The Sweet and Sassy Book Critic

Honest reviews of NYT’s bestsellers.
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    • Never Enough: The Neuroscience and Experience of Addiction
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    • The Silent Patient
    • Women Rowing North: Navigating Life’s Currents and Flourishing as We Age
    • Educated: A Memoir
    • I’ll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer
    • Madame Fourcade’s Secret War
    • An Anonymous Girl
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    • My Review of An Anonymous Girl is Posted!

      Posted at 2:01 pm by thesweetandsassybookcritic, on June 10, 2019

      My review of An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen is live on my blog! You can find it here. Unfortunately, it is not one that I recommend. It was really difficult to get through and I felt disappointed and upset that it took up hours of my life that I will never be able to get back. It was overly simplistic, predictable, and dull. A terrible let down!

      A quick side note, I wanted to take a minute and apologize to my loyal followers for my lack of activity lately. My life turned into a brief whirlwind and the recovery from my wisdom teeth surgery took longer than expected— also this book took me a bit to finish!!

      With that said, the program I am in— MFA in Creative Nonfiction— is gearing up so it is likely that I will not be able to be as active on here as I would like. However, I do plan to keep my social media pages— instagram, and twitter (links to the right) updated regularly with quotes from my favorite books and authors so if you aren’t following me there then please do so! I will continue to read and review books here, just not as frequently as before. However, if there is a book you’d like me to review please let me know and I will try to make time for it right away. Otherwise I will be back here popping in and out to update you with reviews as I read! Until the next one…

      hugs,

      danielle

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      | 4 Comments Tagged bestsellers, Bookaddict, Bookblog, Bookblogger, Booknerd, Bookreview, Books, Bookworm, fiction, Psychological Thriller
    • Review of Madame Fourcade’s Secret War by Lynne Olson is live!

      Posted at 8:42 pm by thesweetandsassybookcritic, on May 1, 2019

      My latest review of Madame Fourcade’s Secret War: The Daring Young Woman Who Led France’s Largest Spy Network Against Hitler by Lynne Olson is up, you can find it here. The book is a riveting true story about a young mother who rose up and became the leader of a secret organization dedicated to taking down Hitler. If you are a history buff, or into reading stories about strong women then definitely check this one out!

      Next up for review is the psychological thriller An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen. I have heard good things about it and it will be a nice change to read something less educational for a minute so I’m looking forward to reading it! I will be posting the review in two weeks. I have to get my wisdom teeth out (ouch!), and I have some important things going on with grad school which will put a cramp in my ability to read/review next week. Look for this review a few days after Mother’s Day, the week of May 13th. If you love fictional thrillers then grab a copy of this and read along with me! Happy reading…

      hugs,

      danielle

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      | 0 Comments Tagged bestsellers, biography, Bookaddict, Bookblog, Bookblogger, Booknerd, Bookreview, Books, Bookworm, history, Nonfiction
    • My Review of I’ll Be Gone in the Dark is Live!

      Posted at 2:29 pm by thesweetandsassybookcritic, on April 23, 2019

      My review of I’ll be Gone in the Dark: One Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer by Michelle McNamara is posted! You can find it here. This was an interesting one to read and review… I can’t wait to hear what you think! Be sure to leave me a comment! The next book I will be reviewing is Madame Fourcade’s Secret War: The Daring Young Woman Who Led France’s Largest Spy Network Against Hitler by Lynne Olson. Grab the book and read along with me! I plan to post my review next week! Happy reading…

      hugs,

      danielle

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      | 0 Comments Tagged bestsellers, Bookaddict, Bookblog, Bookblogger, Booknerd, Bookreview, Books, Bookworm
    • My Review of Educated is Live!

      Posted at 7:47 pm by thesweetandsassybookcritic, on April 14, 2019

      I am thrilled to share that my review of Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover is up on my blog! You can find it here. This book is lengthy! It took me a bit longer to get through than I was expecting, and not because of my interest level, but because of how long it is! It is so good though…it was worth every minute I spent reading it. This book will stick with me for a long time— I can definitely imagine it being made into a movie, and I will cross my fingers for that to come true. I feel as if I can already imagine how it would look on film— with the descriptions Westover uses I keep playing out the scenes over and over in my head— I can see everything with such vivid detail. If you haven’t read it yet, check out my review, and then be sure to grab a copy! Up next for review is… I’ll be Gone in The Dark: One’s Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer by Michelle McNamara. I will be posting my review of it next week! Until then, happy reading…

      hugs,

      danielle

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      | 2 Comments Tagged bestsellers, Bookaddict, Bookblog, Bookblogger, Booknerd, Bookreview, Books, Bookworm, Nonfiction
    • The Winning Book Is…

      Posted at 2:09 pm by thesweetandsassybookcritic, on April 6, 2019

      Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover! Thank you to everyone who participated by submitting a vote. I used a combined tally from social media platforms and my blog, and every book received votes so I plan to review them in the order they ranked. The book that came in second is, I’ll be Gone in The Dark: One’s Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer by Michelle McNamara. The other two books tied for third! I will read them in the order they were listed— Madame Fourcade’s Secret War: The Daring Young Woman Who Led France’s Largest Spy Network Against Hitler by Lynne Olson, followed by An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen. I will review each book in that order over the next four weeks. Please read along with me! I will post my review of Educated next week! Happy reading all…

      hugs,

      danielle

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      | 0 Comments Tagged bestsellers, Bookaddict, Bookblog, Bookblogger, Booknerd, Bookreview, Books, Bookworm, Nonfiction, Reading
    • Review is Up!

      Posted at 11:08 pm by thesweetandsassybookcritic, on April 4, 2019

      I just posted my review of Women Rowing North: Navigating Life’s Currents and Flourishing as We Age by Mary Pipher, you can find it here. Please let me know what you think about the review in the comments section! As for the next book I’ll review, there is a poll below that closes in about an hour! Please vote on it if you haven’t already. I’m running two polls, one here and one on twitter, so please get your vote in before it’s too late! It looks like Educated is currently in the lead— which I’m super excited about, it looks so good! I’ll post the winning book tomorrow! Until then, happy reading friends…

      hugs,

      danielle

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      | 0 Comments Tagged bestsellers, Bookaddict, Bookblog, Bookblogger, Booknerd, Bookreview, Books, Bookworm, Nonfiction, Reading
    • It’s Time to Vote for the Next Book I Review!

      Posted at 7:14 pm by thesweetandsassybookcritic, on April 3, 2019

      Hi guys! I finished reading Women Rowing North: Navigating Life’s Currents and Flourishing as We Age by Mary Pipher, and I will be posting my review tonight or tomorrow, I’m traveling today so it depends on how the travel day goes. In the meantime— I’d like to give everyone an opportunity to help me decide which book I review next! It went really great last time and every book received votes, so if that happens again I’ll review each book in the order it places. Also, I’ll be posting a similar poll on Twitter and Instagram so I’ll go with a combined tally of votes from all three platforms. If you’re not following me on Twitter or Instagram, please do so, so you can vote there too! You can follow me by clicking the icons on the right side of this page. I will give everyone until Thursday at midnight to vote before I announce the winning book on Friday! The books in the running are shown on the lower right side of this page under the Goodreads widget, but I will list them below as well—along with a little description. You can vote at the bottom of this post! Please let me know which one you’re most excited to read or read a review on. I can’t wait to see which book wins!!

      hugs, danielle

      Books in the running!

      Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover—- release date: February 20, 2018. Usually I prefer to review books released in the same year, but somehow I missed this one, and I have heard such great things about it. So, I’m making an exception. Time spent on the NYT’s bestseller list? 57 weeks! It hit the list in early March of 2018. What is it about? This book is a memoir about Tara’s life growing up in rural Idaho with survivalist parents, and her siblings– one who became abusive. She didn’t set foot in a classroom until the age of 17. It’s a story about overcoming seemingly impossible setbacks. If you would like me to read this one next vote for it below!

      Madame Fourcade’s Secret War: The Daring Young Woman Who Led France’s Largest Spy Network Against Hitler by Lynne Olson—release date: March 5, 2019. Time spent on the NYT’s bestseller list? Two weeks. It hit the list towards the end of March 2019. What is it about? It’s a biography of a young mother of two in her 30’s who became a leader of a French spy network against Hitler. Let me know if you’d like me to review it next by voting below!

      I’ll Be Gone In The Dark: One Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer by Michelle McNamara, introduction by Gillian Flynn, and afterword by Patton Oswalt— release date: February 27, 2018. Time spent on the NYT’s bestseller list? It spent 15 weeks on the list, and reached the #1 spot! I’m making an exception for this book as well, even though it was released in 2018. It just looks too good! What is it about? Michelle McNamara was a crime journalist who became obsessed with discovering the identity of a violent killer, coined the Golden State Killer. The book is an account of her discoveries before her sudden death. Which apparently has revealed a substantial amount of relevant information! If this kind of scary true crime story peaks your interest— vote for it below!

      An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen — release date: January 8, 2019. Time spent on the NYT Bestseller list? Eleven weeks! It hit the list in late January of 2019. What is it about? This book is a fictional thriller. The main character agrees to be a test subject in a psychological study. It’s claimed to be suspenseful and creepy with a twist at the end. If you’re into this kind of thing vote for me to read it next below!

      Which book should I review next?
      Vote
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      | 3 Comments Tagged Bookaddict, Bookblog, Bookblogger, Booknerd, Bookreview, Books, Bookworm, Reading
    • Review of The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides is up!

      Posted at 10:40 pm by thesweetandsassybookcritic, on March 30, 2019

      Hi everyone! I just posted my review of The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides— you can find it here. This is one of those books that is a great option for book clubs, so if you are in a book club or have a friend who is in one then I highly recommend it for that purpose. I was on the edge of my seat throughout the book and the worst part was after I finished it I didn’t have anyone to talk about it with!! I ended up spilling the whole story to my husband just so we could discuss it together! He was such a good sport about it!! And even without reading it he had so many questions and so much to discuss. There are countless ways to pick apart and analyze the story and the characters. Check out my review, and let me know what you think. Also, if you haven’t read this one, then please do, and come back here to discuss it!

      Up next for review is Women Rowing North: Navigating Life’s Currents and Flourishing as we Age by Mary Pipher. If you plan to read along with me, grab a copy and we can start together. I just started today! I will be posting my review of it next week. Happy reading…

      hugs,

      danielle

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      | 0 Comments Tagged bestsellers, Bookaddict, Bookblog, Bookblogger, Booknerd, Bookreview, Books, Bookworm, Reading
    • Update!

      Posted at 7:02 pm by thesweetandsassybookcritic, on March 27, 2019

      Hi guys! I just wanted to give everyone a little update! I usually post reviews mid week, but this week I am switching it up a little because I am currently on a ski vacation with my family. I thought perhaps I would have a chance to write the review while away, however, it is not working out that way. Our days have been consumed with skiing, skiing, and more skiing— a little bit of eating, sleeping and a lot of trying to keep our four exhausted children out of the crabby zone– they’re so tired!! But, it’s tired for a good reason, so we will take it! They have been having so much fun! The great news is we officially have all of our children on skis, even our five year old, and they have been tackling black diamonds and begging to do double black diamonds. So– the trip, so far, is a success. Win!

      With regard to my next review of The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides– I plan to post it sometime this weekend. Either late Friday evening or midday Saturday. I just finished the book today, and can’t wait to share my reaction with you.

      Also, don’t forget the next book up for review is Women Rowing North by Mary Pipher. I will post that review as usual next week, likely on Wednesday. I will also get another poll going for the next series of reviews. I have one in particular that I’m just dying to read– Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover– I’ve heard it’s amazing, so I’m secretly hoping that one comes in first place. I cannot wait to read it!

      In the interim, I hope everyone enjoys the rest of the week, and I will be back this weekend to post my review! Until then, happy reading all…

      hugs,

      danielle

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      | 0 Comments Tagged Bookaddict, Bookblog, Bookblogger, Booknerd, Bookreview, Books, Bookworm, Nonfiction, Reading
    • Exciting News!!

      Posted at 3:04 pm by thesweetandsassybookcritic, on March 23, 2019

      Guys, the best thing happened to me yesterday! I am giddy as can be about it. Honestly it made me week, my month, or maybe even my year. But first, before I get to that I wanted to check in with everyone to see how you’re liking The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides. I don’t typically read this genre but I must say I am loving it. It’s creepy in all the right ways, and suspenseful— I think there must be a big plot twist coming and I can’t wait to read what it is. If you aren’t reading this one along with me, please pick up a copy and we can finish it together. I plan to review it next week. I can’t wait to discuss this one!

      Ok, back to my news!! So, remember when I reviewed Never Enough: The Neuroscience and Experience of Addiction by Judith Grisel? If you didn’t catch that one, you can find my review here. Anyway, I loved it. I gave the book a great review, and was so inspired by what I learned that I googled the author, Judith Grisel, and stalked her out to see if I could find a way to contact her directly. I was very pleased that I was able to find her email address through Bucknell University where she is a Professor of Psychology. I sent her an email thanking her for writing the book, explaining why it meant so much to me, and elaborated on why it hit so close to home for me with the passing of my father. I also told her about the book I’m currently working on. Well, I figured that my email would go into some bottomless pile of emails from fans and that I would never hear back from her. I didn’t write it to necessarily hear back. I just imagined what it would feel like to receive feedback from someone if I had a published book out in the world, and from someone who was really impacted by it. I imagine that would feel validating– that is what prompted me to actually go through with sending it. Now, guys, Judith Grisel is extremely famous. She has speaking engagements all over the world, and is a bestselling author. I can’t even begin to imagine how busy this woman is! So, much to my surprise and delight— I received an email from her yesterday!! An email! From Judith Grisel herself! I was so excited, I think I screamed, and I definitely had a smile plastered across my face for the rest of the day. She thanked me for reaching out and expressed condolences for the loss of my father. Her response and the fact that she took time out of her busy life and day to respond to me warmed my heart. It also made me think that if I can get a response from a famous neuroscientist bestselling author then what other dreams are within my reach?! Go for your dreams, guys!!

      hugs,

      danielle

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      | 14 Comments Tagged bestsellers, Bookaddict, Bookblog, Bookblogger, Booknerd, Bookreview, Books, Bookworm, Nonfiction, Reading
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    • Hi, I’m Danielle!

      I'm a writer, grad student, wife, and mom to four. Here you will find reviews of NYT's best sellers--- specifically nonfiction, self help, biographical fiction, and the occasional psychological thriller. So, grab a cup of coffee, or a glass of wine and let's chat.

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      • My Review of An Anonymous Girl is Posted!
      • Review of Madame Fourcade’s Secret War by Lynne Olson is live!
      • My Review of I’ll Be Gone in the Dark is Live!
      • My Review of Educated is Live!
      • The Winning Book Is…
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