Happy Friday, ya’ll! Once, my good friend, Felicia, brought me homemade mac-n-cheese, just because, and it made my heart and belly full. Have you ever received a good surprise when you really, really needed one like angels giving you back-pats or God-winks or the universe giving you a cosmic hug? That was me this week—some best ever things became my mac-n-cheese at just the right time.
Like Lena says, “Good things happen, even in the worst times—maybe especially then because that’s when we appreciate them the most.” – One Thing Better
So, here are my best ever things this week. Maybe they’ll give you a boost like Patrick Swayze does to Jennifer Grey in that final dance scene in Dirty Dancing. 💃🏻
🫏 This donkey made the best out of a bad situation when he got lost five years ago. When Diesel couldn’t find his family, he found a new one in a wild elk herd, where he’s surviving and thriving. Happy news to his original family, who searched high and low for him. That should be a Disney movie one day–the found family trope IRL.
⁉️A new virtual bestie, Ruthie, offered a solid book rec & a name to use in my next book, thanks to the questions posed in my last newsletter. I’m always looking for unique, interesting character names that aren’t overdone. Ruthie gave me a great name (which I’m keeping under wraps for now), AND she started a creative avalanche. This new character has developed so distinctly in my head 👰🏻♀️ (I’ve been seeing her and talking to her ever since) that I think she’ll be the MC of my next, next book. Yay! I’ve already worked out her cameo in Every Good Thing, too. 👏🏻
📖 Ruthie also recommended Unsteady by Peyton Corinne from my last thrift store book haul. I finished it this week and LOVED it! It’s like The Cutting Edge (love on the ice) meets One Thing Better (anxiety issues, PTSD, down-n-out situations) plus more 🌶️. Highly recommend!
🤯 Oh, and speaking of amazing thrift store book finds… I managed to score this at Goodwill!
Just released on May 7th, I nearly DFOed finding this book on the shelves at Goodwill. That means I must read it! Joe and I enjoyed Ever Summer After, so I can’t wait to see where Carley Fortune takes me with this one. If you’ve read it, let me know what you think.
P.S. I tried hard not to look like a bookish psycho in this pic, but eh, didn’t nail it. And, I might have a book-hoarding problem.
🏖️ Oh, and it’s the first day of summer, so I really hope this summer will be different with many best-evers for all of us! Hope you have many perfect beach days soon!
🥹 My TikTok notifications spiked the other night when Yes No Maybe received one of its BEST EVER reviews from Jenny Reads a Lot. Like seriously, I cried over how much she cried (17+times)—mutual sob fests. Watch this… and this! We chatted, and I gained another new virtual bestie as we connected over Rowan, Jack, Wilmington, and eesh—I’m tearing up again. So, I owe Jenny big thanks for her amazing words and her TikTok campaign to “score the big book deal she deserves like yesterday.” 🫶🏻 🙏🏻 Follow her!
💚 Freshfictionreview.com also shared some Yes No Maybe love this week in an incredible review. Miranda called it, “whimsical and well-executed rom-com elements balanced with the murkier aspects of the human psyche.” Read, share, and subscribe for more book recs. Thanks, Miranda!
☔️ One Thing Better is on sale for $.99 this week across platforms (but it’s free for subscribers)! We’re hoping to boost excitement for its sequel, Every Good Thing. I’m 77,000 words into Lena and Ben’s new story, and it feels like… 🥹 ❤️🩹🐎🌪️🦻🏻🧁💔😩. That’s a lot of emojis, but a lot is going on. It’s been tough, writing-wise, especially this week, but I’ll get to the better-ever-after soon.
🍾 Here’s a better-ever-after for you. Today marks my… maths, maths… 27th wedding anniversary! Whoop, whoop! You know you’ve been married a LONG time when you have to break out the calculator (I seriously did). Another funny side note–I’ll probably spend more time with Ben Wright than my IRL husband Joe today (He’s the MC in One Thing Better & Every Good Thing.) Good thing he’s not the jealous type. Anyway, best ever marriage to the best ever guy—thanks for hanging in there, honey.
👩🏻❤️👨🏼 How does a romance writer celebrate her anniversary? 🧐 Sorry, babes, I save all my big romantic gestures for my books. 😬 JK. It’s a transition week here in the Sherry household, so we’re postponing our celebration until we have adequate mental space. Our daughter is moving into her new apartment and taking our grand-cat Jimothy with her. 😩
😢 Other sad news this week, we said goodbye to our sweet dog, Brownie. She was a refugee from Afghanistan, a lover of Coldplay (Paradise was her favorite song to howl to), and a protective, loyal companion for… maths… sixteen years. We miss her, and our hearts break without her.
“Grief is the price we pay for love.” – Queen Elizabeth II
So, love on, I say.
Comment below with a plan to make one thing better for someone this week (it doesn’t have to be with homemade mac-n-cheese) OR your best ever thing. Oh, I’ll also take anniversary ideas and more book recs (books are always a good idea).
Wishing you all a happy summer, happy reading, and many mac-n-cheese comforts!
Bookishly Yours,
Jessica
