Category: 8.5/10

#BookReview The Fury by Alex Michaelides @CeladonBooks #AlexMichaelides #TheFury #CeladonBooks #CeladonReads #partner

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#BookReview The Fury by Alex Michaelides @CeladonBooks #AlexMichaelides #TheFury #CeladonBooks #CeladonReads #partner Title: The Fury

Author: Alex Michaelides

Published by: Celadon Books on Jan. 16, 2024

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 320

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Celadon Books

Book Rating: 8.5/10

A masterfully paced thriller about a reclusive ex–movie star and her famous friends whose spontaneous trip to a private Greek island is upended by a murder ― from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Silent Patient.

This is a tale of murder.

Or maybe that’s not quite true. At its heart, it’s a love story, isn’t it?

Lana Farrar is a reclusive ex–movie star and one of the most famous women in the world. Every year, she invites her closest friends to escape the English weather and spend Easter on her idyllic private Greek island.

I tell you this because you may think you know this story. You probably read about it at the time ― it caused a real stir in the tabloids, if you remember. It had all the necessary ingredients for a press a celebrity; a private island cut off by the wind…and a murder.

We found ourselves trapped there overnight. Our old friendships concealed hatred and a desire for revenge. What followed was a game of cat and mouse ― a battle of wits, full of twists and turns, building to an unforgettable climax. The night ended in violence and death, as one of us was found murdered.

But who am I?

My name is Elliot Chase, and I’m going to tell you a story unlike any you’ve ever heard.

Review:

Gripping, intense, and suspenseful!

The Fury is a menacing, locked-island thriller that sweeps you away to a secluded island in Greece and into the lives of seven people as a furious wind storm leaves six of them stranded, one of them dead, and more than just a few long-buried secrets and skeletons finally coming to light.

The prose is precise and clear. The characters are multilayered, self-absorbed, and secretive. And the plot, told through an unreliable narrator, unfolds and unravels quickly into a foreboding Greek tragedy full of lies, secrets, jealousy, deception, drama, manipulation, desperation, obsession, betrayal, infidelity, violence, and murder.

Overall, The Fury is a dark, taut, unnerving page-turner by Michaelides that did a wonderful job of keeping me mystified, surprised, and guessing from start to finish while at the same time reminding me just how easily people can often be psychologically and emotionally manipulated.

 

This novel is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

        

 

 

Thank you to Celadon Books for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Alex Michaelides

Alex Michaelides was born and raised in Cyprus. He has an M.A. in English Literature from Trinity College, Cambridge University, and an M.A. in Screenwriting from the American Film Institute in Los Angeles. The Silent Patient was his first novel, debuting at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list, and has sold more than 6.5 million copies worldwide. The rights have been sold in a record-breaking 51 countries, and the book has been optioned for film by Plan B. His second novel, The Maidens, was an instant New York Times bestseller and has been optioned for television by Miramax Television and Stone Village.

Photo Credit: Charlotte Knee.

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#BookReview Lose You to Find Me by B. Celeste @Read_Bloom #ReadBloom #LoseYoutoFindMe #AuthorBCeleste #LindonUSeries #BloomBooks

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#BookReview Lose You to Find Me by B. Celeste @Read_Bloom #ReadBloom #LoseYoutoFindMe #AuthorBCeleste #LindonUSeries #BloomBooks Title: Lose You to Find Me

Author: B. Celeste

Series: Lindon U #3

Published by: Bloom Books on Dec. 12, 2023

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 384

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Bloom Books

Book Rating: 8.5/10

After Raine Copelin turns down her long-time boyfriend Caleb Anders’s marriage proposal, the two are barely speaking, barely coping as they enter graduate school at Lindon University. Caleb doesn’t understand what happened—their relationship has been picture-perfect since high school. He always imagined starting a family together, the same happily ever after his parents had. Until the day she broke his heart, he thought Raine wanted that, too.

But Raine has her reasons. Her secrets. She knows she can’t give Caleb the future he wants, so she decides to let him go, no matter the price she has to pay. But when fresh tragedy sends Caleb spiraling back into Raine’s arms, the unanswered questions between them bring old feelings and new wounds to the surface. Fighting grief, lies, and fear, the two must figure out if their love ever truly ended, or if their uncertain futures might still include each other.

Review:

Uplifting, angsty, and sweet!

Lose You to Find Me is an emotive, second-chance romance between the overwhelmed, kind Caleb and the troubled, regretful Raine as they discover that beneath all the hurt, guilt, miscommunication, and past secrets is a deeply rooted friendship, sizzling attraction, and unconditional love that is still smouldering and certainly worth fighting for.

The writing is effortless and smooth. The characters are caring, distressed, and endearing. And the plot is a tender tale of life, love, loss, family, expectations, forgiveness, introspection, acceptance, secrets, friendship, the importance of communication, and new beginnings.

Overall, Lose You to Find Me is the third title in a series that, for me, just keeps getting better and better. It’s a dramatic, romantic, passionate read by Celeste with characters I couldn’t help but root for and a heartwarming ending that left me smitten, satisfied, and ecstatic that there’s still more to come!

 

This novel is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

    

 

Thank you to Bloom Books for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About B. Celeste

B. Celeste is a new adult and contemporary romance author that gives voices to raw, realistic characters with emotional storylines that tug on the heartstrings.

She was born and raised in upstate New York where she still resides with her four-legged feline sidekick, Oliver “Ollie” Queen. Her love for reading and writing began at an early age and only grew stronger after getting a BA in English and an MFA in English & creative writing. When she’s not writing, she’s working out, binge-watching reality game shows, and spending time with her friends and family.

Photo courtesy of Author's Website.

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#BookReview The Italian Daughter by Soraya Lane @GrandCentralPub #TheItalianDaughter #TheLostDaughtersSeries #SorayaLane #GCPInsider

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#BookReview The Italian Daughter by Soraya Lane @GrandCentralPub #TheItalianDaughter #TheLostDaughtersSeries #SorayaLane #GCPInsider Title: The Italian Daughter

Author: Soraya M. Lane

Published by: Grand Central Publishing on Dec. 5, 2023

Genres: Historical Fiction

Pages: 304

Format: Paperback

Source: Grand Central Publishing

Book Rating: 8.5/10

This utterly enchanting and heartbreaking novel tells the story of lost loves, family secrets and enduring hope—perfect for fans of Rebecca Serle, Sophie Kinsella, and Alys Murray.

Italy, 1946. “Estee, I bought this ring years ago and have kept it safe ever since. You’re the only woman I’ve ever loved.” She reached for Felix’s hand and gently closed it over the box. “No,” she whispered. “I want you to propose only when you’re truly free.”

London, present day: Lily clutches a faded piece of paper in her hands, knowing that her life will never be the same again. Whilst grieving for her late father, she is told that her grandmother was born at Hope’s House, a home for unmarried mothers, the only clues to her past contained on a handwritten Italian recipe and an old theatre program.

Desperate for answers, Lily accepts a job on an Italian vineyard in the heart of picturesque Como – a dream her father once shared. Arriving at the palatial home of the Martinelli family, Lily is captivated by the acres of vines that surround her and instantly feels at home. She is also struck by their charming son Antonio and as they chat long into the night over a candlelit dinner, he offers to help Lily discover her family’s heritage.

As Lily unravels the truth of her own legacy, she begins to fall more in love with Italy and with Antonio. And tracing the recipe back to a bakery in a hilltop village, she soon unearths a tragic love story that changes everything…

But when Lily discovers who her grandmother really was, can she too have the courage to follow her heart and leave her old life behind? Or will her family’s heart-wrenching story force her home?

Review:

Captivating, heartwarming, and absorbing!

The Italian Daughter is predominantly set in Italy during the late 1930s, as well as present day, and is told from two different perspectives. Lily, a young woman who journeys to Italy to honour her father and work at a renowned vineyard while also unravelling the secrets surrounding her grandmother’s parentage and conception, and Estee, a beautiful ballerina whose love for the son of a bakery owner promised to another will ultimately change her destiny and life forever.

The prose is eloquent and expressive. The characters are troubled, determined, and endearing. And the plot is a moving tale about life, love, loss, emotion, betrayal, family, friendship, heartbreak, guilt, grief, hope, and regret.

Overall, The Italian Daughter is a rich, alluring, compelling tale by Lane that highlights the enduring passion, loyalty and power of love and is a wonderful choice for anyone who enjoys a dual timeline story with both a sliver of romance and mystique.

 

This book is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

     

 

 

Thank you to Grand Central Publishing for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Soraya M. Lane

Soraya M. Lane graduated with a law degree before realizing that law wasn't the career for her and that her future was in writing. She is the author of historical and contemporary women's fiction, and her novel Wives of War was an Amazon Charts bestseller.

Soraya lives on a small farm in her native New Zealand with her husband, their two young sons and a collection of four legged friends. When she's not writing, she loves to be outside playing make-believe with her children or snuggled up inside reading.

Photo courtesy of Author's Amazon Page.

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#BookReview A Wedding in Driftwood Cove by Olivia Miles @OMilesBooks @FireflyDist @AmazonPub #AWeddinginDriftwoodCove #OliviaMiles #Montlake #FireflyDist

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#BookReview A Wedding in Driftwood Cove by Olivia Miles @OMilesBooks @FireflyDist @AmazonPub #AWeddinginDriftwoodCove #OliviaMiles #Montlake #FireflyDist Title: A Wedding in Driftwood Cove

Author: Olivia Miles

Published by: Montlake Romance on Nov. 21, 2023

Genres: Contemporary Romance, Women's Fiction

Pages: 334

Format: Paperback

Source: Firefly Distributed Lines

Book Rating: 8.5/10

A wedding brings together three sisters—and an undercurrent of secrets threatens to tear them apart in this seaside romance from author Olivia Miles.

With youngest sister Hallie getting married, the three Walsh sisters reunite at their family’s beach house for the big event. It’s a celebratory affair, rife with cherished traditions.

But families are complicated, and these sisters are no exception. Claire, the eldest, no longer believes in love after years working as a divorce attorney, and she resorts to taking her “work husband” as her date to convince her family otherwise. Middle sister, Amy, fears a confrontation with the man who broke her heart by announcing he was marrying someone else. And although Hallie has always lived a charmed life, she’s getting cold feet about marrying her childhood sweetheart.

As the Walsh sisters grapple with the secrets they’ve kept from one another, they must decide if Hallie’s wedding is a chance to mend mistakes of the past…even if it means confronting their feelings about love, life, and one another.

Review:

Heartwarming, alluring, and optimistic!

A Wedding in Driftwood Cove is an amusing, heartfelt tale that immerses you into the lives of the Walsh family, especially three sisters, as they gather to celebrate, interrogate, support, heal, grow, communicate, repair relationships, take chances, and start anew.

The prose is rich and sweet. The characters are genuine, reliable, and compassionate. And the plot, including all the subplots, intertwine and unravel effortlessly into a delightful tale of life, loss, love, family, friendship, self-reflection, determination, independence, happiness, revelations, awkward situations, romantic moments, and the special bonds between sisters.

Overall, A Wedding in Driftwood Cove is an absorbing, uplifting, nostalgic tale by Miles that does a lovely job of highlighting her ability to create relatable characters, idyllic places, and captivating storylines that enchant and engage from start to finish.

 

This novel is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

     

 

 

 

Thank you to Firefly Distributed Lines for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Olivia Miles

Olivia Miles is a USA Today bestselling author of heartwarming women’s fiction and small-town contemporary romance. She has frequently been ranked as an Amazon Top 100 author, and her books have appeared on several bestseller lists, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, BookScan, and USA Today. After growing up in New England and later living in Montreal, Olivia traded salt water for fresh water, and now lives on the shore of Lake Michigan with her family and an adorable pair of dogs.

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#BookReview Restless Dolly Maunder by Kate Grenville @PGCBooks @canongatebooks #RestlessDollyMaunder #KateGrenville #PGCBooks

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#BookReview Restless Dolly Maunder by Kate Grenville @PGCBooks @canongatebooks #RestlessDollyMaunder #KateGrenville #PGCBooks Title: Restless Dolly Maunder

Author: Kate Grenville

Published by: Canongate Books Ltd on Nov. 2, 2023

Genres: Historical Fiction

Pages: 256

Format: Hardcover

Source: Publishers Group Canada

Book Rating: 8.5/10

The international bestselling author of The Secret River and A Room Made of Leaves returns with a fictionalised account of her grandmother’s life, commemorating a strong female character making the best out of the times and society she was born in.

Dolly Maunder is born at the end of the nineteenth century, when society’s long-locked doors are just starting to creak ajar for determined women. Growing up in a poor farming family in rural New South Wales, Dolly spends her life doggedly pushing at those doors. A husband and two children do not deter her from searching for love and independence.

Restless Dolly Maunder is a subversive, triumphant tale of a pioneering woman working her way through a world of limits and obstacles, who is able – despite the cost – to make a life she could call her own.

Review:

Nostalgic, sensitive, and intriguing!

Restless Dolly Maunder is an absorbing, fictional biography that sweeps you away to New South Wales during the late 1800s and into the life of the author’s maternal grandmother, Dolly Maunder, a woman who, after always craving something more than the simple farm life she only ever knew, successfully acquires business after business, from shops to boardinghouses to pubs, while at the same time creating a distance between herself and her children who were often left feeling disappointed, neglected and unloved. 

The prose is insightful and authentic. The characters are strong, intelligent, and enterprising. And the plot is a tender tale of life, loss, love, family, sacrifice, determination, history, tragedy, selfishness, and ambition.

Overall, Restless Dolly Maunder is a heartfelt, illuminating, personal family tale by Grenville that reminds us that families are complicated and messy and the choices we make often have far-reaching consequences.

 

This book is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

          

 

 

Thank you to PGC Books for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Kate Grenville

Kate Grenville's bestselling novel The Secret River received the Commonwealth Writers' Prize, and was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize and the Miles Franklin Literary Award. The Idea of Perfection won the Orange Prize. Grenville's other novels include Sarah Thornhill, The Lieutenant, Lilian's Story, Dark Places, Joan Makes History and A Room Made of
Leaves.

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#BookReview The Other Mothers by Katherine Faulkner @k_faulkner @SimonSchusterCA #TheOtherMothers #KatherineFaulkner #SimonSchusterCA

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#BookReview The Other Mothers by Katherine Faulkner @k_faulkner @SimonSchusterCA #TheOtherMothers #KatherineFaulkner #SimonSchusterCA Title: The Other Mothers

Author: Katherine Faulkner

Published by: Gallery Books on Dec. 5, 2023

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 384

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Simon & Schuster Canada

Book Rating: 8.5/10

The author of the “twisty, fast-paced” (The Sunday Times, London) Greenwich Park returns with a fresh and deftly paced thriller about murder, class, and motherhood in an exclusive London community.

When a young nanny is found dead in mysterious circumstances, new mom, Tash, is intrigued. She has been searching for a story to launch her career as a freelance journalist. But she has also been searching for something else—new friends to help her navigate motherhood.

She sees them at her son’s new playgroup. The other mothers. A group of sleek, sophisticated women who live in a neighborhood of tree-lined avenues and stunning houses. The sort of mothers Tash herself would like to be. When the mothers welcome her into their circle, Tash discovers the kind of life she has always dreamt of—their elegant London townhouses a far cry from her cramped basement flat and endless bills. She is quickly swept up into their wealthy world via coffees, cocktails, and playdates.

But when another young woman is found dead, it’s clear there’s much more to the community than meets the eye. The more Tash investigates, the more she’s led uncomfortably close to the other mothers. Are these women really her friends? Or is there another, more dangerous reason why she has been so quickly accepted into their exclusive world? Who, exactly, is investigating who?

Review:

Fast-paced, twisty, and captivating!

The Other Mothers is a brisk, suspenseful thriller that introduces us to Tash, a wife, mother and journalist who, after learning of the death of a local nanny, decides to investigate the case by befriending the mothers she’s always envied in the hopes of discovering what really happened, and Sophie, a young woman who gets in over her head when she gets a little too close to the members of the family she’s working for and discovers secrets that they’re willing to do anything to protect.

The prose is sharp and crisp. The characters are manipulative, cunning, and vulnerable. And the plot, told through alternating perspectives, is a tortuously menacing tale full of danger, deception, adultery, jealousy, manipulation, friendship, motherhood, class division, secrets, mayhem, and murder.

Overall, The Other Mothers is a cleverly plotted, unnerving, intricate page-turner by Faulkner that is surprisingly the first novel I’ve read by this author, but which will undoubtedly not be my last.

 

This book is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

        

 

 

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Katherine Faulkner

Katherine Faulkner, an award-winning journalist, studied history at Cambridge. She has worked as an investigative reporter and an editor and was formerly the joint Head of News at The Times (London). She lives in London, where she grew up, with her husband and two daughters. She is the author of The Other Mothers and Greenwich Park.

Photo by Katherine Faulkner.

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#BookReview The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose @NitaProse @PenguinCanada #TheMysteryGuest #NitaProse #PenguinReads #PenguinCanada

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#BookReview The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose @NitaProse @PenguinCanada #TheMysteryGuest #NitaProse #PenguinReads #PenguinCanada Title: The Mystery Guest

Author: Nita Prose

Series: Molly the Maid #2

Published by: Viking on Nov. 28, 2023

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 304

Format: Paperback

Source: Penguin Random House Canada

Book Rating: 8.5/10

When an acclaimed author dies at the Regency Grand Hotel, it’s up to a fastidious maid to uncover the truth, no matter how dirty—in a standalone novel featuring Molly Gray, from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Maid, a Good Morning America Book Club Pick.

Molly Gray is not like anyone else. With her flair for cleaning and proper etiquette, she has risen through the ranks of the glorious five-star Regency Grand Hotel to become the esteemed Head Maid. But just as her life reaches a pinnacle state of perfection, her world is turned upside down when J.D. Grimthorpe, the world-renowned mystery author, drops dead—very dead—on the hotel’s tea room floor.

When Detective Stark, Molly’s old foe, investigates the author’s unexpected demise, it becomes clear that this death was murder most foul. Suspects abound, and everyone wants to who killed J.D. Grimthorpe? Was it Lily, the new Maid-in-Training? Or was it Serena, the author’s secretary? Could Mr. Preston, the hotel’s beloved doorman, be hiding something? And is Molly really as innocent as she seems?

As the case threatens the hotel’s pristine reputation, Molly knows she alone holds the key to unlocking the killer’s identity. But that key is buried deep in her past—because long ago, she knew J.D. Grimthorpe. Molly begins to comb her memory for clues, revisiting her childhood and the mysterious Grimthorpe mansion where she and her dearly departed Gran once worked side by side. With the entire hotel under investigation, Molly must solve the mystery post-haste. If there’s one thing Molly knows for sure, it’s that dirty secrets don’t stay buried forever…

Review:

Lighthearted, quirky, and mysterious!

In this latest novel in the Molly the Maid series, The Mystery Guest, we head back to the prestigious Regency Hotel and into the life of maid extraordinaire Molly Gray as she once again finds herself unexpectedly tied up in a murder investigation when the famed author J.D. Granthorpe collapses dead in the Grand Tearoom while making a surprising announcement, and it quickly comes to light he had ties to her past.

The writing is smooth and fluid. The characters are playful, unique, and clever. And the plot is a well-paced, suspenseful tale full of misdirection, deduction, clues, secrets, mishaps, friendship, nostalgia, neurodivergence, amateur sleuthing, and red herrings.

Overall, The Mystery Guest is another captivating, amusing, enjoyable treat by Prose that had just the right amount of suspicious personalities, appealing characters, and abundance of drama to not only keep me engaged and entertained from start to finish but excited to read whatever escapades Molly manages to get mixed up in next.

 

This novel is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

             

 

 

 

Thank you to Penguin Canada for providing me with a copy of this story in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Nita Prose

NITA PROSE is a longtime editor, serving many bestselling authors and their books. She lives in Toronto, Canada, in a house that is only moderately clean.…

Photo by Dahlia Katz Photography.

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#BookReview The Jazz Club Spy by Roberta Rich @SimonSchusterCA #RobertaRich #TheJazzClubSpy #SimonSchusterCA

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#BookReview The Jazz Club Spy by Roberta Rich @SimonSchusterCA #RobertaRich #TheJazzClubSpy #SimonSchusterCA Title: The Jazz Club Spy

Author: Roberta Rich

Published by: Simon & Schuster Canada on Nov. 21, 2023

Genres: Historical Fiction

Pages: 304

Format: Paperback

Source: Simon & Schuster Canada

Book Rating: 8.5/10

A riveting historical thriller about a Jewish cigarette girl in 1930s New York who finds the soldier who burned down her Russian village years earlier only to be swept up in a political conspiracy on the eve of World War II—from the #1 bestselling author of The Midwife of Venice .

New York, 1939

Giddy Brodsky knows she’s lucky to have a job as a cigarette girl at a Manhattan jazz club, but she dreams of opening her own beauty shop and lifting her family out of poverty. The Brodskys have lived cheek to jowl in the Lower East Side tenements since they came to America nineteen years ago, fleeing a deadly pogrom in their Russian village. But they continue to face prejudice, especially with the rise of the fascist organization the American Bund.

Yet Giddy is focused on the future—until she recognizes one of the Cossacks who irrevocably changed her life and the past comes flooding back. Determined to get justice, she enlists the help of Carter van der Zalm, a regular at the jazz club who also happens to be the director with the Department of Immigration at Ellis Island. When Carter discloses that the Cossack is an “undesirable” and may be of interest to the government, Giddy agrees to moonlight as a spy for him.

Not everyone is who they appear to be, and after a shocking betrayal, Giddy finds herself embroiled in a political conspiracy that could bring America into the war in Europe.

From the gritty tenements to the glittering jazz clubs of 1930s New York, The Jazz Club Spy is a thrilling historical novel about a brash young woman who must use all her wits to save the ones she loves.

Review:

Compelling, vivid, and absorbing!

The Jazz Club Spy is a rich, engaging tale set in NYC during 1939 that takes you into the life of Giddy Brodsky, a young woman who, after immigrating to America with her family after surviving a pogrom in her Russian village, finds herself dreaming of opening a cosmetics store, working as a cigarette girl at a jazz club, and suddenly moonlighting as a spy when she accidentally bumps into the cossack who brutalized her family, and she gets mixed up with the Commissioner of Immigration at Ellis Island whom she goes to for help.

The prose is evocative and expressive. The characters are independent, spirited, and brave. And the plot is a mysterious tale of life, loss, love, self-discovery, war, politics, secrets, friendship, determination, poverty, family, betrayal, and espionage.

Overall, I found The Jazz Club Spy to be an intriguing, absorbing, atmospheric tale by Rich that did a lovely job of blending historical events, intense emotion, and thought-provoking suspense.

 

This novel is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

        

 

 

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Roberta Rich

Roberta Rich is the #1 bestselling author of The Midwife of Venice, which was published in thirteen countries, The Harem Midwife, and A Trial in Venice. She divides her time between Vancouver, British Columbia, and Colima, Mexico.

Photograph by Guy Immega.

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#BookReview Consider Me by Becka Mack @SimonSchusterCA #ConsiderMe #BeckaMack #PlayingforKeepsSeries #SimonSchusterCA

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#BookReview Consider Me by Becka Mack @SimonSchusterCA #ConsiderMe #BeckaMack #PlayingforKeepsSeries #SimonSchusterCA Title: Consider Me

Author: Becka Mack

Series: Playing for Keeps #1

Published by: Simon & Schuster Canada on Nov. 21, 2023

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 544

Format: Paperback

Source: Simon & Schuster Canada

Book Rating: 8.5/10

In the sizzling hockey romance that has taken TikTok by storm, the ultimate player turns romantic to charm the woman he is desperate to win over.

The first book in the globally popular Playing for Keeps series.

For a shot at love, he’ll do whatever it takes…

Carter Beckett is the NHL’s best player—both on and off the ice. His career is at its peak, his friends are performing better than ever, and there’s no shortage of women to spend the night with. What more could he want?

Olivia Parker isn’t new to professional hockey players, thanks to her best friend’s boyfriend, but she has no interest in dating one herself—no matter how hot he is. And anyway, she loves working as a teacher and hanging out with her best friend, drama-free. Why would she want to spend her time stroking the ego of an arrogant athlete?

But once Carter meets Olivia, he can’t think of anything else. Too bad for him, Olivia is hellbent on keeping him at arm’s length, with no intention of giving into his charms. Perhaps it’s time for Carter to up his game…after all, nobody said he had to play fair.

Sparks will fly as Carter does whatever it takes for Olivia to consider him.

Review:

Sassy, tender, and romantic!

Consider Me is a passionate, lighthearted tale about the fun-loving, feisty Olivia, who is not a one-night kind of a gal even when it comes to a hunky athlete and the hard-bodied, delicious Carter, who is more than happy being a bachelor and is confident that casual hookups are all he’ll ever need.

The writing is smooth and sweet. The characters are charismatic, hesitant, and endearing. And the plot is a playful, spicy tale filled with friendship, family, insecurity, temptation, desire, palpable chemistry, sizzling attraction, tender moments, sexy times, light drama, and hockey.

Overall, I found Consider Me to be a charming, steamy, entertaining start to this new Playing for Keeps series by Mack that I am positive will be a big hit with fans of the sports romance genre and lovers of contemporary romance that has a nice amount of heart and heat.

 

This novel is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

             

 

 

 

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Becka Mack

Becka Mack is an avid romance reader, writer, and kindergarten teacher. Becka enjoys writing swoon-worthy romances with lovable and relatable characters, loads of humor, and a healthy dose of drama on the way to a happily ever after. She lives with her husband, children, and four-legged babies in Ontario, Canada.

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#BookReview My Darling Girl by Jennifer McMahon @ScoutPressBooks @SimonSchusterCA #MyDarlingGirl #JenniferMcMahon #SimonSchusterCA

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#BookReview My Darling Girl by Jennifer McMahon @ScoutPressBooks @SimonSchusterCA #MyDarlingGirl #JenniferMcMahon #SimonSchusterCA Title: My Darling Girl

Author: Jennifer McMahon

Published by: Scout Press on Oct. 3, 2023

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 320

Format: Hardcover

Source: Simon & Schuster Canada

Book Rating: 8.5/10

A spine-tingling psychological thriller about a woman who, after taking in her dying, alcoholic mother, begins to suspect demonic possession is haunting her family.

Alison has never been a fan of Christmas. But with it right around the corner and her husband busily decorating their cozy Vermont home, she has no choice but to face it. Then she gets the call.

Mavis, Alison’s estranged mother, has been diagnosed with cancer and has only weeks to live. She wants to spend her remaining days with her daughter, son-in-law, and two granddaughters. But Alison grew up with her mother’s alcoholism and violent abuse and is reluctant to unearth these traumatic memories. Still, she eventually agrees to take in Mavis, hoping that she and her mother could finally heal and have the relationship she’s always dreamed of.

But when mysterious and otherworldly things start happening upon Mavis’s arrival, Alison begins to suspect her mother is not quite who she seems. And as the holiday festivities turn into a nightmare, she must confront just how far she is willing to go to protect her family.

Review:

Atmospheric, menacing, and dark!

My Darling Girl is an eerie, gripping, multi-generational story that transports you to Vermont and into the life of Alison O’Connor, who after surviving a traumatic childhood littered with unpredictability and abuse, is wary of having her terminally ill mother come home to die but is determined to do whatever it takes to protect those she loves from the charming yet pure evil that seems to be lingering nearby while she’s living under their roof.

The prose is tight and intense. The characters are multilayered, vulnerable, and troubled. And the plot, told in a back-and-forth style, is an unsettling tale of life, loss, tragedy, desperation, familial drama, secrets, tortured souls, supernatural phenomena, and the complex relationships that exist between mothers and daughters.

Overall, My Darling Girl is a haunting, ominous, chilling tale that kept me engaged and intrigued from start to finish and is undoubtedly once again another unique, creative, frightening tale by McMahon.

 

This novel is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

         

 

 

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Jennifer McMahon

Jennifer McMahon is the author of nine novels, including the New York Times bestsellers Promise Not to Tell and The Winter People. She lives in Vermont with her partner, Drea, and their daughter, Zella.

Photograph by Zella McMahon.

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