#BookReview Not in Love by Ali Hazelwood @PenguinRandomCA @BerkleyPub #NotInLove #AliHazelwood #PenguinReads

categories: 9/10, Book Review, Contemporary Romance
#BookReview Not in Love by Ali Hazelwood @PenguinRandomCA @BerkleyPub #NotInLove #AliHazelwood #PenguinReads Title: Not in Love

Author: Ali Hazelwood

Published by: Berkley on Jun. 11, 2024

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 384

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Penguin Random House

Book Rating: 9/10

A forbidden, secret affair proves that all’s fair in love and science—from New York Times bestselling author Ali Hazelwood.

Rue Siebert might not have it all, but she has enough: a few friends she can always count on, the financial stability she yearned for as a kid, and a successful career as a biotech engineer at Kline, one of the most promising start-ups in the field of food science. Her world is stable, pleasant, and hard-fought. Until a hostile takeover and its offensively attractive front man threatens to bring it all crumbling down.

Review:

Stirring, engaging, and sweetly romantic!

Not in Love is a heartwarming, amusing, enemies-to-lovers romance that transports you into the lives of Rue Siebert, an intelligent biotech engineer who is more than happy being single until one casual hookup sees her almost falling into bed with a man she could possibly see a future with but who happens to be the enemy, and Eli Kilgore, a successful businessman who has been driven his whole adult life by the thought of retribution until a no-strings affair with a woman he just met has him questioning it all.

The writing is heartfelt and light. The characters are hardworking, passionate, and loyal. And the plot is a push-pull tale full of workplace drama, tender moments, witty banter, expectations, friendship, undeniable chemistry, and love.

Overall, Not in Love is a provocative, spirited, entertaining read by Hazelwood with characters I couldn’t help but root for and a happy-ever-after ending that left me smiling, smitten, and extremely satisfied.

 

This novel is available now.

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

         

 

 

Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Ali Hazelwood

Ali Hazelwood is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Love, Theoretically and The Love Hypothesis, as well as a writer of peer-reviewed articles about brain science, in which no one makes out and the ever after is not always happy. Originally from Italy, she lived in Germany and Japan before moving to the US to pursue a PhD in neuroscience. When Ali is not at work, she can be found running, eating cake pops, or watching sci-fi movies with her three feline overlords (and her slightly-less-feline husband).

Photo by Justin Murphy / Out of the Attic Photography.

Website | Facebook | Goodreads | Instagram

#BookReview They Thought I Was Dead: Sandy’s Story by Peter James @peterjamesuk @PGCBooks @panmacmillan #PeterJames #TheyThoughtIWasDead #RoyGrace #PGCBooks

categories: 9/10, Book Review, Mystery/Thriller, Police Procedural
#BookReview They Thought I Was Dead: Sandy’s Story by Peter James @peterjamesuk @PGCBooks @panmacmillan #PeterJames #TheyThoughtIWasDead #RoyGrace #PGCBooks Title: They Thought I Was Dead: Sandy's Story

Author: Peter James

Series: Roy Grace #20

Published by: Pan Macmillan on May 23, 2024

Genres: Mystery/Thriller, Police Procedural

Pages: 400

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Publishers Group Canada

Book Rating: 9/10

Peter James, international bestselling author of the Roy Grace series, returns with a standalone novel revealing the truth behind Sandy Grace’s dramatic disappearance.

Some will know how it begins.

Her name is Sandy. You might know her as the loving wife of Detective Superintendent Roy Grace. But there’s more to her than meets the eye. A woman with a dubious past, a complicated present and an uncertain future. Then she was gone.

Some will know how it ends.

Her disappearance caused a nationwide search. Even the best detective on the force couldn’t find her. They thought she was dead.

But nobody knows this…

Where did she go? Why did she run? What would cause a woman to leave her whole life behind and simply vanish? For the first time, award-winning crime writer Peter James lays bare what really happened to Sandy Grace. They Thought I Was Dead will thrill fans and new readers alike with its gripping story of a woman on the run. This is Sandy’s story.

Review:

Tense, menacing, and gritty!

They Thought I Was Dead is a clever, captivating mystery that takes us back to the beginning and into the life of Sandy Grace, the elusive first wife of Detective Superintendent Roy Grace, whose reckless behaviour leaves his world irrevocably turned upside down and hers on a fast road to ruin.

The writing is brisk and tight. The characters are multilayered, vulnerable, and impulsive. And the plot is a sinister tale full of twists, turns, deception, mayhem, lies, secrets, suspicious personalities, revelations, addiction, and murder.

I have to say that die-hard fans of the Roy Grace series will be absolutely thrilled with this latest outing by James. They Thought I Was Dead is an ominous, sophisticated, entertaining tale that finally gives readers the insight and answers they’ve been waiting for.

 

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 Peter James

Peter James is the international bestselling author of many award-winning novels. His Detective Superintendent Roy Grace series, set in Brighton, has been translated into thirty-seven languages with worldwide sales of over eighteen million copies, and has given him eleven consecutive Sunday Times number ones. In 2015 WHSmith customers publicly voted him the Greatest Crime Author of All Time and in 2016 he became the recipient of the coveted CWA Diamond Dagger lifetime achievement award for sustained excellence. Peter has also written a short story collection, A Twist of the Knife, and his standalone titles include Perfect People and The House on Cold Hill. He has also co-written a non-fiction account of Brighton’s toughest cases with former detective Graham Bartlett entitled Death Comes Knocking. The Perfect Murder, Dead Simple and Not Dead Enough have all been turned into smash-hit stage plays. All his novels reflect his deep interest in the world of the police. Three of his novels have been filmed and before becoming a full-time author he produced numerous films, including The Merchant of Venice, starring Al Pacino and Jeremy Irons. He divides his time between his homes in Notting Hill, London and near Brighton in Sussex.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Google+

#BookReview A Good Life by Virginie Grimaldi (translated by Hildegarde Serle) @EuropaEditions @PGCBooks #AGoodLife #VirginieGrimaldi #PGCBooks #EuropaEditions

categories: 8.5/10, Book Review, General Fiction, Women's Fiction
#BookReview A Good Life by Virginie Grimaldi (translated by Hildegarde Serle) @EuropaEditions @PGCBooks #AGoodLife #VirginieGrimaldi #PGCBooks #EuropaEditions Title: A Good Life

Author: Virginie Grimaldi

Published by: Europa Editions on Jun. 7, 2024

Genres: General Fiction, Women's Fiction

Pages: 288

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Publishers Group Canada

Book Rating: 8.5/10

Full of humor and compassion, a profound exploration of sisterhood, healing, and the ineffable beauty of life from France‘s most beloved contemporary novelist

Laughter, tears, the transformative power of love, unexpected revelations, and striking natural these are the ingredients that combine to make best-selling author Virginie Grimaldi’s American debut the feel-good read of 2024. Grimaldi is among France’s top ten contemporary authors and her uplifting, unputdownable literary novels have quickly garnered her millions of adoring fans. This, her American debut, is among her most delicately wrought and emotionally compelling novels to date. 

Emma and Agathe are sisters. They were thick as thieves when they were young but have always been as different as can be. Agathe, the younger sister, is disorderly, chaotic, and fiery. Five years older, Emma has always been the more mature sister, the defender, the protector, the worrier. Their relationship as adults is scarred by a tragedy that transformed their happy, ordinary childhoods into something much more complex and challenging. For a long time, Emma hasn’t wanted to be involved in Agathe’s life. But then they must return together to the Basque Country, to the house of their adored grandmother, to empty out her home and in the process to reconcile, to remember, and to pour out what is in their hearts. 

The story alternates between Agathe and Emma’s childhood and their present day, with everything in between, and readers see them as young girls, teenagers, young women, mothers, wives, partners, individuals, sisters. This is a story that encompasses whole lives, complex lives, women’s lives, asking all the while how the scars of the past can be healed and what, in the end, is a good life.

Review:

Tender, sincere, and memorable!

A Good Life is an intimate, poignant tale that sweeps you away to France and immerses you into the lives of two sisters, Emma and Agathe, as after being estranged for several years, they come together to clean out their late grandmother’s home and discover how to accept the things they cannot change, confront a past littered with tragedy and heartbreak, acknowledge and repair long-strained relationships, and ultimately learn to savour every moment.

The writing is effortless and polished. The characters are multi-layered, genuine, and scarred. And the plot, including all the subplots, skillfully intertwines and unravels into a delightfully touching tale about life, love, loss, guilt, grief, family drama, secrets, happiness, self-discovery, and sisterhood.

Overall, A Good Life is a beautiful mix of hope, heart, and healing that is not only a humorous, emotive, lovely novel by Virginie Grimaldi but one which I don’t think anyone could possibly read and not be completely absorbed and moved.

 

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 Virginie Grimaldi

Virginie Grimaldi was born in 1977 in Bordeaux, where she still lives. She is the author of nine novels and was the most read French writer for three consecutive years (in 2019, 2020, and 2021). Her novels have been bestsellers in Europe and have been translated into more than twenty languages.

Photo Pascal Ito © Flammarion.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

#BookReview The Offing by Roz Nay @roznay1 @PenguinRandomCA #TheOffing #RozNay #PenguinReads

categories: 8.5/10, Book Review, Mystery/Thriller
#BookReview The Offing by Roz Nay @roznay1 @PenguinRandomCA #TheOffing #RozNay #PenguinReads Title: The Offing

Author: Roz Nay

Published by: Viking on May 28, 2024

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 360

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Penguin Random House

Book Rating: 8.5/10

Two young women are trapped in a deadly chase through the beautiful, dangerous waters around Australia in the new thriller from the bestselling author of Our Little Secret—perfect for fans of The Woman in Cabin 10 and The Drowning Woman.

Ivy is in trouble. A recent break-up has left her humiliated and raw, so when her best friend, Regan, offers her a month-long escape in the form of a trip to Australia, it feels like a lifeline, one that Ivy grabs with both hands.

Regan is everything Ivy’s not—confident, free-spirited, charismatic—and a natural at backpacker fun. But Ivy is drawn to a calmer type of holiday, so when she spots an ad for crewmembers on a small yacht being sailed by a doting father and his daughter, the girls decide to take the job. Together with a handsome third crewmember, they set off north into tropical heat, but it’s not long before doubts start to creep in. Are the girls simply claustrophobic on the boat, or have they stumbled into something they don’t understand?

Tensions rise as the past threatens to catch up with them, and dark secrets emerge that will change everything. A dangerous cat-and-mouse game on land and at sea, this fast-paced, twisty thriller keeps you guessing until the very last page.

Review:

Ominous, intense, and addictive!

The Offing is an eerily gripping tale that sweeps you away to Australia and into the lives of Ivy and Regan, two troubled American friends who, after taking jobs as crew members on a ship owned by a middle-aged man and his young daughter, suddenly discover that they are not the only ones trying to escape the recent past, everyone on the boat has something to hide, and danger is much closer than they think.

The prose is sharp and crisp. The characters are secretive, determined, and multilayered. And the plot unfolds and unravels quickly into a foreboding tale of lies, secrets, abuse, deception, drama, manipulation, friendship, desperation, revenge, violence, and murder.

Overall, The Offing is another dark, taut, unnerving thriller by Nay that did a wonderful job of keeping me mystified, surprised, and guessing from start to finish while at the same time reminding me that everything is not always what it seems.

 

This novel is available now.

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

         

 

 

Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Roz Nay

Roz Nay grew up in England and studied at Oxford University. She has been published in The Antigonish Review and the anthology Refuge. Roz has worked as an underwater fish counter in Africa, a snowboard videographer in Vermont, and a high school teacher in both the UK and Australia. She now lives in British Columbia, Canada, with her husband and two children. Our Little Secret is her first novel.

Website | Twitter | Goodreads

#BookReview The Last Twelve Miles by Erika Robuck @Sourcebooks @sbkslandmark #TheLastTwelveMiles #ErikaRobuck #bookmarkedbylandmark

categories: 8.5/10, Book Review, Historical Fiction
#BookReview The Last Twelve Miles by Erika Robuck @Sourcebooks @sbkslandmark #TheLastTwelveMiles #ErikaRobuck #bookmarkedbylandmark Title: The Last Twelve Miles

Author: Erika Robuck

Published by: Sourcebooks Landmark on Jun. 4, 2024

Genres: Historical Fiction

Pages: 368

Format: Paperback

Source: Sourcebooks Landmark

Book Rating: 8.5/10

Two real, brilliant women on opposite sides of the law, in a deadly game of cat and mouse…

1926. Washington, D.C.

The Coast Guard is losing the Prohibition Rum War, but they have a new, secret weapon to crack smuggler codes, intercept traffic, and destroy the rum trade one skiff at a time. That secret weapon is a 5’2″ mastermind in heels, who also happens to be a wife and mother: Mrs. Elizebeth Smith Friedman, one half of the husband-and-wife pair who invented cryptanalysis.

Bahamas

Cleo Lythogoe, The Bahama Queen, announces her retirement while regaling the thugs at the bar with tales of murder and mayhem on the high seas. Marie Waite, listening in, knows an opportunity when she hears it, and she wants the crown for herself so badly she can taste it. So begins Marie’s plan to rise as rumrunner royalty long enough to get her family in the black. But the more sophisticated her operation grows, the more she appears on the radar of the feds.

Meanwhile, Elizebeth is the only codebreaker battling scores of smugglers. Despite the strain of solving thousands of intercepted messages, traveling the country, and testifying in court, Elizabeth’s work becomes personal—especially when she discovers the identity of her premier adversary is the notorious Marie Waite.

From the glamorous world of D.C. Intelligence to the sultry shores of the Straits of Florida, The Last Twelve Miles is based on the true story of two women masterminds trying to outwit each other in a dangerous and fascinating high stakes game.

Review:

Fascinating, compelling, and fresh!

The Last Twelve Miles is an evocative, intriguing tale that sweeps you between Washington D.C. and the Bahamas during 1926 and into the lives of two women; Elizabeth Friedman, a talented codebreaker tasked with intercepting and deciphering messages to take down the most enterprising of smugglers, and Marie Waits, a mother of two who decides to take over the rum-running business from her husband and build it into something bigger and better than ever before.

The prose is expressive and rich. The characters are complex, intelligent, and driven. And the plot is a well-paced, entertaining mix of life, loss, love, justice, power, family, sacrifice, danger, corruption, politics, and ruthless ambition.

Overall, The Last Twelve Miles is an intricate, vivid, satisfying tale by Robuck inspired by real-life events that does a lovely job of interweaving historical facts and compelling fiction into an engaging tale that is atmospheric and highly absorbing.

 

This novel is available now.

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

             

 

 

Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Erika Robuck

Erika Robuck is the national bestselling author of historical fiction including SISTERS OF NIGHT AND FOG, THE INVISIBLE WOMAN, and HEMINGWAY’S GIRL. Her articles have appeared in Writer Unboxed, Crime Reads, and Writer's Digest, and she has been named the Maryland Writer’s Association’s Notable Writer of April 2024.

A boating enthusiast, amateur historian, and teacher, she resides in Annapolis with her husband and three sons.

Photo by Nick Woodall.

Website | Facebook | Instagram

#BookReview This Summer Will Be Different by Carley Fortune @CarleyFortune @PenguinRandomCA #ThisSummerWillBeDifferent #CarleyFortune #PenguinReads

categories: 9/10, Book Review, Contemporary Romance
#BookReview This Summer Will Be Different by Carley Fortune @CarleyFortune @PenguinRandomCA #ThisSummerWillBeDifferent #CarleyFortune #PenguinReads Title: This Summer Will Be Different

Author: Carley Fortune

Published by: Berkley on May 7, 2024

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 320

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Penguin Random House

Book Rating: 9/10

This summer they’ll keep their promise. This summer they won’t give into temptation. This summer will be different.

Lucy is the tourist vacationing at a beach house on Prince Edward Island. Felix is the local who shows her a very good time. The only problem: Lucy doesn’t know he’s her best friend’s younger brother. Lucy and Felix’s chemistry is unreal, but the list of reasons why they need to stay away from each other is long, and they vow to never repeat that electric night again.

It’s easier said than done.

Each year, Lucy escapes to PEI for a big breath of coastal air, fresh oysters and crisp vinho verde with her best friend, Bridget. Every visit begins with a long walk on the beach, beneath soaring red cliffs and a golden sun. And every visit, Lucy promises herself she won’t wind up in Felix’s bed. Again.

If Lucy can’t help being drawn to Felix, at least she’s always kept her heart out of it.

When Bridget suddenly flees Toronto a week before her wedding, Lucy drops everything to follow her to the island. Her mission is to help Bridget through her crisis and resist the one man she’s never been able to. But Felix’s sparkling eyes and flirty quips have been replaced with something new, and Lucy’s beginning to wonder just how safe her heart truly is.

Review:

Heartwarming, addictive, and thought-provoking!

This Summer Will Be Different is an absorbing, heartfelt tale that takes you into the life of the independent, loyal Lucy as she juggles a best friend in need of help, a life she enjoys but may be missing a little something, and an ongoing attraction for the one man she’s not allowed to have but who she’s never been able to forget, Felix.

The writing is sweet and smooth. The characters are kind, caring, and endearing. And the plot is a touching tale of family, friendship, self-discovery, happiness, healing, taking chances, growth, revelations, tender moments, light drama, promises, selflessness, romance, and new beginnings.

For the past few years, Carley Fortune’s books have topped my must-read favourites list, and even though I didn’t think it was possible to love her books any more than I already did, she proved me wrong once again. This Summer Will Be Different made my heart ache and smile in just 320 pages, and not only did I absolutely adore it, but it might just be one of my all-time summer faves!

 

This novel is available now.

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

         

 

 

Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Carley Fortune

CARLEY FORTUNE is the New York Times and #1 Globe and Mail bestselling au­thor of Every Summer After and Meet Me at the Lake. She’s also an award-winning Canadian journalist who has worked as an editor for Refinery29, The Globe and Mail, Chatelaine, and Toronto Life. She lives in Toronto with her husband and two sons.

Photo by Jenna Marie Wakani

Website | Twitter | Goodreads | Instagram

#BookReview The Return of Ellie Black by Emiko Jean @SimonSchusterCA #TheReturnOfEllieBlack #EmikoJean #SimonSchusterCA

categories: 8.5/10, Book Review, Mystery/Thriller
#BookReview The Return of Ellie Black by Emiko Jean @SimonSchusterCA #TheReturnOfEllieBlack #EmikoJean #SimonSchusterCA Title: The Return of Ellie Black

Author: Emiko Jean

Published by: Simon & Schuster on May 7, 2024

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 320

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Simon & Schuster Canada

Book Rating: 8.5/10

Detective Chelsey Calhoun’s life is turned upside down when she gets the call Ellie Black, a girl who disappeared years earlier, has resurfaced in the woods of Washington state—but Ellie’s reappearance leaves Chelsey with more questions than answers.

It’s been twenty years since Detective Chelsey Calhoun’s sister vanished when they were teenagers, and ever since she’s been searching: for signs, for closure, for other missing girls. But happy endings are rare in Chelsey’s line of work.

Then a glimmer: local teenager Ellie Black, who disappeared without a trace two years earlier, has been found alive in the woods of Washington State.

But something is not right with Ellie. She won’t say where she’s been, or who she’s protecting, and it’s up to Chelsey to find the answers. She needs to get to the bottom of what happened to Ellie: for herself, and for the memory of her sister, but mostly for the next girl who could be taken—and who, unlike Ellie, might never return.

The debut thriller from New York Times bestselling author Emiko Jean, The Return of Ellie Black is both a feminist tour de force about the embers of hope that burn in the aftermath of tragedy and a twisty page-turner that will shock and surprise you right up until the final page.

Review:

Intricate, compelling, and sharp!

The Return of Ellie Black is a well-paced, ominous tale that takes you into the life of Detective Chelsey Calhoun as the past suddenly collides with the present when an investigation into the sudden reappearance of the missing teen Ellie Black shockingly uncovers years of tragedy, dark secrets, and perversion.

The writing is tight and intense. The characters are layered, secretive, and persistent. And the plot, told from multiple perspectives and in a back-and-forth style, is an engrossing tale full of twists, turns, red herrings, secrets, deduction, depravity, mayhem, manipulation, and abuse.

Overall, The Return of Ellie Black is a relentless, suspenseful, tortuous thriller by Jean that keeps you guessing from start to finish and is an eerie reminder that evil can live easily amongst us, simply hidden behind masks of normality.

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 Emiko Jean

Emiko Jean is the New York Times bestselling author of the young adult novels Tokyo Dreaming and Tokyo Ever After, a Reese Witherspoon/Hello Sunshine pick, as well as the novel Mika in Real Life, which was a Good Morning America Book Club pick. She lives in Washington with her husband and two kids.

Photograph © Katy Weaver Photography.

Website | Facebook | Goodreads | Instagram

#BookReview Seven Summers by Paige Toon @PaigeToonAuthor @PutnamBooks @penguinrandom #SevenSummers #PaigeToon #PenguinReads

categories: 10/10, Book Review, Contemporary Romance, Women's Fiction
#BookReview Seven Summers by Paige Toon @PaigeToonAuthor @PutnamBooks @penguinrandom #SevenSummers #PaigeToon #PenguinReads Title: Seven Summers

Author: Paige Toon

Published by: G.P. Putnam's Sons on May 21, 2024

Genres: Contemporary Romance, Women's Fiction

Pages: 448

Format: Paperback

Source: Penguin Random House

Book Rating: 10/10

Six summers to fall in love. One summer to change everything.

Liv and Finn meet six summers ago working in a bar on the rugged Cornish coastline, their futures full of promise. When a night of passion ends in devastating tragedy they are bound together inextricably. But Finn’s life is in LA with his band, and Liv’s is in Cornwall with her family – so they make a promise. Finn will return every year, and if they are single they will spend the summer together.

This summer Liv crosses paths with Tom – a mysterious new arrival in her hometown. As the wildflowers and heather come into bloom, they find themselves falling for one another. For the first time Liv can imagine a world where her heart isn’t broken every autumn. Now Liv must make an impossible choice. And when she discovers the shocking reason that Tom has left home, she’ll need to trust her heart even more . . .

Review:

Poignant, heart-tugging, and nostalgic!

Seven Summers is a pensive, absorbing tale that sweeps you away to the shores of Cornwall and into the life of Liv, a young woman who, after falling in love with a local songwriter who now calls Los Angeles home, spends the next seven years fondly anticipating and savouring the warm sunny months when she finally gets to spend a few days of joy and pleasure with the one man who will always own her heart.

The writing is rich and intimate. The characters are multilayered, genuine, and flawed. And the compelling plot is a delightfully clever blend of life, loss, family, tragedy, love, heartbreak, relationship dynamics, and lighthearted beach read.

Overall, Seven Summers is another immersive, moving, astute tale by Toon that highlights once again her innate ability to delve into all the messy emotional and psychological entanglements that exist between family members, friends, and lovers and proves why year after year she’s the queen of must-read novels.

This novel is available now.

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

         

 

 

Thank you to G. P. Putnam’s Sons – Penguin Random House for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Paige Toon

Paige Toon grew up between England, Australia and America and has been writing books set in sun-drenched locations around the world since 2007. She has written fourteen women's fiction novels, a three-part spin-off series for young adults and a collection of short stories. Her novels have sold 1.5 million copies worldwide.

In Spring 2021, Paige and her publishing team launched ‘feel it all’ branding for her novels, which is inspired directly by her readers and what they have been telling her for years: that when they read a Paige Toon novel, they experience a myriad of emo>ons, from love, heartache and passion, to grief, happiness and hope. The message is simple: get lost in one of Paige’s stories and you really will feel it all.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Amazon | Instagram | Pinterest

#BlogTour #BookReview Playing for Freedom: The Journey of a Young Afghan Girl by Zarifa Adiba & Anne Chaon (translated by Susanna Lea Associates) @AmazonPub @OverTheRiverPR #PlayingForFreedom #ZarifaAdiba #AmazonCrossing #OTRPR

categories: 8.5/10, Book Review, Nonfiction
#BlogTour #BookReview Playing for Freedom: The Journey of a Young Afghan Girl by Zarifa Adiba & Anne Chaon (translated by Susanna Lea Associates) @AmazonPub @OverTheRiverPR #PlayingForFreedom #ZarifaAdiba #AmazonCrossing #OTRPR Title: Playing for Freedom: The Journey of a Young Afghan Girl

Author: Zarifa Adiba, Anne Chaon

Published by: Amazon Crossing on Apr. 16, 2024

Genres: Nonfiction

Pages: 205

Format: Paperback

Source: Amazon Publishing, OTRPR

Book Rating: 8.5/10

A passionate musician growing up in the war-torn streets of Kabul takes her forbidden talents abroad in this triumphant memoir from debut author Zarifa Adiba.

As an Afghan girl, Zarifa Adiba has big, unfathomable dreams. Her family is poor, her country mired in conflict. Walking to school in Kabul, Zarifa has to navigate suicide bombers.

But Zarifa perseveres, nurturing her passion for music despite its “sinful” nature under Taliban law. At sixteen she gains admission to the Afghanistan National Institute of Music, and at eighteen she becomes the lead violist, co-conductor, and spokesperson for Zohra, the first all-female orchestra in the Muslim world.

Despite Zarifa’s accomplishments—which include a stunning performance at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland—her future in music demands a reckoning with her life back home. Many of the girls in Zohra are forced to marry, but Zarifa yearns to study, travel, and explore her independence. Her so-called “bad girl” identity puts her at odds with her culture and her family.

Playing for Freedom is the deeply compelling story of a woman who dares to compose a masterpiece even with all odds stacked against her.

Review:

Honest, informative, and inspiring!

Playing for Freedom is the insightful, intriguing story of Zarifa Adiba’s personal hardships, struggles, successes and accomplishments as a woman and musician born and raised in a country that is riddled with oppression, war and strict religious rule.

The writing is genuine and perceptive. And the novel is an introspective, compelling tale of one woman’s life from being a child raised in a blended family to believing in herself, taking chances, and following her dreams.

Overall, Playing for Freedom is a forthright, passionate, absorbing tale by Adiba that covers such an abundance of themes that, as a fellow woman, it was easy to root for her, appreciate, and be thoroughly captivated by her story.

 

This book is available now.

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

     

 

 

Thank you to OTRPR and Amazon Publishing for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Anne Chaon

Anne Chaon is a journalist and former correspondent for the Agence France-Presse. She was based in Kabul, Afghanistan, from June 2016 to September 2018 and again in June 2021.

About Zarifa Adiba

Zarifa Adiba is the lead violist and co-conductor of Zohra, Afghanistan’s first (and only) all-female orchestra. She studied at the Afghanistan National Institute of Music, the only music education entity in Afghanistan in 2017. She is currently studying International Politics at both Bard College and American University of Central Asia. She is an activist for girls and education and has participated in several panels, including at the World Economic Forum in 2017. Playing for Freedom is her first book.

 

#BookReview Funny Story by Emily Henry @PenguinRandomCA #EmilyHenry #FunnyStory #PenguinReads

categories: 9/10, Book Review, Contemporary Romance
#BookReview Funny Story by Emily Henry @PenguinRandomCA #EmilyHenry #FunnyStory #PenguinReads Title: Funny Story

Author: Emily Henry

Published by: Berkley on Apr. 23, 2024

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 400

Format: Hardcover

Source: Penguin Random House Canada

Book Rating: 9/10

A shimmering, joyful new novel about a pair of opposites with the wrong thing in common.

Daphne always loved the way her fiancé Peter told their story. How they met (on a blustery day), fell in love (over an errant hat), and moved back to his lakeside hometown to begin their life together. He really was good at telling it…right up until the moment he realized he was actually in love with his childhood best friend Petra.

Which is how Daphne begins her new story: Stranded in beautiful Waning Bay, Michigan, without friends or family but with a dream job as a children’s librarian (that barely pays the bills), and proposing to be roommates with the only person who could possibly understand her predicament: Petra’s ex, Miles Nowak.

Scruffy and chaotic—with a penchant for taking solace in the sounds of heart break love ballads—Miles is exactly the opposite of practical, buttoned up Daphne, whose coworkers know so little about her they have a running bet that she’s either FBI or in witness protection. The roommates mainly avoid one another, until one day, while drowning their sorrows, they form a tenuous friendship and a plan. If said plan also involves posting deliberately misleading photos of their summer adventures together, well, who could blame them?

But it’s all just for show, of course, because there’s no way Daphne would actually start her new chapter by falling in love with her ex-fiancé’s new fiancée’s ex…right?

Review:

Amusing, smart, and adorably romantic!

Funny Story is an engaging, witty, roommates-to-more romance that features the quiet, wary Daphne and the outgoing, charming Miles as together they navigate their heartbreak and discover that their exes leaving them might be the best thing that ever happened to them.

The writing is sweet and crisp. The characters are quirky, charismatic, and genuine. And the plot is an irresistible blend of life, love, friendship, family, flirting, light drama, tricky situations, spirited shenanigans, awkward moments, and delectable romance.

I’ve always been a fan of Emily Henry novels, and Funny Story has just become another favourite. It’s funny, tender, deliciously swoon-worthy and without a doubt, one of the best rom-coms I’ve had the pleasure to read this year.

 

This novel is available now.

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

             

 

 

 

Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Emily Henry

Emily Henry is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of People We Meet on Vacation and Beach Read. She studied creative writing at Hope College, and now spends most of her time in Cincinnati, Ohio, and the part of Kentucky just beneath it.

Photo by Devyn Glista/St. Blanc Studios.

Website | Instagram