#BookReview The Next Ship Home by Heather Webb @msheatherwebb @Sourcebooks @sbkslandmark #TheNextShipHome #HeatherWebb #bookmarkedbylandmark

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#BookReview The Next Ship Home by Heather Webb @msheatherwebb @Sourcebooks @sbkslandmark #TheNextShipHome #HeatherWebb #bookmarkedbylandmark Title: The Next Ship Home

Author: Heather Webb

Published by: Sourcebooks Landmark on Feb. 8, 2022

Genres: Historical Fiction

Pages: 432

Format: Paperback

Source: Sourcebooks Landmark

Book Rating: 8.5/10

Ellis Island, 1902: Two women band together to hold America to its promise: “Give me your tired, your poor…”

Ellis Island, 1902. Francesca arrives on the shores of America, her sights set on a better life than the one she left in Italy. That same day, aspiring linguist Alma reports to her first day of work at the immigrant processing center. Ellis, though, is not the refuge it first appears thanks to President Roosevelt’s attempts to deter crime. Francesca and Alma will have to rely on each other to escape its corruption and claim the American dreams they were promised.

A thoughtful historical inspired by true events, this novel probes America’s history of prejudice and exclusion—when entry at Ellis Island promised a better life but often delivered something drastically different, immigrants needed strength, resilience, and friendship to fight for their futures.

Review:

Fascinating, compelling, and memorable!

The Next Ship Home is an immersive tale that sweeps you away to New York City during 1902 and into the life of two women, Francesca Ricci, a young Italian girl who dreams of a better life in America only to suffer persecution and unimaginable loss in the shadows of the statue of liberty, and Alma Brauer, a young American woman with a passion for languages and a new job on Elis Island that, she quickly learns is not a place for immigrants to feel welcome and supported, but rather a building where corruption is rampant and abuse is prolific.

The prose is vivid and rich. The characters are flawed, driven, and engaging. And the plot is a poignant, tender tale of life, loss, love, hope, prejudice, politics, family, sacrifices, tragedy, abusive power, successes, and female friendship.

Overall, The Next Ship Home is an absorbing, moving, beautifully written tale by Webb inspired by real-life events that, at its heart, highlights that sometimes a little kindness, a bit of luck, and a lot of hard work and determination can make a world of difference, and reminds us that even though we’ve come so far when it comes to exclusion and racism, we still have a ways to go.

 

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 Heather Webb

Heather Webb is the USA Today bestselling and award-winning author of seven historical novels. In 2015, Rodin’s Lover was a Goodread’s Top Pick, and in 2018, Last Christmas in Paris won the Women’s Fiction Writers Association STAR Award. Meet Me in Monaco, was selected as a finalist for the 2020 Goldsboro RNA award in the UK, as well as the 2019 Digital Book World’s Fiction prize. To date, Heather’s books have been translated to sixteen languages. She lives in New England with her family, a mischievous kitten, and one feisty rabbit.

Photo courtesy of Author's Website.

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#BookReview The Midnight Ride by Ben Mezrich @benmezrich @GrandCentralPub @HBGCanada #TheMidnightRide #BenMezrich

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#BookReview The Midnight Ride by Ben Mezrich @benmezrich @GrandCentralPub @HBGCanada #TheMidnightRide #BenMezrich Title: The Midnight Ride

Author: Ben Mezrich

Published by: Grand Central Publishing on Feb. 22, 2022

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 304

Format: Hardcover

Source: Grand Central Publishing

Book Rating: 8.5/10

From the celebrated, New York Times bestselling author comes a commercial thriller of an MIT grad student who unwittingly uncovers the hidden connection between the Gardner Museum heist and the most fascinating secret in American history.

THE CARD SHARK: Hailey Gordon is looking to make some fast cash to help pay her tuition when she’s caught counting cards at the Encore casino in Boston. She grabs her winnings and makes her escape. With guards closing in, she dives into an unlocked room to hide . . . only to find a dead body.

THE EX-CON: Recently released from prison, Nick Patterson hasn’t felt hope in a long time, but the job he “inherited” in prison promises to change that. He enters hotel room 633 to find that the person he was supposed to meet has been murdered. Next to the corpse stands a terrified young woman—Hailey Gordon.

THE PROFESSOR: American history professor Adrian Jensen learns of the death of his professional nemesis, Charles Walker, the night after he received Walker’s latest research. Skeptical at first, Adrian nearly deletes the file. But when one small, new detail catches his eye, he makes it his mission to uncover what could be one of the biggest secrets of the Revolutionary War.

All three strangers find themselves on the cusp of an incredible discovery—one that someone is willing to kill to keep buried.

Review:

Sinister, tense, and highly entertaining!

The Midnight Ride is a propulsive, ominous tale that takes us on a journey into the lives of three strangers, Hailey Gordon, an MIT grad student with an exceptional mind for numbers and a special talent for counting cards, Nick Patterson, a recently paroled con man with a new job already planned that he’s sure will go off without a hitch, and Adrian Jensen, a Tufts professor of American history who specializes in all things Paul Revere, as their paths accidentally collide in a race to uncover a secret of unimaginable importance that seems to have been hidden since the Revolutionary War.

The writing is brisk and sharp. The characters are intelligent, determined, and impulsive. And the plot is an action-packed thrill ride full of twists, turns, surprises, adventure, manipulation, danger, historical events, code-breaking, violence, and murder.

Overall, The Midnight Ride is an intense, suspenseful, fast-paced read by Mezrich that I thoroughly enjoyed and which reminded me a little of the National Treasure movies that I absolutely adore.

 

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 providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Ben Mezrich

Ben Mezrich is the New York Times bestselling author of The Accidental Billionaires (adapted by Aaron Sorkin into the David Fincher film The Social Network) and Bringing Down the House (adapted into the #1 box office hit film 21), as well as many other bestselling books. His books have sold over six million copies worldwide.

Photo courtesy of grandcentralpublishing.com

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#BookReview Electric Idol by Katee Robert @katee_robert @SourcebooksCasa #KateeRobert #ElectricIdol #DarkOlympus #SourcebooksCasa

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#BookReview Electric Idol by Katee Robert @katee_robert @SourcebooksCasa #KateeRobert #ElectricIdol #DarkOlympus #SourcebooksCasa Title: Electric Idol

Author: Katee Robert

Series: Dark Olympus #2

Published by: Sourcebooks Casablanca on Jan. 18, 2022

Genres: Contemporary Romance, Fantasy

Pages: 375

Format: Paperback

Source: Sourcebooks Casablanca

Book Rating: 8.5/10

He was the most beautiful man alive.
And if I wasn’t careful, he was going to be my death.

*A scorchingly hot modern retelling of Psyche and Eros that’s as sinful as it is sweet.*

In the ultra-modern city of Olympus, there’s always a price to pay. Psyche knew she’d have to face Aphrodite’s ire eventually, but she never expected her literal heart to be at stake…or for Aphrodite’s gorgeous son to be the one ordered to strike the killing blow.

Eros has no problem shedding blood. But when it comes time to take out his latest target, he can’t do it. Confused by his reaction to Psyche, he does the only thing he can think of to keep her safe: he marries her. Psyche vows to make Eros’s life a living hell until they find a way out of this mess. But as lines blur and loyalties shift, she realizes he might take her heart after all…and she’s not sure she can survive the loss.

Review:

Witty, dark, and wickedly seductive!

Electric Idol is a steamy, provocative retelling that takes you on a journey into the life of Psyche Dimitriou, a candidate to become the new Hera who, after causing a scandal and falling under the wrath of Aphrodite, finds herself needing the protection of a fake marriage to the one man, Aphrodite’s fixer and son, Eros who has literally been sent to take her heart.

The writing is fluid and enticing. The characters are consumed, sassy, and endearing. And the plot is a delightfully salacious tale of desire, temptation, mystique, attraction, chemistry, danger, and sizzling romance.

Overall, Electric Idol is an alluring, fun, spicy tale that I absolutely adored. It is the second title in the Dark Olympus series by Robert that I am now totally hooked on and is, in my opinion, a series that just keeps getting better and better.

 

This novel is available now.

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

         

 

Thank you to Sourcebooks Casablanca for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Katee Robert

Katee Robert is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of contemporary romance and romantic suspense. Entertainment Weekly calls her writing “unspeakably hot.” Her books have sold over a million copies. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband, children, a cat who thinks he’s a dog, and two Great Danes who think they’re lap dogs.

Photo courtesy of Author's Website.

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#BookReview Free Love by Tessa Hadley @randomhouseca #FreeLove #TessaHadley #RandomHouseCanada

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#BookReview Free Love by Tessa Hadley @randomhouseca #FreeLove #TessaHadley #RandomHouseCanada Title: Free Love

Author: Tessa Hadley

Published by: Random House Canada on Feb. 1, 2022

Genres: Historical Fiction, Women's Fiction

Pages: 328

Format: Paperback

Source: Random House Canada

Book Rating: 8/10

A compulsive new novel about one woman’s sexual and intellectual awakening in 1960s London.

1967. While London comes alive with the new youth revolution, the suburban Fischer family seems to belong to an older world of conventional stability: pretty, dutiful homemaker Phyllis is married to Roger, a devoted father with a career in the Foreign Office. Their children are Colette, a bookish teenager, and Hugh, the golden boy.

But when the twenty-something son of an old friend pays the Fischers a visit one hot summer evening, and kisses Phyllis in the dark garden after dinner, something in her catches fire. Newly awake to the world, Phyllis makes a choice that defies all expectations of her as a wife and a mother. Nothing in these ordinary lives is so ordinary after all, it turns out, as the family’s upheaval mirrors the dramatic transformation of the society around them.

With scalpel-sharp insight, Tessa Hadley explores her characters’ inner worlds, laying bare their fears and longings. Daring and sensual, Free Love is an enthralling, irresistible exploration of romantic love, sexual freedom and living out the truest and most meaningful version of our lives.

Review:

Sophisticated, astute, and passionate!

Free Love is an intimate, sentimental tale that sweeps you away to London in the late 1960s and into the life of Phyllis Fischer, a middle-aged married mother of two who, after feeling mostly content as a housewife for years, suddenly has a reawakening when she embarks on a love affair with Nicholas, the twenty-something-year-old son of family friends.

The prose is lyrical and descriptive. The characters are authentic, honest, and multi-layered. And the plot sweeps you away into a compelling, greek tragedy-like saga about motherhood, independence, responsibility, age disparity, adultery, seduction, desire, secrets, freedom, independence, compromise, and love.

Overall, Free Love is an atmospheric, pensive, provocative tale by Hadley that does a wonderful job of highlighting all the challenges and changes women experienced both personally and professionally during that time, and although I don’t think it will be everybody’s cup of tea, it is abundantly clear from the outset that Hadley is an exquisite literary writer with an uncanny ability to lay bare the lengths and sacrifices humanity will go to all for the sake of love.

 

This novel is available now.

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

           

 

 

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

 

About Tessa Hadley

TESSA HADLEY is the author of seven highly praised novels, Accidents in the Home, which was longlisted for the Guardian First Book Award, Everything Will Be All Right, The Master Bedroom, The London Train, Clever Girl, The Past and Late in the Day, and three collections of stories, Sunstroke, Married Love and Bad Dreams. The Past won the Hawthornden Prize for 2016, and Bad Dreams won the 2018 Edge Hill Short Story Prize. She lives in London and is Professor of Creative Writing at Bath Spa University. Her stories appear regularly in the New Yorker and other magazines.

Photo by Mark Vessey.

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#BookReview The Deepest of Secrets (Rockton #7) by Kelley Armstrong @KelleyArmstrong @MinotaurBooks @StMartinsPress #TheDeepestofSecrets #KelleyArmstrong #CaseyDuncan #Rockton #RocktonNovels #MinotaurInfluencers #SMPInfluencers

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#BookReview The Deepest of Secrets (Rockton #7) by Kelley Armstrong @KelleyArmstrong @MinotaurBooks @StMartinsPress #TheDeepestofSecrets #KelleyArmstrong #CaseyDuncan #Rockton #RocktonNovels #MinotaurInfluencers #SMPInfluencers Title: The Deepest of Secrets

Author: Kelley Armstrong

Series: Rockton #7

Published by: Minotaur Books on Feb. 15, 2022

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 352

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Minotaur Books

Book Rating: 8.5/10

#1 New York Times bestseller Kelley Armstrong returns to the captivating town of Rockton in The Deepest of Secrets, the next installment in one of the most imaginative crime series on shelves today.

It’s not always easy to live in the hidden town of Rockton, something Detective Casey Duncan knows firsthand. Tucked away in the Yukon wilderness, the community survives—and thrives—because the residents’ many secrets stay just that—secret.

But what happens when these secrets start to come out? Overnight, no one is safe. It’s not a question of if your secret will come out—but when.

Casey and her boyfriend, Sheriff Eric Dalton, need to find the culprit while protecting those who have been thrust into the spotlight. For a place built on privacy and new beginnings, Rockton isn’t handling these revelations very well. People are turning on one another, and when one of the loudest complainers turns up barely alive, it’s clear that their trickster is actually a murderer.

The threat of exposure is reaching its breaking point, and no one knows what’s going to happen next.

Review:

Sinister, addictive, and highly entertaining!

The Deepest of Secrets is a gritty, unsettling tale that takes us back to the Yukon and into the small community of Rockton, a refuge and home to a variety of criminals from the south where histories are guarded, secrets are treasured, the governing council may be finally ready to pull the plug, and at least one individual with a penchant for burying people alive may have decided it’s time to uncover and reveal everyone’s past they’re desperately trying to keep hidden.

The writing is sharp and descriptive. The characters are crafty, intelligent, and driven. And the plot unfolds and unravels quickly into a suspenseful, action-packed tale full of twists, turns, manipulation, deception, desperation, duplicity, politics, red herrings, friendship, complex relationships, violence, and murder.

Overall, The Deepest of Secrets is another intricate, atmospheric, edgy addition to the Rockton series by Armstrong that ultimately left me enthralled, surprised, and undoubtedly confident that whatever happens next, Rockton will never be the same.

 

This novel is available now.

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

            

 

 

Thank you to Minotaur Books for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Kelley Armstrong

Kelley Armstrong has been telling stories since before she could write. Her earliest written efforts were disastrous. If asked for a story about girls and dolls, hers would invariably feature undead girls and evil dolls, much to her teachers' dismay. All efforts to make her produce "normal" stories failed.

Today, she continues to spin tales of ghosts and demons and werewolves, while safely locked away in her basement writing dungeon. She's the author of the NYT-bestselling "Women of the Otherworld" paranormal suspense series and "Darkest Powers" young adult urban fantasy trilogy, as well as the Nadia Stafford crime series. Armstrong lives in southwestern Ontario with her husband, kids and far too many pets.

Photograph by Kathryn Hollinrake.

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#BookReview Real Easy by Marie Rutkoski @HenryHolt #RealEasy #MarieRutkoski #HenryHoltBooks

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#BookReview Real Easy by Marie Rutkoski @HenryHolt #RealEasy #MarieRutkoski #HenryHoltBooks Title: Real Easy

Author: Marie Rutkoski

Published by: Henry Holt and Co. on Jan. 18, 2022

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 320

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Henry Holt and Co.

Book Rating: 8.5/10

It’s 1999 and Samantha has danced for years at the Lovely Lady strip club. She’s not used to mixing work and friendship―after all, between her jealous boyfriend and his young daughter, she has enough on her plate. But the newest dancer is so clueless that Samantha feels compelled to help her learn the hustle and drama of the club: how to sweet-talk the boss, fit in with the other women, and make good money. One night, when the new girl needs a ride home, Samantha agrees to drive: a simple decision that turns deadly.

Georgia, another dancer drawn into the ensuing murder and missing person investigation, gathers information for Holly, a grieving detective determined to solve the case. Georgia just wants to help, but her involvement makes her a target. As Holly and Georgia round up their suspects, the story’s point of view shifts between dancers, detectives, children, club patrons―and the killer.

Drawing on her experience as a former dancer, Marie Rutkoski immerses us in the captivating world of the club, which comes alive with complicated people trying their best to protect themselves and those they love. Character-driven and masterfully plotted, Real Easy gets to the heart of the timeless question: How do women live their lives knowing that men can hurt them?

Review:

Intricate, addictive, and twisty!

Real Easy is a complex, gritty, character-driven thriller that takes you back to 1999 and into the lives of a myriad of people, including Detectives Amador and Meylin, as they work together to solve a case involving a murdered stripper, her missing coworker Samantha, and a killer who seems to have an unusual fascination with the image of a crown and enjoys keeping small pieces of jewellery as mementoes.

The prose is vigorous and tight. The characters are multilayered, flawed, and troubled. And the plot, told from multiple perspectives, quickly unravels into a sinister tale of unforeseen twists, well-timed surprises, complex relationships, suspicious motivations, manipulation, obsession, tragedy, loss, and murder.

Overall, Real Easy is a dark, unnerving, entertaining adult debut by Rutkoski that kept me guessing from the very first page and left me chilled, satisfied, impressed, and curious to see what her devious mind might come up with next.

 

This novel is available now.

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

           

 

 

 

Thank you to Henry Holt and Company for providing me with a copy of this story in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Marie Rutkoski

Marie Rutkoski is a New York Times bestselling author of several novels for children and young adults. She grew up in Illinois as the oldest of four children, and has lived in Moscow, Prague, and Paris.

She holds degrees from the University of Iowa and Harvard University, and is now a professor of English literature at Brooklyn College, where she teaches Shakespeare, children’s literature, and fiction writing. She lives in Brooklyn with her family and two cats, Cloud and Firefly.

Photo by Beowulf Sheehan.

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#BookReview Where I Can’t Follow by Ashley Blooms @Sourcebooks @sbkslandmark #WhereICantFollow #AshleyBlooms #bookmarkedbylandmark

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#BookReview Where I Can’t Follow by Ashley Blooms @Sourcebooks @sbkslandmark #WhereICantFollow #AshleyBlooms #bookmarkedbylandmark Title: Where I Can't Follow

Author: Ashley Blooms

Published by: Sourcebooks Landmark on Feb. 15, 2022

Genres: Fantasy, Women's Fiction

Pages: 352

Format: Paperback

Source: Sourcebooks Landmark

Book Rating: 9/10

Walk through the door and leave all your problems behind…but you don’t know what’s on the other side. And once you leave, you’ll never come back. Will you go through?

Maren Walker told herself she wouldn’t need to sell pills for long, that it was only means to an end. But that end seems to be stretching as far away as the other side of Blackdamp County, Kentucky. There’s always another bill for Granny’s doctor, another problem with the car, another reason she’s getting nowhere.

She dreams of walking through her little door to leave it all behind. The doors have appeared to the people in her mountain town for as long as anyone can remember, though no one knows where they lead. All anyone knows is that if you go, you’ll never come back.

Maren’s mother left through her door when Maren was nine, and her shadow has followed Maren ever since. When she faces the possibility of escaping her struggles for good, Maren must choose just what kind of future she wants to build.

From critically acclaimed author Ashley Blooms, Where I Can’t Follow explores the forces that hold people in place, and how they adapt, survive, and struggle to love a place that doesn’t always love them back.

Review:

Heart-wrenching, thought-provoking, and memorable!

Where I Can’t Follow is an incredibly moving novel that takes us to small-town Kentucky where emotions run high, tragedy seems to strike, poverty is the norm, opioid addiction is rampant, hope appears futile, and the door to an easier, happier place always seems to be floating nearby.

The prose is eloquent and expressive. The characters are raw, fragile, and conflicted. And the plot is a sobering, compelling tale of life, love, loss, family, friendship, addiction, mental illness, suicidal ideation, socioeconomic depression, desperation, self-preservation, survival and a touch of magical realism.

Overall, Where I Can’t Follow made me think, made me feel, and resonated with me long after the final page. It’s a unique, emotional, absorbing tale by Blooms that is an excellent reminder that thorns can prick, roots can turn rotten, growth requires nurturing and love, and believing you’re worthy goes a long way when the road ahead seems hopeless and daunting.

 

This book 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 Ashley Blooms

Ashley Blooms is the author of Where I Can’t Follow, which was named a Most Anticipated novel by Good Housekeeping, Gizmodo, and Tor.com, among others. Her debut novel, Every Bone a Prayer, was long-listed for the Crook’s Corner Book Prize. She’s a graduate of the Clarion Writer’s Workshop and received her MFA as a John and Renee Grisham Fellow from the University of Mississippi. Her fiction has appeared in The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, Fantasy & Science Fiction, and Strange Horizons, among others.

Photo courtesy of Author's Website.

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#BookReview Meet Me in the Margins by Melissa Ferguson @our_friendly_farmhouse @uplitreads #meetmeinthemargins #melissaferguson #uplitreadscampaign

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#BookReview Meet Me in the Margins by Melissa Ferguson @our_friendly_farmhouse @uplitreads #meetmeinthemargins #melissaferguson #uplitreadscampaign Title: Meet Me in the Margins

Author: Melissa Ferguson

Published by: Thomas Nelson on Feb. 15, 2022

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 320

Format: Paperback

Source: Uplit Reads

Book Rating: 8/10

Savannah Cade is a low-level editor at Pennington Publishing, a prestigious publisher producing only the highest of highbrow titles. And while editing the latest edition of The Anthology of Medieval Didactic Poetry may be her day job, she has two secrets she’s hiding.

One: She’s writing a romance novel.

Two: She’s discovered the Book Nook—a secret room in the publishing house where she finds inspiration for her “lowbrow” hobby.

After leaving her manuscript behind one afternoon, she returns to the nook only to discover someone has written notes in the margins. Savannah’s first response to the criticism is defensive, but events transpire that force her to admit that she needs the help of this shadowy editor after all. As the notes take a turn for the romantic, and as Savannah’s madcap life gets more complicated than ever, she uses the process of elimination to identify her mysterious editor—only to discover that what she truly wants and what she should want just might not be the same. Melissa Ferguson’s latest—a love letter to books, readers, and romance—will leave fans laughing out loud and swooning in the same breath.

Review:

Cute, light, and heartwarming!

Meet Me in the Margins is a sweet, engaging, quirky tale that takes you on a journey into the life of nonfiction editor Savannah Cade as she navigates career uncertainty, financial struggles, romantic entanglements, demanding expectations, an unsupportive family, and a mystery reader who is blunt but nevertheless extremely helpful.

The writing is amusing and fluid. The characters are endearing, dependable, and supportive. And the plot is a lovely blend of tension, humour, chemistry, friendship, workplace drama, awkward mishaps, tender moments, self-reflection, tricky situations, taking chances, moving forward, and the ups and downs of editing.

Overall, Meet Me in the Margins is a charming, tender, delightful story by Ferguson that was a pleasure to read, with its characters I couldn’t help but root for, and an interesting, insightful look into the complex world of publishing.

 

This book is available now.

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

           

 

 

Thank you to Uplit Reads for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Melissa Ferguson

Melissa Ferguson lives in Bristol, Tennessee, where she enjoys chasing her children and writing romantic comedies full of humor and heart. Her favorite hobby is taking friends and acquaintances and turning them into characters in her books without their knowledge. She is confident you should read all her novels, starting with this one.

Photo courtesy of Author's Website.

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#BookReview A Winter Memory by Lulu Taylor @MissLuluTaylor @PGCBooks @panmacmillan #AWinterMemory #LuluTaylor

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#BookReview A Winter Memory by Lulu Taylor @MissLuluTaylor @PGCBooks @panmacmillan #AWinterMemory #LuluTaylor Title: A Winter Memory

Author: Lulu Taylor

Published by: Pan Macmillan on Jan. 4, 2022

Genres: Historical Fiction, Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 576

Format: Paperback

Source: Publishers Group Canada

Book Rating: 8.5/10

A house full of secrets lies at the heart of this absorbing family drama that is perfect for the winter months, from Sunday Times top ten bestselling author Lulu Taylor.

Where is Sylla? Why will no one tell me where she is?

Helen is married to Angus, the younger of the Ballintyre brothers. They met as students and Helen fell in love, not just with Angus but with the romantic Ballintyre family and their beautiful house on the edge of a loch. But marriage to Angus has not proved happy.

Now, years later and with a family, Helen and Angus have been forced to move back to live at Ballintyre with his older brother, Charlie. Helen is surprised to find that Sylla, Charlie’s wife, has disappeared and no one seems to know where she is. Helen is worried, not least because Charlie and Sylla lost their teenage daughter, Rose, only a year before. Surely someone should be looking for her . . .

Sylla Ballintyre has spent her life ministering to her husband, Charlie, and coping with the presence of his overbearing mother, Josephine, until the tragedy of losing Rose drained her happiness away. When she stumbles on the path to freedom, she knows she must take it, whatever the cost.

As Helen struggles with the fallout of recent events and its effect on her life, Ballintyre House becomes the setting for revelations of love, obsession and betrayal that have resonated beyond the present and into the past, affecting the lives of all those who have called it home.

Review:

Brooding, nostalgic, and heart-tugging!

A Winter Memory is predominantly set in the Scottish countryside during the late 1960s, as well as present day, and is told from two different perspectives, Tigs, a young woman struggling with the feelings she has for her childhood friend even after he goes off and marries someone else, and Helen, a wife and mother who finds her life unexpectedly turned upside down when her husband loses his job, they relocate to his family’s estate, and her sister-in-law seems to have up and disappeared without a trace.

The writing is descriptive and smooth. The characters are multilayered, secretive, and troubled. And the plot, including all the subplots, unravel and intertwine seamlessly into a mysterious tale filled with life, loss, secrets, betrayal, lies, obsession, friendship, misdirection, and unrequited love.

Overall, A Winter Memory is another atmospheric, rich, multi-generational family saga by Taylor that kept me engaged and entertained from the very first page and reminded me that life can be complicated, messy, challenging, too short, and often terribly heartbreaking.

 

This novel is available now.

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

         

 

 

Thank you to Publishers Group Canada for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Lulu Taylor

Lulu Taylor moved around the world as a child before her family settled in the Oxfordshire countryside. She studied English at Oxford University and had a successful career in publishing before becoming a writer. Her first novel, Heiresses was published in 2007 and nominated for the RNA Readers' Choice award. It was followed by Midnight Girls, Beautiful Creatures, Outrageous Fortune, The Winter Folly, The Snow Angel, The Winter Children, and The Snow Rose. She lives in Dorset, England, with her husband and two children.

Photograph by Alicia Clarke.

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#BookReview Neon Gods by Katee Robert @katee_robert @SourcebooksCasa #KateeRobert #NeonGods #DarkOlympus #SourcebooksCasa

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#BookReview Neon Gods by Katee Robert @katee_robert @SourcebooksCasa #KateeRobert #NeonGods #DarkOlympus #SourcebooksCasa Title: Neon Gods

Author: Katee Robert

Series: Dark Olympus #1

Published by: Sourcebooks Casablanca on Jun. 1, 2021

Genres: Contemporary Romance, Fantasy

Pages: 380

Format: Paperback

Source: Sourcebooks Casablanca

Book Rating: 8.5/10

He was supposed to be a myth. But from the moment I crossed the River Styx and fell under his dark spell… he was, quite simply, mine.

Society darling Persephone Dimitriou plans to flee the ultra-modern city of Olympus and start over far from the backstabbing politics of the Thirteen Houses. But all that’s ripped away when her mother ambushes her with an engagement to Zeus, the dangerous power behind their glittering city’s dark facade.

With no options left, Persephone flees to the forbidden undercity and makes a devil’s bargain with a man she once believed a myth… a man who awakens her to a world she never knew existed.

Hades has spent his life in the shadows, and he has no intention of stepping into the light. But when he finds that Persephone can offer a little slice of the revenge he’s spent years craving, it’s all the excuse he needs to help her—for a price. Yet every breathless night spent tangled together has given Hades a taste for Persephone, and he’ll go to war with Olympus itself to keep her close…

A modern retelling of Hades and Persephone that’s as sinful as it is sweet.

Review:

Titillating, edgy, and unique!

Neon Gods is a dramatic, spicy retelling that takes you on a journey into the life of Persephone Dimitriou, the dutiful, intelligent daughter of Demeter who, after finding out her marriage to the cruel, ancient Zeus has been arranged, flees to the only place she thinks she’ll be safe, across the River Styx, into the arms of the one man she never believed truly existed, the devilishly handsome, darkly sexy Hades.

The writing is sultry and smooth. The characters are intense, impulsive, and brazen. And the tantalizing, alluring plot is filled with desire, temptation, danger, deception, mystique, palpable attraction, sizzling chemistry, violence, and erotic sex scenes.

Overall, Neon Gods is an intriguing, seductive, mystical tale by Robert that had just the right amount of mystery, steam, mythology characters, and bad boy vibes to keep me engaged from start to finish. As most of you know, I don’t read a lot of fantasy, and I have never read a novel by Katee Robert before, but I have to tell you I really enjoyed this one, and I can’t wait to read what happens in Dark Olympus next.

 

This novel is available now.

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

         

 

Thank you to Sourcebooks Casablanca for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Katee Robert

Katee Robert is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of contemporary romance and romantic suspense. Entertainment Weekly calls her writing “unspeakably hot.” Her books have sold over a million copies. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband, children, a cat who thinks he’s a dog, and two Great Danes who think they’re lap dogs.

Photo courtesy of Author's Website.

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