Format: Paperback

#BookReview Emma of 83rd Street by Audrey Bellezza & Emily Harding @SimonSchusterCA @GalleryBooks #Emmaof83rdStreet #AudreyBellezza #EmilyHarding #SimonSchusterCA

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#BookReview Emma of 83rd Street by Audrey Bellezza & Emily Harding @SimonSchusterCA @GalleryBooks #Emmaof83rdStreet #AudreyBellezza #EmilyHarding #SimonSchusterCA Title: Emma of 83rd Street

Author: Audrey Bellezza, Emily Harding

Published by: Gallery Books on May 23, 2023

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 384

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Simon & Schuster Canada

Book Rating: 9/10

In this witty and romantic debut novel, Jane Austen’s Emma meets the misadventures of Manhattan’s modern dating scene as two lifelong friends discover that, in the search for love, you sometimes don’t have to look any further than your own backyard.

Beautiful, clever, and rich, Emma Woodhouse has lived twenty-three years in her tight-knit Upper East Side neighborhood with very little to distress or vex her…that is, until her budding matchmaking hobby results in her sister’s marriage—and subsequent move downtown. Now, with her sister gone and all her friends traveling abroad, Emma must start her final year of grad school grappling with an entirely new emotion: boredom. So when she meets Nadine, a wide-eyed Ohio transplant with a heart of gold and drugstore blonde highlights to match, Emma not only sees a potential new friend but a new project. If only her overbearing neighbor George Knightley would get out of her way.

Handsome, smart, and successful, the only thing that frustrates Knightley more than a corked whiskey is his childhood friend, Emma. Whether it’s her shopping sprees between classes or her revolving door of ill-conceived hobbies, he is only too happy to lecture her on all the finer points of adulthood she’s so hell-bent on ignoring. But despite his gripes—and much to his own chagrin—Knightley can’t help but notice that the girl next door is a woman now…one who he suddenly can’t get out of his head.

As Emma’s best laid plans collide with everyone from hipster baristas to meddling family members to flaky playboy millionaires, these two friends slowly realize their need to always be right has been usurped by a new need entirely, and it’s not long before they discover that even the most familiar stories still have some surprises.

Review:

Fresh, uplifting, and spicy!

Emma of 83rd Street is a charming, engaging tale that takes us to NYC and into the life of the kind, trendy Emma Woodhouse as she makes new friends, nears graduation, seeks to obtain the career of her dreams, relies a little too heavily on her overconfident matchmaking skills, and navigates a growing attraction to the boy next door who only sees her as a friend who still needs to do a little growing up.

The writing style is witty and sharp. The characters are amusing, layered, and supportive. And the plot is a smart, engaging tale full of tricky moments, awkward situations, quirky mishaps, delicious chemistry, snappy banter, romantic drama, glitz, glamour, tension, friendship, and self-reflection.

Overall, Emma of 83rd Street is an enjoyable, entertaining, modern retelling of Jane Austen’s Emma that’s an outstanding debut by Bellezza & Harding with its endearing characters, heartfelt moments, contemporary storyline, and ending that leaves you with a smile.

 

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 Audrey Bellezza

Audrey Bellezza is a two-time Emmy-nominated TV producer who has spent over twenty years writing, developing, and executive producing nonfiction television shows for a number of networks and streaming platforms. Audrey lives in New Jersey with her husband and two children.

Photography by Monika Normand

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About Emily Harding

Emily Harding is a writer and TV producer whose work has appeared on numerous networks and websites. When not hunched over her computer working on her bad posture, she can be found losing another game of Monopoly to her husband and two kids.

Photography by Monika Normand

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#BookReview Funny Guy by Emma Barry @AuthorEmmaBarry @KayePublicity @KayePublicity @AmazonPub #FunnyGuy #EmmaBarry #Montlake #KayePublicity

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#BookReview Funny Guy by Emma Barry @AuthorEmmaBarry @KayePublicity @KayePublicity @AmazonPub #FunnyGuy #EmmaBarry #Montlake #KayePublicity Title: Funny Guy

Author: Emma Barry

Published by: Montlake Romance on May 16, 2023

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 271

Format: Paperback

Source: Kaye Publicity

Book Rating: 7.5/10

From the author of Chick Magnet comes a heartfelt friends-to-lovers story about what can happen when a funny guy and his childhood best friend are stuck together in a small New York City apartment.

Sam can’t escape the smash hit “Lost Boy” because, well, he is the lost boy. His pop-singer ex immortalized him in a song about his childish ways, and now his comedy career is on the line.

At least he still has Bree, his best friend and confidante. Bree has always been there for Sam, but she’s never revealed her biggest secret: she’s in love with him. To help herself move on, Bree applies for her dream job across the country―and doesn’t say a thing to Sam.

But as Sam tries to resuscitate his career, he turns to Bree for support―and maybe more. In the confines of her tiny apartment, they share a different dynamic. A charged dynamic. But she’s his friend. He can’t be falling for her.

Except he is.

Are his feelings for Bree just funny business? Or is their smoldering attraction the real deal?

Review:

Witty, optimistic, and sweet!

Funny Guy is an uplifting, layered tale that mixes the kind, hardworking Bree, who may finally have to come to grips with the fact that her childhood best friend doesn’t love her in the same way she loves him, and Sam, the hotheaded, impulsive comedian who seems to use his tortured past and feelings of worthlessness to continually try to destroy his successful career and any relationships that could be long-lasting.

The writing is warm and charming. The characters are patient, supportive, and scarred. And the plot is a delightful mix of life, love, friendship, chemistry, attraction, heartfelt moments, introspection, taking chances, and moving on.

Overall, Funny Guy is a captivating, tender, quick read by Barry that did a wonderful job of mixing heavier issues with some lighthearted fun.

 

This book is available now.

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

     

 

 

Thank you to Kaye Publicity for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Emma Barry

Emma Barry is a teacher, novelist, recovering academic, and former political staffer. She lives with her high school sweetheart and a menagerie of pets and children in Virginia, and she occasionally finds time to read and write.

Photo courtesy of Author's Website.

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#BookReview The True Love Experiment by Christina Lauren @christinalauren @SimonSchusterCA @GalleryBooks #TheTrueLoveExperiment #ChristinaLauren #SimonSchusterCA

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#BookReview The True Love Experiment by Christina Lauren @christinalauren @SimonSchusterCA @GalleryBooks #TheTrueLoveExperiment #ChristinaLauren #SimonSchusterCA Title: The True Love Experiment

Author: Christina Lauren

Published by: Gallery Books on May 16, 2023

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 416

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Simon & Schuster Canada

Book Rating: 10/10

Sparks fly when a romance novelist and a documentary filmmaker join forces to craft the perfect Hollywood love story and take both of their careers to the next level—but only if they can keep the chemistry between them from taking the whole thing off script.

Felicity “Fizzy” Chen is lost. Sure, she’s got an incredible career as a beloved romance novelist with a slew of bestsellers under her belt, but when she’s asked to give a commencement address, it hits her: she hasn’t been practicing what she’s preached.

Fizzy hasn’t ever really been in love. Lust? Definitely. But that swoon-worthy, can’t-stop-thinking-about-him, all-encompassing feeling? Nope. Nothing. What happens when the optimism she’s spent her career encouraging in readers starts to feel like a lie?

Connor Prince, documentary filmmaker and single father, loves his work in large part because it allows him to live near his daughter. But when his profit-minded boss orders him to create a reality TV show, putting his job on the line, Connor is out of his element. Desperate to find his romantic lead, a chance run-in with an exasperated Fizzy offers Connor the perfect solution. What if he could show the queen of romance herself falling head-over-heels for all the world to see? Fizzy gives him a hard pass—unless he agrees to her list of demands. When he says yes, and production on The True Love Experimentbegins, Connor wonders if that perfect match will ever be in the cue cards for him, too.

The True Love Experiment is the book fans have been waiting for ever since Fizzy’s debut in The Soulmate Equation. But when the lights come on and all eyes are on her, it turns out the happily ever after Fizzy had all but given up on might lie just behind the camera.

Review:

Charming, witty, and addictive!

The True Love Experiment is an amusing, heart-tugging tale that takes you into the life of Felicity Chen, a successful romance writer who, after realizing she has never truly been in love, reluctantly agrees to be the star of a new bachelor-type show based on her best friend’s DNA technology even if it means working closely with Connor Prince, the single father and documentary filmmaker who may find something he never knew he was actually looking for while producing a reality show he only agreed to do to save his career.

The writing style is humorous and crisp. The characters are fun, charming, quirky, and endearing. And the plot is an irresistible, enchanting mix of life, love, drama, friendship, emotion, snappy dialogue, hilarious hijinks, smouldering chemistry, tender moments, and steamy romance.

Overall, The True Love Experiment is pure magic. It’s a light, funny, entertaining read that’s deliciously swoon-worthy, undoubtedly one of my favourite reads of the year, and even though I never thought I’d say it, may have finally knocked The Unhoneymooners from the top spot on my list of favourite novels written by this amazing duo.

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 Christina Lauren

Christina Lauren is the combined penname of longtime writing partners/best friends Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings, the New York Times, USA TODAY, and #1 International bestselling authors of The Beautiful and Wild Seasons series, Dating You/Hating You, Roomies, Love and Other Words, Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating, and the critically acclaimed Autoboyography.

Photograph by Alyssa Michelle.

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#BookReview The Boyfriend Candidate by Ashley Winstead @ashleywinstead @KayePublicity @HarlequinBooks #TheBoyfriendCandidate #AshleyWinstead #GraydonHouseBooks #KayePublicity

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#BookReview The Boyfriend Candidate by Ashley Winstead @ashleywinstead @KayePublicity @HarlequinBooks #TheBoyfriendCandidate #AshleyWinstead #GraydonHouseBooks #KayePublicity Title: The Boyfriend Candidate

Author: Ashley Winstead

Published by: Graydon House on May 9, 2023

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 384

Format: Paperback

Source: Kaye Publicity

Book Rating: 8.5/10

A laugh-out-loud rom-com about learning to embrace living outside your comfort zone.

As a shy school librarian, Alexis Stone is comfortable keeping out of the spotlight. But when she’s dumped for being too meek—in bed!—the humiliation is a wake-up call. She decides she needs to change, and what better way to kick-start her new more adventurous life than with her first one-night stand?

Enter Logan, the gorgeous, foul-mouthed stranger she meets at a hotel bar. Logan is audacious and filterless, making him Alexis’s opposite—and boy, do opposites attract! Just as she’s about to fulfill her hookup wish, the hotel catches fire in a freak lightning storm—and in their rush to escape, Logan is discovered carrying her into the street, where people are waiting with cameras. Cameras Logan promptly—and shockingly—flees.

Alexis is bewildered until breaking news hits: pictures of her and Logan escaping the fire are all over the internet. It turns out Logan is none other than Logan Arthur, the hotshot politician challenging the Texas governor’s seat. The salacious images are poised to sink his career—and jeopardize Alexis’s job—until a solution is proposed: to squash the scandal, he and Alexis could pretend to be in a relationship until election day…in two months. What could possibly go wrong?

Review:

Clever, engaging, and sassy!

The Boyfriend Candidate is a flirty, feel-good tale about the hardworking, timid Alexis Stone who, after deciding to embark on a one-night stand after having her confidence shattered by an ex, finds her world turned upside down when her date turns out to be none other than Logan Arthur, the latest candidate for governor of Texas, and for the benefit of both their reputations and the political campaign agrees to fake date him until the election is over.

The prose is witty and sharp. The characters are focused, amusing, and driven. And the plot is a lighthearted, funny blend of life, love, introspection, friendship, secrets, deception, awkward situations, sweet moments and taking chances.

Overall, The Boyfriend Candidate is another charming, touching, delightful tale by Winstead that I thoroughly enjoyed and which, in my opinion, is the perfect choice for anyone who loves a good romcom that has a whole lot of hope, heart, and humour.

 

This book is available now.

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

 

         

 

 

Thank you to Kaye Publicity for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Ashley Winstead

Ashley Winstead holds a Ph.D. in contemporary American literature from Southern Methodist University and a B.A. in English and Art History from Vanderbilt University. She lives in Houston, TX, where she drinks red wine and dreams up novels.

Photo by Luis Noble.

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#BookReview Dark Succession by Katee Robert @readforeverpub @grandcentralpub #ReadForever #ReadForever2023 #KateeRobert #DarkSuccession #TheOMalleysSeries

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#BookReview Dark Succession by Katee Robert @readforeverpub @grandcentralpub #ReadForever #ReadForever2023 #KateeRobert #DarkSuccession #TheOMalleysSeries Title: Dark Succession

Author: Katee Robert

Series: The O'Malleys #1

Published by: Forever on May 9, 2023

Genres: Contemporary Romance, Romantic Suspense

Pages: 336

Format: Paperback

Source: Forever

Book Rating: 8/10

The New York Timesbestselling author of Radiant Sin delivers a smoking hot series about the O’Malley family—wealthy, powerful, dangerous and seething with scandal.

Teague O’Malley hates everything associated with his family’s name. And when his father orders him to marry Callista Sheridan to create a “business” alliance, Teague’s ready to cut ties once and for all. But then Teague actually meets Callista, sees the bruises on her neck and the trauma in her eyes and vows he will do everything in his power to avenge her.

Everyone knows the O’Malleys are dangerous. But Callie wasn’t prepared for his brand of lethal grace and coiled power. His slightest touch scorches through her. But the closer they get, the more trouble they’re in. Because Callie’s keeping a dark secret—and what Teague doesn’t know could get him killed.

Previously published as The Marriage Contract.

Review:

Menacing, sultry, and romantic!

Dark Succession is a provocative, edgy tale that takes you into the lives of two main characters, Callista Sheridan, a young woman with little to say in who she will marry when her father is determined to use his last living heir to form a strong alliance with one of the other more powerful Boston families, and the handsome, intelligent Teague who would be more than happy to have absolutely nothing to do with any of his families illegal and nefarious underworld activities.

The writing is crisp and taut. The characters are relentless, committed, and powerful. And the story starts with a bang and never lets up as it takes you on a suspenseful thrill ride full of twists, turns, deception, familial drama, tender moments, red-hot chemistry, violence, and mafia rivalry.

Overall, Dark Succession is a dark, action-packed, passionate tale by Robert that kept me on my toes, packed a good punch of spice, and ultimately left me intrigued for a little more O’Malleys.

 

This novel is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from the following link.

     

 

 

Thank you to Forever & Grand Central Publishing for providing me with 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 The Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry @pcalhenry @SimonSchusterCA @AtriaBooks #TheSecretBookofFloraLea #PattiCallahanHenry #SimonSchusterCA

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#BookReview The Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry @pcalhenry @SimonSchusterCA @AtriaBooks #TheSecretBookofFloraLea #PattiCallahanHenry #SimonSchusterCA Title: The Secret Book of Flora Lea

Author: Patti Callahan Henry

Published by: Atria Books on May 2, 2023

Genres: Historical Fiction

Pages: 368

Format: Paperback

Source: Simon & Schuster Canada

Book Rating: 9/10

From the New York Times bestselling author of Becoming Mrs. Lewis comes a “heartrending, captivating tale of family, first love, and fate” (Kristin Harmel, New York Times bestselling author) about a woman who stumbles across a mysterious children’s book that holds secrets about her missing sister and their childhood spent in the English countryside during World War II.

1939: Fourteen-year-old Hazel and five-year-old Flora evacuate their London home for a rural village to escape the horrors of the Second World War. Living with the Aberdeen family in a charming stone cottage, Hazel distracts her younger sister with a fairy tale about a magical land, a secret place they can escape to that is all their Whisperwood.

But the unthinkable happens when Flora suddenly vanishes after playing near the banks of the River Thames. Shattered, Hazel blames herself for her sister’s disappearance, carrying the guilt into adulthood.

Twenty years later, Hazel is back in London, ready to move on from her job at a cozy rare bookstore for a career at Sotheby’s. With a cherished boyfriend and an upcoming Paris getaway, her future seems set. But her tidy life is turned upside down when she unwraps a package containing a picture book called Whisperwood and the River of Stars . Hazel never told a soul about the storybook world she created just for Flora. Could this book hold the secrets to her beloved sister’s disappearance? Could it be a sign that Flora is still alive after all these years? Or is something sinister at play?

Inspired by the history of the Pied Piper Children, this novel is a poignant reminder of the magical power of stories to draw us together—and ultimately bring us home.

Review:

Enchanting, moving, and absorbing!

The Secret Book of Flora Lea is a captivating, poignant tale set in England during 1939, as well as 1960, that takes you into the lives of the Linden family, especially two sisters, Hazel, a teenage girl who uses her imagination and storytelling to fascinate and entertain, and Flora, a young child who loves to get lost in the magical worlds and adventures her big sister creates, whose lives are unimaginably changed forever when they are sent to the British countryside to escape the dangers of living in London during wartime.

The prose is eloquent and expressive. The characters are flawed, tormented, and optimistic. And the plot is an exceptionally touching tale about life, loss, family, secrets, separation, desperation, grief, friendship, tragedy, the magic of storytelling, and first love.

Overall, The Secret Book of Flora Lea is a captivating, emotional, beautifully written tale by Henry inspired by real-life events that does a wonderful job of highlighting the importance and power of the written word to allow us to connect, escape, dream, uplift, and provide hope in even the direst of situations.

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 Patti Callahan Henry

Patti Callahan Henry is a New York Times bestselling author of thirteen novels, including the upcoming BECOMING MRS. LEWIS – The Improbable Love Story of Joy Davidman and C.S. Lewis. A finalist in the Townsend Prize for Fiction, an Indie Next Pick, an OKRA pick, and a multiple nominee for the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance (SIBA) Novel of the Year, Patti is a frequent speaker at luncheons, book clubs and women’s groups. The mother of three children, she now lives in both Mountain Brook, Alabama and Bluffton, South Carolina with her husband.

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#BookReview Exodus by Kate Stewart @authorklstewart @PGCBooks @panmacmillan #Exodus #TheRavenhoodSeries #KateStewart #PGCBooks

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#BookReview Exodus by Kate Stewart @authorklstewart @PGCBooks @panmacmillan #Exodus #TheRavenhoodSeries #KateStewart #PGCBooks Title: Exodus

Author: Kate Stewart

Series: The Ravenhood #2

Published by: Pan Macmillan on May 2, 2023

Genres: Contemporary Romance, Erotica, New Adult

Pages: 384

Format: Paperback

Source: Publishers Group Canada

Book Rating: 8/10

The second steamy book in the Ravenhood Trilogy by #BookTok sensation and bestseller Kate Stewart.

I did what thieves do. I stole you…

What Cecilia Horner had expected to be a dull year has already been the most exciting summer of her life after she met local bad boys Sean and Dominic and their relationship developed into something altogether more dangerous.

But she is left reeling from the discovery that they are members of The Ravenhood, a secret group of vigilantes. At the head of the society is a man known as the Frenchman and he doesn’t want Cecilia anywhere near his men or his mission.

She has every reason to hate him but there’s a fine line between love and hate. And if her time in Triple Falls has taught her anything, it’s one she’s more than willing to cross.

Review:

Provocative, edgy, and sinful!

Exodus is a dramatic, sultry tale that picks up right where Flock left off, taking us back into the life of nineteen-year-old Cecilia Horner as she juggles her feelings for Sean and Dominic, two members of the Ravenhood gang who are determined to right the wrongs of the past and take her father down, and the enigmatic leader of the group, The Frenchman, Tobias King who she wants to hate with everything she has but who she’s unconsciously drawn to like a moth to a flame.

The prose is tight and steamy. The characters are impulsive, multilayered, and consumed. And the plot is a deliciously salacious tale filled with temptation, desire, danger, deception, mystique, familial drama, palpable attraction, sizzling romance, violence, and malicious intentions.

Overall, Exodus is another dark, intriguing, titillating tale by Stewart that has certainly left me more than eager to now get my hands on the last book in this Ravenhood trilogy series, The Finish Line, to see just how dramatic and sexy this could possibly get before it comes to an end.

 

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

 

About Kate Stewart

Bestselling author and Texas native, Kate Stewart, lives in North Carolina with her husband, Nick. Kate is a lover of all things '80s and '90s, especially John Hughes films and rap. She dabbles a little in photography, can knit a simple stitch scarf for necessity, and on occasion, does very well at whiskey.
Her series, The Ravenhood Trilogy, consisting of Flock, Exodus, and The Finish Line, has become an international bestseller, TikTok phenomenon, and reader favourite.

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#BookReview The Nigerwife by Vanessa Walters @SimonSchusterCA @AtriaBooks #TheNigerwife #VanessaWalters #SimonSchusterCA

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#BookReview The Nigerwife by Vanessa Walters @SimonSchusterCA @AtriaBooks #TheNigerwife #VanessaWalters #SimonSchusterCA Title: The Nigerwife

Author: Vanessa Walters

Published by: Atria Books on May 2, 2023

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 320

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Simon & Schuster Canada

Book Rating: 8/10

This twisty and electrifying debut novel about a young woman who goes missing in Lagos, Nigeria, and her estranged auntie who will stop at nothing to find the truth is perfect for fans of My Sister, the Serial Killer and The Last Thing He Told Me.

Nicole Oruwari has the perfect life: a handsome husband, a palatial house in the heart of glittering Lagos, Nigeria, and a glamorous group of friends. She left gloomy London and a dark family past behind for sunny, moneyed Lagos, becoming part of the Nigerwives—a community of foreign women married to wealthy Nigerian men.

But when Nicole disappears without a trace after a boat trip, the cracks in her so-called perfect life start to show. As the investigation turns up nothing but dead ends, her Auntie Claudine decides to take matters into her own hands. Armed with only a cell phone and a plane ticket to Nigeria, she digs into her niece’s life and uncovers a hidden side filled with dark secrets, isolation, and even violence. But the more she discovers about her niece, the more Claudine’s own buried history threatens to come to light.

An inventively told and keenly observant thriller where nothing is as it seems, The Nigerwife is a razor-sharp look at the bonds of family, the echoing consequences of secrets, and whether we can ever truly outrun our past.

Review:

Sinister, simmering, and engrossing!

The Nigerwife is a sharp, slow-burning mystery that takes you into the life of Claudine as she heads to Lagos, Nigeria, to once and for all discover the fate of her missing, estranged niece, Nicole Oruwari, whose life in the past few years seems to have included a controlling extended family, a strained marriage, friends who liked to indulge in all the finer things of life, and a group of foreign women married to Nigerian men, known as the Nigerwives, who seem to be involved in much more than just charity work.

The writing is tight and intense. The characters are secretive, troubled, and multilayered. And the plot, told from alternating perspectives and using before and after timelines, is an ominous tale full of twists, turns, familial drama, secrets, lies, deception, infidelity, community, culture, societal expectations, relationship dynamics, reckless behaviour, swirling emotions, abuse, violence, vengeance, and murder.

Overall, The Nigerwife is an intricate, crafty, atmospheric read by Walters that captivated, satisfied, and highly entertained me and was a good reminder that things are never quite what they seem.

 

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 Vanessa Walters

Vanessa Walters was born and raised in London and has a background in international journalism and playwriting and is a Tin House resident and a Millay Colony resident. She is the author of two previous YA books and The Nigerwife. She currently lives in Brooklyn.

Photograph © Jerrie Rotimi

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#BookReview The Stolen Hours by Karen Swan @KarenSwan1 @PGCBooks @panmacmillan #TheStolenHours #TheWildIsleSeries #KarenSwan #PGCBooks

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#BookReview The Stolen Hours by Karen Swan @KarenSwan1 @PGCBooks @panmacmillan #TheStolenHours #TheWildIsleSeries #KarenSwan #PGCBooks Title: The Stolen Hours

Author: Karen Swan

Series: The Wild Isle #2

Published by: Pan Macmillan on May 2, 2023

Genres: Historical Fiction

Pages: 432

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Publishers Group Canada

Book Rating: 10/10

A reluctant bride. A forbidden romance. An island full of secrets . . .

It’s the summer of 1929 and Mhairi MacKinnon is in need of a husband. As the eldest girl among nine children, her father has made it clear he can’t support her past the coming winter. On the small, Scottish island of St Kilda, her options are limited. But the MacKinnons’ neighbour, Donald, has a business acquaintance on distant Harris also in need of a spouse. A plan is hatched for Donald to chaperone Mhairi and make the introduction on his final crossing of the year, before the autumn seas close them off to the outside world.

Mhairi returns as an engaged woman who has lost her heart – but not to her fiancé. In love with the wrong man yet knowing he can never be hers, she awaits the spring with growing dread, for the onset of calm waters will see her sent from home to become a stranger’s wife.

When word comes that St Kilda is to be evacuated, the lovers are granted a few months’ reprieve, enjoying a summer of stolen hours together. Only, those last days on St Kilda will also bring trauma and heartache for Mhairi and her friends, Effie and Flora. And when a dead body is later found on the abandoned isle, all three have reason enough to find themselves under the shadow of suspicion . . .

Review:

Absorbing, passionate, and thrilling!

The Stolen Hours is a compelling tale that sweeps you away to 1929 and into the life of Mhairi MacKinnon, one of Effie’s best friends and another one of the thirty-six inhabitants of the small island of St. Kilda, who, on her brief travels to Harris to meet the man she will likely become engaged to, realizes the one she truly loves but who is already sworn to another has always been living right beside her, and when the government decides to evacuate the island villagers and move them permanently to the mainland, time is running out, her new married life is about to begin, and with a heart shattered to pieces and the life she always wanted merely now but a dream she may also have more than one reason to want the de facto ruler of the island, Frank Mathieson, dead.

The writing is expressive and rich. The characters are hardworking, fierce, and loyal. And the plot is an enchanting tale of life, loss, family, friendship, community, drama, mystery, intrigue, responsibilities, expectations, heartbreak, and forbidden love.

Overall, The Stolen Hours is another mysterious, captivating, highly immersive tale by Swan that kept me engaged from start to finish with its rugged depictions of island living and layered, complex, romantic entanglements and even though it’s only the second book in The Wild Isle trilogy, I can already tell this is definitely going to be one of my favourite historical fiction series of all time.

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 Karen Swan

Karen Swan began her career in fashion journalism before giving it all up to raise her three children and a puppy, and to pursue her ambition of becoming a writer. She lives in the forest outside Sussex, England, writing her books in a treehouse overlooking the Downs.

An internationally bestselling author, her numerous books include The Rome Affair, The Paris Secret, Christmas Under the Stars, and The Christmas Secret. 

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#BookReview The Next Girl by Pip Drysdale @SimonSchusterCA #TheNextGirl #PipDrysdale #SimonSchusterCA

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#BookReview The Next Girl by Pip Drysdale @SimonSchusterCA #TheNextGirl #PipDrysdale #SimonSchusterCA Title: The Next Girl

Author: Pip Drysdale

Published by: Simon & Schuster on May 2, 2023

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 368

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Simon & Schuster Canada

Book Rating: 8.5/10

For fans of The Perfect Girlfriend, The Flight Attendant, and Promising Young Woman, a compulsively readable suspense novel about a woman who will stop at nothing to expose the dark secrets of a powerful man—with shocking results.

A bad day at work. A drunken night. A rogue Instagram follow. That’s all it takes to ruin a life…but whose life will be ruined?

When Billie wakes up in a strange guy’s bed, her first thought What happened last night? She can’t even remember meeting him. And how the hell did she get to Coney Island?

Then reality bites and the memories flood in—the reason she was in that bar drinking to start with was because today she’s going to get fired. Yesterday, her law firm lost a high-profile assault Samuel Grange v Jane Delaney. And it looked like it was her fault.

It wasn’t.

Yet now Samuel Grange is free to drive off into the sunset in his Porsche and do it all again to another woman. And all Billie can think What about the next girl? And the one after that?

But there is nothing she can do to stop him.

Unless…She could expose the truth about him on her own. Then everyone would see what he is really like. She could make sure he’ll never be able to do it again.

The problem is, the only way to protect the next girl is to become the next girl.

And, well, that could be a little risky…even deadly.

Review:

Dark, tight, and complex!

The Next Girl is an intense, edgy thriller that takes you into the life of Billie Spencer-Tate, a young paralegal with a knack for losing her day job, who after losing her mother to suicide due to an online troll, spends the majority of her time and effort using her high-tech knowledge and social media skills to hunt down, identify, select, and hand out her own style of justice to those men who abuse, prey, and gaslight women, with her latest target being the arrogant, despicable, dangerous Dr. Samuel Grange who she is determined to expose.

The prose is taut and gritty. The characters are consumed, unpredictable, and secretive. And the plot builds quickly as it twists, turns, shocks, surprises, and unravels all the personalities, behaviours, relationships, and motivations within it.

Overall, The Next Girl, at its core, is a novel about secrets, manipulation, friendship, coercion, obsession, control, cunning behaviour, tragedy, violence, and vengeance. It’s a highly suspenseful, exceptionally clever tale by Drysdale that highlights everything is not always as it appears and is definitely one of the most gripping page-turners I’ve been lucky enough to read this year.

 

This novel is available in paperback 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 Pip Drysdale

Pip Drysdale is a writer, musician and actor who grew up in Africa and Australia. At 20 she moved to New York to study acting, worked in indie films and off-off Broadway theatre, started writing songs and made four records. After graduating with a BA in English, Pip moved to London where she played shows across Europe and started writing books. Her debut novel, The Sunday Girl, was a bestseller and has been published in the United States, Italy, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The Strangers We Know was also a bestseller and is being developed for television. The Paris Affair is her third book.

Photo courtesy of Author's Goodreads Page.

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