Format: Paperback

#BookReview Just Beachy by Wendy Wax @BerkleyRomance @PenguinRandomCA #JustBeachy #WendyWax #Berkley #BerkleyPartner #PenguinReads

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#BookReview Just Beachy by Wendy Wax @BerkleyRomance @PenguinRandomCA #JustBeachy #WendyWax #Berkley #BerkleyPartner #PenguinReads Title: Just Beachy

Author: Wendy Wax

Published by: Berkley on Jun. 3, 2025

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 304

Format: Paperback

Source: Berkley Publishing

Book Rating: 7.5/10

After losing her long-time acting gig on the hit show Murder 101, Sydney Ryan decides she needs a break from Hollywood politics. She heads to Treasure Island, Florida where her grandmother has been visiting and now refuses to leave. Sydney’s plan to lay low for a bit quickly goes awry though, as she is swept up in her grandmother’s now flourishing social life—Grand not only bought a new house in Casas de Flores, she’s also helping her neighbor Myra open a bookstore in Pass-a-Grille. But when someone breaks into Grand’s house repeatedly Sydney realizes her grandmother is keeping something from her.
 
Determined to ferret out the truth and protect her grandmother, Sydney enlists the help of the Ten Beach Road ladies and Luke, a local police officer who was once her high school crush. While Sydney puts her television crime solving skills to the test, she decides to act on the sizzling chemistry between her and Luke. And as Sydney spends more sunsets toasting to true friends and new romance, she begins to wonder if the sun is setting on her time in Hollywood and if this town could be the dawn of a new chapter.

Review:

Spirited, enticing, and witty!

Just Beachy is an amusing, engaging tale featuring the unmoored actress Sydney Ryan who, after being dumped from her long-running series, heads to Florida to hang out with her grandmother, only to discover that something sinister is going on and she may need some help from her old high school flame to figure out exactly what it is.

The prose is light and sweet. The characters are intelligent, relentless, and impulsive. And the plot is a flirty, entertaining blend of friendship, family, chemistry, attraction, tricky situations, self-discovery, family, intrigue, happiness, and romance.

Overall, Just Beachy is a charming, humorous, breezy tale by Wax that did a wonderful job of mixing a sliver of mystery with some lighthearted, romantic fun.

 

This novel is available now.

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

         

 

 

Thank you to Berkley Romance for this free copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Wendy Wax

Wendy Wax, a former broadcaster, is the author of sixteen novels and two novellas, including The Break-Up Book Club, My Ex–Best Friend’s Wedding, Best Beach Ever, One Good Thing, Sunshine Beach, A Week at the Lake, While We Were Watching Downton Abbey, The House on Mermaid Point, Ocean Beach, and Ten Beach Road. The mother of two grown sons, she has left the suburbs of Atlanta for an in-town high-rise, that is eerily similar to the fictional high-rise she created in her 2013 release, While We Were Watching Downton Abbey.

Photo by Joanna Souza

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#BookReview Falling Overboard by Sariah Wilson @sariahwilson @FireflyDist @AmazonPub #FallingOverboard #SariahWilson #Montlake #FireflyDist

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#BookReview Falling Overboard by Sariah Wilson @sariahwilson @FireflyDist @AmazonPub #FallingOverboard #SariahWilson #Montlake #FireflyDist Title: Falling Overboard

Author: Sariah Wilson

Published by: Montlake Romance on Mar. 18, 2025

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 383

Format: Paperback

Source: Firefly Distributed Lines

Book Rating: 8/10

Lucky Salerno’s dream is to own a bakery. To earn enough money to achieve it, she has secured a lucrative job as chief stewardess on a superyacht cruising the Mediterranean. Aboard the ship, there’s one unbreakable no hookups among the crew. No problem. The last thing Lucky has time for is a man. Then she meets Hunter Smith, the gorgeous new deckhand sharing her cabin. Is the universe trying to test her willpower?

Who needs the drama that comes with a relationship? Not Hunter. Who can ignore a witty, beautiful bunkmate like Lucky? Also not Hunter. There’s something just as enticing for a tantalizing mystery behind Hunter’s piercing blue eyes she can’t wait to solve. But at what risk?

As they get to know each other, a secret romance buds at sea, and Lucky has to choose. Abide by the rules to make her career dreams come true, or pursue her love for Hunter—another dream that’s just as near to her heart.

Review:

Amusing, tender, and romantic!

Falling Overboard is a sweet, captivating tale featuring the hardworking, dependable Lucky and the handsome, enigmatic Hunter as they discover while working on the open sea that there may be a lot more to their relationship than instant attraction, forced proximity, and strict rules that might just have to be broken.

The writing is light and fun. The characters are endearing, guarded, and reliable. And the plot is a charming mix of life, love, friendship, family, light drama, self-discovery, and responsibilities.

Overall, Falling Overboard is another cute, cosy, entertaining tale by Wilson that was an absolute delight to read.

 

This novel is available now.

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

     

 

 

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

 

About Sariah Wilson

USA Today bestselling author Sariah Wilson has never jumped out of an airplane, never climbed Mt. Everest, and is not a former CIA operative. She has, however, been madly, passionately in love with her soulmate and is a fervent believer in happily ever afters—which is why she writes romance. She grew up in southern California, graduated from Brigham Young University (go Cougars!) with a semi-useless degree in history, and is the oldest of nine (yes, nine) children . She currently lives with the aforementioned soulmate and their four children in Utah, along with two cats named Pixel and Callie, who do not get along. (The cats, not the children. Although the children sometimes have their issues, too.)

Photo courtesy of Author's Website.

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#BookReview Wandering Wild by Lynette Noni @BlackstoneAudio #LynetteNoni #WanderingWild #BlackstonePublishing #BlackstoneInsiders

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#BookReview Wandering Wild by Lynette Noni @BlackstoneAudio #LynetteNoni #WanderingWild #BlackstonePublishing #BlackstoneInsiders Title: Wandering Wild

Author: Lynette Noni

Published by: Blackstone Publishing on May 20, 2025

Genres: Contemporary Romance, Young Adult

Pages: 304

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Blackstone Publishing

Book Rating: 8.5/10

She hates him. He needs her. Can they survive when all they have is each other?

Zander Rune was the darling of Hollywood until he fell from glory and was labelled a problematic bad boy. His public image needs fixing—fast—or he’ll lose the role of a lifetime, and all his dreams with it.

Charlie Hart is a regular teenage girl who despises everything Zander represents. But thanks to her scheming best friend and an ill-timed social media competition, Charlie finds herself pretending to be Zander’s biggest fan on a four-day reality TV adventure led by renowned survivalist Rykon Hawke.

When their trip goes horribly wrong, Charlie and Zander are left stranded in the wilderness. No Rykon, no film crew, no rescue. The only way they’ll survive is if they trust each other. But in order to do so, both will have to let go of the ghosts of their pasts, and just maybe find themselves—and one another—in the process.

Review:

Sweet, tender, and light!

Wandering Wild is a bighearted, charming tale that takes you on a journey into the lives of a young movie star and the best friend of one of his biggest fans as, in order to help fix his reputation and solidify his next movie contract, they must learn to rely on each other to survive the Australian wilderness for four days.

The writing is witty and smooth. The characters are hesitant, charming, and supportive. And the plot is an engaging, lovely blend of heart, hope, humour, and emotion.

Overall, Wandering Wild is, ultimately, a story about life, friendship, family, coming-of-age, self-discovery, tragedy, loss, grief, heartbreak, awkward situations, embarrassing moments, dreams, secrets, and the joys of falling in love. It’s a cute, heartwarming, entertaining novel by Noni that’s also a true love letter to the Australian Blue Mountains.

 

This novel is available now.

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

        

 

 

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

 

About Lynette Noni

Australian author Lynette Noni studied journalism, academic writing, and human behaviour at university before venturing into the world of fiction. She is the #1 bestselling and award-winning author of The Prison Healer series, The Medoran Chronicles, and the Whisper duology. To date, her books have sold more than one million copies in over 20 countries across the globe.

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#BookReview Letters from Strangers by Susan Walter @FireflyDist @AmazonPub #LettersFromStrangers #SusanWalter #LakeUnion #FireflyDist

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#BookReview Letters from Strangers by Susan Walter @FireflyDist @AmazonPub #LettersFromStrangers #SusanWalter #LakeUnion #FireflyDist Title: Letters from Strangers

Author: Susan Walter

Published by: Lake Union Publishing on May 27, 2025

Genres: General Fiction, Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 310

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Firefly Distributed Lines

Book Rating: 9/10

Jane’s father is far from perfect. But his sudden death brings crushing grief. As Jane grapples with her pain, life delivers another a stack of letters pointing to a secret life. A life her father shared with another woman…who may have had his child.

Across the country, sixteen-year-old Adam is self-destructing. His adoptive parents never intended to show him the unsigned letters from his birth mother, but he is desperate for answers, even if they hurt.

Jane and Adam are on a collision course, but not for the reasons we might suspect. Because the letters do not tell the whole story. What is true is that Adam and Jane are both looking for a woman who does not want to be found.

A family saga spanning two decades, this emotional story explores how good things can grow from the ashes of old scars.

Review:

Compelling, engaging, and heartfelt!

Letters from Strangers is an immersive, moving tale that takes you into the lives of two main characters. Jane, a young woman who, while grappling to come to grips with the sudden death of her father, has her world turned upside down when she stumbles across a bunch of letters that shatter her illusion of him, and Adam, a teenage boy who is stuck in a downward mental spiral due to his conflicting feelings about familial expectations, his emerging sexuality, and the facts surrounding his adoption.

The prose is sensitive and sincere. The characters are vulnerable, troubled, and consumed. And the plot is a captivating tale of life, loss, family, grief, friendship, self-discovery, revelations, strained relationships, and forgiveness.

Overall, Letters from Strangers is a hopeful, tender, heart-tugging tale by Walter that reminds us that families are complicated and messy, the choices we make often have far-reaching consequences, and secrets often find their way to the surface no matter how well they’re hidden.

 

This novel is available now.

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

      

 

 

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

 

About Susan Walter

Susan Walter is the author of Good as Dead and Over Her Dead Body. She was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts. After being given every opportunity but failing to become a concert violinist, Susan attended Harvard University. She had hoped to be a newscaster, but the local TV station had different ideas and hired her to write and produce promos instead. Seeking sunshine and a change of scenery, she moved to Los Angeles to work in film and television production. Upon realizing writers were having all the fun, Susan transitioned to screenwriting, then directing. She made her directorial debut with the film All I Wish starring Sharon Stone, which she also wrote.

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#BookReview Problematic Summer Romance @PenguinRandomCA @BerkleyRomance #NotInLoveSeries #ProblematicSummerRomance #AliHazelwood #Berkley #BerkleyPartner #PenguinReads

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#BookReview Problematic Summer Romance @PenguinRandomCA @BerkleyRomance #NotInLoveSeries #ProblematicSummerRomance #AliHazelwood #Berkley #BerkleyPartner #PenguinReads Title: Problematic Summer Romance

Author: Ali Hazelwood

Series: Not in Love #2

Published by: Berkley on May 27, 2025

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 416

Format: Paperback

Source: Berkley Publishing

Book Rating: 10/10

What is wrong meets what feels right in this romance set in Italy by the New York Timesbestselling author of Deep End.

Maya Killgore is twenty-three and still in the process of figuring out her life.

Conor Harkness is thirty-eight, and Maya cannot stop thinking about him.

It’s such a cliché, it almost makes her heart implode: older man and younger woman; successful biotech guy and struggling grad student; brother’s best friend and the girl he never even knew existed. As Conor loves to remind her, the power dynamic is too imbalanced. Any relationship between them would be problematic in too many ways to count, and Maya should just get over him. After all, he has made it clear that he wants her gone from his life.

But not everything is as it seems—and clichés sometimes become plot twists.

When Maya’s brother decides to get married in Taormina, she and Conor end up stuck together in a romantic Sicilian villa for over a week. There, on the beautiful Ionian coast, between ancient ruins, delicious foods, and natural caves, Maya realizes that Conor might be hiding something from her. And as the destination wedding begins to erupt out of control, she decides that a summer fling might be just what she needs—even if it’s a problematic one.

Review:

Sultry, entertaining, and sweet!

Problematic Summer Romance is a passionate, charming tale that mixes the feisty, intelligent Maya, who’s determined once and for all to show her brother’s best friend she’s the perfect one for him, and the delectable, successful Conor, who still won’t allow himself to act on his feelings for his best friend’s little sister because of the fifteen-year age gap.

The writing is titillating and crisp. The characters, including all the supporting characters, are fun-loving and engaging. And the plot sweeps you away into a sassy, push-pull storyline filled with life, loss, witty banter, shameless flirting, sizzling chemistry, friendship, family, romance, light drama, and responsibilities.

Overall, Problematic Summer Romance is a fabulous read to kick off summer 2025. I loved the characters, I loved the storyline, and I loved the swoon-worthy happy-ever-after ending!

 

This novel is available now.

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

         

 

 

Thank you to Berkley Romance for this free 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.

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#BookReview Our Last Wild Days by Anna Bailey @PenguinCanada @doubledayca #OurLastWildDays #AnnaBailey #PenguinReads #PenguinCanada

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#BookReview Our Last Wild Days by Anna Bailey @PenguinCanada @doubledayca #OurLastWildDays #AnnaBailey #PenguinReads #PenguinCanada Title: Our Last Wild Days

Author: Anna Bailey

Published by: Doubleday Canada on May 27, 2025

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 320

Format: Paperback

Source: Penguin Random House Canada

Book Rating: 8/10

The Labasques aren’t like other families.

Living in a shack out in the swamps, they made do by hunting down alligators and other animals. To the good people of Jacknife, Louisiana, they are troublemakers and outcasts, the kind of people you wouldn’t want in your community.

So, when Cutter Labasque is found face down in the muddy swamp, no one seems to care, not even her two brothers. The only person who questions the official verdict of suicide is Cutter’s childhood friend, Loyal May, who has just returned home to care for her mother. When she left town at eighteen years old, she betrayed Cutter. Now with a ragtag group from the local paper where she works, Loyal goes in search of answers, uncovering a web of deceit and corruption that implicates those in town. It may be too late to apologize to Cutter, but Loyal has restitution in mind.

Weaving through the swamps and bayous of rural Louisiana, Our Last Wild Days is an atmospheric, smoldering suspense about our darker impulses—and how to set things right.

Review:

Intense, thought-provoking, and atmospheric!

Our Last Wild Days is a dark, twisty novel that takes you into the lives of a handful of people, including reporter Loyal May, who, after returning home to care for her mother, finds herself obsessed with discovering what truly happened to her childhood friend Cutter, when her body is found floating in the river.

The prose is fluid and tight. The characters are conflicted, scarred, and relentless. And the plot is a compelling, sobering tale of life, loss, family, friendship, grief, guilt, denial, secrets, abuse, neglect, poverty, desperation, self-preservation, violence, redemption, and small-town dynamics.

Overall, Our Last Wild Days is a gritty, intricate, engrossing tale by Bailey that captivates from the very first page and ultimately leaves you pensive, unsettled and thoroughly entertained.

 

This novel is available now.

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

         

 

 

 

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

 

About Anna Bailey

ANNA BAILEY is a Sunday Times bestselling author from Gloucestershire. Their debut novel, Tall Bones (published in Canada as Where the Truth Lies), was inspired by their experiences living in the Colorado Rocky Mountains and was nominated for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year among other awards. They live in Bordeaux with their wife.

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#BookReview The Ladies Road Guide to Utter Ruin by Alison Goodman @BerkleyRomance @PenguinRandomCA #TheLadiesRoadGuideToUtterRuin #AnIllManneredLadiesNovel #AlisonGoodman #Berkley #BerkleyPartner #PenguinReads

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#BookReview The Ladies Road Guide to Utter Ruin by Alison Goodman @BerkleyRomance @PenguinRandomCA #TheLadiesRoadGuideToUtterRuin #AnIllManneredLadiesNovel #AlisonGoodman #Berkley #BerkleyPartner #PenguinReads Title: The Ladies Road Guide to Utter Ruin

Author: Alison Goodman

Series: The Ill-Mannered Ladies #2

Published by: Berkley on May 6, 2025

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical Romance

Pages: 460

Format: Paperback

Source: Berkley Publishing

Book Rating: 8.5/10

To most of Regency high society, forty-two-year-old Lady Augusta Colebrook, or Gus, and her twin sister, Julia, are just unmarried ladies of a certain age. But the Colebrook twins are far from useless old maids. They are secretly protecting women and children ignored by society and the law.

When Lord Evan—a charming escaped convict who has won Gus’s heart—needs to hide his sister, Hester, from their vindictive brother, Gus and Julia take Hester and her lover into their home. But Lord Evan’s complicated past puts them all in danger. Gus knows they must clear his name of murder if he is to survive the thieftakers who hunt him. No easy task—the fatal duel was twenty years ago and a key witness is nowhere to be found.

In a deadly cat-and-mouse game, Gus, Julia, and Lord Evan must dodge their pursuers and investigate Lord Evan’s past. They will be thrust into the ugly underworld of Georgian gentlemen’s clubs, spies, and ruthless bounty hunters, not to mention the everyday threat of narrow-minded brothers. Will the truth be found in time, or will dangerous secrets from the past destroy family bonds and rip new love and lives apart?

Review:

Mysterious, romantic, and entertaining!

The Ladies Road Guide to Utter Ruin sweeps you away to the British countryside during the early 1800s and into the life of the independent, reliable Lady Augusta Colebrook who, after falling for the escaped convict, Lord Evan, will do whatever it takes to help hide his sister from there spiteful brother, finally discover what despicable behaviours are really going on behind the closed doors of the Rack and Ruin club, and once and for all prove her beloved is actually innocent of all the crimes he was accused of.

The prose is witty and sharp. The characters are resourceful, vulnerable, and passionate. And the plot is a fulfilling blend of family, friendship, danger, desire, societal expectations, scheming behaviour, tricky situations, awkward moments, secrets, attraction, and true love.

Overall, The Ladies Road Guide to Utter Ruin is another charming, adventurous, action-packed addition to the Ill-Mannered Ladies series by Goodman, complete with characters I couldn’t help but root for and a swoon-worthy ending that left me smitten and satisfied!

 

This novel is available now.

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

         

 

 

Thank you to Berkley Romance for this free copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Alison Goodman

Alison Goodman is a Melbourne-based author of historical and fantasy fiction. Her other novels include the The Dark Days Club trilogy, an award-winning mix of Regency adventure and dark fantasy, and EON and EONA, a New York Times bestselling fantasy duology published in 20 countries. Alison has recently completed her PhD focusing on historical research and the Regency era and can dance a mean English contra dance. She is fuelled by coffee and roast potatoes and will travel a long way for a good scone.

Photo by Tania Jovanovic

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#BookReview All the Perfect Days by Michael Thompson @mcwthompson @Sourcebooks @sbkslandmark #AllThePerfectDays #MichaelThompson #bookmarkedbylandmark

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#BookReview All the Perfect Days by Michael Thompson @mcwthompson @Sourcebooks @sbkslandmark #AllThePerfectDays #MichaelThompson #bookmarkedbylandmark Title: All the Perfect Days

Author: Michael Thompson

Published by: Sourcebooks Landmark on May 20, 2025

Genres: Contemporary Romance, Fantasy

Pages: 352

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Sourcebooks Landmark

Book Rating: 8.5/10

Family doctor Charlie Knight is in his late thirties, still playing tennis against the same people every Friday night. Still jogging the same streets every morning. Still treating the same patients every day—fixing the high blood pressure and arthritic knees of folks who’ve known him since he was a kid. But Charlie has a secret plan to escape. A plan to live the life he wants, even if the woman he was meant to do it with has left him behind.

But then Genevieve Longstaff comes back to their hometown, just as something extraordinary happens. Charlie begins to have a vision of the exact number of days a person has left until they die.

Charlie believes it’s a gift. It certainly seems like one—after all, he’s using it to help his patients, family and friends make the most of their to mend relationships, to travel, to retire. But this gift comes with awful consequences, and soon Charlie realizes there are things he doesn’t want to know—especially about the woman he still loves.

Review:

Pensive, heartwarming, and hopeful!

All the Perfect Days is a charming, captivating tale that takes you into the life of Charlie Knight, a young doctor who after years of doing the same thing in the same town finally decides it’s time to move on until he’s suddenly struck with the ability to see the number of days a person has left to live, and the love of his life, the one he let get away all those years ago, returns home.

The prose is fluid and smooth. The characters are troubled, complex, and genuine. And the plot is an absorbing tale of life, loss, love, family, guilt, grief, friendship, forgiveness, compassion, support, community, and romance all interwoven with a thread of magical realism.

Overall, All the Perfect Days is a compelling, emotional, thought-provoking novel by Thompson that reminds us that even the little choices we make often have far-reaching consequences, and sometimes, perhaps, things are truly just fated to happen. 

 

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 gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Michael Thompson

Michael Thompson has been a journalist, producer and media executive for the last fifteen years. He now co-owns a podcast production company called Fear and Greed – home of Australia’s most popular business podcast. He lives in Sydney with his wife, two young children, two cats and his beloved lawn. How to Be Remembered is Michael’s first novel.

Photo courtesy of Author's Website.

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#BookReview The Tiger and the Cosmonaut by Eddy Boudel Tan @PenguinCanada @PenguinRandomCA #TheTigerAndTheCosmonaut #EddyBoudelTan #PenguinReads #PenguinCanada

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#BookReview The Tiger and the Cosmonaut by Eddy Boudel Tan @PenguinCanada @PenguinRandomCA #TheTigerAndTheCosmonaut #EddyBoudelTan #PenguinReads #PenguinCanada Title: The Tiger and the Cosmonaut

Author: Eddy Boudel Tan

Published by: Viking on Apr. 25, 2025

Genres: General Fiction

Pages: 336

Format: Paperback

Source: Penguin Random House Canada

Book Rating: 10/10

Casper Han grew up the dutiful son of immigrants who never felt entirely welcome in their remote corner of British Columbia. Now an adult, living in Vancouver with a boyfriend whose privilege he quietly resents, Casper rarely returns to his hometown, the site of a grief his family doesn’t discuss: the loss of his twin, Sam.

Over twenty years have passed since Sam went missing, and a pressing crisis has brought Casper and his siblings back. Their father has vanished, only to be found wandering the vast woods beyond the family home, confused and clutching a pair of scissors, seemingly trapped in the memory of that tragic night. In order to move forward, the Han family, accustomed to fleeing their problems, must stay put and finally confront the past—untangling the mystery of what really happened to Sam.

Combining the atmosphere and intrigue of a cracking good suspense novel with the depth of a rich character study, The Tiger and the Cosmonaut tells the story of a family whose members have long made themselves small and quiet and obedient—and what happens when the cycle is finally broken.

Review:

Poignant, immersive, and affecting!

The Tiger and the Cosmonaut is a raw, vivid, suspenseful tale that takes you into the life of Casper Han, a young, gay man who, after his father suddenly goes missing, decides to return to his hometown to not only help find his father, but to finally discover what really happened to his twin brother on that night more than twenty years ago when he vanished without a trace.

The prose is eloquent and expressive. The characters are sorrowful, secretive, and strong. And the plot is an exceptionally tender tale about life, loss, family, friendship, strength, abuse, loneliness, grief, self-discovery, revelations, heartache, belonging, and love.

Every once in a while you pick up a book that completely moves you and surprises you in all the best ways, and The Tiger and the Cosmonaut is one of those novels. It’s a powerful, pensive, mysterious, beautifully written story by Tan where the space between the words resonates as loudly as the words themselves and is a beautiful reminder that forgiveness in all its forms is always necessary for true healing.

This novel is available now.

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

      

 

 

 

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

 

About Eddy Boudel Tan

EDDY BOUDEL TAN has been a finalist for the Edmund White Award, the ReLit Best Novel Award, and the Ferro-Grumley Award for his novels After Elias and The Rebellious Tide. He was named a Rising Star by Writers’ Trust of Canada in 2021. His short stories can be found in Joyland, Yolk, and various literary journals and anthologies. The Tiger and the Cosmonaut is his third novel. He lives in Vancouver with his husband.

Photo by Hannes van der Merwe

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#BookReview Detective Aunty by Uzma Jalaluddin @harperbooks #DetectiveAunty #UzmaJalaluddin #HarperBooks #HarperPerennial

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#BookReview Detective Aunty by Uzma Jalaluddin @harperbooks #DetectiveAunty #UzmaJalaluddin #HarperBooks #HarperPerennial Title: Detective Aunty

Author: Uzma Jalaluddin

Series: Kausar Khan Investigates #1

Published by: Harper Books on May 6, 2025

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 336

Format: Paperback

Source: Harper Books

Book Rating: 8.5/10

After her husband’s unexpected death eighteen months ago, Kausar Khan never thought she’d receive another phone call as heartbreaking—until her thirty-something daughter, Sana, phones to say that she’s been arrested for killing the unpopular landlord of her clothing boutique. Determined to help her child, Kausar heads to Toronto for the first time in nearly twenty years.

Returning to the Golden Crescent suburb where she raised her children and where her daughter still lives, Kausar finds that the thriving neighborhood she remembered has changed. The murder of Sana’s landlord is only the latest in a wave of local crimes which have gone unsolved.

And the facts of the case are Sana found the man dead in her shop at a suspiciously early hour, with a dagger from her windowfront display plunged in his chest. And Kausar—a woman with a keen sense of observation and deep wisdom honed by her years—senses there’s more to the story than her daughter is telling.

With the help of some old friends and her plucky teenage granddaughter, Kausar digs into the investigation to uncover the truth. Because who better to pry answers from unwilling suspects than a meddlesome aunty? But even Kausar can’t predict the secrets, lies, and betrayals she finds along the way…

Review:

Captivating, humorous, and suspenseful!

Detective Aunty is a well-paced, amusing murder mystery that takes you into the life of Kausar Khan, a middle-aged widow who, after her daughter becomes the prime suspect in the murder of a local businessman, returns to Scarborough to prove her innocence, discover what’s really going on, and ultimately identify the killer.

The prose is witty and light. The characters are quirky, intelligent, and intriguing. And the plot is a mysterious, engaging whodunit full of family, friendship, community, secrets, greed, suspects, deduction, red herrings, and amateur sleuthing.

Overall, Detective Aunty is a cosy, satisfying, entertaining read by Jalaluddin that was so much fun with all its intricacies, culture, and drama, and which I do hope, and was slightly hinted at, may just be the first in a multitude of books in the Kausar Khan Investigates series.

 

This novel is available now.

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

             

 

 

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

 

About Uzma Jalaluddin

Uzma Jalaluddin is a critically acclaimed and bestselling novelist, playwright, public speaker and teacher. She writes authentic, nuanced and entertaining stories about Muslims, South Asians, and Canadians and is the author of DETECTIVE AUNTY (2025), MUCH ADO ABOUT NADA (2023), THREE HOLIDAYS AND A WEDDING (2023), HANA KHAN CARRIES ON (2021) and AYESHA AT LAST (2019) as well as her first play, THE RISHTA (2023). Her novels have been optioned for film and television, including by Amazon Studios and Mindy Kaling.

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