Format: Paperback

#BookReview Maggie Moves On by Lucy Score @readforeverpub @grandcentralpub #ReadForever #ReadForeverPub #ReadForever2022 #MaggieMovesOn #LucyScore

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#BookReview Maggie Moves On by Lucy Score @readforeverpub @grandcentralpub #ReadForever #ReadForeverPub #ReadForever2022 #MaggieMovesOn #LucyScore Title: Maggie Moves On

Author: Lucy Score

Published by: Forever on Jun. 21, 2022

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 416

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Forever

Book Rating: 10/10

Can these opposites turn up the heat… without burning down the house?

House-flipping sensation and YouTube star Maggie Nichols can’t wait to dig into her next challenge. Arriving in tiny Kinship, Idaho, with only a cot and a coffeemaker, Maggie is prepared to restore a crumbling Victorian mansion in four months or less. She has her to-do lists, her blueprints, and her team. What she doesn’t have is time for sexy, laid-back landscaper Silas Wright.

The man takes flirtation to a whole new level. And he does it shirtless…sometimes pants-less. He and his service school-dropout dog are impressively persistent. But she’s not interested in putting down roots. Not when fans tune in to watch her travel the country turning dilapidated houses into dream homes. A short-term fling on the other hand could fit nicely into her calendar. After all, Maggie remembers what fun is like. Vaguely.

As their summer gets downright steamy, Silas manages to demolish the emotional walls she’s spent years building, sending Maggie into a panic. He’s the wrench in her carefully constructed plans. With the end of the project looming, she has a decision to make. But how can she stay when her entire career is built on moving on?

Review:

Amusing, absorbing, and incredibly romantic!

Maggie Moves On is an alluring, heartwarming tale that takes you into the life of the successful, house-flipping YouTuber Maggie Nichols as she juggles the biggest renovation she’s ever tackled, a business partner that’s ready to settle down, and a sexy, persistent landscaper who’s always available to share a smile and lend a hand.

The writing is warm and fluid. The characters, including the hardworking, sassy Maggie, the flirty, deliciously handsome Silas, and the adorable four-legged Kevin, are unique, fun-loving, and endearing. And the plot is an uplifting, lighthearted tale about life, love, family, friendship, tension, attraction, self-discovery, reconnecting with the past, special moments, community, and finding a place to call home.

Maggie Moves On was one of my most anticipated reads of 2022, and it didn’t disappoint. I purposely didn’t read any reviews for this book as I wanted it to be a complete surprise, and boy am I happy I didn’t because I loved it! How much did I love this book? Well, let’s just say if I had to be stranded on a deserted island with only one book, I’d want it to be this one. It’s funny, sweet, sexy, and downright swoony, and if Lucy Score was granting wishes, I’d be asking for each supporting character to be getting their own book.

This book is available now.

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

            

 

 

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

 

About Lucy Score

Lucy Score is a Wall Street Journal and national bestselling author. Small-town contemporary romcoms are her lady jam, and she enjoys delivering the feels with a huge side of happily ever after. Her books have been translated into several languages, making readers around the world snort-laugh, swoon, and sob. Lucy lives in Pennsylvania with the devastatingly handsome Mr. Lucy and their horrible cat. In her spare time, she enjoys sleeping, drinking dirty martinis, and reading all the romance novels in the universe.

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#BookReview Sea Glass Summer by Miranda Liasson @readforeverpub @grandcentralpub #ReadForever #ReadForeverPub #ReadForever2022 #SeaGlassSummer #MirandaLiasson #SeashellHarborSeries

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#BookReview Sea Glass Summer by Miranda Liasson @readforeverpub @grandcentralpub #ReadForever #ReadForeverPub #ReadForever2022 #SeaGlassSummer #MirandaLiasson #SeashellHarborSeries Title: Sea Glass Summer

Author: Miranda Liasson

Series: Seashell Harbor #2

Published by: Forever on Jun. 28, 2022

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 368

Format: Paperback

Source: Forever

Book Rating: 9/10

A moving, uplifting novel about motherhood, starting over, and an unexpected summer romance…

Kit Blakemore is ready to live again. After her husband died while serving in the military, she was in a haze of grief. Now she wants to reclaim her former self—finish her degree and find a better career to provide for their sweet little boy, Oliver. To do that, she’ll need to sell her late husband’s dilapidated Victorian in Seashell Harbor. But first, Kit intends to give Ollie the kind of unforgettable seaside summer she had growing up, making lifelong memories and friendships.

Of course, nothing goes exactly as she planned. Ollie is struggling with his confidence, and frankly, so is Kit. But everything changes when her husband’s best friend, Alex de la Cruz, returns to town, offering to help her renovate. She doesn’t expect Alex to temporarily move in…or for him to bond with Ollie…or for her numb heart to begin thawing. Slowly he’s helping Kit and Ollie heal, and it scares her to death.

Kit swore she wouldn’t leave herself open to the pain of loss again. But if she’s going to teach her son to be brave and move forward, Kit must first face her own fears.

Review:

Quaint, absorbing, and sweet!

Sea Glass Summer is a heartfelt, uplifting tale set in the small town of Seashell Harbor that takes you into the lives of Kit Blakemore, a young widow and mother who is still grappling with the loss of her husband and the all-consuming grief that is preventing her from moving on, and Captain Alex de la Cruz, a retired air force pilot struggling to come to grips with the death of his best friend and the feelings he’s always had and still has for the woman he actually fell in love with first.

The prose is genuine and smooth. The characters are heartbroken, hesitant, and kind. And the plot is an addictive, alluring mix of friendship, family, life, loss, introspection, support, forgiveness, community, new beginnings, furry friends, and the power of love. 

Overall, Sea Glass Summer is a charming, hopeful, romantic read by Liasson that is a fantastic addition to a series, Seashell Harbor, which I absolutely love and highly recommend.

 

This book is available now.

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

            

 

 

Thank you to Forever & Grand Central Publishing for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Miranda Liasson

Miranda Liasson loves to write stories about everyday people who find love despite themselves, because there's nothing like a great love story. And if there are a few laughs along the way, even better! She's a Romance Writers of America Golden Heart winner and a bestselling author whose heartwarming and humorous small-town romances have won accolades such as the Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence and have been Harlequin Junkie and Night Owl Reviews Top Picks.

She lives in the Midwest with her husband and three kids in a charming old neighborhood, which is the inspiration for many of the homes in her books.

Photo courtesy of read-forever.com

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#BookReview And There He Kept Her by Joshua Moehling @PPPress #AndThereHeKeptHer #JoshuaMoehling #inkedinpoison

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#BookReview And There He Kept Her by Joshua Moehling @PPPress #AndThereHeKeptHer #JoshuaMoehling #inkedinpoison Title: And There He Kept Her

Author: Joshua Moehling

Published by: Poisoned Pen Press on Jun. 14, 2022

Genres: Mystery/Thriller, Police Procedural

Pages: 320

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Poisoned Pen Press

Book Rating: 8/10

They thought he was a helpless old man. They were wrong.

When two teenagers break into a house on a remote lake in search of prescription drugs, what starts as a simple burglary turns into a nightmare for all involved. Emmett Burr has secrets he’s been keeping in his basement for more than two decades, and he’ll do anything to keep his past from being revealed. As he gets the upper hand on his tormentors, the lines blur between victim, abuser, and protector.

Personal tragedy has sent former police officer Ben Packard back to the small Minnesota town of Sandy Lake in search of a fresh start. Now a sheriff’s deputy, Packard is leading the investigation into the missing teens, motivated by a family connection. As clues dry up and time runs out to save them, Packard is forced to reveal his own secrets and dig deep to uncover the dark past of the place he now calls home.

Review:

Gritty, menacing, and dark!

And There He Kept Her is a creepy, engrossing thriller that takes you to Sandy Lake, MN, where acting county sheriff Ben Packard suddenly finds himself unexpectedly uncovering a history of violence and murder nobody in this small town ever could have imagined when his investigation into two missing teens also leads to the discovery of a well-organized drug ring and two sadists with a penchant for confinement, torture, and rape.

The writing is crisp and tight. The characters are multilayered, persistent, and vulnerable. And the plot is a suspenseful, gripping tale full of twists, turns, secrets, deception, community, abuse, familial drama, depravity, mayhem, and murder.

Overall, And There He Kept Her is a shocking, ominous, spine-chilling tale by Moehling that kept me on the edge of my seat from the very first page and is undoubtedly an exceptionally promising debut.

 

This book is available now.

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

          

 

 

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Joshua Moehling

Joshua Moehling works in the medical device industry by day and writes at night. And There He Kept Her is his first novel. He lives in Minneapolis.

Photo courtesy of Author's Website.

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#BookReview Up All Night with a Good Duke by Amy Rose Bennett @AmyRoseBennett @SourcebooksCasa #AmyRoseBennett #UpAllNightwithaGoodDuke #TheByronicBookClub #SourcebooksCasa

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#BookReview Up All Night with a Good Duke by Amy Rose Bennett @AmyRoseBennett @SourcebooksCasa #AmyRoseBennett #UpAllNightwithaGoodDuke #TheByronicBookClub #SourcebooksCasa Title: Up All Night with a Good Duke

Author: Amy Rose Bennett

Series: The Byronic Book Club #1

Published by: Sourcebooks Casablanca on Jun. 28, 2022

Genres: Historical Romance

Pages: 288

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Sourcebooks Casablanca

Book Rating: 8/10

Artemis Jones―”respectable” finishing-school teacher by day and Gothic romance writer by night―has never lost sight of her real dream: to open her own academic ladies’ college. When Artemis is unexpectedly called upon by a dear friend, a fellow Byronic Book Club member, to navigate her first London Season, she comes at once. Who knows, perhaps she can court the interest of a wealthy patron for her school. As long as she can avoid her high-handed aunt’s schemes to marry her off.

Dominic Winters, the widowed Duke of Dartmoor, needs a wife―someone who will provide him with an heir and help him to manage his spitfire adolescent daughter. The problem is, Society has dubbed him “The Dastardly Duke.” Rumors are rife that he murdered his mad wife, so his choices for a suitable bride are limited. But then, he meets the ravishing and passionate Artemis Jones, who might just be everything he needs.

Review:

Enticing, seductive, and witty!

Up All Night with a Good Duke is set in London during 1858 and features the sassy, independent Artemis Jones and the widowed, dependable Duke of Dartmoor, Dominic Winters as they navigate a fake engagement, scandalous rumours, histories strife with heartache, a spirited teenage daughter, and a sizzling attraction neither of them wants to deny.

The prose is light and engaging. The characters are resourceful, strong-willed, and passionate. And the plot is an arousing mix of family, friendship, heartbreak, secrets, societal expectations, undeniable chemistry, tender moments, and steamy romance.

Overall, Up All Night with a Good Duke is an alluring, seductive, entertaining first novel in The Byronic Book Club series by Bennett that may be the first novel I’ve read by this author but definitely won’t be my last.

 

This novel is available now.

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

                 

 

 

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

 

About Amy Rose Bennett

Amy Rose Bennett is an Australian author who has a passion for penning emotion-packed historical romances. Of course, her strong-willed heroines and rakish heroes always find their happily ever after. A former speech pathologist, Amy is happily married to her very own romantic hero and has two lovely, very accomplished adult daughters. When she’s not creating stories, Amy loves to cook up a storm in the kitchen, lose herself in a good book or a witty rom-com, and, when she can afford it, travel to all the places she writes about.

Photo courtesy of Author's Website.

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#BookReview Her Darkest Secret by Jessica R. Patch @jessicarpatch @HarlequinBooks #HerDarkestSecret #JessicaRPatch #LoveInspired #HarlequinBooks

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#BookReview Her Darkest Secret by Jessica R. Patch @jessicarpatch @HarlequinBooks #HerDarkestSecret #JessicaRPatch #LoveInspired #HarlequinBooks Title: Her Darkest Secret

Author: Jessica R. Patch

Published by: Love Inspired on Jun. 28, 2022

Genres: Mystery/Thriller, Romantic Suspense

Pages: 352

Format: Paperback

Source: Harlequin Books

Book Rating: 8.5/10

When a cold-case serial killer returns, FBI special agent Fiona Kelly has one last chance to stop him before he claims the prize he’s always wanted—her.

The sight of a goose feather at a murder scene modeled after a children’s poem is enough to make FBI special agent Fiona Kelly’s blood turn to ice. Almost two decades ago, a feather was left with her sister’s body—and with every subsequent victim of the Nursery Rhyme Killer. Now he’s back. Only this time, his latest gruesome murder is a message to the only one who ever got away: Fiona.

Finding “Rhyme” is an obsession that’s fueled Fiona’s career—and destroyed her marriage to fellow FBI agent Asa Kodiak. Now Fiona and Asa have to put their past tensions aside and work together one last time. But Rhyme is watching, and catching this killer may force Fiona to reveal her biggest, darkest secret…the one only he knows.

Review:

Relentless, intricate, and addictive!

Her Darkest Secret is a sinister, action-packed thrill ride featuring the tenacious FBI special agent Fiona Kelly and the volatile FBI agent Asa Kodiak as they join forces to hunt the cold, calculating serial killer with a penchant for reenacting nursery rhymes that Fiona once, almost two decades ago, was the victim of herself.

The writing is taut and intense. The characters are meticulous, tormented, and persistent. And the plot is a suspenseful, engrossing whodunit full of twists, turns, lies, deception, revelations, familial drama, obsession, depravity, spirituality, violence, and murder.

Overall, Her Darkest Secret is an eerie, tortuous, fast-paced tale by Patch that was so much better than I ever expected, and one that did an exceptional job of highlighting that evil can live easily amongst us, often simply hidden behind masks of normality.

 

This book is available June 28, 2022.

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

            

 

 

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

 

About Jessica R. Patch

Publishers Weekly Bestselling author Jessica R. Patch is known for her dry wit and signature twists. When she's not hunched over her laptop, you can find her cozy on the couch in her mid-south home reading books by her favorite authors, watching movies with her family, and collecting recipes to amazing dishes she'll probably never cook.

Photo courtesy of Author's Goodreads Page.

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#BookReview The Drowning Sea by Sarah Stewart Taylor @SSTaylorBooks @MinotaurBooks @StMartinsPress #MinotaurInfluencers #TheDrowningSea #SarahStewartTaylor #MaggieDArcy #SMPInfluencers

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#BookReview The Drowning Sea by Sarah Stewart Taylor @SSTaylorBooks @MinotaurBooks @StMartinsPress #MinotaurInfluencers #TheDrowningSea #SarahStewartTaylor #MaggieDArcy #SMPInfluencers Title: The Drowning Sea

Author: Sarah Stewart Taylor

Published by: Minotaur Books on Jun. 21, 2022

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 352

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Minotaur Books

Book Rating: 8.5/10

In The Drowning Sea, Sarah Stewart Taylor returns to the critically acclaimed world of Maggie D’arcy with another atmospheric mystery so vivid readers will smell the salt in the air and hear the wind on the cliffs.

For the first time in her adult life, former Long Island homicide detective Maggie D’arcy is unemployed. No cases to focus on, no leads to investigate, just a whole summer on a remote West Cork peninsula with her teenage daughter Lilly and her boyfriend, Conor and his son. The plan is to prepare Lilly for a move to Ireland. But their calm vacation takes a dangerous turn when human remains wash up below the steep cliffs of Ross Head.

When construction worker Lukas Adamik disappeared months ago, everyone assumed he had gone home to Poland. Now that his body has been found, the guards, including Maggie’s friends Roly Byrne and Katya Grzeskiewicz, seem to think he threw himself from the cliffs. But as Maggie gets to know the residents of the nearby village and learns about the history of the peninsula and its abandoned Anglo Irish manor house, once home to a famous Irish painter who died under mysterious circumstances, she starts to think there’s something else going on. Something deadly. And when Lilly starts dating one of the dead man’s friends, Maggie grows worried about her daughter being so close to another investigation and about what the investigation will uncover.

Old secrets, hidden relationships, crime, and village politics are woven throughout this small seaside community, and as the summer progresses, Maggie is pulled deeper into the web of lies, further from those she loves, and closer to the truth.

Review:

Menacing, twisty, and intriguing!

In this latest novel by Taylor, The Drowning Sea, we head back into the life of Maggie D’Arcy, who, after recently leaving her job as a detective on Long Island, heads for a vacation in West Cork, Ireland, where things aren’t as quiet and relaxing as she hoped when the town she’s ends up staying in is rife with misfits, mayhem, a history of drug smuggling, and an estate, Rosscliffe Manor, that seems to have a lot of long-buried secrets of its own.

The writing is crisp and tight. The characters are multilayered, dependable, and tenacious. And the plot is a captivating mix of twists, turns, red herrings, secrets, deception, obsession, manipulation, malicious intentions, small-town politics, and murder.

Overall, I found The Drowning Sea to be another fabulous addition to the Maggie D’Arcy series by Taylor with its complex characters, sinister storyline, and exceptionally dramatic ending.

 

This book is available now.

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

            

 

 

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press – Minotaur Press for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Sarah Stewart Taylor

Sarah Stewart Taylor grew up on Long Island and was educated at Middlebury College and Trinity College, Dublin. She lives with her husband and three children on a farm in Vermont where they raise sheep and blueberries.

Sarah is the author of THE MOUNTAINS WILD, an atmospheric thriller about a Long Island homicide detective named Maggie D'Arcy who returns to Ireland twenty-three years after the unsolved disappearance of her beloved cousin Erin in the Wicklow Mountains. When a young woman disappears and new evidence from Erin’s case is found, Maggie will have to uncover the truth about the Irish man she's never stopped loving and, in order to help Irish police save the missing woman, the truth about who Erin was and what happened to her.

It will be published by Minotaur Books on June 23, 2020.

Sarah is also the author of the Sweeney St. George mystery series, about an art historian who studies funerary art, "the art of death," from Minotaur Books. The first book in the series, O’ Artful Death, was nominated for an Agatha Award for Best First Novel.

Her non-fiction has been published in The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, and many other publications.

Photograph courtesy of Author's Goodreads Page.

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#BookReview The Lies I Tell by Julie Clark @jclarkab @Sourcebooks @sbkslandmark #TheLiesITell #JulieClark #bookmarkedbylandmark

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#BookReview The Lies I Tell by Julie Clark @jclarkab @Sourcebooks @sbkslandmark #TheLiesITell #JulieClark #bookmarkedbylandmark Title: The Lies I Tell

Author: Julie Clark

Published by: Sourcebooks Landmark on Jun. 21, 2022

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 320

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Sourcebooks Landmark

Book Rating: 10/10

Two women. Many aliases.

Meg Williams. Maggie Littleton. Melody Wilde. Different names for the same person, depending on the town, depending on the job. She’s a con artist who erases herself to become whoever you need her to be—a college student. A life coach. A real estate agent. Nothing about her is real. She slides alongside you and tells you exactly what you need to hear, and by the time she’s done, you’ve likely lost everything.

Kat Roberts has been waiting ten years for the woman who upended her life to return. And now that she has, Kat is determined to be the one to expose her. But as the two women grow closer, Kat’s long-held assumptions begin to crumble, leaving Kat to wonder who Meg’s true target is.

The Lies I Tell is a twisted domestic thriller that dives deep into the psyches and motivations of two women and their unwavering quest to seek justice for the past and rewrite the future.

Review:

Intricate, chilling, and brilliantly plotted!

The Lies I Tell is a devious, sinister, character-driven thriller that takes you into the lives of Meg Williams and Kat Roberts, two women from completely different backgrounds whose lives become entwined when their need for vengeance and justice against those who hurt, destroyed, and irrevocably changed their lives forever binds them together.

The prose is edgy and tight. The characters are consumed, secretive, and vulnerable. And the plot using flashbacks and alternating points of view builds quickly as it twists, turns, shocks, surprises, and unravels all the personalities, behaviours, relationships, and motivations within it.

Overall, The Lies I Tell, at its core, is a novel about family, secrets, manipulation, friendship, coercion, obsession, cunning behaviour, tragedy, hatred, and revenge. It’s a highly suspenseful, exceptionally clever tale by Clark that highlights everything is not always as it appears and is without a doubt one of the most gripping page-turners I’ve been lucky enough to read this year.

 

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 Julie Clark

Julie Clark is the New York Times bestselling author of The Last Flight. It has earned starred reviews from Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, and Library Journal, and the New York Times has called it “thoroughly absorbing”. It’s been named an Indie Next Pick, a Library Reads Pick, and a Best Book of 2020 by Amazon Editors and Apple Books. Her debut, The Ones We Choose, was published in 2018 and has been optioned for television by Lionsgate. She lives in Los Angeles with her two sons and a golden doodle with poor impulse control.

Photograph by Eric A. Reid Photogtaphy.

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#BookReview Cinder-Nanny by Sariah Wilson @sariahwilson @KayePublicity @AmazonPub #TheCinderNanny #SariahWilson #Montlake #KayePublicity

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#BookReview Cinder-Nanny by Sariah Wilson @sariahwilson @KayePublicity @AmazonPub #TheCinderNanny #SariahWilson #Montlake #KayePublicity Title: Cinder-Nanny

Author: Sariah Wilson

Published by: Montlake Romance on Jun. 21, 2022

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 334

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Kaye Publicity

Book Rating: 9/10

What could come between a nanny and an earl in a fairy-tale love story? A reality check—in an endearing and witty romance by Sariah Wilson, the bestselling author of Roommaid.

With her sister’s medical bills mounting, Diana Parker can’t say no to a high-paying opportunity like this: accompany a wealthy couple to Aspen and nanny their precocious five-year-old son for three months. Necessary qualifications? She must know how to ski and teach math, speak fluent French, excel at social graces, and hold a master’s degree in childhood development. Who’ll be the wiser that Diana’s only skill is packing for Colorado?

So far, so good—having a con woman for a mother has turned out to be a benefit, even if Diana has complicated feelings about telling lies. But she’s doing this for her sister. And the perks—like a ticket to a lavish charity fundraiser, a new gown, and a Prince Charming–adjacent earl named Griffin Windsor—are pretty irresistible. Diana can’t deny the Cinderella vibe.

Wary of gold diggers and scandal, England’s most eligible bachelor is nevertheless falling for Diana, and sweeping the not-quite princess off her feet.

The warmer their relationship becomes, the slipperier the slopes are for Diana. Sooner or later, she’ll have to come clean. When that happens, does an honest-to-goodness happy ending stand a chance?

Review:

Lighthearted, charming, and fun!

Cinder-Nanny is a delightful, character-driven rom-com set in the idyllic mountains of Colorado that introduces you to the determined, complicated Diana and the charismatic, persistent Griffin as they each discover the power of friendship, the pull of attraction, and the inescapable euphoria of falling in love.

The prose is whimsical and witty. The characters are multilayered, kind, and endearing. And the plot is an amusing blend of life, love, introspection, friendship, family, secrets, embarrassing moments, awkward situations, misunderstandings, taking chances, and finding the one.

Overall, Cinder-Nanny is a well written, refreshing, addictive modern-day Cinderella story with irresistible characters that I devoured in one sitting. I absolutely adored this novel and remain, as always, one of Sariah Wilson’s biggest fans.

 

This novel 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 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 The Love of My Life by Rosie Walsh @TheRosieWalsh @PGCBooks @MantleBooks #TheLoveofMyLife #RosieWalsh #PGCBooks

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#BookReview The Love of My Life by Rosie Walsh @TheRosieWalsh @PGCBooks @MantleBooks #TheLoveofMyLife #RosieWalsh #PGCBooks Title: The Love of My Life

Author: Rosie Walsh

Published by: Mantle Books on Mar. 15, 2022

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 368

Format: Paperback

Source: Publishers Group Canada

Book Rating: 8.5/10

From the New York Times bestselling author of Ghosted comes a love story wrapped in a mystery: an up-all-night page-turner with a dark secret at its core

I have held you at night for ten years and I didn’t even know your name. We have a child together. A dog, a house.

Who are you?

Emma loves her husband Leo and their young daughter Ruby: she’d do anything for them. But almost everything she’s told them about herself is a lie.

And she might just have got away with it, if it weren’t for her husband’s job. Leo is an obituary writer; Emma a well-known marine biologist. When she suffers a serious illness, Leo copes by doing what he knows best – researching and writing about his wife’s life. But as he starts to unravel the truth, he discovers the woman he loves doesn’t really exist. Even her name isn’t real.

When the very darkest moments of Emma’s past finally emerge, she must somehow prove to Leo that she really is the woman he always thought she was . . .

But first, she must tell him about the other love of her life.

Review:

Intricate, heart-wrenching and guileful!

The Love of My Life is a meticulous, character-driven, domestic thriller that immerses you into the lives of married couple Emma and Leo as they grapple with weighty decisions, potentially make unforgivable choices, and unearth devastating secrets that could destroy their lives forever.

The writing is tight and edgy. The characters are complex, secretive, and troubled. And the plot told from dual perspectives builds briskly as it twists, turns, shocks, surprises, and unravels all the behaviours, motivations, personalities, and relationships within it.

The Love of My Life at its core is a novel about love, life, loss, marriage, family, friendship, secrets, parenting, expectations, manipulation, deception, depression, and the powerful bonds that exist between a parent and their child. It’s an emotionally compelling, absorbing tale that highlights just how many secrets people keep even from those closest to them.

 

This novel 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 Rosie Walsh

Rosie Walsh is the author of the international bestseller, THE MAN WHO DIDN'T CALL (which was a New York Times bestseller in the US under the title GHOSTED). The book was published in thirty-five languages and has sold more than 1.5 million copies. Her next novel, THE LOVE OF MY LIFE, publishes in the UK and US in Spring 2022, with translations following around the world. THE LOVE OF MY LIFE has already spent several weeks in the top ten bestseller list in Germany after an early release. 

Rosie came to writing after a career in factual television, which took her to some of the remotest places on earth. She wrote her first novel while living in South America, where she met her partner, George. They now live in Devon, UK, with their two young children. 

Photo by Verity Rivers.

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#BookReview The Hotel Nantucket by Elin Hilderbrand @elinhilderbrand @littlebrown @HBGCanada #TheHotelNantucket #ElinHilderbrand #HBGCanada

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#BookReview The Hotel Nantucket by Elin Hilderbrand @elinhilderbrand @littlebrown @HBGCanada #TheHotelNantucket #ElinHilderbrand #HBGCanada Title: The Hotel Nantucket

Author: Elin Hilderbrand

Published by: Little Brown and Company on Jun. 14, 2022

Genres: General Fiction, Women's Fiction

Pages: 416

Format: Paperback

Source: HBG Canada

Book Rating: 10/10

After a tragic fire in 1922 that killed 19-year-old chambermaid, Grace Hadley, The Hotel Nantucket descended from a gilded age gem to a mediocre budget-friendly lodge to inevitably an abandoned eyesore — until it’s purchased and renovated top to bottom by London billionaire, Xavier Darling.  Xavier hires Nantucket sweetheart Lizbet Keaton as his general manager, and Lizbet, in turn, pulls together a charismatic, if inexperienced, staff who share the vision of turning the fate of the hotel around. They face challenges in getting along with one another (and with the guests), in overcoming the hotel’s bad reputation, and in surviving the (mostly) harmless shenanigans of Grace Hadley herself — who won’t stop haunting the hotel until her murder is acknowledged.
 
Filled with the emotional tension and multiple points of view that characterize Elin’s books (The Blue Bistro, Golden Girl) as well as an added touch of historical reality, Hotel Nantucket offers something for everyone in this summer drama for the ages. 

Review:

Heartwarming, mysterious, and addictive!

The Hotel Nantucket is a colourful, breezy tale that sweeps you away to the newly renovated Hotel Nantucket where there’s plenty of luxurious things, scrumptious treats, an eclectic staff, an abundance of scandal, a touch of romance, a variety of quirky and demanding patrons, a ghostly presence with a big heart, and a strong desire to be the first and only establishment to ever receive the coveted rating of five keys.

The writing is amusing and light. The characters are multilayered, genuine, and intriguing. And the plot is an enchanting mix of friendship, family, secrets, deduction, workplace drama, sizzling chemistry, spirited mishaps, scandalous behaviour, and of course a lot of summer vibes.

I’m not sure if it’s ever truly summer unless I have an Elin Hilderbrand book to throw in my beach bag and this twenty-eighth outing is everything I could have wanted and more. The Hotel Nantucket is an alluring, charming, irresistible tale by Hilderbrand that’s the perfect escapist read with its idyllic setting, layered characters, and blissfully entertaining storyline.

 

This novel is available now.

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

            

 

 

Thank you to HBG Canada for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Elin Hilderbrand

Elin Hilderbrand is a mother of three, an avid runner, reader, and traveler, and the author of twenty-three novels. She grew up outside Philadelphia, and has lived on Nantucket for more than twenty years.

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