Publisher: St. Martin's Press

#BookReview No Two Persons by Erica Bauermeister @StMartinsPress #NoTwoPersons #EricaBauermeister #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview No Two Persons by Erica Bauermeister @StMartinsPress #NoTwoPersons #EricaBauermeister #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers Title: No Two Persons

Author: Erica Bauermeister

Published by: St. Martin's Press on May 2, 2023

Genres: General Fiction

Pages: 320

Format: Hardcover

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 8.5/10

One book. Nine readers. Ten changed lives. New York Times bestselling author Erica Bauermeister’s No Two Persons is “a gloriously original celebration of fiction, and the ways it deepens our lives.”

That was the beauty of books, wasn’t it? They took you places you didn’t know you needed to go…

Alice has always wanted to be a writer. Her talent is innate, but her stories remain safe and detached, until a devastating event breaks her heart open, and she creates a stunning debut novel. Her words, in turn, find their way to readers, from a teenager hiding her homelessness, to a free diver pushing himself beyond endurance, an artist furious at the world around her, a bookseller in search of love, a widower rent by grief. Each one is drawn into Alice’s novel; each one discovers something different that alters their perspective, and presents new pathways forward for their lives.

Together, their stories reveal how books can affect us in the most beautiful and unexpected of ways—and how we are all more closely connected to one another than we might think.


Review:

Compelling, heart-tugging, and absorbing!

No Two Persons is a sensitive, thoughtful tale that takes you into the life of Alice Wein, a young writer who, after the tragic loss of her brother, writes a story that is so special it connects and impacts the lives of nine specific readers who have the opportunity to read it.

The writing is passionate and moving. The characters are stuck, wary, and wistful. And the plot, using a story within a story, sweeps you away into an engaging, touching, heartfelt tale about life, loss, friendship, family, heartbreak, tragedy, the magic of books, and love.

Overall, No Two Persons is a charming, immersive, original tale by Bauermeister that’s a beautiful love letter to books and the power they have to touch, heal, move, and provide hope to anyone lucky enough to read their pages.

 

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 for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Erica Bauermeister

Erica Bauermeister is the author of the bestselling novel The School of Essential Ingredients, Joy for Beginners, and The Lost Art of Mixing. She is also the co-author of non-fiction works, 500 Great Books by Women: A Reader’s Guide and Let’s Hear It For the Girls: 375 Great Books for Readers 2-14.

She has a PhD in literature from the University of Washington, and has taught there and at Antioch University. She is a founding member of the Seattle7Writers and currently lives in Port Townsend, Washington.

Photo Credit: Susan Doupé

#BookReview Adelaide by Genevieve Wheeler @geeewheeler @StMartinsPress #Adelaide #GenevieveWheeler #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview Adelaide by Genevieve Wheeler @geeewheeler @StMartinsPress #Adelaide #GenevieveWheeler #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers Title: Adelaide

Author: Genevieve Wheeler

Published by: St. Martin's Press on Apr. 18, 2023

Genres: Women's Fiction

Pages: 304

Format: Hardcover

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 8.5/10

For twenty-six-year-old Adelaide Williams, an American living in dreamy London, meeting Rory Hughes was like a lightning bolt out of the blue: this charming Englishman was The One she wasn’t even looking for.

Is it enough?

Does he respond to texts? Honor his commitments? Make advance plans? Sometimes, rarely, and no, not at all. But when he shines his light on her, the world makes sense, and Adelaide is convinced that, in his heart, he’s fallen just as deeply as she has. Then, when Rory is rocked by an unexpected tragedy, Adelaide does everything in her power to hold him together—even if it means losing herself in the process.

When love asks too much of us, how do we find the strength to put ourselves first?

With unflinching honesty and heart, this relatable debut from a fresh new voice explores grief and mental health while capturing the timeless nature of what it’s like to be young and in love—with your friends, with your city, and with a person who cannot, will not, love you back.


Review:

Introspective, poignant, and timely!

Adelaide is a passionate, thoughtful tale that sweeps you away to London and into the life of the young American, Adelaide Williams, as she navigates her goals, dreams, expectations, and mental health, all while consistently giving her all to a love affair littered with disappointments, one-sided effort, lack of communication, and heartbreak.

The prose is sincere and evocative. The characters are kind, multi-layered, and vulnerable. And the tightly crafted, effortless plot unfolds in a back-and-forth style, unravelling all the actions, motivations, personalities, desires, needs, tragedy, and complex relationships within it.

Overall, Adelaide is a sensitive, fresh, reflective debut by Wheeler that does a remarkable job of highlighting all the universal struggles of growing up, acquiring self-confidence, battling depression, anxiety, and worthlessness, forging friendships, experiencing an all-consuming love that isn’t reciprocated, and ultimately realizing that everyone is entitled to always be loved fully.

 

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 for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Genevieve Wheeler

Genevieve Wheeler is an American writer and communications manager. Her bylines have appeared in publications like VICE, Vogue Business, Teen Vogue, Elite Daily, and POPSUGAR, with her work and words cited in The New York Times, Vox, the BBC World Service, Cheddar News, Jezebel, and beyond. She holds an MA in marketing communications from the University of Westminster in London and a BS in Advertising from Boston University. She's currently based in London. Adelaide is her debut novel.

Photo Credit: Chelsea Lesser

#BookReview Where by Coyotes Howl by Sandra Dallas @StMartinsPress #WhereCoyotesHowl #SandraDallas #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview Where by Coyotes Howl by Sandra Dallas @StMartinsPress #WhereCoyotesHowl #SandraDallas #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers Title: Where Coyotes Howl

Author: Sandra Dallas

Published by: St. Martin's Press on Apr. 18, 2023

Genres: Historical Fiction

Pages: 320

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 9/10

Beautifully rendered, Where Coyotes Howl is a vivid and deeply affecting ode to the early twentieth century West, from master storyteller Sandra Dallas.

Except for the way they loved each other, they were just ordinary, everyday folks. Just ordinary.

1916. The two-street town of Wallace is not exactly what Ellen Webster had in mind when she accepted a teaching position in Wyoming, but within a year’s time she’s fallen in love—both with the High Plains and with a handsome cowboy named Charlie Bacon. Life is not easy in the flat, brown corner of the state where winter blizzards are unforgiving and the summer heat relentless. But Ellen and Charlie face it all together, their relationship growing stronger with each shared success, and each deeply felt tragedy.

Ellen finds purpose in her work as a rancher’s wife and in her bonds with other women settled on the prairie. Not all of them are so lucky as to have loving husbands, not all came to Wallace willingly, and not all of them can survive the cruel seasons. But they look out for each other, share their secrets, and help one another in times of need. And the needs are great and constant. The only city to speak of, Cheyenne, is miles away, making it akin to the Wild West in rural Wallace. In the end, it is not the trials Ellen and Charlie face together that make them remarkable, but their love for one another that endures through it all.


Review:

Moving, insightful, and incredibly atmospheric!

Where Coyotes Howl is a gritty, intriguing tale that sweeps you away to Wyoming during the early twentieth century and into the lives of the townsfolk of Wallace, especially schoolteacher Ellen Webster and cowboy Charlie Bacon, as they struggle to maintain their livelihoods, identities, sanity, health, and love for each other in harsh weather, barren plains, extreme loss, scarcity of money, and unimaginable tragedy.

The writing is eloquent and vivid. The characters are resilient, devoted, and strong. And the plot is a harrowing tale about life, loss, hope, family, friendship, grief, culture, community, hardship, poverty, trust, survival, and love.

Overall, Where Coyotes Howl is a beautifully written, exceptionally detailed, affecting novel by Dallas that I absolutely adored. It’s one of those novels that I went into thinking it would be good and finished it knowing it was great.

 

This novel is available April 18, 2023.

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

           

 

 

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

 

About Sandra Dallas

Sandra Dallas, dubbed “a quintessential American voice” in Vogue Magazine, is the author of over a dozen novels, including Prayers for Sale and Tallgrass, many translated into a dozen languages and optioned for films. Six-time winner of the Willa Award and four-time winner of the Spur Award, Dallas was a Business Week reporter for 25 years covering the Rocky Mountain region, and began writing fiction in 1990. She has two daughters and lives with her husband in Denver and Georgetown, Colorado.

Photo Credit: Povy Kendal Atchison.

#BookReview The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth @SallyHepworth @StMartinsPress #TheSoulmateBook #SallyHepworth #StMarinsPress #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth @SallyHepworth @StMartinsPress #TheSoulmateBook #SallyHepworth #StMarinsPress #SMPInfluencers Title: The Soulmate

Author: Sally Hepworth

Published by: St. Martin's Press on Apr. 4, 2023

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 336

Format: ARC, eBook

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 9/10

Get ready for a thrilling, addictive novel about marriage, betrayal, and the secrets that push us to the edge in Sally Hepworth’s The Soulmate.

There’s a cottage on a cliff. Gabe and Pippa’s dream home in a sleepy coastal town. But their perfect house hides something sinister. The tall cliffs have become a popular spot for people to end their lives. Night after night Gabe comes to their rescue, literally talking them off the ledge. Until he doesn’t.

When Pippa discovers Gabe knew the victim, the questions spiral…Did the victim jump? Was she pushed?

And would Gabe, the love of Pippa’s life, her soulmate…lie? As the perfect facade of their marriage begins to crack, the deepest and darkest secrets begin to unravel.


Review:

Twisty, sophisticated, and suspenseful!

The Soulmate is a gripping domestic thriller that delves into the intricate, entangled bonds that exist between friends and family members and reminds us that everything is not always as it seems and behind all those smiles and happy faces often hides an abundance of lies, secrets, and swirling emotions.

The writing is ominous and tight. The characters are complex, troubled, and secretive. And the plot, told from alternating perspectives, is sinister and tense as it twists, turns, and unravels all the actions, motivations, personalities, and relationships within it.

The Soulmate, at its core, is a novel about life, love, loyalty, family, marital discord, mental illness, parenthood, friendship, and deception. It’s intense, menacing, enthralling, and, without a doubt, another fantastic page-turner by Hepworth you don’t want to miss.

 

This novel is available now.

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

            

 

 

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Sally Hepworth

Sally Hepworth has lived around the world, spending extended periods in Singapore, the United Kingdom and Canada. She is the author of The Secrets of Midwives, The Things We Keep, The Mother's Promise, The Family Next Door and The Mother-in-Law. Sally now lives in Melbourne with her husband, three children, and one adorable dog.

Photo by Mrs. Smart Photography.

#BookReview If a Poem Could Live and Breath by Mary Calvi @MaryCalviTV @StMartinsPress #IfAPoemCouldLiveandBreath #MaryCalvi #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview If a Poem Could Live and Breath by Mary Calvi @MaryCalviTV @StMartinsPress #IfAPoemCouldLiveandBreath #MaryCalvi #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers Title: If a Poem Could Live and Breathe

Author: Mary Calvi

Published by: St. Martin's Press on Feb. 14, 2023

Genres: Historical Fiction

Pages: 320

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 8.5/10

A fact-based romantic speculative novel about Teddy Roosevelt’s first love, by Mary Calvi, author of Dear George, Dear Mary.

Studded with the real love letters between a young Theodore Roosevelt and Boston beauty Alice Lee—many of them never before published—If a Poem Could Live and Breathe makes vivid what many historians believe to be the pivotal years that made the future president into the man of action that defined his political life, and cemented his legacy.

Cambridge, 1878. The era of the Gilded Age. Alice Lee sets out to break from the norms of her mother’s generation. Women are fighting for educational opportunities and exploring a new sense of intellectual and personal freedom. Native New Yorker, Harvard student Teddy Roosevelt, is on his own journey of discovery, and when they meet, unrelenting currents of love change the trajectory of his life forever.

If a Poem Could Live and Breathe is an indelible portrait of the authenticity of first love, the heartache of loss, and how overcoming the worst of life’s obstacles can push one to greatness never imagined.


Review:

Sentimental, tender, and intriguing!

If a Poem Could Live and Breathe is a compelling, heart-tugging tale that sweeps you away to the late 1870s and into the lives of Harvard student Theodore Roosevelt and debutante Alice Lee Hathaway who, after meeting on an estate in Chestnut Hill, MA, quickly became friends, confidants, and partners until Valentine’s Day just over three years from the day of their marriage when tragedy strikes and Alice succumbs to an undiagnosed kidney infection while giving birth to their first child.

The prose is evocative and rich. The characters are multilayered, intelligent, and engaging. And the plot, infused with preserved love letters, is a fascinating tale about life, loss, family, friendship, history, emotion, determination, heartbreak, passion, and love.

Overall, If a Poem Could Live and Breathe is a beautifully written, enchanting tale by Calvi that does a remarkable job of highlighting her immense knowledge and research into this complex, historical figure who although lived to have an incredibly successful life, both politically and personally, never fully recovered from the sudden loss of his first true love.

 

This novel 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 for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Mary Calvi

MARY CALVI is a 12-time New York Emmy award-winning journalist and national anchor. Her in-depth research for her debut book, DEAR GEORGE, DEAR MARY: A Novel of George Washington's First Love, is the basis of a Smithsonian Channel documentary. Calvi lives in Yonkers, New York.

Photo Credit: Joe Panella.

#BookReview The Ingenue by Rachel Kapelke-Dale @RKapelkeDale @StMartinsPress #TheIngenue #RachelKalpekeDale #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencer

#BookReview The Ingenue by Rachel Kapelke-Dale @RKapelkeDale @StMartinsPress #TheIngenue #RachelKalpekeDale #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencer Title: The Ingenue

Author: Rachel Kapelke-Dale

Published by: St. Martin's Press on Dec. 6, 2022

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 320

Format: Hardcover

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 8/10

My Dark Vanessa meets The Queen’s Gambit in this new novel of suspense about the bonds of family, the limits of talent, the risks of ambition, and the rewards of revenge.

When former piano prodigy Saskia Kreis returns home to Milwaukee after her mother’s unexpected death, she expects to inherit the family estate, the Elf House. But with the discovery that her mother’s will bequeathed the Elf House to a man that Saskia shares a complicated history with, she is forced to reexamine her own past–and the romantic relationship that changed the course of her life–for answers. Can she find a way to claim her heritage while keeping her secrets buried, or will the fallout from digging too deep destroy her?

Set against a post #MeToo landscape, The Ingenue delves into mother-daughter relationships, the expectations of talent, the stories we tell ourselves, and what happens when the things that once made you special are taken from you. Moving between Saskia’s childhood and the present day, this dark, contemporary fairy tale pulses with desire, longing, and uncertainty, as it builds to its spectacular, shocking climax.


Review:

Dark, dramatic, and disturbing!

The Ingenue is a gritty, suspenseful tale that takes you into the life of Saskia Kreis, a thirty-seven-year-old former piano prodigy who, after returning home after her mother’s death to find she’s been disinherited and that her mother has left her multi-million dollar mansion to an old family friend, decides to open up old wounds and discover just how inappropriate her teenage relationship was with this man and just how many others he may have also targeted.

The prose is taut and tight. The characters are vulnerable, consumed, and tormented. And the plot does a exceptional job of building tension and unease as it subtly intertwines and unravels an intricate tale of lies, secrets, abuse, control, manipulation, expectations, revenge, and redemption.

Overall, The Ingenue is an unsettling, compelling psychological thriller by Kapelke-Dale that delves into all the deep, dark secrets people keep even from those closest to them and raises the question of how well do you really know anyone.

 

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 for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Rachel Kapelke-Dale

Rachel Kapelke-Dale is the co-author of GRADUATES IN WONDERLAND (Penguin 2014), a memoir about the significance and nuances of female friendships. The author of Vanity Fair Hollywood's column "Advice from the Stars," Kapelke-Dale spent years in intensive ballet training before receiving a BA from Brown University, an MA from the Université de Paris VII, and a PhD from University College London. She currently lives in Paris.

Photo by author.

#BookReview A Hard Day for a Hangover by Darynda Jones @Darynda @smpromance @StMartinsPress #AHardDayForAHangover #DaryndaJones #SunshineVicram #StMartinsPress #smpinfluencer

#BookReview A Hard Day for a Hangover by Darynda Jones @Darynda @smpromance @StMartinsPress #AHardDayForAHangover #DaryndaJones #SunshineVicram #StMartinsPress #smpinfluencer Title: A Hard Day for a Hangover

Author: Darynda Jones

Series: Sunshine Vicram #3

Published by: St. Martin's Press on Dec. 6, 2022

Genres: Mystery/Thriller, Romantic Suspense

Pages: 352

Format: Hardcover

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 9/10

Some people greet the day with open arms. Sheriff Sunshine Vicram would rather give it a hearty shove and get back into bed, because there’s just too much going on right now. There’s a series of women going missing, and Sunny feels powerless to stop it. There’s her persistent and awesomely-rebellious daughter Auri, who’s out to singlehandedly become Del Sol’s youngest and fiercest investigator. And then there’s drama with Levi Ravinder—the guy she’s loved and lusted after for years. The guy who might just be her one and only. The guy who comes from a family of disingenuous vipers looking to oust him—and Sunshine—for good.

Like we said, the new day can take a hike.


Review:

Lighthearted, quirky, and highly entertaining!

A Hard Day for a Hangover is a playful, engaging, suspenseful tale that takes us back to Del Sol, New Mexico, one last time and into the life of Sunshine Vicram, police chief extraordinaire, as she once again has her hands full with robberies, assaults, murders, an escaped convict, a town flasher, a pregnant racoon, a daughter indulging in first love, and a childhood sweetheart she may finally get to settle down with.

The writing is witty and sweet. The characters are sharp, supportive, and endearing. And the plot is an enticing mix of friendship, family, danger, drama, tension, attraction, community, intrigue, violence, spirited mishaps, romance, and a little heat.

Overall, A Hard Day for a Hangover is the third and final story in the Sunshine Vicram series, and even though it’s more than a little bittersweet to say goodbye to this amazing gang of characters I’ve come to know and love over these past three novels, it is nevertheless a superb ending to a fabulous series that I highly recommend and will undoubtedly miss.

This book is available now.

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

               

 

 

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Darynda Jones

NYTimes and USA Today Bestselling Author Darynda Jones has won numerous awards for her work, including a prestigious RITA, a Golden Heart, and a Daphne du Maurier. As a born storyteller, she grew up spinning tales of dashing damsels and heroes in distress for any unfortunate soul who happened by, annoying man and beast alike. She currently has two series with St. Martin's Press, the Charley Davidson Series and the Darklight Trilogy. Darynda lives in the Land of Enchantment, also known as New Mexico, with her husband of more than 25 years and two beautiful sons, the Mighty, Mighty Jones Boys.

Photograph courtesy of Author's Website.

#BookReview The Villa by Rachel Hawkins @LadyHawkins @StMartinsPress #TheVillaNovel #RachelHawkins #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview The Villa by Rachel Hawkins @LadyHawkins @StMartinsPress #TheVillaNovel #RachelHawkins #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers Title: The Villa

Author: Rachel Hawkins

Published by: St. Martin's Press on Jan. 3, 2023

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 288

Format: Hardcover

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 8/10

From New York Times bestselling author Rachel Hawkins comes a deliciously wicked gothic suspense, set at an Italian villa with a dark history, for fans of Lucy Foley and Ruth Ware.

As kids, Emily and Chess were inseparable. But by their 30s, their bond has been strained by the demands of their adult lives. So when Chess suggests a girls trip to Italy, Emily jumps at the chance to reconnect with her best friend.

Villa Aestas in Orvieto is a high-end holiday home now, but in 1974, it was known as Villa Rosato, and rented for the summer by a notorious rock star, Noel Gordon. In an attempt to reignite his creative spark, Noel invites up-and-coming musician, Pierce Sheldon to join him, as well as Pierce’s girlfriend, Mari, and her stepsister, Lara. But he also sets in motion a chain of events that leads to Mari writing one of the greatest horror novels of all time, Lara composing a platinum album––and ends in Pierce’s brutal murder.

As Emily digs into the villa’s complicated history, she begins to think there might be more to the story of that fateful summer in 1974. That perhaps Pierce’s murder wasn’t just a tale of sex, drugs, and rock & roll gone wrong, but that something more sinister might have occurred––and that there might be clues hidden in the now-iconic works that Mari and Lara left behind.

Yet the closer that Emily gets to the truth, the more tension she feels developing between her and Chess. As secrets from the past come to light, equally dangerous betrayals from the present also emerge––and it begins to look like the villa will claim another victim before the summer ends.

Inspired by Fleetwood Mac, the Manson murders, and the infamous summer Percy and Mary Shelley spent with Lord Byron at a Lake Geneva castle––the birthplace of Frankenstein––The Villa welcomes you into its deadly legacy.


Review:

Compelling, ominous, and unpredictable!

The Villa transports you into the life of cosy mystery writer Emily Sheridan who, after recently battling illness and a nasty divorce, heads to an Italian villa at the invitation of her childhood best friend and successful self-help author Chess Chandler, where the past will collide with the present, long-buried secrets will be unearthed, and the infamous murder that occurred on the property in 1974 and was the inspiration for the classic, celebrated horror novel, Lilith Rising may finally be solved.

The writing is taut and tight. The characters are self-indulgent, secretive, and vulnerable. And the plot using flashbacks and a back-and-forth, past/present style, intertwines and unravels effortlessly into a machiavellian tale full of manipulation, deception, lies, drama, jealousy, secrets, revelations, mayhem, and murder.

Overall, The Villa is a twisty, intense, sinister tale by Hawkins that does an excellent job of delving into the complex dynamics that exist between friends and highlights just how toxic, parasitic, and dangerous some of those relationships can turn out to be.

 

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

 

About Rachel Hawkins

Rachel Hawkins is the New York Times bestselling author of The Wife Upstairs, as well as multiple books for young readers, and her work has been translated in over a dozen countries. She studied gender and sexuality in Victorian literature at Auburn University and currently lives in Alabama.

Photo by John Hawkins.

#BookReview Desperation in Death by J. D.Robb @StMartinsPress #ForgotteninDeath #JDRobb #InDeathSeries #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview Desperation in Death by J. D.Robb @StMartinsPress #ForgotteninDeath #JDRobb #InDeathSeries #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers Title: Desperation in Death

Author: J. D. Robb

Series: In Death #55

Published by: St. Martin's Press on Sep. 6, 2022

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 368

Format: Hardcover

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 9/10

The #1 New York Times bestselling author presents a gripping new thriller that pits homicide detective Eve Dallas against a conspiracy of exploitation and evil…

New York, 2061: The place called the Pleasure Academy is a living nightmare where abducted girls are trapped, trained for a life of abject service while their souls are slowly but surely destroyed. Dorian, a thirteen-year-old runaway who’d been imprisoned there, might never have made it out if not for her fellow inmate Mina, who’d hatched the escape plan. Mina was the more daring of the two—but they’d been equally desperate.

Unfortunately, they didn’t get away fast enough. Now Dorian is injured, terrified, and wandering the streets of New York, and Mina lies dead near the waterfront while Lt. Eve Dallas looks over the scene.

Mina’s expensive, elegant clothes and beauty products convince Dallas that she was being groomed, literally and figuratively, for sex trafficking—and that whoever is investing in this high-overhead operation expects windfall profits. Her billionaire husband, Roarke, may be able to help, considering his ties to the city’s ultra-rich. But Roarke is also worried about the effect this case is having on Dallas, as it brings a rage to the surface she can barely control. No matter what, she must keep her head clear–because above all, she is desperate for justice and to take down those who prey on and torment the innocent.


Review:

Deviant, gripping, and sophisticated!

In this latest novel by Robb, Desperation in Death, we head back to New York during 2061, where NYPSD Lieutenant Eve Dallas and her partner Detective Peabody now find themselves on a gruesome case involving a dead teen elegantly groomed and a missing girl who knows more about what the well-funded “Academy” is really a school for.

The writing is absorbing and meticulous. The characters are multilayered, persistent, and intuitive. And the plot, including all the subplots, unravel and intertwine methodically into a sinister tale full of deception, deprivation, manipulation, abuse, corruption, mayhem, violence, murder, and the disturbing, depraved world of sex trafficking.

It’s hard to believe that this novel, Desperation in Death, is the fifty-fifth book in the In Death  series, and even though I have not read close to even half of the books in this obviously well-loved, remarkable series, I have to say I think this is the best one I’ve ever read and my new all-time favourite in the series.

 

This novel 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 for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About J. D. Robb

J.D. Robb is the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling In Death series and the pseudonym for #1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts. The futuristic suspense series stars Eve Dallas, a New York City police lieutenant with a dark past. Initially conceived as a trilogy, readers clamored for more of Eve and the mysterious Roarke. Forgotten in Death (St. Martin's Press, September 2021) is the 53rd entry in the series.

#BookReview Hester by Laurie Lico Albanese @Laurie_Albanese @StMartinsPress #HesterNovel #LaurieLicoAlbanese #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview Hester by Laurie Lico Albanese @Laurie_Albanese @StMartinsPress #HesterNovel #LaurieLicoAlbanese #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers Title: Hester

Author: Laurie Lico Albanese

Published by: St. Martin's Press on Oct. 4, 2022

Genres: Historical Fiction

Pages: 336

Format: Hardcover

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 10/10

Isobel Gamble is a young seamstress carrying generations of secrets when she sets sail from Scotland in the early 1800s with her husband, Edward. An apothecary who has fallen under the spell of opium, his pile of debts have forced them to flee Edinburgh for a fresh start in the New World. But only days after they’ve arrived in Salem, Edward abruptly joins a departing ship as a medic––leaving Isobel penniless and alone in a strange country, forced to make her way by any means possible.

When she meets a young Nathaniel Hawthorne, the two are instantly drawn to each other: he is a man haunted by his ancestors, who sent innocent women to the gallows––while she is an unusually gifted needleworker, troubled by her own strange talents. As the weeks pass and Edward’s safe return grows increasingly unlikely, Nathaniel and Isobel grow closer and closer. Together, they are a muse and a dark storyteller; the enchanter and the enchanted. But which is which?

In this sensuous and hypnotizing tale, a young immigrant woman grapples with our country’s complicated past, and learns that America’s ideas of freedom and liberty often fall short of their promise. Interwoven with Isobel and Nathaniel’s story is a vivid interrogation of who gets to be a “real” American in the first half of the 19th century, a depiction of the early days of the Underground Railroad in New England, and atmospheric interstitials that capture the long history of “unusual” women being accused of witchcraft. Meticulously researched yet evocatively imagined, Hester is a timeless tale of art, ambition, and desire that examines the roots of female creative power and the men who try to shut it down.

A vivid reimagining of the woman who inspired Hester Prynne, the tragic heroine of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, and a journey into the enduring legacy of New England’s witchcraft trials.


Review:

Absorbing, multilayered, and moving!

Hester is an expressive, compelling tale set in Scotland and Salem during both the early 1800s and 1662 when religious condemnation and fear of the unknown was rife, women with special abilities were labelled witches, the Underground Railroad was working tirelessly to give slaves the freedom they so rightly deserved, cruel and barbaric behaviour towards women who didn’t conform to what society deemed norm was still acceptable, and love still managed to blossom everywhere even under the most unlikely of circumstances.

The prose is evocative and rich. The characters are strong, resilient, and haunted. And the plot is an engrossing tale about life, loss, friendship, family, determination, courage, self-identity, sexism, prejudice, poverty, survival, romance, and the beauty of colour.

Overall, Hester is a book you have to read to truly appreciate just how atmospheric, alluring, and beautifully written it is. It grabs you from the very first page and does a remarkable job of blending historical facts with captivating fiction that’s both intriguing, creative, and exceptionally immersive, especially for those who, like myself, are fans of Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter.

 

This novel 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 for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Laurie Lico Albanese

Laurie Lico Albanese has published fiction, poetry, journalism, travel writing, creative nonfiction, and memoir. Her books include Stolen Beauty, Blue Suburbia: Almost a Memoir, Lynelle by the Sea, and The Miracles of Prato, co-written with art historian Laura Morowitz. Laurie is married to a publishing executive and is the mother of two children.

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