Source: St. Martin's Press

#BookReview Love Interest by Clare Gilmore @momentofclarety @smpromance #LoveInterestNovel #ClareGilmore #SMPRomance #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview Love Interest by Clare Gilmore @momentofclarety @smpromance #LoveInterestNovel #ClareGilmore #SMPRomance #SMPInfluencers Title: Love Interest

Author: Clare Gilmore

Published by: St. Martin's Griffin on Oct. 10, 2023

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 335

Format: Paperback

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 8/10

A sparkling adversaries-to-lovers romcom set at a magazine publisher in Manhattan. When Casey and Alex are forced into proximity, they soon realize falling for each other is just as much of a risk and as it is a reward.

Casey Maitland has always preferred the reliability of numbers, despite growing up the daughter of two artistic souls. Now a twenty-four-year-old finance expert working in Manhattan, Casey wonders if the project manager opening at her company – magazine powerhouse LC Publications – is a sign from the universe to pursue a career with a little more sparkle. That is, until she’s passed over for the job in favor of the board chairman’s son.

Alex Harrison is handsome, Harvard-educated, and enigmatic. Everybody loves him – except for Casey. But when the two are thrown on the same project, they both have something to prove. For Casey, it’s getting tapped for a transfer to the London office and fulfilling her dreams of travelling. For Alex, it’s successfully launching a brand that will impress his distant father.

As work meetings turn into after hours, Casey and Alex are drawn to each other again and again, but neither can avoid the messy secrets and corporate intrigue threatening to tear them apart. What they discover about their workplace might change everything – including the dreams each of them is chasing.


Review:

Charming, captivating, and sweet!

Love Interest is an amusing, tenderhearted, enemies-to-loves romance that transports you to NYC and into the lives of the independent, spirited Casey, who’s determined to do whatever it takes to prove she deserves a promotion, and the successful, hardworking Alex, who takes his job extremely serious and wants to do whatever it takes to make his detached father proud of his success.

The writing is heartfelt and light. The characters are intelligent, stubborn, vulnerable, and endearing. And the plot is a push-pull tale full of workplace drama, tender moments, humorous mishaps, witty banter, goals, expectations, optimism, chemistry, and love.

Overall, Love Interest is an easy, hopeful, promising debut by Gilmore that is bursting with self-discovery, friendship, romance, and the ups and downs of finding success in corporate America.

 

This novel is available now.

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

            

 

 

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

 

About Clare Gilmore

A Nashville native, Clare Gilmore studied Supply Chain Management and English Literature (a perfect combination) at the University of Tennessee. She is currently a resident of Tennessee daylighting as a corporate analyst. Love Interest is her first novel.

#BookReview The Porcelain Maker by Sarah Freethy @freethy @StMartinsPress #ThePorcelainMaker #SarahFreethy #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview The Porcelain Maker by Sarah Freethy @freethy @StMartinsPress #ThePorcelainMaker #SarahFreethy #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers Title: The Porcelain Maker

Author: Sarah Freethy

Published by: St. Martin's Press on Nov. 7, 2023

Genres: Historical Fiction

Pages: 384

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 9/10

An epic story of love, betrayal, and art that spans decades, through the horrors of World War II to 21st century America, inspired by an actual porcelain factory in Dachau.

Two lovers caught at the crossroads of history.

A daughter’s search for the truth.

Germany, 1929. At a festive gathering of young bohemians in Weimar, two young artists, Max, a skilled Jewish architect, and Bettina, a celebrated avant-garde painter, are drawn to each other and begin a whirlwind romance. Their respective talents transport them to the dazzling lights of Berlin, but this bright beginning is quickly dimmed by the rising threat of Nazism. Max is arrested and sent to the concentration camp at Dachau where only his talent at making exquisite porcelain figures stands between him and seemingly certain death. Desperate to save her lover, Bettina risks everything to rescue him and escape Germany.

America, 1993. Clara, Bettina’s daughter, embarks on a journey to trace her roots and determine the identity of her father, a secret her mother has kept from her for reasons she’s never understood. Clara’s quest to piece together the puzzle of her origins transports us back in time to the darkness of Nazi Germany, where life is lived on a razor’s edge and deception and death lurk around every corner. Survival depends on strength, loyalty, and knowing true friend from hidden foe. And as Clara digs further, she begins to question why her mother was so determined to leave the truth of her harrowing past behind…

The Porcelain Maker is a powerful novel of enduring love and courage in the face of appalling brutality as a daughter seeks to unlock the mystery of her past.


Review:

Absorbing, sincere, and expressive!

The Porcelain Maker is a rich, engaging tale predominately set in Germany from the mid-1920s through WWII, as well as 1993, that takes you into the lives of two main characters. Bettina Vogel, a young woman who, through determination and resilience, uses her artistic talents to help the resistance and stay as close to the one she loves as she possibly can; and Clara Vogel, a middle-aged mother who, after her mother’s passing decides with the help of her daughter to embark on a journey to discover the true identity of her father who seems to have had a connection to the acclaimed porcelain maker of Dachau.

The prose is eloquent and well-turned. The characters are lonely, strong, and brave. And the plot, including all the subplots, intertwine and unravel seamlessly into a heartfelt saga of life, loss, secrets, surprises, separation, heartbreak, betrayal, desperation, tragedy, survival, danger, friendship, the horrors of war, and enduring love.

Overall, The Porcelain Maker is an evocative, sentimental, moving debut by Freethy with compelling characters that I devoured from start to finish and one which I highly recommend for anyone who loves a well-written WWII time-slip tale.

 

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 Sarah Freethy

SARAH FREETHY worked as a writer, script consultant, producer and development editor in television before turning her hand to fiction. THE PORCELAIN MAKER is her first novel. She lives in England with her family.

#BookReview The Intern by Michele Campbell @MCampbellBooks @StMartinsPress #TheInternNovel #MicheleCampbell #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview The Intern by Michele Campbell @MCampbellBooks @StMartinsPress #TheInternNovel #MicheleCampbell #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers Title: The Intern

Author: Michele Campbell

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

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 384

Format: Hardcover

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 8/10

A young Harvard law student falls under the spell of a charismatic judge in this timely and thrilling novel about class, ambition, family and murder.

Madison Rivera lands the internship of a lifetime working for Judge Kathryn Conroy. But Madison has a secret that could destroy her career. Her troubled younger brother Danny has been arrested, and Conroy is the judge on his case.

When Danny goes missing after accusing the judge of corruption, Madison’s quest for answers brings her deep into the judge’s glamorous world. Is Kathryn Conroy a mentor, a victim, or a criminal? Is she trying to help Madison or use her as a pawn? And why is somebody trying to kill her?

As the two women circle each other in a dangerous cat-and-mouse game, will they save each other, or will betrayal leave one of them dead?


Review:

Tense, twisty, and suspenseful!

The Intern is a well-executed, menacing tale that features Harvard law student Madison Rivera, who after acquiring the coveted internship with one of her idols and professors, Federal Judge Kathryn Conroy, begins to quickly uncover that people are not always quite as wholesome as they seem and often have a lot of dark secrets in their closets, secrets that others are more than happy to kill for in order to keep quiet.

The prose is brisk and tight. The characters are intelligent, resourceful, and scared. And the plot is a fast-paced, cat-and-mouse game full of twists, turns, action, intrigue, power, corruption, duplicity, manipulation, danger, terror, and murder.

Overall, The Intern is a sinister, edgy, action-packed page-turner by Campbell that I found to be intricate, satisfying, and undoubtedly highly entertaining.

 

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 Michele Campbell

Michele Campbell

A graduate of Harvard University and Stanford Law School, Michele Campbell worked at a prestigious Manhattan law firm before spending eight years fighting crime as a federal prosecutor in New York City.

Michele is the author of She Was the Quiet One and It's Always the Husband.

Photo Credit: Nina Subin

#BookReview Maybe Once, Maybe Twice by Alison Rose Greenberg @alisongreenberg @smpromance #MaybeOnceMaybeTwice #AlisonRoseGreenberg #SMPRomance #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview Maybe Once, Maybe Twice by Alison Rose Greenberg @alisongreenberg @smpromance #MaybeOnceMaybeTwice #AlisonRoseGreenberg #SMPRomance #SMPInfluencers Title: Maybe Once, Maybe Twice

Author: Alison Rose Greenberg

Published by: St. Martin's Griffin on Oct. 3, 2023

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 336

Format: Paperback

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 8.5/10

Filled with the romance and angst that defines the years you come to know yourself, with a shifting timeline covering two decades and ratcheting up the tension, Maybe Once, Maybe Twice is a novel of second chances and finding your own way.

You know that old saying, “if we are still single when we’re 35, we should get married?” Well, Maggie Vine made that vow with two different people, at two very different stages of her life.

And they both showed up.

Maggie Vine’s life is going extra-medium. At 35 she’s pursuing her dreams of being a singer and being a mother—though neither is successfully panning out. So when Garrett Scholl—stifled hedge fund manager by day but electrifying aspiring rock singer by night—comes to her 35th birthday party with the intention to kiss Maggie senseless, it feels like one piece might click into place. Except he’s engaged to someone else, and Maggie knows she won’t fit into the cookie-cutter life he’s building for himself.

Enter Asher Reyes. Her first boyfriend from summer camp, turned into heartthrob actor, he’s lived a successful yet private life ever since he got famous. When a career-changing opportunity is presented to Maggie after her reconnection with Asher, it feels like everything—music, love, family—will fall into place. But her past won’t let her move on without a fight.


Review:

Heartwarming, thought-provoking, and romantic!

Maybe Once, Maybe Twice is a sweet, tender tale that takes us into the life of Maggie Vine, from her teens to her mid-thirties, including the highs and lows of pursuing a singing career, yearning for motherhood, her ongoing unrequited love for a man, Garrett Scholl who somehow seems to continuously fall in and out of her life, and an unexpected reconnection with her first love.

The prose is sentimental and light. The characters are flawed, supportive, and endearing. And the plot is a smart, engaging tale full of life, loss, love, music, tricky moments, awkward situations, undeniable chemistry, drama, tension, self-reflection, and a soundtrack of some of the most classic, unforgettable love songs of all time. (Playlist can be found here: HERE )

Overall, Maybe Once, Maybe Twice is an angsty, compelling, heartfelt tale by Greenberg that I thoroughly enjoyed and which is a lovely reminder that life is unpredictable and full of curve balls and, in the end, timing really is everything.

 

This novel is available now.

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

            

 

 

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

 

About Alison Rose Greenberg

Alison Greenberg is an author and screenwriter who lives in Atlanta, but is quick to say she was born in New York City. While attending The University of Southern California, Alison took her first screenwriting class and fell head over heels. A journey from screenwriting led to marketing jobs, before coming full-circle back to her first love. Alison speaks fluent rom-com, lives for 90’s WB dramas, cries to Taylor Swift, and is a proud single mom to her two incredible kids, two cats, and one poorly-trained dog.

Photo Credit: Talitha Kauffman Photography.

#BookReview People to Follow by Olivia Worley @olivia_worley @WednesdayBooks @StMartinsPress #OliviaWorley #PeopletoFollow #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview People to Follow by Olivia Worley @olivia_worley @WednesdayBooks @StMartinsPress #OliviaWorley #PeopletoFollow #SMPInfluencers Title: People to Follow

Author: Olivia Worley

Published by: Wednesday Books on Oct. 31, 2023

Genres: Mystery/Thriller, Young Adult

Pages: 352

Format: ARC, eBook

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 8/10

Ten teen influencers come to a remote island to star in a reality show, but when one of them winds up dead, they realize that this time, the price of being “cancelled” could be their lives.

A reality show on a remote Caribbean island. Ten teen influencers. One dead body.

Welcome to “In Real Life,” the hot new reality show that forces social media’s reigning kings and queens to unplug for three weeks and “go live” without any filters. IRL is supposed to be the opportunity of a lifetime, watched closely by legions of loyal followers. But for these rising stars–including Elody, an Instagram model with an impulsive streak; Kira, a child star turned fitness influencer; Logan, a disgraced TikTok celeb with a secret; and Max, a YouTuber famous for exposés on his fellow creators—it’s about to turn into a nightmare.

When the production crew fails to show up and one of their own meets a violent end, these nine little influencers find themselves stranded with a dead body and no way to reach the outside world. When they start receiving messages from a mysterious Sponsor threatening to expose their darkest secrets, they realize that they’ve been lured into a deadly game…and one of them might be pulling the strings.

With the body count rising and cameras tracking their every move, the creators must figure out who is trying to get them canceled—like, literally—before their #1 follower strikes again.


Review:

Intense, tight, and sinister!

People to Follow is a crafty, ominous tale that sweeps you away to a secluded island where ten teen influencers have gathered to film the latest reality TV show, “In Real Life”, but in a group like this, where tensions are high, fame is coveted, deception is rife, everyone has secrets, and someone has a hidden agenda, death is definitely not out of the question.

The writing is sharp and crisp. The characters are self-obsessed, ambitious, and secretive. And the plot is a suspenseful mix of twists, turns, secrets, deception, manipulation, obsession, greed, jealousy, malicious intentions, vengeance, and murder.

Overall, People to Follow is a cunning, edgy, promising debut by Worley that is an eerie reminder of just how corrosive social media can truly be and just how low some people are willing to go to achieve even just a little fame and fortune.

 

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 – Wednesday Books for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Olivia Worley

Olivia Worley is an author and actor born and raised in New Orleans. A graduate of Northwestern University, she now lives in New York City, where she spends her time writing thrillers, overanalyzing episodes of The Bachelor, and hoping someone will romanticize her for reading on the subway. People to Follow is her debut novel.

#BookReview Sisters Under the Rising Sun by Heather Morris @StMartinsPress #SistersUndertheRisingSun #HeatherMorrisAuthor #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview Sisters Under the Rising Sun by Heather Morris @StMartinsPress #SistersUndertheRisingSun #HeatherMorrisAuthor #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers Title: Sisters Under the Rising Sun

Author: Heather Morris

Published by: St. Martin's Press on Oct. 24, 2023

Genres: Historical Fiction

Pages: 400

Format: Hardcover

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 8.5/10

A phenomenal novel of resilience and survival from bestselling author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, Heather Morris.

In the midst of World War II, an English musician, Norah Chambers, places her eight-year-old daughter Sally on a ship leaving Singapore, desperate to keep her safe from the Japanese army as they move down through the Pacific. Norah remains to care for her husband and elderly parents, knowing she may never see her child again.

Sister Nesta James, a Welsh Australian nurse, has enlisted to tend to Allied troops. But as Singapore falls to the Japanese she joins the terrified cargo of people, including the heartbroken Norah, crammed aboard the Vyner Brooke merchant ship. Only two days later, they are bombarded from the air off the coast of Indonesia, and in a matter of hours, the Vyner Brooke lies broken on the seabed.

After surviving a brutal 24 hours in the sea, Nesta and Norah reach the beaches of a remote island, only to be captured by the Japanese and held in one of their notorious POW camps. The camps are places of starvation and brutality, where disease runs rampant. Sisters in arms, Norah and Nesta fight side by side every day, helping whoever they can, and discovering in themselves and each other extraordinary reserves of courage, resourcefulness and determination.

Sisters under the Rising Sun is a story of women in war: a novel of sisterhood, bravery and friendship in the darkest of circumstances, from the multimillion-copy bestselling author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, Cilka’s Journey and Three Sisters.


Review:

Immersive, evocative, and affecting!

Sisters Under the Rising Sun is an alluring tale set in Singapore and Indonesia during WWII that follows several women, especially Sister Nesta James, an Australian nurse, and Norah Chambers, a mother and British musician, as they do whatever it takes to help each other survive the horror and hardships of life in a Japanese POW camp in order to one day be able to reunite with the people that have kept their fighting spirits alive and strong.

The prose is vivid and smooth. The characters are dependable, courageous, and resilient. And the plot is a moving tale of life, loss, self-discovery, heartbreak, determination, hope, loyalty, tragedy, survival, love, friendship, sisterhood, and wartime brutalities.

Overall, Sisters Under the Rising Sun is an emotive, rich, absorbing tale that I devoured from start to finish. I’m a huge fan of Heather Morris’ writing, and this novel didn’t disappoint. If you enjoy well-researched WWII novels with a fresh and unique perspective, then I highly recommend it.

 

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 Heather Morris

HEATHER MORRIS is a native of New Zealand, now resident in Australia. For several years, while working in a large public hospital in Melbourne, she studied and wrote screenplays, one of which was optioned by an Academy Award-winning screenwriter in the US. In 2003, Heather was introduced to an elderly gentleman who ‘might just have a story worth telling’. The day she met Lale Sokolov changed both their lives. Their friendship grew and Lale embarked on a journey of self-scrutiny, entrusting the innermost details of his life during the Holocaust to her. Heather originally wrote Lale’s story as a screenplay – which ranked high in international competitions – before reshaping it into her debut novel, The Tattooist of Auschwitz.

Photo by Tina Smigielski.

#BookReview Every Duke Has His Day by Suzanne Enoch @suzieenoch @smpromance #EveryDukeHasHisDay #SuzanneEnoch #SMPRomance #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview Every Duke Has His Day by Suzanne Enoch @suzieenoch @smpromance #EveryDukeHasHisDay #SuzanneEnoch #SMPRomance #SMPInfluencers Title: Every Duke Has His Day

Author: Suzanne Enoch

Published by: St. Martin's Griffin on Sep. 19, 2023

Genres: Historical Romance

Pages: 320

Format: Paperback

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 8.5/10

Michael Blumley, Duke of Loriton (age 28), is viewed as an eccentric by his peers in the ton. He does his duty, of course, but his interest—and talent—lies in the science of electricity. He has no interest in what the frivolities of Society. When his favorite aunt, Mary, Lady Harris, leaves her precious, well-behaved black poodle, Lancelot in his care while she travels his life takes an interesting turn.

Elizabeth “Bitsy” Dockering (age 19), third daughter of a viscount, is enjoying her second Season in London. She is a Diamond of the Season and is adored by all—and especially by her precious black poodle, Galahad. To everyone else, however, Galahad is a demon dog. So much so that Peter Cordray, one of Bitsy’s most insistent beaux and a particular victim of Galahad’s bad manners and sharp teeth, has hired a petty thief (Jimmy Bly) to steal the dog, clearing the way for his suit.

When the two dogs and their “people” meet in the park, chaos ensues and unknowingly results in a dog swap. Which means Lancelot is kidnapped instead of Galahad! But when both dogs go missing in an ever thickening dognapping plot, Michael and Elizabeth end up coming together to scour London, recover Lancelot and Galahad all while falling in love.


Review:

Enchanting, romantic, and highly entertaining!

Every Duke Has His Day is a playful, adventurous tale that sweeps you away to Regency London and into the lives of the quirky, handsome Duke of Loriton, Michael Blumley and the beautiful, independent Elizabeth Dockering as they navigate a mix-up of dogs, a dognapping gone wrong, a suitor determined to do whatever it takes to win the girl, and a sizzling attraction neither of them can deny.

The prose is witty and light. The characters are loyal, supportive, and endearing. And the plot is an amusing, compelling tale full of friendship, family, scheming behaviour, societal expectations, tricky situations, tender moments, unconditional love, and romance.

Overall, Every Duke Has His Day is a lighthearted, engaging, delightful read by Enoch that I absolutely adored and which is the perfect choice for anyone who loves historical romance with a side of adventure.

 

This novel is available now.

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

            

 

 

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

 

About Suzanne Enoch

A native and current resident of Southern California, Suzanne Enoch loves movies almost as much as she loves books, with a particular soft spot for anything Star Wars. She has written more than 50 books, including Regency romances, historical romances, and contemporary romantic suspense. She shares a home with various humans, tropical fish, a dog (Tiki), a tortoise (Lucky Jo), five lizards, six finches, and a parakeet named Fozzie.

Photo Credit: Dinamariephotography.com

#BookReview And Then There Was You by Nancy Naigle @smpromance @nancynaigle @StMartinsPress #AndThenThereWasYou #NancyNaigle #SMPRomance #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview And Then There Was You by Nancy Naigle @smpromance @nancynaigle @StMartinsPress #AndThenThereWasYou #NancyNaigle #SMPRomance #SMPInfluencers Title: And Then There Was You

Author: Nancy Naigle

Series: Chestnut Ridge #1

Published by: St. Martin's Griffin on Jun. 27, 2023

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 352

Format: Paperback

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 8/10

During the coziness of sweater weather in the mountains of Virginia two people find love against all odds in USA Today bestselling author Nancy Naigle’s And Then There Was You .

Reeling after falling prey to a Romeo con-artist who just waltzed away with the better part of her belongings, Natalie Maynard works closely with the detective assigned to her case, only the few leads have led nowhere.

Detective Randy Fellowes can’t promise Natalie restitution, but he’s determined to find the culprit and serve up justice. Married to his work, he’s caught off guard when Natalie has his thoughts wandering to more than the case.

Natalie soon seeks refuge in the one thing she still owns ― an old fishing cabin in the mountains of Chestnut Ridge. She quickly falls in love with the town and the eccentric people who are teaching her so much about the area and its heritage.

Through these people, and the determination of Detective Fellowes, she rediscovers her courage, self, and a reason to risk love again.


Review:

Reflective, optimistic, and tender!

And Then There Was You is a charming, uplifting tale that takes you into the life of Natalie Maynard, a confused, heartbroken widow who, after falling for a con man that left her confidence shattered, her life in tatters and her money all gone, moves to her late husband’s cabin in the idyllic mountains of Virginia to regroup, start over, and perhaps find some peace, family, and a new place to call home.

The writing is warm and fluid. The characters are kind, attentive, and supportive. And the plot is a sweet, heartfelt blend of life, loss, friendship, grief, introspection, drama, community, tricky situations, romantic gestures, unconditional love, and new beginnings.

Overall, And Then There Was You is a heartwarming, hopeful, captivating tale by Naigle that’s a promising start for this new Chestnut Ridge series and is definitely the perfect choice for anyone who loves endearing characters and small-town charm.

 

This book is available now.

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

       

 

 

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

 

About Nancy Naigle

USA Today bestselling author NANCY NAIGLE whips up small-town love stories with a dash of suspense and a whole lot of heart. Now happily retired, she devotes her time to writing, antiquing, and the occasional spa day with friends. A native of Virginia Beach, she currently calls North Carolina home. Nancy is the author of Christmas Joy and Hope at Christmas, both of which have been turned into film for Hallmark Channel.

Photograph by Adam Sanner.

#BookReview The Enemy Beside Me by Naomi Ragen @StMartinsPress #TheEnemyBesideMe #NaomiRagen #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview The Enemy Beside Me by Naomi Ragen @StMartinsPress #TheEnemyBesideMe #NaomiRagen #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers Title: The Enemy Beside Me

Author: Naomi Ragen

Published by: St. Martin's Griffin on Sep. 12, 2023

Genres: Historical Fiction

Pages: 400

Format: Paperback

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 9/10

Inspired by true events, Naomi Ragen’s The Enemy Beside Me is a powerful, provocative novel about two people fighting for reconciliation over unforgivable crimes of the past.

Taking over from her father and grandfather as the head of the Survivor’s Campaign, an organization whose purpose is to bring Nazi war criminals to justice, Milia Gottstein has dedicated her life to making sure the voices of Holocaust victims will never be silenced. It is an overwhelming and heartbreaking mission that has often usurped her time and energy being a wife to busy surgeon Julius, and a mother and grandmother. But now, just as she is finally ready to pass on her work to others, making time for her personal life, an unexpected phone call suddenly explodes all she thought she knew about her present and her future.

In the midst of this personal turmoil, Milia receives an invitation to be the keynote speaker at a Holocaust conference in Lithuania from Dr. Darius Vidas, the free spirited, rebellious conference head. Despite suspecting his motives―she is, after all, viewed as a ‘public enemy’ in that country for her efforts to have them try war criminals and admit their historic responsibility for annihilating almost their entire Jewish community, including her own family―she nevertheless accepts, having developed a secret agenda of her own. But as Milia and Darius begin their mission, shared experiences profoundly alter their relationship, replacing antagonism and suspicion with a growing intimacy. However, this only ramps up the hostile forces facing them, threatening their families, livelihoods, and reputations, and forcing them into shocking choices that will betray all they have achieved and all that has grown between them.


Review:

Thought-provoking, moving, and immersive!

The Enemy Beside Me is an insightful, poignant tale that takes you into the life of Milia Gottstein, a Jewish woman and current head of the Survivors’ Campaign, an organization previously run by her father and grandfather, who reluctantly heads to Lithuania to speak at a Holocaust conference to make sure that the Lithuanian people of today have a clear understanding of the actual role their citizens played and the atrocious acts they committed against their own neighbours and community members contrary to what they’ve always been taught to believe.

The prose is sobering and expressive. The characters are troubled, brave, and strong. And the plot is an enthralling, hopeful tale about life, love, strength, deception, injustice, guilt, loss, shame, respect, passion, truth, understanding, and acknowledgement.

Overall, The Enemy Beside Me is ultimately a heart-wrenching, affecting, pensive tale by Ragen based on real-life events that highlights the extreme hardships, suffering, and horrors endured during a heinous time in history when millions of lives were violated, taken, and senselessly lost, and reminds us that our greatest power against such evil, truly, is knowledge and never, ever to forget.

 

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 Naomi Ragen

Naomi Ragen is an award-winning novelist, journalist and playwright. Her first book, Jephte’s Daughter, was listed among the one-hundred most important Jewish books of all time. Her bestselling novels include Sotah, The Covenant, The Sisters Weiss, and Devil in Jerusalem. An outspoken advocate for women’s rights, and an active combatant against anti-Israel and anti-Semitic propaganda through her website, she has lived in Jerusalem since 1971. An Observant Wife is her thirteenth novel.

Photo Credit: Alex Ragen

#BookReview Gone Tonight by Sarah Pekkanen @sarahpekkanen @StMartinsPress #GoneTonightNovel #SarahPekkanen #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers

#BookReview Gone Tonight by Sarah Pekkanen @sarahpekkanen @StMartinsPress #GoneTonightNovel #SarahPekkanen #StMartinsPress #SMPInfluencers Title: Gone Tonight

Author: Sarah Pekkanen

Published by: St. Martin's Press on Aug. 1, 2023

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 352

Format: Hardcover

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 8.5/10

Catherine Sterling thinks she knows her mother. Ruth Sterling is quiet, hardworking, and lives for her daughter. All her life, it’s been just the two of them against the world. But now, Catherine is ready to spread her wings, move from home, and begin a new career. And Ruth Sterling will do anything to prevent that from happening.

Ruth Sterling thinks she knows her daughter. Catherine would never rebel, would never question anything about her mother’s past or background. But when Ruth’s desperate quest to keep her daughter by her side begins to reveal cracks in Ruth’s carefully-constructed world, both mother and daughter begin a dance of deception.


Review:

Ominous, tense, and clever!

Gone Tonight is a sharp, compulsive, psychological thriller that delves into all the deep, dark secrets people keep even from those closest to them and highlights just how easily people can be emotionally manipulated, controlled, and exploited by those they love.

The writing is crisp and edgy. The characters are distressed, unreliable, and vulnerable. And the plot, told by alternating perspectives, unfolds subtly into a murky tale full of twists, turns, surprises, familial drama, lies, secrets, manipulation, love, dysfunction, wickedness, deception, mental illness, and murder.

Overall, Gone Tonight is a crafty, sinister, engaging tale by Pekkanen that kept me engaged from start to finish and was a fantastic reminder of all the complex bonds and emotional ties that bind mothers and daughters.

 

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 Sarah Pekkanen

SARAH PEKKANEN is the #1 New York Times bestselling co-author of four novels of suspense including The Golden Couple and The Wife Between Us, and the solo author of the thriller Gone Tonight. A passionate volunteer for rescue animals, she serves as an Ambassador for RRSA India and works hands-on in India to heal and vaccinate street dogs. She lives just outside of Washington, D.C., with her family.

Photo Credit: Kristina Sherk

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