reecaspieces

About The Book: 

Crawdads meets the Crawleys…Threaded through with a meticulously researched, well-crafted mystery, this is historical fiction at its best.” —Fiona Davis, nationally bestselling author of The Lions of Fifth Avenue

From the bestselling author of A Tangled Mercy comes an enthralling novel of secrets, a tumultuous war of ideas, and murder as classes collide in the shadow of Biltmore House.

Biltmore House, a palatial mansion being built by the Vanderbilts, American “royalty,” is in its final stages of construction in North Carolina. The country’s grandest example of privilege, it symbolizes the aspirations of its owner and the dreams of a girl, just as driven, who lives in its shadow.

Kerry MacGregor’s future is derailed when, after two years in college in New York City, family obligations call her home to the beautiful Appalachians. She is determined to distance herself from the opulence she sees rising in the Blue Ridge Mountains, however close its reach. Her family’s land is among the last pieces required to complete the Biltmore Estate. But something more powerful than an ambitious Vanderbilt heir could change Kerry’s fate as, one by one, more outsiders descend on the changing landscape—a fugitive from Sicily, a reporter chasing a groundbreaking story, a debutante tainted by scandal, and a conservationist prepared to put anyone at risk to stoke the resentment of the locals.

As Kerry finds herself caught in a war between wealth and poverty, innocence and corruption, she must navigate not only her own pride and desperation to survive but also the temptations of fortune and the men who control it.

Review

Kerry has been called home from school to attend to family matters. She finds her beautiful Appalachian mountains changed a bit with the addition of the massive Biltmore Estate. She also finds her family’s lands and her new life surrounded by corruption and scandal.

This had a rough start for me. The author introduces a ton of characters at the first. There is very little backstory and very few connections to each other. I felt a little lost. But, the further I read the better and better the story became. The magical setting of the Biltmore and the unique mystery just came together and made for a very good read.

And isn’t this cover FANTASTIC!

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

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About The Author: 

Joy Jordan-Lake is the author of eight books, including A Tangled Mercy, a #1 Amazon bestseller and also an Editors’ Choice recipient from the Historical Novel Society; Blue Hole Back Home, which won the Christy Award for First Novel; and the children’s book A Crazy-Much Love. Raised in the foothills of the Appalachians, she spent several summers in and around Asheville, North Carolina, where the Biltmore Estate is located. She continues to love the Blue Ridge Mountains and drags friends and family there with her whenever possible. Jordan-Lake holds two master’s degrees and a PhD in English and has taught literature and writing at several universities. Now living outside Nashville, she and her husband have two daughters, a son, and a ferocious ten-pound rescue pup. To learn more about the author and her work, visit www.joyjordanlake.com .

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Book Blurbs:

“Elegantly written and expertly crafted, Under a Gilded Moon soars as high as any piece of literature can reach. You’re transported to a time and place in history that begs [to be] read late into the night.” —Robert Dugoni, international bestselling author of The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell and the Tracy Crosswhite series

“I was swept away by this dazzling, masterfully written tale of the clash of classes and cultures around the Biltmore in North Carolina. Joy Jordan-Lake brings the past alive with impeccable details, raw emotion, and parallels to our present world. A triumph.” —Emily Carpenter, bestselling author of Burying the Honeysuckle Girls

“This is historical fiction at its finest. With pitch-perfect dialogue and details so rich and so right, Joy Jordan-Lake sets us squarely—lock, stock, and barrel—in 1895 Asheville, NC, in not just one but two distinctive worlds. The grand Vanderbilts and their luxurious Biltmore fascinated me, and the mountain people with their human struggles pulled at my heart.” —Bren McClain, author of One Good Mama Bone, winner of the 2017 Willie Morris Award for Southern Fiction and the 2019 Patricia Winn Award for Southern Literature

“Crawdads meets the Crawleys in Jordan-Lake’s latest, where she offers up a powerful location in the Biltmore House of Asheville, North Carolina. Pitting rugged locals against Gilded Age interlopers and threaded throughout with a meticulously researched, well-crafted mystery, this is historical fiction at its best.” —Fiona Davis, national bestselling author of The Lions of Fifth Avenue

Overview

Truth, Lies, and Second Dates is a sweet and sassy contemporary romance from New York Times bestselling author MaryJanice Davidson.

Captain Ava Capp has been flying from her past for a decade. She’d much rather leave it, and her home state, behind forever. But when she finds herself back in Minnesota, against her better judgment, everything goes sideways in a way she never expected it to.

M.E. Dr. Tom Baker has never forgotten Ava and the cold case she ran away from. When she shows up unexpectedly in town, in spite of himself, sparks fly. Which is terrible because he can’t stop his growing attraction to her. Can these two Type-A’s let their guards down and work together to put Ava’s tragic past behind her for good? And keep their hands off each other at the same time?

Review

Ava is an airline pilot, a very good one at that! She is actually famous. (you will need to read this to find out why.) She has to fly into her hometown and she is not happy about it. Then her past comes back to bite her in the butt…

This story is a little spastic in places. I could not decide if it was a mystery or a romcom. I basically think the author changed her mind in the middle of this book and made it a romcom. And some of the conversations were confusing. I am not sure if it was the format of the early ebook or if it was just the way it was written.

I know it sound like I did not enjoy this book. But, I did enjoy it to a degree. I loved Ava. She is strong and funny, hilarious, as a matter of fact. Then there is Tom. These two together really make the whole story worth reading.

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

MaryJanice Davidson is the international best-selling author of several books, including the Betsy the Vampire Queen series. Her books have been translated into several languages and are available in fifteen countries. She writes a bi-weekly column for USA Today and frequently speaks to book clubs, writer’s groups, teaches writing workshops, and attends conferences all over the world. She has published books, novellas, articles, short stories, recipes, and movie reviews.

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Book Summary:

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Courtney Evan Tate’s The Last to See Her (MIRA; 12/29) is a twisty, fast-paced domestic suspense about sisters, secrets and betrayal–for fans of B.A. Paris and Riley Sager.
Genevieve, a writer, is about to finalize her divorce from her cheating husband Todd. So when her sister Meg, an ambitious physician, has a convention to attend in New York City, she invites Gen along to celebrate her return to single life. It will be a perfect sisters’ getaway in the big city! But things go awry when, on their first evening at the hotel, Gen decides to take a late night walk and disappears without a trace. Eventually she is officially declared a missing person.
Suspicion soon falls on her sister Meg, who was the last person to see her.
Through twists and turns, it is revealed that Meg has been sleeping with her brother-in-law Todd… And then there is a question of a newly purchased insurance policy that just has just gone into effect before Gen’s disappearance. Both Todd and Meg deny any knowledge of it.
But has an actual crime been committed? Can it be proven? And if so, who is really the guilty one?

Review

Genevieve is getting divorced. She and her sister, Meg, decide to go to NYC for a girls weekend. They get a little tipsy and Gen goes out for a little air and to clear her head. She never returns. Meg is the last to see her and the first to become a suspect.

Todd, Genevieve’s cheating husband, is a character everyone loves to hate. He is materialistic and a cheater. I just wanted to punch him a time or two! Then there is Meg! Meg is over the top. As a reader, you really start to like her…until you don’t. I just did not understand her thought process. I just wanted to shake some sense into her. And finally there is Genevieve…you will just have to read it to find out.

What a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive! This book is deceiving in more ways than one. I thought I figured it out…then it twisted again and again. I love a book which keeps me guessing. This one does it!

Grab your copy today! You will not be sorry! This book has a little bit of everything!

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest opinion.

About the author

Courtney Evan Tate is the nom de plume (and darker side) of the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Courtney Cole. As Courtney Evan Tate, she is the author of Such Dark Things and I’ll Be Watching You. Courtney grew up in rural Kansas and now lives with her husband and kids in Florida, where spends her days dreaming of new characters and storylines and surprising plot twists and writing them beneath rustling palm trees. Visit her on Facebook or at courtneycolewriters.com

Social Links:
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Twitter: @Court_Writes Instagram: @CourtneyColeWrites Facebook: @CourtneyColeWrites Goodreads

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Books A Million

Powell’s

Release Date: September 12, 2020

About The Book:

Recently widowed Sylvie Andrus moves with her young son, Jason, to a small river town, and discovers she must solve a two-century old mystery to rid herself of the ghost who haunts her. Still grieving, she finds the ghost of her husband, Ned, waiting in her new home to seduce her. Jason warns Sylvie the ghost is evil but, swept up by her yearning for her husband and determined to reveal what happened to Clarinda Braxton, a Revolutionary Era painter who disappeared without a trace in 1794, she delays, putting her son’s life in peril.

Review

Sylvie and her son have moved into an old house in a quaint little River town. She is recently widowed and struggling to overcome her recent loss. Little does she know she is being possessed by a ghost, Clarinda Braxton. And Sylvie must solve her murder to get her to go away. And to complicate matters even more, the ghost of her husband shows up.

I love a good ghost story and this one is wonderful. Plus, it is a little different than the normal ghost story. It has tons of history and mystery. This makes for a fast paced thriller you do not want to miss. As a matter of fact you could probably read it in one sitting. It is told in two different time periods but the characters are fascinating and you just can’t stop!

I received this novel from the author for a honest review.

About The Author: 

Ginny Fite, author of Blue Girl on the Night Dream Sea, the thriller No End of Bad, and the dark mystery thrillers Cromwell’s Folly, No Good Deed Left Undone, and Lying, Cheating, and Occasionally Murder is an award-winning writer and journalist. 

She’s also been a spokesperson for a governor and for a member of Congress, for colleges and universities, and a robotics R&D company. With degrees from Rutgers University and Johns Hopkins University, she also studied at the School for Women Healers and the Maryland Poetry Therapy Institute. 

In addition to her novels, she is the author of I Should Be Dead by Now, a collection of humorous lamentations about aging, three books of poetry– The Last Thousand Years, The Pearl Fisher, and Throwing Caution– and a short story collection, What Goes Around. 

She is addicted to Twitter and posts as @Unwrinkledbrain. She resides in Harpers Ferry, WV. Website http://ginnyfite.com/

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Book Blurbs: 

“Ginny Fite weaves a fascinating tale of an undiscovered murder, a grieving widow, a mysterious ghost and the history that connects them.  A love story and a ghost story, POSSESSION celebrates the courage of women to overcome tragedy and grief.”—K.P. Robbins, The Stonehenge Scrolls

“As we’ve come to expect of keen-eyed author Ginny Fite, Possession is masterful. In a cyclone of peril and malevolence this novel spirals us back to chilling events of the 18th century, then lets the consequences fall on a 21st century mother and son.  For a story with compelling characters that is both haunting and heartwarming, Possession delivers the goods. –Lee W. Doty, Tidal Kin

“Ginny Fite strikes again, taking us on a wild ride in Possession—an unusual blend of mystery, feminism, and horror told in dual storylines. I consumed this book in a few sittings, desperate for resolution.” –Leslie M. Rollins, Good-Time Girl

Overview

From author Kia Abdullah, Take It Back is a harrowing and twisting courtroom thriller that keeps you guessing until the last page is turned.

One victim. 
Four accused. 
Who is telling the truth?

Zara Kaleel, one of London’s brightest legal minds, shattered the expectations placed on her by her family and forged a brilliant legal career. But her decisions came at a high cost, and now, battling her own demons, she has exchanged her high profile career for a job at a sexual assault center, helping victims who need her the most. Victims like Jodie Wolfe.

When Jodie, a sixteen-year-old girl with facial deformities, accuses four boys in her class of an unthinkable crime, the community is torn apart. After all, these four teenage defendants are from hard-working immigrant families and they all have proven alibis. Even Jodie’s best friend doesn’t believe her.

But Zara does—and she is determined to fight for Jodie—to find the truth in the face of public outcry. And as issues of sex, race and social justice collide, the most explosive criminal trial of the year builds to a shocking conclusion.

Review

Zara is an attorney who has given up her high powered job to help victims of sexual assault. One day, a victim called Jodie Wolfe arrived at the center. She has severe facial deformities due to a disease. But, she has accused 4 Muslim boys of rape. Did I mention Zara is Muslim? Well, this sends the whole city into turmoil.

Wow! This book grabbed you by the throat at the beginning and never let go. I swear…I didn’t know who was telling the truth and who was lying. At the end, I had to actually put the book down a minute and breathe. There are so many aspects to this novel. It is very complex and not for the faint of heart. Between Jodie and her terrible situation, Zara and her Muslim ties, and the 4 teenage boys accused of this crime, my mind was racing and I could not read it fast enough.

Now, this book is not for everyone. I read another review (and I NEVER DO THAT!). She hated this book for various reasons. The reasons she hated it are the reasons I enjoyed it. The intensity, the way the author manipulated the reader, the twists and turns…but the subject matter is tough! So be aware.

I found this book fantastically complex and heart wrenching!

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

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About The Book: 

Three generations of women—and the love, loss, sacrifice, and secrets that can bind them forever or tear them apart.

Millicent Glenn is self-sufficient and contentedly alone in the Cincinnati suburbs. As she nears her ninety-first birthday, her daughter Jane, with whom she’s weathered a shaky relationship, suddenly moves back home. Then Millie’s granddaughter shares the thrilling surprise that she’s pregnant. But for Millie, the news stirs heartbreaking memories of a past she’s kept hidden for too long. Maybe it’s time she shared something, too. Millie’s last wish? For Jane to forgive her.

Sixty years ago Millie was living a dream. She had a husband she adored, a job of her own, a precious baby girl, and another child on the way. They were the perfect family. All it took was one irreversible moment to shatter everything, reshaping Millie’s life and the lives of generations to come.

As Millie’s old wounds are exposed, so are the secrets she’s kept for so long. Finally revealing them to her daughter might be the greatest risk a mother could take in the name of love.

About The Author:

Tori Whitaker grew up in the Midwest. She now resides outside of Atlanta, Georgia, where she and her husband of more than forty years live near their two sons and their families. Tori belongs to the Historical Novel Society, and her feature article, “Multi-Period Novels: The Keys to Weaving Together Two Stories from Different Time Periods,” appeared in the Historical Novels Review. Tori graduated from Indiana University and is chief marketing officer for a national law firm. She is also an alum of the Yale Writers’ Workshop. Millicent Glenn’s Last Wish is her first novel. https://toriwhitaker.com/

Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ToriWhitakerAuthor/

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Twitter: @ToriLWhitaker

Review

Millie is getting close to her 91st birthday. She is still able to live by herself and is very independent. Then her daughter, Jane, shows up and moves in with her. Plus, her granddaughter has some wonderful news. But, all of this brings on some terrible memories. And it is time for Millie to share.

There are a lot of aspects covered in the novel. The main one…the struggle of women in the 50s. It was frowned up on by society for a woman to work. Women could not open their own checking account without their husband’s permission. And even their healthcare involved a husband’s opinion. Oh! How far women have come.

Another aspect which I found unique…assumptions. I have to be careful here…I do not want to give anything away. One of the characters overheard something and this lead to assumptions. This changed a relationship and affected many outcomes.

This story also includes a pretty rough tragedy. So get the tissues ready. I had to set the book aside for a few minutes and breathe.

If you need a good novel about life, family and especially love…THIS IS IT!

I received a copy from the publisher for a honest review.

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Overview

A dozen women join a secret 1850s Arctic expedition—and a sensational murder trial unfolds when some of them don’t come back.

Eccentric Lady Jane Franklin makes an outlandish offer to adventurer Virginia Reeve: take a dozen women, trek into the Arctic, and find her husband’s lost expedition. Four parties have failed to find him, and Lady Franklin wants a radical new approach: put the women in charge.

A year later, Virginia stands trial for murder. Survivors of the expedition willing to publicly support her sit in the front row. There are only five. What happened out there on the ice?

Set against the unforgiving backdrop of one of the world’s most inhospitable locations, USA Today bestselling author Greer Macallister uses the true story of Lady Jane Franklin’s tireless attempts to find her husband’s lost expedition as a jumping-off point to spin a tale of bravery, intrigue, perseverance and hope.

Review

Lady Jane Franklin hires Virginia Reeve to take 12 women on a trek to the Arctic to find her husband. This expedition ends tragically. Virginia also ends up on trial for murder. One of the women on the trip dies and her family needs to blame someone! However, there is a lot of double dealing, secrecy and lies.

This book is told in various time periods, settings and various points of view. This bothers many readers. However, the author handled this excellently and I had no trouble keeping up.

Now, there are several parts I enjoyed more than others. I loved the courtroom scenes. That is where the true mystery lies. This section is intriguing and unique.

The part about the expedition is just ok. This is why I gave the book a 4 instead of a 5 star. The expedition should have been the most exciting. But I just did not enjoy this part as much as I expected.

All that being said…this is a unique read about strong women overcoming many facets of life! Grab your copy today! You will be glad you did!

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

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