reecaspieces

BEYOND SUMMERLAND 

Author: Jenny Lecoat

Publication Date: July 2, 2024

ISBN: 9781525831546

Format: Trade Paperback

Publisher: Harlequin Trade Publishing / Graydon House

Price $18.99

Book Summary: 

Beatriz Williams meets Laura Spence-Ash in this fast-paced and tension-filled novel about secrets and betrayal in a small community recovering from war, and the two young women at the center of a volatile mystery.

In June of 1945, Jersey is in the midst of change as the German occupation of the Channel Islands comes to an end. However, demands for punishment are rising for those suspected of collaborating with the Nazis. Neighbor turns against neighbor as distrust flourishes and accusations fly, especially towards women who had romantic relationships with the German soldiers.

When Jean Parris learns that her father, who died in a German prison, was reported to the Nazis by an anonymous woman, her rage hits a boiling point. The suspect, Hazel Le Tourneur, denies the accusation but has a motive for wanting Jean’s father gone. Then, when Hazel catches Jean secretly meeting with a German soldier, the women form an unexpected bond in the face of ruinous consequences. With tension running high and secrets at every turn, the truth behind the accusations may be more complicated than anyone could imagine.

Review

The war is finally over. Jean and her mother have just discovered that her father, who was taken away by the Nazis, has died in prison. They are still wondering who in their town turned him in for his contraband radio. They will not rest until they discover the traitor.

There are a lot of moving parts to this tale…lies, betrayals, and more lies. The Nazis have just left the Channel Islands and the whole town is trying to regroup. But, there is so much mistrust because everyone sees everyone else as a collaborator with the Nazis. When Jean discovers one of their neighbors, Hazel, had a fight with her father, the whole family causes so much grief for this poor woman. They are determined that Hazel is the one who turned him in and caused his death. But, they soon discover that he was not as upstanding as they thought.

I did feel the ending was a bit rushed. Also, I was not a fan of any of the characters. Jean does redeem herself in the end and she was my favorite. But all of these characters lie to each other 😂. You know, real life stuff😏.

Need a good, historical fiction novel full of betrayals and redemption…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.

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

About the Author:

Jenny Lecoat was born in Jersey, Channel Islands, where her parents were raised under German Occupation and were involved in resistance activity. Lecoat moved to England at 18, where, after earning a drama degree, she spent a decade on the alternative comedy circuit as a feminist stand-up. She also wrote for newspapers and women’s magazines (Cosmopolitan, Observer), worked as a TV and radio presenter, before focusing on screenwriting from sitcom to sketch shows. A love of history and factual stories and a return to her island roots brought about her feature film Another Mother’s Son (2017). She is married to television writer Gary Lawson and now lives in East Sussex. Her debut novel, The Girl from the Channel Islands, was an immediate New York Times bestseller.

Social Links:

Author website: https://www.jennylecoat.com/  

GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20096261.Jenny_Lecoat?from_search=true&from_srp=true  

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JennyLecoat 

Buy Links:

HarperCollins: https://www.harpercollins.com/products/beyond-summerland-jenny-lecoat 

BookShop.org: https://bookshop.org/p/books/beyond-summerland-original-jenny-lecoat/20584186?ean=9781525831546&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjw4MSzBhC8ARIsAPFOuyV8reD_X-_ljxSg0efM8nCc0AcedjI54-EPfezpM0W6G9GMuBPYESMaAqrwEALw_wcB

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/beyond-summerland-jenny-lecoat/1144022096 

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Summerland-Jenny-Lecoat/dp/1525831542 

Overview

Nothing brings family together like crime. In the first book in the thrilling new Angelhart series from New York Times bestselling author Allison Brennan, private investigator Margot Angelhart helps clients the law overlooks, but when she takes on a case more dangerous than she imagined, teaming up with her estranged siblings may be her only hope for survival.

Working alone as a private investigator is tough. Estranged from her PI family, Margo Angelhart does what she must to get by—including taking on sordid cases that pay the bills, even if she’d rather be helping those the justice system has failed.

That is, until a cheating husband case she’s working intersects with her siblings’ corporate espionage investigation, forcing Margo to cooperate with the Angelhart firm. Now, as the siblings compare notes, it’s clear they need to work together before a white-collar crime escalates to murder.

With far more questions than answers and a key suspect on the run, they’ll need the whole family to pitch in. But as they investigate the ever-twisting mystery, Margo isn’t sharing everything. Can she learn to trust her family and heal their once-close relationship before her secrets put those she loves most in danger?

Review

This novel has several story lines. They are unrelated to each other but they flow well together wrapped around the wonderful, private investigator, Margo.

Margo takes on cases that the law can’t help. She has just helped a young girl and her two children escape from her abusive husband. And this husband is not letting it go. He is out for blood and it just might be Margo.

Margo also has been hired by a lady to follow her cheating husband and get proof of his misdeeds. Margo hates these cases. But the more she follows the husband the more she realizes the wife may be the problem.

I have read several Allison Brennan’s books and there is not a bad one in the bunch. And I truly enjoyed this novel as well. This has great intensity and great characters. I never knew which way this was going to turn next.

Need a good suspense tale…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.

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

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Overview

New York Timesbestselling author and southern sensation Kristy Woodson Harvey” (Good Morning America) presents a touching novel about eternal love and the places we call home.

The historic houses in the seaside town of Beaufort, North Carolina, have held the secrets of their inhabitants for centuries. One of the most enduring refuses to be washed away by the tide: What happened to Rebecca and Townsend Saint James on that fateful night of their disappearance in 1976?

Now, the granddaughter they never knew, Keaton Smith, is desperate for a fresh start. So when her mother needs someone to put her childhood home in Beaufort on the market, she jumps at the chance to head south. But the moment she steps foot inside the abandoned house, which has been closed for nearly fifty years, she wonders if she’s bitten off more than she can chew. Wading through the detritus of her grandparents’ lives, Keaton finds herself enchanted by their southern traditions—and their great, big love. As she gets to know her charming next-door neighbor, his precocious ten-year-old son, and a flock of endearingly feisty town busybodies, Keaton begins to wonder if the stories she has been told about her grandparents are true. 

Keaton’s grandmother, Rebecca “Becks” Saint James’s annual summer suppers are the stuff of legend, and locals and out-of-towners alike clamor for an invitation to her stunning historic home. But, in the summer of 1976, she’s struggling behind the facade of the woman who can do it all—and facing a problem that even she can’t solve.

As Keaton and Becks face new challenges and chapters, they are connected through time by the house on Sunset Lane, which has protected the secrets, hopes, and dreams of their family for generations.

“The novel to read this year” (Annabel Monaghan) explores the power of family, the boundless nature of love, and the idea that discovering where we came from just might lead us to A Happier Life.

Review

Keaton has just lost her job and condo in one fell swoop. She ends up moving to Beaufort, North Carolina. Her mother wants her to go through Keaton’s grandparents house to get it ready to sell. This house has not been touched since her grandparents disappeared in 1976, over fifty years ago.

I loved Keaton and her quest to find out what happened to her grandparents. I swear, when she talked about the stuff in that house…took me back to my childhood. Add in all the southerness in this book and I was indeed in my element!

There is just something about Kristy Woodson Harvey’s books that just take me away. And this one definitely captivated me from start to finish.

The history, the mystery, the beautiful town of Beaufort are not to be missed.

Need a fabulous book with a great setting and wonderful characters…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.

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

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Overview

Two women—separated by decades and continents, and united by an exotic family heirloom—reclaim secrets and lost loves in this sweeping novel from the New York Timesbestselling author of The Summer Wives.

“My favorite kind of page-turner—unputdownable!”—Martha Hall Kelly, author of The Golden Doves

New England, 2022. Three years ago, single mother Mallory Dunne received the telephone call every parent dreads—her ten-year-old son, Sam, had been airlifted from summer camp with acute poisoning from a toxic death cap mushroom, leaving him fighting for his life. Now, searching for the donor kidney that will give her son a chance for a normal life, Mallory’s forced to confront two harrowing secrets from her past: her mother’s adoption from an infamous Irish orphanage in 1952, and her own all-consuming summer romance fourteen years earlier with her childhood best friend, Monk Adams— one of the world’s most beloved singer-songwriters—a fairy tale cut short by a devastating betrayal.

Cairo, 1951. After suffering tragedy beyond comprehension in the war, Hungarian refugee Hannah Ainsworth has forged a respectable new life for herself—marriage to a wealthy British diplomat with a coveted posting in glamorous Cairo. But a fateful encounter with the enigmatic manager of a hotel bristling with spies leads to a passionate affair that will reawaken Hannah’s longing for everything she once lost. As revolution simmers in the Egyptian streets, a pregnant Hannah finds herself snared in a game of intrigue between two men . . . and an act of sacrifice that will echo down the generations.

Timeless and bittersweet, Husbands & Lovers takes readers on an unforgettable journey of heartbreak and redemption, from the revolutionary fires of midcentury Egypt to the moneyed beaches of contemporary New England. Acclaimed author Beatriz Williams has written a poignant and beautifully voiced novel of deeply human characters entangled by morally complex issues—of privilege, class, and the female experience—inside worlds brought shimmeringly to life.

Review

Mallory’s 10 year old son, Sam, has had a terrible accident at camp. He has eaten a poisonous mushroom. This damages his kidneys and he is on the wait list for a new one. Mallory and her sister have exhausted all options of their family and Mallory is fighting getting in touch with Sam’s dad, the famous Monk Adams. Mallory knows this will open old wounds and cause more heart break.

This book captivated me from start to finish. There are 3 different time periods. Not many authors can pull this off but Beatriz is a master. She kept them all intertwining around themselves and, as a reader, you just had to know what was going to happen next! Plus, I learned something. I had no idea about Egypt in the 50s.

Oh! And the characters! I am still thinking about them! I would love to see this as a movie!

I did figure out the ending pretty early on. But physically reading it still about made me cry! Beatriz has outdone herself with this one!

Need a good family drama full of secrets and mysteries…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.

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

Purchase Here

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