1. Put my ex-boyfriend’s name on my Christmas wish list.
2. Grin dumbly at him when he shows up at my door.
3. Think it’s kismet that he’s staying on the other half of my duplex for the holidays and means we’re meant to be together. Because we’re not. He broke my heart in High School and never looked back.
ROCKWELL
Things I will never do:
1. Move back to Bearwood.
2. Repeat my parents’ mistakes by getting married.
3. Kiss Brie Holland under the mistletoe. I know how good her kisses are, and if I want to make sure number one and two don’t happen, I’m going to have to keep her safely in the friend zone until I’m out of Bearwood for good.
**Part of the Gift-Wrapped Romance series, Merry Kismet is a second-chance, sweet and clean, romantic comedy.
Review
Rockwell has come back to Bearwood for a brief visit to help his friend and check on his mother. He has not been back home for over 7 years and he absolutely does not want to stay in this small town. But, his friend has loaned him an apartment and it just happens to be next to his Ex, Brie! And Brie just may end up changing his mind.
Brie has been given a notebook to write down her list for Christmas wishes. She writes down her ex boyfriend’s name, Rockewell. And lo and behold, within seconds he is standing at her door.
I am on a Christmas book kick. I find this time of year very draining and rushed. So, I thought some Christmas books would help keep me from falling apart and hurting someone. 😂.
This book is adorable. I loved Brie and her antics…and yes she gets herself in a mess more than twice! She is just what I needed! Then there is Rockwell! He did a runner on Brie when they were teenagers. He has no intention of staying in Bearwood, nor does he plan to fall in love! But Kismet has other plans.
I have not read the others in this series and this is a stand alone. BUT! I am adding the others to my list. This book did exactly what I wanted it to do! Bah humbug 😂😂😂
Need a cute romance to keep the Christmas spirit…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!
I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review .
A resonant tale of love, loss, and learning how to let go
Bette Gartner, a ninety-five-year-old widow, wakes up one morning and decides to throw a dinner party that night for her small family, staff, two neighbors, and a medium—and no one knows why.
The story takes place over the course of the day and is told through the multiple points of view of Bette’s guests, switching back and forth between them as we learn about their motivations, dreams, hopes, and fears. These various storylines converge at the dinner table, where the coming together of different personalities, each with their own tensions and pain points, erupts into epiphanies, resolutions, and new beginnings before the final act of the evening Bette has planned.
Alpha Bette is more than the story of a particular family’s history. Aside from recounting how the characters navigate the daily mundanities of urban life, it also dwells on their larger existential anxieties and the impact of the holes and absences that deceased and displaced loved ones leave behind.
Review
Bette has decided to throw a dinner party…a formal dinner party. Bette is 95 years old and she knows her time is limited and she has some important things to say. Did I mention she is also inviting a medium. Yes! A medium. Of course, this whole situation sends her daughter into a dither!
This story is adorable. Now, I will be honest, the plot is a little thin. But you really don’t notice it until you finish the book and you think about it. Why? Because the characters are so great. Every single one of them is so well done. And I will bet, as a reader, you will have at least two of them in your real life.
Bette is a mess and she will put you in your place in a heartbeat! She takes no prisoners. She, of course, is my favorite. As her health declines she is determined not to fall into the “woe is me” category! And this sends her daughter into a forever tizzy! But, Bette being Bette does whatever she wants anyway! Gotta love her!
Need a good family drama…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.
I received this novel from the author for a honest review.
Sharp eyed and sharp mouthed police detective”* Henri Lefort, is determined to solve homicides and uncover any German conspiracies threatening France—in Mark Pryor’s newest World War II mystery, The Dark Edge of Night.
Winter 1940: With soldiers parading down the Avenue des Champs-Élysées, Nazi flags dangling from the Arc de Triomphe, and the Eiffel Tower defaced with German propaganda, Parisians have little to celebrate as Christmas approaches. Police Inspector Henri Lefort’s wishes for a quiet holiday season are dashed when the Gestapo orders him to investigate the disappearance of Dr. Viktor Brandt, a neurologist involved in a secret project at one of Paris’s hospitals.
Being forced onto a missing persons case for the enemy doesn’t deter Henri from conducting his real job. A Frenchman has been beaten to death in what appears to be a botched burglary, and catching a killer is more important than locating a wayward scientist. But when Henri learns that the victim’s brother is a doctor who worked at the same hospital as the missing German, his investigation takes a disturbing turn.
Uncovering a relationship between the two men—one that would not be tolerated by the Third Reich—Henri must tread carefully. And when he discovers that Dr. Brandt’s experimental work is connected to groups of children being taken from orphanages, Henri risks bringing the wrath of both the SS and the Gestapo upon himself and everyone he loves.
Review
Police Inspector Henri Lefort is planning on a quiet holiday season. But the Nazis have a different plan for Henri. The Gestapo orders Henri to investigate the disappearance of one of their own, Dr. Victor Brandt. This investigation leads Henri to a terrible discovery and he must tread very carefully!
I read the first book in this series,Die Around Sundown. And this book can definitely be enjoyed as a stand alone. But both books are good reads! I just adore Henri! He is snarky, bad mannered and smart! The author does a fantastic job bringing all these attributes to life! Trust me! You will not forget Henri!
This is a tale where you will cringe in places. It is so hard to understand the cruelty of some people. But don’t worry, Henri does his best to bring it all crashing down around the Nazi’s ears!
Need a story with a fabulous character….THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.
I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.
Nick Travers is back where it all began. 25 years after The Philadelphia Inquirer proclaimed Crossroad Blues “an impressive debut by a promising new talent,” the acclaimed crime novel is back. A modern, Southern reinvention of The Maltese Falcon, Crossroad Blues won noir fans with its nod to the masters and thrilled readers with a wild ride along Highway 61. It’s here that we first meet Nick Travers, an ex–New Orleans Saint turned Tulane University blues historian. Nick searches for the lost recordings of 1930s bluesman Robert Johnson—and a missing colleague—and finds trouble at every turn. The cast of characters includes a red-headed siren, an Elvis-worshipping hitman, Johnson’s ghost, and the Mississippi Delta itself. Crossroad Blues still sings.
Review
Nick Travers is Tulane University’s blues historian. He is on the hunt for the 1930s lost recordings of Robert Johnson. But, Nick has discovered more than he bargained for and it may cost him his life.
It has been a while since I have read an Ace Atkins book. WHY? No earthly idea! Lord have mercy this book is good! I loved it for multiple reasons. Of course, great characters. Nick Travers is the best! But the setting is my favorite…The Mississippi Delta! I knew every place in this novel…from Memphis all the way down to New Orleans and everywhere in between. And then there is the mystery and the myth surrounding blues singer Robert Johnson. Ace Atkins did a fantastic job with all of this, the history, the myth, the legend and of course the hunt for the old recordings.
The narrator, Dion Graham is FANTASTIC! He could not have been better and more perfect for this novel. Also, the audiobook is not at Audible. It is at Chirp so I put that link below.
Need a wonderful southern, blues fiction…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.
I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.
THE VACATION Author: John Maars ISBN: 9781335006042 Publication Date: 12/19/2023 Publisher: Hanover Square Press 18.99 US | 23.99 CAD
Book Summary:
How far would you run to escape your past?
Venice Beach, Los Angeles. A paradise on earth. Tourists flock to the golden coast and the promise of Hollywood. But for eight strangers at a beach-front hostel, there is far more on their minds than an extended vacation. All of them are running from something. And they all have secrets they’d kill to keep…
This holiday-set read is a compulsive and addictive thriller, perfect for fans of T.M. Logan.
Author Bio:
John Marrs is an author and former journalist based in London and Northamptonshire. After spending his career interviewing celebrities from the worlds of television, film and music for numerous national newspapers and magazines, he is now a full-time author. His books include No1 bestseller and Netflix series The One, The Passengers, award winning What Lies Between Us and The Good Samaritan. Follow him at www.johnmarrsauthor.co.uk , on Twitter @johnmarrs1, on Instagram @johnmarrs.author and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/johnmarrsauthor.
“That’s her,” the driver yelled to the three men waiting in the rear of the transit van.
He pointed a gloved finger in the direction of a slender woman walking along the sidewalk up ahead.
“You sure?” a gruff voice asked. “It’s pretty dark out there.”
The driver was very sure. He’d watched carefully as his target walked with purpose in her high heels. He recalled her appearance an hour earlier as she made her way up a stainless-steel pole before slowly, seductively descending.
“Yeah, man,” he replied. “You don’t forget a pretty little ass like that in a hurry, even from this distance.”
He was confident their mark was completely oblivious to her impending fate. She stopped suddenly, searching for something that was seemingly wedged in her clutch bag; the streetlamps and neon shop signs illuminated the glitter in her hair. The driver lifted his foot slightly from the accelerator and dipped the headlights as he continued to stalk his prey. Meanwhile, his colleagues slipped black balaclavas over their heads and adjusted their bodies into position—one knelt with his hand gripping the door lever, ready to open it on command; another held plastic restraints, and the third clasped a hunting knife with a serrated blade.
“Ready?” the driver asked. They grunted in unison.
The van sped up, but not so fast as to throw the hunters from the positions they’d rehearsed earlier that day. Then, as it pulled up alongside the woman, the door flew open and the first of her assailants sprang out.
The man with the restraints was the first to reel backward into the vehicle as a bullet from her revolver tore its way through his shoulder blade, taking fragments of collarbone with it.
For a split second, the flash from the gun’s muzzle illuminated the van’s interior as she pinpointed two more would-be assailants poised to drag her inside. Twice more she pulled the trigger; twice more she heard the men screaming. The driver remained rooted to his seat, baffled by how off-kilter their mission had suddenly gone. They had been so confident of its success that there was no Plan B.
“Go, man, go!” yelled a desperate voice as another bullet found its target.
Tires squealed as the van lurched forward, veering across the median and then crisscrossing back toward the sidewalk.
A combination of adrenaline and fury propelled the woman to kick off her heels and run after it, firing twice more and shattering its rear windshield. The vehicle clipped an LA Times newsstand, hurling newspapers into the air; they fell like large chunks of confetti.
She fired one last time, but the van had already corrected itself and sped off out of range. Then she watched in horror as that final shot sent a stranger up ahead, carrying a backpack, sprawling face forward onto the pavement.
Time froze as the consequences of her last reckless bullet resonated.
New England, 1992. Sophie’s hand trembles as she places the birthday card on to the creamy wood of her dresser – this one postmarked from far away, and signed with a name she’s never forgotten, despite their years apart. Downstairs, guests wait around a colourful pile of gifts – Happy 90th Birthday, Sophie! But Sophie has a gift of her own to give today – a tattered collection of photographs she’s never shown anybody. Holding it to her heart, a single tear slides down her wrinkled cheek.
France, 1944. Sophie is folding Camille into her arms, kissing her daughter’s hair. She’s smiling through tears at the plaintive cries of a tiny, perfect newborn baby – her first grandchild. As a midwife, she’s helped so many take their first breath, but this is special. In the street outside, Nazi soldiers patrol day and night, and each week more people disappear. Sophie clenches her fist and vows she’ll do anything to save Camille and her baby from that fate.
But when evil has stolen everything you know, even the truest promises are tested. Sophie swore she’d give her life for her family. How could everything have gone so terribly, heartbreakingly wrong?
A beautiful, heart-wrenching story of love, sacrifice, and the unyielding bonds of motherhood. Perfect for fans of Anna Stuart, Fiona Valpy and Kate Quinn.
Review
Sophie has secrets! So many secrets! She decides to reveal them all on her 90th birthday. It is all about the past and what happened during the war. Her daughter, her grandchildren were all in danger and it was all up to Sophie.
This novel reeled me in and did not let me go. I loved Camille and her quiet ways and Sophie with all her secrets. I will be honest, I was a little hesitant to forgive Sophie for missing Camille’s wedding. But as the story moves along, all is revealed. I can’t fathom going through what Sophie went through to help other people. And then she risks it all to be by Sophie’s side for her difficult pregnancy.
And of course this novel has a big twist at the end. So many secrets and so much heartache…You MUST read this to find out! You will not be sorry!
Need a novel about love and risk with a twist…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.
I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.
This program is read by Tony Award–winning actor Laura Benanti.
A dark and stylish novel of psychological suspense about a young theater critic drawn into a dangerous game that blurs the lines between reality and performance
Vivian Parry likes the dark. A former actress, she now works as the junior theater critic at a major Manhattan magazine. Her nights are spent beyond the lights, in a reserved seat, giving herself over to the shows she loves. By day, she savages them, with words sharper than a knife.
Angling for a promotion, she reluctantly agrees to an interview, a conversation that reveals secrets she thought she had long since buried. Then her interviewer disappears and she learns―from his devastated fiancée―that she was the last person to have seen him alive. When the police refuse to investigate, Vivian does what she promised herself she would never do again: she plays a part. Assuming the role of amateur detective, she turns her critical gaze toward an unsanitary private eye, a sketchy internet startup, a threatening financier, fake blood, and one very real corpse. As she nears the final act, she finds that the boundaries between theater and the real world are more tenuous and more dangerous than even she could have believed. . .
Gripping, propulsive, and shot through with menace and dark glamor, Alexis Soloski’s Here in the Dark takes us behind the scenes of New York theater, lifting the curtain on the lies we tell ourselves and each other.
A Macmillan Audio production from Flatiron Books.
Review
Vivian has been approached by a someone for an interview. She reluctantly agrees to meet him at a coffee shop and answer his questions. Later, the interviewer comes up missing and Vivian was the last to see him. She decides to fall back on her acting skills and investigate what is going on!
Vivian is just a weird character…don’t get me wrong. I really liked her. She just is a bit unconventional in her methods and sometimes she really makes dumb decisions. But this sort of endeared me to her. I also enjoyed her snarkiness. She is a bit sneaky with it. So you have to pay attention.
This story is a bit of a wild ride. And the twist at the end, I kind of knew something was off, just not sure where the author was going to take me. So, I enjoyed the guessing game of who did what, when and where.
Need a good guessing game…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.
I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.
Inspired by a little-known piece of history—the underground group that kept an archive to insure that the lives of Jewish occupants of the Warsaw Ghetto in World War II were not lost to history—this is a heart-wrenching novel of love and defiance that People calls “gripping, emotional, and against all odds, hopeful.”
“This book is a masterpiece: profound, gripping, urgent, and beautiful.”—Madeline Miller, New York Times bestselling author of Circe and The Song of Achilles
On a November day in 1940, Adam Paskow becomes a prisoner in the Warsaw Ghetto, where the Jews of the city are cut off from their former lives and held captive by Nazi guards to await an uncertain fate. Weeks later, he is approached by a mysterious figure with a surprising request: Would he join a secret group of archivists working to preserve the truth of what is happening inside these walls?
Adam agrees and begins taking testimonies from his students, friends, and neighbors. He learns about their childhoods and their daydreams, their passions and their fears, their desperate strategies for safety and survival. The stories form a portrait of endurance in a world where no choices are good ones.
One of the people Adam interviews is his flatmate Sala Wiskoff, who is stoic, determined, and funny—and married with two children. Over the months of their confinement, in the presence of her family, Adam and Sala fall in love. As they desperately carve out intimacy, their relationship feels both impossible and vital, their connection keeping them alive.
But when Adam discovers a possible escape from the Ghetto, he is faced with an unbearable choice: whom can he save, and at what cost ?
Inspired by the testimony-gathering project with the code name Oneg Shabbat, New York Times bestselling author Lauren Grodstein draws listeners into the lives of people living on the edge. Told with immediacy and heart, We Must Not Think of Ourselves is a piercing story of love, determination, and sacrifice.
Review
Adam has been approached by someone he is not familiar with. This person has a strange request. He wants Adam to start documenting the testimonies from his students, friends and neighbors. Adam learns their fears and dreams and he also learns about their survival techniques in the Warsaw ghetto.
This is more of a 3.5 star read, rounded up. Yes, I know I am in the minority on this book! This book moved slowly in many places and there are quite a few characters, and to be honest, I just did not feel a connection with any of them. I think it is more of the layout of the book, the diary format. I do think it is important testimony. I just needed more emotion.
I did learn a few things and this is always important to me. I knew a lot occurred with many Jews turning on other Jews. This book brings a lot of this to light. Sometimes when you read a Holocaust novel, the bad people who are not Nazis, are not really brought to the attention of the reader. This story talks about it all.
Need a different WWII story…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today n
I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.
When author Eden Hart floats into Tucson’s Antigone Books in all her dazzling perfection to give a reading, Kat, a struggling writer, can’t help but compare herself. Professionally, physically, socially—Eden is Kat’s aspiration. Thankfully, Kat’s life starts to take on its own Eden-like glow when her literary future takes shape and she falls madly in love with Jacob, the effortlessly charismatic son of her literary hero. Kat’s life is finally her fantasy realized: a burgeoning career, mentoring from her idol, and a wildly fulfilling relationship. But how long can she keep this up? And when will disappointment tap Kat on the shoulder yet again?
As demons from her past begin to surface, Kat’s mental health craters, and this halcyon dream slips through her fingers. Obsessed with reclaiming her idealized life, Kat develops an insidious plan to not only bring Jacob back into her world but also punish anyone who dares to replace her.
Review
Kat has just met the love of her life, Jacob. And come to find out, his mother is a famous author, Eden Hart. Eden helps Kat in her fight to get published. But then her relationship with Jacob starts to fall apart. This sends Kat into a tailspin.
This book starts out and I fell for Kat, just like everyone does. She pulls out all the stops as she reels everyone into her orbit. And she succeeds. She is talented, cute, and fun…until she isn’t.
Just by looking at this cover, you think this book is going to be a fun, summertime read. Oh but it is not…it is serious, intense and unpredictable! In other words, don’t judge a book by its cover! Grab on and hold tight, this book will take you on a wild, sometimes scary ride of mental illness. I swear, you won’t know which way Kat is going to turn. And just wait till the end! I didn’t see it coming!
Need a story which will have you wondering what the main character will do next…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!
The Mummy meets Death on the Nile in What the River Knows, Isabel Ibañez’s lush, immersive historical fantasy set in Egypt and filled with adventure, a rivals-to-lovers romance, and a dangerous race.
Bolivian-Argentinian Inez Olivera belongs to the glittering upper society of nineteenth century Buenos Aires, and like the rest of the world, the town is steeped in old world magic that’s been largely left behind or forgotten. Inez has everything a girl might want, except for the one thing she yearns the most: her globetrotting parents—who frequently leave her behind.
When she receives word of their tragic deaths, Inez inherits their massive fortune and a mysterious guardian, an archeologist in partnership with his Egyptian brother-in-law. Yearning for answers, Inez sails to Cairo, bringing her sketch pads and a golden ring her father sent to her for safekeeping before he died. But upon her arrival, the old world magic tethered to the ring pulls her down a path where she soon discovers there’s more to her parents’ disappearance than what her guardian led her to believe.
With her guardian’s infuriatingly handsome assistant thwarting her at every turn, Inez must rely on ancient magic to uncover the truth about her parents’ disappearance—or risk becoming a pawn in a larger game that will kill her.
What the River Knows is the first audiobook in the thrilling Secrets of the Nile duology.
Review
Inez has been left by her parents again. They are in Egypt living their best life without her…or so she thinks. When she receives word of their tragic deaths, Inez strikes out to Egypt on her own to discover exactly what happened to her beloved parents.
I have to say, Inez is very resourceful and she does not take no for an answer. I enjoy her ingenuity but I found her a bit vapid in places. She is a bit of a conundrum in this tale. I guess what I am trying to say is, she flip flops between tough and smart to whiny and clueless. She frustrated me a little bit.
Even though I loved the time period, the magic and the setting of Egypt. This story is a bit too long and dragged in quite a few places. But, like I always say, read it yourself and develop your own opinion. Quite a few people really loved this. It does read like an Agatha Christie novel.
Need a tale set in Egypt with a twist…THIS IS IT. Grab your copy today.
I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review
reecaspieces 