The Blackout Book Club by Amy Lynn Green #audiobook #audiblebook #booktwitter #bookreview @recordedbooks

Overview

In 1942, an impulsive promise to her brother before he goes off to the European front puts Avis Montgomery in the unlikely position of head librarian in small-town Maine. Though she has never been much of a reader, when wartime needs threaten to close the library, she invents a book club to keep its doors open. The women she convinces to attend the first meeting couldn’t be more different—a wealthy spinster determined to aid the war effort, an exhausted mother looking for a fresh start, and a determined young war worker.

At first, the struggles of the home front are all the club members have in common, but over time, the books they choose become more than an escape from the hardships of life and the fear of the U-boat battles that rage just past their shores. As the women face personal challenges and band together in the face of danger, they find they have more in common than they think. But when their growing friendships are tested by secrets of the past and present, they must decide whether depending on each other is worth the cost.

Review

Avis is head librarian in her small town in Maine. She has just learned her private library is about to close because the owner is wanting to turn it into a child care center. So, Avis decides to form a book club to keep up moral and to help keep her library doors open. This book club turns into the saving grace for many of the townspeople.

This is a sweet but intense read. There are quite a few characters but the author did a great job keeping them distinctive. They each have characteristics which make them unique and just plain special.

The setting of Maine during WWII is amazing! I loved learning about all the issues this state faced. I knew about the siting of the U-boats but I did not know about the people they recruited to keep and eye out for Germans.

Then there is the book club. I love, love, love all the book references and the closet with romance novels hidden from everyone. I swear, I found myself grinning and laughing at some of the antics from these characters! Such a cute and captivating read!

Need a book about strong friendships and coming together to help everyone…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.

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

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No Strangers Here by Carlene O’Connor #audiobook #audiblebook #booktwitter #bookreview

Overview

Set in Ireland’s striking, rugged countryside, USA Today bestselling author Carlene O’Connor’s dark, atmospheric new crime fiction series combines the eerie atmosphere of Tana French and Louise Penny with the compulsively taut plotting of Dervla McTiernan and Lucy Foley, as an Irish veterinarian grapples with life, death, family dynamics, and the secrets at the heart of her small community…

On a rocky beach in the southwest of Ireland, the body of Jimmy O’Reilly, sixty-nine years old and dressed in a suit and his dancing shoes, is propped on a boulder, staring sightlessly out to sea. A cryptic message is spelled out next to the body with sixty-nine polished black stones and a discarded vial of deadly veterinarian medication lies nearby. Jimmy was a wealthy racehorse owner, known far and wide as The Dancing Man. In a town like Dingle, everyone knows a little something about everyone else. But dig a bit deeper, and there’s always much more to find. And when Detective Inspector Cormac O’Brien is dispatched out of Killarney to lead the murder inquiry, he’s determined to unearth every last buried secret.

Dimpna Wilde hasn’t been home in years. As picturesque as Dingle may be for tourists in search of their roots and the perfect jumper, to her it means family drama and personal complications. In fairness, Dublin hasn’t worked out quite as she hoped either. Faced with a triple bombshell—her mother rumored to be in a relationship with Jimmy, her father’s dementia is escalating, and her brother is avoiding her calls—Dimpna moves back to clear her family of suspicion.

Despite plenty of other suspects, the guards are crawling over the Wildes. But the horse business can be a brutal one, and as Dimpna becomes more involved with her old acquaintances and haunts, the depth of lingering grudges becomes clear. Theft, extortion, jealousy and greed. As Dimpna takes over the family practice, she’s in a race with the detective inspector to uncover the dark, twisting truth, no matter how close to home it strikes…

Review

Dimpna has avoided coming home to Dingle for as long as she can. Family drama and her past is just something she really wants to avoid. But, she is here now and there has been a murder of Jimmy O’Reilly and her parents are possible suspects. Her father has dementia and her mother is rumored to be sleeping with Jimmy. So the complications just keep getting worse!

I loved Dimpna. She is very secretive and just a unique character. I was really rooting for her. You have to read this to find out. She has just had quite a few things happen to her and she is struggling to keep it together. Add in the murder and the beautiful setting and you have an all around good book!

The narrator, Emily O’Mahony is excellent. She did a fabulous job with the accents and all the different voices.

Need a story which will keep you guessing…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!

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

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The Secret Society of Salzburg by Renee Ryan #booktwitter #bookreview #5stars @harlequinbooks

Overview

From the author of The Widows of Champagne, and inspired by true events, comes a gripping and heartwrenching story of two very different women united to bring light to the darkest days of World War II.

London, 1933

At first glance, Austrian opera singer Elsa Mayer-Braun has little in common with the young English typist she encounters on tour. Yet she and Hattie Featherstone forge an instant connection—and strike a dangerous alliance. Using their friendship as a cover, they form a secret society with a daring goal: to rescue as many Jews as possible from Nazi persecution.

Though the war’s outbreak threatens Elsa and Hattie’s network, their efforts attract the covert attention of the British government, offering more opportunities to thwart the Germans. But Elsa’s growing fame as Hitler’s favorite opera singer, coupled with her secret Jewish ancestry, make her both a weapon and a target—until her future, too, hangs in the balance.

From the glamorous stages of Covent Garden and Salzburg to the horrors of Bergen-Belsen, two ordinary women swept up by the tide of war discover an extraordinary friendship—and the courage to save countless lives.

Review

Elsa is a renowned Austrian opera singer. Hattie is an up and coming artist. These two become great friends because Hattie admires Elsa so very much and Elsa is a kind person who sort of takes Hattie under her wing. But, these two have a big secret. They are doing everything they can to smuggle Jews out of Nazi occupied territories.

Elsa is one of the strongest characters I have ever had the pleasure of knowing! And there are quite a few places where this shows up front and center. Then there is Hattie. She can be a bit “holier than thou” in places but she truly ignores the danger to save as many as she can.

Y’all! This book is AMAZING! I know this sounds cliché…but I was hooked from start to finish! And to be honest, I was on the edge of my seat for most of it! This is tagged by Harlequin as “Love Inspired”. But this is more of a love of all people not romance.

Need a novel which will have you reading faster and faster…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today

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

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The Lipstick Bureau by Michelle Gable #booktwitter #bookreview @harlequinbooks

The Lipstick Bureau : A Novel Inspired by a Real-Life Female Spy Michelle Gable
On Sale Date: December 27, 2022
9781525811470
Trade Paperback $16.99 USD

ABOUT THE BOOK:


Inspired by one of the OSS’s few female operatives, Barbara Lauwers, a WWII novel set at OSS’s Morale Office in Rome, which was responsible for creating black propaganda and distributing it behind enemy lines. From the New York Times bestselling author of The Bookseller’s Secret.
Inspired by a real-life female spy, a WWII-set novel about a woman challenging convention and boundaries to help win a war, no matter the cost.


“A gripping, fascinating read.” —Kelly Rimmer, New York Times bestselling author of The Warsaw Orphan


1944, Rome. Newlywed Niki Novotná is recruited by a new American spy agency to establish a secret branch in Italy’s capital. One of the OSS’s few female operatives abroad and multilingual, she’s tasked with crafting fake stories and distributing propaganda to lower the morale of enemy soldiers.
Despite limited resources, Niki and a scrappy team of artists, forgers and others—now nicknamed The Lipstick Bureau—find success, forming a bond amid the cobblestoned streets and storied villas of the newly liberated city. But her work is also a way to escape devastating truths about the family she left behind in Czechoslovakia and a future with her controlling American husband.
As the war drags on and the pressure intensifies, Niki begins to question the rules she’s been instructed to follow, and a colleague unexpectedly captures her heart. But one step out of line, one mistake, could mean life or death…

Review

Niki finds herself working for the OSS, the new American spy agency. She is multilingual and she is assigned to the propaganda division. They are in charge of crafting stories to lower the morale of enemy soldiers. She is hoping this unique job will help her find out more about the family she left behind in Czechoslovakia. But the war just keeps dragging on and she continues to find herself in unique and dangerous situations.

This story started strong but it is very fragmented. There are lots of characters with a viewpoint and it is hard to tell who is doing the actual narrating in places. I did enjoy the aspect that it is based on facts. This did have me researching. And I love a story which has me learning. But, it is just too disjointed to keep me as captivated as I like to be.

Need a good story based on facts in WWII…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.

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


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:


MICHELLE GABLE is the New York Times bestselling author of A Paris Apartment, I’ll See You in Paris, The Book of Summer, and The Summer I Met Jack. She attended the College of William & Mary and spent twenty years working in finance before becoming a full-time writer. She grew up in San Diego and lives in Cardiff-by-the-Sea, California. Find her on Instagram, Twitter, or Pinterest, @mgablewriter.


SOCIAL LINKS:

Author website: https://michellegable.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/MGableWriter
IG: https://www.instagram.com/mgablewriter/


BUY LINKS:


Bookshop.org:
https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-lipstick-bureau-a-novel-inspired-by-true-wwii-events-original-m ichelle-gable/17917455
Indiebound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781525811470
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-lipstick-bureau-michelle-gable/1142529516
Indigo:
https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/the-lipstick-bureau-a-novel/9781525804977-item.ht ml
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Lipstick-Bureau-Novel-Inspired-Events/dp/1525811479/

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A Small Affair by Flora Collins @harlequinbooks #booktwitter #bookreview

A Small Affair : A Novel 

Flora Collins

On Sale Date: December 27, 2022

9780778386933

Trade Paperback

$17.99 USD

336 pages

A twisting novel of psychological suspense about a young woman whose life is torn apart when her wealthy ex-lover is found dead, along with his wife.

Vera is ruthlessly ambitious, beautiful by her own account, and knows how to get exactly what she wants–no matter who stands in the way. When she starts a relationship with a wealthy older man who tells her he’s separated from his wife, she thinks litte of it. After only a few dates, she ends things, but that’s only the beginning. Days later, the man and his wife are found dead in their home, leaving behind a note saying Vera’s rejection had driven him to the horrible act of violence.

Vera is immediately blamed for the couple’s deaths, demonized by the press, fired from her job, and when stalkers and paparazzi begin to haunt her apartment, she flees to her mother’s house upstate. A year later, emerging from a cocoon of self-pity, she tries to re-enter the world, to get her job back—or any job—but the specter of scandal still clings to her. Then she’s invited to a memorial for the wife of the man she had an affair with. As she learns more about the family, and about the couple and their friends, she begins to suspect there was much more to the story than a simple affair gone wrong. In a quest for redemption, Vera soon begins uncovering layers of lies and close-kept secrets held by an inner-circle of filthy rich tech millionaires who will go to any lengths to protect their reputations.

Review

Vera is rocking the fashion world. She is working for an up and coming fashion designer when she meets this wonderful man…well sort of. He has a few warning signs but Vera ignores them. Then the murders happen and the world finds out about his other woman, VERA! She is drug through the internet mud and loses everything. She hides out at her mom’s for over a year. And when she decides to come back, life has left her behind. Then she is invited to a memorial service and suddenly the lies start to unravel.

This is not my usual style of writing. I am not a fan of a slow burn. And this book is definitely a slow burn. But, for some reason, I kept reading. Something about the characters pulled me in. Take for instance, Vera. I really did not like her. She is conniving and a bit ruthless. There was just something about her situation which had me intrigued.

And then there is the reason the slow burn works…the ending! Oh boy, this ending! The more Vera digs, the more lies and manipulation she finds and then the truth comes out and it is not at all what is expected!

Need a story which will keep you slowly building up to a knock out finish…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!

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

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Flora Collins was born and raised in New York City and has never left, except for a four-year stint at Vassar College. When she’s not writing, she can be found watching reality shows that were canceled after one season or attempting to eat soft-serve ice cream in bed (sometimes simultaneously). Nanny Dearest was her first novel.

SOCIAL LINKS:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/flococo16?lang=en

Instagram: @floracollins_author

Buy Links: 

Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/p/books/a-small-affair-flora-collins/18073842?ean=9780778386933

B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-small-affair-flora-collins/1140845010

IndieBound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780778386933 

Books A Million: https://www.booksamillion.com/p/9780778386933?AID=10747236&PID=7310909&cjevent=81600aef729111ed82a800f90a82b821&cjdata=MXxOfDB8WXww 

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Small-Affair-Novel-Flora-Collins/dp/0778386937

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Missing by Cornelia Maude Spelman #memoir #bookspotlight #booktwitter @jacklegpress

Overview

Acclaimed children’s book author Cornelia Maude Spelman’s memoir of her family springs from a meeting and subsequent friendship with the late, legendary New Yorker editor William Maxwell in the 1920s. When Spelman hints at what she thinks of as the failure of her parents’ lives, he counters that “in a good novel one doesn’t look for a success story, but for a story that moves one with its human drama and richness of experience.” Maxwell encourages her to tell her mother’s story at their final meeting. Missing is Spelman’s response to Maxwell’s wisdom. With the pacing of the mystery novels her mother loved and using everything from letters and interviews to the family’s quotidian paper trail-medical records, telegrams, and other oft-overlooked clues to a family’s history-Spelman reconstructs her mother’s life and untimely death. Along the way, she unravels mysteries of her family, including the fate of her long-lost older brother. Spelman skillfully draws the reader into the elation and sorrow that accompanies the discovery of a family’s past. A profoundly loving yet honest elegy, Missing is complex and beautiful like the mother it memorializes.

About the Author

My memoir, MISSING, is now out in paperback from JackLeg Press. It is about my search to understand the “emotional legacies” in my family, and to find out what happened in my mother’s past. You can see a one-minute video about the book on this site. Author Alex Kotlowitz (THERE ARE NO CHILDREN HERE) wrote of MISSING: “Spelman’s gentle, lyrical prose belies the haunting nature of her story, a searing, honest search for the lost pieces of her family’s story…It’s memoir writing at its absolute finest.”

I wrote “The Way I Feel” picture books to help children name, understand, and manage their feelings—and to help their parents and caregivers, who, perhaps, like many of us, were not offered much help, themselves, with their emotions. I felt sure that such books would be of use, but even my experiences when I was a therapist and worked with young children and families, and my own mothering and grandmothering times, had not prepared me for the touching responses of relief and comfort that these books have elicited. It seems that having their adults read with them about a feeling, turning the pages and looking at the illustrations of animal charcters who are experiencing feelings that the children, too, experience, places upsetting and confusing emotions into the safe world of a book, a safe world where feelings have names and where there are methods to manage them.

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Memoir Writing at its Absolute Finest.”


Cornelia Spelman’s gentle, lyrical prose belies the haunting nature of her story, a searing, honest search for the lost pieces of her family’s story. Missing is a book that both comforts and astounds. It’s memoir writing at its absolute finest. ─Alex Kotlowitz


A long, intimate journey; the very honest accounting of the way old pain works its way through the generations. One of the fascinations of the whole story comes from the vicarious satisfaction of seeing someone who actually does discover every bit of what is still discoverable, and then who dares to speculate with candor about how it all fits together, not to mention how it’s affected her.
─Rosellen Brown


Cornelia Spelman | Cornelia Maude Spelman M.S.W., is a writer, an artist, and former therapist. She is the author of picture books for children, including a series called “The Way I Feel.” Her work has been translated into ten languages and sold over two million copies worldwide.


JackLeg Press | JackLeg employs an environmentally sustainable publishing model and a rigorous editorial process to bring the best new and familiar voices into the literary world.

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A Hard Day for a Hangover by Darynda Jones @macmillanusa #booktwitter #bookreview

Overview

A Library Reads Pick

The blockbuster conclusion to the bestselling Sunshine Vicram trilogy

“Laugh-out-loud funny, intensely suspenseful, page-turning fun.” —New York Times bestselling author Allison Brennan

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

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

Compulsively readable, laugh-out-loud funny, and brimming with big-hearted characters, A Hard Day for a Hangover will have readers cheering to the very last page.

Review

Sheriff Sunshine Vicram has a terrible hangover. She knew better but that certainly did not stop her. As she is struggling through her morning, she has been alerted to a possible dead body of a young girl. This leads her to discover quite a few young ladies missing from her area.

I adore this series! Now, this is not my favorite book out of the 3. I felt it was a tad bit too long. But it is still delicious! It is a perfect ending. I found myself laughing out loud (as I always do in these books!) and, once again, loving Sunshine! I will surely miss this character! I hope the author uses her as a cameo in some of her future books.

Sunshine has some of the best one liners and quips. She is also very intelligent and it is very difficult to pull one over in her. But don’t worry…her daughter does!

This whole series is one enjoyable set of mysteries. The characters and their interactions will keep you guessing and keep you laughing!

Need a fabulously funny and just an all around good book…AND SERIES…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!

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

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Winterland by Rae Meadows #booktwitter #audiobook #5stars @macmillanaudio @HenryHolt

Overview

Reminiscent of Maggie Shipstead’s Astonish Me and Julia Phillips’s Disappearing Earth, Winterland tells the story of a previous era, shockingly pertinent today, shaped by glory and loss and finding light where none exists.

In the Soviet Union in 1973, there is perhaps no greater honor for a young girl than to be chosen to be part of the famed USSR gymnastics program. So when eight-year-old Anya is tapped, her family is thrilled. What is left of her family, that is. Years ago her mother disappeared. Anya’s only confidant is her neighbor, an older woman who survived unspeakable horrors during her ten years in a Gulag camp—and who, unbeknownst to Anya, was also her mother’s confidant and might hold the key to her disappearance. As Anya moves up the ranks of competitive gymnastics, and as other girls move down, Anya soon comes to realize that there is very little margin of error for anyone.

A Macmillan Audio production from Henry Holt and Company.

Review

Anya has been chosen to be a gymnast for the USSR. This is one of the greatest honors for her family. Since her mother’s disappearance, her family has been on the government’s radar. Anya hopes to improve the family name with her talent. But, it is more of a struggle than anyone ever imagined.

I remember watching Olga Korbut (yes I am that old!) and Nadia Comaneci when I was a young girl. I knew they struggled but really had no idea exactly what they may have gone through. This book brought all of this to light. I had a childhood full of gymnastics, twirling, dancing, singing and anything else my mother wanted to put me in. And yes, a lot of it was a struggle, but not to this extent.

This story made a huge impression on me. Being an over achiever, I can feel for Anya. But, THE PRESSURE! Then there is her neighbor (her name escapes me🤷🏻‍♀️), with her past in the Gulag camp for just living her life.

Y’all! This book is a must read! There are very few books that I want to read again…THIS IS ONE OF THEM!

Need a story which will open your eyes…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!

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

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If Your Reading This… by Kiersten Modglin @dreamscapeaudio #booktwitter #audiobook

Overview

On the one-year anniversary of her wedding, Colbie Moore’s life looks nothing like it should. Still grieving the loss of the man she meant to spend her life with, she prepares for a weekend away to take her mind off her heartache, but the simple plan results in much more than she bargained for.

A box of letters, meant for the bride and groom to open on their anniversary, is instead opened by Colbie and her three best friends—Miles, James, and Eric—and what it holds could ruin everything.

A mysterious note from a surprising sender is shocking, propelling Colbie down a dark path to discover the truth about the man she loved—his life and his death—before it’s too late. As the mystery unravels, she begins to question everyone around her. What was Phil hiding from her when he died? What secrets are still hidden?

The closer she gets to answers the clearer it becomes that someone has gone to great lengths to protect their lies. And if she pushes any more, everything she has left could be exactly what she stands to lose. Is it worth risking everything to truly know the man she’s already lost? After all, she’s been warned…she might not be able to handle what she finds.

Review

Colbie’s one year wedding anniversary is right around the corner. It is the anniversary of a wedding that didn’t actually happen. Her groom-to-be collapsed and died right before the ceremony. But, Colbie has always had questions about that day. When she decides to read the letters meant for the bride and groom for their first anniversary, she finds one that sends her whole world into a complete tailspin.

Well, when this story began, I had no idea this would happen! Talk about lies and deceptions from just about everyone! And to be honest, I think that Colbie is just way to naive to go through life. I think she missed a lot of clues! And some of her decisions are just a bit questionable and selfish. But you will have to read this to find out. It is definitely a story which will have you guessing and then cussing because of a character’s lie!

The narrator, Subhadra Newton, did a great job, especially with all the voices. And there are quite a few friends and family in this tale!

Need a good “what the heck is going on!” book…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!

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

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Last Circle of Love by Lorna Landvik #booktwitter #bookreview @LUAuthors

Overview

A funny, heartwarming story about a feisty group of women who shake, spice, and heat things up with a “recipe” book for romance, from the bestselling author of Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons.

Newly installed at All Souls Lutheran, Mallory “Pastor Pete” Peterson soon realizes that her church isn’t merely going through turbulent waters, but is a sinking ship. With the help of five loyal members of the Naomi Circle, the young, bold minister brainstorms fundraising ideas. They all agree that the usual recipe book won’t add much to the parish coffers, but maybe one with all the ingredients on how to heat up relationships rather than casseroles will…

Pastor Pete has her doubts about the project, but it turns out the group of postmenopausal women has a lot to say on the subject of romance. While Charlene, the youngest member at fifty-two, struggles with the assignment, baker-extraordinaire Marlys, elegantly bohemian Bunny, I’m-always-right Velda, and ebullient Edie take up their contributions enthusiastically. After all, their book is really about cooking up love in all its forms.

But not everyone in the congregation is on board with this “scandalous” project. As the voices of opposition grow louder, Pastor Pete and these intrepid women will have to decide how hard they’re willing to fight for this book and the powerful stories within—stories of discovery, softened hearts, and changed lives.

Review

Mallory Peterson is the new Pastor if the local Lutheran church. Her church is in need of money and all the previous fundraising attempts have not achieved the desired results. So, some of the ladies of the church have decided on a new fundraising idea, a guidebook to heat up your love life!

I have loved several books by this author. It has been years since I have read her. So, I am not sure if I have grown or if she has changed her writing style. But, this book was just a bit too simple and predictable.

That being said…I did love the characters and the premise of these church ladies writing erotica. But, the conversations were as clean and wholesome as you can imagine. It is more about growing in love and friendship. This had a chance to be much cuter than it was. I guess this book has its place but it is just not with me.

Need a quick story about love…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!

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

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