I’m here with a book that I haven’t seen much press about yet - and it publishes soon! Thanks to Sara Confino for putting Trust Me on This on my radarI’m here with a book that I haven’t seen much press about yet - and it publishes soon! Thanks to Sara Confino for putting Trust Me on This on my radar - and thanks to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for early access in exchange for my honest opinion. I really enjoyed reading this one over the weekend! Trust Me On This centers around two sisters - I mean half-sisters. Zahra is older at 38 and established in her chef-adjacent job of developing recipes for cookbooks, restaurants, etc. Aurora is 12 years younger and a new up-and-comer in Hollywood, having been surprisingly nominated for an Emmy against the co-star of her current show, who also heads the production company with her husband. The girls are not close, with Zahra having some long-held anger that their shared father was absent for much of her childhood yet seemed to spend time fathering Aurora. Aurora just wants everyone to be happy and look on the bright side of life, and Zahra has experienced too much life and loss for that to be the case. When their father requests they come visit him together so he can tell them something in person, and it needs to be soon, as he has terminal cancer, the girls take the road trip together (plus a stray cat) from LA to Seattle to see him. The trip was definitely bumpy, but I felt like I got to know them and their baggage, and I couldn’t put this book down - until I got near the end and then I kept trying to set it down for a bit to make it last longer. If you like family drama and road trip stories, I think you’ll enjoy this book. There are some serious (and sad) points in this mostly-fun story, but I thought the book was well written and relatable. It will be available everywhere Tuesday 4/8!...more
Many thanks to Forever, Dreamscape, and NetGalley for early access to ebook and audio copies in exchange for my honest opinion. I listened/read on a SMany thanks to Forever, Dreamscape, and NetGalley for early access to ebook and audio copies in exchange for my honest opinion. I listened/read on a Sunday while running errands around town, and I enjoyed the story. It's not related to Ana Takes Manhattan, Lissette's debut. Takes One to Know One starts in Miami, where Dani works for a record company and gets a new reggaeton client. She is not a fan of the music, unlike her sister, but she lies to her boss to make her seem like the best fit for this client. Rene, the star, is described as super sexy, and he convinces Dani and her boss to record the new album in Puerto Rico, specifically in Culebra. While Dani has Puerto Rican roots, she has never been there, and her father is actually from Culebra. I was swept away by the beautiful descriptions - I could vividly picture the beaches and the recording studio and everything. I breezed through the book (11.5 hours/400 pages) in one day because I was enjoying it too much to turn it off. If you've ever been to Puerto Rico (or the Caribbean in general), I think you'll enjoy the setting. And if you know reggaeton, I bet you'll enjoy the music portion. For me, the book felt like a mini getaway from a cold, gross weekend in Boston! While this is categorized as a romance, I felt like that plotline could/should have been emphasized more, because this read as more women's fiction than romance. ...more
Thanks to Netgalley, Grand Central Publishing, and Hachette Audio for early ebook and audiobook access in exchange for my honest opinion. I mixed up rThanks to Netgalley, Grand Central Publishing, and Hachette Audio for early ebook and audiobook access in exchange for my honest opinion. I mixed up reading and listening to the audio, and I thought the audio was done extremely well - I tended to listen more than reading because I wanted to know what was going to happen ASAP while I was doing household chores, etc. I definitely recommend both formats, and if you aren’t already a fan of Harlan Coben’s writing, get excited because there are SO many books of his that you can add to your TBR! Nobody’s Fool follows one of the characters in Fool Me Once, Coben’s previous release which has been turned into a highly-rated Netflix show. I haven’t watched it, but I took the time to read Fool Me Once, because I figured I should go into this one with as much background knowledge as possible. I really enjoyed Fool Me Once, and it wasn’t until about 2/3 of the way through Nobody’s Fool that I was glad I had read that one, as more connections are revealed. I do think you could read Nobody’s Fool without having read Fool Me Once, but I got more out of this read (and I think you would, too) by knowing more about how the characters and locations involved overlap. The plot starts 20+ years ago, when Detective Kierce is backpacking Spain with his college buddies after graduation. He has a fling which ends with him waking up covered in blood, with a knife in his hand. He flees back to the US and moves on with his life, eventually becoming the Detective in Fool Me Once. Kierce now works as a PI and is teaching a night class for budding detectives when a woman appears at the door - and he immediately recognizes her as the woman he had a fling with in Spain. She bolts, and he follows her, knowing he has to find out what happened - because he thought she was dead. It’s twisty and exciting, and I absolutely loved it. Coben can do no wrong in my mind!...more
Okay, this was just a blast to read - short and sweet and funny, with lots of great food descriptions (which I should have expected from the author). Okay, this was just a blast to read - short and sweet and funny, with lots of great food descriptions (which I should have expected from the author). The author wrote Sadie on a Plate, Best Served Hot, and Love You a Latke, some of my favorite food-related romances, but the name switch is due to the genre switch. Thank you to Atria and NetGalley for early access to the ebook in exchange for my honest opinion. It is now available everywhere, and I definitely recommend it! Afton Hotels are a big deal, and Pomona is the granddaughter of the founder, who has since passed away. His wife, Pom’s grandmother, currently is in charge - well, for the first few pages of the book before she is murdered! After getting kicked out of her apartment in the hotel due to a recently added stipulation in her grandmother's will, Pom has her eyes opened to the way the majority of people live - working every day for minimal pay and sharing a bathroom with a roommate! She decides she is going to do her part to assist in solving the murder so she can transition back into her usual lifestyle. She also gets into baking, since the baked goods at the cafe where she works are gross. I loved reading about her experimentation in the kitchen! I am NOT a baker, but I love reading about other people making baked goods. Pom is a fashionista, and at one point she mentions how “in� metallic sneakers are right now, and considering I have been wearing my metallic sneakers with everything lately, it made me feel super fashionable....more
Thanks to Uplit Reads, NetGalley, and Harper Muse for access to digital ebook and audio versions of Counting Backwards. This book was a fantastic surpThanks to Uplit Reads, NetGalley, and Harper Muse for access to digital ebook and audio versions of Counting Backwards. This book was a fantastic surprise. I truly enjoyed it, and I had trouble setting it down. I started reading it while doing a mini-brewery crawl in Providence, RI, last weekend. I switched and finished via audiobook while cooking dinner after I got home, and the narration was very well done. I wholeheartedly recommend both versions, as this is a top read so far in 2025! ⭐⭐⭐⭐� This cover is stunning! Considering a lush pomegranate like this represents fertility, it’s extremely apropos for this book. I didn’t anticipate my reaction to finishing Counting Backwards - I sat and cried for a solid 5 minutes thinking about what I had just read. The facts on which this novel was based truly upset me, as they had when the author learned them as a teenager. And that something similar could still be happening in the 21st century is just horrifying! I’m being purposefully vague, because I really want you to read this book. And if you have read it, let me know if you had a similar reaction!...more
Thanks to Minotaur Books, St Martin’s Press, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for early (and pub day!) access in exchange for my honest opinions. One of Thanks to Minotaur Books, St Martin’s Press, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for early (and pub day!) access in exchange for my honest opinions. One of the times each year that I reflect on how long I’ve been reviewing books is when a new Finlay Donovan book releases. I remember reading and reviewing Finlay Donovan Is Killing It in 2021 and falling in love with the characters and revisiting the Loudoun County area, where the books are set and where I’d lived from 2005-2007. And I’m thrilled that my original book is now personalized and signed by the author, after meeting her about a year ago at Porter Square Books in Cambridge, MA! I love the way Finlay and Vero care for each other and Finlay’s kids, and even Stephen, Finlay’s ex-husband. Although Vero is always making threats to hurt him, I still think she cares about their family unit and doing what’s best for the kids. And in this book, Finlay felt like even more of a mama bear, taking care of Cam along with her neighbor. But she still gets to have her fun, too! There is just as much hilarity and there are just as many hijinks as you’d expect in a Finlay book, but to me it seemed a bit more realistic and believable than some recent drama and shenanigans. I didn’t start reading my ebook until this past weekend, when I read the first 1/3 in one sitting, and I sadly figured I wouldn’t finish it by pub day, due to work obligations limited my reading during the week. I was so excited to receive gifted access to the audiobook version today, and I jumped right in listening on my walk home from work, and I finished while making dinner. I have listened to a few of the others, and Angela Dawe does a fantastic job again here. Do check this one out, especially if you’ve read the others - I think the whole series (5 books and 1 novella) is worth reading if you haven’t yet!...more
Thank you to Henry Holt for both a gifted physical copy and a NetGalley ebook copy in exchange for my honest opinion. While the book doesn't publish fThank you to Henry Holt for both a gifted physical copy and a NetGalley ebook copy in exchange for my honest opinion. While the book doesn't publish for a few more months, I'm so happy that I had a chance to read and review it early. This book is a great mix of genres - it’s a family drama including the FMC coming of age (new adult) with a sprinkle of epistolary historical fiction. I wasn't sure what to expect from the blurb and even once I started it, but I really loved this book! What Will People Think?, the author's debut novel, is set in NYC, where recent Columbia graduate and Palestinian-American Mia lives with the grandparents who raised her, after her father's death. Mia works as a fact checker alongside one of her college classmates. She is quite reserved, although her coworker bestie knows about Mia's massive crush on their boss. However, Mia also has a secret side-gig performing stand-up comedy, and the book includes some excerpts from her sets which I found to be HILARIOUS. These separate portions of her life and personality crash into each other to instigate some of the book's present-day drama. In addition, Mia's grandmother has some untold secrets which she is finally ready to reveal, and the book features chapters from a journal that Mia has to translate, set in the 1940s prior to coming to the US. Mia is uncertain which of the characters is her grandmother, and her anticipation of finding out comes across clearly to the reader. I loved reading about Mia learning to balance the seemingly disparate parts of her life (home vs. work vs. comedy) together as she grew into her own person, especially as she learned more about her family's history. Once I started this book, I had trouble putting it down - I just couldn't get enough, especially the last 50+ pages! The historical portions from the journal hit the sweet spot of giving just enough background information without taking away from the plot of the current timeline. I hope others will also connect with this book and love witnessing Mia's character growth as much as I did! Add this to your TBR if it sounds up your alley - I truly cannot recommend it enough!...more
Thanks to the Simon Element, Mary Sue Rucci Books, and NetGalley access to Tilt in exchange for my honest opinion. Climate fiction isn’t a typical genThanks to the Simon Element, Mary Sue Rucci Books, and NetGalley access to Tilt in exchange for my honest opinion. Climate fiction isn’t a typical genre for me to read, but I was completely sucked into this book once I started it. It’s concise, at less than 230 pages, but the plot and writing are rich. Annie is nine months pregnant, shopping at IKEA for a crib on her first official day of maternity leave. The Portland IKEA is northeast of the city, out near the airport (which I noticed when I flew out of PDX in summer 2023 - I grew up equating landing at the Newark airport with the IKEA in Elizabeth!). While shopping, a major earthquake hits, cutting off electricity and creating all kinds of panic. Annie abandons her car (who knows where her keys, phone, purse, etc. are?) and starts the long walk into Portland, where her husband is working at a cafe. She knows he must be panicking about her and the baby. She has some interactions with people along the walk, as she treks past infrastructure damage and people who have not survived. The chapters alternate between Annie’s current journey and glimpses from the past, starting with long ago when she was in college and going up until the night before and morning of the quake, following her pregnancy journey closely. Tilt will publish tomorrow, and I recommend it - although I can understand if you live in the Portland or surrounding west coast area, this read may hit a little too close to home. When I visited Portland with friends in 2023, we did a lot of walking around in different areas, and it was neat to recognize some of the neighborhoods, streets, bridges, etc. while reading. But I’m glad I don’t live close to a major fault line!...more
This was my first time reading author Charlotte Stein’s work, and I really enjoyed My Big Fat Fake Marriage, which I read through a mix of ebook and aThis was my first time reading author Charlotte Stein’s work, and I really enjoyed My Big Fat Fake Marriage, which I read through a mix of ebook and audiobook. Thanks to Macmillan Audio, St Martin’s Griffin, and NetGalley for early access to both media in exchange for my honest opinion. Connie has not had very good interactions with men. Enter her neighbor - who Connie at first thinks is a serial killer, for very good reasons. However, once that misunderstanding is cleared up, she offers to jump in and play his fake wife, as he had previously made up a (complicated) relationship which he had told his coworkers about. Connie goes on a retreat with him, as his fake wife, and they plan a fight to prompt their fake divorce. But he is a complete cinnamon roll, and Connie finds herself feeling very not-fake feelings. There are a few really steamy scenes, and I couldn’t put this one down once I started reading/listening to it. It’s available now everywhere!...more
Thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing/Park Row Books for early access to Close Your Eyes and Count to 10 in exchange for my honest opinioThanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing/Park Row Books for early access to Close Your Eyes and Count to 10 in exchange for my honest opinion. And thanks to the random Books A Million in Beaufort, South Carolina, I stopped into while waiting for my friend to make a work call, because they had the book out early so I could take this picture! The plot of the book is that Extreme Hide and Seek for Influencers is happening on the site of an abandoned hotel on an island in an area similar to the Azores. Now, I have trouble fully understanding how hide and seek could be an extreme sport, but I tried not to dwell on that issue while reading. The land seems “unwell� and the weather is predicted to be bad, and pretty much everything that could go wrong does go wrong. The action is jam-packed, but at the same time it was a little boring, as the tension was lacking. I’ve only read a couple previous books by the author, but this wasn’t a new favorite. I’ll still keep reading her work, though! There is a LOT going on in this book, and all of the characters are various amounts of unlikeable. I stuck with it, but the book felt too long for what it was. And while there was a lot of crazy going on, I really just didn’t care all that much about how it ended or the big reveal. However, just because this didn’t feel like the right book for me, maybe it may be the right edge-of-your-seat thriller for you. Perhaps the audiobook will do a better job capturing the tension of the story. It will be available tomorrow everywhere - or maybe you can find a copy out early like I did! ...more
Thanks to Forever and NetGalley for early access to You Between the Lines which comes out tomorrow! I started reading this yesterday, curled up with mThanks to Forever and NetGalley for early access to You Between the Lines which comes out tomorrow! I started reading this yesterday, curled up with my cat as shown here, and I finished it today on my flight. While I tend to bounce back and forth between books, I didn’t read anything else once I started this book, which means it fully captured my attention - great work to a debut author! You Between the Lines takes place at a small town North Carolina MFA program for poetry and fiction, with just five candidates per program per year. After realizing being a copywriter is sucking the life from her, Leigh applies to the program to build off of her English degree and tap back into her love for creative writing. At the welcome barbecue, she finds that one of the other poetry candidates is her high school crush, Will - who now goes by William. He had criticized her work in a writing semester in high school and Leigh had never forgiven her. Except for maybe when they ran into each other that one time at Middlebury� Leigh’s parents are going through a separation, which has her, the only child, questioning why their three-person unit is no longer viable. Her people-pleasing is at an all time high, while she’s supposed to be vulnerable to achieve greatness in her program. Luckily, she has a best friend and a therapist who both tell it like it is, keeping her head on straight-ish. I appreciated the way the book showed Leigh’s struggle with her insecurity and indecision, even in terms of her choosing her outfits, as they felt realistic and made me care about her character. The sex scenes were quite steamy, and the ending felt natural. Sometimes I felt like chapters ended and time moved forward without fully finishing some experiences, but that could be because I read it quickly. I sobbed through the epilogue on my flight, but no one asked if I was okay, so that’s a plus ...more
Thanks to Forever, Hachette Audio, and NetGalley for early copies of Celebrity Crush in exchange for my honest opinions. The book is now available eveThanks to Forever, Hachette Audio, and NetGalley for early copies of Celebrity Crush in exchange for my honest opinions. The book is now available everywhere! I listened to Celebrity Crush over the course of one evening, while cooking and cleaning and packing. Once I started it, I was sucked into the story by the great narration, and it was the perfect romance to binge while getting things done. I mostly listen to audiobooks while doing chores or while walking/commuting - for me it’s the best distraction from anything required which might feel monotonous. In Celebrity Crush, Emmy is a single parent and a debut author who has written a romance about her celebrity crush. The book she’s written takes off, and there is a ton of speculation about the identity of her crush. When it is optioned as a movie, it becomes an even bigger deal when the producers plan to cast her crush! Emmy gets to meet the crush that inspired the book, and the tension is huge. There is plenty more that happens, but I don’t want to give away too much because it happens in such a fun way. Celebrity Crush is Christy Swift's debut novel, too. If you like reading books about books and movies, reading romance with older main characters, or if you’ve ever imagined meeting your celebrity crush, I think you’ll like this one. I really enjoyed the narration by Stephanie Willing and Andrew Eiden - I think that’s a big reason why I didn’t stop until I had listened all the way to the end! ...more
Thank you to Macmillan Audio, St Martin's Press, and NetGalley for early reader and listener copies of The Queens of Crime in exchange for my honest oThank you to Macmillan Audio, St Martin's Press, and NetGalley for early reader and listener copies of The Queens of Crime in exchange for my honest opinion. I knew of Marie Benedict, but this was the first book of hers that I read/listened to. I mostly listened to the audio, but I found myself following along in the ebook while listening. The Queens of Crime is historical fiction based on a true story, in which the female authors of the Golden Age of Mystery form a secret group and work to solve a real-life murder. Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham and Baroness Emma Orczy call themselves the Queens of Crime and work together to fight against male stereotypes and preconceived notions to find the story behind the disappearance and murder of a young English nurse named May Daniels in 1930s France while abroad with her friend. I thought the book was well paced, as I was invested in the story and didn't want to pause when I had other obligations. I liked that the main characters were authors although I had not heard of all five before reading this book. And I appreciated that this historical fiction set in Europe did not involve WWI or WWII!...more
I had seen great reviews about this book, in particular the audiobook narrated by Karissa Vacker, and I had placed a hold at my library. I was still aI had seen great reviews about this book, in particular the audiobook narrated by Karissa Vacker, and I had placed a hold at my library. I was still a few months out from getting access to it when Harlequin Audio auto-approved me on NetGalley and I was able to grab the audiobook to listen to immediately! Thanks so much Harlequin and NetGalley for the ALC in exchange for my honest opinion, even though the book and audio have been available since December! Definitely Better Now definitely lived up to the hype I had seen. I'm shocked it's a debut novel. And Karissa Vacker does a terrific job narrating the story. The story follows Emma, 25 and about to celebrate one year sober. She has grown a lot in the last year since starting to attend AA meetings, but she has kept her sobriety journey a secret from the coworkers at her new job, having never attended the happy hours she is always invited to join. She is also working through some trauma from her parents' split in part due to her father's substance abuse. The reader gets to witness Emma working through her relationship with her father and her ability to socialize and start to date without the substances she used to rely on in similar situations. I really enjoyed Emma's character and found her to be handling her sobriety in a mature, eye-opening way. It was well-writeen and didn't feel like it was preaching AA or anything like that. In terms of what I've witnessed from friends getting sober, it felt realistic. However, I don't know how someone with their own sobriety journey would feel about how Emma and her sobriety are portrayed. I do recommend it, especially the audiobook, as I think the humor used really makes the heavier topics more approachable....more
Thanks to Harper Select and NetGalley for early access to the book in exchange for my honest opinion. Being granted access the day before publication,Thanks to Harper Select and NetGalley for early access to the book in exchange for my honest opinion. Being granted access the day before publication, I didn't finish the book before it was available, and I took my time reading it, as the emotions conveyed were a lot to handle. To back up, I grew up dancing - all the styles, all the competitions, teaching lessons, working in a dancewear shop. So I was interested in hearing more about Allison's experience in dance prior to So You Think You Can Dance. I remember watching her move on SYTYCD and being struck with awe. After the intro, the first quarter of the book is about her, following her growing up and on the show. The next quarter of the book is about her relationship with Stephen Twitch Boss, and then the last half follows the aftermath of his death by suicide and how she and their children are working through their feelings and moving forward. As Allison says, "People have a lot of opinions that they don't hesitate to share about how I should be handling my grief." I don't want to add my voice to that crew, but I do hope that in writing this book she was able to find more peace. Overall, her confusion was the most prevalent message, and I am not sure why she chose to make some of the statements she did. Especially when she says, about talking to her daughter, "I'm constantly reminding her of the power of silence." The dichotomy of that statement being included in a book that, at times, read like a tell-all left me feeling confused. If you're a SYTYCD fan or a super-fan of hers, you'd probably enjoy this book. But if you are a fan of Twitch, I think you can skip this read. She doesn't hide the "bad" stuff that even she didn't know about when Twitch was alive. I understand she wants to paint a more realistic portrait of him than the loving soul he was on TV and social media, but I don't think this book was the best way to achieve that....more
I recently started reading Seraphina Nova Glass, due to her popularity on bookstagram, and this is my first time reading one of her books pre-publicatI recently started reading Seraphina Nova Glass, due to her popularity on bookstagram, and this is my first time reading one of her books pre-publication. I switched back and forth between my ebook and audio copies (thanks to @netgalley and @htp_hive for copies both in exchange for my honest opinion!), and finished reading it during my flight to DC yesterday morning. I love a short, direct morning flight, and I love how easy it is to get into the city after landing at DCA. Nothing Ever Happens Here may be the title of this one, but there is a LOT that happens in this book! It started with a crazy hostage-type situation, and it was hard for me to put it down after that. The book takes place in small town Minnesota, which isn’t your typical contemporary book setting. There are great side characters in this book, in particular some old-folk home residents who take it upon themselves to try to solve the mystery. I could see these characters getting along well with the characters in How to Age Disgracefully by Clare Pooley, as there is similar humor involved here. I’m having trouble giving much of a summary for this book without giving away key parts of the mystery, so I’ll just say if you enjoy books set in small towns where the adage “nothing ever happens here� is NOT true, this book may be up your alley. I thought the audiobook was done well, and I recommend both forms of this one. It will be available on Tuesday, and I’m excited to add the author to my list of auto-read authors. If you haven’t checked out her blacklist, I recommend On a Quiet Street and The Vanishing Hour, but I’m still working my way through some of her previous releases....more
How much do I love Josh Gad? SO MUCH! This "tell-some" memoir was what I chose to listen to on my flight to Orlando (Or-land-o, Or-land-o, I love you, How much do I love Josh Gad? SO MUCH! This "tell-some" memoir was what I chose to listen to on my flight to Orlando (Or-land-o, Or-land-o, I love you, Or-land-o!), and it really made the flight seem to go by very quickly. Thanks to @bplboston for buying extra copies so my Libby hold came through much faster than expected! I never had the pleasure of seeing Josh in The Book of Mormon (although I watched from the 3rd row thanks to @luckyseattickets last May!), but I did see him and @andrewrannells in Gutenberg the musical on Broadway in the fall of 2023. I don't know if I've ever laughed more at a Broadway show - watching Josh and Andrew play off of each other and wear so many literal hats was an experience I'll never forget. Hearing about these shows let the Broadway fan in me geek out. And hearing more about how Frozen came to be was fantastic, too. Olaf is such a great character, and I love how much influence Josh was given in the development. I could have listened to Josh go on for twice as long, easily, but he left me looking forward to looking for his next career moves and hopefully another amazing memoir with more behind-the-scenes fun. You don't have to be a Broadway fan to enjoy Josh's memoir, as he shares plenty about being a dad, being Jewish, his college experience, and other parts of his life. And what a witty title! I highly recommend the audiobook....more
Thanks to NetGalley, SMP, and Macmillan Audio for early reader and listener copies in exchange for my honest opinions.While in Florida for the weekendThanks to NetGalley, SMP, and Macmillan Audio for early reader and listener copies in exchange for my honest opinions.While in Florida for the weekend in late Jan/early February with a group of octogenarians, many of whom were actual snowbirds, my mind kept returning to The Snowbirds, which I read last week. The Snowbirds follows an interesting couple, Kim and Grant, who leave the Wisconsin winter for Palm Springs. The two have led separate-but-together lives, having raised two daughters while also living apart without marrying. They seem to have hit a bit of an impasse, and neither is sure which direction is best. The book focuses on their time in Palm Springs, and there is a mysterious element when someone goes missing. I enjoyed the author's previous release, Shoulder Season, and I particularly enjoyed the narration of The Snowbirds by @karissavacker - she really added something special in her narration, along with Graham Halstead. If you like reading about realistic characters in situations that may seem a bit far-fetched at first but actually are not, this read may be right for you. If you can get your hands (or ears?) on the audiobook, even better. ...more
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