Month in Review: December 2020

  Well, it’s certainly been a year…that’s for sure! But the one silver lining is that I read a lot and I read some amazing books. Not only was I fortunate to continue to receive review books all year long, but I still managed to read books off my own shelf…I certainly had the time and this is something that I am going to make a priority moving forward, making…

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Review: Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Title: Mexican Gothic Author: Silvia Moreno-Garcia Published: June 2020, Del Rey Format: Hardcover, 336 pages Source: Personal copy Summary:  An isolated mansion. A chillingly charismatic artistocrat. And a brave socialite drawn to expose their treacherous secrets. . . . From the author of Gods of Jade and Shadow comes “a terrifying twist on classic gothic horror” (Kirkus Reviews) set in glamorous 1950s Mexico—“fans of classic novels like Jane Eyre and…

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Review: The Witch Hunter by Max Seeck

  Title: The Witch Hunter Author: Max Seeck Series: Jessica Niemi, #1 Published: October 2020, Berkley Format: Paperback, 400 pages Source: Personal copy   Summary:  A shocking murder in an affluent Helsinki suburb has ties to the occult in this thrilling US debut from Finnish author Max Seeck. A bestselling author’s wife has been found dead in a gorgeous black evening gown, sitting at the head of a formally set…

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Review: I’m Traveling Alone by Samuel Bjork

  Title: I’m Traveling Alone Author: Samuel Bjork Series: Holger Munch & Mia Kruger, #1 Published: December 2016, Corgi Format: Paperback, 528 pages Source: Personal copy Summary:  When the body of a young girl is found hanging from a tree, the only clue the police have is an airline tag around her neck. It reads ‘I’m travelling alone’. In response, police investigator Holger Munch is immediately charged with assembling a…

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Review: Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie

Title: Death on the Nile Author: Agatha Christie Series: Hercule Poirot, #17 Published: September 2020, William Morrow Paperbacks (first published 1937) Format: Paperback Movie tie-in, 334 pages Source: Publisher Summary:  SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE RELEASING OCTOBER 9, 2020 —DIRECTED BY AND STARRING KENNETH BRANAGH Following the success of Murder on the Orient Express, Kenneth Branagh returns to direct and star in this adaptation of the classic Hercule Poirot mystery…

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Review: Dear Child by Romy Hausmann (audio)

  Title: Dear Child Author: Romy Hausmann Narrator: Jane Collingwood, Nicky Diss, Simon Slater Published: October 2020, Macmillan Audio Length: 10 hours 58 minutes Source: ALC via Macmillan Audio Summary: A woman held captive finally escapes – but can she ever really get away? Gone Girl meets Room in this number-one internationally best-selling thriller from one of Germany’s hottest new talents. A windowless shack in the woods. A dash to…

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Review: Girl in the Mirror by Rose Carlyle

Title: Girl in the Mirror Author: Rose Carlyle Published: October 2020, William Morrow Format: Hardcover, 304 pages Source: Publisher via TLC Booktours Summary:  Written with the chilling, twisty suspense of The Wife Between Us and Something in the Water, a seductive debut thriller about greed, lust, secrets, and deadly lies involving identical twin sisters. Twin sisters Iris and Summer are startlingly alike, but beyond what the eye can see lies…

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Review: The Pull of the Stars by Emma Donoghue (audio)

Title: The Pull of the Stars Author: Emma Donoghue Narrator: Emma Lowe Published: July 2020, Hachette Audio Length: 9 hours 6 minutes Source: ALC via Libro.fm Summary: In an Ireland doubly ravaged by war and disease, Nurse Julia Power works at an understaffed hospital in the city center, where expectant mothers who have come down with the terrible new Flu are quarantined together. Into Julia’s regimented world step two outsiders…

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Review: Kick Kennedy: The Charmed Life & Tragic Death of the Favorite Kennedy Daughter by Barbara Leaming (print/audio book)

Title: Kick Kennedy: The Charmed Life & Tragic Death of the Favorite Kennedy Daughter Author: Barbara Leaming Narrator: Eliza Foss Published: April 2016, Macmillan Audio / Thomas Dunne Books Length: 10 hours 17 minutes / 304 pages Source: Audio – borrowed via Library / Print – Personal copy Summary: Kathleen “Kick” Kennedy was the incandescent life-force of the Kennedy family. The daughter of the American ambassador to the Court of…

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Review: Little Women by Louise May Alcott (audio book)

Title: Little Women Author: Louise May Alcott Narrator: Nicol Zanzarella Published: January 2020 Kobo Originals / September 2005 Barnes & Nobles Classics (First Published September 1868) Length: 19 hours / Hardcover, 477 pages Source: Audio – via the Library / Print – Personal copy Summary: Little Women is the delightful story of the four March girls and their approach towards womanhood. Meg, the eldest and most beautiful, shrugs off her…

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Review: Rosemary: The Hidden Kennedy Daughter by Kate Clifford Larson (print/audio)

  Title: Rosemary: The Hidden Kennedy Daughter Author: Kate Clifford Larson Narrator: Bernadette Dunne Published: October 2015, Blackstone Audio / Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Length: 7 hours 44 minutes / 320 pages Source: Audio – borrowed via Library / Print – Personal copy Summary: They were the most prominent American family of the twentieth century. The daughter they secreted away made all the difference.Joe and Rose Kennedy’s strikingly beautiful daughter Rosemary attended…

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Review: The Mystery of Mrs. Christie by Marie Benedict

Title: The Mystery of Mrs. Christie Author: Marie Benedict Published: December 2020, Sourcebooks Landmark Format: ARC Paperback, 288 pages Source: Publisher Summary:  Marie Benedict, the beloved New York Times bestselling author of The Only Woman in the Room, uncovers the untold story of Agatha Christie’s mysterious eleven day disappearance. In December 1926, Agatha Christie goes missing. Investigators find her empty car on the edge of a deep, gloomy pond, the…

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Review: Girl Under Water by L.T. Vargus, Tim McBain

Title: Girl Under Water Author: L.T. Vargus, Tim McBain Series: Charlotte Winters, #2 Published: December 2020, Bookouture Format: ARC E-copy, 425 pages Source: Netgalley via Publisher Summary:  Her numb fingers scrabble over upholstery, over metal, over glass, searching for a way out. Water stings her eyes as she’s dragged downward, clinging to her last breath as she’s absorbed into the cold dark below… When Gloria Carmichael’s body is found broken…

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Review: The Voting Booth by Brandy Colbert (audio)

Title: The Voting Booth Author: Brandy Colbert Narrator: Robin Eller, Cary Hite Published: July 2020, Dreamscape Media LLC Length: 6 hours 5 minutes Source: ALC via Libro.fm Summary: Marva Sheridan was born ready for this day. She’s always been driven to make a difference in the world, and what better way than to vote in her first election? Duke Crenshaw is so done with this election. He just wants to…

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Blog Tour & Review: The Last To See Her by Courtney Evan Tate

Today, I’m so happy to be a tour stop on the blog tour for The Last to See Her by Courtney Evan Tate. Thank you MIRA Books for inviting me to participate.   Title: The Last To See Her Author: Courtney Evan Tate Published: December 2020, MIRA Format: ARC E-galley, 352 pages Source: Netgalley via Publisher Summary:  A woman disappears into the dark city night… Gen is on the verge…

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Review: The Boy from the Woods by Harlan Coben (audio)

Title: The Boy from the Woods Author: Harlan Coben Narrator: Steven Weber Published: March 2020, Brilliance Audio Length: 10 hours 8 minutes Source: Publisher Summary: In the shocking new thriller from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Run Away, a man whose past is shrouded in mystery must find a missing teenage girl before her disappearance brings about disastrous consequences for her community . . . and the…

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Review: Such a Perfect Wife by Kate White

Title: Such a Perfect Wife Author: Kate White Series: Bailey Weggins, #8 Published: May 2019, Harper Paperbacks Format: Paperback, 368 pages Source: Personal copy Summary:  Must be blonde, beautiful, and a good Catholic girl… On a sunny morning in late September, Shannon Blaine, a blonde, green-eyed 34-year old wife and mother of two, sets off on a jog along the rural roads near her home in Lake George, New York.…

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Review: The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins (audio)

  Title: The Wife Upstairs Author: Rachel Hawkins  Narrator: Emily Shaffer, Kirby Heyborne, Lauren, Fortgang  Published: January 2021, Macmillan Audio / St. Martin’s Press  Length: 8 hours 40 minutes / 304 pages  Source: Audio – ALC via Libro.fm / Print – ARC E-copy via Netgalley Summary: A delicious twist on a Gothic classic, The Wife Upstairs pairs Southern charm with atmospheric domestic suspense, perfect for fans of B.A. Paris and…

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Review: Cold Wind by Paige Shelton

   Title: Cold Wind Author: Paige Shelton Series: Alaska Wild Mysteries, #2 Published: December 2020, Minotaur Books Format: ARC E-copy, 296 pages Source: Netgalley via Publisher Summary:  Second in a new series set in Alaska from beloved cozy author Paige Shelton, Cold Wind will chill your bones. Beth Rivers is still in Alaska. The unidentified man who kidnapped her in her home of St. Louis hasn’t been found yet, so…

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Review: The House of Kennedy by James Patterson (print/audio book)

  Title: The House of Kennedy Author: James Patterson Narrator: David Pittu Published: April 2020, Little Brown & Company Length: 10 hours 25 minutes / 425 pages Source: Audio – borrowed via Library / Print – Personal copy Summary: The Kennedys have always been a family of charismatic adventurers, raised to take risks and excel, living by the dual family mottos: “To whom much is given, much is expected” and…

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Review: The Swap by Robyn Harding

  Title: The Swap Author: Robyn Harding Published: June 2020, Gallery/Scout Press Format: ARC E-copy, 334 pages Source: Netgalley Summary:  “No list of thrillers is complete without Robyn Harding,” proclaims Real Simple. Now the USA TODAY bestselling author of The Party delivers a riveting tale about the toxic relationship between two couples after a night of sexual shenanigans, and the manipulative teenager with an explosive secret at the center of…

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Review: The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab (audio)

Title: The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue Author: V.E. Schwab Narrator: Julia Whelan Published: October 2020, Macmillan Audio / Tor Books Length: 17 hours 10 minutes / 442 pages Source: Audio – ALC via Macmillan Audio / Print – Personal copy Summary: A Life No One Will Remember. A Story You Will Never Forget.France, 1714: in a moment of desperation, a young woman makes a Faustian bargain to live forever…

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Review: The Wicked Hour by Alice Blanchard

  Title: The Wicked Hour Author: Alice Blanchard Series: Natalie Lockard, #2 Published: December 2020, Minotaur Books Format: ARC E-copy, 304 pages Source: Publisher via Netgalley Summary:  From the award-winning author of Trace of Evil, a detective dealing with the scars of her past must solve a seemingly unconnected string of murders, and face the impossible question of what to do when the killer may be hiding amongst the ones…

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Review: The Second Mother by Jenny Milchman

Title: The Second Mother Author: Jenny Milchman Published: August 2020, Sourcebooks Landmark Format: ARC Paperback, 464 pages Source: Publisher Summary:  Opportunity: Teacher needed in one-room schoolhouse on remote island in Maine. Certification in grades K-8 a must. Julie Weathers isn’t sure if she’s running away or starting over, but moving to a remote island off the coast of Maine feels right for someone with reasons to flee her old life.…

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Short & Sweet Review: Kiss the Girls and Make Them Cry by Mary Higgins Clark

Title: Kiss the Girls and Make Them Cry Author: Mary Higgins Clark Published: November 2019, Simon Shuster Format: Hardcover, 384 pages Source: Personal copy Summary:  An electrifying new thriller from “Queen of Suspense” Mary Higgins Clark! When investigative journalist Gina Kane receives an email from a “CRyan” describing her “terrible experience” while working at REL, a high-profile television news network, including the comment “and I’m not the only one,” Gina…

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Blog Tour & Review: Winterkill by Ragnar Jonasson

  Title: Winterkill Author: Ragnar Jonasson Series: Dark Iceland, #6 Published: December 2020, Orenda Books Format: ARC E-copy, 276 pages Source: Publisher Summary:  When the body of a nineteen-year-old girl is found on the main street of Siglufjörður, Police Inspector Ari Thór battles a violent Icelandic storm in an increasingly dangerous hunt for her killer … The chilling, claustrophobic finale to the international bestselling Dark Iceland series. Easter weekend is…

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Review: House of Correction by Nicci French

   Title: House of Correction Author: Nicci French Published: October 2020, William Morrow Paperbacks Format: Paperback, 528 pages Source: Publisher via TLC Booktours Summary:  ‘So,’ said Mora Piozzi, her lawyer, looking down at her laptop. ‘In brief: you are charged with the murder of Stuart Robert Rees, on December 21st, between the hours of ten-forty in the morning and half-past three o’clock in the afternoon.’ Tabitha is accused of murder.…

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Book Spotlight: The Chelsea Girls by Fiona Davis – Now Out in Paperback!!!

Last year, I read The Chelsea Girls by Fiona Davis when it was first released in hardcover, and I really enjoyed it! You can read my thoughts on the book here.  Today the book is being released in paperback – with a brand new cover!!! –  and to celebrate, I am helping the publishers get the word out. I’ve read every book Fiona Davis has written and have loved them…

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Review: The Dead Season by Tessa Wegert

  Title: The Dead Season Author: Tessa Wegert Series: Shana Merchant, #2 Published: December 2020, Berkley Books Format: Paperback, 352 pages Source: Publisher Summary:  Senior Investigator Shana Merchant has spent years running from her past. But she never imagined a murder case would drive her to the most dangerous place of all–home. After leaving the NYPD following her abduction by serial killer Blake Bram, Shana Merchant hoped for a fresh…

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Blog Tour & Review: Take It Back by Kia Abdullah

Today, I’m so happy to be a tour stop on the blog tour for Take It Back by Kia Abdullah. Thank you St. Martin’s Press for inviting me to participate.   Title: Take It Back Author: Kia Abdullah Series: Zara Kaleel, #1 Published: December 2020, St. Martin’s Press Format: Hardcover, 304 pages Source: Publisher Summary:  From author Kia Abdullah, Take It Back is a harrowing and twisting courtroom thriller that…

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Review: Lazarus by Lars Kepler

  Title: Lazarus Author: Lars Kepler Series: Joona Linna, #7 Published: December 2020, Knopf Publishing Group Format: Hardcover, 496 pages Source: Publisher Summary:  Sometimes the past won’t stay buried. All across Europe, the most ruthless criminals are suffering gruesome deaths. At first, it seems coincidental that their underworld affiliations are finally catching up to them. But when two of the victims are found to have disturbing connections to Detective Joona…

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Review: Cleo McDougal Regrets Nothing by Allison Winn Scotch

Title: Cleo McDougal Regrets Nothing Author: Allison Winn Scotch Published: August 2020, Lake Union Publishing Format: Paperback, 322 pages Source: Publicist Summary:  Politics is a test of wills in a sharp, funny, and emotional novel about truth and consequences by the New York Times bestselling author. Cleo McDougal is a born politician. From congresswoman to senator, the magnetic, ambitious single mother now has her eye on the White House—always looking forward, never…

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Review: Loss Lake by Amber Cowie

  Title: Loss Lake Author: Amber Cowie Published: November 2020, Lake Union Publishing Format: ARC Paperback, 303 pages Source: Author Summary:  A new town, a new life, and a new home—with an absolutely chilling lakefront view. Two months a widow, Mallory Dent has made the impulsive decision to pack up and move on. In remote McNamara, nestled in the northern mountains, she can escape her grief, guilt, and pain. But…

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Review: When We Believed in Mermaids by Barbara O’Neal (audio)

  Title: When We Believed in Mermaids Author: Barbara O’Neal Narrator: Sarah Naughton, Katherine Littrell Published: July 2019, Brilliance Audio Length: 11 hours 55 minutes Source: Personal copy Summary: From the author of The Art of Inheriting Secrets comes an emotional new tale of two sisters, an ocean of lies, and a search for the truth. Her sister has been dead for fifteen years when she sees her on the…

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Review: Call of Vultures by Kate Kessler

  Title: Call of Vultures Author: Kate Kessler Series: Killian Delaney, #2 Published: December 2020, Redhook Format: ARC Paperback, 352 pages Source: Publisher Summary:  In this suspenseful and twisted thriller, an ex-con uses her unique skill set to fight for the justice of those who can’t defend themselves. Kate Kessler’s novels are “impossible to put down” (Hollie Overton). Killian Delaney has a skewed moral compass, a high threshold for pain,…

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Month in Review: November 2020

  How is it possible that we have one left month of this crazy year…the year that has felt like it has lasted longer than any other? One thing is for sure…my reading certainly hasn’t suffered and for that, I am not complaining! As we head into this last month, I am just going to enjoy it, read what I want and see where the month takes me.    …

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Review: Seven Crows by Kate Kessler

  Title: Seven Crows Author: Kate Kessler Series: Killian Delaney, #1 Published: October 2019, Redhook Format: Paperback, 357 pages Source: Publisher Summary:  An ex-con tracks down the men who have kidnapped her niece in this gritty and visceral thriller. Killian Delaney has a skewed moral compass, a high threshold for pain, and has just been released from prison to discover that someone has taken her niece. Killian does not hesitate.…

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Review: Whiteout by Ragnar Jonasson

  Title: Whiteout Author: Ragnar Jonasson Series: Dark Iceland, #5 Published: January 2020, Orenda Books Format: Paperback, 224 pages Source: Personal copy Summary:  Two days before Christmas, a young woman is found dead beneath the cliffs of the deserted village of Kalfshamarvik. Did she jump, or did something more sinister take place beneath the lighthouse and the abandoned old house on the remote rocky outcrop? With winter closing in and…

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Blog Tour & Review: Bright Lies by A.A. Abbott

   Title: Bright Lies Author: A.A. Abbott Published: November 2020, Perfect City Press Format: ARC E-copy, 224 pages Source: Publicist Summary:  She’s learned too much, too young. Can she break free? Emily’s dreams come true when her mother marries wealthy painter, David. Thanks to him, Emily’s artistic talents shine. Then he starts teaching her things a 14-year-old shouldn’t know. While Emily breaks free, she’s forced to sleep in a rat-infested…

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Review: The Girl Who Lived Twice by David Lagercrantz (audio)

   Title: The Girl Who Lived Twice Author:David Lagercrantz Series: Millennium, #6 Narrator: Simon Vance Published: August 2019, Random House Audio Length: 9 hours 54 minutes Source: Personal copy Summary: The sixth Lisbeth Salander story in the Millennium Series–the crime-fiction phenomenon that has sold more than 90 million copies worldwide. Lisbeth Salander–the fierce, unstoppable girl with the dragon tattoo–has disappeared. She’s sold her apartment in Stockholm. She’s gone silent electronically.…

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Review: Girls of Brackenhill by Kate Moretti

  Title: Girls of Brackenhill Author: Kate Moretti Published: November 2020, Thomas & Mercer Format: ARC Paperback, 332 pages Source: Publisher Summary:  Haunted by her sister’s disappearance, a troubled woman becomes consumed by past secrets in this gripping thriller from the New York Times bestselling author of The Vanishing Year. When Hannah Maloney’s aunt dies in a car accident, she returns to her family’s castle in the Catskills and the…

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Review: The First Shot by Liv Constantine (audio)

   Title: The First Shot Author: Liv Constantine Narrator: Suzanne Elise Freeman Published: November 2020, Audible Originals Length: 2 hours 35 minutes Source: Personal copy Summary: In this gripping prequel to the blockbuster best seller and Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick The Last Mrs. Parrish, listeners will discover exactly how Amber Patterson transformed from small-town girl to master manipulator – after all, practice makes perfect. Amber Patterson has many secrets.…

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Review: The Kingdom by Jo Nesbo

  Title: The Kingdom Author: Jo Nesbo Published: November 2020, Knopf Format: Hardcover, 560 pages Source: pages Summary:  Roy and Carl have spent their whole lives running from the darkness in their past, but when Carl finally returns to make peace with it, the two brothers are inexorably drawn into a reckoning with their own demons. Roy has never left the quiet mountain town he grew up in, unlike his…

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Review: My Darling by Amanda Robson

  Title: My Darling Author: Amanda Darling Published: November 2020, HarperCollins Format: ARC Paperback, 372 pages Source: Publisher Summary:  A new couple moves in next door. And nothing will ever be the same again… I watched you move in and thought we might be friends. I saw you watching from the window – and knew I’d have to keep you away from my husband. I started to trust you. Confide…

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Review: Agent 355 by Marie Benedict (audio)

Title: Agent 355 Author: Marie Benedict Narrator: Emily Rankin Published: July 2020, Audible Original Length: 2 hours 7 minutes Source: Personal copy Summary: From Marie Benedict, best-selling author of The Only Woman in the Room and Lady Clementine, comes a captivating work of historical fiction about a young female spy who may have changed the course of American History. The tide is turning against the colonists in the Revolutionary War,…

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Cover Reveal: Our Woman in Moscow by Beatriz Williams

I am so excited to help Beatriz William spread the news today about her newest book – and share the cover!!! I love reading historical fiction and Beatriz’s previous books have been so good. I am so excited to read this one. This book will be released June 1, 2021, but you can pre-order now. See the pre-order link below.      Title: Our Woman in Moscow Author: Beatriz Williams…

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Review: The Haunting of Brynn Wilder by Wendy Webb

  Title: The Haunting of Brynn Wilder Author: Wendy Webb Published: November 2020, Lake Union Publishing Format: ARC Paperback, 288 pages Source: Publisher Summary:  After a devastating loss, Brynn Wilder escapes to Wharton, a tourist town on Lake Superior, to reset. Checking into a quaint boardinghouse for the summer, she hopes to put her life into perspective. In her fellow lodgers, she finds a friendly company of strangers: the frail…

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Review: The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye by David Lagercrantz (audio)

  Title: The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye Author: David Lagercrantz Series: Millennium, #5 Narrator: Simon Vance Published: September 2017, Random House Audio Length: 10 hours 50 minutes Source: Personal copy Summary: From the author of the #1 international best seller The Girl in the Spider’s Web: the new book in the Millennium series, which began with Stieg Larsson’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Lisbeth Salander…

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Review: Mrs. Lincoln’s Sisters by Jennifer Chiaverini (audio)

  Title: Mrs. Lincoln’s Sisters Author: Jennifer Chiaverini Narrator: Cassandra Campbell Published: June 2020, Harper Audio / William Morrow Length: 12 hours 24 minutes / 336 pages Source: Audio via library / Print via Publisher Summary: The New York Times bestselling author of Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker returns to her most famous heroine, Mary Todd Lincoln, in this compelling story of love, loss, and sisterhood rich with history and suspense. In…

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Review: First Girl Gone by L.T. Vargus, Tim McBain

  Title: First Girl Gone Author: L.T. Vargus, Tim McBain Series: Charlotte Winters, #1 Published: September 2020, Bookouture Format: ARC E-copy, 429 pages Source: Netgalley via Publisher Summary:  Down the beach, she can just make out the rusting hulk of the Ferris wheel through the dawn mist. The hairs prickle on her neck as she drags her focus back to the chestnut hair fanned out in the shallow water at…

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