Review: The Ballerinas by Rachel Kapelke-Dale

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press Published: December 7, 2021 Source: ARC Paperback via Publisher   Summary: Dare Me meets Black Swan and Luckiest Girl Alive in a captivating, voice-driven debut novel about a trio of ballerinas who meet as students at the Paris Opera Ballet School. Fourteen years ago, Delphine abandoned her prestigious soloist spot at the Paris Opera Ballet for a new life in St. Petersburg––taking with her a secret that could upend the lives…

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Blog Tour & Review: The Good Son by Jacqueline Mitchard

  Today, I’m so happy to be a tour stop on the blog tour for The Good Son by Jacqueline Mitchard. Thank you Mira Books for inviting me to participate.   Publisher: MIRA Books Published: January 18, 2022 Source: ARC E-copy via Netgalley   Summary: From #1 New York Times bestselling author Jacquelyn Mitchard comes the gripping, emotionally charged novel of a mother who must help her son after he is…

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Blog Tour & Review: My Darling Husband by Kimberly Belle

  Today, I’m so happy to be a tour stop on the blog tour for My Darling Husband by Kimberly Belle. Thank you Park Row Books for inviting me to participate. ***Please note that this book is being released today, December 28th in e-book and audio format. The paperback original format will be published on March 8th, 2022.   Publisher: Park Row Books Published: December 28, 2021 Source: ARC Paperback via…

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Review: The Distant Dead by Heather Young

Publisher: Custom House Published: August 4, 2021 Source: Paperback via Publisher   Summary: A BookPage Best Book of 2020 * A People Magazine Best Book of Summer * A Parade Best Book of Summer * A Crime Reads Most Anticipated Book of Summer “[A] second stunning piece of redemptive fiction… An ideal recommendation for fans of Kate Atkinson and Jodi Picoult.” – Booklist, Starred Review A body burns in the high desert hills. A boy walks into…

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Review: A Man of Honor by Barbara Taylor Bradford

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press Published: December 28, 2021 Source: ARC Paperback via Publisher   Summary: The prequel to Barbara Taylor Bradford’s New York Times bestselling and dazzling saga A Woman of Substance. Opening five years before the start of A Woman of Substance, A Man of Honor begins with 13-year-old Blackie O’Neill facing an uncertain future in rural County Kerry. Orphaned and alone, he has just buried his sister, Bronagh, and must leave his home to…

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Blog Tour & Excerpt: Cry Wolf by Hans Rosenfeldt

  Today, I’m so happy to be a tour stop on the blog tour for Cry Wolf  by Hans Rosenfeldt – I have an excerpt for you to read thanks to Hanover Square Press.   Publisher: Hanover Square Press Published: December 28, 2021 Source: Netgalley via Publisher   Summary: A DEAD WOLF A DRUG DEAL GONE WRONG A LETHAL FEMALE ASSASSIN The first book in a new series by Hans Rosenfeldt, creator of the TV…

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Review: The Night Portrait by Laura Morelli (audio)

Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks / Harper Audio Published: September 8, 2020 Source: ARC Paperback via William Morrow / Audio via library   Summary: An exciting, dual-timeline historical novel about the creation of one of Leonardo da Vinci’s most famous paintings, Portrait of a Lady with an Ermine, and the woman who fought to save it from Nazi destruction during World War II. Milan, 1492: When a 16-year old beauty becomes the mistress…

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Review: The Return by Nicholas Sparks (audio)

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing / Hachette Audio Published: September 29, 2020 Source: Print – Hardcover via Grand Central Publishing / Audio via Library   Summary: In the romantic tradition of Dear John and The Lucky One, #1 New York Times bestselling author Nicholas Sparks returns with the story of an injured Navy doctor — and two women whose secrets will change the course of his life. Trevor Benson never intended to move back to New…

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Review: The Secret of Snow by Viola Shipman

Publisher: Graydon House Published: October 26, 2021 Source: Paperback via Kathleeen Carter Communications   Summary: As comforting and familiar as a favorite sweater, Viola Shipman’s first holiday novel is a promise of heartfelt family traditions, humorously real experience, and the enduring power of love and friendship. Sonny Dunes, a SoCal meteorologist who knows only sunshine and seventy-two-degree days, is being replaced by an AI meteorologist, which the youthful station manager reasons “will…

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Review: The Holiday Swap by Maggie Knox

Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons Published: October 5, 2021 Source: Personal copy   Summary: The International Bestseller–A feel-good, holiday rom com about identical twins who swap lives twelve days before Christmas–perfect for fans of Christina Lauren’s In a Holidaze and Josie Silver’s One Day in December All they want for Christmas is a different life. When chef Charlie Goodwin gets hit on the head on the L.A. set of her reality baking show, she…

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Review: Darkness Falls by Robert Bryndza

***There are different covers for the UK & US books. The first cover shown is the US cover, and at the bottom of the post, the UK cover is show.   Publisher: Sphere Books (UK) / Thomas & Mercer (US) Published: December 7, 2021 Source: Netgalley via Sphere Books   Summary: THE UNMISSABLE NEW THRILLER FROM THE INTERNATIONALLY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE GIRL IN THE ICE, NINE ELMS AND SHADOW…

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Review: The Fiancee by Kate White

Publisher: Harper Paperbacks Published: June 29, 2021 Source: Publisher   Summary: The New York Times bestselling author returns with an unsettling but riveting psychological thriller about a captivating woman who joins a family and threatens to upend their picture-perfect lives.  They had everything they needed for a perfect family vacation: close-knit relatives, a bucolic setting . . . and a murderer in their midst? Summer’s looking forward to a break from hustling…

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Review: Such a Quiet Place by Megan Miranda (audio)

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio Published: July 13, 2021 Source: ALC via Simon & Schuster Audio   Summary: Welcome to Hollow’s Edge, where you can find secrets, scandal, and a suspected killer – all on one street. Hollow’s Edge use to be a quiet place. A private and idyllic neighborhood where neighbors dropped in on neighbors, celebrated graduation and holiday parties together, and looked out for one another. But then…

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Review: Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid (audio)

Publisher: Random House Audio Published: June 1, 2021 Source: ALC via Libro.fm   Summary: Four famous siblings throw an epic party to celebrate the end of the summer. But over the course of 24 hours, the family drama that ensues will change their lives will change forever. Malibu: August 1983. It’s the day of Nina Riva’s annual end-of-summer party, and anticipation is at a fever pitch. Everyone wants to be around the famous Rivas:…

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Review: Suddenly Last Summer by Sarah Morgan

Publisher: Harlequin HQN Published: June 24, 2014 Source: Netgalley   Summary: Bestselling author Sarah Morgan delivers another irresistible hero in her O’Neil Brothers series who’s more tempting than dessert and twice as sinful! Fiery French chef Élise Philippe is having a seriously bad day. Not only have the opening day plans for her beloved café fallen apart, but Sean O’Neil is back in town, and looking more delectable than ever.…

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Review: Hercule Poirot’s Christmas by Agatha Christie

Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks Published: October 26, 2021 (First published December 1938) Source: Publisher   Summary: In this official edition featuring exclusive content from the Queen of Mystery, the holidays are anything but merry when a family reunion is marred by murder—and the brilliant Belgian investigator is quickly on the case. On Christmas Eve at Gorston Hall, the Lee family’s festivities are shattered by a deafening crash of furniture and a high-pitched wailing…

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Review: Florence Adler Swims Forever by Rachel Beanland

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Paperbacks Published: June 1, 2021 (First published July 2020) Source: Saichek Publicity   Summary: Over the course of one summer that begins with a shocking tragedy, three generations of the Adler family grapple with heartbreak, romance, and the weight of family secrets in this stunning debut novel that’s perfect for fans of Manhattan Beach and The Dollhouse. Atlantic City, 1934. Every summer, Esther and Joseph Adler rent their house…

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Review: The Collective by Alison Gaylin

Publisher: William Morrow Published: November 2, 2021 Source: Netgalley via Publisher   Summary: The USA Today bestselling and Edgar Award–winning author of Never Look Back and If I Die Tonight plumbs the dark side of justice and the depths of diabolical revenge in this propulsive novel of psychological suspense that melds the driving narrative of Then She Was Gone with the breathtaking twists of The Chain and the violent fury of Kill Bill. Just how far will a grieving mother go…

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Review: Five Strangers by E.V. Adamson

Publisher: Scarlet Suspense Published: October 5, 2021 Source: ARC Paperback via Publisher   Summary: With its grassy hills and breathtaking city views, London’s Hampstead Heath is the perfect place to spend an afternoon with friends and loved ones—and on an unseasonably warm Valentine’s Day, the lawns are especially full. So when an aggressive lovers’ quarrel breaks out, there’s an audience of park goers nearby to hear the shouts traded back…

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Review: The Good Lie by A.R. Torre

Publisher: Thomas & Mercer Published: July 20, 2021 Source: ARC Paperback via Publisher   Summary: Six teens murdered. A suspect behind bars. A desperate father. In a case this shadowy, the truth is easy to hide. Six teenagers dead. Finally, the killer behind bars. But are the games just beginning? Psychiatrist Dr. Gwen Moore is an expert on killers. She’s spent a decade treating California’s most depraved predators and unlocking their…

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Blog Tour & Review: The Women of Pearl Island by Polly Crosby

Today, I’m so happy to be a tour stop on the blog tour for The Women of Pearl Island by Polly Crosby.  Thank you Park Row Books for inviting me to participate.   Publisher: Park Row Books Published: December 7, 2021 Source: Netgalley via Publisher   Summary: “A luminous and beautiful novel that gently lures the reader into a captivating story with a mystery at its heart.” – Jennifer Saint, bestselling…

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Review: Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult

Publisher: Ballantine Books Published: November 30, 2021 Source: ARC E-copy via Publisher/Netgalley   Summary: From the #1 New York Times bestselling author comes a deeply moving novel about the resilience of the human spirit in a moment of crisis. Diana O’Toole is perfectly on track. She will be married by thirty, done having kids by thirty-five, and move out to the New York City suburbs, all while climbing the professional…

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Cover Reveal: NEVER COMING HOME by Hannah Mary McKinnon

⁣ I’m thrilled to be part of this cover reveal for 𝗡𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗥 𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗛𝗢𝗠𝗘 by @hannahmarymckinnon…I’m such a big fan of this author!!! This book pubs on May 24th & I can’t wait for this twisted, darkly humorous thriller.⁣ ⁣ ⁣ 𝗦𝘆𝗻𝗼𝗽𝘀𝗶𝘀 ⁣ First comes love. Then comes murder.⁣ ⁣ Lucas Foster didn’t hate his wife. Michelle was brilliant, sophisticated & beautiful. Sure, she had extravagant spending habits, that petty…

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Review: Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley (audio)

Publisher: Henry Holt & Co / Macmillan Audio Published: March 16, 2021 Source: Print – Personal Copy / Audio – ALC via Macmillan Audio   Summary: For fans of Angie Thomas and Tommy Orange, Angeline Boulley’s debut novel, Firekeeper’s Daughter, is a groundbreaking YA thriller about a Native teen who must root out the corruption in her community. Eighteen-year-old Daunis Fontaine has never quite fit in, both in her hometown and…

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Review: True Crime Story by Joseph Knox (audio)

Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark / Recorded Books Published: December 7, 2021 Source: ARC Paperback via Sourcebooks / ALC via Librofm   Summary: What happens to all the girls who go missing? The thrilling story of a university student’s sudden disappearance, the woman who became obsessed with her case, and the crime writer who uncovered the chilling truth about what happened… In 2011, Zoe Nolan walked out of her dormitory in Manchester…

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Review: Last One Out Shut Off the Lights by Stephanie Soileau

Publisher: Little Brown and Company Published: July 7, 2020 Source: Personal copy   Summary: This “outstanding” debut story collection from a rising star reveals Louisiana and its characters with stark honesty and empathy as they grapple with homesickness, desperation, and desire (Peter Orner). Last One Out Shut Off the Lights is a vivid portrait of the last-chance towns of southwest Louisiana, where oil development, industrial pollution, dying wetlands, and the ever-present…

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Most Anticipated Releases: December 2021

  Back again with my five most anticipated releases coming out this month. Publishing slows down as we near the end of the year, but I still managed to find 5 releases that I am excited for…releases that I hope you will be excited to read as well! Some of these are from beloved favorite authors – including a prequel to a most beloved series!!! – and some are new-to-me…

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Blog Tour & Review: Into the Sound by Cara Reinard (audio)

Publisher: Thomas & Mercer / Brilliance Audio Published: December 1, 2021 Source: ARC Paperback via Publisher via TLC Booktours / Audio via Brilliance Audio   Summary: A terrified voice on the phone. The line goes dead. The mystery begins. During a superstorm, Holly Boswell receives a panicked call from her sister, Vivian: Come get me…There’s somebody coming. But when Holly arrives at a Long Island marina, there’s only her sister’s abandoned car.…

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Review: And the Bridge is Love by David Biro

Publisher: Lake Union Publishing Published: October 12, 2021 Source: TLC Booktours   Summary: Three friends, two secrets, one love—and the journey of a lifetime. Every week for twenty years, three friends meet in a leafy enclosure under the Verrazzano Bridge: Gertie, a feisty Norwegian divorcée and former athlete; Maria, a family-obsessed Italian American widow; and Corinna, a book-loving, hash-smoking eccentric. Together they sit and watch the sea as the ships—and…

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Book Feature & Review: Amazon Original Stories – Holiday Reads

  Amazon Original Stories, an imprint of Amazon Publishing, is back with a brand new collection of short stories to kick off your holiday reading. There are four short stories by best-selling authors and all are available now. These stories are not available in print – only in digital or audio format. They are available on Amazon and if you are a Prime member – they are free! Click here…

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Review: The Crow Girl by Erik Axl Sund

Publisher: Harvill Secker Published: April 14, 2016 Source: Personal copy   Summary: The most terrifying thriller you’ll read this year It starts with just one body – the hands bound, the skin covered in marks. Detective Superintendent Jeanette Kihlberg is determined to find out who is responsible, despite opposition from her superiors. When two more bodies are found, it becomes clear that she is hunting a serial killer. With her…

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Review: Death Deserved by Jorn Lier Horst & Thomas Enger

Publisher: Orenda Books Published: February 20, 2020 (first published July 2, 2018) Source: Personal copy   Summary: Police officer Alexander Blix and celebrity blogger Emma Ramm join forces to track down a serial killer with a thirst for attention and high-profile murders, in the first episode of a gripping new Nordic Noir series… Oslo, 2018. Former long-distance runner Sonja Nordstrøm never shows at the launch of her controversial autobiography, Always…

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Month in Review: November 2021

Hard to believe it’s already December! This year has flown by…and while there are still plenty of books left on my tbr from November, I still did read quite a bit. I participated in both #NordicNoirNovember and #NonfictionNovember and got in some good ones in both genres. The big news this month is that I started a newsletter for the blog!!! I do hope you will sign-up if you haven’t…

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Review: The Jealousy Man and Other Stories by Jo Nesbo

Publisher: Knopf Publishing Group Published: October 5, 2021 Source: Publisher   Summary: A veritable crime lover’s delight from a true master of mystery and suspense. Experience the #1 New York Times best-selling author as never before in this dark and thrilling short story collection that takes us on a journey of twisted minds and vengeful hearts. Jo Nesbø is known the world over as a consummate mystery/thriller writer. Famed for his deft…

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Review: The Women of Chateau Lafayette by Stephanie Dray (audio)

Publisher: Berkley Books / Penguin Audio Published: March 30, 2021 Source: Print – Personal copy / Audio – via library   Summary: An epic saga from New York Times bestselling author Stephanie Dray based on the true story of an extraordinary castle in the heart of France and the remarkable women bound by its legacy in three of humanity’s darkest hours Most castles are protected by powerful men. This one…

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Blog Tour & Excerpt: Nanny Dearest by Flora Collins

  Today, I’m so happy to be a tour stop on the blog tour for Nanny Dearest by Flora Collins – I have an excerpt for you to read thanks to MIRA books.   Publisher: MIRA Published: November 30, 2021 Source: Netgalley via Publisher   Summary: In this compulsively readable novel of domestic suspense, a young woman takes comfort in reconnecting with her childhood nanny after her father’s death, until she starts…

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Review: A Blizzard of Polar Bears by Alice Henderson (audio)

Publisher: William Morrow / Harper Audio Published: November 9, 2021 Source: Print – William Morrow / Audio – ALC via Harper Audio   Summary: Wildlife biologist Alex Carter is back, fighting for endangered species in the Canadian Arctic and battling for her life in this action-packed follow-up to A Solitude of Wolverines, “a true stunner of a thriller debut” (James Rollins) and “a great read” (Nevada Barr). Fresh off her wolverine…

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Review: A Solitude of Wolverines by Alice Henderson (print/audio)

Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks / Harper Audio Published: October 27, 2021 / October 27, 2020 (audio) Source: Paperback via William Morrow / Audio via library   Summary: The first book in a thrilling series featuring an intrepid wildlife biologist who’s dedicated to saving endangered species…and relies on her superior survival skills to thwart those who aim to stop her. While studying wolverines on a wildlife sanctuary in Montana, biologist Alex…

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Review: Why Did You Lie by Yrsa Sigurdardottir

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton Published: August 11, 2016 Source: Personal copy   Summary: A journalist on the track of an old case attempts suicide. An ordinary couple return from a house swap in the states to find their home in disarray and their guests seemingly missing. Four strangers struggle to find shelter on a windswept spike of rock in the middle of a raging sea. They have one thing in…

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Review: Beautiful Country by Qian Julie Wang (audio)

Publisher: Doubleday Books / Random House Audio Published: September 7, 2021 Source: ARC E-copy via Netgalley / Audio via Library   Summary: An incandescent memoir from an astonishing new talent, Beautiful Country puts listeners in the shoes of an undocumented child living in poverty in the richest country in the world. “Extraordinary…. Consider this remarkable memoir a new classic.” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) In Chinese, the word for America, Mei Guo, translates directly…

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Review: The Ice Beneath Her by Camilla Grebe (reread)

Publisher: Random House Audio Published: December 27, 2016 Source: Library   Summary: Acclaimed Swedish author Camilla Grebe makes her solo American debut with a psychological thriller as cunning in its twists as it is captivating in its storytelling – for fans of the celebrated crime fiction of Camilla Läckberg, Jo Nesbø, Ruth Ware, and Fiona Barton. Winter’s chill has descended on Stockholm as police arrive at the scene of a…

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Series Review: The Rainer Series by Jamie McGillen

  This month, the online bookclub I co-host, #mommaleighellenbookclub, selected In the Heart of Paradise as one of our selections. Because it is the third book in Jamie McGillen’s series and I had not read the previous two, and me being me, I knew I had to read them first and I’m so glad I did. That being said, I decided to do all three reviews in one post, rather…

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Review: The Cartographer’s Secret by Tea Cooper

Publisher: Harper Muse Published: November 16, 2021 Source: ARC Paperback via TLC Booktours   Summary: A map into the past. A long-lost young woman. And a thirty-year family mystery. The Hunter Valley, 1880. Evie Ludgrove loves to chart the landscape around her home—hardly surprising since she grew up in the shadow of her father’s obsession with the great Australian explorer Dr. Ludwig Leichhardt. So when an advertisement appears in The Bulletin magazine offering…

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Review: No Hiding in Boise by Kim Hooper (audio)

Publisher: Turner Publishing Company / Dreamscape Media Published: June 15, 2021 Source: Print – ARC via Turner Publishing / Audio – via library   Summary: When Angie is awakened by a midnight call from an officer with the Boise Police Department, she thinks there must be a misunderstanding. The officer tells her that her husband was involved in a shooting at a local bar, but how can that be possible when her…

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Review: November 9 by Colleen Hoover

Publisher: Atria Books Published: November 10, 2015 Source: ARC Paperback via Publisher   Summary: Beloved #1 New York Times bestselling author Colleen Hoover returns with an unforgettable love story between a writer and his unexpected muse. Fallon meets Ben, an aspiring novelist, the day before her scheduled cross-country move. Their untimely attraction leads them to spend Fallon’s last day in L.A. together, and her eventful life becomes the creative inspiration Ben has…

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Review: Home Before Dark by Riley Sager (reread)

Publisher: Dutton Books Published: June 30, 2020 Source: Personal copy   Summary: What was it like? Living in that house. Maggie Holt is used to such questions. Twenty-five years ago, she and her parents, Ewan and Jess, moved into Baneberry Hall, a rambling Victorian estate in the Vermont woods. They spent three weeks there before fleeing in the dead of night, an ordeal Ewan later recounted in a nonfiction book…

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Review: The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles (audio)

Publisher: Viking Books / Penguin Audio Published: October 5, 2021 Source: Print – Personal copy via BOTM / Audio – Personal copy via Libro.fm   Summary: The bestselling author of A Gentleman in Moscow and Rules of Civility and master of absorbing, sophisticated fiction returns with a stylish and propulsive novel set in 1950s America In June, 1954, eighteen-year-old Emmett Watson is driven home to Nebraska by the warden of…

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Most Anticipated Releases: November 2021

  Back again with my five most anticipated releases coming out this month. Publishing slows down as we near the end of the year, but I still managed to find 5 releases that I am excited for…releases that I hope you will be excited to read as well! Some of these are from beloved favorite authors and some are new-to-me authors that I am looking forward to taking a chance…

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Blog Tour & Review: Everything We Didn’t Say by Nicole Baart (audio)

Publisher: Atria Books / Simon & Schuster Audio Published: November 2, 2021 Source: Print: ARC Paperback via Atria Books / Print: ALC via Simon & Schuster Audio   Summary: From the author of Little Broken Things, a “race-to-the-finish family drama” (People) following a mother who must confront the dark summer that changed her life forever in order to reclaim the daughter she left behind. Juniper Baker had just graduated from…

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Review: The Wicked Widow by Beatriz Williams

Publisher: William Morrow Published: October 26, 2021 Source: Publisher   Summary: Gin Kelly, the wicked redhead, is back! Readers will delight in next installment of the Wicked City series by New York Times bestselling author Beatriz Williams.  June 1925. Audacious Appalachian flapper Geneva “Gin” Kelly prepares to trade her high-flying ways for respectable marriage to Oliver Anson Marshall, a steadfast Prohibition agent who happens to hail from one of New York’s most distinguished…

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