Maggie

It's only March when I'm writing this review but I already know The Catch will be one of my top five books on 2022. It's that good. A poignant, resonant tale of Ellie, the oldest daughter of a father who married too often, was a larger-than-life force of nature, and after his death, has left her with questions she desperately needs to answer. There is not a false note in this lyrical novel as we follow Ellie through coming to terms with not only her father's legacy but her own direction in life, both through her affair with an older married man, her job at a “click-bait” on-line magazine, and her extended family of step-siblings, and step-mothers, not to mention a colorful bunch of flatmates in Washington DC. My Kindle has so many passages underlined, it's a blur of highlights, particularly toward the end when our hero is realizing so many true things about life and how it works. Even the minor characters ring true and the settings of many scenes are so unique, they deserve special mention (I particularly liked a set piece where Ellie is dressed as Teddy Roosevelt at a baseball game, competing with 3 other “Presidents” in a foot race around the bases). Add in a sub-plot about bird conservation and an unexpected backstory from her father's high school years that's heartbreaking, and my hat is off to this debut author. She's made a fan for life.

My thanks to NetGalley and Fairbrother's publisher for providing an early reader's copy in exchange for my honest review.

astounding book - really well written and engaging.

Two Nights in Lisbon is a fabulous read and definitely one of my favorite novels so far this year. A smart, fast-paced suspense novel with a unique premise and subtle surprises in store for the reader, it starts with a newly-married couple on a short business trip to Portugal but quickly turns into a kidnaping story, complete with false identities, ransom demands, a frantic out-of-her-depth wife, and less-than-helpful police officials. As the hours tick by, we're increasingly aware that we don't know the whole story behind this adventure which means we're frantically flipping pages to learn what's actually going on. How far will Ariel go to save the man she loves? And who will believe her and step in to help? When the police fail to treat her seriously, she pulls in all her contacts, both at the US Embassy and back home in America to get someone, anyone, to help her locate her missing spouse. The author took his time to spool out the plot and I for one enjoyed that pace as it gave me time to muse about what I would do in the same situation and provided me with several evenings of reading enjoyment as opposed to other thriller/suspense novels which practically race through the narrative at breakneck speed. If you're looking for a political thriller with subtle clues and a surprising denouement, this is one I'd highly recommend. Plus I loved that this was set in Portugal, a setting I rarely see used in novels.

My thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an advanced reader copy.

This book about family secrets, sisterhood, and missed chances really struck a chord with me. While I most identified with Beck, I did find the other two sisters (Claire and Sophie) interesting in their own ways as well. In particular, I hadn't ever seen an examination of what it's like to be a “influencer-adjacent” like Sophie, who survives through her friendships and connections with famous friends, but has accomplished little on her own and wound up seriously in debt. When their mother dies and leaves the old famous home in Maine to the girls to sell off, it causes ripples throughout all three lives they didn't see coming. If you're a fan of intricately-woven family dynamics, you should enjoy this one. The writing is well-done, as we've come to expect from Fowler who has established her bonafides with best sellers in the past. While the plot did get lost a bit in the middle and began to meander, it ultimately came together in the end in a satisfying way.

Excellent book. The plot resolves around two twin sisters. Sam and Eleanor are former child TV stars who have drifted apart as adults and chosen very different lifestyles. Eleanor has married and wants nothing more than a large family. Sam, the more outgoing of the two, misses her acting career and has spiraled into alcoholism and drug abuse. After several attempts on Eleanor's part to rehabilitate Sam, she finally cuts ties with her after a major betrayal. But now Elli is missing and has left behind her adopted 2-year-old girl in her grandmother's care and Sam, one year of sobriety under her belt, gets a frantic call not only to help with child care but eventually to track down Elinor who has seemingly disappeared, perhaps into a cult-like female support group called GenFem, whose most committed members shave their head, wear sack-cloth dresses, and are in residence in some kind of isolated compound in the desert. .

I felt both sisters (who are each given a POV at various parts in the story) were well-drawn and distinct. Each had their own challenges and the plot had some interesting twists I didn't see coming. but at no time was I pulled out of the story, but instead was immersed in the narrative. This is a well-written, thoughtful examination of the strong bonds between twins who look alike but are quite different in their approach to life, their desires, their attitude toward having children, and their life goals. I also thought the gradual build-up of the female empowerment group was well done. I was touched by the final outcome of the story which seemed very true and honest.

In this fast-paced dual timeline novel we follow Frankie Saunders in 1968 Chicago, fleeing across country to escape an abusive marriage, aided by her aunt Daisy whose story in 1928 Los Angeles forms the contrasting backdrop to the current narrative. The story of women looking to start over against tremendous odds isn't a new one but in Bryce's hands it comes alive, as she blends in the rich history of both 1920's Hollywood scandals and forty years later, the upheaval of the 1960's civil rights movement. The story of these two women, struggling against odds to rebuild their lives, framed by the ever-present racism that's a part of their everyday existence, is well-written and engaging. An intriguing historical women's fiction from an author we're sure to hear more from.

Thanks to NetGalley for my advanced reader copy.

A lyrical touching novel about the aftermath of grief and learning over time to weave it into the fabric of your life. Sally Holt is about to enter eighth grade when her beloved sister Kathy, dies in an auto accident. Sally was also in the car and the driver was Billy, Kathy's boyfriend and for different reasons, they both carry guilt about their role in the event. The story then follows the two of them, as well as Sally's parents, through the years as they slowly accept the death and learn to move on. Told from Sally's point of view, we watch her grappling with all the challenges of growing up, including an ondoing friendship and eventual touching romance with Billy, the only person who she feels truly understands her. While the subject matter is dark and painful, the book is not a downer but instead an uplifting treatise on coming to terms with loss, continuing to mourn but also learning from the experience to appreciate all that life offers you. It's a profoundly moving and thoughtful book and I highly recommend it.

My thanks to NetGalley for an advanced reader copy.

4.5 stars - this kept my attention and was well written as everything Bohjalian writes is - I found myself wanting to know more about some characters and not caring so much about others but mainly wanted to know more about the reason behind the kidnapping and killing. Some very harrowing visceral scenes and certainly kept me guessing about who would survive and how this event would affect them.

If you enjoy true-to-life stories with braided story lines, this is one you'll like. It centers around a family-owned restaurant in Oak Park set during the beginning of the Trump era and isn't afraid to weave current events like climate change, politics, and even baseball into a touching tale of four generations of an Irish-heritage family. A sprawling delightful saga with a cast of characters I fell for right away as well as a love letter to my favorite big city, Chicago. In a perfect world, I'd be able to show up for brunch at Sullivan's and meet all these guys in the flesh. Heartwarming, realistic, and a perfect summer read.

Mouth to Mouth is structured as a story within a story. Two former college classmates, never particularly close, encounter each other in JFK airport, waiting out a delayed flight, and Jeff Cook, the more charismatic and successful of the two and a renowned art dealer, proceeds to tell the story of his relationship with Francis Arsenault, a man whose life he saved 20 years before in a drowning accident. According to him, he's never shared the details with anyone before and we're sucked into listening as he slowly describes first stalking, then being hired by Francis as a low-level employee and eventually becoming both his protégé and his daughter's lover. As near as he can tell, Francis doesn't recognize him as the person who gave him CPR but regardless, he sees something in the young man and grooms him as one might a longed-for son. But who is playing with who in this enigmatic friendship?
We're never quite sure where Jeff's story is taking us —why does he choose to share this now and is his version the truth or only the spin he's putting on it? Regardless, I was mesmerized by the convoluted in-and-outs of how the lives of these two men, Jeff and Francis, become entwined, leading to a final page I could not have foreseen. I found myself pondering many open-ended questions after I finished this book. Questions of fateful encounters. Questions of free will and toxic masculinity and men who get off on controlling and manipulating women. Questions of how we tell stories about our lives and what makes a reliable narrator. Highly recommended for readers who don't mind being challenged by a story that doesn't wrap up with a neat bow at the end.

My thanks to NetGalley for access to an advanced reader copy. Mouth to Mouth releases January 2022

“If you'd have asked my mother, Who do you belong to, the answer would have been Katy. “You're my everything,” she'd tell me. “You're my whole world.”

Not everyone has that closeness to their mother. But taking that as a jumping off point, after Carol dies, Katy is bereft, adrift without the person she considered her soulmate, the one she turned to and depended on to help her through life. She has also begun to question her commitment to her husband, so on an impulse, she decides to take the trip to Italy she and her mother had planned before her death. Before we know it, Katy's moved into a quaint, family-run hotel in the heart of Positano, a village where her mother once spent a summer, in hopes of rebooting her life and also getting a better understanding of what her mother had been like as a young woman like herself.

And that's when things get interesting. Because through the narrative device of magical realism, Serle imagines a scenario in which Carol is magically alive, 30 and carefree, and the mother and daughter can meet again, this time as new friends and companions. Heartfelt, sad in places, yet ultimately life-affirming like the author's well-beloved In Five Years, this novel also offers vivid, rich descriptions of both the sights and tastes of Positano and Capri, making you long to take your own Amalfi coast vacation.

At time, I found Katy's helplessness frustrating. It made her seem much more naïve and clueless than I would expect of someone her age. It takes her forever to catch on to what's really going on and the romance she embarks on with a handsome hotel developer detracted from the story. Instead I longed for more scenes between the mother and daughter and was disappointed whenever that relationship was put on the back burner in favor of less-interesting subplots. But I liked the over-all concept, being a sucker for time-travel stories and endlessly fascinated by the question of “what if” so if you're in the mood for a light summer read, I'd recommend adding this to your beach bag.

My thanks to NetGalley for an advanced reader copy of this book.

A really excellent blend of suspense and ghost story. The main characters of Clare (and later Mitchell) were well-drawn, the writing flowed, and the story line kept me intrigued. I could have used a bit less of the retelling several times of the basement story but the author did a great job of pulling it all together in the ending chapters and I would definitely read whatever Jennifer Fawcett writes next. She's got a real talent for creating believable characters who have hidden depths to them and aren't just cardboard cut-outs. By the end, I felt as though Lori, Abby, Taylor, and particularly Clare were recognizable, flawed humans who I was glad I'd spent time with. .

Samantha Bailey hits it out of the park again with her second psychological suspense novel, Watch Out For Her. Told in the present from the point of view of Sarah, the protective mother of six-year-old Jacob and in the past by Holly, the college-age nanny she hires, this suspenseful novel hits all the right notes as we bounce around, trying to figure out who to believe, who to trust, and who might be betraying who. Add in Sarah's husband, who is clearly hiding something, Holly's step-sister Alexis who clearly has boundary issues, an over-sharing neighbor who may or may not be trustworthy, and Holly's father, who is using her in unscrupulous ways, and you've got one heck of a story that will keep you turning pages, forcing you to think about what demons drive people and how we'll all seeking love, attention, and safety in our own family and in our own neighborhoods and the lengths some people will go to in getting what they want.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.

Very well-written and paced. I learned a lot about classical music which I was fairly ignorant about plus the plot settings and situations were unique and interesting and while it got a bit heavy-handed, I did think the underlying theme of the racial prejudice Ray suffered was integral to understanding his story and didn't deter my enjoyment. Highly recommended.

I had my doubts that I could get engrossed in six different narrations but she pulled it off! Each one was a character I was anxious to follow and their stories dovetailed so cleanly by the end, it felt right.

An interesting premise - a former news reporter, Sofie Morse, is hired to write a biography of the First Lady, Lara Caine, who's a former fashion model from Eastern Europe, married to a controversial US President, with a young child (in this case, twin girls) and a shadowy past. (any similarities to a recent resident of the White House are obviously intended) Not much is known about FLOTUS and as Lara opens up to Sofie, we begin to suspect she has a hidden agenda we don't yet understand. And boy, does she ever. Before she knows it, Sofie's immersed in an international intrigue that could have far-reaching effects on world politics. Is she being used as a mere pawn in some game she doesn't understand? Should she trust Lara or start her own investigation into what she's being told? What is the truth?

I could have used less of the back story of Lara's previous life in Russia and in Paris, including an early tragic romance, because after a while it took me out of the story playing out in the present day which I found much more intriguing. Felt like much of it could have been condensed and I would still understand why Lara behaved as she did. Also, I longed to hear more details about how Lara met the man that became her husband and the bargain she struck there.

Parts of the novel rang a bit unlikely and convenient but I did enjoy the thinly-veiled peek behind the curtain of Washington and international politics. I wasn't sure Sofie would be that easily taken in although perhaps the lure of the big scoop plus a hefty paycheck was enough to sway her. But all in all, an enjoyable story. For fans of political intrigue and the machinations that occur behind the scenes in US politics. And it's fun to wonder how much of what's written might actually be true of a certain previous First Lady, who remains to this day an enigma.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

A good mix of romance and suspense/intrigue. I did keep wondering how the first part tied in to the main narrative but Modglin did eventually tie them together and the ending was unexpected but perfect. Took a bit to get started when they hit the island but once things ramped up, it sped along nicely.

A moving, heartfelt, but courageously honest memoir about Amy Bloom's lived experience, from her first realization that her beloved husband, Brian, was showing symptoms of early-onset Alzheimer's through the devastating diagnosis and finally, his decision to choose assisted suicide through Dignitas, an organization in Zurich, Switzerland that empowers a person to end their own life with dignity and peace. She supported him throughout the process even as she jumped through legal red-tape and frustrating obstacles to make it happen, while occasionally succumbing to overwhelming grief at the thought of letting him go.

This was a blisteringly moving account, brutal to read but so necessary in today's world. It's a love story of a woman who cared enough to let her partner die peacefully rather than force him to tolerate gradual deterioration and humiliation. You will find yourself wishing for a different outcome even though you know what is coming, you will find yourself crying as you imagine the scenario with your own loved ones, and you will thank whoever urged you to read this unforgettable and important book.

My thanks to NetGalley for letting me read an advanced reader copy of this memoir that releases coincidentally on the same day as my own debut, March 8, 2022.

Just discovered this author. Engaging story, final twist I didn't see coming. I could have done without maybe one of the sub-plots, because there were loads between echoes of Madoff scandal, 9/11, false identities, back-stories galore that got in the way of the main plot line but all in all, I enjoyed the pacing, the characters, the settings (particularly Door County WI which is dear to my heart). I'm a new fan.

I've just finished “Catch Her When She Falls”, the story of a set of small-town friends: Micah, her HS boyfriend Alex, her best friend Emily, Emily's brother Jonah and Ryan, a fellow classmate. When Emily loses her life from a fall out a window during a party in the woods, Alex is tried and sent to prison as the killer, based partly on Micah's recanting of the alibi she originally furnished him. Flash forward to present day; Ryan and Micah are now living together and Alex is up for parole. This news sends Micah into a tailspin as she begins to question whether he was guilty after all. She's has never been sure what happened that night so she takes on the role of amateur sleuth. She tracks down facts, questions eyewitnesses, and searches her own memory for clues. When she stumbles across a true crime chat room, and assumes a false identity online, she provokes the wrath of another classmate Julie who has formed a relationship with Alex while he's been incarcerated. Before long, Micah's imagining people gossiping about her, following her down the street, and breaking into her apartment. In her zeal to solve the mystery, she even drives hundreds of miles to talk to Jonah, who has rebooted his life under a new name.

I found some of Micah's machinations a bit obsessive and over-the-top as she flips between suspects, doubting everyone, neglecting her coffee shop, and making assumptions that only serve to feed her growing paranoia. The ending needed a bit more grounding to make it believable, and I'm not sure all the blind alleys were sufficiently explained but the book did keep me engaged in trying to figure out the mystery and the characters were well drawn so it's four stars for me.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Fascinating - lots of food for thought. I didn't necessarily agree with all his conclusions and the second half wasn't as interesting to me as the first but all in all, an excellent round-up of the current research into attention, focus, from both a psychological and an environmental standpoint with a mix of what we can do individually and what we need to do collectively as a society to address our growing inability to concentrate.

A wonderfully-written coming-of-age story set in New Jersey in 1985, when life was simpler - no cells phones, kids played outside in the streets, and we hadn't ever heard of serial killers or children who went missing in the blink of an eye. It's hard to believe this is a debut because it's so rich with both details and nuanced characterizations of the family. Bee is the older sister and we know from the beginning that her younger sister Audrina, who is beautiful, vivacious, and gets all the attention, will die. The inciting incident is the disappearance of a 4-year old child from the beach, seemingly in plain sight and the subsequent paranoia and distrust that begins to spread through this isolated community. This is a nuanced portrait of not only Bee's growing into adulthood but also the people around her - coming into the modern world where people are not what they seem and everything is much more complex than we see as children. I loved it and would recommend it to anyone who craves realistic characters, a bit of nostalgia, and lyrical writing.

I received an advance review copy from netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4. I can't say this was a spellbinder. Fairly standard fare.

I didn't read the first in this series but found this follow-up (which picks up a month after the earlier story) to be a fast-paced, quick-witted romp with Finlay Donovan, everyone's favorite devoted mom, struggling writer, and accidental contract killer once again teaming up with Vero, her side-kick in crime to figure out why someone wants Finlay's ex-husband Steve dead. , The writing style is flat-out clever enough to keep you turning pages, there's a bit of romance mixed in with the adventures, as well as suspense, mystery, and a few twists I didn't see coming. A light-hearted mystery read with laugh-out-loud moments which made this a perfect read for a chilly January.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

This book took a while to hook me - I'd say it wasn't until around a quarter of the way through the dual time-line story that I got intrigued but once I did, I was in for the duration. The story in the past of Ellie and her participation in the civil rights voter registration movement really resonated with me - she was a small town girl but with a mind of her own and a true sense of justice in the face of intolerable racism. When the modern-day story finally circled back to her and I saw the connections, it was fascinating to read to the end to find out what was behind both what happened decades ago and what was happening in the present day story. No real ghosts or monsters - just human beings behaving in terrible ways to their fellow men. Once again, Diane Chamberlain has tapped into her well of experience and created three-dimensional characters whose story is well worth your time.