So many words. So little time.
Category: book review
This was a much better writing week! I wrote four book reviews: The White Octopus Hotel, by Alexandra Bell, Final Cut, by Olivia Worley, The Dagger in Vichy, by Alastair Reynolds, and Introducing Mrs. Collins, by Rachel Parris. I highly recommend the first and last ones, but I’d skip the middle two if I were you.
Happy writing!
Title: Charlie Quinn Lets Go
Author: Jamie Varon
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 4 out of 5
Charlie Quinn has spent her life playing by the rules. But when, on her thirtieth birthday, she is laid off, her boyfriend leaves her because their life is too “predictable” and she spends the night with violent food poisoning, she hits rock bottom at a stunning velocity, and her carefully constructed world unravels.
She has no choice but to return to her childhood home in LA, where her little sister strikes up an idea: Can control freak Charlie go a whole month saying yes to anything her free-spirited sister requests? Charlie agrees, if only to prove that living by one’s whims will result in nothing but disaster and disappointment.
But when a serendipitous encounter with her high school crush leads to a month of steamy no-strings romance, Charlie starts questioning her monotonous existence. Can she learn to loosen her grip, to let go of past heartbreak, to finally say yes to a messy, bold and exciting life?
At first, I was not sure I was going to like Charlie enough to keep reading this. She was so rigid and uptight it made my skin crawl. I can understand her frustration with her mom and sister growing up—that lackadaisical way of life would have driven me crazy, too. But I can’t imagine being so regimented as to eat the same exact thing every single day for years, and wearing the same thing every day, too. I enjoyed reading Charlie’s journey and her realization that life could be so much more.
Jamie Varon is a bestselling author. Charlie Quinn Lets Go is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of Harlequin Trade Publishing | Park Row in exchange for an honest review.)
Title: The Secret of Orange Blossom Cake
Author: Rachel Linden
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 5 out of 5
Rising star Jules Costa loves re-creating vintage recipes for her popular online cooking show. But when personal and professional disaster strikes, her only chance of saving her career is to complete her new cookbook before the end of the summer. Panicked, Jules returns to her family’s beloved olive farm on the shores of Italy’s stunning Lake Garda. Seeking culinary inspiration, she’s hoping to convince her spunky eighty-year-old Nonna Bruna to share her precious collection of family recipes.
Jules’ plans quickly go awry as she discovers Nonna’s cookbook has magical and unpredictable powers. It only reveals one recipe at a time, offering a cooking experience guaranteed to satisfy the chef’s palate and bring clarity to their life. Yet it remains stubbornly blank for Jules. To make matters worse, the olive farm is in deep financial trouble, and Jules soon uncovers a web of family secrets involving the cookbook and a lost recipe for orange blossom cake that holds the key to everything. And Nicolo, the boy next door who broke her young heart, is now all grown up, even more attractive, and the only person poised to help her find answers.
In a whirlwind summer beyond her imagination, Jules begins to unravel the mysteries baked into her family’s history and discovers the essential ingredients to create the future of her dreams.
I loved this! This had the feel of Southern fiction but made me ready to move to Italy—and eat all the pasta! This was charming and magical and full of memories and whimsy, and it just made me smile. Jules is so fixated on certain things, and the shock of finding herself scrabbling for any port in a storm in Italy is a shock to her system—and who she wants to become. I loved her Italian family—and her little sister—and live on an olive farm sounded so rewarding, especially with Nonna’s cooking and life lessons as a backdrop. This would be a perfect vacation or weekend read.
Rachel Linden lives near Seattle, WA. The Secret of Orange Blossom Cake is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of Berkley Publishing Group | Berkley in exchange for an honest review.)
Title: A Dark and Deadly Journey
Author: Julia Kelly
Genre: historical fiction
Rating: 5 out of 5
After being sidelined for a pesky gunshot wound, typist-turned-field agent Evelyne Redfern is ready for her next assignment with Britain’s secretive Special Investigations Unit. When a British Intelligence informant in Portugal mysteriously disappears just after hinting that he has vital information about German plans that could tip the balance of World War Two, Evelyne and her dashingly irksome partner, David Poole, are sent headed to Lisbon to find him.
Once they land, Evelyne and David aren’t even able to leave the airport, before she discovers one of their fellow aeroplane passengers murdered and uncovers a diary with a clear link between the victim and their missing informant. With their mission in jeopardy before it can truly begin, Evelyne and David fight to keep their cover intact as they descend deeper into the shadows that surround Lisbon’s glittering collection of wealthy expats and dangerous spies. This case will test Evelyne and David’s training, charm, and wit―and their growing attraction for one another.
I’m still loving this series! Historical fiction is my jam, particularly World War II-era stories, and I do love a good murder mystery, so this makes it a winner in my book. Evelyne and David are great characters and I’ve loved getting to know them more with every book. I’ll admit, I did figure out who the killer was a bit before the reveal, but I was not expecting that ending!
Julia Kelly is a bestselling author. A Dark and Deadly Journey is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press | Minotaur Books in exchange for an honest review.)
I only wrote one book review, A Curious Kind of Magic, by Mara Rutherford, because I just did not have time to read this week. I was still too tired from all the nonsense last week. Hopefully, this next week will be better.
Happy writing!
Title: The Guest in Room 120
Author: Sara Ackerman
Genre: Historical fiction
Rating: 4 out of 5
1905. As the mother of a university and a woman with an iron will, Jane Stanford has made her share of enemies. After a scare at her mansion in San Francisco and on the advice of her doctor, she flees to Honolulu and the fashionable new Moana hotel. But as fate would have it, the island is not as safe as it seems.
2005. Zoe Finch is a bestselling author who desperately needs a jump start on her next novel when she makes a split decision to attend a writers conference at the Moana under an assumed name. As a storm brews offshore, she begins having nightmares that feel hauntingly real. Terrified, Zoe enlists the help of mystery writer Dylan Winters, and over the course of the week, races to uncover the shocking truth of what happened in the hotel one hundred years ago almost to the day.
1905. Iliahi Baldwin’s life changes the moment she lands a job at the Moana. Newly hired and reeling from a tragic loss, she strikes up an unlikely friendship with the formidable Jane Stanford upon her arrival, leaving young Ili devastated when the unthinkable happens. Ili knows things, but there are powerful people who need the truth to remain hidden, and to cross them could prove disastrous.
An unforgettable tale of betrayal, secrets, and death that still echoes through the years.
I enjoy reading Ackerman’s Hawaii-set historical fiction. I know very little about the history of Hawaii, and everything I’ve read of hers has been both a well-written, entertaining read and a chance to learn more about something I know almost nothing about. This was no exception.
Jane Stanford…was not a likable person. At all. But, she didn’t deserve what happened to her—nor did she deserve to have her death trivialized and ignored. I liked Ili’s storyline, but I loved Zoe’s the most—and that cat. This was an engrossing read that I read very quickly to find out what happened.
Sara Ackerman is from Hawaii. The Guest in Room 120 is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of Harlequin Trade Publishing | MIRA in exchange for an honest review.)
Title: The Sisterhood
Author: Tasha Alexander
Genre: Historical fiction
Rating: 4 out of 5
London, 1907: When the Season’s most accomplished and elegant debutante, Victoria Goldsborough, collapses and dies at her engagement ball, the great and good of London Society prepare to mourn the tragic loss of an upstanding young woman. But all is not what it seems, and after a toxic beverage is revealed to be the cause of death, the king himself instructs Lady Emily and her husband Colin Hargreaves to unearth the truth.
Who would want to harm one of the most popular women of the year? Is it her fiancé with whom she had an unusually brief courtship; a rival for his affections bitter at being cast aside; her best friend who is almost certainly hiding a secret from Colin and Emily; a disappointed suitor with a hidden gambling habit; or a notorious jewel thief who has taken a priceless tiara from the Goldsborough home? When a second debutante succumbs to poison, the race is on to find a ruthless killer.
Emily and Colin’s investigation leads to a centuries old tomb in the center of London with a mysterious link to another death dating back to Roman times and the violent reign of Boudica, ancient Britain’s fearsome warrior queen. As the stakes rise and the clock ticks down, Emily must find the killer before they strike again.
I haven’t read any of the Lady Emily Ashton Mysteries series, but that wasn’t a problem. I had no problem feeling at home in this world and with these characters. This was a solid historical fiction read and a nice mystery, as well. I did not figure out who the killer was before the reveal, so there’s that, but I enjoyed all the different characters.
Tasha Alexander lives in Wyoming. The Sisterhood is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press | Minotaur Books in exchange for an honest review.)
This has been a very rough week at work. I wrote three book reviews, Overdue, by Stephanie Perkins (This was the slowest of slow burns and ended up being kind meh for me.), Higher Magic, by Courtney Floyd (I DNFed this, but it’s for a blog tour, so I had to write a review.), and Mint to Be, by Katie Cicatelli-Kuc (Not bad, very cute, but predictable.).
Happy writing!
Title: You Make It Feel like Christmas
Author: Sophie Sullivan
Genre: Romance
Rating: 4 out of 5
Maisie Smart has a don’t-look-back policy–not on the choice she made to be a photographer (despite her family’s wishes) and not on the one-night stand she had six months ago. Sleeping with someone she barely knew was out of character; sleeping with a professional hockey player who bolted the morning after is a whole new level of embarrassing. Getting invited to spend the week at Tickle Tree Farm with her family this Christmas is a sure way to fill her with holiday spirit. Until the universe throws a Grinch in her festive plans in the form of the one man she hoped to avoid.
Nick King is a mess. After a significant injury lands him on the bench for every game for the rest of the month, he has more time to dwell on the one night stand he can’t get out of his head. With time on his hands, his anxiety hovering, and the holidays around the corner, he figures visiting his sister and nephew at their Christmas tree farm will be a good way to lie low and sort himself out. He’s in for a surprise when it turns out Maisie is staying at his sister’s and his attraction for her hasn’t lessened one bit in the last six months. Apparently, neither has her anger at him for bailing. But Christmas is the time for second chances, and the forced proximity may help Nick and Maisie unwrap feelings neither of them can walk away from twice.
Reading a Christmas-themed romance in mid-August in Texas was a bit of a stretch, I have to say. The heat index is 110 degrees, so it was hard to feel at home on a Christmas tree farm the week of Christmas, but the setting was more incidental than an integral part of the story, so it worked. I loved the Smart family and their relationships, although Maisie’s mom wasn’t my favorite. Watching Maisie be brave enough to admit her dreams to the people in her life was great, and I loved how Nick managed to be believably vulnerable despite the culture he thrived in.
Sophie Sullivan is from Canada. You Make it Feel like Christmas is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press | St. Martin’s Griffin in exchange for an honest review.)
Title: Thief of Night
Author: Holly Black
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 4 out of 5
There’d always been something wrong with Charlie Hall. Crooked from the day she was born. Never met a bad decision she wasn’t willing to double down on. She may be good enough to steal a shadow from a tower, but will she be good enough to steal back a heart?
I hadn’t read the first book in this duology—sometimes, that doesn’t prove a challenge, but it did in this case—so it took me a bit to figure out this world and culture. I liked the characters in this, although I wanted to smack more than one several times. Lots of adventure and angst against a gritty backdrop of death and magic, this was a solid fantasy read.
Holly Black is a bestselling author. Thief of Night is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of Tor Publishing Group | Tor Books in exchange for an honest review.)
Tomorrow Is Another Day 