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Published on 4 Comments on No One Knows
No One Knows Book Cover No One Knows
J.T. Ellison
Fiction
Simon and Schuster
March 22, 2016
Hardcover
368
Publisher via She Reads

The day Aubrey Hamilton’s husband is declared dead by the state of Tennessee should bring closure so she can move on with her life. But Aubrey doesn’t want to move on; she wants Josh back. It’s been five years since he disappeared, since their blissfully happy marriage—they were happy, weren’t they?—screeched to a halt and Aubrey became the prime suspect in his disappearance. Five years of emptiness, solitude, loneliness, questions. Why didn’t Josh show up at his friend’s bachelor party? Was he murdered? Did he run away? And now, all this time later, who is the mysterious yet strangely familiar figure suddenly haunting her new life?

In No One Knows, the New York Times bestselling coauthor of the Nicholas Drummond series expertly peels back the layers of a complex woman who is hiding dark secrets beneath her unassuming exterior. This masterful thriller for fans of Gillian Flynn, Liane Moriarty, and Paula Hawkins will pull readers into a you’ll-never-guess merry-go-round of danger and deception. Round and round and round it goes, where it stops…no one knows.

My review:

I gave this 4.5 stars. It's a hard book to review because I can't give anything away, but I'm going to do my best to convince you that this is worth the read. First of all, trust me when I say it won't take you long to read. Not because it is a short book, but because it is "unputdownable"!! I can consume an average book in about 3-4 days, and I read this one in a bit more than 24 hours. I could not wait to find out how it was going to play out. This book is being compared to those other G books, which may have prevented me from even reading it (just stop with the comparisons publishers....please?), but thankfully it was picked as one of the She Reads books of spring, so I headed into it with lots of eye rolling at yet another one of "those" books. In all honesty, I thought of the three this may have been my favorite (definitely better than one, but I'm not going to name names). As I mentioned, it's really hard to do much of a review without spoilers, but there are a whole host of characters for you to love or hate. The pace is quick, the narrative goes back and forth in time with various characters, but is not confusing to follow. What is confusing is what happened to Josh? Trust me, keep turning those pages to find out! The only slight downside for me was the ending. I wasn't completely satisfied with it. In a twitter chat with the author we were given the chance to read the original ending, which I liked a bit better, but still had some reservations. I may be in the minority in my opinion, I need to chat with others who have finished it.

I highly recommend this book if you are a fan of psychological thrillers (no comparisons needed). Be warned that if you don't set aside a block of time to read it, you may not get anything else done.

Thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy of this book to review (thank you, thank you!). As always, my opinions are my own.

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1

Published on 1 Comment on Meternity
Meternity Book Cover Meternity
Meghann Foye
Fiction
Harlequin
April 26, 2016
Paperback
368
Publisher via BookSparks

Not quite knocked up... Like everyone in New York media, editor Liz Buckley runs on cupcakes, caffeine and cocktails. But at thirty-one, she's plateaued at Paddy Cakes, a glossy baby magazine that flogs thousand-dollar strollers to entitled, hypercompetitive spawn-havers. Liz has spent years working a gazillion hours a week picking up the slack for coworkers with kids, and she's tired of it. So one day when her stress-related nausea is mistaken for morning sickness by her bosses--boom! Liz is promoted to the mommy track. She decides to run with it and plans to use her paid time off to figure out her life: work, love and otherwise. It'll be her "meternity" leave. By day, Liz rocks a foam-rubber belly under fab maternity outfits. By night, she dumps the bump for karaoke nights and boozy dinners out. But how long can she keep up her charade...and hide it from the guy who might just be The One? As her "due date" approaches, Liz is exhausted--and exhilarated--by the ruse, the guilt and the feelings brought on by a totally fictional belly-tenant...about happiness, success, family and the nature of love.

My review:

Whoa.....imagine my surprise when I went to get the amazon link-up for this book and saw the vitriol it has inspired! It's interesting to note that when I looked it up on Goodreads (a place where it's more common to have actually read the book before reviewing it), there seemed to be a more even distribution of opinions. Where do I fall? I liked this book! The number one fact that I was aware of when reading it is that it is a work of FICTION (come on, all of you screaming on amazon, you do know that means it's made up right?). Maybe because I'm old, and maybe because I worked for 16 years before having kids, and maybe because I did not re-enter the workplace until said kids were in school, but I GOT where this protagonist was coming from. I thought the story flowed well, I was dying to find out what was going to happen once the "baby" came, and it was a pleasure to read. I loved the main character, who just got caught up in a situation she didn't know how to get out of. I never got the feeling that Liz thought those on maternity leave had it easy, she just wanted time to work on her life goals, and saw this as a way out of her overwhelming work responsibilities. I'm not going to say that it was a literary masterpiece, but with all the horrid responses this poor author is getting, I almost want to give it 5 stars just to up the ratings.

A cute book, but you may want to read through some reviews to see if it's for you. My advice is to read it as a work of fiction, and lighten up 🙂

Thanks to BookSparks books of spring for allowing me to review this. As always my opinions are my own.

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6

Published on 6 Comments on The Assistants
The Assistants Book Cover The Assistants
Camille Perri
Fiction
Putnam Juvenile
May 3, 2016
E-book
288
Publisher via Penguin First to Read

A wry and astute debut about a young Manhattanite whose embezzlement scam turns her into an unlikely advocate for the leagues of overeducated and underpaid assistants across the city. Tina Fontana is the hapless but brazen thirty-year-old executive assistant to Robert Barlow, the all-powerful and commanding CEO of Titan Corp., a multinational media conglomerate. She’s excellent at her job and beloved by her famous boss—but after six years of making his reservations for restaurants she’d never get into on her own and pouring his drinks from bottles that cost more than her rent, she’s bored, broke, and just a bit over it all. When a technical error with Robert’s travel-and-expenses report presents Tina with the opportunity to pay off the entire balance of her student loan debt with what would essentially be pocket change for her boss, she struggles with the decision: She’s always played by the rules. But it’s such a relatively small amount of money for the Titan Corporation—and for her it would be a life-changer . . . The Assistants speaks directly to a new generation of women who feel stuck and unable to get ahead playing by the rules. It will appeal to all of those who have ever asked themselves, “How is it that after all these years, we are still assistants?”

My review:

This is one of those books that makes you question your morals when you start rooting for the characters to succeed. The main character and her associates all work as underpaid assistants to some very powerful, very rich folks in the corporate sector. They are all educated women who also have a mountain of student loan debt in common. When the main character ends up with a check (by mistake) that will get her out of debt, she ultimately uses it to pay off her student debt. A funny thing happens while you are waiting for her to get caught, you may find yourself sucked into the story and surprised by the fallout from her escapade. I'm definitely not going to say this was a deep, literary masterpiece, but I loved Tina (even with her sketchy moral code). The ending was very satisfying and not what I expected.

While this may push some buttons for those who always want to "do the right thing", it's an enjoyable read that just may have you rooting for "the bad girl" to triumph in the end!

I was given the chance to read an advanced copy of this book through the Penguin First to Read program. As always, my opinions are my own. This book has also been chosen by BookSparks as one of their books of May for the SRC2016 (Summer Reading Challenge).

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Published on 3 Comments on The Goodbye Year
The Goodbye Year Book Cover The Goodbye Year
Kaira Rouda
Fiction
Sparkpress
April 12, 2016
295
Publisher via BookSparks

As a handful of parents and their children face the all-important senior year of high school an intense time of change for the kids and their soon-to-be-empty-nest parents, the cracks beneath the surface of their seemingly perfect lives begin to appear."

My review:

So interesting that this book would come to me during my last child's senior year of high school! The book follows five families in an upscale community who have children leaving the nest at the end of the school calendar year. It's told from the viewpoint of both the students and the parents, and is a well crafted, well written, hard to put down inside look at the goings on that may not be visible on the surface of these characters' lives. Tensions run high, parent-child relationships hang in the balance, marriages are not what they seem, and their is the ever present undercurrent of what will happen to all of them next year? I thought this book was great, although I am in the minority about "empty nest syndrome". I can't wait for my daughter to head off to college (the high school years with both of my daughters have not been my favorite). No matter what stage of your life you are in, there is likely a character in this novel that you will/can relate to. Really good story encompassing many real life events, and the angst they can cause. I thought the ending wrapped things up nicely without seeming rushed as is the case in many books that I read. Kudos to Ms. Rouda, I have another of her books (In the Mirror) waiting for me on my kindle, and I need to get to it soon!

While I generally don't like to compare books, this one lends itself to calling it a "Big Little Lies" of the high school era.

This book is one of the BookSparks "It's Raining Books" spring selections. My opinions, as always, are my own.

 

6

Published on 6 Comments on All of Us and Everything
All of Us and Everything Book Cover All of Us and Everything
Bridget Asher
Fiction
Bantam Dell Publishing Group
2015-11
Paperback
352
Publisher via She Reads

"Life as Augusta Rockwell knows it changes once she unearths a box of old letters written by her estranged husband, Nick Flemming, the love of her life and the father her children have never known. She's told her daughters that their absent father was actually a spy, which is why he couldn't be part of their lives. But the letters reveal that Nick has secretly been keeping tabs on his family all these years from afar --a discovery that while shocking, has the potential to mend the fractured and wayward lives of the three Rockwell sisters"--

My review:

3.5/5 stars My software does not have the ability for 1/2 stars (ahem....neither does Goodreads, grrr), but I felt that this book fell somewhere in the middle of I liked it and I really liked it. Here is what I really liked about this story. It was a theme that hasn't been done over and over, something that I appreciate with the number of books that I read. The characters were quirky and different, and the family dynamics were spot on in so many places. I adored the fifteen year old daughter, she stole the book for me and I thought she was developed perfectly! This book had a lot of hidden humor even though the subject matter was not necessarily geared toward a funny story. The parts that were not quite as strong for me were that I wasn't as enamored with the sisters, and I couldn't relate much with the mother. They all did some rather strange things (particularly the mother), that I didn't get the reasoning behind. I'm not sure if it was just me, or if these characters were not developed enough for me to get them? Parts of the epilogue were satisfying, but other parts were unnecessary since those characters were not very prevalent in the story as to merit a mention.

Overall, a cute quirky story about an unconventional family, highlighted by some great family dynamics. If I had been more invested in all the family members, this surely would have garnered an additional star.

Thanks to the publisher, who provided me a copy of this book (which is one of the She Reads books of spring). My opinions are my own.

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4

Published on 4 Comments on Who Do You Love
Who Do You Love Book Cover Who Do You Love
Jennifer Weiner
Fiction
Simon and Schuster
August 11, 2015
Paperback
400
Publisher via She Reads

From the “hilarious, heartbreaking, and insightful” (The Miami Herald) bestselling author Jennifer Weiner comes a sweeping, modern day fairy tale about first romance and lasting love. Rachel Blum and Andy Landis are eight years old when they meet late one night in an ER waiting room. Born with a congenital heart defect, Rachel is a veteran of hospitals, and she’s intrigued by the boy who shows up all alone with a broken arm. He tells her his name. She tells him a story. After Andy’s taken back to the emergency room and Rachel’s sent back to her bed, they think they’ll never see each other again. Rachel, the beloved, popular, and protected daughter of two doting parents, grows up wanting for nothing in a fancy Florida suburb. Andy grows up poor in Philadelphia with a single mom and a rare talent that will let him become one of the best runners of his generation. Over the course of three decades, through high school and college, marriages and divorces, from the pinnacles of victory and the heartbreak of defeat, Andy and Rachel will find each other again and again, until they are finally given a chance to decide whether love can surmount difference and distance and if they’ve been running toward each other all along. With honesty, wit, and clear-eyed observations about men and women, love and fate, and the truth about happy endings, Jennifer Weiner delivers two of her most memorable characters, and a love story you’ll never forget.

My review:

I'm a big fan of Ms. Weiner's books. Her novel All Fall Down was one of my favorites of the summer of 2014. This story started out fantastic, and reminded me of why this is a go-to author for me. But I was disappointed with the last half of this book. When Rachel and Andy were young, I thought their respective stories were fascinating, and I was completely caught up in their lives. After they grew up (and after the first breakup), their stories paled for me, until I found it pretty hard to believe why they were still so fixated on each other. The writing was classic Jennifer Weiner, and I always enjoy her writing style. I thought the characters were well done, even if I wasn't on board with where they went with regards to each other. I was bothered by the reasons behind why they broke up, and felt that these were issues that would always be present (particularly for Rachel), so why would they not be problematic later on in life? It's hard for me to articulate this well without giving away the plot, so I'm going to tell you to give this a try and see if you agree, or if I'm off base in my pessimistic attitude about soul mates 🙂

A big thumbs up for the beginning of this book, and a so-so second half make this a novel worth reading. Why?.......because it's Jennifer Weiner, and even her so-so books are worth the read every time.

This book is one of the She Reads books of spring. Thank you to the publisher for providing me a copy of this book. As always, my opinions are my own.

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Published on 8 Comments on Sister Dear
Sister Dear Book Cover Sister Dear
Laura McNeill
Fiction
Thomas Nelson
April 19, 2016
E-book
400
NetGalley

All Allie Marshall wants is a fresh start. But when dark secrets refuse to stay buried, will her chance at a new life be shattered forever?

Convicted of a crime she didn t commit, Allie watched a decade of her life vanish time that can never be recovered. Now, out on parole, Allie is determined to clear her name, rebuild her life, and reconnect with the daughter she barely knows.

But Allie's return home shatters the quaint, coastal community of Brunswick, Georgia. Even her own daughter Caroline, now a teenager, bristles at Allie s claims of innocence. Refusing defeat, a stronger, smarter Allie launches a battle for the truth, digging deeply into the past even if it threatens her parole status, personal safety, and the already-fragile bond with family.

As her commitment to finding the truth intensifies, what Allie ultimately uncovers is far worse than she imagined. Her own sister has been hiding a dark secret one that holds the key to Allie s freedom.

My review:

This psychological thriller had a lot of things I like within its pages.....family saga, mother-daughter bonding, drug use in sports, wrongful accusations, and a woman trying to get her life back. These are among the many themes touched on. The book is told in both the present, and the past, by four main characters. Allie has been in prison for ten years for a crime she did not commit. Her sister Emma has been caring for her daughter Caroline (who was 5 when Allie went to prison). The townspeople are not at all supportive when a convicted killer comes back to town, and neither is the sheriff, who will keep Allie from poking around to find out the real story of what happened that fateful night. Poor Allie is getting slammed from all sides. No one in town wants to hire her, she is not able to poke around in the murder mystery without violating her parole, her sister wants to adopt her daughter, and she dumped her ex boyfriend so he wouldn't have to hang around while she was in prison. Whew.....poor Allie, I was rooting for her all the way! I'm surprised to say that I did figure out who the real killer was quite early on (rarely happens for me), but that did not at all impede my enjoyment in reading how the actual events played out. It started out a bit slow, but once it picked up, it was a complete page turner!

A great who-dunnit story, with a lot of other facets thrown in, make this a wonderful choice for your next read.

2

Published on 2 Comments on Remember My Beauties
Remember My Beauties Book Cover Remember My Beauties
Lynne Hugo
Fiction
Switchgrass Books
April 18, 2016
194
NetGalley

Imagine a hawk’s view of the magnificent bluegrass pastures of Kentucky horse country. Circle around the remnants of a breeding farm, four beautiful horses grazing just beyond the paddock. Inside the ramshackle house, a family is falling apart.

Hack, the patriarch breeder and trainer, is aged and blind, and his wife, Louetta, is confined by rheumatoid arthritis. Their daughter, Jewel, struggles to care for them and the horses while dealing with her own home and job—not to mention her lackluster second husband, Eddie, and Carley, her drug-addicted daughter. Many days, Jewel is only sure she loves the horses. But she holds it all together. Until her brother, Cal, shows up again. Jewel already has reason to hate Cal, and when he meets up with Carley, he throws the family into crisis—and gives Jewel reason to pick up a gun.

Every family has heartbreaks, failures, a black sheep or two. And some families end in tatters. But some stumble on the secret of survival: if the leader breaks down, others step up and step in. In this lyrical novel, when the inept, the addict, and the ex-con join to weave the family story back together, either the barn will burn to the ground or something bigger than any of them will emerge, shining with hope. Remember My Beauties grows large and wide as it reveals what may save us.

My review:

A story about a broken family, only visible once you peek inside their seemingly idyllic home and horse farm. The title refers to the term the father/grandfather uses to refer to his beloved horses, who are caught in the cross-fire when there is great upheaval within the home when the "prodigal" son returns.  There are some lovely passages within the book that are told from one of the horse's point of view, and I thought this was a very unique aspect to the story. Lots of issues tackled within this short novel including, drug abuse, elder care, substance abuse relapse and rehab, blackmail, and lies (for the better or the worse). I did like the contrast between the messed up people, and how they all became calm and almost a different personality around the horses. On the whole, this book was good, but while it had a satisfying ending, you wonder how long things could stay calm, because there was just so much wrong with this family. It almost got to be too much.

A lovely portrayal of hoses (if you are a horse lover), but the overwhelming dysfunction of not just a few, but all of the characters, made this a good read, but not great.

3

Published on 3 Comments on Three Martini Lunch

ThreeMartiniLunchTitle: Three-Martini Lunch
Author: Suzanne Rindell
Published: April 5, 2016 by G.P. Putnam's Sons
Pages: 512
Source: Publisher via Penguin's First To Read
Rating: 4/5
Goodreads

In 1958, Greenwich Village buzzes with beatniks, jazz clubs, and new ideas—the ideal spot for three ambitious young people to meet. Cliff Nelson, the son of a successful book editor, is convinced he’s the next Kerouac, if only his father would notice. Eden Katz dreams of being an editor but is shocked when she encounters roadblocks to that ambition. And Miles Tillman, a talented black writer from Harlem, seeks to learn the truth about his father’s past, finding love in the process. Though different from one another, all three share a common goal: to succeed in the competitive and uncompromising world of book publishing. As they reach for what they want, they come to understand what they must sacrifice, conceal, and betray to achieve their goals, learning they must live with the consequences of their choices. In Three-Martini Lunch, Suzanne Rindell has written both a page-turning morality tale and a captivating look at a stylish, demanding era—and a world steeped in tradition that’s poised for great upheaval.

My review:

This novel takes a bit to get going, but once it does, it's fantastic! I absolutely loved the idea that it takes place around the book publishing world (how many of us would secretly love to be a book editor or write the next great novel?). The three main characters were well drawn, and I loved that each had their own dreams that were not the same, but yet which ultimately drew them together. The book is told in chapters with each of the three main characters taking turns, and I thought it created a good flow to the story. A good depiction of the time period, especially the social moral codes that were present in that day. I found myself sympathizing with each character at some point, and then wanting to slap some sense into them in the next. I loved that even though I usually knew what was going to happen before it did, I could smugly think "I told you that was going to happen". Rindell also did a nice job with the supporting characters, particularly Cliff's father.

While this may take a few pages to get going, it's well worth it in the end. It's a highly enjoyable story about the publishing world and an era of change in the country.

4

Published on 4 Comments on Lies and Other Acts of Love
Lies and Other Acts of Love Book Cover Lies and Other Acts of Love
Kristy Woodson Harvey
Family secrets
Berkley Books
April 5, 2016
Advanced Reader Copy
352
Author

Dear Carolina was praised as “Southern fiction at its best.”* Now author Kristy Woodson Harvey presents a new novel about what it really means to tell the truth . . . After sixty years of marriage and five daughters, Lynn “Lovey” White knows that all of us, from time to time, need to use our little white lies. Her granddaughter, Annabelle, on the other hand, is as truthful as they come. She always does the right thing—that is, until she dumps her hedge fund manager fiancé and marries a musician she has known for three days. After all, her grandparents, who fell in love at first sight, have shared a lifetime of happiness, even through her grandfather’s declining health. But when Annabelle’s world starts to collapse around her, she discovers that nothing about her picture-perfect family is as it seems. And Lovey has to decide whether one more lie will make or break the ones she loves . . .

My review:

This is Woodson Harvey's second novel, following last year's wonderful debut Dear Carolina. I love her writing style, the way she begins each of her book chapters is truly unique, and sets up the reading perfectly! In this book, each chapter begins with an anecdote about life lessons that have been handed down through the family from multiple generations. Probably the most notable, and the one that ties the story together is:

"The lies that matter most are the ones we tell ourselves."

This book has two main protagonists, Lovey and her granddaughter Annabelle. Some of Lovey's story is reminiscing about her past, and how she met her husband, who is facing his end of life in the present. I loved this character! I completely embraced her love of life, family, and friends. Her anecdotes were poignant and spot-on, and her reasons for her secrets were honorable and believable. As for Annabelle.......sigh.......I truly couldn't stand this character! BUT, before you think this would be a reason to give up on this book, I found this in the discussion questions. I'm thinking I may not be the only person to feel this way, and was this what the author wanted, to create a character that could resonate one way with some readers, and another way with others?

Discussion question #7: Was Annabelle a sympathetic character, or were you frustrated by her choices? Why do you think she jumps into relationships? Could she have benefited from having some time alone?

My answer......Completely frustrated, because she's a spoiled, entitled brat who acts like she's still in high school, and HE** YES!

Now you will have to pick up a copy of this book to find out if you are Team Annabelle or Team OnDBookshelf 🙂  This is a wonderfully written book, the life quotes are worth their weight in gold. Well worth the read, and I am looking forward to seeing what this author comes up with next.