Review: HIDDEN by Laura Griffin

August 17, 2020/21 Comments/by Suzanne

Series: The Texas Murder Files #1
Published by Berkley Books on August 25, 2020
Genres: Mystery, Thriller, Romance
Pages: 352
Source: Netgalley
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FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Thanks so much to Brittanie from Berkley for inviting me to take part in Berkley’s 2020 Romance blog tour. Today I’m excited to share my thoughts with you on Laura Griffin’s latest novel, Hidden.

Hidden is the first installment in Laura Griffin’s new crime thriller series, The Texas Murder Files. Hidden draws the reader in from the very first page as we follow a jogger on a popular hike-and-bike trail. As she is jogging, the woman seems nervous and fearful, to the point of paranoia. When a man with a large knife accosts her, it becomes all too painfully clear that she had a reason to be so nervous. Investigative journalist Bailey Rhoads is sent to investigate the murder, as is police detective Jacob Merritt. Bailey approaches Jacob to see if he can give her some details on the case, but instead of being helpful, Jacob is gruff and close-lipped about the case. When she doesn’t get any assistance from Jacob, Bailey decides to do some digging on her own.

Two things become clear as both Jacob and Bailey begin to investigate: 1) There is frustratingly little evidence to go on with respect to the murder. Even getting an ID on the victim is proving to be nearly impossible, and 2) Whether they want to admit it or not or even act on it, Bailey and Jacob are attracted to one another.

Hidden was a winner for me for several reasons, the main one being that the murder case itself is very compelling. From that opening scene, I was hooked on finding out who this woman was and why she was killed in such an awful way. I became all the more invested in the case when both Jacob and Bailey couldn’t find out anything about the victim. It was like she had gone completely off the grid. As Jacob and Bailey slowly began to unravel the details of the case and the suspense began to build, I flew through the pages eager to get to the truth about what had happened, especially as it became clear the woman’s murder was a hit job and that the killer wasn’t finished.

I also really loved both of the main characters. Bailey is a talented and tenacious journalist. She’s determined to get her story and won’t let anyone, not even a sexy police detective, stand in her way. Jacob is equally likeable, even though he initially comes off as somewhat gruff and standoffish. He’s actually just very protective when it comes to his cases. He truly cares about finding justice for his victims and in the case of this victim, is downright ticked off when the FBI comes to take jurisdiction over the case. I loved his passion and I also thought it was cute how hard he tried to fight his growing attraction to Bailey even though her stubbornness made him crazy. His head keeps telling him it’s a bad idea for a cop to get involved with the media, but his heart has other ideas. The chemistry between Jacob and Bailey was great too. The way their relationship progressed felt very organic, not to mention both cute and sexy.

Hidden is a very satisfying and entertaining read. If you enjoy romantic suspense and a riveting murder mystery, be sure to add this gem to your reading list.

About Laura Griffin

Laura Griffin is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than twenty-five books and novellas. Her books have been translated into fourteen languages. Laura is a two-time RITA® Award winner (for Scorched and Whisper of Warning) as well as the recipient of the Daphne du Maurier Award (for Untraceable). Her book Desperate Girls was named one of the Best Books of 2018 by Publishers Weekly. Laura lives in Austin, Texas, where she is working on her next novel.

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Audiobook Review: THE SWITCH by Beth O’Leary

August 14, 2020/18 Comments/by Suzanne

The Switch by Beth O'Leary, Daisy Edgar-Jones, Alison Steadman
Also by this author: The No-Show

Published by Macmillan Audio on August 18, 2020
Genres: Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Women's Fiction, Chick Lit, Romance
Source: Netgalley
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Goodreads

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Beth O’Leary’s The Switch is a charming and heartwarming story that follows Leena, a young woman who lives and works in London. When Leena suffers a panic attack at work one day and almost costs her company a huge client, it becomes apparent that she needs a break from her life. When she confides to her grandmother Eileen about what happened, Eileen confesses that she’s not overly happy with her own life at the moment either. She’s looking for love, but unfortunately, pickings are slim in rural Yorkshire. On a whim, Eileen and Leena decide to swap places for a couple of months, the idea being that Leena can relax and revitalize in a charming, slower paced rural setting, while Eileen can kick up her heels and enjoy life in the big city, where there are of course many more opportunities to meet Mr. Right.

I enjoyed The Switch so much! Both Leena and Eileen are such likeable characters and it was fun to watch them both settle into their new environments. I thought it was so cute watching Eileen hang out with Leena’s young friends, who helped her set up social media dating profiles, and made sure her time in London was everything she hoped it would be. I also loved watching Leena interact with her grandmother’s, mostly elderly, neighbors. Everything about this aspect of the book was just so entertaining and I loved all the quirky characters both in London and in Yorkshire.

It wasn’t all fun and games though. The Switch also deals with some serious and emotional topics as well, such as grief, infidelity, and the hazards of online dating. There’s an especially moving secondary plot that focuses on the death of Leena’s sister Carla and how the loss of Carla has impacted Leena and Eileen, and especially Leena’s mother, who is really struggling with her grief.

There’s also a little romance. It’s somewhat secondary to the emotional journeys of both Eileen and Leena, but for those who love a little romance in their women’s fiction, it’s definitely there and will put a smile on your face.

I listened to the audiobook version of The Switch and thought the narration was wonderful. Leena’s chapters are narrated by Daisy Edgar-Jones, while Eileen’s are narrated by Allison Steadman. I thought both voices were perfectly suited to the characters they were narrating and that they both really brought these characters to life beautifully. I also liked that I was able to comfortably listen to the audio at my usual 1.25x speed.

The Switch is a delightful story about love, family, and community. If you enjoyed Beth O’Leary’s last novel, The Flatshare, I think you’ll love this one too.

About Beth O’Leary

Beth studied English at university before going into children’s publishing. She lives as close to the countryside as she can get while still being within reach of London, and wrote her first novel, The Flatshare, on her train journey to and from work.
You’ll usually find her curled up with a book, a cup of tea, and several woolly jumpers (whatever the weather).

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Reviews: August Book Releases That Should Be on Your Reading List

August 10, 2020/25 Comments/by Suzanne

I’ve been quiet on the blog for a few days because I found myself lost in some pretty amazing reads. If these three novels are anything to go by, August is going to be a fabulous month for new releases. I’m also a big mood reader and my mood was all over the place this week so there’s a little something here for everyone – a heartwarming contemporary, a suspenseful mystery/thriller, and a compelling work of historical fiction.

Reviews: August Book Releases That Should Be on Your Reading List

Vanessa Yu's Magical Paris Tea Shop Goodreads

Author: Roselle Lim

Publication Date: August 4, 2020

Publisher: Berkley

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Roselle Lim’s new novel, Vanessa Yu’s Magical Paris Tea Shop is a heartwarming story about love, family, second chances, and most importantly, about finding one’s self. Vanessa Yu, the protagonist, is a fortune teller but wishes she wasn’t. For most of her life, Vanessa has been unable to control her “gift,” blurting out fortunes at random and driving away friends and potential boyfriends. Because the gift has been nothing but a curse her entire life, Vanessa longs to just be rid of it so she can live a normal life. That doesn’t appear to be an option so when her aunt Evelyn, the only other family member who can tell fortunes, offers to train her, Vanessa jumps at the chance, especially once she realizes it means she’ll be traveling with Evelyn to Paris where Evelyn is opening up a new branch of her popular tea shop.

One of my absolute favorite parts about this book were the author’s lush descriptions of the sights, sounds, and especially the FOOD of Paris. My mouth was watering with each turn of the page as I read about decadent French pastries and the like. Vanessa is also a very likeable character, so it was easy to root for her. I felt so much sympathy for her as she began to fear she would live her entire life alone if she didn’t get control over her abilities. I can’t even imagine that kind of pressure.

The story isn’t just about Vanessa though. There’s also a fabulous subplot involving Aunt Evelyn. She’s actually leaving the Yu family permanently and relocating to Paris. When it becomes clear to Vanessa that Evelyn’s trip to Paris isn’t a temporary one, she is dying to know why, and since Evelyn isn’t talking, she enlists the wonderful Yu Aunties, who are more than willing to go undercover and find out what Evelyn is up to. I adored the closeness of the Yu family overall and those Yu Aunties are a hilarious addition to what is already an entertaining story.

I don’t want to say much more but I will say that I think this is a story that romance fans are going to love. Love is in the air for several characters as Vanessa discovers that while she may hate fortune telling, she thoroughly enjoys playing matchmaker and bringing lovers together. If you’re in the mood for a charming and romantic story that will tug at your heartstrings and leave a smile on your face, be sure to pick up a copy of Vanessa Yu’s Magical Paris Tea Shop. 4 STARS

The Night Swim Goodreads

Author: Megan Goldin

Publication Date: August 4, 2020

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

With her latest thriller, The Night Swim, Megan Goldin explores the connections between two criminal cases that took place in the same small town 25 years apart. Rachel Krall, the protagonist of the novel, is a successful crime podcaster. For the first two seasons of her podcast, “Guilty or Not Guilty, the Podcast that Puts You in the Jury Box”, Rachel looked back at cold cases with a fresh set of eyes. Now that her show has become immensely popular, Rachel wants to up her game by going to court and sitting in on a live, ongoing trial to present and interpret the evidence to her listeners as it becomes available. The trial she has chosen in set in a small town and the accused is the town’s golden boy, a talented swimmer who hopes to make the Olympic team someday. He is accused of brutally raping a high school student who also happens to be the granddaughter of the sheriff. Tensions are high and opinions are very divided as to whether or not the young man is guilty.

Things take an odd turn, however, when she starts receiving mysterious handwritten letters imploring her to take a look at an old case from 25 years ago. The case was ruled a drowning because there were no witnesses aside from the victim’s nine-year-old sister who couldn’t really provide any information. The incident received little press at the time, but the letter writer, who turns out to be the younger sister of the drowning victim, swears her sister’s death was not an accident. Rachel is laser focused on the current case but the pleading tone of the letters get to her and so she starts to casually ask some of the townsfolk about what happened 25 years ago. When it becomes clear that no one wants to talk to her about it, Rachel starts to dig deeper and soon discovers some disturbing connections between the old case and the new case. Will Rachel discover the truth about both of the crimes and thus justice for the victims or will someone try to stop her from exposing long hidden secrets in this small town?

The Night Swim is a riveting mystery that kept me on the edge of my seat from start to finish. The podcast aspect of the novel was also very well done. As Rachel produces each episode, we then get to listen to it before returning to the courthouse to hear more. I was completely invested in both mysteries and dying to learn the truth as the clues were slowly revealed. Be forewarned that because this story does deal with rape, there are some violent and heartbreaking scenes as we get closer and closer to the truth. I found myself near tears a couple of times as the truth came to light.

I enjoyed Megan Goldin’s last thriller, The Escape Room, but I have to say that with her latest effort, The Night Swim, she really knocks it out of the park. 4 STARS.

The Lions of Fifth Avenue Goodreads

Author: Fiona Davis

Publication Date: August 4, 2020

Publisher: Dutton Books

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

I love historical fiction and I love New York City, so I’m always drawn to the novels of Fiona Davis because she sets each one in an iconic NYC location. This time around, Davis has selected the beloved New York Public Library as her setting.

In 1913, Laura Lyons is living in the library with her two young children and her husband, who is the Superintendent of the library. She aspires to be a journalist and enrolls at Columbia University’s Journalism School. Her journalism classes take her to the doorstep of an all-women’s club called the Heterodoxy Club. While attending club meetings and listening to “radical” women discuss women’s issues like suffrage and birth control, Laura begins to question her own existence as little more than wife and mother. There’s a whole world out there she wants to experience. Her thoughts of taking an alternative path in life are cut short, however, when rare books start disappearing from the library and it’s thought to be an inside job, which places her husband squarely on the suspect list.

In 1993, we meet Sadie Donovan, who also works at the New York Public Library. Everyone at the library knows Sadie loves her job and is passionate about books, so it’s a given that she’s the best choice to curate the library’s next big exhibit featuring rare books. What everyone doesn’t know about Sadie is that she’s actually the granddaughter of Laura Lyons. With her family’s muddled history regarding the library and missing books, Sadie figures the little said about that the better, especially when, to her shock and dismay, rare books she plans to use in her exhibit start to disappear from the library. As only a small handful of people have keys to the rare books room, it’s considered an inside job and Sadie finds herself on the suspect list. Sadie becomes determined to find out how the books are being stolen and who is responsible and also hopes deep down that she can somehow redeem the Lyon name and legacy with respect to the library.

What intrigued me the most about this story is that we learn early on in Sadie’s timeline that Laura Lyons, although now deceased, had become a famous feminist essayist at some point in her life. In addition to being eager to find out how the book thefts were being pulled off in each timeline, I was also even more eager to find out what had transpired in Laura’s life to transform her from wife and mother on the verge of tragedy to world renowned author. I loved how the author wove these two timelines together to gradually reveal the answers to both questions.

It actually surprised me how emotional I found myself getting as I was reading this book. I actually gasped a few times when certain beloved rare books went missing and in one case, where a page was torn out of a beloved treasure. If you are passionate about books, libraries, New York, and historical fiction, The Lions of Fifth Avenue is the perfect book for you. 4.5 STARS

Review: EIGHTY DAYS TO ELSEWHERE by K.C. Dyer

August 7, 2020/10 Comments/by Suzanne

Eighty Days to Elsewhere by K.C. Dyer

Published by Berkley Books on August 11, 2020
Genres: Contemporary Fiction, Romance, Women's Fiction
Pages: 480
Source: Netgalley
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository
Goodreads

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Thanks so much to Brittanie from Berkley for inviting me to take part in their 2020 Romance blog tours. Today I’m excited to share my thoughts on K.C. Dyer’s new novel, Eighty Days to Elsewhere with you.

* * * * * *

K.C. Dyer’s new novel, Eighty Days to Elsewhere, is an entertaining romp around the globe that reads like a mash up of the Jules Verne classic, Around the World in 80 Days, The Amazing Race reality TV show, and Eat Pray Love. The novel follows Ramona (Romy) Keene, a young woman who lives in New York City and works with her uncle in his bookstore in the Village. Although Romy dreams of being a photographer and of traveling, she instead sticks close to home, the charming bookstore a safe haven from the world. When an evil new landlord arrives on the scene, jacks up the rent on the bookstore, and threatens to evict them, Romy is desperate to do whatever it takes to save the bookstore.

She applies for a job at a company called ExLibris Expeditions, an unusual company whose mission it is to create custom adventures for clients based on scenes from their favorite books. (How cool does that sound?!) The custom trips involve a great deal of research, including actually traveling to each destination being considered to figure out transportation, things to see and do, etc. When Romy applies for the job, as part of her application process, she is tasked with doing the legwork on a custom trip that follows the route taken in Around the World in 80 Days. There’s a catch, however, a few of them actually: 1) Romy is given significantly less than 80 days to complete her task because of the timeline the client has given ExLibris, 2) Romy is not allowed to travel via commercial airline since that mode of travel didn’t exist at the time of the novel, and 3) Romy is competing against another applicant who is also applying for the job. Whoever successfully completes the trip first and by the stated deadline will win the job and a $10,000 bonus.

It’s best to watch the adventure portion of the book unfold for yourself, but I did want to share some highlights.

5 Reasons You’ll Want to Read Eighty Days to Elsewhere

It’s a book of journeys. We follow Romy on her actual physical journey around the world, which is perfect for readers like me who love to travel but have been sidelined by the COVID-19 pandemic. Romy’s trip takes us through London, Paris, Mumbai, Singapore, and so many other incredible destinations. Even though Romy couldn’t stop at any destination for very long because of the contest, I still loved reading and learning a little something about each place she visited. In addition to the physical journey, we also follow Romy on a psychological journey. Romy has been grieving the loss of her parents and that grief has been holding her back from fully living her life. This trip gives her the opportunity to really live, learn, and grow as a person. The Romy who comes back to NYC after her journey is definitely not the same Romy who left.

Romy’s misadventures. I don’t want to give away any spoilers so I’m just going to say that Romy must seriously have the worst luck of anyone on the planet. If something could go hilariously wrong at any of her destinations, it absolutely did. It got to the point where I couldn’t wait for her to get to the next country just to see what went wrong next and how she was able to recover from it. All I kept thinking the whole time I was reading these misadventure scenes was that this book would make a very entertaining movie or series.

Serious topics are tackled as well. It’s not all fun and games on Romy’s trip. The author also takes on some serious and thought-provoking topics as well, as part of Romy’s journey of growth. Romy learns about the plight of Somali refugees, racism on a level she has never seen it before, her own privilege, and she even has an encounter with Greenpeace and whale hunters, just to name a few. These encounters make it a very eye-opening trip for Romy.

Show stealers. Romy meets an adorably sassy Somali teen named Sumaya on her trip. When Romy meets her, Sumaya has lost both of her parents and is trying to make her way to find her aunt, who emigrated several years earlier. Sumaya is a force of nature, determined that no one and nothing will stand in her way, and she also has a pretty mean stand-up routine, as she wants to be a comedian when she grows up. Sumaya not only steals the spotlight once she joins Romy on her travels, she will also steal your heart.

Romance. Speaking of getting your heart stolen, there is romance in the book as well. Be forewarned that it’s a slow burn and definitely takes a backseat to Romy’s psychological journey, but it’s still really nice to watch Romy finally let her guard down and let someone in. I’m not entirely sure what trope it falls under so I’m going to call it a mix of enemies to lovers and rivals to lovers.

Now I will confess that there were a few times along the way when I had to suspend disbelief. Seriously, no one could have the kind of consistently bad luck Romy has. Also, a few of the places in Around the World in Eighty Days are probably not places that Americans would be advised to travel to at this point in time. That said, I finally just told myself that this is fiction and that I needed to stop nitpicking unlikely scenarios and just enjoy the ride. Once I did that, I enjoyed Eighty Days to Elsewhere immensely and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for an entertaining adventure.

About K.C. Dyer

kc dyer loves to travel. When she’s not on the road, she resides in the wilds of British Columbia, where she likes to walk in the woods and write books. Her most recent novel, published by Berkley Books, is arriving in 2020. A romantic comedy, EIGHTY DAYS TO ELSEWHERE is the madcap story of a young woman so desperate to save her family’s bookstore that she undertakes a race around the world, but ends up falling for her competition.

She is the author of FINDING FRASER, an international bestseller in romantic comedy, and published by Berkley Books. US Weekly called FINDING FRASER a “humorous but relateable self-discovery tale”, and Bustle named it a ‘Must-Read for OUTLANDER fans”.

For teens, kc’s most recent work is FACING FIRE, a sequel to the acclaimed novel, A WALK THROUGH A WINDOW, published by Doubleday/Random House. kc is represented by Laura Bradford of Bradford Literary Agency.

kc has spoken before thousands of readers — both kids and adults — across Canada and the US, and in Europe and Asia. She is a director and long-time participant at the Surrey International Writers’ Conference. She has been writer-in-residence at New Westminster Secondary School, and a featured presenter at the National Council of English Teachers in both Philadelphia, PA and Chicago, Ill; YouthWrite in Penticton, BC; Young Authors in Kamloops, BC; WORD Vancouver, Canadian Authors’ Association in Victoria, BC; Ontario Library Association Super-Conference in Toronto, ON; Simon Fraser University Southbank Writers in Surrey, BC; WriteOn Bowen and many others.

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Review: THE BLACK KIDS by Christina Hammonds Reed

August 3, 2020/20 Comments/by Suzanne

The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed

Published by Simon Schuster Books for Young Readers on August 4, 2020
Genres: Young Adult Fiction, Historical Fiction
Pages: 368
Source: Netgalley
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository
Goodreads

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed is a poignant coming of age story set in Los Angeles during the 1992 Rodney King Riots. It follows Ashley Bennett, a wealthy black teen whose parents have raised her in such a way as to shelter her from the struggles, and particularly, the racism that faces the black community. Ashley attends a mostly white private school and her childhood friends are all white. The only black kids she knows are those who attend her school on scholarships, but they keep to themselves and she doesn’t interact with them. When the novel opens, Ashley’s most pressing concerns are whether to go to school or ditch and hang out with her friends at the pool or beach.

Everything changes, however, when the police officers who were captured on video brutally beating Rodney King, a black man, are acquitted. Rightfully so, the black community is outraged and so the L.A. riots began. The beating, acquittal, and subsequent riots is such big news that there’s no way Ashley can be sheltered from it, and it soon becomes a revelation to her that makes her question everything about herself – her privileged life, her disconnect with the black community, and her entire sense of self.

Ashley’s inner monologue was what really made this story so powerful for me. I just found myself so moved by all of the emotions going through her head as she truly has to re-evaluate everything she has ever known now that she is faced with this new harsher reality. Ashley is also worried sick about her older sister, who abandoned that sheltered life and is out protesting for justice right in the middle of the riots. My heart especially broke for Ashley when during an argument with one of her childhood friends, the friend lets the ‘n’ word fly. Hearing that hate come out of her friend’s mouth for the first time makes her realize that perhaps it’s time to move on and find friends who understand what she is going through and what a mess her head is because of it. Even though my heart broke for her at the loss of friendship, it also soared for her as she slowly starts to find her way, figure out who she is, and who the best kinds of friends are for her.

Ashley’s journey in The Black Kids is a hard one, but as hard as it was, I still loved watching her learn and grow, and discover a new sense of identity. I also thought it was very powerful to watch the riots unfold through the eyes of a frightened and confused black teen. I’m old enough that I remember watching the riots on TV, but Ashley’s perspective is an entirely different one and it really hit me hard as I was reading. It also made me sad in the sense that it’s now almost 30 years since those riots and we still have so much more work to do when it comes to fighting racial injustice. I’m glad to see more and more books like The Black Kids and hope they will inspire all of us to understand and to do better.

About Christina Hammonds Reed

Christina Hammonds Reed holds an MFA from the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts. A native of the Los Angeles area, her work has previously appeared in the Santa Monica Review and One Teen Story. The Black Kids is her first novel.

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Review: THIS IS MY AMERICA by Kim Johnson

July 31, 2020/16 Comments/by Suzanne

This Is My America by Kim Johnson

Published by Random House Children's Books on July 28, 2020
Genres: Contemporary Fiction, Young Adult Fiction
Pages: 416
Source: Netgalley
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository
Goodreads

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Set in Galveston, Texas, Kim Johnson’s This Is My America follows Tracy Beaumont, a 17-year old African American who is on a mission to save her father, who is sitting on Death Row, convicted of a murder he did not commit. When the novel opens, he has less than one year before he’s put to death and so Tracy is running out of time. She has spent the past seven years writing weekly letters to Innocence X, an organization devoted to help those who have been wrongly incarcerated, pleading with them to take her father’s case.

The matter becomes all the more urgent when tragedy strikes the Beaumont family all over again. The local police arrive at the Beaumont house late one night with an arrest warrant for Tracy’s older brother Jamal. He is the prime suspect in the murder of Angela Herron, the editor of their school newspaper and also the white girl Jamal has been dating in secret. Jamal has no alibi and the sheriff’s son places him at the scene of the crime. Fearing he’s going to suffer the same fate as his dad, Jamal flees and refuses to come home until he can prove his innocence. With the clock ticking on both her father’s and her brother’s lives and still no response from Innocence X, Tracy decides it’s time to take matters into her own hands and starts looking for the evidence that will set them both free and save her family.

This story is hard-hitting on so many levels. As we follow Tracy on what turns out to be an increasingly dangerous journey to find the evidence that will exonerate her family members, the author unflinchingly explores so many tough and all-too-relevant topics, such as systemic racism, corruption in law enforcement, police brutality, the lingering existence of hate groups like the KKK, and the fact that without ample resources, a black person has little chance of successfully defending themselves in our legal system. The deck is just stacked against them. The author really drives her point home though by bringing us into the Beaumont home, where we meet and fall in love with Tracy, Jamal, their mom, and especially with their little sister Corinne, who at only seven years old, has never known her father as a free man. He has always been behind bars. Everything this family has gone through just had me in tears several times while I was reading, especially knowing that even though this account is fictional, the Beaumont’s situation is unfortunately a reality for too many families.

I don’t want to give away anything about the actual murder mysteries, so I’m just going to add that as powerful a read as this is because of its message about racial injustice, it’s also just a flat out fantastic read because the drive to find the real murderers is so riveting.

This Is My America is a hard-hitting exploration of the racial injustices that are so pervasive in American society. It’s a powerful read in that it will make you sad, angry, and frustrated at how little progress we as a society have made to stop the racial injustices, but at the same time, it’s a hopeful story. This is a book I’d love to see as required reading at the high school level because of its message that you’re never too young to start making your voice heard and that no matter how young you are, your voice can actually make a difference.

About Kim Johnson

KIM JOHNSON held leadership positions in social justice organizations as a teen and in college. She’s now a college administrator who maintains civic engagement throughout the community while also mentoring Black student activists and leaders. She is also the graduate advisor and member of an historically Black sorority. This Is My America is her debut novel and explores racial injustice against innocent Black men who are criminally sentenced and the families left behind to pick up the pieces. She holds degrees from the University of Oregon and the University of Maryland, College Park.

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Reviews: The Year of the Witching & The Pull of the Stars

July 27, 2020/22 Comments/by Suzanne

Today I’m sharing my thoughts on two historical fiction novels that are releasing in July. The first is an atmospheric tale about witches and curses that is sure to entertain, while the second is a heart-wrenching and thought provoking look at the influenza pandemic of 1918.

Reviews: The Year of the Witching & The Pull of the Stars

The Year of the Witching Goodreads

Author: Alexis Henderson

Publication Date: July 21, 2020

Publisher: Ace

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

I’m always up for a good witchy read so I couldn’t resist picking up a copy of The Year of the Witching by Alexis Henderson. That gorgeous cover promises an atmospheric read with hints of the supernatural, and I knew from the moment I opened the book and saw it was divided in parts labeled Blood, Blight, Darkness, and Slaughter that I was in for a wild ride, and boy does this book deliver! The story follows a young woman named Immanuelle Moore, who was labeled as cursed from the moment of her birth, because her mother was unmarried. Raised by her grandparents after her mother ran off, Immanuelle has spent her entire life trying to live up to the religious ideals of her community and prove that she is not a curse or a threat. One night, however, Immanuelle finds herself inexplicably drawn to a forbidden place called the Darkwood and it is there that everything changes. She encounters witches there and they present her with her mother’s diary.

When people in her community start falling ill soon after, Immanuelle fears she has unleashed something awful and turns to her mother’s diary for some insight. The more Immanuelle reads, the more she questions everything she has ever known about her mother, her own life, and the Puritanical, cult-like ways of her community. I adored Immanuelle because she was so smart, so resourceful and resilient, and because she wasn’t afraid to challenge and question authority, especially if she feels that the authority figures are abusing their power. I also loved how determined she was to save the people of her community even though they weren’t always as nice to her as they could have been because of her “cursed” status. I don’t want to spoil anything so I’m just going to say that for me, The Year of the Witching reads like a mashup of Margaret Atwood’s popular dystopian novel, The Handmaid’s Tale, and Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, a play about the Salem Witch Trials. It’s an atmospheric witchy read filled with secrets, lies, and curses, and whose vivid supernatural imagery will keep you glued to its pages. 4 STARS.

The Pull of the Stars Goodreads

Author: Emma Donoghue

Publication Date: July 21, 2020

Publisher: Little, Brown and Company

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

When I first heard about Emma Donoghue’s new novel, The Pull of the Stars, I struggled with whether or not I could handle reading a novel about a pandemic since we’re currently in the middle of one ourselves, ultimately my love of Donoghue’s writing and storytelling won out though and I decided to give it a go. Set in Dublin, Ireland in 1918, in the middle of both WWI and a deadly influenza pandemic, The Pull of the Stars takes us inside a maternity ward in a hospital in Dublin. Through the eyes of Nurse Julia Power, we see firsthand what it looks like to work in what has become just as lethal as the battlefield itself. Nurse Power is tasked with caring for expectant mothers who have contracted the deadly flu. The hospital is woefully overcrowded and understaffed as the staff continually gets sick while caring for patients. Nurse Power’s ward honestly isn’t even a ward; it’s a supply closet that has been converted to a ward. Not only is it cramped, but it means that all of the pregnant women are in one room together. When tragedy strikes, there’s no dignity and no privacy. Everyone bears witness to your grief.

I was drawn into the story immediately by Nurse Power’s perspective of what it was like to work as a nurse in this environment and her tireless devotion to keeping these women alive, but what really captivated me was watching each pregnant woman’s story unfold. The story may mostly take place in a tiny closet, but Donoghue uses the journeys of each woman to explore some huge themes – religion, poverty, sexual abuse, PTSD, and abuse of power, just to name a few, as well as to show how deadly the flu was and how it could strike at any moment. What takes place in that room is raw, emotional, and so authentic that I found myself tearing up many times while reading, particularly once I learned the significance of the watch on the book’s cover. I may have been hesitant to start reading The Pull of the Stars, but once I started it, it kept me rapt until the very last page. While in many ways, it’s a tragic story, The Pull of the Stars is also a quietly, powerful story of hope and survival. 4.5 STARS

Reviews: Today Tonight Tomorrow & 10 Things I Hate about Pinky

July 24, 2020/14 Comments/by Suzanne

I’ve got two great YA contemporaries to share with you today. The first is from a new-to-me author, Rachel Lynn Solomon and the second is from one of my favorite YA contemporary authors Sandhya Menon. I had so much fun with both of these reads and am excited to share my thoughts on them with you.

Reviews: Today Tonight Tomorrow & 10 Things I Hate about Pinky

Today Tonight Tomorrow Goodreads

Author: Rachel Lynn Solomon

Publication Date: July 28, 2020

Publisher: Simon Pulse

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Today Tonight Tomorrow by Rachel Lynn Solomon is one of the most entertaining and relatable novels set in a high school I’ve read in a long time. It follows senior Rowan Roth on her last day of high school and beautifully captures all of the emotions running through her head as she prepares to say goodbye to her classmates and, in essence, her childhood, and as she looks ahead to her future and her desire to become an author. Will she ever see her friends again? Has she really accomplished everything she hoped to accomplish in high school? Will people take her seriously when she tells them she wants to write romance novels? All of the emotions swirling around in Rowan’s brain as she navigates that last day of school were so relatable and really made me nostalgic for my own high school days.

Today Tonight Tomorrow is also a really fun read though. It features the most epic scavenger hunt/assassin game called HOWL where seniors are given clues that take them all around the city of Seattle, along with an armband and the name of a target, which is of course a fellow senior. If you capture your target’s armband, he or she is eliminated. The goal of the game is to correctly solve all of the clues, providing photo evidence for each, and eliminate as many targets as possible without being eliminated yourself. How much fun does that sound like? I would have loved this game when I was in high school. Heck, I’d actually play it right now! What makes HOWL even more fun though is that Rowan inadvertently ends up paired with her arch nemesis and high school rival for valedictorian, Neil McNair (or McNightmare as Rowan prefers to call him). What could possibly go wrong with this scenario? Will they work together, maybe become friends or dare I say it, even more than friends? Or will they relish the opportunity to go head-to-head one more time before they say goodbye to high school and to each other? Oh, the possibilities! I’m not going to say anymore so that you can find out for yourself, but I’ll just say I loved every minute of their time together that last day. If you’re looking for a heartwarming, contemplative read with a little side of mostly good-natured, cutthroat fun, be sure to check out Today Tonight Tomorrow. 4.5 STARS

10 Things I Hate About Pinky Goodreads

Author: Sandhya Menon

Publication Date: July 21, 2020

Publisher: Simon Pulse

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

My love for Sandhya Menon’s YA novels continues with her latest, 10 Things I Hate about Pinky. Pinky Kumar is a free spirit and a social justice warrior, and when she is passionate about a cause, watch out because nothing is going to stop her from making her dream a reality. While Pinky’s passion is an admirable quality, it does tend to rattle her conservative lawyer parents a bit, especially since they think her free spiritedness leads her to make unwise decisions at times. Pinky’s choice of boyfriends is also a frequent topic of conversation and when it’s the first topic of conversation when they arrive at their beach house for summer vacation, Pinky decides to take action so that she doesn’t have to spend the entire summer listening to her parents. When she hears that Samir Jha, a friend of a friend, has had his summer plans fall through at the last minute, she invites him to her beach house to pose as her fake boyfriend. Samir wants to be a lawyer like her parents and he dreams of going to Harvard, which is Pinky’s mom’s alma mater, so he’s the perfect boy to finally impress her parents. There’s just one problem…once they finally meet up and start hanging out, Pinky and Samir realize they can’t stand each other. Samir is so flustered and so frustrated by Pinky that he actually writes a list down of all the things he hates about her. It’s so hilarious watching the two of them try to deal with each other all summer without blowing their cover and of course every step of the way I’m waiting for that moment when they’re sure to realize that perhaps those sparks flying between them aren’t all about hate after all. I adored everything about this book. Both Pinky and Samir are adorable in their own way, and I also loved the shout outs to Ashish and Sweetie from Menon’s other books in this series. I breezed through 10 Things I Hate about Pinky in a day and was sorry to say goodbye to these characters at the end. As always though, Menon left me with warm fuzzies and a smile on my face and I really hope we’ll get even more books set in this world. 4 STARS

Review: PARIS IS ALWAYS A GOOD IDEA by Jenn McKinlay

July 20, 2020/18 Comments/by Suzanne

Paris Is Always a Good Idea by Jenn McKinlay
Also by this author: Wait for It

Published by Berkley Books on July 21, 2020
Genres: Contemporary Fiction, Women's Fiction, Romance
Pages: 352
Source: Netgalley
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository
Goodreads

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Thanks so much to Brittanie at Berkley for inviting me to take part in the blog tour for Jenn McKinlay’s latest novel, Paris is Always a Good Idea. I had a major case of cover love for this book as soon as I saw it, and I’m thrilled to report that the story itself is as wonderful as the gorgeous cover and can’t wait to share my thoughts on it with you.

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Chelsea Martin is in a rut. She’s all work and no play, and as her sister points out, hasn’t been in any kind of relationship in years. Seven years ago their mother died of cancer, and it’s like Chelsea stopped living as well. Things come to a head when Chelsea’s father announces that he is getting remarried. Chelsea is overwhelmed by the news and feels like her Dad is betraying her mom’s memory and basically tells him this, creating a very awkward and tense situation. A heart-to-heart with her sister afterwards convinces Chelsea that she really needs to do some soul searching. Since the last time she can even remember actually being happy is during her trip to Europe after college, she decides she wants to retrace her steps and see if she can rediscover the Chelsea she used to be.

Paris is Always a Good Idea follows Chelsea on this journey to self-discovery, and wow, what a journey it is! I don’t want to give away any details because her journey is best experienced knowing as little as possible up front, but I do want to share what I loved most about the story. Below are some highlights.

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5 REASONS PARIS IS A GOOD IDEA IS A MUST-READ

Wanderlust. If you love traveling like I do and have been missing it fiercely because of the pandemic, Paris is Always a Good Idea is the perfect read for you. We not only get to travel to romantic and beautiful Paris as the title suggests, but as part of retracing Chelsea’s gap year abroad, we are transported to the lush countryside of Ireland and to an incredible castle and vineyard in Tuscany, in central Italy. The author does an incredible job of capturing the sights, sounds, and atmosphere of each location and bringing them to life. It’s as close as you can get without your passport and I loved following Chelsea on this journey.

Mamma Mia vibes. Okay, so maybe I’ve watched Mamma Mia a few too many times, but as I was reading this book, I kept thinking certain aspects of it reminded me of Mamma Mia. No, Chelsea doesn’t go to Greece and no, there’s no love child with three possible fathers, but still, Chelsea does go to Europe hoping to rekindle her heart by tracking down three hot guys she had fallen in love with during her gap year. The search for these three hotties leads to many awkward and hilarious moments for Chelsea, which is where my Mamma Mia comparison comes from. If you’re a Mamma Mia fan like I am, I think you’ll love this book too.

Emotional journey. It’s not all lighthearted fun and games though. Paris is Always a Good Idea also very much focuses on the emotional journey Chelsea takes as she tries to find herself again. Chelsea has been grieving for the loss of her mother for so many years now that trying to find her way past that grief so that she can live and love again is a tall order. As much as I enjoyed the humor of those lighter moments as Chelsea looks for her old boyfriends, I really loved having this emotional journey as part of the reading experience as well. It made for an all around satisfying read.

Relatable protagonist. Chelsea is definitely a character I found easy to relate to. So much of what she goes through are things many of us have gone through or probably will go through at some point. Burying ourselves in our work to avoid troubles in our personal lives, friction between family members, the loss of a parent, or even just feeling like we’ve lost some essential part of ourselves. She’s also relatable in the sense that she’s messy and flawed. Some of what she says to her dad when she learns he’s getting remarried was downright cringeworthy, but at the same time, the reaction felt very authentic, like drama I could imagine playing out in my own family.

Enemies to Lovers. Lastly, and perhaps the most fun reason of all, for all of you romance fans, there’s a fabulous enemies to lovers romance. I don’t want to give away any details on this, so I’m just going to say if you enjoy sparks flying, witty banter, and off the charts chemistry, you’re going to love this book!

Paris is Always a Good Idea is an emotionally satisfying read that will fill both your heart and your need to travel.

About Jenn McKinlay

Jenn McKinlay is the New York Times, USA Today, and Publisher’s Weekly bestselling author of several mystery and romance series and will be debuting a stand alone romantic comedy in July 2020 entitled PARIS IS ALWAYS A GOOD IDEA. She lives in sunny Arizona in a house that is overrun with kids, pets and her husband’s guitars.

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Review: BLACKTOP WASTELAND by S.A. Cosby

July 17, 2020/14 Comments/by Suzanne

Blacktop Wasteland by S.A. Cosby
Also by this author: Razorblade Tears

Published by Flatiron Books on July 14, 2020
Genres: Fiction, Thriller, Mystery
Pages: 320
Source: Netgalley
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository
Goodreads

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

I don’t normally read a lot of crime novels but I was drawn to S.A. Cosby’s Blacktop Wasteland because it’s set in my home state of Virginia. Whatever my reasons for initially picking it up though, I’m so glad I did because Blacktop Wasteland really blew me away. It is both an action-packed thrill ride that features a high stakes heist and an emotional journey about a man who is caught between the sins of his past and what he desperately wants for his future.

Blacktop Wasteland hooked me from the very first chapter when we meet the protagonist, Beauregard “Bug” Montage. If you like complicated characters, you’re going to love Bug. When we first meet him, Bug is drag racing for cash and it becomes immediately clear that Bug’s driving skills are unmatched. Think “The Fast and the Furious” and you’re on the right track. For years, Bug was the go-to wheelman for anyone out there who was trying to pull off a heist. He’s now trying to leave that life of crime behind though. Bug has a wonderful wife, great kids, and he owns his own auto body shop. He loves his life as a family man and business owner, living on the up and up, and wants to do right by his family no matter what. Bug is also haunted by memories of his father, who led a similar criminal lifestyle but ultimately abandoned his family rather than stick around and take care of them. Bug is determined not to be like his father.

Life gets complicated for Bug, however, when for reasons beyond his control (unexpected expenses, new competition from a rival shop, etc.), he starts struggling to make ends meet and fears he won’t be able to provide for his family. As he exhausts all of his non-criminal options, his old way of life starts calling to him and when a former associate approaches him about a can’t miss heist, Bug agrees to take part, rationalizing in his mind that he’s doing this one last time and that it’s all for his family. Things unfortunately don’t go according to plan as Bug and his associates realize they’ve stolen from the wrong person and that things are about to go from bad to worse for them.

There’s so much tension and suspense building as Bug finds himself in an increasingly impossible situation. When the heist goes wrong, Bug’s life spirals down a dark and dangerous path that leaves him and his family more vulnerable than ever before and he has to figure out a way to fix it once and for all. And what made Bug such an especially compelling character for me is that no matter how deep he found himself in trouble, he never loses sight of his family. He truly is willing to do absolutely anything to protect them and secure their future, even if it means possibly sacrificing himself. S. A. Cosby does such an incredible job with painting Bug as both morally gray and completely sympathetic that I actually found myself rooting for Bug to do whatever he had to do to take out all threats to his family, even if it involved violence. I was just that invested in Bug and his family.

S. A. Cosby’s writing in Blacktop Wasteland is phenomenal as well. Whether he’s describing the back roads of rural Virginia, muscle cars and action-packed driving scenes that would easily fit into a Fast and Furious script, exploring the landscape of poverty and racism that is ever-present in our society, or laying out an emotional discussion between a husband and wife about the challenges that are facing their family, Cosby’s characters are both authentic and unforgettable, and his imagery is vibrant, powerful, and sure to resonate. This is my first time reading one of S. A. Cosby’s novels and I very much look forward to reading more from him. If you’re in the mood for a fast-paced crime thriller that is raw, gritty and will leave you on the edge of your seat, Blacktop Wasteland is a must-read.

About S.A. Cosby

S. A. Cosby is a writer from Southeastern Virginia. He won the 2019 Anthony Award for Best Short Story for “The Grass Beneath My Feet”, and his previous books include Brotherhood of the Blade and My Darkest Prayer. He resides in Gloucester, Virginia. When not writing, he is an avid hiker and chess player.

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