You cannot go wrong with any books by Kaira Rouda. I’m such a big fan of her novels, you just know they are going to have twists and turns and usually, a few characters are not what they seem so there are always surprises. This month, if you are a member of Amazon Prime, you can get The Widow as your Kindle First Reads! I HIGHLY recommend it, you won’t be sorry.
Here is the scoop:
Jody Asher had a plan. Her charismatic husband, Martin, would be a political icon. She, the charming wife, would fuel his success. For fifteen congressional terms, they were the golden couple on the Hill. Life was good. Until he wasn’t.
Martin’s secret affair with a young staffer doesn’t bother Jody personally. But professionally? It’s a legacy killer. Soon a reporter gets word of this scandal in the making, and Martin’s indiscretions threaten to ruin everything Jody has accomplished.
When Martin suddenly dies, it’s a chance to change the narrative—but the reporter won’t let go of his lead. As the balance of power shifts in the Asher house and on the Hill, it’s time for Jody to take control. And there’s nothing the ruthless widow won’t do to secure the future she’s entitled to. Even if she has a secret of her own.
The Widow will be published on December 1.
I am a HUGE FAN of Matthew Quick’s books. I gave five stars to The Reason You’re Alive, which remains of my top reads of all time. Matthew has a way of writing characters who are empathetic and you as the reader, find yourself getting emotional over the interactions between the characters.
When I saw We Are The Light was coming out, I knew I had to get my hands on it! I read it in record time, so eager to dive into the author’s latest.
Here’s what you need to know:
Lucas Goodgame lives in Majestic, Pennsylvania, a quaint suburb that has been torn apart by a recent tragedy. Everyone in Majestic sees Lucas as a hero—everyone, that is, except Lucas himself. Insisting that his deceased wife, Darcy, visits him every night in the form of an angel, Lucas spends his time writing letters to his former Jungian analyst, Karl. It is only when Eli, an eighteen-year-old young man whom the community has ostracized, begins camping out in Lucas’s backyard that an unlikely alliance takes shape and the two embark on a journey to heal their neighbors and, most importantly, themselves.
From Matthew Quick, whose work has been described by the Boston Herald as “like going to your favorite restaurant. You just know it is going to be good,” We Are the Light is an unforgettable novel about the quicksand of grief and the daily miracle of love. The humorous, soul-baring story of Lucas Goodgame offers an antidote to toxic masculinity and celebrates the healing power of art. In this tale that will stay with you long after the final page is turned, Quick reminds us that life is full of guardian angels.
I enjoyed this book, it’s a good solid read that of course, leaves me wanting more from Matthew.
This book is out now! Go read it!
If you haven’t read Kate Mannings’s amazing, incredible novel, My Notorious Life, go get it now. Don’t hesitate, just grab a copy and settle in for a fabulous read! Since I liked that book so much, I was excited to read Gilded Mountain.
Gilded Mountain is incredibly rich with detail, you feel as though you are right there alongside Sylvie. I can’t imagine the level of research done by Kate to be able to immerse the reader in this world. Well, done!
Synopsis:
In a voice spiked with sly humor, Sylvie Pelletier recounts leaving her family’s snowbound mountain cabin to work in a manor house for the Padgetts, owners of the marble-mining company that employs her father and dominates the town. Sharp-eyed Sylvie is awed by the luxury around her; fascinated by her employer, the charming “Countess” Inge, and confused by the erratic affections of Jasper, the bookish heir to the family fortune. Her fairy-tale ideas of romance take a dark turn when she realizes the Padgetts’ lofty philosophical talk is at odds with the unfair labor practices that have enriched them. Their servants, the Gradys, formerly enslaved people, have long known this to be true and are making plans to form a utopian community on the Colorado prairie.
Outside the manor walls, the town of Moonstone is roiling with discontent. A handsome union organizer, along with labor leader Mary Harris “Mother” Jones, is stirring up the quarry workers. The editor of the local newspaper—a bold woman who takes Sylvie on as an apprentice—is publishing unflattering accounts of the Padgett Company. Sylvie navigates vastly different worlds and struggles to find her way amid conflicting loyalties. When the harsh winter brings tragedy, Sylvie must choose between silence and revenge.
Drawn from true stories of Colorado history, Gilded Mountain is a tale of a bygone American West seized by robber barons and settled by immigrants, and is a story infused with longing—for self-expression and equality, freedom and adventure.
Out now! You can win a copy of this over at Goodreads where they are running a giveaway!
Who can you trust? Pretty much no one.
In My Perfect Friend by Sarah Clarke, we meet Beth, a woman who seemingly has an ideal life. She’s rich and glamorous and has worked hard to create a perfect life for herself. But how quickly things can change…
Beth has a perfect life. She has constructed it carefully over the last eighteen years. But one night she makes a choice that risks everything.
When Kat sees an article about that night online, buried memories begin to surface. She and Beth were friends once. Things ended badly then, but now she has a chance to make them right.
Kat introduces herself to Beth. Not as her old friend, but as a stranger. Beth has no idea Kat isn’t who she says she is.
But then neither is Beth.
This intense story centers around three women and will keep you on your toes. I really enjoyed it and need to read the author’s other books!
This is out on November 23.
I feel like a broken record talking about Shalini Boland‘s books but they really are all good. You know what you are going to get when you sit down with one of her novels- a suspenseful story that will keep you on your toes. I usually read her books within a day or two because they flow well and are easy reads that keep you engaged. The Daughter In Law was no exception!
Here’s the plot:
Your new husband has a shocking secret. Would your mother-in-law kill to protect it?
From the moment I meet my new mother-in-law in her beautiful country house, she makes it clear I’m not welcome. Lilian Fletcher hates me for marrying her precious boy on a golden beach far away from her.
Starting our marriage living in the Fletchers’ family home is a nightmare. Then I discover Seb was married before and his first wife is dead. I wonder why the man I love didn’t tell me the truth. And I wonder what happened to her: the woman who came before me. How did she die?
Lilian’s steely blue gaze follows me everywhere. Then the accidents start to happen, and I know she is behind them. It starts with small things, like a dropped birthday cake, a spilt glass of wine. But then my mother-in-law accuses me of something terrible. This woman is determined to get me out of her son’s life.
Now I wish I’d never met my handsome, clever husband. Or come to this luxurious house that feels more like a prison.
But I have secrets too. And no-one knows who I really am…
Read this now!
Talk about unreliable characters, my favorite kind in a suspense book!
Liars Anonymous by Marissa Finch features a support group for pathological and compulsive liars. The book alternates between two members of this club so of course the reader is kept guessing every step of the way. I loved it. I want to be surprised and enjoy the ride on a literary roller coaster.
Here’s the plot:
Marnie Thorpe is at Liars Anonymous for one reason, and it isn’t to make friends. Still, when beautiful, ephemeral Claire finds herself in trouble, Marnie steps in to help. Claire is being stalked, she says, so Marnie lets her crash at her house. She’s half convinced the whole thing is just another lie — until Claire turns up dead.
Claire’s murder unlocks something in Marnie. Memories of another loss, another young woman taken too soon. Her gut tells her someone from their group is responsible, and that none of them are safe. But how can she uncover the truth when she’s surrounded by lies?
How can she catch a killer when everyone around her is a liar?
Give me all the books with lies and deception. I can’t get enough.
Out on November 17.
Small Game by Blair Braverman was such an intriguing read! I really enjoyed it, different than my usual type of book because of the plot which centers around survivalist Mara and a group of people competing for money on a reality show about well, surviving.
Here’s what you need to know:
Four strangers and six weeks: this is all that separates Mara from one life-changing payday. She was surprised when reality TV producers came knocking at Primal Instinct—the survival school where she teaches rich clients not to die during the night outdoors—and even more shocked to be cast in their new show, Civilization. Now she just has to live off the land with her fellow survivors for long enough to get the prize money.
Whisked by helicopter to an undisclosed location, Mara meets her teammates: The grizzled outdoorsman. The Eagle Scout. The white-collar professional. And Ashley, the beautiful but inexperienced one who just wants to be famous. Mara’s unusual, rugged childhood has prepared her for the discomforts and hard work ahead. But trusting her fellow survivors? Not part of Mara’s skill set.
When the cast wakes one morning to find something has gone horribly wrong, fear ripples through the group. Are the producers giving them an extra challenge? Or are they wrapped up in something more dangerous? Soon Mara and the others face terrifying decisions as “survival” becomes more than a game.
I got pretty into the story and it didn’t take much for me to come to the conclusion that I would not last one full day on any show like Civilization. I’d love to see this book turned into a show, it would make a great series.
Get it now.
A really fabulous and intriguing true crime book, not quite like anything else I’ve read lately. Deliberate Cruelty by Roseanne Montillo centers around Ann Woodward, a high society woman who shot her husband back in 1955, using the excuse she thought he was a burglar. Truman Capote was interested in this crazy story and wrote about Ann… not very kindly.
Synopsis:
When Ann Woodward shot her husband, banking heir Billy Woodward, in the middle of the night in 1955, her life changed forever. Though she claimed she thought he was a prowler, few believed the woman who had risen from charismatic showgirl to popular socialite. Everyone had something to say about the scorching scandal afflicting one of the most rich and famous families of New York City, but no one was more obsessed with the tale than Truman Capote.
Acclaimed for his bestselling nonfiction book In Cold Blood, Capote was looking for new material and followed the scandal from beginning to end. Like Ann, he too had ascended from nobody to toast of the town, but he always felt like an outsider, even among the exclusive coterie of high society women who adored him. He decided the story of Ann’s turbulent marriage would be the basis of his masterpiece—a novel about the dysfunction and sordid secrets revealed to him by his high society “swans”—never thinking that it would eventually lead to Ann’s suicide and his own scandalous downfall.
I appreciate a well-researched story like this one and I do love true crime. I don’t read many true crime stories from the 1950s so this was very interesting for me. I need more historical true crime books!
Out no, go read it!
