I have read and enjoyed several of Alafair Burke’s books so when I saw she had written a new one, I had to get my book loving hands on it immediately. From page one I was intrigued by The Better Sister. Chloe marries her sister’s ex-husband and raises her step-son as if he’s her own. Right away there is family dysfunction. When husband Adam is killed, speculation swirls. Who killed him and why? The obvious answer is Nicky, Chloe’s sister. But things are never as they seem.
Here’s the premise:
Though Hannah was the younger of the two Taylor sisters, she always seemed to be in charge. She was the honor roll student with big dreams and an even bigger work ethic. Nicole was always restless . . . and more than a little reckless—the opposite of her ambitious little sister. She floated from job to job and man to man, and stayed close to home in Cleveland.
For a while, it seemed like both sisters had found happiness. Hannah earned a scholarship to an Ivy League school and moved to New York City, where she landed a coveted publishing job. Nicole married promising young attorney Graham McIntosh, and gave birth to a baby boy they named Ian. The Taylor sisters became virtual strangers.
Now, more than fifteen years later, their lives are drastically different—and Hannah is married to Graham. When he’s murdered by a masked intruder at the couple’s East Hampton beach house, Hannah reluctantly allows her teenaged stepson’s biological mother—her estranged sister, Nicole—back into her life. But when the police begin to treat Ian as a suspect in his father’s death, the two sisters are forced to unite . . . and to confront the truth behind family secrets they have tried to bury in the past.
I was engaged by the story and Alafair’s great writing. I was not disappointed by this book, but it seemed a little lighter and shorter than the other books I have read by her.
Due out April, 2019.
The Library of Lost and Found by Phaedra Patrick is a sweet, quirky, heartwarming story for those who love good fiction that leaves you feeling happy. This author’s other novels, The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper and Rise and Shine, Benedict Stone are must-reads if you haven’t read them already. Get them into your hands as soon as you can, they won’t disappoint.
In this novel, Martha Storm works part-time at the library. She loves her job but wishes for a better position though something holds her back from trying to move up. Martha is always doing things for other people, she cannot say no and puts everyone else’s needs ahead of her own.
Her friends and co-workers often take advantage of her but she never speaks up for herself, wanting to make others happy. She often thinks of her grandma Zelda who was a bright light in her life as a young girl but has died years ago. Martha spent the past few years taken care of her sick and aging parents and now that they have died, she leads a rather quiet and boring life.
When a mysterious book is dropped off at the library with an inscription from Zelda to Martha, she is thrown into a search for the origins of the book which is a collection of stories from Zelda when Martha was a young girl.
The date in the book is recent, does that mean Zelda is alive? And if she is, why was Martha told she had died? Suddenly Martha has a new purpose and with this call to adventure, Martha cannot go back to doing things for everyone else and living life as she had before.
I loved the transformation of Martha! The author does such a great job of creating likable but flawed characters. You are really rooting for Martha to make changes and stop being a doormat.
Here’s the official synopsis:
Librarian Martha Storm has always found it easier to connect with books than people–though not for lack of trying. She keeps careful lists of how to help others in her superhero-themed notebook. And yet, sometimes it feels like she’s invisible.All of that changes when a book of fairy tales arrives on her doorstep. Inside, Martha finds a dedication written to her by her best friend–her grandmother Zelda–who died under mysterious circumstances years earlier. When Martha discovers a clue within the book that her grandmother may still be alive, she becomes determined to discover the truth. As she delves deeper into Zelda’s past, she unwittingly reveals a family secret that will change her life forever.Filled with Phaedra Patrick’s signature charm and vivid characters, The Library of Lost and Found is a heartwarming and poignant tale of how one woman must take control of her destiny to write her own happy ending.
Due out in March, 2019. LOVED THIS ONE!
I absolutely loved The Last Mrs. Parrish so I was very excited to get an advanced look at Liv Constantine’s new novel, The Last Time I Saw You. If you haven’t read the author’s first book, do it now.
The new book is also very good and you will want to add it to your MUST READ list for 2019.
Kate English’s mother, Lily Michaels, is dead, the victim of a terrifying attack in her tony suburban Baltimore home. Barely keeping it together for the sake of her family, Kate is surprised and grateful to see Blaire Barrington, her old high school BFF, at the funeral.
Thick as thieves from middle school through college graduation, the girls fell out on the morning of Kate’s wedding to the confident, arrogant Simon English nearly fifteen years before. Almost instantly the years of separation fall away, and Kate and Blaire slip comfortably back into their old roles. Kate, now a prominent heart surgeon, is the accomplished, anxious achiever, while Blaire, a bestselling mystery author, serves as her fierce defender against all enemies.
And now more than ever, Kate needs Blaire’s loving protection. Lily’s killer is still out there . . . and has begun taunting Kate with threatening notes sometimes accompanied by gruesome clues. Without any solid leads, the police investigation has stalled. As the messages become increasingly macabre, Blaire decides to take matters into her own hands, alienating friends and relatives with her relentless, almost accusatory questions.
As Blaire pushes further, the danger for those around her—including the increasingly unstable Kate—grows. But will her relentless quest for the truth push her—and Kate—over the edge?
I love an unreliable narrator like Kate. A few times I wondered what was real and what was fiction? The best kind of suspense keeps you guessing and this one did! I enjoyed the plot, pacing, characters. Well done! Don’t miss this fantastic novel.
From the beginning chapter, I was hooked! The Night in Question by Nic Joseph was a great read. A sympathetic main character who is struggling in her personal life, a handsome singer, a murder. What could possibly go wrong?
When her husband’s medical bills become overwhelming, Paula starts a side job as a rideshare driver. One night, she picks up a quiet stranger and drops him off at a Chicago apartment with a beautiful woman waiting for him in the window. When she later recognizes the passenger as a famous musician, and realizes the woman in the window is not his also-famous wife, Paula does what any down-on-her-luck woman would do: She asks for money to keep quiet. But the biggest risk of her life quickly becomes her biggest mistake when a tenant is found murdered in the same apartment building where she left the musician—and she’s the only person who knows he was there…
The story goes back and forth between the present and the past leading up to the night in question, but it’s not confusing and the author does a fantastic job of creating curiosity. The story is nicely paced, I felt sorry for Paula and wondered what I would do in her situation.
This is going to be a widely read novel, out now!
I love the premise of The Temp by Michelle Frances. Very intriguing from the start!
Wanted: Assistant to provide maternity cover for high-powered TV producer. Must be bright, creative, with killer instincts.
Emma would do anything to work for the woman who has the job she wants. Carrie is at the top of her game, with a dream career, a baby on the way, and a handsome screenwriter husband. For Emma, with parents who don’t understand her ambition and a serious misstep behind her, this temp position might be her last chance.
Carrie has given up more than anyone knows to get to the top of a ruthless business. She won’t give up this baby too. But with Emma filling in for her at the office, her perfect life starts to unravel. Her bank account is inexplicably overdrawn, her husband seems strangely distant and colleagues are all too happy to take Emma’s creative direction. Carrie finds herself dying to get back to work . . . until a letter left at her door changes everything.
Trust and fear trade places in a love triangle that defies readers’ expectations at every turn.
As I mentioned a million times before, I love reading thrillers and suspense novels but many times the plots or ideas seem recycled. Its hard to come up with something fresh and new which captivates a readers attention.
There are numerous authors who have pulled off a plot that’s been done before, and these authors have done it well. I am always on the lookout for a storyline that I haven’t experienced and this is one of those books that brings something new to the table. This is a very entertaining read and I think many of you will stay up into the night to see how it ends!
So many books, so little time! The Stranger Diaries by Elly Griffiths is another novel that I have on my must-read list. I am eager to start it. The cover reminds me of an Agatha Christie novel, something creepy and gothic.
Here’s what you need to know:
Clare Cassidy is no stranger to murder. A high school English teacher specializing in the Gothic writer R. M. Holland, she teaches a course on it every year. But when one of Clare’s colleagues and closest friends is found dead, with a line from R. M. Holland’s most famous story, “The Stranger,” left by her body, Clare is horrified to see her life collide with the storylines of her favourite literature.
To make matters worse, the police suspect the killer is someone Clare knows. Unsure whom to trust, she turns to her closest confidant, her diary, the only outlet she has for her darkest suspicions and fears about the case. Then one day she notices something odd. Writing that isn’t hers, left on the page of an old diary: “Hallo, Clare. You don’t know me.”
Clare becomes more certain than ever: “The Stranger” has come to terrifying life. But can the ending be rewritten in time?
The setting is England so already I am hooked. There is something I adore about novels set in England and British writers seem to write amazing thrillers. The combination of horror and history promises to deliver a book that I will read in one day.
Put this on your MUST-READ list immediately!
Call Me Evie by J.P. Pomare starts with a bang and the reader doesn’t have time to even think about what’s going to happen! From the moment you read the first paragraph, you are thrown into the story of “Evie” and wonder what this story is going to be about. I wondered if it was kidnapping, sex trafficking, what would make a girl shave her head and run out the door only to be pursued by a mysterious man?
What is going on?
Here’s what you need to know:
For the past two weeks, seventeen-year-old Kate Bennet has lived against her will in an isolated cabin in a remote beach town–brought there by a mysterious man named Bill. Part captor, part benefactor, Bill calls her Evie and tells her he’s hiding her to protect her. That she did something terrible one night back home in Melbourne–something so unspeakable that he had no choice but to take her away. The trouble is, Kate can’t remember the night in question.
The fragments of Kate’s shattered memories of her old life seem happy: good friends, a big house in the suburbs, a devoted boyfriend. Bill says he’ll help her fill in the blanks–but his story isn’t adding up. And as she tries to reconcile the girl she thought she’d been with the devastating consequences Bill claims she’s responsible for, Kate will unearth secrets about herself and those closest to her that could change everything.
Though the man calls himself Evie’s uncle, it’s quickly clear he is not. So who is this guy? Evie knows her name is Kate, knows things aren’t what they seem. The man tells Evie he’s protecting her but why does it seem he’s keeping her a prisoner? Did she commit a crime as he says? Slowly Evie is regaining her memory but will it be too late by the time she figures everything out?
This book is giving me the creeps and the chills. Part of it terrifies me! I am reading it now and can’t wait to see how it plays out.
Due out in March 2019.
