Tag: family

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#BlogTour: The Library Of Fates by Margot Harrison

For this blog tour, we’re looking at a strong magical realism/ romance/ mystery combo that leaves off a discussion that could have taken this book from solid to transcendental. For this blog tour, we’re looking at The Library Of Fates by Margot Harrison.

First, the review I posted to the book sites (BookBub.com / BookHype.com / Goodreads.com / PageBound.co / TheStoryGraph.com) and YouTube:

Strong Magical Realism/ Romance/ Mystery Combo. This book had a lot of things for a lot of readers, but curiously, it only had a single line or two about a real world version of itself. But more on that in a moment.

The mysteries here are solid. There’s a dual timeline going on, mostly set in the world just before the collapse in 2020, with the “current” timeline being set in late 2019 and the “then” timeline being back in the 1990s. When the two different mysteries converge… things get quite interesting indeed, setting up one hell of a climax that will take your breath away. As in, if you go into that section just before bed… just plan to stay up a bit later than normal. Once you get there in particular, you’re not going to want to put this book down.

The romance plays out across both timelines as well, with some interesting complications due to the events of the mystery sides of the tale, and is reasonably paced throughout. Nothing overly spicy here, perhaps somewhere between a warm glass of milk and a jalapeno. Maybe somewhere around a Banana or Poblano pepper? Enough that the warm glass of milk crowd may get a little antsy, but also so little that the crowd that barely thinks a habanero is anything at all may not even think there is any spice to be had here at all. I mean, these are college students brought together in an unusual and magical circumstance. Yes, things are going to happen.

But the one thing that hangs over this entire book is the one thing that Harrison only devotes a line or two to – the fact that the very thing that is supposed to be magical about this book, tech in 2025 can already damn near do – and likely will be fully capable of within the next five years or so. While it may not be an *exact* analogue to the magical bit of this book – in that it won’t be a singular book for everyone – AI is largely already to the point that for many readers, particularly those who only read a few books a year or even a few books a decade, AI can already give them a book tailored specifically to their own interests that is largely compelling enough for those exact types of readers. And yes, this is going to be a problem for authors going forward. What happens when the tech gets good enough to satisfy even those of us who read hundreds of books per year? Harrison could have used even her magical version here to perhaps explore this possibility more in a “pre-AI” magical world, but instead uses this part of the magic as more of a macguffin or even an end game set piece than really exploring this idea in any real depth. Which, to this reader, is perhaps a lost opportunity to take a solid mystery/ romance and have it get that much deeper and more timeless.

Still, for what this story actually is and what it actually does, it actually does – *ahem* – all things – *ahem* – quite well within its world, and this is absolutely a book that a lot of different types of readers will be able to enjoy quite a bit.

Very much recommended.

After the jump, an excerpt from the book followed by the “publisher details” – book info, description, author bio, social links, and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: The Library Of Fates by Margot Harrison”

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#BlogTour: No One Aboard by Emy McGuire

For this blog tour, we’re looking at a solid ‘second screen’ mystery. For this blog tour, we’re looking at No One Aboard by Emy McGuire.

First, the review I posted to the book sites (BookBub.com / BookHype.com / Goodreads.com / PageBound.co / TheStoryGraph.com) and YouTube:

Solid ‘Second Screen’ Book. Apparently there is a concept Netflix show/ movie producers call ‘second screen’ – meaning, essentially, that the video must be produced and the story easy enough to follow even as someone is actually doing something else. Thus, actions are spoken – “I’m cutting the veggies now” – and are loud and concise. Rather than simply showing the character cutting the veggies. Plots are simplified and characters a bit more stereotypical than perhaps fully fleshed out, nuanced, “real” people.

This is *exactly* that kind of book – and there is absolutely *NOTHING* wrong with that. Netflix is making bank right now on exactly this type of content, so why shouldn’t authors take a stab at it as well? Not everything has to be a hyper complicated, hyper real “oh, you missed on page 33 paragraph 3 sentence 2 that this thing had this hyper specific property” kind of tale to be enjoyable. Quite the opposite, I would argue – sometimes, *particularly* during the holidays, you really want something you can just consume while vegging out a bit yourself. Many romance novels – the “bubblegum pop” and “Hallmarkie” ones in particular – offer exactly this level of escapism, so why can’t mystery tales have this from time to time?

For what this book actually *is*, it really is a solid work of its type. One that is enjoyable even at its near-400 page length, and one that can work in exactly the kinds of scenarios I describe above – where perhaps you need some time during the hectic holiday season to simply zone out with a good enough book – quite well indeed.

Very much recommended.

After the jump, an excerpt from the book followed by the “publisher details” – book info, description, author bio, social links, and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: No One Aboard by Emy McGuire”

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#BookReview: Honeymoon Phase by Amy Daws

Spicy Trauma In Long Form. This is the third book directly in its series (fourth if you count its “backdoor pilot” book from another series where a key character + a few side characters to this book were all introduced) and is the longest by over 100 pages, according to Amazon’s count… and that length shows here. Now, given that this is a habanero spicy book at times… maybe you want that length. Or maybe you’re more a “motion of the ocean” type that would rather things just get to the point without a lot of extras. Either way, you’ve been warned about the extra girth here and you can now make your own decision based on your own preferences.

And yes, if sexual puns and innuendoes aren’t your thing… you’re really not going to like this book. As it is as deep (oh god) (crap) in the series as it is, you probably should have picked up on that by now, but maybe you picked this up thinking it could be read standalone. While it technically *can* be – its story isn’t directly intertwined with any other – the characters from the other books all play roles to some degree or another here, including one scene in particular here detailing in even more explicit detail a common event among all three tales… and other that is more background to the other books, finally fully explained here.

For those who are looking for solid romance tales with some laughs (including various animals that nearly steal the scene in most scenes they are in) and a ton of heart and you can handle cursing at at least the sailor level (programmers curse more, for what that’s worth) and the aforementioned habanero spice level, this entire series is excellent.

This particular entry, with as much trauma as is detailed on both main characters… maybe the extra girth was needed. Maybe it wasn’t. I’m honestly torn, as I *want* to say it wasn’t needed… but there are also no clearly extraneous scenes here. Every scene was done well and every scene works together in its sequence to tell a richly developed story of two traumatized people slowly coming together over a period of time, and it really works on so many levels that even though I *want* to say the extra length wasn’t needed, I also can’t really defend that position by citing anything that could have been cut and this book work as well as it does here.

Thus, the best I can say is prepare yourself for the extra length… and have fun with it. The conclusion reveals that we’ve got one more book left in this series, and it is the one person we haven’t really heard from yet… who becomes very obvious through the course of this tale that they’ve got their own story to (finally) tell. I for one can’t wait to see what happens there.

Very much recommended.

This review of Honeymoon Phase by Amy Daws was originally written on November 23, 2025.

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#BookReview: Tell Me Why by Kay Bratt

Another Solid Entrant Where Bratt’s Heart Is Tattooed On Her Upper Arm With Her Sleeves Down. For a series that was *supposed* to end at Book 7 or so to now have doubled that speaks to just how popular it has become among fans of the author. That the new books continue to sell and continue to bring in new fans speaks to how well the author is crafting both each individual entry and the overall arc of the series. I know in my own reviews I’ve noted before the series was supposed to end at this book or that book or whatever, but at this point it seems that Bratt will be containing this series through the rest of her writing days.

With this particular entry and its particular crime, Bratt’s heart shines through in more muted and subtle ways than in both previous entrants in this series and in Bratt’s prior works such as her True To Me series or (where I first “met” Bratt) in Dancing With The Sun… and yet equally powerful as those other books, when you know her story. (That she speaks of from time to time publicly, to be clear.) Bratt’s loves are never far from her mind, and always shine through in her writing when you know where you’re looking… and yet when you *don’t* know these details, she still provides an all-t00-real look into far too many of our own families and, in her fictional world, gives us hope that all can work out as well as Bratt makes it work out here. Which isn’t to say there won’t be tragedy, just that the family *will* work through whatever tragedies may come – and celebrate whatever successes may come too.

The heart of the Hart’s Ridge community – and of the Gray family in particular – is what makes this series so strong, so what is coming next for those hearts following the events here…

I for one am looking forward to finding out. 😉

Very much recommended.

This review of Tell Me Why by Kay Bratt was originally written on November 21, 2025.

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#BlogTour: Otherwise Engaged by Susan Mallery

For this blog tour, we’re looking at a solid women’s fiction tale with a touch of romance where all four central characters are executed very well indeed. For this blog tour, we’re looking at Otherwise Engaged by Susan Mallery.

First, the review I posted to the book sites (BookBub.com / BookHype.com / Goodreads.com / PageBound.co / TheStoryGraph.com) and YouTube:

Solid Susan Mallery Women’s Fiction (With A Touch Of Romance). With Susan Mallery, you know pretty well exactly what you’re going to get. She basically has two styles, with a few wrinkles per style, and once you know which style and which wrinkle you’re in… well, if you enjoy reading a lot of variations on the same thing and are looking for the kinds of books that are essentially the reading equivalent of TV you can simply zone out and enjoy and know you’re not going to hit anything *too* complex or disturbing… Mallery is an author you’re going to love. Which long time fans will already know, but the above explanation was more for those newer to her or perhaps who haven’t read her books at all.

With this particular iteration, again, we’re more on the women’s fiction side, but even on this side of Mallery’s writing, romance is never far from the scene – indeed, it will always be close enough that technically the books can be (and generally are) marketed as romance tales, even when the women’s fiction side is actually more dominant in the overall story (as it is here).

Overall, I thought this was actually perhaps a touch more standout than typical Mallery, more dealing with the specifics at hand here that can’t be discussed too much without going into spoiler territory. But she absolutely nails the women’s fiction side, showing strong growth in each of her four central characters – not always easy to do with so many moving parts. So if you’re looking for a solid escape this holiday season – and have some time to invest in this near almost 370 page book – well, here’s yet another solid option.

Very much recommended.

After the jump, an excerpt from the book followed by the “publisher details” – book info, description, author bio, social links, and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: Otherwise Engaged by Susan Mallery”

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#BlogTour: The Perfect Hosts by Heather Gudenkauf

For this blog tour, we’re looking at a solid tale in its genre that has a bit of a chaotic and potentially controversial opening. For this blog tour, we’re looking at The Perfect Hosts by Heather Gudenkauf.

First, the review I posted to the book sites (BookBub.com / BookHype.com / Goodreads.com / PageBound.co / TheStoryGraph.com) and YouTube:

Don’t Let Your Opinions Of Over The Top Gender Reveals, Guns, or Multi-Perspective Stories Fool You – This Is A Solid Book. Seriously, this is one of those books where the *opening scene* has a lot of ick for a lot of people – me included, to an extent. Indeed, I delayed reading this book for a week in part because of the very inciting incident literally listed in the first sentence of the description as of publication day earlier this week as I write this review. (Yes, I’ve had it as an Advance Review Copy for months and yes, I’m officially running behind. Apologies.)

You see, while I have exactly *zero* problems with guns and enjoy a good Tannerite explosion from time to time (on video, never experienced one in person), the over the top gender reveal and thus making a pregnancy a central point of this story… that was the ick for me.

And I was wrong.

Yes, the opening scene is complex and more than a bit confusing and perhaps even accurately labeled as hard to follow.

But the story opens up from there and becomes much easier to understand, even as it revolves around small town and family secrets and decades long mysteries all coming to a head.

Gudenkauf creates here a truly layered story with many things going on at the same time, in the mold of some of the best soap operas – and yet with a fair degree more danger involved.

Overall truly a fun book once one gets beyond the chaotic opening scene, one that plays very well within genre norms without really pushing the boundaries too hard. In other words, a perfectly comfortable read for genre fans that works well enough for those looking to see whether they enjoy this genre.

Very much recommended.

After the jump, an excerpt from the book followed by the “publisher details” – book info, description, author bio, social links, and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: The Perfect Hosts by Heather Gudenkauf”

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#BookReview: Poison Wood by Jennifer Moorhead

Solid Sophomore Southern Suspense. This is a tale that builds on its predecessor, Broken Bayou, in an unexpected direction for readers of Broken Bayou – one of the secondary, yet essential, characters gets her own tale here. Which would be expected in the romance genre, but in mystery/ suspense is far less common.

And yet Moorhead absolutely makes this work. There’s enough of the Bayou here that there are at least a few spoilers from that book, but not so much that you absolutely *have* to have read it first, and thus new readers (who don’t mind a few minor ish spoilers) can come into this book without stressing about not having read Bayou first. (Though you *should* read Bayou too, as it is an excellent tale in its own right.)

Yet there is also quite the tale to be told here, and as deep as Willa’s tale was in the Bayou… this tale may even run a touch deeper. It certainly expands its world a touch, if only in that certain players have larger connections than just Ms. Meade’s home town. And yet as someone who grew up in and around similar connections – which I can’t really detail at all without revealing who some of the players in this tale are – this struck me as perhaps a touch *too* real in some aspects. Clearly, Moorhead has some similar life experiences of her own to get it *this* spot on.

Truly an excellent small town Southern mystery tale that manages to raise a lot of real world emotions without ever getting preachy about any actual real world issue, which is perhaps one of Moorhead’s great strengths as a storyteller, at least as shown in this series.

Very much recommended.

This review of Poison Wood by Jennifer Moorhead was originally written on November 2, 2025.

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#BookReview: Big Nick Energy by Kristen Bailey

Christmas Love Angle. Let me be crystal clear as someone more trained in mathematics than most who happens to work in a field that is technically a sub-discipline of mathematics: For three (or more, really) straight people, there can never be a true love triangle. There can only be a love *angle*. A triangle, by definition, has three sides and three intersecting points. For a romantic love triangle to exist, at least one person involved must be romantically attracted to both of the other two – even if unrequited. With three straight people, no matter the combination of either gender, it will thus never happen. Thus, this book is about a love *angle*, not a love “triangle”, as all of our central characters here are straight.

Now, possible (likely) pedantry aside, this was still a fun Kristen Bailey Christmas book. A bit spicier than a Sarah Morgan Christmas book, with far more sexual innuendo (but you knew that from the title, or should have :D), with quite a bit more comedy, and really at least as much heart to it as Morgan’s annual tales.

Now Jeff, why do you bring up another author in this review? Well, because in both cases they’re both United Kingdom based, with tales primarily based on that side of the “pond” and are fairly consistent in releasing a Christmas book every year, generally within a few weeks of each other. Meaning I tend to read them pretty close and indeed read this one barely ten days after reading Morgan’s latest, so it is fresh on my mind. 🙂

Overall this book hit about as expected – meaning I had a great time and think most readers will too, but if you’re one that doesn’t like cussing or jalapeno (at least) level spice (to be clear, this is nowhere near ghost level, even habanero is debatable, which is why I went with jalapeno)… maybe stick with Morgan’s books. But hey, if you *prefer* the occasional fuck – both in word and in deed – Bailey is going to be right up your alley bringing her version of… well, Big *Nick* Energy. 😀 (Ok, it had to be done once I realized I was kinda walking myself into that one. :D)

I would say that long time fans of Bailey will enjoy this one, and also that if you’re new to Bailey, this is a fun book that is fairly typical of her overall style, even as she writes a few books every year – not just her annual Christmas book. As someone who has been reading her stuff for a few years now, I can honestly say that they’re all fun and if you enjoy this one and are new to Bailey, you’re going to have a fun time reading through her back catalog.

As always, read the book for yourself and let us know what you think by leaving your own review wherever you see this one. Even if you think I’m completely wrong in my thoughts on this book, feel free to call me out in your review if you think I need it. Overall, more reviews reach more readers and help sell more books, so please, help both me and you and help Bailey continue to be able to write more books for us. 🙂

Very much recommended.

This review of Big Nick Energy by Kristen Bailey was originally written on October 21, 2025.

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#BlogTour: The Hidden Daughter by Soraya Lane

For this blog tour, we’re looking at a strong tale that brings new elements to this series while also setting up its conclusion brilliantly. For this blog tour, we’re looking at The Hidden Daughter by Soraya Lane.

First, the review I posted to the book sites (BookHype.com / Goodreads.com / PageBound.co / TheStoryGraph.com), SubStack, and YouTube:

Strong Penultimate Book In Series Brings In New Elements. This entire series of Lane combining both her historical side and her romance side have been truly excellent, and this one is no different there. What makes this one different from the rest of the series is that this one actually takes place comfortably outside the shadow of WWII… and is perhaps one of the more powerful books in the series because of this. Indeed, while it can sometimes be hard for modern audiences nearly a century removed from wartime horrors and tribulations to fully understand all that is happening inside a WWII setting, no matter how good the storyteller is, in bringing the story out of that particular shadow and in using a tragedy that is still rare but at least more relatable than total war, Lane makes this particular tale perhaps all that much easier to fully understand the depth of the tragedy here.

Once again, both historical and contemporary elements are done well and perhaps here blended even more seamlessly than the other books, due to the precise nature of what is happening within this one. Foodies will love the restaurant talk of having our FMC be a chef, and indeed her entire story is richly layered with all too relatable drama for far too many. Even the MMC, while not given remotely equal screen time, manages to have the main point of his backstory developed enough to be quite the gut punch when it is fully revealed.

Perhaps most exciting for fans who have been with this standalone-yet-interconnected-ish series since the beginning is the stinger in the epilogue here. On a scale ranging from “makes you not want the next tale at all to Infinity War’s “I need the next tale RIGHT TBIS FUCKING SECOND!!!!!!!!!!!!!”, this one ends not far off Infinity War’s level of build. With no release date given for the next book!

Which just means you have time to either read this book (if you’ve already been following along) or the entire series (if you haven’t) before the finale comes seemingly at some point in 2026. (Pure somewhat educated guess there.) When you read them, make sure to write your own reviews wherever you see this one. I clearly think this book and the entire series are truly excellent, and I’d love to see what you think too.

Very much recommended.

After the jump, the “publisher details” – book description, author bio, social links, and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: The Hidden Daughter by Soraya Lane”

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#BookReview: Love By Design by Maddie Evans

Atypical Romance Offers Solid Trilogy Conclusion. This is a very atypical romance that some could potentially see as problematic… and others could possibly very easily feel all too seen in. And that all centers on our FMC here.

In the characterization of her rigidity of habit and how completely clueless she is socially, Evans here presents one version of a condition not named in the description, so it would be a spoiler to reveal here. To this writer, living in the real world with the same condition, the characterization here is perhaps a touch stereotypical… and yet while my own life and romances therein have been *wildly* different than portrayed here… I’m also aware enough of others living with this to know that there are indeed very likely some, perhaps many, who will feel quite seen in this characterization and indeed perhaps find hope that they too can find a love as portrayed herein.

Other irritations – and truly, these are *simply* irritations that your mileage will absolutely vary on – are that the author for some reason or another seems to have written “Disney” and then hit Replace All on the manuscript with a fictional name – that is how blatant the descriptions of the company are to real life, yet with the fictional name for the company. There are a few different reasons I can think of even off the top of my head that an author may choose to do this, but it was an irritant every time I encountered it and it did take away from the story a touch… which is unfortunate, given how critical it is at one point.

The other irritant is far more minor in its presentation… and yet it is also one I know many readers will want to be aware of, as it can be a deal breaker for some: without *actually* diving into spoiler territory, let’s just say there is a certain surprise in the epilogue that at least was hinted at briefly in the earlier text that it could potentially be a possibility in this exact situation, so at least it wasn’t a situation of the book before that moment either never mentioning this at all or even outright saying this wasn’t wanted at all.

To be clear though, this really was a solid romance of a very atypical form, between someone who thought he was going to be a priest and thus never have a romantic relationship and someone for whom relationships had always been rather difficult. Indeed, it is these exact two characterizations coming together that actually make this story as strong as it is, as it offers hope to so very many who perhaps are in similar boats of being on the verge of hopelessness for their own potential romances.

Another thing that was done quite well here is the integration of many elements of the Catholic faith, perhaps obvious with a potential priest as the MMC and with the author being so openly Catholic herself. Still, this is one element where at least some readers will want to be aware of up front and can make your own decision to thus read this book or not based on your own thoughts on the Catholic Church. Once again, I’m simply asking you, now that you’ve read this far into my own review, to simply leave this book be if you’re going to give it one star just because it features Catholicism and shows it so favorably or, more actually, normally.

The non-romance drama with the Brighthead Crafters is done very well once again, and this is where the trilogy conclusion comes to bear with both humor and heart, as is to typical of Evans.

Ultimately this really is a quite strong, if also very atypical, romance and a solid conclusion to this trilogy. So pick all three books up, read them, and leave a review for each wherever you find this review. Let us all know what you think – even if you think I’m a complete moron in my thoughts about these books, feel free to tag me anywhere and let me know! I’m just excited that you’re actually reading them, no matter what you think of them. 🙂

Very much recommended.

This review of Love By Design by Maddie Evans was originally written on October 10, 2025.