Tag: family

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#BookReview: Beach Thriller by Jamie Day

Solid Suspense Tale On Both Levels. This is one of those book-within-a-book tales where we actually get to read the book that exists within the tale, and that part of this tale actually does work quite well to further the larger story. Set in a beach town, this is quite literally a beach thriller – even though my own standard of a “beach read” is quite literally “any book you read on a beach”, which could be truly *any* book.

Don’t believe the Negative Ninnies about this book – as a suspense thriller, where you know going in it is *fiction* and will require a level of suspension of disbelief, it really does work well. Is everything perfectly realistic? Fuck no. Does it work well within itself to tell the story Day wants to tell? Absolutely. If you want perfect realism though, maybe try a nonfiction read. (Even that isn’t guaranteed, but that is a topic for some other article than this review of this book. 😉 )

There is exactly one thing about this book that is actually a truly valid criticism from at least certain perspectives, but to reveal that one thing is too spoilery to even really approach more specifically than a warning such as this, but even here that thing is done quite well for my own preferences and indeed to me is one of the better elements of the book. Notice that even this doesn’t tell even those who have read every review I’ve ever written what this thing that may well piss at least some readers off is. 😉

Overall, this really was a really well done summer beach read, maybe a touch long for some readers at the mid 300 ish page mark, but using every page really well. A great read for those looking for a summer thriller… maybe at a beach? 😉

Very much recommended.

This review of Beach Thriller by Jamie Day was originally written on June 9, 2026.

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#BookReview: Party of A Lifetime by Henry Corrigan

Utterly Disgusting LGBT Stephen King x Jeremy Robinson Cross. If you’re familiar with the works of King (specifically Carrie and/ or his more.. *ahem* out there *ahem*… takes) or Jeremy Robinson (TORMENT specifically), those alone will give you a fairly solid idea what to expect as an overall story here. Throw in heavy and explicit LGBT elements (including *technically* closed door, yet still well-heard “spice”) of a variety of sexualities, and now you’ve got an even better idea what to expect here.

This is horror more of the revolting/ disgusting form than of the actually terrifying form, with a touch of The Devil Went Down To Georgia (while staying completely in the Northeast coastal regions) or perhaps the first Nic Cage Ghost Rider movie thrown in.

At a touch under 300 pages, it is a quick read… if you have a strong stomach. Seriously y’all, I’ve read some *very* wild shit over the years, stuff that truly few can handle at all… and this was pushing it even for me.

Going in, I knew this was explicitly an LGBT story and that a church would be in play, and honestly, I had fears about how that would play out. But I can tell you straight up that in this case, the church is more used as a set piece from Ye Olden Times that would still be there in this type of situation than as some anti-Christian diatribe that I had feared. Indeed, those types of issues don’t really come to bear at all, and instead the book focuses more on familial relationships specifically than any religious aspects, even as it uses different Christian-based (yet generic American/ Western European cultural versions of them) concepts within the tale.

Truly a solid LGBT based horror tale, again, of the more revolting/ disgusting side of horror than the actual straight up nightmares for years side.

Very much recommended. If you have a strong enough stomach. 😉

This review of Party Of A Lifetime by Henry Corrigan was originally written on June 3, 2026.

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#BookReview: Bad Boy Era by Amy Daws

Solid Spicy Series Swan Song. This is it. The moment the series has been building to – Everly’s story. And for those who have read this series to this point, it absolutely does not disappoint. We’ve got the hilarity. We’ve got the habanero spice, maybe even hotter – those that prefer a warm glass of milk, yeah, this series isn’t for you, and this conclusion definitely isn’t. We’ve got the returning cast of characters – all of them, including the animals. We’ve got the heart.

New this time, we’ve got a sports romance that uses terms from the sport as a bit of narrative structure and yes, does show at least a couple of games – though this is absolutely romance first, sports second. Also new this time we’ve got a bit of Fifty Shades going on to a degree (to be clear, the non-bedroom side of that tale), and this is one area that will perhaps be more hit or miss for some readers – but also one that works fairly well to grab in a lot of male readers generally turned away by so many romance books.

Ultimately, this *is* a series conclusion that must also stand on its own and tell its own tale while also wrapping up the series, and it does all of this rather well. Readers who have gotten this far into the series will be left satisfied, and readers who pick this book up first… well, I hope you don’t mind at least a few spoilers and at least some element of “what the fuck is going on here”. Yes, I cannot stress this enough: Begin this series with Nine Month Contract, book 1 of this spinoff series, at minimum, if not Last On The List, which actually first introduced Everly and her dad. (Nine Month Contract is absolutely sufficient here, but completionists/ those adamantly opposed to any spoiler whatsoever should likely start with the earlier book.)

Truly a fun read, if a touch long for many romance novels at roughly 450 pages, this really is a great conclusion to its series and one that executes well on all that had been set up before.

Very much recommended.

This review of Bad Boy Era by Amy Daws was originally written on May 26, 2026.

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#BookReview: The Players Club by Rachel Mills

Female Fight Club Has Zero Magical Realism. A lot of the low-rated reviews of this one claim they expected magical realism in this book and… why? There is literally *nothing* about this book that I can find in the days before its release that would indicate there is a shred of magical realism anywhere near this book… because there isn’t any. Expecting any here is entirely on you, not on the author, and it is a you problem, because again, there is no magical realism in this text. At all.

Instead, what we do get is a rather intense psychological drama that really is a female version of Fight Club in so many ways. Approached from this perspective, the tale actually works quite well indeed, even when it does get a bit quick and hazy with particulars at times.

Pretty well the opposite of light and fluffy bubblegum, this is more akin to a nicely done elk steak – deep, satisfying meat, but slightly atypical for most people in a way that will feel weird at times yet is ultimately quite satisfying indeed. Perhaps best enjoyed with a strong red wine and even, if that is your thing, an equally strong cigar. Again, truly, not that light poolside/ beachside read with a ceviche and a margarita. At all.

But for those that dare… it really is quite fun in its own way, and quite devastating in others – there may in fact be some dusty rooms at times here.

Very much recommended.

This review of The Players Club by Rachel Mills was originally written on May 15, 2026.

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#BookReview: Out Of Her League by Ava Rani

Carolina Reaper Spicy Romance With Atypical And Controversial Message. First thing to know about this book: Not for the “clean romance” crowd. AT. ALL. Y’all don’t need to bother reading a word of it, because there are at least three instances where you will need the fucking *emergency room* from the heart palpitations you’ll get, rather than just smelling salts. But for those that enjoy actual porn level (Fifty Shades level, if not exact type) spice… hey, I’ve got a book for you. (Though to be clear, there is actual plot here. This is *not* erotica. Just *very* spicy romance. If only in like 3 scenes.)

Now that the romance crowd has sorted themselves already, let’s talk to the rest of us who fall somewhere in the middle. Beyond the spice debates, there was actually a lot to like here, and indeed a lot of in your face yet not actually preachy (weird, I know, but mostly because of how well it worked within the story itself) messaging that will prove controversial to some and refreshing to others. Subversive, in fact. Which to me makes things so much more interesting anyway.

The actual story itself progressed maybe a touch slowly, but also, the two star reviews here are fucking morons that I wish Goodreads allowed users to block other users, because seriously, after reading this book myself they are so wrong that I will never trust them to tell me the sky is fucking blue, ok?

Instead, for me, the story absolutely clicked on all levels. You’ve got two people at some of the highest levels of their respective fields yet at different stages within them and all the competing wars within both of their heads about how to proceed. You’ve got some tough but not backbreaking emotional weight for both of them to overcome. You’ve even got some travel in here, and hell, for those soccer fans – and at least Rani never called it “football”, because “football” is the sport played with an oblong pigskin whose best players come from the American Southeast – you’ve got a decent amount of soccer-adjacent stuff going on. No, this isn’t anything remotely resembling a sports romance, so there are no actual soccer games here, just a lot of more off the field stuff with this character at this stage of his career.

An excellent tale that nails pretty well everything pretty solidly, again, this is going to be one that is controversial to some and refreshing to others, and again I repeat: “clean” romance crowd, DO NOT READ THIS BOOK. This is one for the Carolina Reaper spicy crowd to enjoy. Particularly those that enjoy their Carolina Reaper as the sauce on some good slow cooked fall off the bone ribs. Dammit, I’m making myself hungry.

Very much recommended.

This review of Out Of Her League by Ava Rani was originally written on May 12, 2026.

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#BookReview: Meet Me In Italy by Brenda Novak

Solid Women’s Fiction/ Romance Blend. This is one of those tales the genre blends between women’s fiction and technically satisfying all known RWA/RNA “romance genre” requirements… while being around habanero spicy to boot, at least in once instance. (Others are closer to jalapeno or even milder, though still stronger than a warm glass of milk.)

Told from a few different characters’ perspectives and thus allowing them all to feel fully fleshed out, one weakness here is that many characters outside these specific perspective characters often feel… not as fully fleshed out. Indeed, at least a few are “I need a character in this role” thin – but for the most part they’re also barely relevant to the story at hand, so it does make at least a degree of sense that they aren’t as strongly written. Particularly given the length of the tale even with these “less fully fleshed out” characters – giving them more to do and making them feel more fully alive the way our main characters do could easily have added a few dozen pages to this already decently chunky tale, particularly given its type.

Overall this is exactly one of those safe *enough* women’s fiction / romance blends that while it may have a thing or two here or there that may begin to step on some toes, for most readers this really will go down about as easily as a cool bottle of Coca Cola on a hot summer day – which is exactly what it was designed to do, clearly. It is that exact kind of not-quite-bland-yet-also-not-too-memorable tale that is almost explicitly designed to appeal to as many readers as possible, and I have exactly zero doubt that it will do exactly that. If you’re looking for a safe *enough* read over the summer, one that transports you to an exotic location – again visiting Italy’s Amalfi Coast, as Sarah Penner’s The Amalfi Curse did last summer and a few others have done over the years – and tickles the brain *enough* and warms the heart *enough* while also providing *enough*… “excitement”… for other regions of the body that it will quite clearly play well with the summer “beach read” / “vacation read” set, which this is clearly intended for.

One thing that makes this a touch more interesting to read after its release (due to life issues arising just before its release, despite having had it as an Advance Review Copy for nearly four months prior to release) is Novak’s public announcement about her own real life shortly after the publication of this book and how that seems to inform various aspects of this tale.

There is also a decent amount of social commentary about various topics, specifically the publishing industry as well as a few others, but other than perhaps the publishing industry “inside baseball”, none of it ever really comes across as preachy. Again, this is where the brain is tickled a bit while never going so far as to produce real agitation, at least for most readers.

Ultimately this is a book that will likely do everything it set out to do – a perfectly safe, flavorful enough, summer/ vacation/ beach read that will play well with the women’s fiction/ romance set generally while being perhaps a bit spicier than the Hallmarkie crowd specifically would prefer.

Very much recommended.

This review of Meet Me In Italy by Brenda Novak was originally written on May 11, 2026.

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#BookReview: American Rambler by Isaac Fitzgerald

Solid Travelogue/Memoir Needs Documentation To Be Solid As History. This is one of those books where read as a travelogue/ memoir from a 40 ish yr old dude who has lived a life few of us can really imagine (though far too many can imagine quite well, at least in some experiences discussed herein), it really works quite well. Fitzgerald found an esoteric thing connected (ish) to his home area and childhood and uses that in midlife as a way to both connect with people he otherwise would never have met and to examine his own life, and in these aspects the tale here really is a solid slice of Americana as it exists in this post-COVID world.

But approaching this as anything remotely resembling a history of Johnny Appleseed – even though this history is discussed – would be a mistake. Because even though Fitzgerald frequently mentions various actual biographies of Appleseed, he never once actually cites them – at least not in this Advance Review Copy text I’ve had for a little over four months prior to publication day. Indeed, that is actually the star deduction here – there is not one shred of any bibliography at all in this text, when similar nonfiction books – even similar memoir based books! – average out around the 15% or so documentation point.

But there again, Fitzgerald isn’t an academic. At all. As this story will tell you. Repeatedly.

Those interested in seeing the actual lived lives of their fellow humans will enjoy this book. It has an interesting structure and due to the particular event chosen for that structure has an interesting cadence to the tale that is atypical and indeed refreshing to a point, and it reads as particularly raw and honest at pretty well all points herein. Specifically including at least some stories here where Fitzgerald doesn’t exactly come out looking as perfect as those memes say we generally try to show ourselves on Instagram or LinkedIn. And yes, there are even points where the room gets a touch dusty.

Overall an interesting tale that will absolutely appeal to at least some readers, and one that helps bring out the commonalities in so many of us even as so much of our lives tries to tear us apart by our differences, and for that reason alone it should get more attention than it likely will.

Very much recommended.

This review of American Rambler by Isaac Fitzgerald was originally written on May 9, 2026.

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#BookReview: Five Star Summer by Sarah Morgan

Low Stakes Medium Spice Sarah Morgan/ Hallmarkie Summer Tale. Sarah Morgan basically has two settings: summer and Christmas, and she seems to make it a point to release both types of book every year. This being a May release and given the title, it is obviously her summer version. Which does involve coastal/ beach living and general summer-ish vibes without being too country or culture specific. (Well done as this book takes place in both the UK and the US, though the bulk of the tale is in the UK.)

If you’ve never read a Sarah Morgan tale before, this – like pretty well all of them, at least in my experience – is a solid introduction to her general style and conforms pretty solidly to “her style”. Not to the level of “if you’ve read one of her books you’ve read them all” but certainly to the level of the Hallmarkie “everything will be in this style with different particulars and take that as you will”, and yes, there is a difference there.

Those that can’t stand the heat of a jalapeno or so, know that this book is likely too spicy for you. Those that need a Carolina Reaper to be able to feel any heat at all, know that this book is nowhere near spicy enough for you. For most readers that fall somewhere in between, this book will likely be engaging without being distracting.

Overall, as I said in the title, really just a solid low stakes, medium spice, Sarah Morgan/ Hallmarkie type tale perfect for when you want to escape “actual” reality and know that there isn’t anything problematic or disturbing (for most readers, at minimum) in the book you’ve chosen to escape into.

Very much recommended.

This review of Five Star Summer by Sarah Morgan was originally written on May 3, 2026.

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#BookReview: Handle With Care by Marybeth Mayhew Whalen

Don’t You Forget About Me. Yes, the title is a Breakfast Club reference… because at its heart, this is essentially a Breakfast Club tale for adults – of a type, at least. A group of strangers forced together all day, all with secrets of how they found themselves there at that moment. An emotional tale of what happens over those several hours.

And, in a bit of irony, other than the “it has cussing!!!!” one star review, literally every complaint in every existing one star review on Goodreads as I write this review nearly 10 days after publication of this book (despite having had it as an Advance Review Copy for several months!) is actually addressed either by realizing that this is a Breakfast Club type tale or even directly within the tale itself as things are wrapping up.

This one hit hard in a few different ways for me. One character has a situation where they made a similar choice to one I made over 20 yrs ago that continues to haunt me at times. Another faced an impossible situation that I’ve faced with far lower stakes more than once. Another sheds some light on some of the things that almost had to have been happening in those involved in the real life situation I mentioned moments ago that continues to haunt me.

But even without those direct personal connections – connections that are almost so common as to be universal, which was one of the things that, again, made Breakfast Club itself so beloved – this really is one that if you have a heart at all, it is going to feel the pull in these words. At some point, which may be different for each reader, the room is *going* to become very dusty indeed. Whalen just has a way of doing that, and this book is no different there.

Indeed, the *one* thing I can find to fault at all is a particular bit in the author’s note at the end that will leave a sour tinge of an aftertaste to many readers – but that is literally the author’s note after the story itself is completed. The story itself is truly an emotional successor to Breakfast Club for those with a bit more “life experience” since that era, and absolutely *nails* this particular vibe.

Very much recommended.

This review of Handle With Care by Marybeth Mayhew Whalen was originally written on April 23, 2026.

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#BookReview: Second Chances by Kellie Coates Gilbert

Solid Second Set. This book picks up shortly after where Silverleaf, Book 1 of this new series, ended – so absolutely read it first – and continues the story of the Haverly family, largely extending plot lines from the first book for some of the family members… and introducing a few new ones for others.

Fans of family dramas featuring elite families of some form – think a less soapy Dynasty or a more rural Blue Bloods or similar – are going to love this new series and this tale in particular, as there are some dynamics that play out in both very fun and very “AW SNAP, IT DONE HAPPENED NOW!” manners.

While this is perhaps a touch spicier than the prior book – *maybe* – it is still more akin to an eggnog or horchata than anything truly spicy. And with very few exceptions, almost always between a married couple anyway. Gilbert clearly knows her fans and target audience well, and trust me, you’ll see worse on even broadcast television these days. Which, yes, I know, isn’t saying much for some… and for others will mean that there isn’t nearly enough. But Gilbert works these scenes very well indeed to great effect for her purposes, and really, that’s what *any* scene in a book like this should strive for.

Overall truly a fun overall tale, one that perhaps touches a bit close as I deal with some similar issues as raised here in my own real life. As in, my wife left for pre-op for a major surgery related to some issues that play heavily into one of the storylines of this very book as I was finishing it. By the time this tale is officially published, my wife will have had the surgery in question and… let’s just say I know well the strain of the characters involved in this situation. In some ways, my own is a touch worse, in others, theirs is. Quite similar and all too real, regardless. And one that unfortunately far too many people will have a similar experience with.

But truly, read this book for the excellent family drama… and be ready for even more, because this series is still in its early phases.

Very much recommended.

This review of Second Chances by Kellie Coates Gilbert was originally written on April 22, 2026.