Tag: womensfiction

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#BookReview: What The Nanny Saw by Kaira Rouda

Good Enough Domestic Thriller. Technically, there *is* a twist in this book. I’ll give it that. But the “shocking moment” described in the description (ok, Masked Singer’s “reveal the revealing reveal”) happens *late*. As in, personally I was expecting that particular moment to be somewhere no later than at least 2/3 into the book – and it happens closer to 90% in. I thought the book would turn more into a cat and mouse type book beyond that point, and to a degree, it did. But there just wasn’t enough “there” there to really say this is even much above average for its genre, which is utter bullshit because I know Rouda is capable of so much more. Still, there’s nothing technically/ objectively-ish wrong here, so by my own standards this *is* a 5* book, even though I find myself agreeing quite a bit with many of the 2* reviews from others.

At just over 300 pages, this book *does* in fact read much quicker, almost more like a sub-200 page book. So there is absolutely that going for it, particularly for those who don’t have a lot of time to commit to a book. And there is absolutely a solid degree of “what is going to happen next” to keep you reading well past bedtime. It just seems that the ultimate payoff for staying up so late… doesn’t quite land as well as it could, really. And hey, maybe that’s more of a “me” thing.

So read this book yourself and see what you think – and leave a review yourself everywhere you can, whether it be Goodreads, Hardcover.app, BookHype.com, BookBub.com, or TheStoryGraph.com – all places you’ll find this very review.

Recommended.

This review of What The Nanny Saw by Kaira Rouda was originally written on November 13, 2024.

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#BookReview: When We Chased The Light by Emily Bleeker

Compelling Companion. This book is more “companion” novel to Bleeker’s 2023 novel When We Were Enemies than “sequel”, in that only the prologue and epilogue feature the more modern timeline from the earlier book. The rest of this story is, well, the rest of the historical story found in pieces in the earlier book as our lead character there tries to piece together her family’s past.

Bleeker does a remarkable job of continuing the story of survival she began in When We Were Enemies and continuing through WWII and the ensuing decades. And just when you think survival is all you get – and with some interesting foreshadowing bringing another well known tale into the narrative in a perfectly timed (both narrative wise and timeline wise) point – … Bleeker manages to bring heavy amounts of dust into the room and absolutely *shatter* you, the reader. But this is done in almost literally the last pages and even words of this tale, so those who give up short of the finish line won’t get to the best part of the tale overall… much like those who give up short of the goal line in most other things, come to think of it. 🙂

I’ve literally read everything Bleeker has written, from her powerful debut through this one, and this is easily near the top of her stack in ambition and overall storytelling. Bleeker has had others that may hit even harder (her 2015 debut, WRECKAGE), but this one shows a remarkable growth as a storyteller overall, able to write this in just a few months and make it flow so well with both its predecessor and within the times and worlds in which it inhabits in our “real” world.

Overall a truly excellent book, and very much recommended.

As an aside specifically for the BookAnon.com version of this review, let me add here that Emily and I have known each other online since sometime shortly after WRECKAGE was published. I read it, and pushed a book club I was in at the time to read it. I then brought her into a related Facebook book club I was in at the time, and a couple of years later it was Emily sharing that Lake Union was looking for more members of their review team that got me into that particular group… and effectively truly got this blog off the ground. That group has now been ended longer than it ran, at least while I was a part of it, but I finally had a chance to meet Emily earlier this year when we both happened to be at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom at the same time. If you look closely at the picture below, you’ll see that I had just downloaded a certain book to my Kindle just the day before meeting her. It was truly an awesome time finally getting to meet someone I’ve known online so long and so well, and I truly do continue to be amazed with her writing… even when I sometimes push back on certain elements of it. 😀

This review of When We Chased The Light by Emily Bleeker was originally written on October 22, 2024.

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#BookReview: A Wish In The Wind by Kay Bratt

Reading The Last Book First? WHAT???? Ok, real confession time: I’ve bought every single book in this series – and this is the *only* one I’ve read, specifically because I also received it as an Advance Review Copy. So why did I buy the other 16 books? I’m familiar with the work, and in many cases the person, of the authors in question, and I trust them to give me solid stories.

This one is yet another such solid story, perhaps of a bit of a Hallmark Movie type vibe – but that is really the intent of this entire series, so it works. Bratt in particular is truly capable of so much more emotional depth (check out her By The Seas series or my own first encounter with her work, Dancing With The Sun) and even outright action/ drama (check out her Hart’s Ridge series), but she shows here that she can contain those other impulses and write on theme and on brand for a collaborative effort – and that too shows great strength and talent as a storyteller (or any group participant), to be able to blend just so well.

So, there it is, really – if you like the Hallmark Movie vibe (and clearly *many* do), you’re going to enjoy both this book and this entire series. If that isn’t really your think, this likely won’t be either.

Oh, and one other strength to both the book and the series: They’re all super short. I read this (120 age ish) book in about 2.5 hrs or so this afternoon. In other words, great for those busy with other things that are looking for quick breaks to enjoy something well written and quite enjoyable that won’t really offend most anyone not actively looking for something to be offended by.

Very much recommended.

This review of A Wish In The Wind by Kay Bratt was originally written on October 15, 2024.

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#BookReview: The Residence by Nicola Marsh

Southern Gothic Amuse-Bouche. This is a short story (really short, with barely enough pages to qualify as a review in some sites if page count were word count in the review) that has one specific goal: To get your mind in the world of the Outer Banks Secrets and the Southern Gothic tone the series is built around. (Which is interesting indeed, given that Marsh is an Australian who I don’t know has ever been to North Carolina’s Outer Banks at all… but more on that momentarily.)

Y’all, as someone who has *been* to the Outer Banks and has lived every day of his (non-vacationing, and even some vacationing) life no further north than 30 minutes or so below the Georgia-Tennessee State Line and has most of the last decade barely six miles off the coast not far from St Augustine… Marsh *nails* Southern Coastal life, at least the parts of it she chooses to expose and explore here, and she absolutely uses it *perfectly* in her Southern Gothic approach. Yes, this isn’t *all* that the American South is, and perhaps it isn’t even a great representation of all that the American South *can be*, but on the creepy/ gothic side? Marsh captured it quite well indeed, particularly if my assumption is true that she’s never actually been here.

Truly an excellent short story that does everything it is intended to do *and* serves as a nice lunch break read when you want something a bit creepy but don’t have much time to read for whatever reason.

Very much recommended.

This review of The Residence by Nicola Marsh was originally written on October 15, 2024.

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#BookReview: Every Moment Since by Marybeth Mayhew Whalen

Dark. Dreary. Dismal. Oppressive. And Then The Candle Flickers To Life. This is one of those books that takes the hyper-dark and hyper-oppressive feel of the singular worst book I’ve *EVER* read – The Road by Cormac McCarthy – and does what McCarthy never could: Provide just that flicker of a spark of a candle lighting. *Just* enough to provide *some* level of hope. Even when most everyone in this book is so broken by the central issue – a child going missing decades ago – and their secrets about that night that none of them *really* *want* that hope, the reader *needs* that smallest flicker… and Whalen provides it in particularly dramatic form.

For those who are not fans of multi-perspective books… this one isn’t going to change that, sorry. There are a lot of perspectives going on here, and a lot of sudden switching that can get a touch confusing at times, particularly as we switch between “then” and “now”.

But really, that was the only *potential* flaw here, and not everyone has that particular hangup. (I don’t, I actually thought the multi-perspectives made the story work much *better* in this particular case, as we get so many views on what happened here and how different people are reacting differently.)

The tie in to Richard Jewel of the Centennial Park Bombing during the 1996 Olympic Park Bombings in Atlanta was interesting, even if Whalen actually meant that particular character to be a more general representation. (And to be clear, it is only my own mind that made the connection at all, though perhaps others who were living in the Atlanta region during that time also might make it. The actual characterization is far more generic and could represent any number of people in similar situations.)

Overall a strong, if extremely dark and depressing, tale extremely well told. Very much recommended.

This review of Every Moment Since by Marybeth Mayhew Whalen was originally written on October 14, 2024.

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#BookReview: The Sullivan’s Island Supper Club by Susan M. Boyer

Solid Story Suffers Slipshod Storytelling. Wait. Sexton. You rated this thing 5* and yet you’re telling me *in the title of the review* that it actually had major problems? Yes. Why? Because just because *I* thought the multi-perspective/ prologue-as-flashforward approach didn’t work as well for this story as Ms. Boyer had hoped doesn’t mean that *you* will. And beyond that disagreement on storytelling (or perhaps even editing, really) approach, this actually was a solid story akin to a South Carolina Low Country version of Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid, perhaps without the atmospheric nature of how Reid chose to tell that story. It has the same level of overall drama and mystery, and the actual tale being told here was just as good if not better – really depends there on whether you prefer a more genteel Old Money East Coast lifestyle or a more glitzy Nouveau Riche West Coast lifestyle. As a native Son of the South who grew up in the trailer parks of Georgia but rose to become a Vice President at a Fortune 50 global megacorporation (which sounds more impressive than it was, fwiw), yeah, I’m far more familiar with and a fan of the East Coast version. (Though this level of neighborhood snobbery, pettiness, and gossip are all aspects of the South that I’ve truly despised for most of my life.)

Still, ultimately Boyer tells a strong women’s fiction/ drama tale that does both her characters and her setting justice, and is a great mind vacation to the area for those looking to escape whatever in your “real” life has you needing it.

Very much recommended.

This review of The Sullivan’s Island Supper Club by Susan M. Boyer was originally written on October 1, 2024.

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#BlogTour: The Banned Books Club by Brenda Novak

For this blog tour, we’re looking at a book that is *just* on the right side of being labeled as “deceptive marketing”, based on its title. For this blog tour, we’re looking at The Banned Books Club by Brenda Novak.

First, the review I posted to the book sites (Hardcover.app / BookHype.com / BookBub.com / TheStoryGraph.com / Goodreads.com):

*Almost* Deceptive Marketing. This is one of those books where the title has *just* enough to do with the book itself that it isn’t *actually* deceptive marketing… but you can look to the lower starred reviews and see that many readers felt that the title and book had little to do with each other. (And they’re right.) There is really nothing in this tale about banning books or anything related to the topic, other than a sentence or two of setup that is also (currently, as of publication day) in the description of the book.

Instead, the tale we *actually* get is a version of the Prodigal Son. One sister left years ago after having her world shattered in HS, the other sister stayed in their hometown and has now been taking care of their mother as her mother’s health rapidly fails. As mom’s time is nearing its end, the prodigal sister is convinced to return… and now, *everyone* in town is going to have to come to terms with the fallout from all those years ago.

In the process, we get a lot of different things, some discussed more than others – spousal abuse/ controlling spouse, sexual harassment/ teen molestation (to be clear, the age of the student in question is *not* “child molestation” in all States), breast cancer, coming home, uncovering family secrets, really quite a bit, such that even in a 350 ish page book… like I said, not all of it is covered n much depth.

And of course we also get a romance plot here… and maybe more… because, well, why not? 😉

Overall, for what it *actually* is, this tale is actually quite strong in many ways. Yes, it has its weaknesses at times, but I think overall this ultimately comes out on the stronger side of resiliency and overcoming your demons. But this is also a tale where your mileage truly will vary, so give it a read and make your own call.

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 Banned Books Club by Brenda Novak”

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#BlogTour: The Paris Daughter by Soraya Lane

For this blog tour, we’re looking at yet another excellent entry in Soraya Lane’s Lost Daughters series that seemingly brings us that much closer to the finale. For this blog tour, we’re looking at The Paris Daughter by Soraya Lane.

First, the review I posted to the book sites (Hardcover.app / BookHype.com / TheStoryGraph.com / Goodreads.com):

(Mostly) Solid Next Entry In Series, Brings Us Closer To Finale. What seems to be clear with this series is that our final book in it will seemingly be the origin story of Hope House, the very entity that essentially started the entire series – which itself would be an intriguing dynamic, storytelling wise. This book does a phenomenal job of bringing us that much closer to that tale… possibly as soon as the next book after this one???

Otherwise, this book largely works to the same degree and in the same ways that its predecessors do – they all manage to superbly combine both elements of Soraya Lane’s romance writing prowess and her historical fiction writing prowess (as Soraya M. Lane). In this particular book, yet again both elements are particularly strong, though I might perhaps give the edge to the historical side – Evaline is truly one of the more assertive (in the best of ways) ladies Lane has ever created in a fictional period, and yet Evaline is also true to her times – she manages to have that steel hand wrapped in velvet that women of earlier times were well known (at least in some circles) for, and yet nothing is actually out of place here. The modern timeline is another of the “writer writes about her life” trope, and yet again, it works well with Lane writing it.

I say “Mostly” in the title because the back part of the tale just felt like it was missing… something? I’m not even sure what, exactly. Maybe more time with Evaline post-war, rather than the way we (the readers) get that information here? Even then, I’m not *sure* that’s what I felt was missing, I just know that the ending ultimately felt a touch abrupt and not as complete as these tales have been, for some reason. But you, the reader of my review, should absolutely read this book and maybe help me figure out what I missed here?

Ultimately truly another excellent entry combining both of Lane’s strengths.

Very much recommended.

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

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#BookReview: House Of Glass by Sarah Pekkanen

Solid Suspense Takes Atypical Turns. This is one of those tales that almost seems destined for at least a sequel, if not a series of some level. There’s more than enough here to justify it, and yet this story itself is fully complete as is. In other words, coming back to this world would be interesting and compelling… but not necessarily *necessary*.

I love the way that certain elements are played in an all-too-real-yet-not-usually-shown-in-fiction manner, and the specific construction of how Stella’s past and present collide is particularly well done – and perhaps indicative that no sequel is expected here, as that particular sub plot could have been spread across a small series – while not feeling rushed or out of place fully happening within this story itself.

There *is* one particular element that could throw at least some readers off, and that is the (minor) romance subplot and specifically that it introduces an LGBT element not otherwise present in the story. Minor spoiler there, apologies, but I’d rather avoid 1*s (which I’ve seen already) specifically because of this. So just know it going forward, and yes, I know that others will praise this book specifically for that very point. *In the context of this particular story as told*, to me it felt refreshing that the author would choose to go that direction rather than feeling forced in just to have that “representation” in the book, but it is also a point where I could see others feeling that it was a touch forced, and they wouldn’t get much pushback from me beyond what I just stated – it didn’t feel that way *to me*.

Overall a truly well told, suspenseful, complex tale with a more-fleshed-out-than-many main character that clearly has a lot going on, and a tale whose world seems ripe for exploring more of. So here’s hoping we get a chance to, and here’s hoping it will be soonish.

Very much recommended.

This review of House Of Glass by Sarah Pekkanen was originally written on September 13, 2024.

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#BlogTour: My Sister’s Boyfriend by Nicola Marsh

For this blog tour, we’re looking at a dark, creepy yet non-supernatural sequel perfect for the fall/ Halloween mood. For this blog tour, we’re looking at My Sister’s Boyfriend by Nicola Marsh.

First, the review I posted to the book sites (Hardcover.app / BookHype.com / TheStoryGraph.com / BookBub.com / Goodreads.com):

Dark. Creepy. Maybe Read My Sister’s Husband First. This is one of those dark, creepy books where *most* of the worst stuff (though not all) is “off screen”, so even though there are mentions of animal abuse, rape, sexual assault, and more, for the most part we never “see” any of this happening – and more often than not, it is merely mentioned, rather than “showing” anything at all about the abuse at hand. (Though there are points where *slightly* more is shown, to be clear – it is simply that the actual abuse is never shown.)

So for those who can handle seeing such primarily “off screen” abuse in a twisty thriller all about family relationships… this one is done quite well, but truly works *best* if its predecessor, My Sister’s Husband, is fresh in your mind. (Vs my having read 869 books between them – seriously.) The events pick up after the events of the first book, with most of the relationships between the characters already well established from that book. (But with enough recap that it is possible to follow along here, there’s just a lot to learn.) Told from just three perspectives (rather than each character’s or a single narrator’s), we get a good sense of what is going on in these complex and complicated relationships, along with a lot of backstory for our new character for this book.

Still, for those looking for dark and creepy yet not necessarily supernatural reads as we go into this fall/ Halloween season, both of these books are quite good for exactly that kind of mood.

Very much recommended.

After the jump, the “publisher details” – book info, description, author bio, social links, and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: My Sister’s Boyfriend by Nicola Marsh”