Tag: womensfiction

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#BookReview: The Memory Collectors by Dete Meserve

More Women’s Fiction Than Science Fiction. Seven years ago, in 2018’s The Space Between, Meserve managed to take a quasi-science/ science fiction concept of a NASA scientist discovering an asteroid behind the sun and spin an electric missing person tale around it – and did so quite well.

Here, she again delves into the “science fiction” element… without ever writing a convincing science fiction book. Yes, it has elements of scifi – the main thrust of the plot is that it is now possible to “time travel” into your own memories and there is now tech to do exactly this. But that is where the science fiction begins and ends here, and other than a (brief) realistic look at the price of such groundbreaking tech and how it would spread to even remotely common use, there really isn’t an actual “scifi” bent to this particular tale.

Now, if one approaches this from more of a “women’s fiction” tale with a few nods to scifi… it actually works a LOT better and is actually quite a strong story… that just needed those nods to scifi to make it work. As a women’s fiction tale of a mother devastated over her son’s death and another mother devastated over something she did that can never be forgiven, both seeking to understand what happened and both desperate to have even a few more minutes of their lives before said events… this is a truly compelling tale.

Meserve manages to weave all four central characters’ stories together seamlessly, though the fact that all use the same tenses and even the same verbal stylings *can* make it a bit hard to distinguish which character you’re reading, particularly in the beginning bits of a hand-off. And still, you can almost see TV/ film producer Meserve – her “day job” when she’s not writing – thinking of camera angles to show viewers certain elements of certain scenes that the characters themselves won’t necessarily realize at the time. Which is actually a cool effect that she brings to the page quite effectively.

Overall I think opinions will likely be divided on this tale based on which side of it you give more weight, which is why I’m trying to caution you in this review. If you come into this book expecting a science fiction book… if you’re familiar with/ enjoy science fiction before this book, you’re going to be disappointed at the science fiction within it. If you’re coming from a more women’s fiction world and perhaps this is (somehow) your first brush with scifi… the scifi may well work for you here. On the other hand, if you’re coming into this book expecting more of a women’s fiction tale with scifi elements to make it work… congratulations, that is *exactly* what you’ve found.

If you’re more of that first more scifi-oriented crowd that is perhaps looking to branch out but need something somewhat close to your scifi preference in order to take a baby step outside of that space to just test the waters… this really is a strong women’s fiction tale that will allow you to do just that, and you’ll likely find something you genuinely enjoy here. So take the chance.

Either way, maybe you think *I’m* the idiot here and that I have no clue what I’m talking about regarding this book. PLEASE, read the book, write your own review – and feel free to call me out as the idiot you think I am, should you feel the need. 🙂

Very much recommended.

This review of The Memory Collectors by Dete Meserve was originally written on April 8, 2025.

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#BookReview: In The Beautiful Dark by Melissa Payne

Beautiful Execution Of LGBT / Elderly Story Wrapped In Murder Mystery. This was an excellent and beautiful story of several different types of people who don’t often play lead roles in stories coming together to create a particularly powerful one.

You’ve got women loving women – in 1972. You’ve got a whole group of elderly people living in a retirement community in 2024… along with a much younger recluse living in an RV she parks near the community. And yes, you’ve even got both cameo and more expansive scenes with different dogs and even a cat.

Payne handles all aspects of this tale with remarkable care and a particular penchant for showing that no matter our backgrounds or where we find ourselves, we all strive for community and family… and often times, we can be our own worst enemies in having them if we aren’t careful.

The fact that she was able to bring so much near psychological horror level tension into the tale, and even a brief sprint of (somewhat comedic, though this may have been unintentional) action late in the tale truly shows just how well Payne knows her craft, as everything was done pretty damn close to perfectly.

Yes, this is a slow tale – it moves along at about the pace of the elderly people using walkers that so many of the characters are. But it is also a particularly beautiful one in both the characters it chooses to use and the story being told here.

For those looking for more elderly people in books or more naturally LGBT – without feeling forced or preachy at all – this is absolutely a book you should check out, and I genuinely believe you’ll enjoy. If you’re a reader that, for whatever reason, *doesn’t* want to read about either of those types of characters… eh, this really isn’t your book. Just move on in peace rather than one starring it because it has such characters.

Ultimately this really was yet another strong tale from Payne, who has done a phenomenal job throughout her career of creating just such tales.

Very much recommended.

This review of In The Beautiful Dark by Melissa Payne was originally written on April 8, 2025.

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#BookReview: The California Dreamers by Amy Mason Doan

Doan Does It Again. I titled my review of Doan’s LADY SUNSHINE “Cinematic” and my review of her THE SUMMER LIST “The Boys Of Summer”, and I can tell you that despite the few years away, Doan has not lost a single step in her storytelling. This tale is just as cinematic and just as evocative as either of those prior books, and does a phenomenal job of showing one particularly extreme lifestyle… and the repercussions it can have as kids raised within it grow up and begin making decisions of their own.

As with much other fiction – and particularly as I write this review on the day that news breaks that, yet again, Augusta, Ga has arrested a parent trying to make a better life for his kids because he placed them in a safe area for a few minutes while going to a nearby spot for a job interview – yes, there are absolutely elements of this story that would not play in the real world of the 2020s. Yet this book also isn’t set in the real world of the 2020s, instead being set decades earlier, in a period where I myself lived at least very certain specific elements of this life both in and out of the trailer park. Identifying which elements goes into spoiler territory, but suffice it to say that it involves what was truly a common practice among working class families of prior eras – even if it may be criminalized by Karens and bureaucrats today.

Still, even with these elements taken as the fiction they are, the story they work to show is itself quite powerful indeed, and Doan truly does an excellent job of showing how halcyon days may not have been as perfect as were remembered… and perhaps we didn’t know all that we thought we did in those days either. Doan just has a way with coming of age stories, clearly, and yet again it truly shines through here in so very many ways.

Come for the beautiful, evocative prose that captures the best of (what I imagine to be, having never actually experienced it) the California summers, both back in the 80s and again in the early 2000s. Stay for the all too relatable story of children confronting what they think they know about their own childhoods and all the family dynamics this brings forth in adult children dealing with their parents.

Very much recommended.

This review of The California Dreamers by Amy Mason Doan was originally written on April 1, 2025.

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#BookReview: Young Rich Widows by Kimberly Belle, Cate Holahan, Vanessa Lillie, and Layne Fargo

Wild NYC 80s Romp. I really can’t say enough great about this book. The fact that I was able to read it at least partially in a not-so-smoke-filled cigar lounge made it even better personally, if only because it made it that much easier to get “in character” as a dude of the era. (Btw, even though I *was* born in the early 80s, my God, to have been able to be a young adult in that era… the 2000s of my own 20s were wild, but I’m pretty sure that era would have been even more fun. 🙂 ) Moving on…

Seriously, this starts out with a bang… nearly literally… and while the action itself doesn’t start picking up as much until at least the 1/4 to 1/3 or so mark (and *really* in the back half, when it becomes almost a different book), here really is quite a bit to enjoy here. The ladies are clearly distinguished characters – likely stemming from likely having one author handle each? – and the initial “come together” scenes are done particularly well given the overall setting and specific events that have taken place to this point. From there, it becomes a somewhat classic tale of people who think they know each other – and largely hate what they know – being forced to work together to achieve some common goal… before shifting from that into a more action/ thriller tale that Michael Bay would have loved to shoot.

The entire “New York, 1980s” setting hits particularly well as well, complete with the strippers and the drugs and the largesse of the lowlifes, and… well, what I was going to say there gets a touch too close to spoilers, so let’s just say that truly everything about this book simply SCREAMS “1980s NYC”, to the level that you begin to suspect that at least some of the authors had to have at least a version of lived experience here. Yes, it is *that* real and *that* visceral, at least in the side of NYC in this period that it chooses to show.

Overall a book that starts slow but picks up steam, one that people who don’t like multiple POV stories should check out anyway, as it is truly well done in this particular instance. You’ll be glad that its sequel is now ready – I know I was, as I was able to finally start my Advance Review Copy edition of the sequel moments after finishing this book – and yes, you really are going to want to start it right away as well.

Very much recommended.

This review of Young Rich Widows by Kimberly Belle, Cate Holahan, Vanessa Lillie, and Layne Fargo was originally written on April 1, 2025.

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#BookReview: Saltwater by Katy Hays

Beautiful Setting. Atrocious People. Maybe Someone Will See The Light. This is one of those tales where there aren’t really too many “good” people – even the people you ostensibly want to root for are doing some very *bad* things! But the imagery of the beautiful Italian islands is absolutely stunning and well done… and even make it a point to play into the endgame, which is always appreciated.

While the book *does* start rather slow, stick with it. It is no Great Gatsby where the first x amount of it is an utter snooze fest that is more apt to put you to sleep rather than keep you up all night… but it *does* get to the “keep you up all night” level. Eventually. And then it keeps you there until damn near the last word of the tale.

Overall a fun book of its type, one with enough to keep you invested and take you to somewhere not where you are. (Unless you happen to be on said Italian islands. Then… maybe read something else if you want to be transported somewhere else? :D) Actually a rather good beach/ cruise read due to the setting at minimum.

Very much recommended.

This review of Saltwater by Katy Hays was originally written on March 25, 2025.

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#BlogTour: The Spanish Daughter by Soraya Lane

For this blog tour, we’re looking at yet another solid entry in this (loose) series. For this blog tour, we’re looking at The Spanish Daughter by Soraya Lane.

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

Yet Another Solid Entry In (Loose) Series. This is one of the more standalone entries in this loose series, where all the books share a common starting point – a group of women meeting with a lawyer after boxes are discovered with their family’s names on them when a London building is being torn down, then each woman beginning her own path to discover the significance of her box. While some of the previous stories have more of the story of how those boxes came to be in them and are thus more essential to read in order, this one was one of the more complete standalones that could very well be read immediately after the series introduction and still make 100% sense with virtually no spoilers for the rest of the series at all.

So for those considering this series, this could actually serve as a decent starting point, if you don’t want to start at the beginning/ if this book happens to be on sale when you come across it.

The story itself is the same solid blend of both sides of Soraya Lane (romance) and Soraya M. Lane (historical fiction) tales, while this one perhaps leans a touch more to the romance side given the lack of war dangers given the setting (and also the similarities even in the historical side to some of Lane’s cowboy romances as Soraya Lane in particular). In other words, yet again, if you’ve never read Lane’s work and happen to come into this book completely blind, this really is a solid introduction to her overall style of storytelling in both halves of her writing career.

Ultimately this was likely a much needed break – for both Lane herself and for readers – as I very much suspect that the most difficult, most harrowing book of this series is still to come… the actual origins of Hope’s House and the mysteries therein, which have been hinted at in the prior books to more or less degrees, though it is still unclear exactly how many stories Lane has planned before executing on that particular tale, which I expect to be the finale of this series. (But who knows, I could be dead wrong about that. Not claiming any form of knowledge of Lane’s plans, to be crystal clear.)

Very much recommended.

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

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#BlogTour: Beach Vibes by Susan Mallery

For this blog tour, we’re looking at a solid tale of friendship and love… that has nothing at all to do with its title. For this blog tour, we’re looking at Beach Vibes by Susan Mallery.

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

Zero Beach Vibes. Solid Mallery Tale. I normally get a bit into the review before explaining star deductions, but in this particular case the reason for the star deduction is the most critical thing you need to know about this book:

It has *ZERO* beach vibes. Yes, it takes place in Malibu – largely across the street from the beach, at best – but the setting here is largely completely irrelevant to literally anything about the story. Mallery could have changed the location names to almost literally “Anywhere” and the overall story would read and feel *exactly* the same.

Now, with that said, this actually *is* a solid tale of its type = in other words, a women’s fiction/ romance blend that Mallery is so prolific with and does so well. If you’ve never read her works, this is a decent one to begin with – not her worst in my own experiences with her books, yet also not her best, but solidly indicative of her overall style of writing and storytelling.

So if you’re ready for a drama filled tale of two strangers who happen to become friends and who happen to develop an uncommon cross bond with each others’ siblings… this tale will work well for you.

Note that the spice level here is somewhere north of a warm glass of milk yet south of habanero – again, fairly typical of Mallery’s overall style. So those that prefer the warm glass of milk or those that prefer ghost peppers… either direction there, you’re likely going to be left a touch disappointed. Yet the overall tale, outside the bedroom, is actually quite strong in its own right, and you really should give it a chance anyway – there will most likely be other things about this tale that you truly enjoy, and maybe you can glass over the bedroom stuff.

Overall a solid, well told tale… that simply has absolutely *zero* to do with anything remotely associated with its title.

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: Beach Vibes by Susan Mallery”

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#BookReview: His Truth Her Truth by Noelle Holten

Slow Front Builds To Frenetic End. This is one of those stories that starts out with a bang in its prologue before going back in time and achieving the pace of… well, probably a tired slug racing an exhausted turtle. In other words, it is rather S L O W in the beginning.

But hang around, because as things start picking up they also begin spiraling, and soon enough your heart is beating faster as your brain is getting a good workout trying to read at the pace of the plot.

There’s a lot going on in these pages, and a lot that a lot of people won’t like – particularly so much domestic abuse, among other issues. But there is also a lot to like overall here, and Holten does a solid job of telling exactly the story she seemingly wants to tell at exactly the pace she seemingly wants to tell it at.

Ultimately, this is one that will have you gripping the final pages, desperate to see exactly how it ends… and that is pretty much what most people want of our thrillers, right?

Very much recommended.

This review of His Truth Her Truth by Noelle Holten was originally written on March 1, 2025.

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#BookReview: We Are Made Of Stars by Rochelle Weinstein

Surprising And Unexpected Yet Powerful. Following Weinstein on social media, I know she was writing this book shortly after the Hamas attacks on Israel in late 2023. As I finished reading this text (that I’ve had on my Kindle for a couple of months or so even now), Hamas had been parading the caskets of several babies they had murdered earlier in the day. Given that the Surfside Condo collapse in Miami a few years ago now – where Weinstein’s family personally knew a few of the victims – clearly contributed quite a bit of emotional heft to the book she was writing at the time, I expected the same to be true here, as Weinstein is quite vocal (yet, to be clear, not preachy) about her Jewish faith and support of the State of Israel. (Haters, go the fuck away. While I’ve only known Weinstein online to date, she is truly a great person in my own interactions with her, no matter what your own political beliefs may be – and we *do* disagree quite substantially politically.)

So that is the background I approached this story with, my own “baggage” I brought into the Drift, even as I generally approach each and every book with a blank slate – and indeed knew *nothing* about this book beyond its title and that Weinstein had written it when I agreed to read and review it, and even when reading it this remained all that I knew (plus that it releases next week so I needed to hurry up with the reading and reviewing!).

What I actually found here was, as I noted in the title of the review, quite surprising and unexpected – for some reason I expected at least one blatantly Jewish character, if not every single protagonist in the book, to be honest, along with a much more blatantly Jewish plot, along the lines of say Jean Meltzer’s books… even though I know from prior reading that this isn’t really Weinstein’s style. What I *actually* got here was a powerful tale of several flawed duos within families – mostly husbands and wives going trying to work through some level of trauma within their relationship, but also a powerful story (that takes a more prominent role later in the text) between a mother and her daughter.

While there are a total of ten main characters and the story *is* told from multiple perspectives (yes, I know there are readers who don’t like that either – if you’re at least willing to try it, this is a *really* good one to try with), Weinstein (and, perhaps, her editors) made the smart choice of limiting our number of perspectives to just a few, and never both halves of any of the five duos. This helps both story cohesion and progression, as even with chapter based perspective switches, at least this way we aren’t getting first person views of both sides of the dynamic in question.

And the traumas that are happening here… even without being explicitly tied into anything overly “real-world”, they’re at the same time all too real. I don’t want to detail them here due to spoiler potential, but I will note that Weinstein truly shines here in just how real and relatable she manages to make pretty well everything about all of these interweaving secrets and dynamics, and the pacing is done particularly well such that some surprises are tossed in early, others are late and seemingly out of nowhere (yet fit perfectly), and still others are teased well with what becomes for me at least a perfectly satisfactory payoff.

Overall truly a powerful and well written story, exactly what Weinstein is known for, and one that will have the room quite dusty at several different points – you’ve been warned about that too, now. 😉 This is one that will leave you with that beautiful “wow, what did I just read” feeling (in the best possible ways) and will hopefully show you a path through even your own struggles.

Very much recommended.

This review of We Are Made Of Stars by Rochelle Weinstein was originally written on February 21, 2025.

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#BookReview: A New Leash On Life by Patricia Sands

A Moving Ending. Yet again packing quite a bit of story into such scant page count, this is a great ending to this series that gives an epilogue of our dog breeder Leslie’s adventures while also telling a compelling story of life after your long time husband has been diagnosed with dementia. It *also* manages to spend the most time out of the United States than any other book, and only Collar Me Crazy, book 2 of the series, spends more time outside of Dragonfly Cove itself.

And yet the tale here is still absolutely centered around Dragonfly Cove and this most recent litter of puppies from Leslie. Here, Chance gets his time to star as the central puppy of the story – and yes, once again (as is so often in this series) he tends to steal the scene most times he’s around.

Again using an elderly main character (as the previous book, Teacher’s Pet did), this tale does a remarkable job of showing both blood and found family and how they all come together. Truly a great tale in a small package, and yet again more evidence of how page count doesn’t give any indication of just how good a story is, with this one clocking in just over 150 pages.

Very much recommended.

This review of A New Leash On Life by Patricia Sands was originally written on January 1, 2024.