Month: July 2017

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #imwayr

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly post to share what you recently finished reading, what you’re currently reading, and what you plan on reading this week. It’s hosted by Kathryn at Bookdate. 

For the first time I missed this post last week. I totally spaced it, I was super bummed once I realized it. I assumed I would get tons of reading done this summer and have all kinds of time on my hands since my kids wouldn't have school and their extra curriculars and I was soooo wrong 😂 Things have been crazier than ever, maybe when they start school next week I'll have more time?!

What I Read Last Week:

Beneath the Surface was a good read but something was missing for me.

Mrs. Saint and the Defectives was a super fun, quirky read.

The Mentor was a creepy, chilling thriller.

I joined in on Throwback Thursday for the first time and read Fear Nothing and loved it!

The Lost Wife was a super emotional read.

Deadly Friendship was an awesome read and I have a character named after me, how cool is that?!

The Trouble With Words was a fun, heartfelt read.

Currently Reading:

Up Next:

I also have a really fun giveaway that I'm super excited about later this week so stay tuned!!

How was your week?

Review: Emerald Coast by Anita Hughes

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Release date: August 1, 2017

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Genre: Women's Fiction

Blurb:

Set on the glamorous Italian island, Emerald Coast is a touching and humorous story about marriage and the difficulty of finding love and happiness at the same time.

Lily Bristol arrives at a luxurious resort in Sardinia for the grand opening of her newest home furnishing store on the Emerald Coast. She's a successful business woman with an international chain of stores from San Francisco to Milan. Thirty-two and newly divorced, she's ready to handle things on her own. At least until her private butler, Enzo, escorts her to a beautiful suite where she notices a suspiciously familiar pair of men's slippers and shaving kit.

Lily is horrified. Her ex-husband Oliver moved out of their restored Connecticut farmhouse six months ago, but they booked this trip when they were trying to save their marriage and never cancelled the reservation. Oliver, a food critic for the New York Times, is here covering Sardinia's hottest new restaurant. The only other available room is the adjoining suite; and worse, Oliver isn't alone. He's brought a twenty-something named Angela with him.

Lily is determined to make do and enlists Enzo to find her a suitable man. But it's not as easy to find new love as they both expected. When Lily and Oliver find themselves alone on a very important night, they turn to each other. Sparks begin to fly, but can they be together without breaking each other's hearts?

Review:

If you're looking for the perfect book to completely escape into, Emerald Coast is it! While I was reading it I felt like I was indulging myself, it had a decadent feel to it as most of the people visiting this exotic locale are glamorous. Though it wasn't quite as scintillating, I still felt a similar vibe to Nigel May and Jackie Collins, it had that same breezy style and stunning setting that their books both have.

The premise for this put a fresh spin on a standard romance; Lily and Oliver are already divorced so there is no brand new love story here. Instead, they both reflect on their relationship throughout the book so you learn about their past that way, which was fun. Both were pretty complex characters with their own quirks and habits that made them endearing. I connected more to Lily than to Oliver, she was a lovable scatterbrain while he was a bit annoying at times.

My favorite part of this was the gorgeous setting, Hughes did a fabulous job of bringing the Emerald Coast to life. The writing was rich and the descriptions were vivid and so easy to conjure up. Add in a little humor and a bit of raciness, what more could you want for a fun, summer beach read?!

Overall rating: 4/5

July Wrap Up

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Curves, Kisses and Chocolate Ice Cream was a delightfully decadent romance. 


Wives of War was a historical novel with a heavy dose of romance. 

A Criminal Defense was a fantastic legal thriller with a killer twist. 

The Child was a well written thriller but unfortunately I figured out the main twist and was left disappointed. 

Each Little Lie was a twisty read with a gripping premise. 

The Secrets She Keeps was an excellent psychological thriller.

Final Girls was an excellent thriller. 

Every Secret Thing was women’s fiction with a literary bent. 

The Stolen Girls is the second in a series that I’m really enjoying. 


Hello, Sunshine was a lighthearted read with plenty of drama. 

Bring Her Home was a fantastic read, it’s my favorite Bell novel hands down. 

The Other Twin was another winner from Orenda.

The Bookshop at Water’s End was a lovely summer read with heart and depth. 

The Marriage Pact was a crazy, strange thriller. 


The Captain’s Daughter was wonderful, atmospheric read.

Reported Missing was a slow burn type of read.


Let the Dead Speak was a fantastic mystery/thriller. 

Lift And Separate was a fun book with a great lead character. 

Death Plays a Part was an adorable and fun cozy mystery.

The Truth We Bury left me with mixed feelings.

A Stranger in the House was a twisty thriller.

I Have Never was a super cute, fun read.

Little Sister was a twisty psychological thriller, I loved it!

Before You Were Mine was a heartfelt and touching read.

Beneath the Surface was a decent thriller.

Mrs. Saint and the Defectives was a cute and quirky read.

The Mentor was a dark, twisty thriller.

Fear Nothing was my first pick for Throwback Thursday.

The Lost Wife was a beautiful, evocative read.

Deadly Friendship is the third in a series I’m loving!

The Trouble With Words cute, fun read.

Emerald Coast was a racy, fun beach read.
July was a good month, I read 32 books even though I felt like I didn’t have as much time to read, I guess I did?! I read plenty of great books but my favorite book this month was….




The Secrets She Keeps! Bring Her Home was a really close second.

How was your month? If you have a Wrap Up I would love to see it so leave a link in the comments. 

Blog Tour: The Trouble With Words by Suzie Tullett @SuzieTullett @bombshellpub

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Release date: July 29, 2017

Publisher: Bombshell Books

Genre: Romantic Comedy

Blurb:

Annabel is desperate to have a baby – there’s just one problem. She’s single, and after losing her husband in a hit and run accident she’s just not ready for a relationship. 
Dan is on the hunt for the perfect woman – but when his mother drops a bombshell, he starts to feel the pressure.
When Dan and Annabel’s worlds collide, both think that maybe they’ve found the solution to their problems…but things start to get messy.
Can both Dan and Annabel get what they want?
Both will soon find out that the trouble with words is finding the right thing to say.

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for The Trouble With Words!

Review:

This was such an adorable, fun read! It's told from both Annabel and Dan's perspective and it flips back and forth each chapter. The premise was cute, Annabel is a widow who wants to have a baby and is looking for a sperm donor and Dan is happily single but his mother really wants him to settle down. It's not as predictable as I had assumed it may be based on the blurb, the author had quite a few tricks up her sleeve that kept me engaged.

I really liked Annabel and couldn't help but feel for her. Being widowed so young must be devastating and she still managed to have a positive outlook on life. Dan was a pretty clueless guy but he did have his charms, though there were times I wanted to smack some sense into him! My favorite character was actually a secondary one and that was Dan's mom. She was hilarious and brought so much life to the story. She's a little troublemaker and was such a vivacious addition to a sweet story.

This was a really fast paced read, a lovely way to spend an afternoon. Despite it's somewhat heavy subject matter it was lighthearted though it did have it's emotional moments. Tullett has a very descriptive, vivid writing style and discusses the characters feelings and emotional outlook quite a bit. It was really heartfelt and touching, a truly fun read.

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

About the Author:

Suzie Tullett is an author of contemporary humorous fiction and romantic comedy. She has a Masters Degree in Television & Radio Scriptwriting and worked as a scriptwriter before becoming a full-time novelist. Her motto is to 'live, laugh, love' and when she's not busy creating her own literary masterpieces, she usually has her head in someone else's.
Suzie lives in a tiny hamlet in the middle of the French countryside, along with her husband and two Greek rescue dogs.

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Blog Tour: Deadly Friendship by Tara Lyons @taralyonsauthor @bloodhoundbook

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Release date: July 23, 2017

Publisher: Bloodhound Books

Genre: Crime Fiction, Mystery/Thriller

Blurb:

Who can you really trust?
 
Detective Inspector Denis Hamilton is dragged into a gruesome murder investigation, while on annual leave in Lake Windermere. A handwritten note, with a woman’s name, is found inside the corpse.
 
When a direct link to London is unidentified, Hamilton must race against the clock to make the connection before the body count rises.
 
Meanwhile, four friends with strained relationships, are reunited. What past event do they want to keep buried and is there something linking them to the murders?
 
Then, when a person from Hamilton's past returns, he must ask himself: how well do we really know our friends?
 
London’s murder investigations team returns in this third novel from the bestselling author of In the Shadows and No Safe Home.

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Deadly Friendship!

Review:

This is the third book in a series but can easily be read as a standalone, I jumped in at book two, No Safe Home and really liked Denis Hamilton, the lead character. Once again, Lyons captured my attention with the premise, I love the idea of a group of friends with secrets and lies. It opens with a chilling and attention grabbing prologue, a woman is murdered and it's told from the POV of the killer and it totally chilled me right to my core.

Hamilton and his team are back on the case and I'm really loving each and every one of them. Rocky first appeared in the last book and I predicted I would like him and I was definitely right. Dixon is another new member and I like the little bit that was revealed about her and am eager to learn more about her in the future. There's an emerging storyline following Fraser that has piqued my interest and I'm curious to see where Lyons takes it. As you can see, there is a great cast of characters and Lyons does a fantastic job of giving more detail and backstory on them in each installment.

The plot focuses on a group of six friends from college who are as thick as thieves, until one of them disappears. Two years later, one of them is murdered and Hamilton is actually on a weekend getaway when the victims body is found in the water while him and his family are trying to enjoy an outing. The remaining five friends were all shady individuals with ties to a past event that isn't revealed until much later, but I was constantly kept on my toes as I tried to figure out which one, if any was the killer.

This was another great read in a solid series, and it may be my new favorite thus far. It was a quick, fast paced read with plenty of thrills and excitement and I'm so eager to see what happens in book four!

Quick side note, I won a competition a few months back where I got the opportunity to choose a characters name in the book! Naturally, I chose myself (haha) and Tara was kind enough to ask me if any particular type of character would bother me. I told her no, she could kill me, make me the killer, I was up for anything. So being completely in the dark, I was pleasantly surprised to find she made Amy Sullivan a pathologist, how cool is that?!? She even made her American, that made me laugh and was such a sweet touch. Huge thanks to Tara, it was unreal seeing my name in the pages of such a great book!

Overall rating: 4.5/5

About the Author:

Tara is a crime/psychological thriller author from London, UK. Turning 30 in 2015 propelled her to fulfil her lifelong dream of becoming a writer. In the Shadows is Tara's debut solo novel published in March 2016. She co-wrote The Caller and Web of Deceit: A DI Sally Parker novella with New York Times bestselling author, M.A Comley.

In August 2016 Tara signed a two-book contract with Bloodhound Books. The second book in the DI Hamilton series, No Safe Home, was published in January 2017.

When she's not writing, Tara can be found at a local Wacky Warehouse stuck in the ball-pit with her young, energetic son. 

Sign up to Tara's monthly newsletter for exclusive news, previews and giveaways: http://eepurl.com/bN2KoH

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Blog Tour: The Lost Wife by Anna Mansell @AnnaMansell @Bookouture

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Release date: July 28, 2017

Publisher: Bookouture

Genre: Women's Fiction

Blurb:

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Fans of Sheila O’Flanagan, Amanda Prowse and Kelly Rimmer will love The Lost Wife, the compelling story of a woman’s deepest secrets, and the friends and family who must learn to live without her.

‘An incredible, beautiful story of loss, love, forgiveness, moving on, overcoming grief, redemption and above all, hope.’ Renita D’Silva

When Ellie Moran passes away, she leaves her newborn son and husband Ed behind her. Their marriage was perfect, their lives everything they had hoped for. So why was Ellie keeping secrets from Ed?

Knowing he can never ask his wife the truth, Ed is struggling to cope. When the secrets threaten to tear his whole family apart, Ed turns to Rachel, the one person who sees him as more than just Ellie’s widower.

But then Rachel discovers something Ellie was hiding, something that would break Ed’s heart. Can Rachel help Ed to find peace without the wife he lost – and a second chance at happiness?

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for The Lost Wife!

Review:

This is broken up into three separate parts and is told from the viewpoint of Ed and Rachel. It begins in 2012 immediately after Ed loses his wife in a tragic accident just a few weeks after their son, Oli is born. Rachel is in her late twenties during this section and is trying to figure out what she wants out of life. Part two is where the two lead characters meet, Rachel works at the daycare where Ed takes Oli. The bulk of the story unfolds during part two and then part three is four years later. The pacing was dead on here, it was a really compelling read that had me hooked throughout.

This is the second book by Mansell and also my second time reading one of her novels and one of my favorite things about her writing is that there is such a lovely flow. Her style is absolutely beautiful, she writes in a really evocative way and Ed's story especially was touching and heartbreaking. I can't even imagine losing my husband, much less right after having a child and Mansell did such a wonderful job in creating his character. His grief was so raw and devastating, you could feel his pain flying off the pages and it totally broke my heart. Rachel was also very well crafted, she was relatable and kind.

This was ultimately an uplifting story, but there was so much heartache along the way, I did tear up a few times, but I also smiled quite a bit as well. Much like her first novel, things were left very open ended and while that's not always my favorite way to end a book, it truly works well here. The characters are so realistic that it's fitting when things are left a bit messy and unresolved, much like real life. I really enjoyed this one and would recommend it to anyone looking for an emotional read with heart.

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

About the Author:

 
 
 
 
 
Anna had a brush with 'fame' as a magician’s assistant back in 1977. She later decided that being sawn in half by her father, at barely 6 months old, was too submissive a role, vowing to channel the trauma in to something much more pro-actively creative. Having failed at acting, singing and professional murder mystery parties (she was ALWAYs the one to die!), she fell to something much more solitary: writing. How To Mend a Broken Heart is her first novel and her life was not on the line in order to write it, or her second: The Lost Wife. Anna lives on a dairy farm in Cornwall with her two children, her husband, and her ex-racing greyhound, Olive Dog.
 
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#ThrowbackThursday Fear Nothing by Lisa Gardner

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I'm finally joining in with Throwback Thursday and I'm SO excited! Renee at It's Book Talk created this weekly feature as a way to highlight old favorites and read books that have already been published. I have so many older books on my TBR that get ignored in favor of review copies and I figure participating in Throwback Thursday will help me to read at a least one older title a week!

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Release date: January 7, 2014

Publisher: Dutton Books

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Blurb:

My name is Dr. Adeline Glen. Due to a genetic condition, I can’t feel pain. I never have. I never will.

The last thing Boston Detective D.D. Warren remembers is walking the crime scene after dark. Then, a creaking floorboard, a low voice crooning in her ear… She is later told she managed to discharge her weapon three times. All she knows is that she is seriously injured, unable to move her left arm, unable to return to work.

My sister is Shana Day, a notorious murderer who first killed at fourteen. Incarcerated for thirty years, she has now murdered more people while in prison than she did as a free woman.

Six weeks later, a second woman is discovered murdered in her own bed, her room containing the same calling cards from the first: a bottle of champagne and a single red rose. The only person who may have seen the killer: Detective D.D. Warren, who still can’t lift her child, load her gun, or recall a single detail from the night that may have cost her everything.

Our father was Harry Day, an infamous serial killer who buried young women beneath the floor of our home. He has been dead for forty years. Except the Rose Killer knows things about my father he shouldn’t. My sister claims she can help catch him. I think just because I can’t feel pain, doesn’t mean my family can’t hurt me.

D.D. may not be back on the job, but she is back on the hunt. Because the Rose Killer isn’t just targeting lone women; he is targeting D.D. And D.D. knows there is only one way to take him down:

Fear nothing.

Review:

I got behind on this series, I'm sure it was because I got on Netgalley and I became overwhelmed with review copies, but when I was trying to decide what book would be my first pick for TT, this was an obvious choice for me. I love Gardner, she's one of my favorite authors and this D. D. Warren series is so great. Luckily I'm only two books behind so I should be caught up soon.

One of my favorite things about Gardner's books is that she doesn't shy away from hard hitting subject matter and she always keeps things fresh and interesting. This is told from D. D.'s POV as well as Adeline Glen who is a psychiatrist helping D. D. with pain management. Adeline doesn't feel pain at all and this was utterly fascinating to me. On top of a totally interesting premise, the characters are deeply complex and so interesting. D. D. is waylaid with a serious injury and she was so out of sorts. She's the type of detective that can't function without work so her seeing her struggle was another engrossing aspect to the story.

I mentioned earlier that Gardner is a hard hitting author but I want to point out that her books are very graphic and violent. There's always a grittiness to her plots and this was one very dark. You have a killer using sick and twisted methods and sisters whose father was a brutal killer as well, so there are quite a few disturbing scenes. Think Karin Slaughter in terms of style, I love this type of writing but wanted to make it clear that this book is very graphic in case that's not your thing.

There were so many gut punching twists that discussing the plot would just ruin things. If you've never read a Gardner book before, I can highly recommend this series if you're a thriller fan. She's a fantastic storyteller and her writing is captivating AND D. D. is such a great lead character.

Overall rating: 5/5

Blog Tour: The Mentor by Lee Matthew Goldberg @LeeMatthewG @pumpupyourbook

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Release date: June 13, 2017

Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Blurb:

Kyle Broder has achieved his lifelong dream and is an editor at a major publishing house.
When Kyle is contacted by his favorite college professor, William Lansing, Kyle couldn’t be happier. Kyle has his mentor over for dinner to catch up and introduce him to his girlfriend, Jamie, and the three have a great time. When William mentions that he’s been writing a novel, Kyle is overjoyed. He would love to read the opus his mentor has toiled over.
Until the novel turns out to be not only horribly written, but the most depraved story Kyle has read.
After Kyle politely rejects the novel, William becomes obsessed, causing trouble between Kyle and Jamie, threatening Kyle’s career, and even his life. As Kyle delves into more of this psychopath’s work, it begins to resemble a cold case from his college town, when a girl went missing. William’s work is looking increasingly like a true crime confession.
Lee Matthew Goldberg's The Mentor is a twisty, nail-biting thriller that explores how the love of words can lead to a deadly obsession with the fate of all those connected and hanging in the balance.

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for The Mentor!

Review:

As most of you know by now, I read a ton of thrillers so I'm always on the lookout for something within the genre that is fresh and unique. I've never read a thriller quite like The Mentor, it has a major literary vibe, it's highly intelligent and very tightly plotted, I loved it!

The premise of this was super interesting to me, I liked the insiders POV into the publishing industry, and as Kyle is an editor, I definitely got a fascinating look at the business of books. This is also a book within a book, (a bookception) another device that always intrigues me. I was hooked even before I actually started reading this, but I do want to point out that it's a bit of a slow burn in the first half. The groundwork is being laid for what is to come and while it was definitely enough to hold my attention, some may be expecting a faster pace right away. Right in the middle things start to move very quickly and that's when the real thrills and twists begin, there are some heart pounding moments and the pacing picks up to a relentless speed that took my breath away.

This had some really gruesome scenes and a deranged and depraved individual, this is definitely not for the faint of heart. There were some surprisingly funny moments as well that really helped to break the darkness up which is always a tool that I appreciate. There is also a subplot that deals with a cold case that was a great addition as well as characters that begin to unravel and descend into madness, the sense of paranoia was palpable and menacing.

This was far too twisty to allow me to discuss the plot further than what the blurb provides, but if that piques your interest and you can stomach some graphic scenes, you may like this one. Goldberg is an immensely talented writer and one that I will certainly be following, his ability to craft sinister characters and a tight plot is exactly what I look for in a solid thriller.

Overall rating: 4.5/5

About the Author:

Lee Matthew Goldberg’s novel THE MENTOR is forthcoming from Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin’s Press in June 2017 and has been acquired by Macmillan Entertainment. The French edition will be published by Editions Hugo. His debut novel SLOW DOWN is out now. His pilot JOIN US was a finalist in Script Pipeline’s TV Writing Competition. After graduating with an MFA from the New School, his fiction has also appeared in The Montreal Review, The Adirondack Review, Essays & Fictions, The New Plains Review, Verdad Magazine,BlazeVOX, and others. He is the co-curator of The Guerrilla Lit Reading Series. He lives in New York City.

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#CoverReveal Cold Blood by Robert Bryndza @RobertBryndza @bookouture

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I am absolutely thrilled to be helping to reveal the cover for the latest book in one of my favorite series! Cold Blood is book five in the Erika Foster series and I cannot wait to read it! Here's some more information about the book.

Blurb:

The suitcase was badly rusted, and took Erika several attempts, but it yielded and sagged open as she unzipped it. Nothing could prepare her for what she would find inside…

When a battered suitcase containing the dismembered body of a young man washes up on the shore of the river Thames, Detective Erika Foster is shocked. She’s worked on some terrifying cases but never seen anything like this before.

As Erika and her team set to work, she makes the link with another victim – the body of a young woman dumped in an identical suitcase two weeks ago.

Erika quickly realises she’s on the trail of a serial killer who’s already made their next move. Yet just as Erika starts to make headway with the investigation, she is the victim of a brutal attack.

But nothing will stop Erika. As the body count rises, the twin daughters of her colleague Commander Marsh are abducted, and the stakes are higher than ever before. Can Erika save the lives of two innocent children before it’s too late? She’s running out of time and about to make a disturbing discovery…there’s more than one killer.

Brilliantly gripping, Cold Blood will have you hooked from the first page and holding your breath to the heart-stopping and shocking ending.

Ahh doesn't that sound amazing?!? You can preorder on Amazon US and Amazon UK and it's released on September 20.

And finally, here's the cover!

Review: Mrs. Saint and the Defectives by Julie Lawson Timmer

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Release date: August 1, 2017

Publisher: Lake Union

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Blurb:

Markie, a fortysomething divorcée who has suffered a humiliating and very public fall from marital, financial, and professional grace, moves, along with her teenage son, Jesse, to a new town, hoping to lick her wounds in private. But Markie and Jesse are unable to escape the attention of their new neighbor Mrs. Saint, an irascible, elderly New European woman who takes it upon herself, along with her ragtag group of “defectives,” to identify and fix the flaws in those around her, whether they want her to or not.

What Markie doesn’t realize is that Mrs. Saint has big plans for the divorcée’s broken spirit. Soon, the quirky yet endearing woman recruits Markie to join her eccentric community, a world where both hidden truths and hope unite them. But when Mrs. Saint’s own secrets threaten to unravel their fragile web of healing, it’s up to Markie to mend these wounds and usher in a new era for the “defectives”—one full of second chances and happiness.

Review:

I have to start by gushing over the cover, it’s so great and perfectly sets the stage for what’s inside. Mrs. Saint and the Defectives was a charming, quirky read with some great themes and hidden gems.

Markie and Mrs. Saint do not have very much in common, Markie is introverted and has no desire to get involved in her neighbors lives, she wants to heal from her divorce and concentrate on her son, Jesse. Mrs. Saint is abrasive, bossy and crosses boundaries constantly, she is SO over the top but I couldn’t help but be charmed by her. The rest of the characters were a group of misfits and oddballs and each had a unique and quirky personality, but most importantly they were all relatable on some level.

There are so many great life lessons here and Mrs. Saint with her wisdom and guidance  teaches most of them. Family isn’t always about being blood related and sometimes bonds can be formed quickly and when you least expect it. I loved the last quarter, there were some unexpected surprises and a historical fiction vibe that was cool. There was a similarity to Maria Semple’s style her, so if you’re a fan of her work, you may like this.

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.