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Release date: April 10, 2018

Publisher: Berkley

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Blurb:

The perfect couple. The perfect house. The perfect crime.

Londoners Jack and Syd found their dream home: lots of space, a great location, and a friendly owner who wanted a young couple to have it.

Everything is exactly what they hoped for when they move in–except Jack makes a disturbing discovery in the attic, and Syd begins to wonder about the girl next door. And they each keep the other in the dark.

A mistake.

Because someone has just been killed outside their back door, and now the police are watching them.

This is their chance to prove they’re innocent–or to get away with murder.

Whose story do you believe?

Review:

Yes, another book with neighbor in the title, but honestly I’m reeled in by the title alone, so if it’s the new replacement for Girl in thriller titles, so be it. Besides the whole neighbor thing drawing me in, that blurb hooked me too. It said just enough to get my attention and leave me wanting more. Unfortunately only half of this book actually worked for me so I’m honestly not even sure how to rate it, much less review it but here goes!

The first half of this I was totally absorbed, it flips between Sydney and Jack and is written via diary style entries where they’re almost speaking directly to each other. Original, right? They were bickering a little and jumping all over the place a bit, but overall the voices were so strong that I was willing to see where it was headed. Then part two started and things sorta fell apart for me here. I felt like it was messy and disjointed and didn’t really match up with the first part. I know that sounds super vague, but spoilers. I was all set for the plot to head in one direction and it took a left turn while I went right, it happens and I’m sure plenty of people will love this one. It’s addictive for sure and well written but was missing that certain “something” for me that I can’t totally pinpoint.

If you’re intrigued by the blurb I say give it a chance, it had several elements I need in a thriller, fast pacing, twists and questionable narrators so the bones of the story are certainly there. The execution and my feelings of misdirection and slight confusion are what kept me from loving this one.

Overall rating: 3/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads|Amazon

Release date: April 10, 2018

Publisher: MIRA

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Blurb:

A delightfully quirky debut about family bonds and the chaos that ensues when nature and lack of nurture collide.

Emily Glass knows she’s neurotic. But she’s got it under control. Sort of. She dons compression socks when she flies (because, you know, deep vein thrombosis) and responds to people routinely overestimating her age with more Lifespin classes and less gluten. Thankfully, she also has David, the wonderful man she’ll soon call husband—assuming they can survive wedding week with her wildly dysfunctional family.

Emily’s therapist mother, Marla, who’s been diagnosing her children since they were in diapers, sees their homecoming as the perfect opportunity for long-overdue family therapy sessions. Less enthused are Emily and her two siblings: ardently feminist older sister Lauren, who doesn’t think the wedding party should have defined gender roles, and recently divorced brother Jason, whose overzealous return to singlehood is only tempered by his puzzling friendship with David’s Renaissance Faire—enthusiast brother.

As the week comes to a tumultuous head, Emily wants nothing more than to get married and get as far away from her crazy relatives as possible. But that’s easier said than done when Marla’s meddling breathes new life into old secrets. After all, the ties that bind family together may bend, but they aren’t so easily broken.

Laugh-out-loud funny and endearingly raw, Family and Other Catastrophes is as entertaining as your favorite sitcom and introduces Alexandra Borowitz as an outstanding new voice in humorous fiction.

Review:

If you think your family is slightly insane and highly dysfunctional then you probably haven’t met the Glass family. They are all SO messed up, reading this was like watching a train wreck, but I could not get enough of this bizarre family with dynamics and kooky behavior that simultaneously made me snort with laughter and shake my head in disgust.

Emily heads home the week before her wedding and this book is divided into sections, one for each day leading up to her wedding. Right from the start, you know you’re in for a good time, Emily may as well be the definition of neurotic and the rest of her family is just as unique and quirky. Her sister, Lauren was obnoxious, she takes the term social justice warrior to a whole new level, she’s contrary just for the sake of it and the stuff that came out of her mouth was horrifyingly hilarious. My other favorite character, (I use favorite loosely here, these people are no one I would actually want to meet, but they were amazingly entertaining) was Nathan, David’s brother. He was just such a weirdo, he spoke like some bizarre throwback to medieval times and had the social graces of a bull. I’m giggling again just thinking about his flirting.

This was laugh out loud funny with some heartfelt, endearing moments thrown in for good measure. Fun is the best way to describe my experience reading this little gem and the characters totally made the book for me, they’re insane and quirky and just what I needed to read over Easter weekend as I spent time with my own extended family! 😜

Family and Other Catastrophes in three words: Hilarious, Risqué and Eccentric.

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the author for my review copy.

Goodreads|Amazon

Release date: April 3, 2018

Publisher: Lake Union

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Blurb:

Can you hide a secret with the whole world watching?

When an explosion rips apart a Chicago building, the lives of three women are forever altered.

A year later, Cecily is in mourning. She was supposed to be in the building that day. Instead, she stood on the street and witnessed it going down, with her husband and best friend inside. Kate, now living thousands of miles away, fled the disaster and is hoping that her past won’t catch up with her. And Franny, a young woman in search of her birth mother, watched the horror unfold on the morning news, knowing that the woman she was so desperate to reconnect with was in the building.

Now, despite the marks left by the tragedy, they all seem safe. But as its anniversary dominates the media, the memories of that terrifying morning become dangerous triggers. All these women are guarding important secrets. Just how far will they go to keep them?

Review:

Catherine McKenzie always comes up with unique and interesting premises that hook me in instantaneously and The Good Liar may be my favorite one to date. Three women, all connected by one terrible tragedy, and I had no idea who was being truthful or if any of them even were actually being truthful, the title of this one is SO fitting!

This is told from Cecily, Kate and Franny’s point of view. Cecily and Kate’s chapters are pretty standard as far as the structure but Franny’s story unfolds via an interview transcript which brought a fresh edginess to the plot, it almost moved things along at an even faster pace, and this was already a page turner. As I said before, none of them were altogether trustworthy or very likable, but McKenzie’s characterization is top notch making this a solid and engaging read.

This was a read that snuck up on me a little bit, as much as I was enjoying it, I did guess one of the plot points before it was revealed so I was slightly anxious that it would be easy for me to puzzle the rest out. WRONG! That tiny little piece I fit together was honestly not even the tip of the iceberg, this was more twisted than a pretzel which kept the plot moving forward at a rapid pace. The epilogue was amazing, you guys know an ending can make or break a book for me and this one just made the book that much better for me!

The Good Liar in three words: Unexpected, Tight, and Riveting.

Overall rating: 4.5/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads|Amazon

Release date: April 1, 2018

Publisher: Lake Union

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Blurb:

Paige Moresco found her true love in eighth grade—and lost him two years ago. Since his death, she’s been sleepwalking through life, barely holding on for the sake of her teenage son. Her house is a wreck, the grass is overrun with weeds, and she’s at risk of losing her job. As Paige stares at her neglected lawn, she knows she’s hit rock bottom. So she does something entirely unexpected: she begins to dig.

As the hole gets bigger, Paige decides to turn her entire yard into a vegetable garden. The neighbors in her tidy gated community are more than a little alarmed. Paige knows nothing about gardening, and she’s boldly flouting neighborhood-association bylaws. But with the help of new friends, a charming local cop, and the transformative power of the soil, Paige starts to see potential in the chaos of her life. Something big is beginning to take root—both in her garden and in herself.

Review:

Based solely on the blurb I figured that Digging In would be a fairly heavy read, following Paige as she works through her grief after losing her husband. While grief is definitely at the core of this novel, it wasn’t depressing or bleak, instead it was full of humor, wit and heart which was just such a breath of fresh air.

Sadly, Nyhan lost her own husband so she has firsthand experience in the way a widow may feel and behave, and while she acknowledges that her situation wasn’t exactly like Paige’s, the authenticity is heavily apparent, Paige was incredibly well drawn. This isn’t a story about a bereaved woman who does everything perfectly and makes no mistakes. It’s a realistic portrayal of a woman living the unthinkable who is just doing her best. She’s trying, and at the end of the day, who can’t relate to someone who is simply trying to do their best?

This was an effortless read, I flew through it and loved every single page. Yes, there were sad moments especially watching Paige’s son, Trey deal with the loss of his father two years on, his struggle broke me. But ultimately this was full of life, vitality and humor, the messy side of life, the things that aren’t pretty, but it was honest and really beautifully done.

Digging In in three words: Wise, Witty and Affecting.

Overall rating: 5/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads|Amazon

Release date: April 3, 2018

Publisher: Graydon House

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Blurb:

The 2:00 a.m. call is the first time Lexie Vidler has heard her sister’s voice in years. Annie is a drug addict, a thief, a liar—and in trouble, again. Lexie has always bailed Annie out, given her money, a place to sleep, sent her to every kind of rehab. But this time, she’s not just strung out—she’s pregnant and in premature labor. If she goes to the hospital, she’ll lose custody of her baby—maybe even go to prison. But the alternative is unthinkable.

As weeks unfold, Lexie finds herself caring for her fragile newborn niece while her carefully ordered life is collapsing around her. She’s in danger of losing her job, and her fiancé only has so much patience for Annie’s drama. In court-ordered rehab, Annie attempts to halt her downward spiral by confronting long-buried secrets from the sisters’ childhood, ghosts that Lexie doesn’t want to face. But will the journey heal Annie, or lead her down a darker path?

Both candid and compassionate, Before I Let You Go explores a hotly divisive topic and asks how far the ties of family love can be stretched before they finally break.

Review:

The drug crisis in the US is overwhelmingly horrific, I have way too many friends and family members who have struggled with addiction and it is such an ugly and awful disease. This book is uncomfortable. This book is heartbreaking. This book is also incredibly important and beautifully poignant. It sheds light on a dark corner of society, that of the pregnant drug addict. The current protocols and procedures in place regarding how to legally handle situations where a mother gives birth to an admitted baby are shocking and utterly unhelpful, definitely eye opening for me. Rimmer is such a gifted writer, there is no one better to write about such a topic.

This is told from two viewpoints, sisters Lexie and Annie. Lexie is a successful doctor who is engaged to an amazing man, seriously everyone deserves a man like Sam. Lexie’s chapters are told in the present day starting immediately after Annie calls to tell her she’s eight months pregnant and scared because she’s still been using heroin and she thinks something is really wrong. Annie’s chapters are told via journal entries that explain her road to drug abuse and events in her childhood that led her down a dark road. My heart broke for both of these women, both of their stories were painfully raw and so very honest. They are gorgeously drawn and complex characters, I can’t say enough about how invested I was in their lives.

This reminded me of a Jodi Piccoult book, it has the same emotionally charged plot coupled with extremely strong writing, this book is phenomenal. You will need tissues, it’s a total tear jerker so be warned. I’m calling it a must read and it’s going right into my top books of the year list.

Before I Let You Go in three words: Heart-wrenching, Emotional and Powerful.

Overall rating: 5/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads|Amazon

Release date: April 1, 2018

Publisher: Lake Union

Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Suspense

Blurb:

In this novel from a New York Times bestselling author, the search for truth is defined by secrets and lies.

Elle is a survivor. She’s managed to piece together a solid life from a childhood of broken memories and fairy tales her mom told her to explain away bad dreams. But weekly visits to her mother still fill Elle with a paralyzing fear she can’t explain. It’s just another of so many unanswered questions she grew up with in a family estranged by silence and secrets.

Elle’s world turns upside down when she receives a deathbed request from her grandfather, a man she was told had died years ago. Racked by grief, regrets, and a haunted conscience, he has a tale of his own to tell Elle: about her mother, an imaginary friend, and two strangers who came to the house one night and never left.

As Elle’s past unfolds, so does the truth—if she can believe it. She must face the reasons for her inexplicable dread. As dark as they are, Elle must listen…before her grandfather’s death buries the family’s secrets forever.

Review:

Are secrets in books ever not interesting?! If a blurb even alludes to secrets from the past I’m adding it to Mount TBR and from the very first chapter I had a feeling that I would like The Forgotten Ones. Spoiler alert, I was right! This was a super addictive, engaging read from an author who really knows how to draw the reader in, pulling you in closer and closer until you aren’t putting the book down until the truth is revealed.

This is told from dual perspectives, Elle and David. Elle’s chapters are in the present day and David’s are a mix between the fifties and today. Poor Elle, she just wants answers and everyone in her life is SO evasive, it frustrated the hell out of me, I can’t imagine being her! When she finds out her grandfather that she thought was already dead years ago is actually on his deathbed now, she figures she may finally get some answers about her mother’s past. It’s not that easy, even though he wants to speak with her his relationship with the truth is tenuous at best. Or is it? So many questions, no answers and who is reliable? This one most definitely kept me on my toes and had me making guesses only to change my mind within pages, I just love when a book makes me do that!

This is an emotional read and Holmes managed to drag a variety of feelings out of me, I ranged from being angry and frustrated to heartbroken and sad. Anytime an author can make me feel something I’m ecstatic and she surely did that a few times over. Mental health issues play a huge role in the storyline and she handled it with grace and care all written in a beautifully fluid manner. I do think the ending may be polarizing but I loved it and found it to be a breath of fresh air. If you’ve read it and want to chat about this ending please let me know, I’m dying to know what everyone else thinks!

The Forgotten Ones in three words: Evocative, Engaging and Haunting.

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.