Author: joycesmysteryandfictionbookreviews

#AGameOfLies #NetGalley

Last April I was lucky enough to hear Clare Mackintosh speak about her foray into a mystery series. It was a change from writing her suspenseful standalones.

After writing the first book, The Last Party, Mackintosh felt that she was not ready to say good-bye to Ffion and those in her world. I am so glad that she did not. I enjoyed The Last Party and highly recommend it. I also very much enjoyed A Game of Lies.

Would you want to be on reality TV? Game of LIes is predicated on a group with secrets who sign up for what they think is one show only to find out (when it is too late) that the show’s premise is based on something else entirely. This leads to disappearance, murder, and a need to find those responsible.

Mackintosh does a good job of evoking the book’s setting on the border of Wales and England. I welcomed back all of the ongoing characters and their (sometimes tricky) relationships. Prickly Ffion is a great character. That she has heart is clear from her relationship with Dave. (Read the book to learn who this is.) I also was happy to again meet up with Leo.

It is not necessary to have read The Last Party to enjoy Game of Lies. That said, this is where the characters are introduced and their complex relationships explored. I recommend reading both. They offer what mystery/suspense readers are looking for.

Many thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 23 April 2024

Four stars ****

The cover of this book, its title and the book’s description all drew me in and made me very eager to read this one. It did not disappoint. I think that The Women of Ardemore House will be adored by those who enjoy a twisty plot and an interesting protagonist.

As in The Maid (Nita Prose),, the main character, inheritor of Ardemore House, sleuth, and keen observer is neurodiverse. This leads to Jo being hyperlexic as just one of her talents. But, readers will enjoy spending time with Jo for many reasons, not just her autism. (It has been noted that the author also is neurodiverse, leading her to be well able to describe Jo’s world.)

Jo is coming out of a difficult period when the story opens. She is recently divorced and has been badly used by her publisher ex. Jo has also experienced the death of her mother. So, when she learns that she has an inheritance in England, Jo is ready to try out the ex-pat life. She arrives to find the requisite decaying country pile and its small cottage, a rather strange caretaker and a portrait…but it disappears.

When caretaker Sid is murdered, the story moves toward solving the case. This gives readers the opportunity to know all those working the case as well as the people in the village.

Who killed Sid? Why? Will Jo find happiness in Britain? Readers will turn the pages as they wait to find out.

I recommend this title. Mystery fans could not do better as they start reading in 2024.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this title. All opinions are my own.

An e book bargain today

Shannon Reed offers readers her idiosyncratic answers (and they are many) as to why we read and why she does. Early on Reed shares that, as someone with a hearing impairment, reading books was a comfortable place to be as there was no need to struggle or answer based on imperfect understanding of what was being said. Reed read everywhere and everything, even a car manual when she forgot (never again!) to have a book with her. Bibliophiles will relate to not ever leaving home without something to read; I know that I did.

This is not an academic treatise but more a series of wide ranging personal thoughts and reflections. Throughout it is clear that Reed loves reading and wants her students and everyone, really, to find joy in a book.

Reed begins by talking about getting her first library card and the many libraries that have played a role in her life. I know two of these personally which made the pages come to life for me. 

Whether it is about reading (or not reading) series, signs you may be a character in a popular children’s book, reading to see ourselves across time, for comfort, fun or shock, or more, it is intriguing to see what the author has to say on a variety of topics.

This book would make a fun gift for a reader…even if that reader means giving a gift to one’s self. Take a look at the back of the book for an exhaustive reading list based on the books mentioned in the text. This will give a bibliophile many ideas for what to try next or to fondly remember books that they have read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this title. All opinions are my own.

#WelcometotheHyunamdongBookshop #NetGalley

First of all, if a book title has the word bookshop in it, I am in! And, this time, I am so glad that I was. This is a lovely book that has been translated from the Korean. It is thoughtful and delightful.

Many know what it is like to think that they were on a path that turned out to not be the right/best one for them. This is what happened to the book’s protagonist who now runs a bookshop. The shop, the protagonist, the characters all are fully realized in this book about connections and life choices.

Anyone who enjoyed books like Until the Coffee Gets Cold or Days at the Morisaki Bookshop, here is your next read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury USA for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 20 February 2024

Editorial Reviews:

“Already a bestseller in Korea, this quiet debut novel poses big questions about what it means to be successful and lead a fulfilling life. A worthy entry into the ever-growing constellation of fiction about the power of books, reading, and community.” ―Booklist

“The prolonged philosophical considerations of reading, community, happiness, and the meaning of work offer moments of reflection and observation. Bo-Reum pleasantly evokes the feeling of spending an afternoon in a favorite bookstore.” ―Publishers Weekly

“A snapshot of life in a quiet corner of Seoul examines how reading can help give voice to emotions, worries, and dreams.” ―Kirkus Reviews

“A story that embraces its sentimentality.” ―The Observer

An e book bargain

#TheMessyLifeofJaneTanner #NetGalley

Before Covid I had never read a book by Brenda Novak. I then read One Perfect Summer and found that I could finally sit down and enjoy a book. Since then, I have read a number of Ms. Novak’s novels. Each has good characters, enough plot to keep the pages turning and generally nice resolutions of the story. All of that is again true here.

In this novel readers meet the Jane of the title. Life has not been going exactly according to plan for her. She is not living where she wants to, she has responsibilities, she wants to be a mom but it hasn’t happened and so on. What will happen when she interacts with her sister’s ex? Will her life become less messy by the end of this story? Find out in this book.

Note that this is a title in a trilogy. So, if you enjoy spending time with Jane look for the other titles. They are Talulah’s Back in Town and The Talk of Coyote Canyon.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this title. All opinons are my own.

Pub date: 20 February 2024

My thoughts on One Perfect Summer

Do you enjoy women’s fiction?  Are you ready to be immersed in a long (464 page) book?  If you  might answer yes to these questions, this title could provide you with an escapist read.

The setting is Lake Tahoe, a beautiful and peaceful place with lots of water, places to walk and sports to enjoy.  There are three protagonists; Serenity, Reagan and Lorelei. 

Serenity writes books about true crimes.  There is a true crime in her personal life that has changed everything for her.  Next is Reagan; she is an ambitious, successful advertising executive until one decision and one moment changes everything. She will be faced with some big decisions. Then there are Lorelei and her four year old daughter Lucy.  Lorelei grew up in foster care and knows nothing about her family.  She was happy in her marriage until…

What do these women have in common?  No spoiler as this comes out early in the novel; the three share a blood relationship discovered after they did testing with a DNA site.  How are they connected?  Who is their common biological relative?  Why has no-one ever discussed any of this with any of them>  You will need to get very close to the end of the book to find the answer.

Around this central plot there are many others involving the sisters’ families, their evolving relationship and their next door neighbors, all of whom have their own stories.  The strands intertwine and four narrators voice the story; these are the three sisters and Finn, one of the neighbors.

Overall, this was a book where the pages turned.  The characters are well established and each is very much their own person.  That said, I think that the novel might have been (even) better had it been shorter.  Sometimes sections replayed things that were already known to the reader.

#FamiliusBooks #NetGalley

Oberman’s alphabet book featuring NYC is very cute(as is her counting book, Let’s Count NYC). See 26 iconic NYC sights/sites while learning the alphabet with your little one. NY natives will recognize all of these and maybe those from away will start a wish list of places to see.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Familius for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 06 August 2024

#HasAnyoneSeenCharlotteSalter #NetGalley

French, actually a husband and wife team who write together, has penned a long (544 pages), suspenseful and immersive read in this latest novel. It definitely kept me coming back on a regular basis to find out what happened.

Here is a domestic drama that is filled with suspense in its portrait of two families and the impact that Charlotte’s disappearance had in the past and also in the present day. What happened to Charlotte? Each of her four children has a take on her. Husband Alec, whose decade birthday she missed, initially seemed dismissive of her absence while Elizabeth/Etty (a daughter) was very worried.

Around the same time that Charlotte is missing in the past storyline, a body is found in a river. Is this death related to the disappearance of Charlotte? Readers will want to know.

The story moves forward thirty years when A LOT happens. There are secrets, murder, podcasts and a case that will challenge Detective Inspector Maud O’Connor. She is a terrific character and readers will hope that she gets a sequel.

Recommended for fans of domestic drama and crime stories.

Many thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 19 March 2024

An e book bargain

In The Thing He Told Me, Laura Dave offers a perfect and immersive novel. Readers, put this one on your list of summer musts!

When Hannah falls in love with Owen, she marries him and moves to California to live with him and his teen daughter, Bailey. Owen has deep computer knowledge and is involved in the launch of a software program that is primed to make investors lots of money. The program that Owen works on will help users to erase items from their public histories. Is there an irony in this being Owen’s work?

One day, Owen disappears. He leaves a note for Hannah asking her to protect daughter, Bailey. From what? Who? From here a brilliant story filled with slow burning suspense engrosses readers. No spoilers so no more here.

The characters in this book and their relationships are so very well portrayed. I felt as if I knew Hannah and Bailey and found myself rooting for their developing connection with one another. Will Hannah, Owen and Bailey be reunited?

What led Owen to run? Is Hannah correct to believe in him? Find out. I highly (!) recommend this one.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.

The CWA Daggers – The Crime Writers’ Association
— Read on thecwa.co.uk/awards-and-competitions/the-daggers/

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/books/best-books-21st-century.html