thoughts on books

Book Reviews

  • lady tremaine by rachel hochhauser

    WOW- extremely intriguing retelling of Cinderella from the viewpoint of her stepmother. This is one of those re-tellings that makes you question history to begin with and how no on eis the villain of their own story. In this version, Cinderella (Ellen) is a little bit dramatic, immature and slightly self-centered- in other words, kind of a typical 16 year old girl. Etheldreda is twice widowed, the first to Henry, her daughters’ father, and the second to Robert, Ellen’s father. He made an interesting and not-great decision about how to handle his estate. All of his money went into a dowry for Ellen that cannot be touched until she is married and it goes directly to her husband once she is married. So Etheldreda has no way to support herself and the 3 girls, although she has inherited the estate she really cannot take care of it.

    A bit of a mystery, this book takes awhile before revealing who the true villain is in this story, and it is very much an adult tale with adult themes and language. It reveals with exquisite pacing the challenges and drawbacks of high society in a highly patriarchal system. Lady Tremaine truly is misunderstood, and makes a lot of mistakes being a stepmother but also has their best interests in mind. I wasn’t expecting her to become an amateur detective and to help her daughters and step daughter learn how to be responsible for their choices.

    I highly recommend this book for anyone who likes historical fiction and especially if you enjoy retellings. The story is really addictive!

    Audiobook review- wonderful performance from Bessie Carter, one of the best in the audio game. I loved her accents and the way that she read the inner dialogue, to be complex and interesting and multi-faceted.

    Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and MacMillan Audio for the ARC and ALC. Book to be published March 3, 2026.

  • BRIGHTER than before by courtney walsh

    Claire is figuring out what the second half of her life is going to look like after heartbreak. Her husband of 23 years, John, cheated on her and is now getting married to the sidepiece, Misty. She can’t bear the humiliation of living in Colorado where her whole community is, and needs to find out who she is apart from a wife and mother. Her divorce newly finalized, she moves to Chicago and makes a list of things she wants to do- get a dog, get real friends, and download a dating app. Her neighbor Miles owns the apartment building she gets and apartment in, and he helps her along the way as she tries dating for the first time, kind of ever.

    This book really made me feel seen. Being humiliated by John was only her first embarrassment, but later when Claire makes mistakes she learns how to pick herself back up and try again. If you like a clean/closed-door romcom with a FMC in her 40’s, friends-to-lovers please pick this up. It is not the complicated and dramatic and sad plot in many lovely books. This one is a lot more like a Hallmark movie, it is perfect in its pure simplicity. The characters do have some tragic back story, but this is not the story, it is more about the every day, the inner dialogue that is perfect for a character learning who they are.

    I loved the text message exchanges between Claire and her adult daughter Minnie, her quirky first dates that go nowhere, and her tiny triumphs. This book was honestly a real joy to read.

    I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

    Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson Fiction for the ARC. Book to be published June 8, 2026.

  • missed connections by aimie runyan

    For fans of magical realism and the fine dining industry- it is like a mixture of Aftertaste and your favorite Ashley Poston. Who hasn’t wanted a magical remote control that could allow you to return to certain points in your life and do something differently? Sabrina Sorensen is at a point in her life where she wants to be a Michelin guide, but her career in the restaurant industry has gone sideways. From the chef’s assistant to lots of kitchen roles, sauce person and General manager and front of the house roles, she has a culinary degree and many connection across the globe. She gets into a special airport lounge that gets her a flight to a certain point in the past.

    At times romantic, I see this as much more of a contemporary light-fantasy-magical realism book than a traditional romance. I liked the storyline and the idea that in our 30’s we are much less insecure and able to speak up for ourselves. Most of our regrets become in being braver, speaking up and taking more risks rather than playing it safe.

    The big surprise and win here is the level of detail and setting of fine dining, not just in running a kitchen, but the career path of someone in this field. Everyone eats at restaurants, but very few have the level of detail and experience in knowing how cut throat and political this can be. I loved the setting and hearing more about what this is like and the interpersonal relationships involved. I loved Sabrina’s character arc and the variety of people who changed based on her path back as a cosmic re-do.

    I definitely recommend this unique story. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

    Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Muse for the ARC. Book to be published May 26, 2026.

  • that night by gillian mccallister

    How far would you be willing to go to help out a sibling? Specifically, would you bury a body for them?

    Joe, Kathy and Frannie are vacationing in Italy when she makes a frantic call to her siblings, she has hit a man and he is dead. They bury the body and promise never to tell anyone. Over the next few weeks, they become a cat and mouse- all are afraid of being caught and Joe starts to realize that there are things that Frannie hasn’t told them. Over time, we learn more and more of the truth about the dead body, and also follow the siblings as they run from the truth.

    At its core, this is a story about loyalty, secrets and family. It is a great thriller, less about the mystery of whodunit and more if they will be caught. A side story is that as a veterinarian we learn a little about that industry and the medical background. From a setting perspective it could have been elsewhere besides Italy, it did not impact the setting that much. I found a lot of the story to be unbelievable but I was able to suspend disbelief and go along for the ride. I enjoyed reading this and found it to be a good story to get lost in.

    Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for the ARC. Book to be published August 18, 2026

  • the top of the world by ethan joella

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    A dual timeline story of 1975, when Maggie is heading to a resort in the Poconos to work and discover what her brother did when he was there the previous summer prior to his untimely death from leukemia.  Maggie is grieving the loss of her older brother and remembering him at his best.  She wonders why he chose to leave in the midst of being a cancer patient and didn’t tell his family where he was.  She soon learns they were like a camp family and mostly didn’t know he was sick. 

    The timeline jumps back and forth from 1975 Maggie to 1974 Chip, when he is living the last few months of his life and working at the resort. 

    I knew this would be a book about grief and moments of human connection, I knew it would be sad.  This is purely devastating, it’s 50% grieving (Maggie) and 50% dying and dealing with dying (Chip).  This is written with so much personal wisdom and raw emotion.  It was so sad to think of Chip wanting to feel alive by hiding his treatment.  There are also some lovely small town minor characters that rounded out the lovely setting.  

    Do I recommend it? Definitely, if you are in the mood for a good mournful cry.  

    Thanks to NetGalley and Scribner for the ARC.  Book to be published June 29, 2026. 

  • flighless birds of new hope by farah naz rishi

    A sweet and heartwarming story about a family- the parents die in an accident and the 3 kids are navigating life without them. There is some toxic family situations as growing up the parents are all about their show cockatoo, Coco. Aden is executor of the estate and his younger sister has been holding things together. Their youngest brother is 13 and still navigating through life and his place in the family. Aden opens the cage and asks Coco to go, then they try to catch her as they monitor her ID chip, like a collar, as she flies across the country.

    The symbolism is pretty in your face here- flying the coop, working together towards a common goal, finding their freedom in their family connection. It isn’t sad as I thought it would be, the narrative mostly revolves around their common mission to bring Coco home.

    the polarizing part is going to be the chapters (these are short/small) that are from the birds POV. On the audiobook she uses a child-like voice for Coco, some people really hate animal POV, but these are heartwarming and charming if you like this kind of thing.

    Audiobook review- easy to follow, sweet and charming audiobook performance.

    Thanks to netGalley and Brilliance Audio for the ALC. Book available now.

  • lost lambs by Madeline cash

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    A happily chaotic family drama about the home at the center of a strange small town conspiracy.

    This promising debut centers around Bud and Catherine, who after 19 years together have decided to have an open marriage. Their 3 daughters all have secrets and challenges of their own. There is a large cast of characters, the one-liners are zingers and the situational comedy is top notch. At times I was a bit turned off by the overtly sexual scenes, (not love scenes) but the family communication and absurd plot really kept me turning the pages. I am really glad I picked this one up. The ending took kind of a turn.

    It’s funny, addictive and just plain quirky.

    Audiobook review: great performance by Christine Lakin. She has great skill in voice acting, giving each member of the Flynn family their own unique voice. I found her performance to be lovely and endearing.

    Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan audio for the ARC. Book to be published 1/13/26

  • japanese gothic by kylie lee baker

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    Unbelievably haunting and the creepiest, craziest horror I have read. My best advice to horror fans that are going to read this— clear your schedule. No calls, no chores, not even a conversation. Once you pick this up, settle in because you aren’t going to want to be disturbed until you are done with this highly engrossing book.

    In 2026, Lee has fled to Japan after murdering his college roommate. He is in his father’s house and claims to be taking time off for stress. The house is hundreds of years old, and it is also the 8 year anniversary of his mother’s disappearance.

    In 1877, Sen is the eldest daughter of a Samurai and training with her father to protect their family at all costs. But when she sees Lee in her house, she doesn’t understand why there is a foreign ghost.

    With interwoven timelines and a connection across centuries, this is a story with two unreliable narrators, a breadth of history and a plot that builds like a sandstorm.

    I can’t even express how engaging this story is. What a skilled writer and storyteller! I went in with high expectations having loved her previous novel and WOW I was not disappointed. My mind is just racing.

    a best horror of 2026

    Thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the ARC. Book to be published April 20, 2026.

  • alan opts out by courtney maum

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    Wow, what a really unique voice in suburban fiction. Alan and Vivian are living the dream, the ad agency that he founded manages keep them in the most luxurious suburb of New York, modeled on Greenwich, Connecticut. Vivian has a chance to join the Queen Anne Society, which is an elitist ladies group for entertaining.

    Then Alan loses the bid for the latest milk campaign. He has sort of a lightning bolt moment, and decides that his entire industry, the idea of capitalism in general, and over consumption, to be lacking. He stops showering, starts eating off the land, and sleeping in their backyard.

    “Mom come home. Dad is having a menty b.”

    This book is well written and wildly entertaining, even if at times it is heavy-handed in the messaging. I truly enjoyed the family characters and found myself relating heavily to Alan’s dilemma. Not long ago, I went with my high school aged son to visit the top university for creative writing in the country. When we were in the breakout session with other students and parents interested in the writing major, one of the parents asked about job rates post graduation. And most of us parents were also thinking the same, am I going to spend all this money for my child to become educated, and then they can’t get a job? The head of the department said something that stayed with me. She said, without really answering the question, “well, 60% of all jobs in the United States are marketing.“

    I think it was her way of saying that, although our children may spend for a year studying writing at the best college in America, they would probably end up selling. Alan’s advertising firm and really his whole existence is driven by the prospect of getting people to over consume. This book could almost be a companion piece to Pixar’s Wall-E. It’s helping the reader think about that same lesson.

    Thanks to Netgy and Little Brown for the ARC- Book to be published June 3, 2026.

  • the anniversary by alex finlay

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    A missing persons, serial killer thriller from two POV- starting in the mid-90’s the popular girl Jules and the brooder Quinn – we follow them until 2011.

    Big on nostalgia, I appreciated the pop culture and current event references to set the tone with each time jump.

    They are in Nebraska and each May 1, a girl is abducted and killed. It takes them a very long time to solve this mystery, but as the time jumps it is a really fast paced novel. Alex Finlay is a master of storytelling, spending just the right amount of time in character building, plot reveals, and building suspense.

    It was creative and clever to see things from both Quinn and Jules’ POV and how they came together at the end. The ending was also very satisfying.

    Thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the ARC. Book to be published May 11, 2026.