June Reading Wrap Up

Welcome to a new feature that I'm going to post at the end of each month. 

I will be posting all of the books I've read that month. It's a way to give some wonderful books some more exposure and maybe you'll see something you'd like to add to your TBR list. 

Titles are linked to Goodreads.

ARCs

The Secrets We Carry by Deanna Lynn Sletten (July 19) ~ One of my all-time favorite, must-read authors. Another great story from Deanna!

The Edge of Summer by Viola Shipman (July 12) ~ Love this author's stories. 

The Night Shift by Natalka Burian (July 12) ~ Very different but good.

The Life We Almost Had by Amelia Henley (June 14) ~ Read my thoughts here.

Local Gone Missing by Fiona Barton (June 14) ~ Review coming soon!

Audiobooks 

The New Normal by Tracy Brogan ~ This fulfilled a reading challenge prompt for me.

The Stolen Marriage by Diane Chamberlain ~ Love her stories!

Interlude in Death (In Death #12.5) by J.D. Robb ~ I'm trying to get caught up on this series on audiobook.

Haunted in Death (In Death #22.5) by J.D. Robb 

Devil's Spring (Bittersweet Hollow #3) by Aaron Paul Lazar ~ Great series. 

See anything here that grabs you?

*********************

Be sure to check the sidebar for my current giveaways!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? June 27, 2022 #IMWAYR

      

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week. It's an opportunity to visit other blogs and to comment on their reads. And ... you can add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date. And here we are! 

**************************************

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you all have a good week. 

Happy reading!

What I'm currently reading

Corinne

by Rebecca Morrow

Pub date July 12

Devil's Spring

(Bittersweet Hollow #3)

by Aaron Paul Lazar

Narrated by Gwendolyn Druyor 

What I recently finished

The Night Shift

by Natalka Burian

Pub date July 12

The New Normal

by Tracy Brogan

Narrated by Amy McFadden

What I am going to read next

Any Other Family

by Eleanor Brown

Pub date July 12

I really love my reading life!

What are you reading this week?

*************************

Be sure to check the sidebar for all of my current giveaways!

This OR That #Giveaway № 62 ~ The Missing Piece by John Lescroart OR Worth Dying For by Lee Child #TheMissingPiece #WorthDyingFor

 

I have sooooo many books!

The This or That Giveaway! feature that I post every Saturday is a way for me to cull my collection and to share some of the many books I have. I get to clear off some of my shelves to make room for more books and give someone else the chance to enjoy these treasures.

Good luck and be sure to stop back next week!

*****************

The Missing Piece

(Dismas Hardy #19)

by John Lescroart

Hardcover ~ Published March 2022

The beloved New York Times bestselling Dismas Hardy series returns with this “perfect piece of entertainment from a master storyteller” (Steve Berry, New York Times bestselling author) about a relentlessly twisty murder mystery.

No one mourned when San Francisco DA Wes Farrell put Paul Riley in prison eleven years ago for the rape and murder of his girlfriend. And no one is particularly happy to see him again when he’s released after The Exoneration Initiative uncovered evidence that pinned the crime on someone else. In fact, Riley soon turns up murdered, surrounded by the loot from his latest scam. But if Riley was really innocent all along, who wanted him dead?

To the cops, it’s straightforward: the still-grieving father of Riley’s dead girlfriend killed the former prisoner. Farrell, now out of politics and practicing law with master attorney Dismas Hardy, agrees to represent the defendant, Doug Rush—and is left in the dust when Rush suddenly vanishes. At a loss, Farrell and Hardy ask PI Abe Glitsky to track down the potentially lethal defendant. The search takes Glitsky through an investigative hall of mirrors populated by wounded parents, crooked cops, cheating spouses, and single-minded vigilantes. As Glitsky embraces and then discards one enticing theory after another, the truth seems to recede ever farther. So far that he begins to question his own moral compass in this “superb thriller from a veteran crime writer” (Jeffrey Deaver, New York Times bestselling author) that you’ll savor to the last word. 

*****************

Worth Dying For

(Jack Reacher #15)

by Lee Child

Hardcover ~ Published September 2010

There’s deadly trouble in the corn county of Nebraska . . . and Jack Reacher walks right into it. First he falls foul of the Duncans, a local clan that has terrified an entire county into submission. But it’s the unsolved, decades-old case of a missing child that Reacher can’t let go.

 

The Duncans want Reacher gone—and it’s not just past secrets they’re trying to hide. For as dangerous as the Duncans are, they’re just the bottom of a criminal food chain stretching halfway around the world. For Reacher, it would have made much more sense to put some distance between himself and the hard-core trouble that’s bearing down on him. For Reacher, that was also impossible. 

*****************

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Be sure to check the sidebar for all of my current giveaways!

Can't Look Away by Carola Lovering ~ My Thoughts #CantLookAway @carolatlovering @stmartinspress

Congrats Carola

on the release of

Can't Look Away!

Can't Look Away by Carola Lovering

Domestic Thrillers, 320 pages

Published June 14, 2022 by St. Martin's Press

From the author of Tell Me Lies and Too Good to Be True comes Carola Lovering's Can't Look Away, a sexy suspense novel about the kind of addictive, obsessive love that keeps you coming back––no matter how hard you try to look away.

In 2013, twenty-three-year old Molly Diamond is a barista, dreaming of becoming a writer. One night at a concert in East Williamsburg, she locks eyes with the lead singer, Jake Danner, and can’t look away. Molly and Jake fall quickly and deeply in love, especially after he writes a hit song about her that puts his band on the map.

Nearly a decade later, Molly has given up writing and is living in Flynn Cove, Connecticut with her young daughter and her husband Hunter—who is decidedly not Jake Danner. Their life looks picture-perfect, but Molly is lonely; she feels out of place with the other women in their wealthy suburb, and is struggling to conceive their second child. When Sabrina, a newcomer in town, walks into the yoga studio where Molly teaches and confesses her own fertility struggles, Molly believes she's finally found a friend.

But Sabrina has her own reasons for moving to Flynn Cove and befriending Molly. And as Sabrina’s secrets are slowly unspooled, her connection to Molly becomes clearer––as do secrets of Molly's own, which she’s worked hard to keep buried.

Meanwhile, a new version of Jake's hit song is on the radio, forcing Molly to confront her past and ask the ultimate questions: What happens when life turns out nothing like we thought it would, when we were young and dreaming big? Does growing up mean choosing with your head, rather than your heart? And do we ever truly get over our first love? 

My thoughts about Can't Look Away ~~

(I love to note the first lines of the books I'm reading. First lines can really grab a reader's attention and I love seeing where the author takes the reader after their first line.)

First line—"Molly never would have gone to the concert in East Williamsburg if Nina hadn't dragged her there."

This is the second book by Lovering that I have read. She just gets better with each book. This is a story that lives up to it's title. I literally could not look away. Once I started it, I devoured it to the very end. It is a definite page-turner!

Molly and Jake are the perfect couple and so in love... until they aren't anymore. Molly moves on but when the past comes crashing back into her world, that's when the creepiness starts. Nothing and no one is who they seem to be anymore. 

Can't Look Away is an exciting thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat. Start it and believe me, you won't be able to look away.

I received an ARC of Can't Look Away from the publisher via NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.

About the author

Carola Lovering is the author of Tell Me Lies, Too Good to Be True, and the forthcoming Can’t Look Away. She attended Colorado College, and her work has appeared in New York Magazine, W Magazine, National Geographic, Outside, and Yoga Journal, among other publications. Her novel, Tell Me Lies, is currently being adapted into a television series for Hulu. She lives in Connecticut with her husband and son. ~ Goodreads

Connect with Carola

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

*********************

Be sure to check the sidebar for all of my current giveaways!

Book Blitz! The Laughbox by Julia Kent ~ Excerpt and #Giveaway! #TheLaughbox

The Laughbox by Julia Kent
Publication date: June 21st 2022
Genres: Adult, Comedy, Contemporary, Romance

The Laughbox contains SIX full-length novels so you can start all of New York Times bestselling romantic comedy author Julia Kent’s series, plus get an ALL NEW NOVELLA you can’t find anywhere else.

Get a taste of billionaires, small towns, rock stars, office romance, secret bosses, second chances, first crushes, enemies-to-lovers, friends-to-lovers, and so much more.

Each series is wildly different from the others, with varying heat levels, different hijinks, but always, always – a heartwarming world you want to live in, with heroes who make you swoon and heroines who make you laugh – and cheer on in their quests for happily-ever-after endings.

This boxed set includes:

Shopping for a Billionaire (a New York Times bestseller)

Fluffy (a USA Today bestseller)

Love You Wrong

Random Acts of Crazy (a New York Times bestseller)

In Your Dreams

Maliciously Obedient (a USA Today bestseller)

and an ALL NEW novella, Shopping for a Billionaire’s Anniversary, featuring Declan and Shannon from Shopping for a Billionaire, as they celebrate their anniversary with affection, heat, and a hilarious set of awkward mishaps that still manage to be conquered by love.

Sink into seven fun stories that leave you with all the feels, loads of laughs, and strange looks from people around you as you read, giggle, and fall in love.

Note: each of these are series starters. Some are standalones (Fluffy), others end with the main characters together but with more books in the series as I follow their relationship (Shopping for a Billionaire, Random Acts of Crazy), others are prequels (Love You Wrong, In Your Dreams), while Maliciously Obedient has a cliffhanger. Full, up-front transparency for readers.

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

iBooks | Kobo | Google Play

SPECIAL RELEASE PRICE:

$2.99 until 6/26 when price goes up to $9.99!

*********************

EXCERPT:

Declan

Here.” My executive assistant, Dave, shoves a perfectly wrapped present at me, with a card and a small envelope. We’re in my office, the sun shining on this beautiful spring day, and I am finishing up work before taking a vacation.

Yes–vacation. It’s for one night, but it counts.

“What’s this?”

“Your anniversary gift for Shannon.”

The note card is blank.

He notices me noticing this and his face sours, the corners of his mouth dropping in scorn, pulling his beard down so he looks like an angry leprechaun.

“I draw the line at writing sweet nothings to your wife and signing your name, even if my rendition of your signature is far superior to your own,” he says dryly, reaching down to square a pile of papers on my desk.

“My signature is my signature. No one can best it, Dave.”

He just snorts.

I shake the box lightly. “What’s in here?”

“Leather.”

“Leather?”

“Ninth-year anniversary gift. Leather is flexible and represents durability.”

“I am well aware of what leather represents. What does it have to do with my marriage?”

He snorts again.

I frown and ask, “Just leather? What is it, a wallet?”

“No! Of course not. The traditional gemstone for ninth anniversaries is lapis. I had a jewelry artist set chunks of lapis in gold, then stitch them onto a leather cuff bracelet.” Dave holds his phone up to me, showing a picture of the piece.

“That’s incredible.”

A short sigh of contentment, then a clipped, “You’re welcome” is how Dave takes a compliment. He doesn’t feed off praise.

He feeds off his own hypercompetence. If efficiency were a drug, Dave would be Al Pacino on Scarface, covered in the fine white powder of his own brutal excellence.

“The lighthouse is reserved for the evening?” I inquire, reaching for my briefcase.

“Yes. Your suit’s in the car already.” Dave eyes me. “Where will you change?”

I’m wearing jeans, hiking boots, and a Lacoste polo shirt, all Shannon’s favorites. The dark green shirt is a nod to my eyes, which she has spent almost a decade raving about.

*********************

About the author

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Julia Kent writes romantic comedy with an edge. Since 2013, she has sold more than 2 million books, with 4 New York Times bestsellers and more than 21 appearances on the USA Today bestseller list. Her books have been translated into French, German, and Italian, with more titles releasing in the future.

From billionaires to BBWs to new adult rock stars, Julia finds a sensual, goofy joy in every contemporary romance she writes. Unlike Shannon from Shopping for a Billionaire, she did not meet her husband after dropping her phone in a men's room toilet (and he isn't a billionaire she met in a romantic comedy).

She lives in New England with her husband and three children where she is the only person in the household with the gene required to change empty toilet paper rolls.

She loves to hear from her readers by email at julia@jkentauthor.com, on Twitter @jkentauthor, on Facebook at @jkentauthor, and on Instagram @jkentauthor. Visit her at http://jkentauthor.com

Connect with Julia

Website | Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter

Newsletter | Instagram | Bookbub | Amazon

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Hosted by:

*********************

Be sure to check the sidebar for all of my current giveaways!

The Life We Almost Had by Amelia Henley ~ My Thoughts #TheLifeWeAlmostHad @booksforwardpr @readforeverpub

Congratulations Amelia

on the release of

The Life We Almost Had!

The Life We Almost Had by Amelia Henley
Psychological Thrillers, 416 pages
Published June 14, 2022 by Forever

From the USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author comes an emotional romance that is "beautifully written and plotted" (Candis).

This is not a typical love story, but it's our love story.

Anna wasn't looking for love when Adam swept her off her feet, but there was no denying their connection, and she believed they would be together forever.

Years later, cracks have appeared in their relationship. Anna is questioning whether their love can really be eternal when a cruel twist of fate delivers a crushing blow, and Anna and Adam are completely lost to one another. Now, Anna needs Adam more than ever, but the way back to him has life-changing consequences.

Is a second chance at first love really worth the sacrifice? Anna needs to decide, and time is running out.

My thoughts about The Life We Almost Had ~~

(I love to note the first lines of the books I'm reading. First lines can really grab a reader's attention and I love seeing where the author takes the reader after their first line.)

First line—"Seven years. It's been seven years since that night on the beach."

This was such an amazing story, unlike any I have read in a long time. It's full of love, betrayal, worry, hope, magic, forgiveness, secrets and lies. But always so much love. And hope. 

The Life We Almost Had is a beautifully written book that grabbed my attention from the very first line and then cemented my love for it with the line 'This is not a typical love story, but it's our love story.' Yep, I'm a sucker for a good love story. And this one is definitely not like any other one I've read. I was rooting for Anna and Adam all the way as they go through some really tough times. Is their love going to be strong enough to see them through it all? 

Amelia Henley is a new-to-me author and I didn't know a whole lot about this book going in, but she now has a fan who loves this book of hers. I will definitely be reading more of her stories, that's for sure!

Thank you to Books Forward and the publisher for a copy of The Life We Almost Had. This is my honest opinion of the book. 

About the author

Amelia Henley is a hopeless romantic who has a penchant for exploring the intricacies of relationships through writing heart-breaking, high-concept love stories.

Amelia also writes psychological thrillers under her real name, Louise Jensen. As Louise Jensen she has sold over a million copies of her global number one bestsellers. Her stories have been translated into twenty-five languages and optioned for TV as well as featuring on the USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestsellers list. Louise’s books have been nominated for multiple awards.

The Life We Almost Had was an international best seller. Her second love story, The Art of Loving You is newly published and available in ebook, paperback and audio. ~ Amazon

Connect with Amelia

Website | Facebook | Goodreads | Twitter

*********************

Be sure to check the sidebar for my current giveaways!

Release Day! Will's Surreal Period by Robert Steven Goldstein ~ An Interview & #Giveaway #WillsSurrealPeriod @booksforwardpr

Happy Release Day!

Congratulations Robert

on the release today of

Will's Surreal Period

Will's Surreal Period by Robert Steven Goldstein

6/21/2022 | SparkPress | Fiction

Print: $16.95, E Book: $9.95

Critically acclaimed author, Robert Steven Goldstein, takes inspiration from his own dysfunctional family in his forthcoming novel, Will’s Surreal Period, to examine the intersections of familial bonds, art, and spirituality. Through a story that unflinchingly explores the most intrinsic human desires, Goldstein cracks open the internal struggles of a family divided. 

William, a San Francisco artist who has struggled for years in obscurity, suddenly and inexplicably finds himself painting in a startlingly new surreal style that is embraced by the art world.

But the onset of persistent headaches and the inability to recall words lead him to a neurologist, where William discovers that his new artistic style is the result of a brain tumor, now threatening his life. He must decide whether to have surgery to remove it, which would relegate him to painting in the drab style that defined his years of anonymity, or take his chances, and allow the tumor to grow, and most likely kill him.

To make matters worse, William and his wife Rosemary are struggling financially, having been disowned by William’s father Arthur, a cantankerous and homophobic old widower, who uses his money to assert power. Arthur is cared for by his younger son, Bertram, in a big house in Scarsdale, New York. But, when Bertram—a gay man, in the closet due to his fear of being disinherited, finally comes out—Arthur decides to switch allegiance to Will, and move to California. A mess ensues. The only question is whether Laurel, a portly California real estate agent who takes an improbable liking to Arthur, will make the situation better or worse.

Goldstein uses humor as a driving vehicle to explore the relationships between strained family members. Can William and Bertram repair the relationship with their father before it is too late? 

  

An Interview with Robert Steven Goldstein

1. How has your personal experience with a ‘dysfunctional family’ inspired the characters and relationships in “Will’s Surreal Period”?

Many years ago I saw a one-panel cartoon that has stuck with me. It’s a picture of a large auditorium, and the banner on stage proclaims: “Annual Convention of Children from Functional Families.” Among the hundreds of seats in the auditorium, only three people, each sitting alone, are scattered across the vast expanse. This cartoon hits home because I, like so many other people I’ve met, come from families we describe as “dysfunctional.” For “Will’s Surreal Period” I drew upon my own personal experiences, as well as stories I’ve heard from friends and acquaintances, to invent a family whose level of dysfunction is sufficiently beguiling and entertaining to hopefully engage readers.

2. Art, spirituality, and creativity are themes in your personal life as well as your writing, why are these necessary keystones in your work as an author?

The three things you mention here—art, spirituality, and creativity—involve an intensive inward focus. I’ve practiced yoga and meditation for over fifty years, spiritual disciplines which incorporate the same sort of inward focus. In the case of yoga, not just the mind but the entire body becomes engaged. This type of inward focus unites the conscious and subconscious minds, the external and internal personas, and ultimately, the individual and universal selves. These unions are the keystones to my perception of life in general, so, they are of course part and parcel of the novels I create.

3. How does “Will’s Surreal Period” differ from your previous novels? Are there any common themes in your body of work?

“Will’s Surreal Period” is my fourth novel, but my first told in third person. My three prior novels were narrated in first person, a technique which allows an author to delve very deeply into one character’s thoughts, but then forces the author to see all the other characters through the eyes of that narrator. “Will’s Surreal Period” is populated by a rich ensemble cast of characters—and though narrated in third person, each segment is seen from the primary perspective of one of the characters who appears in it—thus the reader becomes privy to the thoughts and motivations of a variety of the players. I found it very interesting and rewarding as a writer to tell a story this way. With respect to motifs I tend to embrace in my books, spirituality, sexuality, and food and drink, have been, to a greater or lesser extent, recurring themes in all my novels. In “Will’s Surreal Period,” which primarily explores the dynamics of a dysfunctional family, food and drink play a major thematic role, with sexuality and spirituality providing rich supporting episodes.

4. What do you want readers to take away from “Will’s Surreal Period”?

The first, and most essential duty of a novelist is to produce books that readers enjoy and stick with. I think I’ve done that with “Will’s Surreal Period,” and hope that my readers agree. Beyond that, the novel certainly has some things to say about family dynamics, spirituality, art, sexuality, and food. The book doesn’t try to hit the reader over the head with any of those themes, but I do think that the obstacles the characters confront, and the solutions upon which they stumble, may induce some provocative conjecture on the part of certain readers.

5. How did you begin your journey as a writer and what inspires you to continue writing?

I learned to read when I was three years old and began writing stories almost immediately thereafter. At the age of seven I had a poem published in my elementary school newspaper. When I was a senior in high school I won first prize in Scholastic’s national short story contest with a tale called “Fumatorium.” And in college I majored in English Literature and Creative Writing, and published a couple of articles in trade journals as well. My writing career appeared to be off to a terrific young start. But I knew I wasn’t ready. I hadn’t lived. The confidence, maturity, self-discipline, and wisdom I’d need to write the kinds of books I wanted wasn’t yet there. So I made a pact with myself—I’d work hard, live frugally, invest wisely, and retire as early as I could to write full-time without needing to earn a living from it. At age fifty-six I was finally ready. That was almost fifteen years ago, and I remain as enthused about writing now as I was then.

Praise for Robert Steven Goldstein’s Work

“Cat’s Whisker is a fascinating novel whose hero meditates on the complementary natures of science and spirituality.” 

 - ★★★★ Review from Foreword Reviews

“Growing up, Robert realized that his spirituality and sexuality were not consistent with the models that are formed by others. Those views did not resonate with him. Robert felt a hollowness and emptiness. He moved and fortunately found kindred spirits. This enabled him to have a fulfilled experience and a spiritual illumination.”

 -Interview with Robert Steven Goldstein on Stories that Empower Podcast 

“Books have always seemed sacred to me. As a child, I recall seeing books as things to be revered—they held and transmitted the learnings and perspectives of our culture.” 

-Novels Alive, Interview: With Provocative Author Robert Steven Goldstein

“At times hilarious and at times deeply moving, Will’s Surreal Period is a richly satisfying novel, featuring a rollickingly dysfunctional family, a seemingly endless array of succulent foodstuffs, and a brain tumor that transforms a mediocre painter into a virtuoso. The book’s characters are alluring, its ideas are seductive, and its plot is irresistible—this is a story that will hook you fast and captivate you till the end.”

–KEN JAKOBS, librettist, director, and producer of opera in the San Francisco Bay Area

“Will’s Surreal Period proves why works of fiction are high art, hitching us to a wild ride with an ensemble of engaging and eccentric characters brought together by a maladjusted family—some we may love and others we may scorn—but all seductively propel us into their psyches. Robert Steven Goldstein deftly converts our raw human foibles into emotive entertainment and, as he does, reminds us, sometimes painfully, sometimes hilariously, who we are.”

–MICHAEL J. COFFINO, award winning author of Truth Is in the House.

About the author

Goldstein retired from his job as a healthcare information executive at age fifty-six and has been writing novels ever since. 

His first novel, The Swami Deheftner, about problems that ensue when ancient magic and mysticism manifest in the twenty-first century, has developed a small cult following in India. His second novel, Enemy Queen, a sexual comedy of manners set in a North Carolina college town, was a finalist in the category of cross genre fiction for the International Book Awards. Robert’s third novel, Cat’s Whisker, which was published in October, 2021, probes the perceived rift between science and spirituality. His fourth novel, Will’s Surreal Period, about the peripatetic machinations of a dysfunctional family, is due out in June, 2022. 

Robert lives in San Francisco with Sandy, his wife of thirty-three years, and Cali, a fearless, lovable Akita/Cattle-Dog. Robert has practiced yoga, meditation, and vegetarianism for over fifty years. 

Connect with Robert

Website | Facebook | Goodreads

a Rafflecopter giveaway

***********************

Be sure to check the sidebar for my current giveaways!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? June 20, 2022 #IMWAYR

     

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week. It's an opportunity to visit other blogs and to comment on their reads. And ... you can add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date. And here we are! 

**************************************

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you all have a good week. 

Happy reading!

What I'm currently reading

The Night Shift

by Natalka Burian

Pub date July 12

The New Normal

by Tracy Brogan

Narrated by Amy McFadden

What I recently finished

The Edge of Summer

by Viola Shipman

Pub date July 12

The Secrets We Hide

Patricia Sands

Pub date July 2

What I am going to read next

Corinne

by Rebecca Morrow

Pub date July 12

I really love my reading life!

What are you reading this week?

*************************

Be sure to check the sidebar for all of my current giveaways!

This OR That #Giveaway № 61 ~ Lady in the Lake by Laura Lippman OR The Next Best Thing by Jennifer Weiner #LadyInTheLake #TheNextBestThing

 

I have sooooo many books!

The This or That Giveaway! feature that I post every Saturday is a way for me to cull my collection and to share some of the many books I have. I get to clear off some of my shelves to make room for more books and give someone else the chance to enjoy these treasures.

Good luck and be sure to stop back next week!

*****************

Lady in the Lake
by Laura Lippman
ARC ~ Published July 2019

The revered New York Times bestselling author returns with a novel set in 1960s Baltimore that combines modern psychological insights with elements of classic noir, about a middle-aged housewife turned aspiring reporter who pursues the murder of a forgotten young woman.

In 1966, Baltimore is a city of secrets that everyone seems to know--everyone, that is, except Madeline "Maddie" Schwartz. Last year, she was a happy, even pampered housewife. This year, she's bolted from her marriage of almost twenty years, determined to make good on her youthful ambitions to live a passionate, meaningful life. 

Maddie wants to matter, to leave her mark on a swiftly changing world. Drawing on her own secrets, she helps Baltimore police find a murdered girl--assistance that leads to a job at the city's afternoon newspaper, the Star. Working at the newspaper offers Maddie the opportunity to make her name, and she has found just the story to do it: a missing woman whose body was discovered in the fountain of a city park lake. 

Cleo Sherwood was a young African-American woman who liked to have a good time. No one seems to know or care why she was killed except Maddie--and the dead woman herself. Maddie's going to find the truth about Cleo's life and death. Cleo's ghost, privy to Maddie's poking and prying, wants to be left alone. Maddie's investigation brings her into contact with people that used to be on the periphery of her life--a jewelery store clerk, a waitress, a rising star on the Baltimore Orioles, a patrol cop, a hardened female reporter, a lonely man in a movie theater. 

But for all her ambition and drive, Maddie often fails to see the people right in front of her. Her inability to look beyond her own needs will lead to tragedy and turmoil for all sorts of people--including the man who shares her bed, a black police officer who cares for Maddie more than she knows.'

Read my thoughts here

*****************

The Next Best Thing
by Jennifer Weiner
Hardcover ~ Published July 2012

Blockbuster #1 New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Weiner returns with an irresistible story about a young woman trying to make it in Hollywood…

Actors aren’t the only ones trying to make it in Hollywood.…At twenty-three, Ruth Saunders left her childhood home in Massachusetts and headed west with her seventy-year-old grandma in tow, hoping to make it as a screenwriter. Six years later, she hits the jackpot when she gets The Call: the sitcom she wrote, The Next Best Thing, has gotten the green light, and Ruthie’s going to be the showrunner. But her dreams of Hollywood happiness are threatened by demanding actors, number-crunching executives, an unrequited crush on her boss, and her grandmother’s impending nuptials.

Set against the fascinating backdrop of Los Angeles show business culture, with an insider’s ear for writer’s room showdowns and an eye for bad backstage behavior and set politics, Jennifer Weiner’s new novel is a rollicking ride on the Hollywood roller coaster, a heartfelt story about what it’s like for a young woman to love, and lose, in the land where dreams come true. 

*****************

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Be sure to check the sidebar for all of my current giveaways!