Day is the heartbreaking story of a family whose already unsteady relationships begin to fall apart just prior to the Covid lockdown. It’s the realization of the adults that life as the family has known it will never be the same as they each grapple with their own personal feelings and demons. At the same time, their children must cope with a virus which can cause death, but being young, not believing or understanding anything could ever happen to them.
Dan and Isabel live in a brownstone in New York. The year is 2019. They have two young children, Violet who is 5 and Nathan who is 9. Isabel’s brother Robbie lives upstairs in an attached attic apartment. Robbie is getting over the breakup with his boyfriend. A teacher by day, Robbie is an internet sensation under the name Wolfie. Only Isabel knows about Wolfie.
Robbie has just been told by Isabel that he needs to move out because they need the space. Robbie understands but loves the children so much he knows it will be hard. He also begins to question his choice of career and wonders if it is too late to change it wishing he could go back in time and make another choice.
Dan and Isabel are also going through a difficult time. Isabel is very unhappy in her life but is frozen not knowing what to do or how to leave. She is miserably stuck in a marriage she feels was wrong with children she barely knows.
So, when the lockdown occurs thus begins not only the continued deterioration of a family, but everything which happens later. And none of them will ever be the same. Violet suddenly becomes obsessed with germs, her brother Nathan who moved into Robbie’s old place has a personality change and has a different carefree take on the situation. Isabel and Dan hardly talk, and Robbie finds himself stuck in a remote area of Iceland unable to communicate with his family. All he has for companionship are his books and Wolfie.
None of them are the same people after the lockdown ends. Was it really the lockdown? Perhaps part of it. But the emotional toll it took, lives which may never be fixed, guilt and blame are now how each seem to cope with a new different reality and family dynamic.
Day is a story about love, loss, change and emotional deterioration. It’s heartbreaking yet poignant story which will haunt you for days after you’ve read the final page.
Thank you #NetGalley #RandomHouse #MichaelCunningham #Day for the advanced copy.
The Bachelorette Party will hook you from the first page and will never disappoint! What should have been a wonderful weekend party, turns into a weekend from hell with a dead body added to the mix. The animosity the group feels towards each other is palpable. The reasons, unknown. And when the secrets are exposed well, the explosions can be heard all around New Orleans! But who is killed and why is frustratingly saved for the reader until the jaw dropping ending!
Rosalee is marrying Asher Beake, who she feels is the love of her life. A lawyer, he comes from a very wealthy family. Rosalee can’t help but wonder, why her? So as a group of family and friends organize a bachelorette party, to The Big Easy, with most of them not really wanting to be there it seems to go downhill beginning at the airport. The cast of characters, one of which will be dead by the end include:
Rosalee, the bride to be. A bit insecure due to the fact she knows her soon to be husband’s mother and sister don’t care for her thinking he could do much better. She has no family other than a cousin named Tinsley as her parents died when she was young in a car accident. She hopes everybody can just get along. But she is a bit concerned about one thing. She thinks perhaps Asher is cheating on her with one of the wedding party. And that is only one of Rosalee’s secrets.
Elizabeth Beake is Asher’s mother. She cannot particularly stand Rosalee and does not understand why her son would pick this mouse. She had always hoped he and his best friend from childhood, Georgia would finally see they were made for each other. Something Elizabeth continually says! She is still recovering from losing her husband last year and between this wedding and her daughter Bri’s antics she just wants the weekend to go quickly. Although Elizabeth herself does not share everything with her family.
Bri, the soon to be sister-in-law, does not care for Rosalee and tries to embarrass her whenever she can. She too doesn’t want her as a member of their family and will perhaps attempt to make some waves. But Bri is a drinker and sometimes is an embarrassment to herself. Why does she drink so much? We will find out!
Mara, the best friend, does not like either of Rosalee’s soon to be family. And she plans on showing them just how much on this trip. She wants to make their lives miserable. Yes, she’s a bit jealous and yes even though she planned the trip she has no money, but she adores Rosalee and knows how they have been treating her.
Georgia is Asher’s childhood best friend and doesn’t really know why she is here. She can’t imagine Rosalee wanting her here, but Elizabeth insisted she come. She was a nurse but left her position to start a yoga studio. She feels Rosalee has the wrong impression of her. Worst of all, someone is threatening her and could ruin what is left of her new career.
Tinsley is Rosalee’s only relative, the cousin she went to live with when her parent died. At first Tinsley resented Rosalee’s presence as she and her mother had always been best friends. Tinsley, a bookworm who kept to herself always had to work hard for what she had whereas Rosalee was the life of the party and was able to go to college because of the money she was left when her parents died. She still lives paycheck to paycheck and oh, by the way, she’s paying for everything because Mara is waiting for her “windfall”.
Just remember this…they all have secrets and bitterness towards each other. Anyone of them could be pushed to the limit and accidentally, intentionally kill! And the anticipation of the who, what, where how and why will kill you!
Thank you #NetGalley #OneMoreChapter #TheBacheloretteParty #CarissaAnnLynch for the advanced copy.
Last Night At The Hollywood Canteen is a 1940’s throwback mystery story set in Hollywood where stardom meets addiction meets jealousy meets frenemies meets murder. Set during the time of Bette Davis and Mickey Rooney, the story revolves around a young playwright who moves to Hollywood and befriends a band of what could only be called misfit, alcoholic, movie, music and radio stars. When one of the friends is murdered at the Hollywood Canteen, a club for servicemen to dance and relax, they know it would be in the best interest for their careers to figure out exactly what happen.
Annie Laurence is the playwright who is coming off a high. Her Broadway show was a success for the most part but due to circumstances…both leads signed with a movie company in Los Angeles, and it shuts down. Devastated at not only the loss of the show, but her relationship with the two stars, when offered a job herself, she jumps at the chance to move to LA and work on a script for a movie.
But Annie goes there with a few secrets. And when she goes to the famous Hollywood Canteen to volunteer, she sees Fiona Farris, a famous film critic who alluded to her secret in a review she did of her play, and she becomes nervous. But Fiona introduces her to a band of actors/musicians who she quickly befriends. But are they friends? The seem to love to hate each other! But things take a terrible turn when Fiona is found dead at the club. At first it is ruled a suicide, but the friends seem to think it is much more sinister. Who would have it out for Fiona? Yes, she was hated for her honesty but enough to kill?
But when the friends begin digging, they discover Fiona had been working on a mysterious story which by chance could have ruined someone’s career. But whose?
So as any narcissistic stars would do, they band together to try and discover what really happened to Fiona and what and whose secret she was trying to expose. And that of course is when everybody’s skeletons in the closet slowly surface. Annie herself is panic stricken as she knows if her secret gets out it could be the end of her career!
As for her “career” Annie has a terrible case of writer’s block and hasn’t been able to write a complete sentence since she arrived at the studio. What if she gets fired?
But the case begins to turn, and when Annie gets a brick thrown into her apartment, she realizes she’s on to something. But someone else clearly knows that as well. Then Annie is arrested for the murder of Fiona! How will she be able to prove her innocence? More important who of these friends can she truly trust? Could one of them have really killed Fiona?
Last Night At The Hollywood Canteen is a terrific murder mystery filled with gruff characters who are great at not telling the truth, who are funny and quirky who are able to keep up the facade Hollywood is known for even if it might kill them in the process. But wouldn’t that make them even more famous? Hmmm….
Thank you #NetGalley #SourcebooksLandmark #SarahJames #LastNightAtTheHollywoodCanteen for the advanced copy.
Cackle is an imaginative adult fairytale about a woman who has been scorned, has lost confidence in herself and through the help of another woman who is “different” begins a journey to becoming who she was always meant to be…strong and independent. It’s also very witty and sometimes frightening (in more ways than one).
When Annie, a schoolteacher who has been in love with her boyfriend for years gets dumped by him for reasons she cannot understand, she makes the choice to leave New York City where she always thought she had a fabulous, comfortable life, and the boyfriend she always felt made her feel safe. She decides to take a job in upstate New York and finds an apartment in a little village nearby the new school.
She immediately feels some sort of different vibe coming from the townspeople. She enjoys their comraderies, and they always seem so happy. The village is pleasant, beautiful and the people kind. Although she does discover the apartment she is renting does come with an infestation problem, she takes this with a grain of salt as the village is nestled in the woods.
Although Annie tries to move on, she is still miserable, until she meets the most beautiful woman she has ever seen named Sophie. She becomes Annie’s best friend. Yes, Sophie has been in the village for ages (literally), living in a mansion in the woods, and the other residence don’t particularly care for her, and she is quite quirky, but so are the others. But she makes Annie feel alive again and gives her a strength she never knew she had.
The new school has its own problems. The students constantly tease her, and she has very little control over them until an incident occurs which Annie cannot understand. She begins to look at Sophie in a different light. Very different!
As Sophie begins to give Annie life lessons, Annie gets stronger and stronger. But still, in the back of her mind she can’t forget the relationship she left behind. Although Sophie has continuously warned her not to get in touch with her ex, Annie decides to and that’s when all hell freezes over …literally!
Now Annie has a decision to make…her ex or Sophie who has taught her how to live again by taking control back of her own life. And when Sophie gives Annie an ultimatum, well, Annie may never see the light of day again!
The story is suspenseful, imaginative with one surprise after another, many eccentric characters, both human and crawling and about a woman who learns how to empower herself and grow strong and who in the end learns just how to Cackle!
The Good Part is a tender, heartwarming story, which is both funny and touching at the same time. It will pull at your heartstrings as you ponder the question, if in life you could, would you want to move past the hard work in life and jump to the good part?
Lucy Young is a struggling senior television producer who lives in a dilapidated, run-down apartment with water issues, with her best friend and other careless, inconsiderate roommates. She has no money and is barely acknowledged by her boss. She is miserable.
To make matters worse, this morning as she wakes up to a wet bed because water is pouring down into her room, she discovers on the way to work that her best friend has decided to move out offering to have her come with her and she will cover part of her rent. But Lucy is too proud to take her up on the offer. Even more depressed, she spends her day at a job in which she is so capable of but never given a chance and after work goes on a date which turns out to be an absolute disaster.
As she stumbles home, she sees an old woman standing near a machine machine. She tells her to make a wish but be careful what you wish for! Lucy thinks this is silly, but she puts the coin in the machine. Her wish? To jump ahead to the good part of her life, in which she is not struggling anymore.
The next day, she awakens in a beautiful bedroom next to the most handsome man she has ever seen. And she herself is older! In the other room, she hears a baby crying and when she gets up, she discovers a young boy. She has no idea what has happened. The only thing she can remember is putting the coin in the machine. Her past life is a mystery.
After trying to hide her secret, and her son knowing something is wrong and deciding she is an alien in his mother’s body, she confesses to her whom she now knows is her husband that she can’t remember her life. And as Lucy discovers what her life has become, she now can’t help but wonder how she became the person she is now.
As she tries to adjust to her new reality with her business partner thinking she’s going through menopause and watching her parents who have of course aged and seeing who they have become, she starts to discover pieces of her life, some good and some heartbreaking which have occurred over the years.
And as she begins to fall in love with this man and her children, she must decide…should she try and find a way back to the past? Or stay here not ever feeling the true emotions when she is told about incidents in her life which are only stories to her, with no memory of the feelings which had occurred. And if she goes back, is there a guarantee she gets the same future? Will she even remember her beautiful family?
The Good Part is wonderfully written and thought out. You will certainly laugh at the antics Lucy gets herself into, but your heart will break as you learn and she herself learns no life is ever perfect and no matter the bad, there truly are good parts all along the journey.
Thank you #NetGalley #G.P.Putnam’sSons # SophieCousens #TheGoodPart for the advanced copy.
Thinly Veiled is a funny, romantic romp with a bit of crime interwoven into the story as a group of new friends try to figure out a plan to stop a blackmail scheme, while a blossoming romance prevents someone from admitting to a shady past as they fall in love.
Claire Branson has moved to Salem, Viginia in hopes of putting her past life to rest. Growing up was a difficult process for her made worse by a mother she now realizes she never really knew. Yes, her past is a bit sketchy, but with the help of her best friend Zoey, who in some ways is her protector and guardian angel, she hopes to start a new chapter in her life and quite frankly to stay away from men.
Until…she meets a bartender, Luke Turner. When he finds out Claire is looking for a job, he hires her as a bartender. And that’s when the crazy ride begins. She comfortably flirts with him thinking he could never be interested, but as fate would have it, she’s wrong. Now, she must decide what to tell her new “friend” about her past bad habits. She is torn because she feels this could be something real.
But unfortunately, all good things must have a glitch to them and someone from Claire’s past has found her and has threatened to expose her if she does not help him get out of a sticky jam. She realizes she has no choice but to help him, so she comes clean to Luke, the only person who has really made her feel safe. And he’s not happy.
But her new quirky friends ban together and decide on a plan to help Claire so she won’t end up doing jail time, but when things begin to go terribly wrong, Claire finds jail is the least of her problems, she may just lose her life!
Thinly Veiled is filled with humor, sex, terrific characters and an exciting plot.
Thank you #ElizaModiste #ThinlyVeiled for sending me your book.
With the storytelling perfection, we have been used to by Viola Shipman, comes another extraordinarily, magical Christmas story, The Wishing Bridge, which is about yes, a bridge you walk on, but also about those life bridges we have to cross, those decisions we have to make and sometimes regret and those relationships of past loves, which including family we try to mend. It’s about how some dreams realized in life, perhaps fulfilled, may not be one’s true calling. But how do we know?
Henri, (short for Henrietta) Wegner knows she’s about to lose her job, a job she has cultivated and grown for years. She’s put her whole heart and soul into finding small businesses and making them sell to larger corporations. And she has been great at it. But not this year. So, when her boss begins his speech informing her of his decision, she blurts out that if he gives her until after Christmas, she would be able to give him her family’s business back in Michigan on a silver platter.
Henri’s family owns Frankenmuth, a famous year-round Christmas store which puts out a one-of-a-kind holiday catalogue every child dreams about. Based in Michigan, it was her father’s dream years ago and he was able to see it through and watch it grow. So of course, her greedy boss agrees and gives her only days to close the deal.
But you see, Henri has not been back to her small town in Michigan for years. Perhaps too many memories or perhaps too many ghosts. So, when she surprises her family and friends with a visit just before Christmas, they are excited, yet concerned, her brother suspicious. Why is she here? Henri guiltily begins her examination of the family business and working at the store to get a feel on how things are going. And she finds they are not going well. Her dad seems to be stuck in a time warp and does not want to move into the new century. She sees the waste of money and how tired and stressed her parents seem. She knows she could convince them to sell, but now she questions if she really wants that.
On top of all this guilt, she must face the love of her life whose marriage proposal she turned down all those years ago because she wanted to make a name for herself in business. She also knows if she is able to persuade her parents to sell, so many people will be devastated. Those who have come to rely on this magical store for generations. And as she relives some of her most favorite past memories of the importance of the store and the holiday season in her life, she begins to change in so many ways.
But with time running out and her boss growing angrier for not getting what he wants, she must make a life-changing choice. What is more important. The career she has nurtured all of her adult life, or the family and friends she ran away from. Can you ever really come home?
The Wishing Bridge is a beautiful story with delicate plot twists. It’s that life-balance we all feel at one time or another; am I on the right path, have I done what I need to do, who am I doing this for? It’s about emotional reunions, difficult choices, and touching memories of family both present and past, and finding the forgiveness inside yourself to truly open your heart and love.
VIOLA SHIPMAN is the pen name for internationally bestselling LGBTQIA author Wade Rouse. Wade is the author of fifteen books, which have been translated into 21 languages and sold over a million copies around the world. Wade writes under his grandmother’s name, Viola Shipman, to honor the working poor Ozarks seamstress whose sacrifices changed his family’s life and whose memory inspires his fiction. Wade’s books have been selected multiple times as Must-Reads by NBC’s Today Show, Michigan Notable Books of the Year and Indie Next Picks. He lives in Michigan and California, and hosts Wine & Words with Wade, A Literary Happy Hour, every Thursday.
“A beautifully written story about second chances. Fans of women’s fiction won’t be able to put this down.” –Publishers Weekly on The Secret of Snow
“Viola Shipman knows relationships. The Clover Girls will sometimes make you smile and other times cry, but like a true friendship, it is a novel you will forever savor and treasure.” –Mary Alice Monroe, New York Times bestselling author
“The perfect winter warmer!” –USA TODAY bestselling author Sarah Morgan on The Secret of Snow
Thank you #NetGalley #GraydonHouse #TheWishingBridge #ViolaShipman for the advanced copy and the honor of being included in the blog tour. You can buy the book now at the links below:
What Happens on Vacation is a very funny, sentimental love story which you will read with a smile on your face and a tear in your eyes. With its part love/hate, letting go and mourning loss plot, it immediately grabs you and takes you on a very exotic journey.
Margaret is a very well-respected serious journalist who writes stories which impact lives and countries. With that said, her life is extremely inflexible. You know what time of day it is just by what Margaret is doing. A cup of tea? Oh, it’s eleven o’clock.
You see, this year has not been a standout year for her. She is still mourning the loss of her father who died after a short, surprising illness. She was also divorced after finding out her husband was cheating on her, and she now is living with her mother.
For someone who does not like change this has been very challenging. Even more so, she now has a cubical mate named Jaggar Villain no less and she does not like him at all. He seems to believe it is his job in life to torture and tease her. Although very handsome, she looks down on his form of “journalism” as he tackles really difficult stories, such as how to find a girlfriend on Tinder or, is a dyed checkerboard hairdo really worth the money? For some reason no matter what he says or does it bothers her to the core.
So, when they both compete in the annual workplace trivia contest in which the prize is a trip to the beautiful Zanzibar, a game Margaret has consistently won, she is shocked when he gives her a run for her money and ties for the win. She is even more upset when it is decided the two of them should share the trip!
Now, she has to go on vacation with someone she does not particularly like! And of course, nothing goes as planned. Margaret decides to take her mother and Jagger who she thought would certainly take a model, takes his father. And when those two lock eyes, well, enough said. Her luggage is lost so she must wear her mother’s bathing suits.
The trip turns from bad to worse when she is unable to sleep in her own hotel room because, well, let’s just not go there! She ends up having to room with Jagger. Of course, the two begin to get to know each other better and she discovers he’s not THAT bad. And just as they are getting closer, their parents make an unfortunate announcement!
So of course, Margaret is back to her old self, unwilling to see the good, only the bad and begins to sabotage herself and Jagger. Now, they must go home having done unimaginable things and try to work together. How can they do that? With Margaret being unbending, as well as still reeling from what has just happened and the rest of her life this past year, how does she move forward?
What Happens on Vacation is a delicious tale of love on so many levels, with so many moving parts, with a plot filled with regret, loss, learning to compromise but most importantly letting go and learning to love again.
Thank you #NetGalley #WbyWattpadBooks #JoWatson #WhatHappensonVacation for the advanced copy.
Lisa's Cubby 