Lisa's Cubby

Ghosted is a fascinating young adult book about finding oneself after a tragic loss and understanding you are not the only one grieving, and people grieve very differently. It’s learning how to deal with the guilt and anger which comes with this loss, and learning how to let go of it all so you can start anew and be the person you want to be and not be who you think others want you to be.

Hattie Tilney is a senior at Northanger Abbey. You would think she would be on cloud nine as she prepares her college applications and enjoys being with her friends. But unfortunately, Hattie’s dad, her best friend passed away prior to them arriving at the school which her mother had gotten the job as headmistress.

Her father had been so excited to move and explore Northanger Abbey because ghost hunting had been Hattie and her dad’s favorite pastime. It was their thing. And Northanger was notorious for their ghosts, even having a school club which hunted them.

But he never made the trip and now Hattie, her younger brother Liam, older sister Frankie and their mother are here, each dealing with the death of their father very differently. Hattie continues to mourn her father, Liam has gotten very quiet, Frankie dropped out of school and their mom, well she is never around, always at work.

Hattie copes by trying to please her mother and be the best daughter ever, never making waves even when she would rather be doing something else. But when her mother decides Hattie should take the new transfer student, Kit Morland, who is on a scholarship for the paranormal around and mentor him knowing that’s what Hattie and her dad use to do, well Hattie hates the idea. But as usual, anything to please her mother.

But what ends up happening is that through Kit, and their disagreements on do ghosts exist, something Hattie is now adamant do not! she begins to feel a change come over her and as their friendship begins to grow. Hattie starts to find her own voice and finally begins to understand the loss of her dad and how it has affected them all.

Not everyone is happy with the new Hattie. Her friends begin to see her change and don’t particularly care for it, her siblings don’t care for it either and her mother, well is she had been around more would perhaps have noticed something been available to help.

As her family continues to spiral out of control, Hattie has a crisis which could change her future forever. And that is the catalyst which begins the healing process for all of them as they bond together as the family they use to be and help her. That’s when her realization that her dad spent all his time searching for ghosts and when he died Hattie spent all her time trying to escape hers finally sets her free.

Ghosted is a terrific read about what happens when people are grieving but must continue to act as if nothing happened. It’s a heartfelt story with a bit of wit, romance and growing up all thrown together to make for a satisfying read.

Thank you #NetGalley #WednesdayBooks #Ghosted #AmandaQuain for the advanced copy.

The Deja Glitch is an adorable, funny, sensitive story with lots of charm and romance. Its unique plot makes the reader want to plow through the story to find out how it’s going to end while cheering on our two main characters.

Gemma Peters is a radio producer trying to succeed without anyone’s help, (her father being a god in the music business). Although she pretends everything is always fine, she can’t forgive her father for his past mistakes as she grew up as well as choosing her ex-boyfriend, who she thought was the love of her life over her.

Now her brother is flying in to meet with Gemma and her father. Gemma never sees her father alone. He’s having a difficult time getting there. Gemma has a very routine oriented life. Work, seeing her best friend Lila, a social media guru and the true love of her life, Rex (her dog).

Until one night…

She meets a stranger at Lila’s birthday party and ends up kissing him not knowing who he is or where he came from.

Until the next day…

When she literally bumps into said mystery man (Jack) in a coffee shop and he spills coffee all over her favorite shirt. They talk. It’s odd, he seems to know so much about her. Have they met before?

Then he explains what’s happening…

Gemma finds out that she and Jack have for some reason been living the same day over and over again unbeknownst to her. She thinks Jack is crazy, (cute) but crazy. But he does seem to know what her every move will be. So, Jack takes her to someone who has been trying to help him through this. A scientist who tries to explain this loop they are in. But Gemma has one question. If this is true, why hasn’t she ever been able to remember Jack from the night before? He explains that this has been the farthest he’s ever gotten to have her remember him. Why she asks?

The kiss last night.

And Jack has a theory. He believes if he and Gemma fall in love, the loop will be broken, and they will go back to normal. Although she’s not sure if this is really a trick or if it will help her to getting her life back, she decides to try it Jack’s way. And they begin to spend the day together with all types of crazy obstacles, some Jack knows about and others which just seem to come out of the blue. Is it possible two people can fall in love so quickly without knowing anything about each other?

Well, in this charming, sweet story we will certainly find out. And perhaps what they learn about each other and themselves will serve as the basis for a new beginning. The Deja Glitch is an adorable story with charm and romance. Oh, did I already say that?

Thank you #NetGalley #Dutton #HollyJames #TheDejaGlitch for the advanced copy.

Heather Webber’s magical, beautiful, uplifting writing of stories continues to treat her readers with another wonderful unique story, At the Coffee Shop of Curiosities. Her characters, stubborn, strong, quirky. Their problems secret, hidden deep in their souls, but the love they have for each other obvious which makes the story so romantic.

Ava Harrison broke up with her boyfriend and then he died. She is guilt ridden. Unable to pick up the pieces of her life which according to her late ex is so predictable and without risk, she decides to try new things, one of which is to apply for a job out of her comfort zone. After her ex passed away, Ava found a note. It was a classified ad for a job as the caretaker of an elderly man in a seaside town called Driftwood, Alabama. She has no idea where it came from, but she decides to travel to Driftwood and apply for the job.

There she meets Maggie Mae Brightwell who runs the local coffee and curiosity shop named Magpies. It’s her father’s now, but it was owned by her mother, the light of Maggie’s life who went missing when she was a young girl. Her father, Dez seems to be causing an uprising in the town as the rumor mill believes he is getting ready to sell the beloved shop. Maggie begins to think Dez’s age has caught up with him as he lives alone in the family house, is a bit of a packrat and claims to hear ghosts up in the attic. He also lives with a crotchety cat named Molly who only seems to like Dez.

So, when Ava shows up out of the blue, Maggie is grateful to have someone watch over her father. Maggie likes to keep busy, very busy so she doesn’t have to think about her past and her mother. But when Ava and Maggie meet, they bond over the losses in their lives and seem to be two old souls who were somehow destined to meet.

Both are holding on to what has happened to them from years ago, with fears of what may come, with regrets for what they did or didn’t do. But with the help of Estrelle, a mysterious elderly woman who owns a local shop who seems to have insight into just about everything, and who is feared (in a good way) by just about everyone, those feelings may soon change.

And Ava and Maggie do begin to see their pasts and futures differently as they allow those who they have always kept at arm’s length into their lives. Although they are afraid, they begin to open their wings and fly like confident butterflies to help not only themselves, but each other and those they love in this small town.

At The Coffee Shop of Curiosities is an exceptionally joyful read with funny, adorable townspeople and a satisfying ending which will continue to make you smile even after you’ve put the book on your own shelf.

Thank you #NetGalley #ForgeBooks/MacmillanPublishing #HeatherWebber #AtTheCoffeeShopofCuriousities for the advanced copy.

Peg and Rose Stir Up Trouble is a cute comfortable cozy filled with
charismatic and stubborn seniors who it seems are always in the wrong place at the
wrong time. It’s comedic, sentimental, heartwarming and suspenseful all rolled
into one. Oh, and we can’t forget about the dogs!

Peg Turnball and her sister-in-law Rose Donovan have put their past issues
behind them. They are beginning to get comfortably reacquainted with each
other. So much so that Rose convinces Peg to put herself out there and create a
profile on a senior dating site. First item on Peg’s list…must love dogs, of
course!

Although Peg is really doing this for Rose, she does go on a couple of
dating misses, but incredibly, the third times really is the charm. She matches
with a very handsome senior who loves dogs, Nolan Abercrombie. As they begin to
get to know each other Peg actually believes Rose was right, but all good
things must come to an end. Noland has a fatal accident.

See…Peg knew it was too good to be true! And now it seems the accident may
have actually been a homicide! What Peg and Rose soon discover is not only was
Nolan hiding things about himself, but he seemed to be charming the money out
of many women which leads to a long list of suspects! It seems Nolan was an
enchanting con man!

So once again the two friends find themselves involved in a murder. But when
Rose is almost killed, the situation because even more urgent as to who killed
Nolan. Clearly Rose and Peg are getting too close to the truth.

Peg and Rose’s chemistry makes for a terrific combination with their witty
banter and headstrong determination. Dogs, dating and death. Who could ask for
anything more in a cozy!

Thank you #NetGalley #KeninstonCozies #LaurienBerenson
#PegandRoseStirUpTrouble for the advanced copy.

The Block Party starts off with a bang, literally! This can’t put down novel begins with the end, so to speak and is riveting throughout the telling of the previous year’s issues and what led up to what we know are gunshots at the annual block party. But by who?

As we become invested in the lives of the families who live on the affluent cul-de-sac, with all their hidden secrets, lies and undisclosed problems, the anticipation of the ending is a continuous mystery which the reader tries to keep solving. What on earth happened at the annual block party?

Although the families all seem to know each other and get along, there is a breakdown in relationships and friendships as the year progresses. The families include:

Alex, Nick and their teenage daughter Lattie. Alex works as a marriage litigator, Nick a businessman and Lattie has recently been suspended from high school because of an incident in which someone she thought was a friend squealed on her. From the outside, the perfect family, except Alex’s drinking is out of control, Nick knows it and gives Alex an ultimatum. Lattie whose former best friend lives on the street dumped her for a new set of friends and in the process made her the laughingstock of the school. She wants revenge.

Alex’s sister Emily and Ken her husband also live on the cul-de-sac. Emily is a realtor. They have two boys Logan in college, the apple of his father’s eye and Dylan, in high school. Dylan dates his cousin Lottie’s former best friend, Riley. Ken unfortunately had a wandering eye years ago and through much counseling they worked out the issues. But Emily thinks it could be happening again.

Willow and Evan are in the process of getting divorced but are still living together on the cul-de-sac because of their high school aged daughter, Riley. Because of all her parent’s fighting she truly wishes one of them would move out. But Riley has dumped all her friends for new ones some not so nice and one in particular much older than her.

The Kumar family have just moved in. Samir is a psychiatrist and Mandy a psychologist. Their son Jay is twenty and still lives with them. He does not go to college, is working on an app and is quite the computer expert. It seems he can break into any kind of technology.

Finally, there is Brook who is a widow. Her husband fell off a cruise ship on vacation. But the gossip mill continually gives theories as to what really happened. She has no children and what she does for a living is not really known.

Oh yes, there is Bug Man who pops in and out of the cul-de-sac. Let’s just leave it at that!

And finally, there is the Meadowbrook On-Line Community Page which comments real time on what the mysterious sounds were coming from the block party.

As secrets are revealed, assumptions sometimes incorrect and with anxiety increasing on the street some of the relationships begin to crack during the year leading up to the annual party. Quite frankly something happening should be no surprise.

The Block Party is the perfect beach read with salacious gossip, sex, drugs, mystery and shocking revelations which will drive the reader crazy until the end.

Thank you #NetGalley #St.Martin’sPress #TheBlockParty #JamieDay for the advanced copy.

In Nina George’s previous book, The Little Paris Bookshop, a beautiful story about a man who decides to open a bookstore which is on a boat and floats to the towns along its route and all the interesting characters that are met on its journey. The premise of the story was that the main character had read a story about a gifted girl, and suddenly got the idea for his floating bookstore.

Well, now Nina George has written the book which inspired the floating bookstore in the previous story. The Little Village of Book Lovers is the tale which the main character read, and it is magically beautiful, the writing poetic, the plot enchanting, imaginative and heartwarming.

The tale begins when a little baby is suddenly orphaned as fate would have it. Her name, Marie Jeanne. This was during the 1960’s in a small town in France. She is watched over by love and fate. When she is discovered by a worker named Francis, he and his wife Elsa decide to raise her. They know somehow, she is special. Unbeknownst to them as Marie Jeanne begins to grow, she somehow is able to see people’s glows. She doesn’t yet understand why. And for some reason, she herself does not glow.

Then her foster father has the idea to create a mobile library which travels by van throughout the area. Elsa has her concerns as Francis mortgages everything they own to make this happen. As Marie Jeanne begins to grow up, and travel with Francis in the mobile library which soon becomes popular, she realizes what her talent is to be used for. She is somehow able to match people’s glows by how they look and what they read.

The older she gets, the more she sees how she is able to make people happy as she matches them, and their enjoyment as how books play such an important role. But Marie Jeanne is unable to find her own soulmate it seems. She has never seen a glow from anyone for her. But she accepts her fate on love and just relishes what she is able to accomplish.

But as she knows, fate and love are her friends. They’ve taken care of her all her life. She wonders…if she asks, will they grant her the ability to find her own soulmate? It’s then that love and fate who adore Marie Jeanne must make a decision. But how can they let her go?

The Little Village of Book Lovers is a wonderful story filled with extraordinarily imaginative characters all who feel they must somehow accept loneliness for the rest of their lives, but through the magic of a young girl and books their destiny is changed.

Thank you #NetGalley #RandomHouse/BallentineBooks #NinaGeorge #TheLittleVillageofBookLovers for the advanced copy.

The Guest Room is an exciting psychological thriller with unexpected twists in which the reader may not actually know who the real villain could be. The plot sends you down a rabbit hole of mystery and suspense as you try and put the pieces together of why a young woman was murdered and if her sister may be having some sort of breakdown trying to find the answers.

When Tess’s sister Rosie is found murdered, her life is turned upside down. Forget the fact that Rosie had been leaving her messages to call her and Tess had been too busy, but she also finds out that Rosie had been having some sort of breakdown at the time. So, with all this guilt, blaming herself for not being a good sister, it is now Tess’s mission to find out what really happened. Even though the police have no suspects, Tess does.

After the murder, Tess moves into the apartment Rosie, an upcoming artist owned. Unable to make ends meet she decides to rent out the extra bedroom to travelers and visitors on a short-term basis. But with everything going on with the death, Tess has developed a habit. She snoops in their room just to make sure the has not rented the to a psychopath! She must say she does enjoy looking through their things, trying to figure out who they are and what makes them tick.

At night though, Tess roams the area where Rosie was killed. She tries to find clues or perhaps lure the killer out. She tries to imagine just what happened to Rosie and why. She feels the police, who she hounds daily, has put her sister’s case on the backburner. She feels it is up to her to find out what really took place.

But when a new tenant arrives, Aaran, a very handsome, very kind man arrives to stay in the guest room, Tess becomes curious as to his life. When she does her snooping into his backpack, she finds a diary he is in the process of writing, In the diary he seems to have a secret obsession with a woman. He follows her and imagines his life with her. Tess becomes all consumed with the diary and Aaran.

As her preoccupation with finding out exactly who the woman her tenant seems to be stalking is, she herself becomes obsessed with Aaran. She begins to see this man in a different light. So, she begins to stalk him, but also fall for him.

Then in the blink of an eye Tess’s world which was cracking, completely falls apart as she discovers Aaron’s obsession and thinks she’s found her sister’s killer. As Tess seems to lose all sense of reality, the shocking ending will make this rollercoaster ride worth every minute! Who is really living in the guest room?

Thank you #NetGalley #HenryHoltandCo #TashaSylva #TheGuestRoom for the advanced copy.

The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels has what I like to call the Janice Hallett unique plot. How her mind works is amazing! It has all the components of her previous books including the unusual writing form, this one is in email, phone, message and transcription form. It leads the reader through the intricate details of the suspenseful storyline only to surprise them with an extraordinary ending.

This story revolves around a religious cult back in 2003 called the Alperton Angels, named after the town they lived. The cult included teenagers, a baby, its leader and followers. Back then in the basement of a warehouse four bodies were found. It was ruled a mass suicide of the cult. Gabriel the leader was found guilty of murder and put away for life. The teenagers Holly and Jacob and the baby (which the cult believed to be the anti-Christ) disappeared and have not been heard from since the night of the massacre.

It is now eighteen years since the incident and the mysterious baby would be of legal age. Crime writer Amanda Bailey has a new idea for a book. She informs her publisher she would like to look into the old case and try and find out what happened to Holly and Jacob, but more importantly what ever happened to the baby. Although a few books have been written about the cult and the incidents which occurred in the warehouse, no one at least to Amanda’s knowledge has tried to find the baby.

But she is in for a shock. Her publisher comes back to her and says it’s a great idea but another writer, Oliver Menzies is working on a story with another publisher, so if they share notes it could work. Amanda unfortunately knows Oliver from years ago and doesn’t really think very highly of him but, if that’s the only way to research the story, she’ll suck up her feelings and go with it.

So, Amanda, Oliver and Ellie Cooper (the transcriber of all the interviews) begin their search. But what they soon find is those involved in the case all those years ago have very different memories of what happened. They also find some of the people closely associated with the investigation at the time or those who were investigating the investigation have died. Some it seems by accident.

As Amanda and Oliver try to one up each other on what information they have been finding out (or hiding from the other) Oliver begins to have a bit of a breakdown of sorts after his prison visit to interview the mysterious cult leader, Gabriel. But neither can find any information on the baby. All this leads to more questions than answers.

Then Amanda catches a break and finds she is close to perhaps finding the baby. But the closer she gets, the more danger she believes she’s in. With Oliver hot on her trail, she needs to be the first to break this wide open. Who is this mysterious baby once accused of being the anti-Christ? How are Holly and Jacob really involved in what happened all those years ago. Will WE ever find out what happened!

The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels is another Hallett truimph in both imagination and suspense. It will hook you from the beginning, reel you in and throw you back so fast your head will spin. And you will love every minute!

The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels will be out in America in January 2024. You can preorder a copy as of today.

How Can I Help You is an intense thriller in which dysfunctional derangement is on full display! The story has psychological terror which immediately grabs the reader and takes them on an anxiety-ridden ride of shock and alarm.

Margo loves her job as a library assistant in a small town. She fits right in with her co-workers. She has favorite customers, and she enjoys the routine of her life. But Margo is not her real name. You see her real name is Jane, a former nurse who fled the hospital and city she once worked because thanks to another nurse who she thought was her friend, turned her in because she was killing patients.

But she fooled them all! With the change of hair style and color Jane became Margo two years ago quite nicely. She enjoys knowing something no one else does. She does reminisce about the good old days and sometimes at night even relives her conquests, alone, of course. But, during the day, she puts on a happy smile and is a confident, kind employee.

Until…a new librarian named Patricia is hired. Patricia reminds her of her former friend who squealed on her. Margo can’t seem to get Patricia out of her mind. She becomes obsessed with watching Patricia and wondering what she is thinking. She notices Patricia writing all the time in a notebook and can’t imagine what she could be jotting down.

As for Patricia, she left her fiancée and moved to start a new life. Her hopes of a writing career dashed when the novel she had written was turned down by everybody. So, she’s done with that and decided to try her hand at being a librarian. But being one in a small town in not exactly what she imagined. It’s a great deal of answering phone calls about foolish things such as can you give me the number of the nearest sub shop or where can I get a skirt tailored. Not exactly what she thought she’d be doing.

And Margo catches Patricia’s eye. She can’t figure her out. She seems lovely, but sometimes she sees as she bends down to patrons and whispers to them. They seem to get nervous. What could she be saying? Fascinated, she begins to write down her thoughts on Margo. The more she writes, the more she needs to know about Margo’s life.

Something in Margo changes with Patricia there. An urge she thought she had under control. Then someone dies suddenly in the bathroom and Patricia sees Margo over the body, which begins what seems to be a horrible game between the two women.

As Margo begins to spin out of control, quite noticeably to her boss and the other workers, Patricia creates a scenario of Margo, what she thinks she might be up to. But all this seems to excel the cat and mouse game they both are playing with each other.

The only question…who will win the game? Which one will survive?

The story told by the viewpoints of both Margo and Patricia is a fascinating take on dysfunctional behavior, the justification and the thoughts which go along with logic of their deeds and actions.

How Can I Help You will play with your mind in this deeply sinister story with an even eviler ending.

Thank you #NetGalley #G.P.Putnam’sSons #HowCanIHelpYou #LauraSims for the advanced copy.

Hello Stanger is absolutely, adorably brilliant! With a very creative story, witty banter between the characters, romance, family dysfunction and heartbreak it makes for a wonderfully warm-hearted uplifting read!

The premise is Sadie Montgomery, a portrait artist just as her late mother was has just been selected as a finalist in the North American Portrait Society competition. Just as her mother had been! This she thinks, will finally get her father, an acclaimed doctor to finally recognize she made the correct choice when she decided to not go to medical school, something he has yet to forgive her for. Considering he has basically shunned her since her decision and seems to want to have nothing to do with her. He only dotes on his second wife Lucinda and her daughter Parker, otherwise known as the evil stepmother and evil stepsister as there has always been conflict between them, especially Parker who bullied her so much in high school she ended up getting expelled. Could this make him proud?

So, to celebrate she and her best friend Sue Kim and her dog Peanut are going to have a little party at her illegal apartment in the building of Sue’s father. She goes to the corner store to pick up a few items, wine, dog treats and flowers which were her mother’s favorites to include her in the celebration. The next thing she remembers is waking up in the hospital!

It’s discovered Sadie has a brain issue which needs to be corrected as soon as possible, but with the competition coming up she wants to postpone the surgery. But her father convinces her to do it as soon as possible. But after the surgery she discovers that she has something called face blindness where facial features look like blocks rather than faces. They believe this is being caused by the brain swelling after the surgery. Hopefully it will disappear as the swelling goes away. HOPEFULLY?? She has to compete in a portrait contest in a few short weeks and can’t see faces. How will that work?

As she begins her life trying to use the tools the doctor gave her to help recognize people, but absolutely not telling them about her brain issue, she is just grateful that a nice man with glasses and scruffy hair who wears a jacket with the name Joe lives in her building. Although she wanted to be independent, she realizes she does need some help. And Sadie loves she always knows who he is by that jacket!

But when Peanut gets sick and has to go to the vet, that’s where she sees (or attempts to see) the man she is going to marry! He has what looks like slicked back hair and a beautiful voice! And he asks her out on a date!

But the day of their coffee date he never shows, and never texts to apologize. How could her possible husband be that inconsiderate? Although she still has the hots for the vet, Joe seems to be stepping up in her life by helping her by posing for a portrait which Sadie has no way of knowing is good or bad.

As things heat up with Joe, the competition gets closer and she has no idea what her entry looks like and her evil stepsister tries to intervene in her life just as she did when they were young, she must make some decisions. Is the vet worth the wait or is Joe the one. Should she still be an artist when she can’t even see what she’s doing. What would her mother have done? What advice would she have given her.

As decisions are made Sadie sees her life in a different light. She begins to understand what had been motivating her before her issue and quite frankly she does not like what she sees.

And then the night of the competition takes place, and the chaos really begins!

Hello Stranger is uniquely wonderfully different in the best refreshing way possible. It has heart, soul and a beautiful story! Katherine Center’s books continue to amaze me as they seem to get better and better!

Thank you #NetGalley #St.Martin’sPress #HelloStranger #KatherineCenter for the advanced copy.