6.7.2026 - The Quitter's Club

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing | Lake Union Publishing for gifting me a digital ARC of the new book by Jessica Strawser.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4.5 stars rounded up!

Four best friends reunite for a getaway, each looking for a break but they've also each reached a pivotal point in their lives and feel stuck.  Marie's teaching a class on how to say no, while her marriage struggles.  Brooke's struggling with infertility, Collins is trapped in grief, and Lucy's writing career has left her empty.  They've always encouraged each other not to give up, but maybe they just need to quit.  

I'm a big fan of anything that Jessica Strawser writes (and extra points for her Ohio settings!) and this one veered away from her normal suspense.  And it was still riveting.  I love books about women in midlife making changes and being resilient enough to maybe make even more changes if the first doesn't work.  We all can use more role models like that - and friends like these.  I loved how the women came together for each other no matter what, even when things got really hard.  While it tackles lots of tough issues, it never feels too heavy because of all those supporting hands.

6.6.2026 - Heather

 

Many thanks to NetGalley, Celadon Books, and Macmillan Audio for gifting me both a digital and audio ARC of the sophomore book by Caitlin Mullen, with the audiobook wonderfully narrated by the cast of Bailey Carr, Christine Lakin, and Mia Wurgaft.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4.5 stars rounded up!

In 1994, in a small town in the New Jersey Pine Barrens, 16-year-old twins Annabelle and Sabrina both disappear.  Sabrina had been having an affair with a mysterious older man and Annabelle had her own secrets.  Years later in the same small town, new Police Chief Callie Hauser makes an arrest that unexpectedly resurrects details from a cold case.  As she digs deeper, the past and present collide.

I love mysteries that take place in small towns, where everyone knows your secrets or at least it feels that way.  This is a slow burn, with multiple POV, done perfectly in the audiobook format with different narrators.  I felt compassion for the teenage girls and loved Callie’s grit and determination to find answers.  This book is tense, and the suspension continues to build throughout the book, with secrets galore and characters that will pull at your heart.  Plenty of themes of motherhood throughout.  I loved this author’s debut novel, Please See Us, and this one is just as powerful.

6.6.2026 - Beach Thriller

 

Many thanks to NetGalley, St Martin's Press, and Macmillan Audio for gifting me both a digital and audio ARC of the new thriller by Jamie Day, with the audiobook narrated by the cast of Emily Shaffer, Jane Oppenheimer, Jennifer Pickens, and Megan Tusing.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4.5 stars!

Holly is a struggling writer who returns to her family’s seaside cottage.  Holly still blames herself for the death of her sister when they were teenagers.  She encounters Jade, a teenage runaway, who is searching for her own family connections.  Jade discovers the manuscript of a book Holly started the summer her sister disappeared, based on the true events.

A beach thriller for sure!  I thought the book-in-the-book trope worked very well here, giving the reader a peek into just what happened when Holly was a teenager and her sister died.  Told from alternate POV of both Holly and Jade, the mysterious “Watcher” chapters added another layer of tension into the mix.  I liked the characters – both Holly and Jade – and felt like they helped each other fill those missing parts in their lives; they both have family secrets and questions.  I wouldn’t have guessed the ending at all!  Loved the full cast production on the audiobook - take this one along on your beach vacation!

6.5.2026 - The Last Run

 

Many thanks to NetGalley, Amazon Publishing | Lake Union Publishing, and Brilliance Publishing for gifting me both a digital and audio ARC of this wonderful novel by Rachel Weaver, with the audiobook perfectly narrated by Saskia Maarleveld.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 5 stars!

It’s been years since Ellie fished the Alaskan coastline—not since her mother died.  But when she finds her father beat up behind the local bar, she learns he’s done the gambled away the family’s commercial fishing boat—her five-year-old son’s inheritance and the life she longs to reclaim. For nefarious reasons of his own, the bookie gives them one season to earn the money to buy it back.  Ellie agrees to fish with her father, Pete, bringing her son, Drew, along as they chase the slim hope of paying off the debt. 

If you would have told me that I would have been enthralled with a book about Alaskan fishing, I would not have believed you.  Apparently, this is why those tv shows were so popular, because this story was so tense and gripping that I couldn't look away.  I loved Ellie’s character, trying to be the best mom possible while struggling, still trying to help her dad who has disappointed her yet again.  Of course, the Alaskan fishing environment is a character itself, and I felt the harshness, the struggles, the sense of accomplishment at the end of a hard day.  There’s some romance involved too, but just enough to keep things interesting.  The narration by Saskia Maarleveld was top notch and I ended up listening to this one exclusively.  Wonderful!

6.4.2026 - Valet

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster | Saga Press for gifting me both a physical and digital ARC of this wonderful debut novel by JP Lacrampe.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 5 stars!

Cy has worked for the St Claire family since his inception, and his owner has tasked him to help her 35-year-old son, Grayson, do more with his life.  Grayson is nothing like his CEO sister, Charlotte, who is running the family robotics company after their dad died.  But when Grayson learns that Charlotte plans to sell the company to a tech conglomerate, he panics.  He doesn't want the technology their dad created over the year, like Cy, to be in the wrong hands.  So he does what he thinks he must, and soon he's on the run

I absolutely adored this quirky book and all its characters, but especially Cy for showing us just what it means to be human.  This book has it all - family drama, corporate espionage, second and third chances, working together to accomplish what we can't on our own - all in a way that will have you cheering on robots, laughing and tearing up along the way.  It's dystopian light, showing us a world run by technology and robots, but one that still feels like home.  It's hopeful, cozy, and perfect - just what I needed in a book today.  Don't miss this one!

6.3.2026 - Man of My Dreams

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press | Minotaur Books for gifting me a digital ARC of the new book by Olivia Worley.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4 stars!

Bestselling romance author Ivy Harcourt has been unlucky in love, so she's shocked when one of the characters in the book she's writing seems to come to life.  They have the perfect meet cute in the park, and soon Ivy is convinced that Liam is the man of her dreams.  But is he too perfect?

This book took me on a roller coaster ride in the best ways.  Ivy was a character with a history of drinking, blackouts, and sleepwalking so I was never quite sure if I could trust her.  And was Liam really as perfect as he seemed?  The twists started piling up in the second half of the book and even though I thought I could guess some of where it was going, i never could have guessed all that happened in the end!  It was a book I raced through to figure out just what was going on, and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

6.2.2026 - Down With the Shipmans

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Wiliam Morrow for gifting me a digital ARC of the new book by Meg Mitchell Moore.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4.5 stars!

The Shipman sisters, Jordan, Natalie, and Mae, return to their family summer home on the New Hampshire coast, the first without their late mother.  However, things quickly so south when their father, Calvin, tells them that he plans to sell the beach house.  Each of the sisters are already dealing with various dramas in their lives, and when Calvin's new wife shows up, all bets are off.

This book felt like a mini beach vacation - while it dealt with some tough topics, it was infused with plenty of sunshine and hope as well.  There are dogs and cute kids, and sisters being there for each other.  It's a reminder that families can be messy, but we can never have too many people that love us.  Don't miss this one - a perfect summer read!