5.15.2026 - The May House

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster | Atria Books for gifting me a digital ARC of the new book by Jillian Cantor.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4.5 stars rounded up!

Raised by their single dad in Chicago, three sisters spend one week in May every year with their maternal grandmother.  When she passes away, the adult sisters inherit the California beach house  on the condition that they return every May to spend one week together.  The sisters are now spread across the country and aren't always close, but they make sure to reserve that week to spend together.  But one year, the oldest and most dependable, doesn't show.  The other two begin questioning just how much they know about their sister's life.

I loved this story and how it's told from multiple POV in a nonlinear style from the sisters' childhood to 2019 when Julia doesn't show.  Along the way, we learn about each of the sister's lives and loves, the secrets they hold, the fears they have.  It's so atmospheric, and when you read the author's note, you'll learn that many of the locations are real, giving it such an authentic feel.  Plus it has nostalgia, romance and a wonderful guy next door.  This is the perfect book to read on the beach this summer!

5.14.2026 - Accumulation

Many thanks to NetGalley and GP Putnam's Sons for gifting me a digital ARC of this creepy novel by Aimee Pokawatka.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4 stars!

Tenn, Ward, Anders and Aisling have moved to New York for Ward's job.  Ward hopes that Tenn's dream house will help the fact that she had to leave behind her friends and her job as a filmmaker.  But the house just isn't right.  Ward is too busy with his job to help and the kids are struggling as well.  

Creepy dolls?  Ghosts?  Is the house haunted or is it all in Tenn's mind?  This book is creepy good, but where it excels is in the thoughts it brings up about motherhood, parenthood, loss of self, gaslighting.  Mothers everywhere will be able to relate to having to put their job and life on hold to be able to take care of everyone else.  I loved how there was repetition in conversations - take out the trash, run the dishwasher.  Plus, all the house weirdness and the trouble with the kids.  Kept me glued to the pages!

5.14.2026 - The Shippers

Many thanks to NetGalley, St Martin's Press, and Macmillan Audio for gifting me both a digital and audio ARC of the latest rom-com by Katherine Center, with the audiobook perfectly narrated by Patti Murin.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4.5 stars!

JoJo is bad at love, and along with her sister, who is getting married on a cruise ship, decide to end that once and for all.  She feels like her childhood crush is holding her back and that he's really the one she should be with.  JoJo also gets her childhood best friend, Cooper, to be her wing man for this venture.  Let the shipboard antics begin!

I'm not always a big romance book fan, but will always sign up to read anything Katherine Center writes.  They are just happy books!  This one starts out with a note from the author ensuring you that there will be a happy ending, so never fear!  There are a lot of opportunities here for second chances, and you won't be able to resist Cooper.  JoJo is a bit immature for her genius brain, but she's still one that you will root for her happy ending.  I loved having both the book and the audiobook to get fully immersed, and Patti Murin's narration is always top notch.  Pack this one in your back for your summer vacation!

5.13.2026 - The Forgotten Midwife

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster | Gallery Books for gifting me a digital ARC of this amazing novel by Laura Anthony.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 5 stars!

A dual-timeline story playing out between New Jersey in 2023, and Tipperary, Ireland, in 1954.  In 2023, Riley's grandmother has a rare moment of clarity in her dementia and gives Riley an Irish birth certificate for an unknown baby.  Riley and her fiancé decide to go to Ireland to investigate.  In 1954, Margaret Lannigan is forced to become a nun and then serve as a midwife in a home for "fallen girls."  

This book will break your heart, even though we all are probably familiar with the Ireland laundries, where unmarried mothers were forced to work in abusive conditions and give up their babies.  This story from the viewpoint of one of the women who did their best to help will give you hope over the horrors we humans can heap on others.  The research was impeccable, the writing kept me glued, and the characters felt so real that you will hurt along with them.  Highly recommended!

5.12.2026 - The Foursome

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins | Mariner Books for gifting me a digital ARC of the latest historical fiction novel by Christina Baker Kline.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 5 stars!

It's 1839 when Chang and Eng Bunker, conjoined twins from Siam (now Thailand), arrive in Wilkes County NC.  They are wealthy after their circuit as oddities, and they quickly buy land and start building.  Sisters Adelaide and Sarah Yates, daughters of a once-prominent local family scarred by a scandal, are drawn into their orbit.  Addie sees marriage to Chang as her way of reclaiming her future; Sallie is less sure.  But their lives soon become entangled.

As you would expect from this author, this is a wonderfully researched book, made personal by the fact that the Yates are distant cousins.  Natural curiosity leads anyone to ponder just how this marriage and its subsequent 21 total children worked, but the book never veers into salacious territory.  Instead, we are privy to the emotional side of this coupling and the inevitable squabbles between spouses, brothers and sisters.  It's beautifully written, leading you to explore the unimaginable feeling of being tethered to someone for life.  This is also a story of the period, of slavery and the Civil War.  It's a fascinating look into these people as well as these issues.  Highly recommended.

5.12.2026 - Mercy Hill

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Doubleday Books for gifting me a digital ARC of the debut novel by Hannah Thurman.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4.5 stars!

The Cross sisters have lived their entire lives on the sprawling grounds of Mercy Hill, the Raleigh mental hospital run by their formidable mother, Lisa. Since childhood, JJ, Caro, Mimi, and Denise have been inculcated with their mother's mission: they'll work alongside her to protect Mercy Hill from the fate of other state hospitals across the country, which are being gutted and closed, one by one.  But Mercy Hill faces great scrutiny and Lisa pushes her children even harder.  

I truly enjoyed spending time with this book and the Cross sisters.  Told from the viewpoint of Denise, the youngest, and taking place in the late 1990s-early 2000s, this is a coming-of-age story as well as a look into mental health treatment.  My heart hurt for the way Lisa pushed her girls - skipping grades in school, following a path long laid out for them to become doctors to continue work at Mercy Hill.  Neither parent was aware of the bullying happening at school nor the secrets the girls kept.  This is a very character-driven novel and it's so interesting to see how the girls, raised the same way, handled the pressures and expectations differently.    Wonderful debut and I'm looking forward to more from this author!

5.11.2026 - Coyoteland

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for gifting me an audio ARC of this novel by Vanessa Hu, narrated wonderfully by Ina Barrón.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own – 4 stars!

 

El Nido is a privileged community in the hills east of Berkeley.  Jin Chang moves there with his wife and daughters hoping for a new start.  However, he has a secret to make it big in real estate.  Jin’s daughter, Jane, knows he’s keeping a secret but she’s struggling to fit in at school.  In the wake of a coyote attack, Jane and Tasha, one of the only Black girls at school, bond.  They hatch a plot to expose the town’s hypocrisies. 

 

This takes place during the time of Covid, and I am one who appreciates a Covid storyline that adds to the atmosphere of the book – and it works great here.  Because this is a slow burn character study about racism, classism, entitlement – all those things lurking under the surface of the shiny world we may present to others.  Add in wildfire smoke in the air and the atmosphere mirrors all those societal problems.  My only issue is that I sometimes had difficulties keeping up with the characters.  Ina Barrón is one of my favorite narrators and she did a great job, but this may have been better served with a cast.