6.11.2026 - The Spin

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Mirror House Press for gifting me a digital ARC of this wonderful novel by Faith Gardner.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 5 stars!

In the 1960s, we meet the Crawford family - Leo, an ad man, his wife, Rose, pregnant, brilliant and restless, and teenage daughter, Melinda.  During a family vacation at a cabin in the woods, Rose vanishes.  When she comes back, she's not the same.  Then things get worse when a new color tv triggers a breakdown.  

I don't want to give too much away, but this is a must read.  It's a look back at how women and specifically mental illness were treated during this time period.  You can't help but be angry at so much.   Melinda is caught up in the rebellions of the time and heads to San Francisco, Leo puts all his trust in the doctors and he has to bring in his mother, Harriet, to help but it just causes more issues.  I loved the way this story was written, from the POV of each the family members circling Rose showing how they were affected,  There are also journal entries and doctor's notes to further the story.  Be sure and read the author's note.  Wonderful!

6.10.2026 - The Forty-Year Grudge

Many thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for gifting me the second in this fun mystery series by Liza Tully.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4 stars!

It's been four decades since the women of Sigma Delta Tau were last together.  The group is having a reunion at one of the sisters' ranches in New Mexico, and private investigator Aubrey Merritt is planning on reconnecting with her friends.  She brought along her assistant, Olivia Blunt, to help her with her bags.  But then one of the sorority sisters is murdered, and it's up to Aubrey and Olivia to solve the case.

This is a fun, cozy-style mystery series, with great characters and I enjoyed my second adventure with them.  Aubrey is a bit surly but is trying to train Olivia to be a good investigator.  There are multiple mysteries here to solve and plenty of suspects with motives.  What makes this series shine is the relationship between the two - Aubrey is old school where Olivia relies heavily on technology for her research.  There's plenty of drama but also that something more.  I'm looking forward to more from this pair!

6.10.2026 - The Killer and Frank Lloyd Wright

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for gifting me a digital ARC of the latest nonfiction book by Casey Sherman.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 3.5 stars rounded up!

We all know about the iconic buildings that Frank Lloyd Wright made, but this book explores his private life.  He had a stormy marriage and an infamous affair with another woman, igniting one of the country's first celebrity scandals.  Then scandal turned to horror when there was a fire at Taliesin, the home Wright built as a monument to love.

Once again, Sherman has thoroughly researched his subject and we learn all the details of Wright's life.  I was fascinated with so much of it, especially how the press hounded the family even back then.  Of course, societal morals were very different then, and Wright's actions were seen as completely scandalous.  I did feel bad for his children, because they appeared to be just peripheral figures in his orbit.  The title of this book is somewhat misleading - the murders at his house were certainly impactful but the book spends very little time on them.  A good read!

6.8.2026 - The Break-Up Retreat

 

Many thanks to NetGalley, St Martin's Press | Minotaur Books, and Macmillan Audio for granting my wish and gifting me both a digital and audio ARC of the latest thriller by Camilla Sten, with the audiobook wonderfully narrated by Peyton Mader.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4 stars!

Himlafall Clinic, located deep in the Swedish woods, and run by the esteemed Dr. Hastings, uses revolutionary therapy techniques to heal your heartbreak.  But journalist Isobel Anderssen has heard rumors too - sometimes people are never heard from again.  She checks in with a false story and hidden phone ready to expose Dr. Hastings and bring closure to the families of those missing.  But nothing goes according to plan.

Creepy woods?  Check.  Locked room mystery?  Check.  Cult-like happenings?  Check.  Plus, who doesn't have some heart ache that needs healing?  So of course I enjoyed getting lost in Sten's latest book.  It was tense, atmospheric, and kept me wondering, although I also wondered sometimes about Isobel's decision making.  There were quite a few characters but I didn't have trouble keeping them straight, and I thought the audiobook narration was done very well.  

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!