⭐️⭐️⭐️ Lisa Gardner’s Kiss Her Goodbye takes Frankie Elkin to Tucson, Arizona, where the desert heat is matched only by the chaos surrounding a missing Afghan refugee. Sabera Ahmadi vanished three weeks ago, leaving behind her young daughter and a husband who seems oddly unbothered. When Frankie starts digging, the case quickly turns into a tangled web of murder, espionage, and family secrets. Gardner’s trademark pacing and grit are here in full force, and parts of the story are as sharp and entertaining as ever. But the book also has its share of head-scratchers. Frankie’s hallucinations were overdone and distracting, pulling me out of the action rather than deepening her character. The […]
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A Brisk, Banter-Filled Spy Romp Through Wartime Lisbon
Evelyne Redfern returns in Julia Kelly’s A Dark and Deadly Journey, a smart, stylish mystery set amid Lisbon’s glittering wartime underworld. Fresh off recovery from a gunshot wound, typist-turned-spy Evelyne is eager to rejoin Britain’s Special Investigations Unit. When a British informant vanishes in Portugal after hinting at intelligence that could alter the course of the war, Evelyne and her infuriatingly charming partner, David Poole, are sent to track him down. But before they even leave the airport, a fellow passenger turns up dead and Evelyne stumbles upon a diary linking the murder to their missing contact. Kelly layers her plot with hidden identities, stolen jewels, and coded messages while keeping the […]
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A Thrilling Ride with Fade In by Kyle Mills
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Kyle Mills delivers high-octane action, global stakes, and a protagonist who’s as broken as he is dangerous. In Fade In, ex-Navy SEAL Salam “Fade” al-Fayed wakes from a coma to find himself recruited by a shadowy billionaire-run outfit and thrown into a race against a viral catastrophe that could wipe out civilization. The pace is relentless, the action cinematic, and the villainy chilling. Mills adds emotional depth too—Fade’s inner turmoil and his willingness to keep walking into danger make him a fascinating hero. The writing is taut, the plot twists sharp, and the moral gray zones deliciously murky. On the downside, some of the side characters could’ve used more flesh, […]
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A Love of Books Amid War and Ideology
⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3/5 stars) Madrid, 1934. Bárbara, a young German woman fleeing the rise of Nazism, opens a small bookstore in Spain—a sanctuary for dreamers as political tensions mount. When the Spanish Civil War erupts, her bookshop becomes a fragile refuge for hope and love, even as hatred threatens to consume the country. Her passion for literature and her relationship with a young Republican keep her fighting for a future built on words instead of war. Mario Escobar’s research is excellent, and I appreciated the Spanish Civil War setting—a refreshing departure from the many WWII novels I’ve read. The story’s message about the power of books and human resilience is uplifting. […]
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In The Unraveling of Julia Logic Takes a Holiday
⭐️⭐️ (2 stars) I usually enjoy Lisa Scottoline’s work, but The Unraveling of Julia just wasn’t for me. Gothic literature and astrology aren’t my cup of tea, and this novel dives headfirst into both. The story follows Julia Pritzker, a grieving widow who inherits a mysterious Tuscan villa from a stranger. Once she arrives in Italy, strange things start happening—ghostly visions, eerie coincidences, and a possible family link to a Renaissance duchess obsessed with astrology. It sounds intriguing on paper, but the story quickly spirals into something so far-fetched I had trouble suspending disbelief. Scottoline does a lovely job painting the Tuscan landscape—you can almost feel the sun on the vineyards and […]
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Facing Humanity’s Darkest Chapters
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Confronting Evil: Assessing the Worst of the Worst isn’t light reading—but it’s the kind that matters. The book explores the darkest corners of human history, from Genghis Khan and Caligula to Stalin, Hitler, Mao, and Putin. Each chapter dives into how absolute power, greed, and twisted ideology turned ordinary men into monsters who shaped the world through fear and bloodshed. O’Reilly and Hammer don’t just recount these horrors—they challenge readers to see the moral lesson behind them. Evil has existed since Cain and Abel, but what allows it to flourish is when good people do nothing. That theme runs through the book like a live wire. It’s not just […]
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A Spirited Girl with True Grit of Her Own
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Sandra Dallas once again brings the Old West to life in Tough Luck, a rollicking adventure filled with humor, grit, and heart. The story follows fourteen-year-old Haidie Richards, who escapes a dreary Illinois orphanage with her little brother, Boots, to search for their gold-mining father in Colorado. Disguised as a boy, Haidie joins a wagon train and sets off across dangerous territory, armed with more nerve than experience. Along the trail, she meets a colorful cast of characters—a kind freighter, a gambler with a soft spot, two feisty spinster sisters, and one loyal dog who might just steal the show. As Haidie learns to handle mules, men, and misfortune, […]
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Finding Grace: The Haunting Echo of Choices Made
⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ (3.5 stars) Loretta Rothschild’s debut, Finding Grace, starts with a shocking twist that pulled me right in. Honor Wharton, her husband Tom, and their daughter Chloe are living an enviable life until tragedy strikes. Tom, left shattered, makes a decision that changes everything, connecting his future with Grace Stone, a widow who bears an uncanny resemblance to his late wife. Narrated by Honor from a limbo state, the story tackles themes of motherhood, grief, and the haunting pull of secrets. The premise is powerful, but the pacing lags after the strong opening, and the romantic angle between Tom and Grace felt unsettling rather than moving. Honestly, I couldn’t stand […]
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When Truth Glitters: Friendship, Betrayal, and Survival in Hitler’s “Model” Settlement
⭐⭐⭐⭐✨ (4.5 stars) rounded up to 5 Before reading this book, I wasn’t very familiar with Theresienstadt. The Nazis portrayed it as a “model ghetto,” but in truth it was a stage-managed prison where starvation, fear, and deportation loomed over daily life. Jennifer Coburn tells this story through two women who once shared a childhood bond. Hannah Kaufman, a Jewish girl stranded in Prague with her grandfather, is swept into Theresienstadt and forced to survive inside the Nazi illusion. Her former best friend, Hilde Kramer-Bischoff, a war widow and German national, sees the Reich as her only chance at status and belonging. When their paths collide, both must decide whether […]
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Joseph’s Story, Told with Heart and Faith
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 Jill Eileen Smith’s The Prince and the Prodigal is a faithful retelling of one of the most beloved Old Testament stories. Joseph’s journey—from his brothers’ betrayal to his rise in Egypt—is familiar to many of us, but Smith keeps it fresh by adding depth and humanity without straying from Scripture. I especially appreciated how she balanced Joseph’s story with Judah’s, showing both men’s struggles and growth. The family dynamics feel real: the jealousy, guilt, and eventual forgiveness strike an emotional chord. Smith doesn’t reinvent the story (thankfully), but she does make these biblical figures relatable. Joseph’s resilience and trust in God are woven through every chapter, reminding readers that divine providence […]
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