32. The Unmaking of June Farrow by Adrienne Young

listened on Libby

320 pgs. (10:08)

Beautifully narrated by Brittany Pressley

2023
Adult Fantasy 
Finished 7/11/2025
Goodreads rating: 4.13
My rating: 5
Setting: Jasper, North Carolina (an author-created town in the mountains of West NC) in 2022 and 1950.

My comments: This was such a compelling book!  A beautifully written story that could have been incredibly complicated, but it was woven so well that it wasn't at all. (This sort of story usually has me confused, but not this one!)  June Farrow's life....and plight....and mysteries swallowed me up completely. I look forward to seeing if there are other books by Adrienne Young that I've missed out on.  Highly recommended.

Goodreads synopsis:  In the small mountain town of Jasper, North Carolina, June Farrow is waiting for fate to find her. The Farrow women are known for their thriving flower farm—and the mysterious curse that has plagued their family line. The whole town remembers the madness that led to Susanna Farrow’s disappearance, leaving June to be raised by her grandmother and haunted by rumors.

It’s been a year since June started seeing and hearing things that weren’t there. Faint wind chimes, a voice calling her name, and a mysterious door appearing out of nowhere—the signs of what June always knew was coming. But June is determined to end the curse once and for all, even if she must sacrifice finding love and having a family of her own.

After her grandmother’s death, June discovers a series of cryptic clues regarding her mother’s decades-old disappearance, except they only lead to more questions. But could the door she once assumed was a hallucination be the answer she’s been searching for? The next time it appears, June realizes she can touch it and walk past the threshold. And when she does, she embarks on a journey that will not only change both the past and the future, but also uncover the lingering mysteries of her small town and entangle her heart in an epic star-crossed love.  

With The Unmaking of June Farrow, Adrienne Young delivers a brilliant novel of romance, mystery, and a touch of the impossible—a story you will never forget.

30. The Lion Women of Tehran by Marjan Kamali

listened on Libby

327 pgs.

2024
Adult Hist Fiction
Finished 7/2/2025
Goodreads rating: 4.49
My rating: 5
Setting: Set mostly in Tehran, moving from the 1950s forward to contemporary America, but most was in Tehran.

My comments: What a wonderful read...full of history that I can remember, relationships, feminism, family, striving for a quality life, and so many of the past and current tensions/frustrations in our world.  Beautifully written....such a great story!

Goodreads synopsis:  An “evocative read and a powerful portrait of friendship, feminism, and political activism” (People) set against three transformative decades in Tehran, Iran—from nationally bestselling author Marjan Kamali.

In 1950s Tehran, seven-year-old Ellie lives in grand comfort until the untimely death of her father, forcing Ellie and her mother to move to a tiny home downtown. Lonely and bearing the brunt of her mother’s endless grievances, Ellie dreams for a friend to alleviate her isolation.

Luckily, on the first day of school, she meets Homa, a kind girl with a brave and irrepressible spirit. Together, the two girls play games, learn to cook in the stone kitchen of Homa’s warm home, wander through the colorful stalls of the Grand Bazaar, and share their ambitions of becoming “lion women.”

But their happiness is disrupted when Ellie and her mother are afforded the opportunity to return to their previous bourgeois life. Now a popular student at the best girls’ high school in Iran, Ellie’s memories of Homa begin to fade. Years later, however, her sudden reappearance in Ellie’s privileged world alters the course of both of their lives.

Together, the two young women come of age and pursue their own goals for meaningful futures. But as the political turmoil in Iran builds to a breaking point, one earth-shattering betrayal will have enormous consequences.

“Reminiscent of The Kite Runner and My Brilliant Friend, The Lion Women of Tehran is a mesmerizing tale” (BookPage) of love and courage, and a sweeping exploration of how profoundly we are shaped by those we meet when we are young.

18. Bright Side by Kim Holden

listened on Audible

423 pgs.

2014
Contemporary "New Adult" romance
Finished 4/16/2025
Goodreads rating: 
My rating: 5
Setting: 

My comments: The first half of this book was really great with an incredibly personable protagonist with the most positive attitude - totally refreshing.  But little by little hints were given that made me realize the story was not going to end without some really sad feelings, and even, maybe, tears.  This was correct.  The whole story was beautifully written, although the end tended to go on and on and on a little too much.  Maybe I say that because there was sadness and grief that was heaped on top of even more sadness and grief.  It also made me think a lot of Steve's last days.  It was definitely a good read, but I HATE tearjerker books. So my rating is tainted a bit....

     SYNOPSIS:  Kate has just moved from San Diego to Minneapolis to begin her college degree.  She speaks with her best friend, Gus, at least once a day.  He is closer than a brother.  They were practically raised together and their banter is exceptional.  His band, of which he is the lead singer and songwriter, has just gotten a record deal and is on the road.  They're hitting it big, fast.  She is making great friends in Minneapolis.  She is positive, friendly, happy, and helpful to all.  And then...

Goodreads synopsis:  Secrets.

Everyone has one.
Some are bigger than others.
And when secrets are revealed,
Some will heal you ...
And some will end you.

Kate Sedgwick’s life has been anything but typical. She’s endured hardship and tragedy, but throughout it all she remains happy and optimistic (there’s a reason her best friend Gus calls her Bright Side). Kate is strong-willed, funny, smart, and musically gifted. She’s also never believed in love. So when Kate leaves San Diego to attend college in the small town of Grant, Minnesota, the last thing she expects is to fall in love with Keller Banks.

They both feel it.
But they each have a reason to fight it.
They each have a secret.

And when secrets are revealed,
Some will heal you …
And some will end you.

6. Head Cases by John McMahon

#1 FBI PAR Unit

listened on Audible (purchased)

352 pgs.

2025
Adult police procedural/series
Finished 2/2/25
Goodreads rating: 4.16
My rating: 4.25
Setting: The team is based in Florida, but this takes place more on the west coast

My comments: Gardner Camden is a savant autistic who has a photographic memory.  He was raised by a really savvy mother (who happened to be a psychiatrist) who's taught him how to survive in the real world.  He remembers everything she's taught him.  He is part of a special FBI unit called PAR, which is full of incredibly smart (and eccentric) people who have screwed up in the FBI. But boy, can they figure things out! This story looks like the first of a series.  The plot was terribly complicated and intense....and really good.

Goodreads synopsis:  Head Cases follows an enigmatic group of FBI agents as they hunt down a murderer seeking his own justice in this electrifying—and commercial—series debut.

FBI Agent Gardner Camden is an analytical genius with an affinity for puzzles. He also has a blind spot on the human side of investigations, a blindness that sometimes even includes people in his own life, like his beloved seven-year-old daughter Camila. Gardner and his squad of brilliant yet quirky agents make up the Patterns and Recognition (PAR) unit, the FBI’s hidden edge, brought in for cases that no one else can solve.

When DNA links a murder victim to a serial killer long presumed dead, the team springs into action. A second victim establishes a pattern, and the murderer begins leaving a trail of clues and riddles especially for Gardner. And while the PAR team is usually relegated to working cold cases from behind a desk, the investigation puts them on the road and into the public eye, following in the footsteps of a killer.

Along with Gardner, PAR consists of a mathematician, a weapons expert, a computer analyst, and their leader, a career agent. Each of them must use every skill they have to solve the riddle of the killer’s identity. But with the perpetrator somehow learning more and more about the team at PAR, can they protect themselves and their families…before it’s too late?

With an enigmatic case that will keep readers on the edge of their seats and a thoroughly engaging ensemble cast, John McMahon’s Head Cases is a triumph.

3. The Big Empty by Robert Crais

#20 Elvis Cole and Joe Pike

listened on Audible - purchased

373 pgs. (8:25)

2025
Adult Contemporary Mystery/series
Finished 1/20/2025
Goodreads rating: 4.65
My rating: 5
Setting: southern California

My comments: Interesting, edge-of-your seat story that pretty much had me guessing till the end.  What else can you ask for in a murder mystery procedural?  A protagonist/PI with a sense of humor?  Check.  Interesting, well-flushed out characters?  Check that off, too.  Disturbing murders....unfortunately.  This was a good one.

Goodreads synopsis:  Traci Beller was thirteen when her father disappeared in the sleepy town of Rancha, not far from Los Angeles. The evidence says Tommy Beller abandoned his family, but Traci never believed it. The police couldn't find her dad and neither could the detectives her mother hired, but now, ten years later, Traci is a super-popular influencer with millions of followers and the money to hire a new detective: Elvis Cole.

Taking on a ten-years-cold missing person case is almost always a loser, but Elvis heads to Rancha where he learns an ex-con named Sadie Givens and her daughter, Anya, might have a line on the missing man. But when Elvis finds himself shadowed by a deadly gang of vicious criminals, the simple missing persons case becomes far more sinister and dangerous. Elvis calls in his ex-Marine friend, Joe Pike, to help, but even Pike might not be able to help.

As Elvis Cole and Joe Pike follow Tommy Beller's trail into the twisted, nightmare depths of a monstrous evil, the case flips on its head. Victims become predators, predators become prey, and when everyone is a victim, can Elvis Cole save them all?

In a case that tests Elvis Cole's loyalty to his clients and himself, the truth must come out no matter the cost. Elvis must face The Big Empty and see justice done.

1. The Walking Fish by Rachelle Burk

read on Kindle

192 pgs.

2015
Middle Grades CRF/STEM
Finished 1/12/2025
Goodreads rating: 4.16
My rating: 5
Setting: Summer at the protagonist's cottage on Glacial Lake

My comments: Rachelle Burk is coming to my school at the end of the month, and I had never heard of her before.  This book was great!  It was very well written, had humor, and honestly portrays a middle schooler who's a good kid but twists things around a little to suit herself and is naturally curious.  It's a perfect STEM/STEAM read!

Goodreads synopsis:  A humorous, exciting tale of an ordinary girl who makes an extraordinary scientific discovery—a blind fish that walks

When seventh-grader Alexis catches an unusual fish that looks like a living fossil, she sets off a frenzied scientific hunt for more of its kind. Alexis and her friend Darshan join the hunt, snorkeling, sounding the depths of Glacial Lake, even observing from a helicopter and exploring a cave. All the while, they fight to keep the selfish Dr. Mertz from claiming the discovery all for himself. When Alexis follows one final hunch, she risks her life and almost loses her friend. Walking Fish is a scientific adventure that provides a perfect combination of literacy and science.

82. The Waiting by Michael Connelly

Ballard & Bosch #6

listened on Audible (purchased)

407 pgs.

2024
Adult Mystery
Finished 12/8/2024
Goodreads rating: 4.47
My rating: 5
Setting: LA and vicinity, contemporary

My comments: The Cold Case Unit in LA, headed by Renee Ballard - Connelly spent the 6th in the series about this LA police detective working on three major cases.  They're all intricate and edge-of-your-seat fascinating.  Renee and Harry have become very close friends, having similar thoughts, feeling, and reactions to many things.  What was wonderfully great for me sas that Maddie Bosch is part of this book! (Why is her relationship with her father so strained? and almost secretive?)  This was a really good one!

Goodreads synopsis:  LAPD Detective Renée Ballard tracks a terrifying serial rapist whose trail has gone cold, with the help of the newest volunteer to the Open-Unsolved Unit: Patrol Officer Maddie Bosch, Harry’s daughter.

Renée Ballard and the LAPD’s Open-Unsolved Unit get a hot shot DNA connection between a recently arrested man and a serial rapist and murderer who went quiet twenty years ago. The arrested man is only twenty-three, so the genetic link must be familial. It is his father who was the Pillowcase Rapist, responsible for a five-year reign of terror in the city of angels. But when Ballard and her team move in on their suspect, they encounter a baffling web of secrets and legal hurdles.

Meanwhile, Ballard’s badge, gun, and ID are stolen—a theft she can’t report without giving her enemies in the department the ammunition they need to end her career as a detective. She works the burglary alone, but her solo mission leads her into greater danger than she anticipates. She has no choice but to go outside the department for help, and that leads her to the door of Harry Bosch.

Finally, Ballard takes on a new volunteer to the cold case unit. Bosch’s daughter Maddie wants to supplement her work as a patrol officer on the night beat by investigating cases with Ballard. But Renée soon learns that Maddie has an ulterior motive for getting access to the city’s library of lost souls.

74. The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center

listened on Libby when I FINALLY got it from TPPL

336 pgs.

2024
Adult RomCom
Finished 10/6/24
Goodreads rating: 4.14
My rating: 5
Setting: Contemporary LA (with some Houston)

My comments: I love Katherin Center's writing.  And this novel about writers writing together is a winner for me!  A completely clean romance with ups and downs and two funny, clever protagonists is a surefire hit.  Highly recommend for a feel-good story with an HEA.

Goodreads synopsis:  She’s rewriting his love story. But can she rewrite her own?

Emma Wheeler desperately longs to be a screenwriter. She’s spent her life studying, obsessing over, and writing romantic comedies―good ones! That win contests! But she’s also been the sole caretaker for her kind-hearted dad, who needs full-time care. Now, when she gets a chance to re-write a script for famous screenwriter Charlie Yates―The Charlie Yates! Her personal writing god!―it’s a break too big to pass up.

Emma’s younger sister steps in for caretaking duties, and Emma moves to L.A. for six weeks for the writing gig of a lifetime. But what is it they say? Don’t meet your heroes? Charlie Yates doesn’t want to write with anyone―much less “a failed, nobody screenwriter.” Worse, the romantic comedy he’s written is so terrible it might actually bring on the apocalypse. Plus! He doesn’t even care about the script―it’s just a means to get a different one green-lit. Oh, and he thinks love is an emotional Ponzi scheme.

But Emma’s not going down without a fight. She will stand up for herself, and for rom-coms, and for love itself. She will convince him that love stories matter―even if she has to kiss him senseless to do it. But . . . what if that kiss is accidentally amazing? What if real life turns out to be so much . . . more real than fiction? What if the love story they’re writing breaks all Emma’s rules―and comes true?

56. Harry's Trees by Jon Cohen

listened on Libby
432pgs.

2018
Adult CRF with a touch of magical realism
Finished 6/18/24
Goodreads rating: 4.19
My rating: 5
Setting: Contemporary northeastern PA, in the "Endless Woods"

My comments: Beautiful writing, clever story, wonderful characters, and a rich setting in the woods. This is definitely a favorite!

Goodreads synopsis:  The first thing you learn when you climb a tree is to hold on. Now it’s time for Harry to learn to let go…

Thirty-four-year-old Harry Crane, lifelong lover of trees, works as an analyst in a treeless US Forest Service office. When his wife dies in a freak accident, devastated, he makes his way to the remote woods of northeastern Pennsylvania’s Endless Mountains, intent on losing himself. But fate intervenes in the form of a fiercely determined young girl named Oriana. She, too, has lost someone—her father. And in the magical, willful world of her reckoning, Oriana believes that Harry is the key to finding her way back to him.

As Harry agrees to help the young girl, the unlikeliest of elements—a tree house, a Wolf, a small-town librarian and a book called The Grum’s Ledger—come together to create the biggest sensation ever to descend upon the Endless Mountains…a golden adventure that will fulfill Oriana’s wildest dreams and open the door to a new life for Harry.

48. How to Read a Book by Monica Wood

listened on Audible
288 pgs.

2024
Adult Contemporary Fiction
Finished 5/27/24
Goodreads rating: 4.36
My rating: 5
Setting: Contemporary Maine, Portland area

My comments:  I couldn't put this one down.  Told from the points of view of three different characters and set in Maine - with many references to locations that I totally knew - this beautifully written novel has won my heart!  The narrator was fantastic.  The kindness, integrity, and humility of Violet Harriet, and Frank were the very heart of this poignant story.

Goodreads synopsis:  A charming, deeply moving novel about second chances, unlikely friendships, and the life-changing power of sharing stories.

Our Reasons meet us in the morning and whisper to us at night. Mine is an innocent, unsuspecting, eternally sixty-one-year-old woman named Lorraine Daigle…

Violet Powell, a twenty-two-year-old from rural Abbott Falls, Maine, is being released from prison after serving twenty-two months for a drunk-driving crash that killed a local kindergarten teacher. Harriet Larson, a retired English teacher who runs the prison book club, is facing the unsettling prospect of an empty nest. Frank Daigle, a retired machinist, hasn’t yet come to grips with the complications of his marriage to the woman Violet killed.

When the three encounter each other one morning in a bookstore in Portland—Violet to buy the novel she was reading in the prison book club before her release, Harriet to choose the next title for the women who remain, and Frank to dispatch his duties as the store handyman—their lives begin to intersect in transformative ways.

How to Read a Book  is an unsparingly honest and profoundly hopeful story about letting go of guilt, seizing second chances, and the power of books to change our lives. With the heart, wit, grace, and depth of understanding that has characterized her work, Monica Wood illuminates the decisions that define a life and the kindnesses that make life worth living.  . 

43. The Women by Kristin Hannah

listened on Libby
480 pgs. (14:56) read by Julia Whelan

2024
Adult Historical Fiction
Finished 5/11/2024
Goodreads rating: 4.67 (you never see them this high, and there's a reason!)
My rating: 5+
Setting: first half: Vietnam, 1967-1969; second half Coronado Island, southern California (and other places around the US) from 1969 - 1982, ending at the dedication of the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, D.C. in November of 1982.

My comments:   Oh my.  Once you start this book, there's no putting it down.  I had very little idea of what it was about, which is probably best because I don't think I would have read it.  I was in high school at the time this book was set.  I was a young married mom when it the war was "over."  This story, about the women of the war in Vietnam is potent, real, all-consuming, and beautifully written.  I didn't shed a tear until I listened to Kristin Hannah read her acknowledgements.  This was a very powerful, masterfully written story that I don't imagine I will forget.

Goodreads synopsis:  An intimate portrait of coming of age in a dangerous time and an epic tale of a nation divided.

Women can be heroes. When twenty-year-old nursing student Frances “Frankie” McGrath hears these words, it is a revelation. Raised in the sun-drenched, idyllic world of Southern California and sheltered by her conservative parents, she has always prided herself on doing the right thing. But in 1965, the world is changing, and she suddenly dares to imagine a different future for herself. When her brother ships out to serve in Vietnam, she joins the Army Nurse Corps and follows his path.

As green and inexperienced as the men sent to Vietnam to fight, Frankie is over- whelmed by the chaos and destruction of war. Each day is a gamble of life and death, hope and betrayal; friendships run deep and can be shattered in an instant. In war, she meets—and becomes one of—the lucky, the brave, the broken, and the lost.

But war is just the beginning for Frankie and her veteran friends. The real battle lies in coming home to a changed and divided America, to angry protesters, and to a country that wants to forget Vietnam.

The Women is the story of one woman gone to war, but it shines a light on all women who put themselves in harm’s way and whose sacrifice and commitment to their country has too often been forgotten. A novel about deep friendships and bold patriotism, The Women is a richly drawn story with a memorable heroine whose idealism and courage under fire will come to define an era.

38. First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston

listened on Libby
340 pgs.

2024
Adult Mystery/Thriller
Finished 4/29/2024
Goodreads rating: 4.07
My rating: 5
Setting: Louisiana

My comments: Set in Louisiana and split between current day and bits and pieces of "jobs" over the previous eight years, we follow Evie Porter and her current "mark" Ryan Sumner.  Evie is a con-woman, a really clever one, who works for the mysterious and unknown Mr. Smith.  This intricate story, beautifully woven with fun surprises thrown in here and there, was very hard to put down.

Goodreads synopsis:  Evie Porter has everything a nice, Southern girl could want: a perfect, doting boyfriend, a house with a white picket fence and a garden, a fancy group of friends. The only catch: Evie Porter doesn’t exist.

The identity comes first: Evie Porter. Once she’s given a name and location by her mysterious boss Mr. Smith, she learns everything there is to know about the town and the people in it. Then the mark: Ryan Sumner. The last piece of the puzzle is the job.

Evie isn’t privy to Mr. Smith’s real identity, but she knows this job will be different. Ryan has gotten under her skin, and she’s starting to envision a different sort of life for herself. But Evie can’t make any mistakes—especially after what happened last time.

Because the one thing she’s worked her entire life to keep clean, the one identity she could always go back to—her real identity—just walked right into this town. Evie Porter must stay one step ahead of her past while making sure there’s still a future in front of her. The stakes couldn't be higher—but then, Evie has always liked a challenge...

37. The Broken Girls by Simone St. James

listened on Libby
336 pgs.

2018
Adult Mystery 
Finished 4/2//2024
Goodreads rating: 4.07
My rating: 4.75
Setting: Two time periods:  1950 & 2014 Vermont

My comments: For some reason, it took me a long while to get into this book.  Maybe every time I started I was too tired to register what was going on because the first few vignettes were different people, different time periods.  And then, with some urging from a friend, I did get into it.  This is a wonderful, solid story with lots of surprises and a touch of magical realism.  A lot of mystery, a lot of sleuthing, and some very interesting characters made for a story that after that hard start I had a hard time putting down!

Goodreads synopsis:  Vermont, 1950. There's a place for the girls whom no one wants--the troublemakers, the illegitimate, the too smart for their own good. It's called Idlewild Hall. And in the small town where it's located, there are rumors that the boarding school is haunted. Four roommates bond over their whispered fears, their budding friendship blossoming--until one of them mysteriously disappears. . . .

Vermont, 2014. As much as she's tried, journalist Fiona Sheridan cannot stop revisiting the events surrounding her older sister's death. Twenty years ago, her body was found lying in the overgrown fields near the ruins of Idlewild Hall. And though her sister's boyfriend was tried and convicted of murder, Fiona can't shake the suspicion that something was never right about the case.

When Fiona discovers that Idlewild Hall is being restored by an anonymous benefactor, she decides to write a story about it. But a shocking discovery during the renovations will link the loss of her sister to secrets that were meant to stay hidden in the past--and a voice that won't be silenced. . . .

36. Accidentally Engaged by Farah Heron

listened on Audible
357 pgs.

2021
Adult contemporary romance
Finished 4/13/2024
Goodreads rating: 3.71
My rating: 5
Setting: Contemporary Toronto

My comments: One word: delightful.  Want to giggle and be thoroughly entertained?  In a reading slump?  This is the book to read.  Set in contemporary Toronto, this romantic comedy packs humor, family love and strife, and the love of cooking and baking into one very enjoyable story.  A huge plus for me was being able to peek into the culture and foods of the Indian Muslim community.  Note:  no actual gratuitous "steam", but the author does what she needs to get her point across....

Goodreads synopsis:   Reena Manji doesn’t love her career, her single status, and most of all, her family inserting themselves into every detail of her life. But when caring for her precious sourdough starters, Reena can drown it all out. At least until her father moves his newest employee across the hall--with hopes that Reena will marry him.

But Nadim’s not like the other Muslim bachelors-du-jour that her parents have dug up. If the Captain America body and the British accent weren’t enough, the man appears to love eating her bread creations as much as she loves making them. She sure as hell would never marry a man who works for her father, but friendship with a neighbor is okay, right? And when Reena’s career takes a nosedive, Nadim happily agrees to fake an engagement so they can enter a couples video cooking contest to win the artisan bread course of her dreams.

As cooking at home together brings them closer, things turn physical, but Reena isn’t worried. She knows Nadim is keeping secrets, but it’s fine— secrets are always on the menu where her family is concerned. And her heart is protected… she’s not marrying the man. But even secrets kept for self preservation have a way of getting out, especially when meddling parents and gossiping families are involved.

25. Signal Moon - Short story by Kate Quinn

listened on Audible
57 pgs.

2022
Adult Historical Fiction/SciFi Short Story
Finished 3/24/24
Goodreads rating: 4.33
My rating: 5
Setting: 1943 & 2023 London

My comments: Two time periods, two Navy radio operators.  One in 1943, one in 2023.  One British, one American.  Talk about long-distance relationships!  One saves the other.  SciFi....love it more and more each time I read one.

Goodreads synopsis:  A short story about an impossible connection across two centuries that could make the difference between peace or war.

Yorkshire, 1943. Lily Baines, a bright young debutante increasingly ground down by an endless war, has traded in her white gloves for a set of headphones. It’s her job to intercept enemy naval communications and send them to Bletchley Park for decryption.

One night, she picks up a transmission that isn’t code at all—it’s a cry for help.

An American ship is taking heavy fire in the North Atlantic—but no one else has reported an attack, and the information relayed by the young US officer, Matt Jackson, seems all wrong. The contact that Lily has made on the other end of the radio channel says it’s… 2023.

Across an eighty-year gap, Lily and Matt must find a way to help each other: Matt to convince her that the war she’s fighting can still be won, and Lily to help him stave off the war to come. As their connection grows stronger, they both know there’s no telling when time will run out on their inexplicable link.

20. Weyward by Emilia Hart

listened on Libby - borrowed from library

416 pgs.
2023
Adult Historical Fiction/Magical Realism

Finished 3/10/2024
Goodreads rating: 4.10
My rating:/
Setting: Cottage in England during three different time periods:  1619, 1942, contemporary

My comments: LOVE the cover!  Told from the point of view of three women in the Weyward family:  Altha, in 1619, on trial for practicing witchcraft, supposedly using a spell to have a farmer's cows trample him to death.  Violet, in 1942, living a hugely restricted life with her brother, being intimidated by a hateful father.  And then there's Kate in 2019, never leaving her flat because of an abusive, controlling husband, until she finally takes matters into her own hands.  Three really interesting stories of three strong women, bonded by blood and history and the huge touch of magic that connects them with the natural world, the birds, the bees, the bugs, and all growing things.  It was hard to put down and beautifully narrated by three different female voices.

Goodreads synopsis:  I am a Weyward, and wild inside.

2019: Under cover of darkness, Kate flees London for ramshackle Weyward Cottage, inherited from a great aunt she barely remembers. With its tumbling ivy and overgrown garden, the cottage is worlds away from the abusive partner who tormented Kate. But she begins to suspect that her great aunt had a secret. One that lurks in the bones of the cottage, hidden ever since the witch-hunts of the 17th century.

1619: Altha is awaiting trial for the murder of a local farmer who was stampeded to death by his herd. As a girl, Altha’s mother taught her their magic, a kind not rooted in spell casting but in a deep knowledge of the natural world. But unusual women have always been deemed dangerous, and as the evidence for witchcraft is set out against Altha, she knows it will take all of her powers to maintain her freedom.

1942: As World War II rages, Violet is trapped in her family's grand, crumbling estate. Straitjacketed by societal convention, she longs for the robust education her brother receives––and for her mother, long deceased, who was rumored to have gone mad before her death. The only traces Violet has of her are a locket bearing the initial W and the word weyward scratched into the baseboard of her bedroom.

Weaving together the stories of three extraordinary women across five centuries, Emilia Hart's Weyward is an enthralling novel of female resilience and the transformative power of the natural world.

11. Dead Letter Days by Kelley Armstrong

#.5 Haven's Rock

Read - Kindle eBook
87 pgs.
2023
Adult Novella

Finished 1/31/24
Goodreads rating: 4.36
My rating: 5
Setting: Contemporary Yukon woods

My comments: Unlike all the other Casey Duncan/Rockton books, this one is from Dalton's point-of-view.  There are a couple of fairly easily solved mysteries, Dalton's dealing with his own childhood miseries, and then Eric and Casey actually get married.  I really like this one, not too repetetive (short!) and quite interesting.

Goodreads synopsis:  Eric Dalton spent most of his life in Rockton, a hidden town in the Yukon for people who need to disappear. Now that sanctuary is gone, and he’s holed up in a wilderness lodge with his girlfriend, Casey Duncan, and their friends, as they scout for a place to build their own Rockton. When Eric and Casey find a literal message-in-a-bottle, it leads them to the mystery of a woman who went missing decades ago, having never received that vital message. As they investigate that cold case, Dalton must finally lay to rest the ghosts of his own past and make some overdue decisions before he’s ready to step forward in his new life with Casey.

Note: This is not a full-length novel. It’s a novella set between the end of the Rockton series and the beginning of the Haven’s Rock spinoff

9. Exception to the Rule by Christina Lauren

listened on  Audible
101 pgs.
2024
Adult Rom Com - Short Story

Finished 1/27/2024
Goodreads rating: 4.39
My rating: 5
Setting: Contemporary colleges across America

My comments: Absolutely adorable.  Written almost entirely in emails. Cute short story about a high school boy and girl who mistakenly emailed each other on Valentine's Day in 2014 and continued the correspondence annually until 2023, when they were in grad school.  They'd never given each other much information about themselves, including their names, only knowing they'd both grown up in Irvina, California.  So much fun!

Goodreads synopsis:  On February 14, an accidental email to a stranger opens the door to an unexpected relationship in a captivating short story by the New York Times bestselling authors of The Unhoneymooners.

One typo, and a boy and girl connect by chance. Wishing each other a happy Valentine’s Day isn’t the end. In fact, it becomes a friendly annual tradition—with rules: no pics, no real names, nothing too personal. As years pass, the rules for their email “dates” are breaking, and they’re sharing more than they imagined—including the urge to ask…what if we actually met?

Christina Lauren’s The Exception to the Rule is part of The Improbable Meet-Cute, irresistibly romantic stories about finding love when and where you least expect it. They can be read or listened to in one sitting.

48. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

listened on Libby
389 pgs.

2017
Adult HistFict
Finished 4.02
Goodreads rating: 4.02
My rating: 5
Setting: California

My comments: I've read lots and lots of rave comments about this book but was skeptical.  And then, I couldn't stop listening!  To create a personality with so many nuances must be done by a highly skilled writer.  Not only was the plot extraordinary, but the writing was pretty flawless.  I had no idea it was LGBTQ2+.  I'm guessing this will be one of the stories that I might remember much more than so many that I so quickly forget.....

Goodreads synopsis:  Aging and reclusive Hollywood movie icon Evelyn Hugo is finally ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life. But when she chooses unknown magazine reporter Monique Grant for the job, no one is more astounded than Monique herself. Why her? Why now?

Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband has left her, and her professional life is going nowhere. Regardless of why Evelyn has selected her to write her biography, Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jumpstart her career.

Summoned to Evelyn’s luxurious apartment, Monique listens in fascination as the actress tells her story. From making her way to Los Angeles in the 1950s to her decision to leave show business in the ‘80s, and, of course, the seven husbands along the way, Evelyn unspools a tale of ruthless ambition, unexpected friendship, and a great forbidden love. Monique begins to feel a very real connection to the legendary star, but as Evelyn’s story nears its conclusion, it becomes clear that her life intersects with Monique’s own in tragic and irreversible ways.

34. Simon Sort of Says by Erin Bow

listened on Audible

320 pgs.

2023
Middle Grades CRF
Finished 5/15/2023
Goodreads rating: 4.32
My rating: 5

My comments:  Simon's a 7th grader and only child.  His mom is an undertaker and his dad is a Catholic deacon.  They move from Omaha, Nebraska to a tiny small town where, because of all its scientific and astronomical activity, no microwaves, cell phones, tv, anything of that sort is allowed.  Simon has been homeschooled for the past year and is heading back to school for the first time in 18 months or so, the first time since something pretty horrible happened to him - which he alludes to, and which slowly becomes known by about the middle of the book.  It's a book about friendship and family and trauma - and how both his parents and he deal with all that's happened.  He also raises a puppy to become a service dog, which is another interesting segment of the story which will greatly appeal to many kids.