Book Review: We Are the Match, by Mary E. Roach

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

Frona is tall, willowy where Helen is curved, and if she were not standing beside Helen I would think of her as beautiful.

From the queen.

Was it this woman before us, pacing at the edge of the boat, her golden hair swept up to reveal smooth white shoulders? Does she fancy herself queen enough to vie for power against Zarek?

She is goddess of secrets and sex, and both are obvious in the tilt of her chin and set of her lips. She is beautiful, but  never in a way that could have rivaled Helen’s.

Paris of Troy had been planning to destroy the Family for a long time, as revenge for destroying the closest thing she had to family when she was younger.

Official synopsis:

Paris is a fixer for mob families on the Grecian islands when a powerful crime lord hires her to investigate a bombing. Insinuating herself into Zarek’s circle is the chance for revenge that Paris has been waiting for since she was a child. Years ago, Zarek wiped out everyone she loved. Now it’s Paris’s turn. Her target? Zarek’s beautiful daughter, Helen.

Helen wants nothing more than to abandon the violent world in which she was raised—and worse, an arranged marriage to a man she barely knows. In Paris, Helen sees the perfect tool to help her escape. And in Helen, Paris sees a desperate woman who will be the perfect revenge. As the two work together to find the bomber, and their connection becomes increasingly intimate, Zarek’s empire grows more fragile and their own bonds of loyalty and purpose are tested.

When murder sends them fleeing to Troy, danger only brings Paris and Helen closer together—in love, in fury, and in the will to survive. If Zarek wants a war, Paris and Helen are ready to ignite it.

There’s a delicious electricity between Paris and Helen from the first time they meet. Initially, Paris thinks it will make it that much easier to carry out her plan, but as she and Helen get to know each other, of course things get more complicated.

While Helen’s identity is very much tied up with her crime Family, the ones closest to her that she feels she can trust are the body guard since she was born, Tommy, and her personal assistant, Erin. After Paris saves her life the night they meet, Helen brings her into the inner circle quickly, while assuring her father that she only intends to use Paris as a plaything until her arranged marriage. Anything or anyone Helen values could be used against her by a powerful and cruel man like her father.

The story moved quickly and easily earned 4 out of 5 stars. While each seemed to be evil in their own way, the characters had unique motivations and justifications for their often unsavory actions. The book also showed the fine line between passion and violence. 

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Becki Bayley is a wife and mother who enjoys reading, writing, and relaxing. Some of her other hobbies include jigsaw puzzles and LEGO. Check out what she’s working on at her blog, SweetlyBSquared.com.

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Book Review: Six Weeks by the Sea, by Paula Byrne

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

Mr. Rose carried a goldfish in a pail. It was a sultry Sunday morning, but he was wrapped in a light wool comforter. His troublesome cough had worsened, despite the sea air and the ministrations of his physician, yet the fatigue he had laboured under when he arrived in Devonshire had dissipated. He felt renewed, invigorated and full of purpose.

That morning he had written again to Mr. Hayley, recounting the secret that the Reverend Swete had imparted to him at the midweek ball, his tongue loosened by several bowls of punch: the true identity of the girl on the beach. The child’s very existence was the strongest proof of all that they had fought for and canvassed. Their beloved poet had not lived to see the fruits of his labours, but Hayley’s Life and Posthumous Writings of William Cowper Esq. would make amends and seal William’s name among the great abolitionists, helped in small part by the addition of Mr. Rose’s own reminiscences and cache of letters from dear Cowper. All in good time, he said to himself.

This imagined summer holiday gives Jane Austen the love she tells so beautifully for the world.

Official synopsis:

When Jane Austen hears the news that her family is to leave their beloved country home for the city of Bath, she faints with surprise and horror. But there is one compensation: the promise of a six-week holiday by the sea while their new lodgings are being prepared. She relishes the bracing air and beautiful surroundings, takes pleasure in sea bathing, and shares laughter with her sister Cassandra and best friend Martha Lloyd.

To her joy, brother Frank arrives, fresh from naval exploits in the war against Napoleon. His friend Captain Parker seems to be making a play for Jane’s affections, but her sharp emotional intelligence tells her that something is not quite right. Meanwhile, she assists the eccentric Reverend Swete in finding a home for his bi-racial granddaughter who has arrived from the West Indies.

Jane initially takes against another visitor to the seaside resort of Sidmouth, the lawyer Samuel Rose, but as she gets to know him, a wholly different feeling begins to blossom. . . .

This was a truly delightful novel of what Jane Austen’s six weeks while moving from her family’s country home to Bath may have been. Her parents are hoping to marry their daughters into loving relationships, hopefully while elevating their station financially.

Happiness is what matters to Jane and her sister, whose previous fiancé died. While Jane knows the solicitor looks like a better match for success, she feels more attraction initially to another man in the community. But there is more to be learned about everyone, and none of them expects their story to end by the sea.

The story was relaxing and meandering between different members of Jane’s family and her brother’s friends and contacts. The book earned 3 out of 5 stars, but would be a more compelling read for those who are already fans of Jane Austen and want to learn more about what could be imagined for the missing chapters of her life. 

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Becki Bayley is a wife and mother who enjoys fresh air, feeling the sun on her skin, and reading books just for fun sometimes. Check out her adventures with her family on her Instagram, where she posts as SweetlyBSquared.

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Book Review: Sycorax, by Nydia Hetherington

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

My father was of the Sun, and my mother of the Moon, I said, gulping at the air.

Dripping in sweat, I wiped my face and wrapped the muslin over my eyes, as I’d done so many times before. Then, taking a deep breath, letting agony run through me in a silent cry, I concentrated on the sound of my mother’s bells, tinkling around my angle, and stumbled on. Forwards again. Step by step. Forwards. Breathing. Living. Moving.

The crow, patient with my slow advance, flew in circles, soaring above the path it knew so well, now lost within the storm’s debris. As we reached the lane to the market, it alighted on the branch of an upturned tree, before settling gently on my shoulder. It was a powerful act of solidarity, a message I couldn’t help but understand.

We’d enter the town together.

I wasn’t alone.

Without knowing the full story of The Tempest, Sycorax’s story of life before was still fascinating.

Official synopsis:

Born of the sun and moon, shaped by fire and malady, comes a young woman whose story has never been told...

They call her Sycorax. Seer. Sage. Sorceress.

Outcast by society and all alone in the world, Sycorax must find a way to understand her true nature. But as her powers begin to grow, so too do the suspicions of the local townspeople. For knowledge can be dangerous, and a woman's knowledge is the most dangerous of all...

With a great storm brewing on the horizon, Sycorax finds herself in increasing peril - but will her powers save her, or will they spell the end for them all? Find out in this gripping and vivid narrative exploration of one of literature's most mysterious figures.

Sometimes the retelling of one imagined lifetime feels like it lasts even longer. This book was like that. Spanning from the meeting of her parents to the fate of her son, the story of the magic woman born Raven and eventually renamed by the townsfolk to Sycorax, encompassed so many more legends, lessons, and tales than there seemed room for in one life.

The voice and descriptions contributed to a beautiful story with a full range of emotions clearly shared. This book will be readily recommended to those who enjoy period fiction, stories with amazing female characters, and of course expansion on Shakespeare classics. Sycorax earned 5 out of 5 stars.

{click here to purchase this book via my affiliate link}

Becki Bayley is a wife, and mother who does her best traveling through reading, while cozy at home. Find out more about her life and reads on her blog, SweetlyBSquared.com.

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Book Review: Kingston and the Magician's Lost and Found, by Rucker Moses and Theo Gangi

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

I’m sitting outside on the stoop and I can’t imagine hitting the pillow. I am wired, my heart racing like it’s got enough voltage running through it to power the county grid.

At 4:00 a.m., the street is so quiet I’d believe I’m back in the suburbs. Must be how they grow trees in Brooklyn, extra thick and gnarly and lush. The leaves swish in the breeze like they’re whispering secrets.

The one word that keeps playing in my head, from all the info my uncle just dumped on me, is sacrifice…

Because that’s what I understand now that maybe I never understood before.

Kingston didn’t think he could return to his old home with his mother and actually find his father, but forces beyond his control seem to be making him look at things a little different. 

Official synopsis:

Twelve-year-old Kingston has just moved from the suburbs back to Echo City, Brooklyn—the last place his father was seen alive. Kingston's father was King Preston, one of the world's greatest magicians. Until one trick went wrong and he disappeared. Now that Kingston is back in Echo City, he's determined to find his father.

Somehow, though, when his father disappeared, he took all of Echo City's magic with him. Now Echo City—a ghost of its past—is living up to its name. With no magic left, the magicians have packed up and left town and those who've stayed behind don't look too kindly on any who reminds them of what they once had.

When Kingston finds a magic box his father left behind as a clue, Kingston knows there's more to his father's disappearance than meets the eye. He'll have to keep it a secret—that is, until he can restore magic to Echo City. With his cousin Veronica and childhood friend Too Tall Eddie, Kingston works to solve the clues, but one wrong move and his father might not be the only one who goes missing.

At 12 years old, of course Kingston doesn’t get much of a vote in what’s going on with his life. So when his mom says they’re moving back to the city where his dad disappeared during a magic trip, but redoing the family’s old magic store to be a coffee shop, Kingston is just along for the ride. He’s a good kid, and usually does as his mom says.

But strange things happen almost right away, and Kingston is given the idea that maybe he could bring his dad back from wherever he disappeared to, and they could go back to being a happy family again. He doesn’t want to go against his mom, but magic is practically happening to him without him doing anything, so it really isn’t his fault.

The book had a plot way more intricate than expected for middle grade fantasy/fiction. The world-building was clear, which is great since it’s apparently the first in an extensive series. The story would be easily recommended to those who enjoy magical realism and fantasy that is entertaining for middle-grade or adult readers. This first book in the series earned 4 out of 5 stars.

{click here to purchase via my affiliate link}

Becki Bayley is a mom and escape reader. She enjoys parenting and hanging out with middle grade kids, since you never know what they’ll say next. Check out some of her favorite reads and her life on her blog, SweetlyBSquared.com.

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Book Review: The Athena Protocol, by Shamim Sarif

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

I have a mouthful of dirt. Damp earth and pine needles. I fight to twist my way out, but my attacker has legs on either side of me and an arm on my head, and I can’t move. Feeling paralyzed sets me off into panic, but somewhere in my head, there’s a sense of the familiar. The look of the hands that are grasping mine, the scent of the person on top of me. My brain makes a connection. I stop resisting and wait, suddenly realizing who it is. Slowly, Hala releases the pressure of her arm, so I can moore my head to look at her.

“I missed you,” I say.

My face hits the dirt again. Okay, maybe there was just a hint of sarcasm in that comment.

“Let go of me,” I try, but it comes out a garbled mess with my mouth against the forest floor. But suddenly Hala’s grip softens again, and it’s almost easy for me to twist and cuff her off me entirely. I sit up.

“What are you doing here?” I ask, spitting a few times to get rid of the dirt in my mouth.

“I just landed a micro drone on that van,” she says.

While already part of a rogue justice organization, Jessie can’t resist the urge to do something against her direct orders. Those running the organization force her to pay the price, and she misses those she’s used to working with more than she expects.

Official synopsis:

Jessie Archer is a member of the Athena Protocol, an elite organization of female spies who enact vigilante justice around the world.

Athena operatives are never supposed to shoot to kill—so when Jessie can't stop herself from pulling the trigger, she gets kicked out of the organization, right before a huge mission to take down a human trafficker in Belgrade. 

Jessie needs to right her wrong and prove herself, so she starts her own investigation into the trafficking. But going rogue means she has no one to watch her back as she delves into the horrors she uncovers. Meanwhile, her former teammates have been ordered to bring her down. Jessie must face danger from all sides if she's to complete her mission—and survive.

Jessie and two other agents are the brawn of the Athena Protocol, executing the plans made by a handful of powerful women and based on exhausting research on those they’re bringing to justice. The women in charge, of course, leave nothing to chance, and expect their orders to be followed immediately and exactly. When Jessie steps out of line, the consequences are swift and strict. She’s out, even after planning their next mission which puts one of the main women in charge at risk.

They chose Jessie to join the Athena Protocol because she was determined and resourceful, so she utilizes these skills to not be left behind on their next mission. Expecting her to work relentlessly toward vigilante justice and then stop when they say so may not work out as the women in charge expect.

The story earned a high 4 out of 5 stars. This all-female crew was brilliant, talented, and strong, inside and out. There was also a small element of family drama encased in their found family. The book would be enjoyed by those who like strong female characters, justice, and intricate action plans.

{click here to purchase via my affiliate link}

Becki Bayley is a homebody who enjoys reading and building LEGO when she’s not at work. See what else she and her family are up to on Instagram, where she posts as SweetlyBSquared.

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Book Review and GIVEAWAY: Fog and Fury, by Rachel Howzell Hall {ends 8/4}

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

Saturday morning brought with it thick fog. But as I drove north on Highway 1 – before I could even begin to list types of gems – the fog thinned, and sunshine spread like butter across the blacktop. And then I saw the blue sky and the gray ocean, and ahead of me, there was nothing but a straight road without one curve or bend.

This was not the devil’s highway.

Why couldn’t all of this highway be straight? Why was it crooked headed back to LA?

My grip loosened, and I unclenched my sphincter and rolled down the windows. I was now driving like I wasn’t on my way to court-mandated therapy.

I’d save that list of gems for a true emergency.

Sonny initially thinks life with her mother in Haven will be a relaxing change from LA. Soon enough, Haven is showing her its other side, and even destroying what she thought she’d miss from LA.

Official synopsis:
After ten years on the force, LAPD cop Sonny Rush relocates with her elderly mother to peaceful Haven, California, to join her godfather’s burgeoning PI business. What crimes could possibly happen in a town nicknamed “Mayberry by the Sea”? Sonny’s first case: find Figgy, a missing goldendoodle last seen sporting a Versace collar. At least scouting out a dognapper gives Sonny a chance to get to know her new neighbors.

Forty-eight hours in town and Figgy’s disappearance entangles Sonny in an unwelcome reunion with her ex, one of Haven’s wealthiest citizens. And when the body of a teenage boy is found along a popular hiking trail, Sonny is drawn into a web of strange beyond anything she ever saw in LA.

Then comes a local’s warning: question everything. Haven hides secrets that could destroy its idyllic facade. Or destroy Sonny first.

Oh, Sonny. Leaving the LAPD and moving to lil' Haven was supposed to be a re-start and refresh. She was ready to set up somewhere safe to live with her mom while her mother’s dementia progressed. Instead, her first intro to the community where her godfather was welcoming her to his business was clients with a definite link to the past she was trying to leave.

Before long, Sonny’s detective skills have connected a missing dog, a murdered high school boy (who wasn’t even her case!), and the whole image built on lies of what’s supposed to be a delightful and stereotypical small town. Unfortunately, there are some residents of blissful Haven who aren’t appreciating her ability to make the connections, and she and those she loves are being threatened. What’s meant to scare Sonny off the case instead strengthens her resolve to get to the bottom of things.

Fog and Fury is the first Haven Thrillers book, and introduces lots of complex characters. While the story presented within this book resolves the initial plot points, there are several loose ends to be wrapped up in subsequent books. Overall, this strong intro to the series earns 3 out of 5 stars. Sonny is an engaging and positive character with reasonable flaws, and she inspires a reader to want the best for her. Those who enjoy small town stories with a bit of police procedural and strong female characters will enjoy this book, and likely those to come in the Haven Thrillers series.

{click here to purchase on Amazon via my affiliates link - currently FREE for Kindle Unlimited users!}

Becki Bayley is a wife and mother who enjoys reading, counted cross-stitch, and tending to her flowers to watch birds and butterflies through the summer. Check out some of what she sees on Instagram, where she posts as SweetlyBSquared.

GIVEAWAY:

One of my lucky readers will win a copy of Fog and Fury!

Enter via the widget below. Giveaway will end on Monday, August 4th, at 11:59pm EST, and winner will be contacted via email the next day and have 24 hours to respond, or an alternate winner will be chosen.

U.S. residents only, please.

Good luck!

Fog and Fury, by Rachel Howzell Hall {ends 8/4}

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Book Review: The Speed of Falling Objects, by Nancy Richardson Fischer

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

I sleep fitfully, waking again and again in the dark morning hours to insects burrowing beneath my sweatshirt. The worst part is that I have to look at them in the firelight, hairy legs, twitching antennae, stingers and pincers, to make sure they’re not deadly before I brush them away. Some sting, some don’t. They’re all repulsive. When Gus leaps to his feet, shakes out his shirt, shivers in revulsion, I’m glad. He sees me watching in the flickering light, hesitates like he’s considering coming over, trying to talk. I turn my back. He can spoon with my dad since he likes him so much.

The rains start like someone flipped a light switch. Rivulets find their way through the piled palm fronds. Each time I shift, another drips on me. It’s like water torture. Sometime before dawn, the switch flips again and the rains stop. Without the steady patter of water, I can hear Cass sniffling. She’s sitting at the edge of our shelter by the fire, feeding it with branches and pages from Jupiter’s book to keep it going. I’m furious at her. Beyond furious. I crawl over. “What’s up?”

Danny Warren would do anything to be closer to the father who left her life after an accident left her with only one eye. She’s watched every episode of his adventure show, and is sure his invite to star with a teen movie idol will be the ticket to the relationships her mother kept her from having with her father.

Official synopsis:

Danger “Danny” Danielle Warren is no stranger to falling. After losing an eye in a childhood accident, she had to relearn her perception of movement and space. Now Danny keeps her head down, studies hard, and works to fulfill everyone else’s needs. She's certain that her mom’s bitterness and her TV star father’s absence are her fault. If only she were more—more athletic, charismatic, attractive—life would be perfect.

When her dad calls with an offer to join him to film the next episode of his popular survivalist show, Danny jumps at the chance to prove she’s not the disappointment he left behind. Being on set with the hottest teen movie idol of the moment, Gus Price, should be the cherry on top. But when their small plane crashes in the Amazon, and a terrible secret is revealed, Danny must face the truth about the parent she worships and falling for Gus, and find her own inner strength and worth to light the way home.

A life-or-death adventure really brings out the best—and worst—in people. The beginning of the story was full of foreshadowing about nothing going quite the way Danny and her dad expected them to go. While Danny’s obsession with her dad’s show was certainly never healthy, when wildlife survival skills were needed, all the knowledge she had gleaned from just trying to get to know her dad saved her life, and others.

The characters who continued through the story showed dramatic evolution between their public personas, or who they even planned to be, and who they really were, when their lives boiled down to only survival.

Overall, the story and setting were fascinating, and the book earned 5 out of 5 stars. Those who enjoy books with engaging and varied characters, action/adventure stories, and rainforest or wildlife survival stories will love this one.

{click here to purchase via my Amazon Affiliates link}

Becki Bayley is a wife and mother who enjoys nature from the safety of her porch, with pretty birds, butterflies, and even snakes, but no biting or stinging creepy-crawlies. Check out the delightful view from her porch on Instagram, where she posts as SweetlyBSquared.

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Book Review and GIVEAWAY: Into the Leopard's Den, by Harini Nagendra {ends 7/14}

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

Kaveri gave Ramu a watery smile, gripping his hand. ‘Last week, on her sixtieth birthday, Uma aunty told me that she feels like her life has restarted all over again.’

‘Of course it has,’ Ramu agreed. ‘Her son and daughter-in-law constantly tell her that she is old and should sit at home. But ever since she became part of the Bangalore Detectives Club, a whole new world has opened up.’

‘I hope she is careful tomorrow,’ Kaveri fretted. ‘If we are right, then the killer is a very intelligent and careful person. Someone who plans well ahead and doesn’t like to make mistakes.’

Ramu nodded. ‘It was only by accident that Venu found Kupamma so soon after she was stabbed. The murderer must have expected that the death would be discovered only later the next morning, when Hiramma arrived with her daily tiffin. Perhaps he even planned to pin the murder on defenceless Hiramma.’

‘Not defenceless anymore,’ Kaveri reminded him. ‘Now she has us to uncover the truth.’

Kaveri Murthy’s reputation as a good detective has spread, and people continue asking for her help to solve cases involving their loved ones, even while she is pregnant with her first child. Luckily she has the unwavering support of her husband, doctor Ramu.

Official synopsis:

Bangalore, 1922: Pregnant and confined to the house by her protective mother-in-law, Kaveri Murthy has resolved to take a break from detection. But when an elderly woman is murdered at night and dies clutching a photograph of Kaveri while asking for her help—how can she refuse? Missing the assistance of her husband Ramu, who is working in Coorg, Kaveri investigates her new case with her able assistants, milk boy Venu and housemaid Anandi. They find a trail of secrets that lead them to suspect the killer may be in Coorg.

Eager to be reunited with her husband, Kaveri sets off to Coorg to investigate. When she arrives, she encounters a thorny thicket of cases. Why does a ghost leopard prowl the forests at night, terrorizing the plantation workers? And who is trying to kill Colonel Boyd, the Coffee King of Coorg? She finds suspects in every coffee bush and estate—from Boyd’s surly plantation manager and security guard to the feuding brothers who own the neighboring plantation—and the many women the Coffee King has pursued and abandoned.

When two vulnerable children appeal for her help, Kaveri is drawn deeper into the case, becoming emotionally involved in finding the killer. Soon, one murder turns into two—and then a few days later into three. Now the killer has tasted blood and needs to be stopped. Racing against time, Kaveri must take on her most complex challenge so far, with the assistance of Anandi and Venu in Bangalore, and with Ramu and Inspector Ismail in Coorg. In this stunning new novel by an acclaimed master of the form, the Bangalore Detectives Club must find and expose a brutally intelligent killer before they strike again.

In this, the fourth book in the Bangalore Detectives Club series, Kaveri again is asked for help with  multiple cases with some similarities. Is there a link between the ghost leopard, the murder of an old Bangalore woman, and the attempts on a plantation owner’s life in Coorg? When so many random occurrences seem to overlap, it seems inevitable that solving one will lead to solving the rest.

The clues in this story lead Kaveri to travel by car and driver to Coorg from her home in Bangalore. She leaves a few members of their detective club working the clues in Bangalore and joins her husband who is in Coorg at a clinic helping local plantation workers. She’s certain the death of an old woman in Bangalore is related to a rumored trip to Coorg not long ago, so Ramu already being there is quite convenient for her to disguise her motives for traveling while pregnant.

Kaveri, Ramu, and their cast of friends and family are such likable characters. This book also wrapped up with some of the recipes Kaveri enjoys while visiting Coorg. The book earned 4 out of 5 stars. Publication information states this is the final book in the series. This story and the earlier three in the series would be enjoyed by those who like strong female characters, historical fiction depicting 1920s Bangalore, and warm family and found-family relationships.

{click here to purchase via my Amazon Affiliates link}

Becki Bayley is a Gen X mother who likes reading by her flowers, and taking breaks to watch the birds and butterflies and to refresh her drink. See what else she’s been up to on her blog, SweetlyBSquared.com.

GIVEAWAY:

One of my lucky readers will win a copy of Into the Leopard's Den!

Enter via the widget below. Giveaway will end on Monday, July 14th, at 11:59pm EST, and winner will be notified via email the next day and have 24 hours to respond, or an alternate winner will be chosen.

U.S. residents only, please.

Good luck!

Into the Leopard's Den, by Harini Nagendra

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Book Review: Knife River, by Justine Champine

Review by: Becki Bayley

Later that night as I tried to fall asleep, I remembered a woman, a self-described psychic, who called us at the house years ago. It was just weeks after our mother disappeared, and we were still sleeping with the phone then, the receiver resting between both our heads on the floor in our mess of quilts. Liz answered on the first ring. It was after one in the morning. My sister put the call on speakerphone just as the woman began to say that our mother’s body was in water. She couldn’t say exactly where, but described a lake with a faded red boat house and two Adirondack chairs at the end of a dock. Liz grabbed her notepad and began to furiously jot it all down, tearing the pages off as she filled them and letting each one fall to the side. I remember the chill that came over me then, lying there in the dark still dressed in my day clothes, eyes crusted over with sleep, listening to the sound of this strange woman’s voice fill our living room.

The lives of Liz and Jess are forever changed when their mother, Natalie, doesn’t return home one night. The police never charge anyone with a crime, and can’t even find Natalie’s body. When her bones are discovered fifteen years later, Jess moves back home to hopefully find closure with her sister.

Official synopsis:

When Jess was thirteen, her mother went for a walk and never returned. Jess and her older sister, Liz, never found out what happened. Instead, they did what they hoped their mother had done: survive. As soon as she was old enough, Jess fled their small town of Knife River, wandering from girlfriend to girlfriend like a ghost in her own life, aimless in her attempts to outrun grief and confusion. But one morning, fifteen years after their mother’s disappearance, she gets the call she’s been bracing for: Her mother’s remains have been found.

Jess returns to find Knife River—and her sister—frozen in time. The town is as claustrophobic and rundown as ever. Liz still lives in their childhood home and has become obsessed with unsolved missing persons cases. Jess plans to stay only until they get some answers, but their mother’s bones, exposed to the elements for so long, just leave them with more questions. As Jess gets caught up in the case and falls back into an entanglement with her high school girlfriend, her understanding of the past, of Liz, of their mother, and of herself become more complicated—and the list of theories more ominous.

Knife River is a tense, intimate, and heartrending portrayal of how deeply and imperfectly women love one another: in romantic relationships, in friendships, and especially as sisters.

Jess was a unique character to narrate this story. She was only 13 when her mother disappeared, so her high school years were spent with her sister raising her, and the constant suspense of hoping their mother would return while knowing she was probably already dead. Liz sacrificed her dream of college to stay in their small town and see her sister to adulthood. They were different girls with not much in common when their mother disappeared, and suddenly having to navigate life without their mother did not make them closer.

When some children playing discover human bones and the authorities contact the sisters, Jess leaves her suburban life with her girlfriend to return to the small town where she never felt like she belonged. Liz still lived in the same house, so she would be there if their mother was ever able to return. The sisters anxiously anticipated finally getting some answers.

The book earned 5 out of 5 stars. The story was complicated, but well told and resolved by the end. This could be recommended for those who like family dramas and small towns as a setting.

{click here to purchase via my Amazon Affiliates link}

Becki Bayley is a Gemini who enjoys reading in her flower garden with a refreshing drink when she’s not on-the-go having adventures with her kids. See what they’re up to on Instagram, where she posts as SweetlyBSquared.

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Book Review and GIVEAWAY: The Ashtrays are Full and the Glasses are Empty, by Kirsten Mickelwait {ends 6/22}

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

On our last day we prowled the shops, and I bought a small guitar for Baoth, an embroidered shawl for Honoria, and a toy bull for Patrick. After dinner, there was a fireworks display, and the locals gathered at city hall to sing “Pobre de Mi” by candlelight as all the men formally removed their red kerchiefs until the following year. The crowd formed circles to dance the traditional sardana and we followed along as best we could. 

Suddenly, the little brass band broke into the “Savoy Hop” and the crowd began chanting “Dansa Charleston! Dansa Charleston!” Gerald and I were confused until we saw the look on Ernest’s face: knowing we’d learned this newest dance craze, he’d tipped off the band. Gerald took my hand and let me to the center of the crowd, where we giddily swung our arms and kicked our feet in time to the beat. I caught his eye and we both grinned. After a week of trying so hard to fit into Ernest’s world, it felt good to be ourselves. 

Sara and Gerald Murphy led unique lives through such interesting times—international homes and travel, two world wars, evolving art and culture, a depression—and the author presented Sara’s imagined voice to narrate it all.

Official synopsis:

Raised in New York's Gilded Age, pampered heiress Sara Wiborg dreams of a more creative life than the rigid future prescribed for her. It's only when she meets Gerald Murphy that she finds a man who shares her creative, aesthetic ideal and, after a friendship of eleven years, they marry despite the strong disapproval of her family.

Against the sizzling Jazz Age backdrop of 1920s Paris and Antibes, Sara's innate style and gift for friendship attract the bohemian elite of the new century-including Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Picasso, and Dorothy Parker. But by the 1930s, her fortune is lost and tragedy strikes-not once, but twice. Sara's strength and resilience allow her to find a new equilibrium over time, long after the parties have ended. A heartbreaking story of love and loss, The Ashtrays Are Full and the Glasses Are Empty follows Sara through her very modern life to reveal how tragedy can be healed by faith, unconditional love, and a creative mind. 

Sara Wilborg married a bit later in life than was usual in the early 1900s. She waited until she found someone she truly wanted to spend the rest of her life with, and by all appearances, her marriage with Gerald Murphy was worth the wait. The retelling of their privileged and entertaining life shared the good and the bad, along with Sara’s potential emotional reflections on it all.

Living their lives with her family’s money and opportunities, the Murphys were close friends with well known artists like the Picassos, the Hemingways, the MacLeishes, and the Fitzgeralds. While it sounds like lots of fun and glitter, Sara’s perspective also included the darker parts of even the happy parts of their life. 

No life is without tragedy, and the Murphys had more than their share. The author’s ideas of Sara’s possible reflections on the losses in their lives and possible lessons to learn were especially touching. Who hasn’t wondered if a different choice on something seemingly unrelated could have led to a different outcome?

The book ran the full range of emotions - the Murphys had documented experiences of joy, fun, and unquestionably happy events, as well as losses no one ever wants to bear. Overall, the story earned 4 out of 5 stars. While it was fiction, it could be recommended to those who like stories from the early 1900s (though it spanned into the 1970s), memoirs, and womens’ stories. 

{click here to purchase via my Amazon Affiliates link}

Becki Bayley is a wife, mother, and stereotypical Gen-Xer. Read more of her reviews and other life adventures on her blog, SweetlyBSquared.com.

GIVEAWAY:

One of my lucky readers will win a copy of The Ashtrays are Full and the Glasses are Empty!

Enter via the widget below. Giveaway will end on Sunday, June 22nd, at 11:59pm ET, and winner will be notified the next day via email, and must respond within 24 hours, or an alternate winner will be chosen.

U.S. residents only, please.

Good luck!

The Ashtrays are Full and the Glasses are Empty, by Kirsten Mickelwait

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Book Review: The Woke and the Dead, by Mark S. Bacon

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

Suspicion, distrust, and curiosity tugged Lyle in different directions. He stood at the desert gun range and plucked his wrist rubber band. He had soaked up everything he saw, heard, and smelled during the rapid fire and later. Visions of the child behind the machine gun made him want to smack the father or just hop in his Mustang and put the entire group in the rearview; still he wanted to know more.

Many of the shooters headed to their trucks; a few remained. Lyle pulled out his phone, hoping to take quick, unnoticed photos of the few guys left.

Crack!

One gunshot and a cry of pain grabbed the stragglers’ attention. Lyle spun around and saw a man drop his semi-auto and fall to the ground clutching his leg. Lyle dashed to the middle-aged man and knelt over him. The idiot shot himself.

Lyle Deming and his girlfriend Kate Sorensen are determined to solve the hate crimes at Nostalgia City, especially while the governor is determined to claim they’re random acts of violence instead of targeted murders.

Official synopsis:

A public war between a governor and a theme park lights the fuse on an explosive story of hate, death, corruption, bigotry, and espionage. This Nostalgia City mystery is a stand-alone political thriller.

Lyle Deming finds a body in Nostalgia City's parking lot during an LGBTQ event. The ex-cop turned theme-park cab driver takes a breath and steps away from the bullet-punctured corpse. Was this a hate crime?

Arizona governor Rod Gudgel, running for reelection, calls it a random shooting. He mocks Nostalgia City theme park for its inclusiveness using homophobic and racial slurs.

Kate Sorensen, the park's blonde, 6' 2½" PR director, calls out Gudgel's insensitivity and prejudice. The governor retaliates saying the park's rides are unsafe, then threatening the park's permits.

When Nostalgia City employees demonstrating at a Gudgel campaign office are killed and injured, Kate joins Lyle in a mad scramble to find the killers and shut up or shut down the governor. Lyle hits blind alleys, then he runs afoul of an armed hate group.

At the same time, Kate digs into the governor's long history of malfeasance, enraging Gudgel allies and attracting the menace of state guardsmen. The governor seems to have armed supporters everywhere.

With Lyle's wry humor and Kate's unflappability, the story moves quickly as puzzles and subplots multiply and loop together threatening the park, their relationship, and their lives.

Multiple plot lines make this book quickly engaging. There’s a murder, then a mass shooting, then obvious corruption. A reader is left wondering if it’s all connected, or just a really bad week. A connection with it all, short of just the targeted community, would mean less bad guys.

Lyle, the former police detective (turned cab driver) also fears whether his daughter could be too closely connected with the first target. He wants to continue doing his job, but preferably without having to worry about his family’s safety at the same time.

While this is the fifth book in the Nostalgia City Mysteries, it read all right as a stand alone. More may have been gained from previous engagement with the characters, but the book earned 3 out of 5 stars on its own. It would be recommended for those who enjoyed previous books in the series, and readers who enjoy LGBTQ characters and storylines.

{click here to purchase via Amazon Affiliates link}

Becki Bayley is a wife and mother who enjoys reading, counted-cross-stitch, and doing LEGO. Check out more of what her family is up to on Instagram, where she posts as SweetlyBSquared.

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Book Review and GIVEAWAY: Dear Future Me, by Deborah O'Connor {ends 6/12}

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

MIRANDA

Saltburn, 2023: The morning of…

The day starts with an argument. Whispers that snip at the dawn air. It’s been like this for weeks, a horrible back and forth that feels like we are throwing the same rock at each other, over and over again.

After last night, though, our words have a new intensity, an urgency, like everything is about to come to a head.

In 2023, a class receives letters they wrote to themselves 20 years earlier. Some of the people are where they expected to be, in the life they had planned or expected. One person leaves her home only to die off the sea cliffs nearby, and her best friend wants to untangle what may have happened 20 years before to lead to this unexpected tragedy.

Official synopsis:

In 2003, Mr. Danler's high school class got an assignment to write letters to their future selves. Twenty years later, they receive them in the mail.

Upon opening them, the students are shocked to find that their envelopes contain old secrets that threaten to expose the truth about the tragic death of one of their classmates. And when one letter makes the beautiful and successful Miranda jump off a cliff to her death, the small community is rocked to its core.

Stunned by what has happened and armed with a clue of her own, Miranda's best-friend Audrey decides to track down her old classmates to get to the bottom of Miranda's death. And in doing so, she sets off a chain of events that could expose the truth not just about one untimely death, but two.

Time is moving fast when the classmates originally write letters to their future selves. They start the letters, go on an overnight class trip where one of them dies, and then finish the letters after they return from the trip. Audrey misses out on the trip and some other school when she’s unexpectedly sick. Now that her best friend has died, probably after reading what was written in her letter, she’s determined to find what happened on that trip to cause not only the death of a classmate back then, but creating a lingering conflict to cause Miranda’s death when the letters are delivered.

Entanglements, young love, divorce, affairs—how much of it is part of life, and could some of it have precipitated a murder? Audrey has usually kept to herself and raising her brother, but now she’s on a mission to discover which of her former classmates is hiding something that could have led to her best friend’s death.

While the ending of the book gave it an extra star to bring it to 4 out of 5, the middle got somewhat confusing with multiple character dramas and potential plot lines. The story was told from multiple viewpoints to tell of Audrey’s investigation compared to flashbacks in the content of other student’s letters and memories of the fateful school trip. This entangling mystery could be recommended for those who like school stories, murder mysteries, and complicated relationships.

{click here to purchase via my Amazon Affiliates link}

Becki Bayley loves reading, writing, and having fun with her family and friends. Check out her blog at SweetlyBSquared.com.

GIVEAWAY:

One of my lucky readers will win a copy of Dear Future Me!

Enter via the widget below. Giveaway will end on Thursday, June 12th, at 11:59pm ET, and winner will be notified the next day via email, and must respond within 24 hours, or an alternate winner will be chosen.

U.S. residents only, please.

Good luck!

Dear Future Me, by Deborah O'Connor

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Book Review and GIVEAWAY: When Canaries Die, by Luis Figueredo {ends 6/11}

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

Mo bounced into the room with youthful enthusiasm and plopped onto the long, blue leather couch next to Maggie. With a huge grin spreading across his face, he leaned back and clasped his hands behind his head. The more he thought about Asher’s facial contortions when Pierce exposed the major crack in the government’s seemingly perfect defense, the more satisfied he felt. 

Mo’s face broke into a genuine smile. “The look on Asher’s face when she suddenly realized that she was up against one of the best lawyers in the country and he had a smoking gun was priceless.”

Pierce narrowed his eyes because compliments from Mo were rare. Criticism was the norm.

“The canary analogy was a little long winded but effective,” Mo mused. His tone was reminiscent of a time when Pierce was a wet behind the ears lawyer fresh out of law school.

“And there is it,” Pierce said, closing the laptop.

Pierce Evangelista and Moses Black seem to bend the law to their will, when it’s really a beautiful work of art when they interpret and present their cases in parallel to reality.

Official synopsis:

A hotshot Miami attorney, Pierce Evangelista finds himself navigating a world on the brink of collapse as a deadly pandemic sweeps the globe. Amidst the chaos, Pierce is tasked with challenging the U.S. government’s immigration policies that left thousands of asylum-seekers stranded in dire conditions. As the virus spreads uncontrollably and the demand for blood transfusions skyrockets, criminal organizations exploit the situation, turning human blood into a precious commodity. With the border towns of Tijuana, Juarez, and Matamoros descending into chaos, Pierce must confront powerful forces and fight to reopen the border to save lives. Dive into this gripping legal thriller infused with science fiction and suspense, where the line between survival and exploitation blurs in a world plagued by tragedy and greed.

Processing the multiple dilemmas in this story was powerful, especially with the memories of living through COVID quarantines. A new pandemic is especially deadly, but this time, it leaves immigrants at risk from the disease and the cartels, who want to harvest their blood for sale to the highest bidder, to use to treat others already diagnosed. 

Maggie Malone, an attorney for the ACLU, has formed an attachment with a woman and her toddler in a camp at the border, waiting for asylum entry to the U.S. While Maggie wants to help reform immigration law, especially during the virus, she is especially concerned with the young mother and child after losing contact with them during a shut-down of the border. 

The book was a real page-turner with enemies on multiple fronts. People are afraid of anything outside their homes, as an exposure to the pandemic could mean probable death. From the legal front, virtual court changes the playing field immensely. The story earned 3 out of 5 stars. While this is the third book in the Pierce Evangelista political thriller series, it read fine alone, especially with the involvement of Moses Black and Maggie Malone. This would be recommended to readers who enjoy sci-fi medical stories and political/legal thrillers. 

{click here to purchase via my Amazon Affiliates link}

Becki Bayley is a corporate drone and mother who fills her time with well-managed engagements and reading in the moments in between. See what else she’s up to on her blog: SweetlyBSquared.com.

GIVEAWAY:

One of my lucky readers will win a copy of When Canaries Die!

Enter via the widget below. Giveaway will end on Wednesday, June 11th, at 11:59pm ET, and winner will be notified the next day via email, and must respond within 24 hours, or an alternate winner will be chosen.

U.S. residents only, please.

Good luck!

When Canaries Die, by Luis Figueredo

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Book Review - This American Woman: A One-in-a-Billion Memoir, by Zarna Garg

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

“Excuse me,” said one of those early 2000s women whose name could be Brittany or Amber or Tiffany, “but are you even a student here?”

“Me?” I said. “No.”

“Why are you in our group meeting?” said Bramfany.

Everyone stared at me.

“I just think it’s interesting,” I said.

“It is interesting,” said Bramfany. “Don’t you think that if business school is so interesting, you should apply to business school and pay for business school?” 

“Oh, no, I can’t pay for school again. I already have a law degree.”

“Oh, for India?” she said, like I had a degree for a dollhouse.

“No, no, I’m licensed to practice law in the state of New York.”

“So again, why are you, a lawyer, hanging out with business school students?”

What was wrong with me? Was I really this misdirected?

Zarna Garg never imagined that her interesting way of observing the world around her could evolve into a successful career in comedy after moving to the U.S. and getting her law degree.

Official synopsis:

Throughout Zarna’s whole childhood in India, everyone called her “so American” just for reading the newspaper, having deep thoughts, and talking back to anyone over the age of thirty. When Zarna’s dad tried to marry her off at age fourteen, Zarna fled—first to the streets of Mumbai and ultimately to the glittering paradise of Akron, Ohio, where she got to become American for real.

On Zarna’s very American quest to find herself and her calling, she threw herself wholeheartedly into roles like dog-bite lawyer, crazy perfectionist stay-at-home mom, Indian matchmaker, prizewinning screenwriter, and more. It wasn’t until a dare led her to a stand-up comedy open mic that Zarna finally found her spiritual home: getting paid cold hard cash for her big fat mouth.

And as Zarna discovered, after surviving the brutal streets of Mumbai, the cutthroat world of stand-up comedy is nothing.

Zarna is a much later child in her parents’ lives, which doesn’t stand out to her much until her siblings are grown, married, and out of the house,and her mother dies, making her marriage (at age 14) her father’s next goal. While it was certainly more traumatic at the time, her retelling of the story in this amusing memoir gives a great sample of Zarna’s humor, since she obviously survived.

The story of Zarna’s marriage, parenting, and evolution of careers was inspiring and entertaining. The story earned 3 out of 5 stars, and her other books would probably prove equally amusing. This (and most likely her other books) could be recommended to those who enjoy parenting stories, books about realized dreams, and stories about Indian cultures and people.

{click here to purchase via my Amazon Affiliate link - hardcover is 53% off, as of this writing!}

Becki Bayley is a woman whom her husband says is awesome. He questions whether there is anything else. See what they’re up to on her blog, SweetlyBSquared.com.

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Book Review and GIVEAWAY: Karma Never Sleeps, by R. John Dingle {ends 5/29}

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

When Mel was finished and they had no more questions for her, they thanked her for coming forward, then watched her walk back to her Jeep and slowly drive away. Gus sat back in his rocking chair and steadied it so that his face was beside Vanessa’s.

“Didn’t see that coming,” he said.

“That killing spree theory of mine is making more sense all the time.”

“It is starting to come into focus. I’ll give you that. But Mel wasn’t there that night. Everything she just told us is third party hearsay; it’d never stand up. We need the evidence or at least a confession from one of the women who was there that night.”

Gus Wheeler had an arrangement with the FBI when he came on as an agent, that he could take leave and travel with his band. But when he and his partner agent are tasked with untangling two murders that may be linked to a potential murder 25 years earlier, he has some choices to make.

Official synopsis:

When a second woman from a group of friends known as “the posse” is murdered in the woods near the New England enclave of Kendalton, FBI agent and profiler Gus Wheeler and his partner are called in to determine if this is a serial killing. He’s intrigued by a clue hidden on the body: a memorial picture of a teen who died 25 years ago.

Instead of helping with the investigation, the long-term friends stonewall the agents. But Gus can smell fear beneath their calm masks, fake smiles, and politely vague answers. Digging deeper, he discovers they are being terrorized by cyberstalking, spying, threats and mysterious break-ins. When a third member is hospitalized after a brutal attack, Gus suspects someone in the posse is the hunter instead of the hunted.

Is it the alpha leader Jules, her best friend Maria—married to the chief of police—outsider Mel, or weak link Lizzy? Or someone else bent on revenge? Time’s running out, and Gus’s life depends on his skill at determining who’s the best liar in town.

This was an engaging page turner from the first! While it’s apparent right away that some of the posse are not nice girls, could any of them be murderers? The story becomes a great examination of how well you can really know someone.

FBI agent Gus Wheeler and his work partner Vanessa are smart, no-nonsense investigators determined to find out who isn’t telling the truth, and perhaps even more importantly, why.

While a few suspects seem more likely to be behind the murders and other crimes, are they really all connected, or is someone trying to lead them on a chase in the wrong direction? When extra clues start appearing, they have to still wonder if they are clues, or decoys to lead them away from the really guilty parties. 

The story was full of wild twists and turns, and hard to put down as the conclusion neared. The book earned 4 out of 5 stars, and with all the details, may be worth a second read even knowing the ending. This intriguing story could be recommended to those who like small town dramas, high school nostalgia, and contemporary murder mysteries.

{click here to purchase via my Amazon Affiliates link}

Becki Bayley enjoys Legos and jigsaw puzzles when she isn’t reading or following her kids’ activities. Check out what else they’re up to on Instagram, where they post as SweetlyBSquared.

GIVEAWAY:

One of my lucky readers will win a copy of Karma Never Sleeps!

Enter via the widget below. Giveaway will end on Thursday, May 29th, at 11:59pm ET, and winner will be notified the next day via email, and have 24 hours to respond, or an alternate winner will be chosen.

U.S. residents only, please.

Good luck!

Karma Never Sleeps, by R. John Dingle

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Book Review and GIVEAWAY: See How They Fall, by Rachel Paris {ends 5/11}

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

‘Are you sure you’ll be okay?’ Duncan asked. ‘I really don’t want to leave you but there are some urgent issues I have to deal with.’ He was heading in to the office. Someone else could have taken care of the work. He was just desperate for a distraction, for the charade of routine and normality. ‘Why don’t you invite some friends over?’

‘Bridge and Vicky are coming after yoga,’ I lied. All of my friends had offered to visit, but I’d brushed them off with excuses about the police investigation. If I couldn’t be with Tilly, then I wanted to be alone. I would spend the day online, seeking out the miracle stories, the kids who’d returned to full health after prolonged intubation and sedation. But so far, everything I’d read was consistent on one point - every hour she remained in that medically induced coma, the worse the odds of her making a full recovery.

Skye’s husband and his brothers are making her question her own perceptions of events, but she is confident that she knows what she’s seen. Mei is convinced the other detectives are taking the easy answer, and there’s more to Skye’s suspicions than they’re ready to believe.

Official synopsis:

When Skye married into the wealthy Turner family, she thought she was entering paradise. But now, several years later, she remains uneasy amid the opulence of her husband’s world, struggling with her own secrets and working to maintain a normal life for their young daughter, Tilly.

Skye’s delicate balance is undone when the family patriarch, Sir Campbell Turner, dies suddenly and an illegitimate heir comes forward to stake his claim in the luxury goods empire the old man leaves behind. Reluctantly, the Turners receive the newcomer at an intimate weekend retreat at Yallambee, the family seaside estate, but tempers flare and egos clash within their first few hours together and the night ends in a tragedy that leaves one dead and another fighting for life.

Sergeant Mei O’Connor is assigned to investigate the incident and though her superiors are keen to close the case as swiftly as possible, the evidence just isn’t lining up. Convinced that there’s more to the suspicious death than a simple accident, Mei continues to search for answers. But pulling at these threads may just tear down the Turner empire.

Skye definitely came from humble roots, but she’s been holding her own and trying to fit in with the super-wealthy and powerful Turners since she married Duncan Turner. While she isn’t sure about Duncan’s brothers, she’s more confident that her husband is a kind and reliable husband and father to their daughter, Tilly.

But when Duncan’s son, Cody, is introduced to the family at the weekend when they’ll determine what’s next after the death of the patriarch, Sir Campbell Turner, no one seems to be taking it well. Cody has always been nice, and good to his half-sister, Tilly, but Duncan and his brothers are more at odds than usual, and the brothers suspect Cody of ulterior motives to show up during the power struggle within the family.

Skye has her own past, which makes her observations and suspicions less believable, sometimes even for her. But as the evidence continues to stack up on other issues, even she isn’t sure if Tilly is safe with Duncan’s family.

This story was thrillingly told, with an unreliable main narrator, and so many suspects. In addition to whether to trust Skye’s suspicions, Mei must also question whether the other police detectives are choosing an easy solution instead of squaring off against such a powerful family. The book earned a high 4 out of stars, with a thought-provoking twist at the end. This would be enjoyed by those who like contemporary family dramas and stories in Australia. 

{click here to purchase via my Amazon Affiliates link}

Becki Bayley is a wife and mother who is happiest when she’s reading or watching her kids’ antics. See a bit of their fun for yourself on Instagram, where she posts as SweetlyBSquared.

GIVEAWAY:

One of my lucky readers will win a copy of See How They Fall!

Enter via the widget below. Giveaway will end on Sunday, May 11th, at 11:59pm EST, and winner will be notified the next day via email and have 24 hours to respond, or an alternate winner will be chosen.

U.S. residents only, please.

Good luck!

See How They Fall, by Rachel Paris

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Book Review and GIVEAWAY: At the Island's Edge, by C.I. Jerez {ends 5/8}

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

We continue to dance, and I sing along to the chorus. I think about the words and what it would mean to Eli if he understood it. Would he think it’s fate that we are dancing to a song about a woman who knows every wound, every war of life, and the pain of love?

When it ends, patrons seated at tables near the dance floor’s edge clap for us. Maybe it’s because for a split second the two of us looked happy. Or perhaps it’s Eli’s effort to dance and lead me despite only being able to use one arm. It doesn’t matter. I blink back the tears from the corners of my eyes, flooded with conflicting emotions and sentimentality.

Eli hugs me again, but this time he holds it a second longer, pulling my body a slight pulse tighter against his. He leans down and kisses my cheek. I’m tempted to turn my face and return his kiss, but a sudden movement at the entrance catches my eye.

My feet are frozen. I cannot move. It’s not possible. It’s been ten years, but it’s him. So much time but he’s barely changed, maybe a little more mature, but still the face I knew before. I’m struck dumb by the familiarity of his features.

Lina returns to Puerto Rico after attending high school in the U.S. and serving a traumatic tour with the Army in Iraq. Can she still rise to be the mother and family member her family expects?

Official synopsis:

As a combat medic, Lina LaSalle went to Iraq to save the lives of fellow soldiers. But when her convoy is attacked, she must set aside her identity as a healer and take a life herself.

Although she is honored as a hero when she returns to the US, Lina cannot find her footing. She is stricken with PTSD and unsure of how to support her young son, Teó, a little boy with Tourette’s. As her attempts to self-medicate become harder to hide, Lina realizes she must do the toughest thing yet: ask for help.

She retreats to her parents’ house in Puerto Rico, where Teó thrives under her family’s care. Lina finds kinship, too—with a cousin whose dreams were also shattered by the war and with a handsome and caring veteran who sought refuge on the island and runs a neighborhood bar.

But amid the magic of the island are secrets and years of misunderstandings that could erode the very stability she’s fighting for. Hope lies on the horizon, but can she keep her gaze steady?

The story starts with the attack of Lina’s convoy in Iraq. Her recounting of each moment is full of emotion, and the reader can feel Lina’s distress and urgency to get home safe to her son. As a combat medic, she is only supposed to be there to help her fellow soldiers, but as her convoy passes through a village with multiple threats, she is forced to do whatever it takes to survive. 

As it was the end of her tour anyway, Lina is soon honorably discharged and back with her son. While she originally had planned to stay and have the military fund her journey through medical school, she now wants out, and has little support processing what she’s been through.

Lina and her son move back to her family’s home in Puerto Rico, where she has not lived since before high school. Her relationships with all of her family members are closely examined, and she isn’t confident in trusting anyone else to have her best interests at heart. Unfortunately, she is still emotionally overwrought and has to make some bad choices before she realizes how badly she needs help.

The book was an emotionally-charged journey through Lina’s PTSD and its resulting alcoholism. But all is never lost, and experiencing Lina’s life through her eyes helps the reader feel her strength and love for her son and family. The book earned a high 4 out of 5 stars, and would be readily recommended to those who enjoy contemporary fiction, strong female characters, and stories of life transitioning after military service.

{click here to purchase on Amazon - currently FREE for Kindle Unlimited!}

Becki Bayley is a Gemini who enjoys Legos, snack foods, and Cherry Coke. See more of what she’s up to and her family’s adventures on her blog, SweetlyBSquared.com.

GIVEAWAY:

One of my lucky readers will win a copy of At the Island's Edge!

Enter via the widget below. Giveaway will end on Thursday, May 8th, and winner will be notified the next day via email and have 24 hours to respond, or an alternate winner will be chosen.

U.S. residents only, please.

Good luck!

At the Island's Edge, by C.I. Jerez

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Book Review and GIVEAWAY: Glory Daze, by Danielle Arceneaux {ends 5/7}

Review by: Becki Bayley

Glory tipped the Uber driver thirty dollars in the parking lot of Cypress Downs. He had said nothing about her appearance on the long drive, and he ought to be rewarded for that. Her feet were so swollen from alcohol and sodium from the night before that she couldn’t get her shoes on. She held them in one hand, with her keys in the other, as she walked barefoot to her car, the asphalt digging into the soles of her feet. A feeling of gratitude washed over her when she locked herself inside her Honda-CRV. She may not have been home, but she was on her turf.

Thank God she found a pair of old gas station sunglasses in the glove compartment, because her eyes rejected the sunlight. Various thoughts jammed her brain while she was driving. According to Valeries, and what she was told at the casino, she had had too many drinks. That may have been true, but Glory felt so physically demolished that it had to be more than just alcohol. She couldn’t stop wondering if someone had slipped something into her drink. In fact, the only sensation that  came close to how she felt the night before was when she pricked herself at Opelousas. It could not have been a coincidence. 

Stubbornly independent Glory Broussard is back. Since she already solved one murder, her daughter and "that woman" expect her to help solve another.

Official synopsis:

After her life was turned upside down by solving the murder of her best friend, Sister Amity Gay, all Glory Broussard wanted was a little peace and quiet. That included getting back to her Sunday morning routine as a bookie in a coffee shop, and planning the annual Mardi Gras gala for her church. But there’s no rest for Glory once the woman who broke up her marriage walks in to CC's Coffee House and asks for help finding her missing husband. It doesn’t take long before Glory finds him . . . with a knife impaled in his chest.

No one knew the man—and his dark side—better than Glory Broussard, who would rather let the local authorities take the lead. But Glory’s daughter, still reeling from problems of her own, insists on her involvement. Glory’s search for the murderer takes her deep inside the seedy world of Louisiana casinos and racetracks, from their high roller VIP rooms with chatty dealers to stables filled with thoroughbred horses and shady dealings.

As if solving a murder and sparring with the woman who had an affair with her ex-husband isn’t enough, Glory has to get to the bottom of her daughter’s secrets, and there are a few members of her church group who would love to see her fail in her Mardi Gras responsibilities. Walloped with one revelation after another, Glory’s no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is attitude and strength is tested like never before. But it’s going to take more than that to keep her down in this charming and gripping new novel in the award-winning and critically acclaimed Glory Broussard mystery series.

Glory Broussard has an unavoidable approach and asks the questions that need to be asked. It’s how she solved the murder of her best friend in Glory Be. When she finds her ex-husband, Sterling, stabbed and dead, her daughter Delphine and Sterling’s new wife Valeries are hoping that Glory will again prove to be more effective than the authorities at solving the crime.

Glory regrets her promise to help more than a few times, especially when she finds herself in danger again and would rather be far from drama involving her ex and "that woman"—the woman he left her for. But she would do anything for her daughter, so she keeps untangling the web that led to Sterling’s untimely death.

The characters in this series are so enjoyable. While this book earned a 5 out of 5 stars, each book is investing more readers in the lives of Glory and Delphine, and their relationships with Noah and Beau, and now Justice, Valerie, and Constance. The series is easily recommended to those who like cozy mysteries with strong and quirky female characters. 

{click here to purchase via my Amazon Affiliates link}

Becki Bayley is a reader with many amazing, imaginary friends, and two marvelous kids. Check out what they’re up to on Instagram, where she posts as SweetlyBSquared.

GIVEAWAY:

One of my lucky readers will win a copy of Glory Daze!

Enter via the widget below. Giveaway will end on Wednesday, May 7th, and winner will be notified the next day via email and have 24 hours to respond, or an alternate winner will be chosen.

U.S. residents only, please.

Good luck!

Glory Daze, by Danielle Arceneaux

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Book Review and GIVEAWAY: Better Left Unsent, by Lia Louis {ends 4/23}

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

Maybe this is what I need tonight. Not quite the squeezing myself into a jet-black full-body suit with my head in a huge felt frame bit. But the party itself. Because what better way to forget about everything than to get dressed up in something stupid and drink and eat and watch Michael Waterstreet do the worm (which is more like the salt-doused slug) before crying into a miniature hot dog because his wife has left him again.

Plus…Jack. Jack has a way of making nothing seem like a big deal. Best friend blocking you? No worries. Your mum has been secretly seeing her ex-husband nobody talks about? Happens to us all. Send out all your draft emails? So what?

After a server glitch sends all of Millie’s draft emails—that were never meant to be read by anyone else —she decides she’s done with technology, and maybe humanity. But maybe something good could result from airing some hard truths?

Official synopsis:

Two years ago, thirty-year-old receptionist Millie Chandler had her heart spectacularly broken in public. Ever since, she has been a closed book, vowing to keep everything to herself—her feelings, her truths, even her dreams—in an effort to protect herself from getting hurt again.

But Millie does write emails—sarcastic replies to her rude boss, hard truths to her friends, and of course, that one-thousand-word love declaration to her ex who is now engaged to someone else. The emails live safely in her drafts, but after a server outage at work, Millie wakes up to discover that all her emails have been sent. Every. Single. One.

As every truth, lie, and secret she’s worked so hard to keep only to herself are catapulted out into the open, Millie must fix the chaos her words have caused, and face everything she’s ever swept under the carpet.

Oh, Millie. So the emails get sent, but then someone in IT suggests that sending emails isn’t something an update could do. Has she been intentionally sabotaged by someone? And if so, who? Of course, Millie’s main focus will first be damage control. She frantically tries to correct anything with those she may have hurt, especially in the case of her ex-boyfriend, Owen, and his girlfriend, who may or may not stick around for Owen’s or Millie’s apology.

While most of the story is definitely Millie’s, her fantastic friends (Ralph & Cate, first and foremost) really contribute to the plot, both by aiding in her character development, and pointing out some positives of the receipt of the emails that she never meant for anyone else to read.

Lia Louis writes books that are emotionally engaging but not altogether predictable, and this was no exception. This imaginative book earned 4 out of 5 stars and would be enjoyed by those who like contemporary relationship stories. 

{click here to purchase via my Amazon Affiliates link—currently only $4.73 for paperback!}

Becki Bayley enjoys reading, writing, and building Legos. Check out her recent activities on Instagram, where she posts as SweetlyBSquared.

GIVEAWAY:

One of my lucky readers will win a copy of Better Left Unsent!

Enter via the widget below. Giveaway will end on Wednesday, April 23rd, at 11:59pm ET, and winner will be notified via email the next day, and have 24 hours to respond, or an alternate winner will be chosen.

U.S. residents only, please.

Good luck!

Better Left Unsent, by Lia Louis

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