A big thank you for my friends at Simon and Schuster for reaching out with this one for me!

Description

The New York Times bestselling author of the “mesmerizing and evocative” (Sara Gruen, author of Water for Elephants) Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet returns with a powerful exploration of the love that binds one family across the generations.

Dorothy Moy breaks her own heart for a living.

As Washington’s former poet laureate, that’s how she describes channeling her dissociative episodes and mental health struggles into her art. But when her five-year-old daughter exhibits similar behavior and begins remembering things from the lives of their ancestors, Dorothy believes the past has truly come to haunt her. Fearing that her child is predestined to endure the same debilitating depression that has marked her own life, Dorothy seeks radical help.

Through an experimental treatment designed to mitigate inherited trauma, Dorothy intimately connects with past generations of women in her family: Faye Moy, a nurse in China serving with the Flying Tigers; Zoe Moy, a student in England at a famous school with no rules; Lai King Moy, a girl quarantined in San Francisco during a plague epidemic; Greta Moy, a tech executive with a unique dating app; and Afong Moy, the first Chinese woman to set foot in America.

As painful recollections affect her present life, Dorothy discovers that trauma isn’t the only thing she’s inherited. A stranger is searching for her in each time period. A stranger who’s loved her through all of her genetic memories. Dorothy endeavors to break the cycle of pain and abandonment, to finally find peace for her daughter, and gain the love that has long been waiting, knowing she may pay the ultimate price.

I’m thrilled to take part in the blog tour today for Brenda Novak’s new novel: Summer on the Island. This is a story of family and friendship, of relationships and secrets. I’m sure Ms. Novak’s fan will love it!

I enjoyed the story, but have to say that I enjoyed the main plot best, focused on Marlo and her life. I had a little trouble getting into the book until about a quarter of the way in, then it moved quickly for me. I was wondering if perhaps another book with the main characters could be coming in the future?

Thank you for my copy and for making me part of the tour!

Summer on the Island : A Novel 

Brenda Novak

On Sale Date: April 5, 2022

9780778311850

Trade Paperback

$16.99 USD

400 pages

ABOUT THE BOOK:

For fans of Elin Hilderbrand and Nancy Thayer, New York Times bestselling author Brenda Novak’s newest standalone novel about friendship, family and the ties that bind and challenge us follows three friends as they escape to a coastal Florida town for the summer.

Marlo Madsen has just been through a global pandemic that turned her life—and the lives of almost everyone she knows—upside down. Her beloved father has died from COVID. Helping her mother, who has MS, handle his estate means returning to the small coastal Florida town where she was raised.

Having just left her job as a divorce attorney—which paid well but showed her too much of the worst in people—she’s invited two friends to join her for a seaside summer. The two friends are also facing huge life changes after the worsening California wildfires took everything from them, and need to decompress and recuperate. And travel has long been forbidden, so they are beyond appreciative for the ability to escape.

Unfortunately, a restful summer doesn’t seem to be in the cards, especially when Marlo learns about a special provision in her father’s will that reveals he has a love child with Rosemarie, the housekeeper who’s worked for the family for years. Rosemarie’s son was around while Marlo was growing up, but she never suspected a thing. Nobody did. And once the news is revealed, the fallout will cause waves big enough to topple two families and a whole community.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Brenda Novak, a New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author, has penned over sixty novels. She is a five-time nominee for the RITA Award and has won the National Reader’s Choice, the Bookseller’s Best, the Bookbuyer’s Best, and many other awards. She also runs Brenda Novak for the Cure, a charity to raise money for diabetes research (her youngest son has this disease). To date, she’s raised $2.5 million. For more about Brenda, please visit www.brendanovak.com.

SOCIAL:

TWITTER: @Brenda_Novak

FB: @BrendaNovakAuthor

Insta: @authorbrendanovak 

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Today I’m part of the Flatiron Books blog tour for Four Treasures of the Sky by Jenny Tinghui Zhang. This was a beautifully written and amazing read, telling the story of Daiyu, a young girl kidnapped from China and brought to San Francisco in the 1880’s. This story was startling, sad, and had many triggers relating to sexual violence, abuse, neglect, and more, but it was so beautifully told that I could not stop reading. Daiyu’s story tells of her strength and courage and shines a light on a time in our history that many don’t know much about. This is Zhang’s debut novel and her writing is so picturesque and so mellifluous that it’s hard to believe that this is her first. As someone who adores Lisa See’s novels (and has read most if not all of them), this book reminded me of her works. I can’t stop thinking about this story.

Historical fiction at its finest – thank you for my copy.

Here’s the overview:

Description

“Engulfing, bighearted, and heartbreaking.” —Ann Patchett

A propulsive and dazzling debut novel set against the backdrop of the Chinese Exclusion Act, about a Chinese girl fighting to claim her place in the 1880s American West

Daiyu never wanted to be like the tragic heroine for whom she was named, revered for her beauty and cursed with heartbreak. But when she is kidnapped and smuggled across an ocean from China to America, Daiyu must relinquish the home and future she imagined for herself. Over the years that follow, she is forced to keep reinventing herself to survive. From a calligraphy school, to a San Francisco brothel, to a shop tucked into the Idaho mountains, we follow Daiyu on a desperate quest to outrun the tragedy that chases her. As anti-Chinese sentiment sweeps across the country in a wave of unimaginable violence, Daiyu must draw on each of the selves she has been—including the ones she most wants to leave behind—in order to finally claim her own name and story.

At once a literary tour de force and a groundbreaking work of historical fiction, Four Treasures of the Sky announces Jenny Tinghui Zhang as an indelible new voice. Steeped in untold history and Chinese folklore, this novel is a spellbinding feat.

And from the publisher:

I have always hated my name. As a child growing up in China, Daiyu’s grandmother tells her the tragic tale of Lin Daiyu, the heroine for whom she was named who died of a broken heart. Daiyu refuses to be like her namesake, resenting being named after a weak and sorrowful character. But at a young age, tragedy strikes when Daiyu is left parentless and destitute. When she is kidnapped and smuggled at the bottom of a coal barrel across the sea to San Francisco, Daiyu must constantly reinvent herself in order to survive. We follow Daiyu on a desperate quest to outrun the tragedy that chases her as she tries to find herself and a more promising future during a time when anti-Chinese sentiment and rampant violence are spreading throughout the country.

Jenny Tinghui Zhang is a Chinese-American writer. Her fiction and nonfiction have appeared in Apogee, Ninth Letter, Passages North, The Rumpus, HuffPost, The Cut, Catapult, and elsewhere. She holds an MFA from the University of Wyoming and has received support from Kundiman, Tin House, and VONA/Voices. She was born in Changchun, China and grew up in Austin, Texas, where she currently lives. 

I’m thrilled to take part in the Harper-Collins Winter Reads Blog tour for yet another great book: The Lying Club by Annie Ward. This was a suspenseful and engaging read, which had me reading late into the night as I didn’t want to put the book down!

Here’s the overview:

THE LYING CLUB

Author: Annie Ward

ISBN: 9780778389408

Publication Date: March 22, 2022

Publisher: Park Row Books

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Facebook: @anniewardbooks

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Book Summary:

From the acclaimed author of Beautiful Bad comes an explosive new novel of revenge, murder and shocking secrets—where the victims aren’t who you might think. Perfect for fans of Liane Moriarty, Lucy Foley, and Liv Constantine.

Three women. Two bodies. One big lie…

A tangled web of lies draws together three women in this explosive thriller of revenge, murder and shocking secrets.

At an elite private school nestled in the Colorado mountains, Natalie, an office assistant, dreams of having a life like the school moms she deals with every day. Women like Brooke—a gorgeous heiress, ferociously loving mother and serial cheater—and Asha, an overprotective mom who suspects her husband of having an affair. Their fates are bound by the handsome assistant athletic director Nicholas, whom Natalie loves, Brooke wants and Asha needs.

But when two bodies are carried out of the school one morning, it seems the tension between mothers and daughters, rival lovers, and the haves and have-nots has shattered the surface of this isolated, affluent town—where people stop at nothing to get what they want.

Author Bio: 

Annie Ward is the author of Beautiful Bad. She has a BA in English literature from UCLA and an MFA in screenwriting from the American Film Institute. Her first short screenplay, Strange Habit, starring Adam Scott, was an official selection of the Sundance Film Festival and the Grand Jury Award winner at the Aspen Film Festival. She has received a Fulbright scholarship and an Escape to Create artist residency. She lives in Kansas with her family.

I always love stories that take place in private schools (I’ve taught in them for over 30 years!). And I really liked the character development in this story, especially of Natalie, the protagonist. I felt like tension was building and building throughout the story (which is told out of chronological order) as you came to know the backstory behind the events that start the novel, and I could not put it down. My only disappointment was that I felt that the tension built and built and then the ending wrapped up rather quickly. I don’t know what I was expecting, but it felt “quick” to me after all the build up to the “accident”. However, I think it would make an awesome movie!

If you like this genre, then I think you’ll love this one! Thank you for my copy and for making me part of the tour!

Today I’m part of the Inkyard Press YA blog tour (a division of Harper-Collins) for Killing Time by Brenna Ehrlich. This was a suspenseful story of two murders, one now and one in the past, with a central protagonist of a girl in high school who loves true crime and has her own podcast, even though her mother hates her passion with a passion!

Here’s the overview:

Killing Time  

Brenna Ehrlich

On Sale Date: March 8, 2022

9781335418678

Hardcover

$18.99 USD

336 pages

About the Book:

Killing Time follows a true-crime obsessed teenage girl who sets out to uncover a killer when her favorite teacher is murdered. With a dual POV that sends the reader back twenty years, this engrossing and twisty thriller is perfect for fans of Courtney Summers and Karen McManus.

Summer in Ferry, Connecticut has always meant long, lazy days at the beach and wild nights partying in the abandoned mansions on the edge of town. Until now, that is.

Natalie Temple’s favorite teacher has been murdered, and there’s no way this true-crime obsessed girl is going to sit back and let the rumor mill churn out lie after lie. Not if she has anything to say about it – even if she has to hide her investigation from her disapproving mom and team up with a new boy in town with a mysterious smile and a talent for making fake IDs.

But the more Natalie uncovers, the more she realizes some secrets were never meant to be told.

With two interwoven mysteries, Killing Time is a deathly warning to a generation of murderinos: what happens when the stories we’re chasing finally catch up with us?

About the Author:

Brenna Ehrlich is a journalist, YA author, and editor who has worked everywhere from MTV News to Rolling Stone. She resides in New Jersey with her husband Morgan and their two cats, Nimbus and Hazel. She enjoys horror movies and romcoms in equal measure.

Social Links:

Author website: https://www.brennaehrlich.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BrennaEhrlich

IG: https://www.instagram.com/brennaehrlich/

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Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Killing_Time?id=8JEpEAAAQBAJ&hl=en_US&gl=US 

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/killing-time-87 

Apple Books: https://books.apple.com/ch/book/killing-time/id1563212004 

I’ll be getting this one for my daughter for her birthday! Thank you for my copy and for making me part of the tour!

I loved this title, which I grabbed off Net Galley, about three sisters who reunite after their mother’s death to investigate why they’ve been left a house in Italy. Their mother’s early life, told in alternating chapters, provides a depth to her life before them, as they work to iron out the divisions among their own relationships. I love Italy and family stories and stories about sisters, so this was a great read for me! Thank you for my galley!

Here’s the overview:

Description

A secret romance sends three estranged sisters to the Amalfi Coast to follow clues about their mother’s past, and challenges them to a whole new future, in this emotional novel from New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Probst.

Priscilla, Devon, and Bailey haven’t been close in years, but when the sisters are forced to come together to settle their mother’s estate, they discover a secret.  In an old trunk, they happen upon ownership papers for a house on the Amalfi Coast, along with a love letter to their mother from an anonymous man, promising to meet her in Italy during the summer of her sixty-fifth birthday.

Now they’re questioning everything they knew about her history. In order to get answers about the woman they thought they knew, they’ll have to go back to where it all started. The sisters embark on a trip to the stunning cliffside village of Positano, Italy, to track down the mysterious ex-lover, and figure out who their mother really was.

As Priscilla, Devon, and Bailey unearth the truth, they also experience the magic of Italy, the power of sisterly love, a little unexpected romance, and newfound hope for the future.

If you know me, you know I love historical fiction. This novel was the story of the Romanovs. I’ve read a lot of books about this family’s tragic circumstances and each time I read, it’s always so sad because I know what is coming.

Book Summary:

This sweeping new novel from the internationally bestselling author of The Woman Before Wallis takes readers behind palace walls to see the end of Imperial Russia through the eyes of Olga Romanov, the first daughter of the last Tsar.

Grand Duchess Olga Romanov comes of age amid a shifting tide for the great dynasties of Europe. But even as unrest simmers in the capital, Olga is content to live within the confines of the sheltered life her parents have built for and her three sisters: hiding from the world on account of their mother’s ill health, their brother Alexei’s secret affliction, and rising controversy over Father Grigori Rasputin, the priest on whom the Tsarina has come to rely. Olga’s only escape from the seclusion of Alexander Palace comes from her aunt, who takes pity on her and her sister Tatiana, inviting them to grand tea parties amid the shadow court of Saint Petersburg. Finally, she glimpses a world beyond her mother’s Victorian sensibilities—a world of opulent ballrooms, scandalous flirtation, and whispered conversation.

But as war approaches, the palaces of Russia are transformed. Olga and her sisters trade their gowns for nursing habits, assisting in surgeries and tending to the wounded bodies and minds of Russia’s military officers. As troubling rumors about her parents trickle in from the Front, Olga dares to hope that a budding romance might survive whatever the future may hold. But when tensions run high and supplies run low, the controversy over Rasputin grows into fiery protest, and calls for revolution threaten to end 300 years of Romanov rule.

This was the first time I read this story from the viewpoint of Olga, and this makes it stand out from other novels and non-fiction reads. I think that those who know this story will appreciate Turnbull’s attention to historical detail and creation of Olga’s “voice”. Thank you for my opportunity to read and be part of the tour!

Author Bio: 

Bryn Turnbull is the bestselling author of The Woman Before Wallis. Equipped with a master’s of letters in creative writing from the University of St. Andrews, a master’s of professional communication from Ryerson University and a bachelor’s degree in English literature from McGill University, Bryn focuses on finding stories of women lost within the cracks of the historical record. She lives in Toronto.

THE LAST GRAND DUCHESS: A Novel of Olga Romanov, Imperial Russia, and Revolution

Author: Bryn Turnbull

ISBN: 9780778311706

Publication Date: February 8, 2022 

Publisher: MIRA Books

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Instagram: @brynturnbullwrites

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I loved Brenda Janowitz’ The Grace Kelly Dress so I was excited to get her new novel: The Liz Taylor Ring, which is a story of a family, a ring, and the ties that bind them together.

Book Summary:

Three siblings. A priceless family ring. One legendary love story.

In 1978, Lizzie Morgan and Ritchie Schneider embark on a whirlwind romance on the bright beaches and glamorous yachts of Long Island. Over the years, their relationship has its share of ups and downs, including a nine-month hiatus that ends with a stunning eleven-carat ring—one that looks just like the diamond Richard Burton gifted Liz Taylor after their own separation. Like the famous couple, despite the drama that would unfold throughout the Schneiders’ marriage, the ring would be there as a symbol of their love…until it wasn’t.

Decades later, when the lost ring unexpectedly resurfaces, the Schneiders’ three children gather under one roof for the first time in years, eager to get their hands on this beloved, expensive reminder of their departed parents. But determining the fate of the heirloom is no simple task, unearthing old wounds and heartaches the siblings can’t ignore. And when the ring reveals a secret that challenges everything they thought they knew about their parents’ epic love story, they’ll have to decide whether to move forward as a family or let the ring break them once and for all.

Thank you for my copy and for making me part of the tour!

The Liz Taylor Ring

Author: Brenda Janowitz

ISBN: 9781525806476

Publication Date: February 1, 2022

Publisher: Graydon House

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Twitter: @BrendaJanowitzr

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Author Bio: 

Brenda is the author of seven novels, including THE GRACE KELLY DRESS and the upcoming THE LIZ TAYLOR RING, which will be published by Harper Collins/ Graydon House on February 1, 2022. She is the former Books Correspondent for PopSugar. Her work has also appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Real Simple, The Sunday Times (UK), Salon, Redbook, USA Today, Bustle, The Forward, the New York Post, Publisher’s Weekly, Hello Giggles, Writer’s Digest Magazine, WritersDigest.com, and xojane. 

Brenda attended Cornell University and Hofstra Law School, where she was a member of the Law Review. Upon graduation from Hofstra, worked for the law firm Kaye Scholer, LLP, and did a federal clerkship with the Honorable Marilyn Dolan Go, United States Magistrate Judge for the Eastern District of New York.

Here’s the scoop:

HAPPY. MARRIED. MISSING.

Leigh Fletcher: happily married stepmum to two gorgeous boys goes missing on Monday. Her husband Mark says he knows nothing of her whereabouts. She simply went to work and just never came home. Their family is shattered.

Kai Janssen: married to wealthy Dutch businessman, Daan, vanishes the same week. Kai left their luxurious penthouse and glamourous world without a backward glance. She seemingly evaporated into thin air. Daan is distraught.

DC Clements knows that people disappear all the time – far too frequently. Most run away from things, some run towards, others are taken but find their way back. A sad few never return. These two women are from very different worlds, their disappearances are unlikely to be connected. And yet, at a gut level, the DC believes they might be.

How could these women walk away from their families, husbands and homes willingly? Clements is determined to unearth the truth, no matter how shocking and devastating it may be.

Every time I thought I had everything figured out, it shifted and I was wrong. And that ending!

Definitely this is not one to miss if you enjoy this genre.

Author Bio: 

Adele Parks was born in Teesside, North-East England. Her first novel, Playing Away, was published in 2000 and since then she’s had 20 international bestsellers, translated into twenty-six languages. She’s been an Ambassador for The Reading Agency and a judge for the Costa. She’s lived in Italy, Botswana and London, and is now settled in Guildford, Surrey, with her husband, teenage son and cat.

Thank you for my review copy and for letting me be part of the tour!

WOMAN LAST SEEN

Author: Adele Parks

ISBN: 9780778312048

Publication Date: February 1, 2022

Publisher: MIRA Books

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I love Heather Gudenkauf’s books, so I was excited to join the tour for her latest: The Overnight Guest. This is a suspenseful, twisty mystery that kept me up past my bedtime!

Here’s the overview:

If you love a good thrilling read, don’t miss this one!

Thank you for my copy and for making me part of the tour!

THE OVERNIGHT GUEST

Author: Heather Gudenkauf

ISBN: 9780778311935

Publication Date: January 25, 2022

Publisher: Park Row Books

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Instagram: @heathergudenkauf

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