books

Spotlight on LEGALLY BLIND by Cathy Donald

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I’m shouting it out today for a new title that my friend Penny at Author Marketing Experts told me about: Legally Blind.

Thanks, Penny!

Here’s the scoop:

What if doing the right thing meant defending someone you could never forgive?

Justice isn’t always as simple as determining guilt or innocence. Sometimes, the hardest battle is deciding whether someone deserves a second chance.

In Cathy Donald’s Legally Blind, defense attorney Chelsea Turner faces that very dilemma when she’s assigned to represent Joel Radebe, a man accused of murder. But Joel isn’t just another client. He’s responsible for the bombing that killed Chelsea’s father when she was a child.

Although Joel was convicted, imprisoned, and later granted amnesty, the damage to Chelsea’s family remains. Now, decades later, he’s facing a new murder charge, and Chelsea must set aside her personal history to confront a troubling possibility: What if he’s innocent this time?

Set against the backdrop of South Africa, Legally Blind weaves a murder mystery with the emotional weight of a daughter torn between loyalty to her father’s memory and her responsibility to seek the truth.

When justice and forgiveness are two very different things, how do you decide what’s right?

Author bio:

Cathy Donald is a South African novelist and former medical doctor. After qualifying in medicine in 1984, she practiced in both rural communities and urban private practice, most recently running a women’s health practice in Somerset West.

Alongside her medical career, she wrote scripts, music, and lyrics for amateur dramatic productions, particularly for schools and youth groups. She has since published multiple novels, many of them set in South Africa and centered on family, resilience, and the moral choices that shape people’s lives.

Her novel The Silence of the Shadows received the Jury Prize at the Milan International Literary Awards in 2022.

Learn more at www.cathydonald.co.za.

Amazon: https://bit.ly/4ibfeiR

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/238336660

Bookouture Blog Tour for My Child Is Gone by Nicole Trope

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Today’s novel is a solid suspense story – sort of a slow burn as each character reveals themselves and their secrets, bit by bit.

I enjoyed it and it kept me guessing. Nicole Trope is a great writer and is a master at suspenseful pacing.

Thank you for my copy and for having me on the tour!

Here’s the scoop:

It was meant to be the perfect family trip at a house by a lake, miles from anywhere… until five-year-old Gus disappears. Did he wander off into the empty fields? Or was he taken by someone close to home?

The mother: I never wanted to come on this trip but my sweet son Gus is so excited to see his cousins. My ex-husband Kyle is here, and his new fiancée. We’re all playing happy families until my beautiful little boy goes missing. My heart is broken. And the accusations start…

The new fiancée: I carefully apply my lipstick, ready to make the perfect impression. My husband-to-be thinks I’m excited to be a stepmother. But when I watch him with Gus, the darkest part of my heart wishes it was just the two of us – that Gus didn’t exist.

The uncle: My wife and teenage daughters think we’re in the middle of nowhere to spend time with our extended family, but I know why we’re really here. And I’m not the only one with secrets. Then Gus goes missing. We’re all exposed. And I don’t know who will survive the truth coming out…

An absolutely addictive psychological thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat and racing through the pages. Perfect for anyone who loves Andrea Mara, Shari Lapena or Claire Douglas.

About the Author:

Nicole Trope went to university to study Law but realised the error of her ways when she did very badly on her first law essay because, as her professor pointed out, ‘It’s not meant to be a story.’

She studied teaching instead and used her holidays to work on her writing career and complete a Masters’ degree. In between raising three children, working for her husband and renovating houses, she has published multiple bestselling novels. She lives in Sydney, Australia.

Bookoututre Blog Tour for A Body at the Bakery by Lucy Connelly

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The Mercy McCarthy cozy mysteries is SUCH a fun series, so I was thrilled to see there was a new one out: A Body at the Bakery. In this installment, Mercy stumbles across a murdered baker and friend, and works to solve the mystery before another murder occurs.

Always a fun read, you can read any of these stories as stand alones, but reading them in order is more fun!

Thank you for my copy and having me on tour!

Here’s the scoop:

St. Patrick’s Day in Shamrock Cove has brought out countless Irish flags, streams of green bunting, lots of good-natured cheer… and the body of the local baker.

One of Mercy McCarthy’s daily haunts is the patisserie at the heart of Shamrock Cove’s main street, run by her good friend Paisley. The enticing aroma of rich chocolate and perfectly baked sweets is a treat she can rarely resist. She never expected that her pastry run would turn deadly.

Following the breadcrumbs with her trusty canine pal, Mr. Poe, Mercy freezes in terror when she stumbles across the lifeless body of Paisley’s ex-husband, John. All fingers point to Paisley, but Mercy is determined to prove her dear friend’s innocence.

John’s cousins refuse to help Mercy’s investigation just as a suspicious stranger starts lurking around the bakery. Mercy is worried that Paisley could be next, so she enlists the help of her neighbours to catch the killer before another body turns up at the bakery. With her friends at her side, Mercy is sure the case will bqe a piece of cake.

Then another devastating murder happens in front of Mercy’s own eyes. With the St. Patrick’s Day parade just around the corner, can Mercy catch her killer before another innocent bystander at the bakery becomes toast?

An utterly compelling and totally Irish cozy mystery. Fans of Agatha Christie, Carlene O’Connor and Faith Martin will absolutely love the Mercy McCarthy series!

About the Author:

Bestselling author Candace Havens has published more than 25 books. Her novels have received nominations for the RITA’s, Holt Medallion, Write Touch Reader Awards and National Reader’s Choice Awards. She is a Barbara Wilson Award winner. She is the author of the biography Joss Whedon: The Genius Behind Buffy and a contributor to several anthologies. She is also one of the nation’s leading entertainment journalists and has interviewed countless celebrities from George Clooney to Chris Pratt. Candace runs a free online writing workshop for more than 2000 writers and teaches comprehensive writing classes. She does film reviews with Hawkeye in the Morning on 96.3 KSCS, and is a former President of the Television Critics Association.

Bookouture Blog Tour for MOLLY IS MISSING by Samantha Hayes

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I’m here for the tour of this super suspenseful read of a missing girl and her mother who wouldn’t give up searching for her.

Fast-paced and twisty, this one kept me engaged right up through the final page!

Here’s the scoop:

It’s every mother’s worst nightmare…

Kim arrives early at the school gates, bursting with excitement to see her daughter, Molly, after a week-long history trip. Shy and a little anxious, time away from her loving parents is a big deal for Molly – but the emoji-filled texts Kim’s been receiving all week prove her daughter has been having the time of her life. But when the bus pulls up, Molly’s seat is empty. Her teachers say she never went on the trip…

As the search for Molly begins, distraught Kim feels like the police are dragging their feet and the school is acting a little too defensive. And with each precious day that passes, the secrets that bind Kim’s tight-knit community begin to unravel. Why isn’t Kim’s best friend by her side? And why is her husband acting so shady?

Nothing matters to Kim but bringing Molly home safe. With nowhere to turn and no one left to trust, only Kim can find her. And she’s running out of time…

A totally unputdownable psychological thriller that will keep you up all night reading. Perfect for anyone who loves Freida McFadden, Andrea Mara, and Jeneva Rose.

About the Author:

Samantha Hayes grew up in a creative family where her love of writing began as a child. Samantha has written over twenty thrillers, including the bestselling titles Date Night and Until You’re Mine . The Independent called her writing ‘fantastically written and very tense’ while Good Housekeeping said ‘her believable psychological thrillers are completely gripping.’ Samantha’s books are published in multiple languages and in her free time, Sam loves painting watercolours, going to the gym and swimming. She has three grown-up children and lives in Warwickshire.

Thank you for my copy and for having me on the tour!

Bookouture Blog tour for Two Couples by Cathryn Grant

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Two couples. One vacation. Who will make it out alive?

Emily: When I first saw the glass-fronted house perched on the edge of Lake Tahoe, a shiver ran though me. I knew I had to have it. And convincing my best friend, Samantha , and her husband, Patrick, into buying with us was easy; she always does what I tell her. But I throw my husband, Keith, a warning glance as he jokes about our bigger share. I need this week away to be perfect so they never learn my secret, or how far I will go to keep it.

Samantha: I can read Emily like a book. Toasting our first night away together, I can tell that something isn’t right. Why does she stiffen every time Keith speaks, and check her phone when she thinks no one is looking? I’ve always let her think that she’s the one pulling all the strings, but she has no idea why I drained our savings to buy this remote lakeside house or my real reason for being here…

As night falls on our first evening in our new home, an ear-piercing scream breaks the silence, scattering birds from the pine trees. Someone is a liar. Someone is a killer. Someone is dead.

Readers who love psychological thrillers like The Housemaid, The Perfect Marriage and The Girl on the Train will absolutely devour this twist-packed book from Cathryn Grant.

I’m here today as part of the tour for this twisty, suspenseful read – that takes place near where I grew up! Beautiful Lake Tahoe is the setting for this novel and if you like a psychological thriller, then I highly recommend it!

Thanks for Bookouture for having me as part of the tour and for my copy!

About the Author:

Cathryn is the author of over thirty psychological suspense novels. The things that cause torment in real life—obsession and revenge, guilt and envy and longing—are endlessly fascinating in fiction, and she never grows tired of writing stories about characters struggling to overcome the worst. Cathryn also writes ghost stories because… who knows what lies beyond our senses.

When she’s not writing, she’s usually reading, walking on the beach, or playing golf, going way out of her way to avoid hitting her ball in the sand or the water. She lives on the Central California Coast with her husband and their cat, Cleopatra.

The Underground Bakery by Gosia Nealon

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I always love a good WWII novel and it’s especially interesting to read about those who Resisted in Europe. This new novel from Bookouture was an engaging and exciting read that those who love this genre will enjoy! Nela and her father are sent to the Lodz ghetto and work to run their bakery and support their friends, to help them survive the Nazi occupation.

Thank you to my friends at Bookouture for a review galley!

Here’s the scoop:

Poland, 1943. “The Germans are here,” Jakub whispers over the pounding at the bakery door. I snatch my baby from her crib but there’s no time to hide, the footsteps are coming closer. Jakub and I exchange a glance: they know what we’ve done…

Present day. Heidi arrives in Poland, a scribbled address in her hand. It has been one week since she found the photo of her grandmother Nela holding a baby outside a bakery and gazing at a man who nobody knows. With her grandparents gone and her mother’s illness getting worse, Heidi wants to find out the truth before it’s too late.

Stepping inside the bakery, Heidi inhales the scent of sweet apple cakes and fresh bread. She shows the photo to the man behind the counter, but her hopes are shattered when Olek orders her out of his shop, cursing the couple who led the Nazis to his family’s door during the war. But Nela was Jewish. Why would she risk her own life?

Determined, Heidi forces Olek to confront what he is so desperate to bury. As his resolve crumbles, they uncover stories of an underground network hidden within the bakery’s walls. But will the truth about Heidi’s grandfather give her mother the peace she needs, or will it tear apart her family for good?

An absolutely gripping and page-turning World War 2 historical fiction novel by Polish American author Gosia Nealon. Fans of Siobhan Curham, Lorna Cook and The Nightingale will be hooked.

About the Author:

While Gosia Nealon is a proud New Yorker, she was born and raised in Poland. Her journey to the Big Apple revealed a wealth of cultural differences, but also the values that connect us all. Like the fierce desire to protect family, find love, and ultimately, discover who we are and why we’re here.
Gosia’s award-winning short stories have always delved into life’s biggest questions, but it was the drama, sacrifice, and tragedy of WWII that led her to pen her debut novel, which won a gold medal in the 2022 Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPY).
Growing up in Poland, Gosia heard many firsthand accounts of the war, told from a perspective rarely captured in mainstream literature. She was compelled to breathe life into two young people falling in love in the midst of the most terrifying conflict of our time.
When Gosia isn’t tapping away at her laptop, she’s often walking the streets of New York. With her husband and two young sons in tow, they search for the most succulent pierogi, transporting them back to the cobbled streets of her childhood.

Bookouture Blog Tour for The Wish List Trip by Kerry Lonsdale and Orly Konig

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From Bookouture, this story was an engaging read of two friends who no longer get along, carrying out their third best friend’s dying wish – to revisit different places they enjoyed together and to scatter her ashes. I loved this story and could not put it down. It was the kind of read that made me laugh and made me cry. There’s something so wonderful about the power of female friendship/sisterhood. Definitely will be on my holiday gift list for some friends this year!

Thank you for my copy!

Here’s the scoop:

Dear Holly and Anna,

I knew it would take drastic measures to bring you together, so, ta da, one drastic measure! I’m sorry I died. And I know you guys haven’t spoken in five years. But here’s the plan: over fourteen days, you are going to scatter my ashes in every place we vacationed together in our twenties.

I wish I could have fixed your friendship before I passed away. But dying comes with one perk—you can’t say no to me now.

You’re going to have the best time. I’ve planned rum cocktails in Cabo and café hopping in Paris. And along the way, I’ll keep sending you letters. Because there’s a secret I wasn’t brave enough to share when I was alive… and if I know the three of us, I suspect we’ve all been hiding something from each other.

The times we spent together were the best days of my life. Nobody made me laugh like you did, Anna. And Holly, promise you’ll let your hair down one last time for me.

I hope by the end of this trip, there’s nothing left we’re afraid to say…
xo, Zoe

The Wish List Trip is an unputdownable story of sisterhood, self-discovery and how not to smuggle your friend’s ashes through French border control… Addictive, escapist and bittersweet, perfect for fans of Elin Hilderbrand, Emily Giffin and Jojo Moyes.

About the Authors!

Kerry Lonsdale is the Amazon Charts, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post and #1 Kindle bestselling author of the Everything series, No More trilogy, and multiple standalone romantic women’s fiction and domestic drama novels. Her books have sold more than two million copies and have been translated into twenty-seven languages. She resides in Northern California.

After years of pushing the creativity boundary in corporate communications, Orly Konig made the switch to fiction. She is the author of The Distance Home, Carousel Beach, The Arrangements, and with her best friend and co-author — The Wish Trip List (coming September 8, 2026). She also writes about living an unapologetically imperfect life on Substack. She’s a co-founder and past president of the Women’s Fiction Writers Association.

Bookouture Blog Tour for Christmas with the East End Girls by Jean Fullerton

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I just love this series about a group of femaile friends living in London during WWII. This one, book 4, focuses primarily on Georgina (“George”) and the man she falls in love with. I’ve loved all the books in this series and I know there are more to come. You can read them as stand alones, but I like reading them all in order! And, as always, I appreciate an uplifting ending!!

Thank you for my copy and for having me on the tour!

Here’s the scoop:

East London, 1943: Will this wartime Christmas bring love, joy and peace to the East End Girls?

Georgina St John-Smythe – George to her friends – is usually the life and soul of any party. But as the East End of London prepares wearily for another wartime Christmas amid nightly bombings, she is finding it hard to muster her festive spirit, still hurting from a recent romantic betrayal. But everything changes when she meets handsome Captain ReverendGuy Moncrieff…

Forced to leave the army after a life-altering injury, Guy is struggling to settle into his new role at a bomb-damaged little church in the centre of the East End. Romance is the last thing on his mind, but when he and George are thrown together to organise a special Christmas Eve carol service that will give their incredible, irrepressible community a chance to shine, the closeness that develops between them surprises them both.

But just as George begins to dream that a future with this kind, generous man might be possible, she is falsely accused of a terrible crime that threatens not only her happiness with Guy, but her future in the Women’s Auxiliary Airforce. Can the East End Girls rally behind one of their own to right this wrong? And as the bells ring out on Christmas Eve, can George and Guy put the past behind them and make a fresh start together? Or is it too late for a happy ever after?

Fans of Katie Flynn, Rosie Goodwin and Lizzie Lane will adore this heart-warming and emotional festive World War Two saga about love, friendship and new beginnings.

About the Author: (I love how the author herself is an “East End Girl”!)

Born and bred in East London, Jean was a District Nurse by trade working throughout East London. Since 2008, she has been publishing bestselling saga fiction, including the popular World War Two Ration Book series, which, like all her books, is set in East London. Jean has also written her autobiography A Child of the East End , about growing up in post-war Stepney and Wapping.

Bookouture Blog Tour for Murder at the Manor House by Katie Gayle

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I love Katie Gayle’s Julia Bird cozy mysteries so much! It’s so refreshing to have a smart, resourceful woman over 50 as the protagonist, and her having a sweet doggo is just icing on the cake. I never get tired of these stories and each be read as a standalone. But I enjoy reading them in order as I can watch the characters and their relationships develop.

Thank you for my copy and for having me on tour! I enjoyed this one and did not figure it out!

Here’s the scoop:

ulia Bird is as keen as anyone in Berrywick to see inside the famous Greystone Manor. But when she does, the last thing she expects to find is a body!

When Julia Bird is asked to clear out the gatehouse at Greystone Manor after the sudden death of Colonel Loxton’s sister, she is intrigued to finally see inside the impressive house. But when she discovers the body of the Colonel, who greeted her only hours before, dead behind the sofa with a bruise on his forehead, Julia believes his death is no accident.

Once forensics confirm it was murder, Julia tries to piece together what happened. On the day the Colonel died, she saw an unknown man getting into a car outside the manor. The butler Garforth and the housekeeper Biddy claim there were no visitors that day, so who was this mysterious man? Or is someone in the Colonel’s family not telling the truth, with tensions running high over the inheritance?

Days later, Julia finds another body dead among the rhododendrons and knows the deaths must be connected. At the Colonel’s funeral she heard his friends talking about a long-buried secret. Had the second victim discovered it, and is it motive enough to kill? With time running out, can Julia solve the case before there’s another murder at the manor?

An addictive and totally charming cozy mystery set in the English countryside. Perfect for fans of M.C. Beaton, Faith Martin and J. R. Ellis.

About the Author(s):

Katie Gayle is the writing partnership of best-selling South African writers, Kate Sidley and Gail Schimmel. Kate and Gail have, between them, written over ten books of various genres, but with Katie Gayle, they both make their debut in the cozy mystery genre. Both Gail and Kate live in Johannesburg, with husbands, children, dogs and cats. Unlike their sleuth Epiphany Bloom, neither of them have ever stolen a cat from the vet.

I apologize; I realize I was to post on the 26th, not 27th. My error!

Bookouture Blog Tour for The Christmas Cove Inn by Kristin Harper

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I loved this sweet, feel-good romance about a busy woman who ends up on a small island off the coast of Massachusetts for Christmas, as opposed to an island in the Caribbean, and how she falls in love with the town, the people, and one man in particular. This was a clean read, FYI, and left me ready to start thinking about the holidays!

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

Here’s the scoop:

All Celeste wants for Christmas is to escape. But could a surprise visit to an inn where candles glow behind every window and the smell of winter spices fill the air be her chance at a new beginning?

Dropping her suitcase down on the front step of the Christmas Cove Inn, Celeste can’t help but smile. Her holidays should have been spent on assignment in the Caribbean, the perfect way to mend her broken heart. But when her flight was diverted to Sea Spray Island near Cape Cod, she had to take the only room left at the inn.

Celebrating the season is the last thing on her mind but that’s all cheerful islander and single dad Nathan wants to do. His family’s cozy inn is full of festive spirit, and it’s not only the twinkling decorations and crackling fires that begin to thaw Celeste’s aching heart…

With fast-falling snow keeping her on the island, she’s soon drawn in to the Christmas countdown activities by the quirky locals… and is spending more and more time with Nathan. When he asks for her help to raise money for the struggling community center, she says yes in a heartbeat. For the first time in years, has Celeste finally found a place to call home?

But when the snow stops and it’s time for Celeste to return to the city, will she really be able to say goodbye to Nathan and Christmas Cove? Or will the magic of the season give her a reason to stay?

A heart-warming and joyous festive read full of romance, Christmas spirit and small-town charm. Perfect for fans of Pamela Kelley, Heidi Swain and Sarah Morgan.

(Note: this book was previously published as Celebration At Christmas Cove)

About the Author:

Kristin Harper earned an MFA in creative writing. Before becoming a full-time author, she held numerous professional roles, including college professor, data analyst, and development director. She grew up in New England, and has lived in various places across the US, including the West Coast and Washington, D.C. Kristin’s now happily back in Massachusetts, just a stone’s throw from Cape Cod – the source of inspiration for the setting of her Dune Island series.