Old Flames and New Fortunes – Book Review

Title:- Old Flames and New Fortunes

Author:- Sarah Hogle

Date published:- April 23rd 2024

No. of pages:- 384 pages

Genre:- Romance

Rating:-

Plot:- 3/5

Writing:- 3/5

Overall rating:- 3/5

A steamy second-chance romance about a magical florist’s unexpected reunion with her high school sweetheart as she fake dates his soon-to-be stepbrother.

A small, magical town tucked away in rural Ohio, Moonville is the perfect place for flora fortunist Romina Tempest to expand her shop, where she uses the language of flowers to help the hopeful manifest their love lives. After giving up on her own big romance eleven years ago, at least she can bask in the promise of others’.

So, when the shop’s potential financier shares news of his wedding, Romina jumps on the opportunity to discuss buying the business. What better place to negotiate a deal than at a wedding, even if she has to fake-date her chaotic colleague Trevor to get an invitation? But all hell breaks loose when she discovers Trevor’s soon-to-be stepbrother is none other than Alex her high school sweetheart. Her greatest love. The boy who, eleven years ago, broke her heart, and who now thinks she and Trevor are dating. 

What starts as an innocent misunderstanding becomes a week-long fake dating scheme, as Romina resolves to make Alex pay for breaking her heart. The only issue? She can’t deny their still-burning connection. Caught between proving to Alex what he lost, and coming clean and risking her business, Romina must decide whether giving Alex another chance means going back on herself, or finally releasing her hold on the past.

I really like the front cover. And I thought the story is cheesy and cute. But then I was OK with this book–did enjoy the first part of the book but through the second book, it kind of felt flat for me.

In a rural part of Ohio, Romina Tempest is a florist who knows the secret language of flowers and owns a shop with her sister Luna. When the colleague Trevor announces to Romina that his father, who is the potential financier of their shop is in town, Romina and Trevor goes to meet his father–but it turns out that Trevor’s father is getting married to Kristen, who is Romina’s ex-boyfriend’s mother. Not to mention after eleven years, Romina meets her ex-boyfriend Alex again after he broke her heart all those years ago. Now Romina and Trevor fake date each other in front of Alex but Romina couldn’t help but realize that she still has feelings towards Alex even after all those years.

The story is entertaining, I like how each of the chapters in the book are named after a flower–some flower names I am not that familiar with. I do like the chemistry between Romina and Alex. I also like the plot of the story as well. However, I felt this story could have been shortened, and that it kind of went down the drain towards the end, in my opinion which lowered my rating to three stars from a four star rating. However, if you like romance with a hint of magical realism in it, then this book is one for you. Worth three stars.

Sarah Hogle is a mom of three who enjoys trashy TV and provoking her husband for attention. Her dream is to live in a falling-apart castle in a forest that is probably cursed. Her novels are You Deserve Each Other, Twice Shy, Just Like Magic, and Old Flames and New Fortunes.

She’s Not Sorry – Book Review

Title:- She’s Not Sorry

Author:- Mary Kubica

Date published:- April 2nd 2024

No. of pages:- 330 pages

Genre:- Psychological Thriller

Rating:-

Plot:- 4/5

Writing:- 4/5

Overall rating:- 4/5

An ICU nurse accidentally uncovers a patient’s frightening past in this chilling thriller.

Meghan Michaels is trying to find balance between being a single mom to a teenage daughter and working as a full time nurse. While on duty at the hospital one day, a patient named Caitlin arrives in a coma with a traumatic brain injury, having jumped from a bridge and plunging over twenty feet to the train tracks below. 

But when a witness comes forward with shocking details about the fall, it calls everything they know into question. Was Caitlin  pushed  and if so, by whom and why? 

Meghan has always tried to stay emotionally detached from her patients, but this time, she mistakenly lets herself get too close until she’s deeply entangled in Caitlin’s and her family’s lives. Only when it’s too late, does she realize that she and her daughter could be the next victims.

Meghan Michaels is an ICU nurse. While on the shift, she comes across a patient named Caitlin Beckett who apparently survived the suicide attempt where she had jumped from the big pedestrian bridge. Caitlin’s suicide attempt was talk among the ICU nurse and Meghan soon finds herself getting close to Caitlin’s parents. Soon, the police come forward, saying that there is a witness claiming that Caitlin was pushed and not jumped, which makes this case a murder case. Meanwhile a string of robberies are taking place across Chicago and Meghan couldn’t help feeling that someone is following her.

This was a fast paced thriller. Although in my opinion, the first few chapters started out a bit slow but then gained momentum towards the middle of the book. This wasn’t as great as Local Woman Missing, which I thoroughly enjoyed but it was a good thriller nonetheless. The twist revealing at the middle of the book and also towards the end were both completely unexpected. Mary Kubica knows how to put the reader on the edge and I have to say, this book did make feel like I am on the edge.

Overall, this was a good thriller and would rate 4.25 stars.

The Chibineko Kitchen – ARC Book Review

Title:- The Chibineko Kitchen

Author:- Yuta Takahashi

Date published:- 7th November 2024

No. of pages:- 192 pages

Genre:- Japanese fiction

Rating:-

Plot:- 5/5

Writing:- 4/5

Overall rating:- 4.5/5

Welcome to the Japanese seaside café The Chibineko Kitchen, where a soul-nourishing meal in the company of the resident kitten will transport you back in time to reunite with departed loved ones—for fans of Before the Coffee Gets Cold and The Midnight Library.

It’s a beautiful morning, and nineteen-year-old Kotoko Niki is far from home. Whispers of an enigmatic café whose kagezen, an extra portion of a meal for someone who has passed away, promise the impossible—a reunion with the departed—have led her to a seaside town outside of Tokyo. Still devastated in the wake of her beloved older brother’s sudden death, Kotoko can only hope for a miracle. As Kotoko struggles to heal from her loss, the restaurant’s kitten, the young chef, and the other patrons—each in search of answers of their own—teach her that she is not alone in her grief. Told in a succession of voices, memories, and even recipes, Yuta Takahashi’s touching debut is sure to linger long in readers’ hearts.

This was a very cute, emotional, heartbreaking read to me and I actually enjoyed this book really much.

The Chibineko Kitchen is a special kitchen, reserved to make remembrance meals. Kotoko lost her brother and she comes across this special kitchen, dedicated in serving the remembrance meals of the loved ones. The restaurant kitten plays a vital role in the restaurant which is why the name implied. The stories talk about how people visit this restaurant, orders the meal and then reconnect with their loved ones.

The story in general is well written and is quiet engaging. I like how after every chapter there is the recipe of that meal written so readers may have a taste of the meal. I love reading Japanese novels as most of the Japanese novels have a unique storytelling and this book is no exception. I realized that there is part 2 of the series which is not translated yet into English and which I am looking forward to read the part 2 and enjoy the taste of Japanese meal. Overall a four star read.

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.

A Novel Love Story – Book Review

Title:- A Novel Love Story

Author:- Ashley Poston

Date published:- June 25th 2024

No. of pages:- 384 pages

Genre:- Romance/Contemporary/Magical Realism

Rating:-

Plot:- 4/5

Writing:- 4/5

Overall rating:- 4/5

A professor of literature finds herself caught up in a work of fiction… literally.

Eileen Merriweather loves to get lost in a good happily-ever-after. The fictional kind, anyway. Because at least imaginary men don’t leave you at the altar. She feels safe in a book. At home. Which might be why she’s so set on going to her annual book club retreat this year—she needs good friends, cheap wine, and grand romantic gestures—no matter what.

But when her car unexpectedly breaks down on the way, she finds herself stranded in a quaint town that feels like it’s right out of a novel…

Because it is.

This place can’t be real, and yet… she’s here, in Eloraton, the town of her favorite romance series, where the candy store’s honey taffy is always sweet, the local bar’s burgers are always a little burnt, and rain always comes in the afternoon. It feels like home. It’s perfect—and perfectly frozen, trapped in the late author’s last unfinished story.

Elsy is sure that’s why she must be here: to help bring the town to its storybook ending.

Except there is a character in Eloraton that she can’t place—a grumpy bookstore owner with mint-green eyes, an irritatingly sexy mouth and impeccable taste in novels. And he does not want her finishing this book.

Which is a problem because Elsy is beginning to think the town’s happily-ever-after might just be intertwined with her own.

After reading Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on her latest novel, A Novel Love Story. Poston writes really unique romantic plots with a magical and fantasy twist in it, which makes reading romance novels more interesting and intriguing. Like Seven Year Slip, A Novel Love Story also is a romance story with magical realism in it. But it wasn’t as good as Seven Year Slip.

Eileen Merriweather is an English professor. She had recently ended engagement with a man named Liam and her best friend Pru went off to Iceland with her boyfriend as she suspect that her boyfriend was going to propose her there. Feeling lonely, Eileen decides to drive down to annual book club retreat even though she might be the only one in the book club and get lost herself in a book. But her car unexpectedly breaks down in the middle of the quaint town which feels like it came out of a novel…and it really is. And it’s none other than Eileen’s favorite novel series. Eileen could place all the characters in the book–Junie, Will, Maya, Gemma, Ruby, Jake…but there is one character that Eileen couldn’t place. Anders who owns a book shop and a cat named Butterscotch who offers his loft for her to stay in until her car gets repaired. It is said that her favorite author who wrote the series died without finishing the novel and Eileen must find a way to end the story a happily ever after.

I really liked the concept of the book. Of course, I wished I was like Eileen, lost in the fictional world in real life and meeting all the favorite characters in the novel. The whole story was cheesy, well written and of course the sizzling chemistry between Eileen and Anders is intense. Not to mention the grumpy sunshine trope in the book. It was also quiet enjoyable, and there were funny parts in the book that will make you laugh out loud. However, the love story between Eileen and Anders didn’t start out until much later in the book and thus couldn’t explore much into their relationship. I also though Eileen’s reaction when she realized that she was in the fictional town was slightly bland–if I realized at once that I was in a fictional town, I would get freaking crazy!

Overall, this was a fun book to read, really liked the uniqueness of the plot. Worth four stars.

The Married Man – ARC Book Review

Title:- The Married Man

Author:- K.L. Slater

Date published:- will be published on 1st November 2024

No. of pages:- 419 pages

Genre:- Psychological Thriller

Rating:-

Plot:- 4/5

Writing:- 4/5

Overall rating:- 4/5

Everyone thinks my husband is dead. Just like we planned…

Eleven years ago, my husband disappeared. Eleven long hard years I waited, my heart breaking for our son, who didn’t know his father was coming back.

Today, my hands shake as I try to understand what I’ve just my husband has a new wife. This wasn’t part of our plan.

Eleven years ago, my husband made a terrible mistake. I sacrificed everything to help him fix it. But now he’s put our son and me in danger again.

We had a plan. He broke the rules. But who will pay the price?

A completely gripping and addictive thriller from the number 1 ebook bestselling author K.L. Slater, The Married Man will have you glued to the pages until the very last twist. Perfect for fans of Lisa Jewell and Freida McFadden.

I always make a point of reading KL Slater’s books as I always have enjoyed reading her thrillers. The Married Man is her latest thriller and is the story of two women Liv and Kait. Liv’s husband Rich disappeared eleven years ago and it appeared to be Liv have helped him to disappear. But then Kait’s husband Daniel looks like a mirror image of her husband Rich. Has Rich married again? Meanwhile, Liv’s son Maddox start distancing himself from his mother as he believed that his mother is hiding secrets from him and start befriending a mysterious man.

This was a fast-paced thriller and a page turner. The writer as always keep the reader on the edge and the unexpected twists and turns at the end of the book was great. The entire story is told in the POVs of Liv, Kait and Maddox and we know that Liv and Kait are holding secrets which is revealed in the end. However, in my opinion, I didn’t really enjoy this thriller book as much as I did with her other thrillers although as I mentioned earlier the pacing was great.

Overall this book worth four stars.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.

One by One – Book Review

Title:- One by One

Author:- Freida McFadden

Date published:- July 13th 2020

No. of pages:- 295 pages

Genre:- Psychological thriller

Rating:-

Plot:- 4/5

Writing:- 4/5

Overall rating:- 4/5

One by one, they will get what they deserve…

A night spent sleeping on dirt and leaves is not how Claire Matchett expected to spend her vacation.

She thought this would be a break from the stresses of work and raising her young children. A chance to repair her damaged marriage. A week of hiking and hot tubs with two other couple friends. It sounded like heaven.

Then Claire’s minivan breaks down on a lonely dirt road. With no cell reception, the group has no choice but to hike the rest of the way to their hotel. But it turns out the woods aren’t as easy to navigate as they thought.

Hours later, they are lost. Hopelessly lost.

And as they navigate deeper into the woods, the members of their party are struck down mysteriously one by one. Has a wild animal been hunting them? Or is the hunter one of them?

But as more time passes, one thing becomes clear:

Only one of them will return home alive.

Claire and Noah are going on a vacation with two other couples, Jack and Michelle, and Lindsey and her boyfriend Warner. Claire was badly in need for the vacation, as she wanted to take a break from her work and raising kids as well as a chance to repair her marriage with Noah. On the way to the inn, the minivan stops in the middle of nowhere by the woods and the six friends decide to go to the inn through walking. However, soon, the walking through the woods turn into a nightmare as one by one, gets killed or disappeared. In the end, only one of them will survive.

The story is told in two POVs–Claire and an anonymous character, whose identity is revealed at the end (and a completely unexpected revelation mind you). The story did give an air of eerie and creepy feeling as the group is lost deep in the woods, and is surviving through almost filtered water and wild plant. The story is also intense as it will put the reader on the edge–with a bit of a supernatural element in it. The book is fast-paced (just like all her books), unputdownable and a page turner. The ending part of the story is where things turned out to be interesting, particularly the revelation of the anonymous character. Also reading about Anonymous character kind of gave chills when reading the story.

I have made an oath to read all of Freida McFadden’s books and this is the sixth or seventh book I have read from her. This wasn’t her best but still gave the reader a fast paced thriller packed with unexpected twists. Overall worth four stars.

The Couple at No. 9 – Book Review

Title:- The Couple at No. 9

Author:- Claire Douglas

Date published:- August 19th 2021

No. of pages:- 407 pages

Genre:- Psychological thriller

Rating:-

Plot:- 5/5

Writing:- 4/5

Overall rating:- 4.5/5

It was the house of their dreams. Until the bodies were found . . .

BODIES FOUND UNDER PATIO

When pregnant Saffron Cutler moves into 9 Skelton Place with boyfriend Tom and sets about renovations the last thing she expects is builders uncovering a body – two bodies, in fact.

POLICE INVESTIGATE

Forensics indicate the bodies have been buried at least thirty years. Nothing Saffy need worry herself over. Until the police launch a murder investigation and ask to speak to the cottage’s former owner – her grandmother, Rose.

OWNER QUESTIONED

Rose is in a care home and Alzheimer’s means her memory is increasingly confused. She can’t help the police but it is clear she remembers something.

A KILLER AT LARGE?

As Rose’s fragmented memories resurface, and the police dig ever deeper, Saffy fears she and the cottage are being watched.

What happened thirty years ago?

Why did no one miss the victims?

What part did her grandmother play?

And is Saffy now in danger?

Saffron “Saffy” and her boyfriend Tom move into a cottage, previously owned by her grandmother, who is now in a care home. While extending a part of the house, the builders discover two skeletal remains in the ground. Saffy was worried, although she knew that her grandmother has rented out the cottage many times and it could be one of those lodgers who might have put those remains. However as forensics and the police investigate, Saffy finds out that the bodies have been buried for more than thirty years, which means, her grandmother was at that time living in the cottage. Now Saffy must gently question her grandmother Rose although she is suffering from dementia. And someone else is also watching Saffy and the house…

This was a fast-paced page turning thriller in my opinion. The story is told in the POVs of several people–Saffy, Saffy’s mother Lorna, who spent some time in the cottage when she was a kid, Theo, who tries to find the reason why his father was hiding the newspaper article about Saffy’s cottage. The story is well written, dividing the time line–between the present and 1979-1980, told in Rose’s, Saffy’s grandmother’s POV. There are twists and turns, most of them in my opinion were unexpected. There were some parts of the story where I did predict that this would happen but most of the parts in the story were unpredictable. The whole book as a result was fast paced and unputdownable.

This is the first book I have read of Claire Dougla and looking forward to read more of her books–worth four and a half stars!

Claire Douglas always wanted to write novels and, after many years of trying to get published, her dream came true when she won the Marie Claire Debut Novel Award in 2013 with THE SISTERS.

Her second and third novels, LOCAL GIRL MISSING and LAST SEEN ALIVE (Penguin), are Sunday Times bestsellers.

In Italy for Love – ARC Book Review

Title:- In Italy for Love

Author:- Leonie Mack

Date published:- 22nd October 2024

No. of pages:- 335 pages

Genre:- Romance

Rating:-

Plot:- 4/5

Writing:- 4/5

Overall rating:- 4/5

Julia Volpe’s Italian dream has turned into a nightmare. Still living with her ex, Luca, a year after they’ve broken up, desperate to sell the dilapidated B&B that was meant to be their future, Jules knows she needs to leave. There are just two problems. Her passport has expired and she’s broke.

Not quite ready to ask her parents for help – at the ripe old age of twenty-seven – Jules decides to head as far away from Luca as she can to work on an olive farm until she has enough money to pay for her passport and a ticket back home.

Jules has sworn off love, but she hadn’t bargained on the beauty of Cividale del Friuli, the ancient Italian town on the banks of the gloriously blue Natisone river. As the community of farmers, neighbours and locals generously welcome her into their lives, Jules can feel her defences crumbling. But it’s when she meets Alex, broodingly handsome yet charmingly gallant, that Jules truly knows she’s in trouble. Because Alex has sworn off love too, and his reasons run deep enough for him to keep his word just as Jules is starting to reconsider her resistance to romance.

Live your very own Italian dream and let Leonie Mack whisk you away. Romantic, spell-binding, truly touching and perfect for all fans of Jill Mansell, Mandy Baggot and Sarah Morgan.

Julia Volpe’s Italian dream seemed to have turned into a nightmare. Julia was preparing to leave but there are two things that are keeping her from leaving–her passport has expired and she’s broke. Julie breaks up with her ex boyfriend Luca and decides to work in an olive farm so she could earn some money, get her passport and return back to Australian. While working at the farm, she meets Alex, a handsome and charming man. Julia didn’t want to fall in love but the chemistry between Alex and Julia is starting to develop. Alex too had wanted to take a break from love life but when he meets Julia, things are different.

This book was great and well written. I actually liked how Julia is independent without depending on any others. There were some emotional parts but at the same time there are some happy moments in the book as well. The stories, the background story of Alex was very well told and it was emotional to read those parts. I also like the side characters, Arco and Attila.

Overall, this is a great romance novel and worth four stars.

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.

Leonie Mack is an author of romantic comedies with great international locations and big feelings. She loves a happy ending and shares that love in every book she writes! She is a journalism graduate, a language nut and loves to travel, particularly on foot, by bike and by train. After growing up in Australia and living most of her adult life in London, she now lives in Germany, among the vineyards on the Main river.

We Used to Live Here- Book Review

Title:- We Used to Live Here

Author:- Marcus Kliewer

Date published:- June 18th 2024

No. of pages:- 312 pages

Genre:- Horror/Psychological Thriller/Paranormal

Rating:-

Plot:- 5/5

Writing:- 5/5

Overall rating:- 5/5

Get Out meets Parasite in this eerily haunting debut and Reddit hit—soon to be a Netflix original movie starring Blake Lively—about two homeowners whose lives are turned upside down when the house’s previous residents unexpectedly visit.

As a young, queer couple who flip houses, Charlie and Eve can’t believe the killer deal they’ve just gotten on an old house in a picturesque neighborhood. As they’re working in the house one day, there’s a knock on the door. A man stands there with his family, claiming to have lived there years before and asking if it would be alright if he showed his kids around. People pleaser to a fault, Eve lets them in.

As soon as the strangers enter their home, uncanny and inexplicable things start happening, including the family’s youngest child going missing and a ghostly presence materializing in the basement. Even more weird, the family can’t seem to take the hint that their visit should be over. And when Charlie suddenly vanishes, Eve slowly loses her grip on reality. Something is terribly wrong with the house and with the visiting family—or is Eve just imagining things?

If you have watched the movies Get Out and Parasite, then this book is a mixture of the two books. It was creepy, scary and…the ending was totally and completely bizarre and unexpected!

Eve and Charlie had bought their new house. While settling down, the Faust family knocks on the door. Eve was the one who opened the door and it was Thomas, Paige and their three children, Jenny, Kai and Newton. Thomas tells Eve that the house in which Eve and Charlie had settled down was actually his childhood home and asks if it was alright for Thomas to look around the house. Eve wasn’t sure but she allowed the family to enter into the house. The family didn’t leave as promised and soon, weird things start happening inside the house. Was the house really haunted or is Eve imagining things?

I simply couldn’t put this book down. There were extracts from the documents, that kind of proved that the house may have some supernatural elements that might affect the occupants inside the house. The descriptions, particularly the description of the ghostly figure in the basement and in the attic, gave me chills own the spine as I was reading the book. I was engrossed into the book and felt like watching a horror movie. Eve maybe hallucinating or maybe it was happening in real. The ending…wow I like the fact that the author allowed us to imagine what the ending was actually like. I don’t want to spoil the review much as there might be people who still haven’t read the book, what really happened to Eve Palmer was actually a mystery that the author has left for the readers to decide. That’s all I am saying.

I am hoping there might be a sequel to this book, this book was unputdownable and gave a creepy and horror vibe as I read this book. Worth five stars.

Marcus Kliewer is a writer and stop-motion animator. His debut novel We Used to Live Here began life as a serialized short story on Reddit, where it won the Scariest Story of 2021 award on the NoSleep forum (eighteen million members). Film rights were snapped up by Netflix, and it acquired by Simon & Schuster for publication even before it had been extended into a full-length novel. He lives in Vancouver, Canada.

Follow him on Instagram @marcus_kliewer for exclusive book updates / writing things / stop motion animation & a lot of pet videos.

An Unwanted Guest – Book Review

Title:- An Unwanted Guest

Author:- Shari Lapena

Date published:- August 7th 2018

No. of pages:- 352 pages

Genre:- Psychological Thriller

Rating:-

Plot:- 4/5

Writing:- 4/5

Overall rating:- 4/5

A weekend retreat at a cozy mountain lodge is supposed to be the perfect getaway . . . but when the storm hits, no one is getting away

It’s winter in the Catskills and Mitchell’s Inn, nestled deep in the woods, is the perfect setting for a relaxing–maybe even romantic–weekend away. It boasts spacious old rooms with huge woodburning fireplaces, a well-stocked wine cellar, and opportunities for cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, or just curling up with a good murder mystery.

So when the weather takes a turn for the worse, and a blizzard cuts off the electricity–and all contact with the outside world–the guests settle in and try to make the best of it.

Soon, though, one of the guests turns up dead–it looks like an accident. But when a second guest dies, they start to panic.

Within the snowed-in paradise, something–or someone–is picking off the guests one by one. And there’s nothing they can do but hunker down and hope they can survive the storm–and one another.

I have read almost every Shari Lapena books and this is one of the books that I still haven’t read and wanted to read.

An Unwanted Guests follows people who wants to spend the vacation at the Mitchell Inn. Riley and Gwen are best friends and Riley is going through PTSD after her stint in Afghanistan. Lauren and Ian are boyfriend and girlfriend who wants to spend the days at the inn, skiing. So is the newly engaged couple Matt and Dana, Matt belonging to a famous wealthy and influential family. Then there is David who is a famous defense attorney and was a suspect in his wife’s murder initially. Then we have Henry and Beverly who is trying to repair their own marriage. And then Candance, a mysterious author who wants nothing but being in her room, writing her next best selling novel. Things seemed to be good until the next day, Dana’s body was found by the stairs. Initially, Dana’s death was proved to be an accident, but soon Candace’s body was found and she was strangled to death. Someone among the guest is a murderer and one by one the guest seems to be disappearing…

This was fast paced and unputdownable thriller. Each of the guests and the workers are a suspect and one of them could be a killer. Not to mention when the power is cut off due to bad weather makes the situation worse. The situation is tense as each guest suspect one another and pinpoint the blame towards each other. However, I did predict the ending. The writing was intense and I was kept on the edge of the seat as I was reading the book.

Overall this book worth 4 stars.