Chapter Thirteen by Maria A. Palace

Hello everyone.  I hope your day is going well.

I'm sure you are not surprised by the fact that I get many emails about books.  Mostly from authors, publishers or publicists asking if I'll read a story they are representing or have written.  While I try and review the blockbuster books that I know you are contemplating reading, every now and then I like to read an author that I'm not familiar with or is just getting started. Let's face it, thousands and thousands of talented writers never get a literary agent and are miles away from getting a publishing contract.  Does that mean they are not as good as published authors, NO!  I've read many self published or small publisher books that put some New York Times Best sellers to shame...Monkey Temple by Peter Gelfan comes to mind, so does Picket Fences by Emma L.R. Hogg. I'm still thinking about both of them and I read Monkey Temple two years ago! My point is for you to consider a non-mainstream book.  How many people have you seen get on those singing shows that drive a bus for a living but can sing better than "stars".  Talent is widespread and not always recognized.

I recently read Chapter Thirteen by Maria Palace. The novel is about a woman, Kate, who has lost several loved ones.  She moves home to Pennsylvania and is working as a journalist when she sent to cover an old mansion.  Kate or Katy gets to know the old lady that lives in the house but all is not what it seems.  I don't want to give it away but if you like paranormal or love stories, you'd really like this. The writing flows nicely, dialog is great and I ADORE how the author doesn't make the reader sit through every outing.  For example saying something like "after the date ended" instead of making us sit through each second.  Love that!  Just give me the meat and potatoes of the story and that is exactly what this author does, which makes this story a very pleasant reading experience.  This is also a quick read with nicely sized chapters.  The story itself is interesting and the characters are well defined and likeable.  

The book is a solid, well written, fun, highly enjoyable, well paced read.  Maria Palace is on my radar now, next time she has a book release I'll be in line to buy it.

Mother May I by Joshilyn Jackson

Hello everyone.  I hope you're having a very nice day.

I'm gonna cry but I have to tell you about my mother.  She died suddenly when I was thirty.  I thought being the big three-oh would be the worst thing about that year, I was wrong.  It still is painful because she was such a great Mom, so I remind myself to be grateful.  My mom was stunningly beautiful. She was the kindest person you could ever meet.  Mom managed to deal with me as a three year old and newborn triplet girls (and we all know what a pain they were). Christmas was her favorite time of year. Mom loved to play games even video games, she would be amazed that my niece works on video games and would love the games of today. She knitted hats for the homeless. We had to walk up a large hill from the bus stop and in the winter, we would always have four cups to hot chocolate waiting. She hated having her picture taken but loved family photos. Mom would float around our pool, sitting on a ball, reading a book. She read a lot, thrillers, romance and Agatha Christie.  She didn't even get mad when we cannonballed her, soaking her book.  My mom loved model trains, so does my husband.  When my parents would visit, Mom and hubby would go "hobby" shopping together, each vowing not to tell their partner how much they spent. Mom adored her parents and my dad was her absolute soulmate.  Above all else, she would do anything for her children.

I recently read Mother May I by Joshilyn Jackson.  I have enjoyed this author in the past so was anxious to read her newest book. This is the story of a woman, Bree, who has everything.  A wonderful life and family.  One day she thinks she thinks she sees an older woman looking through the window of their house.  The she believes the strange woman is following her.  Suddenly, while at her daughter's school, her baby, asleep in a stroller, disappears.  Taken by the old lady, she tells Bree to do exactly what she says or she'll never see her child again.  When Bree realizes that the kidnapper is a mother herself she is even more shocked, how can one mom do this to another? This book asks some very interesting questions.  What would you do for your child? Would you kill someone?  Would you sacrifice someone else from your family? Would you be set on revenge? Would you kidnap another woman's child? 

This thriller is easy to get into with limited characters.  It is fast paced, spacing twists throughout instead of just at the end.  You'll find this book enthralling and terrifying.  Perhaps if you're pregnant or the Mom of a toddler, skip this one.

I wonder what my mom would have thought of Mother May I.  How it would stack up against the thrillers of her time?  Coma still gives me the creeps!

The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth

Hello everyone.  I hope your day is going well.

Do you have siblings?  I find them very odd, in sooo many ways!  It is weird to have someone share your DNA but be completely different people.  We have shared memories but then branched out into our own lives.  I think my experience may be different from many people's as my sisters are triplets.  They have a unique bond I don't share.  Many years ago, lotto was really big and my husband was going to buy a "family" ticket.  He called each of the trips to have them give him a number, they all gave the same one! They seem to have a sense of each other's welfare despite living hundreds of miles apart.  I told you they were odd!

I recently read The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth. This author also wrote The Mother-In-Law, which I enjoyed.  This new book is the story of twin sisters who grow up in less than ideal circumstances. Fern, is now a librarian, and is sensitive to too many stimuli.  Rose, an interior designer for businesses, has always acted as Fern's protector.  Sadly, Rose discovers that she is unable to have a baby so Fern decides to get pregnant and give the baby to Rose since she has been her lifelong champion and beloved sister.

This book is very much like The Mother-In-Law, it is an interesting story...to start.  Just as we are engaged and feel we really know the characters the author starts throwing in subtle hints that perhaps something is not right.  Slowly the delightful storyline is in doubt.  Can we believe anything we read?  Then those hints that things aren't as they should be turn into all out twists as the world she has created for the reader falls completely apart.  This book was very enjoyable, especially as I've become more familiar with Sally Hepworth's plotting style.

I'm gonna start sending the triplets a mental image and see if they pick up on it.  "Send me a book....send me a book!"  

Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano

Hello everyone.  I hope you're having a good day.

Have you ever seen one of those videos that pops up in your Face Book feed where a baby laughs at their grandfather making a face? I'm not subscribed to any cute baby groups but they always show up in my feed, kind of like those videos about how to serve a filet mignon dinner using only ring dings and mustard.  Obviously some portions of the internet think I'm a female MacGyver, obviously they haven't seen the the fine film of filth covering my house!  Hummm, maybe the filth is holding everything together and that IS my MacGyver-ness.  I like that, dirt on purpose not because I'm lazy.

Something everyone has in common is liking to laugh.  I remember being at my Aunt and Uncle's house for a Christmas Eve party and my dad holding the whole room captive as he was delighted by telling a joke.  I think it went like this: "I have a bird named Chet and he sings.  If I hold a match under him but to the right he sings Jingle Bells.  If I hold a match under him but to the left he sings Oh Holy Night.  If I hold a match under him in the center he sings Chet's Nuts Roasting On An Open Fire." My extended family laughed loudly and my father was filled with joy at making everyone laugh.  Now maybe it was the booze, being off work for the holiday, or being with his family but Dad was truly happy.  It's a very good memory.

I recently read Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano. This book is about an author who goes to meet her agent and misses their reservation at an upscale restaurant so they end up meeting at Panera.  Finlay is describing the plot of her book when she is overheard by a woman at a nearby table.  When Finlay gets up to leave she discovers a note from the other patron who is offering her $50,000 to kill her husband.  The plot of the book has been taken as real and Finlay is thought to be a contract killer! Not only is Finlay way behind on her book but she's out of money, making the stranger's note all the more interesting.

This book is a great read and perfect break from the world we live in.  It is fast, interesting, easy to read, easy to get into, has clearly defined characters and plot but most of all this book is funny.   How funny?  Read to your husband funny.  Tell him to put his meeting on mute so they don't hear you reading him your book, funny.  Text your sisters, "OMG you've got to read this" funny.  If you like to laugh and could use a break from reality, this book is for you. If you like slapstick comedy but in word form, you must read this story.  Oh heck, just trust me, go get this book.  Unless of course you hate to laugh, then I wash my hands of you. 

Even though my dad is gone, my nephew has his same sense of humor.  I'll have to make sure I tell him Dad's Chet joke and see who he can make laugh. 

Every Vow You Break by Peter Swanson

Hello everyone.  I hope you are enjoying your day.

When you got married did you have a nice honeymoon?  My sister went to one of those islands...one of the "amas" or "ini" places off the coast of Florida.  I can't remember where but I'm certain she had a nice time.  For me, I got one night in Scranton, PA.  Now if you're from Pennsylvania don't get your drawers in a twist.  I love the state, lots of my family came from PA.  However, as far as exotic, seductive locales go, the Hilton in Scranton doesn't exactly blow up your skirt.  Okay, between us buddies, it was cool.  It was an old train station that we got to explore, but as far as brag-ability it isn't great.  "Oh so your sister went to the islands.  Where did you go? One night in Scranton???"  Hubby said not to tell you this story lest you think he's cheap.  In his defense, we purchased our first house thirty days before our wedding and we used our honeymoon money for a down payment.  But if he asks, yes, I think he's cheap and owes me a trip to Europe at the minimum!

I recently read Every Vow You Break by Peter Swanson.  This is the story of Abigail and Bruce. They are getting married.  First Abigail is attending her shower, only not the kind where you get a toaster, the kind where you and your friends go to a resort. While at this resort, Abigail meets another man who wonders if she loves her husband-to-be as much as she thinks she does, especially after she sleeps with him.  Of course, once home and during the final preparations for the wedding, she tells Bruce nothing about what happened on the trip.  Panic sets in when she sees the man she slept with and when he starts emailing her.  She kindly refuses his advances and proceeds with the wedding.  After the nuptials, Bruce whisks his new bride away for a lovely honeymoon, but guess who shows up? Oh yes, it's deliciously evil.  If you want more, you'll have to read it.  This book has got great pacing and an even better setting.  Lots of fun with this story and a nice escape!

After reading Every Vow You Break I'm a little more grateful for my single night in Scranton, but I'm gonna tell people it was Scranton, France.

Nathalie Dupree's Favorite Stories & Recipes

Hello everyone.  I hope you are having a nice day.

I have to do something you may not like.  I try to be good to you mixing it up with current and backlist books, popular and lesser known authors, and different genres. Yes, I know I'm thriller heavy...thanks for reminding me. I'd say thrillers are my guilty pleasure but I wear my thriller addiction proudly. Nope, today I must be my housewifey best and review....wait for it....you knew it was coming someday....oh yes, I MUST review a cookbook. I swear I hear at least one person out there cheering and the rest of you stop pouting, it's just one book.

I recently read Nathalie Dupree's Favorite Stories and Recipes by Nathalie Dupree, Cynthia Graubart. This book is a kind of a "best of" tale, although I only see one recipe in it that I already have in another volume. Favorites Stories and Recipes is just that it has stories about her life and the food she cooks. I have at least nine of her cookbooks, and I am not a cookbook collector. Frankly, there are way too many recipes to  be had online, why spend money on a book.  I buy these books because they teach you,  there are tips, explanations and variations offered throughout each of Nathalie's books.  She is a trained chef, restaurant owner, teacher, and tv show cooking host and you really reap the benefit of her experience.  It would be so easy to take advantage of her following and just put out great recipes but her books go the extra mile and that's why I buy them.  I actually learn. 

Years ago when I was first married, I couldn't cook.  I literally had to call my mother to find out how to make a baked potato.  You wash the potato, put it in the oven and bake it.  You test to see if it's soft by sticking it with a fork.  I did that and it exploded in my face, all over my clothes and the oven.  You actually have to poke them before baking or kaboom.  My mother left that out.  While she found it quite funny, I realized I REALLY knew nothing about cooking if I couldn't chuck something in the oven and turn it on and be successful.  During that time Nathalie Dupree was on PBS every Saturday morning with a cooking show.  Not only was she talking about what she was doing but she told you why.  One time she mentioned the amount of money that is spent learning to play golf, reasoning that learning to cook was just ...learning...and a bad pie crust was a small amount of money to pay for a successful future.  

Today, I can cook almost anything and I owe that to Nathalie Dupree.  Favorite Stories and Recipes is a book filled with stories, recipes and beautiful, large color photos.  Honestly, you can't go wrong with any of her books. You will learn loads, get an interesting book to actually read (not just reference) and get some great workable recipes too.

The Drowning Kind by Jennifer McMahon

Hello everyone.  I hope your day is going well.

I have to confess, I am behind on reviews.  I try not to post too many a month, not to pester you.  How many times do you want to read these before I make your teeth itch or you roll your eyes at what I'm saying for the gazillionth time? (My mother would say not to do that or they'll stay that way.) The issue is that I've read so many books lately. Thrillers are making me very happy.  It seems for the longest time we've had lots of domestic thrillers, you know, wife is secretly someone else, hubby is a serial killer, or the kindly next door neighbor has fifteen bodies planted in his garden hoping they'll fertilize his roses.  Aah you say, but April you love those. I do indeed! However, all of the sudden there are a batch of books out that take my thriller addiction out of the neighborhood and into interesting locations or have a smidge of supernatural thrown in...something different.  Honestly, I'm reading them faster than I am reviewing them as I'm basically having thriller-paloosa here. Still I'll try not to slap gobs of reviews up but sometimes I can't help myself.

I recently read The Drowning Kind by Jennifer McMahon.  This book features two time lines, the current day and 1929. Both time periods have a story that surrounds a natural spring.  Supposedly you can talk to this water, tell it what you want, basically make a wish and it comes true.  But the water gives at a price.  

In the current day there are two sisters Lexie and Jax.  Lexie has been written off by Jax, who believes her sister is having mental issues and has stopped taking her medication. In fact, Jax is receiving multiple calls from Lexie that are gibberish, so they go ignored.  Sadly, shortly after, Jax discovers that Lexie has died, drowned in the pool on the family's estate she now owns. When returning home for the funeral, Jax is flooded with memories of her sister and the beloved pool, remembering what a strong swimmer she was.  Things are complicated when Jax finds the estate house a disaster, things are everywhere, dirty dishes, belongings, and tons of paper.  It seems that before she died Lexie was researching the estate and her own family.  Did that play a part in her mental break or death?

In 1929, Will and Ethel are newly weds and very much want to have a baby.  Unfortunately Ethel hopes each month that she is pregnant only to be disappointed.  Will decides to ease the stress by taking them away to a beautiful resort.  Ethel discovers that the waters of the resort are supposed to heal, cure and may even be able to grant wishes.

Clear your schedule for this one.  Opening the book will have you instantly hooked and you'll ignore your loved ones until it's over.  Loved this, hope you do too.