Book Review: Just the Beginning

📚 Book Review: Just the Beginning

Sarah Bennett

🗓️ Publication Date: March 15, 2025

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

📚 My Review: This story is all about fresh starts and second chances, set in a small-town village of Halfmoon Quay. It follows Anya as she rebuilds her life after heartbreak and betrayal, with the help of her childhood crush, Rick. I loved how Sarah Bennett wove complex family dynamics into the story, making it heartfelt and uplifting. This book is the perfect feel-good escape and I’ll definitely be looking out for more from this author!

Thank you to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: Everyone in Halfmoon Quay, the picture-perfect village clinging to the edge of the Cornish coast, knows Rick Penrose is the person to turn to for help.

Friendly and reliable, not to mention drop-dead gorgeous, he’ll do anything for anyone. When his teenage crush Anya moves back to the quay for a fresh start, he has the perfect solution. She needs a job and his great uncle needs help to run his hotel. It’s a win-win.

Following the death of her husband, Anya Stokes discovered everything about her life was a lie. Without her beautiful home and the luxuries she took for granted, Anya and her daughter, Freya, have no choice but to move in with her aunt and uncle in Halfmoon Quay.

As she begins to turn her life around, Anya realises the perfect man might have been right under her nose all the time. But there’s a fine line between helping and taking over and Rick doesn’t always know where it is. Then Anya discovers he’s been keeping things from her and it’s like the past is repeating itself…

Book Review: The Drowning Woman

📚 Book Review: The Drowning Woman

Robyn Harding

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

📚 My Review: A fast-paced thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat! This book is full of complex and dodgy characters, and features an intense bond between two women. As the story unravels, the line between ally and enemy becomes increasingly blurred and every twist left me questioning who could really be trusted. This is a tale of survival, retribution, and betrayal and you won’t want to put it down/stop listening!

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: A deliciously twisted story of friendship, retribution, and betrayal about a homeless woman fleeing a dangerous past—and the wealthy society wife she saves from drowning, who pulls her into a dark web of secrets and lies.

 

Lee Gulliver never thought she’d find herself living on the streets—no one ever does—but when her restaurant fails, and she falls deeper into debt, she leaves her old life behind with nothing but her clothes and her Toyota Corolla. In Seattle, she parks in a secluded spot by the beach to lay low and plan her next move—until early one morning, she sees a sobbing woman throw herself into the ocean. Lee hauls the woman back to the surface, but instead of appreciation, she is met with fury. The drowning woman, Hazel, tells her that she wanted to die, that she’s trapped in a toxic, abusive marriage, that she’s a prisoner in her own home. Lee has thwarted her one chance to escape her life.

Out of options, Hazel retreats to her gilded cage, and Lee thinks she’s seen the last of her, until her unexpected return the next morning. Bonded by disparate but difficult circumstances, the women soon strike up a close and unlikely friendship. And then one day, Hazel makes a shocking request: she wants Lee to help her disappear. It’ll be easy, Hazel assures her, but Lee soon learns that nothing is as it seems, and that Hazel may not be the friend Lee thought she was.

Book Review: Show Don't Tell

📚 Book Review: Show Don't Tell 

@Curtis Sittenfield

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

🗓️ Publication Date: February 25, 2025

📚 My Review: This was my first short story collection! Sittenfeld’s writing is incredibly insightful, and brings characters to life in a way that feels really authentic. I enjoyed many of the storylines but felt like some of the endings were a bit too abrupt for my liking (yes, I know.. short stories... lol), but I can see why she’s so beloved and will definitely continue to read more of her work.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: In her second story collection, Sittenfeld shows why she’s as beloved for her short fiction as she is for her novels. In these dazzling stories, she conjures up characters so real that they seem like old friends, laying bare the moments when their long held beliefs are overturned.

In “The Patron Saints of Middle Age,” a woman visits two friends she hasn’t seen since her divorce. In “A for Alone,” a married artist embarks on a creative project intended to disprove the so-called Mike Pence Rule, which suggests that women and men can’t spend time alone together without lusting after each other. And in “Lost but Not Forgotten,” Sittenfeld gives readers of her novel Prep a window into the world of her beloved character Lee Fiora, decades later, when Lee attends an alumni reunion at her boarding school.

Book Review: Starting Over in Starshine Cove

📚 Book Review: Starting Over in Starshine Cove

Debbie Johnson

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

🗓️ Publication Date: February 19, 2025

📚 My Review: This was heartwarming and fun, with relatable characters and a witty writing style. I haven't read the other books in the series but I didn't feel like I was lost reading this as a standalone. I enjoyed the pace of the book and how it sprinkled in each of Connie and Zack's past to give us an idea about their characters and how they got to where they are. This books gives proof to second chances and allowing to give them to yourself and is a perfect book for fans of fun contemporary romances. Add this one to your list!

Thank you to Netgalley and Storm Publishing for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: Connie Llewelyn is the beating heart of the magical seaside village of Starshine Cove. She runs the local cafe, and is everybody's friend – always on hand with a kind smile, a listening ear and a freshly-baked scone.

Since losing her beloved husband five years ago, she's been busy raising her children, supporting her extended family and staying positive. Now, as her kids fly the nest, she finds herself wondering what her own future might look like.

When a face from the past unexpectedly arrives in Starshine, could meeting Zack again give her a second chance at love? Will Connie be brave enough to take a risk on living life for herself?

From the beloved bestselling author of the Comfort Food Café series, this is a heart-warming tale of second chances, self-discovery and the extraordinary healing power of community. Perfect for fans of Jenny Colgan, Milly Johnson and Heidi Swain.

Book Review: The Perfect Rom-Com

📚 Book Review: The Perfect Rom-Com

Melissa Ferguson

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

🗓️ Publication Date: February 11, 2025 - Out Now!

📚 My Review: Finishing this on Valentine’s Day feels so fitting! I loved reading about Bryony’s journey, and Jack Sterling? Absolutely swoon-worthy. The publishing world storyline was fascinating, and the slow-burn romance had just the right touch of charm. A delightful, feel-good read!

Thank you to Netgalley and Thomas Nelson Fiction. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: She's written dozens of smash hit novels as a ghostwriter. Too bad no one knows it.

Aspiring author Bryony Page attends her first writers conference bursting with optimism and ready to sell her manuscript with long-shot dreams of raising awareness for The Bridge, her grandmother's financially-struggling organization where she teaches ESL full-time. But after a disastrous pitching session, she stumbles into correcting another author's work in a last-ditch attempt to make a good impression with the agent. And she, as it turns out, is spot on.

No one is more surprised than Bryony when the agent offers her the opportunity to be a ghostwriter for Amelia Benedict, popular rom-com novelist. Bryony agrees on one she'll write books for this vain, demanding woman just as long as Jack Sterling, literary agent of the legendary Foundry Literary Agency, works to sell her own book too.

What nobody predicted, however, was that Bryony's books would turn Amelia Benedict into the Amelia Benedict, household name and bestselling author with millions of copies sold around the world.

And just like that, the Foundry Agency can't let her go.

But on a personal note, Jack is realizing he can't either

Book Review: The Secret Life of Beatrice Alright

📚 Book Review: The Secret Life of Beatrice Alright

Brooke Harris

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

🗓️ Publication Date: February 7, 2025

📚 My Review: Oh My! This book was EXACTLY what I needed. So sweet! Perfectly predictable and I have zero complaints about it! Getting there was the absolute sweetest and heart wrenching journey. The relationship forged between Ellie and Malco melted my heart from the very beginning, while Bea's journey had me rooting for her the whole time. This was my first novel by Brooke Harris. The writing style was perfect and I loved every minute of it! 

Thank you to Netgalley and Storm Publishing for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: Beatrice Alright is the queen of silver linings. She can find a spark of hope in any situation. Even when her partner delivers earth-shattering news that leaves Bea and their four-year-old, Ellie, without a home, she refuses to panic.

Because Bea believes that what she does have is more important – her job at St Helen’s Hospital, which offers a warm, dry shelter for her and Ellie to stay while she figures things out. By day Bea cleans the wards, by night she tucks her daughter into bed between mops and buckets.

And tries so hard to hold on to hope.

When Bea sees an old man sitting on a cold and lonely bench outside the hospital, she really doesn’t have time to stop. She should be clearing up her own mess, not worrying about this cantankerous stranger. But Bea can’t help herself…

As she slowly starts to draw out Malcolm’s heartbreaking story, could this simple act of kindness begin to heal a decades-old pain? And might finding peace for Malcolm help Bea in ways she didn’t even know she needed

Book Review: The Family Lies

📚 Book Review: The Family Lies

Angela Henry 

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

📚 My Review: What was that??? 😳 This was my first book by Angela Henry and I enjoyed her writing style a lot. My only complaint was that there was a section at the beginning of the second half of the book that dragged a bit and I almost put it down. I'm so glad I didn't because the last twist at around 75%, while a bit over the top, was totally worth it lol! If you're a fan of twisty family drama you should definitely check this one out!

Thank you to Netgally and Storm Publishing for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Review was posted (Instagram, Goodreads, bookishlytara blog, Storygraph) on February 1, 2025. An additional post was posted on Instagram on the publication day as well as an Amazon Canada review. (links below)

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: Every family has secrets. The Dorseys bury theirs.

Sabrina Adams thought her luck had finally turned around when she was hired as a librarian for the wealthy Dorsey family. But as soon as she arrives at their elegant estate, she senses something is off. They have cameras everywhere. She’s banned from the third floor, and she spotted someone watching the house from the nearby woods. And why does the housekeeper, Mrs Manning, insist on so many rules?

Then police officers arrive at the door with questions about the disappearance of a local woman. Sabrina is shocked to learn her charming employer, Theo Dorsey, was the last person to see the missing woman alive. He insists he’s innocent. Despite her growing doubts, Sabrina keeps her head down because she desperately needs this job. But then Theo is linked to another woman’s death several years before. And after finding out no one has seen the Dorsey’s previous librarian in years, she has to ask herself... Who can I trust in this family? And will I be next