Book Review: Greenwich

📚 Book Review: Greenwich

Kate Broad

🗓️ Publication Date: July 22, 2025 - OUT NOW!

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

📚 My Review: This book pulled me in with its moody summer setting and plot full of tension, emotion, and quiet drama. I found the writing to be really vivid, and I liked how the author captured the confusion of growing up and the thrill (and danger) of first love. The characters felt real, with secrets simmering just beneath the surface, and the stakes slowly building until everything came to a head! It was a gripping, emotional read about loyalty, truth, and the moment everything changes.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press via netgalley for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: Summer, 1999. Rachel Fiske is almost eighteen when she arrives at her aunt and uncle’s mansion in Greenwich, Connecticut. Her glamorous aunt is struggling to heal from an injury, and Rachel wants to help—and escape her own troubles back home. But her aunt is oddly spacey and her uncle is consumed with business, and Rachel feels lonely and adrift, excluded from the world of adults and their secrets. The only bright spot is Claudia, a recent college graduate, aspiring artist, and the live-in babysitter for Rachel’s cousin. As summer deepens, Rachel eagerly hopes their friendship might grow into more.

But when a tragic accident occurs, the family turns on Claudia in a desperate bid to salvage their reputation. Caught between her upbringing and her feelings for Claudia, her desire to do the right thing and to protect her future, Rachel must make a pivotal choice. She’s the only one who knows what really happened—and her decision has consequences far beyond what she could have predicted.

Book Review: Hot to Go

📚 Book Review: Hot to Go

Kristen Bailey

🗓️ Publication Date: July 18, 2025

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫

📚 My Review: This was such a fun read with the perfect mix of sunshine, and slow-burn romance. I loved the witty banter, the awkward (but hilarious) school moments, and the undeniable chemistry between Suzie and "not-Carlos". The writing had an easy, breezy flow that made it impossible to put down. If you’ve ever wondered what would happen if your vacation fling followed you home and then sat next to you in a staff meeting... this book is for you! A perfect escape with just the right amount of spice and swoon.

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

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: The vacation ended. The heat didn’t…

Meet Suzie French teacher, newly single, newly heartbroken. After an awful break-up, she heads to Mallorca for a much-needed holiday with her cousins, expecting sun, sangria, and siestas.

She isn’t expecting to fall in love – especially not with the handsome Spaniard who rescues her when she gets separated from her group during an ill-judged midnight skinny dip.

But what starts as a steamy holiday romance built on white lies and mistaken identities turns into something more complicated when “Carlos” shows up at the school she works at.

Except his name isn’t Carlos. It’s Charlie Carter, and he’s the new Spanish teacher.

Now they’re stuck in department meetings pretending they haven’t seen each other naked, both feeling thoroughly duped, both wondering if that hot holiday fling can exist in real life? But when they’re thrown together again on a school trip to Seville, the heat between them proves impossible to resist

Book Review: Haley Hope is Gone

📚 Book Review: Haley Hope is Gone

Michele Dominguez Greene

🗓️ Publication Date: July 10, 2025 - OUT NOW!

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

📚 My Review: This was a solid mystery with an eerie small-town setting and a dark, slow-burning plot. Emily Ray’s return to Lake Arrowhead brings emotional depth, and the tension builds nicely as she digs into a case no one wants reopened. The stakes felt real, especially with her father’s declining health adding urgency. That said, some of the twists were a bit easy to see coming, and the pacing seemed slow to me in spots. Still, the underlying mystery and themes of long-buried secrets kept me interested to the end and I'm invested enough to go back to read the first book!

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

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: Every small town has its secrets. Lake Arrowhead’s run bone-deep.

After closing the case that nearly destroyed her career, Special Agent Emily Ray is placed on mandatory leave and retreats to Lake Arrowhead with her father—a mountain town where she spent childhood summers. A peaceful vacation is just what she needs—until she learns about Hayley Hope, a fifteen-year-old girl found drowned in Papoose Lake. When Emily meets Hayley’s best friend Lillian Knox, the teen is convinced it was murder.

The local sheriff’s department dismissed it as a tragic drowning, case closed. But when threatening messages appear, she begins to unravel the small community’s web of silence and complicity. As Emily investigates—despite explicit orders not to—she uncovers a web of corruption. Young girls have been disappearing for years—vulnerable teens whose voices were silenced.

With only Lillian’s testimony and scattered clues to guide her, Emily races against escalating threats. Evidence vanishes, witnesses disappear, and her father’s deteriorating health puts him at risk as shadowy figures close in. Emily must uncover the dark truth behind Hayley’s death before another girl disappears.

Book Review: Party of Liars

📚 Book Review: Party of Liars

Kelsey Cox

🗓️ Publication Date: July 1, 2025 

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

📚 My Review: A glitzy fast-paced spin on the classic locked-room mystery. A Sweet Sixteen in a possibly haunted Texas mansion? YES, please! I loved how secrets unraveled and the motives surfaced. I also really enjoyed the multiple POV twisty writing style and oh! So much drama! This is perfect for fans of juicy whodunnits with a dark, glamorous edge.

Thank you to Minotaur Books via netgalley for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: A lavish, Texas-sized Sweet Sixteen turns deadly in this twisty, pulse-pounding new novel — serving up a fresh take on a classic locked-room whodunnit. Let the festivities begin…

Today is Sophie Matthews’s sixteenth birthday party, an exclusive black-tie bash in the heart of the Texas Hill Country, where secrets are as deep-rooted as the sprawling live oaks. Sophie’s dad has spared no expense, and his renovated cliffside mansion—once thought haunted—is now hosting the event of the season. Then, just before the candles on the three-tiered red velvet cake are blown out, a body falls from the balcony onto the starlit dance floor below.

It’s a killer guest list . . .

DANI: Sophie’s new stepmother who’s been plagued by self-doubt ever since the birth of her own baby girl

ÓRLAITH: the superstitious Irish nanny who senses a looming danger in this cavernous house

MIKAYLA: the birthday girl’s best friend who is not nearly as meek as the popular kids assume

KIM: the cunning ex-wife who has a grudge she can’t let go of . . .

Everyone is invited in. Not everyone will get out alive.

Book Review: Sunny Side Up

📚 Book Review: Sunny Side Up

Kate Sturino

🗓️ Publication Date: June 24, 2025

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

📚 My Review: Sunny Greene is bold and funny and I loved how she figured it all out one awkward date and body-positive pep talk at a time. I loved the writing style and how it made me laugh, cringe (in a good way), and root for her through it all. Between the ex reappearances, mailman flirtations, and business pitch drama, it was full of heart and sass. I'd say this is for anyone who is looking for a heartwarming self-love ride that shows that reinvention can be messy, but also empowering!

Thank you to Celadon Books via netgalley for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: Sunny Greene is thirty-five, recently divorced, facing the looming prospect of going solo to her little brother’s wedding, and currently trying to find anything plus-sized in the Bergdorf Goodman swimsuit department that doesn’t make her want to cry. It’s not going well. But isn’t rock bottom the perfect place to start a climb? 

She decides it’s now or never. Sunny has her PR empire, her gorgeous Chelsea apartment, her two dogs, and her loyal best friends. Maybe it's time to just love her body and accept herself for who she is. With a new commitment to confidence, her journey begins. Who says a plus-sized divorcee can’t put herself first, feel beautiful, and date up a storm?

Of course things are never straightforward in the dating world. Is fate knocking at her door with Dennis, the charming and down-to-earth mailman, or should she be with Ted, the business tycoon who seems ready to make her size-inclusive swimsuit brand a reality? And what should she do about her ex, who shows up unexpectedly, eager to reconnect?

With the same candor and confidence her followers love, Sturino brings us Sunny Greene, a Carrie Bradshaw for the next generation, and her journey through the trials and triumphs of dating, friendship, and finding yourself.

Book Review: The Widow's Husband

📚 Book Review: The Widow's Husband 

Natasha Boydell

🗓️ Publication Date: June 18, 2025

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

📚 My Review: Creepy, twisty, and completely addictive! I was suspicious of everyone

 At some point! Friends, neighbors, strangers, even Maggie’s husband being alive and I still didn’t see the ending coming. The romance plot with Gary added an interesting layer to all the tension and the slow unraveling of her world had me holding my breath. A chilling, gripping read that’ll leave you questioning everything!

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

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: Maggie has started venturing out of her house at last. Years of being held as a virtual prisoner by her controlling husband, Frank, she’s now free. She’s just taking little walks in the village, braving smiling at strangers, feeling delighted when they smile back.

Then, on one of her walks, she finds herself drawn to a poster in the window of the local pub, advertising an evening with a psychic. Maggie doesn’t believe in the supernatural, but decides it is the perfect place to finally meet some friends.

But the psychic has news for Maggie. She tells her that Frank is back. And that he’s got a message for her… And when strange things begin happening, Maggie can’t help but wonder – does someone have it in for her? Or could Frank have found a way to come back for her?

Book Review: Everything's Coming up Rosie

📚 Book Review: Everything's Coming up Rosie

Courtney Walsh

🗓️ Publication Date: June 10, 2025

📚 My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫

📚 My Review: A heartwarming and cozy read! Exactly what I love about Courtney Walsh's writing. Rosie’s journey was full of charm, humor, and unexpected lessons and I have to say that the quirky cast of seniors added so much fun! I enjoyed watching Dylan's story unfold and the sweet romance with Booker. The story reminds us that dreams can change—and that’s okay! This was a sweet, feel-good read with plenty of heart! Add it to your summer list!

Thank you to @Thomas Nelson Fiction via @netgalley for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

📚 Goodreads Synopsis: Sometimes what you think you want and what you actually want turn out to be different things . . .

Rosie Waterman has one to become a working actor. But lately, that hasn't been working out. When she loses her apartment and her job on the same day, she does what she always does--puts herself out there, ready to find the next big thing. But a trip home makes her realize that while she's been struggling to make this dream come true, all her friends have become real adults with careers and weddings and babies on the way. Rosie's been at this for years, and she has nothing to show for it. But how does she simply let go of her dream?

When she's offered a job as the director of a regional theatre's production of Cinderella, she jumps at the chance--even though she's only directed in college and the job is in Door County, Wisconsin, and not in New York. She has no other offers, and at least she'll be getting paid to do something theatrical. But when she arrives, she quickly realizes that the "regional theatre" is actually in a retirement community, and the "actors" are actually senior citizens with no acting experience whatsoever.

Working on the show presents new challenges, forcing Rosie to learn how to step up and be the leader this fledgling theatre troupe needs. The more time she spends with her new cast, the more she begins to rethink what it means to dream big, especially when that big dream hasn't turned out to be at all what she thought it would be. It's not at all what she expected, but could it be exactly what she needs?