While Paris Slept

 While Paris Slept

Author: Ruth Druart

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing 

Year: 2021

In the midst of unspeakable horror and terror, a panicked mother thrusts her infant son into the hands of a stranger in a desperate attempt to save her baby. 

While Paris Slept is an engrossing story of survival, love, and what it means to be a family. Set during WWII and in a few years after the war, it is the story of young Sam and the two sets of parents who love him. His Jewish birth parents entrust Sam’s survival to stranger as they were about to be deported to Auschwitz. The man, a railroad worker, took the baby and fled Paris with his girlfriend. They made the treacherous journey to America with baby Sam. They were living the American dream after the war when they found out Sam’s birth parents survived the concentration camp and now want their son back. 

Told from multiple points of view, this compelling story of love, sacrifice, family, and identity, is perfect for fans of historical fiction and domestic dramas. 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Huntress

 The Huntress 

Author: Kate Quinn

Narrator: Saskia Maarleveld

Publisher: Harper Audio

Year: 2019

I listened to The Huntress by Kate Quinn awhile ago. It was engrossing! I loved the main characters Nina and Jordan. Nina is  a fearless Russian woman who wants to fly. She becomes a pilot for the Night Witches, an all female Russian bombing regiment. Jordan is a high school girl in post-war Boston who dreams of becoming a photographer. They are two smart, strong women determined to follow their dreams instead of society’s expectations.

The story is told from different points of view and the timeline bounces between WWII and a few years after the war. Quinn is a master at weaving all the different threads, POVs and timelines together into a tightly plotted narrative that races along like a jet through the air. Saskia Maarleveld’s narration is outstanding.

She handles the multiple characters’ accents, which include Russian, British, German, Boston, and New York, with aplomb. The story, characters, and narration all come together for a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️read. 

The Weekend Away

 The Weekend Away

Author: Sarah Alderson

Publisher: Harper 360

Year: 2021

Happy Publication Day - a day late! 

BFFs Orla and Kate head off on a girls weekend to catch up and recharge their friendship. They’ve drifted apart since Orla and her husband had a baby, while Kate is in the midst of a messy divorce. 

Kate’s night out on the town is far different from what Orla expects. Kate takes Orla to a late dinner at an expensive restaurant and then to a club where Kate starts flirting with two men. Kate invites the two men back to their Airbnb over Orla’s drunken protests. The next morning, Orla wakes up with only scattered memories of the previous night and Kate missing. As the hours pass without Kate turning up, Orla sets out to find her friend and figure out what happened. The more Orla looks for Kate, the more secrets she uncovers about her best friend and herself. 

This is an entertaining thriller that’s perfect for a quick read by the pool or at the beach. Orla is a likable main character and the book has lots of lies for her to untangle. This is perfect for fans of the Lifetime channel’s movie mysteries. 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 

Thank you to NetGalley, author Sarah Alderson  and Harper 360 for the eARC of the book. The Weekend Away publishes on April 13th. 

Where would you like to go for a weekend away with your BFF? 

#theweekendaway #sarahalderson #harper360 #netgalley #thriller #missingperson #killerweekend #bff #girlstrip #mystery #lisbon #bookstagram #bookworm #alwaysreading #publishingsoon #beachread #vaction #mysteryfiction 

Gone ‘til November

 Gone ‘til November 

Author: Wallace Stroby

Publisher: Tantor Media

Year: 2010

Confession- I get tired of the psychological thriller sub genre. Don’t get me wrong- there are lots of great psychological thrillers. But I’ve gotten to the point where if a book’s description says psychological thriller, I might not pick it up. I like my thrillers with some action. Give me a bank robbery, jewelry heist, or drug deal gone bad. So I’m always looking for thrillers that are different. One of my go to authors for this is Wallace Stroby. His modern day noir thrillers usually involve professional thieves, crime bosses,  some kind of crime gone wrong, and maybe a shady cop. 

Gone ‘til November features sheriff’s deputy Sara Cross. She’s first to arrive on the scene at an officer involved shooting. Her former partner (and former lover) has fatally shot a man during what should have been a routine traffic stop. But something about the incident doesn’t sit right with Sara and she starts digging for the truth. 

Stroby and narrator Karen White deliver a tightly wound story of greed, murder, and a search for truth. Perfect for fans of gritty crime fiction and who like strong female main characters. 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#gonetillnovember #wallacestroby #karenwhite #tantormedia #audiobooks #audiobookreview #libbyapp #librarybook #nior #modernnior #crimefiction #crimefictionbooks #crimefictionnovel #backlistbooks #backlist 

Later

 Later 

Author: Stephen King

Publisher: Hard Case Crime

Year: 2021

Jamie sees dead people - or more accurately the recently departed. He’s had this special ability since he was a little boy. Sometimes it’s gross and scary. Sometimes it’s hard to tell the person is dead. Eventually the ghost, spirt, or whatever you want to call it fades away. 

Jamie’s special ability doesn’t usually affect his life until one day it does. Liz, Jamie’s mom’s girlfriend, is a cop trying to hang on to her job. The police have been trying to catch a bomber who had been terrorizing the city for years. The bomber is dead, but he left one final bomb. Liz knows if she can find the final bomb before it goes off, she’ll keep her job. She enlists Jamie’s help in finding the recently departed bomber. She wants Jamie to talk to the dead man and to find out where he planted his last bomb. The recently departed can’t lie when asked a direct question. As Jamie questions the dead man, he realizes something is different.

Something evil has taken over the dead man. Something terrifying that won’t fade away. 

I flew through Stephen King’s new book for Hard Case Crime. I loved Jamie and his mom. Jamie’s breezy first person point of view is like a mesmerizing story a stranger tells you over beers in a dark bar. There’s humor, suspense, evil, and main character with lots of heart. 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

March Wrap Up

 March Reading Wrap Up

Goodbye March! Hello April!

I had another good month and enjoyed 13 books this month. 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Four Winds

Later

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Paris Library

Three Hours in Paris

A Beautiful Crime

Slay 🎧

The Cousins 🎧

The Better Liar

Gone ‘til November 

Confessions on the 7:45

The Weekend Away

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Next Year in Havana 

She’s too Pretty to Burn

The Four Winds wasn’t a happy, enjoyable read. I’ve seen many reviews on Instagram and Facebook saying it was sad and depressing, but I thought it was inspiring. Yes, the time period of the book (the Great Depression) and subject matter (Dust Bowl, hunger, poverty) are sad, depressing, topics. But the characters were resilient, loving, hopeful, and inspiring. 

I read The Paris Library for our Instagram group read #betweenfriendsbookclub.A Beautiful Crime was a #bookstgrammademedoit read. Thank you to @netgalley for the digital ARCs of She’s too Pretty to Burn and The Weekend Away. 

What was your favorite March read? 

#thefourwinds #theweekendaway #later #confessionsonthe745 #gonetilnovember #thebetterliar #thecousins #sly #shestooprettytoburn #abeautifulcrime #nextyearinhavana #threehoursinparis #theparislibrary #readingwrapup #monthlywrapup #alwaysreading #ebooks #audiobooks #librarybooks #kindle #audible