Gone Before Goodbye by Reese Witherspoon & Harlan Coben
Goodreads blurb: An unforgettable suspense novel that combines the storytelling talents of Academy Award-winning actor Reese Witherspoon and internationally bestselling author Harlan Coben, Gone Before Goodbye is the story of a woman trapped in a deadly conspiracy—where uncovering the truth could cost her everything.
Maggie McCabe is teetering on the brink. A highly skilled and renowned Army combat surgeon, she has always lived life at the edge, where she could make the most impact. And it was all going to plan…until it wasn’t.
Upside down after a devastating series of tragedies leads to her medical license being revoked, Maggie has lost her purpose, but not her nerve or her passion. At her lowest point, she is thrown a lifeline by a former colleague, an elite plastic surgeon whose anonymous clientele demand the best care money can buy, as well as absolute discretion.
Halfway across the globe, sequestered in the lap of luxury and cutting-edge technology, one of the world’s most mysterious men requires unconventional medical assistance. Desperate, and one of the few surgeons in the world skilled enough to take this job, Maggie enters his realm of unspeakable opulence and fulfills her end of the agreement. But when the patient suddenly disappears while still under her care, Maggie must become a fugitive herself—or she will be the next one who is… Gone Before Goodbye.
My take: 4.25 out of 5. My recommendation queen, Reese Witherspoon, and my suspense king, Harlan Coben, decided to write a book together and of course I was going to be reading it ASAP. I had my doubts, I don’t trust the dual authors and it could have potentially just been a marketing ploy. However, against all odds this hit it out of the park. I was enthralled and finished this book so quickly. You really do not know where it is going, and it was a bit of everything, intrigue, crazy rich people, medical drama, thriller. It also makes you really freaked out that some of this things are probably really occurring all around you. If you are a thriller fan, this is a great read. I also did the audiobook and kind of loved that Reese read the female part.
The Heartbreak Hotel by Ellen O’Clover
Goodreads blurb: A bed-and-breakfast for the brokenhearted might hold the key to another chance at love in this achingly hopeful debut romance.
Louisa Walsh emerged from a tumultuous childhood with a degree in counseling, a wealthy boyfriend, and her sunny outlook on life mostly intact. But that optimism is tested when she’s dumped and left unable to afford rent on their gorgeous house in the mountains of Colorado. Even with her life in disarray, Lou knows losing the one stable place she’s ever called home is not an option.
She asks her reclusive landlord, Henry Rhodes, to let her stay for free in exchange for renting out the house’s many rooms as a bed-and-breakfast. She’s shocked when he agrees to her terms, and even more surprised to discover Henry is a handsome thirtysomething veterinarian with silver at his temples and sadness in his eyes. One who does not take it well when Lou starts marketing her B and B as a retreat for the recently heartbroken.
But as the Comeback Inn opens its doors to its weary, hopeful guests, Lou and Henry find themselves dancing around both their undeniable connection and the closely held secrets that threaten to topple this fragile new start. A chance at love, here, could be too close to home…or it could be exactly where their hearts finally heal.
This is an ARC review thanks to a gift from the publisher.
My take: 3.5 out of 5. This is a sweet if totally predictable romance. A perfect book for those nursing a heartache, and those who love a bit of psychology with their fiction. The characters were well developed and engaging. Also the idea of a hotel to nurse your heartbreak is kind of brilliant.
The Academy by Elin Hilderbrand and Shelby Cunningham
Goodreads blurb: #1 bestselling author Elin Hilderbrand teams up with her daughter, Shelby Cunningham, to deliver a dishy, page-turning novel following an intertwined cast of characters over the course of one drama-filled year at a New England boarding school.
It’s move-in day at Tiffin Academy and amidst the happy chaos of friends reuniting, selfies uploading, and cars unloading, shocking news: America Today just ranked Tiffin the number two boarding school in the country. It’s a seventeen-spot jump – was there a typo? The dorms need to be renovated, their sports teams always come in last place, and let’s just say Tiffin students are known for being more social than academic. On the other hand, the campus is exquisite, class sizes are small, and the dining hall is run by an acclaimed New York chef. And they do have fun—lots of parties and school dances, and a piano man plays in the student lounge every Monday night.
But just as the rarefied air of Tiffin is suffused with self-congratulation, the wheels begin to turn – and then they fall off the bus. One by one, scandalous blind items begin to appear on phones across Tiffin’s campus, thanks to a new app called ZipZap, and nobody is safe. From Davi Banerjee, international influencer and resident queen bee, to Simone Bergeron, the new and surprisingly young history teacher, to Charley Hicks, a transfer student who seems determined not to fit in, to Cordelia Spooner, Admissions Director with a somewhat idiosyncratic methodology – everyone has something to hide.
As if high school wasn’t dramatic enough…As the year unfolds, bonds are forged and broken, secrets are shared and exposed, and the lives of Tiffin’s students and staff are changed forever. The Academy is Elin Hilderbrand’s fresh, buzzy take on boarding school life, and a thrilling new direction from one of America’s most satisfying and popular storytellers.
My take: 3.75 out of 5. I don’t really know if much happened but I was engrossed by the end and want the sequel. Its a book that should have been YA and it is not and it looses appeal because of it as really the expectations were different. I even went to the launch event and it was very much instilled that it is not a YA book. It is also a hardcover so it gives you different expectations. Every single adult character in this book is appalling, like not even mildly redeeming. This feels also a bit odd because i get that there are weird characters but to make it a bit believable let me think that there is at least one adult in this world that is not crazy. However, I do want to know what happens and what is in the freaking envelope (IYKYK) so I will be reading the continuation of this. But really it could have just been one book, but I get it they need the checks. Side note: East is great give me so much more east in the next book please. .
Alchemy of Secrets by Stephanie Garber
Goodreads blurb: It starts with a class in an old movie theater. Folklore 517: Local Legends and Urban Myths, taught by a woman called the Professor. Most students believe the Professor’s stories are just fiction, but Holland St. James has always been convinced that magic is real. When she tracks down a local legend named the Watch Man, who can supposedly tell you when you’ll die, the world finally makes sense. Except that the Watch Man tells her she will die at midnight tomorrow unless she finds an ancient object called the Alchemical Heart.
With the clock ticking, Holland is pulled deeper into this magical world in the heart of Los Angeles—and into the path of a magnetic stranger. Everything about him feels like a bad idea, but he promises Holland that her sister sent him to protect her. As they chase clues and stories that take them closer to the Alchemical Heart, Holland realizes everyone in this intoxicating new world is lying to her, even this stranger. And if she can’t figure out whom to trust, not even the Alchemical Heart will save her.
My take: 4.25 out of 5. I think I didn’t know what was happening for half this book but man was I engaged. A total rollercoaster that really only stops until the last second, and I was in for the whole of the ride. This is magical but its also a great character story and I really was being taken on some sharp turns by these people. This is the baby of Historical Fiction and magical realism that I am very happy it exists.
I’m Gonna Get You Back by Elena Armas
Goodreads blurb: Haunted by a stalker and the ashes of her career, Frankie Rossi travels to Vermont hoping for one last chance—but instead collides with the man she’s never been able to forget.
Once a celebrated suspense novelist, Frankie arrives at a small book convention carrying more secrets than she can bear. The last person she expects to see is Turner Reece—her brother’s best friend, her first love, and the man who still owns her heart…even if he’s engaged to someone else. But Turner has secrets of his own, and their reunion is charged with everything they’ve left unsaid: longing, regret, and a chemistry that refuses to stay buried.
As anonymous gifts turn sinister and a blizzard snows them in with Frankie’s stalker, the fragile hope she’s building with Turner is pushed to the edge. Can they finally claim the love they’ve both been running from—or will the darkness shatter their second chance?
From the bestselling author of The Spanish Love Deception comes a gripping new novella—available only in audio.
3.25 a quick, audiobook only, from Elena Armas who is fantastic. I do not know what to call this, a scary romance? Romantic thriller? Whatever it is it was good. It was mysterious, sexy and it will fly by.
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