The Briar Club by Kate Quinn
Goodreads blurb: A haunting and powerful story of female friendships and secrets in a Washington, D.C. boardinghouse during the McCarthy era.
Washington, D.C., 1950. Everyone keeps to themselves at Briarwood House, a down-at-the-heels all-female boardinghouse in the heart of the nation’s capital, where secrets hide behind white picket fences. But when the lovely, mysterious widow Grace March moves into the attic, she draws her oddball collection of neighbors into unlikely friendship: poised English beauty Fliss whose facade of perfect wife and mother covers gaping inner wounds; police officer’s daughter Nora, who is entangled with a shadowy gangster; frustrated baseball star Bea, whose career has ended along with the women’s baseball league of WWII; and poisonous, gung-ho Arlene, who has thrown herself into McCarthy’s Red Scare.
Grace’s weekly attic-room dinner parties and window-brewed sun tea become a healing balm on all their lives, but she hides a terrible secret of her own. When a shocking act of violence tears apart the house, the Briar Club women must decide once and for all: Who is the true enemy in their midst?
Capturing the paranoia of the McCarthy era and evoking the changing roles for women in postwar America, The Briar Club is an intimate and thrilling novel of secrets and loyalty put to the test.
My take: 4.5 out of 5. I love Kate Quinn’s books and this one did not disappoint. I loved how something as small as a female boarding house can represent the historical perspective of the entire nation. For as many characters as there are they are so well developed and you absolutely fall in love with the entire house (except 2 maybe). I wasn’t convinced at the beginning but by the end I as devouring this book and was so in love with it.
The First Time I Saw Him by Laura Dave
Goodreads blurb: Laura Dave continues Hannah Hall’s pulse-pounding journey in the riveting and deeply moving sequel to the #1 New York Times bestselling blockbuster and Apple TV+ show, The Last Thing He Told Me.
Five years after her husband, Owen, disappeared, Hannah Hall and her stepdaughter, Bailey, have settled into a new life in Southern California. Together, they’ve forged a relationship with Bailey’s grandfather Nicholas and are putting the past behind them.
But when Owen shows up at Hannah’s new exhibition, she knows that she and Bailey are in danger again.
Hannah and Bailey are forced to go on the run in a relentless race to keep their past from catching up with them. As a thrilling drama unfolds, Hannah risks everything to get Bailey to safety—and finds there just might be a way back to Owen and their long-awaited second chance.
A gripping, rich, and deeply moving novel about the power of forgiveness, The First Time I Saw Him picks up right where the epilogue for the “genuinely moving” (The New York Times) The Last Thing He Told Me left off, giving listeners the eagerly awaited and absolutely exhilarating sequel to Dave’s global blockbuster.
My take: 3.25 out of 5. This is one where the sequel is definitely not as good as the original. I understand the marketing reason to do this and needing a season 2 of the series, but clearly this book does not carry the same punch as the original. Its interesting, there are some twists (if way fewer than the first one) but its a mid book, not close to the thrills of the first one. Enjoyable if you liked the first book but you don’t have to run to read it, maybe watch only the series? The audiobook cast is stellar.
The Book Witch by Meg Shaffer
Goodreads blurb: She can hop into any novel, she just can’t stay there. Come along with the book witch in this magical and inspiring love letter to reading from the USA Today bestselling author of The Wishing Game.
Rainy March is a proud third-generation book witch, sworn to defend works of fiction from all foes real and imaginary. With her magical umbrella and feline familiar, she jumps into and out of novels to fix malicious alterations and rogue heroes.
Book witches live by a strict Real people belong in the real word; fictional characters belong in works of fiction…. Do not eat, drink, or sleep inside a fictional world, lest you become part of the story. Falling in love with a fictional character? Don’t even think about it.
Which is why Rainy has been forbidden from seeing the Duke of Chicago, the dashing British detective who stars in her favorite mystery series. If she’s ever caught with him again, she’ll be expelled from her book coven—and forced to give up the magical gifts that are as much a part of her as her own name.
But when her beloved grandfather disappears and a priceless book is stolen, there’s only one person she trusts to help her solve the case: the Duke. Their quest takes them through the worlds of Alice in Wonderland, The Great Gatsby, and other classics that will reveal hidden enemies and long-buried family secrets.
This is an ARC review thanks to a gift from the publisher. Book comes out on April 7th.
My take: 3 out of 5. This was a weird book. It was sweet but the twist and turns made it a bit too weird. I think it was trying to be too smart. I love the concept of Book witches and going in and out of books but it went very meta. Big points for good literary references and I will always love reading a boo about book lovers but this did not need to be as convoluted as it was.
Beneath by Ariel Sullivan
Goodreads blurb: Hundreds of years before the Illum ruled supreme, humanity risked everything to rebuild after a devastating war in this explosive dystopian romance and prequel to Conform.
Twenty-three-year-old Sasha Cadell knows time is running out in the underground city, filled with survivors of the nuclear fallout six years ago. She works in the Expansion Sector, trying to escape the memories of those she lost. Her bleak existence is upended when Tristian Hayes, a stunningly handsome, frustratingly determined commander of the Force, recruits her to join him and his elite team of soldiers as they embark on a secret mission to the surface.
Sasha is thrust into brutal training with stakes far beyond mere survival. The fate of the remaining humankind depends on their success—or failure. As she confronts her own demons, Sasha finds both allies and foes in the training program, as well as a sizzling attraction between her and Tristian that threatens the walls she’s built around her heart.
But under the surface, secrets and deception run as rampant as illnesses. And not everyone will survive the rise of a power more terrifying than anything they’ve ever known.
This is an ARC review thanks to a gift from the publisher. Book comes out on March 24th.
My take: 4 out of 5. I absolutely loved conform and I really wanted the next book to be the continuation of it. Nut no we now get a 9 part series so basically if conform is book 4 this is book 1, which also ends in a cliffhanger. Man this is a series that is going to require some serious patience maybe wait until its all over. But if you are like me and you wen t down the rabbit hole of conform it is worthwhile continuing. Although it has little to do with each other, there are some easter eggs but really you could read both as standalones. I was engaged and I’m loving where this is going but it was a bit less engaging that the original.
Anatomy of an Alibi by Ashley Elston
Goodreads blurb: A tense, feverish thriller about two women’s lives that are forever intertwined when a murder threatens to expose them both. “Elston expertly unravels a web of secrets and lies. You won’t be able to put this excellent thriller down until the final shocking page.” —Megan Mirand
Everyone at Chantilly’s Bar noticed out-of-towner Camille Bayliss. Red lips, designer heels, sipping a Negroni. But that woman wasn’t Camille Bayliss. It was Aubrey Price.
Camille Bayliss appears to have the picture-perfect life; she’s married to hotshot lawyer Ben and is the daughter of a wealthy Louisiana family. Only nothing is as it seems: Camille believes Ben has been hiding dirty secrets for years, but she can’t find proof because he tracks her every move.
Aubrey Price has been haunted by the terrible night that changed her life a decade ago, and she’s convinced Benjamin Bayliss knows something about it. Living in a house full of criminals, Aubrey understands there’s more than one way to get to the truth—and she may have found the best way in.
Aubrey and Camille hatch a plan. It sounds simple: For twelve hours, Aubrey will take Camille’s place. Camille will spy on Ben, and the two women will get the answers they desperately seek.
Except the next morning, Ben is found murdered. Both women need an airtight alibi, but only one of them has it. And one false step is all it takes for everything to come undone.
My take: 4 out of 5. Is it as good as First Lie Wins? no. Is it thoroughly enjoyable and the twists took me for a spin? very much yes. A good non scary whodunit, that you will read really fast. I did it in audiobook and really enjoyed the narration. I actually was mid on the book halfway but it kept getting better and what I thought was going to happen was not even close so I always enjoy that.
Tati's Tidbits 