How to Write a Love Story by Catherine Walsh
Goodreads blurb: The newest book from bestselling author and Kindle Unlimited sensation Catherine Walsh, in which an ambitious editor travels to Ireland to help the daughter of a fantasy author legend complete her father’s final book, only to fall in love with her in the process.
Ciara Sheridan’s father has left her with three things: a sprawling and distinctly ramshackle estate on the Irish coast, the outline for the finale to his bestselling epic fantasy series that he wanted her to finish—and writer’s block.
Enter Sam Frank Sheridan fanboy and hotshot editor, sent from the New York publishing house direct to Ciara’s doorstep. Ciara was expecting a crusty old-timer, so the handsome young American is a surprise. And for his part, Sam was expecting Ciara to have written something by now.
Ciara and Sam have two weeks of the hottest Irish summer on record to write this novel together and secure Frank’s legacy—but will their own love story be the plot twist neither of them see coming?
my take: 3.5 out of 5. Although a tad absurd in its setting, a really sweet and charming lover story about book lovers and book writers. For romance fans that are also Game of Thrones groupies this is right up your alley as Ciara’s father used to write what would be a Game of Thrones styles book. It is absolutely predictable but sweet.
Lake Effect by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney
Goodreads blurb: It’s 1977 and an air of restlessness has settled on the residents of Cambridge Road in Rochester, New York. When Nina Larkin is given a copy of The Joy of Sex by her newly divorced friend, she can no longer dismiss the nearly non-existent intimacy of her marriage. Just as her oldest child, Clara, is falling in love for the first time, Nina finds herself longing for the a midlife awakening. An intoxicating fling with a neighbour brings Nina a freedom she never thought possible—but also risks the reputations of both families and unravels Clara’s world, just as she stands on the threshold of adulthood.
Years later, Clara, now a successful food stylist in New York City, has never been able to move past the long-ago scandal. Drawn back home by the pull of a family wedding and wrestling with her own demons, she makes a pivotal decision that turns her life upside down.
Written with Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney’s signature humor and insight, LAKE EFFECT is a wise and probing look at love and desire, mothers and daughters, loss and grief, and what we owe the people we love most.
my take: 4.25 out of 5. An interesting family dynamics story in the 70s and 90s. Its family drama meets romance meets complicated cul de sac dynamics int he best of ways. I actually wanted to like it more, it is straight up my alley, but at times the book dragged and Clara is absolutely insufferable so I had to deduct some points for that. I do love how the 70s and 90s are now like historical fiction, it feels so close yet so far away.
Lady Tremaine by Rachel Hochhauser
Goodreads blurb: A breathtaking reimagining of Cinderella, as told through the eyes of its iconic “evil” stepmother, revealing a propulsive love story about the lengths a mother will go to for her children
A widow twice-over, Etheldreda is now saddled with the care of her two children, a priggish stepdaughter, and a razor-taloned peregrine falcon. Her entire life has become a ruse, just like the manor hall they live grand and ornate on the exterior, but crumbling, brick by brick, inside. Fierce in the face of her misfortune, Ethel clings to her family’s respectability, the lifeboat that will float her daughters straight into the secure banks of marriage.
When a royal ball offers the chance to secure the future she desperately desires, Etheldreda must risk her secrets, pride, and limited resources in pursuit of an invitation for her daughters—only to see her hopes fulfilled by the wrong one. As an engagement to the heir of the kingdom unfolds with unnerving speed, she discovers a sordid secret hidden in the depths of the royal family, forcing her to choose between the security she’s sought for years and the wellbeing of the feckless stepdaughter who has rebuffed her at every turn.
As if Bridgerton met Circe, and exhilarating to its core, Lady Tremaine reimagines the myth of the evil stepmother at the heart of the world’s most famous fairytale. It is a battle cry for a mother’s love for her daughters, and a celebration of women everywhere who make their own fortunes.
This is an ARC review thanks to a gift from the publisher.
my take: 4.5 out of 5. This book is a brilliant Cinderella retelling. If you like me are a fan of both Disney and Historical Fiction this is the book for you. Beautifully written and so cleverly intertwined. The supposed great qualities that we see from Cinderella in the regular narration are spinned on its head here in a really interesting manner. Also, I am a fan of the Stepmother now, a total kick ass woman, not portrayed as evil but as a woman doing what needs to be done in the world to get by. A great story of what is family, love and what are you willing to do to get ahead and protect the ones you love. Please Read!
Wild Goose Chase by Sarah Adler
Goodreads blurb: An antique dealer and his inconvenient(ly irresistible) new colleague must contend with an illicit stuffed goose and their sizzling attraction, from USA Today bestselling author Sarah Adler.
Antique store owner Callahan Leitner has an illegal taxidermy goose in his living room.
Why? It’s…complicated.
But it may end his career unless he finds a legitimate way to dispose of the bird ASAP. Unfortunately, there’s an unexpected wrench in his plans—the frustrating, effervescent Annie O’Neill.
Annie is happy to fill in for her uncle at his antique store; it’s the perfect opportunity to gain more experience before opening a shop of her own, and to finally meet his handsome young business partner. Unfortunately, Cal is nothing like the charming man she expected. She’s tempted to take his apparent dislike personally, until she stumbles upon the source of his the contraband waterfowl hiding upstairs.
When the goose goes missing, it puts both of their professional reputations on the line. As Cal and Annie attempt to track down the bird before it can be traced back to the store, their tentative alliance turns into something much deeper. Will the hunt for their felonious fowl lead to true love, or end in ruin?
This is an ARC review thanks to a gift from the publisher.
my take: 2.75 out of 5. I think this is the book where Sara Adler lost me. Mr. Nash’s Ashes was quirky in an adorable way. Finders Keepers and Lost Medium was quirky but moving into the weird category but I was still ok with it and riding the wave even if I wasn’t so excited for it. The weird and quirky in Wild Goose Chase went to the absurd and it was just a little too much to care. I was just not into it. The whole reason why the goose appears is just wild and it lost me. Its also an enemies to lover which is not really since the pretended to be enemies but they both liked each other from before so its weird too. I did think their relationship was sweet and that was the only reason I did not DNF.
My Husband’s Wife by Alice Feeney
Goodreads blurb: The New York Times bestselling Queen of Twists is back with a psychological masterpiece that will leave you questioning everything you know about love, identity, and revenge.
Eden Fox, an artist on the brink of her big break, sets off for a run before her first exhibition. When she returns to the home she recently moved into, Spyglass, an enchanting old house in Hope Falls, nothing is as it should be. Her key doesn’t fit. A woman, eerily similar to her, answers the door. And her husband insists that the stranger is his wife.
One house. One husband. Two women. Someone is lying.
Six months earlier, a reclusive Londoner called Birdy, reeling from a life-changing diagnosis, inherits Spyglass. This unexpected gift from a long-lost grandmother brings her to the pretty seaside village of Hope Falls. But then Birdy stumbles upon a shadowy London clinic that claims to be able to predict a person’s date of death, including her own. Secrets start to unravel, and as the line between truth and lies blurs, Birdy feels compelled to right some old wrongs.
My Husband’s Wife is a tangled web of deception, obsession, and mystery that will keep you guessing until the last page. Prepare yourself for the ultimate mind-bending marriage thriller and step inside Spyglass – if you dare – to experience a story where nothing is as it seems.
My take: 2.75 out of 5. This one was just not for me. It had too many plotlines which leaves plot holes that annoy me. Also the ending felt slapped in and not really logical. I do have to say the start is brilliant, it just went downhill from there at the end. I might be the only person in the world not loving this and I am ok with that
Tati's Tidbits 