A Perfect Hand: A Novel
by Ayelet Waldman
Surprising and entertaining (4/25/2026)
What delightful historical fiction! If I didn't know better, I'd have thought the book was written by Jane Austin or a novelist of that perfect. The tone and story itself is consummate 19th C!
As the book blurb says, this book is about two 19th C servants plotting to get their employers married to each other so the two can marry and be together.
Alice Lockey is maid to Lady Jemima Alderwick while Charlie Wells is valet to Viscount Nigel Wynstowe, one of Jemima's suitors. Alicia can read (not many servants in those days could), so the books Jemima's aunt gives her like those of John Stuart Mill, hold no interest for Jemima they do for Alice. Alice is intrigued. Then during one of Alice's errands to London, she meets Emmeline, an administrator for the Society for the Promotion of Employment for Women or as its unfortunate acronym is known:
SPEW (I found that so funny). Captivated by Emmeline and SPEW's literature, Alice realizes she and Charlie may be mismatched. Alice has greater visions for herself. The ending to this book is so incredibly clever, I do not want to spoil it for future readers. Suffice it to say, it's worth reading this book to find out.
This may seem a romance at face value but it's deeper than that. We are treated to the lives of English servants not the peers and see what they face in their day to day existence. Alice views her life as potentially equal to a man (shocking!) and why not.
This is a story about balancing love and ambition.
Highly recommend.
A Perfect Hand: A Novel
by Ayelet Waldman
Delightful historical fiction (4/24/2026)
What delightful historical fiction! If I didn't know better, I'd have thought the book was written by Jane Austin or a novelist of that perfect. The tone and story itself is consummate 19th C! As the book blurb says, this book is about two 19th C servants plotting to get their employers married to each other so the two can marry and be together. Alice Lockey is maid to Lady Jemima Alderwick while Charlie Wells is valet to Viscount Nigel Wynstowe, one of Jemima's suitors. Alicia can read (not many servants in those days could), so the books Jemima's aunt gives her like those of John Stuart Mill, hold no interest for Jemima they do for Alice. Alice is intrigued. Then during one of Alice's errands to London, she meets Emmeline, an administrator tor the Society for the Promotion of Employment for Women or as its unfortunate acronym is known:
SPEW (I found that so funny). Captivated by Emmeline and SPEW's literature, Alice realizes she and Charlie may be mismatched. Alice has greater visions for herself. The ending to this book is so incredibly clever, I do not want to spoil it for future readers. Suffice it to say, it's worth reading this book to find out.
This may seem a romance at face value but it's deeper than that. We are treated to the lives of English servants not the peers and see what they face in their day to day existence. Alice views her life as potentially equal to a man (shocking!) and why not.
This is a story about balancing love and ambition.
Highly recommend.
The Tuxedo Society: A Novel
by Paul Rudnick
Great spy spoof (4/24/2026)
What a fun read! A crazy addictive spoof of the spy worlds of James Bond, Jason Bourne, George Smiley and Ethan Hunt but featuring a new hero: gay Andrew Birnbaum and his fellow gay spies, the Tuxedo Spies. Andrew Birnbaum is recruited by his friend to join the Tuxedo Society, an exclusive society for queer men and women, who are dedicated to saving the world.
Andrew is an unemployed and lazy actor and can do voices and the Tuxes need that. Through a series of madcap adventures around the world, Andrew and cohorts recover diamonds, save Reata Pershing, the President's wife (AKA Michelle Obama), take down a mad grandma and other powerful enemies. Andrew is a goofball but actually turns out to be pretty at the spy thing.
The book is filled with so many spy tropes that are snarky, witty and outrageously funny to name - the reader will have no trouble recognizing them though.
It's writing at its best.
This is a book for lovers of satire or just in need of a plain good laugh-out-laugh read.
I'd like to thank NetGalley and Atria Books for allowing me access to this ARC.
The Summer Boy: A Novel
by Philippe Besson
Coming of age (4/22/2026)
This novel may be considered part auto-fiction as well as a fictional coming-of-age novel about a summer in 1985 when six French teenagers (five boys and one girl) spend a summer on an island, Sablanceaux, and experience a series of "firsts." Told in first person by the narrator, Philippe, an 18 year old who comes to Sablanceaux each summer with his family. Socially, unlike his friends, Marc and Christophe, Philippe is not from the working class, which he ponders as he considers the differences their lives may take, as evidenced in the book's Epilogue. Within arrival Philippe meets and is attracted to Nicholas who had moved to the island with his mother to escape an abusive father. As the summer goes on, an event occurs which changes life then and later for these six teenagers.
Philippe tells his story retrospectively so he's wiser than his 18 year old self. He's still confused by what happened and considers it as "his loss of innocence." The tone of the book is plaintive but with a depth of emotion that gives you pause as you consider what Philippe might have felt and thought during this summer. Very moving.
I'd like to thank NetGalley and Scribner for granting me access to this ARC.
Caller Unknown: A Novel
by Gillian McAllister
Fast-paced thriller (4/22/2026)
This is a fast paced, exciting thriller asking the question: what would you do to save your child? It’s a propulsive read and one that keeps you on the edge of your seat. As the title suggests, a series of calls from an unknown number set off events that test the moral fiber of the characters.
Simone Seaborn and her daughter, Lucy, are on a camping trip in Texas having a long awaited vacation. They settle down for the night at a motel where Simone receives a call from an unknown number saying Lucy, has been kidnapped. Instead of a ransom, she must now commit crimes herself if she wants to get Lucy back, and in doing these she must navigate small Texas towns and remote desert areas. For Simone motherhood is her pride and joy after having had a traumatic childhood, so she sees no other choice.
The tension is at time unbearable. As each task is given you wonder will it ever end. You feel intensely for Simone and it’s heart wrenching at times. This is a perfect read for lovers of psychological thrillers with an edge of tenuous morality in the telling.
I’d like to thank NetGalley and William Morris for allowing me to read this ARC.
Dissection of a Murder: A Novel
by Jo Murray
Excellent thriller (4/22/2026)
Stunning, propulsive and brilliant! I was held captive from the moment I started reading. And that ending!
Leila Reynolds is a barrister (my thanks to the author for explaining the difference between a barrister and a solicitor) who’s been given her first murder trial case which also will be prosecuted by her husband, Julian Kessler, high power attorney who hasn’t lost a case. On top of it all, her client, Jack Millman, offers no defense. The book takes us through case prep, trial and aftermath. It’s an interesting procedural read but the tension rises as Witness X’s thoughts are interposed between those of Leila’s - who is Witness X?
I enjoyed the subtlety of this book and the creeping suspense - always second guessing myself as the twists and turns abound. I truly didn’t see that ending coming. This was an all around clever story perfect for readers who love to be challenged during a thriller.
I’d like to thank NetGalley and Dutton for allowing me to read this ARC.
The Players Club: A Novel
by Rachel Mills
Life-play (4/20/2026)
This book posits an interesting premise: changing your identity to experience a self outside your true self. Through elaborate role play, the protagonist in this novel in trying on other identities to make up for what she feels is an unfulfilled life. Beth Greenwood, a 38 year old graphic designer, meet a woman who invites her to join a secret society of women who help each other temporarily live out different lives. Through this group female friendships are formed that bolster self esteem. While the rules are secret, Beth shares them with her sister, Elspeth, who is diagnosed with a rare disease altering the life-play for Beth.
I liked the concept of life-play which in the beginning was fun and light hearted. But when Elspeth becomes ill, identity change for Beth takes on darker side in her desire to save her sister's life. Beth herself is having an identity crisis. It was at this point when the book seemed to veer off the initial premise that I wasn't sure what the point was. I think by bifurcating the story this way something was lost. Still I enjoyed the read as it was interesting.
I'd like to thank NetGalley and Atria Books for allowing me to read this ARC.
Henry Tudor Must Die
by Jillian Laine
Fantasy and history meet (4/19/2026)
What a wonderful treat to bring Anne Boylen and Catherine of Aragon back to life - and restore their legacy to doing good for women! Both women have been vilified in history - men usually get to write the histories so is there any reason they don't come out nice - but maybe they had their own secrets and demons to resolve. This is a fun-filled historical fiction treat with magical realism, witchcraft, beautiful make-believe, and a feminist theme that is sure to delight a lot of readers.
We meet Anne on the day before her execution. She is being rescued by "Lina" AKA Catalina (Catherine of Aragon) and given magic to save her from beheading. It seems Anne already possessed this power, but she needed a boost. Lina had been sent by Marguerite of Angouleme who represents an order of medieval women, the Hellebore Sisters, she has assembled to fight misogyny and empower women. The two start of journey of building the sisterhood and meet others like the sister of Joan of Arc. But once Jane Seymour is dead, Lina and Anne return to England to complete their quest - as we know from history, Henry was a "bad" guy when it came to women. There they meet Anna of Kleves, Katherine Howard and Catherine Parr.
This story is pure make-believe of course but it's such fun to read. However, when it comes to actual historical events, the book is spot on. I've always detested the period of history of Henry VIII because of his greed, the terrible men he surrounded himself with, and his despicable treatment of women - especially Catherine of Aragon - so I was happy to enter the world of make-believe and see him get his comeuppance!
This is a book for lovers of historical fiction who like to see history twisted to see the bad guys thwarted. Highly recommend.
I'd like to thank BookBrowse/Netgalley and Berkley Publishing for allowing me to read this ARC.
Somebody Worth Killing
by Jessica Payne
Fun romp into murder, mayhem and love (4/16/2026)
What a fun romp into murder, mayhem and love! This is my first book by this author and I'm definitely going to have to read more of her work. Nadia Davis is an assassin. She has a good life - a loving husband, two beautiful daughters, PTA - but her real compulsion is killing "bad" people (Nadia has standards!). When a fellow assassin hints that she's not being giving high profile kills because she's a mom, Nadia checks into that and is finally given one.
Only the high profile turns out not to be anyone she expected. Faced with the possible dilemma that she might not be killing a "bad" person, she consults her grandmother (she's an interesting character in the story). What happens next would be a spoiler, so read the book, you will definitely not be disappointed.
I enjoyed Nadia. While living in a morally grey world, she has a warmth and a concern for others. When faced with executing the biggest job of life, her internal "morality" (only bad guys) takes over. Nadia also has a deep reserve of love for her husband - that was sweet to have in this book; it adds to the moral complexity of this story. The pacing was perfect too.
And, I liked the hint at the end that maybe Nadia has a "bad" person left to deal with (sequel would be great).
l'd like to thank BookBrowse/NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for allowing me access to this ARC.
Good Joy, Bad Joy: A Novel
by Mikki Brammer
The “joys” of aging (4/16/2026)
The joys of aging unfold in this sweet book. The choices one can make as one grows old are part of this delightful story too. Growing old is no picnic - l know from experience- but that doesn't mean you have to give up living as Joy, the 89 year old protagonist, decides.
When Joy learns her best friend, Hazel, has been diagnosed with terminal cancer, Joy becomes aware of the profound change this will mean to her. As Hazel has always been the more adventurous of the two, Joy determines she can't be tied to her old self.
Venturing to stretch herself she comes to realize this new side of her might not be the legacy she wants to leave.
The friendship between Hazel and Joy is so heartwarming. This is a friendship study but but also a consideration of what life has to offer as you age. Life doesn't stop at 89 as Joy learns. You still have plenty of choices left.
I'd like to thank NetGalley and St Martin's Press for allowing me accept to this ARC.
This Is Not About Running: A Memoir
by Mary Cain
Can’t out it down memoir (4/16/2026)
I could not put this memoir down from the moment I read the first two sentences. I knew nothing about the author but after I finished the last sentence of her amazing book I was so in awe of this woman's courage and resilience after years of sports abuse.
Mary Cain was one of the fastest runners of her generation in middle distance events. From middle school on she was outperforming girls older than her.
At the age of 16, she was recruited to be coached by Alberto Salazar at the Nike Oregon Project (NOP), a program designed to cultivate young runners. While the abuse in that program is horrific, her lite as a young runner in middle school wasn't much better.
There while she was not physically abused by dieting and other things, she was bullied by her coach, her teammates and their parents. Jealousy is the key ingredient for that - and even later in competitive racing where opponents snubbed her. In NOP, staff were not qualified like the sports psychologist who only brought on Mary's troubling self loathing as she struggled to lose weight and lost races (usually not placing high enough to make the cut). By the time she left the program she was a shell of who she had been when she first arrived. But due to a NY Times article she helped write, she helped expose the program, regained her dignity, went in to sue Nike, and establish an advocacy group for young girl runners.
While this is a fairly long book, the chapters are short and the language is clear, precise and sharp, making the reading fast. Truly I was mesmerized in the read. This is such a tragic story but told with such honesty. It's a must read for parents who are considering or seeing their children as championship material.
Too Close to Home: A Novel
by Seraphina Nova Glass
Great thriller (4/16/2026)
Received an invitation to listen to this thriller just a few days before its publication (thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Audio for letting me listen to this excellently narrated book). The story kept me interested from the very beginning.
Three women's stories become interconnected when a bomb blows up one of their cars. Regan, Sasha and Andi are among the suburban housewives of Clover hills Lake, Connecticut, a quiet, sedate place where nothing untoward happens. Regan thinks she sees her husband's ghost, Sasha is outrunning a scary past and Andi is dealing with an ugly divorce. Somehow that bomb incident seems directed at Regan and the three try to figure out if this is true.
As the story develops, there are lots of twists and turns that keep you going - by now you are so fully engaged in the listen you think about turning the speed to 5 (definitely not recommended) because you want to get to the ending - it's a good one! Three women's stories pacing is fast, the characters are interesting - though this is a plot story. You can't go wrong reading this novel.
Summer of Love
by Kerri Maher
Poignant, heartfelt historical fiction (4/14/2026)
A moving, poignant and loving portrait of three women as they come of age during a "summer of love" separated by forty plus years. It explores the consequences of decisions made hastily but not thoughtfully. And, it is a stunning tribute to a golden age and to women.
Set in a dual time line that alternates between 1967-1970s and 2015, this book deals with three women: Winifred ("Winnie"), her sister, Miranda, and Dawn. Winnie and Miranda are daughters of a Napa winery owner. Winnie is a free spirit and artist, taking off after college gradation, while Miranda assumes a role in the winery. The turbulent 60s and its counterculture takes Winnie down a spiraling road to a broken heart.
Returning to her roots yo recover, she grapples with being back at the winery as she renews her ties with Miranda. But when she is lured back to her love, Winnie finds that heartbreak is her decision and other consequences are her burden. She hands these to Miranda as she runs away. In 2015 we meet Dawn struggling with alcoholism and discovering a book that has deep meaning to her and her family.
Seeking answers she uncovers the most closely guarded family secret. I loved the writing, the story, the characters, the setting - I've been to Sonoma, Temecula but not Napa, but the beauty of any winery does not escape me. The book captured my interest immediately and based on what the author wrote in her Afterword, she exquisitely captured the essence of this California setting. Having grown up in the 60s, I kept hearing.
"California Dreaming" as I read and the historical element to this book is well done.
This is a book for lovers of historical fiction that’s honest, real and heartfelt. Highly recommend.
Thank you BookBrowse/NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for giving me access to this ARC.
The Original: A Novel
by Priya Parmar
Great historical fiction (4/13/2026)
An enjoyable historical fiction read about Katharine Hepburn covering the years leading up to the 1939 release of The Philadelphia Story, which as used in this book is a paean to her beginnings.
Using an omnipresent narrator, this "biographical" novel tells Katharine's story. Daughter of a prominent physician and suffragette mother, Hepburn most defining childhood moment was the death of her beloved brother Tom. The book moves forward 10 years or so after that to 1932 and Hepburn's arrival in Hollywood. At this point the novel moves to vignettes of famous people in her life: Irene Selznick, Leland Howard, Cary Grant and others. Here the omniscient narrator gives us moments that show her character, the ups and downs in the career and how these friends supported her as risked all to set aside Hollywood's vision for a female star.
This is marvelous book. It takes on a story of a woman pioneering her way to be authentic, love as she sees fit, and be true to her beliefs. The book's structure lends itself to almost appearing to be a tell all (and Hepburn had plenty to tell if she wanted). The prose is crisp and engaging. You feel the old Hollywood vibe coming through.
I really enjoyed this book. It's perfect for lovers of historical fiction - any historical fiction - or historical fiction of a Hollywood's Golden Era.
I'd like to thank NetGalley and Random House for allowing me to read this wonderful ARC.
Palaces of the Crow: A Novel
by Ray Nayler
Speculation historical fiction (4/11/2026)
As one reviewer wrote, this book is "sharp speculative fiction" boding on "morality and mortality." Indeed, there is a depth to this fantasy historical fiction novel. Set during WWII, Neriya, a Jewish girl, befriends Buster, a crow she has met, who saves her from the Nazis. Hidden in the woods she stays with Czeslaw, a Polish defector from the Russian army, Kezia, a Roma who witnessed the murder of her family, and a non-speaking boy whose name is unknown. Together these four and the crows protecting them manage to eke out a community of equality and respect. But make no mistake they face human brutality and horror but a nobility from the birds - this is not a novel that makes things pretty.
Thirty years later Czeslaw returns as a high KGB official seeking revenge on his wartime foes and bringing a cringing secret - the corruptibility of power and its madness.
I'd like to thank NetGalley and Farrar, Strauss and Gerard for allowing me to read this ARC.
Nothing Tastes as Good: A Novel
by Luke Dumas
Is it worth it? (4/9/2026)
4.25 stars. This was a fast read for me. I was in from the beginning on this story of what fat shaming has done to people - creating a greedy world of diets (which this book literally produces), exercise programs, equipment and get skinny quick diets - brutal and sometimes lethal.
Emmett Truesdale is morbidly obese and wants desperately not to be. He's had a miserable home life, an abusive stepfather, been bullied at school, basically is unemployable (except for his Target job where his boss wishes to make him unemployable).
He signs up a clinical trial for a program called Obexity, combining gene therapy with a drug, EmaC-8 (which Lizette, Emmett's best friend calls emaciate). Told in part through social media posts, detective interviews, Emmett's book and blog, the story follows Emmett's horrific journey to slim down.
The plot falls astray a bit toward the end but by then you are so invested in Emmett it doesn't matter. The book comes down to asking the question: is being skinny worth it at any cost? Our world is a bit too obsessed by greed and beauty we forget that yes while health is important, size is not the issue - it's the self worth of the individual that is. If you like a healthy dose of satire, gore and fun, this book might be for you.
The Fallen: The Lost Girls of Ireland's Magdalene Laundries and a Legacy of Silence
by Louise Brangan
What the past reveals (4/6/2026)
This is such an eye-opening book, exposing what a country when deducted to religion and morality can do to ensure that women are kept in their place - under the guise of protection - and erased from society. While many know of the Magdalene Laundries, many do not know other institutions used to incarcerate women or their history, cruelties and secrets. This book tells it all.
When Ireland was a new country in the early 20th C, it created laws to control women under the belief if women could be controlled, the rest of Irish society would be controlled as well. This thinking was based on the mythical view of the Blessed Virgin Mary as the purest form of womanhood. The government worked with the Catholic Church to make use of convent facilities as places to send young girls susceptible to the sins of the pagan world where they could be reformed. Besides the laundries, they used prisons, asylums, industrial and reformatory schools, Mother and Baby homes, and County homes for this purpose and legalized their use as part of its carceral system. At one time 1 of the Irish population was confined to these outstripping the “current rate of mass incarceration in America.”
The book presents stories of several women who were confined to these institutions and their horrific stories of what they endured. What was most cruel was how the nuns running these places strove to dehumanize the girls and women by changing their names, dressing them in rags, and forcing them to do dangerous work. The last home closed in 2013. By statistics reported in a recent Irish report, over 10,000 women died and were erased from memory.
This is a well researched and written book. It begs the mind of how such cruelty could be done by a government but in today’s America that is exactly what the white Christian nationalists want. White men who feel emasculated by women joyfully await this as I heard one young man stare recently. This is why a book such as this is so important. In today’s Ireland abortion is legal. Why? Because as history has shown you cannot enforce religion on the people.
Highly recommend.
I’d like to thank NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for allowing me to read this ARC.
Liberty Island: A Novel
by Virginia Hume
Lovely historical fiction (4/5/2026)
Lovely historical fiction/ romance set in the waning days of the 19th C and early 20th C as women's rights were emerging. Told against the background mainly of Boston and Maine, where a family spends their summer, this book delivers a lovely story of mothers and daughters.
The book alternates in time and POV. Anna Bradley spent her summers on Liberty Island caring for her nieces one of whom is Julia Demarest who occupies the other POV. Anna has written a popular children's series of books, Liberty Island, but wishes to remain anonymous. Fiercely independent she has chosen not to marry until her past returns. Julia goes off to college and becomes involved in women's organizations especially the right to vote. She goes on to cultivate bohemian ideas which alienates her from her family. And she sees the Liberty Island books she once adored as quaint and out of touch.
But she too is independent and doesn't want to settle for just anything. The book examines women's coming of age at a time when America was coming off the Gilded Age and WWI and their desire to be different from their mothers. This book is magically written. It flows in a gentle and tender course. Its character driven but location plays into the tone and atmosphere. I loved Julia. She was striving to be so modern but still struggled to separate from her roots. Her romance with Michael was sweet.
If you've read Beatriz Williams or even Sarah Blake's The Guest House, this is a good book to check out.
It's Not Her: A Twisty Thriller about Two Families and a Chilling Lake Resort Crime from the Author of Local Woman Missing
by Mary Kubica
Couldn’t stop reading it (4/5/2026)
I stayed up way to late but I simply had to finish this book! What a psychological thriller! I just didn't see that ending coming either. Sister Courtney and her family (husband Elliot, and daughter, Cass) along with her brother Nolan and his family (wife, Emily, daughters Reese and Mae, and son, Wyatt) are vacationing at a lake in Wisconsin when a horrific event occurs that shatters both families and involves a child is missing, much like the missing girl, Kylie, who disappeared five years before.
Courtney is overwrought that her niece is missing and the police seem to be doing nothing about it. She investigates but while discovering some clues, nothing results in finding her niece until a clue leads them to her. But there's more, though you'll have to read the book to find out what it is. The atmosphere surrounding this book is creepy and chilling. The woods surrounding the resort - which to my way of thinking was old and rundown - are dark and filled with ominous danger. The manager of the resort, Mrs. Dahl, and her handy man, Daniel Clarke, seem sinister. The whole place is forbidding. Even the characters are a bit off and add to the tension and creepiness. Reese, the missing niece, is such an angry bitter child due in part to bullying at school; her parents' marriage is on the rocks, and her brother, Wyatt, is awful. Courtney is falling apart seeing murderers everywhere, even her husband, and what her daughter and niece, Mae did, is appalling. All of this intensifies the psychological aspects of this thriller.
This is my very first Mary Kubica book but it won’t be my last.
The Fallen: The Lost Girls of Ireland's Magdalene Laundries and a Legacy of Silence
by Louise Brangan
Reexamining the past (4/4/2026)
This is such an eye opening book, exposing what a country when deducted to religion and morality can do to ensure that women are kept in their place - under the guise of protection - and erased from society. While many know of the Magdalene Laundries, many do not know other institutions used to incarcerate women or their history, cruelties and secrets. This book tells it all.
When Ireland was a new country in the early 20th C, it created laws to control women under the belief if women could be controlled, the rest of Irish society would be controlled as well. This thinking was based on the mythical view of the Blessed Virgin Mary as the purest form of womanhood. The government worked with the Catholic Church to make use of convent facilities as places to send young girls susceptible to the sins of the pagan world where they could be reformed. Besides the laundries, they used prisons, asylums, industrial and reformatory schools, Mother and Baby homes, and County homes for this purpose and legalized their use as part of its carceral system. At one time 1 of the Irish population was confined to these outstripping the “current rate of mass incarceration in America.”
The book presents stories of several women who were confined to these institutions and their horrific stories of what they endured. What was most cruel was how the nuns running these places strove to dehumanize the girls and women by changing their names, dressing them in rags, and forcing them to do dangerous work. The last home closed in 2013. By statistics reported in a recent Irish report, over 10,000 women died and were erased from memory.
This is a well researched and written book. It begs the mind of how such cruelty could be done by a government but in today’s America that is exactly what the white Christian nationalists want. White men who feel emasculated by women joyfully await this as I heard one young man stare recently. This is why a book such as this is so important. In today’s Ireland abortion is legal. Why? Because as history has shown you cannot enforce religion on the people.
Highly recommend.
I’d like to thank NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for allowing me to read this ARC.
Power Reviewer
