andiesmith's reviews
2021 reviews

The Invisible Spy: Churchill's Rockefeller Center Spy Ring and America's First Secret Agent of World War II by Thomas Maier

5.0

“The Invisible Spy” starts off with two Nazi spies walking through New York City, and one being hit by a car. Yes, Nazi spies in NYC! They were far from the only spies. Ernest Cune, a tough and smart Italian American guy who played NFL ball for the Brooklyn Dodger (yes football, not baseball) who becomes an intelligence go-between and political influencer. This book not only brings a ton of untold stories but all the big names like Fleming (yes Bond’s Fleming) and Wild Bill. If you love reading about true life spies, this is a great read. 

 

Thank you NetGalley and Hanover Square Press #TheInvisibleSpy #NetGalley

Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism by Sarah Wynn-Williams

4.0

Sarah Wynn-Williams starts the book off with the telling when a shark attacked her when she was a child. This is a fitting story considering the sharks she worked with while at Facebook. Wynn-Williams saw the power Facebook could have, and she wanted to work there for idealistic reasons. But over the course of her career saw evil, selfishness and absolute power take over. A must read tell all (you know its good when it’s making Zuck mad!) 

If I Dig You by Colby Wilkens

2.5

This is a two-part review. The story is great. “If I Dig You” is a spicy sapphic romance with some treasure hunting. This part of the book was fantastic. I enjoyed the story. That is a 4 star review

The second part of the review is how The Tribal Alliance Against Frauds found that Colby Wilkens is not of Cherokee and Choctaw descent as she claimed. This is negative stars.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press. 

A Catalog of Burnt Objects by Shana Youngdahl

3.0

Caprice, at 17, is smart, and independent. Her older brother is and alcoholic, her father is absent, and her mother isn’t really there. Her Grandfather is always there for her though.  As she starts her senior year in high school, her brother comes back home from rehab. Caprise is planning for her furture when a fire rips through her town. 

 

In “A Catalog of Burn Objects”, Shana Youngdahl touches on so many intense parts of life such as love, addiction, recovery, aging grandparents, and loss. 

Growing up in Southern California, fires were always in the back of my mind. Even living in the Texas Hill Country I have a go bag packed in case one breaks out nearby. Fires are the worst, I read this book with a small ball of anxiety in me.

 

Thank you NetGalley and Dial Books

The Fifteen: Murder, Retribution, and the Forgotten Story of Nazi POWs in America by William Geroux

5.0

On orders from President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Department of War hastily built hundreds of POW camps in the United States.  Protected by the Geneva Convention, German POWs were well-fed and housed. Many worked on American farms, and a few would even go on to marry farmers’ daughters. Nazis attacked fellow Germans they deemed disloyal. Fifteen were sentenced to death by secret U.S. military tribunals for acts of murder. German authorities condemned fifteen American POWs to the same fate. This is the same hostage diplomacy we still  use today.

 

While I knew the United States held Nazi POWs here, but didn’t realize how many. There were a couple camps near me, including one you can still tour. Field trip is planned. I love books that leads me down a worm hole of more research! For my fell World War II buffs, this is a must read.

 

Thank you NetGalley and Crown for the ARC. #TheFifteen #NetGalley

On the Grid: Life Behind the Scenes of Formula 1 by Luke Smith

4.0

I finished this fantastic behind-the-scenes book about F1 just hours before FP3 of the opening race of the 2025 season. It looks like it should be an exciting season.

 

F1 journalist Luke Smith brings this book as a mix of informative, behind-the-scenes, and memoir. We are introduced to the man behind the tracks, the woman who introduced Luke to F1 (his mom!), and the good and bad of being on the road for a very long race season. I enjoyed reading about how teams are trying to reach carbon net zero (Especially Mercedes!).

 

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Via  for the ARC. #OntheGrid #NetGalley #F1 #FormulaOne

The Story She Left Behind: A Novel by Patti Callahan Henry

5.0

Have you ever gone into a book basically blind? I didn’t read what this book was about but knew Patti Callahan Henry wouldn’t disappoint me. She didn’t! What a beautiful story about a parents love but with a lot of twists and mystery. Maybe my favorite read for March!         

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC. 

Naples 1944: War, Liberation and Chaos by Keith Lowe

5.0

Keith Lowe has chronicled, a subject we don’t always talk about, the terrible and often unexpected consequences of war. Both are magnified in Naples, Italy. Even before the fall of Mussolini, Naples was a city of contrast and the allied occupation of it intensified it. While the allied forced sis repair a lot of the infrastructure that was destroyed by the Germans, they also did a lot of damage to the women and men of Naples, and the economy. 

 

I appreciated Lowe for acknowlg=dgin the fact few if any primary sources exist when it comes to some of the subject he wrote about in the book, because of shame. He also acknowledges as an outsider, he is not the one to do those interviews. We often gloss over the damage both sides do during war. I enjoyed this read. If you are a WWII history nerd, please read this book! 

 

Thank you NetGalley and St.Martin’s Press  for the ARC. 

The Usual Family Mayhem by HelenKay Dimon

4.0

Kasey Nottingham needs a big idea for the next big thing to save her job. In panic she pitches a small-town pie business that happens to be run by her grandma Mags and live-in “best friend” Celia, She goes home to see if they would be interested in this idea. She is scared to talk to them about it, and starts snooping. Kasey finds information that could implicate Mags and Celia in murder! Enter Jackson Quaid, Celia’s nephew and Kasey’s long-time crush, while a huge distraction, becomes very helpful to Kasey trying to find out about these secret pies!

 

How have I never read HelenKay Dimon?! Fun cute read, AND I looked at her backlist and added more books my TBR! 

Thank you NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager  for the ARC. #TheUsualFamilyMayhem #NetGalley.

Nightshade by Michael Connelly

5.0

LA County Sherif Detective Stilwell has been “exiled” to scenic Catalina Island because of office politics on the mainland. It is usually petty theft and drunk and disorderly, but then Stillwell gets a report of a body weighed down at the bottom of the harbor. He also gets a call about a stollen statue from the prestigious Black Marlin Club.  One of Stillwell’s deputies gets attacked and ends up in the hospital. Are any of these incidents related? This is a lot of crime, and Stillwell is going to have to work with the Sheriffs on the mainland.

 

It is exciting to read the first book in a series! I’m looking forward to seeing how these characters develop. Like Bosch, Stillwell, toes the line of the rules but will get to the bottom of things. I am absolutely stoked about the series being set on Catalina (bummer to have to do research trips to the island lol). This is a must read!

Thank you NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for the ARC. #Nightshade #NetGalley #MichaelConnelly