jhscolloquium's reviews
904 reviews

I Will Find You by Harlan Coben

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Best-selling author Harlan Coben relates that the inspiration for his latest stand-alone book, I Will Find You, was a sentence that popped into his head. "I'm serving the fifth year of a prison sentence for murdering my own child. Spoiler alert: I didn't do it." He thought to himself, "What if I opened the book with the man, who is accused of murdering his own child and is in prison for it, finding out his child may still be alive right away?" Deciding that would be a "cool opening," the story developed from there. Remarkably, given the intricate and shocking plot twists for which Coben is known, he insists that when he sits down to write, "I know the beginning, I know the end, I know nothing in between. So it's like travelling from my home state of New Jersey across the country to L.A. -- I may go Route 80, I'll maybe go via the Suez Canal or stop in Tokyo, but I always end up in L.A."

Coben says he enjoys "playing with the idea of a perfect life, and the outside forces that could change any aspect of it." And does just that in I Will Find You. As noted, the first-person narration begins with David Burroughs explaining his circumstances and why he did not protest his innocence more vehemently when he became a suspect in the murder investigation: guilt. He felt that he had failed the son it was his job to protect. "Guilty or not guilty of the actual murder, it is my fault and thus my sentence to serve." Three-year-old Matthew was murdered in his own room and David discovered his lifeless child in his bed wearing his Marvel-Hero-themed pajamas. From that moment on, David explains, he was constrained to a "metaphorical life sentence" irrespective of how the legal proceedings played out.

David loved his son. Like any parent, he was not a perfect father. He and his wife, Cheryl, were struggling to make their marriage work. Cheryl had just completed her residency in general surgery and was working a night shift, so David was alone with Matthew. "Three-year-olds can be tough" and David was preoccupied, tired, and decided to put Matthew to bed without reading him a bedtime story. He didn't hold his liquor well, and after drinking more than he should have, he passed out without ensuring that the doors were locked. If Matthew's killer(s) made any noise entering the house, David didn't hear it, nor was he awakened by any screams coming from Matthew's room. He woke up at 4:00 a.m. and instantly knew something was wrong in the quiet house. When he went to check on Matthew, he discovered his beautiful son had been bludgeoned to death with a baseball bat. A baseball bat on which only David's fingerprints were found that elderly Mrs. Wilson testified she watched David bury in the woods separating their houses. There was no evidence that David had been drugged, no discernible motive, no other suspects, and he had a history of night terrors and sleepwalking. It didn't take the jury long to return a guilty verdict and David accepted his fate, even though he knew he did not kill his own son. Unless . . . Could he have killed Matthew while in a fugue state and have no recollection of committing the crime?

But David makes clear that his story won't be about his innocence being proven and his freedom restored. Because "my son would still be dead."

Rather, his story is about a chance sighting of a young boy in the background of a photograph taken at an amusement park by a vacationing family. The photograph is shared with friends, as routinely happens countless times every day. But the photograph in question depicts a boy, in profile, about the age Matthew would be now who bears a congenital hemangioma -- a port-stain birthmark -- that is significantly similar to the one that Matthew was born with on his cheek.

By the time Rachel, David's sister-in-law, engineers a visit with David, she has had a forensic examination of the photograph conducted. Age-progression software has concluded that the photograph is a match to one taken of Matthew, but Rachel has not revealed the discovery to Cheryl, who has remarried and is pregnant. Rachel is a journalist whose career recently imploded after her ethical choices came under scrutiny. But she still has sources and connections, yet David knows that if she takes the photograph to the police, they will not institute a new investigation. They will write it off as a coincidence because, after all, the perpetrator was caught and convicted. The case of Matthew's murder is closed.

So David decides he has to escape so that he, with Rachel's assistance, can conduct his own investigation and find his son. Because David is convinced Matthew is the boy in the picture.

At this point, readers with any knowledge of how prisons operate must suspend their disbelief and accept that David is housed in a facility where the warden, Philip Mackenzie, is not just the former partner of David's father, a retired police officer, but his father's best friend and David's godfather. (Ostensibly, these family connections constituting a major conflict of interest, were overlooked by officials when the warden sought to have David housed in the prison he ran in order to ensure David's safety.) Moreover, Coben never explains why David, who would have been charged with murder under the criminal statutes of and serving his sentence in a state prison, is instead housed in a federal penitentiary. No federal crime is described, thus the F.B.I. would have no jurisdiction. Nonetheless, the warden not only believes David's contention that the boy in the photograph is likely Matthew -- after all, he never believed David was capable of committing such a heinous crime -- but agrees to risk his own life and career in order to help David escape. And enlists the assistance of his son, a police officer. Together they plan and carry out an elaborate escape that is as harrowing, fast-paced, and entertaining to read as it is implausible.

Coben can be forgiven for taking dramatic license because he needed a mechanism to get David out of prison so the real adventure could begin. With assistance from Rachel, David begins his quest by going home to visit his dying father and his aunt who cares for him. The bedside scene is poignant and wrenching, even before Coben reveals his father's history. David also returns to his old neighborhood where many of the guys he grew up with remain. Some are eking out an honest living while others are still affiliated with gangs and engaged in criminal endeavors. Step by step, David starts gathering clues to why Matthew was targeted while maneuvering in ways that permit him to continue eluding the F.B.I. And the two agents assigned to the case, Max Bernstein and his partner, Sarah Jablonski, are fully developed, intriguing, and frequently hilarious characters who deserve to be the main protagonists in one of Coben's thrillers. Max insists he is a funny guy and that's why they're referred to as "the F.B.I. Desi and Lucy," but Sarah is convinced the nickname stuck solely because she is a redhead. Their banter is crisp, but their sixteen-year partnership is tested when Max begins to question David's guilt and Sarah is adamant about their role in the case. They are assigned only to apprehend a fugitive, not re-open an old murder case.

Coben intersperses chapters featuring Gertrude "Pixie" Payne, the eighty-two-year-old matriarch of the Payne family, heirs to the Payne Kentucky Bourbon dynasty. Pixie is the cousin of popular Coben character Windsor Horne Lockwood III or "Win." The Paynes are wealthy, influential, powerful, and very used to getting exactly what they want. Coben gradually reveals that Pixie may be getting on in years, but she is still a forceful, decisive woman who manages her family and its assets. She has spent her life surrounded by men who have engaged in despicable behavior and has done whatever was necessary to keep the family's secrets buried, scandals avoided. She's currently doing whatever is required to protect her grandson, Hayden, who has arrived for a visit with his son, Theo.

In his signature style, Coben melds a large cast of fascinating characters (even criminal defense attorney Hester Crimstein makes an appearance as Rachel's lawyer) and surprising plot twists into a cohesive, absorbing, and decidedly contemporary tale. The story's gait is set from the first page when David reveals his circumstances and never slows for even a beat. In fact, Coben notes that I Will Find You may well be his fastest-paced book to date. Indeed, I Will Find You moves at breakneck speed, with revelation after revelation demonstrating just how adept Coben is at weaving a clever, complex mystery without ever sacrificing character development. It is never readily apparent how Coben is going to pull the numerous loose threads of the plot together . . . until he again manages to seamlessly do so. Which is why I Will Find You is such a compellingly good story. Considering that Coben does not know what direction the plot is going to take when he sits down to write, his ability to concoct believable details that illustrate the ways in which the characters' lives are intertwined, why they made the choices they did, and the dramatic impact upon their lives of those choices is nothing less than awe-inspiring and unparalleled.

And I Will Find You is an emotionally resonant story. Coben credibly conveys the guilt and grief that David has lived with for more than five years, as well as his self-doubt in light of what appears to be uncontroverted evidence that hebrutally took his own child's life (his fingerprints on the baseball bat, an eye witness who positively identified him, the dearth of any evidence pointing to intruders entering the home while he slept). Cheryl's grief at losing both her son and her marriage, and her commitment to carrying on her important work as a transplant surgeon and starting over with a new husband and child, are heartbreakingly realistic, as is Rachel's relatable need to uncover the truth about her nephew's fate and, perhaps, reclaim her dignity, self-esteem, and professional standing in the process. Max and Sarah squabble about their ethical and moral roles and responsibilities, and readers will want to see justice done once the whole truth is revealed.

I Will Find You proves yet again that Coben is one of America's best storytellers. It is another must-read novel from the acclaimed author that will undoubtedly be touted as one of the best thrillers of 2023.

Thanks to NetGalley for an electronic Advance Reader's Copy of the book, as well as to Grand Central Publishing for a paperback copy of the book via Novel Suspects.

All the Dangerous Things by Stacy Willingham

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The inspiration for All the Dangerous Things was an idea that came to author Stacy Willingham one day. "What would it feel like to be trapped inside the mind of a sleep-deprived mother who, deep down, believed that the disappearance of her child was somehow her fault?" Not yet a mother herself, Willingham says she pondered why a mother would feel that way until she realized that women and, in particular, mothers, "are conditioned from birth to feel guilty about something. We always think things are our fault. We always feel the need to apologize: for being too much or too little. Too loud or too quiet. Too driven or too content. For wanting children more than anything or for not even wanting them all." Willingham confesses that she was afraid to pen a book focused on motherhood, so she did a lot of research on the subject. And was dismayed to discover that many women don't express their emotions because of the guilt they feel about experiencing them. Which is actually tragic because their emotions are largely universal. "We feel completely alone in an experience that's shared by so many," Willingham observes, which propelled her to create the variety of female characters featured in All the Dangerous Things who are "flawed, complicated, messy . . ."

In a compelling first-person narrative, Isabelle Drake reveals at the outset of the story that her life changed exactly one year ago when her son, Mason, was kidnapped. And -- unimaginably -- during that year, she has not had "a single night of rest." Despite trying sleeping pills, eye drops, caffeine, and therapy, Isabelle is only able to "microsleep" for two to twenty seconds at a time, so she has been "stumbling through life in a semiconscious dream state" for a full three hundred and sixty-four days. Nonetheless, she is still "no closer to the truth." She is a wreck -- physically and mentally.

Although it is emotionally draining for her, Isabelle travels to true crime conferences and conventions at which she speaks about Mason's unsolved case. She does it because she hopes that an audience member might be able to shed light on Mason's whereabouts and, in exchange for her participation, is provided a list of the attendees' names and addresses. When she returns home, she studies those lists and researches the backgrounds of her audience members in search of even the most attenuated clues.

Willingham also performed extensive research on sleepwalking and found that about one-third of children sleepwalk at some point during their childhood. And about two percent of them continue doing so in adulthood. Isabelle explains that she has always been a heavy sleeper and, as a child, sleepwalked from time to time. Now, suffering from severe insomnia, she recalls moments from her childhood for which she lacks a cogent explanation. She grew up in a house near a marsh, and there were nights when she woke up disoriented, confused. Inexplicably, there were muddy footprints on the carpet. Her younger sister, Margaret, mysteriously drowned in the marsh one night. Mason's stuffed dinosaur was found on the banks of the marsh near their home. Isabelle is haunted by the "similarities between then and now" and "the icy silence from my parents that never seems to melt." (She is virtually estranged from her parents, although they do send her checks that she is loath to cash, even though she needs the money to cover her living expenses so that she can keep searching for Mason.) The detective assigned to the case has always made her uncomfortable because, of course, when Mason went missing, both she and her husband, Ben, immediately came and have remained under suspicion.

Unlike Isabelle, Ben quickly moved on with his life after Mason disappeared. He bought a condominium near his office, leaving Isabelle in the house they shared, and is in a new romantic relationship. Isabelle describes how they met, worked together after Ben hired her, and married quickly after his first wife's tragic suicide. She details their journey to parenthood, and how their marriage began falling apart before Mason was born, and collapsed fully under the strain of Mason's kidnapping.

She meets Waylon Spencer on a flight home from a conference at which she again related her story. He explains that his popular podcast led to the closure of a cold case and, despite her misgivings, she contacts him later and agrees to grant him access to all the information she has amassed about Mason's case . . . and her life. As he interviews her for the podcast and his inquiries grow increasingly intrusive and accusatory, Isabelle grows increasingly suspicious of Waylon and his motives. Is he really an ally?

The centerpiece of the story is Isabelle's fear that she may have harmed her own child. After all, one of her neighbors insists that he observed her walking past his house in the middle of the night, but she has no recollection of doing so. She reviews every moment of the video footage from the baby monitor in Mason's room to see if she entered his room during the night while he was sleeping but was eft with no memory of doing so. She believed her sleepwalking stopped when she was in college. But has she continued to sleepwalk, right up to the night Mason was taken? She doubts herself even to the point of pondering whether she might be capable of homicidal sleepwalking, an exceedingly rare, but scientifically documented phenomenon. Her therapist explains that it is possible for sleepwalkers to do "terrible things, that they would never do if they were awake. They can't differentiate between right and wrong" because the upper frontal lobe of the brain is asleep during sleepwalking. 

Willingham deftly portrays a woman terrified by the possibility that she lost control over her own behavior to the point that she harmed her own child. She loved Mason more than anything, and cannot really conceive that she could be capable of such a heinous act. She is desperate to find any other plausible explanation, any scrap of evidence that will lead her to answers and, hopefully, her son -- alive and well. But her guilt is not so limited. Because she is his mother and it was her job to protect Mason, and she feels the judgment of everyone in her life, as well as many of those strangers who listen to her relate the story at those conferences and conventions. After all, Mason's bedroom window was open; the batteries in the baby monitor were dead. She also feels guilt about her feelings prior to Mason's kidnapping. Being a full-time mother can be an isolating and disappointing experience, especially for a woman who had a successful career as a journalist an misses working and having a social life, as well as a husband who found her interesting and desirable. And there is the strain of being constantly and relentlessly needed and depended upon by your child. It is fear, guilt, and ruminating about the past that keep Isabelle from sleeping, and she knows time is running out because human beings cannot survive without sleep indefinitely. She is conscious of the fact that she is becoming increasingly paranoid, and unable to discern what is real from what she imagines.

All the Dangerous Things is a tautly-crafted, tense, and absorbing mystery that is, at times, difficult to read. Because as Willingham examines her protagonist's deepest fears, Isabelle is relatable and empathetic. After all, the idea of being so out of control and beyond one's moral boundaries that one could be capable of committing unspeakable acts is horrifying and terrifying. Isabelle's angst and self-doubt are palpable and affecting, even as Willingham inspires readers to view her with suspicion while injecting clues to Mason's whereabouts at expertly-timed intervals. Isabelle is surrounded by other female characters who are empathetic and compelling, especially Isabelle's mother whose story Willingham unravels compassionately. The mystery around which Isabelle's misery revolves is plausibly constructed, and the conclusion shocking. All the Dangerous Things is almost suffocatingly atmospheric, which heightens the dramatic tension. It is engrossing, solidly entertaining, and ideal for readers who enjoy slow burning mysteries.

Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.

The Ballerinas by Rachel Kapelke-Dale

dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

The Ballerinas is an exploration of female friendships set within the world of professional ballet where competition is a fierce motivator. The story features three dancers: Delphine, Lindsay and Margaux, who all began studying at the Paris Opera Ballet when they were young girls. Over the years, they are intensely focused on the careers to which they aspire. As they mature, they might secure spots as members of the ballet company or, if they are good enough, become soloists or principal dancers, featured in productions. The path to becoming a principal dancer is long and fraught, requiring not just superior talent, dedication, and tireless preparation, but the ability to navigate the politics of getting noticed and championed by the ballet company's teachers, choreographers, and artistic directors. For debut author Rachel Kapelke-Dale, little research was required, aside from learning about the workings of the Paris Opera Ballet because she trained intensively in ballet as child. "My training allowed me to sketch in the background action for various scenes without too much trouble, as the format of those classes is so deeply ingrained in my memory," she relates. 

For Delphine Léger, dance is a family matter. Her mother was a star ballerina whose career was cut short by her unplanned pregnancy. Delphine feels pressure not just to live up to her mother's example, but her expectation that Delphine will avoid making the same mistake she did and enjoy a long, successful career. Lindsay and Margaux also struggle with the stressors that challenge young dancers as they mature, including the never-ending effort to maintain an ideal body even as natural changes threaten to render perfection unattainable, the harsh criticisms of instructors ("You start out a whole and then you break," Delphine observes), expectations of parents and family members, and the destruction and debilitating effects of self-doubt and competition that can drive fragile adolescents to behave in harshly shocking ways.

It is 2018, and Delphine has decided that "Paris is always a good idea." After a thirteen-year absence, she has returned to Paris to choreograph Rasputin, a ballet she wanted to stage the entire time she was in St. Petersburg working as a choreographer at the Mariinsky Ballet with her romantic partner. And she has definite ideas about who she wants to star in the production: her old friend Lindsay, who has been a soloist for years. But Lindsay is now thirty-five years old – the company has a mandatory retirement age of forty-two -- and not a good partner. But Delphine is convinced that her staging of the classic, with Lindsay as the tsarina, will revitalize the company . . . as well as her friends' careers. Nathalie Dorival, the artistic director, reluctantly agrees to give Delphine one month to determine if Lindsay is up to the challenge. But she must name an understudy -- an insult to a ballerina of Lindsay's status. Delphine must accept Nathalie's condition because the production will be mounted as part of the opera's three hundred and fiftieth anniversary season, she desperately wants to make the most of the opportunity Nathalie has given her by agreeing to take her back into the company, . . . and she is intent on giving Lindsay "something that would change her life. Fourteen years after I had ruined it." Delphine's one true love, Jock (formerly Jacques), will be Lindsay's co-star, and there will be a role for Margaux, as well. While Lindsay is eager to take on the role Delphine is customizing for her, Margaux is resentful and suspicious, given that Delphine has been out of there lives for so many years and failed to make an effort to maintain their friendship. Kapelke-Dale says Margaux is “disillusioned,” but do not have any training to pursue a different career and has “taken her frustration and turned it in on herself.”

Delphine's first-person narration moves back to 1995, when Delphine, Lindsay, and Margeaux are students . . . and competitors. Kapelke-Dale notes that it was her editor who recommended adding the second timeline in order to fully reveal the characters’ pasts. She immerses readers in the girls' world, providing insight into the grueling physical demands of ballet, their emotional struggles, the imbalance of power in their relationship, and the machinations it inspires, including one particularly stunning betrayal. As the narrative moves incrementally forward in time, Kapelke-Dale reveals the characters' secrets at deftly-timed intervals, providing context for their behavior and illuminating their motivations.

The Ballerinas is a taut, evenly-paced, and absorbing glimpse into the world of ballet. Delphine would be easy to dismiss as unlikable and, therefore, irredeemable. But that misses the point. Delphine is a product of the world into which she was born, and all the people and events that influence her. She is self-centered, selfish, driven, and vengeful. But she also cares about her friends and colleagues, and eventually returns to Paris intent on making up for her mistakes. But is it too late? 

The themes Kapelke-Dale delves into through her characters resonate against the ballet backdrop, they are universal. Female friendships are complicated, but their complexity is magnified in Kapelke-Dale's convincing portrayal of women facing consequential choices about reproduction, work-life balance, and workplace harassment and abuse in an industry where men have, for centuries, been the powerbrokers and women have been vulnerable to and dependent upon their desires, whims, and approval. Kapelke-Dale says that as she was writing the book, she thought deeply about an institution that “purportedly celebrate femininity in some ways also reinforce draconian standards,” and wanted to impart the sense of urging that Delphine feels as her fortieth birthday looms and she wonders if her best professional years are behind her. Ultimately, her characters must decide how they will shape their futures, what matters most to them, and what kind of people they want to be. Kapelke-Dale delivers an entertaining story with a conclusion that is nothing less than jaw-dropping, despite early foreshadowing because so much transpires in succeeding chapters.

Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.

The Spoon Stealer by Lesley Crewe

dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Emmeline Darling was born on a summer morning in 1894. She arrived so quickly that her mother did not have time to grab her before she plopped right into the basket of freshly laundered linens her mother was in the process of hanging up to dry. "I don't think she ever forgave me for bloodying those beautiful white sheets," Emmeline writes in her memoir, excerpts of which are featured in the story, detailing Emmeline's life experiences. She recalls that her mother never really seemed to know what to do with her as she grew up on their Nova Scotian farm with her four older brothers. Oh, Emmeline is sure that her mother loved her, but she tried her mother's patience and was always aware that her mother didn't like her very much. Emmeline was a "big" girl who worked hard on the farm alongside her brothers, but was not particularly well-liked in school, either. 

The Spoon Stealer opens in 1968. Emmeline, who never had children and has been retired for eight years, confronts her loneliness. Urged on by her devoted and delightful talking dog, Vera (the story of how Vera came to live with Emmeline is both hilarious and reveals the opinionated Emmeline's tenacity), Emmeline enrolls in a four-week course on memoir writing led by the officious and self-important Joyce Pruitt, who "fancied herself a writer of sorts, having had a few articles and poems published in the local paper." Emmeline and five other women gather at the local library, their first assignment having been to commence penning their memoir, something Emmeline did well before signing up for the course. As each woman reads her work aloud, Emmeline praises and encourages them. But when Emmeline begins reading, the other would-be memoirists are mesmerized not by "What she wrote," but, rather, "how she wrote it." Emmeline finds herself drained after reading a few pages. "When you read it out loud to people, it's like living it all over again, but it's not the same," she tells Vera. "Which is the truth -- what happened, or my memory of what happened?"

Emmeline does not, however, reveal her compulsion to her fellow autobiographers that first day. But as she was making her tea when she arrived at the library, she slipped a small, ornate spoon that might have originated in a child's tea set into her pocket and took it home with her. Emmeline is a spoon stealer, and over the years has amassed quite a collection that she keeps in an opulent Chinese enamel box that has brought her solace over the years.

About the first half of The Spoon Stealer is devoted to Emmeline's burgeoning relationships with her classmates. They bond as Emmeline reads her memoir aloud and becomes an increasingly influential friend to each of them. They are an eclectic group. Widowed Sybil Weatherbee cares for her elderly mother and looks for ways to keep herself busy, Mrs. Tucker runs a fish and chips shop with her husband, Una is raising five children whose names all begin with "G" and perpetually has her hair up in curlers, and Harriet is self-conscious about her teeth. Flora, a devout believer in the Ten Commandments, allows her judgmental attitude to get in the way of friendship.

But it is the memoir that lays the foundation for the latter portion of the book. Emmeline reveals her family's history, including the devastating losses they sustained, and the circumstances and events that brought about a lasting fracture between her and her surviving family members. She was just twenty-one years old when she set sail across the Atlantic all alone during World War I, determined to be at her beloved brother Teddy's side. But once she reached Europe, she learned it would be impossible to get back home and remained there for years before returning home to Nova Scotia to be with her family. Although she did not intend to stay long, she ended up spending ten years there. Those years were marked by both further family tragedy, mental illness, resentments, and eventual estrangement, as well as the joy of watching the niece and nephew she adored  grow up. But at thirty-five years of age, she found herself a "hopeless spinster" whose only source of "nightly entertainment was darning socks with my mother" so she knew she had to leave "to save her own life," according to Crewe. She returned to Europe and remained there for more than forty years during which her life was filled with adventures, travel, and fascinating people. Emmeline's memoir is richly detailed, emotionally riveting and, at times, overwhelmingly heartbreaking. Crewe shepherds readers through Emmeline's triumphs and successes, as well as her disappointments and innermost emotional struggles, including one moment that Crewe says she found "very, very tough to write" and was in tears as she did so. "It still makes me heartsick thinking about it," she relates. It is equally tough to read, but it is a pivotal point in Emmeline's life and in critical ways informs her story.

Emmeline finds that reading her memoir aloud to her friends opens "the doors she'd been trying to keep nailed shut for years," and it proves to be mentally and emotionally draining, but her supportive friends stand beside her as she unburdens herself, revealing the most shameful moment of her life and her biggest regret. Soon after, she is shocked to learn that her brother Martin, who lived on the family farm his entire life, has died at the age of eighty-two. And willed the property to her. She is baffled. Why would Martin choose to leave the farm to her? She realizes that she wants to see the farm again, as well as her family members, some of whom she has never met or communicated with. 

It is a bittersweet homecoming, as she surveys the property remembering her childhood, her fractious relationship with her mother, and the happy times she spent with Teddy, the brother with whom she shared such a special, close relationship, and finds that little on the farm has changed. She catches up with her surviving brother, niece and nephew, and their children. Again, Crewe surrounds Emmeline with a compelling cast of fully developed, complex characters with a myriad of emotional struggles and their own constellation of tangled relationships. Emmeline has opinions about everything and does not hesitate to share them. It is a character trait that both endears her to some family members and angers others who see her as an interlo9per who has no standing to dispense advice about people or situations about which she lacks context and history. She begins renovating the farm, and makes plans for further improvements both to the property and her family's lives but not all of her ideas are welcomed or embraced. Long-ago betrayals and simmering resentments surface and, in some cases, take Emmeline aback but force her to examine the past from others' perspectives. After all, they remained in Nova Scotia while she lived a life completely separate and apart from her family -- a life none of them know anything about. 

The Spoon Stealer is entertaining, emotionally resonant, and thought-provoking. Emmeline is a complicated, multi-layered, and flawed, but endearing character who endures heartbreak, loss, and emotional abandonment, but perseveres. She is resilient, stubborn, self-aware, and determined to create a meaningful and purposeful life for herself, but throughout the years never loses sight of the lesson she learned from her dear Teddy -- who "always made my life better" -- as a young girl. "He told me that animals and people who are hurt only need a spoonful of kindness," Emmeline relates in her memoir. And that outlook permeates every aspect of Emmeline's existence, even when is a bit cantankerous and delights in letting Vera torment their unpleasant neighbor, Mr. Henderson, who fusses about his fastidious yard and precious garden gnome.

Crewe tackles difficult topics -- war, mental illness, suicide, resentments and grudges, betrayals and secrets -- in a frank, unsparing, but solidly compassionate manner. Even when her characters behave in despicable ways, Crewe humanizes them and gives readers insight into their histories and motivations. Some of her characters and their behavior are hilariously outrageous, while others' brokenness and demises are horrifyingly, but believably tragic. Through her characters, she illustrates how challenging circumstances and fraught relationships have the power to derail and embitter some people, while strengthening others. And includes some delightful magical realism in the form of Vera, Emmeline's sometimes sarcastically witty, but unwaveringly loyal dog. One revelation will take many readers by complete surprise, providing further insight into Emmeline's choices and why they were absolutely right for her. And about those spoons? The impetus for Emmeline's need to steal spoons wherever she goes is credibly explained . . . and resolved.

Crewe has crafted a steadily paced, always intriguing multi-generational story illustrating the power of family and friendships that is ultimately uplifting, and infused with hopefulness, grace, and joy. The Spoon Stealer is a thoroughly charming and engrossing story populated with unforgettable characters, a spoonful of whimsy, and a great deal of valuable wisdom.

Thanks to Nimbus Publishing and The Tandem Collective for a paperback copy of the book. 

City Under One Roof by Iris Yamashita

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Debut author Iris Yamashita says City Under One Roof was inspired by a documentary she viewed more than twenty years ago about the city of Whittier, Alaska where all of the residents lived in a single building. She knew there had to be a story to be told in such an intriguing setting.

Whittier, Alaska is about sixty miles southeast of Anchorage, at the head of Passage Canal. It is situated between the spectacular mountains and an ice-free port, surrounded by three glaciers. It serves as the gateway to the Prince William Sound wilderness. Snowfall in Whittier averages twenty-two feet per year, but every summer tourists visit the city, many arriving aboard cruise ships. The city is also accessible via the Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel through Maynard Mountain. At two-and-a-half miles long, it is the longest highway tunnel in North America, built to withstand temperatures up to -40 degrees Fahrenheit temperatures and winds of one hundred fifty miles per hour. In 2000, the one-lane tunnel was made passable by cars in addition to trains, each navigating the tunnel in both directions. The tunnel is aired out between trips with jet turbine ventilation. The single lane of vehicle traffic travels directly over the slightly sunken railroad track, and there are safe-houses within the tunnel -- small buildings that can be used in the event of a severe earthquake, vehicle fire, or other emergency. 

Whittier was once known as Camp Sullivan. During World War II, the U.S. Army built the port and railroad to transport soldiers there. Following the war, two high-rise buildings were erected and the Army continued operating the port until 1960. In 1964, the 9.2 magnitude "Good Friday Earthquake," still the largest on record in the U.S., caused over ten million dollars in damage, triggered tsunamis, and claimed forty-three lives. It also rendered one of the city's two large buildings uninhabitable. Incorporated in 1969, the city still boasts a three-person year-round police force and volunteer fire and rescue squad. The city's two hundred and seventy-two or so citizens all reside in a fourteen-story condominimum known as Beghic Towers Incorporated which also houses the hospital, school, and city government offices.

Yamashita set City Under One Roof in fictional Point Mettier, Alaska, modeled after Whittier but with some distinct differences, including additional pedestrian tunnels such as the one used by the town's children to get to their schoolroom. In the story, the shell of one building, destroyed by the 1964 earthquake, remains standing and the diverse group of two hundred and five residents all live in the Davidson Condos, known as the Dave-Co where the post office, a church, an infirmary, and a general store that sells "touristy tchotchkes" are situated. There is also an inn within the structure. Winter lasts for about eight months with temperatures as low as minus thirty-five degrees, and Alaska is thrust into darkness for nearly the entire day for several months of the year. Life in a place like Point Mettier does not appeal to everyone, and the permanent, long-time residents are there for very speciic reasons. Some love the scenic setting, the isolation, or living within such a closeknit community. But most are running away from something or someone, including her protagonist.

In fact, when Yamashita visited Whittier while researching the book, she discovered that when the tunnel only accommodated train travel, one of the female residents was protected by the train conductor who prevented her abusive ex-husband from boarding and traveling to Whittier. A disproportionately high number of women in Alaska have endured domestic violence, in part because of the scant police enforcement of laws and restraining orders designed to protect them in remote regions. She explores the theme of fictional Point Mettier functioning as a safe haven for victims by incorporating that history into the story. Even now that vehicle traffic flows into Point Mettier, the toll booth operator tells Cara that he maintains a list of "no-gooders" to watch out for, but acknowledges that other than checking identification and attempting to dissuade them with stories about the tunnel shutting down there is little he can do to prevent them from entering the city.

Yamashita relates the story from three perspectives. People who travle through the tunnel have the sensation of falling down a rabbit hole and ending up in a strange and crazy wonderland full of quirky characters. Cara Kennedy is an "otter," which is what the townspeople call outsiders. She is a detective with the Anchorage police who arrives in Point Mettier because she is investigating what might be a murder case. Yamashita likens her to Alice in Wonderland, chasing clues as to why body parts have been washing up on the area's shores. As the book opens, in fact, Amy Lin, a local teenager, has stumbled upon a hand and foot. More than a year ago, Cara and her husband, Aaron, decided to take a much-needed vacation with their young son, Dylan. They rented a cabin in Talkeetna near Denali National Park and on the third day, Aaron took Dylan, along with his camera gear, on a morning hike to see snowshoe hares. They never returned. Cara wants to investigate whether their disappearance could be linked in any way to the body parts. When an avalanche closes the tunnel, she is forced to remain in Point Mettier. She teams up with Chief Sipley and the town's only police officer, Joe Barkowski, but does not reveal significant details about what prompted her to travel to Point Mettier. Cara is a highly skilled police professional who has sustained a horrible tragedy. She is determined to get answers, and willing to take whatever risks are required in order to do so. She is also likable and empathetic, particularly as Yamashita gradually reveals more details about the events that compelled her to visit Point Mettier.

Seventeen-year-old Amy Lin has lived in Point Mettier for fourteen years with her mother, who operates a business serving "barely passable" Chinese food that Amy Lin is tasked with delivering. She has recently learned that the details about her family's history and origins that she always accepted as true were actually manufactured by her mother. That knowledge has stirred up perplexing feelings and emotions for her, even though the revelations have given her a new understanding of her mother and her motivations. Day-to-day life in Point Mettier is challenging for Amy Lin due to a lack of activities, even though there are occasional school field trips. She is certain that were it not for Internet access connecting the little town to the rest of the world, she would not survive. There is nothing perplexing, however, about her feelings for her boyfriend, Even Spence Blackmon, who moved to Point Mettier about seven years ago with his younger brother, Troy, and their mother, Debra, who is one of the schoolteachers. Amy and Spence sneak off, along with the other local kids, to the remains of the next-door Walcott Building which used to house a bowling alley, auditorium, movie theater, and indoor pool. When Even and his family go missing, Amy is determined to find them. She is intuitive, observant, and resilient -- the white rabbit to Cara's Alice, according to Yamashita.

Lonnie Mercer is Yamashita's Mad Hatter. She wears a different colored beret every day, speaks in what Yamashita describes as "word salad" (strings of free-flowing, internal word associations) and has an undisclosed mental disability. She lives in fear of being sent back to the Institute where she was forced to live for a time after her mother was killed by an abusive boyfriend. She orders the same thing from Amy Lin's mother every day -- fried rice -- and is devoted to her pet moose, Denny. Chief Sipley looks after Lonnie and instructs her not to speak to Cara, ask her any questions or answer any questions Cara might pose, reminding her, "You don't want to end up back at the Institute, do you?" 

Yamashita surrounds her three main characters with an eclectic group of supporting players, including the innkeeper, the manager of the general store, a gang of criminals whose headquarters are located in a nearby village, and a lonely lounge singer who was once a successful recording artist in Japan. Point Mettier is, of course, a central character in the tale, as well -- brooding, claustrophobic, and holding the secrets of its inhabitants. Yamashita's prowess as a screenwriter translates well to a lushly descriptive narrative that brings to life not just her compelling characters, but also the fascinating little town of Point Mettier and the surrounding area. She convincingly details how a place as naturally beautiful as the region can also be eerily menacing and frightening. She effectively melds her characters' emotional struggles with the procedural aspects of Cara's investigation, keeping the action moving forward at a fast pace and accelerating the tension as Cara and Officer Barkowski grow closer to each other and to identifying the individual whose partial remains were discovered by Amy Lin.

In City Under One Roof, some of the mysteries explored are wrapped up in a cohesive, satisfying manner. However, as the story proceeds, Yamashita introduces intriguing additional details pertaining to others and refrains from providing a tidy ending to those plots. Indeed, City Under One Roof is just the first entertaining installment in what promises to be a riveting and atmospheric series featuring Yamashita's colorful and eccentric cast of characters.

Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.

Devil's Way by Robert Bryndza

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Kate Marshall's life changed following the sudden death of her dear friend and Alcoholics Anonymous sponsor, Myra. Kate was surprised to learn that Myra bequeathed her business and home to Kate, conditioned on Kate launching her own detective agency. Tristan, her former research assistant at Ashdean University, where Kate was a lecturer in criminology, became her partner. It is now 2018, and together they are running both the agency and the caravan site Kate inherited from Myra which provides an income stream between cases.

Kate has maintained both her sobriety and relationship with her beloved son, Jake, who is now a junior at a California university and opts to remain in Los Angeles for the summer to complete an internship at a prestigious film company. Kate starts every morning, rain or shine, with a swim in the ocean. But on a lovely June day, she immediately notices that something is wrong. She comes up for air and feels a violent current tugging at her waist and legs. As she is dragged back under the water, she realizes that she has been caught in a riptide and is powerless to escape. Meanwhile, while she is fighting for her life, Tristan is staking out a house across town, watching to see if the husband of their client will emerge with another woman. 

Twenty-four hours later, Kate awakens in the intensive care unit and learns that she was rescued by a couple of her guests at the caravan site who observed her struggle in the water. As Kate begins recovering, she gets acquainted with another patient, Jean, whose bed is only obscured from Kate's view by a curtain. Jean overheard the physician mention that Kate is a private detective and begins questioning her about the type of cases she has handled. Specifically, cases of missing persons. Jean is a mere fifty-five years old, but looks nearly two decades older than Kate, who is forty-seven. She reveals that her grandson, Charlie, vanished eleven years earlier and was never found. With his fate undetermined, Jean's daughter, Becky, could not cope with the loss of her son and took her own life seven years later. Becky blamed Jean for Charlie's disappearance because Jean and Charlie had gone camping with Becky and Charlie's father, Joel. Charlie was sleeping in Jean's tent, and Jean stepped outside intending to remain close by while she smoked a cigarette. But her on-again, off-again boyfriend of many years, Declan Connoly, showed up and Jean ventured further from the tent than originally planned in order to confront and deal with him. By the time she returned, Charlie was nowhere to be found. Along with Becky and Joel, Jean searched for Charlie for several hours before they reported his disappearance to the police and search parties were assembled. 

The group was camping at fictional Devil's Way in the eastern portion of Dartmoor National Park. Author Robert Bryndza fashioned it after Dartmoor and Exeter where he spent summer holidays as a child. His detailed descriptions of the Devil's Way Tor (an imposing stack of rocks atop a grassy hillside), river, gorge, and a massive sink hole into which authorities suspected Charlie fell, whisk readers away to a beautiful, but mysterious and eerie setting. The area is isolated, and permeated with a sense of brooding and foreboding. There is even an imposing Pixie Tree to which fabric ribbons are affixed as offerings in hopes that wishes will be granted. It is easy to imagine a little boy waking up alone in a tent, frightened, and going looking for his grandmother but losing his way in the dark. Search dogs traced Charlie’s scent to the edge of the river but found no other clues to Charlie's whereabouts. Eventually, authorities stopped looking for Charlie.

Jean and Tristan agree to take the case with the knowledge that the chances of finding Charlie alive are virtually nonexistent. However, Kate is anxious to provide Jean the closure and peace she is seeking. Kate is moved by Jean’s plight -- she has lost both her only child and only grandchild. 

Bryndza details Kate and Tristan's investigative steps, which include reviewing news articles about the case and the evidence amassed by authorities, as well as meetings with police personnel who were assigned to the case and other witnesses. They learn that Joel has moved on with his life -- he has remarried, has two young daughters, and operates a pub. Declan Connoly served time in prison and Charlie's blood was found in his car, but police were satisfied that Charlie cut his hand during an outing with Declan and Jean a few weeks prior to his disappearance. Oof course, they venture to Devil's Way to inspect the area where Charlie was last seen alive. They also visit the adjacent Danvers Farm and have a run-in with one of its residents. They learn that the prior tenants abruptly departed not long after Charlie went missing. They also discover that Jean was at odds with a social worker who was brutally murdered at around the same time. Could her blood-spattered notebook hold clues to Charlie's fate?

Once again, Bryndza has crafted a richly atmospheric, cleverly plotted story. He again demonstrates he is equally adept at the construction of complex and suspenseful mysteries, and character development. Kate is changed by her brush with death. She is mortified by her own vulnerability, embarrassed that she had to be rescued and owes her life to the surfers who pulled her from the water. She is also resolved not to let the experience change her lifestyle. Her relationship with Tristan is tested in new ways -- they have their first real disagreement -- as they work closely together, and Tristan expands his investigative skills with Kate’s mentoring. 

They are surrounded by an eccentric and compelling cast of supporting characters, including Jean, the old-before-her-time grandmother who struggled with addiction, as well as a toxic romance from which she was unable to extract herself for far too long and her fractured relationship with her daughter. She is riddled with guilt about Charlie’s disappearance and Becky’s death and traumatized by both events. But her devotion to Charlie and grief over his loss seems genuine, so her failure to be forthright in her dealings with Jean and Tristan is puzzling. Tristan's old friend Ade makes an appearance, and his sister, Sarah, now a mother, continues to insert herself and her opinions into Tristan's personal life and professional relationship with Kate. But Tristan is maturing, growing more self-assured and assertive. In addition to Declan and Joel, readers get to know the reclusive Anna through characters with whom she interacted, including the officious and self-aggrandizing Maureen Cook, who ran the Cranborough Writers group of which Anna was a member. Maureen is a “large lady in her late fifties who seemed to have overdone it with the fake tan,” sports blue eye shadow, and loves cruises. She is hilariously proud of her “photostat copier” and dismayed at having been the target of a coup within the writing group.

As Kate and Tristan search for answers, Bryndza injects surprising revelations, red herrings, and shocking details about his characters' lives and behavior into an evenly paced and emotionally evocative narrative. Only well into the story will readers find themselves guessing, perhaps correctly, about Charlie's fate. Figuring out the mystery does not diminish the satisfaction of being privy to the various characters' reactions when the truth is unveiled, especially those who loved little Charlie Julings. Bryndza competently tackles difficult topics, including the devastation of sudden loss, the ongoing effects of grief and guilt, and mental illness in an absorbing, entertaining, and surprisingly moving tale in which he illustrates that sometimes the truth does indeed hide in the dark.

Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.

One Last Secret by Adele Parks

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Dora’s life has not gone according to plan. Once, she was young and naïve, studying to be an actress at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. She believed having been given a place at the prestigious school “was the beginning of everything. Everything marvelous and possible and wild.” Then she met a handsome, charming, older man who swept her off her feet. But their big romance turned into a quintessential tale of heartbreak and abandoned dreams. There was no divorce in progress, as he initially represented, and too late Dora figured out that she was nothing more to him than a dalliance. When things became too inconvenient and complicated for him, he threw money at the problem and abandoned her. Blindsided, the consequences of their affair upended Dora’s life. She was forced to drop out of school and struggled to earn a living without the benefit of a degree or meaningful work experience. For a time, a good friend assisted her, but when he moved on, she had no choice but to reach out to her mother, from whom she had hidden her true circumstances. Her mother was disappointed, but willingly came to Dora’s aid, agreeing to move in and help Dora manage her life and responsibilities. She asked few questions because when she did, Dora evaded them. 

However, to make ends meet, Dora became an escort, a dangerous avocation she had to conceal from her mother. She was able to fool her mother for a time about where she was really working, fabricating a promotion to the position of manager to explain the amount of money she was earning and the material things she was able to provide, including a move to a more spacious apartment. She always changed into jeans and tennis shoes before returning home.

But one evening, an emergency arose, and her mother needed to reach her immediately. Frantic to get in touch with Dora, she called the pub where Dora allegedly worked, but learned that not only was she not the manager, but she also hadn’t even worked there for some time. Desperate, she searched Dora’s laptop for the address of her employer, and was shocked and dismayed by the photos she found stored there that Dora emailed to a woman named Elspeth, her “agent.” She was puzzled by the stash of cash tips hidden in Dora’s closet, and taken aback when Dora comes home from work in a short, strapless cocktail dress. Dora’s mother announces she is leaving, taking with her the one thing most precious to Dora, who realizes that fighting her mother’s decision would be a mistake. 

Now thirty-one years old, Dora is still working with Elspeth and has formed a close friendship with her neighbor, Evan, a twenty-seven-year-old trust fund baby she met four years ago. Evan will eventually inherit a fortune from his father, who owns an international property and land management company. “He is my best friend and he hates what I do, but he loves me,” Dora explains in her first-person narrative. But she has returned from a job beaten, bruised, and shaken. The client was not a regular, and as he assaulted her, he said, “You disgust me. Stop what you are doing. Stop it now. Or next time will be worse. Next time will be the last time.” 

Dora and Evan are extremely close, but have never been romantically involved, even though Dora is well aware that Evan is in love with her and she sees him as the most “sympathetic, humane being” she has even known. Evan experiences extreme mood swings, and Dora has stood by and supported him in his fight with drug addiction. He has dated many women, but never sustained a relationship. Dora knows he needs a certain kind of woman by his side. The kind “who can drop everything at a moment’s notice to pack her Fendi sunglasses and a Chanel bikini and hop on a plane to the Caribbean if the mood takes him. Career women can’t do that.” 

Dora is at first sure Evan is joking when he tells her they should marry. “I see his problem. I can also see how he might have concluded I’m the solution.” Still, the idea appeals to her because she cares deeply for him, he will cherish her, and, most importantly, marriage to Evan will ensure that she can leave her dangerous work behind, financially secure. Perhaps she will be able to reclaim the one thing that means the most to her. The idea is especially enticing after her recent terrifying experience, so Dora accepts Evan’s proposal, and they formulate a plan to introduce her to his family. They embark on their newly negotiated romantic relationship, which Dora finds pleasing, and she promises Evan she is permanently out of the escort business.

Except with Evan out of town on business, she sees no harm in accepting one last assignment. A regular client, Daniel, asks her to do one final favor for him. He wants her to accompany him to a chateau in the south of France to celebrate a friend having been made a partner in a law firm. It will only be from Friday to Monday, and they will be pretending that she is Daniel’s girlfriend because all of Daniel’s friends will be attending with their partners. Daniel has always been “a pussycat,” he will pay her handsomely, and it will be a strictly platonic weekend so she will not break her promise to Evan. It should be an easy weekend for Dora in luxurious surroundings. After all, she explains, she reinvents herself every time she embarks on a new assignment, becoming the woman her client is paying for her to be. “I am anyone I want to be. I am no one at all,” she relates.

Dora has no idea that she is walking into a trap. But she quickly realizes that nothing is as Daniel promised, and something is off about the entire setup. His friends are a decidedly eccentric group, and she immediately becomes the target of suspicion, accusations, outright gaslighting. She recognizes one of Daniel’s friends, Jonathan, as the client who beat and threatened her, but futilely tries to convince herself that she is wrong since she never saw the client’s face. Her confidence is shaken, and she wonders if it is because her “life is finally coming together, and I can hardly believe it. I don’t trust my own luck.” Eventually, though, she realizes she is in danger and accepting Daniel’s invitation was a grave mistake. But why is she being targeted? And who is really behind the nefarious charade? The revelation of one last secret could claim not just her future with Evan, but her life.

Through Dora, author Adele Parks explores gender and socioeconomic disparities, as well as greed and power in an inventive and tautly crafted tale about revenge and retribution. Dora is an endearing, sympathetic, and pragmatic protagonist who unsparingly details what her life as an escort is like, offering stark observations about the similarities between the trade-offs made by ordinary women in their dealings with men and those required of prostitutes. She acknowledges the mistakes she has made in her life, and explains both her struggle and desire to disengage from the life she has created for herself despite the enormous losses she has suffered. She is a survivor who acknowledges the codependent nature of her relationship with Evan, but it is based on genuine affection and earnestness, and she is determined that her “hooker with a heart” story will have a happy ending worthy of Hollywood. Are her motives really that simple? Or is she more calculating than her explanations suggest? Parks expertly keeps readers guessing and surrounds Dora with equally interesting supporting characters, especially Evan. He is self-aware. He knows he is a hapless, spoiled, and indulged trust fund baby who has never had to work to earn anything, but is intent on freeing Dora from her treacherous lifestyle. He proves that he is willing to do whatever is necessary to protect the woman he loves. Would he be as eager to rescue her if he knew the whole truth? 

One Last Secret is a darkly absorbing and fast-paced story, with the fascinating and multi-layered Dora at the center of an imaginative mystery. 

Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.

Just the Nicest Couple by Mary Kubica

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Just the Nicest Couple focuses on two couples living in Chicago suburb. Lily Scott is a high school algebra teacher and her husband, Christian, works as a market research analyst. Lily is pregnant and after three heartbreaking miscarriages, they are cautiously excited about the fact that she is nearing the end of the first trimester of the pregnancy, a milestone they did not previously reach. They have not told anyone that they are expecting again. They stretched their budget to purchase their dream home, set on the edge of a large forest with breathtaking views. Bestselling author Mary Kubica modeled the locale after Waterfall Glen, a preserve “where I’ve trained for marathons. It’s beautiful, densely wooded with a limestone path that weaves between forests and beside ponds, and is filled with wildlife.” In his first-person narrative, Christian reveals he is excited that their dream of becoming parents seems to be closer to coming true every day and remains deeply in love with the wife who is, to him, beautiful, petite, and delicate. His protectiveness of Lily leads him into a moral quagmire.

In contrast, the marriage of Jake Hayes, a highly successful neurosurgeon, and Nina, who teaches English at the same high school as Lily, has hit a rough patch. The story opens on the day after they had a particularly vicious argument and Jake stormed out of the house. He did not return and is not answering Nina’s calls or text messages. She is growing increasingly worried. She explains in her first-person narrative that the two have been at odds over the amount of time she has been spending assisting her mother. At just sixty-two years of age, her mother has been healthy and able to live independently until recently. Now, not only is she unable to drive because she is suffering from macular degeneration (the wet form which is resistant to treatment and ultimately leads to blindness), she recently discovered a mass in her breast which is being evaluated. Nina is an only child and her mother raised her alone after her parents divorced due to her father’s infidelity. In time, he also abandoned Nina, who has remained close to and feels an obligation to care for her mother She and Jake have argued numerous times over what she describes as Jake’s jealousy and resentment about the amount of time and attention Nina spends caring for her mother’s needs, which detracts from their time together as a couple. 

Lily and Nina are good friends and tell each other everything, according to Nina. And the two couples have occasionally socialized together. But as Nina is worrying about Jake’s whereabouts and the state of their marriage, Lily confesses to Christian that she lost one of the earrings he gave her as a fifth wedding anniversary present. It must have become dislodged when she happened upon Jake as she was walking in Langley Woods, the forest preserve behind their house. Jake confided in her that he was troubled about being unable to save a few patients recently and having marital problems with Nina, and led her down an unmarked trail, looking for deer. “He tried to kiss me,” Lily tells Christian, and the situation escalated. Lily claims to be unsure about Jake’s fate, but she “might have hurt him.” And then she ran back to her car as fast as she could. She is covered with scrapes and bruises, and did not report the incident to the police or anyone else, explaining that she “couldn’t bring herself to tell Nina because she didn’t want to hurt her like that. Nine would have been devastated if she knew what Jake tried to do.” Hours later, Lily is “haunted by what happened” and concerned about Jake’s well-being.

Kubica is known for crafting compulsive, fast-paced domestic thrillers featuring fascinating, fully developed characters. In Just the Nicest Couple, her four main characters are complex and compelling. Christian and Lily do, in fact, seem like a quintessentially nice young couple. They are educated, have solidly established themselves in their careers, and have settled into a home they love. Lily’s current pregnancy seems, so far at least, on track to end joyfully. Their marriage is a happy one. But the incident with Jake upends their peaceful domesticity. Christian is earnest, likable, and devoted to Lily, who has never previously given him a reason to distrust her. He details why they opt not to belatedly report Jake’s assault on Lily to the police, their search for Jake back at Langley Woods, and the increasingly desperate measures – most of which are by his design -- they employ to ensure that if something untoward has happened to Jake, Lily will not be implicated. After all, Christian also must protect their unborn child.

In her alternating narrative, Nina details the tension in her marriage in the months leading up to Jake’s disappearance, her efforts to find him, and the unwavering support she receives from her mother. She also takes steps to protect her mother, who is vulnerable because of her visual impairment. Kubica thoughtfully explores Nina’s difficulty balancing the demands of her husband against her devotion to a parent who is growing older and facing health challenges. Despite their recent struggles, Nina fondly recalls and longs for happier days with Jake, still loves him, and is intent on learning whether he callously decided to leave her following their last argument . . . or is unable to come home to her. As she searches for answers, her suspicions grow. In addition to Nina’s mother, another supporting character also figures prominently in the tale. Ryan, a fellow teacher at the high school, is a devoted friend to Nina. But his behavior grows increasingly concerning and Kubica keeps readers guessing about his motivations. Does he want more than friendship from Nina? Is he somehow involved in Jake’s disappearance? 

The main theme of Just the Nicest Couple is the moral dilemma that Christian faces. Kubica asks readers to consider how far they would go to protect a loved one from the consequences of his/her poor decision-making, especially with potential criminal liability looming. Christian must choose between his own sense of right and wrong, and the preservation of the life he has built with Lily. Kubica propels the story forward as Christian confronts what – and who – he is willing to sacrifice to safeguard his wife so that they can raise their child together. 

Kubica’s approach to telling the story is inventive and provocative. As noted, readers get to know Christian and Nina, and are privy to their thoughts and emotional struggles via their alternating first-person narratives. However, she does not include narratives from either Jake or Lily. Rather, readers get acquainted with them only through the recollections, observations, and impressions of their partners and friends. Thus, Christian and Nina are inherently unreliable narrators. As the story progresses, it becomes apparent that Lily’s stated version of her interactions with Jake may not have been fully accurate and truthful. Meanwhile, Christian’s questionable decision-making escalates, heightening the danger in which he and Lily find themselves. Nina, meanwhile, gradually discovers that her perceptions of her relationships with those most important to her were severely flawed, and her life will never play out the way she once thought it would. 

Kubica says she strives to create characters with whom her readers will connect, hoping readers will relate to them and step into their shoes as “they make really stupid decisions.” In Just the Nicest Couple Kubica takes readers on a turbulent emotional journey with Christian and Nina, and their spouses, injecting clues, revelations about the characters’ marriages, and plenty of red herrings along the way, as the pace of the action escalates and the story careens to a shocking climax. She says it is also important to her that once all the surprising plot twists are revealed, readers remain interested to see what ultimately happens to her characters. Indeed, she provides an emotionally satisfying conclusion to an absorbing, entertaining, and thought-provoking story.

Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.

The Widow by Kaira Rouda

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The Widow opens with the first of “Mrs. Asher’s Little Tips for New Congressional Spouses,” which appear between chapters. Written in Jody Asher’s voice, the blurbs offer insider information about how to navigate Washington, D.C. society events, Congressional protocols, and expectations. They are designed to help wives of newly elected officials avoid embarrassment and make life in the city more enjoyable. Jody instructs wives about daily life in Washington, D.C., explaining, for instance, that their husbands’ time “will be scheduled down to the minute. I’m not kidding.” And identifies the staff members with whom the wife must become acquainted in order to make their family life run smoothly. For instance, the Chief of Staff can “make your life miserable if he wants.” 

Author Kaira Rouda's husband, Harley Rouda, served in the United States House of Representatives, representing California’s 48th District, from 2019 to 2021. She says that when her husband was elected, they were scrambling to secure housing, attending orientation sessions, and feeling “completely overwhelmed.” But they were assisted by caring, experienced spouses and Rouda included the tips as an homage to those helpful women. In addition to being highly entertaining, the gossipy, over-the-top tone of those snippets offers insight into the psyche and agenda of Rouda’s main character, a woman who delights at and is very accustomed to being in charge, with her place in society and at her husband’s side secure, never threatened -- a symbol of the power she wields. 

In Part Two, Rouda introduces excerpts from “A Guide for New Members of Congress” from Mimi Smith, who has been a friend to both Jody and her husband, Martin Asher, for more than twenty years. They all met in law school, and she is, by Jody’s admission, “a political animal, more connected than even we are,” who runs a highly respected think tank with her husband, Spencer. Mimi is a strategist and advisor who has guided the Ashers throughout Martin’s career. She is glamorous, savvy, and formidable. Her advice is offered in a straight-forward, unflinching, and experienced manner. Of course, as the story proceeds, Rouda reveals that Mimi has her own shocking agenda. And that Jody admires, respects, and fears Mimi because of her ability to make or break careers. But she does not trust her.

As the story begins, Martin is, at fifty-five, still handsome and charismatic. He serves as Chair of the House Foreign Relations Committee, serving his sixteenth term. Jody is planning the lavish and costly upcoming wedding of their daughter, Charlotte. At the outset, Jody acknowledges, through her first-person narrative, that she is intent on controlling Martin and will use unscrupulous means to do so. Martin has not been feeling well, and Charlotte is concerned about him. Things are about to get much worse for Martin, who has been scrambling to secure funds to pay for the wedding, and learns that a reporter is chasing a story about his ties to lobbying firms. Max Brown, an investigative reporter with the Washington Times, claims he has evidence that Martin is taking payoffs . . . and plans to run the story. In his first-person narrative, Martin assures his benefactor that he will pay all the money back. 

Meanwhile, Charlotte’s future father-in-law plans to back Martin’s opponent when Martin runs for re-election. And Martin’s indiscretion with a young, beautiful intern in his office who is just a few years older than Charlotte – and was placed in his office by Mimi -- is about to have serious repercussions, especially when he makes matters worse by telling her that he will provide her with an excellent recommendation, but she needs to find another position. Martin frets that he has secured his own political demise and knows that, if he has, Jody will extract revenge. Jody is determined to find a way to save his career, reputation . . . and her lifestyle.

Martin and Jody met in law school and married because their goals aligned. Jody had a dark past about which Martin was not fully aware until after he married her, and he ponders whether he would have married her anyway. He also oversold himself to her. “We both were posers, not at all what we appeared. That was our superpower. Together we wanted to be more than what we’d come from. We wanted power and prestige.” As Jody notes, “What’s love got to do with anything inside the beltway?” But now everything they have worked to accomplish is in jeopardy. Mimi wisely warns that if the intern story breaks, Martin could actually lose the upcoming election. "Sex scandals eclipse all others in this town.” 

And then Martin dies suddenly, and his death opens an avenue for Jody to come into power in her own right. She is ready to seize the opportunity. At first, Jody does not care about Martin’s seat, but a bit of googling reveals the Widow’s Mandate. She makes up her mind that she is not going to resume practicing law to support herself. Rather, her thirty years as “an important public servant” should be rewarded. “The fact is: whoever is serving, their spouse is, too, without most of the perks or thanks,” Rouda notes. JOdy declares, “There is nothing else I want to do. No other job interests me. I want this one. And I will get it, earn it. The people will love me, like they loved Martin,” she tells herself. And she will be able to figure out Martin's tangled financial dealings, and discover who was actively working to derail his career. Mimi agrees to help her, but Jody must first convince the party leaders who have already selected a young woman to run for Martin’s seat. The machinations, manipulations, double-crossing, and deal-making begin in earnest, and make for a titillating story.

The Widow succeeds in part because Rouda has crafted a convincing story about the cutthroat ways that business is conducted in the nation’s capital. She admits that she drew upon her personal experiences to believably depict “the settings, the traditions, the backstabbing.” She injects surprising plot twists and revelations that keep the story moving at a steady pace, heightening reader interest in seeing just how far beyond ethical norms Jody will go and how things will play out for her. 

But the real strength of The Widow is Rouda’s characters, especially Jody. She is not simply narcissistic and power-hungry. She is self-aware, and that aspect of her personality, revealed in a narrative that crackles with honesty from a woman who knows exactly who and what she is, elevates the story. Jody admits that she is unable to experience the full range of human emotions and lacks empathy for others, including her own daughter. Charlotte understands her mother, accepts her, and does not make excuses for her. She shares with Mimi that Jody has “often apologized to her for her inability to show emotion and feel true love.” Thus, Jody is fascinatingly despicable and, in key moments, surprisingly sympathetic. After all, the ability to emote is deeply satisfying and a person who lacks the capacity to feel must lead a miserable, unfulfilling life. Her story is riveting as she strives to secure a future for herself that she deems suitable and befitting what she has already accomplished with Martin. She is extremely clever, and surprisingly good at reading other people’s emotions and ferreting out their agendas, even though she utterly lacks compassion for them and is ruthlessly conniving. But her opponents are formidable. Can she be skillfull outwitted and played? 

The Widow is a captivating tale of intrigue, corruption, and the corrosive nature of ambition and unbridled power, at the center of which is a woman who is mesmerizingly cold and calculating. Rouda says she would enjoy writing another book set in Washington, D.C. and after devouring The Widow, readers will be hoping she does.
 
Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.

The Villa by Rachel Hawkins

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

About The Villa, author Rachel Hawkins says "there are a lot of stories happening all at once." She describes it as being about friendships and, more specifically, female friendships and toxic relationships. It is also about writing, art, sex and gender, and, or course, money. 

The current-day story focuses on Emily, a published author of a cozy mystery series featuring an amateur sleuth named Petal Bloom who lives in a little town called Blossom Bay. Emily is nearly thirty-six years old, still living in Asheville -- the town in which she grew up -- and nothing in her life has been going well for quite some time. She was physically ill for more than a year while a definitive diagnosis and appropriate treatment plan evaded her physicians. Her seven-year marriage to Matt imploded and now she's having trouble focusing on drafting the next installment in the Petal series, "A Gruesome Garden," in part because Petal's love interest, Dex, was modeled on Matt. She needs to finish the book not just to fulfill her contractual obligation. She needs the money to pay her attorneys because her pending divorce has become toxically acrimonious. Matt is suing for a significant portion of her royalties and future earnings, based on Emily's assertion during an interview that the books would not exist without her husband. 

Ironically, though, since separating from Matt, Emily's health has improved and she is feeling well enough to meet her childhood friend, Chess Chandler, who is in town for a book signing. The two women were childhood friends -- when Chess was known first as Jessica and, later, Jay -- but rarely see each other. Chess has become a wildly successful self-help guru, publishing books with titles like "You Got This!" Her career began when advice she doled out on a website launched by a friend went viral. Suddenly, Chess amassed hundreds of thousands of Instagram followers, snagged jobs with Salon and the Cut, and landed a book deal. "Things My Mama Never Taught Me" (Chess did not have a good relationship with her mother, Nanci) became an instant bestseller, with Chess telling woman how to get their lives on the "Powered Path" and chatting with Oprah about it. In her first-person narrative, Emily admits that "somewhere around the time she started calling herself 'Chess,' I realized I might actually hate my best friend." Part of the reason may be that Emily's life is decidedly "not on the Powered Path." 

Still, Emily agrees to meet Chess for lunch, and they fall back into their old dynamic. And, as always, Chess has a plan. She wants Emily to accompany her to Italy to stay at the sumptuous Villa Aestas just outside Orvieto for six weeks, during which they will work on their respective upcoming books. Emily can't resist the pull of six weeks away from her house and the rut she is in. "Six weeks to try and get my career back on track and reignite my sense of purpose." Of course, since the setting is gorgeous, she can also post beautiful photos on Instagram and Facebook that Matt will see. Chess is feeling pressured by her publisher to come up with her next volume of pithy advice for the masses.

Hawkins employs a parallel narrative focused on Mari Godwick, the author of "Lilith Rising," which was a publishing phenomenon in 1976. Mari was barely out of her teens when she joined the ranks of mostly male writers with the story of a girl named Victoria Stuart who "brings about the destruction of those she loves with no regret, single-minded in her focus in the way teenage girls certainly are in real life, but had not been permitted to be in the realms of horror fiction." By the time the book was released, Mari, inspired by Mary Shelley, who wrote Frankenstein, was already famous -- or perhaps, more aptly, infamous -- because of a tragedy that occurred at Villa Rosato (the prior name of Villa Aestas) during the summer of 1974. Mari traveled there with Pierce Sheldon, her would-be rock star boyfriend, as well as her stepsister, Lara Larchmont, as guests of Noel Gordon, a legitimate Scottish rock star and one of Pierce's idols, modeled after Lord Byron. Also staying at Villa Rosato is Johnnie Dorchester, whose relationship with Noel is murky, at best. At only twenty-six years old, Noel is the senior member of the group. Pierce is twenty-three and Johnnie is twenty, but Mari and Lara are only nineteen years old. And Mari, in particular, the daughter of literary royalty, has already experienced life events normally reserved for adults. 

By interspersing excerpts from various articles and podcasts, Hawkins reveals some of the events that took place in 1974. The technique is highly effective, enticing readers to forge on in order to learn how and why those events unfolded. Hawkins has gathered an eclectic and multi-layered group of characters at Villa Rosato. Noel is an established star who has too much money and time to spend between engagements, so he rents Villa Rosato to keep the party going all summer. Purportedly, he and Pierce are there to compose songs together -- the chance to work with Noel could bring Pierce the career breakthrough he has been seeking. But as the weeks go on, not much music gets made, and Mari is increasingly frustrated. Her life with Pierce is supposed to be about the two of them pursuing their art -- his music and her writing. But art cannot be the focus of one's life when money needs to be made in order to survive. Drugs, and sexual experimentation and dalliances cause jealousy, resentments, and distrust, as Johnnie's purpose there gradually becomes clearer, along with his feelings about the other guests. Hawkins says that creating the character of Pierce was the most challenging aspect of drafting The Villa because she had to make him "appealing enough that we understand why both Mari and Lara loved him while also showing just how destructive and oblivious he could be . . ." Indeed, Pierce is both endearingly confused about his life and choices, and despicably self-centered and callous.

The most intriguing aspect of the storyline is Mari's journey, as she navigates her relationships with her housemates and ponders her future, while taking inspiration for the novel that will become her masterpiece from the villa itself, along with snippets of prose that come to her. "Houses remember. She has no idea where she's going with that thought, but it had popped into her brain and she's written it down, sure it was the beginning of . . . something. Something big, some story just sitting coiled inside of her, ready to spring out fully formed." She wants to focus on her writing and tell the story that she can feel taking shape in her imagination. Lara lurks on the edges of the group, craving attention. She has a history with and feelings for Pierce, and Mari does not trust her. Indeed, she and the others find Lara's cloying attempts to be noticed and desire for validation annoying. But Lara and Mari have been inextricably intertwined for years, and their bond grows stronger during that revelatory and life-changing summer.

In the present day, Emily is inspired to write, as well. But she has no interest in continuing Petal Bloom's story. Rather, she learns about the villa's notorious history and begins researching what happened. Like Mari's, her search proves consequential in a variety of ways. Emily, like Mari, is a fully developed character and her emotional struggle is palpable. She is well aware that she has arrived at a crossroads in her life, and is determined to carve out a happier future for herself. She is also intent on keeping Chess from co-opting her impending success. Like the relationship of Mari and Lara, Emily's long friendship with Chess is complicated and riddled with old hurts, resentments, jealousy, and distrust. Secrets and betrayals are revealed. But they are bound together through history and shared experiences, and neither of them has the desire -- or strength -- to completely untangle their relationship. As Hawkins details the history of their friendship, she reveals that Emily has always been more naive and gullible than Chess, who has parlayed her natural wit and charisma into an empire. Emily knows the real Chess, rather than the one who inspires other women to buy her psychobabble-laden advice. But Emily is not guileless and as she delves further into the history of the villa and its former visitors, the inherent unreliability in her narrative becomes apparent. Is Emily a hapless victim of others' manipulations or does she have a dark nature, as well? Can her friendship with Chess withstand bombshell revelations and calculated machinations? Should it? The story's pace never stalls as Hawkins injects surprising twists at perfectly timed intervals. 

The Villa seamlessly combines two evocative storylines set nearly five decades apart but with eerie parallels. Hawkins examines artistry and the mysterious genesis of inspiration, as well as the mercurial nature of friendships and the destructive power of toxic relationships. Hawkins relates that she was inspired to explore "the idea of how art and life intersect, how great art can get made in the middle of chaos and the way artists inspire and also possibly derail one another." And she does so in an absorbing, suspenseful and, ultimately, entertaining mystery.

Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.