The First to Lie by Hank Phillippi Ryan Book Review

Releasing September 2020 (not my picture).As a Super Reader, I was gifted a NetGalley copy of "The First To Lie." This is also the first book of Ms. Ryan's I have had the opportunity to read.The premise of this book is that a large pharmaceutical company, Pharminex, is marketing a drug that has more side effects than they are willing to admit. There are quite a few people who were hurt by this drug, either physically or emotionally. So many characters in this book were pretending to be someone else entirely in order to uncover the cover-up about this drug.If you like a read that has characters that are sometimes hard to keep up with as to which identity they are at certain times coupled with some deep-seated family secrets and perhaps a bit of romance along the way, I highly recommend you add this to your to be read stack!

After All I've Done by Mina Hardy Book Review

Not my picture. Publishing November 2020.

This is a book I downloaded off of NetGalley.

Diana and Val were best friends growing up. Diana ended up marrying Jonathan and having a "rich" life. Val had moved away, only to move back home when her dad got sick and she needed to take care of him. At some point, Diana and Val made an agreement because Diana wanted to leave Jonathan, but according to the prenup she had to have proof of his infidelity ... enter Val's part in the scheme. Diana then had a bad car accident ... one so bad that she suffered anesthesia-related amnesia and could not recall at least two months of her life, what happened, who was involved, what she did or did not do, nothing. Her memories were just gone. During her accident, she had broken both of her collarbones so in swoops her mother-in-law, Harriett, who incidentally lived above Diana and Jonathan's garage in an apartment. Harriett cooked for Diana, drove her to her appointments, basically was the "mom" Diana never had, Diana having been adopted by a drug-addicted woman.

This story takes an interesting turn near the end of the book. I kept flipping pages to find out what was going to happen, if Diana was going to recover her memory. I was starting to piece things together while reading, but really was quite surprised at who the bad guy turned out to be.

The Safe Place by Anna Downes Book Review

This is a book I "won" from Minotaur through a GoodReads giveaway. Releasing July 14, 2020.

Emily has lost another temporary job and according to the temp service they are few and far between. As well, as an aspiring actress, she has also lost her agent who has decided to marry and move to the states. Feeling rather down on her luck, she is almost hit by a bus when her "knight in shining armor," Scott, who also happened to own the company she was just fired from, saves her from certain death. They go have a coffee. Scott offers Emily a once-in-a-lifetime job ... all she has to do is say yes. After some smooth talking from Scott, Emily says yes and without hesitation signs the confidentiality agreement. Off to a French estate she goes! Everything is seemingly normal but yet not normal, but Emily soon finds herself settling in and actually starts to enjoy all the hard work she and Nina have been doing to create what one might refer to as a sort of Neverland. Aurelia, Scott and Nina's daughter, does not seem as sick as Nina makes her out to be, troubled yes, sick no. After escaping for a day to a nearby city and catching up with some Google searches, Emily discovers a surprising secret about Nina and Scott ... a secret that is so tightly woven into the pages of this story it will leave you wondering how you didn't see it coming, a shocking turn of events at the end for sure.

There is some great character building in this book, I think. Emily, not so sure of herself, ends up finding she is a worthwhile individual. Scott who is a successful businessman is in actuality a rather weak man, Nina and Aurelia ... well, they are just some exceptional characters of their own.

Find Her Alive by Lisa Regan Book Review

This is a book I downloaded off of NetGalley (not my picture). This is the first book I have read by Ms. Regan, this being the eighth in her Detective Josie Quinn series.

Josie and her team (comprised of Noah, who is also Josie's significant other, Gretchen, and Mettner, to name a few) are working on The Bone Artist case. In this book, Ms. Regan does an amazing job of telling two stories at once, to provide much needed background to get to the end. While the reader is able to start piecing together who The Bone Artist turns out to be, just exactly how it all relates in the final outcome keeps one reading. There are some intertwining relationships involved: Josie and her twin sister Trinity; Josie and Noah; Josie and her grandmother; and let's not forget Josie and Trinity's parents (Trinity, Josie, and their biological parents are a story in themselves!). 

I think this would be a good series to read in order, to get a sense of the characters. If the other seven are anything like this one, they can all be read as stand-alone books. 

What She Didn't See by Heather Wynter Book Review

Not my picture.

As a member of Ms. Wynter's review/early reader team, I was gifted a copy of "What She Didn't See." Thank you!

What was supposed to be a trip for two best friends, Gracie and Lena, with this story taking place in Rome, turned out to be something much more deadly Gracie and Lena were on their way to meet Gabe and Luke for coffee at a cafe, when their simple walk down the street erupted in chaos. Through the devastation of this act, Gracie learned some things about herself and developed some feelings for Luke (at the time she met him she did not know what he did for a living).

Short stories are just that ... short. They have to encompass a lot of action in a short amount of time. Ms. Wynter has been able to do that in this novella. She has a budding romance, a bad guy, a good guy (or two), and the underlying theme of Gracie finding an inner strength. It will be interesting to see what "adventures" Gracie gets up to in the second installment.

Forget Her Name by Jane Holland Book Review

This is a book I purchased off of Amazon a while back. I believe it was one of those that popped up in the "you may be interested" category.

This is a story that is composed of a deep-seated family secret. One that I certainly was not expecting. If you are into psychological reads, I highly recommend you give this book a read.

Catherine (called Cat by some) apparently had a sister. When Catherine was 12, making Rachel right around 13 years old, Rachel suddenly disappears. To me, this story is so well written that when the "twist" happens you will find yourself thinking, "I didn't see that coming ... at all." As the caption on the book cover says, "The secrets of the past can't stay buried forever," especially with the uncovering of the diary that Catherine finds. And, the bad guy - you won't believe that either! Well done, Ms. Holland!

Drawing Home by Jamie Brenner Book Review

This is a book I "won" through an Instagram giveaway hosted by Ms. Brenner a month or so ago. I have a hard time categorizing books into any particular genre; this apparently is what you would call a "beach read."

This story takes place in Sag Harbor, New York, a sleepy little town rich in the city's history. Henry Wyatt, an artist, became a resident of Sag Harbor much to the disappointment of his long-time friend and self-appointed agent, if you will, Bea Winstead. Through their association, Bea became known in the art circle while Henry wanted a quieter life, out of the limelight, away from art. He wanted more from life. Bea could not understand this desire. While in Sag Harbor, Henry befriended a young girl, Penny, and taught her some drawing skills. Upon Henry's passing, his will became a point of contention between Bea and Penny's family.

You'll have to read the book to find out how this all turned out. Ms. Brenner does a fantastic job of drawing the reader into this story. I could just picture someone of Bea's standing swooping into this lazy little town of Sag Harbor thinking she would just rule the roost (so to speak), only to find her plans changed ... drastically. It's a refreshing read for sure!