The Litertarian

Book Review:: The Summer of You and Me | Denise Hunter

One day Maggie is at the fair with her young daughter and swears she sees her husband among the crowds. Trouble is, he was killed in the line of duty five years ago.

The Summer of You and Me by Deinse Hunter Book Cover

Calling upon his brother to help her search for him opens up a new world of possibilities neither of them ever expected, and are a little afraid to entertain. But they don’t give up, and eventually are confronted with an impossible truth.

This novel is at once a mystery, a love story, and a story of revitalization. Grief is heavy and comes in waves, some hitting so hard and fast it makes us feel like we’ll never get a breath of fresh air again. But holding stagnant doesn’t allow you to buoy back to the surface, lifted by the spirits of those who came before. By the love and honor you have for them. This is a story about humanity in a lot of ways. Coping with death. Resilience.

An undercurrent of support, love, and understanding runs through this novel. The characters seem to be at least casually religious, though it’s not outwardly discussed much through the narrative. Instead they lead by example, telling truths even when it hurts, finding forgiveness in difficult situations, overcoming shock in favor of compassion. There is plenty of drama in this book, but I could feel the safety net underneath, in the best way possible.

The Summer of You and Me blurs genre lines to bring a story that will tug at your heart strings. I absolutely loved it. I hope you will too.

Note:: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Details

Title:: The Summer of You and Me
Author:: Denise Hunter
Genre:: Contemporary Romance
Publisher:: Thomas Nelson
Length:: 352 pages
Audio Length:: 9h 55m
Audiobook Narrator:: Kim Churchill
Published:: April 22nd, 2025
The Litertarian Rating:: 5-Stars

If you liked this book, check out…

Before We Were Us | Denise Hunter
Counting Miracles | Nicholas Sparks
Every Moment Since | Marybeth Mayhew Whalen

Book Review:: Can’t Get Enough | Kennedy Ryan

Can’t Get Enough is the third book in her Skyland series, but the first one I’ve ever read, and I’m impressed! I’ve heard lots of great things, and this one certainly did not disappoint.

Can't Get Enough by Kennedy Ryan Book Cover

Hendrix and Maverick meet at a party as two people who can’t entertain the idea of being together, despite their attractions. He’s technically with someone else, and she’s on the brink of a major deal with his significant other that will lead to the career she’s dreamed of for a long time. But he does overhear an emotional conversation between Hendrix and her mother with Alzheimer’s on the phone, and offers to lend a hand. His own grandfather suffered through the same disease. As time passes, Hendrix and Maverick grow closer and closer until neither of them can deny what they’re feeling anymore.

One thing I loved about this book was how realistic it felt. Hard conversations were hard, intimate scenes don’t go off without a hitch, painful things are very painful. The author really puts herself into the shoes of her characters, and you can feel that as you read it.

The story between Hendrix and Maverick isn’t the most straight forward, but it is sexy as hell. Mav is a millionaire, and that man moves money to make things happen. I can admit that can be romantic! I loved how there were some tough decisions to make, and hard circumstances to navigate, but none of it got in the way of the truth of their feelings for one another (no third act breakup!).

I was pleasantly surprised by this book, and I’m excited to go back and read the rest of the Skyland series!

Note:: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Details

Title:: Can’t Get Enough (Skyland #3)
Author:: Kennedy Ryan
Genre:: Contemporary Romance
Publisher:: Forever
Length:: 448 pages
Audio Length:: 14h 30m
Audiobook Narrator:: Wesleigh Siobhan & Jakobi Diem
Published:: May 13th, 2025
The Litertarian Rating:: 4-Stars
Spice Rating:: 3

If you liked this book, check out…

Adam & Evie’s Matchmaking Tour | Nora Nguyen
Let’s Call A Truce | Amy Buchanan
Yours Truly | Abby Jimenez

Book Review:: The Correspondent | Virginia Evans

A novel to move you. Sybil’s life is as complex and nuanced as the next, and as someone who corresponds best through the written word, we get glimpses into her past, her present, her constancy, and her deepest secrets. The Correspondent is a novel that will make you laugh, cry, smile, and wince as Sybil Van Antwerp bares her soul into the pages.

The Correspondent by Virginia Evans Book Cover, woman at a desk

An epistolary novel is one told entirely through correspondence. There is no narrator or outside voice – we are presented with letters and emails that cross Sybil’s desk, both incoming and outgoing, and from these we discern her life.

What do we know? She has a complicated relationship with her family, her previous career, a young acquaintance, a new medical diagnosis, and secrets from her past she is both keeping and some she is too afraid to discover. She is older, her children are grown, and she is coming to terms with her life, such as she has lived it to this point.

The Correspondent by Virginia Evans Book Cover, two birds

This is a beautiful novel. It unfolds so elegantly with each new letter. Sybil is at times laughable stodgy in her set ways, but also touching and vulnerable in others. Her story teaches us that it’s never too late to put yourself out there, to right previous wrongs, or to learn something new about yourself.

I love Sybil, and by the end of her story, I had tears streaming down my face. This is a story I won’t soon forget, and I hope you read it too.

Note:: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Details

Title:: The Correspondent
Author:: Virginia Evans
Genre:: Epistolary Fiction
Publisher:: Crown
Length:: 304 pages
Audio Length:: 10h
Audiobook Narrator:: TBA
Published:: April 29th, 2025
The Litertarian Rating:: 5-Stars

If you liked this book, check out…

The Most Fun We Ever Had | Claire Lombardo
The Last Love Note | Emma Grey
Counting Miracles | Nicholas Sparks
I’ll Come to You | Rebecca Kaufmann

Book Review:: We All Live Here | Jojo Moyes

We All Live Here by Jojo Moyes is a raw, emotional, and realistic story of a family that has fallen apart and is only functioning through strategic use of metaphorical cellophane tape and sheer force of will.

We All Live Here by Jojo Moyes Book Cover

Lila Kennedy finds herself as the head of her household after a humiliating divorce that left her career and reputation in shambles and with him multiplying his genes with one of the other school mums. She and her two daughters have support in the form of Lila’s mother’s second-husband Bill, who is still in the deep throes of grieving her unexpected death. The house is falling apart one expensive project at a time, and the landscape guy keeps bringing up more issues she needs to address but are nowhere near the top of her priority list. Then one day, Lila’s septuagenarian absent-since-she-was-4-years-old father shows up on her doorstep looking for a place to stay for awhile, unafraid to make himself at home and insert himself into absolutely everything with an annoying American charisma that seems to fool everyone else. What follows is a story about family and forgiveness and grief and perseverance, and grace, and the grit to get through the next thing and the next while somehow keeping all the juggling balls from crashing into the ground.

The family dynamics crafted in this novel felt so realistic. The quintessential example of the phrase if it’s not one thing, it’s another. The two grandpas who loved the same woman, the young daughter and her school play, the older daughter and her mean-girl school problems and rebellious streak, the dynamics with the ex-husband creating a new family apart from them and the emotional blow that strikes against them all. On top of everything else, Lila is ‘getting back out there’ as an officially over-the-hill divorcee, and the story of her romantic experiences were so brutally honest, complete with fundamental mistakes, misunderstandings, the inability to see things for what they truly are. It felt raw and honest and I really appreciated that.

This novel has a lot going on, and though certain elements felt somewhat predictable, none of it felt formulaic or cliche. In my experience, Jojo Moyes is a skillful storyteller, and this family drama is one that will keep you engaged and interested until the very last pages, leaving you with warm feelings of hope and acceptance that will fill your cup like only a good book can.

Details

Title:: We All Live Here
Author:: Jojo Moyes
Genre:: Contemporary Fiction
Publisher:: Pamela Dorman Books
Length:: 464 pages
Audio Length:: 12h 38m
Audiobook Narrator:: Jenna Coleman
Published:: February 11th, 2025
The Litertarian Rating:: 5-Stars

If you liked this book, check out…

The Most Fun We Ever Had | Claire Lombardo
Thank You For Listening | Julia Whelan
Amazing Grace Adams | Fran Littlewood

Book Review:: The Proposal Project | Donna Marchetti

I don’t know how I stumbled across Donna Marchetti’s first book, Hate Mail, but it was one of the most memorable romances I read last year. When I saw she had a new book coming out this year, I jumped at the chance to read it.

The Proposal Project by Donna Marchetti Book Cover

The premise is two people with a mutual friend-couple who got off on the wrong foot team up to make said friend-couple’s proposal something to remember. That’s right, both the man and woman want to propose to each other, unbeknownst to the other, but certainly beknownst (ha) by our two lead characters, Pricilla and Oliver. Planning the perfect proposal is about more than just making her best friend’s day special for Priscilla, this is the moment she hopes will launch her new event planning business. Having to work with and trust Oliver was not on her bingo card, and neither was having to fake date him in order not to spoil their schemes.

Romantic comedies can be hit and miss for me. Often they veer over the line from cute and playful into cliche and annoying, but Marchetti, in both books I’ve read so far, seems to know exactly where the line is and bends it to her will. Cheesy? A little. Unbelievable? No. And the deeper character moments fill the gaps between mishaps with heart and tenderness that wins me over every time.

Note:: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Details

Title:: The Proposal Project
Author:: Donna Marchetti
Genre:: Romantic Comedy
Publisher:: Harper Collins | One More Chapter
Length:: 384 pages
Published:: June 27th, 2025
The Litertarian Rating:: 4-Stars

If you liked this book, check out…

Hate Mail | Donna Marchetti
Not in My Book | Katie Holt
Exes & O’s | Amy Lea

Book Review:: The Seven O’Clock Club | Amelia Ireland

What does it take to earn a five-star rating? Is it simply capturing and holding your attention? Is it making you feel things down deep in the depths of your soul? Is it creating a world/character/story that will linger in your mind for years to come? If your answer is yes to any of the above, The Seven O’Clock Club makes the list without even trying.

The Seven O'Clock Club by Amelia Ireland Book Cover

This is a book about grief – possibly the most complex of human emotions. Four people are selected to be a part of an experimental project, led by a woman named Geniveve. Each of them has a pain so deep and vivid they can’t face it, it’s ruining what is left of their lives. Geniveve brings them together once a week at seven o’clock for a gently led support-group style meeting. Slowly they are asked to introduce themselves: who they are, how they’ve changed, and eventually, what it was that happened to bring them to the group.

Each of them has a story, each of them a pain so great it fundamentally changed them. And together, they find community. Friendship. Family.

I knew early on this book was going to be a profound experience. The characters opening themselves up and pouring out their pain was so powerful. Chills were had. Tears were shed. My own heart broke a little bit for every one of them.

These characters and their situations were so well-realized, and when the twist came I was skeptical at first, but it allowed for the themes to resound even more powerfully and left me with a lot to ponder once the story ended.

I am so grateful I got the opportunity to read this book early through netgalley after being one of the chosen ones by Berkley for this title. This is one of the best books I’ve read so far this year. I can’t wait to see what’s next for Amelia Ireland!

Note:: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Details

Title:: The Seven O’Clock Club
Author:: Amelia Ireland
Genre:: General Fiction/Fantasy
Publisher:: Berkley
Length:: 368 pages
Audio Length:: 12h
Audiobook Publisher:: Penguin Audio
Published:: April 15th, 2025
The Litertarian Rating:: 5-Stars

Linky Links!!

If you liked this book, check out…

The Last Love Note | Emma Grey
Maybe Next Time | Cesca Major
Yin Yang Love Song | Lauren Kung Jessen

Book Review:: Mrs. Quinn’s Rise to Fame | Olivia Ford

Bake off, but make it bookish!

Mrs. Quinn’s Rise to Fame is the cozy adventure of a lithe septuagenarian ready to take a little piece of the world for herself for the very first time.

Mrs. Quinn's Rise to Fame by Olivia Ford Book Cover

Jenny Quinn bakes every day. She uses antique scales to weigh her ingredients, and recipes passed down to her from the women in her family. Recipes tell their own stories, you know, of the women who wrote them down, and the time they recorded them. One day on a whim, she decides to enter a televised baking competition, but she’s so unsure of herself (and specifically her bread baking skills) that she keeps her application a secret from her beloved husband. It’s only the second time she’s kept something from Bernard, and the guilt starts to rise like her nemesis: yeasted dough. Remarkably, she gets through to audition after audition and eventually, she can’t hide it any longer, and she realizes she doesn’t want to keep her other secret anymore either. She’s just not sure how to tell it.

Okay seriously, this book gives all the cozy feel-good vibes of Bake Off. Jenny is patient and kind and so sincere it hurts a little bit, but in a good way…? Somehow Olivia Ford has really captured the essence of that British baking competition and infused it into this story perfectly.

Some of the book focuses on some flashbacks to a young Jenny, who finds herself in a very difficult situation. The world was different in those days, especially for women, and I found that storyline so heartbreaking and emotional.

The writing was so engaging and compelling it was easy to connect to the story. A delight all the way through. Like a hug in a book!

5 stars, no notes.

Details

Title:: Mrs. Quinn’s Rise to Fame
Author:: Olivia Ford
Genre:: Cozy General Fiction
Publisher:: Pamela Dorman Books
Length:: 384 pages
Audio Length:: 11h 12m
Audiobook Narrator:: Melanie Crawley
Published:: January 30th, 2024
The Litertarian Rating:: 5-Stars

If you liked this book, check out…

The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife | Anna Johnston
The Christmas Inn | Pamela Kelley

Book Review:: Eight Hundred Grapes | Laura Dave

Timing is everything, and who knows that better than a wine maker? I’m learning that lesson again from Eight Hundred Grapes. I read it once before in 2022 and rated it 3 stars. Rereading again in 2025 it has earned 5.

I suppose for me it was an acquired taste.

Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave Book Cover

Georgia flees town in her wedding dress, taking refuge back home in Sonoma county, at the bar her brothers own together. She’s been away awhile, and returns to find things not at all how she left them, but in just as complicated a mess as she finds her own self in. The foundations of her family she always believed to be unshakable have been shooketh, and she’s scrambling to make sense of the new reality taking shape around her.

I’m struggling to understand why a version of myself from three years ago didn’t find anything to connect with in this novel. I must not have, to have rated it three stars. The me of today sees a young woman coming to terms with a rite of passage that was thrust upon her all at once instead of coming to it on her own: the dissolution of her folks turning from ‘parents’ into ‘people’. This coming on the heels of a revelation that her fiancé has been hiding the biggest imaginable secret, and that her brothers are tangled up in something she doesn’t understand. All of these things are reinforcing the idea that people, no matter how good their intentions are, or how otherwise ‘good’ they may be, can and will make decisions that can hurt you. Decisions you may not understand. Decisions that will cause ripple effects far beyond what might have been expected.

This book is about coming to terms with the humanity and imperfections of your family, about the impermanence of some things and the imprinting of others upon the very fabric of your being. About holding onto and letting go of childhood. It’s about potential. It’s about building cultivating the soil and knowing when to give up, and more importantly, when not to. It’s about taking control of your own destiny, and accepting the fallibility of others, as we are fallible ourselves. But really it’s a story of a family in crisis, and who can’t relate to that at some level?

Laura Dave, I’m sorry I did not see or understand the brilliance of this novel the first time around. I’m just glad I picked it up again and saw its true worth this time. Thank you, for such an incredible story.

Details

Title:: Eight Hundred Grapes
Author:: Laura Dave
Genre:: Contemporary/General Fiction
Publisher:: Simon & Schuster
Length:: 274 pages
Audio Length:: 8h 6m
Audiobook Narrator:: Joy Osmanski
Published:: February 1st, 2022
The Litertarian Rating:: 5-Stars

If you liked this book, check out…

The Cheesemaker’s Daughter | Kristin Vukovic
Wish I Were Here | Melissa Wiesner
I’ll Come To You | Rebecca Koffman

Book Review:: Any Trope But You | Victoria Levine

Oh tragic personal crisis – Oh handsome brawny hunk in the woods who can right any wrong with his handsome brawny-ness! Any Trope But You is a mostly lightweight romantic comedy that will walk you through the set up for The Next Great American Romance, because despite trying to run away from romance novels entirely, the main character Margot is literally walking into one.

Any Trope But You by Victoria Lavine Book Cover

It’s a cute story, yes, and if you really love romantic comedies, you’ll probably like this one. It just wasn’t my favorite.

The one thing I do applaud here is the inclusion of characters with disabilities and chronic pain, characters who need full-time carers and have unpredictable health patterns. Both of the main characters have family members they feel responsible for, and I think the topic is handled very well (without one of the characters actually being one of the disabled themselves…somehow the lead characters are always the normies).

That being said, I think my main complaint here is that given the sincerity of the themes implied by those circumstances, this novel leans far too heavily in the almost-stupid romantic comedy hijinks. Of course, we’re expecting to go through a long list of cliched tropes (hey-it’s in the title), but I think it was the air-headedness required for Margot to fall into all of them that bugged me. Was it her actual personality? Eh. The two sides of her just didn’t seem to match up very well for me.

The romance, however, seemed quite genuine once it got going (given that the first of the tropes was dumbfounding-attraction at first sight), and by the end I didn’t need any further convincing that it had legs to stand on once they got into the ‘real world’. Also, the spicy scenes in this book were particularly good, in my personal estimation.

The themes, as well, are valuable. Throw yourself into new experiences, pick yourself back up when the world knocks you down, don’t erase yourself within the needs of others, and, of course, you’ll always find your true love once you hit rock bottom and decide to take a spontaneous trip to Alaska in hopes of rearranging your entire life!

I wish I could give this book a higher rating, but with issues previously discussed and some elements of the ending that also felt a little too convenient in a way that put a bad taste in my mouth, this is sitting at three stars from me.

Note:: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Details

Title:: Any Trope But You
Author:: Victoria Lavine
Genre:: Romantic Comedy
Publisher:: Atria Books
Length:: 336 pages
Audio Length:: 11h 17m
Audiobook Narrator:: Tim Paige & Jesse Vilinsky
Audiobook Publisher:: Simon & Schuster Audio
Published:: April 1st, 2025
The Litertarian Rating:: 3-Stars

If you liked this book, check out…

The Tourist Attraction | Sarah Morgenthaler (Rom Com set in Alaska)
The Rom Commers | Katherine Center (Disabled Carer Rep)

Book Review:: Nobody’s Fool | Harlan Coben

Nobody’s Fool is my first Harlan Coben novel, and wow – color me impressed! This is the second book in the series led by main character Sami Kierce, and I’m going back to read the origin story that left him off the police force as soon as possible, which is where he finds himself at the beginning of this novel.

Nobody's Fool by Harlan Coben Book Cover

Speaking of origin stories, in a way, this novel is really the exploration of Sami’s. After college, he had a fling with a beautiful woman in Spain, and was ready to give up everything for her, until he woke up beside her bloody body, knife in his hand. He fled, and it was the series of events set off by this experience that led him to becoming a cop in the first place. Now, he sees a woman he knows is her, alive and well and here, and it changes everything.

Not only is this case from Sami’s past coming back to haunt him, but the murderer of his former fiance is being released early from prison, and he’s determined to get justice from that case, too. He has a new baby, and a wife he loves, and though he’s no longer officially a cop, he teaches a criminal justice class that fulfills him. In short, a lot to lose.

What a skillfully written novel! This one had me questioning everything, fully engaged and wondering where the heck it was going to lead next. There are so many moving pieces and so many corners for spooky things to jump out from behind, it was entertaining as hell. If this is the level of mystery and suspense I can expect from Harlan Coben, I’m adding his entire backlist to my TBR! What more can you ask for from a thriller? That feeling is what you search for in this genre, and Nobody’s Fool absolutely delivers!

Note:: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Details

Title:: Nobody’s Fool (Detective Sami Kierce #2)
Author:: Harlan Coben
Genre:: Mystery/Thriller
Publisher:: Grand Central Publishing
Length:: 352 pages
Audio Length:: 11h 17m
Audiobook Narrator:: Vikas Adam
Published:: March 25th, 2025
The Litertarian Rating:: 5-Stars