sarahsbookstack's Reviews (2.55k)

I have not read book 1 but I felt this was good enough to stand on its own. 

Piper (a figure skater)  just wants to make it to the Olympics, but after a public tirade... that dream seems to have vanished from her hands. Richard "Kappy" is a hockey player that has a history work Piper, but could he be the one to help her achieve her dreams?

Most of the book is the present but a good chunk is the past. It really digs into the MCs loathe/like/love relationship. They felt the constant pull to one another until one of the other's feelings would get hurt and the dance continued. I think both of them were stubborn and that both were playing it safe until, as they say "their time is right". 

There's a scene at the end that is pulse pounding and I just had to brace myself for heartache but it was so well done and I'm happy with the ending. 

At its heart, I fully believe this book takes a look at mental illness back when maybe it wasn't fully understood (though is it really still understood?) . Silver Dollar had her demons and one was Echo. I felt so bad for her. She wanted to be understood and seen and be protected but I felt she was just taken advantage of at every turn. I fully feel the personality of Echo is what got her into bad situations. 
 
While her mother, Baby Doe, loved Silver unconditionally, she still wasn't really there for her after she left home. Even after pleading in letters, Baby Doe just always wished for her home instead of doing something about it. 

Thank goodness for Carl. He was bruised by Silver/Echo but was always trying to be there for her. He did a good thing bringing about a film to let the world know of the Tabors and all they suffered. 

I loved every single character I met in this book! An antiques dealer and an elderly heiress become unlikely friends (with arguments but grudging respect) as Claire and Hanna help the staff/townspeople find answers they long for. 

Hanna is such a beautiful soul. She has a soft heart for orphans and helps them in amazing ways. Claire has a hard time at first breaking through Hanna's stubbornness but then she eventually gives as good as she gets. The journals Claire found and the way they worked through them to give some answers was nice. I felt bad for what it did to Clyde but it's outside forces that are to blame. I could see this story continuing in some way but if it's a single book, it's great too. 

It's been a long while since I've read a legal thriller and this one just knocked my socks off! Two sisters who each accuse the other of offing their father. Both sisters have nervous tells and it was truly a mind bend to figure out which one is guilty.

I haven't read the whole series but Eddie going from one side of the law (lawless) to the other (a lawyer) is super interesting. It took me a bit to warm up to the character of Kate but as soon as she struck out on her own, I fell for her. She was so bada** at the end too ...I was cheering her on (even though for what she went through was sick 😵‍💫)

The characters in this are very flawed but very real! Relationships are explored and tested and poor decisions are made. 

Swanee is a 15 year old grappling with her parents public divorce and the fact that she might not even know her father at all. Her mother Christina seemingly can't let go of her ex, Colin, even though she left the marriage. I felt that she struggled with her choices but never struggled in her love for her daughter who she just wants to protect.  

There is a shock that I didn't see coming at the end of this book and I felt it just made Swanee struggle even more with having to deal with the aftermath of it.  

I love that there are 2 second chance romances in here- one ten years later and one decades later! 

Tate had a summer best friend/love, Lainey, that he hasn't seen in 10 years until something terrible happens in his life and he runs back to Widow's Wharf intending to sell his family's cottage where he, of course, runs into Lainey. They take a bit to warm up to each other again but soon are hanging out all the time. 

I loved Lainey. She was a bit reckless sometimes in her keeping up the family business of fishing while her dad recovers from a heart attack, but she was sweet. I also loved Tate. I felt he fit better in the small town even though we didn't see much of him in his city life. His ex was a fool. I love the townspeople ESPECIALLY Lucille! She was so funny every time she was on the page but she was also so protective of Lainey and even in doing so was hilarious. The octopus scene made me LOL, then the jellyfish scene, and then the time he jumps in the ocean but can't really swim well and needs Lainey's help. 

It's been a good while since I've read a vampire book that I just devoured (pun but not accidental 😉)

Ruby and her twin Ripley have been training as vampire hunters until Rip is turned by the most wanted vamp, X, who strikes a deal with Ruby to rescue his BFF from her people. 

Ruby is the best. She never gave up on her sister even when at the risk of her own life. I love the soft moments we get of X. He lost a lot when he was turned and at the end, I feel he's doing things that can help redeem all the death and destruction he caused. There are surprises in the big battle at the end which I should have seen coming but they were shocking. 

When Lacie's husband Derek suffers a stroke, she will meet Quinn who's visiting a friend in the hospital and who will change Lacie's life in many ways.... mostly in a mistake from the past that binds these 3 together. 

This was a good read for June's Pride month as there is queer love represented in many ways.... through Lacie and Quinn and even Lacie's daughter Rachel and Derek's hospital caregiver Ben. It was great of Lacie to figure out what she wanted eventually for her life and who she spent it with, even though it came at the most inopportune time. 

This was a great twist on the Beauty and The Beast tale, except where the beast is a half dragon and the Beauty can paint the future. 

To save her family from ruin after losing their father to the seas, Tru strikes a deal to marry Elang and go to his underwater kingdom. He plans to get her help to take down his grandfather, the Dragon Lord who rules with an iron first. 

This was so adventurous both in the seas and on land. I love that the servants of Elang were turtles. A water demon, last of its kind, Shani, was so devious and it was hard to figure out where she landed/sided with but she was fun.  I was almost mad at the end with what happened but the epilogue redeems it. 

Finally, I felt this was on par with The Whisper Man. It was a good read. The father and son investigating the crimes at different times and the son needing to find out what happened to his father. 

Dan, after witnessing a serial killer with a victim, has turned his profession into helping victims by profiling criminals. 

At first I was a little confused about how and when we switched from the more present past and the now. (the far past at least had dates) But at one point in the book, I just got into the flow of it and it flew by. I can't imagine how terrifying Dan's situation at that young age had to be.