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winecellarlibrary's Reviews (657)
This review is also available on my blog: Wine Cellar Library
First, I would like to thank Book Sirens and Sally White for providing me with a Kindle copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
I was grabbed initially by the beautiful cover art on this book. This is my first book from Book Sirens, and I am incredibly impressed. The premise of the novel is very reminiscent of [b:Twilight|41865|Twilight (Twilight, #1)|Stephenie Meyer|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1361039443l/41865._SY75_.jpg|3212258] and [b:Fallen|6487308|Fallen (Fallen, #1)|Lauren Kate|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1440619649l/6487308._SY75_.jpg|6678670], but with ghosts instead of vampires or fallen angels. In fact, I feel that this is written much better than the first books in either of those series. I would highly recommend this book to fans of either.
I don't know what it is, but I'm a sucker for books where the main character is torn between loving two different people. Rachel has a perfect boyfriend named Parker, but she is also in love with Parker's friend Noah, even though Noah died in a car accident before she ever met him. (Maybe it's just me, but I am definitely #teamnoah, no matter how inconceivable that relationship might be.)
Noah has taken it upon himself to protect Rachel from his younger brother Ethan, who also died in the wreck. Ethan is violent and obsessive and will hurt anyone who stands in the way of him getting what he wants: Rachel, all to himself.
There were a couple scenes that did not quite make sense with the narrative, such as Rachel meeting with a medium and being scared about what might happen, even though she can see and speak to spirits on her own. Otherwise, I truly enjoyed every minute and I really hope there may be a sequel in the future. Bravo, Sally White!
First, I would like to thank Book Sirens and Sally White for providing me with a Kindle copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
I was grabbed initially by the beautiful cover art on this book. This is my first book from Book Sirens, and I am incredibly impressed. The premise of the novel is very reminiscent of [b:Twilight|41865|Twilight (Twilight, #1)|Stephenie Meyer|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1361039443l/41865._SY75_.jpg|3212258] and [b:Fallen|6487308|Fallen (Fallen, #1)|Lauren Kate|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1440619649l/6487308._SY75_.jpg|6678670], but with ghosts instead of vampires or fallen angels. In fact, I feel that this is written much better than the first books in either of those series. I would highly recommend this book to fans of either.
I don't know what it is, but I'm a sucker for books where the main character is torn between loving two different people. Rachel has a perfect boyfriend named Parker, but she is also in love with Parker's friend Noah, even though Noah died in a car accident before she ever met him. (Maybe it's just me, but I am definitely #teamnoah, no matter how inconceivable that relationship might be.)
Noah has taken it upon himself to protect Rachel from his younger brother Ethan, who also died in the wreck. Ethan is violent and obsessive and will hurt anyone who stands in the way of him getting what he wants: Rachel, all to himself.
There were a couple scenes that did not quite make sense with the narrative, such as Rachel meeting with a medium and being scared about what might happen, even though she can see and speak to spirits on her own. Otherwise, I truly enjoyed every minute and I really hope there may be a sequel in the future. Bravo, Sally White!
This review is also available on my blog: Wine Cellar Library
First, I would like to thank Netgalley and Minotaur Books for providing me with a free Kindle ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
When I started reading this book, I was concurrently reading another novel with a similar beginning, so I had to set this one aside in order to prevent confusion. The book is broken up into three parts. Part I was mildly interesting as Alice begins to suspect her second husband of cheating, whilst continuing to struggle with the grief of her first husband's death almost a decade ago.
In Part II, the book changes from Alice's narration to that of another character. I do not want to spoil anything for anyone, so I won't even mention this character's name (don't peek!). This was my FAVORITE part of the book! I was so obsessed with these characters that I couldn't put the book down and stayed up until my boyfriend got up and started getting ready for work! o.O There are two words for this section: ultimate betrayal!
Part III brings everything together. I had already figured out how this book would end in Part I, but reading Part II made me question everything I suspected. I felt that the conclusion of the book was rushed and that the Epilogue was so short that it could have been omitted.
Nonetheless, this book became unputdownable at the conclusion of Part I and I stayed up all night to finish it. This book will have you loving the characters you hate and hating the characters you love!
#netgalley #thefirstmistake
First, I would like to thank Netgalley and Minotaur Books for providing me with a free Kindle ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
When I started reading this book, I was concurrently reading another novel with a similar beginning, so I had to set this one aside in order to prevent confusion. The book is broken up into three parts. Part I was mildly interesting as Alice begins to suspect her second husband of cheating, whilst continuing to struggle with the grief of her first husband's death almost a decade ago.
In Part II, the book changes from Alice's narration to that of another character. I do not want to spoil anything for anyone, so I won't even mention this character's name (don't peek!). This was my FAVORITE part of the book! I was so obsessed with these characters that I couldn't put the book down and stayed up until my boyfriend got up and started getting ready for work! o.O There are two words for this section: ultimate betrayal!
Part III brings everything together. I had already figured out how this book would end in Part I, but reading Part II made me question everything I suspected. I felt that the conclusion of the book was rushed and that the Epilogue was so short that it could have been omitted.
Nonetheless, this book became unputdownable at the conclusion of Part I and I stayed up all night to finish it. This book will have you loving the characters you hate and hating the characters you love!
#netgalley #thefirstmistake
This review is also available on my blog: Wine Cellar Library
[b:The Woman in Cabin 10|28187230|The Woman in Cabin 10|Ruth Ware|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1465878007l/28187230._SY75_.jpg|48209164] was recommended to me by a work friend. I had been interested in the book but had not sprung on the purchase just yet, and she just so happened to have a copy that she had just finished. I'd been extremely busy with school and work at the time, so it took quite a while to read it, but had I had the time to devote to it, this book could have easily been read in a couple days. It moves quickly, and it keeps you guessing. [a:Ruth Ware|9013543|Ruth Ware|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1562697198p2/9013543.jpg] inserts little teasers throughout the book that drive the intrigue. As far as you've understood from the synopsis and what you've read, Lo watched a woman get thrown overboard, so why does the outside world believe that she herself has gone missing? Ware skillfully delves into the realm of post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, alcohol-dependency, and the stigma of prescription anti-depressants as Lo tries to come to terms with what is real and what might just be all in her head. Contemporary tales are not my typical genre, but this book was a solid read and very enjoyable.
Update:
Since reading this book over the final months of 2018 and into January of 2019, I have strayed from my typical historical fiction and have begun to have a passion for contemporary thrillers and suspense novels. Would I have given it a higher star rating had I read it more recently? Most likely, no. Lo was a difficult character to connect with, as was her boyfriend. For this reason, the book was not something that held my attention or that I would be inclined to read in a single sitting. Lo could be frustrating, but the story itself was intriguing. It would make a great beach read.
[b:The Woman in Cabin 10|28187230|The Woman in Cabin 10|Ruth Ware|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1465878007l/28187230._SY75_.jpg|48209164] was recommended to me by a work friend. I had been interested in the book but had not sprung on the purchase just yet, and she just so happened to have a copy that she had just finished. I'd been extremely busy with school and work at the time, so it took quite a while to read it, but had I had the time to devote to it, this book could have easily been read in a couple days. It moves quickly, and it keeps you guessing. [a:Ruth Ware|9013543|Ruth Ware|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1562697198p2/9013543.jpg] inserts little teasers throughout the book that drive the intrigue. As far as you've understood from the synopsis and what you've read, Lo watched a woman get thrown overboard, so why does the outside world believe that she herself has gone missing? Ware skillfully delves into the realm of post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, alcohol-dependency, and the stigma of prescription anti-depressants as Lo tries to come to terms with what is real and what might just be all in her head. Contemporary tales are not my typical genre, but this book was a solid read and very enjoyable.
Update:
Since reading this book over the final months of 2018 and into January of 2019, I have strayed from my typical historical fiction and have begun to have a passion for contemporary thrillers and suspense novels. Would I have given it a higher star rating had I read it more recently? Most likely, no. Lo was a difficult character to connect with, as was her boyfriend. For this reason, the book was not something that held my attention or that I would be inclined to read in a single sitting. Lo could be frustrating, but the story itself was intriguing. It would make a great beach read.
This review is also available on my blog: Wine Cellar Library
First, I would like to thank Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for providing me with a free Kindle edition of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
I feel as though I have read a lot of books set in the Hamptons, lately. Thankfully, returning to the Hamptons through Cate Holahan's eyes has been an incredible ride! Each time you think you have figured out whodunnit, evidence emerges pointing to the contrary.
Three couples have arrived at a beach house in the Hamptons on vacation. After an eventful and mentally-taxing first night for everyone, one of the couples discovers the body of one of the vacationers on the beach. One of the wives has been murdered. Could someone in their group of friends be capable of such brutality? Gabby, the detective on the case, is also working a rape case, and the deeper she digs, the more apparent it is that these two cases are linked in someway, and they are hitting much too close to home.
The timeline jumps back and forth between the events leading up to the killing and the investigation following it. No one is innocent. Everyone has a secret. Each of them are tangled in a web of deceit. But which of them could possibly be capable of murder?
Holahan expertly navigates the alternating timelines and keeps you guessing the entire time. An unputdownable page-turner. I can't stop thinking about it!
#netgalley #onelittlesecret
First, I would like to thank Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for providing me with a free Kindle edition of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
I feel as though I have read a lot of books set in the Hamptons, lately. Thankfully, returning to the Hamptons through Cate Holahan's eyes has been an incredible ride! Each time you think you have figured out whodunnit, evidence emerges pointing to the contrary.
Three couples have arrived at a beach house in the Hamptons on vacation. After an eventful and mentally-taxing first night for everyone, one of the couples discovers the body of one of the vacationers on the beach. One of the wives has been murdered. Could someone in their group of friends be capable of such brutality? Gabby, the detective on the case, is also working a rape case, and the deeper she digs, the more apparent it is that these two cases are linked in someway, and they are hitting much too close to home.
The timeline jumps back and forth between the events leading up to the killing and the investigation following it. No one is innocent. Everyone has a secret. Each of them are tangled in a web of deceit. But which of them could possibly be capable of murder?
Holahan expertly navigates the alternating timelines and keeps you guessing the entire time. An unputdownable page-turner. I can't stop thinking about it!
#netgalley #onelittlesecret
This review is also available on my blog: Wine Cellar Library
Human Nature in Prose
This book really captured human nature. How does one cope with the suicide of a friend? How does one cope with conflicting evidence coming from close friends? This pageturner was impossible to put down. I look forward to reading more from this author.
Update:
Over a year later, I am still potently aware of the feelings generated by this novel. Kat's pain and remorse are nearly tangible as she struggles to find out just what happened to Shea. Convinced Shea would not have committed suicide no matter the circumstances, she is determined to uncover the truth. This novel is definitely deserving of a re-read to experience that deep connection all over again.
Human Nature in Prose
This book really captured human nature. How does one cope with the suicide of a friend? How does one cope with conflicting evidence coming from close friends? This pageturner was impossible to put down. I look forward to reading more from this author.
Update:
Over a year later, I am still potently aware of the feelings generated by this novel. Kat's pain and remorse are nearly tangible as she struggles to find out just what happened to Shea. Convinced Shea would not have committed suicide no matter the circumstances, she is determined to uncover the truth. This novel is definitely deserving of a re-read to experience that deep connection all over again.
This review is also available on my blog: Wine Cellar Library
I originally wrote this review in October 2020, and I am sharing it here for the first time.
The Migration by Helen Marshall is an apocalyptic dystopian novel. An immune disorder affecting only children and young adults has emerged, and the world's top doctors and scientists struggle to understand it. In addition to the arrival of this disease, massive storms and the subsequent flooding are decimating entire cities. Sophie's little sister Kira has never been the same since her diagnosis, and when she dies suddenly, Sophie's entire world shifts. Sophie begins to realize that the information being released by the government is false and incomplete, and after videos are leaked of the recently deceased seemingly still very much alive, Sophie is determined to find out what the government is hiding from the public and what exactly has happened to her sister. Armed with her aunt's research and the help of a young man who volunteers at the hospital, Sophie embarks on a mission to set her sister and those like her free.
When I picked up The Migration, I knew next to nothing about the plot. In fact, had I read the synopsis, I might not have read it. The synopsis reads like a zombie horror story, but it is not that at all. At times haunting and tragic, but at most times touching and inspiring, this novel left me in a surreal state many days after I finished reading it. Surprisingly, this novel is marketed to adults, but I would argue that it may have been better marketed to young adults. Sophie is relatable in her unfaltering devotion to her sister and those like her. Her passion for doing what she believes to be right and natural, despite what the government is implementing, left me with a swelling sense of hope. Given our current climate in the times of COVID-19, when the world feels off-kilter, this is exactly the story I needed to bring me back to center.
I originally wrote this review in October 2020, and I am sharing it here for the first time.
The Migration by Helen Marshall is an apocalyptic dystopian novel. An immune disorder affecting only children and young adults has emerged, and the world's top doctors and scientists struggle to understand it. In addition to the arrival of this disease, massive storms and the subsequent flooding are decimating entire cities. Sophie's little sister Kira has never been the same since her diagnosis, and when she dies suddenly, Sophie's entire world shifts. Sophie begins to realize that the information being released by the government is false and incomplete, and after videos are leaked of the recently deceased seemingly still very much alive, Sophie is determined to find out what the government is hiding from the public and what exactly has happened to her sister. Armed with her aunt's research and the help of a young man who volunteers at the hospital, Sophie embarks on a mission to set her sister and those like her free.
When I picked up The Migration, I knew next to nothing about the plot. In fact, had I read the synopsis, I might not have read it. The synopsis reads like a zombie horror story, but it is not that at all. At times haunting and tragic, but at most times touching and inspiring, this novel left me in a surreal state many days after I finished reading it. Surprisingly, this novel is marketed to adults, but I would argue that it may have been better marketed to young adults. Sophie is relatable in her unfaltering devotion to her sister and those like her. Her passion for doing what she believes to be right and natural, despite what the government is implementing, left me with a swelling sense of hope. Given our current climate in the times of COVID-19, when the world feels off-kilter, this is exactly the story I needed to bring me back to center.
This review is also available on my blog: Wine Cellar Library
It’s been a long time since I’ve read a book that was utterly unputdownable. This book is everything I had hoped it would be, and more. It is easily the best book I have read in over a year and is among my favorite books of all time. I frequently caught myself scanning ahead because my eyes just couldn’t wait to find out what happened next.
Wendy has just remarried, and her abusive ex-husband, Josh, kills her and her entire family in retaliation. She wakes up disoriented, finding herself in a bar, and like a bad dream, her memory fades as she comes to. She is twenty-one again, and what she doesn’t know is that she’s been given a second chance at life by the Fortuna coin her father gave her. Plagued by flashes of her memories of the future, she experiences overwhelming déjà vu. She meets her soulmate that night in the bar, but for her to save her future children’s lives, she will need to relive her past with Josh rather than follow her heart.
The first few chapters were difficult to read, but they were brief. This book definitely has a lot of triggers, but the worst of them is at the beginning. As Wendy and Josh’s relationship develops in her new life, she can sense that something isn’t right. As a domestic violence survivor, I could feel my anxiety building with each insidious thing Josh would do, even though the advancement of his controlling behavior was very gradual. Sometimes, it was just a subtle change in his demeanor, and he would have looked perfectly amiable to an outsider, which is so often the case in domestic violence situations. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the pages. However, despite the tension I felt, Karen Ann Hopkins delivered this story with such understanding and delicacy that at no time did I feel overwhelmed or triggered. I would guess that she or someone very close to her has experienced this sort of relationship, but if that’s not the case, her research has served her very well; Josh’s character is written flawlessly.
I would highly recommend this book to all women. (Domestic violence is genderless, but I make this statement since the majority of victims are women and the main character is a woman.) So many of us second-guess ourselves when our instincts are screaming at us that something isn’t right, and this book could help many women identify toxic behavior in their current and future relationships. For domestic violence survivors, I would recommend that you embark upon this book with caution, but I do not feel it is so extreme that you couldn’t find the same pleasure in reading it that I did.
I will be recommending this book to everyone I know. The author graciously provided me with a digital advanced reader copy at my request, but I love it so much that I am purchasing a print copy to add to my bookshelf.
It’s been a long time since I’ve read a book that was utterly unputdownable. This book is everything I had hoped it would be, and more. It is easily the best book I have read in over a year and is among my favorite books of all time. I frequently caught myself scanning ahead because my eyes just couldn’t wait to find out what happened next.
Wendy has just remarried, and her abusive ex-husband, Josh, kills her and her entire family in retaliation. She wakes up disoriented, finding herself in a bar, and like a bad dream, her memory fades as she comes to. She is twenty-one again, and what she doesn’t know is that she’s been given a second chance at life by the Fortuna coin her father gave her. Plagued by flashes of her memories of the future, she experiences overwhelming déjà vu. She meets her soulmate that night in the bar, but for her to save her future children’s lives, she will need to relive her past with Josh rather than follow her heart.
The first few chapters were difficult to read, but they were brief. This book definitely has a lot of triggers, but the worst of them is at the beginning. As Wendy and Josh’s relationship develops in her new life, she can sense that something isn’t right. As a domestic violence survivor, I could feel my anxiety building with each insidious thing Josh would do, even though the advancement of his controlling behavior was very gradual. Sometimes, it was just a subtle change in his demeanor, and he would have looked perfectly amiable to an outsider, which is so often the case in domestic violence situations. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the pages. However, despite the tension I felt, Karen Ann Hopkins delivered this story with such understanding and delicacy that at no time did I feel overwhelmed or triggered. I would guess that she or someone very close to her has experienced this sort of relationship, but if that’s not the case, her research has served her very well; Josh’s character is written flawlessly.
I would highly recommend this book to all women. (Domestic violence is genderless, but I make this statement since the majority of victims are women and the main character is a woman.) So many of us second-guess ourselves when our instincts are screaming at us that something isn’t right, and this book could help many women identify toxic behavior in their current and future relationships. For domestic violence survivors, I would recommend that you embark upon this book with caution, but I do not feel it is so extreme that you couldn’t find the same pleasure in reading it that I did.
I will be recommending this book to everyone I know. The author graciously provided me with a digital advanced reader copy at my request, but I love it so much that I am purchasing a print copy to add to my bookshelf.
