You guys, school is almost out for the summer! I cannot believe we have made it to the finish line. Two out of our three kids have been at this remote learning game for 15 months. I have forgotten what quiet sounds like and I no longer remember what it feels like to be alone in our home. I cannot wait for summer to begin so they can ditch these screens and get lots of quality time outside in the sunshine and I can’t wait to hit the books. This late-spring ten stack was more misses than hits for me, sadly. However, there are a few gems mixed in that definitely should be added to your future TBR list. To those of you who are already on summer break at home with your kiddos, congrats on being on the other side of the strangest school year in our lifetime. If the finish line is still in sight for your family…deep breaths, we are almost there! Cheers to a great summer and I’ll be back soon with another 10.

“Time After Time” by Lisa Grunwald

On a bright December morning, Joe Reynolds meets the girl of his dreams. Though something seems slightly off about Nora Lansing (it’s 1937 and she’s dressed to the nines in a flapper dress) Joe doesn’t mind at all. Not wanting to part after their first electric meeting the two go for coffee and fall fast for each other. Joe offers to walk Nora home but on their way the two are met by thieves. After a quick scuffle Joe turns to see that Nora has vanished leaving his coat behind on the ground. Thankfully he had got her phone number earlier in the evening but when he calls to check on Nora he is met with the unsettling news that Nora is not who he thought she was. As Historical Fiction books go this one was just okay for me. The beautiful backdrop of New York City with Grand Central Station being a major character itself it’s hard not to get swept up in the romance of it all but there are so many far fetched reaches in the plot that I had a hard time settling into to love this story. The old line of “it’s not you, it’s me” perfectly describes how I feel about “Time After Time”. Would have loved to give it a glow up and may be a favorite for someone but it just wasn’t right for me.

“A Borrowed Life” by Kerry Anne King

At age forty-nine Liz has recently become a widow after her husband Thomas suddenly passed away. Being the wife of a pastor Liz has always lived under the watchful eye of the congregation and knew what her role needed to be. Now that Thomas is gone and the strict set of rules he used to control Liz by are no longer hanging over her head she begins to ask herself, who am I without him? Having lost most of who she was under her husband’s thumb over twenty-six years Liz begins to make a new life for herself all at her adult daughter’s defiance to any sort of change. Abigail cannot understand why her mother can’t just honor her father and remain exactly as she was before his passing. Why is she auditioning for a play? Why is she spending time with the neighbor who is clearly a bad influence? Who is this man that is driving her home from rehearsal? The conflict between mother & daughter only increases as Abigail struggles to hold on to life as she knows it and Liz exhales and creates the life she has always dreamed of. Though I found this to be an enjoyable read I found myself wondering if the author has issues with religion as almost all of the characters in this book that belongs to the church were written in a negative light, even in the smallest of ways, though redeeming herself with Pastor Steve and his youthful positivity. “A Borrowed Life” was a quick read and might be a welcome addition to the right readers library but not sure it will find a permanent home in mine. Thank you NetGalley and Amazon Publishing for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

“The Hunting Party” by Lucy Foley

A group of longtime friends find themselves in the Scottish Highlands at a beautiful yet extremely isolated estate for their annual New Year’s Eve getaway. The eight guests have been gathering to ring in the new year like this for a decade and this year would prove to be unlike any before it. As the group consumes endless amounts of champagne a blizzard starts to rage outside that makes the roads completely impassable. Like so many well intentioned group holidays tensions begin to rise as personalities start to clash. While the empty bottles continue to pile up their old buried secrets begin to find their way to the surface spiraling it into a fatal evening. Now one of them is dead…and one of them is responsible. You know an author is good at character development when you actually want to jump through the pages to get the chance at smacking one of them yourself. However, I felt there was more time spent explaining who these friends were and their backstory than on moving the plot forward. The last 1/4 of the book really moved but you had to really commit in order to get to the goods. I had high expectations for this book after reading “The Guest List” last year but sadly it just wasn’t the same caliber story. If you haven’t yet read “The Guest List” maybe pick this one up first as it is still a good read, but for me, just not as good as the former.

“The Confession Club” by Elizabeth Berg

Who doesn’t need a good group of girlfriends that you can share anything with – no judgements, no questions asked. That is just what the Confession Club has in their little town of Mason. Picking up where “Night of Miracles” left off and “The Story of Arthur Truluv” before that “The Confession Club” dives deeper into the story of Maddy, Nola and the residents of Mason, Missouri. First introduced to us in “Night of Miracles”, Iris is still thriving and continuing the baking classes for Lucille in the home she rents from Maddy. When a handsome new stranger wanders into town Iris befriends him only to discover that he has a complicated past that she may not be ready for. Joining the Confession Club, Maddy and Iris find a safe place to explore what they really want out of life and how to rely on those around them. Though this was probably the weakest of the three books in the series it was still a worthwhile read to visit Mason one last time and reminisce on how these characters have grown since we first met Maddy in “Truluv”. I highly recommend reading book one in this series if you haven’t already. You’ll fall in love with Arthur Truluv.

“The Keeper of Lost Things” by Ruth Hogan

He will always know that she loves him as long as Anthony has the medallion that Therese gave him. Then on the day that she unexpectedly dies the unthinkable happens and he loses it. For the next forty years, Anthony becomes the keeper of lost things, collecting whatever he finds and labeling it meticulously with the intentions of somehow reuniting the item with its person to make amends for the one item he so wishes he could find again.. Now as the end of his life draws near Anthony must pass on his mission to someone in the hopes that all can be restored and made right again. Bequeathing his home and all of his possessions in it to his assistant, Laura has now been handed the impossible task of returning the random items to their owners to fulfill Anthony’s last wish. She is joined on her mission by Anthony’s gardener and a young neighbor who will do whatever they can to give their beloved Anthony his peace. Though “The Keeper of Lost Things” was slow to get moving I found this book so endearing. The characters, the stories each object has to tell and even the ghost are each a perfect charm on this little bracelet of a book. No, it’s not a page-turner. Nor is it a book that will draw you in from the start but if you endure through to its end “The Keeper of Lost Things” will find its way into your heart.

“The Floating Feldmans” by Elyssa Friedland

Annette Feldman is taking her 70th birthday plans into her own hands notifying her daughter, Elise and her son, Freddy that their families will be joining her and their father on a cruise to the Caribbean. Feldman, party of 8, is not prepared for the uncharted waters ahead that is their first family vacation in a very long time. Annette and David – desperate to make one last great family memory together. Elise and Mitch – almost empty-nesters who can’t connect with their teenage children anymore. Rachel and Darius – siblings who at one time were the best of friends but now don’t know how they will survive living in this cube of a room together for a week. Freddy & Natasha – well, no one really knows what Freddy does and no one knows Natasha, period. Each of Feldman’s are harboring a secret that could sink their perfectly laid out week straight to the bottom of the ocean if any of them rose to the surface. As most forced family fun goes Annette’s best laid plans begin to crumble around her but she certainly gets memories to last a lifetime, even if they weren’t exactly the kind she had in mind. Now, I have never been on a cruise but “The Floating Feldmans” certainly did not make me want to jump online and book one. The description of the lines for the buffet alone made me want to jump ship! Each of these crazy family members are uniquely flawed and their strained dynamics relatable. Though I didn’t love this story myself it definitely would make for a quick, fun summer book for the right reader.

“Recipe for a Perfect Wife” by Karma Brown

After an incident at work Alice finds herself without a job and moving away from her beloved city to the suburbs with her husband who has very much decided it is time for them to start a family. Their new home and endless amount of free time has left Alice feeling uneasy and unaware of who she is anymore. The house needs so many repairs and updates – its constantly freezing, the kitchen hasn’t been updated since the 50s and the amount of wallpaper that needs to be stripped feels never ending. One afternoon while she is down in the basement looking for painting supplies Alice comes across boxes that belonged to the previous owner. Inside she finds magazines and a cookbook from 1955. Determined to give this homemaker thing a serious try, Alice begins to cook her way through Nellie’s cookbook and along the way uncovers some of her secrets hidden within the pages. As she reads on Alice discovers that Nellie’s perfect exterior shielded a life behind closed doors that was anything but. Nellie’s confessions begin to cause Alice to question the foundation of her own marriage while lessons from the past help her gain stronger clarity as to what path in life she wants to walk down. Told in dual timelines through Alice and Nellie’s eyes, “Recipe for a Perfect Wife” was a hit for me. I didn’t have any expectations going into this book but found it to be a quick read that had me invested from the start, though the topics in this book will not be for everyone. I loved the recipes and advice from the 50s sprinkled in at the start of each new chapter. What a different world we are living in now! Give this one a try if you are looking for something new to add to your TBR list. Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Publishing for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

“In Case You Missed It” by Lindsey Kelk

After three years away Ros is coming back to England with her tail between her legs desperate to pick things up where she left off with her friends and family. When she arrives at her childhood home Ros finds out that her parents have moved her things out to the shed and her best friends have all gone and grown-up without her. Now she must find a job and find a place to live all while finding a way to keep herself from contacting her ex now that they are in the same city. Grasping to hold on to all that she remembers to be good in her life, Ros can’t seem to move on in the same way that her friends have, even her parents are planning a second wedding! Hoping that the new opportunity that has accidentally landed in her lap will lead to positive things Ros jumps in with both feet but is going back always the best way to move forward? “In Case You Missed It” isn’t your typical “romance” read with the actual romance taking a bit of a back seat for most of the story. Instead you get a great read about friendship and a woman finding out who she truly is and coming into her own. I became a fan of Lindsey Kelk last year after reading “One in a Million” and this book was just as good. If you have yet to discover this charming author’s work, do yourself a favor and add one of her many heartwarming titles to your TBR list.

“The Jetsetters” by Amanda Eyre Ward

Charlotte Perkins is all alone having just attended the funeral of her best friend, her last friend on earth. Estranged from her children at 70 years young, Charlotte wants a new start on life. When she comes across an ad for a contest Charlotte decides that the ‘Become a Jetsetter’ prize will be hers. She hits submit on her entry deciding that when she wins her three children will come with her to Europe. When the prize notification shows up Charlotte is thrilled but her children couldn’t be dreading the trip more. The Perkins family board the cruise ship with more secrets in their luggage than one should be forced to carry and as they dock into each port along the way their carefully constructed facades begin to chip away revealing the things they each wish to keep hidden. Can forced family fun lead to a reconciliation or will their relationships remain adrift? You know the old saying “don’t judge a book by its cover?”…well, I mistakenly did that with “The Jetsetters”. Based on this beautiful, summery cover I assumed I was walking into a light-hearted beach read of a book. I couldn’t have been more wrong. The content is heavy, the mood is dark and I’m not sure any of these characters were even remotely like-able. How did this ended up as a Reese’s Book Club pick? I don’t usually like researching what I’m reading ahead of time but “The Jetsetters” is one instance that I wish I knew what I was getting into beforehand. Let this be a lesson to me, just because the cover is light and airy doesn’t mean what’s inside will be.

“The East End” by Jason Allen

Corey has an unusual hobby. For the last few months he has been breaking into the mega-mansions that line the coast of his hometown, not to steal anything, just to look around, just because he can without getting caught. Just before Memorial Day he chooses the wrong house. He lingers too long, sees too much. The home belongs to his mother’s boss, billionaire Leo Sheffield and while perched on the roof, Corey witnesses an incident poolside that will have dangerous consequences for all involved because Corey wasn’t the only one to discover Leo’s secret. Unfolding over the long holiday weekend, the story flows nicely, but I found it to be a bit sophomoric. A far fetched plot you can poke holes in as well as unlikeable characters made this one of those reads that I was happy to be on the other side of. If you are in the market for a twisty story, this is a quick read but misses the mark for me.

’til next time,

The Booked Mama

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