Her Three Lives Review

Author: Cate Holahan

Genre: Suspense

Publisher: Grand Central Publ.

Release Date: April 20, 2021

Purchase Link: Amazon

My Rating: 4 Suspicious Hearts

Special thanks to Grand Central Publ. for an arc of this book.

Gaslight goes high-tech in USA Today bestselling author Cate Holahan's new standalone thriller in which a family must determine who the real enemy is after a brutal home invasion breaks their trust in each other.

Review:

Social Media Influencer Jade Thompson is engaged to be married to Architect Greg Hamlin.  Greg is divorcing his wife and marrying Jade who is carrying his child. While Jade is an up and coming social media star, she isn't in the same class as Greg when it comes to fame, wealth and culture but they declare their love and commit to making it work. Greg is a multi-millionaire and twenty years Jade's senior, raising a lot of eyebrows and throwing up warning signs among Greg's family and friends, especially his resentful daughter Violet who takes every opportunity to feed her dad's anxiety over the age difference.  Thus, when a home invasion turns savage, the seeds of doubt previously sown sprout and start to grow.  Greg is left home-bound with a traumatic brain injury and a severe case of paranoia from the brutal attack, and Jade loses their baby.  In his highly agitated state, Greg begins questioning her motives for staying with him.   Devoted daughter Violet continues feeding her dad's doubts and fueling his suspicions until Gregg starts to believe that Jade's only after his money.  After having a high price security system installed, Greg spends his days tracking his fiance's every move, growing more paranoid by the hour.  Jade stands to inherit a great deal of money upon Greg's death.  Did she hire someone to kill him and destroy their child?  

Through Jane's narration, readers know she's hiding a big secret about her past, but they don't know what.  They do know her intent - her reason for staying with Greg which gives them special insight into the direction this story takes.  Jade may be the number one suspect, but the cast of possible villains is convoluted.  As reader's soon learn, there're several red herrings with motive and opportunity, and the author does a great job with the development of these players into the story line.  While none of the characters are particularly likable, they play their roles to perfection serving to keep readers guessing as to who and why.  While the story begins at a slow pace, it soon settles into a steady flow with rising tension that escalates in proportion to Greg's growing paranoia following a twisted plot line that explodes in a dramatic conclusion many won't see coming. 

Her Three Lives is an intense, complex domestic suspense story with a multitude of suspects with motive.  Solving the mystery became an obsession with me as I studied all the players, motives, and opportunities.  Callahan's writing is precise, setting the pace and moving the story forward with expertise. Just when readers are lulled into thinking they know everything, she hits them with an explosive "aha" ending.  Her Three Lives is a methodical suspense thriller that fans of the genre will enjoy.

Synopsis:

Her public life

Jade Thompson has it all. She’s an up-and-coming social media influencer, and she has a beautiful new home and a successful architect for a fiancé. But there’s trouble behind the scenes. To Greg’s children, his divorce from their mother and his new life can only mean a big mid-life crisis. To Jade, his suburban Connecticut upbringing isn’t an easy match with her Caribbean roots.

Her private life

A savage home invasion leaves Greg house-bound with a traumatic brain injury and glued to the live feeds from his ubiquitous security cameras. As the police investigate the crime and Greg’s frustration and rage grows, Jade begins to wonder what he may know about their attackers. And whether they are coming back.

Her secret life

As Greg watches Jade’s comings and goings, he becomes convinced that her behavior is suspicious and that she’s hiding a big secret. The more he sees, the more he wonders whether the break-in was really a random burglary. And whether he’s worth more to Jade if he were dead than alive.

Cate Holahan is the USA Today Bestselling author of psychological suspense books. Her fifth novel, Her Three Lives, will be published by Grand Central Publishing in April 2021. She has had books named to Kirkus' Best Books of the Year and Book of the Month Club's official selections. Notable works include: One Little Secret, Lies She Told, The Widower's Wife, and Dark Turns.

An award-winning journalist and former television producer, she has written for BusinessWeek, The Boston Globe, and The Record newspaper. Her short fiction won first place in the 19th annual Calliope competition, a magazine published by the writer's group of American Mensa. She lives in New Jersey with her husband, two daughters, ages 7 and 5, and dog Westley.

She graduated from Princeton University in 2002.

She is represented by Paula Munier at Talcott Notch Literary.

http://www.cateholahan.com

Razorblade Tears Review

Author: S.A. Cosby

Genre: Crime Thriller

Publisher: Flatiron

Release Date: July 6, 2021

Preorder Link: Amazon

My Rating: 5 Bleeding Hearts

Special thanks to Flatiron Books for an arc of this book.

A black father and a white father join forces on a crusade for revenge against the people who murdered their gay sons, by S.A. Crosby, the award-winning author of Blacktop Wasteland.

Review:

Author S.A. Cosby delivers a powerful sermon in Razorblade Tears - a message of fire and brimstone delivered in his distinctive, crystal clear voice.  A promise of justice to the weary, the wronged, the misunderstood.  And he delivers it through a brilliant characterization of the proverbial odd couple . . . a black father and a white father, both ex-cons whose sons found love and happiness with each other only to have it taken away by gay-bashing killers who blasted their faces into oblivion, leaving them lying in a pool of their own blood on the street like yesterday's trash.  Both fathers, who had abolished and severed all ties with their sons when the boys came out of the closet, are drowning in painful tears of regret, guilt, shame, self-hatred, and a world of what-ifs.  Hindsight is 20/20.  It's too late to make amends with their sons - they're lying in the cold, hard ground, and their case has been shelved as a "cold case".  But Ike and Buddy Lee weren't born yesterday.  They're seasoned old timers who've been around the block a time or two . . . a prison block where the weak fold and the tough reign supreme and yet, both survived.  Left with a mountain of regret and a burning rage for justice for their boys, Ike and Buddy Lee dry their river of razorblade tears and team up to dole out some old timey southern justice.  The story that unfolds is graphic, explosive, cinematic story-telling at its finest. 

I'll admit to being leery of starting Razorblade Tears . . . after all, there's no way it could come close to Cosby's masterpiece Blacktop Wasteland, right?  Wrong.  Cosby has outdone himself by doing what he does best - keeping it real.  He doesn't mince words or spare feelings or worry about what's politically correct or who he might offend as he renders a graphic story of two fathers drowning in a river of grief and regret.  Two fathers who claimed they were not prejudice while shaming their sons for their sexual orientation.  Two fathers who severed all ties with their own sons - committing the ultimate betrayal of prejudice within family units.  Two fathers with a hard lesson to learn - love is love.  All the rest is packaging.   

Razorblade Tears is crime fiction as raw, gutsy and hardcore as it comes . . . definitely not for the faint of heart.  As a reader, I found myself wiping tears while cheering these two hellions on through the twisted, action packed plot to the explosive, cinematic conclusion.  Images explode on pages soaked in blood, gore, guts, tears - a visual experience down the road to hell crying out for the big screen.  But, if you read your way through the heartbreak and violence, you'll discover an undercurrent of hope for a brighter future, for redemption, be it on earth or beyond.  A sermon delivered from the pulpit and pen of Author S.A. Cosby to all back-row church goers who refuse to see or hear or believe.  A lesson to be learned that I pray will touch and open hearts before it's too late.  The time to say I love you is always NOW.  Amen. 

Highly recommended for fans of hardcore crime fiction and great, heartfelt storytelling everywhere.

Synopsis:

Ike Randolph has been out of jail for 15 years, with not so much as a speeding ticket in all that time. But a black man with cops at the door knows to be afraid.

The last thing he expects to hear is that his son, Isiah, has been murdered, along with Isiah’s white husband, Derek. Isiah was a gay black man in the American South; Ike couldn’t bring himself to attend his son’s wedding. Isiah was a man Ike never understood. A boy he was never there for the way he should have been.

Derek’s father, Buddy Lee, is also suffering. He’d barely spoken to his son in five years; he was as ashamed of Derek for being gay as Derek was ashamed his father was a criminal. Buddy Lee still has contacts in the underworld, though, and he wants to know who killed his boy.

Ike and Buddy Lee, two ex-cons with little else in common other than a criminal past and a love for their dead sons, band together in their desperate desire for revenge. In their quest to do better for their sons in death than they did in life, alpha-males Ike and Buddy Lee will confront their own prejudices, about each other and their sons, as they rain down vengeance upon those who hurt their boys.

Provocative and fast-paced, Razorblade Tears is a story of bloody retribution, heartfelt change - and maybe even redemption. 

Blitz Blog Tour & Spotlight

 

In a blink of an eye, I turned her whole world upside down. I messed up and will do anything to make things right. Is there any chance of a happily ever after for a football star and librarian? Fans of the Boston Terriers Series by Jacob Chance will devour Blitz by A.M. Williams, a light and humorous, enemies to lovers romance.

Read Now!

One sexy football player. One sassy small town librarian.

Is there any hope for happily ever after?

Charlie

HEA? No way.

Jasper Sutton is the reason I watched my dream go up in smoke.

I don’t care that he’s ridiculously hot and the night we met was one of the best of my life. The fact that he’s also funny and easy to talk to means next to nothing. 

He tore all my hopes to shreds when he bought the old library to turn it into a gym.

I can’t forgive him. 

Jasper

Charlotte “Charlie” Drake is something else. And I don’t mean that as a compliment.

She might be gorgeous and sexy, but she’s also headstrong and stubborn.

I get it--I messed up. I didn’t have all the facts and took things too far.

But I’m crazy about her. She’s the only woman who looked past my name and reputation to see the real me. I want to prove to her that I’m serious, I’m sorry, and we could be good together.

What does it take to get over the ultimate fumble and still win the game?

Add to Goodreads!

Excerpt 

Copyright 2021 @ A.M. Williams

“Not gonna lie,” I said after a few minutes of silence. “I wasn’t expecting you to drive a truck.”

“Why’s that?” he asked.

I shrugged even though he wasn’t looking at me. “I think it’s because you’re a pro athlete, so I just assumed you’d want some type of sports car.”

He said nothing for a moment and I glanced at him. I watched as he clenched and unclenched his jaw. He finally asked, “How’d you find out I was an athlete?”

I shrugged again. “Someone said something.”

“Someone had to tell you?”

Was he offended?

I looked at him and caught the surprise on his face. “Yeah?” I knew it came out sounding like a question, but he sounded way too offended for the situation.

“I have a milkshake named after me.”

I blinked at him, not sure where he was going with this. All I could hear was Kelis singing about milkshakes in my head as I asked, “So?”

“And a burger. My number’s retired at the high school.”

Ah, that explained the framed football jersey in the foyer of the high school then. I’d been wondering about that and hadn’t asked.

“That just screams famous or something,” he continued. Who was he trying to convince? Me or himself?

“Dude, it’s just a milkshake. Having something named after you doesn’t mean shit. For all I knew, you’d won a contest.”

“At every place in town?”

Okay, he had me there. There were a lot of things named after him. I might have looked that up earlier in the week. Still didn’t mean much.

“Maybe you like eating contests. I don’t know!” And now I was the one grasping at straws. I needed to shut up.

He grumbled something under his breath, but I didn’t bother trying to figure out what he said. I really couldn’t get over the fact that he was this butt hurt over me not knowing that he was this famous guy and that he had stuff named after him because of it.

It didn’t seem like that big of a deal to me.

About A.M. Williams 

A.M. Williams is just a simple girl from the south that found herself living abroad. When she’s not annoying her cat or reading, she’s spending time with her husband and traveling as much as possible. She has a serious case of wanderlust and wants to go as many places as possible while she can. She loves Cheerwine, sweet tea, and North Carolina (eastern style) BBQ as well as those crystal clear waters on the North Carolina coast.

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The Last Secret You'll Ever Keep Review

Author: Laurie Faria Stolarz

Genre: Young Adult Suspense

Publisher: Wednesday Books

Release Date: March 16, 2021

Order Link: Amazon

My Rating: 4 Psycho Hearts

Special thanks to Wednesday Books for an arc of this book.

Bestselling author Laurie Faria Stolarz returns with a thrilling novel where an eighteen-year-old girl's search for answers lands her in one of the most terrifying situations imaginable.

Review: 

Eighteen year old Terra was abducted and held four days in an abandoned well.  She finally outsmarts her kidnapper and escapes.  The problem is no one believes her story of being kidnapped.  Not the police, not her Aunt, not her friends at school.  There is no evidence of an abduction to back up her story so they believe she's making it up.  Mentally, this is devastating to Terra and her already fragile mind spirals out of control.  Her only solace is in an online group for survivors - Jane Anonymous.  Yes, the same Jane Anonymous as in Book 1.  Nice tie in that works in this case.  When a girl in the chatroom vanishes, Terra is terrified she's been kidnapped by the same man again.  Their stories are eerily similar, and Jane rushes against the clock to find out what's happened to her . . . before he comes for her.

The Last Secret You'll Ever Keep is a psychological horror house filled with illusions.  Terra is one of the most unreliable narrators you'll find, making it hard to know whether to believe her or not. As the story unfolds, it becomes increasingly difficult for readers to figure out what's real and what's not.  Through chapters of Then and Now, both past and present stories drive a steady pace, and the twisted convoluted plot line keeps readers on their toes.  The ending was not unexpected for me, but it in no way diminishes the journey of mind games and illusions.  Fans of psychological thrillers will enjoy this one.

Synopsis:

Four days…
Trapped in a well, surrounded by dirt, scratching at the walls trying to find a way out.
Four days of a thirst so strong, that when it finally rains, I drink as much as possible from the dripping walls, not even caring how much dirt comes with it.

Six months…
Since my escape. Since no one believed I was taken to begin with – from my own bed, after a party, when no one else was home…
Six months of trying to find answers and being told instead that I made the whole incident up.

One month…
Since I logged on to the Jane Anonymous site for the first time and found a community of survivors who listen without judgment, provide advice, and console each other when needed.
A month of chatting with a survivor whose story eerily mirrors my own: a girl who’s been receiving triggering clues, just like me, and who could help me find the answers I’m searching for.

Three days…
Since she mysteriously disappears, and since I’m forced to ask the questions: will my chance to find out what happened to me vanish with her? And will I be next?

Website: 
http://www.lauriestolarz.com/

Laurie Faria Stolarz grew up in Salem, MA, attended Merrimack College, and received an MFA in Creative Writing from Emerson College in Boston.

Laurie Faria Stolarz is an American author of young adult fiction novels, best known for her Blue is for Nightmares series. Her works, which feature teenage protagonists, blend elements found in mystery and romance novels.

Stolarz found sales success with her first novel, Blue is for Nightmares, and followed it up with three more titles in the series, White is for Magic, Silver is for Secrets, and Red is for Remembrance, as well as a companion graphic novel, Black is for Beginnings. Stolarz is also the author of the Touch series (Deadly Little Secret, Deadly Little Lies, Deadly Little Games, Deadly Little Voices, and Deadly Little Lessons), as well as Bleed and Project 17. With more than two million books sold worldwide, Stolarz's titles have been named on various awards list.

A Duke In Time Review

Author: Jana MacGregor

Series: The Widow Rules #1

Publisher: St. Martins Griffin

Release Date: June 29, 2021

Order Link: Amazon

My Rating: 4 Sizzling Hearts

Special thanks to St. Martins Griffin for an arc of this book.

Get ready for lost wills, broody dukes, and scorching hot kissing all over London in A Duke in Time by Janna MacGregor.

Review:

Katherine Vareck meets with the solicitor to learn details of her husband's Will . . . and so do his other two wives!  All three are shocked to learn about the others, but in the heat of the moment they vow to band together and try to get their dowrey back.  In walks the dead husband's half-brother Christian, and as it turns out he's not shocked his scumbag, estranged sibling would do this.  But it's not his problem, right?  As he tries to leave, Katherine gets in his face and lists all the reasons it is his problem and why he has to help them.  If this gets out, a huge scandal will ensue and the women will be scorned.  Let the battles begin!

Who doesn't love a spicy historical romance with a spunky heroine facing off against a handsome Duke?  Katherine proves to be one little spitfire that pushes all Christian's buttons in this entertaining story of the three merry widows, lost dowry, buried secrets and catastrophe after catastrophe.  Katherine is an admirable heroine, full of spunk, sass, and hidden desires stoked by one hunky Duke, but one big secret from her past that can bring it all crashing down.  Christian is a kind war hero who's just returned home to take over as the Duke of Randford - a title and job he never wanted.  What he does want is to set up a charity to take care of his wartime men who are returning home to a bleak life of poverty and scorn . . . and to convince one spicy, hot sister-in-law that he's the man for her.  

Sparks fly hot and often in this raunchy historical romance.  While the characters have a bit of a "modern" take on things, the action and pace are swift, the chemistry smoking and the story delightful.  A Duke In Time is a highly entertaining historical romance with a healthy dose of laughter . . . and sex.  I can't wait to read the next book in the series.  Recommended to fans everywhere.

Synopsis:

Katherine Vareck is in for the shock of her life when she learns upon her husband Meri's accidental death that he had married two other women. Her entire business, along with a once-in-a-lifetime chance to be a royal supplier, is everything she's been working for and now could be destroyed if word leaks about the three wives.

Meri's far more upstanding brother, Christian, Duke of Randford has no earthly clue how to be of assistance. He spent the better part of his adult years avoiding Meri and the rest of his good-for-nothing family, so to be dragged back into the fold is…problematic. Even more so is the intrepid and beautiful Katherine, whom he cannot be falling for because she's Meri's widow. Or can he?

With a textile business to run and a strong friendship forming with Meri's two other wives, Katherine doesn't have time for much else. But there's something about the warm, but compellingly taciturn Christian that draws her to him. When an opportunity to partner in a business venture brings them even closer, they'll have to face their pasts if they want to share each other's hearts and futures.

Janna MacGregor was born and raised in the bootheel of Missouri. She credits her darling mom for introducing her to the happily-ever-after world of romance novels. Janna writes stories where compelling and powerful heroines meet and fall in love with their equally matched heroes. She is the mother of triplets and lives in Kansas City with her very own dashing rogue, and two smug, but not surprisingly, perfect pugs. She loves to hear from readers.

Visit her at www.JannaMacGregor.com.
Twitter: @JannaMacGregor
Facebook: Janna MacGregor
Sign up for her newsletter at www.JannaMacGregor.com

A Good Day For Chardonnay Review

Author: Darynda Jones

Series: Sunshine Vicram #2

Publisher: St. Martins Press

Genre: Romance Suspense, Humor

Release Date: July 27, 2021

Order Link: Amazon

My Rating: 5 Sweet & Hilarious Hearts

Special thanks to St. Martins Press for an arc of this book.

From the New York Times bestselling author Darynda Jones comes the second novel in her laugh-out-loud Sunshine Vicram mystery series, A Good Day for Chardonnay.

Review:

Sheriff Sunshine Vicram is back along with her sleuth teenage daughter Auri and the rest of the quirky crew from the first book A Bad Day For Sunshine.  I went into A Good Day For Chardonnay with fingers crossed for more of the sarcastic, witty banter and laugh out loud scenes and was richly rewarded with all that and more.  This book gifts readers with much needed depth in story line that I found lacking in book 1 - depth found through the exploration and development of the case of Sunshine's abduction.  All clues point to badboy Levi Ravinder, but Sunshine knows in her heart he didn't do it although she has a feeling he was there.  Major revelations there, and the author takes this opportunity to strengthen and develop their relationship and move it forward at warp speed.  Readers also get more depth through the inclusion of an old serial killer case that daughter Auri, whose determined to follow in her mother's footsteps, decides to investigate along with her best friend and boyfriend Cruz.  What a fiasco that turns out to be!  Again, great character and plot development!  These plots all twist and intertwine in surprising ways, producing hilarious scenes filled with snark and yet also real emotional connections between characters.  I can't say enough about this cast of characters - each command their own space in the story and every single unique personality has its time to shine.  Jones has outdone herself!

A Good Day For Chardonnay is hilarious, heartwarming and entertaining to read.  Development in character relationships and overall plot lines are huge as missing pieces of the puzzle fall into place and questions are answered.  I loved the sexy banter between Sunshine and Levi as well as the heartfelt moments, the awesome family moments between Sunshine and Auri and Auri and her grandparents, the witty banter between Sunshine and her best friend Deputy Quincy and the quirkiness of the whole crazy town . . . including the raccoon who refuses to stay put, creating chaos everywhere.  Jones lends her unique voice to this fast paced, action packed, captivating story and spins a tale worthy of a tall glass of Chardonnay.  Humorous, stimulating and an absolute delight to read, I highly recommend A Good Day For Chardonnay to everyone!  Cheers to a five star read!

Synopsis:

Running a small-town police force in the mountains of New Mexico should be a smooth, carefree kind of job. Sadly, full-time Sheriff—and even fuller-time coffee guzzler—Sunshine Vicram, didn’t get that memo.

All Sunshine really wants is one easy-going day. You know, the kind that starts with coffee and a donut (or three) and ends with take-out pizza and a glass of chardonnay (or seven). Turns out, that’s about as easy as switching to decaf. (What kind of people do that? And who hurt them?)

Before she can say iced mocha latte, Sunny’s got a bar fight gone bad, a teenage daughter hunting a serial killer and, oh yes, the still unresolved mystery of her own abduction years prior. All evidence points to a local distiller, a dangerous bad boy named Levi Ravinder, but Sun knows he’s not the villain of her story. Still, perhaps beneath it all, he possesses the keys to her disappearance. At the very least, beneath it all, he possesses a serious set of abs. She’s seen it. Once. Accidentally.

Between policing a town her hunky chief deputy calls four cents short of a nickel, that pesky crush she has on Levi which seems to grow exponentially every day, and an irascible raccoon that just doesn’t know when to quit, Sunny’s life is about to rocket to a whole new level of crazy.

Yep, definitely a good day for chardonnay.

NYTimes and USA Today Bestselling Author Darynda Jones has won numerous awards for her work, including a prestigious RITA, a Golden Heart, and a Daphne du Maurier, and her books have been translated into 17 languages. As a born storyteller, Darynda grew up spinning tales of dashing damsels and heroes in distress for any unfortunate soul who happened by, certain they went away the better for it. She penned the international bestselling Charley Davidson series and is currently working on several beloved projects, most notably the Sunshine Vicram Mystery Series with St. Martin's Press and the Betwixt and Between Series of paranormal women's fiction. She lives in the Land of Enchantment, also known as New Mexico, with her husband and two beautiful sons, the Mighty, Mighty Jones Boys.

She can be found at http://www.daryndajones.com 

I Don't Forgive You Review

Author: Aggie Blum Thompson

Genre: Mystery Suspense

Publisher: Forge Books

Release Date: June 8, 2021

Preorder Link: Amazon

My Rating: 5 Twisted Hearts

Perfect for book clubs or the beach, Aggie Blum Thompson's I Don't Forgive You is a page-turning, thrilling debut "not to be missed." (Wendy Walker)

Review:

Photographer Allie Ross is trying to find her place among the women in an upscale Washington, DC neighborhood where she's recently moved with her lawyer husband Mark and young son Cole.  Being accepted is important to Mark's career as he climbs the corporate ladder so it's imperative that Allie make friends and fit in with the neighborhood moms.  Unfortunately, the harder Allie tries the more obvious it becomes that she's an outsider and unlikely to be accepted into the established mom cliques.  In a last ditch effort, Allie agrees to attend a neighborhood block party with Mark where she once again finds herself standing on the sidelines.  When another dad strikes up a flirtatious conversation with her, Allie plays along until a combo of alcohol and a disturbing reference to her secret past send her fleeing to the bathroom where she fends off a sexual assault after which she insists on going home.  Allie makes a spur of the moment decision not to share details of the troubling attack with Mark which comes back to haunt her the next day when news of the neighborhood dad's overnight death circulates like wildfire.  The neighborhood rumor mill is running rampant, and it's only a matter of time until intimate pictures of Allie and the guy from the party surface on the internet fueling the raging gossip and suspicions.  Much to her surprise and her husband's shock, Allie's become the prime suspect in a murder investigation.  

The story that unfolds is unsettling, disturbing, and eerily relatable.  The role society cliques, gossip mills and social media play in accusing, judging and convicting Allie is eerily similar to modern day cyberbullying.  Tinder and Facebook accounts indicate Allie is living a double life - one as a wife and mother and another as Sexy Lexy the sensuous Tinder sensation.  She claims she's being framed by someone from her past, but the evidence of her guilt is insurmountable as are the growing doubts in the minds of police, friends and her husband who is reeling from all the negative media attention.  Allie sets out to prove her innocence which means opening old wounds.  Undoubtedly, someone knows her secret and blames her for what happened way back in high school.  Someone who doesn't forgive her.  

There's nothing I love better than a dark, twisted thriller that keeps me burning through pages looking for answers.  One that forces me to change my mind numerous times throughout the story.  I'm thrilled to say I Don't Forgive You is one of those books.  Author Aggie Blum Thompson has rendered a creepy, unsettling story ripe with lies, hidden truths and paranoia that will have readers questioning every character.  I Don't Forgive You is so twisted and convoluted with evidence so damning to the unreliable narrator Allie that it's hard to know what and/or who to believe.  Continuous shocking revelations move the story forward at a furious pace leaving readers and Allie reeling.  Her attempts to soften the blows and disappointment in the lack of support and sympathy from family leads to an increase in her alcohol consumption which unfortunately leads to strong suspicions about her behavior.  Is someone setting Allie up?  Or is she delusional?  Did she kill to keep her secrets? 

I Don't Forgive You ventures into the dark, dangerous, scary world of  the dark web.  A place of deceit, lies, secrets and illusions.  A place where innocent lives are exploited and destroyed.  It's not often that an author can keep me floundering in the dark until The End, but Thompson's skill at weaving a twisted tale with a large cast of possible villains kept me guessing until the big reveal. Fans of suspense thrillers are going to love this one.  It's a page burner that demands reading straight through in one sitting.  I couldn't put it down.

Synopsis

An accomplished photographer and the devoted mom of an adorable little boy, Allie Ross has just moved to an upscale DC suburb, the kind of place where parenting feels like a competitive sport. Allie’s desperate to make a good first impression. Then she’s framed for murder.

It all starts at a neighborhood party when a local dad corners Allie and calls her by an old, forgotten nickname from her dark past. The next day, he is found dead.

Soon, the police are knocking at her door, grilling her about a supposed Tinder relationship with the man, and pulling up texts between them. She learns quickly that she's been hacked and someone is impersonating her online. Her reputation—socially and professionally—is at stake; even her husband starts to doubt her. As the killer closes in, Allie must reach back into a past she vowed to forget in order to learn the shocking truth of who is destroying her life. 

GET A COPY

Https://www.aggieblumthompson.com

Hurricane Summer Review & Blog Tour

Welcome to my stop on the Hurricane Summer Blog Tour!  Read my review, synopsis and an excerpt below.  You can also meet the amazing author of this beautifully rendered debut story, Asha Bromfield.

Genre: Young Adult

Publisher: Wednesday Books

Release Date: May 4, 2021

Order Link: Amazon

My Rating: 5 Heartfelt Hearts

Hurricane Summer is a powerful coming of age story that deals with colorism, classism, young love, the father-daughter dynamic—and what it means to discover your own voice in the center of complete destruction.

Review:

From the first page of Hurricane Summer to the last, storms are brewing in more ways than one. There's the physical hurricane bearing down on the island of Jamaica and then there's the emotional storm that batters our heroine Tilla at every turn of this stunning debut novel.  Canadian's eighteen year old Tilla and her nine year old sister Mia arrive in Jamaica to visit their Jamaican father who they haven't seen for a year since he left them and their mother in Canada to return to his homeland.  Relationships are strained, and Tilla is both fearful and excited to see her father again.  This is her chance to see her father in his elements . . . his beloved Jamaica.  A place he loves more than her, her sister and his wife.  Tia wants to understand why her father was drawn back to this place time and again . . . why she was never enough.  However, it soon becomes clear that she won't be spending a lot of time with her father even after he promised they'd spend the summer together.  Almost immediately after their arrival, he leaves Tilla and her sister in the poverty stricken countryside with his family while he returns to the city to work.  She is devastated, humiliated and immediately put on-guard as she senses the hostility radiating off some family members.  The story that unfolds is heartbreaking, extremely intimate, and quite educational.  I found myself repeatedly shocked at the resentment and abuse practiced among these native people whom you would expect to support each other.  The presence of colorism is particularly disturbing as the shade of ones skintone determines ones "place" in society - even affecting ones educational opportunities.  Social class and sexism play a large role in their daily lives also determining ones place in a family.  My heart absolutely broke for these characters and their bleak futures.

Hurricane Summer is an emotional roller coaster from start to finish.  Author Asha Bromfield has penned an intense coming-of-age story featuring a young woman desperate to find her place in her father's world and to find herself.  Through vivid imagery and analogies, the author showcases the beauty of a place known to travelers as paradise vs. a poverty stricken world of dark secrets and impoverished people.  Through characters so fully fleshed out that you can feel the sweat drip off their skin along with waves of desperation radiating from their eyes, readers get up close and personal with the storms threatening their lives.  The undertone of danger and darkness kept me turning pages while silently praying Tilla and others would escape unharmed.  Through it all, I was amazed by Tilla's strength and resilience and ability to stand back up after being knocked down time and again.  Incidences of verbal abuse are disturbing and often worse than physical blows and assaults.  The growing sense of despair lends an ominous tone throughout as the story engulfed me and carried me at breakneck speed toward the coming storm.

The inclusion of the Jamaican Patois language is difficult to understand until you get into the flow of the story.  The author includes a dictionary at the front of the book, but I found I didn't need it as I soon lost myself in the atmospheric story after getting more into the characters heads.  I found the language actually enhanced the reading experience with authenticity.  Hurricane Summer is rich and full and alive with both darkness and rays of  hope.  Threads of a deeper message intertwine with  compelling themes of classism, colorism, sexism, abandonment, rejection and first loves delivered through beautifully lyrical writing.  

This book would make a great book club or reading group discussion, and I highly recommend it in spite of several warning triggers.  Brilliantly rendered through the eyes of a confused, coming of age eighteen year old girl on a journey of self-discovery, Hurricane Summer is simply the perfect storm.  Destined to be "that" book in 2021!

Synopsis:

Tilla has spent her entire life trying to make her father love her. But every six months, he leaves their family and returns to his true home: the island of Jamaica.

When Tilla’s mother tells her she’ll be spending the summer on the island, Tilla dreads the idea of seeing him again, but longs to discover what life in Jamaica has always held for him.

In an unexpected turn of events, Tilla is forced to face the storm that unravels in her own life as she learns about the dark secrets that lie beyond the veil of paradise—all in the midst of an impending hurricane.

Excerpt:

            We touch down at 1:46 p.m. local time.

Warm air floods the plane as the doors open, and the sweet aroma of fruit wafts in the air. Passengers race to grab their bags as the thick accent comes over the PA once again:

“Ladiez and gentle-mon, welcome to Kingston, Jamaica. It iz a beautiful day here on the island, and we wish you nothing but irie on your travels. It has been our pleasure to have you on board. As always, thank you for flying Air Jamaica.”

I gently shake Mia awake as Patois begins to pour out all around us. I grab our backpacks from the cabin, and we throw them over our shoulders before trudging off the plane.

As we make our way through the busy airport, we are sur-rounded by a sea of rich, dark skin. I feel courageous as we navigate through the brown and black bodies, and I can’t help but wonder if the feeling of belonging is why Dad loves it so much here.

Once we clear at customs, we continue our trek through the massive airport. All around us, people smile and laugh, and there is a mellowness to their pace. Most of the women wear bright colors and intricate braids in their hair, Afros, or long locks down their backs. An array of sandals and flip-flops highlight all the bright painted toenails as Mia and I weave through the crowd.

“Stay close!” I yell, grabbing on to her hand. When we find the exit, I grow nervous knowing what awaits us on the other side. I look to Mia. “You have everything?”

She nods.

“Okay,” I whisper to myself. “Let’s do this.”

With our suitcases lugging behind us, we spill out of the doors and into the hot sun. The heat immediately consumes me, and it is amplified by the chaos and noise that surrounds us. The streets are packed. Loud horns blare, and people yell back and forth in thick, heavy Patois accents. Men argue on the side of the road, their dialect harsh as they negotiate the rates for local shuttle buses. Along the roads, merchants sell colorful beaded jewelry and fruit so ripe that I can taste it in the air. Women wear beautiful head wraps and sell plantains and provisions, bartering back and forth with eager travelers. People spew out of overcrowded taxis, desperate to catch their flights as others hop in, desperate to get home. The sun pierces my skin as the humidity and gas fumes fill my lungs. The ac- tion is overwhelming, and I feel like a fish out of water. As we wait by the curb, there is no sight of our father.

“What if he forgot?” Mia asks.

“He wouldn’t,” I reply. “Mom just talked to him.” “What if he got the time mixed up?”

“He’ll be here.”

But the truth is, when it comes to our father, I can never be sure.

I fight with this idea as five minutes turn into ten, and ten into twenty.

The heat blazes, and sweat drips down my stomach. I check my watch: forty-two minutes.

I pull my pink hoodie over my head to reveal a white tank top, tying the hoodie around my waist to better manage the heat. Without my phone, I have no way of contacting him to see where he is.

But he said he’d be here. He gave us his word.

Fifty-six minutes later, our father is nowhere to be found. My eyes frantically search the crowd as I ponder how much his word is truly worth. Time and time again, he has proven that the answer is not much. I turn to Mia, ready to tell her to head back inside. Worry graces her face for the first time since we left. Her carefree attitude fades as the concern of a nine-year-old takes over. I can’t stand to see her like this, and I’ll do whatever it takes to escape the feeling that is bubbling inside of me.

We’ll take the first plane out.

“Mi, Dad’s not coming. Let’s go back insid—”

“Yow! Tilla!” A deep voice interrupts me mid-sentence. I whip my head around to find my father standing a few

feet away with two freshly sliced pineapple drinks in hand. “Daddy!” Mia screams. She drops her things on the curb

and sprints toward him. My heart does somersaults.

One glimpse of my father and I am a child again.

Asha Bromfield is an actress and writer of Afro-Jamaican descent. She is known for her role as Melody Jones, drummer of “Josie and the Pussycats” in CW’s Riverdale. She also stars as Zadie Wells in Netflix’s hit show, Locke and Key. Asha is a proud ambassador for the Dove Self-Esteem Project, and she is pursuing a degree in Communications. She currently lives in Toronto, and her name translates to "Life" in Swahili. In her spare time, she loves studying astrology, wearing crystals, burning sage, baking vegan desserts, and taking walks to the park with her dogs Luka and Kyra. Hurricane Summer is her debut novel.