Ashton Hall | Book Review & Tour Stop

Ashton Hall

Lauren Belfer

Publisher: Ballantine Books

Pub Date: 6.7.2022

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Hannah and her son, Nicky, arrive at Ashton Hall in Cambridge, England, to visit her sick uncle. Hannah is reeling from her husband’s betrayal and dealing with her son’s fits of rage. But any respite is short-lived when Nicky discovers skeletal remains in a hidden room of the manor. 

I enjoyed this book because it blends the modern with the historical. It does this all through the discovery of the skeleton dating back to the 16th century. And instead of using dual-time lines, you learn about this mystery woman named Isabella, who lived during the Tudor reign, through investigation and research. 

There is fascinating information for those who love Tudor Era history or even investigative and forensic archeology. The story is unhurried. Yet when the parallels between Hannah and Isabella start to pour out, it becomes a very moving tale. 

Thank you @suzyapprovedbooktours and @laurenbelfer1

for a spot on tour and a gifted copy. 

👑 ᴅᴏ ʏᴏᴜ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴛᴏ ꜱᴛᴜᴅʏ ᴘᴀꜱᴛ ᴍᴏɴᴀʀᴄʜꜱ? ᴅᴏ ʏᴏᴜ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴀ ꜰᴀᴠᴏʀɪᴛᴇ?

A Dreadful Spendor | Book Tour

A Dreadful Splendor

B.R. Myers

Publisher: William Morrow Books

Pub Date: 8.23.2022

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Thank you @tlcbooktours and @williammorrowbooks for a spot on tour and a gifted copy of A Dreadful Splendor by @brmyerswriter  

In this spectacularly imaginative and ghoulishly fun Gothic murder mystery brimming with romance, betrayals, and chills, a fake spiritualist is summoned to hold a séance for a bride who died on the eve before her wedding, but as nefarious secrets are revealed, the line between hoax and haunting blurs.

Be careful what you conjure…

In Victorian London, Genevieve Timmons poses as a spiritualist to swindle wealthy mourners–until one misstep lands her in a jail cell awaiting the noose. Then a stranger arrives to make her a peculiar offer. The Lord he serves, Mr. Pemberton, has been inconsolable since the tragic death of his beautiful bride-to-be. If Genevieve can perform a séance persuasive enough to bring the young Lord peace, she will win her freedom.

Soothing a grieving nobleman should be easy for someone of Genevieve’s skill, but when she arrives at the grand Somerset Park estate, Mr. Pemberton is not the heartbroken lover she expected. The surly–yet exceedingly handsome–gentleman is certain that his fiancée was murdered, even though there is no evidence. Only a confession can bring justice now, and Mr. Pemberton decides Genevieve will help him get it. With his knowledge of the household and her talent for illusion, they can stage a haunting so convincing it will coax the killer into the light. However, when frightful incidents befall the manor, Genevieve realizes her tricks aren’t required after all. She may be a fake, but Somerset’s ghost could be all too real…

🕯💀This is a perfect read for the spooky season that is soon to be upon us! 𝙳𝚘 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚍𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚏𝚊𝚕𝚕? 𝙸𝚏 𝚜𝚘, 𝚒𝚜 𝚒𝚝 𝚏𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚘𝚛 𝚜𝚌𝚊𝚛𝚢?

Point Last Seen | Book Review & Tour Stop

Point Last Seen

Christina Dodd

Publisher: HQN

Pub Date: 7.26.2022 Happy Pub Day!

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𝐏𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐋𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐧 has the perfect dark, gothic feel. In fact, the town where it is set is named Gothic. 

Gothic is a remote town set upon the California cliffs overlooking the turbulent ocean. The town is filled with eccentric types: psychics, a former actress, a war vet, and Adam, an artist who creates sculptures from metal that washes up from the sea.

On a stormy night, Adam ventures down to the rocky water and discovers a body. Realizing the woman is still alive, barely, he takes her in. She is badly bruised and terribly frightened. She can’t remember much; she knows her name is Elle and that she is a scientist, and apparently, someone is trying to kill her.

The setting and the characters are great in this book. Everyone has their own little quirks, and everyone is hiding something. Adam and Elle are both hurting, lost souls that end up helping each other. There is romance added in as a bonus to the suspense. 

This is book one in the Last Seen in Gothic series, and I’m excited to return to Gothic soon. 

Thank you @harpercollins and @HQNbooks for a spot on tour and a gifted ebook.

🗺 𝕎𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕚𝕤 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕓𝕖𝕤𝕥 𝕥𝕠𝕨𝕟 𝕟𝕒𝕞𝕖 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕙𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕖𝕧𝕖𝕣 𝕧𝕚𝕤𝕚𝕥𝕖𝕕? 𝕀 𝕙𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕤𝕥𝕠𝕡𝕡𝕖𝕕 𝕚𝕟 ℂ𝕙𝕣𝕚𝕤𝕥𝕞𝕒𝕤𝕥𝕠𝕨𝕟 𝕒𝕟𝕕 ℍ𝕖𝕝𝕝.

The Wife Before

Shanora Williams

Publisher: Kensington Books

Pub Date: 6.28.2022 Available Now!

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Thank you [partners] @bibliolifestyle and @kensingtonbooks for one of BookBub’s Best Mysteries & Thrillers of 2022.

A new bride’s fairytale marriage soon becomes a prison of secrets in this insidiously sexy, twist-filled psycho-drama from Shanora Williams, the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of THE PERFECT RUIN. 

📖  Samira Wilder has never had it easy, and when her latest lousy job goes south, things only promise to get harder. Until she unexpectedly meets a man who will change her life forever. Renowned pro golfer Roland Graham is wealthy, handsome, and caring, and Samira is dazzled. Best of all, he seems to understand her better than anyone ever has. And though their relationship moves a bit fast, when Roland proposes, Samira accepts. She even agrees to relocate to his secluded Colorado mansion. Soon, they are married amid a media firestorm, and Samira can’t wait to make a fresh start—as the second Mrs. Graham . . .

Samira settles into the mansion, blissfully happy—until she discovers long-hidden journals belonging to Roland’s late wife, Melanie, who died in a tragic accident. With each dusty page, Samira comes to realize that perhaps it was no accident at all—that perhaps her perfect husband is not as perfect as she thought. Even as her trust in Roland begins to dwindle and a shadow falls over her marriage and she begins to fear for her own life, Samira is determined to uncover the truth of Melanie’s troubled last days. But even good wives should know that the truth is not always what it seems . . .

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Wow! This sounds great and I’ve seen some 5 🌟 reviews already! I’m excited for 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞.

 🎆 Happy 4th of July to those who celebrate. How do you really feel about fireworks? I think they are pretty, but they sure scare a lot of animals. 😢

Lacie’s Secrets | Book Review & Book Tour

Lacie’s Secrets

Teresa Sorkin and Tullan Holmqvist

Publisher: Beaufort Books

Pub Date: 4.12.2022

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After the news of her mother’s death, Kate Williams travels back to her family’s summer home. Villa Magda, the oceanside manor in Maine, has been in Kate’s family for generations. But it holds painful memories for Kate. 

Lacie, Kate’s younger sister, disappeared 18 summers ago, and there has been no sign of her since. Kate has finally returned to Villa Magda with her family and her friends. She’s hoping to put the past to rest and finally move on.

Instead, Kate is haunted by Lacie’s memory everywhere she turns. It’s as if the very house is whispering secrets to her. Is she going mad? And what did everyone know that she didn’t? When a body is found floating in the pool; Kate knows she is no longer safe. 

𝐋𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐞’𝐬 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐬 has all the great elements of a classic gothic thriller within a modern mystery! The authors did a great job building up that eerie and tense feeling. You become uncertain which characters to trust, whose memories to believe, and so many twisted secrets! And I love how the house feels like a character as well. 𝘏𝘢𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘢𝘵𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨.

The Cicada Tree | Book Review & Tour Stop

The Cicada Tree

Robert Gwaltney

Publisher: Moonshine Cove Publishing

Pub Date: 2/22/2022

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𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐝𝐚 𝐓𝐫𝐞𝐞 is a hard book to categorize. It has the elements of a great Southern Gothic novel, but it is certainly a coming-of-age story filled with bullying, race and wealth disparities, and magical realism. 

It’s the summer of 1956 and the cicadas have returned to Providence, Georgia. Along with their reemergence, strange occurrences and even the supernatural take hold of the young Analeise Newell.

Eleven-year-old Analeise, a piano prodigy, has always loved playing with her friend Etta Mae. But now Analeise feels anger inside her: jealousy of Etta Mae’s beautiful voice and a fascination with the Mayfields, wealthy plantation owners. 

I loved how music was a part of this story and the cicadas seemed to be a creepy analogy of secrets crawling back out into the light. There is definitely an eerie feel throughout – is this madness, is it mystical? I was a little confused at times, but then wow, the ending really shocked me! 

Thank you to @suzyapprovedbooktours and @robertgwaltneyjr for a spot on tour and a gifted ebook.

🎶 𝙷𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙲𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚍𝚊𝚜 𝚂𝚘𝚗𝚐 (𝚘𝚛 𝚋𝚞𝚣𝚣𝚒𝚗𝚐)? 𝙳𝚒𝚍 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚊𝚝 𝚌𝚕𝚘𝚜𝚎 𝚛𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚛 𝚜𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚌𝚊𝚞𝚜𝚎 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚕𝚘𝚜𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚊 𝚑𝚞𝚖𝚊𝚗?!

Reckless Girls | Book Review

Reckless Girls

Rachel Hawkins

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

Pub Date: 1/4/2022

🌟🌟🌟🌟

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I’ve seen a few people have mixed feelings on this one, but I totally got lost in it. As Lux says, “𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘸 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘵 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳, 𝘢𝘥𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘰𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘭𝘤𝘰𝘩𝘰𝘭…” and you’ve got yourself a hot mess. Not to mention they are on a deserted island.

This is a classic tale of betrayal and survival. Start with six beautiful free spirits, two couples and two young girls looking for adventure, as they all sail out to the ill-fated but gorgeous Meroe Island. At first, it seems like a tropical paradise, then reckless decisions are made, and loyalties shift. 

The salty, sun-scorched atmosphere of 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐆𝐢𝐫𝐥𝐬 alone made it a fun read. But the dynamics between the six main characters were so tense and sexy that I wasn’t sure who to trust. 𝑺𝒂𝒏𝒅, 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒇, 𝒔𝒆𝒙, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒕𝒔 –  I just had a good time reading this one.

Thank you to @stmartinspress and @ladyhawkins for a gifted copy and great book package (check out my reel).

⛵️ ᴡʜᴇɴ ᴡᴀꜱ ᴛʜᴇ ʟᴀꜱᴛ ᴛɪᴍᴇ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴇʀᴇ ᴏɴ ᴀ ʙᴏᴀᴛ? ɪᴛ’ꜱ ʙᴇᴇɴ ᴀʙᴏᴜᴛ ᴛᴇɴ ʏᴇᴀʀꜱ ᴏʀ ꜱᴏ ꜰᴏʀ ᴍᴇ.

Ruby Falls | Book Review & Tour Stop

Ruby Falls

Deborah Goodrich Royce

4 / 5

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Look closely at this beautiful but eerie cover, and as the author says, you will have a “𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯.”

Eleanor Ruby Russell, an actress, lives in Los Angeles, having settled into a darling little rose-covered cottage in the Hollywood Hills with her new husband, Orlando.

But the past haunts Ellie. She was abandoned as a child by her father in the depths of a pitch dark cave. While touring the cave, it seemed as if he simply vanished.

When Orlando begins to act strangely towards Ellie, she is convinced he is hiding something, but she hasn’t told him the truth either; but then, what is the truth?

Although set in 1987, I felt this had more of a classic feel, like the ‘40s or ‘50s. 𝐑𝐮𝐛𝐲 𝐅𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐬 is a taut psychological mystery with a nod to the gothic. Deborah Goodrich Royce does a marvelous job keeping the suspense high as you wonder if Ellie is losing her mind, is she being gaslighted, or is something even more twisted at play?

The ending may leave some wanting, but I thought it was a fitting “end of the rabbit hole” for Ellie. 

Thank you to @suzyapprovedbooktours and @deborahroyce for an invitation to the tour and a gifted copy.

Down Comes the Night | Book Review

Down Comes the Night

Allison Saft

3.5 / 5

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I wanted to love this one; it had so many of my favorite elements: set in Victorian England, a magical realm with dark forces, and an eerie gothic feel. But I couldn’t seem to connect with this story; in fact, half of the time I was a bit confused. 

Wren is a healer who has been dismissed from the Queen’s guard, and Lord Lowry summons her to his estate to heal a servant. It turns out the servant is none other than Hal Cavendish, the notorious Reaper of Vesria – Wren’s sworn enemy. 

Although Cavendish is looking for redemption and healing, when Wren discovers the source of his illness, she realizes they both are in grave danger. They will have to join forces if they are to survive this kind of monster. 

So lots of cool things are going on, but I just didn’t understand many of the decisions Wren makes. There is a blossoming romance, but it’s slow, and again, Wren oscillates back and forth. I just felt disconnected for much of the time.

Diehard fantasy lovers may enjoy this one, so I still suggest trying it out for yourselves.

Opium and Absinthe {book review}

Opium and Absinthe

Lydia Kang

4 / 5

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It is 1899, and Bram Stoker’s Dracula has just been published. 

Tillie Pembroke has just suffered a terrible injury while out riding her horse. Her collarbone is surely broken. As the doctor attends to her, he prescribes her laudanum for the pain. Just then she receives word that her sister has been murdered. The body has been found, drained of all its blood with two puncture wounds in the neck. It would appear her sister was killed by a vampire.

Tillie, being a young woman who loves to study and research, even in her opium-induced daze, knows she must get a copy of Dracula. As Tillie goes on the hunt for a copy, she runs into Ian, a “newsie”, selling papers that tell of her sister’s death. He seems just as intent on finding the killer as she is. 

As Tillie continues to dig deeper into the murder, her doctor sends her down a spiraling path of addiction. Tillie becomes a Morphinomanic. Then the murderer strikes again, the same puncture marks in the neck, all the blood drained from the body. Could it be possible that a vampire is stalking the streets of New York? 

This almost felt like a classic gothic mystery. It had historical elements, vampires, addiction, family secrets, and murder. I enjoyed Tillie’s character. She was bright, inquisitive, and independent. Yet through her, Kang told the true story of how so many women in the late 19th century become addicted to opium and morphine. 

The author’s notes are a must-read! Please don’t pass them over.

TW: addiction, disease & death, sexual assault.

Thank you to @netgalley, @lakeunionauthors and @LydiaKang for this digital copy for review.