Jack Frost by Debbie Macomber

 

Title:  Jack Frost

Author:  Debbie Macomber

Narrated by:  Lisa Negron

Publisher: Debbie Macomber Inc.

Length: Approximately 1 hours and 44 minutes

Source: Purchased from Amazon.com on Audible

 

Have you ever met anyone who seemed cranky at first but was really a wonderful person once you got to know them?  I worked at my local Dime Store in high school with an older woman named Ann.  She seemed very cranky when I first started working at the Dime Store, but as I got to know her, she turned out to be a wonderful person who has a reason to be cranky (her beloved husband died young). 

Jack Frost is this type of story.  Lindsay Calhoun’s family is on a cruise, and she will be spending Christmas alone.  She volunteers to organize the office Christmas party.  The office scrooge, Jack, is not happy about an office Christmas party and always seems grumpy.  When the power goes out as the two are tying up things at the end of the party, they find themselves trapped together in the office.  As they get to know each other better, they begin to really understand one another.  Will love blossom between these two?

Jack Frost was the November pick for the Brenda Novak Book Group, but I didn’t get to it until December.  It was a perfect light and uplifting Christmas book, perfect for the season.  I think this one would make a great Hallmark movie.  Lisa Negron was a good narrator.

Bright Lights, Big Christmas by Mary Kay Andrews

 

Title:  Bright Lights, Big Christmas

Author:  Mary Kay Andrews

Narrated by:  Kathleen McInerney

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Length: Approximately 8 hours and 8 minutes

Source: Review Copy from NetGalley

Do you have a live Christmas tree or an artificial one?  In Bright Lights, Big Christmas, Kerry Tolliver is helping out her family after her father’s heart attack, by traveling from her family’s Christmas tree farm in North Carolina to New York City with her big brother Murphy and his dog Queen to sell their Christmas trees.  This is how the family makes their money for the year. Their family has been selling Christmas trees in the same location since Kerry was a child, but she hasn’t been a part of it since she was a kid.  She is now in her thirties and at a crossroads in life.  What does she want to do moving into the future?   

Kerry meets a handsome single dad, Patrick, who lives nearby with his son Austin.  She grows close to them both, but how can she start a relationship if she returns to North Carolina soon? 

Kerry also befriends an elderly man, Heinz, that stops by her Christmas tree stand daily.  She is an artist, and together with Austin and Heinz, they start to create a Christmas book.  When Heinz goes missing, Austin will not stop until they discover what has happened to him.  Will they find him before it is too late?

Bright Lights, Big Christmas by Mary Kay Andrews was the Brenda Novak Book Group pick for October, but I didn’t read it until December.  I greatly enjoyed this book.  It was a light tale filled with second chances, found family, and the spirit of Christmas.  I loved the characters in the community surrounding the Christmas tree lot including Spammy, the old camper Kerry and Murphy live in that does not have any heat or a functioning bathroom.  I felt very cold reading about this.  I enjoyed the mystery at the end and the romance.

I listened to the audiobook narrated by Kathleen McInerney, and I greatly enjoyed it. This is a clean read and it felt like a Hallmark movie.  I would love to see this story as a movie.

Overall, Bright Lights, Big Christmas is a feel-good Christmas novel with great characters.

The Seaside Library by Brenda Novak

 

Title:  The Seaside Library

Author:  Brenda Novak

Narrated by:  Amy McFaddon

Publisher: Harlequin Audio

Length: Approximately 12 hours and 17 minutes

Source: Checked out with Hoopla through the Kewaunee Public Library.  Thank-you!

Do you like to go to the beach?  If so, what beach is your favorite?  I live in Kewaunee which is on Lake Michigan so the beach is never far away . . . although I do not want to swim at the beach in November.

The Seaside Library by Brenda Novak was the November pick for the Page-turners Book Club at the Kewaunee Public Library and the April/May pick for the Brenda Novak Reading Challenge.  The book cover made me think this would be a relaxing beach romance, but it was more of an intriguing mystery set on an island.

Ariana has returned to where she grew up, Mariners Island, after twenty years.  Her two best friends, Ivy and Cam still live on the island.  Her teen years were filled with an unrequited love for Cam as well as a mystery that comes back when she returns to the island.  The remains of a missing girl are discovered, and the cold case is reopened.  Cam was the last person to see her alive and is the prime suspect.  Ivy and Ariana are his alibi, but they have held the secret for the last twenty years that they lied to cover for Cam.  He left them an hour before the time they gave in their statement.  As the mystery reopens, Ariana and Cam find that they may have feelings for each other as well.  Will the murderer be uncovered and will romance bloom?

I thought the murder mystery was interesting, but sad.  I did not guess the ending until the story lead me to the conclusion.  I did not care for the love story between Ariana and Cam.   Mostly because Cam was still married at the time.  He talks about how he doesn’t love his wife and only married her because she got pregnant, but when you talk about your wife that way to people, are you really giving your relationship a chance?  Ariana spends the night when his wife is away, and she catches them pillow fighting when they return.  They are like – we are innocent, but the wife is dubious.  I would be dubious too as I can’t imagine any scenario where it would be okay for my husband and I to have a “friend” over and be pillow fighting with them half dressed in our bed.  That is weird.  It made me not care for their romance at all.  I am not a fan of romance that starts when one of the characters is married.

Amy McFaddon was a good narrator, and the mystery story line kept me engaged with this audiobook.  I quickly finished it.  It did make for a good book club discussion on this novel.

Talulah’s Back in Town by Brenda Novak

 

Have you ever been to a wedding with a runaway bride or groom?  I have not fortunately, but that doesn’t stop me from loving the movie Runaway Bride and loving this book about a runaway bride.

Talulah has been a runaway bride . . . three times so far in her life.  Her first jilted groom was her high school sweetheart, Charlie.  She returns to her hometown of Coyote Canyon, Montana for her Great Aunt’s funeral and to clean out her house.  Upon her return, she reconnects with Charlie’s best friend Brant.  Sparks fly, but can she settle down with one person? Charlie and his family still are upset with her even though it has been fourteen years and make her trip back very uncomfortable.  Should Talulah return to her successful dessert café in Seattle or should she start a new life in Coyote Canyon?

September has been a very hectic month for me and I loved reading this book. It was a great escapism read.  I enjoyed reading Talulah and Brant’s love story – they were an interesting couple with great chemistry.  I loved the small town setting, the secondary characters, and the forces working for and against Talulah and Brant. There was a bit of a mystery in it about a rock that gets thrown through Talulah’s window that kept me wondering as well.  I also loved the description of Talulah’s cooking and I really want to try out her carrot cake!

I would rate the steam level in this romance as high.

This is the first book in a new Coyote Canyon series, and I am looking forward to the next book in the series.  I read this for the Brenda Novak Book Group September pick.  I love Brenda Novak’s discussions about the monthly selections which can be found on her Facebook page.  The discussion on this book is tomorrow!

Book Source:  Review copy from NetGalley. Thank-you!  Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

It’s One of Us by J.T. Ellison

 

Title:  It’s One of Us

Author:  J.T. Ellison

Narrated by:  Julia Whelan

Publisher: Harlequin Audio

Length: Approximately 11 hours and 38 minutes

Source: Checked out with Hoopla through the Kewaunee Public Library.  Thank-you!

What is the last book you read that kept you up too late at night?

It’s One of Us by J.T. Ellison was the March 2023 Brenda Novak Book Club Selection, but I didn’t get to it until April.  It was an intriguing thriller and I enjoyed listening to it on audiobook with all of the driving I had to do in April.

Oliva Bender is a successful interior designer.  She is married to her high school sweetheart, Park, but her one sadness in life is that they haven’t been able to have a child.  They have been going through rounds of IVF and Oliva has suffered through many miscarriages.  The morning that Olivia loses her latest pregnancy; the police arrive to inform them that DNA from a murder victim indicates that Park’s child is the murderer.  Park and Olivia don’t have a child, who could this be?  This opens up an entire can of worms that involves secrets and lies that changes their lives forever.  Who is the murderer, and will he strike again?

It's One of Us is a riveting thriller, although I did guess all of the big surprises.  I did love the wild ride though and it was a perfect audiobook to listen to for all of my driving for work during April.  Where the book really shines is the realistic look into Olivia’s life and her trying desperately to conceive, only to lose so many babies.  The author had a great note at the end to discuss how this was based on her own personal experiences.

Brenda Novak had a great interview with the author that you can still access on her Facebook page.

The Book Spy by Alan Hlad

 

What is your favorite novel or movie that has a female spy?

The Book Spy is an intriguing new WWII historical fiction novel.    Maria Alves is a microfilm expert at the New York Public Library.  One of her colleagues becomes a part of a new government program that is sending librarians that are microfilm experts to Europe as part of a new branch of the Office of Strategic Service.  In Europe, the librarians will work as espionage agents to look through newspapers, magazines, and books that could contain any information that will help with the Allied cause.  Maria uses her wit to be recruited and she is sent to Lisbon, Portugal.  While there she meets Tiago Soares.  He runs a bookstore, but is also helping Jewish refugees escape Europe with counterfeit passports and visas.  As the war progresses, both of their futures are thrown into question as Maria becomes a double agent.  Will they be able to help push the allies to their final victory, and will they survive?

I adored this novel.  It had a bit of everything – romance, intrigue, suspense.  I love learning something new in a historical fiction novel and I felt like I learned so much in The Book Spy.  I had no idea that this program existed in WWII and it was fascinating to learn about. I’ve also never read a WWII novel set in Portugal and I learned a lot about what was going on in that part of the world during the war.  Over one million refuges escaped through the port of Lisbon.  I also learned about the tragic crashing of the Yankee Clipper through Maria experiencing it in this novel. It was a heartbreaking accident. Maria and Tiago were both very brave characters and I enjoyed reading about them.  The side characters were interesting as well.

The Book Spy was the Brenda Novak Book Group February selection.  I was a bit behind on reading it, but I enjoyed listening to Brenda Novak interview author Alan Hlad at her monthly book club on Facebook. Alan Hlad stated that he likes character driven novels with characters that you root for.  He succeeded with that in the The Book Spy.

The Book Spy ended with a great author’s note that detailed all of the real history and historical characters in the novel.  It was fascinating.  It also had great questions to use if you read this with a book club.

Review Copy from Netgalley.   Thank-you! I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.