Review: Golden Hills - Jennifer Weiner - June 2023 I'll be honest – I've been in one of those reading slumps that every book lover dreads. You know the feeling: picking up book after book, only to set them down after a few pages, nothing quite clicking. So when I spotted Jennifer Weiner's "Golden Hills" as an Amazon Original Short Story, it felt like exactly what I needed: something quick, digestible, and from an author I trust to deliver emotional depth without requiring a massive time commitment. What I got was so much more than a slump-buster. "Golden Hills" centers on Ida Berkowitz, a senatorial candidate whose seemingly assured victory gets complicated when her past resurfaces in the form of Marissa Schuyler – her former camp bunkmate and the keeper of a decades-old secret. Weiner masterfully captures that stomach-dropping moment when your carefully constructed adult life collides with the messy realities of who you used to be. Ida and Marissa...

Review : The Candidate's Daughter - Catherine Lea - May 2013 New Zealand author Catherine Lea’s The Candidate’s Daughter is a gripping thriller that not only delivers high-stakes tension but also provides a moving portrayal of disability representation. Set against a backdrop of crime, politics, and betrayal, the novel weaves an intense and emotional story that keeps readers hooked until the very last page. The novel centers around Kelsey Money, a 22-year-old car thief who gets entangled in a kidnapping gone terribly wrong. What initially seems like a straightforward ransom plan quickly unravels when Kelsey realizes she’s been double-crossed. Now, not only is she being framed for murder, but six-year-old Holly McClaine—who has Down syndrome—is in grave danger. With only 24 hours to save the girl, Kelsey must fight against impossible odds to bring her home safely. At the heart of this novel is the complex dynamic between Kelsey and Holly. Despite being one of the so-called ‘kidn...

State of Union Paula Dombrowiak (Kingmaker, #3) Publication date: September 10th 2024 Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance Our marriage could make or break us… Letting go of billionaire playboy Darren Walker was the right thing to do. My life as a former escort will only damage his campaign for congress, and I’m too scared to admit I’ve fallen in love with my fake husband. Except when Darren finds me and refuses to let me go, I can’t run from my feelings any longer. It’s time I have the courage to confess that he isn’t my husband in name only. He’s my everything. All Darren wants is to carve out a future for himself while honoring his father’s legacy. But can I truly be the politician’s wife my husband needs when there are those who will use me to derail his campaign? It doesn’t matter how much we love each other, I can’t change my past. But we have no way of knowing that he has shocking family secrets that are yet to be revealed. Secrets bigger than me and powerful enou...

The Unlikely Pair Jax Calder (Unlikely Dilemmas, #2) Publication date: August 7th 2024 Genres: Adult, Contemporary, LGBTQ+, Romance What happens when you find yourself stranded in the wilderness with your political enemy? Getting stranded in the freezing wilderness with my archenemy wasn’t on today’s to-do list. But somehow, that’s where I’ve ended up. Harry Matheson, my political rival, has always been smarmy, arrogant, and entitled. It figures that even this plane crash has barely ruffled his well-coiffed hair. It’s all fine, though, because our pilot has gone to call for help and rescue should be imminent. Fast forward a few frigid hours… Umm…maybe it’s not so fine, because it appears our pilot is part of an international terrorist group intent on kidnapping us. Now Harry and I have to flee through the wilderness—together. Unfortunately, being adept at political debates and parliamentary procedures doesn’t exactly prepare you for the basics of finding food, keeping w...

Review: Lula Dean's Little Library of Banned Books - Kirsten Miller - June 2024 As a former librarian and a voracious reader, I have always found the notion of "banned books" ridiculous as we should not be censoring what people read. People should have the free will to choose what to read or not to read. In the last few years, the notion of banning books has been running riot, especially in the USA, and every day when I read the number of books being banned or parents/organizations - I am thankful that despite being in such a small country, that we have the freedom to read whatever the hell we want too. This book caught my attention with the Little Library and the Banned Books. In this small town of Troy, Lula Dean is on a mission to ban books she thinks are inappropriate, and standing against her in this fight is Beverley Underwood - these two have been at each other's throats since their college days.  Lindsay Underwood is a lesbian and is not against sharing the bo...

King of Nothing Paula Dombrowiak (Kingmaker Series, #1) Publication date: March 12th 2024 Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance I’m not the sort of girl you take home to meet your parents. But our marriage of convenience is the perfect revenge… I find Darren Walker drowning himself in expensive whiskey. Young, handsome, and educated, he’s the playboy son of a U.S. Senator, and his father’s sudden death has hit him harder than expected. When he offers me millions of dollars to marry him, I want to tell him that I can’t be bought. But of course, that’s not true, and Darren is prepared to play dirty. He’s made it his life’s mission to squander his potential in order to avoid living in his father’s shadow. But if he wants to see even one cent of his trust fund, he needs a wife. And not just any wife will do. Ours will purely be a marriage of convenience, and I’m going to be his final, perfect revenge. My name is Evangeline Bowen, and I’m an escort to the rich and powerful. B...

Fallen Raven Audiobook Diana A. Hicks (Raven Duet, #1) Publication date: September 21st 2023 Genres: Adult, Romance Now a 2023 Readers’ Favorite Gold Medal Winner in the Romance – Contemporary genre! “Diana A. Hicks painted a slow-burn romance balanced on the dark edge of danger…Fallen Raven will capture the minds of readers who enjoy Mafia political romances with plenty of action to entertain them.” – Readers’ Favorite Reviewer Seventeen-year-old Aurora Vitali didn’t have the best life in Las Vegas, but it was a place to call home. When her father scores a win after so many fails, he abruptly moves the whole family to the Upper East Side in New York City. Aurora is quickly seduced by the glitz and glamour of her new world, where designer clothes, limos, and beach parties are the norm. Her first day at their elite school, she meets Enzo Alfera, one of the royals. He’s rich, gorgeous, and so dangerous. The magnetic pull she feels when he’s near is absolutely irresistible. S...

Review: Not the Plan - Gia De Cadenet - February 2023 After reading quite a few thrillers, I needed something a bit light-hearted and on my library holds from the Libby App was Not the Plan by Gia De Cadenet. This is one of those star-crossed political party romances. You would think that if they are on the same side then they would be friends but they are viewed as the Capulets and Montagues - a Romeo and Juliet scenario and now our two main characters Isadora and Karim are about to find themselves the stars in their own Romeo and Juliet love story. Not the Plan starts with a not-so-graceful #meetcute at the airport and then they find themselves seated next to each other on the plane. They find themselves chatting away and go their separate ways. The thing is neither of them can get the other out of their heads, imagine their surprise when they find them on opposing political sides and that if they ever were to get involved with one another - it could lead not only to them both losi...