…. On a Bookshelf near you!

In Seotember I hope to read….

Publication Date: September 12, 2023
Publisher: Inkyard Press

Goodreads: New from the author of Seoulmates comes a story of mistaken identities, the summer of a lifetime, and a love to risk everything for.

When Elijah Ri arrives in New York City for an internship at his father’s massive tech company, Haneul Corporation, he expects the royal treatment that comes with being the future CEO—even if that’s the last thing he wants. But instead, he finds himself shuffled into a group of overworked, unpaid interns, all sharing a shoebox apartment for the summer.

When Jessica Lee arrives in New York City, she’s eager to make the most of her internship at Haneul Corporation, even if she’s at the bottom of the corporate ladder. But she’s shocked to be introduced as the new executive-in-training intern with a gorgeous brownstone all to herself.

It doesn’t take long for Elijah and Jessica to discover the source of the they share the same Korean name. But they decide to stay switched—so Elijah can have a relaxing summer away from his controlling dad while Jessica can make the connections she desperately needs for college recommendations.

As Elijah and Jessica work together to keep up the charade, a spark develops between them. Can they avoid discovery—and total disaster—with their feelings and futures on the line?

What is coming soon …. to a bookshelf near you?

Let me know – I am always looking for a good read!

Author: Jill Shalvis
Publisher: Avon
Genre: Romance
Source: Avon ( Netgalley )

Goodreads: What makes life sweet?

-Freshly baked bread
-A cool lake on a hot summer day
-The comfort of a cozy bookstore
-Second chances and new beginnings

When Harper Shaw’s life falls apart, she knows it’s time for a change. She removes everything that doesn’t spark joy—from her soul-sucking job to eating kale to making lists—and sets off for the last place she was happy, Lake Tahoe (who wouldn’t feel good there, right?) to fulfill her dream of opening her own bakery.

With her Sugar Pine Bakery in between a tavern, owned by sexy, grumpy Bodie Campbell, and a bookstore, run by her new BFF, she feels a peace she’s never experienced since…well, forever.. Then she meets Ivy, a teenage runaway, who barrels into her heart. She sees a lot of herself in Ivy and takes her under her wing, but the teenager has secrets…

When those secrets explode, it changes Harper’s new world, and she’ll learn, it’s never too late to start over, it’s never too late to figure out your life, and best of all, it’s never too late to let yourself believe in love.

Ope’ Opinion: The constant sexual innuendos and the foul language really took away from this story for me. The story itself was really good. I thought the father / daughter relationship was an amazing one.

I liked Bodie’s big family and their acceptance of each other and “outside” people. They felt like they put their arms around everyone. I also liked the strong women in this book.

I know this is a romance, but there was too much steam too quickly for me. I am a closed door romance reader.

Author: Fiona Davis
Publisher: Dutton
Genre: Historical Fiction
Source: Dutton ( Netgalley )

Goodreads: New York Times bestselling author Fiona Davis transports us back to 1950s Manhattan and the glamorous Radio City Music Hall. . . .

New York City, 1956: Nineteen-year-old Marion is over the moon to have been selected to be one of the Rockettes, Radio City Music Hall’s glamorous precision-dancing troupe. It’s an honor to perform in the world’s most spectacular theater, an art deco masterpiece. But with four shows a day as well as grueling rehearsals, not to mention exacting standards of perfection to live up to, Marion quickly realizes that the life of a Rockette has both extraordinary highs and devastating lows.

Then one night a bomb explodes in the theater. It’s only the latest in a string of explosions around the city orchestrated by a person the press has nicknamed the “Big Apple Bomber.” They have been terrorizing the citizens of New York for sixteen years by planting bombs in popular, crowded spaces. With the public in an uproar over the lack of any real leads after a yearslong manhunt, the police, at Marion’s urging, turn in desperation to a radical new technique: psychological profiling.

As Marion finds herself pulled deeper into the investigation, she realizes that as much as she’s been training herself to blend in—performing in perfect unison with all the other identical Rockettes—if she hopes to catch the bomber, she’ll need to stand out and take a terrifying risk. But she may be forced to sacrifice everything she’s worked for, as well as the people she loves the most.

Ope’s Opinion: The first part of the book you learn about Marion, her father, and sister. Her father was a liar and very old fashion. You see Marion’s attempt at becoming a Rockettes dancer. It is so interesting and full of details that I am sure are from Fiona Davis’ research. I found this part very interesting.

The second half is a mystery that Marion attempts to solve. She and a friend find out things and do things the detectives were not able to figure out. I found this half unbelievable. I have never been a fan of a civilian figuring out a mystery.

I will read another Fiona Davis. This one was half great for me.

A weekend in the city with my daughter – so much fun!
We saw a broadway show – The Parade
We ate great food – Max Brenner chocolate shop
We went to the Strand – books and more
A complete weekend!

Author: Erika Montgomery
Publisher: Griffin
Genre: Fiction
Source: Griffin ( Netgalley )

Goodreads: For decades, the Campbell women have reunited at the family’s rambling seaside cottage known as Beech House to celebrate life’s many occasions. But this year, they will be called back to Martha’s Vineyard for a celebration of a different their beloved matriarch Cora is getting remarried. And all the town gossips are calling him the one who got away, years ago…

For renowned chef Mickey Campbell, this wedding isn’t just a welcome excuse to return to the place she first learned to cook at her grandmother’s side. It’s also a chance to regroup while she figures out a way to tell her smoldering head chef boyfriend that she’s mismanaged their restaurant into the red.

Mickey’s mother, Hedy, is still mourning the passing of her adored father three years earlier, and she isn’t sure she’s ready to welcome a new man into the fold―and she’s not certain her own thorny relationship with her mother will weather the storm of her upcoming marriage.

But everyone knows a woman’s heart holds more than meets the eye. For Cora, drawing her daughter and granddaughter back to Beech House isn’t just about a ceremony, but a chance to reveal a history she has kept close to her heart for decades. As the days leading up to the wedding unfold, secrets of Cora’s past come to light– a secret that will cause three generations of Campbell women to question marriage, motherhood, and ultimately learn to savor the delicious joy of following your own heart.

Told in dual timelines on the sumptuous beaches of Martha’s Vineyard, OUR PLACE ON THE ISLAND is the sparkling, romantic read of the season.

Ope’s Opinion: This was an awesome read from the beginning to the very end. I enjoyed the relationship between three strong women, who were the main characters. It was interesting to read from the two time lines and see how woman’s expectations have changed.

If you have not packed your beach for the summer yet, I would definitely put this one in your bag. It is deeper than a fluffy beach read, but would be enjoyable with your toes in the sand as it is set on the beach.

There were a few surprises along the way, but in general it ended the way I would have wanted it to. Now I am looking forward to her next book.

Author: Liz Johnson
Publisher: Revell
Genre: Christian Fiction
Source: Revell ( Netgalley )

Goodreads: A hurricane may have destroyed her livelihood on Prince Edward Island, but she’s determined to save her community

Kelsey Ahern has performed at the Victoria Playhouse on Prince Edward Island every summer since she was seven. But when a hurricane destroys the building, it’s not just her memories that are in jeopardy. Her future as a teacher and drama coach are too. She teams up with Levi Ross, the facilities director at the high school, to produce a benefit show to raise money to rebuild the theater. He has a reputation for being able to fix anything, and Kelsey is sure there’s more to the quiet man than meets the eye.

For his part, Levi has admired Kelsey for years, but he can’t seem to find the words to tell her. When a popular weatherman arrives in town to cover the aftermath of the hurricane and takes an interest in Kelsey and her show, Levi realizes that the time has come to speak up–or lose the heart of the woman he longs for.

Join New York Times bestselling author Liz Johnson for a season of rebuilding, restoration, and romance with this final book in the Prince Edward Island Shores series.

Ope’s Opinion: This is the third book in the Prince Edward Island Shores series. Although it is part of a series, it could read alone. You may miss some details and back story, so I recommend you start at the beginning. It is clean, slow burn romance. This is Levi’s story, he is the youngest of three boys.

Kelsey is Levi’s love interest in this book. She is a saint as far as I am concerned. She took the time to pull Levi out of his inability to talk. The beginning of the book was a little frustrating for me when all Kelsey could get out of Levi was a nod, a smile or a word. This is where having read the series helps. You understand why Levi is not talking.

The ending was very sweet and wrapped everything up. I am eagerly awaiting Liz Johnson’s next book.

Goodreads:

Catherine Sterling thinks she knows her mother. Ruth Sterling is quiet, hardworking, and lives for her daughter. All her life, it’s been just the two of them against the world. But now, Catherine is ready to spread her wings, move from home, and begin a new career. And Ruth Sterling will do anything to prevent that from happening.

Ruth Sterling thinks she knows her daughter. Catherine would never rebel, would never question anything about her mother’s past or background. But when Ruth’s desperate quest to keep her daughter by her side begins to reveal cracks in Ruth’s carefully-constructed world, both mother and daughter begin a dance of deception.

Sarah Pekkanen is an author I enjoy reading.