Page Turners: May 2022

May 31, 2022

DEATH AT THE DINNER PARTY

MY THOUGHTS:

Francesca Eve is a professional caterer and has arrived at Claremont House to serve the high society. She has the menu all prepared and it is nothing out of the ordinary. A full breakfast is easy and a wonderful picnic lunch is no challenge for Fran. But when dinner was served the last thing she ever expected was a dead body. The wealthy hosts are so demanding and when the maid discovers the body of the host, the entire weekend quickly comes to an end. It wasn’t exactly the weekend Fran was hoping for. Everyone in the house immediately became suspects. The list of suspects is quite lengthy, the weekend guests, the staff, Fran and Adam, and most importantly, the dead man’s wife. Everyone had motive and opportunity. The DCI assigned to the case, Nell Bradley, is friends with Fran and immediately clears her knowing she isn’t capable of murder. The killer is quickly discovered and arrested. As Fran is packing to return home, she is bothered by all the events and can’t help but wonder if the police arrested the right person, or did someone just get away with murder?

I absolutely love this series. I love how Fran and Adam work together with Fran’s sleuthing skills and Adam’s computer skills, they make a wonderful team. This story is fast paced and the characters are brilliant. The twists and turns of this cozy mystery were spot on and will keep you guessing til the very end. This is the second book in The Adam and Eve Mystery Series. It can be read as a standalone story but take the plunge and start with the first book. I look forward to reading the third installment in this series. I loved this book and I highly recommend it.

Thank you Emma Davies for such a wonderful cozy mystery. I absolutely loved it and I am looking forward to the next installment in this series. I highly recommend this book.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

DESCRIPTION:

DEATH AT THE DINNER PARTY

Author: Emma Davies

Publisher: Bookouture

Publication Date: May 27, 2022

Pages: 290

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Francesca Eve, caterer extraordinaire, has come to Claremont House to work for the cream of society. A full breakfast spread? Simple. A glorious picnic lunch? Easy as pie. But a dead body for dinner was definitely not on the menu…

No sooner has Francesca Eve turned up for a jam-packed weekend of gourmet catering at a posh country house than she realises how challenging this event is set to be. Not only are the hosts wealthy – and demanding – beyond her wildest dreams, but each of the guests is more difficult than the last. But she never expected the host to turn up dead…

Suspicion falls on everyone in the house – could there be a murderer in their midst? Is the incredibly glamorous, and now extremely rich, widow really as upset as she’s making out? What secret is the housekeeper hiding? Whose money troubles are now forgotten? As the only person without a motive, Fran’s intimate knowledge of the house party puts her in the prime position to help the police.

As rumours swirl and guests’ pasts come to light, someone else is found dead. But when the police arrest their chief suspect, Fran becomes convinced they have the wrong person – the evidence is almost too neat to be true. So she decides to strike out alone, in the country house where the killer is still staying… Someone has killed twice to keep their secret safe. Will Fran be able to unmask them, or will this weekend turn out to be her deadliest job ever?

ABOUT EMMA DAVIES

Hello, a little bit about me ……

Before we go any further there are two things you need to know: One – I love singing loudly in the car, and Two – I have a passion for Pringles.

If you’re happy with both these things then please feel free to read on ….

Once upon a time I worked in a design agency where I was asked to write an amusing caption to go beside my details on their website. I wrote ‘I am a best selling novelist currently masquerading as a thirty something mother of three.’

Well I’m now a fifty something mother of three and am happy to report the rest came true. I’m a member of The Romantic Novelists’ Association, and live with my husband and children in rural Shropshire. I write in the gaps between real life.

May 30, 2022

ALL THAT IS HIDDEN

MY THOUGHTS:

Tina Hamilton is a normal ten year old, who loves fishing, planting and harvesting. She enjoys playing baseball with the boys and roaming around the local area in beautiful Appalachia. Investors want to turn her beautiful mountain town into a destination vacation theme park. But that would literally destroy the quaint town that they know and love. So, Tina’s father does everything he possibly can to stop that from happening. But at what costs is he willing to endure to stop the project?

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. This new to me author quickly became a favorite. I really enjoyed her writing style and felt like she transported me to Appalachia. I loved the characters of the story and they seemed like normal, real people, much like close family and friends. This beautifully written, coming-of-age story is one that will stay with me for a while. I enjoyed the writing style and the story flowed very well, keeping me interested and engrossed all the way to the end. This story was captivating, inspiring and full of hope. I highly recommend this very thought provoking book.

Thank you Laura DeNooyer-Moore for such an inspiring and encouraging story filled with hope. I absolutely loved it and I highly recommend this book.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

DESCRIPTION:

ALL THAT IS HIDDEN

Author: Laura DeNooyer-Moore

Publisher: Lighthouse Publishing

Publication Date: December 14, 2012

Pages: 323

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Are secrets worth the price they cost to keep?
Ten-year-old Tina Hamilton finds out the hard way.
She always knew her father had a secret. But all of God’s earth to Tina are the streams for fishing, the fields for planting and harvesting--a world snugly enclosed by the blue-misted Smokies. Other than the seasons, nothing ever changed.
Until the summer of 1968.
Tina’s life changes forever. Trouble erupts when northern exploitation threatens her tiny southern Appalachian town.
Some folks blame the trouble on progress, some blame the space race and men meddling with the moon’s cycles, and some blame Tina’s father.
A past he has hidden catches up to him as his secret settles in like an unwelcome guest. The clash of progressive ideas and small town values escalates the collision of a father’s past and present.

ABOUT LAURA DENOOYER-MOORE

As a Michigan native, Laura earned a BA in Education and Fine Arts at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, then taught school in Milwaukee, Wisconsin for nine years. She pioneered the middle school and high school art program, wrote curriculum, taught creative writing, and coached volleyball.

Over twenty years later, Laura started her own teaching and tutoring business from home, working with home schoolers the past sixteen years. Between these two teaching jobs, she and her husband raised four children. In her spare time, Laura wrote and published her first novel and received awards for other stories.

Storytelling through novels is her passion, especially character-driven stories featuring complex relationships, whether historical fiction or a fairy tale setting.

Laura has contributed to The Baum Bugle periodical and hosts a blog to encourage creativity and spur imagination, wherever they are found.

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May 27, 2022

A MOTHER’S HEART

MY THOUGHTS:

Lorcan living in Ireland as a widow and raising two young children on his own. He meets Rachel and they fall in love with each other. Rachel’s family assumed that their marriage would never last. Rachel had never planned on raising two stepchildren, but she loved them as if they were her own. The children, Dylan age 5 and Olivia age 8 loved Rachel and knew her as their mother. But when Lorcan dies each other is all they have to make it through such a horrible time. Lorcan’s family decides to fight Rachel for custody of the children siting that they are blood relatives and belong with their family. Rachel sees the children as her family and refuses to give up on them. They have been through enough in their life, and she has been their only constant. So, she fights to keep them. As the story continues there are so many twist and turns that come to light, and through the heartache a mother’s love always prevails. Rachel is such a wonderful and patient mother. She is so protective of her family and does everything she possibly can to make her family happy. Rachel is from New Zealand while the children are from Ireland which is also where the children’s grandparents on their father’s side live. Rachel’s dilemma…does she raise them in their familiar environment in Ireland or does she move them to New Zealand where her family is?

I was so moved by this story. The heartbreak, the emotions and the unconditional love of a mother. This story hits all the emotions and was very thought provoking as far as what is really important in life….family. This story was heartbreaking, emotional and inspiring, I loved it. I highly recommend this book.

Thank you Carmel Harrington for such an emotional and inspirational story of overcoming life’s obstacles. I absolutely loved it and I highly recommend this book.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

DESCRIPTION:

A MOTHER’S HEART
Author: Carmel Harrington
Publisher: Bookouture
Publication Date: May 26, 2022
Pages: 431
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“Those children are our life, Rachel. You can't take them from us. And I will not stop until they are back where they belong, with their blood family!”

When Rachel met handsome Irish widower Lorcan it was a whirlwind romance. Her family back home thought it would never last. But it did, and they were so happy. Bringing up two stepchildren hadn’t been in her life plan, but she loved them like her own. She’d say to them “even though you didn’t grow in my tummy, you grew in my heart”, and they’d all laugh together. Their little family wasn’t quite the same as everyone else’s, but it was beautiful, it was happy, it was home.

Until now. When Lorcan dies in a tragic accident, Rachel’s world collapses in an instant. She knows she has to be strong for her stepchildren. But given the chance to move back to the country she grew up in, she wonders if it could be the new start they need.

However, she doesn’t count on the children’s own grandparents. Their blood relations, who say Rachel isn’t their real mother, and so can’t take them away from Ireland. Who say they won’t let her.

As Rachel finds herself fighting against the only people who might love the children as much she does, everyone will have to ask – what makes a parent? What makes a home? And with whom do the children of her heart have a future?

ABOUT CARMEL HARRINGTON

Carmel Harrington is from Co. Wexford, where she lives with her husband Roger, children Amelia and Nate and their beloved rescue dog, George Bailey. An international bestseller and regular panellist on Irish radio and TV, her warm and emotional storytelling has captured the hearts of readers worldwide, translated into nine languages. Carmel’s trademark is to write warm, uplifting stories with humour, heart and hope. She loves to write about family, friendships, love and life within complex, twisting plots. Carmel’s novels have been shortlisted for an Irish Book Award in 2016 & 2017 and her debut won Kindle Book of the Year and Romantic eBook of the Year in 2013.

May 26, 2022

THE SOLDIER’S LETTERS

MY THOUGHTS:

Prague, 1941: Charlie is a member of the SS and is ordered to murder the Jewish people in captivity, but he refuses over and over again. He isn’t a murderer and vows to save as many people as possible, no matter what it costs him. While in the Theresienstadt concentration camp, he is drawn to beautiful Amelia, he immediately falls in love with her. He does everything he can to keep her safe, sneaking food to her and checking on her as often as he can. He knows that it is impossible for their love to survive. Will they ever make it out alive? Charlie pours out his heart in the love letters that he writes to Amelia.

I was so taken back by this story. This heartbreaking story was full of raw emotion and it completely broke me. It was amazing to me the honesty, the inspiration and the hope portrayed through this story. The endurance, and courage of the people to survive the worst of times was overwhelming. This series is a must for anyone that enjoys a phenomenal love story. Love, love, loved it.

Thank you Shari J. Ryan for such an emotional and inspirational story of always looking for the sunshine on the other side of the most horrible experiences. I absolutely loved it and I highly recommend this book.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

DESCRIPTION:

THE SOLDIER’S LETTERS
Author: Shari J. Ryan
Publisher: Bookouture
Publication Date: May 24, 2022
Pages: 278
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“Survive for as long as you can, fight until you can’t fight any longer, and if this war ever ends, I want you to run as far from here as you can and never look back…”

Nazi-occupied Prague, 1941: On a foggy winter’s day, a solider called Charlie is ordered to murder an elderly Jewish woman. He refuses, but that doesn’t stop another Nazi shooting her. As the woman’s daughter cries out, “Mama, no, please don’t leave me!” Charlie knows that he is not a killer. He vows to save as many lives as he can.

In Theresienstadt concentration camp, he sees the same sapphire-eyed girl with beautiful auburn hair. Her name is Amelia. He escorts her to Block B and memorizes her prison number. They are meant to be enemies yet, in that instant, he falls in love.

Yet in such hell, love isn’t meant to exist and they are destined to be torn apart. Despite this, Charlie never stops looking for Amelia, writing letters to her and keeping them safe. But what are the chances of her surviving the war? Will the soldier’s letters remain unread forever?

ABOUT SHARI J. RYAN

Shari J. Ryan is a USA Today Bestselling Historical Fiction writer. Her desire to write stories revolving Jewish livelihood during World War II stems from being a descendant of two Holocaust survivors. After the passing of Shari’s grandmother, she pursued an active interest in learning more about the inherited stories she yearned to understand better.
Shortly after earning a bachelors degree from Johnson & Wales University, Shari began her career as a graphic artist and freelance writer. She then found her passion for writing books in 2012. In 2016, Shari began writing her first Historical Fiction novel, Last Words, a story about a lifelong journey through the eyes of a Holocaust survivor. With two character related books to follow, Shari quickly found a new passion to share untold World War II stories within a fictional setting.
Shari is a lifelong New England girl who lives to make people laugh. She is happily married with two wonderful sons and a spunky Australian Shepard, who fits right in with the family.
Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Bookhype | Amazon | Instagram | Book Bub

THE PRISON CHILD

MY THOUGHTS:

Czechoslovakia, 1943: In the Theresienstadt concentration camp a baby girl is born. But how will this baby girl ever survive? More than twelve years later in New York, Annie overhears her parents whispering, and Annie finds out that she doesn’t belong to them and they must keep the secret hidden or they risk loosing her. Annie’s life immediately becomes a shambles. She discovers nothing in her life is real, it’s all been a lie. When she gets older she decides she must find her birth parents and she must go to great lengths to discover the truth. But as she pieces together her past she wonders if her birth parents are even alive or did they parish like so many others.

This series is absolutely breathtaking. The emotions are so well written on the pages, that it pulls you into the story when you least expect it. I was heartbroken and felt such sympathy for Annie. I felt like this story was gut wrenching and is sure to stick with me for ages. Don’t pass this one up, it’s an absolute must read.

Thank you Shari J. Ryan for such a wonderful, emotional and inspirational story of holding on to a ray of hope. I absolutely loved it and I highly recommend this book.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

DESCRIPTION:

THE PRISON CHILD
Author: Shari J. Ryan
Publisher: Bookouture
Publication Date: May 24, 2022
Pages: 296
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How will we get by the guards? It seems impossible. Yet we will be dead by the end of the week if we don’t—my precious girl and I have nothing to lose by trying.

Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia, 1943: In Theresienstadt concentration camp, a brown-eyed baby girl is born in darkness, surrounded by barbed wire. The innocent new-born has no hope of surviving—unless, by some kind of miracle, she is able to escape…

In New York, over a decade later, Annie listens to her mother and father’s urgent whispers on her twelfth birthday. “They’re going to find out that she doesn’t belong to us. She’ll be taken away.”

The little girl’s world crumbles. That day, her search for answers begins…

Everything in Annie’s life is a lie. As she grows older, she pieces together the fragments of her past. With a broken heart, she uncovers a story of bravery in the face of evil, hope amongst darkness, and forbidden love—the kind of love that takes immense courage.

Will the secret of who she really is come to light? And can she ever be reunited with her birth family—if they’re even alive?

ABOUT SHARI J. RYAN

Shari J. Ryan is a USA Today Bestselling Historical Fiction writer. Her desire to write stories revolving Jewish livelihood during World War II stems from being a descendant of two Holocaust survivors. After the passing of Shari’s grandmother, she pursued an active interest in learning more about the inherited stories she yearned to understand better.
Shortly after earning a bachelors degree from Johnson & Wales University, Shari began her career as a graphic artist and freelance writer. She then found her passion for writing books in 2012. In 2016, Shari began writing her first Historical Fiction novel, Last Words, a story about a lifelong journey through the eyes of a Holocaust survivor. With two character related books to follow, Shari quickly found a new passion to share untold World War II stories within a fictional setting.
Shari is a lifelong New England girl who lives to make people laugh. She is happily married with two wonderful sons and a spunky Australian Shepard, who fits right in with the family.
Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Bookhype | Amazon | Instagram | Book Bub

THE GIRL WITH THE DIARY

MY THOUGHTS:

Prague, 1942: Amelia is hiding in her closet, the only place she knew to be safe until she is found and captured by the SS. Amelia lives through the horror of witnessing the death of her mother and is shoved onto a train packed with hundreds of people. The train travels for what seemed like days, before it arrives at a concentration camp. Amelia fears that her life is over as she is led to a block. But one of the soldiers gives her a piece of bread she thinks that maybe there is hope. Charlie, the soldier meant to be an enemy, is actually the one that helps so many prisoners from being deported. He falls in love with Amelia and will do anything in his power to save her. The only way for them to survive is for them to keep their love a secret.

This emotionally gripping and amazingly beautiful story was heart wrenching. I couldn’t put this book down until I finished it. I was completely taken back by how real this story was. I wish I could give ten stars because five just doesn’t seem like enough. Absolutely must read.

Thank you Shari J. Ryan for such a wonderful, gripping and fascinating story of never giving up hope in the worst of times. I absolutely loved it and I highly recommend this book.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

DESCRIPTION:

THE GIRL WITH THE DIARY
Author: Shari J. Ryan
Publisher: Bookouture
Publication Date: May 24, 2022
Pages: 331
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The worn leather-bound diary, tied with a red ribbon, has hidden the truth for seventy years. The spine crackles as she opens it,reading the long-forgotten words of her grandmother. “What if you never come back? What if you die trying?”

Nazi-occupied Prague,1942: Amelia is hiding in her closet when flashlights blind her and she’s captured by the SS. Out on the cobblestone street, her heart shatters as her mother is shot before her eyes. She is shoved onto a freight train with hundreds of others—hours pass as they travel in darkness.

Arriving in a concentration camp, Amelia fears for her life when she is led to a block by a soldier. He is her enemy, yet he secretly passes her a piece of bread; an act that saves her.

They are meant to despise one another, but Amelia and Charlie are powerfully drawn to each other. Amelia sees how Charlie risks everything to save prisoners from deportation—and she sees the kindness in his eyes.

Amongst so much tragedy, falling in love is a miracle. Yet, one day, Charlie utters those miraculous words. “I’m in love with you. To everyone else, we’re wrong, but what does that matter when nothing in this world is right?”

But under the all-seeing gaze of the guards and endless watchtowers, there is only so long they can keep their secret—and the very act of loving each other endangers their lives. Will they remain loyal to each other in the face of death? And when they finally say goodbye, will it be by choice or by force?

ABOUT SHARI J. RYAN

Shari J. Ryan is a USA Today Bestselling Historical Fiction writer. Her desire to write stories revolving Jewish livelihood during World War II stems from being a descendant of two Holocaust survivors. After the passing of Shari’s grandmother, she pursued an active interest in learning more about the inherited stories she yearned to understand better.
Shortly after earning a bachelors degree from Johnson & Wales University, Shari began her career as a graphic artist and freelance writer. She then found her passion for writing books in 2012. In 2016, Shari began writing her first Historical Fiction novel, Last Words, a story about a lifelong journey through the eyes of a Holocaust survivor. With two character related books to follow, Shari quickly found a new passion to share untold World War II stories within a fictional setting.
Shari is a lifelong New England girl who lives to make people laugh. She is happily married with two wonderful sons and a spunky Australian Shepard, who fits right in with the family.
Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Bookhype | Amazon | Instagram | Book Bub