The first Wednesday of each month, Carolyn Astfalk hosts #OpenBook, where bloggers link posts about books they’ve read recently. Here’s a taste of what I’ve been reading:

Fiction

The Night the Lights Went Out by Karen White. Not at ALL what I expected — but what a story! Merilee moves into a guesthouse with her kids after divorcing her unfaithful husband. She strikes up an unlikely friendship with her prickly landlady, who’s nursing a lot of old hurts that haunt her more and more as she ages. Merilee enrolls the kids in a local private school and must deal with the Mean Moms crowd. Heather (the chief Mean Mom) suddenly takes Merilee under her wing, making her over in her own image — but something is not quite right. Local scandals turn into danger before long. A terrific read.

Emily’s Song by Christine Marciniak. An accidental trip through time after her best friend’s wedding lands the unhappily single Emily in the home of an unhappily engaged young man who’s about to head off to the Civil War. Rich historical detail, especially involving fashion, give extra credibility to the tale. I enjoyed the plot twists and well-thought-out connections between past and present. Some proofreading errors in this novel, but overall, the characters, humor, and suspense were spot on.

Write Me Home by Crystal Walton (Home in You #1). An enjoyable (and clean) romance, this novel told the story of Ethan, whose heart was broken as a teenager when his sister tied in a tragic accident, and Cassidy, who inherited a summer camp in the Catskills and wants to renovate and sell it. Cassidy can’t get beyond old memories at the camp, and Ethan is similarly stuck in the past, constantly reliving (and blaming himself for) his sister’s death. Restoring the summer camp seems like it will restore both of their spirits — but someone is sabotaging their efforts.

Begin Again by Crystal Walton (Home in You #2). Best of the “Home in You” series (which you don’t have to read in order, BTW), this novel has former model Ti arriving in the Outer Banks on vacation and running into Drew, a single dad with a failing business. Clever banter ensues as Ti charms her way into helping Drew save his shop in the tourist town, but Ti also needs to deal with the ghosts of her own past, which nearly keep her and Drew apart.

The Space Between by Dete Meserve. Significant clues are often hidden “in plain sight.” Astronomer Sarah returns from a business trip where she presented an important scientific discovery, only to discover her teenager home alone and her ambitious restauranteur husband missing. What follows is some evidence tampering on her part — intentional and unintentional — as she seeks to find her husband and find out whether he actually is guilty of the murder he’s been accused of committing. The suspense builds, with intruders, secret codes, and plenty of evidence that Sarah herself is not blameless when it comes to problems in her marriage to Ben. Who can be trusted? A well-crafted thriller; I didn’t want to stop reading! Coming July 24 – preorder now! (Netgalley review)

The Family Next Door by Sally Hepworth. Single Isabelle doesn’t seem to fit into the Melbourne neighborhood of young families, and everyone’s suspicious. She seems to be particularly fascinated with Essie, a young mother with a terrible secret. But Essie is not the only one with a secret: two other moms on the street wish they could run away from family crises they cannot divulge. A lot of head-hopping, not much character development. (Netgalley review)

The Last Chance Matinee by Mariah Stewart. I received the second book in this series via Netgalley, so I read them out of order. It definitely would have helped to have read this one first, though I think there were a few continuity errors. Two sisters travel to northeastern Pennsylvania to receive their inheritance after their estranged father’s death — and discover that they have another sister they never knew of. In order to inherit their father’s fortune, the three must live together and renovate a tumbledown theater in town.

Surviving the Stillness by Jessica White. In this historical novel set in the 1920s, a brother and sister on the run are stranded in a small Montana town and taken in by a woman who works in a Catholic orphanage. 15-year-old Abigail has managed to hold it together despite the trauma she’s faced in the past year or so at the hands of the people who were supposed to protect her — until she reaches the safety of the orphanage. She’s not the only one suffering, however; the local doctor still grieves the loss of his wife and isn’t sure how to deal with the upcoming separation from his son when the young man goes off to college. This is a story of compassionate healing on many levels, and the human ability to heal others even while the healer is suffering.

YA/Children’s

Black Bottle Man by Craig Russell. Can a novel be both chilling and enjoyable at once? This tale of a young boy caught up in a Faustian bargain manages that. Alternating in time from Rembrandt’s younger days through his ninetieth year, the novel slowly fills in the blanks of a deal with the devil that turned a whole family’s life upside-down and left Rembrandt alone in the world and unable to stay in one place longer than 12 days. Imagine being homeless and always on the move for 80 years! YA novel recommended for high-school age and up. (Review copy provided by author)

Nonfiction

One Beautiful Dream by Jennifer Fulwiler. There’s vulnerability in every chapter this book, and that’s what makes it resonate with readers, no matter how much you have (or don’t have) in common with Jennifer. While she brings plenty of the dry wit she’s (deservedly) famous for, she also brings the wisdom — the lessons she has had to learn as a woman, as a mother, and as a professional. Read my full review. (Review copy provided by publisher)

Links to books in this post are Amazon affiliate links.

Follow my Goodreads reviews for the full list of what I’ve read recently (even the duds!)

Visit today’s #OpenBook post to join the linkup or just get some great ideas about what to read! You’ll find it at Carolyn Astfalk’s A Scribbler’s Heart and at CatholicMom.com!

Copyright 2018 Barb Szyszkiewicz