This month I’m sharing the three books I read, All Fall Down by Jennifer Weiner, An Unwanted Guest by Shari Lapena and The Restaurant by Pamela Kelley.

All Fall Down, Jennifer Weiner – Bestselling author, Jennifer Weiner tells the story of Allison, a suburban mom who seemingly has it all; the perfect house, husband and child but she’s hiding an addiction to pills. The plot is a departure for Weiner’s typical beach reads and I found the story pretty heartbreaking, especially as a mother. 

An Unwanted Guest, Shari Lapina – I love love loved this book and at first, it reminded me of Clue. A stay at a cozy mountain lodge brings together a group of guests looking for a relaxing and romantic weekend away but when a winter blizzard hits cutting off power and contact with the outside world, guests start turning up dead. Check out this twisty thriller for yourself and see if you catch the killer.

The Restaurant, Pamela Kelley – This book was cute; an easy and quick summer read. Three sisters who live hundreds of miles apart inherit a restaurant on Nantucket, where they grew up together. The sisters were left the restaurant by their grandmother who was a silent owner of Mimi’s Place, one of Nantucket’s most popular year-round restaurants. Before they have the option to sell the restaurant, there is a catch, the sisters must work together at the restaurant for a full year or it will go to Paul, the chef. 

The post July 2020 Reads first appeared on Lindsey Boova.

Where The Crawdads Sing has been on my reading list for far too long and I’m so glad to have checked it off my list because truthfully, it lived up to the hype. Although I did not finish four books this month, I will be sharing a few other titles of some previously read books I would recommend for your next digital book club.

Where The Crawdads Sing, Delia Owens

I could not put this book down’; I plowed through it staying up late a few nights in a row because I was hooked. Kya, abandoned as a child by her family, survives for years alone in a shack along the marsh in a quiet, coastal North Carolina town. When local town hero, high school quarterback, Chase Andrews turns up dead, most of the townies suspects Kya, who they refer to as “The Marsh Girl’.

The book is a coming of age story, following Kya, her life in the marsh and her interactions with the town, the water and those who live nearby. The book is immersed in nature and the author does a phenomenal job describing the surroundings. One of my favorite books I’ve read this year. Soon to be motion picture.

The Woman In The Window, AJ Finn

“It isn’t paranoia if it’s really happening . . .Anna Fox lives alone—a recluse in her New York City home, unable to venture outside. She spends her day drinking wine (maybe too much), watching old movies, recalling happier times . . . and spying on her neighbors. Then the Russells move into the house across the way: a father, a mother, their teenage son. The perfect family.

But when Anna, gazing out her window one night, sees something she shouldn’t, her world begins to crumble—and its shocking secrets are laid bare. What is real? What is imagined? Who is in danger? Who is in control? In this diabolically gripping thriller, no one—and nothing—is what it seems. Twisty and powerful, ingenious and moving, The Woman in the Window is a smart, sophisticated novel of psychological suspense that recalls the best of Hitchcock. “

In development as a motion picture.

The Last Mrs. Parrish, Liv Constantine

“Amber Patterson is fed up. She’s tired of being a nobody: a plain, invisible woman who blends into the background. She deserves more—a life of money and power like the one blond-haired, blue-eyed goddess Daphne Parrish takes for granted. To everyone in the exclusive town of Bishops Harbor, Connecticut, Daphne—a socialite and philanthropist—and her real-estate mogul husband, Jackson, are a couple straight out of a fairy tale. Amber’s envy could eat her alive . . . if she didn’t have a plan.

Amber uses Daphne’s compassion and caring to insinuate herself into the family’s life—the first step in a meticulous scheme to undermine her. Before long, Amber is Daphne’s closest confidante, traveling to Europe with the Parrishes and their lovely young daughters, and growing closer to Jackson. But a skeleton from her past may undermine everything that Amber has worked towards, and if it is discovered, her well-laid plan may fall to pieces. With shocking turns and dark secrets that will keep you guessing until the very end, The Last Mrs. Parrish is a fresh, juicy, and utterly addictive thriller from a diabolically imaginative talent.”

Into The Water, Paula Hawkins

From the author of The Girl On The Train, “A single mother turns up dead at the bottom of the river that runs through town. Earlier in the summer, a vulnerable teenage girl met the same fate. They are not the first women lost to these dark waters, but their deaths disturb the river and its history, dredging up secrets long submerged. Left behind is a lonely fifteen-year-old girl.

Parentless and friendless, she now finds herself in the care of her mother’s sister, a fearful stranger who has been dragged back to the place she deliberately ran from—a place to which she vowed she’d never return. With the same propulsive writing and acute understanding of human instincts that captivated millions of readers around the world in her explosive debut thriller, The Girl on the Train, Paula Hawkins delivers an urgent, twisting, deeply satisfying read that hinges on the deceptiveness of emotion and memory, as well as the devastating ways that the past can reach a long arm into the present. Beware a calm surface—you never know what lies beneath.”

Check out my March recommendations here and and April here.

The post Virtual Book Club – June 2020 Recommended Reading first appeared on Lindsey Boova.

Put down your phone and pick up a book. Or, open your Kindle app and download a book from my latest round up of recommended reading.

How To Murder Your Life, Cat Marnell – A memoir by fashion and beauty journalist, Cat Marnell, that openly covers her ongoing struggle with addiction. The memoir follows Marnell’s childhood in a DC suburb, to a fancy boarding school in Massachusetts where she first begins taking Ritalin both recreationally and as a study aid, her introduction to the party scene and her turbulent career as a beauty editor. The book reads a bit manic and cyclical, chronicling her ambition followed by self destructive behavior, rinse and repeat; she recalls“My ambition and my addiction had been duking it out like two boxers in a ring for years.”

I’m Fine and Neither Are You, Camille Pagan – A timely novel that deep dives into the complex relationships between spouses, friends, parents and children. Penny, the main character is the breadwinner of her household and primary caretaker of her family, putting on a front that everything is fine. Unfortunately, an unexpected tragedy strikes and causes Penny to reflect on her life choices and begin making changes. The book honestly explores family dynamics and bonds between friends.

Such A Fun Age, Kiley Reid – Kiley Reid’s debut novel examines privilege, race and class in America. The story is centered around Alix Chamberlain, a successful woman with two small girls and her babysitter, Emira Tucker, a 25 year old figuring out what she wants to do with her life. The book explores the realities of being a grown up and the evolution of relationships. The book is a page turner that every reader will experience differently.

The Hating Game, Sally Thorne – Lucy and Joshua, executive assistants for the co-CEO’s of two recently merged publishing houses are trapped in a shared office, vying for the same promotion. A predictable enemies to lovers romance, the story was a bit cliche and at times slightly ridiculous but a quick and pleasant read nonetheless. Spoiler alert, the best selling book will be a motion picture starring Lucy Hale and Robbie Amell (well done casting crew).

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The post April 2020 Reads first appeared on Lindsey Boova.