Easy Charcuterie Boards

by Marco and Aubrey Niccoli

A great introduction to the history of charcuterie and the basics for building your own board. Whether for entertaining or personal enjoyment, this book provides details and recipes to help get you started with this entertaining staple. Why pay to take the class when you can read the book and learn all the same secrets!

Fear thy Neighbor

by Fern Michaels

Thrilling, when you move to a new place and find human bones! One woman’s picture-perfect island sanctuary reveals itself to be filled with dangers in this exciting page-turner!

For Women Only: What You Need To Know About The Inner Lives Of Men

by Shaunti Feldhahn

For Women Only is eye-opening and insightful. It answers questions, eliminates confusion and in many cases reveals that often assumptions made are incorrect and unfounded. It is an easy read; an important and helpful book.

Part of Your World

by Abby Jimenez

She never disappoints another homerun. Love has to overcome many obstacles in this novel: Age, abuse, sexism, family and friends.

A Stranger In The House

by Shari LaPena

This author quickly became one of my favorite suspense writers; have read all but one of hers and would highly recommend them to any reader looking for lots of unexpected twists and turns in this psychological thriller! Not as many highly defined characters in this story, but still lots of fun to try and guess the ending. Many secrets and lies come forth as this story unfolds -- a seemingly happy young suburban wife accused of a murder and learning how well (or not) her her husband and neighbors really know her. Entertaining to see how the two detectives go about gathering clues. The plot has reader guessing the outcome; the ending seemed to come out of nowhere and will not disappoint!

Bloomsbury Girls

by Natalie Jenner

In 1950 in London it is the story of three young women finding their way working in a man’s world. They find friendship and support working together in an old bookstore with a strict set of rules. Each one comes from an entirely different set of circumstances but they find they have more in common than they expected including similar dreams and goals. The book is peppered with famous people from the literary world.

The Bonesetter's Daughter

by Amy Tan

This is a heartfelt, compassionate, insightful story rooted in the complexities of mother- daughter relationships. I did not struggle to get invested in Ruth's "present day" storyline, but also thoroughly enjoyed losing myself in the story of LuLing's childhood and young adulthood that was sandwiched in-between. I am grateful to this story for leaving me so much to chew on, and feel like I learned quite a bit along the way---about Chinese history, culture clash, dementia, archeology, and myself.

The Hill We Climb

by Amanda Gorman

I’m not a huge poetry guy but loved when Gorman read this at the inauguration. The passion and power of her words came off the pages almost as strongly as when she read them to millions of people.

Upgrade

by Blake Crouch

An addicting read. This is just as good as Dark Matter. This is precisely the kind of science fiction I hope for when I pick a book labeled science fiction. Hard to put down and even harder to forget.

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine

by Gail Honeyman

Eleanor Oliphant is a compelling protagonist - she’s quirky and says the first thing that comes to her mind. As a creature of odd habits, she falls in love with a musician from afar and goes through a series of self-improvement projects to ready herself for a relationship with this man that she hasn’t met, but is convinced is “the one.” Reading about her journey and character evolution is a great read, and there’s a twist at the end that completely surprised me!

The Maid

by Nita Pros

This is not your typical hotel murder mystery novel. The main character is beyond endearing with her many quirks and trusting nature. She makes you want to keep turning each page! Definitely a worthwhile read for anyone who enjoys a murder mystery with a sincere and lovable protagonist.

Velvet Was the Night

by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

I really wanted to like this book after loving Mexican Gothic. If I had to read one more time that the main female character was "unattractive" and the insinuation that she wasn't worthy of development, love, etc. because of this - UGH. It gets really interesting towards the end but then plummets again into shallow narratives of how the characters look before a so-so ending.

Cherish Farrah

by Beth Morrow

Good new horror fiction. It is an easy quick read. Characters are well written and complex. Nice to see some inclusive horror protagonists. Not the best, but worth a read.

French Braid

by Anne Tyler

This is the story of a family with all of its strengths, quirks and personalities from the 1950s up until now. It is told with her terrific and familiar style of writing where you feel you are right there in the conversations and situations. No one writes dialogue like Anne Tyler. I enjoyed it and loved it even more when the meaning of the title is revealed about 10 pages before the end. It is warm, funny and heartbreaking all at the same time.

My Grandmother Asked Me To Tell You She's Sorry

by Fredrik Backman

Fredrik Backman has a way of connecting his characters in very intriguing and entertaining ways. Also, his connection of characters from one book to another reminds me of the way that Maeve Binchy made such connections from one of her stories to another. This book took a little bit of effort to get going, but once I got into it a bit, it was a very enjoyable read.

Snacks for Dinner

by Lukas Volger

Great book for summer time meals. Recipes and suggestions were fun to make and eat. I made with my boys and we had a blast! There is also a nice variety of snacks for all taste buds.

Jane and the Year Without a Summer

by Stephanie Barron

This is the fourteenth book in the "Being Jane Austen" series. If you are a Janeite these light mysteries will charm you. Barron perfectly captures Austen's world and wit. The books allude to the perils of the Regency era and use expressions found in Austen's novels. While it is not necessary to go back and read the series from the beginning, doing so will deepen your appreciation for the characters. Bridgerton fans, the Regency period details will delight you.

To Rescue the Republic

by Bret Baier

Compelling historical review of Grant and specifically the difficulties he dealt with as President, especially in the area of Reconstruction. Grant could not achieve his goals due to both Southern and Northern resistance. One aspect of Grant's history is his effort to work out a compromise in the election of Hayes vs Tiler as his Presidential successor. Even in 1875, the US was bitterly divided with the Presidential election results and Electoral votes.

Hard Truth

by Nevada Barr

I love this series. Anna Pigeon is a Park Ranger for the National Parks System. Each book takes place in a different park. Each book involves a different crime that occurs, and Anna’s journey to solve the crime. I love coming back to these books in between reading others. This particular book is set in Rocky Mountain National Park. Most of the others I’ve read involve lots of history or natural surroundings, but this one focused more on the crime itself and the psychology of the killer and victims.

Chaos: Charles Manson, the CIA, and the Secret History of the Sixties

by Tom O'Neill

I read this right after reading Helter Skelter for the first time and think it helped. Everything was fresh in my head reading the 'known' facts about the case. Hearing O'Neill's rebuttal about the details was interesting. If you can stomach 2 Manson books in a row, recommend reading one then the other. Well written.