The title alone caught my attention and I thought it was a book I would enjoy reading. I do not mind quirky books, but this one was too over the top in that regard. I do not feel that this book delivered enough to make me care about the characters, the story, the ... anything. Thank you to NetGalley and Pantheon for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own. For more reviews, please visit my blog at: https://www.msladybugsbookreviews.com/. Over 1000 review

I am sorry that I committed to reading this book before I discovered it was of the fantasy and magical realism genres. There must be a new trend for books with that focus because, unfortunately, I have been trying to read quite a few lately. However, even though I was not the intended audience, I did enjoy the book. The characters were well-developed and I learned a lot about restaurant management. I have never contemplated what it would take to be a Michelin restaurant inspe

I enjoyed this book though I had a difficult time getting interested in the story. It took a while for it to keep my attention. It was, however, drama personified. While I did not like some of the characters, that did not really affect my ability to stay invested in the story. A good book but did not have the wow factor I was hoping for. Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own. For more reviews, please visit

I am a huge fan of David Baldacci and have thoroughly enjoyed many of his series. Unfortunately, I go to excited to see he was releasing a new book that I did not notice it was part of the Walter Nash series. I did not enjoy the first book in the series and should not have committed myself to reading this one. That is on me. I did not like the characters, especially Nash. The story did not hold my attention and it took everything in me to finish reading it. There are, however

I have evidently been on a tangent with reading books with a fantasy and magical realism focus. Unfortunately, I am not a fan of books in that genre. I had really enjoyed the author’s previous book, Ghosts of Harvard, so I was looking forward to reading this one. Alas, I felt like I was on a ride through an ADHD experience. There were too many topics and none of them received the focus needed to make it a cohesive read. I will probably read future books by this author, but I

After reading this book, I have come to realize that military fiction is not a genre I enjoy. The beginning of the book was okay and did a good job of setting the scene and developing the primary characters. There was too much military technology for my taste and it made it hard for me to stay invested in the story. Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own. For more reviews, please visit my blog at: https://www.msladyb

I am not against reading books that contain witches or have a paranormal aspect if the mystery and suspense is intense enough to grab my attention and keep me invested in the story. While this book does have twists and turns and clues sprinkled throughout, this one just did not deliver the oomph I needed to want to keep reading. I could not stay focused and wanted to put it aside for other books that would hold my attention. I also feel like the ending was not handled well an

I have loved the author, Fannie Flagg, for many years. So any time a new book is released, I will definitely have it on my to-be-read list. So I was excited at the opportunity to read her latest book. However, this one just did not appeal to me. The collection of short stories was okay, but not what I was expecting. “My bad” that I did not read the synopsis first. As with most of her books, there are some quirky individuals which I enjoyed. Unfortunately, the random stories w

First of all, I should have explored more about this title before I started to read it. I am not a fan of books in the fantasy or magical realism genres. So I was not the intended audience. The multiple POV aspect is interesting. But there did not seem to be much depth to the story. So I had trouble staying invested in the book. Though I think there are plenty of readers who will enjoy it. I will leave it up to you whether you think it is worth your time. Thank you to NetGall

This is the first book I have read by the author, T. Jefferson Parker. I tend to enjoy police procedurals and definitely mystery thrillers. However, this particular story did not have as many twists and turns as I expected. I had trouble staying interested in the story. There may be plenty of readers who will enjoy Wild Instinct, so I encourage you to try it to see if it appeals to you. Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for my advanced review copy. All opinions and th

This is the first book I have read in the Billie Walker series. And while it was an okay read, I do not think I will read any more books in the series. You will experience the book through multiple timelines which did not seem to flow well for me. I enjoyed the historical fiction focus of life in the aftermath of WWII in Europe. With a slow start that had me struggling to get invested in the story, I finally made it to the end. And I was happy to finally close the book and no

Though the second book in the Old Juniper Bookstore series, it is the first one I have read. I am not sure if that made a difference in my opinion. While there are some positive aspects to the book, there were more negatives that kept me from wanting to actually finish the book. I am sure there are plenty of readers who will not be bothered by the pastor discussing the fact of why she is not having sex ... especially when she is NOT married. I am sorry, but I did not find thi

The premise of this book appealed to me and I loved the way the book pulled you into the story from the first page. The dual POV narration was appealing and I enjoyed discovering the dynamics of relationships between the former university friends. I do not think it is one of the best psychological thrillers I have ever read. But it was an okay book and may appeal more to others. Thank you to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts

I enjoy reading books in the historical fiction genre. And while this was a different focus than my typical read, it had a lot of positive aspects. I love the focus of a strong female character who demonstrated intelligence and strength. Set in a period of time when women were not recognized for these positive characteristics, this was a breath of fresh air.Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.   Fo

First of all, I was not the intended audience for this book. While I have enjoyed other books by the author, Evie Woods, I do not find those in the magical realism genre appealing. As a musician myself, I did appreciate the focus on musicians. Being exposed to how violins are made as well as played was informative and a positive aspect to this book. At times, I felt like the story dragged on and I had a difficult time staying focused. There are many individuals, though, who w

When I first opened this book and started reading it, I almost put it down and declared it a DNF. However, I was determined to see it through to the end. And, by then, I was determined to stick with it. I am not even sure how to write this review. The book is filled with murder, mental health issues, secrets, hidden identities, and a lot of twists and turns. As you experience Savannah “Savi” Portman’s life and writing episodes, you begin to question everything. All I can say

I have been a fan of the Cork O’Connor series for several years and have had the pleasure of reading or listening to the audiobook versions of all of them. The characters are well developed and the setting of Tamarack County in Minnesota comes to life on the pages. This particular book has a flashback to earlier in Cork’s life during his time as sheriff before returning to the present day. There are a lot of twists and turns that will have you invested in the story and anxiou

I enjoy reading historical fiction books. However, this was a different focus from most of my reads. Unfortunately, this one just seemed to take too long to tell the story. I struggled to stay focused. It had promise but I did not feel like it delivered. The Roaring Twenties, murder mystery, and PTSD aspects could have developed into a relatable and inspiring story. Plus the random use of the “F-bomb” was totally unnecessary. Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for my a

I am so sad that this is the last book in the Salem B&B series! I have enjoyed the time I have spent with Charlene, Sam, Jack, Avery, Silva, and Minne. This book is set during the Halloween time period which is a perfect for the setting of Salem, Massachusetts. The characters have become friends on the page and I have grown to care about them. And while I am sad that this series is ending, the author created the perfect ending. My heart almost stopped beating and I gasped out

This was a fun cozy mystery to start the new Maddie Penrose series by Fliss Chester. I love the thought of a grandmother and her granddaughter running a quaint teashop in the Cornish countryside. And while I am not a cat person, Crumpet and Toast were mischievous enough to add a positive aspect to the book. Maddie is a wonderful primary character. And her method of solving the murder mystery as if she was looking at a recipe was a unique twist. And good looking Detective Insp