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The Maid's Secret: A Maid Novel by Nita Prose

April 2025

There are moments when you finish reading a series that you love, and you exhale and smile. You know that the characters have been through a lot, but they have ended up in a better place.

We met Molly the Maid back in 2022 in Nita Prose’s first book, THE MAID, which went on to win the Anthony Award, Barry Award, Goodreads Choice Award, Macavity Award, and Ned Kelly Award. There was something about this quirky young woman that captivated readers. We went on to learn more about her in the second novel, THE MYSTERY GUEST, in 2023, and the holiday novella, THE MISTLETOE MYSTERY, last year. We knew that Molly loved her grandmother. But now, in THE MAID’S SECRET, we finally get to hear from Gran and learn about her history.

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One Good Thing by Georgia Hunter

April 2025

Following the success of WE WERE THE LUCKY ONES, I was looking forward to what Georgia Hunter would write next. In ONE GOOD THING, she brings us to World War II Italy in 1940. There, we meet Lili and Esti, both of whom are Jewish and have been friends since they were in school together. They become even closer after the birth of Esti’s son, Theo. Esti’s husband, who is of Greek heritage, has returned to Greece to check on his family as attacks on Greek Jews have begun. I was unaware that over 80% of Greece’s pre-war Jewish population was killed by the Nazis.

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The Summer Guests by Tess Gerritsen

March 2025

I realized the other day that lately I have been reading more stand-alone titles than series books. But I was excited to pick up THE SUMMER GUESTS, the second entry in Tess Gerritsen’s series that is set in the town of Purity, Maine, and features a group of ex-CIA agents who have settled there. They have a book club, they drink martinis, and they call themselves the Martini Club. They also are the bane of police chief Jo Thibodeau as they nose their way into crimes, bringing their unique set of skills. Jo tells them to “stay away” when a teen goes missing, but this only motivates them to help as much as they can.

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Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall

March 2025

There are books that are hard for me to describe as all I want to say is “I loved it.” BROKEN COUNTRY by Clare Leslie Hall is one of those books. How is this for a description? One night I stayed up until 2:45am reading it, and when I turned the last page, I took a quick picture and posted it on Instagram with some praise attached. It is the first time that I ever have done that in the wee hours of the morning.

I am not sure what I loved the most. Was it the characters, the plot, the twists, the writing…or how all of these elements came together so brilliantly? If I am asked to compare it to another book, the easy reply would be THE PAPER PALACE, as it also is about a woman who has loved two men. But then I think of the way that the farm is so beautifully described, and I am pulled in other directions on how to bring readers to it. Oh, and it takes place in the ’50s and ’60s, the decades that set a tone themselves.

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Seeking Shelter: A Working Mother, Her Children, and a Story of Homelessness in America by Jeff Hobbs

March 2025

Jeff Hobbs has been on my radar since I first interviewed him 11 years ago about THE SHORT AND TRAGIC LIFE OF ROBERT PEACE, a book that I have thought about again and again. So when I saw SEEKING SHELTER, I knew I wanted to read it. For 2025, I have been looking for one book each month about a social issue to read and discuss.

With the way Jeff tells a story, I get invested in the characters and what happens in their lives. Homelessness in America, especially in large cities like Los Angeles, is a huge issue. Home instability abounds, and many live one paycheck away from losing their home. In SEEKING SHELTER, readers get to know Evelyn, a mother of five (soon to be six) who has moved to LA to chase a dream of a better education for her children. It’s 2018 when we meet her. Shortly afterwards, she leaves her abusive husband and is working full time as a waitress. But she still cannot afford housing of her own or navigate government assistance.

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The Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict

February 2025

A few years ago, Marie Benedict wrote THE MYSTERY OF MRS. CHRISTIE. It examined the 11-day disappearance of Agatha Christie, which became huge news.

In THE QUEENS OF CRIME, which is set in 1930, Marie brings together Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham and Baroness Emma Orczy, all of whom are brilliant female writers in the Golden Age of Detective Fiction. The book is told from Dorothy’s point of view. These women strive to have the respect of the male writers in the genre, and all are members of the legendary Detection Club.

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The Oligarch's Daughter by Joseph Finder

February 2025

THE OLIGARCH’S DAUGHTER by Joseph Finder is the kind of thriller that has you racing to read the pages.

The book opens with a young man working on a sailboat. Suddenly he realizes that the carefully devised cover that he has built for himself over the past years has been blown --- and he has been found by one of the Russians from whom he has been running. He quickly grabs his go bag with cash and survival gear, including a burner phone, and heads into the woods. He is armed with his wits and the skills he honed as a child with his father, who loved living off the grid. Readers head on the run with him as the henchmen who have been called out to catch him are close on his tail.

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Good Dirt by Charmaine Wilkerson

February 2025

I was a huge fan of Charmaine Wilkerson’s first novel, BLACK CAKE. So when I heard that she had a new book coming out, I was looking forward to reading it. I am happy to share that GOOD DIRT is another powerful work of fiction that spans generations. Charmaine has a beautiful way of telling a family story, filling it with emotion and history.

Ebby Freeman is at the heart of the book. As a young girl, she witnessed her brother being killed in a home invasion, but she holds back from revealing everything she saw that day. For years, she is looked upon as “the poor Freeman girl,” and what happened to her is whispered about. Ebby already stands out as the stunningly beautiful Black woman in her affluent, all-white neighborhood. All this history makes the pain of being left at the altar on the day of her wedding at her family home that much sadder. She stumbles through life for a while before jetting off to France to get away from it all. But even there Ebby’s past follows her.

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Presumed Guilty by Scott Turow

February 2025

PRESUMED GUILTY is Scott Turow’s third book featuring Rusty Sabich as his protagonist. Many of us remember reading PRESUMED INNOCENT and INNOCENT, so I was happy to catch up with this iconic character again.

Rusty is now 77, living in a quiet town and working his way towards retirement. He’s in a relationship with a woman he wants to marry, and life is looking good. Bea has a son, Aaron, who she adopted as a baby. Aaron has been through some tough times, but he’s getting his life in gear and on the right track. Until he’s charged with the murder of his girlfriend, Mae, the daughter of the local prosecutor. Aaron is a Black man being brought up in an all-white community --- and prejudice will rear its head here.

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Dear Sister: A Memoir of Secrets, Survival, and Unbreakable Bonds by Michelle Horton

February 2025

I read DEAR SISTER last fall as I prepared for an interview at the Morristown Festival of Books with its author, Michelle Horton. I always thought that if a person killed someone in self-defense, he or she would be acquitted. I was so far off the mark.

Michelle writes about her sister, Nikki, who was in an abusive relationship for nine years. When her partner went to shoot Nikki and himself, which would make their children orphans, Nikki grabbed the gun and shot him. She had hidden the abuse from her family, masking it with long sleeves and excuses for her various wounds. But she confided in friends who were there to support her.

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