Bookreporter.com Bets On...

Beautiful Ugly by Alice Feeney

January 2025

If you want a book with twists, then Alice Feeney’s BEAUTIFUL UGLY is the one for you. We open on a happy note as Grady Green has his first New York Times bestseller, and he is ready to celebrate with his wife, Abby Goldman. But Abby goes missing that night. She had been on the phone with her husband just before she disappeared.

A distraught Grady falls into a deep depression and is unable to write. Grief has overtaken him. His literary agent, Kitty, offers him something that may be his salvation. Her former client, bestselling author Charles Whittaker, left her a cabin on Amberly, a remote island off the coast of Scotland. Grady agrees to go there and write as nothing else seems to be happening for him.

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More or Less Maddy by Lisa Genova

January 2025

I have been a long-time fan of Lisa Genova’s work. In fact, her previous novels --- STILL ALICE, LEFT NEGLECTED, LOVE ANTHONY, INSIDE THE O'BRIENS and EVERY NOTE PLAYED --- were Bets On selections. Reading them, I have learned about early-onset Alzheimer’s, traumatic brain injury, autism, Huntington’s disease and ALS.

In MORE OR LESS MADDY, Lisa takes us inside the world of Maddy Banks, who seems to have normal issues for a college student. But when they escalate, she finds herself in a deeply depressed and dark state, barely making her way through the day. A quick visit to the university’s health facility gets her a prescription for an antidepressant, and all is well for a while.

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The Stolen Queen by Fiona Davis

January 2025

I have been a passionate reader of Fiona Davis’ novels --- all eight of them. So when I tell you that I think THE STOLEN QUEEN is her best one, it’s really high praise.

As long-time readers know, Fiona sets her books in iconic New York City buildings. This time it’s the Metropolitan Museum of Art. As always, there are two time frames. This one takes place in 1936 and 1978.

In Egypt, the setting for the earlier chapters, Charlotte Cross is on a dig with a number of other archaeologists. Along the way, she finds a tomb that has not been completely researched. It belongs to Hathorkare, a female pharaoh who has not been given her due in history. Charlotte finds a broad collar in gold, which hints that this woman had been regal. Fiona has us entrenched in the ruins with the team, and we feel like we are dusting off the treasures found there.

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The Note by Alafair Burke

January 2025

In THE NOTE by Alafair Burke, three friends have decamped to a stunning place in the Hamptons for a reunion visit. It all sounds idyllic, but this is a thriller, so don’t settle back in your chair and relax.

Lauren, Kelsey and May have not seen each other in a while. But it quickly becomes clear that had they not attended the same camp in the past, they probably would not be in each other’s lives. They were close at one time, but we don’t know exactly why they’re spending time together now. Is it to share memories, or something else? Each has a history that is carefully parsed to readers, as something scandalous or embarrassing has happened to them. They know some of each other’s secrets, but not all of them. Alafair does a great job of drawing us deeper and deeper into their lives.

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The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon

December 2024

There are times when I wonder WHY I did not get to a book sooner. This was the case with THE FROZEN RIVER by Ariel Lawhon. It came out a year ago, and I just got to it last week. I loved the first-person voice of Martha Ballard, a renowned midwife who delivered babies in Maine. The novel is set in the winter of 1789 when the river has frozen --- and a man’s body is discovered there. The mystery of how he got there and who was responsible sets up the backbone of the book. What Martha is able to uncover --- and how she does it --- is what makes the story special.

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What I Ate in One Year: (and related thoughts) by Stanley Tucci

December 2024

I love it when authors who write memoirs or share their thoughts narrate their own work. So when I saw that Stanley Tucci narrated WHAT I ATE IN ONE YEAR, I was all in for a listen. What a fun idea to chronicle what one ate/cooked/dined out on over the course of a year. As I am writing this, I just devoured a Trader Joe’s Green Chile Macaroni and Cheese. I realize that instead I should have zeroed in on one of the recipes in the book’s pages and whipped up something that was much more of a culinary delight.

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The Grays of Truth by Sharon Virts

November 2024

THE GRAYS OF TRUTH is the third book by Sharon Virts that I have made a Bets On pick (MASQUE OF HONOR and VEIL OF DOUBT were the first two). She has a way of writing a historical mystery that plants me right in the time period, which this time is Reconstruction-era Baltimore.

Jane Gray Wharton is in a loveless marriage to Ned, a growling man who feels that life has done him wrong. He is visiting his brother Hank’s home in Baltimore on family business when he dies of mysterious causes. Jane is suspicious of what happened as she was a nurse in the Civil War. Her skills tell her that Ned was healthy, and passing away like this definitely sparks questions. Jane is not fond of Hank’s wife, Ellen, and in fact distrusts her immensely. However, Jane’s views are suspect as she has a history of mental health issues, which has led people not to believe her.

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The Blue Hour by Paula Hawkins

November 2024

THE BLUE HOUR by Paula Hawkins is set on the Scottish island of Eris. There is one house, Fairburn House, and it is unreachable from the Scottish mainland for 12 hours each day as the tide comes in. It’s the perfect setting for the story.

Vanessa Chapman, a famous artist who worked in numerous mediums, lived there for years before she passed away. Now it is home to Grace Haswell, a doctor who loves the solitude and isolation of the place. When a piece of Vanessa’s art is found to contain a human bone, an investigation is called for. James Becker, a noted art historian, is charged with figuring out how the bone may have gotten there. What happened out on that island? And what happened to Julian, Vanessa’s husband who disappeared two decades ago?

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Like Mother, Like Mother by Susan Rieger

November 2024

Mothers! They are the subject of Susan Rieger’s terrific novel, LIKE MOTHER, LIKE MOTHER. Here we get a look at three generations of mothers.

Lila Pereira is the first mother we meet in a section called “Lila.” She has spent her life in the limelight as the renowned executive editor of The Washington Globe. She’s been a rather absentee mother --- the kind who bore three daughters and seems to drop in and out of their lives, there when summoned but perhaps in body only and ready to zip off to another program or event. For the steadying force in their lives, her children rely on their father, Joe. He nurtures them and is their main rudder.

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Be Ready When the Luck Happens: A Memoir by Ina Garten

November 2024

I so enjoyed Ina Garten’s memoir, BE READY WHEN THE LUCK HAPPENS. I have been looking forward to this book for a while, and I listened to it on audio. Ina is the narrator, which makes it all the more special.

I have cooked from her cookbooks (and this book inspired me to do that a lot more), I went to the Barefoot Contessa store when it was in East Hampton, and I watched her show on Food Network, always getting ideas from her. But what I took away from this book was advice from a savvy businesswoman far beyond how to make a brilliant dinner party, or how to use a knife or an interesting ingredient. While cooking is at the heart of what she does, there are lessons on when to go big, when to fold and when to say, “This really is not worth the time that I am putting into it.” And there was a dose of saying something to the effect of “If I had just done that sooner, it might have been better for me,” which takes time to admit.

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