Review: The List

The List by Steve Berry
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Full Disclosure: I received an Advance Reader's Copy of The List by Steve Berry from Grand Central Publishing via NetGalley.  This book is available for purchase now.  

I am an avid reader of Steve Berry's books.  I have read the entire Cotton Malone series.  When I saw The List coming out, I couldn't wait to read it.  The List is not part of the Cotton Malone series.  It is also a bit different from that series.  This feels more like a John Grisham novel.  When I got to the end, I realized that Steve Berry recognized that as well.  I say all that in case you pick this up thinking you will get more Malone and are wondering why you are reading about Southern lawyers.  Surprise!  But seriously, this book scares me.  If a company isn't already doing what this book suggests, I feel like we are not far from a future where they will.  Sure, we don't see a lot of company towns these days although we might soon as companies look to diversify to increase profit.  I am being intentionally vague because I don't want to give away the big reveal.  However, it will reveal itself pretty early on in the book. You don't really need to fear spoilers.  If you like legal thrillers, you will want to read The List.

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Review: Westward Women: A Novel

Westward Women: A Novel by Alice Martin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Full Disclosure: I received an Advance Reader's Copy of Westward Women: A Novel by Alice Martin from St. Martin's Press via NetGalley. It will be published in March 2026.  

I will confess that I agreed to read Westward Women by Alice Martin because as a young girl, I used to watch Westward the Women every time it was on television.  I haven't seen it in ages and don't remember if it is problematic, but I was just so fascinated with these women who were compelled to go west no matter what obstacles they encountered.  Westward Women is like a modern, fever dream version of that.  Nobody knows why women get the itch and have to compulsively start heading west.  The same thing that compels them to move also affects them in other ways physically and mentally, making them vulnerable.  Some try to travel in groups or rely on the kindness of strangers to get them where they are drawn to go.  Of course, not everybody they encounter has good intentions.  The story is told from the perspective of a few different women.  All of them are searching for something.  All of them are hoping to find what they are looking for before whatever this thing is completely debilitates them.  Despite what happens, I still found myself wanting to go on a road trip.

Bonus points for Winnie, worth remembering.  

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Review: Best Wishes from The Full Moon Coffee Shop

Best Wishes from The Full Moon Coffee Shop by Mai Mochizuki
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Full Disclosure: I received an Advance Reader's Copy of Best Wishes from The Full Moon Coffee Shop by Mai Mochizuki from Ballantine Books via NetGalley.  This book is set to be published at the end of October 2025.

Best Wishes from The Full Moon Coffee Shop is the second book in the Full Moon Coffee Shop series by Mai Mochizuki.  While there are a few references to the first book, you could read this as a standalone.  If you do though, there might be a few first book spoilers.  If you don't care about that, enjoy them at will!  I will also say that this book might be best enjoyed around the winter holidays.  I couldn't wait that long.  Like the first book, the chapters of this book follow the story of a character and how they end up at the Full Moon Coffee Shop.  There is also a certain amount of overlap in the stories.  Every character learns something and often it is not to assume you know what someone else is thinking or their motivations.  Sometimes, you have to give people the benefit of the doubt.  

I can't decide if the best part of the coffee shop is that it is a cat cafe (IYKYK) or that they don't take orders and custom-make the food and beverages to each specific customer.  I am dying to know what I would get.  Astrology also plays an important part in these stories.  If you have ever wanted to learn more about birth charts and how the planets influence your life, this is a fun way to get a beginner course.  If astrology is not your thing, I would still encourage you to read this if you like animals or an adorable cafe.  I will warn you that I cried at the end.

Bonus points for Rin.  What a wonderful friend!

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Review: Carl's Doomsday Scenario

Carl's Doomsday Scenario by Matt Dinniman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Carl's Doomsday Scenario is the second book in the Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman.  You definitely want to start with book one and read in order.  The story is like playing a video game and each book builds on events from the previous.  So yes, there are cliffhangers.  Yes, if you like the book, you will probably be committing yourself to reading the rest of the books.  I, personally, am all in.  I actually have to force myself to read other things rather than immediately start the next book because I want to draw out the experience.  Book two picks up right where book one left off.  We've made it out of training and now the real trials begin.  Carl still has Donut and a rapidly growing velociraptor by his side.  What could possibly go wrong?  Although training is over, there is still a lot to learn if Carl and crew are going to survive.  They've picked up some friends and made more than a couple of enemies.  As exciting and thrilling as the adventure part is, these books are also laugh-out-loud funny.  I highly recommend these books to gamers but also to anyone who likes dystopian fiction that doesn't take itself too seriously.


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Review: One Perfect Couple

One Perfect Couple by Ruth Ware
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

One Perfect Couple by Ruth Ware went by so fast I'm not even sure when I read it all.  I started reading and then the next thing I knew, it was over.  In case you are wondering, that is a good thing.  It was so engrossing.  Five couples travel to a remote tropical island to compete in a reality TV show that is a cross between Love Island and Survivor to see who will be crowned the perfect couple.  A tropical storm has other plans for the production and soon the Survivor-part of the game isn't just a game anymore.  The story is told in various formats including transcripts of radio messages and diary entries.  Not everything adds up though, and you really won't know who to trust.

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Review: It Had to Be You

It Had to Be You by Mary Higgins Clark
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It Had to Be You is the eighth book in the Under Suspicion series by Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke.  You don't have to start from the beginning of the series to read this although there are references to previous books.  If you want to avoid spoilers if you decide to go back, you may want to start with book one.  At the same time, each book is a self-contained mystery so you can be one and done.  I was so excited to see there was a new Under Suspicion book because I thought the series might be over with the passing of Mary Higgins Clark.  I am so glad that Alafair Burke was able to publish this!  The whole series is about a true crime reality TV show that successfully attempts to solve cold cases.  This particular story involved twins who separately or together may have killed their parents.  While they were never convicted, the brothers even suspect each other!  You have to read the book to find out what happens when you start digging up the past and seriously investigating all the possible suspects.  

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Review: You Are Fatally Invited

You Are Fatally Invited by Ande Pliego
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

You Are Fatally Invited by Ande Pliego is like reading a game of Clue.  I had such a good time trying to figure out who dunnit and how.  The story is told through alternating perspectives, so you can never be quite sure if you are getting the full truth.  And there is enough overlap in the characters' back stories to allow for red herrings.  I highly recommend this if you like a good locked room-type of mystery or playing Clue.  

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