Completed: January 18, 2026
Rating: 10/10
Review: When Kathryn is invited to be a guest curator to help create an exhibit on Jack the Ripper she is thrilled to have been asked to be part of the project. As she jumps into the research, she is horrified to realize that her sister in her other life in 1888 is one of Jack the Ripper's victims. Now she has a dilemma on her hands. One of the rules of being a time crosser is that she cannot do anything that will change history or else she will forfeight that path, but how can she possibly let her own sister remain in danger and be the final victim of this horrilbe killer? In Victorian London, Kathryn's sister has been banished from her status loving parents home and Kathryn is not allowed any contact with her. Knowing what she does from her other life, how can she push the limits of her time crossing life to be able to spare her sister? And now with her childhood friend involved, her decisions now affect yet another life.
This was an edge of your seat addition to the author's Timeless series. They just keep getting better. This was suspenseful and kept me guessing to the end. While the main character was at times frustrating and headstrong, her motives were born of a desperation to somehow save her sister from a horrible and untimely death that would be recorded for all of history. Yet her recklessness in doing things her own way can prove to be the undoing of it all. But this is what made her very human to the reader. Though dealing with horrible events in history, the author managed to not be overly graphic while maintaining the horror and fear that came with the murders of the women. There is a thread of faith running through all these book in the series but is not heavy handed. I appreciated being challenged within the story of thinking of who really is in control and in whom is my trust and how decisions reverberate through time. The author's research of the historical periods is once again fantastic. High recommend though I would definitely read the books in order.
Completed: January 31, 2026
Rating: 8.5/10
Review: Iris, a chef, left her life in London due to a toxic relationship and is starting over in New York City, a place nostalgic to her because of all the movies she used to watch with her Mom that had New York as a back drop. But it's not turning out quite like she had thought. When out with her best friend, Bobby, at a street fair in Little Italy, she is struck by a door of a little family run gelato shop. She has seen that door before in one of her Mom's photos. Intrigued, she returns the next day. She meets Gio, who she finds out is the nephew of the owner and he shares with her that the shop is about to close. They have only ever served one flavor of gelato, vanilla, but it has made them famous. And only her uncle knows the recipe and he's had a stroke and can't remember it. They are down to their last batch. When he gives Iris a sample she instantly realizes that it is the exact same gelato that her Mom would make for when they wached their movies together and she has the recipe! But what is her Mother's ties to this family and how can she hand over the the recipe that holds such meaning between her Mother and herself? Iris offers her chef's knowledge to help re-create the recipe hoping either Gio's family stumbles upon it themselves or somehow his uncle remembers, But spending so much time with Gio and his family is working it's way into her heart. And now her secret is threatening to ruin everything.
This was an easy, escapist kind of read. The setting was nice, I loved the friendship between Iris and Bobby, the mystery of the gelato recipe and the story in general I enjoyed though it was at times a bit unbelievable. But if I suspended the unbelief it was a read I liked. There was lots of lies that I don't know had to go that far but it kind of drove the story onward. For a rom-com it's not too spicy, I just skipped through the couple of parts where it showed up.
Completed: February 20, 2026
Rating: 9/10
Review:
Completed: March 14, 2026
Rating: 9.5/10
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Completed: April 3, 2026
Rating: 9.5/10
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Completed: April 16, 2026
Rating: 9/10
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Completed: April 18, 2026
Rating: 10/10
Review:
Completed: May 3, 2026
Rating: 9.5/10
Review:
Completed: May 15, 2026
Rating: 9.5/10
Completed: June 16, 2026
Rating: 8/10
Completed: July 8, 2026
Rating: 7.5/10
Review: It's been 18 months since Riva's beloved husband Paul passed away from cancer. She thought she was dealing with the grief but she's still rambling about their beautiful Victorian home with no motivation to either go out or to keep the place up. And with all Paul's medical bills still being paid off she is looking at having to sell the home. But Riva loves this home. Not only was it where she and Paul have lived practically their whole married lives but it is where she grew up and it's been in her family for three generations. While her daughter is pushing her to sell the home, Riva is reluctant to leave the memories and her and Paul's precious collection of loved books. As she considers her options, an opportunity to rent some of her empty rooms comes across her path and before she knows it her home now houses a mix of eclectic "women of a certain age". When one of the women's older brother starts coming around can this mix of women find grace for each other and make space for each to grow and thrive.
This was an easy summer read. Loved the bookish theme that was hinted at throughout and wish it would have explored a little deeper into that. While I liked the main character and the free spirited Windy, I did find a couple of the characters really unlikeable through most of the story and I did feel all the characters were much too gossipy creating drama reminiscent of teenagers rather than grown women. In the end there was character growth that redeemed it but I also found the ending wrapped up a little too quickly so the growth seemed sudden. Maybe it might be a spring board for future books?
Completed: July 22, 2026
Rating: 9/10
Review:
Completed: Augyst 5, 2026
Rating: 9/10
Conpleted: August 16, 2026
Rating: 6,5/10
Review: Kelli Quinn is moving to small town Brunswick with her two young children hoping for a fresh start. As a newly single mom, her high powered job as a litigator for a large Atlanta law firm is no longer doable in her new family situation. She's hoping the slower life moving in with her aunt Carly and more regular hours working at her best friend's small law firm will help the family heal from the painful split from her former husand and children's father. A fith filled woman, Carly is hoping it will rub off on her neie and family but kelli has always been a bit reluctant in matters of faith. Jon Tremaine and his wife Sarah also had a fresh start in Brunswick. After testifying for the feds against a drug cartel that he was once involved with, he and Sarah have built a happy life under the Federal Witness Protection Program and are expecting their first child. When one of his Mexican background employees from the tree farm he manages is wrongfully accused of drug smuggling, Jon hires the new lawyer in town to defend him. Kelli, however, is not very on board at first but then decides to take on the case at the encouragement of her boss/friend. But as Jon begins inserting himself more and more into the case, Kelli is wondering how exactly Jon happens to know so much about cartels and how feds work in drug smuggling cases.
I like a good legal thriller once in a while. I have read several books by this author before and have enjoyed the faith aspect he includes. Unfortunately, this one will not be a favorite. The story premise is interesting but something didn't rise to the occasion in the execution of it for me. It just did not capture me like I thought it would. Some of the conversations felt choppy and ended suddenly giving me a "fade to black" kind of feel. Some of the characters never felt fully fleshed out. The build up to what should have been the tense and suspence parts of the story just didn't accomplish the goal for me. I did like the moral dilemma Jon & Sarah faced in wrestling with the balance of helping his employee while not revealing how far to take it so that he, himself, remained safe. That part made the story for me. While this particular novel didn't make it to the level of a great read for me I will read more from this author.
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