Stacy Alesi

RELIC by Gretchen McNeil

March 17, 2016

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Annie Kramer’s post graduation trip to Slaughterhouse Island was supposed to be a fun start to her final months before college. She and a group of friends rented a houseboat, spent their first night camping on the beach with booze, and planned to hike one of the nearby abandoned mines the following day. Everything went basically according to that plan with just two hiccups: the arrival of a couple of cops intent on making sure the group was aware of just how off limits the mines are and a passerby who attacked Annie before running off into the woods.

The mine itself was something of a nightmare for the group. With passages shooting off from the entrance, they split into four pairs to explore. Each pair ended up separated in the maze of tunnels, eventually finding their way back to home base only to discover their radio had been demolished while they were inside. What’s worse, they arrived home in time to hear that a body was discovered just outside the mine that very day. And that was when the horror really began.

Gretchen McNeil’s latest is a fantastic return to horror for the author. Readers may wonder, though, why it’s an ebook release only. Sadly, the book was orphaned with the shuttering of Egmont last year. But fortunately for us all it was rescued by Epic Reads, hence the ebook release.

I would have loved for the book to have been longer (much longer, maybe). More detail of Slaughterhouse Island (where did THAT name come from?.) and time focused on building the setting and ominous tone would have made this book so much more of an intense read, in my opinion.

That said, it’s still fantastic fun. There’s a bit of history around the mine, some creative area folklore, and plenty of murders to make this a worthy successor to McNeil’s previous horror releases, Possess and Ten. There’s even a sample of McNeil’s upcoming I’m Not Your Manic Pixie Dream Girl to tempt your reading palate as well.

Fans of Gretchen McNeil are sure to be satisfied by this latest and it’ll make a perfect diving in point for new readers too.

3/16 Becky LeJeune

RELIC by Gretchen McNeil. Epic Reads Impulse (March 8, 2016). ASIN: B00ZP5WPBC 352p.

ebook only

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THE TOTAL PACKAGE by Stephanie Evanovich

March 15, 2016

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This is the latest contemporary romance from someone who has become one of my favorite authors. If you haven’t read Big Girl Panties (which made my best books of 2013 list) or The Sweet Spot, you can start here. Like most romance series, the latest book barely touches on the previous ones, but if you’ve read them, you will appreciate the update, and if you haven’t, you will want to after reading this one. Make sense?!

Tyson Palmer was a super star quarterback until he fell into drug and alcohol addiction. During that time, his college tutor, Bella, who had a big crush on him, managed to get him to take her virginity, but he barely remembers it.

Fast forward a few years, and Tyson has been given a true gift by the owner of a fictitious Texas football team. The owner gets Tyson dried out and cleaned up and back playing the best football of his life. Sports reporter Dani Carr isn’t too impressed, and in fact, keeps her distance from him. Until she’s hired by the team as a publicist for one of their closed mouth superstars and she is forced to deal with him.

Eventually Tyson figures out who she really is, but it takes a little longer for the romance to reach it’s usual conclusion – but not before the angst, the laughs and hot sex -and Evanovich really excels at all three. This is a terrific romance for fans of Jennifer Crusie or Susan Elizabeth Phillips. I loved it!

3/16 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

THE TOTAL PACKAGE by Stephanie Evanovich. William Morrow (March 15, 2016). ISBN 978-0062234858. 256p.

Kindle

4 Comments | Book Reviews, Fiction, Romance | Tagged: Thriller | Permalink
Posted by Stacy Alesi

CRAVINGS by Chrissy Teigen

March 11, 2016

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Recipes for All the Food You Want to Eat

with Adeena Sussman, Photographs by Aubrie Pick

There should probably be a sub-sub-title after “recipes for all the food you want to eat” that says “but you probably shouldn’t eat, at least not very often.” Most of the criticism leveled at Teigen about this book is that there is no way she can eat food like this all the time, and she admits she does not – but it is the food she likes. So take it from there.

In her introduction, Teigen addresses the issue:

“I don’t want to seem like one of those annoying ‘I can eat anything I want anytime’ chicks. It’s just that I wanted to be honest in this book about the kinds of food I love, the kinds of food I crave.“

So in case you’re even more out of touch than I am, Chrissy Teigen is a mega-celebrity supermodel, Lip Sync Battle TV host, and is married to John Legend. If you are a Teigen fan, or one of her 1.3 million Twitter followers, or one of her 5.5 million Instagram followers, then you probably already bought this book that debuted in the number one spot on the coveted NY Times bestseller list. If you are not familiar with her, you can take a look at her food blog, So Delushious, or her Instagram before deciding to buy – her voice is so unique and I am happy to say, is heard loud and clear throughout. It’s like she’s sitting there with you, making you laugh. While you cook. What could be bad about that?!

The book is divvied up into Breakfast All Day, Soupmaster, Salads (For When You Need Them), Noodles and Carbs, Thai Mom, Party Time, Sh*t on Toast, Vegetable Things, Things That Intimidate People but Shouldn’t, and Supper. There are lots and lots of pictures, and Chrissy and hubby John are in many of them.

Teigen instagrammed that the Lemon Arugula Cacio e Pepe is one of the top five recipes in the book, so it seemed a good place to start, especially since I just got a big bag of baby arugula from the farm. This recipe is simple and really delicious. Teigen’s mom is Thai, and the Thai recipes are explained so well that she makes it all look very approachable and doable. Shades of Christina Tosi emerged with the French Toast Casserole topped with salted Frosted Flakes, and that is very fine company to be in. And her soups – she is the self proclaimed “soupmaster” – are to die for, so I will happily concede her the title.

The book is edited by a food celebrity, former Top Chef Masters judge and award winning food writer Francis Lam, and apparently he was the one who put the idea of a cookbook in her head. So thanks, Francis!

This has to be one of the most charming and fun-to-read cookbooks out there, and the recipes are terrific, too. Add this one to your bookshelf.

3/16 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

CRAVINGS by Chrissy Teigen. Clarkson Potter (February 23, 2016). ISBN 978-1101903919. 240p.

Kindle

2 Comments | Book Reviews, Cookbook, Nonfiction | Permalink
Posted by Stacy Alesi

FAR FROM TRUE by Linwood Barclay

March 9, 2016

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Promise Falls Trilogy, Book 2

Barclay presents the second novel in Promise Falls trilogy, taking place in the town of Promise Falls. No surprise that characters and situations from the first book are present in this novel.

Further developments of action take place and lead the reader into additional insight into the people and plots that began in Broken Promise. The book opens when the horrific happening of a drive in movie screen falling down occurs, killing four people in their cars while watching the movie.

The daughter of one of the victims asks Cal Weaver, a private investigator, to look into the situation. Cal investigates and discovers a secret room in the father’s house, which has obviously been used for sexual activities. He immediately finds that a number of DVDs have been stolen and may be the prime cause of the “accident” killing the woman’s father. At the same time, detective Barry Duckworth is attempting to solve two murders, one of which is three years old but believed by Duckworth to be connected to the present one.

Barclay is a master at making the protagonists in his books become real and having faults like everyone else. Detective Duckworth is overweight and is starting to experience the symptoms of cardiac problems. These do not stop him, but do make him appear more normal. Duckworth’s wife is on him to watch his diet and take care of himself as would any spouse in a like situation.

As the lies surrounding the murders start, Weaver discovers facts pointing towards evil once buried, which is present in Promise Falls. Another murder occurs and both Duckworth and Cal pursue their investigations no matter where their findings take them.

The evil in the town’s past seem to point towards involvement with the present day. Far From True ends on a complete cliffhanger, with some things solved, but others still pending and awaiting solution.

The question arises, how many books are planned by Barclay involving Promise Falls, and can they be written as episodes rather than opening and closing. There is no doubt that Linwood Barclay can almost effortlessly keep his readers glued to his books. Will he continue to do so if the series extends far out into the future? I am a fan of his, and will continue to look for anything he comes out with as long as he keeps coming out with novels.

3/16 Paul Lane

FAR FROM TRUE by Linwood Barclay. NAL (March 8, 2016). ISBN 978-0451472700. 480p.

Kindle

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THE TRAVELERS by Chris Pavone

March 8, 2016

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Chris Pavone’s first novel, The Expats, set the stage for his second and now his third book. The stories involve Americans whose working lives in some way involve residing or traveling overseas.

Will Rhodes is recently married and somewhat insolvent, gets a job as a travel writer for the prestigious magazine, “The Traveler.” His work is to travel all over the world and write attractive articles about the food in different areas he visits in order to attract a well to do clientele that subscribe to the magazine – and are also probable clients for a series of travel agencies that have been set up by the publication.

One night he meets a very attractive woman in Argentina wine country and in spite of his being married, starts an affair. It seems that she wants to entrap him via a blackmail scheme into accepting an offer he can’t refuse.

At her orders, he travels all over Europe from France to Ireland onto a mega yacht and to an isolated cabin on the rugged cliffs of Iceland. Will is drawn further and further into a web of intrigue with connections to a gigantic global conspiracy.

The people closest to him, including his new wife, all seem to be involved in the conspiracy and may prove to be the greatest threats to him. The ending is not telegraphed but becomes the only weak area in a novel that is compelling. It would almost appear as if Pavone just came to a point that he thought would be a logical ending and he proceeded to do just that – end it.

3/16 Paul Lane

THE TRAVELERS by Chris Pavone. Crown (March 8, 2016). ISBN 978-0385348485. 448p.

2 Comments | Book Reviews, Crime Fiction, Fiction | Tagged: International | Permalink
Posted by Stacy Alesi

DEADLY JEWELS by Jeannette de Beauvoir

March 7, 2016

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A McGill University doctoral candidate, Patricia Mason, has made an amazing discovery; she has found some of England’s crown jewels in a locked room under the city of Montreal, where they were hidden from the Nazis during World War II.

The mayor believes this find could be great publicity for the city, and calls in publicity director Martine LeDuc to put a good spin on it. It shouldn’t be difficult, until a skeleton is found alongside the jewels, a stone goes missing, and Mason is murdered.

LeDuc once again calls on her friend, Detective-Lieutenant Julian Fletcher, whose family’s wealth and prestige allow him great latitude with the police department, in this terrific second book (The Asylum, 2015) of the series.

Turns out a Neo-Nazi group is interested in the jewels, as they believe, as did Hitler, that the stones possess mystical powers. The story moves back and forth from very interesting World War II flashbacks to the present day, a riveting mystery. LeDuc’s personal life adds to her stress level, as her husband wants his children to move in with them on a permanent basis. Steve Berry fans should enjoy this.

3/16 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

DEADLY JEWELS by Jeannette de Beauvoir. Minotaur Books (March 8, 2016). ISBN 978-1250045409. 352p.

Kindle

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THE CAIRO CODE by Glenn Meade

March 6, 2016

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Novels about love existing during the course of war and the strains put upon the lovers by the conflict raging about them are plentiful. The Cairo Code is an excellent book revolving around a segment of World War II and the parts three people play in the drama.

U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill met in Cairo, Egypt during November 1943 in order to discuss plans going forward for operation Overlord, the invasion of Europe at a near future date. Hitler had the impression that if this invasion were allowed to take place, it would be the capstone on the defeat of Germany, which he felt was already started. He ordered the assassination of both Roosevelt and Churchill, with the emphasis on murdering the US president as primary.

Major Johann Halder, a brilliant agent of the Abwere, was assigned to head the attempt along with Rachael Stern, an Egyptologist, to accompany him to supply credibility that they were in Cairo to reexamine tombs. Their families had been excavating those tombs prior to the war. Stern, of Jewish descent, was being held at a concentration camp and released to Major Halder with the promise that she would be freed after the successful venture, as well as her parents, who were also being held prisoner by the Nazis.

The Americans, getting wind of the plot, assigned Lt. Colonel Harry Weaver to go after Halder and his party. Weaver was one the best officers the U.S. had and was thought to be the soldier that could foil the plot. The caveat in this was that Harry, Halder and Rachel had been together at excavations in Egypt with their families prior to the war. They had been close friends but both Harry and Johann fell in love with Rachel, and never knew whether or not she was in love with either of them.

The story revolves around the chase between Harry and his two friends, and if any of them would be able to actually kill their former friends or object of love. Meade handles the sequences of the chase and reactions of both sides with knowledge that they were facing former great friends and what they would do if they actually met. There was an attempt by the Nazis to kill Roosevelt at the Cairo conference in real life which obviously did not succeed. But the major thrust of Meade’s story involves love tested by being on opposite sides during a world war.

Extremely well done novel with the reader easily being caught up in the emotions and activities of both sides. The ending is not at all telegraphed but does leave the reader with the impression that he or she has just finished one of the most satisfying stories written in a long time.

3/16 Paul Lane

THE CAIRO CODE by Glenn Meade . Pinnacle (February 23, 2016). ISBN 978-0786037308. 416p.

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SAVING SOPHIE by Ronald H. Balson

March 5, 2016

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This is the follow up to Once We Were Brothers, a hugely popular by word-of-mouth book that was originally self published, then picked up by St. Martins. Ron Balson is a practicing attorney in Chicago so writing novels is his second career, and he’s quite good at it.

The two protagonists from Once We Were Brothers, private investigator Liam and attorney Catherine, return here and move between Chicago and the Middle East. The story opens with the theft of 88 million dollars and a man on the run, and we don’t know anything at all about the whys or hows of it. And then we learn…

The titled “Sophie” is a young girl who has been kidnapped by her maternal grandfather and taken to his fortress of a home in Palestine.

Sophie’s father, Jack Sommers, is heartbroken. His wife had died and when his in-laws sued for custody, trying to prove he was an unfit father, they lost their case. But Jack felt bad about cutting off his daughter from her grandparents, so he suggested visitation once a month. On their third visit, they disappeared with Sophie.

Jack is a lawyer and he manages to embezzle money in hopes of paying ransom and getting his daughter back. He disappears, but his partners in crime end up dead and there is still no sign of anyone getting Sophie back to him. Liam and Catherine are hired to find the money and Jack Sommers, and in the process agree to try and help Jack get his daughter back.

The story moves to the Middle East and Balson does a phenomenal job of interspersing the history of Zionism, the state of Israel and all the fighting in the Middle East going back to biblical times, creating a fascinating back drop to the present day story.

Turns out grandpa is from a long line of terrorists, and is in the middle of planning a September 11th size attack using biological warfare, creating a terrifying culmination to the story.

This is another exciting thriller from a terrific storyteller.

3/16 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

SAVING SOPHIE by Ronald H. Balson. St. Martin’s Griffin (September 15, 2015). ISBN 978-1250065858. 448p.

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THE BIG REWIND by Libby Cudmore

March 4, 2016

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One misdelivered piece of mail lands Jett smack dab in the middle of a murder investigation.

It’s a mix tape, on cassette no less. And when it arrives, Jett, being the nice neighbor she is, heads over to KitKat’s apartment to hand deliver it. After her knocking brings no answer but the desperate cries of KitKat’s cat, Jett starts to worry and lets herself in, discovering that someone has very recently (based on the burning pot brownies) bludgeoned the party planner and baker with her own rolling pin.

KitKat’s boyfriend is the prime suspect in the case, especially when a neighbor claims to have seen him at the apartment just hours before the crime took place. But KitKat’s friends aren’t so sure. And Jett, a temp at a PI agency (proofreading, not investigating) can’t say no when KitKat’s own sister begs for her help. Jett is sure the mix tape itself is a big clue, and intends to start there. But how do you track down an anonymous mix tape creator in a city as big as the Big Apple?

Libby Cudmore’s debut is a fantastic. A mystery set around a mix tape? I grew up in the days of mix tapes and was seriously craving an amateur sleuth read as well. The Big Rewind not only hit the spot mystery wise but proved to be a nostalgic trip through music and mix tape history, too.

Mix tapes are so deep. Or they can be. Some are just samplings of music meant to widen your horizons (most of the ones I received were) but a tape like the one here represents the creator’s deepest feelings. So it makes sense that when Jett finally tracks down a cassette player to listen to said tape, she realizes this is someone who could very well have killed KitKat.

The investigation and the tape prompt Jett to go on a journey through her own mix tapes and ex boyfriends, even going to far as to track some of them down, forcing her to reevaluate her own past as she digs deeper into KitKat’s.

The Big Rewind is funky and fun. A mystery filled with music and the sights and sounds of Brooklyn.

(There’s even a Spotify playlist to listen to as you read.)

3/16 Becky LeJeune

THE BIG REWIND by Libby Cudmore. William Morrow Paperbacks (February 2, 2016). ISBN 978-0062403537. 256p.

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GONE AGAIN by James Grippando

March 3, 2016

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In an afterward, Grippando, the creator of Jack Swyteck, an attorney practicing in Florida, indicates that he is sending Jack back into his literary roots. This is exactly what is done as Swyteck becomes involved with defending a prisoner on death row as he did in the first novel introducing him, The Pardon.

A young girl named Sashi Burgette disappeared on her way to school three previously. While a body was never found, an ex-con named Dylan Kyle was stopped for drunken driving shortly after the disappearance was reported. An article of Sashi’s clothing was found in his vehicle and a police video of Kyle’s drunken explanation of events provided enough circumstantial evidence for a jury to convict him of murder.

A few days prior to Kyle’s execution, Sashi’s mother visits Swyteck, who is doing pro bono work at the Freedom Institute and blurts out that she received a phone call from her daughter,indicating that she is still alive. Jack, in the interest of justice being served, jumps into the case in spite of the police indicating the call is a hoax, the death warrant already signed by the governor of Florida, and the state attorney declaring that the case is closed.

Grippando proceeds to grab the reader with twists and turns of the story that seemingly complicate events beyond any readily visible solution. And, at the same time Jack’s wife, Andie Henning, is about to have a baby. Andie works for the FBI normally doing undercover work. While still able to handle work prior to going on maternity leave, Andie discovers some details related to the crime Jack is working on. She is not able to pass the information onto Jack due to constraints placed on what she can divulge, but does manage to provide some help to her husband.

The book is by any definition an all nighter as are the previous novels in the Swyteck series and certainly motivates readers to seek out the next in this series.

3/16 Paul Lane

GONE AGAIN by James Grippando. Harper (March 1, 2016). ISBN 978-0062368706. 400p.

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