Book Review: Our Secrets Were Safe

By Jami Denison

“Old friends who have a secret” has become such a trope in crime fiction that authors need to come up with bigger and more audacious plot points to keep readers entertained and make sure their books stand out in a crowded market. In novelist Virginia Trench’s debut, Our Secrets Were Safe, the secrets are numerous and the characters are haunted. With class divides, evil stepfathers, and secret love affairs, readers may need a spreadsheet to keep track of all the action.

Ten years ago, college students Caroline and Brooke were in a car accident that killed Sofia, Caroline’s childhood friend/ex-lover and current lover of Caroline’s half-brother Leo. Now, on the brink of Brooke’s wedding and Caroline’s career success, Sofia has returned—or someone claiming to be her. Stalking the women via text, “Sofia” threatens to reveal what really happened the night of the accident—along with all the other secrets the women have been keeping. When another college friend is found dead, Caroline and Brooke realize that Sofia is dangerous. How far will they go to keep their secrets safe?

Trench’s prose is strong, lively, and compelling. She writes in close third person from the perspectives of Caroline and Brooke in the present, and Sofia in the past. While Caroline gives too much information about her job and Sofia seems unstable and vengeful from the get-go, Brooke is a captivating character, with complications and a back story that could have supported a novel only about her. 

The book’s biggest challenge is the huge number of characters and the complicated histories they all bring with them. The first few chapters are particularly confusing. We meet Brooke at her sister’s baby shower, and there are so many people and so many agendas that it’s not clear who the point-of-view character is. By the ending, most of the characters have revealed themselves as unsympathetic—except for Brooke—so it’s hard to care about what really happened to Sofia. 

Still, Our Secrets Were Safe held my attention throughout. Trench is a very strong writer, and the set-ups she creates all have pay-offs. I look forward to her follow-up. 

Thanks to Crown for the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Book Review: Hit for Six

 

By Sara Steven

LOLA is juggling two jobs to make ends meet; underpaid sales exec by day, and waitress in a cocktail bar by night.

MONTY is the captain of Bath Beasts cricket team and heir to a portfolio of luxury properties.

Girls like her don’t normally end up with boys like him. But when she accidentally bares all at his cup final, destiny (and the number six) ensures their match is a home run.

Unfortunately, Monty’s family has other ideas, doing all they can to prevent their golden boy from getting bowled over by the lowly Lola. Can their love survive the attacking shot? Or will they find themselves on a sticky wicket? (Synopsis courtesy of Goodreads.)

Hit For Six is the quintessential “love from the wrong side of the tracks” story, complete with a unique plotline and an even more unique way that Lola and Monty discover one another. I couldn’t believe what ended up happening to Lola at Monty’s cup final. I don’t think I could have loathed a character more than how much I loathed her coworker, particularly when Lola is blamed for baring it all, and no one seems to want to support her or or come to her aid. 

At first, Monty had his own opinions about Lola. But given some time, he can’t get her out of his mind, and in the best of ways. Lola feels drawn to Monty, too, yet she has a tough time overlooking the fact that he comes from a more privileged background, and she doesn’t. He comes from money, and she’s scrambling to make ends meet. But despite their differences, both characters find common ground together, despite some outside influences that might threaten that foundation.

Monty’s parents are all out obnoxious! There seem to be a lot of preconceived notions on who they feel is best for Monty, not taking into account Monty’s own thoughts and feelings on the subject. This makes Lola feel she’ll never measure up. I really felt for her, particularly because she is consistently trying to better herself and find her own success. 

I am not familiar with cricket and don’t know much about it, but it was easy to follow along and I felt the descriptions within Hit For Six helped cricket novices like me better understand the game and what Monty and his teammates were doing. There was a reference within the story to how the more recent Olympics admitted breakdancing as a recognized sport, so T20 cricket shouldn’t be that far behind, and I had to research that and I discovered T20 cricket will indeed be part of the 2028 summer games! It would be fun if there could be a real-life Monty and Lola who find their way into one another’s hearts by way of the “slap and tickle” game, with just as much chemistry and heat. It was an amusing read!

Thanks to Rachel's Random Resources for the book in exchange for an honest review.

Purchase Link:
Amazon US

Isabella May lives in (mostly) sunny Andalusia, Spain with her husband, daughter and son, creatively inspired by the mountains and the sea. She grew up in Somerset on Glastonbury's ley lines and loves to feature her quirky English hometown in her stories.

After a degree in Modern Languages and European Studies at UWE, Bristol (and a year working abroad in Bordeaux and Stuttgart), Isabella bagged an extremely jammy and fascinating job in children's publishing... selling foreign rights for novelty, board, pop-up and non-fiction books all over the world; in every language from Icelandic to Korean, Bahasa Indonesian to Papiamento!

All of which has fuelled her curiosity and love of international food and travel - both feature extensively in her romcoms.

Isabella is also a Level 4 Pranic Healer and a stillbirth mum.

You can follow her Foodie Romance Journeys and Cricket Romances at the following hang-outs:

Website * Facebook * Instagram * Bluesky

Visit all the stops on Isabella's blog tour:

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It's not summer without Brooke Lea Foster...plus a book giveaway

Credit: Deborah Feingold

We're pleased to have Brooke Lea Foster back at CLC today to talk about her latest novel, Our Last Vineyard Summer. Fans of Elin Hilderbrand and Amy Mason Doan will appreciate this compelling story (based on the buzz we've been hearing). Thanks to Gallery, we have THREE copies up for grabs!

Brooke Lea Foster is an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post Magazine, The Atlantic, The Boston Globe Magazine, and People, among others. An alumna of The Writing Institute at Sarah Lawrence College, she is the author of three nonfiction books and the novels Summer Darlings, On Gin Lane, and All the Summers In Between.

Visit Brooke online:
Website * Facebook * Instagram

Synopsis:

After suffering through her first year of graduate school at Columbia following her senator father’s death, Betsy Whiting is hoping to spend the summer with her boyfriend…and hopefully end the summer as his fiancée. Instead, her mother—a longtime feminist and leader in the women’s movement—calls Betsy and her sisters back home to Martha’s Vineyard, announcing that they need to sell their beloved summer house to pay off their father’s debts.

When Betsy arrives on the island a week later, she must reckon with her strained familial relationships, a long-ago forbidden romance, and the complicated legacy of her parents, who divided the family even as they did good for the world.

Following a dual timeline between 1965 and 1978, and filled with the vibrant, sunlit nostalgia of the cherished New England vacation setting, Our Last Vineyard Summer poignantly captures two generations of women navigating love, loss, and womanhood while trying to find the courage to stand up for what they believe in—and the strength to decide if the home they once loved is worth saving. (Courtesy of Amazon.)

"With a perfect blend of secrets, misdeeds, and unexpected love, Brooke Lea Foster has crafted a gripping, timely story that will captivate readers from start to finish." 

--Amy Poeppel, author of Far and Away

"Brooke Lea Foster’s Our Last Vineyard Summer has all my favorite book ingredients—intriguing mother-daughter dynamics, a vivid Martha’s Vineyard setting, a gripping dual timeline and, best of all, a family secret bombshell that I never saw coming." 

--Martha Hall Kelly, New York Times bestselling author of Lilac Girls

"Foster depicts two generations of women who are stubborn and smart, vulnerable and competitive, but she does so with compassion and wit that makes you cheer them on until the end." 

--Jo Piazza, internationally bestselling author of The Sicilian Inheritance

A note from Brooke:
Hi! Thank you so much for having me today! I’m so excited to talk to you about Our Last Vineyard Summer. This is a book so close to my heart. I keep saying that this is the novel I was meant to write. Even if it’s my fourth book, it’s probably my most autobiographical novel in some ways. For example, I am one of three sisters. Like the Whiting family, I lived in Washington, DC, and was immersed in politics for most of my twenties and thirties, but I vacationed in Martha’s Vineyard. Most of all, I took my own experiences about the complications of family relationships and sister baggage and all of that stuff we carry around with us and worked it into this book. Now on to the questions!

What is a favorite compliment you received on your writing?
It’s funny because I have a tendency to remember the negative things people have said about my writing rather than the good. Isn’t that something women do? We’re our own greatest critic. One truly nice thing. I’ve had several people tell me is that, when they finished my book, they were disappointed that it ended. To me, that’s the hallmark of great characters and a fantastic story. You’re so immersed in it that you don’t want it to end. I’ve also been told I write telling dialogue, which makes me smile since I was a former journalist and spent two decades listening to people talk before I wrote my first novel.

What is one thing you would tell the debut novelist version of yourself?
Ooh. Another great question. I would say: You’ve been a writer since you were a little girl, and you’re a writer still. Follow your heart, tell a great story, and put everything you have into building complicated characters. All of this work will make someone see themselves differently or feel a little less lonely or maybe even inspire them to make a change in their life. Fiction can transform people. It’s transformed you, hasn’t it?

If Our Last Vineyard Summer were made into a movie, what songs would be on the soundtrack?
When I was writing this novel, I kept listening to Benson Boone’s song “Ghost Town.” I know it’s strange because it’s a contemporary song, but it has this line that says something like . . . “before I turn your heart into a ghost town, I’m going to take everything we built and tear it all down.” It was an anthem for this book. I felt like I was creating this ultra-close-knit family who loved each other dearly and then, in the interest of the plot, I was tearing it all down. It sort of broke my heart. Yet it made for a really powerful story. Another song on this album would have to be: “Me and Bobby McGee.” The sisters would definitely be belting that out in the kitchen while making breakfast. Maybe “You’re so Vain” by Carly Simon or “I Feel the Earth Move” by Carole King. These feel very emblematic of the kind of emotions running through the course of the novel, and since the book is set in 1965 and 1978, they feel vintage-cool enough to set the scene.

If your life was a TV series, which celebrity would you want to narrate it? 
I’ve never thought of myself as a character, but it reminds me of my teenage son telling me a kid in his school thinks he’s the “main character.” Ha! Okay, I would say that if I was the main character, it would have to be Jennifer Garner. I’m a mom; I’m a mix of goofy, fun loving and generous; and I’m a very authentic person. Jen Garner is all of those things to me, so I could see her nailing my constant inner chatter. 

If we were to visit you right now, what are some places you would take us to see?
I would definitely whisk you off to Martha’s Vineyard. We would stop at Titcomb’s Bookshop along the way to pick some novels out on the Cape. We’d board the boat in Wood’s Hole with a stop for a lobster roll just before traveling across Vineyard Sound by ferry. When we got off the ferry, I’d take you straight to State Beach, the perfect eclipse of sand that sits between Oak Bluffs with its colorful antique gingerbread houses and Edgartown, the toniest town with its postcard-perfect colonials with white picket fences. For the rest of the week, I would take you on a bike ride to Morning Glory Farm to buy a bouquet of wildflowers. We would drive to North Tisbury Farms for my favorite chocolate chip cookies. Every night we would finish the day watching sunset on the porch with a glass of crisp white wine. Perfection!

What is the last book you read that you would recommend?
I’m halfway through The Listeners by Maggie Stiefvater and I love everything about it. It’s historical fiction. It’s literary. It takes place in West Virginia at a luxury hotel. There’s so much going on and it’s so atmospheric that I can’t put it down. 

Thanks to Brooke for chatting with us and to Gallery for sharing her book with our readers.

How to win: Use Rafflecopter to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using Rafflecopter on our blog, enter the giveaway here. 

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Giveaway ends July 8th at midnight EST. 

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Book Review: Smoke on the Wind

By Melissa Smoot

Struggling with the tragic end of her marriage, Keaka Denney is on a bittersweet adventure in Scotland with her son, Colin. She’s joining him on a weeklong hike along the West Highland Way before he enters university in Glasgow. Soon into the journey, Keaka’s disquieting visions begin—a woman from ages past reaching for Colin, a burning cottage, violence.

Scotland, 1801. After Sorcha Chisholm and her son are wrenched from their home in a brutal eviction, they face an arduous trek toward a new beginning. When Sorcha learns she’s wanted for a murder she didn’t commit, she and her son run for their lives. Then help arrives from the strangest woman in the most unexpected ways.

Centuries apart, Keaka and Sorcha walk the same path—devoted mothers in circumstances beyond their control who will do anything to keep their sons safe. Defying logic, they find strength in each other. But what does their connection mean? And how far will it go? (Synopsis courtesy of Amazon.)

I don't even know where to begin with this review. This story captured my attention, and my heart, from the very first chapter. I learned so much about the history of Scotland, and the Highlands, and I was absolutely enthralled from the first page to the last. The heartbreaking story of Sorcha Chisolm and what she and her son went through when they were evicted from their family land in the Highlands in1801 was devastating. The terror and hopelessness they endured in the coming months kept me feverishly turning the pages to find out how their story would end. 

I loved how the author wove in the present-day story of a mother and son traveling the same path, in reverse. The visions that the mother, Keaka, has of Sorcha and her son along the way created a parallel world but in two different centuries. It also connected the women in the undeniable love for their sons. The impeccably descriptive writing helped to see the stunning landscape and towering mountains and forests.

The amount of love and emotion that Estes tells these two stories with is unmatched. I find myself still thinking about their journeys and know that I will for some time. This is a beautiful book, and you will be grateful for having had the honor of reading it. 

Thanks to Kaye Publicity for the book in exchange for an honest review. Purchase Smoke on the Wind here.

Also by Kelli Estes: 
The Girl Who Wrote in Silk
Today We Go Home

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Reviews at Amazon: April-June 2025

We're posting some reviews at our Amazon (or Goodreads) accounts, as either they've been sitting in our queue for a while and deserve their time in the sun, fall under our featuring policy, or they're new reads that we couldn't wait to post at the blog. You can check them out at the links below. Hope we can help you find your next favorite book!

Sara:

We Don't Talk About Carol by Kristen L. Berry

An Ethical Guide to Murder by Jenny Morris

Melissa:
The Accidental Sisterhood by Julie Edelman

You're Enough, June Nelson by Jessi Hansen

Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting by Clare Pooley

Home of the American Circus by Allison Larkin

Alarm Fatigue by Barbara Rachel

Jill is Not Happy by Kaira Rouda

A Map to Paradise by Susan Meissner

Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner

Falling for You Again by Kerry Lonsdale

Battle of the Bookstores by Ali Brady

Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano

Last Twilight in Paris by Pam Jenoff

Everything We Thought Was True by Lisa Montanaro

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Spotlight and Giveaway: How Freaking Romantic

We're excited to celebrate the publication of Emily Harding's first solo rom-com, How Freaking Romantic! This enemies-to-lovers story is sure to heat up your summer (not that we need more actual heat, but the kind from books is always good). Thanks to Gallery, we have THREE copies for some lucky readers!

Beatrice Nilsson is what some might call “feisty” (those who love her) and others “combative” (those who don’t). But no matter what you call her, she’s a good lawyer and an even better friend. So when the marriage of her two closest pals ends in divorce, Bea picks a side and storms the office of attorney Nathan Asher to tell him exactly what he can do with his alimony petition. Unfortunately, what should end with a few choice words soon spirals into uncharted territory when Nate shows up at her NYU Law office a few days later as a newly-minted adjunct professor—and her new colleague.

Bea still hates Nathan, of course. But between weekly meetings and networking events, walks around Washington Square Park and late-night pizza, that hate begins to feel a lot like something else. And as uncomfortable truths emerge about the divorce that started it all, she might have to choose between her friends’ happily ever after and her own for the very first time. (Synopsis courtesy of Amazon.)

“The set-up! The snark! The spice! Emily Harding had me at 'storming the office of her best friend’s ex-husband’s divorce lawyer' and kept me cackling all the way through. This book is an absolute delight.” 
-- Colleen Oakley, USA Today bestselling author of The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise

"Inject this cynical angry woman into my veins! How Freaking Romantic is truly for the ragey girls among us, and I loved every second of it. Emily Harding writes the scrappiest, wittiest, most heartfelt characters to root for, and we’re all the luckier for it." 
-- Ali Rosen, bestselling author of Recipe for Second Chances

"Flawless. Harding is set to be a rom-com powerhouse.” 

-- Lauren Layne, New York Times bestselling author of Made in Manhattan

Emily Harding is one-half of the writing duo behind the For the Love of Austen series, including Emma of 83rd Street and Elizabeth of East Hampton. She is a graduate of Emerson College with degrees in both creative writing and film. After working over fifteen years in television development and production, she found her way back to writing. Emily lives in Dallas with her husband, two children, and an incredibly spoiled Texas heeler. Visit Emily at her website and on Instagram.

How to win: Use Rafflecopter to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using Rafflecopter on our blog, enter the giveaway here. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaway ends July 6th at midnight EST. 

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Book Review: The World's Greatest Detective and Her Just Okay Assistant

By Sara Steven

Olivia Blunt doesn't want to be an assistant detective for the rest of her life. She's determined to learn everything she can from her mentor and renowned investigator, Aubrey Merritt, but the latter is no easy grader.

After weeks of fielding phone calls from parties desperate for the world-renowned detective’s help, a case comes across Olivia’s desk that just might be worthy of Merritt’s skills. On the evening of her sixty-fifth birthday party, Victoria Summersworth somehow fell over her balcony railing to her death on the rocky shore of Lake Champlain. She was a happy woman—rich, beloved, in love, and matriarch of the preeminent Summersworth family. The police have ruled it a suicide, but her daughter Haley thinks it was murder.

Merritt is ever the skeptic, but Olivia believes Haley. Plus, she’s desperate to prove her investigative skills to her aloof boss. But the Summersworth family drama is a complicated web.

Olivia realizes she might be in over her head with this whole detective thing... or she might be unravelling a mystery even bigger than the one she’d started with. (Synopsis courtesy of Goodreads.)

The World’s Greatest Detective has some great nuances that reminded me of the TV show Hacks, particularly with its primary investigator, Aubrey. She is tough and shrewd, and won’t put up with any nonsense. She won’t give any leeway to Olivia, not if Olivia wants to be Aubrey’s assistant. When the case regarding Victoria Summersworth becomes their primary objective, it was fun to see how both women go about figuring out if Summersworth’s death was really self-inflicted, or if there was foul play involved. Aubrey is methodical and stoic, while Olivia uses intuition to factor in everything at play, making both characters push and pull against each other in the best of ways.

The synopsis indicates how complicated the Summersworth family drama can be, and that is no lie. There are a lot of elements and various relatives at play, from siblings to potential romantic partners, assistants and relatives attached to assistants. I appreciated how every suspect is detailed out nicely, so I never felt lost as to who was who. Through it all, I had my suspicions on what really happened to Victoria Summersworth, and there were some definite twists and turns along the way. The plotline didn’t make it easy, and that’s the best kind of suspenseful experience. Where you have to actually focus and think on what the eventual answer might be.

When I got about three-quarters of the way through the book, I did feel as though it was running a little longer than I’d expected it to. Maybe because I was more than ready to know for sure if my assessment was correct. But even with that, The World’s Greatest Detective was a great read, and even though the title claims that Olivia is just the okay assistant, she was definitely more than that. Both ladies were powerhouses and really made the experience!    

Thanks to Berkley for the book in exchange for an honest review.

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