Other People's Houses Blog Tour

Abbi Waxman, author of Garden of Small Beginnings is coming out with another book.

Summary (Provided by Goodreads): At any given moment in other people's houses, you can find...repressed hopes and dreams...moments of unexpected joy...someone making love on the floor to a man who is most definitely not her husband...

*record scratch*

As the longtime local carpool mom, Frances Bloom is sometimes an unwilling witness to her neighbors' private lives. She knows her cousin is hiding her desire for another baby from her spouse, Bill Horton's wife is mysteriously missing, and now this...

After the shock of seeing Anne Porter in all her extramarital glory, Frances vows to stay in her own lane. But that's a notion easier said than done when Anne's husband throws her out a couple of days later. The repercussions of the affair reverberate through the four carpool families--and Frances finds herself navigating a moral minefield that could make or break a marriage. 

Berkley publishing has been nice enough to allow me to share with you an excerpt from the first chapter before the official release tomorrow! Go ahead and enjoy :)

Frances pulled into the elementary school lot and Ava got out, sighing as if she were a fourteen-year-old Victorian child disembarking for her day down the mine. She pulled open the door and swung her arm wide.

“Medium-size children may now escape. Mind the gap, and watch out for speeding moms on cell phones.”

The children had already unbuckled and piled out, high-fiving Ava as they passed her. Kate stopped, and Frances turned to see what was up. The little girl’s face was a study in conflict.

“What’s wrong, honey?”

Kate looked at Frances, and her chin wobbled.

“I left my toilet roll tubes at home.”

“Oh.” Frances looked at her eldest child. Ava shrugged, looking back inside the open minivan.

“They aren’t in the car.”

“Oh, OK.” Frances smiled at Kate. “I’m sure the teacher will have lots of extras.” She herself had, over time, sent in three thousand toilet roll tubes. For all she knew they were building a particle collider out of them, or an accurate re-creation of the New York subway system. Let’s hope they didn’t use the obvious choice for subway trains.

“No, I have to have my own ones.” Kate’s eyes were filling with tears, her shit-fit indicator was dropping to DEFCON 3. “It’s for the class project. Everyone else will have them.”

Frances weighed her options. On the one hand Kate was only six, and would not only survive but would forget the trauma of not having had toilet roll tubes. But on the other hand, she was a member of the Yakuza-esque organization known as Miss Lollio’s First Grade Class, whose members fell on the weakest like wolves on a lamb. Forgetting to bring toilet roll tubes and having to borrow some was a Noticeable Event to be avoided at all costs. It wasn’t on the level of peeing oneself, of course, it wasn’t going to give rise to a nickname you couldn’t shake until college, but it wasn’t great.

“My mommy put them in a bag, but she forgot to give them to me.” A note of accusatory steel had entered her voice. Frances gazed at the little angel, whose mother had been heard calling her Butterblossom. Kate’s eyes had gone flat like a shark’s. She knew she would get what she wanted, the only question was when. I am younger than you, old lady, her eyes said, and I will stand here until age makes you infirm, at which time I will push you down, crunch over your brittle bones, and get the toilet roll tubes I need.

“Alright, Kate. I’ll go back and get them after I drop Ava, OK, and bring them back to school for you.” Frances knew she was being played, but it was OK. She was softhearted, and she could live with that.

“Suckah . . .” Ava headed back to her seat, shaking her head over her mother’s weakness, a weakness she loved to take advantage of herself.

“Thanks, Frances!” Kate beamed an enormous smile, turned, and ran off—the transformation from tremulous waif to bouncy cherub instantaneous. Behind her in the line of cars, someone tapped their horn. OK, the brief honk said, we waited while you dealt with whatever mini crisis was caused by your piss-poor parenting, because we’re nice like that, but now you can get a move on because we, like everyone else in this line, have Shit to Do. Amazing how much a second of blaring horn can communicate.

Frances waved an apologetic hand out of the car window, and pulled out of the gate.

She dropped the other kids and was back at Anne’s house in a half hour. Having carpool duty wasn’t the onerous task the other parents thought it was: All three schools were close to home, and all four families lived on the same block. As Frances ran up to Anne’s door she looked over and saw her own cat, Carlton, watching her. She waved. He blinked and looked away, embarrassed for both of them.

She knocked softly on the door, but no one answered. Maybe Anne had gone back to sleep. She turned the handle and pushed open the door, peering around. Yup, there was the bag of toilet roll tubes. She grabbed it and was about to shut the door again when she saw Anne lying on the floor, her face turned away, her long hair spilling across the rug.

“Anne! Holy crap, are you OK?” But as she said it her brain started processing what she was really seeing. Anne, on the floor, check. But now she’d turned her head and Frances realized she was fine. In fact, she was better than fine. Frances had instinctively stepped over the sill and now she saw that Anne was naked, her face flushed, a man between her legs, his head below her waist.

“Shit . . .” Frances dropped her eyes, began to back out, “Sorry, Anne, Kate forgot her toilet roll tubes . . .” Stupidly she raised her hand with the Whole Foods bag in it because, of course, that would make it better, that she’d interrupted Anne and Charlie having a quickie on the living room floor. It was OK, because she was just here for the toilet roll tubes. Nothing to see here, move along.

The man realized something was wrong, finally, and raised his head, looking first at Anne and then turning to see what she was looking at, why her face was so pale when seconds before it had been so warmly flushed.

Frances was nearly through the door, it was closing fast, but not before she saw that it wasn’t Charlie at all. It was someone else entirely.

Frances closed the door and heard it click shut.

Giveaway

If you enjoyed that excerpt, you can enter my giveaway below for a chance to win a copy of the full novel!

The giveaway starts today and is open until April 9th. You must be a US resident and over the age of 18 to enter. If you are under 18, parent permission must be granted. 

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Hello, World!

The Coincidence Makers

By: Yoav Blum
Published Year: 2018
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Pages: 304

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I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This in no way shape or form influenced my opinion.

Summary (Provided by Goodreads): What if the drink you just spilled, the train you just missed, or the lottery ticket you just found was not just a random occurrence? What if it’s all part of a bigger plan? What if there’s no such thing as a chance encounter? What if there are people we don’t know determining our destiny? And what if they are even planning the fate of the world?

Enter the Coincidence Makers—Guy, Emily, and Eric—three seemingly ordinary people who work for a secret organization devoted to creating and carrying out coincidences. What the rest of the world sees as random occurrences, are, in fact, carefully orchestrated events designed to spark significant changes in the lives of their targets—scientists on the brink of breakthroughs, struggling artists starved for inspiration, loves to be, or just plain people like you and me…

When an assignment of the highest level is slipped under Guy’s door one night, he knows it will be the most difficult and dangerous coincidence he’s ever had to fulfill. But not even a coincidence maker can see how this assignment is about to change all their lives and teach them the true nature of fate, free will, and the real meaning of love.

First Impressions

I saw this book in an email from Netgalley and was drawn in by the title. I love coincidences and definitely and someone who believes everything happens for a reason. When I read the summary, I was immediately intrigued. It sounded unlike any book I had read before which continued to pique my interest. I’ve been in a bit of a book rut, so I requested this book to review and was very excited when I was approved.

What I thought

Guy, Emily, and Eric are coincidence makers. Their job is to set coincidences in motion, meaning there is no such thing as a true coincidence. Guy works with minor coincidences, such as matchmaking, but there are other levels of coincidence makers who set larger things in motion that can take years to come around. When Guy receives an assignment for a higher level coincidence, he starts to question what he’s been doing.

The concept of this book is so interesting! Imagine a world where there really is no such thing as a coincidence, but that there are people who decide these coincidences are going to happen and manufacture them. Mind blown right? The easiest ones to explain are matchmaking coincidences, but there are also inspiration coincidences. Matchmaking coincidences are pretty much what they sound like. You know all the meet cutes in movies? Or when you get partnered with your crush in class? Those didn’t just happen, but they were masterfully manipulated with a string of seemingly unconnected events to make it happen. Inspiration coincidences are like when Alexander Flemming accidentally discovered Penicillin when he found the moldy bread, or when someone who works as an IT is actually a truly gifted musician and they need to be inspired to change their path in life.

Guy most often work with matchmaking coincidences whereas Emily works mostly with inspiration coincidences. Eric receives a variety of coincidences that aren’t typically discussed. The three of them met and became friends at the coincidence makers training. The book alternates between Guy’s perspective, Emily’s perspective, and flashbacks from their training. It was fascinating to read about the course and how coincidence making works.

There is also a bit of a romance in the book that I didn’t quite expect. Guy is in love with someone from his past and Emily is in love with Guy. The relationships between Guy, Eric, and Emily are well written. I also liked how thought out the job of being a coincidence maker was. I was a bit surprised that this was more of a love story than the summary made it seem. It took a twist about halfway through the book that, while a little predictable, was really fun and made me like to book even more.

If you like romantic stories but are sick of reading the same type over and over again, I would recommend The Coincidence Makers. It seems to mix romance with a little bit of science/fiction and added a refreshing breath to typical romance tropes. The characters are solid and the concept is interesting and well thought out. I would definitely recommend it and almost rated it 4 stars, but I don’t know if it’s a book that I’d re-read. If you feel like you’ve been in a book rut, I would definitely recommend checking this one out.

Book Club March 2018- Artemis

By: Andy Weir
Published Year: 2017
Publisher: Crown Publishing Group
Pages: 305

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Summary (Provided by Goodreads): Jazz Bashara is a criminal.

Well, sort of. Life on Artemis, the first and only city on the moon, is tough if you're not a rich tourist or an eccentric billionaire. So smuggling in the occasional harmless bit of contraband barely counts, right? Not when you've got debts to pay and your job as a porter barely covers the rent.

Everything changes when Jazz sees the chance to commit the perfect crime, with a reward too lucrative to turn down. But pulling off the impossible is just the start of her problems, as she learns that she's stepped square into a conspiracy for control of Artemis itself—and that now, her only chance at survival lies in a gambit even riskier than the first.

What I thought

Being completely honest, when Denise picked this book I was a bit apprehensive. The summary did not appeal to me, so I felt myself putting off reading it a bit. I will happily admit, that my initial feelings were wrong and I’m glad that I was forced to read this book.

Artemis is a city on the moon. It is made up of aluminum bubbles that are connected by tunnels. Jazz has lived on Artemis for 20 years, since she was 6 years old, with her father. She has never known life on Earth. The population of people living on Artemis full time is pretty small, with the majority of people being tourists. Even though Jazz is a genius, she works as a smuggler. When offered the opportunity to work a job for one of her longtime customers, she finds herself in the middle of a situation a lot more dangerous than she originally expected.

As soon as I started reading this book, it reminded me of a grown up version of the Disney Channel Original Movie, Zenon Girl of the 21st Century. Honestly, if you have ever seen that movie, it is so similar. Both have feisty female characters who aren’t living up to their potential, who stumble upon a larger scheme, while originally only trying to serve themselves, and have to end up saving their city.

This book was a lot of fun and pretty easy to read. There are bits that get a little to scientific for my tastes, but I was appreciated them. I like when authors think out how certain aspects of their world would be possible. So, even though there were parts I didn’t understand and skimmed over, I appreciated them being there.

I definitely had a love/hate relationship with Jazz. I understood that at her ore she was a good person, but the whole “super genius with wasted potential” thing got a bit annoying. It seemed like she was a genius when it was convenient to the story, but then she was just so lazy at times. She also was not a good daughter, and her dad seemed so wonderful, so I felt bad for him. I did enjoy the secondary characters, so it was fun to see her interact with them more as the story went on.

Overall, I enjoyed the book and I would gladly read a sequel to see how Jazz and Artemis grow

What Book Club Thought

Everyone enjoyed the story. I think I actually had the most issues with it, but everyone finished the book and everyone liked it! We definitely haven’t had a book that we’ve all enjoyed in a while. One of the book club members agreed that it seemed like it was left open to a sequel.

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Let me Lie

By: Clare Mackintosh
Published Year: 2018
Publisher: Berkley
Pages: 400

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I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This in no way shape or form influenced my opinion.

Summary (Provided by Goodreads): The police say it was suicide.
Anna says it was murder.
They're both wrong.

One year ago, Caroline Johnson chose to end her life brutally: a shocking suicide planned to match that of her husband just months before. Their daughter, Anna, has struggled to come to terms with their loss ever since.

Now with a young baby of her own, Anna misses her mother more than ever and starts to question her parents’ deaths. But by digging up their past, she’ll put her future in danger. Sometimes it’s safer to let things lie…

First Impressions

I have read Mackintosh’s previous two novels and enjoyed them. I liked her second more than her first, so I was looking forward to this one. The cover honestly didn’t do much for me and wouldn’t be one I picked up off of the shelves with no prior knowledge.

What I thought

Anna Johnson lost both of her parents about a year ago. Her dad committed suicide and then 6 months later, her mom committed suicide in the same way. It is the anniversary of her mom’s death when she receives a note on her front door that reads “Suicide? Try again.” Anna, who has been having doubts about her parents’ deaths, sees this as the confirmation she needs to move forward with her suspicions. She goes to the cops with the letter, where retired cop, Murray, who is currentl working at the front desk, takes on the case. Soon after, it seems as though someone is coming after Anna to stop her from finding out the truth.

This story is told in 3 parts, and the first part was my least favorite. The book got off to a bit of a slow start. It was interesting seeing Anna bring her suspicions to the police and making my own theories (was it her neighbor? A mobster? Anna’s baby daddy?), but I knew a plot twist was coming and I just wanted it.

There was a second storyline about Murray and his wife who has a mental illness that causes her to check herself into a facility from time to time. It was an interesting storyline, but at times felt a bit too much considering it wasn’t meant to be the main storyline.

When the plot twist/part 2 came along, I was a lot more interested in what was happening. It felt as though the story was really moving forward and I liked seeing some of the relationships. It also erased an element from the first part that I didn’t like, so that helped.

Then! I got to part 3! I had no idea yet another twist was coming and it was a good one. Part 3 was my favorite part of the book because I really felt like that was when the action started happening. The pace of the book picked up greatly and I enjoyed it so much more.

I know that I didn’t say much about the book, but I try not to say too much about mysteries/thrillers since I don’t want to give anything away. I will say that this book completely got me! Mackintosh’s last book, I See You, also got me with a really good twist at the end. If you enjoy thrillers, I would recommend looking into this book and Mackintosh’s other novels. They’re all a bit slow to start, but have some surprising twists.

The Broken Girls

By: Simone St. James
Published Year: 2018
Publisher: Berkley
Pages: 336

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This in no way shape or form influenced my opinion.

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Summary (Provided by Goodreads): Vermont, 1950. There's a place for the girls whom no one wants--the troublemakers, the illegitimate, the too smart for their own good. It's called Idlewild Hall. And in the small town where it's located, there are rumors that the boarding school is haunted. Four roommates bond over their whispered fears, their budding friendship blossoming--until one of them mysteriously disappears. . . . 

Vermont, 2014. As much as she's tried, journalist Fiona Sheridan cannot stop revisiting the events surrounding her older sister's death. Twenty years ago, her body was found lying in the overgrown fields near the ruins of Idlewild Hall. And though her sister's boyfriend was tried and convicted of murder, Fiona can't shake the suspicion that something was never right about the case.

When Fiona discovers that Idlewild Hall is being restored by an anonymous benefactor, she decides to write a story about it. But a shocking discovery during the renovations will link the loss of her sister to secrets that were meant to stay hidden in the past--and a voice that won't be silenced. . . .

First Impressions

The cover of this book is kind of meh. I definitely wouldn’t pick it up based on the cover alone. The summary was more intriguing. I was fascinated by the history of an all girls school intertwining with present day. I also enjoyed St. James’ previous book, so I was curious about this one.

What I thought

This book took me a little while to get into, but once I got started it was fascinating.

Fiona is a journalist in present day. Her sister was murdered 20 years ago and her body was found on the land of Idlewild, the school for troubled girls. When Fiona finds out that the school is being restored, she jumps on the chance to write a story about it in hopes that she will find out more about her sister’s murder. This story is alternated with rotating points of view of four students of Idlewild in the early 1950s. These chapters give insight into the everyday lives at Idlewild and the past of how one of the girl’s lives ends forever. Similar to St. James’ previous novel, there is a supernatural/ghost element.

The reason I mention the ghost element is because I was taken aback by that side of the story in her previous novel. Going into this one I expected it, so I was able to handle it a bit better. I didn’t mind it in this story thought. It definitely was a part of the storyline, but it could just as easily have not been there. It was more of a bonus than a part that truly held the story together, so I was ok with it.

As I expected, my favorite parts of the story were the flashbacks to the girls’ lives at Idlewild. I like to read about experiences that are dissimilar from my own and the boarding school for troubled girls was fascinating. Add the fact that it was haunted, and I kept waiting for something to happen so I looked forward to the flashbacks.

Fiona’s story was interesting as well, but moved a bit slowly. She starts with investigating the spot where here sister was murdered. Even though a murderer was convicted and has been sitting in jail for 20 years, Fiona isn’t sure he’s the one who did it. She feels like some part is missing and it has been bothering her for 20 years. When she starts researching Idlewild, she discovers a lot more than she expected.

Like I said, it moves a bit slowly. There were parts that were meant to be twists that I was able to figure out, but there were some parts I didn’t expect. I wouldn’t classify this as a mystery per-say, but there were some mysterious elements to it.

This book was interesting. I liked trying to figure out two stories at the same time that intertwined. I also liked the historical fiction elements of the story, even though the history wasn’t that long ago. If you dislike ghost stories, this won’t be up your alley. But if you like mysteries and are looking for one with a bit of a twist, then I’d recommend this book. There are some solid friendship elements and relationship elements to this story too. I look forward to reading St. James’ next book.

Summer in the City

By: Elizabeth Chandler
Published Year: 2006
Pages: 358
Publisher: HarperTeen

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Summary (Provided by Goodreads): Athletic Jamie isn't sure about spending the summer in the city with her romance–novel–writing mum. But when she meets irresistible Josh, Jamie realizes she could probably use all the romance advice she can get!

Lacrosse camp 9 a.m.–noon (can't be late! "Coach" Josh will freak out)

Basketball camp 1:00–4:00 (so many screaming kids. . . )

Shopping with Mona 4:30 (finally a break)

Date with Andrew 7:30 (he's so perfect. . . isn't he?)

First Impressions

I think this book popped up as a recommendation when I got my Kindle or as a ebook deal somewhere. This was definitely a cover that caught my eye and that alone was the reason I checked it out. I hadn’t heard anything about this book but it sounded right up my ally!

What I thought

This book was so enjoyably and pleasant.

Jamie is spending the summer before her freshman year of college in the city (Baltimore) with her romance novel writing mother. While she typically spends the summer in Michigan at the cabin with her high school football coach dad, he has a new girlfriend who he invited with and that is not Jamie’s scene. She signs up for a Lacrosse camp at the high school and ends up learning more about herself than the expected for the summer.

While some of the parts of this story were a bit silly (why is an incoming college freshman with a basketball scholarship attending a high school Lacrosse camp when she has only ever played Lacrosse in her backyard with her dad), overall, I loved this story.

Unlike Jamie’s mom’s romance novels, Jamie is not lucky in love. In fact, she’s a bit cynical when it comes to romance. The few relationships she had failed as a result of the boys only getting close to her to get close to her father. When she first spots Josh at Lacrosse camp, she writes him off as not her type since he’s just another jock. He also writes her off as being a bit cocky.

In addition to the fun but feisty romance, the friendships are great. Jamie has both female and male friends and I loved that it showed the different types of friendship that a person can have. Her friendship with Mona is the perfect teenage girl friendship, but then her friendship with Ted is a great sports boy/girl friendship with no level of flirty attraction. The balance between the relationships was very enjoyable.

There were also some pretty funny moment throughout the book. I can’t specifically pick one out (if you’ve read this blog for a while you’ll know I’m not really one for marking quotes) but this book was just pure fun all over.

If you love books about sports with strong female characters and solid relationships you need to pick up this book. It’s a quick read that will make you have all the feels. Jamie is an independent woman and Josh is swoon worthy. It was the perfect summer read and I loved the slow burn of their romance. I highly recommend this book and I’m glad that I purchased it so that I can read it again in the future!

As Bright As Heaven

By: Susan Meissner
Published Year: 2018
Publisher: Berkley
Pages: 387

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This in no way shape or form influenced my opinion.

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Summary (Provided by Goodreads): From the acclaimed author of Secrets of a Charmed Life and A Bridge Across the Ocean comes a new novel set in Philadelphia during the Spanish flu epidemic of 1918, which tells the story of a family reborn through loss and love.

In 1918, Philadelphia was a city teeming with promise. Even as its young men went off to fight in the Great War, there were opportunities for a fresh start on its cobblestone streets. Into this bustling town, came Pauline Bright and her husband, filled with hope that they could now give their three daughters--Evelyn, Maggie, and Willa--a chance at a better life.

But just months after they arrive, the Spanish Flu reaches the shores of America. As the pandemic claims more than twelve thousand victims in their adopted city, they find their lives left with a world that looks nothing like the one they knew. But even as they lose loved ones, they take in a baby orphaned by the disease who becomes their single source of hope. Amidst the tragedy and challenges, they learn what they cannot live without--and what they are willing to do about it.

As Bright as Heaven is the compelling story of a mother and her daughters who find themselves in a harsh world, not of their making, which will either crush their resolve to survive or purify it.

First Impressions

Ooooo! Very pretty! Meissner’s covers definitely speak to me. I was very intrigued by the summary. I enjoy historical fiction and I have never read a book that takes revolves around the Spanish Flu. Add in the intrigue of an orphaned child and I knew this would be one I would enjoy.

What I thought

As Bright as Heaven is split into two parts. Part 1 occurs before and during the flu, part 2 occurs after. I have to admit, that I think I was partial to Part 1.

Pauline and her husband, Thomas have 3 girls aged 15, 11, and 7. In the early 1900s, they decide to move their family from Quakerstown Pennsylvania to Philadelphia, not long after losing their baby boy. They move into the home of Thomas’s Uncle Fred, who is an undertaker. Shortly after the family arrives, World War 1 and the Spanish Flu leave their mark on the city. Amongst this chaos, Maggie, the middle child, finds an orphaned baby boy and brings him home. The family raises them as their own, filling the void left by baby Henry.

Without giving too much away, there is a bit off complication with how Maggie finds orphan Alex. This is explored in the second part, but it’s pretty obvious from the beginning that it’s going to come back and bite Maggie in the butt.

The story is told with alternating perspectives from Pauline and each of her daughters, Evie, the eldest, Maggie, and Willa, the youngest. It was a bit hard to get into at first because of that. I felt like I wasn’t quite getting far enough into the story to connect with any of them, so when it switched perspectives I felt lost. Luckily, the writing settled pretty quickly, and about 20% of the way through the book it really started to flow.

I think part of the reason I preferred the first part to the second is that the first part had a bit more drama and suspense. The second part was a lot about relationships and was a bit more predictable to me than the first part. I did enjoy seeing the relationships between the sisters grow and I also appreciated seeing what they did with their lives as they grew, but it wasn’t my favorite part.

Again, it’s hard to talk about certain parts without giving things away, but I wasn’t crazy about Evie and Willa’s stories in the second part. I was more so irritated by Willa’s storyline than Evie’s, but there was one aspect of Evie’s story that just didn’t sit well with me. It is meant to be romantic, but it just rubbed me the wrong way a bit.

If you enjoy historical fiction and want something a little different, then I’d recommend this book. It does focus more on family and familial relationships that romance, so if you tend to prefer the romantic historical fiction stories, this will not be it. Surprisingly, even though it can be a dark/heavy book at times, that isn’t the overall feeling that I was left with, so if you’re intimidated at all by the storyline, I would say it’s lighter that you will expect it to be. The writing is solid and enjoyable and I look forward to reading more from Meissner.

The Queen of Hearts

By: Kimmery Martin
Published Year: 2018
Publisher: Berkley
Pages: 352

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This in no way shape or form influenced my opinion.

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Summary (Provided by Goodreads): Zadie Anson and Emma Colley have been best friends since their early twenties, when they first began navigating serious romantic relationships amid the intensity of medical school. Now they're happily married wives and mothers with successful careers--Zadie as a pediatric cardiologist and Emma as a trauma surgeon. Their lives in Charlotte, North Carolina are chaotic but fulfilling, until the return of a former colleague unearths a secret one of them has been harboring for years. 

As chief resident, Nick Xenokostas was the center of Zadie's life--both professionally and personally--throughout a tragic chain of events in her third year of medical school that she has long since put behind her. Nick's unexpected reappearance during a time of new professional crisis shocks both women into a deeper look at the difficult choices they made at the beginning of their careers. As it becomes evident that Emma must have known more than she revealed about circumstances that nearly derailed both their lives, Zadie starts to question everything she thought she knew about her closest friend. 

First Impressions

Ooooo! So pretty! I almost don’t care what this book is about because the cover is so pretty. Luckily, the summary appealed to me as well. A friendship with hidden secrets in their past that comes back to haunt them? I was completely sold and this became one of my most anticipated novels of 2018.

What I thought

Queen of Hearts is pretty much what Grey’s Anatomy would be if it was a book and I loved it.

Emma and Zadie became friends when they met at a high school program for aspiring doctors. They then stayed friends as they went through the same programs and both ended up working in their specialties in Charolette. At this point in their lives, tey are both married with children and still consider each other their closest and dearest friends.

When they were in medical school, the experienced a traumatic event that was fraught with drama and mystery. Ten years later, a doctor from their past, who was right in the middle of this mystery and drama, shows up in their hospital.

The story alternates between Zadie and Emma’s perspectives as well as the timeline of current day and their pasts (mostly their third year of medical school). I liked the way that this novel was laid out. I think the story would have lost a lot if it had only been told from one perspective, and I liked that we learned about their past slowly over time and not all at once.

Martin also balanced the medical terminology with real world drama. I never felt like I was reading a textbook, but there was enough there that I felt as though Emma and Zadie were real life med students and doctors. The only issue I had with the writing was the character descriptions. I felt there was a lot of discussion about Emma and Zadie’s appearances. Not only did it come up a few too many times for my liking, but it was always the same description. If I had to read that Zadie was “slim but voluptuous in a curvy way” one more time I was going to scream.

I loved the medical drama, as I am a fan of the early Grey’s Anatomy seasons. The friendship was beautiful to see too. I loved seeing that Emma and Zadie were supportive of each other throughout their lives. Watching the way their past came up on them was fascinating too, and ended in a satisfying (if maybe not fully realistic) way.

I really enjoyed this book. I would have loved to read it with book club, just to have someone to talk about it with. If you are a Grey’s Anatomy fan, or a fan of books with friendship at the core I would highly recommend this book. As a debut, I think Martin has a few kinks to work out with her writing, but her story telling is solid and I was entertained the entire time. I look forward to reading more of her books in the future!