By Amity Gaige
** Publication Date 1 April 2025 **
​4.75 stars

I love how this book is written from three distinct points of view. Two of them are so clearly connected. The third doesn’t reveal itself until much later. While it is a story of the Appalachian Trail and those who undertake it, it is also a story of finding yourself out there in the wilderness and realizing what ultimately makes you happy.


Sparrow is trying to do a flip flop on the AT. Starting in Harper’s Ferry, hiking to Maine, then ferrying back to Harper’s Ferry and continuing the rest of the trail south from there. Her ‘treasure’ spouse is the one doing all the driving. Meeting her at checkpoints. Taking her to hotels for a break. Restaurants for real food. Until Sparrow misses a checkpoint. 


Lena is the elderly scientist and forager, living in a retirement to death community. She has one real friend in the facility and mostly lives online talking to her Reddit buddy. They’ve never met, but she thinks him to be the master forager and outdoorsman that he portrays on the message boards. They have a private message conversation that goes back and forth for quite a while. Lena is lonely. She doesn’t think herself lonely, but estranged from her daughter, she truly has no one but the stranger online, and Warren, her community friend who goes foraging with her.


As a Maine Warden, Bev protects the massive outdoor lands of Maine. Search and rescue have been her forté, But that’s not all she does. She gives tickets, fines, and even breaks up domestic disputes in town if needed. When the call comes in that Sparrow has missed a check-in, Bev does what Bev does best. But when days pass and the mystery of Sparrow’s disappearance deepens, Bev wonders if her luck has run out. Will they ever find Sparrow?


As someone who loves the mountains, I would never dream of trying to through hike either the Pacific Crest or Appalachian Trail. I applaud those who do.  I love to read novels like this that immerse me in their worlds, but don’t require any muddy boots or hunger. Gaige has done such an amazing job of not only making the Trail a character in the story, but writing such deep characters. I fell in love with them all. 


Strongly recommend!!! If you loved Wild, you will love Heartwood. 

By Sandie Jones 
** Publication Date 25 March 2025 **
​4 stars 

Rock groupies have existed for as long as rock has existed. Maybe even before. Lots of books have approached the topic. This book tackles it in a different light. 


Sixteen year old Cassie is obsessed with Secret Oktober. She imagines that she’s going to be in a relationship with Ben Edwards, their lead singer. When she shows up at a pop-up event, she befriends Ameilia who has been a groupie for a while. Amelia knows the band and thinks she has a relationship with the drummer Michael. Amelia ropes Cassie into hanging out, skipping school and work, and following the band. 


Nicole is Cassie’s older sister. Nicole is a singer/songwriter who is working the circuit trying to make something of her career. When Nicole crosses paths with Ben, she does her best to keep him a secret from her sister. Nicole knows Cassie’s obsession and doesn’t want to hurt her in any way. But as Cassie and Amelia get in deeper with both their imagined relationships and the band, things turn ugly. 


The book jumps between current day and the 1980s. It develops into more than just a book about a band and relationships. It’s about hiding your past and having to confront it later in life. It’s about secrets that you never should have kept and truths that should have been told. I never expected the ending to turn out the way it did. It’s kind of wild. 


Enjoyed this one and would recommend it. Definitely kind of chick-lit with an edge.

By Lisa Jewell
** Publication Date 25 March 2025 **
​4 stars
I’m not even a Marvel fan! Honestly you don’t have to be to love this book. I’m a huge Lisa Jewell fan, so when I saw another novel by her, I didn’t even read the title. But here I am, not only having loved this book, but wanting more Jessica Jones.


Since this takes place in the Marvel Universe, I’m sure a lot of you know all about Jessica Jones. For those of you who don’t, it appears that Ms. Jones has taken a leave of absence from the superhero life after being brainwashed and forced to commit heinous crimes. Now she’s a self-employed private detective living and working in Hell’s Kitchen. 


When approached by a very fancy mom to find out what’s wrong with her teens, Jessica initially wants to say no. But having no other jobs in the future and needing the income, she names an outrageous price and takes on what she thinks are just teens being teens. Until they aren’t. These teens are strange. Nothing normal about them. Which leads Jessica to a small town in England and a very strange social media beauty influencer.


Alongside all this is Jessica’s somewhat relationship with another superhero, Luke. Will they or won’t they? Are they or aren’t they? It’s just a side story to the real mystery. 


With Lisa Jewell’s ability to spin an amazing mystery, this novel rocks. As an initiate to the Marvel Universe, I have to say, I might need to dig in a little deeper now. I think they were genius to ask someone as talented as Ms. Jewell to write a little story for Ms. Jones. 

By Andrew Ludington
** Publication Date 18 March 2025 **
​4 stars
​Please, please do not put this book down in the first third. It is slow. It is detailed, but if you can hold out, you will be rewarded with a great adventure tale set in the 6th century. 


Rabbit Ward is a time traveler. Chrono Archaeologist to be more precise, but he does travel through time to retrieve relics that may have been lost to history otherwise. There is a time jump in his past that has forever haunted him, and people are starting to whisper that maybe it’s time for him to hang up his jumping shoes. Dr. Ward thinks otherwise.


He keeps encountering this mysterious modern day woman on his jumps. Rabbit wants to determine who she is. Then there is the rumor that someone is selling out secrets so that she can keep finding him on his travels. Someone within his own ranks. The Smithsonian. Whoever she is, she has an uncanny ability to cross paths with him.


On a trip to 535 CE they cross paths again. This time, though, it might take both of them to get out of this trip safely. Can Rabbit trust her? 


As I said, the beginning of this novel tends to be fairly methodical with a lot of backstory. A lot of research went into getting the historical details correct. It’s crazy! Do not fret! Keep along and you’ll find an amazing trip through history, with a lot of hijinks and mayhem. I flew through the second half of this book. 


For a person who is not enamored of historical novels, I did enjoy this one. It has enough intrigue to keep anyone entertained.