By Sarah Harman
** Publication Date 11 March 2025 **
4 stars

Books set in London are such fun. I love the feeling of being someplace other than Nowheresville, US. This book is no exception.


Florence was mostly raised in Florida, but ended up in the UK when her mother was dating a Brit. She ended up a member of a girl pop band, but that was short-lived. Now she’s a single mom of a quirky 10 year old boy. No job. Not a whole lot of money. And literally no direction.


One of her son’s classmates goes missing while on a field trip, and Florence immediately wonders if her son was involved. After all, her son Dylan is not particularly enamored of this rotten heir to a frozen food empire. So when she finds evidence that Dylan really may be have been responsible, she will do anything to clear his name. She’s a mom, after all. 


But Florence is unskilled and unmotivated, so how will she do this? Recruiting a fellow mom, also from the US, to be her driver and her partner. Florence ropes this mom into her plan to prove Dylan’s innocence, even when it crosses the line.


Very cute, very fun story about a very aimless woman trying to find her place after plan A doesn’t work out. It’s reminiscent of the Finlay Donovan series. Hapless Florence makes a lot of mistakes simply by trying to do the right thing. 


Definitely recommend this light read.

By Jenna Voris
** Publication Date 4 March 2025 **
​4 stars

In my mind I must still be a teen, because I truly love YA books. This one delves into being queer as a teen, unwanted pregnancy, and the religious right. If that doesn’t appeal to you, do not read this book. But for a lot of teens, this book is exactly what they need. 


Riley is a high school junior, heavily involved in the drama department, and queer. She came out to her parents as being bisexual. They accepted her without question. However, their church did not. As such, the family no longer attends church.


When one of Riley’s sister Hannah’s best friends is caught saying unkind things about Hannah, Riley takes matters into her own hands. This results in Riley having to spend a week at a Christian spring break camp or lose her spot in the spring musical. For Riley there is no option here. The camp it is. But she is going to use this time to find a way to make the people of her town understand that their pastor, her best friend’s father, is anything but a positive influence.


Only things happen at camp that Riley can’t even imagine would, and she is forced to rethink her revenge campaign. Life as a teen is never easy.


I honestly can’t imagine what it would be like to be in Riley’s situation. Fortunately she’s fairly resilient to the chatter about her sexuality. As an adult, knowing so many people who were unable to share their true sexuality as teens, I’m glad the world has changed. I’m thankful for books like this for the teens currently trying to figure out who they are. My hope is that teens will always be accepted for who they are (and adults too.) Maybe more books like this will accomplish that.

By Ginny Myers Sain
** Publication Date 4 March 2025 **
​4 stars
Southern Gothic Horror! This is a crazy wicked novel about myths, legends, and murder taking place in the Ozarks off the Aux-Arc Trail.


Dovie’s mom disappeared ages ago, when Dovie was just a little one. No one talks about what happened to her mom. Mostly because Dovie’s family, the Clovers, are Hill people - or outsiders in this small community in the Ozarks. Dovie’s maternal grandmother and her mother had a gift where they could track the dead by the ‘singing of their bones.’ And Dovie has it too. When hikers go missing from the AAT, the local Sheriff relies on Dovie to locate the dead.


Then there’s Lowan, the other half of Dovie, and a descendant of another Hill family. Their grandmothers and mothers were best friends. Until Lowan’s mother died and Dovie’s disappeared. Lowan is battling demons of his own in this small town. Dovie wants to take his demons away.


When a boy from Oklahoma goes missing from the Trail, Dovie finds him. Lowan knows how he died. And the boy’s brother comes looking for answers. The three team up to try to figure out who or what is responsible for what’s happening in these hills. 


This is a creepy telling of the tale of the Ozark Howler, a mythical beast in the hills of the Ozarks. But there’s more to this than just the Howler. It’s a story of outsiders in their own communities. About the power of the local preacher to turn against those who have been here longer than most. And believing in the best of people without realizing their dark sides.


It’s an immersive novel that beautifully describes this location and the people who inhabit it. I enjoyed it immensely with its themes of magic and backwoods wisdom. Dovie is one tough cookie who accepts her ‘gift’ even when it causes her such pain. Gripping and frightening, well done.

By Emily J Taylor
** Publication Date 25 February 2025 **
4 stars



The fantasy world of Leyland sounds like a fairly dreary and dismal spot. But this book set in Leyland, and its alternate world Barrow, is not. This novel dumps us in the middle of this place with a spunky heroine named Maeve who wants to hide from the worlds.


Maeve was present when her father supposedly committed the greatest crime ever - releasing a toxic vine that causes everyone to sleep. She was sent to an orphanage where she later escaped and started moving around under aliases to protect her identity. But when she receives an anonymous letter saying her father is innocent, Maeve decides it’s time to get to the bottom of the real story.


Stealing someone else’s spot as an apprentice for the Otherwhere Post, Maeve immerses herself in the world of scriptomancy to try to unearth the truth. Along the way her own life will be threatened. With her mentor and roommate by her side, can Maeve prove that her father was not guilty of mass murder?


Such a great book. For all those who love fantasy and other worlds, this one is truly fun. Maeve is a fierce protagonist who has to learn to trust others, something she’s never done. It’s a bit of a mystery to find out the truth, which makes this journey evermore enjoyable. 


Wish this was a series, as I loved all the settings and characters and would be thrilled to return to the worlds of the Otherwhere Post.

By Nussaibah Younis
** Publication Date 25 February 2025 **
​4 stars



This book was really fun and enlightening. I love when I can enjoy reading something, but also learn something in the process. 


Nadia is a lecturer at university in London. She decided to take a sabbatical and implement her deradicalization ideas with a division of the UN stationed in Baghdad. Immediately upon arrival she starts to question why on earth she thought it was a good idea. 


Her unit will be responsible for the ISIS ‘brides’ imprisoned in a camp. They are women from both Iraq and other countries, who somehow ended up married to men of ISIS. Nadia feels that with the right training and counseling, they can be repatriated into their own countries. Only the two people on her team seem against the idea, and her boss seems oblivious. Nadia is all alone on this one. Nadia blunders into her task with hilarity and sometimes sadness. Most of these women didn’t realize what they were signing up for, and most would like to go home. 


While Nadia’s concept is noble, the task of implementing it is never going to be an easy one. The middle east is still filled with misogyny, sometimes extreme, and corruption, everyone wants to get paid for their assistance. Nadia latches onto a 19 year old former-ISIS bride who reminds her of herself. That’s when things get really out of hand.


This novel introduced me to so many things that I knew nothing about. What it is like to be Muslim in London. What happened to all the ISIS brides that were recruited. It was a lesson in world culture that I sorely needed. The wonderful thing was Nadia! She managed to keep putting one foot in front of the other even when things got horribly bad. She turned her coworkers into allies. She was tough and soft and funny all at the same time. She grew throughout the novel. 


It’s a good one.