A family-centric tale of a Dominican Republic/ American sisters and cousins some born with a gift. When Flor, who can forecast when a death will occur, tells the family she wants to hold a living wake the sisters fear the worst. Chapters are divided to share the female family members stories and explore family, traditions, motherhood and resilience. Flor's daughter is collecting stories as research for her project and these stories mirror the experiences of many immigrants who straddle two countries and two cultures. While some non-spanish speakers may have difficulty with the language the themes come through clearly - family, love and searching for happiness. ​ 4 stars

Grandmother, daughter and granddaughter traverse the undertow that threatens to pull them apart as they try to find their footing in their coastal Florida home.  This is a beautifully expressed story of love, connection and pushback of three generations of Vietnamese American women.  Grandma Minh is the connective tissue between her daughter Huong and granddaughter Ann and Huong resents the ease of her mom's and daughter's relationship yet doesn't know how to change it.  When Minh dies and leaves the Banyan House to her daughter and granddaughter it begins the healing process.  Three generations of strong women each passing on that strength to their children.  They have all known love and great heartache and while only two have known the horrors of war and leaving their homeland, they all share in the wake of the trauma.   This gorgeous debut is the perfect book for mothers and daughters to share.  4 stars

A romcom involving two physicists proving that love and hate can exist between two bodies of matter simultaneously and that honesty does matter even though it is hard to practice. Elsie needs her fake dating gigs to pay for all the expenses her day job as an adjunct professor doesn't cover. When she runs into her client's older brother on the biggest MIT interview of her life she feels like her future career just got put on the bunsen burner. Jack is tough and all wrong for Elsie in theory but in practice their particles keep colliding in a not unpleasant way with lots of friction. Delightfully witty and smart this is another example of breaking the stereotype that intelligent people in science can't be fun and a nod to" you should be who you are and love who you want to love". Her fans will love this and she will bring many more into the Hazelwood universe.   4 stars

A dying town on the Texas coast is the scene of a possible murder. Kate was elderly, it was a horrible storm and the Parson House was in need of repair but did she fall off the balcony or have help? This story balances Southern gothic intrigue and small town politics with the effects of childhood trauma that goes down as easy as sweet tea on a Texas summer day. Lou is confused about her relationship with her girlfriend Heather, her relationship with Kate's kids who used to be childhood friends, and very confused about what really happened in that car crash years ago that changed all of them forever. Small town behavior where everyone knows your business combined with all those underlying secrets and layers of racism make this debut sure to please readers of S.A. Cosby and Stacey Swann's OLYMPUS TEXAS. ​ 4 stars

S.A. Cosby does not mince words, tolerate racism or sugarcoat a history of violence in his native Virginia. His superpower against this hatred is the mighty pen and once again his words and story seep into your head and stay with you even as you shake your head in disbelief that the world can be so cruel. Former FBI Titus Crown is the first black sheriff in his small town and dealing with a horrific school shooting resulting in the death of a beloved white teacher by a black teen. When the shooter is gunned down this sets off a powder keg. Titus finds proof that the slain teacher was part of a ritual killing spree targeting black children he won't rest until all the these killers are found. Powerful, violent and a sad reminder that not all children are treasured. Titus is a spiritual man but whoever is carving bible quotes into the victims does not serve the same god. He is deeply attached to the town he grew up in and his family but this evil might just break him. Fans of his other books will read this in one sitting as will readers of Southern crime or horror like THE ANGEL MAKER. I listened to the audiobook and loved the narration whose voice is as smooth as sweet tea which got me through the violent parts.  
​ 4 1/2 stars