Review: The Perfect Neighborhood

The Perfect Neighborhood by Liz Alterman
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A good book, but not a great book. 2.5 stars.

I was a tad disappointed with this book. Not because it was easy to figure out who-dun-it (it wasn't all that easy), but because this book was half YA and bad YA for that matter. A lot of what was very close to pedophilia sex and a ton of teen angst. I could see a lot of the angst since the teen was the babysitter who was watching the first child that went missing, but that is not what we really get with Cassidy. She seems more worried about her relationship than anything else. Yes, she feels guilt, but...

Allison and Christopher also have a ton of angst, which has nothing to do with the missing child/children. Or does it?

I was into this novel but not so deeply engaged that my mind didn't keep drifting as I was reading this book. I think the only reason I didn't give up was that I really had no clue who the abductor was and wanted to assuage my curiosity.

*ARC Supplied by the publisher Crooked Lane Books. there author, and NetGalley.

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SYNOPSIS: "Liz Alterman’s engrossing novel is a thought-provoking read about the dark side of suburbia and the secrets of close-knit communities, perfect for fans of Joshilyn Jackson.

When actress and model Allison Langley leaves her former rockstar husband, Christopher, in the middle of the night, it’s all her Oak Hill neighbors can talk about. The gossip comes to an abrupt halt when five-year-old Billy Barnes goes missing on his walk home from kindergarten.

Billy’s mother, Rachel, blames herself for being at work and letting her only child walk alone. Cassidy, Billy’s teenage babysitter, was also late to arrive on the afternoon he disappeared and blames herself for his disappearance.

As the clock ticks down, police are unable to find any trace of Billy, forcing Rachel to ponder the enemies she’s made in their well-off suburb. Could it be one of her neighbors who stole her son? Would they abduct Billy to hurt her? How easy would it be to take a child while the parents or nannies are distracted?

When another child goes missing, the town is put under a microscope as the police try to get to the bottom of the disappearances. Will they be able to find the two children, or will it be too late? What secrets lie at the heart of this tragedy, and how far will one go to keep those dangerous secrets buried."

Review: Suburban Hell

Suburban Hell by Maureen Kilmer
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What do you get when you mix chick/mom lit with horror? You get "Suburban Hell," the perfect melding of both genres. Not too horrifying and not too mom-ish. Just the ideal book for a beach read or when you want something lite!

Four women with the prerequisite toddlers and Kindergarteners -Melissa, Amy, Liz, and Jess want a "She Shed". Well, one starts to get built but unbeknownst to Liz, the mom building it, something horrible is going to be unleashed. And it really isn't pretty!

Now Amy has to take steps to release what has been unleashed. So she reaches out to the others in their little group to stop what has taken over their pal.

I loved this book. The women were so diverse. The author made them come alive for me. I would want these women for my own friends, and the neighborhood was just so perfect. It was like stepping back in time what with the parties that would close off the streets and the school fairs. However, this book also had the feel of the modern what with the kitchen reveal that one neighbor devised.

Frankly, I don't know why I loved this book but suffice it to say that I did, and it is going to go on my 'comfort book' shelf so I can re-read this book for Halloween!

*ARC supplied by the publisher PENGUIN GROUP Putnam, G.P. Putnam's Sons, the author, and NetGalley.

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SYNOPSIS:"Bad Moms meets My Best Friend’s Exorcism in this lite-horror-comedy about a group of women in the Chicago 'burbs, whose cul-de-sac gets a new neighbor: a demon.

Amy Foster considers herself lucky. After she left the city and went full minivan, she found her place quickly with neighbors Liz, Jess, and Melissa, together snarking the “Mom Mafia” from the outskirts of the PTA mom crowd. So, one night during their monthly wine get-together, the newfound crew concoct a plan for a clubhouse She Shed in Liz’s backyard – the perfect space for just them, no spouses or kids allowed.

But the night after they christen the space with a ceremonial drink, things start to feel…off. What they didn’t expect was for Liz’s little home improvement project to release a demonic force that turns their quiet suburban enclave into something out of a nightmare. And that’s before the Homeowners’ Association gets wind of it.

Just as Liz is turned into a creepy doll face overnight, cases of haunting activity around the neighborhood intensify, and even the calmest moms can’t justify the strange burn marks, self-moving dolls, and horrible smells surrounding their possessed friend, Liz. Together, Amy, Jess, and Melissa must fight back the evil spirit to save Liz and the neighborhood…before the suburbs go completely to hell. But at least they don’t have to deal with the PTA, right?"

Review: The Neighbors

The Neighbors by Nancy Bush
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I am questioning whether I was given the same ARC as everyone else. I could not get into this book or the characters. The book's synopsis sounded so promising, and some reviewers claimed that you didn't need to read the first two books in this series to jump into this book easily. Well, IMO, yes, you do need to read the first two books, and if you have KU, you're lucky since they are freebies to borrow. Some of the things I did not like about this book: 1) You needed to read the first two books to understand one of the storylines in this one. 2) Perhaps the author dislikes 'the older' generation, or maybe it is because she seems to be kissing up to the younger generation? I don't know which. However, I know that it seemed false and offensive. 3) What romance there was seemed forced and false. (at least up to the point that I gave up.) 4) More characters than you can shake a stick at. Very difficult to keep straight who was who and who was sleeping with who. 5) The characters and storyline that did make me curious enough to read this book ended up being a bit on the stupid side. I mean, come on, who hires a bodyguard to protect you from dog poop in your mailbox? Yes, I understand there is more to it, but I gave up after 40%. I am in the minority, so try this book because you may like it; everyone else did! *ARC supplied by the publisher Kensington Books, Zebra, the author, and NetGalley.

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SYNOPSIS:"If you lived here

It’s one of the most exclusive addresses in town—a luxury development with pristine lawns and steep price tags. But there are unforgiving people living in the Villages, who know your secrets and have plenty of their own . . . secrets that no one lives to tell . . .

You’d be dead by now.
Mackenzie Laughlin has reluctantly moved to the Villages as bodyguard to Daley Carrera, who claims someone is pranking her and her husband. Mac expects a simple case of petty squabbles between new and longtime residents. Instead, she hears rumors of squalid affairs and sinister disappearances that tie in to a missing persons investigation led by her partner, Jesse James Taft.

Welcome to the neighborhood . . .
Behind every door and every smile, there are grudges that run deep and dangerous. Mac and Taft are being marked as targets, but why? Figuring out who to trust is the key to uncovering a killer who has no qualms about killing again. The neighbors are watching. And if getting into the Villages was difficult, getting out alive may be impossible . . ."

Review: The Watchmakers: A Story of Brotherhood, Survival, and Hope Amid the Holocaust

The Watchmakers: A Story of Brotherhood, Survival, and Hope Amid the Holocaust by Harry Lenga
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Review

This is a challenging book for me to review. The subject matter is one that I've never paid that much attention to except for what we needed to learn in school. I have no idea why I chose this ARC, but it must have been something/someone who wanted me to know more about these atrocities. Or maybe Karma? This story is told in a very even almost unemotional way. There was no histrionics in the telling-just plain simple truth. Don't get me wrong, there is some humor mixed in with the horror, but it is very dark humor. So not only is this a history of being a Jew at this time and the horrors of the camps, but it is also a story of what optimism can do for a person. I'm going to take this wisdom to heart. The voice of this historically specific book was spot on-I could see in my mind's eye Mr. Harry Lenga sitting in front of me telling me his horrible story. I could feel him. This brought all the horrors of Auschwitz and Treblinka to the fore. I could only read this book in brief spurts, or I got a bit over-emotional. Learning about the Chassidic Jews in Kozhnitz, Poland, was an education. Understanding the fate of Jews and others in many other bordering countries was eye-opening for me. My education has been sorely lacking. If I have one complaint is that I would have loved to see the timeline of England and America during these horrid years and what they were doing to stop this atrocity. Apparently, via my research, there wasn't much they could do. Quoted from https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/ "The United States entered World War II in December 1941, after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor. By 1943, the American press carried a number of reports about the ongoing mass murder of Jews. Although the United States could have done more to aid the victims of Nazi Germany and its collaborators, large-scale rescue was impossible by the time the United States entered the war." For more information on Mr. Lenga, see this link - https://stlholocaustmuseum.org/oral-h... and also - https://stljewishlight.org/arts-enter... Please don't ignore the footnote numbers. I did thinking that they wouldn't work on my Kindle, but sadly I found out too late that they do work. *ARC provided by the publisher Kensington Books/Citadel Press, the author, and NetGalley.

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SYNOPSIS: "Told through interviews with his son, watchmaker Harry Lenga's extraordinary memoir of endurance, faith, and a unique skill that kept three brothers together--and alive--during the darkest times of World War II.

"Inspiring. Exhilarating. Astonishing. An epic tale of brotherhood, ingenuity, and survival." --Heather Dune Macadam, International Bestselling author of 999: The Extraordinary Young Women of the First Official Jewish Transport to Auschwitz "A truly extraordinary book." --Damien Lewis, #1 international bestselling author Harry Lenga was born to a family of Chassidic Jews in Kozhnitz, Poland. The proud sons of a watchmaker, Harry and his two brothers, Mailekh and Moishe, studied their father's trade at a young age. Upon the German invasion of Poland, when the Lenga family was upended, Harry and his brothers never anticipated that the tools acquired from their father would be the key to their survival. Under the most devastating conditions imaginable--with death always imminent--fixing watches for the Germans in the ghettos and brutal slave labor camps of occupied Poland and Austria bought their lives over and over again. From Wolanow and Starachowice to Auschwitz and Ebensee, Harry, Mailekh, and Moishe endured, bartered, worked, prayed, and lived to see liberation. Derived from more than a decade of interviews with Harry Lenga, conducted by his own son Scott and others, The Watchmakers is Harry's heartening and unflinchingly honest first-person account of his childhood, the lessons learned from his own father, his harrowing tribulations, and his inspiring life before, during, and after the war. It is a singular and vital story, told from one generation to the next--and a profoundly moving tribute to brotherhood, fatherhood, family, and faith. "Deeply moving." --Jesse Kellerman, bestselling author "Vivid and compelling." --Christopher R. Browning, Frank Porter Graham Professor of History Emeritus, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and author of Ordinary Men."

Review: When It Falls Apart

When It Falls Apart by Catherine Bybee
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

4.5 highly recommended stars. However, a little caveat from me, the first half or so of this book may not appeal to a young audience. It deals with a lot of the realities of dealing with the elderly, especially those that have had strokes or major illnesses and may require long-term nursing home care. Be warned-I went through it, and it is all exactly how Ms. Bybee describes it. This is a new author for me, but I do believe I will be in the market for more books by Ms. Bybee. But along with the despair of taking care of an aging parent is the newness and hopefulness of a new romance. Not only a new romance with the perfect Italian man but his wonderful family, his daughter, and a tight-knit Italian community (another Little Italy on the west coast!) To add even more spice to this dish, we have Luca's ex-wife come strolling into the picture after abandoning her daughter all those years ago. This was the perfect, fast (1 day for me), steamy, emotional, and happy summer read. This is one that will be going onto my comfort bookshelf. *ARC supplied by the publisher Montlake, the author, and NetGalley. Many thanks.

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SYNOPSIS: "From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Catherine Bybee comes a bittersweet romance about the power of love in the face of heartbreak and loss.

Brooke Turner has always had a complicated relationship with her father. But when his health takes a turn for the worse, she drops everything to care for him. He’s her dad, after all, and he needs her. What Brooke doesn’t anticipate is the unraveling of her long-term relationship and a cross-country move to San Diego’s Little Italy.

Luca D’Angelo is the oldest of three children and a single father to a young daughter. When his mother rents the top floor of their house to Brooke, he’s angry. Who is this beautiful stranger with no ties to the neighborhood? Can she be trusted in such close proximity to his family?

As Luca learns of Brooke’s difficult journey with her ailing father, his heart softens. And Brooke, who witnesses Luca’s struggle as a single parent, develops feelings for him too. But when it all falls apart, will love heal their wounded hearts?"

Review: The Secret Life of an Uncool Mom

The Secret Life of an Uncool Mom by Serena Terry
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A sweet look at being a mom in modern Ireland. A difficult look at aging. I didn't know this was an Irish book (shame on me), and I had to spend a lot of time looking up unknown Irish words as well as modern slang. Unbeknownst to me, there was a bit 0f a dictionary in the back of the book!

I will say that this book had one huge trigger warning that I wish I would have known about, and that was ageism. And when I say ageism, I mean it goes both ways. The young are down on anyone over 25, and the over 35 crowd isn't looking with a lot of love at the under 25 crowd. Funny- it took my generation a lot more years in between ages to be so snarky about each other.

This was a sadly funny look at a mother losing her s**t over her newly teenaged daughter, her age, weight, kids, and a full-time job. And let me tell you, Tara takes a beating at her career. As a matter of fact, she takes a beating over almost anything, but the biggest issue is she gives herself the most extensive beatings. I can see where Tara is coming from since I passed this way myself. As a matter of fact, I have no clue why I'm still not as cool with everyone else as I am inside my own head (LOL). Now I'm just an Olde Pharte! It'll hit us all sooner than later!

I enjoyed this read-no I didn't love it, and it won't become a comfort read, but I very well will most likely pull this out one more time and give it a re-read. The perfect summer beach read.

*ARC supplied by the publisher HarperCollins, the author, and Edelweiss/ATTL.

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SYNOPSIS: "From the creator of viral Tiktok sensation, Mammy Banter, comes a hilarious warts-and-all novel about modern motherhood – and how having it all sometimes isn’t what you think it might be.

She used to want it all.


Now she just wants a nap.



Tara Gallagher is knackered. She used to dream of being Beyoncé but suddenly she’s thirty-six – with three kids, a loving husband, a very boring job – and instead of headlining Coachella, she’s in her pyjamas on a Friday night, watching cheesy TV.


It’s time for a mommy makeover. She’s going to show her teenage daughter she’s still cool. She’s going to show her husband she’s still an absolute ride. She’s going to show her colleagues she’s still a Boss Bish.


But most of all, she’s going to prove to herself that she can still be a mom, still work full time, and still be Beyoncé…



The debut novel from viral TikTok star, Mammy Banter'

Review: Smells Like Tween Spirit

Smells Like Tween Spirit by Laurie Gelman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

4.5 stars rounded up. This is a fast semi-humorous read. There is a good bit of seriousness to this particular book.

I've followed this series (can only 4 books be considered a series???) from the beginning. These books started out a little sillier than the last two books. But that is fine with me, it just shows me how all of the players are growing. I learned quite a bit about pubescent boys who are training for wrestling. Yikes!

I love the fact that Jen is still her usual irreverent self, this time becoming a Pioneer Middle School (PMS), mat mom. Jen is still teaching spinning, taking care of her granddaughter at times, her father, and her husband and let us not forget taking care of herself. She is a busy new-millennium Grandmom and I wish I had half of her energy and sense of humor.

In this book, we have unfortunate and sad things happening-but we also have some very childish things going on and that was with the adult children/ LOL! It just goes to show you that around your parents you never have really grown up!

*ARC supplied by Henry Holt and Co./Macmillan Publishers, the author, and NetGalley.

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SYNOPSIS: "From the author of Class Mom and You’ve Been Volunteered comes Laurie Gelman's next laugh-out-loud novel Smells Like Tween Spirit.

As a new Mat Mom of the Pioneer Middle School (PMS) Wrestling team, Jen Dixon finds herself thrown in the middle of the “guerrilla war against so-called perfect mothers," armed only with her cutting wit and acerbic sense of humor. (New York Times Book Review)

Handling a whole host of new challenges, from the dreaded seventh-grade science fair to a school fundraiser (again!), Jen faces the somewhat-terrifying new social dynamics of the wrestling moms with her trademark combination of reluctance and exceptional delivery.

Between school events and teaching spin classes, Jen finds herself fully immersed in sports mom competitiveness. These parents seem perfectly unassuming, until their kids start to wrestle, and they become raging pubescent monsters. Learning to navigate this new world while fielding calls from the principal because of Max’s newfound misogynistic behavior, Jen steels herself for the indignities of middle-school life—with her loyal spin class attendees and her bossy four-year-old granddaughter giving her the strength she needs to press on.

Mix in a Parent Night, New Year’s Party, and Valentine’s Day Dance, and Jen Dixon certainly has her hands, and her calendar, full. And through it all, Jen continues to charm with her riotously funny quips and memorable one-liners.