The Baguette Murders by Anne Penketh

 

Set in a charming French small town, we have a mix of English imports living alongside their French neighbours. There is as expected a certain animosity towards the outsiders who have walked into French territory and with no small effort and hard work set up businesses of their own. 

Pippin is one of them with a successful bakery but who has to face Tristan aka Bucky who is antagonistic as he considers her a rival who is doing very well. The murders that follow point the finger at a baker as the weapon is hidden in a baguette but the sheer interest for me was the daily interactions and how life played out in a small town. There were extra marital affairs galore, vendettas lasting generations, everyone was related or connected and there was no way to keep secrets. These added so much variety to an otherwise normal cozy.

Sent by Joffe Books for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

An Insidious Inheritance by Amelie West

Clara has been estranged from her father for decades. Her relationship with her mother was also strained. Clara has learnt the hard way to be self reliant and she is distrustful of anyone who lends a helping hand or offers anything because of past lessons. When she inherits a house from her father in a desolate area, her one idea is to sell it and use the proceeds to become financially independent.

The property has a strange ambiance and history attached to it. Although touted as an inn, it shows neglect, disarray and Clara realises that in 1933 with the economic slump, getting rid of the property is no easy task. 

The story has gothic overtones and there are several people who will do their best that Clara does no digging into the past or even actual digging in the property, which will uncover unsavory history. You always feel throughout the story that you have to watch your back as if someone, not quite human, is watching you and prompting you to act.

Sent by Victory Editing Coop Netgalley for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

The Alchemist of Alleppo by Marie K. Savage

 

Michael Samaan and Kat Musgrave met coincidentally (it seems) at the VA Museum. One with an interest in artifacts and the other for an inexplicable pull towards the display of a particular goblet.

The story starts from there and it is fascinating, unexpectedly full of questions and certainly events, people and feelings which cannot be logically explained. Going back hundreds of years to turbulent times, previous births and a reincarnation in a present time to set finally and bring to an end a very troubled past.

The story was magical, a love story repeated and a book I couldn’t put down. I would urge those who enjoy stories of history as well as those things which are magical, fantasy with a whiff of probability to get this book.

Sent by Blank Slate Communication/Independent Book Publishers Association, courtesy of Netgalley for an unbiased review.

The Forger’s Requiem by Bradford Morrow

Henry Slader is a literary forger par excellence. A long time feud with Will who attempts to kill him and presumed he was dead, finds Henry disoriented, concussed and suffocating in a grave. Using his wits and bits of memory coming back to him, he decides on a spot of blackmail, also changing his identity in the process to carve out a new life for himself.

Involving literal forgeries on the scale of Edgar Allan Poe and Mary Shelley needs skills and Henry uses Nicole, Wills daughter to execute forgeries which are flawless. They also start the downward tread to Henry’s doom eventually.

There were abrupt changes in location and timelines where one had to take a moment as to what was happening but the story gives one a glimpse into the world of literary pieces and the demand to own an original letter or poetry penned by a famous person.

The book was sent by Grove Atlantic for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

When She’s Gone by Rea Frey

 

Cora was a victim of a kidnapping and the perpetrators were never caught. She was an Olympic gymnast hopeful and the kidnapping just before the final trials put several competitors in the spotlight. Nothing happened but Cora has lived with the trauma since that Halloween.

Fast forward and with a four year old daughter of her own Cora faces the same horrific crime. Lulu is kidnapped and ransom notes that follow outline a horrific plan. Injure a child gymnast in such a way that they get knocked out of the competition. The same theme with the demands going higher and higher.

The story is detailed and depraved. How ambitious parents will stoop to anything to get what they want. How love can be so possessive and subverted that it can force a normal person to be temporarily insane.

Riveting story.

Sent by Thomas and Mercer for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

The Vanishing of Josephine Reynolds’s by Jennifer Moorman

 

The story is a mix of fantasy and what could be unaccounted probability. Not disclaiming anything here but it does make one think that there is a lot we really do not know. Here is a story of a young woman, suddenly widowed, bereft of mental support and just trying to get through one day at a time. Whilst wondering how she going to just survive, her sister with the best of intentions sends her a listing of a house which was owned by their ancestors, and on a sudden whim Josephine buys the place.

It is from this point that the overlap between the present times and the 1920s take place. Her great grandmother Alma was a fun lady who in these days of prohibition ran a speakeasy. Glamorous and patronized by all the top people in town, they did not fear a raid, but going by records Josephine knew this was not accurate. Newspaper records show Alma being shot during a raid, but the fact this that Josephine is living proof that Alma did not die in the raid. So Josephine comes up with a plan to try to circumvent the raid and get Alma to safety. 

The time travel back and forth adds more and more depth to the story because Josephine gets drawn into a relationship and is undecided whether to stay in the 1920s or move back to present times. The entire history of that man would change if that happened.

Altogether a very intriguing read which led to lots of questioning of what ifs and hows. 

Sent by Harper Collin’s Focus, courtesy of Netgalley.

I received a complimentary copy of this book.  Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The Drowning Game by Barbara Nickless

 

Set in Seattle and Singapore and a rich concern of building yachts for the rich and famous, Ocean House has commenced their biggest endeavor ever, building a super yacht for the rich and famous George Meng.

The story is a superb one set against a history of espionage, murder, a fight for freedom from a man who has everything but seeks freedom for his family and how he unwittingly and then willingly draws two sisters into his plan and bid for freedom. There is also a family history uncovered, unsavory and hidden for decades now open for the world to see.

The story was a page turner, descriptive and emotional, displaying the strong ties that bind family over everything else. Characters were so varied that they added layers of interest to the story. I read it one go myself.

Sent by Thomas and Mercer for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.