I saw the light in your window tonight: TAKE ME WITH YOU.

Take Me with You by Steven Rowley
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This wasn’t my favorite Rowley, but it was an interesting read to say the least.

Norman and Jesse have been married for some time when Jesse awakes and sees Norman disappear in a pool of light in their backyard. Jesse races and out clings to Norman’s legs, but Norman disappears into the beam of light, nonetheless.

Jesse’s response? No calling the police. Instead, he mainly returns to his normal life. Sure, he starts exploring some paranormal/galaxy-related phenomenon in the Joshua Tree area. And, oh yeah, there’s the giant hole he starts digging in the backyard. But otherwise, he throws himself into teaching his classes, finding himself, and exploring and ruminating on the pieces of their marriage that didn’t always work.

He lies to Norman’s sister Lalley when she shows up, wondering if she can use the embryos she helped create for Norman and Jesse a while back. He lies to the private detective Lalley hired to find Norman. He lies to their quirky neighbor who takes him star gazing. Honestly, the whole thing is just odd.

It’s really not a bad book, it’s just different. There is a lot of talk about marriage and relationships. The problem with Norman and Jesse is that we spend so little time with them together, mostly a few flashbacks, that I wasn’t really invested in their marriage. It was hard to care if Norman came back and difficult to root for their marriage to succeed. I’m sure Rowley was making a lot of deeper points with the beams of light and stars and relationships, but I’m not smart enough for all that.

This is a contemplative and thoughtful book about marriage, family, and the ties that bind us. If you like cerebral stories about relationships, this one is for you.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons in return for an unbiased review.

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It feels so good I’ll have trouble letting go: RUNNING HOME TO YOU.

Running Home to You by Samantha Saldivar
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I picked this up expecting a lighthearted romance but it’s far more than that. Instead, this is an emotional story that hits many serious topics, ranging from death, grief, coming out, religion, alcoholism, addiction, and more. Whew!

Abby and Kate meet playing on their college softball team. Abby is reeling after the death of her mother, while Kate faces many pressures from her religious parents. Kate bristles when Abby—a star at her former school before an emotional breakdown after her mom’s death—seemingly waltzes in and is a lock for Kate’s position of shortstop. As for Abby, she’s hanging on by a thread and heavily self-medicating with alcohol. Kate has a serious boyfriend and neither he nor her parents support her plans of heading to law school.

Despite their differences—and rivalry over the same position—Abby and Kate have quite a spark between them. The story is truly beautiful as it covers Abby and Kate’s attempts at both friendship and romance over many years, but it’s also slow-burning and long. It would have benefited from being a bit shorter and perhaps focusing on just a few of its many dark topics in-depth. There’s also a lot of softball discussion and that’s coming from a big sports fan! Same with religion—I was not expecting this book to go so deep into religion and queer identity.

This is an emotional book that’s sometimes long and overwrought. But it’s also a lovely story that truly captures the angst that many individuals feel in coming out and the beauty of Abby and Kate's romance.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and Dell Press in return for an unbiased review.


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There's a little bit of bad in the best of us: UNTIL THE LAST LIGHT GOES OUT.

Until the Last Light Goes Out by Courtney Gould
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I read this practically as soon as I received the ARC, because Courtney Gould and her writing have a hold over me.

I was not disappointed.

Here's the deal. I don't even like horror, but I love Gould so much, I will read anything she writes. And this story was amazing--sucked me in and spit me out. Somehow Gould wrote a book that makes you feel like you're inside a giant carnival funhouse, spinning from mirror to mirror, dizzy and slowly going mad trying to find your way out.

Welcome to Kaleidoscope Key.

Twenty-five years ago, a class of high school seniors were given the senior trip of a lifetime: a night at Kaleidoscope Key, a newly opened exclusive resort in Florida. But on that trip, 183 members of the senior class died. And the five survivors have never spoken about what exactly happened.

It's now the 25-year-anniversary. Paige Keller, daughter of a survivor, has reluctantly returned. She discovers that her ex-BFF KJ has gone missing. KJ is also the daughter of a survivor. And she's been obsessed with Kaleidoscope Key for years.

So Paige and the sons of two other survivors make the trip to Kaleidoscope Key. But once there, they realize there is something dreadfully wrong with this place. Time shifts. Rooms shift. Maps change. And something seems out for blood.

This story is spell-binding! Gould creates a horrifying, trippy, eerie atmosphere. The book is so terrifying and tense. I absolutely could not put it down--it's a complete page turner.

At its heart, this story asks: what would you do for the people you love? (There's something excellent happening between KJ and Paige, which I adored.) But on a darker, more terrifying level, it delves into what would you do to survive? Especially when faced with life or death.

Rarely does reading a book where everything feels wrong work perfectly, but it does here. I was simultaneously creeped out and riveted.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and Wednesday Books in return for an unbiased review. Look for this one in October, 2026!

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Every sweet memory I can recall she got it all: THE SHIPPERS.

The Shippers by Katherine Center
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was a cute story, mainly set on a cruise ship, as JoJo tries to ensnare her childhood crush Finn with the help of her childhood BFF Cooper. Wait, what if the right guy for her was Cooper all along? 🙄 Lots of hijinks and adventures follow.

I would have loved this a lot more if JoJo had any common sense (she’s a mathematician after all!) or the ability to communicate ever. She was incredibly self-centered and completely oblivious not only to Cooper's devotion, but really to life around her. The amount of insane ideas this woman clings to in the name of love -- ugh! Meanwhile, there's poor Cooper, the sweetest guy in the world, revealing childhood trauma and caring for her at every turn, just to be basically ignored.

There was so much miscommunication here -- you wanted to shake JoJo and tell her to just grow up! I did enjoy the cruise ship setting, probably because I'm going on my first cruise in a few months and I'm curious. Overall this is cute and readable, but a bit frustrating.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and St. Martin's Press in return for an unbiased review.

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All the ugly things will come back around: WHERE THERE'S SMOKE.

Where There's Smoke by Rachel Louise Adams


Newly divorced, Dolores Hawthorne has returned to Wisconsin from California, becoming a local medical examiner. She's living closer to what's left of her family and adjusting to her new life. She's called to the scene of the local slaughterhouse, Marcy's Meats, when a worker finds a body (yuck). Soon, the case has gotten big and FBI Agent Paul Turner is back, along with newly recruited Kate Butcher.

This is an excellent follow-up to what was an excellent first book in the Coldren County series. Dolores is a wonderful, complex, and nuanced character, still struggling with getting to know her brother and teenage sister. Once a forensic pathologist, she's pretty bored as a medical examiner in a small town--until someone's dropped in with the pigs.

Sound gruesome? These books aren't for the faint of heart. They are grim and gross and full of plenty of details about the slaughterhouse, autopsies, death, and so much more.

But they are so worth it. Adams weaves a dark and horrifying story, linking together the slaughterhouse and the local prison along with local secrets and a whole lotta small town lies. As she does, she delves into the ties that bind siblings and family, along with the power of men--and exactly how much they can get away with.

I highly recommend this series!

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and Minotaur Books in return for an unbiased review.


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Like a whisper inside me each and every day: THE ME I USED TO BE.

The Me I Used to Be by Kristan Higgins
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a lovely story of friendship and loss.

Audrey, Micah, Jasmine, and Beck were known as the Core Four; they grew up incredibly close. They spent their high school years together, with much of their time at Audrey's farm, where they were deeply loved and mothered by her mom, Dr. Kate. But right after graduation, a horrible accident tears the Core Four apart. Now it's their 25-year high school reunion and Audrey has asked her friends to come back together at the farm one last time. She has something to tell them--she has early onset dementia and intends to end her life before it worsens.

The story flashes between the group's adventures and times in high school and their present-day lives. We see how none of them are as happy as they felt in their Core Four days. It's easy to get lost in their lives and Higgins depicts their emotions and worries incredibly well. Each woman has a lot to deal with, honestly! There's a wonderful side plot with Audrey and her stepdaughter that especially tugged at my heartstrings.

This isn't always an easy story to read, but it's a great exploration of friendship, forgiveness, and grief.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing in return for an unbiased review.



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Should have seen the warnings signs: THE DYING LIGHT.

The Dying Light by Ann Cleeves


I adore the Matthew Venn / Two Rivers series for many reasons. One is the fact that Ann Cleeves excels at writing characters, writing people. She delves into the why: what makes people tick and work. Her books may not always be driven by constant action, but you keep reading as each page reveals more about our characters and what and why led them to be killed (or to kill).

And, Matthew Venn is one of my favorite detectives. I love his steady nature that also comes with a quiet, lingering insecurity, making him relatable and human. I love that he's not all ego and brash anger, like so many crime solvers, but intelligence and thoughtfulness. And I love the relationship between him and his husband Jonathan, which is portrayed honestly and lovingly.

This is an excellent mystery, which kept me guessing the entire time. We get a multi-POV story, including Matthew, his colleague Jen, and Catherine, a wealthy woman who has just lost her teenage daughter, Hannah, to an apparent murder. Both Hannah and her friend Lottie are found dead at the family's country home, and it's up to Matthew and team to determine why--with added pressure as Hannah's father is high up in politics.

There's a small cast of characters, and each is well-drawn, often with a potential motive. Cleeves does a good job of playing up the small-town versus big city rift and how it's affected locals in Devon. As with every Venn tale, there's so much more going on than "just the mystery," making it a complex, nuanced tale that will keep you flipping the pages. 4.5 stars.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and Minotaur Books in return for an unbiased review. Look for the U.S. version in September 2026!


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