The Jackal's Mistress by Chris Bohjalian

It's 1864 and Libby Steadman fears every day that her land will become the battleground between the Union and the Confederates. Her husband Peter was captured and held in a Union prison camp but his letters have long since stopped coming and she fears him dead. She's left running his gristmill with only her young niece and two freed slaves. When she finds Union captain Jonathan Weybridge gravely injured and left for dead she risks everything to save his life. 

This story was tense and full of action, with the fear of discovery on every turn of the page. Based on true events, this is a story of courage and heroism. It's well written and the characters are well developed. I've loved every book I've read by this author and this one was no exception. I recommend this to anyone who likes historical fiction. 

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Close Your Eyes and Count to 10 by Lisa Unger

It started out as a social media stunt—an extreme game of hide and seek on the grounds of a crumbling abandoned hotel. Hosted by daredevil adventurer Maverick Dillan and his crew, the prize for the winner is a million dollars. But it quickly becomes a deadly game of survival when a storm blows in and an unknown threat is stalking the contestants. Adele is a single mother of two, struggling to make ends meet after her husband's deception. She's in it for the money, but also to prove her strength and independence to her kids. Even before the game begins things start to fall apart: the warnings of the island's inhabitants, the tension among the Extreme crew members, and the ominous groans of the hotel's foundation... will any of them make it out alive?

In the author's notes at the end, Lisa Unger admitted that the story is based on a real abandoned hotel, Monte Palace on the island of São Miguel where she visited with her family. Looking up pictures of the hotel helped me picture the ominous setting in my mind as I was reading the story with the addition of the storm adding to the tension. The chapters were told in multiple POV from Adele and each of her children to Mav and his crew, piecing the story together s you read along. I loved it!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Happily Ever After by Jane Lovering

Andi Glover grew up traveling across the country with her hippie parents in a camper van. Her sister escaped the life as soon as she could to attend boarding school, but Andi never got that chance, learning only from her beloved books. Now her only chance at living a normal life on her own lies in Templewood Hall, where she gets a live-in job cataloging its vast and chaotic library. Dreaming that it will become like one of her Gothic novels and the lord of the manor will fall madly in love with her, Andi never expected the uniquely strange cast of characters in this spooky neglected home. Life is definitely stranger than fiction!

Part Gothic mystery, part clean romance, all slow build. There were definitely a lot of strange twists I never expected and fun dry humor. I really loved Jay with his bashful attraction and quirky personality. Andi was a bit whiny at first and resentful of her sister and it was great to see her grow throughout the story. Overall a good story. 

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

All The Water In The World by Eiren Caffall

This book is told from the perspective of Nonie, a young girl born after the glaciers melted and the seas rose, the World As It Is, as she calls it. She's only ever heard stories of the World As It Was. She lives with her father, sister and a small community of scientists on the roof of New York's Natural History Museum, refusing to leave without saving some of the history and artifacts preserved there. Nonie has an interesting connection to water and can feel when storms are coming, but the hypercane hit with no warning destroying their home, knocking out the flood gates holding back the ocean, forcing them to escape the city in a small canoe with only four survivors. Along their way to discover a new place they can call home, they encounter communities both helpful and hostile, ever stronger storms and natural disaster, and the struggle to survive with little to no food or water. 

I loved reading the story from this young girl's unique perspective, as someone who didn't know anything different. She's lost so many people she cared about and the chapters jump back and forth between the past others told her about, her life growing up in the Museum, and trying to survive after they lost their home. The story starts off a little slow to give some background, but once I got into it I was fascinated. The beautiful and terrifying cover of a city underwater was what drew me in, but the story inside was even better!