Book Review: Claire, Darling by Callie Kazumi

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Claire, Darling by Callie Kazumi  was published on March 11, 2025 by Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine / Bantam. It opens with Claire finding out that her fiancé, Noah, isn't working where he said he was and is now ghosting her. Claire must find out why. Book Review: Claire, Darling by Callie Kazumi Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine / Bantam for providing me with an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of Claire Darling by Callie Kazumi for free in exchange for my honest review. I was absolutely thrilled when my request for a copy was approved because the synopsis was so good. From the beginning, I absolutely loved the main character of Claire and her work friend named Sukhi. Throughout the novel, we learn about Claire's past and how terrible her mother was towards her. I kept hoping that somehow we would learn who Claire's father was and would eventually connect with him. It's really no wonder Claire had no self confidence as an ad...
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Book Review: A Cryptic Clue (Hunter and Clewe, #1) by Victoria Gilbert

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book review a cryptic clue hunter and clue 1 victoria gilbert

A Cryptic Clue (Hunter and Clewe, #1) by Victoria Gilbert was published on July 11, 2023.  It opens with sixty-year old Jane Hunter starting a new job for Cameron "Cam" Clewe after being forced to retire from her librarian career.  When Jane finds a dead body on her first day of the job, Cam requests his employee to help exonerate his name.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for the Advanced Readers Copy of A Cryptic Clue (Hunter and Clewe, #1) by Victoria Gilbert.  I loved the cover and synopsis of the book and was thrilled when I learned that I was receiving a free copy of it in exchange for my honest review.

At first, I had trouble getting into the story, so I put the book aside and came back to it.  Being in a different mindset definitely made the difference.  I ended up enjoying the storyline.  I really liked the main character, Jane Hunter.  I wasn't as crazy about Cameron Clewe, but he ended up growing on me.

There were lots of suspects, and I wasn't sure who the killer was going to be.  In fact, I didn't figure out who it was, and when the identity was revealed, I felt like it came out of left field.  Additionally, there were a couple of underlying mysteries involving people's identities.  However, those identities were never revealed, and it really bothered me that the author didn't wrap those two storylines up.  Since it appears that there will be at least a sequel, I'm hoping that we find out who these two people are.

All in all, I enjoyed A Cryptic Clue (Hunter and Clewe, #1) by Victoria Gilbert for the most part.  Four out of five stars is what I gave this book.

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