Book Review: The Fair Weather Friend by Jessie Garcia

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The Fair Weather Friend  by Jessie Garcia  opens with Faith Richards, a popular meteorologist in Detroit, never returning back to the news station after her dinner break. The next day, her news station releases a story that she's been found, strangled to death not far from the station. The Fair Weather Friend , as Richards is referred to by adoring fans, had some deep, dark secrets. As those skeletons come to light, other peoples' lives start to unravel, and things are not what they seem. I'd like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for approving my request for an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of Jessie Garcia's The Fair Weather Friend . A digital copy was provided to me for free in exchange for my honest review. All opinions of the novel are my own. There were many things I absolutely enjoyed about Jessie Garcia's sophomore novel including multiple point of views, the character development, and numerous red herrings. Overall, the story being told from a var...
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Book Review: Christmas Presents by Lisa Unger

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book review christmas presents lisa unger

Christmas Presents by Lisa Unger is a novella expected to be published on October 24, 2023 by Penzler Publishers.  Madeline Martin is the owner of a thriving business, a bookstore.  When author and podcaster Harley Granger stops by her store, Madeline is starstruck.  However, bad memories are dredged up for Madeline by the author when he mentions that he is reopening a cold case that she survived.

Thank you, NetGalley and Penzler Publishers, for the Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of Lisa Unger's novella, Christmas Presents.  As a recent fan of the author, I knew I wanted to read her latest without even reading the synopsis, so I requested to read this novella and was ecstatic when I was approved to receive a copy for free in exchange for my honest review.

This novella falls into the mystery, thriller, and suspense genre but has a little romance and intrigue to it.  Despite the genre, it even put me in the Christmas mood since it takes place during the holiday.  It's the perfect book for those who love this genre and want a holiday read.

From the get go, I narrowed the killer down to two different people.  As the storyline progressed, I did start to second guess myself and wondered if the narrator was unreliable.  When the murderer was revealed, I was glad it was who it was . . . you're not going to get any spoilers from me.  I will say that for all intent and purposes, Christmas Presents had a happy ending, and Lisa Unger did a nice job wrapping it up.

The story was told from alternating timelines.  I don't always like it when an author does this because it can feel disjointed.  However, Lisa Unger did a fabulous job with it because it had me on the edge of my seat wondering what really happened.  It really helped move the story along.

Five out of five stars is what I gave Christmas Presents by Lisa Unger.  Don't miss out on this fantastic novella . . . pre-order it today.  You won't be sorry.

 

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