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Like a Sister by Kellye Garrett Publisher: Mullholland Books / Little Brown & Company Ginasbookreport Rating:  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Genre: Mystery / Thriller Read This If You Love: Jar of Hearts / And Now She’s Gone FORMER REALITY STAR DESIREE PIERCE FOUND DEAD IN LINGERIE IN BRONX WITH COCAINE AND NO SHOES When Lena’s sister Desiree is found dead, Lena just doesn’t believe the theory that it was a drug overdose. Sure, they had a falling out years ago over Desiree’s habits, but something doesn’t add up. They are sisters via their hip hop mogul father, but they lead very different lives. Desiree’s full of social media and seemingly public and Lena’s one of quiet studious work. Can Lena uncover the truth, and will that truth repair her family or tear it apart forever? Garrett excels at this voice-driven character development. The reader quickly feels like they are right there with Lena. Lena whose voice rings with truth and depth. As she sets out to unravel the mystery of her sister’s death, Len

In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune Publisher:  Tor Books Ginasbookreport Rating:  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Genre: Fantasy / LGBT Read This If You Love:  The House in the Cerulean Sea ,  Under the Whispering Door , Once Upon a Time (tv show), Alix E. Harrow books “It is as Gio said. Searching for a connection. Making something out of nothing so the spaces between us do not seem so far.”—Nurse Ratched Another stunning fantastical novel from TJ Klune—master of wit and emotional writing! I absolutely love Klune’s writing style and the larger messages of found families, love, and connection that all of his books convey. This time around, In the Lives of Puppets  takes us on a fairy tale retelling to tackle themes of loneliness, fitting in, and family and friendship.  Victor is an inventor who lives in the forest with his father Gio and his two rebuilt robot friends, Nurse Ratched and Rambo (the Roomba). As Victor sets about building his latest piece of work, he stumbles upon an android in the Scrap Yard

The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett Publisher: VIPER, part of Serpent’s Tail, an imprint of Profile Books Ltd. Ginasbookreport Rating:  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Genre: Mystery Read This If You Love: other Janice Hallett books / unusual ways to tell a story “First rule of journalism: don’t become the story. It never ends well.” The Alperton Angels cult has held the fascination of the public for almost two decades. Now the newborn baby involved in the case is turning 18 and the media is chomping at the bit to be the first to find the child at the center of the case. What new insights would this angle provide? Amanda, a successful true crime author, is just the person to write this novel and re-investigate the events of the evening that left a brutal crime scene with the Alperton Angels at the center. Just one rule to survive, don’t become part of the story. It’s dangerous. I ADORE this author and her unusual way of writing a story. If you have never picked up one of her novels

Homicide and Halo-Halo by Mia P. Manansala Publisher:  Berkley Books Ginasbookreport Rating:  ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Genre:  Mystery / Cozy Mystery Read This If You Love:  Cozy mysteries / Arsenic and Adobo #2 in the Tita Rosie’s Kitchen Mystery series. We once again return to Shady Palms, Illinois and the close-knit Filipino community. Our heroine baker, Lila, finds herself on the judging panel for the local pageant and doing her best to encourage young women in her community to go after their dreams. She’s also trying to get her new business off the ground and recover from the traumatic events of the last novel. Lila is doing her best to balance it all, but BAM…she finds herself once again in the middle of a murder to solve!  I adored Arsenic and Adobo , the first book in this series, so I was excited to see it as a continuing series. One of my reading goals this year is to get caught up on series that I enjoy and this was one of four series on that list. Manansala’s books are cozy mysteries packed

I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai Publisher: Viking Ginasbookreport Rating:  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 Genre: Mystery / Thriller / Fiction / Literary Fiction Read This If You Love: Serial   “You’re obsessed. You’re getting obsessed.”    “Is there forgiveness in your dreams?”  This booooooooook!!! You might have heard about this one…I jest because it is EVERYWHERE. My prediction is that it will end up being a love it or hate it book (more on that later) and I loved it. While reading it, there was a compulsion to read one more chapter, find out one more thing. This, to me, is a what strong storytelling looks like. Every page included something that was eventful, impactful, or interesting. I Have Some Questions for You  is literary fiction mixed with mystery and mystique against a backdrop of a coming of age story. “—the way every girl was just a body to be used, to be discarded—the way that if you had a body, they could grab you—if you had a body, they could destroy you.” Bodie is a succe

You Must Remember This by Kat Rosenfield Publisher: HarperAudio Ginasbookreport Rating:  ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Genre: Mystery / Thriller / Domestic Suspense Read This If You Love: Rachel Hawkins “Let go or get dragged.” Delphine’s grandmother, Miriam, is suffering from dementia and the family is gathering at the family home named The Whispers. It’s one last Christmas for all of them to come together, along with Miriam’s care aid Adam. While the family tries to keep track of a nomad Miriam in the present, we hear Miriam’s life story through her trapped memories. Some want love, some want money, some want family, and some just want to survive. Who will make it out and just what really happened in the past at The Whispers? The marketing copy for this book advertises it as a Knives Out  meets Taylor Jenkins Reid. To be honest, other than a rich family at a large estate, I don’t see how this book is similar to either the movie or Jenkins Reid books. Instead, I would liken You Must Remember This  to a Rach

The Moving Finger by Agatha Christie Publisher: William Morrow & Company Ginasbookreport Rating:  ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Genre: Mystery / Cozy Mystery  Read This If You Love:  Miss Marple series “No smoke without fire.” Anonymous letters start showing up throughout the town of Lymstock. Even Jerry and his sister Joanna, who moved to the town to assist in Jerry’s recovery from an airplane accident, receive a letter full of disdainful accusations…all untrue. While the town is rolling with gossip and speculation, the crescendo builds until one of their own is found dead. Who is writing the letters? Did they cause the death? Just what is happening in this “sleepy” little town? “But a lot of people do tell lies.” I read this novel as part of ReadChristie2023 for the March prompt of Anger.  The Moving Finger  is a Miss Marple novel that was first published in 1942. Although I know that the excuse of “it is of the time” would be used, I still found the amount of misogyny in the book to be off putting. It

Book by Book / While We Were Dating by Jasmine Guillory Publisher:  Jove Book published by Berkley, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC Ginasbookreport Rating:  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Genre:  Contemporary Romance / Chick Lit Read This If You Love:  The Unhoneymooners  / other Jasmine Guillory books  In By the Book, Izzy is making her way in the world of publishing. Her one time dream job has hit the reality that publishing isn’t always a glamorous thrill-a-minute industry. Day after day she slogs through her list of to dos, which includes reminding Beau Towers that he has an actual deadline for his memoir. Izzy finds herself on the standoffish author’s doorstep and all her frustrations come pouring out after his rude behavior. The perfect start for a romance, right! But is Beau really a jaded jerk or is he just as lost in life as Izzy. By the Book  delivers a sweet love story built on finding yourself and someone to support you along the way.  Side note: As someone who worked in book publishing,