Here are my favorite reads of 2016. It doesn't mean they were published this year, only that I read them this year:

Candidate for Murder by Lauren Carr

I think this one was Lauren Carr's best murder mystery so far from what I've read of her work. I mean who else can write about a dog running for mayor and still give us a thrilling murder mystery? Plenty of laughter, twists and turns and murders in this one. Perfect for the mystery lover who enjoys colorful characters, smart dogs, political and gov't corruption and a good dose of humor in their books.

Corporate Citizen (Book #5 Roma Series) by Gabriel Valjan

If you are a fan of thriller/suspense novels that include a very likeable cast of characters that not only use their law enforcement skills to solve crime but also know how to enjoy "la doce vita" as only Italians can, then you need to pick up this series. Corporate Citizen, I am happy to say, was a great addition to the whole series, and I eagerly and impatiently await Book #6.

Atmospheric, well-written and emotional, this book transported me by its lush descriptions of the vineyards in Napa Valley, its 1950s setting, the art of winemaking, the tasteful romance and the mysterious past of a strong woman and her family. Partly set in Italy, the story is rich and full of secrets, secrets that are devastating, that kept me holding my breath until the last page. 

The Golden Son by Shilpi Somaya Gowda

Well-written, evocative, emotional and exotic, The Golden Son is the second book from Gowda that will once again capture not only readers who loved her first book, but anyone who loves to read literary fiction rich in culture and characterization.

Finally, I want to thank all my readers and blogger friends who have supported me and my blogging team (Sandra, Maria and Fil) with your heartfelt comments. A big thank you to all the authors, publicists, book tour organizers and publishers who trust us with their books and allow us wonderful hours of reading!

Buy the Book: Amazon  ~  Barnes & Noble

Goodreads

My Review:

Reviewed by Laura Fabiani

I love time travel stories, so I was super pleased when this book showed up unexpectedly in my mailbox. I read this one earlier this year and loved it, but never posted my review, so here it is. If any of you are YA fiction fans, especially of time travel, this one is well worth the read.

Cassandra is 17 and reluctantly spending the summer with her mom and stepfather at his beach house. She's angry, bored and restless. When she meets a stranger one evening on her house's private beach during a party, he seems to stir up something in her. It turns out Lawrence is actually from 1925. As they figure out how to spend time together, they both realize that their interactions cause a ripple effect through time and change people's existence.

Their growing love is doomed but worse yet, Cassandra does some research and discovers Lawrence is to be murdered in two weeks time. They try to figure out how to prevent this from happening. At this point I'm racing through this book because I'm dying to know what happens. There are unexpected twists and I was pleased with its realistic ending. It was also refreshing to read a book that was not a trilogy in the time travel genre.

I found this book thrilling, suspenseful, romantic and unique. The contemporary beach setting from Cassandra's world with the Gatsby-era 1920s glamour of Lawrence's world made the time-travel element exciting. Their double-dilemma of not being from the same century and knowing one of them was to be murdered added danger and suspense to the plot. The story alternates from both Cassandra and Lawrence's point of view, which was great. The author succeeded in capturing the voices of both the characters, one contemporary and the other from the past.

I think this book would translate well into a movie. I also like the book cover. It suits the story so well. This was a satisfying read, a captivating story that was perfect to escape into.

Disclosure: Thanks to the publisher for sending me this book for review. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.

About the Author:

Renee Collins grew up on a beach in Hawaii. Sadly, she never met anyone from the past on those shores, but she did go on to get a degree in History, which is almost the same. She currently lives in Colorado with her family. Visit her at www.reneecollinsauthor.com.

Buy the Book: Amazon

My Review:

Reviewed by Laura Fabiani

This was truly a delightful book!

Based on the real lives of Jane Austen, her family and Tom Lefroy, author Michaela MacColl has written a cozy YA mystery novel that is sure to please Austenesque fans of all ages. Jane meets the mysterious Tom Lefroy to whom she becomes attracted just as she discovers a secret that could potentially ruin her family's reputation. How these two events in her life converge is the basis for this intriguing and romantic tale.

The author builds a strong intelligent character in Jane, as any reader would expect from a fictionalized account of Jane Austen's life. We also have the flamboyant and refreshing cousin Eliza, who is suspected of treason by the War Office, and Jane's handsome brother Henry who is enamored with Eliza. Finally, the initially arrogant Mr. Lefroy is very Darcy-like in how he gets taken in by Jane and her intellect.

Lovers of Jane Austen's literature will note how some characters and situations in this book hint at what Jane would go on to write in her future novels. For young readers unfamiliar with the Regency era or Jane Austen, this novel is a great way to introduce them to a literary icon. Jane's refusal of adhering to conventions and her moral integrity shape her character and her decisions in this book.

I enjoyed the plot tremendously, however, the abrupt ending of Jane's romance with Mr. Lefroy and her lack of emotions about his choice left me a little cold at the end. She should have experienced some heartbreak for a man she would have considered as a future husband. Apart from this unimpassioned ending, this was a charming take on the life of a young sleuth Jane Austen.

Disclosure: Thanks to Raincoast Books for sending me this book for review. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.

Fifteen Words by Monika Jephcott Thomas
ISBN: 9781911110958
Published: November 22, 2016
Published by: Clink Street Publishing
Trade paperback: 293 pages
Content rating: G

Book Description:

Two young doctors form a profound and loving bond in Nazi Germany; a bond that will stretch them to the very limits of human endurance. Catholic Max - whose religious and moral beliefs are in conflict, has been been conscripted to join the war effort as a medic, despite his hatred of Hitler’s regime. His beloved Erika, a privileged young woman, is herself a product of the Hitler Youth. In spite of their stark differences, Max and Erika defy convention and marry. But when Max is stationed at the fortress city of Breslau, their worst nightmares are realised; his hospital is bombed, he is captured by the Soviet Army and taken to a POW camp in Siberia.

Max experiences untold horrors, his one comfort the letters he is allowed to send home: messages that can only contain Fifteen Words. Back in Germany, Erika is struggling to survive and protect their young daughter, finding comfort in the arms of a local carpenter. Worlds apart and with only sparse words for comfort, will they ever find their way back to one another, and will Germany ever find peace? Fifteen Words is a vivid and intimate portrayal of human love and perseverance, one which illuminates the German experience of the war, which has often been overshadowed by history.

Reviewed by Sandra Olshaski

This is a brooding, dark novel that produced a sense of foreboding in me from the first few words. It is based on real events, experienced by the author's parents. It is a compelling, even raw account of life in Germany during the Second World War, reflecting the lives of ordinary Germans, some pro-Nazi (Erika) and others trying to maintain their religious faith (Max). And we see life from the perspective of Germans who we normally view as "the bad guys."

There are enough German words in the novel to make it authentic. Although at times it read like a translation, the author has a wonderful descriptive ability. For example, "her (Erika's) head burned as an Alpine wind of doubt roared through her ears." Or Max heard "the sleeping dragon sound of the sea."

The characters are strong, complex, real, and ultimately flawed. The fifteen words that Max and Erika are allowed to write in letters link them together, but are those words enough to maintain their love as distance, time, and temptations present themselves?

The author has certainly succeeded in capturing the horrors and gut-wrenching effects of war on victims and survivors alike. An ancient book of wisdom says that "man has dominated man to his injury." That is certainly proved true in this book.

This is a true-life story of war, loneliness, hope, courage and survival in the face of overwhelming odds.

Sandra Olshaski's disclosure: Thanks to Rachel at Authoright for sending me this book for review. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.

Monika Jephcott Thomas grew up in Dortmund, Mengede, north-west Germany. In 1966 she moved to the UK and, after a thirty-year career in education, delved into the therapeutic world where she has over twenty years experience as a counsellor and psychotherapist, gained with a wide variety of clients and presenting conditions. Her professional background has given her insight into the effect of traumatic events not only on those directly experiencing them but also on their families and the generational impact. 

Connect with the author at monika-jephcott-thomas.com

I also got some more gorgeous kidlit!

Killing It is one of those books that you should read if you are thinking of launching a business and then once again after you've launched the business and every year after that.

Title: Killing It: An Entrepreneur's Guide to Keeping Your Head Without Losing Your Heart

Author: Sheryl O'Loughlin

Publisher: HarperBusiness

Published: December 6, 2016
Hardcover: 304 pages

Content Rating: G

Book Description:

The former CEO of Clif Bar, Co-founder of Plum, and serial entrepreneur offers insights about launching and growing a business while maintaining a fulfilled life in this practical guide filled with hard-won advice culled from the author’s own sometimes dark, raw experiences. With a foreword by Steve Blank.

Aspiring entrepreneurs are told that to launch a business, you must go all in, devoting every resource and moment to making it work. But following this advice comes at an enormous personal cost: divorce, addiction, even suicide. It means sacrificing the intangibles that make life worth living.

Sheryl O’Loughlin knows there is a better way. In Killing It, she shares the wisdom she’s gained from her successful experiences launching a company from the ground up (Plum), running two fast-growing companies (Clif Bar and REBBL), and mentoring aspiring entrepreneurs (Stanford University). She tells it like it is: If you don’t invest in your wellbeing, your business will not succeed, nor will you.

Sheryl knows firsthand the difficulty of balancing the needs of her growing family with her physical and mental health, while managing other work and life challenges. In this warm, honest, and wise handbook, she gives you the essentials for killing it in business—without killing the rest of your life.

Filled with real-life examples and anecdotes, Killing It addresses common questions including:
How do you prepare your significant other for your business venture?
How do you time launching and growing your business with the ebb and flow of family life?
How do you find joy in the day-to-day?
How do you maintain meaningful, supportive friendships?
How do you walk away and start again?

The ultimate life and business course, Killing It gives entrepreneurs the tools they need to start their enterprise and thrive—both in the office and at home.

Purchase Links

HarperCollins | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

It's been three years this month since I launched my business and it has been full speed ahead since then. In Killing It, the author states the fact (taken from Deborah Gage's The Venture Capital Secret: 3 out of 4 Start-Ups Fail) that 95% of startups fail. Yeah...that's because being an entrepreneur is HARD work, requiring skills in many areas.

So when I read the full title of Killing It, I knew I wanted to read it. And I like what Sheryl had to say right from the very beginning. She addresses that being an entrepreneur is a calling, driven by passion, and because of this a lot of entrepreneurs get driven to the ground. Their health and relationships can suffer. So she tackles topics that business books don't. She helps you navigate the waters of launching and keeping a business when you have a significant other in your life as well as children.

It made me understand that a lot of my success was the unwavering support of my husband, his timely advice when I was stumped with a problem or racking my brain on how to handle a situation. Thinking back, he's been my faithful adviser and the voice of reason when I was too emotionally invested.

This year has been tough on my health. Anyone who knows me knows I am dedicated, driven and determined to establish a good business model with excellent customer service at its core. I've succeeded, but the time and the energy has also drained me. Sheryl knows what that's like, she gets it. And for this reason, as I was reading this book, I felt that she was my guide and a wake up call to take better care of myself so that I can continue to be successful without killing myself. I need to start investing in my well-being. It's a learning curve, that's for sure.

Sheryl's business experience, her woman's perspective and the many anecdotes she includes in this book are strong points for me. This book is far from dry or boring. Sheryl is honest and forthright, using examples of her own past mistakes, fears and insecurities. This resulted in my feeling reassured that I'm not alone in feeling this way, in having self-doubts or berating myself when I feel I messed up.

Killing It is one of those books that you should read if you are thinking of launching a business and then once again after you've launched the business and every year after that. Why? Because her advice will make sense during the different phases of your business' growth. And isn't that book cover clever? It looks like a post-it note, drawing one's eye to it. Simple and effective. I highly recommend this book for entrepreneurs and artists.

Disclosure: Thanks to the publisher and TLC Book Tours for sending me this book for review. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.
 




Sheryl O’Loughlin earned her MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. She is the CEO of REBBL super-herb beverages, and she previously served as the CEO of Clif Bar, where she led the concept development and introduction of Luna Bars, and was the cofounder and CEO of Plum Organics. She is the former executive director of the Center for Entrepreneurial Studies at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. She lives in Santa Rosa, California, with her husband, Patrick, and her two sons.

In Nancy J Alexander's debut novel Relentless, we have a successful doctor with repressed memories of a traumatic past, an unconventional therapist with a secret of her own and a madman intent on killing the girl he's obsessed with.

At 34, Gina Reynolds is a respected neonatologist with a successful practice, but suddenly she starts having nightmares and visions of scenes from her childhood when she suffered abuse at the hands of a sadistic cousin, Jake. Although she changed her name twice, and has moved on and pursued a career, she feels he is after her and will kill her. With the help of her therapist Dr. Elisabeth Reinhardt and others, Gina comes to terms with her past to confront this man who has been the cause of her terror.

This novel has a great premise. I love stories that deal with psychological issues and the scenes with Gina and her therapist Dr. Reinhardt were very interesting to me. Not surprising then that the therapist ended up being my favorite character. She was smart and intriguing.

It is clear that the author's clinical experience in her work with survivors of childhood trauma shines through in this novel. At times, though, this same attention to detail and repetition took over her writing style and bogged down the story so that I felt I was reading multiple reports of people's histories and procedural outlines on how to investigate and catch elusive murderers.

I liked the ending, which was surprising and unexpected and perfect, really. Overall, this was a good story that would have benefited from some developmental editing to solidify the plot and tighten the narrative for a more fast-paced thriller. A good debut for those who like psychological thrillers.

To read more reviews, please visit Nancy J Alexander's page on iRead Book Tours.

Disclosure: Thanks to the author for sending me this book for review. I was not told how to rate or review this product.


Love of the mystery/thriller genre combines with psychotherapy training and experience to produce an emotionally supercharged dramatic novel. Nancy Alexander has devoted much of her professional life to helping survivors of childhood trauma; their distress has been ingrained and works to create characters who give voice to their plight. To analyze the evil minds that prey on others and the intricacies of law enforcers who pursue them seemed a natural interlacing of professional, literary and creative interests.

Connect with the author: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

I'm already very hopeful that this year will be a better year because of the awareness I bring into it. They say it takes 21 days to form a habit. I've already started to plan out how to best implement wellness in my life and I'm feeling better because of it. That is the first step. You will also notice more books will be featured on this blog that focus on wellness. 

So have you thought of your "one word" for 2017? Like Sheila says, a word…can be a powerful thing.

In 2011, I read and reviewed Secret Daughter, Shilpa Somaya Gowda's debut book. I loved it and wondered if The Golden Son would live up to her first novel. Let's just say that I flew through the pages of this one and was immediately drawn in from the first page. 

Title: The Golden Son by Shilpi Somaya Gowda
Publisher: William Morrow 

Published: November 29, 2016
Paperback: 432 pages
Content Rating: PG-13 (For scenes of domestic violence and abuse)

Book Description:

The New York Times and #1 internationally bestselling author of Secret Daughter returns with an unforgettable story of family, responsibility, love, honor, tradition, and identity, in which two childhood friends—a young doctor and a newly married bride—must balance the expectations of their culture and their families with the desires of their own hearts.

The first of his family to go to college, Anil Patel, the golden son, carries the weight of tradition and his family’s expectations when he leaves his tiny Indian village to begin a medical residency in Dallas, Texas, at one of the busiest and most competitive hospitals in America. When his father dies, Anil becomes the de facto head of the Patel household and inherits the mantle of arbiter for all of the village’s disputes. But he is uneasy with the custom, uncertain that he has the wisdom and courage demonstrated by his father and grandfather. His doubts are compounded by the difficulties he discovers in adjusting to a new culture and a new job, challenges that will shake his confidence in himself and his abilities.

Back home in India, Anil’s closest childhood friend, Leena, struggles to adapt to her demanding new husband and relatives. Arranged by her parents, the marriage shatters Leena’s romantic hopes, and eventually forces her to make a desperate choice that will hold drastic repercussions for herself and her family. Though Anil and Leena struggle to come to terms with their identities thousands of miles apart, their lives eventually intersect once more—changing them both and the people they love forever.

Tender and bittersweet, The Golden Son illuminates the ambivalence of people caught between past and present, tradition and modernity, duty and choice; the push and pull of living in two cultures, and the painful decisions we must make to find our true selves.

Reviewed by Laura Fabiani

In 2011, I read and reviewed Secret Daughter, Shilpa Somaya Gowda's debut book. I loved it and wondered if The Golden Son would live up to her first novel. Let's just say that I flew through the pages of this one and was immediately drawn in from the first page. This is a novel rich in characterization and culture, filled with gems of wisdom and depth.

The novel is the story of Anil Patel, the elder son of a respected family in a village of India, who decides to become a doctor and pursue his medical residency in Dallas, Texas at one of the best known hospitals in America. Anil experiences immigrant issues--new culture and attitudes, prejudice, modernized lifestyle and the wonder of modern medicine. He learns some tough lessons all while juggling the traditions of his own culture and family.

This is also the story of Leena, a close childhood friend of Anil who lives in Anil's village in India and who eventually gets married and experiences abuse at the hand of her husband's family. At some point Anil and Leena's life reconnect and their life lessons will combine to bring about positive change and healing for both their families.

I simply loved how the author was able to seamlessly intertwine the Indian and American cultures and the struggle to find one's identity when part of both cultures. The lush descriptions of the Indian village and farmlands, its people and their lives shone through as equally as did the adrenaline rush of the exhilarating but exhaustive medical residency in a big hospital of a modern metropolis.

It is evident that Gowda understood and researched both settings and cultures well. The unspoken but understood ways of doing things in the small Indian village, especially when it came to arranged marriages and dowries versus the medical jargon and competitive nature of the residency were clear evidence of her extensive research. It is these subtle but powerful bits of information that makes this novel so good, so satisfying to read, and such a pleasure for info junkies like me. I love learning new things as I read.

Well-written, evocative, emotional and exotic, The Golden Son is the second book from Gowda that will once again capture not only readers who loved her first book, but anyone who loves to read literary fiction rich in culture and characterization. This book has made it to my Best Reads of 2016 list.

To read more reviews, visit Shilpi Somaya Gowda's page on TLC Book Tours.

Disclosure: Thanks to the publisher and TLC Book Tours for sending me this book for review. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.






Shilpi Somaya Gowda was born and raised in Toronto, Canada. She holds an MBA from Stanford University, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she was a Morehead-Cain scholar. She lives in California with her husband and children.

Find out more about Shilpi at her website, and connect with her on Facebook and Twitter.

This is the first book by Jan Moran that I had the pleasure of reading and it certainly won't be my last. 

Jan Moran is a Rizzoli bestselling and award winning author. She writes historical women's fiction for St. Martin's Press (Scent of Triumph, The Winemakers), contemporary women's fiction (Flawless, Beauty Mark, Runway), and nonfiction books (Vintage Perfumes, Fabulous Fragrances). Her stories are smart and stylish, and written with emotional depth. Jan often draws on her international travel and business experiences, infusing her books with realistic details.

The Midwest Book Review and Kirkus have recommended her books, calling her heroines strong, complex, and resourceful. She likes to talk to readers at www.janmoran.com and on social media. She lives in southern California and loves lattes and iced coffee, anything chocolate, and Whole Foods Double Green smoothies to balance it all out.

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