Middlemarch Reads

Finding time to read has been hit and miss with me lately, but here’s what I’ve been diving into!

–Marissa

My Darling Husband by Kimberly Belle was an audio listen, and it kept me engaged throughout! Cam is a celebrity chef with a lot of secret financial issues, so when his wife and children are held for ransom, the clock – and tension – builds and builds throughout. This was a tense suspense novel that put you in the shoes of both Jade and Cam. Engaging for sure!

The Suite Spot by Trish Doller was such a warm, lovely follow-up to Float Plan (which I read and loved last year)! Rachel is a single mom in Ft. Lauderdale who loses her job at a boutique hotel and takes a chance on moving to a tiny Ohio town to work in a new hotel/brewery start up with her daughter. Of course, her boss is handsome, moody, has a past and there are fireworks between them right away. I loved every page of both of these novels – the characters, the settings, the warmth and coziness of the will-they-won’t-they… these romance novels just flow and give me all the feels. 🙂

The Younger Wife by Sally Hepworth is the latest from this fantastically readable author, and this was another page-turner (though people are… vocal about the ending!). Sisters Rachel and Tully are told by father Stephen that he is marrying Heather, his girlfriend (who is their age)… and oh, dad is still married to Pam, their mother, who is in a nursing home with dementia – cue the drama! This book deals with a lot of serious trigger warning topics (rape, eating disorders, anxiety, theft, abuse, domestic violence), but not in a heavy-handed way. I felt like there was still so much to unpack with these characters, but I flew through the pages!

What Happened to the Bennetts by Lisa Scottoline is a stand-alone suspense novel featuring typical suburban family the Bennetts – dad, mom, son, daughter and dog – who, after a horrific carjacking incident, find themselves quickly shuttled into the witness protection program. I loved the glimpse “behind the curtain” of what that life was like, and the pacing was great as dad Jason tries to untangle what happened to his family and why. Implausible, yes, but fast-paced and engaging enough!

In a New York Minute by Kate Spencer is just a joy of a romance novel. Kate is the co-host of one of my favorite podcasts (Forever35), and it’s so fun to finally get to read her fiction writing! Franny and Hayes have a fabulous meet-cute on the subway in New York City and become “internet famous” as a result… then their paths keep crossing across the city. They are opposites who attract, and their flirting is just adorable. This is a feel-good, warm, delicious romance novel!

I also read the forthcoming The Joy of Self-Care by Becca Anderson, which was a nice, diverting non-fiction book on finding joy in all things.