April Women's Fiction Books

by Susan Roberts

April brought us lots of fantastic new books.  Here are reviews of four April Women's Fiction novels that all published earlier this month.

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Indelible by Laurie Buchanan

April 2021; SparkPress; 978-1684630714
ebook, print (304 pages); thrillers

I started this book on a Sunday evening and planned to read a few chapters.  At 3am, I put the finished book down.  Once I started this suspenseful book, there was no way that I could stop until I read it all.   

Sean was a policeman who was injured in an accident after a sniper killed his partner.  He left the force and went to the writer's retreat run by his sister and her husband to recuperate.  The retreat in the beautiful and serene Pacific Northwest helped him heal physically and mentally as he worked as a general handyman.  He picks up the four new writers in residence at Sea-Tac airport and is immediately drawn to Emma, a young woman in a wheelchair.  The other writers are a psychic, a bitter divorcee, and a limo driver from NYC.  All four of them are writing books about their experiences in life but in reality,  the limo driver is really a criminal who wants to kill Sean and ends up threatening to harm all of the people at the retreat.

Indelible is an unputdownable book that contrasts the beauty of the Pacific Northwest with the terrible thoughts of a serial killer - it contrasts four people who create their worlds with words with someone who creates his world with fear and torture.  Clear your calendar before you start this fantastic new thriller.  You won't want to put it down until the end.

This is book #1 in a new series and I can't wait to read the next book and read more about Sean McPherson and the writers retreat in Washington.

Buy Indelible at Amazon

Maggie Finds Her Muse by Dee Ernst 

April 2021; Griffin; 978-1250768339
audio, ebook, print (304 pages); women's fiction

"Every author in the world knew in their heart of hearts that despite the fame, awards, accolades, and devoted followers, in any moment we could all become incapable of putting together even the simplest of sentences." (p 2)

This book has Paris and sexy men and Paris and love and Paris.  Can you tell that I love books about Paris?

Maggie Finds her Muse is a delightful and funny look at a 48-year-old woman learning how to feel confidant and love herself while she is having fun in Paris!

Maggie is a famous writer with two popular books completed in her new trilogy.  The third book is due in two months - she has already gotten extensions on the date and knows that she has to deliver this time.  What's the problem?  She has writer's block and hasn't written the first word.  Her agent decides to take her to Paris with him and his partner.  He knows that the magic of Paris will help her start writing again.  The only problem is that she has more interruptions in Paris  - first, of course, she wants to see the city that she has dreamed about, second, her ex-husband shows up in Paris to visit their daughter who lives in Rennes and they begin to develop a relationship, and third, a sexy Frenchman is living in the same apartment where she is staying.  Max is the son of the apartment's caretaker/friend.  Max is sexy but is also a nice person who cares about the people in his life. Will being in the City of Lights and spending time with her ex-husband and sexy Max give her the incentive she needs to complete her book by the deadline?

Maggie Finds Her Muse is a fun book and a perfect summer read.  Maggie is a fantastic main character and very real because we see her flaws and her struggles with her life.  She has a great sense of humor and the book made me laugh out loud in parts.  I was pulling for her to finish that book and find a happily ever after ending.

Along with this being a fantastic story, the writer tells us so much about Paris that you can take a mental vacation - to the Eiffel Tower, Shakespeare and Company bookstore, Montmartre - and all of the little cafes that are serving fantastic food.

Buy Maggie Finds Her Muse at Amazon

Mother May I by Joshilyn Jackson

April 2021; William Morrow; 978-0062855343
audio, ebook, print (336 pages); thrillers

Revenge doesn’t wait for permission.

Mother May I is an intense novel that will keep you on the edge of your seat as you rapidly turn pages to find out how it ends.  It kept me up way past my bedtime because I knew that I wouldn't sleep until I finished it.  This is the first book that I've read by this author and now understand what a mistake that is and plan to order her previous books.

Bree grew up poor but now lives a life of wealth and luxury in her perfect marriage.  Her husband was born into a wealthy family and is now a well-known lawyer.  They have two teenage daughters and a new baby boy.  Bree takes the baby with her to watch her daughters' play rehearsal.  He is in his car seat behind her and when she gets ready to leave - he's gone.  All that's left is a note warning her that she is being watched; if she wants her baby back, she must not call the police or deviate in any way from the instructions that will follow.  In a panic, she drives home and waits for what she thinks will be a ransom phone call.  But the instructions are worse, much worse and she has to carry out a task that will have great ramifications on her life...but she'll do anything to get her son back.  As her quest to get her son back and keep her family safe becomes more intense, Bree risks everything possible.  Will she get her son back and will it cause irreparable damage to her family?

This book is full of suspense from the first chapter until the end.  Bree was a strong woman and a dedicated mother who put the safety of her family ahead of her own safety.  I was on her side the entire way and hoped for a happy ending for her family and the return of her son.  This was a fantastic thriller!

Buy Mother May I at Amazon

In a Book Club Far Away by Tif Marcelo

April 2021; Gallery Books; 978-1982148096
ebook, print (400 pages); women's fiction

"When a military spouse called for an SOS, the answer was always yes.  The reason was clear and undeniable;  milspouses didn't round the troops for the smallest things.  They'd endured too much, forged by over two decades of conflict, stemming from 9/11 when lives had been divided into before and after." (p 23)

This is a wonderful book about friendship.  The three main characters were all Army wives that became friends in 2012 when one of them started a book club.  They were very close friends when their husbands were all stationed at the same place but as the years went on the they moved to other places, their friendship diminished.  Until in 2020, one of the friends sent an SOS to the other two - that meant she needed help now - no questions asked.

Regina Castro, Adelaide Wilson-Chang, and Sophie Walden became friends in 2011-12 when their husbands were all posted at Fort East.  They were inseparable until a betrayal happened and the threesome were no longer friends. Adelaide was still friends with each woman but Regina and Sophie hadn't talked in over eight years and were still angry with each other.  When Adelaide issues an SOS to her friends, they both go to her home immediately  Her husband is overseas and she needed surgery and had no one to help her or take care of her daughter.  When Regina and Sophie saw each other, there were instant fireworks and they were both adamant that they wouldn't stay.  But their friendship with Adelaide came first so they both made the best of it to help her.  Can they overcome their past hurts and resentments and become friends again or will they be unable to forgive?  Will Adelaide's dream of bringing the trio together again end up in disaster?

A Book Club Far Away is a beautiful book about female friendships.  Women know how important their friends are to their lives - they are people to laugh with, cry with and be with at sad times.  The friendship that these three women had in the earlier parts of their lives was awesome and they had all suffered without each other over the ensuing years.  This book reinforces the importance of female friends.  This is my first book by this author and I definitely plan to read some of her earlier books.

Buy A Book Club Far Away at Amazon

Susan Roberts lives in North Carolina with her husband of over 50 years.  She grew up in Michigan but now calls North Carolina home. Since her travel plans had to be canceled for this year, she is starting to make plans for travel in 2021. She reads almost anything (and the piles of books in her house prove that) but her favorite genres are Southern fiction, women's fiction, and historical fiction. Susan is a top 1% Goodreads Reviewer. You can connect with Susan on Facebook, Goodreads, or Twitter.

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