Everyone has secrets. Some of them involve past heartbreak, some alter egos, and some the not-exactly-murder of your villainous husband. And then there are the secrets that involve unrequited love and unparalleled pining as you cut a swath across the high seas in search of treasure and adventure and — okay, can you tell which book was my favorite? The quality varies in these titles, but they also have unique strengths… even if some could use a little more crime and derring-do. *wink*
The Perfect Crimes of Marian Hayes (The Queer Principles of Kit Webb #2) by Cat Sebastian: This book was a delight. I mean, a romance that begins with blackmail, robbery, and a wee bit of murder is right up my nefarious alley, and the darkness of the characters’ reality is balanced by the warm fuzzies of their full acceptance of and care for each other — and their circle of friends. I love a prickly heroine and a devoted hero, and I appreciated the explorations of intimacy and motherhood, with all their complications. Going in, I expected this to be a tale of adventure and hijinks, but it’s really a heartfelt character study — with a side of crime. My thanks to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
The No-Show by Beth O’Leary: Three women are stood up on Valentine’s Day… by the same man. They each forgive him but are left to wonder why he never showed. What really happened — and who is he really? I neither hated nor loved this book, though it could have easily gone either way. The premise and marketing tone make it sound like a fun ride, with female bonding and a bit of mystery, but this is where the central conceit fails. Joseph is not merely the common denominator between three very different women — he’s the heart of the story, deliberately kept inaccessible. For better or worse, I guessed the twist six chapters in, and the knowing made the attempt at mystery all the more bewildering. I think this could work in a movie, where you have less time to think and less ability to access character’s minds, but in a book, it came off as withholding, and making the reader spend the book guessing and suspecting did a disservice to the story and all of the characters, not just Joseph. Because when you’re busy trying to figure out a contrived mystery, you miss the real story. My thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Romancing Mr. Bridgerton (Bridgertons #4) by Julia Quinn: After watching the second season of Bridgerton a couple weeks ago, I just had to revisit my favorite of the books — and remind myself of how amazing Penelope and Colin are. I never get tired of watching her fight for herself and seeing him realize that she truly is the smartest, most wonderful person in the world and that he’s been a blind fool for never noticing it before.
Captain Blood by Rafael Sabatini: Now this was a great way to end the reading week. If you’ve paid any attention at all, you know Captain Blood is a favorite, and I had such fun revisiting this after a couple years away. Sabatini is at his swashbuckling best here as he chronicles the misfortunes and exploits of the doctor-turned-pirate. And, as always, I was captivated by the tension between Peter Blood and Arabella Bishop, which adds such a wonderful emotional balance to this tale of adventure on the high seas. Not for everyone and certainly “of it’s time” in many ways, but still one of the great pirate tales and an excellent distraction during a busy week.
—b
Book It With Becca 
Hmm… I have to admit that I’m even more curious about The No Show now because I’ve seen a few reviews that have been pretty positive and so now I’m wondering how I’ll feel about it 😂 The Perfect Crimes of Marian Hayes sounds wonderful though and I’m defo keen to pick that up too. I think I’m in the minority of “haven’t watched or read Bridgerton yet” (or so it seems lately lol) but with each mention of the show and books, the more curious I become! I hope you have a great week of reading ahead, Becca!
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Honestly, I wouldn’t recommend it, but I’m not surprised I’m in the minority (I often am). I like authors playing with narrative but not when it feels like a trick on the reader — or when it’s done purely for the sake of experimentation and not because it actually adds to the story. As for Bridgerton (both show and books), it’s fun but don’t expect groundbreaking! Good fluff, though. 🙂
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Beth’s first 2 books were soooo good but jeez Louise, the 3rd one was so bad. I saw a spoiler for the No-Show and nope.
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It was… a choice, Panda. There was a way to tell this story that didn’t require blatantly misleading the audience, but this was not it. Much as my feminist heart cringes to say it… I think the way was to actually make the book about him instead of the women, change the question from “what’s up with this creep?” to “what happened to the women in his life?”
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