Sacha T. Y. Fortuné

I chose this book from an ARC program because the intro and blurb were interesting.

The Premise

In the 1960s, three young women meet in a maternity hospital, each of them pregnant with children whose names and stories they would only find out much later on. They are expected to give up their babies and pretend they do not exist, but their pasts follow them.

However, no secret can remain a secret forever. Decades later, someone unearths their records and threatens to blackmail them all. Now a politician’s wife, a famous Christian singer, and a prominent business owner, all three women have a lot to lose. Told from multiple viewpoints, this novel reveals the heartbreaking but uplifting stories of healing and redemption.

The Pros

This was an epic saga with memorable stories that were touching. I loved all the themes represented — family, responsibility, love, relationships, women’s rights, race relations, and so much more. It presents an accurate picture, showing the pressures that women faced in contemporary society at the time, where there was limited access to birth control, and immense reputational risk for women who engaged in premarital sex.

I enjoyed the relationships and bond the women maintained for each other despite the passage of time, and really appreciated the writer’s talent in capturing these stories which, though stated to be fictional, bear similarities to many real-life experiences during that time. The depictions of the family life situations were particularly well done — especially Faith’s parents and the way they were able to turn a blind eye to her plight.

Overall all the stories made an intriguing page-turner that was exciting though painful at times to read.

The Cons

I appreciated the historical tapestry woven throughout the book, but had to admit that it covers such a long period of time (34 years!), and through the eyes of so many characters, that it was difficult to keep track of at times. I liked the idea of the individual stories, but the execution was a bit convoluted — I lost count of how many viewpoints there were, as some of them came in much later on. I could easily see this story being made into 3 separate books, each of which would have been excellent on its own (or even a “Book 1: Becca”/ “Book 2: Faith”/ “Book 3: Sandy” in one cohesive volume) — but altogether and with so much switching between chapters and viewpoints, it was a lot to take in, which was a shame as the story is fabulous.

It also felt like there were things unresolved by the end, and while this may be acceptable for the genre, it left me feeling unsettled as I wanted to know what happened! After waiting through the entire book, Becca’s story seemed unfinished, and I also didn’t fully understand Michael’s parents’ motivations.

Conclusion

Despite my own feelings that I wish the story were told a bit differently, this was a really good novel that I would highly recommend to other readers. There is a lot here that will resonate with many women who lived during that time, and many profound messages underlying the actual story that will remain with me for awhile. I can easily see this being made into an amazing film. I am grateful to the writer for providing much-needed insight into this aspect of history, and for sharing her own truth as someone who was also adopted from a maternity hospital. I would love to read further work by this author.

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A “haunted house” horror/mystery about the elusive mother-daughter bond

This was my twenty-second book I chose via the Reedsy Discovery program, for which I am the single approved reviewer for this new book. This review also appears on Reedsy.

If you’re interested in becoming a Reedsy reviewer (and have the chance to get paid “tips” to review books!) check it out here.

The Premise

Single mother Lexie moves into a new home with her four-year-old daughter Ava, eager to distance herself from her emotionally abusive mother. Strange phenomena soon begin to take place: headaches, fainting spells, and evil thoughts that possess both mother and daughter and cause them to be violent to each other. With the help of her love interest, their next door neighbour Ryan, Lexie soon learns that the house has a sordid history: many people — particularly women — died or were injured on the premises. As Lexie and Ryan dig deeper, they uncover a dark secret buried decades ago, and must figure it out in time to provide comfort to a dying man before it’s too late.

The Pros & Cons

This novel subverts the typical “haunted house” horror mystery with genre-bending sub-plots about the elusive mother-daughter bond.

Romance builds between Lexie and Ryan as he helps her to solve the mystery of her house’s past, and we also see glimpses of women’s fiction, promoting a strong female character and her struggle to be a single parent without the financial help — or even the acknowledgement — of the child’s father.

The relationship with Lexie and her mother was amazingly well written. I think many women can relate to that tense feeling of begrudging gratitude for the woman who gave you life and helped you get back on your feet, while at the same time hating that indebtedness when it is laced with venomous emotional abuse. I also loved every minute of Ava — even the psychotic breaks. Her bubbly personality breathed life into the dark corners of the novel, and I appreciated her insight into the evil happenings, as well as her defence of her mother.

My only con was the overall pacing — I loved the vignettes we see in the second half, which catch us up to the past homeowners and show how the house affected their lives, but as it dealt with so many viewpoints, it felt like I was being tugged in many directions at times. Also, I thought Ryan’s back story emerged fairly late — by that time I was already in love with him as a character as he was so good to Lexie and Ava, and I didn’t even need to know why!

Despite that, the writer’s style was a pleasure to read — hills and valleys of description, nuances, action, drama and just pure talent. In general, I loved the way the tension mounts and builds as they uncover, piece by piece, what took place over the past decades as the house was held in the grip of an evil spirit. The underlying story was heartbreaking, and even when we finally learn what took place, we never do quite understand the “why” behind the murderer’s actions. It remains an eternal mystery — as, I suppose, does the natural inclination of any tense mother-daughter relationship!

Conclusion

I really enjoyed this novel and would highly recommend it to mature readers who can appreciate darkness — both of horror, and of emotional depth. Note: there is a sprinkling of mature language and situations, so younger readers should beware. The overall story itself is powerful, and leaves a lasting message. It also felt unique, which I really appreciated as I am an avid reader, so difference is a definite plus. This genre usually focuses on more guts and gore, and I was really thrilled to see a “horror” that didn’t depend on that for shock value, but instead on the everyday darkness of emotional relationships. I look forward to seeing more from this author.

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Coming soon

This book came to me directly from the author, for whom I’ve reviewed several books before:

• Inside Outside Part 1 – Black Wings: The Death Angel & The Griffin
• Inside Outside Part 2 – Black Wings: The Death Angel & A Seraph
• Inside Outside Part 3 – Black Wings: The Valkyrie & Her Wyvern

The Premise

With her single-parent family struggling to get by, McKinley’s “purchase” by the wealthy Mr. Dimitri Komarov is a welcome income source. But Komarov, the mayor of the town of Ivanov, doesn’t want a wife; he wants a witch. In their superstitious society, he knows a witch will grant him more respect and fear than his finances could ever buy. But with the smart-mouth, mischievous Koldun’ya (Russian for “witch” or “sorceress”), Komarov gets far more than he bargained for. So does Sascha, Komarov’s right-hand man. Danger follows McKinley’s power — but fortunately, Sascha is ready to risk it all to save the impertinent imp that has stolen his heart.

The Pros & Cons

This was a great, fast-paced read with a main character that flew off the pages to make me laugh and smile. McKinley’s power is multifold — her effect on others is more farcical than fantastical, and it was thrilling to read her mischievous ways as her influence in the town grew. Despite her silliness at times, she genuinely loved and cared for her townsfolk, especially the father figure of her “employer” Komarov and her love interest Sascha. Her actual powers, when those were revealed, were simply an extension of her traits, as she was able to do so much without actual magic! I loved the dialogue and the relationship with Sascha, who was a thrilling character in his own right. My only con is that the villain was merely a blip on the radar in terms of the pacing, as the book was quite short and most of its real estate was dedicated to McKinley’s naughtiness!

Conclusion

This was a fabulous short read if you like your romance with a bit of a fantastical twist. As usual, this author does not disappoint: her heroines are powerful and memorable, and her heroes are dynamic and supportive of their ladies. This was a pleasure to read, and I was happy to get something a bit more light-hearted from this author, who also did a great job with darker fiction in her “Inside Outside” series I’ve already reviewed. This one is also a bit less on the hot-and-heavy side than that series, so it would also be good for teenagers. I will gladly recommend this to readers if you love your characters and your stories swift, sexy and snarky!

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This book found its way to me via an author’s newsletter that featured other books. I chose it because I was in the mood for a good women’s fiction.

The Premise

40-something-year-old Josie is at a crossroads in her life. After a break-up, she struggles to get over her ex Thomas who is still in her life. Then, when she quits her job, her friend offers her an opportunity to open her own restaurant. As Josie launches into the creation of this dream she’s always had, along the way she also tries to figure out her dating life post-Thomas and post-divorce. Childless womanhood has left her with an emptiness she’s not able to understand fully, and she tries to fill it with her new career and her female friendships. Fortunately she’s got a great batch of friends — but are they enough to help her through this midlife crisis, and does she really need love in her life, or is her cat enough?

The Pros

This was a good, heart-warming read about female friendships and womanhood at a later stage of life. I liked how the friendships had blossomed through the years, and how the friends truly supported each other — helping build new careers for each other, setting up a support system to help with a new baby, and showing up when they were really needed even though they all had their busy lives. It was great to see such a great show of female camaraderie and true friendship, even though they each had their quirks. I also loved how we were able to see glimpses of the lives of the other characters through the main character Josie, as it felt like a fully fleshed cast that I could easily imagine being made into a film or movie.

The Cons

I liked this book, but admittedly it took me awhile to get into it. I wasn’t sure what to expect as the women’s fiction genre can be open-ended with no foregone conclusion. Eventually I did grow to enjoy Josie’s journey of maturity — even at her stage of life, post-divorce and at 40-something, but the pacing at the beginning was a bit of a slow start for me. The writing style had quite a lot of very long introspective passages that just kind of said where the character’s mind was at, rather than showing the reader through actions or events — a shame, really. It’s not my preferred style of writing, so it took awhile to get used to these ebbs and flows to appreciate the story.

Conclusion

This was a good read and will certainly tick all the boxes for less picky readers, but I wished for a bit more to take me all the way there. Nevertheless it is a story that will resonate with many women, and I think there is a lot they may relate to here in any of the female characters’ lives. I would recommend to other readers, and I look forward to other books by this author. I’d love to give her a chance to see if another book could give me *all* the feels rather than just a bit of the tingles I felt with this one!

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