Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake by Alexis Hall

Rosaline Palmer applies many labels to herself: mother, bisexual, disappointment to her parents, bakery worker. She's on her way to applying one more, contestant on Bake Expectations. She considers herself very lucky and even more so when she meets a fellow contestant on her way up to the first weekend. Yes, their train is cancelled causing both to be late and, yes, Rosaline tells Alain an outrageous lie because she is flustered and attracted to him. But that is quickly cleared up and Rosaline is on her way to making friends and winning hearts. Well, sort of. She still has to juggle her precocious eight-year-old, her day-to-day job, and her parents who are not only disappointed in her life choices, they let her know with every conversation.

Like most of Hall's books, the characters come alive, even the side characters who are not even on that many pages. I got a little bogged down in the middle but only a little. Hall is an amazing writer and I have so far enjoyed everything I've read. Can't wait for the next book in this series.

Four stars

This book came out May 18, 2021

Followed by Paris Daillencourt Is About to Crumble

Borrowed as ebook from Libby

Opinions are my own

Tinkering With Love by Aliyah Burke

In a switch-up, we have a grumpy-sunshine book where the female is the grumpy one. And Dawson Shay sure has reason to be grumpy. She grew up in foster homes though her bio mom has recently contacted her and she's... not a good person. Also, after being dumped by her boyfriend, Dawson moved a good distance because she was promised a job which was then yanked away from her after she arrived in town. Sure, they owner of the place gave her another job (which she is, by the way, rocking). But now she has to go on a corporate retreat with none other than the man who stole her job.

Tully Faulkner isn't sure why the new employee in town doesn't like him but he sure likes her. In fact, he makes it his mission to make sure that she's going to like him. Which would usually be somewhat gross but he does actually make sure that she is allowed to shut him down and (it's implied) that he would walk away. 

The two get close during the retreat (with an interesting scavenger hunt) and even closer afterward. This is a nice start to a series but so much relies on the characters not actually talking to each other. Even after SO many of the side characters tell them to.

Three stars

This book comes out June 20, 2022

ARC kindly provided by Entangled Publishing, LLC and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

The Recovery Agent by Janet Evanovich

Gabriela Rose is a treasure hunter. She's intelligent, driven, and blessedly single after divorcing her from-a-young-age-sweetheart, Rafer. But their paths are going to cross again when her hometown is devastated by a hurricane and her grandmother insists that the family ghost, Annie, has told her where  a lost treasure map is hidden. The map will lead her to King Solomon's ring and an even bigger treasure. Unfortunately she needs to go back to her family home, the one Rafer won in the divorce. 
Suddenly, the two of them are working together again. They are off on a big adventure flying all over the world and somehow getting entangled with a cult that is also after the ring. 
Evanovich fans will delight in this book. It is fast, fun, and fluffy though without much purpose or direction. 

Three and a half stars

This book came out March 22, 2022

Borrowed as ebook from library

Opinions are my own

The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill

This was a really interesting book within a book. 

The "outer book" is that of an author writing to an American, getting help on making sure that her book reads like it was written by a native of the United States. While initial letters are helpful, later letters prove to be less than.

The book our author is writing is that of four strangers meeting in the Boston Public Library. Initially, they all sit at the same table. When a scream rings through the library, everyone is asked to remain where they are and the four begin talking to each other. That one experience brings them together again and again. Well, it's the scream coupled with the fact that a woman is found underneath a table in another room of the library. 

The characters are well-developed and we even get to see some of the development through the letters exchanged. The mystery is also well-developed though it got a little over-involved for my taste.

Overall a well-designed book that keeps readers engaged and enjoying the story.

Four stars

This book came out June 7, 2022

Ebook from Hoopla

Opinions are my own

A Wolf in Duke's Clothing by Susanna Allen

For five years, Alfred Blakesly, Duke of Lowell, has been looking for his mate. He traveled the world

looking for her. He needs to find his mate because the shifters are dying out and, as Alpha, his pack can not find love until he does. He is an unusual Alpha in that he does not just collect wolves (his shifter animal.) Instead, he collects all of the animals that are normally considered runts (meaning he now has a LOT of footmen.)Despairing, he has returned to England and the glittering ballrooms of the ton. And it is there that he finally smells her, his mate. 

Felicity Templeton is so close. As an orphan, she is a wallflower but she has plans. In eleven days, she will reach her majority and be out from under her uncle's thumb. Being kidnapped from a ball and spirited away to the country was definitely not a part of her plans. Though nice, the residents in this house are... odd. 

But what the Duke and Felicity don't know is that there is a timeline to their courting and they will need to have some frank discussions if they want to find their HEA.

This book was a little loopy and not tightly written but I enjoyed the ride.

Four stars

This book came out April 27, 2021

Followed by A Most Unusual Duke

Borrowed as ebook from Libby

Opinions are my own

Murder in G Major by Alexia Gordon

Gethsemane Brown has few options left to her when she accepts a job as the music teacher at a private school... in Ireland. Yes, she's a fabulous violinist but can she really turn around a group of boys in six weeks to win a major award. They've got the bare bones, a great soloist and another great violinist. But that's not the thing that bothering her. It's actually the ghost of Eamon McCarthy. Yep, there's a ghost. And he's asking Gethsemane to solve his murder. His twenty-five-year-old murder.

I had heard about this book on the Get Booked podcast. They really liked the whole series and, while I liked this book well enough, it was a little convoluted.

Four stars

This book came out September 13, 2016

Followed by Death in D Minor

Borrowed as ebook from Kindle Unlimited

Opinions are my own

Making Things Right at Work by Gary Chapman, Jennifer M. Thomas, Paul White

The authors say that the goal of this book is to minimize conflict at work. They acknowledge that conflicts will happen, even in the healthiest of workplaces and even start the book off with common conflicts that happen in the workplace. Some of the conflicts include miscommunication, having different viewpoints or communication styles. They also cover mistakes both intentional and unintentional. And of course, there is the ever popular feeling offended for which there are five languages. Interestingly, if you know the five languages of appreciation, it is often that the person's way of receiving appreciation is the same that they are most easily offended. If you haven't read the five love languages, there is a quick recap of the languages in the second section. 

Luckily, the authors include some hints on ways to avoid conflict. Of course, communication is the first up. But the emphasis is on effective communication and there are subcategories for ways to actually be effective.

The third section addresses what in other books is called "The stories we tell ourselves." They talk about the ways that we can clear up misconceptions and ways that we might misperceive others motives or values.  

Indirect communication was an interesting issue to me that I haven't seen in other leadership books.The authors highlight it as a symptom of a toxic workplace. Indirect communication includes not saying what you mean, gossiping, going above someone's head: basically, it is any time you don't talk to the person you actually need to address. Any time you do this, you undermine trust which and create more problems. 

Other sections talk about deception (even white lies aren't really okay) and making sure that we try to put ourselves in the place of other people.

Of course, they go over what the Seven Guest Service Gold Standards call "Recovery." In this book it's called by its more popular name "apologizing." This is such a big part of making things right at work that there are two long chapters about how to effectively apologize and what to do when an apology isn't enough. There are even parts of an apology outlined (apology languages): expressing regret, accepting responsibility, making restitution, planned change, and asking for forgiveness. 

Another section of interest to me was the part about forgiveness or letting things go.

This book would be best for group work rather than self study. 

Four stars

This book came out January 25, 2022

Borrowed as ebook from Libby

Opinions are my own