This months list of recommendations features a modern day continuation of the James Bond series, A Spy Like Me, a novel about two very different people who are a classic, will they, won’t they scenario in Ally Zetterberg’s debut novel, The Happiness Blueprint. While I throughly enjoyed the first two recommendations on my list.
My favorite book on the list has to be, The Paris Widow. Set primarily in Paris (as the title suggests) Stella and Adam are enjoying the last few hours in Paris, when Adam goes missing after an explosion. Finally in The Frame Up, we join in on a art heist that mixes both magic and the supernatural.
A Spy Like Me
Kim Sherwood
I truly enjoyed this modern continuation of the James Bond series. Author Kim Sherwood makes some modern-day updates in this continuation of Ian Fleming’s classic spy series. For instance, Moneypenny takes a senior role at MI6 and Q is no longer a person (you’ll have to read the book + my upcoming Q&A with Kim to learn more about this one!) A Spy Like Me revolves around finding out who is truly running the private military company Rattenfänger and if James Bond is still alive, where they are keeping him. This novel keeps you on the edge of your seat as Johanna Harwood (003) one of Bond’s former lovers goes off the grid to find him, and in the process discovers that not every 00 is exactly who they seem to be.
An elite team of MI6 agents must go undercover to unravel a smuggling network funding violent terror in the second thrilling adventure in the acclaimed Double O series by Kim Sherwood.
James Bond is alive.
Or at least, he was when he left a clue at the black site where the insidious private military company Rattenfänger held him captive. MI6 cannot spare any more lives attempting to track down one missing agent—no exceptions, even for Bond. But Johanna Harwood, 003, has her own agenda. Sidelined by her superiors while she grieves the loss of a loved one, Harwood goes on an unsanctioned mission: to find 007. Meanwhile, MI6 has another problem…
A bomb has detonated in London.
Double O agents on the trail of the terrorists responsible acted quickly to prevent mass destruction and save lives. But MI6 failed to neutralize the nation’s enemies before they could strike, and one of their own was seriously injured in the blast.
They won’t fail again.
Assigned to root out the source of the terrorists’ funding, Joseph Dryden, 004, and Conrad Harthrop-Vane, 000, enter the field. Tracing clues from Sotheby’s auction house to Crete to Venice, they uncover a money laundering scheme involving diamonds, black market antiquities, and human trafficking. Once a major sale is made, a six-day countdown to the next terror attack begins. As the Double O’s follow the twisting trail, they find themselves unexpectedly inching closer to Bond…
The Happiness Blueprint
Ally Zetterberg
To say that Klara and Alex have trouble connecting is an understatement. For most of the book, we keep wondering if they will ever figure out how the other one feels. Both characters have endearing quirks and struggles that they must overcome during the book, it’s only once they start to grow in their friendship, that they begin to realize just how much they’ve come to depend on one another.
When Klara finally discovers that Alex is not married, their relationship changes from friendship to romantic… only to have fate/tragedy send them their separate ways. Want to find out if Klara and Alex get the happy ending they deserve? You’ll have to read the book to find out!
Klara and Alex are having trouble connecting, but at least their calendars are in sync.
Klara—who’s always thought of herself as a little different, a sneaker in a world full of kitten heels and polished boots—is feeling a disconnect these days. She has type 1 diabetes, currently works in a dead-end job, and is in desperate need of a change. When her dad falls ill, Klara begrudgingly agrees to help run his small construction company while he recovers, even though it means moving back home and pushing the boundaries of her comfort zone to the extreme.
Alex has been a shell of himself since his brother died in an accident. He’s unemployed, has bills piling up, and is distant from friends and family. His therapist is encouraging him to keep things manageable by setting up a calendar, checking off tasks each day, and looking for work to help get him back on his feet. When an ad pops up for a carpenter position at a small construction company, he jumps at the chance to take a step forward.
Klara’s and Alex’s stories unfold through a series of miscommunications in this clever and witty novel from debut author Ally Zetterberg that’s about finding acceptance and even love in unexpected places.
The Paris Widow
Kimberly Belle
The Paris Widow has found its place in the list of my favorite books of 2024 so far (it releases on June 11th so you’ll have a bit of a wait on your hands). The story centers around Stella and Adam and occasionally jumps to the beginning of their European trip. Stella, a former flight attendant has finally found a nice normal guy, or so she thinks. When their Parisian getaway turns tragic and her husband is presumed dead, she finds out that her husband might not have been who he said he was, and there is no one she can truly trust.
You can finish this novel from beginning to end in a couple evenings of dedicated reading, and trust me you won’t want to put it down! Definitely in my top 5 of 2024!
A dream vacation turns deadly when secrets from the past catch up to a married couple in Paris in this new edge-of-your-seat thriller from USA Today bestselling author, Kimberly Belle.
When Stella met Adam, she thought she had finally found a nice, normal guy—a welcome change from her previous boyfriend and her precarious jetsetter lifestyle with him. But her secure world comes crashing down when Adam goes missing after an explosion in the city square. Unable to reach him, she panics.
As the French police investigate, it’s revealed that Adam was on their radar as a dealer of rare and stolen antiquities with a long roster of criminal clients. Reeling from this news, Stella is determined not to leave Paris until she has the full story. Was Adam a random victim or the target of the explosion? And why is someone following her through the streets of Paris?
An irresistible, fast-paced read set in some of Europe’s most inviting locales, The Paris Widow explores how sinister secrets of the past stay with us—no matter how far we travel.
The Frame Up
Gwenda Bond
There was only one twist in the otherwise amazing nook, that I did not like, but I won’t put any spoilers here. If you like reading stories about artist heist mixed with a bit of the supernatural/magic, The Frame Up is definitely a book to add to your must read list. The book came out just before Valentine’s day this year, and there’s definitely a love triangle in this book every bit worth untangling as much as the build up to the heist itself.
“Makes grand larceny more fun than ever.”—Holly Black, New York Times bestselling author of Book of NightDani Poissant is the daughter and former accomplice of the world’s most famous art thief. There was no job too big for Maria and her loyal crew. The secret to their success? A little thing called magic, kept rigorously secret from the non-magical world. They seemed unstoppable . . . until a teenage Dani turned her mother over to the FBI.
Ten years later, with Maria still in prison, Dani finds herself approached for a job that only Maria and her crew could pull off . . . if any of them were still speaking to her. But it’s the job of a lifetime and might just be the lure Dani needs to reconcile with her mother and be reunited with her mother’s old gang—including both the love of her life and her former best friend.
The problem is, it’s an impossible task—even with the magical talents of the people she once considered family backing her up. It’s a heist that needs a year to plan, and Dani has just over a week. Worse, the more Dani learns, the more she understands that there’s far more at stake in this job than she ever realized.
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