Where Coyotes Howl

Author: Sandra Dallas
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: St. Martin's Publishing Group, 2023
Pages: 320
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: 1916: The two-street town of Wallace is not exactly what Ellen Webster had in mind when she accepted a teaching position in Wyoming, but within a year's time she's fallen in love - both with the High Plains and with a handsome cowboy named Charlie Bacon. Life is not easy in the flat, brown corner of the state where winter blizzards are unforgiving and summer heat relentless. But Ellen and Charlie face it all together, their relationship growing stronger with each shared success, and each deeply felt tragedy.

Ellen finds purpose in her work as a rancher's wife and in her bonds with other women settled on the prairie. Not all of them are so lucky as to have loving husbands, not all came to Wallace willingly, and not all of them can survive the cruel seasons. But they look out for each other, share their secrets, and help one another in times of need. And the needs are great and constant. The only city to speak of, Cheyenne, is miles away, making it akin to the Wild West in rural Wallace. In the end, it is not the trials Ellen and Charlie face together that make them remarkable, but their love for one another endures through it all.

Review: I had intended this to be my first book of 2024, and decided to get started on it early. I couldn't put it down. I stayed up until 1:15am to finish it. I cannot recommend this book enough. I tore my heart out, stomped on, stomped on it again, and again and again. And I loved it. This is a must-read for anyone who loves historical fiction, and especially for those of us who are fascinated with the West.

I would love a sequel, but there's nothing about the ending of this book that suggests there will be one.

Barbara Isn't Dying Yet

Author: Alina Bronsky
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Europa Editions, Incorporated, 2023
Pages: 192
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Walter Schmidt has lived his whole life within the narrow, "comfortable" confines of traditional gender roles: he has made it to retirement without learning how to fry an egg or use a vacuum cleaner. After all, he could always count on his wife, Barbara. But one morning she can't get up from bed anymore, everything changes.

With biting humor and great warmth, Alina Bronsky writers about how Walter, nearing the end of his life, is suddenly forced to reinvent himself as a caregiver and house-husband, and become the caring partner he never was in all his years with Barbara.

Little by little, Walter's rough facade begins to crumble - and with it his old certainties about his life and family.

Review: This had A Man Called Ove vibes, and I was not disappointed. 

The Woman in Me

Author: Britney Spears
Genre: Memoir
Publisher: Gallery Books, 2023
Pages: 288
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: In June 2021, the whole world was listening as Britney Spears spoke in open court. The impact of sharing her voice - her truth - was undeniable, and it changed the course of her life and the lives of countless others. The Woman in Me reveals for the first time her incredible journey - and the strength at the core of one of the greatest performers in pop music history.

Review: I have a hard time giving memoirs less than five stars because who am I to judge someone else's life or their takeaways. I always find it interesting to see how others grew up and became who they are.

I missed the appeal of Britney Spears, nor do I know much about her. I was graduating from college when she became popular, and more into country music at that time anyway. However, she has certainly kept herself in the headlines over the years.

This book is written in simple language, and I think she's an interesting person (for better or worse), but it also confirms that I'm grateful I'm not famous. My final thoughts are that she would have benefited from better people around her.

The Frozen River

Author: Ariel Lawhon
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2023
Pages: 448
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: Maine, 1879: When the Kennebec River freezes, entombing a man in the ice, Martha Ballard is summoned to examine the body and determine cause of death. As a midwife and healer, she is privy to much of what goes on behind closed doors in Hallowell. Her diary is a record of every birth and death, crime and debacle that unfolds in the close-knit community. Months earlier, Martha documented the details of an alleged rape committed by two of the town's most respected gentlemen - one of whom has now been found dead in the ice. But when a local physician undermines her conclusion, declaring the death to be an accident, Martha is forced to investigate the shocking murder on her own.

Over the course of one winter, as the trial nears, and whispers and prejudices mount, Martha doggedly pursues the truth. Her diary soon lands at the center of the scandal, implicating those she loves, and compelling Martha to decide where her loyalties lie.

Review: I wasn't sure that I wanted to read a book this thick with such heavy the
mes this close to the holidays. I decided to give it a two-chapter chance, and oh my. I couldn't put this down. This author can weave a story. I haven't read her others, but I'm going to change that in 2024. 

I loved Martha. This character, based on a real person, and this novel will stay with me for a long time.

Do not skip the author's note at the end, but don't read it until after you've read the book.

Other Ariel Lawhon Novels
The Wife, The Maid, and the Mistress (reading January 2024)

Nothing.Everything.

Author: Virginia Montanez
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Winding Road Publishing, 2023
Pages: 426
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: To her children, her pushy mother, her preacher father and her four seemingly perfect brothers, irreverent YA author Ellis Sloan is surviving the sudden demise of her damaging marriage just fine. She's her usual irreverent self, helping her teens adjust while working hard on her second novel. But inside, the words are all gone, and she has been typing gibberish into a document she deletes every day.

Her depressing monotony is interrupted when her one-time childhood nemesis and eventual first kiss re-enters her life by shouting profanity at a toppled piano outside her bedroom window. Now famous and beloved, Lincoln Hale's mysterious return resurrects memories Ellis buried deep on the prom night he never came for her and unleashes a chain of events that leads her to discover what it's going to take to finally get back to who she once was. With equal doses of humor and heart, she learns the secrets of the past, faces her paralyzing fears, and tries to repair her brokenness before time runs out on her next book and her first shot at real happiness.

Review: I wasn't sure I wanted to read something that isn't fluff this late in the year, but the first two chapters grabbed me so I kept right on going. Montanez is a local author for me, and once blogged as PittGirl.

I loved this book. I loved the characters, I loved the story, I loved the ending. This is the book I wish I would have written.

Christmas at the Shelter Inn

Author: RaeAnne Thayne
Genre: Fiction / Christmas
Publisher: Harlequin, 2023
Pages: 304
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: Growing up in the Shelter Inn hotel, Natalie Shepherd envied guests who could come and go as they pleased. So when it was time to finally leave for college and put the lush green mountains around Shelter Springs - along with the cloud of loss that seemed to follow her family - behind her, she swore she'd never come back. But now her sister McKenna needs a favor. On pregnancy bed rest at doctor's orders, McKenna needs a helping hand with her two young daughters and someone to take over the inn during a hectic holiday season, and Nat can't refuse. And just when things can't get worse, she runs into her late brother's best friend, Griffin Taylor.

Griff has mixed feelings about Natalie's return. She's just as beautiful and full of life as he remembered, but there's a secret he's carried for years about her brother - and the guilt is eating away at him. Still, Christmas in this small town is filled with treasured traditions and new adventures that hold the promise of something sweet and lasting.

Review: This is very obviously a Hallmark Christmas movie-esque novel, and I loved it. This could have been a shorter novel, but if you want to fall into a Christmas novel, this is a good one. Enjoyed!