Book and Product Reviews by Roundtable Reviews

Release Date - May 9, 2023 Genre - General Fiction, Women's Fiction, Contemporary Romance Clover's life has always been intertwined with death. As a kindergartener, her teacher dropped dead in front of the class. Her parents died when she was a child, so her journey brought her to New York City to live with her grandfather, a man who would become her everything. When she was a young adult and exploring the world, he passed away alone in his office. She's never gotten past the fact that he died alone, and that's what led her to become a death doula, a job that few people understand, so it limits her friendships. Her latest client has amazing stories to tell, and one of them involves the man who got away. Clover sets off on a trip to find that man and see if she can bring peace to her client before she passes. It's this trip and this women who have Clover reevaluating her life and what she wants most. I've sat with both of my parents as they died, and the role of

Release Date - April 18, 2023 Genre - Women's Fiction Adelaide is an American living her best life in England. Londoner Rory Hughes is everything she could ever imagine in a man. He's charming, sexy, and she's quickly falling in love with him. Only tragic events change him and even Adelaide is having a hard time getting back the Rory she wants. But, what is it going to cost her to save him? Adelaide is very much a book about mental health, romance, and the chance for do-overs. It's dark, light, and very hard to put down. Don't put it down or let the darkness keep you from reading. It's very much worth the time. The writing is fluid and starts in the past, goes farther into the past, and then brings readers to the future. It's that future where you become so happy you stuck with Adelaide, her views on love, and her quest for the man who will win her heart for life. 

Release Date - 1999 Genre - Anthology I'm angry. For the first time in 20+ years, I am close to giving up reviewing books. Why bother? A week or so ago, I got a notification that a review of mine was being taken down as the content was anti-Google policies. Why? It was a fictional young adult book about trafficking. Something that happens daily. Something I despise, but my not liking it doesn't make it go away.  I'd picked up a copy of Places I Never Meant to Be many years ago at a library book sale. There's never been a more fitting time to review this book. It's a series of short stories all written by authors who have faced book bans. One of my favorites, Judy Blume, edited the book. Dr. Seuss turned me into a life-long reader, but Judy Blume, Lois Duncan, Stephen King, and Dean Koontz all sparked the flames into a fire that hasn't slowed down.  Julius Lester said: "Censorship is an attitude of mistrust and suspicion that seeks to deprive the human expe

Genre: Cookbook, World Travels Release Date: April 25, 2023 Note: This review is based on a partial ARC and not the full book. A free section was provided by the publisher through Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review. I'm a fan of Gordon Ramsay, but not the Hell's Kitchen celebrity. He's reality show fake and unappreciated in my home. It's the British show, The F Word, that drew me into his world and made me realize he's great with his kids and can be very genuine and enjoyable. I started watching Uncharted for that reason. His episode in Maine was fantastic and brought me to many familiar areas. The travels he does on Uncharted are showcased in this National Geographic release. It offers 60 recipes from different regions of the world, ranging from Tasmania to Louisiana. While I didn't get to see the chapter on Maine, it is in this book.  The photography is lush, the recipes offer a decent mix of sides and mains, including dishes like ho

Genre: Mystery, Serial Killers Release Date: May 1, 2019 Four years ago, I couldn't get into Next Girl to Die. I don't ever completely give up. I do like to circle back. This time, I found myself far happier with the main character's mood and dislike of the small Maine community she fled. It's been 15 years since Claire Calderwood left Maine for Detroit, and she's thrown herself into her work. She gets a call from the police chief that another body has been dumped in the park, and the murder is very, very similar to the murder of her sister so many years ago. When Rachel was murdered, Claire's life changed. She hid secrets then and realizes that with what she does know, she may be able to solve these cases and finally bring her sister's murderer to justice. Bodies start turning up at a faster rate, and a very nosy investigative reporter keeps butting his way into each one. Noah is the last thing Claire needs standing in her way, but his sleuthing is also und

Genre: Apocalyptic Fiction, Sci-Fi, Time Travel Release Date: January 5, 2021 Wasteland is the second book in the Phoenix Cycle Series by John G. Doyle. If you've discovered his TikTok videos, you'll know who he is and have a good understanding of his wit. It's that wit that led me to his books, and the more I read, the more I cast him and certain friends in the different roles. I'm sorry, but I think we all know who the real Viking goddess is! Actually, I'm not sorry at all, and all fans know she is. Now, if you haven't read the first book in the series, stop and read that first. Otherwise, you'll be exposed to a few spoilers. ----------- When we last saw Jericho Johnson, he was in bad shape having been defeated. He wakes up three years later, strapped to a table in Arizona in the year 2344. While he was in bad shape, he's been patched up by the nefarious Dr. Cross, and he's now in possession of several man-made components that haven't truly bee

Release Date - April 11, 2023 Genre - Suspense, Mystery/Thriller Nine-year-old Katie Harmon's babysitter falls off the edge of a cliff while taking a selfie on their outing. Evidence, however, suggests that Anna's death may not have been a tragic accident. Instead, a shrewd detective is convinced there's more to the story and that someone killed Anna. As Katie was the only one with her, it has to have been Katie. Sara, Katie's mom, is terrified that her daughter is being suspected of murder, but she also has another fear. There are things that Sara knows of her past that she doesn't want anyone to figure out, and their sudden media status is making it very hard to keep old secrets. Sara is afraid her daughter may be a ruthless killer, but she also knows this is the daughter she loves who she could never believe would do wrong. But, are her instincts right or is she projecting her past onto her daughter's present and future? Everything She Feared wasn't baf