Rosepoint Reviews – June Recap – Toasty Temps – Cool Books

Progress came to a screeching halt with spring cleaning. Now with sizzling summer temps, little progress outside, and air conditioning inside, none to zip inside. Windows are a biggee, inside and out, but it’s too hot to contemplate doing windows in 97 degree temps with “feel like” temps of 105 F. Closets, cupboards, still beckon but at least it was hot enough to clean rugs and have them dry enough to walk on within a half a day.

Also, despite all the prep and barricades surrounding my veggies, the varmints found a way to eat the beans and peas, and most anything else I was hoping to harvest by July. I am, however, raising a bountiful crop of mosquitoes in the little water tub for the lotus seeds I planted and coaxed to the surface. The lotus seeds need six hours of sun and don’t get that on the deck but appear quite happy for the time being.

I’m thinking at this point if the critters won’t eat my tomatoes or radishes, maybe that’s all I can count on in my veggie garden. I may rip it out and put in a water feature—transplant my lotus plants. Maybe I could grow frogs.

Of course, we are still going to the Y three times a week, greatly enjoying the classes, meeting other seniors, and discovering muscles we forgot we had. We added another class for the current challenge, ending in August.

My “boys,” the CE and our son, celebrated birthdays the end of June. Upcoming doctor visits are beginning to take an additional toll on time with each birthday though, a reminder that time marches on…and on…

We reviewed sixteen books in June—trying to catch up with the books read during the May hiatus. (I’m still not entirely caught up.) The book up for review in July at the Y Book Club is Beartown, of which I’m familiar, of course, but will have to get the book and familiarize myself with salient points. I had a difficult time with it first time through.

The source of our books is our library, NetGalley, and author and publisher requests. As always, the links on titles are to our reviews that include purchase information.

#RosepointPublishing #JuneRecap

Famous Last Words by Gillian McAllister
Blackout by David Rosenfelt (audiobook)

Mini-reviews

Dogged Pursuit by David Rosenfelt (CE review)

Fatal Verdict by Peter O’Mahoney (CE review)

Smoke on the Water by Jack Bartley (CE review)

What We Left Behind by Luisa A Jones (CE review)

Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave by Elle Cosimano (audiobook)
One in a Million Boy by Monica Wood (audiobook-book club)
Body of Evidence by Stephen Penner (CE review)
A Body at the Book Fair by Ellie Alexander
The Midwife of Hope River by Patricia Harman (audiobook)
How to Hotwire an Airplane by Henry Rausch (buddy read with the CE)
Folded Corners by Jean Grainger

Audiobooks Mini-Reviews

Never Lie by Freida McFadden (audiobook)

Women of War by Suzanne Cope (audiobook)

The Last Conclave by Glenn Cooper (CE review)

Favorite Book of the Month

The CE had more than one five-star review in June. He really loved Smoke on the Water and The Last Conclave, but we both loved How to Hotwire an Airplane.

Favorite for June – How to Hotwire an Airplane

My Reading Challenges page…caught up with May and June but dismayed at the numbers.

The Goodreads landing page may be correct at 94 for a goal of 150 or 63%, but the book count widget is still well off, leading me to believe that even when I reach my goal of 150, it won’t register the win. Otherwise, I appear to be behind in all my challenges except Goodreads.

I hope you found a book or two listed above that appealed to you and I always appreciate your comments. Most especially if you have reading suggestions! Have a warm but safe July!

Famous Last Words by Gillian McAllister #BookReview #TuesdayBookBlog #WomensCrimeFiction

A Suspenseful Domestic Thriller with Shocking Twists, Unravel the Deception

Best Mystery, Thriller & Suspense

Book Blurb:

From the author of Reese’s Book Club Pick and New York Times bestseller Wrong Place Wrong Time comes an addictive thriller about a new mother’s world upended when her husband commits a terrifying crime. How well does she truly know the man she loves? And what danger does she face if her entire life has been built on a lie?

It is June 21^st, the longest day of the year, and new mother Camilla’s life is about to change forever. After months of maternity leave, she will drop her infant daughter off at daycare for the first time and return to her job as a literary agent. Finally. But, when she wakes, her husband Luke isn’t there, and in his place is a cryptic note.

Then it starts. Breaking news: there’s a hostage situation developing in London. The police arrive, and tell her Luke is involved. But he isn’t a hostage. Her husband – doting father, eternal optimist – is the gunman.

What she does next is crucial. Because only she knows what the note he left behind that morning says…

My Review:

There’s nothing like an all out race that slams at 150 mph into a wall. Sorta what this novel does as the beginning is both a shock and thrill ride.

New mom Camilla didn’t have a particularly restful night and hoping for a little help getting ready for her first day back to work discovers her hubby’s note. Harried and a little resentful, she manages both herself, the baby, and the house and gets to her own job. Before she can get settled down, however, the police are asking to speak to her.

Famous Last Words by Gillian McAllister — Famous Last Words – UK cover

There is an apparent hostage situation in London. She’s thinking hubby is a hostage, but no, they inform her, he is the hostage taker.

Whoa! Switcharoo! Not what the reader expects and it’s a great hook. With two POVs, hers and the hostage negotiator, things progress swiftly until the whole premise hits that proverbial wall. The hostages are killed and Luke manages his escape.

Part II, left without the rug underneath, the reader is now a hostage as well—hanging onto the storyline simply because you have to know the how, why? Cam insists he’s innocent. But in the face of everything, including damaging videos, does she really still believe it can’t be him? If it IS him, WHY?

What follows after that mad scramble into incredulity are the personal back stories and struggles with Cam and the negotiator, Niall, who with the death of the hostages now has those deaths and failure laid at his feet.

AH! Then Part III kicks in and the pace picks up again, but that middle part definitely slows and chills the narrative. In the meantime, some seven years have elapsed, it’s old news, and her life may be changing with a new romance. She decides it’s time to have Luke officially declared dead.

Now the hitch in the giddy-up. Oops. Maybe not. Truth to say, she might always love Luke. If it’s him, trying to reach her—she must know.

Yeah, those twists. It’s possible you also figured out a few things, stretched your imagination. Great characters. I found Niall particularly engaging and empathetic. Still, there’s a whole story yet to reveal denouement. A surprising departure from most plots, tension filled, suspenseful. If you enjoy thrillers, you’ll enjoy this one—even through the slower part. 4.5 stars

I read Wrong Place Wrong Time and I’m still experiencing vertigo from that one. This one pushes disbelief and also leaves you tilted. The author looks so innocent in those author photos, hard to believe these plots come from that mind.

Many thanks to my local library for the opportunity to read and review this book. The thoughts expressed here are my own.

Rosepoint Rating: Four point Five Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Women’s Crime Fiction, Domestic Thrillers, Women’s Psychological Fiction
Publisher: William Morrow
ISBN: 978-0063338449
ASIN: B0D3CH5FZS
Print Length: 332 pages
Publication Date: February 25, 2025
Source: Local Library

Title Link(s):

Amazon-US | Amazon-UK | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

The Author: Gillian McAllister

As you find me, it’s winter 2025 and my new novel is Famous Last Words, a thriller with a marriage at its centre. It asks the question: what would you do if your husband is caught up in a siege in central London? Only, the police tell you he isn’t one of the hostages: he is the gunman… I hope you like the answer!

As to me, otherwise, I am the author of these novels:

Everything But The Truth (2017)
Anything You Do Say (2018) called The Choice in America
No Further Questions (2018) called The Good Sister in America
The Evidence Against You (2019)
How To Disappear (2020)
That Night (2021)
Wrong Place Wrong Time (2022)
Just Another Missing Person (2023)
Famous Last Words (2025)

My most popular novel is probably Wrong Place Wrong Time, which was selected for the Radio 2 book club and was the Reese’s Book Club August ’22 pick. It debuted at number 4 on the Sunday Times Bestseller List and number 2 on the New York Times Bestseller List.

When not writing (which is basically never), I can be found walking my dog Wendy and parenting my small toddler. The best moments of my day always are the first sip of my coffee, the moment I step into the bath at night, and my son telling me he loves me. And that rare thing that happens only once a year – a novel idea.

Happiness is a Reading Buddy