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The View From Lake Como
by Adriana Trigiani
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It feels so good to have a new Adriana Triggiani book to get lost in this summer. Jess Capodimonte Baratta is part of a big, messy, loving family that lives in Lake Como, NJ. Triggiani weaves her story full of wonderful characters between life in New Jersey and life in Lake Como in the Tuscany region of Italy. The work includes lots of Italian food and cultural descriptions that were so important in Triggiani’s prior stories. Jess works for her uncle Lou who owns a company that supplies white and blue marble sourced in Italiy for customers in NJ. We learn about the process of removing the marble from the hilltops. There is romance, culture, possible criminal involvement and amazing word pictures describing the beauty of the people, food, hills and lakes. I did not want this book to end.

Smile For The Cameras
by Miranda Smith
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The cast of a horror movie made twenty years ago gets together for a reunion, and a remake of the movie. Ella, the “final girl” in the original movie has disappeared from the acting scene and refused to make a movie or join in a reunion. Something awful happened during the first shooting only the cast members know about. Finally, she has agreed to shoot the film as a way to get back into movie making. What could go wrong? As the filming begins, old wounds surface, and then, people start getting murdered. A fun if not realistic read. I enjoyed trying to guess who the slasher was.

Everyone Is Lying To You
by Jo Piazza
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I really enjoyed this book about social media influencers, which I don’t follow and don’t know much about. It kept my interest and had a lot of twists and turns especially in the epilogues.

The Honeymoon Crashers
by Christina Lauren
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This book was just what I needed for a summer read, light and breezy. Twin Olive announces to her very close family that she and her fiancé are going to elope in Hawaii so not to remind her sister, Amelia, of her failed marriage. The family plans to surprise the couple in Hawaii with a full blown wedding. Ami and her cousin Diego set off early to start the preparations. Ami is forced to plan the wedding with charismatic best man Brody and eventually they like each other. Was this whole elopement a ruse to get Ami out of her rut. Read and find out. I also recommend the audiobook, it is read with multiple actors and sound effects.

Hidden Pictures
by Jason Rekulak
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Mallory Quinn, fresh out of rehab and recovery from a recent tragedy, has taken a job as a nanny for an affluent couple living in the upscale suburb of Spring Brook, New Jersey, when a series of strange events start to make her ( and her employer) question her own sanity. Teddy, the precocious and shy 5-year old she's charged with watching, seems to be haunted by a ghost who channels his body to draw pictures that are far too complex and well-formed for such a young child. At first these drawings are rather typical, but then the illustrations take a dark turn, showcasing the details of a gruesome murder.

My Friends
by Fredrik Backman
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Fredrik Backman has a way to write broken people that you fall in love with. A priceless painting is gifted to a runaway foster kid by the artist himself. Can Luisa handle the responsibility of having such a priceless gift? As she travels with the artist’s best friend to sell the painting, the full story of the artist, his friends and growing up in a poor neighborhood is unfolded. This book weaves past and present together creating an intriguing story.

Count My Lies
by Sophie Stava
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Sloan is a serial liar, mostly white lies, and she lies out of habit, mostly harmless on silly things, or to make herself look better, or be liked more. Sometimes her lies catch up with her and bring on serious consequences. One day her lies bring her into contact with an apparently lovely family. She eventually becomes their nanny. But, as it is lately with Nanny situations, all is not right with this family, or with any of the characters. The beginning was slow, almost too repetitive. Some of the situations were absurd, but ok, things happen in novels. A lot of this was outrageous, and the writing at times seems YA. At one point, I thought, how is this author going to write herself out of this quandary…. she did, and it made for an adequate, if improbable twist.

The River Is Waiting
by Wally Lamb
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I listened to the audible version read by Jeremy Sisto. Wow, It was unputdownable and very moving but also sad and disturbing.

The Names
by Florence Knapp
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Women’s Fiction spanning thirty five years. The author put a good deal of thought and effort in writing this book. (Hence the two stars) It was easy to get lost and confused as names changed and time periods jumped around. For example: Bear was also Julian and Gordon. It takes place in London, Ireland, Africa, Italy, and Paris, I believe. Not sure if the author was exploring the possible opportunities for a baby boy born in 1984 or the ravages of wife abuse, or the confused experiences of a young daughter. As I started the book, iwasrecommending it to friends who have experienced wife abuse and survived. Then I had to call back and tell them not to waste their time.

Welcome To Pawnee
by Jim O'Heir
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Absolutely outstanding book! I am a huge fan of the show and this book brought back so many great memories of watching the show and made me feel more connected to it. This book is full of interesting behind the scenes stories. It makes me want to re watch the show (again), and I will have a deeper appreciation for the stories. Jim O'Heir is a class act.
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