Book Review: "Once and Again" by Rebecca Serle

In the Acknowledgements of her powerfully thought-provoking new book, Rebecca Serle said, “[This] is the first book that does not ask the question ‘How will it turn out?’ but instead ponders: ‘How do I sit with what has happened?’” I feel like that really sums up the core of this story.

The women of the Novak family have been given an extraordinary gift. Each has the opportunity to turn back time, once, to erase or redo something. When Lauren was 15, she learned about this gift, as her mother Marcella used hers to save Lauren’s father, who died in a car accident.

Once Marcella chose her moment to redo, although she felt relief, she also felt a great weight placed on her. Now she had no chance for a do-over, which made her more cautious and nervous about everything, particularly her husband’s actions. This definitely strains her relationship with Lauren.

Lauren and her husband Leo have been struggling with fertility issues. When Leo gets a job in NYC for the summer, he moves there, while Lauren returns to her childhood home on the Malibu shores. She misses Leo, although not the constant stress of IVF, and she enjoys surfing with her father and spending time with her grandmother, Sylvia. And Lauren still doesn’t understand why she and her mother can’t get along.

To her surprise, Lauren’s first love, Stone, returns home to care for his dying stepmother. As she watches his grief and reconnects with him for the first time in 10 years, Lauren’s feelings become jumbled. To rediscover her happiness, is there an opportunity to redo something?

Rebecca Serle always knows how to touch my emotions and get me thinking. I definitely cried a bit as I pondered what I would change if I had the chance—or would I? This really would be an excellent book club book, and it’ll certainly be on my mind for a long time!

Book Review: "Toe to Toe" by Falon Ballard

Ballet has been the core of Allegra’s life since she was a young girl. Although pushed by her mother, a former dancer who gave up her career for marriage and a family, Allegra loves ballet more than anything. And she desperately wants to become a principal ballerina.

When her ballet company announces it will produce a new ballet, Allegra desperately wants the lead role. But her director told her that he doesn’t think she has the sex appeal to land the part. She is determined to prove him wrong.

After attending her sister’s bachelorette party at an all-male dance club, Allegra is mesmerized by the show’s star, and the owner of the club, Cord. In addition to his obvious physical attributes, she’s impressed by his dancing ability and his overall sex appeal.

Allegra comes up with an interesting proposition for Cord. She’d like him to teach her to be sexier when she dances. Although he’s reluctant at first, he doesn’t want to let her walk away. And being the one to help her realize her own sex appeal is a powerful motivator.

The more they dance together, the stronger their attraction grows. Allegra knows she’s fallen for Cord, but she can’t let a relationship derail her career. Cord knows that Allegra will be pressured to choose between her career and a relationship. What happens if she chooses ballet? Where does that leave him?

While there weren’t too many surprises in the book, I really enjoyed Allegra and Cord’s banter and chemistry. I’m a sucker for stories about dancers and other performers, and juxtaposing ballet with male strippers was really an interesting twist. Once again, Falon Ballard utterly charms me!

Book Review: "This Story Might Save Your Life" by Tiffany Crum

We may be only one-quarter of the way into 2026, but I feel pretty confident saying that this is going to be another year of fantastic debut novels! Tiffany Crum’s book, a hybrid mystery/romance, definitely was a great read.

Benny and Joy are best friends and cohosts of a satirical survival podcast. Each episode envisions a somewhat improbable scenario, but inspired by real life—what happens if you get swallowed by a whale, for instance—and they have to brainstorm ways to survive.

The podcast is an enormous hit, thanks to the charm and humor of the hosts and the business strategy of Xander, Joy’s husband. Things are about to get even bigger, as they’re about to sign a lucrative distribution contract and publish a co-written memoir.

But one morning when Benny goes to Joy’s house to finish recording, it appears Joy, Xander, and their dog have disappeared. No one can figure out what happened, and as the police begin to investigate, it appears there are a lot of secrets that were hidden. And soon their attention turns to Benny.

The book shifts between the present and the chapters of the memoir that Joy wrote. Both narratives introduce just as many questions as they do answers.

Although the pacing ebbs and flows, I found this tremendously compelling. I don’t know if I was completely enamored of Joy as a character, but the banter between her and Benny was terrific. (Extra points for the Happy Days angle.) On the whole, I couldn’t put this down and can’t wait to see what Crum does next!

Book Review: "No Matter What" by Cara Bastone

“‘Don’t waste your energy over how you think things should be,’ Deb booms. ‘See things for how they actually are.’”

It has been a rough year for Roz and Vin. They were involved in a serious accident that upended their lives, causing injuries to both of them and Vin’s brother Raff. But even though their physical recovery has gone well, Roz and Vin haven’t slept in the same bed in nearly a year, and can barely stand to be in the same room.

As tough as it gets, Roz still hopes that they’ll be able to work things out. Although the fact that neither will come out and say what they’re thinking or feeling certainly complicates matters. But when Roz finds that Vin has signed a lease for an apartment of his own, she is devastated.

The two are moving in separate orbits and living in separate rooms. To help absorb some of her time alone, Roz signs up for a figure drawing class. She finds herself inspired by this exploration of her creative side.

As the date for Vin to move out draws closer, they’re still drawn to each other, physically and emotionally. Vin agrees to serve as Roz’s model for her to sharpen her skills. And it is through the time they spend together, with Roz focused on every aspect of her husband’s body, that they start to see each other more clearly again. Is there a chance they’ll make it back to one another before it’s too late?

I wanted to love this book but for some reason it never quite clicked with me. I found their struggles very emotional and I wanted them to rebuild, but neither of them communicated clearly, which always drives me crazy in books. Still, the story was a powerful one.

Book Review: "Wait for Me" by Amy Jo Burns

Amy Jo Burns’ last book, Mercury, was one of my favorite books of 2024. Needless to say, I was looking forward to this and I’m grateful to Celadon Books and NetGalley for the complimentary advance copy.

Unfortunately, this book didn’t work as well for me as Mercury did, but it was an intriguing story. Marijohn is 18 years old in 1991, spending the summer working at her father’s gas station and writing songs she plays on her broken mandolin. Her best friend Lazarus is her cowriter, duet partner, and overall sidekick.

Marijohn’s father swears that he was the last person to see country music phenomenon Elle Harlow before she disappeared in 1973. He’s obsessed with keeping Elle’s legacy alive, and there’s a distinct possibility she could be Marijohn’s mother. She longs to know the truth.

The last night before Lazarus leaves for college, Marijohn is determined to tell him she loves him. But when a meteor strikes their town that night, it changes the course of everything, and brings secrets long hidden to the surface.

The book shifts to Elle’s story for a bit. We see her apprenticing to a healer, craving a musical career, and feeling unloved and unsupported. Her story shows that talent can flourish anywhere.

I felt like a lot of the dialogue in the book, particularly where Marijohn and Elle were concerned, was almost stream of consciousness. There’s a lot of miscommunication here, which is my least favorite trope to read about. But the central themes of loss, longing, and love really resonated with me.

Book Review: "Dear Monica Lewinsky" by Julia Langbein

Thanks so much to Doubleday Books and NetGalley for the advance copy of this book I was eagerly anticipating!

Sigh. I’m guessing this is more “it’s not the book, it’s me,” because I’m starting to realize that sometimes satirical books just don’t work for me. This may be why I struggled with the author’s last book, although like this one, I loved the concept.

When Jean receives an invitation to attend a former professor’s retirement ceremony in France, she is completely undone. She hasn’t communicated with this man since she studied abroad in 1998, and they had an inappropriate relationship. Jean believes this is what derailed her life all those years ago.

As she looks at her diaries and photos from that time, she realizes that her affair with her professor happened at the same time as the Monica Lewinsky scandal. Her life seems to be unraveling, so she decides to pray to Monica for guidance, as you would a saint. And Saint Monica answers.

I was living in the DC area during the whole Clinton/Lewinsky affair, and I always felt she got a raw deal. I really wanted to love the book, but it just didn’t work for me.

The book will publish 4/14.

Book Review: "Her Last Breath" by Taylor Adams

I stayed up until 2:00 am because I absolutely couldn’t put this book down. This was the same feeling I had when I read Taylor Adams’ debut thriller, No Exit.

Tess and her best friend Allie grew up together. In fact, when Tess finally got the courage to speak up about her mom’s abuse, she moved in with Allie and her family through high school. They took different paths—Tess went to law school and Allie became a popular travel influencer—but they’ve found their way back to each other.

After much persuading, Tess finally agrees to go caving with Allie. Yet as they start to make their descent down an immensely claustrophobic path, they realize they are not alone. An earlier confrontation with a fellow caver leaves them vulnerable.

Before she realizes it, Tess is stranded in a narrow passage with no way of getting back up safely—and her oxygen is getting depleted. She has to use every ounce of strength she has to fight for survival, against a killer determined to thwart her every move.

From her hospital bed, Tess recounts every painful and frightening moment of this horrible day. But the detective who is investigating her ordeal tells Tess that there are secrets that Allie was keeping, secrets which might mean this seemingly random attack might not have been so random.

I’ve never gone caving before and have no desire to, ever. But Adams’ imagery made me feel like I was stuck right there with Tess. This was an absolutely heart-pounding book, and it took a while for my adrenaline to level off after reading!