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This was a lovely read, and it tackled a number of important topics: the way we process deep grief, especially when our culture or even family does not understand. It also takes an unflinching, well documented journey into the depths of prolonged depression and even phobia. And it examines the contrast between extreme privilege and entitlement vs. the struggles of those who have to scrabble out a living.

And yet! Ms. Colgan always manages to keep the tone gentle yet true; sympathetic, but never maudlin or cloying. Her skill at weaving together love, death, humor, and the shadows of isolation never descend into a dismal experience for the reader.

Marissa (the protagonist) is so very, very human, and Ms. Colgan's skill at the telling detail makes this a gentle, but never, ever shallow story.

Another fun magical realism lite rom-com from Webber. No spoilers, but you just know how it will turn out. The fun is finding out how they get there. Imaginative little twist at the end, too.

What a perfectly crafted story! I love Ms. Allen's ability to weave magic and wonder into every page. The characters are wonderful, and she reveals them with slow, tantalizing care. And I include Mallow Island itself as one of the primary characters of the book.

She never slides into cliché rom-com trope. This novel is a breath of fresh air, a joy to read on every page, even in the most painful parts.

Thank you, Ms. Allen, for a beautiful read.

A little slow but sweet. Her ability to capture the telling detail is phenomenal. And quite often hilarious.

Took me a little while to get into this, with the cover so oddly being identical to The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle. Also her writing style felt just a little bit ponderous. Really learning to recognize telling vs. showing. But not to the point of real annoyance, so I am glad I continued.

It's a very interesting story, and I really liked the main character, Margaret. Liked the suspense of mixed up identities, as well as what was going to happen to Dottie.

Good time-period color, and her ability to convey the grim desperation of war was vivid without triggering (at least for me). A very enjoyable book to add to my inadvertent fascination with WW2 tales.

Funny in a droll way, but a bit too obsolete of a world for me.

These are fun to read. Heather Webber is very, very careful about her magical/paranormal references, and so they are a bit tepid. I guess she doesn't want to be controversial or have that overshadow the story, and they don't. Frankly, I'd like a little bit more, but that's okay. It's what she seems to do in all her semi-magical stories.

She's very good at fun plot twists, character development, and setting the scene, etc.

Cozy and fun, and just enough romance to keep it interesting but not over the top. (Although okay, okay, enough! We know he has hypnotic gray eyes!!!).

Looking forward to the next one, after a palate cleanse or two.

Pretty good. Great anecdotes. Recommended for entrepreneurs.

Oh my goodness, did I ever love this! If you like to cook. If you like to eat. If you like a multi-layered magical tale. Or just something deliciously different, Kim is a wonderful story-weaver. Highly recommended.

I just adore Abbi Waxman. That's all I can say.. I don't have kids, can't even imagine how complicated it must be as a single mom with a teenage girl getting ready to leave for college nowadays. Can't even relate to any of it, as far as my own life.

So why am I reading stuff about lives so different from mine?? Because she is hilarious, wise, fascinating, and she just grabs the reader and never lets go. LOVE her characters, love her use of POV (which I am usually not a fan of switching around), and the slow unfold of what is really going on.

Thank you, Abbi Waxman, for another nearly sleepless night, gobbling down your delicious conclusion.

You are a master of "Show, don't tell."

This is really fabulous.

He is funny, wise as hell, and every small page glows with powerful inspiration. Not cheesy, but right to the heart. I hate turning it back in to the library, so might have to break down and get a copy to dip into, in those times of weirdness and doubt that all creators slog through.

I am liking these more than I would have thought, but maybe it's because I like Heather Webber's writing. She has a good eye for the telling detail and interesting plot twists.

Lots of fun, believable characters with a little hint of magic, maybe a little more romance than I would prefer, but all in all, well-paced writing -- not always the case with the zillions of other cozies out there. Looking forward to the next one.

I was curious as to whether they gave the Tarot a decent telling, and yes, that part was pretty accurate and funny at times. I also loved the cover, created by a friend of mine.

I quit at page 136. I kept reading that far, because I was hoping that at some point there would be a denouement of the main character realizing divination is real .. or some kind of redemption.

But then I realized I had developed a hard dislike for all the characters except maybe the cop (to the extent he was developed at all). Driven by self-consciously snappy, glib dialogue, and attitude up to our necks, it just annoyed the hell out of me. Goodbye, so long, I really don't care.

Soooooo glad it was only a library book.