Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead by Elle Cosimano

Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead (Finlay Donovan #2) by Elle Cosimano, 357 p.

"Finlay Donovan is―once again―struggling to finish her next novel and keep her head above water as a single mother of two. On the bright side, she has her live-in nanny and confidant Vero to rely on, and the only dead body she's dealt with lately is that of her daughter's pet goldfish.

On the not-so-bright side, someone out there wants her ex-husband, Steven, out of the picture. Permanently. Whatever else Steven may be, he's a good father, but saving him will send her down a rabbit hole of hit-women disguised as soccer moms, and a little bit more involvement with the Russian mob than she'd like.

Meanwhile, Vero's keeping secrets, and Detective Nick Anthony seems determined to get back into her life. He may be a hot cop, but Finlay's first priority is preventing her family from sleeping with the fishes... and if that means bending a few laws then so be it. With her next book's deadline looming and an ex-husband to keep alive, Finlay is quickly coming to the end of her rope. She can only hope there isn't a noose at the end of it..."--Goodreads blurb

The second book in this series lived up to the first. Cosimano delivers hilarity, drama, and relatable. Except for all the murdering...that's not relatable. But juggling, family, children, career, and potential romance is somewhere a lot of us have been. This book flew as it was such an easy, fun read. Looking forward to book 3.

 

Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin

 

Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin, 256 p.

"Gilda, a twenty-something lesbian, cannot stop ruminating about death. Desperate for relief from her panicky mind and alienated from her repressive family, she responds to a flyer for free therapy at a local Catholic church, and finds herself being greeted by Father Jeff, who assumes she’s there for a job interview. Too embarrassed to correct him, Gilda is abruptly hired to replace the recently deceased receptionist, Grace.

In between trying to memorize the lines to Catholic mass, hiding the fact that she has a new girlfriend, and erecting a dirty dish tower in her crumbling apartment, Gilda strikes up an email correspondence with Grace’s old friend. She can’t bear to ignore the kindly old woman, who has been trying to reach her friend through the church inbox, but she also can’t bring herself to break the bad news. Desperate, she begins impersonating Grace via email. But when the police discover suspicious circumstances surrounding Grace’s death, Gilda may have to finally reveal the truth of her mortifying existence."--Goodreads blurb

 I adored this book. A mishap has put Gilda in the oddest situation, but it turns her world upside down. Going through Gilda's emotions with her was hard at times, exasperating at others. Mental health takes center stage in this story, and while it's not explicitly said, Gilda is obviously on the autism spectrum somewhere and we get to see her navigate life with that. Highly recommend. 

Hook, Line and Sinker by Tessa Bailey

 

Hook, Line and Sinker (Bellinger Sisters #2) by Tessa Bailey, 385 p.

"King crab fisherman Fox Thornton has a reputation as a sexy, carefree flirt. Everyone knows he's a guaranteed good time--in bed and out--and that's exactly how he prefers it. Until he meets Hannah Bellinger. She's immune to his charm and looks, but she seems to enjoy his... personality? And wants to be friends? Bizarre. But he likes her too much to risk a fling, so platonic pals it is.

Now, Hannah's in town for work, crashing in Fox's spare bedroom. She knows he's a notorious ladies' man, but they're definitely just friends. In fact, she's nursing a hopeless crush on a colleague and Fox is just the person to help with her lackluster love life. Armed with a few tips from Westport's resident Casanova, Hannah sets out to catch her coworker's eye... yet the more time she spends with Fox, the more she wants him instead. As the line between friendship and flirtation begins to blur, Hannah can't deny she loves everything about Fox, but she refuses to be another notch on his bedpost.

Living with his best friend should have been easy. Except now she's walking around in a towel, sleeping right across the hall, and Fox is fantasizing about waking up next to her for the rest of his life and... and... man overboard! He's fallen for her, hook, line, and sinker. Helping her flirt with another guy is pure torture, but maybe if Fox can tackle his inner demons and show Hannah he's all in, she'll choose him instead?"--Goodreads blurb

This was a fun, easy read. Even though I hadn't read the first in this series, it was easy to pick up the characters and the usual romance tropes played out in an entertaining way. It was a fun escape, which is what these contemporary romances seem to be. 

Who Was Jane Austen? by Sarah Fabiny

Who Was Jane Austen? by Sarah Fabiny, 107 pages

The Who Was series of books are biographies written for children.  But, actually they are just as informative for adults as they are for children.  I have never read any of Jane Austen's novels but this book about her life makes me want to put them high on my reading list.  It was hard for a young woman in the late 1700s to get an education let alone any kind of career.  Someone bought the rights to her first novel but never published it.  Her first novel was not published until after her death.  Jane did go on to get her books published and Emma became one of her most famous novels.