Book Review: Finlay Donovan Rolls The Dice (Finlay Donovan, #4) by Elle Cosimano

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Finlay Donovan Rolls The Dice (Finlay Donovan, #4)  by Elle Cosimano opens with Finlay Donovan and her nanny, Vero, planning a trip to Atlantic City to pay off some debts, find Javi, and retrieve a stolen car.  But first, they come up with a cover story that backfires miserably.  Finlay and Vero have to be clever and sneaky to accomplish what they set out to do, but will they have to come clean? Thank you, NetGalley, for the Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of Finlay Donovan Rolls The Dice (Finlay Donovan, #4) by Elle Cosimano.  This is one of the books I was most excited about being able to read before it was in stores.  I received the eBook for free in exchange for my honest review. The fourth installment picks up where the last book ended and ties up the loose ends from Finlay Donovan Knocks Them Dead (Finlay Donovan, #3)  . . . so much so that I thought that this was going to be the last book in the series.  However, Finlay Donovan Rolls The Dice ends up having a couple of cliffhangers,

Book Review: The Lake House by Kate Morton

book review the lake house kate morton
When another member in my book club recommended The Lake House by Kate Morton, I immediately asked if the movie of the same name starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock was based on this book. Fortunately, they had nothing to do with each other and when opening up the Goodreads.com app on my phone to look the book up, I saw that I already had it on my to read list.

Not your typical thriller, I had some trouble getting into the book but forced myself to continue since it was a book club pick. By the time I finished, I was glad I read it. The Lake House alternates between the present day Cornwall, England and various years of the past, mainly the year 1933. 

Normally, switching between time periods within a book doesn't bother me, but it did with this one. It was frustrating because when it switched to the past, it didn't do it chronologically. For example, it would jump back to June 1933, then to August 1932, and so on.

Unfamiliar with Kate Morton, I was surprised to see she has written other novels. Many of her fans who reviewed The Lake House felt like it wasn't up to par with her previous novels and thought it followed a formula. I'm interested to read some of her other novels so I can compare for myself.
 
Other than being slow to start and jumping around the past too much, the novel was very well written. It reminded me of something P.D. James would write. Somewhat predictable, it kept me guessing for the most part. If you like historical fiction or mystery, it's a must read. I gave The Lake House four stars out of five.


Synopsis of The Lake House by Kate Morton

Cornwall, England - 1933. Sixteen year old Alice Edevane loves writing and is working on her first novel at her family's lakeside estate. The night of their midsummer's eve party, Alice's eleven month old brother, Theo, vanishes.

Present day. London Detective Sadie Sparrow is visiting her grandfather in Corwall and discovers an abandoned estate frozen in time. Wondering why the house was left to decay, Sparrow starts digging into the history of the estate, revealing secrets long forgotten.



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