The Baker of Lost Memories

The Baker of Lost Memories by Shirley Russak Wachtel
6/1/25; 317 pages
Little A

The Baker of Lost Memories by Shirley Russak Wachtel is a recommended family drama/historical fiction.

Anya and Josef lost their first daughter, Ruby, but they survived the Holocaust before moving from Poland to America. There they had another daughter, Lena. While growing up, Lena always felt her parents distance from her but she had a best friend, Pearl, who tragically disappears from Lena’s life. The narrative goes on to follow Lena growing up, marrying, and owning a bakery in 1960's Brooklyn.

The quality of the writing is good and has a lot of potential as it deals with trauma and the effects of it on a family. The plot is interesting, mainly follows Lena's struggles with her marriage and her work at the bakery, but the pacing is uneven, verging on glacially slow at times. The narrative alternates between the point-of-view of Anya and Lena and provides insight into the distance between mother and daughter and the struggles in continuing their relationship. Most of the interpersonal problems, both with Lena's marriage and with her mother, could have been resolved with an open, honest discussion.

Honestly, I never felt emotionally invested in the characters or the novel, likely due to the uneven pacing. Introducing Pearl suddenly coming back into Lena's life was an unbelievable aspect to the plot. I deduced what was up right away, could not suspend disbelief, and rejected the premise. Perhaps people who relish all historical fiction novels will enjoy this more than I did.

Thanks to Little A for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

No More Tears

No More Tears: The Dark Secrets of Johnson & Johnson by Gardiner Harris
4/8/25; 464 pages
Random House

No More Tears: The Dark Secrets of Johnson & Johnson by Gardiner Harris is an excellent, very highly recommended, well researched and documented investigative exposé on the Johnson & Johnson corporation. Harris uncovers decades of deceitful practices including hiding, ignoring, or changing research, lying, and using their money and power to influence doctors and media. As Harris states, for all intents and purposes, J&J was a criminal enterprise that embraced a corporate pattern of greed and misconduct while hiding the truth from consumers.

It is pointed out that one consistent theme is how unsurprising so many findings were. This is something that many readers will take note of as we remember the decades long question about the safety of talc and recall when the dangers of Tylenol were brought to light. It was disturbing how long J&J dug in and didn't take the talc out of their baby powder. J&J always put their business interests first whenever it appeared they would be impacted by awareness and regulation of any of their products due to research and studies demonstrating negative consequences on public health.

The information is presented in 5 parts. Part I opens with the history of J&J, and continues with sections on Johnson's Baby Powder and Tylenol.  Part II Prescription Drugs, has sections on Procrit, Risperdal, Duragesic, and the Ortho Evra Birth Control Patch. Part III Medical Devices contains sections on the Pinnacle Metal on Metal Hip implant and Prolift Vaginal Mesh. Part IV on Vaccination covers Covid. Following this are pages of notes which serve to thoroughly document all the information.

Harris ends with seven actions that should be taken. Briefly they are: 1. Doctors should be barred from taking money as gifts from drug companies. 2. States should stop certifying continuing medical education courses funded by drug and device companies. 3. The FDA needs to be funded by taxpayers, not the drug industry. 4. Companies and executives should be punished for lying under oath to the FDA and courts. 5. States should repeal laws that forbid personal injury suits or punitive damages against FDA approved products. 6. The American media organizations need to do some deep soul searching to figure out how they so thoroughly missed the monster in their midst. 7. There must be a wholesale reassessment of the very system where the conglomerate was allowed to thrive.

This is a must read exceptional analysis of well documented research which exposes information that everyone should know. Thanks to Random House for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

She's a Lamb!

She's a Lamb! by Meredith Hambrock
4/8/25; 312 pages
ECW Press

She's a Lamb! by Meredith Hambrock is a recommended novel, highly for the right reader. It takes a deep dive into the also spiraling mind of an aspiring actress.

Jessamyn St. Germain knows she is destined to be a star in the theater who is adored by fans. At age 26 she may just be an usher at one of Vancouver’s smallest regional theaters, but Jessamyn know she will get the part of Maria in the upcoming production of The Sound of Music. When she doesn't get a role and instead is offered the position of childminder for young actors playing the von Trapp children. Her vocal coach, Renee, reinforces Jessamyn's delusion that she was tasked with doing that so she can step in and take over the role when Samantha Nguyen, the actress playing Maria fails.

The biggest drawback to the narrative is Jessamyn, who is not simply an unlikable and unreliable character, she's an intensely unhinged woman who believes she is talented in her fantasied mind. Since the whole plot unfolds through her point-of-view it is exhausting to be immersed in her magical thinking, anger, self-aggrandizement, mental-health issues, and delusion. 

However, it will hold your attention, especially if you enjoy being inside the unraveling mind of a person. Sometimes the fantasy she is making up in her mind of her stellar abilities can actually be so absurd it is humorous (but usually it is disturbing). 3.5 rounded up. Thanks to ECW Press for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

The Griffin Sisters' Greatest Hits

The Griffin Sisters' Greatest Hits by Jennifer Weiner
4/8/25; 384 pages
William Morrow

The Griffin Sisters' Greatest Hits by Jennifer Weiner is a very highly recommended family drama following three women: two sisters brief career in the world of pop music and the burgeoning talent of a daughter.

Sisters Zoe and Cassie Grossberg were born a year apart and are polar opposites. Zoe is pretty, popular, and wants to be a singer in a band. Cassie is a wildly talented musical prodigy who can sing, write songs, and play anything on the piano, but she is overweight and lacks confidence and self esteem. Cassie will sing with Zoe, however, so when she is talked into performing one night the two are discovered.

They form a group, The Griffin Sisters, and songwriter Russell D’Angelo, joins them. He and Cassie immediately connect when writing songs together. Zoe, who is used to be the sister everyone wants, sets her sights on Russell, in spite of his lack of interest in her. Her actions eventually lead the group breaking up, and, inadvertently, Russell's death. Cassie flees to Alaska and cuts off contact. Zoe has a baby, Cherry, and tries and fails to launch a solo career. She then marries and loses all aspirations for fame.

Cherry shows a real musical talent, but her mother discourages her from pursuing a career in music. At 18 she auditions, gets a spot on a talent search show, and leaves home without a word. This eventually leads her to trying to find her aunt Cassie for help and, in part, to learn the truth about what happened to the band years ago.

Chapters in the narrative follows Cassie, Zoe, and Cherry in the current day and also have chapters from two decades earlier when The Griffin Sisters began allowing you to get a good sense of their personalities and proclivities. The characters are all depicted as fully realized individuals with strengths, flaws, needs, and secrets.  We know their inner struggles, failings, and thoughts. They are not all likeable, but they are portrayed as realistic with their own challenges.

The writing is excellent and the pace is fast. Once I started reading this novel, I was pleasantly surprised how quickly I became invested in the plot and caught up with the drama and complexities of the interaction between both the sisters and also the issues between mother and daughter. Knowing their inner thoughts and secrets, even those that were unpleasant and cruel, gave depth to the characters and their motives and desires. It also makes it a nuanced, realistic family drama.

This is a novel about sisters, dreams, music, motherhood, young love, forgiveness, and the courage it takes to follow your dreams. Along with that is also a realistic delineation of the adage that all actions have consequences and those consequences must be faced. Finally, clearly there is a message about not judging people by their looks.

The Griffin Sisters' Greatest Hits is a great choice for those who enjoy family dramas and music. Thanks to William Morrow for providing me with an advance reader's copy. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

The Float Test

The Float Test by Lynn Steger Strong
4/8/25; 272 pages
HarperCollins

The Float Test by Lynn Steger Strong is a recommended literary family drama set in Florida.

The four Kenner family siblings come together after their mother dies. The oldest daughter Jenn, lives nearby and has a large family, Fred (Winnifred) is a writer who is unable to write, Jude is a former lawyer who has a teenage daughter and a grudge against Fred, and George is estranged from his wife and job. Jude is the omniscient narrator and describes everyone's experiences over two months during the summer in Florida.

First, the writing is quite descriptive and the potential for a great literary drama following a dysfunctional family is present. The descriptions of the hot, humid atmosphere in Florida is palpable. 

All of these siblings have a strained relationship with each other, including secrets and grudges they are holding. There are numerous interpersonal issues, backstories, subplots, secrets, anxieties, and actions going on throughout the novel. unfortunately, none of the characters are compelling. Fred is decidedly annoying and the story focuses on her the most.

Unfortunately all of the well-written various parts don't coalesce into that one whole, complete story. 2.5 - rounded up for the descriptive writing. Thanks to HarperCollins for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

When the Moon Hits Your Eye

When the Moon Hits Your Eye by John Scalzi
3/25/25; 336 pages
Tor Publishing/Macmillian

When the Moon Hits Your Eye by John Scalzi is an absolutely stellar, very highly recommended science fiction satire. This will absolutely be on my list of the best books of the year.

The moon has turned into cheese. A new lunar cycle marks the moment when the moon was replaced with cheese, or an "organic matrix," as NASA prefers to put it. All the lunar rock samples on earth have also turned to cheese. One concern is that a mass of cheese sixteen hundred miles in diameter isn't likely to be stable. 

Now everyone around the world is confronting and struggling with the existential questions regarding all aspects of the moon turning to cheese. These discussions include average citizens, scientists, politicians, astronauts, authors, billionaires, filmmakers, philosophers, religious leaders, students, comedians, bankers, and more.

As expected, the writing is excellent. My appreciation of When the Moon Hits Your Eye only increased while reading. The premise is introduced and then chapters are various people reacting. It covers one lunar cycle. There are no main characters, however there are several recurring characters. The narrative can be extremely humorous but also serious and touching at times.

The plot unfolds through a collection of a wide variety of people reacting to an absolutely absurd occurrence that challenges everyone's fundamental understanding of the universe. It is a satirical book about a cross section of humanity faced with a large scale crisis and how they react. The crisis here is a moon made of cheese but comparisons could be made to the varied and numerous reactions to other world wide events.

When the Moon Hits Your Eye is a perfect choice for readers who can appreciate the surface level absurd situation and understand the deeper implications it induces. Thanks to Tor/Macmillian for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

The Devil's Kitchen

The Devil's Kitchen by Mark Thielman
4/1/25; 310 pages
Severn River
Johnson and Nance #1

The Devil's Kitchen by Mark Thielman is a recommended novel with a dual timeline which alternates between events from the French revolution and a current murder mystery in Yellowstone.

In Paris, France, 1794 during the French Revolution art student Aristede is protecting the Scepter of Dogobert, a relic of the French royalty. The goal is to smuggle it out of the country for safe keeping. In the present, a history professor is found dead at the base of Yellowstone Canyon. Seasonal park ranger and former homicide detective Clarence Johnson assists Special Agent Alison Nance with the investigation once it is determined they are dealing with a murderer.

Johnson and Nance worked well together and following the clues in the murder investigation is a compelling part of the narrative. There are keen insights into what may be the motive behind the murder as well as some humor along the way. Also included is a good dose of art history which neatly ties into the plot. I enjoyed this storyline. It would be entertaining to follow them, along with Johnson's dog, Tripod, in another investigation.

Admittedly, I'm not a huge fan of historical fiction but I have been known to appreciate it at times. In this case, the chapters set in the 1790's were less appealing than those set in the present. I just never cared that much, although I knew it would eventually tie into the present day investigation, so these chapters felt like they dragged on too long.

The Devil's Kitchen will appeal to readers who enjoy the French Revolution, art history, a treasure hunt, murder mysteries and police procedurals. Thanks to Severn River for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.