The One by Audrey J. Cole

 

Title: The One

Author: Audrey J. Cole

Publisher: OrangeSky Audio

Release Date: March 1, 2025

To save their marriage, Sloane must forgive her husband's affair. Instead, she tries a more tempting option–settling the score. But will it prove to be a deadly mistake?

ER doctor Sloane Marks is shattered when she learns her husband Ethan slept with his partner at Seattle Homicide. She considers leaving him and joining The One, having gone to college with the popular dating app's billionaire founder, Brody Carr. But at forty-two, Sloane feels she has no choice but to forgive Ethan if she wants a chance at creating the family she never had.

Months later, Sloane bumps into Brody, who's recently returned to Seattle. In due time, Ethan worries she's cheating. His suspicions are confirmed when he learns the rich app founder took Sloane on a freediving excursion in the San Juan Islands. Soon after, Brody's famous wife dies in an accident. Ethan becomes the lead investigator in her death, which he suspects wasn't at accident at all.

Caught between a distrusting husband and a powerful billionaire who protects his secrets at all costs, Sloane is in a fight for her life. And the only way out is to take matters into her own hands.

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Popcorn worthy!

Sloane Marks is an ER physician, and her husband, Ethan, is a homicide detective. She thought they were happy until Ethan cheated with his homicide partner. Sloane isn’t sure she can forgive him, yet she finds herself wanting to be a mother. Ethan has always wanted a family, but Sloane wasn’t ready.

Sloane believes that if Ethan knew how she felt, they might move forward. In college, her chemistry lab partner was Brody Carr, now a millionaire and the well-known founder of the app The One. When she bumps into Brody at the store while buying ice cream, she learns he recently separated from his wife. Their chance meeting lifts her spirits. She knows Brody finds her attractive, but can she have an affair? Soon, Sloane joins Brody for a weekend trip to the San Juan Islands, certain it will drive Ethan crazy.

A week after returning, Brody’s wife drowns. The police are investigating Brody, and Sloane has so much to lose. What has she gotten herself into?

The One was truly addictive. I couldn’t stop listening. Sloane and Ethan were somewhat unlikable characters, but I needed to know where the story was headed and how it would play out. I wasn’t disappointed.

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

The 6:20 Man by David BaldacciThe 6:20 Man #1

 

Title: The 6:20 Man

Series: The 6:20 Man #1 

Author: David Baldacci

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing

Release Date: July 12, 2022

Every day without fail, Travis Devine puts on a cheap suit, grabs his faux-leather briefcase, and boards the 6:20 commuter train to Manhattan, where he works as an entry-level analyst at the city’s most prestigious investment firm. In the mornings, he gazes out the train window at the lavish homes of the uberwealthy, dreaming about joining their ranks. In the evenings, he listens to the fiscal news on his phone, already preparing for the next grueling day in the cutthroat realm of finance.

Then one morning Devine’s tedious routine is shattered by an anonymous email: She is dead.

Sara Ewes, Devine’s coworker and former girlfriend, has been found hanging in a storage room of his office building—presumably a suicide, prompting the NYPD to come calling on him. If that wasn’t enough, Devine receives another ominous visit, a confrontation that threatens to dredge up grim secrets from his past in the Army unless he participates in a clandestine investigation into his firm.

This treacherous role will take Travis from the impossibly glittering lives he once saw only through a train window, to the darkest corners of the country’s economic halls of power…where something rotten lurks. And apart from this high-stakes conspiracy, there’s a killer out there with their own agenda, and Devine is the bullseye.

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A good character for a new series!

Travis Devine works at a job he hates, but that his father strongly approves of. He’s an entry-level analyst at a well-known investment firm, Cowl and Comely, making money for the owner, Brad Cowl, and is likely to continue doing so.

Travis works long hours, six days a week, and takes the 6:20 train to Manhattan every morning on time. During his commute, he can see Brad Cowl’s house and a young woman who’s always in a bikini as the train passes by.

One day, upon arriving at work, Travis receives a message: Sara Ewes, a colleague, has been found dead in a storage closet. Stranger still, he gets a text from an unknown number informing him of her death before anyone else knows.

At first, it appears to be suicide, but soon it’s clear someone murdered Sara. Travis launches his own investigation for two reasons: he liked Sara and had feelings for her, and his Army past is catching up, threatening his freedom unless he uncovers the truth.

Travis is a highly likable character. It’s easy to root for him. Baldacci throws in plenty of red herrings to distract from the real culprit and the reasons behind Sara’s murder. Following Travis was definitely entertaining.

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

Someone I Used to Know by Paige Toon

 

Title: Someone I Used to Know

Author: Paige Toon

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Release Date: June 24, 2021

xxxSo much can change in half a lifetime…

Then

At fifteen, George is the foster brother Leah never asked for. As the angry, troubled boy struggles to come to terms with his circumstances, Leah finds herself getting drawn closer to him.

Theo’s wealthy family have mysteriously pulled him out of boarding school and he’s now enrolled at the local state school with Leah and George. When their worlds collide that summer, the three teenagers form a bond they believe will be unbreakable. But life doesn’t always go to plan...

Now

Shocking news brings Leah back to Yorkshire, baby daughter in tow. But Emilie’s father Theo isn’t with them, and George has unexpectedly returned. After half a lifetime, have they healed the scars of their pasts? Will coming back home set their hearts in a different direction?

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This one tugged at all my heartstrings!

In “Then,” Leah is fifteen when she meets George. Her parents are foster parents, and George is the newest arrival in their home—an angry teenager separated from his baby sister. Meanwhile, a wealthy kid, Theo, joins Leah’s school after being pulled from his private school. Despite their differences, they form a strong friendship, and Leah finds herself developing feelings for both.

In “Now,” Leah is back in her hometown with her daughter, Emilie, but without her husband, Theo, when George reappears.

Leah’s life has been far from easy. She’s struggling, but George’s presence stirs memories of that unforgettable summer. What will she do with these rekindled feelings?

Someone I Used to Know is emotional and rewarding, a story of heartbreak, loss, and healing. Told through “Then” and “Now” timelines, this novel brings its characters to life, making them lovable and realistic.

Paige Toon also surprises us. I was so sure of the twist, but when it came, I was completely wrong.

Little by little, I’m listening to all her books, and the audiobooks have all been wonderful so far.

Cliffhanger: No

5/5 Fangs

The Minute I Saw You by Paige Toon

Title: The Minute I Saw You

Author: Paige Toon

Publisher: Simon Schuster Audio

Release Date: May 14, 2020

Some people believe that it’s possible to fall in love simply by gazing into another person’s eyes . . .

When Hannah and Sonny meet, a spark ignites that is hard to ignore and impossible to forget. Weeks later, their paths cross again, but Sonny appears distant and reluctant to meet Hannah’s eye. It soon transpires that Sonny is at a crossroads. He’s committed to making serious life changes – ones that can’t and won’t include romance.

Hannah has her own reasons for wanting to keep their budding friendship platonic. Plus, she’s only in town temporarily, housesitting for her uncle. But as the summer hots up and the chemistry between them intensifies, Hannah and Sonny discover that there’s more to each other than meets the eye...

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When Hannah meets Sonny, sparks fly!

Hannah works in an optometrist’s office when Sonny comes in for an eye exam and to order new glasses. Their interaction hints at a connection. But when Sonny returns to pick up his glasses, he’s a different man. Gone is the happy, flirtatious guy; instead, he seems sad and lost.

In the weeks that follow, Hannah bumps into him multiple times. Eventually, they strike up a friendship. Neither Hannah nor Sonny is looking for a relationship. Hannah, moreover, isn’t staying in England permanently. She plans to leave as soon as her uncle returns from his cruise, as she’s house- and dog-sitting in his absence.

Little by little, Hannah and Sonny open up about their traumas and pain, but can they open their hearts to love?

Fabulous writing, deeply moving themes, likable characters, and a summer setting make this reader a fan of Paige Toon.

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

Brain Damage by Freida McFadden

 

Title: Brain Damage

Author: Freida McFadden

Publisher: Hollywood Upstairs Publishing

Release Date: April 28, 2016

Dr. Charly McKenna finally has it all. 

Prosperous career as a dermatologist? Check. 

Spacious apartment overlooking Central Park? Check. 

Handsome lawyer husband? Double check. 

Then one night, a bullet rips through the right side of her skull and she loses everything. As Charly struggles to recover from her brain injury, she begins to realize that the events of that fateful night are trapped in the damaged right side of her brain. Now she must put the jigsaw pieces together to discover the identity of the man who tried to kill her... before he finishes the job he started

Amazon

Totally engrossing!

Dr. Charly McKenna, a skilled dermatologist, is beloved by most of her patients. She lives alone with her cat until a new patient, a lawyer, asks her out. Charly has a strict rule against dating patients, but when he asks again months later, she agrees. A few months after that, they’re married. Then her world shatters: she wakes up in a rehab hospital after being shot. Facing a grueling recovery, she must relearn to eat, talk, and move her body—made harder by the sensation that one side of her body is no longer there.

Charly knows her situation is dire. She can’t recall who shot her or why. A recurring dream haunts her, with someone whispering in her ear after the shooting, but the face remains elusive.

Is the person who attacked her still out there? Is she still in danger?

I loved this audiobook. Freida McFadden masterfully portrays Charly’s struggle as a patient to reclaim her body and mind. Her ordeal was well portrayed. Though a suspense novel, it weaves in a touch of romance.

Cliffhanger: No

5/5 Fangs

Say You'll Remember Me by Abby JimenezSay You'll Remember Me #1

 

Title: Say You'll Remember Me

Series: Say You'll Remember Me #1

Author: Abby Jimenez

Publisher: Forever

Release Date: April 1, 2025

There might be no such a thing as a perfect guy, but Xavier Rush comes disastrously close. A gorgeous veterinarian giving Greek god vibes—all while cuddling a tiny kitten? Immediately yes. That is until Xavier opens his mouth and proves that even sculpted gods can say the absolute wrong thing. Like, really wrong. Of course, there’s nothing Samantha loves more than proving an asshole wrong…

. . . unless, of course, he can admit he made a mistake. But after one incredible and seemingly endless date—possibly the best in living history—Samantha is forced to admit the truth, that her family is in crisis and any kind of relationship would be impossible. Samantha begs Xavier to forget her. To remember their night together as a perfect moment, as crushing as that may be.

Only no amount of distance or time is nearly enough to forget that something between them. And the only thing better than one single perfect memory is to make a life—and even a love—worth remembering.

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I adore Abby's books. She can make me root for the main characters in just a few chapters.

Samantha works as a social media marketing specialist for a mustard company. She finds a kitten that needs help, so she takes it to a veterinarian with good reviews. When she meets Xavier Rush, she is unhappy with his diagnosis. The kitten, Pooter, will need expensive surgery to survive, and even then, things could go wrong, so he recommends putting him to sleep.

Samantha is furious; she leaves and starts a campaign to raise money for Pooter’s surgery. She returns after succeeding to show Xavier she saved the kitten. She is surprised to learn Xavier feels bad about how he spoke to her initially. He had a bad day and might not have had the best bedside manner.

Xavier asks her out, and they have a night to remember. It’s the best first date either has had. But Samantha is leaving Minnesota permanently to move to California to help her family care for her mother, who has dementia.

Samantha tells Xavier to forget her and move on, but Xavier doesn’t want to, and what follows is a love story full of hardship and real problems.

How can these two make it work? Is there a happy ending?

Say You’ll Remember Me deals with a few tough topics:

First, Alzheimer’s dementia in a young person. The disease affects caregivers, their dynamics, and can be scary for the patient. There’s a point when patients with moderate dementia stop recognizing those close to them, and some may want to run away.

Second, long-distance relationships are hard, and they can break a couple apart. It’s never easy to be far from the person you love.

Third, it also mentions abuse as a child and how that abuse can affect your personality later in life.

As always, Abby Jimenez makes her characters likable and relatable. Although I felt that Say You'll Remember Me had less humor than its predecessors.

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

The Last Secret Agent: My Life as a Spy Behind Nazi Linesby Pippa Latour

Title: The Last Secret Agent: My Life as a Spy Behind Nazi Lines

Author: Pippa Latour

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Release Date: May 13, 2025

After decades of silence, the last surviving World War II British spy reveals the real, untold story of her time as a secret agent in the deadly world of Nazi France.

From a unique and singular voice comes the incredible true story of the last surviving undercover British female operative in WW2. Pippa Latour parachuted into occupied France in 1944 to conduct sabotage and subversion behind enemy lines. Selling soap to German soldiers and hiding codes on a piece of ribbon, she sent back crucial information about troop positions in the lead up to D-Day, and continued her work until Paris was liberated. From her childhood as an orphan in South Africa to her years as an undercover agent, Pippa's story is that of a woman determined to honor her principles and risk her life to fight against the greatest evil of the 20th century.

The Last Secret Agent is a posthumously published memoir, co-written with journalist Jude Dobson. Pippa was decorated highly for her actions, including being made a Member of the Order of the British Empire and receiving the Légion d’Honneur in France. For years, Pippa kept her involvement in the war effort secret from everyone, including her family, but for the first time, her story can now be told in full.

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I'm always drawn to World War II stories, and being able to read this memoir of a true secret agent was quite an experience.

Pippa Latour’s life was unlike most. Raised in South Africa, France, and England, she endured multiple losses as a child and teenager. She became an English spy in France, working against the Nazi regime.

Parachuting into occupied France in 1944 as a Special Operations Executive (SOE) agent, her mission was to sow chaos for the Nazis. She sent intelligence to England, traveling from town to town disguised as a 14-year-old girl selling soaps for her “grandparents” while gathering critical intel and transmitting it back using hidden wireless radios.

What she witnessed and experienced was a living nightmare, with death all around her. She narrowly escaped capture multiple times and was deeply affected by the horrors she saw, yet she stayed focused on her mission and succeeded.

What a brave and incredible woman Pippa was! She kept her role as an SOE agent secret from everyone until her children discovered an article about her online. Only then did she share her story, which she so richly deserved to tell.

Jude Dobson, the narrator of this Memoir, captures Pippa's voice, transporting us to the past she endured.

Cliffhanger: No

5/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by Macmillan Audio via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Love Haters by Katherine Center

 

Title: The Love Haters

Author: Katherine Center

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Release Date: May 20, 2025

It’s a thin line between love and love-hating.

Katie Vaughn has been burned by love in the past—now she may be lighting her career on fire. She has two choices: wait to get laid off from her job as a video producer or, at her coworker Cole’s request, take a career-making gig profiling Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West.

The catch? Katie’s not exactly qualified. She can’t swim—but fakes it that she can.

Plus: Cole is Hutch’s brother. And they don’t get along. Next stop paradise!

But paradise is messier than it seems. As Katie gets entangled with Hutch (the most scientifically good looking man she has ever seen . . . but also a bit of a love hater), along with his colorful Aunt Rue and his rescue Great Dane, she gets trapped in a lie. Or two.

Swim lessons, helicopter flights, conga lines, drinking contests, hurricanes, and stolen kisses ensue—along with chances to tell the truth, to face old fears, and to be truly brave at last.

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Enjoyable!

Katie Vaughn is worried about being laid off from her job. Then, she’s given the chance to create a video about Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West, already internet-famous for saving a famous actress’s puppy. Katie is told that Hutch doesn’t do interviews, but she might convince him for a “Day in the Life” segment after filming the Coast Guard video. Determined to keep her job, Katie will do whatever it takes.

Katie arrives in Key West without her suitcase, but Hutch’s Aunt Rue helps by providing clothes from a store and a place to stay in one of her villas. Katie is deeply grateful. While shopping, she bumps into Hutch himself. She’s instantly attracted to him but unsure how she’ll manage the assignment, as it requires swimming—and Katie doesn’t know how.

Aunt Rue helps with this, too, arranging swimming lessons with her and the gals. Katie is ready to try until she discovers the instructor is none other than Hutch.

Despite learning Katie can’t swim and that she’s filming the video instead of his brother Cole, whom he expected, Hutch agrees to teach her as long as she puts in a good word with Cole.

A fun, fast-paced romance with characters you wish were real, especially the Great Dane, George Bailey. Narrator Patti Murin does a great job bringing these characters to life. Though I loved the characters, I found the romance took a backseat to Katie’s body image struggles. 

Will I read Katherine Center's next book? Absolutely!

Cliffhanger: No

3.5/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by Macmillan Audio via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

King of Ashes by S.A. Cosby

 

Title: King of Ashes 

Author: S.A. Cosby

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Release Date: June 10, 2025

When eldest son Roman Carruthers is summoned home after his father’s car accident, he finds his younger brother, Dante, in debt to dangerous criminals and his sister, Neveah, exhausted from holding the family—and the family business—together. Neveah and their father, who run the Carruthers Crematorium in the run-down central Virginia town of Jefferson Run, see death up close every day. But mortality draws even closer when it becomes clear that the crash that landed their father in a coma was no accident and Dante’s recklessness has placed them all in real danger.

Roman, a financial whiz with a head for numbers and a talent for making his clients rich, has some money to help buy his brother out of trouble. But in his work with wannabe tough guys, he’s forgotten that there are real gangsters out there. As his bargaining chips go up in smoke, Roman realizes that he has only one thing left to offer to save his himself, and his own particular set of skills.

Roman begins his work for the criminals while Neveah tries to uncover the long-ago mystery of what happened to their mother, who disappeared when they were teenagers. But Roman is far less of a pushover than the gangsters realize. He is willing to do anything to save his family. Anything.

Because everything burns.

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Roman Carruthers has a knack for numbers. As a financial advisor, he can make money for anyone. His clients are certainly happy when their portfolios always do well.

Roman is called to his family home after his father is injured in a car accident. His father is in a coma, and his sister Neveah struggles to keep their family business, Carruthers Crematorium, afloat without help. Their father opened the crematorium years ago, and it has been a successful enterprise. When Neveah asks Roman for help, he leaves everything behind to return to Jesserson Run.

Upon arriving, Roman learns that his younger brother, Dante, has been running with the wrong crowd and owes a large debt to criminals. If Dante doesn’t repay them, his life is at stake.

Roman tries to settle his brother’s debt, but things go wrong, and the criminals force him to undertake dangerous and illegal tasks.

How will Roman help his family escape this situation?

King of Ashes is filled with complex characters. Nothing is purely black or white; the story explores shades of gray. Roman commits morally and legally questionable acts, but they’re necessary to protect his family.

The book includes vivid descriptions of violence that match its dangerous setting. Narrator Adam Lazarre-White does a fantastic job, making the story feel all too real. I knew the ending wouldn’t be tidy, but I hoped Roman would survive.

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by Macmillan Audio via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Parents Weekend by Alex Finlay

Title: Parents Weekend 

Author: Alex Finlay

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Release Date: May 6, 2025

From the bestselling author of If Something Happens to Me, comes one of the year’s most anticipated thrillers.

In the glow of their children’s exciting first year of college at a small private school in Northern California, five families plan on a night of dinner and cocktails for the opening festivities of Parents Weekend. As the parents stay out way past their bedtimes, their kids—five residents of Campisi Hall—never show up at dinner.

At first, everyone thinks that they’re just being college students, irresponsibly forgetting about the gathering or skipping out to go to a party. But as the hours click by and another night falls with not so much as a text from the students, panic ensues. Soon, the campus police call in reinforcements. Search parties are formed. Reporters swarm the small enclave. Rumors swirl and questions arise.

Libby, Blane, Mark, Felix, and Stella—The Five, as the podcasters, bloggers, and TikTok sleuths call them—come from five very different families. What led them out on that fateful night? Could it be the sins of their mothers and fathers come to cause them peril or a threat to the friend group from within?

Told through multiple points of view in past and present—and marking the return of FBI Special Agent Sarah Keller from Every Last Fear and The Night Shift—Parents Weekend explores the weight of expectation, family dysfunction, and those exhilarating first days we all remember in the dorms when our friends become our family.

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Agent Sarah Keller is back!

This new case involves five university students—Stella, Libby, Blane, Felix, and Mark—who all go missing during the Parents’ Weekend dinner at Santa Clara University. Campus police and the FBI are called in, as one of the missing students is the child of a Federal State Department official, and another is the child of a famous judge.

Sarah, temporarily working in California, is assigned to assist with the case. She senses something serious is afoot, not just kids fooling around. She must determine if the incident is payback for something one of the parents has done or if one of the students triggered it.

I always enjoy Alex Finlay’s books. This one features short chapters from multiple POVs. The audio, narrated by Brittany Pressley, helps me keep everyone straight. I wasn’t thrilled with the denouement, but overall, it was an entertaining novel.

It’s worth mentioning the addition of an interesting character, Annie Hafeez. I wonder if she and Sarah will team up again.

Cliffhanger: No

3.5/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by Macmillan Audio via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.