Book Review: The Frozen River

By Melissa Amster

Maine, 1789: When the Kennebec River freezes, entombing a man in the ice, Martha Ballard is summoned to examine the body and determine cause of death. As a midwife and healer, she is privy to much of what goes on behind closed doors in Hallowell. Her diary is a record of every birth and death, crime and debacle that unfolds in the close-knit community. Months earlier, Martha documented the details of an alleged rape committed by two of the town’s most respected gentlemen—one of whom has now been found dead in the ice. But when a local physician undermines her conclusion, declaring the death to be an accident, Martha is forced to investigate the shocking murder on her own.

Over the course of one winter, as the trial nears, and whispers and prejudices mount, Martha doggedly pursues the truth. Her diary soon lands at the center of the scandal, implicating those she loves, and compelling Martha to decide where her own loyalties lie.

Clever, layered, and subversive, Ariel Lawhon’s newest offering introduces an unsung heroine who refused to accept anything less than justice at a time when women were considered best seen and not heard. The Frozen River is a thrilling, tense, and tender story about a remarkable woman who left an unparalleled legacy yet remains nearly forgotten to this day.Hard to put down. Wasn't expecting to feel as connected to it as I did. Really well told and I got so angry sometimes. Relevance to present times even though it took place in late 1700s. Interesting to learn about what life was like back then and how much we take for granted in comparison. (Synopsis courtesy of Amazon.)

I had received a lot of recommendations for The Frozen River. I am so glad I listened and decided to check it out because it was really good. It takes place in the late 1700s in Maine, which I didn't know would be of interest to me, but Ariel Lawhon totally grabbed my attention with this novel and didn't let go! It was very hard to put down when I had to get back to real life.

Martha Ballard is a new historical figure for me, but she sounds like a really interesting woman. The situation in the story could have taken place now as it felt so relevant to current events. There's a lot of heartbreak in this story, as well as some really great moments. I got so angry with people at times. Men haven't changed in over 200 years, when it comes to protecting their own self-interests over the well-being of women. I was just infuriated by the injustices that took place in this novel!

Since this took place during colonial times, everything was so different in terms of what we take for granted in the present day. They had to make their own candles! It's also sad how Martha lost some of her family during an epidemic since healthcare was a lot different back then. 

Overall, this was an incredible story that I still think about! The narrative flowed well the entire time and the details were easy to visualize without taking away from the story itself. Be sure to read the author notes after you finish the story.

In terms of casting, I didn't really have anyone in mind aside from Rebecca Wisocky as Martha. I pictured her as soon as I started this book. They're the same age and have curly hair, and Rebecca has the personality to pull off this role so well if this novel was ever made into a movie.

Now I need to read Ariel's other books! I heard she has a new one coming next year.

(Trigger warnings below.)

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TW: Graphic description of rape, stillbirth, death of children, physical violence, description of a dead body, killing animals

Just in the "St. Nick" of time!

Today we are featuring two Christmas rom-coms that came out this year. It's not too late to check them out, even with Christmas right around the corner! 🎄

Christmas People by Iva-Marie Palmer

Some people are Christmas people, but Jill Jacobs is most certainly not. She hasn’t been ever since her hometown love broke her heart on Christmas Day three years ago. After that, Jill moved to L.A. to pursue her dream of becoming a screenwriter. She hasn’t been home in years to avoid her ex, but this winter she finds herself back in drab, suburban Illinois for the holidays.

After one very hazy night, Jill wakes up to a hometown that's filled with jolly neighbors, covered in pristine white snow, and seasoned with the smell of peppermint. She realizes that this is more than just a bad hangover… she's stuck in a Heartfelt movie. One set in her town, starring real people from her life, including her family, her high school crush (uber perfect, owns a bakery, and definitely a Christmas Person), and of course, her ex —handsome as ever and now exclusively clad in plaid flannel.

The only way out of this bizarro world is to complete the plot of the movie, including a holiday bake off and a cookie-sweet love story. To get home in time for Christmas, Jill must act out a picture-perfect holiday romance with the one that got away, all while her ex watches on. 

Fa la la la freaking la….

"Palmer’s first adult novel knocks it right out of the snow globe." ―Library Journal

"Switching from writing for kids and teens, Palmer presents her first adult novel, a sublimely entertaining holiday romance with a cleverly calibrated mix of snappy wit, sexy chemistry, and sweet charm, all perfectly on point." ―Booklist, starred review 

From Iva-Marie's website

Iva-Marie Palmer is the author of numerous books for children and teens, including the highly-acclaimed YA rom-com Gimme Everything You Got and The Jules Verne Prophecy series with Larry Schwarz.

Before turning full-time to writing, she worked as a web editor and writer for the Walt Disney Company, as an award-winning reporter, and up close and personal with many a Christmas person as a Hallmark store employee. Iva-Marie currently resides in Burbank, California, with her husband and two sons. Christmas People is her first adult novel. Visit Iva-Marie at her website and on Instagram.

Christmas Fling by Lindsey Kelk

Is a fake boyfriend really just for Christmas?

One fake romance. One magical Christmas. One chance to fall in love.

Laura was all set for a quiet solo Christmas – just her, a bottle of wine, and flat-sitting for a stranger. But when the stranger’s parents mistake her for his mystery girlfriend, she’s swept off to the snowy Scottish Highlands with Callum and his whole family.

Between the cosy sleeper train, charming pubs and breathtaking views, this could be the no-strings-attached Christmas of Laura’s dreams.

But stranger Callum is hot, hilarious and their ‘fake’ chemistry is off the charts.

So is this just a Christmas fling? Or the start of something more? (Synopsis courtesy of Amazon.)

Praise for Lindsey Kelk's rom-coms:

'So funny, so charming, so romantic' ― Beth O'Leary

'Lindsey Kelk is the Taylor Swift of romance writing – she makes me PROUD to be a romance reader!' ― Daisy Buchanan

'Impossibly funny, wildly romantic and extremely hot – I could not have loved it more’  ― Rosie Walsh

From Facebook

Lindsey Kelk is a Sunday Times bestselling author, podcaster, and proud defender of The Cheesecake Factory. She’s the author of the I Heart series, The Christmas Wish, Love Story, and the YA romantasy series The Bell Witches.

When she’s not writing, Lindsey co-hosts Tights and Fights, a pro-wrestling podcast on the Maximum Fun network (yes, really—pro wrestling).

Off the clock, she’s probably reading, binge-watching TV, texting the group chat, or planning a karaoke night (despite being unable to sing).

Born and raised in South Yorkshire, Lindsey lived in London and New York before settling in Los Angeles with her husband and two cats. (Bio adapted from Lindsey's website.)

Visit Lindsey online:

Website * Facebook * Instagram * TikTok

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Book Review: The Poppy Fields

By Melissa Amster

What if there were a cure for the broken-hearted?

Welcome to the Poppy Fields, where there’s hope for even the most battered hearts to heal.

Here, in a remote stretch of the California desert, lies an experimental and controversial treatment center that allows those suffering from the heartache of loss to sleep through their pain...and keep on sleeping. After patients awaken from this prolonged state of slumber, they will finally be healed. But only if they’re willing to accept the potential shadowy side effects.

On a journey to this mystical destination are four very different strangers and one little dog: Ava, a book illustrator; Ray, a fireman; Sasha, an occupational therapist; Sky, a free spirit; and a friendly pup named PJ. As they attempt to make their way from the Midwest all the way west to the Poppy Fields—where they hope to find Ellis, its brilliant, enigmatic founder—each of their past secrets and mysterious motivations threaten to derail their voyage.

A high-concept speculative novel about heartache, hope, and human resilience, The Poppy Fields explores the path of grief and healing, a journey at once profoundly universal and unique to every person, posing the questions: How do we heal in the wake of great loss? And how far are we willing to go in order to be healed? (Synopsis courtesy of Amazon.)

After reading The Measure (reviewed here), I wanted to read The Poppy Fields as soon as possible and I am glad I got a chance to do so recently. I liked it as much as, if not more than, The Measure.  I enjoyed getting to know each of the characters and learning more about their backstories.

The Poppy Fields is about a place where people can sleep for a month or two in order to relieve their grief and feel better about their loss. However, people run the risk of a heartbreaking side effect. Three strangers journey there for different reasons and form a bond along the way. I don't want to say anything more to keep the rest of it a surprise.

This was a great story with a lot of nice character development. I found myself absorbed whenever I picked it up. I was so interested in seeing what would happen next and where the story would go. It was a really interesting and thought-provoking story that had some light nods to The Wizard of Oz. Would you sleep off your grief for a month or two, if you knew you could risk having a psychological side effect? Definitely something to ponder. 

I did have a couple concerns, but nothing that took away from my enjoyment overall. Nikki would blend the narratives in a lot of the chapters. We'd start with Sasha's narrative and suddenly we'd get Ava's perspective and then Ray's, without a break inbetween. Also, there were a lot of coincidences like in The Measure. The ending felt kind of anticlimactic, but the story also wrapped up nicely.

Regardless of my concerns, I loved this novel and am eagerly awaiting whatever Nikki writes next!

(Trigger warnings at the bottom of this post.)

Movie casting suggestions:
Ava: Cailee Spaeny
Ray: Scott Eastwood

Sasha: Natasha Liu Bordizzo

Sky: Hannah Love Lanier

Ellis: Brie Larson

Yasmin: Jameela Jamil

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TW: Death of sibling, death of grandparent, death of young child, death of fiancee, death of best friend, PTSD

What's in the (e)mail

This is going to be our last "What's in the (e)mail" post. Although we enjoy sharing our bookmail with you, putting together this post has become time-consuming, even with just posting general links at the top. We will be sharing a lot of great books and authors at CLC in 2026 and can't wait for you to see what's in store! We also hope to get more bookmail into your hands, so keep entering all our giveaways. 

All (or most) of these books can be found on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, Apple, Kobo, etc.

NG = NetGalley

Melissa:

Girls Our Age by Phoebe Thompson from Lake Union (NG)
The Players Club by Rachel Mills from Atria (NG)
Liberty Island by Virginia Hume from St. Martin's Press (NG)
The Naysayers by Liz Fenton & Lisa Steinke from Little A (NG)
Soon by You by Dahlia Adler from St. Martin's Press (NG)

Seeing Other People by Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka from Berkley (print)

The May House by Jillian Cantor from Atria (NG)
She Took My Baby by Steena Holmes from BookSparks (NG)

The Mountains We Call Home: The Book Woman's Legacy by Kim Michele Richardson from Sourcebooks (NG)

Out of Touch by/from Elle Grand (NG)

Rules for Mothers by Julie Swendsen Young from Greenleaf Book Group Press (NG)

Challah-day Fling by/from Amanda Usen (ebook)

Latke'd and Loaded by/from Jessica Topper (ebook)

Over and Over by Becky Hunter from Forever (NG)

Like Wafers in Honey by Leah Eskin from Levine Querido (NG)

Consequences of Normal by Elle Baade from Lake Union (NG)

The Foursome by Christina Baker Kline from Mariner (NG)

Big and Lily by Lisa Roe from Harper Perennial (NG)

The Shippers by Katherine Center from St. Martin's Press (NG)

Everything Has Happened by T. Greenwood from Crooked Lane (NG)

Deadlines, Donuts & Dreidels by Jennifer Wilck from @adina.reads (ebook)

You'll Love It Here by Natalie Sue from William Morrow (NG)

One Week to Win the Chocolate Maker by Timothy Janovsky from Harlequin (NG)

Ideal Life by Evelyn Skye from Atria (NG)

Bump, Set, Sparks by Jennifer Moffatt from St. Martin's Press (NG)

Together On Our Own by/from Eliana Megerman (ebook)

This Story Might Save Your Life by Tiffany Crum from Flatiron (NG)

Romantic Hero by Kirsty Greenwood from Berkley (NG)

The Good Mothers by Caitlin Weaver from Storm Publishing (NG)

Most Ardently Yours by Freya Sampson from Sourcebooks (NG)

Dead Set on You by Lexi Alexander from Crooked Lane (ebook)

You & Me and You & Me and You & Me by Josie Lloyd and Emlyn Rees from Putnam (NG)

Missed You the First Time by/from Julia Carpenter (print)

Mare by Emily Haworth-Booth from Farrar, Straus, and Giroux (NG)

Sara:

The Hundred Man Plan by/from Misty O'Hara (ebook)

While You Were Seething by Charlotte Stein from St. Martin's Press (NG)

Yours Always by Corinne Sullivan from MB Communications (NG)

A Shore Thing by Portia MacIntosh from Rachel's Random Resources (NG)

The Name Game by Beth O'Leary from Berkley (NG)

Jami:
Phoebe Berman's Gonna Lose It by Brooke Averick from Crown (NG)
The Better Mother by Jennifer van der Kleut from BookSparks (NG)

Ship of Dreams by Donna Jones Alward from Angela Melamud (NG)

The Last Woman of Warsaw by Judy Batalion from Dutton (NG)

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Book Review: My Husband's Wife

By Sara Steven

When Angela DiMarco loses her husband in a sudden car accident, her world shatters overnight. In the tight-knit Italian-American neighborhood of Boston’s North End, she had built a life filled with love, tradition, and the comfort of family. But everything she believed to be true is nothing but a lie when she learns her husband, Michael, had a secret he had been hiding. Michael was not alone when he died. With him was his Italian lover and pregnant ‘wife,’ Isabella Russo. 

As Angela struggles to make sense of this betrayal, she faces an impossible choice: walk away or take in the baby who is now without a mother or father. Her decision to care for Nina takes Angela to the sunlit hills and lemon groves of Sorrento, where she meets Isabella’s grieving family. Tension and distrust fill the air, but slowly, Angela and the Russo family find common ground in their shared love for Nina. 

My Husband’s Wife is a powerful novel about loss, forgiveness, and the courage it takes to start over. Tracey Wheeler Noonan has curated a story that reminds us that family can be born out of heartbreak and that hope often waits in the most unlikely places. (Synopsis courtesy of Goodreads)

At first, after Angela finds out that her husband died in a car accident and he wasn’t alone in the car when it happened, she is disoriented and shocked, completely caught off guard by the fact that Michael had another woman in his life. But as time progresses and the chapters unravel, the reader is given insight into when Angela can pinpoint subtle division in her marriage. There are even more moments that not only help Angela in coming to terms with such a horrendous event, but it also helped me to see what had really happened, and why Michael made the choices he’d made that would have completely damaged what he and Angela had.

The fact that Angela makes the decision to care for Nina really shows what kind of character she is. I don’t know if many of us could have that kind of conviction, but the story also dives deeper into some of the reasons behind Angela’s choices, too. From her standpoint, Isabella was given opportunities that Michael didn’t want to give to Angela. It’s better understood as to why that was, but it was still hurtful. I had a tough time feeling sorry for Michael, and an even harder time feeling something for Isabella, especially after a shocking revelation that is offered towards the end of the book. 

Having been through my own divorce and at times, concerns about custody, I could completely relate to how Angela feels. I felt torn between feeling like Nina belonged with her Sorrento family, given who her mother was, but Angela set aside her pain in order to do all she can for a guiltless child. Despite everything, Nina’s existence helps to heal Angela, a chance at new beginnings and a new life. When Angela and Nina travel to Sorrento, it was a pivotal moment, and I was on bated breath waiting to see how the exchange would go between two opposing worlds. 

I’ve never tried limoncello before, but after reading My Husband’s Wife, it’s definitely something I want to add to my to-do list. That wasn’t something I’d expect as a takeaway from the story, but given the deeply rich descriptions and mouthwatering illustrations, it was a nice byproduct to the drama. Angela’s story of perseverance in the face of pain was a very motivating and inspiring story!

Thanks to Wicked Good Entertainment for the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Spotlight and Giveaway: The Voice I Just Heard

Today we are pleased to feature The Voice I Just Heard by Susan Dormady Eisenberg. This is her debut novel, but she recently had it revised and is re-releasing it a couple years after her sophomore novel, One More Seat at the Round Table. Melissa enjoyed this novel and featured it on her Bookstagram this past autumn. She will be reviewing it soon. Thanks to Get Red PR, we have THREE copies to give away!

What's the price of chasing a dream?

It’s 1970 and Nora Costello is a gifted young soprano who longs to sing on Broadway despite her parents’ disapproval and chronic stage fright. When her brother Liam dies in Vietnam, she spirals into grief, wondering how she'll embrace her goals without her north star.

At a summer theater near Cohoes, New York, Nora meets her soulmate, Bart Wheeler, a washed-up Broadway baritone with problems of his own—and great advice about singing. Nora also reunites with her best friend Liz, a troubled nun with secrets about Liam.

As Nora struggles with family, romantic, and vocal issues, she wonders if she’ll ever feel whole again. But when she finds a unique way to honor Liam’s love for their hometown waterfall, she finally starts to heal.

Both a coming-of-age-story and a tale of enduring love, The Voice I Just Heard offers characters to root for. It explores the most compelling voice of all: the whisper inside each of us that tells us to follow our hearts. (Synopsis courtesy of Amazon.)

"An utterly engrossing story of family, death, theater, music and the choices we make that determine the story of our lives. You will fall in love with these people." 
- Stephanie Cowell, author of The Boy in the Rain

"The author’s keen sense of time and place and her knowledge of and passion for the theater make Nora’s life and the novel itself come fully alive."  

- Monica Maxon (Amazon reviewer)

"A fast, engaging read that’s perfect for travel or for curling up at home with a cup of tea." 

- Ellabella (Amazon reviewer)

Susan Dormady Eisenberg is also the author of One More Seat at the Round Table. She has published arts profiles in newspapers, Classical Singer, Opera News, and Huffington Post. She’s drafting her third novel about American icon Annie Oakley, and has also written for companies and organizations throughout Greater Washington, D.C. In her first career, Ms. Eisenberg was director of marketing for The Joffrey Ballet/NYC and publicist for Syracuse Stage and Goodspeed Opera House. She makes her home in Maryland with her husband, a senior care executive, and is a proud member of the Authors Guild. (Bio adapted from Amazon.)

Visit Susan online:

Website * Instagram

How to win: Use KingSumo to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using KingSumo on our blog, enter the giveaway here.

Giveaway ends December 23rd at midnight EST.

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Sara and Melissa Talk About...Kindness

We've been running a column series to get more personal with our readers. We are now into our sixth year!

This month, we are talking about kindness. It feels especially important to talk about this topic during the holidays. 

We're always open to topic suggestions, so please don't hesitate to share those in the comments. We'd also love to know if you can relate to anything we've said or hear your own thoughts on the topic. So don't be shy. 😊 We look forward to getting to know you as much as we're letting you get to know us. You can find our previous columns here, in case you missed them.

Melissa Amster:

There are so many directions to go with the subject of kindness. I've recently been thinking of something because of an influencer I follow: @yourbestiemisha (or Dontcrossagayman on Facebook). Misha is always talking about the nice things he does for strangers. It's inspiring and heartwarming to hear about everything he does to make someone else's life a bit brighter. However, I know he's received pushback from people who think he's bragging about his acts of kindness. 

That's what I want to talk about today: Should we share about our acts of kindness with others? 

I personally like spreading kindness and doing nice things for people whenever I can. I just don't like to talk about it on social media. To me, it feels like robbing someone of their dignity. Especially if it's a charitable act of some kind. So I'm private about doing acts of kindness. What's important to me is that the recipient benefitted and that it made their life just a bit easier. 

On the other hand, hearing Misha talk about the things he does for people is inspiring others to do acts of kindness and spread more joy whenever possible. It brightens my day to hear about something good he did for someone else. With all the cruelty in the world these days, it's refreshing to hear about someone just paying for another person's groceries or comforting them when they are crying in public. I do feel that Misha only talks about his acts of kindness in order to inspire other people to do them too. He seems to be all about love and light. Still, that doesn't mean that I feel comfortable going public with every single act of kindness I've ever done. To each their own, right?

This holiday season, I task you with doing one act of kindness. I don't want to know what you did or who you did it for. I just want you to brighten someone else's day. And if you need some ideas for what to do, go visit Misha on social media!

Sara Steven:

I had a tougher time with the topic choice for this month, mainly due to the current climate of everything going on around us. There have been a lot of tragedies lately, intertwined with a lot of dispassionate people who wouldn’t seem to know an act of kindness if it was staring them in the face. 

And then I saw this news clip about a skunk who’d gotten stuck in a dumpster, and the first thing that had come to mind for me was: how metaphoric.

The last animal most of us would ever consider assisting would be a skunk. The risk of helping–I mean, that alone might make most of us take pause. I’ve never been sprayed by a skunk, but from what I’ve heard, it’s pretty awful. Yet the local fire department reached out to the Southwest Wildlife Conservation, all in an effort to try to do everything they could to save the skunk, despite getting sprayed multiple times for over an hour.  

Maybe they were merely doing their job. For me, though, it was an ultimate act of kindness.

Life can be like that when we dole out our own acts of kindness. Sometimes the interactions we have or the situations we face when we try to help or be kind are a lot like dealing with a skunk; caustic. Troublesome. Smelly. But we still dive in, because being kind isn’t about reaping the rewards. It’s about doing something for someone else, often without that reward. Sometimes it seems that the person who is the recipient of the act of kindness could care less. They don’t seem grateful. Instead of being grateful, they might lash out because they are going through something we don’t understand. Much like the skunk, it could be fear that drives their reaction. And all we can do is say that we tried.

It can get to a point where we might feel like it’s not worth it. We keep trying to be kind, but at what cost? Getting sprayed over and over, multiple times, doesn’t sound like a lot of fun to me. Being kind can change people, though. It can make a difference, even if we don’t see it. Even if the recipient doesn’t recognize it–they might later on, when they are facing their own situations, make a choice in doing something for someone else. Paying it forward.  

Watching the video reminded me that it isn’t always easy to be kind, but given the choice between being kind and being dispassionate, I choose kindness, every time. Even if it sometimes means having to take a long-awaited metaphorical bath in a tub of hydrogen peroxide, baking soda, and dish soap to get the smell off.   

What are your thoughts on kindness?

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