Our latest read A Bit Much by Sarah Jackson takes us through the complicated journey that is a female relationship with young women who are fully determined, yet overwhelmed, full of love but sometimes not knowing how to love and trying to determine how to truly socialize. Alice is twenty-four and falling apart. She's lost her job, her appetite, her ability to sleep. And now she's worried she's going to lose Mia, her closest friend, who's being treated for a serious illness.  Still focused on Mia, while trying to convince others she's a stable, happy person, Alice meets her neighbour James--someone she used to try to avoid. This book is an intimate look at female friendships, new relationships, and the disorienting times in which we live.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Where The Crawdads Sing, by Delia Owens gives us mystery, romance, loneliness and beauty. For years, rumors of the “Marsh Girl” haunted Barkley Cove, a quiet fishing village on the North Carolina coast. Kya Clark is barefoot and wild; unfit for polite society. So in late 1969, when the popular Chase Andrews is found dead, locals immediately suspect her.

But Kya is not what they say. A born naturalist with just one day of school, she takes life's lessons from the land, learning the real ways of the world from the dishonest signals of fireflies. But while she has the skills to live in solitude forever, the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. Drawn to two young men who are each intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new and startling world—until the unthinkable happens.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our latest read by Amy McCulloch is a high-altitude thriller that will truly take your breath away, it's called Breathless. Cecily Wong is in over her head. She’s come to Manaslu, the 8th-highest peak in the world, to interview world famous mountaineer, Charles McVeigh on the last leg of a record-breaking series of summits. She’s given up everything for this story–her boyfriend, her life savings, the peace she’s made with her climbing failures in the past–but it’s a career-making opportunity that could finally put her life back on track. When one climber dies in what everyone else assumes is a freak accident, she fears their expedition is in danger. And by the time a second climber dies, it’s too late to turn back.  She's stranded on a mountain in a remote region, and has quite the battle for survival against a killer who is picking them off one by one!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This month's book, our latest read is a debut rom-com novel by Sonya Singh, where we are taken on a journey of letting go, self-discovery, a woman's journey of connecting to her South-Asian roots, culture, food, family, feast and fun in "Sari Not Sari"!! Manny Dogra is the beautiful young CEO of Breakup, a highly successful company that helps people manage their relationship breakups. As preoccupied as she is with her business, she's also planning her wedding to handsome architect Adam Jamieson while dealing with the loss of her beloved parents. Manny has never understood why her parents who were both born in India, always wanted her to become an "All-American" girl. But that's what she did and all she knows.. She knows next to nothing about her South Asian heritage, and that's never been a problem — until her parents are no longer around, and a Photoshopped image of her that makes her skin look white appears on a major magazine cover. Now the woman who built an empire encouraging others to be true to themselves is having an identity crisis.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This month's book is a thrilling rollercoaster ride about a heist gone terribly wrong, with a plucky protagonist who will win readers’ hearts - “Lucky" by Canadian author Marissa Stapley.

Lucky Armstrong is a tough, talented grifter who has just pulled off a million-dollar heist with her boyfriend, Cary. She’s ready to start a brand-new life, with a new identity --- when things go sideways. Lucky finds herself alone for the first time, navigating the world without the help of either her father or her boyfriend, the two figures from whom she’s learned the art of the scam.

When she discovers that a lottery ticket she bought on a whim is worth millions, her elation is tempered by one big problem: cashing in the winning ticket means she’ll be arrested for her crimes. She’ll go to prison, with no chance to redeem her fortune.

As Lucky tries to avoid capture and make a future for herself, she must confront her past by reconciling with her father; finding her mother, who abandoned her when she was just a baby; and coming to terms with the man she thought she loved --- whose dark past is catching up with her, too.

This is a novel about truth, personal redemption and the complexity of being good. It introduces a singularly gifted, multilayered character who must learn what it means to be independent and honest...before her luck runs out.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Since her Gran died a few months ago, 20 something Molly Gray has been navigating life’s complexities all by herself. Her unique character, along with her obsessive love of cleaning and proper etiquette, make her an ideal fit for her job as a hotel maid. She delights in donning her crisp uniform each morning, stocking her cart with miniature soaps and bottles, and returning guest rooms at the Regency Grand Hotel to a state of perfection.
But Molly’s orderly life is upended the day she enters the suite of the infamous and wealthy Charles Black, only to find it in a state of disarray and Mr. Black himself dead in his bed. Before she knows what’s happening, Molly’s unusual demeanor has the police targeting her as their lead suspect. She quickly finds herself caught in a web of deception, one she has no idea how to untangle. Fortunately for Molly, friends she never knew she had- unite with her in a search for clues to what really happened to Mr. Black.
A Clue-like, locked-room mystery and a heartwarming journey of the spirit, The Maid explores what it means to be the same as everyone else and yet entirely different—and reveals that all mysteries can be solved through connection to the human heart.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This month on our Relaxing Reads podcast hosts Ann, Deb and Simone discuss The Most Precious Substance On Earth by Shashi Bhat. A humorous coming-of-age novel and a sharp-edged look at how silence can shape a life.
Nina, a bright, hilarious, and sensitive 14-year-old, doesn’t say anything when her best friend begins to pull away, or when her crush on her English teacher intensifies. She doesn’t say anything when her mother tries to match her up with local Halifax Indian boys unfamiliar with her Saved by the Bell references, or when her worried father starts reciting Hindu prayers outside her bedroom door.
And she won’t speak of the incident in high school that changes the course of her life.
On her tumultuous path from nineties high school student to present-day high school teacher, Nina will learn difficult truths about existing as a woman in the world.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This month on our Relaxing Reads podcast hosts Ann, Deb and Simone discuss Dial A for Aunties by author Jesse Q. Sutanto - a super funny and quirky novel that is part thriller, part rom-com, and a celebration of mothers and daughters as well as a deep dive into Chinese-Indonesian culture.  When Meddelin Chan ends up accidentally killing her blind date, her meddlesome mother calls for her even more meddlesome aunties to help get rid of the body. Unfortunately, a dead body proves to be a lot more challenging to dispose of than one might anticipate, especially when it's accidentally shipped in a cake cooler to the over-the-top billionaire wedding Meddy her Ma, and aunties are working, at an island resort on the California coastline. But things go from inconvenient to downright torturous when Meddy's great college love—and biggest heartbreak—makes a surprise appearance amid the wedding chaos. Such a great read. Plus we chat with Author Jesse Q. Sutanto about how she came up with this concept, her favourite moment in the book and about this novel becoming a Netflix film.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Relaxing Reads podcast hosted by Ann, Deb and Simone. This month they read The Holiday Swap by Maggie Knox. A feel-good, holiday-themed romantic comedy about identical twins who switch lives in the days leading up to Christmas It’s like Gilmore Girls meets the Parent Trap meets Cake Wars. We really enjoyed this one and were able to have Book authors Karma Brown and Marissa Stapley join us for a Q & A. Book Synopsis When chef Charlie Goodwin gets hit on the head on the L.A. set of her reality baking show, she loses a lot more than consciousness; she also loses her ability to taste and smell--both critical to her success as show judge. Meanwhile, Charlie's identical twin, Cass, is frantically trying to hold her own life together back in their quaint mountain hometown while running the family's bustling bakery and dealing with her ex, who won't get the memo that they're over.

With only days until Christmas, a desperate Charlie asks Cass to do something they haven't done since they were kids: switch places. Looking for her own escape from reality, Cass agrees. But temporarily trading lives proves more complicated than they imagined, especially when rugged firefighter Jake Greenman and gorgeous physician's assistant Miguel Rodriguez are thrown into the mix. Will the twins' identity swap be a recipe for disaster, or does it have all the right ingredients for getting their lives back on track.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Cathrin Bradbury's life imploded in the space of a few months. Her beloved parents died, her marriage limped to an end after twenty-five years, her heavily mortgaged house turned against her, and a promising new romance ended in crushing disappointment. But somewhere in that year, a new path, three or four, began to open up. It’s a lot to go through, but there is always a Bright Side and Cathrin joins Simone, Deb and Ann to share how she found it, during an intimate Q & A.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.