The Name Game by Beth O’Leary

Amy    

Lynnie  

romance, contemporary fiction

Charlie Jones (she goes by “Charlie”) and Charlie Jones (he goes by “Jones”) end up meeting each other when they both show up to start the same new job on a small island in the English Channel. Obviously, there was some sort of mix-up since they have the same name. But how were two acceptance letters inexplicably mailed to two different people? Despite the fact that something very fishy is going on, the two Charlie Joneses agree to live in the same farmhouse (there’s no other open space on the island) and work together for two months so that the farm store owners can get to know them before deciding which Charlie Jones they’ll officially hire. Both need this job because they need fresh starts, leaving behind all their former troubles.

Amy’s Review

While not as good as Beth O’Leary’s other novels, it was cute watching two people who have vowed to not deal with other people discover each other. The story unfolded through Charlie’s and Jones’ journaling. While the premise of two Charlies getting the same job offer was an unlikely stretch, the real problem for me was that the reader was not given sufficient information about Charlie’s prior troubles. Very slowly, her experiences emerge through flashbacks but I couldn’t really figure out why she was so delicate and I had trouble caring about someone who I didn’t know well. It was frustrating to me. I guess all the unexplained anxiety wasn’t what I was in the mood for over winter break.

And THEN, near the end, the entire novel went topsy turvy with a giant plot twist I hadn’t seen coming. I can’t say anything at all or I’ll ruin it. But it took effort getting reoriented to the new reality which was presented. 

I really feel badly when I get a galley from an author I love but don’t end up loving it as much as the author’s other books. I fear NetGalley, the author, or the publisher won’t grant me any more galleys. But I want to be honest. The Name Game lacked the level of fun I’ve come to expect from O’Leary’s novels. I also didn’t love the characters as much as I normally do.

I do genuinely appreciate being given the opportunity to read an early copy of this novel! 

Lynnie’s Review

On the remote Isle of Ormer, two people named Charlie Jones get off the ferry and present themselves as the new manager of the island farm shop. Has there been a mix-up? Is one of them an imposter? Will the real Charlie Jones please stand up?

I absolutely loved the Isle of Ormer and its residents. As O'Leary does, she created characters that you not only want to spend time with, but that you feel you already know. While the Charlie Joneses are a mystery, the other Ormer inhabitants and the setting itself are delightful and I found myself completely charmed by them. It was them, more than the Charlies, who made me want to keep reading at first, though the Charlies certainly grew on me as the book progressed and, in the end, I found myself cheering for them and their love story, as I always do in any O'Leary novel.

But the mystery of the Charlies is the meat of the book, isn't it? Sadly, like any mystery, I had it figured out by about halfway through the book; Checkov's gun strikes again. At least, I had the who figured out, if not exactly the how. And like any mystery, that made the book much less interesting for me, which is why I generally don't read mysteries. It's not O'Leary's fault, I actually think she obfuscated really well, particularly for someone who doesn't write mysteries most of the time. At the end of the book though, I found myself wondering if I would have enjoyed the book any less (or even more) if it had been written without that bit of storytelling, and the truth is, I don't know.

As I was looking back, I realized that Amy and I have read every single book Beth O'Leary has written; we generally love her writing. There's a lot of O'Leary's signature wit and charm in the pages of The Name Game and overall, I really enjoyed the story and her characters, but if you've read my reviews before, you know that I do NOT enjoy a mystery and in the end, that's the part of the book that brought this novel down for me.

So, four stars for the lovely settings and characters and typical O'Leary wit, 2 for the mystery that bored me, rounds out to 3 overall. I think most readers will be much more tolerant of the mystery than I was and will love the entire package.


Thank you to NetGalley, Beth O’Leary, and Berkley Publishing Group! The Name Game will be released on April 7, 2026.

Just for the Summer (Part of Your World #3) by Abby Jimenez

Amy       

romance

Justin claims to be a “good luck charm”—every time he and a woman split up, the very next guy she meets turns out to be her forever partner. It stinks for him and he explains this in a viral public post which Emma sees. She writes to him because she’s also that sort of good luck charm. They decide that, if they date each other Just for the Summer, then their curses will be broken and they’ll each move on to their forever partners after they break up. 

Of course, they turn out to be a perfect match because they are the stars of this romance novel! Their courtship is adorable and very fun. Unfortunately, they both have serious problems with their mothers which have affected their lives in negative ways. And, sadly, I had real trouble swallowing the situations with the mothers. It felt forced and unrealistic.

BUT THEN about 80% of the way through the novel, I couldn’t put the book down! This one started out barely qualifying as a sequel in the Part of Your World series but ended up circling back to the series in the best way! It was a pleasant surprise and a juicy one too. And I do feel that Abby Jimenez did a good job addressing mental health issues. So, in the end, while this is my least favorite of the three Jimenez novels I’ve read, I did enjoy it and will certainly read more of her novels.

The House Saphir by Marissa Meyer

Amy        

fantasy

Mallory is a con artist, making money by giving tours of an abandoned haunted house, The House Saphir, without the proper licensing or permission. She also happens to be able to see and communicate with ghosts. Just when the authorities catch on to her con schemes, Armand, the descendant of the original mansion owner, comes for her help. He wants her to come to his estate in the country to help him exorcise the ghost wreaking havoc on the mansion. 

Mallory was a brat. Savvy, but deceitful and unconcerned about consequences of her actions. She was doing what she needed to survive but it was hard for me to cheer her on. Sadly, much of the story was predictable. Mallory was slow to catch on. However, Armond was sweet. And the French monsters were intriguing. The creepy factor was fun. Marissa Meyer’s creativity was on point. But the story itself never grabbed me and got, sadly, comical toward the end. I kept envisioning the Scooby Doo gang. I felt that this book was geared for a younger audience than I like reading. I enjoy the Young Adult genre, but this one felt like it was intended for middle-schoolers. This is not my favorite book by Meyer.

The audiobook narrator, Rebecca Soler, displayed an outstanding vocal repertoire—even better than her usual with a huge number of unique voices. However, I feel that her interpretation of Mallory was part of the reason why I didn’t like Mallory so much as a character. Soler read Mallory as someone who is always angry, suspicious, and hateful—truly bratty and combative all the time. I feel that hindered my enjoyment of this one and also made the story feel more juvenile.  Therefore, despite her awesome vocal range and talent, I’m only giving her a B for this one.

The Other Side of Now by Paige Harbison

 Amy    

 Lynnie 

fantasy

Meg (known by her stage name, Lana) has grown tired of her Los Angeles lifestyle and decides to escape to Ireland for a break. She had intended to go to college in Ireland, but after deciding to  to stay home with her best friend and ending up a famous television star, has often wondered how different her life would have turned out if she’d gone through with her Ireland plans. Upon her arrival in Ireland, she realizes that the town people there all know her. They know her real name. Apparently, she’s been living there for many years. They think she has some sort of amnesia.

Amy’s Review

The Other Side of Now is definitely hard to swallow. The reader must suspend reality. But the protagonist is the first one to admit that her life is suddenly like one of the many novels and movies that cover alternate realities, string theory, time travel, parallel worlds, etc. In fact, she names pretty much all of them throughout this novel. So, at least, Paige Harbison understands what a huge gulp this premise is for readers. 

I stuck with it partially out of curiosity, but mostly because I really loved the characters Meg met in Ireland. They were fun and comforting and cozy. And then the last part of the novel was un-put-downable and I had to find out how Meg’s life would play out. Yes, the story was unlikely but, overall, it was a fun ride and I grew to care about Meg and her new friends.

I both read the novel and listened to the audiobook, alternating as convenient. The author narrated the audiobook herself and she was AMAZING!  I mean, seriously, she could just be an audiobook narrator for a living. She had a ton of accents and voices and was a great voice actress. And I think I liked the novel more from her narrations than I might have if I’d only been reading it. I give her a very solid A!

Lynnie’s Review

I've said it before, but I love a good multiverse story so I was immediately drawn to the idea behind The Other Side of Now. As the book's description tells us, successful actress Lana takes a trip to get away after a breakdown, but when she wakes up in the quaint Irish town that she and her deceased best friend always dreamed of visiting, everyone seems to know her by her real name - Meg - and even more alarming, she has her presurgery face, her hair is different... she no longer seems to be Lana at all! Well... count me in.

I admit that I was not immediately drawn into the story. I did not like Lana; she was immature, superficial and entitled, while also clearly running from grief and whatever happened with Aimee before Aimee's death. Once she woke up in Avalon however, and learned more about the life she lived as Meg there, it brought out a softer, calmer side of her personality.

I adored the characters from Avalon - they were charming and comforting and the kind of friends that you wish you would wake up to if everyone thinks you might have a head injury. They were exceedingly patient and kind with Meg, explaining her own life to her even as they tried to understand what she was experiencing.

As slow as I felt the start of this book was, I could not put down the second half. I needed to find out what would happen to Meg and her two lives.

Paige Harbison, the author narrates her own book and I'll be honest, I generally avoid audiobooks narrated by authors. But Amy said the narration was excellent and she was right! Harbison did an excellent job with a variety of accents and voices and I found her narration really brought the story to life, so I preferred listening to reading the book.

So far, this is one of my favorite books of the year - I definitely recommend it.

Wolfsong by T.J. Klune

Amy    

fantasy

Ox’s dad wasn’t the best dad before he abandoned Ox and his mom, but Ox has adults who care about him despite the cruelty of kids at school. After the Bennett family arrives at the empty house on Ox’s street, he also becomes part of their family. They might be werewolves, but they care deeply about Ox. He vows to protect his newfound family from the threats and dangers which surround them. But when tragedy strikes and Ox is abandoned again, he must become a leader himself.

All of T.J. Klune’s novels are about love, acceptance, and found family. Ox is such a sweet character and the reader can’t help but cheer him on. 

For the most part, Wolfsong was a lot of fun to read. But it was a long book and the middle dragged. And every single feeling in Ox’s head was examined in minute detail—his internal musings and observations went on far too long and, sometimes, repetitively. It slogged. It was sappy. But I had developed such compassion for Ox that I kept reading.

It’s an unusual book. It reads (and the cover looks) a lot like a young adult novel but then it has a couple very detailed sex scenes. It states that it is for adult readers.  But it felt juvenile most of the time. And I see that it’s a 4-book series. I don’t see myself reading any more of this series but am glad I read this novel written back in 2016, well before Klune’s hit The House in the Cerulean Sea.

The narrator, Kirt Graves, was terrific! He exhibited lots of different voices and fantastic voice acting. All the key characters had their own voices which I could easily identify. If he’d spoken just a bit quicker, I’d give him my highest grade. Perhaps it was his reading that made it feel like it was geared for a younger audience. But, he gets a very high A for his compassionate performance.

Yours Truly (Part of Your World #2) by Abby Jimenez

Amy       

romance

Briana, an ER doctor, is reeling from worrying about her brother with kidney failure, her upcoming divorce, and missing her best friend who recently married and moved two hours away. A new ER doctor, Jacob, joins the hospital and, after getting off on the wrong foot, the two develop a quick friendship despite his anxieties and her troubles. They agree to pretend to be dating so Jacob can avoid some family embarrassment.

This was a cute and sweet romance.The letter writing period in the beginning was adorable. And these characters were both charming and trying to overcome hurdles. I loved getting to know them and watch their relationship grow. There was so much sexual frustration due to misunderstood boundaries and incompletely overheard conversations. And the ending contained an extra amount of drama. But I enjoyed Yours Truly and continue to appreciate Abby Jimenez’s writing. I’ll be reading more of her books.

While this is, technically, a sequel, it really stands alone. It only shares some characters with Part of Your World and you don’t need to have read #1 to enjoy this one.

The audiobook is narrated by Kyla Garcia as Briana and Zachary Webber as Jacob. At first, I thought it was weird that Webber was selected to voice Jacob when he had voiced the main male character in this novel’s prequel, Part of Your World.  But, the facts are that: 1) this novel isn’t so much a sequel as a spinoff and the character he voiced from the first novel only speaks briefly in Yours Truly and 2) Webber is simply a fantastic narrator for romance. So I got over myself and enjoyed his performance immensely. Garcia, on the other hand, has a very robotic, hard delivery when not acting as a character. When she’s actually displaying emotion from a character, she’s terrific! But listening to her reading the narrator part really bugs me frequently. I give Webber an A and Garcia a B.

How to Read a Book by Monica Wood

Amy    

fiction

Violet is 22 years old and was just released from almost two years in prison. She coincidentally runs into the woman who volunteers as the manager of the book club for the prisoners. This relationship outside of jail becomes pivotal for Violet’s post-incarceration life.

What a joy! I must admit that the summary of this book didn’t sound overly appealing to me but I was pleasantly surprised! Violet, Harriet, and Frank were all so endearing. I love a good “second chances” story and How to Read a Book hooked me. The secondary story about research into avian intelligence, particularly African grey parrots, was also extremely interesting. 

I made time to listen to this feel-good novel. Some sensitive topics were handled well. While the Monica Wood didn’t sugar coat things, she also didn’t sensationalize these topics. The circumstances felt authentic. I thought her points were made in a thought-provoking way.

I’m not thrilled about the title of this novel. While we do learn Harriet’s advice on how to read a book, I don’t view books, or how to read them, as the main focus of Violet’s story depicted in this novel. Rather, this title makes it just another one of those “book/library-titled” novels whose names all run together. What a shame.

The audiobook was fabulous with Eileen Stevens as the narrator. She has a wonderful vocal repertoire and is a terrific voice actor. She even voiced talking parrots! Even though she could’ve really wowed me if she’d actually sung the songs in the story, I still give her an A+.