Land of Last Chances (She Writes Press) by Joan Cohen may be a novel, but it’s about real-life situations. Drawing from some of her own personal and professional experiences, Ms. Cohen crafts a complex and fast-paced story that forces us to examine our own values and beliefs.

Do you know how many social media followers you have? Do you care? Even if you do, I bet you’re not as obsessed as the central characters are in Followers by Megan Angelo (Graydon House).

 

Released at the end of 2019, The Wives, by Tarryn Fisher, is a thrilling story of self-loathing, revenge, and denial. Yet, in the end, there's no denying it, The Wives should be a smashing success.
 

Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke tell a tale of The Two Lila Bennetts. She is captured—blindfolded and restrained—as well as constrained by the ethics of her profession to defend a client who may be guilty of murder. Once the client is found not guilty, all hell breaks loose. And that’s just by page one.

If you hesitate to read Stepmother: A Memoir by Marianne Lile because you’re not a stepmother or you don’t usually read memoirs, you could lose out on a warm and rewarding reading experience. Believe me, I fall into both camps and am glad I ventured into this wonderful story.

Though a novel, Bedside Manners by Heather Frimmer, reads like a memoir or true-life story. And for us readers, that’s a good thing because though the topic—breast cancer—is scary, Ms. Frimmer juxtaposes it with relatable life-goes-on situations.