Jessica StrawserCritiques

Domestic violence is too often downplayed, overlooked, and still far too uncomfortable a conversation to have; we must do better in this area of life.

Jessica Strawser has crafted a great story about the Sequence, an underground group who help women in their last option in DV situations. If you need the Sequence, you are in the position similar to witness protection: You will leave everyone and everything behind, get a new name and new social security number, and get set up in an undisclosed location.

The group, who use code names and works on the basis of anonymity, even within the group — for plausible deniability reasons, assist these women to the Grove, a nature conservation in the middle of nowhere. Katie winds up as the caretaker on the property after her best friend, now boss, insists she is up for the challenge following her divorce. Little does Katie, or Bess know that Katie is stepping into the shoes of one of the underground workers.

Thrust into the unknown of working on the property and helping battered women who show up in the middle of the night, Katie is in way over her head. When her years as a tech worker solving problems leads her to ask too many questions, she finds not only is she now at risk, but so are the people she cares for most.

The Last Caretaker is a realistic look into the horrors of life on the run for battered women whose lives depends on becoming invisible. This is a tough subject and a near impossible one to write about successfully in a fictional way that keeps the reader interested while not disrespecting true victims. Jessica Strawser has found the sweet spot within which to master both these tasks.

A must read in our ever violent world.

Thank you NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for the ARC. My options have not been influenced and this is an uncompensated review.

i thought that this was a great exploration of family and the ways in which we connect to each other (and why) and how those connections work in real life. (how what works for one person/couple is entirely different than what might work for others.) it had a twist toward the end that i wasn't at all on the lookout for and that i never saw coming. i'm not entirely sure (looking back on it) that it's necessary, because this quiet idea of relationship is interesting enough for me, but i can see why it was added, and it certainly adds more for thought. i do like how by the end the author makes us think, at least a little, about the american health care system and how screwed up it is.½

Excellent read.

Loved how positively supportive women can be to each other, and doing the right thing especially if its challenging is the right thing to do. Solid, strong characters, good dialog and timing. Also enjoyed the nature setting.

Will definitely follow this writer.

Kelly Monroe and Nova Huston are partners in their business, Parting Your Way, as end-of-life doulas. They are trained to provide comfort and support to those coping with terminal illnesses and mostly the elderly population. Kelly and Nova are polar opposites in their view and approach to life. Nova is an unconventional, free spirit compared to Kelly's organized mindset which includes being a mother to Willow. Their business is challenged when Nova accepts Mason Shaylor who is 36 years old and feels like his life is over. He was successfully living his dream as a popular musician until he develops a deteriorating medical condition which hasn't responded to several surgeries. He is despondent about his future and never being able to play his guitar again. Nova begins to work with him as he struggles with how to say goodbye as he feels his life is over. Parting Your Way has never worked with someone so young and could never imagine the repercussions that might result. This is a bittersweet story about living life with intention without regrets and the spirit to overcome all odds.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley. My review is my voluntary, unbiased opinion.

I was not lucky enough to come across Jessica Strawser sooner and that is so disappointing because I loved this book. Not that I could tell won me over with amazing cover art visually and won me over with every page I turned. We all have a group of girls who we trust who we love to hang with but what happens when you spend a Saturday around a fire pit with friends and wake up the next day and one of them is missing and no one remembers what happen. Everyone doesn’t know what to think. Were Kristen and her twins kidnapped? Did she run away from the perfect husband? Is he perfect did he do it? The story is told from duel perspectives One chapter is told by Clara a married mother and one being Izzy the only single woman in the group. I felt emotionally connected to all the girls and loved that. I found myself feeling bad for Izzy because I felt that she wanted to be happy so bad that she forgot to live. I felt that the author wrapped things up nice building up to an awesome ending. I want to thank Netgalley and all parties for my advanced reader copy this came out yesterday go get it!

Gone Girl meets Big Little Lies but so much better. Definitely a page turner.

This was a good way to cover a difficult topic in a somewhat unusual way. It was very hard for the main character to figure out who she could trust---to say nothing of the reader's ability!!

What a heart-wrenching book about split-second decisions and the price we pay for them. This story is told from two POV from half-sisters Caroline and Sela, unfolding layers of their past and how different their lives could have been if not for decisions made for them.
Not only does it touch on how we all have to deal with past mistakes and our decisions of what we do about them, but it digs into organ donors and the view from both sides.
It's a great story about second chances, forgiveness, and how we move on when we think we no longer can. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me a copy of this book.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read this great book.
Violet and Finn​ meet by chance, or was it fate? With instant chemistry, their initial meeting leaves a lasting impact on them both. ​So eventually, when they find each other again, get married, and start a family, we assume they'll live happily ever, right?

Not so. There are secrets from Finn's past, things Violet only gets fed bit by bit after Finn disappears with their young son. And Finn's not the only one keeping secrets. Their mutual friend has a doozy of her own, which holds her back from helping Violet.

Along with secrets comes guilt. Can Violet and Finn come to terms with the past? And, will they think the struggle to do so is worth it?

A great read, reminding us that everyone has a past. And some ​will go to great lengths to keep it hidden.

Oy... where do I even start with this book? On one hand, I liked it for what it was: well-written, insightful into the way clique-based, small-town neighbourhoods work, astute in its descriptions of motherhood and female friendships. On the other hand, I was incredibly disappointed with the overall plot, and the mystery-that-wasn't.

I wanted so badly for this book to be more than it was. More clever, more mysterious, more thought-provoking. But it developed in such a paint-by-numbers way, and left absolutely nothing for the reader to speculate about. The answers were so clear, spelled out in detail from the beginning, and I read all the way through expecting some interesting plot twist that never came.

In the end, that was my main issue with the book: that it had so much potential that never developed into anything, and it left me desperately wanting more than it delivered.

Very middle of the road for me. I liked the premise- that a friend witnessed an intruder on a zoom call & things get weird from there- but it became a little too boring after the halfway point. I got tired of Molly and Daniel’s dysfunctional relationship. And sadly, I was bored of Liza’s neurosis even though she had every reason to be that way. The ending just didn’t pack the punch I wanted it to— and the one character that I actually did like (Rick and his daughter, Rosie), got the shaft. I’m glad I read it, but it could’ve been better.

2.5 stars, rounding up. This is by no means a thriller. It started off with an interesting premise, but there were truly no surprises. Some things just seemed to resolve themselves for no reason, so the author kind of lost me toward the last 15% of the book.

So I spent a good chapter confident that Nova had helped Mason fake his death, and the rest of the book hoping it might still be true.

Brilliant premise, wish I had been a little bit more engaged in the book itself.

This ended up feeling more like a mystery than a thriller. It was well plotted and I didn't expect the ending, but I felt like I wanted the characters to be a bit more than they were.

Also, as always, I'm absolutely terrible at reading about characters with excessive debt. It stresses me out so, and I simply can't relate.

I expected a lot more from this book. While I learned much about the role of an end-of-life doula,
I had a hard time relating to the character, Nova. She seemed both brave and independent while also lost and struggling. The story moved too slowly at first but picked up when you finally learn what really motivated Nora to land where she is. It's definitely a book for discussion as it makes you think about what drives your passion for life. I can see a musician finding the story appealing but based on the raving reviews, I was personally disappointed.

I received the digital copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley. My review is voluntary and unbiased.

Caroline is a busy mother of 3, an event director who finds her life turned upside down the day she receives an email from her “half sister”. She initially disregards this claim as a mistake since her father, a market research analyst, has always served as a role model. Caroline and Walt are married with 3 young children: Riley, Lucy and Owen.

Like a lot of curious families they decided to send in DNA ancestry kits. No one expected it to uncover many lies from the past. Ironically, it’s Caroline’s own father who states, “data, while itself trustworthy, could always be skewed-and often was.”

Meanwhile, Sela lives in N. Carolina grieving the loss of her mother Rebecca (Ecca). Her mother raised her as a single mother while working as an artist in Brevard. She has always kept the paternity of Sela’s father a secret. Unfortunately, Sela’s health is slowly failing as she also separates from Doug her husband who she feels doesn’t understand her grief. She fears she will never see her son Brody grow up or play with their dog Oscar.

Certainly, there is much more to both these stories which eventually entwine and unravel the truths and lies which have been buried but not forgotten. Betrayals which changed the course of people’s lives.

This is an interesting story about the pros and cons of learning the “truth” of our ancestry. In these present days, finding out about unknown relatives is possible. Can knowing the truth of the past help the future? How does someone hide his past to protect his reputation? Sometimes, stories aren’t so black and white and seldom do they involve just the person himself. Secrets always have a way of rising to the surface over time.

“by the very nature of most traps you can’t tell you’re in one until it’s too late. So you really shouldn’t point fingers from the outside the way you do.”
― Jessica Strawser, Not That I Could Tell

A group of women have an outdoor cookout and one of them never arrives home.

I was pleasantly surprised by how both clever and well written this book was. I finished it in one night. I really got into the world of these women and found the book to be exceptional.

It is also a great hook. The mystery here was great but so were the characters who were well drawn and quite enjoyable to read about.

The plot was delicious. This thriller had everything and I loved that the central premise was based on an all woman's cookout. Great concept!

It took awhile to really get going but once it did I was hooked.

The pacing was good, the dialogue was snappy and fun and all of the women and their stories were interesting.

f you are looking for a mystery that is both fun and quite clever look no further. Four stars.

Actually 4.5 stars because of the creative ending!

I had previously read "Almost Missed You" by Jessica Strawser and it broke my heart! I was hoping this latest novel could evoke such intensity of emotion and it came very close even if nothing here drove me to tears. Molly and Liza were the best of friends, and although they tried to remain that way after Liza moved, the distance between them made it impossible. Meanwhile Molly has been suffering debilitating pain, and she and her husband have drifted apart. When Liza and Molly try to rekindle their friendship over a video chat Liza witnesses something she wasn't meant to see. Fearing for Molly and her children Liza drives all night to get to her, and is treated as an unwelcome and unwanted nuisance when she arrives. She is shocked when Molly turns her away. but there's an even bigger shock waiting for Liza when she gets home, and there is just no telling if their friendship or Molly's marriage will survive.

I received an advance copy for review

This small town neighborhood drama started off really strong, but it wasn't long before it was just too easy to tell where it was headed and how it would end up.
Kristin wasn't just gone, her twins were gone, her belongings were gone and her perfect soon to be ex husband was back. Everyone had their own suspicions but it was all just too simplistic for me.

I received an advance copy for review

Almost Missed You is the kind of book that has a great intriguing start and then when the answers start to come slowly loses some of its appeals. I loved the mystery of why Finn kidnapped his own son when he is apparently in a happy marriage to Bear's mother Violet. It was such a great start, wondering why Finn would do a thing like that. However, the answer to that question made me dislike Finn quite badly. To be totally honest did I want to bitch slap him a couple of times through the book. His decision, his secrets, well it annoyed the crap out of me. Thankfully Violet and Caitlin made the book bearable. Both women are in my opinion victims in this story. Violet who is left with no explanations to why her husband has left her and taken their son with them and Caitlin who is being blackmailed into helping Finn.

Almost Missed You did not turn out to be as good as I thought it would be when I started reading it. I liked the writing, but I did not like Finn's actions and that made the book a bit hard to read. For one thing, I just couldn't understand why Finn never told Violet about certain aspects of his past? Come clean about what happened those two years that it took for them to meet again after the first meeting. That Caitlin and her husband George didn't insist that Finn should tell Violet felt also a bit weird. There are a lot of other things that bothered me, but I don't want to spoil the story, but there are a lot of secrets in this book and those secrets are dragged into the light.

Almost Missed You may not have made my day. However, it was not all bad, I did like the writing and I wouldn't mind reading more from Jessica Strawser. I also have to admit, despite my dislike of Finn did when I read the ending hope that there would be a bright future for the characters.

I want to thank the publisher for providing me with a free copy through NetGalley for an honest review!

Being into genealogy, I like stories with DNA twists. Caroline's family does the tests that they got as Christmas presents while Sela does hers because she has kidney disease and needs a donor, though she's reluctant to ask any possible matches. Caroline has the perfect nuclear family, a loving husband and three kids, while Sela is struggling with a husband who left her when he couldn't deal with her disease and a preemie son. It all explodes when the two women find out their half-sisters.
Stuff like this happens now with the genealogical DNA tests; I have several instances of cousins who were adopted and are now found-family. And the idea that a match to donate a kidney from one sister to the other is enough to create plenty of drama. But the author chose to add a lot of extra dramatics to the story that seemed ultimately unnecessary. The more interesting drama occurred with Caroline's parents and Sela's mother, but it wasn't covered much except for small details.
I didn't care for the two twists at the end; one just added more unnecessary drama and the other just seemed too convenient. Ultimately, this was an okay read but not for me.

Excellent. Well written. Interesting, and differing, characters. Moving. Heart-wrenching. Uplifting.

I enjoyed this book and found it well-paced. Minus one star because I found the ending somewhat disappointing, even abrupt. As other reviewers mentioned, this book nicely handles the complexity of adult friendships and how they evolve once one friend gets married and has children.

This was a touching and emotional story of a death doula, Nova Huston and her client, Mason Shaylor. It was a little slow at the start but I liked it more as it went on. There was a lot of jumping around in the timeline but it was pretty clear when each chapter was taking place. This would be a good book club selection that would generate a lot of questions and conversations. Thanks to NetGalley for the digital ARC.½

Jessica Strawser is always giving us something to think about and adding her own twist. This is the third novel I’ve read by her and she’s quickly become an author I’ll always read or request.

I had never heard of a death doula before reading Jodi Picoult’s Book of Two Ways. In this book, Ms. Strawser delves more deeply into this occupation and the emotional toil it takes. I found it informative, learning about the ins, outs and what ifs. Emotional in so many ways…realistic situations, good characters and development. A little slow in parts, but it didn’t distract me from the story.

Thanks to Ms Strawser, St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for this ARC. Opinion is mine alone.