First Chapter: The Two of Us by Andy Jones

Bibliophile By the Sea hosts First Chapter, First Paragraph every Tuesday. Share the first paragraph(s) of your current read or book interest, with information for readers.

The Two of Us by Andy Jones, paperback published February 9, 2016. From Washington Square Press

First chapter, first paragraph:

People ask: How long have you been together? 

How did you meet?You're sitting at a table, fizzing with the defiant ostentation of new love (Is that what it is? Is it love already?), laughing too loud and kissing more enthusiastically than is de riguer in a quiet country pub, and someone will say, Put her down! Get a room! You make a lovely couple, or some variation on the theme. 

Book description:
Fisher and Ivy discover that falling in love is one thing, but staying there is an entirely different story.

Andy Jones lives in London with his wife and two little girls. During the day he works in an advertising agency; at weekends and horribly early in the mornings, he writes fiction.

Would you keep reading based on the first paragraphs?

Book Review: The Passenger by Lisa Lutz

Lisa Lutz's thriller, The Passenger, is the story of a woman's attempts to change her identity and start a new life away from a troubled past.

In case you were wondering, I didn’t do it. I didn’t have anything to do with Frank’s death. I don’t have an alibi, so you’ll have to take my word for it...

Tanya DuBois finds her abusive husband Frank dead at the bottom of the stairs, and decides to make a run for it rather than try to explain or prove her innocence.  She gets help from the mysterious Mr. Oliver, who provides her with a new passport, social security number, and money.

Tanya has to change her name several times, however, switching identities once with a bartender named Blue, who gives her enough ID for Tanya to become a grade school teacher in a small rustic town in Colorado. But her past always reaches out to her, till finally she decides to return home to face the music and her real name.

I enjoyed the suspense of this woman on the run, who narrowly escapes detection all along her way. So what if she and Blue become vigilantes to preserve their new identities. It's okay as long as it's fiction. In real life, however, I might not be so forgiving....

An intriguing read, a good plot, this latest thriller by Lisa Lutz's I would rate 4/5.

Thanks to the publisher for an ARC for my objective review.  The book will be released March 1, 2016 by Simon and Schuster.

Sunday Salon: It's Too Cold Outside to Do Anything But Read

Welcome to the Sunday Salon where bloggers share their reading each week. Visit The Sunday Post hosted by The Caffeinated Bookreviewer. 
Also visit It's Monday, What Are You Reading? hosted by Book Date. 

Came home from a short trip to sunny LA and found snow and frigid temps in Ohio and also a few new books to temper the sudden shift from 80-degree LA to 19-degree Ohio.

Remembrance by Meg Cabot, fantasy published February 2, 2016, William Morrow. The 7th in the Mediator novels.

Everything's Relative, contemporary women's fiction by Jenna McCarthy, published February 2, 2016 by Berkley

Keep Calm, political thriller by Mike Binder, published February 2, 2016 by Henry Holt and Co.

The House on Primrose Pond, contemporary fiction by Yona Zeldis McDonough, published February 2, 2016 by NAL

North of Here, contemporary fiction/romance by Laurel Saville, to be released March 1, 2016 by Lake Union Publishing. For a TLC book tour review in March. 

I am currently reading Lisa Lutz's thriller, The Passenger, and enjoying the story of a woman's attempts to change her identity and start a new life away from a troubled past. 

Book Reviewers Wanted for Book Blog

Luxury Reading is looking for book reviewers to post reviews in exchange for free books.

I already post my reviews here on my own Book Dilettante, but if you don't have a blog and you want to write reviews, this may be an opportunity for you!

http://luxuryreading.com/reviewer3/

Waiting on Wednesday: Devonshire Scream by Laura Childs

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted weekly by Jill at Breaking the Spine. What new releases are you eagerly waiting for. Link your post to Breaking the Spine.

I have really enjoyed many of the Teashop Mysteries by Laura Childs, and this is the 17th in the series, which shows how popular the story line is. Devonshire Scream is to be released in hardcover on March 1, 2016. Part of the popularity is due to the recipes that are included in the books!

Book description from the publisher: 
Catering a trunk show at Heart's Desire Jewelry is a shining achievement for Theodosia and the Indigo Tea Shop. After all, a slew of jewelers, museums, and private collectors will be there to showcase their wares and sip some of Theo's best blends. But the party is crashed by masked muggers who rob the precious gems and jewels on display, leaving shattered glass, scattered gemstones, and a dead body in their wake. 

Theo can't help but intercede when her dear friend Brooke, aunt of the victim and owner of Heart's Desire, begs for help. Though the FBI believes this "smash and grab" is the work of an international gang of jewel thieves, Theo is convinced that the felon is someone much closer to home...

What new book are you waiting for to be published?

Sharon A. Katz will be reviewing the book and giving away two autographed copies on Feb. 29. Visit her at https://sharonreadsblog.wordpress.com/

Featured Book: Brotherhood in Death by J.D. Robb

Brotherhood in Death (In Death #42) by J. D. Robb, published Februry 2, 2016 by Berkley

Sometimes brotherhood can be another word for conspiracy...

Book description: Dennis Mira just learned that his cousin Edward was secretly meeting with a real estate agent to sell their late grandfather’s magnificent West Village brownstone, despite the promise to keep it in the family. Then, when he went to the house to confront Edward about it, he got a blunt object to the back of the head. (publisher)

The victim: "former lawyer, judge, and senator, Edward Mira, who mingled with the elite and crossed paths with criminals, making enemies on a regular basis."

Conflict: ...the disappearance of a powerful man, the family discord over a multimillion-dollar piece of real estate" 

Opening paragraph (Ch. 1):

After a long, tedious day -- the first half spent in court, the second half with paperwork - Lieutenant Eve Dallas prepared to shut it all down. 

At the moment all she wanted out of life was a quiet evening with her husband, the cat, and a glass - or two - of wine. Maybe a vid, she thought as she grabbed her coat, if Roarke hadn't brought too much work home.  

Quotes are from the book and from goodreads. 

Review: The Diver's Clothes Lie Empty by Vendela Vida

Bibliophile By the Sea hosts First Chapter, First Paragraph every Tuesday. Share the first paragraph(s) of your current read or book interest, with information for readers.

The Diver's Clothes Lie Empty by Vendela Vida, published June 2, 2015
Genre: literary suspense
Rating: 5/5
Source: library

A young woman takes off on her own to a foreign country and has to survive after her passport and wallet are stolen. 

How she gets through the scrapes she gets into in an unfamiliar country is the basis of the novel. A little suspenseful and a bit of a travelogue at the same time, it shows what can happen to unsuspecting travelers - pickpockets, an unreliable police system, unfamiliarity with a new culture and customs, etc. 

I really enjoyed this young woman's travel and how she survives and takes on a new persona as she is stripped of her old possessions or discards them as she has to face new situations. Running away from an unpleasant situation in her past, she comes to terms with the present and begins to create a new self.

I woke up at 3:30 a.m. to finish this book.That's how interesting I found the character and how well written the story.

First chapter, first paragraph: 

When you find your seat you glance at the businessman sitting next to you and decide he's almost handsome. This is the second leg of your trip from Miami to Casablanca, and the distance traveled already muted the horror of the last two months. What's to stop you from having a conversation with this man, possibly even ordering two vodka tonics with the little lemon wedges that the flight attendant will place into our plastic cups with silver tongs? He's about your age, thirty-three, and, like you, appears to be traveling alone. 

How does the first paragraph grab you. Does it make you want to read on?