The Murder Trial

"I had a sinking sensation. A feeling of impending doom." ~ 47%

I am on a roll with reading my favorite genre. Lately it's been murder trials and thrillers back-to-back in my TBR. Patterson's latest, The Murder Trial, was a great addition. It centers on a young woman standing trial for the double murder of her parents. Eighteen-year-old Janelle Thompson is the adopted Black daughter of a blue-eyed Republican Senator and campaign manager. Then one Friday night, her parents are declared dead after gone missing. All evidence points to the daughter who is barely old enough to vote. The story takes place in her holding cell at Westfall Justice Center (county jail), the St. Louis County Circuit Court, and home in Webster Groves, MIssouri.

This book has mixed reviews among advance readers. The co-author, Nancy Allen, practiced law for 15 years in the Ozarks and taught law at the university level for 16 years. I'd say she is credible enough, especially when partnered with the great storyteller, Patterson. So I began with high hopes.

"Well. Look how that turned out. Ironic, actually." ~ 62%

My critical side-eye first appeared when I learned the main character, Janelle, was Black and constantly told how "lucky" she is to be adopted and raised by white affluent parents. Yeah okay. Then the special mistreatment she received in school, at home, and the court system only made me angry. Fights, an old, white jury and judge. A teeny-weeny Afro because her white mom doesn't know what else to do with her hair. Likened to a maid. Come the fuck on! 

The Murder Trial has signature short chapters that made it easy to read in one evening. But not because the story was page-turning good. Because it felt borderline racist and stereotypical. I spent majority of the book shaking my head. The inconsistencies are glaring, such as the cover not matching the main character's description at all and her age being 18 for over a year. The dialogue is not realistic. The character's constant bad decisions is infuriating. The repetitive often-exaggerated curse word "shit." The writing is meant for YA. And the ending...tuh!

The entire story is just horrible. This is not what I expect as a Patterson fan and not a good impression of the co-author. I say this with my Black chest: do not recommend!

Happy Early Pub Day to James Patterson and Nancy Allen! The Murder Trial will be available Monday, November 23.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins. ~LiteraryMarie

Title: The Murder Trial
Author: James Patterson and Nancy Allen
Published: November 2026
Pages: 400
Edition: Galley
Genre: Thriller
Rating: 🖤

Certainty

"We may think it, but have they shown us any proof?" ~ 57%

Do you dread jury duty? Do you avoid being chosen? Well a woman finds herself serving on a high-profile jury instead of joining her husband on a retreat. Doubt casts a long shadow in this suspenseful short story by the bestselling author of The Last Thing He Told Me and The First Time I Saw Him. 

Dr. Preston Becker is a pharmaceutical exec accused of driving too fast through an intersection and striking twin girls. The case seems straightforward. But as the murder trial advances, truths conflict and it's not so black and white. Cora is sequestered with eleven strangers with eleven different views of the facts, and reaches the limits of certainty. All the evidence in the world won't help understand another person.

Certainty is a very short story that jumps from one point to another. Yet in just 34 pages, it drew me in as if I was in the courtroom myself. It finished quite abruptly with a strange twist that left me confused. Uncertain, if you will. Maybe that was the author's point.

Happy Early Pub Day to Laura Dave! Certainty will be available Tuesday, December 1 for a dollar and some change.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins. ~LiteraryMarie

Title: Certainty
Author: Laura Dave
Published: December 2026
Pages: 34
Edition: Galley
Genre: Mystery
Rating: 🖤 🖤

Take My Word for It

"...we are all storytellers." ~ 98%

Take My Word for It starts with a powerful beginning that I won't dare spoil. Tell us who you are, LeVar! And so begins the story of a legend. He needs no introduction but allow me to remind you of his greatness. LeVar Burton is the actor behind Roots Kunta Kinte, Star Trek: Next Gen, and Reading Rainbow. In his own words, he pulls back the curtain on roles he's played and the life he's lived.

I learned so much about LeVar in 350 pages. From his diagnosis of manic depression, to his physical reactions during the filming of Roots, to his inner thoughts of becoming a father, and the childhood that shaped the man he is today. LeVar left nothing on the table. He was very vulnerable and seemingly honest in his words. As an 80s baby, he is the voice of my childhood. Most importantly, his memoir carries a resounding theme of advocating literacy, equity and liberation. 

"I think I"m more able to retain who I am in every space because I recognize that every space has not earned the right to experience certain parts of me. Some situations and people don't deserve it." ~ 34%

Words I live by spoken so eloquently! Readers will begin this book with little knowledge of LeVar Burton and end with a deep respect for the proud educated Black man they now know more about. I recognize this is cheesy of me to say but take my word for it and read Take My Word for It!

Happy Pub Day to LeVar Burton! Take My Word for It is officially on shelves.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins. ~LiteraryMarie

Title: Take My Word for It
Author: LeVar Burton
Published: November 2026
Pages: 352
Edition: Galley
Genre: Memoir
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤

Series Sunday: All In

(The 6:20 Man #4) 

My Series Sunday pick is All In, the fourth book in The 6:20 Man series by David Baldacci. In the newest thriller, Travis Devine reluctantly leaves U.S. soil on an assignment from the Office of Special Projects. An investigative journalist is shot and the man she was meeting, an intelligence analyst, is snatched off the street. From Manhattan to Australia, Devine is pulled into a world of Russian mobsters, compromised prisons and rogue ops. 

"I don't believe or disbelieve anything at this point." ~ 18%

All In is over 400 pages of disappointment. At 18% in, it was a struggle to finish. At 97% through, it was painfully clear that it took all that to get to this ending. Baldacci very rarely lets me down. He created an intriguing character in Travis Devine, the 6:20 Man, but this new installment lost my interest. I am used to conspiracy theories, political elements and borderline unethical moves. But what was this?! All talk, nothing in, no action. The pace was slow as a snail, not his trademark fast as a train pace. Baldacci wrote All In to be timely with today's culture with data centers, AI, and Russian business but it was at the expense of a thrilling tale.

Does this miss make me drop the hit 6:20 Man series? Of course not. I'm still looking forward to the next book hoping Travis Devine returns to the U.S. with a better mystery.

Happy Early Pub Day, David Baldacci! All In will be available Tuesday, November 10.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins. ~LiteraryMarie

Title: All In

Author: David Baldacci

Published: November 2026

Pages: 448

Edition: Galley

Genre: Mystery

Rating: 🖤

Series Sunday: The Girl in the Lake

(Holmes, Margaret & Poe #3) 

My Series Sunday pick is The Girl in the Lake, the third book in the Holmes, Marple & Poe series by James Patterson and Brian Sitts. There is an accusatory message from a corpse left at a frozen lakeside crime scene. It says, "If anything happens to me, arrest Brendan Holmes." Wait, whaaaaat?!?! And so the story begins.

"Never apologize for exposing mediocrity." ~ 49%

Our mysterious private investigators Holmes, Marple & Poe have taken refuge at a remote lodge in upstate New York after their sleek city headquarters was bombed. Then a body in the lake put them back in the headlines and under suspicion. It seems the dangerous Oliver Paul is their version of Alex Cross' Mastermind because he is back taunting the trio. The Girl in the Lake is the continuation of a great mystery series!

We still don't know much about any of these main characters but that is what adds to the suspense, intrigue and frantic page-turning. I want to know more! I want to solve the mystery, but more so learn more about their identities. Patterson expertly gives us tidbits into their personal lives which was the best parts of this new installment. The mystery gladly took a backseat while I fell more in like with Holmes, Marple, Poe, and friends.

Happy Early Pub Day, James Patterson and Brian Sitts! The Girl in the Lake will be available Tuesday, Oct 27.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins. ~LiteraryMarie

Title: The Girl in the Lake

Author: James Patterson and Brian Sitts

Published: October 2026

Pages: 352

Edition: Galley

Genre: Mystery

Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤

I Only Shout So You Can Hear Me

"But I honestly believe you don't know who I am. You see a version of me. You have an idea. I'm the party guy, the wild guy, the guy who says those three words ("Yeah!" "What?" "Okay!") ~ 2%

"Yeaaaaaaah!" is the distinct shout of Grammy Award-winning producer, hype-master, and King of Crunk, Lil Jon. He takes his high energy to the page in a new memoir appropriately titled I Only Shout So You Can Hear Me. It begins with him as a kid in the suburbs of Atlanta—he was just Jonathan Smith back then—to his musical evolution. He opens up about creative burnout, personal struggles, heartbreak, his passion for DJing, being a parent, and reinventing himself as a multifaceted artist.

"Good music is like a release valve; you hear it and it takes you somewhere else." ~ 87%

What I love most about reading memoirs are intimate details that have not been shared publicly and little known facts. There is so much I learned about Lil Jon from this book! For example, he made the beat for Too $hort's "Blow the Whistle" in a session for E-40. I am quite impressed with all he's accomplished, pioneered, and survived—including the tragic loss of his son. Lil Jon gives an inspiring message to up-and-coming artists, entrepreneurs, and music fans. The message to embrace change and find success on your own terms is loud and clear.

Happy Pub Day to Lil Jon! I Only Shout So You Can Hear Me is officially on shelves.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins. ~LiteraryMarie

Title: I Only Shout So You Can Hear Me
Author: Lil Jon with Paul Cantor
Published: October 2026
Pages: 304
Edition: Galley
Genre: Memoir
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤

Beignets and Big Feelings

"Enjoy where you are right now. " ~ 42%

A Black funeral ain't a Black funeral without a surprise. When Grandma Olivia Hollis passes away, her funeral reunites four generations of heirs. She orchestrated a weeklong scavenger hunt in an effort to bring her family back together. If someone isn't game, no one gets a dime. 

Beignets and Big Feelings has a host of colorful characters and a vivid setting. The heirs find themselves on a Mississippi River jazz cruise, a bayou swamp tour, old cemeteries, and more. Amid delicious beignets, crispy popcorn shrimp and snippy alligators, the women discover real treasure in each other. 

Great setting. Characters with big personalities. Family drama to the nth degree. All the makings of a good book, right? But it took me the longest time to get from the opening reading of the will scene to the one big messy family happy ending. There were many characters and personalities to keep up with. The short chapters had its opposite effect where it was easy to put the book down often. Maybe I prefer Leslie Gray Streeter's nonfiction. I still remember pieces of Black Widow from over six years ago but don't ask me what I just read in Beignets and Big Feelings because I'm drawing a blank.

Happy Pub Day to Leslie Gray Streeter! Beignets and Big Feelings is officially on shelves.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins. ~LiteraryMarie

Title: Beignets and Big Feelings
Author: Leslie Gray Streeter
Published: October 2026
Pages: 235
Edition: Galley
Genre: Grown Women Fiction
Rating: 🖤 🖤