Beatriz Williams

As its title suggests, The Golden Hour is doused in the shimmering, golden charm of the 1940s Bahamas, and shadowed with the political intrigue and tense race relations of the time.

I was absolutely enthralled by this plot, the writing, the setting, everything!

Lulu, a journalist who would’ve otherwise been forced to pack her bags and head back to the States with her tail and ink pen between her legs, instead makes her living packaging the high society life of the Duke and Duchess and show more selling it to readers as “The Lady of Nassau.” Granted access into the intimate goings-on of the banished royals, Lulu sees the stains that those meticulously positioned Union Jack pillows are meant to conceal 🇬🇧. Betrayal, treason, murder—all of these secrets hit Lulu personally when her (spy) husband goes missing, taken as a prisoner of war.

As Lulu risks her life to save Thorpe, she learns about the complicated, pained, beautiful, and scattered family that he comes from.

Told from two alternating perspectives and multiple timelines, this novel—with its glittering wits, poignant romances, and family intricacies—delights on every page.

Seriously. I want to live at the Prince George hotel in Nassau, heading toward my trusty bartender at 6 pm, people-watching while he whips me up a rum punch cocktail?!?! “So [begins Lulu’s] twentieth night in Nassau. Now pay attention” (Williams 38). And, God help you, when Beatriz Williams starts spinning a narrative (or three), you better sit up and pay that attention in full. show less

Each of the three Schuyler sisters has her own world-class problems, but in the autumn of 1966, Pepper Schuyler's problems are in a class of their own. When Pepper fixes up a beautiful and rare vintage Mercedes and sells it at auction, she thinks she's finally found a way to take care of herself and the baby she carries, the result of an affair with a married, legendary politician.

But the car's new owner turns out to have secrets of her own, and as the glamorous and mysterious Annabelle show more Dommerich takes pregnant Pepper under her wing, the startling provenance of this car comes to light: a Nazi husband, a Jewish lover, a flight from Europe, and a love so profound it transcends decades. As the many threads of Annabelle's life from World War II stretch out to entangle Pepper in 1960s America, and the father of her unborn baby tracks her down to a remote town in coastal Georgia, the two women must come together to face down the shadows of their complicated pasts. show less

When the big name American male author who has leased the Castle of Kinloch on a small island in Scotland is found murdered, the pool of suspects is small. Particularly as other than the inhabitants of the island, the only other people there are the three American writers, who purport to be best friends there on a writing retreat to work on a collaborative book. But anyone who has met Cassie (wife and mother of 6 with a prolific backlist of cozy mysteries), Emma (respected author of dull as show more dirt history books), and Kat (brash author of dark supernatural erotica) can tell they're not exactly friends. Did they come to the island to commit murder? And if it wasn't them, who else on the small island could have possibly wanted the victim dead?

A really fun murder mystery that pokes plenty of fun at the publishing industry, but also reflects many of its realities. While it took me some time to warm to the characters, particularly Kat who is very stand-offish (for good reason), eventually all three became a delight to follow. Divided into two parts, following our main three characters before the murder and as they try to solve it themselves gives the reader lots of time to explore the characters as they reveal more and more of their secrets while working towards the final resolution of the whodunnit. Setting the novel on a small Scottish island in December gives it plenty of atmosphere, that I throughly enjoyed. And while the authors include plenty of humour (the plaid! the sheep jokes!) throughout the book, they also thoughtfully engage with some serious themes including sexual assault. An excellent read for those who enjoy a solid mystery with a heavy dash of (eventual) female friendship. show less

I think once again I'm an outlier with this one. UNDER THE STARS is the newest historical fiction from bestselling author Beatriz Williams. Like many of her novels, she again uses what I personally consider a much overused literary device (other authors use it too). If you're a reader of contemporary fiction, you'll likely recognize it - three women, three stories, three different time periods. All three eventually connect, but their connection is only revealed piece by piece. While I show more generally look forward to picking up a book by Beatriz Williams, this one disappointed me.

Different chapters are narrated by different characters, which means each time you get involved in one character’s storyline, you are forced to leave it at the chapter’s end to pick up a different story thread. I find this kind of construction winds up limiting my emotional involvement in and concerning for characters - because each of their stories is revealed in interrupted bits and pieces.

So now that you are aware of my overall reaction and prejudices, let me describe a bit about the three main characters:

• Providence Dare - a fictitious character the author has placed onboard the Atlantic, an actual steamship that sunk during a storm near Fishers Island in 1846. Providence was employed as a servant in the home of an American artist, Henry Lowell Irving, also fictitious. Her contribution to UNDER THE STARS comes in the form of a written account of the disaster, filled with details of what happened on the ship as it floundered.

• Meredith Fisher - an aging film star who needs to “dry out” before she begins shooting a new movie that offers the kind of juicy part that could resurrect her career. Her back story takes place in 1993.

• Audrey Fisher - Meredith’s adult daughter who has agreed to supervise her mother’s detox, even though the two of them don’t get along all that well. Audrey is a talented cook whose husband recently disappeared under suspicious circumstances, leaving Audrey with a pile of debts from their joint restaurant business. Her story takes place in 2024.

The stories of all three women take place around Winthrop Island, a creation of the author that's based on Fishers Island, close to where the author lives. All three stories get more and more complex as the book progresses. To the point where I felt the plot took a few turns that seemed far-fetched to me. And I was eager to finish.

I still recommend UNDER THE STARS, because I expect many readers of historical fiction don't share my prejudices about plot construction. And there's certainly enough drama to keep you turning pages. Including a murder charge, uncertain parentage, and numerous romantic obstacles. I think I was just hoping for something more substantial rather than just another formulaic bestseller. Which this will no doubt be. show less