Book Description:
What’s Not Said is a story about Kassie O’Callaghan, a middle-aged woman on a mission to divorce her emotionally abusive husband and start a new life with a younger man she met while on a solo vacation in Venice. When she learns her husband has chronic kidney disease, her plans collapse until she pokes around his pajama drawer and discovers his illness is the least of his deceits.
Then again, Kassie is no angel. The separate lives they lead collide head-on into a tangled web of sex, lies, and DNA. As she helps her husband find an organ donor, Kassie uncovers a secret, forcing her to decide whose life to save: her husband’s or her own
MY THOUGHTS ON THIS BOOK
What's Not Said is the debut novel from author Valerie Taylor and it is the first book in her What's Not Said series. It is clear Kassie is not happy being with her husband and not happy with her life. After all she is cheating on him with a much younger guy, with plans to divorce her husband. But when she finds out her he has a chronic kidney disease and is quite ill, the divorce is off, that is until she finds something in her husband's drawer that proves his deceit as well. This is quite the back and forth story and there are twists and turns that will through readers off chorus, so it makes you want to keep reading to see who is doing what next.
What's Not Said is well written with well created character that are pretty realistic. I have to admit that it is more of an adult story than I was expecting so I did skip over a lot of it to get to the main storyline. This would be good for those who enjoy a good contemporary romance. I think this one is a Four Stars for me.
A special thanks to the author/publisher for a copy of this book. I am not required to write a positive review, the opinions here are mine alone. I am disclosing this with my review in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
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Book Details:
Book Title: What's Not True by Valerie Taylor
Category: Adult Fiction 18+
Genre: Women's Fiction, Chick Lit
Publisher: She Writes Press, 321 pages
Release date: August 2021
“What’s Not True…is an enthralling, character-driven story that will appeal irresistibly to fans of women’s fiction…Taylor’s prose is crystalline…she does not waste words, rather using them to create a tense, nerve-shredder that
offers full entertainment to readers.” — Readers’ Favorite 5-star review
Book Description:
With her court date set for her divorce and her plans with the younger man in the rearview mirror, Kassie O’Callaghan shifts attention to reviving her stalled career. But things get complicated when she unexpectedly rendezvous with her former lover in Paris. After a chance meeting there with a colleague and a stroll along Pont Neuf, Kassie receives two compelling proposals. Can she accept them both?
But Kassie’s decision process screeches to a halt when her soon-to-be ex-husband has a heart attack, forcing her to fly home to Boston. There, she confronts his conniving and deceitful fiancée—a woman who wants not just a ring on her finger but everything that belongs to Kassie. In the ensuing battle to protect what’s legally and rightfully hers, Kassie discovers that sometimes it’s what’s not true that can set you free.
Though a standalone novel, What’s Not True is the sequel to What’s Not Said (September 15, 2020).
Interview with Valerie Taylor
Author of What’s Not Said (She Writes Press, September 2020) and What’s Not True (She Writes Press, August 24, 2021)
How many books will be in the WHAT’S NOT Series?
Now that What’s Not True is available everywhere, I have fondly labeled my work the WHAT’S NOT Series, and it seems to be catching on! If you say something enough times, folks often adopt it in their own lexicon.
While What’s Not Said was originally written as a standalone, What’s Not True was written purposely to end with a cliffhanger. I’m in the process of writing the third book, yet to be formally named, but it will obviously carry the WHAT’S NOT in its title. So soon, I’ll be able to call it the WHAT’S NOT Trilogy.
Are there any scenes in your novels that are autobiographical?
A common piece of advice aspiring authors receive is to “write what you know.” The basic plots of both What’s Not Said and What Not True are totally fictional, as are the characters. However, in retrospect, I’d say the first book, What’s Not Said, had more elements in it that are autobiographical than the second book, What’s Not True. Perhaps that means I evolved as a writer by the time I got to book two!
In What’s Not Said, Kassie’s father dies when she’s young, and so did my dad. And like Kassie, I had a wicked stepfather and a mother who died of cancer. In What’s Not True, two of the characters live in Charlestown, MA, as did I once upon a time. Kassie and I both are allergic to pomegranates and are huge Boston Red Sox fans. Bad Kassie’s—Kassie’s alter ego—mimics a nickname a colleague had given me years ago—Bad Malerie.
How many books do you read each year and do you have a favorite genre?
Before I retired and worked 50 to 60 hours a week, I was ecstatic to read 12 books a year. That was my goal. Of course, this was before eReaders and audiobooks became as popular as they are today. Each year I tried to read a cross-section of genres—historical and contemporary fiction to balance the non-fiction books I generally read for self-help or business/career purposes.
Once I retired in 2016, I set a new goal to read 30 books each year. Last year I read 39 books! I think I changed my goal to 40 on Goodreads for 2021. I’ll need to check my progress! These days, I read a lot of fiction, as my need or desire for non-fiction has lessened. I have discovered short stories this year, which I enjoy, obviously, for the succinct storylines, fast pace, and the sense of accomplishment I feel when I complete each story!
How has social media impacted your life as an author?
Social media? Love it! Hate it! Before What’s Not Said was published I was barely on Facebook. In fact, I don’t think I was. But then everyone says we must have a presence there. So I do, and in the last 18 months, I’ve built a following of more than a thousand. Now I know that’s not huge, but it’s steadily growing.
Little did we authors know, though, how critical social media would become once the pandemic hit in March 2020. As you know, all public events were cancelled. Many still are. The only way for us to reach our audience, to launch our books, to stay in touch became social media. As such, I’m relatively active on Instagram and Twitter, as well as Facebook. I’d love to have you follow me. The links are below.
Will there be new characters in the third book of the WHAT’S NOT Series?
As a matter of fact, there’s a new villain to challenge Kassie, the protagonist, and there is a new secondary character that I’ll be introducing. My overall goal is to spin off the new secondary character into a new series; perhaps a cozy mystery that wouldn’t include the main characters in the WHAT’S NOT Series, but create a whole new cast of characters. More than likely, the main setting will still be in the Massachusetts and Rhode Island area. Not sure if there’ll be any European intrigue in it. I’m still exploring the idea!
I’d love to hear from you. Here’s how you can reach and follow me:
My website: www.valerietaylorauthor.com
Follow me: Facebook.com/valerietaylorauthor
Twitter: @ValerieEMTaylor
Instagram: ValerieETaylor
And please do subscribe to my newsletter, Behind and Ahead, which I write with readers in mind:
www.valerietaylorauthor.com/subscribe
Thank you so much! Read on!
You'll Also Love The Award-Winning First Book in This Series:
Book Details:
Book Title: What's Not Said by Valerie Taylor
Category: Adult Fiction 18+
Genre: Women's Fiction, Chick Lit
Publisher: She Writes Press, 300 pages
Release date: September 2020
Content Rating: PG-13 + M: has several sex scenes and some bad language.
2021 International Book Awards Finalist in Fiction: Women’s Fiction
2020 Canadian Book Club Awards Finalist in Fiction
Chosen as an August 2021 Pulpwood Queens Book Club selection
Featured by the international NoMo Book Club in May 2021
“Taylor’s dialogue is snappy and contemporary . . . A witty and often amusing marriage drama.”
―Kirkus Reviews
Book Description:
What’s Not Said is a story about Kassie O’Callaghan, a middle-aged woman on a mission to divorce her emotionally abusive husband and start a new life with a younger man she met while on a solo vacation in Venice. When she learns her husband has chronic kidney disease, her plans collapse until she pokes around his pajama drawer and discovers his illness is the least of his deceits.
Then again, Kassie is no angel. The separate lives they lead collide head-on into a tangled web of sex, lies, and DNA. As she helps her husband find an organ donor, Kassie uncovers a secret, forcing her to decide whose life to save: her husband’s or her own.
Meet the Author:
Valerie Taylor was born and raised in Stamford, Connecticut. She earned a B.S. Marketing degree and an MBA from Sacred Heart University, as well as a graduate certificate in health care administration from Simmons University (formerly Simmons College). She had a thirty-year career in the financial services industry as a marketer and writer. Valerie is a published book reviewer with BookTrib.com; and a member of Westport Writers’ Workshop, Independent Book Publishers Association, and Women’s Fiction Writers
Association. She enjoys practicing tai chi and being an expert sports spectator.
connect with the author: website ~ twitter ~ facebook ~ instagram ~ goodreads
Tour Schedule:
Sep 15 – Viviana MacKade – book spotlight / guest post / giveaway
Sep 15 - Cover Lover Book Review – book spotlight / giveaway
Sep 15 - I'm All About Books – book spotlight / giveaway
Sep 16 - Review Thick & Thin - book review of WHAT'S NOT SAID / author interview
Sep 16 – Pick a Good Book – book review of WHAT’S NOT TRUE / author interview / giveaway
Sep 16 - AllBookedUpReviews (instagram) - book review of WHAT'S NOT TRUE
Sep 17 – fundinmental – book spotlight / giveaway
Sep 17 - Amy's Booket List – book review of WHAT’S NOT TRUE / giveaway
Sep 21 – Welcome To MLM Opinion's Reviews – book review of WHAT’S NOT TRUE
Sep 21 - @twilight_reader – book review of WHAT’S NOT SAID
Sep 23 – Book Corner News and Reviews – book review of WHAT’S NOT SAID / giveaway
Sep 23 - Review Thick & Thin - book review of WHAT'S NOT TRUE / guest post
Sep 24 – Book Corner News and Reviews – book review of WHAT’S NOT TRUE / giveaway
Sep 27 – Sadie's Spotlight – book spotlight / author interview / giveaway
Sep 27 - Sefina Hawke's Books – book review of WHAT’S NOT SAID
Sep 28 – Cheryl's Book Nook – book review of WHAT’S NOT TRUE / giveaway
Sep 29 - Sefina Hawke's Books – book review of WHAT’S NOT TRUE
Sep 29 - Falling Into A Good Book - book review of WHAT'S NOT TRUE
Sep 30 – @twilight_reader – book review of WHAT’S NOT TRUE
Sep 30 - StoreyBook Reviews - book spotlight / guest post / giveaway
Oct 1 – Celticlady's Reviews – book spotlight / guest post / giveaway
Oct 1 - Books for Books – book review of WHAT’S NOT SAID
Oct 4 – Locks, Hooks and Books – book review of WHAT’S NOT SAID / giveaway
Oct 5 – Locks, Hooks and Books – book review of WHAT’S NOT TRUE / giveaway
Oct 6 – Splashes of Joy – book review of WHAT’S NOT SAID / giveaway
Oct 6 - Books Lattes & Tiaras – book review of WHAT’S NOT TRUE
Oct 7 – Splashes of Joy – book review of WHAT’S NOT TRUE / author interview / giveaway
Oct 8 – Jazzy Book Reviews – book spotlight / giveaway
Oct 8 - Books for Books – book review of WHAT’S NOT TRUE
Oct 12 - Books and Zebras - book review of WHAT'S NOT TRUE
Oct 12 – Adventurous Jessy – book review of WHAT’S NOT TRUE / giveaway
Enter the Giveaway:
WHAT'S NOT TRUE Book Tour Giveaway
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One winner will receive a signed print copy of Her Keeper’s Heart (US only)
Ends October 13, 2021
