STARRED REVIEW! Got the news this morning, burst into tears.

Look. Writing a novel is a long haul, and this one? I put a lot of myself into it. I worked really hard on it. I moved publishers, a process fraught with self-doubt. And, by moving publishers, I also inserted more time into the process of publication. It’s been two full years since my last book, The Death of Us, came out.

All this to say, I guess I needed some good news for this book. I have had some lovely support from early readers, other authors as well as booksellers. But the trade reviews are, whew, a moment.

If you’re not familiar with this system, the “trades” are publications for people in the biz who put books on the shelf for other people, primarily library and bookstore employees. The major ones are Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, Booklist (from the American Library Association), and Kirkus Reviews. There are, of course many other places from which to receive reviews, but those are the four “trades.”

Reviews in the trades are heavily weighted toward plot so that the people making choices about book purchases can make some quick decisions about what looks good to get in. There’s usually some kind of judgment as to quality, too, and that can be good, bad, a little of both, careful and measured or effusive—could go any direction, really. And if the reviewer really likes something, they might give it a star. There might be a standard number a publication might give a month, or there might be no limits, I’m not sure, but not every positive review gets a star. They of course go to all kinds of books, not just mystery, not just fiction.

I’ve had stars before. My first book got THREE! (I know how lucky I am.) But because this book was such a journey, I really feel this one. It’s such a relief to have someone say, I got what you were trying to do, and it worked. In fact, “Every bit of it works.”

Here’s the “verdict” from the review, after the plot summary: “Suspense novelist Rader-Day changes pace with this sharply funny, heartfelt mystery, and every bit of it works. Its exploration of family secrets will delight fans of Nina Simon’s Mother-Daughter Murder Night and Nita Prose’s The Maid.”

OMGosh, that star makes me so happy, as do those comparisons!!

Thanks for reading… tour dates coming soon, but you can always pre-order signed, personalized and stamped by ME books from The Book Cellar or New Book Joy, both in Chicago, Book Stall in Winnetka, or Blue House Books in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Sales through those stores will be signed on launch week!