What a great book! I love reading Fern Michaels books and I’m sure you will too. Pick up this book and give it a go! Thank you Fern for writing such a great book for us!

Suspense! A all-night page turner. Vivid character descriptions and a fast-paced plot. Twists and turns. Well developed story-line. You will love it!

A fascinating tale of family with a mystery included.. I loved it.
Many thanks to Kensington and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I thoroughly enjoy reading Fern Michaels books, and “On the Line” is no exception. I couldn’t put this book down, and loved the depth of the back story Ms. Michaels brought to this book. She takes us from the cartels in Columbia, to the streets of Manhattan. “On the Line “ is a well developed and enjoyable read.

I loved the multiple storylines in this Fern Michaels Book. She did an excellent job of winding things thru each one. She keeps you guessing, and I love that in a book.

Fern Michaels knows how to write a emotional charged mystery. Which is what this is with romance thrown in. I loved it.

Masterful storytelling and just enough mystery and twist and turns to keep you reading until the end. Complex and interesting characters to follow along through the journey of bumps and hardships that keeps you hooked until the very end. Hard to put down and keeps you hooked until the end.

THis is a story starts in today with a mn sick. It then goes into the history of his family. Which, is important for the book to work. It really kept me on my toes. There is romance, mystery, and family love. I enjoyed it and read it very quickly.

Fern Michaels' "On the Line" is a captivating and emotionally charged novel that explores themes of love, family, and second chances. The story follows a group of women who come together to support one another as they face personal and professional challenges. Michaels' writing is poignant and filled with genuine emotions, drawing readers into the lives of the characters. With its relatable and strong-willed protagonists, "On the Line" is a compelling read that showcases the power of friendship and resilience.

On The Line written by Fern Michaels was a fantastic story, this book broke my heart in more than one way. This book was so different from other novels I have read by this author, so I thought it was time for a change. The ending was <b>NOT</b> it for me, it was like the rest of the story was absolutely amazing, but the ending wasn't what I was expecting. It felt bland to me, like the way the entire book played out, and then the ending was just boring. At the age of eighty-nine, Fern Michaels still amazes me with her amazing story telling. The cover just captured my attention, the fiery orange color. I absolutely love when the title of the book is used in the story, it's like an aha moment. On The Line has two stories of three generations of a family woven into one standalone. This book has suspense, mystery, family, friendships, and romance tropes that pulls readers in from the very beginning. While I loved this book, the ending took away half of my love, so therefore I had to rate this book four stars. I can't recommend this book enough, please do yourself a favor and pick up your copy immediately. Just be prepared to have your heart broken a little bit.

THANK YOU TO NETGALLEY AND KENSINGTON BOOKS FOR AN ARC OF THIS BOOK IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW!!!!!!!

Mateo Castillo is a rising star chef who will soon be featured on a major television cooking competition when he collapses in his restaurants kitchen. Mateo soon finds himself regaining consciousness in the emergency room. Mateo is so lucky someone find him because he could have died from the loss of too much blood. The cause of Mateo's illness is unknown and worrying. Mateo ends back up in the hospital a few weeks later for the same exact reason as the first time, found passed out in the kitchen. Doctor Adrian Ardell is determined to find the cause of Mateo's illness. Doctor Ardell works relentlessly doing blood tests and genetic tests on Mateo and his family. When blood tests start coming back Doctor Ardell finds there is a high level of mercury in Mateo's blood. The question is why and how? The test results uncover a family secret, Doctor Adrian Ardell is in no place to tell Mateo his family secrets. Mateo works with a lot of seafood and shell fish in his kitchen, could that be the cause of all the mercury in his blood? You will have to read this book to find out.

On The Line is told in three parts, the book starts off with Mateo during present day in New York City when he starts passing out in his kitchen. The second half of this book goes back in time to many years ago when Mateo's grandparents and parents escape Colombia from the drug cartels. Reading about escaping the drug cartels and becoming American citizens literally broke my heart. When Mateo's grandparents bakery gets blown up, that's their last straw and when they decide to escape Colombia. The third and finally half of this book goes back into present times when Mateo learns the story of who his parents are. The test results threaten to uncover a dark secret that exposes Mateo's family to dangers from the past, while clouding the investigation into who is trying to hurt Mateo in the present. I can't express my gratitude enough when Mateo's grandparents wanted to better their lives, so they start the trek to America. The friends they met, the angels that were sent their way was just so heart warming. Please read this book, it was so so good. Escaping the drug cartels shows how much pain one person can endure, it just destroyed my heart.

Not my favorite Fern Michael’s book.
I didn’t relate very well to the plot or the story.
I finished it but I’ve read other books of hers that I felt were much more interesting.

I have always really enjoyed this author's books and this is another great one! It is a stand alone book (not part of her normal series) but I still loved it. Mateo is a great character and I was really rooting for him.

I have to say this book was a surprise because it’s not what I expected. I’ve read this author before so I was a bit disappointed. The plot was okay and the writing was good but the story just didn’t grab me.

I will preface this with, I am a huge Fern Michaels fan. Loved the Texas series, Las Vegas series, and Kentucky series. I have read all of them twice and Seasons of Her Life is one of my favorite books! This book was such a disappointment I didn't connect with the characters and probably better that I didn't because as soon as their story was told, they were pretty much left out. Grandparents, parents and child. Somehow what happened to the grandparents and parents was suppose to connect to what was happening with the son, I just didn't like the connection, personally. It seemed to have very little to do with the story of his family and more with a cooking competition that people didn't want him to win. I finished the book but was tempted a few times to put it down.I am still a fan of Fern Michaels writing, this is just not one that I like very much.

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

REVIEW TO FOLLOW.

Mateo Castillo is a rising star chef in Manhattan. He is going to be featured on a major TV cooking competition. When he suddenly collapses his life become a challenge to discover the cause. His family becomes involved which leads to dangerous secrets from his past while trying to find out who is trying to hurt him in the future.



Thanks to Fern Michael’s and Kensington Books

Mateo Castillo is a chef in NYC and loves cooking for people. He is found unconsciousness at his restaurant. He is sent to the hospital and meets Dr. Adrian Ardell a specialist. He is told he has too much mercury in his system.
We also travel back to when Mateo's parents meet in Columbia and flee the country from the drug cartels in the eighties. They leave his Elena's parents and end up in Mexico. They have help along the way from some great people.
We are told his parents story and Mateo's story. The stories are all connected and written very well. I love the mystery of who was poisoning Mateo and can his parents finally tell him the truth about his life.
I love Fern Michaels stories.

Mateo Castillo’s name is becoming well-known in the culinary circuits of Manhattan. He’s about to be featured on a TV culinary show, when he lands in the hospital after a fall in his restaurant’s kitchen. Luckily, he was found, or the consequences may have been dire, but he must undergo a series of tests to get to the root of the problem.

Dr. Adrian Ardell happens to be working when Mateo presents to the ER. She’s a hematologist and is determined to find out what is causing the increased levels of mercury in his system. She also insists that his parents get blood samples taken in the event he needs a donor. The results are not what she anticipates but lead to the backstory of Mateo’s parents fleeing Colombia years before and their journey to the United States via Mexico.

The stories of past and present are woven together to create a fascinating story of what people will do to create a better life for themselves and those around them.

I really enjoyed learning of some of the customs surrounding different cultures and although a work of fiction, I can only imagine that many people have fled their birth countries in order to escape the cartels.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for allowing me to read an ARC of this novel. #NetGalley #OntheLine

I found this story confusing and, in the end, not very suspenseful. It felt like the author had two stories she wanted to tell and couldn't decide which one to pick and so ended up with both.  I actually thought somehow the kindle version of the story got compromised and another book got inserted into the middle of my story.
Mateo Castillo is a rising chef. He ends up in the ER with a high dose of mercury in his blood. There he meets this fascinating doctor who diagnoses him and tells him to cut back on the sea food. Considering that Mateo works in a sea food restaurant that's a tall order but nevertheless he seems to be doing well when bam he's back in the ER with higher than normal does again. Clearly something's going on and it's up to Mateo and the beautiful doctor to investigate and get to the truth before Mateo dies. 
The story then shifts to this family in Colombia who are inadvertently targeted by the cartel and have to escape. They use an underground railway that is run by the local church and the pastor. Eventually the younger couple immigrates to the US having saved an infant along the way. This infant is Mateo now grown up. Once I got over the confusion of the total shift in the story and realized the infant is Mateo, I thought Mateo is probably a child of one of the cartel higher ups and his past has caught up with him. 
There are some definite positives when you get past all the confusion.  The story of the escape from Colombia and resettlement is compelling.  While the suspense is rushed and the resolution to the mystery a somewhat nonevent, the romance is sweet and heartfelt and the ending with Mateo being able to find his passion to feed the hungry and teach the poor is a worthy ambition.
 I truly enjoy stories by this author and will continue to seek out and read her books int he future as well.

I grew up hearing my mom rave about Fern Michaels’ books so when I saw an ARC available on @netgalley for her latest novel, I figured I’d go ahead and request it; she’s certainly a proven author, initial reviews were strong, and the plot sounded interesting enough. I was thrilled to receive an approval email granting me access to it in January and started reading it almost right away. Fast forward to present day (mid March)… Ya’ll… I legit just finished this book. I was so close to throwing in the towel a number of times and probably would have put it in a virtual DNF pile if I didn’t promise an honest review in exchange for the “Advanced Reader Copy”. So, I pushed on and finally finished it.

The book is broken down into three big sections: present, past, and back to the present. There are some chapter breakdowns within these sections but most chapters are LONG LONG LONG– at one point my Kindle told me I had an hour and eight minutes of reading left in the chapter. Wait, what? Is that a typo… sadly it is not. I am someone who likes to read a chapter at a time so shorter chapters suit me best. These seemingly never-ending chapters just didn’t bode well for me as a reader.

I was moderately entertained in section one as the problem the main character faces is interesting, and the book is fairly well written. I liked the premise of section two – the backstory and history of the main character’s family but it was extremely detailed and felt a lot like a separate story plugged into the middle of the first one. It left me feeling a bit bored. The third and final section of the book, back to present day, picked up a little for me so it was a little easier to continue reading. However, we finally got to the ending and I hate to say it but it felt rushed. Ultimately, I believe too much time was spent on the the family’s history and some of that energy should have gone towards setting the reader up for the ending, which was somewhat anticlimactic.

Here's what it boils down to… I’m likely not the target audience for this one and that’s okay. I think my mom would love it and I’m actually going to suggest that she read it because I’d love to get her feedback. I just don’t think women below fifty will appreciate this book as much as those over that benchmark. There are plenty of endearing qualities about this story which is why it’s garnered lots of 4 and 5 star reviews. My opinion seems to be the outlier, so please take that into consideration if this book is on your TBR list. Ugh, I truly hate giving books a low star rating but I can’t help but give On the Line two stars, even though it makes me feel sad to do so.