I couldn’t stop listening! I loved this story! So much action, and never a dull moment. Rich character development and enough backstory given to understand the plot. Protagonist was likable and common so I could relate to her. Just enough of a love story to keep the interest but not too much where it was unrealistic or sappy. I truly felt like this could have been my family. I thoroughly enjoyed this book!

The blurb of this book gives away so much information about the plot that I had figured out half of the things. So it doesn't come as surprise at all when some twists are thrown in the mix.

I also found characters of Carly, Mary, Lucas mushy for my tastes. They feel so unreal and naive. All time good, how can anyone be? Even after knowing that your husband has been hiding more than you could have guessed? There's no anger or rage anywhere in the book.

The mystery part also did not work for me. Ending left me bereft and feeling even worse about the book.

The narration is good.
Audiobook rating : 3 stars
Book rating : 2.5 stars
Thanks Netgalley and HarperCollins publishing for the audiobook ARC in exchange of an honest review.

My first book I've read by Coble and whoa did she put me through a lot! I really liked how this book started out with a good unsolved murder, some family strife and a taste of historical fiction! But then, as the story progressed I had a hard time pining what the genre was. I felt completely inundated with all the genres in this book. Historical fiction (with a fascianting background about faberge eggs of the Tsars), Russian Mafia, multiple murder mysteries, family secrets, backstabbing, heists, infidelity, romance, babies, oh and don't forget the home remodel, oh and that touch of Christian literature in here too. There are a few other big plot points that I won't share for fear of spoilers that were the cherry on the sprinkles on the icing on the cake. Basically, it was too much. Way too much. It felt way too unrealistic. I also don't like mixing murder mysteries with a love interest unless it's a comedy, it doesn't sit right for me. I don't want to be disturbed by a stabbing murder upstairs but then now I get to see two characters be romantically interested in one another...

The audiobook was well done and easy to follow, I enjoyed the narrator.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Christian Publishing for the ALC that I paired with the eARC from Thomas Nelson Publishing.

What a well-written story. So many layers!

This book has opened up the world of Fabergé to me, which I have never really known much about before. What a rich history this topic has! I am ready to learn more about the history of Fabergé now, and the missing eggs.

Carly has a renewed chance at love with a guy she knew a long, long time ago. Now he's her next-door neighbor. And confidant as they bust this case open. And her protector.

I really enjoyed seeing Carly's relationship with her grandmother and how much she cherishes that connection. The story dives in to that and allows Carly to search for relatives that they didn't even know were lost.

Not a cozy mystery; definitely a suspense novel. It had me at the edge of my seat a few times!

Trigger warnings: Some violence. Infidelity in marriage.

Overall, a clean read. No crude language or content.

I listened to the audio version. Well narrated! Great listening experience.

Suspense lurks around every corner in the newest Colleen Coble novel. From page one, readers will find themselves drawn into the life of Carly Harris. The newly widowed young mother begins to uncover a long hidden-family secret while sorting through collectibles inherited from her great grandmother. Harris’ natural maternal desire endears her to readers, and her connection to her grandmother’s neighbor tugs at the heart.

The continual plot twists keep readers on the edge of their seats throughout the entire novel. Just when it seems they are making progress discovering the truth, a new development reveals a new part of the mystery.

This clean read will be enjoyed by suspenseful murder mystery lovers and is Coble’s best novel yet.

I read because books like this and I'd give it a 10 stars rating if I could.

I loved the story of redemption and second chances. Callie was a darling. I mean her selflessness and sense of devotion to those she loved was inspiring. She deserved all the good things thay came her way. Lucas was a hero. He and Callie were well suited for each other because of their shared values on love, faith and family.

The twist and turns of the book was very unpredictable.

Highly recommended. I listened to the audio version and the narrator did an excellent job. Excellent job.

I received a copy of this book and this is my honest opinion.

The first half of this book has a heavy domestic/family drama focus, with extreme lack of communication and several greedy, selfish, rude, snobby characters that I found frustrating to read about at times. In all honesty I haven’t been in the mood for this kind of content so it took me a while to get through this section of text. That said, I’m glad I kept reading because the second half of this book held my attention and made me appreciate its story as a whole so much more, especially as the suspense picks up and character arcs are made clear with significant positive changes seen in nearly every character.

This book follows a young woman named Carly during a very challenging time in her life with strained family relationships, the murder of a close family member and being a single mother of a baby boy. When Carly inherits an object worth millions of dollars from her great-grandmother, along with documents involving an intriguing family mystery, more murders and other crimes start to take place that are directly connected to Carly’s inheritance, and it’s a race against the clock to take down the bad guys before anyone else gets hurt.

Thank you NetGalley and Thomas Nelson for giving me a digital ebook and audiobook of Fragile Designs to honestly read and review.

I had the pleasure of hearing the audio version of Colleen Coble's Fragile Designs. The narrator's performance was perfect for this book. I loved hearing it. Five stars.

This storyline did not disappoint. There were a lot of twists and turns, and the author kept me guessing on who was the culprit. Voice actor did the story justice. Will be reading more from this author!

Fragile Designs by Colleen Coble: Colleen Coble has done it again. Trademark twists and turns complete with relationships dynamics are just some of the reasons I enjoyed this book. I've always been interested in Faberge Eggs and one being an intricate part of this story made it a must read. Trusting God through unimaginable circumstances is always a prevalent theme (but done in a non preachy way) that always encourages me in my own relationship with God. Colleen's characters always feel real and are people l'd like to meet in real life minis the 'villain.' I was privileged to read an ARC of this book. All opinions are mine.

I loved this listen! It was original, unique, well researched. The narration was excellent, characters likable and I found myself looking forward to listening time!

This book has something for everyone! Mystery, family dynamics, history, and plenty of twists. Of course when you start out with two characters who dislike each other, you just know they'll end up madly in love. So there were a few predictable parts but plenty of surprises too. The book is well written with believable characters and a story that pops up on the page and keeps the reader on edge wondering what will happen next.

I listened to the audio book and was impressed with the narrator. A very enjoyable book.

I've always loved India Jones'style adventure. But this book isn't just a historical treasure hunt, it's an adventure with lots of family drama. I loved the combination of the two. It's intense, sweet and sour at the same time. Exactly how I like it.

Carly is a young widow struggling to stay afloat after her husband's death. The marriage was not going well, but she never imagined finding herself a widow with a baby in her arms. While doing some cleaning she found a priceless object with a lot of historical value and this is where it all starts. There are a lot of people interested in this relict and in the middle of this whole adventure she realizes that life didn't end when she became a widow.

I loved the premise of the story and it was written with a sweetness that grabbed me until the last paragraph. I highly recommend it.

Well narrated by Karen Peakes (two-time Audie Award nominee), Fragile Designs tells the intriguing story of twin sisters, separated at birth. Now in their sixties, neither Elizabeth nor Mary have any idea they are even adopted, much less have a sister. Not until Carly, Mary's granddaughter discovers it and sets out to track down her great-aunt.

But, there is more to the story as the newly widowed Carly also discovers what she thinks may be a Russian Fabergé egg. Having worked as an antique dealer, Carly is eager to solve both mysteries--that of her family and of the egg. Her recently deceased husband had apparently set all in motion before he was killed. Word of the possibility of the missing egg has spread and multiple groups are intent on finding the valuable egg, at any cost.

Carly and her infant son have moved in with her grandmother. Grandmother Mary begins restorations on the large family home to turn it into a B & B. When an intruder is killed in the house and a then construction worker attacked, the neighbor, a police officer, insists they all move in next door with him. Committed to being single, it's a huge change for Lucas Bennett. Lucas stands by Carly through the labyrinth of finding the answers to many questions the family faces. And through the danger.

This novel is set in Pawleys Island, North Carolina, a small town (I googled it) with a population of about 103. Pawleys Island itself is "4 miles long and mostly 1 house wide" (Pawleysisland.com), so having the info helped me to understand some of the plot and to visualize it better.

Carly Harris is the MC who currently goes to flea markets and other such places to earn an income, which isn't enough. She's always had a dream of writing a novel but has yet to do so. Life becomes complicated when a tragedy occurs and as she is going through things she finds something that she recognizes as one of a kind and extremely valuable, if it is in fact authentic. Carly also finds some documents that will change the entire family, a long kept secret that she has to decide who to tell and when. All of this takes her back to live with her grandmother, Mary, where Carly gets help from Detective Lucas Bennett, the brother of a long ago boyfriend of hers.

The item of value that she found is potentially the cause of murders, so she is concerned for her family and that they are in danger. There is possibly a Russian mob behind the murders happening and she has to find out in order to know if she and her family are safe.

I don't want to say more, but was engaging, fast paced, and held my interest throughout. I love how many connections were made and family involved. It definitely kept me on my toes!

The narrator of the audio version was excellent, had really good voice inflections, and was easy to follow. I would absolutely listen to this narrator again.

Loved the narrator and there was an interesting premise for this novel. I enjoyed the parts about the hunt for a family treasure and the provenance of the faberge egg.

I did find some of it a bit far-fetched though, especially towards the end. Maybe the tension between Carly and her family should have been explored more, with no instafix? Its not bad though, well worth the listen.

Thanks to Thomas Nelson for approving me for this title via Netgaley.

Fragile Designs is a story full of mystery, murder and intrigue. It's also a story full of hope, love and sacrifice. Listening to this story reminded me that I really do ejoy Colleen Cobles books. She has a way of capturing your attention right from the beginning so you don't want to stop reading/listening to it.

This story follows Carly Harris, a newly widowed mom. Carly is living with her grandmother and her infant son. Her grandmother has decided to rennovate their home in Buford into a B&B. While in the process Carly discovers a big family secret that turns her world upside down.

Lucas Bennett, Carly's neighbor and homicide detective, trys to help Carly investigate this family secret. Lucas is not a big fan of Carly especially since she broke his brother's heart. But since she was married to his friend and her grandmother was a friend of theirs he feels that he can't say no.

The action and adventure of this story plays out so well. With all the little things that come out it keeps you on your toes the whole time that you almost don't realize what is going on. It's a very intriguing story.

The narrator does an excellent job of keeping the story interesting. I really liked the way she did the voices that you immediately know who is speaking as she changes the voices. She really helped me to imagine each of the characters and I really would love to hear other stories that she narrates.

I did not realize this was Christian fiction when I picked it up. I would not have read this if I had known that however it was not a bad read and I’m glad gave it a try. The story was enjoyable.

Fragile Designs
By: Colleen Coble

Genre:
Fiction Thriller, Romantic Suspense

Summary:
A pregnant Carly suffers the tragic loss of her husband who is a police officer, and is killed during a home invasion. This leaves Carly as a single mother who is forced to make a choice, raise sweet baby Noah on her own or move in with her grandma.

Grandma has a plan to make her home into a Bed and Breakfast, which allows Carly to leave her job, focus on her writing and help grandma with the renovations. While cleaning through the attic Carly makes an unbelievable discovery. Once that will rock her family to the core.

Review:
I love reading Colleen Coble, and she doesn’t disappoint in Fragile Designs! It is fast paced, action packed, and full of unpredictable suspense! The plotline and transitions flow perfectly, the tension between Carly and her sisters, and the romantic suspense between Carly and Lucas is unbelievable! I did receive an audio version of this novel and the narrator pulled off the southern accent and charm. It was truly engaging! Highly Recommend this read or listen.

Thank you to Colleen Coble, Thomas Nelson, Zondervan Audio, and NetGalley for the Advanced Readers Copy for free. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

#netgalley #colleencoble #fragiledesigns #Thomasnelson #ARC #Zondervanaudio

It is hard for me to admit that Fragile Designs was my first book that I have read by Colleen Coble. One thing that I can promise is that it will not be my last. I really liked so much about Fragile Designs. It had all the elements necessary for it to be a successful romantic suspenseful mystery. Fragile Designs was fast paced and well plotted. The characters were not only likable but so well developed. Of course, there were a handful of characters that were difficult to like, as well. I appreciated that Colleen Coble put a strong, capable and caring woman protagonist at the center of this story. From what I gathered about Colleen Coble’s distinctive signature aspects of her writing, Fragile Designs included a “clean” romance and also had elements that included distinctive Christian values that were apparent in the fictional characters in this book. Fragile Designs took place in both South Carolina and Georgia. I listened to the audiobook that was so well narrated by Karen Peakes. Her interpretation of and the distinction between the characters was outstanding.

Carly Tucker/ Harris had been married to her police officer husband, Eric, for three years when Carly discovered that she was pregnant with their first child. She had not worked up the courage yet to tell Eric her news. Perhaps today would be the day that she would tell Eric that he was going to become a father. Things had not been great between Carly and Eric lately. Maybe that was why she hadn’t shared her news with him yet. Carly was shocked by what she discovered when she arrived home and went to find Eric. When Carly found Eric, he lay brutally murdered on the floor of their garage. In that instant, Carly became a widow and she would become a single mother.

A little over nine months later, Carly was living with her beloved grandmother, Mary Tucker, in her old but rather large home in Beaufort, South Carolina. The home had been in Carly’s grandmother’s family for generations. It sat on scenic waterfront property but the house was in dire need of many repairs and updates. Carly’s grandmother had been contemplating a renovation and an idea of turning the house into a bed-and-breakfast. Mary Tucker thought that a bed-and-breakfast was exactly what would secure Carly’s and her infant son, Noah’s, livelihood and futures. Ryan, Carly’s high school boyfriend, who happened to live next door, agreed to do the needed renovations. Carly’s grandmother envisioned that Carly and her two younger sisters could all have a share in the planning of the bed-and-breakfast and its future. The sisters were informed about the plans and arrived ready to do their part. Carly and her sisters’ relationship was not one that was warm and loving. Her sisters resented Carly and blamed Carly for many things. They were downright nasty and even cruel to Carly. After their mother died and their father disappeared from their lives, Carly felt responsible for her sisters and practically raised them. Carly’s sisters showed no signs of appreciation or love for her.

Carly and her grandmother agreed that the first thing that needed to be done was cleaning out the house. There were so many pieces of furniture that Carly’s grandmother had inherited from her mother that had been stored in the attic. Since Carly had the knack and talent for recognizing valuable pieces and pieces that were not worth anything but sentimental value, she was tasked with cleaning out the attic. Carly would decide what to keep and what to sell. During Carly’s first attempt at this task, she discovered a letter in an old chest with life changing information. The contents of the letter revealed a long kept secret. Shaken by the contents of the letter, Carly continued to go through the abandoned items and furniture only to discover a true treasure. If the treasure was what Carly suspected it was, her life and perhaps her safety and that of her family could be affected. Carly began to wonder if her husband’s death could have had anything to do with the things she just discovered? All this was way beyond Carly’s comfort level and knowledge. She knew that she needed help but who could she trust with this newly acquired knowledge? Carly decided to seek out Lucas Bennet’s assistance. Lucas was Ryan’s older brother. He was a homicide detective and lived next door to Carly’s grandmother. Even though Carly believed that Lucas disliked Carly ever since she broke up with his brother back when she was in high school, Carly decided to take a chance on Lucas. Would Lucas be able and willing to help Carly?

I really enjoyed Carly’s character. She was strong, capable, determined, caring and always thinking of others before herself. Carly enjoyed taking care of others and she was a great mom to Noah. She held her discoveries close to her heart until she had enough evidence and proof that they were true. She did not want to lift hopes without verifying the facts. I enjoyed the relationship that blossomed between Carly and Lucas. It was unexpected for both but so undeniably beautiful. Both Carly and Lucas were faced with many challenges and questions throughout the book. Fragile Designs was about secrets, murders, long lost and recovered treasures, deceit, family dynamics and drama, gangs, Russian mafia and adoption. I really enjoyed listening to the audiobook of Fragile Designs by Colleen Coble and highly recommend it.

Thank you to Thomas Nelson for allowing me to listen to the audiobook, Fragile Designs by Colleen Coble, through Netgalley in exchange for a honest review. All opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.