Thank you to get red PR for sending me this advanced reader copy of roll the sun across the sky.

Our FMC Arden Rice has devoted her entire life, making sure that her daughter Leigh has whatever she needs. This includes a life of secrets, betrayals, and many marriages.
She is finally at peace with her new husband and her daughter, when a train wreck changes the entire trajectory of her life.
Arden is now forced to face her past choices that she has made and reflect on how that has impacted her entire life.

I thought this book was a great representation of how our choices no matter how big or how small can have long lasting effects. This was a quick fast paced read, that left you wondering how Aden would resolve so many of her problems.

I did not leave feedback on any social media sites as I did not like this book. The main character was way too raunchy. I should have stopped reading at ‘outliving the 3,000 people in the Twin Towers’. Very tasteless and disrespectful.

Thanks to She Writes Press for my advanced copy of Roll The Sun Across The Sky by Barbara Linn Probst which comes out May 13th.

This was an interesting book and would be great for book club discussion. Arden was one of the most selfish and complex characters along with being very unlikeable. Through this dual timeline, you see her in her early 20s and then again as she turns 60 and tragedy strikes. As Arden reflects on her life she thinks about the decisions she's made and what makes a person.

Barbara's writing style captivates you in her books and she has such beautiful writing.

If you like women's fiction or family drama you'll enjoy this book.

I have read all of Barbara Linn Probst’s superbly written ‘book club’ novels (with their beautiful covers!) but this one was rather different, primarily because the author has taken some big risks by writing a protagonist who is one of the most unlikeable characters I have ever read outside of a thriller. Arden Rice’s journey through this novel begins when she is 24 as she travels to Europe with Robert, the young man she seems to have conveniently paired with for her own selfish ends. The story then moves to Arden on her 60th birthday when she faces a tragedy of immeasurable proportions that leaves her 10-year-old granddaughter in her care and her unkind behaviors in her past life to reckon with. Now we find out more about what has shaped Arden and how she has shaped her own daughter. For me I was wondering about Arden’s parents? How did they shape her? There is very little in Arden’s musings to give us any insight into her childhood.

Of course, as this is a novel we guess Arden is in the end going to change and become a nice person. To find out if that happens the reader will have to read it… but be warned, it is no light and predictable road. For me, I was left with bemusement about Arden’s character… I personally in real life have never known anyone who even approaches such a selfish being and I hope I never will. But sadly I suppose such people exist (everyday people I mean, not some politicians and the like.) The question is, do I want to read about them? Well yes, because I know what an intelligent writer Linn Probst is, and yes, because that is what fiction is for; to explore worlds and people we would otherwise not experience. This is my least favorite novel of this author but for me it is a 4/5 anyway and for other readers it may be anything from a 2 to a 5! And 5 stars to Linn Probst for taking a risky subject and writing a novel about it. Great fodder for book club discussions.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4

Arden Rice loses her family in a tragic accident. Caring for her granddaughter, Arden is now forced to come to terms with moments from her past. Have the decisions she made shaped the future of her daughter's and granddaughter's lives?

This story focuses on flashes from Arden's past and present life, taking readers on a journey through past relationships, while also incorporating chapters from Lilah's point of view. Arden was a complicated character - she was selfish at times, but you still cared about her. Unfortunately, the same can not be said about Lilah. Overall, a riveting tale of womanhood and motherhood.

Advanced reader copy courtesy of Netgalley and She Writes Press. All Opinions are my own.

In 1977, Arden Rice, a twenty-four-year-old teacher, embarked on a journey to Europe with her friend/boyfriend Robert, whose exact relationship status is uncertain. Arden is a selfish and reckless young woman. Despite this, the voice in her head urged her to strive for goodness. The story shifts to 2013, and Arden anticipates celebrating her 60th birthday with her husband, daughter, and granddaughter when tragedy strikes. She wonders if this is the punishment she always expected for her past behavior. The story unfolds across two timelines, one in the first person and the other in the third person, focusing on Arden's relationships. She reflects on the many men who have come and gone in her life and her unwavering commitment to providing her daughter with a good life, regardless of the consequences. Is Arden worthy of forgiveness?

This is the fourth novel by Barbara Linn Probst, who has a talent for creating beautifully written literary fiction. Roll the Sun Across the Sky challenges readers to care about Arden, a complex character who has shown love yet has also committed cruel acts and told numerous lies. The novel explores themes of love, loss, grief, and redemption. Additionally, stories set in Manhattan always provide added appeal. It's an emotional journey that moved me to tears. 

4.25 stars.

This is women’s fiction at its finest; it’s memorable, thought-provoking, complex, maddening, and haunting. There is so much to unpack here, and I devoured it.

My reviews seldom give the background/premise or synopsis of a book, because we can all look those up with ease on our own. My focus is always on the writing, the character-development, the sensitivity it provokes, and the pace and depth of the story. The story unfolds in two separate timelines; one told in first person and the other told in third person. These timelines reveal this very imperfect, even unlikable, protagonist who is Arden Rice.

She is shown to the dear reader to be chronically flawed, yet hopeful to change; she is just like we all are: imperfect and flawed—perhaps not all in the same way, but, nonetheless, human.

It is a story about love, family, grief, guilt, and redemption, with a backdrop of breathtaking, lyrical prose, a smidge of suspense, and well-crafted, multi-dimensional supporting characters. I loved it.

It is difficult to review without revealing spoilers, but it is an exceptional journey of life and all the chaotic, horrible, beautiful, and exquisite elements that transpire during one’s unique expedition. This will make for a scintillating book club discussion. It is due to be published on May 13th, 2025.

Thank you author, Barbara Lin Probst; publisher, She Writes Press; and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of the ARC in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are wholly my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and She Writes Press for an ARC of Roll The Sun Across the Sky by Barbara Linn Probst in exchange for my honest review.

I truly dislike giving a book a negative review, but Barbara Linn Probst’s latest novel, Roll the Sun Across the Sky, left me with such a bad taste in my mouth. So here it is.

When I read the premise for this story, it sounded like it was right in my wheelhouse – mother-daughter relationship, dual timeline, a woman facing her past mistakes seeks redemption. This book was all that, however, I found Arden Rice, our main character, to be extremely unlikeable. I would even go so far as to say she is narcissistic and cruel. I don’t have a problem with unlikeable characters, and when done well, I often root for them or at least laugh at or with them. That was not the case with Arden. Everything that happens to her she brings upon herself. At the beginning of the story, when Arden was 24, she does something so cruel and purposeful, a malicious unprovoked action that could have caused great physical harm to another person, all to benefit herself. Most of this book is from Arden’s POV, and is essentially her stream of consciousness as she moves through her life, so we have a very good understanding about this character’s intents and motivations. I don’t want to elaborate further so as not to spoil the book for other readers. Suffice it to say, I found that single act at the beginning of the book so despicable and inexcuseable, that it would have been best for me to DNF the book at that point.

I decided to read on to see if Arden would be able to redeem herself. Sadly, she makes one mean and hurtful decision after the next. Even in the present-day timeline, when Arden is a grandmother, I found her to be insufferable. The ending had suggestions of redemption, but at that point it was too late for this reader.

The book moves quickly and I found the time-line hops to be successful. I may be an outlier with my low, critical review of this book, because there are several 5-star reviews out there, so if the premise and themes of Roll the Sun Across the sky sound interesting to you please check out other reviews.

I feel like the author had great ambition for this story but the execution falls short. I'm no prude, but the emphasis on the sexual roles of these characters felt shallow to me. It felt reductive as if sex is the most important part of a person's life. I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Barbara Linn Probst, the Author of “Roll the Sun Across the Sky” has written a thought-provoking, captivating and intriguing novel. In this well written and reflective novel, the author vividly describes the landscape, scenery, and dramatic characters. The genres for this novel are Women’s Fiction, Motherhood, and Marriage and Divorce. The characters are described as complex, complicated and flawed. In this novel, the author discusses how past behavioral mistakes can contribute to actions in the present and future. I appreciate that the author also mentions the importance of family, forgiveness, second chances, love and hope. Other questions arise is the importance of money, and is the pen mightier than the sword? Can words be dangerous, or creative?

The protagonist of the story Arden Rice is about to celebrate a birthday that turns out to be tragic. She revisits her life, her loves, her secrets, her betrayals, her mistakes, and bad choices. Arden is seeking some sort of redemption for herself and her granddaughter. As secrets and perceptions are clarified, Arden is looking for a positive path. I couldn’t put this book down, and I highly recommend it. This is an amazing, memorable, and heartfelt story.

This was an engaging read and an interesting reflection on life's choices (and wrongs done). There's a dual timeline between sixty-year-old Arden and her twenty-something self. As present-day Arden copes with the aftermath of an unbelievable tragedy, we trace the path that got her to where she is.

At face value, Arden is a good woman with a good family who should never have to endure what she's being put through. And yet we see she has always believed herself at some level unworthy of such a good life. When that life falls apart, it's almost like the thing she's been waiting for has finally arrive: her comeuppance.

While it's up to the reader to decide whether we agree with Arden's assessment, I think she inflated her own importance in others' lives quite a bit. We see this when she eventually allows herself a chance to right some of her past wrongs, or at least speak to those she had wronged. She had great power over the men who loved her, but they also had plenty of agency and ability to heal those wounds, whereas in Arden's mind they sort of stayed preserved in amber on the last day she heard from them.

I like that about this story, just as I like the author's portrayal of Arden's various misdeeds as selfish yet relatable. Arden's lack of true hardship in life makes her a little hard to like sometimes, and her missteps harder to forgive. At the same time, I have experienced the compulsion to avoid a man whose feelings for me feel oppressive. Under duress, I have blurted out words I would immediately want back. Even if we need to dislike Arden a tiny bit, we can see a bit of ourselves in her too. She shows a way through even the worst times, into a place of self-awareness and steadiness.

I hit a few snags while reading -- I wondered if the character of Leigh might have benefited from a tiny bit more development, and I didn't quite understand why the past chapters were in first person while the present ones were in third person -- but overall I was surprised by how much this story drew me in.

Barbara Linn Probst has given us another well written, enjoyable page turner. Her characters are relatable, complex, interesting. The use of first person and third person for the main character at different ages was interesting and intriguing.

The main character reflects on her lifetime of moral and ethical mistakes that she has made in her lifetime. The storyline goes along two time periods from past to present and Arden the main character relives many of the mistakes that she made in her life in searching for a way to make inner peace with her past. The story was well developed and the characters were relatable as no one is perfect. I highly enjoyed and recommend this book. Many thanks to Netgalley and She Writes Press for providing me an advanced readers copy in exchange for my review.

Barbara Linn Probst is successful again in her fourth book, Roll The Sun Across The Sky. It is a compelling story that spans both time and geography. As a young woman, Arden explores Europe and Egypt, with the iconic Orient Express as part of her journey. The timeline contrasts her youthful experiences with her reflections at 60. She is quite a complex character with more than her share of flaws, but she does have redeeming qualities as well.
This a a very entertaining book.

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

A woman relives the mistakes of her youth when she suffers an unimaginable tragedy. Were her sins responsible for her losses?

This book had a somber tone and was more serious and melancholy than a lot of the books I read. But there were some really interesting life lessons. I couldn’t stand how often Arden lied. Her lies were selfish, but at least she realized that. As far as the plot, I didn’t know what would happen, which is a sign of good writing! And I enjoyed seeing the parallels between mother and daughter. I just wish they had communicated more openly.

Approaching a milestone birthday, Arden Rice
experience it all: three marriages, hardship,
wealth, things she regrets and defends-to give her daughter the best life she can. That's
what Arden thought.
But nothing is simple for Arden. Haunted by her
history, with a background of damage and
deception. Then her life went into chaos.

Secrets unravel, and Arden finds herself
questioning herself. Her roll in shaping the
disturbing person her daughter is. . As
the stakes increase, especially with her granddaughter that was in her care, Arden
questions herself: Which acts define a person?

A mother-daughter is, a compelling story about woman's
struggle to face her reckless past, with a lot of
of damage and deception.

I had a hard time getting into the book at the beginning. However I really enjoy this mother u daughter book

This is Barbara Linn Probst's fourth book and it continues her trend of excellent and memorable stories. Each of her books are different but what they all have in common is beautiful writing and characters who make a lasting impression on her readers. She has quickly become an author that I follow so that I don't miss any of her books or the insights that she shares on social media about her research and writing process.

Roll the Sun Across the Sky looks at love and loss, guilt and forgiveness - not just forgiveness of others but also forgiving yourself. Arden looks at her life from her trip to Egypt with her boyfriend when she was 20 until present day when at 60 she is faced with a terrible life event and begins to look back at all of the nuances of her life. Her life is full of various men, a daughter she loves but doesn't really understand and now a granddaughter who is in her care and becomes her main focus in life. She knows that she's made mistakes every step of the way and has to decide if the mistakes were worth it and if she has learned from her past. This is a beautiful look at a woman’s struggle to face her history and the damage she has done to herself and others and to decide whether she can find redemption from her past.

When I started reading this novel,8 felt this will be a good summer beach book and not much more. The more I got into it, I realized it addresses many issues, such as promiscuity, loneliness, , deception, family , relationships, remorse, etc. Although Arden, the main character was not very likeable in the beginning, the reader’s empathy is growing when Arden is confronted with tragedy and figures out how to deal with it and how to atone for her previous life.
I received a complimentary copy, opinions are my own. Thanks NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the advanced copy

Roll the Sun Across the Sky is a woman’s story about truth, regrets, reflection, and renewal. It is told mainly through Arden’s eyes as she makes cringing mistakes and decisions without thought.

The novel begins with a twenty-something, Arden, who travels with a boyfriend to Egypt and becomes pregnant. It evolves to show Arden navigating to protect her daughter and have a better life at all costs. The novel transitions to the present day as Arden must deal with the untimely death of her daughter, Leigh, and her third husband, Connor, who is her soulmate. Readers will relate as she deals with caring for her granddaughter, Danielle, and balancing her grief.

Through Danielle’s revelations, she discovers past secrets, realizing that her decisions and cruel actions against men affected her relationships in many ways. She suffers from her mistakes upon the deaths of her husband and daughter, picking up the pieces to help her granddaughter cope.

I like the two timelines as we see Arden progress in making her life right again, if only for her granddaughter. Her character is unlikeable yet painfully honest. I thank NetGalley for allowing me to read and review Roll the Sun Across the Sky. #NetGalley #Roll the Sun Across the Sky #Women’sfiction