October Reading Wrap Up 🎃

 

𝗢𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗪𝗿𝗮𝗽 𝗨𝗽

October flew by for me! It’s not like we did any special this month, but the days went quickly. But tomorrow is a big day- my husband is having double knee replacement surgery tomorrow. It’s been a long time coming and I can hardly believe it’s finally happening. 

October was a pretty good reading month. No five stars books for me, but still solid, entertaining reads. 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

🎧Beasts of Extraordinary Circumstances- a beautiful story about love, nature, and magic. Enjoyed this buddy read with @thereadingteapot and @rjs.readingnook 

🎧Moloka’i- follows the life of a Hawaiian girl who contracts leprosy and is sent away from her family to a quarantined leprosy settlement. My book club read this and it was better than I expected, but I would have preferred an own voices story. 

🎧The Night Ship - this historical fiction novel combines two different time lines. In one, an adventurous girl embarks on a treacherous sea journey from the Netherlands to the Spice Islands in 1629. In the other timeline, a grieving boy is sent to live with his gruff grandfather on a small island off the coast of Western Australia where he learns the story of a tragic Dutch shipwreck 300 years earlier. Thank you Simon & Schuster Audio for the complimentary book! 

Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six - a locked room thriller with lots of twist and turns. Thank you Harlequin Publishing and NetGalley for the digital review copy. 

The Honeys- Mars, a gender-fluid teen, returns to a summer camp to in an attempt to understand their twin sister’s death. This is a slow burning YA horror story. 

⭐️⭐️⭐️

I’m wthe Girl- billed as the spiritual successor to author Courtney Summer’s hit Sadie. I thought it lacked Sadie’s emotional punch and just found this story sad and depressing. 

The Family Game- a writer meets her fiancé’s wealthy and secretive family. A swing and a miss for me. I thought the plot was kind of ridiculous. Thank you Random House and NetGalley for the digital review copy. 

No QOTD from me today. Just asking to please send my hubby some good vibes for his surgery tomorrow. 

🎃𝕳𝖆𝖕𝖕𝖞 𝕳𝖆𝖑𝖑𝖔𝖜𝖊𝖊𝖓!🎃

#monthlywrapup #readingwrapup #crimefiction #thrillerfiction #historicalfiction #bookstagram #audiobooks #audiobookstagram #yahorror #yathriller #yabooks #teenreads 

The Heights

 

Author: Louise Candlish

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Year: 2022

🎧 𝗔𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗼𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 🎧

Thank you @simon.audio for the #giftedcopy! 

A woman will stop at nothing to seek revenge on the man she blames for her son’s death. 

Can you enjoy a book with an unlikeable main character? Ellen Saint, the main character of The Heights, is so filled with rage and hate that’s it’s hard to like her and I’m ok with that. This story is told from multiple points of view and the timeline shifts between past and present. It opens with Ellen recognizing Kieran, the man she feels was responsible for her son’s death. He’s paid his debt to society, but Ellen thinks a few years in prison isn’t enough. And she starts planning the ultimate revenge. 

Ellen never gave Kieran a chance when he was the new kid at school and her son befriended him. She didn’t like him from day one and eventually blamed Kieran for leading her son down the wrong path- all while overlooking her own not-so-great parenting skills and doing very little to actually help her son. 

This is a well plotted story of grief and revenge. Author Louise Candlish knows how to keep the suspense simmering leaving readers on the edge of their seats. Narrators Genevieve Gaunt and Milo Twomey really bring the characters to life. This is perfect for fans of psychological suspense, domestic suspense, shifting timelines, and multiple POVs. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

QOTD: What was your favorite Halloween costume that you wore when you were a kid? Or your most recent favorite Halloween costume? 

My grandmother made a clown costume for me when I was little. She sewed it all herself. I remember it being very colorful and fun. 

#theheights #simonaudio #audiobook #louisecandlish #audiobookstagram #audiobookreview #suspensebooks #revengethriller #domesticsuspense #crimefiction #london #revengeisadishbestservedcold

The Family Game

 

Author: Catherine Steadman

Publisher: Random House

Year: 2022

📖 𝗣𝘂𝗯 𝗗𝗮𝘆 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 📖

An author discovers deadly family secrets after she meets her fiancé’s incredibly wealthy and powerful family for the first time. 

Harriette’s life seems perfect. Her debut novel was a bestseller and she’s in love with the man of her dreams. But Harriette has a dark secret that must never come to light. Edward, her fiancé, is estranged from his powerful old-money family. The news of their engagement motivates Edward’s family to bring him back into the fold. And that’s when Harriette gets pulled into a deadly game.

This is one of those books where, when I finished it, I thought “that was pretty good.” And then after a little while I started to really think about it. And guess what? Nah. Didn’t really like it that much. Most of the book is just a set up for the last 40ish pages. And upon reflection, the “solution” to take care of the dark, deadly family secret that the rich, powerful father comes up with pretty ridiculous. Sorry I’m being so vague. I don’t want to give away any spoilers. 

I have really enjoyed the author’s previous books, but this one just didn’t do it for me. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to @netgalley and Random House for the digital review copy. The Family Game is available today. 

QOTD: what are you reading this week? 

 I started Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six the other day. So far so good!

#thefamilygame #crimefiction #thriller #darkfamilysecrets #slowburnbooks #thrillerbooks #thrillerfiction #familysecrets #familygamenight #bookstagram #booksta #pubday #publicationday #bookworm #bibliophile 

Christmas Books

 

I’m the outreach librarian for my local public library. I’m pretty new to the job, but I’m really enjoying. The library has numerous self-lending stations throughout the county to give community members, especially those who have difficulty getting to the library, access to books. I’m starting to add Christmas books to my deliveries to the library’s outreach stations. Maybe I should have been like all the stores and started with Christmas back in August.

#librarylife #lovemylibrary #libraryoutreach #librarianlife #christmasbooks #christmasbookstagram #bookstagram #howmanyistoomany 

The Furies

Author: John Connolly 

Narrator: Jeff Harding

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Year: 2022

 🎧 𝗣𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗗𝗮𝘆 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 🎧

Happy pub day to John Connolly’s new book 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬, the latest addition to his long running Charlie Parker series. Thank you Simon & Schuster for the gifted copy 

This book is really two interconnected novellas. Even though this is the 20th book in the series featuring Portland, Maine PI Charlie Parker, it’s the first one I’ve read. I’ve know about the series but always shied away because the books have a supernatural component. And usually I like my thrillers paranormal-free. I decided to give this one a try and was intrigued when the first story opened with a brutal crime committed in Athens, PA - a location not too far from me. That certainly grabbed my interest. The story soon shifted to Portland, where the return of Raum Buker, a nasty criminal, puts the lives of two sisters in jeopardy. In the second story, Charlie must protect two women who face different threats as Covid becomes a global pandemic. 

Both stories did have a paranormal element and I ended up enjoying them. I had no trouble jumping into the series at book 20. There was enough backstory info to give me a sense of the kind of guy Charlie is and the kinds of cases he takes on. Narrator Jeff Harding did a fantastic job. His narration reminded me of a hard boiled detective from a 1940s noir movie. It’s just the right tone for this atmospheric thriller. I really enjoyed this one and it’s perfect if you’re in the mood for a supernatural thriller this spooky season. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

QOTD: how’s the weather in your corner of the world? It’s a beautiful warm and sunny day here and I’m loving it. 

#thefuries #johnconnolly #simonaudio #jeffharding #audiobook #audiobookstagram #audiobookreview #crimefiction #thrillerbooks #suspensebooks #supernatural #supernaturalthriller #detectivefiction #charlieparker #portlandmaine #bookstagram #publicationday #charlieparkerseries 

Dark Room Etiquette

Author: Robin Roe

Publisher: Harper Teen

Year: 2022

📖 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 📖

Thank you to author @robinroewriter, @harperteen and @netgalley for the digital review copy. 

Saye is a rich high school kid who’s one of the popular and cool kids. He’s aloof, and seems to find most people and things boring. Basically, he’s not a very likeable kid. Then he is kidnapped by a man claiming to be his biological father. 

 The isolation, loneliness, and trauma Saye goes through when he’s kidnapped are heartbreaking. He does his best to cope and survive, but he loses parts of himself. 

This book examines not only Saye’s trauma, but the effects it has on those around him. It’s a tough story to read, but ultimately it’s message is hopeful. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Dark Room Etiquette publishes on October 11. 

QOTD: what’s new in your little corner of the world? 

Not much going on here. I’ve just been hanging out with the dogs. We finally had a warm, sunny day today after too many chilly rainy days. 

#darkroometiquette #robinroe #harperteen #yabooks #teenbooks #crimefiction #bullying #bullies #abuse #kidnapping #serialkiller #trauma #teentrauma #teentraumarecovery #bookstagram #publishingsoon