Memorial Day

 Memorial Day

Memorial Day is the day we honor and remember those who died in active military service of our country. 🇺🇸

My son in law is a history buff so I used some of his books to put together this stack for today. 

What’s on everyone’s agenda today? Right now I’m listening to the noisy cicadas and watching my daughter’s dogs chase the cicadas flying around the yard. One of her dogs loves eating them. 🤮

Hope y’all have a great day! 

Heaven’s a Lie

 Heaven’s a Lie 

Author: Wallace Stroby 

Publisher: Mulholland Books

Year: 2021

It’s no secret that I’m an action reader. Combine an action packed plot with a smart, plucky, and likable main character and I’m a happy reader! Wallace Stroby’s books have been making me a happy reader- first with his Carissa Stone series and now with his latest book Heaven’s a Lie. 

Joette Harper is down on her luck and working the front desk at a crummy hotel. One night, a deadly car accident takes place in front of the motel. Joette finds a bag full of money in wreckage and she impulsively takes it. She has debts to pay and could use a change of luck. Joette’s decision to keep the cash puts her life in danger when a very bad man comes looking for his money. 

Joette is a very real main character. She’s still grieving the death of her husband, trying to pay off medical bills, and dealing with her mother who had a debilitating stroke. Joette’s desperation keeps her fighting to keep the money against all odds. 

This book is perfect for readers who like high octane thrillers and smart, strong, and resourceful main characters. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The long holiday weekend is upon us. I’m at my daughter’s house babysitting her dogs while she and her husband are away at a wedding for the weekend. I’ll just be hanging out with their two dogs and reading. What are your weekend plans? 

#heavensalie #wallacestroby #mulhollandbooks #thriller #thrillerbooks #mystery #takethemoneyandrun #finderskeepers #bookstagram #bookreview #jerseyshore #motel #readreadread #noir #alwaysreading 

They Went Left

 They Went Left

Author: Monica Hesse 

Narrator: Caitlin Davies

Publisher: Little Brown Young Readers Audiobook 

Year: 2020

How do you find one lost boy on a continent full of lost people? 

Zofia Lederman, an 18 year old Polish Jewish girl, survived the nightmare of the Holocaust. Now months after the end of the war, she is on a desperate journey to find her younger brother Abek. Her journey takes her back to their hometown and then through Poland and into to Germany as she looks for Abek. Zofia lands in a displaced persons camp where she finds others trying to piece their lives back together. 

I loved Monica Hesse’s book Girl in the Blue Coat, a WWII mystery set in Amsterdam. They Went Left is a heartbreaking search for family, love, and hope. Zofia’s desperation is palpable thanks to Caitlin Davies’ narration. I liked that this book highlighted what happened to Zofia after being liberated rather than her time in the camps. Zofia must write to and work with numerous aid organizations during her search for Abek. Zofia and the friends she makes in the displaced persons camp must decide how to put their lives back together after surviving history’s darkest time. I found this story compelling, heartbreaking, and yet hopeful. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#monicahesse #theywentleft #littlebrownyoungreaders #historicalfiction #wwii #holocaust #holocaustfiction #youngadultfiction #yahistoricalfiction #audiobook #audiobookreview #caitlindavies #ireadya #teenfiction #displacedpersonscamp #audible #audibledailydeal 

Hour of the Witch

 Hour of the Witch

Author: Chris Bohjalian

Narrator: Grace Experience and cast

Publisher: Random House Audio

Year: 2021

Mary Deerfield is a young woman in Puritanical Boston. She’s married to Thomas, an older and well to do man. By all accounts Mary is a good wife, stepmother, and pious woman. She just hates getting physically abused when her husband gets drunk. When Thomas stabs Mary in the hand with a fork, she realizes that Thomas will eventually kill her one day. She decides to divorce him instead. That idea doesn’t go over too well in the male-dominated Puritan community and soon whispers of Mary being involved in witchcraft begin. 

I’m guessing author Chris Bohjalian did tons of reach in order to write this book. He seems to have gotten all the details of the time period, including the language, down. Mary is a woman ahead of her time. She has thoughts, opinions, and desires. She doesn’t want to be a victim. 

I liked the over-all plot and the narration lead by Grace Experience was excellent. But the story just dragged a little too much for me. I expected more of a thriller and instead got a lot of talking about forks. This is perfect for readers who love historical fiction with a little side of legal thriller or who are intrigued with New England’s witchcraft hysteria. 

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 for me because it was a tad to slow for my taste. 

 

#thehourofthewitch #graceexperience #randomhouseaudio #chrisbojalian #audiobook #audiobookreview #witchcraft #boston #puritans #audiobookstagram #devilstines #historicalfiction 

Light Perpetual

 Light Perpetual 

Author: Francis Spufford

Narrator: Imogen Church

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio 

Year: 2021

Happy Tuesday! 

🎧 Audiobook Review 🎧

Thank you Sion & Schuster Audio for the gifted copy of this audiobook! 

It’s 1944. Shoppers are jammed in a crowded store on a busy Saturday when a German bomb falls, killing everyone including five children. But the children’s stories don’t end there. In author Francis Spufford’s new novel, he imagines what their lives might have been if the bomb never fell. 

Spufford shows restraint in the alternative timeline of his main characters’ lives. They don’t grow up to be rich and famous or change the course of history. They live ordinary lives full of ordinary trials, tribulations, and triumphs- job changes, falling in love, mental health issues, toxic relationships, surly teenage children, good life choices, and bad. Ordinary people who would have lived ordinary lives had a bomb not fallen on them.

Narrator Imogen Church brings the story to life in the audiobook. Her narration is spot on. In one particular chapter, Ben, who has schizophrenia, has a mental health crisis as he struggles to ignore the voice in his head. Church’s narration  is both heartbreaking and frightening as he works to stay in the moment and not allow his fear to spiral out of control. 

This is a story of what could have been- the everyday joy, sorrow, hope, love, fear, challenges, grace, and second chances. This is a good choice for readers who enjoy character driven novels or who like historical fiction. Light Perpetual is available now. 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Are you a character or a plot driven reader? 

#lightperpetual #francisspufford #simonaudio #audiobooks #audiobookreview #characterdriven #london #historicalfiction #literaryfiction #bookstagram #audiobookstagram #audiobooksofinstagram #whatmighthavebeen 

The Perfect Daughter

 The Perfect Daughter 

Author: D.J. Palmer

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

Year: 2021

What is it about multi personality disorder that captures our imagination? From books to movies, we are intrigued with characters who have split personalities. 

Penny is the cherished adopted daughter of the Francone family. But she’s not just Penny. She’s also Ruby, Chloe, and Eve. When Penny is found covered in blood and holding a knife at the scene of her birth mother’s murder, her family and her doctor set out to prove Penny’s diagnosis of multiple personalities and her innocence. 

This book is filled with twists and turns, suspects, and red herrings which makes it an enthralling thriller. The author treats mental health issues with respect instead of just using it as a cliched plot device or for shock value. 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I read this as part of a #spontaneousgroupread hosted by the fabulous @andrea.c.lowry.reads She’s an amazing bookstagrammer and if you’re not following her, you really should. Loved our group discussion about the book too. 

My sister and I had a wonderful visit with our mom this week. Mom, who has Alzheimer’s, was alert and chatty. She said she’d busy writing lesson plans and curriculum. She’s been retired from teaching elementary school for 30 years. She also complained that after working for hours on it, her principal would just stick it all in a file without bothering to read it- just like a typical administrator. 😂 The teacher part of her brain is still going strong! 😀 

What’s everyone reading this weekend? I’m starting The Prophets today. 

#theperfectdaughter #djpalmer #stmartinspress #mentalhealth #thriller #multiplepersonalities #mystery #bookreview #kindle #ebookreview #groupread #buddyread #spontaneousgroupread  

One Got Away

 One Got Away

Author: S.A. Lelchuk

Narrator: January LaVoy

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Year: 2021

Happy Monday! 

Nikki Griffin, a PI who’s also a bookstore owner, is back in the second installment from author S.A. Lelchuk. This time Nikki has been hired by the son of a wealthy San Francisco matriarch who believes his mother is the victim of a con-man. Following the trail of the con-man leads Nikki to some very bad men. And Nikki isn’t afraid to dish out some revenge to bad men. 

Lelcuck keeps the action going full throttle throughout the book. As Nikki’s search for the con-man and answers continues, she comes up against very dangerous group of sex traffickers. There’s lots of twists and turns to keep the action going and Nikki is like a dog who won’t let go of a bone. Nikki is a strong and complex main character. The senseless murders of her parents when she was young gave her a sense of justice and a moral code that often operates outside the law. Yet, she hasn’t last her humanity and does try to tame her darker demons. Bonus- as a bookstore owner, Nikki is an avid reader, book discussions and titles pop up throughout the story. 

January LaVoy provides an excellent narration for the audiobook. She hits the right notes during the high octane action scenes and conveys Nikki’s warmth and humor- especially during Nikki’s encounters with a lonely boy who helps her with the case. 

Even though this is the second book in the series, it could be read as a stand alone. There’s enough info in the book to give you a sense of the events of the first book. This is perfect for readers who are fans of Orphan X, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, and Jack Reacher. 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

How does everyone’s week look? I’m getting my second shot tomorrow and hope to see my parents later this week. 

#onegotaway #salelchuck #macmillianaudio #januarylavoy #thriller #mystery #audiobook #audiobookreview #audiobookstagram #audiobooksofinstagram #femaleprivateinvestigator #badasswoman #sanfrancisco #privateinvestigator #privateinvestigation #conman #makethempay