I’m not trying to steal Tarryn Fisher’s bag so let me recommend I Can Be a Better You, The Wrong Family, The Wives or the first in The Opportunist serI’m not trying to steal Tarryn Fisher’s bag so let me recommend I Can Be a Better You, The Wrong Family, The Wives or the first in The Opportunist series. This one, though????
Friendly reminder to authors. Covers are important. Your opinion can differ from mine with respect to the cutesie cartoony cover (me = love ‘em), but similar cover art is never a bad thing when it comes to the ability of old geezers like myself looking for their next read. I loved The Love Hypothesis and still have Love on the Brain on the Kindle to get to eventually – and the reason it got there was because I recognized the art instantly. Honestly, I didn’t even notice Ali Hazelwood’s name on this one because . . .
But then I was chatting my weekly chat with Shelby like we do and when we finally got around to talking books after dissing our husbands for a bit she said she was reading this porny little vampyre/werewolf thing and loving it so obviously I put it on hold at the library.
Now, it’s been a hot minute since I’ve read some leechy shifter shiz, but be still my ever Twilight loving self, this was IT for me! Bonus – it even had a plot and not just smexuals (*cough knotting cough*). If you want your supernatural love to be full on NC-17 rather than PG-13, get a copy of this stat. And if you want some more werewolf smut, I recommend most anything by Suzanne Wright.
Do you ever find yourself reading books that randomly have things in common? Generally, for me at least, it comes in the form of a song I haven’t hearDo you ever find yourself reading books that randomly have things in common? Generally, for me at least, it comes in the form of a song I haven’t heard in a billion years being referenced in back-to-back reads or a not often used city somehow being the setting. This time it was the plot itself – the whodunit surrounding the death of a nanny. (In case you are curious/are a sufferer of the FOMO like myself – the book I read before this was The Other Mothers - and it was a winner).
I snagged this copy without even taking a gander at a blurb when it was offered up as a Read Now on NetGalley and didn’t pay attention to the fact that Sarah Pekkanen had not partnered up with her usual other half Greer Hendricks for this one - but it REALLY felt like it was co-written. I loooooooooved the storyline regarding the dead nanny and the potential suspects (should her death be proven to be intentional and not merely a horrible accident). The rich wife, the adulterer husband, the silent (yet oh so creepy) daughter and the doting granny ALL had my hinky meter going off. And the divorce proceedings which brought our leading lady Stella in as an advocate for Rose to determine which custody arrangement would be in her best interest was excellent. But then there was the subplot regarding Stella’s dead mother and . . . . .
Not only was it completely unnecessary, it really derailed a quality murder mystery for me (and felt like it was written by someone else and merely spliced together). 3.5 Stars, but rounding down. (Oh, and it should go without saying I really do not like the cover – good thing this was a known-to-me author so I overlooked it ha-ha.)
ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you, NetGalley! ...more
Here’s another ancient ARC that’s been sitting around my NetGalley shelf for eternity. I picked this up despite the dreaded face cover (and let me telHere’s another ancient ARC that’s been sitting around my NetGalley shelf for eternity. I picked this up despite the dreaded face cover (and let me tell you the flowers/fruits/veggies covering the face cover is one of my absolute most hated face covers, but it actually makes sense here so kudos to you, cover artist) because I REALLY enjoyed Good Rich People by this author. But this one???? Woof.
So first, the entire premise of some woman who randomly listens to a podcaster and then not only assumes she has gone missing/has been murdered when said podcast stops casting lets you know right away the leading lady is . . . .
But I can get on board with a little Velma action sometimes, suspend my disbelief and lean into the crazy. The main problem with this is that nothing happened until the end. This could have been a pretty decent short story, but even at less than 300 pages it just drug on and on with nothing happening but repetition that the ranch was not the place Sera wanted to be.
1.5 Stars but rounded up because there was potential here and I appreciate second person narratives when they are done well. ...more
For the first 2/3 of this novel I was feeling my most recent favorite vibes while living in Irina’s world – those that remind m
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OH. MY. GOD.
For the first 2/3 of this novel I was feeling my most recent favorite vibes while living in Irina’s world – those that remind me of Fleabag. But then things got nutty. American Psycho but make her a hot ginger who instead of working on Wall Street makes her living via fetish kink photography.
Obviously from the two references above, this sucker is for those who like things dark. Don’t read it if you are of a sensitive nature. There’s your warning. For those of you who like a whole lot of fuck-up-ed-ness in your fiction? This one is worthy of all the hot button marketing terminology: fresh, original, edgy, riveting, twisted, page-turner, you name it.
Eliza Clark, you are a fucking GIFT. I can’t wait to read more of what you come up with.
If you’re new to my space let me begin with a little recap of my reading style. #1, I hate face covers. #2, I generally don’t read blurbs. I 100% did If you’re new to my space let me begin with a little recap of my reading style. #1, I hate face covers. #2, I generally don’t read blurbs. I 100% did not read a blurb here and was willing to overlook my own opinion about a face cover because ever since I read Luckiest Girl Alive I have been dying to get my hands on a new release by Jessica Knoll.
Which leads to #3, I am an idiot. As soon as I started reading this I was like “hmmmm, they’re straight up naming Florida State as the place where this sorority killer did his killing??? Usually authors tend to name a fictional place.” And then I kept reading and was like “man, this is reading like a true crime story about something that really happened.” BECAUSE IT WAS! Good lord . . . .
If you like serial killer stories and fictionalizations of true crime, this one is not to be missed. It is so quietly powerful with regard to not only the mind of the murderer, but in general with how female victims and witnesses were treated (especially back in the 1970s, but I’m sure still today). And the delivery is matter-of-fact – not preachy or TED talky – it just is what it is. Obviously I had no clue what this was about before (or while) reading, but I was fully invested the entire time.
I don’t know how this book came to be on my TBR (because you KNOW it wasn’t from that cover!). All I know is I was still eleven trillion on the wait lI don’t know how this book came to be on my TBR (because you KNOW it wasn’t from that cover!). All I know is I was still eleven trillion on the wait list for a Kindle copy so I snagged it off the first come/first served shelf last Thursday at the library on my way home from work. I didn’t remember what it was supposed to be about so I took a quick looky-look at the synopsis and saw the potential for a culty church and your girl was down to clown. It also was clearly marked as a “novel of suspense” to which I now have to say . . .
Unfortunately all I can say about this one now that I’m finished is it was nothing but wasted potential. It’s fine if you’re an author who doesn’t want to write dark stuff . . . but you really need to just stay out of the lane of stories that make the reader anticipate really dark stuff. ...more
I’m going to keep this real short because simply put, this book was . . . . not good.
If you’re looking for a brainless “thriller” this summ
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I’m going to keep this real short because simply put, this book was . . . . not good.
If you’re looking for a brainless “thriller” this summer, then maybe (?????) add this to your TBR, but for real don’t ever attach my name to the recommendation. I’m Not Done With You Yet was the basic bitch of fatal female friendship stories. There’s a little obsession, there’s a wibbly wobbly timeline, there’s (not even kidding) 34 mentions of being a sociopath, but there’s oh so very little plot and then the narrator changed but the voice was so similar I had to backtrack and see that I was indeed reading from a different perspective.
Good news is, Jesse Q. Sutanto has already written about obsession (literally – the title is The Obsession) and it was a pretty decent YA approach to a story like You. Even better news is you can skip her additions to the thriller genre altogether and get one of her zany murder mysteries instead because both Vera Wang and The Aunties are laugh-out-loud funny.
This one leaves itself open for a sequel, but please god no . . . .
Mmmmmmm, there’s nothing like the smell of a little gaslighting in the morning!
I’ll be the first to admit Darcey Bell is an acquired taste
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Mmmmmmm, there’s nothing like the smell of a little gaslighting in the morning!
I’ll be the first to admit Darcey Bell is an acquired taste – in fact, I gave A Simple Favor a 1 Star myself. And then the movie came out and I realized there really IS such a thing as being a wrongreader, because I had taken the print version waaaaaay too seriously. If I would have read it as dark humor I would have had a much more enjoyable time.
While this is certainly not going to win a Pulitzer (but, good grief, freaking Demon Cottonmouth (and yes I know it’s Copperhead) won that so I’m not exactly sure what’s happening there), at less than 250 pages this is a perfectly fine way to spend an evening with a bottle of vino out on the deck. A little gaslighting, a little revenge and one hell of a faithful feline friend.
3 Stars for the story – eleven trillion for Catzilla.
Allow me a moment to age myself. When I was a kid, not only did I Walk Like an Egyptian and warble my tiny emo lungs out to “Close your eyes, give me Allow me a moment to age myself. When I was a kid, not only did I Walk Like an Egyptian and warble my tiny emo lungs out to “Close your eyes, give me your hand – can you feel my heart beating????” but I also WORE. THE. SHIT. OUT. Of the VHS tape of the instant classic (LOL) The Allnighter starring none other than . . . .
When I saw she was releasing a novel I was all over it . . . and I was lucky enough to score an early copy. And I give massive props to a 63 year old achieving her dream of getting a book published. But the story just was not great.
Jane is a 33-year old, one-hit-wonder (on a cover song, not even an original) who has somehow managed to never have to get a real job in the decade since her 15 minutes of fame were over. Instead she does things like corporate parties or, as is the jumping off point here, a bachelor party in Vegas. Recently broken up from her famous boyfriend (and watching his life with his new love unfold via social media), Jane’s BFF/manager Pippa offers up her guest room and a getaway to London. On the flight, Jane meets Tom – who then ghosts her for two weeks before making contact, they go out on one date and then they are in instalove and she moves in with him . . . .
Yeah, this was not it. Not only is instalove not my jam, but Jane having no sense of responsibility at over 30 and being a shit friend who immediately ditched her ride or die for some D made it even worse. Not to mention the entire storyline about “Jonesy” which hinted at a real #metoo experience (which could have explained some of Jane’s behaviors) only to amount to nothing and the bizarre Jane Eyre shoutouts made this one a real slog.
ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. ...more
But then the same night I picked up this library hold I came across a news article where one twatty mother had managed to ban over a dozen books in a local high school. So basically near children are allowed to fight and die for our country, but they can’t read about sex and/or gender whatsoever. Got it. Oh, and also the state decided keeping conversion therapy legal is also A-Okay so I live in a shithole.
Ziggy, Stardust and Me tackles conversion therapy in an aggressive One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest sort of way as it is set in 1973. I’ll be honest and say this story didn’t 100% work for me (the Ziggy Stardust parts served as more of a gimmick and a distraction to a solid narrative), but I always love a coming-of-age story and this was an important one to tell – touching not only on the aforementioned conversion therapy and being an outcast to your family for the way you were born, but also mistreatment of Native Americans and the Wounded Knee Occupation, realizing being gay doesn’t mean you’re “broken” so there’s absolutely nothing to be fixed, etc.
The Virgin Suicides meets Bunny. If that sounds like your idea of a good time you should check this one out - otherwis"You girls sure are creepy."
The Virgin Suicides meets Bunny. If that sounds like your idea of a good time you should check this one out - otherwise steer clear. A new take on the missing girl story told via a combo of the Greek chorus as children and individual narratives as adults. This is a time where the purple writing really worked for me …..
Imagine for a second there is inside you something like a soul. This soul is like a bowl of still water. It sits, a clean and precious thing, balanced in your chest. The water is cool. Holy. It is entirely itself. It is like water before water was a word. Now, imagine a syringe. The vial is brown and, as you look at it, you realize it is full of human shit, the tiniest, foulest amount. And imagine this needle being pressed, slowly, into the skin of your sternum, injected, as you watch helplessly, into this bowl of balanced water. How quickly it spreads and stinks and fouls this cleanest thing at your center. And in seconds the bowl is ruined. And you look at the bowl and feel terrible you were unable to protect it, this precious and fragile and perfect thing. And you recognize the life’s work it will take to wash and repair the bowl, and it is not fair, because it is not you who dirtied it. So you tip the bowl over and it breaks. You pretend it does not exist.
But then there are times when a feeling crawls across you. The feeling is all the sadder and truer because you cannot name it. You can live a happy enough life with a broken bowl inside you. But you will always be wanting, a feeling as keen and common to you now as thirst.
I’m going with 3.5 Stars because it seems that’s my go-to in 2023 when I come across something fresh but can’t say I looooooved it. Personal growth that I’m only talking about how much I hate this cover and not deducting points for it ; )
EDIT: Because the blurb calls this "The Virgin Suicides meets The Florida Project" (which I had not watched prior to today). That's accurate as far as the "Greek chorus" portion which is what is only witnessed through the childrens' eyes. The Florida Project is quite possibly one of the best films I've ever seen and a real punch in the throat if you are capable of watching truly depressing shit in your free time....more
I picked this up despite the dreaded face cover when I kept seeing people all over Instagram giving it high ratings and saying “Hank Philli
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I picked this up despite the dreaded face cover when I kept seeing people all over Instagram giving it high ratings and saying “Hank Phillipi Ryan does it again!!!” To which I now say does what again? Writes one of the stupidest things I’ll read this year and bores the crap out of me in the process? Way to go!
The premise here is Alyssa meets Bree at a local hotel bar. After one drink Alyssa offers up her guest house to this complete stranger so already it’s the dumbest shit I’ve ever laid eyes on. Then nothing happens for about eleventy-seven pages aside from Bree making it with another complete stranger who also ends up over at the house all the time. Then the big secret is revealed and Alyssa gets a happy ending . . . . even though if it were real life she would end up destitute because the Feds would have seized all of her assets. The end. I award you zero points and someone smack me if I ever pick up another book by this author again. ...more
Did I just read this nearly 750 page book in two days? Tell me you’re crazy without telling me you’re crazy. In my defense, I didn’t realize how long Did I just read this nearly 750 page book in two days? Tell me you’re crazy without telling me you’re crazy. In my defense, I didn’t realize how long this was before I requested it from the library. I simply saw B.E.E. had a new release and Mitchell said he would hurt me if I didn’t get it immediately. I think I was like a billion and a half down the wait list too, but ended up getting this within a week of asking for it so I think it’s safe to say others either were intimidated by the sheer volume or realized pretty darn quickly this wasn’t for them and returned it. And to whoever you are I say THANK YOU for letting me get my grubby little mitts on it post haste.
Now on to the book. Simply put, this is about . . . .
“the memories I had of the Trawler and more specifically of Robert Mallory.”
Written as a nonfiction narrative, this one is for the Bret Easton Ellis superfan. I mean, if you ever wanted to crawl around inside this fella’s brain, The Shards is the one for you! After finishing I did a Google to see what was said about this “true story” before it was released and I am amazed at how many people were duped. Dear Dummies: YOU LITERALLY HAVE A COMPUTER ATTACHED TO YOUR HAND ALMOST ALL THE TIME. It’s not hard to find out these cases didn’t actually happen. Not to mention he is an author who previously wrote a “true story” about fucking vampires. And also . . .
I was a storyteller and I liked decorating an otherwise mundane incident that maybe contained one or two facts that made it initially interesting to be retold in the first place but not really, but adding a detail or two that elevated the story into something legitimately interesting to the listener and gave it humor or surprise or shock, and this came naturally to me. These weren’t lies exactly – I just preferred the exaggerated version.
I just found out this was initially released as a serial story – new entries were written every two weeks and read by Ellis himself on his podcast. My first reaction to that? Oh yeah, I would have read the crap out of this as a serial. Followed immediately by, ewwwww, B.E.E. even YOU have a podcast?
With that knowledge now is the time to disclose that while I’m the first to say “don’t you have an editor?!?!?!?!” – on this occasion I’m giving a pass – because there literally was no editor nor any intention that this would be released as a physical book when it was initially created.
But I wasn’t kidding when I said this is for the superfan. Basically it reads like a high school journal written by someone with extreme literary chops and covers Bret Easton Ellis’ senior year at Buckley in 1981. Ellis more than dabbles in sex (both of the hetero and nonhetero varieties) and drugs, works on his debut novel Less Than Zero, finds himself a member of the “me too” movement nearly 40 years prior to its time and develops a bit of an obsession with the new boy in school who he believes might just be a serial killer. Oh, and also? It is QUINTESSENTIALLY 1980s. We’re talking popped collars, Topsiders, ray bans and a detailing of every single song that was playing at any moment throughout his days. It certainly is not a book for everyone, but it was most definitely for me. All the Stars.
Whistling tunes we hide in the dunes by the seaside . . . . ...more
The premise here is freshman Stevie is having a hard time adjusting to high school life. While her BFF was taken under the wing of the resident HBIC, Stevie was not simply left in the dust, but bullied by the popular crowd too. Enter Dee and her plan to shake things up, taking the queen (and king) bees down a notch. Strategically placed photos and pranks, all signed “Love, Heather.” It isn’t long before the school looks a little something like this . . . .
Soooooo, the problem with being a certain age as mentioned above is this wasn’t really written for me. I’m not sure of the author’s age, but it absolutely came off at times that she had taken a page out of Uncle Stevie’s playbook by trying to write youngsters only to come off like . . . .
As seems to be the trend of late, this simply had too much going on. The bully story was solid and I never saw the twist coming. And while I’ve complained plenty about absentee parents in YA stories, I have now discovered the only thing worse is when they are on page too much. I don’t even know how to address the entire Pete storyline. Inclusion is great . . . until it’s presented as an insulting stereotype. Once again – keep it simple. Want to write a story/book about gender? Then write THAT book – don’t throw it in as some bizarre add-in just to get more hashtags assigned to your current release. This was a two star “it was okay” read for me pretty much throughout (despite Stevie being a character I felt for), but with the ending and the fact that I am not the target demographic for this one I’m going to go with a three.
ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you, NetGalley! ...more
I’m 100% going to take the blame for my (sorta) wrongreading of this one. You see, 2022 was the yTo find what’s in the dark you have to let it in.
I’m 100% going to take the blame for my (sorta) wrongreading of this one. You see, 2022 was the year where I discovered the “social thriller” and when I saw this book was about Black girls going missing in a backwoods Pennsylvania community my brain immediately told me this was going to fall under the umbrella of that newfound fave genre (so much so that I was able to ignore my dislike of face covers and immediately request it from the library). For those of you who are also thinking about reading this please note this is a horror story, not a thriller.
The story here is of the “maybe you SHOULDN’T go home again” variety. Liz survived a high school party in the woods where Keisha was murdered. Years later, she’s returning to the Rust Belt to attend her best friend’s wedding. And then her friend’s daughter goes missing, bringing up memories of the past and leading Liz to question a slew of unsolved murders of other Black girls that spans 30 years.
Again, I’ll blame myself for finding the big reveal of this one a bit lackluster. I’m definitely a thriller over horror girl . . . .
^^^Oh look, it’s an image of me with my Currently Reading stack. At this point I’m afraid to even look and see how many things I’m supposed
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^^^Oh look, it’s an image of me with my Currently Reading stack. At this point I’m afraid to even look and see how many things I’m supposedly still trying to finish. (In case you don’t know me – I only read one book at a time, but at this point in the year it usually says I’m reading 50 or 60 at once because I suck at posting timely reviews).
I’m going to keep this one short and sweet. It’s been two years since the Sophie Foundation added a new member to their elite rankings, but Jessa might be just what the club is looking for. Gabby can’t leave the suspicious “suicide” of her husband alone – which is making her the prime suspect by the police in what would have been a closed case. Eventually these two former college classmates’ paths will cross again.
Okay, so I’ll be the first to admit that revenge stories just really aren’t my jam. That being said, I thought this was one of the better ones I’ve read. The very obvious motive could have been disclosed about a billion pages sooner and I could always live without soap opera drama (in this case the daughter that was simply thrown in for a *gasp* twist and everything that had anything to do with that part of the storyline). I previously gave this author a 1 Star so I’m glad I enjoyed this one. I’ll eventually get around to Pretty Little Wife....more
At this point I think it’s safe to say I’ll read anything that even hints to having some sort of “cultish” mindset attached to it. The twists and revelations here weren’t anything I couldn’t’ see coming, but it was a satisfactory read and, unfortunately, the big law firm stuff regarding being top dog one day only to quite possibly sink right back to the bottom of the barrel should your productivity fall off was pretty much spot on....more
I’ve said it a million times that my reactions could be blamed on right place/right time way more than 50% of the time. The giant banner advertising tI’ve said it a million times that my reactions could be blamed on right place/right time way more than 50% of the time. The giant banner advertising the series Tell Me Lies kept slapping me right in the face until I finally realized I had an unread Carola Lovering ARC sitting on the Kindle and I decided to give it a whirl.
First things first, I hate the cover. I mean you had to see that one coming. And a warning for anyone looking for a super twisty stabby good time, this probably isn’t the story for you. What it turned out being was sort of a love triangle . . . with a twist. Molly is married to Hunter but used to be rock star Jake’s muse. This is the story of Molly and Hunter’s present life in Connecticut interspersed with Molly and Jake’s love story from the past. I can’t imagine any of the big reveals will come as a huge shocker to most readers, but it was some tasty brain candy when my head wasn’t capable of retaining anything but soap opera style yumminess.
Can’t Look Away was a step up from Colleen Hoover’s style. Stick around 10 years and all the kids on BookTok will discover this author and tell y’all to read her *eyeroll*
3.5 Stars
ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you, NetGalley!...more
I blamed my robot heart for not feeling all of the feels along with everyone else who read Summers’ last release Sadie, but made sure I was first in lI blamed my robot heart for not feeling all of the feels along with everyone else who read Summers’ last release Sadie, but made sure I was first in line for this one (despite that awful cover) to attempt some sort of redemption arc on my own behalf. Worked out great too because I really dug this one!
I took a sneaky peak at the blurb after checking this one out from the library and was a little concerned to see it was supposed to be about a couple of teenage girls solving the case of who raped and murdered the sister of one of them. Good news if you’re like me and don’t always love an amateur sleuthing show, these gals did not channel their inner Nancy Drew. Really, this book could have been dubbed . . . .
There weren’t a lot of surprises when it came to the whodunit, but the story itself was pretty fascinating for me and kept me invested the entire time. ...more
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