The Perfect Daughter by D.J. Palmer (Read 10/23 to 10/25) - 5 Star

I received this book as an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) through NetGalley. I received this copy free in exchange for my honest review.

Grace’s daughter Penny is in Edgewood, a facility for the criminally insane, awaiting her trial for murdering her Birth Mother Rachel. But Penny isn’t just Penny, she is Eve, Ruby and Chloe too.  Who murdered Rachel, and is Penny really Disassociate Identity Disorder (DID) or as the head Edgewood doctor thinks Antisocial Personality Disorder, ie Penny is an expert liar.

This is the second DJ Palmer book I have read, and he has become a favorite author.  I love the twists and turns of his stories. The characters are all so engaging, and make you want to read about them. This was unputdownable for me.  I found myself wanting to know the next twist throughout my day, and I couldn’t wait to read more, even if it was only 5 mins while my coffee brewed.

Bait and Witch by Angela M. Sanders (Read 10/18 to 10/19) - 4 Star

I received this book as an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) through NetGalley. I received this copy free in exchange for my honest review.A mystery, a library, a small town and a witch!  Josie is a librarian at the library of Congress, who overhears a senator making a shady deal.  When she and a co-worker whistleblow it, the co-worker disappears.  So Josie feels she needs to too.  She answers an ad for a librarian position in Wilfred, Oregon.  But not all is as ideal as it seems.  Josie finds a dead body on her first day. This was a great seasonal read, The characters in Wilfred were wonderful and colorful.  And the library itself was magical.  I’m not 100% sure I like Josie, but I don’t hate her either.  It is obvious this is meant to be a first book in the series, and I do look forward to reading more.

The Haunting of Brynn Wilder by Wendy Webb (read10/14/20 to 10/17/20) - 3 star

I received this book as an Amazon Prime Early Reads. I was excited to read it because I had read and enjoyed two other Wendy Webb books:  The End of Temerence Dare and The Lady in the Lake, both of which had solid 3 stars from me.  Consistency is important. 

This book I was pleasantly surprised to find takes place in Wharton, the same town on Lake Superior’s shores as The Lady in the Lake.  And we got to revisit with some of the same characters, although if you haven’t read Lady in the Lake, it’s ok you will not be lost this is not a sequel.

Brynn Wilder comes to Wharton to escape an avalanche of loss in her life.  And she stays at boarding house for the summer where she meets the other long term boarders and quickly makes friends.  But there is a mystery afoot, over the winter a mysterious woman died in Room 5, and nobody knows who she was or how she got there.  Then Brynn starts dreaming of her.....

This wasn’t my favorite Wendy Webb book, it was again consistent writing. Her characters are well written and she develops the mystery well.  And the best part in my mind is that she actually resolves it in the final chapter.  However, I did not like the resolution, I felt it was a little too far out there.  If I was basing my rating on just how much I liked the story it would be a 2-star.  But her writing style and solidness of story and character development brought this book up to its 3-star rating.

Where has the year gone?

Wow we are in October already.  My last post was in June...that is craziness!

Of course I have read a ton of books between now and then, 33 to be exact.  That is far too many for a summary post.  So I’m just going to show my goodreads list...most of them in goodreads I didn’t even bother write reviews either..it’s been a tough motivation year.

The ones I did review are as follows:

Confessions on the 7:45

This was an engrossing book, the characters and story kept me guessing and staying up past my bedtime.  It was really well written and a great read.

Dark Tides

I wanted to like this book truly I did. I really liked the first one and I was excited to read this one. However the characters did not have the same resonance with me as in the first book. I hated Livia and I had trouble connecting with Sarah and Johnnie and Alys.  And I really didn’t care for the Ned storyline either.  It was well written and the story flowed, I just did not care for the characters and I read it quickly so I could get through it.

The Book of Two Ways

This was a good book right up until the end.  It was a little slow at the beginning and I felt like the chapters were long. But it worked to keep me reading later than I planned.  I missed many a bed time.  It was a solid 3 moving towards a 4. The ending or I should say lack of ending for ruined it for me. They both abruptly end with no resolution and I hated it, I almost threw my iPad against the wall I was so upset!  But luckily I was fiscally minded enough not to.

I received this book as an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) through NetGalley.  I received this copy free in exchange for my honest review.

The-Star Crossed Sisters of Tuscany

To be fair when I first got this book, I wasn’t sure I was going to like it. I love Italy and the premise was great. But I wasn’t sure the sisters and the mystery was going to do it for me. Boy was I wrong this was amazing!  I was so drawn into the characters but the ones I loved and the ones I hated. I can’t say the ending was a complete surprise but it did leave me guessing up to the end.

I received this book as an Advanced Reader’s Copy (ARC) through NetGalley.  I received this copy free in exchange for my honest review.

Daughter from the Dark by Marina & Sergey Dyachenko - 2Star (Read 2/10 to 6/6)

I received this book as an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) through NetGalley. I received this copy free in exchange for my honest review.

This is a translated work from a Ukrainian husband and wife team.  I will admit up front that I think due to cultural differences, some of the book really was baffling to me.  There are social graces or norms, that are probably normal in the Ukrain, but are odd to a US reader.  For example the interaction with the teenagers in the first chapter had a lot of cultural nuances I felt I was missing.

Aspirin is a DJ and he finds a 10 year old girl, Alyona, on his doorstep. She says someone is looking for her. She won’t talk to him though and he leaves her, then he runs into some teenagers about a block away, who chase him with their dog. He goes back for the girl,  as they flee she tosses her teddy bear back into the alley and it kills the dog. Aspirin takes her home, he really doesn’t know what is happening or what else to do with her.  In the morning she refuses to leave.  Claiming that she is a musical prodigy, Alyona insists she must play a complicated violin piece to find her brother.  And her is where it gets a bit more confusing.  I think she is an Angel, but who she is, is never fully explained.Be aware there is a lot of cursing, like every other word.  Also there are very violent scenes when Alyona’s teddy bear defends her.

This book took me a long time to read. I put it down and came back to finish it almost 4 months after I started it.  I really couldn’t relate to the characters in the story line wasn’t as enthralling as it sounded in the description. I don’t think that it’s because of the authors, I think that it had to do with the translation. I feel like there was some sort of heart missing from the story. It was an OK story plot wise, and I like some of the interesting factors.

March Reads Wrap Up

Well I have been out of commission for a while. I have still been reading, but I just haven’t had tome to write up. So For March/April/May you are getting a summary of the month, and I’m going to try and get back on track in June.

In the Shadow of the Sun by E. M. Castellated - 5 Stars (Read 3/4 to 3/8)
This is the February OUABC selection, it was wonderful as usual. I really enjoyed the writing and the story and the magical twists. I didn't know much about the Louis XIV and his reign, I found myself googling like a mad woman throughout the book. I love it.

The Dragon of Lonely Island by Rebecca Rupp - 3 Star (Read 3/8 to 3/9)
This was a book my son requested me to read.
Fafnyr Goldenwings, a three-headed dragon that sleeps deep inside a cave on Drake's Hill. Because their mother needs a quiet place to finish her novel, the three Davis children find themselves spending the summer on Drake's hill. They meet Fafnyr and each head tells a story.
This was an ok book. it was a quick read and it made my son happy for me to read it.

The Bookshop on the Shore by Jenny Colgan - 3 Star (Read 3/10 to 3/11)
This was the final book from my Quarterly Book Exchange.  This is a follow The Bookshop on the Corner, which wasn't a real problem it was fine as a stand alone book.  A single mother Zoe takes her 4 year old son to Scotland, and is hired to help Nina while she is on maternity leave.
I didn't love this book, but I didn't hate it either.  It was super predictable, and the characters were flat.  I really hated Jaz though!  This was a light read for me, but I probably won't read the book that came before this. 

City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert - 3 Star (Listened to 2/29 to 3/14)
This was an audio book I listened to.  It is the story of a woman finding herself in the 1930's, she was promiscuous and wild.  She found and lost love. I didn't love it, the story was slow for me, I wonder if I would have liked it better if I had read it.

Tigers, Not Daughters by Samantha Mabry - 3 Star (Read 3/12 to 3/16)
I received this book as an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) through NetGalley. I received this copy free in exchange for my honest review.
There are four Torres girls, Ana (18), Jessica (16), Iridian (15), and Rosa (12). One summer night they run away from home, the 15 year old teenage boys across the street see them, Hector, Peter, Luis, Jimmy, Calvin and the narrator. However the boys chase after the girls and when they leave their house Hector’s mom figures out what has happened and alerts the Torres sisters dad, Rafe. Rafe comes and gets them and takes them home. The narrator blames himself and his friends for messing up the girls escape. And also because they didn’t escape, for Ana’s death 2 months later. We come back on the Anniversary of Ana’s death, and the story follows how the sisters are surviving in the wake of their tragedy.Lots of sensitive material: death, teenage promiscuity, domestic violence, alcoholism. But all in a pg light, yeah it is there and life is messy but it’s not over the top or rated R. This was an ok book. It had some really slow parts, but the last 3rd really picked up. I’m not sure I cared for the story arc, there are a lot of unanswered questions. But it was ok.

Willa’s Grove by Laura Munson - 5 Star (Read 3/17 to 3/22)
I received this book as an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) through NetGalley. I received this copy free in exchange for my honest review.
Three women received an invitation to Montana to Willa’s Grove. Willa Silvester lives in Willa, Montana population 32. Willa is a 46 year old widow. She seems to be on the outs with most of the residents of the town, they are angry at Willa for choosing to move away after living there for 20 years. Willa has invited three friends to her cabin before she leaves; Bliss, Harriet, and Jane. Each is going through her own life changing experience, and the women form a community to help each other through.This book is now on my favorites list. It is a heartbreaking but relatable story about 4 women in their late 30’s to early 40’s whose lives have all been turned upside down one way or another. And they have come together to support each other to determine what’s next. I’m not sure how to explain how this book is speaking to me on so many emotional levels. It is putting into words so many things that I felt and felt with during and right after the divorce, of finding out who am I, my supposed to be didn’t turn out the way it was planned to, what does my future look like how? I get it, I get where they are and what that place looks like in retrospect, even if you aren’t in the middle of a life’s crisis the raw beauty and message of this book is absolutely worth the read.Spent the last 10% crying, just wow!

The Mother’s Promise by Sally Hepworth - 5 Star (Read 3/24 to 3/25)
Once again OUABC knocked it out of the park. I had received this last year in the Mother’s Day box, and just hadn’t gotten around to it for some reason. Man I should have. The characters are great and so relatable, the story was heart breaking but in a good way. I’m not going to lie it’s a tear jerker of a book, but that is how you know it is good.

Do Nothing: How to Break Away from Overworking, Overdoing, and I received this book as an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) through NetGalley. I received this copy free in exchange for my honest review.
Underliving by Celeste Headlee - 3 Star (Read 3/22 to 3/27)
Not at all what I expected, it was more or of a history of how we became so focused on productivity and multi-tasking than about how to do nothing. I don’t know now that I have read it that it is self-help, I feel like it is more encouraging the reader to self-evaluate, to remember to breathe and take moments to enjoy the life they built. That it isn’t a competition of who is busiest, that family and work can and should be separate spheres.

The List of Things That Will Not Change by Rebecca Stead - 3 Star (Read 3/27 to 3/30)
I received this book as an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) through NetGalley. I received this copy free in exchange for my honest review.
When Bea was 8, her parents told her they were getting a divorce and notebook to record the things that were not changing. This is the story her Dad’s wedding and what lead up to it. It was good, little convoluted as to what the story was really about.

April Read Wrap Up

Music for Tigers by Michelle Kadarusman - 3 Star (Read 4/5 to 4/8)

I received this book as an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) through NetGalley. I received this copy free in exchange for my honest review.
Louisa has been sent to spend the summer with her Uncle Rufus, Ruff for short, at a Tasmanian Bush camp. She doesn’t want to be there, she wants to be practicing her violin to audition for the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra.
I had troubles with this one, it just doesn’t appeal. The story isn’t engaging or making me want to finish. I really struggled. The characters felt flat to me, and the mystery was a good plot line, but somehow it didn’t draw me in.

The Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd - 5 Star (Read 4/1 to 4/5)
I received this book as an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) through NetGalley. I received this copy free in exchange for my honest review.
This was an amazing book! I am not religious, but I was still drawn into the story, and I found myself crying at Jesu's cruxifixction as if I was a devout christian. Sue Monk Kidd has once again hit it out of the park. I fell in love.
I had troubles with this one, it just doesn’t appeal. The story isn’t engaging or making me want to finish. I really struggled. The characters felt flat to me, and the mystery was a good plot line, but somehow it didn’t draw me in.

The New Husband by D.J. Palmer - 5 Star (Read 4/8 to 4/13)
I received this book as an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) through NetGalley. I received this copy free in exchange for my honest review.
Nina, her 13 year old daughter Maggie, and 16 year old son Connor are moving in with Nina’s new boyfriend Simon. Maggie is resentful of the move and doesn’t accept Simon in their lives. Also Simon is her social studies teacher. Connor is more accepting. Their father Glen is gone, he has been missing for 16 months, and New Hampshire says someone must be missing for 2 years before they will grant a divorce. Once her divorce is granted, Nina plans to marry Simon. Nina was having some financial troubles and it moved the move in with Simon up and she worries about how Maggie is taking things.
I loved this book, I loved the fast paced storyline and the characters, and I saw part of the twist, but when the truth came out I actually gasped aloud!

The Last Letter from Juliet by Melanie Hudson - 5 Star (Read 4/13 to 4/17)

This was the January OUABC read.  It is the love story of a Juliet, a WWII ATA woman pilot and a man called Edward.  When Juliet is 100 years old, Katherine comes to stay at Juliet's cottage, and finds her memoirs.  This is a poignant and heartbreaking story of love and war and loss.  I couldn't put it down.

Frogkisser! By Garth Nix - 4 Star (Read 4/17 to 4/20)
I read this book for BOTM's February read: YA.  This was a hilarious story from Garth Nix about a princess that goes on a quest to save her kingdom and her sister, and gains the name Frogkisser, and saves much more than she expected.  It was fun and funny, and really an enjoyable read.

Lady Clementine by Marie Benedict - 2 Star (Read 12/18/19 to 4/22/20)
I received this book as an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) through NetGalley. I received this copy free in exchange for my honest review.
I wanted to like this book, but I didn’t. I didn’t like the portrayal of the Churchill’s, and it may be true but it still made me dislike them as people. This book dragged for me, as you can see it took me almost 5 months to finish, I kept starting and stopping because I didn’t care for it.

The Love Story of Missy Carmichael by Beth Morrey - 4 Star (Read 4/22 to 4/29)

I received this book as an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) through NetGalley. I received this copy free in exchange for my honest review.
Millicent (Missy) Carmichael is 79 years old and she is a bit unmotivated. She is going to something called a fish-stunning but she really just wants to go back to bed instead. It seems her husband is dead, and she isn’t very close to her children. And she befriends some women in the park and changes her life.
I really love the story though, and I admit I spent the last 10% crying like crazy. Also there wasn't a lot of movement in the story, lots of character growth though, which I know seems odd, but not much happened besides internal growth of the characters, and Missy coming to terms with her life.