The Unhoneymooners

 

Christina Lauren has been in the back of my mind as an author to try out. I was happily surprised to see The Unhoneymooners in the local free library. 

Olive is a fun and feisty characters, I liked how she was not perfect and how her flaws grew into something else as she learned things about herself. Ethan is also a fun character even though you only see him from Olive's point of view. The humor is my type of humor but will not be for everyone. 

Despite loving the first half of the book I sort of grew bored of it after the trip ended. The humor died out and it became more of a pity story which is not my style. Normally I would not consider continuing the series but since it is a shorter novel for 1.5 I would consider giving it a try. 

Under The Whispering Door

 

I have been eyeing T.J. Klune's work at the bookstore but was not ready to commit. When I found Under The Whispering Door at a second hand store for a dollar I was ready to give it at try.

While overall I did not like the book I loved the writing. So elegant, flowed well, and just seemed magical in it's own way. I also like the premise of the book. The main issue was the main character, totally unbelievable and the Mr. Klune seemed to forget what type of character he had written at the start of the story.

Wallace is a ruthless, mean, lonely, and cruel man. He has no friends, no life outside of work, and no drive except to crush people in court. I wanted to see Wallace learn humility, kindness, and love over time. Instead one chapter ended and in the next one Wallace was suddenly this understanding, kind, fun, friendly person who did not fit the narrative of the original living Wallace at all. 

I may consider trying more of Mr. Klune's work but I hope the characters show development not overnight becoming a new person totally. 

The Intruder

 

I almost skipped The Intruder. I read the first chapter at the end of The Surrogate and it did not draw me in but I figured I would give it a try. Thankfully I still ordered The Intruder from the library and what a ride it was. 

I liked Casey she is a down to earth woman who lives in a cabin in the forest. Sounds like a dream until the story continues and you realize that Casey may be hiding something or maybe it is the girl who showed up right before the storm started covered in blood. Lets not forget Lee who is her closest neighbor and something seems off about him. 

Everyone has secrets some are just more deadly then others. I really do not know how Mrs. McFadden does it. By now I figured I knew all her tricks for twists and turns. Nope the twist caught me off guard so badly I had to stop reading and put the book down for 24 hours. It was just so unexpected for me and I love that. The pace of the writing was perfect, the characters were all developed and had me caring about them, and I liked how everything was explained. After Never Lie this is my favorite book by Mrs. McFadden. 

Don't Let Her Stay

 

Don't Let Her Stay was another booktok video choice. At least I got it from the library.

Joanne has it all, a wealthy husband, a baby, and a lovely house however she wants more. She wants to stop being so isolated and someone to talk to. Soon her step daughter decides to come visit and strange things begin to happen. Is Joanne crazy like her mother or is something more sinister going on.

I really wanted a new twist but the story was like many other books in the thriller genre. Not a bad story just over done. I did not see anything new. The characters were average. I did appreciate that the story was not full of fluff and it was nice to enjoy a shorter book. 

The Last Word

 

The Last Word is the second book by Taylor Adam I have read. I skipped Hairpin Bridge because it had bad reviews. Sadly I did not like it. 

The writing was all over the place, jumped around between reality, memories, a story within the book, and just did not work for me. I did not care about the characters nor did I think the story was believable in any way. I did care about the dog which played an emotional part in the story. 

I skimmed most of part one hoping it would get better in part two. By part three I was back to skimming. 

The Pumpkin Spice Café

 

I could not resist buying a book when I saw Costco had them back for the holiday season. Good thing I did too because all the books sold within a week. The cute cover and different genre sold me on choosing The Pumpkin Spice Café. 

Jeanie is adorable, clearly scared to be in a new place she is trying to embrace her new life and get out of her comfort zone. Though she is in over her head since she has no clue what small town life is like, how to run a café, or how to deal with the sexy farmer who delivers weekly produce.

Logan likes routine and keeps to himself. Doing his deliveries and hanging out with his farm animals is his life and he is content with that. Well until the new owner of the Pumpkin Spice Café upends his routine. 

Jeanie and Logan were so fun as a couple. Reading about their blunders, fun moments, and they felt so real. Like I could peek in the café window and see them sitting at a table having coffee. I like how the story has the characters that will appear in the next story as side characters. I do plan on continuing the series. Hopefully Costco gets more books in stock. 

She Didn't See it Coming

 

I was excited to try a new Shari Lapena book but sadly She Didn't See It Coming was the first book by Mrs. Lapena that I did not like. 

Different points of view during a story is growing on me but not when it is far too many characters with far too little to say. Bryden, Sam, Bryden's parents (both of them), Bryden's sister Lizzy, Paige (Bryden's best friend), Derek, Alice, a neighbor, the detective. So many points of view and the story did not get pushed ahead at a fast enough pace for me. I think around 50 pages should have been cut out and instead replaced by Alice and Derek's story. Or better yet write a story with Alice and Derek because I felt things were unresolved with them. The neighbor also needed a story written about her. This felt more like an outline with the extra characters since their stories were mostly unresolved. 

Despite not enjoying She Didn't See It Coming I would try more of Mrs. Lapena's work. 

Don't Let Him In

 

Don't Let Him In was all over Booktok and once again I was suckered into trying it. I keep trying to read books that I do not like hoping they will get better.

The con man was my favorite character in the book despite there being several characters. I did not care if any of them were swindled and I would have been okay with all the women loosing their money to the con man because they were obviously desperate for a man. 

The writing was choppy, chapters were a nightmare to keep track of, I had no clue why the story was broken into parts, and between the constant character jumps, time jumps, and the con man's constantly changing name it was a hot mess. 

Considering this is the second Lisa Jewell book I have read and not liked clearly her writing style is not for me so I will not seek out more of her work. 

The Surrogate Mother

 

I read the first chapter of The Surrogate Mother in the back of The Tenant it while the chapter was boring the last line of the first chapter totally drew me in. When I saw The Surrogate Mother at Costco I grabbed a copy. 

This felt like The Tenant all over but told from a female point of view. I figured out all the twists and it was so SLOW at the start. I read five chapters and the only interesting part was the last line of the first chapter. I had to force myself to pick it up and keep reading. The last fifty pages or so were the best and had the most plot. 

I did read the preview chapter for The Intruder! and based on that alone I am not sure if that will be my style or not. 

Survive the Night

 

I have read other Riley Sager books in the past and they were enjoyable sadly Survive the Night was the worst book I have read this year. I did finish it but only because power was out. 

The main character Charlie was majorly annoying. She constantly rode the self pity train and did not seem to value anything about her life. Clearly she needed therapy and a lot of it. Due to this the story was super repetitive and boring. I saw no growth in Charlie nor did I care if she survived. The "movies" were the worst part, any normal person would be highly concerned they were having hallucinations and not joke about them being movies in their head.

Despite not enjoying the overall story line I will say the writing was consistent. Chapters flowed well, the length of each chapter was around the same, side characters surprised me, and the story did have a clear conclusion to the mystery. However I do not recommend Survive the Night to anyone. 

Do Not Disturb

 

I am not sure where I read it but I saw Do Not Disturb was Mrs. McFadden's best novel. I went in with really high expectations and I think that soured the experience for me. 

Quinn was a typical Mary Jane, perfect life, perfect job, perfect husband, and perfect sister. However is not all as it seems. Quinn is hiding a deadly secret and has no clue how to deal with it or present herself to the world. 

I was not a fan of the story changing perspective three times. Just as the story got good the perspective changed which drove me crazy. The writing was smooth and flowed until the story changed perspectives. Once it got to the second person I kept reading for a couple chapters then lost interest. I had to force myself to pick up the book and keep reading. The twist at the end was not something I saw coming and I did not figure it out because the twist did not fit the story. 

14 Ways to Die

 

I had a gift card for Barnes and Noble so after an hour or so of browsing a store while out of town I was intrigued by the title and cover of 14 Ways to Die.

Jess has clearly never gotten over the loss of her mother to a madman whom her father nicknamed The Magpie Man. Interesting serial killer name choice but it fit the scenario. Wanting to help capture the killer Jess signs up to have her life filmed on reality tv in an attempt to draw views to the case. It works and soon the whole town is following Jess and her escapades to capture the magpie man before it is too late and he kills again. 

What I liked is Jess's passion at getting justice for her mother. I liked that the chapters were consistent and all were short with no outliers.

What I did not like was how Jess did not care for her safety or the safety of anyone else around her. This is a man who has killed numerous adult women and she is just daring him to come try to kill her. 

The plot was okay, it had too much filler. Even though the chapter were short some felt unnecessary and I did end up skimming large parts of the story. This was a debut novel so I could see the author learning from this and growing. Cutting the story down, making it a better reading pace, and adding more action. 

Alibi's Collection

 I looked at the library for Death Row since I am a fan of Freida McFadden but it seems it is an amazon exclusive. Since I had to have surgery I figured I would treat myself. The complete set of short stories was around 6 dollars. None of the authors were familiar to me except for Mrs. McFadden so I had hopes I would enjoy all 6 short stories and find more authors to explore in the future. 

I did not like three of the stories at all. I tolerated two and enjoyed one. Good Neighbors was the only story I liked. It was a full story with great pacing. 

Overall the stories felt like they were rushed, more of an outline, some impossible to solve, had a character(s) I did not care about or even disliked reading about. 

Hopefully I wont fall for a well written email with a catchy book banner again. 

The Tenant

 

The Tenant is the first book I have read by Mrs. McFadden that had a male as the main characters point of view and I loved how it was a different twist from what I am used to in that regard. 

Blake is a well rounded character, one who has it all going for him, his dream job, a great personal life, a new home, and enough money to make life comfortable. However that soon all comes crashing down when he looses his job and is forced to take in a tenant. 

Nothing is as it seems with the hidden twists and turns that await. Despite having read several of Mrs. McFadden's books I did not see all the mysteries, catch all the hints, or figure out the major thoughts Blake had until revealed. 

I was glad for a book that held my attention. I am still dealing with a lot. I finally finished moving. Hooray for that. Now I need to focus on my physical health and mental health. Reading has always been my favorite hobby so it is so hard to admit I am struggling to want to read. 

I'm Afraid You've Got Dragons

 

My friend lent me I'm Afraid You've Got Dragons and I see why she was drawn to it. The cover is lovely, fun, and enticing all at the same time. 

Robert was by far my favorite character, I love the first chapter that described him and it totally drew me into the story. My issue was with the princess, I felt nothing for her. She just came off as annoying to me. The prince grew on me as I read about his life and learned his thoughts. 

This is a shorter story but tells a whole story leaving nothing to question. I liked that part a lot. The ending was not my favorite but it makes sense and fits the story. The writing was consistent, flowed well, and was a joy to read. 

Icebreaker

 

I went into Icecbreaker blind. I just saw it at a second hand store for a couple bucks and knew it was popular. This is not the normal type of book I read at all. 

Anastasia is annoying. She clearly cannot recognize abuse or that she is being treated like a doormat by her skating partner Aaron. 

Nate is the captain of the hockey team and comes off as perfectly understanding women. Which seems far from true. I don't remember a single guy from college that understood women. 

The book was way too long. The story could have been told in half the amount of pages. I can understand a spicy scene but at least half the story was various spicy scenes. It felt like I was just reading a smut book. I kept waiting for the story to start but it never really started. It was not even until I got to almost 3/4th of the book that Nate even started skating with Anastasia like the back of the book mentioned. It was the last 3/4ths of the book was the strongest part of the story. I will not be continuing the series. 

The Last One at the Wedding

 

I randomly choose The Last One at the Wedding from the eBooks the library had available. 

It is rare that I read a mystery novel with a man as the main character that does not involve a lot of action and intense moments of physical activity. The Last One at the Wedding had none of that. 

Frank is obsessed with his job and keeping his record at his job pristine. He is so obsessed with his job he does not really even know those around him. So it is a surprise to him when his daughter calls to inform him she is getting married. Suddenly whisked into the world of the ultra wealthy Frank is soon not sure what is going on, who to trust, or even if he can trust his own eyes. 

The story was ok, the writing was consistent but slow in parts. Very little in the mystery and more about a man reaching retirement age soon with no purpose in life. 

The House of My Mother: A Daughter's Quest for Freedom

 

Even though I like watching true crime I rarely read about it. However after learning about the Franke family I knew I wanted to hear more and learn how neighbors did not know what what was going on with those poor children. The House of my Mother gave some insight into how horribly those poor children were treated while keeping some boundaries to protect the minors. 

I never ever question the narrative being told in true stories. It is not my place to judge how someone interprets what has happened to them in their life. Instead I critique the way they present their account. 

Shari clearly has major psychological issues from her upbringing and that comes across in the story in a way that makes you feel for her. At times I was frustrated with lots of happenings in Shari's life and other times I was sad hearing how help was denied to all the children. 

It was a really easy read, the story just flowed with a simple way of writing. It did not drag or go into overly abusive situations just told a bigger picture of what it had been like living with someone like Ruby. 

The Perfect Divorce

 

The Perfect Divorce is the sequel to The Perfect Marriage and I was thrilled learning their was a sequel. 

Even though Sarah Morgan is a person who appears cold and heartless I really like her. She is constant, nothing comes out of play with Sarah which I enjoy. I imagine writing a character with narcissistic traits would be complicated but Mrs. Rose is amazing at it. The new part of Sarah that appears is the loving mother side. It was an interesting aspect to add onto the depth of Sarah. 

Bob was a blundering fool and reminded me far too much of Adam who also had issues. I wish a different approach to Bob had been taken but it does make sense that Sarah has a specific type of man she likes to be with. 

The writing style is not my favorite. I prefer one point of view and not jumping between many different points of view. At least they were consistent with giving all the characters adequate page time. The ending acknowledgements was not what I expected so that was a fun add on. 

The God of the Woods

 

 

The God of the Woods was Barnes and Nobles number one ranked mystery last year. God of Disaster is more along the lines of what it should have been titled. 

Beyond the premise I liked nothing about the story. The whole thing was a hot mess. I only kept reading because it was ranked so highly. 

The story jumps around between characters, years, months, and was a jumbled mess. I cared about none of the characters. The only saving grace was with so much confusion I at least did not figure the majority of the mystery. 

Guess I can say I finally read a highly popular book when it was popular. 

First Lie Wins

 

I have been on the libraries waiting list for awhile so when First Lie Wins was available on my tablet I quickly downloaded it. 

While I read the story fairly quickly I am still not sure if I actually enjoyed the book. The more I think about the plot the more I realized it was all over the place. At the start of the story was a big mystery that was never answered which drives me crazy usually but the story spiderwebbed and the new mysteries brought up where answered. 

The writing just seemed all over the place. Alex the main character was at least consistent with her thoughts and behavior. 

The Writing Retreat

 

The Writing Retreat was one of a handful of options available at a small airport I got stranded at. Desperate for something to do I bought the book. I ended up leaving the book at another airport for someone else to find.

Alex wants to be a writer but with her stubborn writers block and her job demanding more of her then she wants to give writing has been put on the back burner. All that changes when her favorite author holds a contest for female writers. Four writers will get to visit the elusive author and attend her writing workshop. Excited Alex can hardly wait to win. However once she arrives things are not what she thought they would be at all. 

I figured out the whole mystery. Around chapter three I had it all figured out. If I had anything else to read I would not have finished the book. 

Beautiful Ugly

 

If I had not read previous work by Alice Feeney I would not have picked up Beautiful Ugly based on the cover. 

What a great idea for a suspense story. Women goes missing and her husband is so distraught he will do anything to find out what happened. Including ruining his own career, loosing his house, and all his savings. The suspense kept building until it all came to a head. I am still not sure what happened in the end. It was loosely finished with multiple options for the ending. I don't mind an open ending at times but none of the overall mystery felt completed in any way and even  with the open ending pretty much everything was left open. 

Considering Rock, Paper, Scissors is the only book I have liked by Alice Feeney I may stop pushing her books ahead on my to read list. 

I dislike writing reviews about books I did not enjoy but sadly I enjoy the story line until I was around 80% into the book. By having invested that much time I had to finish it. 

The Crash

 

I knew it was bound to happen but a Freida McFadden book I did not like. I even put myself on the wait list at the library before The Crash was released so I would not have to wait forever to read it. Writing reviews for books I did not enjoy is always such a challenge. 

Tegan was an okay character, I expected her to act like she did the entire time. Even though most of the story was told from her point of view I do not feel like she was the main character. No secrets for Tegan.

Polly was the character I wanted to know more about. It was frustrating to get small tidbits about Polly then have everything stop like hitting a brick wall and I never feel like her story was explained fully. Potential for a well written character the fell flat hard.

Hank was my favorite character but I am 100% biased since he reminded me of my deceased husband in every way. 

The other characters did not have much book time so they were just sort of there but I do not feel like I got to know any of them. 

The writing was fine I just did not like the overall story. I have never been pregnant but maybe it is normal for people to hear their unborn child's voice. Also I did not like how Tegan was hallucinating but it was never really dealt with. The overall big mystery was solved just smaller things I want to nitpick at. I expect more of Mrs. McFadden and her abilities. 

Two Twisted Crowns

 

Two Twisted Crown is the second book in The Shepard King duology. I was on the waiting list from the library but a friend lent it to me. 

I had a lot of issues with the story line, the characters, and the overall flow of the story. Elspeth went from being a main character telling the story to an after thought. I HATED that immensely. The fear, the logic of dealing with an invasion in her mind, the acceptance of having magic but not able to use it freely, and her love for Ravyn. Writing out the main character to a side after thought really threw off the flow of the story then to make it worse Prince Elm was brought in with his point of view. I do not feel it was necessary. I would have preferred the whole story be written from Ravyn's point of view instead of Elm being made a character to carry the story. 

Several of the plot twists I saw coming. One major one I did not and I feel like it was forced. Just made to happen to be convenient and tie up character's stories. 

The overall story moves so slowly and it was not even important to the overall plot line. Took me weeks to get through part one. My friend said that part two speed up but I did not think so. I managed to slog through that. Finally when my library book came in I said I will finish and that is the only reason I even attempted part three. 

The ending was good. It had action, character conflict to some degree, and pretty cool magic but was not strong enough to carry the whole book. While I loved One Dark Window sadly Two Twisted Crowns missed the mark by a lot.

The Only One Left

 

The Only One Left was a random find when I could not sleep and was browsing the e-library for a book. Lucky for me I did not realize I had previously read work by Mr. Sager and did not enjoy it. 

Kit while seeming to be a meek and mild in home care aid is really a character with layers. The more I read the more complex I realized Kit was. At first she comes off as a nosy woman who is desperate for any job in the health care field that she can get after a horrible accident. 

Despite being unable to talk you get a feel for Lenora as she types out her story on an old typewriter. Plagued with polio and several strokes Lenora is silent but manages to comminute quickly with taps and her eyes which show she has a lot to say.

Even though I did not care for other work by Mr. Sager I did enjoy The Only One Left to consider other work by Mr. Sager. The story moved along at a brisk pace never leaving me bored with what was going on. The mysteries were many and several twists occurred. I figured out of some of the mysteries but not all of them. The ending also tied up every character's fate which I appreciate. 

One Dark Window

 

My friend recommended One Dark Window and I put myself on the wait list for it from the library.

Elspeth is a complex character and despite sharing head space with a monster I still got a good feel for who she is. Secretive, smart, and quiet has been Elspeth's armor for years. Unable to show anyone who she is for fear of being arrested Elspeth trusts no one and refuses to share her secrets with anyone. 

My biggest complaint was that the providence cards did not play as much of a role as I wanted them to. I wanted to know more about how they were made, how they were used over the years, and what cards the king carries with him if any. 

The writing is lovely and it is very gothic centered. My friend was generous enough lend me Two Twisted Crowns  but I a hesitant to read it. While anxious to know how the story ends I know my friends favorite thing is when a main character dies which is far from my favorite thing. 

Local Woman Missing

 

I saw Local Woman Missing at the bookstore a few months ago and liked the sound of it. I put myself on the library wait list and finally got it a few days ago. All I can say is I am glad I got it from the library. 

While I did finish the book I was not happy overall with the way things turned out. It was confusing, did not make sense, and the only reason I kept reading was due to how much I liked the first chapter of the book. The first chapter set up an amazing premises for a story then the story just sort of jumped into a volcano and had a super weak ending that glossed over the girl in chapter one. The writing style is not for me at all, it jumps around, each character's writing is portrayed differently giving each character a sense of identity but some are poorly written. 

The Perfect Escape

 

The Perfect Escape was a random choice from the e-library. 

I am not a fan of switching points of view normally but it worked out well in The Perfect Escape. Each woman seems to have their own issues with men. I liked getting to see how each woman handled their difficulties and their thoughts on what was going on when Diana disappears. 

The writing was fine and flowed well. I did not figure out all the twists and turns but I did figure out some. A chapters had me going just one more chapter but I was able to put the book down and at night and go to sleep. 

Digging Deeper

 

Digging Deeper is another book I got with the ones I paid .49 cents for. 

Thora is back in town and not as hidden from the public eye as she would like. Having helped catch a famous kill Thora is now teaching at the local university and ready for a change from her desk job at the FBI. Soon everything changes when Thora wakes up in a coffin and only has a small tube for air. 

I have never read a story about a woman being buried alive and I liked the idea too bad it was not planned out well. Clues were all over the place but not enough to point at anyone then the final suspect was so unbelievable I rolled my eyes at it. The writing was fine and easy to follow along to. 

The Red River Slayer

 

The Red River Slayer is another book I got from the .49 cent sale. I had no clue it was a series. Despite that the book read as a stand alone.

Char is trying to heal from being a victim of sex trafficking and just wants to feel safe while being useful. I like how she was timid but able to stand up for herself without sounding like a cold person. Life was hard for Char until she was freed from her horribly cycle of life and it shows in her demeanor. It was clear she was a person with many layers to her. 

Mack came off as harder and more tight lipped then Char which made since for his character development and jobs in his life. I do not feel like he was in the story as much and it was hard to get to know him.

The overall mystery of the story was nearly impossible to figure out until the end. I did not believe I missed any early clues as to who the Red River Slayer could be which was frustrating. Even if I cannot solve the mystery I like more of a chance to solve it. The writing was clear and easy to follow even with the few jumps around between characters.