Watching You by Lisa Jewell

Hello everyone.  I hope you are well.

Did you ever see the old Maxwell House coffee commercials? No?  Let me enlighten you. They had a huge advertising campaign featuring the slogan "Good To The Last Drop." It was a great idea and very catchy at the time. 

That is EXACTLY how Lisa Jewell's book Watching You can be described. Good to the last drop! Now that you want a cup of coffee which we know goes great with books, let me tell you about this story. It starts with a murder scene, not only do we not know who the murderer was, but we don't know where this scene is or for that matter if the victim is even male or female. Using that premise, Lisa Jewell weaves a tale that makes us guess at everything that is involved. It is brilliant at making us wonder if this person, then that, is the victim or perhaps the murderer. Experienced thriller readers will spot so many opportunities for characters to be either and with good reason. As the story is told the reader leans toward one character for each part, then the possibility of a completely different scenario. Now it might sound confusing but it is not. The plot is clear and well told, the pacing enough to keep you flipping pages as you race to the end. Then there is the last drop part. I'll give nothing away other that to say you'll enjoy it to the very end! 

I was so fortunate to receive an advance copy of this book, which is now available for pre-order. Since this great book is released on December 26, 2018, if you don't want to pre-order it might be a great use of those gift cards and be something to curl up with during the coming winter.

Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill

Hello, hope you are well....blah, blah, blah, niceties over, time to move on! Forget chicken cooking, housework, etc. We must talk! I purchased a book called Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill. Do you know who Joe Hill is? Huh? Do you? Go on, guess, I'll wait. NO don't google! Unfair! Yes, ladies and gentlemen, boy and girls...Joe Hill is Stephen King's son. You've heard of legacy acceptance into ivy league schools, multi-generational presidents, now we have father and son writers. No, no, not just any writers, horror writers!  Would he write like his dad? Was his dad actually writing for him and slapping sonny's name on it, kinda like a nice inheritance? Would the writing be juvenile? Would it be big words sending me repeatedly to the dictionary like he had something to prove? You know I have a love/hate relationship with Stephen King. Okay, mostly love, I highly doubt you can have had the longevity he has as an author without a whole lotta love. But, his wordiness and tangents totally get on my every last nerve. What about the offspring?!?! Sit down, yes, I know you have far more interesting things to investigate in your life, congratulations Nancy Drew. I had to know if the son was like the father. Had to!

Do you want me to tell you? Draw it out longer? Build the suspense? I'll spill. Joe Hill is amazing! Yes, amazing! No tangents at all (picture me looking up to the heavens mouthing "thank you"). No wordiness. What is left? I'll tell you, a super strong plot. A great ghost story where you see the ghost several times but it is the tension...ah the tension of what is about to happen that spurs you faster and faster through the book. The plot unfolds in such a way that takes some kind of unlikable characters and slowly evokes your compassion and eventually you're rooting for them. The story twists and turns, when you think it might slow down it doesn't and the whole time it is scary. At some points, I couldn't read this book at night. Honestly. Then, I couldn't help but read it anytime I could fit in a page or two. It was so good. It reminds me of everything I love about Stephen King and eliminates the things I don't like. Reading this took me back to reading The Shining, and that is a huge compliment as it started my interest in pleasure reading.

Yep, Joe Hill has talent, bred or learned I don't care, long as it keeps coming. Long live the King and Crown Prince. I'll start practicing my curtsy.

A House at the Bottom of a Lake by Josh Malerman

So this blog has been going for a little while. We're getting close, right? Good, because I want to tell you a secret. My husband doesn't read much. He has no patience for it after work, maintaining he's read enough for the day. Now, every once in a while, I'll read a book that he can't resist. I love it, naturally. I think he has completed 5 books this year. That is a whole library for him. Don't get me wrong, I don't mean this as an insult. Nope. Just like every book NOT being for every person, every hobby can't be for everyone either or this world would be boring. Now that I've given you the domestic reading situation I have to confess that I usually tell my husband about the novel I'm reading, not every detail of course, but the basic plot as it is progressing. He actually listens and remembers. When I ask him "What was the book that had the character that did...." he'll name the book immediately. Go figure, half the time he can't remember my name but phone numbers and license plates from the 1960's and books I've told him about....BINGO! (Yes, I'm teasing, he knows my name....I think.)

Last week I read A House at the Bottom of a Lake by Josh Malerman. Now he is the author of the very popular thriller Bird Box, that I still have not read. Despite my fear of dark water, I was excited to read this. You know how I hate it when books meander off topic, since this was a very short book of just over 100 pages, I thought surely it would stay on target and I would rocket through. I happily report it does stay on target. Unfortunately that is about the last thing about this book that made me happy. Okay, okay, that was too harsh. It was entertaining and the writing style pleasant. It bugged me though, still does.  This couple finds a house under the water of a lake, why it is there is never explained. (bug) The couple dives many times exploring the house, really interesting idea. Inside the house things happen that are not physically possible. The couple agrees not to discuss why certain things in the house are not the way they should be...by the laws of nature. The author never explains why those deviations exist (bug). Then the ending, to be honest I don't get it. I am not even sure if they are dead or alive. (bug, bug, bug...get me a fly swatter, bug!)

Can you tell this story irritated me? It's like I write a story that surrounds the sky being purple with pink polka dots...that is what the whole story is about, but never tell you why and just when you think you are about to get some answers, it's over. Blank page! Not to have a tantrum but if this hadn't been on my Kindle, I would have thrown it across the room! Loved the story idea, did not love the actual book. Ahhhh, but now enter my husband. I tell him the last 3rd of the book, including the ending. Tell him I dislike it and why. He disagrees completely! Can you believe that! The nerve! He thinks this book is brilliant, artistic, inventive, and very Twilight Zone. He thinks I want to be lead through the story too much and that everything I dislike is perfection.

So there you have it. The exact reason I always say to never put much stock in negative reviews or positive either. Yes, of course I still want you to read the blog. I think you just have to use reviews as a jumping off place. Hubby thinks it would be cool to jump in this lake and explore, I'll just stay in the boat and get some sun.

A Sparkle of Silver by Liz Johnson

I am up in the air whether to rate this three or four stars. First I think for me, it was a three. I had a difficult time getting into this book and the beginning was a bit slow. HOWEVER, I read a great many thrillers that, by their nature, move very quickly. This is a romance with a little mystery and treasure hunt thrown in. It has to move more slowly for the attraction to build between the two main characters and the mystery to unfold. So, I question my finding that it was slow. In addition, so many romance novels (and this is more than a romance novel) surround a rich man or someone in the fashion world, this does neither. So for me, that is another reason for a higher rating. In fact, the setting is a wonderful old estate, which is very clearly a large part of the book and very interesting. The writing is good, the plot clearly described. Yes, given my hesitation I think for what kind of book this is, it is definitely a four. By the way, this is Christian Fiction, no sex and it takes almost to the end to get a kiss. If you're looking for something racy, you won't find it here. You will find a delightful story. 

Hello fellow readers. I bet after all my thriller reading you never thought I'd read a Christian Romance. Ha! Fooled you. This review was written for BookishFirst.com, a very neat web site where you can get copies of books before they are published. Yes, you can too! I was sent this book for review, for which I am always grateful!

Cooking for Ghosts by Patricia V. Davis

Sometimes it is hard to imagine what people are into, what their interests are. I'm not talking those "internet" type interests, minds out of the gutter people and eyes up here. If you read this blog you know several things about me, I am a housewife that buys way too many books, I like to cook but detest cleaning.  I am an Olympic quality, championship style, procrastinator, often, to enable me to read the ending of some great book. You might think given all the wifey stuff, I might have a thing for collecting recipes or a certain kind of china. You'd be wrong, although, for the record, I will gladly accept any good recipe.

I grew up with an inground, heated pool. My sisters often had their friends over swimming and had pool parties for their birthdays. I was always a strong swimmer, but during high school my mother insisted I become certified as a lifeguard, which I did. She could then relax at those numerous pool parties and even tell parents that there was a lifeguard attending. You might find it odd that I have developed a fear of deep, dark water. It freaks me out. You might find it even odder that I have a thing for ships. Yes, ships. I am fascinated by vessels in the navy and have been on several, from aircraft carrier to submarine. I've even seen the famous concrete ships in two locations (google it if necessary they are totally cool).

What I find the most interesting is the old ocean liners. Not the ones of today that are top heavy, odd looking things. I mean the old elegant ships. The kind of ship you'd make a transatlantic crossing on. You know, black on the bottom with a ring of white around the top. How sharp is that? In fact, I'm more than interested, I'm obsessed with the liner SS United States. It was built in Virginia at famous Newport News Shipbuilding. It set the record for fastest transatlantic crossing (New York to England) and still holds the record to this very day! The ship, designed by William Francis Gibbs, was meant to be fireproof with very little wood on board, even down to aluminum coat hangers. When air travel became more popular the SS United States was removed from service. The furnishings were stripped and sold at auction. I was so fortunate to go to a restaurant on the Outer Banks that had much of the furniture. I saw the stool where Marylyn Monroe sat at the bar and the actual bar. I ran my hand down the smooth railings. I ate dinner on the table and sat in the chairs from the main dining room. One time I stuck my hand under the crisp white tablecloth to find a cork wedged in the underside lip of the table. I often think of that silly cork, wondering what it would testify to if it could.  Sadly, the SS United States doesn't sail anymore and is docked in Philly, hopefully to be turned into a floating hotel and event space, turning a blind eye to those who don't care for history and call for it to be scrapped.  I hope that terrible day never comes. I was given a plaque of the time trial records of the winning speed from the office of an executive at Newport News Shipbuilding. I have stationery and a room key, lots of little things. Not related to the SS United States but another legendary ocean liner, I also have a post card mailed from the Lusitania before it was sunk by a German torpedo. You think I'm kidding, but seriously, I am a regular housewife that is now afraid of water but fascinated by ships. I can see you shaking your head from here.

Imagine my absolute joy when I was given a copy of Cooking for Ghosts by Patricia V. Davis. It is part one of The Secret Spice Café trilogy. It is about THE QUEEN MARY! Yes, I'm yelling. It has cooking (see above, yes cooking, no cleaning) and ghosts, and a famous ocean liner. What could be better? Honestly. I know, I know, it is not a thriller. It is thrilling enough....the setting is aboard the Queen Mary!  Are you getting the feel for my excitement? Now despite my major desire to dive into this book, I have been holding it for a bit, waiting until October. Although it is an advanced reader copy the title was actually published in 2016. Otherwise, I would not have held it as it is completely unfair to the author and publisher who were so generous to send it to me. But this one, I waited a bit. Finally, I couldn't stand it and dove in.

I don't know where to start, I have so much to say. This book is beautifully written, it reads smoothly, you will be shocked to know you've flipped pages and that time has passed. It is completely enveloping. For me, the story has three basic components; the ship itself … the exploration and description, the four women that are the main characters … each with their own back story to be told, and the fact that the Queen Mary is haunted. This book features some of the ghosts. Now, each of these components could have gone so wrong. If it were me, I would have described the ship in so much detail, you would have been fast asleep by page 2. The ghosts could have been so hokey and cliché. The woman's stories could have taken over. BUT none of these things happen. The story is told in absolute perfect balance AND each of these parts are sprinkled evenly thoughout. It is just amazing. The characters are imperfect and yet the reader cares for them because of these imperfections and life trials. The ghosts are so believable, at first the characters think they are living people, I might have too if I didn't know the title. The paranormal could have been so overdone, but wasn't.

This book works, from top to bottom, bow to stern, beginning to end. The story is haunting and moving. The descriptions are just enough to pull you in but not enough to overwhelm. Then there is the ending. I was reading it out loud to my husband, by the last three pages, in tears because it was so wonderful. For me, this book will linger for a long time. I will never look at any ship in the same way as Patricia Davis has literally brought them to life for me and I am very grateful.

The Wicked Deep by Shea Ernshaw

Hello, hope you all are well and enjoying your fall. Perhaps you are doing what so many readers are, celebrating the cool weather with some spooky books. To be honest, it never occurred to me to read creepy books near Halloween. I don't know why, I reread A Christmas Carol before Christmas. I've also started getting one of those cute little holiday romances for the last few years. Though I'm not a huge romance novel lover I get sucked in by the very idea of holiday love and the always festive cover. Kind of proves hubby's idea that I am an advertiser's dream.

This year I started thinking about all the scary books on my "to be read" list. Who knew I had so many! I have Stephen King (yes, again, I never give up on him), his son with a book about some possessed box, a writer from Australia that writes gobs of haunted house books, and several books about witches. Now witches are not really my thing and if they were, my preference would be for Glenda the Good. Who wouldn't want that dress, cool wand with the star and to travel by heel clicks. Obviously I haven't read the Wizard of Oz. Anyway, I seem to often pick up witch books because of my sisters. Two of the three are Salem addicts. They go to Salem Massachusetts every year for Halloween. They go to a big ball, drink pumpkin martinis, the works. Not my thing but potato po-taa-to. Maybe I always grab these books so I can pass them on to them for their reading enjoyment. You know, any excuse to buy books.

I just finished reading The Wicked Deep by Shea Ernshaw. Since the story revolves around teenagers I suspect this might be technically a young adult book, although there is cussing and unmarried sex. The story is about a cursed town. The town, Sparrow, is cursed because 200 years ago they drowned 3 witches. Although I am still not clear if they actually were witches. They sold perfume and men liked them. Using that threshold everybody at the makeup counter in every department store, at Ulta and Sephora is conjuring some kind of spell. Thinking of past credit card bills, that could actually be true so that is a bad example. Anyway, every year these witches come back to kill boys as revenge.

I went into this book with an open mind but there was that little voice whispering Hocus Pocus (which I'm also reading). I was pleasantly surprised. I really liked this book. I don't know why I get some stupid idea about a book before reading it. I'm always wrong and the book is usually wonderful. This book was completely original, had an interesting story line, some thriller worthy twists, and a plot that moved quickly. The writing was good and did not meander. A great read with a very satisfying ending.

Go grab that Harry Potter wand that I know you bought in secret and accio yourself a copy of The Wicked Deep.

A Simple Favor by Darcey Bell

Well, it's not cool here yet, but there is something in the air. Oh yes, that is panic. Holiday panic. I feel the pressure already!  I'll get flack for this but allow me to be very sexist for just a second. I know, I can hear you saying, "have you seen the political news lately, April? Do you think it is wise to even whisper the word sexist right now?" This is a light-hearted book blog, just for fun and so I can stop annoying hubby with endless book chat, nothing more. Anyway, back to my comment. Women seem to have more holiday stress than men. I don't know if it is because more of the holiday prep falls on women or because women are driven to make those absolutely perfect memories. In my case, I can tell you exactly what it is. We put up too many decorations and bake way too many cookies for way too many people. In my defense how do you say no to giving out cookies at the holidays? As for decorations, we have an old house, it is even on the National Register of Historic Places. It begs for holiday decorations and lots of them. We do six trees. Yes, six. Don't judge! Just seeing the endless stream of boxes come out of the attic is enough to give the calmest person an enormous panic attack. Worry not, I'll cope. The dishwasher was a battle but is finally fixed, so I count that as big old check off my list.

Now I usually turn to reading as a distraction. Fortunately, I am bogged down in my reading. So many wonderful and oh so generous publishers have sent me copies of books to review. In addition, some of my favorite authors have had or are about to have new releases. Naturally, as if on que, these new released books must each be 500 pages! I feel like Demi Moore, rolling around money, in Indecent Proposal, only in my case it's books. Yikes, those corners are just not nearly as comfortable as cold hard cash! So, I might have to post a couple of extra reviews, I still promise not to bog you down. In any case, too much good reading? Nope. I'm very grateful to all sources and cannot wait to read and talk about each of your books.

On to todays actual topic, A Simple Favor by Darcey Bell. Actually, I'd never heard of this book but saw a trailer for the upcoming movie. Thinking it looks like a thriller, which are often books first, bingo, Amazon to the rescue...and here it is.  I'm pausing here, typing slowing....not sure what to say. The book is good, it is interesting and a fairly fast read. There are things that bug me. Part of the story is told by blog. Great. But when you live it and I read about it, then write about it in the blog, then later write about it telling the truth of what actually happened...I've now read about the same event 3 times, 1 of which is completely unnecessary. I know I harp on this over and over, but I really dislike when authors do this. I don't want to read the same thing twice. I know Darcey Bell hasn't read about my endless cookies, 6 trees and huge "to be read" list but she should, as repeating unnecessarily wastes my time and yours. I know you're tired of hearing it but why isn't this caught in editing. It HAS to bother more people than just me. The other thing that irritated me a little, is that it seems like this book tried to throw in every twist available. I'm still undecided about that comment, even as I type it. Who loves thrillers and doesn't love a good twist? Not me. I adore a good twist-a-thon. I guess there is no pleasing me, not enough twists I'm unhappy, now it seems I'm unhappy with too many. Maybe these weren't involved enough, not entrenched in the story enough.

I think this is a good book, I would read it again. Is it one of my favorites, no. Could it be your favorite, sure!

ps. now I have the song Let's Twist Again going through my head. If it doesn't stop soon I'll have to resort to singing the theme from Gilligan's Island!