You Are Not Alone by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen

Hello everyone. Hope you and your family are safe and healthy.  As you might guess by my absence I have been sick and hospitalized again, not with the virus but an infection. To say I am tired of being poked, prodded, and needles everywhere is an understatement. On to happier topics, like reading!

I recently read You Are Not Alone by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen. I read the other two books by these talented ladies, The Wife Between Us  and An Anonymous Girl, and enjoyed them both. Finally, I was able to get my hands on their latest and it was worth the wait. This thriller follows a young woman who meets two sisters, but she doesn't really know them as the reader discovers. The story opens with a huge "gotcha", which I always love as it makes me feel like I am in for a huge rollercoaster ride. In this case, the main character, Shay, is on her way to work in NYC when she witnesses someone jump in front of an oncoming subway. I was hooked immediately and although the remainder of the story isn't filled with such drama, it certainly holds your attention.

Most chapters change perspective, being told by a different person and sometimes from a different time period. I didn't find this way of storytelling a problem but liked how it helped the book unfold. The characters are interesting and you will find yourself cheering for Shay, as she discovers her internal strength. A definite thriller right to the end.

If you're in NYC and read this book, you just might find yourself "social distancing" in the subway station, between you and the edge of the platform!

Big Lies in a Small Town by Diane Chamberlain

Hello everyone.

Have you ever checked out your genealogy? I started looking at my family and hubby's years ago. We had a 486 computer with a dialup modem. I could literally brew a pot of coffee and make a cup while waiting for a single census page to load. Thankfully, we've come a long way. If you haven't coughed up a couple of dollars and joined a company that holds all those family records, stop being a cheapskate and do it for at least one month. You will be surprised what you find. While I am definitely a Yankee, hubby has firm roots in the south. His family is one of the North Carolina's first settlers and founders.  We had a bit of problem with one set of great grandparents, finally finding them and a long line of predecessors in a tiny town called Edenton.

Edenton has been named prettiest small town in America. It is one of those places where shop keepers can leave merchandise on the sidewalk outside their shops overnight. Nothing disappears and people wanting to buy something just leave the money. Yes, places like that do actually still exist. They have a noise ordinance to keep the peace, a highly active downtown, and have voted Walmart out. Many of the houses date to the 1700's and range from modest to enormous. Amazingly, most are perfectly kept despite their age and the amount of work that goes into an old house. Indeed, Edenton is a beautiful town.

I recently read the newest offering from Diane Chamberlain, Big Lies in a Small Town. This entire story takes place in Edenton, North Carolina, where we follow two artists at two different periods of time. In 1940, Anna, from New Jersey, wins a contest through the WPA to paint a mural for the Post Office in Edenton. We also follow Morgan, a former art student and convict, suddenly let out of jail thanks to the will of a recently deceased famous artist. He had a way of taking people he doesn't know under his wing and improving their lives. This mysterious benefactor has left a wish in his will that Morgan restore the 1940 mural painted by Anna. There is so much to discover in this story, I don't want to spoil it for you.

The characters in this book are imperfect, yet enthralling. Art plays a huge role as does the town, yet neither is overwhelming. So much care has been done to research the artistic endeavors and the real town of Edenton. Anyone going to this southern sanctuary would easily recognize it from this story. The pacing is perfection, just fast enough to spur you through pages but slow enough to let you savor the story. This is a good one, happy and sad, light and dark, and highly memorable....a Diane Chamberlain trademark.

If you vacation on the Outer Banks this summer and have had too much sun, take a little trip to Edenton. You'll find this town as charming as this book.

Christmas in Vermont by Anita Hughes

Hello everyone.

Christmas prep is in full swing here. Three trees are up (of six), with lights and a grand total of ten ornaments. Yeah, I'm a bit behind in the tree decorating department. It may seem like it is a lot of trees, okay let's be honest, six is insane. That being said, we are the Scrooge of the neighborhood. In an area of old houses, people tend to really dress them up for the holidays. In fact, I was shocked when we first moved to this area. One of the larger historic houses has been turned into a small inn. They have breakfast with Santa, a tree lighting party, etc. One year when we had lots of snow they were taking their guests of horse drawn sleigh rides right past our house. Not something you see everyday.

I recently read Christmas in Vermont by Anita Hughes. This second chance romance is full of holiday cheer. Set in an inn in Vermont, two old flames meet once again, still detecting the original spark. (Get it, flames....spark....)  Emma and Fletcher are faced with problems, like Fletcher's fiance who is also staying at the inn, along with his daughter from a previous marriage. Then there is the troubled inn keeper, who is quite endearing and serves as a delightful side story. This book, while slightly over 300 pages, is a quick read. There is a bit of turmoil in the romance but the story is sweet and Christmassy.  This book is perfect for taking your mind off an ever expanding holiday "to do" list, leaving you in the mood for some fluffy snowflakes to float past your windows.

While you might not want to give a holiday book as a Christmas gift, this would be such a kind and timely gift for someone under stress or a "love you" present at a festive lunch.  After giving this a read, you'll be more in the mood to tackle those trees.

29 Seconds by T.M. Logan

Hello everyone.

Hope you are all well.  Did you get hit with hurricane Dorian? Did you see the Bahamas? How terrible. I find a category one hurricane terrifying, I cannot imagine what those people went through. Sadly, we did have damage. I know you are aware we have a historic house, but someone slapped aluminum siding on it in the 1970's and we are not taking it off.  First, the siding actually provides warmth which is especially useful in an area where old houses were built with no insulation, and secondly, we'd have to get permission from the historic planning committee to change the outside. We really don't need anymore hoops to jump through. I am already feeling like a cross between a circus pony and the old high-diving horses from Atlantic City (which my parents made me go see when I was really little). During the storm we lost a good hunk of siding, actually the back and side of our house, not the whole thing but the soffit. For those of you that don't speak "house", that is the part way at the tippy top that touches the roof. We have three stories over a high basement so the soffit is more than thirty feet high, we will need a contractor to tack it back up. Naturally they are all swamped. Estimate number one is supposed to arrive this afternoon, hard to really seriously gripe about when so many people have lost their lives. Enough of that, on to something much more pleasant, a new book.

I recently read 29 Seconds by T.M. Logan. If he sounds familiar it is because he wrote the book Lies, a thriller, which I liked very much. 29 Seconds is the story of a woman, Sarah, who has the boss from hell. Sarah is a teacher at the college level, she is trying to get the British version of tenure. Her boss, Alan, denies her repeatedly, making it very clear her career is not advancing and he will ensure it is completely over unless she sleeps with him whenever he desires. Sarah is a married woman with children who finds her boss disgusting. After an unusual situation our heroine teacher meets a man with ties to the Russian underworld. He insists he owes her a favor and wants to provide his specialty...making people disappear. All she has to do is give him a name.

You, obviously, know where this story is headed, the main character is going to wrestle with her morals about the possibility of giving her boss's name to this criminal. She resists even after Alan  gets more offensive with every chapter. Frankly, I would have smacked him across the face long ago and would have given his name to the Russian mobster without reservation, morals smorals  Heck the boss is so bad I probably would have purchased a megaphone to yell his name for the vanishing treatment, not the cheapo old fashioned cones either, the electronic annoyingly loud megaphones. Yes, I know I've just defined myself as a morally bankrupt, not nice, perhaps even murderous person. Read it, see what you'd do.

I am greatly simplifying the story, it is much more interesting that this simple plot and has many twists and turns. It is well written, grabs your attention from the beginning and moves quickly to a satisfying end. Two well paced, interesting thrillers now from this author, I am anxious for his next novel.

Do you think I should mention that whole morally inept, possibly murderous, thriller reader to any contractors coming to fix our house. Wonder if they would work faster or run.

The Escape Room by Megan Goldin

Hello everyone.

There are many odd things about writing a blog, one is that you really don't know anything about those that are reading it. I don't know if you live in the country or city. Are you a business professional? Are you a housewife, maybe looking for book reviews and cleaning tips...good luck with that...no cleaning here. Yes, I've seen the bathrooms and the dishes in the sink but I must read (and procrastinate). Because of this impersonal kind of communication you may be too young to know some reference I give or find something that amuses me to be ho-hum everyday for you. Why do I mention this? When I was a kid I remember going to New York City for the first time. I recall looking out the hotel room window down at the street and it was so busy, always. Of course we climbed inside the Statue of Liberty, looking out from her crown. We went on a shopping trip as my mom wanted a very specific bedspread that she was certain Gimbels carried. We saw the Rockettes Christmas show at Radio City Music Hall. We also went up to the lookout floor in the Empire State building. I was so young and had never been in a building that high before, the elevator ride seemed to go on forever. I realize this may be an everyday thing for you, but if you haven't been in a skyscraper before it is an usual experience initially. By the time I was in college we were cutting classes to go "into the city" to see a Broadway show, one time almost getting elbowed in the face by Frank Langella (look him up). I digress, let's talk about a book.

I just read The Escape Room by Megan Goldin. This is a thriller about a group of people that work in a cut throat financial merger company in New York City. The story follows a specific team of coworkers. We discover that two of the team members have died and the rest have been called to a team bonding exercise, an escape room, that is an actual elevator in an empty luxury office tower under construction. The elevator is up high, where the one guard can't hear any screaming or pleas for help.   I won't say more, except I hope you aren't claustrophobic. This book is well written and sticks to the storyline. Anywhere the author takes you is absolutely necessary. The reading is quick, easy, and pleasant yet tense, as a thriller should be. There are those books that you want to slow down and savor, this is not one of those books. This novel you want to gobble up whole, just ask me, I read 290+ pages today...a new record for me. Yup, this was a great page-turner from beginning to twisty, satisfying end.

I think the publisher might be able to sell this as an exercise book. After reading this, I bet a lot of people will be skipping the elevator and taking the stairs!

The Mother-In-Law by Sally Hepworth

Hello everyone.

I have to give you a bit of housewife trivia. Our daggum (insert swearing like a sailor here, although I've known several sailors that never swore but do your best...make it really profane) ....as I was saying our daggum dishwasher is broken again. Of course, it was right after we cooked a whole bunch. We took several meals to a friend who doesn't cook, then there was Easter which we cooked for at the same time. End result, a kitchen that looked like a bomb went off. Actually, that would have made for a tidier kitchen! We made ham, turkey, boiled eggs, egg salad, chocolate cake, roasted carrots, my grandma's green bean casserole, and the always pain the butt sugar cookies complete with royal icing piping. But wait there is more...that is on top of the normal dinner dishes, errant bowls, and of course endless array of coffee cups. We just had the dishwasher fixed; they installed a new brain/control panel. That was short lived. The problem is that I love this dishwasher. I know there are people that have real problems, I get it, honestly, I do. But I love my dishwasher, like I love air conditioning, heating and skipping through commercials on the heaven-sent DVR machine. Sadly, hubby has informed me that he has figured it out that my beloved scouring friend is 14 years old and not worth sinking any more money into. Hold on, still more.... he has had some big system conversion thing followed by being on call. I don't understand it, all I know is he works 16 hours days and dishwasher mania must wait until the work load lightens.  You guessed it, leaving me with chipped nails and very dry hands and I still can't get dishes done faster than we use them.

During one of these silverware scrubbing sessions, I was thinking about sayings. Just little things people say, usually specific to their geographic region or age. The south is great for these types of things, like "tripping a$$ over tea kettle" or "slicker than cat s$#t on linoleum."  My mom had one she said often, I have no idea where she got it from. If Mom had to go out of her way, she'd say she had to go "round Robin Hood's barn." Now, I don't know about you but I never knew Robin Hood had a barn. Maybe all that take from the rich and give to the poor thing left him in need for storage for his ill-gotten gain. Perhaps Robin Hood's barn was a storage unit. Maybe before donning tights, he was a dairy farmer and housed his cows in the previously mentioned barn. I don't know, honestly..."round Robin Hood's barn." I'm shaking my head at the thought.

I recently read The Mother-in-Law by Sally Hepworth. This is kind of billed as a thriller, but it is really a flat-out mystery. In the book we follow an extended family, but the story is told from the perspective of the two main characters, Lucy and her mother-in-law, Diana. Now despite Diana and her husband being well off financially, she refuses to help her family, yet has a charity that helps others. Hmmmm, curious.  She is cold and uncaring, sometimes completely apathetic. One day, Diana is found dead. A suicide note is found in the drawer of her desk. If you're committing suicide, wouldn't you leave the note in a more prominent place? Then there is the group she is a member of, where they discuss taking certain kinds of poison to end their own life. Diana is found with her mouth full of such a liquid. However, the autopsy reveals that she had no poison in her system and appears to have been smothered. Then why the note and mouth full of bleck? This is the mystery that this book explores. As it does, a saying came to mind.... for Diana "there is a method to my madness".  Ever hear that one? You'll understand by the time you solve this mystery. Yep, that is what ran through my head as I read this book. Read is too normal of a word, I flew through this novel. Two days, start to finish and that is with my constant mountain of dirty dishes beckoning me. Obviously, the pacing of this is fantastic or a pokey reader like me would still be on chapter five.

Don't wait, get yourself a copy of this book, a cup of coffee, and prepare to be dazzled.  I suggest a paper cup. I've got enough to wash!

The Girl He Used To Know by Tracey Garvis Graves

Hello everyone.

I have a word for you...ready?  SEX!  Yes, sex. Okay, goodnight and have a safe drive home! No? Okay, then I'll go on. Sex is everywhere. It is getting checked out at the grocery store, in more ways than one, or being noticed while walking your dog. Sex is in movies, nature, tv, in books. I am assuming we are all adults here, if under 18 turn this off and go read a book. Back to being adults, being a few years out of my twenties, okay more than a few. No, not that many...okay maybe...let's get off my age. Let me just say, by now what I haven't done, I have ruled out or put in that side category of "maybe just once if I'm in a weird mood and have had a hell of a lot of wine." No matter where you are in your sex life journey, we all know what that attraction feels like. As with many things promoted for money, sex has been turned into a sales vehicle. Whether we like it or not sex sells. I remember being in a marketing class in college and being shocked when we were shown an ad for a certain kind of scotch. It was in a glass over ice. The teacher asked us to look very closely at the ice and sure enough the shape of the haze within the ice was that of a woman's body. Sex does sell, more than booze too, it sells books. No? Don't think so? Ask the author of Fifty Shades of Grey. It was a fan fiction version of Twilight but became SO popular, partly because of the sex. Result, book deal and well paid author.

Sex in a book is especially important in a romance novel. Perhaps not the sex act itself but definitely sexual tension. We root for the characters to get together, to fall in love, to have emotional as well as sexual chemistry. But frankly, if there is no physical spark it could end up like loving your brother not someone you have great passion with. This week I read The Girl He Used to Know by Tracey Garvis Graves. First, let me say, I was very fortunate to receive an advanced copy from the publisher (thank you most excellent St. Martin's Press). I know several other reviewers who also received copies. They ALL LOVED it. Adored. Best thing since sliced bread. When looking at the author on Amazon you will see she is highly rated, a NY Times best seller.  You know it's coming don't you?

For me, this book missed the mark. This is the story of a couple that falls in love in college,  separates then reconnects years later. The story is painfully slow, they don't go anywhere or do anything. That is fine, it drives me crazy when I read a bunch of books where all the activity and settings are over the top, but when you stay in one place the reader is relying on the author to really develop the characters and for some wonderful dialog. The conversations between characters in this story seemed somewhat forced. Not playful, fun, or enjoyable. Not that all discussions have to be light but they didn't seem particularly meaningful either. In this story the girl is on the autism spectrum, the third book with that theme that I've read in six months. Makes me wonder if that is the next trend like vampires were a few years ago (betting female French spies during WWII follow as next major book topic). I can't really explain it other than to say what others found charming, I found flat and uninteresting. The writing was slow and bland. There was a big event at the end but frankly by then it seemed awkward and out of place. I know the work that goes into a book. I really do. It hurts me to say something bad about any book, please remember I am one of the very few people that don't like this. I just thought this whole story, minus the ending, could have been told in 10 pages.

Now that I've depressed us all, time to go to the grocery story to get "checked out", one way or another.

An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen

Hello everyone.

I hope you had a nice Christmas, or Tuesday, however it was you spent it last week. My Christmas was disastrous, despite my early start and incessant list making. We didn't get all our decorations or trees up. Our company arrived a day later than originally planned which gave us more prep time, yet still we were cleaning after they arrived and remained without the last tree and several critical decorations. In addition, I forgot to bring out several of the "snacks" we had purchased. We play games, lots of them, so we serve a nice breakfast but no lunch just snacks, then dinner, of course. Anyway, I forgot to put out lots of the snacks we had purchased...like a platter of assorted Italian meats my brother-in-law loves, or the nuts he loves, or the cheeseball that is tradition.

We were so lucky that from all my siblings, as a group present, hubby and I received a Play Station 4. Now before you think we are juvenile let me tell you my mother was the first in line to get an Atari, oh so many years ago, which she loved and played often. In addition, my artist niece has now declared her major as "game design". Since I bothered to learn all the words to Blue Clues in an effort to be a favorite aunt, you can bet your fanny I'm going to play a game she thinks is interesting. (BTW, I spent a good hour begging her to make a game of the book Nevermoor.) So we were being taught how to use the new game machine when my family packed up, leaving quickly after we finished. I forgot to give them treats that we usually do, and we will never eat, like dozens and dozens of spectacularly decorated sugar cookies (can you guess who made them...hint...I'm pointing at me) and a container of homemade fudge so big you could soak in it. Oh well, I guess they had a good time and that is all that matters, right? Successful family time. Unfortunately, my husband came away sick and now I'm getting the creeping crud. We both feel absolutely awful!

One good thing, after Christmas I was so tired, besides sleeping the only thing I've done is read. Hooray! I just read An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen. If they sound familiar it is because they are the writing team that brought readers the thriller The Wife Between Us. I greatly enjoyed The Wife Between Us, but An Anonymous Girl is even better! This new book is about trust and lies. When is it okay to lie and when has it gone too far?  How do you tell if someone is lying? What are your moral values? It starts when a young makeup artist sneaks into a psychological study about morals because it pays well and she needs the money. Right there you are wondering about values, as she is lying to get into the study....but what if she needs the money for a noble reason? Is it bad then? Anyway, when the book starts you might think it is going to be slow or dry as a girl answers questions on a computer screen. You'd be wrong. It is strangely compelling, the story calls to you to push on just one more chapter. The story quickly morphs into something completely different, something personal and unpredictable. Someone is a master manipulator but the reader remains unsure who. As this plot becomes more and more of a true thriller, we realize that not only is their a whole lot of mental twisting going on but actual physical danger. Who is the target and who is the perpetrator? It is well told, quickly paced and certainly holds your interest. In addition, it has an oh so satisfying end, which you know I adore.

If you have a bookstore gift card, An Anonymous Girl is released January 8, 2019 and would really start your reading year out on the fast track!

Lies by T. M. Logan

Now, I realize I just posted yesterday and you're likely already at your April limit, (who isn't) but I forgot to tell you about a great book, and it releases on September 11th! While I find it annoying to be bombarded with posts, I also don't want you to miss a great book and if you are a thriller lover, this is a great one!

This book starts with a man Joe, in his car with his son, Ben, who sees his mom's car with mommy driving down the road. Since it is not at a time or place Joe would expect to see his wife out and about, he follows her. What unfolds is a wild ride. Joe discovers a vat of simmering doubt and disappointment. 

The cover asks the question about what if your life was based on lies. Now, frankly, I'm certain many of our lives are based on little lies. Nobody wants to look boring to their Facebook friends from high school. Everyone absolutely MUST outdo each other with the frequency of lavish vacations. That's not what the book is talking about. How would you feel if everything you based your life on fell apart. If you suddenly discover piece after piece of information showing you were one giant Jenga tower about to fall because that solid base you stand on was never really there at all. Those are the questions this book asks. It is terrifying. It could happen to any of us. I guess we all rest our faith on the integrity of those around us, but some people are really good liars. 

Lies was so good. A fast paced, keep you up all night page turner with an excellent twist at the end. If this story doesn't have you awake reading, it will have you examining everyone in your life...just to make sure.

The Dream Daughter by Diane Chamberlain

I just read The Dream Daughter, by Diane Chamberlain. This book, published by St. Martin's Press will be for sale October 2, 2018.

I was nervous about reading this book. It has time travel and medical stuff, both of which I completely avoid. I was absolutely mesmerized by this book, reading it in three days when I had other things I should have been accomplishing.

This is the story of Carly, a young physical therapist who loses her husband in Vietnam, but discovers that she is carrying his child. Happy to have that remaining piece of him, Carly is crushed to hear that the baby has a fatal heart flaw and will die right after birth. There is help, however, in the form of Carly's brother-in-law, Hunter, who has traveled back in time to 1970 and stayed there because of his love for Carly's sister and their young child. Hunter proposes teaching the pregnant Carly to time travel, sending her to 2001, where she might be able to get the baby's heart fixed while still unborn producing a normal, healthy child.

The story moves quickly, keeping the attention on the small cast of characters. Carly and family are completely endearing. The ending is a surprise and perfection, completely satisfying. I am struggling as I don't want to give the story away, but it is interesting and beautifully written. It makes you wonder what you would do for the person you love. When does that love become selfish? Best of all this is one of those kind of books that lingers, staying with you, maybe forever.

Bring Me Back by B.A. Paris

A few weeks ago, June 19th to be exact, B.A. Paris' new book Bring Me Back was released. I was very excited as I have read and enjoyed both of her previous books, Behind Closed Doors and The Break Down. I implored my husband to pick it up at the bookstore near his office on release date. I must read it immediately. Finally, after several deep breaths, who am I kidding practically hyperventilating, I said no. I would wait. I have tons of brand-new books here waiting, hell begging to be read. I would wait until this came out in paperback or when not in such a precarious position as to be crushed by my own stack of to be read books.

Alas, along came the dreaded Barnes and Noble 20% off coupon. Getting such a current release hard back for on $13 must be a sign, it is fate, meant to be. We were destined to become story-reader soul mates. Well, I've finished it and I'm unsure of our current status. If I had to purchase it again, I would...so I consider that a recommendation, but somethings keep nagging at me. Without a plot rehash I'll just say a man and his girlfriend on a trip, pull into a rest stop. He returns from the bathroom and she is missing. The story flashes forward 12 years and the same man (named Finn, if that matters), is about to be married, to the woman who disappeared sister. I don't know, my husband is very close to my family, I can already see him saying "ewe", not that he doesn't adore my sisters but not in a creepy incest kind of way.

Anyway, the story leads you to believe that the original girlfriend might still be alive and stalking Finn and her sister, his current love interest. Sounds super interesting. One of my pet peeves is when books yammer on about topics that don't matter to the story or rehash the same thing over and over. I have a lot to read (see leaning tower of to be read books above), and I want authors to be very respectful of my time. This book seemed to spend a lot of time pondering who it could be sending clues to Finn. He goes over the same people in his head repeatedly. That gets on my nerves and makes me feel like the story needed something else in the story line to take up space instead of me obsessing about Finn obsessing. Then there is the end. I don't want to spoil it for you but it kind of hit me like the Sopranos fade to black, it was neat and interesting, don't get me wrong and a great story idea but I kind of felt a teensy bit cheated, like he would have known and to say he had no idea is insincere.

None the less, I still liked to book very much. I will still try and show some self control the next time B.A. Paris releases a book and wait for the paperback or purchase the kindle version...at least until I have a bad day or a good day and MUST consol or reward myself with her newest book.

Baby Teeth

I have to tell you the funniest story. I was recently sent a advanced reader copy for a new thriller called Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage, which hits bookstores July 17th. By the way, huge thanks to St. Martin's Press, the publisher, for making my week. Anyway, I start reading this unusual book. It is about a young girl, 7 years old, who is very smart. She loves her dad so much but her mom, she'd kind like her out of the picture so she can have her dad all to herself. The little girl is Hanna and the mom is Suzette. So let's just cut to the short of it, this book is devious, dark, intense and quite thrilling. I really liked it.

So, I'm reading along one afternoon, about halfway through the book when my husband comes in with the mail. He stops in our hall and doesn't move. Odd, I ask if anything bad came in the mail. No answer. I ask if he's okay, no answer. Finally, he says "I don't know." We had received a post card, on the front are kids drawings and printed over it is "Maybe if Mommy was uglier, maybe Daddy wouldn't love her as much." Hubby was confused. He didn't know if this was a weird campaign for some unusual group or product, or if some little girl was really a problem child and had sent something very odd to the wrong address. He flipped to postcard over and it says in red ink written like a child, "I hate mommy so much. I promise you'll feel the same way, cross my heart, hope mommy dies." The postcard was from the publisher, reminding me of the book they'd sent. Believe me I needed no reminding.

Now if that does not convince you to buy and read this book, then I wash my hands of you, so would Hanna!

A Gathering of Secrets by Linda Castillo

Well everyone, I bought a new vacuum but now the dishwasher broke. All I want is to live in a home of complete harmony, is that really so much to ask? Needless to say, to escape the Maximum Overdrive 2.0 going on in my house I have resorted to books! As usual!

I have been so fortunate to receive an advance reader copy of A Gathering of Secrets by Linda Castillo. I haven't read anything by Linda before so went into this completely blind. This story is half thriller half mystery. It opens like a rocket, and I mean opens. I was saying "wow" out loud during the prologue....you read that right...THE PROLOGUE. The first chapter was even more shocking. Immediately I'm intrigued.

Without giving the story away, this is set in Ohio within several groups of Amish. There is a murder, and we follow the chief of police, Kate Burkholder. Now Kate, who is ex-Amish herself has her own set of problems and they intertwine with the murder. Interesting huh? The chief is a very likable character that you find yourself totally rooting for. The thing is, after the super-exciting beginning the book settles into Kate going from person to person, interviewing them trying to find out who knew what and why certain things happened. I started to think "uh oh, here we go, this is about to get really dry and boring." The thing is, it didn't! It got more and more compelling of a read the further it went along and hung on until the very end...I mean the very end.

If you are interested in a mystery/thriller in a different setting or are interested in the Amish, this is the book for you. If the Amish setting is a turn off for you please know that it only assists the story, it doesn't detract or bog it down in any way. This book is released July 10th.

I cannot thank St. Martin's Press enough for so generously sending me a proof of this amazing story. Please don't mind it though if I blame you for my sudden urge to learn how to quilt.

The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks and Sara Pekkanen

          I am a thriller girl. Of course I'll read anything that is really good but I gravitate toward thrillers. Needless to say I read a lot of them and am always trying to guess the twist, the ending. After reading these mysteries with action added for a long time, I thought I was getting pretty good at it. Enter The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen.

I'm reading along one night, my husband walks by and wonders why I look that way. Now I say that is my everyday face, but he thought I looked shocked. Then I start flipping the book backwards, saying "What? No? What? Huh?". I just didn't understand, but I did. It was devious, it was unplanned, it was sneaky, I didn't see it coming AND it was only halfway through. To say I loved it, is an understatement. It's fast paced, fast reading and I never saw it coming. What else could you possibly want in a thriller? Next book these two authors put out, sign me up, I'm first in line. You though waiting to get Harry Potter books at midnight was a big deal, wait until their next book comes out. I'm totally there.

The most remarkable thing about this, after seeing me questioning this book, being so shocked, my husband read it. He rarely reads fiction, but was compelled to give this a go. He finished in a day and didn't see the first twist either. Wonderfully diabolical.

*This review is one I posted at BookishFirst.com. If you haven't been to their site give it a try. You can earn points for books, write reviews but the best thing is you get to read several chapters of books really getting to know them before you purchase them. Frankly, I think you should buy everything I tell you to but somehow I don't think you'll take my advice alone. Oh well, a girl can try.