The Guest List by Lucy Foley

Good morning everyone.  Hope your day is off to a good start.  I have to tell you about something I did a few years ago that still bothers me.  Frankly, I'm ashamed.  Hubby and I went to upstate New York for his birthday. We went to visit my grandmother. All my sisters were in town.  So, I stopped at a party place and got little kids toys, like squirt guns and get the bb through the maze, and made little silly party favors.  When there, I didn't want my grandmother to cook, we were already invading her house, so I brought take out chicken. We had this cute little birthday lunch for my husband and got to spend time with my siblings and beloved grandmother all at the same time.  All the rest of family from the area had either passed away or moved away.  Well, except one person, my mother's cousin, Joe.  He was my grandmother's, brother's son, hence my mother's first cousin.

Joe was so good to us. His family came to our house every Christmas and he would always be the one to grab the new toy we wanted to play the most, read the instructions, set it up, and teach us how to play.  Then Joe and my mom would play games as long as we wanted.  Every year he played, and yes, he was an adult he just did it because he was so kind.  At our wedding he took over five hundred pictures and gave them to us, so we would have plenty of candid shots that the photographer would undoubtedly miss.  He knew it was a day I couldn't get back. He even came to my parents house the morning of the wedding to make sure we didn't need anything.

So, back to my grandmothers house for hubby's  birthday party.  Joe somehow found out we were in town and came over, seeing the empty plates with food scraps and eaten cake. He had a gift for my husband's birthday.  Hubby is a train nut, Joe brought him an antique pocket watch that belonged to a conductor on a train. It is beautiful.  Oh my gosh, I forgot to invite Joe.  He must have had his feelings hurt knowing he had not been included.  I wanted to crawl into a hole.  He died shortly after and I have regretting my letting him down every day since. What does this tear-jerker have to do with books?  I made a rotten guest list, some people have very interesting lists.

I recently read The Guest List by Lucy Foley. This was my first book by this author but definitely not my last.  This is the story of an elaborate wedding taking place on a private island off the coast of Ireland.  We follow several members of the wedding party and guests, each seeming to have their own secrets.  When someone ends up dead, everyone appears to have a motive, some tied together.  But how can that be, for many of the guests this is their first time meeting.  This book is full of atmosphere, from ancient ruins, to peat bogs that swallow bodies, to a creepy old graveyard, a storm blowing in and, of course, no cell service. The story is a fairly quick read.  While I wouldn't call it a page turner like many thrillers, I would agree that this is an excellent mystery.  It kind of reminded me a bit of The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, only The Guest List is set in reality and much easier to follow with far fewer characters.  Many people are comparing it to Agatha Christie's books.  I read The Guest List immediately after the thriller Home Before Dark by Riley Sager.  I admittedly had my doubts it would hold my interest, especially after a haunted estate thriller.  There is something about The Guest List that makes you come back to read more. I don't know exactly what it is, the different voices from the wedding party, or the shortish chapters., I can't figure it out.  The book is remarkable how everything becomes together at the end, it is masterful.  You'll find yourself nodding your head, saying "aaaah" out loud, as the pieces fall into place.  A very enjoyable mystery.

By the way, Joe MADE me a beautiful vanity complete with mirror, when I was eight years old. Yes, I feel terrible. Don't worry, I won't be in charge of your birthday party guest list.

Home Before Dark by Riley Sager

Hello everyone, I hope you are having a great day.  Let's jump right into it, as I have a chicken to bake (certainly my seven thousandth). I just finished Home Before Dark by Riley Sager.  If this book isn't already on your radar, it is about a woman, Maggie, who inherits an old mansion in Vermont. When her family lived there years ago they found it to be haunted, so haunted that one night her family flees with nothing but the clothes on their back. Maggie was five years old when her family left and doesn't remember much.  The knowledge she has about the house comes from a best selling book her father writes after they flee, which Maggie believes is a complete lie.

Written with alternating chapters following the present day Maggie, and actual chapters from the book written by Maggie's dad, Ewan, the reading is quick.  Many sections end in a cliffhanger or revelation, propelling the reader forward.  It is full of atmosphere, a bit spooky, and in one section, quite gross.  It contains several mysteries and as thriller lovers prefer...many twists. If you are a romantic comedy reader, this isn't for you. However, if you like horror, mysteries, or thrillers, this, my friends, is the book for you. It's a wild ride that will grab you from the very beginning and doesn't lift the overhead harness until the very end.

Now the bad news, Home Before Dark isn't going to be released until June 30th.  I have a finished, hardbound copy. It isn't an advanced reader copy/galley. How did I get it so early (June 1st)? Book of the Month, that's how. Wait, don't close your laptop, I swear this is not a commercial. I get no kickback, they have no idea who I am.  Several years ago I received a gift subscription and have renewed it for several years. Books end up costing $14.99 hardbound.  Have you priced books lately, never mind, I know you have a reading addiction too.  Well for you library dwellers let me tell you they run from $26 to $31. That is more than a quarter of a hundred dollars for one book.  That just shocks me.  Anyway, Book of the Month (BOTM) gets you a discount because you're basically paying ahead. AND you can get up to two additional books each month.  Trust me here, any add on books, pay for instead of using credits. Credits cost $14.99 but add ons at $9.99, so save those credits for each months BOTM.

My mom used to get BOTM ages ago, thankfully, it is much better now. If you don't want a book, just skip a month. Nothing is sent automatically. There are five new books to choose from each month. Usually there is a thriller, but the choices are varied. One of June's choices was Home Before Dark, which they got early for their subscribers. My description is probably clear as mud, but their web site is much better. My husband said I looked like a kid on Christmas morning when I saw Home Before Dark as a choice.  What can I say, I've been waiting for this to come out and to get it early and at a discount, it's housewife heaven.

By the way, if you're thinking, like I was, that this might be a reworking of The Amityville Horror is isn't.  Riley Sager's novel is much more involved and so good.

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!

Saint X by Alexis Schaitkin

Hello everyone.

I hope you are well. Many of us are enjoying some "inside" time. If you can get a free moment from the craziness of a house full of kids,  perhaps you can grab a book. I'm sure your book stockpile exceeds your supply of toilet paper.  Maybe you could knock a few novels off your tbr.

When I read about the book Saint X I was interested. This story sounded like a thriller plucked from the newspaper headlines. This is not the case. This book certainly isn't a thriller and is barely a mystery. The point is to discover who killed a teenager at a vacation island location but the book ends up as a discussion of grief. If you want a thought provoking story about how people handle all kinds of loss, without getting terribly depressing then Saint X is for you. The writing is engrossing, and descriptive without repeating itself, the author moves the story along, not lingering too long on any topic. I really appreciated the writing style. This book was really good, my problem is with myself and not the book. I thought I was reading a thriller and kept expecting the story to race to a heart pounding conclusion, which it never did. Again, a strong, well written, interesting read but not a thriller or suspenseful mystery.

Take care!

The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James

Hello everyone.

Have you ever gone to one of those old roadside motels? No? Me either. Hubby always wants to stay at them, referring to them as "mom and pop" places instead of something corporate owned. I agree it is a lovely idea, but I can't get the picture out of my head of sagging mattresses, rusty, dirty bathrooms, and bugs. Yes, I've seen those things in big chain hotels.  I don't know, maybe one day.

I recently read The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James. I couldn't wait for this to be released. A haunted old motel, what is not to like?  For me, it wasn't all pleasant. In this story, a young woman, Viv, works at the motel in 1982 and goes missing. In 2017, Viv's niece who is obsessed with the story of her aunt's disappearance, also works at Sun Down so she can investigate what happened years ago.  It's an interesting premise but for me, the ghost story takes a back seat to the mystery that both girls are trying to solve. Timelines that shift are often an excellent way to tell a story and I love when they come together in the end but in this case everything just gets too jumbled, the story isn't clean enough. The ghost story could be expanded on and much scarier and the mystery could be much less. In fact, I correctly guessed the answer to the mystery after the first few pages of the book.

If you love Simone St. James, read this, by all means, you might love it as so many people do.  If she is a new author for you, I suggest Broken Girls, a great ghost story. Even though The Sun Down Motel wasn't my favorite, I'll be in line to purchase the next St. James novel.

Sorry All

It's been a long time since my last post. Sadly, I've been in the hospital for the last three weeks. Just home now, but super weak. Trying to build strength to walk and go back to my normal life. It's going to take a bit of time and a lot of effort.

I didn't want you to think I had forgot about you or the great stories on the market right now, because that is just not the case.

Hope you are safe and happy.

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.