Books, Books, Books, and a Cat

 An absolutely unique novel with a mysterious and haunting vibe.  There were several layers to this novel that make it a story that will stick with me for a long time.  Ellie Mills is a child when she first sees a legendary island off the coast of Nova Scotia. She swims to it and finds a farm with a house and a man named Clay inside.  The man quickly ushers her back to land only for Ellie to discover that the few hours she thought she was gone was actually a week.  Ellie grows up but can't stop thinking about the island even as she tries to convince herself it isn't real.  When the island is spotted by several hundred people on a cruise ship, Ellie is drawn back to her home to see if she can see the island one more time.  She swims back to the island and finds Clay who is the exact same as when she was a child.  Thus begins a new chapter in Ellie's life.  I keep finding myself drawn to this story and can't stop thinking about it.  An isl...

 4.5 Stars- A poignant and heartwarming romance that will make this the perfect beach read of the summer. This is a story with characters you actually care about.   Nikki is a former reality star who comes  home for the summer only to find that her brother is going to marry a woman that dated her ex-fiance.  Nikki was on a reality dating show and thought she had found the love of her life only to find out that he actually had a girlfriend at the time.  Now that girlfriend is going to marry Nikki's brother.  Nikki is devastated that her family is warmly embracing Cara after everything that happened.  With their wedding happening in only a matter of weeks, Nikki and Cara's family come to the lake to wedding prep and Nikki tries to get Cara's brother Nate on board with sabotaging the wedding.  Nikki and Nate soon develop not only a friendship but soon find that they have feelings for each other.  Only it does not seem possible that this rom...

  This novel is the perfect blend of thriller meets horror.  I am not a huge horror fan but Kelley Armstrong's horror novels keep me wanting more.  In this story, it is a dark and stormy night and several strangers find themselves stranded in an out of the way stretch of road after crashing into each other during a storm.  All around them are woods and these are not your typical woods.  They are the type of woods where once you go in, you might never come out.  Each chapter introduces us to new characters with their back story.  After they crash, they all converge at a bar where they share their stories and figure out very quickly that things are not as they seem.   This was a wild ride that had me guessing what was going on.  The first half of the book was trying to figure out what was really happening.  Kelley Armstrong is one of my favorite authors and with her books you never know if it is just a mystery or will there be a super...

  If you are looking for great descriptions of Spain, this might be the book for you. The descriptions in this book are extremely vivid and I felt at times that I was actually in Valencia.  However the storyline for me just did not pack the same punch.  Dahlia is recently divorced and is looking to get away from her old life.  She has family that she barely remembers in Valencia, Spain so she travels there after her divorce is final.  She finds a job working in a bar run by another American.  The two of them have a slow burn romance as Dahlia searches for what she really wants in life.   The story was a little slow moving for my taste. I liked the premise but I found that the story was just not that memorable for me.  I really wanted more to happen in the story.  The descriptions of Valencia really saved the book.  I did really enjoy picturing the sights and sounds all around her epically the food.  I would love to some day tra...

 The couple that kills togther, stays together, right?   In this follow up novel to, A Serial Killer's Guide to Marriage, Haze and Fox are going through a rough patch. Fox is going to therapy but Hazel just wants him to help more with the kids and the household.  The two of them are going through typical trials that couples face when they have two small children except someone seems to be aware of their extra curricular activities.  Now their lives may be in danger if they can't find out who is spying on them.  I am loving this series.  The first book was fantastic and this was a great second novel.  The action and mystery is spot on.  Plus, Haze and Fox are great characters.  There were even a couple of chapters that featured Jenny's perspective which I found really interesting.  This novel featured mom drama, typical issues that you find in a marriage, kid issues, but it also had problems that one would never expect unless you wer...

 I'm a little in awe of this novel.  I had read a book previously about a woman who had gone undercover at a lunatic asylum but this book took it to a whole new level.  The fact that this book was based on many real life events added to the impact of this novel. The story is told in two different time periods.  The first is Emily's story in 1961.  Emily is a journalist who really does not want to get married and leave her working life behind.  She decides to take a huge risk and go undercover at the local woman's prison to find out if the conditions there are really as bad as an anonymous letter claims.  Emily is easily admitted but soon realizes that things are much worse than she ever imagined.   The second story follows Rachel in 1996.  Rachel is a cop who finds a body in an unmarked grave.  Rachel is determined to find out who that body is but while she is investigating the reader gets flashbacks to Rachel's earlier life.  ...

  3.5 stars- This was a super sweet and short novel.  There was amazing life advice as well as a heartwarming story.  This was the third in the series but you don't have to read the other two to enjoy this novel.  There were some nods to the other novels but this one can be read in isolation.  Set in Japan, there were some references that I didn't really understand but I appreciate expanding my horizons. I did find some parts confusing as I was unfamiliar with names of different places, people, and things mentioned, but this is my cultural ignorance. The story centered around a mother, daughter, and the father.  There was an interesting story.  The point of view changed for each character and I felt that really worked for the story because I truly understood each character better.  The advice in the book was important and I feel like this book helped remind me about what is important in life.  Thank you to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for t...

  3.5 Stars- This book had me hooked in that I had to find out what was going to happen.   Three friends go on a girls getaway to hike in the wilderness in Washington State.  However the area that they are in is a known area where a serial killer has been to stalk.  When one of the friends, Stephanie,  gets injured they must try to find a place to rest and get help.  They come across an isolated cabin but need to take their chances.  The three friends must band together before things go from bad to worse.  First of all I loved the fact that we had three friends that were very close friends.  I have found that my friendships in life have fallen in this pattern.  I also enjoyed the thriller aspect in that I truly never knew what was going to happen and who was the real bad guy.  The novel was completely narrated from Jade’s point of view and as she was kind of the odd one out I really felt for her.  However I did not like ho...

  4.5 Stars- This was such a fun book that really had it all.  There was mystery, action, romance, and even a little historical fiction. Maeve and Therese are sisters who have both just lost their mom.  The two sisters don't get along and one wish that their mom had was for them to travel to Ireland together and hopefully reconcile. However, upon her death they find out that their mom's money was all scammed away.  Both Maeve and Therese need money and find out that a painting that their family has always had may be worth a significant amount. To sell it they need to trace its origins and that means traveling to Ireland.  Once in Ireland, the sisters embark on a journey that has them meeting interesting people, falling in love, figuring out their family history, and solving a mystery involving a crime. This was an excellent story and one that I wanted to keep reading as new events kept unfolding.  I really enjoyed the mystery that Maeve and Therese had to f...