5 stars

BOOK REVIEW: Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six by Lisa Unger

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Title: Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six

Author: Lisa Unger

Audiobook Length: 12 hours and 20 minutes

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Genre: Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Suspense

Read Start Date: April 3, 2023

Read Finish Date: April 12, 2023

Brief Summary of the Plot from Goodreads: Three couples rent a luxury cabin in the woods for a weekend getaway to die for in this chilling locked-room thriller by New York Times bestselling author Lisa Unger.

What could be more restful, more restorative, than a weekend getaway with family and friends? An isolated luxury cabin in the woods, complete with spectacular views, a hot tub and a personal chef. Hannah’s loving and generous tech-mogul brother found the listing online. The reviews are stellar. It’s his birthday gift to Hannah and includes their spouses and another couple. The six friends need this trip with good food, good company and lots of R & R, far from the chatter and pressures of modern life.

But the dreamy weekend is about to turn into a nightmare. A deadly storm is brewing. The rental host seems just a little too present. The personal chef reveals that their beautiful house has a spine-tingling history. And the friends have their own complicated past, with secrets that run blood deep. How well does Hannah know her brother, her own husband? Can she trust her best friend? And who is the new boyfriend, crashing their party? Meanwhile, someone is determined to ruin the weekend, looking to exact a payback for deeds long buried. Who is the stranger among them?

 My Review: Lisa Unger’s Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six is a gripping and suspenseful thriller that will captivate readers from beginning to end. The story follows three couples who rent a luxurious cabin in the woods for a weekend getaway, but find themselves caught in a terrifying situation where they cannot trust anyone, not even each other.

The novel begins by introducing the six main characters, each with their own personal secrets and complicated relationships with each other. There are married couples Hannah and Bruce, Hannah’s brother Mako and his wife Liza, and Mako’s ex-girlfriend Cricket and her boyfriend.

Although the rental cabin initially seems like a dream with its hot tub, stunning views, and personal chef, things quickly take a turn for the worse. A deadly storm brews, the rental host seems a little creepy, and the personal chef reveals the cabin’s spine-tingling history. Meanwhile, a stranger seeks revenge for long-buried deeds and is determined to ruin the group’s weekend. Strange things start to happen at the cabin, and what was supposed to be a great weekend, ends in a nightmare no one could have anticipated.

The author masterfully builds tension and unease throughout the novel, utilizing the isolated cabin in the woods to add a sense of danger and isolation. Each character is well-developed and complex, with their own motives and secrets that are slowly revealed, building suspense and intrigue.

This was a great book to listen to while exercising, as it kept me engaged the entire time.

BOOK REVIEW: How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix

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Title: How to Sell a Haunted House

Author: Grady Hendrix

Audiobook Length: 12 hours and 59 minutes

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Genre: Fiction, Horror, Paranormal, Thriller

Read Start Date: March 28, 2023

Read Finish Date: April 3, 2023

Brief Summary of the Plot from Goodreads: Grady Hendrix takes on the haunted house in a thrilling new novel that explores the way your past—and your family—can haunt you like nothing else.

When Louise finds out her parents have died, she dreads going home. She doesn’t want to leave her daughter with her ex and fly to Charleston. She doesn’t want to deal with her family home, stuffed to the rafters with the remnants of her father’s academic career and her mother’s lifelong obsession with puppets and dolls. She doesn’t want to learn how to live without the two people who knew and loved her best in the world.

Most of all, she doesn’t want to deal with her brother, Mark, who never left their hometown, gets fired from one job after another, and resents her success. Unfortunately, she’ll need his help to get the house ready for sale because it’ll take more than some new paint on the walls and clearing out a lifetime of memories to get this place on the market.

But some houses don’t want to be sold, and their home has other plans for both of them…

 My Review: After the tragic passing of her parents, Louise is forced to return home to handle their estate and confront her estranged brother, Mark. Despite being siblings, they have never seen eye to eye. Louise, the older child, feels her parents favored Mark, leading to resentment. On the other hand, Mark believes that Louise has always had everything handed to her while he’s been left with nothing.

Their parents’ will only exacerbates the situation, leaving everything to Mark except for their mother’s peculiar collection of “artwork,” including unsettling puppets and taxidermy squirrels. While Mark is eager to sell the house, Louise wants to prolong the process by delaying the removal of the “artwork.”

Amidst these family tensions, strange occurrences begin to happen in the house, such as scratching sounds from the attic, televisions turning on when no one is around, and the unsettling movement of the puppets. These supernatural elements set the stage for an unforgettable haunted house story.

The author, Hendrix, skillfully creates an engaging and atmospheric world that draws readers in. The horror elements are genuinely creepy, and the story has plenty of unexpected twists and turns to keep readers on edge.

Overall, How to Sell a Haunted House is a must-read for those who enjoy horror and paranormal stories.

BOOK REVIEW: Mad Honey by Jennifer Finney Boylan and Jodi Picoult

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Title: Mad Honey

Author: Jennifer Finney Boylan and Jodi Picoult

Audiobook Length: 15 hours and 12 minutes

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Genre: Fiction, Mystery, Contemporary, Romance, LGBT, Thriller

Read Start Date: March 16, 2023

Read Finish Date: April 17, 2023

Brief Summary of the Plot from Goodreads: A soul-stirring novel about what we choose to keep from our past, and what we choose to leave behind.

Olivia McAfee knows what it feels like to start over. Her picture-perfect life—living in Boston, married to a brilliant cardiothoracic surgeon, raising a beautiful son, Asher—was upended when her husband revealed a darker side. She never imagined she would end up back in her sleepy New Hampshire hometown, living in the house she grew up in, and taking over her father’s beekeeping business.

Lily Campanello is familiar with do-overs, too. When she and her mom relocate to Adams, New Hampshire, for her final year of high school, they both hope it will be a fresh start.

And for just a short while, these new beginnings are exactly what Olivia and Lily need. Their paths cross when Asher falls for the new girl in school, and Lily can’t help but fall for him, too. With Ash, she feels happy for the first time. Yet at times, she wonders if she can she trust him completely . . .

Then one day, Olivia receives a phone call: Lily is dead, and Asher is being questioned by the police. Olivia is adamant that her son is innocent. But she would be lying if she didn’t acknowledge the flashes of his father’s temper in him, and as the case against him unfolds, she realizes he’s hidden more than he’s shared with her.

Mad Honey is a riveting novel of suspense, an unforgettable love story, and a moving and powerful exploration of the secrets we keep and the risks we take in order to become ourselves.

My Review: I borrowed the audiobook of Mad Honey from the library solely because it was listed as “popular”, without any prior knowledge of the story. I later discovered that it was a nominee for the Goodreads Best Fiction award in 2022.

The novel is structured around two different points of view, that of Olivia and Lily, and revolves around the pivotal event of Lily’s untimely death, and suspected murder. While Olivia’s perspective progresses forward in time, Lily’s viewpoint takes readers back in time, providing insight into her life leading up to her death. Through Lily’s perspective we see the evolution (in reverse) of the romantic relationship between Asher (Olivia’s son) and Lily. Meanwhile, Olivia’s viewpoint centers around the aftermath of Lily’s death and Asher’s subsequent trial.

This unique structure adds a layer of depth to the storytelling and allows readers to see the full picture of the events leading up to and following Lily’s passing. In the afterward of the book, the author’s describe their writing process, where initially each author took up one POV. Through editing and redrafting (done by both authors) the writing styles were combined into one cohesive book.

The suspenseful plot kept me on the edge of my seat, as the investigation into Lily’s death unfolds and secrets are revealed. I don’t want to give away too much about the plot as the story takes a surprising turn around the halfway mark, revealing an unexpected twist that is not hinted at in the synopsis. The twist and well executed pacing adds an additional layer of complexity to the story and kept me guessing until the very end.

The characters are well-developed and relatable, each with their own flaws and challenges that make them feel real and engaging.

A definite must-read!

BOOK REVIEW: Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood

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Title: Love on the Brain

Author: Ali Hazelwood

Book Length: 368 pages

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Genre: Fiction, Romance, Contemporary, Chick Lit

Read Start Date: February 28, 2023

Read Finish Date: March 5, 2023

Brief Summary of the Plot from Goodreads: From the New York Times bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis comes a new STEMinist rom-com in which a scientist is forced to work on a project with her nemesis—with explosive results.

Bee Königswasser lives by a simple code: What would Marie Curie do? If NASA offered her the lead on a neuroengineering project – a literal dream come true – Marie would accept without hesitation. Duh. But the mother of modern physics never had to co-lead with Levi Ward.

Sure, Levi is attractive in a tall, dark, and piercing-eyes kind of way. But Levi made his feelings toward Bee very clear in grad school – archenemies work best employed in their own galaxies far, far away.

But when her equipment starts to go missing and the staff ignore her, Bee could swear she sees Levi softening into an ally, backing her plays, seconding her ideas… devouring her with those eyes. The possibilities have all her neurons firing.

But when it comes time to actually make a move and put her heart on the line, there’s only one question that matters: What will Bee Königswasser do?

My Review: Bee Königswasser is the typical, snarky romance heroine with a twist: she is a brilliant neuroscientist. She thinks that she has just hit the jackpot when she is assigned to work as the lead on a helmet NASA is developing. Then she finds out that her engineering counterpart is Levi Ward. You know, the hunky guy that hated her in grad school for some reason that she could never quite figure out.

And it is clear that he still hates her–his evilness knows no bounds. He eats her freakin’ vegan donut…like who the F does that? Then he cancels the equipment she orders, prevents her from accessing the building…God what is this guy’s problem?

But then weirdly, things change. He is actually nice to her. He helps her. He says nice things about her to others…

As this is a romance novel, I’m sure by now you’ve already figured out they end up getting together. The sex scenes are very well written and are very steamy.

I normally do not enjoy romance novels, but for some reason I adored this one. Maybe it was the voice of Bee, maybe it was the plot, or the way Ali Hazelwood wrote the book (in a playful and informal style), but it was just great — much better in fact than her other book, The Love Hypothesis.

Do I recommend this book? Duh!

BOOK REVIEW: Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng

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Title: Our Missing Hearts

Author: Celeste Ng

Audiobook Length: 9 hours and 51 minutes

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Genre: Fiction, Contemporary, Dystopia

Read Start Date: February 14, 2023

Read Finish Date: February 24, 2023

Brief Summary of the Plot from Goodreads: A novel about a mother’s unbreakable love in a world consumed by fear.

Twelve-year-old Bird Gardner lives a quiet existence with his loving but broken father, a former linguist who now shelves books in a university library. Bird knows to not ask too many questions, stand out too much, or stray too far. For a decade, their lives have been governed by laws written to preserve “American culture” in the wake of years of economic instability and violence. To keep the peace and restore prosperity, the authorities are now allowed to relocate children of dissidents, especially those of Asian origin, and libraries have been forced to remove books seen as unpatriotic—including the work of Bird’s mother, Margaret, a Chinese American poet who left the family when he was nine years old.

Bird has grown up disavowing his mother and her poems; he doesn’t know her work or what happened to her, and he knows he shouldn’t wonder. But when he receives a mysterious letter containing only a cryptic drawing, he is pulled into a quest to find her. His journey will take him back to the many folktales she poured into his head as a child, through the ranks of an underground network of librarians, into the lives of the children who have been taken, and finally to New York City, where a new act of defiance may be the beginning of much-needed change.

My Review: The book follows the stories of Bird and his mother Margaret. The first part is about Bird. He received a letter from his mother and using it as a clue to her whereabouts, he tracks her down. Although only 12, he travels to NYC by himself to find her. The second part of the book is about Margaret, her past, and the events that led to the reason why she had to abandon Bird and his father. Additionally, we learn of Margaret’s protest and we see how the same is carried out.

The story is set in a world where Chinese-Americans and anyone of Asian descent are despised and seen as “other” due to their supposed responsibility for a global financial crisis. In Our Missing Hearts Asians are being attacked with impunity, and the children of so-called “problem” Asians are being taken away by the government and placed in the care of white families to maintain political control and silence dissent against discrimination. The book echoes the real-world experiences of the pandemic, where Asian Americans were being subjected to hate crimes.

In Our Missing Hearts, books written by Asian authors are banned, or worse, destroyed.

“We don’t burn our books, she says. We pulp them. Much more civilized, right? Mash them up, recycle them into toilet paper. Those books wiped someone’s rear end a long time ago.”

The disturbing work of fiction depicted in this book draws unnerving parallels to the current state of our world, making the idea of such a scenario seem plausible. However, amidst this frightening reality, the book also showcases the presence of virtuous individuals who stand up for what is right.

A young woman’s protest, using the book of poetry entitled “Our Missing Hearts,” written by Margaret, served as a catalyst for the unraveling of Margaret’s family life. Margaret had written the poems about her son Bird and the experience of motherhood, but the words were co-opted as a symbol of rebellion against the unjust taking of children from their families. The missing children represent the missing hearts of their mothers, and Margaret’s work became a rallying cry for those who sought to expose this injustice.

Overnight Margaret became the face, the voice, the reason for the protests, making it impossible for her to stay at home. Had she stayed, Bird would have been taken, like so many children before him. Margaret fled to protect her family–to ensure that her son would grow up with his father–and in turn, Bird’s father had to maintain the rouse. That Margaret’s beliefs were not his own.

The novel’s theme appears to be about the power of storytelling and the value of knowledge and literature in a society that seeks to control and silence dissenting voices. Through the character of Bird, the novel explores the dangers of authoritarianism and the importance of questioning the status quo. The government’s efforts to erase literature deemed unpatriotic and to relocate children of dissidents highlight the dangers of limiting access to knowledge and information. The novel also explores the impact of family separation and the longing for connection and identity, as Bird embarks on a quest to find his mother and reconnect with his cultural heritage. Ultimately, the novel suggests that individual acts of defiance and the preservation of cultural heritage can be powerful tools in resisting oppressive systems.

This book was very moving and was written with beautiful prose.

For example:

“breathing in the peculiar smell of the library: a mix of dust and leather and melted vanilla ice cream. Warm, like the scent of someone’s skin.”

And also:

“There is no snow, yet, to hold footprints, and in a moment, as his father disappears from sight, it is as if he never passed that way at all. Today it strikes Bird as unbearably sad, to pass by and leave no trace of your existence. To have no one remember you’d been there.”

I can’s say enough good things about this book. If you read only one book this year, please make it this one.

BOOK REVIEW: Starvation Heights by Gregg Olsen

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Title: Starvation Heights

Author: Gregg Olsen

Book Length: 436 pages

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Genre: Nonfiction, True Crime, Medical History

Read Start Date: January 31, 2023

Read Finish Date: March 8, 2023

Brief Summary of the Plot from Goodreads: In 1911 two wealthy British heiresses, Claire and Dora Williamson, came to a sanitorium in the forests of the Pacific Northwest to undergo the revolutionary “fasting treatment” of Dr. Linda Burfield Hazzard. It was supposed to be a holiday for the two sisters. But within a month of arriving at what the locals called Starvation Heights, the women were emaciated shadows of their former selves, waiting for death. They were not the first victims of Linda Hazzard, a quack doctor of extraordinary evil and greed who would stop at nothing short of murder to achieve her ambitions. As their jewelry disappeared and forged bank drafts began transferring their wealth to Hazzard’s accounts, Dora Williamson sent a last desperate plea to a friend in Australia, begging her to save them from the brutal treatments and lonely isolation of Starvation Heights.

In this true story—a haunting saga of medical murder set in an era of steamships and gaslights—Gregg Olsen reveals one of the most unusual and disturbing criminal cases in American history.

My Review: I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Starvation Heights tells the story of Linda Hazzard, a quack doctor who operated a fasting sanitarium in the early 20th century in the state of Washington. Hazzard claimed that fasting could cure all manner of ailments, and convinced many wealthy patients to undergo extreme fasting regimes under her supervision. However, many of her patients suffered greatly, and some even died under her care.

The book delves into the disturbing and often gruesome details of Hazzard’s practices, and explores the psychology behind her obsession with starvation and control. It also examines the social and cultural context of the time, and how the prevailing attitudes towards medicine and health allowed Hazzard to operate her dangerous and fraudulent business for years.

The harrowing account of Hazzard’s patients’ starvation had a profound impact on me. The book focuses on the “treatment” of Claire and Dora, two heiresses from England who voluntarily submit themselves to Hazzard’s dangerous regimen. They are forced to survive on meager amounts of vegetable broth for over 40 days and endure brutal enemas and physical abuse. Claire eventually succumbed to the “treatment” and died.

Like the curl of smoke from a candle, Claire was gone.”

Starvation Heights by Gregg Olsen, ebook at 21%

It is shocking to learn that despite numerous witnesses, no one intervened to stop the cruelty. Adding to the horror, the State refused to prosecute Hazzard for Claire’s death by starvation because it was deemed too costly. Instead, they sought to have Claire’s estate pay the expenses. Can you imagine!?!?

Many of her critics were aghast that it had taken so very long for the fasting proponent to be stopped at all. They wondered what kind of power she held? How was it that she had been allowed to get away with repeated murder?”

Starvation Heights by Gregg Olsen, ebook at 52%.

All of this death and cruelty was motivated by greed.

The way the vice-consul perceived it, Linda Burfield Hazzard had targeted wealthy and vulnerable subjects of the British Empire. It was her practice to have herself appointed administrator of their estates, and once accomplishing that, she and husband Samuel were in the position to submit enormous bills to the dead patients’ estates and extract large sums of money. Everything had been for greed. For the love of money.”

Starvation Heights by Gregg Olsen, ebook at 55%.

Hazzard not only robbed her patients of their money and possessions but also manipulated them into believing that the starvation was actually working. Despite weighing no more than a young child, Hazzard’s patients were convinced that they were getting better.

She had such a will that when she placed food of an inferior quality on the table and told me it was the best, it immediately became in my eyes the best. Her great power over people lies in her tremendous will plus mental suggestion.”

Starvation Heights by Gregg Olsen, ebook at 23%.

The book was undoubtedly meticulously researched, and despite being a work of non-fiction, the storytelling was exceptional. Even the trial segment of the book was engaging, as Hazzard’s behavior in the courtroom was truly unbelievable. Through the trial, readers were able to delve into the details of the case and learn more about Hazzard’s other victims, who unfortunately numbered quite a few.

I highly recommend this book to people who are interested in true crime and medical history. It may also appeal to those interested in the darker side of human nature and the psychology of manipulation. However, due to the disturbing content and descriptions of abuse, it may not be suitable for all readers due to various trigger warnings.

Trigger warnings include, but are not limited to:

  • Extreme malnutrition
  • Starvation
  • Physical abuse and violence
  • Medical malpractice
  • Death and dying
  • Manipulation and exploitation
  • Mental illness
  • Eating disorders

Please note that this list may not be exhaustive, and individual readers may find other aspects of the book to be triggering or distressing. It is always a good idea to research a book’s content and potential triggers before reading, and to prioritize self-care while reading if necessary.

Reviews Published
Professional Reader
10 Book Reviews

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

BOOK REVIEW: Briardark by S.A. Harian

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Title: Briardark

Author: S.A. Harian

Audiobook Length: 10 hours and 33 minutes

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Genre: Fiction, Horror, Mystery, Thriller

Read Start Date: January 19, 2023

Read Finish Date: January 22, 2023

Number of Book in Series: 1

Brief Summary of the Plot from Goodreads: For Dr. Siena Dupont and her ambitious team, the Alpenglow glacier expedition is a career-defining opportunity. But thirty miles into the desolate Deadswitch Wilderness, they discover a missing hiker dangling from a tree, and their satellite phone fails to call out.

Then the body vanishes without a trace.

The disappearance isn’t the only chilling anomaly. Siena’s map no longer aligns with the trail. The glacier they were supposed to study has inexplicably melted. Strange foliage overruns the mountainside, and a tunnel within a tree hollow lures Siena to a hidden cabin, and a stranger with a sinister message…

Holden Sharpe’s IT job offers little distraction from his wasted potential until he stumbles upon a decommissioned hard drive and an old audio file. Trapped on a mountain, Dr. Siena Dupont recounts an expedition in chaos and the bloody death of a colleague.

Entranced by the mystery, Holden searches for answers to Siena’s fate. But he is unprepared for the truth that will draw him to the outskirts of Deadswitch Wilderness—a place teeming with unfathomable nightmares and impossibilities.

My Review: I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank God there is a sequel to this book planned because I NEED TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS!

Dr. Siena Dupont leads a team into the Deadswitch Wilderness to research the Alpenglow glacier. When they get there, though, the glacier is inexplicably gone. How can a glacier melt entirely within a few days? But that isn’t the only strange thing. Time seems to pass differently in this part of the forest, with saplings turning to full-grown trees in a matter of days.

Then they find a dead body in a tree that Siena and Cam swear is a hiker that went missing in the wilderness 7 years ago. But how can it be her? The body is a body, not a skeleton.

It’s almost as if an alternate reality, where time passes differently, was bleeding into the Deadswitch Wilderness and causing all these weird anomalies. Would Siena and her team make it out before it was too late?

I listened to this book as an audiobook and got through it in about 3 days. I wanted to find out what was happening. A nail-biter from the beginning, this book was fast-paced and super engaging. This book had it all: mystery, thrills, horror, and an overall creepiness factor. The tension never quit! I love that in a book. It’s not so often that I am so enthralled with a book; it was disappointing to put it down.

Even though the book was plot-driven, the author also developed the characters well, which doesn’t always happen in plot-driven books.

This book deserved every one of its 5 stars, and I can’t wait until the next book.

Reviews Published
Professional Reader
10 Book Reviews

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

BOOK REVIEW: Snow by Ronald Malfi

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Title: Snow

Author: Ronald Malfi

Book Length: 311 pages

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Genre: Fiction, Horror, Sci-fi, Folklore-Monsters, Paranormal

Read Start Date: October 23, 2022

Read Finish Date: October 29, 2022

Brief Summary of the Plot from Goodreads: Todd Curry wants nothing more than to spend Christmas with his son. But when a brutal snowstorm cancels his flight from Chicago to Des Moines, Todd and a few other stranded passengers decide to rent a Jeep and make the trip on their own.

During the drive, they pick up a man wandering through the snow, who claims to be searching for his lost daughter. He is disoriented and his story seems peculiar. Strangest of all are the mysterious slashes cut into the back of the man’s coat, straight down to the flesh…

When they arrive at the nearest town, it appears deserted. Windows dark, car abandoned, fired burning unattended. But Todd and the rest of the travelers soon learn the town is far from deserted, and that they are being watched…

My Review: I LOVED THIS BOOK. I couldn’t wait to crawl into bed so that I could read it again, and that rarely happens.

Todd Curry is traveling to Des Moines to see his young son. HIs connecting flight in Chicago is cancelled due to a bad snow storm, but he is anxious to get home. He promised his son that he’d be there by morning. Todd and his son’s mother are separated, and he rarely sees the boy, so it’s important to keep his promise. Todd has the idea to rent a car and drive to Des Moines. Storm be damned.

The woman in front of him at the rental car counter gets the last SUV. Kate Jansen, a woman Todd had met at the airport bar while waiting to hear the fate of his flight, offers to give Todd a lift. He accepts gladly. Fred and Nan Wilkinson, a “silver-haired couple in their late sixties”, are also stranded at the airport. They decide to join Todd and Kate and together all 4 set off to Des Moines, with Todd at the wheel.

They have barely left the city, when they encounter a strange man in the middle of the highway, alone in the snow storm. “Suddenly, the figure was in the middle of the road, only a few yards in front of them as if he had materialized out of thin air.” Todd crashes into a snow bank and wrecks the SUV. They climb out of the car, to find a lone man standing in the road. The man’s name is Eddie Clement and his daughter, aged eight, is lost somewhere in the storm.

Something isn’t right about Eddie, or his story. “Kate put a hand on Eddie’s broad flannel back and led him to the Cherokee. Todd noticed two rips in the fabric of Eddie Clement’s flannel coat, one at each shoulder blade, each one perhaps five inches long. The fabric around each slit looked frayed.”

They four-some in the vehicle are skeptical. A man out in the bitter cold, alone, looking for his daughter for who knows how long…how isn’t he a popsicle? Why would his daughter run off in this weather? Nothing seems to make sense. As a reader, you get the feeling that something is terribly off with Eddie and it adds a layer of tension to the story. At this point, we are only 39 pages in, and the tension only increases with each page.

Seeking shelter, they walk to the nearest town. What they find there would change their lives forever, if they manage to survive that is.

By page 69, we learn that the town is virtually deserted. Where did everyone go? And then they encounter someone:

“A man was standing directly behind Nan, no more than five feet away. His clothes hung off him in tattered ribbons and were splattered with blood. The man’s eyes were dead in their sockets, his face as expressionless as an Egyptian mummy.” …

“The sound of the rifle fire was almost deafening.

In the street, the man’s head evaporated into a red mist. The body sagged forward, then dropped straight to the ground, its legs folded neatly beneath it.

Nan screamed and Fred cursed. Kate clawed at the back of Todd’s neck, gripping a fistful of hair.

Then something else happened. The headless body in the street bucked once, twice, three times. Hot blood spurted from the abbreviated neck and coursed like an oil slick across the ice. There was the impression of levitation, although the dead man never actually left the ground; rather, something from within the man’s body was rising up, up. For one insane moment, Todd actually believed he was witnessing the dead man’s soul vacating the body.

But this was no one’s soul. What rose up was a hurricane swirl of snow, funneled and compacted so that it was nearly tangible. It held the vague form of a human being, though as it continued to withdraw itself from the man’s body, Todd could see its arms–or whatever served as arms–were nearly twice the length of a normal person’s. It had no definable characteristics beyond the vague suggestion of humanity. And as it peeled away from the corpse–from out of the corpse–it hovered briefly above the body, nearly solid and comprehensible, before it dispersed into a scattering of snowflakes and was gone.

The silence that followed was thundering.”

Snow by Ronald Malfi, pages 68-69

I got chills reading that again — soooo good! At this point in the story, I was already hooked, but this entrenched me in the story further.

This book is probably one of the best horror stories I’ve read this year. I would give it 10 out of 5 stars (if that were possible). The writing is fantastic. I love the way Malfi paints the picture. The monsters were super cool, the storyline creepy as hell. I had a hard time putting this book down. A must read.

BOOK REVIEW: Book Lovers by Emily Henry

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Title: Book Lovers

Author: Emily Henry

Book Length: 384 pages

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Genre: Fiction, Romance, Contemporary, Women’s Fiction

Read Start Date: August 27, 2022

Read Finish Date: September 4, 2022

Brief Summary of the Plot from Goodreads: One summer. Two rivals. A plot twist they didn’t see coming….

Nora Stephens’ life is books—she’s read them all—and she is not that type of heroine. Not the plucky one, not the laidback dream girl, and especially not the sweetheart. In fact, the only people Nora is a heroine for are her clients, for whom she lands enormous deals as a cutthroat literary agent, and her beloved little sister Libby.

Which is why she agrees to go to Sunshine Falls, North Carolina for the month of August when Libby begs her for a sisters’ trip away—with visions of a small-town transformation for Nora, who she’s convinced needs to become the heroine in her own story. But instead of picnics in meadows, or run-ins with a handsome country doctor or bulging-forearmed bartender, Nora keeps bumping into Charlie Lastra, a bookish brooding editor from back in the city. It would be a meet-cute if not for the fact that they’ve met many times and it’s never been cute.

If Nora knows she’s not an ideal heroine, Charlie knows he’s nobody’s hero, but as they are thrown together again and again—in a series of coincidences no editor worth their salt would allow—what they discover might just unravel the carefully crafted stories they’ve written about themselves.

My Review: I am not usually a romance novel reader, but have gotten into it recently because I’ve heard that you should read what you are currently writing to get you in the mindset. I also am not usually a fan of romance movies or rom coms. From my limited understanding, this book covers the small town romance trope. Emily Henry writes in the “Behind the Book” section at the end of the book:

“And having seen enough of these low-angst, made-for-TV delights (Hallmark and otherwise), I found myself fascinated with one particular iteration of the small-town romance. It goes like this: an uptight, joyless, career-obsessed main character gets shipped off from the big city they call home to conduct business in Middle America. They don’t want to go! They don’t even have the right shoes for this kind of setting! But once they’re there, not only do they manage to fall in love with one of the sweet, small-town locals, but they also manage to learn the true meaning of life. (Spoiler alert: it’s not a high-power career in a major metropolis. And everyone ends up happy. Well, everyone except for the ex. The woman (or man) left behind in the city, whose entire role is usually to call the lead character and bark at them over the phone, remind them that they went to Smalltown, USA for business–to conduct a mass layoff, or to crush the local toy emporium so Big Toy can open its 667th location in the heart of the town, while maybe bulldozing a gazebo or two on the way.”

Emily Henry goes on to say about the inspiration for Book Lovers: “I found myself asking, who is this woman? Where does her story go from here?”

Enter Nora Stephenson, the woman left behind in the big city. Nora, a high earning, workaholic, book agent, has been left behind THREE times! Nora loves her job, the city (a.k.a. Manhattan), and her life there. The City is where she grew up with her mother and sister Libby — where her mother died. The City for Nora is not only a place to live, but a place where her mother’s memory can be found on every corner. She couldn’t imagine anything worse than living in one of those small-towns from the romance novels she reads, or in general moving from the City to anyplace else.

We meet Charlie Lastra (a book editor) pretty early in the book, and it is obvious that this guy will be the love interest. Nora is late to her meeting with Charlie because she was being dumped, en route, by another guy who is leaving her for a small-town local girl. At this point, Nora is so used to this being her luck with men, that it doesn’t phase her. She really could care less. When she arrives at the table, to pitch her client’s new manuscript, which takes place in Sunshine Falls, a small town in North Carolina, Charlie turns down the book. Whatever, Charlie is a nightmare anyway (everyone says so).

The joke is on Charlie Lastra, because 2 years later, the book Nora was pitching is a best seller making tons of money.

Libby (Nora’s sister) is a mother of 2, with a 3rd on the way, and guilts Nora into taking a four-week relaxation vacation to Sunshine Falls. Nora, who gives Libby whatever she wants, agrees. There is a lot of baggage in the relationship between the sisters, stemming from the death of their mother when they were young. In short, Nora had to step into the mother role and gave up a lot of her dreams. Nora puts Libby first, but Libby is unhappy that Nora works too much and doesn’t seem to have time for Libby anymore, etc.

Anyway, they go to Sunshine Falls, and who should Nora see there, but Charlie. Turns out he is FROM Sunshine Falls, which is why he didn’t want to edit the book because it was clear from the manuscript that the author had never been to Sunshine Falls. Sparks fly, etc. Charlie and Nora are like the same person, except you know, Nora is a woman and Charlie is a man. Has Nora stepped into a small-town romance of her own?

I could go on about the plot, but I think you get the idea.

From the synopsis, I was afraid that this book was going to be too much like Beach Read, but I was pleasantly surprised that it was not. I really liked the main characters Charlie and Nora. Their characters were believable, with real problems. I felt that this was a “small-town romance”, but in real terms rather than movie terms. Nora was a smart, professional woman, who had a hard time finding a man who could handle that — which unfortunately is a very real problem. Charlie, also in love with the City, is stuck in Sunshine falls taking care of the family business and his ailing father. This is also a real life problem faced by many people. Aging parents, no one else to take care of them…etc.

I think that Bookshelf Fantasies says it best in saying that “[t]he plot has much more depth than you might expect. Emily Henry excels at creating funny, quirky, unusual characters, then giving them rich backstories that humanize them and expose the pains and sorrows behind their facades. The same is true here, and it makes Nora much more likable than she initially comes across, so much so that I became very invested in her happiness and well-being.”

I also loved how Charlie and Nora were not perfect, but perfect for each other. I agree with Ali’s Books, when she says “Charlie and Nora are perfection together. When they come together it’s HOT and not because the scenes are steamy, but because you feel their connection so deeply. The way Charlie worships and adores Nora is just everything. And watching the sisters heal and reconnect was beautiful, too.”

I also appreciated that the banter between the characters did not get tiresome as in most romance books I’ve read lately. They are both playfully sarcastic, but the conversations were not stupid or annoying, and did not seem contrived just for the sake of having a conversation to show how sarcastic the characters were — meaning that the conversation had purpose, depth, a certain realistic edge to it.

While the ending was predictably a happy one, it was also very realistic, which was great. I can’t stand sappy, ridiculous endings that just ruin an otherwise good book. I’m so glad that this didn’t happen here, because I would have been pretty annoyed.

All in all another great book from Emily Henry!

BOOK REVIEW: Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn

/ E.A. Hoffmann / 1 Comment

18045891Title: Sharp Objects

Author: Gillian Flynn

Book Length: 321 pages

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Genre: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Horror, Contemporary

Read Start Date: September 4, 2022 

Read Finish Date: September 17, 2022

Brief Summary of the Plot from Goodreads: Fresh from a brief stay at a psych hospital, reporter Camille Preaker faces a troubling assignment: she must return to her tiny hometown to cover the unsolved murder of a preteen girl and the disappearance of another. For years, Camille has hardly spoken to her neurotic, hypochondriac mother or to the half-sister she barely knows: a beautiful thirteen-year-old with an eerie grip on the town. Now, installed in her old bedroom in her family’s Victorian mansion, Camille finds herself identifying with the young victims—a bit too strongly. Dogged by her own demons, she must unravel the psychological puzzle of her own past if she wants to get the story—and survive this homecoming.

My Review: Camille Preaker, now a reported living in Chicago, is sent to her childhood hometown Wind Gap to cover the story of two child murders. To say that Camille had a troubled childhood would be an understatement. The tag line on the cover of the book I rented from the library states: “This family isn’t nuclear. It’s toxic.” That’s a mild way to put it.

Adora, the family matriarch and Camille’s mother is beloved by the small town of 2,000 residents. The Preaker’s are old money, and own the biggest business in town: a hog farm and butchery. When Camille was thirteen, her sister Marian died after a long bout of illnesses. Marian, the more loved child. The more adored child. Camille had always been second best. Soon after, Camille started cutting words on her body until only a small patch of skin on her back was unmarred. By the time she was an adult, she was also an alcoholic.

At the age of 30 she went to rehab for 6 months, a place for girls who cut. Her mother only visited once. “Then, inevitably, came the stories of Marian. She’d already lost one child, you see. It had nearly killed her. Why would the older (though necessarily less beloved) deliberately harm herself? I was so different from her lost girl, who — think of it — would be almost thirty had be lived. Marian embraced life, what she had been spared. Lord, she had soaked up the world — remember, Camille, how she laughed even in the hospital? I hated to point out to my mother that such was the nature of a bewildered, expiring ten-year-old. Why bother? It’s impossible to compete with the dead. I wished I could stop trying.”

Despite this horrible relationship and past, Camille, fresh out of rehab is heading back to the place where her demons grew up — to stay in the very house where they were created. Wind Gap was “the place where [her] sister died, the place [she] started cutting [her]self. A town so suffocating and small, you tripped over people you hated every day. People who knew things about you. It’s the kind of place that leaves a mark.”

For the first time in a long time, Camille sees Amma, the half-sister she knows very little about. “My mother said she was the most popular girl in school, and I believed it. Jackie said she was the meanest, and I believed that, too. Living in a swirl of Adora’s bitterness had to make one a bit crooked. And what did Amma make of Marian, I wondered? How confusing to live in the shadow of a shadow. But Amma was a smart girl — she did her acting out away from home. Near Adora she was compliant, sweet, needy — just what she had to be, to get my mother’s love.”

Gillian Flynn paints the picture of a bleak town in Nowheresville, America, where you are either a winner or a loser. “Old money and trash,” as Camille puts it. Now, two young teenagers are dead, strangled with their teeth pulled out. By all accounts these girls had their troubles — sometimes they were even bullies, but who would do such a heinous thing? Suspects abound, the police seem a tad incompetent, or at best overwhelmed / out of their league. Will the killer be caught before the next girl goes missing?

The mystery keeps you in it’s grip until the end.

I also really love Gillian Flynn’s writing style. Here are some examples:

“I rang the doorbell, which had been a cat-calling screech when I was very young, now subdued and truncated, like the bing! you hear on children’s records when it’s time to turn the page.”

“I drank more vodka. There was nothing I wanted to do more than be unconscious again, wrapped in black, gone away. I was raw. I felt swollen with potential tears, like a water balloon filled to burst. Begging for a pin prick. Wind Gap was unhealthy for me. This home was unhealthy for me.”

This book was published back in 2006 — wow already 16 years ago — so chances are you might have already read it. In case you haven’t yet, please do. This book is just fantastic.