The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton

The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton 

Evelyn Hardcastle will die everyday at 11:00 pm until Aiden Bishop can solve her murder and break the cycle. As each day begins anew, Aiden finds himself inhabiting the body of a different guest at Blackheath Manor, some more helpful than others. 

458 pages.
 

Hidden Things: A Novel. By Doyce Testerman.

Hidden Things: A Novel. By Doyce Testerman. 2012. Harper Voyager. ISBN-13: 9780062108111 (Paperback).

“Watch out for the hidden things,” are the last words private investigator, Josh White, speaks to his business partner, best friend and ex-girlfriend, Calliope Jenkins, while still alive. But cryptic messages from Josh on their business’s answering machine and couriered by a stranger known as the Fat Man send Calliope on a bizarre road trip halfway across the country. With her is an appointed guide, Vikous, who for all appearances is a trench coat-wearing clown. But as Calliope is about to learn, not all things are as they seem and not all shadows that have been forgotten and relegated to myths and nightmares prefer to remain hidden.

Hidden Things is a character-driven story, but the fantasy and suspense elements fit well into the plot and how the Hidden beings are portrayed is wonderfully unique. Interspersed with Calliope’s bittersweet memories of Josh and snarky camaraderie with Vikous, this is a great debut novel by Testerman.

323 pages

MOBIUS

The Escape Artist. By Brad Meltzer. Narrators: Scott Brick & January LaVoy.

The Escape Artist. By Brad Meltzer. Narrators: Scott Brick & January LaVoy. 2018. Hachette Audio. ISBN13: 9781478949374 (Unabridged audiobook, 12 hours 45 mins).

Even though it’s his rotation off, when Jim "Zig" Zigarowski sees the name Sergeant First Class Nola Brown on the list of new arrivals, he makes sure he is the one to work on her body. Zig is a civilian mortician at Dover Air Force Base. When the broken bodies of American soldiers are flown back home, Zig pieces them back together. He is known for his talent and dedication, but it isn’t a love for his craft that drives him. Zig wants to be able to provide closure for the families receiving home their loved ones. And for a brief moment in time, Zig knew Nola; it feels necessary to him to be the one to see to her. Only, the body on the table isn’t Nola. And the scrap of paper in a small canister Zig retrieves from the body’s stomach proves Nola is alive, and that trouble is following her.

Meltzer brings together Zig and Nola, who is the U.S. Army’s artist-in-residence, and ensnares them in a covert sleight of hand. It appears that Operation: Bluebook, has been resurrected and greed is at the helm. The Escape Artist is an entertaining story with plenty of action and intriguing politics and history tracing back to the greatest escape artist of all, Harry Houdini.

Narrators Brick and LaVoy are top notch. Top notch!

416 pages
MOBIUS 

Verity by Colleen Hoover

Verity by Colleen Hoover
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Freaked me out. I think I had actual heart palpitations. Extremely suspenseful up to the last second.

Pages: 333

The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens

The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Overall, I found this adult mystery/thriller fascinating, and it went in all sorts of unexpected directions. I was able to predict a lot of the outcomes ahead of time, but there was one thing that caught me off guard and surprised me.

There are some things that happen at the end that are a bit ridiculous, though they definitely make the story more dramatic and intense. I just occasionally wanted to shake a few characters for making such poor choices in such a serious situation, but such is humanity.

Overall, this is a captivating read, and I'm glad I picked it up on Audible, as the audiobook narration is excellent.

Pages: 303

Twisted by Helen Hardt

Twisted by Helen Hardt
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I love this series!! She does a great job pulling you into the series. You for sure have to read the brother's book all at once, because she does a great job leaving the story hanging on.

300 Pages

View all my reviews

Unraveled by Helen Hardt
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Oh wow, this ended with a bang. I could see some it coming but there was so many surprises that I didn't even see coming!!

288 Pages

View all my reviews

Shattered by Helen Hardt

Shattered by Helen Hardt
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

More twists and turns just keep coming with this series....

304 Pages

View all my reviews

Sadie by Courtney Summers

Sadie by Courtney Summers
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The unique concept and style is absolutely stellar. I was completely captivated, even when I didn't want to be.

This is a YA suspense story about Sadie, a teenager who goes missing after her 13-year old sister is murdered. It's told in two unique, alternating parts. One part is Sadie's POV, right up until the point at which she officially disappears. The other part is a missing person's podcast, presented just like an investigative story, as the podcaster travels, researches, and interviews people trying to piece together what might have happened to Sadie.

This story is dark, ugly, emotional, and gut-wrenching, but you won't be able to look away. It reminds me a bit of watching those hour long investigative shows that I grew up with as a child, where they try to track down answers to unsolved mysteries, murders, and disappearances.

The unique style lends itself well to an audiobook format, so I highly recommend this book on audio.

Book 29 read in 2019

Pages: 311

Hunting Annabelle

Hunting Annabelle by Wendy Heard
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is a delicious and mysterious psychological thriller by a debut author, and I can’t wait to see what she writes next.

This story will have you second-guessing every character and every event that occurs from start to finish. There’s so much suspense that it deserves all 5 of the dark, twisty, and murderous stars that I awarded it.

Here are my 10 favorite things about it, with no spoilers:

1. This is Dexter level on the murderously creepy scale.

2. I love a potentially unreliable narrator, especially when I desperately want him to be somewhat reliable but can’t be sure if he actually ever is or not.

3. It’s so layered and nuanced. I feel like I need to go back and read it again right now, so I probably will. I want to take everything in again, since so much happened so fast.

4. Heard does some amazing things with description. I feel like I’m right there seeing, feeling, tasting, smelling, and hearing it all.

5. The characterization is so complicated and fascinating.

6. The mom. Wow. She’s something else. Talk about an intense side character.

7. The audiobook is also amazing, and I love the narrator, Tim Chiou. I wish he would narrate more books.

8. Talk about kicking a character when he is down…repeatedly. There are no easy fixes or lazy solutions in this story. Sean just has to cross all of the muck to get to the other side, and it just keeps getting deeper.

9. Here’s what it felt like to read this one: “Okay, I know exactly what is happening now”. . . twist. . . “So I was wrong before but now I’ve got it”. . . Twist. . .” I’m pretty sure”. . . twist. . . “It just has to be”. . . twist. . .”Oh, my God! It’s totally”. . . twist. WTF???

10. The cover is perfection. I adore it. I have some bookmarks, and I really want to cut one of them apart to highlight book quotes from this novel between the title, kind of like the cover. That may happen.

As far as I’m concerned, this book is A+ from start to finish, and you should all go out and snatch it up for some murdery holiday reading (come on, we all know how you really feel about those in-laws).

It would also make a great present for your favorite book nerd friends, your least favorite family members, and all frenemies. Books like this can be a great way to say, “Hey, everything is fine. I just might want to murder you today,” or even, “I swear, I’m not trying to frame you. Mostly.” ;)

Pages: 336

Law and Disorder by Heather Graham

Law and Disorder by Heather Graham
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I wanted to read some books by this author, than with it being the wildcard for the year I moved up on my list. Well I gave this two stars because their wasn't much to this story. I just really didn't get much out of this book, there was so much missing from the story for me. 

256 Pages

Full Dark, No Stars by Stephen King

Full Dark, No Stars by Stephen King

A collection of four novellas from the master of horror.

1922
Wilfred James fully acknowledges that he killed his wife, Arlette, on their Nebraska farm after she continued to pressure him to sell their land to a hog butchery. But he had no idea how she would haunt him after the murder.

Big Driver
After cozy mystery author Tess is raped and left for dead, even she never imagined the lengths she would go to for revenge.

Fair Extension
Dave Streeter has recently been diagnosed with cancer; his best friend, meanwhile, has never had anything go wrong in his life, and Streeter can't help but resent him for it. When one makes a deal with the devil, as Streeter does, there's always a price to pay.

A Good Marriage
When Darcy Anderson stumbles upon a box hidden under a worktable in the garage, she begins to question everything she thought she knew about her husband of over twenty years.

368 pages.

The Watcher by Bella Jewel
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book starts out explaining Marlie's experience with a serial killer. So it starts out very interesting from chapter 1. I had a good idea who was now watching her, but I didn't know for sure. I was happy that she was able to find someone to help her figure out what was going on. 

View all my reviews

320 Pages

Take Me Back by Meghan March

Summary: "We fell in love on a beach, got married in paradise, and rode off into the sunset. It should have been perfect, but saying “I do” doesn’t guarantee a happily-ever-after.Two years later, I barely recognize either of us behind the walls we’ve built.
It’s time to bring it full circle. Back to a tropical paradise. Back to find out if we can still make this work.
I’m not willing to give her up, but to save us, I have to risk everything.
Two damaged people.
Countless secrets.
The fight of our lives.
We might be broken, but we’re not done." - Amazon

This is not a book I would have chosen to read of my own volition. It was a recommendation from Nicole, so I gave it a go.  And, whew!  It started as a simple 'can they save their marriage' type beach read - but then - there was a turn of events.  A big turn of events.  And I can't say much more without giving away the goods, y'all.  Is there romance?  Yep.  Suspense?  Yep.  Some sappiness that I wish had been left out because it's not real life?  Yep.  Do I regret reading it?  Nope!  It caught me by surprise, and if you read voraciously like I do, you know how difficult that is.

4.5/5

272 pages

One more thing.  The following is a note from the Amazon page - and I agree.

Author's Note: Please be aware that reviews MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS. This book is best enjoyed by going in blind, and that is the experience I hope every single reader gets to have. Please read reviews at your own risk.

Broken by Cynthia Eden
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Wow, this book had me guessing the whole time who was the serial killer. I didn't figure it out until right before he came out. It must just all be awful for her not knowing anything about her past and luckily she found her own little family to help her figure out the past. 

View all my reviews

348 Pages

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I typically really enjoy stories about antiheroes or with unreliable narrators, but there was a stretch at the start of this book when I considered DNF-ing the book (which I confess I had done once before). In the end, I’m glad that I didn’t. The story has a very slow start, so it’s not until about 15% in that things started to happen. Even after that, it took a bit longer for the pace to really pick up enough to create intrigue and suspense.

Then a friend told me that she was shocked by how the story worked out, and after that, I couldn’t quit guessing and second guessing how it would all work out in the end, which helped keep me invested in the rest of the story. By the end, I had suspected and accused almost everyone and everything.

In fact, I kept texting guesses to my friend, which start out reasonable and then quickly become ridiculous. So for fun, I’ll share them all below in order. If you hate SPOILERS, please don’t read ahead, as I don’t want any of my predictions to impact how you read and view the story. It’s best to approach this story with no information or preconceptions.

Book 138 read in 2018

Pages: 323

The Predictions in Chronological Order:

Defiance by C.J. Redwine
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Summary: While the other girls in the walled city - state of Baalboden learn to sew and dance, Rachel Adams learns to track and hunt. While they bend like reeds to will of their male Protectors, she uses hers for sparring practice. When Rachel's father fails to return from a courier mission and is declared dead, the city's brutal commander assigns Rachel a new Protector: her father's apprentice, Logan - the boy she declared her love to and who turned her down two years before. Left with nothing buy fierce belief in her father's survival, Rachel decides to escape and fins him herself.

I enjoyed this book, and has a strong female character that is able to handle her self and stops at nothing to figure out what happened to her dad.

View all my reviews

403 Pages

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

#BecRereads2018

This is such a gorgeous story about so much ugliness.

It was fascinating to read it again, knowing the outcome this time. Last time, I read it through crazy fast, without even setting it down. I was so captivated that everything took me by surprise, and I remember being an emotional wreck for hours afterwards.

This time, it was so interesting to go in knowing and to see it all coming at me, but it still played tricks on my emotions, especially as the audiobook has an excellent narrator.

This is one book that is really meant to be read more than once, even though I suspect a lot of people say the exact opposite--that the big twists would all be ruined. They aren't. Knowing the major twists left me open to really absorb all the finer details that I missed, misunderstood, or was guided to overlook on a first read.

Pages: 242

PREVIOUS REVIEW:
This novel. It wrecked me.

I don't know how long I sat after, clutching the book. Long enough that my fingers ached. Long enough that my voice cracked when I next spoke. Long enough that my soul cried a thousand ugly tears.

I want to call it gorgeous. The writing is. It's so very gorgeous, but I can't forget the hideous, gaping wounds the story left in my chest.

I picked it up intending to read only a chapter or two and ended up reading it straight through. I was unable to step away. Every page, every moment, compelled me to read forward. I didn't even care what got abandoned or ignored in my real life while I read. Because it didn't feel like any of it could have mattered, not in light of the paths I followed, the journey I endured. I still feel the heaviness on my soul. I can't shake off this story. It clings and begs to be remembered.

A Cry in the Night by Mary Higgins Clark

Jenny McPartland is a single mother with two little girls, living in New York City, and working in an  art gallery when a handsome rich young artist sweeps her off her feet, marries her, and takes her off to Minnesota. He wines and dines her, is perfect with her daughters, and is just the perfect man, so different from her ex.

However, there are forebodings of cracks in his armor. He is hostile to her ex-husband, and possessive of her. And once they get to his home in Minnesota, things quickly become sinister. He isolates her from her friends and the community and wages psychological warfare on her.

I found myself really disliking this woman; she was stupid and gullible, all the things I get impatient with women for being. However, the story becomes very suspenseful, as all Higgins stories do.



 352 pages

The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die by April Henry

The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die by April Henry
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Not bad. Fast-paced. This book would be good for reluctant readers.

For me, the story was thin. I don't hate it. I just would only recommend it to young, reluctant readers, rather than to everyone. It has mystery, but it lacks depth.

Pages: 213

"In the Kill" by K. Sterling

Book 1 in the Lavender series is about a hit man and the artist whom he is sent to kill.  However, once he meets Sage Bradley, "Mr. Lavender" is sure that he's about to assassinate the wrong man.  Surely someone so talented who devotes his spare time to helping homeless teenagers and knitting hats for the elderly is not deserving of death.  Lavender must figure out who hired him to kill an innocent man and why before another assassin is sent to finish the job and him with it.  Although not a full length novel, it was packed with exciting scenes and kept me guessing how things would turn out.  109 pages (Kindle edition).