Title: You Are Fatally Invited Author: Ande Pliego Narrator: Mia Hutchinson-Shaw, Alejandro Ruiz , Victoria Villarreal, Feodor Chin , William Damron, John Lee , Dawn Harvey , Jeremy Carlisle Parker Format: eBook / Audiobook Length: 363 pages / 11 hours 02 minutes Rating: 3.5 stars Publication Date: February 11, 2025
Review: This story has definite And Then There Were None vibes (and even a very small Clue (the movie) reference early on), so while it absolutely started off slow… it got more interesting once the characters were being killed off. I guessed the murderer incorrectly, and did not see any of the twist coming. I like how each character had a different personality and it felt like a real writing retreat (minus the murders lol).
I enjoyed each narrator and am glad they gave each characters chapter their own narrator. It helped keep the story flowing.
Note: I gave this one 3.5 on Storygraph, but will mark it as 4 stars on NetGalley because they do not use half stars.
I received a complimentary e-copy. Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC. I borrowed the audiobook through my local library to immerse myself into the story.
The Sunday Salon is a place to link up and share what we have been doing during the week. It’s also a great opportunity to visit other blogs and join in the conversations going on there.
This past week was soooooooo busy! It was my second to last week of work, so lots of getting the kitchen put away and cleaned up before the end of the school years. I am also getting my house and yard all set up and ready for my daughter’s graduation party. My family is coming up to New Jersey to visit as well.
Had to take the dog to the vet yesterday. He wasn’t putting pressure on one of his back legs and we were concerned. Turns out, joker stubbed one of his toes and it was swollen, causing him pain. He was Rx pain meds and he’s on the mend!
Today is my daughter’s 18th birthday! We are gonna go out to dinner tonight to celebrate. Restaurant of her choice of course.
Currently:
I just started Kill Your Darlings on Friday. I am not far in but I am already intrugued!
I am almost done listening to the audiobook of my NetGalley ARC You Are Fatally Invited. Definite AndThen There Were None vibes (and even a very small Clue (the movie) reference early on) but I want to know how it all ends up for these characters. Should be done in a little bit.
Lie In The Tide is starting off slow, and I think I am not really feeling it is because there are a lot of characters and You Are Fatally Invited has a lot of characters too so my brain is overloading lol. You readers all know what I mean! I think I am going to give it one more day and if it’s not drawing me in I’m gonna put it aside and find something else to read.
Just Finished:
Gemma James finally published the latest book in the Zodiac Queen series, Capricorn, and since I am absolutely invested in this crazy story I needed to read it. Best one in the series so far, but check those trigger warnings on this series before getting into it.
I needed a cover with a bathing suit on it, and this Elin Hilderbrand short story was an Amazon First Reads bonus pick sometime last year. I gave it three stars- story was pretty good but the ending reallllllllllllly tanked my rating.
Read another short story from Amazon First Reads titled When We Were Friends. This one was pretty decent for a short read. I could see this one being made into a made for TV movie on Lifetime lol.
If you’d like to be friends with me on Storygraph, this is my profile page. I stopped using Goodreads this year (and didn’t really keep up with it last year) because I want to support a black woman business owner over a white male billionaire.
If you ask Jill Tingley, she’ll tell you she and her husband Jack are college sweethearts living the dream in Southern California. Wealthy, popular and genetically blessed, theirs is an enviable life, though they’ve grown distant in recent years. Newly empty nesting with their daughter Maggie away at college, Jill suggests a road trip to reconnect.
Jack would rather do anything else than drive to Utah with his wife. He’s only stayed in this marriage because of a shared secret, a tragedy in the past he wanted to keep buried. And for his daughter’s sake. But Jack is finished with the charade of his marriage. He’s filing for divorce as soon as they return, no matter what.
But he doesn’t realize what else Jill is hiding.
So begins a cat-and-mouse road trip as a cunning wife–think Ripley in yoga pants–and a reluctant husband match wits and drive each other to the edge. But everything will be fine. Jill still loves Jack and believes he’s the only one for her. She’ll do anything to keep him. Anything. She always has.
Challenges: Audiobook, COYER, NetGalley
Review: This was a wild ride! Jill is delusional in her relationship with Jack. Jack wants out of this marriage and keeps getting trapped into staying by Jill’s words and actions. The more the story goes on the more unhinged Jill becomes. A really good thriller I would recommend to people who read the genre.
I would like to note that I feel this book could of used another narrator, a man, for Jack’s chapters, instead of Marnye Young reading both Jack and Jill’s chapters.
Thank you to Thriller Book Lovers: The Pulse for allowing me to read and listen to this book. I received a complimentary eBook and audiobook.
The Sunday Salon is a place to link up and share what we have been doing during the week. It’s also a great opportunity to visit other blogs and join in the conversations going on there.
This past week was the busiest it’s been in forever! My daughter’s Senior Prom was on Friday and a few of her friends were coming over beforehand to hang out and take photos. So we had to get the yard and house party ready, on top of work/school and extra curricular activities.
Currently:
I am in the middle of two ARCs (one audio and one eBook). I should be done with Jill Is Not Happy by the middle of the week, and hoping to be done with Lie In The Tide by the weekend. My NetGalley ratio is currently at 76%.
Just Finished:
You can check out my review of The Safari on the blog, or on Storygraph.
The Perfect Sister is a NetGalley backlog that I didn’t get around to reading last year. This one was a three star review for me. That review is also on Storygraph.
If you’d like to be friends with me on Storygraph, this is my profile page. I stopped using Goodreads this year (and didn’t really keep up with it last year) because I want to support a black woman business owner over a white male billionaire.
Title: The Safari Author: Jaclyn Goldis Format: eBook Length: 320 pages Rating: 2 stars Publication Date: May 20,2025
Challenges: COYER, Netgalley/Edelweiss
Review: SOME SPOILERS WILL BE IN THIS REVIEW- Honestly, I probably should of DNFed this one. The beginning of the book had different POV chapters so you get to know the characters. I didn’t really feel the suspense of a typical thriller book. Most of the characters annoyed me, so I wasn’t invested into their backstory or what was going on with them. Odelia is murdered and a family member is missing. When that family member is finally located, the explanation as to what happened is so preposterous I literally paused and scratched my head. It was badly explained away with ‘I left my cell phone behind so I couldn’t call for help’. I could not take the rest of the book seriously after that.
This is my honest review, and all opinions are my own.
This book is about a Jewish family, and a lot of Orthodox Jewish rituals and customs are mentioned throughout the book. I thought it was important to mention this fact to my blog readers.
I received a complimentary e-copy. Thank you to Aleaha Reneé from Simon & Schuster for allowing me to read this ARC through Edelweiss.
The Three Ws are: What are you currently reading?What did you recently finish reading?What do you think you’ll read next?
If you cannot tell, I have LOTS of summer reading plans!
The last eBook I read was The Devil’s Kiss by Gemma James. I will not be continuing the series, and you can check out my Storygraph review as to why that is so. At the writing up of this post, I am halfway through The Safari by Jacyln Goldis. I plan to read Lie In The Tide by Holly Danvers on my Kindle Paperwhite next. I am trying to keep up with my ARCs and NetGalley’s.
The last audiobook I listened to was The Perfect Sister, a NetGalley backlogged book that I ended up borrowing the audiobook through the library. Now at the writing up of this post I am listening to The Vacation by John Marrs. I may DNF it since I am confused as to what is going on and the story is not keeping me engaged at all. We will see how I feel in another hour of listening. The next audiobook I plan to listen to is The Bachelorette Party by Camilla Sten, a Macmillan Audio Influencer ARC.
I am trying to read more physical books, and this summer I want to get quite a few in. The last physical book I read was back in March lol (The House Hunt by C.M. Ewan)! I am going to start Kill Your Darlings by Peter Swanson today when I get home from work. Then I plan to reread Swimsuit by James Patterson. It’s been YEARS since I read it (and don’t remember the plot one bit) and since I need a book with a swimsuit on the cover for a challenge I am doing, bingo, haha!
Title: So Happy Together Author: Olivia Worley Narrator: Michelle H. Lee Format: eBook / Audiobook Length: 304 pages / 8 hours 47 minutes Rating: 3 stars Publication Date: June 3, 2025
Challenges: Audiobook, Backlog Board of Books, COYER, NetGalley, Read For The Stars
Review: This book kept my interest, as Jane is pretty much a stalker girl obsessed with her ex boyfriend Colin. You could see exactly where the plot is heading for most of the book, so it was sort of annoying. The characters are in the mid 20s but I feel like they act immature at times. I did not mind the narrator, Michelle H. Lee. This is the first time I am hearing her voice, and it fits the story perfect. This is a good thriller book and most readers will probably enjoy it. I gave it an average three stars because it just felt average to me.
I received two complimentary copies. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press Early Readers for allowing me to read this ARC and Macmillan Audio Influencer Program for sending me an ALC, which I used Netgalley to listen to.
Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings to spotlight the books we’re excited about that we have yet to read. Generally, they’re books that have yet to be released. Find out more here.
I received this hardcover copy in the mail and I cannot wait to read it! It’s going to be the first book I pick up in June, that’s for sure!
“From the New York Times bestselling author of The Kind Worth Killing and Eight Perfect Murders comes an inventive, utterly propulsive murder-mystery in reverse, tracing a marriage back in time to uncover the dark secret at its heart.”
This premise is giving me Memento vibes (who remembers that movie from 2000? I loved it!). This is why I am so pumped about this book!
Last week I got home from work to find a package on my porch. I opened it, not expecting any book mail… and I was so surprised to find Peter Swanson’s next book Kill Your Darlings in my hands. I immediately posted to Instagram on Thursday, but thought I would post about the book on the blog today.
Going through my emails, I found that I had signed up to be a HarperCollins Tastemaker a little while back, and apparently was approved (so cool!). So thank you to them for sending me the book!
Good morning fellow readers! I am a mood reader, but since I am doing a summer reading challenge I wanted to plan out all the books I want to get to in June, July and August.
I have a good amount of ARCs publishing in the summer months, so I am prioritizing getting through them before publication day! Gonna try my best. Trying to get that Netgalley ratio up!
I also want to read these beachy summery cover books by the author who got me back into reading as an adult, James Patterson. His books are short chapters and quick plots and I devour them!
This list is by no means permanent. If any Libby holds come in I will more than likely accept them, and they are not on the graphic above.
Q: How many books do you plan to read in the summer?
The Three Ws are: What are you currently reading?What did you recently finish reading?What do you think you’ll read next?
For a challenge I am doing on Instagram I needed a cover with Sunglasses on it. I went to my Libby app and found The Weekend Away by Sarah Alderson and borrowed it, since it had a cover with a Netflix sticker in the corner so I thought it had to be a good book (or at least popular enough to warrant a Netflix show). This one wasn’t a favorite of mine but it wasn’t a bad book either so I gave it three stars on Storygraph.
I am halfway through with Death Row by Freida McFadden, my Amazon First Reads choice for May.
I have the eBook and the audiobook for The Bachelorette Party by Camilla Sten thanks to SMP and Macmillan, respectfully. This book publishes in June so I want to definitely get to it this month and have my review posted before the pub date.
Title: Skin and Bones Author: Paul Doiron Format: eBook Length: 368 pages Rating: I have not read it yet
For the first time in print, Skin and Bones features a collection of eight gripping original short stories in the bestselling Mike Bowditch series—including one brand new, never-before-published story—from Edgar-award nominated author Paul Doiron.
In THE BEAR TRAP, legendary Maine woodsman and bush pilot Charley Stevens tries to convince young Mike of the dangers awaiting rookie game wardens.
RABID draws Mike into the story of a gruesome case involving a bat with rabies from his Charley Steven’s past (2019 Edgar award nominee for Best Short Story).
When a visiting hunter goes missing in the middle of a snowstorm, a young Charley Stevens sets off to rescue him—but begins to suspect the man may not want to be found in BACKTRACK.
In THEIMPOSTER, Mike is confronted with a baffling case of stolen identity when he discovers a dead body whose driver’s license claims he is none other than Mike Bowditch himself.
Mike tracks down a sinister prowler who turns a couple’s dream vacation home into a nightmare in THE CARETAKER.
An investigation into the killing of a bald eagle in SKIN AND BONES unearths an old case of a missing young man whose physically abusive brother might have murdered him.
In SNAKEBIT, Mike must hunt down a killer who uses the unlikeliest of murder weapons: rattlesnakes.
(Brand New!) Mike suspects there’s more to a grisly murder-suicide than meets the eye in SHEEP’S CLOTHING.
Critically acclaimed for his brilliant crime novels, Paul Doiron proves he is also the master of short story in Skin and Bones.
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press Early Readers for sending me a complimentary ebook.
I saw Everyone Here Is Lying by Shari Lapena while browsing through my library. I ended up not grabbing it off the shelf, but instead decided to borrow the audiobook through Libby. ⭐⭐⭐⭐
I had borrowed The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson from the library. I fully immersed myself (eBook from Libby, physical book and audiobook from Hoopla), but mostly read the eBook. ⭐⭐⭐⭐
A friend recommended I read The Affair by N.A. Cooper, so I borrowed the audiobook from Hoopla. ⭐⭐⭐
The Best of Friends by Lucinda Berry I found on Amazon and used my No-Rush Rewards to pay for the entire price of the book. ⭐⭐⭐⭐
I wanted to start reading the Eddie Flynn series, so I started with The Defense, the first book in the series, from Hoopla. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Q: Have you read any of these? Any of them are on your TBR?
Challenges: Audiobook, COYER, NetGalley, Read For The Stars
Review: I have listened to other Alex Finlay books and really liked them. I am also a big fan of Brittany Pressley as a narrator. But this story wasn’t holding my interest at times and I found my mind wandering a good amount. I wish the college students had more backstory at the beginning, because I honestly was not invested in their lives and did not emotionally care what happened to any of them by halfway through the book. I think other readers will enjoy the book, and it wasn’t a bad story, so this is why I gave it an average three stars rating.
I received two complimentary copies. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press Early Readers for allowing me to read this ARC and Macmillan Audio Influencer Program for sending me an ALC.
Title: Dead Of Night Author: Lisa Gray Format: eBook / Audiobook Length: 267 pages / 7 hours 11 minutes Rating: 4 stars
Challenges: Audiobook, COYER, NetGalley
Review: While I was not a fan of the narrator, I was hooked into the story. The plot is real simple, a writer vacations in a small town with a rental property whose previous renters disappeared. Of course the author has to investigate what happened and figure out why they disappeared. You also get the POV from Ruby, a young mom whose child is missing. The stories intertwine, and the plot twist at the end comes out of nowhere! Four stars!
Thank you to Thriller Book Lovers: The Pulse for allowing me to read this ARC, and listen to this ALC.
