• Book Reviews

    Book Review: The Perfect Couple by Jackie Kabler

    The perfect couple…or the perfect lie? A year and a half ago, Gemma met the love of her life, Danny. Since then, their relationship has been like something out of a dream. But one Friday evening, Gemma returns home to find Danny is nowhere to be seen. After two days with no word from her husband, Gemma turns to the police. She is horrified with what she discovers – a serial killer is on the loose in Bristol. When she sees the photos of the victims she is even more stunned…the victims all look just like Danny. But, the detectives…

  • Book Reviews

    Book Review: Chatroom With A View by Glenn Maynard

    Lizzie Borden took an axe . . . and so goes the song depicting the 1892 axe murders of her father and step-mother. Research indicates that a killer gene could be passed down through generations of family members, and evidence begins with Lizzie’s ancestor who murdered his mother in 1673. Chatroom with a View opens with a bone-chilling episode, and what’s left of Troy Cullen’s dysfunctional family keeps him even further from the normal integration with society. Troy’s life further unravels when his ex-girlfriend, Veronica, announces that she is pregnant. Troy loses control and plots to do unto others as…

  • Feature Posts/Weekly Memes

    Bookish (And Not So Bookish) Thoughts #5

    We should always make time for the things we like. If we don’t, we might forget how to be happy. The House in the Cerulean Sea – TJ Klune I’m slowly working my way through this wonderful book, and it seems to be exactly what my brain needs right now. It’s sweet, whimsical, and yet full of so many hard truths that it makes my head spin. That small quote above is just one of the many gems in this book. So far I’ve seen themes of discrimination, the concept of self-worth, and even nature vs. nurture. I don’t know.…

  • Book Reviews

    Book Review: All Kinds of Other by James Sie

    In this tender, nuanced coming-of-age love story, two boys—one who is cis and one who is trans—have been guarding their hearts to protect themselves, until their feelings for each other give them a reason to stand up to their fears. Two boys are starting at a new school. Jules is just figuring out what it means to be gay and hasn’t totally decided whether he wants to be out at his new school. His parents and friends have all kinds of opinions, but for his part, Jules just wants to make the basketball team and keep his head down. Jack…

  • Feature Posts/Weekly Memes

    It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

    It is once again Monday, and this time I do actually feel like the weekend flew by! However I’m kind of happy about that because I had a wonderful weekend. Full of friends, good food, and lots of excellent reading. I’m still maintaining my slower pace of making it through books. 4-5 books per month seems to be the goal, with it being closer to 3-4. Still, like I wrote earlier last week, I’m enjoying this change! It’s nice to have more time to just savor things, and appreciate them. No rush. Just reading. Read Last Week: Last week I…

  • Book Reviews

    Book Review: The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

    A Life No One Will Remember. A Story You Will Never Forget. France, 1714: in a moment of desperation, a young woman makes a Faustian bargain to live forever and is cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets. Thus begins the extraordinary life of Addie LaRue, and a dazzling adventure that will play out across centuries and continents, across history and art, as a young woman learns how far she will go to leave her mark on the world. But everything changes when, after nearly 300 years, Addie stumbles across a young man in a hidden bookstore and he…

  • Ramblings

    Goodbye April, and hello May!

    Another month is on its way out, my friends. It always feels a bit bittersweet to me. I simultaneously feel like I did as much as I could, and that I didn’t use my time as well as I could have. The closer that it gets to the end of the year, the more apparent that feeling is. This year though, I’ve given myself a lot more grace. My last rambling post was on finding small bits of happiness, and that extends into the way I feel about the passage of time now. The more you see the small wins,…

  • Feature Posts/Weekly Memes

    Can’t Wait Wednesday (4/28/21)

    Once again it is almost the end of the month. This time though, I was prepared for it! Time seems to have gotten back to semi-normal. Although I still often have to remind myself of what day of the week it is. That hasn’t changed. Perhaps it’s my excitement at my eventual road trip across the U.S. that has the calendar feeling standard again, but I like it! I really missed traveling. Anyway, on to the pick for this week, shall we? Twitter has been my best friend lately when it comes to discovering new books. I kind of fell…

  • Ramblings

    Small bits of happiness.

    Time for another rambling post, because I’m doing my daily work under a blanket in my big and cozy chair. I woke up feeling poorly, and it hasn’t improved much since then. It’s days like today that I’m actually so thankful to be working from home. This is the kind of day that I would normally have had to call in sick, because I wouldn’t have been able to make the 1 1/2 hour commute to work. Since I’m at home though, and able to take care of myself as needed while still doing my work, I’m able to just…

  • Book Reviews

    Book Review: The Toll by Cherie Priest

    State Road 177 runs along the Suwannee River, between Fargo, Georgia, and the Okefenokee Swamp. Drive that route from east to west, and you’ll cross six bridges. Take it from west to east, and you might find seven. But you’d better hope not. Titus and Melanie Bell leave their hotel in Fargo for a second honeymoon canoeing the Okefenokee Swamp. But shortly before they reach their destination, they draw up to a halt at the edge of a rickety bridge with old stone pilings, with room for only one car . . . When, much later, a tow-truck arrives, the…