Night Watcher
Gripping, shocking, thrilling, and mesmerizing, the Night Watcher was an addictive read! This one had the hair standing up on the back of my neck! Nola Strate is the host of Night Watch, a late-night radio show in Portland, Oregon. Callers to her show discuss hauntings and sightings. One night a woman called in and said an intruder was in her home, and it scared the daylights out of Nola. The eerie phone call brought back memories of the frightening and deadly night that a man entered her home and killed her babysitter while she called for help upstairs. Since then, Nola has tried to forget the horrific night when The Hiding Man killed her babysitter. Whew! This book was awesome! I loved the tension; the mounting sense of dread and danger were off the charts. As Nola begins to feel that she is being watched and her concerns that The Hiding Man is back and after her, her fear was oozing from the pages. She becomes hypervigilant and with strange sighting at her next door neighbors home, she is beyond frightened. She turns to her father for support while others look at him as being a suspect! I loved not knowing who could be trusted! I tried my best to figure out the identity of The Hiding Man but never guessed it! This was so hard to put down! I was glued to the pages and on the edge of my seat! What a thrilling and shocking roller coaster ride this book became! Mysterious, pulse pounding and hard to put down! Highly Recommend. I listened to the audiobook and the narrators were fantastic! They did an amazing job of bringing this book to life! Thank you to Hachette Audio | Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
Don’t Open Your Eyes
When dreams become nightmares, you might want to keep your eyes open! In Don’t Open Your Eyes, Annabelle is a married woman with two daughters and a great career. She appears to have it all, but what she doesn’t have is peaceful sleep. Annabelle is having dreams which for some reason are slowly coming true to a degree. Annabelle is feeling stressed and Jason, her husband is far from supportive. The Annabelle has a dream that her daughter, Scarlett is in danger…. This book is told through the POV’s of various characters (Annabelle in the present, Scarlett, and Annabelle in the past) and using two timelines. For the first half of the book, I found myself scratching my head and wondering just what the heck is going on? Are the dreams premonitions? I had no clue what was happening. All I knew was that I wanted to know more. I had no idea where this book was heading for most of the book. I felt lost yet I was enjoying the plot. I enjoyed the tension and the dread that Annabelle was feeling. I never saw the various twists and turns coming. Overall, an enjoyable book that kept me on my toes and wondering what would happen next! Mysterious, twist filled, and full of tension! Thank you to Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine | Bantam and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
The Lies They Told
Gripping, raw, thought provoking, emotion evoking, heart breaking, and hard to put down! With her book, The Lies They Told, Ellen Marie Wiseman tackles sad and horrific time in American history. This work of historical fiction tackles the immigrant experience during the 1930’s, poverty, prejudice, the Eugenics program, forced sterilizations, seizure of land, and loss to name a few. Let me tell you, it can be difficult to read with tears in your eyes and that is what I did at various times in this book. Lena Conti, a young unwed mother from Germany has crossed the ocean and entered the United States through Ellis Island where she and her mother and brother are examined and only Lena and her baby are allowed to stay. Silas Wolfe, a widowed father, who was expecting Lena’s mother, begrudgingly agrees to take on Lena and her baby to his cabin in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains to care for his two children and his home. I thought the author did a tremendous job of depicting both time and place in this book. She vividly described the cabin and mountains while introducing reader to Silas and his children. I felt for Lena and all that she went through. I could imagine her fear of leaving Germany in search of a better life in a new country. Her shock at being subjected to a very through exam only to be separated from her brother and mother. Imagine being a young woman in a new country with a young child, with nowhere to go, no money and facing starvation and prejudice. Luckily, she was taken in by Silas but the culture shock of being in a cabin, having to learn how to adapt to living with his family and learning how to care for his household. Just when I thought thing were going to be fine and Lena begins to meet and enjoy her neighbors, a woman from the State of Virginia’s Eugenics Office stops pays them a visit…… Oh, how this book pulled on my heartstrings. I rooted for all the characters in this book. Bonnie, one of Silas’s children stole every scene she was in. I loved her spunk and tenacity. My heart broke many times while reading this beautifully written book. I went from concern, to happy, to hopeful, to devastated, to angry, to hopeful, to heartbroken and back to hopeful again. This book put me and the characters through the ringer. The author did a great job with her research and showing the plight of poor, rural, and down on their luck individuals. She showed how those who lived in the mountains had a strong sense of community and depicted their ways of supporting each other. She also showed how those in power abused it and took advantage of poor people who they viewed as uneducated, lacking in morals, unable to care for their children, their land, and. themselves. Ellen Marie Wiseman has delivered another gripping and moving historical fiction book. She continues to wow me with her wonderful writing. Thank you to Kensington Publishing and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
Circle of Days
Ken Follett has another gripping and epic tale on his hands with Circle of Days! He wrote one of my favorite books, The Pillars of the Earth which left me amazed by his wonderful storytelling. I have been a fan ever since. In Circle of Days he takes on Stonehenge, one of the world’s great mysteries. In doing so he introduces readers to a vast array of characters living around 2500 BCE. Many will stand out such as Seft, a talented flint miner and Joia, a born leader and priestess who has a vision of a monument. A monument which will be made using the biggest stones in the world. At 704 pages, this is not a fast read, but it is a captivating and gripping one! I was so immersed in the plot that I lost track of the page count and never felt this book’s length. That is a testament on Follett’s talented and gifted a storytelling. This work of historical fiction looks at the various groups of people living during that time in history. The vivid descriptions transported me to the hills, the mountains and the plains. I observed the Midsummer ceremonies, the hardships, the love, the violence, the births, the deaths, and the rising of a monument. Wonderfully written, Circle of Days is Ken Follett’s vision of how Stonehenge was built. Once again, Follett has this reader intrigued and invested in a group of people building something that will stand the test of time. Another thing that will stand the test of time is Follett’s brilliant storytelling. Beautifully written, riveting, and imaginative. Thank you to Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
We Are All Guilty Here
Gripping, shocking, tense, thrilling and hard to put down, Karin Slaughter delivered with We Are All Guilty Here! Karin Slaughter does not shy away from difficult subjects or scenes. She is known for her gritty and raw subject matter and intense storylines. She excels at police procedurals and creating complex characters dealing with real life issues. Her books tend to grab me from the very first page, and this book was no exception! In We Are All Guilty Here, two teenage girls have gone missing, and Officer Emmy Clifton will find herself investigating a case which hits close to home. North Falls is a small town where everyone knows everyone. They are a tight knit community and when two local girls go missing, Emmy and her father Walter (the town Sheriff) are on the case! It’s a tough, heat breaking case where one of the girls taken is Emmy’s best friend’s daughters. All involved with be affected by the girls being taken. In a town where everyone knows your name, everyone feels and sees your pain. Years later, another girl is taken leaving Emmy and the rest of the police force scratching their heads while investigating the latest missing girl. Whoever said time heals all wounds, never lost someone they love. The town is still reeling from the last two girls who went missing, and now with another girl missing, their hearts have been ripped open yet again! The stakes are high and Jude, a recently retired FBI officer has returned to town and offers to help… Whew! This was an addictive police procedural, but it was also a family tragedy affecting several families in North Falls. This book is full of secrets, trauma, lies, and loss Perhaps those in North Falls don’t know their neighbors that well after all. Many of the characters will suffer loss while others will get redemption. The pages are dripping with tension, pain, loss, and grief. The pages are also filled with courage, strength, determination, and love. We Are All Guilty Here is a firecracker of a book and the first in Karin Slaughter’s new North Falls series!!!! I can’t wait to read what comes next! Wonderfully written, well thought out, mysterious, and tense! 4.5 stars Thank you to HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction | and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
The Stolen Life of Colette Marceau
Beautifully written, well thought out, and moving, The Stolen Life of Colette Marceau will steal your heart as well as having you turning the pages! Colette Marceau has been stealing since her childhood. Her mother stole as did her grandmother. It is a unique family tradition of taking from the cruel and evil and giving to those in need. If you are getting strong Robin Hood vibes you are not alone! Colette has lived a long life and has stolen a massive amount and has given to to worthy causes. She can steal just about anything. But when a long missing bracelet from her past shows up at a museum in Boston, her past comes rushing back to her. 1942 – Occupied France Annabel Marceau has taught her daughter, Colette to be a successful thief in order to fund the French resistance during WWII. But one horrible and fateful night, Annabel is caught by the Germans and Colette’s four-year-old sister, Liliane has disappeared with half of a diamond bracelet sewn into her nightgown. Colette is told that her sister’s body was found floating in the Seine. Told in two timelines, The Stolen Life of Colette Marceau shows the horrors of occupied France, the holocaust, and the quest for survival. It also shows the bonds of family, and those doing what they can to help those in need. It shows us Colette as a young girl and as a woman who has lived a long life. A woman with a heavy heart and survivor’s guilt. She has spent her life stealing to help those in need even though the most precious things of all have been stolen from her – her mother and sister. Kristin Harmel has written another gripping, moving, and thought-provoking tale about family, loss, grief, love, history, and survival. This is the second book I have read by Kristin Harmel, and I look forward to reading many more in the future. Thank you to Gallery Books and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
Night Watcher
Gripping, shocking, thrilling, and mesmerizing, the Night Watcher was an addictive read! This one had the hair standing up on the back of my neck! Nola Strate is the host of Night Watch, a late-night radio show in Portland, Oregon. Callers to her show discuss hauntings and sightings. One night a woman called in and said an intruder was in her home, and it scared the daylights out of Nola. The eerie phone call brought back memories of the frightening and deadly night that a man entered her home and killed her babysitter while she called for help upstairs. Since then, Nola has tried to forget the horrific night when The Hiding Man killed her babysitter. Whew! This book was awesome! I loved the tension; the mounting sense of dread and danger were off the charts. As Nola begins to feel that she is being watched and her concerns that The Hiding Man is back and after her, her fear was oozing from the pages. She becomes hypervigilant and with strange sighting at her next door neighbors home, she is beyond frightened. She turns to her father for support while others look at him as being a suspect! I loved not knowing who could be trusted! I tried my best to figure out the identity of The Hiding Man but never guessed it! This was so hard to put down! I was glued to the pages and on the edge of my seat! What a thrilling and shocking roller coaster ride this book became! Mysterious, pulse pounding and hard to put down! Highly Recommend. I listened to the audiobook and the narrators were fantastic! They did an amazing job of bringing this book to life! Thank you to Hachette Audio | Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
Don’t Open Your Eyes
When dreams become nightmares, you might want to keep your eyes open! In Don’t Open Your Eyes, Annabelle is a married woman with two daughters and a great career. She appears to have it all, but what she doesn’t have is peaceful sleep. Annabelle is having dreams which for some reason are slowly coming true to a degree. Annabelle is feeling stressed and Jason, her husband is far from supportive. The Annabelle has a dream that her daughter, Scarlett is in danger…. This book is told through the POV’s of various characters (Annabelle in the present, Scarlett, and Annabelle in the past) and using two timelines. For the first half of the book, I found myself scratching my head and wondering just what the heck is going on? Are the dreams premonitions? I had no clue what was happening. All I knew was that I wanted to know more. I had no idea where this book was heading for most of the book. I felt lost yet I was enjoying the plot. I enjoyed the tension and the dread that Annabelle was feeling. I never saw the various twists and turns coming. Overall, an enjoyable book that kept me on my toes and wondering what would happen next! Mysterious, twist filled, and full of tension! Thank you to Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine | Bantam and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
The Lies They Told
Gripping, raw, thought provoking, emotion evoking, heart breaking, and hard to put down! With her book, The Lies They Told, Ellen Marie Wiseman tackles sad and horrific time in American history. This work of historical fiction tackles the immigrant experience during the 1930’s, poverty, prejudice, the Eugenics program, forced sterilizations, seizure of land, and loss to name a few. Let me tell you, it can be difficult to read with tears in your eyes and that is what I did at various times in this book. Lena Conti, a young unwed mother from Germany has crossed the ocean and entered the United States through Ellis Island where she and her mother and brother are examined and only Lena and her baby are allowed to stay. Silas Wolfe, a widowed father, who was expecting Lena’s mother, begrudgingly agrees to take on Lena and her baby to his cabin in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains to care for his two children and his home. I thought the author did a tremendous job of depicting both time and place in this book. She vividly described the cabin and mountains while introducing reader to Silas and his children. I felt for Lena and all that she went through. I could imagine her fear of leaving Germany in search of a better life in a new country. Her shock at being subjected to a very through exam only to be separated from her brother and mother. Imagine being a young woman in a new country with a young child, with nowhere to go, no money and facing starvation and prejudice. Luckily, she was taken in by Silas but the culture shock of being in a cabin, having to learn how to adapt to living with his family and learning how to care for his household. Just when I thought thing were going to be fine and Lena begins to meet and enjoy her neighbors, a woman from the State of Virginia’s Eugenics Office stops pays them a visit…… Oh, how this book pulled on my heartstrings. I rooted for all the characters in this book. Bonnie, one of Silas’s children stole every scene she was in. I loved her spunk and tenacity. My heart broke many times while reading this beautifully written book. I went from concern, to happy, to hopeful, to devastated, to angry, to hopeful, to heartbroken and back to hopeful again. This book put me and the characters through the ringer. The author did a great job with her research and showing the plight of poor, rural, and down on their luck individuals. She showed how those who lived in the mountains had a strong sense of community and depicted their ways of supporting each other. She also showed how those in power abused it and took advantage of poor people who they viewed as uneducated, lacking in morals, unable to care for their children, their land, and. themselves. Ellen Marie Wiseman has delivered another gripping and moving historical fiction book. She continues to wow me with her wonderful writing. Thank you to Kensington Publishing and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
Circle of Days
Ken Follett has another gripping and epic tale on his hands with Circle of Days! He wrote one of my favorite books, The Pillars of the Earth which left me amazed by his wonderful storytelling. I have been a fan ever since. In Circle of Days he takes on Stonehenge, one of the world’s great mysteries. In doing so he introduces readers to a vast array of characters living around 2500 BCE. Many will stand out such as Seft, a talented flint miner and Joia, a born leader and priestess who has a vision of a monument. A monument which will be made using the biggest stones in the world. At 704 pages, this is not a fast read, but it is a captivating and gripping one! I was so immersed in the plot that I lost track of the page count and never felt this book’s length. That is a testament on Follett’s talented and gifted a storytelling. This work of historical fiction looks at the various groups of people living during that time in history. The vivid descriptions transported me to the hills, the mountains and the plains. I observed the Midsummer ceremonies, the hardships, the love, the violence, the births, the deaths, and the rising of a monument. Wonderfully written, Circle of Days is Ken Follett’s vision of how Stonehenge was built. Once again, Follett has this reader intrigued and invested in a group of people building something that will stand the test of time. Another thing that will stand the test of time is Follett’s brilliant storytelling. Beautifully written, riveting, and imaginative. Thank you to Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
We Are All Guilty Here
Gripping, shocking, tense, thrilling and hard to put down, Karin Slaughter delivered with We Are All Guilty Here! Karin Slaughter does not shy away from difficult subjects or scenes. She is known for her gritty and raw subject matter and intense storylines. She excels at police procedurals and creating complex characters dealing with real life issues. Her books tend to grab me from the very first page, and this book was no exception! In We Are All Guilty Here, two teenage girls have gone missing, and Officer Emmy Clifton will find herself investigating a case which hits close to home. North Falls is a small town where everyone knows everyone. They are a tight knit community and when two local girls go missing, Emmy and her father Walter (the town Sheriff) are on the case! It’s a tough, heat breaking case where one of the girls taken is Emmy’s best friend’s daughters. All involved with be affected by the girls being taken. In a town where everyone knows your name, everyone feels and sees your pain. Years later, another girl is taken leaving Emmy and the rest of the police force scratching their heads while investigating the latest missing girl. Whoever said time heals all wounds, never lost someone they love. The town is still reeling from the last two girls who went missing, and now with another girl missing, their hearts have been ripped open yet again! The stakes are high and Jude, a recently retired FBI officer has returned to town and offers to help… Whew! This was an addictive police procedural, but it was also a family tragedy affecting several families in North Falls. This book is full of secrets, trauma, lies, and loss Perhaps those in North Falls don’t know their neighbors that well after all. Many of the characters will suffer loss while others will get redemption. The pages are dripping with tension, pain, loss, and grief. The pages are also filled with courage, strength, determination, and love. We Are All Guilty Here is a firecracker of a book and the first in Karin Slaughter’s new North Falls series!!!! I can’t wait to read what comes next! Wonderfully written, well thought out, mysterious, and tense! 4.5 stars Thank you to HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction | and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
The Stolen Life of Colette Marceau
Beautifully written, well thought out, and moving, The Stolen Life of Colette Marceau will steal your heart as well as having you turning the pages! Colette Marceau has been stealing since her childhood. Her mother stole as did her grandmother. It is a unique family tradition of taking from the cruel and evil and giving to those in need. If you are getting strong Robin Hood vibes you are not alone! Colette has lived a long life and has stolen a massive amount and has given to to worthy causes. She can steal just about anything. But when a long missing bracelet from her past shows up at a museum in Boston, her past comes rushing back to her. 1942 – Occupied France Annabel Marceau has taught her daughter, Colette to be a successful thief in order to fund the French resistance during WWII. But one horrible and fateful night, Annabel is caught by the Germans and Colette’s four-year-old sister, Liliane has disappeared with half of a diamond bracelet sewn into her nightgown. Colette is told that her sister’s body was found floating in the Seine. Told in two timelines, The Stolen Life of Colette Marceau shows the horrors of occupied France, the holocaust, and the quest for survival. It also shows the bonds of family, and those doing what they can to help those in need. It shows us Colette as a young girl and as a woman who has lived a long life. A woman with a heavy heart and survivor’s guilt. She has spent her life stealing to help those in need even though the most precious things of all have been stolen from her – her mother and sister. Kristin Harmel has written another gripping, moving, and thought-provoking tale about family, loss, grief, love, history, and survival. This is the second book I have read by Kristin Harmel, and I look forward to reading many more in the future. Thank you to Gallery Books and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
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