6.17.2022 - Local Gone Missing

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Books for gifting me a digital copy of the latest mystery/thriller by Fiona Barton - 4 stars!

Detective Elise King's life revolved around her job, until she was diagnosed with breast cancer.  Recovering at home after surgery, her chemo brain makes her wonder if she'll ever be back to her pre-cancer self and be able to work.  But when a local man goes missing the night of a neighborhood music festival, Elise's neighbor, Ronnie, pulls her into investigating themselves.  

I really loved the characters of Elise and Ronnie - I could easily see a series of books involving these two.  Ronnie was hilarious!  This was a good mystery and police procedural and I adore Barton's writing.  I loved the small town vibe where everyone seems to know everyone's business, for better or worse.  My only negative was that there were so many characters and different time periods that I had some trouble keeping everyone clear. 

6.15.2022 - The Hidden One

 

Many thanks to NetGalley, St Martin's Press, Minotaur Books and MacMillan Audio for gifting me both a digital and audio ARC of the latest book in the wonderful Amish detective series featuring Chief Kate Burkholder, written by Linda Castillo, wonderfully narrated by Kathleen McInerney.  5 stars!

This book finds Chief Burkholder leaving her job in Ohio and traveling to Amish country in Pennsylvania when elders asked her to help a church member who was accused of murdering a bishop a decade ago.  The bishop's remains were recently unearthed, along with the murder weapon belonging to her childhood friend, Jonas.  But Kate's investigations leave her in danger as well as she gets too close to the truth.

I have anxiously awaited each book in this series and love each one.  This one was a bit different because we don't get to follow the regular police crowd from Kate's office in Painters Mill, Ohio.  But these mystery books are always so well written and keep me intrigued, as well as always teaching me more about the Amish culture.  This is the first time I also listened to the audiobook, and thought the narration was wonderful.  I especially liked hearing the Deutsch spoken.  This is a fabulous series - even though you could read each as a stand-alone, you must start at the beginning!

6.14.2022 - Flying Solo

Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Ballantine Books for gifting me the sophomore novel by Linda Holmes, author of Evvie Drakes Starts Over, which I loved.  4.5 stars rounded up!

Laurie is fresh off the trauma of canceling her wedding and returns to her small hometown in Maine to go through her beloved aunt's home after her death.  She enlists her friend, June, to help her go through Dot's possessions and hires Matt to help her sell or dispose of the things they don't want to keep.  Laurie also meets back up with Nick, her high school sweetheart, who stayed in town and runs the local library.  When Laurie finds a carved wooden decoy duck hidden at the bottom of her aunt's chest, it leads the group on a mission.

I loved these characters and the small town feeling the author has created.  You can just imagine sitting with these people on Dot's deck, surrounded by food and wine, enjoying life.  This is also a story of being true to yourself, finding your own path in life, and surrounding yourself with a tribe that makes it all work.  Being older, it certainly makes you think about the possessions we leave behind and how we should share our stories.  Evvie Drake was a quick mention in this book, which was fun.  I loved spending time with this book and these characters!

6.12.2022 - Privacy

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Ballantine/Bantam Books for gifting me a digital ARC of the latest thriller by Nina Sadowsky - 4 stars!

Dr Lania Landers is a therapist in practice with another therapist at their company, Better Life.  When one of her marriage therapy patients holds his wife hostage and threatens to shoot her, she is able to talk him down.  A journalist, Cal Murray, is on hand and records the scene, thrusting her into the limelight as well as Cal's own personal interest.  But then several of Lania's patients receive threatening notes and packages with the words "Watching You."  

Don't read too much about this one before starting it - it's more fun to figure it out on your own.  The story plays out with interspersed passages from The Watcher, giving all kinds of creepy vibes.  This is a cautionary tale of how much of our life is public and how much of our privacy we willingly sign away to all our apps, the internet, and our smart technology.  In the wrong hands, any part of our privacy can be exploited.  A fast, intriguing read!

6.10.2022 - Island Time

Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for gifting me a digital copy of Georgia Clark's new book, Island Time - 3.5 stars.

The Kelly family are loud, messy Australians and the Lee family are more sophisticated, aloof Americans.  But their daughters are married and the other Kelly daughter, Amelia, brought them together for a family vacation to an island off Queensland to meet her boyfriend.  Then a tsunami hit and their long weekend turned into being stranded for six weeks.

I loved the setting, the history, even the bird info in this book.  I also loved the character progression, as each character learns more about themselves, how to relate to each other, and how to fulfill and understand their dreams.  What I didn't like so much was the fact that there were so many different points of view in the third person that it was confusing.  There was also a lot of gay sex - so much that it felt pornographic instead of romantic.  I love dark humor but there were quite a few tone deaf jokes.  I'm probably too old and straight to be the target audience for this book so please read other reviews!

6.10.2022 - And There He Kept Her

Many thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press Sourcebooks and Dreamscape Media for gifting me both a digital and audio ARC of the debut novel by Joshua Moehling, wonderfully narrated by Linda Jones - 4.5 stars rounded up!

Acting Sheriff Ben Packard is back home in small town Sandy Lake, Minnesota, after a devastating personal loss.  When his cousin's daughter and her boyfriend go missing, Deputy Packard is determined to find them.  The two teens broke into an elderly man's house looking for drugs and met the homeowner, Emmett Burr, who was armed.  Now Burr's fighting to keep the secrets found in his basement.

I loved this book - it's one of those stories where the crime happens right away and you go along with the police as they try to solve the case, while learning all the characters' backgrounds along the way.  This was a gripping story, expertly written to make you feel contrasting emotions towards the perpetrator while despising the crime.  In addition, despite the terrible nature of the crime, the author never made the violence gruesome and over the top, like so many books do.  Readers are smart enough to fill in the blanks without it being so blatant.  So bravo for a fabulous debut with fingers crossed that this was just the first in a series featuring Ben Packard (and Franklin!).

6.9.2022 - Blood Orange Night

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for gifting me a digital ARC of this amazing memoir by Melissa Bond - 5 stars!

Melissa is a married mother of two, one a special-needs child, who struggles with intense insomnia, sleeping only an hour or two every night.  Desperate, she goes to her doctor who prescribes benzodiazepines—a family of drugs that includes Xanax, Valium, Klonopin, Ativan—and increases her dosage on a regular basis.  Then her body starts collapsing.  She eventually learns she was overprescribed and these drugs should be given for very short periods of time.  Stopping cold turkey can lead to a fatal seizure.  This is her story of the struggle to taper off these medicines.

This book is a page-turner and I was shocked to learn of the issues with these drugs.  I know many people who were prescribed Xanax and Ativan and never knew of how it changed your brain forever.  Melissa was so brave in opening up her life and struggles to show the damage that these prescription drugs can do.  She tells of how she tried to be the best mother and wife possible, while she wasn't sleeping and her brain and body attacked.  The dangers of opioids are well known - hopefully this book will open everyone's eyes to the danger of benzodiazepines.  A must read!