ANOTHER BOOKISH WEEK…

Today I’m participating in WWW Wednesdays, at Taking on a World of Words.  Here’s how it works:

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next, and/or what are you eagerly awaiting?

CURRENTLY READING:

Anxious People, by Fredrik Backman

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove comes a charming, poignant novel about a crime that never took place, a would-be bank robber who disappears into thin air, and eight extremely anxious strangers who find they have more in common than they ever imagined.

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BOOKS READ SINCE MY LAST POST OF 9/22/20:

When She Was Good, by Michael Robotham

Three Perfect Liars, by Heidi Perks

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EAGERLY ANTICIPATING:

I am waiting for my pre-ordered copy of Life in Pieces, by Dawn O’Porter, coming tomorrow:  October 1, 2020.

Synopsis:  From reflections on grief and identity, bad hair and parenting, sleep and spirituality, to the things we can control and the things we cannot, Dawn has been doing a lot of thinking about life in lockdown. Mostly from a cupboard. Discover the daily diaries that track the journey – for a hilarious, heartbreaking and highly entertaining glimpse into the new normal.

‘There’s been a lot of well-meaning but mad advice on how to contend with the strangest period of human history any of us has ever lived through. Dawn O’Porter redresses the balance by telling it as it really has been: holding out for 5pm to crack open the tequila’ Mark Watson

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That was my week, and I am late to the party!  What did your week look like?

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HUMP DAY READING…

Today I’m participating in WWW Wednesdays, at Taking on a World of Words.  Here’s how it works:

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next, and/or what are you eagerly awaiting?

CURRENTLY READING:

When She Was Good, by Michael Robotham

From the bestselling author of The Secrets She Keeps and Good Girl, Bad Girl comes a new thriller featuring the brilliant forensic psychologist Cyrus Haven as he becomes embroiled in an explosive murder case with disturbing origins.

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BOOKS READ SINCE LAST POST OF 9/16/20:

Final Cut, by S. J. Watson

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Monogamy, by Sue Miller

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EAGERLY ANTICIPATING:  I have added House of Correction, by Nicci French, to my “must read” list.  The book will be released on October 27, 2020.

In this heart-pounding standalone thriller from bestselling author Nicci French, a woman accused of murder attempts to solve her own case from the confines of prison—but as she unravels the truth, everything is called into question, including her own certainty that she is innocent.

Tabitha is not a murderer.

When a body is discovered in Okeham, England, Tabitha is shocked to find herself being placed in handcuffs. It must be a mistake. She’d only recently moved back to her childhood hometown, not even getting a chance to reacquaint herself with the neighbors. How could she possibly be a murder suspect?

She knows she’s not.

As Tabitha is shepherded through the system, her entire life is picked apart and scrutinized —her history of depression and medications, her decision to move back to a town she supposedly hated . . . and of course, her past relationship with the victim, her former teacher. But most unsettling, Tabitha’s own memories of that day are a complete blur.

She thinks she’s not.

From the isolation of the correctional facility, Tabitha dissects every piece of evidence, every testimony she can get her hands on, matching them against her own recollections. But as dark, long-buried memories from her childhood come to light, Tabatha begins to question if she knows what kind of person she is after all. The world is convinced she’s a killer. Tabatha needs to prove them all wrong.

But what if she’s only lying to herself? 

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That was my week.  What did yours look like?  I am still struggling to read more…but find myself caught up in other activities.  How are the rest of you hanging in there?

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BOOKISH WEDNESDAY…

Today I’m participating in WWW Wednesdays, at Taking on a World of Words.  Here’s how it works:

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next, and/or what are you eagerly awaiting?

CURRENTLY READING:

Final Cut, by S.J. Watson

A gripping new psychological thriller from S.J. Watson, the New York Times bestselling author of Before I Go to Sleep, in which a documentary filmmaker travels to a sleepy fishing village to shoot her new film and encounters a dark mystery surrounding the disappearance of a local girl.

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BOOKS READ SINCE LAST POST OF 9/8/20:

Little Disasters, by Sarah Vaughan

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Unfollow Me, by Charlotte Duckworth

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EAGERLY ANTICIPATING:

A book from a favorite author is waiting on my Kindle…and I am eager to start reading it!  Monogamy, by Sue Miller, is just the kind of book I need right now.  To whisk me away from dark thoughts and places, with the great writing of an author I have followed since the 1980s, when she wrote The Good Mother...an Oprah pick that was then made into a movie.

 

A brilliantly insightful novel, engrossing and haunting, about marriage, love, family, happiness and sorrow, from New York Times bestselling author Sue Miller.

Graham and Annie have been married for nearly thirty years. A golden couple, their seemingly effortless devotion has long been the envy of their circle of friends and acquaintances. 

Graham is a bookseller, a big, gregarious man with large appetites—curious, eager to please, a lover of life, and the convivial host of frequent, lively parties at his and Annie’s comfortable house in Cambridge. Annie, more reserved and introspective, is a photographer. She is about to have her first gallery show after a six-year lull and is worried that the best years of her career may be behind her. They have two adult children; Lucas, Graham’s son with his first wife, Frieda, works in New York. Annie and Graham’s daughter, Sarah, lives in San Francisco. Though Frieda is an integral part of this far-flung, loving family, Annie feels confident in the knowledge that she is Graham’s last and greatest love.

 When Graham suddenly dies—this man whose enormous presence has seemed to dominate their lives together—Annie is lost. What is the point of going on, she wonders, without him? 

 Then, while she is still mourning him intensely, she discovers that Graham had been unfaithful to her; and she spirals into darkness, wondering if she ever truly knew the man who loved her.

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What did your week look like?  I only read two books, but I’m almost finished with the current read.  Instead of reading all night to finish, I decided to sleep.  Enjoy your week!

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BOOKISH DELIGHTS…

Today I’m participating in WWW Wednesdays, at Taking on a World of Words.  Here’s how it works:

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next, and/or what are you eagerly awaiting?

CURRENTLY READING:

Little Disasters, by Sarah Vaughan

“Taut, clever, compelling, and guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat.”—Paula Hawkins, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Girl on the Train and Into the Water

From the bestselling author of Anatomy of a Scandal—a new thought-provoking novel exploring the complexity of motherhood and all that connects and disconnects us.

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BOOKS READ SINCE MY LAST POST OF 9/1/20:

Don’t Look for Me, by Wendy Walker – (NG-9/15/20)

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Heart Bones, by Colleen Hoover

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Girls of Summer, by Nancy Thayer

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EAGERLY ANTICIPATING:

I recently discovered a book by a budding author, one who comes from a famous family, some of whom are literary award winners, like her Pulitzer-Prize winning brother (Ronan Farrow, Catch and Kill):

Hush, by Dylan Farrow (Release Date:  10/6/20)

Synopsis:  Graceling meets Red Queen in this exciting debut novel by an electrifying new voice

“Hush has all the trappings of a great fantasy: a curse, a labyrinthine castle, many secrets, and powerful magic. At the center of it all, a girl unwilling to allow her world to be twisted by lies when she knows the truth. A truly gripping read.” – Emily A. Duncan, New York Times bestselling author of Wicked Saints

They use magic to silence the world. Who will break the hush?

Seventeen-year-old Shae has led a seemingly quiet life, joking with her best friend Fiona, and chatting with Mads, the neighborhood boy who always knows how to make her smile. All while secretly keeping her fears at bay… Of the disease that took her brother’s life. Of how her dreams seem to bleed into reality around her. Of a group of justice seekers called the Bards who claim to use the magic of Telling to keep her community safe.

When her mother is murdered, she can no longer pretend.

Not knowing who to trust, Shae journeys to unlock the truth, instead finding a new enemy keen to destroy her, a brooding boy with dark secrets, and an untold power she never thought possible.

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That was my week, one of books I loved with more to anticipate.  What did your week look like?

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A BOOKISH WEEK…

Today I’m participating in WWW Wednesdays, at Taking on a World of Words.  Here’s how it works:

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next, and/or what are you eagerly awaiting?

CURRENTLY READING:

Don’t Look for Me, by Wendy Walker – (NG-9/15/20)

In Wendy Walker’s thrilling novel Don’t Look for Me, the greatest risk isn’t running away. It’s running out of time.

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BOOKS READ SINCE LAST POST OF 8/25/20:

The Switch, by Beth O’Leary

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Home Before Dark, by Riley Sager

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EAGERLY ANTICIPATING:

To Tell You the Truth, by Gilly Macmillan – a book I pre-ordered for its release date of 9/22/20

Synopsis:  To tell you the truth . . . everybody lies.

Lucy Harper’s talent for writing bestselling novels has given her fame, fortune and millions of fans.  It’s also given her Dan, her needy, jealous husband whose own writing career has gone precisely nowhere.

Now Dan has vanished. But this isn’t the first time that someone has disappeared from Lucy’s life. Three decades ago, her little brother Teddy also went missing and was never found. Lucy, the only witness, helplessly spun fantasy after fantasy about Teddy’s disappearance, to the detectives’ fury and her parents’ despair. That was the start of her ability to tell a story—a talent she has profited from greatly. 

But now Lucy’s a grown woman who can’t hide behind fiction any longer. The world is watching, and her whole life is under intense scrutiny. A life full of stories, some more believable than others. Could she have hurt Teddy?  Did she kill Dan?  Finally, now, Lucy Harper’s going to tell the truth.

Cross her heart.

And hope to die.

***

That was my week.  Not much reading, but I enjoyed the books I chose.  What did your week look like?

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BOOKISH WEDNESDAY…

Today I’m participating in WWW Wednesdays, at Taking on a World of Words.  Here’s how it works:

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next, and/or what are you eagerly awaiting?

CURRENTLY READING:

The Switch, by Beth O’Leary

A grandmother and granddaughter swap lives in The Switch, a charming, romantic novel by Beth O’Leary, who has been hailed as “the new Jojo Moyes” (Cosmopolitan UK)…

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BOOKS READ & REVIEWED SINCE MY LAST POST OF 8/18/20:

Paris Never Leaves You, by Ellen Feldman

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Cleo McDougal Regrets Nothing, by Allison Winn Scotch

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He Started It, by Samantha Downing

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EAGERLY ANTICIPATING:

I discovered a new Nicci French book that will be released on April 27, 2021:   The Other Side of the Door.

Synopsis:  From the internationally bestselling author of The Lying Room, a sexy, intricate thriller about the temptation of secrets, the weight of lies, and the price of betrayal and suspicion.

Who is more dangerous? An enemy, a friend, or a lover?

When Bonnie Graham arrives at her boyfriend’s apartment in London, she is horrified to discover a dead body in a pool of blood on the floor. But she doesn’t call the police. Bonnie hides the corpse and then carefully wipes away any evidence she was ever there.

Bonnie is a music teacher who spent a long, hot summer in London rehearsing with a band to play at a friend’s wedding. It was supposed to be fun, but the band members find the complicated knots of their friendships—some old, some new—unraveling as the days themselves unwind. What was meant to be a summer of happiness, love, and music turns deadly as lovers betray one another, passions turn murderous, and friendship itself becomes a crime.

Everyone tells lies. But is anyone prepared to tell the truth to uncover a murderer?

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That was my week. What did yours look like?

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WWW WEDNESDAYS…

Today I’m participating in WWW Wednesdays, at Taking on a World of Words.  Here’s how it works:

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next, and/or what are you eagerly awaiting?

CURRENTLY READING:

Paris Never Leaves You, by Ellen Feldman

A passionate story of survival and a real page turner. This story will stay with me for a long time.” —Heather Morris, author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz and Cilka’s Journey

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BOOKS FINISHED SINCE THE LAST POST OF 8/11/20:

The End of Her, by Shari Lapena

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Imperfect Women, by Araminta Hall

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EAGERLY ANTICIPATING:

The Good Sister, by Sally Hepworth, will be released on 4/13/21

Synopsis:  From the outside, everyone might think Fern and Rose are as close as twin sisters can be: Rose is the responsible one, with a home and a husband and a fierce desire to become a mother. Fern is the quirky one, the free spirit, the librarian who avoids social interaction and whom the world might just describe as truly odd. But the sisters are devoted to one another and Rose has always been Fern’s protector from the time they were small.

Fern needed protecting because their mother was a true sociopath who hid her true nature from the world, and only Rose could see it. Fern always saw the good in everyone. Years ago, Fern did something very, very bad. And Rose has never told a soul. When Fern decides to help her sister achieve her heart’s desire of having a baby, Rose realizes with growing horror that Fern might make choices that can only have a terrible outcome. What Rose doesn’t realize is that Fern is growing more and more aware of the secrets Rose, herself, is keeping. And that their mother might have the last word after all.

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That was my week.  What did yours look like?

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BOOKISH MOMENTS…

Today I’m participating in WWW Wednesdays, at Taking on a World of Words.  Here’s how it works:

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next, and/or what are you eagerly awaiting?

CURRENTLY READING:

The End of Her, by Shari Lapena

The new domestic suspense novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Couple Next Door and Someone We Know

A long-ago accident–and a visitor from out of the blue. . .

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BOOKS FINISHED SINCE MY LAST POST OF 8/4/20:

Just Between Us, by Rebecca Drake

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His & Hers, by Alice Feeney

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My Pear-Shaped Life, by Carmel Harrington

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EAGERLY ANTICIPATING:

Take it Back, by Kia Abdullah – (A NetGalley ARC releasing on 12/8/20)

This ARC is resting comfortably on my Kindle.  Here’s a peek at what is within its pages.

From author Kia Abdullah, Take It Back is a harrowing and twisting courtroom thriller that keeps you guessing until the last page is turned.

One victim.
Four accused.
Who is telling the truth?

Zara Kaleel, one of London’s brightest legal minds, shattered the expectations placed on her by her family and forged a brilliant legal career. But her decisions came at a high cost, and now, battling her own demons, she has exchanged her high profile career for a job at a sexual assault center, helping victims who need her the most. Victims like Jodie Wolfe.

When Jodie, a sixteen-year-old girl with facial deformities, accuses four boys in her class of an unthinkable crime, the community is torn apart. After all, these four teenage defendants are from hard-working immigrant families and they all have proven alibis. Even Jodie’s best friend doesn’t believe her.

But Zara does—and she is determined to fight for Jodie—to find the truth in the face of public outcry. And as issues of sex, race and social justice collide, the most explosive criminal trial of the year builds to a shocking conclusion.

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What did your week look like?  I haven’t read many books, but have enjoyed each one.

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MORE ENGAGING BOOKS…

Today I’m participating in WWW Wednesdays, at Taking on a World of Words.  Here’s how it works:

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next, and/or what are you eagerly awaiting?

CURRENTLY READING:

Just Between Us, by Rebecca Drake

 

 

A book I downloaded in January 2018, and which I am thoroughly enjoying right now.

Just Between Us winds its roller-coaster plot around our tendency to see exactly what we are looking for—while our little lies take on dangerous lives of their own.” — O, The Oprah Magazine…

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BOOKS FINISHED SINCE MY LAST POST OF 7/28/20:

Friends & Strangers, by J. Courtney Sullivan

Until I Find You, by Rea Frey (NetGalley-8/11/20)

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EAGERLY ANTICIPATING:

Little Disasters, by Sarah Vaughan – a book I have pre-ordered that will be released on August 18.

Synopsis:  From the bestselling author of Anatomy of a Scandal—a new thought-provoking novel exploring the complexity of motherhood and all that connects and disconnects us.

You think you know her…but look a little closer.

She is a stay-at-home mother-of-three with boundless reserves of patience, energy, and love. After being friends for a decade, this is how Liz sees Jess.

Then one moment changes everything.

Dark thoughts and carefully guarded secrets surface—and Liz is left questioning everything she thought she knew about her friend, and about herself. The truth can’t come soon enough.

***

My week has been slower than usual, but I am enjoying the books.  I have finished my NetGalley ARCs until September, so that’s good, right?  Except we all know how quickly the weeks will fly by, and I’ll be playing catch-up again.

What was your week like?

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ENJOYING BOOKISH MOMENTS…

Today I’m participating in WWW Wednesdays, at Taking on a World of Words.  Here’s how it works:

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next, and/or what are you eagerly awaiting?

CURRENTLY READING:

Friends & Strangers, by J. Courtney Sullivan

An insightful, hilarious, and compulsively readable novel about a complicated friendship between two women who are at two very different stages in life, from the best-selling author of Maine and Saints for All Occasions (named one of the Washington Post‘s Ten Best Books of the Year and a New York Times Critics’ Pick).

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BOOKS FINISHED SINCE MY LAST POST OF 7/21/20:

The Safe Place, by Anna Downes

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Playing Nice, by JP Delaney – (NG-7/28/20)

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The Request, by David Bell

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The Night Swim, by Megan Goldin – (NG-8/4/20)

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EAGERLY ANTICIPATING:

Behind the Red Door, by Megan Collins (Release Date – 8/4/20)

Synopsis:  The author of the “suspenseful, atmospheric, and completely riveting” (Megan Miranda, New York Times bestselling author) debut The Winter Sister returns with a darkly thrilling novel about a woman who comes to believe that she has a connection to a decades old kidnapping and now that the victim has gone missing again, begins a frantic search to learn what happened in the past.

When Fern Douglas sees the news about Astrid Sullivan, a thirty-four-year-old missing woman from Maine, she is positive that she knows her. Fern’s husband is sure it’s because of Astrid’s famous kidnapping—and equally famous return—twenty years ago, but Fern has no memory of that, even though it happened an hour outside her New Hampshire hometown. And when Astrid appears in Fern’s recurring nightmare, one in which a girl reaches out to her, pleading, Fern fears that it’s not a dream at all, but a memory.

Back at her childhood home to help her father pack for a move, Fern purchases a copy of Astrid’s recently published memoir—which may have provoked her original kidnapper to abduct her again—and as she reads through its chapters and visits the people and places within it, she discovers more evidence that she has an unsettling connection to the missing woman. With the help of her psychologist father, Fern digs deeper, hoping to find evidence that her connection to Astrid can help the police locate her. But when Fern discovers more about her own past than she ever bargained for, the disturbing truth will change both of their lives forever.

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I had a great reading week, finishing books I enjoyed.  Two of them were NetGalley ARCs, so my schedule on that front is clear until August 11, after which I only have one in September and another in December.  What did your week look like?

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