The Hitchcock Hotel by Stephanie Wrobel

Title: The Hitchcock Hotel

Author: Stephanie Wrobel

Publisher: Berkley 2024

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 352

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library Love

Where I Got It: Library

Alfred Smettle is not your average Hitchcock fan. He is the founder, owner, and manager of The Hitchcock Hotel, a sprawling Victorian house in the White Mountains dedicated to the Master of Suspense. There, Alfred offers his guests round-the-clock film screenings, movie props and memorabilia in every room, plus an aviary with fifty crows.

To celebrate the hotel’s first anniversary, he invites his former best friends from his college Film Club for a reunion. He hasn’t spoken to any of them in sixteen years, not after what happened.

But who better than them to appreciate Alfred’s creation? And to help him finish it.

After all, no Hitchcock set is complete without a body.

This book is a bit of a slow burn. The murder doesn’t actually happen until very far into the story. Before that, we get a great atmospheric set-up complete with unreliable narrators. We have reason to suspect that every single character is keeping a big secret that could harm another. Slowly the secrets start coming to the light and the tension increases. At a certain point in the story, I was on the edge of my seat just waiting for something terrible to happen. Thankfully it did. And then we get the big unraveling of all the mysteries, at least for the reader. While I liked how this one ended, I felt it was a bit too coincidental. I cannot believe that none of the other characters figured it out. Oh well. I guess people want to see what they want to see. Still, it was a very enjoyable mystery/thriller.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Kiss Curse by Erin Sterling

Title: The Kiss Curse (Graves Glen #2)

Author: Erin Sterling

Publisher: Avon 2022

Genre: Romance

Pages: 309

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library

Where I Got It: Library

Gwyn Jones is perfectly happy with her life in Graves Glen. She, her mom, and her cousin have formed a new and powerful coven; she’s running a successful witchcraft shop, Something Wicked; and she’s started mentoring some of the younger witches in town. As Halloween approaches, there’s only one problem—Llewellyn “Wells” Penhallow.

Wells has come to Graves Glen to re-establish his family’s connection to the town they founded as well as to make a new life for himself after years of being the dutiful son in Wales. When he opens up a shop of his own, Penhallow’s, just across the street from Something Wicked, he quickly learns he’s gotten more than he bargained for in going up against Gwyn.

When their professional competition leads to a very personal—and very hot—kiss, both Wells and Gwyn are determined to stay away from each other, convinced the kiss was just a magical fluke. But when a mysterious new coven of witches come to town and Gwyn’s powers begin fading, she and Wells must work together to figure out just what these new witches want and how to restore Gwyn’s magic before it’s too late.

Somehow I read the first book in this series, enjoyed it, and completely forgot about it. I saw that Sterling’s newest book is publishing this month and so I thought I would catch up. I remember being slightly annoyed by the main characters in the first book, but was still intrigued by the side characters to continue. In this one, we get a great larger mystery and some great sexual tension. Gwyn and Wells are such a great opposites attract couple. I loved seeing them spar throughout the first half of the novel. Once we get to the last third, the plot moves into high gear. I loved seeing how Gwyn and Wells worked together to save the town. And now I need to read the last one in this trilogy.

Graves Glen

• #1 The Ex Hex

• #2 The Kiss Curse

• #3 The Wedding Witch

Next up on the TBR pile:

Behind the Horror by Lee Mellor

Title: Behind the Horror: True Stories that Inspired Horror Movies

Author: Lee Mellor

Publisher: DK 2020

Genre: Nonfiction - True Crime

Pages: 288

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library

Where I Got It: Library

Which case of demonic possession inspired The Exorcist? What horrifying front-page story generated the idea for A Nightmare on Elm Street? Which film was based on the infamous skin-wearing murderer Ed Gein?

Unearth the terrifying and true tales behind some of the scariest Horror movies to ever haunt our screens, including the Enfield poltergeist case that was retold in The Conjuring 2 and the serial killers who inspired Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs.

Behind the Horror dissects these and other bizarre tales to reveal haunting real-life stories of abduction, disappearance, murder, and exorcism.

Overall, the stories behind the horror movies are pretty uneven. A few were very detailed and sufficiently creepy. I loved the chapters that detailed the background of the The Exorcist and Poltergeist. I found some of the chapters very detailed and informative. But then many of the chapters were too plodding. I found myself getting bogged down in some of the details. And a few times even I found the details to be too gross.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Briar Club by Kate Quinn

Title: The Briar Club

Author: Kate Quinn

Publisher: William Morrow 2024

Genre: Historical Fiction

Pages: 432

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Lifetime - 60s; Library Love

Where I Got It: Library

Washington, DC, 1950. Everyone keeps to themselves at Briarwood House, a down-at-the-heels all-female boardinghouse in the heart of the nation’s capital where secrets hide behind white picket fences. But when the lovely, mysterious widow Grace March moves into the attic room, she draws her oddball collection of neighbors into unlikely friendship: poised English beauty Fliss, whose facade of perfect wife and mother covers gaping inner wounds; policeman’s daughter Nora, who finds herself entangled with a shadowy gangster; frustrated baseball star Beatrice, whose career has come to an end along with the women’s baseball league of WWII; and poisonous, gung-ho Arlene, who has thrown herself into McCarthy’s Red Scare.

Grace’s weekly attic-room dinner parties and window-brewed sun tea become a healing balm on all their lives, but she hides a terrible secret of her own. When a shocking act of violence tears the house apart, the Briar Club women must decide once and for all: who is the true enemy in their midst?

I snagged a copy of Kate Quinn’s newest book and immediately started reading it. I always enjoy her books that expand on women’s stories from history. In this one, Quinn takes a slightly different tactic. Instead of one woman or a few women, we get many different stories based in history but not exact women. I loved the collection of characters that we meet in each chapter. The murder mystery slowly unfolds as we learn about the backgrounds of a variety of people. I loved how Quinn weaves in a variety of topics: McCarthyism, racism, workplace misogyny, parenting, romantic relationships, growing up, etc. We get a rounded picture of life in the United States in the early 1950s. I didn’t emotionally connect with the characters, but I really enjoyed following them along in life.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Deading by Nicholas Belardes

Title: The Deading

Author: Nicholas Belardes

Publisher: Erewhon Books 2024

Genre: Horror

Pages: 304

Rating: 2/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

Where I Got It: Library

If you want to stay, you have to die.

In a small fishing town known for its aging birding community and the local oyster farm, a hidden evil emerges from the depths of the ocean. It begins with sea snails washing ashore, attacking whatever they cling to. This mysterious infection starts transforming the wildlife, the seascapes, and finally, the people.

Once infected, residents of Baywood start “deading”: collapsing and dying, only to rise again, changed in ways both fanatical and physical. As the government cuts the town off from the rest of the world, the uninfected, including the introverted bird-loving Blas and his jaded older brother Chango, realize their town could be ground zero for a fundamental shift in all living things.

Soon, disturbing beliefs and autocratic rituals emerge, overseen by the death-worshiping Risers. People must choose how to survive, how to find home, and whether or not to betray those closest to them. Stoked by paranoia and isolation, tensions escalate until Blas, Chango, and the survivors of Baywood must make their escape or become subsumed by this terrifying new normal.

Such a disappointing read! I was hoping for some great cli-fi horror involving snails and an otherworldly presence. I was hoping for something like Annihlation. Instead, this is a disjointed (not in a good way) mess of random characters and about fifty (it feels like) plots. We never really focus on any one thing. Instead, every chapter is jumping around characters, time, space, and plot lines. I grew very frustrated that we never knew who was speaking until almost halfway through each chapter. It wasn’t mysterious, it was just confusing. That choice made it very hard to connect to the story in any meaningful way. The horror involving the snails was interesting, but never fully explored. The story keeps turning to the deading and a semi religious cult that spring up. Pretty boring. And I really didn’t need almost a 100 pages of random birdwatching. Seriously, I started skimming those sections. Too detailed and very off-putting for the reader. This has not been a good week for my reading…

Next up on the TBR pile:

Love and Death Among the Cheetahs by Rhys Bowen

Title: Love and Death Among the Cheetahs (Royal Spyness #13)

Author: Rhys Bowen

Publisher: Berkley 2019

Genre: Mystery

Pages: 304

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Ebook

I was so excited when Darcy announced out of the blue that we were flying to Kenya for our extended honeymoon. Now that we are here, I suspect he has actually been sent to fulfill another secret mission. I am trying very hard not to pick a fight about it, because after all, we are in paradise! Darcy finally confides that there have been robberies in London and Paris. It seems the thief was a member of the aristocracy and may have fled to Kenya. Since we are staying in the Happy Valley—the center of upper-class English life—we are well positioned to hunt for clues and ferret out possible suspects.
Now that I am a sophisticated married woman, I am doing my best to sound like one. But crikey! These aristocrats are a thoroughly loathsome sort enjoying a completely decadent lifestyle filled with wild parties and rampant infidelity. And one of the leading lights in the community, Lord Cheriton, has the nerve to make a play for me. While I am on my honeymoon! Of course, I put an end to that right off.
 
When he is found bloodied and lifeless along a lonely stretch of road, it appears he fell victim to a lion. But it seems that the Happy Valley community wants to close the case a bit too quickly. Darcy and I soon discover that there is much more than a simple robbery and an animal attack to contend with here in Kenya. Nearly everyone has a motive to want Lord Cheriton dead and some will go to great lengths to silence anyone who asks too many questions. The hunt is on! I just hope I can survive my honeymoon long enough to catch a killer. . . .

Another Georgie mystery. It was pretty decent, but not the best in the series. I did enjoy the change in scenery to Kenya. Unfortunately the relations between the natives and Europeans was a bit much. I understand the time period, but I I wasn’t really excited by all of the commentary. The murder mystery was interesting, but then the reveal is much too quick. I would have liked a bit more discussion and resolution. And there was a decided lack of grandfather and Claire. I need more in the next book.

Her Royal Spyness:

• #0.5 Masked Ball at Broxley Manor

• #1 Her Royal Spyness

• #2 A Royal Pain

• #3 Royal Flush

• #4 Royal Blood

• #5 Naughty in Nice

• #6 The Twelve Clues of Christmas

• #7 Heirs and Graces

• #8 Queen of Hearts

• #9 Malice at the Palace

• #10 Crowned and Dangerous

• #11 On Her Majesty’s Frightfully Secret Service

• #12 Four Funerals and Maybe a Wedding

• #13 Love and Death Among the Cheetahs

• #14 The Last Mrs. Summers

Next up on the TBR pile:

Four Funerals and Maybe a Wedding by Rhys Bowen

Title: Four Funerals and Maybe a Wedding (Royal Spyness #12)

Author: Rhys Bowen

Publisher: Berkley 2018

Genre: Mystery

Pages: 299

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library

If only Darcy and I had eloped! What I thought would be a simple wedding has been transformed into a grand affair, thanks to the attendance of the queen, who has offered up the princesses as bridesmaids. Silly me! I thought that withdrawing from the royal line of succession would simplify my life. But before Darcy and I tie the knot in front of queen and country, we have to find a place to live as man and wife...

House hunting turns out to be a pretty grim affair. Just as we start to lose hope, my globetrotting godfather offers us his fully staffed country estate. Mistress of Eynsleigh I shall be! With Darcy off in parts unknown, I head to Eynsleigh alone, only to have my hopes dashed. The grounds are in disarray and the small staff is suspiciously incompetent. Not to mention the gas tap leak in my bedroom, which I can only imagine was an attempt on my life. Something rotten is afoot--and bringing the place up to snuff may put me six feet under before I even get a chance to walk down the aisle...

Finally we got back into some good Georgie mysteries. I loved the central mystery to this book. And as much as I was annoyed by Claire and Belinda in the past, I really enjoyed them in this volume. And we get Georgie’s grandfather returning. I loved the coming together of the family. Plus a new setting (and home) for Georgie and the reappearance of a talked about character. Really enjoyed this one, even if Darcy’s gaslighting still bothers me.

Her Royal Spyness:

• #0.5 Masked Ball at Broxley Manor

• #1 Her Royal Spyness

• #2 A Royal Pain

• #3 Royal Flush

• #4 Royal Blood

• #5 Naughty in Nice

• #6 The Twelve Clues of Christmas

• #7 Heirs and Graces

• #8 Queen of Hearts

• #9 Malice at the Palace

• #10 Crowned and Dangerous

• #11 On Her Majesty’s Frightfully Secret Service

• #12 Four Funerals and Maybe a Wedding

• #13 Love and Death Among the Cheetahs

• #14 The Last Mrs. Summers

Next up on the TBR pile:

Pines by Blake Crouch

Title: Pines (The Wayward Pines #1)

Author: Blake Crouch

Publisher: Thomas & Mercer 2012

Genre: Scifi?

Pages: 315

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library; Random TBR Pick

Secret service agent Ethan Burke arrives in Wayward Pines, Idaho, with a clear mission: locate and recover two federal agents who went missing in the bucolic town one month earlier. But within minutes of his arrival, Ethan is involved in a violent accident. He comes to in a hospital, with no ID, no cell phone, and no briefcase. The medical staff seems friendly enough, but something feels…off. As the days pass, Ethan’s investigation into the disappearance of his colleagues turns up more questions than answers. Why can’t he get any phone calls through to his wife and son in the outside world? Why doesn’t anyone believe he is who he says he is? And what is the purpose of the electrified fences surrounding the town? Are they meant to keep the residents in? Or something else out? Each step closer to the truth takes Ethan further from the world he thought he knew, from the man he thought he was, until he must face a horrifying fact—he may never get out of Wayward Pines alive.

Been meaning to read this series for awhile now. Finally picked it up and man, was that a ride. I read this one in just two days. Crouch really knows how to set the pace of a book and never let up. I just had to keep reading to find out what happens next. Overall, Ethan is not a great hero, but more of an everyman thrust into a weird situation. This book is not super deep or complicated, but I did love the ride. The ending is a crazy reveal and I was taken aback a bit. I will be putting the next in the series on my TBR.

Next up on the TBR pile:

A Homemade Life by Molly Wizenberg

Title: A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes from My Kitchen Table

Author: Molly Wizenberg

Publisher: Simon & Schuster 2010

Genre: Nonfiction - Cooking; Memoir

Pages: 352

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library; MMD Previous

In A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes from My Kitchen Table, Molly Wizenberg recounts a life with the kitchen at its center. From her mother's pound cake, a staple of summer picnics during her childhood in Oklahoma, to the eggs she cooked for her father during the weeks before his death, food and memories are intimately entwined. You won't be able to decide whether to curl up and sink into the story or to head straight to the market to fill your basket with ingredients for Cider-Glazed Salmon and Pistachio Cake with Honeyed Apricots.

Once again, I’m reminded that I don’t really like memoirs. I always go into them thinking that I will enjoy hearing about someone’s life, only to come away with a “meh” feeling about most of them. I thought this one might be different with the focus on food and recipes. I still didn’t really care about her life. I was intrigued by some of the recipes, but many of them feel very mundane. I would rather just pick up a cookbook and attempt the recipes. Not a bad book, just definitely not for me.

Next up on the TBR pile:

On Her Majesty's Frightfully Secret Service by Rhys Bowen

Title: On Her Majesty’s Frightfully Secret Service (Royal Spyness #11)

Author: Rhys Bowen

Publisher: Berkley

Genre: Mystery

Pages: 298

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library

When royal sleuth Georgie Rannoch receives a letter from her dearest friend Belinda, who's in an Italian villa awaiting the birth of her illegitimate baby, she yearns to run to her side. If only she could find a way to get there! But then opportunity presents itself in a most unexpected way—her cousin the queen asks her to attend a house party in the Italian Lake Country. The Prince of Wales and the dreadful Mrs. Simpson have been invited, and Her Majesty is anxious to thwart a possible secret wedding.

What luck! A chance to see Belinda, even if it is under the guise of stopping unwanted nuptials. Only that's as far as Georgie's fortune takes her. She soon discovers that she attended finishing school with the hostess of the party—and the hatred they had for each other then has barely dimmed. Plus, she needs to hide Belinda's delicate condition from the other guests. And her dashing beau, Darcy's (naturally) working undercover on a dangerous mission. Then her actress mother shows up, with a not-so-little task to perform. With all this subterfuge, it seems something is bound to go horribly wrong—and Georgie will no doubt be left to pick up the pieces when it does.

Another fun mystery. This time we get actual Nazis and a new location in Italy. It’s always nice to leave England every couple of books. I really enjoyed re-meeting Paolo and Max while negotiating a tricky murder and diplomatic situation. I wish we had had more Darcy and a little less Wallis and Claire. Here’s hoping the next book has more focus on Georgie and Darcy.

Her Royal Spyness:

• #0.5 Masked Ball at Broxley Manor

• #1 Her Royal Spyness

• #2 A Royal Pain

• #3 Royal Flush

• #4 Royal Blood

• #5 Naughty in Nice

• #6 The Twelve Clues of Christmas

• #7 Heirs and Graces

• #8 Queen of Hearts

• #9 Malice at the Palace

• #10 Crowned and Dangerous

• #11 On Her Majesty’s Frightfully Secret Service

• #12 Four Funerals and Maybe a Wedding

• #13 Love and Death Among the Cheetahs

• #14 The Last Mrs. Summers

Next up on the TBR pile:

Pandemic 1918 by Catharine Arnold

Title: Pandemic 1918

Author: Catharine Arnold

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press 2018

Genre: Nonfiction

Pages: 363

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library

Before AIDS or Ebola, there was the Spanish Flu — Catharine Arnold's gripping narrative, Pandemic 1918, marks the 100th anniversary of an epidemic that altered world history.

In January 1918, as World War I raged on, a new and terrifying virus began to spread across the globe. In three successive waves, from 1918 to 1919, influenza killed more than 50 million people. German soldiers termed it Blitzkatarrh, British soldiers referred to it as Flanders Grippe, but world-wide, the pandemic gained the notorious title of “Spanish Flu”. Nowhere on earth escaped: the United States recorded 550,000 deaths (five times its total military fatalities in the war) while European deaths totaled over two million.

Amid the war, some governments suppressed news of the outbreak. Even as entire battalions were decimated, with both the Allies and the Germans suffering massive casualties, the details of many servicemen’s deaths were hidden to protect public morale. Meanwhile, civilian families were being struck down in their homes. The City of Philadelphia ran out of gravediggers and coffins, and mass burial trenches had to be excavated with steam shovels. Spanish flu conjured up the specter of the Black Death of 1348 and the great plague of 1665, while the medical profession, shattered after five terrible years of conflict, lacked the resources to contain and defeat this new enemy.

I’m always up for a infectious disease book and this one is a well-researched, compelling look at one of the deadliest pandemics in history. I loved how Arnold sprinkles primary sources throughout the text giving the reader a clear picture of the horrors that people lived through in 1918. I didn’t learn much more about the pandemic due to my extensive knowledge previous to reading, but I did get to know various real people’s experiences. At times, the book was difficult to read due to the human suffering. But it was a fascinating and incredibly precent look at a historical event.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The House with a Clock in Its Walls by John Bellairs

Title: The House with a Clock in Its Walls (Lewis Barnavelt #1)

Author: John Bellairs

Publisher: 1973

Genre: Children’s Books

Pages: 179

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Perpetual - NPR Horror; Library

When Lewis Barnavelt, an orphan. comes to stay with his uncle Jonathan, he expects to meet an ordinary person. But he is wrong. Uncle Jonathan and his next-door neighbor, Mrs. Zimmermann, are both magicians! Lewis is thrilled. At first, watching magic is enough. Then Lewis experiments with magic himself and unknowingly resurrects the former owner of the house: a woman named Selenna Izard. It seems that Selenna and her husband built a timepiece into the walls--a clock that could obliterate humankind. And only the Barnavelts can stop it!

We ended watching the movie version with Jack Black and Cate Blanchett before reading the book, but I wasn’t too spoiled. Of course the movie changes some things around to make the story more fantastic for the screen. But by and large, the main story stays true to the spirit of the book. And what a book it is! If I had read this at about 9 years old, I would have been completely in love with this book. Even at 38, I really really really enjoyed this book. We get the right amount of humor, adventure, and horror in this slim little novel introducing us to Lewis Barnavelt and his eccentric Uncle Jonathan and neighbor Mrs. Zimmerman. I sped through the pages, only pausing to examine the wonderful illustrations. I probably won’t read the rest of the series, but I really loved this first volume.

P.S. The novel was illustrated by Edward Gorey. I love his work so much!

Next up on the TBR pile:

Conjure Women by Afia Atakora

Title: Conjure Women

Author: Afia Atakora

Publisher: 

Genre: Fiction

Pages: 416

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library; Monthly Theme - June

Conjure Women is a sweeping story that brings the world of the South before and after the Civil War vividly to life. Spanning eras and generations, it tells of the lives of three unforgettable women: Miss May Belle, a wise healing woman; her precocious and observant daughter Rue, who is reluctant to follow in her mother’s footsteps as a midwife; and their master’s daughter Varina. The secrets and bonds among these women and their community come to a head at the beginning of a war and at the birth of an accursed child, who sets the townspeople alight with fear and a spreading superstition that threatens their newly won, tenuous freedom.

A very atmospheric look at three women in the mid 1800s. I was captivated by the dreamy descriptions of life in the south. May Belle and Rue were amazing and interesting women. I definitely wanted to see where their lives went. At times, the book was very difficult to read, depicting horrific situations and occurrences. Important, but definitely hard to read. Ultimately, I was bored with Varina’s story and would rather have had those sections reworked to focus on May Belle and Rue instead. I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to feel about Varina. Those hesitations kept me from rating this with 5 stars.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Once & Future Vol. 1

Title: Once & Future Vol. 1

Author: Kieron Gillen, Tamra Bonvillain, Dan Mora

Publisher: Boom Studios 2020

Genre: Comics

Pages: 160

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library

When a group of Nationalists use an ancient artifact to bring a villain from Arthurian myth back from the dead, retired monster hunter Bridgette McGuire pulls her unsuspecting grandson Duncan, a museum curator, into a world of magic and mysticism to defeat a legendary threat. Now the two must navigate the complicated history of the McGuire family, all while combating the deadly secrets of England’s past that threaten its very future.

Finally picked this one up and oh my goodness, it was a good one. I’m always up for a reimagining of classic stories and myths. This one takes the King Arthur myth and turns it on its head. The reader is thrown completely into the story with Duncan and left to figure put what exactly is going on. I loved encountering the various characters and attempting to understand their place in the larger story. I will be waiting on pins and needles for the next volume.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Daughters of Temperance Hobbs by Katherine Howe

Title: The Daughters of Temperance Hobbs

Author: Katherine Howe

Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. 2019

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 338

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library; GR Random June

Connie Goodwin is an expert on America’s fractured past with witchcraft. A young, tenure-track professor in Boston, she’s earned career success by studying the history of magic in colonial America—especially women’s home recipes and medicines—and by exposing society's threats against women fluent in those skills. But beyond her studies, Connie harbors a secret: She is the direct descendant of a woman tried as a witch in Salem, an ancestor whose abilities were far more magical than the historical record shows.

When a hint from her mother and clues from her research lead Connie to the shocking realization that her partner’s life is in danger, she must race to solve the mystery behind a hundreds’-years-long deadly curse.

This volume continues Connie story and her discovery of her ancestors. I enjoyed the book, but felt like the modern sections dragged a bit. I wanted to speed up the storyline for those chapters. I also got annoyed with Connie on multiple occasions for not telling people the truth. The historical chapters were much more interesting. I almost wanted a whole book of just those chapters. I would have loved to read about each of the women through history. Very well researched book featuring stories and characters from early America.

The Physick Book

• #1 The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane

• #2 The Daughters of Temperance Hobbs

Next up on the TBR pile:

A Heart So Fierce and Broken by Brigid Kemmerer

Title: A Heart So Fierce and Broken (Cursebreaker #2)

Author: Brigid Kemmerer

Publisher: Bloomsbury YA 2020

Genre: YA Fantasy

Pages: 456

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library; Monthly Theme - June

Find the heir, win the crown.
The curse is finally broken, but Prince Rhen of Emberfall faces darker troubles still. Rumors circulate that he is not the true heir and that forbidden magic has been unleashed in Emberfall. Although Rhen has Harper by his side, his guardsman Grey is missing, leaving more questions than answers.

Win the crown, save the kingdom.
Grey may be the heir, but he doesn't want anyone to know his secret. On the run since he destroyed Lilith, he has no desire to challenge Rhen--until Karis Luran once again threatens to take Emberfall by force. Her own daughter Lia Mara sees the flaws in her mother's violent plan, but can she convince Grey to stand against Rhen, even for the good of Emberfall?

The heart-pounding, compulsively readable saga continues as loyalties are tested and new love blooms in a kingdom on the brink of war.

I fell hard for A Curse So Dark and Lonely. I picked it as one of my three best books for last month. I eagerly got the sequel from the library. I sped through it and came out the other side being utterly disappointed. This is not the same series or story or characters. I couldn’t understand the huge shift from one to two. It’s not character growth, if anything, we get characters going backward. And we are treated to basically no Harper or Rhen in this volume. I was just beyond disappointed. And why is Rhen now complete trash? Grey lied to him and then thinks that he can claim the morale high ground. I just… no. I was not a fan. Lia Mara is a decent character, but she seems to be the counterpoint to Grey and that’s it. I would have liked more from her. And do not get me started on the very last chapter with Rhen. Utter rage! I imagine that I will pick up book three because I want to see how this one ends, but I’m not going to jump on it.

Cursebreaker Series

• #1 A Curse So Dark and Lonely

• #2 A Heart So Fierce and Broken

• #3 A Vow So Bold and Deadly

Next up on the TBR pile:

Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane

Title: Ask Again, Yes

Author: Mary Beth Keane

Publisher: Schribner 2019

Genre: Fiction

Pages: 390

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library; MMD 2012-2019

Francis Gleeson and Brian Stanhope, rookie cops in the NYPD, live next door to each other outside the city. What happens behind closed doors in both houses—the loneliness of Francis’s wife, Lena, and the instability of Brian’s wife, Anne, sets the stage for the explosive events to come.

Ask Again, Yes is a deeply affecting exploration of the lifelong friendship and love that blossoms between Kate Gleeson and Peter Stanhope, born six months apart. One shocking night their loyalties are divided, and their bond will be tested again and again over the next 40 years. Luminous, heartbreaking, and redemptive, Ask Again, Yes reveals the way childhood memories change when viewed from the distance of adulthood—villains lose their menace and those who appeared innocent seem less so. Kate and Peter’s love story, while haunted by echoes from the past, is marked by tenderness, generosity, and grace.

For the record, I can see why people love this book. I enjoyed Keane’s writing and the transitions between sentences and paragraphs. She is a talented writer. Unfortunately, I am not a fan of the depressing family drama stories. The story did not grab me at any time. I wasn’t clamoring to pick the book back up after putting it down. It took me almost two weeks read this books. Ridiculously slow for my usual time for completion of 2-3 days. Everything moved so slowly in the book, except for the large time jumps. The characters are all realistic, and yet, I wasn’t connecting to any one of those characters. I just wasn’t a fan of anyone in the novel. The disconnect combined with slow writing and a very dark tone left me not really enjoying this book at all.

Next up on the TBR pile:

When Women Ruled the World by Kara Cooney

Title: When Women Ruled the World

Author: Kara Cooney

Publisher: National Geographic 2020

Genre: History

Pages: 400

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library

Female rulers are a rare phenomenon--but thousands of years ago in ancient Egypt, women reigned supreme. Regularly, repeatedly, and with impunity, queens like Hatshepsut, Nefertiti, and Cleopatra controlled the totalitarian state as power-brokers and rulers. But throughout human history, women in positions of power were more often used as political pawns in male-dominated societies. Why did ancient Egypt provide women this kind of access to the highest political office? What was it about these women that allowed them to transcend patriarchal obstacles? What did Egypt gain from its liberal reliance on female leadership, and could today's world learn from its example?

In this captivating narrative, celebrated Egyptologist Kara Cooney delivers a fascinating tale of female power, exploring the reasons why it has seldom been allowed through the ages--and why we should care.

An extremely dense yet ultimately fascinating and informative look at six queens of ancient Egypt. I knew some about Nefertiti and a lot about Cleopatra, but the four other queens were new to be. I loved how Cooney weaves in general history and culture about ancient Egypt and with what we know about these specific six women.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Cocaine Blues by Kerry Greenwood

Title: Cocaine Blues (Phryne Fisher Mystery #1)

Author: Kerry Greenwood

Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press 2006

Genre: Mystery

Pages: 175

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library

The London season is in full fling at the end of the 1920s, but the Honourable Phryne Fisher—she of the green-gray eyes, diamant garters, and outfits that should not be sprung suddenly on those of nervous dispositions—is rapidly tiring of the tedium of arranging flowers, making polite conversations with retired colonels, and dancing with weak-chinned men. Instead, Phryne decides it might be rather amusing to try her hand at being a lady detective in Melbourne, Australia.

Almost immediately from the time she books into the Windsor Hotel, Phryne is embroiled in mystery: poisoned wives, cocaine smuggling rings, corrupt cops, and communism—not to mention erotic encounters with the beautiful Russian dancer, Sasha de Lisse—until her adventure reaches its steamy end in the Turkish baths of Little Lonsdale Street.

I’ve been meaning to read this series for years now and I finally put it on my shortlist TBR. And it was an utterly delight. I love falling for Phryne and into her world of glamour and grit. We’re thrown into the story and Phyrne’s life, but everything seems to fall into place immediately. The mystery was fun and full of twists and turns. Definitely need to get the next one soon.

Phryne Fisher Mystery

• #1 Cocaine Blues

• #2 Flying Too High

• #3 Murder on the Ballarat Train

• #4 Death at Victoria Dock

• #5 The Green Mill Murder

• #6 Blood and Circuses

• #7 Ruddy Gore

• #8 Urn Burial

• #9 Raisins and Almonds

• #10 Death Before Wicket

• #11 Away with the Fairies

• #12 Murder in Montparnasse

• #13 The Castlemaine Murders

• #14 Queen of the Flowers

• #15 Death by Water

• #16 Murder in the Dark

• #17 Murder on a Midsummer Night

• #18 Dead Man’s Chest

• #19 Unnatural Habits

• #20 Murder and Mendelssohn

Next up on the TBR pile:

Crowned and Dangerous by Rhys Bowen

Title: Crowned and Dangerous (Royal Spyness #10)

Author: Rhys Bowen

Publisher: Berkley 2016

Genre: Mystery

Pages: 315

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library

As Lady Georgiana's beloved Darcy drives her out of London, she soon discovers that he isn’t planning to introduce her to the pleasures of sinning in secret—as she had hoped—but to make her his wife! 

Of course, she'll need special permission from the king to marry a Roman Catholic. Though he will inherit a title, Darcy is as broke as Georgie. Even his family’s Irish castle has been sold to a rich American who now employs his father. 

Nothing will deter them from their mission—except perhaps the news that Georgie's future father-in-law has just been arrested for murdering the rich American. With the elopement postponed, they head for Ireland, where the suspect insists he’s innocent, and it’s up to them to prove it—for better or worse.

Oh yes! Thank you Georgie for another fun murder mystery. We finally get to meet Darcy’s father and see a bit of his previous life in Ireland. I am still annoyed by the lack of communication between Georgie and Darcy, but he’s growing on me. I did love the inclusion of Zou Zou to mix up the situation.

Her Royal Spyness:

• #0.5 Masked Ball at Broxley Manor

• #1 Her Royal Spyness

• #2 A Royal Pain

• #3 Royal Flush

• #4 Royal Blood

• #5 Naughty in Nice

• #6 The Twelve Clues of Christmas

• #7 Heirs and Graces

• #8 Queen of Hearts

• #9 Malice at the Palace

• #10 Crowned and Dangerous

• #11 On Her Majesty’s Frightfully Secret Service

• #12 Four Funerals and Maybe a Wedding

• #13 Love and Death Among the Cheetahs

• #14 The Last Mrs. Summers

Next up on the TBR pile: