Taylor Fenner's Blog, page 26
December 13, 2023
Can’t Wait Wednesday: One of Us Knows
Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings, to spotlight and discuss the books we’re excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they’re books that have yet to be released.
One of Us Knows by Alyssa Cole
Thriller, Standalone
eBook, Hardcover, Paperback, 352 Pages
April 16, 2024 by William Morrow Publishing
Blurb:From the critically acclaimed and New York Timesbestselling author of When No One Is Watchingcomes a riveting thriller about the new caretaker of a historic estate who finds herself trapped on an island with a murderer—and the ghosts of her past.
Years after a breakdown and a diagnosis of dissociative identity disorder derailed her historical preservationist career, Kenetria Nash and her alters have been given a second chance they can’t refuse: a position as resident caretaker of a historic home. Having been dormant for years, Ken has no idea what led them to this isolated Hudson River island, but she’s determined not to ruin their opportunity.
Then a surprise visit from the home’s conservation trust just as a Nor’easter bears down on the island disrupts her newfound life, leaving Ken trapped with a group of possibly dangerous strangers—including the man who brought her life tumbling down years earlier. When he turns up dead, Ken is the prime suspect.
Caught in a web of secrets and in a race against time, Ken and her alters must band together to prove their innocence and discover the truth of Kavanaugh Island—and their own past—or they risk losing not only their future, but their life.
Why I Want to Read This Book:How could you not want to read this book after that cover? I’m intrigued by the main character having dissociative identity disorder and the fact that she is a historical preservationist makes it so easy to picture the lead in a historic home like I might tour on vacation. Once again this is a book where the main character and others are cut off from the rest of the world – this time due to nature – which we all know I enjoy.
Will you be checking this one out? What upcoming releases are you looking forward to?
December 10, 2023
It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? – 11 December 2023
#IMWAYR is a weekly meme started on J Kaye’s blog and then was hosted by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at The Book Date.
Hey Bookdragons! How was your weekend? I had a busy week last week with work and then being tired at home so I didn’t get a lot of reading finished…
Last Week I Read/Currently Reading:
I’m almost finished with Shadows of You and I’ve really loved this one! I can’t wait to go back and read the other books in this series.
On Deck:The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins
On Spine of Death by Tamara Berry (Audiobook)
What are you reading this week? Are you reading winter/Christmas reads or just normal books?
December 9, 2023
The Sunday Post: Uneventful Week, Christmas Shopping, and Social Media Breaks
The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme.
Uneventful Week, Christmas Shopping, and Social Media BreaksHey Book Blogging Friends! Happy Sunday! How was your week?
My week was pretty uneventful overall. I was just feeling tired and spend a few afternoons just watching movies and shows between waking up and going to work. I also took a break from posting on Instagram. I used to love bookstagram but now it feels like a chore.
I started and finished my Christmas shopping this week and made a big splurge purchase for myself.
WWW Wednesday – 6 December 2023
Audiobook Review: Bad Things Feel Best by Ivy Smoak
Book Review: The Truth In My Lies by Ivy Smoak
It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? – 11 December 2023
Audiobook Review: It Waits in the Woods by Josh Malerman
Can’t Wait Wednesday: One of Us Knows
Book Review: Shadows of Us by Catherine Cowles
eBook:
December 8, 2023
Book Review: The Truth In My Lies by Ivy Smoak
The Truth in My Lies (Secrets of Suburbia #1) by Ivy Smoak
Blurb:I’m not supposed to leave the house. But what my husband doesn’t know won’t kill him. I break his rules every morning on my runs. It’s always been best when I have a routine. So every day I wake up, run, clean the house, wish for a better life, repeat. And every day is exactly the same.
Except for Thursdays. I live and breathe for Thursdays. It’s when he comes. I watch him from a distance. I can’t help myself. But I was never supposed to talk to him.
I know what you’re thinking. But you don’t know my story. You don’t know the kind of monster my husband is. And trust me, you have no idea who I am.
My Review:This book was a wild ride! If you like unreliable narrators you need to check this one out.
Is Addy (Adeline) a downtrodden, abuse housewife of a controlling man? Or is she really as crazy as her husband and psychologist tell her she is? And what happens when she stops taking the meds she is forced to take?
Meet Adeline, Adeline isn’t allowed to leave the house per her controlling husband’s rules. But every morning she runs. And every Thursday morning she looks forward to seeing him. The hot young guy who mows the lawn for a house in her neighborhood. A meet cute gets them together and try as she might Addy starts to fall for the younger man, despite all the reasons why she shouldn’t. But in the background the rest of her life is unraveling.
This book was a fun read. The author really captured the perspective of an unreliable narrator and the unspooling of a troubled mind. Adeline is a character you’ll enjoy even as she does questionable things. And Ben, swoon, that’s all!
I do feel like the story is isolated to Ben, Addy, Dr. Nash, and Addy’s husband and would have enjoyed a little more dimension to the “gawkers” as Adeline refers to the women in her neighborhood.
Overall I enjoyed this one and I’m looking forward to the next book and the next psycho housewife.
My Rating:
4.5 Knives Out of 5, Rounded Up
December 7, 2023
Audiobook Review: Bad Things Feel Best by Ivy Smoak
Bad Things Feel Best by Ivy Smoak
Blurb:A young writer searching for inspiration instead finds danger, betrayal, and romance in a spellbinding novel by USA Today bestselling author Ivy Smoak.
It’s almost like he wants her to think he is a monster. Hazel Fox arrives at her new job on a private island hoping to get inspiration from a renowned novelist, only to discover she won’t be working with the author after all. She won’t even get to meet her.
Instead, she’ll be assisting the handsome—and infuriating—Mr. Remington. Mr. Remington unnerves Hazel from the moment they meet. Not only because he’s cold and strict and seems hell-bent on getting her to quit…but because his eyes are the same color of the ocean in their backyard. And his intense gaze always seems to be trained on her. Mr. Remington refuses to share any personal information about himself—not even his first name.
But if there’s one thing Hazel is certain of in this beautiful, isolated estate, it’s that Mr. Remington has secrets. And those secrets are dangerous. Something sinister is going on, and Hazel is determined to discover the truth…no matter how close she has to get to Mr. Remington.
After all, it’s the things that are bad for us that feel best.
My Review:I picked this up on Kindle Unlimited a while ago after seeing it all over Bookstagram. It’s my first read by this author but it won’t be the last!
This book had all the things to draw me in. A main character that is an aspiring writer. A mysterious love interest. A creepy old house full of secrets.
This book was easy to get into and easy to read. I wanted to keep going to see what was going to happen.
The author fakes out the reader making you think it’s going to turn into a certain genre – but it doesn’t. While I was able to guess one piece of the puzzle it was still an interesting, engaging read with a weird ending that I wasn’t displeased with.
My Rating:
4 of 5 Knives!
December 6, 2023
Audiobook Review: The Murder on the Links, Poirot Investigates, and After the Funeral by Agatha Christie
The Murder on the Links (Hercule Poirot #2) by Agatha Christie
Blurb:Beloved detective Hercule Poirot made his second appearance in this tale of murder, blackmail, and forbidden love.
Hercule Poirot rushes to France in response to an urgent and cryptic plea from a client. But the Belgian detective arrives just too late: the man who had summoned him is found dead on a golf course, stabbed in the back with a letter opener and wearing an ill-fitting coat with a mysterious love letter in its pocket.
Strange circumstances multiply, culminating in the discovery of a second body stabbed with the same murder weapon. While the local authorities pursue the false leads suggested by the evidence, Poirot relies instead upon his famous “little grey cells” to cut through the confusion and untangle a story of blackmail, forbidden love, and a long-buried secret.
Blurb:Here is a sparkling collection of mystery gems, polished puzzlers from the pen of Agatha Christie starring the vain, eccentric and utterly brilliant Hercule Poirot.
Hercule Poirot grapples with a chain of mysteries that challenge his ingenuity and display the author’s wide-ranging imagination to fine effect. Herein the detective deals with the theft of a gem said to have been the eye of a mysterious idol, a million dollars in bonds that disappear from a locked case, jewel thieves who have conceived of a seemingly impossible theft, and even the kidnapping of the Prime Minister of England. Poirot uses deduction, deception and isn’t above creating illusions to reveal a killer, but his foes are often both more unusual and more dangerous than simple murderers. He finds himself battling spies, masters of disguise and even trying to thwart a supposed Egyptian curse. Upon the initial appearance of Poirot Investigates in 1924 reviewers were impressed by the author’s ability to create a complete, thoroughly conceived mystery with a surprising but logical solution inside a tight package of perhaps four thousand words. For the next fifty years, writing at any length that took her fancy, Christie would continue to produce some of the finest mysteries ever written.
With an eye-catching new cover, and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Poirot Investigates is both modern and readable.
After the Funeral (Hercule Poirot #29) by Agatha Christie
Blurb:In this exclusive authorized edition from the Queen of Mystery, Hercule Poirot is called on to investigate the murder of a brother and sister.
“He was murdered, wasn’t he?”
When Cora Lansquenet is savagely murdered, the extraordinary remark she had made the previous day at her brother Richard’s funeral suddenly takes on a chilling significance. At the reading of Richard’s will, Cora was clearly heard to say, “It’s been hushed up very nicely, hasn’t it. But he was murdered, wasn’t he?”
Did Cora’s accusation a dark truth that sealed her own fate? Or are the siblings’ deaths just tragic coincidences?
Desperate to know the truth, the Lansquenet’s solicitor turns to Hercule Poirot to unravel the mystery. For even after the funeral, death isn’t finished yet . . .
My Reviews:The Murder on the Links:
Of the 3 reviewed here, I liked this one less than After the Funeral yet more than Poirot Investigates.
The Murder on the Links is narrated by Poirot’s friend Hastings who I don’t particularly like. He’s oblivious and yet he tries, frequently unsuccessfully, to solve the case before Poirot or guess Poirot’s next move only to make a fool of himself. And more often than not is distracted by a woman.
This one is an interesting murder when you sit back and think about it but I found all of the mechanics and misdirections a bit boring while actually listening to the audiobook.
My Rating:
3.5 of 5 Knives!
Poirot Investigates:
I’ve really been enjoying the Poirot mysteries lately but I didn’t enjoy this third book. It’s actually a collection of stories, no more than a bite of each really. I felt like I’d barely gotten the introduction to the story and Poirot was wrapping up the crime. Again, Hastings is prominent in this book as he seems to be in the initial few Poirot books (tell me how many more until he goes away!), and he blunders his way along as Poirot solves the cases.
My Rating:
2 of 5 Knives
After the Funeral:
Of the 3 audiobooks I’m reviewing here, After the Funeral is my favorite. It’s later in the series and Hastings is gone. Poirot does seem to take a smaller roll in this book but I found the mystery quite interesting and didn’t see the twist coming.
All along you’re looking at the family trying to see who could have done it then Christie pulls a trick out of her sleeve that I personally didn’t expect, making it a worthwhile read.
My Rating:4 of 5 Knives!
December 5, 2023
WWW Wednesday – 6 December 2023
WWW Wednesday was created by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and was taken over by Sam at Taking on a World of Words. To participate answer the 3 W’s:
What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?
I’m finally starting this one! As in right now, today. I got a little sidetracked with a few other books.
Recently Finished:It Waits In the Woods by Josh Malerman
This was a short audiobook but I really enjoyed it! I’d love to see it expanded upon, or at least the thing than waits in the woods. An origin story maybe.
Reading Next:The Heiress by Rachel HawkinsThis one releases next month so I’m going to dive into my eARC either this week or next.
Have you read any of these? What are you reading this week?
Can’t Wait Wednesday: Diavola
Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings, to spotlight and discuss the books we’re excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they’re books that have yet to be released.
Diavola by Jennifer Thorne
Horror, Standalone
eBook, Hardcover, 304 Pages
March 26, 2024 by Tor Nightfire
Blurb:Anna has only two rules for the annual Pace family destination vacations: Tread lightly, and survive.
It isn’t easy, when she’s the only one in the family who doesn’t quite seem to fit. Her twin brother Benny goes with the flow so much he’s practically dissolved, and her older sister Nicole is so used to everyone—including her blandly docile husband and two kids—falling in line that Anna often ends up in trouble for simply asking a question. Mom seizes every opportunity to question her life choices, and Dad, when not reminding everyone who has paid for this vacation, just wants some peace and quiet.
The gorgeous, remote villa in tiny Monteperso seems like a perfect place to endure so much family togetherness–including Benny’s demanding new boyfriend (it’s Christopher, not Chris). That is, until things start going off the rails–the strange noises at night, the unsettling warnings from the local villagers, and, oh, the dark, violent past of the villa itself.
Jennifer Thorne skewers all-too-familiar family dynamics in this sly, wickedly funny vacation-Gothic. Beautifully unhinged and deeply satisfying, Diavola is a sharp twist on the classic haunted house story, exploring loneliness, belonging, and the seemingly inescapable bonds of family mythology.
(Warning: May invoke feelings of irritation, dread, and despair that come with large family gatherings.)
Why I Want to Read This Book:Well if this doesn’t sound like the perfect example of a dysfunctional family vacation. Especially the father reminding everyone who paid for the trip and how much it’s costing him. It reminds me of a more family-inclusive version of The Villa by Rachel Hawkins and I’m looking forward as always to another take on the haunted house story.
Will you be checking this one out? What upcoming releases are you looking forward to?
December 2, 2023
The Sunday Post: Wrapping Up November, Snow, and Writing Weekend
The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme.
Wrapping Up November, Snow, and Writing WeekendHey Bookdragons! Happy Sunday! I hope you had a great week.
It’s the first weekend of December, can you believe that? I feel like I blinked and the entire month of November passed when I wasn’t looking but I did do a lot of things. I read 15 books, at least half of which were audiobooks. I write about 12,500 words in my WIP. I took a vacation and colored my hair. All on top of working a bit of OT.
It started snowing last night. A wet, sloppy snow. I detest winter and I’m just counting down the days to 80 degree temps and daylight until 9 pm. It feels so long off.
With it expected to snow the rest of today yet I’m going to spend today and tomorrow writing and catching up on some reviews.
It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? – 27 November 2023
Book Review: A Ghost of A Chance by Brittany Kelley
Can’t Wait Wednesday: The Deepest Lake
Book Review: The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? – 4 December 2023
Audiobook Review: The Murder on the Links and After the Funeral by Agatha Christie (rescheduled)
Can’t Wait Wednesday: Diavola
Book Review: Bad Things Feel Best by Ivy Smoak
Book Review: The Truth in My Lies by Ivy Smoak
None This Week
November 29, 2023
Book Review: The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
BlurbPart of a six-volume series of the best in classic horror, selected by award-winning director Guillermo del Toro
The classic supernatural thriller by an author who helped define the genre. First published in 1959, Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House has been hailed as a perfect work of unnerving terror. It is the story of four seekers who arrive at a notoriously unfriendly pile called Hill House: Dr. Montague, an occult scholar looking for solid evidence of a “haunting;’ Theodora, his lighthearted assistant; Eleanor, a friendless, fragile young woman well acquainted with poltergeists; and Luke, the future heir of Hill House. At first, their stay seems destined to be merely a spooky encounter with inexplicable phenomena. But Hill House is gathering its powers—and soon it will choose one of them to make its own.
My Review:It took me a couple tries to get into this book. It’s one of those chicken before the egg situations where I first watched the 1999 adaptation, The Haunting, and then the 2018 Netflix miniseries, The Haunting of Hill House and had trouble connecting with the book.
Before I get into my review of the book, the original 1963 adaptation, The Haunting, stays truest to the book, yet the Netflix adaptation remains my favorite in how unique is it away from the book, followed by the 1999 adaptation. In my binging following reading this book, I also watched the miniseries, Rose Red, which is Stephen King’s interpretation after he and Steven Spielberg had creative differences and went their separate ways while making the 1999 adaptation. I also found Rose Red to be an interesting, loose adaptation.
In The Haunting of Hill House we follow Eleanor Vance who is invited to come to Hill House by Dr. Montague along with Theodora (no last name) and the heir to the house, Luke Sanderson, to explore the so-called psychic phenomena that occurs there after the house’s dark history.
Eleanor, recently displaced after her mother whom she was the caregiver of for 11 years has passed, now lives with her selfish sister and her family and is told she is not allowed to take the car the sisters share to go on her trip. But Nell takes it anyway. Eleanor has always been my main sticking point with this book. I don’t like her. She’s very immature and full of flights of fancy and quickly becomes unhinged once arriving at Hill House. I think in a way I relate to Nell as I was my grandmother’s caretaker for most of my 20s with very little assistance from my mother, my grandmother’s daughter.
For the purpose of their stay, the foursome seem very laidback and joke a lot, even when weird things begin to happen at the house. Theodora (my favorite character in the 1999 and Netflix adaptations) is the cruel flirt in this book, poking at Nell then freezing her out. Luke is more serious than the adaptations show him and he didn’t honestly make much of an impression on me. It was Dr. Montague (Dr. Markaway in the 1963 adaptation and Dr. Marrow in the 1999) that surprised me the most. He’s very genial and childlike in his excitement for the process.
But nothing really happens in this book. Nothing scary anyway. A little pounding on the walls, some cold spots, a dog seen and then not there. While I enjoyed this book and there are so many beautifully written, memorable lines that I plan to annotate my copy later, it shocks me that this book is seen to be such an enduring horror novel when it’s so… bland? Maybe people in 1959 were more excitable or frightened than me, sitting here in 2023. Maybe I’ve watched one too many horror movies. I just didn’t think it was particularly exciting.
There are a few unanswered questions I have after reading this book, little things that made no sense.
Overall I did enjoy this book once I could get into it. Will I reread it? Probably not. But it was definitely worth reading.
My Rating:4 of 5 Knives!
