Well September was a little slow in the reading department for me, only because my dad gave us a scare and had a major heart attack out of no where and ended up having open heart surgery to have a quadruple bypass. He is doing much better now, though. He is in rehab and will get to come home towards the end of this month. It was scary for me, I was here by myself when it happened, but my brother came down to be with me. I was scared that I was going to lose him, and if that happened I don't know what I would have done. I am a daddy's girl through and through. But thank God he is doing better and is on the mend.
While in September I did finally get to read The Lying Game by Ruth Ware.
On a cool June morning, a woman is walking her dog in the idyllic coastal village of Salten along a tidal estuary known as the Reach. Before she can stop him, the dog charges into the water to retrieve what first appears to be a wayward stick, but to her horror, turns out to be something much more sinister...The next morning, three women in and around London—Fatima, Thea, and Isabel—receive the text they had always hoped would NEVER come, from the fourth in their formerly inseparable clique, Kate, that says only, “I need you.”The four girls were best friends at Salten, a second rate boarding school set near the cliffs of the English Channel. Each different in their own way, the four became inseparable and were notorious for playing the Lying Game, telling lies at every turn to both fellow boarders and faculty, with varying states of serious and flippant nature that were disturbing enough to ensure that everyone steered clear of them. The myriad and complicated rules of the game are strict: no lying to each other—ever. Bail on the lie when it becomes clear it is about to be found out. But their little game had consequences, and the girls were all expelled in their final year of school under mysterious circumstances surrounding the death of the school’s eccentric art teacher, Ambrose (who also happens to be Kate’s father). I was super excited to read this book as I loved The Woman in Cabin 10 and despite some of the reviews that I read I think that she did just as well on this book as the last. The thing that I loved the most is that is told from multiple POV's; which I know that some people hate and some people get confused but I like it because you get to see everyone's side and get clues from everyone in the story. This story is also told in past and present times. I feel that I Ware tied up all the ends and left me with no questions with this book. This book was one that I don't feel as if I could guess out who did it and why they did it. I could put this book down. I mean you knew that something bad happened in the past but its not given to you until the last few chapters and then it just gushes out and you are like WOW! I definitely recommend this book! It will keep you up reading late just to finish it.
I also read The Best Friend by Shalini Boland.
Toxic school mums, money worries, paranoia, and murder . . . They say to keep your friends close and your enemies closer . . . Wrong.
Louisa's new best friend has it all - the house, the status, the money. But she's also hiding a dark secret. And as Louisa is drawn deeper into her friend's life, events take a chilling turn.
After Louisa's son begins going to a new school, she befriends one of the other mom's, Darcy. They soon become fast friends but something seems off. Its not obvious at first but then Louisa begins to feel uncomfortable. When she states these worries to her sister and husband they don't quite think its as bad as she makes things to be. To them there is probably a very good explanation. But Louisa doesn't trust Darcy anymore so she begins to try to unravel the shambles her life has become. What's real and what isn't? Is Louisa just imagining things or can Darcy not be trusted? This book gave me anxiety while reading it because I knew that I didn't like Darcy from the beginning. I also didn't care for her husband while he thought she was obsessing over Darcy. By the time the conclusion happens you feel as if you know both women and all things were tied up in the end, it left you with no unanswered questions. I will definitely read more from her in the future.
I also read The Game You Played by Anni Taylor
Little Boy Blue, where did you go? Who led you away? Only I know . . . .
Two-year-old Tommy Basko goes missing from a popular inner-city playground. Six months later, his parents begin receiving cryptic messages in rhyme about Tommy. The police don't believe the messages are from the abductor, but Tommy's mother Phoebe is certain they're a game meant for her.
Against the advice of the police, Phoebe decides to play the game.
She begins a frantic search for the writer of the rhymes, at the cost of causing her marriage to shatter.
When the shocking identity of the message-writer is discovered, Phoebe's desperate race for the truth has only just begun.Who took Tommy? And why? This book also gave me some anxiety only because I was worried about the missing child. I really enjoyed this book and will read more from this author. I really liked Phoebe and her character. I didn't really care for Luke her husband only because he went about things the wrong way while his son was missing, he started to blame his wife, and then got distant and then when things started to happen he started to think she was crazy and was behind the things. He got tired of everyone feeling sorry for his wife and not him. I liked how when Phoebe started to figure things out and I liked how the one person you thought wouldn't be of help helped out the most. I didn't really see the ending coming until the end of the book and then I was like OMG that just happened. The ending closed everything up just right. I liked it a lot.
Homecoming by Rob Aspinall
Mayflower, Kansas is famous for two things. Corn syrup and murdered high school girls.
Every few years, the Homecoming Killer snatches another. He keeps her. Toys with her. Murders her in the most shocking way. And when he leaves her remains, he leaves no clues behind. It always happens around homecoming and always to the most popular girl in school.
Now, he’s kidnapped Brooke Tanner, beautiful, innocent, smart. The small rural town is gripped by fear. Police detectives are no closer to a breakthrough. And time is running out fast.
With only a week left to find her, Brooke’s wealthy uncle hires struggling private investigator, Alice Parks. Facing an impossible case and battling her own dark demons, Alice will go to almost any length to save Brooke. But even streetwise sleuth Alice isn't ready for the dangers that await.I had tried to read this book twice now and I finally finished it. I was quite surprised at the ending. It was not one that I was expecting at all. I really liked Alice. I wont give away any spoilers but I knew that something had happened in her past for her not to want to come back home to Mayflower and the way that her dad acted towards her. I liked how it went back and forth between the POVs and like I said if I say much more I will give it away, just know that the ending is not what you expect.
A Stranger in the House by Shari Lapena
Karen and Tom Krupp are happy—they’ve got a lovely home in upstate New York, they’re practically newlyweds, and they have no kids to interrupt their comfortable life together. But one day, Tom returns home to find Karen has vanished—her car’s gone and it seems she left in a rush. She even left her purse—complete with phone and ID—behind.
There's a knock on the door—the police are there to take Tom to the hospital where his wife has been admitted. She had a car accident, and lost control as she sped through the worst part of town.
The accident has left Karen with a concussion and a few scrapes. Still, she’s mostly okay—except that she can’t remember what she was doing or where she was when she crashed. The cops think her memory loss is highly convenient, and they suspect she was up to no good.
Karen returns home with Tom, determined to heal and move on with her life. Then she realizes something’s been moved. Something’s not quite right. Someone’s been in her house. And the police won't stop asking questions. Because in this house, everyone’s a stranger. Everyone has something they’d rather keep hidden. Something they might even kill to keep quiet. It took me a while for me to get my hands on this book, but it finally came in at the library, and I devoured it in two sittings. I had to know what was going on. I had to keep reading to find out more not about Karen or Tom but the creepy neighbor next door that kept staring at them through her windows. Again with this book I didn't care for Tom, because he started to think that she was behind it all and was crazy and a little bit obsessed with the things that were happening. The police didn't put enough faith in Karen at the beginning and didn't trust her in the slightest. I liked how the twists came and you never saw them coming. I definitely recommend this book as well. I cant wait for her next book.
Bird Box
Something terrifying that must not be seen. One glimpse and a person is driven to deadly violence. No one knows what it is or where it came from.
Five years after it began, a handful of scattered survivors remain, including Malorie and her two young children. Living in an abandoned house near the river, she has dreamed of fleeing to a place where they might be safe. Now, that the boy and girl are four, it is time to go. But the journey ahead will be terrifying: twenty miles downriver in a rowboat—blindfolded—with nothing to rely on but her wits and the children’s trained ears. One wrong choice and they will die. And something is following them. But is it man, animal, or monster?
Engulfed in darkness, surrounded by sounds both familiar and frightening, Malorie embarks on a harrowing odyssey—a trip that takes her into an unseen world and back into the past, to the companions who once saved her. Under the guidance of the stalwart Tom, a motely group of strangers banded together against the unseen terror, creating order from the chaos. But when supplies ran low, they were forced to venture outside—and confront the ultimate question: in a world gone mad, who can really be trusted? Okay so I had heard so much about this book and it was supposed to be the greatest book ever and it was supposed to be so scary and blah blah blah.....well sorry to disappoint..it didn't do any of that for me. Maybe it was because there was so much hype for me to read it. I got this book in a book exchange on Facebook. I read it in two sittings hoping that it would get better and it never did. When I finished it, I was like what did I just read?? I felt the story was a little rushed. I mean I have questions that weren't answered at all? What happened to Gary? How did she make it four years and not die of starvation? How did the birds at the door not die? I mean what was out there, they never said what it was? And if the trek down the river was so easy as the writer let on why did she wait four freaking years to do it. And the ending, it just ended! I would not recommend this book, I mean if you are looking for a book with something hidden coming after every one read The Stand by Stephen King
I hope maybe that you will find a book here that you want to read I know that I enjoyed them ( well all but Bird Box)!
