Recent Reads

                           
The Mirror by Nora Roberts

Synopsis - When Sonya MacTavish inherits the huge Victorian mansion on the coast of Maine, she has no idea that the house is haunted. The footsteps she hears at night, the doors slamming, the music playing, are not figments of her imagination. In her dreams she sees glimpses of the past. In the present she finds portraits of brides. And when she has visions of an antique mirror, she is drawn to it, sensing it holds dark family secrets.
Then one night the mirror appears and Sonya glides through this looking glass, into the past—and sees a bride murdered on her wedding day, the circle of gold torn from her finger. It is a scene that will play out again and again—a centuries-old curse that must be broken—and a puzzle she must solve if there is any hope of breaking the curse.

Thoughts - This is book two in the Lost Brides Trilogy. I really enjoyed book one. I try not to read books that are still being written. I rather wait and consume them all at once then wait. I don't know why but I thought Inheritance was a stand alone. Then I thought it was a duology. But no.. it is a trilogy. Meaning I have to wait one more year to finish this story. Some part of me thinks the books could have lost some of the side stories and the story could have been wrapped up in two books. But the other part of me loves these characters.. wishes I could be one of the gang and live in this quaint little Maine town. The friendship the four main characters have created is enviable. And all the side characters are just as amazing. 



Just Some Stupid Love Story by Katelyn Doyle

SynopsisMolly Marks writes Hollywood rom-coms for a living—which is how she knows “romance” is a racket. The one and only time she was naive enough to fall in love was with her high school boyfriend, Seth—who she ghosted on the eve of graduation and hasn’t seen in fifteen years.
Seth Rubinstein believes in love, the grand, fated kind, despite his job as, well…one of Chicago’s most successful divorce attorneys. Over the last decade, he’s sought “the one” in countless bad dates and rushed relationships. He knows his soulmate is out there. But so far, no one can compare to Molly Marks, the first girl who broke his heart.
When Molly’s friends drag her to Florida for their fifteenth high school reunion, it is poetic justice that she’s forced to sit with Seth. Too many martinis and a drunken hookup later, they decide to make a bet: whoever can predict the fate of five couples before the next reunion must declare that the other is right about true love. The catch? The fifth couple is the two of them.
Molly assures Seth they are a tale of timeless heartbreak. Seth promises she’ll end up hopelessly in love with him. She thinks he’s delusional. He has five years to prove her wrong.

Thoughts - Let me start by saying I am not a big fan of romance. I do read of a few a year just to mix things up and on occasion I really do enjoy them. I did not love this one. I did finish it and it did have its moments but it felt so drawn out and it wasn't even a long book. It was the hopelessly romantic vs the cynic. They get together and break up more than a few times or it was a wrong timing issue then Covid happened.. and well I don't know. It was just not for me. 



These Silent Woods by Kimi Cunningham Grant

SynopsisNo electricity, no family, no connection to the outside world. For eight years, Cooper and his young daughter, Finch, have lived in isolation in a remote cabin in the northern Appalachian woods. And that's exactly the way Cooper wants it, because he's got a lot to hide. Finch has been raised on the books filling the cabin’s shelves and the beautiful but brutal code of life in the wilderness. But she’s starting to push back against the sheltered life Cooper has created for her—and he’s still haunted by the painful truth of what it took to get them there.
The only people who know they exist are a mysterious local hermit named Scotland, and Cooper's old friend, Jake, who visits each winter to bring them food and supplies. But this year, Jake doesn't show up, setting off an irreversible chain of events that reveals just how precarious their situation really is. Suddenly, the boundaries of their safe haven have blurred—and when a stranger wanders into their woods, Finch’s growing obsession with her could put them all in danger. After a shocking disappearance threatens to upend the only life Finch has ever known, Cooper is forced to decide whether to keep hiding—or finally face the sins of his past.

Thoughts - This book is described an a mystery thriller and that is where this book lost me. If it had been described as a slow atmospheric suspense I would have gone in with different expectations and enjoyed it more. The stranger that wanders into their woods putting everything in danger doesn't enter the book until the 75% mark. I just kept waiting for the twist. For that reason this was a two star read for me. 

Now putting my expectations aside.. yes this was a slow read but they descriptions were beautiful.. and the last 15% of the book had all my emotions going.. there was so much love in this book. Love without all the showiness, without the Hallmark spin. I would have added another 1.5 stars to my initial review. 



The Girl Who Was Taken by Charlie Donlea

SynopsisTwo abducted girls—one who returns, one who doesn't.
The night they go missing, high school seniors Nicole Cutty and Megan McDonald are at a beach party in their small town of Emerson Bay, North Carolina. Police launch a massive search, but hope is almost lost--until Megan escapes from a bunker deep in the woods...A year later, the bestselling account of her ordeal has made Megan a celebrity. It's a triumphant story, except for one inconvenient thing, Nicole is still missing.
Nicole's older sister, Livia, a fellow in forensic pathology, expects that one day soon Nicole's body will be found and her sister's fate determined. Instead, the first clue comes from another body--that of a young man connected to Nicole's past. Livia reaches out to Megan to learn more about that fateful night. Other girls have disappeared, and she's increasingly sure the cases are connected.
Megan knows more than she revealed in her book. Flashes of memory are pointing to something more monstrous than she described. And the deeper she and Livia dig, the more they realize that sometimes true terror lies in finding exactly what you've been looking for...

Thoughts - This is my third Charlie Donlea book. The first I didn't love the second two books have been much better. I didn't know who the bad guy was till the very end. The story went back and forth to the time before the abduction, right after Megan was found and a year later. Three women at the center of the story, each different with their own personalities, their different struggles. I found myself turning the pages to get to the end. Learning a bit more about forensic pathology was also interesting. 



The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Synopsis - Nobody Owens, known to his friends as Bod, is a perfectly normal boy. Well, he would be perfectly normal if he didn't live in a graveyard, being raised and educated by ghosts, with a solitary guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor the world of the dead.
There are dangers and adventures for Bod in the graveyard: the strange and terrible menace of the Sleer; a gravestone entrance to a desert that leads to the city of ghouls; friendship with a witch, and so much more.
But it is in the land of the living that real danger lurks, for it is there that the man Jack lives and he has already killed Bod's family.

ThoughtsJust as I was finishing this book news of Neil Gaiman being accused of sexual misconduct by eight women broke. Now this is certainly worthy of a whole separate post but can you separate the art from the artist? Should all his work be cancelled due to him allegedly being a piece of shit. How do you feel about Roald Dahl or Kevin Spacey? 

Anyway.. getting back to the book. The accusations against him do not affect my opinions of this book. This book is considered a great coming of age story and while that may be true.. another truth is that I have already come of age. This book may have had a different effect on me had I been a teen. Kind of like The Outsiders. But how would I feel about the Outsiders now into my 40's.. I don't know. So I will say I did not love it. It was a story about a boy being raised by ghosts in a graveyard. It was sad. It had a few nice moments but overall I could have done without reading it. 
       


Defy the Night series by Brigid Kremmerer

SynopsisA desperate prince. A daring outlaw. A dangerous flirtation.

In the Wilds of Kandala, apothecary apprentice Tessa Cade has been watching people suffer for too long. A mysterious sickness is ravaging the land and the cure, Moonflower Elixir, is only available for the wealthy. So every night, she defies the royal edicts and sneaks out, stealing Moonflower petals and leaving the elixir for those in need.
In the palace of Kandala, Prince Corrick serves as the King's Justice, meting out vicious punishments and striking fear into the hearts of agitators and outlaws. Corrick knows he must play this role convincingly--with a shortage of elixir and threats of rebellion looming ever closer, the King's grip on power is tenuous at best, and Corrick knows his brother is the kingdom's best hope for survival.
But when an act of unspeakable cruelty brings the royal and the outlaw face to face, the natural enemies are faced with an impossible choice--and a surprising spark. Will they follow their instincts to destroy each other? Or will they save the kingdom together . . . and let that spark ignite?

Thoughts - This is my second series by Brigid Kremmerer. This first was the Cursebreaker series. That one started out really strong but faltered towards the end. This series on the other hand just got stronger and better with every book. The series is complete so I was able to devour these books. I absolutely loved them. The characters, the story, the adventure.. the brotherly love.. everything. Love. 

I am currently in the midst of two more series... will share more when I finish them. 

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Comments

  1. oh i love the graveyard book! i have read it several times. Yes disappointing about neil gaiman, and hard to know if we should give up on the authors and their works. But i do enjoy his books!
    cheers
    sherry https://sherryspickings.blogspot.com/

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  2. These books sound good!

    Jennifer
    https://curatedbyjennifer.com

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  3. Great variety of book and great reviews. Thanks for sharing. Take care, have a great day and a wonderful week ahead.

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  4. I find I have a hard time enjoying coming of age stories now that I'm older too; I think some book are just meant to be read in the teen years.

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  5. I cannot wait to read The Mirror. I'm moving up on the list at my library! I also thought it was a stand alone book before reading it. I can't wait to get back to it. I will check out some of your other favorites. Thanks for sharing!

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  6. Anonymous2/17/2025

    You are a prolific reader. I hope you have a wonderful day.
    www.rsrue.blogspot.com

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  7. I always enjoy your book reviews. You've been reading a lot of good books lately.

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  8. I haven't read a Nora Roberts book in a long time but I used to enjoy all of them back in the day. I like Gaiman but again haven't read him in a while either. Love seeing what you are reading!

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  9. Thank you for sharing your latest reads, Hena. These Silent Woods is the one which appeals to me the most! xxx

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  10. It sounds like you had more misses this time than normal. I hate to hear that about Neil Gaiman. I've had that kind of disappointing revelation on more than one book in recent years, just as I read it. I find it hard to separate the person from their actions. On a more positive note, I read one this month that you recommended not long ago and loved it. Watch for my wrap-up on March 1st!

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  11. I was never a Neil Gaiman fan but I did love this book. I will never read anything else by him ever again though, given the accusations. I think there are some instances where it is possible to divide the two and enjoy the work but not the creator, but for sexual crimes I absolute refuse to. Usual Suspects was one of my all-time favorite movies, though I never really cared for Kevin Spacey. After the accusations against him, I've never watched the movie again, nor anything else he's been in.

    Like, I love Niall Horan, obsessively. He's one of my most favorite singers ever and I have a tattoo of the Spotify code of my fave song of his. But if allegations like that ever came out about him, that tattoo would be covered up so quick and he would be completely removed from my Spotify library, no acceptions.

    Now I have to Google Roald Dahl to find out what you're referring to, and it makes me really sad to have to likely say goodbye to Matilda.

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  12. I haven't read the Gaiman books. Some friends came down hard on me because I like Hemingway, at least I like some of his books. They think its awful I like his books because he was big game hunter and trophy hunter. However his books are outstanding, some of them I like better than others, studies of flawed human nature. So I ignore my friends and cherish some of his works.

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    1. Good on you, my dear. People are flawed, and misguided, not to mention living in different eras (an excuse, I know). Still, some modern celebrities are dead to me, but Hemmingway and Gaiman are treasures.

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  13. I guess it depends on how much you like the artist's work. If you enjoyed the art without knowing the bad things about the artist, it's easier to separate. Once you know, it's harder. With Gaiman, I've lately heard that many of his works that really resonated with people were kind of stolen from other authors, in that he was "heavily influenced" by their lesser known works. Which makes me curious to seek those out instead.

    Interesting how your expectations going in influenced your rating. That's something that more authors need to know, I think.

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  14. I like how you share your thoughts on the books -- I haven't read the Gaimen but I know what you mean about the idea of loving something earlier and now -- "am I just too old for it?" I have had that feeling more than once. (While others we read when young have a whole different meaning after we get a few decades more experience under our belts!). The canceling is interesting. A dilemma I sometimes think about. When there is an artist whose work you respect or like, can you not like the work and not the creator? I think that's more or less where I am with Woody Allen, for example, or Roald Dahl. An awful lot of people throughout history gave us amazing things but were pretty terrible. Still, it's a squeamy feeling!

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  15. I haven't read a Nora Roberts book in a while but I have liked her in the past.

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  16. I haven’t read Nora Roberts for quite some time now. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on these books.

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  17. These Silent Woods sounds very interesting to me.
    Thank you for sharing.
    Carla

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  18. I want to read the Nora Roberts' series. I used to love her books and this series looks good too.

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  19. I have only read Nora Robert's J.D. Robb books. I would like to give her books under her Nora Roberts name a try. The Mirror sounds really good. I really want to try Brigid Kremmerer's books. I am glad you liked this series!

    I hope you continue to enjoy your reading and have a great week!

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  20. Anonymous2/17/2025

    I need to get back into reading, I'm getting behind on to read list! Ha ha! I need to look into some of these that you mentioned here, some look like good ones!

    Carrie
    curlycraftymom.com

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  21. I don't read a lot of romance books either. It will be easy to skip this one.

    I feel so sad about Neil Gaiman. People can disappoint us.

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  22. Thanks for sharing these reads!

    https://www.kathrineeldridge.com

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  23. These silent woods sounds interesting to me, my hubby likes Neil Gaiman

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  24. I haven't read any of these. The Mirror sounds like a good one!

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  25. Great reviews! I've been wanting to read the Defy the Night series by Brigid Kremmerer. I'm glad you enjoyed it! :)

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  26. I enjoyed reading your thoughts on these!

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  27. The Girl Who Was Taken has me curious and I am loving the Lost Brides trilogy as well.

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  28. I'm glad to hear you enjoyed the Defy the Night trilogy - I've been wanting to give that one a try!

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  29. Katelyn's book looks cute! I love a fun romcom and this one has all the colorful elements and "look" which makes me more curious. One I hadn't seen before reading your list so I'll have to read up on that one. :) Thanks for visiting my list today!

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  30. None of these books really appeal to me but I loved your reviews. Bookworms rule! x

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  31. Thank you for your candid takes on all these books! I'm going to add the Defy the Night series to my TBR. Based on the synopsis and your review, it's right up my fantasy loving alley right now. Hope you're having a great week!

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  32. I've read one book by Kemmerer and really liked it, I think maybe it is the spinoff from this series? I liked The Graveyard Book, but didn't love it I don't think. It is interesting to look back at books and wonder what we would think of them if we read them as adults, or the YA books I read now, what would I have thought as a teen? Love the cover on the Nora Roberts book! Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
    Lisa Loves Literature

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  33. Great list! Nora Roberts and Charlie Donlea are very popular with my library patrons. Happy Wednesday!

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  34. Thanks for great book reviews ~ enjoy ~

    Wishing you good health, laughter and love in your days,
    clm ~ A ShutterBug Explores,
    aka (A Creative Harbor)

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  35. Anonymous2/19/2025

    I love how detailed and honest your reviews are! You give a great balance of personal thoughts and analysis, making it easy to decide what to read next. Excited to hear about the series you're currently reading! Looking forward to your next reviews.

    — Abdullah Ibna Jafar
    **Clipping Path Lab**
    🌐 [clippingpathlab.com](https://clippingpathlab.com/)

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  36. I read Just Some Stupid Love Story last year and I also found it underwhelming.

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  37. I've learned that every public figure, at one time or another, faces allegations that aren't always true. It's a sad fact. Unless I see/hear a celebrity currently doing or saying something downright stupid, evil, reprehensibly offensive, etc., I try to take the attitude that the person is innocent until proven guilty. What frightens me most is how deep fakes can be created so convincing as "proof". Strange times we live in. Be well!

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  38. Oh, no...there's scandal about Roald Dahl? I need to look into that. He was married to Patricia Neal, I remember. She was the original mother on the Walton Christmas special that was the pilot for the 70s TV show, "The Waltons." But Michael Learned was the mother in the series. Loved that show!! Anyway, I liked Dahl's books, too. Had no idea he was a questionable character.

    Have never read a Nora Roberts book. My mom, who was Nira Roberts, was a huge fan. I like the cover of The Mirror very much. Might need to check it out.

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  39. You got a lot of reading done! There wasn't much movement plot wise in The Mirror, but I thought the setting was picturesque and I was engrossed by all the enjoyment of life in the pages. I look forward to wrapping the mystery up, though. The last book comes out mid November. I find that I'm less interested in romances lately. Too bad the one you picked up was a dud.

    I enjoyed These Silent Woods, but I went in knowing that it was more of a slow, atmospheric suspenseful read and I listened to the audio which may have enhanced my enjoyment. I liked her second book even more.

    I have no desire to pick up the Gaimen book. Even if he wasn't rumored to do what he did it just doesn't appeal to me. Yes, a whole discussion post could be done up about separating the art from the artist. I think it depends on what they did and if it's verifiable.

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  40. The premise of These Silent Woods sounds interesting, but it does sound really slow-moving. However, I am intrigued by The Girl Who Was Taken.
    Also, I heard about Neil Gaiman, and it does make me not want to read any more of his books. I loved Coraline, but being able to separate the work from the author is difficult.

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