Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak

 

The plot:  A recovering addict who's been clean for eighteen months, Mallory Quinn, just got a job as a nanny for Caroline and Ted Maxwell's five-year-old son, Teddy, for the summer. She's desperate to prove herself, and they're willing to give her a chance despite her past drug use. And it's all because of Teddy. He's a sweet, shy boy who likes to wear purple and draw pictures of rabbits. He also draws pictures of his imaginary friend, Anya; those aren't as cute. Then his pictures get even darker, showing a man dragging a woman into the forest and then burying her. And Mallory begins to suspect that Teddy is being haunted by something sinister. Was Anya murdered? Mallory gets drawn into solving the mystery in order to protect Teddy, but his parents start to question her honesty...and her sanity. 

My thoughts:  I loved Teddy and how cute he is with Mallory; I also really loved getting to see his artwork throughout the book...and the eerie story his pictures start to tell. And a mystery with a touch of the supernatural like this one has is one of my favorite kinds of books to read. I appreciated the atmosphere and suspense Rekulak creates and how he keeps you guessing about the truth behind the haunting until the very end. This is such a compelling read. I loved it.  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading!

Haiku reviews...

 

Say You'll Remember Me by Abby Jimenez

Xavier falls hard for Sam. 

The next day, she moves away.

What's a guy to do?

Romance .... 353 pages .... 4.5/5 stars.

(Xavier is an "alarmingly handsome veterinarian" who loves animals more than people...but he loves Sam most of all. Their long-distance love story is funny, poignant, and tugs at the heart.)

The Serendipity by Emma St. Clair

There's magic in the

building bringing Willa and 

Archer together.

"A Whimsical Romance" .... 276 pages .... 5/5 stars.

(A sweet and funny grumpy vs. sunshine romance with a cute magical twist. The Cupid Chronicles by Courtney Walsh is another whimsical romance in this fun series involving a magical match-making newspaper; it's equally charming.)

The Treasure Hunters Club by Tom Ryan

Lost treasure. Buried

secrets. And murder. Three try

to dig up the truth.

Mystery .... 368 pages .... 4/5 stars.

(Entertaining fast-paced thriller full of family secrets, lies, hidden gold, betrayal, shocking twists, and new beginnings.)

Happy Reading!

Summer Romance by Annabel Monaghan

 

The plot:  Her mom died two years ago. Her husband asked for a separation one year ago, and now he wants to finalize their divorce. Professional organizer Ali Morris's life is a mess. She's juggling grief and her three kids. Who needs love? But then her dog pees on Ethan Hogan's foot at the dog park and instead of getting mad, he smiles at her like she's the best thing he's ever seen. And Ali's summer suddenly starts to look a lot brighter. 

My thoughts:  Summer Romance is deliciously sweet and delightfully humorous. I loved it! I could relate to Ali and her very real struggles to deal with everything in her life from her messy kitchen to mediation with her soon-to-be ex-husband. And Ethan was awesome...so kind and admiring of Ali, and such a great listener. I enjoyed their interactions, especially when he takes her skateboarding and dresses up in a crazy suit to go with her to her mediation meetings. He's hilarious. I'd love to meet a guy like him. From start to last, this was such a fun book. It's a perfect summer read. Annabel Monaghan has become one of my favorite authors. I love the way she writes and crafts her characters and their happy endings.  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading!

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday is a fun weekly meme hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.

This week's theme:  BOOKS THAT FEATURE TRAVEL. 

This was a pretty easy post for me because I love reading travel memoirs and about faraway places I would love to visit someday. So, here are MY 10 FAVORITE TRAVEL READS.

Maiden Voyage by Tania Aebi

(A book about a girl who sails around the world on her own.)

The Road to Ubar by Nicholas Clapp

(An amateur archaeologist's search for the fabled Arabian city.)

Hitchhiking Vietnam by Karin Muller

(A woman's solo journey across Vietnam.)

Tracks by Robyn Davidson

(A woman's journey across the Australian desert...with camels.)

Lost in the Amazon by Stephen Kirkpatrick

(Five men battling to survive in the Amazon jungle.)

The Art of Pilgrimage by Phil Cousineau

(One of my favorite books on travel and making your own pilgrimages in life.)

Sahara Unveiled by William Langeweische

(A man's journey from Algiers to Dakar across the vast and lonely Saharan desert.)

The Nile by Toby Wilkinson

(A fabulous look at Egypt and a journey down the Nile.)

The Coolest Race on Earth by John Hanc

(Running a marathon in Antarctica!)

Lost Among the Birds by Neil Hayward

(One man's big year birding.)

Happy Reading! 

(And traveling by book all over the world.)

In the Hour of Crows by Dana Elmendorf

 "Papaw gave me his death-talking gift when I was only nine. He  told me what he could do, then he told me how to use the secret Bible verses to do it. The gift jumped out of him and into me."

"There are only a few rules for death-talking. If you tell someone the secret scriptures, your gift is gone. You can only pass it to someone of the opposite sex. If you die with your gift, it disappears forever. And you can't talk the death out of someone twice."

"What Papaw didn't tell me is how you shoulder a lifetime of guilt for all the souls you can't save. That I'll spend the rest of my life trying to make up for it."

 

 My thoughts: I liked the combination of mystery and magical realism in this book. And I always love that small town Appalachia setting with its deep-rooted families (and all their secrets), their strange superstitions, and their herbal folk magic. And I really liked Weatherly Wilder with her eerie gift of saving lives with her death-talking, and her vulnerability, especially as she tries to prove who murdered her cousin, Adaire. There's also a mysterious Soul Walker named Rook, who is sometimes a boy, more often a crow; I loved his connection to Weatherly. There's great Southern atmosphere, a compelling voice, and several good twists. Poignant, gritty, and beautifully written, In the Hour of Crows is a captivating novel.  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading!

 

May's Bookish Art...

 

Charles Edward Perugini -- In the Orangery

"Literature is my Utopia."

--Helen Keller

Welcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-reum

 

From the blurb:  "Yeongju is burned out. She did everything she was supposed to: go to school, marry a decent man, get a respectable job. Then it all fell apart. In a leap of faith, Yeongju abandons her old life, quits her high-flying career, and follows her dream. She opens a bookshop." 

"In a quaint neighborhood in Seoul, surrounded by books, Yeongju and her customers take refuge. From the lonely barista to the unhappily married coffee roaster--and the writer who sees something special in Yeongju--they all have disappointments in their past. The Hyunam-dong Bookshop becomes the place where they all learn how to truly live."

My thoughts:  My nephew recommended this book to me; he loves Korea, bookshops and reading, so this novel was right up his alley. I liked it, too. It's an introspective character-driven novel set in a bookshop. What's not to love? All the characters are struggling to find happiness in a society where achievement and career success take precedence over personal fulfillment. Hwang Bo-reum describes it this way:  "Everyone in the novel is taking small steps forward, whether it's learning something new, or making a change to their lives. What they're doing might be far from achieving what society deems as success, but ...how others judge where they stand doesn't matter to them. The fact that they've progressed, and are happy where they are, is sufficient." This book is an interesting look at Korean culture and societal pressures. I thought some of the chapters dragged a bit, but I liked all the characters, and enjoyed the story overall. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Favorite quote from the book:  "...happiness is never beyond reach. It's not in the distant past, nor on the horizon of the future. It's right in front of me. Like that day's beer, and today's quince tea. ... I think life becomes easier knowing that happiness is not that far out of reach."

Happy Reading! 

The Family Experiment by John Marrs

 

The plot:  Awakening Entertainment is about to launch their newest initiative: MetaChildren--children that exist entirely in the Metaverse. But first it's hosting a new competition reality show called The Family Experiment where four couples and one singleton get the chance to raise a virtual child from birth to age 18 over the next nine months. Millions of viewers will watch the livestream and vote for the winners. The prize? The right to keep their virtual child...or risk it all for the chance to have a real baby. 

My thoughts:  Set in the near-future, Marrs explores an unsettling and thought-provoking 'what if' scenario and all its unintended consequences. What if people could raise a virtual child as a replacement for having real children? 

I loved that he played out his scenario in the form of an immersive reality livestreaming show. The couples were all flawed and had some dark secrets in their pasts that led to some very unexpected twists and turns along the way. They weren't necessarily likable, but their stories were all compelling! This is one of those books that pulls you in from the first page and keeps you reading (and guessing) until the very end. I really appreciate the way Marrs writes. This book is set in the same world as his novel, The One, which I also enjoyed. I like that his novels are unique and always surprise me in some way. This one is definitely darker than The One--there's no real happy endings here--but it's very much a 4-star read!

Happy Reading!

Top Ten Tuesday

 

Top Ten Tuesday is a fun weekly meme hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.

This week's theme is AUTHORS WHO LIVE IN MY STATE. Or books by them. 

So, here's my list of 10 UTAH AUTHORS along with the cover of one of their books. Enjoy!

Jessica Day George

Brandon Mull

Julianne Donaldson

Ally Condie

Brandon Sanderson

Dan Wells

Charlie N. Holmberg

Jennifer A. Nielsen

Gerald N. Lund

Lisa Mangum

Happy Reading!

Why Didn't They Ask Evans? by Agatha Christie

 

The plot:  A man falls from the top of a cliff in Wales. His last words: Why didn't they ask Evans? Bobby Jones is the only one to hear him. In the dead man's pocket is the photograph of a hauntingly lovely young woman. But at the inquest, the dead man's sister looks nothing like the photograph. And then an attempt is made on Bobby's life. And he and his childhood friend, Lady Frances "Frankie" Derwent, start to think that the dead man might have been murdered. So they come up with a scheme to look into the matter themselves.

My thoughts:  I never know how much to say about a mystery like this. But I do think that the less you know going in the better. And Agatha Christie's mysteries are always full of hidden clues and unexpected surprises. I've been working my way through her books and quite enjoy them. There's no Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple to solve the murder in this one, but Bobby and Frankie make for two delightful amateur sleuths. They get into several entertaining escapades along the way, and their interactions are pretty funny. I liked them. And the mystery itself kept me guessing. Though I thought it got a little too convoluted. And I didn't love the long letter at the end explaining all the reasons and details of the crime. But it was still a fun read.  3.5/5 stars.

Happy Reading!

Randomness...

Recently finished reading:  Her Dying Secret by Lisa Regan.

This is the 20th Detective Josie Quinn mystery and it's another good one! I really like Josie and her husband, Noah, who is also a police detective. And their cases always have a compelling twist. These books read fast, and while I'd always recommend starting with the first one, Vanishing Girls, Regan does an excellent job of giving you all the information you need to enjoy this one, even if you haven't read any of the others. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Recently bought this fun "Reading is my Superpower" tee shirt:

(It makes me happy.)

And last, but not least, my favorite glad things from last month:

• A fun afternoon playing Tobago with my sister.
• African violets blooming on my windowsill.
• Birding on Antelope Island (a state park in Utah on the Great Salt Lake) with my niece and nephew where we saw among other birds Western Meadowlarks, Horned Larks, Burrowing Owls, two Great-Horned Owls guarding their babies, lots of Avocets, a Kestrel...and a porcupine sleeping high up in a Cottonwood tree. It was the cutest thing ever!
• Celebrating my neighbor's 95th birthday.
• The delicious scent of lilacs outside my window.
• Lunch with a friend. (Pera Pizza and a Strawberry Italian Float at Pizzeria Limone--YUM!)
• Observing Easter and remembering with deep gratitude and joy the atonement and resurrection of Jesus Christ.