My Child Is Missing by Lisa Regan

 

The plot:  Two go into the woods, but only one comes out. That's the legend of The Woodsman. And it's spreading across Pennsylvania--scaring elementary-age children, challenging the teenagers. Detective Josie Quinn knows it's just a story, but when two sister go missing, and only the younger girl is found, she also knows something sinister is going on. The investigation into Kayleigh's disappearance is hard enough, but Josie's not sleeping because of some recent traumatic events, and then she learns about two other murders linked to the story of The Woodsman... and she starts to wonder if they have a serial killer on their hands.

My thoughts:  This is the eighteenth Josie Quinn book, and another excellent mystery in this addictive series. Josie and her partner, Noah Fraley, are so good together. I've liked seeing how their relationship has developed and grown over the course of these mysteries. And I found this particular mystery nicely twisty and unexpected. I've been reading this series in order, which I recommend, because Josie's past is fairly complicated. But all the books in this series aren't long and they read fast. 

My rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading!

Other Josie Quinn mysteries I've reviewed:

Vanishing Girls (#1)

The Girl With No Name (#2)

Her Mother's Grave (#3)

Her Silent Cry (#6)

Cold Heart Creek (#7)

The Drowning Girls (#13)

Watch Her Disappear (#14)

The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter

A cryptic invitation.

A trip to Mistletoe Manor.

A Christmas snowstorm.

And a puzzling locked room disappearance. 

It's up to Maggie Chase and fellow author, Ethan Wyatt, to solve this mystery.

First line:  It wasn't until the elevator doors were sliding open that Maggie realized she was about to come face-to-face with her three lest favorite things in the world:  Christmas. A party. And Ethan Freaking Wyatt.  

My thoughts:  This entertaining novel is a great combination of mystery and romance. And I loved it. There's fun banter, and lots of action and humor. Maggie is a very engaging character; she's clever and funny, but also vulnerable and alone. I liked how Ethan really saw her, and how he wanted to help her, and protect her. I enjoyed their swoony kisses, too. They made a great team (even though she saw him as her nemesis at the beginning of the book). And the mystery was very Christie-esque. If you want a fun holiday mystery/romance, check this book out. 

My rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading!

Randomness....

 My sister wrote a book!   

A Lady Most Alluring by Amy Newbold is a sweet, clean, and charming Regency romance novella inspired by Cinderella. It's available on Kindle, KU, and in paperback, so check it out! It would make my sister's Christmas if you did. :D 

Have you noticed lately how many book bloggers are either taking a hiatus, or quitting altogether? I started to count up the blogging friends I've made over the years who are no longer around, but quit when my list of names hit 20 because it was just too depressing. I miss them! But I get it. Bloggers get tired, burn out, move on, find something else they want to do with their time. But it still makes me sad. I started blogging because I wanted to find a community of people who love books and reading as much as me. And it makes me sad seeing that community shrinking away to nothing. It makes me wonder how much longer the rest of us will stick around. 

Some of the library books I'm hoping to read this month:

An Instruction In Shadow by Benedict jacka

The Night Woods by Paula Munier

The Reaping by Jess Lourey

Catch and Keep by Erin Hahn

Write For You by Megan Byrd

Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn

The Doomsday Book by Connie Willis

And my glad things last month?  Honestly, November was a rough month for me with a stressful trip to the hospital with my mom, my aunt's funeral, unexpected car repairs that ended up costing $460, another stupid jury duty summons, and lots of cold, gray days. Plus, I haven't been sleeping well, so I've been running tired...and anxious. Which made coming up with a list of happy things for this post challenging. But I did think of four:

• My mom ended up not having anything seriously wrong, and the unrelenting pain in her left leg that she was experiencing has gone away, something for which I am very grateful.
• My next-door neighbor, who I don't know very well, came over when she saw the ambulance to see if we needed anything, which I thought was very kind of her.
• I won two more books from Goodreads that arrived in the mail last week: Give Me Butterflies by Jillian Meadows and Summit's Edge by Sara Driscoll. I look forward to reading both of them later this month. 
• And my car's heater is working again...something much appreciated on these wintry mornings. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Whether you make an ABC list of what you're grateful for, or take turns going around the dinner table acknowledging your blessings, I hope we can each take a moment today to remember all the good things in life that we have been given...and to give thanks. For that's where true happiness lies. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

My gratitude list:  family, friends, home, warmth, sight, autumn leaves, trees, food to eat, (turkey, mashed potatoes & stuffing!), grace, forgiveness, the atonement of Jesus Christ, good books, chocolate, hot showers & flush toilets, game nights, movie dates, laughter, music, birds, electricity, internet, my paycheck, a working car, a place to sleep, hoodies, Squishmallows, garbage trucks, freshly laundered clothes, sisters, Zebra pens, mountains, beautiful beaches, lip balm, pancakes, caring co-workers, nephews and nieces, blogging friends, libraries, food storage in the pantry, Post-It notes...and at least a hundred other things. 

Haiku Reviews...

One Last Play by Annah Conwell

She loves football...and 

his daughter. Can he convince 

her to love him, too?

Sweet romantic comedy .... 252 pages .... 5/5 stars.

(Clean single dad sports romance that I totally loved.)

Love and Other Conspiracies by Mallory Marlowe

He's into cryptids;

she's not. But when they team up,

their new web show rocks.

Romance .... 334 pages .... 4/5 stars.

(Cute and humorous with lots of fun banter.)

Reel Love by Savannah Scott

Online word game brings

famous actress and marine

biologist together.

Romantic comedy .... 372 pages .... 4.5/5 stars.

(Opposites attract in this sweet romance. Loved the island setting.)

Happy Reading!

The Next Everest by Jim Davidson

 

First line:  We climbed the deadliest section of Everest at night.

From the blurb:

 "On April 25, 2015, Jim Davidson was climbing Mount Everest when a 7.8 magnitude earthquake released avalanches all around him and his team, destroying their only escape route and trapping them at nearly 20,000 feet. It was the largest earthquake in Nepal in eighty-one years and killed about 8,900 people. That day also became the deadliest in the history of Everest, with eighteen people losing their lives on the mountain.

"After spending two unsettling days stranded on Everest, Davidson's team was rescued by helicopter. The experience left him shaken, and despite his thirty-three years of climbing and serving as an expedition leader, he wasn't sure that he would ever go back. But in the face of risk and uncertainty, he returned in 2017 and finally achieved his dream of reaching the summit."

My thoughts:  I read Jim Davidson's previous climbing memoir, The Ledge, several years ago and have never forgotten it. It's a gut-wrenching and emotionally powerful read. His chronicle of climbing Mt. Everest is equally compelling. I love reading these kinds of books. And this one is richly detailed and descriptive, and honest, too. Davidson weaves in moments from his past that taught him valuable lessons that helped him on this difficult adventure. He writes about the importance of patience and persistence, hard work, inner resilience, dealing with grief and loss, choosing confidence over fear, and "focusing on the climb, not the drop". I highly recommend it. 

My rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading!

November's bookish art...

 

William Worchester Churchill - Woman Reading on a Settee

"Life is like a book: some chapters are sad, some happy, and some exciting. But if you never turn the page, you will never know what the next chapter holds." 

--Anonymous