Two Bloggers One Book ~ IT by Stephen King

I am not sure why I let Barb talk me into reading this one. I think it's paybacks for making her read The Stand a few years back...lol. Once you see my thoughts you can go over and see what Barb thought at Booker T's Farm.

Welcome to Derry, Maine ...

It’s a small city, a place as hauntingly familiar as your own hometown. Only in Derry the haunting is real ...

They were seven teenagers when they first stumbled upon the horror. Now they are grown-up men and women who have gone out into the big world to gain success and happiness. But none of them can withstand the force that has drawn them back to Derry to face the nightmare without an end, and the evil without a name.

We did it! Barb and I finally finished this one. We might have started this one in September with the idea of finishing it in October and now it's the end of November. That should tell you just how well we both were enjoying this one...lol.

I have had this book on my shelf for over twenty years and never read it. I have seen the movie (the older one as Tim Curry will always be my Pennywise), but this book is so big I kept putting it off. I am going to just say I think I preferred the movie. 

So this is part coming of age story (the parts from when the group were kids) and then the other part is them being adults. The group faced a foe when they were young because it killed Bill's brother and then they all seemed to forget all about what happened. Then it starts up again and Mike who still lived in Derry calls them all back to face it all over again and while in Derry parts of what happened that one year comes back to them bit by bit. 

Okay so I didn't mind the parts when they were kids (well up till that ending), but I really could care less about them as adults. I was so bored, but then even the parts with them as kids started to get so boring. I am not sure why this book is so well liked but for me it was a bit of s snoozefest and I only finished because I had already invested a lot of time in it and wanted to say I read IT. :)

I think if King would take about 300 pages out of this book it could have been more interesting. 

3 stars (for finishing it and a fantastic narrator, Steven Weber)

Early Review of Death at a Scottish Wedding by Lucy Connolly

 I got this from Netgalley for a fair and honest review.

Something old, something new, something borrowed and someone’s blue…

Finally feeling like Sea Isle, Scotland is becoming her new home, American doctor Emilia McRoy is delighted when she is invited to a wedding at Morrigan's Castle. Her friends have warned her that it's a three-day party and it's bound to get wild, not to mention the impending snowstorm. Constable Ewan Campbell, owner of the castle, ensures their safety with the blizzard. What he didn’t ensure, is that all of his guests would survive the night alive. When Emilia explores the impressive castle, she finds a dead man in one of the turrets.

The snowstorm hits and the local police can’t reach the castle until it lets up. With no one able to leave, the family insists they carry on with the wedding, which makes Emilia's job as the coroner a bit easier—the suspects are in one place­––and complicated because the killer has Emilia in his sights. The fact no one claims to know the victim isn't helping. Why would someone no one knows be murdered at a castle in the middle of nowhere?

It’s up to Emilia to uncover the mystery who the victim is, so the killer doesn’t get away Scot free.

I read book one earlier this year and loved it! So I couldn't wait any longer to get to book two which comes out in January. Even though it wasn't as good as book one it was still very good. 

Emilia who is an American living in Scotland in a small seaside town, where she is the local doctor, has been making some good friends and one of them is getting married. Angie wants her good friends to be at all the functions as it seems the Scotts like to do a lot of celebrating leading up to the wedding.

They are having the wedding at a local castle that is owned by Ewan who is the Liard of the small town they live in and also the constable. The man that Angie is marrying comes from money and so Ewan will be there with some of his men for security which was a good thing because once they get to the castle things don't go so well. 

Emilia and Ewan find a dead body and it happens to be Angie;s ex who was also Damien's ex friend. That isn't the only problem as it's been snowing and snowing so they are snowed. Then Angie and Mara are not feeling well and because of what happened to the victim she is worried about them as they could have been poisoned too. Em who is not only the doctor but coroner doesn't have a lot of supplies and they are cut off from going anywhere. 

So everyone there is a suspect and Em is determined to find out whodunit even if it almost gets her killed in the process.

I really like Em, she is a fun character with lots of spunk. All the characters are great actually. I think what I missed from this one that was in the first one was the banter between Em and Ewan, there just wasn't as much in this one. 

I really enjoyed the mystery in this one as it was really hard to figure out who exactly done it as there were lots of good suspects. I had it narrowed down to who I thought it was and I was right but I couldn't figure out the motive.

So this is called a cozy mystery but I will say that for some it might not be as cozy as they would want. The main character gets injured pretty good in this one and that isn't even what happened at the end when she figures out who the bad person was and gets in trouble. I feel that for some people it might not feel cozy so giving you a heads up. It's cozy in the sense of a amateur sleuth, small town setting, etc., just a little more injuries. :) 

I can't wait for another one though so I highly recommend it! 

4.5 stars

Two Bloggers One Series ~ Ghostly Echoes by William Ritter

 

Barb and I are just plowing right on through the Jackaby series. Once you see what I had to say you can go and check out what Barb thought at Booker T's Farm.

Jenny Cavanaugh, the ghostly lady of 926 Augur Lane, has enlisted the investigative services of her fellow residents to solve a decade-old murder—her own. Abigail Rook and her eccentric employer, Detective R. F. Jackaby, dive into the cold case, starting with a search for Jenny’s fiancé, who went missing the night she died. But when a new, gruesome murder closely mirrors the events of ten years prior, Abigail and Jackaby realize that Jenny’s case isn’t so cold after all, and her killer may be far more dangerous than they suspected.

Fantasy and folklore mix with mad science as Abigail’s race to unravel the mystery leads her across the cold cobblestones of nineteenth-century New England, down to the mythical underworld, and deep into her colleagues’ grim histories to battle the most deadly foe she has ever faced.

Okay, so I am going to start by saying I was really excited for this book and so maybe I hyped it up a bit but it was a bit of a let down compared to the other books. 

In this series there is a ghost Jenny that hangs out where Jackaby lives and she has never wanted Jackaby to find out what happened to her, but lately she has been having some moments and she is finally ready.

I really like Jenny so I was so excited to get to her story but it was kind of a let down and there was a few things in it that made me really roll my eyes as it didn't need to be there to make the story go and it felt a tad bit preachy about certain things. After that happened I just lost a bit of interest in the story. 

It also gets a little confusing for me about what all is going on so I really don't remember much about what happened. Jackaby and Rook decide to try and figure out what happened to Jenny and they start looking for what might have happened to her boyfriend who disappeared the night she died making him seem a bit suspicious. Then a new murder happens that seems to be a lot like what happened to Jenny and this leads them to some other not so nice people and some don't really want to be messed with and there is a lot going on in on the otherworldly scene and that is about what I remember. 

I love Jackaby and Rook and though it was interesting finding out what happened to Jenny I guess I just hyped things up and was let down a bit. I am curious to see what will happen next as there is this Dire King they have to battle I am guessing. :) 

3.5 stars

Week in Review #61

The Week in Review is where I combine Stacking the Shelves, The Sunday Post and It's Monday! What are you reading?  If you have never joined in on these meme's you can check them out by clicking on the meme and it will take you to the host blog.

Hey, hope everyone that celebrated had a great Thanksgiving. I ate to much as always but not a lot of family drama so wasn't to bad. :) 

It snowed!!! I am officially ready for spring now. It was just a dusting but lows in the 20s I am not fond of. 

You will see I didn't read much as that is because I am still on this Youtube watching kick. I think I just needed a bit of a break as I have read a LOT (mostly listened to) this year already so I am okay with a slow month. :) 

Have a great week and happy reading!

Books I have added

 Nothing!

Books read last week

I know you all are shocked at the is one lonely book...lol. It's been a weird reading month. :)

• The Quest of Danger - The 4th book in the Once Upon a Tim series and it was a lot of fun.

So I am a bit bummed but I did decide to put a book to the side, it's not a DNF just more of a DNF for now as I just wasn't getting into it and I am bummed as it's one of my 2024 eARCs and I was so exited for it but I think it has second book syndrome. :(

• Of Hoaxed and Homicide - I really enjoyed book one so I was so excited but I don't know if it's just the case or what but at 21% there has been no murder and it just seems to really drag. I have been reading on it since the first of November.

Currently reading

• Death at a Scottish Wedding - The book I switched out Hoaxes for and enjoying it so much more! I loved the first book in this series too so I am glad this one is going better as it's also a 2024 release.
• Omnivore's Dilemma - I didn't read on this one this week.
• The Search - I didn't really read on this one either.
• Tentacles - I am enjoying this one and almost finished with it.

What might be up next

 Just hoping to finish a lot of things currently reading.

How was your week? What did you get?

Week in Review #60

The Week in Review is where I combine Stacking the Shelves, The Sunday Post and It's Monday! What are you reading?  If you have never joined in on these meme's you can check them out by clicking on the meme and it will take you to the host blog.

Getting this up a bit late but I figured better late than never...lol. The weather has turned a bit chilly and I am not happy but it is late in November so I guess it's okay but blah.

So I haven't been doing much reading and didn't even post last week which is why I wanted to get this one up. I have just fell down the homesteading rabbit hole as well as gardening videos and trying to learn more about gardening as I want to work a bit harder on making my veggie garden grow better come spring/summer.

Have a great week and happy reading!

What you might have missed on my blog

Review of Whispers at Dusk

Books I have added

 Nothing

Books read last week

 

This is what I have read over the past two weeks.

• Whispers at Dusk - I enjoyed this one though I think I like her normal Krewe of Hunters better.
• Anne of Green Gables - Never read this before, I know! I actually really liked it, Anne is a hoot!
• The Pagan Stone - Finished out another Nora trilogy and I thought it was okay. It's one of her Paranormal ones.
• Chaos Monster - This was a nice short fantasy middle grade book that was fun.
• Dance of Death - The 6th book in the Pendergast series and I enjoyed it.

Currently reading

• Of Hoaxes and Homicide - I am a bit bummed that this one hasn't drawn me in like I hoped as I loved book one but this one is just not grabbing me.
• The Omnivore's Dilemma - Nonfiction and I are not friends so this is slow going but interesting. And making me think twice about what I get at the grocery store.
• The Search - Just started this one on audiobook, it's a long one at 15 hours. I don't think a romantic suspense needs to be that long! It was the shortest one from my friends list she gave me to try!

What might be up next

 Not real sure.

How was your week? What did you get?

Two Bloggers One Series ~ Whispers at Dusk by Heather Graham

Barb and I have been working on the Krewe of Hunters series and it's a long series, so there was a short trilogy spin off where they are international and so we decided to try the first book from that trilogy because if we waited till we caught up on Krewe it would be years...lol. Once you see what I had to say go on over to Booker T's Farm and see what Barb thought. 

When darkness falls, there’s nowhere to hide.

Four bodies have been discovered along Europe’s riverbanks, placed with care—and completely drained of blood. Pinpricks on their throats indicate a slender murder weapon, but DNA found in the wounds suggests something far more sinister. Tasked with investigating, the FBI recruits Agents Della Hamilton and Mason Carter to Blackbird, an international offshoot of the Krewe of Hunters. If you want to catch a vampire killer, you need agents who can speak with the dead.

The pair travel to Norway, where the shadowy forests of Lillehammer reveal a gruesome scene. The killer is thirsty for more victims, and the bloodless trail soon leads Della and Mason to a group that believes drinking blood is the key to immortality. To catch the culprit of such an intimate crime, the agents will have to get close. Mason’s already lost one partner; he’s not ready to risk Della as bait. But sometimes justice requires a sacrifice…

When some American's in Europe are found murdered the FBI decide to send Della and Mason to Blackbird to help them figure out what is going on. Della and Mason don't really know each other but when working on the case they realize they work well together. 

Blackbird is the international version of Krewe of Hunters and this case has them puzzled as it it looks as if there is a vampire on the loose and they are trying to figure out who is behind it before anything else happens. 

The case leads them to the "master" who is training others to kill to gain immortality or at least that is what they think. This case sends them all over as they try and figure out exactly what is going on and even when they catch one person they find out there are more out there. 

There is a slow burn romance happening between Della and Mason that I am sure will span the three books in the trilogy as it hasn't really gotten to far with that, this book was more about the mystery than the romance. I really like Della and Mason and I am curious to see what will happen with them and how they will wrap up everything that is happening with this series. 

I really liked the ghost that was in this one that was helping them with everything, he was cool.

You don't really have to read any Krewe of Hunters books to be able to read this trilogy. 

4 stars

Two Bloggers One Book ~ In My Dreams I Hold a Knife by Ashley WInstead

This year I wanted to try out more thrillers because I haven't read a lot of them. Lets just say I think I am figuring out that I only like a certain type of thriller even if the book sounds good...lol. After you see my thoughts go see what Barb thought at Booker T's Farm. 

Six friends.
One college reunion.
One unsolved murder.


A college reunion turns dark and deadly in this chilling and propulsive suspense novel about six friends, one unsolved murder, and the dark secrets they’ve been hiding from each other—and themselves—for a decade.

Ten years after graduation, Jessica Miller has planned her triumphant return to southern, elite Duquette University, down to the envious whispers that are sure to follow in her wake. Everyone is going to see the girl she wants them to see—confident, beautiful, indifferent—not the girl she was when she left campus, back when Heather’s murder fractured everything, including the tight bond linking the six friends she’d been closest to since freshman year. Ten years ago, everything fell apart, including the dreams she worked for her whole life—and her relationship with the one person she wasn’t supposed to love.

But not everyone is ready to move on. Not everyone left Duquette ten years ago, and not everyone can let Heather’s murder go unsolved. Someone is determined to trap the real killer, to make the guilty pay. When the six friends are reunited, they will be forced to confront what happened that night—and the years’ worth of secrets each of them would do anything to keep hidden.

Okay, so I think this one is my fault as I kept seeing it around and people seemed to like it though I did see some not liking it. Her new book was coming out and I was like you know we should try this author and Barb wanted to read it. Well...

So I am going to start by saying I DNFed this book at 50% so I hung on way longer than I should have as I was so bored and I didn't care on thing about any of the characters or what the problem was but I did sort of want to know who the killers was but then in the end it wasn't enough to push on so I did skip to the end to see if I guessed it right on who the killer was of the girl from college and I was right. 

Told in two timelines about a group of college kids and then the same people ten years later at a reunion and something happened while they were in college and now the brother wants answers. He knows one of them killed his sister and is determined to find out. 

I just couldn't handle the college drama timeline and then the other timeline with them older the characters were not any more likeable. The main POV which is Jess, she was a stupid crazy horrible person and so yeah I just couldn't get into this one. :( I hope her newest one is better because I have an audio ARC I need to listen to and now I am nervous. 

DNFED

Week in Review #59

The Week in Review is where I combine Stacking the Shelves, The Sunday Post and It's Monday! What are you reading?  If you have never joined in on these meme's you can check them out by clicking on the meme and it will take you to the host blog.

The weather is bipolar! We were freezing as in winter temps at the beginning of the week and now it's like 70 outside! Oh believe me I am not complaining but it's so weird...lol.

I haven't watched any new movies but I have been watching a lot of Homesteading videos on Youtube. :) 

Have a great week and happy reading!

Books I have added

• Cursed Cruise - I requested this and then I read book one and it wasn't great but it was okay, so now I am hoping this one lives up to it's cool cover...lol. This is a good lesson in read book one before requesting book two. :)

Books read last week

• The Ghost Job - This was okay but I don't care to have necromancy in my middle grade books.
• Finch House - This was a fun middle grade ghost story.
• In My Dreams I Hold a Knife - I am starting to think I am not a thriller reader or I just need more action and less drama. I ended up DNFing and going to end to see if I was right about who the killer was and I got it right. :)
• Murder at Mallowan Hall - First in a historical mystery featuring Agatha Christie's maid as the sleuth and you get a little of Christie as a character too so that was fun. I wasn't a huge fan of the plotline of why the murder happened and thought the MC was a bit of a know it all but it wasn't a bad start to a series. I will continue the series.
• Secret Star - Best thing about this book is that it finished a trilogy...lol. This was so cheesy and instalusty and the relationship just didn't work.

Currently reading

• IT - Yes, still plugging away at this one. We decided to spread it out to November...lol.
• Of Hoaxes and Homicide - I loved the first one and couldn't wait to try this one, it's okay so far but I am not far into it, only about 8% into the ebook.
• Omnivore's Dilemma - Look at me reading non-fiction! Been watching a lot of homesteading channels and this was mentioned so I checked it out on libby. I am only about 10% into it. I am curious but it's a slow read as I am not huge on non-fiction.
• Whispers at Dark - Listening to this one, it's the first in a spin off of Krewe of Hunters that takes them to Norway. I am only around 12% into this one.

What might be up next

 

• The Pagan Stone - I want to finish up another trilogy, just hope this one ends better than the other trilogy I read...lol.

How was your week? What did you get?