Tea&Read

Books give a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything. - Plato

[teaandread]

Butcher & Blackbird

5/5 ✨

"I'm muscle and scars blended with scripts and swirls of black in. The same way I look at her and find beauty in the marks that are only temporary, she looks at me and I know she feels the same. There's art in our scars. There's wonder in the way we can heal." pg 220

I'm not usually into the spicy stuff I have to admit. I did read the 50 Shades series though and got into that right away. It's just not my typical bookshelf choice. Who doesn't love a little role play and a steamy scene or two every now and again? It does seem to be one of the fasted rising genres today thanks to us Millennials getting older and I guess needing to add a little something different to our daily life?

Whatever the reason, here we are. I can honestly say though that the main reason I went after this book and then the rest of the trilogy was the idea of a serial killer. Two in fact. There are in fact that typical gushy scenes that don't involve sex. Just the casual flirting that so many of us end up taking part in at work. When you share interests and loads of time together, it tends to happen. I'm not validating that in your life or saying to go forth and do so if you are already committed. This is more of a those that aren't should definitely feel free to participate. Now I'm rambling.

Anyhow, one serial killer is using her talents to rid the world of something of the worst perpetrators out there, pedophiles and rapists. Although many of us would definitely side with her motives and choice of "victims" we also can't condone violence to this degree. But when she tangles with the killer deemed "Butcher", "Blackbird" finds there is something maybe missing from her life. Maybe their shared goal is one meant to be shared together. Maybe they can be stronger as a unit.

What comes next is a wild ride with humor, murder, and of course sex. If you want a spin with a main character that is part antagonist, part protagonist you can root for, you need to read this!

[teaandread]

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

4/5

“And no matter how desperate or dire, never pray to the gods that answer after dark.”

If only Adeline had heeded Estele’s words of wisdom from her many years of experience, she wouldn’t be thrown into the lifelong curse she found herself in 300 years later.

Addie didn’t want to get married but in 1700s France as a woman, she had little choice. So instead, she spoke to the gods and asked for their help. For days she prayed and gave gifts to the gods of the light, but it wasn’t until she left a gift, her most treasure ring for the gods in the night was her prayer answered. Addie’s downfall was that she was not specific enough as to how she wanted out of the life she was living. This god took it as a challenge and so made it that Adeline could not die but would also never be remembered. It was as if she’d never been born and after walking away from someone, as though they’d never met.

Luc, the god that granted her the everlasting cursed life, returns every year on the anniversary….for a while. Some years he punishes Addie when she won’t agree to walk into the afterlife with him and makes him mad. He is the only one that remembers her true name. That is until she meets Henry in a bookstore and Addie feels as though she’s found a loophole. There is finally someone that remembers her name even after she’s left the room, but is this loophole a real miracle or is it just another game Luc created to further torture Addie’s long life? Will she ever find the happiness she desperately seeks?

At 442 pages, it was my longest this year, even with it being from the beginning. The story does flip back and forth through time so if you’re not a fan or get easily stumped, as I admittedly do at times, just be aware. Overall, the creation of the story though was very unique. I enjoyed the little historical time period tidbits that were thrown in as well as watching the growth of the character over time.

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A Talent for Murder

4.5/5 – Would you be able to suspect your own husband of murder? In fact not just one murder; but five. Would a little bit of blood be enough to think the absolute worst of the person you share your bed with at night? Spoiler alert, that’s what our girl Martha does within the first chapter or so of her introduction. That would really be my only issue with this book, it the speed in which we go from zero to serial killer.

Poor Martha, who never thought she'd amount to anything in a long-term relationship finally found a husband. A man that she has to admit, she isn't really head over heels for but it's better than being alone right? Then one day, she finds blood on Alan's shirt and her mind wanders to a rather far-fetched place. When Martha researches his past conventions, she finds several unsolved murders have occurred near those venues and she reaches out to an old friend Lily to help research the possibilities. The question then becomes, are Martha and Lily barking up the wrong tree or are they putting themselves in the path of a very sly serial killer?

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This Tender Land

4/5 – Every so often I can get  behind a story that is based around family strife. About   how things fall apart but there is someone beside you to help put it all back together again. There are some historical relations in this book which I appreciated. When a book doesn't have murder or spooks, I like being able to come away from it learning something. Granted, not all the historical references made in the book are accurate, it doesn't mean that there were not similar circumstances to someone's life in that time period and I enjoy that it gives me more questions to find the answers to.

The story of brothers Odie and Albert, their Sioux friend Mose whose native name is     Amdacha, and their little friend Emmy who have run away from a torturous boarding school to track down the brother's aunt in St. Louis. Murder, theft, and kidnapping are the accusations they are trying to leave up river but the Black Witch won't let it go.  Police raids, near death experiences, and the people they meet along the way allow the   audience to be in the canoe right alongside this ground of vagabonds during these  trials. There is a  way for everyone to relate to some part of this story as they read. Whether it be the fear of the unknown, the desire for a place to call home, or feeling as though you have no sense of purpose in life. You will find a character and a town that will call out to your very soul in these pages.  

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Listen for the Lie

5/5 – I finished this one in day! I absolutely could not put this one down! It's obviously safe to say that it was too gripping to put down. This one really did keep me guessing until the final reveal. There were several perfect set ups to what the truth might be.  Every time you thought an interview was going to reveal and clearer picture of the events on the night of the murder, it skewed the truth just a little more instead.

Five years ago, Lucy's best friend Savvy turned up dead and Lucy was left with a TBI that has caused her to forget the events of the night. Now, podcaster Ben Owens has turned up in that small Texas town with the hopes of turning that unsolved murder into the second season. When Lucy's grandmother tricks her into coming home for an interview, she begins her story just has she's recounted for the last five years, “I don't remember.” No one has believed her but for some reason she starts to believe Ben will. It is a wild ride the reader takes to come to the twisted finish line. False starts, surprise affairs, anger issues, and exes that just don't want to hear the word ‘no'. Will the events of that night come back in time to help prove Lucy's innocence or will the testimonies of the town lead to the end of another young woman's future?

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She Started It

5/5 - “You four are important to me.” Poppy takes a sip of her wine, and I think I can see her hands tremble slightly, betraying her air of certainty. “I know that the feeling is not mutual, but I can honestly say that you four have shaped the entire trajectory of my life. I would not be where I am today without you.” PG 41

Talk about the surprise of a lifetime. Not only getting invited to a private island getaway  all expenses paid but being asked by a girl they tormented to be her bridesmaids. Esther, Tanya, Chloe, and Annabel has drifted apart since high school ended. Their lives seemingly detached from one another's yet a messy web remains. Then, for icing on the cake, Poppy Greer has invited them away and as much as lives have changed, none of the girls can shake the feeling that something isn't quite right. That there is something  off about Poppy and the reason that she wants them there. Then makeup is destroyed, jewelry goes missing, and a not too gentle push while standing on the edge of a cliff. Things are getting weird. It doesn't take long before the scenic view of the island is marred by murder. Secrets are  revealed; affairs, sexual misconduct, theft, the list goes on. What no one sees coming is the next murder that each day brings. Will anyone make it off the island alive?

I wasn’t ready for this one. It was the perfect thriller as every time I thought I knew the killer, they would end up dead. Then you start to wonder if maybe there's more than one. Maybe two of them are working together to keep the secrets of the past and present from getting out there. Maybe others that read this are more ahead of the game than I was. The opening points you in one direction but the clues throughout the book  try to lead you to a different conclusion. I would have to say that this is a quick read as  you will be hanging on to every word.

[teaandread]

The Wilderwomen

4/5 – There's a line in The Notebook that would fit perfectly in this novel. The one that

 goes, “If you're a bird, I'm a bird.” The reason it fits, is that all the Wilder women, turn out to be unable to find footing on the ground. One day, five years ago, Nora Wilder walked out her front door and never looked back. Now her oldest Zadie is down on her luck once more and the younger Finn is knocking at the door of 18 looking for adventure. At 23, life hasn't turned out quite the way Zadie expected it to for her. Finn was adopted by a nice family that gave her a great life and wanted to give her everything, including their last name. First, she wants to take her older sister on a secret adventure. Finn wants to find their mother.

All the Wilder women have been given a second sight of sorts. A special gift that allows them to communicate with bits of the world around them. A spiritual connection to the auras that make up that people and places they interact with. Finn has decided to use hers to track down Nora. During their travels, the sisters stumble upon the very path their mother had taken all those years ago and learn aspects of their mother's past and possibly present, that they hadn't been privy to even when they had shared a life. The trip is also about the truths within both Zadie and Finn's lives that have been turned into secrets. Secrets have a way of coming out in the end. Will they reach the end of their journey still committed to both one another and they family they wanted to put back together?

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The New Couple in 5B

4.5/5 - “I hear all the notes of desperation and fear that sing discordant and wild, a cacophony in my own heart. And I think that maybe you’re wrong. Maybe everything I am and everything I’ve done, has led me here to this teetering edge. There was no other possible ending. No other way.” Pg 7

After several months of taking care of Chad’s ailing Uncle Ivan, the old man has finally taken his last breath. Chad and Rosie are now left the palatial apartment at the Windermere. A building dripping with power, money, and of course…secrets. Rosie finds the situation slightly confusing though. Why had they received the apartment and not his daughter? How did Chad know they were left the apartment before the reading of the will? And why, why does everyone at the Windemere seem to be a little too involved in their lives?

Some things about their new life Rosie can shake off. That is until Dana turns up death by apparent suicide after assuring Rosie she has secrets about their new life. About Chad’s past too. Suddenly the walls have begun to close in around Rosie. The cameras, the nosey Aldridge’s across the foyer, and Chad’s curious choices are making Rosie feel as though, no one is who she thought and that maybe, the secrets of the Windemere are out to get her too.

[teaandread]

The Last Time I Lied

4.5/5 – The boat is empty. No oars. No life vests. Certainly no people. The only thing inside is a pair of glasses, twisted like a wrung-out washcloth, one of the lenses spiderwebbed with cracks. Pg 292

Artist Emma Davis is digging up her past by returning to Camp Nightingale as a counselor. This decision was made with great hesitation as 15 years before Emma’s cabinmates Vivian, Natalie, and Allison disappeared. The campground and surround woods searched with no luck, the lake and nearby islands also came up empty with the girls and so, the camp was forced to close its gates. Even though everything within Emma told her to leave the past in the past, Emma’s guilt at not stopping the other girls from sneaking out that night has lain heavy with her for years. Her successful career is built on that guilt and the ghosts that keep her company.

Several faces from the past are also hanging around Camp Nightingale. Old friends and nemesis are welcoming Emma back, but is she deserving of that welcome? Are they all acting this way with the best of intentions. Now that Emma is older, she is learning more about the storied past of the campground. The asylum that once stood on the property is not the biggest secret to be revealed. The biggest will come when the campers now in Emma’s care also disappear and she must now confront her guilt of the past while trying to save the girls with her now. Solving that mystery may help Emma both come to peace with herself and get the truth that has desperately been needed for the last 15 years.

[teaandread]

Lock Every Door

4/5 - We start out learning about the young Jules. The poor young 20s college grad who is currently couch surfing after a most unfortunate run in with her now ex-boyfriend who was found in the midst of fits of ecstasy with a young coed. When the job of a lifetime presents itself on Craigslist, it would be foolish to say no, right?

The Bartholomew is an institution of an apartment building. Everyone wants to live there and anyone who’s anyone wants to be seen there. Other than some curious rules, the job sounds like a dream come true. All Jules has to do is live in the posh apartment and mind her own business. But when she becomes aware of the morbid history, her friend Ingrid disappears, hearing bumps in the night, and the run ins with other residents that spark a sketchy cord, Jules starts to believe there is truth in the rumors. Jules starts to believe that her life is in danger as one of the few young people living in the Bartholemew.

I liked this book because it kept me guessing as to what exactly was the dark secret of the infamous Bartholemew? The characters ended up surprising me in various ways; a true instance in which no one is quite who they seem to be. The truth of the building is more in depth than what I had expected could be the case. I’m not good with a lot of repetition which was my reason for lowering the star count. Otherwise, definitely a must Riley Sager read.

[teaandread]

Sign Here

4.5/5 – A book from the perspective of Hell was not initially on my bingo card for this year. You would think it would end up being a story in which you couldn't relate to the characters on a human level and yet I had no trouble doing so. Does that say more about me or the style of writing?

  The goal of the main character, Peyote, is to make his way back out of Hell to do things over on Earth. In order to do this, he has to complete the loophole available in his job. Yes, there are not only Dante’s layers of Hell in here, but also jobs on each level. As the reader, you will experience the curious trials he encounters through his job below ground and the family he seems to be rooting for to both fail and succeed. At 402 pages you might figure that it would take a beat to get through but in reality, it was an easy flight that kept me from wanting to put it down even in my sleep.

[teaandread]

Booth

4/5 – I love a historical narrative. My main go to when it comes to genre is mystery/crime/horror but a historical narrative is my version of a palate cleanser. We all know the story of how the actor John Wilkes Booth shot President Lincoln at Ford Theater and then jumped onto the stage where it was not immediately clear that anything was actually out of the ordinary. What many are not so well aware of, is that there is much more to the Booth story than just that one moment in time.

  Although many will not care about all the details of the before, having information that has survived time from both his own hand and that of his family, makes the story that much more interesting. Booth is told through the eyes of John’s oldest sister Rosalie. From the historical standpoint, there really isn’t much known about this sister as she was considered crippled in some way and remained at home with their mother for her whole life. This is where Fowler took some poetic license to be able to tell the story in a relatable point of view. It also helps when adding fluff with fact is needed.

Several letters and diaries have survived from the other Booth siblings, as well as John Wilkes, that were used in the novel. Those words are 100% true. It is the in between moments that called for a narrator’s interruption. I found it a great read overall; it’s a great spin on how to tell history. I just thought there were certain topics that were dwelled upon a little longer than need be.

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Where the Crawdads Sing

5/5 – Although late to the party on reading this, I must say I didn't read any past reviews   and I'm very glad I didn't and got to experience it all on my own. I found this book to be  more than just words on a page to read, it is an experience. It is a feeling, a time and place in which the audience can sink into and become a part of. If you haven't yet crossed this one off your list, dive in. It’s a quick read as you will NOT want to put it  down. The flow of these words makes it easy to get through in only a few hours.

A young girl, forced to survive on her own, essentially from the age of seven,  Abandoned by her family to escape from their abusive father and then abandoned by the father. Kya learns how to survive in her swamp cabin by pure grit. She's part of a town that would rather shun her based on her forced lifestyle than help her based on her age and situation. One day though, she grows up and catches the eye of the football star. When he winds up dead, that past relationship becomes front page news and the past of her family paints the picture for the town believing her to be responsible. But what really happened that night and whose version of events is the truth?       `

“You came again, blinding my eyes like the shimmer of sun upon the sea….Your eyes  haunt my heart and it falls still.” Pg 352

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Incidents Around the House

3.5/5 – It wasn't a hard read but part of my problem was the repetition in certain responses by the narrator.

The story is written from the point of view of the child which takes a second to get used to. I think that language, more than anything, is what kind of turned me off of things. There was some repetition of details and reactions that make things a little drug out too. The reactions of other characters to the situation at hand were actually somewhat frustrating. The spectral being goes from only revealing itself to the child, to popping up for everyone everywhere.

I was disappointed in the ending. For me, I like some kind of wrap up or even a cliffhanger that kind of leaves things open for interpretation even if you're mad. I felt the ending on this was frustrating in that there wasn't really any info to go off of to allow the reader to come to a proper conclusion. Instead, the second half of the story bounced around in spurts that felt like a jerky car ride and then you kind of just had to accept that it was all possible.

“I think I should go downstairs.” “They told me to make sure you didn't do that.” “Why.” “They want you to rest. And they think you need time with a friend.” Pg 260

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Dearest

3/5 – I really wanted to give this book all the applause. It was a very quick read but at about half way through it became a very frustrating read. There is an incident early on that we don't get much closer on for why it happened to start with. You can guess that it was hallucination, but there was very little circle back.

   We hit the climax in the middle of the story when things switch from is she suffering severe PPD, to, oh well maybe  there's just evil spirits. I feel separately the options are intriguing and great for a hit read. If someone was slowly fading into madness based on being overly stressed, hallucinations sound viable. It wouldn't be the first instance, in real life, that something like that happened. On the other hand, there is the option of things being 100% supernatural in nature. We all love a good ghost mystery, a spirit that just doesn't want to let go. A haunted place or object that causes every worse fear we may have to come true.

   I think putting together two themes in this fashion, didn't bode well for the story line. Not only is it switched halfway through, the way Walters concluded things seemed extra far-fetched. Issues begin before the object is discovered yet the extend of things do not come to a head until everyone is made knowledgeable of it.

“Labor of Love: a guilt-fueled endeavor that not only feels mandatory but is also a ginormous pain in the ass.” Pg 111

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The Four Winds

4.5/5 – It got off to a bit of a slow start and I felt the story, at times, didn't flow in an even tempo. I did however, still get wrapped up in the story itself.

Elsa, the unloved and forgotten. Disowned by her family in 1921 and left with no choice but to abandon her life in Texas in 1934. The young man she had been forced to marry has left Elsa and their children to fend for themselves. A dreamer who never wanted the responsibilities that he saw as being forced upon him.

The Dust Bowl in Texas was eating away at everything; their crops, animals, health, and general will to live. After being abandoned by the man that she loved that would never love her back, Elsa like so many others before her, headed West.

Unfortunately for this threesome, California is not the welcoming place they had been led to believe, and the struggles are not over, they've only morphed into something else. The hunger remains. Hunger for food, work, money, love, and a true future.

“The four winds have blown us here, people from all across the country, to the very  edge of this great land, and now, at last, we make our stand…” Pg 426

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Sleep Tight

5/5- I couldn't put it down and even read by flashlight in the car kind of book.

From several murdered police personal, to the people you meet that don’t quite feel as though they are fully on the up and up, and those clues that are never all that they seem or you hope they will be; this book is packed with every area of jump scare and mystery that one could ask for. A double murder brought her onto this case and the kidnapping of her daughter forced her to be the one to investigate.

In order to solve the homicides, Tess must go back home and face the onslaught of memory bursts that plague her at every turn. But while some of these memories are beneficial to solving the case, others will do more to hurt than help. Will Tess find out what they all mean? Will she find her daughter in time?

Also, who doesn't enjoy a psychotic supporting cast?

“Worse, though, were the sounds. Sounds of the animals, like a kennel of demented beasts. The Lost Children had begun to gather on the Devil's Backbone.” Pg 286

J.H. Markert