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I had mixed feelings about this one. It was super engaging and I could hardly put it down while I was reading it. But the whole explanation/plot twist at the end just didn't really work for me. I don't know what I wanted, but it wasn't what I got 😂 A soft pick. I liked it, but don't see myself rereading it later.

This one was okay. The pacing was choppy/slow, and a lot of the character motivations just didn't work for me. I also get annoyed whenever I hear the “if you don't want the government tracking/checking your every move you're obviously a criminal“ argument: it's simply not true. It was a fun concept, but the execution just didn't quite work for me.

I have a lot memories of Dad reading this one out loud to us when we were growing up, but I don't think I had read it since! It's a pretty adorable story about a group of kids who live in a little cul de sac alley neighborhood. The main story is that there is a robbery, but there are a lot of little side stories and it's all such good fun.

#Roll100 @PuddleJumper
#ReadtheUSA - New York
#ISpyBingo (Bare Feet; “Author of“) #BookSpinBingo

Finally got to my November #TravelingThrills book 😂 I thoroughly enjoyed this one. It's not super fast-paced - definitely more suspense than thriller - but I liked the MC so much that I didn't mind. The back and forth between past and present chapters felt balanced and even though there were some aspects of the grand reveal that left me scratching my head a bit (a side character's motivations/methods seemed like a bit of stretch), I'll still be ⬇

At first, I enjoyed Blair's sassy attitude, but after a while the flirting aka bickering between the two MCs began to get on my nerves. It could be because my husband and I are both super chill so I've never understood the “arguing as foreplay“ concept lol The mystery aspect didn't make a lot of sense either, which meant the entire plot began to drag around 2/3 through. It was an okay read, but one of those that I enjoyed less as I went along.

This one just wasn't for me. I've enjoyed some of Thompson's other writing - he can be brilliantly insightful and cutting, with an ability to call out hypocrisy and hold a mirror right up to your own face - but I struggled with this one, mostly just him and his attorney being out of their minds on drugs. Actually, it was great anti-drug propaganda 😂 I just kept thinking - do people do this for FUN?!😆 Anyway, it was worth the one-off read for me⬇

It's always a pleasure to return to Kate Burkholder's world, and while the 16th installment had some plot twists that stretched believability a bit, it was still enjoyable. Love the characters in this series. Kate is gritty and tough without being obnoxious (actually, she kind of reminds me of Eve Dallas of the In Death series) and Castillo always writes the Amish as real people. It's also always fun to read books set in Ohio and actually know ⬇

The husband & I have been off this week, and instead of going to FL as originally planned, we've hunkered down and had the most relaxing, chill week ever - and three days left to go!! I've been reading up a storm and have completed 6 books so far this year. None of them were mind-blowing, but since it's the beginning of the year, they check off so many challenge prompts 😂 So here's the skinny (sorry for the hosts getting tagged multiple times!):

Cannot BELIEVE I am working on a reading journal for ***2025*** That's not a real date!!!! @PuddleJumper is responsible for most of my challenges this year, although @lauredhel is also doing some work 😂 This year: #ISpyBingo #100YearsofBooks (and finishing @Librarybelle 's #192025 ), #Pantone2025 #Roll100 #GottaCatchEmAll and #BookChain

Not pictured - #ReadtheUSA #WickedWords @AsYouWish #FourFoursin25 @lauredhel #FictionalTraveler @julieclair ⬇