Struggling author Lowen gets an offer to ghostwrite for famous Verity Crawford after an accident leaves her incapacitated. She falls for Verity‘s husband &discovers more about the family‘s tragic history. Lowen reads Verity‘s works, she comes across an autobiography. is it paranoia or is the truth stranger than fiction?
I thought K Slaughter had prepared me for all things but I was wrong. Twisted af esp for someone who writes romance. Wtf ending.

I got a new kindle case! 😍😍
🌛🌝🌜
(It‘s from TheSoGreat21 on Etsy)

I got this as a gift (book &🌮🧦) from someone I don‘t see often &we‘re not friends on socials -but it was just perfect..& he said “ya, do you like witch stuff?” And I was like 🤔 “I mean, yes, but also cuz it‘s Buffy” which he didn‘t seem to know?? maybe the cover called to him. It‘s a great cover.

& an ok story, Willow takes a walkabout. No scoobies. it‘s from the Reboot where I have no idea what is the plot, but it was good to see Willow.

Definitely ugly cried my way through the last couple chapters. This was so good. Beautiful. frustrating at times. Epic. Another side of the Greek Heroes and legends.

I don‘t know what I expected this book to be about, i just bought it because everyone was reading it. I do not know a lot about the mythology and I keep being surprised about what‘s happening 😂 it‘s captivating so far though! I‘m about 1/3 of the way in with Deidameia.

Wow! What a life! The early chapters recount her time as a “Virgin Groupie” and a Vegas Show Girl and those alone are iconic. I hated hearing about the projects that fell through because I bet they would have been awesome. Cassandra Petersen herself is very humble and unproblematic. Content Warning: stories of Child abuse, sexual assault, suicidal ideation pop up here and there. Highly recommend audio especially, because I love the voices she does

The caliber of names that get dropped are just 🤩🤩
Listening while I‘m cleaning and suddenly realized “Bobby” is Robert Deniro. (Some of these stories are 😱 but his is 👍) What a life!

I thought this was new, why did this come out in 2011?

A trio of friends, Ronke, Boo & Simi, with varied goals and personalities are upended when a friend from Simi‘s past gets added to the mix. They are enjoying the glamour that Isobel brings but it becomes clear that she likes to stir the pot. She is a pot stirrer. As the group becomes divided, they find themselves entwined in unexpected ways.

Super addictive. Unique story with a rich Anglo-Nigerian backdrop. & it will be adapted for TV this year.

I‘m really enjoying that everyone is not 25.

My 37 year old, child free & childish self is LOVING these interactions.

#JoyousJanuary #Readathon
Seeing as how it will be subzero this weekend, I figured I‘d join in. I have been slacking on starting Atomic Habits daily read and Song of Achilles keeps getting sidelined. Goals-

🥶Finish Current Reads-
📕Wahala
🎧Yours Cruelly, Elvira

🥶Read-
📕Song of Achilles
📕Cruel and Unusual
💥Willow (graphic novel)
🎧 Dracula

🥶 start Chapter A Day-
📕 Atomic Habits

❄️

🐸☕️

🦇🦇🦇
Excited to be starting this today, the beginning talks about when she‘s called “over the hill” at 30 after an audition …fast forward to still being stunning and an absolute icon at 70.
🦇🦇🦇

@Eggs #wondrouswednesday

☃️ not really, I follow a few authors and bookish accounts on IG and twitter but that‘s it
☃️100 books, and @ melanatedreader (on twitter) has a challenge #20booksbyblackwomen and I‘m on # 2. I kind of fell off on my diversity goal last year, so making a better effort out of the gate.
☃️tagged.

Thanks for the tag @DarkMina

Read the first chapter in bed while the smush watched Doctor Who. #happypubday

Also first book on the kindle I got for Christmas.

I forget Nick Offerman is this man and not Ron Swanson. I feel badly that I did not enjoy this more, I enjoy Offerman & I agree with his politics & his adventures were neat.

I think that some of the tangents might work better in audio format. Also there was less “walking outside” than anticipated.

He references events(election, COVID, 1/6/21) but the whole point in me reading a book is to escape👏from👏this👏reality👏.Not what I was looking for.

“Was” 😫 “still is”

#butwhy #catsoflitsy

I finished this today while working on my art/reading nook!

This was a fun listen. Trinity Jordan is recovering from a trauma & lives in a futuristic apartment complex. She‘s leading a quiet life, at the moment. Her neighbor suffers an emergency, & Trinity looks in on the neighbor‘s houseguest who she‘s told is recovering from a head injury himself. However she finds there is another cause of his odd behavior. 🤖
Things get 🌶 & dystopian.

#weekendreading @Andrew65

Will probably focus on Nick Offerman‘s book today 🏔 unless I actually get to goodwill/Big Lots and end up working on my office/nook renovation.

Not much left in the A.I. Who Loved Me 🤖🌶 if that doesn‘t get finished today, it will on tomorrow‘s run.

🎉 “Reading Resolutions” this year to read 100 books, and I am doing @PuddleJumper ‘s #Roll100 to clear some of the TBR and maybe start some new series.

🎉 Tagged book 📖 is in progress it‘s quite enjoyable this far.

🎉 pick a word to define 2022 - improvement. Self improvement, home improvements, trying to be better personally and professionally 🎊

#thoughtfulthursday @MoonWitch94

🐻🐻

Very informative, but dry. Does not speak much of application of Stoicism to modern society-
one quote references “spending too much time emptying one‘s bowels” along with too much drinking or copulating.

Also many essentially state, “if someone disagrees with you, who cares they‘ll be dead soon”
This is meant for you to ponder the expanse of time, and seek only you own validation. I did not find it inspiring.

Structure of the book was good.

I took this at breakfast but didn‘t get to start reading until 13 Hours later 🤣 (chocolate protein oats w/frozen blueberries)

I really enjoyed this. I used to be really into celebrity gossip in Perez‘s peak. Here in the #freebritney era that‘s not that cool anymore, but picturing Perez working on his laptop at Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf and Nicole Richie coming in to cuss him out brings me joy. He does show some remorse and regret for the bridges he burned. He presents himself as somewhat oblivious to the power he has holding. I don‘t know about that, but it was not boring.

Week 5 points- 6924

🎄#Wintergames2021 total points - 16,532
For #MistletoeManiacs

🥳🥳 Happy New Year 🎈🎆

Last book of #wintergames2021 was a full out therapy session. The first chapters start of as graphic as any K Slaughter novel, then moves in to a wonderful agnostic view of the afterlife and a case study on how people deal with grief and loss. It‘s a lot, and you‘re always wanting more for everyone. Frustrating. Realistic. Haunting. A perspective on serial killers tales, even almost 20 yrs since it‘s publish, that‘s quite unique.

…I don‘t think I could have ended up with 2 more opposite books than these two 🙈

Both audiobooks that have been in my library forever. We‘ll see if they should have stayed there…

#Roll100
Thanks @PuddleJumper ! 🥳

I enjoyed this. It equips you with tools to do battle against the constant messages society gives you about the right way to have a body, change your inner monologue and challenge the biases you may hold against others.

It‘s a fairly quick read / listen. More of a high level over view.
I am curious about the companion workbook.

#MistletoeManiacs #Wintergames2021

The 3rd Scarpetta doesn‘t disappoint.

A serial killer is targeting couples. Latest victim is the daughter of a political figure. Is it a copycat? The CIA? Scarpetta‘s worlds collide as they investigate.

It‘s from 1992. lots of driving around. Pagers. Newspapers. Asking for directions.

Cornwell must be a chef, the way she describes the food makes me hungry 😋
I Appreciate Marino‘s continued evolution.

#wintergames2021 #mistletoemaniacs

Listening to this today, before the diet culture inundation that January brings.

I was trying decide if I was internalizing things or if this book was just not for me. The start was more showmanship than substance.

2 hours in, we are on the same page as she explains that it is ok to want to change and express yourself a certain way. The key is examining if these changes enrich your life or if it‘s an external message and who stands to benefit.

I don‘t typically do cozy mysteries but this was delightful.

Holly White‘s engagement falls through but she has a warm homecoming returning to Mistletoe, ME. Until one of the locals turn up murdered at her parents‘ Christmastree Farm.

She alternates searching for clues, serving hot chocolate and playing “reindeer games”, but finds more than she asked Santa for.

🎧 narration was great but the Boston accent was more of a New Jersey thing 🤣

Week 4 points 350
#wintergames2021 #mistletoemaniacs
#averymerryreadathon #wrapitupreadathon

🎧12 Slays of Christmas - I didn‘t expect much - but it‘s a cute read, their “Reindeer games” are adorable, set in a festive Maine town.

📚 enjoying Cornwell but might “pause” that one for a winter read for #WGwordsearch points 🤔

📺/🎥 A Merry Friggin‘ Christmas was a good grown up Christmas movie if you need a break from Hallmark flicks

Very interesting, I don‘t know what to think of how “true” this true story is. What really gets me is that the family is being antagonized by a demonic presence in the house and these Amityville kids still have to go to school and eat their broccoli 🥦 as if nothing is going on 😂

Audiobook was well paced, read by Ray Porter who used an appropriate cadence and tone for the material.

#MistletoeManiacs #wintergames2021

Week 3 points- 627

I did not love anything I finished this week. The couple in progress are going well.

Lots of good 📺 and some great viewing that doesn‘t count - Spider-Man and The Witcher 🥳

A lot less points this week without wintry reads to rack up #WGwordsearch points

#wintergames2021 #mistletoemaniacs
#wrapitupreadathon #averymerryreadathon

🎄📚👻

I don‘t mind the artistic liberty taken with the Jack the Ripper murders, but it just seems to prattle away endlessly and the “tension” between the 2 MCs is inconsistent and not that appealing. I‘ve been trying to read this one since September but it wasn‘t all I‘d hoped.

#MistletoeManiacs #Wintergames2021
#averymerryreadathon
#wrapitupreadathon

The case, story, events in and of themselves are very interesting. The book details the investigation and what a terrible human the killer is in a compelling way. But I feel it was “too little too late” for the attention the book gave to the victim and her family. Pictured here is Tara Grant who deserved better.

#wintergames2021 #mistletoemaniacs

So - It took until this far in the book to have a insight of who Tara Grant was from a perspective other than her awful (murderer) husband‘s. For the first 75% of the book we have only his tainted opinion that she was inattentive, cold, a workaholic, an absent mother, a b-word. Still tragic even if she were all those things, but it does her a disservice to wait this long to briefly add the perspective of who she was from her family and friends.

🏆Week 2 points - 7,210🏆

📚 #WGwordsearch added lots of points with In a Holidaze and Snowdrift (which is not a holiday story but is Sweden in February so there was plenty of *snow*)

📺- loving Hawkeye

🎥- Holiday in Handcuffs was so preposterous 😂 Mario Lopez tho ♥️

🎧- Blood In The Snow is STILL in my ears but I think I‘ll stick with it.

#wintergames2021 #mistletoemaniacs
#averymerryreadathon #wrapitupreadathon
#anywayyoureadathon

Embla Nystrom went through a traumatic event as a teen wherein he friend went missing, taken right before her eyes, and a mob boss threatened her to keep quiet about it. She did, for some time. Now a homicide investigator, the past come back to haunt her as she works a new case.

It‘s good. The ending was a bit more tell than show and I wasn‘t as satisfied with the resolution. Characterization was great.
#wintergames2021 #mistletoemaniacs

#wintergames2021
#mistletoemaniacs

Perfect festive listen for driving back from shopping and doing the gift wrapping and stocking stuffing

Reading before getting into the days activities 🎄❄️

Checked a couple off for #ornamenthunt while watching Holiday in Handcuffs.
#sparkles #animal #gift

#AnywayYouReadathon

I have a busy weekend but the plan is to focus on audiobooks while cleaning, crafting & wrapping. Blood in the Snow is in progress but I still have about 10 hours 😬 and it hasn‘t really been grabbing me so I either need to commit or bail, A Christmas Carol will make a good background for festive chores & I‘m really looking forward to Snowdrift so that will keep me from scrolling my life away in my down time.
❄️⛄️🎄

Next up!

#wintergames2021
#mistletoemaniacs

This was fun. Don‘t overthink it 😂
A quick read, a cute romance. I did feel like the characters acted much younger than their ages. But, definitely some festive fun. 🎄(and, like, a trillion points for #WGWordsearch)

#wintergames2021
#mistletoemaniacs
#averymerryreadathon
#wrapitupreadathon

I feel like I did do this with Karin Slaughter but now I wouldn‘t have enough left 😂
Patricia Cornwell or Seanan Maguire would make for enough (and entertaining enough) material