This was my second most anticipated release of the year, and...nope. This just did not work for me. The ending blew my mind alright, but not in a good way. While reading, I thought the rest of the book was good, not fantastic, but definitely interesting. Looking back at in light of the ending reveal though...ugh. No thanks. This story can just get itself on out of my brain now. 😑

Riley Sager announced on Instagram today the name and plot of his new book... coming out June 2023. 😁😁😁😁 Now my #1 most anticipated for next year!!

1. The entire time I was reading this I kept accidentally calling it Mudblood. 😆
2. I really enjoyed the first 80% of this. I'd give that 4⭐. Then the last 20% came along and ruined it. Awful, hopeless, depressing ending. Even though the theme is racism, I expected SOMETHING good to be shown, some clear point or hope...and there's just not. I guess the author was going for realistic, but it didn't work for me. Disappointing.

It's here!! 😁

I really want to watch the movie again now!! (Also, the ending in the movie is better. 🤷 The ending here leaves you guessing as to whether he knows... actually if I hadn't seen the movie first I would have thought he didn't...and to me, that's the best part of the whole story.) I would have rated this 4 if not for that vague ending. ⚠️ ...content warning and triggers for excessive strong language, talk of suicide, racism, brief mention of rape.

Love this. ♥️

Currently reading. I've always loved the movie, so this has been on my TBR for awhile. 57% and...OMG. 😮 So. Good.

My 30th Dean Koontz. 😁 While not one of my favorites of his, it's still very engaging. And I LOVED the character of Shepherd, a (sometimes) high functioning autistic. He really made the book for me.
(Also how do you guys like my new review pics?? I take so many pictures of the sky that I decided to use them as backgrounds. 😊)

Not a fan. For as brutal a crime as this was, it should not have been boring at all. Yet when I put it down for a few days and then picked it back up I literally had to remind myself what was going on. And now that I've finished it, it's almost like it left a bad taste in my mouth and made me question why I even read thrillers to begin with. Because there was absolutely nothing worthwhile that I felt I could take away from this. 🤷

🙌😁 My library says it's a 7 week wait. Not bad at all!!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ I have not read a book this powerful in a long time. I'm not usually drawn to poetry at all, but I loved her 2021 inauguration poem so I wanted to give this a try. SO glad I did. She deals with the heavy topics of COVID, racism, and white supremacy with words so raw and real that my heart was both broken and mended. I read this on a library ebook, then decided I needed to soak in these words some more so I bought a print copy today. ♥️

So. Much. This. ♥️♥️♥️

♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️ (Not sure why Litsy only has the Spanish version listed, but this is from Call Us What We Carry by Amanda Gorman.)

⭐⭐⭐⭐ (The 2008 BBC miniseries starring Matthew Macfadyen is 5⭐! 😍) I have loved this story since watching the miniseries but am just now getting to the book. So good!!

Also, this is the most exciting thing that's happened in this book for a while. 🤷 I'm on page 120 (after 2 months) and is it possible to be any more long-winded??

Unpopular opinion.
1. I am bored, and literally do not care who killed the man.
2. The MC being unable to pick up on social cues is one thing, but it feels like the author is deliberately making her look stupid (some of the things she doesn't pick up on are really ridiculous), and I'm not okay with that kind of thing.
🤷
Sorry but not sorry. This is not for me.

I am finally getting back into Outlander book 2 after being distracted by way too many other books. 😆 I'm at 38%. (I took this picture while on a walk at the park today. I wasn't reading anything while there, but what a lovely spot for it!!)

The octopus gets ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐. The rest of the book is a ⭐⭐⭐. (The whole book should have been from the point of view of the octopus. 🐙 Or Tova, the elderly cleaning lady. I really liked her as well.)

⭐⭐⭐⭐ Sci-fi horror done right! 👍 And I would absolutely enjoy a movie made out of this. 😁

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ I LOVED this. Creepy, mystery, lake atmosphere, plot twists everywhere. The supernatural aspect was also intriguing, not what I expected...I can't really say what it is exactly without giving anything away, but it's not usually a subject I'm good with. In this book though, it's very well done. Another win for me from my favorite thriller writer. 😁

#FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl

Starting this one tonight!! 😁 I've had it since Monday and have been counting down the days for the weekend to hurry up and get here so I can read it! 😆

(not listed yet on Litsy) ...The new Alex North novel!! Release date: Feb 28, 2023. 🤩🤩🤩

This creepy picture when you first open the book!!! 😮👏

😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁

Out of curiosity as to what monumental task I had gotten myself into by starting to read Outlander, I went count the combined page number of all nine books (per Goodreads)...8,565 😳🤯

⭐⭐⭐⭐ I was not expecting to like this book as much as I did. Plus I have no idea why because the subject matter is NOT cozy (trigger warnings for rape and attempted rape), but I felt this whole cozy atmospheric vibe going while I read...like I was wrapped up in a plaid blanket in front of a fireplace, sipping coffee while a light misty rain falls outside. 🤷

😁😁😁😁 I will literally drop every other book I'm reading the SECOND this comes in!! My most anticipated book of the year!

Someone hold my coffee while I rush to add all the remaining books of the series to my TBR. I'm invested now! 😆

😊♥️

I can't even with myself. Can we just say "nerd" and be done with it?! ??

Back to it. And I must say, this quote sums up my whole reason for finally reading Outlander. It always seemed "cozy" to me for some reason. So far, it kind of is. (Also...library downloads are so weird with page numbers. 1,869 pages?! Please!! It's hefty enough at 850! ?)

Steinbeck status: on page 28 of 600. 😆 (I'll be reading this one slowly; it's not one to be rushed. I feel like I need to chew each sentence, to fully absorb it. And that's a good feeling for me right now. 😊) I'm also highlighting passages like crazy! This is a great example of how descriptive the book is. 🌼♥️

New book and a view for my lunchtime break today. 😍

Love, love, love this. ♥️♥️♥️♥️ Honestly, I was highlighting so much in this book. 😭💔♥️😍

⭐⭐⭐⭐
So... regardless of what I said two months ago about quitting due to too much smut, I caved and finished reading it this weekend! 😆 So, SO glad I did!!!! Yes, way too much smut, but the rest of it is beautiful. Such a good story of healing from trauma and finding hope again. ♥️♥️♥️

Okay then. I'm nervous, but I've put off reading this long enough. Here I go. 😬

I was...underwhelmed here. It's okay. Just not particularly shocking or frightening in any way.

...and a promising beginning!! 👍

Starting now!! 😁

I just got an email from Goodreads...I won a copy of this book!!!! 😍😍😍

Okay-good is the best I can say here. 🤷 I liked some parts...the sobering reminder of the early days of COVID was well done, and there's the mother of all plot twists that happens at 59%. But the rest of the book is just blah to me. And I didn't like the main character at all, so that didn't help!

Goodreads has a giveaway going on for it! 🤞

🤣🤣🤣🤣

We're a third through the year already, so here are my top 5 of 2022 so far. (And 3 from the ACOTAR series made it!! Lol 😂)

⭐⭐⭐⭐
(Book 10 of 2022)

Intensity x1,000
? You REALLY want to believe she's being set up but MAN does she look crazy!! ? This was a wild ride of guessing. I did eventually guess part of the ending but the author threw in an explanation for it that I was NOT expecting, because I've never seen it done in a thriller. It works though and gives you something to chew on afterwards like "hm, what if??"

?: IG, bookedanbusy