Dad's first reads 2021

My Dad has already read almost 10 books but I only have notes so far to 5 of them. I'm excited for the next batch because I gave him a few translated mysteries from other countries and that's always fun...for me. Anyways, on to the list!

 The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley 3.5/5 this book is told in the perspective of an 11 year Fluvia. Dad thought that the kid nerration explained it all meticulously, that it was very smart and realistic. He thought the mystery was good, suspenseful toward end, and he really enjoyed that you learned the story more  as she learned and figured it out.

Killing with Confetti by Peter Lovesy 4.5/5  He said "and I quote, "through a big fucking wrench into me... that ending." He really thought it was good, that it had started out slightly confusing but unfolded well and he loved it.

Good Girls Lie by J. T Ellison 4/5 Basically Dad's usual descriptions for books. was different, kept in suspense, mystery off the start then near middle you figure out what's going on, past and present povs, better written, etc... He still makes me want to read it. 😝

I See You by Clare MacKintosh 4/5 Once again his usual but he told me I should just read this one, so that must mean it was pretty nifty. enjoyed it, liked how it came together and surprised at ending, keep guessing over culprit, accessory and victims until very end

Highway of Tears by Jessica McDiarmid 4/5 Dad also really like this true crime book he found it very informative, although a little dry in places hence to 4 not 5 star. My dad was also quite pissed by the end of book and I'm pretty sure that's the point. Racism against indigenous peoples in North America is extremely rampant, and it's hard to catch onto sometimes especially if you're white, which is why books like this is so important. Let's learn and do better, my father was furious and learnt a lot. Definitely recommend.

The Pisces Book Review

 The Pisces by Melissa Broder

Um, 2 stars? I think, maybe? 

Pretty much my reactions when reading this book, 

"Um weird"

"Fucking rude"

"Ok, hold the phone"

"wth"

"wtf"

"OMFG"

This book is a ride from start to finish, it's about Lucy a 38 year old woman having a crisis over her breakup with long term boyfriend and thesis, because she's pretty much breaking up with both the boyfriend and the thesis. She is unapologetic for being the biggest asshole and most self centered person on the planet while also I pity her because she's obviously struggling with severe mental health issues and extreme depression. As someone who struggles with poor mental health I don't think that gives people a right to be an asshole and disrespect others. Lucy is slightly redeemable and i have hope for her future self after the book ends, but honestly just ugh. 

So this book was marketed to me as 'merman erotica' and it did have fishy sex, but it is not erotica because I was disgusted by every sex scene in this book. It's either disappointing, gross or both. Theo was also an unhealthy mother fucker, who toyed with Lucy that I felt like she was getting brainwashed by him. Jeez, giver the girl a healthy relationship. 

Honestly, at one point in the book our mc Lucy just pretty spirals down into non-existence and makes terrible decisions with REAL consequences, which she seemed to learn from but it was a little late. I don't want to spoil this book if you decide to read it, if you need spoilers hit me up on my instagram @booksontuesday

I did give this the 2 stars because I do think it showed how mental health affects us, and how we can become so obsessed with ourselves that we become out of control. And honestly I think maybe that's part of the point of the book but also by 3/4's of my way through it I only finished it because I craved closure from the story. And I NEEDED, not wanted, to write this review to let my very complicated feelings out which also means that maybe this is a good book? Because I can't stop thinking about it... 

Or maybe it's so bad that it's going to haunt me for the rest of my life.

I need a stiff drink. 

May the odds be ever in your favour.

Also putting the trigger warnings slightly down because they often spoil parts of the story, read at your own will.

#thepisces #thepiscesbookreview #melissabroder 

Otherwise the trigger warnings are animal abuse/death, graphic sex, depression, suicide and talk of suicide

My Most Anticipated books 2021

• In the Ravenous Dark by Strickland
• The Project by Summers
• Gilded Serpent by Jensen
• Blade of Secrets by Levenseller
• Daughter of Sparta by Andrews
• Six Crimson Cranes by Lim
• Lost in the Deep Dark Woods by Thomas
• Bridge of Souls by Schwab
• Crown of Gilded Bones by Armentrout
• Ariadne by Saint

This is a very short list but I want all these so much!!!! 

Top 2020 reads

 My List

• Mooncakes
• 
  The Shadows Between Us
• The Black Witch and Iron Flower
• From Blood and Ash
• Dark Shores and Dark Skies
• This is How You Lose the Time War
• The Song of Achilles
• My Dark Vanessa
• Fable
• Mexican Gothic
• Queen of Nothing
• Watch Over Me
• Spoiler Alert

My Dad's List

• Hunting Whitey
• The Last Time I Lied
• The Guest List
• Murder in the Crooked House
• Hunted
• In the Cold Dark Ground
  

Man it was a great reading year! Tell me your favorite book that you read in 2020?

Dad Reads Winter Edition 2

Once again I have no strenght or will power to make my notes coherent, nobody reads my blog anyways 😩 so here are my dads thoughts on books he read at the end of November and throughout December.

 Wrong Alibi by Christina Dodd 3.5/5 well written, in some suspense, slightly dragged out, good mystery tag line "what goes around comes around"

Confessions on the 7:45 by Lisa Unger 3.5/5 pretty good, kept wondering, you just have to read it to know

The Residence by Andrew Pyper 3/5 a little fucked up "it was," ending didn't make much sense, one extreme to another different level, maybe would read his other books 

Watching from the Dark by Gytha Lodge 3.5/5 drawn out, was ok, past and present perspectives and had him stumped

The Last Thing to Burn  by Will Dean 4.5/5 well written, thriller suspense mystery and a bit of a mind fuck, really stood out from other novels

Once again some of these are arcs and aren't released yet. Keep your eyes open for them, there's definitely a few I really want to read.

December 2020 reads

 Holy crap, why can't I read this many books in one month all the time? Because sleep, slumps and honestly probably just those two reasons.....

Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo 4/5 So I finally read and finished Ninnth House, honestly maybe it's more of a 3 stars but it was really boring. I love supernatural mystery so I thought for sure I would love this. I didn't love it, and my favorite character was Darlington and if you've read it well you know. The twist was out of left field there was no real buildup and I wouldn't have guessed and now I'm left with a very unsatisfying story but I'll probably still read the next one.

Strangelands vol 1 5/5 This is a great graphic novel and I would love to keep reading more of this series. It's got great potential, plus it's indigenous ownvoices with one of the creaters at least, Little Badger who recently released Elatsoe which I'm looking forward to reading as well.

Snow Day by Julie Lipson 4/5 This audiobook is short, sweet and cute. It' was really well done, I was impressed.

Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco 4/5 sigh I wanted this to be 5 stars so badly and I loved the romantic relationship aka banter, because it's not really a relationship....yet....? Anyways, it's really interesting and I'm really intrigued to read the next one but the pacing was really off. Like really, really off, it takes place over weeks, or months I guess? I don't even know, but our main character was lacking a bit, I'd rather have read from the other twins life, ours is a bit boring and plain and slow to take action. I think I would have understood her bad decisions more if she hadn't literally had long periods of time to think about things. 

A Stolen Life by Jaycee Dugard I really hesitate to rate this book because it's literally a memoir written by a woman who was kidnapped and kept in captivity for over 20 years. It was heartbreaking and beautiful and I can't believe Jaycee Dugard had any hope and survived this trauma. I hope for the best for her, her story is important and inspiring, if Jaycee Dugard can survive under her circumstances I can handle the shit show of 2020.

The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley 5/5 I know that some aspects of this story were predictable but I loved it. It was atmospheric, and I was fascinated by the how of these characters connecting.

Instant Karma by Marissa Meyer 5/5 This was so cute, I'm still crying. It follows a stereotypical ya rom-com plot but with sea rescue and learning and character growth and um, ya. I just loved it, I didn't think I would especially because I didn't like the main charcter but I read it in one night. Highly recommend.

Hunting Whitey by Casey Sherman 4/5 This true crime book follows mob boss Whitey Bulger after he goes on the run as an old man. It also covers the last bit of his life while he was in prison. I enjoyed this book, it was well written and was kind of fascinating to get a glimspe into this man's life. He was racist, and homophopic and well a murderer but also there was a lot of grey area to his life. He was extremely loyal, loved animals and became a type of father figure to many people. Anyways it's prettty messed up, highly recommend. Also just a side note, the poor police.

The Guest List by Lucy Foley 4/5 This was basically the Hutning Party but more predictable and I still loved it.

One by One by Ruth Ware 3/5 Um, this was very easy to see through and honestly kind of annoying. IT was fun though, I liked it enough for 3 stars I guess.

The Girl From Widow Hills by Megan Miranda 3/5 I liked this one too but also it didn't have any ooumph for me. 

The Viscount Who Loved me by Julia Quinn I fell into the Bridgerton hole as soon as I saw the show. I skipped the first book becuase it pretty much follows the first season and I didn't need to relieve Daphne. Anthony did not disapoint and this is probably my favorite.

An Offer from a Gentleman by Julia Quinn cute

Romancing Mr. Bridgerton by Julia Quinn my other favorite in the series.

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson 4/5 I wasn't expecting this to be as good as it was but it was really fricking good. Highly recommend.

Living-Room Matsunaga-kun vol 5 4/5 Just a cute rom-com with questionable age gap roamnce but I don't care because I'm 29 and trash.

Dad Reads Winter Edition 1

Alright in my usual or less usual fashion, my dad is a man of few words and so here are my notes, because I've been working on being behind on blog posts for a few months now. 😓 So here y'all go! 

Lake Crescent by J. J. Dupuis 3.5/5 screwed him up, kept intrigue up and well written but slightly drawn out

The Rope by Alex Tresniowski dnf'd boring and couldn't get into it

The Day She Died by S.M Freedman 4/5 it fucked him up, you'd have to read to understand, wild ride

Unspeakable Acts  curated by Sarah Weinman 3/5 some of it very good, some not so much

The Woman Outside my Door by Rachel Ryan 4/5 well written, kept him guessing, good story

The Drowning Kind  by Jennifer MCMahon 4/5 kept in suspense, kept guessing, but supernatural aspect to it

Although he mostly enjoyed all these books, nothing super stood out to him during this reading selection.

Also to be noted, my dad reads tons of arcs because none of my coworkers seem to read much in terms of mystery. So some of these aren't released yet.

Murder at Brightwell by Ashley Weaver Review

 4/5 stars

I recieved an eARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Although I did recieve an arc, I also thought it would be a good audiobook, and guess what it was! I read this using both my digital copy and the audio and it was perfect. Murder at the Brightwell follows Amory Ames, the wife of a wealthy man. She is struggling in her marriage and is completely unsure about what to do about it so she ends up following an old flame to the seaside to help him convince his sister that she's marrying a rake. Instead of convincing the sister not to marry a rake, she ends up sleuthing to find out who commited murder. I'm not going to say much more just because I really don't want to spoil anything.

I loved this book, it was a lot of fun, I loved our main character and honestly there's not much I can say about it. Just I really liked it, it was a bit slow moving pacing but it started picking it up and I loved it. If you like cozy, historical mysteries, this is a perfect book for you!