NetGalley Addicts Support Group discussion

A delightful Golden Age murder-mystery The Red House Mystery by A.A. Milne ⭐⭐⭐.5 https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Vow by Debbie Howells

I was hoping this was a funny evil story, but Long Live Evil by Sarah Rees Brennan wasn't all that evil or funny.

3 Stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Very behind on reviews, got to one from my backlog.

Stolen Angels (Detective Ellie Reeves #5) by Rita Herron



My Review - 4 Stars
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Another backlog book.

The Sweetheart Crush (Blossom Glen #3) by Miranda Liasson



My Review - 3.5 Stars
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

My review of Bella Mackie What a Way to Go

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Let's Try This Again by Jordyn Woodtke. I'm not really feeling it, but I'm not very far in yet. I'll give it a little more time...

Countdown

4.5 stars for me.
Read as a free review copy. NetGalley.
Fast paced thriller. Conspiracy theory.

My review here - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Finished listening to by Walter Hickey yesterday and found it quite insightful, check out my review here

Just finished my review of by Rosie Hewlett ; you can find my review here

Note: this book can be found under two titles: “Medea” or “The Witch of Colchis”

Celestial Monsters by Aiden Thomas

The second book of the Sunbearer duology and a worthy continuation. Worked pretty much as a YA Fantasy should.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Just finished listening to by Annah Conwell! My impressions can be found here!

Between Dragons and Their Wrath by Devin Madson
is another political fantasy... Would have made a better story if the politics weren't the main plot.

More of the people and the dragons. (And the dragons only had a few pages of stardom, but dragons are in the title).

A low 3 Stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Rosie's Little Cafe on the Riviera by Jennifer Bohnet

Friends and the Golden Age of the Sitcom by Joanna Hagan

As a FRIENDS fan, I expected far more from this.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Phoenix Keeper by S.A. MacLean

Though an adult fantasy, it was written in a YA style, with a whiny, self-centred protagonist. No surprise that it didn't work for me.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Nocturne with Gaslamps by Matthew Francis

Had great promise, but ended up mostly a dud.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Fallen Woman by Fiona McIntosh and my review.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Gods Below by Andrea Stewart

The cover is sweet and grabs your attention, but the story is not even half that good.

2 Stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Christmas Ever After by Jaimie Admans

I'm not fond of reading Christmas books too early, but this was a September release, and a Jaimie Admans book at that! As lovely as all her other works.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

"... democracy is misleading, because the Founding Fathers did not care for the word, which is nowhere to be found either in the Declaration of Independence or the US Constitution."

They actually designed an aristocracy, so it's no surprise we have The Forever War: America’s Unending Conflict with Itself. Acclaimed BBC journalist and foreign correspondent Nick Bryant writes a fascinating account of how and why we are still fighting it.
My review of The Forever War: America..."

Victory for the Sewing Factory Girls: The BRAND NEW uplifting title in the Sewing Factory Series for 2024 by Posy Lovell and my review.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Little Coffee Shop of Terrors by Hazel Graves

Not much happens that an avid reader wouldn't figure out within a few chapters, which made this boring, so I had to start skimming.

2 Stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I've read 4 very different books recently:

Book 1 A Feminist’s Guide to ADHD: How Women Can Thrive and Find Focus in a World Built for Men - a great book for females who have or suspect they may have ADHD

My 4 star review - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


Book 2 We Three Kings - a wonderful Christmas RomCom to get you in the festive mood.

My 5 star review - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


Book 3 The Woman in the Cabin - a fast paced thriller

My 4.5 star review - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...



Book 4 My 4 Star Review of The Darkest Night: 22 Winter Horror Stories

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Is there anyone whose mind John Boyne can't inhabit? In the 3rd book of his Elements Quartet, he gives us Freya, a talented burns specialist doctor, but a vengeful manipulator of the unwary. Fire is ironically chilling.
My review of FIRE

Still available on NetGalley

The Secret That Killed You

Published April 30, 2024
3.5 stars
Read as a review copy.
Nazis, Hitler, American Presidents, the Oval office, conspiracy theories and more.

My review here - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

These Deadly Games by Diana Urban

The Whisper Sister: A Novel by Jennifer S. Brown

That bland cover almost made me miss this book. Thanks to a friend's glowing 5 star review that brought it on my radar. This is one of the best historical fiction works I have read in months!
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Just finished the latest full-length thriller from Candice Fox - an outback doozy - High Wire. What a complex, dark imagination she has!
My review of High Wire

Staged by Elle Cosimano is the first of six Amazon Original Stories in the light-hearted #BusybodiesCollection featuring amateur sleuths. A body spoils this real estate agent's groomed carpet, so she starts looking for clues.
My review of Staged

These are still available until the end of October.

Kiss Don't Tell by Avril Tremayne

The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife by Anna Johnston

Deserves the hype!
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Others by Evette Davis was a disappointment. Mostly telling the story instead of showing.

2 Stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Finished this a few days ago - Maybe Next Christmas - Out 24th October 2024

My 4 Star Reveiw - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I jumped over a few (I am behind for the first time) so I could read American Rapture by CJ Leede because I heard some interesting things about it... Well... disappointing.

It was a religious lecture from the thoughts of a sixteen-year-old girl, sheltered/controlled by her religious parents with a side of a 'zombie' like B movie story. Sure, I get we as humans are losing our morals/values, and religion can breed major insanity, but sex-crazed zombies... they are not going to understand that they have to strip...

And no, it was not funny.

I did not like the MC, but the side characters had personalities. This book could have been better with a different execution and less religious rambling.

2 stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Southern Spirits by Angie Fox

I just finished The Perfect Rom-Com by Melissa Ferguson.

The genre is romance.

It's available from now until March 14, 2025.

I gave it 5/5 stars.

I would really recommend it for fans of Emily Henry.

My review:
Oh. My. Goodness. What a stand out book! It has slow-burn romance, it has a villain that you just love to hate, it has relatable main characters and it moves at the perfect pace... And the ending is the very best part!

This is a really well-written romance and I devoured it in a couple of days. I'll be honest - before I read this, I was expecting a mediocre romance. I wasn't super intrigued by the ideas. It sounded not very exciting - a book about the inner workings of publishing? Yawn!

But the way Melissa Ferguson has taken her ideas and perfectly executed them is just *chef's kiss.*

Just you wait - this is a high quality, well written romance on par with some of the most popular writers in the genre.

I will be looking forward to reading other work by this author.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Good People: Stories From the Best of Humanity by Gabriel Reilich

For those who like uplifting nonfiction anecdotes as in the 'Chicken Soup for the Soul' series.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

So happy I jumped back a few books and read Inferno's Heir by Tiffany Wang .

Even though there are those boring politics, the story isn't bogged with it!

Great story!

Now to wait for the next!

4 Stars!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Merriest Misters by Timothy Janovsky

A bit like Tim Allen's The Santa Clause movies, but with a gay couple at the helm. Could have been memorable had the couple not been so whiny.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Reunion Dinner by Jesse Q. Sutanto is the second "busybody" story in Amazon's collection of six. They are short, quirky mysteries that I read as an entertaining break between books.
My review of The Reunion Dinner

On a more serious note, I'm glad I decided to give Orbital by Samantha Harvey a try. It's on the Booker Prize short list, and I'm happy to say I can see why they chose it. I didn't read it on NetGalley, but I figure some of you may still have it.
My review of Orbital

Just finished The Christmas Eve Murders

If you love Christmassy Cosy Mysteries then this is for you - my review is here - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Rhino Keeper by Jillian Forsberg


90% readers have rated this 4 stars or more. I am in the immediate outlier range with my 2.5 stars rounded up to 3.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Rosh wrote: "Lula Dean's Little Library of Banned Books by Kirsten Miller

Read a satisfying satire after ages!
h..."

This is one highly political book! And done so well! Sith loads of humor. I LOVED IT!

Sam wrote: "This is one highly political book! And done so well! Sith loads of humor. I LOVED IT!"

Agree! Satire is the best way of countering restrictive politics smartly. Glad you loved it too! It was one heck of a book. :)

The City of Stardust by Georgia Summers

Great cover, good concept, poor execution.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Right Here Waiting for You by Rebecca Pugh

Lies We Tell Mothers by Suzy K. Quinn

The Nightward by R.S.A. Garcia could have been better

2 Stars

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...