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Sealed Off (A Maine Clambake Mystery, #8)
Sealed Off (A Maine Clambake Mystery, #8)
Barbara Ross | 2019 | Mystery
10
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Fall Brings Mysteries for Julia
The clambake that Julia Snowden and her family run on their family’s island is just running on weekends through Columbus Day. Unfortunately, tension among the staff seems to be reaching the boiling point. Romances among the staff have been causing issues all season, but Julia was hoping they could make it until the end of the season, and those issues would resolve themselves before the clambake starts up again in the spring. A fist fight as the guests and crew were leaving one days brings things to a head, and leaves Julia in the unfortunate position of firing her boyfriend’s brother. However, a dead body on the island the next morning only makes the situation worse.

There is a strong sub-plot, almost a second full mystery, in this book involving a room that has been sealed off since the 1890’s in the family mansion on the island. Between the two stories, this book moves forward at a constant pace, and the pages flew by. I never wanted to put the book down until I reached the satisfying end. Once again, I was left in awe of how the clues were woven into the story. Several series arcs were advanced here, and the chances for character development were put to full use. The new characters are just as strong as the series regulars, which is no surprise to anyone who has read the series. Those looking for recipes will be pleased with the five we get at the end of the story. There is not one wasted word in this story, and I set it down completely satisfied. Well, almost satisfied. As is always the case, I was left wanting to visit Julia and her family and friends again as soon as possible. Fans of the series will be delighted with this book. If you haven’t started this series yet, you need to fix that as soon as possible.
  
Brahms: The Boy II (2020)
Brahms: The Boy II (2020)
2020 | Horror
401. Brahms: The Boy II. What little kid doesn't want a creepy doll? Mom, Liza, and son, Jude are hanging out at home one night and they get attacked and robbed in their home in a very PG undramatic scene. Jude suffers from PTSD and doesn't say a word afterwards, and Liza gets the nightmares, so hubby Sean and Liza decide the best thing to do is get away from it all and vacation at a completely secluded guesthouse of a completely empty creepy mansion! Fun! Oh, and there's a creepy groundskeeper walking around with a shotgun and a big ol mean dog! Nice! Out of the many activities that they can do on this vacation like, looking at the woods, admiring the woods, or exploring the woods, they decide to take a walk in the woods. And this is when Jude discovers a hand sticking up out of the dirt, and he uncovers...a dirty old extremely creepy looking doll, and he obvi falls in love, and names it Brahms, well, that is the name Brahms told him to call him. Mom and Dad are like, eww gross, but it makes him happy, let's take it home clean it up! Within a short time, Jude starts turning around, while Liza thinks the doll is alive causing mischief, cause it can't be Jude doing these things. What to do, what to do... Internet investigation montage scene to recap Part I, give a little more backstory of course. It's not a great movie, honestly it felt they were going to go one way with it, felt rushed then went with a different route, it wasn't a terrible way to go, just felt they changed gears all of sudden. I liked it, i do like bad horror movies, add a creepy doll, makes it better. I personally now want a Chucky Vs. Chucky movie! Filmbufftim on FB
  
John Phillips (John the Wolfking of L.A.) by John Phillips
John Phillips (John the Wolfking of L.A.) by John Phillips
1970 | Folk, Rock, Singer-Songwriter
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"So the The Wolf King Of L.A. and There's A Riot Goin' On were both recorded in the same studio. John Phillips bought Jeanette McDonald, a Hollywood actress, a mansion in Bel Air. And he illegally built a studio in the attic, which was huge. I guess there were building restrictions, but he just wanted to build a recording studio in there. He recorded the album in that place. Now coming on to the transcendent, joyous, pop glory of The Mamas & The Papas, The Wolf King Of L.A. is a very strange album. I think John was hanging out with Gram Parsons and as a result, the record is a country-soul-pop album. In The Mamas & The Papas, he was writing for a pop audience and I guess that was a message to Michelle Phillips because they're both adulterers, I think. John would write a song and get Denny Doherty to sing it because he knew he was having an affair with his wife. John was quite a dark guy! They were very personal songs, but also universal because he was writing for a pop audience. But with Wolf King, he went solo. Phillips became deeply addicted to heroin, coke and everything else. He was a very advanced drug addict. Wolf King Of L.A. is a very soulful album. John wrote and arranged the songs for The Mamas & The Papas but his voice was hidden in the mix as Denny and Michelle had incredible voices. But on this album, it's just his voice. And I believe that the session musicians were Phil Spector's Wrecking Crew and are the same guys who played on The Mamas & The Papas records. They loved John Phillips and thought he was a fucking great guy. It's one of those records I haven't stopped playing for 30 years and a great document of rock and LA culture in the late '60s. It's also got a great cover with John wearing a top hat standing on Malibu beach with the sun setting looking absolutely wasted."

Source
  
The Wife Who Knew Too Much
The Wife Who Knew Too Much
Michele Campbell | 2020 | Thriller
7
8.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Wild thriller that keeps you on your toes!
Tabby Girard hasn't seen Connor Ford for thirteen years, since he broke her heart as a teen. Back then he was the handsome rich kid whom she fell in love with while working at his country club. But she wasn't good enough for the Ford family, especially Connor's grandmother. Tabby quickly learns Connor is richer than ever now. He's married to Nina Levitt, a wealthy and famous woman twenty years his senior. He married for money, not love, he tells Tabby, and he's miserable. He portrays Nina as a controlling and jealous wife. But if he cheats on Nina and leaves her, their prenup dictates that Connor receives nothing. Then Nina is found dead in the pool at Windswept, her Southampton mansion, where she had just thrown her annual fourth of July party. It seems like Tabby and Connor can finally be together. But Tabby quickly grows suspicious. Was Nina's death really a suicide? And if not, does that mean she's in love with a murderer?

"I'm writing this to raise an alarm in the event of my untimely death. This is hard to admit, even to myself, let alone to the world. My husband is planning to kill me. For obvious reasons. He's in love with someone else. And he wants my money."

It's funny, the writing in this book felt simple and stilted at times. However, I cannot deny that this is a thrilling read. It's fast-paced, and I flew through the pages. Campbell kept me guessing--something that isn't always easy to do--and offered some excellent twists. Kudos to her there. Alternating perspectives between Connor and Tabby works well, as does throwing in some flashbacks from Nina. It all adds up to a very suspenseful, slightly crazy, and quite enjoyable thriller.

Best written book? No. Wild and crazy ride with lots of surprises? Yes. (And also, make better life choices, Tabby.) 3.75 stars.
  
The Monster of Farewell (Blacklighters #1)
The Monster of Farewell (Blacklighters #1)
Catherine Black | 2019 | Fiction & Poetry
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Kickass females!
Contains spoilers, click to show
Mercury Havenworth
My mother always told me I had nothing. No place in civilized society. No moral compass. No soul...
But despite all my shortcomings, there is one thing I do have: Farewell. It's my home. My sanctuary and birthright. It's everything to me, and one day soon, I will oversee this feral matriarchy which gave me life.
The men who step through our gates see a crumbling mansion, they see a handful of women willing to bleed for a cause, but Farewell is so much more than that.
It's an empire.
MY empire.

Kessler Lawson
After eight years of incarceration, I'm a free man...for approximately two hours.
That's how long it takes to ruin my life.
Wedged between freedom and the officer who put me behind bars in the first place, I'm given a choice: Help the New Liberty Police Department infiltrate a band of criminals ruling over Farewell, Missouri...or score a one-way ticket back to prison.
With enemies on both sides, falling into bed with the boss's murderous daughter probably isn't the best idea, but there's no going back now...not after undressing the monster of Farewell.

(Warning: This book includes dark themes, offensive language, and explicit scenes that may make some readers uncomfortable. Read with caution.)

<strong>Very good</strong>

I don't know what one as expecting but I really really enjoyed it. The whole women kicking ass and the men do the "woman's work" was brilliant . The book was so well written it had a touch of violence but not to the point of being over the top, it had seriously hot sex scenes , strong female roles as well as some strong male characters it was well balanced read!

Watching Mercury develop through the book was empowering in a way. If I had one thing I thought could have bee better maybe the end not so rushed.


Highly recommend