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The White City
The White City
Grace Hitchcock | 2019 | Fiction & Poetry, Religion, Romance
9
9.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
The Characters (3 more)
The Plot Line
True Crime Elements
Writing Style
Fantastic Debut!
I am a lover of true crime, historical fiction, suspense and romance. I mean a huge lover of all of them. So, when I saw that this was the best of all of those worlds, I was ecstatic. This is a debut novel from Grace Hitchcock and let me tell you what. The detail she includes in this story, made me feel like I was right there in the center of the World’s Fair, following these awesome characters, and reaching an ending that left me wanting another story just like it.


Winnie and Jude’s characters are wonderful! I loved them so good. The detail with which Hitchcock created the scenes that Winnie saw, and went through, and how Jude fell for her, was awesome. I felt like I became Winnie and fell for Jude instantly. Jude was a sweet soul and Winnie was absolutely full of spunk and sass!

The real life serial killer aspect woven into the story was incredible. I had no idea about that time period having someone like that, and it really made the story that much more captivating. The twists and turns of the roller coaster story, seeing Winnie going “undercover” to prove to her Police Chief father that she was right, was fantastic and had me reading this book and finishing it in a 24 hour period.

If you love historical novels, love the thrills of a great suspense story, and enjoy reading a God-filled romance book, then look no further than this 4 star debut. Ms. Hitchcock has extreme talent and is sure to be on the best sellers list before long! I sing the praises of this story loudly and can’t wait for the next book from this talented author, as well as another incredible installment in this new series from Barbour!

*I received a complimentary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing and was under no obligation to post a review, positive or negative.*
  
Charlie’s grandson has been born, and he’s delighted to be spending time with this addition to the family. But he soon begins to get drawn into another mystery. First a true crime writer wants to write about some of Charlie’s past cases. Then there’s the mysterious man in the library asking questions.

This is definitely a slower book in the series as it took a while for us to figure out exactly where the mystery might be. There is one in the book, and I enjoyed it once Charlie started investigating. As always, the characters, both new and old, shine. I loved getting to spend more time with the usual gang, and most of them get at least an appearance. We also get to see some characters from the author’s other series, which was a lot of fun.

NOTE: I received a copy of this book.

Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2018/03/book-review-claws-for-concern-by.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
  
Kneaded to Death
Kneaded to Death
Winnie Archer | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Ivy Culpepper has come back to her home town of Santa Sofia and is trying to put her life back together after her mother was killed in a hit-and-run accident. When a murder occurs outside the local bakery where Ivy is taking a baking lesson, the three sisters who own the bakery are suspected of the crime. Sure that they wouldn’t kill anyone, Ivy starts investigating on her own.

The author did such a great job with the descriptions that I could almost feel the warmth from the ovens and smell the bread baking in Yeast of Eden. The characters were true-to-life, and the mystery well thought out. This book will leave you hungry – for more of Ivy Culpepper, and for fresh baked bread!

Kneaded to Death is the first book in Winnie Archer’s new Bread Shop Mysteries series.

<i>Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced review copy</i>
  
I am 16% through this book and I am going to have to dnf (did not finish) it. I had very high hopes for this book. When I read the description I knew I needed to read it. Charles Manson has always fascinated me. I've always had a morbid obsession with true crime so I was ecstatic when I was approved for this book. Unfortunately this book just wasn't for me. I found the timeline in the book to be weird and a little hard to follow. I've only read Helter Skelter so maybe I needed to have more of a background on Charles Manson to be able to fully follow the story. The other thing that I didn't like was how graphic the details were. Lis Wiehl & Caitlin Rother have a way with putting you in the story. Unfortunately with how graphic this book was, I had to put it down.
  
The Keepers - Season 1
The Keepers - Season 1
2017 | Crime, Documentary
This was a decent, interesting yet harrowing series. It initially looked at the disappearance and then death of a young nun teacher, and another young woman within days if each other in 1960s Baltimore. Thereafter the story unfolded covering abuse in the catholic school, repressed memories and a cast of very unusual characters from the city, all of whom appear to have been involved.
While the series is interesting, and the stories being told are truly horrific, the series itself seems to get distracted and is at times all over the place. The first few episodes were quite focused, but the last 2 episodes were a frantic rush to close off aspects of the story, but a number of other avenues suddenly appeared out of nowhere, leading to quite a confusing, tiring conclusion.
One of these days there will be a true crime series on Netflix that ends with all questions answered.
  
Sinister (2012)
Sinister (2012)
2012 | Horror
8
7.1 (24 Ratings)
Movie Rating
The Suspense (1 more)
The shocks
Creepy as hell
I went in to this with no idea about it, and after I had watched it I wished I had watched it at a different time, not immediately before having to clean an empty church at 10pm....

Ellison, played by Ethan Hawke, is a true crime writer looking to write the next big hit book and moves his family into a house where a murder took place... and that is about all I'm going to say about the story.

It takes a lot to creep me out, and give me the jitters but this one did, genuinely on the edge of my seat not knowing when the next time I would be shocked, holding my breath awaiting the next moment...

The story might be standard horror movie fare, but the frights are paced perfectly to give you the high points at the right times...

If you are disappointed with normal horror films lack of horror, give this one a try.