A Thriller That I Didn't Hate - Let Me Lie

TITLE: Let Me Lie
AUTHOR: Clare Mackintosh
PUBLISHER: Berkley
PUBLISHING DATE: March 13, 2018

FROM GOODREADS: Two years ago, Tom and Caroline Johnson committed suicide, one seemingly unable to live without the other. 

Their adult daughter, Anna, is struggling to come to terms with her parents’ deaths, unable to comprehend why they chose to end their lives. Now with a young baby herself, she feels her mother’s presence keenly and is determined to find out what really happened to her parents.

But as Anna digs up the past, someone is trying to stop her. She soon learns that nothing is as it seemed.

MY THOUGHTS: I've had kind of a hit and miss relationship with thrillers for the past six months or so. I go into them wanting to love them and hearing others rave about them only to be disappointed and feel like maybe the genre is out to get me. Therefore, you can imagine I didn't have high expectations for "Let Me Lie." I also have not read any of Mackintosh's other books so I didn't really know what to expect. Imagine my surprise at ending up really enjoying this book and finding it hard to put down. 

The format of the book worked great for me. It's told in three distinct parts and each part has a cliffhanger which changes the direction for the remainder of the books. Also, it's told from three perspectives. Anna, who recently had a baby and lives with her partner Mark, Murray, a retired detective and his mentally ill wife Sarah, and an unknown party. Two years ago Anna's father committed suicide and seven months later, her mother followed the exact same path. However, now that the year anniversary is arriving, something happens which leads to Anna questioning if her parents actually committed suicide or if they were murdered.

While I didn't really like many of the characters in this book, I felt that wasn't even important. Anna was okay but I actually found her kind of annoying. Yet this didn't interfere with my reading enjoyment because man, I needed to know what was going on. I did grow quite fond of Murray and his wife. He was the grounding voice of reason in the book for me and the relationship with is mentally ill wife Sarah was truly beautiful.

It's hard to review this because I don't want to give anything away. I will warn readers, there is an act of animal cruelty against a bunny which I did not appreciate and which I feel was included for shock value. Also, there are a few surprises at the end, one of which is didn't necessarily need or agree with which is why I went with 4/5 rather than 5/5. So if you like thrillers, and even if you've been burned by them in the past like me, this might be one you want to consider reading.

I received my copy from the Penguin First to Read program in exchange for an honest review. 

RATING: 4 PAWS

April 2018 Monthly Wrap Up

Once again I read 9 items this month.  9 seems to be the magic number lately.  I didn't really get bogged down by any of my reads and I would have had 10 but I finished my buddy read of "Dread Nation" on May 2nd.  So here's what the recap looks like:

Let Me Lie: Clare Mackintosh 4/5

Fiction Can Be Murder: Becky Clark 2/5

The Vampire Within: Laura Daleo 4/5

Class Mom: Laurie Gelman 4/5

Under Dogs: Andrius Burba 5/5

The Wolves of Winter: Tyrell Johnson 4/5

Murder on Black Swan Lane: Andrea Penrose 4/5

The Atrocties: Jeremy Shipp 4/5

Taste of Wrath: Matt Wallace 5/5

My favorites of the month would have to be "Under Dogs" for obvious reasons and "Taste of Wrath."  "Let Me Lie" was my biggest surprise because it was a thriller that didn't let me down.  My least favorite was "Fiction Can Be Murder."

I also want to update my challenges even though there are progress bars to the right.

Cloak & Dagger: 13/35

What an Animal: 13/20

Swords and Stars: 10/20

Library Love: 13/24

Not too shabby!  So what did you guys read this month and what was your favorite read!

Stacking the Shelves (160)/Sunday Post - Is There an ARC Support Group?

Stacking the Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves or TBR piles, may it be physical or virtual.  This means you can include books you buy in a physical store, online, books you borrow from the library or friends, review books, gifts and of course, ebooks! The original meme was started over at Tynga's Reviews. And it now has a new co-host where individuals can link up as well - Marlene from Reading Reality.  Clicking on the book (or title) should take you to the Goodreads page.  I'm also now linking up with the Sunday Post which is hosted by Kimberly@Caffeinated Book Reviewer. 

So I received several books for review this week.  There has to be a rule about them all getting approved at the same time.  I fell in love with "Vicious Rumer" the minute I read the synopsis.  You also know I can't resist a cute dog so "Disorderly Conduct" was an obvious choice.  Both "Girl with a Gun" and "The Gaslight Stalker" are historical mysteries - one in the old West and one in London and you know how much I love Jack the Ripper tales!

I never have any luck getting approved for titles from Curiosity Quills on Netgalley but I got an email from them asking if I'd be interested in reviewing any of their new releases and when I replied, they sent me both of the ones I was interested in.  You will recognize "The One Unspoken" from my list of books I would slay zombies for and "The Coffin Maker" just sounded too awesome to pass up.

Finally I grabbed this one from the Kindle First program this month - "A Marriage in Dog Years."

So what did you add to your list this week and have you read any of these????

Weekly Reads (05/04/18)

I can't believe May is here already.  Where has the time gone?  Although I will admit that May has brought hot summer temps to my town and has left me wondering what happened to Spring.  Mr. Mike is feeling much better and is getting back into the flow of things which is good.  Thanks for all the good thoughts you guys sent his way.

So we have a busy weekend planned but I've worked in some reading time.  A elderly man who lives a block away passed away this week so Saturday afternoon we are attending his memorial service.  Also, Booker T has to go the vet tomorrow morning for his yearly shots.  Daddy is taking him and he will be seeing his girlfriend (one vet tech is obsessed with him) so it will be a fun outing for  him and I'll stay home and play with Cass.  Here are the two books I'd like to finish this weekend.  I'm about 100 pages into "Closer Than You Know" and about 300 pages into "Outpost."  I'm enjoying them both so who knows what I'll be able to accomplish.  

There are a couple of movies out which we also want to watch this weekend.  Tuesday night we watched "12 Strong."  I'm not a huge fan of "war" movies but I have to admit I enjoyed it and it was done really well. 

I've also discovered a new song I'm in love with.  It's really strange because I'm not a huge country fan and I actually thought this was a Daughtry song when I first heard it.  Imagine my surprise to find out it was Keith Urban.

 So I hope everyone out there has a wonderful weekend and upcoming week.  What are some of your plans???

Dread Nation Buddy Read Update #2

When Maria and I started the endeavor, she told me that sometimes she is a slower reader.  I read pretty fast so I was pacing myself and reading other stuff along the way.  Well, imagine my surprise when Maria told me she finished this past weekend.  Now don't worry, we still have a few more updates for you guys but I guess I could say my leading Maria into the dark side (at least for this book) was a success!

So here are some more of our thoughts and questions and make sure you hop over to Maria's blog HERE to see what I asked her!

WARNING:  This may contain SPOILERS so if you have't read the book and plan to, you might want to skip this post.

Maria:  I was struck by the fact that Jane's mom made it a point to buy up the "worst of the worst" of slaves, so as to give them a second chance on her own plantation. She would also buy up families, so that they wouldn't be separated. I really admired that about her, and was surprised that a white woman of that time would be so compassionate. What did you think of this, especially in light of a later revelation about her

Barb:  I am not sure Jane's Mom was "sold" on this whole idea of slavery.  I think it's great that she was willing to give people second chances and I personally think that by having Jane is her life, she was able to be more empathetic toward other slaves.  Of course, we can also assume she probably wasn't TOO prejudice because she did sleep with Jane's father.

Maria:  I couldn't stand Rachel, a former slave, when I read about her in Chapter 11. She hated Rachel's mother, saying that "...the missus weren't no lady afore she married the major......" and "She ain't nothing but rabble, she ain't got no class...." She also complained that Jane's mother "....wasn't doing things right. Not enough whippings, not enough discipline, too many Negroes forgetting their place." I found this woman to be such a HUGE contrast to Auntie Aggie, and the other aunties!

Barb:  This book definitely does not have a shortage of despicable people!

Maria:  Jane dreamed about Rachel the night before the fateful dinner at the mayor's house, and she thus felt this was a bad omen. Do you agree, or do you think this was just a coincidence?

Barb:  I really don't think it was an omen but I know in that day, a lot of faith was put in omens and prophecies and I think because Jane was not well accepted, she hung on to her beliefs that much more stronger.  I can fully understand why Jane felt it was an omen.  We can often find things that aren't there if we look for them hard enough.

Maria:  I think that the ongoing contrast between the ideologies of the Survivalists and the Egalitarians echoes the conflicts between the Republicans and the Democrats in our own time. So I feel the author was using this as a commentary on the differences between the two parties regarding bigotry and racial discrimination. Do you think this was intentional on her part?

Barb: Oh I definitely think this was intentional.  Follow her on Twitter - she doesn't keep her feelings  hidden much.  I think the whole book has mirrored a lot of what is going on in the world today.  However, I really do try to keep Politics out of it because I prefer reading for enjoyment :)  That being said, I think Ireland really hit in the right time to publish "Dread Nation."

Maria:  How ironic and HORRIBLE that Jane actually saved Miss Anderson's life, and that woman was not at all grateful! And Mayor Carr said that, although the Preston girls had again saved lives, he wished "they were a bit more discreet in their work." DISGUSTING. How could people behave like this in such a situation? If Jane hadn't acted as quickly as she did, Miss A would have been history! (Not that I would have minded much, lol.)

Barb:  She should have let her die.  (This is coming from the person who has no problems with characters dying in books).

Maria:  My question about the letters was answered in Chapter 16. I can't BELIEVE what an absolutely DESPICABLE person Miss Anderson is! But I was surprised that she returned the letters to Jane. I wonder why she didn't destroy them. That's what I would have expected a horrible, mean person like her to do. Why do you think she didn't destroy do that?

Barb:  Clearly Miss Anderson enjoys being a terrible person and what fun would it be if Jane never found out what she had done.  If she had destroyed them, she would have lost the pleasure she received from hurting Jane so much.

Maria:  What did you think when you read about Jackson's reaction as soon as they all got to Summerland? His escape attempt was immediately stopped by the sheriff's goons. I thought it was interesting that Jane had a calmer, more rational reaction. Do you think this is a contrast in male vs. female behavior in this type of circumstance, or instead, a contrast between two temperaments -- one cool, and the other impulsive?

Barb: I don't know that I really thought about it being a male or female thing.  I think we have seen how impulsive Jackson has been the entire book thus far so his actions were completely in character.  Jane has always been the more pensive, methodical one.

Maria:  What did you think of Jane's reaction to Katherine's disgust at the implication that they might have to work in "a house of ill repute"? This incident had some humor in it, despite the terrible situation Jane and Kate were in.

Barb:  I think Jane knew her reaction would get a rise from Katherine.  Also, given how Katherine was brought up, her reaction is certainly understandable.

So I hope you enjoyed reading our thoughts.  I should be finished with this book as you read this and I can't wait to hear how it ends.  Stormi has eluded all along that it sets up a sequel and now we know there is one.  Wonder what happens????

Can't Wait Wednesday (156)

Can't Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings to spotlight highly anticipated books.  It is based on the Waiting on Wednesday meme which used to be hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

FROM GOODREADS: SHE LOOKS LIKE ME. SHE SOUNDS LIKE ME. NOW SHE'S TRYING TO TAKE MY PLACE.

Liz Kendall wouldn't hurt a fly. She's a gentle woman devoted to bringing up her kids in the right way, no matter how hard times get.

But there's another side to Liz---one which is dark and malicious. A version of her who will do anything to get her way, no matter how extreme or violent.

And when this other side of her takes control, the consequences are devastating.

The only way Liz can save herself and her family is if she can find out where this new alter-ego has come from, and how she can stop it.

WHY I CAN'T WAIT:  I want to know all about this alter-ego, how it came to be, and how Liz is going to stop it.  Better yet, CAN she stop it?  Too many questions, just give me the book now!

WHAT BOOK CAN'T YOU WAIT FOR THIS WEEK???

TTT- No Animal Cruelty....Books I'd Slay a ZOMBIE To Get Early

The top 10 weekly meme used to be hosted by The Broke and the Bookish but starting this week, they are handing over the reins to ThatArtsyReaderGirl who can be found HERE.  Each week she will focus on lists which cover various topics related to books and reading. 

So this week's topic was actually books I'd slay a LION to get early.  Well, this is a cruelty free blog and anyways, what did that lion ever do to us?  So I'm changing it to books I'd slay ZOMBIES to get early.  On to the list!

The Outsider - Stephen King

We Sold Our Souls - Grady Hendrix (I just discovered this one this week)

The One Unspoken (The One Unspoken #1) - Sarah Bryant

Voyage of the Dogs - Greg Van Eekhout 

Sawkill Girls - Claire LeGrand

The Cabin at the End of the World - Paul Tremblay

Fury (Menagerie #3) - Rachel Vincent (LOOK AT THIS COVER!!!!)

Crusoe - Ryan Beauchesne (You knew there'd be dog books)

Echos - Alice Reeds

The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein - Kiersten White

So there you have it.  

PS - SAVE THE LIONS!