Farm News - November 18, 2024 (a long time coming)

 

 So, I kind of fell of the face of the earth the past three months.  I did enough to keep the blog going but fell drastically behind on updates.  Now I want to play catch up.  I'm going to do a life update, hopefully a post with reading updates for August, September and October and then a few book hauls.  That's the plan so let's hope I stick to it.  Anyways, here is step one!

SEPTEMBER: This month kicked off with major repairs at the farm.  I mentioned we had to have a big job done which was having all of our plumbing replaced and redone.  Our home is 124 years old and we still had a huge cast iron septic pipe which ran from the attic to the basement.  It was cracking and finally reached the "We need to do this soon" stage.  We threw in all the other plumbing as well because we got a good deal but still, no one likes to spend a high 4 figure amount right?  Also, three days of working in my bedroom with two 100 pound dogs?  Not fun at all. Not much of note for that month although I did have fun reading lots of vampire books for #Vamptember.

OCTOBER: We were full steam ahead of festive mode.  My work bestie came in from out of town to visit for a few days and we enjoyed good food, good games and good movies.  Mr. Barb and I watched tons of horror movies as well as lots of football.  The pups had fun handing out candy and I didn't see as much of my mom as usual because she had a person quit at work and she was working insane hours. I had to go out of town for work for 2 days which always upsets the boys' schedule even though Daddy takes vacation time with them.   

NOVEMBER: The main news so far this month, at least here at Booker T's Farm is that on November 8th, Apollo turned five.  Since it fell on a Friday and we had off on Veteran's Day, we made the whole three-day weekend about him.  He had a birthday party, a giant puppy cookie, gifts, extra walks and lots of cuddling.  And of course, Zekey was right there with him. We are gearing up to celebrate our wedding anniversary soon as well as Thanksgiving.  I have managed to get half of my Christmas shopping done and even made a hand-crocheted blanket for my friend's cat, Baby.

So hopefully I will now feel like doing bi-weekly updates.  I also plan on blog hopping so more so be prepared to see me around!

Forgiven But Not Forgotten

 

TITLE: From Here to the Great Unknown: A Memoir

AUTHOR: Lisa Marie Presley, Riley Keough

PUBLISHER: Random House

PUBLISHING DATE: October 8, 2024

PAGES: 304   

SOURCE: Library

FROM GOODREADS: Born to an American myth and raised in the wilds of Graceland, Lisa Marie Presley tells her whole story for the first time in this raw, riveting, one-of-a-kind memoir faithfully completed by her daughter, Riley Keough. 

In 2022, Lisa Marie Presley asked her daughter to help finally finish her long-gestating memoir. 

A month later, Lisa Marie was dead, and the world would never know her story in her own words, never know the passionate, joyful, caring, and complicated woman that Riley loved and grieved. 

Riley got the tapes that her mother had recorded for the book, laid in her bed, and listened as Lisa Marie told story after story about smashing golf carts together in the yards of Graceland, about the unconditional love she felt from her father, about being upstairs, just the two of them. About getting dragged screaming out of the bathroom as she ran towards his body on the floor. About living in Los Angeles with her mother, getting sent to school after school, always kicked out, always in trouble. About her singular, lifelong relationship with Danny Keough, about being married to Michael Jackson, what they shared in common. About motherhood. About deep addiction. About ever-present grief. Riley knew she had to fulfill her mother’s wish to reveal these memories, incandescent and painful, to the world. 

To make her mother known. 

This extraordinary book is written in both Lisa Marie’s and Riley’s voices, a mother and daughter communicating—from this world to the one beyond—as they try to heal each other. Profoundly moving and deeply revealing, From Here to the Great Unknown is a book like no other—the last words of the only child of an American icon.

MY THOUGHTS: I have never been an Elvis fan.  I can respect that many loved him and that he was an icon, but he was before my time, and I didn't really care.  In fact, I spent one particular year really disliking him - the year he died.  That sound cold but a little backstory.  Elvis died on my mom and dad's wedding anniversary.  And my mom was HUGE fan.  And all she did all day was cry.  And I only young kid of seven years old and I was so pissed at Elvis for ruining my dad's anniversary plans. Years later, I started listening to Lisa Marie Presley's music when she started recording.  Her music was dark and angsty and everything I loved so I guess it all came full circle.  

I picked up this book wanting to know more.  I'm sure no one can imagine what it would have been like to have been Elvis' daughter and to be caught up in that crazy world.  I'm really surprised she survived as long as she did.  And when I saw Riley Keough finished the book for her, I immediately jumped on the library hold list so I could see what Lisa's childhood and life was really like.  And let's just say, it was stranger than I imagined.

Lisa Marie really had a great, loving yet short-term relationship with her father before he passed.  Her teens years were filled with chaos and self-destruction but some happy times as well.  Her adulthood was more trauma (yes, she was married to Michael Jackson and did really love him and yes, she kept her son's body at her home for over a month after he committed suicide) but after reading this, her life comes across much sadder and a lot less freakshow.  

Since this is a memoir and I don't want to rate someone's life, I will base my rating on the book itself.  I felt that the style which included Lisa Marie's POV her daughter took from recorded tapes interspersed with Riley's memories and recollections really did work.  At times the tales were choppy and didn't flow but Riley was working with what she had and what she could remember.  Overall, I flew through it pretty quickly and enjoyed learning more.  It even made me relisten to Lisa Marie's first two albums and I'm pleased to find I still consider them some of my all-time faves.

MY RATING: 5 Paws

Feed Your TBR - Another Fine Mess (Bless Your Heart #2)

 

Can't Wait Wednesday, which I have adapted to better suit my blog as "Feed Your TBR" 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.

April 15, 2025

FROM GOODREADS: Another Fine Mess is a horror novel that combines mystery, humor, and heart. It follows the Evans women, who have kept the undead from rising in their southeast Texas town for over a century. However, the dead sometimes rise too quickly. In Another Fine Mess, Lenore Evans, Luna, and the new sheriff must uncover what threatens everything they love.

WHY I CAN'T WAIT:  I know there isn't much here on the synopsis but given that it is a sequel, I'm okay with it not giving much away.  I was pleasantly shocked at how much I loved Bless Your Heart and when I saw this cover, I feel in love.  It's gonna be hard to wait so long for this one!

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

2 Bloggers 1 Series - Death Masks (The Dresden Files #5)

 

It might be a tad bit late but Stormi and I continued our series read of The Dresden Files in October.  It took me a while longer to read this one but I think it's because of other books taking priority.  Once I got into it, it did fly pretty quickly.  It just took a while for me to get into it.  So read on for my thoughts and then hop over to Storm Reads to see what Stormi thought.

TITLE: Death Masks (The Dresden Files #5)

AUTHOR: Jim Butcher

PUBLISHER: Ace

PUBLISHING DATE: August 5, 2003

PAGES: 432   

SOURCE: Library

FROM GOODREADS: Harry Dresden, Chicago's only practicing professional wizard, should be happy that business is pretty good for a change. But now he's getting more than he bargained for: 

A duel with the Red Court of Vampires' champion, who must kill Harry to end the war between vampires and wizards... 

Professional hit men using Harry for target practice... 

The missing Shroud of Turin... 

A handless and headless corpse the Chicago police need identified... 

Not to mention the return of Harry's ex-girlfriend Susan, who's still struggling with her semi-vampiric nature. And who seems to have a new man in her life. 

Some days, it just doesn't pay to get out of bed. No matter how much you're charging.

MY THOUGHTS: So, I'm now five books into this series and I think I see a pattern.  Every book opens with Harry in the middle of a catastrophe where his death is imminent.  It has to be exhausting to be Harry Dresden because I get physically tired reading about his disastrous life.

In this book Harry is continuing to rage war with the Red Court, or maybe more accurately, they are raging war with him.  They have sent a representative to town for a duel and Harry excepts, even when the odds of survival are definitely low.  In addition, Harry has been hired by a new job hired by the Knights to find the ancient Shroud of Turin.  Oh, and by the way, Harry now thinks that the big Chicago mob boss he thought he was on decent terms with has a hit on him.  

I will admit I found this book a bit hard to get into.  Although I know the Knights are an element Stormi really enjoys reading about, they aren't my favorite part of the Dresden world.  I enjoyed seeing Susan return and feel badly for the obstacles that exist that keep them apart.  I enjoyed meeting Butters, the unique character who works in the city morgue and I hope we get to see more of him in the future.  I also enjoyed learning more about the Denarians even though, dare I say it, snake-man.  Ugghh.

Like previous installments, the ending of this novel was satisfying and left just enough unresolved issues to lead into the next book.  I am glad I hopped on board to read this with series and can't wait to find out what trouble finds Harry next!

MY RATING: 4 Paws

Short but Satisfying

 

TITLE: Ushers: A Short Story

AUTHOR: Joe Hill

PUBLISHER: Amazon Original Stories

PUBLISHING DATE: November 1, 2024

PAGES: 29   

SOURCE: Kindle Unlimited

FROM GOODREADS: Martin Lorensen is a twenty-three-year-old counselor for disturbed teenagers. He’s bright, compassionate, attractive, and outgoing. He’s also—and this is the most interesting thing—not dead. Martin has improbably survived not one but two deadly disasters that claimed dozens of lives. The kid is riding one hell of a lucky streak. Two federal agents think there is something darker at play. Now that they’ve arranged to interview Martin, they want answers. Martin is ready to share everything he knows. One thing is for certain: when it comes to escaping death, luck doesn’t figure into it at all.

MY THOUGHTS: This is a short story from Amazon Originals which I was able to snag last month through a bonus First Reads choice.  I think everyone can pick it up as of today and although my review will be short given this is only a short story, I wanted to feature it on my blog.

Joe Hill is hit or miss for me.  I either love his stuff or find it just "meh."  However, I loved the horror short he did last October for Amazon Originals, The Pram, so I wanted to give this one a shot.  I will say I really loved the premise behind this one.  I think it worked great as a short story but will admit, I think I could have hopped on board for a full-length novel of this one.  Martin was a curious character and at the end, I knew where this one was headed.  Definitely one to grab if you are a Hill fan or if you just enjoy horror short stories

MY RATING: 5 PAWS

Feed Your TBR - Serial Killer Support Group

 

Can't Wait Wednesday, which I have adapted to better suit my blog as "Feed Your TBR" 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.

March 18, 2025

FROM GOODREADS: After her sister is murdered, a woman infiltrates a support group for serial killers in this biting queer feminist debut thriller, perfect for fans of The Final Girl Support Group and My Sister, the Serial Killer.

When Cyra Griffin’s younger sister is murdered by a serial killer, Cyra knows better than to expect justice from the hands of the police department. With the investigation already dying its own slow death, Cyra follows the blood trail and finds her own way forward. 

Using insider information (don’t ask) Cyra infiltrates a support group for serial killers by pretending to be one herself in the hopes of finding the person who ended her sister’s life. Proving herself to them comes at a cost, but it’s one Cyra is willing to pay in the name of revenge.

Unfortunately, the dangerous men in the group aren’t the only obstacle in Cyra’s path for vengeance, and the further Cyra descends into the deadly world of serial killers, the harder it becomes to hold on to her own humanity. 

This dark, witty debut novel is a cunning homage to women’s wrongs that will have you wondering exactly how many monsters walk unseen among us.

WHY I CAN'T WAIT:  I love books featuring serial killers and someone infiltrating a group of one sounds like it could be a lot of fun.  I also have to admit this author's first name caught my attention - such a unique one and I personally love it.

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

Pretty Drastic Noise Control Technique

 

TITLE: The Blonde Dies First

AUTHOR: Joelle Wellington

PUBLISHER: Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers

PUBLISHING DATE: July 30, 2024

PAGES: 336   

SOURCE: Library

FROM GOODREADS: A group of friends fight to choose their own fates in this trope-savvy, self-referential young adult thriller from the acclaimed author of Their Vicious Games , about a demonic force that acts according to horror movie rules in the spirit of the Scream movies. 

Devon is always being left behind by her genius twin sister, Drew. At this point, it’s a fact of life. But Devon has one last plan before Drew leaves for college a whole year early—The Best Summer Ever. After committing to the bit a little too much, the twins and their chaotic circle of friends learn why you don’t ever mess with a Ouija board if you want to actually survive the Best Summer Ever, and soon find themselves being hunted down by…a demon? 

But while there’s no mistaking the creeping, venomous figure is not from around here, their method doesn’t feel very demonic at all. In fact, it’s downright human—going after them in typical slasher movie kill order. And that means Devon, the blonde, is up first and her decade-long crush, Yaya, is the Final Girl who must kill or be killed to end the cycle. 

Devon has never liked playing by anyone else’s rules though, not even a demon's, and the longer this goes on, the more she feels Drew and Yaya slipping away from her even as she tries to help them all survive. Can they use their horror movie knowledge to flip the script and become the hunters instead of the hunted? Or will their best summer ever be their last?

MY THOUGHTS: I read this as a choice for a Facebook horror book club I belong to.  I've been interested in it for a while, but I have to admit, it wasn't what I expected, and I sort of struggled to get through it.  

Devon is trying to plan an epic summer.  School is out and her twin sister, Drew has graduated a year early.  Devon knows her brilliant sister is moving on to bigger and better things so she wants their friend group to have one last hurrah.  However, the summer starts with a party at the home of Drew's elite private school classmates.  Devon's friends don't know what to expect but attend anyways.  They expected pretentious kids, drugs and some alcohol but never planned for an encounter with a Ouija board which starts the summer off with a demonic filled fight for survival. 

I thought this book was a slasher. I mean, the cover screams slasher right?  However, the friend group is trying to navigate the tropes of a supernatural demon movie, all the time trying to survive.  This book didn't make a whole lot of sense at time.  They were trying to follow the rules of a cult famous horror movie they loved, but every twist and turn throws something in the way.  And while I appreciated the inclusiveness in the book, it also felt like the author was trying too hard to check off all the right boxes.  I didn't really care for any of the kids and the relationship drama between Drew and Devon was oversold and quickly became redundant. The ending was also a letdown and the motivation behind everything weak at best.

I think anyone who enjoys YA horror would be interested in at least giving this one a go.  I think the author did a lot of job talking about classism and provided some good social commentary, but sometimes, this gal just wants some good old slasher excitement.

MY RATING: 3 Paws