“It’s so hard to call what people are capable of. So many with dark minds live perfectly ordinary lives, holding down demanding jobs. Matthew’s learned to keep an open mind. Always.” – 3.5/5 stars!

Attention! This book contains: letters, pregnancies, elephant curtains, lemon yellow dresses, shootings, private investigators, Canada, graduation ceremonies, cathedrals, and hospital rooms.

A gripping psychological thriller from the bestselling author of I Am Watching You. The perfect family? Or the perfect lie?

It’s their daughter’s graduation and Rachel and Ed Hartley are expecting it to be one of their family’s happiest days. But when she stumbles and falls on stage during the ceremony, a beautiful moment turns to chaos: Gemma has been shot, and just like that, she’s fighting for her life.

PI Matthew Hill is one of the first on the scene. A cryptic message Gemma received earlier in the day suggests someone close to her was about to be exposed. But who? As Matthew starts to investigate, he finds more and more layers obscuring the truth. He even begins to suspect the Hartleys are hiding something big—from him and from each other.

While Gemma lies in hospital in a coma, her would-be killer is still out there. Can Matthew unravel the family’s secrets before the attacker strikes again?

The story was okay. Not a terrible thriller, not an amazing one either.
I think what kind of ruined the story for me was the fact that I saw the revelation coming from early on (not about everything, but for the most part), so I wasn’t very impressed. This is obviously not the author’s fault, but that’s why I wasn’t surprised by the events that followed.
I would really enjoy more unpredictable twists and turns for the story, instead of so much dialogue (inner, and between characters).
It was still an enjoyable read… just a little too predictable for my taste.

“She’s capable of so little yet accused of so much, and I remain torn between wanting to protect her and the urge to suspect her.” – 5/5 stars!

Attention! This book contains: wheelchairs, cliffs, murders, caretakers, strokes, and typewriters.

At seventeen, Lenora Hope
Hung her sister with a rope

Now reduced to a schoolyard chant, the Hope family murders shocked the Maine coast one bloody night in 1929. While most people assume seventeen-year-old Lenora was responsible, the police were never able to prove it. Other than her denial after the killings, she has never spoken publicly about that night, nor has she set foot outside Hope’s End, the cliffside mansion where the massacre occurred.

Stabbed her father with a knife
Took her mother’s happy life

It’s now 1983, and home-health aide Kit McDeere arrives at a decaying Hope’s End to care for Lenora after her previous nurse fled in the middle of the night. In her seventies and confined to a wheelchair, Lenora was rendered mute by a series of strokes and can only communicate with Kit by tapping out sentences on an old typewriter. One night, Lenora uses it to make a tantalizing offer—I want to tell you everything.

“It wasn’t me,” Lenora said
But she’s the only one not dead

As Kit helps Lenora write about the events leading to the Hope family massacre, it becomes clear there’s more to the tale than people know. But when new details about her predecessor’s departure come to light, Kit starts to suspect Lenora might not be telling the complete truth—and that the seemingly harmless woman in her care could be far more dangerous than she first thought.

This book was INSANEEE!
I’m fully convinced Riley Sager can’t write a bad book because… WOW, what the hell just happened? It was so difficult to put this book down because there was always something going on.
The writing is amazing! It’s crazy the number of plot twists and turns this book has. I also really liked the pacing and the creepy gothic atmosphere; it really set the tone for the story. I think it’s so interesting that this author creates stories that are so full of detail and with plenty of characters that the reader can’t trust. I can’t even fathom how authors put together books like this!
Of course, I had no idea what was going on until the very end… and I could never have predicted it!
I think for now it’s safe to say Riley Sager has become my go-to thriller author, and I can’t recommend his books enough!

“… I think for some people the purpose of a memoir is to really display the facts, to share the story exactly how it hapopened. And while I worked to make sure this story was as honest as possible, that was never the point for me. This book was never about sharing memories; it was about sharing a feeling. I don’t care what year the competition was it what dress I was actually wearing; I care about how it felt to be there; how it felt to win. And that’s why I avoided all memorabilia. It seemed like driving to the rink to take a look of finding the pictures from my childhood iPhone would tell a different story, an external story. I wanted every moment in this book to come from my own head, with all its flaws and inconsistencies.” – 3/5 stars!

Poignant and captivating, Ignatz Award winner Tillie Walden’s powerful graphic memoir, Spinning, captures what it’s like to come of age, come out, and come to terms with leaving behind everything you used to know.
It was the same every morning. Wake up, grab the ice skates, and head to the rink while the world was still dark.
Weekends were spent in glitter and tights at competitions. Perform. Smile. And do it again.
She was good. She won. And she hated it.
For ten years, figure skating was Tillie Walden’s life. She woke before dawn for morning lessons, went straight to group practice after school, and spent weekends competing at ice rinks across the state. It was a central piece of her identity, her safe haven from the stress of school, bullies, and family. But over time, as she switched schools, got into art, and fell in love with her first girlfriend, she began to question how the close-minded world of figure skating fit in with the rest of her life, and whether all the work was worth it given the reality: that she, and her friends on the figure skating team, were nowhere close to Olympic hopefuls. It all led to one question: What was the point? The more Tillie thought about it, the more Tillie realized she’d outgrown her passion–and she finally needed to find her own voice.

I was in the mood to grab a graphic novel, and this seemed really cute, so why not give it a go?
To be honest, it was just okay – it did feel a bit flat to me. I didn’t even know this was a memoir until about halfway through the book. It’s very focused on the author’s life growing up and her experience as a competitive skater (I mean, duh, it’s a memoir), but I struggled with keeping my interest in what was going on and the challenges the author was facing. I get that it was a coming-of-age kind of narrative where she is discovering herself, but it lacked… something.
Now that I’m thinking about it, it just seems like the book was unnecessarily long, with weird pacing… and a little boring. It’s not my intent to criticize the author and her life, but I think the book could have been put together in a different way, all while being true to her story.
The art was beautiful, though! And I also really liked how in the beginning of each chapter we get skater “tricks” (I don’t know what else to call them) and how to do them. That was a really nice touch!
Overall, it was just alright… I guess it just wasn’t for me.

“What is your body telling you? What thoughts are running through your head? Ignoring the alarms, numbing them by mindlessly scrolling through Instagram, or trying to drown them out with that third beer or that thirteenth episode of your favorite show will only depress the problems and make them worse down the road.” – 4.5/5 stars!

Attention! This book contains: anxiety, counseling, mental health, alarms, and listening to your own body.

Anxiety is real—but it isn’t the end of your story. Dr. John Delony knows what anxiety feels like. He’s walked that dark road himself, but he found light and hope on the other side of it. Bringing together his own journey and two decades of counseling and research, he walks you John will show you that most of what you’ve heard about anxiety is wrong. Things While mental health is complex, our culture has made anxiety into something it’s not. For the majority of people who face anxiety, the truth is simpler than we anxiety is an alarm . It’s a signal—nothing more and nothing less. Anxiety is simply our body’s way of telling us something is wrong. If we stop and listen, we can calm the alarm and move forward into healing and hope.

Dr. John never disappoints! This was a nice, quick read, full of great information on how to deal with anxiety. I really appreciated Dr. John’s perspective on the topic, and it was surprising for me to know that he has his own struggles with it – I always looked at Dr. John as a cool, calm, and collected kind of person, so it was a little unexpected!
I found this small book insightful and genuinely helpful for anyone struggling with anxiety – I just wish it had been a full-length book! It was very straight to the point, very practical-oriented advice, and without fluff.
I would definitely recommend it to readers facing the same challenge.

“Remember, you have been criticizing yourself for years and it hasn’t worked. Try approving of yourself and see what happens.” – 5/5 stars!

Louise’s key message in this powerful work “If we are willing to do the mental work, almost anything can be healed.” Louise explains how limiting beliefs and ideas are often the cause of illness, and how you can change your thinking … and improve the quality of your life! Packed with powerful information and beautiful four-color illustrations — you’ll love this gem of a book!

I honestly loved this book so much, I read it back to back twice in 2 days – pretty cool for someone who hasn’t picked a book in months, huh?
I’m familiar with Louise Hay and her work, and I have read a few books from her before, but this was the first time reading this one. If I understood correctly, it seems like this was the first book she wrote, which is very impressive.
This book spoke to my soul! Here, Louise Hay speaks about how we can heal our lives through our thoughts and beliefs. It’s not only about physical health, but improving the quality of your life in all areas. No matter what you believe in, I would say the least you can take from this book is a dose of inspiration and good energy.
I have so much love for Louise Hay, and I couldn’t be thankful enough for stumbling over her books when I need them the most. I would recommend all of her books, but if I had to pick one, definitely pick up “Mirror Work”, which is excellent!