Month: April 2019

Blog All About It | Sweet

pg 200 hgt photo b91627ff-d665-4557-8cb9-06eb04ca8221.jpg

This year, one of the Challenges I signed up for is Blog All About It, hosted by The Herd Presents. The guideline is basically a blogging prompt challenge. Each month there’s a different prompt that you can interpret as you’d like then create a blog post around it. The 2019 list of prompts can be seen here on my Challenge Page. I will be posting for this Challenge on the 2nd Saturday of each month.

 photo sweet.jpg

This month’s prompt is: SWEET

One of my favorite words!

I admit I have a sweet tooth. No that’s not true, I have several!!

My go-to favorite sweet, which also is my comfort food, is ice cream!! Preferably a sundae from Friendly’s with forbidden chocolate and chocolate chip ice cream with hot fudge, peanut butter, and marshmallow toppings and let’s not forget the sprinkles, whipped cream, and the cherry!

And talking about chocolate, I’m not very good around Halloween. Having bags of candy ready to be given out, some of the bags do not contain the entire number of pieces that is stated on the bag.

And if I am completely honest, I will never pass on dessert, be it cakes or pies.

But the greatest sweetness in my life today, are my 2 granddaughters, Lucy who will be 3 in October and Nora, who is 2 ½ months old. With the internet being both a positive and negative with some people stealing images, I won’t be posting their pictures. But know, their sweetness fills my heart!!

Friday | Friendly Fill-Ins


Hosted by McGruffy’s Reader and 15 and Meowing

This week’s Fill-Ins:

  1. I used to be able to ___________________, but I no longer can.
  2. I just can’t seem to _____________________.
  3. I’m notorious for _________.
  4. There’s no use crying over _________.

My answers:

  1. I used to be able to stay awake until the wee hours of the morning, but I no longer can.

  2. I just can’t seem to to do everything I used to do, but I think that’s just age.

  3. I’m notorious for adding books to my TBR list/pile even though I need many lifetimes to read all the ones I already have. YES!! I am a book hoarder!.

  4. There’s no use crying over trivial things, life is too short.

Review | BEFORE SHE KNEW HIM by Peter Swanson

BEFORE SHE KNEW HIM by Peter Swanson
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Published by William Morrow
Publication Date: March 5, 2019
ISBN-10: 0062838156
ISBN-13: 978-0062838155
Pages: 320
Review Copy From: Publisher
Edition: ARC TPB
My Rating: 4

Synopsis (via GR)

Catching a killer is dangerous—especially if he lives next door

Hen and her husband Lloyd have settled into a quiet life in a new house outside of Boston, Massachusetts. Hen (short for Henrietta) is an illustrator and works out of a studio nearby, and has found the right meds to control her bipolar disorder. Finally, she’s found some stability and peace.

But when they meet the neighbors next door, that calm begins to erode as she spots a familiar object displayed on the husband’s office shelf. The sports trophy looks exactly like one that went missing from the home of a young man who was killed two years ago. Hen knows because she’s long had a fascination with this unsolved murder—an obsession she doesn’t talk about anymore, but can’t fully shake either.

Could her neighbor, Matthew, be a killer? Or is this the beginning of another psychotic episode like the one she suffered back in college, when she became so consumed with proving a fellow student guilty that she ended up hurting a classmate?

The more Hen observes Matthew, the more she suspects he’s planning something truly terrifying. Yet no one will believe her. Then one night, when she comes face to face with Matthew in a dark parking lot, she realizes that he knows she’s been watching him, that she’s really on to him. And that this is the beginning of a horrifying nightmare she may not live to escape. . .

My Thoughts

Do you believe everything happens for a reason? Do you believe that people enter our lives at the exact time for a purpose? Then you can say that’s what happened when Hen and her husband had dinner with their new neighbors.

Hen is Bipolar and in the past had some psychotic breaks but today her medication has stabilized her. So when they are given a tour of the neighbor’s house, she knows that what she sees, a fencing trophy is the property of a student that was killed 2 years ago. But why would her neighbor, Matthew be in possession of it unless he had something to do with the murder. A murder that she has followed closely. But because of her past, nobody believes her that the murderer is living right next door, especially the police. And then she witnesses another murder.

Matthew knowing her history and that nobody is taking her seriously, he embarks on a truth session and tells her that he is indeed the killer and why. He also divulges about the abusive childhood that he and his brother Richard endured.

This is the first book that I read by this author but will be looking for more of his work. I enjoyed his writing style and that the suspense continued throughout the book, which made me want to keep turning the pages. The story was believable as well as the characters. And an ending that made me gasp!

If you enjoy Psychological Thrillers, pick this one up!

Purchase Links: Amazon 🔗 | Barnes & Noble 🔗 | Goodreads 🔗

REVIEW DISCLAIMER

  • This blog was founded on the premise to write honest reviews, to the best of my ability, no matter who from, where from and/or how the book was obtained, and will continue to do so, even if it is through PICT or PBP.
  • I received a copy of this book, at no charge to me, in exchange for my honest review. No items that I receive are ever sold…they are kept by me, or given to family and/or friends.
  • I do not have any affiliation with Amazon.com or Barnes & Noble. I am providing link(s) solely for visitors that may be interested in purchasing this Book/EBook.
  • Mailbox Monday

    Mailbox Monday

    According to Marcia, “Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week. Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.
    Click on title for synopsis via GoodReads.

    I was away for 2 weeks spending time with my granddaughters and these books were delivered:
    Saturday, March 16th:
    PARK AVENUE SUMMER by Renee Rosen ~ TPB from Penguin Random House via GR win
    THE MOTHER-IN-Law by Sally Hepworth ~ HC from St. Martin’s Press

    Monday:
    BY A SPIDER’S THREAD by Laura Lippman ~ TPB from Harper Collins
    Wednesday:
    CAT CHASE THE MOON by Shirley Rousseau Murphy ~ HC from Harper Collins
    Friday:
    COLD WATERS by Debbie Herbert ~ eBook from Prime

    Friday | Friendly Fill-Ins


    Hosted by McGruffy’s Reader and 15 and Meowing

    This week’s Fill-Ins:

    1. The highlight of my week is ______________________.
    2. Only _____ more days until __________________.
    3. I believe I was born to _________.
    4. Age is _________.

    My answers:

    1. The highlight of my week is celebrating our 38th wedding anniversary.

    2. Only 1 more day until the weekend, which means more time to read.

    3. I believe I was born to be a Mom and a Nana, which are my greatest joys.

    4. Age is just a number.

    Mailbox Monday

    Mailbox Monday

    According to Marcia, “Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week. Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.
    Click on title for synopsis via GoodReads.

    Wednesday:
    A STRANGER ON THE BEACH by Michelle Campbell ~ eBook from St. Martin’s Press via NetGalley
    Thursday:
    MY SISTER IS MISSING by Julia Barrett ~ eBook from RedDoor Publishing via NetGalley
    WHAT SHE NEVER SAID by Catherine Riggs ~ eBook from Thomas & Mercer via NetGalley