Series Sunday: BOOKSHOTS

Series Sunday is a bookish meme hosted by Literary Marie of Precision Revision. I encourage all of my fellow book bloggers and bookhearts to play along.

• Read an installment of a series.
• Share your review/recommendation below.
• Include the title, author and series name.

My Series Sunday pick is about the new live app BOOKSHOTS. It is perfect for fellow James Patterson fans and a great companion to my bookish challenge: Keeping Up with Patterson. Read or listen to thrillers, romance and non-fiction eBooks on the go using your iPhone/Android/iPad/tablet. All eBooks are $3.99 and under 150 pages. With Patterson, a whole lot can happen in 150 pages!

No, short stories and novellas are not new. But Patterson takes it to another level with a convenient app and special features. The BOOKSHOTS app will hold your purchases in a library. Previews are free. New eBooks will be released monthly by James Patterson and other new authors. It will tide over Alex Cross, Michael Bennett and Women's Murder Club readers until the next full installment of the series. The user-friendly layout and purpose of BOOKSHOTS encourages us to read more.

Download the app and stay tuned for my review of the following BOOKSHOTS: Cross Kill, The Trial, Little Black Dress, The McCullagh Inn in Maine, Chase, and 113 Minutes.

Title: BOOKSHOTS
Author: James Patterson
Published: June 2016
Pages: Less than 150
Edition: eBook & Audiobook
Challenge: Keeping Up with Patterson
Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

 

First Lines Friday

First Lines Friday is a bookish meme hosted by Literary Marie of Precision Revision. I encourage all of my fellow book bloggers and bookhearts to play along.

• Grab your current read(s).
• Share the first line(s).
• Include the title and author.

"The thing to remember about this story is that every word is true. If I never told it to a soul, and this book did not exist, it would not cease to be true."

~ All at Sea by Decca Aitkenhead

 

The Girls in the Garden

"I'm starting to think there's something not right about this community." ~ pg. 54

No shit, Pip (squeak). Picture a communal garden square in urban London where children run in and out of other people's houses. The neighbors have known each other for years. You trust that your children are safe. But on a summer night as a neighborhood party is taking place, 12-year-old Pip discovers her 13-year-old sister Grace lying unconscious in the garden. What happened?

Before I delve further into my review, let's look at the gorgeous book cover. It would certainly catch my attention on a bookshelf. Well designed!

Now on to the book itself. I enjoyed Lisa Jewell's other novels so I assumed this would be a suspenseful page-turner with characters I could connect to. Hmmm, perhaps it was because I figured out the mystery early on, but The Girls in the Garden was meh. Pip was an okay narrator but the chapters focused on other characters were a bore. It was very slow-paced; although, the book started off with the main incident and the book was separated into "before" and "after" sections. Great layout but not-so-good content. Pass on it, bookhearts.

The Girls in the Garden was published on June 7, 2016.

Disclaimer: This book was received directly from the publisher for review purposes only. In no way does it influence my review. The opinions I have expressed are honestly my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins.

Title: The Girls in the Garden
Author: Lisa Jewell
Published: June 2016
Pages: 252
Edition: Galley
Challenge: Popsugar A Book Set in Europe
Rating: ♥♥♡

 

I Almost Forgot About You

"When every day feels the same and the needle just doesn't move?" ~ pg. 197

Dr. Georgia Young has a wonderful life—a fulfilling career as an optometrist, best girlfriends and a loving family. But she feels stuck and ready for a change. There is a greater meaning to life and Georgia intends to discover it. The first step is contacting the men she loved just to let them know she didn't forget about them; she chooses to remember.

Listen. Terry McMillan clearly took her time writing this one. I Almost Forgot About You is a story well thought out and well written. I took my time reading to appreciate every part of this grown woman story. By the last page, I was inspired to actively start a project of my own similar to the main character's. Not too many fiction books urge me to take action in this way. Kudos to the author!

I Almost Forgot About You is not a fast-paced story nor is it full of drama. Instead readers will get something more valuable: a well-told story that is relatable to any mature woman during any stage of her life. It will encourage readers to embrace change and take chances. How many times have you wondered "what if" or daydreamed about possibilities? How many times have you almost forgot about someone from your past? Let this fiction story help remind you.

Happy Pub Day, Terry McMillan! I Almost Forgot About You is available today.

Disclaimer: This book was received directly from the publisher for review purposes only. In no way does it influence my review. The opinions I have expressed are honestly my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins.

Title: I Almost Forgot About You
Author: Terry McMillan
Published: June 2016
Pages: 299
Edition: Galley
Challenge: Popsugar Book That is Published in 2016
Rating: ♥♥♥♥

 

Series Sunday: Addicted With a Twist

(Addicted #1.5) 

Series Sunday is a bookish meme hosted by Literary Marie of Precision Revision. I encourage all of my fellow book bloggers and bookhearts to play along.

• Read an installment of a series.
• Share your review/recommendation below.
• Include the title, author and series name.

My Series Sunday pick is Addicted With a Twist, the sequel to the popular novel, Addicted, by Zane. A married woman's life spirals out of control with her three affairs. Picking up three years later, Zoe and Jason are still married but slipping back into her old ways, she has a hotel rendezvous with a man called Orpheus. It appears Zoe has not overcome her sexual addiction.

"LIBERTINE—a person who has sex with no morals." ~ pg. 5

I have not read Zane in umpteen years. Though I have most of her earlier books in my personal library, her stories began to all read the same. Too predictable erotica. Too comfortable in being the current hot author. Too book production line. So I stopped reading Zane. But while browsing an online bookstore, I came across Addicted With a Twist. I never knew this book existed!

Addicted With a Twist is a super short eBook at less than 30 pages; hence why I dubbed it #1.5 in the series. It is straight to the point and a quick glance into how Zoe, her momma, Jason and Orpheus are doing. It will only take a few minutes to read so I suggest borrowing from the library.

Title: Addicted With a Twist
Author: Zane
Published: August 2014
Pages: 26
Edition: eBook
Rating: ♥♥♥

 

First Lines Friday

First Lines Friday is a bookish meme hosted by Literary Marie of Precision Revision. I encourage all of my fellow book bloggers and bookhearts to play along.

• Grab your current read(s).
• Share the first line(s).
• Include the title and author.

"Life is often amusing. Right when you honestly start to believe that you have everything figured out and under control, you get this curveball thrown at you that you can't quite maneuver your emotional well-being into the position to catch."

~ Addicted With a Twist by Zane

 

Sunday's on the Phone to Monday

"The taste of the book slept on her palate." ~ pg. 66

The once romantic bohemian couple, Claudio and Mathilde Simone, are now domesticated in New York raising three daughters and running a struggling vinyl record store. Claudio's family is Mathilde's family and vice versa. Over the years, their family bonds are tested as they face mental illness, physical illness, true origins and secrets.

Sunday's on the Phone to Monday is meant to be a family love story. Readers will see the same ties that bond a family together may tear a family apart as well. Written in an odd lyrical style, I could not get into this novel. I tried, put it down a couple times, tried again and finally pushed through. However, I should have implemented my 50-Page Rule.

Pass on it, bookhearts.

Title: Sunday's on the Phone to Monday
Author: Christine Reilly
Published: April 2016
Pages: 318
Edition: Hardcover
Rating: ♥♡