I am fascinated by cults. The disregard for basic human rights under the pretext of the church of Scientology is jaw-dropping. The narrator of the audiobook is very easy to listen to (although at times she seems a bit too chipper considering the negative experiences she is describing).

Super boring. I listened to this on audio, and it didn‘t help that it was read by the author, who sounded like an apathetic teenager who was called on to read out loud in class. She sounded like she would rather be doing almost anything else besides read her book.

I highly recommend this audiobook! The book is written in a documentary/interview style with multiple POVs from various band members from a 70‘s (fictional, although you would swear they were real) rock band. There are 10 plus narrators reading this, so each band member has a unique voice. It is SO well done!!

There are plenty of reviews out there for this story, but I want to plug the audiobook. If you have any interest in reading this book, I highly recommend listening to it on audio. They could not have picked a better narrator than Dion Graham. He is amazing, and he is absolutely believable as the main character. I feel like his voice elevated this story so much!

A touching family story, that happens to be a western with a kick-ass female protagonist.

This book is perfect. It‘s haunting and encouraging at the same time. What a beautifully told story.

This book is really, really good. The writing is excellent. The main character is deplorable and I was continually shocked at his behavior. One of my favorites this year, for sure!

This is a western set in Texas in the 1800‘s that has a Lonesome-Dove feel to it (without the heft, or the love story, or the cattle drive...ok, maybe they aren‘t that alike!) When I read in the acknowledgements that Robert Duvall read an early copy and championed the book, I thought that seemed fitting. I really enjoyed this read.

Good psychological thriller with twists and reveals that keep you guessing. Set in Vail, CO and Nashville, TN (which is close to where I live so that‘s always fun.) A teenage girl who is a world-champion skier has an accident which precipitates a cascade of events that no one saw coming. And I loved the dog 😁🐶

I could not put this book down. I just loved it. It‘s a family saga that begins with a tragedy and just keeps on going in a way that makes you wonder how they do it. Somehow I missed Lightkeepers, but it‘s now on my TBR.

A teenage boy is pretty sure that his 10 year old sister is a psychopath, and he is trying to navigate his own coming of age while keeping her from hurting others. While the premise is disturbing, this is not a scary book. But it was a good read.

This is a beautiful family saga told from multiple perspectives and stems from a tragic event. The various storylines at first seem unrelated, and then slowly start to enter-twine and build off each other. I loved each storyline and could not get enough. A plus for me is that part of the story takes place in Washington state, from where I recently moved and am deeply homesick for.

Interesting supernatural spin on a horrific true story. The author makes you feel like you are along on the wagon trail (not that anyone would want to be on this one! 😬) Great mix of characters, most of which are based on real people. I‘m not usually into supernatural elements, but this one was almost believable. After reading this, I had to read up on the Donner Party...yikes!

I was not blown away by this, although I know that I‘m in the minority. I think the concept is intriguing and relevant, however, I found it kind of ho-hum 😕 Maybe it was due to lackluster main characters 🤷‍♀️

This was a funny, snarky book told from the perspective of a disgruntled man whose wife recently left him. When he has to return to his hometown to see his dying grandfather, he re-opens old wounds and his eyes are opened to funny/troubling details about his family. The narrator is sarcastic and witty, which I appreciate. Fun summer read.

This is a YA book about a teenage girl who escapes an isolated religious cult in the woods only to land in prison (that happens right at the beginning) where she learns about the “real world”. You then start to learn about her life in The Community and what led to her arrest. Goodreads says it is based in a Grimm fairytale called the Handless Maiden, but I have never heard of that. Entertaining read.

The narrator of this book has a funny, quirky voice, but she has zero personality. I gave it until 150 pages but I got tired of all the mundane details...and nothing had actually happened yet. I hate to give up, but I can not power through this 😕

This is a sweet story set in the late 1800‘s as an Army colonel leads an expedition through uncharted territory in Alaska, reluctantly leaving his new wife behind. It is told through journal entries and letters with intermittently dispersed pictures (I felt like a giddy kid reading a picture book whenever I saw one😊) It also has a touch of a supernatural element to it in the vein of Native American folklore. I‘m glad I read this.

Another fun domestic thriller by Clare Mackintosh! It took awhile to build up the suspense, but there were plenty of plot twists to get my heart racing. And the detective‘s storyline was so sweet...

Randomly, 3 days after finishing this book, I found out that the author was doing an appearance at my local library! She was great 😊

I was totally engrossed in this book. It follows the lives of 4 girls who met at camp as kids where they endured a traumatic event, and then skips ahead to when they are young adults. It reads almost like four separate stories that all spin off from one event. My only complaint is that it was too short...I wanted to know more about them!

I adored this book. It will surely be one of my top books for the year. I feel like I have been to Alaska now after reading this and it was beautiful! There is a strong theme of abuse in this book, but the strength and resiliency that it builds in the victims is encouraging. This is a great read! Now I want to read The Nightingale...

This is a beautiful, layered story of two young, black newlyweds who suddenly have to deal the the husbands‘ wrongful incarceration. It starts off being told as a narrative from alternating perspectives. Then switches to the letters that they write back and forth to each other while he is in jail. It is heartbreaking, yet sweet. It‘s a definite pick!

I really enjoyed this unique, thought-provoking, yet entertaining book. At the beginning, 4 young siblings visit a fortune teller who tells them each the day they will die. Then it fast forwards to their adulthood with a section of the book devoted to each sibling and how they chose to live their life. Like the description says: “Is it better to live a long and cautious life, or to burn brightly, but for the shortest time?”

This is wonderful novel about the fortitude and resiliency of three women living through brutal times in Germany during WWII. The instinct to persevere and protect your children at all costs is displayed through these women and I admire them all. Each of these women is so different, and they come from completely different backgrounds, but the bond they share is heartwarming. Great read!!

Although I should have been prepared from the description of the story (and the title), but this book was pretty depressing. There are a lot of children in it that shitty things happen to. The story was well-told and quickly paced right off the bat and ultimately I did like it, but I had to sit and gather my thoughts afterwards...and hug my kids tightly. No one should ever have to experience the horror of a missing child.

I just love multigenerational family sagas, and this one was beautiful. I also learned about the history of the racial tensions between the Koreans and the Japanese without feeling like the author was being biased. As a bonus, it was a timely read since the Olympics are currently taking place in Korea and Pyeongchang was mentioned several times.

Good psychological thriller! The entire book takes place in the home of an agoraphobic, and her days are pretty monotonous. But the drama that finds her (and that she witnesses through her windows) keeps it interesting. Once I finished this, I had to get my beating heart to settle back down before I could fall asleep.

I almost bailed up to about the half way point because I didn‘t care about any of the characters and I was annoyed with them. But once it started picking up some steam, I was hooked and I flew through to the end. I did not have this one figured out.

Wow. SO. GOOD. This is one of the best books I have ever read. This was my first read of 2018, and now I have a book hangover. It was over 900 pages and I wish it had been longer! I may just have to complete the series.

Also, the world needs more men like Gus McCrae 🤠❤️🐂🐖🐎🌵

This was between a pick and a so-so for me. I‘ve heard so many great things about Louise Penny and I was really looking forward to starting this series. This book was a bit too predictable for me, but I still enjoyed it...enough to continue with the series and try the next one.

The was my first Karin Slaughter novel and I loved it. I‘m not huge on police procedurals (I prefer to read more about the criminals and the victims) so this one was right up my ally. The description of the crimes were pretty intense though...

Now I need to figure out which book of hers to read next 😁

Fast-paced, suspenseful, great characters and a little bit of supranatural on the side.

I️ just love this author. I️ heard an interview with her on a podcast (I️ forget which one) and it made me love her even more. This book is entertaining and heartbreaking at the same time. It reads somewhat like a YA novel since it is essentially about teenagers, but the storylines and struggles are not unique to young adults. I️ highly recommend this one!

I‘m trying to ease my way into Stephen King without jumping straight to the horror. This was a good, straightforward detective novel. It was only creepy in the way that certain people just creep you out. Not scary at all. I liked the grouping of unlikely characters, but I‘m not sure I liked them enough to read the rest of the trilogy.

My heart is already racing watching my Astros play game 7 trying to get to the World Series, so I figured I would read a little Stephen King.

I found it hard to care about either of these girls, and I kept waiting for something to actually happen. At least it was a quick read.

This book was so beautiful. It follows Cyril from his conception to old age in 7 year increments, set mainly in Ireland, Amsterdam and New York. Although I found him a bit too passive, his plight is real. So far this is my favorite read of 2017. ❤️💔❤️

This book gave my physical symptoms of anxiety. That has never happened to me before. I read this in two sittings and lost sleep over it. It‘s just so disturbing! Holy cow.

This is a great thriller! The concept is crazy...a remote town is populated by criminals whose memories have been erased. So no one knows what they did to deserve being sent there. And of course, chaos ensues...

If you read a description of this book, you'll think, "what?!..." Yet it's totally entertaining and compelling somehow. It's simultaneously funny and scary (in the way that too much technology can be scary...not creepy clowns).

I have been coveting this bumper sticker ever since I saw it on a car in a parking lot...and I randomly found it this weekend at bookstore in Walla Walla! Woo hoo!!😄

I just loved this book! It's a beautifully written story that spans decades and interweaves the stories of several strong women and the choices that they make, some history about the development of the Twin Towers, feminism, environmentalism...it so good!

Fantastic story. I hope my daughter grows up to have the fortitude of Mattie Ross.

For such an eerie concept, the narrator focused so much on mundane details that I found myself bored the whole time. Even the characters seems bored. Although the storytelling did not captivate me at all, the idea of the book made me sit and think about the "what if's..."

This was my first Richard Russo and it just blew me away. I now have a book hangover. I will definitely be picking up his other books!

This was a sweet little book told from the perspective of a woman in her 80's on New Year's Eve, reminiscing about her younger years. She was a proud, independent working woman during a time when that was not so common. And it's based on a true story...so I feel like us working women owe a little something to her.

This book stole my heart, and I was not expecting that. It is the story of a family with 6 kids navigating their way through the 1960's-70's in Washington state. The story is shaped around the father's religion (baseball), the mother's religion (devout Christian) and the Vietnam war. The first part of the book goes into the weeds a bit about the game of baseball, but it is very endearing (but I am a baseball fan). Then the book takes off. So good!

This psychology thriller was a great read! Twisty and unpredictable (to me, anyways...I don't really try to guess what's happening though since I like to be surprised.) A woman's husband goes missing 5 years ago and he has just been declared dead. As she tries to figure out what happened to him, the book goes back and forth to their childhood as well as the time of his disappearance and present day. I had a hard time putting it down!

I was super intrigued about a scandalous event that occurred in an Amish community and getting a peak into their cultures and customs (and this did fit that bill) but the strong telling was a little dry and dragged on. It could have been a lot shorter and it would have been just as informative.