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vandeblogger

vandeblogger

Joined January 2017

I 💗 books.
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vandeblogger
Pickpick

Really interesting to have sociopaths explained BY a sociopath.

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vandeblogger
Pickpick

Basically just on a mission to read everything she's written, because I LOVE IT ALL

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vandeblogger
The Forgotten Girls | Sara Blaedel
Mehso-so

I was drawn in right away, but less than impressed with character development, and I outright disliked the ending. This is one in a series of books with these characters, so maybe if I read others I could have some questions answered, but I'm not invested enough in the characters to do that.

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vandeblogger
Glass Houses | Louise Penny
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The blurb described this story as "gripping" and yes. That's accurate.

3 likes2 stack adds
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vandeblogger
Pickpick

Read aloud with the kids. Super fun book.

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Couple Next Door | Shari Lapena
Mehso-so

I kept waiting for some shocking revelation, but I did not feel shocked by any of the revelations. Also 👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻stereotyping of postpartum depression/mental illness. But I did read the whole thing today, wanting to know what happened. So.

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vandeblogger
No One Is Coming to Save Us | Stephanie Powell Watts
Mehso-so

I feel a little torn on my review here. I wouldn't say that I liked this, so much as I feel like it's good for me to read stuff that doesn't reflect my own life experiences at all.

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vandeblogger
Enclave | Ann Aguirre
Bailedbailed

A writing style that attempted (and failed, IMO) to make the main character seem badass and an audiobook narrator whose voice I found grating from the first sentence, made me give up on this less than 1/4 of the way through.

TubaSheila I almost quit a book because the narrator, but the story was too good. I think it was "Did you ever have a family?" or something. 7y
1 like1 comment
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vandeblogger
Girls in Peril: A Novella | Karen Lee Boren
Pickpick

Reminiscent of the movie Now and Then. Completely different from the other stuff I've been reading.

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vandeblogger
The Scorpio Races | Maggie Stiefvater
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I want Maggie Stiefvater to write a million books and I will read them all.

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One Safe Place | Tania Unsworth
Mehso-so

This was fine. I was entertained for a couple hours.

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vandeblogger
I Was Here | Gayle Forman
Pickpick

I keep reading her stuff, and it keeps missing the mark for me. That said, compelling story. I'm giving it a "pick" because I'd definitely recommend it for anyone who is a Forman fan.

BornReadChicago Didn't live this one, but I love her saccharine Just One Day series 😊 7y
2 likes1 comment
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vandeblogger
Pickpick

I hesitate to enthusiastically endorse this as something everyone should read, but it was worth the read for me.

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vandeblogger
A Wrinkle in Time | Madeleine L'Engle
Pickpick

It's been so long since I read this last that I'd forgotten how things went! Love it.

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vandeblogger
Pickpick

More true crime! But this one is less about the murders, more about the relationship Claudia (a reporter) has with the killer after he's convicted. My only complaint is that she talks about his size/weight a LOT. Like, way more than necessary.

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vandeblogger
Vanishing Girls | Lauren Oliver
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Pickpick

Quick & engaging

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Pickpick

Beautifully written, but often sad in the melancholy "isn't ANYBODY happy?" kind of way

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Pickpick

Fascinating perspective on the story of Ted Bundy- Ann Rule knew him personally, and stayed in touch with him throughout his life. (And, amazingly enough, she was contracted to write this book about a series of Oregon murders, long before Ted Bundy was even a suspect.)

segeorgeff I read this book years ago and have read lots of her other work. Her books got me hooked on true crime before it was all over TV. One of her books is about a famous case here in SA. 7y
vandeblogger Oh, which book? I love her stuff! 7y
TubaSheila Oh! I read this one several years ago, while at my in-laws house! Wasn't it just nuts? 7y
2 likes3 comments
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vandeblogger
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Pickpick

I remember when this happened, although I only heard the very basics- Oscar Pistorius shot & killed his girlfriend through a bathroom door, claiming he thought it was intruder. And I remember thinking, "What? No. No way he didn't know it was her." This book goes into the details & background of his life & makes quite a convincing case that in fact, he didn't know.

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vandeblogger
Mehso-so

True crime story of a guy wrongly convicted of murder. Pretty heartbreaking to hear all the things that went wrong to lead to the conviction. (So-so for too much editorializing on the part of the author)

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vandeblogger
Bossypants | Tina Fey
Mehso-so

I really like Tina Fey, but this book fell flat for me. (Maybe I would have liked it more if I'd read it when it first came out? I dunno.)

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City of Lost Souls | Cassandra Clare
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Pickpick

Abrupt shift in books from true crime to paranormal YA. I really enjoy this series. (This is book 5, I've liked them all.)

3 likes1 stack add
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vandeblogger
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Pickpick

Have I told you I like true crime? I like true crime. This is the Jodi Arias story (which I was already familiar with, thanks true crime TV) told by the prosecutor. Very detailed, and parts of it were hard to listen to.

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vandeblogger
Mehso-so

Eh. It was fine.

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Pickpick

Really interesting if you're in to true crime. Looks at why different types of criminals commit the crimes they do.

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Pickpick

Amazing story.

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I was lamenting to a friend how long the library wait list is for this book and she stopped by the next day to loan me her copy! 👍🏻

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vandeblogger
The Thirteen: A Novel | Susie Moloney
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Mehso-so

Interesting premise, not well executed.

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Hunger Games | Suzanne Collins
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Library book sale choices! Most years I end up with a mix of stuff I've read & liked and stuff I haven't read yet. This year the only one I've already read is Hunger Games & I picked that one up to replace a copy I (apparently) loaned & never got back. So! Looking forward to some new stuff!

vandeblogger Okay, and I've also read most of the kids books. 7y
JennaAZ I loooooooved the Justin Cronin trilogy. The Twelve was the toughest, though, in my opinion. 7y
8 likes2 comments
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vandeblogger
Pickpick

Can hardly wait for the next illustrated book to come out! (Not until OCTOBER 😬)

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Emmy & Oliver | Robin Benway
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Sweet story, if maybe a little sappy/sentimental at times.

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vandeblogger
Perfect: A Novel | Rachel Joyce
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I don't want to say I enjoyed this, because the book is quite sad, but I definitely got caught up in the story and the characters. Worth reading.

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vandeblogger
The One | Kiera Cass
Pickpick

As with the other 2 in the series, quick & fun. And nicely ended, I thought.

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The Elite | Kiera Cass
Pickpick

Cute & fun. I could do with a little less love-triangle in my YA Dystopian fiction, but I suppose it's written aimed at teenagers, so I'll put up with it.

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The woman in white | Wilkie COLLINS
Pickpick

I don't read classics nearly as much as I used to, but when I do, I remember why I love them so much. Kept me interested in the story for all TWENTY FIVE HOURS of audiobook.

3 likes1 stack add
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vandeblogger
The Woman in White | William Wilkie Collins
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If you like classics at all, let me recommend Wilkie Collins.

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Read this for the Book Riot challenge- set within 100 miles of my location. (Took place about 10 miles from here.)

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Started book 2! Illustrated book 3 isn't out until October, but it's pre-ordered already. These books are gorgeous.

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Pickpick

Finished the illustrated version with the kids this morning *happy sigh*

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Pickpick

Yup, still on my true crime kick.

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vandeblogger
Pickpick

I've been in a true crime mood. I just started another.

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vandeblogger
Pickpick

Ann Rule knows how to write true crime.

5 likes1 stack add
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vandeblogger
Panpan

I think Robert Durst's story is fascinating, but this book was not that. I listened to the audiobook and really disliked the author, who also narrated, and was a DA for some of the stuff Durst was involved in. It was much more her story of dealing with this guy than his actual story. And I pretty much hated her by the end. So big NO to this one.

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vandeblogger
Mehso-so

This was fine. Not always believable, but still a cute story.

ErinBumG I'm with you in feeling very so-so about this book too. People adored it but... I don't know. 7y
3 likes1 comment
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These are all books that I picked up at some point during the last year but then set aside for one reason or another (often to get a library book read before it was due 😬) and never got back to. So I'm bumping them all to the front of the line. Time to finish some books! I also have a couple audiobooks & at least one kindle book in this category. Wish me luck!

7 likes1 stack add
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Eragon ended up moving too slowly to hold Will's interest, so we set it aside for the time being & started in on the illustrated edition of Harry Potter. Kids 1st reading! (my last re-read of the series was in 2009.) LOVE.

JennaAZ My husband gave me these for Christmas and I've flipped through them but haven't sat down to read them yet. Can't wait, they're so gorgeous! 7y
11 likes1 comment
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vandeblogger
The Selection | Kiera Cass
Pickpick

Obviously not a literary classic, but quick & enjoyable! I'll definitely finish the series.

aprilbapryll Oh I really enjoyed that series. So fun. 7y
5 likes1 comment
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vandeblogger
Mehso-so

I wanted to like this more than I did, but turns out I really prefer the scientific/investigative aspects of true crime more than the "life story" aspects. Also, it's unsolved (which it says RIGHT ON THE COVER IF I HAD PAID ATTENTION) which drives me crazy. I found it a little hard to keep track of everyone, but possibly because I listened instead of reading.

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vandeblogger
The Selection | Kiera Cass
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Afternoon agenda.

BornReadChicago These were pretty fun 👍 7y
9 likes1 comment
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vandeblogger
Mehso-so

Eh. Interesting in places, but much of it was stuff I've already read/heard. I skimmed a lot of it.