Make Up Reading

5 out of 5 stars Megan Miranda never lets me down. there are certain authors that you just wait excitedly for each release and that is the case with Miranda.  Her novels pull me in right away and I absolutely love each of her main characters. This book was just as good as I hoped/expected! Arden survived something terrible, at six years old she was sleepwalking and she disappeared.  She was found three days later in a storm drain by Sean Coleman, a quiet volunteer. Arden's disappearance made the small town  of Widow Hills famous  as well as Arden and her Mother. Life was never the same and not in a good way. Every time an anniversary of the incident she gets bothered by reporters and harassed by some of the people in her town. With the twenty year anniversary coming up   Arden finally feels safe from the prying eyes of the public. In her small town . She is now named Olivia and no one knows who she is, at least she thinks so but it seems her past is c...

4.5 out of 5 stars I would like to thank Netgalley and St. Martin's for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review Fifteen years after a disastrous Summer spent at the family's second home on Cape Cod when things are changed forever between Annie, her sister Poppy and their adoptive brother Michael Annie returns with Poppy. The sisters want to move on from what has happened and they feel that the only way they can is to sell the house. Michael, however doesn't want to sell it. He wants what he sees as the truth to come out. The relationships between the siblings was interesting and I loved that the house felt like a character as well. I love it when a town, a home or school feels like it's own character.  I won't say too much more about the family secrets because I fear it would give away too much.  This is a perfect Summer read and I would highly recommend it!

4 1/2 out of 5 stars When Shayna Darby gets an e-mail from her twin sister Angela's  boyfriend Seb in Paris that she was missing she ignores it at first. She and Angela have not spoken in three years since their parents died in a car accident.  Then she gets another e-mail  from Seb and this one tells her that the police believe Angela is dead after a shooting at the Sorbonne. It seems that Angela was abducted during the chaos of the shooting and that she was killed shortly after so Shayna hops on a plane in order to find out what happened to her sister. Paris was most definitely a main character in this novel and that was one if my favorite parts. I have always had an interest in the catacombs  so I really loved that, It was also kind of cool to see the not so romantic side of Paris.  In some ways Shayna's journey to find her sister felt like Alice in Wonderland.  I  would like to add that it was nice to have a mixed race main character. It will b...

5 out of 5 stars Thank you to NetGalley and St.Martins Press for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Where to start? How can I describe How much this book moved me? It is hard to put down in words. This was such a special book told in such and unique and personal way. The story is told from the other various neighbor's POV. Two young lovers meet when  Juniper's family moves into the house that her step Father had built right behind Xavier and his mother's house. From the moment they set eyes on one another it is love. The issue? Juniper is white and Xavier is bi-racial. What's the big deal? You may ask yourself that, after all the year is 2020. The problem is that there are still ugly people that judge people by the color of their skin. There is also the problem with Juniper's step Father Brad and Xavier's Mother Valerie. Valerie didn't care for Brad from the start. It could have been that he immediately ...

5 out of 5 stars Thank you to NetGalley and Park Row for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review Chicago native Dr.Sadie Foust moves to a small Main island with her husband and two sons after his sister commits suicide and leaves him her house and her 16 year old daughter Imogene. Sadie is not thrilled with leaving Chicago but what can they do? Her son has been expelled from his school, she has had issues with work and her husband has recently had an affair. So they pack up and move. The problem is that the Main island is small and everyone seems to know everyone. It also doesn't help that Imogene seems very hostile towards Sadie no matter what she does.  Things that go from bad to worse when the woman down the street is murdered and the police keep stopping by and asking Sadie questions. Determined to solve the murder herself before someone in the family gets blamed for out Sadie puts herself in danger. I think this the best Mary Kubica book that I h...

4 out of 5 stars I would like to thank NetGalley and William Morrow for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. Veterinarian  Cassie Larkin is driving home from work one night when she sees a man assaulting a woman on the side of the road. Feeling like she has no choice but to help Cassie pulls over, gets out of her car and tries to help the woman. When the man sees her he tells her to go away. That he has no plans to hurt her but Cassie does all she can to stop him, including calling the police and getting closer. When the man escapes he takes her van. She knows that he now has her address and the keys to her home.  The next day happens to be Halloween and when Cassie's husband Sam disappears as he is taking her daughter Audrey trick or treating Cassie knows she must do everything she can to find her husband even if it puts her life in jeopardy.  Heather Chavez  has written a fast paced mystery that keeps you inte...

3 1/2 out of 5 stars Thank you to Netgalle and Graydon House for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. Thursday's husband Seth has two other wives that she has never met. When Seth told her that he loved her and wanted to marry her he informed her that he wanted to be with her and wanted to marry her even though he has a wife already. It seems that his other wife does not want to have children but he loves her and wants to stay in a relationship with her as well. He also informs her that he grew up in a polygamist household.  She agrees to what he wants because more than anything Thursday just wants to be with him. Thursday has always been curious about Seth's other wives but she has become increasingly more curious since Seth took on the third wife. What she finds is not what she expected and her husband is not who she thought he was.  This book was heading for a solid 4 1/2 to 5 stars until the end. Don't get me wrong, ...

5 out of 5 stars I would first like to thank NetGalley and St. Martins press for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I really have had a great year of reading and "Trace of Evil" has kept the streak going. Natalie Lockhart is a cop in the sleepy town of Burning Lake in upstate New York. Burning Lake is a tourist town that tends to make most of it's money from the history of killing witches. There are magic shops everywhere and graveyard tours for those interested, Heck, the police cars even used to have a witch riding a broom painted on them. The town is always full of teenagers in covens and it also tends to attract satanists as well. While people often want to leave their small towns behind Natalie has no desire to ever leave. She loves the town and the people that live there. She even became a cop so she could follow in her Father's footsteps to protect the people of the town. We first meet Natalie, her sister ...

4.75 stars out of 5 stars I would like to thank Netgalley and Atria Books for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. Libby Jones was adopted as a baby and for her whole life she has wondered her she really is. Shortly after her 25th birthday Libby receives a letter she has been waiting her whole for for. She will finally know where she comes from. Her life has not been horrible but she has never known who she truly is. However, opening the letter leaves her with even more questions.  What she knows is that twenty five years ago police were called to a house at 16 Cheyne Walk complaining of a baby crying. What they found was three dead bodies from a murder suicide and evidence of a cult. Though there were reports of children being seen going in and out none of the children were there except for one baby girl by the name of Serenity Lamb, aka Libby Jones. As we flash back to the past as Henry tells us in first person the events th...

4 out of 5 stars  Thank you to Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. Claire and her husband Ethan are still devastated over the loss of their son Colton  from a condition caused by Claire's mitochondrial  DNA. Though they have tried to heal from it they are not doing well. Ethan wants another child but Claire is afraid of giving birth to another child destined to die at a young age.. Even though Claire knows it is unfair she is afraid that she could not love a child that is not hers by blood as much. Then one day while on her support board Mito Moms someone mentioned something that makes Claire change her mind as she comes up with a plan to have a biological child after all.  She decides to go to Robert Nash a Doctor working on creating a child with DNA from 3 people.  She gives birth to a miraculous daughter named Abby. This is  a very well written psychological/medic...

4 out of five stars I would like to thank Netgalley and Wattpad Books for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. For as long as Clara cab remember she has had a crush on the boy next door Griffin Tomlin. When he finally notices her she can't believe her luck.  Then one Winter night during a party things change completely.  Clara begins to withdraw into herself, doing her best to stay away from Griffin. One early September, the day after the neighborhood Labor Day party Griffin is found dead and Clara's sister Emily is accused of his murder. Clara knows why she did it but she can't tell anyone the reason. When Clara meets Aniston who is determined to find out why Emily killed Griffin truly dark  secrets begin to come out and Clara begins to wonder if life will ever feel normal again. This is a dark story that covers some hard hitting topics. I read this very fast because I wanted to find out what happened to Clara and he...

5 out of 5 stars Thank you to Netgalley and Celadon Books for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book for an honest review. Adam always thought he, his wife Ulrika and their 18 year old daughter Stella were a pretty normal family. That is until one day in late August  arrested on suspicion of killing Chris Olsen . Adam who is a pastor finds himself question everything he thought he believed in. Told from the point of view from each family member the truth slowly begins to unravel.   Adam who is a pastor finds himself questioning everything he thought he believed in. Told from the point of view from each family member the truth slowly begins to unravel. Stella has never been your average child, she is the type of girl that lives life by her own rules. Yes, she has been a bit wild but could she ever kill someone? Adam certainly doesn't believe she could do something like that. While Adam sets out to prove Stella's  innocence, Ulrika does everything t...

5 out of 5 stars First off I would like to thank Netgalley and  St. Martin's Press for allowing me to read an advanced copy in exchange of an honest review. To be honest when I first started reading this I was not sure how I was going to  like this because I was expecting this to be more of a psychological thriller but this is more of a family drama, mystery. I needn't worry though as I was hooked almost immediately.   The story is told through the POV of Mother-In-Law Diana and Daughter-In-Law Lucy. Told in past and present Lucy and Diana lure you in with their story. You find yourself understanding each woman more and more as the story goes on and your heart breaks as the women's relationship is pulled apart because of misunderstanding. I did not agree with most of Diana's choices but I understood why she made many of them. As I said this is definitely more of a family drama with a mystery thrown in. I do think you will be able to figure out the guilty part...

5 out of 5 Stars First I would like to thank Netgalley and St. Martins Press for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.  Meghan went from a happy, healthy and athletic girl to weak sick ghost of her former self almost overnight. Her Mother Becky believes that there is something terribly wrong with Meghan but the doctors can't seem to figure out what it is. There are too many symptoms that are pointing in too many directions. One day Meghan's Father , Carl finally has a suggestion, maybe Meghan has something called Mitochondrial disease. A friend of his suggested it as the disease has a different symptoms for each and everyone person. It is a very hard disease to diagnose. Luckily his friend knows a doctor who specializes in it.  Becky is thrilled with the idea that they may finally have an answer and she is thrilled to meet Dr. Zach Fisher.  Though Dr. Fisher believes she does have Mito when Meghan starts to exhibit new ...

This is the second Megan Abbot book I have read and I liked even more that the first which was "The End of Everything". I have become a big fan of Megan Abbot after reading this one. This book is a bit different because it is told from an adult point of view except for one section near the end. The Knox family lives and breathes through teenage daughter Devon, a phenom on her way to becoming an Olympic gymnast. In fact their whole little gymnast community lives and breathes through Devon. They all want her to succeed so that maybe, just maybe their daughters can. One night everything changes, a young man dies a violent death and the world they all live in is thrust into chaos.  Now, let me start by saying this book reads different than her other books or at least the one I read. Megan Abbot excels in writing teenage girls and just how devious and yet innocent they can all be so, I was curious to see if she could write for an adult women in the same way and let me assure you t...

4 Stars I find myself often not feeling much sympathy for the characters in a Picoult novel. I found Melanie to be the most unlikable character I have read in a long time. I understand her pain in losing her daughter and I understand that she hated Chris for his part in it but I really feel as if this went beyond her daughter's death. I feel as if Melanie's anger was released after Emily died because of all the resentment and jealousy she felt towards Gus. Gus came into the Gold's lives and kind of took over. As the book said she was a hurricane. Mel wanted to be free sexually like Gus but she could never allow herself. She wanted to be strong like her but she pushed that deep down as well. Part of her knew how Michael felt about Gus as well. I think that was a very big part of the anger and change in Mel. She was a character that you should feel for but you really don't. I feel the same about Emily. We know Emily before she is born so we should be heartbroken at the ...

Have you ever read a book that you thought was good but, you didn't enjoy? That is how I felt about "Good as Gone". Last year I read a few books about girls that had been kidnapped and return home. Some were good and some were just okay. This book was good but, I didn't care for the way this was written. There was something about the characters and the whole feel of the novel that was off-putting.  I don't think I would call it a suspense novel though. I think of it more as a character study. Thirteen year old Julie disappears in the middle of the night, taken by a bearded man and the only witness to the kidnapping is her younger sister Jane. Eight years later on the same day that Jane comes home from college for a visit there is a knock on the door and there stands Julie. The girl's mother Anna has her doubts though, is this her sweet daughter or an opportunist? Anna also has had a hard time forgiving her youngest daughter for not coming to alert her parents...

4.5 stars Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher Cornerstone Digital for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this novel for an honest review. Pre World War 1 Europe and the Goldbaum family are an extremely wealthy banking dynasty. Greta Goldbaum from Vienna does not really want to marry her English cousin Albert she does it anyway as that is what is expected and though Greta is a defiant girl she also knows that the sometimes you have to do what is expected. Greta is a fun, gregarious girl while Albert is a serious and quiet man. This novel takes us up through most of World War 1 and we follow the family through it all. With the war brewing we see how anti semitism began to take control of certain parts of Europe. A sweeping tale with Greta at the center this was a novel that I could not put down and though it was a bit long I managed to read it in 24 hours. There were a few slower parts but the characters and storylines were enough to keep me hanging in there. This is the first ...