Pleasant Nights

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

Lemon’s family is keeping a huge secret. “Old Lucy,” the monster of their lake, isn’t real. The sightings are simply one of them in a latex suit swimming around the lake. But the town depends on the money the tourists spend to come and try to see Lucy. But when a real monster begins attacking people, it’s up to Lemon and her friends to uncover the truth.

I love a good cryptid story, as long as the cryptid doesn’t turn out to be just a big alligator or some nonsense. And I LOVED the big reveal of what the monster actually was. The payoff was totally worth it. Lemon is a delightful character, and her best buddies are a great source of support. There was a bit too much “young adult” ” Does he like me or does he LIKE ME?” about it, but I really enjoyed this book. Absolutely worth reading.

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

I really love middle-grade horror. These books are so charming and sweet, and they usually explore themes of acceptance and friendship. This was definitely right up my alley. And I did like it, but the good stuff didn’t really come until halfway through the book.

Will’s mom is the executive director of a giant cemetery. He keeps this underwraps because the other 7th graders will make fun of him. But when his school takes a field trip to the cemetery, his cover is blown. He ends up making friends with a couple of other kids, but when the school bully pressures him into letting him in after hours, Will is left to pick up the pieces.

It seems like the bully disturbed something he shouldn’t have and unleashed a ghost. Will and his new friends have to solve the mystery and help the ghost rest. This book was a lot of fun, and I definitely recommend it to any spooky middle school kid.

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

Queen Rachel Harrison has never let me down! I’ve loved every one of her books and only have The Return left to read. See other reviews here: Play Nice, So Thirsty, Black Sheep, and Cackle. She’s just such an outstanding writer and every one of her books features a badass female character.

Rory returns to her hometown to be with her twin, Scarlett, because Scarlett is pregnant. However, upon her return, Rory is attacked and bitten by a werewolf. Rory is in disbelief at her attack, but all the signs point to her being a werewolf (it literally says this on the cover…no spoiler). As Rory navigates this new life, she’s also falling for her old friend, Ian. Scarlett has also been hiding some secrets of her own, but together the twins can confide in and support one another through tough times.

I loved this book. The body horror is pretty extreme, given the transformations, but it was so worth seeing what Rory goes through to understand how bad this is for her. The secret of who bit her is pretty fun, too. This book was just so much fun. Definitely recommend it.

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

Vera Wong’s teahouse has been broken into, and a dead body (Marshall) is found on the floor. Vera is on the case. Even though she’s in her sixties and lives alone, she will solve the murder without any help from the police, because who needs them? She will do a better job than they will, anyway!

Vera grew on me a lot through this book. I wasn’t sure I would finish because she was pretty annoying. But, much like the characters she meets, she became more endearing, especially because she has a big heart. Even though she believes several people might be the murderer, she also feeds them and urges them to be friends with one another. She befriends the murdered man’s wife and brother, as well as two younger people who have a connection to Marshall. Ultimately, I’m glad I continued with this one. I was a great cozy mystery full of heart.

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

I loved the premise of this book. All of humanity lives on one island because a fog of insects has taken over the world. Three scientists and a hundred villagers live on this island. However, one of the scientists is murdered, which triggers a security system. If this scientist died without disabling the system, the fog would take over the island in four days. Now, they have to solve her murder to prevent the fog. But all their memories have been lost.

Sounds complicated? It is. And this isn’t even the bulk of the plot. I should have known that the author of The 71/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle would write another complex book that I mostly understood. I didn’t like 71/2 Deaths much, but this one was pretty good. I’m always predisposed to love dystopia, and as bonkers as this plot was, I was kept guessing throughout. I really enjoyed this one.

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

This beautiful memoir highlights the author’s childhood, explores the death of her father, and her return to his homeland, Greece. Nikolidakis’s father was abusive in every way. This isn’t graphic in the book, but it is horrifyingly obvious what happens to her. The abuse left her dependent upon alcohol to quell the memories. She spent most of her twenties just trying to get through each day.

On her 27th birthday, her father murders his girlfriend and her daughter and then himself. She has to then deal with the aftermath. Part of her healing journey was to travel alone to Greece to find her father’s estranged family.

This book was wonderfully written, very moving, and full of life and heart and recovery. I loved following her journey.

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

I don’t read a ton of John Grisham, but when I can get an advanced copy, I’m happy to dig in. What I’ve read of his has been mostly pretty good. Framed and The Innocent Man were absolutely fantastic and will stick with me for a while. The Boys From Biloxi was fine. The Runaway Jury was awful. So, I wasn’t sure what version of Grisham I was going to get. But this one was great.

Simon Latch is a small-town attorney, and when elderly Eleanor comes to him to create her will, he gleefully realizes she’s worth a fortune and has no one to inherit her money. However, Eleanor dies mysteriously, and Simon is the only suspect. He knows he’s not guilty (as does the reader), so the fun of the book is trying to figure out who did it.

This was a lot of fun. Simon isn’t a great guy, but he’s definitely not one you hate. And his quest to find the real killer is excellent. This wasn’t as tense as some of Grisham’s earlier books, but definitely worth reading.

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

The most shocking thing about this book was how the Los Angeles Times went to great lengths to protect the University of Southern California. A decade ago, a hotel manager called 911 to report a woman’s overdose. Also in the room was Carmen Puliafito, the Dean of Medicine at USC. When the author of this book, Paul Pringle, heard about it, he began digging deeper into the story. After thorough reporting, his managing editor squashed the article entirely.

Pringle wasn’t going to be stopped by that, though. He continued working on the story without approval. He tried contacting Puliafito, the college president, and all those involved. Eventually, he discovered the woman’s identity, and the story broke open. After all this happened, another story broke. At every step of the way, the story was killed. Over and over and over. Clearly, USC had its hands in the Times.

The campus gynecologist was accused of sexual harassment, and an investigation uncovered reports dating back to the 1990s, yet he still had the job. I just could not believe how hard the journalists had to fight to get the stories published. Outstanding reporting and captivating book. Loved this one!

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

When Claire comes home for a month in the summer, she realizes she can’t stay with her mostly estranged mother. Claire’s sister, Natalie, has been missing and presumed murdered for twenty years. Natalie had a summer job at a vineyard, so to learn more about her Claire heads there as well. They offer her a job, and Claire realizes it is a way to get closer to her sister.

But the vineyard has a lot of secrets. Claire finds Marsha’s diary. She’s now the co-owner with her husband, but the diary explains the tempestuous relationship between them. As Claire reads more of the diary, she becomes closer to the other co-worker, Liam. As Claire asks seemingly innocent questions about the vineyard’s origins, the owners grow suspicious of who she really is and why she is asking.

This book was okay, but very predictable. I rolled my eyes several times at how coincidental all the events were. I liked Claire, but she comes to conclusions without much evidence, which isn’t great writing on the author’s part. I still recommend this because I did want to keep reading.