Goodbye November!

I don't really know where November went. Like any other month this year (see the Good Place tumblr piece at the end of this post), it happened way too quickly but also took forever.

Maybe December can just be the former.

Just like 2019, I wanted to make some resolutions and (try to) stick to them. As a reminder, here were my updated resolutions.


2020 Resolutions:

     (1) Write [almost] every day

     (2) Don't stop reading

     (3) Complete something (e.g. a manuscript)

     (4) Share love of books/writing
     (5) Be kinder to myself

(1) I think I wrote a grand total of like 7 days, and three of them were cheating. I quickly gave up on NaNoWriMo (it's too hard to try to focus on writing when you work 10 hour days and literally don't have any brain power to do anything else---and I just haven't been able to focus fully).

(2) Books read this month: 11. (we're not talking about my half-started/half-finished piles or my TBR piles, okay?).

(3) Two Moves Ahead query-waiting. Still waiting....

(4) Posts this month (including this one): 11.

(5) Like October, there were days were I tried to eat better. There were days when I just didn't care. And mostly, I was okay with it. There were a few days were I hated my body because of it, but those feelings didn't last nearly as long as they did in the past. Unlike October, in November, I did manage to exercise a few times (got myself a stationary bike--I can read and cycle; two birds, one stone).

Anyone still holding onto their resolutions?

Any exciting December reads?
Anything I should check out?

#newyearsresolutions #goodbyenovember #hellodecember #hello2020 #keeplearning #writeeveryday #dontstopreading #completesomething #getprofessional #books #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

The Last Secret You'll Ever Keep

I had completely forgotten about the wonderful world of Netgalley until the other day. What is Netgalley? Well, it's a website that lets you read electronic ARC (advanced reader copies) for free, as long as you review them on their website (and in theory, on your own). You are not guarenteed to read each and every book that you request, but you are able to read a lot of them.

My most recent fine was "The Last Secret You'll Ever Keep" by Laurie Faria Stolarz

["Four days…

Trapped in a well, surrounded by dirt, scratching at the walls trying to find a way out.Four days of a thirst so strong, that when it finally rains, I drink as much as possible from the dripping walls, not even caring how much dirt comes with it.

Six months…
Since my escape. Since no one believed I was taken to begin with – from my own bed, after a party, when no one else was home…
Six months of trying to find answers and being told instead that I made the whole incident up.

One month…
Since I logged on to the Jane Anonymous site for the first time and found a community of survivors who listen without judgment, provide advice, and console each other when needed.
A month of chatting with a survivor whose story eerily mirrors my own: a girl who’s been receiving triggering clues, just like me, and who could help me find the answers I’m searching for.

Three days…
Since she mysteriously disappears, and since I’m forced to ask the questions: will my chance to find out what happened to me vanish with her? And will I be next?"]

It was really good. Definitely a little traumatizing. And a lot confusing (though that could be mostly a craft choice due to the narrative being 1st person and the narrator being unreliable due to her trauma). 

And, like any perfectly orchestrated (YA) psychological thriller, there was a really great plot twist (or a few) that kind of blew me away. I'm pretty darn skeptical and can be good at pointing out different twists, but I really, really didn't see that one coming.

Trigger Warnings: suicidal thoughts, murder, death threats, violence, psychological torture, death, starvation, medicalization/institutionalization 

#thelastsecretyoulleverkeep #lauriefariastolarz #netgalley #psychologicalthriller #books #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Ghosting You

From the fabulous author (Alexander C. Eberhart) of "Lock & West" as well as "There Goes Sunday School" is the amazingly fabulous and totally heartbreaking "Ghosting You.

["Tommy hears dead people. Okay, one dead person. His best friend, Chase. Since his death, Tommy can’t stop hearing his voice. They talk every day and Tommy even sends him texts, but it always ends the same. Message failed to send. Until one day, a stranger texts back.

Getting stuck in nowhere Georgia was not on Nick’s summer agenda, but a horoscope, a chance encounter, and a cute boy has things looking up. There’s just one problem, the boy hates him. When a broken phone leaves him with a new number, Nick is ready to write off the entire summer as a loss. But then he receives a strange text.

When Tommy and Nick’s worlds collide, the attraction is instant, but Tommy just can’t let Chase go. Can Nick use his status as Tommy’s anonymous stranger to break down his defenses or is Nick destined to live in a love triangle with a ghost?"]

Alexander totally played around with POV and texting fics and the idea of ghosts/ghosting people and it was fucking fantastic.

I saw the one plot twist happening, but that's, again, because Alexander really set up some amazing clues for it (and because it was the wickedly beautiful thing that I would have done).

Even thought this book is only available on the Kindle/e-readers, you need to go read it. Like now. Like yesterday. Because, as per his other totally contemporary, break-out, honest novels, this book was...it left me speechless. And soooooooo incredibly happy.

Trigger Warnings: homophobia, transphobia, violence, extreme anxiety, depression, cancer, suicidal thoughts, etc

#ghostingyou #alexanderceberhart #books #bookstagram #ghosts #ghosting #textingfic #books #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

This Lie Will Kill You

My coworker suggested this book to me in a semi-frantic text one afternoon after struggling to get through the first few chapters, she spent over an hour in her car (#audiobookaddict). Of course, I purchased it (for my kindle--didn't feel like waiting for it) within the hour.

This book was like Clue meets Riverdale (according to the back-of-the-book blurb at least--I've seen Clue about a thousand times (good description for that one at least) but I never watched Riverdale).

["One year ago, there was a party.
At the party, someone died.
Five teens each played a part and up until now, no one has told the truth.

But tonight, the five survivors arrive at an isolated mansion in the hills, expecting to compete in a contest with a $50,000 grand prize. Of course…some things are too good to be true.

Now, they realize they’ve been lured together by a person bent on revenge, a person who will stop at nothing to uncover what actually happened on that deadly night, one year ago.

Five arrived, but not all can leave. Will the truth set them free?
Or will their lies destroy them all?"]

I'll agree with her, the beginning was a little slow (just all of the getting-to-know-you exposition chapters).

And the one or two plot twists I saw coming (excellent clues, not necessarily because it was predictable). 

But the major plot twist, I just like...did NOT see coming. Did I like it? I'm still not sure. I appreciate that I would never have seen it coming and would never have excepted it (would never have written it myself), but I still haven't decided if I like it.

EITHER WAY, it's a good read. Something to put in that growing stack of young adult psychological thriller/murder mysteries that I have racking up.

Any suggestions for me (and/or my lovely coworker?)?

#thisliewillkillyou #chelseapitcher #psychologicalthriller #YA #murdermystery #clue #books #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Love and Olives

Since we can't travel right now (or at any point in the foreseeable future), why not read about it, read about people doing it, and pretend you're there (especially if you're reading about summer in Greece instead of sulking in the snow like I am today).

Jenna Evans Welch's amazing Love& series has been recently added to with "Love & Olives."

["Liv Varanakis doesn’t have a lot of fond memories of her father, which makes sense—he fled to Greece when she was only eight. What Liv does remember, though, is their shared love for Greek myths and the lost city of Atlantis. So when Liv suddenly receives a postcard from her father explaining that National Geographic is funding a documentary about his theories on Atlantis—and will she fly out to Greece and help?—Liv jumps at the opportunity.

But when she arrives to gorgeous Santorini, things are a little…awkward. There are so many questions, so many emotions that flood to the surface after seeing her father for the first time in years. And yet Liv doesn’t want their past to get in the way of a possible reconciliation. She also definitely doesn’t want Theo—her father’s charismatic so-called “protégé”—to witness her struggle.

And that means diving into all that Santorini has to offer—the beautiful sunsets, the turquoise water, the hidden caves, and the delicious cuisine. But not everything on the Greek island is as perfect as it seems. Because as Liv slowly begins to discover, her father may not have invited her to Greece for Atlantis, but for something much more important."]

IT WAS SOOOO GOOD! I mean, I read 500 pages in 6 hours. Read the entire fucking thing in 6 hours. I barely stopped to eat dinner (I definitely didn't stop to shower--waited until pretty late at night for that annoying task).

The beauty of Greece, the magic of Atlantis, the fluffiest of romance (the glorious, glorious cutesy coupley nicknames--god, like all of my weaknesses).

#loveandolives #jennaevanswelch #loveandgelato #loveandluck #loveandseries #books #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Dove Cove Series

I stumbled upon this series in the if-you-loved this-book-check-out-these-awesome-reads section in one of the many many, many books I read recently. 

Well, to be more accurate, I stumbled upon "No Holding Back" (the second, much-gayer book in the series). And to be true to the shelf, I had to read the first book first, then the gay-er book, and then the final one (you have to do it right, after all).

Go into the book knowing that there's a lot of first world problems in this book. Like some of Abbi Glines' books, most of the main characters are all uber wealthy (like each and every one of them have a super unique and crazy rare and extremely expensive, quirky car). 

But they do have real people (poor and rich) problems as well as some serious romance issues (all of which, spoiler alert, get resolved).

A slightly torturous read at points (some of the characters and writing isn't super flushed out in the first novel--but Kate gets better and better as the series continues), but so worth the time (especially since they're such easy, relatively short reads).

#noloveallowed #noholdingback #nosecondchances #kateevangelista #dovecove #dovcoveseries #yaseries #swoonreads #books #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

One Of Us Is Next

"One Of Us Is Next"... Just as psychologically torturing as her (Karen M McManus's) first book "One of Us Is Lying." Maybe a slightly bit tamer (at least in terms of like the wide-spread terror and group think that the first), or maybe I'm just getting numb to it all.

["Come on, Bayview, you know you've missed this.

A ton of copycat gossip apps have popped up since Simon died, but in the year since the Bayview four were cleared of his shocking death, no one's been able to fill the gossip void quite like he could. The problem is no one has the facts.

Until now.
This time it's not an app, though—it's a game.
Truth or Dare.

Phoebe's the first target. If you choose not to play, it's a truth. And hers is dark.
Then comes Maeve and she should know better—always choose the dare.
But by the time Knox is about to be tagged, things have gotten dangerous. The dares have become deadly, and if Maeve learned anything from Bronwyn last year, it's that they can't count on the police for help. Or protection.

Simon's gone, but someone's determined to keep his legacy at Bayview High alive. And this time, there's a whole new set of rules."]

This whole new set of characters, even though Maeve was a pretty solid secondary character in the first installment. With a whole new set of secrets. And greatest fears. And romances. And well...murder.

I CAN'T FUCKING WAIT FOR HER NEXT BOOK: "The Cousins" coming out December 1st (already pre-ordered it).

Though for now, unfortunately, for my own sanity, I think I need to take a break and read a cute-sy, contemporary, rom com. The only potential for an accelerated heart-rate: kisses and fluff (no Truth or Dare bombs or near-death experiences or health scares).

Trigger Warnings (ones that don't out-right give away the climax/murderer): Bullying, Terror, Murder, Violence, Blackmail, Alcoholism, Mental Illnesses, Cheating, Suicide, Mentions of Large Scale Violence/Shootings, Group Think, Terrorism, Copy Cating, etc

#oneofusisnext #karenmmcmanus #oneofusislying #twocankeepasecret #psychologicalthriller #yapsychologicalthriller #murdermystery #romance #books #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

One Of Us Is Lying

Okay so imagine the Breakfast Club...but with a different ending. Sure there's still a lot of "from different lifestyles" friendships and romances, a lot of cliques/clique profiling, etc. But there's also a bit of murder (or like straight-up, full on, lots of bits murder).

Karen M. McManus's very first novel, YA psychological thriller, "One Of Us Is Lying" was...W H O A. 

["Pay close attention and you might solve this.

On Monday afternoon, five students at Bayview High walk into detention.
Bronwyn, the brain, is Yale-bound and never breaks a rule.
Addy, the beauty, is the picture-perfect homecoming princess.
Nate, the criminal, is already on probation for dealing.
Cooper, the athlete, is the all-star baseball pitcher.
And Simon, the outcast, is the creator of Bayview High's notorious gossip app.

Only, Simon never makes it out of that classroom. Before the end of detention, Simon's dead. And according to investigators, his death wasn't an accident. On Monday, he died. But on Tuesday, he'd planned to post juicy reveals about all four of his high-profile classmates, which makes all four of them suspects in his murder. Or are they the perfect patsies for a killer who's still on the loose?

Everyone has secrets, right? What really matters is how far you would go to protect them."]

And I kind of sort of figured one aspect of it out before the end...at least I had picked up on the hints. Though I didn't see a lot of it coming. Like A LOT.

There's so many twists and turns and climaxes. So many fucking trigger warnings, too (like I'm pretty hard to upset/trigger, and I felt pretty shaken up during parts). Like hard-core bullying/blackmail/violence.
And the small-town feel of straight up racism, homophobia, group thing (GOD the fucking group think in this book) is so spot on, it hurts. 

Everything about this novels hurts. I'm tearing up a bit right now, that's how psychological thriller-ing it was. I can't stop thinking about it (then again, not taking a break and just diving right into it's sequel "One of Us is Next" probably isn't helping...at all). But SO FUCKING GREAT! Like...holy shit.

Okay, I think I'm just rambling now so I'll just go... (UNLESS someone has any suggestions for more books along this vein that I need to read--because I will, like as soon as possible).

Trigger Warnings (ones that don't out-right give away the climax/murderer): Bullying, Terror, Murder, Violence, Blackmail, Alcoholism, Drug Abuse, Mental Illnesses, Underage Neglect, Cheating, Homophobia, Suicide, Mentions of Large Scale Violence/Shootings, Group Think, etc

#oneofusislying ##karenmmcmanus #oneofusisnext #twocankeepasecret #psychologicalthriller #yapsychologicalthriller #murdermystery #romance #books #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Two Can Keep A Secret

I started with Karen M. McManus's "Two Can Keep A Secret" out of her three (four in December) YA psychological thrillers.

SO. FUCKING. GOOD.
No wonder why people are calling her the new YA Scream Queen (can't remember where I read that, but it's more than true).

["Echo Ridge is small-town America. Ellery's never been there, but she's heard all about it. Her aunt went missing there at age seventeen. And only five years ago, a homecoming queen put the town on the map when she was killed. Now Ellery has to move there to live with a grandmother she barely knows.

The town is picture-perfect, but it's hiding secrets. And before school even begins for Ellery, someone's declared open season on homecoming, promising to make it as dangerous as it was five years ago. Then, almost as if to prove it, another girl goes missing.

Ellery knows all about secrets. Her mother has them; her grandmother does too. And the longer she's in Echo Ridge, the clearer it becomes that everyone there is hiding something. The thing is, secrets are dangerous--and most people aren't good at keeping them. Which is why in Echo Ridge, it's safest to keep your secrets to yourself."]

There's always this suspension of disbelief that goes on when you read a YA/Middle Grade novel and the narrator/main character is the one who goes into hard-core-detective-mode and ultimately solves the crime/murder...even though the police couldn't. This is how TCKAS starts off...and then there's a great twist (only minor spoiler) where Ellery is just...continuously surprised by how her theories plan out (or don't?).

And like always, there's this plot twist that you don't see coming. AND then there's a secondary plot twist that like left me feeling SHOOK and feeling sick to my stomach and desperately wanting a sequel.

Trigger Warnings (ones that don't out-right give away the climax/murderer): Bullying, Terror, Murder, Runaway, Violence, Blackmail, Underaged sex, Alcoholism, Drug Abuse, Mental Illnesses, etc

#twocankeepasecret #twocankeepasecretifoneisdead #karenmmcmanus #oneofusislying #oneofusisnext #psychologicalthriller #yapsychologicalthriller #murdermystery #romance #books #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Holding Court

Not exactly the YA murder mystery I was looking for. But K.C. Held's "Holding Court" was still really good.

Less of a psychological drama than I had imagined. And more of a magical realism with a side of murder mystery (or maybe I was just sensitized to all of it because I forgot it was a magical realism and I was really focused on the romance...)

["Sixteen-year-old Jules Verity knows exactly what's in store at her new job at castle-turned-dinner-theater Tudor Times. Some extra cash, wearing a fancy-pants dress, and plenty of time to secretly drool over the ever-so-tasty--and completely unavailable--Grayson Chandler. Except that it's not quite what she imagined.

For one, the costume Jules has to wear is awful. Then there's the dead body she finds that just kind of...well, disappears. Oh, and there's the small issue of Jules and her episodes of what her best friend calls "Psychic Tourette's Syndrome"--spontaneous and uncontrollable outbursts of seemingly absurd prophecies.

The only bright side? This whole dead body thing seems to have gotten Grayson's attention. Except that the more Jules investigates, the more she discovers that Grayson's interest might not be as courtly as she thought. In fact, it's starting to look suspicious..."]

The magical realism (The Psychic Tourette's Syndrome) was actually really great addition. I wanted to write down every random Psychic quote, but didn't realize that I should until I was half-way through the novel (so do that, it will make it even better). Her little blurts were like the climax in "Murder, She Wrote" or "Columbo" or "Diagnosis Murder" (so carefully orchestrated and seemingly insignificant but totally critical to the plot/resolution).

Spoiler Alert, they did catch the killer, but only after a few near-death-experiences (and an extra murder or two). And the romance had a totally-saw-that-coming resolution AND a holy-shit-didn't-see-that-coming resolution, which was a very fantastic touch.

Off to read a novel that I know it a ya, psychological drama. But I'm not sure if it's a romance (I'll keep you updated).

#holdingcourt #kcheld #yamurdermystery #yamagicalrealism #books #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

NaNoWriMo 2020

I've never done NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). I always felt intimidated (and now that Nov 1st is here, I'm feeling extremely intimidated).

The goal of NaNoWriMo? Write an entire novel. Get them words (50,000 to be specific). 

Some people just pour out the words and edit later. Some people spend most of September and October planning, outlining, sketching out everything. 

Then there's me...who decided to do NaNoWriMo yesterday. Who would love to get 50,000 words. Who didn't plan, didn't outline, didn't sketch anything out.

I'm going into this with low expectations. Write. Get some words out. Try to get into a rhythm of writing again (something I've been putting off for months and months now).

I'm not going to write a brand new novel right now. That seems crazy (only because I didn't plan/outline/sketch out). I'm going to try to work on Hooked, my Captain Hook retelling story (and if all else fails, I'm going to work on Category Five--the linked-manuscript/companion novel to my manuscript Two Moves Ahead).

So like...yeah... Any tips? Any words of inspiration? Any fun new cocktails to try?

#nanowrimo #nanowrimo2020 #writing #writerproblems #writer #gettingthemwords #books #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks