The Witch by Freida McFadden

Started: 11/2/2026

Finished: 11/8/2026

Year: 2026

Pages: 339

Genre: mystery, paranormal

Grade: B+

Reason for reading: library book

Type: hardcover

Blurb (from Amazon): "Some secrets don't die―they wait.

"When Julia Barlow loses her job and her apartment, she has nowhere left to go but Pemberton, her family's sprawling seventeenth-century estate in rural Massachusetts. Officially, she's there to check in on her aging grandmother. Unofficially, she's hoping the old house will give her a place to disappear.

"Instead, Pemberton begins to unravel her.

"Every night, the grandfather clock stops at exactly 3:41 a.m. The lights flicker without warning. And a disembodied voice cries for help outside Julia's bedroom door.

"As Julia digs into the house's dark history, she uncovers the story of a woman executed for witchcraft in 1692―and realizes the past may not be finished with Pemberton yet. When decades of family lies begin to surface, Julia must confront a terrifying truth: Pemberton may be haunted by women whose voices refuse to stay silent."

Opinion: Lots of little twists both in history and present day

One Split Second by Robert Dugoni

Started: 10/25/2026

Finished: 11/1/2026

Year: 2026

Pages: 395

Genre: mystery

Grade; B+

Reason for reading: library book, continuing with series

Type: paperback

Blurb (from Amazon): "Detective Tracy Crosswhite is assigned to defend an old friend. Sheriff Jenny Almond has been charged with first-degree murder for shooting an unarmed veteran on a stormy night of confusion, paranoia, and split-second choices. Tracy is certain there’s more to the story of Anthony Alvarez’s killing―and her investigation draws her back to a cold case that still haunts the community.

"More than forty years ago, Alvarez was the prime suspect in the unsolved disappearance of a teenage babysitter. The lead investigator, Jenny’s late father Buzz Almond, always believed Alvarez had been framed. Decades later, his suspicions of a conspiracy are driving Tracy to find answers. Digging deeper into both the past and the present, she discovers a complex web of sinister motives and long-buried secrets, unearthing them one by one.

"As a decades-old mystery casts its dark shadow on a small town, only the truth will finally set the innocent free."

Opinion: It was nice to see Tracy work with her husband on a case. Ending felt rushed. Good mystery despite part of it figured out about halfway through.

Track of the Cat by Nevada Barr

Started: 10/20/2026

Finished: 10/25/2026

Year: 1993

Pages: 245

Genre: mystery

Grade: C

Reason for reading: library book

Type: paperback

Blurb (from Amazon): "Patrolling the remote West Texas backcountry, Anna’s first job as a national park ranger is marred by violence she thought she had left behind: the brutal death of a fellow ranger. When the cause of death is chalked up to a mountain lion attack, Anna’s rage knows no bounds. It’s up to her to save the protected cats from the politics and prejudices of the locals—and prove the kill was the work of a species far less rare…"

Opinion: A lot of strange time jumps. Interesting murders.

Trailed by Kathryn Miles

Started: 10/13/2026

Finished: 10/19/2026

Year: 2022

Pages: 283

Genre: true crime

Grade: C

Reason for reading: library book

Type: hardcover

Blurb (from Amazon): "In May 1996, two skilled backcountry leaders, Lollie Winans and Julie Williams, entered Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park for a week-long backcountry camping trip. The free-spirited and remarkable young couple had met and fallen in love the previous summer while working at a world-renowned outdoor program for women. During their final days in the park, they descended the narrow remnants of a trail and pitched their tent in a hidden spot. After the pair didn’t return home as planned, park rangers found a scene of horror at their campsite, their tent slashed open, their beloved dog missing, and both women dead in their sleeping bags. The unsolved murders of Winans and Williams continue to haunt all who had encountered them or knew their story.

"When award-winning journalist and outdoors expert Kathryn Miles begins looking into the case, she discovers conflicting evidence, mismatched timelines, and details that just don’t add up. With unprecedented access to crucial crime-scene forensics and key witnesses—and with a growing sense of both mission and obsession—she begins to uncover the truth. An innocent man, Miles is convinced, has been under suspicion for decades, while the true culprit is a known serial killer, if only authorities would take a closer look."

Opinion: Not quite what I was expecting. Very obvious that a lot of research was done.

The Dead Zone by Stephen King

Started: 10/11/2026

Finished: DNF

Year: 1979

Pages: 513

Genre: thriller

Grade: D

Reason for reading: library book

Type: paperback

Blurb (from Amazon): "When Johnny Smith was six years old, head trauma caused by a bad ice-skating accident left him with a nasty bruise on his forehead and, from time to time, those hunches…infrequent but accurate snippets of things to come. But it isn’t until Johnny’s a grown man—now having survived a horrifying auto injury that plunged him into a coma lasting four-and-a-half years—that his special abilities really push to the fore. Johnny Smith has come back from the void with an extraordinary gift that becomes his life’s curse…presenting visions of what was and what will be for both the innocent and guilty alike. But when he encounters a ruthlessly ambitious and amoral man who promises a terrifying fate for all humanity, Johnny must find a way to prevent a harrowing predestination from becoming reality…"

Opinion: I had recently watched the movie so the book wasn't keeping my attention...shouldn't have watched it.

Devil's Food Cake Murder by Joanne Fluke

Started: 10/8/2026

Finished: 10/11/2026

Year: 2011

Pages: 322

Genre: cozy mystery

Grade: B-

Reason for reading: continuing with the series, library book

Blurb (from Amazon): "Hannah Swensen must admit that her life is pretty sweet. Things are going well in the romance department, and her bakery’s delectable confections are selling almost as fast as she can bake them. Even her good friend Claire is on cloud nine, head over heels with her new husband, Reverend Bob Knudson. If only they could find time to take their honeymoon!

"When Bob’s childhood friend Matthew Walters comes to town, it seems like divine intervention. Matthew, like Bob, is a Lutheran minister with a stubborn sweet tooth. Since he’s on sabbatical, Matthew is happy to fill in for Bob while he and Claire take that long-awaited honeymoon. It sounds like the perfect plan—until Hannah finds Matthew dead in the rectory, face-down in a plate full of Devil’s Food Cake.

"Determined to find out who killed Matthew, Hannah starts asking questions—and discovers that the good Reverend wasn’t quite the saintly fellow he appeared to be. It will take some more digging to find out, but Hannah is sure of one thing: even the most half-baked murder plot can be oh so deadly . . ."

Opinion: Lots of going back and forth. Ending leaves something interesting for future books.

One Good Eye by Kevin Wade

Started: 10/3/2026

Finished: 10/5/2026

Year: 2026

Pages: 231

Genre: mystery

Grade: B-

Reason for reading: library book, continuing with series

Type: hardcover

Blurb (from Amazon): "As a hurricane makes landfall on Long Island’s Gold Coast, Police Chief Jeep Mullane responds to a plea for help at the estate of his longtime friend Jenny Racine, who has been violently assaulted in a home invasion. Jenny was the girl next door growing up, is now a rich and famous entrepreneur, and has always been a compelling, infuriating, and magnetic presence in his life.

"Though Jenny is adamant she wants no investigation of the incident, Jeep sets off on a lonely and dangerous path to find out who attacked her. As he makes alarming discoveries, he must pry open the secrets of Jenny’s ex-military ex-husband, a fugitive police captain, officious federal agents, steely blue-blooded women, and two local biker gangs, casting aside his protocol as a police chief to challenge the criminals himself."

Opinion: Interesting mix of two different mysteries going on-one based on childhood, one based on current day.