The Shining by Stephen King

Started: 7/20/2026

Finished: 7/30/2026

Year: 1977

Pages: 659

Genre: horror/suspense

Grade; B+

Reason for reading: library book

Type: paperback

Blurb (from Amazon): "Jack Torrance’s new job at the Overlook Hotel is the perfect chance for a fresh start. As the off-season caretaker at the atmospheric old hotel, he’ll have plenty of time to spend reconnecting with his family and working on his writing. But as the harsh winter weather sets in, the idyllic location feels ever more remote . . . and more sinister. And the only one to notice the strange and terrible forces gathering around the Overlook is Danny Torrance, a uniquely gifted five-year-old."

Opinion: The movie captures most of what is in here and adds a couple of elements that are not. Suspenseful. Fun read.

Outfoxed by David Rosenfelt

Started 7/16/2026

Finished: 7/18/2026

Year: 2016

Pages: 326

Genre: mystery

Grade: B

Reason for reading: TBR pile, continuing with series

Type: hardcover

Blurb (from Amazon): "Defense lawyer Andy Carpenter spends as much time as he can working on his true passion, the Tara Foundation, the dog rescue organization he runs. Lately, Andy has been especially involved in a county prison program where inmates help train dogs the Tara Foundation has rescued to make them more adoptable, benefiting both the dogs and the prisoners. One of the prisoners Andy has been working with is Brian Atkins, who has 18 months left on a 5-year term for fraud. Brian has been helping to train Boomer, an adorable fox terrier the Tara Foundation rescued from a neglectful owner. Brian and Boomer are clearly a terrific match. In fact, Andy hopes that Brian will adopt Boomer himself, once his sentence is up. But one day, Andy arrives at the prison to discover that Brian has used Boomer to make an ingenious escape, and man and dog are both in the wind. The next day, the man on whose testimony Brian was convicted is found murdered. Brian is caught and arrested for the crime, though he forcefully protests his innocence. Suddenly, Andy finds himself with a new client in Brian and a new dog in Boomer. And as he starts to dig deeper into the murder and the events leading up to it, Andy realizes he might be putting them all in far more danger than anyone had realized."

Opinion: A decent murder mystery. A big lingering situation is resolved...or is it? Wondering what the next book will bring to Andy and his family. 

Crypt Suzette by Maya Corrigan

Started 7/12/2026

Finished: 7/16/2026

Year: 2019

Pages: 288

Genre: cozy mystery

Grade: B+

Reason for reading: library book, continuing with series

Type: paperback

Blurb (from Amazon): "Suzette Cripps has been occupying a spare bedroom at Val’s granddad’s house while she takes classes in this Maryland Eastern Shore town—but she’s always seemed a little secretive and fearful, and any talk about her past is a closed book.

"After winning the costume contest at the Halloween-themed bookstore party, Suzette is mowed down by a hit-and-run driver—and Val and her grandfather start to wonder whether it was really an accident or if someone was after Suzette. Granddad is a little distracted by his new enterprise as a ghost-buster, but as Val talks to Suzette’s coworkers and fellow creative writing students, she grows more convinced that the dead woman’s demons weren’t imaginary—and that she needs to rip the mask off a killer …"

Opinion: Plenty of suspects. Interesting murder victim and reasoning for murder.

No Way to Treat a Child by Naomi Schaefer Riley

Started: 7/12/2026

Finished: DNF

Year: 2021

Pages: 205

Genre: non fiction-foster care system/child welfare

Grade: F

Reason for reading: won it through Goodreads.com giveaway

Type: hardcover

Blurb (from Amazon): "Kids in danger are treated instrumentally to promote the rehabilitation of their parents, the welfare of their communities, and the social justice of their race and tribe—all with the inevitable result that their most precious developmental years are lost in bureaucratic and judicial red tape. It is time to stop letting efforts to fix the child welfare system get derailed by activists who are concerned with race-matching, blood ties, and the abstract demands of social justice, and start asking the most important question: Where are the emotionally and financially stable, loving, and permanent homes where these kids can thrive?"

Opinion: The author is a journalist-never actually worked in the child welfare system. I have worked in it and yes it is FAR from perfect but how about you actually work it and come up with something better?

On Thin Icing by Ellie Alexander

Started: 7/10/2026

Finished: 7/12/2026

Year: 2016

Pages: 270

Genre: cozy mystery

Grade: B

Reason for reading: library book, continuing with series

Type: paperback

Blurb (from Amazon): "It's the dead of winter in the sleepy town of Ashland, which means no tourists-and fewer customers-for Jules Capshaw and her bakery. But when she's asked to cater an off-season retreat for the directors of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, business starts heating up...until Jules finds a dead body in the freezer.

"Someone at the retreat has apparently iced the bartender, a well-known flirt with a legendary temper-that is, before a killer beat him to the punch. Then, from out of nowhere, Jules's own ex-husband shows up at the shop-and soon becomes a suspect. With accusations piling up higher than the snow-and thicker than a chocolate mousse cake-Jules has to think outside the (recipe) box to find the real culprit...and make sure he gets his just desserts."

Opinion: Interesting off the main stage mystery. Not sure if I'm liking Carlos showing up.

Murder at an Irish Wedding by Carlene O'Connor

Started: 7/10/2026

Finished: DNF

Year: 2017

Pages 308

Genre: mystery

Grade: F

Reason for reading: library book, continuing series

Type: hardcover

Blurb (from Amazon): "Any wedding is a big deal in the small village of Kilbane—even more so when the bride is a famous fashion model. It’s also good for business. Not only has customer traffic picked up at Naomi’s Bistro, Siobhán O’Sullivan and her five siblings have a full plate catering for thet hree-day affair. And Siobhán’s own beau, local garda Macdara Flannery, gladly steps in as best man after the groom’s first choice makes a drunken arse out of himself,

"Even if he hadn’t been disinvited to the wedding, the original best man wouldn’t have been able to show. He’s been found murdered in the woods, casting a pall over the nuptials. And when a second member of the wedding party is poisoned by a champagne flute engraved with Macdara’s name, the garda goes from being best man to prime suspect.

"With a killer at large and a string of robberies plaguing Kilbane, Siobhán feels more than a little protective of her village. She vows to clear Macdara’s name, but the suspect list is as long as the guest list. Like the bride walking down the aisle, Siobhán needs to watch her step. For as she gets closer to unveiling the truth, the murderer is planning a very chilly reception for her . . ."

Opinion: Not sure why I borrowed this one considering I really didn't like the first one...didn't last long reading it. Not worth my time when I have so many other books to read

Carl's Doomsday Scenario by Matt Dinniman

Started: July 3, 2026

Finished: July 10, 2026

Year: 2021

Pages: 351

Genre: fantasy

Grade: B

Reason for reading: library book, continuing with series

Type: hardcover

Blurb (from Amazon): "“Greetings, Crawlers! The training levels have concluded. Now the games may truly begin.”

"The aliens have come, and they’ve transformed Earth into a multilevel, video game–like dungeon. It’s the newest season of the galaxy’s most watched game show, Dungeon Crawler World. Now on the third floor, Carl and Donut have to fight harder than ever. They’ve already proven that a Coast Guard vet and once-and-forever feline royalty are an almost unstoppable team. Their ratings are off the charts. Viewers can’t get enough. But the dungeon gets more dangerous each day, and now there’s a whole new problem to deal with: Quests.

"They call it the Over City. A sprawling, once-thriving metropolis devastated by a mysterious calamity. But these streets are far from abandoned. An undead circus trawls the ruins. Murdered women rain from the sky. An ancient spell is finally ready to reveal its dark purpose. Can Carl and Donut solve the mystery in time?

"And can Carl finally find some pants?"

Opinion: Not as good as the first book-too much outside the dungeon interference. Stil and entertaining read.

The Bachman Books by Stephen King

Started: 6/20/2026

Finished: 7/3/2026

Year: 1982

Pages: 692

Genre: short stories

Grade: C

Reason for reading: library book

Type: hardcover

Blurb (from Amazon): "collection of four of Stephen King's earliest novels: "Rage", "The Long Walk", "Roadwork", and "The Running Man"."

Opinion: As with any short story collection, some I liked more than others. Overall, King has some issues ;)

The Pirate King by Sean Kingsley and Rex Cowan

Started: 6/16/2026

Finished: DNF

Year: 2024

Pages: 213

Genre: pirate history

Grade: D

Reason for reading: library book

Type: hard cover

Blurb (from Amazon): "Henry Avery of Devon pillaged a fortune from a Mughal ship off the coast of India and then vanished into thin air—and into legend. More ballads, plays, biographies and books were written about Avery’s adventures than any other pirate. His contemporaries crowned him "the pirate king" for pulling off the richest heist in pirate history and escaping with his head intact (unlike Blackbeard and his infamous Flying Gang). Avery was now the most wanted criminal on earth. To the authorities, Avery was the enemy of all mankind. To the people he was a hero. Rumors swirled about his disappearance. The only certainty is that Henry Avery became a ghost.

"What happened to the notorious Avery has been pirate history’s most baffling cold case for centuries. Now, in a remote archive, a coded letter written by "Avery the Pirate" himself, years after he disappeared, reveals a stunning truth. He was a pirate that came in from the cold . . ."

Opinion: I just ended up not being interested so I stopped. It wasn't poorly written and the overall topic wasn't not interesting.