Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll

Started: 10/25/2023

Finished: 10/30/2023

Year: 2023

Pages 373

Genre: Thriller

Grade: B

Reason for reading: library book

Type: hardcover

Blurb (from Amazon): "Masterfully blending elements of psychological suspense and true crime, Jessica Knoll—author of the bestselling novel Luckiest Girl Alive and the writer behind the Netflix adaption starring Mila Kunis—delivers a new and exhilarating thriller in Bright Young Women. The book opens on a Saturday night in 1978, hours before a soon-to-be-infamous murderer descends upon a Florida sorority house with deadly results. The lives of those who survive, including sorority president and key witness, Pamela Schumacher, are forever changed. Across the country, Tina Cannon is convinced her missing friend was targeted by the man papers refer to as the All-American Sex Killer—and that he’s struck again. Determined to find justice, the two join forces as their search for answers leads to a final, shocking confrontation."

Opinion: An interesting take on Ted Bundy

O is for Outlaw by Sue Grafton

Started: 10/24/2023

Finished: 10/25/2023

Year: 1999

Pages 400

Genre: mystery

Grade: B

Reason for reading: continuing with the series

Type: paperback

Blurb (from Amazon): "The call comes on a Monday morning from a guy who scavenges defaulted storage units at auction. Last week he bought a stack. They had stuff in them--Kinsey stuff. For thirty bucks, he'll sell her the lot. Kinsey's never been one for personal possessions, but curiosity wins out and she hands over a twenty (she may be curious but she loves a bargain). What she finds amid childhood memorabilia is an old undelivered letter.

"It will force her to reexamine her beliefs about the breakup of that first marriage, about the honor of that first husband, about an old unsolved murder. It will put her life in the gravest peril. "O" Is for Outlaw: Kinsey's fifteenth adventure into the dark side of human nature."

Opinion: I'm glad that this took a more personal look at Kinsey's life and her relationship with her ex-husband. An interesting mystery.

Board to Death by CJ Connor

Started: 10/23/2023

Finished: 10/24/2023

Year: 2023

Pages: 222

Genre: cozy mystery

Grade: C

Reason for reading: library book

Type: paperback

Blurb (from Amazon): "Back in his hometown of Sugar House running his family’s board game shop and café, Ben Rosencrantz just can’t seem to get his life to pass go, much less collect $200. Once he was a happily married English professor in Seattle. Now he’s a divorced caregiver, looking after his ill father and a Chihuahua named Beans while still figuring out the rules of retail management. At least the town has become more LGBTQ+ friendly than when Ben was a teenager—and that flower shop owner, Ezra McCaslin, enjoys flirting with him.

"But despite his usual clientele of gamers, Ben is barely earning enough to keep the store running and stay on top of his father’s medical bills. Then a local toy and game collector named Clive offers him a winning strategy—to purchase a turn-of-the-twentieth-century edition of The Landlord’s Game, the realty and taxation game that inspired Monopoly, at a tenth of the rare edition’s true value. Suspicious of Clive’s shady, low-priced deal, Ben turns the offer down.

"Then Clive turns up dead at the front door of Ben’s and a backpack full of $100 bills appears on his doorstep. Now Ben is the #1 suspect in Clive’s death, and unless he and Ezra can prove his innocence and find the real killer, he’ll go to jail for murder—and no amount of double dice rolls will set him free . . ."

Opinion: An interesting mystery that was unfortunately predictable. I do like the characters of Ben and Ezra and am curious on what future mysteries they get involved with in the upcoming books.

Deja Dead by Kathy Reichs

Started: 10/9/2023

Finished: 10/23/2023

Pages: 532

Year 1997

Genre: Mystery/thriller

Grade: B

Reason for reading: starting the series

Type: paperback

Blurb (from Amazon): "Her life is devoted to justice—even for those she never knew.

"In the year since Temperance Brennan left behind a shaky marriage in North Carolina, work has often preempted her weekend plans to explore Quebec. When a female corpse is discovered meticulously dismembered and stashed in trash bags, Temperance detects an alarming pattern—and she plunges into a harrowing search for a killer. But her investigation is about to place those closest to her—her best friend and her own daughter—in mortal danger…"

Opinion: I think that I've read some of these out of order so I'm starting from number one. Lots of indepth knowledge about handling bones. 

The Cotton Candy Massacre by Christopher Robertson

Started: 10/8/2023

Finished: DNF

Year: 2022

Pages: 355

Genre: horror

Grade: D

Reason for reading: library book, local bookstore book club choice

Type: paperback

Blurb (from Amazon): "The book you are about to read is an account of the tragedy that occurred at the reopening of Bonkin's Bonanza one day in the summer of 1989. Some came looking for fun, like Candy Barton and her best friend, Leigh.

"Others, like Rocky Rhodes and Sully Sullivan, came looking for a second chance. Instead, they would find a twisted, funfetti nightmare.

"For many of the thrill-seekers and families visiting Bonkin's Bonanza, that day would be their last. And the events that unfolded would go on to become infamously known as The Cotton Candy Massacre."

Opinion: It was written differently-kinda of a mix between a screenplay and a novel. Definitely not a bad thing. It just didn't keep my attention.

Kisses Don't Lie by Alexa Darin

Started: 10/5/2023

Finished: 10/6/2023

Year: 2023 (this edition)

Pages: 304

Genre: romance suspense

Grade: C

Reason for reading: librarything.com early reviewers giveaway

Type: paperback

Blurb (from Amazon): "Bailey Ventura is sure she’s met Mr. Right when she goes to Las Vegas and meets gorgeous head of casino security, Carter Davis. Charming and swoon-worthy, not to mention an Elvis tribute artist, Carter is just the kind of man Bailey can see herself growing old with. But to keep the romance going, she'll need to come up with a plan to convince Carter to go home with her.

"Luck is on Bailey's side when she wins a sexy red Thunderbird convertible! And when Carter agrees to accompany her on the drive home, she thinks he, too, is interested in a relationship. But all is not as it seems. Carter has an ulterior motive. He’s looking to get a million-dollar diamond out of Las Vegas, which means Bailey's romantic road-trip could end in heartbreak."

Opinion: A thorough review is posted on Librarything.com

Episode Thirteen by Craig DiLouie

Started: 10/2/2023

Finished: 10/5/2023

Year: 2023

Pages: 433

Genre: horror/paranormal

Grade: B

Reason for reading: looked interested, fan of the paranormal world

Type: paperback

Blurb (from Amazon): "Fade to Black is the newest hit ghost hunting reality TV show. Led by husband and wife team Matt and Claire Kirklin, it delivers weekly hauntings investigated by a dedicated team of ghost hunting experts.

"Episode Thirteen takes them to every ghost hunter's holy grail: the Paranormal Research Foundation. This brooding, derelict mansion holds secrets and clues about bizarre experiments that took place there in the 1970s. It's also famously haunted, and the team hopes their scientific techniques and high tech gear will prove it. But as the house begins to reveal itself to them, proof of an afterlife might not be everything Matt dreamed of. A story told in broken pieces, in tapes, journals, and correspondence, this is the story of Episode Thirteen—and how everything went terribly, horribly wrong."

Opinion: Imagine one of those ghost hunting/paranormal television shows that just goes horribly wrong. Pretty imaginative.

100 Places to See After You Die by Ken Jennings

Started: 9/30/2023

Finished: DNF

Year: 2023

Pages: 275

Genre: travel satire

Grade: D

Reason for reading: library book

Type: hardcover

Blurb (from Amazon): "Ever wonder which circles of Dante’s Inferno have the nicest accommodations? Where’s the best place to grab a bite to eat in the ancient Egyptian underworld? How does one dress like a local in the heavenly palace of Hinduism’s Lord Vishnu, or avoid the flesh-eating river serpents in the Klingon afterlife? What hidden treasures can be found off the beaten path in Hades, Valhalla, or NBC’s The Good Place? Find answers to all those questions and more about the world(s) to come in this eternally entertaining book from Ken Jennings.

"100 Places to See After You Die is written in the style of iconic bestselling travel guides—but instead of recommending must-see destinations in Mexico, Thailand, or Rome, Jennings outlines journeys through the afterlife, as dreamed up over 5,000 years of human history by our greatest prophets, poets, mystics, artists, and TV showrunners. This comprehensive index of 100 different afterlife destinations was meticulously researched from sources ranging from the Epic of Gilgamesh to modern-day pop songs, video games, and Simpsons episodes. Get ready for whatever post-mortal destiny awaits you, whether it’s an astral plane, a Hieronymus Bosch hellscape, or the baseball diamond from Field of Dreams.

"Fascinating, funny, and irreverent, this light-hearted memento mori will help you create your very own bucket list—for after you’ve kicked the bucket."

Opinion: Wasn't sure what I was expecting when I got this. Definitely insightful on different ideas of where you go when you die.