It's Monday 10/16! What Are You Reading?

Whew...late on the blog today. I spent the morning running around - therapeutic massage (not the relaxing kind but the "find the spots that hurt the most and dig in" kind!), my annual mammogram, then a bunch of errands. Finally back home & loving the quiet for a few moments...but my son spent the night and will be up soon, and my husband is coming home soon to meet the hot water heater salesman with me.

We tried another relaxing camping weekend...and it was mostly relaxing. But we got skunked with bad weather again. We haven't seen the sun here in the mid-Atlantic in quite a few days now! We did enjoy a nice hike, a campfire, and lots of reading, though. I'll share some photos on Saturday Snapshot. However, we came home from packing up in the rain, with loads of wet, dirty towels and both of us really needing a shower to find that our hot water heater died while we were away! No hot water, a puddle in the basement, and the fuel oil tank empty (it seems it kept trying to heat the water as the cold water poured in and right out the bottom!). So, I showered at a friend's house last night, my husband showered at work this morning, and we have to boil water to do dishes! Hoping that getting a new one won't take too long (or be too expensive).

Anyway, we did enjoy plenty of reading this weekend! Here's what we have all been reading:

• Still thoroughly enjoying the seasonal R.I.P. Challenge, I have been reading Before the Fall by Noah Hawley, a best-seller from last year that I gave my husband (I think for Christmas). It's a literary thriller about a private plane crash with only two survivors - a man and a little boy. There is plenty of suspense as to why and how the plane crashed (and whether it was some sort of error or intentional), but the novel also digs deeply into each of the characters who were on the plane. It's been really great - completely riveting - and I just have a few pages left.
• I listened to another thriller on audio last week, If I Run by Terri Blackstock, one of the free audios I downloaded from SYNC this summer. This was another gripping thriller, that starts out with a young woman leaving the crime scene of her best friend's murder and going on the run. We don't know why she is running; those details come to light gradually as she tries to evade the police and the PTSD-suffering vet that the victim's parents have hired to find her. The entire story isn't resolved at the end - it turned out to be part 1 of a trilogy - but I enjoyed it.
• This morning, during my journeys around town, I started a new audiobook, Local Girl Missing by Claire Douglas - yes, another suspense novel! Are you seeing a theme here? I've only just started it, but it's about a woman who is still haunted by her best friend's disappearance 18 years later and returns to their hometown to see if she can finally find out what happened.
• My husband, Ken, finished Deadly Cure by Lawrence Goldstone, a historical thriller set in NYC in 1899. He says it was very good and that I will like it, too!
• Ken is now reading The Lock Artist by Steve Hamilton, which won the 2011 Edgar Award for Best Novel. I gave it to him for his birthday recently, as recommended by a reading friend of mine. It's about a young man who the unusual talent of being able to open any lock. He's says it's good so far.
• Jamie, 23, returned to The First Law trilogy by Joe Abercrombie, an epic fantasy that was recommended by our friends at Northshire Bookstore in Vermont. We gave book 1, The Blade Itself, to Jamie for his birthday in August, and he raced through it in just a few days! He was thrilled to find books 2 & 3 at his favorite used bookstore, and he is almost finished with book 2, Before They Are Hanged and then onto book 3! Score one for mom and dad (and Northshire) for a good birthday gift!

Here's what I posted in the blog last week:

Movie Monday: Everything, Everything, based on the YA novel

TV Tuesday: Ten Days in the Valley - new limited thriller starring Kyra Sedgewick

Middle-Grade Review: Hear the Wolves by Victoria Scott - suspenseful survival story in Alaska

Fiction Review: In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware - dark & creepy suspense

What Are You Reading Monday is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date, so head over and check out her blog and join the Monday fun! You can also participate in a kid/teen/YA version hosted by Unleashing Readers.

What are you and your family reading this week?  

You can follow me on Twitter at @SueBookByBook or on Facebook on my blog's page.    

Camping this weekend

 

Fiction Review: In a Dark, Dark Wood

I am really enjoying the R.I.P. Challenge this fall, as I do every year! It gives me a chance to finally get to some of the suspense, mystery, and thriller novels I used to read exclusively that now seem to pile up. For Father’s Day this summer, I gave my husband In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware, a novel recommended by (and purchased at) Northshire Bookstore in Manchester, VT, where I attended Booktopia in May. He enjoyed this creepy thriller, and so did I!

The novel starts with a bang, with the main character, Nora, waking up injured in a hospital room after a frantic run through a dark and snowy woods that she barely remembers. She knows that something horrible has happened, but what?

The action then moves back to a couple of weeks earlier. Nora wakes up in her small apartment and heads out for a 9-mile run through the park on a beautiful November day. When she returns, she finds a new e-mail from a stranger, inviting her to a hen party for an old friend, Clare, whom she hasn’t seen or talked to in ten years. (Note that a “hen party” is a British tradition, sort of like what we might call a bachelorette party in the U.S., though it seems to be a more deeply ingrained and varied tradition there). Mystified as to why she was invited, Nora e-mails another old friend, Nina, (whom she has kept in touch with) whose name was also on the invitation. The two decide to attend together, though Nora still has some serious doubts.

Exactly what happened between Nora and Claire ten years ago remains a mystery for much of the book, but it is clear that it was very upsetting to Nora, causing her to break off all contact. Nora and Nina arrive at the hen party (which is actually an entire hen weekend), being held in an unusual house, secluded in the woods, that is mostly made of glass. Their very exuberant host, Flo, explains that she is Claire’s best friend and the house belongs to her aunt. Other attendees include Melanie, a new mom who is away from her baby for the first time, and Tom, a fashionable gay man who loves a good party.

Claire finally arrives, making Nora feel even more nervous and claustrophobic than she already is. Nora deals with the stress all weekend by going running through the surrounding woods. The narrative moves back and forth from the hen weekend to Nora in the hospital, in pain, remembering blood, and watching the police officer on duty outside her room, so you know from the start that something goes terribly wrong that weekend. One of the first things Nora remembers is that it all had something to do with the shotgun hanging on the wall over the fireplace in the glass house.

This novel is all about suspense. You know from the start that something goes wrong, so much of the suspense comes from wondering what happened, but Ware also creates a creepy, dark tone with the setting. That glass house feels to Nora like they are all on stage, surrounded by the dark woods, not able to see out but on display. She sees signs that perhaps they are not alone. As you read and get to know each character, you wonder if one of them could be the one who goes crazy and pulls out the shotgun? Or was it someone else? It’s a delightfully creepy journey filled with taut tension that kept me turning the pages late into the night. Apparently, Reese Witherspoon agrees because she is making the novel into a movie! I can’t wait.

308 pages, Scout Press

Disclosure: I purchased this book myself. My review is my own opinion.

Note: This post contains affiliate links. Purchases from these links provide a small commission to me (pennies per purchase), to help offset the time I spend writing for this blog, at no extra cost to you.

In a Dark Dark Wood
by Ruth WareTrade Paperback

 Or purchase from Northshire Bookstore in VT:

In a Dark, Dark Wood

  

Middle-Grade Review: Hear the Wolves

Hear the Wolves by Victoria Scott. While the days here were still in the 90’s and humid, this dark survival story transported me to cold, dark Alaska during an epic blizzard.
One of the first books I read for the R.I.P Challenge (I was so excited when September arrived!) was the middle-grade novel

Twelve-year old Sloan lives in tiny Rusic, Alaska, with her father and her older sister, Maren. Her mother left two years ago, and Sloan survived a harrowing incident out in the wilderness by herself. Those experiences caused Sloan to be afraid of being left alone. Her father or Maren walks her to school each day, and she imagines an invisible lasso connecting them to her. Sloan’s father wants his youngest daughter to regain her confidence and independence, so he leaves her alone for two days while he and Maren travel to a nearby town for a community vote, along with most of the rest of Rusic’s residents.

Sloan isn’t very good at math or writing, but she is an excellent hunter, thanks to her dad’s teaching, and she has a talent for art, too. Her sister entered her work in a contest, and Sloan won a scholarship to attend a big art competition in Anchorage, but Sloan is afraid to travel that far. She desperately wants to overcome her fear.

Things have been changing in Rusic lately because of the wolves. It used to be that the wolves minded their own business, and the humans minded theirs, with plenty of rabbits and other small game for them to share. Since much of the habitat for rabbits was destroyed, though, food has become scarce for the wolves. As they’ve gotten hungrier and hungrier, they’ve also become bolder and more desperate, encroaching on the human side of Rusic.

When Sloan’s father left her alone for two days, he didn’t know that a huge blizzard was on its way. When Sloan wakes up that first morning and sees how heavily the snow is falling, she makes her way to the church in town, where oil reserves are stored, to get an extra barrel of oil to keep their generator running through the storm. There, she runs into a few other stragglers left behind, including an older woman who is badly injured. The group decides they need to walk to the next town to get her to medical care. The rest of the novel covers their harrowing journey, not only battling the elements but also trying to keep the starving wolves at bay.

This is a tense and suspenseful survival story, with a ragtag group of people thrown together by circumstances fighting for their lives, as the storm rages on and the wolves draw closer. The book is packed with action and adventure, but it is also about the internal struggles of Sloan and her companions, each battling his or her own problems and trying to work together. Although it’s written for middle-grade readers and stars a twelve-year old protagonist, parts of the story are violent and gory, so younger or more sensitive readers may want to consider whether this book is for them. The violence is not gratuitous, though; it is a realistic part of the danger this group faces in its journey. Those willing to go along for the ride will find a riveting and compelling story of survival, friendship, and bravery.

220 pages, Scholastic Press

NOTE: This novel includes a lot of fascinating information about the lives of wolves. In a note at the end of the book, the author describes her visit to a wolf sanctuary as research for the book, and what she learned about wolves.

Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher in return for an honest review. My review is my own opinion and is not influenced by my relationship with the publisher or author.

Note: This post contains affiliate links. Purchases from these links provide a small commission to me (pennies per purchase), to help offset the time I spend writing for this blog, at no extra cost to you.

Hear the Wolves
by Victoria L. ScottHardcover

 Or you can order Hear the Wolves from Book Depository (free shipping worldwide)

TV Tuesday: Ten Days in the Valley

One of the new fall TV shows I was most excited about is Ten Days in the Valley, a "limited series" with 10 episodes on ABC about a young girl who is abducted from her home and her overworked, stressed-out mother. We have watched the first two episodes so far, and it is dark and suspenseful with plenty of twists.

Kyra Sedgewick (known for her starring role on The Closer and many other movie roles) stars as Jane Sadler, a TV producer. At the start of the first episode, we see that she has a difficult relationship with her ex-husband, Pete, played by Kick Gurry, who begs for more time with their daughter. Jane seems to have a very close relationship with her adorable daughter, Lake, played by Abigail Pniowski, and the two of them cuddle together as Lake falls asleep. Jane, though, soon breaks her promise to stay in bed when she gets an urgent call that the next episode of her new cop show needs a complete rewrite by morning. In what looks like a familiar routine for Jane, she gets out of bed and tiptoes out to the shed behind the house that serves as her office. She brings a baby monitor and keeps the back door cracked open.

Things go from bad to worse that night, though, and after an intense night of writing, Jane heads back to the house to find that all of the doors - including the one she left open - are closed and locked. She breaks a window, frantic now, and gets into the house, only to find that Lake is gone without a trace. She immediately suspects that Pete came back during the night to take Lake because she'd said no to his request to keep her for a few more days. The police get involved, with the investigation led by Detective John Bird, played by Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (aka Mr. Echo from Lost, a favorite of ours). At first, the police follow Jane's instincts, but soon other clues emerge that muddy the waters and point to a more complicated case. To make matters worse, it is clear to the police that Jane is lying or withholding information (she's doing both).

Only two episodes have aired so far, but we are loving this show. It's fast-paced suspense with layers of complexity that are just beginning to get peeled away, bit by bit. Sedgewick is her usual amazing self, here playing a woman who was clearly on the edge of falling apart even before her daughter went missing; her performance is intense and compelling. The other actors are excellent as well, including Malcolm-Jamal Warner as Jane's boss, Emily Kinney (we liked her most recently in the short-lived Conviction) as Jane's assistant, and Erika Christensen of Parenthood fame as Jane's sister. It's a taut thriller that keeps you guessing, with surprises in every episode. We can't wait to see more!

Ten Days in the Valley is currently airing on ABC and is available On Demand, on the ABC website, or for $1.99 an episode (or $16.99 for the season) on Amazon. There will be 10 episodes (each represents a different day).

Movie Monday: Everything, Everything

Since I review YA books, I'd heard about the novel Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon. I haven't had a chance to read the book yet, so I was glad when the movie came out. Reading the summary of the story, I was wondering whether it might be a 2017 version of The Boy in the Plastic Bubble (anyone else remember that 1976 TV movie starring John Travolta?) Well, it kind of is...but with more depth and some plot twists I wasn't expecting. I enjoyed this teen romantic drama.

Eighteen-year old Maddy, played by Amandia Stenberg, has a rare immune disease such that her body can't protect her against germs; even a common cold could be deadly. So, Maddy has lived her entire live in her specially designed house, with only her mother and her nurse, Carla, for company. If you have to be stuck in a house your whole life, it's a pretty cool place, with natural elements, modern furniture, and a huge glass wall with a view of the outside world. Maddy is used to this secluded life, so she keeps busy taking architectural classes online, making models (her favorite is a diner where she imagines one day sitting in a booth), studying, playing games with her mom and Carla, and enjoying time online.

One day, a new family moves in next door, and Maddy has an excellent view from her window of the moving truck, the family, and especially, the gorgeous long-haired teen boy named Olly, played by Nick Robinson. He sees her, too, and is fascinated and attracted to the beautiful girl behind the glass. They begin communicating via handwritten notes held up to windows and progress to texts, IM, e-mails, and eventually talking on the phone. As expected, they fall in love. Olly yearns to show Maddy the world, and Maddy is suddenly no longer content to never leave home, but they both want to protect Maddy's health. I expected a rather predictable story at that point ala The Boy in the Plastic Bubble, but what happens next surprised me.

I watched this movie on my own, while my husband was traveling. He's not a huge fan of teen romances (though he did enjoy Before I Fall with me). It's a mostly light drama, with a bit of suspense toward the end and a hefty dose of romance. Visually, it's wonderful to watch. I found myself wanting to visit Maddy's home (minus the not being able to leave part), and the movie does some fun things with their through-the-glass romance, for instance Maddy imagining herself and Olly in person in the diner she designed while they're texting or talking on the phone. The teen actors did a good job and were fun to watch, and both Anika Noni Rose and Ana de la Reguera were good as Maddy's mom and nurse, respectively.

Everything, Everything is currently out on DVD and available for streaming on Amazon, starting at $3.99. Or you can read the book!

Disclosure: I received this DVD free in return for an honest review. My review is my own opinion and is not influenced by my relationship with the film's PR team.

Note: This post contains affiliate links. Purchases from these links provide a small commission to me (pennies per purchase), to help offset the time I spend writing for this blog, at no extra cost to you.

         

It's Monday 10/9! What Are You Reading?

Last week was another busy one, with my husband's birthday & dinner out, an unexpected evening out with friends for dinner and a new musical based on Something Wicked This Way Comes (which was amazing!), and a family dinner here for my husband's birthday on Friday. Then, I was completely wiped out! But that's OK - it was a nice, quiet weekend, so I had time to rest and recover and even got a bunch of things done online that I'd been putting off (the upside of being stuck on the couch). I was also discharged from PT last week after two months, so that was a relief. My arm & shoulder aren't back to 100% yet (maybe about 75%), but I'm on my way and will continue to work on it at home. Getting rid of those 2-3 PT visits a week will free up some time for me!

As always, we are all enjoying our books. Here's what we've been reading this past week:

• I finished In a Cold and Lonely Place by Sara J. Henry, an author I met at Booktopia in May. I bought this literary suspense novel for my husband, and he liked it. It's the story of a reporter in Lake Placid, NY, who is present when a body is found encased in the frozen lake, and it turns out to be a man she knows. It's a slow, dark burn with plenty of tension and suspense, as she works on a series of articles about the dead man while how he died remains a mystery (until the very end). A perfect fit for me for the R.I.P. Challenge - creepy & suspenseful but not scary or gory.
• Next, I was very excited to read the latest novel by best-selling author Andy Weir (who wrote The Martian): Artemis. It is due out on November 17, and I am reviewing it for Shelf Awareness and just finished it last night. Artemis is the name of the first city on the moon, and the story follows a young woman, Jazz, who is a small-time smuggler but gets involved in some serious criminal activity that is way over her head. It's basically a caper story that takes place on the moon, with Weir's signature blend of science, suspense, and plenty of humor. I really enjoyed it.
• I finished listening to a middle-grade sci fi thriller, Horizon, by renowned author Scott Westerfeld. This is book 1 of a new series that starts with a group of kids on their way to a robot competition in Japan when their plane crashes. Nothing about the crash or their surroundings afterward seems quite right. It combines sci fi elements with mystery and survival adventure. Believe it or not, I think this might be the first Westerfeld novel I have read! I enjoyed it and have downloaded book 2 (a good sign as I don't always continue with series after book 1).
• My husband, Ken, is reading Deadly Cure by Lawrence Goldstone, a historical thriller set in NYC in 1899. He says it is very good so far and that I will like it, too!
• Jamie, 23, finally finished a whopping epic fantasy, Swords and Scoundrels by Julia Knight, book 1 of The Duelists trilogy, and enjoyed it. He says it's similar to the Three Musketeers, with elements of steampunk and fantasy/magic mixed in. 
• Now, Jamie has returned to The First Law trilogy by Joe Abercrombie, an epic fantasy that was recommended by our friends at Northshire Bookstore in Vermont. We gave book 1, The Blade Itself, to Jamie for his birthday in August, and he raced through it in just a few days! He was thrilled to find books 2 & 3 at his favorite used bookstore, so now he is reading book 2, Before They Are Hanged. Score one for mom and dad (and Northshire) for a good birthday gift!

Last week's blog posts:

TV Tuesday: The Killing, a dark Netflix show about homicide detectives on a case in Seattle

Fiction Review: Be Frank with Me by Julia Claiborne Johnson - warm, funny story of an unusual little boy and his caretaker

Fiction Review: Exposed by Lisa Scottoline - exciting legal thriller

2017 Big Book Summer Giveaway Winner! - Congratulations, Cheriee!

What Are You Reading Monday is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date, so head over and check out her blog and join the Monday fun! You can also participate in a kid/teen/YA version hosted by Unleashing Readers.

What are you and your family reading this week?  

You can follow me on Twitter at @SueBookByBook or on Facebook on my blog's page.  

2017 Big Book Summer Challenge Giveaway Winner!

Congratulations, Cheriee! You won the Big Book Summer Giveaway! Everyone who participated in the 2017 Big Book Summer Challenge (either through the challenge page here on the blog or through the Goodreads group) was eligible, and I used a random number generator to pick a winner.

Cheriee blogs at Library Matters, and she included her Big Book Summer sum-up in this blog post - she finished 4 Big Books this summer! Plus, Cheriee was an active member of the Big Book Summer Goodreads group. Way to go, Cheriee! (You can follow Cheriee on Twitter).

For your prize, Cheriee, you can pick any of these Big Books (or if none of these are to your liking, let me know and I can offer other alternatives):

• The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater (YA fantasy)
• The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith, aka JK Rowling (adult mystery)
• The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Dodkin (YA mystery/fantasy)
• Freedom by Jonathan Franzen (adult fiction)
• Overpowered by Mark H. Kruger (YA sci fi thriller)
• Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese (adult fiction) 

(links are to my reviews, where available)

Congratulations to Cheriee and the other 19 people who participated in the 2017 Big Book Summer Challenge! I hope to see you all back here next summer - I already have more Big Books I want to read!

Fiction Review: Exposed

Recently, I reviewed Exposed by Lisa Scottoline for Shelf Awareness. This is the 5th book in her Rosato & DiNunzio series of legal thrillers. I think I had only read one other Scottoline novel before - Everywhere That Mary Went, her very first novel. I did post about her here in the blog before, though, when she wrote a hilarious column for the Phildelphia Inquirer, about her experiences on book tours.

I enjoyed reading Exposed, a suspenseful legal thriller. I found the first half of the novel a bit slow (perhaps because I was unfamiliar with the characters), but it picked up by the middle and was very fast-paced from then on, with lots of unexpected twists and turns and plenty of surprises. You could definitely jump right into this 5th book in the series without reading the first four - that's what I did, and I enjoyed it.

You can read my full review here on Shelf Awareness.

Have you read any Lisa Scottoline books? Are you a fan?

This novel fit in perfectly with my fall R.I.P. Reading Challenge!

Fiction Review: Be Frank With Me

I was thrilled when my neighborhood book group chose Be Frank With Me by Julia Claiborne Johnson for our September selection because I’d heard good things about this novel. It lived up to my expectations – almost everyone in my book group loved this funny, quirky, heartwarming story of a very unusual little boy.

Alice is a young twenty-something assistant working in the publishing industry. Her boss, editor Isaac Vargas, gives her a strange but important assignment: to fly to California and help one of their star authors finish a long-awaited book. M. M. Banning (known as Mimi to her friends) is a mysterious and reclusive author who wrote one best-seller when she was young that became a classic and never wrote another novel (think Harper Lee and To Kill a Mockingbird). She’s gone through some financial difficulties and now needs to publish a second novel, decades later.

Alice is sent to help her with household tasks so she can write, help her with the computer (she still writes on a typewriter), and keep an eye on the progress of the book for Mr. Vargas. When she arrives, however, she finds that her primary role is that of caretaker for Mimi’s unusual nine-year old boy, Frank. In fact, Mimi doesn’t let her see anything she’s working on.

To give you an idea of Frank’s oddness, here is Alice’s first glimpse of him:

“M.M. Banning and I were seated on the living room couch, watching her son playing outside in the hot, bright son. The kid, dressed in a tattered tailcoat and morning pants, accessorized by bare feet and a grubby face, looked like some fictional refugee from the pages of Oliver Twist, one who’d walked all the way to Los Angeles from Dicken’s London and had slept in ditches at night along the way.”

That passage also gives you a glimpse of the author’s wonderful sense of humor. Those turned out to be Frank’s play clothes. He always dresses in miniature outfits that look like they came from classic Hollywood films but was usually far more dapper and cleaned up for outings beyond the house and yard. Here’s a passage from the opening prologue, describing Frank as he and Alice rode a city bus together:

“But his looks weren’t what had our fellow travelers transfixed, certainly not in a place like Hollywood where gorgeous kids are so common that you even see them on city buses. No, what got people staring was Frank’s look. Before we left the house that morning, he’d shellacked his hair like a mini Rudolph Valentino, put on a wing-collared shirt, white tie and vest, a cutaway coat, morning pants, and spats. Also a top hat, which he balanced on his knees while we rode to the hospital because, as he’d explained to our bus driver when the man admired it, “A gentleman never wears his hat indoors.” “

So, yes, Frank is adorable but also very hard to get close to. He’s a very quirky kid (after a while, you realize he probably has autism), as is his reclusive mother. Frank has two hard and fast rules: No touching Frank, and no touching Frank’s things. Alice, of course, learns the importance of these rules by trial and error.

Alice and Frank spend their days together, in a constantly amusing way, and slowly – very slowly – get to know each other better and come to care about each other. Mimi is mostly shut up in her room, typing (at least Alice hopes she’s really typing). There is a big mystery as to who Frank’s father is, since Mimi has never said. Add into the equation one other person whom the isolated Bannings allow into their lives – the mysterious Xander, a handsome man who describes himself as Frank’s “piano teacher and itinerant male role model.”

This is a very, very funny novel. It’s become trite to say something is “laugh-out-loud funny,” but it is really true in this case – I was bursting out with unexpected laughter the whole time I was reading this book. It’s not just funny, though; this is also a very warm, tender story about the growing relationship between Alice and Frank. Elements of mystery and suspense are also woven in along the way. Will Mimi finish her book? Who is Frank’s father? Where does Xander go when he disappears and what is his story anyway? Quirky, prickly, sweet Frank, though, is at the heart of this witty, clever, uplifting story, and I was sorry to say goodbye to him at the end.

287 pages, William Morrow

Disclosure: I borrowed this book from the library. My review is my own opinion.

Note: This post contains affiliate links. Purchases from these links provide a small commission to me (pennies per purchase), to help offset the time I spend writing for this blog, at no extra cost to you

Be Frank With Me A Novel
by Julia Claiborne JohnsonTrade Paperback

TV Tuesday: The Killing

For the past few weeks, during the end-of-summer TV lull, my husband and I have gotten hooked on a dark, suspenseful mystery series called The Killing on Netflix. All the new fall shows are starting now, but we are still loving this great suspense show!

Mareille Enos (more recently of The Catch) plays homicide detective Sarah Linden. As the first episode opens, Sarah is on her last day on the job in Seattle, ready to retire and start a new life with her boyfriend in sunny Sonoma, CA. She and her son, Jack (played by Liam James), have tickets for a late-night flight and have already packed up their home.

Then, a new case hits: a 16-year old girl, Rosie Lawsen, is missing and soon found dead. The case really gets under Sarah's skin as she and her replacement, Stephen Holden (played by Joel Kinnaman), criss-cross the city trying to find clues to Rosie's murder. Sarah misses her late-night deadline - a few times - and finally pledges to stay an extra week to try to wrap up the case. But this case is not easily solved.

Meanwhile, Rosie's family is devastated. Her father, Stan (played by Brent Sexton), owns his own moving company, but years ago he worked for the Russian mob as a "fixer." Her mother, Mitch (played by Michelle Forbes), is wrecked by depression at the loss of her daughter and can't even take care of their remaining two younger sons. Her sister, fun aunt Terry, steps in to help.

Meanwhile, there is a close mayoral race going on in Seattle, pitting the sitting mayor, Lesley Adams (played by Tom Butler) against the handsome, charismatic man-of-the-people councilman Darren Richmond, played by Billy Campbell. Politics gets pulled into the mix when a car registered to the councilman's campaign is found to be connected to the case.

The action goes back and forth between the detectives trying to solve the case, the grieving family who wants justice, and the ever-more nasty political campaign, as the Richmond side tries to distance itself from the horrific crime, and the Mayor tries to imply Richmond was involved. The tone of the show is dark and brooding, much like Sarah herself, set against the backdrop of a mostly dark and always raining Seattle (you won't want to visit the city after seeing all this dark rain!). There is plenty of suspense as the experienced detective and the newbie work (sometimes at odds with each other) to try to find a lead, with all kinds of unexpected twists and turns in the plot.

The entire cast is excellent in this show, but Mareille Enos is really outstanding. If you've only seen her before as the glamorous, wealthy Alice on The Catch, you will barely recognize her here. This is a grittier, more real feeling Enos who fully inhabits the character of Sarah, with her almost-obsession with being a good detective and solving this case in constant battle with her desire to be a good mom (and some secrets in her background). Her relationship with Holden is also an interesting one to watch develop, as she completely distrusts him at first, and he has his own secrets. His performance is also very good - both characters feel real and relatable.

We are in the middle of season 2 (of 4 seasons total), and Linden and Holden are still working on the same case, with all elements of the show digging deeper and deeper. There are surprises and red herrings in every show, plus plenty of character development on all sides. Like I said, we are completely hooked. If you liked The Fall, this show has a similar dark, gritty feel to it (it seems to be as dark and rainy in Ireland as it is in Seattle). It's perfect for this spooky season! (though we enjoyed it during the hot summer, too).

The Killing is a Netflix Original program, so it is available for streaming only on Netflix, with all four seasons there. Or you can watch it on DVD (link below).

It's Monday 10/2! What Are You Reading?

Whew. Last week didn't turn out the way I'd planned. I was supposed to go on a little vacation with my husband for our 28th anniversary and his 40th college reunion in Oklahoma. Instead, he went by himself, and my oldest son and I drove to my hometown of Rochester, NY, for my uncle's funeral. He passed away Monday night at age 74 after a difficult battle with a form of dementia. It was, of course, very sad to lose him, and he wasn't very old, but his last months and especially the last days were pretty bad, so it was a blessing that he didn't linger for long in that state.

So, I spent my week cancelling one trip, planning another, and putting together a memorial DVD with photos, music, and videos. I was very glad to have made the decision to go. It was such a comfort to be with my family and see all my cousins, and my son and I were glad to be there for my aunt and two cousins who lost their husband/father. It was emotional for me because this was the brother closest to my dad, who just died two years ago. I certainly understood how my cousins were feeling.

It was a wonderful service and just great to see not only my close family but also extended family and some very old friends of my dad's and my uncle's whom I hadn't seen since I was a kid. I was also very grateful for my son's help - he did most of the driving - and his company.

A sad week and very busy, so little time for blogging, though we always fit in some reading time - it's comforting during difficult times. Here's what we were reading this past week:

• I am still reading (almost finished) In a Cold and Lonely Place by Sara J. Henry, an author I met at Booktopia in May. I bought this literary suspense novel for my husband, and he liked it. It's the story of a reporter in Lake Placid, NY, who is present when a body is found encased in the frozen lake, and it turns out to be a man she knows. It's a slow, dark burn with plenty of tension and suspense, as she works on a series of articles about the dead man while how he died remains a mystery (hopefully to be revealed now that I am near the end!). 
• I finished listening to Masterminds: Payback, the third and final book of a middle-grade trilogy by Gordon Kormon. I loved the first book, Masterminds, and its sequel. It's a fast-paced thriller with sci fi elements, and book 3 was just as compelling, with a satisfying ending.
• Now, I am listening to another middle-grade sci fi thriller, Horizon by renowned author Scott Westerfeld. This is book 1 of a new series that starts with a group of kids on their way to a robot competition in Japan when their plane crashes. Nothing about the crash or their surroundings afterward seems quite right. It combines sci fi elements with mystery and survival adventure. I'm enjoying it so far. Believe it or not, I think this might be the first Westerfeld novel I have read!
• My husband, Ken, finished The Son by Jo Nesbo, a stand-alone thriller not featuring his well-known Harry Hole character. He really enjoyed it.
• Now, Ken is reading Deadly Cure by Lawrence Goldstone, a historical thriller set in NYC in 1899. He was looking for a compelling and lightweight paperback for the plane, and I received this one for review. I'm guessing he didn't have much time for reading this weekend with all the reunion events!
• Jamie, 23, is reading an epic fantasy, Swords and Scoundrels by Julia Knight, book 1 of The Duelists trilogy, and enjoying it. He says it's similar to the Three Musketeers, with elements of steampunk and fantasy/magic mixed in. He's almost finished, but he didn't have much reading time either - he did most of the driving this weekend!

Notice a theme here? I finally posted my official sign-up for the R.I.P. Challenge, which I enjoy every fall, and have been enjoying lots of suspense, thrillers, mysteries, and other creepy stuff!

Just two blog posts last week:

TV Tuesday: Salvation - a suspenseful thriller that mixes a potential apocalypse with politics

 2017 R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril Challenge XII - see what I'm reading & join the fun!

What Are You Reading Monday is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date, so head over and check out her blog and join the Monday fun! You can also participate in a kid/teen/YA version hosted by Unleashing Readers.

What are you and your family reading this week?  

You can follow me on Twitter at @SueBookByBook or on Facebook on my blog's page. 

R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril Challenge XII 2017

It's that time of year again! Time for some creepy, spooky reading for the 
R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril Challenge (R.I.P.) hosted by Estella's Revenge and My Capricious Life. 

I've participated in this fun fall challenge for the past few years, and I always enjoy it because I like reading a bit of dark stuff (not too dark), but I don't always find the time. I used to read suspense, mystery, and thrillers almost exclusively, until I discovered reading groups and reviewing and broadened my reading horizons. And my husband LOVES to read this stuff. So, my TBR bookcase (yes, an entire bookcase!) includes lots of good creepy stuff. In September and October, I enjoy focusing on that and also making a dent in my TBR pile!

Now, before you say, "Oh, I don't read horror," let me explain that the R.I.P. Challenge is pretty broad - it includes anything a bit dark: mysteries, suspense, thrillers, supernatural or paranormal, gothic, and yes, horror, too. So, the books you read can be as scary or wimpy as you prefer. Most of mine are suspense. mystery, or thriller.

I actually started this challenge back on September 1, when it began, but this is my first chance to officially sign up and post about it.

So, I have already read or am almost finished with these creepy books:

• In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware (literary mystery/thriller)
• Hear the Wolves by Victoria Scott (middle-grade outdoor adventure)
• Hollow City (book 2 of the Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children series by Ransom Riggs (YA fantasy & suspense)
• A Cold and Lonely Place by Sara J. Henry (literary thriller - almost finished)
• Not shown: Masterminds: Payback by Gordon Kormon (book 3 in a middle-grade sci fi thriller series) - listened on audio
• Not shown: Horizon by Scott Westerfeld (middle-grade sci fi thriller) - currently listening on audio

Don't the covers all look creepy? They kind of match. Though, to be clear, none of the covers have spiders printed on them - I got the Halloween decorations out and added those for effect!
And here is a stack I plan to draw from for the rest of the month - I probably won't get to all of these (highly unlikely), but these are some of the many on my shelf I am dying to read that fit for the R.I.P. Challenge:

• Before the Fall by Noah Hawley (literary suspense)
• The Sleepwalker by Chris Bohjalian (literary suspense)
• Artemis by Andy Weir, author of The Martian (suspenseful sci fi)
• The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware (literary thriller)
• The Only Thing to Fear by Caroline Tung Richmond (middle-grade suspense)

I'm having so much fun already and can't wait to read the rest! Do you enjoy reading anything creepy or suspenseful? Join the fun and sign up at the link above.

Happy Spooky Reading Season!

TV Tuesday: Salvation

I'm a little late with this review of Salvation, a CBS summer show that started in July, but since it is still available in a couple of places, I thought I'd go ahead and review it now. My husband and I have enjoyed this fast-paced show that is a mix of sci fi thriller and political conspiracy and just watched the season one finale this week.

MIT grad student Liam Cole, played by the adorably scruffy Charlie Rowe, one day discovers a large asteroid that is on a course to collide with Earth in 186 days. He rushes to the home of his professor, played by Dennis Boutsikaris, but finds a huge mess in his office, his glasses crushed on the floor, and his professor nowhere to be found. Scared now, Liam rushes across campus, trying to stay away from whatever "bad guys" found his professor. That same day, Liam meets Jillian, a beautiful young writer played by Jacqueline Byers, and it's love at first sight for both of them.

Desperate to tell someone about the asteroid who can help, Liam crashes into a TED-type talk given by Darius Tanz, played by Santiago Cabrera, a tech billionaire who runs a powerful company. It takes some convincing, but Darius soon believes Liam and understands the seriousness of the problem. The two head to Tanz Industries headquarters in D.C. and contact Grace Barrows, played by Jennifer Finnigan, who is the Press Secretary for the Assistant Secretary of Defense, Harris, played by Ian Anthony Dale.

Two different but related threads run through the show. There's the science side of things, where Darius and Liam race against time to try to figure out how to either destroy the asteroid or move it off course. And there's the political side of things, where Grace and Harris (sometimes working at odds with each other; other times working together) try to convince those in power to provide the necessary funding and support. Through it all, only a very small group of people even know about the asteroid - they are afraid that if it becomes public knowledge, panic and chaos will ensue.

There's a lot going on in this show to keep it moving at a fast pace. In addition to the main storylines, Darius is secretly working on an "ark," a rocket that would hold 160 people and could make it to Mars; there's an existing romance between Grace and Harris; a new romance between Liam and Jillian (though he can't tell her about the asteroid); political machinations; and a small issue of ever-worsening conflict and perhaps approaching war between Russia and the US. It's all very exciting, with plenty of suspense, and the acting is good, with excellent chemistry between the main characters. The science might be a bit iffy in places, but that's typical for this sort of sci fi thriller - you just suspend disbelief and go along for the ride. And what a ride it is! We watched this show the old-fashioned way, once a week as each new episode was released (well, not entirely old-fashioned - we watched it On Demand), and we were always eager to see the next one. It ended with a huge cliff-hanger, so I hope there will be a season 2!

Season 1 (13 episodes) just finished airing on CBS. The last 5 episodes are available for free On Demand or on the CBS website. To see the first 8 episodes on CBS, you have to subscribe to their service. The entire first season is available FREE to Amazon Prime members or you can purchase episodes for $1.99 each (link below) on Amazon.

It's Monday 9/25! What Are You Reading?

Super late with my post today after a very hectic morning - out the door early for fasting bloodwork, back home for a quick breakfast, then to PT and massage for my shoulder injury, then a stop at the grocery store and finally home! Whew. Unfortunately, that will be the norm for this week until later when we head to Oklahoma for my husband's 40th college reunion. That should be fun - besides his reunion, we'll be seeing one of my best friends from high school (oddly enough, we both married Oklahoma guys!) - and hopefully not too tiring for me. I'll get a little downtime while my husband is out golfing. And, hey, flying means LOTS of reading time, right?

Last week was busy, too, but we enjoyed our books - celebrating this spooky fall season (even though it has been 90 degrees here!). Here's what we've been reading:

• I finished a YA fantasy thriller, Hollow City by Ransom Riggs, the second book in the Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children series. I enjoyed the first book, and my son's girlfriend loaned me this one. It was just as good - fun, suspenseful, and with a sense of humor, too. I love how the author builds his story around real vintage photos he's found of creepy/weird stuff! Very creative.
• I was in that in-between stage - didn't want to start the longer book I'm planning to bring on the trip but not quite enough time to squeeze in another - so I chose a short (but still creepy) novel, In a Cold and Lonely Place by Sara J. Henry, an author I met at Booktopia in May. I bought this book for my husband, and he liked it. It's the story of a reporter in Lake Placid, NY, who is present when a body is found encased in the frozen lake, and it turns out to be someone she knows. I've just started it, but it already has a dark tension to it with plenty of suspense.
• On audio, I am listening to Masterminds: Payback, the third and final book of a middle-grade trilogy by Gordon Kormon. I loved the first book, Masterminds, and its sequel. It's a fast-paced thriller with sci fi elements, and book 3 is just as compelling.
• My husband, Ken, is reading The Son by Jo Nesbo, a stand-alone thriller not featuring his well-known Harry Hole character. He's really enjoying it.
• Jamie, 23, is reading an epic fantasy, Swords and Scoundrels by Julia Knight, book 1 of The Duelists trilogy, and enjoying it. He says it's similar to the Three Musketeers, with elements of steampunk and fantasy/magic mixed in. He's home today, and says he'll probably finish it tonight.

Last week's blog posts:

Movie Monday: Gold starring Matthew McConaughey, drama about gold prospecting

TV Tuesday: Fall TV We Are Looking Forward To

Fiction Review: The Hearts of Men by Nickolas Butler, about friendship through generations

Nonfiction Review: The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo - some good advice but also a little nutty!

My Summary of Books Read in August

Saturday Snapshot: Lake Atsion, New Jersey Pinelands - pics from our camping/kayaking

What Are You Reading Monday is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date, so head over and check out her blog and join the Monday fun! You can also participate in a kid/teen/YA version hosted by Unleashing Readers.

What are you and your family reading this week?  

You can follow me on Twitter at @SueBookByBook or on Facebook on my blog's page.

Remember if you are participating in my Big Book Summer Challenge to leave links to your reviews on the challenge page (the second links list is for reviews, updates, and wrap-ups) to share them. I know many of you enjoyed your Big Books this summer! The Challenge is finished, but you can continue to link up your reviews and/or wrap-up posts through the end of September.