The Escape Room by Megan Goldin

Goodreads Blurb

Vincent, Jules, Sylvie, and Sam are ruthlessly ambitious high-flyers working in the lucrative world of Wall Street finance where deception and intimidation thrive. Getting rich is all that matters, and they’ll do anything to reach the top.

When they are ordered to participate in a corporate team-building exercise that requires them to escape from a locked elevator, dark secrets of their team begin to be laid bare.

The biggest mystery to solve in this lethal game: What happened to Sara Hall? Once a young shining star—”now gone but not forgotten”.

This is no longer a game.
They’re fighting for their lives.

My Review: Rated 4 out of 5 stars

Revenge comes in many forms. Can your plan work? Will they suffer for what they did?


A thriller that will leave you stunned and even more frightful of elevators. What secret does Vincent, Jules, Sylvie and Sam keep, that will forever change their lives? Innocence gives powers to the beast. Money is all that matters for most people. People will go mad and see the only solution is murder. I loved how the author wrote this story where we know what happened with Sara Hall and at the same time what was currently happening on the elevator.

Escape rooms are now popular team building games to solve puzzles in order to open other rooms in order to escape. I was crushed when Sara was being seen like she was crazy and her work was lacking. The loss of her job and everything she cared for had me in tears. The ruthlessness of people climbing the corporate latter making deals that will make them richer at the cost of innocent people had me pissed. I am glad they got what they deserved. The secrets you keep will someday be revealed. Be careful of the secrets you keep with others and think twice before getting in that elevator.

Author Biography

Megan Goldin is the bestselling author of “The Escape Room”, praised by Lee Child as “one of my favorite books of the year”, as well as “The Girl In Kellers Way”, a critically-acclaimed domestic noir thriller nominated for Australia’s leading crime fiction awards.
Megan worked as a journalist for Reuters, the Australian ABC and Yahoo! News before writing her debut psychological thriller The Girl In Kellers Way.
REVIEWS
“Top-shelf page turning crime”
“Domestic noir at its best. This work of fiction will leave your heart pounding days after the final pages are finished” New Idea Magazine
“A taunt thriller” Courier Mail review
“A cracker of a debut novel that gives Gone Girl and Girl on the Train a run for their money” Herald-Sun review
“A real page turner” Women’s Day Magazine

Book trailer: http://bit.ly/2vFtj2p

New ARC Book Mail: The Safe Place by Anna Downes

Goodreads Blurb

Superbly tense and oozing with atmosphere, Anna Downs’s debut is the perfect summer suspense, with the modern gothic feel of Ruth Ware and the morally complex family dynamics of Lisa Jewell.

Welcome to paradise…will you ever be able to leave?

Emily is a mess.

Emily Proudman just lost her acting agent, her job, and her apartment in one miserable day.

Emily is desperate.

Scott Denny, a successful and charismatic CEO, has a problem that neither his business acumen nor vast wealth can fix. Until he meets Emily.

Emily is perfect.

Scott offers Emily a summer job as a housekeeper on his remote, beautiful French estate. Enchanted by his lovely wife Nina, and his eccentric young daughter, Aurelia, Emily falls headlong into this oasis of wine-soaked days by the pool. But soon Emily realizes that Scott and Nina are hiding dangerous secrets, and if she doesn’t play along, the consequences could be deadly. 

Author Biography

ANNA DOWNES was born and raised in Sheffield, UK, but now lives just north of Sydney, Australia with her husband and two children. She worked as an actress before turning her attention to writing. She was shortlisted for the Sydney Writers Room Short Story Prize (2017) and long listed for the Margaret River Short Story Competition (2018). The Safe Place was inspired by Anna’s experiences working as a live-in housekeeper on a remote French estate in 2009-10. 

Book Mail: The Kept Woman (Will Trent #8) by Karin Slaughter

Goodreads Blurb

Husbands and wives. Mothers and daughters. The past and the future.

Secrets bind them. And secrets can destroy them.

The author of Pretty Girls returns with an electrifying, emotionally complex thriller that plunges its fascinating protagonist into the darkest depths of a mystery that just might destroy him.

With the discovery of a murder at an abandoned construction site, Will Trent of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation is brought in on a case that becomes much more dangerous when the dead man is identified as an ex-cop.

Studying the body, Sara Linton—the GBI’s newest medical examiner and Will’s lover—realizes that the extensive blood loss didn’t belong to the corpse. Sure enough, bloody footprints leading away from the scene indicate there is another victim—a woman—who has vanished . . . and who will die soon if she isn’t found.

Will is already compromised, because the site belongs to the city’s most popular citizen: a wealthy, powerful, and politically connected athlete protected by the world’s most expensive lawyers—a man who’s already gotten away with rape, despite Will’s exhaustive efforts to put him away.

But the worst is yet to come. Evidence soon links Will’s troubled past to the case . . . and the consequences will tear through his life with the force of a tornado, wreaking havoc for Will and everyone around him, including his colleagues, family, friends—and even the suspects he pursues.

Relentlessly suspenseful and furiously paced, peopled with conflicted, fallible characters who leap from the page, The Kept Woman is a seamless blend of twisty police procedural and ingenious psychological thriller — a searing, unforgettable novel of love, loss, and redemption. 

Author Biography

Karin Slaughter is one of the world’s most popular and acclaimed storytellers. Published in 120 countries with more than 35 million copies sold across the globe, her nineteen novels include the Grant County and Will Trent books, as well as the Edgar-nominated COP TOWN and the instant NEW YORK TIMES bestselling novels PRETTY GIRLS, THE GOOD DAUGHTER, and PIECES OF HER. Her most recent book, THE LAST WIDOW, features Sara Linton and Will Trent. Slaughter is the founder of the Save the Libraries project—a nonprofit organization established to support libraries and library programming. A native of Georgia, Karin Slaughter lives in Atlanta. Her standalone novels PIECES OF HER, THE GOOD DAUGHTER, and COP TOWN are in development for film and television.

Review: Bad Kitty Joins the Team by Nick Bruel

Goodreads Blurb

Kitty is terribly out of shape–she can barely torment Puppy without needing a break to huff and puff! When Kitty’s owner catches her wheezing, Kitty is told it’s time to EXERCISE.

It takes some serious convincing, a high-stakes competition, and a little bit of trickery but eventually Kitty gets into the competitive spirit . . . albeit reluctantly. What did you expect?

Will our favorite feline friend learn what it means to be a good sport? Find out in this hilarious addition to the Bad Kitty series.

My Review: Rated 4 out of 5 stars

So who can win a sport competition between cats or rodents? This was a funny book. It teaches kids about being active in sports, running or other exercise options. It also teaches kids not to eat junk food, that eating healthy is good for your body. Kitty is truly out of shape and cannot keep up with mouse. Mouse brings in the best rodents to beat cats and only one team is successful. Fun book for all to enjoy.

Author Biography

Nick Bruel is the New York Times bestselling author and illustrator of children’s books including Bad KittyBad Kitty Gets a BathBad Kitty Meets the Baby, and Boing!, among others. Nick is a freelance illustrator and cartoonist, and during his down time, he collects PEZ dispensers and grows tomatoes in the backyard. He lives in Tarrytown, NY with his wife Carina and their lovely cat Esmerelda.

Cover Reveal: Wild Thing (Blueblood Vampires Book Two) by Michelle Hercules

BOOK DETAILS:
Wild Thing
by Michelle Hercules
(Blueblood Vampires, #2)
Publication date: May 29th 2020
Genres: New Adult, Paranormal, Romance
Cover Design: Michelle Hercules
Photography: Michelle Lancaster (@lanefotograf)
Model: Lochie Carey (@lochie_carey)

Synopsis:

Savage. Reckless. Wild. These are only some of the words used to describe me. I’m all of those things, and I never wished to be anything else in almost 500 years of existence.

Then she came along. Aurora Leal, the daughter of the High Witch and destined for that role. She’s practically royalty in the magical world, but most importantly, she’s forbidden fruit.

I was taught never to mess with witches, and I had no intention of breaking that rule until the night she crashed into my life. I couldn’t resist the pull, and like an idiot, I succumbed to her charms.

Now I’m screwed. What was supposed to be only a hookup left a permanent mark. I ended up mated to the sassy witch. An eternal commitment wasn’t something I ever wished for, but when your destined mate is promised to someone else, that’s a much bigger problem.

I only have two choices. Either I find a way to break the mating bond or Aurora will become a widow before she says I do. That will definitely start a war between vampires and mages. But the more time I spend with her, the less inclined I am to give her up.

Damn, I guess I’m killing some mages, then.

Goodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53171239-wild-thing
Pre-orderhttps://books2read.com/u/47r0La?store=amazon

Author Biography

USA Today bestselling author Michelle Hercules always knew creative arts were her calling but not in a million years did she think she would write a novel. With a background in fashion design she thought she would follow that path. But one day, out of the blue, she had an idea for a book. One page turned into ten pages, ten pages turned into a hundred, and before she knew, her first book, The Prophecy of Arcadia, was born.


Michelle Hercules resides in The Netherlands with her husband and daughter. She is currently working on the Legends of Gattica series.


Author links:

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/michelleherculesauthor
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michelleherculesauthor/
Facebook Readers’ Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/mhsoars/
Amazon Author page: https://www.amazon.com/Michelle-Hercules/e/B075652M8M
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/michelle-hercules

Unique Gift I Received From Author Joyce DiPastena

I wonder what door this skeleton key opens? This is such a unique piece of history. I won this key from Joyce DiPastena newsletter. She always has fun unique gifts. Come join the fun https://joycedipastena.com/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=the_most_read_book_of_the_14th_15th_centuries&utm_term=2020-04-15 Check out how I found out I won. Pretty awesome announcement.

Book Mail: What I Like About You by Marisa Kanter

Goodreads Blurb

Can a love triangle have only two people in it? Online, it can… but in the real world, it’s more complicated. In this debut novel Marisa Kanter explores what happens when internet friends turn into IRL crushes.

There are a million things that Halle Levitt likes about her online best friend, Nash.

He’s an incredibly talented graphic novelist. He loves books almost as much as she does. And she never has to deal with the awkwardness of seeing him in real life. They can talk about anything…

Except who she really is.

Because online, Halle isn’t Halle—she’s Kels, the enigmatically cool creator of One True Pastry, a YA book blog that pairs epic custom cupcakes with covers and reviews. Kels has everything Halle doesn’t: friends, a growing platform, tons of confidence, and Nash.

That is, until Halle arrives to spend senior year in Gramps’s small town and finds herself face-to-face with real, human, not-behind-a-screen Nash. Nash, who is somehow everywhere she goes—in her classes, at the bakery, even at synagogue.

Nash who has no idea she’s actually Kels.

If Halle tells him who she is, it will ruin the non-awkward magic of their digital friendship. Not telling him though, means it can never be anything more. Because while she starts to fall for Nash as Halle…he’s in love with Kels.

Review: The Mystery of the Moon Tower (The Pathfinders Society) By Francesco Sedita and Prescott Seraydarian

Goodreads Blurb

Summer camp just became a whole lot more interesting when five curious kids accept a mysterious project: work together as a team to uncover a series of strange clues, reveal a secret path–and follow its twists and turns to a legendary treasure!

Join in the fun in this lively, clever debut graphic novel sure to appeal to fans of the Last Kids on Earth and Lumberjanes series.

Kyle is a new kid in town who likes to draw. Vic is a cool cheerleader who’s secretly a math whiz. Quiet Beth is a history buff, while goofball Harry likes performing magic tricks, with the help of his patient wingman, Nate. Five kids unlikely to form a team, for sure.

But then they’re thrown together at summer camp, where they watch a grainy old movie about the history of their town, Windrose, and one of its illustrious citizens of a bygone era: the intrepid explorer-inventor Henry Merriweather. He’s the one who established their camp. Merriweather’s Camp Pathfinders’ motto? Plus Ultra more beyond!

The five kids soon find there is indeed “more beyond” in their pokey town with its weird weather and sudden geysers of smelly air. Deciphering a route of historical markers leads them to Merriweather’s old castle, which is lined with ornate, beautiful tiles in hallways that lead to secret rooms full of odd objects–and where time itself is warped!

Kyle, Vic, Beth, Harry, and Nate witness scenes from Merriweather’s past and realize his experiments and eccentricities are pointing toward a path–that could lead to the rumored lost treasure of Windrose.

This is the path our heroes are meant to follow, on a journey that will take them back and forth through time, through woods, and across waterways revealed by moonlight, right up to the looming Moon Tower itself–which holds Merriweather’s secret . . . and the treasure! 

My Review: Rated 4 out of 5 stars

A graphic novel with a group of kids who go in search of a treasure hunt. They all attend camp pathfinder. They are given a group mission. They need to figure out the riddles from each location to find what they’re looking for. Each kid has a talent that is valuable. Can Merriweather guide them through this mystery adventure? Is there really a treasure at the end of this mystery? You will have to read to find out.

Author Biography

Francesco Sedita was born on March 18 on Mott Street in the Little Italy section of New York, New York, to two native New Yorkers.

Sedita studied writing at the Gallatin School of New York University. “It’s this incredible multi-disciplinary program that allowed me to study many aspects of writing, including screenwriting, fiction, and theatrical writing,” he says. While at Gallatin, he was a Writing Fellow for Saturday Night Live. After graduating, he wrote and directed a show that ran Off-Off Broadway for 5 years. He is now the Creative Director at major children’s book publisher. Miss Popularity is his first book.

Francesco has been writing since the second grade. “I wrote and illustrated a story about a dog named Blackie. My next-door neighbor read it, and when she told me how much she liked it, I realized right then that I wanted to be a writer. I love to tell people stories,” he says. When he was in college, he focused on writing comedy, and even did stand-up for a time. In graduate school, he focused on writing literary fiction. “Miss Popularity seemed like a strange direction for me at first, but it was an editorial director at Scholastic who made me realize it was the book I was born to write!” says Francesco. “We were discussing the idea of a character who comes to a musty old school and totally transforms it with her personality and fashion sense, and we both had a really good laugh. And then a day or two later, I was walking down the street and the entire story came to me in a flash-I emailed my editor right away, and Cassie Knight was born!”

Francesco Sedita lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Review: Betsey: A Memoir by Betsey Johnson

Goodreads Blurb

Mention the name “Betsey Johnson” and almost every woman from the age of 15 to 75 can rapturously recall a favorite dress or outfit; whether worn for a prom, a wedding, or just to stand out from the crowd in a colorful way. They may also know her as a renegade single mom who palled around with Edie Sedgwick, Twiggy, and The Velvet Underground, or even as a celebrity contestant on Dancing with the Stars. Betsey is also famous for her iconic pink stores (she had 65 shops across the US) and for her habit of doing cartwheels and splits down the runway at the close of her fashion shows. Throughout her decades-long career, she’s taken pride in producing fun but rule-breaking clothing at an accessible price point. What they might not know is that she built an empire from scratch, and brought stretch clothing to the masses in the 80s and 90s.

Betsey will take the reader behind the tutu and delve deeply into what it took to go from a white picket fence childhood in Connecticut to becoming an internationally known force in a tough, competitive business. The book will feature Betsey’s candid memories of the fashion and downtown scene in the 60s and how she started her own business from the ground up after designing successfully for multiple other companies. She will discuss that business’s ups and downs and reinventions (including bankruptcy), and her thoughts on body image, love, divorce, men, motherhood, and her bout with breast cancer. Betsey will be richly illustrated with many of her landmark clothes, fashion sketches, and personal photos–making the book the perfect memento and gift for every girl (of any age) for whom Betsey is, as a recent New York Times profile noted, “a role model still.”

My Review: Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Betsey has been my fashion icon for many years. I truly loved her story and I am super sad I finished the book in two days. I wanted more pictures, more details, more stories. I love the 1950’s and to be able to feel like I was living those years with Betsey through her book was fantastic. Betsey wrote her story by sharing everything with us without holding anything back. She shared her good times and bad times. Betsey talks about boyfriends to weddings, family love, new career opportunities, fashion shows to Betsey Johnson stores, to health scares and happy times.

She is super brilliant, smart, unique and a hard worker. Luck was on her side and I am happy she was able to bring us her wonderful fashion. She is so down to earth and love that she lives a simple life but funky and colorful. I wish I had her skills and courage to go off and do what makes me happy. Fashion has been my best friend for many years. To be able to put pieces together that ordinary no one would wear makes me happy. It makes people smile especially when I wear my fun Betsey Johnson purses. Thank you Betsey for sharing your amazing story. I wish you all the best and looking forward to more fashion fun.

Author Biography

Known for her celebration of the exuberant, the embellished and the over the top, Betsey has been rocking the fashion industry with her unique and original designs since the 1960’s. Her commitment to remain true to her one-of-a-kind vision has afforded Betsey continued success in an industry known for its fickleness. Her ability to change with the times while keeping her designs pure has not gone unnoticed.