Second Hand Curses

 Audible Original Fiction by Drew Hayes.

https://www.audible.com

This was a fun little story set in a fairytale universe where mythical creatures and magic spells have real-world ramifications. For example, when Cinderella accepted the fairy's help for one wonderful evening at the ball with the prince, she effectively signed a magical contract to pay for that night of fun with a lifetime of servitude in the fairy's house afterwards. Whoops!

Enter the heroes of this story, the Bastard Champions, a trio of scoundrels who can help a person escape just such a problem... if that person can pay their fees. And since Cinderella has the besotted prince waiting in the background to marry her, it looks like she can afford their assistance.

This story is just part of the first chapter of the amusing little novel, full of great characters and fun plot twists. I really enjoyed it! 

I also listened to recently by Audible Originals: Poirot Investigates

Laughing in the Dark

 Nonfiction by Chonda Pierce

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

This was a decent celebrity memoir but not spectacular. I wish it had been funnier, I guess. 

The Orphan Collector

 Fiction by Ellen Marie Wiseman

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

Looking at this title, I wondered: Does that mean we have an orphan who collects things, or a person who collects orphans? I don’t want to spoil it and tell you…

I did really like this story, which is set during the Spanish flu epidemic of 1918 and, unsurprisingly, involves a lot of orphans. I recommend this book! 

I also read by this author: The Life She Was Given

Neglected

 Nonfiction by Cathy Glass

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

This is the newest book from Cathy Glass, a British foster carer. I have read nearly all her books. 

In this story she takes charge of a two year old called Jamie whose drug-addicted mother kept him in a crib almost all of his little life. As a result Jamie is undernourished, has severe diaper sores, is almost nonverbal, and doesn’t walk as well as he should. 

In the midst of this assignment, Covid lockdown hits, and Cathy is required to navigate Jamie’s recovery in near-isolation. 

Of course Cathy is able to nurse this little one into health and get him a permanent placement, which is always gratifying to read. I didn’t love this book as much as some of her others, maybe because there were no real surprises. But I still thought it was worth reading. 

I also read recently by this author: Girl Alone

The Inheritance Games

 Fiction by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

Tobias Hawthorne, eccentric billionaire, dies and leaves a strange will. Instead of bequeathing his fortune to his two daughters and four grandsons, he gives instructions that all of his money will go to a complete stranger, a penniless teenager named Avery, provided that she lives in his mansion (with his disinherited family!) for one year after his death. 

Wait, what?

Yeah, it was a hard premise to swallow, but the idea was to set up the main character in the lap of luxury with FOUR attractive young men... And then she had to solve a puzzle with the boys' help to find out why she'd been chosen... Plus there's another mystery heir who may or may not be dead...

I didn't love this book. It was too convoluted and not believable, although I did like Avery's character.

I also read by this author: The Naturals

Unspeakable Things

 Fiction by Jess Lourey

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

In the early eighties in a small Minnesota town there is a girl called Cassie who isn't allowed to tell anyone about her family. Her dad says that what goes on in their rural home is their private business. When boys from the poor section of town are rumored to have been abducted and molested, Cassie wonders if her dad might know something about it. Or maybe Sergeant Bauer, her dad's buddy on the police force, is somehow involved.

All of this was an interesting setup, but I didn't completely like this novel. Cassie's character hinted at a vague ickiness that made the reader feel unsettled for the whole book, but nothing ever really got resolved to my satisfaction. Still it was an okay book.

Hamnet

 Fiction by Maggie O'Farrell

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

William Shakespeare, the real historical person, had two daughters called Susanna and Judith with his wife Anne (or maybe Agnes.) Apparently, he also had a son who died as a child, and the name of that son was Hamnet, which may be considered the same name as "Hamlet." 

This novel is about that family.

With a book is subtitled "a novel of the plague," obviously one can't expect a happy story; still it is a very well-written and emotionally affecting novel. 

450 from Paddington

 Fiction by Agatha Christie 

https://www.audible.com

This classic mystery was also published under the title What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw! in the USA. It begins with an old lady witnessing a murder in a train car, and ends with Miss Marple finally revealing who the murderer AND the victim really were.

I enjoyed this story every much!

I also read recently by this author: Poirot Investigates

Quicksilver

 Fiction by Dean Koontz

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

At the center of this story is Quinn Quicksilver, an orphan with an unusual name. Leaving the orphanage where he was raised, Quinn embarks on an independent life at age eighteen, but soon is forced to go on the run by circumstances beyond his control.

This was a fun caper-style story with some dark (but not despairing) elements.

I also read recently by this author: The Other Emily

Providence

 Fiction by Max Barry

https://www.audible.com

This was a great story about a futuristic starship sent far into space to defeat an alien race threatening planet earth. That sounds hokey, but I assure you it was not. 

There were realistic characters and a great plot, although the ending wasn’t exactly happily ever after. 

 

I also listened to recently by this author: Jennifer Government

The Last One Home

 Fiction by Victoria Helen Stone

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

This story is told from the perspective of Donna in 1985 and her daughter Lauren in 2021. Donna was 35 when she found out she was pregnant after an affair with Michael, a married man. She decided to keep the baby (Lauren, of course) and went to Sacramento, Michael's hometown when he promised (again) to leave his wife for her. But it turned out that Donna wasn't Michael's only mistress, and she ended up raising baby Lauren alone.

Now Lauren is back in Sacramento and living in her father's family home, trying to unravel what really happened between her parents. There's a murder involved, and the story is supposed to be a thriller, but it was pretty slow-moving. I didn't really buy the surprise ending, either.

Two Little Girls in Blue

 Fiction by Mary Higgins Clark

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

Kelly and Kathy Frawley, identical three-year-old twins, are kidnapped from their bedroom and an eight million dollar ransom is demanded. But Mr. and Mrs. Frawley aren't millionaires; there's no way they could pay that much money. Or is there?

This was classic Mary Higgins Clark suspense, a great thriller that keeps you guessing!

I also read recently by this author: You Don't Own Me

The Wives

 Fiction by Tarryn Fisher

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

What if your husband had two other wives, and you accepted that? Or, alternatively, what if everything you thought was real was only a delusion? Throughout this story, you can't tell which thing is true.

This story kept me guessing, but I didn't love the characters.

Lisey's Story

 Fiction by Stephen King

https://www.audible.com

I didn't like this book. It got so creepy I couldn't finish it.

I really like most of Stephen King's stories because he writes such wonderful characters, but in this story I couldn't stand what was happening to poor Lisey.

I also read recently by this author: The Eyes of the Dragon

The Personal Librarian

 Fiction by Victoria Christopher Murray and Marie Benedict.

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

Belle da Costa Greene, librarian for the personal library of turn-of-the century billionaire J.P. Morgan, was a real person, and this book is a novelization of her life. She was definitely an amazing woman and an interesting character.

I wanted to love this book, but it was just okay. I'm not sure why, but the characters just didn't come to life completely for me. Still a qualified thumbs-up, I guess...

Apples Never Fall

 Fiction by Liane Moriarty

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

This is a great story about a woman who disappears. After a week, her four adult children are divided about what to do. After all, she sent a text saying she was going "OFF-GRID," whatever that means. Should they report her missing if she's probably just gone someplace voluntarily? And if something did happen to her, they all realize that their father would be the first one the police suspect... 

I loved this book! It had wonderful characters and a surprise at the end.

I also read recently by this author: Nine Perfect Strangers

Dark August

 Fiction by Katie Tallo

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

Augusta Monet is nineteen years old when her great-aunt dies and leaves her a decrepit house with a reverse mortgage. There Augusta finds some of her late mother Shannon's things, notes and files that Shannon, a police detective had left behind when she was killed almost ten years ago. Augusta becomes caught up in an old case her mother had investigated before she died.

Will Augusta solve the case her mother couldn't?

We Begin at the End

 Fiction by Chris Whittaker

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

Vincent has just served thirty years in prison. When he comes out Walker, his best friend from childhood, is there to pick him up. Even though Walk is the sheriff of their small California town, he has always stood by Vincent, knowing that the crime Vincent had committed was accidental. But Vincent can't forgive himself....

Meanwhile there is Star, who had been Vincent's childhood sweetheart. She has struggled along through poverty and addiction, but the ones who suffer with her are her children Duchess and Robin.

I liked some of the characters, but I didn't love this story. It had a good beginning and a good ending but mostly it was just okay.