Its a novella, which means it is a shorter book. It's a quick read, not an in-depth story. I like the characters but it wasn't long enough to fully develop them. After reading the book, I did go see that there are a few more books in the series. So maybe that is a way to get to know more of the characters. I did like the setting and the background that the author set up for the books. I would recommend it.

Jack and Annie saw wagons going to CA. They met a teacher that was 16 or 17 years old living in a dug out with a storm protector on it that she built. My favorite part of the book so far is that Jack is better at reading than everyone in his class. Can't wait to read more tomorrow.

Excellent!

Another great Verity Kent mystery. This time, Verity and Sidney head to Aunt's to solve the mystery of three murders and whether or not they are connected. A fun, Downton Abbey-esque read, albeit a little wordy in parts. Overall, an enjoyable book.

Number #16 in the Maisie Dobbs series. It is 1941 and Maisie works for SOE and is in pursuit of a murderer amongst the Free French stationed in London. If you've enjoyed the Maisie series, you will enjoy this one, too. Always well-written and engaging.

I've read many Lisa Jewell books and consider myself a fan. She does a great job of creating a realistic and vivid picture of her characters and their lives, and I usually enjoy following along as she tells their stories and gradually puts pieces together to solve a mystery or a puzzle of some kind. This book felt like Lisa Jewell "light," and read more like a romance novel. The book alternates between the lives of two young women making their way in London 70 years apart - Betty in the 1990s and Betty's step-grandmother Arlette in the 1920s. Both of them are extraordinarily beautiful, and other characters comment on this so often that it starts to seem ridiculous. I liked the story of Betty more than that of Arlette, but overall the characters in both time periods were flat, their problems were predictable and the book dragged on way too long. I had to force myself to finish it.

This was a fun read. I really enjoyed reading about the main character’s journey of self discovery in terms of his sexuality and growing up in the Mish. I also learned about some of the injustices that Indigenous peoples face in Australia and which also can be seen in other countries. However, the story did feel a bit rushed at some points and I would have liked a bit more development in some areas. Though as the author’s debut novel, I think it was well done.

A very amusing and entertaining story with unusual characters held captive in an apartment during a real estate viewing. During the course of the novel, each person's story is revealed, friendships are formed, questions are answered and all come together for a common humanity.

I'm clearly missing something with this book, because the entire time I read it all I kept thinking was "there is no way this author is an actual human being." The book takes place over the span of 11 years. In most chapters, we follow Kate and Meredith, two neighbors living in a town where a woman named Shelby has just gone missing. Meredith, a doula with two children named Delilah and Leo, has started receiving threatening text messages from an unknown number. Shortly after, her and her daughter disappear. The book centers around what was going on with Meredith prior to her disappearance, with Kate providing insight into what happened after she disappeared. Set eleven years later, there are also chapters from Leo's point of view, where we get to see what it's like to have your sister suddenly return after being gone for eleven years. There are just so many reasons why this book didn't work at all. The biggest of them all is that it is poorly written. As an example of what you can expect, this is how the author thinks someone would describe potentially seeing figures outside of a house a few weeks before the occupants went missing - "It was dark out," Cassandra says, "a moonless night. The streetlight outside has been out a month or two. My husband, Marty, called the city about it a while ago, but it still hasn't been fixed. Our tax dollars...hard at work. The only light came from whatever porch lights were left on overnight." Yeah. Because when my neighbor turns up missing and I think I may have seen some strange figures skulking about their house, I'm definitely going to be remembering that it was a moonless night. Everyone else in the book is just as poor at their job. The pathologist couldn't correctly figure out how someone died. The police openly lied about evidence and just sort of hoped no one would ever question them or figure it out. A woman running a daycare is completely unaware of the abuse happening there - and then the mother just doesn't even care?? Who finds out their kid is being abused and is just like "eh, I better send them back the next day or they'll get soft." Are there no other daycares?? The final thing I'll mention is that the ending is completely bonkers. I guess if you're going to commit murder, this is the town to do it in - apparently no one is ever around to watch people murder people and then drag their bodies into their cars.

Book Two in the Country Store Mystery Series. The story just continues but this time Robbie Jordan finds Erica dead on the floor of the store. She didn't hear anything and now she is scared. Who wanted to kill Erica and why? Robbie of course decides to help the police find the killer, while putting herself in danger. Quick, easy and fun read. I will continue to read the rest of the series.