I just loved Lenny and her rescued dog Malcolm.

This was funny but also heartbreaking because of child/wife/pet abuse related content. Very good description of what it’s like to disassociate due to childhood trauma. I’m not sure what else I can say without giving away the plot.

The narrator Annie Maynard did a great job. I love Australian accents, even if I have to slow my listening speed a little bit to understand.

For fans of Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine or The Maid.

Special thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced audiobook edition in exchange for my honest opinion.

Pub Date: Jul 09 2024

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ What Time the Sexton’s Spade Doth Rust (Flavia de Luce, #11)

Flavia de Luce is back! I was so excited to hear that there was a new addition to this series. She is the perfect mix of smart, funny and sassy. She’s joined again by housekeeper Mrs Mullet, her beloved Dogger and her very spunky younger cousin Undine.

When a neighbor is poisoned, Mrs Mullet is suspected because she cooks breakfast for him. Flavia and Undine find the clues to help the police figure out what happened, and Flavia is able to use her chemistry skills to figure out what poison was used.

There is a very big plot twist in this one that I never would have guessed. My heart aches for Flavia with all that she’s been through. I think it takes a very special writer to be able to invoke such strong feelings from a reader.

I would have liked more witty insults from Daffy, and maybe some encouraging words from either the vicar’s wife or the inspector’s wife. But overall very happy with this newest edition of the series.

I will be pre-ordering/purchasing the audiobook with my own money/Audible credits because the narrator of this series is one of my favorites.

Special thanks to Netgalley and Random House for the advanced Kindle edition of the book in exchange for my honest opinion.

• A Murder Most French (An American in Paris #2) Colleen Cambridge ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
• The Hobbit (Middle Earth, #0) J.R.R. Tolkien ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
• The Main Character Jaclyn Goldis ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
• Central Park West James B. Comey ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
• Westport James B. Comey ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
• You’d Look Better as a Ghost Joanna  Wallace ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
• One Perfect Couple Ruth Ware ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
• The Last Murder at the End of the World Stuart Turton ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
• Catching Fire (The Hunger Games #2) Suzanne Collins ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
• Mockingjay (The Hunger Games #3) Suzanne Collins ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
• The Bone Collector (Lincoln Rhyme, #1) Jeffery Deaver ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
• The Coffin Dancer (Lincoln Rhyme, #2) Jeffery Deaver ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
• The Empty Chair (Lincoln Rhyme, #3) Jeffery Deaver ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
• The Stone Monkey (Lincoln Rhyme, #4) Jeffery Deaver ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 
• The Vanished Man (Lincoln Rhyme, #5) Jeffery Deaver ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 
• The Twelfth Card (Lincoln Rhyme, #6) Jeffery Deaver ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
• The Cold Moon (Lincoln Rhyme, #7) Jeffery Deaver ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
• The Broken Window (Lincoln Rhyme, #8) Jeffery Deaver ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
• The Burning Wire (Lincoln Rhyme, #9) Jeffery Deaver ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

This book went on a wild but fun post-apocalyptic ride. Most of the world has been annihilated by a toxic fog. The survivors live on a beautiful island.

Then one day, there is a murder, but everyone’s memories have been wiped so they don’t know who did it. In order to stop an actual doomsday clock (think Siri but with the ability to kill everyone at once) from ending all remaining life, they have to solve the murder with the clues available.

I was telling someone that I had requested this book thinking it was related to the 2023 Hulu series, A Murder at the End of the World, which I just loved. They’re not in the same universe, but they both do mention rich people finding ways to survive the coming environmental disasters caused by global warming, so that was interesting.

I love cozy mysteries and this one is sort of locked room/And Then There Were None-y in that there’s only 122 people on the island so it has to be one of them.

Special thanks to Netgalley and RB Media for an advanced audiobook copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Pub Date: May 21 2024

Westport is a followup to the first in the series: Central Park West. I had read Central Park West at the beginning of May without even realizing that there was a sequel coming up so soon. I was glad to go back into the world of (former) prosecutor Nora Carleton to see what she was up to after leaving the New York U.S. Attorney’s office.

Even though Nora has left the big city for an investment firm ($$$) in Connecticut, there are still major crimes. Someone is trying to frame her for another murder, and she has to rely on her friends to figure out who is the real culprit.

The murder victim is Helen, who is Nora’s recruiter, boss, mentor, and good friend.

I think it’s so interesting to read books written by public figures who have inside knowledge of things like this, to get their perspective on how the system works. I would definitely keep reading more books in this series.

Special thanks to Netgalley and RB Media for an advanced audiobook copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Pub Date: May 21 2024

Photo credit: AJC.com

This was one of the best plays I’ve ever seen. I liked it even better than the movie or the book. It was an absolute delight. If you get a chance to see it, please go!

16 books in April

• The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games, #1) by Suzanne Collins
• Death in the Details by Katie Tietjen
• The Postcard Killers by James  Patterson
• The Last Word by Elly Griffiths
• It’s Not Hysteria: Everything You Need to Know About Your Reproductive Health (But Were Never Told) by Karen Tang
• I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai
• The Book of Doors by Gareth  Brown
• An Assassination on the Agenda (Lady Hardcastle Mystery, #11) by T.E. Kinsey
• Close to Death (Hawthorne & Horowitz, #5) by Anthony Horowitz
• The Reappearance of Rachel Price by Holly  Jackson
• The Devil’s Flute Murders (Detective Kosuke Kindaichi, #5) by Seishi Yokomizo
• Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies (The Vacation Mysteries, #1) by Catherine Mack
• Trojan Gold (Vicky Bliss, #4) by Elizabeth Peters
• Silhouette in Scarlet (Vicky Bliss, #3) by Elizabeth Peters
• Murder at the Polo Club (Cleopatra Fox Mysteries #7) by C.J. Archer

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This book is a must read for anyone who identifies as a female or anyone who loves anyone who identifies as a female. It should also be required reading for anyone running for any office anywhere since they have decided to make uninformed decisions about laws that impact half of the population.

I listened to an advanced audiobook copy (thanks Netgalley and Macmillan Audio) but I’m considering purchasing a hardcover copy to have on hand as a reference copy for me (51) and my daughter (17). I rarely do this unless I absolutely LOVE a book.

Publication date 5/7/24

Book 81 of the year
Lady Hardcastle and her lady’s maid Armstrong are back for their 11th mystery together. This time they have to try to stop an assassination attempt that could change the course of history.

The book is set in July 1912 in London. I had to research to remember the details of the actual assassination of Archduke Ferdinand that kicked off the events of WWI (June 1914 in Sarajevo). This made me feel (in the best possible way) like the book was a Magic Treehouse book for adults in that it’s teaching me things about history but in a fun way. Not that there’s time travel 😄

I love how Hardcastle and Armstrong face gender discrimination head on and don’t stand for it for even one second. Their banter together is so good.

Elizabeth Knowelden did a great job narrating the book, as always.

Special thanks to Netgalley and Brilliance Publishing for the advance copy of the audio book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Publication Date 5/21/24

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This is the fifth one in the series that I’ve listened to. I think that’s all that’s been translated so far out of almost EIGHTY books. I absolutely love Japanese writers and especially mysteries. Detective Kindaichi is such a real character to me, much more so than my beloved Poirot.

In this locked room mystery he is trying to figure out who is brutally murdering members of a household after the war. It’s a very moody story that involves a seance and a record player that keeps playing a composition of the recently deceased patriarch.

The audiobook is very atmospheric with bits of music throughout since the patriarch was a composer. Akira Matsumoto is a very good narrator.

I see that another one will be published soon. Can’t wait to see what Detective Kindaichi gets up to next.

Special thanks to Netgalley and Bolinda Audio for the advance copy of the audio book in exchange for my honest opinion.