Gone Girl: A Novel by Gillian Flynn

Published May 24, 2012

On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears from their rented McMansion on the Mississippi River. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer?

As the cops close in, every couple in town is soon wondering how well they know the one that they love. With his twin sister, Margo, at his side, Nick stands by his innocence. Trouble is, if Nick didn’t do it, where is that beautiful wife? And what was in that silvery gift box hidden in the back of her bedroom closet? (GoodReads)

Rating: 5 stars

I don't even know where to begin with this selection. This has been the most intense, thrilling, frustrating, and amazing book that I have EVER read! I give major props to Ms. Flynn. I don't know how she did it....but she clearly did. 

As the reader, I had no idea who to side with or who to believe. She poses so many what-if situations....you will hardly believe the outcome. 

I am so mad at myself for waiting this long to read it. I usually never keep reviews so short, but I am afraid to give anything away. It would be an injustice. 

I beg of you...pick it up and read it!!!! NOW

Sh*tty Mom by Kilmartin, Moline, Ybarbo & Zoellner

"Sh*tty Mom" is the ultimate parenting guide, written by four moms who have seen it all. As hilarious as it is universal, each chapter presents a common parenting scenario with advice on how to get through it in the easiest and most efficient way possible. With chapters such as "How to Sleep Until 9 A.M. Every Weekend" and "When Seeing an Infant Triggers a Mental Illness That Makes You Want to Have Another Baby," as well as a Sh*tty Mom quiz, this is a must-have, laugh-out-loud funny book for the sh*tty parent in all of us. (Goodreads)

Published September 1 2012



Review - 5 Stars


If you answer yes to one or more of the following questions, this book is for you:

1.  Have you ever opened a bottle of wine before your kids go to bed, and had at least 2 glasses?

2.  When reading your child a bedtime story, do you skip words, sentences, maybe even pages hoping your kid won't notice?

3.  Have you failed to get your kid in the bath tub for more than 4 days?

4.  Do you bribe with candy and other tooth decaying treats just so you can get through Walmart without everyone staring at your screaming child?

5.  Have you ever locked yourself in the bathroom just for a few moments of peace?

6.  Have you ever told your kid his toy was broken just so you wouldn't have to get up and put batteries in it?

I am by no means admitting to doing any of the above atrocities.  Just making that clear...

Any-who....Sh*tty Mom is a riot!!  Loved every minute!!

Shy-Town Girls (Book 1) by Wilson, Yih, Leimkuehler, and Clinesmith

Published November 23, 2012

Four Shy Girls, Four Big Dreams, One Awesome City

Book 1 in the Shy-Town Girls Quartet Series

When beautiful, but shy 24-year-old, Bobbie Bertucci, arrives at her new digs, an elegant brownstone in Chicago's historic Gold Coast neighborhood, she has no idea what her new life will be like. Between balancing her job as a modeling agent and escaping a bad relationship, she's hit rock bottom.

But things change when she moves into the same building as her close friend Meryl. Additionally, her two new twenty-something roommates, Ivy and Ella, help bring Bobbie out of her shell. Barbara, landlady and mother-hen of the house, watches out for the girls while sharing wisdom, sage advice, and guidance along better paths. Bobbie, Meryl, Ivy, and Ella, all variations of shy girls, brave the city of Chicago together, forming a powerful bond of friendship. Their nighttime roof deck conversations over glasses of wine instigate laughter and even some tears.

Bobbie takes a bold step to redesign her life completely to ensure she doesn't fall into the romantic trap she fell into before. But there's a new suitor in the picture, and she will have to decide between an old flame or a new one, taking a risk, something hard for any girl--even harder for a shy girl. (GoodReads)

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Today was the first day of fall and the first day of my new single life.

Ladies, if you love chic lit, and if you are a fan of the Sex and the City series...you will love Shy-Town Girls. From the very beginning, I fell in love with Bobbie Bertucci and her awesome personality. She experiences many of life's pitfalls in this first of four book series. 

Love lost, friends gained and finding her Agape. 

You are now an official resident of 721 Dearborn

After moving out of her apartment with her model boyfriend, Bobbie finds her self taking up residents with 3 ladies her age and 1 spunky older woman who teaches Bobbie all about the meaning of love. 

Friendship, above all things, my love, lasts an eternity...beyond this life.

Nervous at first, Bobbie quickly creates lifelong friendships with her 3 roommates. Meryl, an old friend convinces Bobbie to move away from Charlie, the hot cheating model boyfriend, and into her house with Ivy, the beautiful party animal and Ella, the quiet mysterious dancer. It didn't take long for Bobbie to become one of the girls. 

The only way to understand Agape is to live it and let it consume you.

Bobbie learns all about the meaning of love from the Barbara, the older eccentric owner of the house. It wasn't until Oliver, Bobbie's best friend from childhood, starts to look at her in a different light that she truly learns the meaning of love. 

Dirty Red (Love Me with Lies #2) by Tarryn Fisher

 

Published December 21 2012

Dear Opportunist,

You thought you could take him from me, but you lost. Now, that he's mine I'll do anything to keep him. Do you doubt me? I have everything that was supposed to be yours. In case you were wondering; he doesn't ever think about you anymore. I won't let him go....ever.

Dirty Red

Review : 5 Stars

Before I begin my review for Dirty Red, I have to ask: Have you read The Opportunist?  If no, go right now to Amazon, iBooks, Barnes n Noble...wherever...and buy it.  Like NOW!  

If you have read The Opportunist, you know what I be saying...

Dirty Red was everything I expected and more.  Thank you Tarryn Fisher for writing a fabulous follow up in the Love Me with Lies Series.  

Leah the main character is screwed up and a little bitchy.  She will pull out all the stops in getting and keeping her man.  Dirty Red is written in her POV and I loved how honest she is.  She really is a B@#$%, but you also cannot help but feel sorry for her and Caleb.  The book took some great twists and turns that threw me and I cannot wait until the 3rd book is out!! 

"Whoever she was, I would wipe her from his memory in no time at all.  Why?  Because I was the best of the best: the Godiva, the Maserati, the perfect colorless diamond..."

 

Thank you Ms. Fisher for entertaining me yet again!

Devil in Disguise by Heather Huffman

Published June 2012

Reporter Rachel Cooper is America’s Sweetheart – but that won’t help her when human traffickers kidnap her sister. Can an old flame help her protect the ones she loves? Does she even want him to? (GoodReads)

Rating: 4.3

I wasn't sure what to expect when we were asked to read Ms. Huffman's Devil in Disguise, as it was classified as a contemporary romance thriller. Lately I have been delving into straight erotic romance....this was a great change of pace.

I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. I enjoyed all of her characters...the heroine, Rachel Cooper....the rugged tough Conrad Langston....the innocence lost of Julia and the amazing steadfastness of Neena.

As I literally read the entire book with a 24 hour period, my heart felt for all the sadness and drama the characters had to endure. As a mother of young children, my heart stayed in my throat throughout all the suspense.

The truthfulness of human trafficking that you, as the reader experience is difficult to imagine and yet she does a fantastic job with the details....explains but not overly descriptive.

I will definitely suggest Devil in Diguise to others, as well as, look for more of Ms. Huffman's works.