Tag Archive for: Book of the Month

Darling Girl

Darling GirlTitle: Darling Girl
Author(s): Liz Michalski
Genre(s): Retelling
Format(s): Audio
Pages: 352
Length: 11h 42m
Narrator(s): Elizabeth Knowelden
Source: Owned
Reason(s): BotM Backlist
Rating:
Spice: 2.5 Flames

My Thoughts

DARLING GIRL was a very interesting, dark twist on the story of Peter Pan by JM Barrie. I really enjoyed the topsy turvy nature of this story and flipping everything on its head. I thought the idea of Holly Darling looking for her daughter while trying to keep her son safe from what lurks in the shadows, windows, and wind was a fun concept.

At first, I thought Holly was selfish but as I learned more and more about the truth and what happened to her and her family, I realized that even though many of her decisions and actions were questionable, she did what she thought was best for her family. I liked her arc of character growth. I wish, however, she had done more in the story instead of relying on other people. The ending was a bit anticlimactic because of it. I also didn’t think she spent enough time with Christopher Cooke to warrant him being the love interest. I loved that he was, but I thought he needed more time and pages in the story.

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The Last Word

The Last WordTitle: The Last Word
Author(s): Taylor Adams
Genre(s): Thriller
Format(s): Audio
Pages: 337
Length: 9:57
Narrator(s): Carlotta Brentan, Jim Meskimen
Source: Owned
Reason(s): BotM Backlist
Rating:
Spice: 0.5 Flames

My Thoughts

I read THE LAST WORD pretty quickly. The suspense kept me reading, but I figured a lot of it out by the end. The author going crazy because of a 1-star review on Amazon was a fun premise, but I didn’t like the “book within a book” idea. Every time the narrative switched over to horror novel Deek was writing, I just kept waiting for that part to end. I especially hated the ending of his novel and gritted my teeth during his acknowledgments. I wish he had gotten what he deserved. I also disliked the male narrator during those parts.

THE LAST WORD dealt with some pretty heave topics–death of a child, death of a parent, grief, and suicidal ideation. I actually preferred the non-thriller part of the story more than the actual thriller. I liked Emma and Laika a lot. I liked her story with Shawn, and I would’ve much preferred reading a whole story about them.

Ink Blood Sister Scribe

Ink Blood Sister ScribeTitle: Ink Blood Sister Scribe
Author(s): Emma Törzs
Genre(s): Fantasy
Format(s): Audio
Pages: 416
Length: 13h 53m
Narrator(s): Saskia Maarleveld
Source: Owned
Reason(s): BotM Backlist
Rating:
Spice: 1 Flames

My Thoughts

I really enjoyed INK BLOOD SISTER SCRIBE. I thought the concept and magic system were very intriguing. I also thought the mystery aspect of the story was fun. I guessed a lot of what was going on but I still enjoyed reading the story as everything came to fruition.

I loved both Esther and Joanna. I felt for them as they learned the truth that had been hidden from them for most of their lives. Even though I liked Nicholas, I thought he was really naïve and needed to ask more questions. I also liked Collins, just not as a romantic interest for Joanna. I would’ve rather seen her with Nicholas.

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The Lost Apothecary

The Lost ApothecaryTitle: The Lost Apothecary
Author(s): Sarah Penner
Genre(s): Historical Fiction, Mystery
Format(s): Audio
Pages: 301
Length: 10h 29m
Narrator(s): Lorna Bennett, Lauren Anthony, Lauren Irwin
Source: Owned
Reason(s): BotM Backlist
Rating:
Spice: 1 Flames

My Thoughts

I really enjoyed THE LOST APOTHECARY. I loved that the story was written in three POVs, two from the past and one from present day. I thought it was an interesting look at how we interpret past events vs what really happened.

I liked both the past story and the present day one, but I thought the past one was a bit more interesting. I thought the idea of an apothecary dispensing poisons to women that wanted to exact revenge on the men who betrayed them was a really fun concept. It made for an interesting mystery.

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The Boyfriend

The BoyfriendTitle: The Boyfriend
Author(s): Freida McFadden
Genre(s): Thriller
Format(s): Audio
Pages: 363
Length: 9h 13m
Narrator(s): Victoria Connolly, Robb Moreira
Source: Owned
Reason(s): Book of the Month
Rating:
Spice: 1.5 Flames

My Thoughts

THE BOYFRIEND is my first Freida McFadden book. While it wasn’t my favorite thriller, it kept me reading and the ending was way different than I was expecting. I’ll definitely give McFadden another go.

The two POVs and timelines were interesting. At first, I didn’t like them because of how McFadden seemed to be setting up one of them. (I mean who writes a book from the killer’s POV from the get-go, right?) Fortunately, I realized there had to be more to what seemed to be happening. I didn’t like the characters very much and I thought one of them was really stupid on more than one occasion. I’m glad I stuck with the story, though, because the twist was a lot of fun because it was so unexpected. For quite a bit of the story, I kept trying to figure out who the killer was. I did figure it out before the big reveal, but only just.