Hello Readers! I hope you had great week. Last week had been good. I, specially my daughter, enjoyed social gathering after long time and meeting all relatives. It was nice change from living only 3 of us for a year in Hyderabad and half the time under lockdown. This month also was going to be same with Diwali on 14th and cousin’s wedding on 27th and then cleaning rent house that is of my relative who is living in U.S. It’s relief I haven’t signed up for many tours this month as I’m hardly going to have time but I already got 6 NetGalley widgets from Penguin and won ebooks as part of group challenge in Goodreads. I’ll share titles this week as it’s going to take time to read them all.

What I read last week –

Epona (Highlands Series Book 1) by Michelle Dalton

I enjoyed author’s writing. It was descriptive, vivid and emotive. What I loved most was the way author represented amputee’s feelings and suffering, conversations between characters, the past, and how Sadie’s gift and connection with animals were written. It was was intense, dark, heart-wrenching and captivating romantic suspense. Read full review ➡ HERE

Vala (Highlands Series Book 2) by Michelle Dalton

Vala was taken place in same setting as Epona with both old and new characters but focusing more on new characters and their story. Romance was not major part of the book as there was more focus on Call’s past, struggle with her gift, and the murder investigation. It’s in third part of the book I could figure out Vala, (also called Völva, a priestess, in Norse mythology) means seeress, a woman who can foretell future. I wish there was more about this, a legend or myth. But I liked the rituals and occult were narrated and it was fascinating to read how murderer and suspects were practicing it. My review will be up tomorrow.

Currently Reading –

Black River (Jess Bridges Mystery #1) by Joss Stirling

A thrilling new whodunnit series, fast-paced and funny, featuring a detective as sharp as his suits and a heroine who’s trouble.

The River Thames always gives up its dead…

There’s a killer picking off victims from the wild swimming spots on the upper reaches of the Thames. The case takes Detective Inspector Leo George into the path of Jess Bridges, a private investigator who lives life close to the edge.

Their enquiries lead them to author, Jago Jackson, whose book on secret wild swimming spots has turned him into a social media celebrity. Is Jago’s book the blueprint that the murderer is following? If so, does that make Jago a target or the killer himself? Either way, the duo find themselves swimming in some very dangerous waters …

I’m 40% through this book. It’s another One More Chapter Read along book. For thriller, it’s interesting and lighter which took my by surprise. It has cozy mystery feel. writing is gripping and descriptive and there are many characters but it’s not confusing and I’m enjoying witty and and sarcastic tone of main character. I cannot guess who the killer is and how Jess is going to solve her private investigator case.

Next I’ll be Reading –

Memories in the Drift by Melissa Payne

Melissa Payne, bestselling author of The Secrets of Lost Stones, returns with another haunting and hopeful novel about redemption, the power of memory, and a woman’s will to reclaim her life.

My name is Claire. I’m thirty-six years old. It’s September. I know what I’m doing and why I am here…for now.

Ten years ago, Claire Hines lost her unborn child—and her short-term memory—following a heartrending tragedy. With notebooks, calendars, to-do lists, fractured pieces of the past, and her father’s support, Claire makes it through each day, hour by hour, with relative confidence. She also has a close-knit community of friends in the remote Alaskan town where she teaches guitar to the local children. It’s there, in the reminders.

As determined as Claire is to regain all that’s disappeared, she’d prefer to live without some memories of her before life—especially those of her mother, Alice, who abandoned her, and Tate, the ex-boyfriend who broke her heart.

But when Alice and Tate return from the past, there’ll be so much more for Claire to relive. And to discover for the very first time. Through healing, forgiveness, and second chances, Claire may realize that what’s most important might not be re-creating the person she was, but embracing the possibilities of being the person she is.

This will be my second book by the author. I enjoyed The Secret of Lost Stone. I loved her writing and characters in it. I’m sure I’m going like this story of lost memories and redemption.

The Demons’ Play by Holly Ann

This illness is my demon and this book is my therapy. I have symptoms like these and I want to help you see what it’s like to feel like me.

The Demons’ Play is a book about mental health like no other; a play within a book experience based on the author’s own personal experiences.

We are introduced to fifteen characters, all with different mental disorders including depression, PTSD, bipolar disorder, grief, and schizophrenia. Their personal stories and group therapy sessions are interspersed with images, poems, and thoughts all related to their illnesses. 

The book is based on the author’s own personal experiences with mental health and there are poems so it’s going to be difficult to review but I’m sure it will be different from what I have read so far.

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Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed this post! Let me know in comments what you are currently reading and planning to read next, or if you have read any of these books.

Happy Reading!

 

      

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