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Some houses hold secrets that are meant to be kept forever…
When Eliza Sullivan inherits an estate from a recently deceased aunt, she leaves behind a grievous and guilt-ridden past in New Orleans for rural England and a fresh start. Eliza arrives at her new home and finds herself falling for the mysterious lord of Havenwood, Malcolm Winfield. Despite the sinister rumors that surround him, Eliza is drawn to his melancholy charm and his crumbling, once-beautiful mansion. With enough love, she thinks, both man and manor could be repaired.
Not long into their marriage, Eliza fears that she should have listened to the locals. There’s something terribly wrong at Havenwood Manor: Forbidden rooms. Ghostly whispers in the shadows. Strangely guarded servants. And Malcolm’s threatening moods, as changeable as night and day.
As Eliza delves deeper into Malcolm’s troubling history, the dark secrets she unearths gain a frightening power. Has she married a man or a monster? For Eliza, uncovering the truth will either save her or destroy her.
Ramble-y Teaserish Stuff
In June 1899 Eliza and her sister Lydia arrive in England from New Orleans after Eliza inherits an estate from a great-aunt she last saw over twenty years ago. Both are excited about a fresh start -- free from their past and any societal demands.
There's a catch, though. Because there's almost always a catch. In order to actually lay claim to her full inheritance, Eliza must marry within three months. Eliza, of course, had absolutely no interest in marrying ... until, of course, she encountered the moody lord of the neighboring estate next door.
Next door to Sherbourne House is Havenwood Manor -- still in horrible disrepair from a fire three years prior. The only one remaining in the house (aside from staff) is Malcolm Winfield. His father and brother both perished in the fire. His mother vanished shortly thereafter. Did she run away? Did she fall into the ravine? Or, as so many rumors state, did Malcolm kill her?
In spite of the stories, Eliza is drawn to Malcolm and vice-versa. When it becomes clear that marriage could help her keep her inheritance as well as help Malcolm keep Havenwood, the two elope. Soon after, things begin to happen that make Eliza question everything -- including her own sanity. She began hearing and seeing things that weren't there (or were they?), and her new husband and house were both full of secrets nobody seemed to be willing to talk about.
It's a book full of mysteries and twists ... and oh the twists will have my head spinning for some time. It is deliciously gothic and I had a near impossible time putting it down. I started early Monday morning -- finished less than twenty-four hours later. My biggest complaint? Not nearly enough Lydia.
When I saw this mentioned on Twitter, I knew it was going to be a must-have. I didn't even read the description before I downloaded it -- just the cover:
Two lonely bookworms. An unexpected friendship. A library that needs their help...
I knew that years ago I had read and loved a Bella Osborne chick-lit so was sort of expecting the same. Maybe a rom-com. Two nerds fall in love in the stacks sort of thing.
This is so not that.
And it is so much better than anything that I had imagined.
Tom is an awkward and "invisible" sixteen year old. Invisible, that is, until he seeks solace in the library he used to go to with his mother as a young boy and catches the attention of seventy-two year old Maggie. They bond, they save each other, a few lambs and other people along the way ... and play a big part in saving the library, too.
At least, I'm assuming that the library will get it's Happily Ever After. I still have another 30% to read because eventually I do probably have to sleep.
If you want to share whatever has kept you up past your bedtime because you just needed one more chapter ... or the entire book ... please comment! My TBR pile is already toppling, but I can always add more.
Criminology academic Kate Marshall is on a scuba jaunt with her son when they dive toward a shocking discovery: the body of a teenage boy entangled below the surface of the Shadow Sands reservoir. The detective chief inspector’s too-quick narrative of a tragic drowning doesn’t add up, and when Kate follows the evidence, it leads to a darker discovery.
The victim is only the latest in a series of mysterious deaths and disappearances linked to the moorlands—and a mythic phantom said to hide in the rolling fog. When a researcher of urban legends vanishes without a trace, Kate and her associate Tristan Harper must act fast and look deep if they hope to find her alive.
But the elusive serial killer they’re hunting isn’t the only one a step ahead of Kate and Tristan. Someone else is making dead certain that the secrets of Shadow Sands stay buried.
Ramble-y Teaserish Stuff
Shadow Sands is the second Kate Marshall book, following the amazing Nine Elms.
Yes. Read that one first. I really shouldn't have to tell you all the time.
I actually had another post all ready for today. It was a book that started strong and then crashed and burned and was really rather not that great about 14 pages AFTER 56. I just didn't feel right about posting two really strong teasers for a book that went wheeeee-boom. SO I grabbed my next Bryndza and got a couple of chapters in before having to do the joyous overnight at work. It should have been fine. It's a freaking holiday so that typically means deadville in the hotel world.
Nope.
However, the problematic dipwads that I had to deal with for the first three hours of my shift made for perfect fodder for a serial killer book for the rest.
Have you ever found yourself actually being tempted to root for a serial killer?
I mean, besides Dexter Morgan.
Luckily, in spite of it all, I'm still not so jaded and depraved that I wasn't rooting for Kate and Tristan.
Okay, so on to the book.
The Shadow Sands reservoir is a popular diving spot near Kate Marshall's home. It had been created in the 1950s when a valley and the village of Shadow Sands was flooded out. Kate and her sixteen-year-old son Jake go out one day to see if they can locate the ruins of the old Shadow Sands church ... and, in the ruins, they discover a fully dressed and quite dead body of a young man not much older than Jake. The police right it off as an accident, but several weeks later Kate is contacted by the boy's mother. She had read up on Kate and felt that she (and Tristan) could uncover the truth as to what really happened to her son, Simon.
Of course, as soon as Kate starts to look into things nothing adds up the way that they're supposed to believe. They soon discover that Simon is the latest in a long line of mysteries at Shadow Sands and it gets even stranger. A new philosophy and religion professor at the university where Kate and Tristan work is studying local urban legends, such the "Fog Phantom" of Shadow Sands who was supposedly responsible for young people going missing: It comes up from nowhere and it gets you, disorients you into a blind panic...
And then she goes missing.
In the fog.
Spooky, right?
I love this about Robert Bryndza. He can make me shiver even when the heat is cranked up ... holds me glued to the pages even on a work night that never really seems to calm down for more than a few minutes at a time ... and keeps me guessing right up to the end.
The absurdly outrageous, sarcastically satiric, and always entertaining New York Times bestselling author Christopher Moore returns in finest madcap form with this zany noir set on the mean streets of post-World War II San Francisco, and featuring a diverse cast of characters, including a hapless bartender; his Chinese sidekick; a doll with sharp angles and dangerous curves; a tight-lipped Air Force general; a wisecracking waif; Petey, a black mamba; and many more.
San Francisco. Summer, 1947. A dame walks into a saloon . . .
It’s not every afternoon that an enigmatic, comely blonde named Stilton (like the cheese) walks into the scruffy gin joint where Sammy "Two Toes" Tiffin tends bar. It’s love at first sight, but before Sammy can make his move, an Air Force general named Remy arrives with some urgent business. ’Cause when you need something done, Sammy is the guy to go to; he’s got the connections on the street.
Meanwhile, a suspicious flying object has been spotted up the Pacific coast in Washington State near Mount Rainer, followed by a mysterious plane crash in a distant patch of desert in New Mexico that goes by the name Roswell. But the real weirdness is happening on the streets of the City by the Bay.
When one of Sammy’s schemes goes south and the Cheese mysteriously vanishes, Sammy is forced to contend with his own dark secrets—and more than a few strange goings on—if he wants to find his girl.
Think Raymond Chandler meets Damon Runyon with more than a dash of Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes All Stars. It’s all very, veryNoir. It’s all very, very Christopher Moore. discoveries are those of the heart.
Ramble-y Teaserish Stuff
It's been another crazy handful of days. Very little reading. Lots of sleep, though ... not good sleep, but still enough to keep me from having the book finished like I figured that I would. I'm almost there, though, so today will be the day ... and a second teaser post even though I used it for the most recent Book Beginnings & Friday 56 (which, thanks to computer glitchiness, has now somehow disappeared). Thank goodness for Prologues (which I used for the Book Beginning) so I can use the first bit from Chapter One for today ... as well as a blip from page 170 of the hardcover. Well, it starts on 170 and then continues to 171 but whatever. Potato po-tah-toe, right?
I am very much okay with the fact that I've been taking my dear sweet time with this one. As much as I adore Fool, I'm fairly certain that Sammy might be my new favorite Christopher Moore character and I am freaking ecstatic that there's going to be at least one follow-up book so, hence, my new favorite Christopher Moore series. I do find myself waiting for a sunglass-wearing fruitbat, though ... or to get some hint as to who is going to end up the Emperor of San Francisco (my money is on the kid). I know this likely means nothing to you unless you've read others from Moore ... so just go do so. Start at the beginning of the beginning (Practical Demonkeeping) and just keep on going.
I did my Tuesday Intro/Teaser Tuesday post about this one yesterday. It's been a rough few days and it's exactly what I've needed -- as far as books go. The progress has been slow because my brain keeps drifting, but that just gives me more time to enjoy it, right? Sure. Let's go with that.
Recently Finished :
Carol Higgins Clark's Zapped.
Sadly, the only good things about it were that it wasn't very long and, mostly, that it finished my Alphabet Soup 2021 Titles list.
What's Next :
I'm ignoring my NetGalley shelf at the moment so I'm not even going to pretend that the book I really "should" be reading (as it's being released today) will be next. I might just say "sorry, nope" and forget it was ever even there. One of my dearest friends died just a few days ago and the last thing I need is depressing WWII stuff. Fluffy rom-coms, gothic romance, serial killers .... that's what I need. So I'll add The Widow of Pale Harbor and Shadow Sands to the wishlist along with my next Hester Fox and hopefully at least one of them will be added to the "Recently Finished" section next week.
and adding Parting the Veil, too, since it's been on my nightstand for weeks
What is a Victorian lady's formula for love? Mix one brilliant noblewoman and her enigmatic protection officer. Add in a measure of danger and attraction. Heat over the warmth of humor and friendship, and the result is more than simple chemistry--it's elemental.
Lady Violet is keeping secrets. First, she founded a clandestine sanctuary for England's most brilliant female scientists. Second, she is using her genius on a confidential mission for the Crown. But the biggest secret of all? Her feelings for protection officer Arthur Kneland.
Solitary and reserved, Arthur learned the hard way to put duty first. But the more time he spends in the company of Violet and the eccentric club members, the more his best intentions go up in flames. Literally.
When a shadowy threat infiltrates Violet's laboratories, endangering her life and her work, scientist and bodyguard will find all their theories put to the test--and learn that the most important discoveries are those of the heart.
Ramble-y Teaserish Stuff I really wanted to have this be my I'll Sleep When I've Read... post for this week, but there ended up being no post at all. I lost a dear friend to a long horrible illness and reading just wasn't happening. As it is I'm still only 21% in, but A Lady's Formula for Love is already so perfectly delightful that I've already placed the second in the Secret Scientists of London series on the wishlist. I may need both of them -- and whatever may follow -- on my actual shelves instead of just my Cloud. It's that good.
Widowed for five years, Lady Violet Greycliff is the creator of Athena's Retreat -- a social club for women in London. For all appearances sake, it is simply the female version of the popular gentlemen's clubs that most Regency fans know of already, like White's, Brooks, and Boodle's. When you get deep enough in, though, there are secret laboratories and libraries where the members study and experiment. These aren't the needlepointing gossipers (although there is plenty of gossip and I'm sure they each know their way around a needle). These women are interested in things like mathematics and astronomy and medicine and chemistry.
Violet's stepson, William (commonly called Grey), works for a top secret agency for the Queen and, as such, has commissioned his brilliant stepmother to assist in discovering an antidote to a new poisonous weapon that has been developed. Of course, there are plenty who do not want her to succeed and Grey employs Arthur Kneland to be her bodyguard. Violet is unaware until Arthur rushes in to save her from an explosion that, in all likelihood, was not caused by one of her members.
The attraction between the two is instantaneous and almost combustible all in its own right.
I love watching Violet and Arthur interact. They are both wonderfully awkward. He is afraid that getting too close to her will make her a distraction from the task at hand of making sure she stays safe. She is just a delightful bundle of brilliant flibbertigibbetness. (It's a word. Trust me. I just typed it so it must be.)
Like I said, I'm only at 21% right now but I just know that the next 79% will be amazing. I might even sleep with a well-read smile on my face ... after a few more chapters.
Zapped is the 11th Regan Reilly book by Carol Higgins Clark. I was familiar with the character thanks to the Christmas stories written with Mary Higgins Clark, but this is the first I've read without Alvirah and Willy. And it may be my last.
The good news is that it helped me finish my titles list for the Alphabet Soup challenge.
That's about it.
I remember the Northeast Blackout (that happened AUGUST 2003 -- not July). I was interested to see what Clark did with it. Unfortunately, what she did was confuse the heck out of me with too many characters and too many storylines and not enough pages to make them not feel like a rushed and jumbled mess.
Maybe it's just me.
Maybe it's because I read a couple of outstanding books back to back.
I did my Tuesday Intro/Teaser Tuesday post about this one yesterday. I was hoping to make a lot of progress on it during the day but got distracted and then distracted again. It looks like a quiet night at work, though, so hopefully I'll be able to spend some good quality time with Peter Dinklage .... I mean, Evan Wilding.
Recently Finished :
Title:Station Eleven
Author:Emily St. John Mandel
Publication:9 September 2014 - Vintage Books
Format: Kindle eBook
It was amazing and phenomenal and gave me a massive book hangover.
Now to wait until mid-December for the HBOMax series (which the author assures me is also amazing).
What's Next :
I still haven't done either of these yet and know I need to or the NetGalley guilt will become overwhelming .... but .... they feel kind of depressing and I'm really not sure I want that right now.
I think perhaps I'll go the Victorian STEM/Rom-Com route instead. Added bonus : it will cross E off my list for authors. Then two more letters and one more title to go for Alphabet Soup 2021!
I will then probably continue the joy of serial killers and jump into the next Kate Masrshall book by Robert Bryndza since the third is coming soon ...
... but first back to linguistic semiotic nerdgasms 💕
Ritual murder. Archaic clues. A visionary killer. In this heart-stopping novel by the Wall Street Journal and Amazon Charts bestselling author of the Sydney Rose Parnell series, words can kill.
On the muddy banks of the Calumet River, a body has been found posed next to a series of mysterious glyphs and bearing wounds from a ritualistic slaying. Chicago detective Addie Bisset knows only one man who can decipher the message left by the killer: her friend Dr. Evan Wilding. A brilliant forensic semiotician, Evan decodes the etchings as Viking Age runes. They suggest either human sacrifice or righteous punishment. But to what god? And for what sins?
Only one thing is clear from the disturbing runic riddles: there are more victims to come.
As Evan races to determine the identity of the Viking Poet, he and Addie uncover the killer’s most terrifying secret yet: the motive. This startling discovery puts Evan’s life in mortal danger, and verse by ancient verse, time is running out.
Ramble-y Teaserish Stuff I've been suffering from a bit of a book hangover after StationEleven.
The cure?
Peter Dinklage ... I mean ... Dr. Evan Wilding. In my head, he is Dinklage.
Same height. British. Absolutely brilliantly amazing.
I was intrigued when I saw the description for the book on the First Reads page at Amazon. Viking Runes and a serial killer? Like this wouldn't be the book I picked for the month. I don't even know why there was more than one choice.
I gave myself most of Sunday and well into Monday to recover from Station Eleven ... and then I fell in love ... because of the word "shit."
Yes, my teaser comes from very early in the book. I couldn't help it, though. The nerdgasm over my mental Dinklage dissecting the word "shit" sealed the deal.
I haven't made it far at this point thanks to life and work and whatnot but the intrigue I felt at the description is still going strong ... as is my love for Wilding.
I started this on Thursday night/early Friday morning just enough to get the blurbs for the Book Beginnings/Friday 56 post.
Once I truly got into it, I had a hard time putting it down for long.
Yes, I read past my bedtime ... and woke up early to continue.
I grabbed this from my library shortly after seeing the trailer for the upcoming series on HBOMax. I am now worried that, much like Lovecraft Country, the series will be a huge disappointment and they won't come close to capturing the magic of the book.
Would it have felt the same and read the same if I had read it when first released in 2014 -- pre-coronavirus?
I honestly have no idea. I'm assuming probably not. I think it's probably more relatable now than it would have been, but it still would have been magical.
Those who read it pre-coronavirus, did they think back to the book wondering if it was where were heading?
I'm full of questions, but there is absolutely no question that this is an amazing book and well-worth a few more hours of lost sleep.
If you want to share whatever has kept you up past your bedtime because you just needed one more chapter ... or the entire book ... please comment! My TBR pile is already toppling, but I can always add more.
Kirsten Raymonde will never forget the night Arthur Leander, the famous Hollywood actor, had a heart attack on stage during a production of King Lear. That was the night when a devastating flu pandemic arrived in the city, and within weeks, civilization as we know it came to an end.
Twenty years later, Kirsten moves between the settlements of the altered world with a small troupe of actors and musicians. They call themselves The Traveling Symphony, and they have dedicated themselves to keeping the remnants of art and humanity alive. But when they arrive in St. Deborah by the Water, they encounter a violent prophet who will threaten the tiny band’s existence. And as the story takes off, moving back and forth in time, and vividly depicting life before and after the pandemic, the strange twist of fate that connects them all will be revealed.
Ramble-y Teaserish Stuff
Station Eleven was not my plan for today. Or for ever, really. I had no idea it was even a thing until I saw an ad for the upcoming series on HBOMax and I knew immediately two things : I need to see that show .... and I need to read the "based on" book before I do. Luckily, my library had a digital copy available so I nabbed it even though I still had a good percentage of the book I had been reading left to go. I really only know what Amazon says, what I saw in the trailer, and what I grabbed for my Book Beginnings & Friday 56 blurbs. I have a very good feeling about all of this.
I'm only 25% in to Pies and Prejudice by Ellery Adams even though it's been on TBR since it was first released .... in 2012.
I know. I'm horrible. It, however, is not.
I already want to take a trip south to see what kind of pie Ella Mae would say best suited me. I'm guessing something more savory than sweet. Maybe something like Shepherd's Pie .... kind of comforting, kind of heavy. Or a Beef & Guiness because, well, beer. Of course, on my way to Havenwood, Georgia I would need to stop by Miracle Springs, North Carolina and get some books from Nora and a comfort scone from Hester. Of course, on my way back home I would have to stop in Virginia and hope for a vacancy at Storyton Hall.
You might say I'm a bit of an Adams fan and there are still so many I have yet to read. I could probably spend a month or two (or more) just catching up.
So, this is the first book in the Charmed Pie Shoppe series. It's a mystery, but I often have times that I forget that when I'm reading Adams even though the mysteries are always well-plotted and tend to keep me guessing. It's the people who live that keep me coming back for more .... and have urges to hop a train and head south. Here it's Ella Mae LeFaye (formerly Kitteridge) who returns to the home that has been in her family for centuries after she discovers her soon-to-be-ex husband cheating on her. Her return is more than a bit overwhelming with the onslaught of attention from the five women who raised her -- her mother, three aunts, and Reba (housekeeper? family friend? I'm not really sure at this point .... but she might as well be family). They're all thrilled to have her home and want to help her open her dream pie shop. Not thrilled to see her is childhood nemesis and still epic "mean girl," Loralyn Gaynor. The LeFayes and Gaynors have been rivals for centuries and that's not likely to change anytime soon. The location picked out for the pie shop is where Loralyn wants to open a new nail salon after she convinces her fiancé to buy it for her. He, of course, ends up dead -- shortly after Ella Mae has a very public argument with him. Again, this is just an added bonus to the wonderful story of Ella Mae and her family and they're why I already know -- even at 25% -- that this series is going to be a must-read for me.
Random "Oh Heck on a Clamshell" Moment: A hotel guest walked by, asked about what I was reading tonight. I started to tell her and that it's by one of my favorite authors. She's written so many that I have yet to read so, out of curiosity, I looked up just how many. 43 published books as of yet unread. Actually, I believe it's more than that since I don't think that list included any of the "J.B. Stanley" books. I have a lot of catching up to do.
This one, however, was quite wonderful. I rambled and teased Brightwood by Tania Unsworth yesterday and only regret that it wasn't two or three times longer.
What's Next :
I have three books still on my NetGalley shelf for the year and four letters left for my Alphabet Soup Authors list. I was thinking that I would tackle the authors, but I just realized that the first NetGalley book due is the second in a series so I suppose I'll get my hands on the first one and read those ... after pie ... and maybe a serial killer ...
