It’s that time of year again where I give you my absolute favorite books of 2019. Hopefully, there are some new books on here that you’ll love just as much as I did.
What were your favorites of 2019?
*Click on the book cover to read the synopsis on Goodreads*
The Holidays are right around the corner and I can’t wait to have a few days off from work to relax and get some much-needed reading done.
How are you spending your holidays?
We were tagged by the amazing Chelsie over at My Reading Escape to join in on the book tag fun. Thanks for including us 🙂
I’ve asked for a few books that have been on my TBR for a while but the main one I really want and hope to receive is Normal People by Sally Rooney. I’ve heard nothing but amazing things about her books and I want to start with this one.
I get asked this question a lot and we joke around at work about which books we would use as weapons if the occasion arose (yeah, we are kind of morbid). I always go for Stephen King. IT is over a thousand pages long and so worth the damage it does to your hands after holding it while reading.
I usually don’t like to have food/snacks around books because of crumbs or stickiness. But sometimes I make an exception for a cute contemporary book. It puts you in the right mindset for a cup of coffee or hot chocolate with a decent cookie or two.
Yes, I know that they changed the cover for this one but it still drives me crazy that they first decided to go with that cover. It made me feel as if they were trying to sabotage her.
Anything by V(E)ictoria Schwab is a super quick read for me. Her books draw you in and you sit and read her entire book in one sitting.
I know that I’m so late to the party with this book but I’ve been wanting to read this for a while now and I need to own it for my book collection.
I wanted to throw this book across the room because it was one of my highly anticipated reads but it was just awful.
I own this book but just haven’t read it yet.
This book is just the cutest and puts me in a better mood.
This is not your typical pick me up book but it took my mind off of things that were going on around me.
Happy Thanksgiving week!!!
This week will be a small reading week due to the holiday.
I’ll be reading a Riverdale book since I’ve been obsessed with that show lately and a book from an author who I’ve never read from before.
What are you reading?
When Archie, Betty, Veronica and Jughead take a road trip, they discover that their small-town problems seem to follow them wherever they go.
Archie’s on trial for murder, and the evidence is stacked against him. Betty, Veronica, and Jughead all know that Archie is being framed by Hiram Lodge, but how can they prove it?
The gang comes up with a last-ditch plan to prove Archie’s innocence: They have to go back to the scene of the crime. They have to go back to Shadow Lake.
Threats are around every corner deep in the woods at the Lodge family cabin. Will the teens find the evidence they need to clear Archie’s name? And more importantly, will they make it back to Riverdale alive?
The dreamers walk among us . . . and so do the dreamed. Those who dream cannot stop dreaming – they can only try to control it. Those who are dreamed cannot have their own lives – they will sleep forever if their dreamers die.
And then there are those who are drawn to the dreamers. To use them. To trap them. To kill them before their dreams destroy us all.
Ronan Lynch is a dreamer. He can pull both curiosities and catastrophes out of his dreams and into his compromised reality.
Jordan Hennessy is a thief. The closer she comes to the dream object she is after, the more inextricably she becomes tied to it.
Carmen Farooq-Lane is a hunter. Her brother was a dreamer . . . and a killer. She has seen what dreaming can do to a person. And she has seen the damage that dreamers can do. But that is nothing compared to the destruction that is about to be unleashed. . . .
This week I’m going to read the books that I was supposed to read last week and then an arc that I received from the publisher. I didn’t read what I planned due to me getting a copy of Queen of Nothing early. Then disappointment set in and I couldn’t read anything after that this weekend.
What are you reading?
My daddy warned me never to fall for a boy like Jace Jacobs . . . The second I saw him walk through the door, I knew he was trouble. A gorgeous rebel with a bad attitude and a huge chip on his shoulder.My heart warned me. I didn’t listen. I saw something protective and good beneath the fierce, tough exterior. I fell hard and fast. He promised we’d be together forever, and then left me with a broken heart. Now, ten years later, Jace Jacobs is standing at my door.Sexier than he’s ever been. Provocative and commanding.Successful and powerful. The man I always knew he would become. But I promised myself I’d never lose my heart to him again.Even time couldn’t dim our chemistry. One glance of his intense eyes, and I become weak. One brush of his hand, and he brings me to my knees. Little do I know, Jace holds the key to everything I’ve lost and everything that threatens my future.Now he will either save me, or he will break me all over again . . . More of You – a Confessions of the Heart second-chance, stand-alone romance
The secrets lurking in a rundown roadside motel ensnare a young woman, just as they did her aunt thirty-five years before, in this new atmospheric suspense novel from the national bestselling and award-winning author of The Broken Girls.
Upstate NY, 1982. Every small town like Fell, New York, has a place like the Sun Down Motel. Some customers are from out of town, passing through on their way to someplace better. Some are locals, trying to hide their secrets. Viv Delaney works as the night clerk to pay for her move to New York City. But something isn’t right at the Sun Down, and before long she’s determined to uncover all of the secrets hidden…
A historical YA horror novel based on the infamous real-life inspiration for Countess Dracula
In 17th century Hungary, Anna Darvulia has just begun working as a scullery maid for the young and glamorous Countess Elizabeth Báthory. When Elizabeth takes a liking to Anna, she’s vaulted to the dream role of chambermaid, a far cry from the filthy servants’ quarters below. She receives wages generous enough to provide for her family, and the Countess begins to groom Anna as her friend and confidante. It’s not long before Anna falls completely under the Countess’s spell—and the Countess takes full advantage. Isolated from her former friends, family, and fiancé, Anna realizes she’s not a friend but a prisoner of the increasingly cruel Elizabeth. Then come the murders, and Anna knows it’s only a matter of time before the Blood Countess turns on her, too.
*Click on the image above to find out more about this release.*
Praise for GREGG OLSEN’S NOVELS
“Gregg Olsen’s Envy is a riveting page-turner that I could not put down. Like Jay Asher’s Thirteen Reasons Why, Envyexplores a serious topic–cyberbullying–in a fantastic, well-crafted story. Can’t wait for the next Empty Coffinnovel!” ―Nancy Holder, New York Times bestselling author of the Wicked saga, Dear Bully contributor
“Gregg Olsen’s Envy offers an interesting view on the devastating effects bullying can have, not only on the individuals involved from both sides, but on the community at large.” ―Bree Despain, author of The Dark Divine trilogy
“Sure to spice up your reading repertoire!” ―GirlsLife.com
“Olsen’s characters jump to life and his plots are so intricate you never see the killer coming….a definite hit!” ―RT Book Reviews
“Dark and addictive…” ―Jordan Dane, critically acclaimed author of In the Arms of Stone Angels
“Olsen writes with authority, drawing inspiration from actual headlines and crime…” ―Publishers Weekly
“WICKEDLY CLEVER! TWISTED.” ―Lisa Gardner
“OLSEN WRITES RAPID-FIRE PAGE-TURNERS.” ―The Seattle Times
“GRABS YOU BY THE THROAT.” ―Kay Hooper
Footprints were scattered about like fallen leaves. She looked down into the ravine, and once more her lungs filled with fear. A body, blackened and motionless lay splayed out in the bushes.
Detective Megan Carpenter is no stranger to evil. Escaping the horrors of her old life, she’s vowed never to let anyone hurt her or those she loves ever again. Joining the small police force in Jefferson County’s Port Townsend, Megan is determined to get every victim of a crime the justice they deserve.
So when Ruth Turner walks into the Sheriff’s office claiming her sister Ida Watson has been missing for over a month, Megan’s instincts tell her that she needs to do more than just file a report.
Arriving at a secluded farmhouse in the hills above Snow Creek, she finds Ida’s teenage children alone and frightened.
Then a few days later, close to the Watsons’ home, the blackened body of a woman is discovered in an abandoned pickup truck.
Megan must unravel the disturbing secrets of the isolated Snow Creek community if she is to catch the killer.
But Megan has dark secrets of her own too…
Hidden in the back of her closet is a box of tapes containing every single recording of her therapy sessions with Doctor Albright over thirteen years ago. As Megan begins to play the tapes, she’s taken straight back to her terrifying childhood, back to the time she was a kid called Rylee, fighting to survive.
Can Megan finally confront the past she’s spent years trying to block out and will listening to her own painful story help her solve the complex case she is now entangled in?
From the Number One New York Times and Amazon Charts bestselling author, comes an absolutely heart-stopping and completely unputdownable crime series, introducing Detective Megan Carpenter.
It took her two trips to bring the body parts to the firepit, a location that had been the center of activity when she and Amy still had visitors. S’mores. Puffs of marijuana. Long, drunken stories about people they loved and hated.
Regina used some fat rendered from a goat she’d slaughtered to help ignite the pieces of what remained of the nameless dead man. She piled on the wood and set the fire. She knew it would take a long time, probably all night.
When they first moved there one of their friends hit a doe and someone came up with the bright idea of cremating the animal’s remains. The worst idea ever. It sent up a stream of acrid smoke and the fire hissed as the animal’s fat was consumed. A person’s pre-burned body couldn’t be that bad. Or could it? When the night was over the deer was gone. Even some of the bones had burned. Gone. That’s just what she needed. She knew that no one would pay any attention to the pyre.
Once she’d burned a mattress sending a tornado of black smoke into the sky. No one said a word. No one complained of the smell either. In Snow Creek, she mused, burning a body was a private, do-not-disturb affair. Like a lot of things out there. She watched the blaze take off and then hurried inside to tell Amy that she was finally getting to some of that trash that had piled up in the barn.
“How’d it go? Did you bury the body?” “Yes. I did.”
“In the woods?”
“Yes, baby, in the woods.”
Regina felt Amy’s lips against hers. So warm and lovely. So perfect.
“You get some rest. I’m going to watch the fire.” “I love you.”
“I love you forever and a day.”
Their love, they both knew, was everlasting.
– 1 Winner will receive a $30.00 Gift Card.
Throughout his career,
A New York Times, Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author, Olsen has written nine nonfiction books, nine novels, a novella, and contributed a short story to a collection edited by Lee Child.
The award-winning author has been a guest on dozens of national and local television shows, including educational programs for the History Channel, Learning Channel, and Discovery Channel. He has also appeared on Dateline NBC, William Shatner’s Aftermath, Deadly Women on Investigation Discovery, Good Morning America, The Early Show, The Today Show, FOX News, CNN, Anderson Cooper 360, MSNBC, Entertainment Tonight, CBS 48 Hours, Oxygen’s Snapped, Court TV’s Crier Live, Inside Edition, Extra, Access Hollywood, and A&E’s Biography.
In addition to television and radio appearances, he has been featured in Redbook, USA Today, People,Salon magazine, Seattle Times, Los Angeles Times and the New York Post.
The Deep Dark was named Idaho Book of the Year by the ILA and Starvation Heights was honored by Washington’s Secretary of State for the book’s contribution to Washington state history and culture. His Young Adult novel, Envy, was the official selection of Washington for the National Book Festival.
Olsen, a Seattle native, lives in Olalla, Washington with his wife, twin daughters, three chickens, Milo (an obedience school dropout cocker spaniel) and Suri (a mini dachshund so spoiled she wears a sweater).
WEBSITE:http://www.greggolsen.com/
TWITTER:@Gregg_Olsen
GOODREADS: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15035.Gregg_Olsen
FACEBOOK:https://www.facebook.com/GreggOlsenAuthor
INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/greggolsen/
WEEK ONE
This week I’m going to read a book that I started on Saturday, an amazing arc that I stumbled upon, and a book that I received from BookWorm Box. And maybe… just maybe if I have extra time I’ll read a book that I won from Goodreads.
What are you reading this week?
No one can save her.
In order to protect Prince Lucien d’Malvane’s heart, Zera had to betray him. Now, he hates the sight of her. Trapped in Cavanos as a prisoner of the king, she awaits the inevitable moment her witch severs their magical connection and finally ends her life.
But fate isn’t ready to give her up just yet.
With freedom coming from the most unlikely of sources, Zera is given a second chance at life as a Heartless. But it comes with a terrible price. As the king mobilizes his army to march against the witches, Zera must tame an elusive and deadly valkerax trapped in the tunnels underneath the city if she wants to regain her humanity.
Winning over a bloodthirsty valkerax? Hard. Winning back her friends before war breaks out? A little harder.
But a Heartless winning back Prince Lucien’s heart?
The hardest thing she’s ever done.
In her first hairdo-raising adventure, Elvira meets the weirdos next door–a pasty-faced group of coffin-carrying bloodsuckers! Elvira likes vampires as much as the next ghoul. But when they start chomping on her friends, the new creeps on the block receive a little visit–from ELvira’s unwelcome wagon. This book begins a new series starring America’s favorite glamour ghoul.
My daddy warned me never to fall for a boy like Jace Jacobs . . . The second I saw him walk through the door, I knew he was trouble. A gorgeous rebel with a bad attitude and a huge chip on his shoulder.My heart warned me. I didn’t listen. I saw something protective and good beneath the fierce, tough exterior. I fell hard and fast. He promised we’d be together forever, and then left me with a broken heart. Now, ten years later, Jace Jacobs is standing at my door.Sexier than he’s ever been. Provocative and commanding.Successful and powerful. The man I always knew he would become. But I promised myself I’d never lose my heart to him again.Even time couldn’t dim our chemistry. One glance of his intense eyes, and I become weak. One brush of his hand, and he brings me to my knees. Little do I know, Jace holds the key to everything I’ve lost and everything that threatens my future.Now he will either save me, or he will break me all over again . . . More of You – a Confessions of the Heart second-chance, stand-alone romance.
The secrets lurking in a rundown roadside motel ensnare a young woman, just as they did her aunt thirty-five years before, in this new atmospheric suspense novel from the national bestselling and award-winning author of The Broken Girls.
Upstate NY, 1982. Every small town like Fell, New York, has a place like the Sun Down Motel. Some customers are from out of town, passing through on their way to someplace better. Some are locals, trying to hide their secrets. Viv Delaney works as the night clerk to pay for her move to New York City. But something isn’t right at the Sun Down, and before long she’s determined to uncover all of the secrets hidden…
I didn’t read as much as I wanted to last week. So this week I’m reading something that I started on Friday and some arcs that I received in the mail.
What are you reading this week?
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Stephen King, the most riveting and unforgettable story of kids confronting evil since It—publishing just as the second part of It, the movie, lands in theaters.
In the middle of the night, in a house on a quiet street in suburban Minneapolis, intruders silently murder Luke Ellis’s parents and load him into a black SUV. The operation takes less than two minutes. Luke will wake up at The Institute, in a room that looks just like his own, except there’s no window. And outside his door are other doors, behind which are other kids with special talents—telekinesis and telepathy—who got to this place the same way Luke did: Kalisha, Nick, George, Iris, and ten-year-old Avery Dixon. They are all in Front Half. Others, Luke learns, graduated to Back Half, “like the roach motel,” Kalisha says. “You check in, but you don’t check out.”
In this most sinister of institutions, the director, Mrs. Sigsby, and her staff are ruthlessly dedicated to extracting from these children the force of their extranormal gifts. There are no scruples here. If you go along, you get tokens for the vending machines. If you don’t, punishment is brutal. As each new victim disappears to Back Half, Luke becomes more and more desperate to get out and get help. But no one has ever escaped from the Institute.
As psychically terrifying as Firestarter, and with the spectacular kid power of It, The Institute is Stephen King’s gut-wrenchingly dramatic story of good vs. evil in a world where the good guys don’t always win.
Bestselling author Laurie Faria Stolarz returns with Jane Anonymous, a gripping tale of a seventeen-year-old girl’s kidnapping and her struggle to fit back into her life after she escapes.
Then, “Jane” was just your typical 17-year-old in a typical New England suburb getting ready to start her senior year. She had a part-time job she enjoyed, an awesome best friend, overbearing but loving parents, and a crush on a boy who was taking her to see her favorite band. She never would’ve imagined that in her town where nothing ever happens, a series of small coincidences would lead to a devastating turn of events that would forever change her life.
Now, it’s been three months since “Jane” escaped captivity and returned home. Three months of being that girl who was kidnapped, the girl who was held by a “monster.” Three months of writing down everything she remembered from those seven months locked up in that stark white room. But, what if everything you thought you knew―everything you thought you experienced―turned out to be a lie?
Find Me Their Bones- Sara WolfNo one can save her.
In order to protect Prince Lucien d’Malvane’s heart, Zera had to betray him. Now, he hates the sight of her. Trapped in Cavanos as a prisoner of the king, she awaits the inevitable moment her witch severs their magical connection and finally ends her life.
But fate isn’t ready to give her up just yet.
With freedom coming from the most unlikely of sources, Zera is given a second chance at life as a Heartless. But it comes with a terrible price. As the king mobilizes his army to march against the witches, Zera must tame an elusive and deadly valkerax trapped in the tunnels underneath the city if she wants to regain her humanity.
Winning over a bloodthirsty valkerax? Hard. Winning back her friends before war breaks out? A little harder.
But a Heartless winning back Prince Lucien’s heart?
The hardest thing she’s ever done.
