Month: July 2015

Review – Somebody I Used to Know

~ Erika K ~ 10 Comments

Somebody I Used to Know by David Bell
Somebody I Used to Know

Genre: Mystery / Thriller
My Rating **** (4 of 5 stars)

***NOTE: I was provided a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review***

Nick Hansen is a recently divorced social worker living alone with his dog Riley. His ex-wife is sure that he never stopped loving his college girlfriend Marissa, who was killed in a college campus house fire 20 years earlier, and that’s one of the reasons that they are no longer together. On his way home from work one evening, he sees a girl in the supermarket who looks so much like Marissa that he is compelled to speak to her. As soon as he asks about her family, she turns and runs from the store. The following day, police arrive on his doorstep to ask him if he knew a girl who has been found murdered at a local hotel. They show him a photo, and it is none other than the girl from he market. Even worse, she had his name and address on a slip of paper in her pocket when they found her.

Wanting both to clear his name and to lay to rest his suspicion that this could somehow be Marissa’s daughter, even though she would have been born after Marissa died in the fire, he enlists the help of an old college friend to investigate the girl’s death.

This was a great thriller! I had suspicions about some things (which I can’t mention because I don’t want to spoil anything!) early on, but only suspicions. The author keeps things moving at a good pace, and I felt as invested in Nick’s investigation as he was.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a good mystery or thriller. And you don’t just have to take my word for it – check out these reviews from The Hidden Staircase and Jewel’s Eclectic Books!

Visit David Bell’s website
Follow David Bell on Facebook or Twitter

Purchase from Amazon
Purchase from Barnes & Noble

Help me Choose – What to Write?

~ Erika K ~ 8 Comments

I’ve been doing NaNoWriMo (username is ekehlet if anyone wants to be writing buddies this year!) for a couple of years, but I have not yet managed to finish. I also have a handful of other partially written drafts and I go back and forth between them. I try to work on all of them a bit here and there, but I have decided that it would be a good idea to actually complete a rough draft of something I already have started before beginning a brand-new writing project this November! I’ve narrowed my choices down to two, and I’m hoping to get some feedback.

Below are short excerpts from a cozy mystery and a ghost story / paranormal thriller. I started working on the cozy several years ago, but still only have 7 chapters written. I know who did it, so a little time spent outlining what I think needs to happen should get me to the end. The other story is my NaNoWriMo attempt from 2014. It started out as a retelling of a bad dream I had one night (I think too much pizza the previous evening may have been involved), but took on a life of its own. The more I wrote, the more it wandered off in unexpected directions. It is a lot closer to being a complete rough draft than the cozy mystery, but I can’t quite figure out how to get it there.

If you have the time to give these a quick read, I would really appreciate your opinion. Assuming either is a genre you would read, do either of the excerpts sound like something that would interest you enough to read more? If so, leave me a comment to let me know which one!

Continue reading →

What are you reading Wednesday – 7/8/15

~ Erika K ~ 21 Comments

What are you reading Wednesday – 7/8/15

whatareyoureadingwed
What Are You Reading Wednesdays is a weekly meme hosted by Its A Reading Thing. To participate, open the book you are currently reading to page 34 (or 34% in your ebook) and answer these three questions. If you have a blog, leave a link down in the comments so that others can visit and see your post. If not, just leave a note with your answers.

The Questions are:
1. What’s the name of your current read?

2. Go to page 34 in your book or 34% in your eBook and share a complete sentence. (or two!)

3. Would you like to live in the world that exists within your book? Why or why not?

My answers for this week:
1. Somebody I used to Know by David Bell
Somebody I Used to Know
Released today, but I have an ARC and I’m halfway through! It’s turning out to be a quick read because it is hard to put down. 🙂

2. “It’s not those things.” She kept poking the ice. “I don’t want to be…complacent.”

3. Sure – nothing wrong with the setting in this one. There are some unsettling things going on, but they could occur anywhere…

So, what are you reading this Wednesday? Leave me a comment to let me know!

Top Ten Hyped Books I’ve Never Read

~ Erika K ~ 30 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Every Tuesday they post a new Top Ten list prompt. This week’s list is Top Ten Hyped Books I’ve Never Read. I know some people love these books (hence the hype), but they are either not for me, or I just haven’t gotten around to them yet.

Let me know which hyped books you haven’t read – I’m sure I’ve missed a bunch. I’d also love to hear if you have read any of the books on my list. Tell me why they are worth reading! 🙂

Note – all book descriptions from Goodreads

Continue reading →

The Book Market Bookshop, Crest Hill, IL

~ Erika K ~ 12 Comments

I visited The Book Market used bookstore in Crest Hill, IL yesterday. They have recently moved into a new space, and it is impressive!

IMG_1119

According to the business card I picked up, they have over 250,000 new and used books, and the store is over 5,000 square feet. I was in heaven – row after row after row of books! 🙂

IMG_1121  IMG_1116

They have mystery, sci-fi, romance, general fiction, and just about anything else you can imagine.

IMG_1117

There’s also a large kids’ section with lots of Goosebumps books, which my daughter is going to love.

If you are in the area, be sure to check them out!

The Book Market
2365 Plainfield Rd.
Crest Hill, IL 60403
815-744-4240

The Book Market on Facebook

Patriotic Reads for the Long 4th of July Weekend

~ Erika K ~ 2 Comments

Although I’m happy to read almost anything at almost anytime, I do sometimes like to tailor my reading to the season. Hercule Poirot’s Christmas at Christmas time, Halowe’en Party in the fall (sense a trend here?), and so on. With the 4th of July just around the corner, and the extra day of free reading time that will give me, I thought it would be fun to read a story that occurs on the 4th of July, or maybe a nice political thriller. If you’d like to do the same, here are a few suggestions…

Continue reading →

What are you reading Wednesday – 7/1/15

~ Erika K ~ 6 Comments

What are you reading Wednesday – 7/1/15

whatareyoureadingwed
What Are You Reading Wednesdays is a weekly meme hosted by Its A Reading Thing. To participate, open your current read to page 34 and answer these three questions. If you have a blog, leave a link down in the comments so that others can visit and see your post. If not, just leave a note with your answers. I’d love to hear what you are reading!

The Questions are:
1. What’s the name of your current read?

2. Go to page 34 in your book or 34% in your eBook and share a complete sentence. (or two!)

3. Would you like to live in the world that exists within your book? Why or why not?

My Answers this week:
1. Eeny Meeny by M.J. Arlidge
Eeny Meeny (Helen Grace, #1)

2. Looking at the map, he saw that there were some holiday cottages only a mile or two away. Perhaps if he hurried he could make it there before it got too dark.

3. No! I wouldn’t want to have to live there. Too many bad things are happening at the moment. I’m not even sure I’d want to spend any time with the “nice” people in this story. (I do want to stick around long enough to find out how everything turns out, though! 🙂 )