Sunday Post #105

The Sunday Post is hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated reviewer book blog, and is a post to recap my bookish and non-bookish things from the last week.

Well, this has been some week. We've been so busy at the hospital with Covid patients!  This is no joke people!  We even lost one of our beloved physicians on Thursday. He was older and had a lot of health issues, but was still plugging away. Covid was the last straw.  

On Wednesday, while at work, I didn't realize the extent of the all the chaos that happened in Washington DC until I got home and my husband filled me in.  What a disaster, but not all that surprising to be honest. 

In other news, I got the second dose of the Covid vaccine on Thursday and didn't feel so good Thursday and Friday. Among feeling sore all over, I had weird hot flashes. I seem to be in the minority with my reaction though, as my co-workers only felt sore at the injection site and not many other symptoms. So good news for most. My sister (she also works in a hospital) got her first dose last week and didn't have any symptoms other than a little soreness at the injection site.  I hope vaccinations role out fast for everyone else!

Read:

Click on cover for Goodreads link:

Peril at End House is a re-read by audio for me. I think the last time I read the book was at least ten years ago, if not more. The audio was fantastic! Hercule always makes me laugh. Wrong Alibi wasn't my cup of tea and ended up being a DNF. The Wife Upstairs was a surprising, twisty take on Jane Eyre. Daylight was a page turner!

Received/Purchased/Library Lend:

Watched:

Back to old standbys. I need some comfort watching!

How was your week?

Review: Daylight by David Baldacci

 

Daylight (Atlee Pine #3) by David Baldacci

Publication Date: November 17th 2020 by Grand Central Publishing

Pages: 432

Audio Book Length: 11 hrs 37 min

Narrators: Brittany Pressley & Kyf Brewer

Source: Publisher & Purchased Audiobook

Rating: ★★★★

Link: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Audible | Libro.fm | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Atlee Pine is searching for answers in the abduction of her twin sister, thirty years earlier. Her sister, Mercy was taken, and Atlee was left, but assaulted and almost died. The events shattered her family and is one of the chief reasons she became an FBI agent. All three books have taken us a little closer to the truth of that night, but the focus of each story is divided into that ongoing mystery and a new mystery Atlee which is solved by the end.

I won’t spoil the series by detailing the progress in her search for answers about her sister and family, but I will say that it doesn’t fully resolve by the end of Daylight. Honestly, I was a little disappointed by that, but even so, Daylight was a captivating read! Murder and political corruption are at the center of this mystery, and this time in addition to her intrepid FBI assistant Carol Blum she has John Puller as a partner in tracking down these evil people. Lots of action and danger with them barely coming away with their lives had me on edge of my seat!

So far, there’s been no serious romance for Atlee, but I have hope (hopeless romantic here) that along with the truth, Atlee will find someone special. There was the possibility in the last book, but nothing concrete happened however something may come of it in the coming book (s?).  

Atlee is my hero! She’s one badass having been an Olympic weightlifter and MMA competitor, she has the muscle and skill to take on the nastiest fights, and she has no problem fighting dirty when necessary! She’s a champion for victims and can’t stand to walk away when she should be focusing on her own investigation.

This series is best read in order.

I alternately listened and read the book, and the audio was fantastic! Brittany Pressley’s strong, calm voice made Atlee come alive, and I love that Kyf Brewer performed all the male parts. I listened at 1.3x normal speed.

 4 Stars

Audio Review: The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins

 

The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins

Publication Date: January 5th 2021 by Macmillan Audio & St. Martin's Press

Pages: 304

Audio Book Length: 8 hrs 39 min

Narrators: Emily Shaffer, Kirby Heyborne & Lauren Fortgang 

Source: St. Martin's Press & Libro.fm

Rating: ★★★½

Link: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Audible | Libro.fm | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Jane is a woman scraping by in life, hungry for more and not afraid to take advantage of others to get it. Being raised in the foster system, she’s had to become a bit ruthless to get by.  Jane finds a seemingly perfect way into the charmed life she longs for in Eddie Rochester.  He’s recently lost his wife, Bea, in what’s reported as a boating accident, but the circumstances are questionable at best.  Eddie seems sad and lonely, a sort of kindred spirit to Jane. With all her mercenary qualities, Jane is a lonely woman, who’s never fit in or felt wanted.

Most of the characters, like the rich housewives in Thornfield Estates and John Rivers, Jane’s foster acquaintance, are unlikeable. Even Jane isn’t especially sympathetic, especially since instead of trying to get ahead by improving herself, she uses and manipulates others. Very different from the original Jane Eyre who through hard work and a strong character became an accomplished woman, able to provide for herself. I think that, along with the “romance” were the biggest disappointments to me. But I think that’s on me because I love the original Jane Eyre so much, I have certain expectations whenever I pick up a retelling. I was rooting for Jane here and did feel sorry for her, because she was dealt a bad hand in life, but so was the original Jane. I’m not sure how I feel about how it all turned out, but I do think it was a sort-of-happy-ending, all things considered.

The Wife Upstairs is a compelling, twisty mystery/thriller that kept me turning the pages to find out how it’d all turn out.  Being a retelling some of the story is expected, but it doesn’t follow the original Jane Eyre closely at all.  What you think is happening may not be the case and I was surprised in one respect at the end. I think fans of writing like Lisa Jewel or Ruth Ware will definitely enjoy the story, it’s a mystery that keeps you guessing and on edge.  

I alternately listened and read the story.  Emily Shaffer and Lauren Fortgang fit Jane and Bea’s voices well. I’ve listened to Kirby Heyborne in the past and like the way his voice projects a “good guy” vibe. Was Eddie Rochester a “good guy”? Well, I guess you’d have to read the book to find out, lol. I listened at 1.3x.

3.5 Stars

Top Ten Tuesday: Most Anticipated Releases for the First Half of 2021

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Artsy Reader where each week they post a new top ten list and ask fellow bookish folk to share their lists on that topic.

Most Anticipated Releases for the First Half 2021

I'm excited for several books, but these are my top ten:

What's on your list?

Sunday Post #104

 

The Sunday Post is hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated reviewer book blog, and is a post to recap my bookish and non-bookish things from the last week.

It's been a busy weekend with babysitting my grandkids. They're five and three, and they wore me out, lol! We met my daughter and her husband at our place in Central California but came home yesterday (Saturday). Here's a picture of the clouds blanketing the valley. There's a lake under there. 

We came home yesterday (Saturday) and I'm happy to be home and resting before I have to go to work tomorrow. I'll probably go on a run later. 

Read:

Click on cover for Goodreads link:

I was trying to meet my 2020 Audio Book Challenge (100 books) so I've been listening to a lot of novellas. Happy Trail was the only full-length book. I got close to my goal and hit 93 for the year. I did go over my Goodreads goal of 150 books with 161 books read. I'll be setting the same number for both challenges this year, and I don't think I'll be joining any other challenges. 

Received/Purchased/Library Lend:

Library lends and a Kindle Unlimited. All audio books. I added The Daydream Cabin after seeing Sophia Rose's review and because I love Carolyn Brown. Didn't know Kelley Armstrong had a historical/time travel novel out, but I borrowed it after seeing it featured on Tanya's blog. Love Armstrong's Rockton series so much!

Watched:

I'm about half way through and enjoying it so far. 

How was your week?

 

 

Favorites of 2020: Mystery/Thriller, Fantasy/UF & Historical

 It's the end of 2020, woohoo! Here are the rest of my favorites: 

Mystery/Thrillers:

Click on covers for Goodreads link:

Fantasy/Urban Fantasy:

Historical: