Book Chat

Book Chat: Updates from Mackenzie 8/15/2018

Well, I have had to slow down a bit the past week on my reading, but all for productive reasons! As I think I’ve mentioned, I recently relocated from Nebraska to Chicago. The only hold up was that while I physically relocated, my belongings did not come with me! It was a fast turnaround from my old job to my new job, so I didn’t have a chance to pack up. I was back in Nebraska this weekend to pack up my place and send my things on their way to meet me. It was EXHAUSTING but I’m really glad it is done! I took a break in the pool at that complex for the last time, and it was bittersweet. But the suit of armor that sits on a second floor balcony just over my left shoulder in this photo is still there. It has resided there for the entire 4 years I’ve lived in that complex, and I’ve never once seen the owners of the unit! Perhaps they are inside of the suit of armor?

I spent hours in my apartment alone packing and sneezing (was I living with all of that dust buried under all of my things???) but I passed the time by listening to podcasts. Recently I’ve been really into the RHAP podcasts about Big Brother. I won’t bore you with the details of that, because Big Brother is not for everyone (though I think if you gave it a try, most would enjoy it; there’s a lot of strategy to Big Brother, plus some humiliating costumes they sometimes have to wear and plenty of drama). I think I did link a favorite blog of mine, though, that covers Big Brother so you should go back and check her out here!

What I’ve Read

I read the book Sister of Mine by Laurie Petrou with Berit and Brenda and Norma as a Traveling Sisters read and we LOVED it! When we were discussing this book, we all felt the book was different than we expected in a very good way! One thing that was really great about this book was that it had a very vintage feel to it. Brenda was saying it reminded her of the Thrillers from a decade or so ago, and I have to agree! Those thrillers were not about the twist like the ones now are, they were deep burning character studies about lives unraveling and secrets. Check out my review, and also the reviews of my sisters (linked above)!

I also participated in a Traveling Sisters read to the book Our House by Louise Candlish. Though everyone had things they liked about it, I think Berit and I were the two biggest fans of this book! Berit’s review can be read here and mine can be found here! Brenda and Norma have a recap of some of the other Traveling Sister reviews for this which can be found on their blog here! This book was TWISTED and Candlish has become a favorite author of mine. Sometimes I still think about what I would think if I came home and someone else was moving into my house? That is a domestic horror scenario!

What I’m Reading

I’m currently finishing Not Her Daughter by Rea Frey with a few of my book besties and I am LOVING it! The writing on this book is so smooth! It’s about a woman Sarah who witnesses a small girl being mistreated, and without thinking she takes the girl with her. Sarah had her own absent mother who mistreated her, and she feels a connection with 5-year old Emma. What commences is a story of a nation-wide search for a girl, a mother who isn’t sure she should have had children, and a woman who never got to be a mother but finds it is the one thing that can heal her. This is not a run-of-the-mill child kidnapping book. You will find yourself questioning what you KNOW to be the right thing as you read this. Can’t wait to finish up and review it! This book publishes on August 21, 2018!

I’m also reading The Affair by Sheryl Browne, which is on sale now. Its really good! I wouldn’t call this a psychological thriller. It is a domestic suspense novel about the impact secrets, lies, and yes, an affair, can have on a family. It is about the way one lie inevitably leads to more lies, and a chain of events can be set in motion that it is too late to stop. This one is actually on sale now and I will review it this week on my blog!

Happy reading friends!

Mackenzie

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