Spooky Reads, Tricks and Treats

Author: Kimberly

Oct 28

I can’t believe it’s already Fall and Halloween is here!  Where does the time go?  If you’re a fan of Halloween, we’ve got some great spooky reads for all ages!  Above all, we wish you a safe and fun weekend!

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BAD MOON RISING by Jonathan Maberry.  A new master of terror reigns supreme. And in his most horrifying novel yet, the clash between good and evil explodes in an apocalyptic showdown few will survive.  Each year, the residents of Pine Deep host the Halloween Festival, drawing tourists and celebrities from across the country to enjoy the deliciously creepy fun. Those who visit the small Pennsylvania town are out for a good time, but those who live there are desperately trying to survive.

TRICK OR TREAT MURDER by Leslie Meier.  Haunted-house parties and ghostly galas. . .grinning pumpkins, mayhem and murder. It’s going to be one heck of a Halloween for Lucy Stone and Tinker’s Cove. . . It’s October in Maine, and everyone in Tinker’s Cove is preparing for the annual Halloween festival.  Trick-or-treat turns deadly as a little digging in all the wrong places puts Lucy too close to a shocking discovery that could send all her best-laid plans up in smoke. . .

HALLOWEEN TRICKS & TREATS from Better Homes and Gardens.   From spooky to whimsical and everything in between, Halloween Tricks and Treats is a treasure-trove of neat ideas and helpful how-tos for adding a personal touch to your Halloween parties and celebrations.

   

BALLAD: A GATHERING OF FAIRIE by Maggie Stiefvater.  Remember us, so sing the dead, lest we remember you. James Morgan has an almost unearthly gift for music. And it has attracted Nuala, a soul-snatching faerie muse who fosters and then feeds on the creative energies of exceptional humans until they die. James has plenty of reasons to fear the faeries, but as he and Nuala collaborate on an achingly beautiful musical composition, James finds his feelings towards Nuala deepening.

HARBOR by John Ajvide Lindqvist.  One ordinary winter afternoon on a snowy island, Anders and Cecilia take their six-year-old daughter Maja across the ice to visit the lighthouse in the middle of the frozen channel. While the couple explore the lighthouse, Maja disappears — either into thin air or under thin ice — leaving not even a footprint in the snow. Two years later, alone and more or less permanently drunk, Anders returns to the island to regroup. He slowly realises that people are not telling him all they know; even his own mother, it seems, is keeping secrets.

THE HAUNTING HOUR by R. L. Stine.  Ten terrifying tales that will haunt you forever.  Read the spine-tingling story of a baby-sitter who loves evil tricks . . . the terrifying tale of a boy who dared to lie down in the tomb of an ancient mummy . . . the ghastly story of two boys just dying to have the scariest Halloween ever…and more. These are the original stories that inspired the hit TV show R.L. Stine’s The Haunting Hour.

   

HAPPY HALLOWEEN, CURIOUS GEORGE by H. A. Rey.  Halloween is here, and Curious George is getting ready for the big night. There are so many costumes to try on, treats to share, and games to play! George has so much Halloween fun picking out the perfect pumpkin, decorating his house, and celebrating with his friends that he’s not sure he’s ready for the day to end.

HALLOWEEN MICE! by Bethany Roberts.  Simple, spirited verse and lively watercolors capture the excited anticipation and shivery delight of a favorite holiday. Four Halloween mice dress up in costumes for a midnight romp in the pumpkin patch. But they hadn’t counted on a Halloween cat! Children will applaud as the mice’s clever plan scares the cat away-and the littlest mouse gets the last laugh.

BATS AT THE LIBRARY by Brian Lies.  Another inky evening’s here – The air is cool and calm and clear. Can it be true? Oh, can it be? Yes! Bat Night at the library! Join the free-for-all fun at the public library with these book-loving bats! Shape shadows on walls, frolic in the water fountain, and roam the book-filled halls until it’s time for everyone, young and old, to settle down into the enchantment of story time. Brian Lies’ joyful critters and their nocturnal celebration cast library visits in a new light. Even the youngest of readers will want to join the batty book-fest!

What are your favorite spooky reads?

Happy Halloween from Lazy Day Books!
Kimberly

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Thriller Thursday: No Rest For The Dead, Edited by Andrew and Lamia Gulli

Author: Kimberly

Sep 8

It’s time for another installment of Thriller Thursday! 

This one was really exciting for me – No Rest For The Dead was written by twenty-six amazing mystery and thriller authors including Sandra Brown, RL Stine, Jeffery Deaver, Michael Palmer, Kathy Reichs and more.  Twenty-Six!  As excited as I was for what promised to be a great mystery, I was even more excited to see how all these author’s writing styles would blend together into one cohesive story.  Would it be seamless or would it be disjointed?  The only way to find out was to dive right in. 

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Title: No Rest For The Dead
Author: Sandra Brown
Published: 07-05-2011
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Source: Advance Review eBook Copy
Price: $11.99

From the back of the book:
When Christopher Thomas, a ruthless curator at San Francisco’s McFall Art Museum, is murdered and his decaying body is found in an iron maiden in a Berlin museum, his wife, Rosemary, is the primary suspect, and she is tried, convicted and executed. 

Ten years later, Jon Nunn, the detective who cracked the case, is convinced that the wrong person was put to death.  In the years since the case was closed, he’s discovered a web of deceit and betrayal surrounding the Thomases that could implicate any number of people in the crime.  With the help of the dead woman’s friend, he plans to gather everyone who was there the night Christopher died and finally uncover the truth, suspect by suspect. 

Solving this case may be Nunn’s last chance for redemption - but the shadowy forces behind Christopher’s death will stop at nothing to silence the past forever.

I read most of this book on a plane and I’m sure the person sitting next to me, my sweet husband, was tired of all my “oh, did you catch that?” and other out-loud gasps as I made my way though the unfolding story.  I might have even elbowed him once or twice while I was reading, as if he had any idea what I was talking about… What can I say, I’m an interactive reader.

Anyway, the chapters flowed seamlessly.  Other than slight changes in the cadence of the words, the only real way to tell a new author had taken over was the name at the top of the page.  It’s amazing to me how twenty-six different authors were able to create such a wonderful, flowing story full of twists, turns and shockers. 

I read the last few chapters the next morning on the train during my morning commute.  I really thought I had this one figured out, but I was only partially right.  The final twist at the end was enough for me to declare out-loud, “No freakin’ way!”, apparently loud enough to turn a few heads.  Which was a great opportunity to make a book recommendation!

Brother and sister editing team Andrew and Lamia Gulli, from Strand Magazine, have done a wonderful job taking all of these different author voices and weaving them together into one serial novel.  If the twenty-six authors contributing to No Rest For The Dead aren’t enough to make you click the buy it now button for the shear fun of reading them all in one place, then knowing that proceeds from the sale of this novel go to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society should make you feel good about buying this book right away.

If you can’t tell already, I loved No Rest For The Dead, as much for having some of my favorite mystery writers in one place as for the mystery itself.  I gave this one five sunshines!

Who are your favorite mystery writers?

Happy Reading!

Kimberly

Download the eBook from Lazy Day Books

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New Release Tuesday: July 19

Author: Kimberly

Jul 19

It’s New Release Tuesday, my favorite day of the week!  We have exciting new releases today from Jennifer Echols, Daniel Silva, Laurie Beth Jones, Gretchen Rubin and many more!  Visit the Lazy Day Books eBookstore to see all of this week’s new eBooks.  Click the eBook cover or title for information about that particular eBook. 

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Love Story:  By Jennifer Echols.  She’s writing about him.  He’s writing about her.  And everybody is reading between the lines.  Set at New York City College, this is the story of Erin Blackwell, who grew up on her grandmothers’ racehorse farm in Kentucky, and Hunter Allen, her stable boy.  When Erin chose to pursue a creative writing career over a business major, her grandmother cut her off financially and gave Erin’s college tuition and promised racehorse farm inheritance to Hunter.  Read our review of this young adult romance here.

Portrait of a Spy:  By Daniel Silva.  Gabriel Allon Series, Book 11.  Set against the disparate worlds of art and intelligence, Portrait of a Spy moves swiftly from the corridors of power in Washington to the glamorous auction houses of New York and London to the unforgiving landscape of the Saudi desert. Featuring a climax that will leave readers haunted long after they turn the final page, this deeply entertaining story is also a breathtaking portrait of courage in the face of unspeakable evil—and Daniel Silva’s most extraordinary novel to date.

The Happiness Project:  By Gretchen Rubin.  Or, Why I Spent A Year Trying To Sing In The Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, And Generally Have More Fun.  Gretchen Rubin had an epiphany one rainy afternoon in the unlikeliest of places: a city bus.  “The days are long, but the years are short,” she realized.  ”Time is passing, and I’m not focusing enough on the things that really matter.” In that moment, she decided to dedicate a year to her happiness project.

     

Jesus in Blue Jeans:  By Laurie Beth Jones.  A Practical Guide to Everyday Spirituality.  “I came to them wearing robes because they wore robes. I come to you in blue jeans because you wear blue jeans.” So begins Laurie Beth Jones’s joyful, inspiring book about how to add grace and spirituality to our everyday lives. Imagining Jesus as a man of today, she finds relevance and inspiration not only in what He said, but especially in what He did. 

Killed at the Whim of a Hat:  by Colin Cotterill.  The launch of a brand new series by the internationally bestselling, critically acclaimed author of The Coroner’s Lunch.  Jimm Juree was a crime reporter for the Chiang Mai Daily Mail with a somewhat eccentric family.  When Jimm is forced to follow her family to a rural village on the coast of Southern Thailand, she’s convinced her career–maybe her life–is over.  So when a van containing the skeletal remains of two hippies is inexplicably unearthed in a local farmer’s field, Jimm is thrilled.  Suddenly Jimm’s new life becomes somewhat more promising—and a lot more deadly. 

Always Something There to Remind Me:  by Beth Harbison.  Can you ever really know if love is true? And if it is, should you stop at anything to get it?  Two decades ago, Erin Edwards was sure she’d already found the love of her life: Nate Lawson.  Her first love. The one with whom she shared everything–dreams of the future, of children, plans for forever.  The one she thought she would spend the rest of her life with.  Until one terrible night when Erin made a mistake Nate could not forgive and left her to mourn the relationship she could never forget.

   

Gluten-Free in Five Minutes: by Roben Ryberg.  100 Rapid Recipes For Breads, Rolls, Cakes, Muffins, And More.  Gluten-free cooking doesn’t mean that you have to spend hours in the kitchen laboring over intricate recipes and multi-flour blends. For two decades, Roben Ryberg has been on the cutting edge of food science. Now she has developed breakthrough–and breakneck–recipes for successful five-minute gluten-free baking, using just a few ingredients and common kitchen appliances.

Girls to the Rescue Bundle: by Bruce Lansky.  Books #1-7.  In most heroic tales, a helpless young lady waits around for a prince to rescue her. But the spunky girls in this entertaining series are much too busy saving the day to await Prince Charming. These adaptations and original stories from around the world inspire readers to become a new kind of heroine. This bundle includes Girls to the Rescue Books #1-7. The books included in the bundle contain a total of 65 short stories. Ages 7-12

When Zachary Beaver Came To Town: by Kimberly Willis Holt.  1999 National Book Award winner for Young People’s Literature.  Toby Wilson is having the toughest summer of his life.  His mother left for good; his best friend’s brother was killed.  Then Zachary Beaver, the fattest boy in the world, arrives in Toby’s sleepy Texas town.  And it’s Zachary Beaver who turns the town of Antler upside down and leaves everyone, especially Toby, changed forever.  With understated elegance, Kimberly Willis Holt tells a compelling coming-of-age story about a thirteen-year-old boy struggling to find himself in an imperfect world.  Ages 12 and up

Which books are you most looking forward to this week?  Please share with us in the comments!

Happy Reading!

Kimberly

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Thriller Thursday: Dominance by Will Lavender

Author: Kimberly

Jul 14

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Title: Dominance
Author: Will Lavender
Subject: Fiction
Published: 07-05-2011
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Source: Advance Review Copy
Price: $8.99

Dominance is a novel about a puzzle game about a novel.  Sounds confusing, but it’s not.  And it’s not just any game, it’s a deadly one.  One that Harvard professor Alex Shipley will have to solve very quickly before the killer catches up to her.

Fifteen years earlier, Alex was part of a night class called Unraveling a Literary Mystery, taught by famed professor Richard Aldiss.  Aldiss was teaching the class remotely from his prison cell where he was serving time for the brutal murders of two female grad students.  The women were killed with an axe and their bodies decorated with the novels of reclusive author Paul Fallows.  The night class’ assignment was to solve the mystery of Paul Fallows’ identity, using his novels as their map.  The way to follow the map was through a mysterious game called The Procedure.

During the night class, Alex exposed the true identity of Paul Fallows and uncovered evidence that acquitted Aldiss of the two murders.

Flash forward to the present day and one of Alex’s former classmates has been murdered with an axe and the body surrounded by Fallows’ novels.  She must use what she knows from the night class to stop the killer before each of the night class participants is picked off, one by one.

Dominance is the best kind of psychological thriller, the kind that wakes you up in the middle of the night with weird dreams.  Even after putting a couple of weeks between finishing the novel and writing the review, Dominance is still playing games with my head.  I fell asleep last night thinking about posting this review today and woke up this morning having had the strangest dreams.  For me, that makes this a great thriller worthy of five sunshines! 

Dominance is not a mindless, breezy beach read.  Will Lavender writes in a way that fully engages his readers.  You, the reader, are called upon to pay attention and follow the clues.  And trust me, when you finally reach the last jaw-dropping page, you will be richly rewarded for your efforts. 

Happy Reading!
Kimberly

Buy the eBook at Lazy Day Books

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New Release Tuesday: July 12

Author: Kimberly

Jul 12

I’m still on a high from last week’s new thrillers No Rest For The Dead, Dominance and The Vault.  But, I wouldn’t want to neglect this week’s equally exciting featured releases from Iris Johansen, John Hart, P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast, Jim Defede and so many more.  It seems every Tuesday, my to-be-read pile grows taller and taller!  Click any of the ebook titles or covers for more information about that ebook.  Here we go!

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The Day The World Came To Town: by Jim Defede. When thirty-eight jetliners bound for the United States were forced to land in Gander, Newfoundland, on September 11, 2001, the citizens of this small community were called upon to come to the aid of more than six thousand displaced travelers. They affirmed the basic goodness of man at a time when it was easy to doubt such humanity still existed.  The Day The World Came To Town is also our Lazy Day Pick of the Week.

Quinn:by Iris Johansen.  The thrilling and revelatory follow-up to Eve, which delves deep into the life and psyche of Eve Duncan’s lover and soul mate, Joe Quinn. As a ruthless killer closes in, long-held secrets are gradually and shockingly revealed.

Iron House: by John Hart, Jr. Determined to protect the ones he loves, Michael spirits Elena—who knows nothing of his past crimes, or the peril he’s laid at her door— back to North Carolina, to the place he was born and the brother he lost so long ago. There, he will encounter a whole new level of danger, a thicket of deceit and violence that leads inexorably to the one place he’s been running from his whole life: Iron House.

   

The Matchmaker: by Linda Francis Lee. So many people fell for the adorable dog from Emily and Einstein that author Linda Francis Lee had to write a special story about him. Einstein sure loves the attention – but who knew how much he knows about love? The Matchmaker is Einstein’s special matchmaking treat for all of us, and love is surely in the air…

Love Struck:by Melissa Marr. A selchie short story from the Love Is Hell anthology…

Then Came You:by Jennifer Weiner. With startling tenderness and laugh-out-loud humor, Jennifer Weiner once again takes readers into the heart of women’s lives in an unforgettable, timely tale that interweaves themes of class and entitlement, surrogacy and donorship, the rights of a parent and the measure of motherhood.

   

The Swinger:by Michael Bamberger and Alan Shipnuck. The most famous athlete in the world has gotten himself into a bit of trouble.  Maybe you heard?  In this wild, funny, and deliciously mischievous novel, two veteran Sports Illustrated writers take us between the ropes and the sheets of the PGA Tour to chronicle the epic rise, astonishing collapse, and uproarious comeback attempt of the greatest golfer of our time, Herbert X. “Tree” Tremont.

Of Thee I Zing:by Laura Ingraham. While Laura Ingraham was walking through a Northern Virginia shopping mall one Saturday afternoon, it all became clear to her. Everywhere she turned, she saw signs of the impending disaster: zombie teens texting each other across a cafe table; a man having his eyebrows threaded at a kiosk; a fiftyish woman shoe-horned into a tube top and skinny jeans; and a storefront ad featuring a Victoria’s Secret model spilling out of her push-up bra and into the faces of young passersby. Ingraham wondered to herself, “Is this it? Is this what our forefathers fought for? What my parents struggled for? I wonder if Victoria’s Secret is still having that two-for-one sale?”
 

Dragon’s Oath: by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast.  The first in an enthralling new mini-series of novellas from the #1 bestselling authors of the House of Night, Dragon’s Oath tells the story behind the House of Night’s formidable fencing instructor – the love that will transform him, and the promise that will haunt him.  In early 19th century England, long before he’s a professor at the Tulsa House of Night, Bryan Lankford is a troublesome yet talented human teen who thinks he can get away with anything… Young Adult
 
 
To see all of this week’s new releases, visit the Lazy Day Books store.  Which new releases are at the top of your to-be-read list?
Happy Reading!

Kimberly

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