Meadowbrook Lane ReadsALot

While on our vacay up north, the book I had in hand was Behind Her Eyes , a thriller.and not my typical genre. Beach Read was the audio book I enjoyed on walks or while folding laundry (even on vacay, lol!) It was a light hearted story that I found easy to enjoy. The author explained that she wrote this book when she, like her main character, was out of ideas to write about next. I found myself smiling and laughing during this read. I also liked the references to some good 90’s songs & that it takes place in Michigan along Lake Michigan. I think I give this one a 3 out of 5: a good beach read. 

 This was my cottage/vacation read and it did not disappoint!  I tried to get at it every spare minute I had —even if I could only read three or four pages at a time!  It was not really necessarily scary or suspenseful — so not a thriller…I would say more of a mystery.  It centers around a husband and a wife and there is all sorts of good stuff in it to keep you guessing —from friendships and relationships and affairs, to ex-spouses and changed identities and an unsolved murder.  A lot of the book is a police investigation which was new for me to read also – – I haven’t read many books with detectives as characters ….or defense lawyers!  Super good.  Would definitely recommend.  4.5 of 5.  Bonus— it is a pretty fast read also to sneak in between other books maybe… It was only 305 pages which is pretty short compared to many I have been reading lately  :) .

 Sometimes you’ve just got to go back to trusty Kristin Hannah for a comfort read!  Loooved (like all of her books!) this one.  It follows a mother of twins in high school.  Felt so relatable right from the start of the book.  Serious tragedy hits.  This hits home because it’s something that could have absolutely …probably …happened to any one of us or our friends in HS (and I pray our kids are smarter!!!).  You do SUCH stupid things and just don’t have the foresight at that age. It is really hard to describe further what the book is about without giving away a lot of what makes the book hard to put down, so I’ll just say that it is a must read, and does wrap up nicely at the end….which I personally always like.  Maybe doesn’t give all of the answers to the future but leaves you satisfied that things will work out for the beloved characters:) 4 of 5 for sure.  

   I decided to read this for several reasons.  I’ve found that I really enjoy historical fiction—with possibly my favorite time period being that surrounding WWII—and also because I knew I watched the movie during high school history class over many class periods for a week or two, but has absolutely zero recollection of it.   It was VERY good.  It was EXTREMELY historical/fact/timeline/geography/military based, so it was also actually one of the more difficult books I’ve read.  I mean that it took me a LONG time to read it in order to let things sink in, keep people and places and times straight.  It was heavy.  I often would stop and look up maps or google different specific people mentioned and read bios on them, or look up military ranks. Again, it was just so “fact packed.”   I am so glad I read it and really “enjoyed” it (as much as you can enjoy a book like that!???!).  It was super interesting to learn the oddly opposing mo...

  Alrighty. So I was in search of a good memoir.  I do love an over-comer type story of someone’s life.  When I ordered it, I was reminiscing of reading The Glass Castle and wanted something semi-similar.  Well. It actually was not at all similar to that-ha ha-but also super good. This follows a young woman’s journey (not too much childhood time written about) through a relationship, unexpected pregnancy, and motherhood….but motherhood of a sick child.  It was extremely eye opening  to a whole side of motherhood that we luckily enough haven’t had to experience…the procedures, the hospitalizations, the loss of little ones you meet during those hospital stays.  An awesome book that leaves you so grateful for the life you lead. A solid 4 out of 5.

Ok. This book was like nothing I’ve ever read before. I almost don’t even know how to rate it.  3?  4?  It was definitely good once I got into it, but it was just SO different that I have no comparison.  So it is supposedly a psychological thriller….I’m not sure that’s the category I’d give it.  Although, I’m not sure what category I would put it in!  Lol. If you are looking for something totally different and out of the box, it’s definitely worth while—but it does take a bit to get into it.  I’ll describe it as an adult ghost story..???….  The quote on the front of the book from the Miami Herald states, “One of the year’s most chilling novels…melds the mystery genre with the supernatural for a psychological thriller that is as scary as it is enthralling.”  

I do enjoy a good story involving a police officer solving a crime. This book falls into that category. I have a feeling that the twists in this one may not measure up to “Behind Her Eyes”, just from how much both of you enjoyed that book, however, this one is worth picking up! I listened to this one as an audiobook and really enjoyed the narrators. 4 out of 5 for me.