James Patterson - Eat, Tan, Read

V is for ….

V is for …. Vampires

Nobody writes vampires like Anne Rice! Over the years, I have read many a variety of vampires but Lestat reigns above them all.

A pretty good looking V stack if I say so myself. The Vampire Chronicles were not my first vampire books but they quickly became my favorite. Starting reading them in high-school and into my early 20s. I will be honest I have not picked up an Anne Rice book in a very long time. I have one on list that I am hoping to get to this year however.
The Vampire Lestat is book 2 and The Vampire Armand is book 6.

Nora Roberts’ Valley of Silence is very good as well! Book 3 in the Circle Trilogy so it’s when everything comes to a head! I really enjoyed this series but then I am never disappointed in Nora Roberts.

Looking forward to:
Violets are Blue – Book 7 in the Alex Cross series, I am only on book 2 😁. But my husband, among others, loves this series!

My Year in Books

2020 was definitely not a normal year for any of us. It felt, at times, like we were living in one of the books we read, and not one we want to. But we made it through and are settling in to our new normal, whatever that may look like.
I, like so many, experienced an emotional tribulation that took a few months to overcome. In that time, I remembered that reading books was not a competition on how many I can get through in a month or a year but something that I love doing. I have a tendency to set goals and then obsess over them. I am working on breaking this unhealthy habit. I also don’t need to feel like I must write a blog post everyday. If I do, that’s awesome, if not, its not a big deal and people will not unfollow me because of it. There are so many other things that I enjoy doing as well and I don’t want to forget about those or spending time with the people that I love.

So, 2021 will be about having fun and doing what makes me happy every day.

2020 books completed:
36 Books
12,454 pages
My average rating – 3.9 🌟

5 🌟 Books:
Skipping Christmas by John Grisham
Memorial Drive: A Daughter’s Memoir by Natasha Trethewey
Strawberry Shortcake Murder by Joanne Fluke
Gilchrist by Christian Galacar
What Doesn’t Kill You by Iris Johansen
Dark Places by Gillian Flynn
Chasing Evil by Kylie Brant
Jamie Quinn Mystery Collection by Barbara Venkataraman
1st to Die by James Patterson
American Predator: The Hunt for the Most Meticulous Serial Killer of the 21st Century by Maureen Callahan

I hope everyone has a wonderful and safe New Year. Happy Reading! 😉

C is for….

C is for …. Cross, Alex Cross.

“C” is definitely full of Cross titles as expected, taking out all my James Patterson’s there is still Crossroads of Twighlight and Cross Bones.

Speaking of Crossroads of Twightlight, I 💗 the Wheel of Time series! For anyone who is a fan of Fantasy books like Game of Thrones, I highly recommend this series by Robert Jordan. I read it about 15 years ago. I instantly fell in love with them and just could not get enough. Just binge read one after the other. I was devastated when Robert Jordan passed away, what a great loss for the literary world. The series was finished by Brandon Sanderson. When Jordan realized that he was not going to beat his illness and may not be able to finish on his own, he brought Sanderson into the fold as well as left copious notes so he would be able to finish the series as intended. I will be honest, I have been too chicken to finish it. I know that one of these days I need to put my fear behind me and just do it.

Do you have a series that you are afraid to finish?

January Reading Recap

5 books

1,717 pages

Average rating 3.8

Murder at Harbor Village 🌟🌟🌟🌟

American Predator 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Bound Through the Ashes 🌟🌟🌟

A Painted House 🌟🌟🌟

1st to Die 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Off to a good start to the year! Had some really great picks and some that were just okay. I was most excited to read American Predator and I was not disappointed! 1st to Die has been on my TBR list for so long and I am so happy that I finally got around to reading it. This series has instantly become one of my favorites.

I am very thankful for Lyrical Underground, Viking Books, and Danelle Nelson for proving me with some of these good reads!

Check them out!

What was your favorite read from January?

Book Review – 1st to Die

1st to Die by James Patterson

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Crime Thriller Mystery

“What is the worst thing anyone has ever done? Phillip Campbell asked himself again, heart pounding in his chest. Was it this? Had he just done it? Not yet, a voice inside answered. Not quite yet.”

Homicide inspector Lindsey Boxer is called to the Mandarine Suite of the Grand Hyatt where a prominent couple that had just gotten married the night before are found brutally murdered.

“She was so young and beautiful: calm, tranquil, and undisturbed except for three crimson flowers of blood spread on her white chest. She looked as if she were a sleeping princess awaiting her prince, but her prince was in the other room, his guts spilled all over the floor.”

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Book 5 – California

“In San Francisco, newlyweds are being stalked – and slaughtered. Enter four unforgettable women, all friends…Lindsey, a homicide inspector in the city’s police department…Claire, a medical examiner… Jill, an assistant D.A. …and Cindy, a reporter who has just started working the crime desk of the San Francisco Chronicle. Joining forces, pooling their talents, courage, and brains, they have one goal: to find, trap, and outwit the most diabolical and terrifying killer ever imagined.”