MARCH RECAP

MONTHLY RE-CAP

MARCH

I think we can safely assume that March 2020 is one that none of us will ever forget...and the fun is extending into April...and maybe longer...who knows???  The Quarantine has made it possible for me to get more audiobooks listened too...but not in the same way as most.  I'm considered essential because I work in a grocery store.  We are open 24 hours normally, but with the restrictions, we are now closing at 10 PM.  I have switched to 3rd Shift...because NO customers.  Less exposure, hopefully.  I can listen to books while I'm working now.  It's kind of awesome...just the book part, though, everything else that comes with this...SUCKS!

My stand-outs for the month are The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James, The Last Letter by Rebecca Yarros and Nothing To See Here by Kevin Wilson...all three at five stars and a novella by Taylor Jenkins Reid titled Evidence of the Affair...which I listened to for free from Amazon Prime.   An Honorable Mention goes out to Lost Stars by Claudia Gray at four and a half stars.

MY RECAP FOR THE MONTH OF MARCH⤏ 

14 AUDIOBOOKS 

PLUS 1 NOVELLA AUDIOBOOK

1 KINDLE eBOOK

16 BOOKS TOTAL

5, 593 PAGES READ (INCLUDING AUDIO'S)

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AUDIOBOOK

THE SHINING GIRLS

BY LAUREN BEUKES

LINK TO FULL REVIEW

BOOK TAGS⇣
⤏ TIME TRAVELING
⤏ SERIAL KILLER THRILLER
⤏ MYSTERY WITH SUSPENSE
⤏ GRAPHIC SCENES
⤏ FULL-CAST NARRATION

MY REVIEW IN ONE SENTENCE⤏ The whole concept of a time-traveling serial killer was terrific. I just not sure how well she pulled it off.

FINISH DATE⤏ 03/03

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AUDIOBOOK
BE NOT FAR FROM ME
BY MINDY MCGINNIS

LINK TO FULL REVIEW

BOOK TAGS⇣
⤏ A CHEATING BOYFRIEND...A DRUNKEN FALL DOWN A RAVINE
⤏ LOST & HUNGOVER WITH A VERY BROKEN FOOT
⤏ GRAPHIC DEPICTIONS OF SURVIVAL
⤏ LIFE REFLECTIONS

MY REVIEW IN ONE SENTENCE⤏ A gruesome tale of survival, filled with misadventure and ruminations about life.

FINISH DATE⤏ 03/05

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eBOOK 
DIRTY GIRLS
BY LILY WHITE


LINK TO FULL REVIEW

BOOK TAGS⇣
⤏ 2 STAR RATING
⤏ A POSSIBLE SERIAL KILLER MYSTERY
⤏ MIXED WITH ROMANCE...AT LEAST I THINK IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE
⤏ MORE DEPRAVED THAN DARK
⤏ TRYING TO FIT WITH THE IN CROWD
⤏ BULLYING & DEGRADATION

MY REVIEW IN ONE SENTENCE⤏ I was looking for something dark that would suck me in with undeniable chemistry, despite the darkness of the couple's situation...sadly that's not what I got. 

FINISH DATE⤏ 03/06

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AUDIOBOOK
BEST DAY EVER
BY KAIRA ROUDA

LINK TO FULL REVIEW

BOOK TAGS⇣
⤏ SLOW-BURN
⤏ PSYCHOLOGICAL (LIGHT) SUSPENSE
⤏ A STUDY OF A SOCIOPATH
⤏ OVER-THE-TOP...TO THE POINT OF HILARITY

MY REVIEW IN ONE SENTENCE⤏ Told completely from Paul's warped point of view, you'll slowly get a picture of what makes Paul tick.

FINISH DATE⤏ 03/08

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AUDIOBOOK
SAVE YOURSELF
BY KELLY BRAFFET

LINK TO REVIEW

BOOK TAGS⇣
⤏ REALISTIC GRIT-LIT
⤏ DARKISH AND COMPELLING
⤏ YA-ISH MIXED WITH ADULT-ISH
⤏ DEALING WITH MANY HOT-TOPICS
⤏ WITH EVERYTHING FROM BULLYING TO SOMETHING LIKE MASOCHISM

MY REVIEW IN ONE SENTENCE⤏ The lives of all these people are on a collision course...and this is the sorted story of how they arrive there.

FINISH DATE⤏ 03/12

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AUDIOBOOK
RUST & STARDUST
BY T. GREENWOOD

LINK TO FULL REVIEW

BOOK TAGS⇣
⤏ FICTION BASED IN TRUTH
⤏ WITH NAMES AND FACTS KEPT
⤏ SALLY HORNER KIDNAPPING
⤏ 1948
⤏ PEDOPHILIA (IT'S DIFFICULT TO READ/LISTEN TO AT TIMES)

MY REVIEW IN ONE SENTENCE⤏ I just wanted this girl to know more, to know better than this, It was gut-wrenchingly sad at times.

FINISH DATE⤏ 03/15

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AUDIOBOOK
THE LAST LETTER
BY REBECCA YARROS

LINK TO FULL REVIEW

BOOK TAGS⇣
⤏ SPECIAL FORCES/MILITARY HERO
⤏ SINGLE MOTHER OF TWINS HEROINE
⤏ A LOVABLE BLACK LAB RESCUE DOG
⤏ MOUNTAIN RESORT TOWN
⤏ CANCER

MY REVIEW IN ONE SENTENCE⤏ This book not only got under my skin, it even made me cry, it was actually quite heartbreaking.

FINISH DATE⤏ 03/19

AUDIOBOOK
BRING HER HOME
BY DAVID BELL

LINK TO FULL REVIEW

BOOK TAGS⇣
⤏ MULTI-LAYERED MYSTERY
⤏ THRILLS & SECRETS
⤏ TWISTY
⤏ SOMEWHAT ANNOYING MC

MY REVIEW IN ONE SENTENCE⤏ Despite not liking the MC, the mysterious disappearance of his daughter was twisty and engaging.

FINISH DATE⤏ 03/21

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AUDIOBOOK
LOST STARS (STAR WARS)
BY CLAUDIA GRAY

LINK TO FULL REVIEW

BOOK TAGS⇣
⤏ STAR WARS DISNEY CANON
⤏ SET DURING EPISODE IV AND VI (THE OG STAR WARS TRILOGY)
⤏ MOVIE TIE-IN TIDBITS
⤏ ROMANCE

MY REVIEW IN ONE SENTENCE⤏ A story of best friends who morph into something more..until they end up on -opposing sides...and become star-crossed lovers, set against the backdrop of the Star Wars Universe.

FINISH DATE⤏ 03/24

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AUDIOBOOK
THE THIRD MRS. DURST
BY ANN AGUIRRE

LINK TO FULL REVIEW

BOOK TAGS⇣
⤏ ABUSIVE/CONTROLLING HUSBAND
⤏ SECRETS & LIES
⤏ REVENGE THEME
⤏ EVERYTHING IS NOT ALWAYS AS IT SEEMS...

MY REVIEW IN ONE SENTENCE⤏ If this book were a puzzle...it would be missing a few pieces, It was diverting and rather compelling...but when you're all finished...a few things don't necessarily add up.

FINISH DATE⤏ 03/25

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AUDIOBOOK
DEADLY SILENCE
BY REBECCA ZANETTI

LINK TO FULL REVIEW

BOOK TAGS⇣
⤏ ROMANTIC SUSPENSE
⤏ SEXUALLY EXPLICIT
⤏ DARK ANGEL-ESQUE GENETICALLY ENHANCED DUDES
⤏ TOO MUCH GOING ON...
⤏ EYE-ROLL INDUCING

MY REVIEW IN ONE SENTENCE⤏ I seriously don't know if Romantic Suspense is for me...it comes off too cheesy and unbelievable.

FINISH DATE⤏ 03/26

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AUDIOBOOK
NOTHING TO SEE HERE
BY KEVIN WILSON

LINK TO FULL REVIEW

BOOK TAGS⇣
⤏ MAGICAL REALISM
⤏ LAUGH OUT LOUD FUNNY
⤏ ENDEARINGLY ODD
⤏ LITERARY FICTION

MY REVIEW IN ONE SENTENCE⤏ What an endearing and odd little story, it blazed a path straight to my heart.

FINISH DATE⤏ 03/27

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AUDIOBOOK
DEADLY LITTLE SCANDALS
BY JENNIFER LYNN BARNES

LINK TO FULL REVIEW

BOOK TAGS⇣
⤏ DEBUTANTES AND A SECRET SOCIETY
⤏ SECRETS, LIES & MURDER
⤏ A SOUTHERN SOAP OPERA
⤏ YOUNG ADULT

MY REVIEW IN ONE SENTENCE⤏ The blurb is spot on when it calls this twisty, soapy and gasp-inducing.

FINISH DATE⤏ 03/28

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AUDIOBOOK
CAGED
BY ELLISON COOPER

LINK TO FULL REVIEW

BOOK TAGS⇣
⤏ SERIAL KILLER MYSTERY
⤏ FBI CASE
⤏ INTRICATE PLOTLINE
⤏ SUSPENSE THRILLER

MY REVIEW IN ONE SENTENCE⤏ At times this book blew my mind, others, it felt a tad contrived...but essentially it was an intricately woven story about a diabolical serial killer.

FINISH DATE⤏ 03/30

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AUDIOBOOK

THE SUN DOWN MOTEL

SIMONE ST. JAMES

LINK TO FULL REVIEW

BOOK TAGS⇣
⤏ MURDER/DISAPPEARANCE MYSTERY
⤏ AMATEUR SLEUTHING
⤏ EERILY HAUNTED HOTEL
⤏ GHOSTS WITH AN AGENDA
⤏ A NEW FAVORITE

MY REVIEW IN ONE SENTENCE⤏ Great narration paired with one girl's quest to figure out the mysterious disappearance of her aunt, wrapped within a serial killer mystery and sprinkled with a few ghostly hauntings, all add up to an atmospheric novel that is unputdownable...or...un-pause-able.

FINISH DATE⤏ 03/31

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BEST COVER FOR THE MONTH OF MARCH IS A TIE BETWEEN...

AND...

REVIEW⇢ SAVE YOURSELF

BY KELLY BRAFFET

SYNOPSIS FROM AUTHORS WEBSITE⇣
Patrick Cusimano is in a bad way. His father is in jail; he works the midnight shift at a grubby convenience store; and his brother’s girlfriend, Caro, has taken their friendship to an uncomfortable new level.  On top of all that, he can’t quite shake the attentions of Layla Elshere, a goth teenager who befriends Patrick for reasons he doesn’t understand and doesn’t fully trust. The temptations these two women offer are pushing Patrick to his breaking point.
Meanwhile, Layla’s little sister, Verna, is suffering through her first year of high school.  She’s become a prime target for her cruel classmates, not just because of her strange name and her fundamentalist parents: Layla’s bad-girl rep proves to be too a huge shadow for Verna, so she falls in with her sister’s circle of outcasts and misfits whose world is far darker than she ever imagined.
Kelly Braffet’s characters, indelibly portrayed and richly varied, are all on their own twisted path to finding peace.  The result is a novel of unnerving power—darkly compelling, addictively written, and shockingly honest.

BOOK TAGS⇣

⤏ REALISTIC GRIT-LIT
⤏ DARKISH AND COMPELLING
⤏ YA-ISH MIXED WITH ADULT-ISH
⤏ DEALING WITH MANY HOT-TOPICS
⤏ WITH EVERYTHING FROM BULLYING TO SOMETHING LIKE MASOCHISM

BOOK DETAILS⇣

AUDIO PERFORMED BY⇢ MICHAEL GOLDSTROM
NARRATION RATING⇢  4/5
BOOK COVER⇢ MEH...

SETTING⇢ RATCHETSBURG, PA

SOURCE⇢ LIBBY AUDIOBOOK (LIBRARY)

AUDIOBOOK LENGTH⇢ 11 HOURS, 40 MINUTES

MY THOUGHTS⇣

The lives of all these people are on a collision course...and this is the sorted story of how they arrive there.  You know some shit is going to hit-the-fan in a town called Ratchetsburg...

While some of the characters are teens, the story itself is rather heavy.  If you are looking for a happy ending...this isn't it.  It's all about getting the short-end of the straw in life.  It's raw and not pretty.  It's both deeply disturbing and deeply affecting at the same time.  It even almost pulled me out of my slump (I haven't been moved enough to give anything 5 stars lately)...not quite, but close.  Hopefully, I find a book that does, soon.

The Audio is performed really well by Michael Goldstrom, they just should have had a female narrator for the female voices.  It would have upped the narration rating to a full five stars, then.

MY RATING⇢ 4¼✰STARS✰

BREAKDOWN⇣

Plot⇢ 4.2/5

Characters⇢ 4/5

The Feels⇢ 4/5

Pacing⇢ 3.5/5

Addictiveness⇢ 3.5/5

Theme or Tone⇢ 4.2/5

Flow (Writing Style)⇢ 4.5/5

World-Building⇢ 4.3/5

Originality⇢ 4.3/5

Ending⇢ 4.5/5

March Re-Cap

March has been a good reading/listening month for me, with only two books below four stars.  The Snakes and Ladders Challenge really helped with that.  I have to say, I wouldn't mind doing a pick-it-for-me poll again sometime.  I need an easier website then surveymonkey.com, though.  That one confused me, I couldn't for the life of me figure out how to post it on here.  If anyone knows of a better website for this sort of thing...please let me know?

⇝My March Reading/Listening Re-Cap⇜

(Audiobook) Prisoner of Night and Fog by Anne Blankman

Highlights Include: 

Historical Fiction Based in Truth

Germany Pre-WWII Times

Mystery

Family Secrets

Ravings of a Madman--Adolf Hitler

Splash of Romance

Finish Date:  03/01

☆4.3☆STARS - GRADE=A-

(Audiobook) Beartown by Fredrik Backman

Highlights Include:

Realistic Fiction

Hockey, Hockey & More Hockey

Small Town Ways

Rape

Rape Culture

Finish Date:  03/04

☆4.7☆STARS - GRADE=A

(Audiobook) The Long Game by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Highlights Include:

Political Intrigue

Scandals & Terrorists

Twisty

Young Adult

Mystery-Suspense-Thriller

Book #1 Rating: ☆3.8☆

Finish Date:  03/08

☆4.5☆STARS - GRADE=A-

(Audiobook) If You Dare by A.R. Torre

Highlights Include:

Romantic Suspense

Did She or Didn't She

Crime Mystery

Toned Down Erotic-ness

Book #1 Rating: ☆4.5☆ Book #2 Rating: ☆4☆

Series Rating:  ☆4.3☆

Finish Date:  03/11

☆4.2☆STARS - GRADE=B+

(Audiobook) The Gone World by Tom Sweterlitsch

Highlights Include:

Mystery

Time-Travel

Apocalyptic Bleakness

Science Fiction

WTF Did I Just Listen To

Stand-Alone

Finish Date:  03/16

☆4.5☆STARS - GRADE=A-

(Netgalley eARC) Romanov by Nadine Brandes

Highlights Include:

Retelling

Russia

Based in Truth

Historical

Fantasy

Magic Spells

Finish Date:  03/17

☆2.7☆STARS - GRADE=C-

(Audiobook) The Exes' Revenge by Jo Jakeman

Highlights Include:

One hell-of-a Asshat

+3 Women and a Child

Revenge

Abuse

A Little Bit of Mystery

Finish Date:  03/20

☆2.3☆STARS - GRADE=D+

(Audiobook) Everything You Want Me To Be by Mindy Mejia

Highlights Include:

Small-Town Mystery

Psychological Thriller

Forbidden Romance

Multiple POV's

Finish Date:  03/22

☆4☆STARS - GRADE=B+

(Audiobook) The Heroin Diaries: A Year In the Life of a Shattered Rock Star by Nikki Sixx

Highlights Include:

Memoirs

10 Year Anniversary Edition

Addiction

Rock Star Life

Drugs, Sex, & Rock N' Roll

Finish Date:  03/24

☆4.5☆STARS - GRADE=A-

(Audiobook Novella) The Test by Sylvain Neuvel

Highlights Include:

Novella/Short Story

Thought-Provoking

A Possible Future

Finish Date:  03/25

☆4☆STARS - GRADE=B+

(Audiobook) The Red Hunter by Lisa Unger

Highlights Include:

Intricate Plot/Twisty Mystery
Engaging Characters
Revenge
Rape and the Aftermath
 & Empowerment

Finish Date:  03/29
☆4.7☆STARS - GRADE=A

(Audiobook) Jane Doe by Victoria Helen Stone

Highlights Include:

Girls Rule, and Boys Drool
Revenge
A Self-Diagnosed Sociopath
Absolutely Brilliant
Bad-Ass MC
Unputdownable

Finish Date:  03/31
☆5☆STARS - GRADE=A+







12 Books total, 11 Audiobooks (one of which is a novella) and 1 Netgalley eARC, for a total of 4,315 Pages (including Audios) read.

So many great covers to choose from...and it came down to The Red Hunter and Romanov and My Favorite Cover Winner for the month of March is: