Memorials by Richard Chizmar

 

Memorials by Richard Chizmar, 470 pages, ⭐⭐⭐

1983: Three students from a small college embark on a weeklong road trip to film a documentary on roadside memorials for their American Studies class. The project starts out as a fun adventure, with long stretches of empty road and nightly campfires where they begin to open up with one another.

But as they venture deeper into the Appalachian backwoods, the atmosphere begins to darken. They notice more and more of the memorials feature a strange, unsettling symbol hinting at a sinister secret. Paranoia sets in when it appears they are being followed. Their vehicle is tampered with overnight, and some of the locals appear to be anything but welcoming. Before long, the students can’t help but wonder if these roadside deaths were really random accidents…or is something terrifying at work here?

The Christmas Ring by Karen Kingsbury

 

The Christmas Ring  by Karen Kingsbury  196 pages

While searching for her family's missing Christmas ring, a military widow sparks a friendship with a handsome antiques dealer, who just might have the love and the lost heirloom she's been longing for.

I wanted to read this because the movie just came out.  I love that the beginning is set in World War II.  I thought it was going to be very predictable, but in the end I was surprised by what happened. 

Jawbreaker by Christina Wyman

 

Jawbreaker  by Christina Wyman  305 pages

Max Plink's life is complicated. Her parents aren't getting along. The school bullies are relentless, and her own sister is the cruelest of them. Worst of all, her mouth is a mess. With a mismatched puzzle of a jaw, Max has a Class II malocclusion, otherwise known as a severe overbite. She already has braces, which means she lives on Advil and soft foods after each orthodontist appointment. But now Max has to wear painful (and totally awkward) orthodontic headgear nicknamed "the jawbreaker." Could things get any worse? Yes. The journalism competition Max wants to enter has a video component. But being on camera means showing her face not just to her junior high classmates, but possibly the whole city. Going viral is the last thing Max needs, but winning this competition is what she wants most. Turns out, following her dreams is complicated, too.

This is a Mark Twain nominee.  It really hit home because I had to wear headgear when I was a teenager, but not out in public.  I also related to parents fighting all the time.  It was so sad that one of her bullies was her sister though.  I really think kids will like this book if they just give it time.  It is a long book for some kids to get through.

Nightwing, Vol. 4: The Leap by Tom Taylor

Nightwing, Vol. 4: The Leap by Tom Taylor

Nightwing (2016) #97-100, 200 pages

⭐⭐⭐.75/5

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Collecting the exciting tales from Nightwing's adventures, this volume includes Nightwing #97-100 and Nightwing 2022 Annual—these include an appearance from Nite-Mite—that's right, that meddling Nite-Mite booped himself over from the fifth dimension!

Also with Blockbuster off the table, the crime families all head to Bludhaven in an attempt to claim the city as their own...including Tony Zucco himself! Since his "daughter" Melinda Zucco is currently the mayor, and definitely not secretly working with Nightwing to take down crime bosses—it should be easy, right?!

A Box Full of Darkness by Simone St. James

 

A Box Full of Darkness by Simone St. James - 352 pages

Siblings return to the house they fled eighteen years before, called back by the ghost of their long-missing brother and his haunting request to come home.

Strange things happen in Fell, New York: A mysterious drowning at the town’s roadside motel. The unexplained death of a young girl whose body is left by the railroad tracks. For Violet, Vail, and Dodie Esmie the final straw was their little brother's shocking disappearance, which started as a normal game of hide-and-seek.

As their parents grew increasingly distant, the sisters were each haunted by visions and frightening events, leading them to leave town and never look back. Violet still sees dead people—spirits who remind her of Sister, the menacing presence that terrorized her for years. Now after nearly two decades it’s time for a homecoming—because Ben is back, and he’s ready to lead them to the answers they’ve longed for and long feared.

Holy cow, was this a great book!  I was hooked from the beginning and could not put this down.  I had to know what happened to Ben, how did he disappear during a game of Hide-and-Seek?  Why is Fell such an odd town?  I loved how this was written.  It is definitely my favorite written by this author.  

The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning by Margareta Magnusson

The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning by Margareta Magnusson, 117 pages

From the MARC: "Margareta suggests which possessions you can easily get rid of (unworn clothes, unwanted presents, more plates than you'd ever use) and which you might want to keep (photographs, love letters, a few of your children's art projects). Digging into her late husband's tool shed, and her own secret drawer of vices, Margareta introduces an element of fun to a potentially daunting task. Along the way readers get a glimpse into her life in Sweden, and also become more comfortable with the idea of letting go."

 

Urn Burial by Kerry Greenwood

Urn Burial by Kerry Greenwood, 187 pages

From the MARC: "Vacationing at a Gothic mansion in Australia's Victorian mountain country, Phryne Fisher becomes embroiled in a mystery involving death threats to her host, the strangling murder of a parlor maid, and the presence of mysterious funerary urns."