Crown of Midnight

Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas | 420 pages | 2013

From the throne of glass rules a king with a fist of iron and a soul as black as pitch. Assassin Celaena Sardothien won a brutal contest to become his Champion. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown. She hides her secret vigilantly; she knows that the man she serves is bent on evil.

Keeping up the deadly charade becomes increasingly difficult when Celaena realizes she is not the only one seeking justice. As she tries to untangle the mysteries buried deep within the glass castle, her closest relationships suffer. It seems no one is above questioning her allegiances—not the Crown Prince Dorian; not Chaol, the Captain of the Guard; not even her best friend, Nehemia, a foreign princess with a rebel heart.

Then one terrible night, the secrets they have all been keeping lead to an unspeakable tragedy. As Celaena's world shatters, she will be forced to give up the very thing most precious to her and decide once and for all where her true loyalties lie... and whom she is ultimately willing to fight for.

(Synopsis taken from Goodreads)

Absolute Superman, Vol. 2: Son of the Demon by Jason Aaron

Absolute Superman, Vol. 2: Son of the Demon by Jason Aaron

Absolute Superman #7-14, 206 pages

⭐⭐⭐⭐.5/5

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Absolute Superman Vol. 2: Son of the Demon continues Jason Aaron and Rafa Sandoval’s bold reimagining of the Man of Steel in a world that fears his power—and may soon feel its wrath. Collecting issues #7–14 of the hit series, this volume plunges Superman into a brutal conflict with the Lazarus Corporation, led by the immortal Ra’s al Ghul. As Kal-El is hunted, manipulated, and pushed to the edge, the mysterious Omega Men arrive with a terrifying proposition: unleash your full power, or watch the world burn. With Smallville under siege and his past haunting him, Superman must decide what kind of god he will become.

Never Lie by Freida McFadden

 Never Lie by Freida McFadden-296 pages

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Synopsis: Newlyweds Tricia and Ethan are searching for the house of their dreams.

But when they visit the remote manor that once belonged to Dr. Adrienne Hale, a renowned psychiatrist who vanished without a trace four years earlier, a violent winter storm traps them at the estate… with no chance of escape until the blizzard comes to an end.

In search of a book to keep her entertained until the snow abates, Tricia happens upon a secret room. One that contains audio transcripts from every single patient Dr. Hale has ever interviewed. As Tricia listens to the cassette tapes, she learns about the terrifying chain of events leading up to Dr. Hale’s mysterious disappearance.

Tricia plays the tapes one by one, late into the night. With each one, another shocking piece of the puzzle falls into place, and Dr. Adrienne Hale’s web of lies slowly unravels.

And then Tricia reaches the final cassette.

The one that reveals the entire horrifying truth.

Thoughts: This one is a good read. I can't give it a full 5 stars because of a couple plot points, but it's still a good one. I guessed part of the plot twist, but was still surprised by some of it. I like the ending, but I'm not sure if the main characters get what they really deserve. 

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

180 pages

⭐⭐/5

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s third book, stands as the supreme achievement of his career. First published in 1925, this quintessential novel of the Jazz Age has been acclaimed by generations of readers. The story of the mysteriously wealthy Jay Gatsby and his love for the beautiful Daisy Buchanan, of lavish parties on Long Island at a time when The New York Times noted “gin was the national drink and sex the national obsession,” it is an exquisitely crafted tale of America in the 1920s.

Murder She Wrote The Body in the Trees

 

Murder She Wrote The Body in The Trees by Jessica Fletcher - 272 pgs

A Group of friends from Florida have come to Maine for leaf-peeping season.  When one girl goes missing and later turns up dead, Jessica along with local police chief Mort must figure out who the killer is, and the culprit is somebody no one would have suspected!  If that is not enough, there is also a bicycle bandit on the loose snatching women's purses.  The town will pull together to catch that thief.

Another great book int he Murder She Wrote collection.

PENDERGAST: THE BEGINNING by DOUGLAS PRESTON

 PENDERGAST: THE BEGINNING  by DOUGLAS PRESTON  (Pgs 369)

Amazon Review: 

It only took six months for the life of Special Agent Dwight Chambers to crumble around him. First, he lost his partner, and then, tragically, his wife. Returning to work at the New Orleans Field Office, Chambers is dismayed to find himself saddled with mentoring a brand new FBI agent—a certain A. X. L. Pendergast. As Chambers tries to pull himself together, his enigmatic and exasperating junior partner pulls an outrageous stunt that gets both of them suspended.

Pendergast welcomes the banishment, because it gives him the opportunity to investigate a peculiar murder in Mississippi that has captured his fancy. Chambers grudgingly goes along. What starts off as a whimsical quest swiftly turns into a terrifying pursuit, as Chambers and Pendergast uncover a string of grisly, ritualistic killings that defy any known serial killer profile.
 
Thanks in large part to Pendergast’s brilliance and unorthodox methods, they solve the case and find the killer… and that is when the true horror begins.

I have read every book in the Pendergast series, except one, and I enjoyed learning more about the early life of Agent Pendergast.

BEST WISHES FROM THE FULL MOON COFFEE SHOP by MAI MOCHIZUKI

 BEST WISHES FROM THE FULL MOON COFFEE SHOP by MAI MOCHIZUKI (Pgs 224)

Goodreeds Review: In Japan, cats are a symbol of good luck. As the myth goes, if you are kind to them, they'll one day return the favor. And if you are kind to the right cat, you might just find yourself invited to a mysterious coffee shop under a Christmas-time Kyoto moon.

Satomi is devoted to her job in Tokyo, but when her boyfriend hints that he is going to propose to her on Christmas Day, she becomes torn between the career in the city that she loves and a quieter life with her boyfriend in the country. What will the magical cats see for her future?

Koyuki, meanwhile, works at Satomi’s company. Ever since her father passed away in an accident on Christmas Day, she has been playing the role of the good, cheerful girl—and now that her mother has remarried, she is forced to pretend she is part of a happy new family. But this Christmas, what will the cats reveal as her true wish?

Junko, Satomi’s sister-in-law, lives in a small town with her husband and their daughter Ayu, a first grader. When her estranged father becomes ill, Junko returns home with Ayu in tow—and with the help of the magical cats, she learns something surprising that will change her life forever.

This holiday season, each stands at a crossroads, confronting their past and present struggles. With the help of some feline divinations, each will finally have the courage to seek happiness and contentment in their lives.