Death Row by Freida McFadden

 

Death Row by Freida McFadden - 74 pages

With all hope of an appeal fading away, the fate of a condemned murderess takes a shocking turn in a breathtaking short story.

Talia Kemper is on death row for murdering her husband. She had an alibi and no known motive, yet Talia’s unwavering protestations of innocence have always been ignored. Then one day in the visiting area, she sees a recognizable stranger she’s certain is her husband. It turns out the man she’s been convicted of killing may not be dead after all. But as the days tick away toward Talia’s execution, what will it take for her to be believed?

Freida McFadden’s Death Row is part of Alibis, a collection of stories about lies, truth, and deception. It’s just a matter of what you can get away with. They can be read or listened to in one sitting.

This is a great little novella; I found myself wanting more about Talia.  I really enjoyed this one and loved how she ended it.

The Inmate by Freida McFadden

The Inmate by Freida McFadden-388 pages

Brooke is the new nurse practitioner at a men's maximum security prison.  Her old boyfriend is also in the same prison, serving a life sentence.  This is one of those books that when you are reading about their interactions you are screaming in your head to not trust him.  But in true McFadden style just when you think you have it all figured out she pulls the rug out from under your feet!!  A must read.  I LOVED it!

 

The Inmate by Freida McFadden

⭐⭐⭐⭐✩

The Inmate by Freida McFadden - 386 pages

There are three rules Brooke Sullivan must follow as a new nurse practitioner at a men’s maximum-security prison:

1) Treat all prisoners with respect.

2) Never reveal any personal information.

3) Never EVER become too friendly with the inmates.

But none of the staff at the prison knows Brooke has already broken the rules. Nobody knows about her intimate connection to Shane Nelson, one of the penitentiary’s most notorious and dangerous inmates.

And they certainly don’t know that Shane was Brooke’s high school sweetheart—the star quarterback who is now spending the rest of his life in prison for a series of grisly murders. Or that Brooke's testimony was what put him there.

But Shane knows.

And he will never forget.

I was really looking forward to this book and it didn't disappoint.  I found that Brooke was just a bit naive about some things which was a little annoying.  I liked that I kept going back and forth of who to believe did the crime.   I just didn't know for sure until the end whether to believe that Shane was innocent or not, but the ending did surprise me.  The reason for the crime was a bit silly but that's just my opinion.  

Darling Rose Gold by Stephanie Wrobel

Darling Rose Gold by Stephanie Wrobel - 320 pages

"Mothers never forget.  Daughters never forgive"

This book will be released in March 2020 and I was fortunate enough to get an advanced reader copy from NetGalley.  Fans of Gone Girl and The Act will find much to love in this compulsively suspenseful read. 

For the first eighteen years of her life Rose Gold Watts thought she was seriously ill.  She suffered from allergies to most everything, used a wheel chair and a feeding tube but no one could isolate and treat whatever was wrong with her.  It turned out that her problem was that her mother Peggy was a very good liar.  Peggy is sentenced to prison for what she did to Rose and then is released after five years with nowhere to go.  Everyone is shocked when Rose Gold takes her in.  Is it altruism, forgiveness or something far darker?  I stayed up late reading this one and highly recommend it.  It's one of the best psychological suspense books I've read in a very long time. 

Turning the Tables: From Housewife to Inmate and Back Again by Teresa Giudice

Turning the Tables: From Housewife to Inmate and Back Again by Teresa Giudice, 261 pages

I am not a super big fan of the Real Housewives Franchise (just the Beverly Hills ladies), but I am always fascinated by reality stars. Teresa Giudice and her husband Joe were both charged and sentenced to jail time for falsifying loan documents and evading taxes. What always amazes me about these reality stars is that they always find a way to make a buck.  This book is written immediately after Teresa has served her jail time but before Joe does his.  The book follows her adventures in prison and how she seems to find a way to fit in.  The good news is she survived her prison stay and came out with the idea to make yoga videos.  This was surprisingly not that bad of a read if you can get over all her self absorption.

No. 6, v.3-9 by Atsuko Asano

No. 6, v.3 by Atsuko Asano - 192 pages
No. 6, v.4 by Atsuko Asano - 176 pages
No. 6, v.5 by Atsuko Asano - 192 pages
No. 6, v.6 by Atsuko Asano - 176 pages
No. 6, v.7 by Atsuko Asano - 192 pages
No. 6, v.8 by Atsuko Asano - 176 pages
No. 6, v.9 by Atsuko Asano - 192 pages

This continues the story of Shion and Rat's attempts to rescue Safu and take down the city No. 6.  I really enjoyed this series.  It was well done.  I didn't realize until halfway through the series that this is actually based on a novel series in Japan.  I was interested enough to try to find the novel series but it is only available in Japanese.

Double Shot by Diane Mott Davidson

Double Shot by Diane Mott Davidson, 310 pages

Book 12 in the Goldy Culinary Mysteries series finds our favorite caterer in fear - her violent ex-husband has just had his prison sentence commuted.  In no time flat, Goldy is attacked outside her newly purchased catering venue.

These lovely light mysteries are a fun read - although there is always a murder and some mayhem, there is never a lot of gore or overly descriptive violent descriptions.

Orange is the New Black by Piper Kerman

Orange is the New Black by Piper Kerman- 298 pgs.

This book is getting a lot of buzz right now because of the TV show based off it airing on Netflix.  Because of that and a recommendation by a friend, I decided to give it a shot.  During an adventurous time in her life, Piper Kerman became tangled with a woman who involved Kerman in the drug world.  After delivering a large amount of cash for a drug payment, Kerman got scared and left the world of drugs  and started to live a normal life. Or so she thought.  10 years later, she was arrested and sentenced to a year in federal prison.  She learned a lot about herself and others during this stay.  This was a fast and enjoyable read.  It is a very good example of how your past can come back to haunt you.

Orange is the New Black, by Piper Kerman

Orange is the New Black, by Piper Kerman, 298 pages

The subtitle for this book is "My year in a women's prison."  I found this a fascinating read, and I usually hate those "my year doing a thing" books.  Piper made some bad choices after college- mainly the one time she smuggled a large amount of drug money past airport customs.  But after ten years pass by, she is indicted for that one big mistake and sentenced to over a year in prison.   This comes as a shock to Piper, her fiancee, and begins her long journey of self-realization and education about the US prison system.  Pretty good, as far as memoirs go.