A Long Stretch of Bad Days by Mindy McGinnis

Summary:

Lydia Chass doesn’t mind living in a small town; she just doesn’t want to die in one. A lifetime of hard work has put her on track to attend a prestigious journalism program and leave Henley behind—until a school error leaves her a credit short of graduating. Undeterred, Lydia has a plan to earn that credit: transform her listener-friendly local history podcast into a truth-telling exposé. She’ll investigate the Long Stretch of Bad Days: a week when Henley was hit by a tornado and a flash flood as well as its first—and only—murder, which remains unsolved.

But Lydia needs help to bring grit to the show. Bristal Jamison has a bad reputation and a foul mouth, but she also needs a credit to graduate. The unexpected partnership brings together the Chass family—a pillar of the community—and the rough-and-tumble Jamisons, with Bristal hoping to be the first in her family to graduate. Together, they dig into the town’s worst week, determined to solve the murder.

Their investigation unearths buried secrets: a hidden town brothel, lost family treasure, and a teen girl who disappeared. But the past is never far, and some don’t want it to see the light. As threats escalate, the girls have to uncover the truth before the dark history of Henley catches up with them.

My Review:

This book was a very realistic read. Two girls from different parts of town partner together for a project. Lydia and Bristal are so different. Have a family beef with each other. Lydia, get the idea to do a podcast with her. Just to get out of town. Which is full of secrets and covers up. She is about to solve a big murder mystery that happens during The Stretch of Bad Days year ago.

I found this book very good and so tense at times. Did enjoy how the two main characters interact with each other at times. I always love Mindy McGinnis books, they feels so real, and so many emotions go into it. This is a must-read if readers love podcast books. So you might want to check it out.

Happy Reading!!!

What I’m Reading Monday

Like every young woman in New America, Stella knows the rules:

Deflect attention.
Abstain from sin.
Navigate the world with care.
Give obedience.
Embrace purity.
Respect your chaperone.

Stella can’t go out by herself, or spend time with boys except at Visitations. Girls in New America must have chaperones at all times until they marry, so Stella’s lucky that Sister Helen is like a friend to her. When Sister Helen dies suddenly, she’s devastated, especially when the Constables assign Stella a new chaperone just days later.

Sister Laura is… different. She leaves Stella alone at the library (isn’t that illegal?) and knows how to get into the “Hush Hush” parties where all kinds of forbidden things happen. As Stella spends more time with Sister Laura, she begins to question everything she’s been taught. What if the Constables’ rules don’t actually protect girls? What if they were never meant to keep them safe?

Once Stella glimpses both real freedom and the dark truths behind New America, she has no choice but to fight back against the world she knows. She sets out on a dangerous journey across what was once the United States, risking everything.

Comes out in June, add to TBR

Biz knows how to float. She has her people, her posse, her mom and the twins. She has Grace. And she has her dad, who tells her about the little kid she was, who loves her so hard, and who shouldn’t be here but is. So Biz doesn’t tell anyone anything. Not about her dark, runaway thoughts, not about kissing Grace or noticing Jasper, the new boy. And she doesn’t tell anyone about her dad. Because her dad died when she was six. And Biz knows how to float, right there on the surface—normal okay regular fine.

But after what happens on the beach—first in the ocean, and then in the sand–the tethers that hold Biz steady come undone. Dad disappears, and with him, all comfort. It might be easier, better, sweeter to float all the way away? Or maybe stay a little longer, find her father, bring him back to her. Or maybe—maybe maybe maybe—there’s a third way Biz just can’t see yet.

WWW Wednesday

This book was so good. I rely did love the feel of it. My review will be up soon.

What I’m Currently Reading:

So need an upbeat book after Mindy McGinnis. So far I’m enjoying this book.

What I’m Reading Next:

I really want to read this book soon or hopefully next. Always get myself sidetracked.

What I’m Reading Monday

Lydia Chass doesn’t mind living in a small town; she just doesn’t want to die in one. A lifetime of hard work has put her on track to attend a prestigious journalism program and leave Henley behind—until a school error leaves her a credit short of graduating. Undeterred, Lydia has a plan to earn that credit: transform her listener-friendly local history podcast into a truth-telling exposé. She’ll investigate the Long Stretch of Bad Days: a week when Henley was hit by a tornado and a flash flood as well as its first—and only—murder, which remains unsolved.

But Lydia needs help to bring grit to the show. Bristal Jamison has a bad reputation and a foul mouth, but she also needs a credit to graduate. The unexpected partnership brings together the Chass family—a pillar of the community—and the rough-and-tumble Jamisons, with Bristal hoping to be the first in her family to graduate. Together, they dig into the town’s worst week, determined to solve the murder.

Their investigation unearths buried secrets: a hidden town brothel, lost family treasure, and a teen girl who disappeared. But the past is never far, and some don’t want it to see the light. As threats escalate, the girls have to uncover the truth before the dark history of Henley catches up with them.

Meet Winter Young—rookie backup dancer turned global pop phenomenon. His star power has smashed records, selling out stadiums from LA to London. Now he’s bringing his swoon worthy assets to a whole new arena…

Infamous criminal tycoon Eli Morrison has just one weakness—his daughter, Penelope. And Penelope has just one wish for her nineteenth birthday—a private concert with Winter Young. When covert ops organization The Panacea Group approaches Winter with this once-in-a-lifetime chance to infiltrate Morrison’s inner circle, Winter must use his fame, cunning, and charisma to pull it off—only he won’t be on his own.

Posing as Winter’s bodyguard is the fiery Sydney Cossette, Panacea’s youngest spy. Sydney may be the only person alive impervious to Winter’s charms, but as the mission brings them closer, she’s forced to admit there’s more to this A-lister than slick dance moves and a handsome face. Panacea’s unlikeliest partners just might become its biggest heroes—and maybe even more—if they can survive each other first.

WWW Wednesday

What I Finish Reading:

I really enjoy this murder mystery on the high seas. It comes out soon, so add it to your TBR.

What I’m Currently Reading:

I always love crazy twisted read by Mindy McGinnis, so I’m excited to be reading this now.

What I’m Reading Next:

I really don’t know. I have some books I’m in middle of I need to finish. I get so sidetracked by the new book.

I Will Find You Again by Sarah Lyu

Summary:

Welcome to Meadowlark, Long Island—expensive homes and good schools, ambition and loneliness. Meet Chase Ohara and Lia Vestiano: the driven overachiever and the impulsive wanderer, the future CEO and the free spirit. Best friends for years—weekend trips to Montauk, sleepovers on a yacht—and then, first love. True love.

But when Lia disappears, Chase’s life turns into a series of grim snapshots. Anger. Grief. Running. Pink pills in an Altoids tin. A cheating ring at school. Heartbreak and lies. A catastrophic secret.

And the shocking truth that will change everything about the way Chase sees Lia—and herself.

My Review:

What happens when someone you love disappears?

Chase and Lia seem to have the best love story. Then, one day, Lia disappeared. Chase life as she knows it come falling a part. Even her magic pills don’t seem to be helping. She starts blaming everyone for Lia being missing. Even Lia’s new girlfriend, which she feels a little off. Soon Chase to discover secrets of Lia she never knew before. Was she blind in their relationship?

This book broke me and it was so good. I could not put it down until I got answers. Chase and Lia story is my favorite and heartbreaking also. This is my second book by Sarah Lyu, and I love it. Her first book was The Best Lies. This book was full of twists and surprises. Some readers must not see coming. There are some triggers warning for this book. It recently came out, so check it out.

Happy Reading!!!

What I’m Reading Monday

Andrea Hannah’s Where Darkness Blooms is a supernatural thriller about an eerie town where the sunflowers whisper secrets and the land hungers for blood.

The town of Bishop is known for exactly two things: recurring windstorms and an endless field of sunflowers that stretches farther than the eye can see. And women—missing women. So when three more women disappear one stormy night, no one in Bishop is surprised. The case is closed and their daughters are left in their dusty shared house with the shattered pieces of their lives. Until the wind kicks up a terrible secret at their mothers’ much-delayed memorial.

With secrets come the lies each of the girls is forced to confront. After caring for the other girls, Delilah would like to move on with her boyfriend, Bennett, but she can’t bear his touch. Whitney has already lost both her mother and her girlfriend, Eleanor, and now her only solace is an old weathervane that seems to whisper to her. Jude, Whitney’s twin sister, would rather ignore it all, but the wind kicks up her secret too: the summer fling she had with Delilah’s boyfriend. And more than anything, Bo wants answers and she wants them now. Something happened to their mothers and the townsfolk know what it was. She’s sure of it.

Bishop has always been a strange town. But what the girls don’t know is that Bishop was founded on blood—and now it craves theirs.

WWW Wednesday

What I Finish Reading:

This creepy read was mind-blowing. Review to come soon.

What I’m Currently Reading;

I’m still in the middle of this book. I have been getting sidetracked a lot.

What I’m Reading Next:

Some birthday books might dive into next.

Remind Me to Hate You Later by Lizzy Mason

Summary:

Seventeen-year-old Jules grew up in her mother’s spotlight. A “parenting influencer,” Britt shares details of her daughter’s life-pictures, intimate stories, insecurities, all-to a point that becomes unbearable to Jules.

And suddenly she’s gone.

Natalie has only barely begun to grieve her best friend Jules’s death when Britt announces her plans to publish a memoir that will dissect Jules’s life and death. But Nat knows the truth behind Britt’s “perfect” Instagram feed-Jules hated the pressure, the inauthenticity, the persona. There’s so much more to Jules than Britt and her followers could ever know. As Nat connects with Jules’s boyfriend, Carter, and their shared grief and guilt bonds them, she becomes determined to expose Britt, to understand what really happened, and who is to blame.

In a world that feels distorted by celebrity and the manipulations of social media and public opinion, Natalie and Carter need something real to hold onto. Remind Me to Hate You Later is a moving account of grief, depression, complex relationships, love, and the search for truth.

My Review:

What happens when your mom YouTube famous?

All of Jules life she been dealing with her personal life being online, thanks to her mom. She has one best friend and the sweetest boyfriend. Mostly, she keeps to herself a lot and is very depressed. Her mother mother posted something very personal, and the next day, she is gone. Now her best friend Natalie is left to pick up the pieces.

This was an emotional read dealing with someone taking their life. Natalie whole life was around Jules, and she never knew what she was really into. She tries hard to accept her feelings and the changes around her. I really did love this book and the storyline. There are trigger warnings for those who want to read it. I thought it handled the grief stuff very well. There are so many emotions until the very end. This is a must-read for those who are interested in mental health books.

Big 40th Birthday Celebration

Sorry I have not posted any reviews in over a week. I have been having fun on vacation. Hardly got any reading done. So I’m home now, ready to go back to my books and play with my dog. Here are some photos.