Book Review: One Perfect Lie by Lisa Scottoline

                                        

Every book that Scottoline comes out with ends up on my doorstep. I reached out to a publisher once and every one of her books are sent to me now, which I find pretty damn neat!

When we first crack open the book we meet Chris. If you're a people reader, you'll get strange vibes from him immediately.
We see he's been surveying the town he's just moved to, as well as observing the students and the community for unknown reasons.

He's applying for a job as a teacher and a coach at the local high school. On paper he looks great.

He quickly befriends three teenage boys after staking them out to see which one best suits his needs. We aren't clued into what exactly his needs are until the second half of the book.

The second half will definitely throw you for a loop. Chris was nothing like I imagined him to be and I had an extremely wrong opinion on him. Scottoline no doubt intended it to be that way because the first twist was definitely a jaw dropper.

This particular books is centered around domestic terrorism which makes it timely for these days. Scottoline has a way of setting up fast paced suspense in a way that makes you fly through the book. The book is written with short chapters which helps a lot as well. You just want to keep turning the pages to see what happens next.

A few of the elements I really loved about this book is the power of a mother's love, the inside look at a worry a mother has to endure, and this one goes to show how fast things can get off track in your family if you're not paying close attention. Definitely brings attention to the fact that things can get out of hand quickly if they aren't nipped in the bud.

Title: One Perfect Lie
Author: Lisa Scottoline
Genre: Mystery/Suspense
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Published: 4/11/2017

Format: Finished hardback ARC from publisher
Pages: 351

A "There's Someone Inside Your House" by Stephanie Perkins Playlist!

Hey everyone! I have a routine when I wake up. I grab something to drink and sit down and read all of my e-mails that I missed.

When I opened the one I got from Wicked Reads, I was super excited. I was prompted to pick a candy and come up with something creative that I could post. I had no idea what book I would be receiving.

In my last post, I mentioned how much I loved Stephanie Perkins' book There's Someone Inside Your House. Well, lo and behold, I had a package waiting for me this morning. It was in a super cute pink bag as you can tell from the photo. This one is signed! It was fate, I swear.

It also came with some different pieces of candy, a popsocket that said "I have a WICKED TBR," and a card holder keychain for your license and any other cards you may have.

It's probably one of the coolest packages I've ever gotten so far in my few years of book blogging and I'm so happy to be a part of it! I chose to make a playlist that I feel would fit this particular book, so tune in for my picks below!

1. Avalanche by Leonard Cohen

The amount of suspense in this this song is insane. The composure of Cohen's voice while telling a horrifying tale will chill you to the bone.

2. Song of Joy by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

If you've never listened to this one before, I urge you to. It tells the story of a woman and her three children killed but the ominous statement at the end leaves room for you to draw your own conclusions on what happened.

3. I Love the Dead - Alice Cooper

If you've seen the video you'll know between Cooper's weird lyrics glorifying necrophilia and his facial expressions while singing, it makes for a weirdly fascinating song. "While friends and lovers mourn your silly grave, I have other uses for you darling.

Trapped With You - BLOGOWEEN

We have one more day until Halloween! I feel like October has seriously flown by on a witch's broom! I feel bad because I didn't get any candy to hand out to the children but I've had so much other stuff on my mind I didn't even think about it until now.

Hopefully I won't have too many disappointed kids show up tomorrow! You can find the prompts and more information here. The blog host for this prompt can be found here.

The prompt is all about characters you'd want to be trapped in a haunted house with.

1. Dimitri Belikov - The Vampire Academy series

He's hot and he's strong as hell. I imagine him keeping me distracted in multiple different ways to avoid being scared. ;)

2. Ronald Weasley - Harry Potter

Every group needs a funny person in it. If you don't have comic relief you're all bound to go crazy while trapped inside. True?

3. Feyre - ACOTAR

And I'd need a badass female beside me because Lord knows I'd need someone to watch my back if I watch theirs. I'd trust her with my lifeeeeeeee.

I'm sure there are some more, but those are definitely my top three. A weird group of people. I'm not saying we'd survive, but I know I'd be in good company.  ❤

Which characters would you pick to be stuck in a haunted house with you?

Paper Gods - Goldie Taylor

Title: Paper Gods
Author: Goldie Taylor

Genre: Political thriller

Synopsis from Goodreads:

The mayor of Atlanta and a washed-up reporter investigate a series of assassinations, and uncover a conspiracy that reaches into the heart of the city's political machine.
Mayor Victoria Dobbs Overstreet is a Harvard-trained attorney and Spelman alum, married to a celebrated heart surgeon, mother to beautiful twin girls, and a political genius. When her mentor, ally, and friend Congressman Ezra Hawkins is gunned down in Ebenezer Baptist Church, Victoria finds a strange piece of origami–a “paper god”–tucked inside his Bible. These paper gods turn up again and again, always after someone is killed. Someone is terrorizing those who are close to Mayor Dobbs, and she can't shake the feeling that the killer is close to her, too.

Recommended for:

Anyone who likes politics, faith, thrillers, corrupt politicians, strong female leads, secrets, lies, and intrigue.

Rating:
★★★/5

Buy links:
Amazon | Barnes and Noble

Review:

I have to admit that Paper Gods was out of my comfort zone. I don't do politics. I ignore it and hope for the best. I know that's not the best thing to do with how the world is right now, but I just don't partake and I'm not ashamed about it. ;) When I say I don't do politics, that includes reading books about them. I don't think I've ever read a book centered around politics in my life until I received this one in the mail.

I cracked it open anyway and found a tale of corrupt politicians (surprise), more than a few twists and turns, and a handful of murders. You can definitely tell that this book is written by a journalist because of how she writes and embellishes her sentences.

There are quite a few characters so you really have to pay attention to who's who in order to keep the story straight. They're all decently compelling and when everyone's connections to one another comes out the story ends up making a lot of sense.

Even though Hampton started out as a less than likable character, he slowly began to be my favorite next to Chanel. There are so many twists and turns I feel like I got whiplash, but it was a good story. I would have enjoyed it a lot more if I were clued in on politics before reading this.
I do feel as if I learned a lot about the election processes through reading this!

You Are The Everything by Karen Rivers (Blog Tour + Giveaway)

Can you want something—or someone—so badly that you change your destiny? Elyse Schmidt never would have believed it, until it happened to her. When Elyse and her not-so-secret crush, Josh Harris, are the sole survivors of a plane crash, tragedy binds them together. It’s as if their love story is meant to be. Everything is perfect, or as perfect as it can be when you’ve literally fallen out of the sky and landed hard on the side of a mountain—until suddenly it isn’t. And when the pieces of Elyse’s life stop fitting together, what is left?

You Are The Everything by Karen Rivers
Publisher: Algonquin Young Readers

Genre: Contemporary YA
Publication Date: 10/30/18
Rating: 

⭐

⭐

⭐

⭐/5

Review:

Hey, everyone! I have a question for ya. Do you like books that make you cry? If so, you need to grab this book, some tissues, and a little comfort food to endure a read-through of this novel.

I was slightly weirded out by the narrative of the story, but after I got into the groove of it and read further, I now see why it's written the way it is.

Elyse and Josh's plane go down and they're left as the soul survivors among their classmates after traveling home from Paris. Elyse now has a hard time remembering things due to her traumatic brain injury, and she was left with a glass eye. Josh is beside her being supportive through it all.

If you're tired of the same old same old in books, pick this one up. The writing style alone will pull you in. And be ready to be thrown for a loop at the end. Just read it, you'll see what I mean.

TOUR SCHEDULE

Blog tour schedule link:

http://fantasticflyingbookclub.blogspot.com/2018/09/to

ur-

schedule-spark-

of

-white-fire-by.html

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Karen Rivers

is

the author

of

twenty-one novels for children, teens, and adults, i

n-

cluding the highly praised

The Girl

in

the Well

Is

Me

,

All That Was

,

Before

We

Go

Extinct

and

A Possibility

of

Whales

. She lives

in

British Columbia, Canada. Find her

online

at

karenrivers.com

or

on

Twitter @karenrivers.

Karen Rivers is the author of twenty-one novels for children, teens, and adults, including the highly praised The Girl in the Well Is Me, All That Was, Before We Go Extinct, and A Possibility of Whales. She lives in British Columbia, Canada. Find her online here or on her Twitter.

Giveaway:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

A Bit Late...BLOGOWEEN! - Halloween Creatures

Hey, everyone! I'm a tad bit late to the BLOGOWEEN thing...I just recently joined Twitter and didn't find out anything about this until yesterday. I've been having issues wondering what to blog about recently, so this came at just the right time. I love anything Halloween related so this is right up my alley.

BLOGOWEEN is ran by Sam and Clo! The first prompt is from Anthony. I wasn't tagged but I'm going to do it anyway. ;)

1. Witch: A Magical Character or Book

Of course I'm going to have to go with Harry Potter. It's the first series I ever picked up and it's the only series that has had a lasting impression on me this long besides the Vampire Academy series. It's my favorite. Long live Harry Potter. ⚡

2. Werewolf: The Perfect Book to Read at Night

There's Someone Inside Your House by Stepanie Perkins was the first book that popped into my head. I finished this book in June and it's stuck with me! If you love typical slasher movies, this is a book you should definitely pick up.

3. Frankenstein: A Book that Truly Shocked You

People around the book blogging world might be tired of hearing about Gone Girl, but that ending was honestly jaw dropping. I can't help but be in awe still to this day. I fell in love with Gillian Flynn after that and have read all of her books. Each one just gets better and better without fail.

4. The Devil: A Dark, Evil Character

(If you've not read this book don't read below this. Spoiler warning). 

I've only read the first book in the Dollanganger series but the mother in this book was such an evil hag! After the children's dad dies she hands the children off to her Grandma, who, by the way, is also an old, evil hag. She puts them in the attic to be hidden away so their mother can get back into the will.
Leaving your children for money under the guise of it helping them after their grandfather dies.
Freakin' psycho! It gets me riled up every time I remember this dang book.

5. Grim Reaper: A Character that Should Have Never Died



That is all I'm saying about this one. SMH.

6. Zombie: A Book that Made You "Hungry" for More

Furyborn! The cover is breathtaking but that story! It's so good. I need more ASAP.

7. Gargoyle: A Character that You Would Protect at All Costs

Dimitri Belikov from The Vampire Academy series. He's my baby. 

8. Vampire: A Book that Sucked the Life Out of You

A Child Called It. I remember reading parts of that book and just being so horrified that people have to encounter things like this. I can't imagine a life like that.

9. Ghost: A Book that Still Haunts You

Cujo. I love dogs. I also know not a lot of people get their dogs vaccinated for rabies. Which is terrifying to me. Being stuck in a car knowing a viscous dog is trying to tear you to pieces with no way of escaping. *shudder*

10. Skeleton: A Character You Have a Bone to Pick With


I don't think another character besides Umbridge has made me hate them so much as I hate Joffrey. Little asshole. This scene was my favorite, next to the one where he got what he deserved. *slightly ominous sentence for people who haven't read the book* Lol.

11. Mummy: A Book you Would Preserve Throughout Time

Any Harry Potter one as states above. Everyone needs to read them at least once.

12. Creepy Doll: A Cover too Scary to Look At




All of the Asylum novels are scary!

That's the end of that! I'm supposed to tag people but sadly I haven't made any friends in the book blogging world yet. Maybe one day.
Have you read any of these books? Do my sentiments match up with yours? Let me know in the comment section below. :)

The Fever King (Feverwake #1) by Victoria Lee

Title: The Fever King
Author: Victoria Lee
Publication Date: March 1, 2019

Publisher: Skycape
Pages: 412
Source: Paperback copy from publisher
Rating: 3/5

Synopsis from Goodreads:
In the former United States, sixteen-year-old Noam Álvaro wakes up in a hospital bed, the sole survivor of the viral magic that killed his family and made him a technopath. His ability to control technology attracts the attention of the minister of defense and thrusts him into the magical elite of the nation of Carolinia.
The son of undocumented immigrants, Noam has spent his life fighting for the rights of refugees fleeing magical outbreaks—refugees Carolinia routinely deports with vicious efficiency. Sensing a way to make change, Noam accepts the minister’s offer to teach him the science behind his magic, secretly planning to use it against the government. But then he meets the minister’s son—cruel, dangerous, and achingly beautiful—and the way forward becomes less clear.
Caught between his purpose and his heart, Noam must decide who he can trust and how far he’s willing to go in pursuit of the greater good.


Review:
I was so lucky to have gotten the chance to read this book so early! Although I didn't really get invested into the characters until the last end of the book, I know I'll have to tun into the next book to see exactly what happens. It doesn't end in a big cliff-hanger, but it does leave you holding up grabby hands for more.

A few of the things that stood out to me was the world-building, the amount of gayness, and my love for Noam and Dara. As I said above, it took me awhile to connect with them, but the way Lee has written him keeps him at a distance not only from Noam, but also us as readers for a bit. Once some secrets come out, Dara won't fail to be your favorite character either. ;)

The Fever King isn't a genre I usually read, so it was confusing to me at first. I stuck with it, and I'm so happy I did. Stepping out of your comfort zone while reading isn't always a bad things. Sometimes you do find rare gems, this is one.