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Home Buchanan City 1888 (Part One)

Buchanan City 1888 (Part One)

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  1. Susan Julian 19 years ago

    Just wanted to thank you for the years I enjoyed watching you as Clint Buchanan. You were my favorite character on the the show. It is a bit difficult watching someone else try to play your role. It’s just not the same. Miss you. Your fan, Susan

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  • jhsiess

    Musician | Book Reviewer | Retired Attorney

    Absolutely thrilled with the way the Hickok Homest Absolutely thrilled with the way the Hickok Homestead renovation has turned out! Still waiting on blinds for the sliding glass door & shutters for the picture window in the living room. Getting everything tidied up (so much dust everywhere) & organized. I'm confident my parents would approve. My mother would love all the counter space in the kitchen!
    This is a sight no one has seen since 1982! The r This is a sight no one has seen since 1982!

The renovation of my beloved childhood home is underway! #1Son, Robert, is working hard, prepping for the contractor to work some magic. He's ripping out carpets, tack strips, & baseboards, and peeling off wallpaper. Not to mention cleaning out closets & cupboards. Lots of purging taking place.

Look at those gorgeous hardwood floors! But no, I'm not going to leave them exposed, in part because, as is visible in the last photo, they aren't in all of the rooms. My parents added about 675 square feet to the house 43 years ago. In the family room, you can see the outline of where my bedroom used to be before it was converted. 

It's going to be beautiful again when this project is complete. I think Kenny & Ethel, the parental unit, would be proud. I know they'd be tickled about Robert's involvement!

I still have to decide what colors to paint the exterior. 🤔 The dreadful beige & green have to go.

Now, if I could just get those pesky home flippers to stop calling, texting, emailing, & snailmailing me with ridiculous lowball offers to buy the house, I'd be a happy woman. 🤦‍♀️ It's not for sale! Not now & not ever . . . at least as long as I'm sucking air into my lungs!

#HickokHomestead #Family #HomeRenovation #HomeImprovement
    I didn't intentionally abandon this account. 🤦‍♀️ I didn't intentionally abandon this account. 🤦‍♀️ But my energy is usually focused on @jhscolloquium, where I post about books & authors.

And life just happens . . .  sometimes lobbing totally unexpected plot developments at us. More about that to follow.

In the photo, I'm with some of my favorite people on the planet -- my boys & my grandnieces. Quinn is 10 & Raven will be 7 in September! They're headed to 5th & 1st grade this week.

Matthew is still an Accountant with the State of California, Department of Social Services, & Robert is assisting me with a total renovation of the Hickok Homestead on Crescent Avenue. More about that in subsequent posts, too.

📸: Nephew #1, Paul McKelvey 

#GrandauntieJanie #QuinnEileen #RavenMaxine #Family #FavoritePeople #MissingJudyMcKelvey #HickokHomestead
    🎄 Delta Drama Peeps Annual Christmas Party🎄 It wa 🎄 Delta Drama Peeps Annual Christmas Party🎄

It was epic, but we missed Michael Grenie so we had a video call with him! Hope to see him soon. ❤️

#Friendship ##Priceless #Christmas2023 #DeltaDramaPeeps
    🎄Whine Club 🎁 Our monthly Whine Club with our ann 🎄Whine Club 🎁

Our monthly Whine Club with our annual gift exchange fell on my birthday this year!

📸: @jea955 & @linda.sunday.hansen

#WhineClub #Christmas2023 #Friendship #Priceless
    🎄Christmas 2023🎅 Some things old (my mother's ani 🎄Christmas 2023🎅

Some things old (my mother's animated carolers & her silly little elf atop her clock) & something new (my tree -- because I gave Matthew my tree for his new house). 
We got in the spirit right after Thanksgiving this year!

#Christmas2023 #Retired #TisTheSeason🎄
    Enjoyed a cozy evening with Matthew at Boo Manor w Enjoyed a cozy evening with Matthew at Boo Manor watching @breakingbad again. He has decorated for Christmas and it's very cozy & homey. He loves Christmas and is enjoying his first holiday season in his first home! 🎄🎁

#Christmas2023 #HappyHolidays #BooManor #Matthew #Family #Retired #RetirementDoesNotSuck #SavorTheMoments #Priceless #BreakingBad #BingeWatching
    Their new single has been released to raise funds Their new single has been released to raise funds to help the people of #LahainaTown. 

#MauiStrong #LahainaStrong #Maui #DoobieBrothers #MichaelMcDonald #MickFleetwood

https://youtu.be/PXdWmNjWFbg?si=0TuXgOwLNECRBsGU
    Relaxing afternoons & spectacular sunsets. 🌴🌺🌊😎 # Relaxing afternoons & spectacular sunsets. 🌴🌺🌊😎

#Vacation2023 #Maui #MauiStrong #LahainaStrong #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck
    There's no place I'd rather be to cheer on our @49 There's no place I'd rather be to cheer on our @49ers!
💛❤️🏈❤️💛🏈💛❤️🏈❤️💛

Maui nō ka ʻoi! 🌺🌴🌊

#Maui #Vacation2023 #LahainaStrong #MauiStrong #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck
    Matthew and I had a great time when we stayed in M Matthew and I had a great time when we stayed in Makena last month. But I'm so happy to be back at my favorite spot again. I'm staying on the 12th floor, as I have numerous times, enjoying this panoramic view from the lanai. Yes, it is different now as those of us visiting are sharing space with a large number of employees & Lahaina residents for whom this resort is their home for the time being. And it was heartbreaking to drive through Lahaina Town for the first time since the fire, especially when I got to the area along the Bypass where almost 100 crosses stand, one for each victim. I just passed through, but this transformed Maui is the everyday reality for its people. I can't help contemplating why such a beautiful, spiritual place & its citizens have to endure such destruction & tragedy. Of  course, there are no answers. But aloha is more than a word; it is a belief & way of life. The word has been coopted commercially & socially, & gets thrown around casually, but it means presence (alo) & breath (ha). It is a profound concept when you ponder it. Aloha will carry Maui & its people through this time of grief, mourning, & manifesting a different future than was contemplated, just as everyone I have encountered has welcomed me with warmth & appreciation. In this ever-changing yet unchanging view from my lanai, I see & feel Maui's unbreakable spirit, & am grateful to be able to savor it & this indescribable beauty yet again. 

Maui nō ka ʻoi! 🌺🌴🌊

#Maui #Vacation2023 #Kaanapali #LahainaStrong #MauiStrong
    It's a great time to visit Maui because local busi It's a great time to visit Maui because local businesses need tourism to survive! And every business owner & employee thanked us for proceeding with our trip & supporting their efforts to help not just themselves, but their ohana, many of whom are now residing with them & looking for jobs.

The aloha spirit at the Kula Lodge & Restaurant is amazing. They do not yet have clearance to use the water, but did that stop them from serving delicious food? Nope! The loco moco was outstanding, served in a paper bowl with plastic utensils and an ice cold bottle of water! They are bringing in barrels of fresh water to cook the items on a limited menu, & wash pots and pans. They even put big water bottles with pumps in the restrooms for guests to wash their hands & are offering stays in their quaint, charming lodge at steeply discounted rates for guests who don't mind a sponge bath! The staff are all upbeat, friendly, delighted to be working . . . and making it work.

Over at the Maui Tropical Plantation, the Mill House is now Cafe O'Lei. The Maui onion soup is delicious & the setting beautiful, although this photo of the hillside & fields shows the effect of the ongoing drought on Maui. My photos from previous visits feature a lush, green hillside & crops growing in the fields. But as Californians know, the rain returns -- eventually -- and the grass & vegetation turn green again.

I asked Matthew to snap a photo as I was driving of just one of the many fields around the Kahului airport where a total of approximately 10,000 rental cars are sitting idle that would normally be navigated all over the island by happy tourists. The cars have been sitting in what were once pineapple and sugar cane fields, but those industries are long gone. Now Maui relies on tourism & construction to keep its economy running. 

We stayed in south Maui & never ventured to the west side out of respect for Lahaina town & her people. 
 
Maui nō ka ʻoi! 🌺🌴 I can't wait to get back to the island. My body lives in Lodi most of the time .. . . but my soul resides on Maui.

#Maui #MauiStrong #MauiTropicalPlantation #Vacation #Vacation2023 #I❤️Hawaii #KulaLodgeAndRestaurant #Retirement #CafeOlei
    We usually get takeout from Miso Phat in Kahana, b We usually get takeout from Miso Phat in Kahana, but we're staying in Wailea this time & not venturing to the west side. There was no wait at the Kihei location, which we had never visited before!! The sushi was just as yummy!! And had a glass of Lodi wine -- Michael David -- with it. 🍇🍷🥢🐟🐠🐡🐙🦀

#Vacation #Vacation2023 #Maui #MauiStrong #I❤️Hawaii #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck #IDeserveIt #IEarnedIt #Sushi #MisoPhat #MisoPhatKihei #NoFilter
    The view from our table at Mama's Fish House. Spec The view from our table at Mama's Fish House. Spectacular! And Matthew enjoying it after the meal.

#Vacation #Vacation2023 #Maui #MauiStrong #I❤️Hawaii #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck #IDeserveIt #IEarnedIt #RetirementCelebration #PromotionCelebration #MamasFishHouse #NoFilter
    We finally celebrated my retirement, as well as Ma We finally celebrated my retirement, as well as Matthew's two promotions and purchase of his first home, at Mama's Fish House! We used the generous gift certificate presented to me at my retirement party on 10/29/21. Mahalo to my wonderful staff & colleagues! 🌴🌺🌊

#Maui #MauiStrong #Vacation #Vacation2023 #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck #RetirementCelebration #I❤️Hawaii #IDeserveIt #IEarnedIt #MamasFishHouse #PromotionCelebration #NoFilter
    Last night, we enjoyed a delicious, fun dinner at Last night, we enjoyed a delicious, fun dinner at Monkey Pod! 
The squash ravioli appetizer melted in my mouth.
Then I relaxed on the comfy lanai for another dazzling sunset.

#Maui #MauiStrong #Vacation #Vacation2023 #I❤️Hawaii #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck #IEarnedIt #IDeserveIt #NoFilter
    We had a lovely brunch at Nalu's where Poke served We had a lovely brunch at Nalu's where Poke served as our host! He is apparently 28 years old & quite a talker. It was not crowded at all, & the food was yummy!

#Maui #MauiStrong #Vacation2023 #Vacation #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck #IDeserveIt #IEarnedIt #NoFilter
    Perfection. #Maui #MauiStrong #I❤️Hawaii #Vacatio Perfection.

#Maui #MauiStrong #I❤️Hawaii #Vacation2023 #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck #IDeserveIt #IEarnedIt #NoFilter
    Aloha kakahiaka! @49ers football in paradise! #P Aloha kakahiaka!

@49ers football in paradise!

#Priceless!

#Maui #MauiStrong #Vacation #Vacation2023 #I❤️Hawaii #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck #IDeserveIt #IEarnedIt #NinerGang #Niners #49ers #49erfaithful #FTTB🏈 #NoFilter
    Sunset. #Maui #MauiStrong #I❤️Hawaii #Vacation202 Sunset.

#Maui #MauiStrong
#I❤️Hawaii #Vacation2023
#Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck #IDeserveIt #IEarnedIt #NoFilter
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  • jhscolloquium

    Book Reviews | Guest Authors

    📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖 You're Invited 𝐓𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟐𝟖𝐭 📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖

You're Invited

𝐓𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟐𝟖𝐭𝐡
𝟑:𝟎𝟎 𝐩.𝐦. 𝐄𝐃𝐓 | 𝟏𝟐:𝟎𝟎 𝐩.𝐦. 𝐏𝐃𝐓

𝐂𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐢𝐧 𝐑𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 is an award-winning former journalist & best selling author. She recently published her excellent latest crime fiction novels, 𝐇𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐝 & 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐝.

𝐃𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐨𝐧𝐞 is her latest true crime volume. Its journey to publication was arduous, fraught with delays & frustrations. The case it explores is deeply disturbing, baffling, & infuriating, as were the legal proceedings that culminated in an alleged murderer being sentenced to die. Whether the evidence & rulings were sufficient to support a conviction, much less imposition of the death penalty, remains controversial & vigorously debated.

What is 𝘣𝘦𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘥 debate is that on February 15, 2010, Joseph McStay, his wife Summer, & their 2 young sons were reported missing from their San Diego County home. It was as if time had stopped inside their house, with breakfast left on the kitchen counter, their truck in the driveway, & no food or water left for their dogs. Investigators found no blood, signs of a struggle . . . or clues to their whereabouts. 

Nearly 4 years later, a motorcyclist found the McStays’ remains in & around 2 shallow graves in the Mojave Desert, 100 miles from their home. They died from blunt force trauma.

In 𝐃𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐨𝐧𝐞, Caitlin hunts for the truth behind the heinous crime & the lingering questions. Was justice done? Or did a killer get away with murder?

We'll discuss her other true crime books, including 2 of my favorites, 𝐁𝐨𝐝𝐲 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐬 & 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐤𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠. Caitlin will expound on the challenges of writing true crime, the intense & extensive research required, the various obstacles she has encountered, & how she crafts a fact-specific & engrossing narrative.

𝘐 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘭𝘭 𝘫𝘰𝘪𝘯 𝘶𝘴 𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘐𝘎𝘓𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘥𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘳 𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳!

#Colloquium #BookReviewer #AuthorChat #CaitlinRother #TrueCrime #DownToTheBone #CitadelPress #KensingtonPublishing #DeadReckoning #BodyParts #PinnacleBooks #CrimeFiction #Hooked #Staged
    📖 𝓑𝓸𝓸𝓴 𝓡𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀 ⚰️ Salon Rose is thoroughly confuse 📖 𝓑𝓸𝓸𝓴 𝓡𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀 ⚰️

Salon Rose is thoroughly confused. She's pretty sure that she's looking at a dead body. Hers. Lying on a shiny metal table with a toe tag attached.

Soon she's ushered into a strange place by a girl about her age who tells her "this place is an enigma. only way to explain it." The man who appears to be in charge welcomes her to the afterlife assembly -- A.A., the best afterlife teen support group. He's Mr. Eck & he informs her that she has left the LOL (Land of the Living) & arrived in the NIB (Nowhere In Between) where she will remain for an undetermined period of time before moving on to The Big IF (the Big Infinite Forever). The NIB is where recent decedents work things out. 

Salon has no recollection of dying, much less being murdered. She is desperate to find out what happened to her & why her beautiful life ended just before she was going to graduate from high school & go to UCLA in the fall.

That intriguing beginning pulled me right into 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐔𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐀𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐒𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐧 𝐑𝐨𝐬𝐞 by 𝐀𝐦𝐲 𝐁. 𝐒𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫 & held me rapt until the very last page. It's a creative coming-of-age story about coming to terms with one's life & choices. As Salon interacts with her fellow group members, each of whom has their own issues to deal with, she searches for her own murderer (it's a cleverly-plotted mystery), misses & worries about those she left in The LOL, & decides what matters most to her now that her future is far different from the way she imagined it.

It's an emotional, unpredictable, imaginative, & deeply thought-provoking story. Scher challenges reader to reconsider grief, friendships, loss, & how to pivot when life (or death) gives you no choice but to do so. 

ꜱᴀʟᴏɴ ᴊᴏᴜʀɴᴀʟꜱ ᴀꜱ ᴀ ᴡᴀʏ ᴛᴏ ꜱʏɴᴛʜᴇꜱɪᴢᴇ ʜᴇʀ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛꜱ & ꜰᴇᴇʟɪɴɢꜱ. ʜᴀᴠᴇ ʏᴏᴜ ᴇᴠᴇʀ ᴋᴇᴘᴛ ᴀ ᴊᴏᴜʀɴᴀʟ? ɪꜰ ꜱᴏ, ᴅɪᴅ ʏᴏᴜ ꜰɪɴᴅ ɪᴛ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ ᴀ ᴠᴀʟᴜᴀʙʟᴇ ᴡᴀʏ ᴛᴏ ᴜɴᴅᴇʀꜱᴛᴀɴᴅ ʏᴏᴜʀ ᴇᴍᴏᴛɪᴏɴꜱ, ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛꜱ, ᴄʜᴀʟʟᴇɴɢᴇꜱ, ᴇᴛᴄ.?

#Colloquium #BookReviewer #AmyBScher #TheUnexpectedAfterlifeOfSalonRose #YAFiction #TinyGhostPress #LGBTQIA #ThrillerBookLoversThePulse
    📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖 You're Invited 𝐓𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟐𝟑 📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖

You're Invited

𝐓𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟐𝟑𝐫𝐝
𝟔:𝟎𝟎 𝐩.𝐦. 𝐄𝐃𝐓 | 𝟑:𝟎𝟎 𝐩.𝐦. 𝐏𝐃𝐓

𝐊𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐋𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐥𝐞 has long been one of my favorite authors & I'm thrilled that she has agreed to chat with me! 

2026 is an exciting year for her, so we have 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘵 to discuss. Her fabulous Everything Series -- 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝗪𝐞 𝐊𝐞𝐞𝐩, 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝗪𝐞 𝐋𝐞𝐟𝐭 𝐁𝐞𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐝, & 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝗪𝐞 𝐆𝐢𝐯𝐞 -- has beenre-released & the special editions are gorgeous. The 4th & final book in the series, 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝗪𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝, will be released on 𝘈𝘶𝘨𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝟹! 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝗪𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲, a five-chapter novella infused with emotional resonance about a brother and sister coming to terms with the past following the recent death of their father, is available to read 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘦. (Visit Bookouture.com/subscribe/kerry-lonsdale/ to download a copy!) It's beautifully written and will resonate with anyone who has lost a loved one only to find out that there was so much they did not know about that person and their life . . . when it's too late to ask questions.

And if all of that isn't enough . . . Kerry has written another book with her best friend, 𝐎𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐊𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐠. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝗪𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐋𝐢𝐬𝐭 𝐓𝐫𝐢𝐩 will be published on 𝘚𝘦𝘱𝘵. 𝟾, 𝟸𝟶𝟸𝟼. 

𝘐 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘭𝘭 𝘫𝘰𝘪𝘯 𝘶𝘴 𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘐𝘎𝘓𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘥𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘳 𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳!

#Colloquium #BookReviewer #AuthorChat #KerryLonsdale #EverythingSeries #TheWishListTrip #OrlyKonig #WomensFiction #Bookouture #UpcomingRelease #BlackstonePublishing
    📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖 Thank you, Amanda! What a great 📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖

Thank you, Amanda!

What a great conversation I had with author 𝐀𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚 𝐒𝐤𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐫𝐞 about all of her books, especially her newest, 𝗪𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐍𝐨 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐄𝐥𝐬𝐞 𝗪𝐢𝐥𝐥. I learned a great deal during our discussion, including how she brings her background as a nurse into her historical fiction writing, the research she conducts, and where she gets inspiration for her books.

𝗪𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐍𝐨 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐄𝐥𝐬𝐞 𝗪𝐢𝐥𝐥 may be set in 1939 with most of the characters actual historical figures, but it is timely, contemporary, and highly relevant 𝘵𝘰𝘥𝘢𝘺. And beautifully written. Amanda skillfully addresses a highly controversial subject that inspires deep emotional responses with tact, precision, & credibility. She respects her readers' ability to ponder the events in the story & form their own opinion. 

She described the topics addressed in her previous books -- 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝗪𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐆𝐚𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐧; 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞'𝐬 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐭; 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐌𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞 𝗪𝐞𝐬𝐭; 𝐁𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐤𝐲; and 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐫'𝐬 𝐀𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭 -- & they all sound fascinating! I'm anxious to read all of them.

𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨? Amanda raved about 𝘗𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘢 𝘎𝘳𝘦𝘨𝘰𝘳𝘺's latest book, 𝐁𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐲𝐧 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐨𝐫, and is re-reading 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐄𝐲𝐞𝐬 𝗪𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝗪𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐆𝐨𝐝 by 𝘡𝘰𝘳𝘢 𝘕𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘦 𝘏𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘯.

ᴅᴏ ʏᴏᴜ ᴇɴᴊᴏʏ ʀᴇᴀᴅɪɴɢ ꜰɪᴄᴛɪᴏɴᴀʟ ʙᴏᴏᴋꜱ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴀᴅᴅʀᴇꜱꜱ ᴄᴏɴʀᴏᴠᴇʀꜱɪᴀʟ ᴛᴏᴘɪᴄꜱ? ɪꜰ ꜱᴏ, ɢɪᴠᴇ ᴍᴇ ꜱᴏᴍᴇ ʀᴇᴄᴏᴍᴍᴇɴᴅᴀᴛɪᴏɴꜱ!
 
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    📘𝓒𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓻 𝓡𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓪𝓵 📗 More exciting news from author 𝐊𝐞 📘𝓒𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓻 𝓡𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓪𝓵 📗

More exciting news from author 𝐊𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐋𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐥𝐞! She wrote a book with her best friend, 𝐎𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐊𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐠. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝗪𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐋𝐢𝐬𝐭 𝐓𝐫𝐢𝐩 is "a story of sisterhood, self-discovery, and how not to smuggle your friend’s ashes through French border control . . ." It will be published on 𝘚𝘦𝘱𝘵. 𝟾, 𝟸𝟶𝟸𝟼. The cover is beautiful & I'm confident the story is, too.

𝘚𝘺𝘯𝘰𝘱𝘴𝘪𝘴:

Dear Holly and Anna,

I knew it would take drastic measures to bring you together, so, ta da, one drastic measure! I’m sorry I died. And I know you guys haven’t spoken in 5 years. But here’s the plan: over 14 days, you are going to scatter my ashes in every place we vacationed together in our 20s.

I wish I could have fixed your friendship before I died. But dying comes with one perk -- you can’t say no to me now.

You’re going to have the best time. I’ve planned rum cocktails in Cabo & café hopping in Paris. Along the way, I’ll keep sending you letters. Because there’s a secret I wasn’t brave enough to share when I was alive . . . & if I know the 3 of us, I suspect we’ve all been hiding something from each other.

The times we spent together were the best days of my life. Nobody made me laugh like you did, Anna. Holly, promise you’ll let your hair down 1 last time for me.

I hope by the end of this trip, there’s nothing left we’re afraid to say . . .

xo, Zoe

And order your copy of the gorgeous new editions of her Everything Series -- 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝗪𝐞 𝐊𝐞𝐞𝐩, 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝗪𝐞 𝐋𝐞𝐟𝐭 𝐁𝐞𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐝, & 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝗪𝐞 𝐆𝐢𝐯𝐞 --from Barnes & Noble or Blackstone Publishing, if you haven't, because the final book, 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝗪𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝, will be released on 𝘈𝘶𝘨. 𝟹rd!

Kerry will be chatting with me via 𝐈𝐆𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐞 on 𝐓𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟐𝟑𝐫𝐝, at 𝟔:𝟎𝟎 𝐩.𝐦. 𝐄𝐃𝐓 | 𝟑:𝟎𝟎 𝐩.𝐦. 𝐏𝐃𝐓! I can't wait!

ᴅᴏ ʏᴏᴜ ʙᴜʏ ʙᴏᴏᴋꜱ ꜱᴏʟᴇʟʏ ʙᴀꜱᴇᴅ ᴏɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴏᴠᴇʀ? ᴏʀ, ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴍᴇ, ᴅᴏ ʏᴏᴜ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ꜱʏɴᴏᴘꜱɪꜱ ꜰɪʀꜱᴛ?

#UpcomingRelease #Colloquium #BookReviewer #KerryLonsdale #EverythingSeries #TheWishListTrip #OrlyKonig #WomensFiction #Bookouture #BlackstonePublishing
    📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟐 Thank you, David! Oh, I' 📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖

𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟐

Thank you, David!

Oh, I'm glad we were able to finish our discussion after a brief interruption from the technology gods. 

𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨? David recommends 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐚𝐫𝐲 by 𝘈𝘭𝘦𝘹 𝘍𝘪𝘯𝘭𝘢𝘺* and 𝐒𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦 𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐲 (available January 27, 2027) by 𝘏𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘢𝘩 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘺.

*Are you an 𝘈𝘭𝘦𝘹 𝘍𝘪𝘯𝘭𝘢𝘺 fan? Did you know that he wrote legal thrillers under his real name, 𝘈𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘺 𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘻𝘦, before pivoting to writing psychological thrillers? 
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐮𝐭𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐫 and 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐝𝐯𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞'𝐬 𝐃𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐫 are both excellent! You can read my reviews of them at www.jhsiess.com! 

ɪꜱ ᴛʜᴇʀᴇ ᴀɴ ᴀᴜᴛʜᴏʀ ᴡʜᴏꜱᴇ ᴡᴏʀᴋ ʏᴏᴜ ᴇɴᴊᴏʏ ᴡʜᴏ ᴡʀɪᴛᴇꜱ ᴜɴᴅᴇʀ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴛʜᴀɴ ᴏɴᴇ ᴘᴇɴ ɴᴀᴍᴇ?

#Colloquium #BookReviewer #AuthorChat
#ThrillerBookLoversThePulse #DavidEllis #KeepThemClose #TheMunichAffair #JamesPatterson #GPPutnamAndSons #PenguinRandomHouse #TheAnniversary #AlexFinlay #ScreamCity #HannahMorrissey
    📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟏 Thank you, David! I had 📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖

𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟏

Thank you, David!

I had a simply delightful time talking with bestselling and Edgar Award-winning author 𝐃𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐝 𝐄𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐬! We had a wide-ranging conversation about how he started writing fictional stories as a child, and after finishing law school and launching his practice, he realized he missed creative writing and drafted his first novel, 𝐋𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐕𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧. It earned not just a blurb, but raves but none other than 𝐉𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐏𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧. That ultimately led to their long collaboration. They have co-written and published 9 books, and their 10th and final novel, 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐀𝐟𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐫, will be released on September 21, 2026.

David is a Justice of the Illinois Appellate Court for the First District, so he told me that he gets up at 3:30 a.m. and writes until 7:00 a.m. 

His new book, 𝐊𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐂𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞, was an instant bestseller and deservedly so! You might think that with David's background and need to manage his time scupulously in order to do justice (no pun intended) to both of his careers, he would be a plotter. But, in reality, he tends to be more of a pantser and all that plot twists in his books? He doesn't always know they're going to figure in the plot until he's actually writing the book! 

~ 𝑲𝒆𝒆𝒑 𝒘𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑷𝒂𝒓𝒕 2 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒄𝒖𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏! ~

ᴅᴏ ʏᴏᴜ ᴘʀᴇᴏʀᴅᴇʀ ʙᴏᴏᴋꜱ ɪɴ ᴏʀᴅᴇʀ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ ᴀʙʟᴇ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴛʜᴇᴍ ᴀꜱ ꜱᴏᴏɴ ᴀꜱ ᴛʜᴇʏ ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪꜱʜᴇᴅ? 
ᴅɪᴅ ʏᴏᴜ ᴋɴᴏᴡ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴘʀᴇᴏʀᴅᴇʀꜱ ᴀʀᴇ ᴇꜱꜱᴇɴᴛɪᴀʟ ᴛᴏ ʟᴇᴛ ᴘᴜʙʟɪꜱʜᴇʀꜱ ᴋɴɪᴏᴡ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴀᴜᴛʜᴏʀꜱ' ʙᴏᴏᴋꜱ ᴀʀᴇ ʜɪɢʜʟʏ ᴀɴᴛɪᴄɪᴘᴀᴛᴇᴅ & ᴡɪʟʟ ꜰɪɴᴅ ᴀɴ ᴀᴜᴅɪᴇɴᴄᴇ?

#Colloquium #BookReviewer #AuthorChat
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    📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖 You're Invited 𝗪𝐞𝐝𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟏 📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖

You're Invited

𝗪𝐞𝐝𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟏𝟓𝐭𝐡
𝟕:𝟎𝟎 𝐩.𝐦. 𝐄𝐃𝐓 | 𝟒:𝟎𝟎 𝐩.𝐦. 𝐏𝐃𝐓

I love discovering the work of new-to-me authors, & sometimes it's such a delightful experience that I want to read all of their previous books! 

When I was offered the chance to read 𝗪𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐍𝐨 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐄𝐥𝐬𝐞 𝗪𝐢𝐥𝐥 by 𝐀𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚 𝐒𝐤𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐫𝐞, I ws instantly intrigued by the synopsis. The story is contemporary, timely, & relevant to what is happening in America in 2026, even though it opens in 1939. In my opinion, 𝗪𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐍𝐨 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐄𝐥𝐬𝐞 𝗪𝐢𝐥𝐥 is a must-read volume for all historical fiction fans.

And it's Amanda's sixth book. She previously published 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝗪𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐆𝐚𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐧; 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞'𝐬 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐭; 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐌𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞 𝗪𝐞𝐬𝐭; 𝐁𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐤𝐲; and 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐫'𝐬 𝐀𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭. All of them are now on my TBR list.

𝘐 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘭𝘭 𝘫𝘰𝘪𝘯 𝘶𝘴 𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘐𝘎𝘓𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘥𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘳 𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳!

ʜᴀᴠᴇ ʏᴏᴜ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴀɴʏ ᴏꜰ ᴀᴍᴀɴᴅᴀ'ꜱ ʙᴏᴏᴋꜱ? ɪꜰ ꜱᴏ, ᴡʜɪᴄʜ ᴏɴᴇ ꜱʜᴏᴜʟᴅ ɪ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ɴᴇxᴛ, ɪɴ ʏᴏᴜʀ ᴏᴘɪɴɪᴏɴ?
ɪꜰ ɴᴏᴛ, ʀᴇᴄᴏᴍᴍᴇɴᴅ ꜱᴏᴍᴇ ʜɪꜱᴛᴏʀɪᴄᴀʟ ꜰɪᴄᴛɪᴏɴ ᴀᴜᴛʜᴏʀꜱ ᴡʜᴏꜱᴇ ᴡᴏʀᴋ ʏᴏᴜ ᴇɴᴊᴏʏ!

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#WhenNoOneElseWill #AmandaSkenendore #BookBrowse #KensingtonBooks #HistoricalFiction #WomensHistoricalFiction #ReproductiveRights #WomensHealth
    📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖 You're Invited 𝐓𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟏𝟒𝐭 📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖

You're Invited

𝐓𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟏𝟒𝐭𝐡
𝟑:𝟎𝟎 𝐩.𝐦. 𝐄𝐃𝐓 | 𝟏𝟐:𝟎𝟎 𝐩.𝐦. 𝐏𝐃𝐓

Appellate courtrooms don't operate the same way as the lower courts often depicted in books, films, & TV shows. During trials, attorneys question witnesses while a judge controls (hopefully) the proceeding.

𝘏𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳, when a case is appealed to a higher court, there is no testimony. Just attorneys trying to convince a panel of justices why their client should prevail. And the justices 𝘨𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭 the lawyers, often mercilessly, interrupting them to focus on areas they deem important. In law school, I was taught that during appellate argument, when a justice's mouth opens, the lawyer's closes. No exceptions. You stop, listen to the question, & better be prepared to formulate an intelligent response.

I'm honored that bestselling author 𝐃𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐝 𝐄𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐬 agreed to take time out of his busy schedule to talk with me on 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟏𝟒𝐭𝐡.

I'm also kind of tickled at the prospect of turning the tables on him a bit. Because in addition to being a phenomenal author who is the absolute 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 at injecting plot twists & developments into his stories that I never see coming, he is also an esteemed Justice of the Illinois Appellate Court for the First District. So I'm looking forward to being the one asking 𝘩𝘪𝘮 questions! 🤭(But if he wants to interrupt me, I guarantee I 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 yield.) 

His just-released book, 𝐊𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐂𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞, is already a USA Today bestseller and deservedly so. Like his previous books, it's a riveting, emotionally complex, & memorable thriller, brilliantly imagined & flawlessly executed.

𝘐 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘭𝘭 𝘫𝘰𝘪𝘯 𝘶𝘴 𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘐𝘎𝘓𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘥𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘳 𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳!

ᴅᴀᴠɪᴅ ᴇʟʟɪꜱ ɪꜱ ᴀ ᴍᴀꜱᴛᴇʀ ᴀᴛ ᴄᴀᴛᴄʜɪɴɢ ᴍᴇ ᴏꜰꜰ-ɢᴜᴀʀᴅ ᴡɪᴛʜ ꜱʜᴏᴄᴋɪɴɢ ᴘʟᴏᴛ ᴛᴡɪꜱᴛꜱ!
ᴡʜᴀᴛ ᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ᴀᴜᴛʜᴏʀ(ꜱ) ᴅᴏ ʏᴏᴜ ᴛʜɪɴᴋ ᴀʀᴇ ᴇꜱᴘᴇᴄɪᴀʟʟʏ ᴀᴅᴇᴘᴛ ᴀᴛ ɪɴᴊᴇᴄᴛɪɴɢ ꜱᴜʀᴘʀɪꜱᴇ ʀᴇᴠᴇʟᴀᴛɪᴏɴꜱ ɪɴᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇɪʀ ꜱᴛᴏʀɪᴇꜱ?

#Colloquium #BookReviewer #AuthorChat
#ThrillerBookLoversThePulse #ThrillerBookLoversThePulse #KeepThemClose #DavidEllis #GPPutnamsSons
    📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖 Thank you, Christina! 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐚 📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖

Thank you, Christina!

𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐚 𝐌𝐜𝐃𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐝 is not only one of my favorite authors. She's also easy to talk with, & I had a great time chatting with her about her early life, career as a journalist, decision to start writing novels, inspiration for her books, and much more! I was particularly intrigued to learn that she self-published her just-released third installment in her riveting & timely 𝐉𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐋𝐚𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐭 𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬, 𝐀𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝗪𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐞.

And if you aren't following Christina on social media, you should be. Her posts and videos are very entertaining & often hilarious. When I asked her who the genius is behind them, she said, "Me!" Be sure to check out her account here, as well as on TikTok & Facebook, & let her know how great her content is.

It's not necessary that you read her 𝐉𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐋𝐚𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐭 𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 in order, but I can't recommend strongly enough that you 𝘥𝘰. Because the stories' impact is cumulative, the nuanced context increasingly powerful. Start with 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐀𝐭 𝐁𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐋𝐚𝐤𝐞, her prequel novella. You can download it free of charge on her website (christina-mcdonald.com). 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐁𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝗪𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 and 𝗪𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐋𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐃𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 precede 𝐀𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝗪𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐞.

𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨? Christina recommends 𝐇𝐨𝐭 𝐆𝐢𝐫𝐥 𝐌𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐂𝐥𝐮𝐛 by Ashley Winstead.

ᴄʜʀɪꜱᴛɪɴᴀ'ꜱ ɴᴇᴡ ʙᴏᴏᴋ ᴅᴇᴀʟꜱ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴀ ꜰᴀᴋᴇ ᴠɪᴅᴇᴏ, ᴄʀᴇᴀᴛᴇᴅ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴀɪ, ᴡʀᴇᴀᴋɪɴɢ ʜᴀᴠᴏᴄ ɪɴ ʜᴇʀ ᴍᴀɪɴ ᴄʜᴀʀᴀᴄᴛᴇʀ'ꜱ ʟɪꜰᴇ. 
ʜᴀᴠᴇ ʏᴏᴜ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴀɴʏ ᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ʙᴏᴏᴋ(ꜱ) ɪɴ ᴡʜɪᴄʜ ᴀɪ ɪꜱ ꜰᴇᴀᴛᴜʀᴇᴅ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʏᴏᴜ ʀᴇᴄᴏᴍᴍᴇɴᴅ?

#Colloquium #BookReviewer #AuthorChat
#ThrillerBookLoversThePulse #AllTheLiesWeSee #ChristinaMcDonald #JessLambertSeries #IntrigueInkPublishing
    📬 𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝑴𝒂𝒊𝒍 📚 Expressing my 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘴 & 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 📬 𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝑴𝒂𝒊𝒍 📚

Expressing my 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘴 & 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 for the great books I have received recently! 

And . . . I'll be spotlighting 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 soon.

📘 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 by 𝘑𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘦 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨 (William Morrow & @lbtheloverofbooks) 𝘚𝘶𝘣𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘓𝘢𝘶𝘳𝘢 𝘉𝘦𝘵𝘩'𝘴 𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘈𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘴: 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘣𝘦.𝘤𝘰𝘮/@𝘭𝘣𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘧𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴/

📕 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐯𝐨𝐫𝐬 by 𝘔𝘦𝘨𝘢𝘯 𝘔𝘪𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘢 (Scribner)

📘 𝐃𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐞 by 𝘔𝘦𝘨𝘢𝘯 𝘔𝘪𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘢 (Scribner)

📗 𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 by 𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘤𝘢 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘭𝘭 (Scribner)

📙 𝐀𝐦𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐑𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐞: 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐑𝐞𝐰𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 by & courtesy of 𝘈𝘮𝘺 𝘍𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘴

📒 𝐌𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐃𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫 by 𝘏𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘗𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘪 𝘙𝘺𝘢𝘯 (Minotaur Books)

ᴅᴏ ʏᴏᴜ ʟᴇɴᴅ ʙᴏᴏᴋꜱ ᴛᴏ ꜰᴀᴍɪʟʏ ᴀɴᴅ/ᴏʀ ꜰʀɪᴇɴᴅꜱ? ʜᴀꜱ ᴀɴʏᴏɴᴇ ᴇᴠᴇʀ ʀᴇᴛᴜʀɴᴇᴅ ᴀ ʙᴏᴏᴋ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴠɪꜱɪʙʟᴇ ᴅᴀᴍᴀɢᴇ? ʜᴏᴡ ᴅɪᴅ ʏᴏᴜ ʜᴀɴᴅʟᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ꜱɪᴛᴜᴀᴛɪᴏɴ?

#Colloquium #bookreviewer #Gift #BookMail
#BookMailIsTheBestMail #TheFourthPrincess #JanieChang #TheOnlySurvivors #DaughterOfMine #MeganMiranda #HelplessBook #JessicaKnoll #AmyInRegrograde #AmyFerris #MotherDaughterSisterStranger #HankPhillippiRyan #Scribner #WilliamMorrow #LBTheLoverOfBooks #MinotaurBooks
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    📘𝓒𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓻 𝓡𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓪𝓵 📗 𝐊𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐋𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐥𝐞 has long been one 📘𝓒𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓻 𝓡𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓪𝓵 📗

𝐊𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐋𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐥𝐞 has long been one of my favorite authors & 2026 is an exciting year for her. 

Have you read her fabulous Everything Series -- 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝗪𝐞 𝐊𝐞𝐞𝐩, 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝗪𝐞 𝐋𝐞𝐟𝐭 𝐁𝐞𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐝, & 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝗪𝐞 𝐆𝐢𝐯𝐞? All 3 books have been re-released & the special editions are gorgeous. They are available 𝘯𝘰𝘸 from Barnes & Noble. Or you can order signed copies directly from Blackstone Publishing.

If you haven't read them, 𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘶𝘱 because the 4th & final book in the series, 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝗪𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝, will be released on 𝘈𝘶𝘨𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝟹!

In the meantime, Kerry has given readers a gift -- a little amuse-bouche to tide us over while we read or re-read the first 3 books & are waiting for 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝗪𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝.

𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝗪𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲 is a five-chapter novella, a short story infused with emotional resonance about a brother and sister coming to terms with the past following the recent death of their father. It's beautifully written and will resonate with anyone who has lost a loved one only to find out that there was so much they did not know about that person and their life . . . when it's too late to ask questions.

And it's available to read right now, 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘦. Just go to Bookouture.com/subscribe/kerry-lonsdale/ to download your copy! 

Watch for another big announcement about Kerry's writing on Wednesday, July 15th. 🤫

And mark your calendar because Kerry has agreed to chat with me via IGLive on Thursday, July 23rd, at 6:00 p.m. EDT | 3:00 p.m. PDT!  I can't wait to talk with her about all of her books, writing habits, journey to publication, & much more.

ᴅᴏ ʏᴏᴜ ᴘᴜʀᴄʜᴀꜱᴇ ᴍᴜʟᴛɪᴘʟᴇ ᴄᴏᴘɪᴇꜱ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ꜱᴀᴍᴇ ʙᴏᴏᴋ ɪɴ ᴏʀᴅᴇʀ ᴛᴏ ᴄᴏʟʟᴇᴄᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ᴠᴀʀɪᴏᴜꜱ ᴇᴅɪᴛɪᴏɴꜱ?

#UpcomingRelease #Colloquium #BookReviewer #KerryLonsdale #EverythingSeries #EverythingWeKeep #EverythingWeGive #EverythingWeLeftBehind #EverythingWeFound #UpcomingRelease #EverythingWeCarry #Novella #ShortStory #SecondChanceRomance #Bookouture #BlackstonePublishing
    📖 ░A░u░t░h░o░r░ ░C░h░a░t░ 📖 Thank you, John! I h 📖 ░A░u░t░h░o░r░ ░C░h░a░t░ 📖

Thank you, John!

I had a great time talking with author 𝐉𝐨𝐡𝐧 𝐃𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐞! 

Surprisingly, John was not a dedicated reader as a child. He developed his love of reading later, & eventually decided he wanted to be a writer. For him, it's been a family project. Perseverance, determination, & resilence resulted in the publication of 3 volumes so far in his Gus Wheeler FBI Thriller Series: 𝐊𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐚 𝐍𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐥𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐬, 𝗪𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬, & 𝐁𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐥 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐬, available 𝘑𝘶𝘭𝘺 𝟸𝟿, 𝟸𝟶𝟸𝟼. Each book can be enjoyed as a stand-alone volume.

John on a small island off the mid-coast of Maine in a 200-year-old home he & his wife restored. 𝐁𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐥 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐬, set in the remote northern region of the state, is a fast-paced, dark mystery featuring the realistic & entertaining partnership of Gus & Vanessa ("V), a badass woman with "stop-sign red" hair, tattoos, & a lot of wisecracks to match her attitude. The cleverly-crafted story is replete with shocking twists & surprises.

John is currently working on the 4th installment in the series & plans to publish at least 2 additional volumes after that.

𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨? John recommends 𝘋𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘺 𝘒𝘢𝘯𝘦's most recent book, 𝐒𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐚 𝐂𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐆𝐢𝐫𝐥; 𝐈𝐭'𝐬 𝐍𝐨𝐭 𝐇𝐞𝐫 by 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘒𝘶𝘣𝘪𝘤𝘢; 𝘚𝘢𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘢 𝘋𝘰𝘸𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨's books; & 𝘑𝘰𝘩𝘯 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘺's PI Charlie Parker series. 

We got the technological bugs worked out & were able to chat on Zoom. Instagram will only post 20 minutes of our discussion, so finish watching on my YouTube channcel: https://www.youtube.com/@JHSColloquium.

ʀᴇᴄᴏᴍᴍᴇɴᴅ ʙᴏᴏᴋ(ꜱ) ʏᴏᴜ'ᴠᴇ ᴇɴᴊᴏʏᴇᴅ ɪɴ ᴡʜɪᴄʜ ᴛʜᴇ ꜱᴇᴛᴛɪɴɢ & ᴀᴛᴍᴏꜱᴘʜᴇʀᴇ/ᴍᴏᴏᴅ ᴀʀᴇ ᴄʀɪᴛɪᴄᴀʟ ᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇ ꜱᴜᴄᴄᴇꜱꜱꜰᴜʟ ᴛᴇʟʟɪɴɢ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ꜱᴛᴏʀʏ.

#Colloquium #BookReviewer #AuthorChat #JohnDingle #GusWheelerFBIThrillerSeries #KarmaNeverSleeps #WingsOfMadness #BeforeTheDevilKnows #ThrillerBookLoversThePulse #TulePublishing
    📖 𝓑𝓸𝓸𝓴 𝓡𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀🌙 𝐇𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐁𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐝 by 𝐒𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐡 📖 𝓑𝓸𝓸𝓴 𝓡𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀🌙

𝐇𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐁𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐝 by 𝐒𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐡 𝐉. 𝐌𝐚𝐚𝐬 is the first installment in her Crescent City series. It's an 𝘦𝘱𝘪𝘤 story. Earlier this year, I made my first foray into reading fantasy with the first 2 volumes in her 𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐆𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐬 series & enjoyed them so much I joined another 𝐓𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐦 𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐆𝐥𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐥 readalong. 

It took a bit to get invested. The main character, Bryce Quinlan, is a 25-year-old half-Fae & half-human woman who is a bit lost & aimless. But she has a group of loyal & devoted friends, & her life has not been easy so she is immediately sympathetic.

There are 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘵 of characters -- archangels, witches, shifters, mer people, wraiths, sprites, demons, et al. And a collection of self-serving power brokers like Micah, a malevolent governor who owns Hunt Athalar, a Fallen angel more than 200 years old & intent on earning his freedom. He is Micah's reluctant assassin -- punishment for participating in a failed rebellion.

Unsure I could hang in for 𝟾𝟶𝟶 𝘱𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘴, a shockingly horrific event occurred that devastated Bryce & I 𝘩𝘢𝘥 to know if she would survive. From that point, the story is fast-paced, riveting, & emotionally resonant. Despite the imaginary setting & mythical characters, it's a very 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯 story about friendship, autonomy & empowerment, sibling rivalry, morality, quests for unbridled power & dominance, & romance. It's a joy to see Bryce's growth -- she's a snarky badass who refuses to compromise her principles & beliefs. The themes are explored against a couple of intriguing mysteries. Maas injects so many unexpected twists & shocking revelations that I had absolutely 𝘯𝘰 𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘢 how those mysteries were going to be resolved. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

ᴀʀᴇ ʏᴏᴜ ᴀ ꜰᴀɴᴛᴀꜱʏ/ʀᴏᴍᴀɴᴛᴀꜱʏ ꜰᴀɴ? ʀᴇᴄᴏᴍᴍᴇɴᴅ ᴀ ꜰᴀɴᴛᴀꜱʏ/ʀᴏᴍᴀɴᴛᴀꜱʏ ʏᴏᴜ ᴛʜɪɴᴋ ɪ ꜱʜᴏᴜʟᴅ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴀꜰᴛᴇʀ ɪ ꜰɪɴɪꜱʜ ʀᴇᴀᴅɪɴɢ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛʜʀᴏɴᴇ ᴏꜰ ɢʟᴀꜱꜱ ᴀɴᴅ ᴄʀᴇꜱᴄᴇɴᴛ ᴄɪᴛʏ ꜱᴇʀɪᴇꜱ.

#Colloquium #BookReviewer #CrescentCitySeries #HouseOfEarthAndBlood #SarahJMaas #TandemCollectiveGlobal #BloomburyBooksUS #Fantasy #Romantasy
    📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖 You're Invited 𝐒𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟏𝟏 📖 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒕 📖

You're Invited

𝐒𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟏𝟏𝐭𝐡
𝟑:𝟎𝟎 𝐩.𝐦. 𝐄𝐃𝐓 | 𝟏𝟐:𝟎𝟎 𝐩.𝐦. 𝐏𝐃𝐓

𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐚 𝐌𝐜𝐃𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐝 became one of my favorite authors when I read her first published book, 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐎𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐚 𝐅𝐞𝐥𝐥. She followed that stunning debut with 𝐁𝐞𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐋𝐢𝐞 & 𝐃𝐨 𝐍𝐨 𝐇𝐚𝐫𝐦. With each successive book, she surprised me & kept me engrossed in her characters' dilemmas & struggles.

Just when I was convinced her writing couldn't get any better, she released 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐁𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝗪𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬, a book unlike any she had published up to that point -- an absolutely riveting, emotional mystery with a gut-punch twist. 

Happily for me & her other fans, it was just the first book in her 𝐉𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐋𝐚𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐭 𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬. She followed it up with 𝗪𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐋𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐃𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬; a prequel novella, 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐭 𝐁𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐋𝐚𝐤𝐞; and the just-published 𝐀𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝗪𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐞. 𝘈𝘭𝘭 of her books are exceptionally good thrillers, but with every new book she manages to surpass her previous work.

It's not necessary that you read her 𝐉𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐋𝐚𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐭 𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 in order, but I can't recommend strongly enough that you 𝘥𝘰. Because the stories' impact is cumulative, the nuanced context increasingly powerful. In the contemporary & timely 𝐀𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝗪𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐞, 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 Jess values is on the line, including her own freedom. The stories are intricately, deftly plotted, the characters fully formed & believable. McDonald explores their emotional struggles & motivations with unsparing honesty & insight. Jess' internal dialogue is wrenchingly, heartbreakingly raw, & McDonald's writing has a cinematic quality that draws readers into the quirky town of Black Lake which is itself an indispensable character in the tense stories.

𝘐 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘭𝘭 𝘫𝘰𝘪𝘯 𝘶𝘴 𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘐𝘎𝘓𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘥𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘳 𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳!

#Colloquium #BookReviewer #AuthorChat 
#ThrillerBookLoversThePulse #AllTheLiesWeSee #ChristinaMcDonald #JessLambertSeries #IntrigueInkPublishing
    📖 𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘 🏡 𝐍𝐨 𝐇𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 by 𝐍𝐢𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐁𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬 📖 𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘 🏡

𝐍𝐨 𝐇𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 by 𝐍𝐢𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐁𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬 is a fast-paced, tense thriller that is also a riveting character study, moving, & thought-provoking. 

Raven had a troubled children. She & her younger sister, Ivy, who had Down syndrome, were abandoned by their abusive mother. Their hands-off, emotionally unavailable father quickly remarried Joan. But a tragic incident claimed Ivy when she was 11 & Raven was 14. Raven has blamed herself since that horrible night. 

Raven is happily married & has a 15-year-old son, Luke, & 9-year-old daughter, Emerson. She's the lead microbiologist at a lab in Calgary, specializing in studying & testing water. She's always had a loving, supportive relationship with Joan, who loves providing childcare because she adores Raven & her children. It was Joan who raised Raven & Ivy after their mother left, & literally saved Raven in the dark days after Ivy's death.

But despite 3 evacuation orders, Joan has refused to leave the family home adjacent to the Echo River. When Raven arrives with Luke, Emerson, & their Chihuahua, Betty White, to convince Joan to leave, the property is already beginning to flood . . . & a deluge is imminent. Joan is stubbornly packing & by the time Raven gets her out of the house, it's too late. They can't reach the road & their only recourse is to take refuge on the roof & wait to be rescued.

The water keeps rising & being back at the house -- just above the place where Ivy perished -- causes bits & pieces of memories to return to Raven. About Ivy, their mother, their childhood, the night Ivy died . . . & Joan. Over the course of a 6-hour siege, during which the water level continues to inch perilous closely to the roof, no rescuers are able to reach them, & Emerson suffers several asthma attacks. Raven has time to analyze everything she was told about their mother, the circumstances surrounding Ivy's death, & what her own children have tried to communicate to her over the years.

(Cont. . . . )

#Colloquium #BookReviewer #ThrillerBookLoversThePulse #NoHigherGround #NicoleBrooks  #BlackstonePublishing
    📖 𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘 ⚰️ 𝐏𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐄𝐧𝐣𝐨𝐲 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐲 is author 📖 𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘 ⚰️

𝐏𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐄𝐧𝐣𝐨𝐲 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐲 is author 𝐓𝐚𝐫𝐚 𝐆𝐨𝐞𝐝𝐣𝐞𝐧's impressive debut adult novel set at a creepy, gothic castle in Austria, told via a first-person narrative. Mia returns to the castle-turned-hotel where her cousin was murdered in 2015, when Mia was there with him & her aunt, a true crime author  researching the unsolved 1969 murders of the hotel's owners. Their 5-year-old son survived & inherited the hotel but was convicted of the murder based on Mia's testimony that she heard them arguing, he leave the scene with blood on his shirt, & she found her cousin with a gash in his head.

She' s back as the nanny for the new owner who is unaware of Mia's 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭 identity. Mia has lived a nomadic life, unable to commit to a place or relationship, or even discuss the past & how it has impacted her. With the murderer seeking to overturn his conviction. Mia searches for the truth, adamantly believing the right person was convicted. 

Mia begins to doubt not just her own memories, but what her aunt led her to believe & her perceptions of Tristan. There have long been rumors that the hotel is haunted, & she starts to believe the stories may be true. But she is determined to find the killer, understand his/her motivation, & satisfy herself her testimony did not convict an innocent man.

Goedjen's atmospheric tale moves at a steady pace as she takes readers along on Mia's clandestine investigation. As Mia finds clues, Goedjen deftly heightens the suspense with each discovery, ramping up the book's pace incrementally until Mia finds the one piece of a complex puzzle that provides the answers she has been seeking. But will she live to reveal the truth & ensure that justice prevails? You'll be unable to put this book down until you find out!

ʀᴇᴄᴏᴍᴍᴇɴᴅ ꜱᴏᴍᴇ ᴇxᴄᴇʟʟᴇɴᴛ ᴛʜʀɪʟʟᴇʀꜱ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴀʀᴇ ᴄʀᴇᴇᴘɪʟʏ ᴀᴛᴍᴏꜱᴘʜᴇʀɪᴄ & ᴘᴇʀꜰᴇᴄᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ꜰᴀʟʟ ᴡʜᴇɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴡᴇᴀᴛʜᴇʀ ɪꜱ ɢᴇᴛᴛɪɴɢ ᴄᴏʟᴅᴇʀ & ᴛʜᴇ ɴɪɢʜᴛꜱ ᴀʀᴇ ɢᴇᴛᴛɪɴɢ ꜱʜᴏʀᴛᴇʀ!

#Colloquium #BookReviewer #ThrillerBookLoversThePulse #TaraGoedjen #PleaseEnjoyYourStay #Atria #EmilyBestlerBooks #Thriller #GothicMystery
    📖 ░A░u░t░h░o░r░ ░C░h░a░t░ 📖 Thank you, Ellen! It 📖 ░A░u░t░h░o░r░ ░C░h░a░t░ 📖

Thank you, Ellen!

It was so delightful chatting with author 𝐄𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧 𝐌𝐞𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫. I've been reading her books for years & feel like I know her, even though this was our first actual conversation!

We talked about how she discovered she wanted that she wanted to be a writer in high school, inspired by grudging praise from a teacher. She then had a successful career writing advertising copy before deciding in her 40's that its was finally time to pursue her dream. Since then, she has published ten novels, including 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞; 𝐅𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥, 𝐃𝐨𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐲 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐫; 𝐃𝐨𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐲 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐫 𝐃𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞; 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐒𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐲; 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐨𝐨𝐟𝐭𝐨𝐩 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐲; 𝐓𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐌𝐲 𝐇𝐮𝐬𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐝 & 𝐃𝐢𝐯𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞 𝐓𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐬 (her "pandemic books"); and, most recently, 𝐉𝐨𝐲𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐞.

Ellen described her approach to writing -- her style is a hybrid of "plotter" & "pantser" -- & the ongoing challenges of being a writer ("I have to re-learn this book writing thing with every novel!"), including getting just the right narrative voice, as well as book marketing & finding an audience for her brand.

𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨? Ellen recommends:

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐲 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝗪𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐌𝐲 𝐇𝐮𝐬𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐝 by 𝘙𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘦 𝘞𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘩
𝐌𝐲 𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬 by 𝘍𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘳𝘪𝘬 𝘉𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘮𝘢𝘯
𝐀𝐦𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐑𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐞: 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐑𝐞𝐰𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 by Amy Ferris

Ellen also encourages readers to follow & support @noonmiracle, a production house offering writing courses & other events.

ᴊᴜɴᴇ ɪꜱ ᴀʟᴍᴏꜱᴛ ᴏᴠᴇʀ ᴀʟʀᴇᴀᴅʏ. ʏɪᴋᴇꜱ! ᴡʜᴀᴛ ʙᴏᴏᴋ(ꜱ) ᴀʀᴇ ʏᴏᴜ ᴅᴇᴛᴇʀᴍɪɴᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ꜰɪɴɪꜱʜ ʀᴇᴀᴅɪɴɢ ʙᴇꜰᴏʀᴇ ᴊᴜʟʏ ᴀʀʀɪᴠᴇꜱ?

#Colloquium #BookReviewer #AuthorChat #EllenMeister #TheOtherLife #FarewellDorothyParker #DorothyParkerDrankHere #LoveSoldSeparately #TheRooftopParty #TakeMusband #DivorceTowers #Joybird #MontlakePublishing #ContemporaryFiction #WomensFiction #RomanticFiction #MagicalRealism
    📖 ░A░u░t░h░o░r░ ░C░h░a░t░ 📖 Thank you, Edward! I 📖 ░A░u░t░h░o░r░ ░C░h░a░t░ 📖

Thank you, Edward!

I had a delightful, far-ranging conversation with 𝐄𝐝𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐥, an author I just discovered when I was offered a copy of 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐍𝐨𝐰 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐧. 

He is also the author of three YA books: 𝐀𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐥𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 (inspired by his experiences as a young cellist participating in classical music competitions); 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐃𝐚𝐲 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐬 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠; and 𝐈𝐧 𝐂𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬. He says he loved writing for teenagers & continues to read YA literature. His first adult novel was 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐈𝐧-𝐁𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐞, which also features magical realism.

Edward is an accomplished musician with a degree in composition who writes underscores for TV and movies, including animated Disney production. 

We discussed his journey to publication and the trends he has observed in the publishing industry, especially with regard to books featuring LGBTQIA+ characters, and the 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 of 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘴 now becauase there are so many efforts to enact book bans and silence diverse voices. And much more!

Edward reminds us to follow @authorsagainstbookbans & contact our representatives & tell them to oppose H.R. 7661 and H.R. 8705, two efforts to enact 𝘧𝘦𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘭 book bans! 

What is the author reading? Edward recommends: 
𝐓𝐨 𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐨𝐧 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐞 by by 𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘛. 𝘋𝘶𝘨𝘢𝘯
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐁𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐭 by 𝘑𝘦𝘯 𝘍𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘶𝘴𝘰𝘯 
𝗪𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐒𝐞𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟 by 𝘊𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵
𝐋𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐩𝐮𝐬 by 𝘚𝘵𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘙𝘰𝘸𝘭𝘦𝘺
𝐁𝐨𝐲𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥 by 𝘈𝘭𝘦𝘹𝘪𝘴 𝘏𝘢𝘭𝘭

ᴡʜᴀᴛ ʙᴏᴏᴋ(ꜱ) ᴀʀᴇ ʏᴏᴜ ʀᴇᴀᴅɪɴɢ ᴀɴᴅ/ᴏʀ ʟɪꜱᴛᴇɴɪɴɢ ᴛᴏ ᴏɴ ᴛʜɪꜱ ʙᴇᴀᴜᴛɪꜰᴜʟ ꜱᴜɴᴅᴀʏ?

#Colloquium #BookReviewer #AuthorChat #EdwardUnderhill #TheHouseOfNowAndThen #AlwaysTheAlmost #ThisDayChangesEverything #InCaseYouReadThis #TheInBetweenBookstore #YABooks #AvonBooks #HarperCOllins #PrideMonth #HappyPride #ReadQueerAllYear
    🌈 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐡 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 🌈 Here are jus 🌈 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐡 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 🌈

Here are just a few books that I love and highly recommend you read any time, but especially if you are looking for a couple more that you can read before Pride Month ends. 

But remember, reading books that celebrate Pride isn't just a one-month-out-of-the-year endeavor. Read books that celebrate Pride and diversity all year long!

📚 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐧 𝐏𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 by 𝘑𝘰𝘴𝘩𝘶𝘢 𝘔𝘰𝘦𝘩𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨

📘 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐇𝐞 𝐊𝐞𝐩𝐭 𝐇𝐞𝐫
📙 𝗪𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐒𝐥𝐞𝐞𝐩
📕 𝐀 𝐋𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐓𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐆𝐨𝐧𝐞
📔 𝐁𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐁𝐫𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐧 𝐒𝐤𝐲

📕 𝗪𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐔𝐩𝐨𝐧 𝐀 𝐑𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐞 by 𝘑𝘦𝘯𝘯 𝘚𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘣𝘺 writing as Eliza Gordon ~ Thanks for the recommendation, @alannagraceauthor!

📘 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐜 𝐏𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 by 𝘔𝘪𝘭𝘰 𝘛𝘰𝘥𝘥 ~ Thanks for selecting this book, @bookbrowse! I loved discussing it with fellow readers.

📗 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐍𝐨𝐰 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐧 by 𝘌𝘥𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘜𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘭

ᴛᴇʟʟ ᴍᴇ ᴀʙᴏᴜᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴏᴏᴋꜱ ʏᴏᴜ ʟᴏᴠᴇ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴄᴇʟᴇʙʀᴛᴇ ᴘʀɪᴅᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ᴅɪᴠᴇʀꜱɪᴛʏ! 
ᴍʏ ᴛʙʀ ʟɪꜱᴛ/ꜱʜᴇʟᴠᴇꜱ ᴀʀᴇ ꜱᴏ ꜰᴀʀ ᴏᴜᴛ ᴏꜰ ᴄᴏɴᴛʀᴏʟ, ᴡʜᴀᴛ ᴄᴏᴜʟᴅ ɪᴛ ʜᴜʀᴛ ᴛᴏ ᴀᴅᴅ ᴀ ꜰᴇᴡ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ʙᴏᴏᴋꜱ, ʀɪɢʜᴛ?🤷‍♀️

#Colloquium #BookReviewer #BookLover #BenPackardSeries #JoshuaMoehling #AndThereHeKeptHer #WhereTheDeadSleep #ALongTimeGone #BeneathABrokenSky #PoisonedPenPress #JennSommersby #ElizaGordon #WishUponARosie #MiloTodd #TheLilacPeople #BookBrowse #Counterpoint #PenguinRandomHouse #TheHouseOfNowAndThen #EdwardUnderhill #AvonBooks #HarperVoyager #Pri
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