"in twenty - five years of life, she had learned that understanding didnt always - or even often - bring peace."
published: 2002
pages: not sure. too lazy to climb my bookshelf. ill check later.
pages: not sure. too lazy to climb my bookshelf. ill check later.
read: 10/9-14/2020
book: 81 in 2020
Dylan O’Connor is a gifted young artist just trying to do the right thing in life. He’s on his way to an arts festival in Santa Fe when he stops to get a room for himself and his twenty-year-old autistic brother, Shep. But in a nightmarish instant, Dylan is attacked by a mysterious “doctor,” injected with a strange substance, and told that he is now a carrier of something that will either kill him...or transform his life in the most remarkable way. Then he is told that he must flee--before the doctor’s enemies hunt him down for the secret circulating through his body. No one can help him, the doctor says, not even the police.
Stunned, disbelieving, Dylan is turned loose to run for his life...and straight into an adventure that will turn the next twenty-four hours into an odyssey of terror, mystery--and wondrous discovery. It is a journey that begins when Dylan and Shep’s path intersects with that of Jillian Jackson. Before that evening Jilly was a beautiful comedian whose biggest worry was whether she would ever find a decent man. Now she too is a carrier. And even as Dylan tries to convince her that they’ll be safer sticking together, cold-eyed men in a threatening pack of black Suburbans approach, only seconds before Jilly’s classic Coupe DeVille explodes into thin air.
Now the three are on the run together, but with no idea whom they’re running from--or why. Meanwhile Shep has begun exhibiting increasingly disturbing behavior. And whatever it is that’s coursing through their bodies seems to have plunged them into one waking nightmare after another. Seized by sinister premonitions, they find themselves inexplicably drawn to crime scenes--just minutes before the crimes take place.
What this unfathomable power is, how they can use it to stop the evil erupting all around them, and why they have been chosen are only parts of a puzzle that reaches back into the tragic past and the dark secrets they all share: secrets of madness, pain, and untimely death. Perhaps the answer lies in the eerie, enigmatic messages that Shep, with precious time running out, begins to repeat, about an entity who does his work “by the light of the moon.”
Stunned, disbelieving, Dylan is turned loose to run for his life...and straight into an adventure that will turn the next twenty-four hours into an odyssey of terror, mystery--and wondrous discovery. It is a journey that begins when Dylan and Shep’s path intersects with that of Jillian Jackson. Before that evening Jilly was a beautiful comedian whose biggest worry was whether she would ever find a decent man. Now she too is a carrier. And even as Dylan tries to convince her that they’ll be safer sticking together, cold-eyed men in a threatening pack of black Suburbans approach, only seconds before Jilly’s classic Coupe DeVille explodes into thin air.
Now the three are on the run together, but with no idea whom they’re running from--or why. Meanwhile Shep has begun exhibiting increasingly disturbing behavior. And whatever it is that’s coursing through their bodies seems to have plunged them into one waking nightmare after another. Seized by sinister premonitions, they find themselves inexplicably drawn to crime scenes--just minutes before the crimes take place.
What this unfathomable power is, how they can use it to stop the evil erupting all around them, and why they have been chosen are only parts of a puzzle that reaches back into the tragic past and the dark secrets they all share: secrets of madness, pain, and untimely death. Perhaps the answer lies in the eerie, enigmatic messages that Shep, with precious time running out, begins to repeat, about an entity who does his work “by the light of the moon.”
THOUGHTS
for some odd reason, this is my favorite DK book.
at least that was the claim i was making before i re-read it. lol. i read this back in 2002 before I knew blogging was a thing and before I even thought to write out my thoughts somewhere so of course i didn't even remember what it was about.
...and then i have no idea why i decided to re read/listen to it and uh, yea. (I think the library had the audio available asap?)
I still like it, I just found Jilly annoying as fuck and then I got sad because I am Jilly. 😂
I also thought, well of course Shep would be able to do what he does because this wouldn't be a Dean Koontz if Dean Koontz didn't make his characters work for their saving grace a lil bit, lol.
I'll keep it sweet and short and say that I am glad I didn't remember a single thing besides Fred, the plant which should say a lot because I didn't even remember he belonged to Jilly til I reread it. 😅
This is typical Dean Koontz giving you some thriller, suspense, mystery in a book that packs a punch.
I feel like because maybe I've mostly been reading chic lit AND young adult and I've already read an extensive list of his blacklist and other than his new releases i haven't really read him much lately, it felt like being reintroduced to an old friend that I didn't know I missed that much but that idk if im ready to dive back into completely. (i need light airy shit right now.)
I know, it sounds bad! but trust me!!!! I don't mean it like that! I guess its just with the times and everything going on right now I don't want heavy things to read. I just wana read some chill ass books that don't require a lot from me. If anything, I think hank greens books put me in a funk that I'm just now getting out of after reading several romances...and once again, I loved his books!!!! It's just maybe its not their time for me to read em rn.
I do want to jump back into rereading DK's books so I can re-jog my memory and finally give all my babies their own posts and I know I will, its just, maybe in a bit.
This turned into a feels post instead of my thoughts on this book. 😬
SHORT STORY: I liked this story. I love that I can rely on Dean Koontz to do what he does best and this book does just that. Its so fitting that it involved a virus and being injected with "stuff" given everything going on rn.
I loved the connections made and my absolute favorite part (other than Fred) is the cover.
Once I finished the book I was like "oh shit. It makes sense."
anyway, jump over for basic spoilers. i would have spoilers for you but i didn't fucking do them WHEN i finished the book so there that goes. 😬
SPOILERS
S P O I L E R S
S P O I L E R S
S P O I L E R S
S P O I L E R S
S P O I L E R S
S P O I L E R S
all i know is that it was their parents that had something to do with why there were injected. well, the dad. the dad created it and the dude that injected the bros is the dude that killed their dad and yea.....
but they end up at some rich dudes house and well, they all survive in the end.
except Fred.
Dean did my dude Fred dirty.
:(
i honestly already hella forgot. wow. lol
pub: 2020
pages: 306
read: 10/10-11/2020
book: 80 (!) in 2020
When a Nigerian woman falls for a man she knows will break her mother’s heart, she must choose between love and her family.
At twelve years old, Azere promised her dying father she would marry a Nigerian man and preserve her culture even after emigrating to Canada. Her mother has been vigilant about helping--forcing--her to stay well within the Nigerian dating pool ever since. But when another match-made-by-mom goes wrong, Azere ends up at a bar, enjoying the company and later sharing the bed of Rafael Castellano, a man who is tall, handsome, and white.
When their one-night stand unexpectedly evolves into something serious, Azere is caught between her growing feelings for Rafael and the compulsive need to please her mother who will never accept a relationship that threatens to dilute Azere's Nigerian heritage.
Azere can't help wondering if loving Rafael makes her any less of a Nigerian. Can she be with him without compromising her identity? The answer will either cause Azere to be audacious and fight for her happiness or continue as the compliant daughter.
At twelve years old, Azere promised her dying father she would marry a Nigerian man and preserve her culture even after emigrating to Canada. Her mother has been vigilant about helping--forcing--her to stay well within the Nigerian dating pool ever since. But when another match-made-by-mom goes wrong, Azere ends up at a bar, enjoying the company and later sharing the bed of Rafael Castellano, a man who is tall, handsome, and white.
When their one-night stand unexpectedly evolves into something serious, Azere is caught between her growing feelings for Rafael and the compulsive need to please her mother who will never accept a relationship that threatens to dilute Azere's Nigerian heritage.
Azere can't help wondering if loving Rafael makes her any less of a Nigerian. Can she be with him without compromising her identity? The answer will either cause Azere to be audacious and fight for her happiness or continue as the compliant daughter.
THOUGHTS
I LOVED THIS GODDAMN BOOK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
this is probably the book my heart was waiting for this year.
thanks baby jesus for BOTM (yea i know they really fucked up).....because if it wasnt for them i would have never came across this book (it just came out and ive only seen it ONCE on bookstagram!) and also, that cover😍! thats one of the main reasons i chose this book.
im going to say this and i know its going to sound messed up BUT this book did in chapter 1 what party of two was trying to do itself. (i know...but that's how i feel.)
the whole 'met in a hotel' spiel was done SO WELL here that i was hooked from the very first chapter; i ate this book up in just a few hours (honestly, had i just sat down i would've finished it faster!) and once i was done i found myself missing Azere & Rafael. this book also had me all in my feels.
i was SO freaking mad at her mom! i kept wishing that Azere would just tell her mom to fuck off (i know! super disrespectful!) but if you ever read this book, you'd understand. i just couldn't comprehend how her mother kept pushing men on her no matter how bad they were.
women are more than just vessels to a new life and more than subjects to men!
that shit irritated me to no end!
😠😡🤬
just thinking about it gets me mad. (you should see all of the notes i made!)
i was mad that Azere would just take it all. i still wish she'd would have stepped it up a bit more. i mean in the end it all works out but ahhh!!!
it also irked me a bit that she kept calling her mom mommy. (but that's just me).
Rafael & Azere!
their meeting!, their re-encounter!, that twist! their truths! and their ending! ahh!!
their entire story had me swooning.
it wasnt just some superficial love story. there was depth to both of them and i really liked that. he has a past, she has her African heritage...it makes for so much more than an on the surface love story.
in the end, it all works out how its supposed to and i loved it. there is a bit of a WTF twist that left me all fucked up but it works out the way its supposed to.
i think the only thing that i was kinda like "why?" over was the mention of Rafael being uber rich. maybe it was said as a way to explain some things...idk? i mean, its mentioned and its talked about very briefly afterward but.......what was the point?
to me it kinda came off as a way to justify that a Spanish man in the end ends up....(having a hard time wording this here) like "hey, he's not Edo but he has money so we should be good anyway." idk...do i make sense?
anyway, i really liked this read. im so glad i chose it. and that i dove in right away.
this is the kinda book i can see myself re-reading and im just hoping i forget enough that i can be blown away the second time around just like i was this time.
jump over for spoilers.
*sorry for typos! i either post or overanalyze because i then start doubting everything! eek!* thank you sooo much for reading!!! love you lots!
pub: 2020 (? too lazy to look)
read: 10/7/2021
book: 74-79 in 2020
SYNOPSIS
look em up on amazon...too many to link.
THOUGHTS
when will i learn.
i dont remember much about these books so, ah, ha!
BUT i did take some notes so theres that. let me go get them....
- once upon a time in silverlake: its about a homeless dude teaching her and BJ a lesson.
- big shot: giving without expecting & sorta like a day in the life of Mindy
- kinda Hindu: about her religion and her daughter
- searching for coach Taylor: the perks of not having a husband basically. lol
- help is on the way: i guess about the beauty of having help with a newborn but also how mom is always close even if she is no longer earth side.
- please like me: about being a big ass introvert and how its better than turning up.
those were all the notes that i took. i was ready to be over these books pretty quick.
they werent bad. they were just super short, they were okay to pass the time with. im having a really hard time describing here why i wasnt omg about them.
i think because theyre all like 3 minute reads. it would have been better i think for me had it been a small book of essays from her or something like that.
anyway, yea. thats basically it.
i dont know why i keep reading these amazon short stories.
thanks for reading!
 @lesreads___on IG |
published: 2020
pages: 356
read/heard:10/1-5/2020
book: 73 in 2020
read/heard:10/1-5/2020
book: 73 in 2020
A young heroine in Depression-era Maine is navigating the rocky terrain of her new life on Echo Mountain.
After the financial crash, Ellie and her family have lost nearly everything--including their home in town. They have started over, carving out a new life in the unforgiving terrain of Echo Mountain. Though her sister Esther, especially, resents everything about the mountain, Ellie has found more freedom, a new strength, and a love of the natural world that now surrounds them. But there is little joy, even for Ellie, as they all struggle with the sorrow and aftermath of an accident that left her father in a coma. An accident for which Ellie has accepted the unearned weight of blame.
Urgent for a cure to bring her father back, Ellie is determined to try anything. Following her heart, and the lead of a scruffy mutt, Ellie will make her way to the top of the mountain, in search of the healing secrets of a woman known only as "the hag." But the mountain still has many untold stories left to reveal to Ellie, as she finds her way forward among a complex constellation of strong women spanning generations.
After the financial crash, Ellie and her family have lost nearly everything--including their home in town. They have started over, carving out a new life in the unforgiving terrain of Echo Mountain. Though her sister Esther, especially, resents everything about the mountain, Ellie has found more freedom, a new strength, and a love of the natural world that now surrounds them. But there is little joy, even for Ellie, as they all struggle with the sorrow and aftermath of an accident that left her father in a coma. An accident for which Ellie has accepted the unearned weight of blame.
Urgent for a cure to bring her father back, Ellie is determined to try anything. Following her heart, and the lead of a scruffy mutt, Ellie will make her way to the top of the mountain, in search of the healing secrets of a woman known only as "the hag." But the mountain still has many untold stories left to reveal to Ellie, as she finds her way forward among a complex constellation of strong women spanning generations.
THOUGHTS
last night as i was falling asleep, i had written the most perfect post in my head and i was like WRITE IT DOWN BEFORE YOU FORGET and then of course i didn't do it and i then forgot.
U G H !!!!!
anyway, i found this book through an IG ad and i jumped on it because i liked the cover and the premise was good and if i've learned anything its that usually kids books pack a punch like no other so i was all up for it.
and this book does pack a punch.
i genuinely felt for Ellie because she was carrying so much on her and i couldn't believe how her mother was acting with her just because she adapted instead of mourning over what they had lost.
i get it. shit changed. but...well, if Ellie wasnt handy, not that you guys weren't surviving...but would you have survived in the long run had the dad not survived? look, all im saying is....why be mad at the kid who knows how to survive in the wilderness!? she doesn't know it all but she's far ahead....why would you shun her? and i get it, as a parent who lost everything you have EVERY right to be disappointed at the path that life put you in...but why would you be so harsh on your kid?
that made me sad. BUT i love that Ellie did not let that stand in her way.
"nothing about life on Echo Mountain was harder for me than that rift: the idea that i should be sorry for being different. And i made up my mind early on that i might miss my mother, miss my sister, and be lonely, but i would not be sorry for what sent me apart."
and then Esther, her sister...what a bitch....i can see how mom was on her side because she was grieving the loss right along her but i felt like it was sooo mean!😢 like she straight up picked sides instead of being a mother to both. (im not a mother so i dont know what it would even feel like so just know that i know that these are valid feelings...but so are mine and that whole situation bummed me out.)
and the story progresses...
i feel like there's a lot happening here but also, not a lot happening here? if that makes sense?
the story is more so about Eliie and her going through her feels and then trying to bring her dad back and it was good but i feel like not a lot happens.
and then they way her dad comes back...ive never been in a coma, dont know anyone whose been in one but i wasnt too crazy about that ending. kinda like "well, im 300 pages deep, lets close this bitch out real quick now".
if this book is meant to be all about Ell's feels: fuck yea!
but if it was sposed to be about like also bringing her dad back: eh.
idk.
its kinda like being on a roller coaster and expecting a crazy ass dip only to realize that its already over before you realized that it had already started.
not a bad read. im glad i read it because there were some gems in there but over all, meh.
a good chunck of the book was about El's feels. and then it was about tryina wake up dad and then it was about the figurines and finding out where they came from and then it was about Cate and then it was...over.
i have questions.
i feel like some scenes should have just been left out....idk.
idk.
jump ova' for spoilah's
"i think we're all capable of things we might not want to admit to."
published: 2020
pages: 334
read: 9/26/2020
book: 72 in 2020
It starts with a shocking accusation...
Stephanie and Patrick are recently married, with new-born twins. While Stephanie struggles with the disorienting effects of sleep deprivation, there’s one thing she knows for certain – she has everything she ever wanted.
Then a woman from his past arrives and makes a shocking accusation about his first wife. He always claimed her death was an accident – but she says it was murder.
He insists he’s innocent, that this is nothing but a blackmail attempt. But is Patrick telling the truth? Or has Stephanie made a terrible mistake?
How will it end?
Stephanie and Patrick are recently married, with new-born twins. While Stephanie struggles with the disorienting effects of sleep deprivation, there’s one thing she knows for certain – she has everything she ever wanted.
Then a woman from his past arrives and makes a shocking accusation about his first wife. He always claimed her death was an accident – but she says it was murder.
He insists he’s innocent, that this is nothing but a blackmail attempt. But is Patrick telling the truth? Or has Stephanie made a terrible mistake?
How will it end?
THOUGHTS
wowowowowowowowowowowowowowowoowowowowowow!!!!!!
wowowowowowowowowowowowowowowoowowowowowow!!!!!!
i should start off by saying that its been about a month and several books since i have last written my thoughts on a book.
idk, ive been in a funk. i havent even really been reading as much as i usually do.
its 156 am as i write this and i am sleepy as fuck but this book was just soooo wooooah! that i had to do what i havent done in months which is open up my laptop and write this post directly on blogger instead of just copying and pasting directly from the notes app on my phone.
all that should just speak volumes about how i feel about this book.
Shari, Shari, Shari.
i fucking love you! (granted i wasnt a big fan of her last book but ive loved all of her books!)
maybe this one was a bit predictable?
idk.
that's mostly what i've been seeing in regards to reviews about this book but to me personally, i think "so fucking what!?" i absolutely bloody loved it.
i didnt really read too much into the story and for once i held back and didnt look for spoilers so i wasnt really looking to expect that. AND THEN THAT happened and i was like HOLY SHIT I WAS NOT EXPECTING THAT.
AND THEN!!!! that epilogue!
Shari is the queen of open ended endings that leave you wondering "just what the fuck did just happen!?"
LOVED IT!
worth the $.90 i owe the library (oops!) from the first time i didnt get to it.
anyway...in this story, here comes Erica trying to warn Stephanie about her mans and how he's evil but of course...do you believe the crazy mad woman or do you believe your husband. and how can you even entertain such ideas when you have twins at home that never shut up because they have colic (whatever that is...i dont have kids)!?
honestly, i did feel like it was a lot of nothing (?. does that make sense?) but once you get to it, you can see the ground work that was put there for you.
and then you get deeper into the story and you can see the work that was put in for you even more and then youre left like WOAH! 😲 at least i know i was.
and if that wasnt enough, there's another 🤯.
AND IF THAT WASNT ENOUGH! there's the epilogue. which just further shows that Shari is good at fucking with your head because, tbh, HOW did it happen!?
so good.
honestly, LOVED THIS book.
and now im even more excited for her newest release next year in July (which will be here in the blink of an eye because TBH, what is even time now?)
(LMFAO!!!!!! according to the time stamp, i wrote this 12/29/2020, im "editing" on 6/30/2021. if i stick to my shit, this should post sometime in july loooool!) (update: im posting: 7/13/2021!)
anyway, i loved this book. this story was good!
and i never really do this mostly because i never remember names and shit BUT this story reminds me of the likes of Peter Swanson. both her every fear & for some reason i am also getting the kind worth killing vibes but if i could throw in another one, i'd also say before she knew him. Erica reminds me of Hen a lot. in the sense that like bitch had facts and they both were super nonchallant about them given the nature of the men around them.
okay for reals now, loved this read.
forever love Shari.
jump over for spoilers!
thanks for reading!
@lesreads___on IG |
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