Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and auld lang syne*? – Robert Burns, 1788
I am not a superhero, consciously I know this, yet somehow I am repeatedly dumbfounded when faced with the stark evidence of this simple fact. Perhaps it is societal expectations or perhaps it is just me or a combination of both. Somehow while I wasn’t paying attention another year has passed and I am desperately trying to catch up. It seems I have lost that “loving feeling” though a serenade by Tom Cruise circa 1986 would likely help a great deal. I am assured by my friends that this disquiet is not an incipient mid-life crisis but simply a side effect of the rigors of hockey season.
Typically I would chalk it up to a case of the winter blues if I hadn’t read a number of posts by other bloggers recently expressing varying degrees of disenchantment with reading, blogging etc echoing many of my own sentiments. Though the consensus has largely been the intention to read in 2015 for the love of it, and as much as I heartily agree with this edict I haven’t been so mired in indecision bookwise since the debacle that was the conclusion of Richelle Mead’s Georgina Kincaid series. However all is not lost as there is a number of books recently added to my admittedly sizable TBR pile that I hope will rekindle the passion.
UPCOMING
ARCs From Penguin/Random House Canada
Little White Lies by Katie Dale – The first time Lou meets mysterious Christian, she knows he is The One. But Christian is hiding a terrible secret. Why does he clam up every time Lou asks about his past? Why doesn’t he have any family photos, and why does he dye his blond hair black? When Christian’s house goes up in flames, his tires are slashed, and he flees for his life, Lou insists on going with him. But as Christian’s secret is unveiled in front of the whole world, it seems everything he’s ever told Lou is a lie. Can what the media are saying about him really be true? Should Lou trust him? Or is she in grave danger? And what if their accidental meeting wasn’t an accident at all…?
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins – Rachel takes the same commuter train every morning. Every day she rattles down the track, flashes past a stretch of cozy suburban homes, and stops at the signal that allows her to daily watch the same couple breakfasting on their deck. She’s even started to feel like she knows them. “Jess and Jason,” she calls them. Their life—as she sees it—is perfect. Not unlike the life she recently lost.
And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough. Now everything’s changed. Unable to keep it to herself, Rachel offers what she knows to the police, and becomes inextricably entwined in what happens next, as well as in the lives of everyone involved. Has she done more harm than good?
All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven – When Finch and Violet meet on the ledge of the bell tower at school, it’s unclear who saves whom. And when they pair up on a project to discover the “natural wonders” of their state, both Finch and Violet make more important discoveries: It’s only with Violet that Finch can be himself—a weird, funny, live-out-loud guy who’s not such a freak after all. And it’s only with Finch that Violet can forget to count away the days and start living them. But as Violet’s world grows, Finch’s begins to shrink.
NOW AVAILABLE
The Pact – Karina Halle
It all started with a pinky swear…
Linden McGregor is tall, rugged, and gunslinger handsome; a helicopter pilot with a Scottish brogue and charm to spare. He’s also one of Stephanie Robson’s best friends and has fit into that box for as long as she’s known him.
Beautiful, funny and an ambitious businesswoman (with one hell of an ass), Stephanie Robson is one of Linden McGregor’s best friends and has fit into that box for as long as he’s known her.
But some relationships can’t be boxed, can’t be classified, can’t be tamed.
Back in their mid-twenties and tired of the competitive hit-or-miss dating scene of San Francisco, Steph and Linden made a pact to marry each other if neither one of them are in a serious relationship by the time they hit thirty.
It sounds like fun and games but as the years to thirty tick past and lovers come and go out of their lives, the pact becomes larger than life.
Sex is inevitable. Friendships are tested. Hearts are on the line.
The pact is about to change everything.
It is somehow fitting that when I have reached this reading crossroads of sorts that I would come across a new offering by a somewhat “old”, at least in terms of my reading for blogging purposes, author. I discovered Karina Halle’s spectacular Experiment in Terror series in 2013. It was that perfect unlikely combination of horror and romance that sparked my interest enough to read first one then another and another and so on in rapid succession. While The Pact is a deviation from her paranormal and darker fiction of the last two years it still possessed that compulsively readable quality all of Halle’s writing seems to have in common and I consumed it in less than 24 hours. Though it is not quite a serenade from Maverick, The Pact was more than entrancing enough to inspire me to revisit my TBR pile to see what in Burn’s famous words other acquaintances I might have forgot in days long ago.
RELATED ARTICLES
- Darkhouse – Experiment in Terror #1 REVIEW
- Red Fox – Experiment in Terror #2 REVIEW
- Dead Sky Morning – Experiment in Terror #3 REVIEW
- Lying Season – Experiment in Terror #4 REVIEW
- On Demon Wings -Experiment in Terror #5 REVIEW
Christina Collie is a twenty-eight-year-old Tennessee native who began doodling images inspired by her favorite books almost four years ago before launching Doodles by Christina. Since then she has doodled over 50 images and has sold prints around the globe. Outside of being a huge bookworm, she enjoys watching LSU football, playing with her dog Nola, and hanging out on her best friend’s farm.
For Luisa Chavez, a twenty-three year old former beauty queen, a better life has always been just out of her reach. Sure, she’s had men at her feet since she was a young teenager but she’s never had the one thing she’s craved – security. Having grown up in near poverty, her waitressing job in Cabo San Lucas can barely let her take care of herself, let alone her ailing parents. Every day is another unwanted advance, every day is a struggle to survive.
Penny Dreadful Book Reviews (Est. 2013) 