Book ~ "Talk Money to Me: Save Well, Spend Some, and Feel Good About Your Money" (2019) Kelley Keehn

From Goodreads ~ No matter your age, salary, social or relationship status, money is an important part of your life. Yet, somehow, talking about your money situation is hard. Why is it that you know more about what goes on in your friend’s bedroom than with their bank account? Do you know if your parents have a will or or if they’ll leave a legacy? How many of your colleagues are still paying off student debt but are jet-setting around the globe on multiple credit cards?

Since no one is talking about it, you can’t be expected to learn how to manage your money on your own. With years of experience as a personal finance advisor and educator, Kelley Keehn will answer your most burning questions about money and will talk you through how to avoid mistakes along the way. You can gain control of your debt, learn to save for your future, have a life, and feel good about money all at the same time. And - spoiler alert - you don’t need a budget to do any of this! You’ll learn:

• How to build good credit (and get rid of bad credit—especially credit card debt)
• What all these dreaded acronyms mean and how they can work for you - TFSA, RRSP, RESP, CFP, CPP
• How and when to invest for your future 
• How to talk about money with your partner - and everyone else in your life
• How to save for a mortgage and then work towards being mortgage-free 
• How to have fun, splurge once in a while, and still save money

I work in the financial services industry so books like this catch my eye.  It's always interesting to see how others talk about retirement, budgeting, finances, etc. and I always look forward to learning something new.

The chapters are:

1. Cash or credit?
2. Shopaholic Anonymous
3. Leaving money on the table
4. All show
5. The car trap
6. Sharing is caring
7. Burn your mortgage
8. Going solo
9. The sandwich generation
10. Where are you now?

There is a glossary at the end.

Each chapter begins with scenarios with various situations, along with missteps.  There are solutions followed by where they are now.

I found the information in this book was at a basic level so it's good for someone who doesn't know a lot and gives them something to think about about building your credit rating, saving for retirement, don't spend more than you have, etc.  It seemed, though, that the solution to each situation was to hire a fee-for-service Certified Financial Planner, which I don't think was needed every time.  Don't overspend.  Don't live beyond your means.  Don't try to keep up with friends.  If you don't need it but want it but can't afford it, don't get it.

Book ~ "Seven Days" (2019) Alex Lake

From Goodreads ~ In seven days, Maggie’s son, Max, turns three. But she’s not planning a party or buying presents or updating his baby book. She’s dreading it. Because in her world, third birthdays are the days on which the unthinkable happens ... she loses her child.

For the last twelve years Maggie has been imprisoned in a basement. Abducted aged fifteen, she gave birth to two sons before Max and on their third birthdays, her captor came and took them from her.

She cannot let it happen again. But she has no idea how to stop it. And the clock is ticking.

Maggie is 15 years old when she's abducted in 2006 while walking to her cousin's house.  She spends the next twelve years living in a windowless room with no means to escape.  "The man" brings her food twice a day, rapes her often and punishes her when she gets out of line.  She makes a rough calendar to keep track of time.  She becomes pregnant with Seb.  Despite how he was conceived, Maggie loves him more than she thought could be possible.  On Seb's third birthday, "the man" takes him away and she never sees him again.  She gets pregnant again with Leo and the same thing happens on his third birthday.  She gets pregnant a third time with Max.  She knows now what will happen to Max on his third birthday (in seven days) and gets more panicked as the day approaches.

In the meantime, Maggie's family has no idea what has happened to her.  Has she run away?  Has she been murdered?  Has she been sold as a sex slave for porn movies and/or prostitution?  As the years go by and there is no sign of her, they try to move on with their lives.

Given the storyline, I found this book a bit disturbing to read ... but I kept going hoping Maggie would be able to escape somehow and "the man" (we find out who it is about halfway through the book) would be brought to justice.

I liked the writing style.  It is written in third person perspective with the focus on wherever the action is ... Maggie, her mother, her brother, her father and the investigating police officer.  The timeline jumps back and from from 2006 to 2018 and is labeled at the beginning of the chapters when the time changes.  As a head's up, there is swearing, adult activity and violence.

Book ~ "Big Lies in a Small Town" (2019) Diane Chamberlain

From Goodreads ~ North Carolina, 2018: Morgan Christopher's life has been derailed. Taking the fall for a crime she did not commit, she finds herself serving a three-year stint in the North Carolina Women's Correctional Center. 

Her dream of a career in art is put on hold - until a mysterious visitor makes her an offer that will see her released immediately. Her assignment: restore an old post office mural in a sleepy southern town. Morgan knows nothing about art restoration but desperate to leave prison, she accepts. What she finds under the layers of grime is a painting that tells the story of madness, violence and a conspiracy of small town secrets.

North Carolina, 1940: Anna Dale, an artist from New Jersey, wins a national contest to paint a mural for the post office in Edenton, North Carolina. Alone in the world and desperate for work, she accepts. But what she doesn't expect is to find herself immersed in a town where prejudices run deep, where people are hiding secrets behind closed doors, and where the price of being different might just end in murder.

What happened to Anna Dale? Are the clues hidden in the decrepit mural? Can Morgan overcome her own demons to discover what exists beneath the layers of lies? 

North Carolina, 1940
Anna Dale's mother has just passed away when she wins a national contest to paint a mural for a post office in Edenton, a small town in North Carolina.  She moves temporarily from New Jersey to Edenton to get to know the town and do the mural justice.  A couple high school students help her out for credits and experience.  One is black and the small town's prejudices don't approve.  Plus a local artist had entered the contest and Anna was chosen over him, so there is some resentment.

North Carolina, 2018
Morgan has just spent a year in a woman's prison when she is made an offer she can't refuse.  She has been chosen by one of her favourite painters to restore a mural for the gallery his estate is opening.  Not know anything about restoration or why she was chosen as the late painter's latest project, she agrees so she can be released early from prison.  As she starts cleaning up the mural, which Anna Dale had painted, Morgan discovers some disturbing things that have been painted on it and wants to know what happened to Anna.

I've read many books by this author and liked this one.  I liked the writing style and found the story interesting.  It bounces around in the two different time periods and voices but the chapters are marked as to what the time period is and whose voice it is. It is written in first person perspective from Morgan's point of view and third person when it's Anna's point of view.  I liked the characters.  As a head's up, there is some swearing and violence.

Book ~ "Keeping My Sisters' Secrets" (2017) Beezy Marsh

From Goodreads ~ Eva, Peggy and Kathleen were sisters born into a close-knit working class family, living in a tiny terraced house in a London street so rough the police would only walk down it in pairs. As they grew up between the wars, they dreamed of escaping their father's anger and the struggle of daily life in Waterloo.

Peggy was a studious and principled girl so appalled by conditions in the factories that she became a Communist. Beautiful Kathleen, with a voice like silk, experienced tragedy too young and was destined to have her heart broken time and time again. Feisty Eva became a child thief so she could help their mother put food on the table and never lost her rebellious streak, or her desire to protect her family by whatever means necessary.

Over the years the sisters stayed together, sharing each other's lives and supporting each other through hard times. "Keeping My Sisters' Secrets" is a rich, moving story of their fight to survive through decades of social upheaval, their love for each other the one constant in a changing world.

Peggy, Kathleen and Eva are sisters (they also have two brothers) living in London between WWI and WWII.  They are poor and barely getting by.  Their father takes his frustration out on their mother by beating her.  When Peggy is old enough, her family makes her leave school to get a job with the post office.  The same with Kathleen ... she gets a job in a jam factory when she is old enough.  Eva, though, became a thief at an early age and provides a lot for the family.  The girls eventually fall in love, get married and start families of their own.

I found the book interesting at first ... but I found the characters unlikable.  Kathleen was the beautiful one but, despite claiming she wouldn't make the same mistake her mother made, is desperate enough to marry an abusive man.  Eva started stealing when she was about ten.  Her mother knew but didn't do anything about it because she was benefiting from it.

The editing could have been tighter.  There were typos.  For example, it should have been " ... a friend of her brother, Frankie's" not "... a friend of her brother Frankies".  And at one point, Kathleen leaves Albert's house where they have been living after they got married because she "did not want to die next to Albert's miserable mother-in-law".  Albert's mother-in-law would have been her mother who she loves not HER mother-in-law who is a hag.  There were many expressions I've never heard of before ... like cozzer, hoisting and whip-round.

What were the sisters' secrets anyway?  I still don't know.  Whatever they were, they couldn't have been that big of a deal.

Book ~ "The Missing Millionaire: The True Story of Ambrose Small and the City Obsessed With Finding Him" (2019) Katie Daubs

From Goodreads ~ In December 1919, Ambrose Small, the mercurial owner of the Grand Opera House in Toronto, closed a deal to sell his network of Ontario theatres, deposited a million-dollar cheque in his bank account, and was never seen again. As weeks turned to years, the disappearance became the most "extraordinary unsolved mystery" of its time. Everything about the sensational case would be called into question in the decades to come, including the motivations of his inner circle, his enemies, and the police who followed the trail across the continent, looking for answers in asylums, theatres and the Pacific Northwest. 

In "The Missing Millionaire", Katie Daubs tells the story of the Small mystery, weaving together a gripping narrative with the social and cultural history of a city undergoing immense change. Daubs examines the characters who were connected to the case as the century carried on: Ambrose's religious wife, Theresa; his long-time secretary, Jack Doughty; his two unmarried sisters, Florence and Gertrude; Patrick Sullivan, a lawless ex-policeman; and Austin Mitchell, an overwhelmed detective. A series of trials exposed Small’s tumultuous business and personal relationships, while allegations and confessions swirled. But as the main players in the Small mystery died, they took their secrets to the grave, and Ambrose Small would be forever missing. 

Drawing on extensive research, newly discovered archival material, and her own interviews with the descendants of key figures, Katie Daubs offers a rich portrait of life in an evolving city in the early twentieth century. Delving into a crime story about the power of the elite, she vividly recounts the page-turning tale of a cold case that is truly stranger than fiction. 

At age 53, Ambrose Small was a self-made millionaire who lived in Toronto and owned several Ontario-based theatres including the Grand Opera House in Toronto (where the Scotia Plaza now is).  On December 1, 1919, he sold his theatre holdings for $1.7 million and deposited a million dollar cheque in the bank.  The next day he met with his lawyer in his office at the Grand Opera House.  His lawyer left at 5:30 p.m. and was the last person to see Small ... no one has seen him or heard from him since.  Because he would take off, Theresa, his wife, wasn't overly concerned when he didn't arrive home for supper and didn't report him missing until a few weeks later.

This book is about the disappearance of Small and the investigation.  No one knows what happened to him.  Was he murdered?  If so, there were many suspects.  Theresa, who was very religious, might have gotten tired of his womanizing.  Jack, his assistant, wasn't a fan of Small's because he felt Small didn't treat him well.  Maybe Small took off to start a new life ... but it's weird that he didn't take any of the money with him.  Maybe he had amnesia ... but he was easily recognizable, especially with all the posters advertising a reward for his return.

It's an interesting story and the author did a thorough job in researching, even speaking with descendants of the Small and Jack.  The editing could have been a bit tighter, though, as there were some typos.

Book ~ "The Last Affair" (2019) Margot Hunt

From Goodreads ~ Nora Holliday is not that kind of woman. Not the kind who has an illicit affair with a married man. But Josh Landon is everything Nora’s alcoholic husband isn’t. And now she and Josh are so infatuated, they can’t stay away from one another.

Abby Landon, Josh’s daughter, is home from college nursing a broken heart. She’s seeking solace, not more scandal, so when she catches her dad kissing Nora, she vows to take the homewrecker down.

And as for Abby’s mother and Josh’s wife, Gwen? To anyone on the outside looking in, the mother of two appears to be living the ideal suburban life.

Until she winds up dead.

The serene seaside town of Shoreham has always been the perfect place to raise a family - not somewhere housewives are brutally murdered. So who killed Gwen Landon and how many twisted secrets will be exposed as the vindictive plot comes undone? 

We know right away that Gwen gets murdered.  Gwen is not a nice person so there could any number of people who kill her.

Nora and Josh are from the same town and happen to run into each other at a hotel where their conferences are being held.  They have dinner together and there is an attraction.  And so begins their affair, which continues after they get back home.

Nora is the mother of three children.  Carter, her husband, is an alcoholic and there's no longer any love between them.  Josh is married to Gwen and they  have two children.  Josh realized many years ago that despite her outward appearances, Gwen is all about Gwen and there's no love between them.  No wonder Nora and Josh get together.  Josh also had to deal with the return of his daughter, Abby.  She was at university and abruptly quit and came home with her heart broken.  Once Abby catches her Josh kissing Nora, she becomes obsessed with finding out who she is.

This is the third book I've read by this author and I liked it.  It is written in third person perspective in Nora, Gwen, Josh and Abby's voice.  It could have been many who murdered Gwen and I was okay with whodunnit.  As a head's up, there is swearing and some violence.

Despite their cheating, I liked Nora and Josh and it seemed like there was real affection between them.  The author did a good job in making Gwen hateful.  I wasn't a fan of Abby ... I found she was a bit extreme.  She left university because of her boyfriend and then was a big baby while she was living back home.  I found her a bit unbelievable given her age.

Book ~ "Three Days Missing" (2018) Kimberly Belle

From Goodreads ~ It’s every parent’s worst nightmare: the call that comes in the middle of the night.

When Kat Jenkins awakens to the police on her doorstep, her greatest fear is realized. Her eight-year-old son, Ethan, is missing - vanished from the cabin where he’d been on an overnight field trip with his class. Shocked and distraught, Kat rushes to the campground where he was last seen. But she’s too late; the authorities have returned from their search empty-handed after losing Ethan’s trail in the mountain forest.

Another mother from the school, Stef Huntington, seems like she has it all: money, prominence in the community, a popular son and a loving husband. She hardly knows Kat, except for the vicious gossip that swirls around Kat’s traumatic past. But as the police investigation unfolds, Ethan’s disappearance will have earth-shattering consequences in Stef’s own life - and the paths of these two mothers are about to cross in ways no one could have anticipated.

Racing against the clock, their desperate search for answers begins - one where the greatest danger could lie behind the everyday smiles of those they trust the most.

Kat has recently separated from her abusive husband, Andrew, and he is fighting her over everything.  She is very protective of their eight-year-old son, Ethan, who has an above average IQ and is bullied at school.  Kat is hesitant to let him go on an overnight chaperoned camping trip with his class but he really want to go.  Then she discovers he has disappeared during the night and rushes to the campsite, wanting to help the police find him.  She suspects Andrew has taken him as revenge against her.

Stef is the wife of Sam, Atlanta's mayor, and mother to their son, Sammy.  Sammy is in Ethan's class and on the same overnight camping trip as Ethan.  She gets a call the next morning who claims they have kidnapped her son and she rushes to the campsite to validate whether it's true or not.

This is the third book I've read by this author and I thought it was okay.  It is written in first person perspective in Kat and Stef's voices ... the chapters alternate and are marked so you know whose voice it is.  This worked for me because I liked getting to know what was going on in their heads.  I thought the whodunnit was obvious and figured it out pretty quickly.  I found Ethan and Sammy rather unlikable and seemed to act older than their age.  As a head's up, there is swearing and violence.

Book ~ "The 19th Christmas" (2019) James Patterson and Maxine Paetro

From Goodreads ~ As the holidays approach, Detective Lindsay Boxer and her friends in the Women's Murder Club have much to celebrate. Crime is down. The medical examiner's office is quiet. Even the courts are showing some Christmas spirit. And the news cycle is so slow that journalist Cindy Thomas is on assignment to tell a story about the true meaning of the season for San Francisco.

Then a fearsome criminal known only as "Loman" seizes control of the headlines. He is planning a deadly surprise for Christmas morning. And he has commissioned dozens of criminal colleagues to take actions that will mask his plans. All that Lindsay and the SFPD can figure out is that Loman's greed - for riches, for bloodshed, for attention - is limitless.

Solving crimes never happens on schedule, but as this criminal mastermind unleashes credible threats by the hour, the month of December is upended for the Women's Murder Club. Avoiding tragedy is the only holiday miracle they seek.

This is the nineteenth in the Women's Murder Club series (I've read them all). Though it is part of a series, it does work as a stand alone.  There are four members of the Women's Murder Club ... cop Lindsay, reporter Cindy, medical examiner Claire and prosecutor Yuki.  I don't know why it's considered part of this series because (1) Claire was basically non-existent (she and her husband headed to a conference at the beginning of the book and arrived home in time for New Years Eve) and (2) the only time the four women got together was at the end to celebrate New Years Eve.  As usual, the focus is more on Lindsay.

The police department starts getting random tips and vague clues that something big is going to happen.  But they have no idea what so they are trying to cover all their bases which is stretching the department thin since it's happening over the Christmas holidays.  Unfortunately Lindsay and Richie didn't have the foresight to take their loved ones out of town so they are stuck working crazy hours, as is acting chief Brady (Yuki's husband) and former chief, Jacobi.

Cindy is approached by the wife of a Mexican man who has been in prison for two years for a random murder.  He and his family are in the country illegally.  As she investigates, Cindy feels the man is innocent and pulls Yuki in to help prove it.  It was a weird random subplot that seemed out of place other than trying to invoke some Christmas spirit?

I thought the writing was okay.  There was odd stuff, though, that made me wonder if perhaps the two authors had written different chapters and hadn't read each others.  Or the editor slacked off.  For example, Jacobi is brought into the story and we find out that he was the former chief before he retired.  Then a couple chapters later, the beginning of chapter 31 starts "Former chief Warren Jacobi drove".  Yep, I know ... I didn't forget who he is.  It's like they were introducing a new character but weren't.  This happened a couple times.

I liked the short choppy chapters.  The point of view shifted ... it was first person perspective when the focus was on Lindsay and third person perspective when the focus was on others such as Cindy, Yuki, etc.  As a head's up, there is swearing.

I found the ending and whodunnit really lame.  Throughout the book, "Loman" is portrayed as incredibly smart, vicious and manipulative and I thought he was actually a wimp in the end.  The end came very quickly and I went "Huh?  That was it?  All that build-up for that?"  To be honest, I'm still not sure what the caper was and how he expected to pull it off.

Everyone gets together for New Years Eve and are happy happy happy.  Then the next couple chapters focus on Joe and seem random and out of place.  I thought maybe it was the first couple chapters as a preview for the 20th book .... but no.  I'm assuming they are indeed setting us up for the 20th book but it was strange how they handled it.

Book ~ "The Blind Mechanic" (2018) Marilyn Davidson Elliott

From Goodreads ~ Eric Davidson lost both eyes in the Halifax Explosion when he was two years old. Against all odds, he taught himself to become an auto mechanic and had a successful decades-long career as "one of the boys."

Eric Davidson was a beautiful, fair-haired toddler when the Halifax Explosion struck, killing almost 2,000 people and seriously injuring thousands of others. Eric lost both eyes - a tragedy that his mother never fully recovered from. Eric, however, was positive and energetic. He also developed a fascination with cars and how they worked, and he later decided, against all likelihood, to become a mechanic. Assisted by his brothers who read to him from manuals, he worked hard, passed examinations, and carved out a decades-long career. Once the subject of a National Film Board documentary, Eric Davidson was, until his death, a much-admired figure in Halifax.

This book does not gloss over the challenges faced by Eric and by his parents. Written by his daughter Marilyn, it gives new insights into the story of the 1917 Halifax Explosion and contains never-before-seen documents and photographs. While Eric Davidson has been mentioned in previous Explosion accounts, his story has never been told in such fascinating detail. Davidson overcame such odds that his life story might not seem believable if it had not happened.

The Halifax Explosion was a maritime disaster in Halifax, Nova Scotia, which happened on the morning of December 6, 1917.  The Norwegian vessel SS Imo collided with SS Mont-Blanc, a French cargo ship with explosives, in Halifax Harbour.  About 2,000 people were killed by the blast, debris, fires or collapsed buildings, and an estimated 9,000 others were injured.

Nearly all structures within half-mile radius, including the Halifax community of Richmond, were obliterated.  A pressure wave snapped trees, bent iron rails, demolished buildings, grounded vessels and scattered fragments of Mont-Blanc for kilometres.  Across the harbour, in Dartmouth, there was also widespread damage.

Relief efforts began almost immediately and hospitals quickly became full.  Rescue trains began arriving the day of the explosion from across Nova Scotia and New Brunswick while other trains from central Canada and the northeastern United States were delayed by blizzards.

The blast was the largest man-made explosion at the time and in the North End of Halifax, there are several memorials to the victims of the explosion.

Eric Davidson (1915 - 2009) was two years old when this tragedy occurred.  He was watching out the window when the blast happened.  Shattered glass went into his eyes and the doctor determined that his eyes couldn't be saved.  His eyes were removed and he was fitted with prosthetics.  Quite an experience for such a young boy but he adapted.  When he was old enough, he was sent to The Halifax School for the Blind for his education and to learn a trade.  But he had an interest in cars and he really wanted to be a mechanic.  After understandably being turned down by garages, Eric taught himself how to fix cars and with his keen sense of hearing and touch, developed a reputation of being an expert at repairing cars and was eventually hired on at garages, fulfilling his dream.

Eric would marry Mary and have three children.  His daughter, Marilyn, is the author of this book.  She tells of Eric's life ... his childhood, his marriage and raising a family, his hobby of collecting and repairing antique cars, the recognition of his achievements and goodwill, and more.  With Eric's death in 2009, there was only one last survivor of the explosion still living.

I liked this book and found it interesting.  Despite what had happened to him, it sounds like Eric was a happy helpful fella who didn't let his disability stop him.  I liked the writing style ... it's told in a conversational manner.  You should check it out if you would like to know how the Halifax Explosion affected a family and how they moved on from the experience.  Plus it's a personal perspective on some Canadian history.

Book ~ "Twisted Twenty-Six" (2019) Janet Evanovich

From Goodreads ~ Grandma Mazur is a widow ... again. This time her marriage lasted a whole 45 minutes. The unlucky groom was one Jimmy Rosolli, local gangster, lothario (senior division) and heart attack waiting to happen ... well, the waiting's over.

It's a sad day but if she can't have Jimmy at least Grandma can have all the attention she wants as the dutiful widow. But some kinds of attention are not welcomed, particularly when Jimmy's former "business partners" are convinced that his widow is keeping the keys to their financial success for herself.

As someone who has spent an entire career finding bad guys, a set of missing keys should be no challenge for Stephanie Plum. Problem is, the facts are as twisted as a boardwalk pretzel with mustard.

Stephanie's grandmother has just gotten married to a mobster named Jimmy, who passes away 45 minutes later in a casino. His ex-wife isn't happy because now she's been cut out of the will. His mobster friends aren't happy because he had the keys to a fortune and they figure he had given them to Grandma. What keys?! But he didn't but that doesn't stop everyone from coming after Grandma to get them.

Stephanie works for her bail bondsman cousin, Vinnie, and is questioning her life.  Lulu is a former 'ho who works with her. As usual, they have a couple people they have to track down who didn't show up for their court date. Stephanie and Joe, a police officer, are still together and Ranger, her former colleague, is still hot and lusting after Stephanie, which is tempting her.

This is the 26th in the Stephanie Plum series and I've read them all. As in previous books, Evanovich continues to follow her formula:

• Stephanie is lusting after Morelli and Ranger ... check
• Lulu talks about food all the time and talks about going on a diet ... check
• Stephanie goes home to mooch meals from her parents ... check
• Ranger calls Stephanie "Babe" and just wants to have sex with her with no commitment ... check
• Ranger has his employees tail Stephanie to keep her out of trouble ... check
• Something happens to Stephanie's car so Ranger lends her a nice one ... check

I liked this book better than the last few.  It was nice to see Stephanie's dad do more than just grunt, eat, watch TV and want to kill Grandma.  It's written in first person perspective from Stephanie's point of view. There is some swearing and adult situations.  Since it's basically the same story over and over, though, I stopped buying these books a long time ago and now borrow them from the library. It's a mindless familiar read.

Book ~ "A Stranger in the House" (2017) Shari Lapena

From Goodreads ~ Karen and Tom Krupp are happy - they’ve got a lovely home in upstate New York, they’re practically newlyweds and they have no kids to interrupt their comfortable life together. But one day, Tom returns home to find Karen has vanished - her car’s gone and it seems she left in a rush. She even left her purse - complete with phone and ID - behind.

There's a knock on the door - the police are there to take Tom to the hospital where his wife has been admitted. She had a car accident and lost control as she sped through the worst part of town.

The accident has left Karen with a concussion and a few scrapes. Still, she’s mostly okay - except that she can’t remember what she was doing or where she was when she crashed. The cops think her memory loss is highly convenient and they suspect she was up to no good.

Karen returns home with Tom, determined to heal and move on with her life. Then she realizes something’s been moved. Something’s not quite right. Someone’s been in her house. And the police won't stop asking questions.

Because in this house, everyone’s a stranger. Everyone has something they’d rather keep hidden. Something they might even kill to keep quiet. 

Tom comes home from work late one night and discovers the door is unlocked, Karen, his wife, is gone, her car is gone but her phone and purse are in the house.  Then he gets a call that Karen has been in a car accident and is in the hospital.  He rushes to the hospital ... Karen is battered but okay but has amnesia.  It's a good thing she has the support of Tom and Brigid, her best friend from across the street, to help her through this.  Then a dead body is found near where Karen had her accident and the police are looking at Karen for murdering the man ... the problem is, though, that Karen can't remember that night, why she was even in that 'hood and if she did indeed murder the man (and why).

I liked this book and as with this author's other books, there's always a weird twist at the end, which I liked in this one.  I liked the writing style ... it's written in third person perspective with a focus on wherever the action is.  As a head's up, there is swearing.

Book ~ "An Unwanted Guest" (2018) Shari Lapena

From Goodreads ~ A remote lodge in upstate New York is the perfect getaway. ... until the bodies start piling up.

It's winter in the Catskills and the weather outside is frightful. But Mitchell's Inn is so delightful! The cozy lodge nestled deep in the woods is perfect for a relaxing - maybe even romantic - weekend away. The Inn boasts spacious old rooms with huge wood-burning fireplaces, a well-stocked wine cellar and opportunities for cross-country skiing, snowshoeing or just curling up with a book and someone you love. 

So when the weather takes a turn for the worse and a blizzard cuts off the electricity - and all contact with the outside world - the guests settle in for the long haul. The power's down but they've got candles, blankets and wood - a genuine rustic experience! 

Soon, though, a body turns up - surely an accident. When a second body appears, they start to panic. Then they find a third body. Within the snowed-in paradise, something - or someone - is picking off the guests one by one. They can't leave and with no cell service, there's no prospect of getting the police in until the weather loosens its icy grip. The weekend getaway has turned deadly. For some couples, it's their first time away. For others, it will be their last. And there's nothing they can do about it but huddle down and hope they can survive the storm. 

Ten people head for a weekend getaway to a quaint inn in the Catskill ... two girl friends, an engaged couple, a dating couple, a couple whose marriage is in trouble, an author and an attorney.  Because of the nasty wintry weather, staff and other guests can't make it and it's up to the owner and his son to take care of everyone.

On the second morning, one of the guests is found dead at the bottom of the stairs.  It looks like an accident but the attorney wants to make sure so asks that the body not be moved until the police arrive ... which probably wouldn't be until the next day.  Then another guest is found dead, obviously murdered.  And later that day, there is another murder.

No one trusts each other now.  Was it someone who was staying at the inn committing the murders?  Or was there someone else hiding there they aren't aware of?

This was an interesting story with lots of twists and turns to throw you off and get you thinking in different directions about whodunnit.  The whodunnit was a surprise to me and I bought it.  What I wasn't buying, though, was how they were caught (the clue they left behind).  I liked the writing style.  It's written in third person perspective with a focus on wherever the action is.  As a head's up, there is swearing.

Book ~ "A Dangerous Man" (2019) Robert Crais

From Goodreads ~ Joe Pike didn't expect to rescue a woman that day. He went to the bank same as anyone goes to the bank and returned to his Jeep. So when Isabel Roland, the lonely young teller who helped him, steps out of the bank on her way to lunch, Joe is on hand when two men abduct her. Joe chases them down and the two men are arrested. But instead of putting the drama to rest, the arrests are only the beginning of the trouble for Joe and Izzy. 

After posting bail, the two abductors are murdered and Izzy disappears. Pike calls on his friend, Elvis Cole, to help learn the truth. What Elvis uncovers is a twisted family story that involves corporate whistleblowing, huge amounts of cash, the Witness Relocation Program, and a long line of lies. But what of all that did Izzy know? Is she a perpetrator or a victim? And how far will Joe go to find out? 

After Joe Pike does his business at his bank, he sees the Isabel, the teller who had taken care of him, get kidnapped right in front of the bank.  He follows the car and saves her.  The would-be kidnappers are found dead shortly after they are released from jail the next day.  When Isabel disappears again, Joe begins to look for her.  He discovers Ted, a family friend of Isabel's who was a retired U.S. marshal, was recently murdered and Joe asks his friend and partner, Elvis Cole, a private investigator to find out what's going on.

Elvis discovers that Ted bragged about some of the people he had put in the witness protection program and it seems that Ted had helped Isabel's family many years ago get a new life.  But there may be someone who still carries a grudge against the family and there may be some missing money they want back ... and they think Isabel knows where it is.

I discovered the Elvis Cole series in the 1990s.  What attracted me to it was that Elvis was funny and tried to be charming ... the books were a fun read.  I find when Joe Pike is the focus, as it is with this book, it is more heavy and serious and not as much fun.  The book is written in third person perspective with whoever the focus is.  Though it's #18 in the series, it works as a stand alone.  As a head's up, there is some swearing and violence.

I found some of the writing a bit lazy and confusing.  Like what is "PT"?  It's something Joe did after a run and before he got dressed.  Another line was "Cole glanced at Carly as they shook."  Did Elvis and Joe shake hands?  Or did they both physically shake?  What's a "scimitar smile"?  I had to look up what scimitar meant and it's a short sword.  What is a sword smile?!  And what's a "Cheez-It dick"?  Chen is describing a police officer ... I didn't know what the "Cheez-It" meant.

Book ~ "Friends: A Cultural History (The Cultural History of Television)" (2019) Jennifer C. Dunn

From Goodreads ~ A cultural phenomenon for a decade, "Friends" ranked in the top ten for every year of its original run, an accomplishment unmatched by any other scripted series. 

And more than twenty-five years since its theme song promised "I'll be there for you," Rachel, Monica, Phoebe, Joey, Chandler and Ross are still entertaining audiences around the world. 

As the characters maneuvered their ways through dating, love and the occasional conflict, their loyalty to each other remained steadfast. 

In "Friends: A Cultural History", Jennifer C. Dunn explores why the show immediately took hold of viewers and how the series remained must-see TV for so long. Dunn examines the cultural landscape that allowed a show not centered on traditional sitcom norms of family and career to become such a critical and commercial success. 

The author also addresses how the show's complicated depictions of gender roles and class distinctions - as well as its lack of ethnic diversity - did not detract from its popularity. In addition to exploring memorable plotlines, cherished moments, and the quirks of the principal players, this book analyzes the show's enduring cultural relevance. Featuring a discussion of the show's 25 best episodes, "Friends: A Cultural History" offers an engaging look at the series that has resonated with generations of television viewers. 

I was a fan of Friends and still watch the shows now and then when I come across them on TV ... so that's why this book caught my eye.

This book covers a lot of information about Friends and for the most part I found it interesting.

The chapters were:

1. Friends changes the sitcom landscape
2. Friends one-screen and off
3. Friends as family
4. Friends happy not doing too much
5. Friends happy not thinking too much
6. Thin, white, upper-middle-class Friends
7. Stereotypes, sexuality and Friendly tensions
8. Friends music, fashions and locations will all be there for you
9. Friends among fans:  memes and alternative narratives
10. Friends forever
11. Appendix:  The One with the Twenty-five Best Episodes

This book discusses the beginnings of the show, the actors, their characters, what was happening in their real lives when they were doing the show and what they've done since.  When I originally watched it and even watching the shows today, I didn't consider it too deep ... but this book does.  It analyzes how, though there were brief secondary characters of colour and different nationalities, the main characters were white, how they were able to live in such nice apartments, etc.  It also examines the different roles and relationships of the characters over the ten years.  It showcases some of the sayings from the show that have come into our lives like "How YOU doin'?", the impact of the song on the Rembrandts and how the show connected to other shows.

Though there was a lot of information, I was surprised that there was no mention of the surrogate mother of Monica and Chandler's surrogate babies, Bruce Willis, Pete and a brief mention of Gunther.

According to the author, the Ross and Monica were the least liked characters ... I personally found Ross and Rachel annoying and hated how prominent their storylines were.

Book ~ "Talk Triggers: The Complete Guide to Creating Customers with Word of Mouth" (2018) Jay Baer and Daniel Lemin

From Goodreads ~ Word of mouth is directly responsible for 19% of all purchases and influences as much as 90%. Every human on earth relies on word of mouth to make buying decisions. Yet even today, fewer than 1% of companies have an actual strategy for generating these crucial customer conversations. "Talk Triggers" provides that strategy in a compelling, relevant, timely book that can be put into practice immediately, by any business.

The key to activating customer chatter is the realization that same is lame. Nobody says "let me tell you about this perfectly adequate experience I had last night." The strategic, operational differentiator is what gives customers something to tell a story about. Companies (including the 30+ profiled in "Talk Triggers") must dare to be different and exceed expectations in one or more palpable ways. That's when word of mouth becomes involuntary: the customers of these businesses simply MUST tell someone else.

Consumers are wired to discuss what is different and ignore what is average. "Talk Triggers" not only dares the reader to differentiate, it includes the precise formula for doing it.

Combining compelling stories, inspirational examples, and practical how-to, "Talk Triggers" is the first indispensable book about word of mouth. It's a book that will create conversation about the power of conversation. 

I find books about customer service and customer reactions interesting so that's why this book caught my eye ... it's about talk triggers and word-of-mouth marketing.  I'd never heard the term "talk triggers" before.

The sections are:

1. Why word of mouth works
2. The four talk trigger criteria - be remarkable, relevant, reasonable and repeatable
3. The five types of talk triggers - talkable empathy, talkable usefulness, talkable generosity, talkable speed and talkable attitude
4. Creating talk triggers in six steps - gather internal insights, get close to your customers, create candidate talk triggers, test and measure your talk triggers, expand and turn on and amplify your talk trigger
5. Appendix - summaries of the chapters including the key points and key data

I liked that there were case studies in all the chapters.  For example, they discussed how Doubletree Hotels by Hilton give you a warm cookie when you check in.  I've stayed at the Doubletree Hotel in Regina, SK, a few times and yes, they do give you a warm cookie (sometimes two!) when you check in.  And yes, I've told others about it and mentioned it in my blog posts and Yelp posts.  And yes, it is one of the reasons I stay at this hotel when I go to Regina.  I didn't realize there was a term for it (ie talk trigger).  The book also discusses Five Guys Burger and Fries.  I've had a burger and fries at a few of their restaurants.  Even if you are eating in, your order comes in a bag.  And regardless of the size of fries you order, they intentionally give you more (hence the bag) ... and yes, they do.  And yes, I have mentioned the abundance of fries in my blog posts and Yelp posts without realizing it was their talk trigger.

Book ~ "Someone We Know" (2019) Shari Lapena

From Goodreads ~ "This is a very difficult letter to write. I hope you will not hate us too much.  My son broke into your home recently while you were out."

In a quiet, leafy suburb in upstate New York, a teenager has been sneaking into houses - and into the owners' computers as well - learning their secrets, and maybe sharing some of them, too.

Who is he and what might he have uncovered? After two anonymous letters are received, whispers start to circulate and suspicion mounts. And when a woman down the street is found murdered, the tension reaches the breaking point. Who killed her? Who knows more than they're telling? And how far will all these very nice people go to protect their own secrets?

In this neighborhood, it's not just the husbands and wives who play games. Here, everyone in the family has something to hide.

You never really know what people are capable of.

When Amanda doesn't come home after a shopping weekend away with a friend, her husband, Robert, reports her missing.  It turns out she wasn't away with her friend after all and everyone assumes she has left her abusive husband ... until her body turns up.  Then the police start investigating.  It seems like all the men in the neighbourhood were attracted to Amanda (and she didn't discourage them) and because of this, their wives didn't like her.

In the meantime, Olivia and Paul's son, Raleigh, has been breaking into houses, not to steal anything, but to hack into their computers.  When Olivia finds out, she feels bad and sends anonymous letters of apology to the two houses she knows about.  This puts one neighbour on the hunt to find out who had broken into her house.

This was an interesting story with lots of twists and turns to throw you off and get you thinking in different directions about whodunnit.  The whodunnit was a surprise to me and I'm not sure I'm really buying it.  I liked the writing style, though.  It's written in third person perspective with a focus on wherever the action is.  As a head's up, there is swearing.

This is the second book I've read by this author and I look forward to reading other books by her.

Book ~ "Go Ask Alice" (1971) Anonymous

From Goodreads ~ A teen plunges into a downward spiral of addiction in this classic cautionary tale.

January 24th

After you've had it, there isn't even life without drugs ...

It started when she was served a soft drink laced with LSD in a dangerous party game. Within months, she was hooked, trapped in a downward spiral that took her from her comfortable home and loving family to the mean streets of an unforgiving city. It was a journey that would rob her of her innocence, her youth - and ultimately her life.

Read her diary.

Enter her world.

You will never forget her.

When I was in my early teens, girls (including me) were reading Go Ask Alice.  Because it was such an important book in our lives, I thought it would be interesting to reread it today.

The book is the "diary" of a fifteen-year-old girl.   She gets invited to a party of one of the cool kids and they play Button.  She doesn't realize what the game is until afterwards.  Everyone is randomly served a pop ... most are laced with LSD and those who get pop that aren't are the "babysitters".  She ends up with a pop with LSD and has a wonderful mind-blowing experience.  And that sets her on the path to want more drugs.

She ends up getting involved with some drug dealers and selling to elementary students.  She and a friend run away from home a couple times because their families are putting many restrictions on them.  When she tries to lead a clean life, her past keeps pulling her back.

I don't remember what my early teen self thought of the book.  But more than 40 years later, it was interesting to reread it ... granted I'm not the target market for it anymore.  I found the writing style not great and boring and the story itself is pretty lame and unbelievable.  The book is definitely dated.  Does anyone do LSD, acid or bennies anymore?  Her mother is concerned that she is dressing like a hippy and nags her about it.  The girl is out hustling for "bread".  And there's no way two teenagers under 18 could take off to San Francisco, get jobs right away and then give them up to start their own business.

Book ~ "I'm Not What I Seem: The Many Stories of Rita MacNeil's Life" (2016) Charlie Rhindress

From Goodreads ~ Rita MacNeil has long been recognized as one of the East Coast's great singer-songwriters. As a young girl with the dream of becoming a singer, she overcame a series of seemingly insurmountable obstacles and achieved success by believing in herself and refusing to give up. A trailblazer, Rita played an integral role in the women's movement in Canada and forged a path that was unique to her, paving the way for future generations of east coast musicians. 

Charlie Rhindress first came to know Rita as he collaborated with her on his play "Flying on Her Own", incorporating more than twenty of her songs into a script that told the story of her life. 

For this biography, Rhindress did extensive research and interviewed many of the people who worked with her and knew her best. The story of a strong, sensitive, complex woman emerged and the result is a powerful and moving portrait of a unique woman and important artist of her times. 

Rita MacNeil (1944 – 2013) was a Canadian singer/songwriter from Big Pond, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. She was the fifth of eight children and was born with a cleft lip and palate, which made her shy but she found happiness through singing.  In addition, her childhood wasn't overly happy with her parents always fighting and drinking. 

Her family moved to Toronto for work when she was young, before heading back home to Cape Breton.  Rita moved back to Toronto when she was 17, hoping to make a name for herself as a singer.  Instead, she ended up pregnant by a man who wouldn't marry her and moved back home to Big Pond to the support of her family.

Rita moved back to Toronto after her daughter was born to again pursue her singing career.  She met and married David and settled in being a wife and mother.  She wanted more and became in involved in the women's rights movement and wrote songs of protest.  Rita and her family moved back to Big Pond, with Rita figuring that would bring her contentment.  But she knew that singing was what she wanted to do and that became her goal ... and she did everything to make it, including leaving her marriage.  Rita ended up with many top selling albums and awards from around the world.

I didn't know a lot about Rita and wasn't a fan, though I didn't dislike her music.  I like reading bios/autobios and I knew Rita had had an interesting life. The book included interviews with Rita's friends and former colleagues, in addition to the author interviewing Rita.  I liked the writing style and found the book interesting and honest.

Book ~ "One Man Grand Band: The Lyric Life of Ron Hynes" (2016) Harvey Sawler

From Goodreads ~ Author Harvey Sawler traces the life of Ron Hynes, one of the most respected singer-songwriters in Canadian history. Through personal conversations and interviews, Sawler captures the spirit of an artist whose stock-in-trade has always been authenticity over mere commercial acceptability, providing rare insight into the life of the man who penned some of the country’s best-loved music. 

Sawler guides us through the dark times of addiction to the triumphs of songs such as “Sonny’s Dream” and “Atlantic Blue” while capturing the true essence of Hynes and the source of his musical genius. 

Ron Hynes (1950 - 2015) was a folk singer-songwriter from Newfoundland and Labrador and was known as the Man of a Thousand Songs.  He wrote the song Sonny's Dream, which has been recorded worldwide by many artists and was named the 41st greatest Canadian song of all time on the 2005 CBC Radio One series 50 Tracks: The Canadian Version.  He was a founding member of The Wonderful Grand Band, one of Newfoundland's most popular performing groups (formed in 1978) and had released seven solo albums.   Hynes was a seven-time East Coast Music Awards winner and past Juno and Canadian Country Music Awards nominee.  In July 2012, Hynes was diagnosed with throat cancer and underwent treatment.  He died in St. John's in 2015 at the age of 64.

I didn't know a lot about Ron Hynes.  I knew he'd written Sonny's Dream and that was about it.  But I like reading bios/autobios and it sounds like Hynes had an interesting life.

The book included interviews with Hynes' friends and colleagues, in addition to the author interviewing Hynes many times.  While there was a lot of detail about his tours and the author would go off on tangents about non-Hynes things, it is written at a high level with not a lot of details about his personal life.  Apparently Hynes had been married at least twice and had four daughters but this was barely touched on.  To me, if you are going to write a book about a person, this would be important information to include.  Hynes' drug addiction took him to the dark side and he died destitute but this was also covered at a high level.

The editing could have been better.  I found the writing was a bit repetitive.  It seemed like the chapters were written individually for a newspaper article, for example, because the author would tell who someone was in Hynes' life (for example, his friend and guitar player) and then later on say who they were again as if this was the first mention of them in the book.  Plus some of the stories were told a couple times ... as if they weren't told earlier.  It was weird.  And there were some typos ... on the same page, the Barenaked Ladies is spelled correctly but in a couple paragraphs above was spelled Bare Naked Ladies.

Book ~ "Paw of the Jungle" (2019) Diane Kelly

From Goodreads ~ Police officer Megan Luz and her K-9 partner in crime, Brigit, are on all fours as they try to solve their latest Lone Star mystery.

AT THE ZOO
The weather is beautiful, work is slow and her canine colleague could use a walk. What better day for Megan to take Brigit to the Fort Worth Zoo, where they can let loose and witness the law and order of nature unfold? But what begins as a fun field trip turns serious when a pair of rare hyacinth macaws named Fabiana and Fernando goes missing. Is the new custodian, a gentle soul who happens to be an ex-convict, to blame? Or is something far more sinister afoot?

AND ON THE HUNT
The birds are worth thousands of dollars and the list of people on the premises who might have stolen them is long. Soon other animals start disappearing ... and Megan and Brigit have their hands and paws full of suspects. But when a rare black rhino is taken from the zoo, presumably for its black-market-friendly horn, time is of the essence. Can Megan and Brigit find out who’s behind the mystery - before they too become prey? 

Megan is a police officer in Fort Worth, Texas.  Her partner is Brigit, a German Shepherd.  She has two cases on the go.  Women are losing their rings and Megan is determined to find out who is stealing them and how.  The second case involves animals that are disappearing from a zoo and it's up to Megan and Brigit to figure out who is stealing them.

I've read many books by this author and I liked this one.  Though it's the eighth in the Paw Enforcement series, it can work as a stand alone and you don't have to read the others to know what's going on (there is enough background provided).

I liked the writing style ... it was amusing at times.  It is written in first person perspective from Megan's point of view and third person perspective from Brigit's point of view (which is funny) and the Poacher's perspective.

I like Megan.  She's gotten more confident as time goes on.  Brigit's funny and likeable and it's fun to get into her head.  Though she is a trained police dog, she can be naughty when she wants to be (like stealing tennis balls or being a bum at supper time).