What’s new on my bedside table? . . .

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Happy hump day!

Until a few moments ago I only had three new ARCs on my shelf, but as I was looking, feeling quite pleased with myself I have to admit, up popped another! But as it was a Kate Robards book, Only the Guilty Survive, and I loved her first book – The Three Deaths of Willa Stannard – I’m not going to complain. And what a beautiful cover!

The mass suicide of a cult known as The Flock sent shockwaves through the small rural town of Iola, Michigan. Led by the charismatic Dominic Bragg, The Flock camped at an abandoned bird sanctuary before their sudden and shocking demise. The deaths came just weeks after one of their members, Laurel Tai, a local pageant queen, was abducted. 

The town turned its blame and fear onto the sole survivor, Claire Kettler–Laurel’s best friend. Burdened by grief and unanswered questions about her friend’s murder and her fellow cult members’ deaths, Claire can’t help but wonder what really happened, especially when the cult leader is nowhere to be found. 

When podcaster Arlo Stone begins poking around ten years later, determined to uncover the truth about the cult and Laurel’s murder, Claire is propelled back into action. In a desperate attempt to puzzle out the past and keep her secrets from being spilled for the entertainment of thousands of listeners, Claire must dig into a tangle of unanswered questions before time runs out and history repeats itself. 

This weeks ARCs are all by authors whose previous books I have loved. I am trying to be a little more picky about my requesting. My second title is Guilty Mothers, the 20th title in the Kim Stone series by Angela Marsons.

In a quiet kitchen, where two mugs wait by the kettle to be filled, Sheryl Hawne lies in a pool of blood. Her only daughter, Katie, is found at her side, still clutching the murder weapon and apparently incapable of speech. To Detective Kim Stone, the case seems open and shut. But Katie is in no state to be questioned, so Kim and the team must dig deep to understand what triggered this brutal act.

Soon, they learn that Katie participated in beauty pageants as a child, and her mother kept a shrine to her achievements. As Kim gazes at the golden trophies and shiny rosettes, she is forced to wonder if this was what set Katie on the path to murder…

But then Kim receives a shocking call. Another woman is dead. And with Katie safely locked up, she cannot be the killer. The second victim also entered her daughter in pageants, and a broken tiara is found thrust down her throat. Someone clearly feels that these mothers are guilty – and that they deserve to die. Forcing back the memories of her own monstrous mother, Kim vows to find justice for these women, no matter what pain they caused.

Now more than a day behind their killer, Kim races to learn more about a competitive world where appearances are everything and mothers will go to any lengths to ensure their daughters triumph. Buried somewhere in this dark past is the key to unlocking the case… but will Kim be able to find it before another family is destroyed forever?

I read my first book by Australian author Leoni Kelsall earlier this year and so was excited to see another offering from he so soon. The Homestead in the Eucalypts is her new title and is due for publication 02 July.

When student doctor Taylor Lawrence’s city life is turned upside down, she seeks sanctuary on her grandparents’ farm in the South Australian countryside.

During the lonely nights, she fantasises of a time long-gone; of Anna, who, rising at dawn to milk the cows and fetch water from the well, is caught in a bushfire that threatens to leave her reputation as blackened as the surrounding bushland. And of Anna’s rescuer, fellow settler, Luke Hartmann.

Reality blurs as Taylor repeatedly escapes into Anna’s world, and she realises she must discover whether her dreams are pure fantasy—or if they recount a story more familiar than she could ever imagine.

Either way, it seems she’ll end up with a broken mind or a broken heart. The problem is, Taylor is no longer sure which she would prefer.

I posted a review of Caro Ramsay’s The Suffering of Strangers yesterday, and here today I have her new title – Out of the Dark, #3 in the DI Christie Kaplan series.

A young woman is missing, but has she run away – or been captured?

A dying cop asks DCI Christine Caplan to fulfil her last wish: to investigate a cold case that’s still preying on her mind. The naked body of a young man that was found in a lonely wood, dismissed as a down and out by her superiors. Caplan connects the case to other victims left to die in the bleak Scottish forests, injured and unable to escape. As the scent grows stronger, the cold cases suddenly seem dangerously hot.

In this thrilling hunt for the missing girl, Caplan must trace where love and control get out of hand, and question where power lies in any relationship. Meanwhile, the dark nights of Scotland conceal a terrifying game of cat and mouse . . .

So, I now have 516 unread books on my NetGalley shelf, one more than last week – a definite improvement! And I have 21 pending requests.

My feedback ratio remains on a very shaky 72%.

Next Tuesday I will be starting the

Challenge on The Perks of Beng a Book Addict group on Goodreads.

LIST OF TASKS

📖 Read a book with a character who is a writer
📖 Read a book with a character who loves reading
📖 Read a book with a character who is a librarian
📖 Read a book with the word “typewriter” in the text
📖 Read a book where the main setting is a bookstore
📖 Read a book with the word “LIBRARY” in the title/series title
📖 Read a book with the letters B*O*O*K in the title/series title and/or the author’s name
📖 Read a book with the letters P*E*N in the title
📖 Read a book with the author’s initials in the word “READING”
📖 (Re)read a book by a favourite author
📖 Read a book from a favourite genre
📖 Read a book of fiction where reference is made to a real book
📖 Read a book recommended to you by a GR Friend
📖 Read a book recommended by a favourite author
📖 Read biography about or the memoirs/autobiography of an author
📖 Read a book with an author using a pen name
📖 Read a non-fiction book connected to reading in some way (your explanation)
📖 Read a book where the main setting is one of the countries listed in the post above
📖 Read a book where one of the cities listed in the post above is mentioned
📖 Read a book from this list Portal
📖 Read a book with a title that starts with a letter from SHAKESPEARE (the/a(n) can be ignored)
📖 Read a book with a character or written by an author called William (or any of its variations)
📖 Read a book whose author was born in April
📖 Read a book that was first published between 1995 – 2024
📖 Read a book that is a retelling of one of Shakespeare’s plays
📖 Read a book that contains (parts of) a poem or a collection of poems
📖 Read a play or read a book where a character is an actor/actress
📖 Read a book originally written in a different language than your own
📖 Read a book you have borrowed from a Library
📖 Read a book you own and haven’t read yet

ABOUT THE CHALLENGE:

📖 This is an individual challenge

📖 You can complete all tasks, but it’s not necessary, however, you need to finish a minimum of 12 tasks to consider your challenge accomplished.

📖 You can start any time from 23 April 2024 and need to finish before 23 April 2025.

📖 You can use 1 book to cover a maximum of 3 tasks if you’d like to do so, but you can also use 1 book/task. Up to you.

📖 For this challenge, there are no restrictions/special conditions on page numbers, genres, etc… :), feel free to read whatever you like!

I am going to try and use only one book per task.

For the Aussie Readers April challenge, I have completed reading 4/9 titles and the first of the 4 Australian authors I selected. I have got the biggest read, Moth to the Flame by Joy Dettman 592 pages, finished but have yet to write my review. I am only a little behind on this challenge.

And for the Autumn Aussie Readers challenge I have completed 6/13 books including 3/4 Australian authors I selected. I am one book behind where I should be with this challenge.

We have been having very foggy mornings this week and cool evenings. Our cat is no fonder of this weather than I am and isn’t straying far from home. She has claimed the chair beside the fire for her own in the evenings.

We were meant to be going to the NZ SuperCars round in Taupo this weekend but someone (that would be me!) forgot to book the tickets and they sold out weeks ago. So I guess we will be watching on TV. No biggie – at least I’m warm, comfortable and can see everything!

We’ve a friend’s birthday on Saturday but, other than that, the rest of our plans are weather dependent. Pete wants to finish painting the exterior basement walls, and I have a few jobs to do in the garden that I need his ute for.

Have you any plans for the weekend?

Happy reading my friends and stay safe.