Category: books and reading

Weekend Getaway: Pt. 1 Books and Baked Goods

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn books and reading, travel16 Comments

Hello everyone!! We had the most fun on our little trip. It wasn’t anything big or fancy, none of our trips are, but we had a very good time. We had a bit of a crazy start though to our journey!

I planned this trip because I was looking for a train ride that wasn’t too short or too long. Wyatt loves trains and it seemed our options were the train at Greenfield Village, which is like 15 minutes of train ride, or taking a train to Chicago, which seemed much too long of a ride for Wyatt to stay seated the whole time. Like most travel and wheelchairs, once you are in your seat, that is it. No getting up! (as an aside, did you know that airplane bathrooms are not even wheelchair accessible?) So when I found the train that runs through Cuyahoga National Park, which is a two hour round trip journey, I knew it was perfect. The Akron area is about two and a half hours from our home, so not even a bad drive. I booked an Airbnb in Parma, which was a nice distance between both Akron and Cleveland, giving us plenty of options for other things to do as well.

Thursday morning we loaded up the car, and I plugged the directions into my phone – for Columbus. Not Cleveland. Our first stop was supposed to be the Cleveland Museum of Natural History – unfortunately, I set our GPS to the Columbus Museum of Natural History. We had driven about an hour and some change before we realized the mistake, and reset the directions, which put us an hour behind schedule! We weren’t in a hurry but it was still a bummer.

Then at a stop at the gas station for a fuel up and provisions, Wyatt gagged on a gummi bear and you guessed it, threw up. Yay. I happened to be in the back with him and was totally freaking out as I do, but everything was fine really. But, we had to get him cleaned up and changed, putting us more behind. Although, I was infinitely more grateful that Wyatt was ok. Obviously.

We hit the road again, this time in the right direction, with a freshly changed kiddo who was forbidden anymore gummi bears and made it to our Airbnb, about two hours behind when we had anticipated arriving. We decided it was too late to try to hit a museum so we settled into the house for about half an hour or so, and then got back in the car, although none of us wanted to, so that we could find somewhere to eat and something to do. Wyatt was all about shopping and wanted to get a book, so I googled bookstores nearby and found one about twenty minutes away.

First though, we stopped in at this little old Polish bakery and take out restaurant called Rudy’s Strudel Shop, and sort of went bonkers since we were hungry wolves, as Wyatt says.

We did try to show a little restraint. We managed to get out of there with only an apple strudel for our breakfast the next few days, a loaf of butter crust bread, a small bag of sprinkle cookies for Wyatt, and a chocolate dipped peanut butter cookie for the three of us to share. (it was huge)

We drove through steelyards and neighborhoods and found our way to the very magical bookstore called Loganberry Books, in the Larchmere neighborhood of Shaker Heights, Ohio. From the front, it seemed like a small, quirky bookstore.

However, once you enter it is like it magically becomes much much larger. Like a Tardis. Or one of those tents from Harry Potter. It just keeps going and going, with room after room of books. They sell both new and used books, and had so many cool looking vintage books and beautiful architectural details!

Wyatt and I might have picked up a few books.

We walked up and down the streets of the little neighborhood, poking our heads into different stores and then strolling around the Fiddlehead Gallery. The two (I am assuming) owners were the nicest people! They gave us so much good information about the Cleveland area, and it was nice to chat with them. We purchased two mugs, because we might have a mug addiction, and left knowing a bit more about the area, which was nice. When we finally piled back into the car, we were all running out of steam a bit. So we nixed our plans to go out to eat and to go grocery shopping and picked up burgers on the way back to house. And that was the end of our adventure for the night! It was good we had an early night anyway, because the next day was our train ride and we had to be up early!

And I will post about that tomorrow! I just have too many photos of the next few days to put it all in one post.

A Few Mini Book Reviews

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn book review, books and reading11 Comments

It’s about time to catch up on some book reviews! I guess they are not really reviews per se, but more my thoughts and feelings on the book. Anyway, I have a few that I would like to talk about today!

I loved this book. It is definitely one of my top favorite books that I have read this year. Can I just say, Valancy is such a kick butt heroine? I love her character’s growth, although it wasn’t a slow steady growth, just a one day out of the blue, I’m done with this crap growth. The scene with her family at the table had me cracking up. She just didn’t give a darn at that point and let them know! And she wasn’t just purely rebellious to be rebellious. She had a mission, and a good one. When she heard that a friend of hers, that she admittedly hadn’t seen or spoken with in a very long time, was ill and that no one was “doing for her” she took matters into her own hands, and moved right in, not giving one hoot about any damage to her reputation. Because what kind of Christian folk would allow someone to lay dying without any help? Like I said, she was awesome. She decided to live life and was going for it. I mean, she did have a bit of a reason to throw all caution to the wind, but I don’t want to reveal it, or reveal anything that happens afterward.

So much of the description was otherworldly, whimsical, ethereal, making me want to see these forests and hollows and swamps and just everything there is to see.

“Frogs, little green wizards of swamp and pool, singing everywhere in the long twilights and long into the nights; islands fairy-like in a green haze; the evanescent beauty of wild young trees in early leaf; frost-like loveliness of the new foliage of juniper trees…”

Doesn’t it just sound so magical?

You guys, this was so adorable! Vera Wong is full of mischief and shenanigans, pokes her nose into things that are not her business, makes food that can change the mind of the strongest holdout, and has really good instincts. This book is full of new and budding friendships that bloom into a found family, that just filled me with goodness and warmth and happy feelings, almost like Vera had prepared one of her specialty teas just for me. She is a bit of a miracle worker, Vera is, and I can’t wait for the next book.

This book had a completely different feel. It was a slow read, introspective, thoughtful. In Korea the genre of this book is “healing fiction” and is meant to be read slowly, and usually centers around one main gathering place – such as the bookshop in this book. Every character we meet in this story is undergoing some sort of change, a moment in their lives that involves them making decisions to improve their lives. It was a book that made me think, and I took my time with it. Also, it talks a lot about coffee, so be prepared to be craving a nice warm cup of your favorite blend while reading!

This was a crazy, twisty, dark and creepy read – and I loved it!! It had some big folk horror vibes, which is one of my favorite subgenres, and had so much intrigue and so many twists and turns that I almost never knew what was coming next. There were so many secrets, so many things to hide. I read way past my bedtime with this one. It is the perfect time of year to read this too, as the book takes place at the end of the summer at a posh resort that had once been a private residence made of stone that towered over the rest of the village. If you have been thinking of reading this, I highly recommend grabbing a copy now!

Have you read any of these? What did you think?

Top Ten Tuesday: Most Anticipated New Releases During the Second Half of 2024

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn books and reading48 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

Hello everyone!! This week’s top ten Tuesday is all about which books I am most excited about that release in this second half of the year.

Somewhere Beyond the Sea || A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping

These are probably the two books I am the most excited about. I loved The House in the Cerulean Sea, and I loved The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches so these two cannot come out soon enough for me!

The Life Impossible || The Spellshop

I don’t have to wait too much long for The Spellshop, which this cover oh my gosh. I want to live in that house! I am hoping to read this one and The Honey Witch around the same time. The Life Impossible comes out in September and it just sounds so amazing. I am all about settings and the setting for this book gives me all the feels.

The Healing Season of Pottery || We’ll Prescribe You a Cat

Don’t these sound wonderful! I am all about Asian fiction right now, and both of these sound just so calm and like a warm safe place to visit. I can’t wait to curl up with both of these during the cold months.

The Teller of Small Fortunes || The Full Moon Coffee

And more books with cats on the cover! These two both have such a whimsy to them and I am all about whimsy. And cats. And coffee. And probably cozy little traveling caravans! I am so excited!

And that’s it. I can’t get to ten, although I am sure that after visiting everyone’s blogs today I will find quite a few more to add to this list!

My Mid-Year Book Freakout Tag

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn books and reading11 Comments

So, the clouds outside are gathering and dark, the wind is picking up, and storms are on the way. Chores are done for the night, I have some Ginger Turmeric Tea next to me on the table (although tonight I wish it was wine!) and I thought this would be the perfect time to write this post!

I’ve seen this around on BookTube and by other book content creators and thought it sounded fun!

Is it just me or does it sort of remind you of those senior superlatives in high school?

1. Best book you’ve read so far in 2024

Hands down, the best book that I have read so far this year.

2. Best sequel you’ve read so far in 2024

This book was such a fantastic follow up to the first in the series, Gladwynn Grant Gets Her Footing by Lisa Howeler. I love Gladwynn and her vintage style, as well as the homeschooling mom who is also the barista. Such a fun series!

3. New release you haven’t read yet but want to.

I love this series set in Northern Michigan in one of my favorite places in my home state, the Traverse City area. I need to pick it up – it looks like the perfect summer read!

4. Most anticipated release for the second half of the year.

I absolutely loved The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches and I can’t wait for this new book to come out! And I have to wait all the way until December!!

5. Biggest disappointment.

The Darling Buds of May. Loved the show, did not like the book. At all. That has never happened to me before! I do love this cover though.

6. Biggest surprise.

I received The Magic All Around from the publisher and I didn’t know much about it prior to reading it. However, once I picked it up I could barely put it down. It was so good, I could not stop reading it.

7. Favorite new author. (Debut or new to you)

I am late to the party on Sager, and I wish I had picked up his books sooner! I just finished The Last Time I Lied today and again, it was another book I could not stop reading. It was crazy good, and had so many twists and turns! I can’t wait to read another of his books!

8. Newest fictional crush.

I wouldn’t say crush but I would definitely like to hang out with Tress and talk about her adventures and see her cups.

9. Newest favorite character.

See above.

10. Book that made you cry.

Of course it is a middle grade. I loved this book! I had never heard of it honestly when I picked it up at a used book sale, I just thought it looked neat, with that cute little house and the tree. And it was a cute little book…with the exception of the part that made me cry!! It was the loss of an animal friend that did it, of course.

11. Book that made you happy.

Another middle grade! I one hundred percent adored this book, and while it gave me some anxiety, it ended up all working out and just left me with the warm fuzzies.

12. Most beautiful book you’ve bought so far this year (or received)

It’s a tie for me on this one. I just love love love that cover of Watership Down and I was so happy that Billy and Wyatt got it for me, but then that cover of Tress is fire.

And there you have it! My Mid-Year Book Freakout. How would you answer some of these questions?

My Sunday-Monday Post

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn books and reading27 Comments

My Sunday Post is hosted by Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer

Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date

Hello everyone!! We have been getting so much rain here! It is like bouts of rainy dreary clouds/then a few hours of sun and humidity. I was finally able to get out and weed yesterday morning, before the rain/humidity cycle started back up again. The garden (and weeds) are really enjoying this weather!

Read Last Week:

I am not quite done with The Living Great Lakes but I am so close! It is excellent, and I am so glad that I picked it up to read. It was a good balance to The Cloisters, which was so well done and well written, but it was also very dark and left me feeling very unsettled.

Reading This Week:

After The Cloisters I needed something lighter! I am diving into the world of cozy mysteries, starting with this magical bookshop series by Amanda Flower, then moving on to Gladwynn Grant Gets Her Footing.

Posted Last Week:

Summer Shark Watch: Jaws!

Wednesday Morning Coffee Catch Up

Watching and Listening:

Billy and I have been watching Death in Paradise still, and mixing it up with The Mayfair Witches. I read the heck out of Anne Rice as a teen/new adult and the Mayfair Witches was my absolute favorite by her. I loved the whole family history that was practically half of the book. Billy has been wanting to watch the show, and while I am watching it, I can’t help but compare it to the book. I will just keep telling myself it is in the spirit of the book and be happy with that. I had a real thing for New Orleans back then, and watching the show is sort of nostalgic for me, and rekindling that love. (Reading the Karen White books set there is also fueling that fire!) We visited about 6 times, the last time the week before Katrina, when she was still at sea. Far enough out that no one knew what was coming and too early for any evacuation warnings, just kind of out there, and weather forecasters knew about her. But to be there as a tourist right before then watch that devastation was … I can’t describe it. Tragically surreal. We haven’t been back but now I am thinking I need to go again.

Billy and I are also starting a summer shark watch – not real sharks although I have heard they are unusually active this summer – but movie sharks. We watched the all important Jaws on the fourth to kick us off, and next up is Deep Blue Sea.

As for listening, I had been listening to The Living Great Lakes but I had to return the audio book through Libby and now I am reading it.

And that is it from my corner of the world! How are you all doing?

My Sunday-Monday Post

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn books and reading, television32 Comments

My Sunday Post is hosted by Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer

Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date

Hello everyone! Another week, and here we are in July already! We are off to a rainy start this July and that is ok, Michigan needs it. We also were dodging extremely unhealthy air quality last week and spent so much time inside. We were among the worst in the world for air quality – it blows my mind that a fire 500 miles from us could have effects here but it shows how small the world really is sometimes.

Read Last Week:

We read more Wyatt books than mine last week, since we were trapped inside. I did manage to read one, and started listening to another.

I have been waiting and waiting for The House on Prytania to come in for me at the library and let me tell you, when I got the email, I headed directly there and did not pass go. It was so good, y’all~ I love Nola and Beau, but the other characters are just as interesting and fun to read. Jolene in particular is a hoot!

I also started listening to The Living Great Lakes on Libby, and I am really enjoying it! I mean, living in the Great Lakes state it is of particular interest to me, and I am learning so much about the lakes as I listen.

Reading This Week:

I am so excited to read this! I bought it all the way back in January but have held onto it until summer, because I am a nerd and since the book takes place in the summer, I wanted to read it in the summer. It sounds so good!

Posted Last Week:

Hello July!

What Wyatt’s Reading

Homeschool Curriculum Picks for 2023-2024

Tuesday Morning Coffee Catch Up

Watching/Listening:

In TV land, Billy and I got sucked into the world of School Spirits. We were expecting something a bit cheesier or just not as well done as it is, for what it is. It is so good! And now we are out of episodes which is a huge bummer. I love Simon and Wally, such good characters!

We also have been filling in here and there with Death in Paradise, and we are on the Humphrey episodes. We had just watched Beyond Paradise in the spring, which is about Humphrey who is back in England after his stint on the islands so it was neat to go back and rewatch his origins again.

This week we also start our shark month movie marathon! Well, I guess not really marathon since we are spreading them out over a few weeks, but still..lots of shark movies beginning with Jaws on Tuesday!

In my YouTube world, I have been watching a lot of With Love, Kristina, and Alexis Dahl. With Love, Kristina does a lot of vintage (mostly vintage) videos but also declutter videos which are my weakness. They are so relaxing, just to watch things go from super cluttery to all nice and organized. Sigh. Alexis Dahl is a Michigander whose videos are all about science and history and they are awesome! I loved her most recent video about Henry Ford’s “utopian” towns in the U.P. It was so fascinating!

I already mentioned that I am listening to the audiobook of The Living Great Lakes by Jerry Dennis, which is fantastic. I have also been listening to the podcast Sinisterhood, which is true crime/horror but the two hosts Christina and Heather are hysterical and I actually laugh out loud at some of their comments. So far I have really enjoyed their episodes The Stanley Hotel and The Nain Rouge, which is a total Detroit thing!

What Wyatt’s Reading

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn books and reading11 Comments

At the start of this month, I set a goal for Wyatt and I for a summer reading challenge. I counted all books, whether he read them, I read them to him, or we read them together. For some reason, I felt like 20 was an appropriate number. I must have been crazy, because the challenge has already been completed and he received his first reward today, which was the Ghosts in the Attic Game from Peaceable Kingdom, his pick. The last week or so we haven’t really been able to do much outside, it has either been raining or like today, the air quality is too bad to leave the house for any length of time. We have been filling our time indoors with board games, and books, and of course, painting. However, this post is about books, so let’s get back to those. I can get carried away.

It was a pretty good month! So many insect books, I love it! There were some standout favorites out of this bunch, of course. Wyatt absolutely loved, loved, loved Snake’s Big Mistake, for many reasons. One thing we love to do is find characters in wheelchairs in books, and we were excited to spot a little hedgehog in a wheelchair in this one. But Wyatt also loved this book because it was about art and pottery. He loves art, and his grandma is a potter, with her own wheel and kiln and everything. I rarely read the author blurb to Wyatt in these books, but this one caught my eye. The author Sarah Kurpiel is herself a wheelchair user, and get this, a LIBRARIAN and an ARTIST. Wyatt’s two big loves, art and the library! It was very exciting. I saw that she also has a book, Lone Wolf, which of course Wyatt and wolves, so I will make sure we pick that up for him.

He also really loved Are Pirates Polite?, which was super cute, and now when he does something I can say “Is that how pirates act?” or “Do pirates interrupt?” Interrupting is such a thing for him right now. He is finding his words and adding to his speech everyday and is in a hurry to say them all to us, at all times. We have not had to address interrupting until this point so it is a new struggle for us all. Hopefully pirates help us. And finally, his final favorite of the month, What About Worms? This was a cute book, where the tiger was afraid of worms and worms were afraid of spiders and Wyatt found it absolutely hysterical.

As for my favorites, let’s start with the book that made me teary. Does this happen to anyone else? We were reading “Love Makes a Garden Grow” and ugh, it was so beautiful and sentimental I started to tear up and cry. Wyatt stuck his little face in mine, and asked me if I was sad. I had to tell him not really, but I was more just overcome with emotions over the story. Garden books that get sentimental will probably forever make me cry; my uncle Art and I had a special bond over gardening and now he is gone and you know how these things sneak up on you and hit you in the heart. It was a very beautiful book, especially for those who garden with family. I also really enjoyed The Red Tin Box. It is about a little girl who buries her treasures in a little red tin box, and goes back years and years later with her granddaughter and digs it up. It was just very sweet and I loved the whole idea of it. We loved reading Evergreen together too! It is a longer picture book, with little chapters almost, and is about the adventures of Evergreen the squirrel and her quest to get her acorn full of restorative soup to a sick family member. It was really well done! Firefly Hollow is actually our current read aloud, so we are not done with it yet. It just seemed perfect for the summer. We read a chapter before bedtime every night, and I probably look forward to it as much as Wyatt.

And that just about wraps up June for what Wyatt and I have been reading! Every book we read was amazing and special, it was a great month spent with great books.

My Sunday-Monday Post

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn books and reading45 Comments

My Sunday Post is hosted by Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer

Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date

Hello everyone! I hope the past week treated you well! We had an easier week, just one specialist appointment for Wyatt, and lots of playing, and nightly evening walks for Billy and I while Wyatt rides his little Rifton adaptive bike! Guys, he loves it so much! It took a doctor, a therapist, a social worker, and me a ton of paperwork to get it, but once that was all completed, we got it in two weeks! It was absolutely crazy how fast it was approved and got here!

Read Last Week:

This book was such a hoot! It cracked me up and also gave me a little anxiety. LOL.

Reading This Week:

I am waiting for this Karen White book to come in. The library shows it “in transit” on my account so it should be here soon, so I will start with This Wicked Fate, the sequel to This Poison Heart. For some reason all of my YA and Middle Grade holds are coming in to the library like crazy wildfire and piling up and my actual adult books are slowly trickling in.

Posted Last Week:

My Sorta, Kinda, Camping Shopping List

A Full Father’s Day: Classic Cars and a Picnic

Tuesday Morning Coffee Catch Up

Watching and Listening:

Billy and I watched School Spirits, which was actually a lot better than we had thought it was going to be. I am sucked in and need answers! We also finished up the American version of Ghosts, which we also really like. (we were all about ghosts apparently this past week) We also are still continuing our rewatch of Death in Paradise. We are in the Humphrey Years right now.

We didn’t watch any movies but we have a fun cheesy campy July of movies coming up. We decided to fully embrace shark week this year, and are doing like a shark month. Jaws, The Meg, Shark Night, Deep Blue Sea… we are just going shark wild. Wyatt and I are starting a bit of summer school starting July 10th and we are going to do some shark stuff as part of our studies as well. I am pretty excited, I love a campy summer movie binge!

I am behind on some of my favorite YouTubers! Darling Desi, who I have mentioned before, Forgotten Way Farms, The Cottage Fairy, among others all have new videos that I haven’t watched. I am thinking Wyatt might get a trip to Grandma’s this week and I can stay home and fold laundry and catch up. Or I will tell Billy to go play video games at night or something and catch up. Either way, I am catching up!

Listening. Old stuff still mostly. Wyatt has decided this is a new favorite song of his. Pretty sure I loved this one at his age too. I mainly put on a playlist and roll but Wyatt has actual requests, and this is a frequent one. Sometimes at 7 am.

And that is from around here! What has been going on in your world?

Stephen King Summertime Reads

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn book review, books and reading7 Comments

Stephen King and summertime go hand in hand for me. So many summers of my young adulthood were spent reading his books, scaring myself silly. I will always associate summer reading with Stephen King. I haven’t read as many of his books in recent years, I just can’t keep up anymore, but I do have a few on my list for this summer, that I hope to read. This list however, is of Stephen King books that I have read and loved and will always make me think of summer.

First up one of my two all time favorite Stephen King books – Bag of Bones.

I think this one flies under the radar a lot, and does not get the appreciation it deserves. It is fantastic, the story of a grieving man who retreats to his summerhouse to try to heal and write again, as he is a writer unable to write. While there, he meets a woman and her daughter, and..a ghost. I am all about a ghost book. I read this entire book out loud to Billy one summer, years after I had read it for the first time. There is a made for tv movie, but don’t watch it and don’t compare it to the book. The book is by far superior!

My second book on the list is my other favorite – another underappreciated King book, in my high opinion!

Joyland! I really can’t say it better than I said it in 2016 –

I loved this book so much; I didn’t want it to end! The feel of it was classic top of his game King. It put me in mind of Bag of Bones. Thinner, and The Body. The story was a sentimental and nostalgic coming of age story; there were triumphs and revelations and a bit of sadness too. The story is told from the point of view of Devin as a wistful older man, looking back at this summer, a monumental one that changed him forever.

It was weird reading this a bit, as two of the characters are named Erin and Devin, and my name is Erin and my brother’s name is Devin. Lol. I don’t usually encounter them too frequently in books, especially Devin, much less in the same book! (If you want to see my review that is on my old blog, click here!)

Ok the next ones are pretty classic!

Is there any horror fan out there who can think of summer without thinking of It? My cousin Brian and I read this the same summer and completely terrified ourselves!

These two go hand in hand! The Regulators, written under King’s pseudonym, and Desperation. Both are the same story, parallel universe type stuff, about the same monster. My brother and I for years and years would respond to each other in the language of Tak like complete nerds. We still do at times lol, most often thankee sai which is more Dark Tower. Anyways, I digress.

The next three were all part of compilations as either short stories or novellas.

I swear, this story is one reason I absolutely am terrified of swimming in open water. And I can’t see one of these rafts afloat in a lake without thinking of this story!! Originally part of Skeleton Crew, chockful of terrifying short stories…

Also known to my generation as the movie Stand by Me with River Phoenix (sigh..my young girl heart had such a crush). The story is just as compelling as the movie, and is another coming of age story like Joyland. Such a summertime Stephen King memory for me, especially renting this on VHS and watching it at slumber parties as a kid. Originally part of the Different Seasons book, which is one of my all time favorites of King’s as well.

Oy this book was so good but so terrible and made me cry. Why am I including it?? It is just sad. I could never revisit it now as an older person with a child. It would break my heart even more than it did before! However, I couldn’t leave it off of this list. It was originally published as part of the Bachman Books.

As for the books that are on my summer TBR, I have added the following two:

I am not a baseball fan, but I am a fan of baseball movies and stories. Blockade Billy just sounds so good and I am intrigued, what could be the secret in this one!! And 1922, eeek! I will probably not sleep for a few nights.

And since June is audiobook month, I’ve added Billy Summers to listen to – starting now!

I would love to reread Bag of Bones and Joyland this summer as well! I own all of his books except for those that came out in the past seven years, I think I may have to revisit my Stephen King collection after this meander down memory lane..

Book Review: A House with Good Bones

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn book review, books and reading10 Comments

Publisher Summary:

A haunting Southern Gothic from an award-winning master of suspense, A House With Good Bones explores the dark, twisted roots lurking just beneath the veneer of a perfect home and family.

“Mom seems off.”

Her brother’s words echo in Sam Montgomery’s ear as she turns onto the quiet North Carolina street where their mother lives alone.

She brushes the thought away as she climbs the front steps. Sam’s excited for this rare extended visit, and looking forward to nights with just the two of them, drinking boxed wine, watching murder mystery shows, and guessing who the killer is long before the characters figure it out.

But stepping inside, she quickly realizes home isn’t what it used to be. Gone is the warm, cluttered charm her mom is known for; now the walls are painted a sterile white. Her mom jumps at the smallest noises and looks over her shoulder even when she’s the only person in the room. And when Sam steps out back to clear her head, she finds a jar of teeth hidden beneath the magazine-worthy rose bushes, and vultures are circling the garden from above.

To find out what’s got her mom so frightened in her own home, Sam will go digging for the truth. But some secrets are better left buried.

My Thoughts:

I loved this book! I knew I would, but I didn’t realize it was going to be so funny! The main character, Sam, cracked me up. I feel like if she were real we could hang. I also like bugs and wine and watching cozy British mysteries with rumpled detectives.

I don’t know if I would want to hang in that house though…. it sounded just a little bit creepy for me! On a scare scale, I would not put this way up there, but it did have this undercurrent of unease that made me well, uneasy.

There are vultures in this book y’all! And I was totally here for it. I didn’t realize vultures were so dang interesting! I see them circling in the sky, by the sides of the road, but they are not exactly my favorite birds. However, this book made me rethink vultures and my opinion of them. I am not sure I would want to run a vulture rescue/rehab like one of the characters in the book did, but I no longer think they are as yucky, and that is a win.

Sam has memories of living in the house as a child, growing up with her mom and brother, as her mom worked two jobs to support them after her father died. They lived with her grandmother in her childhood home while her mom tried to get the family back on their feet, and it does not exactly sound idyllic. Sam’s grandma was pretty frightening and darn right ghoulish at times. Sam’s mom is off too. Her normally laid back mom seems to have changed her entire personality, changing their home from how it had felt for the last twenty years, with funky art pieces, color, charm, into something cold and boring, lacking personality. More like something her grandma would like, in fact.

I absolutely devoured this book. It is a fast quick read, and a good one! Although, you may never look at a rose garden the same way again after reading it…