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Tara, this is your thread for 2018. I have included the link to the required format thread and an example. If you had a 2017 thread - it will be archived so when you get the opportunity move over your completed books and formats to the 2018 thread - but we will allow time for you to do that.

Please follow the standard required format below - I hope you enjoy your reading in 2018. Here is also a link for assistance with the required guidelines:

Link: /topic/show/...

Our Required Format:

JANUARY

1. by Winston S. Churchill
Finish date: January 2018
Genre: (whatever genre the book happens to be)
Rating: A
Review: You can add text from a review you have written but no links to any review elsewhere even goodreads. And that is about it. Just make sure to number consecutively and just add the months.

IMPORTANT - THE REVIEW SHOULD BE SHORT AND SWEET - THERE ARE NO LINKS OF ANY KIND IN THE BODY OF THE REVIEW ALLOWED. NONE. DO NOT REFER TO ANY OTHER BOOK IN YOUR BRIEF REVIEW. THE ONLY BOOK CITED IN YOUR REVIEW IS THE ONE YOU ARE REVIEWING - NO OTHERS. ALL LINKS TO OTHER THREADS OR REVIEWS ARE DELETED IMMEDIATELY - THERE WILL BE NO WARNING. WE CONSIDER THIS SELF PROMOTION AND IT IS NOT ALLOWED AND IS IN VIOLATION OF OUR RULES AND GUIDELINES.

Tara, I believe you are new to these threads - we are here to help you with the standard format which once you get it under your belt is extremely easy. Check out the How To thread because it gives you all of the details you need to be successful. It takes everybody a couple of entries to get the knack and you can always rely on looking back at the example in comment box one if you forget.

We are here to help and hope you enjoy your thread in 2018.

Regards,

Bentley

JANUARY

1. by James Patterson
Finish date: January 2, 2018
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Rating: B
Review: I can always rely on James Patterson for an enjoyable and easy read. This one was no exception. The two storylines were both fun to “work the case� with Lindsay and company. The character development was good � Joe is trying to figure out where he’s going next after losing his job, Yuki leaves the DA’s office and takes a new job, Cindy has written a book and is doing the publicity for that. This one was just a good, easy read � definitely “brain candy� for me.

2. by Riley Sager
Finish date: January 8, 2018
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Rating: A+++
Review: This was my second read of 2018 and my first 5 star rating! I mean I could gush on and on about this book! It was THAT good!

So basically you’ve got Quincy who acts like she has her act together after surviving a terrible incident which saw her best friends murdered before her eyes. She’s labeled a “Final Girl�. She’s effectively blocked it completely out of her mind and “thinks� she’s moved past it. But can one really move past something like that?! When Sam, another “Final Girl� randomly shows up on her doorstep, things start to spiral for Quincy. She’s not nearly as perfect as she wants everyone to believe. And then she begins remembering what happened that night many years ago �. Maybe some things are better left unremembered �.

I don’t want to give any more plot details about it without getting into spoilers. But really, this book caught me from the very first page and I was absolutely hooked until I finished it. And that ending �. well! It’s a crazy ending that I was not prepared for! I’m so glad that I picked this one up. I haven’t been caught up in a book like I was with this one in a very long time, so I really enjoyed my time with it.

3. by Jason Emerson (no photo)
Finish date: January 12, 2018
Genre: History/Biography
Rating: C
Review: I majored in history in college. I am trying to expand my reading into more non-fiction. It has been a long time since I really read a historical non-fiction book with a somewhat critical eye.

It is not unknown the struggles that the Lincoln family endured. Not only did Mary Lincoln have to bury 3 of her 4 children, but she was also right beside her husband when he was shot. I’m not sure anyone would be able to suffer those kinds of losses and come out completely unscathed. Everyone does handle grief differently, but any way you look at it, the losses Mary had to deal with were substantial.

I took a lot of notes during my reading and one thing that really stuck out to me was the author’s obvious soft spot for Robert Lincoln. Historically, Abraham and Mary’s son has not been shown in a very good light for having his mother committed to the insane asylum. Some people feel like Robert had a sane woman committed just so he could save the embarrassment she was causing to the Lincoln family. Mr. Emerson has a differing opinion, and claims that Robert was just doing his duty to his mother by protecting her.

Overall, I felt like this was a well-written, well-researched book. I found it easy to read. I enjoyed reading it and learned quite a bit.

Great start Tara

4. by Lee Child
Finish date: January 19, 2018
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Rating: C
Review: This one, for the most part, I enjoyed. I felt like the plot was a little convoluted and far-reaching. But I suppose that’s kind of what you get when you’ve got a character like Jack Reacher�.But I like Jack Reacher the character. He’s got charm, and yet he’s indisputably badass at the same time. There’s just something about him. I honestly think that his character is the reason I kept reading this one, because to be honest with you, the overall storyline was not really my cup of tea. Clocking in at 422 pages, this book was a little chunkier than I have been reading lately. Unfortunately, I also feel like at least 100 pages could have been cut out and not much would have been missed. Can a reader like a book because they like the main character? Because that’s really my feeling on this one. I didn’t care for the storyline itself, but I felt like Reacher made the book worth reading.

5. by Matthew Reilly
Finish date: January 28, 2018
Genre: Adventure Thriller
Rating: D
Review: Imagine an Indiana Jones movie in book form. Yep, that’s pretty much it. It read fast and was fun, but there was a lot of filler that I think the story could have done without. Yet looking back, I understand why that filler was there � to set up the series.

It was a fun adventure book. There’s a lot of character development and the writing is good. If it was just a tad shorter it would have been a little more enjoyable for me.

6. by Joseph J. Ellis
Finish date: January 30, 2018
Genre: History/Biography
Rating: B-
Review: I have started a Presidential Reading Challenge. Basically I'm going to read biographies on all the presidents. This is the first book I chose for George Washington. I chose this book to start with because it appeared to be a short, all-encompassing biography. I figured it would give me a good decent background before I really got started into the meat of George Washington’s life. And for the most part, this book fulfilled that. But it definitely left me wanting more. There were a lot of places that I really wanted more information on, but I realize that it’s not feasible to put every single thing about his entire life into one small volume such as this.

The writing itself in this book was extremely good. There were some dry parts, but those usually occurred when there was discussion of battle details and strategy � those topics just don’t interest me all that much. Overall I found this one easy to read and it kept my interest throughout. I found it to be a wonderful overview of Washington. It is an easy read, one that will most certainly appeal to casual readers. It also made me realize that my knowledge of the history of the American Revolution is severely lacking (!).

You should love our Presidential Series then

Bentley wrote: "You should love our Presidential Series then"

I probably would :)

FEBRUARY

7. by Leslie Meier
Finish date: February 6, 2018
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Rating: B
Review: This is the second book in the Lucy Stone series and I totally enjoyed it. I do want to say that this book had a somewhat dark storyline, one that I would not normally equate with a cozy mystery. Overall though this was a really good read that I read rather quickly and thoroughly enjoyed.

8. by Debra Webb
Finish date: February 9, 2018
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Rating: B-
Review: I had never heard of Debra Webb until I was pitched this book as part of the TLC Book Tour. It sounded interesting, so I accepted. Overall it's a pretty decent book. Basically MC Tony's niece has gone missing at college and he goes to town to help find her. Then you've got the other MC, Jo, who 18 years prior, had been kidnapped and held in the same small college town. She fears its the same people who took her that took Tony's niece, so she comes to town to finally solve the puzzle once and for all. That's the basic premise. In between there you've got Tony trying to pull his life together for 5 minutes in order to find his niece and then there's Jo, who is struggling with her past - while not being entirely forthcoming about what happened to her all those years ago. It's a good storyline, and the writing was well done. While I did enjoy it, it ultimately won't be something I will remember much about in a few months. So an "ok" read for me.

9. by Deborah Crombie
Finish date: February 14, 2018
Genre: Mystery
Rating: B
Review: This is the first book in the Duncan Kincaid/Gemma James series. I have read a few of the later books, but wanted to see this series from the beginning. So I finally got around to picking this one up. It felt very reminiscent of an Agatha Christie book. The basic premise is Duncan is on vacation and a few people are murdered. The local police essentially bungle the whole investigation and Duncan steps in. He has to unravel the clues because someone in that house is the murderer. It was a good book, but definitely had a completely different feel to it. I'm looking forward to more earlier books so I can see how Duncan & Gemma's relationship blossoms.

10. by Tiffany Reisz
Finish date: February 18, 2018
Genre: Mystery/Thriller/Romantic Suspense
Rating: A
Review: I received a copy of this book for free in exchange for an honest review. When I was originally pitched this one it sounded creepy and interesting. When it first arrived and I read the first page I was really afraid I had made a big mistake by accepting this one. I set it aside until it was closer to my posting date. And when I did finally pick it back up I literally flew through it! It hooked me from the first page and didn't spit me back out until the very ending. It was indeed creepy. It was somewhat taboo feeling at times. It was just a really good read and I thoroughly enjoyed it. This was my first time reading anything by this author, but it certainly won't be the last. Highly recommended!

11. by Stuart Woods
Finish date: February 26, 2018
Genre: Mystery
Rating: B-/C+
Review: This is the 11th book in the Stone Barrington series. In this particular installment Stone is back in New York and he's introduced to a seemingly filthy rich, somewhat shady, client. And it just goes downhill from there for Stone. That includes a dead woman in his house with Stone being a suspect in her murder, a sexually explicit video of Stone and a girlfriend being leaked onto the internet, and then someone close to Stone is kidnapped. It's just one thing after another. And somehow Stone manages to get out of every jam he encounters. Overall a good and entertaining read.

MARCH

12. by James Thomas Flexner (no photo)
Finish date: March 7, 2018
Genre: History/Biography
Rating: C+
Review: This book is the first in a four book series on our first president, George Washington. This particular installment covers the years from Washington's birth until the very start of the American Revolution. I am glad that this book gave me more background on the early years of Washington's life. And it really made me realize that my knowledge of those early years in America are severely lacking.

This book was written in the 1960s and I felt a little bogged down at times with the writing style being a little different from more contemporary works. I am glad that I finally got to know Mr. Washington before he was President Washington. It was an interesting perspective to learn things from his early childhood and early military career.

13. by Zoje Stage
Finish date: March 8, 2018
Genre: Thriller
Rating: A-
Review: This is a creepy psychological thriller that I had a hard time putting down. Yet, I found it very hard to find it completely believable. You've basically got a mother who is doing everything in her power to figure out why her young daughter won't talk. Come to find out, the daughter most certainly can talk ... and she's starting to plot her mother's demise. Whoa! But that's also where the unbelievable part came in for me. I found it extremely hard to accept the fact that a 7-year-old child could actually be plotting and attempting to murder her mother. I'm not saying it can't and doesn't happen, I just like to think it can't/won't. So it makes for a very interesting read. It's not going to be a book for everyone, it definitely will be a divisive read, but I thoroughly enjoyed it!

14. by Charlaine Harris
Finish date: March 14, 2018
Genre: Fantasy/Paranormal
Rating: B+
Review: This is the 7th book in the Sookie Stackhouse series. It was great to jump back in with Sookie, but I did have a bit of a time recalling what had previously happened so I found this book to have a slightly slow start. But it quickly picked up the pace and I enjoyed it.

15. by Carol O'Connell
Finish date: March 18, 2018
Genre: Mystery
Rating: D-
Review: This is the first book in the Kathleen Mallory series. And it just didn't work for me. I never did like Mallory's character, she was so cold I swear ice had to be hanging from her hair. And there was this entire side storyline about mediums and seances that just didn't fit the entire book itself. I'm assuming that's where the "Oracle" in the title came from, but it didn't feel like it really belonged in this story. It just wasn't good in my opinion and I won't be reading any more in this series.

Good job and thank you for your cooperation.

All of your citations are perfect too.

16. by Bonnie MacBird
Finish date: March 29, 2018
Genre: Mystery/Historical Fiction
Rating: C
Review: It's a good thing this was a freebie, because it ultimately wasn't the greatest for me. I also didn't feel like I was reading a good portrayal of the character Sherlock Holmes. It read easily enough, just wasn't my cup of tea.

APRIL

17. by Kamila Shamsie
Finish date: April 6, 2018
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Rating: A
Review: Holy moly this book gave me all the feels. It's outside my normal reading comfort zone and it made me think like I've never thought about a book before. I loved it and will be singing its praises to everyone!

18. by Sue Grafton
Finish date: April 15, 2018
Genre: Mystery
Rating: B
Review: The 6th book in the Kinsey Millhone series. I hadn't read #5 in quite some time but I had no trouble getting right back in with Kinsey. I love her character, she's strong and smart. The storyline in this one was really good. A good and enjoyable read.

19. by Ruth Ware
Finish date: April 21, 2018
Genre: Mystery
Rating: B
Review: A really good thriller that had me questioning just about everything at every turn. A really good book that I thoroughly enjoyed!!

20. by James Patterson
Finish date: May 2, 2018
Genre: Mystery
Rating: D
Review: This is the first book in a new(ish) series featuring a female detective in Australia. It was a flop for me. I had the killer pegged before even the halfway mark. I didn't care for Harriet's character. This one just didn't work for me at all.

21. by Judy Blundell
Finish date: May 8, 2018
Genre: Young Adult/Historical Fiction
Rating: A-
Review: Overall I enjoyed this book. However, I did have some issues with it. I enjoyed the vibe of the post-war era that this one is set during, however I did not believe the mystery part that the author threw in at the near end. It just didn't work with the rest of the book in my opinion.

22. by Carla Norton
Finish date: May 15, 2018
Genre: Mystery
Rating: B
Review: It had been a long time since I read the first book in this series, but I didn't have any trouble jumping back in with Reeve. I enjoyed it and the pacing was good. A good book, but nothing extraordinary.

23. by James Patterson
Finish date: May 23, 2018
Genre: Mystery
Rating: C
Review: The second book in the NYPD Red series. A decent installment. I enjoy the characters. A quick and easy read, but nothing that's going to be very memorable.

24. by Kristin Hannah
Finish date: June 6, 2018
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: A
Review: What. A. Book. Powerful. Moving. Thought-provoking. What a wonderful story. A book that is out of my comfort zone, but one that I'm extremely happy I gave a shot. Highly, highly recommended!

25. by Jennifer Hillier
Finish date: June 11, 2018
Genre: Thriller
Rating: A
Review: This was a thrilling ride of a book! I love how it unfolded layer by layer. It's not for the faint of heart. But I really enjoyed it!

You are making great progress