19. Tell Me What You Did by Carter Wilson

listened on Libby

420 pgs.

2025
Adult mystery 
Finished 4/26/2025
Goodreads rating: 3.74
My rating: 3.75
Setting: contemporary America - just can't remember where

My comments: Poe runs a podcast where she interviews people who have perpetrated some sort of crime.  But now she becomes the prey ot a ruthless stalker.  Somewhat of a loner, she lives a secluded life with her dog, Bailey, her only close associations that of her producer (and boyfriend), and her father.  She'd watched her mother being murdered 17 years prior, and this entire story is about her reliving how she captured and murdered the killer herself.  But now someone claiming to be him is after her, using her own podcast.  There weren't many surprises along the way, nevertheless it kept me on the edge of my seat ... it just went on a little too long.

Goodreads synopsis:  She gets people to confess their crimes for a living. He knows she's hiding a terrible secret. It's time for the truth to come out…

Poe Webb, host of a popular true crime podcast, invites people to anonymously confess crimes they've committed to her audience. She can't guarantee the police won't come after her "guests," but her show grants simultaneous anonymity and instant fame—a potent combination that's proven difficult to resist. After an episode recording, Poe usually erases both criminal and crime from her mind.

But when a strange and oddly familiar man appears on her show, Poe is forced to take a second look. Not only because he claims to be her mother's murderer from years ago, but because Poe knows something no one else does. Her mother's murderer is dead.

Poe killed him.

From the USA Today bestselling author of The Dead Girl in 2A and The New Neighbor comes a chilling new thriller that forces the question: are murderers always the bad guys?

Shop Hops

 I LOVE Shop Hops!

7/1 - 8/31/2025  All Mid-Atlantic Shop Hop (PA-NJ-WV-VA-DE)

8/1 - 8/31/2025  Tri State Paper Crafting Shop Hop (Ohio-Indiana-Michigan)

9/24 - 10/4/2025  Buggies and Buds Shop Hop (Eastern PA)

          Dover - Treasures Old and New

          Ephrata - L & L Rubber Stamps & Scrapbooking

          Greencastle - Stampin' Station/Home of Purple Daisy Design

          Honey Brook - Shady Lane Impressios

          Lancaster - Country Cottage Creations

          Lititz - Cozy Crop House

          Mechanicsburg - Joys of Life

          Paradise - Farmhouse Memories

Bits and Bobs

 TrashyTreasyours creates cute ephemera to stick here and there with different sizes of circle punches, distress ink, stencils, fussy cuts, stickers..... So easy and almost mindless.  Video here.

18. Bright Side by Kim Holden

listened on Audible

423 pgs.

2014
Contemporary "New Adult" romance
Finished 4/16/2025
Goodreads rating: 
My rating: 5
Setting: 

My comments: The first half of this book was really great with an incredibly personable protagonist with the most positive attitude - totally refreshing.  But little by little hints were given that made me realize the story was not going to end without some really sad feelings, and even, maybe, tears.  This was correct.  The whole story was beautifully written, although the end tended to go on and on and on a little too much.  Maybe I say that because there was sadness and grief that was heaped on top of even more sadness and grief.  It also made me think a lot of Steve's last days.  It was definitely a good read, but I HATE tearjerker books. So my rating is tainted a bit....

     SYNOPSIS:  Kate has just moved from San Diego to Minneapolis to begin her college degree.  She speaks with her best friend, Gus, at least once a day.  He is closer than a brother.  They were practically raised together and their banter is exceptional.  His band, of which he is the lead singer and songwriter, has just gotten a record deal and is on the road.  They're hitting it big, fast.  She is making great friends in Minneapolis.  She is positive, friendly, happy, and helpful to all.  And then...

Goodreads synopsis:  Secrets.

Everyone has one.
Some are bigger than others.
And when secrets are revealed,
Some will heal you ...
And some will end you.

Kate Sedgwick’s life has been anything but typical. She’s endured hardship and tragedy, but throughout it all she remains happy and optimistic (there’s a reason her best friend Gus calls her Bright Side). Kate is strong-willed, funny, smart, and musically gifted. She’s also never believed in love. So when Kate leaves San Diego to attend college in the small town of Grant, Minnesota, the last thing she expects is to fall in love with Keller Banks.

They both feel it.
But they each have a reason to fight it.
They each have a secret.

And when secrets are revealed,
Some will heal you …
And some will end you.

17. Cold as Hell by Kelley Armstrong

#3 Haven's Rock

listened on Libby

341 pgs.

2025
Adult Mystery
Finished 4-13-25
Goodreads rating: 4.29
My rating: 4
Setting: Contemporary middle-of-nowhere, Yukon, Canada

My comments: It's great to be back with Casey and crew in the middle-of-nowhere Yukon.  Casey is now eight months pregnant, in a pregnancy that has had many worries and mishaps.  Their new community is only a little over a year old and they are working hard to make it safe and happy for all, when one of the female inhabitants is kidnapped, assaulted, and rescued in the nick of time.  Shortly after that, another female disappears, found murdered in a gruesome way.  All of Haven's Rock is shocked because everyone has been vetted extremely carefully so they know that no "crazies" have been let in.  How wrong they are.  The mystery is well written, and you know that near the end of the book there's going to be a very harried birth, complete with almost tragic results.  I do enjoy and look forward to every book in the series.

Goodreads synopsis:  Haven’s Rock is a sanctuary town hidden deep in the Yukon for those who need to disappear from the regular world. Detective Casey Duncan and her husband, Sheriff Eric Dalton, are starting a family now that they’ve settled into their life here. As Casey nears the end of her pregnancy, she lets nothing, including her worried husband, stop her from investigating what happens in the forbidden forest outside the town of Haven’s Rock.

When one of the town's residents is drugged and wanders too close to the edge of town, she’s dragged into the woods kicking and screaming. She’s saved in the nick of time, but the women of the town are alarmed. Casey and Eric investigate the assault just as a snowstorm hits Haven’s Rock, covering the forest. It’s there they find a frozen body, naked in the snow. With mixed accounts of the woman's last movements, the two begin to question who they can trust—and who they can't—in their seemingly safe haven.

16. A Steep Price by Robert Dugoni

#6 Tracy Crosswhite

listened on Audible

410 pgs.

2018
Adult Police Procedural
Finished 4/10/2025
Goodreads rating: 4.38
My rating: 4.5
Setting: Contemporary Seattle

My comments: Although depressing, this mystery was super interesting and kept me on my toes, looking forward to returning each time I had to stop reading.  There are two (interesting) cases going on at once, Tracy is pregnant, and we get much more acquainted with Fazio and his wife Vera, who has just discovered she has breast cancer. 

Goodreads synopsis:  Called in to consult after a young woman disappears, Tracy Crosswhite has the uneasy feeling that this is no ordinary missing-persons case. When the body turns up in an abandoned well, Tracy’s suspicions are confirmed. Estranged from her family, the victim had balked at an arranged marriage and had planned to attend graduate school. But someone cut her dreams short.

Solving the mystery behind the murder isn’t Tracy’s only challenge. The detective is keeping a secret of her she’s pregnant. And now her biggest fear seems to be coming true when a new detective arrives to replace her. Meanwhile, Tracy’s colleague Vic Fazzio is about to take a fall after his investigation into the murder of a local community activist turns violent and leaves an invaluable witness dead.

Two careers are on the line. And when more deadly secrets emerge, jobs might not be the only things at risk.

Inspiration for Art Pages that are Actually Easy Enough for Me to Do!!!

 Stamps, distress inks and a tiny bit of fussy cutting....I can actually pull this off myself!  Super short video and I have all the materials!  vickyp