ReadingGrrls Paper Safari

Publication Date:  June 1, 2021 Format:  Audio Genre:   AA Literature/ Romance Narrators:  Mela Lee Publisher:  Grand Central Publishing Length:  10 hours 32 min Buy:  Kindle  |  Audio Synopsis Seven days to fall in love, 15 years to forget, and seven days to get it all back again... Eva Mercy is a single mom and bestselling erotica writer who is feeling pressed from all sides. Shane Hall is a reclusive, enigmatic, award‑winning novelist, who, to everyone's surprise, shows up in New York. When Shane and Eva meet unexpectedly at a literary event, sparks fly, raising not only their buried traumas, but the eyebrows of the Black literati. What no one knows is that 15 years earlier, teenage Eva and Shane spent one crazy, torrid ...

Publication Date:  August 24, 2021 Format:  ebook Genre:   Suspense Publisher:  MIRA Books  Length:  248 pages Buy:    Kindle  |  Paperback  Synopsis From the author of  When I Was You  comes a spine-tingling new thriller about a mother’s worst nightmare come true, when her teenage daughter goes to a sleepover and doesn’t come back. Whitney had some misgivings when she dropped her increasingly moody teenage daughter, Amelia, off at Lauren’s house. She’d never met the parents, and usually she’d go in, but Amelia clearly wasn’t going to let something so humiliating happen, so instead Whitney waved to her daughter before pulling away from the little house with the roses in front. But when she goes back the next day, an elderly couple ans...

Publication Date:  January 30, 2022 Format:  Audio Genre:   Mystery Narrators:  Athena Karkanis Publisher:  Bespeak Audio Length:  9 hours 43 min Buy:  Kindle  | Audio Synopsis When, at the age of sixty, Joanne learns that Douglas Ellard, the reserved general practitioner whom she had grown up believing to be her father was, in fact, the best friend of her biological father, the brilliant visual artist Desmond Love, she begins to question not just who she is but what factors play a role in shaping all of us and in making us who we really are. Joanne is offered the chance to revisit her family history, when writer Roy Brodnitz, author of  The Happiest Girl , a Broadway mega-hit inspired by a Desmond Love painting, approaches her wi...

Violet Spark Elsa Jade & Erin Kellison (Butterfly Witch, #1) Publication date: January 24th 2022 Genres: Adult, New Adult, Urban Fantasy Imogen Taylor: Artist. College dropout. Gamer. Screwup. I had big plans for art school in California, but when the best mom in the world—mine—needed help, I came home to Arbolito, Arizona instead. I even got my old high school job back, making smoothies at the Desert Freeze…in winter. So, yeah, by day, my life is a cold, tropical-hued hell. But at night, I escape reality by plugging into my favorite video game, Legendelirium, to become a powerful, sexy witch, going on epic quests while vanquishing baddies. Until a cute guy from my gaming world shows up at work, gives me the worst kiss ever, and my reality and fantasy lives get blended by purple goo laced with lethal, nanorobotic technology. Now, I’ve got powers—strange, witchy ones. Scary people are after me, and I don’t know who to trust. And, get this. Somehow, it’s up to me to defea...

Publication Date:  July 14, 202 Format:  Hardcover Genre:   Fiction Publisher:  Grove Press Length:  240 pages Buy:   Paperback  | Kindle Synopsis It’s 1974 in the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma and fifteen-year-old Justine grows up in a family of tough, complicated, and loyal women presided over by her mother, Lula, and Granny. After Justine’s father abandoned the family, Lula became a devout member of the Holiness Church – a community that Justine at times finds stifling and terrifying. But Justine does her best as a devoted daughter until an act of violence sends her on a different path forever. Review:  I loved the description of this book but was sadly disappointed after reading it.  Each chapter is a leap in time making the book feel a bit disjointed...

Publication Date:  February 1, 2022 Format:  Kindle Genre:   AA Fiction/historical fiction Publisher:  Ballantine Books  Length:  400 pages Buy:   Kindle | Hardcover  Synopsis We can’t choose what we inherit. But can we choose who we become? In present-day California, Eleanor Bennett’s death leaves behind a puzzling inheritance for her two children, Byron and Benny: a traditional Caribbean black cake, made from a family recipe with a long history, and a voice recording. In her message, Eleanor shares a tumultuous story about a headstrong young swimmer who escapes her island home under suspicion of murder. The heartbreaking tale Eleanor unfolds, the secrets she still holds back, and the mystery of a long-lost child, challenge everything ...

  Publication Date:  October 4, 2005 Format:  Paperback Genre:   Fiction Publisher:  Mariner Books Length:  265 pages Buy:   Paperback  Synopsis Andrew, after many years, returns to his hometown to attend his mother's funeral. Planning to remain only a few days, he is drawn into the tragic legacy of his childhood friend and beautiful girl next door, Eden Close. An adopted child, Eden had learned to avoid the mother who did not want her and to please the father who did. She also aimed to please Andrew and his friends, first by being one of the boys and later by seducing them. Then one hot night, Andrew was awakened by gunshots and piercing screams from the next farm: Mr. Close had been killed and Eden blinded. Now, seventeen years later, Andrew ...

Shopping for a Highlander Julia Kent (Shopping for a Billionaire, #18) Publication date: January 11th 2022 Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance I’m a professional chickenblocker. Except “chicken” is a euphemism. I get paid to follow a womanizing troglodyte who thinks rules are for other people and that my pants are the next pair he’s getting into. Dream on. Bet your first professional job didn’t involve babysitting an extremely hot, muscle-bound Scottish Highlander with an ego the size of a kilt and a libido bigger than his…well… Chicken. Keeping Scottish football (that’s ‘soccer” to us Americans) player Hamish McCormick away from inappropriate scandals while he does product endorsement campaigns is my mission. No problem. Until Hamish decides I’m his next scandal. And maybe more…. Shopping for a Highlander is an enemies-to-lovers, slow burn romance that opens with a surprise kiss and ends with a happily ever after. This sports comedy in the New York Times bestselli...

Publication Date:  August 18, 2020 Format:  Paperback Genre:   Fiction Publisher:  Mulholland Books Length:  354 pages Buy:    Kindle  |  Paperback  Synopsis Dr. Margo Dunlop is at a crossroads. Her adoptive mom just passed away, and Margo misses her so much she can't begin to empty the house-or, it seems, get her brother on the phone. Not to mention she's newly single, secretly pregnant, and worried about her best friend's dangerous relationship. In an effort to cheer herself up she goes in search of her birth mother. Instead she finds Nikki, her mother's sister. Aunt Nikki isn't what Margo expects, and she brings upsetting news: Margo's mother is dead. Worse, she was murdered years ago, and her killer is still at large—and sending Nikki...

Publication Date:  January 11, 2022 Format:  Audio Genre:   Romance Narrators:  Kelsey Navarro & Tim Paige Publisher:  Dreamscape Media Length:  7 hours 47 min Buy:  Kindle  |  Audio Synopsis I’m not the type of girl who picks up a man on a rooftop bar—not the type who lets a man’s hands roam my body, discovering I have no panties on, never the girl who has hours’ worth of o’s from a smoking-hot one-night stand. But Dominick makes it so easy to say yes. His body, his moves, and his oh-so-wicked tongue have me saying it over and over again. Yes, please. Yes, more. Yes, right there. He worships every inch of my body, and I’m still sore the next morning when I meet him again. This time, he’s Mr. Dalton, m...

  Publication Date:  January 11, 2022 Format:  Audio Genre:   Mystery/thriller Narrators:  Karissa Vacker Publisher:  Macmillan Audio Length:  11 hours 01 min Buy:  Kindle  |  Audio Synopsis When Chloe Davis was twelve, six teenage girls went missing in her small Louisiana town. By the end of the summer, her own father had confessed to the crimes and was put away for life, leaving Chloe and the rest of her family to grapple with the truth and try to move forward while dealing with the aftermath. Now twenty years later, Chloe is a psychologist in Baton Rouge and getting ready for her wedding. While she finally has a fragile grasp on the happiness she’s worked so hard to achieve, she sometimes feels as out of control of her...

Once Upon Academy Vol 2 Breezy Jones, Cara North, Elle Klass, Marie Long, Valerie Puri Publication date: January 7th 2022 Genres: Adult, Paranormal, Romance To kick off the end of our first semester, Once Upon Academy is hosting the annual Winter Ball. A night full of magic, love and happy endings. Join the descendants of classic fairytale characters as they navigate the prestigious halls of Once Upon Academy. Get boujee at the most magical night of the school year and experience a fairytale kiss under the mistletoe. It’s a night you don’t want to miss. Add to Goodreads / Purchase — SNEAK PEEKS: -Perle of Love- His gaze averted to the table and his untouched tea. She wasn’t going to the ball if he wasn’t. Why is she punishing herself like that? Her words, so full of genuine care and compassion, stung the mixed emotions in his mind. He was still afraid to fully open up his heart to her—to be the vulnerable wolf his family thought. She was the last spark of goodness th...

Publication Date:  July 21, 2009 Format:  Audio Genre:   Fantasy Romance/Vampires Narrators:  Jim Frangione Publisher:  Recorded Books   Length:  15 hours 12 min Buy:  Kindle  |  Audio Synopsis The third book in the series tells the story of the vampire Zsadist, a former blood slave with a violent past. When he meets Bella, Zsadist thinks her human love could be his path to salvation. Then Bella is kidnapped, and Zsadist will stop at nothing to get her back. Review: I found this book on Hoopla through my Public Library.   I'm really enjoying this series.  It is much more than just a romance.  There is a war going on between the Vampires and the Others who are vampire killers who are undead a...

  Publication Date:  April 11, 2008 Format:  Paperback Genre:   Fiction Publisher:  Cannongate USA Length:  448 pages Buy:    Kindle  |  Paperback  Synopsis Eric Sanderson wakes up in a house he doesn’t recognize, unable to remember anything of his life. All he has left are his diary entries recalling Clio, a perfect love who died under mysterious circumstances, and a house that may contain the secrets to Eric’s prior life. But there may be more to this story, or it may be a different story altogether. With the help of allies found on the fringes of society, Eric embarks on an edge-of-your-seat journey to uncover the truth about himself and to escape the predatory forces that threaten to consume him. Review:  This was a ...

  Publication Date:  September 21, 2021 Format:  Audio Genre:   Historical YA fiction Narrators:  Matt Godfrey Publisher:  Harper Audio      Length:  7 hours 19 min Buy:  Kindle  |  Audio Synopsis Summer 1958. A gruesome killer plagues the Midwest, leaving behind a trail of bodies completely drained of blood.  Michael Jensen, an aspiring journalist whose father happens to be the town sheriff, never imagined that the Bloodless Murders would come to his backyard. Not until the night the Carlson family was found murdered in their home. Marie Catherine Hale, a diminutive 15-year-old, was discovered at the scene — covered in blood. She is the sole suspect in custody. Michael didn’t think that he would be part of the investigation, but he is pulled in when Marie decides that he is the only one she will confess to. As Marie recounts her version of the story, it falls to Michael to find the truth: What really happened th...

Publication Date:  November 25, 2021 Format:  Audio Genre:   Child Abuse/psychology Narrators:  Helen Naylor Publisher:  Hatchett UK - Thread   Length:  10 hours 15 min Buy:  Kindle  |  Audio Synopsis There was a time when I loved my mother. It’s shocking to imply that I stopped loving my mum because mothers always love their children and always do their best for them. Mothers are supposed to be good. But my mother wasn’t good. Ten years ago, Helen Naylor discovered her mother, Elinor, had been faking debilitating illnesses for 30 years. After Elinor’s self-induced death, Helen found her diaries, which Elinor wrote daily for more than 50 years. The diaries reveal not only the inner workings of Elinor’s twist...

  Publication Date:  February 6, 2006 Format:  Audio Genre:   Noir fiction  Narrators:  Heather O'Neill Publisher:  Highbridge      Length:  6 hours 59 min Buy:  Kindle  |  Audio Synopsis Set in Glasgow in 1981, a time of hunger strikes, riots and unemployment that decimated the old industrial heartlands,  The Field of Blood  is the first in the tense Paddy Meehan series from Scotland's princess of crime, Denise Mina. The vicious murder of a young child provides rookie journalist Paddy Meehan with her first big break when the suspect turns out to be her fiance's 11-year old cousin. Launching her own investigation into the horrific crime, Paddy uncovers lines of deception deep in Glasgow'...

  63,988 pages read 232 books read Heidi | Paper Safari Book Blog This is my journey in books for 2021! In 2022 I am joining Dollycas ( https://escapewithdollycas.com ) for the Alphabet Challenge.  You can find my list here .   I'm also going to try to up my 2022 reading challenge to 250 books since I have exceeded my reading challenge for the last 2 years.