Book Chatter

Sunday Matters

Do you remember Easter 2020? What a dark time that was! Andrea Bocelli had that concert which was live from the Duomo di Milano. It was so beautiful but it was eerie how deserted the streets were there, as they were here. I’ve included the link for it above. I remember watching it and thinking how he didn’t look well and many weeks later it was revealed that he sang while battling COVID. What a time that was.

Right Now:

Everyone is back at church now and can enjoy Easter services in person! We actually attended Easter service last night because I feared that the crowds would be too large today.

Today, we just want to take a long walk, put the food on to cook and have a nice dinner. It should be very relaxing.

This Week:

Nothing else matters this week except my first COVID vaccine appointment for this Tuesday! Finally!! I plan to go there, running and waving my arms all around in anticipation. I can’t tell you how happy I am that the day is finally here. My husband received shot #1 last Thursday. No reactions at all. In fact, his arm wasn’t even sore.

If some of you are having trouble finding an appointment, select Walmarts and Sam’s Clubs are now offering appointments as well. This is good since most everyone will be eligible come 4/15.

Reading:

I finished We Begin At The End. What a book! My review posts tomorrow. Don’t miss it. The book is just too good.

I am currently reading Vera by Carol Edgarian. If I want to stay on track with my reading and posting, I need to finish this baby by Tuesday.

Watching:

While browsing Netflix I came across a series called The Sinner. It’s a detective show featuring Bill Pullman. The first season is way out there and contains a lot of sex and triggering violence. About halfway through we were going to give it up because some of the scenes are very disturbing but at the same time, the story is so twisty and strange that you cannot for the life of you figure out why this young mother hauls off and kills someone on a public beach. Maybe the other seasons are less intense but we stuck with it and the ending was very good.

I heard on the news that Knives Out will have sequels, at least two and Netflix has picked up the rights to them. I really enjoyed the first movie and Daniel Craig has agreed to stay on.

Grateful for:

Bug repellent. Last year we had a horrible time with baby mosquitoes. This year, we’ve had hardly any rain but they are already out and already attacking.
Science. Need I say more?

What are your plans today?

The New Neighbors
By Simon Lelic
Berkley, 9780451490452, April 2018, 352pp.

The Short of It:

You might have a pre-conceived notion about what this book is about but you’d be wrong.

The Rest of It:

Jack and Syd find their dream home. It’s way outside of their means, but after the open house where couple after couple put in their offers, they toss theirs in as well thinking they don’t have a chance in hell of it being accepted but why not?

Well, it’s accepted.

The house is large and majestic in the way large, neglected homes are. It’s has good bones and potential but Jack and Syd can’t shake the feeling that something is off. When Jack goes into the attic to find the source of a strange smell, he discovers something and from there, one bad thing after another happens.

This was a good story but it’s not all “creepy house” and woo-woo if you get my drift. I think it’s marketed to be that way and in all honesty, the title doesn’t quite fit the story. It took a long time for something to happen and it wasn’t until 100 pages in that I began to really look forward to reading it. This is one of those reads where if you give it time, it does pay off in the end. There are some twists and interesting choices made with character and plot but ones that had me turning those pages. Overall, I enjoyed it.

Source: Copy provided by the publisher.
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

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