Waiting on Wednesday - Forget Me Not

 

'Waiting on Wednesday' is an event where I feature an upcoming book that I am extra excited about.  I love doing this, letting the 'word' spread about authors and series that I enjoy.   Hope you'll stop by often and see what I'm 'waiting' on.

I have enjoyed all of Stacy Willingham's books that I've read.  The one I'm 'waiting on' this week is her fourth and I think the cover is lovely and a bit creepy.  Beautiful colors, but there are some thorns and other hidden things pictured.  I first discovered Stacy when a friend that I made when we lived in Kerrville told me that her daughter's husband had a cousin who had her first book being published.  She told me a bit about it and I thought it sounded like one I'd love to try.  That book was A Flicker In The Dark and you might know that it would be noteworthy because the author comment on the cover is by Karin Slaughter (I love her books!).  That debut book sold a lot of copies and was nominated for a number of awards.  Book #2 was All The Dangerous Things and #3 was entitled Only If You're Lucky.  Can't wait for this new one!  Have you read any of Stacy's books?  What did you think?      

Forget Me Not

by Stacy Willingham

Publication Date: August 26th

A pulse-pounding new Southern thriller from the author of the runaway bestseller A Flicker in the Dark.

Twenty-two years ago, Claire Campbell’s older sister, Natalie, disappeared shortly after her eighteenth birthday. Days later, her blood was found in a car, a man was arrested, and the case was swiftly closed. In the decades since, Claire has attempted to forget her traumatic past by moving to the city and climbing the ranks as an investigative journalist... until an unexpected call from her father forces her to come back home and face it all anew.

With the entire summer now looming ahead—a summer spent with nothing to do in her childhood home, with her estranged mother—Claire decides on a whim to accept a seasonal job at Galloway Farm, a muscadine vineyard in coastal South Carolina less than an hour away from where she grew up. At first glance, Galloway is an idyllic escape for Claire. A scenic retreat full of slow-paced nostalgia, as well as a place where her sister seemed truly happy in that last summer before she vanished, it feels like the perfect plan to pass the time. However, as soon as Claire starts to settle in, she stumbles across an old diary written by one of the vineyard's owners, and what at first seems like a story of young rebellion and love turns into something much more sinister as it begins to describe details of various unsolved crimes. As the days stretch on, Claire finds herself becoming more and more secluded as she starts to obsess over the diary's contents… as well as the lingering feeling that her own sister's disappearance may be somehow tied to it all.

Galloway was supposed to be a place to help her move forward, but instead, Claire quickly finds herself immersed in her own dark and dangerous past.

Waiting on Wednesday - The Poppy Fields

'Waiting on Wednesday' is an event where I feature an upcoming book that I am extra excited about.  I love doing this, letting the 'word' spread about authors and series that I enjoy.   Hope you'll stop by often and see what I'm 'waiting' on!

The book I'm waiting on this week is a bit out of my wheelhouse.  However, the cover caught my eye and the description was also interesting.  Plus, the author, Nikki Erlick, is also the author of The Measure, which I have not read as yet, but it's one of the books that the afternoon book group I'm a part of is considering reading for the second half of 2025.  We'll see if it gets voted in.  I do think that I will read The Measure regardless.  Have you read The Measure and/or discussed it with other readers or a book group?  And, what do you think about the description of The Poppy Fields?  Oh, The Poppy Fields is also going to be one of those books that has the sprayed edges and illustrated end pages.  That seems to be such a big things these days.      

The Poppy Fields

by Nikki Erlick

Publication Date: June 17th

From the New York Times bestselling author of the smash-hit The Measure—a runaway bestseller and a Read with Jenna TODAY Show pick—comes a stunning speculative story of healing, self-discovery, forgiveness, and found friendship.

Welcome to the Poppy Fields, where there’s hope for even the most battered hearts to heal.

Here, in a remote stretch of the California desert, lies an experimental and controversial treatment center that allows those suffering from the heartache of loss to sleep through their pain...and keep on sleeping. After patients awaken from this prolonged state of slumber, they will finally be healed. But only if they’re willing to accept the potential shadowy side effects.

On a journey to this mystical destination are four very different strangers and one little dog: Ava, a book illustrator; Ray, a fireman; Sasha, an occupational therapist; Sky, a free spirit; and a friendly pup named PJ. As they attempt to make their way from the Midwest all the way west to the Poppy Fields—where they hope to find Ellis, its brilliant, enigmatic founder—each of their past secrets and mysterious motivations threaten to derail their voyage.

A high-concept speculative novel about heartache, hope, and human resilience, The Poppy Fields explores the path of grief and healing, a journey at once profoundly universal and unique to every person, posing the questions: How do we heal in the wake of great loss? And how far are we willing to go in order to be healed?

It's now June and summer has come...

Hey there everyone!  How are all of you doing and did you know that it is now June?  Summer is here.  I will say that our weather people in this area have been a bit obsessed with saying our temps are way too much like summer and reminding everyone to watch out for the heat.  A lot of people have moved into Central Texas from other parts, places that late spring/summer takes a longer time to appear.  I say, welcome to Texas.  Be sure you have your hat, your sunscreen, and your water.  Those are my warnings to newcomers.  Ha!

I decided it might be time to share what I've read in May and also talk a little bit about what I'm planning for summer reading.  I read 9 books in May - several of them in Julia Spencer-Fleming's mystery series that I had mentioned in my post here.  At that time I had read the first 4 books in the series and was working on #5.  May saw me 'catch-up' on that series by finishing #5-9.  Enjoyed them very much.  The tenth book in the series will be published in mid-November.  It's titled At Midnight Comes the Cry and I 'can't wait' for it.  As you can see by the cover and the snow, it's set close to Christmas time and takes Russ and Claire further along in their life journey together.  Julia is an author that writes fairly slowly (the previous book was published in 2020) and so her fans are quite eager for this new book.  

My other reading for this month included a couple of books for the afternoon book group that I attend.  The theme was 'books and libraries' and I reread Anne Bogel's book of essays called I'd Rather Be Reading.  I've linked to my review of that one from several years ago.  I again enjoyed reading her thoughts.  I also sort of skimmed Ann Hood's book, The Book That Matters Most, which I also read in 2018.  Again, I linked to my review from that time.  It's a tale of a book group that talks about 'the book that has mattered most' to them, one member shares each month.  I liked it again as well.  The last book I finished was the second book in Kristen Perrin's new series, How to Seal Your Own Fate.  I had shared that one as a 'Waiting on' book back in February here.  The first book in the series was discussed at our mystery book group in February.  I did like this second book, but I think maybe not quite as much as the first.  I'll be curious how the author will continue the series.  This new one was good, but I just didn't find it quite as absorbing.  

I think that's it for May.  It's now June and summer reading is here.  I have enjoyed hearing about all the plans that so many have for 'summer reading'.  I thought about joining in on some of the events, but....no.  I've been going a bit back and forth about working on catching up on another mystery series that I've gotten behind on (there are several of those!) or even doing a reread or two of some longer books that I enjoyed a number of years ago.  We'll see what works for me.  I know I've talked about how I really like to do 'free reading' - no rules, no musts, no 'gotta's'.  And I have so, so many books that I haven't even begun as yet.  Ah well.  Books and reading make me happy and 'take me away'.  

Hope everyone has a nice week!  I will have a 'Waiting on' post on Wednesday and have several books that I am excited about that I will share in that way this summer.  Take care - stay cool - enjoy your summer reading!!