By Cynthia Ayala
Hey there readers. I hope everyone is having a wonderful week. It’s been a nice week. I had four days off from work but then I worked all weekend, which is fair, and I don’t mind working the weekends, there’s more energy on the weekends. It’s crazy sure, but time also just flies by. Been working on my business plan with my mom for “Dragin Pub House”. Can’t reveal everything about it but the title is a pun. I have quite the affinity for puns. Anyway, since it’s been pretty easy going of late (minus the bouts of insomnia) I’ve been able to catch up on my reading, editing, and writing. Love it! So check out this week’s reading list. Hope something catches your eye here, Happy reading.
1. Vicious (Pretty Little Liars #16)
by Sara Shepard (Goodreads Author)
Vicious is the explosive conclusion to Sara Shepard’s #1 New York Times bestselling Pretty Little Liars series, perfect for fans of the hit ABC Family original TV show based on the series.
High school seniors Aria, Emily, Hanna, and Spencer have been through a lot since their best friend, Alison DiLaurentis, disappeared five summers ago. A stalker named “A” has harassed them for their past mistakes and revealed their darkest secrets to the world. They’ve been on TV, hounded by the press, kicked out of school, arrested, and even put in jail. With time running out, and their lives on the line, one of the Liars does something so terrifying and shocking, fans will be left breathless.
Sara Shepard’s fan base continues to grow as ABC Family’s hit Pretty Little Liars TV show draws in new readers to the #1 New York Times bestselling series. Full of unexpected twists and shocking revelations, this long-awaited finale to this much-loved series will not disappoint.
“A deeply moving story of family, homelessness, and the ghosts that won’t let us go. Haunting and unforgettable.”
Megan Shepherd, New York Times bestselling author of The Secret Horses of Briar Hill
Told in the naive voice of a homeless girl sheltered by her mother from the world, this is a moving debut perfect for fans of David Almond, A Monster Calls, and Room.
I’m invisible. Ma says I’m supposed to be so the Authorities don’t get me. She goes out into the streets almost every day but I’m not allowed. I’ve got to stay inside the mill so they don’t see me.
In an old, abandoned mill, a girl and her ma take shelter from their memories of life on the streets, and watch the busy world go by. The girl calls it the Castle because it’s the biggest place they’ve ever stayed, a home of her own like no other. The windows are boarded up and the floorboards are falling in, but for her neither of those things matter.
Then developers show up, and it’s clear that that their lives are about to change forever. Desperate to save their refuge from the Authorities and her mother from her own personal demons, the girl seeks out the ghosts of the mill. And with only Caretaker the old man who’s slept outside the mill for decades around to answer her questions, she begins to wonder what kind of ghosts are haunting both the mill and her mother.
The Girl in Between is a compelling, witty, and at times heartbreaking novel that explores themes of loneliness and grief with effortless warmth and an unforgettable voice that will stick with you long after you’ve finished.
3. Out of the Shadows (Shadowlands #1)
by Ashlee Nicole Bye (Goodreads Author)
Nobody ever said death would be easy…
From the streets of Melbourne to the bowels of Westminster, the delicate balance between life and death that is so painstakingly maintained by the reapers of The Order of Dark and Light is being tested by the return of an ancient threat. Tensions are rising within the hidden world of The Shadowlands and if this threat is not contained war will be inevitable. And the destruction of the human world is bound to follow in its wake.
Amidst this tension, eighteen-year-old Sachi Manning is struggling to cope with the grief and guilt that has plagued her ever since her best friend was murdered six months earlier—that is, until she spots him seemingly alive and well and being held at scythe point by a hooded figure who looks more like a GQ model than the Grim Reaper.
Sachi shouldn’t be able to see through the glamours that shield Shadowlanders from the human world, so the reaper in question wants some answers. And so begins the craziest couple of weeks of Sachi’s life as she is drawn into a world of mysteries, magic, monsters, and mayhem, encountering dragons, faeries, soul-sucking demons, not-so-grim reapers, and even the Horseman of Death.
With a mix of heart, humour and hair-raising action, Out of the Shadows is the adventure of an afterlifetime, perfect for fans of Cassandra Clare and Kresley Cole.
*Disclaimer: All synopsis are provided by Goodreads.