Book Review: Dear Pen Pal (The Mother-Daughter Book Club, #3) by Heather Vogel Frederick

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Dear Pen Pal (The Mother-Daughter Book Club, #3)  by Heather Vogel Frederick  is the third book in a middle grade book series that is being rereleased. Chaos erupts in this third installment as the daughters in the book club get themselves into trouble. Each of the girls have big changes in their lives:  Jess is going to boarding school; Megan's grandmother comes to live with her; Emma starts a campaign against school uniforms; Cassidy has a lot of unexpected change coming to her family. Will the mother daughter book club stay together? I'd like to thank NetGalley, Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, and Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers for an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of Dear Pen Pal  by Heather Vogel Frederick with it's upcoming rerelease to the public. I always love a good book that involves books, even if its target audience is children between the ages of eight and twelve. It wasn't until I reached the end of the book that I realized that it...
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Book Review: Everyone Here Is Lying by Shari Lapena

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book review everyone here is lying shari lapena books

Everyone Here Is Lying by Shari Lapena was published on July 25, 2023.  The story opens with William Wooler having an affair.  When his mistress ends things, William goes home early wanting some peace and quiet only to find his daughter Avery home from school early.  He loses his temper with his daughter and leaves.  Hours later, Avery is missing and presumed dead, leaving William as the suspect.  However, he isn't the only person in town hiding a secret.

Shari Lapena is one of my favorite authors, so whenever she has a new book out, I know that I'm going to read it automatically.  I was hoping that I'd be lucky enough to receive an advanced readers copy from NetGalley.  Unfortunately, it wasn't in the cards for me.  However, I was one of the first people to be able to check out Everyone Here Is Lying from my local public library.

Told from multiple perspectives, the story held my attention, and I drew some conclusions on who I thought was involved in the kidnapping of Avery.  I thought the father was too obvious, and I didn't think it was anyone in the immediate family.  My mind briefly landed on the mistress and then on her son.  There were so many twists and turns that I started second guessing myself on who I thought it was.  When the author revealed what happened, I was completely shocked by it.  Looking back, she did give a really good clue as to who was involved, and I ignored it.

Although Everyone Here Is Lying by Shari Lapena is a suspense novel, it isn't fast paced at all.  It's more of a slow burn but in a good way.  I do have to say that normally there are a few likable characters throughout the story, but this isn't one of them.  The majority of the characters were unlikable in my opinion, but surprisingly, that didn't detract from the story.

Five out of five stars is what I gave Everyone Here Is Lying by Shari Lapena.  I can't wait to see what the author writes next.  Hopefully, she will eventually write a sequel to to this book.

 

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