The Running Bibliophile

First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston is about a woman named Evie Porter that has everything a woman could want. But the catch is ... Evie Porter doesn't exist. Her identity and location comes first ... Evie Porter. The mark comes second ... Ryan Sumner. Lastly, the job. Evie only knows her boss by Mr. Smith, but after she failed miserably with her last job, Evie can't screw up the Ryan Sumner job if she wants to go leave this live behind and reclaim her true identity. WOW . . . Ashley Elston weaved a fantastic story that had me on the edge of my seat the entire time I was reading First Lie Wins . It's so engaging that I couldn't wait to find out how it all was going to end. There were twists and turns galore that had me guessing the whole time. The author did wrap up the story line but ended in a way that there could be a sequel. I truly hope there's a sequel because I want more of this tale!! One of the things I enjoyed the most about First Lie Wins is that

The House On Yeet Street by Preston Norton is a story about the friendship of four boys, secret crushes, and a one hundred year old curse. Aidan Cross throws his secret journal through the upstairs house on Yeet Street to keep his secret feelings far away from his best friend Kai. When the boys decide to have a sleepover in the very same, very haunted house, Aidan is horrified and knows he has to get his journal back before the others find it. In the process of his search, he discovers a ghost, and evil is unleashed upon the town yet again. A big shout out to NetGalley for the Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of The House On Yeet Street by Preston Norton. I appreciate receiving a copy for free in exchange for my honest opinion.  When I first started reading the story, it was I found it to be a little choppy and disjointed. However, this issue quickly corrected itself. We soon find out that the main character is gay but hasn't come out yet AND is hiding his feelings from his

Stage Fright by Wendy Parris is a locked room mystery for middle grade readers. It opens with twelve year old Avery returning to her old neighborhood for two weeks to visit her friends only to realize they've changed and grown up. To prove that she's grown up too, Avery suggests holding a  séance  at their deserted theater that has a reputation of being haunted. It starts out as all fun and games . . . until they get trapped in the building and realize they're not alone. NetGalley, thank you for the Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of Stage Fright by Wendy Parris.  I was intrigued by the cover and synopsis and was delighted to be approved to read this story.  I received a copy of this book for free in exchange for my honest review. This book brought back a lot of memories from my childhood about how my friends and I would ride our bikes, play in the woods, and play kickball and tag.  It also made me think about all the Point Horror books I read in middle school and h

The Old Willis Place, A Ghost Story Graphic Novel is written by Mary Downing Hahn and adapted by Scott Peterson, Meredith Laxton, and Sienna Haralson.  The story opens with siblings Diana and Georgie spying on the new caretaker and his daughter Lissa moving onto the property. Diana desperately wants to be friends with Lissa, but making friends might unleash evil spirits. I was absolutely excited to be approved and receive an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of this book for free in exchange for my honest opinion from NetGalley.  I first started reading books by Mary Downing Hahn in middle school and checked out every book by her that my school library had. The Old Willis Place was not available at my school, and my local bookstore didn't have it in stock.  So, this is the first time I've ever read this book. Right away, I knew that Diana and Georgie were ghosts. However, I'm not sure if I would have figured that out as a kid. I had a general idea of what would happen

Lenny Marks Gets Away With Murder by Kerryn Mayne is about Lenny Marks who keeps the same exact schedule each day and plays Scrabble with her made up friend, Monica Gellar while watching the television show, Friends .  Lenny also doesn't remember much from the day her mother and stepdad disappeared.  But then a letter from the parole board arrives via mail and turns her world upside down. I received an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of this book from NetGalley for free in exchange for my honest review.  What drew my interest in this book was the synopsis, so I was happy to be approved to get a copy in my hands before the general public! At first, the main character, Lenny Marks, got on my nerves and was just super annoying.  It wasn't until I was approximately 3/4's of the way into the story that we find out her entire back story and why she is the way she is.  From that point on, Lenny wasn't quite so annoying, and I found myself liking the character a lot more.  The main

Goblin Monday (Goosebumps House of Shivers, #2)  by R.L. Stine opens with Mario Galagos vacationing with his friends and their parents in Vermont.  When Mario finds an ugly stone statue and brings it into the house, he unknowingly starts a war with goblins. Thank you, NetGalley, for the Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of this book.  I received it for free in exchange for my honest opinion. Growing up, I was a huge fan of R.L. Stine and his Fear Street series.  Having read the first book in this new series and enjoying it, I wanted to see if the second installment was as good as it's predecessor.  Unfortunately, I was a bit disappointed and underwhelmed with Goblin Monday . Although the age range for this book is for children aged eight to twelve years old, I actually think it's more appropriate for kids aged six to eight years old.  As the story develops, I kept expecting something scary or suspenseful to happen, but neither of those things happen until the reader has read approxim

The Dare by Natasha Preston is a young adult horror novel about Marley and her friends Atlas, Lucia, and Jesse are seniors in high school.  The senior pranks are fun and lighthearted until Rhett starts doling out dares that are more serious.  Will Marley and her friends survive? A huge thank you to NetGalley for the Advanced Readers Copy of The Dare  by Natasha Preston.  The last book I read by this author was so well written, I knew I wanted to give her latest story a try. The first thing I noticed about the story is it's reminiscent of R.L. Stine's Fear Street series, which brought back all the feels from my childhood.  Pretty quickly, the storyline shifts and is eerily similar to the movie I Know What You Did Last Summer .  It's at this point that I became disappointed with the book and almost stopped reading it.   Additionally, there were other parts t hat reminded me of The Secret Diaries by Janice Harrell.  So, overall, The Dare wasn't very original. The relations

Darling Girls  by Sally Hepworth is a  story of love and secrets and what family will do to protect each other.  Jessica, Norah, and Alicia have been told over and over how lucky they are to be placed in such a loving foster home.  People on the outside don't realize that Miss Fairchild, their foster mother, is an absolute nightmare. Thank you, NetGalley, for the Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth.  Hepworth is one of my favorite authors, so I was ecstatic to be approved to read this book.  I received it for free in exchange for my honest review. Hepworth's latest story is an interesting read told from different characters and alternates between the past and present.  I enjoyed the "past" chapters better than the "present" chapters because it lets the readers get a glimpse of who the main characters were as children and how they became the people they were today.  The different perspectives and timelines was done extremely well, s