Sara Reads Things

Happy New Year's Eve!!!!!! I can't believe we are here. The last day of 2019. The last day of the decade. Its been a fantastic year and I'm ready for the next. Recently, I watched the movie called A Simple Favor. It was a psychological thriller that had a fantastic ending, but also left me with many questions. Naturally, I wondered if there was a book involved in this story, and of course there was. The book answered some of my questions, but I was still wondering if this could all really happen. I guess it doesn't matter because in a story, you make up anything that you want. Add on Goodreads She’s your best friend. She knows all your secrets. That’s why she’s so dangerous. A single mother's life is turned upside down when her best friend vanishes in this chilling debut thriller in the vein of  Gone Girl  and  The Girl on the Train . It starts with a simple favor—an ordinary kindness mothers do for one another. When her best friend, Emily, asks Stephani...

Hello Monday! Last Monday of the year. I can't believe we've gotten this far. This last week was a rough one. Two of my boys came down with the flu. It was terrible. It lasted days of high fever and a cough. I nearly went stir crazy being stuck in the house for that long. Of course, it started the day after Christmas. I'm just glad it wasn't on Christmas day. We all were able to enjoy a wonderful day with family. I hope you had a wonderful Christmas too. This weeks book is Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, a classic. I'm getting a jump start on my reading challenges for next year. I didn't work on them as much as I had wanted, so I thought I would read as much as I can in the first part of the year before I get bogged down with review requests. What are you reading this week? Monday -  Chicken Udon Tuesday -  Crantastic Turkey Burger Wednesday -  Fajita Style Chicken Drumsticks Thursday -  Beef Pastitsio   Friday -  Sirloin...

This is the last Sunday Confessions of the year. 2020 is only a few short days away and damn, I'm excited. The new year has so much promise, I can't wait. Lets get on with this weeks confessions. Sunday Confessions #23 ~ Weekly Menu #331 And The Book Of The Week ~ Movie Review: Bright Lights ~ Book Review: The Last Human by Zack Jordan ~ 2020 Book Challenge Picks ~ Book Review: Havenfall by Sara Holland Weekly Menu #332 And The Book Of The Week ~ Book Review: Symptom of a Heart Break by Sona Charaipotra ~ Book Review: Belle Revolte by Linsey Miller ~ Sunday Confessions #25 Super excited to read both these books. Goodbye to 2019, hello 2020. I hope you read some wonderful books in the coming year.

Title: Havenfall By: Sara Holland Genre: Urban Fantasy Pages: 320 Release Date: March 3rd, 2020 Publisher:  Bloomsbury YA Rating: ★★★★☆ Summary from Goodreads:  A safe haven between four realms. The girl sworn to protect it--at any cost. New York Times bestselling author Sara Holland crafts a breathtaking new contemporary fantasy perfect for fans of Melissa Albert and Holly Black. Hidden deep in the mountains of Colorado lies the Inn at Havenfall, a sanctuary that connects ancient worlds--each with their own magic--together. For generations, the inn has protected all who seek refuge within its walls, and any who disrupt the peace can never return. For Maddie Morrow, summers at the inn are more than a chance to experience this magic first-hand. Havenfall is an escape from reality, where her mother sits on death row accused of murdering Maddie's brother. It's where Maddie fell in love with handsome Fiorden soldier Brekken. And it's where one day she ho...

With 2020 only days away, now is the time to update your book challenges and make new ones for the coming year. Here are my Book challenges of 2019 and what I plan on reading in 2020. 2019 Gilmore Girls Book Challenge 30/341 This one is going to take me a while. Star Wars Book Challenge 4/196 I just started this one a few months ago, so again, gonna take me a while. Read Around the Country Challenge 13/50 I also just started this challenge, but I have a feeling it will go fast. 100 Books to Read Before You Die Challenge 30/100 I'm really excited for this challenge. Goodreads Best Books of 2018 Challenge 21/21 Finished this challenge up about a week ago. I can't believe it took me so long, lol. 2020 Books Set in Scotland 0/18 I found a wonderful list of books set in Scotland, the land of my ancestors. I can't wait to dive into this list. It's going to be so hard picking which list I want to start on first....

Title: The Last Human By: Zack Jordan Genre: Scifi Pages: 448 Release Date: March 24th, 2020 Publisher:  Del Rey Books Rating: ★★★☆☆ Summary from Goodreads:  The last human in the universe is on the run from a godlike intelligence in this rip-roaring debut space opera. Sarya is the civilized galaxy's worst nightmare: a Human. Most days, Sarya doesn't feel like the most terrifying creature in the galaxy. Most days, she's got other things on her mind. Like hiding her identity among the hundreds of alien species roaming the corridors of Watertower Station. Or making sure her adoptive mother doesn't casually eviscerate one of their neighbors. Again. And most days, she can almost accept that she'll never know the truth--that she'll never know why humanity was deemed too dangerous to exist. Or whether she really is--impossibly--the lone survivor of a species destroyed a millennium ago. That is, until an encounter with a bounty hunter and ...

Title: Bright Lights Genre: Biography Release Date: January 7th, 2017 My Rating: ★★★★☆ IMDB Rating: 8/10 Stars Cast:   Debbie Reynolds ,  Carrie Fisher ,  Todd Fisher Summary from IMDB:  An intimate portrait of actress  Debbie Reynolds  and her relationship with her beloved children,  Carrie Fisher  and  Todd Fisher . IMDB Trailer Review: I never really knew the story behind Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher. I've seen some of their works, but that was about it. This movie really tells what it was like to be these two wonderful people and it's told from their point of view. I loved hearing the stories coming from the mouth of those who lived it. A wonderful movie worth watching. 

Can you believe that Wednesday is Christmas?! I sure can't. This year has gone by so fast and so many wonderful things have come of it. I can't wait to see what 2020 brings me and my family. I hope you had a wonderful year as well. This weeks book is A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness. I've been obsessed with the TV show. My husband and I binged the whole first season and now I can't wait for season two. In the meantime, to keep my mind busy, I'm going to read the book... and maybe the second book... We shall see. Lets get on with this weeks menu. Enjoy! Monday -  Spicy Chicken Lettuce Wrap Tuesday - Cheesy Brunch Bake Wednesday -  Fajita Style Chicken Drumsticks Thursday -  Greek Avgolemono Chicken Soup Friday -  Mexican Beef Lettuce Wrap Saturday - Chicken Udon Sunday -  Leftovers Night

Hello Sunday, welcome back. I hope you all had a great week. I know I did. I'm excited for Christmas and all the wonderful things that are coming up in the next few weeks. Did you get anyone on your Christmas list a book? I sure did. I can't wait for them to read it. Lets get on with the confessions. Sunday Confessions #22 ~ Weekly Menu #330 And The Book Of The Week ~ Movie Review: Teen Titans Go vs Teen Titans ~ Book Review: Tulip Fever by Deborah Moggach ~ Best of Goodreads 2018 Challenge Review ~ Book Review: Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate Weekly Menu #331 And The Book Of The Week ~ Book Review: The Last Human by Zack Jordan ~ Book Review: Havenfall by Sara Holland ~ Sunday Confessions #24 I put these two books right on my currently reading list. I can't wait to dive into them. Excited for Christmas and the things to come. Can't wait to see what next week brings and what all of you are doing ...

Title: Before We Were Yours By: Lisa Wingate Genre: Historical Fiction Pages: 480 Release Date: November 30th, 2017 Publisher:  Quercus Rating: ★★★★★ Summary from Goodreads:  Memphis, Tennessee, 1939 Twelve-year-old  Rill Foss  and her four younger siblings live a magical life aboard their family's Mississippi River shantyboat. But when their father must rush their mother to the hospital one stormy night, Rill is left in charge, until strangers arrive in force. Wrenched from all that is familiar and thrown into a  Tennessee Children's Home Society orphanage , the Foss children are assured that they will soon be returned to their parents. But they quickly realize the dark truth... Aiken, South Carolina, present day Born into wealth and privilege,  Avery Stafford  seems to have it all: a successful career, a handsome fiancé, and a lavish wedding on the horizon. But when Avery returns home to help her father weather a health crisi...

It took me all year, but I finally finished my Best of Goodreads 2018 challenge. Some of the books were awesome, and some I didn't like, but then again, some of the genres weren't my style. Here are the books and my ratings. I think my favorite book out of all of these books was Still Me by Jojo Moyes. I binged the entire series and was drawn into the pages like glue. Loved it.  What was your favorite book of 2018? Doesn't have to be on this list. Let me know in the comments below.

Title: Tulip Fever By: Deborah Moggach Genre: Historical Fiction Pages: 281 Release Date: April 10th, 2001 Publisher:  Dial Press Trade Paperback Rating: ★★★★☆ Summary from Goodreads:  A tale of art, beauty, lust, greed, deception and retribution -- set in a refined society ablaze with tulip fever. In 1630s Amsterdam, tulipomania has seized the populace. Everywhere men are seduced by the fantastic exotic flower. But for wealthy merchant Cornelis Sandvoort, it is his young and beautiful wife, Sophia, who stirs his soul. She is the prize he desires, the woman he hopes will bring him the joy that not even his considerable fortune can buy. Cornelis yearns for an heir, but so far he and Sophia have failed to produce one. In a bid for immortality, he commissions a portrait of them both by the talented young painter Jan van Loos. But as Van Loos begins to capture Sophia's likeness on canvas, a slow passion begins to burn between the beautiful young wife and the t...

Title: Teen Titans Go! vs Teen Titans Genre: Comedy/Cartoon Release Date: September 24th, 2019 My Rating: ★★★★★ IMDB Rating: 6.8/10 Summary from IMDB:  The comedic modern-day quintet takes on their 2003 counterparts when villains from each of their worlds join forces to pit the two Titan teams against each other. They'll need to set aside their differences and work together to combat Trigon, Hexagon, Santa Claus and time itself in order to save the universe. IMDB Trailer Review: OMG, I loved this movie... and its not because I have age appropriate children that loved this movie, but because I grew up with the original Teen Titans and I loved them then. The story brought back the original cast with the drama that I fell in love with. They battled each other in an epic story line that brought both worlds together. If you loved the original or the current Teen Titans, you need to watch this fun movie. 

Monday is back! I tried to solicit a friend to wrap all my Christmas presents for me so I didn't have to, and I hooked me a present wrapping fish. My baby sister said that she would if I brought the presents to her. I am glad to do so since she only lives down the street from me. Hahahah, I'm free. Did you know that I read a book this week? lol, of course I did. That is what I do. Anyway, all jokes aside, I read several books this week and I'm excited to share them with you. Like the entire Selection series by Kiera Cass. I downed that series this week and I have some mixed thoughts on it. Stay tuned for that. This weeks read is Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo. I just finished her Wonder Woman book and thought I would continue the good feels with this book. Have you read this book? I heard many good things about it. Can't wait to dive in. On to this weeks menu. Enjoy! Monday -  Buttery Garlic Chicken Tuesday -  Beef Barley Stew   Wednesday - ...

Sunday! Welcome back to my confessions. Its the only time of the week where I can let it all out and tell you all what has been going on around the confessions blog.  We are one week closer to Christmas. I hope you all have your presents bought and wrapped. I haven't started wrapping yet, but I really need to get on that.  Lets get to wonderful things that have been happening! Sunday Confessions # 21 ~ Weekly Menu #329 And The Book Of The Week ~ Movie Review: The Hustle ~ Book Review: Wonder Woman by Leigh Bardugo ~ Mini Reviews: Goodkind, Riordan and Nix ~ Book Review: Way of the Wolf by E.E. Knight Weekly Menu #330 And The Book Of The Week ~ Movie Review: Teen Titans Go vs Teen Titans ~ Book Review: Tulip Fever by Deborah Moggach ~ Best of Goodreads 2018 Challenge Review  ~ Book Review: Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate ~ Sunday Confessions #23 What a great week. I can't wait to dive into...