No Second Chance.

GoodReads Synopsis-- Dr. Marc Seidman awakens to find himself in an ICU, hooked up to an IV, his head swathed in bandages. Twelve days earlier, he had an enviable life as a successful surgeon, living in a peaceful suburban neighborhood with his beautiful wife and a baby he adored. Now he lies in a hospital bed, shot by an unseen assailant. His wife has been killed, and his six-month-old daughter, Tara, has vanished. But just when his world seems forever shattered, something arrives to give Marc new hope: a ransom note. The note is chilling, but Marc sees only one thing-he has the chance to save his daughter. He can't talk to the police or the FBI. He doesn't know who he can trust. And now the authorities are closing in on a new suspect: Marc himself. Mired in a deepening quicksand of violence and deadly secrets-about his wife, about an old love he's never forgotten, and about his own past-he clings to one, unwavering vow: to bring Tara home, at any cost.

My Thoughts-- Another great Harlan Coben book.  I sounds like a broken record at this point, but he's just so great at writing twisty, turn-y thrillers, and this one was no different.  Four stars.

Shoe Addicts Anonymous.

GoodReads Synopsis-- Helene Zaharis's politician husband keeps her on a tight leash and cancels her credit cards as a way of controlling her. Lorna Rafferty is up to her eyeballs in debt and can't stop her addiction to Ebay. Sandra Vanderslice, battling agoraphobia, pays her shoe bills by working as a phone sex operator. And Jocelyn Bowen is a nanny for the family from hell (who barely knows a sole from a heel but who will do anything to get out of the house).  On Tuesday nights, these women meet to trade shoes, and, in the process, form friendships that will help them each triumph over their problems—from secret pasts to blackmail, bankruptcy, and dating. Funny, emotional, and powerful, Shoe Addicts Anonymous is the perfect read for any woman who has ever struggled to find the perfect fit. 

My Thoughts-- It took me a while to get into this one, but it really picked up about midway through. The second half was fantastic! Such a cute story about four women who have nothing in common but their love for shoes.  Four stars.

Songs of Willow Frost.

GoodReads Synopsis-- Twelve-year-old William Eng, a Chinese-American boy, has lived at Seattle’s Sacred Heart Orphanage ever since his mother’s listless body was carried away from their small apartment five years ago. On his birthday—or rather, the day the nuns designate as his birthday—William and the other orphans are taken to the historical Moore Theatre, where William glimpses an actress on the silver screen who goes by the name of Willow Frost. Struck by her features, William is convinced that the movie star is his mother, Liu Song.  Determined to find Willow, and prove his mother is still alive, William escapes from Sacred Heart with his friend Charlotte. The pair navigates the streets of Seattle, where they must not only survive, but confront the mysteries of William’s past and his connection to the exotic film star. The story of Willow Frost, however, is far more complicated than the Hollywood fantasy William sees onscreen.

My Thoughts-- Oh gosh, this book was horrible.  Only by sheer will did I manage to finish it.  It was just ridiculously depressing, and the story just compounded sadness upon sadness.  And just when you think it can't get any sadder, it does.  Most of my time reading this book was spent wishing it was over. I don't remember the last book I read that was so depressing and hopeless. However, it did have a somewhat satisfying ending, so it gets an extra half star because I'm a sucker for a good ending.  One and a half stars.

Gone for Good.

GoodReads Synopsis-- As a boy, Will Klein had a hero: his older brother, Ken. Then, on a warm suburban night in the Kleins' affluent New Jersey neighborhood, a young woman -- a girl Will had once loved -- was found brutally murdered in her family's basement. The prime suspect: Ken Klein. With the evidence against him overwhelming, Ken simply vanished. And when his shattered family never heard from Ken again, they were sure he was gone for good. Now eleven years have passed. Will has found proof that Ken is alive. And this is just the first in a series of stunning revelations as Will is forced to confront startling truths about his brother, and even himself. As a violent mystery unwinds around him, Will knows he must press his search all the way to the end. Because the most powerful surprises are yet to come.

My Thoughts-- Gone for Good is easily my favorite stand-alone Harlan Coben book.  So many twists and turns.  Just when you think you've figured it out, the ground shifts again.  But yet, it's not at all outrageous.  Harlan Coben walks that line expertly.  Five stars.

Twenties Girl.

GoodReads Synopsis-- Lara Lington has always had an overactive imagination, but suddenly that imagination seems to be in overdrive. Normal professional twenty-something young women don’t get visited by ghosts. Or do they? When the spirit of Lara’s great-aunt Sadie—a feisty, demanding girl with firm ideas about fashion, love, and the right way to dance—mysteriously appears, she has one request: Lara must find a missing necklace that had been in Sadie’s possession for more than seventy-five years, because Sadie cannot rest without it.  Lara and Sadie make a hilarious sparring duo, and at first it seems as though they have nothing in common. But as the mission to find Sadie’s necklace leads to intrigue and a new romance for Lara, these very different “twenties” girls learn some surprising truths from and about each other.

My Thoughts-- I loved this book!  Sophie Kinsella is hit or miss for me, and this was a spot-on hit.  Lara and Sadie were so hilarious together.  I laughed so hard at this book.  Five stars.

2015 Book Challenge.

One of my favorite things in the last few years has been participating in some blogger book challenges (Megan hosts my favorite one twice a year). Thanks to these challenges, I've been pulled out of my favorite genres, read books that I otherwise would not have read, and discovered wonderful new authors. Some of my favorite books have been discovered through these book challenges-- The Pilot's Wife, the Harry Potter series, and Hyperbole and a Half, just to name a few.

So I decided to make my own book challenge for the whole year! I took many categories from a popsugar list, some old challenges from Megan's blog, some links on pinterest, and some of my own ideas.

There are 44 categories on this list, and my goal is to read 52 books this year. So that leaves me with 8 "freebies" to read that are just for me. And I do have a few self-imposed rules: 

- All books must be over 200 pages long

- Only three re-reads allowed unless 1) it's been more than 10 years 

since I first read the book OR 2) the category calls for it.

- No counting one book for multiple categories. Each category gets its own book.

- I may switch books previously assigned to a category as the year goes, 

as long as they all get covered by only one book.

-All books must be started and finished within 2015, unless the category states otherwise.

So without further adieu, here's my list!