It's Monday! What Are You Reading? November 7, 2016

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week. It's an opportunity to visit other blogs and to comment on their reads. And ... you can add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date. And here we are!

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Hope everyone had a great week. Hubby was out of town for a few days and since he is retired and ALWAYS home, it was kind of like a vacation for me. I rarely get the house to myself so it was very enjoyable. It was nice to have him back home though too.

My daughter and I went to see the movie Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, this weekend. It is based on the book series by Ransom Riggs. We thought it was a great way to spend the afternoon. We are both big fans of the series and had been trying to find a time to go see it since it came out in September. It made me want to read the three books again.

I've been getting a lot of books read lately. Now I just need to get caught up on my review posts. Does that happen to you too?

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you all have a great week. Happy reading!

What I'm currently reading/listening to


What Happens at Midnight
by Laura Chapman
Love this author and I am loving her holiday novellas.

Two from Isaac's House: A Story of Promises
by Normandie Fischer
(audiobook)

What I recently finished


Making Christmas
by Laura Chapman
Fun story. My thoughts will be posted on Tuesday.

Behind Closed Doors
by B.A. Paris
Wow, what an intense story! My thoughts will be posted soon.

The Christmas Surprise (A Holiday Novella)
by Samantha March
Another fun Christmas novella. My thoughts will be posted later this week.

The Murder Game
by Julie Apple (aka Catherine McKenzie)

Loved it! Read my thoughts here.

What I am going to read next


The Illusory Prophet (Singularity #3)
by Susan Kaye Quinn
Love this author and love this series!

I really love my reading life!

What are you reading this week?

Be sure to check the sidebar for my current giveaways!

The Murder Game by Julie Apple ~ My Thoughts

The Murder Game

The Murder Game by Julie Apple
Print and e-book, 340 pages
Published: November 1st 2016

For fans of The Secret History and How to Get Away With Murder comes an exciting new voice in suspense fiction.

Ten years working as a prosecutor have left Meredith Delay jaded and unsure of what she wants out of life. She’s good at her job, but it haunts her. Her boyfriend wants her to commit, but she keeps him at arm’s length. Then Meredith is assigned to a high-profile prosecution involving the violent murder of a fallen hockey star. At first, it appears to be just another case to work. But when her old friend Julian is accused of the murder, it takes on a whole new dimension.

Meredith, Julian, Jonathan, and Lily were a tight-knit group in law school. But now, Jonathan’s defending Julian, and Lily’s loyalties aren’t clear. And when Julian invokes a rare—and risky—defense, Meredith is forced to confront their past.

Has something they played at as students finally been brought to death?

Purchase The Murder Game

Amazon US | Amazon CA

Amazon UK | Amazon Australia

My thoughts about The Murder Game ~~

(I love to note the first lines of the books I'm reading. First lines can really grab a reader's attention and I love seeing where the author takes the reader after their first line.)

First line—'It was Laura who called to tell me the news. "Meredith?" Her voice echoed down the bad connection, repeating itself like a rock slipping across the water. "It's about Julian..."'

The Murder Game is an intriguing story within a story, written by one of my must read authors. You need to read the information below to learn the interesting way this story came about. After reading Fractured and getting a look at Julie's life, I was super excited to read the story that was such a part of that book. Confused? Don't be, it all makes sense and I loved how these two books are connected.

So .... about The Murder Game. I loved it! What a great look at the inner workings of the legal world, lawyers, and those who think they can get away with murder. It's also a story about friendships and loyalty and secrets.

I loved the uniqueness of bringing a character from one book to life in another one and to be able to tie the stories together like this author did. And I love that Catherine is able to shake things up and make each of her books more enticing than the last. She just keeps getting better and better!    

About the Author

Julie Apple is both the pen name of Catherine McKenzie and the protagonist of her new novel, Fractured.

How did that happen?

A long time ago in a galaxy far far away (okay it was Canada, Montreal specifically) (also, 2007), Catherine decided to write a novel she’d been thinking about since she attended McGill Law School in the 1990s. Sitting in her Criminal Law class, she wondered if a lawyer would have an advantage in planning a perfect murder. Could she use her knowledge of the law to do it? What if a group of friends tried it out, just for fun? A game.

But then, years later, what if that murder actually happened?

Catherine wrote that book. Though she was happy with it, she put it in a drawer because her writing career took a different turn.

Fast-forward to 2015. Catherine gets the idea for Fractured and its protagonist, Julie Apple (hey, that’s me!). She’s an author who’s written a book that’s drawn all kinds of unwanted attention to her and her past. Catherine decided to base Julie’s book on the book she had in a drawer. When Fractured was finished, Catherine thought it might be fun to take that book of the drawer and let it out in the world.

And that’s how I, and The Murder Game, was born.

Want to know more about me? Read Fractured—some crazy things happened to me ten years after the events that took place in The Murder Game. Not that The Murder Game is based on real events, or anything. Of course not.

And then maybe you’ll know the answer.

Were we guilty?

Were we innocent?

You tell me…

Connect with Julie

Website | Goodreads | Twitter

Be sure to check the sidebar for my current giveaways!

Release Day: The Murder Game by Julie Apple

Happy Release Day!

The Murder Game

The Murder Game by Julie Apple
Print and e-book, 340 pages
Published: November 1st 2016

For fans of The Secret History and How to Get Away With Murder comes an exciting new voice in suspense fiction.

Ten years working as a prosecutor have left Meredith Delay jaded and unsure of what she wants out of life. She’s good at her job, but it haunts her. Her boyfriend wants her to commit, but she keeps him at arm’s length. Then Meredith is assigned to a high-profile prosecution involving the violent murder of a fallen hockey star. At first, it appears to be just another case to work. But when her old friend Julian is accused of the murder, it takes on a whole new dimension.

Meredith, Julian, Jonathan, and Lily were a tight-knit group in law school. But now, Jonathan’s defending Julian, and Lily’s loyalties aren’t clear. And when Julian invokes a rare—and risky—defense, Meredith is forced to confront their past.

Has something they played at as students finally been brought to death?

   

I am reading The Murder Game right now and I am loving it! And I love how it connects to Catherine's story Fractured. My complete review will be posted later this week. 

Purchase The Murder Game

Amazon US | Amazon CA

Amazon UK | Amazon Australia

About the Author

Julie Apple is both the pen name of Catherine McKenzie and the protagonist of her new novel, Fractured.

How did that happen?

A long time ago in a galaxy far far away (okay it was Canada, Montreal specifically) (also, 2007), Catherine decided to write a novel she’d been thinking about since she attended McGill Law School in the 1990s. Sitting in her Criminal Law class, she wondered if a lawyer would have an advantage in planning a perfect murder. Could she use her knowledge of the law to do it? What if a group of friends tried it out, just for fun? A game.

But then, years later, what if that murder actually happened?

Catherine wrote that book. Though she was happy with it, she put it in a drawer because her writing career took a different turn.

Fast-forward to 2015. Catherine gets the idea for Fractured and its protagonist, Julie Apple (hey, that’s me!). She’s an author who’s written a book that’s drawn all kinds of unwanted attention to her and her past. Catherine decided to base Julie’s book on the book she had in a drawer. When Fractured was finished, Catherine thought it might be fun to take that book of the drawer and let it out in the world.

And that’s how I, and The Murder Game, was born.

Want to know more about me? Read Fractured—some crazy things happened to me ten years after the events that took place in The Murder Game. Not that The Murder Game is based on real events, or anything. Of course not.

And then maybe you’ll know the answer.

Were we guilty?

Were we innocent?

You tell me… 

Connect with Julie

Website | Goodreads | Twitter

Be sure to check the sidebar for my current giveaways!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? October 31, 2016

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week. It's an opportunity to visit other blogs and to comment on their reads. And ... you can add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date. And here we are!

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Happy Halloween!

It's Halloween! I don't know what you are doing for Halloween but we will be waiting at home for the grandkiddos to come over in their cute, cute costumes. They 'trick' us by running from the front door to the back door several times—more candy that way. Ha! But we love it!

I have been so busy, especially in my reading life. I seemed to have overcommitted myself as far a reading goes and have spent October trying to get all the wonderful books in. My favorite authors need to slow down their writing so I can catch up! I had last Wednesday off work since I had to work on Saturday and I literally spent the whole day reading. Whew! I am feeling better about my reading world now though.  

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you all have a great week. Happy reading!  

What I'm currently reading/listening to

The Murder Game
by Julie Apple (aka Catherine McKenzie)

Two from Isaac's House: A Story of Promises
by Normandie Fischer 
(audiobook)
I need to take a road trip so I can really get into this wonderful story.

What I recently finished

Come This Way
by Michelle Schlicher
Love this author's stories! My thoughts will be posted later this week.


Orphan Number 8
by Kim van Alkemade 
Book club pick, we had a great discussion.


The Round House
by Louise Erdrich
Another book club pick. Check out my giveaway HERE.

Three & Out (Queen of the League #3)
by Laura Chapman
Love this series! Check out my thoughts HERE. 

What I am going to read next


The Christmas Surprise (A Holiday Novella)
by Samantha March

I really love my reading life!

What are you reading this week?

Be sure to check the sidebar for my current giveaways!