​Today is the first episode of my new podcast feature called #BuddyReads. This is where me and a fellow book nerd either read or listen to or a combination of the both, discuss a stand-alone title.  As this is a book discussion, of course, there is a spoiler alert in effect.

Classy Green, friend, fellow book lover, audiobook listener, and Shelf Addiction reviewer joined me on the podcast to discuss Broken Things written by Lauren Oliver! I read the paperback ARC and Classy listened to the audiobook.

​If you've already read Broken Things, leave a comment and let us know what you thought about it.

Publisher: HarperCollins/HarperAudio 
Release Date: October 2, 2018
Format: Hardcover/MP3 Download
Pages: Hardcover: 408 | Audio Length: 9 hrs 50 mins
Narrators:​ Sarah Drew, Erin Spencer, Saskia Maarleveld
Source: Book Expo/Audible
Genre: YA Mystery/Thriller
Rating: 2 bookmarks (from both Classy and Tamara)

Synopsis: It’s been five years since Summer Marks was brutally murdered in the woods. 

Everyone thinks Mia and Brynn killed their best friend. That driven by their obsession with a novel called The Way into Lovelorn the three girls had imagined themselves into the magical world where their fantasies became twisted, even deadly.

The only thing is: they didn’t do it. 

On the anniversary of Summer’s death, a seemingly insignificant discovery resurrects the mystery and pulls Mia and Brynn back together once again. But as the lines begin to blur between past and present and fiction and reality, the girls must confront what really happened in the woods all those years ago—no matter how monstrous.​

This was another one of my many book club reads.  These Shallow Graves has been on my shelf for a while now, since September last year to be exact - so I'm excited to finally share my thoughts on it.  Without my book club selecting this book, I'm not sure when I would have gotten to it and I'm glad that I did. It's worth the read.

Publisher: Random House Delacorte​
Release Date: October 27, 2015
Format: Paperback ARC (received in exchange for an honest review)
Pages: 488 (Hardcover)
Source: Publisher
Genre: YA Mystery, YA Historical Fiction,
​Review Date: May 9, 2016
Rating: 3 bookmarks
​
Synopsis:  Wild aspirations aside, Jo’s life seems perfect until tragedy strikes: her father is found dead. Charles Montfort accidentally shot himself while cleaning his revolver. One of New York City’s wealthiest men, he owned a newspaper and was partner in a massive shipping firm, and Jo knows he was far too smart to clean a loaded gun.

The more Jo uncovers about her father’s death, the more her suspicions grow. There are too many secrets. And they all seem to be buried in plain sight. Then she meets Eddie—a young, brash, infuriatingly handsome reporter at her father’s newspaper—and it becomes all too clear how much she stands to lose if she keeps searching for the truth. Only now it might be too late to stop.

The past never stays buried forever. Life is dirtier than Jo Montfort could ever have imagined, and the truth is the dirtiest part of all. 

First let me just say, covers can be deceiving. That's exactly why you should never to choose a book by it's cover. This cover art is gorgeous, really. Looking at it, you'd think that there was some sort of paranormal aspect or something scary. Wrong on both accounts.  These Shallow Graves is a historical fiction title with a somewhat predicable mystery woven withing.  While the mystery portion was underwhelming, that didn't make the things going on in the story any less shocking.

Today I have an audiobook review for you! Jackaby was another of my book club reads. This was a fun and easy read. Short enough for a quick audiobook as well. Read on to see what I thought of Jackaby!

​Publisher: Algonquin Young Readers | HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books
Release Date: September 16, 2014
Format: MP3 Audio
Pages: 299 (Hardcover) / Audio Length: Approx 7.5 hours
Narrator: Nicola Barber
Source: Scribd
Genre: YA Mystery, Historical Fiction, Fantasy
​Review Date: May 3, 2016
Rating: 4 bookmarks

Synopsis: Newly arrived in New Fiddleham, New England, 1892, and in need of a job, Abigail Rook meets R. F. Jackaby, an investigator of the unexplained with a keen eye for the extraordinary--including the ability to see supernatural beings. Abigail has a gift for noticing ordinary but important details, which makes her perfect for the position of Jackaby’s assistant. On her first day, Abigail finds herself in the midst of a thrilling case: A serial killer is on the loose. The police are convinced it’s an ordinary villain, but Jackaby is certain it’s a nonhuman creature, whose existence the police--with the exception of a handsome young detective named Charlie Cane--deny.

Jackaby is  an awesome melding of genres. Taking place in New England during the 1890's, I got a full sense of the period including how it was for women during that time. Abigail fresh off the boat from Europe finds herself looking for some adventure and she finds it.  This clearly is a young adult title, and it feels like it. While Abigail, and Jackaby, are solving murders and dealing with gory killings, it's clear that Abigail is young. For that time she's essentially an adult, but this story is clearly geared toward the younger audience. It's a very simple plot. On the flip side because it's simple, it works. One thing that surprised me especially about this book is that while it's entitled Jackaby, it's really all about Abigail. It's told from her point of view. Is about her experiences. How she interacts with
Jackaby, and the other characters in the story.

Publisher: Little, Brown and Company 
Release Date: First published Sept 24, 2012 | Audio unabridged edition released by Hatchette Audio on Sept 24, 2012
Format: MP3 Audio
Pages: 372 (Hardcover) / Audio Length: Approx 6 hours
Narrator: Emma Galvin
Source: Audiobook SYNC
Genre: YA Mystery
Review Date: Recorded August, 2014
Rating: 3 bookmarks

Synopsis: James Patterson returns to the genre that made him famous with a thrilling teen detective series about the mysterious and magnificently wealthy Angel family... and the dark secrets they're keeping from one another.

On the night Malcolm and Maud Angel are murdered, Tandy Angel knows just three things: She was the last person to see her parents alive. The police have no suspects besides Tandy and her three siblings. She can't trust anyone -— maybe not even herself. 

Having grown up under Malcolm and Maud's intense perfectionist demands, no child comes away undamaged. Tandy decides that she will have to clear the family name, but digging deeper into her powerful parents' affairs is a dangerous -- and revealing -- game. Who knows what the Angels are truly capable of?