3.75⭐
•Guess what, still a sucker for some duet narration. There was nothing earth-shattering here but still an entertaining listen. Although I wasn‘t sold on the heroine as a serial killer, she botches things up so much that I‘m not sure how she isn‘t in jail or worse.

4.25⭐
•I loved the fast pace, the craziness, the Gotham-like city setting. It started with a bang and kept on going. I could‘ve done without the rant about romanticizing abuse or whatever she went on about, to be honest, I tuned it out.
•Saskia Maarleveld…lately, I‘ve not been vibing with her husky voice, but I can admit that she is good at narrating.

3⭐
•You could say that this has a standout concept with all it brings to the table, and yet...its predictability and lack of dread-building failed to hook me in. Ultimately, I found it uninspiring.
•The narration performed by Brittany Pressley and Xe Sands was perfection and kept me listening despite my waning interest in the book.

4.25⭐
•I loved the found-family vibes this had going on, Gabe and his family were amazing. Despite not always understanding Anna‘s motivations, I still found myself rooting for her and Gabe.
•Kate Handford‘s narration was decent.

4⭐
•Her narration was top-notch which I expected…and while she revealed nothing earth-shattering, I still found myself fully engaged.

Light Pick
3.5⭐
•I‘m not sure what it was but this didn‘t grab me like the first book did. Who knows maybe my energy was just wrong for this in the moment. I can say that it really didn‘t need a sequel, and perhaps I was disappointed in the direction it took with it.
•The author decided to narrate this second book and I would‘ve preferred that she kept the same narrator as the first book but she really wasn‘t bad at all.

4.75⭐
•I love JLBs‘ Naturals series and I‘ve always wanted to find something like it but for adults and this hit closer than anything I‘ve read before to that series. It has the misfit team of FBI players trying to use their skills to find serial killers and I was here for it. The only thing that would‘ve put this over the top for me was multiple POVs from different characters because sometimes it got tedious being in Gardner Camden‘s head.

3.25⭐
You could call this a slow burn and you could also call it boring. That‘s not to say that it didn‘t have its good points; it has a very intricate plot and a fairly satisfying end. But overall, I just wasn‘t that invested in the meanderings of Ben Packard and to be truthful my interest has been waning since book #2. Although, most will find this one to be a pick.

I still haven't had a book that I've rated a full 5 stars yet, but these two have come super close.

FEBRUARY #bookspinbingo board. I filled all but two squares. I've been pretty good at sticking to my plans, lately. I think my A-Z ultimate book challenge has had something to do with that.

#bookspin •HEAD CASES BY JOHN McMAHON• completed.
#doublespin •FIRST LIGHT BY LIZ KERIN• completed.

@TheAromaofBooks

My March #bookspinbingo board. I'm really looking forward to Sunrise on the Reaping.

@TheAromaofBooks

2.5⭐While her books are bingeable, I‘m unsure whether they‘re bingeable enough to make up for all the cringeable…also the unbelievable. I‘ve liked a couple by her & hated one other…looking at you, locked door. Although, I don‘t think I‘ve yet read enough of her books to form a satisfying opinion.
I‘m not a fan of LeslieHoward‘s narration. She might‘ve been okay if she had only been Polly‘s narrator and had other narrators for the different POVs.⬇️

3⭐
•This leaned more towards romance than thriller and while I usually like this author's style of romantic suspense, this one felt very mid to me. Although the ending had me more engaged even if it was a difficult pill to swallow.
•Ellie Gossage and Jay Myers were fairly decent narrators and they were both new to me.

4.25⭐
•Kate Alice Marshall has become an auto-read author for me because she never disappoints. This one wasn‘t without its issues but overall I was still engaged. Bonus factor: she always has Karissa Vacker narrate her books and she is one of my favorites.

4⭐
•Police procedurals that follow a particular detective usually put the focus on them…but this series focuses on all the characters involved and the detective happens to be one of those characters. It feels more personal and allows you to care about the characters involved. However, I didn‘t connect with the characters in this edition quite as much as the previous books and the ending was slightly OTT, I still highly recommend this series.

3.75⭐
•The premise of this story is rather compelling and it pulled me in immediately. Where the story goes from there was even rather interesting…but the ending left me underwhelmed. Overall though, I would still say it was a worthwhile book.
•Johanna Parker‘s narration was decent at times and atrocious at others…her whiny, pitchy, crying was super annoying.

3.75⭐ (GRAPHIC AUDIO EDITION) I didn‘t like the narrator in the original version, so I thought I‘d try the GA ed. to see if I could gel with it. Unfortunately, they still had Darrow voiced by someone with an accent, so I still struggled.
Despite my issues, I liked this version more. However, I still didn‘t really understand what was going on in the second half of the book. Is it some sort of test, and if it is, did he pass?⬇️⬇️⬇️

3.5⭐
•This has five-star potential, but ultimately I was left feeling unfulfilled and even low-key enraged with the author‘s idea of closure.
•The narration was performed wonderfully by Thérèse Plummer.

4⭐
•This had a very unique concept and for the most part, it was well executed. Things got a little muddled in the middle, making it difficult to follow but fortunately, I gleaned enough of that muddled part for everything to come together by the end.
•Jennifer Pickens was fine but this could‘ve benefited greatly from additional narrators.

4.5⭐
•A fascinating concept that was almost perfectly executed. Although, I could‘ve done without the turmoil of wondering if the dog would be harmed. It spun the oft-used podcast element on its head. If you‘re a fan of psych thrillers; this one is not to be missed.
•Allyson Ryan and Patrick Zeller both performed excellently.

Light Pick | 3.5⭐
•This was super long and super slow-burn. I think the potential for a heartfelt romance was there but the writing failed to get me invested in these characters enough to justify spending that much time with them. I really like this author‘s time-travel series but this one was just okay.
•I liked Ashley Brice but Will Tulin, while a good narrator, does not have the right voice tone for romance, although he did grow on me.

3.5⭐Light Pick
•Ultimately I liked the story…despite the knife-play scene (ugh, is this a thing?). Also, the characters came off as unrealistic and seriously obsessed with sex/dirty talk. And yet, it ended up entertaining me, what can I say, clearly I‘m a sucker for duet narration…because Elena Wolfe and Jacob Morgan killed it.

4⭐
•How far would you go for your best friend, would you help her bury a body? This turns that phrase into a whole damn story. Complete with nosy neighbors, blackmail, a separate hit-and-run accident, interfering kids, and many red herrings.
•Hillary Huber and Andi Ardnt performed the narration fantastically.

4.25⭐
•This audiobook started with the author assuring us that the pets depicted do not come to harm, which I found awesome. I had just finished another book and worried throughout if anything would happen to the dog. It was nerve-wracking, and not in a good way. This one took me for a ride, and it was an interesting take on the donor-family/donor-recipient relationship concept.
• Gail Shalan and Chris Andrew Ciulla performed the narration well.

4.75⭐
•Ugh…that ending left me reeling in more ways than one. I‘m hella confused about what is going on and wishing that it wouldn‘t be so long (however long that may be) for the next installment to come out. Reading up on stats from the wiki has helped to lessen my confusion, at least a little.
•Rebecca Soler was much improved since the first book…but I still prefer the Graphic Audio editions of this so much more.

This was a worthwhile listen with stories from both sides of the spectrum, and I learned a thing or two about GLP-1s. The audio felt like an actual podcast—it's possible that it was a recording of a podcast, even.

Light Pick (almost) 3.5⭐
•The author set the scene very well in this book, I felt like I was there at times and for me that‘s something. But the slow burn and possibly the plot's outrageousness brought this down a notch or two. This is one of those stories where the side characters are more interesting than the main characters.
• Brittany Pressley and Stacey Glemboski performed the narration excellently.

Here is my #bookspinbingo board for FEBRUARY!

@TheAromaofBooks

My final #bookspinbingo board for January.

I finished all but one book, so a pretty good month.

I had two DNFs; If You Can Hear This & All the Colors of the Dark (yes, I dnf'd ATCOTD, I couldn't gel with the writing style).

@theAromaofBooks

#FEBRUARY #bookspinbingo board

@theAromaofBooks

4.5⭐
• This was surprisingly good for a YA high school drama, especially since lately I think they're all just a little too juvenile for me. It restored my faith that there is good ya out there for adults who like ya. I don‘t want to give too much away so I‘ll add things got a little insane in the end but it was definitely thrilling.
•Lily Ganser was a new-to-me narrator from whom I would love to hear more of.

4.75⭐
A searing look at the world of Ice Dance featuring a troubled romance, fraught with heartbreak both on and off the ice. It was a slightly slow start but once it took off, I was hooked. The full-cast narration with interview commentary was perfectly performed and one of the book's highlights. I highly recommend this for anyone who loves Taylor Jenkins-Reid…it was like a mash-up between Daisy Jones and the Six and Carrie Soto is Back.

4.5⭐
•Well this was super fun, & twisty…right up to very end. The full-cast narration was the icing on this twisty, layered cake. While the story had a repetitive angle, I didn't have an issue with it since it was vastly different depending on whose head you were in.

2⭐
•ya•supernatural-ish thriller•prophetic dreams•murder-y•secret society•

I‘m left wondering if I read a different book than everyone else because it seems like many readers loved this…but I did not. Whatever it was trying to be, and I‘m not sure that it knew what it was trying to be, was too problematic for me, and the characters were too saccharine to be believable.

4⭐
•If you like all of the above mixed with a Miami flair and you‘re okay with nothing too mind-blowing happening, then this could hit just right. Also, the ending surprised me with where it went.
•The full-cast narration was fantastic and made the story more enjoyable by far.

4⭐
•This story is about a rape and so much more. It won‘t be for everybody, but I was fixated on it despite, or perhaps because, it tended to resemble a train wreck.
•Marin Ireland's narration was superb as always.

4.75⭐A perfect ending to the series, leaving just enough to your imagination. I came to care for these characters. The setting of Michigan hit home for me…like literally. While the writing wasn‘t as polished as I would like, I feel it was made up for in other areas. As for the narration; I‘ve said it many times, I wish it had been full cast because it would‘ve been so good. But it was not to be, and Stacey Glemboski did do a good job with it.

4.25⭐
•Despite being a tad long-winded, this was still so riveting. Although, the abuse this girl and her siblings endured was difficult to listen to at times.
•As for the narration, you have to give her credit for telling her own story, and she wasn‘t so bad that I wanted to quit listening or anything that extreme.

2.5⭐

•mystery suspense thriller•amnesia•twisty•predictable•

•I didn‘t fully see the first twist—but I easily figured out the next one, and the climantic ending was too implausible to be believed even a little.
•The narration by Kimberly M Wetherell was fine.

3.5⭐(Light Pick)
•I feel like this was a bit unfocused and lacked depth. Maybe it needed to pick one genre and stick to it. It seemed to want to dip its toes into as many as possible without fully committing to one. Overall, it had elements that worked and ones that didn‘t work for me.
•The narration performed by Deanna Anthony, Carmel Jewel Jones, & Robin Eller was fantastic.

3⭐
•domestic suspense•mystery thriller•heavy stalker vibes•fortunate coincidences•

•This wasn‘t a bad story, but I think I wanted it to end differently. Then again, I‘m not sure I care either way. I guess I‘m mostly feeling indifferent about it.
•The narration by Jennifer Pickens was fine.

3.75⭐
•A decent story despite getting a little difficult to follow towards the end.
•Stephanie Nemeth-Parker and Corey Carthew were both satisfactory.

4.25⭐
•If I rated primarily based on the content, this would get 5 stars…but when I factor in the delivery of the content, I can‘t help but lower it. I‘m not always a fan of how this author writes, but I‘m definitely a fan of the intriguing topics she brings to her books.
•Carlotta Brentan‘s narration was top-notch, she has a wide range of accents.

3.5⭐
•I loved Most Wanted (Han and Qi‘ra‘s origin story) by Rae Carson, so I was all set to love this one. But, unfortunately, it failed to lure me in. Maybe it's because it was a different writer.
•The narration by Oliva Hack was okay.

3.5⭐
•novella length audio•cheating drama•domestic psychological suspense•multiple POVs•full cast narration•

•Honestly, I was bored AF until the ending; it saved it from being completely mediocre. That and the narration…the full-cast narration was solid.

4⭐
The action starts early on and doesn‘t let up till the end. There was something in the beginning that happened that almost made me stop listening but I soldiered on and everything regarding that issue resolved itself in the end. I‘m glad I continued since this was a different kind of book for me, which I needed. This had quite a few elements that reminded me of the movie Con Air. The narration was decent.

P.S. the dog is okay…

I created an A-Z challenge that includes everything you could want in an A-Z challenge. This includes titles, authors, characters, items (on the covers), and a scavenger prompt.

https://app.thestorygraph.com/reading_challenges/f958009c-40f5-456a-aef4-4156b6a...

If you have a Canva account, I also made a template to add all your books. That link will be in the comments because it's super long.

use #atozchallenge if you join and let me know

4.75⭐
•This book explores the nature of sociopathy and the moral complexities surrounding the act of killing. It challenges your understanding of sociopaths and their motivations, asking provocative questions about justification and morality. But it does it entertainingly, putting a unique spin on a typical thriller and it leaves you plenty to contemplate.
•Allyson Ryan‘s narration was very well done…she really made this character come to life.

My January #bookspinbingo board.

#bookspin = Raised by A Serial Killer by April Balascio
#doublespin = Lies He Told Me by James Patterson & David Bell (started this one today)

@TheAromaofBooks

It was a good year! Here are my Stats and Fav Books from 2024. (3 posts total).