Credit, as always, goes to the wonderful Lia @ Lost in a Story for this decluttering idea! I’ve been doing this for a while now and I have a load of fun doing it each week.
The aim is to declutter your tbr shelf. To do this:
- Go to your goodreads to-read shelf.
- Order on ascending date added.
- Take the first 5 (or 10 if you’re feeling adventurous) books. Of course if you do this weekly, you start where you left off the last time.
- Read the synopses of the books
- Decide: keep it or should it go?
The Good Girl by Mary Kubica
Synopsis: One night, Mia Dennett enters a bar to meet her on-again, off-again boyfriend. But when he doesn’t show, she unwisely leaves with an enigmatic stranger. At first Colin Thatcher seems like a safe one-night stand. But following Colin home will turn out to be the worst mistake of Mia’s life.
When Colin decides to hide Mia in a secluded cabin in rural Minnesota instead of delivering her to his employers, Mia’s mother, Eve, and detective Gabe Hoffman will stop at nothing to find them. But no one could have predicted the emotional entanglements that eventually cause this family’s world to shatter.
Nothing about this book is drawing me in. I know Kubica is supposed to be a really good thriller writer but I have other books of hers on my shelf, so I’m going to take this one off for now.
Verdict: remove
The Fireman by Joe Hill
Synopsis: The fireman is coming. Stay cool.
No one knows exactly when it began or where it originated. A terrifying new plague is spreading like wildfire across the country, striking cities one by one: Boston, Detroit, Seattle. The doctors call it Draco Incendia Trychophyton. To everyone else it’s Dragonscale, a highly contagious, deadly spore that marks its hosts with beautiful black and gold marks across their bodies—before causing them to burst into flames. Millions are infected; blazes erupt everywhere. There is no antidote. No one is safe.
Harper Grayson, a compassionate, dedicated nurse as pragmatic as Mary Poppins, treated hundreds of infected patients before her hospital burned to the ground. Now she’s discovered the telltale gold-flecked marks on her skin. When the outbreak first began, she and her husband, Jakob, had made a pact: they would take matters into their own hands if they became infected. To Jakob’s dismay, Harper wants to live—at least until the fetus she is carrying comes to term. At the hospital, she witnessed infected mothers give birth to healthy babies and believes hers will be fine too. . . if she can live long enough to deliver the child.
Convinced that his do-gooding wife has made him sick, Jakob becomes unhinged, and eventually abandons her as their placid New England community collapses in terror. The chaos gives rise to ruthless Cremation Squads—armed, self-appointed posses roaming the streets and woods to exterminate those who they believe carry the spore. But Harper isn’t as alone as she fears: a mysterious and compelling stranger she briefly met at the hospital, a man in a dirty yellow fire fighter’s jacket, carrying a hooked iron bar, straddles the abyss between insanity and death. Known as The Fireman, he strolls the ruins of New Hampshire, a madman afflicted with Dragonscale who has learned to control the fire within himself, using it as a shield to protect the hunted . . . and as a weapon to avenge the wronged.
In the desperate season to come, as the world burns out of control, Harper must learn the Fireman’s secrets before her life—and that of her unborn child—goes up in smoke.
UGGGHHHH I hate long synopses like this!!! That being said, I really, really want to read this one, so it’s definitely staying on my list!
Verdict: keep
S is for Stranger by Louise Stone
Synopsis: There are two sides to every story.
But only one is true.
Sophie wished she’d paid more attention when her little daughter, Amy, caught sight of a stranger watching them. She only looked away for a second. But now Amy’s gone.
No one trusts an alcoholic. Even a sober one. The police are suspicious of Sophie’s tangled story and so is her ex-husband, Paul. Especially when new information emerges that changes everything.
But what if Sophie is telling the truth? What if her daughter really is missing? And what if that stranger at the fairground wasn’t really a stranger at all…
All the bad ratings have put me off reading this one.. not to mention someone asked a questions on the Goodreads page that was a spoiler, but didn’t mark it as a spoiler 🙃
Verdict: remove
Intrusion by Mary McCluskey
Synopsis: Kat and Scott Hamilton are dealing with the hardest of losses: the death of their only child. While Scott throws himself back into his law practice in Los Angeles, Kat is hesitant to rejoin the workplace and instead spends her days shell-shocked and confused, unable to focus.
When an unwelcome face from Kat’s past in England emerges—the beautiful and imposing Sarah Cherrington—Kat’s marriage is thrown into a tailspin. Now wealthy beyond anything she could have imagined as a girl, Sarah appears to have everything she could need or want. But Sarah has an agenda and she wants one more thing. Soon Kat and Scott are caught up in her devious games and power plays.
This sounds awful for my tastes. Nu-uh.
Verdict: remove
The Other Child by Lucy Atkins
Synopsis: Sometimes a lie seems kinder than the truth . . . but what happens when that lie destroys everything you love?
When Tess is sent to photograph Greg, a high profile paediatric heart surgeon, she sees something troubled in his face, and feels instantly drawn to him. Their relationship quickly deepens, but then Tess, single mother to nine-year-old Joe, falls pregnant, and Greg is offered the job of a lifetime back in his hometown of Boston. Before she knows it, Tess is married, and relocating to the States. But life in an affluent American suburb proves anything but straightforward.
Unsettling things keep happening in the large rented house, Joe is distressed, the next-door neighbours are in crisis, and Tess is sure that someone is watching her. Greg’s work is all-consuming and, as the baby’s birth looms, he grows more and more unreachable. Something is very wrong, Tess knows it, and then she makes a jaw-dropping discovery.
Another thriller that sounds just like all the others, apart from the fact this one has really mediocre reviews.
Verdict: remove
Pet Sematary by Stephen King
Synopsis: When Louis Creed & his family move from Chicago into a beautiful old house in rural Maine, it all seems too good to be true: physician father, beautiful wife, charming little daughter, adorable infant son–and now an idyllic home. As a family, they’ve got it all…right down to the friendly cat.
The road in front of their home frequently claims the lives of neighborhood pets. Near their house, local children have created a cemetery for the dogs & cats killed by the steady stream of transports on the busy highway. Deeper in the woods lies another graveyard, an ancient Indian burial ground whose sinister properties Louis discovers when the family cat is killed.
Honestly, I kind of loved the film version of this, so I definitely want to read the book as I know it will be far less OTT and more creepy.
Verdict: keep
Phantoms by Dean Koontz
Synopsis: CLOSER…
They found the town silent, apparently abandoned. Then they found the first body strangely swollen and still warm. One hundred fifty were dead, 350 missing. But the terror had only begun in the tiny mountain town of Snowfield, California.
AND CLOSER…
At first they thought it was the work of a maniac. Or terrorists. Or toxic contamination. Or a bizarre new disease.
AND CLOSER…
But then they found the truth. And they saw it in the flesh. And it was worse than anything any of them had ever imagined…
Considering I’m such a huge lover of the horror genre, I really should get round to reading a Koontz book soon! This one sounds like it could be eerie as hell… BUT, I have another of his novels on my TBR that I’ve just purchased for £1.96!! So I’m going to remove this one… for now.
Verdict: remove
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
Synopsis: Obsessed with the idea of creating life itself, Victor Frankenstein plunders graveyards for the material with which to fashion a new being, shocking his creation to life with electricity. But this botched creature, rejected by its creator and denied human companionship, sets out to destroy Frankenstein and all that he holds dear. Mary Shelley’s chilling gothic tale was conceived when she was only eighteen, living with her lover Percy Shelley near Lord Byron’s villa on Lake Geneva. It would become the world’s most famous work of Gothic horror, and Frankenstein’s monster an instantly-recognisable symbol of the limits of human creativity.
I really want to read all the hold horror classics, this one included!
Verdict: keep
Raven: The Untold Story of the Rev. Jim Jones and His People
Synopsis: For the first time in paperback, Tim Reiterman’s Raven provides the definitive history of the Rev. Jim Jones, the Peoples Temple, and the murderous ordeal at Jonestown three decades ago. This PEN Award–winning work explores the ideals-gone-wrong, the intrigue, and the grim realities behind the Peoples Temple and its implosion in the jungle of South America. Reiterman’s reportage clarifies enduring misperceptions of the character and motives of Jim Jones, the reasons why people followed him, and the important truth that many of those who perished at Jonestown were victims of mass murder rather than suicide.
I have a fascination with Jim Jones and People’s Temple. It’s such a massive & baffling tragedy from the last 50 years and I continually want to learn more about it. I have another Jim Jones book on my TBR that I got for free on Netgalley, so I’m going to remove this one for now. If the other book leaves me wanting, I’ll add it back on.
Verdict: remove
The Moth Diaries by Rachel Klein
Synopsis: At an exclusive girls’ boarding school, a sixteen-year-old girl records her most intimate thoughts in a diary. The object of her obsession is her room-mate, Lucy Blake, and Lucy’s friendship with their new and disturbing classmate. Ernessa is a mysterious presence with pale skin and hypnotic eyes. Around her swirl dark secrets and a series of ominous disasters. As fear spreads through the school, fantasy and reality mingle into a waking nightmare of gothic menace, fuelled by the lusts and fears of adolescence.
And at the centre of the diary is the question that haunts all who read it: Is Ernessa really a vampire? Or is the narrator trapped in her own fevered imagination?
LOL this book looks like my worst nightmare. What is with that tacky cover? And why the hell is synopsis trying to be all mysterious about whether Ernessa is a vampire when the book tagline CLEARLY states that she is… I mean maybe that’s a ploy, but if it is, it’s stupid.
Verdict: remove
Oh hell yeah, this was a great week for decluttering! Go me! 7 books down feels like a good accomplishment to me!
How many of these books do you know and want to read? Do you disagree with any of my verdicts? Let me know!
The synopsis for The Fireman is super long, right? But then so is the book 😂 I really need to get to this one soon as well! Great list!
LikeLiked by 2 people
It is a brilliant read. All of Joe Hill’s work is top notch. His father is Steven King so great writing is in his blood 😆.
LikeLiked by 2 people
I’m glad to hear that, and I know! Imagine the pressure of having Stephen King, the king of horror, as your dad though! 😛
LikeLiked by 1 person
I had no idea he was Stephen Kings son until a few months ago. The person who pointed it out to me asked “well, didn’t you look at his picture? It’s obvious”
Valid point 😂
LikeLiked by 2 people
Hahaha I’ve never seen what he looks like, but I’m assuming he must be the spit of King then? 😂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Pretty much! 😂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ok I just looked him up and he does look so much like King haha!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I didn’t put it together for a long time. His writing definitely has King’s influence but his stories are brilliantly unique 😃.
LikeLiked by 2 people
That’s good to hear! Stephen King is very hit or miss for me as far as plots go but I do like his writing. So this is promising!
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s soooo long haha. Yeah, I want to get round to this one soon too! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great week indeed!! I probably should atart doing these… Although my goodreads TBR isn’t even accurate because there are a lot missing!! 😂😂
I’ve never even heard about that People’s Temple thing…
LikeLiked by 1 person
They are really great posts to do and same here, mine isn’t particularly up to date, by I still like to declutter. And WHAAAATTT I mean I guess I’m totally into cults so it makes sense I know so much about it but he literally made over 900 commit mass suicide!! It’s a pretty infamous cult and event 😱
LikeLiked by 1 person
WTH??? Well, I better inform myself then… Even if I don’t know him I don’t get how people like him an Manson get to brainwash so many out there!?!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I know! It’s crazy! Jim Jones was really culturally open in a time when not so many people were so he had a huge amount of black followers and they moved to their own community out of America. He was mad though, as all cult leaders are lol
LikeLiked by 1 person
I SOOO need to do this still! Miss Mandy at Book Princess Reviews and I have a TBR cleaning date next weekend, so we’re going to strive to be like you!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Aw that sounds like fun. I love Mandy and her blog, so have a super fun time doing that 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you! If you want to declutter anymore, let us know. We’ll be Twitter chatting as we go!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I enjoyed the Other Child when I read it last summer. Don’t let the average reviews put you off as I thought it was a good psychological thriller.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I did have thoughts to keep this one but as I have so many books to read similar (that I’ve already purchased) I thought I would let this one go for now 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I know the feeling ☺
LikeLiked by 1 person
Pet Sematary is kind of silly, but it’s entertaining 😛
LikeLiked by 1 person
I thought it would be because the movie is haha
LikeLike
I have the same hatred of long synopsis’ as you do 😂
Pet Semetary sounds good. Need to read a few of the older King books.
I like this declutter idea. May have to do it myself.
LikeLiked by 1 person
They’re such a pain!
Yeah I need to read more King stuff myself and yh I love decluttering my shelf haha, it’s oddly relaxing
LikeLiked by 1 person
Looks like you’ve been quite ruthless in your declutter, but ruthlessness is good sometimes 🙂 Out of this entire list, I’ve only read Pet Semetary and Frankenstein, so I’m pleased to see you’ve kept them! Both are fantastic reads 🙂
LikeLike
Yeah, I like to be ruthless because my TBR pile is such a huge mess at the moment haha! I’m glad to hear you liked those two 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person