Supermarket

My sister loaned me her copy of Logic's book, Supermarket.

I honestly was a little on the fence about reading this novel for a few reasons. Mainly because I had no idea who Logic was but also because my mom and sister both realllllllllly hyped this book up to me. All my sister told me was that it deals with mental health issues that the author had gone through himself. So I decided to give it a shot.

Main character Flynn is an aspiring author who decides the best way to finish his novel is to completely immerse himself in the story. If you haven't guessed it yet, his novel is set in a supermarket. So Flynn sets out to find himself a job at a grocery store. Everyone in the store quickly becomes inspiration for characters in his book. There's Ted, Ronda, Kurtis, Rachel, Becca, Cara, Bianca, Ann, Mia, and of course, Frank.

It's menial work but Flynn is getting good content for his novel. Plus, he gained a best friend and a girlfriend just by showing up at Muldoon's every day. But this is kind of where the story gets tricky to talk about.....

I was 32 pages in when I had a hunch.

I was 66 pages in when I knew.

I was 157 pages in when everything really came together.

I was flying through the last 100 pages.

 

It was honestly worth the hype.

 

Looking for other books by Bobby Hall?

This Bright Future

The First 21

I was a teenager when my mom handed me a copy Nikki Sixx's The Heroin Diaries. We regularly shared music books so this wasn't a big thing, but this book was insane. It detailed Nikki Sixx's descent into sex, drugs, and rock and roll. So when I saw that he was publishing another book, The First 21, detailing his life leading up to his rockstar lifestyle, I immediately preordered it.

Where The Heroin Diaries was raw and unfiltered journal entries filled with unbelievable stories, The First 21 drops the facade of Nikki Sixx and lets us into the life of Frankie Feranna. A young man who had been taken in by his grandparents who allowed him to be who he wanted to be. They believed in him when neither of his parents did. Strangers along the way created the man we know as Nikki Sixx. But little did I know, he borrowed or straight up stole aspects of his stage persona from literally everyone he came in contact with, even his name.

It's not really the book I was expecting it to be, but it was a good quick read into the life of an average kid with Idahoan roots who actually made it as a rockstar. It's not about the raw unfiltered version we all know and love, it's about the kid who made it.

Looking for other books by Nikki Sixx?

The Heroin Diaries

Looking for other books by Motley Crue Members?

Tommyland

Looking for other books featuring Motley Crue?

Life on Planet Rock

Answered Prayers

By now, you all know I'm obsessed with Truman Capote.

So lets talk about his infamous unfinished novel, Answered Prayers.

 

For years, the publication date for this book kept getting pushed back. There are so many theories surrounding why this book was never finished. Personally, I don't think he ever intended to finish writing it. He even makes jokes in the very first chapter that he may never get around to finishing it. But regardless of how many stories were lost, or destroyed, or whatever may have happened, Answered Prayers contains three fantastic stories.

Answered Prayers follows a fictionalized version of Capote, as P.B. Jones. This character seems to be hellbent on writing a novel that exposes all the secrets of his closest friends. It's filled with sex, alcohol, and socialite drama. "Unspoiled Monsters" dove headfirst into the sex fueled "service station" that made Jones start selling his body. "Kate McCloud" was basically Holly Golightly 2.0. The depression, the anxiety, the worldview. But it embraced the queer undertones in a not so subtle way, quite the opposite in Breakfast at Tiffany's. But "La Cote Basque" really brought the gossip to the table. Lady Ina wasn't afraid to tell Jones the goings-on in their upper-crust circle.

Now, I'm well aware that this book fractured many of Capote's friendships, but I don't believe that's why he stopped writing the book. I think the drugs and alcohol, mixed with blatant honesty about his life caused him to stop writing. I really think this was it for him. His life's work became an illusion of truth.

Looking for other books by Truman Capote?

In Cold Blood

Other Voices, Other Rooms

 The Grass Harp

Breakfast at Tiffany's

The Complete Stories of Truman Capote

Music for Chameleons

 

Looking for other books featuring Truman Capote?

Tru & Nelle

Tru & Nelle: A Christmas Tale

No Saints in Kansas

The Dating Game Killer

In 1978, The Dating Game introduced Bachelor No. 1. He was described as a successful photographer who enjoys skydiving and motorcycling....his name was Rodney Alcala.

 

But before his television debut as an eligible bachelor, Alcala spent time in prison after being charged with the sexual assault and attempted murder of an eight year old girl. Believe it or not, he lured her into his car with the promise of pretty pictures he had taken. Yet, somehow he was recruited for the game show which he shockingly won.

I didn't know much about Rodney Alcala, dubbed The Dating Game Killer for obvious reasons. So I was fully unprepared for the graphic rapes, assaults, torture, and murders of so many young women. It infuriated me that Alcala got not one, not two, but three separate trials for his last suspected murder. With two death sentence reversals, he somehow managed to keep his case in court for nearly 30 years. But the early 2000s had a new trick, DNA testing. After obtaining DNA from Alcala, investigators were able to tie him to four other women who had been brutally raped and murdered in California. After a third trial, Alcala was sentenced to death for his attacks on Jill Barcomb, Georgia Wixted, Charlotte Lamb, Jill Parenteau, and Robin Samsoe.

 

A few years later, the same DNA was tied to a case in New York on Cornelia "Michael" Crilley. He was also considered the prime suspect in Ellen Hover's murder. Since The Dating Game Killer was released in 2010, Alcala has been tied to several other murders in California, Washington, and Wyoming. After spending most of his adult life on Death Row, Rodney Alcala managed to avoid the death penalty and died of natural causes in July 2021.

Seven Dirty Secrets

Oh. My. God. THAT ENDING.

I was picking my jaw up off the floor at 2 am when a freaking bomb was dropped like 10 pages before the end of the book. I thought I had it figured out too and I was WROOOOOONG.

You guys all know Natalie D. Richards is one of my auto-buy authors. But I'm not even kidding when I say Seven Dirty Secrets is her best book yet. It's believable, has just enough twists to keep you on edge, and really truly will make your jaw drop.

The premise includes a weekend long scavenger hunt and some cryptic clues.

"One caused the fall.

One did nothing.

One saw it all.

One didn't care.

One used their head.

One played the hero.

One was left for dead."

 

This hunt wasn't what Cleo had in mind for her birthday, but she was willing to play along. That is until she realizes the dates, times, and clues are all focused around time she spent with her abusive ex-boyfriend.....oh and he died on a camping trip for her birthday the year before. With her best friend and brother in tow, they set off to find whoever is taunting them. The whole thing just felt so believable. Natalie D. Richards really created such an amazing character. Cleo had her eyes set on college, an abusive past, and a dead ex. I just felt incredibly connected to her and honestly it made me love this book more than any of the others.

Looking for other books by Natalie D. Richards?

One Was Lost

We All Fall Down

What You Hide

Six Months Later

Gone Too Far

My Secret to Tell

Five Total Strangers

Tacky

It's no surprise that I'm obsessed with the early 2000s.

 

I have an odd mix of Britney Spears, Fall Out Boy, and a variety of one hit wonders on my playlist and I bump that shit regularly. I can now stream reruns of MTV's most cringe-worthy shows. I still wear my mass produced Nirvana tee that I begged my mom for at Hot Topic. Hell, I probably still have a bottle of Warm Vanilla Sugar lotion tucked away in a memory box too. So if you're looking to walk down memory lane, you need a copy of Tacky: Love Letters to the Worst Culture We Have to Offer.

 

Rax King hits all the high points and low points of 2000s pop culture. Since we're basically the same age, we had arguably the same experiences as every other preteen in the early 2000s. I don't know what the fascination is with this era, but I'm here for it. Rax King writes in a way that vocalizes how important it is to be yourself, but does it in a way that is so incredibly relatable.

We take away little things from every experience we have. Whether it be music tastes from CDs the neighbor burned for you, learning the art of seduction from rom-coms, or even watching Guy Fieri yell about Flavortown in an attempt to heal a broken heart. We've literally all been there. So yeah, my walk into adulthood had a lot of the same stops along the way and I wouldn't change it one bit.

Dracula

Sooooooo it's 2021 and I've finally read Dracula.

I actually decided to buy a special edition book box from The Literary Book Club which features a classic novel and bookish gifts to open on specific pages. Honestly, it enhances the book reading experience every time I get a box like this but this Dracula box was by far my favorite.

As for the book itself, I was so surprised when I realized it was written through journal entries, letters, and newspaper clippings. I'm OBSESSED with books written this way. Throwing a vampire into the mix makes it even better.

We've known about Dracula forever. We know he's the original vampire with a kick-ass castle. Instead of talking about him, I'm gonna talk about some of the things I was completely caught off guard by. For example, I didn't realize Van Helsing originated here! I also loved reading Dr. Seward's journals because who doesn't love a psychologist nonchalantly observing the effects of vampirism?! It also blows my mind how modern vampire stories pretty much follow the same outline of what it means to be a vampire.

I originally got caught up with Dracula after I accidentally found a copy of Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu. Bram Stoker actually drew inspiration for Dracula from Carmilla's story which was published nearly 25 years before the release of his iconic vampire tale.