Book Review: A Poisonous Pour (Cece Barton Mystery, #3) by Maddie Day

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A Poisonous Pour (Cece Barton Mystery, #3)  by Maddie Day  opens with the city of Colinas, California celebrating Memorial Day weekend with various activities including a car show and picnic. While co-sponsoring a booth at the car show with local mechanic Josie Jarvin, Cece witnesses one of the attendees, Regan Greene, getting into multiple arguments with others. Aside from that, everything goes well. That is until the next morning when the town finds out that Regan is dead, and it looks like she was murdered. With multiple people having motives, Cece utilizes her amateur sleuthing skills to find out who actually committed the dirty deed. I was approved for and received a digital copy of an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of A Poisonous Pour by Maddie Day from NetGalley and Kensington Publishing. A huge thank you goes out to both for providing me a copy for free in exchange for my honest opinion. Maddie Day's Cece Barton series has become one of my favorite cozy mystery series, an...
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Book Review: I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy

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book review im glad my mom died jennette mccurdy

I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy is a heartbreaking memoir of former child actress Jennette McCurdy, best known for her roles on Nickelodeon's iCarly and Sam & Cat.  Jennette wanted nothing more than to please her mother so at six years old, she went on her first audition.  From there, Jennette starts restricting her calorie intake with the help of her mother.  Things get worse for Jennette, and she takes us on her journey to overcome many things.

This is a book I wouldn't have read had the book club I belong to not chose it for our February 2023 meeting.  I vaguely knew who the actress was, but the title of her autobiography was a huge turn off for me.  With that being said, I am so glad that I bit the bullet and read her story.  I now know why Jennette chose the title she did.  The grass was definitely not greener on her side.

I can not believe all the things Jennette had to endure from her mother, including but not limited to vaginal and breast examinations,, the mother bathing Jennette into her teens and at times forcing her and her older brother to shower together, and being encouraged by her mother to starve herself so Jennette didn't develop breasts in the hopes to get younger roles longer.  There is so much more that went on behind closed doors, but you'll have to read the story to see what else Jennette endured.

I'd have to say that I'm Glad My Mom Died is well written and intriguing.  However, I would never say it's humorous like many of the synopses say.  It is a heartbreaking and disturbing read.  Jennette McCurdy's story may have triggers for people with eating disorders, addictions, or abuse.  Five out of five stars.


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