Review: Gone for Good by Joanna Schaffhausen

Read this if…you like reading about serial killers and are prepared to read late into the night.

*This book contains violence and some graphic descriptions. Nothing overboard, but your typical thriller fare.*

It’s been twenty years since the Lovelorn Killer terrorized the people of Chicago. Responsible for the deaths of seven women, whom he tied up and strangled in a ritualistic way, this terrifying serial killer is no longer active. Many believe he’s dead or locked up for lesser crimes, but a small group of armchair detectives led by Grace Harper believe he’s still out there and can be caught. When Grace is found murdered in the same way as the Lovelorn Killer’s other victims, Detective Annalisa Vega gets her chance to solve the infamous case that has eluded the best law enforcement agencies, but at what cost?

WOW! I haven’t read a police procedural this good in a long time! It was suspenseful and spooky. I read mostly at night and there were a few times that I got up to close the blinds because I was just so creeped out by this story. This is my first time reading this author, but I plan on following more of Detective Vega’s adventures as they come out. I guessed the serial killer, so I took a star off for that, but then the ending just blew me away, so it earned the lost star back. If you’re a thriller fan, you’ll devour this one!

My Rating: ★★★★★

At the time of this post, this title is set to be released on August 10th, 2021.

*Thanks to the author, St. Martin's Press, and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Review: For Your Own Good by Samantha Downing

Just a disclaimer: no teacher I know thinks or behaves the way teachers in this book do! Haha! 

Teddy is a teacher at a prestigious private school where the students are entitled and the parents are even worse. He puts up with all the nonsense because he believes it is his job to teach these kids how to be decent human beings. If their parents have shielded them from appropriate consequences, then Teddy steps in to show them how the real world works, even if that means being a tad unethical and petty at times. It’s all for the good of the students, after all. However, Teddy’s lessons aren’t solely focused on his students, which becomes clear when one of his pranks goes horribly wrong and leaves someone dead. Teddy doesn’t stop there though and the whole school is about to become known as #HomicideHigh.

I had previously read ‘My Lovely Wife’ by Samantha Downing and really enjoyed it. So when this one popped up on NetGalley, I put my request in right away. Being a teacher, I have to admit that Teddy couldn’t have been much farther from a teacher of the year with his warped sense of duty to his students. That being said, this novel was extremely enjoyable to read. Teddy is a true villain and there were a lot of twists and turns throughout the book to keep me reading. My only complaints were that the pacing slowed down quite a bit about 2/3 of the way through and while the ending was satisfying, it seemed a little subdued considering the huge buildup.

My Rating: ★★★★☆

At the time of this post, this title is set to be released on July 20, 2021.

*Thanks to the author, Berkley Publishing, and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Review: Dark Roads by Chevy Stevens

Being addicted to ID Discovery shows about murder and mayhem, I was instantly intrigued by Chevy Stevens's newest novel, Dark Roads. I vaguely remember watching a special about a Canadian highway that was the last known location of a lot of missing women and is believed to be the hunting route of a serial killer. So when I read the synopsis of Dark Roads, about a similar stretch of highway through the dark Canadian wilderness where women from all walks of life, especially indigenous women, disappear never to be seen or heard from again, I knew I needed to add it to my TBR pile.

The story is narrated by two young women who experience first-hand the evil that can lurk in the dark. Hailey was recently orphaned when her father died in a tragic accident and now has to live with her aunt and uncle. Her Uncle Vaughn is referred to as "The Iceman" by the kids in town because of his strict demeanor. He is always nagging Hailey about not walking or biking at night along the Cold Creek Highway. An apparent control freak, Vaughn and Hailey do not get along well under the best of circumstances, so it's no surprise that things come to a head when Hailey discovers that Vaughn is keeping a dark and dangerous secret. Fearing for her safety, Hailey runs away to live off the grid in an attempt to free herself from Vaughn's control. It doesn't take long for the town to assume that Hailey too has become a victim of the Cold Creek Highway.

One year passes and the story picks up with Beth, a young woman who drops out of law school after her sister is found murdered in a ditch along the infamous highway. Beth is struggling to come to terms with her sister's death and the fact that the police don't seem to have answers about the monster who destroyed her family's lives. She decides to visit Cold Creek herself and steps into the life her sister lived, waitressing at the same restaurant and living out of a motel before deciding to set herself up at the local campground. When Beth accidentally crosses paths with Hailey, the two girls must work together to stay out of the clutches of a ruthless killer who is watching their every move.

This turned out to be a completely different story from what I had been expecting, but I still enjoyed it. Dark Roads started off really strong. I flew through the first part of the book where Hailey was the only narrator. Stevens did a wonderful job of developing characters and building the 'creep' factor. Her ability to create a realistic setting is quite impressive. Unfortunately, the novel really slowed when the narrator switched to Beth and took quite awhile to pick back up again. Having read the whole book now, I would say this is just a minor flaw considering the intensity takes back over for the last 20% of the book. There were times I considered not finishing it because I was bored of Beth's day to day life in Cold Creek, but I'm so glad I stuck with it because what followed was action-packed and exciting! There will be a few spots you'll have to trudge through in order to get to the thrilling ending, but it really is worth it! If that sounds like something you can handle, go check it out!

My Rating: ★★★★☆

At the time of this post, this title is set to be released on August 3rd, 2021.

*Thanks to the author, St. Martin's Press, and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Review: The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix

One thing I love is a good scary movie from the 1980s, before horror movies became all about the gore and shock value. When I read the synopsis of Grady Hendrix's novel, The Final Girl Support Group, I knew it was something I would have to read. It follows the lives of several "final girls" decades after they each became the sole survivor in their own real-life horror movie. Many of these women's tales inspired hokey film franchises and tell-all books written by horror-obsessed fans. Lynette is one of these final girls and finds life after tragedy to be difficult, to put it mildly. Scared that she'll one day be the target of a psychotic killer again, she practically lives as a shut-in, literally behind a cage she's installed in her apartment. She has no one in her life, besides a plant she talks to and her fellow final girls, who meet monthly for a group therapy session in secret. All of Lynette's precautions prove inadequate though when the final girls become the target of someone who wants them all dead. She must face her fears of the outside world and put decades' worth of preparation into action if she wants to survive and save the only people who understand her.

This book was a fun read! It got a bit over-the-top with the gore and violence for me in a few bits, but I'm not going to hold that against the story because it is in the appropriate horror genre. It honestly felt like I was watching a modern-day horror movie. There were a lot of connections to famous horror films like Halloween, Friday the 13th, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and Scream, just to name a few. I found myself spooked quite a few times while reading this late at night when I was the only one in the house awake. My biggest complaint is that the ending to the big scene at the end seemed a little rushed. I went back a few pages just to make sure I hadn't accidentally skipped over a big chunk because I couldn't really believe that was it. The build up to the scene was great and then it just deflated. There were also several instances throughout the novel where the characters were just too unbelievable or stared to annoy me. Lynette could be very repetitive and whiny. Also, there's no way the cops would have acted towards Lynette the way they did in the novel. I mean, they refuse her right to a lawyer, lock her up for days while taunting her with graphic material related to her traumatic past. Maybe a handful of cops would've been jerks, but an entire station psychologically abusing someone like that without repercussions just seems so far-fetched. 

Overall, The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix is worth your time, especially if you're a fan of classic horror movies. Despite some minor issues with the story, it is mostly fast-paced and suspenseful with some surprising twists and a lot of bad-ass female characters. 

My Rating: ★★★★☆

At the time of this post, this title is set to be released on July 13th, 2021.

*Thanks to the author, Berkley Publishing Group, and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Review: The Therapist by B.A. Paris

I always forget how much I love B.A. Paris's writing until I start another one of her novels and then her talent is hard to ignore! I've loved some of her previous works, including Behind Closed Doors, The Break Down, and The Dilemma. She writes in the domestic suspense genre, which is important to know. I would not describe her novels as thrillers, but they keep me up reading late into the night regardless. If you're unfamiliar with her work, you should really check out some of her books. Her latest release, The Therapist, would be a great place to start!

Much like her previous work, The Therapist is a slow burn with a lot of character development and tension that builds with each page until an intense climax. The reader follows Alice, a woman who moves into a gated community in London with her boyfriend, Leo. Hoping that this will be the start of their happily-ever-after, Alice blissfully moves into one of the twelve homes in The Circle and immediately tries to make friends with the neighbors. It doesn't take long before Alice learns that the former owners of their new beautiful home met a tragic end in an apparent murder-suicide. The murdered woman shares the name of Alice's sister who, along with their parents, died a long time ago in a car accident. Because of this coincidence, Alice becomes obsessed with the details of the murder and is not ready to accept the murder-suicide label as fact. Enter a mysterious stranger who crashes a party within The Circle's gated community, which sets Alice off on what may or may not be a delusional trip down the rabbit hole.

If you've enjoyed B.A. Paris's previous work, you're sure to enjoy this latest novel as well. If you haven't read this author before, then you're in for a real treat!

My Rating: ★★★★★

At the time of this post, this title is set to be released on July 13th, 2021.

*Thanks to the author, St. Martin's Press, and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Review: Fallen by Linda Castillo

Reading the next installment in the Kate Burkholder series has become a summer tradition for me. After the school year ends, I read the next short story in the series and then dive into the next novel as soon as it becomes available. I love this series and cannot wait to read about Kate's next adventure as a cop in Amish country and also check in on how her relationship with Tomasetti is progressing. 

I have no idea how she does it, but Linda Castillo has written another amazing thriller starring the ex-Amish Chief of Police. Fallen starts out with a bang as the opening scene details the murder of another formerly Amish woman who returned to Painters Mill only to be greeted by a murderer. The beginning is definitely graphic, which will bother some readers, but I didn't find it overly grotesque. It definitely gave the story an edge that has not always been present in previous Kate Burkholder novels. Kate feels connected to the victim because of her own experiences leaving the Amish fold and sets out to apprehend the killer before more victims show up. This novel is full of suspense and has twist after twist to keep you on your toes. All of the readers' favorite characters are there to support Kate as well.

I consistently give 4-star reviews to many of these books. I love the characters and the mysteries are always entertaining, but, as you probably already know, I'm stingy when it comes to giving out 5-star ratings. In fact, the last Burkholder novel I gave 5 stars to was #8, Among the Wicked. It has to be un-put-down-able (yes, I'm making a new word here) to earn such a high rating from me and I'm so happy to say that Fallen checked all the boxes. I devoured it in two sittings. It was so action-packed and suspenseful that the pages seemed to turn themselves. Kudos to Linda Castillo for being able to still write such fresh and exciting material thirteen novels in to a series. The only bummer here is that now I have to wait a whole year to read the next one!

My Rating: ★★★★★

At the time of this post, this title is set to be released on July 6, 2021.

*Thanks to the author, St. Martin's Press, and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Review: The Maidens by Alex Michaelides

Alex Michaelides's previous novel, The Silent Patient, got a ton of buzz when it was released and even won some readers' choice awards for its unique plot. Having read and enjoyed it immensely, I was excited to read Michaelides's next novel, The Maidens. I have to say that it exceeded my expectations and (in my opinion, of course) is better than The Silent Patient.

The Maidens follows Mariana Andros, a group therapist who is still dealing with her husband's tragic death a year later. The only person left in her family circle is Zoe, her niece who was left in Mariana's charge when her parents were killed in a car crash. While attending university, Zoe's best friend is found murdered, her throat slit and her body found in a way that makes her death seem almost sacrificial or ritualistic. Mariana immediately goes to Zoe and her mama bear claws come out as soon as she realizes that a young, handsome professor might be preying on his unsuspecting students. Determined to find the person responsible for the murder, Mariana gets herself into all kinds of trouble with the police. Her digging continues even as more bodies of young girls start to show up. The victims all have one thing in common-they were part of a secret group on campus called "The Maidens," which shows all the signs of being a cult run by the suspicious professor. The police don't seem to be putting two and two together, so Mariana sets off to find the killer and stop him before he can turn his sights to her beloved Zoe.

I loved this one! While I enjoyed The Silent Patient, I was worried The Maidens would fall victim to the same kind of ending where the reader is expected to suspend reality a bit to accept the resolution. This plot veered towards unbelievability for a moment, but righted itself in time. I did not see the big twist coming and there were plenty of red herrings that kept me guessing throughout. The pacing was quick and had I not been so end-of-the-year-teacher tired, I would have finished it in just a few sittings. I think those who liked The Silent Patient will definitely like this one, especially since there are some 'Easter egg' references to characters and places from that novel sprinkled into the Maidens. If you didn't love The Silent Patient, I still think there's a good chance you'd like this book as it doesn't have any of the same issues that I found with the other title.

My Rating: ★★★★★

*Thanks to the author, Macmillan Audio, and Netgalley for providing me with the audiobook in exchange for an honest review!

At the time of this review, this title will be available to purchase on June 15th, 2021.

Review: The Last Thing to Burn by Will Dean

Jane lives a simple life as a farmer's wife. Each day blends into the next as she follows a mundane routine of cooking and cleaning. Her husband, Leonard, works all day in the fields and rules his home with an iron fist. He punishes Jane for any act of disobedience by burning her prized possessions, one by one. What makes this punishment all the more harsh is that Jane is a victim of human trafficking and hardly has anything to call her own other than some letters from her sister and an old copy of Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men. Leonard keeps her captive in the isolated farmhouse where she is monitored by security cameras that record her every move. After exhausting all attempts to escape in the first few years of her captivity and suffering a terrible injury to one of her ankles, Jane has more or less become resigned to her twisted role as Leonard's wife. That changes when Jane becomes pregnant.

Determined that her daughter will not grow up to be preyed upon by such a monster as Leonard, Jane again begins dreaming about escaping one day. Things get even more interesting when her husband kidnaps a local woman and keeps her in the cellar below the farmhouse where is forced to endure unspeakable horrors. Kidnapping and holding Jane against her will was easy enough since she was a Vietnamese woman who had been smuggled into the country illegally. There was no one looking for her when she went missing. It's an entirely different ball game with Cynthia, Leonard's latest victim, who is on the nightly news and has become the focus of local law enforcement. He's starting to feel the pressure and it's not long before Jane realizes that this situation might provide her with her one and only chance for freedom, if she's brave enough to risk everything and try.

When I first heard about this novel, it was being compared a lot to Room, which I read several years ago. I have to say that I enjoyed both novels, but The Last Thing to Burn was so much more engrossing to me. I practically devoured it in one sitting. Kudos to Will Dean for being able to write about such a mundane existence without actually boring the reader. There was always something going on to keep me turning the pages. While there were instances of abuse mentioned in the novel, I appreciated that they were more alluded to rather than described. I was already unsettled by Jane's situation and I think gratuitous descriptions of rape would have made this too much for me to stomach. If you are looking for a thrilling page-turner, look no further!

My Rating: ★★★★1/2

*Thanks to the author, Atria Books, and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Review: The Girl on the Missing Poster by Barbara Copperthwaite

 I first became aware of author Barbara Copperthwaite when I read and enjoyed Flowers for the Dead (read my review here). I just finished her latest novel, The Girl on the Missing Poster, and let me tell you-this was the first book in awhile that I actually sacrificed sleep for. I stayed up last night far past my bedtime just so I could see how it would all wrap up. Before getting too invested in this review, however, readers should know this novel includes descriptions of violence against women (rape) and animal abuse.

Stella is one of a pair. Her identical twin sister disappeared without a trace decades ago and Stella has never given up on getting the answers she so desperately needs to move on with her life. Every year on the anniversary of her sister's disappearance, she plasters the town with missing posters hoping someone might finally remember something that could reveal what happened on that rainy night. When Stella is approached by Netflix to make a crime docuseries about her sister, she instantly agrees, hoping the extra exposure will lead to a big break in her sister's case. All does not go as planned, however, as the TV show stirs up a lot of questions and old feelings by those who knew Stella and her sister. There are the usual suspects, including the boyfriends of both women at the time and even Stella herself. The break she's looking for finally comes in the form of an email sent from the supposed killer himself. Stella finds herself playing a deadly game with a madman in an effort to finally understand what happened to her other half all those years ago. How far is she willing to go to learn the truth?

Honestly, I loved the format of this novel. The chapters alternated between Stella and the documentary episode transcripts. Being a fan of the true crime series that Netflix has been churning out lately (just finished The Night Stalker, actually!), I was immediately drawn into the setup. My biggest- and really only- complaint is the novel's pacing. It was a slow build and then the climax hit and everything got wrapped up too quickly. I barely had time to even process what was happening. It was still a great ending, one I felt was pretty original for the genre, but I wish the author would have slowed it down a bit so I could appreciate it properly. Perhaps if the Mary storyline was edited out or reduced a bit, things would have flowed a little better. Either way, it's still an edge-of-your-seat thriller that you won't regret reading!

My Rating: ★★★★☆

*Thanks to the author, Bookouture, and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

At the time of this review, this title will be available to purchase on February 23rd, 2021.

Review: Mother May I by Joshilyn Jackson

I read three of Joshilyn Jackson's novels several years ago, and while I rated them all 3 or 4 stars, I was never quite blown away by her stories. They all started out so promisingly, but left me disappointed in one way or another. I was hesitant to give Mother May I a chance for this reason, but the synopsis made it seem like Jackson might have more success writing thrillers than the women's fiction she wrote early on in her career. Keeping in mind how prepared I was not to love another one of her books, I was pleasantly surprised by this one! I absolutely could not put it down. The story weaved every which way and the suspense and surprises just kept coming from beginning to end. I am so glad I gave this one a chance and I think fans of the mystery/thriller genre will enjoy it as well!

Bree Cabbat is the wife of a successful lawyer and the mother of three children-two teenage daughters and an infant son. Life is wonderful and problem-free until the morning Bree wakes up to see an old crone peering through her bedroom window. She can't shake the feeling that this witchy-woman was up to no good and her suspicions prove right when her son is kidnapped immediately after Bree spots the mystery woman a second time. A note is left behind instructing Bree to return home and tell no one what has happened. She does as she's told, desperate to get her son back. It turns out the woman has a plan for Bree and if she does not follow instructions to the letter, her son will be killed. The narrative continues as Bree fulfills these demands and tries to uncover why her family is being targeted by this woman. There are plenty of twists and turns to keep the pages turning and the characters are well developed.

I want to go so much more in depth with this because there's a lot more to this story, but I don't want to spoil anything. As a mother, I found Bree easy to empathize with. Just imagining being in her shoes ramped up my anxiety. The themes of this story are very timely considering the way the world views and treats women. I feel like there was an important message underneath all of the drama and suspense, which I completely support and appreciate. Long story short, go read this book!

My Rating: ★★★★★ out of 5

*Thanks to the author, Harper Audio, and Netgalley for providing me with this audiobook in exchange for an honest review!  

At the time of this review, this title will be available to purchase on April 6th, 2021.

Review: The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose

"His mistress is dead. His wife is his only hope." The tagline immediately made me want to read The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose. I'm happy to say that it did not disappoint!

Sarah Morgan is a BOSS (are the kids still saying that nowadays?). She is partner at a prestigious law firm and one of the most successful defense attorneys in the Washington, D.C. area. Her life is dedicated to her job and while she loves her husband, it's obvious from the start that her marriage comes second. Adam, a struggling novelist, does not enjoy living in his wife's shadow and spending so much time alone while Sarah works late into the night. It's only a matter of time before he begins having an affair with a waitress. He comes to love both women for different reasons and can't decide which one he should leave the other for. Adam's choice is made for him when his mistress is found stabbed to death in his bed. Facing a murder charge that includes a death sentence, Adam is facing an uphill battle as all the evidence points directly to him. If he has any chance of proving his innocence, he needs his wife's help, but can he trust that she has his best interests in mind after all he's done to her? 

This was a solid thriller that will surely entertain fans of the genre. The novel moves along at a quick pace, alternating narration between Sarah and Adam. There are plenty of red herrings and a shocking twist at the end that readers won't see coming! I was actually really satisfied with the ending despite finding it disturbing. The biggest complaint I had with Rose's story is that Adam was a complete tool. I honestly couldn't stand his character and was hoping Sarah would just leave him to fend for himself after all his douchebag antics. While the twist at the end was great, I felt it was a little implausible, at least without answering a few more questions for me.

Overall, this one is definitely worth all of the hype it's being given! Give it a read and you won't regret it.

My Rating: ★★★★ out of 5 

*Thanks to the author, Dreamscape Media, and Netgalley for providing me with this audiobook in exchange for an honest review!  

Review: Unfaithful by Natalie Barelli

My first encounter with Natalie Barelli was when I read The Housekeeper over the summer. I couldn't get enough of the diabolical narrator in that one, so I snatched this November release up as soon as I saw it was from the same author. Unfaithful is definitely as "unputdownable" as the cover claims.

Anna is an associate professor in mathematics at a decent university. She seemingly has a perfect life that includes a satisfying career, a husband she adores, and two adorable children. From the outside, Anna appears to have it all, but it doesn't take long for her world to start tearing at the seams. A grad student Anna worked with to crack a previously unsolvable math concept suddenly kills himself in front of her. While this is bad enough, his death could also take away her hard-earned chance at a prestigious professional prize. She makes the shady decision to claim his work as her own, which leads to a whole slew of stress and anxiety as she waits for someone to find out what she's done.

I thought this was going to be the major problem in this novel, but it turns out Anna's life is a veritable s**t-show. Her husband's cheating on her and his mistress rubs it in her face every chance she gets; Anna has zero friends and a toxic relationship with her mother; she's somehow become the target of a dangerous stalker; and to top it all off, she finds herself the prime suspect in a murder case. Oh yeah, she lies and drinks every chance she gets. I'll be honest, I don't really blame her for imbibing excessively because this book filled me with anxiety. I'm still not sure if this a good or a bad thing, though. 

I will say that this is definitely one of those books that you won't be able to put down for long. I was so engrossed with Anna's crazy life that I couldn't wait until I could begin reading again. It was suspenseful and the ending was both unpredictable and satisfying. At first, the number of major obstacles the narrator had to face seemed excessive, but I'm honestly impressed with how smoothly Barelli was able to pull it all off. Besides the stress this story added to my life, my only real complaint about Unfaithful was all the unlikable characters. I never did end up liking Anna, primarily because of how she handled her cheating husband, but she also lied and whined way too much. In the entire book, there was only one character I even kind of enjoyed, but she got annoying at times too. 

Overall, this is a fantastic, suspenseful thriller that will keep you reading way past bedtime. If you can get past the objectionable narrator, I think most mystery fans will enjoy the ride!

My Rating: ★★★★ out of 5 

*Thanks to the author, Dreamscape Media, and Netgalley for providing me with this audiobook in exchange for an honest review!

Review: The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins

I read Jane Eyre when I was in high school and I remember being drawn into the dark magnificence of the gothic romance. It became an immediate favorite, so you can imagine my excitement when I heard about The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins. It is more or less a modern retelling of Bronte's plot, but there is plenty of originality in this twisty tale. The mood of this gothic domestic thriller also reminds me of Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca, since Jane is always trying to live up to her seemingly perfect predecessor. However, there is no brooding Mrs. Danvers in this version and the house in Thornfield Estates where Jane and Eddie live doesn't quite have the same larger-than-life character that Manderley did. Despite the obvious similarities to these two classics, The Wife Upstairs stands on its own as a modern mystery full of twists and turns that readers will devour in no time at all!

Jane is a young woman who is running away from a troubled past. She is utterly alone in the world until she meets Eddie Rochester, a recent widower who owns a large estate in the posh neighborhood where Jane works as a dog walker. Sparks fly when the two meet and a romance blooms between the unlikely pair. Jane slowly learns how to live in a life of luxury, but is always keeping true happiness at arm's length, subconsciously fearing it's all too good to be true. She becomes obsessed with learning as much as possible about the late Mrs. Bea Rochester, the founder of a successful business who was declared dead after disappearing during a tragic boating accident that also killed her best friend. It is presumed Bea drowned alongside her friend, but her body was never found. Jane finds out soon enough that things aren't quite as they seem when the police determine the two women's deaths were actually homicides and Eddie is a prime suspect. Jane can't seem to figure out who is the bigger threat to this new shiny life that's waiting for her- her fiancé or his dead wife.

Fans of Jane Eyre will recognize major elements of the plot, but Hawkins does a wonderful job recreating this tale for the twenty-first century. Jane herself isn't quite as pure and innocent as the original. She is running from a terrible secret in her past which she fears could destroy this new life she's made for herself if it were to ever be discovered. Bea is also a very modern woman, the creator of a popular southern lifestyle brand called 'Southern Manors' that reminds me of Reese Witherspoon's Draper James clothing line. Unfortunately, something is lost in the reinvention of these characters because I couldn't connect with any of them, Jane especially. I wanted to like her, but I just didn't. She was a little too hard and flat throughout the novel and even when she voiced her vulnerabilities, it didn't come across as genuine. 

The lack of character depth is my only complaint about this novel. I would still highly recommend it to fans of the domestic suspense and thriller genre. You don't have to have read the classics I mentioned to enjoy this title, although it will definitely give you a better idea of the mood the author was trying to create. I couldn't put this one down and felt like it was a wonderful take on some of my favorite gothic romances!

My Rating: ★★★★ out of 5

*Thanks to the author, St. Martin's Press, and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

At the time of this review, this title will be available to purchase on January 5th, 2021.

Review: Little Bones by N.V. Peacock

 I was really excited to read Little Bones by N.V. Peacock for two reasons. The first being that the plot was unique and stood out from the average missing child thrillers I often read. The protagonist is the daughter of Mr. Bones, a serial killer who murdered little boys and used their bones to create macabre works of art. Cherrie has given herself a new name and a new life in an attempt to escape her previous life as "Little Bones," the nickname she received at 8 years-old when the public discovered she was a potential accomplice in her father's crimes. Considering her involvement in the kidnappings of eleven young boys when she was a child, Cherrie is not the typical protagonist.  The second thing that lured me in was the mention of a true crime podcast that stirs up Cherrie's life and leads to the subsequent abduction of her young son. I enjoy listening to true crime podcasts myself, such as "Serial," "Teacher's Pet," and "Up and Vanished" to name a few, so I was interested in seeing how the author incorporated her own version of this popular media into the story.

The book had me hooked from the beginning and I was not able to put it down for the first 60% or so. I was rooting for Cherrie to find her son and was very intrigued by her relationship with her serial killer father. Unfortunately, the last 40% of the novel did not live up to the beginning and I was left feeling disappointed and confused. While there were several red herrings introduced, the "bad guy" wasn't a huge shocker. I had suspected the culprit multiple different times throughout the story so the final reveal was less than shocking. My other complaint is that I lost my connection with Cherrie as soon as she switched into vigilante mode. I'm all for a bad ass protagonist, but Cherrie almost came across as being manic where she'd be frantically plotting and scheming on how to run her own investigation into her son's disappearance and the next minute she's sitting on the couch eating a bowl of cereal and watching Grey's Anatomy. Thankfully, my child has never gone missing, but if she did, I could promise you that I would NEVER be able to chill out and watch mindless television just a few days into her disappearance. One minute she'd talk about not being able to sleep because her mind is racing with fears for her son and the next minute, she's calmly going to bed early as a way of passing time as she waits for developments. It just seemed so unlikely to me that a mother in this position would act the way she does. Her actions made me dislike her which was frustrating because I didn't start the novel feeling that way.

Overall, this was an entertaining enough read, but the inconsistent characterization of Cherrie ruined it for me in the end.

My Rating: ★★★ 1/2 out of 5

*Thanks to the author, Avon Books, and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

At the time of this review, this title will be available to purchase on October 31, 2020.

Review: She Lies Close by Sharon Doering

I just finished reading She Lies Close by Sharon Doering and I have to say that it exceeded my expectations! I've read a ton of mysteries involving missing children, but if you asked me to give you details about one, I probably wouldn't be able to. While plenty have been great- full of suspense and shocking twists- they just don't have characters that stick with me. Doering's take on the popular theme caught me by surprise as I found myself laughing and connecting with the protagonist in a way I hardly ever do. There's one point in the story where the main character is annoyed at being delayed on her way home because all she is looking forward to is taking off her pants. (Lady, I feel you!) That's not to say the plot doesn't check all the genre's boxes; it is suspenseful and creepy and sad in all the right ways.

Grace Wright is a recently divorced mother of two who is just trying to survive each day. Her first priority is taking care of her young children, which seems all the more challenging when she realizes her next-door neighbor is a suspect in the disappearance of a local girl, Ava Boone.  Grace does her best to appear "normal," but it's not hard to see that she's a hot mess. She already struggles with ADD and anxiety, and on top of that her insomnia is keeping her up for days at a time, causing her to hallucinate and black out in the middle of the night. She obsesses over her neighbor, convinced he is grooming her three-year-old daughter to be his next victim. One day, she thinks she sees little Ava in her neighbor's house and that pushes Grace to act. She breaks into his house and finds disturbing evidence that only make her all the more certain he is responsible for kidnapping Ava, but no one will listen to her concerns. When the neighbor turns up dead, Grace finds herself in the middle of a murder investigation.

This novel has a lot of dark humor that makes it stand out from typical books in this genre. Grace is snarky and sarcastic, which I loved! If I could choose a fictional best friend, she'd definitely be in my top three. She comes across as so real and vulnerable which is so refreshing. The plot itself is solid, but I will remember She Lies Close because of the life Doering brings to her characters. Readers who are not fans of crass language or sexual details in their books should probably stay away from this one, but I'd highly recommend it to anyone else looking for a well-written mystery with memorable characters.

My Rating: ★★★★★

*Thanks to the author, Titan Books, and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Review: Flowers for the Dead by Barbara Copperthwaite

Flowers for the Dead by Barbara Copperthwaite follows protocol for the all-too-familiar thriller/police procedural plot, but still manages to create a very unique and terrifying serial killer. 

The novel bounces back and forth between multiple characters, including Mike who is a recently widowed police detective. Nothing stands out about Mike. He's the typical damaged detective trying to balance his life as a single father with his career hunting the bad guys. He may be a little rough around the edges, but it's a given that he has a heart of gold. Laura is a young woman trying to bring herself out of the pits of depression after being the sole survivor in a horrific car accident that killed her entire family. There's nothing too memorable about her, but I did enjoy watching her evolve from a victim to a proactive and confident woman. 

While dealing with her grief, Laura unknowingly catches the attention of Adam, the psychotic serial killer and star of the story. Adam is unusual because he spends a significant amount of time wooing his victims. When he finds a woman who seems perfect for him, he falls fast and he falls hard. He sends these unlucky ladies messages via the types of flowers he sets on their doorsteps. He buys them groceries and tidies up their homes for them while they're sleeping. He puts their every need in front of his own. Sounds like a catch, right? The only problem is he does all of this in complete secrecy, using hidden surveillance systems to spy on the women who have no clue who Adam is. They all react to his attention differently. Some start to believe they're going crazy, while others just assume an ex is pulling out all the stops to get back together. One thing that stays the same, however, is that Adam eventually feels unappreciated, hurt, angry, etc. That doesn't bode well for the current recipient of his affections.

What I found to be unique about this novel was that the reader spends much of his/her time watching the story unfold through Adam's perspective. Most thrillers I read either ignore the serial killer's POV entirely as a way of keeping the mystery and fear factor high or they only give brief glimpses into the bad guy's thought process. In Flowers for the Dead, the author uses flashbacks to show the reader Adam's entire life, beginning with his childhood as a young boy and up to the present time. His younger years are not simply glossed over. While this does make the story's presentation stand out from a lot of the other novels in the same genre, I'm not sure if it was the best use of the reader's time. In fact, one of my complaints is that I feel there was far too much time spent on Adam's backstory. His experiences are quite heavy and if the point was to show how he evolved into becoming the monster he is later in life, that could have been accomplished in about half the number of pages. The extra background slowed the momentum of the story and caused me to feel like I was slogging through at a glacial pace.

Overall, the writing was great and the storyline was definitely very creepy. Readers with sensitivities should be aware that there were grotesque descriptions as well as disturbing child sexual abuse in the novel. Had I known about the latter, I probably would have skipped this read altogether, but that is my personal preference. If you're looking for a scary thriller to keep you up at night, this would definitely do the trick!

My Rating: ★★★★☆

*Thanks to the author, Bookouture, and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Review: The Search Party by Simon Lelic

"A missing girl. Five friends. Not everyone will make it home alive."

This mystery centers around Sadie Saunders, a popular teenager who has gone missing. Everyone in town believes she has to be dead after being gone for more than a few days. As the cops are searching the nearby woods and using dive teams to explore the bottom of the powerful river that winds around the sleepy town hidden in the middle of nowhere, everyone knows it's a body they're really searching for. Enter Fleet, the typical damaged detective with a heart of gold. This is the first time he's returned to his hometown since he lost someone he loved here a long time ago. The locals aren't shy about voicing their doubts about Fleet's ability as an investigator. They put pressure on the police force to solve the mystery of Sadie's disappearance and Fleet's boss is ready to lock someone up just to appease them, justice be damned. Obviously our detective's moral compass cannot allow this and so Fleet sets out to uncover the truth and apprehend the real party or parties responsible for Sadie's disappearance. 

Meanwhile, rumors swirl around the town and seem to settle around Sadie's closest friends. There's Abi and Cora, who are constantly competing to be Sadie's BFF. Mason has been the subject of most of the rumors as he's Sadie's boyfriend and is known to have quite a bad temper. There's also Fash, a kind kid from a strict household, and Luke, Sadie's twin brother. These five teens take it upon themselves to conduct their own search party in the woods after coming to the conclusion that the cops are planning to have Mason take the fall. Poorly prepared, they set out into the wilderness to find their missing friend and quickly realize that they all have their own motives for wanting Sadie gone. Their distrust of one another erupts into violence and one member doesn't make it back from the search party alive.

The tagline for Simon Lelic's The Search Party immediately grabbed my attention. It was oozing with suspense, so I decided to give it a try. I'd previously read another of Lelic's works earlier this year, The New Neighbors, and while I liked it, it didn't blow me away.  So I thought it only fair to give the author another shot. There were plenty of good things about this book. Mysteries involving crimes among a close-knit group of friends are a dime-a-dozen it seems, but Lelic's smooth writing and genuine characters made the familiar premise feel fresh and exciting. Each of the teens was presented authentically with his or her own realistically flawed personality. The dialogue seemed natural and kept the story moving quickly. On the other hand, Fleet's character was far too stereotypical to capture my interest. Throw him in the mix with a bunch of other mystery novel detectives and you'd never be able to pick him out. Besides the characters, the overall narrative was just one note for me. The climax never reached the level of intensity I was hoping for, partially because the final "twist" wasn't as unexpected as I think the author intended it to be. The Search Party was entertaining enough, but it's not a book that is going to stay with you long after you've put it down.

My Rating: ★★★☆☆

*Thanks to the author, Berkley Publishing Group and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Review: The Heatwave by Katerina Diamond

After a few disappointing reads, I was in desperate need of a great thriller. You know the ones; the kind where you don't even realize you've spent hours reading because the plot is so compelling. I picked up The Heatwave by Katerina Diamond because I saw a friend with similar tastes had recently left a promising review about it. It absolutely did not disappoint! Books like this make me happy and remind me why I love to read in the first place.

The storyline alternates between the past and the present through the use of two narrators. Felicity is a wife and mother of two who drops everything to return to her hometown when she sees on the television that a teenage girl has mysteriously disappeared there. This strikes a nerve with her because when she was growing up, another teenage girl went missing under similar circumstances. For reasons that aren't immediately revealed to the reader, Felicity feels like she is the missing link that connects these two disappearances. She sets out to do some investigating on her own, hoping to get answers to questions that have plagued her for years and save the latest missing girl. This is the first time she's returned home since she left as a teenager after having done something terrible. Jasmine is the narrator for back "then" when the first girl went missing. She is best friends with Felicity and lives a privileged life, spending her summers with her parents traveling the world as they do charity work. This particular summer, however, plans have fallen through and Jasmine is excited by the prospect of actually getting to experience a normal summer vacation. Jasmine's family has recently relocated and taken on a renter, Tim, who lives in a small garden house in the backyard. Jasmine can tell immediately that Tim is not the picture-perfect man her parents believe him to be. She embarks on a dangerous journey when she decides to find out what Tim might be hiding. Felicity and Jasmine's stories interweave seamlessly to tell a thrilling tale full of deception and depravity.

This book was just what I was hoping it would be! I have never read anything by Katerina Diamond before, but she is definitely an author I will be following from now on. I don't typically think too much when I read mysteries. I'm not a reader who is constantly trying to figure out the twists before they come. I simply read it and let the plot unfold as it may, but I wouldn't have been able to figure out the ending of this book no matter how hard I tried. There were several twists and reveals that I never saw coming. This book was just so...effortless. It was so easy to get sucked in and before I knew it, I had finished it! This would definitely make a great summer beach read and has been one of my favorites of 2020 so far.

My Rating: ★★★★★
At the time of this post, this title is set to be released on June 25, 2020.

Thanks to Avon Books and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Review: Those Who Hunger by Owen Banner

I do not often read supernatural novels, but I make an exception when I find a title that seems especially original. I am drawn to stories that attempt to weave supernatural elements into well-established settings because it seems like such a difficult feat. I was blown away by the credibility of Seth Grahame-Smith's Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. Being a fan of Amish-based mysteries (like the wonderful Kate Burkholder series), I've also been curious to see how authors integrate the supernatural with the rigid social confines of an Amish community. So I didn't hesitate to snatch up Those Who Hunger: An Amish Vampire Thriller by Owen Banner as soon as it became available.

This "horror" story surrounds a series of vicious murders within an Amish community that hides a terrible secret-many of its members are vampires, cursed to hide their hunger for human blood or risk losing everything that matters to them. The Zook family knows this curse all too well. There are more vampires in their family than non-vampires. Haddie Zook is an Amish teenager who realizes she has the mark when a terrifying encounter with a predator initiates her transformation. She struggles with her new identity as she learns to keep her hunger in check. Meanwhile, Jacobo, a detective assigned to the violent murders in the community, is keeping a close eye on the Zook family, suspecting one of them is responsible for the heinous deaths of several innocent people.

It's difficult to go into much more detail than this without risking spoiling parts of the story for potential readers, so I'll jump into my review. This book was WAY TOO LONG. I've read plenty of 500+ page novels and I never shy away from a big book, but there's nothing more annoying than wasting precious reading time on something that could have easily been condensed into 300 pages. I felt like I was slogging through this and was horribly dismayed when I saw I was only 32% of the way through the story. The suspense and excitement did pick up once I got to about 80%, but I read for hours and felt like I was getting nowhere because the author spent so much time detailing random tangents that ended up having nothing to do with the main plot. (If someone else reads this, please come back and tell me what the purpose of the drug dealer scene was because I'm still annoyed by that.)

This story could have been easily streamlined if the author cut down on the number of narrators. I counted no less than a dozen different POVs within the first third of the book, some of which we only heard from the one time. This made things confusing for the reader and just added information that could have been more efficiently shared in other ways. In my opinion, the only people we needed to hear from would have mainly been the Zook family members: Haddie, Esther, Nehemiah, and maybe Roy for an outsider's perspective. Jacobo's random detective excursions were pointless and Mel's experiences, while tragic, really didn't need to be included. 

While this novel is listed as part of the "horror" genre, I would argue that it's more of a coming-of-age supernatural mystery with some gratuitous gore thrown in every now and then. Even the violent vampire attacks felt like they were over-the-top and more for shock and awe than anything else. Potential readers should also note that there are sex scenes and a few instances of animal abuse in the novel as well.

I struggled with how to rate this book. At times, I was thinking about one-star and others, I got up to a 3.5, so I'm settling on 2 because of pacing issues and how far-fetched I felt the ending was. There were too many questions left unanswered for me to be comfortable with the culprit(s) that were finally revealed. On the other hand, the writing was good and the story was detailed, even if excessively so. Fans of Amish characters and vampires will enjoy the mash-up of the two very different subjects. However, if you'd like to read about the worlds of vampires and the Amish colliding and don't want to devote your time wading through so many unnecessary pages, I'd recommend you try The Hallowed Ones series by Laura Bickle. I read these back in 2014 and remember liking them quite a bit more than Those Who Hunger.

My Rating: ★★☆☆☆

*Thanks to the author and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Review: The Guest List by Lucy Foley

I chose this title for my April Book of the Month selection and it was a fantastic read! I was worried when I saw that the chapters were written from the viewpoints of so many different people because I sometimes can have a difficult time remembering who's who, but that was not an issue this time around. Foley is adept at weaving through multiple POVs in a way that is not overwhelming for the reader. I actually enjoyed the constant change between characters and the unique insights each one was able to add to the plot. The characters include:

• Aoife, the Wedding Planner: Along with her husband, she has rented out her remote Irish island for an extravagant wedding at a deep discount in the hopes that the publicity will spur future business. She is cool-headed and no-nonsense and knows how to handle any issues that threaten to ruin a couple's big day.
• Jules, the Bride: She knows what she wants and heaven help anyone who tries to stand between her and her desires. She's the visionary behind a wildly successful online magazine. Her confidence comes across as arrogance most of the time. She strives to maintain a perfect image in all regards.
• Olivia, the Bridesmaid: She's Jules's younger, gorgeous half-sister. She's really struggling to come to terms with something that happened in her recent past and resorts to self-harm as a way of dealing with her trauma. Overall, she's an emotional wreck and Jules sees her as a potential wedding liability.
• Hannah, the Plus-One: Married to Jules's best man and the MC of the wedding, Hannah is in her mid-30s and reveling at the thought of a weekend getaway with her husband away from the kids. She's hoping they can rekindle their former passion, but her husband's relationship with the bride is a constant source of conflict for the couple.
• Johnno, the Best Man: He's the groom's childhood friend from boarding school. Time hasn't been as kind to him as it has been to the groom however, and Johnno is regarded by everyone as a pathetic screw-up who reflects poorly on those who know him.

The reader knows from the off-set that something terrible has happened on the wedding night that results in murder. The who and the why are not answered until the very end, which provides constant suspense and keeps the reader invested. The short chapters that alternate POVs also helps the pacing of the novel. I found myself sitting down with the book, only intending to read for a few minutes before noticing that an hour or more had passed. Even though, as some discontented reviewers pointed out, the backstories of the main characters are very slowly revealed, the constant change of time between the wedding night and events prior kept me interested. I personally never felt bored as I learned each character's past. The characters were very three-dimensional and the way their stories intertwined so seamlessly was fascinating to me.

Overall, I think fans of the suspense and thriller genre will enjoy this book, although there's not much "thrill" per se until the final few chapters. It's very reminiscent of a few Agatha Christie classics, but with original twists that will keep you guessing until the end. This really is a perfect summer read and I think I'll check out Foley's previous novel The Hunting Party since I enjoyed The Guest List so much.

My Rating: ★★★★★
At the time of this post, this title is set to be released on June 2, 2020.