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When I’m Dead
Author: Hannah Morrissey
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Date Published: October 31, 2023I would say it would be great to be back in Black Harbor, but oh what a bleak place! The way the author paints the town, you just know you would never want to live there, either by birth or accident. You can just feel the dreariness, poverty, and crime creeping around the edges.
Hannah Morrissey writes dark, intelligent thrillers but she’s not afraid of using humor to break up the bits between the gore. “Libby’s eyes land on a copper-colored vintage [wine] labeled Hallowine. She remembers sampling it once from her mother’s glass and immediately making a face. It tasted like licking the basement floor.”
While the adults in the book could have used a little more development, the teenagers were on point and included mean girls, victims, and secret connections. And because of Morrissey’s background as a police transcriber, the book had a good frame of reference for the police and medical examiner procedural. Are you able to guess the perpetrator partway through the book? Yes. Was it Morrissey’s intention? I believe it was.
I have liked all of the the author’s Black Harbor, and I know if Morrissey writes it I will buy it!
Thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for an advance reader’s copy.
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Gone Tonight
Author: Sarah Pekkanen
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Date Published: August 1, 2023Ruth takes a mother’s love to its extreme. She will do anything to protect her daughter Catherine from her past. Catherine is a dutiful daughter, bound at the hip to her single mother. So when Ruth is diagnosed with a fatal disease, Catherine at first goes into a tailspin. Determined to see if her mother’s past can yield more information that will save her, Catherine plunges into an investigation her mother is unable to stop.
Sarah Pekkanen is a master at finding the twist, and then twisting it just a bit more!
Thanks so much to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advance reader’s copy.
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The Lodge
Author: Sue Watson
Publisher: Bookouture
Date Published: October 24, 2023Sue Watson is an auto-buy for me, and this book had all the ingredients to keep me reading: a remote location, a snowstorm, a group of contentious people, and a murder (or two!).
I loved the descriptions of the setting in this book – a cozy cottage, the (too) warm fireplace, the steam coming off the hot tub, and the swirling snow. A nice romantic setting turned evil when Fiona’s mother-in-law decides to invite her and her kids, her ex-husband, his wife, and newborn. Fiona’s only going because her mother-in-law has indicated this could be her last birthday. But is that really her only motivation? And what the heck is Jenna doing there and why is she in everyone’s business?
Take the time to enjoy this fast read and find out the answers!
Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for an advance reader’s copy.
Background photo courtesy of Long Luc on Unsplash.
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Alex Cross Must Die
Coming soon!
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The Boss
Author: James Caine
Publisher: James Caine
Date Published: October 15, 2023The perfect job or the perfect nightmare? That’s the question that Alice must decide in order to answer the question: how far would she go to keep it?
This book has all the moral dilemmas you might encounter at work: should you do personal errands for your boss, should you work late into the night, should you make friends with someone under your supervision, and should you let your boss get away with something that will make you hate her forever?
James Caine has managed to capture the creepiness of walking to a parking lot in darkness, working in a building alone at night, and driving through back country roads, in a quick, fast-paced book of psychological suspense with a unique storyline.
Thank you to the author James Caine for a “street team” copy of The Boss.Background photo courtesy of Dane Deaner @unsplash
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Her No. 1 Fan
Author: Abby Davies
Publisher: Apple Loft Press
Date Published: September 28, 2023I was happy that the author acknowledged Stephen King’s Misery as the inspiration for this story. Misery was one of those stories that just stayed with me and I think possibly Her No. 1 Fan will as well.
This is the story of how a young boy, raised from a young age under his stern and unstable grandmother, is mentally stunted and still living under her influence as a young man. He develops an infatuation with Rachel Brown who he believes is truly Doctor Elouise Sparks, the role she plays on a popular TV show. He believes he’s kidnapped her to perform a critical medical service. Throw in a remote location, a relentless snowstorm, and one determined fan, and Rachel knows she’s never getting out of there. Alive.
Thanks to Love Books Tours for inviting me on this tour. -
The Intern
Author: Michele Campbell
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Date Published: October 3, 2023What I liked about The Intern:
• The Harvard campus and court settings felt real.
• The characters were well-developed, complete with backstories.
• The storyline was fast-paced.
• I loved the insider knowledge of Harvard and the law (see Campbell’s bio).
The only thing that kept me from giving this 5 stars was the feeling that the storyline was a little far-fetched and that Madison (the intern) and Kathryn (the judge) had too many lucky escapes from the bad guys who were after them, the federal prosecutors who were no less easy on them. But the quick pacing, nail-biting scenes, and likable main characters (despite their flaws) made this an enjoyable, suspenseful read.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for another great read from Michele Campbell.Thanks to Christopher (@kismet) on Unsplash for the background photo of Harvard.
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The Family Secret
Author: Mikayla Davids
Publisher: Mikayla Davids
Date Published: September 1, 2023I seem to be drawn to books that take place in chalets on ski mountains. Without a doubt, you know that something bad is going to happen.
This book was a perfect recipe for disaster: the grandmom, the 3 sisters who all have secrets, and the grandkids are sharing a luxury cabin in a ski resort in France. It should be peaceful and relaxing, a time for the family to recover and heal after one of the sisters’ husbands (Craig) murders her sister’s husband. But then Craig is released from prison and you all know that can’t be good!
The characters are well developed, so much so that you see the differences between each of the sisters and the kids. I’m pretty sure I was holding my breath during a really harrowing scene on the ski slopes that I’m still thinking about as I write this review!
This is book two in the series, but I didn’t read book one so this reads fine as a standalone.
Thanks to Love Books Tours for an eBook version.Background photo courtesy of David Klein on Unsplash.
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12 Months to Live
Authors: James Patterson and Mike Lupica
Publisher: Little, Brown
Date Published: September 25, 2023Jane Smith is a gritty defense attorney with only 12 months and nothing left to lose. Except for her best friend and partner Jimm Cunniff, her rescue dog RIP (Rest in Peace), and a new relationship with veterinarian doctor Ben.
When I first started reading I thought “this book is not for me” but I gave it a chance and I’m glad I did! I was hooked on this courtroom procedural and Patterson/Lupica had me falling in love with Jane and rooting for her to win even though we all know her client is the slimiest creature on earth! Jimmy, her sidekick who helps with investigations is likable and loyal.
The chapters are short which contributes to the “readableness” of this book, and the ending leaves us hoping that we have a new character to follow!
Thanks to the #JamesPattersonStreetTeam and Little, Brown for an advance reader’s copy.
Background photo courtesy of Inspo @unsplash
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Pretend You Don’t See Her
Author: Mary Higgins Clark
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Date Published: September 12, 2023This is a September 2023 reissue of the 1997 classic. When I first picked it up, I was afraid that it would be dated – no cell phones, no GPS, and definitely no dual timelines that I’ve become accustomed to reading. But this book proves why Mary Higgins Clark is known as “The Queen of Suspense”!
While the Witness Protection Program Lacey is placed in after she witnesses a crime is probably a lot less locked down than one would be today, you still get a feel for what it must feel like being confined to a made-up background, far from home, and unable to confide anything about your current whereabouts. And it’s human error that places Lacey in danger.
The quick, short chapters made this a breeze to read and left me wondering why I haven’t added more Clark novels to my TBR. Read it. You’ll like it!
Thanks to Simon & Schuster for this advance reader’s copy of the reissue.
