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The Nursery
Author: Sue Watson
Publisher: Bookouture
Date Published: October 20, 2022We know that Emily and her daughter Sofia have been living quietly in Sidmouth for the past 12 years. We also know that Emily was escaping her ex, and something that she did. But that quiet life is about to blow up when Emily finds her daughter chatting with a stranger online. Then her friend Nancy is hospitalized and has only Emily to turn to. To top it off, Emily was just starting to feel something for Oliver, a handsome and wealthy retiree, who she now puts on the back burner to care for her friend and be there for her daughter.
Just when things start looking up again, Watson throws in another bombshell! Bam!
This one was a bit of a slow burn, but you can’t lose with a book by Sue Watson. Her prose is wonderful, and you can almost feel her winking conspiratorially with you!
Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for an advance reader’s copy.
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The Family Game
Author: Catherine Steadman
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine, Ballantine Books
Date Published: October 18, 2022Oh no! I finished this book too quickly! I love locked room/scavenger hunt games and I wanted the games in this book to keep on going!
It was so much fun to see how an outsider with secrets of her own would discern the secrets of the wealthy and powerful family she hopes to marry into. And we are right alongside Harriet as she tries to figure out why her soon to be father-in-law handed her a tape that implicates so many people.
The only flaw in this book was that I thought the consequences of Harriet’s secret coming out were overblown. But as I’ve learned from other books, sometimes a person’s guilt is all the punishment they need. The only way out is to play the game, and the only way to play the game…is to agree to the rules of engagement…
Background photo by Volodymyr Hryshchenko on @unsplash
Thanks so much to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine, Ballantine Books for another great Catherine Steadman thriller!
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The Intruder
Author: Daniel Hurst
Publisher: Inkubator Books
Date Published: September 21, 2022The Intruder is another great book from Daniel Hurst! He has a knack for writing quick paced thrillers with lots of twists and turns.
At first, William and Maria seem like the perfect union – a high powered couple that have managed a work-life balance. Despite their late evenings at the office, they still manage movie nights with the kids and date nights with each other. They seem likeable enough. But then a disgruntled employee is driven to revenge, and William’s secrets start to unravel.
I love how Hurst portrays Maria as a totally devoted wife, an equal partner in the company, but completely clueless – until she has reason not to be. She’s quick-thinking and savvy enough to realize there’s something afoot! William’s confidence and dependence on his charm quickly devolves to bring us to a satisfying conclusion.
Thanks to NetGalley and Inkubator Books for an advance reader’s copy.
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Violet is Nowhere
Author: Faith Gardner
Publisher: Mirror House Press
Date Published: September 22, 2022I am thrilled that Faith Gardner followed up quickly on the first book in The Jolvix Episodes, Amen, Maxine!
This time around we get to see the main character, Violet, kidnapped and left in a cabin with absolutely no technology – no cell phone, no TV, no internet, no mirrors. But someone is stocking the fridge and leaving her clean clothes, and spa-like soap in the bathroom. It would be a great vacation home if it wasn’t for the bars on the windows, and a burner phone that has one number on it. There are no landmarks, few sounds, and no way out.
Gardner does an amazing job of giving the reader insight into the boredom, curiosity, and hopelessness as Violet goes through each emotion. Her only connection to the outside world is the voice on the other end of the phone, Bud. She’s posted of information on social media, so he knows what she looks like as well as intimate details of her life. Even if she could look him up, Bud has virtually no social media presence.
What do these two have in common? They have one week to find out. And the clock is ticking…
Thanks to Booksprout and Mirror House Press for an advance reader’s copy.
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The Lucky One
Author: Jessica Payne
Publisher: Bookouture
Date Published: September 14, 2022The Lucky One is told in multiple timelines. The first is Norah’s memory of what happened 10 years ago, when she and her friend were kidnapped after leaving their high school prom. The second is told as it happens; Norah is called home after her father is found dead, and it looks like the kidnapper, nicknamed “Hansel”, is back.
Payne did a good job of leaving her own breadcrumbs, giving us multiple suspects and theories. It was interesting to see true crime books and podcasts from the victim’s point of view. She showed how a retelling, whether to sensationalize or to try to solve a crime, can throw a victim into the spotlight and traumatize them again.
But Norah’s no ordinary victim. She has used the 10 years since her kidnapping to become a proficient MMA fighter. She’s also gained a confidence that she would be able to face down Hansel, should he return. And then people start going missing…..
No spoilers here! You will find The Lucky One is a fast paced, intelligent thriller, that might just make you read into the night!
Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for an advance reader’s copy.
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How to Survive Your Murder
Author: Danielle Valentine
Publisher: Razorbill (Penguin Random House)
Date Published: August 30, 2022My initial thoughts looking at the bloody spatters on the cover of How to Survive Your Murder were that it looked like a darkly interesting book, but not in my genre, so would I really enjoy it? Chainsaws in a cornfield freak me out because I’m still traumatized by the smell of gasoline and sound of the chainsaws at a Halloween event my sister forced me to attend. In the words of Jordan Peele, I almost said “nope” after reading an excerpt.
Well, I not only enjoyed it, I loved it! This YA book uses the horror movie trope of the Final Girl to take us on the journey of “what if”. What if Alice had followed her sister into the corn maze? What if she had had an opportunity to go on a date with bad boy, Wes? What really happened that night, a year ago?
It was like a bad accident – I couldn’t look away. And every time Alice said this is where she should be doing what the horror movies told her she should do, I was screaming “RUN!” My first foray into Final Girl homage prior to this was much more steeped in horror movie lore, so I appreciated the relatable humor and down-to-earth, realistic language that made me realize I’m missing out by not reading more YA books!
Thanks to Bookish First and Penguin Books for an advance reader’s copy.
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The Woman on the Bench
Author: Eliot Stevens
Publisher: Inkubator Books
Date Published: August 28, 2022It’s the stuff of romance novels: a chance encounter with a perfect stranger. A shared moment. The wish for more.
So it went for Mark and Alice, who encounter each other at a party. Mark is there with his wife Cecilia and doesn’t get the chance to find out more about Alice. So, he can’t believe his luck when Alice finds him, and they decide to meet at “their bench”. The relationship quickly escalates.
At first, we feel sorry for Mark. He’s the “good guy”. But then we find out more of his back story and feel sorry for his beautiful wife, still hurting from a miscarriage, and Mark’s bad behavior during her pregnancy. Plus, she knows something about Mark that could ruin him.
Mark should have known something bad was going to happen. Alice knows much more about him than he does about her. But he’s thinking with his emotions not with his brain – he’s so flattered by Alice’s attention he can’t see that he has completely lost his moral compass. You won’t even feel sorry for Mark when he’s blindsided. He’s been so stinking smug about his affair!
Although we can see where the book is headed, the author meanders toward the ending so when we get there, it’s with great satisfaction!
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Please Join Us
Author: Catherine McKenzie
Publisher: Atria Books
Date Published: August 23, 2022Please Join Us is an intelligently written book about a group of women ostensibly gathered together to collaborate in an attempt to usurp the “old boy’s network”.
When litigator Nicole is invited to join Panthera Leo at an expensive retreat where women come together to do bonding exercises, I totally got “The Hunt” vibes. Not being a person who could be thrown into the wilderness and survive, I really felt for the characters. I’m pretty sure my jaw was tense as I read about the trials they went through.
As the book progresses, Nicole sees what the group has been trying to teach her – connections and powerful networks are the key to success. As one of the characters remarks, you like to think you get ahead on your own merits, but really how far can you go before needing connections before being passed over for someone who does? But what is the price for their loyalty?
I love how McKenzie takes us through Nicole’s thought process as she begins to unravel the secrets of Panthera Leo. Although all of the characters were flawed, I was rooting for Nicole one hundred percent!
Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for another great Catherine McKenzie thriller!
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Into the Woods
Author: Lorraine Murphy
Publisher: Inkubator Books
Date Published: August 21, 2022Into the Woods a well told story about the disappearance of a little girl and her family’s fight to save her. The author covered everything – the dangers of social media, loss of a child, mental illness, marital issues, parent alienation – with compassion and authenticity.
I love how Murphy created characters that are all flawed but kept us invested in them. I found this book well written and so fast paced I finished it in a day (if you count staying up past midnight as one day 😉
I can’t wait for Murphy to write a new book – I’ll be the first in line to buy it!
Thanks to NetGalley, Inkubator Books, and Booksprout for an advance reader’s copy.
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You’re Invited
Author: Amanda Jayatissa
Publisher: Berkley Publishing Group
Date Published: August 9, 2022Once again, I enjoyed the perspective that Amanada Jayatissa brings to her novels. We get a wonderful glimpse at Sri Lanken culture and traditions, especially the preparations and intricacies of a Sri Lanken wedding in a privileged family.
But this is not just any wedding. It’s a wedding that must be stopped. The only problem is, the one who can stop it has been “uninvited”.
Amaya innocently believes she has been invited to her former best friend’s wedding to her ex-boyfriend. Is she just jealous, or is something darker going on here? She’s determined to stop the wedding of Kaavi and Spencer, and now that she’s in Sri Lanka, she has to carefully navigate the world of aunties, gossip, and mortal tutting.
I loved Amaya’s little asides, imagining in her head what disaster she would like to see befall someone who has slighted her (imagined or otherwise). I also liked how she compulsively and superstitiously checked time to see if it was a good sign before proceeding (because I think, subconsciously, I do that 😉
Although it took a while to get to all of the secrets that EVERYONE was hiding I did not guess the ending and I loved the twists and turns the story took to get there.
Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for an advance reader’s copy of another great book from Amanda Jayatissa!
Background photo courtesy of @valkyriepierce at unsplash.
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