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I Feed Her to the Beast and the Beast Is Me
Author: Jamison Shea
Publisher: Square Fish
Date Published: August 27, 2024There will be blood.
Well, I dipped my toe into dark fantasy and it didn’t kill me, lol! Was I thirst-trapped by the cover? I’m not gonna lie – it is truly mesmerizing. But beyond that, Jamison Shea understands the beauty of words and the power they have to transport us. They were able to describe the setting so well, that even people like me who understand very little French, and ballet even less, can viscerally feel every pirouette, arabesque, plié, and jete. We can feel the calloused heels, the broken toenails, and the aching in the calves.
Shea also expands on what it is to be “other” – a brown-skinned girl in a sea of pale, blonde, privilege. Where for her, perfection is not enough. They also take us down the road of greed, longing, jealousy, and sacrifice. There is mythology, allusions to the River Styx, to blood sacrifice, and to dark rituals.
Despite the heavy topics, this book flowed effortlessly and beautifully. However, please do note the TWs. If you like books like Black Swan, Ballerinas (Kapelke-Dale), or books by Carlos Castaneda, you will enjoy this.
Huge thanks to Bookish First where I won a paperback version, and to the publisher. -
Don’t Tell a Soul
Author: Jessica Huntley
Publisher: Inkubator Books
Date Published: August 4, 2024This book has it all:
• Twists
• Twins
• Basements (2)
• Cats (there have to be cats)
• Bad parents
• Shady landladies
• Creepy houses
• Twists – did I mention it has twists?
Have I piqued your interest yet? These are all the ingredients needed for a twisty thriller about a teenager who leaves her abusive home to start over in a new town. She is lucky enough to find a job and housing due to the kindness of strangers, but at what price? Just when you think she’s going to be okay…dun dun dun…stuff happens….
I am so glad I got to read this advanced reader’s copy from Booksprouts and Inkubator Books! -
The Fiance
Author: Rona Halsall
Publisher: Boldwood Books
Date Published: August 2, 2024Holy flip-flop! Even though Anna was seeking revenge for the murder by surgical error of her husband Ollie, she was betrayed by her emotions. Her plan to get Theo, his surgeon, to fall in love with her, is turned on its head when she starts to fall in love with him!
Complicating matters are Theo’s two entitled, spoiled, grown children, who disapprove of anyone their father dates. Could they be behind the escalating threats to Anna’s safety? Or is it someone else?
“Revenge is a dish best served cold, or maybe never served at all?” Though you might be tempted to criticize Anna for her Project Theo, in the end you’ll be cheering her on.
Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for an advance reading copy and another excellent read from Rona Halsall! -
The Perfect Place
Book Tour
Author: Amanda Cassidy
Publisher: Canelo Crime
Date Published: August 1, 2024Elle has found her “perfect place”. At least it will be once the renovations have taken place. Elle is a social media influencer, with a flagging audience, and if she can complete this renovation of a crumbling chateau in the south of France using sponsor gifts, she is sure her loyal followers will rally around her. Especially when she tops it off by filming her wedding to the handsome Will.
What I loved:
1. The gothic feel of the old chateau.
2. The owner lurking about, hiding a secret of his own.
3. A social media follower, sending mysterious messages hinting at Elle’s past
4. Elle’s manager Sue, whose intentions are questionable.
Elle makes some poor decisions along the way, and is taking a big risk buying a house that won’t truly be hers until the owner dies. But her risks aren’t nearly as big as the ones her husband is taking. And neither of them knows what the other is doing.
Read along and ask yourself: would you make the same decisions?
Thanks to Love Books Tours and the author for an advance reader’s copy.
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Twelve Secrets
Author: Robert Gold
Publisher: Bookouture
Date Published: August 2, 2024Book Description
I should hate you. I should want you dead for what you did to my sweet, blue-eyed boy. But you’re the only person who can give me the answers I need. What really happened the night you killed him?
It’s twenty years since my teenage brother was murdered and my mother took her own life with a broken heart. I buried myself in writing to numb the pain, but when the police knock at my door and tell me my brother’s killer has just been found murdered, my heart stops dead: the killer had letters from my mother written just days before she died.
My mother believed someone else was there that night. As the police search my home, my head races with a million questions. Did my mother really kill herself, or did someone get to her before she could find out the truth?
Under the guise of writing an article, I press old friends and neighbours for answers. But why do they dodge my questions? What are they so afraid of? Is there anybody in this small town I can trust?
I pore over my mother’s letters late into the night until I discover a family secret that turns my blood to ice. Everything I thought I knew about the night my brother was murdered is a lie.
As I get closer to the truth, another body drops. Someone in this close-knit town will stop at nothing to keep their secrets. Can I find them before another innocent life is taken?
A twisty, pulse-racing new crime thriller that will keep you turning pages late into the night. Perfect for fans of Lisa Regan, Robert Dugoni and Kendra Elliot.My Thoughts
Ben is an investigative journalist faced with his toughest story yet. Why were his brother and his brother’s friend killed by two young girls their own age? Were they targeted? Was his mom’s suicide related or was it murder? And who has committed the most recent murder, one that he knows must be connected to the death of his brother?
This is a drama that plays out over several points of view. And each character has secrets that overlap with each other.. I thought this was going the way of folie à deux but that was not really the focus at all. This was my first book by Robert Gold and I enjoyed it enough that I will read the other two books on the series!
Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for taking me along on this blog tour!
About The Author
Robert Gold is the Sunday Times bestselling author of the Ben Harper series, which includes Twelve Secrets, a Richard and Judy Book Club pick, Eleven Liars and Ten Seconds. Originally from Harrogate in North Yorkshire, Robert Gold began his career as an intern at the American broadcaster CNN, based in Washington DC. He returned to Yorkshire to work for the retailer ASDA, becoming the chain’s nationwide book buyer. He now works in sales for a UK publishing company. Robert now lives in Putney and his new hometown served as the inspiration for the fictional town of Haddley in his thrillers.
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The Stepdaughter’s Lie
Author: Teri Terry
Publisher: Bookouture
Date Published: July 29, 2024BOOK BLURB
My life should be perfect. But my stepdaughter wants to destroy it all…
Standing in my bathroom, the luxurious marble tiles cool under my feet, I stare at the test in my trembling hand. The second line is unmistakable: I’m pregnant.
This is all my husband Theo and I have ever wanted, but I didn’t think it was possible. I should be excited, but all I can think about is telling my stepdaughter.
Because Ellie’s always hated me, ever since she realised it was no longer just her and Theo. Now she’s seventeen, beautiful and smart – smart enough to see through me. And if Ellie decided to uncover my secrets, it wouldn’t be just my marriage at stake… it would be my life.
But I’ve been so careful burying my past. There’s no way she could learn the truth. I know stress isn’t good for the baby, so I force myself to relax.
Until one day I find a packet of tablets tucked inside Ellie’s bag. My head spins – she’s made it clear she wants me gone but I never imagined she would try to harm my baby. I know I can’t tell Theo. She would only deny it to her beloved daddy, fluttering her lashes like she always does.
My beautiful home has become a prison, my husband feels like a stranger. But all I know is that this precious life inside me is more than I deserve – and there’s nothing I won’t do to protect it…
An absolutely gripping and page-turning psychological thriller that will keep you reading late into the night! Perfect for fans of Daniel Hurst, Shari Lapena and T.M. Logan.MY THOUGHTS
Rowan faces a dilemma when she finds out she’s pregnant. She already has a contentious relationship with her stepdaughter, but now Ellie has even more reason to hate her. Because Ellie knows more than Rowan thinks. And Theo, her husband is no help, because he’s never home, and when he is, Ellie is in his ear about how crazy her stepmom is. And who do you think he believes? Hormonal, sleep-deprived Rowan, or Ellie, the daughter he dotes on since her mother disappeared?
Added into the mix is the overarching technology – a house that can track your every move, lock or unlock doors through facial recognition, find your phone, or control the music. Sounds a little too realistic not to be scary, right?
I went back and forth between liking Rowan and feeling like she was manipulative which I believe was the author’s intent! Ellie was a typical teenager and I loved her sense of humor even when she was misguided. This was a great thriller about blended families, reinvention, and the ways that technology can be used for evil ends.
Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture Books on Tour for an advance reader’s copy.
Author Bio
Teri Terry is an award-winning, internationally bestselling author of thrillers for young adults and adults. She has lived in France, Canada, Australia and England at more addresses than she can count, acquiring four degrees, a selection of passports and an unforgettable name along the way. Before writing full time, Teri has been a scientist, a lawyer, an optometrist, and worked in schools, libraries and for a charity. She now calls a village in Buckinghamshire home, where she lives with her husband and Scooby, a very cute and naughty cockapoo.
https://www.facebook.com/TeriTerryAuthor/
https://www.instagram.com/teriterrywrites/
https://twitter.com/TeriTerryWrites/
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Buy Link:
Amazon: https://geni.us/B0D5YK4DC6social
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One Big Happy Family
Author: Jamie Day
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Date Published: July 16, 2024What’s scarier than a closed room mystery? How about a hotel on a cliffside (aptly named The Precipice), with a hurricane coming, and a murderer on the loose!
Charley is a maid in a desperate situation – she can’t afford a place of her own and her Nana’s care fees both, so she’s lucky she has a free room (well, closet) at the hotel. But the owner has died – will the new owners be as generous? Day has done an excellent job of showing us the characters of each of the three Bishop sisters and their partners who come to stay for their Dad’s funeral. And then there’s the guest Charley is hiding from an ex-boyfriend. She’s protective of Charley, but can they trust her ex not to find her? Everything is precarious, not just the hotel, and it is all leading up to a crazy night of flickering lights, horrendous rain, and (dun dun dun)….murder.
I flew through this book in a day, and now I’m going back to read The Block Party!
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced reader’s copy of this thrilling read.Photo courtesy of Lennart Nacke @unsplash
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Girl Next Door
Author: Karen King
Publisher: Bookouture
Date Published: July 9, 2024Put aside a day just to read because you won’t be able to put this one down. I read into the wee hours because the suspense was killing me!
Vanessa and Aaron have a blended family, one son from her, one son from him, and a 3-year-old between them. They have sworn to treat all kids equally and mostly they do. Until the new neighbor next door falls from her bedroom window. When blame threatens to tear them apart, how far will Vanessa go to protect her son?
King will have you questioning each character’s motivation and suspecting almost all of them at some point. We hear their individual points of view. King perfectly captures teen angst and sibling relationships, loyalty, and secret-keeping
Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for inviting me on this Books On Tour!
Author BioKaren King was born in Birmingham and has always enjoyed reading and writing. She’s been published for over thirty years, in a variety of genres for both children and adults. She loves writing about the complexities of relationships. Her first three books for Bookouture were romances where relationships came right, she has now turned to the darker side of relationships, writing two psychological thrillers about relationships that go badly wrong. Karen now lives in Spain where she loves to spend her non-writing time exploring the quaint local towns with her husband, Dave, when she isn’t sunbathing or swimming in the pool, that is.
https://www.instagram.com/karenkingauthor/
Sign up to be the first to hear about new releases from Karen King here: https://www.bookouture.com/karen-king
Buy Link:
Amazon: https://geni.us/B0D274VT3Gsocial
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Just the Nicest Family
Author: Alison James
Publisher: Bookouture
Date Published: June 23, 2024Book Tour
This is my third Alison James novel and my third 5-star review!
What would be worse than being on vacation in a foreign country and being arrested for a crime you may or may not have committed, but at the same time, you are definitely keeping secrets you don’t want to come out?
That’s the situation Tim Cutler finds himself in when he travels to France to meet and vacation with a potential buyer for his veterinary business. When he sees someone from his past, he opens the door to what happens next.
Told in alternating timelines and POVs, this was a fast read with a main character you don’t know whether to root for, pity, or boo!
This was part of a Bookouture Books on Tour.Alison James
Author Bio:
Alison James was born in the Cotswolds but spent most of her formative years abroad. She studied languages at Oxford, then became a journalist and author, returning to university after her two children to take a law degree. After a three-year stint as a criminal paralegal, she worked as a commercial copywriter and then a TV storyliner, before coming full circle to write fiction again.
Sign up to be the first to hear about new releases from Alison James here: http://www.bookouture.com/alison-james
Buy Link:
Amazon: https://geni.us/B0D2HRFXXKsocial
You can sign up for all the best Bookouture deals you’ll love at: http://ow.ly/Fkiz30lnzdo
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Two Sides to Every Murder
Author: Danielle Valentine
Publisher: Penguin Group, Penguin Young Readers Group
Date Published: June 25, 2024I rarely read YA but when I do, you can be sure it will be Danielle Valentine.
I loved that the publisher stayed true to the colors and font of How to Survive Your Murder which combined all the murder tropes into a campy (pun intended) rendition. The author also used the same voice, which fulfilled my expectation that this was going to be a gory, twisty, but sideways smile read.
16 years ago, the unthinkable happened at Camp Lost Lake, giving birth to the story of the person, most likely a woman, whose face was “misshapen, old, haggard, with green-tinted skin and long, stringy gray hair; and her eyes were black, sunken, surrounded by deeply lined, rubbery skin, her nose long, hooked, covered in warts…”
A witch, hunting down people at a summer camp? Yikes! But still, just as Camp Lost Lake is getting ready to reopen, two teens are searching for the truth about what happened – one for her bio father, the other to clear her mother’s name. As their paths cross, the truth will come out. But not before more harrowing victims fall prey to the Witch of Lost Lake.
Thanks so much to Bookish First for an advance reading copy.
Book Cravings 