The Last to Vanish by Megan Miranda was another good mystery/thriller.
Abby Lowell has been working at The Passage Inn in the small town of Cutter’s Pass in North Carolina for 10 years. It’s adjacent to the Appalachian Trail and offers beautiful scenery, great hiking, and breathtaking waterfalls. Cutter’s Pass has also been the scene of several disappearances through the years. When one of the missing’s family members shows up at the Inn looking for answers, Abby becomes embroiled in the mystery.
This was a good, fast, easy read and was very enjoyable. Abby, and all of the supporting characters, are well rounded and likable. The story moves quickly and is compelling.
Thanks to NetGalley and Scribner for the ARC. Look for The Last to Vanish July 26, 2022.
I have been waiting (and waiting and waiting) for this book to become available at my library. It finally did…and I read it…and I loved it!
Before I talk about The Lioness I have to mention that I love this author. I read The Flight Attendant and The Hour of the Witch and while I enjoyed them, I found myself frequently talking to the main characters (which is not something I make a habit of) and exclaiming things like, “GIRL, WHAT ARE YOU THINKING?!” Or “OMG, YOU IDIOT!” And so forth and so on.
The Lioness is Chris Bohjalian’s latest book, which he apparently wrote in 2020 during quarantine…or as he so aptly put it, during the year that Satan spawned. I think it must have made a difference because this is my favorite of his books (at least the ones I’ve read.) I was captivated immediately and just devoured the book (no pun intended, ha!)
I’m hesitant to describe the book in much detail because I don’t want to give anything away. It’s set in the 1960’s when a Hollywood movie star and her entourage go on an African safari. They anticipated seeing giraffes munching on leaves or seeing elephants or wildebeest…and things didn’t exactly go as planned.
The book is written from several character’s viewpoints, which typically annoys me. It didn’t in The lioness. Each chapter is labeled with the character speaking, so it’s very easy to follow and doesn’t feel strange. And it makes sense. (But if this usually isn’t a format you care for, you might not like it.)
Chris Bohjalian is a lovely writer. His characters are all well rounded and intriguing and he describes Africa and the animals and challenges so well that it’s easy to imagine being there.
A rich, eccentric family. A time-honored tradition. Or a lethal game of survival? One woman is about to find out if she has what it takes to join her husband’s family in this riveting, must-read thriller from the author of Something in the Water, Mr. Nobody, and The Disappearing Act.
Harriet Reed, a novelist on the brink of literary stardom, is newly engaged to Edward Holbeck, the heir to an extremely powerful family. And even though he’s long tried to sever ties with them, news of their marital bliss has the Holbecks inching back into their lives.
As Harriet is drawn into their lavish world, they seem perfectly welcoming. And when Edward’s father hands Harriet a tape of a book he’s been working on, she is desperate to listen.
But as she presses play, it’s clear that this isn’t just a novel. It’s a confession.
A confession to a grisly crime. A murder. And suddenly, the game is in motion.
This was good! Harriet (Harry) seems like an average woman…but you quickly realize that she’s hiding something. As the book progresses it becomes clear that everyone is hiding something. There are hints about the secrets and then there are the twists and turns which keep you guessing throughout.
I was so excited to read this, as I had read another book by Catherine Steadman a couple of months ago – Something in the Water – which I enjoyed a lot. The Family Game has a great plot, interesting characters, and tons of surprises.
The Family Game by Catherine Steadman will be out November 8, 2022. Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for the ARC.
I’ve fallen in love with a man called Sam. And he’s perfect, just perfect.
It’s a whirlwind romance. And when our dream home falls through just before our wedding, we decide to move in with his parents. He says his mother, Evelyn, is the sweetest person. But I’m not so sure.
She’s obsessively protective over Sam. She wants to know where he is all the time. She wakes us up in the morning, bustling into our room like he’s a small child, not a grown man. She doesn’t want me to be alone with him. And with every day that passes – as I keep having accidents I can’t believe are coincidental – I start to fear more that she doesn’t want me to marry her son.
That she wants to be the only person he will ever love.
Then I overhear an argument between her and Sam’s dad. Evelyn has a secret. And it changes everything I thought I knew about the family I’m marrying into.
From that moment, I know that if I want to make it to my wedding day alive, I will need to be very, very careful…
I was so intrigued by the description of this book, and it didn’t disappoint. There are twists and turns, and a few surprises that keep you guessing.
4 stars – mostly because I became so frustrated with Dana, the bride to be. She seems hopelessly naive at times. Sam, her fiancé, was equally annoying. He believed his mother over her and seemed to always manipulate Dana (for example, moving into his parent’s house)…I was very frustrated with both of them.
Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for the advance reader copy. Look for The Mother In Law July 29, 2022.
Another ARC from NetGalley and another thriller I really enjoyed.
Description
On the evening of their wedding anniversary, Ali and Matthew are involved in a fatal car accident.
Grief-stricken, Ali can’t bring herself to believe that her beloved Matthew is gone…
The smell of his aftershave lingers in their bedroom. His voice still rings out on their answerphone. She sees his face in the eyes of strangers.
But as the months pass, and her family and friends rally round, Ali starts to uncover secrets that Matthew kept from her.
This book was really, really good. The characters were well rounded and believable and the plot was surprising all the way through. I read this in one sitting because I was so intrigued and invested that I had to find out what happened.
4.5 stars…I had to take off half a star just because Ali annoyed me so much at times. She seemed willfully ignorant of her husband’s true character and it drove me crazy.
But…this is a really good, well written book. Look for My Husband’s Secrets by Louise Sharland August 9, 2022. Thanks to NetGalley and Harper360.
We’ve been busy around here. Besides a few house projects, I bought a bunch of used furniture and painted it for…P’s new apartment! We got her moved in about 3 weeks ago.
(Seems very apropos right now, right?)
Because we’ve been so busy around here, I haven’t been reading much. BUT! I just finished The Resemblance by Lauren Nossett, and !!!
I was quite intrigued by this one when I read the description…
On a chilly November morning at the University of Georgia, a fraternity brother steps off a busy crosswalk and is struck dead by an oncoming car. More than a dozen witnesses all agree on two things: the driver looked identical to the victim, and he was smiling.
Detective Marlitt Kaplan is first on the scene. An Athens native and the daughter of a UGA professor, she knows all its shameful histories, from the skull discovered under the foundations of Baldwin Hall to the hushed-up murder-suicide in Waddel. But in the course of investigating this hit-and-run, she will uncover more chilling secrets as she explores the sprawling, interconnected Greek system that entertains and delights the university’s most elite and connected students.
The lines between Marlitt’s police work and her own past increasingly blur as Marlitt seeks to bring to justice an institution that took something precious from her many years ago. When threats against her escalate, and some long-buried secrets threaten to come to the surface, she can’t help questioning whether the corruption in Athens has run off campus and into the force and how far these brotherhoods will go to protect their own.
The Resemblance did not disappoint. I was captivated from the first page. It’s fast paced (but not too fast), and the mystery of who killed the fraternity brother in a hit and run continued to evolve throughout the story. Just when I thought I’d figured it out, there was a twist, and then another and another.
The main character, Marlitt, is likable and sympathetic…although there’s another mystery concerning her lurking beneath the surface. The fraternity brothers, university president, and police chief are complicated characters; both intriguing and, at times, villainous.
I found the setting, Athens and the University of Georgia, fascinating as well. Lauren Nossett has written a riveting and compelling mystery and I highly recommend it. 5 stars!
Thank you NetGalley & FlatIron Books for the ARC. Look for The Resemblance November 8, 2022.
It was supposed to be the perfect weekend away. Six very different women travel to a sun-soaked Greek island for a bachelorette trip, to celebrate Lexi’s upcoming wedding. From the glorious ocean views to the quaint tavernas and whitewashed streets, the vacation seems too good to be true. But dangerous undercurrents run beneath the sunset swims and midnight cocktails – because each of the women is hiding a secret. Someone is determined to make sure that Lexi’s marriage never happens – and that one of them doesn’t leave the island alive.
I received a free copy of this ebook from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I really enjoyed One of the Girls by Lucy Clarke. The first chapter reveals that someone dies on the hen weekend to Greece, and you’re left wondering who it is throughout the rest of the book – and trying to figure it out. Each chapter is from a different character’s point of view, which I’m not usually a fan of, but in this case it works (at least for me.) Every character has a secret, and they’re slowly exposed throughout the book…which makes the mystery of who dies even more mystifying.
I was intrigued and enthralled throughout the book. It’s an easy read, with a satisfying conclusion.
Five stars.
Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the ARC. Look for One of the Girls June 28, 2022.
I received an advance reader copy of The Last Princess by Shelley Wilson. (Thanks to NetGalley and BHC Press for the copy)
Description
Northumbria, 866 AD
Edith still has much to learn about the art of ruling a kingdom, but when her family is murdered, she’s faced with the challenge of staying alive.
As a young woman in Anglo-Saxon England, Edith finds it hard to be heard above the Eldermen who are ripping the kingdom to pieces, but nothing can prepare her for the arrival of the pirates and the Vikings. Torn from her homeland and sold into slavery, she’s determined to survive at any cost.
Finding allies in the unexpected and enemies closer to home, Edith clings to her dream of returning home one day to reclaim her throne and to exact revenge on those who harmed her family.
I love historical fiction! I constantly search for people, places, words I’m unfamiliar with…and really appreciate learning something new. In this instance, I learned about Northumbria, the Viking invasions of England, Bamburgh and Bamburgh Castle, and that era.
I really enjoyed this story. Edith is a likable character; courageous , adventurous, and spirited. The other characters were all fascinating as well – from Jarl Aaric, to the shield maiden and Edith’s duplicitous uncle , Aelle. The book was easy to read, and the story was compelling.
Five stars!
Look for The Last Princess May 24, 2022.
I also received an ARC of It Could Be Anyone by Jaime Lynn Hendricks. While completely different from The Last Princess, I enjoyed it just as much.
Description
To anyone on their flight out of New York, they appear to be five best friends excited for a destination wedding in Miami. No one would guess that each of them has a reason to want the groom dead.
Trevor Vaughn, the groom in question, wooed his bride-to-be by first becoming close with her friends—which is to say that he learned all of the five’s darkest, most dangerous secrets and blackmailed them into convincing Fiona to say “I do.” The friends were forced to convince a doubting Fiona to go through with the wedding, no matter what, and now the charade is set to continue all the way to the altar.
Trevor has his own reasons for wanting to marry into Fiona’s family, and he’ll stop at nothing to make his plan a reality. But when he dies of an apparent allergic reaction at the wedding, surrounded by such close enemies, the possibility of murder isn’t far behind. And for the authorities investigating the case, anyone present could be a suspect…
It Could Be Anyone was an enjoyable, satisfying read. The characters all had many layers, which Ms. Hendricks peeled away little by little, revealing a bit more with each page…and intriguing me a bit more, little by little, with every page.
I started and finished this in one day – very easy and compelling story!
I’m giving this 4.5 stars, only because of the random grammatical errors. While there were only a few scattered throughout the book, I found them distracting from the excellent story I was consumed with.
Thank you NetGalley and Pendleton Publishers for the ARC. It Could Be Anyone will be released May 10, 2022.
I recently read Something in the Water by Catherine Steadman. This was one of Reece Witherspoon’s book club picks, and I found a copy at our local library. It sounded interesting so I thought I’d give it a read.
The synopsis:
Erin is a documentary filmmaker on the brink of a professional breakthrough, Mark a handsome investment banker with big plans. Passionately in love, they embark on a dream honeymoon to the tropical island of Bora Bora, where they enjoy the sun, the sand, and each other. Then, while scuba diving in the crystal blue sea, they find something in the water. . . .
Could the life of your dreams be the stuff of nightmares?
Suddenly the newlyweds must make a dangerous choice: to speak out or to protect their secret. After all, if no one else knows, who would be hurt? Their decision will trigger a devastating chain of events. . . .
The book started strong and hooked me from the first page. It was interesting, suspenseful, and had some surprises. Good storyline and an easy read (this would be a good beach read).
I’m giving it 4 out of 5 stars though, mostly because I found the characters to be difficult to relate to – or, if I’m honest, to like.
Still, I recommend it, especially if you’re looking for a fun, thrilling, suspenseful read. You don’t have to like the characters to enjoy a book, but it helps.
I received an advance reader copy of Dark Circles by Caite Dolan-Leach, and spent this stormy day happily immersed in this book.
The Description: An embattled actress becomes entangled in a dark conspiracy at a spiritual retreat—and starts a true crime podcast to try to break the case—in this chilling novel about fame, violence, and our morbid fascination with murder, from the acclaimed author of Dead Letters.
Olivia Reed needs a break. She doesn’t want to think about her name plastered on tabloids or be reminded of her recent meltdown on a Manhattan street. Her micromanaging publicist has just the thing in mind: a remote retreat in upstate New York—the House of Light. It’s not rehab; it’s a Spiritual Center, a site for seeking realignment and personal growth. There will be yoga and morning meditation, soft bamboo-blend fabrics and no shortage of crystals to cleanse her energy.
But Liv will soon find that the House of Light is filled with darkness. A prickly local, Ava, informs her that something twisted is lurking behind the Light’s veneer. There have been a series of mysterious suicides committed by women caught in the Light’s web, and no matter who Ava talks to, no one believes the Center is involved. To find out what’s really happened and put her celebrity to good use, Liv starts a podcast, seeking to connect the dots and expose the Light’s true intentions. Because beneath the glowing skin of the Light’s inhabitants lie rotten souls, and Liv starts to wonder if anything—even her own life—is how it appears.
Oh my…this was so good…5 stars from me!
I was hooked from the first page, completely drawn into the story. There are twists and turns, and surprises and shocks. It is very well written…and (importantly) it is easy to read. The mystery is so compelling that I found it difficult to put the book down, even for a few minutes.
A huge thank you to Caite Dolan-Leach, Random House Publishing, Ballantine Books, and NetGalley. Dark Circles will be out 4/19/22 – soon!
Tchin Tchin! 