ARC Reviews: Donut Disturb, and The Finalists

 I received ARCS of these books from the publishers in exchange for honest reviews. This did not affect my opinions of the books or my reviews themselves.

In the latest installement in the Bakeshop Mystery series, the small town of Ashland, Oregon has come together to organize and ceebrate the wedding of two of the town's beloved citizens. But then the bride's father shows up unannounced, and the bassist of the wedding band is found murdered, and Juliet, owner and operator of bakeshop Torte, must once again put on her amateur detective hat and solve the mystery.

I love this series. The characters are so endearing, it's like a warm hug reading about them again. There is no shortage of suspects or twists and turns, and the solution to the mystery is a surprise that makes sense. The beautiful descriptions of the town make it its own character. I'm always happy to revisit Ashland, and I highly recommend other readers take the trip too.

In The Finalists, Bell sets his mystery in the academic world. Six college students are locked in a building, just like students for years before them have done, to take place in a ritual of sorts. They are the finalists for an extremely generous and long-running fellowship, and must now compete in an essay portion and interview to determine the winner. The bylaws are rigid, the representative of the family running the fellowship is drunk, and no one can leave until a winner is selected.

Then one of the students dies.

Bell creates a tense "murderer among us" atmosphere with locked doors and no one coming until the designated time. He also delves into the politics and policies of the behind the scenes workings of academia, which escalate the tension between the characters. The ending is a little pat, but still a surprise.

ARC Review: One of the Girls

 

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my opinion of the book or my review itself.

Six women are in Greece for a "hen's weekend", to celebrate Lexi's soon-to-be marriage to Ed. But on what should be the perfect trip, tensions, secrets, and the past simmer below the surface. These not only threaten Lexi's future wedded bliss, but someone's life.

Clarke explores some very complex topics-female friendships and relationships, female roles, the power of the past-while weaving together a very suspenseful story. I did not guess the twists and turns, and was very surprised by the ending. This is a good summer beach read, particularly with the gorgeous descriptions of sand and sea.

ARC Review: Outside

 

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my opinion of the book or my review itself.

The premise of this book is one that drew me in right away. There are four friends who end up having to take shelter in a hut in the middle of an Icelandic blizzard, completely cut off from the outside world with no means of communication. They have dark secrets in their shared past, and these secrets may rise to the surface, because the author promises not everyone is going to survive the night. 

But this book was a slow read, a really slow read. This definitely built tension between the characters, but it didn't build enough suspense for me. For me personally, the book dragged until the last quarter when it suddenly picked up full speed ahead. When I saw where the author had been building, the rest of the book made sense, but I still think it could have been a quicker ride to the finish.

ARC Review: The Woman in the Library

 

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my opinion of the book or my review itself.

A story within a story, The Woman in the Library does a fantastic job of interspersing letters from a fan and fellow writer with the story the letters refer to-the tale of a writer who finds herself caught up in both a friendship group and a mystery when she and three other people hear a woman scream at the library. The thing is, out of those four people, one of them is a murderer. 

This is such a clever book. Gentill explores the idea of writing itself, and the different processes, influences, and styles that come into play, all while juggling a highly suspenseful mystery full of twists and turns. While Freddie, the forementioned writer, is spinning her novel around her three new friends and her perceptions of their personas, she is also being caught in a web of secrets from the past and a possible serial killer.

I would definitely recommend this book. I flew through it.

ARC Review Roundup: Blaine for the Win, Breathless, It Could Be Anyone, Just Like Mother

 I received ARCs of these books from the publishers in exchange for honest reviews, This did not affect my opinions of the books or my reviews themselves.

When Blaine is dumped by his boyfriend...on their one year anniversary...in a fancy restaurant, what he takes away from it is that if his now ex wants serious, he's going to get serious. This means Blaine is running for Senior Student Council President. The only problem is, he's never run for anything in his life, and going for broke might just mean losing himself.

This book was so great. It has humor, friendship, romance, and drama all in one. It's a book with heart. I highly recommend it.

So here's the thing with this book. The premise is so good, with people unknowingly climbing a mountain with a killer. This sets up so much tension, because no one can just escape on their own. There's natural tension too, with threats of blizzards, avalanches, and slips. 

But so much of this book was taken up by explaining mountain climbing and every single step that goes into an expedition. This is set up as a thriller, as it states on the cover, so I think the book should have been more thrilling. The ending itself is really well done and even scary, and I would have liked to see a lot more of that.

This was another story where I loved the premise, but didn't love the execution as much as I hoped for. A group of best friends have to pretend to be excited for their friend's wedding, because the groom is blackmailing them with their deepest, darkest secrets. But as the book lets us know from the very beginning, the groom has pushed one of them too far, and by the middle of the wedding reception, the groom is dead.

The secrets were really huge ones, and when they were revealed, I was shocked each character was able to just keep going given how everything they thought they knew was completely shaken. I definitely wanted to know who killed the dastardly groom, but the answer felt almost like a throwaway at the very end. 

When Maeve fled the cult she grew up in, she left her cousin Andrea behind. Reunited as adults, Maeve finds herself drawn into Andrea's world, even moving in to Andrea's home when her own world starts to fall apart. Andrea's focus is fertility, and the importance of women having children, a stance Maeve doesn't agree with, but she loves her cousin and owes her so much...

This book is terrifying. Absolutely terrifying. It is masterfully written and the suspense builds until it's cranked up to 11 and you can't look away no matter how scary things get. And that ending! I definitely recommend this book.

ARC Review Roundup: The Golden Couple, Under Lock and Skeleton Key, and Dark Circles

 I received ARCs of these books from the publishers in exchange for honest reviews. This did not affect my opinion of the books or my reviews themselves.

After losing her professional license, Avery Chambers is a therapist who feels free to develop her own methods. When a seemingly perfect couple, Matthew and Marissa Bishop, agree to do whatever it takes to repair their marriage after Marissa's infidelity, they set in motion events no one saw coming.

This, like previous books by these authors, is a read full of twists and turns. I can honestly say I did not see any of the reveals coming, and thoroughly enjoyed the ride.

Tempest Raj is a disgraced magician, from a family of magicians, foiled by a glitch she swears she had nothing to do with. Coming home to the other family business-building secret rooms in people's homes-the dead body of her stage double is found inside a sealed wall. Tempest must solve the mystery while fighting to regain her reputation and decide what her future holds.

This book was just so much fun. There's mystery, suspense, romance, and the depictions of the secret rooms and keys and staircases were so great to read. I definitely recommend this book and really am looking forward to more in the series.

Olivia Reed, an actress who has just suffered through a breakup and a significant scandal, is essentially ordered by her publicist to attend a retreat. When Olivia arrives at the House of Light, everything is as she expected-fasts, group time, yoga, and sunrise hikes. But then a local woman, Ava, who has spent many sessions at the House of Light, starts telling Olivia about the women who have committed suicide after spending time there. Olivia begins investigating, even starting a podcast as she dives deeper into what is truly going on at the House of Light.

Olivia is a complicated character trying her best in the world she has been thrust into. The House of Light is just mysterious enough to make it ominous, and the podcast parts are very cool. The ending of this surprised me so much in the best possible way. I was truly shocked, but everything made sense looking back. I definitely recommend picking up this book. 

ARC Review: The Children on the Hill

 

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my opinion of the book or my review itself.

First, let me admit that I am a big Jennifer McMahon fan. I have a collection of her books on my bookshelf, and have reread quite a few. 

This book lived up to my excitement for sure.

It's the past tale of Vi and her brother Eric, and their grandmother, and Iris, a young girl their grandmother brings home one day from her famous mental health treatment center. Vi and Eric are fixated on monsters, what they look like, where they are and how to defeat them. As Vi tries to draw Iris out of her shell, per her grandmother's instructions, she invites Iris to join her and Eric's Monster Club.

This is also the present tale of Lizzy Shelley, a monster hunter with a highly successful podcast. Lizzy travels around the United States, responding to local legends and sightings. But her real motivation is to find her sister, who she knows is a true monster.

The way the past and present combine and intersect is masterfully done, and McMahon does an amazing job of examining the concept of monster and what it truly means. This book shocked me time and time again, with expertly plotted twists. I highly recommend this read.