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.

ARC Review Roundup: The Night Shift, The Club, and The Book of Cold Cases

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

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.

I was especially excited to get an ARC of this book, as I really enjoyed Finlay's Every Last Fear. The Night Shift features two small-town murders years apart, where teenagers are murdered at local businesses after hours. The survivors from both crimes find themselves linked together, as well as an FBI agent, and the brother of the original suspect. The original suspect has never been seen again since he made bail, and fear is gripping the town once again.

This is a great book full of complex characters, secrets from the past, and lots of twists and turns. I could not put it down, and finished it quickly. The ending was a complete shocker to me that worked so well.

This book was a bit of a disappointment to me. I was highly intrigued by the concept, a very high-end getaway for those on the A list, where people suddenly start disappearing and turning up dead. I pictured a celebrity And Then There Were None.

This was not a bad book by any means. It kept my attention, and I wanted to know what was going to happen next. But the story moved slowly, and there wasn't a real heightened sense of danger. No one really seemed to know what was going on while it was happening, and so there wasn't any of that tension and fear that really make a book like this exciting and gripping. 

I'm not against recommending this book, just know going in it's a lot tamer than you're probably hoping for.

I have really enjoyed every book of St. James I have read. She has a way of twining together mysteries that feel real world with elements of the supernatural and paranormal, making it all feel realistic and as if it could happen in any small town. 

In The Book of Cold Cases, Shea Collins runs her own true crime blog. Having thwarted her own almost-abduction, she lives in fear and uses her blog as her outlet. By chance at her day job, she meets Beth Greer, once suspected of being The Lady Killer, the most infamous murderer to hit Claire Lake.

This book is eerie, scary, suspenseful, and full of twists and turns. The characters are complex and highly complicated, blood runs from taps and footsteps sound where they shouldn't, and there's even a romance that made me giddy. St. James keeps the hits coming, and I already can't wait for her next book.