Review: The Goddesses

Title: The Goddesses
Author: Swan Huntley
Publication Date: July 25, 2017
Genre: Psychological Suspense
Recommended If You Like: Swan Huntley's previous book, explorations of friendships and relationships, Hawaii as its own character

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 Book:

Nancy, her husband, and their two boys move to Hawaii in an attempt to save their family from falling apart. But when Nancy meets Ana, her other relationships take a backseat to Ana's magnetic personality--and Nancy not only knows, but accepts, that whatever Ana wants, she will get.

What I Liked:

This is definitely a suspenseful book. Readers know something is lurking on the horizon, and you can feel it on every page.

I really enjoy Huntley's writing style. It has a beautiful flow to it, and she can really make you see what her characters are seeing and feel what they are feeling.

Hawaii was really its own character in this book, which was great. Huntley really makes Hawaii come alive in a way that even readers who have never been there can appreciate.

Anything I Didn't Like?

This book does move really slowly. There is a lot of suspense to it, but it takes quite a while to get to what the suspense is building up to.

I also really struggled to like the character of Ana. I think this is what Huntley was going for, but I disliked Ana so much that I had trouble getting into the book and staying involved.

I also saw the big revelation at the end coming before I had even finished a third of the book. It felt really obvious to me.

So...?

I didn't love this book like I wanted to. I just had such a struggle with the characters, and being able to predict the biggest revelation from so early on really took away from the reading experience.

Review: When I Am Through With You

Title: When I Am Through With You
Author: Stephanie Kuehn
Publication Date: August 1, 2017
Genre: Psychological Suspense
Recommended If You Like: suspense built of situation, unreliable narrators

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 Book:

Ben just wanted to find some meaning for his life, some hope for a future he's not looking forward to. But leading what should have been a simple camping trip soon turns into tragedy. It's a story Ben will tell--but he's going to take his time.

What I Liked:

This is a great concept for a book. From the start, there is so much suspense. You know Ben is only doling out little details at a time, and you don't know how much to trust him and how much to read between the lines. This makes you have to keep turning pages, all with a building sense of dread.

Anything I Didn't Like?

The concept didn't play through the way I was hoping for. The first third of the book felt like it was set up as a classic unreliable narrator, eerie, super psychologically suspenseful read. But then events veered onto a path that just didn't work for me.

So...?

While this book definitely kept me turning pages-Kuehn has a talent for creating suspense-this book just didn't do it for me.

Review: The Wicked Girls

Title: The Wicked Girls
Author: Alex Marwood
Publication Date: July 30, 2013
Genre: Psychological Suspense
Recommend If You Like: secrets from the past, suspenseful flashbacks, explorations of human nature

The Book:

When they were children, Bel and Jade spent one day together, and by the time that day was through, the world would see them as murderers.

Now adults, living new lives under new names, the two women are brought together by the mysterious strangling deaths occurring in and around an amusement park--and they are forced to wonder just how much of their own pasts will be brought out into the present.

What I Liked:

This is a book that just flies by-I read three quarters of it in a day. It is extremely suspenseful, especially through the use of flashbacks. Marwood doesn't reveal to the readers what truly happened that fateful day until the end of the book, and the build up creates a real sense of absolute dread.

Marwood also does a thorough and fascinating job of exploring the dark side of human nature--in particular, just how much a person can (or cannot) change--and how much society and the people around them will allow them to change.

Anything I Didn't Like?

I did feel like there were one or two too many subplots and characters. The book could have been tightened up a bit.

So...?

This was a quick, suspenseful read with very little light and some real surprises (including one surrounding a side character that really stuck with me). While this is not the best of this genre I've read, Marwood will suck you into the story and you will not be able to put this book down.

Review: The Marriage Pact

Title: The Marriage Pact
Author: Michelle Richmond
Publication Date: July 25, 2017
Genre: Psychological/Suspense/Thriller
Recommended If You Like: creepy sinister groups, relationship-centered drama, lots of twists and turns, thrillers with a deep sense of dread

I received a copy 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 Book:

Alice and Jake are newlyweds who get sent a seemingly well-meaning, if odd, gift-an invitation to join The Pact. The Pact is a group of married couples dedicated to ensuring that all their marriages survive and thrive.

Alice and Jake are in love, and want their marriage to succeed, so they accept the invitation. But they soon realize that what they signed up for is far darker and farther reaching then they had ever imagined.

What I Liked:

This is one of those books that keeps you with your heart in your throat. There is so much suspense, and the book manages to ride the fine line between horror and thriller, keeping you in a constant state of heightened fear for the characters.

There are so many amazing twists and turns in this book as well. One of the big reveals at the end took me completely by surprise.

Richmond has also created a very unique book, which is always exciting when an author is writing in a very popular genre. I loved that I never knew where this book was going, which just upped the suspense even more.

Anything I Didn't Like?

The very end was absolutely fine, but just didn't pack the punch the rest of the book did.

So...?

I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about this book, as the subject matter could have verged into cliched or cheesy, but Richmond made the story so unique and suspenseful, and even scary. I would definitely recommend this book.

Review: The Lying Game

Title: The Lying Game
Author: Ruth Ware
Publication Date: July 25, 2017
Genre: Psychological Suspense
Recommended If You Like: Ware's previous books, secrets from the past, explorations of female friendship

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 Book:

When Isa gets a text from Kate, simply saying I need you, it takes her right back to her painful past. Isa and Kate, along with Fatima and Thea, were a clique of four at a boarding school, playing a game that seemed to be all for fun. But the Lying Game had consequences, consequences that are still reverberating in the present, threatening to blow apart their lives.

What I Liked:

This was such a suspenseful book! I couldn't put it down once I picked it up.

Ware is the master of the slow build. You know something is coming, as you watch the characters try to pretend everything will be fine--but there is always something (or someone) lurking around the corner, another shoe just waiting to drop. She plays that skill up once again in this book. You can't help but keep turning pages.

The reveals in this book almost entirely caught me completely by surprise. A few times I had inklings of what could be coming, but I was never able to figure out the full picture.

Ware also does a great job of examining what friendships are like between teenage girls. She perfectly captures the intensity of those bonds that can make you do anything for each other, that can linger even into adult lives.

Anything I Didn't Like?

It's really hard to find anything not to like about Ware's books. I don't think either this book or the previous one are as strong as her first book, but that doesn't mean I don't still really enjoy them.

So...?

I would absolutely recommend this book for anyone who loves a great book full of suspense and lots of twists and turns.

True Crime Thursday: Tinseltown: Murder, Morphine, and Madness at the Dawn of Hollywood

This is a fantastic, gripping, brilliant true crime book.

What I noticed about Tinseltown right from the start is that it reads like a novel. It felt like I had picked up a whodunit, and was completely sucked in. Mann has this great writing style that is so easy and fun to read.

This is also an absolutely fascinating story, one that has remained unsolved for decades. Mann tells the true tale of William Desmond Taylor, a director and actor in the Roaring Twenties, whose murder remains a mystery to this day. Books have been written, webzines have been crafted, and conspiracy theories have been spun, but Mann has what he believes to finally be the true solution.

And Mann backs his solution up with lots and lots of impeccable research. He paints a living, breathing picture of Hollywood in the 1920s, from the movies, to the people who strove to not only create them, but to create their own destinies as famous and beloved stars. Mann focuses on three of these female stars and their personal and professional struggles, but also weaves in so many other important Hollywood figures of that time, and makes them all come alive for readers.

This is a wide-reaching book of non-fiction. Mann manages to not only discuss and attempt to solve a murder, but writes of all the scandals, backstage dealings, and politics that surrounded and enfolded Hollywood at that time.

This is a book I would definitely recommend. It's one that will be joining my other true crime favorites on my bookshelves.

ALA Review: If I Was Your Girl

Title: If I Was Your Girl
Author: Meredith Russo
Publication Date: May 3, 2016
Genre: Young Adult/LGBTQ
Recommended If You Like: timely and relevant reads, books that hit you in the heart, protagonists to root for, strong female protagonists

I received a copy 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.

Note: Nothing in this review is a spoiler. Anything I discuss in this review is either general, or is stated in the book summary on the inside cover, Amazon, etc.

The Book:

Amanda moved in hopes of finding that typical teenage life. But when she makes friends, and begins to fall in love, she fears the secret she's carrying might tear all that apart-that she used to be Andrew.

What I Liked:

This is a book that feels important.

With everything going on in the world today, let alone in the United States, I think this is a book people need to read.

Amanda is a strong, smart, and brave girl, who I feel everyone can relate to, regardless of their own personal circumstances. The supporting characters surrounding her feel real, like people you might have gone to high school with. The book feels immediate, and the story will suck you in.

Anything I Didn't Like?

 I completely understand why Russo ended the book where and when she did, but I definitely was left wanting more. I would love to know about the next chapter of Amanda's life.


So...?

Russo has created a world and characters that feel so very relevant and important, wrapped up in a gripping story written beautifully. I definitely recommend this book.