Paris Peralta has worked hard to craft the perfect persona, but when she is found in a pool of blood next to her dead husband and clutching the murderParis Peralta has worked hard to craft the perfect persona, but when she is found in a pool of blood next to her dead husband and clutching the murder weapon, she knows she is in trouble.
Ruby Reyes convicted of muder 25 years earlier is now being released early for good behavior. After the media coverage of Paris Ruby knows she has something worth bargaining. During her last days in prison she starts sending letters to Paris in the vain of blackmail.
Drew Malcom is a journalist turned podcaster who has his own history with Ruby Reyes. Due to her early release he decides to do a podcast episode on Reyes and her tragically deceased daughter. His podcast leads him on a path where the only conclusion is impossible.
Hillier knows what she is doing when it comes to Thrillers. This book has brought her entire backlist to the table of my TBR. You never really know what is going on (in the best way possible) until its right about to be revealed. This works amazing with the plot and justifies all the little details she gives you. Due to the dual POV you are introduced to a lot of characters but they are never frivolous and all have their own small connections. This works well with bringing the reader into the mystery and helping tie up any plot holes.
This may be an issue I had with the audio versus reading this book physically but the timeline switch seemed like it would last so long that you would forget what book you were reading. There were a couple of times we would jump back into the future and I would remember what the synopsis was and what I was expecting out of the book. This was not bad per say but it did not help me feel connected to the story and made it harder to immerse myself into the story.
I would recommend this title to anybody who enjoys thrillers, or is interested in getting into the genre. The audio worked great and the narrator was a great fit for the story. I had a hard time determining the timeline so that may be something that could be easily resolved with a physical copy.
Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced listener copy of this book allowing me to review this title voluntarily. ...more
A well developed YA locked room thriller that has high stakes, complicated relationships, and a darker plot line. I loBookTok - Bookstagram - BookTube
A well developed YA locked room thriller that has high stakes, complicated relationships, and a darker plot line. I loved the Jackson took this book to the next step by not only raising the stakes but giving the reader a well thought out underlying story. You are reading a top line plot with a sub plot in the background. Both of these plots are intertwined beautifully to the point where you are equally invested in them.
Jackson writes in a way where you can feel the tension in the RV. This was such a fantastic plot driver but it also felt like its weakness. As you follow the main characters POV it keeps you biased to everyones reactions which works well, but I would have loved a few oposing POV's to keep us tethered to story.
Overall, I think that this is a fantastic book for anybody who loves locked room thrillers. Lovers of Jackson's very popular series A Good Girl's Guide to Murder would also find this book just as entertaining.
Thank you to the Publisher and NetGalley for an advance reader copy of this book.
A dark atmospheric read that envelopes the reader in old Hollywood, and the horrors behind it. Montserrat, a talented but overlooked sound editor in 'A dark atmospheric read that envelopes the reader in old Hollywood, and the horrors behind it. Montserrat, a talented but overlooked sound editor in '90s Mexico City, pines for her childhood crush, Tristán, a fading soap opera star. Their lives are surreal when they become entangled with Abel Urueta, a cult horror director claiming to possess magic from an unfinished film. He seeks their help to shoot the missing scene and break a curse, but as they delve into the occult, a dark presence haunts Montserrat and Tristán sees the ghost of his ex-girlfriend. Unraveling the film's mystery, they discover that sorcery and magic may be more than mere movie themes.
Moreno-Garcia nails the atmosphere of this book and gives you a deep sense of who the characters are as they themselves unravel throughout the story. Because they are true to themselves, the characters are sometimes impossible to route for or love. Due to the deep dive into our characters' everyday lives and interactions, it is easy to get lost in the reason behind the story. Even though there is this light apparition of where the story is going you are meandering along the storyline waiting for the next bit of excitement to convince you to read on. This tug and pull of the plot leaves you feeling a bit off-kilter and takes away from the main focus of the book. However, Moreno-Garcia's writing takes over any deficits the story has as you really start to see what makes the characters tick. You watch them unravel as their timeline gets shorter and they are forced to face the consequences of their actions.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance eARC or this book. ...more
A Scatter of Light is an emotional coming of age story that envelops so many hard topics into bite size concepts. I loBookTok - Bookstagram - BookTube
A Scatter of Light is an emotional coming of age story that envelops so many hard topics into bite size concepts. I loved Lo's ability to let the characters be flawed and not picture perfect, while creating a trajectory for their growth.
This book ripped my heart open in so many unexpected ways. Aria is exiled to her grandma's house after an end of year scandal that leaves her on barely speaking terms with her high school best friends. Through this exile Aria is given the opportunity to explore her own interest and things she may have been ignoring. Aria and her grandmother (Joan) have a unique relationship that truly helps drive the story. I loved seeing their interactions and found them to have a heart warming dynamic.
Aria becomes close friends with Steph, her grandmothers gardener, and through Steph discovers the queer community. This is where the true self discovery happens and we get to see a lot of queer joy. Aria also gets insight on what her life could look like as a newly discovered queer woman.
This is a story of love, grief, and living with regrets. Although this is a companion novel to Last Night at the Telegraph Club, you can read them in any order. A Scatter of Light stands strong on its own. As a companion it offers a glimpse at Lily's life after LNatTG, as well as how the LGBTQ community has changed since the 1950's.
Thank you Penguin Teen and BookishFirst for a free copy of this book. All opinions are my own....more
An eerie story full of fairytales and gothic consequences, Chokshi weaves a story of betrayalBookTok - Bookstagram - BookTube
3.5 stars rounded to 4...
An eerie story full of fairytales and gothic consequences, Chokshi weaves a story of betrayal, fate, and the things we do to keep our past hidden.
I'm a sucker for atmospheric reads and The Last Tale of the Flower Bride does not disappoint. Chokshi knows what they're doing when it come to atmosphere. At every point in the story I found myself fully captivated by the scenes around me. The absolute dedication to the atmosphere kept me intrigued with the story even when I wasn't very attached to the characters.
I found the relationship itself to be too detached from the story to really feel any emotion towards the relationship. This did not work well for the story because you need to pick a side to feel invested. I never felt like I wanted to route for anybody so it made the story not as lovable as I wanted it to be. Despite it being a grimdark fairytale I still expected to at least enjoy the characters. Overall they were not unenjoyable just not very dimensional, especially the bridegroom.
This book gave me a lot of the same atmospheric energy as Spells for Forgetting. Both books do a fantastic job at creating an atmosphere that you can feel and fully grasp while reading the books. Another comparable book is House of Hollow simply because they are both eerie and deal with fae.
Thank you to the Publisher and NetGalley for an advance listeners copy of this book. All opinions are my own. ...more
Thank you Monitaur books for an advance readers copy of this book.
364 days since Isabelle Drake slept, 364 days since her son went missing. WillinghamThank you Monitaur books for an advance readers copy of this book.
364 days since Isabelle Drake slept, 364 days since her son went missing. Willingham drags you into Isabelles head and leaves you just as paranoid as she is. The twist! It felt like you were bouncing back and forth between twist (in the best way!). The author does such a great job at making you apprehensive of all the characters. She lets you fall in love with them right before she cracks the facade and makes you question them. Such an ominous, dark, and atmospheric read....more
"A creature that eats human pain. It feels good: too good. Soon he wants to hurt himself more, just so the pain can be taken away. But the more the cr"A creature that eats human pain. It feels good: too good. Soon he wants to hurt himself more, just so the pain can be taken away. But the more the creature becomes a part of his life, the more he damages everything around him. Some wounds are too deep to ever heal."
The overall concept of this book was interesting and even thought provoking, especially when discussing the creature. However, the story itself is less than 300 pages but feels like it lasts 500+. The characters do not have any chemistry together and the interactions are all cringy at best. I wish there was a way to add in some lore to the creature because I think that would have added a lot of substance to the book. I felt like it was a little too vague, although I can appreciate that the vagueness did add to the creature. I wanted to love this book because the synopsis sounds incredible but the story just didn't live up to it.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily....more
On a chilly November morning at the University of Georgia, a fraternity brother steps off a busy crosswalk and is struck Never betray the brotherhood.
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.
Jumping into this book I was pleasantly surprised by the atmosphere the author creates. This book is a great mix of mystery, murder, and dark academia. It shows the darker side of fraternities and sororities, from a very passionate protagonist. The main character is bullheaded and selfish. Sometimes this was enjoyable because she fought for what she believed in but must the time it made the character unlikeable. Having a main character that was generally unlikeable effected the enjoyability of the story.
The author may have bit off more than they can chew with trying to interconnect their many ideas. This book would have been stronger if she had broken it into two different stories. One of the big plot points felt completely out of the blue and had a terrible, useless, conclusion. This is where the book started to go downhill for me. The MC is the only character who got any useful back story and the others were very surface level. I wish at least the other two main characters would have had a past to build on.
My last gripe with the book is that there is no growth from any of the characters. They are all exactly the same as when they started. This caused the book to overall, fall flat.
I would still recommend this book to people because I do not think that every book needs to be a whole deep story. However, it was a below average thriller/murder mystery/dark academia that could have been much better with refinements. I will continue to read this author because I am sure there will be one that I like more in the future.
The narrator was fantastic. A wonderful audiobook and the narration was always appropriate for all scenarios....more