Tag: secrets

Posted in Book Review

Review: Quiet in Her Bones by Nalini Singh

Posted on by writingkat95

The Hook:


Aarav’s mother disappeared ten years
ago and was never found. Now, as memories
resurface from the night she vanished, Aarav
is determined to uncover the truth of what happened
that night.


My Impressions:


With memorable characters and stylish narration,
this book makes for an excellent weekend read.
Each revelation spurred me on until I finished
reading the book in a single sitting.

Aarav makes an entertaining protagonist,
lending a certain sense of humor to the
dark themes of the book. The other characters
were memorable and distinct, and while there
was plenty of suspense, the pervasive feeling
the book evoked was tragedy. Aarav’s
mother is rendered with such humanity, it’s
impossible as a reader not to feel the
acute loss of her.

I highly recommend this book to mystery
fans. It’s a quick read, and impossible to
put down before the end.

Happy Reading!

Posted in Book Review

Review: The Last House Guest by Megan Miranda

Posted on by writingkat95


The Hook:

When Sadie Loman disappears,
her family becomes suspicious of her
best friend, Avery Greer, a girl from
“the wrong side of town.” A year
later, Avery works to uncover the
real truth behind what happened
to Sadie.

My Impressions:

This book kept me on my toes from start to
finish. There were twists along the way
that even made me gasp out loud.
Sadie felt like a tangible presence,
haunting me until I read on to find
out what became of her.

Megan Miranda’s narrative style works
wonderfully to create a sense of
tension and even claustrophobia as the
tight knit Maine town Avery grew up in
becomes more and more menacing as
her suspect list grows.

This book is an excellent read for mystery fans,
and serves as a perfect entry point to
Miranda’s works.

Happy Reading!

Posted in Book Review

Review: The Family Upstairs, by Lisa Jewell

Posted on by writingkat95

The hook:

On Libby’s twenty-fifth birthday she inherits a mysterious abandoned mansion and a mystery. Something terrible happened in this house twenty-five years ago, and Libby isn’t the only one looking for the truth.

My impressions:

This excellently told gothic mystery quickly became one of my favorite books I’ve read this year. Told from multiple perspectives across both the past and the present, this book explores the reasons behind the tragedy that left the mysterious house abandoned and the truth of the day Libby was found there as a baby, alone.

Fans of gothic stories and books like Flowers in the Attic are likely to enjoy this twisted tale of family and manipulation. What really happened twenty five years ago? Who were Libby’s parents? And why was she the only one left alive in that house after the tragedy that took place there just before she was found by the authorities, alone and abandoned but mysteriously well cared for?

You’ll have to read to find out, and I promise the journey is well worth it.

-Happy Reading

Posted in Book Review, Uncategorized

Review: Tell Me Everything, by Cambria Brockman

Posted on by writingkat95

The hook:

A tight knit group of college friends is thrown under suspicion when one of their group meets a tragic fate during a night of partying. Someone in the group knows more than they are telling, and everyone has secrets they’d rather not come to light.

My impressions:

This book got ahold of me and didn’t let go until I’d finished it. Every twist was perfectly timed, and as I pieced together the clues and foreshadowing, I found myself repeatedly whispering “oh no, oh NO” under my breath. If you’re a hardcore mystery fan, this is a perfect book to devour in one frantic sitting. Fans who are less used to the brutality of some of the darker books of the genre may want to seek out a spoiler free trigger warning list, as there are certainly some parts of the book that are quite disturbing. Even as a seasoned lover of mystery novels, I found myself queasy and disturbed by some of the scenes near the end of the book, and I don’t recommend it to anyone who dislikes depictions of gruesome material. There’s not much gore exactly, it’s more that the descriptions of some plot elements are psychologically disturbing. All that said, if you go into it prepared for all that, it’s an incredibly well written book that you’ll be unable to put down.

Fans of the shows Criminal Minds and How To Get Away With Murder will enjoy this twisty read. If you’re looking for a tangled tale to keep you up at night, you’ll love this book.

-Happy Reading

Posted in Book Review

Review: People Like Her, by Ellery Lloyd

Posted on by writingkat95

The hook:

Emmy Jackson makes a living as an influential mommy blogger, exaggerating and even fabricating details of her life to appeal to an ever-growing audience. She hasn’t realized yet that someone wants to hurt her and her family, but she will soon. Someone believes Emmy deserves to lose it all- and she just might.

My impressions:

This book may look like a fun, zippy read, but make no mistake, it is DARK. I went in with assumptions about the tone and was pleasantly surprised that it was a lot more tense and suspenseful than I expected. The author skillfully built incredible tension even during seemingly innocuous scenes. Something as simple as a child’s birthday party felt sinister, and the entire story had my stomach churning with anticipation.

I would caution that if you are a parent, this book might hit a bit close to home. Parts of the plot revolve around danger to the protagonist’s children, and some readers may find that particularly upsetting. However, I can say without spoiling too much that I think readers will find the ending satisfying, and the journey getting there is certainly full of compelling twists.

Fans of Lisa Jewell and Ruth Ware will likely enjoy this fast paced thriller. I certainly found it to be impossible to put down until the ride was over.

-Happy Reading!

Posted in Book Review

Review: The Herd, by Andrea Bartz

Posted on by writingkat95

The hook:

When the leader of a notorious women’s only workspace group goes missing, journalist Katie seizes the opportunity to look into the truth behind the glamorous image of The Herd and its enigmatic missing leader Eleanor.

My impressions:

Whether or not social commentary and parody are your bag, this mystery is compelling and compulsively readable. Tightly plotted and full of interesting characters, this book holds up as an excellent thriller without relying too heavily on it’s gimmicks to stay interesting. The writing style is snappy and flows well, making it a thoroughly enjoyable read. I dare you not to finish it in a single sitting!

Fans of “People Like Her” and “A Simple Favor” will love the stylish prose and darkly funny wit in this hit novel. If you’re looking for something to scratch that elusive itch of humor and murder, this is absolutely the book for you. I highly recommend it to both veteran mystery fans and newcomers to the genre, as it makes for a great entry point into the mystery thriller world.

-Happy Reading!

Posted in Book Review

Review: The Last Time I Saw You, by Liv Constantine

Posted on by writingkat95

The hook:

Estranged best friends Kate and Blair are reunited after Kate’s mother is found murdered. When Kate starts receiving threatening messages, she finds herself leaning more and more on Blair for support. But is Blair hiding something?

My impressions:

As usual, Liv Constantine blew me away. It’s rare that I find myself rooting for characters who are doing objectively bad things, but every character in this book is so compelling, I couldn’t help but root for all of them, if only to see where their actions would lead. I particularly enjoyed the way the book explored themes of friendship and codependency, and how those lines can get blurred. I love the way Constantine writes such memorable characters, each with their own complex motivations and often fascinatingly messed up moral codes.

Fans of Gillian Flynn and Lisa Jewell are bound to enjoy this author’s work as well, and while I can’t say too much without spoiling the plot, I highly recommend this book as a good starting point on Constantine’s writing. If you’re looking for one last phenomenal beach read this summer, this is the book for you!

-Happy reading!

Posted in Book Review

Review: The Stranger in the Lake, by Kimberly Belle

Posted on by writingkat95

The hook:

Rumors swirl about wealthy widower Paul after the death of his wife, but his new wife Charlotte disregards the town’s suspicions as nothing more than hurtful gossip. When another body shows up in the same lake Paul’s wife drowned in, Charlotte is forced to wonder if maybe her husband is not so innocent after all.

My impressions:

I’m personally a huge fan of this kind of fish out of water story wherein a character from a humble background gets swept up in a world of wealth, only to discover that the wealthy are hiding dark secrets. It’s an entire subgenre of mystery, and this book falls solidly into that category. Charlotte is an outsider among Paul’s wealthy friends and neighbors, and this gives her a unique perspective as she uncovers the dark underbelly of her husband’s past.

One of my favorite things about this author’s writing style is the way she makes the setting come alive. The whole time I was reading I felt like I could practically see the action playing out in front of me. The cold lake, the fog, all of it felt so immediate, and it really leant itself to the atmosphere of the mystery. If you’re looking to escape the summer heat, this might be just the book to escape into, because it’s sure to give you chills!

Fans of The Girl on the Train and The Good Sister will likely enjoy this snappy and engrossing thriller. I highly recommend this book as a perfect summer escape!

-Happy reading!

Posted in Book Review

Review: The Perfect Guests, by Emma Rous

Posted on by writingkat95

The hook:

In 1988, young Beth goes to stay with the wealthy family at Raven Hall as a companion for their little girl. In 2019 an actress named Sadie is hired to participate in a Clue-like mystery night party at Raven Hall. Over the course of their alternating perspectives, the connections between the two girls are slowly revealed, as well as the dark secrets Raven Hall has kept hidden all these years.

My impressions:

This book was about as tailored to my tastes as it gets!

The combination of alternating timelines and semi-reliable narration make for an unsettling read in the best way. I really loved the fractured feeling of the narrative, tension hyping up in one timeline only to leave you hanging for a while when the narrative leaps back to the other timeline.

With a glamorous backdrop and secretive cast of characters, this book felt like an invitation to a murder mystery dinner party, just like the one Sadie attends. As each new twist surfaces, the sense that there’s something we’re not being told grows more intense. When the pieces all finally fall into place and the twists are all out in the open, that unsettling feeling becomes surprise and horror and half a dozen other reactions as the characters react to the secrets that have, for better or worse, been revealed.

What really struck me about this book was that I didn’t find myself actively rooting against any of the characters, even once their dirty secrets started coming out. I don’t know that I was rooting for them either, but I was fascinated by the whole cast of characters, and I wanted to know everything they were hiding.

I highly recommend this book for fans of The Haunting series on Netflix, or for anyone who enjoys games like Clue and Betrayal.

Happy reading!