The author has a creative imagination, but I wasn’t sold on the way it was written!
Eve Palmer, and her partner Charlie Bastion fix up old houses with The author has a creative imagination, but I wasn’t sold on the way it was written!
Eve Palmer, and her partner Charlie Bastion fix up old houses with the intention of flipping them for a profit, and their current home – 3709 Heritage Lane – in the backcountry of Oregon is their most ambitious project to date. One Friday night, Eve and their dog Shylo (no harm comes to the dog btw) are alone in the house, waiting on Charlie’s return, when the doorbell sounds.
Eve reluctantly opens the door to a family of five – Thomas, his wife Paige, and their children, Kai, Newton, and Jenny. Turns out Thomas grew up in the house, and since they were passing, he was hoping to show his family the interior. They seem harmless, so Eve agrees. But the tour stretches on forever, and finally just when they’re about to leave, Jenny, their youngest, goes missing… And that’s just the start of the bizarreness…
Unhinged and mind-bending! I savoured the idea of this, the concept, the cleverly concealed clues and hints, the insertion of news articles, interviews, relevant articles, etc, the gothic setting, and best of all, the chilled-me-to-my-bone ending, and the place it ended. However, the way it was written just didn’t do it for me – it was all over the show – choppy, hard-to-keep-track of plot, some downright awful dialogue, and inconsistent character behaviour. I appreciate that given the trippy and strange plot, the writing needed to contain a certain amount of surrealism especially the further into the novel things got, but it was this way from the beginning, which made it hard to connect with any characters as they were all odd from the first meeting, therefore tough to care about. For me the most terrifying part of a horror novel is when your characters are living their lives as if everything is normal, only to be confronted with something supernatural or paranormal, and it would’ve worked with this exact plot and not lost anything. I’ve seen a similar plot work in a TV show, and another book, and the characters were 100% more realistic to life – can’t name either obviously due to spoilers.
It will be interesting to see if the Netflix movie will get it right (by me).
Those who thought they knew Oliver Ryan were shocked to learn that he had assaulted his wife Alice so badly that Liz Nugent is now an Auto-buy Author!
Those who thought they knew Oliver Ryan were shocked to learn that he had assaulted his wife Alice so badly that she resides in a coma, unlikely to recover. The couple had been married for nearly thirty years and Oliver has never displayed any violent tendencies, has he? But can their memories of the man be trusted? Because hurting Alice is far from the worst thing Oliver has done.
Last year, I finally got around to reading Liz Nugent, and Unravelling Oliver is now the third novel I have read by her, and all have been five star reads. Right from the first page Oliver was a cold, manipulative, controlling, bully, but how he came to be that way definitely wrecked me, not that it excuses his actions as an adult. The various POV’s of those who encountered Oliver in life-altering ways were all interesting, exciting and tense. The majority of the book read like a contemporary drama saga but with chilling undertones, and once the entire story was revealed, I was left shocked and stunned.
The audiobook was one of the best I’ve ever read. A different narrator voiced each character and every aspect of their various personalities shone through – loved the various Irish and French accents, and the chapter narrated by Alice’s disabled brother, Eugene, was incredible – I listened to it twice.
I’m so happy to have discovered Liz Nugent, I have another library audiobook of hers coming up which I can’t wait to dive into. Unravelling Oliver is a not-to-be-missed must read. As was Strange Sally Diamond and Skin Deep....more
First came A Kind Worth Killing, then A Kind Worth Saving, and now we have A Talent for Murder, and all three hA Talent for Murder was gripping stuff!
First came A Kind Worth Killing, then A Kind Worth Saving, and now we have A Talent for Murder, and all three have totally and utterly bowled me over with their shocking and unpredictable twists, and fast-paced, edge-of-my-seat plots. Just like the first two books in the series this suspenseful domestic noir thriller can be enjoyed as a standalone, but you'd be missing out on some screwed up, mind boggling character histories if you intend to skip them.
I recommend going into this one blind, so I've decided to skip a synopsis in order not to give a thing away. All I'll say is that one page in and I was already engrossed in Josie's story. In this series pretty much all of the characters are unlikable, and untrustworthy, but their predicaments suck you in, and some of them you just can't help caring if they live or die. There was quite a bit of ‘tell’ rather than ‘show' backstories included, but they were exciting, tense, and interesting enough for it not to bother me.
I have no hesitation in recommending A Talent for Murder. Just don't get too attached to anyone, as you never know what direction the story is going to take.
I’d like to thank Netgalley UK, Faber & Faber, and Peter Swanson for the e-ARC.
It’s the start of the summer and the arrival of the elite, cultured, seductive Richardsons – husband Elin Hilderbrand’s Last Hurrah was Pure Escapism!
It’s the start of the summer and the arrival of the elite, cultured, seductive Richardsons – husband and wife Bull and Leslee – has Nantucket locals in an excited frenzy.
Everybody who is anybody is dying to be invited to one of the extravagant, exclusive parties at their newly-purchased, twenty-two-million-dollar, seaside mansion – 888 Pocomo Road – but only a select few will be deemed worthy to glide its halls.
Fast forward to August and the Richardsons are persona non grata. What happened?
Then on the evening of August 22nd a double tragedy strikes the Richardsons. While partying out to sea aboard their yacht (with some non-locals) they receive a call from the Fire Chief to say their house is ablaze. And when their boat docks, they are one person short – a young woman is missing presumed to have gone overboard. Did she fall? Did she purposefully jump? Or was she pushed?
It’s time for the Richardsons to face the music.
Swan Song was an indulgence. I relished all the juicy interpersonal melodrama, scandalous behaviour, betrayals, sweet romances, emotional highs and lows, side of mystery, and immense wealth and privilege. It was hard for me not to daydream over what it would be like to be one of these characters living the dream in a lap of luxury on Nantucket (lobster rolls, yes please). The descriptions of 888 Pocomo Road and everything within its walls (clothes, food, etc) were hilariously insane – fascinating yes, but such an over-the-top waste of money. There were a good mix of spoilt unlikeable characters coupled with more down-to-earth ones to keep me happy and entertained.
It’s the fourth in a series but can be enjoyed by itself. I’ve only read #3 The Perfect Couple (5 stars), meaning some of the characters were familiar to me, but most were new to Swan Song and specific to this story. And any that were regulars were introduced with all the relevant information from the previous instalments.
I’m sorry to report that after thirty fictional books set on Nantucket, Elin Hilderbrand is retiring so sadly Swan Song is her last release. I wish her the best, and luckily for me I still have a lot of her backlist to read including the first two in this series.
I devoured the audiobook, and Laurence Bouvard was sensational. I see she has also narrated some of this author’s previous books which makes me so happy. Elin Hilderbrand read the final chapter which left me misty-eyed.
It’s Valentine’s Day 2020 in Ebbing, and Karen Simmons is looking for love on a night reserved for couplDon’t Talk to Strangers sang Rick Springfield!
It’s Valentine’s Day 2020 in Ebbing, and Karen Simmons is looking for love on a night reserved for couples. But it’s slim pickings at her local pub that night, so a depressed and lonely Karen heads home alone.
The next day, Karen’s body is found in Ebbing Woods – still wearing her red dress from the night before – suffocated, propped up against a tree. Why did Karen go out again after she got home? Who was she meeting? Most importantly, who killed her, and why? And Karen’s isn’t the first murder to occur in those woods…
The second book in the series is set a year after the events of the first and can be enjoyed as a standalone. I feel horrible saying this because #1, Local Gone Missing, was one of my top reads in 2022, but unfortunately, Talking to Strangers was average by comparison. The first half moved at a snail's pace, and even though the plot did pick up after that, it wasn’t by much. I kept finding other things to occupy my time, and it's never a good sign when you’d rather do the vacuuming over reading a book. I think two POVs investigating/researching Karen’s murder was one too many, as things tended to get repetitive. Annie’s POV was the most intriguing. My second complaint is that the mystery was pretty predictable, and the epilogue came as no surprise – the myriad of subtly placed clues that the first book contained were absent from this one. I preferred the secondary crime involving online dating apps and misogynous men. That plot was tense, emotive, informative, and disturbing – several times I wanted to punch my kindle screen imagining it was these disgusting male’s faces. If I didn’t already loathe dating apps, I would now. Also, I’d never heard of cyber-flashing used in this context and immediately checked my Apple AirPlay privacy settings – so thanks for the info, Fiona Barton.
I enjoyed spending time with Elise, Kiki and company; just wish the main crime and pacing had been more to my liking. I will continue to read the series because I loved the first book, this author, and the recurring characters.
I want to thank NetGalley UK, Random House UK Transworld Publishers, and Fiona Barton for the e-ARC.
The outlier soars in on a black tailed Cooper’s hawk!
First Half –A solid 4 stars. Last Half – Had dropped to 3 by 60%, and 2.5 closer to 2 following thThe outlier soars in on a black tailed Cooper’s hawk!
First Half –A solid 4 stars. Last Half – Had dropped to 3 by 60%, and 2.5 closer to 2 following the conclusion of the mystery.
The summer of 1995 is a tragic one for the small town of Cedar Creek, Nevada.
24th June – A local man is the victim of a hit-and-run on a lonely stretch of road.
4th July – The Margolis Family – father, mother, and baby – vanish without a trace, last seen at the Split the Creek Gala.
13th July – The Cedar Creek Sheriff drowns when his car crashes into Cedar Lake.
Fast forward to Raleigh, North Carolina, 2024. Sloan Hastings’s life is turned upside down when she submits a DNA test to a genealogy site. Sloan has always known she was given up for adoption as an infant – but her test results reveal something shocking – Sloan is the baby who disappeared from Cedar Creek all those years ago.
Well, this was certainly a book of two halves for me. The prologue was disturbing and emotional, and my heart was in my mouth the entire time. I enjoyed the premise and beginning and thought the lead-up and way Sloan discovered her true identity was unique. At first, I really warmed to Sloan as a character, until she started making stupid decisions that is. I liked the setting of Cedar Creek and could completely picture it in my head. The flashbacks were utilised well (again only for the first 50%), and I liked how we were given POV’s from bit characters – the truck driver, executive assistant, etc.
But the last half… honestly, I’m still shaking my head in disbelief over how everything could’ve crumpled so fast. There’s no way I can say it nicely – the plot was ludicrous. Mild spoilers for my rant just to be on the safe side. (view spoiler)[The mystery was extremely predictable and underwhelming. I had most of it worked out by 60%, as there just weren’t that many suspects to go around. And where was the emotion – characters didn’t seem to give a toss once everything came out. There was one storyline which led nowhere, so I’m not sure why it was included. I don’t understand why two characters didn’t come forward with what they knew in 1995. A weak reason was given for one, but they willingly opened up in 2024, even though nothing had changed, the killer was still out there, and they were in just as much danger as they were back in 1995. And I guess even the author forgot about the second character as they weren’t even part of the 2024 timeline. Further to this, why did the killer do away with some key witnesses, and not others? Why were some characters oblivious to the obvious danger they were in? Why did characters antagonise, confront, and reveal all to the killer, when the killer didn’t know they knew they had murdered? And don’t get me started on the final 1995 scenes – they were the worse! And the final standoff in 2024 – not much better… (hide spoiler)]
I can’t possibly recommend Long Time Gone, but given the many positive reviews, I say go for it, and hopefully your experience will be better than mine. Glad mine was a library book....more
A heroic act brings unwanted attention for a high school teacher!
3.5.
When a former student, Mark LeDrew, enters Lodge High where Richard Boyle works, A heroic act brings unwanted attention for a high school teacher!
3.5.
When a former student, Mark LeDrew, enters Lodge High where Richard Boyle works, wearing explosives, Richard manages to talk him down. But while retreating Mark accidentally removes his finger from the trigger, detonating the bomb, killing only himself in the blast. Richard is unwittingly a hero – praised by his family, school and community for his actions and bravery.
But his moment in the spotlight brings enemies out of the woodwork, all of whom hold grievances against Richard. To protect his reputation, Richard attempts to resolve the matters himself. It's his first of many mistakes, because Richard has much more to lose than just his reputation.
I Will Ruin You (love the title) was an exhilarating, fast-moving, exciting, quick read. Honestly, Linwood Barclay has always reminded me of Harlan Coben, and vice versa – not enough for me to mix up the two authors – but their writing styles and types of plots share commonalities. There were some rollercoaster chapters cliffhangers, but unfortunately the final reveal was kind of obvious. Also, there were several sub-plots that were either resolved too easily or fizzled out which made me wonder if they were only included to distract from the perpetrator and add more suspects. Which didn’t work on me. Even though drug-dealing isn’t my preferred plot in a domestic thriller there were some great twists in that storyline.
All in all, an above average read which kept me entertained and glued to its pages....more
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