Through reading (and loving) The Silence of Bones I’ve realized something about myself as a reader: I can tolerate a lot of dark, violent content in a book if the prose is pretty enough. And while the poetic prose is a definite selling point, the fact that The Silence of Bones is also an impeccably crafted mystery with amazing character work and an arc of profound hopefulness cemented its place in my heart as the … Continue reading The Silence of Bones by June Hur →
I should couch this review with the admission that I am the biggest scaredy cat. I don’t usually read romance thrillers, let alone straight ahead thrillers with only a little bit of lovin. Not only do I need to be promised a happy ending, I also want the beginning and middle to be fairly cheerful and absent of conflict. I am, admittedly, a bit ridiculous, but yes, I would prefer to be wrapped up in … Continue reading When No One is Watching by Alyssa Cole →
A woman has been stabbed on the hike and bike path around Ladybird Lake in Austin, Texas. Detective Jacob Merritt is on the case, but he and his partner Kendra are convinced there’s more to it than the opportunistic attack it appears to be. It doesn’t take long for the Feds to swoop in and take the case off their hands – confirming suspicions that there’s something big going on – but Jacob does not … Continue reading Hidden by Laura Griffin →
TW: rape I really wish I could write a full review of The Lion’s Den and how utterly fantastic it is, but to do so would require spoiling a lot of the book and I want readers to go in fresh. When I picked up this thriller I thought it would be a locked-room mystery set on a yacht with fancy people murdering each other, which sounded fine. It is not that at all. Despite … Continue reading The Lion’s Den by Katherine St. John →
I love the Kat Holloway series. Not only is it cracking good reading, start to current installment, but it’s become one of the gifts I reach for when someone I know is experiencing bereavement and mourning. This is a very short list: the books have to be transporting and diverting to give the person a respite from the exhaustion of grief, with enough heft to be engaging, but not so much as to be nonstop … Continue reading Murder in the East End by Jennifer Ashley →
Bronze Gods is a steampunk mystery/urban fantasy by married couple Ann and Andre Aguirre (writing as A.A. Aguirre). I loved the world and the main characters, but I was disappointed by the mystery. The plot is very simple in essence but very complicated in detail. James Mikani and Celeste Ritsuko are inspectors with the Criminal Intelligence Division. They have to work together to stop a series of murders. They have been partners for three years, … Continue reading Bronze Gods by A.A. Aguirre →
Shadow Garden is a book that is difficult to classify, but after a lot of pondering I think it’s best described as a thriller with some Gothic elements. The plotting is so excellent that I read it in one sitting, but I struggled to find a character to root for. Former socialite Donna Pryor has moved to a beautiful assisted living community called Shadow Garden while she recovers from a broken hip. Donna’s memory is … Continue reading Shadow Garden by Alexandra Burt →
CW: Self-harm, suicidal ideation, abortion It’s difficult to review a book that is so, so good, but you don’t want to reveal too much for fear of ruining it for others. The Guest List is one of those books; it’s a thriller that is so superbly plotted that I’m afraid to say anything about it because I want other readers to enjoy every reveal as much as I did. I just want to shove it … Continue reading The Guest List by Lucy Foley →
I’m a huge fan of Gothic and of creepy shit in general, so I was super excited to read The Companion. While this book has Gothic elements, it doesn’t follow the Gothic convention of having the heroine vindicated, and frankly it turned out to be a depressing read in general. Part of the book takes place in 1855 as Lucy Blunt awaits the verdict of her murder trial. While she is imprisoned, Lucy reflects back … Continue reading The Companion by Kim Taylor Blakemore →
CW: The death of a child, sexual assault, suicidal ideation The Lost Ones by Anita Frank lured me in with the promise of a Gothic set in WWI, but the pacing was massively slow and the characters largely unlikeable. As a result, I only finished the book because I needed resolution on the ghostly portion. This book actually made me grind my teeth, and at one point my cat, Dewey, shut the book on me … Continue reading The Lost Ones by Anita Frank →
When I read the blurb for Pursuing Pandora I was overcome with a burst of excitement. I immediately messaged Shana, with the comment “this book sounds so bananas that I’m tempted to check it out” and she agreed that I must. Check this out: Corporate lawyer Winter Carlyle is the first to admit that she’s become jaded with romance after a very messy public breakup. When her bossy aunt asks her to visit a high-end … Continue reading Pursuing Pandora by Maggie Brown →
