8.8.2021 - The Perfect Family

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for gifting me a digital ARC of the latest domestic thriller by one of my favorites, Robyn Harding - 5 stars for a darkly entertaining read!

The Adlers are the perfect family.  Dad, Thomas, is a successful real estate agent who ensures that his own home is picture perfect on the outside.  Mom, Viv, is an interior designer/home stager, making the insides of a home perfect.  They have two children, Eli and Tarryn.  All seems perfect until the night that eggs are thrown at their house.  Because each of them has a secret and each of them thinks they are being targeted because of that secret.

Buckle up and have fun with this one!  Told in alternating POV from each of the family members, we learn all their secrets while they are still secret from each other.  As the violence towards the Adlers ramps up, so does all the twists and turns of the story.  Who is responsible for all that is going on?  Go into this one as blind as possible and just have fun - it's one of those juicy, voyeuristic looks into how that perfect family really lives.  You will find yourself flipping the pages as fast as you can until you get to that crazy last sentence!  Highly recommended!

8.7.2021 - You Can Never Tell

 

Many thanks to NetGalley, Crooked Lane Books and Dreamscape Media (excellently narrated by Jorjeana Marie) for gifting me both a digital ARC and audiobook of the thriller by Sarah Warburton - 4.5 stars!

Kacy was framed for a theft by her supposed best friend and subsequently fired from her dream job at a museum; devastated, her and her husband, Michael, moved to Sugar Land for a new start.  Kacy was slow to trust in making new friends but she slowly met people in the neighborhood, becoming fast friends with next-door neighbor, Lena.  Lena was on her side when it appeared that her old friend was continuing to taunt her from far away.  When the couple found hidden cameras in their home, Lena's husband, Brady, helped them detect and remove them.  But when Michael makes a discovery after being with Brady, they both realized they didn't know their neighbors as well as they thought.

I loved how this book alternated the story with snippets from a true crime podcast telling about this crime.  It led even a more creepy vibe to the entire tale, because there were enough really true details to make it seem so real.  The characters felt real and you could feel for Kacy, wounded from her last friendship and slow to trust yet needing friends in her life.  A must read!

8.7.2021 - Gone for Good

Many thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for gifting me a digital ARC of the latest thriller by Joanna Schaffhausen - 4.5 stars rounded up!

Detective Annalisa Vega of the Chicago Police Department is called to investigate a murder where the MO is identical to unsolved murders of young women in the area decades before.  In addition, the victim, Grace Harper, was part of a group called the Grave Diggers, who tried to solve cold cases.  Grace had a wall full of photographs from the Lovelorn Killer, as he was dubbed, when she was apparently his next victim.  Detective Vega also has a tie to the killer - her high school boyfriend's mother and their old next door neighbor was his last victim before Grace.  The killer taunts the media and the public through letters and now he's contacting Annalisa personally.

I raced through this book and absolutely loved the twist at the end that I never saw coming.  The author kept the tension high as we followed along the investigation and hunt for this killer.  I also liked getting to know the backgrounds and personal sides of these characters and am beyond excited that this is the first in a series featuring Detective Vega.  Highly recommended!

8.5.2021 - Cul-de-sac

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books/Random House for gifting me a digital copy of the latest thriller by Joy Fielding - 5 stars!  I have been reading her books for decades and have loved them all!

A quiet cul-de-sac, just 5 families.  But the book opens with a shooting and someone won't survive the night.  Each family has their own issues and secrets, with plenty of motive and opportunity.  There's Maggie and her family, who fled from California after a scary incident.  Elderly Julia's grandson moves in with her with questionable motives.  Heidi and Aiden are newlyweds; Aiden suffers from PTSD and a controlling mother.  Sean lost his job and Olivia is now the breadwinner which isn't working well for Sean.  Nick and Dani are both doctors who keep to themselves.

We learn about each of the families in alternating chapters and you'll be questioning lots of people.  Some you'll love and some you'll love to hate.  This is just a fast-paced thriller that proves once again that you never know what goes on behind closed doors!  

8.3.2021 - The Family Across the Street

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for gifting me a digital copy of the latest thriller by Nicole Trope - 4.5 stars!

On a quiet street in Sydney during a heatwave, a gunshot rings out piercing the silence.  What's going on behind that closed door?  The story starts 7 hours earlier when things just don't seem right to delivery person, Logan, as he tries to deliver a package to the home of Katherine, John and their two children.  Neighbor Gladys also notices that things are different at the neighbor's house, but she's called the police once too often to report insignificant things, so her husband tells her to wait.  

Told from several different POV, this is a tense thriller that will keep you glued to the pages.  The characters feel real, each with their own issues and past trauma.  There are people who step up to do the right thing, no matter what.  A good tale about second chances and looking past outward appearances.  Another winner from Nicole Trope!

8.2.2021 - Dark Roads

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for gifting me a digital ARC of the latest thriller by Chevy Stevens, always a must-read author for me.  4.5 stars rounded up!

Cold Creek Highway is an isolated highway running through British Columbia - it's also the hunting grounds for predators over the decades.  There are billboards of missing young girls and signs warning others not to hitchhike or walk alone.  Hailey lives in Cold Creek, raised by her father to be knowledgable about the surrounding woods and take of herself.  When he dies unexpectedly, Hailey must go to live with her aunt and her husband, Vaughn, a police officer in town who bullies Hailey.  Things get to a breaking point and Hailey disappears into the woods, leaving the town to believe she fell prey to the highway killer.  The following year, Beth comes to town to try and find closure after her sister, Amber, was killed there only to find herself in danger as well.

The prologue and epilogue bookend a story that is filled with danger and scary characters, but also filled with resilience and strength.  You will be rooting for Hailey and her amazing dog, Wolf, as they survive in the woods and try to right so many wrongs.  I loved the strong friendship between Jonny and Hailey - were we all to have such a friend!  The story was very well written and I was in the dark figuring out exactly who the perpetrators were.  I also appreciated the author's note about the real highway in BC where so many have gone missing - adds a very creepy realism to this story.

8.1.2021 - The People We Keep

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for gifting me a digital copy of this wonderful book by Allison Larkin - 5 stars!

April is 16 years old, living in a motorless mobile home in rural upstate NY, all but abandoned by both parents.  She has a gift for writing songs, singing and playing the guitar but when her father breaks her guitar in a final confrontation, she decides she's had enough and reads for the road.  We follow along April's journey as she makes her way across the eastern coast, finding friends and pieces of home along the way.

I loved this book and will be thinking about these characters for a long time!  April is so strong and determined, both in chasing her dream as well as trying not to hurt others along the way.  She is full of hope and resilience, even when she's starving and down to her last dollar.  She's been taught to run when things get tough and to depend on no one but herself.  This book also emphasizes the impact people have on each other.  Do not miss this book - I loved everything about it!