10.3.2026 - Dive Bar at the End of the Road

 

Many thanks to NetGalley, St Martin's Press, and Macmillan Audio for gifting me both a digital and audio ARC of this wonderfully creepy novel by Kelley Armstrong, with the audiobook perfectly narrated by the talented trio of Helen Laser, Sean Patrick Hopkins, and Shane Ghostkeeper.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4.5 stars!

It's a dark, stormy night when a car swerves to avoid something, or someone, standing in the road, only to hit a fallen tree.  Four more cars will follow in a pileup no one can seem to avoid.  These strangers find themselves in a backwoods dive bar, waiting for daybreak and hoping for cell service.  But they soon notice that not everything is as it seems and going outside is a very bad idea.

I cannot believe this is a new-to-me author, but this is the perfect book to read for spooky season.  I listened to it on audiobook and would highly recommend that format because of the wonderful narration, which just added to the story for me.  It's such an atmospheric read, with the creepy woods around the bar and just everything feeling wrong - kind of like an old Twilight Zone episode.  There's also some good themes here to ponder but I don't want to reveal them in case I would inadvertently spoil anything.  It's a non-stop thrill ride that you won't be able to look away from.  

10.3.2026 - The Back Bedroom

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing | Amazon Original Stories for gifting me a digital ARC of this true crime story by Gregg Olsen.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4 stars!

In 1976, police found the decomposing body of Davey Weilbacher, just 3 years old, who had been beaten by those who should have loved him.  The adults in the home claimed that Davey was possessed and that they were trying to rid him of the Devil.  

Such a sad story, and another chapter in the unbelievable saga of people falling under the spell of one man, whether it be a family or a cult.  It's heartbreaking that these people just went along with whatever the patriarch of this family said to do, and could inflict such trauma onto a toddler in the name of religion.  The story is short and you can read it in one sitting, but poor Davey's plight will stay with you.

10.1.2026 - A Field Guide to Death and Deceit

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for gifting me a digital ARC of this wonderful book by Michelle L. Cullen, the second in the Harry & Emma series.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4.5 stars!

Harry's long-ago girlfriend gets in touch after 50 years, begging him for his help, asking him to meet her at a farm on the outskirts of their town.  Emma, Harry's one-time caretaker and now partner, is suspicious and insists on joining him.  When they show up, Willow is nowhere to be found, but they discover the farm owner is dead.  When they return to Harry's home after being interviewed by the police, Willow is there with a story of a real estate scam involving the farm.  Harry decides to help her, even recruiting his brother and a neighbor in the investigation.  

I had to first go and read A Field Guide to Murder, and I recommend that one before this book so that you fully understand these two main characters.  I love books with smart, older characters who won't let a little physical ailment stop them from living their best life.  Harry and Emma such a good team and the investigation is taut and will leave you guessing.  Plus, there's a bit of humor and romance to keep things interesting.  I'm here anxiously awaiting the next book in this series!

10.1.2026 - The French Illusion

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Doubleday Books for gifting me a digital ARC of the latest thriller by a long-time favorite, John Grisham.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 5 stars!

Paul and Chelsea have the perfect fairytale wedding, and then head to Paris for a dream honeymoon.  But the dream turns to a nightmare when they are kidnapped while on a day trip.  Who would kidnap them and why?  It turns out they aren't the first couple this has happened to.  The search for clues stretches across borders, with the FBI, CIA and French Intelligence trying to work out what's happening.

A departure from his normal legal thrillers, this book lends more to a spy/espionage thriller, with cat-and-mouse covert operations, and Grisham nails this genre as well.  Still here is the tense, gripping plot line leaving you glued to the pages, with characters you will relate to and feel for.   I especially liked both Stuart Nash, an attorney, and Rae Claire, a CIA officer, who get pulled in for a rescue effort.   I also felt for the parents in this book, giving up everything for their children.  A great new read from a wonderful author!

10.1.2026 - Unreliable Narrator

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Putnam Books for gifting me a digital ARC of the new book by Araminta Hall.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4 stars!

Hope arrives at the isolated Shadowlands estate, excited to spend her summer assisting the writer Ambrose "Rosie" Glencourt.  Hope is swept up into an unfamiliar world, captivated by their brilliance, especially Tom, who resides on the property.  Ten years later, she is living in self-imposed exile when she opens Rosie's new bestseller and discovers it's a retelling of her time at Shadowlands and all she swore to keep hidden.  

This was an intriguing story and was true to its title - you didn't know who or what to believe.  It's a story of obsession, revenge, and people who take advantage of others for their own gain.  I was kept interested throughout, feeling for Hope, and enjoyed the twisting plot.

9.30.2026 - The Radiance

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster | Summit Books for gifting me a digital ARC of this novel by Ayad Akhtar.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 3 stars.

The synopsis...When a hit-and-run shatters more than his body, a writer is caught between revelation and madness as an uncanny pull toward a brilliant campus colleague ensnares him in a scandal that threatens to destroy them both. What begins as a provocative portrait of academic and cultural warfare deepens into erotic entanglement, the exposure of a family secret, and the mystery surrounding the narrator’s accident—both the violence and its aftermath.

This one is getting good reviews, but it's one that I felt I wasn't smart enough to understand from the beginning.  It's supposed to be auto fiction, but I don't know anything about the author so not sure how much is based in reality.  I just never connected to the story.  There is a lot going on but yet there's not a solid plot that I could follow.  I almost DNF'd it but I just can't do that so I soldiered on.  

9.27.2026 - Trad Wife

 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster | Atria Books for gifting me a digital ARC of the new book by Sarah Langan.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4.5 stars rounded up!

Nothing is going right for journalist Jenny Kaplan.  When she gets the opportunity to go behind the curtain of the wildly-successful Mia Wright, the perfect trad wife of Black Swan Farm, she jumps at it.  She just needs to live with Mia and her family on the farm for one week, then submit a story about what she experiences.  But things are very different behind the online videos.

I have loved both of Langan's previous books, and they are all different.  This one is a slow burn horror that sneaks up on you until you can't look away.  It's dark, suspenseful, scary, and best gone in to cold.  It's not your typical trad wife book and it will have you reading late into the night - with the lights on.