The Winemaker's End by Jean-Luc Bannalec (Brittany Mystery #12)

An atmospheric French getaway, complete with exquisite wine, gourmet food, and murder. So much for a peaceful honeymoon!

Can't people even honeymoon in peace? Apparently not if you're Commissaire Georges Dupin. One minute you're enjoying the beautiful French countryside, sampling exquisite Muscadet, and indulging in gourmet meals with your new bride. The next, you're investigating a murder. So much for romance.

In The Winemaker's End by Jean-Luc Bannalec, Georges and his wife, Claire, are honeymooning in French wine country when they visit Claire's friend, Cécile. Unfortunately, Cécile's ex-husband, Brian, a talented winemaker, has been murdered. Between a fierce winery rivalry, a possible discovery of rare wines, and some questionable relationships, there are plenty of suspects. When another body turns up, the investigation becomes even more complicated. Are the murders connected, or is something else going on?

First, let's talk about the writing. It was exquisite. Bannalec transported me straight into the French countryside. I could practically see the vineyards, smell the food, and taste the wine. Had it not been for the inconvenient matter of murder, I'd have been ready to pack my bags.

Georges was a thoroughly likable detective. He genuinely tried to remain in honeymoon mode, but curiosity and unanswered questions eventually got the better of him. His investigation unfolded logically and believably, without improbable heroics or ridiculous decisions.

Claire was fiercely loyal to Cécile, even when I began to wonder whether her friend might be hiding something. I admired that loyalty, although I questioned Claire's honeymoon priorities. Personally, if someone offered me gorgeous French scenery, exceptional Muscadet, and gourmet meals, I wouldn't be volunteering to investigate a homicide. You'd have to drag me away, possibly with a court order. Friendship is wonderful, but so is a nice glass of wine.

The pacing was perfect for the atmosphere. The descriptions occasionally slowed things down, but that was part of the charm. This isn't a heart-pounding thriller designed to keep you awake until three in the morning. It's a cozy mystery meant to be savored, much like the wines featured throughout.

The mystery itself was wonderfully satisfying. I had my suspicions, and more than one turned out to be spectacularly wrong. Bannalec kept me guessing without ridiculous twists or unbelievable revelations. The solution surprised me, but everything made sense. Human nature, particularly jealousy, can be a dangerous thing.

I also appreciated the absence of graphic violence and unnecessary steamy scenes. Yes, there are murders, but that's rather like ordering a cheeseburger and being warned it contains beef. When you pick up a mystery, you know what you're getting into!

This was my first Bannalec novel, and I didn't even realize I was jumping into an established series. I had no trouble enjoying it as a standalone. Readers who love Agatha Christie's Miss Marple mysteries, traditional whodunits, charming settings, and thoughtful detective work should feel right at home. I experienced those same wonderful Miss Marple vibes throughout.

Five stars. The Winemaker's End didn't keep me awake all night, but it didn't need to. Bannalec delivered a beautifully written, atmospheric, believable mystery that was an absolute pleasure to read. Sometimes a great book isn't one that makes your heart race. Sometimes it's one that makes you wish you could stay a little longer.

Preferably with another glass of Muscadet.

Content warning: Murder and death, without graphic descriptions of violence.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books for the complimentary advance reader copy. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.

 

Final Girls by Riley Sager

Riley Sager didn't just pull the rug out from under me...he rolled me up in it. Oh, holy cow. 

I'm suffering from a serious thriller hangover. Not enough sleep, too much caffeine, and pieces of my brain still stuck in an endless "Oh holy cow. Holy cow. WOW." loop. Riley Sager, I hope you're happy.

Final Girls doesn't waste time easing readers into the story. We open with a terrified young woman running for her life, the sole survivor of a massacre. Welcome to the world of the Final Girls, where surviving is apparently just the beginning of your problems.

Quincy Carpenter survived the horrific events at Pine Cottage, where a birthday celebration with college friends turned into a bloodbath. Years later, she's built a successful life as a baker and blogger, living with her defense attorney boyfriend, Jeff. She still keeps in touch with Coop, the police officer who rescued her that terrible night.

There are three known Final Girls: Quincy, Lisa Milner, and Samantha Boyd. Then Lisa dies, and suddenly Quincy's carefully constructed world starts coming apart.

Here's the problem: Quincy doesn't remember what happened at Pine Cottage. She suffers from dissociative amnesia, leaving a massive hole in her memory. She's tried to recover those memories, but nothing has worked. And as a reader, I kept wondering how much she actually remembered, how much she thought she remembered, and whether I could trust any of it. Enter Samantha Boyd, who apparently decided Quincy's life needed a complete renovation, preferably with a wrecking ball.

I didn't trust Samantha. Not one little bit. Yes, trauma affects people differently, and I tried to give her some grace. But she pushed Quincy into increasingly questionable behavior, and I wanted to grab her by the shoulders and tell her to leave the poor woman alone. Quincy had survived. She'd built a life. Maybe it wasn't perfect, but it was hers!

Jeff wasn't much help, either. He wasn't a bad guy, but his preferred method of dealing with Quincy's problems seemed to involve sweeping them under the nearest rug. And I had serious questions about how much attention he was paying to her increasingly unhealthy reliance on Xanax. Pretty soon, he was going to need wall-to-wall carpeting.

Sager alternates between present-day events and flashbacks to Pine Cottage, and the pacing is brilliant. The flashbacks become more frequent as Quincy's memories begin returning, gradually revealing pieces of that terrible night. Every answer seemed to raise another question. I suspected practically everyone at some point, including Quincy herself. And then came the ending.

OH. HOLY. COW.

I'm not telling you a thing. Not one little hint. Suffice it to say that my jaw hit the floor, my brain divided itself into warring factions, and I seriously considered sending Riley Sager a bill for emotional damages. I was played. Completely, thoroughly, magnificently played. The conclusion was both shocking and satisfying, bringing Quincy's journey full circle in a way that felt absolutely right.

Five stars, hands down. If you love psychological thrillers, unreliable memories, suspicious characters, and twists that leave you questioning your own intelligence, read this book. Just don't start it too close to bedtime.

Trust me. I have the caffeine consumption and sleep deprivation to prove it.

How to Disappear Completely by Liz Kerin

Four stars for the journey, with a deduction for the destination.

At thirteen, Hazel and her sister Kira receive a mysterious message they believe comes from another world. They call the being responsible the Snow Angel, and Kira becomes obsessed with it. Then Kira disappears without a trace.

Twenty years later, Hazel is still haunted by her sister's disappearance. No body. No answers. No closure. Just two decades of grief, guilt, and unanswered questions. Then a podcast revisits the mystery, other people who experienced the Snow Angel begin coming forward, and those people start having unfortunate little accidents. Apparently, hearing messages from another world comes with a rather alarming mortality rate.

I never really connected with Hazel, but I understood her. Between the grief and mysterious episodes that leave her freezing to the bone, sometimes to the point of unconsciousness, she's developed a rather unhealthy relationship with pills and alcohol. Not exactly a physician-approved treatment plan, but I understood her desperation.

What kept me turning pages wasn't necessarily Hazel herself. It was the mystery of Kira's disappearance. Where did she go? Why was her body never found? And what on earth (or elsewhere) was the Snow Angel?

Kerin tells the story across two timelines, 2006–07 and the present, and I thought she handled them well. The beginning takes its time establishing the characters and mystery, but once the suspicious accidents begin piling up, the suspense really takes off. Every time Hazel gets close to someone who might have answers, something terrible happens. I began worrying about her safety, although I had no idea who or what was responsible.

That's when the book started interfering with my bedtime. One more chapter. Just one more.

Of the supporting characters, Lily, Hazel's childhood friend, was easily my favorite. She's funny, loyal, and apparently believes happy hour can begin around two in the afternoon. Finally, someone with reasonable priorities! Her humor provided a welcome break from the grief, obsession, and the increasingly suspicious body count.

Kerin did a good job keeping me guessing. There were clues, and eventually certain characters started setting off my internal alarm bells, but the mystery wasn't obvious from the beginning. I enjoyed her writing style and the balance of suspense, emotional complexity, and occasional humor.

Unfortunately, the ending lost me. Without giving anything away, the final explanation involves some ambitious ideas about trauma and the nature of reality. And I understood it. I really did. But understanding something and believing it are two entirely different things.

Kerin explained her reasoning, but accepting it required a bigger leap than I was willing to make. I was perfectly happy to suspend my disbelief. Unfortunately, by the ending, my disbelief needed a parachute.

Despite my disappointment with the resolution, How to Disappear Completely earns four stars. The storytelling was engaging, the suspense kept me reading, and I genuinely wanted to know what happened to Kira. I just wish the ending had been as satisfying as the journey.

Readers who enjoy psychological suspense with speculative or supernatural elements, complicated family relationships, and explorations of grief and trauma may appreciate this one. Those who prefer more grounded explanations might share my reservations.

Four stars for a compelling mystery and several nights of just one more chapter. The ending? Well, we can't have everything.

Content Warnings: Grief and loss, child disappearance, murder, substance misuse, overdose, PTSD/trauma, violence, sexual content including choking/breath restriction during intimacy, and near-drowning.

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for providing an advance reader copy of How to Disappear Completely by Liz Kerin in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

 

In Contempt by TG Wolff (Rizk Brothers #3)

A murder mystery with enough suspects to fill a jury box, characters I adore, and a plot that stole my sleep. 

I have a complaint to file against T.G. Wolff. Her latest book, In Contempt, kept me reading every chance I got, and then kept me up well past my bedtime because I absolutely HAD to finish it. I have things to do, you know. Sleep is supposed to be one of them.

This is the third book in the Rizk Brothers series, and I am happy to report that Jakob and Seth Rizk remain two of my favorite fictional characters. These two are about as different as identical twins can get, and I love them both.

Jakob is the serious, law-abiding brother, currently serving as Indiana's interim Attorney General and running for the position permanently. He's married to Courtney, who is pregnant with twins. Seth, on the other hand, considers rules more like suggestions, has a talent for pushing his luck, and apparently believes danger is something to laugh in the face of. Preferably while doing something that would give Jakob a coronary. And this time, they've got a murder to deal with.

Jakob's opponent in the Attorney General race, Jessica Hartley, is found murdered in the sauna at her gym. Naturally, suspicion falls on Jakob. After all, eliminating your political opponent is certainly one way to win an election, although I doubt it's covered in the campaign handbook. Fortunately, Jakob has an alibi.

That leaves the question of who actually killed Jessica. And oh, what a collection of suspects we have! We have a murder victim with enough potential enemies to fill a jury box. A senator who apparently interpreted she's like a daughter to me rather creatively. A potentially furious wife, jealous sisters, an ex-boyfriend, and a neighbor whose music apparently registers on the Richter scale. Seriously. With this crowd, I'm surprised the police didn't have to hand out numbered tickets.

Meanwhile, Seth is supposed to be returning to Miami to resume his job as a vice detective. Unfortunately, a power failure causes him to miss his flight, and his boss has apparently reached the end of his patience with Seth's excuses. He's told not to bother coming back. Well, that's one way to clear your schedule.

Now unemployed and with time on his hands, Seth gets involved in the murder investigation alongside Detective Angel Martinez, a no-nonsense detective who has caught his attention. At first, it's mostly Seth pushing his luck and Angel trying to keep him in line. Then Angel needs a date for a family gathering and, for reasons known only to her, asks Seth. Oh, honey. What have you done? I thoroughly enjoyed watching their relationship develop. Angel is more than capable of standing up to Seth, and I suspect she's having almost as much fun keeping him in line as he's having testing the boundaries.

But this book isn't all murder suspects, romantic complications, and Seth being Seth. Jakob is under enormous pressure. He's running for office, his opponent has been murdered, his office is trying to bring the killer to justice, his wife is expecting twins, and his brother is suddenly unemployed. That's a lot for anyone to handle, even someone as responsible as Jakob.

Unfortunately, he's been using alcohol to cope with the stress, and when Courtney is rushed to the hospital, he makes a dangerous mistake trying to get to her. I appreciated that Wolff didn't gloss over this. Angel helps him through the situation but also has a serious conversation with him about his drinking. Jakob promises to get himself straight. It's a reminder that even the responsible brother isn't perfect.

And then there's Seth's approach to helping his brother manage stress. It involves old golf clubs and some property that was headed for the curb anyway. Sometimes you just need to beat the stuffing out of something that doesn't mind being destroyed. What I particularly loved about this scene was the relationship between the brothers. They may approach life from completely different directions, but they're there for each other when it counts. Beneath Seth's wisecracks and Jakob's seriousness is a genuine bond that makes these characters so much fun to follow.

One of Wolff's greatest strengths in this book is the balance between the murder investigation and the brothers' personal lives. Not once did I feel like the family issues, romantic developments, or humor were unnecessary distractions or page-filler. Everything fit together naturally. The personal stories added depth to the characters without slowing down the mystery, and the investigation never got lost in the family drama. That's not always easy to pull off, especially three books into a series, but Wolff makes it look effortless.

And the mystery itself? Excellent! There were plenty of suspects, motives, and questions to keep me turning pages. About halfway through, I developed a theory about the killer. I didn't have proof, but I had my suspicions. When everything finally came together, I discovered I was right. There's something deeply satisfying about solving a fictional murder before the detectives do, even if you couldn't actually prove your case in court.

The ending wrapped everything up satisfactorily, and I closed the book feeling thoroughly entertained. The pacing was excellent, the characters were wonderful, and the combination of mystery, humor, and family relationships was exactly what I wanted.

If you enjoy mysteries with memorable characters, a healthy dose of humor, complicated family relationships, and enough suspects to keep your detective skills busy, I highly recommend the Rizk Brothers series. I'd suggest starting with the first book, though, because getting to know these brothers is half the fun.

Five stars. No hesitation. This book cost me sleep, and I regret absolutely nothing.

Well, except that I don't have the next book waiting for me. Which brings me to one final thing.

Dear T.G. Wolff,

I love the Rizk brothers. I love their adventures. I love the way you balance murder, mayhem, family, and humor. But I've finished In Contempt, and now I have a problem. I NEED MORE!

Please get back to the keyboard immediately. These brothers have more trouble to get into, and I intend to be there for every minute of it. Preferably before my next bedtime.

Although we both know how that's going to turn out.

Exit Strategy by Lee Child (Jack Reacher #30)

Thirty books later, Reacher still can't enjoy a cup of coffee without someone making a career-ending mistake.

Jack Reacher was minding his own business, enjoying a cup of coffee in Baltimore. Naturally, this couldn't last. Apparently, the man is constitutionally incapable of consuming caffeine without stumbling into a criminal conspiracy.

This time, trouble starts when Reacher witnesses a couple of grifters cheating an elderly couple out of their life savings. Reacher takes care of the situation in his usual efficient fashion, and you'd think he could finally get back to his coffee. You'd be wrong.

Someone bumps into him and slips a note into his pocket. A desperate plea for help. And if there's one thing we know about Jack Reacher after thirty books, it's that he doesn't ignore someone who needs rescuing. Especially when there are bad guys who could benefit from a little attitude adjustment.

And just like that, we're off on another adventure.

One of the things I particularly enjoyed about Exit Strategy was that I had absolutely no idea where the story was going. The people I thought were the good guys mostly weren't, and the people I thought were the bad guys mostly weren't. Every time I thought I had someone figured out, I had reason to reconsider. I knew Reacher would prevail in the end. But how he was going to untangle this particular mess was anybody's guess, and it certainly wasn't mine.

Reacher himself was everything I've come to expect and love. Wonderfully intimidating, ridiculously observant, and armed with the kind of dry sarcasm that really ought to have its own specialized font. Seriously. Someone needs to invent Reacher Sans. Bold, intimidating, and best used immediately before someone makes a very poor life decision. It would come in one size: Threatening.

The pacing was steady throughout, and I had no complaints about the storytelling. There was enough mystery to keep me interested, plenty of uncertainty about who could be trusted, and the satisfaction of watching Reacher do what Reacher does best: figure things out and dispense his own very particular brand of justice.

And let's talk about the audiobook!

Scott Brick, narrating for Random House Audio, was fantastic. I could listen to him read for hours. His delivery was excellent, his timing perfect, and he captured Reacher's personality beautifully. A good narrator can make an enjoyable book even better, and Brick certainly did that here.

The ending was satisfying, too. The pieces fell into place, the appropriate people got what was coming to them, and Reacher did what he always does. He simply walked away, heading off to the next town and the next adventure. Or the next coffee shop. You never know.

So why four stars instead of five?

Honestly, there's nothing I can point to that I particularly disliked. The story was interesting, the pacing was good, the twists kept me guessing, and the narration was excellent. But while I thoroughly enjoyed the book, it didn't have that irresistible one-more-chapter quality that makes me sacrifice sleep. It was a solid, entertaining Reacher adventure that I was happy to pick up again whenever I had the chance.

If you're already a Reacher fan, you'll find plenty to enjoy here. If you're looking for a mystery with shifting loyalties, a hero who doesn't tolerate bullies, and enough dry wit to make you chuckle while the bad guys reconsider their career choices, this one delivers. Thirty books into this series, Reacher is still wandering around the country, minding his own business until someone makes the unfortunate decision to involve him in theirs.

You'd think word would have gotten around by now.

Big Cult Energy by Jack Friday

 A stoner PI, a con man, Lizard Jesus, and mountain lions. There's probably medication for that.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Peter Key has recently inherited a considerable amount of money and a dilapidated house. You'd think that would be enough to keep a man occupied, but apparently not. Although he has no desire to return to his career as a private investigator, trouble has other plans. As it turns out, trouble arrives wearing white tunics and sandals, with a firm belief in Lizard Jesus.

Yes, you read that correctly. Lizard Jesus.

It all starts when two kids down the street begin receiving mysterious Amazon packages addressed to someone who doesn't live there. Then two members of a rather peculiar cult show up looking for the same person. Everyone is confused. Including me.

Before Peter can make sense of that mess, another case drops into his lap. A little old lady has been burglarized while stuck in a hole in her floor, and the thief couldn't even be bothered to help her out. Dastardly, if I may say so myself.

And we're off!

Peter Key is not your typical brilliant, methodical private investigator. He's a stoner who seems to survive on dumb luck and a remarkable ability to stumble into situations that would send a sensible person running in the opposite direction. Along the way, he encounters a con man, a fellow preaching the gospel of Lizard Jesus, and an assortment of characters who make you wonder whether there's something in the water.

The humor is absurd, the situations are ridiculous, and Peter often seems just as bewildered as the reader. But I suspect that's exactly the point. This isn't a mystery that takes itself particularly seriously, and neither should you.

What impressed me most was the imagination behind the story. Jack Friday takes seemingly unrelated mysteries, throws in a cult with some truly bizarre beliefs, and somehow brings everything together. I suspected the cases would eventually connect, but I couldn't figure out how. That kept me reading, even when I was wondering what on earth Peter was going to do next.

The pacing is driven as much by Peter's unpredictable adventures and the eccentric characters he meets as by the mysteries themselves. There were moments when the absurdity got a little tiresome, and I could have done with fewer opportunities to exercise my eye-rolling muscles. But for the most part, the humor worked, and I appreciated the sheer creativity of it all.

I also enjoyed the ending. The various threads came together, the story reached a satisfying conclusion, and I was left feeling that the journey, however ridiculous, had been worthwhile. Sometimes that's all I ask of a book. Well, that and a little less confusion, perhaps.

The book includes LGBTQ+ representation among its characters, which fits naturally into the story. There's also a healthy dose of irreverent religious satire, particularly surrounding the cult and its rather unusual beliefs.

Content warnings: Alcohol and recreational drug use, manipulation, and some violence.

Readers who appreciate quirky private investigators, unconventional mysteries, eccentric characters, and humor that ventures well into the absurd would enjoy this novel. If you like your mysteries straightforward, your detectives sober, and your religious figures decidedly non-reptilian, this probably isn't the book for you.

I'm giving Big Cult Energy four stars. I got lost a couple of times while I was reading it, and I spent plenty of time wondering what color the sky is in these people's world. But it was wildly imaginative, entertaining, and ultimately satisfying.

The title of the book is Big Cult Energy, and lemme tell ya', they're not joking.

 

While They All Watched by Sulari Gentill

The bodies are piling up, the suspects are multiplying, and apparently nobody in this town is safe. So much for small-town charm.

This one snuck up on me!

When Clementine and Oscar receive word that Oscar's best friend, Jack, has been murdered, they immediately leave Australia and return to their original hometown of Roberta on the Lake, Michigan. What should have been a family reunion under happier circumstances becomes a nightmare as the siblings struggle to understand who killed Jack and why. And Jack, as it turns out, is only the beginning.

The night of his funeral, Bart is murdered. Then Jed disappears. Then the substitute high school principal is murdered. And somehow, all roads seem to lead back to the high school Bobby Sox baseball team, where several of these men once played together.

Apparently, high school baseball can leave you with more than fond memories and a few old trophies.

Clementine, or Clem, narrates the story, and I liked her immediately. She's a photographer, she's intelligent, and she's a reliable narrator, which is almost refreshing in a psychological thriller. I didn't have to spend half the book wondering whether she was lying to me, losing her mind, or both. I also liked Oscar, her veterinarian brother. I mean, how can you not trust a vet?

Then there's Sam, the high school principal, whose calm demeanor and effortless authority over his students made him another favorite. Carter, who returned to town shortly before people started dropping like flies, was another character I enjoyed. Gentill does an excellent job developing the blended family and the people surrounding them. They feel like actual human beings rather than cardboard cutouts waiting for their turn to be murdered.

And that brings me to my biggest criticism.

This book starts slowly. Really slowly.

Gentill spends a considerable amount of time introducing the characters, establishing their relationships, and immersing us in the family's history. I appreciate good character development, but at one point I started wondering whether Jack was going to be the only murder victim in this murder mystery. Fortunately, I didn't have to wonder forever.

When Jed disappeared, things started picking up. And when George, another former baseball player, called to say he thought he might be next and then disappeared himself, I was officially hooked.

George claimed he was protecting himself. Okay, fine. But he left behind a wife and a one-year-old child? Without a better explanation? Oh, George. Something is definitely rotten in Roberta on the Lake.

From that point forward, the book became increasingly difficult to put down. The tension continued building, the questions multiplied, and I found myself suspicious of practically everyone.

One of the most unsettling elements of the book is the way each chapter begins with a conversation involving the killer. We don't know who's speaking or who the murderer is, but these little glimpses add another layer of unease to an already disturbing story. I loved that technique. It kept reminding me that someone knew exactly what was happening, even when I hadn't the foggiest idea.

I had absolutely no idea who the killer was. None. Zip. Nada. Gentill completely blindsided me. The clues were there, but they certainly weren't waving little flags and announcing themselves. When the truth finally came out, things fell into place, but that didn't make the revelation any less jaw-dropping. I love a mystery that surprises me without making me feel as though the author simply pulled an answer out of thin air. That's exactly what happened here.

So why four stars instead of five? Pacing. Plain and simple. The final third of this book was riveting, and the payoff was excellent. But I can't ignore the fact that the earlier chapters moved slowly enough that I started getting impatient. All that character development ultimately helped make the mystery work, but I would have appreciated a little more momentum along the way.

Readers who enjoy character-driven mysteries, complicated family relationships, small-town secrets, and carefully constructed twists should find plenty to enjoy here. If you appreciate a slow-burn mystery that rewards your patience with a spectacular final act, this one deserves a spot on your reading list. If you need nonstop action from the first chapter, however, you might find yourself checking your watch during the early going.

As for me? Four solid stars. A slow beginning, an increasingly disturbing mystery, and a final third that made me forget all about the dust bunnies. Well, almost. Those little freeloaders aren't going anywhere.

Content warnings: Murder, violent deaths, missing persons, grief, child abuse, sexual abuse of a minor, and family trauma.

I received an advance reader copy of While They All Watched by Sulari Gentill through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

 

The Simple Truth by David Baldacci

Two brothers, two storylines, and one thoroughly confused listener.

I have enjoyed quite a few books by David Baldacci, so I had high hopes for The Simple Truth. Unfortunately, this one just wasn't working for me.

The story goes back and forth between two brothers, and I found myself constantly trying to figure out which one I was listening to at any given moment. By the time I sorted that out, we'd moved on again. Somewhere along the way, I lost the plot. Possibly more than one.

I don't necessarily think this is a bad book. I think it's a book that would work better for me in print. When I'm reading, I can flip back a few pages, double-check who's who, and get myself straightened out. Audiobooks aren't quite so forgiving, especially when I'm trying to follow the story while doing something else.

And frankly, listening to a book shouldn't feel like taking a pop quiz on character identification.

So I'm calling this one a DNF, but only for the audiobook version. I'm not ruling out picking up the print edition someday, because I suspect there's a perfectly good Baldacci story buried beneath my confusion.

Sometimes it's not the book. Sometimes it's the format. And sometimes you just need to know which brother you're dealing with!

Whistling in the Dark by Lesley Kagen

Two little girls, one dangerous summer, and a 10-year-old with questionable investigative skills

It's the summer of 1959, and ten-year-old Sally O'Malley has a lot on her plate. Her mother has gone into the hospital for gallbladder surgery, and complications have kept her there longer than expected. Sally's older sister, Nell, has been instructed to look after Sally and her younger sister, Troo. Unfortunately, Nell has a boyfriend, and apparently boyfriends take precedence over little sisters. Their alcoholic stepfather isn't much help either, preferring the company of his booze to that of his stepdaughters.

So Sally finds herself responsible for Troo. She's ten. What could possibly go wrong?

Well, for starters, there's a murderer and child molester loose in the neighborhood, preying on young girls. Sally, blessed with an overactive imagination and a questionable understanding of criminal investigation, sets about figuring out who the bad guy is. Her list of suspects includes the neighborhood beat cop, and her evidence involves, among other things, the color of people's socks. Because apparently, footwear is an important investigative tool when you're ten.

Sally made me roll my eyes more than a few times, but she's ten. Ten-year-olds are supposed to make you roll your eyes. It's in the job description.

And that's one of the things Lesley Kagen did particularly well. Sally is authentically ten years old. She doesn't think or speak like a miniature adult. Her imagination runs wild, her reasoning is sometimes spectacularly flawed, and her decisions aren't always the wisest. But underneath all that, she's a little girl trying to make sense of a world that has suddenly become frightening and unpredictable.

There were times I wanted to reach right into the book, wrap Sally and Troo in bubble wrap, and keep them safe until their mother came home. These two little girls were dealing with far more than they should have had to, and the adults who were supposed to protect them were doing a lousy job of it.

Although there's a murder mystery running through the story, I found that Whistling in the Dark was really more about Sally and Troo navigating that summer than about catching a killer. The mystery provided an undercurrent of danger, but the girls and their experiences were the heart of the book.

I didn't know who the villain was, although I was fairly certain Sally's suspicions about the neighborhood cop were misplaced. When the truth finally came out, I wasn't particularly surprised. The revelation made sense, but it wasn't one of those endings that left me sitting there with my mouth hanging open.

This isn't necessarily my usual type of book. I generally prefer my thrillers with a little more suspense and a few more surprises. But Kagen's writing was excellent, Sally's voice was wonderfully authentic, and the story kept me interested from beginning to end.

Four stars. A well-written, engaging coming-of-age story wrapped around a dark mystery. It didn't keep me up all night, but it certainly kept my attention.

She's Not Sorry by Mary Kubica

 Someone forgot to put the thrill in thriller.

I checked out She's Not Sorry by Mary Kubica from Libby, thinking I was in for a good psychological thriller. Unfortunately, 34% of the way through, I decided life was too short and there were too many other books waiting for my attention.

Meghan is an ICU nurse caring for a young woman named Caitlin, who apparently attempted suicide by jumping from a bridge. Meanwhile, somewhere in the city, a lunatic is attacking women, leaving Meghan worried about her daughter's safety while she's at work. Sounds like the makings of a pretty good thriller, doesn't it? That's what I thought, too.

Unfortunately, there's an awful lot of conversation, an awful lot of Meghan's thoughts about Caitlin's parents, her fellow nurses, and everything else going on around her, but remarkably little actual thrilling.

I don't mind character development. I don't mind a slow burn. But I do expect something to happen that makes me want to keep reading. Or listening, in this case.

Here's the kicker: I had to go back and reread the synopsis several times because I kept forgetting what the book was supposed to be about. That's not exactly a ringing endorsement for a psychological thriller.

I listen to audiobooks primarily in the car, and I've found that a really good one occasionally follows me into the house because I simply have to know what happens next. This one never made it out of the car.

To be fair, I didn't finish the book. Maybe everything comes together in the second half. Maybe there are twists and turns that would have knocked my socks off. I'll never know, and I'm okay with that. I gave it 34% of my attention, and it never managed to earn the other 66%.

One star. Life's too short, my TBR pile is too tall, and I'm moving on to something that actually thrills me.

The Perfect Witness by Iris Johansen

She escaped her crime family, changed her name, and built a new life. Unfortunately, her past didn't get the memo. 

I chose this book because I saw the name Iris Johansen. That's it. I didn't even bother investigating what it was about. So although the paranormal aspect took me completely by surprise, I thoroughly enjoyed the novel.

Imagine being able to read people's memories. Now imagine being born into a crime family where your father discovers your unusual talent and decides to put it to work in his various ... business ... dealings.

Welcome to Teresa's world. And it's not a particularly pleasant one.

Teresa has spent her life being used for an ability she never asked for. When she finally gets the chance to escape, Andre Mandak appears and helps her disappear. He arranges a new home, a new family, and a new identity, giving her something she's never really had before: a chance at a normal life.

Of course, this is a thriller. Normal lives don't tend to last very long. And there's the small matter of Andre expecting her to repay him someday.

Teresa doesn't trust anyone at first, and who could blame her? But as she settles into her new life as Allie, she gradually learns to trust her new family and Andre. Unfortunately, the past has an annoying habit of refusing to stay where it belongs, and Allie soon finds herself fighting to protect everything she's come to love.

I liked Allie. She's been dealt a pretty rotten hand, but she's determined to make something better of her life. I enjoyed watching her grow from someone who couldn't trust anyone into someone who had a family, a home, and something worth fighting for.

I also liked Andre, and for reasons I can't quite explain, I trusted him from the beginning. Maybe it was because he helped Allie escape when she desperately needed someone on her side. Maybe it was because he gave her hope for a future that didn't involve being exploited by her own family. Whatever the reason, I never really questioned his intentions.

The paranormal element was a departure from my usual thrillers. Allie's ability to read memories isn't exactly something I encounter in everyday life, but I have no problem suspending my personal beliefs for the sake of a good story. That's why they call it fiction, after all.

There was also some steamy romance, which I happily skipped. I'm here for the suspense, danger, and people behaving badly. I'll leave the bedroom gymnastics to someone else.

What I particularly enjoyed was that the suspense wasn't so much about figuring out who the villain was or waiting for some enormous twist. It was about watching Allie build a life worth living and then fight to keep it. She wasn't simply trying to escape her past anymore. She had something to lose, and that made her struggle all the more compelling.

The Perfect Witness was a good, solid read. It kept me interested, and I enjoyed the characters and the storyline. It didn't keep me up half the night promising myself just one more chapter, but not every book has to threaten my sleep schedule to earn a good rating.

Four stars. An entertaining thriller with a paranormal twist, a little more romance than I needed, and a protagonist worth rooting for. The dust bunnies survived another day.

The Judge's List by John Grisham

Knowing who the killer is isn't the problem. Proving it without becoming his next victim is.

The Judge’s List by John Grisham is one of those books where you know who the good guys are and you know who the bad guy is. There really isn't much question about that. The trick is figuring out how the bad guy is going to get away with what he's done when the good guys are right there keeping an eye on him.

And this particular bad guy is downright creepy.

Lacy Stoltz works for the Florida Board on Judicial Conduct, investigating complaints against judges. Then Jeri Crosby comes to her with one heck of a complaint: she believes a sitting judge is a serial killer, and she has spent years gathering evidence to prove it.

I liked both Lacy and Jeri, although I was torn about both of them at first. I wanted Lacy to be a little more patient with Jeri. This woman has been living with this for years, and she's terrified. Give her a minute! At the same time, there were moments when I wanted to tell Jeri, "Just get to the point already!" So apparently I was going to be impatient no matter which woman I sided with.

The judge, however, was an excellent villain. He's intelligent, methodical, and terrifyingly good at what he does. He knows the law. He knows how investigations work. He knows how to leave a crime scene without leaving forensic evidence. Even worse, he has his own sophisticated hacking system, called Maggotz, that allows him to keep tabs on the people around him. With that little tidbit, "creepy" becomes an understatement.

So while Lacy and Jeri are trying to figure out how to catch him, there's always that uncomfortable little thought in the back of your mind:

How much does he already know about what they're doing?

That's where the suspense comes from. This isn't really a whodunit. We know who did it. The question is whether Lacy and Jeri can possibly prove it when they're dealing with someone who knows the system well enough to stay several steps ahead of them.

I really enjoyed this one. The storyline was excellent, the villain was genuinely unsettling, and Grisham kept me interested all the way through. It didn't have me staying up until ridiculous hours muttering "just one more chapter," so the dust bunnies were never in serious danger, but I was always ready to pick it back up.

A solid four stars. Sometimes knowing exactly who the bad guy is makes watching the net slowly close around him even more satisfying.

The Spring by Melissa Larsen

This one started as a slow burn and ended with me sacrificing sleep to people who don’t even exist.

The Spring started slowly enough that I wasn't quite sure where it was taking me. I wasn't even sure if the title was referencing the season, a gadget, or a body of water. Several hours later, it was 2 a.m., I had about fifty pages left, and my body staged an intervention. I woke up this morning with my iPad on the floor. Of course, I immediately finished those last pages.

Shay has never had an easy life. After a terrible childhood, she was taken in and eventually adopted by Alma, the mother of her best friend, Phoebe. Now Alma can no longer care for herself, and Shay is working three jobs to pay for Alma's care facility. Meanwhile, Shay and Phoebe haven't spoken in five years. Then, out of the blue, Phoebe calls.

She's living in California with Daniel, a wealthy and charismatic man, and it quickly becomes obvious that something is wrong. Phoebe buys Shay a plane ticket and asks her to come. But by the time Shay arrives in California, Phoebe has disappeared. 

And a woman's body has washed up on the coast.

This one definitely takes its time getting started, but once the pieces began falling into place, I was hooked. Shay was a character I liked immediately. She's carrying an enormous amount of responsibility, particularly when it comes to Alma, and her complicated relationship with Phoebe makes sense. They may have been estranged for five years, but Phoebe was once Shay's best friend. When Phoebe asks for help, Shay can't walk away.

There were several times when I desperately wanted Shay to develop a slightly stronger sense of self-preservation. When your gut is telling you something is off, that's a million years of evolution telling you to get out of there. You should listen.

Daniel made me uncomfortable almost immediately. He's charming, wealthy, and very good at uncovering people's secrets. There is also a group of underage girls, possibly runaways, living on his property, and his apparent control over them gave the whole situation an unsettling, almost cult-like atmosphere. Watching him manipulate Shay only made that feeling stronger. I knew there was something wrong with Daniel. I just couldn't figure out exactly what it was.

Then there's Liv, the surly teenager who picks Shay up at the airport. She has plenty of teenage attitude, but oddly enough, I trusted her almost immediately. Apparently my fictional-character survival instincts are alive and well.

I did have a hunch about the identity of the murderer, but that didn't spoil the ending for me at all. I may have suspected one piece of the puzzle, but I did not anticipate how all of those pieces would eventually fit together. I don't want to spoil anything, but let's just say it was sleep-deprivation great.

The slow beginning is really my only criticism, and considering this book eventually kept me reading until 2 a.m., I'd say it recovered nicely. The tension builds steadily, the atmosphere becomes increasingly sinister, and by the final stretch, I needed answers ... and I needed to know whether Shay was going to survive long enough to get them.

Five stars. It started as a slow burn and ended with me sacrificing sleep to people who don't even exist. That's about as good an endorsement as I can give.

Content warnings should include murder, violence, difficult childhood/child abuse and neglect, coercive control and manipulation, and potentially exploitative situations involving underage/runaway girls.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books for providing an advance copy of The Spring in exchange for an honest review.

 

Still Mad by Ava Strong (Lily Dawn #5)

Now we have sacrifices to storms. Lily and Xander might want to reconsider their travel plans. 

I just finished listening to Still Mad by Ava Strong, the fifth book in the Lily Dawn series, and this series continues to be exactly what I want for my commute. This time, Lily Dawn and Xander Jackson are hunting someone who apparently thinks storms need human sacrifices.

Because apparently murder in paradise wasn’t already dramatic enough.

People are being killed as storms approach, and Lily and Xander have to figure out who is behind the deaths before the weather (and the body count) gets worse. The premise was creepy, strange, and just different enough to keep things interesting.

I’m still really enjoying Lily and Xander as a team. Their relationship has been developing gradually throughout the series, and I like that progression. It gives me something to stay invested in beyond whichever whacko happens to be terrorizing the islands this week.

Tim Alexander continues to do a very good job with the narration. His style is easy to follow, he doesn’t go overboard trying to give every character a wildly different voice, and he lets the story do the work. At this point, his narration has become part of what makes this series such a good commute listen for me.

Still Mad was another solid entry in the series. It didn’t keep me up all night, and the audiobook did manage to remain in the car, but I was always happy to hit play again when I got behind the wheel. 

Because apparently paradise has a surprisingly high whacko-per-capita rate.

Still Here by Ava Strong (Lily Dawn #4)

 Come for the tropical paradise. Stay because a body is tied to the mast.

I am going to be sad when my perfect commute series comes to an end. Still Here is the fourth book in Ava Strong’s Lily Dawn series, and once again, it delivered exactly what I wanted: an entertaining mystery, a strong female protagonist, a partner I enjoy, and enough murder in paradise to make me seriously question the Caribbean tourism board.

This time, people are turning up dead and tied to the masts of boats. FBI agents Lily Dawn and Xander Jackson are called in to figure out who is doing the killing and stop them before yet another body becomes part of the nautical décor. Naturally, things get complicated.

Their investigation leads them to a religious cult with possible ties to the murders. Normally, I might have rolled my eyes a little at the sudden appearance of a creepy cult, but it works here because of the larger storyline running through the series. Lily’s sister, Cara, disappeared years ago, and Lily has never stopped looking for her. We learned earlier in the series that Cara had been delving into the occult before she vanished. So now the questions start piling up.

Is the cult involved in the murders? Does the occult connection actually mean something? Is the old witch we found out about in the last book involved? Could any of this lead Lily closer to finding out what happened to Cara?

Or is it all coincidence, and Lily and Xander are dealing with yet another nutjob killing people in paradise?

I liked the uncertainty. Strong gives us enough possibilities that I wasn't immediately convinced I knew where the story was going. Better yet, the Cara storyline makes the cult feel like part of the larger series rather than something tossed into this particular book just to make things creepier.

I also continue to really like Lily and Xander together. Lily is strong without being obnoxiously invincible, and Xander's personality plays well against hers. Their partnership has become one of my favorite parts of the series, and after four books, I'm invested in both of them, I wonder if they'll get together for real, and I need to find out what happened to Cara.

Tim Alexander's narration continues to work beautifully for me. He doesn't perform vocal gymnastics trying to make every character sound wildly different. His narration is clear, natural, and easy to follow, which is exactly what I want when I'm listening in the car.

Four stars for Still Here. It didn't escape the car and keep me up all night, but it didn't need to. This series has found its niche in my reading life: solid mysteries, likable characters, an ongoing mystery I'm invested in, and just enough tropical murder to make my commute considerably more interesting.

Apparently paradise is dangerous. Good thing I don't drive that far.

Nothing Human Left by Logan Hart

When everyone might be crazy, picking the murderer gets complicated.

I finished Nothing Human Left at about one o'clock in the morning. That should tell you something right there. Forget the dust bunnies. This one stole sleep. The story begins slowly, but give it time. The author is laying the groundwork, and once that foundation starts cracking, good luck putting the book down.

Grace was raised by her single mother, Marge, whose problems go considerably beyond your average overprotective parent. Marge is obsessed with keeping Grace safe. Every time Grace spends time outside or away from her mother, Marge checks her from head to toe for bugs and other dangers. Sometimes she refuses to let Grace leave the house at all. Because according to Marge, there are monsters out there. She calls them People Faces. They look human, but they aren't, and Marge believes that only she and Grace can see them.

As a child, Grace witnesses increasingly frightening behavior from her mother, including an incident in which Marge becomes convinced that a man she has been seeing is a People Face and tries to kill him in front of Grace. Eventually, Marge's delusions, and the murders she is accused of committing, land her in prison. Years later, Grace is left with the aftermath of a deeply traumatic childhood and gaps in her memory. Then Marge insists that she is innocent of the murders that put her behind bars, and Grace begins looking for the truth. 

The story alternates between present-day Grace and her childhood, and the two timelines work extremely well. Normally, jumping back and forth in time can make me twitchy, but here it serves a purpose. We are discovering Grace's past along with her, and what she remembers, or doesn't remember, matters.

What I particularly loved was how thoroughly the author made me question everyone. I started out absolutely convinced that Marge was dangerously delusional. Then I began questioning Grace's perception of events. Before long, I was side-eyeing her aunt Vivian and cousin Desi, too. At some point, apparently nobody in this family was getting through my imaginary psychological screening. The plot becomes increasingly disturbing and twisty as Grace searches for answers. Just when I thought I had some idea of what was happening, something shifted. I was completely blindsided.

This is psychological horror that gets under your skin. The idea of People Faces is creepy enough by itself, but the real horror comes from never being completely certain what (or whom) you should believe. It left me questioning what was real right along with Grace.

My only caution is that the beginning does take some time to build. Don't expect the story to come screaming out of the gate. For me, though, that slow buildup paid off enormously. By the latter part of the book, putting it down was no longer an option. Hence the 1 a.m. bedtime. And this book is DARK. It is definitely not for the faint-hearted. Content warnings include murder, violence, gore, childhood trauma, child abuse/endangerment, mental illness and delusions, and attempted murder.

Readers who enjoy dark psychological horror, unreliable memories, dysfunctional families, disturbing secrets, and mysteries that keep shifting underneath them should find plenty to love here. If you need likable, well-adjusted people making sensible life choices, however, you may have wandered into the wrong book.

Five stars. Nothing Human Left disturbed me, fooled me, and cost me sleep. With very little adaptation, I could easily see this becoming one seriously unsettling, award-worthy horror movie.

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

 

Still Awake by Ava Strong (Lily Dawn #3)

 Resort service, cocktails, and the coroner. Right up my alley.

I have officially found my perfect commute audiobook series.

Still Awake is the third book in Ava Strong’s Lily Dawn series, and Lily and her partner, Xander Jackson, are rapidly becoming one of my favorite crime-fighting teams. Lily is a strong female protagonist without being insufferable about it, while Xander is a hotheaded Southern boy who seems to quite enjoy getting on her nerves. They work well together, they annoy each other just enough to keep things entertaining, and I genuinely like spending time with both of them. This case, however, was DARK.

Someone is murdering people at various resorts and then posing their bodies so they appear to still be alive. They're sitting around looking like perfectly normal vacationers until some unsuspecting resort employee wanders over to see if they need anything. Another drink, perhaps?

Surprise! Dead person.

At that point, they're really not requiring much of anything except the coroner.

It is a wonderfully creepy premise because the victims are left right out in the open. There's no body buried in the woods or stuffed into a trunk. They're simply sitting there among vacationers who have no idea they're sharing the resort with a corpse.

Lily and Xander once again made the story work for me. I especially like Lily because she's capable and determined without falling into that particular fictional-female-investigator trap where "strong" apparently means "obnoxious to everyone within a ten-mile radius." Xander's temper and Southern-boy personality make him a great counterbalance, and their banter adds some much-needed lightness to an otherwise very dark case.

The audiobook continues to be exactly what I want for my commute. It kept me interested, was easy to follow while driving, and apparently I liked it enough that it escaped the car once. That's significant. My four-star audiobooks generally remain obediently in the vehicle.

Four stars. Still Awake didn't keep me up at night, but it did escape the car, and I've already downloaded the next book in the series. At this point, Lily and Xander can ride along with me anytime.

Preferably somewhere without a resort.

Or suspiciously motionless people sitting beside the pool.

The #1 Lawyer by James Patterson and Nancy Allen

 Never ask, "What else can go wrong?"

Stafford Lee Penney is the #1 lawyer in Biloxi, Mississippi. He’s successful, confident, and very good at what he does. Then his life begins to fall apart.

Spectacularly.

After Stafford Lee wins a high-profile murder trial, things start going wrong: personally, professionally, and pretty much everywhere else. At some point, I stopped wondering whether things could get worse and started wondering exactly what fresh disaster Patterson and Allen were going to throw at the poor man next.

For the most part, I liked Stafford Lee. I understood his anger and frustration as his carefully constructed life crumbled around him. That said, there were a few times when he behaved like a spoiled two-year-old, and I wanted to tell him to pull up his big-boy lawyer pants and deal with it. Sympathy only goes so far.

The mystery itself kept me guessing. I had my suspicions that the murders were connected to one particular man (or at least to someone associated with him), but I was never completely sure. I happily followed the clues, changed my mind a few times, and thought I had at least a reasonable handle on things. Yeah, I didn’t.

The ending completely blindsided me. Those are my favorite kinds of endings: the ones that make sense once everything is revealed but still manage to catch me looking in entirely the wrong direction.

The #1 Lawyer was a good, solid four-star read for me. It kept me engaged, I wanted to know what happened next, and I enjoyed the combination of courtroom drama, murder, and Stafford Lee’s spectacularly unraveling life. It didn’t keep me awake half the night, but household chores were definitely in danger.

The dust bunnies are history.