Cackle, By Rachel Harrison ~ 5.0 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Alcoholism, Humor, Magical Realism, Suspense

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Books for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: October 5th, 2021

304 Pages

Synopsis: A darkly funny, frightening novel about a young woman learning how to take what she wants from a witch who may be too good to be true, from the author of The Return.

All her life, Annie has played it nice and safe. After being unceremoniously dumped by her longtime boyfriend, Annie seeks a fresh start. She accepts a teaching position that moves her from Manhattan to a small village upstate. She’s stunned by how perfect and picturesque the town is. The people are all friendly and warm. Her new apartment is dreamy too, minus the oddly persistent spider infestation.

Then Annie meets Sophie. Beautiful, charming, magnetic Sophie, who takes a special interest in Annie, who wants to be her friend. More importantly, she wants Annie to stop apologizing and start living for herself. That’s how Sophie lives. Annie can’t help but gravitate toward the self-possessed Sophie, wanting to spend more and more time with her, despite the fact that the rest of the townsfolk seem…a little afraid of her. And like, okay. There are some things. Sophie’s appearance is uncanny and ageless, her mansion in the middle of the woods feels a little unearthly, and she does seem to wield a certain power…but she couldn’t be…could she? (Goodreads)

I enjoyed Rachel Harrison’s The Return, so Cackle has been one of my most anticipated books of 2021 and I’m pleased to say that it surpassed my expectations.

Annie spends a good portion of the book dealing with the breakup of her long term relationship with Sam. Some readers may be put off by her wallowing in misery and insecurities, but having gone through something similar, I completely understood the process she went through. Balancing her tendency to rely on alcohol to numb her pain, is her sharp sense of humor which had me laughing out loud more than once. Slowly, over the course of the story, she comes to realize who she wants to be, and I loved watching her journey of self-discovery. Sophie, while seemingly confident and self-possessed, has her own insecurities underneath which come out near the end of the book, but for the most part she turns out to be the best thing that could have happened to Annie.

The story itself is scarce on scares, but full of charm, whimsy, and black comedy. And, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I think Ralph the adorable spider has cured my arachnophobia! Seriously though, Cackle is deliciously wicked and fun, and I easily gobbled it up in one sitting. While the ending wraps everything up, in my humble opinion there’s also plenty of material for another book and I’m hoping Rachel Harrison will revisit the small town of Rowan, its inhabitants, and Annie and Sophie. This is coming out the beginning of October which is wonderful because it’s an ideal read for the Halloween season!

The Family Plot, By Megan Collins ~ 3.0 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Alcoholism, Dysfunctional Families, Mystery, Suspense

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: August 17th, 2021

320 Pages

Synopsis: When a family obsessed with true crime gathers to bury their patriarch, horrifying secrets are exposed upon the discovery of another body in his grave in this chilling novel from the author of Behind the Red Door and The Winter Sister.

At twenty-six, Dahlia Lighthouse has a lot to learn when it comes to the real world. Raised in a secluded island mansion deep in the woods and kept isolated by her true crime-obsessed parents, she has spent the last several years living on her own, but unable to move beyond her past—especially the disappearance of her twin brother Andy when they were sixteen.

With her father’s death, Dahlia returns to the house she has avoided for years. But as the rest of the Lighthouse family arrives for the memorial, a gruesome discovery is made: buried in the reserved plot is another body—Andy’s, his skull split open with an ax.

Each member of the family handles the revelation in unusual ways. Her brother Charlie pours his energy into creating a family memorial museum, highlighting their research into the lives of famous murder victims; her sister Tate forges ahead with her popular dioramas portraying crime scenes; and their mother affects a cheerfully domestic façade, becoming unrecognizable as the woman who performed murder reenactments for her children. As Dahlia grapples with her own grief and horror, she realizes that her eccentric family, and the mansion itself, may hold the answers to what happened to her twin.

With her signature “spellbinding, poignant, and atmospheric” (Christina McDonald, USA TODAY bestselling author) storytelling, Megan Collins weaves a haunting and suspenseful tale filled with secrets that won’t remain buried. (Goodreads)

I was so excited when I was approved on NetGalley for The Family Plot. It really seemed as though it was going to check all my boxes. Unfortunately, this is a case where the premise is more exciting than the actual book.

For me, the main letdown were the one dimensional characters. For siblings whose names are inspired by serial killers and their victims, I was expecting so much more than the flat personas that were presented instead. I never really connected with any of them which made it an uphill battle to care what was happening, but it wasn’t all bad. After the beginning, which was a bit of an info dump, the creepy, atmospheric setting, multiple mysteries, and red herrings sprinkled throughout made the story a quick and easy read. Despite my issues with the characters, I probably would have rated this between 3.5 – 4.0 stars if it wasn’t for the lackluster ending which had me groaning in frustration.

While The Family Plot didn’t live up to my perhaps too high expectations, other readers have given it positive reviews on Goodreads, so I encourage you to check them out before making up your mind as to whether you want to give this a try. As for me, there was enough here that I liked, that I’ll give the next book by Collins a try.

Just One Look, By Lindsey Cameron ~ 4.5 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Alcoholism, Mental Illness, Mystery, Psychological Suspense

Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: July 27th, 2021

304 Pages

Synopsis: The eyes aren’t the windows to the soul. Emails are.

Cassie Woodson is adrift. After suffering an epic tumble down the corporate ladder, Cassie finds the only way she can pay her bills is to take a thankless temp job reviewing correspondence for a large-scale fraud suit. The daily drudgery amplifies all that her life is lacking—love, friends, stability—and leaves her with too much time on her hands, which she spends fixating on the mistakes that brought her to this point.

While sorting through a relentless deluge of emails, something catches her eye: the tender (and totally private) exchanges between a partner at the firm, Forest Watts, and his enchanting wife, Annabelle. Cassie knows she shouldn’t read them. But it’s just one look. And once that door opens, she finds she can’t look away.

Every day, twenty floors below Forest’s office, Cassie dissects their emails from her dingy workstation. A few clicks of her mouse and she can see every adoring word they write to each other. By peeking into their apparently perfect life, Cassie finds renewed purpose and happiness, reveling in their penchant for vintage wines, morning juice presses, and lavish dinner parties thrown in their stately Westchester home. There are no secrets from her. Or so she thinks.

Her admiration quickly escalates into all-out mimicry, because she wants this life more than anything. Maybe if she plays make-believe long enough, it will become real for her. But when Cassie orchestrates a “chance” meeting with Forest in the real world and sees something that throws the state of his marriage into question, the fantasy she’s been carefully cultivating shatters. Suddenly she doesn’t simply admire Annabelle—she wants to take her place. And she’s armed with the tools to make that happen. (Goodreads)

Just One Look is a completely over-the-top, unbelievable read, that’s so much fun that I challenge anyone not to feel compelled to read it in one or two sittings!

Cassie, the anti heroine in this twisted tale, is a wee little bit unhinged. Something happened that derailed her once promising career in corporate law, and now the only job she can get is as a temp. Part of the mystery is what exactly happened in the past, and Cameron tantalizingly leaves clues throughout the book. Without giving away any spoilers, once Cassie’s transgression that precipitated her fall from grace was revealed, I actually felt more sympathy toward her than I did in the beginning. In the present, Cassie’s instability is made worse by her drinking and she begins spiraling out of control. Like Joe Goldberg in Caroline Kepnes’ You series, you can’t help reluctantly wanting Cassie to have a happy ending, hopefully which will also get her some much needed psychological help.

Diametrically opposed to the hot mess that Cassie and her life have become, is the seemingly perfect couple of Forest Watts and his lovely wife Annabelle. Or are they? As we all know, appearances can be deceiving, and in this case all is definitely not as it seems. I humbly admit that I did not see the twists that upended this story until right before they occurred. While the first half of the book is a slow burn set up, the second half is more like a runaway train, and the ending had me laughing and doing a facepalm at the same time.

Just One Look is an exciting debut from Lindsay Cameron, and another book that I’ll be shocked if it’s not adapted for film. I guarantee it will be one of the more buzz-worthy reads of the summer and I highly recommend it for fans of authors like Caroline Kepnes, Liv Constantine, Paula Hawkins, and Gillian Flynn.

Lost In the Never Woods, By Aiden Thomas ~ 5.0 Stars

Tags

Alcoholism, Anxiety, Death of a child, Dysfunctional Families, Fantasy, Gun Violence, Mystery, PTSD, Romance, Suspense, YA Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group/Swoon Reads for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: March 23rd, 2021

384 Pages

Synopsis: When children go missing, people want answers. When children go missing in the small coastal town is Astoria, people look to Wendy for answers.

It’s been five years since Wendy and her two brothers went missing in the woods, but when the town’s children start to disappear, the questions surrounding her brothers’ mysterious circumstances are brought back into light. Attempting to flee her past, Wendy almost runs over an unconscious boy in the middle of the road, and gets pulled into the mystery haunting the town.

Peter, a boy she thought lived only in her stories, claims that if they don’t do something, the missing children will meet the same fate as her brothers. In order to find them and rescue the missing kids, Wendy must confront what’s waiting for her in the woods. (Goodreads)

For someone who didn’t particularly care for the original Peter Pan, by J.M. Barrie, I’ve read my fair share of retellings, some good, others not so much. Lost In the Never Woods gives the oft-told fantasy an entirely imaginative albeit extremely dark spin, that completely captured my attention from beginning to end. As always, I don’t want to give away any spoilers, but I have to warn you that there are themes here that some readers may find difficult, including: PTSD, anxiety, death of children, and gun violence.

This is one of the very few times I actually liked the character of Peter Pan. He has that cavalier nonchalance at times, that I’ve found in previous stories, but I wasn’t annoyed by it like I usually am, because underneath that facade is a much deeper and complex personality. Indeed, this is a Peter who really does take his responsibilities to both Neverland and the Lost Children, seriously. And, once he realizes what has put everything in danger, he’s willing to sacrifice himself. I also loved Wendy, who’s written much differently here then how she’s been depicted in other retellings. While she struggles with memory loss and PTSD from her ordeal, she’s a fierce fighter, yet also retains that maternal side the classic Wendy displayed. When Peter drops back into Wendy’s life, he appears to be a few years younger than Wendy, which gave me a moment’s pause, as their relationship obviously is heading for romance. Thankfully, for readers’ sensibilities, the darkness that is behind the children’s disappearance, is also in part, responsible for the draining of Peter’s magic, and results in him aging, so by the time his and Wendy’s relationship reaches the kissing stage, he’s about eighteen-years-old as she is. Their relationship is the driving force behind everything that happens, so it was important that the author made Peter and Wendy believable and relatable, and I’m happy to say Aiden Thomas delivered in spades. As for the story itself, it’s different than any other retelling I’ve read. You don’t see much of Neverland, except through Wendy’s memories. There’s no Tinkerbell, and no Captain Hook. In fact, the villain is someone who innocuously appears in the original classic, but here, takes on epic evil proportions. Thomas also skillfully blends in other original characters and elements from the original, such as the Darling’s Saint Bernard Nana, and Wendy’s talent with sewing. If you’re familiar with Peter Pan, you won’t find it surprising that this doesn’t have a perfect happily-ever-after, yet the bittersweet finale is really the only way the story could end, and leaves the characters as well as the reader with a satisfying sense of peace and closure.

I absolutely loved Thomas’s debut, Cemetery Boys so Lost In the Never Woods has been one of my most anticipated reads of 2021, and I was not disappointed. I will even go so far as to predict  this will most likely be one of my favorite reads of this year. I highly and enthusiastically recommend this for older teens and adults who love imaginative fantasy retellings!

The Goddesses by Swan Huntley ~ 1.5 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Alcoholism, Dysfunctional Families, Hawaii, LGBTQ

Thanks to NetGalley and Doubleday Books for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: Available Now

320 Pages

Synopsis: When Nancy and her family arrive in Kona, Hawaii, they are desperate for a fresh start. Nancy’s husband has cheated on her; they sleep in separate bedrooms and their twin sons have been acting out, setting off illegal fireworks. But Hawaii is a paradise: they plant an orange tree in the yard; they share a bed once again and Nancy resolves to make a happy life for herself. She starts taking a yoga class and there she meets Ana, the charismatic teacher. Ana has short, black hair, a warm smile, and a hard-won wisdom that resonates with Nancy. They are soon spending all of their time together, sharing dinners, relaxing in Ana’s hot tub, driving around Kona in the cute little car Ana helps Nancy buy. As Nancy grows closer and closer to Ana, skipping family dinners and leaving the twins to their own devices, she knows that she will do anything Ana asks of her.

Given the rating above, it probably will come as no great surprise that The Goddesses just was not my cup of tea. When I first saw the publisher’s blurb saying it was a cross between The Descendants and Single White Female, I was so excited. But it wound up not being anything like I expected.

I know I tend to go on and on about being able to connect to characters, but honestly, this is one of the first things I look for in a story. Here, I disliked everyone, with the exception of Nancy’s seventeen-year-old twin sons, Jed and Cam. While they were troublemakers, this was in response to their parents self-absorption and neglect. Most of the time I found them sweet and funny, and kept thinking that Nancy and Chuck didn’t deserve to have them as children. Actually, disliked might be too strong a word for my feelings toward everyone else. They were all just so boring, with little to no personality. Nancy and her adulterous husband Chuck, are cardboard cutouts of a married couple. Nancy especially drove me crazy with her judgmental attitude and neglect of her sons. She completely ignores her own shortcomings which made it absolutely impossible for me to emphasize with her. The only thing I can give them kudos for was the way they handled their son Cam’s coming out to them. And Ana, who I was expecting all sorts of exciting villainy from, was equally banal. When the book finally got around to revealing her motivations, it was completely predictable and left me thinking “That’s it? I stuck with this book for this?!”

As for the plot, instead of being an exciting thriller, it was more like wading through quicksand. I kept reading. I kept waiting. But nothing happened. Okay, there’s a little twist near the end, but it’s nothing inspiring, and even worse, there’s no real climax, and there’s no realistic resolution.

The only reason why I’m giving The Goddesses 1 1/2 stars is because I did love Jed and Cam, and I liked the setting of Kona, Hawaii, but even the beautiful setting was spoiled for me due to the utter lack of diversity. As always, I recommend that you check out other reviews before making up your mind if you want to try this. As for me, I don’t think I’ll be trying anything else by Swan Huntley.

Golden Boys ~ By Sonya Hartnett – 4.5 Stars

Tags

Alcoholism, Child Abuse, Coming of Age Stories, Dysfunctional Families, YA Fiction

Thank you NetGalley and Candlewick Press for providing an e-Arc in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis: With their father there’s always a catch…

Colt Jenson and his younger brother Bastian, have moved to a new, working-class suburb. The Jensens are different. Their father, Rex, showers them with gifts–toys, bikes, all that glitters most–and makes them the envy of the neighborhood.

To Freya Kiley and the other local kids, the Jensens are a family out of a movie, and Rex a hero–successful, attentive, attractive, always there to lend a hand. But to Colt he’s an impossible figure in a different way: unbearable, suffocating. Has Colt got Rex wrong, or has he seen something in his father that will destroy their fragile new lives?

Golden Boys is a tale of two very dysfunctional families, seen through the eyes of their children. The story takes place in Australia during the late 1970s or early 1980s. This isn’t a book that is action packed from beginning to end. Yet while the pacing is slow, especially in the beginning, that doesn’t make the narrative any less compelling. Seeing the events that unfold from the perspective of the children, makes an already disquieting story deeply personal. Sonya Hartnett deftly captures that childlike innocence we all had at some point. I think the strongest passages are from Freya and Colt who are the oldest, and are both put in the unspeakable position of staying quiet about their fathers’ actions or revealing secrets long kept hidden. Nothing that happens is too graphically told, which in a way makes it even more menacing. It’s also a reminder that sometimes monsters need not be supernatural in nature, and that they can hide behind the most ordinary and benign of facades. None of the adults walk away from this smelling like roses. Both fathers are despicable and vile, and the mothers are your stereotypical enablers. This might have been a problem but in the end it’s not because the children are so brilliantly written, and after all, in the end this is their story. The only reason why I haven’t given this 5 stars is because I hated the ending. I thought it was much too abrupt and it left me a bit frustrated. Overall though I found Golden Boys to be a hauntingly beautiful and evocative novel and I think it would be a perfect pick for a teen or adult book discussion group. It’s an unsettling story that will linger in your mind long after you’ve finished.

 

Try Not to Breathe ~ By Holly Seddon – 4.0 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Alcoholism, Mystery, Relationships, Suspense, Vegetative States

Thank you NetGalley and Ballantine Books for providing an e-Arc in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis: Amy Stevenson was the biggest news story of 1995. Only fifteen years old, Amy disappeared walking home from school one day and was found in a coma three days later. Her attacker was was never identified and her angelic face was plastered across every paper and nightly news segment.

Fifteen years later, Amy lies in the hospital, surrounded by 90’s Britpop posters, forgotten by the world until reporter Alex Dale stumbles across her while researching a routine story on vegetative patients.

Remembering Amy’s story like it was yesterday, she feels compelled to solve the long-cold case.

The only problem is, Alex is just as lost as Amy–her alcoholism has cost her everything including her marriage and her professional reputation.

In the hopes that finding Amy’s attacker will be her own salvation as well,  Alex embarks on a dangerous investigation, suspecting someone close to Amy.

While not perfect, Try Not to Breathe is an impressive debut for author Holly Seddon mainly because of the two main characters — Alex and Amy — whose tragic stories are told in alternating chapters. The author really went out on a limb by making  the comatose Amy a main character and she could have failed miserably, but she not only makes her story compelling through flashbacks to fifteen years earlier, but she fully develops her by exploring the idea that people in vegetative states are cognizant of what is happening around them. While Amy is in a prison due to her condition, so is Alex. Her alcoholism which began when she was a child, has not only ruined her life, it’s now actually put it in danger. She’s only twenty-eight years old, yet her body is beginning to fail because of the ravages of the disease. There are some reviewers who have called Alex unlikable or an “anti-hero”, but I found her an incredibly sympathetic character. I’m going to be honest here and say this may be because alcoholism runs in both sides of my family, and I’ve seen first hand the effects it has on it’s victims and the people who care about them. Alcoholism and for that matter any other addiction, is not a black and white issue, and Holly Seddon illustrates this with Alex’s battle to not only save herself, but seek redemption. Perhaps because of the attention that is paid to Amy and Alex, the other characters aren’t as well written. The mystery of who attacked Amy, and why isn’t a great surprise, and the ending is a bit rushed. Yet despite these flaws, I found this not only a compelling read, but one that I think will stay with me for a while. Try Not to Breathe  may not to be for everyone. It’s not exactly what I’d call an upbeat novel although it does have its uplifting moments especially towards the end. It certainly works as a standalone, but I’m hoping that Holly Seddon will write more about these two amazing and complicated women.

 

River Road ~ By Carol Goodman – 4.0 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Alcoholism, Mystery, Relationships

Thank you NetGalley and Touchstone for providing an e-Arc in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: January 19th, 2016

Synopsis: Nan Lewis–a creative writing professor at a state university in upstate New York–is driving home from a faculty holiday party after finding out she’s been denied tenure. On the way, she hits a deer, but when she gets out of the car to look for it, the deer is nowhere to be found. Eager to get home and out of the oncoming snowstorm, Nan is forced to leave her car at the bottom of her snowy driveway to wait out the longest night of the year–And the lowest point in her life…

The next morning, Nan is woken up by a police officer at her door with terrible news–one of her students, Leia Dawson, was killed in a hit-and-run on River Road the night before. And because of the damage to her car, Nan is a suspect. In the days following the accident, Nan finds herself shunned by the same community that rallied around her when her own daughter was killed in an eerily similar accident six years prior. When Nan begins finding disturbing tokens that recall the death of Nan’s own daughter, Nan suspects the two accidents are connected.

As she begins to dig further, she discovers that everyone around her, including Leia,is hiding secrets. But can she uncover them, clear her name, and figure out who really killed Leia before her reputation is destroyed for good?

Although I found River Road a little slow at the beginning, it didn’t take me long to become thoroughly engrossed in the story and its characters.

Nan is someone I think many readers will emphasize with. Struggling with guilt and self-loathing since her young daughter was killed, she’s a functioning alcoholic. Because of her emotional issues, she’s the perfect person for the true villain to frame. The big questions are who is this mysterious figure and what are their motivations? While I had figured out fairly early on who the murderer was, it didn’t really spoil my enjoyment of the story particularly because there are just enough red herrings thrown in to leave a small cast of doubt as to whether I was right. Adding to the compelling nature of the story is the way in which Carol Goodman creates her characters. They’re all flawed, yet entirely relatable. They’re written so realistically that you feel as though they could be friends, family, co-workers, or neighbors. 

The story itself is suspenseful and filled with many twists and turns. There are even some clever ties to Greek mythology. There’s a light romance that develops between Nan and the police officer who is in charge of the investigation, but it takes a back seat to the rest of the story. The ending wraps not only the mystery up perfectly, but also the potential road ahead for Nan. While it may not be easy, she has the love and support of family, friends, and colleagues.

While River Road isn’t filled with non-stop excitement, it’s likable characters and compelling plot make it a fast-paced read nonetheless. It’s a moody and atmospheric mystery which should appeal to readers of this genre.