A Killer Harvest by Paul Cleave ~ 4.5 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Bullying, Cellular Memory, Medical Thriller, Organ Donation, Serial Killers, Suspense

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

Release Date: Available Now

400 Pages

Synopsis: Joshua is convinced there is a family curse. It’s taken away his biological parents, robbed him of his eyesight, and is the reason why his father Logan, the detective who raised him, is killed while investigating the homicide of a young woman. The suspect, Simon Bowers, is killed by Logan’s partner Ben, whose intentions are murkier than expected. 

After this tragedy, Joshua is handed an opportunity he can’t refuse: a new pair of eyes. But a mishap during surgery leads to Joshua unknowingly getting one eye from his father, and the other from Simon. As Joshua navigates a world of sight, he gets glimpses of what his eyes might have witnessed in their previous life. Memories, truth, and lies Joshua discovers a world darker than the one he has emerged from. What else has he failed to see?

Meanwhile, Simon’s accomplice Vincent, is bent on revenge, going after the loved ones of those involved in Simon’s death, and Vincent is drawing closer and closer to Joshua.

Huh. This was a surprise. I figured I was going to enjoy Killer Harvest after reading so many positive reviews, but I didn’t suspect how much I was going to love it! 

At the heart of this story is the controversial phenomenon of cellular memory. Is it possible for a recipient of an organ donation, to receive the emotions and behaviors from the donor through memories stored in the neurons of the donated organ? It seems like the medical community is divided as of now over this possibility, but there have been cases that make you wonder. There have been plenty of books and movies that have used this theory as part of their premise, but Paul Cleave puts a whole new spin on it.

Joshua is one of the most lovable characters I’ve come across in a while. There are times that it really does seem like some supernatural curse is hanging over his head. He grabbed me by the heartstrings from the very beginning and because of that I was thoroughly invested in the story. He’s sweet, compassionate, and determined to do the right thing. He’s also a bit impulsive, like many teens, and this winds up getting him into trouble. 

There are many secondary characters, and while I didn’t think all of them were necessary to further the plot, there were a few that play a big part in Joshua’s life and I really enjoyed them.

The story itself has more than one theme with organ donation/cellular memory, bullying, and serial killers, among them. This could have been messy and confusing, but the author deftly brings everything together. I was hooked from the very first page, and the surprising twists and mini cliffhangers at the end of each chapter made it impossible for me to put this book down. I started it mid-afternoon and finished about 1:00 in the morning.

The only reason why I’m not giving this a perfect 5 stars is because of the ending. It’s deliberately left open-ended, which I had no problem with, although it’s left me longing for a sequel. However, there were some loose ends concerning a couple of characters that left me a little frustrated.

There are quite a few reviewers on Goodreads who have mentioned that Paul Cleave, who’s from New Zealand, is underappreciated in the U.S. and after reading Killer Harvest, I have to agree. It’s a brilliantly written thriller and a perfect beach and vacation read. I really can’t recommend it highly enough. This was my first book by Cleave, but it certainly won’t be my last! 

Deceived, by Heena Rathore P. ~ 4.0 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Mystery, Psychological Thrillers, Serial Killers, Suspense

Thanks to Heena for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: June 24th, 2017

350 Pages

Synopsis: How well do you know your loved ones?

A girl struggling to cope with the murders of her mother and five-year-old brother.

A journalist chasing the ghost of a potential serial killer.

A thirteen-year-old girl who slaughtered her parents.

And a revenge-driven psychopath who is about to destroy everyone’s life.

After 9 years, a young writer is still coping with the brutal murders of her mother and five-year-old brother, as she moves into a house of horrors, to start a new life with her lover. Will friends and family be ably to redeem Ally out of the impending doom in time? Will her infallible love become the key to the destruction of her already fragile world? Will madness prevail over love; true love over revenge?

Deceived is a gripping psychological thriller that mazes through the deepest, darkest emotions of the human mind through the story of a vulnerable girl who treads in the mist of deception bred from a long unforgiven betrayal.

I’ve been eagerly anticipating reading Deceived since our fellow blogger Heena, announced several months ago that she was going to be coming out with her first novel. Before I proceed with my review, let me say, if you haven’t checked out her author blog at https://heenarathorep.com and her review blog at https://thereadingbud.com please do. I know to book lovers a cover can make a big difference as far as drawing our attention. As soon as I saw the cover of Deceived, I had to know more and I’m so happy to say that the story delivered on that first promise. The foreward which is written by crime blogger and author Patrick H. Moore, sets the tone by writing about the difference between Psychopaths and Sociopaths. From there the story takes off and maintains a very fast pace. Although I guessed at some revelations, there were others that managed to catch me by surprise. Heena does a great job juggling the perspectives of four different characters as well as two time periods set thirty years apart. There’s a nice seamless flow to the chapters, which when added to the fast pace, makes this book difficult to put down. The journal entries from the mysterious psychopath known only as “Mikey”, add a further creepy tone to the story. Some of the scenes, especially toward the end are graphically violent and bloody, which had even me cringing. None of these are gratuitous however, and they fit in with the rest of the story. One word of warning to animal lovers, Ally has a loyal German Shepherd named Max who does suffer at the hands of Mikey, so you might want to skim over those couple sections. There are just a couple of issues I ran into which prevented this from being a perfect read for me. The first concerns the dialogue between the characters. At certain times I found it to be awkward, which was a little distracting. And then there’s Allison, who I really liked, yet at the same time she left me extremely frustrated at times. She’s a smart, capable and independent woman, who’s survived this horrible trauma in her past, but she allows herself to be manipulated which results in not only her life being put in danger, but the people she loves and cares about as well. There are plenty of warning signs that she ignores, which had me wanting to take her by the shoulders and yell ” What is wrong with you? Wake up! Run and don’t look back!” Overall though, Deceived is a wonderful page-turner and I recommend it to mystery, suspense and psychological thriller enthusiasts. Heena has another book in the works called Sinister Town which I’m eagerly awaiting, especially after reading her exciting debut.

Ill Will ~ By Dan Chaon – 2.0 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Childhood Sexual Abuse, Drug addiction, Dysfunctional Families, Mental Illness, Mystery, Satanic Ritual Abuse, Serial Killers, Suspense

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

Release Date: March 7th, 2017

480 Pages

Synopsis: “We are always telling a story to ourselves, about ourselves,” Dustin Tillman likes to say. It’s one of the little mantras he shares with his patients, and it’s meant to be reassuring. But what if it’s a lie?

A psychologist in suburban Cleveland, Dustin is drifting through his forties when he hears the news: His adopted brother, Rusty, is being released from prison. Thirty years ago, Rusty received a life sentence for the massacre of Dustin’s parents, aunt, and uncle. The trial came to symbolize the 1980s hysteria over Satanic cults; despite the lack of physical evidence, the jury believed the outlandish accusations Dustin and his cousin made against Rusty. Now, after DNA analysis has overturned the conviction, Dustin braces for a reckoning.

Meanwhile, one of Dustin’s patients gets him deeply engaged in a string of drowning deaths involving drunk college boys. At first Dustin dismisses talk of a serial killer as paranoid thinking, but as he gets wrapped up in their amateur investigation, Dustin starts to believe that there’s more to the deaths than coincidence. Soon he becomes obsessed, crossing all professional boundaries–and putting his own family in harm’s way.

Ill Will is the first book I’ve read by bestselling author and National Book Award winner Dan Chaon, and I was so excited when I was approved for this on NetGalley, but after finishing it last night, I’m left with a feeling of overwhelming frustration. While there were some parts that were complete and total genius, there are just too many issues I had with this and the bad wound up outweighing the good. I’m trying to think where to even begin. The story’s timeline alternates between the early 1980s and 2012-2014. The past focuses on Dustin Tillman, his adopted brother Rusty, and his two cousins Katy and Wave. The central mystery is who massacred Dustin’s parents and aunt and uncle. It’s set against the 80s hysteria around satanic cults and repressed memories. This mystery was definitely my favorite part of the book. The author definitely did his research into the horrible witch hunts that destroyed so many lives. Dustin and Rusty’s relationship is complicated, and even though Rusty turns out to be innocent of the murders, as an adult, he himself admits to doing some pretty horrible things to Dustin. Because of this I didn’t feel as much sympathy for him as I ordinarily would have for an innocent person being railroaded by the legal system. Dustin as a child is an extremely complex character and enigmatic one. I felt so sorry for him, but as the story of his childhood unfolds it becomes apparent that there’s something not quite right about him. Whether this is related to his and Rusty’s relationship, or the murders, or something more sinister, is the big question. As an adult, he seems to have put everything behind him. He’s a successful psychologist, with a wonderful wife and two teenage sons. But when one of his patients who’s an ex-cop brings to his attention a series of mysterious drownings of young men, he immediately partners up with him in this crazy investigation that completely crosses the boundaries of professional patient/doctor relationships. Honestly, the whole thing made absolutely no sense to me whatsoever. Adding to my confusion was Chaon’s writing style. There are sentences left uncompleted, chapters that are nothing but columns which was so bizarre, I wound up skimming the majority of them, and the choppy transition between the past and the present, as well as the different viewpoints of multiple characters. I was hoping at least the ending would answer my questions, but it didn’t. The identity of the serial killer was revealed, although I had already guessed who it was, but there were numerous plot holes that were never filled, and I was left unsure as to who really murdered Dustin’s family. Overall, this was just a convoluted mess from start to finish, and I confess I’m really annoyed because it could have been a fantastic mystery/suspense novel. However, it’s gotten some rave reviews on Goodreads, as well as from critics at the Washington Post, Chicago Tribune and Entertainment Weekly,  which has left me second guessing myself and wondering what did I miss. 

Aggravated Momentum ~ By Didi Oviatt – 4.5 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Mystery, Psychological Thrillers, Serial Killers, Suspense

I’d like to thank the author for providing me with this ebook in exchange for an honest review.

281 Pages

Synopsis: Not everything is as it seems in what appears to be an average family. When danger lurks so close to home, skeletons emerge, and the darkest of secrets surface, causing twisted desires to become reality. Aggravated Momentum offers the perspective of some very diverse and unique characters, including fun, witty personalities to fall in love with, along with an intellectual killer to die for. You may be surprised as to whom exactly you can relate. Is it the cold, calculated murderer, who’s name is yet to be released? Markie or Kam, the independent sisters, guilty of nothing more than getting tangled with the wrong people at the most inopportune times? Who are you exactly? And more importantly, who are they? The deeper you dig into the psyche of another, the more breath taking are the secrets you will find.

Didi Oviatt is one of our fellow WordPress bloggers as well as an author, so if you haven’t checked out her awesome blog, https://didioviatt.wordpress.com I encourage you to do so. If you’re like me, you know you’re going to love a book when the prologue gives you a nightmare! Seriously, the opening is straight out of Hitchcock and from that moment on I was completely hooked. The story is told in the first person POV of multiple characters, which could have been confusing, but instead added more layers to an already exciting murder mystery. Also, because of the use of this POV, you really get into the minds of the characters, including that of the serial killer’s which is beyond creepy. The identity of the killer is revealed about halfway through the story, but this doesn’t take anything away from the plot. Instead, you get a firsthand peek at what their motivations are. The characters here are quite complex and most of them have disagreeable aspects to their personalities. Kam is somewhat of a racist and ultimately  shows a skewed sense of morality, and Markie herself is a strong personality, but there are some moments where she shows herself to be a bit of a bully. Despite this, I still liked her and found her a worthy character to root for. She and  Kam, have a rather complicated, yet relatable relationship given that they come from a dysfunctional family. They love and support each other, but there’s some hidden anger and resentment between them, which because of the horrifying events unfolding around them, are eventually dragged out into the light of day. Up until the true villain is unmasked, there were plenty of plot twists which kept me guessing. And even once I knew the murderer’s identity, I still remained utterly mesmerized because there are many more secrets that are unveiled. The only reason why I’m not giving this a full 5 stars is because of the ending. It seemed to wrap everything up a little too quickly and because I had become completely invested in the characters, it left me wanting more. Overall though, I found Aggravated Momentum to be a true page-turner and I cannot recommend it enough to fans of suspense and psychological thrillers. I can honestly say that with this book, Didi Oviatt more than holds her own against bestselling authors like Tami Hoag, Paula Hawkins, Louise Jensen and Lisa Gardner. I guarantee that once you start reading you won’t be able to put it down! I can’t wait to see what Didi comes out with next!

 

A Merciful Death (Mercy Kilpatrick #1) ~ By Kendra Elliot – 4.5 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, FBI, Mystery, Serial Killers, Survivalists, Suspense

Thanks to NetGalley and Montlake Romance for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: January 17th, 2016

352 Pages

Synopsis: FBI special agent Mercy Kilpatrick has been waiting her whole life for disaster to strike. A prepper since childhood, Mercy grew up living off the land–and off the grid–in rural Eagle’s Nest, Oregon. Until a shocking tragedy tore her family apart and forced her to leave home. Now a predator known as the cave man is targeting the survivalists in her hometown, murdering them in their homes, stealing huge numbers of weapons, and creating federal suspicion of a possible domestic terrorism event. But the crime scene details are eerily familiar to an unsolved mystery from Mercy’s past.

Sent by the FBI to assist local law enforcement, Mercy returns to Eagle’s Nest to face the family who shunned her while maintaining the facade of a law-abiding citizen. There, she meets police chief Truman Daly, whose uncle was the cave man’s latest victim. He sees the survivalist side of her she desperately tries to hide, but if she lets him get close enough to learn her secret, she might not survive the fallout…

While the plot of Merciful Death is enjoyable, what truly drives this book are it’s characters, particularly Mercy Kilpatrick, who is one of the most unique heroines I’ve come across. While unsurprisingly, given her occupation, she’s a kickass character and her prepper childhood has had a profound effect on her and adds to her complexity. She has so many layers and secrets, that I think there will be even more revealed in ensuing books. As for Truman, well, I have a new book crush. He’s also a strong personality, but there’s a vulnerability to him which comes from an incident which took place when he was a police officer in a large city. He’s instantly attracted to Mercy, but this is written in a realistic manner. His loyalty to her, and some of his admittedly stalker-like yet adorable behavior towards her in the middle of the investigation makes him that much more endearing. The chemistry between them steadily grows throughout the story, yet is light on actual romance, so I’m excited to see how things turn out for them in the rest of the series. The mystery itself made for a fun read and it kept me guessing as to who the killer was right up until the very end. I had to suspend belief at times regarding some of the events that take place, but it wasn’t that difficult to do. I highly recommend Merciful Death to fans of mystery and suspense, especially if you’re looking for a story with unusual characters. I’m very much looking forward to the next book in the series, Merciful Truth, which is coming out on June 6th. 

Pretty Wicked ~ By Kelly Charron – 5.0 Stars

Tags

Horror, Mystery, Serial Killers, Thriller, YA Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Dark Arts Publishing for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: September 30th, 2016

300 Pages

Synopsis: The daughter of a local police detective, fifteen-year-old Ryann has spent most of her life studying how to pull off the most gruesome murders her small town of Colorado has ever seen. 

But killing is only part of it. Ryann enjoys being the reason the cops are frenzied. The one who makes her neighbors lock their doors and windows on a hot summer’s day. The one everyone fears but no one suspects. 

Carving out her own murderous legacy proves harder than she predicted. Mistakes start adding up. And with the police getting closer, and her own father becoming suspicious, Ryann has to prove once and for all that she’s smarter than everyone else–or she’ll pay the ultimate price.

Some people are called to certain things in their life. That’s what hunting is for me. An urge. A desire. The closest thing I have to a calling.

My name is Ryann Wilkanson. I’m fifteen years old.

And I’m a killer.

And with that chilling opening, you know this isn’t going to be your typical YA novel. Oh sure. Ryann may look all perky and polished.

You know. The cheerleader. The straight-A student. The girl everyone wants to be. But inside she is seriously twisted.

She’s been planning her first murder since she was nine-years-old and was helping her older sister babysit a neighbor’s annoying little girl. Studying up on serial killers by watching true crime specials, she idolizes the likes of John Wayne Gacy, Ted Bundy and Jack the Ripper. She dreams of the day when she can start her own reign of terror in her small Colorado town, and now she feels the time is right.

Starting with the little girl, who’s now twelve, she proceeds to cut a bloody swath through her town, reveling in each kill. But, as the body count rises and Ryann grows more and more confident, she starts making some pretty rudimentary mistakes, and she becomes desperate to turn suspicion away from herself.

What ultimately shocked me the most about this story, is that in some incredibly bizarre way, I kind of liked Ryann. I actually found myself rooting for her at times. Oh God! I know! That’s just so wrong! Most of the book is told from her perspective so you really get an inside look at what makes her tick. Okay, yes she’s a complete psychopath, but she realizes exactly what she is and is completely comfortable with it. She knows precisely how to play people and also has this wickedly black sense of humor which had me laughing out loud a couple of times, especially when she’s fangirling over famous serial killers. I know how demented that sounds, but trust me. If you decide to read this, you’ll know exactly what I mean. I also felt a little sorry for her. The youngest daughter of a respected police detective, she just can’t seem to step out from under her sister’s shadow. Nothing she does seems good enough, and it’s obvious how this plays into her psychosis. Surprisingly, for all the carnage that unfolds, there’s very little blood and gore, and best of all, no adorable pets are killed. So, if you’re an animal lover like me you can heave a sigh of relief. There’s also a secondary mystery involving a secret admirer who knows exactly what Ryann has been up to, which adds an additional intriguing layer to an already mesmerizing story. As Ryann became more and more sloppy in choosing her victims and covering up her kills, I knew she was going to eventually get caught, although I was half expecting her to pull a rabbit out of her hat and charm herself out of the corner she had painted herself into. I couldn’t tear myself away until the exciting conclusion. I began reading around 8:00 p.m and stayed up until the wee hours of the morning because I just had to know how everything turned out.

In the end, while Ryann may be down, you just know she’s definitely not out. Thankfully there’s going to be a sequel, Wicked Fallout, which hopefully will be out next year. Pretty Wicked is going on my short list of favorite books of 2016. I highly recommend this for older teens and adults who are in the mood for a dark read with an anti hero you’ll find yourself becoming reluctantly enthralled with. I guarantee Ryann won’t be a character you’ll forget anytime soon!

Ink and Bone ~ By Lisa Unger – 4.5 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Horror, Mystery, Paranormal Fiction, Serial Killers, Suspense

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

Release Date: June 7th, 2016

Synopsis: Twenty-year-old Finley Montgomery is rarely alone. Visited by people whom others can’t see and haunted by prophetic dreams, she has never been able to control or understand the things that happen to her. When Finley’s abilities start to become too strong for her to handle–and even the roar of her motorcycle or another dazzling tattoo can’t drown out the voices–she turns to the only person she knows who can help her: her grandmother Eloise Montgomery, a renowned psychic living in The Hollows, New York.

Merri Gleason is a woman at the end of her tether after a ten-month-long search for her missing daughter Abbey. With almost every hope exhausted, she resorts to hiring Jones Cooper, a detective who sometimes works with Eloise Montgomery. Merri’s not a believer, but she’s just desperate enough to go down that road, praying she’s not to late. Time, she knows, is running out. 

As a harsh white winter moves into The Hollow, Finley and Eloise are drawn into the investigation, which proves to have much more at stake than even the fate of a missing girl. As Finley digs deeper into the town and its endless layers, she is forced to examine the past, even as she tries to look into the future. Only one thing is clear: The Hollows gets what it wants, no matter what.

Ink and Bone is the first full length novel set in The Hollows following three short stories collected under the title The Whispering Hollows. You needn’t have read the previous stories in order to enjoy this, but if you do try Ink and Bone, you’re probably going to want to go back and get caught up. This is one of those suspense/thrillers where the tension begins on the very first page and never lets up. Finley is an interesting character even without her cool motorcycle, pink hair and many tattoos, taken into consideration. She’s conflicted about her psychic abilities thanks to her mother who denied her daughter’s gift while she was a child. Although Finley has always had the support of her grandmother, Eloise, she tends to indulge in some self-destructive behavior. Her tattoo addiction is actually tied to her psychic dreams, as she feels compelled to have the images from her visions inked on to her skin. She’s a strong heroine, yet also fragile in many respects. I also really liked her ex-boyfriend Rainer. He’s one of the reasons why she left Seattle to begin her voyage of self-discovery. She feels they bring out the worst in each other, yet you can’t help but be a little charmed by him despite his past philandering and addictions. He is so in love with Finley that he follows her to The Hollows and starts his own business. I know this sounds a bit stalkerish, but it’s really not. He’s determined to clean up his act and prove himself to Finley, and is extremely supportive and protective of her. If there are future books in the works, I hope these two stay together because I think they’re soul mates. The book is told from multiple viewpoints so in addition to Finley, you also hear from Merri and Wolf, the parents of the missing girl, and others. With so much action going on, having the story formatted in this way could have been confusing but wasn’t because each character has their own distinctive voice. By the time I finished, I felt that that the story couldn’t have been told as successfully without seeing things unfold from different perspectives. It’s also focuses on the psychological makeup of each character and their relationships which adds another interesting layer without slowing the pace down. The only criticism I have is that while the book is filled with exciting twists and turns, near the end I felt things got a little too frantic and over-the-top. Overall though Ink and Bone is a top-notch thriller perfect for fans who enjoy suspense, the paranormal, and horror.

 

 

 

 

The Darkest Corners ~ By Kara Thomas – 4.0 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Mystery, Psychological Thrillers, Serial Killers, YA Fiction

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

Synopsis: There are ghosts around every corner in Fayette, Pennsylvania. Tessa left when she was nine and has been trying ever since not to think about it after what happened there that last summer. Memories of things so dark will burn themselves into your mind if you let them. 

Callie never left. She moved to another house, so she doesn’t have to walk those same halls, but then Callie always was the stronger one. She can handle staring into the faces of her demons–and if she parties hard enough, maybe one day they’ll disappear for good.

Tessa and Callie have never talked about what they saw that night. After the trial, Callie drifted and Tessa moved, and childhood friends just have a way of losing touch. 

But ever since she left, Tessa has had questions. Things have never quite added up. And now she has to go back to Fayette–to Wyatt Stokes, sitting on death row; to Lori Cawley, Callie’s dead cousin; and to the one other person who may be hiding the truth.

Only the closer Tessa gets to the truth, the closer she gets to a killer–and this time, it won’t be so easy to run away. 

The Darkest Corners is a taut psychological thriller that will leave readers guessing right up to the very end. The suspense builds slowly, but the story never drags. Tessa and Callie are both flawed characters because of what happened to them ten years previously. While they each handled their trauma as best they could when the story begins they’re completely estranged. Despite them having to deal with even more unimaginable events, one of the pleasures of this book is seeing the two of them become close again. There is a lot of drama packed into this book including: prostitution, drug and alcohol abuse, and serial killers. Somehow Kara Thomas manages for the most part to make it all work. There’s a couple of things I thought could have used a little more development like the mystery involving Tessa’s sister and mother, but given everything that was going on this wasn’t a major annoyance. There’s not a lot of action that happens until the second half, but once it starts it never lets up. I have to warn you there are plot twists and red herrings aplenty, so every time you think you have things figured out, guess again! The ending wraps everything up perfectly so that there are no loose ends. The Darkest Corners is technically a YA novel, but I highly recommend it to adults as well who are looking for a thrilling mystery with lots of twists and turns.

The Obsession ~ By Nora Roberts – 4.5 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Family Relationships, Romantic Suspense, Serial Killers

Thank you Penguin First To Read for providing an e-Arc in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: April, 12th, 2016

Synopsis: Naomi Bowes lost her innocence the night she followed her father into the woods. In freeing the girl trapped in the root cellar, Naomi revealed the horrible extent of her father’s crimes and made him infamous.

Now a successful photographer living under the name Naomi Carson, she has found a place that calls to her, thousands of miles away from everything she’s ever known. Naomi wants to embrace the solitude, but the residents of Sunrise Cove keep forcing her to open up–especially the determined Xander Keaton.

Naomi can feel her defenses falling, and knows that the connection her new life offers is something she’s always secretly craved. But as she’s learned time and again, her past is never more than a nightmare away.

I’ve been a fan of Nora Roberts for thirty-some-odd years, and with each book I read it continually amazes me that the quality of writing of this prolific author always is of the highest standard, even though she’s now coming out with several books a year: usually one romantic-suspense standalone, a paperback trilogy, and two in her In Death series under her pseudonym J.D. Robb. She also usually contributes at least a couple of short stories or novellas to various anthologies. I’m happy to say that in my humble opinion Obsession is a shining example of why Nora Roberts is a bestselling author. 

The story immediately kicks into high gear, when an almost 12-year old Naomi discovers what her strict and controlling father has been doing in the root cellar. The plucky preteen shows more courage and determination than many adults would if faced with similar circumstances. She’s forced to grow up very quickly after her father’s crimes are brought to light, but she and her younger brother Mason are loved, cared for, and protected by their uncle and his husband. Sadly, their mother never truly recovers, and in many respects young Naomi becomes her caretaker. 

When the plot moves to 17 years later, Naomi is a successful photographer who after years of being on the move, surprisingly finds herself buying a house, adopting a dog, and settling into the community of Sunrise Cove. It’s there she meets Xander: business owner, mechanic, singer, and book collector. Yep. A true renaissance man. Like all her male protagonists, Xander is definitely has an alpha-type personality, but that’s okay because so does Naomi. They both believe in telling it like it is, although Naomi is reluctant to share her family background for obvious reasons. Their romance and the way it develops is mesmerizing and utterly believable. They’re both the type of people you’d like to have as friends in real life. 

Another reason why I love Nora Roberts is the way she fleshes out her secondary characters which usually makes me as emotionally invested in them as I am in her main characters. I found this to be the same case here, especially with Naomi’s brother Mason. While he doesn’t play as big a part in the story as Naomi, he’s intriguing enough that I’m hoping he gets his own story.

The actual mystery doesn’t really come into play until halfway through the book, and it wasn’t hard to guess the identity of the killer, which is why I’ve given this only 4 1/2 stars. But honestly, the characters are so engaging that it doesn’t really matter. Naomi’s backstory and how she’s trying to come to terms with what happened, while for the first time in her adult life she’s lowering her barriers and letting people in, makes for some pretty compelling reading itself.

Overall, Obsession is a fantastic read which should appeal to longtime fans of the author as well as readers who haven’t tried her before and are looking for a solid romantic-suspense novel. I always think it’s the sign of a great book when I’m still thinking about it several days after I’ve finished it and that’s turned out to be the case here. Obsession is full of the beautiful detail and compelling characters which are hallmarks of Nora Roberts and will pull you right into the story and not let go until you’ve reached the end. It’s a must read for any fan of this genre!

After She’s Gone ~ By Lisa Jackson – 3.0 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Family Relationships, Hollywood, Mental Illness, Mystery, Serial Killers, Suspense

I received this e-Arc from NetGalley and Kensington in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: December 29th, 2015

Synopsis: Cassie Kramer and her younger sister Allie, learned the hazards of fame long ago. Together, they’d survived the horror of a crazed fan who nearly killed their mother, former Hollywood actress Jenna Hughes. Still, Cassie moved to L.A. urging Allie to follow. As a team, they’d take the town by storm. But Allie, finally free of small-town Oregon, and just that little bit more beautiful, also proved to be more talented–and driven. Where Cassie got bit parts, Allie rose to stardom. But now her body double has been shot on the set of her latest movie–And Allie is missing. 

Police discover that the last call to Allie’s phone came from Cassie, though she has no recollection of making it. Instead of looking like a concerned relative, Cassie is starting to look like a suspect–the jealous sister who finally grew sick of playing a supporting role. As the tabloids go into a frenzy, Cassie ends up on a Portland psych ward. Is she just imagining the sinister figure who comes to her bedside, whispering about Allie–a visitor of whom there is no record? Is someone trying to help–or drive her mad?

Convinced she is the only one who can find Allie, Cassie checks herself out of the hospital. But a sudden slew of macabre murders–each victim masked with a likeness of a member of Cassie’s family–makes Cassie fear for her safety and her sanity. The only way to end the nightmare is to find out what really happened to Allie. And with each new discovery, Cassie realizes that no one can be trusted to keep her safe–least of all herself.

The good news is that although After She’s Gone is a sequel of sorts to Lisa Jackson’s Deep Freeze (2005), this can easily be read on it’s own. The bad news is that while the mystery is interesting enough, the characters are one-dimensional, unlikable, and to be perfectly frank, completely unbelievable.

The heroine of the story is Cassie, and while at the beginning of the story I had a modicum of sympathy for her, it fast disappeared. She scurries from Oregon, to L.A. and back to Oregon in increasingly desperate attempts to find her sister Allie who by all accounts is a despicable person who hates Cassie and has done everything in her power to break up Cassie’s marriage to the dishy cowboy Trent. As past fights between the two sisters are revealed through Cassie’s memories, it becomes clear that no matter how much she dislikes Allie, she keeps going back for more abuse, yet she treats Trent, who has done nothing but love and support her, like dirt. While I understand the bond between the sisters, especially having survived such a horrible childhood trauma, this just strained credibility. Cassie does become more empowered in the latter half of the book, but by that time I just didn’t care.

The mystery surrounding the missing Allie, and an increasing body count made up of people associated with the sisters’ last film Dead Heat, will keep you guessing, although by the time I had reached the midway point I had guessed the why if not the who. While the main mystery is solved, there’s a little surprise at the end that leaves the possibility for a third book about the Kramer family.

I vascillated between giving this 2.5 – 3.0 stars, before finally settling on the higher rating.  While it’s received mixed reviews on Goodreads, there’s quite a few readers who enjoyed this. I think if you’re already a Lisa Jackson fan, you should try it. If you’re new, I recommend you go back and read some of her earlier books before tackling this one.