The Innkeeper’s Daughter (The Gentlemen Spies Series #1), By Bianca Schwarz ~ 4.0 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Historical Fiction, Mystery, Romance, Sex Trafficking, Sexual Abuse, Suspense, Torture

Thanks to NetGalley and Central Avenue Publishing for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: January 12th, 2021

384 Pages

Synopsis: In the twilight of a November evening, Sir Henry March, a man of wealth and charm, comes across a badly beaten Eliza, desperate to escape her cruel stepfather. Realizing she has nowhere to go, Sir Henry takes her home to Mayfair.

There, as she recovers, Henry introduces the lovely Eliza to a world of art and literature she never knew existed. But Eliza’s brutal world follows her to London where the salons of the aristocratic elite co-exist with the back alleys of the criminal underground.

Thankfully Henry, a secret agent to the crown is able and willing to deal with the man Eliza’s stepfather had sold her to, and the pimp who plans to enslave her.

As romance blossoms between them, Eliza unearths an old secret that leads them into the dark sadistic world of sex trafficking, and finally allows Henry to identify the traitor responsible for selling military secrets to the French, causing the death of thousands.

A natural at the spy game, Eliza proves herself a worthy partner in their fight for truth and justice. But with time running out, and the fate of one girl hanging in the balance, Henry and Eliza must find a way to outwit a nasty pimp and eliminate a dangerous enemy agent.

The Innkeeper’s Daughter caught my eye both for the beautiful cover, and because the premise seemed reminiscent of My Fair Lady, albeit a much darker version. I sped through this in two sittings, so obviously it was fast-paced and kept me reading. Henry and Eliza are both quite affable and I enjoyed the dialogue between them. I wish Eliza had been written a little older though, even just by a couple of years. A romantic relationship between a man in his early thirties, and a girl barely eighteen, left me a little unsettled, especially given the graphic sex scenes. The secondary characters are equally well-written and had very interesting backstories which added immensely to the main plot. The best part of the story though, was the political intrigue and mystery and that’s what kept me engrossed. Although the villain was revealed fairly early on, there were enough exciting twists to keep me guessing. The ending wraps things up neatly and sets the stage perfectly for the next book, The Gentleman’s Daughter which will be released in July 2021. As you can tell, The Innkeeper’s Daughter isn’t your usual frothy Regency romp. The romance between the two main characters I could have done without, and there are some extremely dark themes here including: sex trafficking, physical abuse, and sexual abuse. In addition to the steamy romantic escapades, there are a couple of graphic sexual torture scenes that made me cringe a bit, but overall I found this to be quite unique in such a crowded genre and I found the story and characters both memorable and entertaining. I’ll definitely be reading the next book.

Imaginary Friend, by Stephen Chbosky ~ 4.0 Stars

Tags

Adult Non-Fiction, Child Abuse, Domestic Violence, Horror, Mystery, Substance Abuse, Suicide, Suspense, Torture

Thanks to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: October 1st, 2019

720 Pages

Synopsis: Christopher is seven years old. Christopher is the new kid in town. Christopher has an imaginary friend. The epic work of literary horror from the #1 bestselling author of THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER.

We can swallow our fear or let our fear swallow us.

Single mother Kate Reese is on the run. Determined to improve life for her and her son, Christopher, she flees an abusive relationship in the middle of the night with Christopher at her side. Together, they find themselves drawn to the tight-knit community of Mill Grove, Pennsylvania. It’s as far off the beaten track as they can get. Just one highway in, one highway out.

At first, it seems like the perfect place to finally settle down. Then Christopher vanishes. For six awful days, no one can find him. Until Christopher emerges from the woods at the edge of town, unharmed, but not unchanged. He returns with a voice in his head only he can hear, with a mission only he can complete: Build a tree house in the woods by Christmas, or his mother and everyone else in the town will never be the same again.

Soon, Kate and Christopher will find themselves in the fight for their lives, caught in the middle of a war between good and evil, with their small town as the battleground.

Imaginary Friend is probably one of the most anticipated books of 2019, as it’s the first book written by The Perks of Being a Wallflower author, Stephen Chbosky, in twenty years. Given how much I loved POBAW and the film adaptation, as soon as I found out about it I contacted the publisher and begged for an eARC. Grand Central Publishing was already one of my favorite publishing houses, but now they’ve gone to the top of my list thanks to their generosity.

Chbosky’s first book as well as its film adaptation has an enormous cult following, so his second twenty years later, is a dream come true, particularly as it’s so different. If you look on Goodreads you’ll see a lot of mixed reactions to it. After spending the last four nights reading, I can say that while I did have a couple of issues, for the most part I really enjoyed it. 

One of the chief complaints seems to be the length. Yes,720 pages makes for a long story, but this didn’t bother me until the last 200 pages. At that point I think the battle between good and evil goes on a little too long and could have been pared down some. One saving grace is that Chbosky and his editor were smart when they decided to make the chapters short because this helps keep the pace going even during the slower sections. The actual horror portion doesn’t truly kick in until a little past the first quarter. Instead, this first part is spent introducing the characters which I didn’t mind at all because I loved them, especially Christopher, a seven-year-old boy who literally winds up having the fate of the world resting on his tiny shoulders. Having a small child be the main character in an adult novel carries quite a bit of risk, but Stephen Chbosky successfully pulls it off. He perfectly captures Christopher’s feelings of confusion, frustration, and fright, as well as his love for his mother and friends. The bond between Christopher and his mom, Kate, is beautiful and one of my favorite parts of the story. 

The story itself is a creative spin on the familiar good vs evil theme. There’s a ton of religious symbolism which may not appeal to every reader, but I thought was entirely in keeping with the storyline. There’s some awkward and repetitive phrasing scattered throughout which was occasionally distracting, but it didn’t substantially detract from my enjoyment. In addition to the main story with Christopher and his family and friends, there are others centered around secondary characters which blend intriguing layers into the larger picture. There are quite a lot of twists, and one in particular that I thought particularly brilliant. The ending perfectly wraps all the plot lines up yet leaves the door open a crack for a possible sequel.

Imaginary Friend may not be the same generation-defining literary achievement as its predecessor was, but it’s a thoroughly enjoyable horror story that’s perfect for fans of books like The Stand, by Stephen King. One word of caution. There are quite a few themes here that may be triggers for some people. These include: child abuse, domestic violence, suicide, torture, substance abuse, and extreme violence and gore. Also, I am now terrified of deer! 

Good Girl, Bad Girl, by Michael Robothom ~ 4.0 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Attempted Rape, Attempted Suicide, Child Abuse, Mystery, Substance Abuse, Suspense, Torture

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

Release Date: July 23, 2019

368 Pages

Synopsis: From the bestselling author of The Secrets She Keeps, the writer Stephen King calls “an absolute master…with heart and soul,” comes a fiendishly clever suspense novel about a dangerous young woman with a special ability to know when someone is lying—-and the criminal psychologist who must outwit her to survive.

A girl is discovered hiding in a secret room in the aftermath of a terrible crime. Half-starved and filthy, she won’t tell anyone her name, or her age, or where she came from. Maybe she is twelve, maybe fifteen. She doesn’t appear in any missing persons file, and her DNA can’t be matched to an identity. Six years later, still unidentified, she is living in a secure children’s home with a new name, Evie Cormac. When she initiates a court case, demanding the right to be released as an adult, forensic psychologist Cyrus Haven must determine if Evie is ready to go free. But she is unlike anyone he’s ever met—-fascinating and dangerous in equal measure. Evie knows when someone is lying, and no one around her is telling the truth.

Meanwhile, Cyrus is called in to investigate the murder of a high school figure-skating champion, Jodie Sheehan, who dies on a lonely footpath close to her home. Pretty and popular, Jodie is portrayed by everyone as the ultimate girl-next-door, but as Cyrus peels back the layers, a secret life emerges—-one that Evie Cormac, a girl with no past, knows something about. A man haunted by his own tragic history, Cyrus is caught between the two cases—-one girl who needs saving, another who needs justice. What price will he pay for the truth? Fiendishly clever, swiftly paced, and emotionally explosive, Good Girl, Bad Girl is the perfect thrilling summer read by internationally bestselling author Michael Robothom.

Good Girl, Bad Girl is the first book I’ve read by Michael Robothom, and while there were a couple of issues I ran into, I still really enjoyed it. 

The best part of the book are Cyrus and Evie. I loved both their backstories and the mystery surrounding Evie, I found especially compelling. I confess I thought her ability of being a “truth wizard” would be more of a focus of the book and was disappointed that it wasn’t. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the same emotional investment in discovering who was behind Jodie’s death. Don’t get me wrong, it was a solid mystery. I think I was just so captivated by the developing relationship between Cyrus and Evie, and the shared traumas between them, that I found Jodie’s story almost distracting. 

All of the characters are extremely well-written, with plenty of flaws amongst them, which serves to make them relatable (although there was one who I found thoroughly detestable and who didn’t get the just desserts they should have.) But again, it’s Cyrus and Evie who are the standouts here and raise this story above others in the same genre.

Good Girl, Bad Girl was an entertaining and quick read, and from the way it ends I will be very surprised if this doesn’t turn into a series. Both Cyrus and Evie are characters I easily grew attached to and I’d love to see more of them. I do want to caution though, there are triggers which some people may have a difficult time with. These include: Descriptions of torture, child abuse, substance abuse, attempted suicide, self-harm, and attempted rape. Otherwise, I highly recommend this to fans of mystery, suspense, and character-driven stories.