Tropical Girl Reads

The invitation is anonymous. It doesn’t say whose funeral I must attend. I don’t want to go. But I have no choice if I want to keep my terrible secret safe…

As we gather by the graveside, prying eyes behind designer sunglasses take in my every move. I don’t recognise anyone. I pull at my dress, wanting to run, but the words on the invitation keep me frozen in place. I can’t leave without discovering who sent it. And why.

And then I see it – the name on the Alice Anderson. My blood turns to ice.

That’s my name.

I haven’t used it for three years. But somehow, someone here knows who I really am…

I can’t fall apart now. I can’t lose everything I’ve worked for. So I force my hands to stop shaking and start studying each face in the congregation.

I don’t know who the woman in the grave really is. But I have planned for this very moment, and I know exactly what’s going to happen next…

This totally addictive page-turner from bestselling author Helen H. Durrant is perfect for fans of The Housemaid, Gone Girl and The Perfect Marriage. Prepare to be hooked from the very first page.

This book was not as good as I thought it was going to be.

Donna receives a mysterious email to attend a funeral and that she must attend if she does not want to reveal her secrets. Donna has no choice but to attend the funeral. However, when she reaches the funeral parlor, the name of the deceased person is Alice–Donna’s real name. Now Donna works for a family and takes over the role of an assistant–the same role that the deceased person used to have. And as Donna is working, she finds many disturbing secrets about the family.

The story actually started out great, creating a tense and eerie atmosphere and there was something going to happen in the story. However, as the story subsided, the story kind of got boring in my opinion. It was slow paced, and the story in my opinion kind of seemed to be out of order or rather, the writer didn’t execute the story well to an amazing plot. Nonetheless, I think I would like to give this author another chance and try out her future books. The pacing was slow and there wasn’t too much twists and turns that you would expect in a thriller book. Overall this book is worth three stars.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture fo the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.

Her father was one of the most prolific serial killers in American history. Now Detective Margot Phalen must face a chilling what if it runs in the family?

As the daughter of notorious serial killer Ed Finch, Margot has spent decades escaping her past—changing her name, her appearance, and building walls no one can breach, except her partner, Detective Wes Fox, whose growing closeness threatens the isolation she depends on.

When her troubled brother shows up needing a place to stay, pressuring her to participate in a true crime documentary about their father, Margot’s carefully controlled world begins to unravel. Then she notices blood on her brother’s shoes just as a body is discovered in a dumpster near her home. Is she being paranoid, or might the monstrous legacy of her father be closer than she ever imagined?

A visit to her imprisoned father delivers another Ed had an accomplice who’s still free—and still hunting. As Margot investigates, she must confront the question that’s haunted her entire how much of her father’s darkness might she carry within herself?

Dark, gripping, and emotionally raw, this taut thriller will have you reading late into the night. Perfect for fans of Karin Slaughter, Tana French, and Lisa Gardner.

This is the fourth book of the Detective Meghan Phalen series and boy I simply couldn’t put the book down.

Detective Margot Phalen is the daughter of America’s most prolific serial killers Ed. Her father is incarcerated but someone is copying what her father had done many years ago. Meanwhile, Margot and her partner are set to investigate an arson case where a woman was almost burned to death and Margot and Wes must find the person responsible for the arson.

I couldn’t follow up with most of the characters since I haven’t read the first three books but it didn’t really matter to me. I really liked the pacing–it was fast paced and unputdownable in my opinion. There are some twists and turns and I like how the author managed to put the reader on the edge. I really enjoyed reading this book and couldn’t wait for the fifth book to come soon.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Storm publishing for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.

New York Times bestselling author Megan Miranda returns with a gripping and propulsive thriller that opens with the disappearance of a journalist who is investigating a string of vanishings in the resort town of Cutter’s Pass—will its dark secrets finally be revealed?

Ten years ago, Abigail Lovett fell into a job she loves, managing The Passage Inn, a cozy, upscale resort nestled in the North Carolina mountain town of Cutter’s Pass. Cutter’s Pass is best known for its outdoor offerings—rafting and hiking, with access to the Appalachian trail by way of a gorgeous waterfall—and its mysterious history. As the book begins, the string of unsolved disappearances that has haunted the town is once again thrust into the spotlight when journalist Landon West, who was staying at the inn to investigate the story of the vanishing trail, then disappears himself.

Abby has sometimes felt like an outsider within the community, but she’s come to view Cutter’s Pass as her home. When Landon’s brother Trey shows up looking for answers, Abby can’t help but feel the town closing ranks. And she’s still on the outside. When she finds incriminating evidence that may bring them closer to the truth, Abby soon discovers how little she knows about her coworkers, neighbors, and even those closest to her.

Megan Miranda brings her best writing to The Last to Vanish, a riveting thriller filled with taut suspense and shocking twists that will keep you guessing until the very end.

I like reading Megan Miranda’s books and so this book is no exception. A unique plot like, about hikers going missing through the Appalachian trail. A journalist, who comes to this small town starts to investigate the missing case but he himself also disappears. Abby Lovett has been working in the inn for almost ten years and when the journalist’s brother Trey comes back to look for the answers about his brother’s disappearance, Abby also start investigating on her own.

The pacing was a bit slow but I really like the plot of the story. Did something happen to those hikers? Or is a serial killer on lose? This was to me an OK read in my opinion. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t great either. The twist at the end wasn’t great as I thought it will be. To me, this book was more an emotional thriller than a psychological thriller in my opinion. It wasn’t unputdownable like most thrillers should have been but it was OK.

Overall this book is worth 3.5 stars in my opinion.