Tropical Girl Reads

Title:- Jackal

Author:- Erin E Adams

Date published:- October 4th 2022

No. of pages:- 322 pages

Genre:- Thriller/Horror

Rating:-

Plot:- 4/5

Writing:- 4/5

Overall rating:- 4/5

A young Black girl goes missing in the woods outside her white Rust Belt town. But she’s not the first—and she may not be the last. . . .

It’s watching.

Liz Rocher is coming home . . . reluctantly. As a Black woman, Liz doesn’t exactly have fond memories of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, a predominantly white town. But her best friend is getting married, so she braces herself for a weekend of awkward and passive-aggressive reunions. Liz has grown, though; she can handle whatever awaits her. But on the day of the wedding, somewhere between dancing and dessert, the bride’s daughter, Caroline, goes missing—and the only thing left behind is a piece of white fabric covered in blood.

It’s taking.

As a frantic search begins, with the police combing the trees for Caroline, Liz is the only one who notices a pattern: a summer night. A missing girl. A party in the woods. She’s seen this before. Keisha Woodson, the only other Black girl in school, walked into the woods with a mysterious man and was later found with her chest cavity ripped open and her heart missing. Liz shudders at the thought that it could have been her, and now, with Caroline missing, it can’t be a coincidence. As Liz starts to dig through the town’s history, she uncovers a horrifying secret about the place she once called home. Children have been going missing in these woods for years. All of them Black. All of them girls.

It’s your turn.

With the evil in the forest creeping closer, Liz knows what she must do: find Caroline, or be entirely consumed by the darkness

The pitch of the story sounded really great that I instantly wanted to try this book out! Liz Rocher returns back to small town Johnstown, Pennsylvania very reluctantly and she was one of the Black girls. She came back to the town to attend her friend’s wedding. But when her friend Mel’s child, Caroline goes missing on that day, and as Caroline is a biracial child, then things get worse. The police tried to blame and pin point evidence against Liz but black girls have been brutally murdered in that small town since 1985…

I have to say, the story started out really great. It was intriguing, mind gripping and engaging and I was literally on the edge of the seat. Is there a serial killer that no one knows about? A serial killer since 1985 that targeted on black girls? I was literally engrossed into the story, wanting to find out what is going to happen next. There were snippets on the girls that were murdered, so as a reader you can get an insight of what their life was like hours before they were murdered. I do like the small poems and myth that is written in the book.

And…but when it came to the end…I was disappointed. I know it was a horror book, but did not really expect that kind of ending. I really thought…ending was lame which hugely disappointed me and lowered a rating on the book.

Nonetheless, this is the author’s debut book and cannot wait tor read more books from this author!

Erin E. Adams is a first-generation Haitian American writer and theatre artist. She received her BA with honors in literary arts from Brown University, her MFA in acting from The Old Globe and University of San Diego Shiley Graduate Theatre Program, and her MFA in dramatic writing from NYU Tisch School of the Arts. An award-winning playwright and actor, Adams has called New York City home for the last decade. Jackal is her first novel.

Title:- The Suspect

Author:- Kathryn Croft

Date published:- will be published on 8th February 2023

Publisher:- Bookouture

No. of pages:- 359 pages

Genre:- Psychological Thriller

Rating:-

Plot:- 5/5

Writing:- 5/5

Overall rating;- 5/5

My family said he killed my mother. They lied…

I was just a little girl, fast asleep in my stroller, the day my mother was killed. I don’t remember anything about the sunny day that turned so dark.

But now, twenty years later, when the man walks towards me in the shadows of an empty street, his eyes on me for just a fraction too long, a shiver goes down my spine. I recognise his face from the picture in the papers. He killed my mother.

I try to run but he wants me to listen. He says that he is innocent, that the police got it wrong, and that my family have been lying to me for years.

My father and sister tell me to stay away from him. They remind me that because of him my mother never got to tuck me in at night or ease me through my first heartbreak. My boyfriend begs me to ignore him and says he could be dangerous. But when he is found dead, I am shaken to my core. Who needed to keep him quiet?

I won’t feel safe until I find out what he wanted to tell me. And when I go to his flat and find a photo that proves he was telling the truth, I suspect that the person who killed my mother is far closer to home than I could have imagined. What dark secrets are the people I love hiding? And if I search for the truth, am I placing my own life in danger?

Twenty years ago, Jess was in her buggy when her mother was murdered in the park. She had no recollection of who killed her mother at that time. Now in the present day, a man approaches towards Jess. Jess immediately recognized him as the man who was accused of her mother’s murder but when the man tells her that he was innocent, Jess was confused. Her family seemed to have lied to her and Jess is determined to uncover the truth about what really happened to her mother and who actually did murder her mother.

The story divides between past and the present, the present mainly told in Jess’s POV and the past mainly told from Lori’s Jess’s mother’s POV and is set in 1993. This was very intriguing to read and I was hooked into the story from the start of the chapter till the end. Lori’s part was interesting as she finds that she had been in a relationship with a married man and she was going to start a new life by enrolling into a university thus taking her daughter with her. There were moments in the story where you were put on the edge, there were some twists and turns and the ending was an unexpected twist! Overall, there is whole bunch of family drama in this book, which made this book more compelling to read.

So if you are looking for an unputdownable thriller with a bit of family drama in it, then try reading out this book. Worth five stars!

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

Title:- Little Lost Souls

Author:- Stacy Green

Date published:- will be published on 30th January 2023

Publisher:- Bookouture

No. of pages:- 335 pages

Genre:- Thriller

Rating:-

Plot:- 4/5

Writing:- 4/5

Overall rating:- 4/5

To save the lost children of the city, she must put herself into terrible danger…

On the streets of Philadelphia, as the snow falls and black ice settles in dark back alleys, lost and vulnerable teenagers are being snatched off the streets. When one of them is found alive, Private Investigator Lucy Kendall knows she will never forget the sight of the boy’s brown eyes, forever dulled. She vows to find the monster behind the suffering.

Desperate to save the lost children of the city, Lucy goes into the dark places where the police cannot. But when a key witness is found dead, and a strand of Lucy’s long red hair is located near her body, Lucy suddenly finds herself under suspicion and on the run.

The chief of police knows all about Lucy’s own dark past and is convinced she’s guilty. Hiding in the shadows, unable to trust anyone, Lucy continues her search for the real killer. At last, in a dangerous suburb of the city, she befriends vulnerable fifteen-year-old Riley, who claims to know who the murderer is.

But when Riley disappears, Lucy must race to find the twisted soul responsible for snuffing out the lives of these little lost souls before another innocent girl is taken. Lucy is determined to get justice even if it costs her freedom… or her life

A gripping, page-turning thriller full of mystery and suspense. Perfect for fans of Rachel Caine, Lisa Reganand Robert Dugoni.

Previously published as See Them Run

This is the second book of the Lucy Kendal series.

Teenagers are being snatched from the streets and when Lucy saved one teenager, she vowed to bring the ring down. But when one of the main witnesses was murdered and Lucy is the main suspect she must try to save herself by finding the person who actually killed the witness.

This was a fast paced unputdownable thriller and I felt like I was watching an interesting thriller movie while reading this. The author manage to grip the reader to the story making the reader feel like they are also part of the story.overall I enjoyed it and worth four stars.

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

Title:- The Blue Bar

Author:- Damayanti Biswas

Date published:- 1st January 2023

Publisher:- Thomas and Mercer

Genre:- Thriller

No. of pages:- 396 pages

Rating:-

Plot:- 5/5

Writing:- 4.5/5

Overall rating:- 4.5/5

On the dark streets of Mumbai, the paths of a missing dancer, a serial killer, and an inspector with a haunted past converge in an evocative thriller about lost love and murderous obsession.

After years of dancing in Mumbai’s bars, Tara Mondal was desperate for a new start. So when a client offered her a life-changing payout to indulge a harmless, if odd, fantasy, she accepted. The setup was simple: wear a blue-sequined saree, enter a crowded railway station, and escape from view in less than three minutes. It was the last time anyone saw Tara.

Thirteen years later, Tara’s lover, Inspector Arnav Singh Rajput, is still grappling with her disappearance as he faces a horrifying new crisis: on the city’s outskirts, women’s dismembered bodies are being unearthed from shallow graves. Very little links the murders, except a scattering of blue sequins and a decade’s worth of missing persons reports that correspond with major festivals.

Past and present blur as Arnav realizes he’s on the trail of a serial killer and that someone wants his investigation buried at any cost. Could the key to finding Tara and solving these murders be hidden in one of his cold cases? Or will the next body they recover be hers?

This was an enjoyable and thrilling ride and the first thriller book I have read set in Mumbai with a touch of Bollywood in it.

In 2000 Tara wearing a blue sequined sari goes into the station and leaves the station within three minutes as she was asked to. That was the last time anyone had seen Tara. Now present day, Arnav Tara’s lover who is a police inspector was asked to visit a site belonging to a rich estate mogul, where they had found skeletal remains. Thinking that Tara might be one of the victims as many wore blue sari and were dancers at the blue bar, Arnav must catch the killer who has been roaming in the streets of Mumbai for years.

This was fast paced thriller and quiet unputdownable and literally I was hooked into the story. The author must have done tremendous research on the book as some of the things mentioned in the book was realistic-‘ corruption among police forces and politicians, prostitution, bribes and the glamour of Bollywood. The story is mainly told in Arnav and Tara POV and do like thd vivid description of the city of Mumbai with Marathi or Hindi added into the story. Overall I enjoyed reading this book and if this book is a series I cannot wait to read the next one- worth five stars!

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

Damyanti Biswas is an author, blogger, animal-lover, spiritualist.

Her work has been published in Smokelong Quarterly, Ambit, Pembroke Review, Griffith review among many others in the US, UK, and Australia. She also serves as one of the editors of the The Forge literary magazine.

Her Indian debut literary crime novel You Beneath Your Skin was an Amazon bestseller, and optioned for the screens by Endemol Shine. Her next novel, The Blue Bar, was published in Jan 2023 via Thomas & Mercer. It was a number one new release on Amazon.

Be sure to follow Damyanti on Bookbub for the latest on sales and giveaways. Say hello on Twitter or Instagram : where she loves chatting about books, cake, and existential angst.

Title;- Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six

Author:- Lisa Unger

Date published:- November 8th 2022

No. of pages:- 396 pages

Genre:- Psychological Thriller

Rating:-

Plot:- 5/5

Writing:- 4/5

Overall rating:- 4.5/5

Three couples rent a luxury cabin in the woods for a weekend getaway to die for in this chilling locked-room thriller by New York Times bestselling author Lisa Unger.

What could be more restful, more restorative, than a weekend getaway with family and friends? An isolated luxury cabin in the woods, complete with spectacular views, a hot tub and a personal chef. Hannah’s loving and generous tech-mogul brother found the listing online. The reviews are stellar. It’s his birthday gift to Hannah and includes their spouses and another couple. The six friends need this trip with good food, good company and lots of R & R, far from the chatter and pressures of modern life.

But the dreamy weekend is about to turn into a nightmare. A deadly storm is brewing. The rental host seems just a little too present. The personal chef reveals that their beautiful house has a spine-tingling history. And the friends have their own complicated past, with secrets that run blood deep. How well does Hannah know her brother, her own husband? Can she trust her best friend? And who is the new boyfriend, crashing their party? Meanwhile, someone is determined to ruin the weekend, looking to exact a payback for deeds long buried. Who is the stranger among them? 

I have always wanted to read Lisa Unger and so I am so happy when I found the audio version of this book on Scribit!

The story starts with three couples rent a luxury cabin for the weekend located deep in the woods. The cabin involves a perfect getaway with a personal chef, a cabin found by Hannah’s brother. Yet as they moved into the cabin, they realize that someone else was also in the cabin, a dark history about the cabin and the storm that seemed to be brewing in and the couples realizes that they have been hiding secrets from each other.

This was really gripping and fast paced! I was literally hooked into the story from the beginning to the end and I felt like I was watching some sort of a horror/thriller movie while reading the book! The book divides between the past, starting from 1997 to the present with a different story background until they seemed to be connected towards the end. Each characters are unreliable with a secret of their own, something that I liked. There were some twists and turns and the ending was a dramatic ending. The only bad thing about this book is there were some unnecessary characters but then it was OK. Overall, it was a great psychological thriller book that kept me on the edge–fast paced, unputdownable and mind blowing! Worth 4.5 stars.

Lisa Unger is the New York Times and internationally bestselling author of twenty novels, including SECLUDED CABIN SLEEPS SIX, LAST GIRL GHOSTED, and CONFESSIONS ON THE 7:45 — now in development at Netflix, starring Jessica Alba. With books published in thirty-three languages and millions of copies sold worldwide, she is regarded as a master of suspense.Unger’s critically acclaimed novels have been featured on “Best Book” lists from the Today show, Good Morning America, Entertainment Weekly, People, Amazon, Goodreads, L.A. Times, The Boston Globe, Sun Sentinel, Tampa Bay Times, and many others. She has been nominated for, or won, numerous awards including the Strand Critics, Audie, Hammett, Macavity, ITW Thriller, and Goodreads Choice. In 2019, she received two Edgar Award nominations, an honor held by only a few authors, including Agatha Christie. Her short fiction has been anthologized in The Best American Mystery and Suspense, and her non-fiction has appeared in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, NPR, and Travel+Leisure. Lisa is the current co-President of the International Thriller Writers organization. She lives on the west coast of Florida with her family

Title:- Every Missing Girl

Author:- Leanne Kale Sparks

Date published:- will be published on February 7th 2023

No. of pages:- 272 pages

Genre:- Thriller

Rating:-

Plot:- 4/5

Writing:- 4/5

Overall rating:- 4/5

The stunning landscape of Colorado’s Rocky Mountains are among our greatest natural treasures. But there are deadly secrets lurking in the craggy heights. FBI Special Agent Kendall Beck and Denver Homicide Detective Adam Taylor team up to investigate a kidnapping crime, but the case quickly turns cold. When Taylor’s niece, Frankie, suddenly vanishes at a local hockey rink, it’s clear that there’s a predator on the loose—and now, the case has turned personal.

One discovery after another leads Beck and Taylor closer to the truth, as they close in on the devastating truth about the fates of the missing girls—and the many who came before them. Will they be able to find Frankie before it’s too late? In this thrilling story, Leanne Kale Sparks weaves the threads of this harrowing drama and builds the intensity to a fever pitch.

This is the second book of Kendall Beck series but I haven’t read the first book of the series though it didn’t really matter when I started reading this.

FBI agent Kendall Beck and homicide detective Adam Taylor team up together to solve a kidnapping case though it becomes cold. However, Taylor’s niece, Frankie suddenly vanishes after a practice and soon the case becomes personal. And soon they begin a cat and mouse chase game as they realise there are other girls who had been abducted and missing.

The beginning of the story was intriguing and mind hopping. I was completely engrossed into the story. However, in the middle of the book, it wasn’t very compelling but the pace was good and it helped me to get interested in the book. There were twists and turns and the ending was what actually made my breath drew away–it was really great. I was literally hooked on the end. Overall, if you like an engaging police procedural then try out this book–I am looking forward to read the third book of the series. Worth four stars.

Many thanks to Netgally and the publisher for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.

Title:- The Snow Storm

Author:- Triona Walsh

Date published:- will be published on February 2nd 2023

Publisher:- Bookouture

No. of pages:- 335 pages

Genre:- Psychological Thriller

Rating:-

Plot:- 3/5

Writing:- 3/5

Overall rating:- 3/5

It’s an icy New Year’s Eve. Snow blankets a windswept Irish island as the wild Atlantic Ocean rages.

Six friends gather. It has been ten years since the tragedy that tore them apart. A lot can change in a decade…

Childhood bonds are now lifelong secrets.

Dear friendships have twisted into deep jealousies.

A happy reunion is shattered by a dead body.

The celebrations have barely begun when one of the guests goes missing. As the snow thickens, the body is found.

Then the storm wreaks havoc on the island. Everyone is trapped – there is no way out. No electricity. No phone signal.

Nobody knows who to trust. No one is who they seem. Because one of them is a killer, and one will be dead next…

The story starts with six friends reuniting on New Year’s even even though there was an icy storm brewing in. They were reuniting after ten years when a tragedy tore them apart. However the reunion soon becomes a nightmare when one of their friends was found murdered and was dumped by the cliff. And as you go further, you see there are deep secrets among your friends–a secret that might threaten to ruin their friendship and one of them could be a murder.

If you have read Ruth Ware’s One By One, this book did sound similar to that book. I have to say, I did like the pitch and the plot of the story however, I felt or maybe it was just me that the pacing of the thriller book was slow. I couldn’t really get into the story like I really wanted to and I felt there weren’t much twists or thrills. However, towards the middle, it got a bit interesting. The story itself is also unpredictable although the ending wasn’t as predictable as I thought it would be. However, I did like the Irish names, the Irish words and the descriptions of the sceneries of Ireland which made me imagine what Ireland look like. Overall, in my opinion, it wasn’t really a great thriller but it was an OK thriller. If you like a book set in winter storm, then you can try this book. Worth three stars.

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

Title:- A Slow Fire Burning

Author:- Paula Hawkins

Date published:- August 31st 2021

Genre:- Psychological Thriller

Rating

Plot:- 4/5

Writing:- 3/5

Overall rating;- 3.5/5

When a young man is found gruesomely murdered in a London houseboat, it triggers questions about three women who knew him. Laura is the troubled one-night-stand last seen in the victim’s home. Carla is his grief-stricken aunt, already mourning the recent death of yet another family member. And Miriam is the nosy neighbor clearly keeping secrets from the police. Three women with separate connections to the victim. Three women who are – for different reasons – simmering with resentment. Who are, whether they know it or not, burning to right the wrongs done to them. When it comes to revenge, even good people might be capable of terrible deeds. How far might any one of them go to find peace? How long can secrets smolder before they explode into flame?

This is the third book I have read of Paula Hawkins so I was excited when I got the book.

The story begins with the gruesome murder of a man named Daniel Sutherland. There were three women involved in his life–Laura a troubled woman who was last seen leaving the victim’s boat house, Carla, the victim’s aunt dealing with the death of a close relative and Miriam, the nosy neighbor with a secret past. All these three women has some sort of connection with each other.

To be honest, initially, the story started slow burn and partially boring. It got interesting towards the middle, and I feel there are two sets of the stories told in the book–one about a notorious serial killer that Miriam escaped from as a young girl back in 1980’s coupled with the murder of Daniel. As a reader we discover each of these women’s deep secrets. It got more and more interesing towards the end, although I wished the author had written a little about the serial killer case more. This wasn’t her best book and still the Girl in the Train, her debut book will be her best but it wasn’t horrible either. But if you are into slow burn thrillers, then try out this book–worth 3.5 stars.

Paula Hawkins is the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller The Girl on the Train, which was made into a major motion picture.