Tropical Girl Reads

Title:- One For Sorrow

Author:- Helen Fields

No. of pages:- 370 pages

Date published:- will be published on March 3rd 2022

Genre:- Thriller

Rating:-

One for sorrow, two for joy
Edinburgh is gripped by the greatest terror it has ever known: a lone bomber is targeting victims across the city, and no one is safe.
 
Three for a girl, four for a boy
In their jobs, DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach deal with death every day. But when it becomes clear that every bomb is a trap designed to kill them too, the possibility of facing it themselves starts to feel all too real.
 
Five for silver, six for gold
With the body count rising daily and the bomber’s methods becoming ever more horrifying, Ava and Luc must race to find out who is behind the attacks – or pay the ultimate price…
 
Seven for a secret never to be told…

I have read Helen Field’s standalone novel The Shadow Man and I was very much impressed with her work that I have decided to read all her books. Well, One for Sorrow is actually a DI Callanach series and even though I haven’t read a single one of DI Callanch series, I actually didn’t mind and read this book more like a standalone novel. And boy, I enjoyed reading this book so much!

A series of bombins are taking place around Edinburgh targeting victims including ones who are working in law enforcements, both DI Callanach as well as DCI Ava must find the bomber before claiming more victims.

I was that into the book when I started reading this one. The story changes back and forth in the timelines–to the present day where bombings are claiming victims with the bomber’s tactics beginning to improve to the past about an innocent girl named Quinn who is being harrassed and stalked by her ex boyfriend Liam. Initially, through reading this book, you do find that there’s a connection between the past and the present. The writing was really good and the author did a good job of drawing the reader into the story, making the reader feel like they are in a cat and mouse chase finding the bomber! This was filled with twists and turns, and quiet unputdownable as I stayed up all night reading this book, waiting to find out what’s going to happen next though I had a pretty much idea on who the bomber is towards the end of the book. The ordeal that Quinn had gone through was heartbreaking and emotional. But nonetheless, while reading this book, I felt like I was watching an action packed movie on the TV!

Overall, if you like fast paced thriller then this book is one for you–worth five stars!

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

An international and Amazon #1 best-selling author, Helen is a former criminal and family law barrister. Every book in the Callanach series has claimed an Amazon #1 bestseller flag. The last book in the series, ‘Perfect Kill’ was longlisted for the Crime Writers Association Ian Fleming Steel Dagger in 2020, and others have been longlisted for the McIlvanney Prize, Scottish crime novel of the year. Helen also writes as HS Chandler, and has released legal thriller ‘Degrees of Guilt’. Her audio book ‘Perfect Crime’ knocked Michelle Obama off the #1 spot. In 2020 Perfect Remains was shortlisted for the Bronze Bat, Dutch debut crime novel of the year. Now translated into 16 languages, and also selling in the USA, Canada & Australasia, Helen’s books have won global recognition. Her historical thriller ‘These Lost & Broken Things’ came out in May 2020. Her first standalone thriller – The Shadow Man – from HarperColllins will be published on February 4, 2021. She currently commutes between West Sussex, Scotland and California. She lives with her husband and three children. Helen can be found on Twitter @Helen_Fields for up to date news and information or at http://www.helenfields.co.uk.

Title:- The Girls in the Fire

Author:- Dea Poirier

Date published:- will be published on 4th March 2022

Publisher:- Bookouture

No. of pages:- 313 pages

Genre:- Thriller

Rating:-

Harlow looked down at a photo of her victim and couldn’t reconcile it with the body found by the lake. Here was a young and carefree woman, gazing at the camera with her striking emerald green eyes, her long black hair waving in the breeze. But within an instant her future had been extinguished. Harlow had to find out why.

When the remains of a young woman are discovered on the edge of Saranac Lake in upstate New York, local law enforcement immediately call Detective Harlow Durant. When she arrives at the scene, she instantly knows this case will get under her skin. Lying just beyond the picturesque lake popular with families are the remains of a victim who has seemingly been burned to death. With very little evidence remaining, Harlow begins scouring missing persons reports.

The victim is identified as twenty-six-year-old Ellie Gordon—a fun-loving young woman who worked in the bookstore and enjoyed going out with friends. When her mother comes to ID the body, she reports her daughter’s gold crucifix missing and the hunt begins to locate it and any potential DNA evidence. But as Harlow starts to piece Ellie’s last movements together, another body is found. The victim was killed in exactly the same way and worked with Ellie.

Witness statements identify a local man who was obsessed with both women and when Harlow sees video evidence of him pawning the gold necklace, she thinks she has her man. But when he too winds up dead, Harlow has to start over. The only other link to the women is Gavin Croswell, one of the most powerful men in the town. But with a whole host of alibis, pinning the murders on him is almost impossible.

With time running out to find the killer before another woman loses her life, the case soon becomes personal when Harlow’s car is violently run off the road. Someone wants to warn her off the case and they will use anything they can to threaten her. Even if it means exposing her own dark secret.

Can Harlow confront her demons to save another innocent life from being lost? And just how much is she prepared to sacrifice?

An absolutely addictive serial killer thriller perfect for fans of Melinda Leigh, and Robert Dugoni’s Tracy Crosswhite series.

Detective Harlow Durant is back with another criminal case!

When the remains of a woman’s body was found near the lake, the local PD contacts Detective Harlow Durant to the scene. The woman’s body is badly burned and charred and is barely recognizable. Detective Harlow Durant must solve the case before another victim will be snatched and dealing with her own past demons.

What made me get interested in this book is Harlow’s background–a serial killer father and coming from a dysfunctional family. This time, the author has given us snippets of Harlow’s relationship with her father who killed women almost twenty years ago and the timelines shift back and forth–to the present where Harlow is investigating the current case to the past that happened twenty years ago that changed her life forever. Nonethless, this book is fast paced thriller, with the twists and turns, the numerous suspects that leave you confused as to who would be the real killer. The ending was shocking and unpredictable and I was so immersed into the book that I stayed up all night reading this book! The very end is a cliff hanger, something that makes the reader like me to crave for the third book and wouldn’t wait to see what is going to happen next!

If you are looking for some start of detective series, I recommend this series to you all. This is fast paced, page turned with twists and turns you wouldn’t expect–worth five stars!

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

Author Dea (D.H) Poirier is the author of NEXT GIRL TO DIE, which hit #1 in the Amazon charts. She was raised in Edmond, Oklahoma, where she got her start writing in creative writing courses. She attended The University of Central Oklahoma for Computer Science and Political Science. Later, she spent time living on both coasts, and traveling the United States, before finally putting down roots in Central Florida. She now resides somewhere between Disney and the swamp. Follow her on twitter https://twitter.com/deapoirierbooks

Lately, I have been having a reading slump and also I was a little bit busy. so I am a bit late posting the reviews!

Title:- Return to Blackwater House

Author:- Vikki Patis

Date published:- will be published on 1st March 2022

Publisher:- Hodder and Stoughton

Genre:- Psychological Thriller

No.of pages:- 280 pages

Rating:-

You can run from your past, but you can’t hide forever…

Rebecca Bray has moved on from a childhood she desperately wants to forget.

She has everything she’s ever wanted – the perfect fiancé, a loving stepdaughter, a career she’s proud of, and now the house of her dreams.

But when the family move to the Cornish village where Rebecca grew up, everything she wanted to bury from those years starts to claw at the surface.

Then, when her stepdaughter goes missing at a New Year’s Eve party, Rebecca must finally face the ghosts of her past – or Ava might never come home safely…

A haunting, atmospheric read full of twists, turns and bumps in the night – perfect for fans of Ruth Ware, Nuala Ellwood and Sophie Draper.

Rebecca Bray returns to her childhood town in Cornwall, after she has inherited a house known as “Blackwater” from Gwen. She remembers all those fond memories of her childhood and teenage years and vowed never return back to the town. She and her fiance Daniel and his daughter Ava seemed to be the perfect family, living in this new house.

But one day, Ava goes missing. And while investigating Ava’s disappearance, Rebecca’s past came back to her tormenting, a past she vowed to forget…

This is really a good book. Though this was actually a thriller, to me, this was actually an emotional roller coaster ride, especially when reading towards the end and you find what Rebecca’s secret and past was, you feel a bit emotional and at times it was heartbreaking.

The story divides between the past–when Rebecca, Daniel and Ava moves into the house to the present, when Ava has disappeared and the police taking part in the case. In the beginning, we see a different picture of this picture perfect family but towards the middle of the book…well let’s just say, it’s not as picture perfect as it seems. The writing was engaging, the author doing a great job making the reader immerse into the story and making the reader feel like they are part of the story as well. I was so engrossed into the book and simply couldn’t put the book down. The characters, particularly Rebecca is broken character and despite being not biological mother and daughter, Rebecca and Ava seem to have a very strong bond with each other.

Nonetheless, the ending left me emotional and it was a bit heartbreaking.

Overall, this was a good thriller, that will make you emotional as well as unputdownable–worth five stars!

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

Vikki Patis is the bestselling author of psychological thrillers In the Dark (2021), The Wake (2020), Girl, Lost (2020), The Girl Across the Street (2019), and The Diary (2018). Girl, Lost, a top 100 bestseller on Amazon, was later longlisted for the Not the Booker Prize 2020. Return to Blackwater House will be published by Hodder & Stoughton in March 2022.

She is represented by Emily Glenister at DHH Literary Agency and also writes historical fiction as Victoria Hawthorne. Her first historical suspense novel, The House at Helygen,

Title:- The Summer We Buried

Author:- Jody Gerhman

Date published:- will be published on 8th March 2022

Genre:- Psychological Suspense

Rating:-

An unthinkable crime—and the tattered threads of a friendship gone wrong—come roaring back to terrible new life in Jody Gehrman’s riveting psychological suspense, perfect for fans of Joshilyn Jackson.

Twenty years ago, Tansy was drawn to Selene’s hard edges, her grit, and her knack for survival. Since then, the confused tangle of guilt about covering up a murder shattered their friendship, and even now, at thirty-eight, Tansy has never come to terms with what happened that night.

But now, Selene is back, demanding her old friend repay her. Selene’s daughter, Jupiter, attends the college where Tansy works as a guidance counselor. Selene is convinced that Jupiter’s boyfriend, Colton, is abusive, and wants Tansy to intervene. As she is drawn back into the intensity of Selene’s world, Tansy discovers the ugly truth about Colton. But Tansy suspects there’s far more to the story, and now she’ll finally have to confront Selene once and for all.

So I requested this ARC and was glad that I got this book. Though I was a bit skeptical about this book, to my surprise, I actually enjoyed reading this book!

Tansy is a counsellor at the university when her former best friend, Selene waltzes into her office one day, asking her to repay for a deed that they both have committed many years ago during the summer. Selene’s daughter, Jupiter is attending the same university and Selene is convinced that her boyfriend, Colton is abusing her. Reluctantly, Tansy agrees to help her and soon, she discovers some dark secrets about Colton and at the same time develops a bond between her and Jupiter and a romance blossom between her and Zack, Selene’s brother.

Initially, the first few chapters were a bit boring but gradually, the story got interesting. and intriguing as I kept continuing to read the book. Selene seemed to be a very complex character that as a reader, you don’t know, if she is really telling the truth or not. Tansy is loyal and helpful and a likable character in my opinion. Jupiter, suffers just like any other domestic victims insecure though later on, she starts becoming stronger with the help of Tansy. The writing was engaging that the author did a good job of drawing the reader into the story, making the reader feel like they are also the part of the story.

Overall, if you like a bit of a family drama, then I would recommend this book–page turner and the few parts in the book can make you emotional and heartbreaking–worth four stars!

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

Jody Gehrman has authored thirteen published novels and numerous plays for stage and screen. Her suspense novels include Watch Me and The Girls Weekend. Her Young Adult novel, Babe in Boyland, won the International Reading Association’s Teen Choice Award and was optioned by the Disney Channel. Jody’s plays have been produced or had staged readings in Ashland, New York, SanFrancisco, Chicago and L.A. Her newest full-length, TribalLife in America, won the Ebell Playwrights Prize and received a staged reading at the historic Ebell Theater in Los Angeles. She and her partner David Wolf won the New Generation Playwrights Award for theirone-act, Jake Savage, Jungle P.I. She holds a Masters Degree in ProfessionalWriting from the University of Southern California and is a professor of Communications at Mendocino College in Northern California.

The first book review of the month of February!!

Title:- The Replacement Wife

Author:- Darby Kane

No. of pages:- 412 pages

Format:- Audiobook

Date published:- December 28th 2021

Genre:- Psychological Thriller

Rating:-

The #1 International bestselling author of Pretty Little Wife returns with another thrilling domestic suspense novel that asks, how many wives and girlfriends need to disappear before your family notices?

Elisa Wright is a mom and wife, living a nice, quiet life in a nice, quiet town. She’s also convinced her brother-in-law is a murderer. Josh has one dead wife and one missing fiancée, and though he grieved for them he starts dating someone new. Elisa fears for that woman’s safety, and she desperately wants to know what happened to her friend, Josh’s missing fiancée.

Searching for clues means investigating her own family. And she doesn’t like what she finds. A laptop filled with incriminating information. Other women.

But when Elisa becomes friends with Josh’s new girlfriend and starts to question things she thinks are true, Elisa wonders if the memories of a horrible incident a year ago have finally pushed her over the edge and Josh is really innocent. With so much at stake, Elisa fights off panic attacks and a strange illness. Is it a breakdown or something more? The race is on to get to the truth before another disappearance because there’s a killer in the family…or is there?

Content Warning:- Substance Abuse, Mental disorder

After reading her debut book, Pretty Little Wife by the same author, I was excited when I got hands to her second novel, the Replacement Wife. However, I hate to say, this book did not live up to my expectations and didn’t come close to Pretty Little Wife, which I devoured in one go.

Elisa Wright is a dutiful wife and mother. After a shooting incident that left Elisa traumatized, she gets suspicious of her brother-in-law Josh, when she discovered some messages exchanged between a person named “concerned” and Abby, Josh’s fiancee, who went missing after she starts receiving messages from the “concerned”. Josh has a dead wife, a missing fiancee and Elisa thinks her brother-in-law is a murderer. But when Josh brings in a new girlfriend and introduces to the family, Elisa must do whatever to prevent the same fate that Josh’s previous partners faced.

The plot was good–is Josh really a killer or whatever that are happening to his partners are a list of unfortunate incidents? Elisa also on the other hand is an unreliable narrator that you would think whether she is truly delusional about her brother-in-law or not. However, besides the plot being good, there were so much negative points about this book.

Too much repetition made me bored–everyone is talking about Elisa suffering from traumatization, Elisa’s obsession towards her brother-in-law to the point of stalking him was a bit too much for me. None of the characters in the book appealed to me. But nonetheless, I kept the book going, thinking ok maybe, I might find something intense and interesting. Even the part towards the ending got interesting but eventually, it was…well, I didn’t like the ending much. I was confused. If I outline my doubts about the ending, I might as well put in some spoilers but I decided simply to say…I didn’t like the ending. It was unbelievable, unrealistic and nothing like how Pretty Little Wife ended.

This wasn’t a fast paced thriller, not much twists and turns, too much repetitions that will make you bored. Worth 2.5 stars.

Darby Kane is the pseudonym of a former trial attorney and award-winning romantic suspense author. Her thriller debut, Pretty Little Wife, was a #1 international bestseller and a recommended read in The New York Post, The Skimm, Huffington Post, Refinery29, Book Club Girl, Style Caster, and Popsugar. A native of Pennsylvania, Darby now lives in California and runs from the cold. Her next domestic thriller, The Replacement Wife, will be released in December 2021. Visit darbykane.com for more information.

Title:- The Lying Wife

Author:- Kathryn Croft

No. of pages:- 303 pages

Date published:- will be published on 24th February 2022

Publisher:- Canelo

Genre:- Psychological Thriller

Rating:- 4/5 stars

Be careful what you wish for…

Callie has known sadness, and sometimes doubted she would ever have the life she wanted. When she meets James, also no stranger to grief, it seems as though her luck has changed. She becomes his wife, and in the process a stepmother to his two sons. Callie has finally got what she always imagined for herself.

But things don’t go to plan for Callie. She tries to get things right, but at every turn she makes mistakes. If she can only show her new family just how much she cares, perhaps everything will be okay. Yet the harder she tries, the more she fails. A split-second decision leads to her spiralling out of control, and there is no way back for Callie.

When the police arrest her for murder, the dark tale of Callie’s shocking fall from grace slowly unfolds. But how much is Callie willing to reveal about the choices she made? If those she cares for the most learn the truth, they will hate her. Will her secrets be her undoing? Or will she tell the truth, no matter the cost?

A compelling psychological thriller with an unforgettable ending from #1 bestseller Kathryn Croft. Perfect for readers who love Sheryl Browne, Alison James and Claire McGowan.

OK, I thought this book was actually a good thriller!

Callie is married to James and James has two sons from his previous marriage, Dillon and Luke. As much as Callie tried to be a good stepmother, Dillon and Luke couldn’t stand her. Then Callie meets Dillon’s best friend Rhys and the two embark on an affair…

The first part of the story was boring but gradually, it got interesting and intense with some twists and turns. Although Callie’s affair with a teenage boy like Rhys was slightly disturbing to read, nonetheless, the author manage to get the reader hooked into the story without going astray. Callie in my opinion is quite an unlikable character–I mean just because she thinks her husband is having an affair doesn’t mean she should have an affair…let alone a teenage boy! I do like the shifting of the timelines when Callie is questioned by the police to the past that led her being to that situation. The ending was a little unexpected and I liked the ending.

Overall, it was a good thriller–worth four stars!

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

Kathryn is the bestselling author of eight psychological thrillers and to date she has sold over one million copies of her books. Her third book, The Girl With No Past spent over four weeks at number one in the Amazon UK chart, and she has also appeared on the Wall Street Journal’s bestsellers list.

With publishing deals in sixteen different countries, Kathryn’s ninth book will be be published in May 2022. Kathryn writes full time and is now hard at work on her tenth book.

After twelve years living in London, she now lives in Guildford, Surrey, the place she grew up, with her husband, two children and two crazy cats.

http://www.kathryncroft.com

Title:- The Baby Shower

Author:- S.E. Lynes

Date published:- will be published on 1st March 2022

Publisher:- Bookouture

No. of pages:- 360 pages

Gnere:- Psychological Thriller

Rating:-

She doesn’t know I’m there, watching her in the mirror. She slides her hand under her blouse. And then I see something impossible. She isn’t pregnant…

She bursts into my life like a storm, and nothing is the same again. She seems so perfect, with her lilting laugh and her beautiful face. One by one, I watch as my friends fall under her spell.

Only I seem to suspect something. Only I see that her smiles don’t reach her cold, furious eyes. And when I’m accused of things I didn’t do, when my home is vandalized, I know she’s behind it. But she only lets her mask slip when no one is looking, so if I say anything, I’ll look crazy.

So when the baby shower comes around I’m there, sitting on a velvet sofa in a posh hotel room, surrounded by balloons. We share gifts, we pour small glasses of champagne, and she beams, her bump just visible under her bright red shirt.

But that afternoon, I finally learn the unbelievable truth.

There is no baby…

This was actually really good!

Jane and Sophie had been friends…until Lexie comes along. Lexie changes Jane’s life drastically so much that she loses her only friend Sophie to her, who has fallen into her spell. Lexie somehow makes Jane’s life miserable, for no reason. Then both Sophie and Lexie gets pregnant and Lexie hosts a baby shower at her expense. By chance, Jane sneaks into Lexie in the bathroom…and finds that she wasn’t pregnant and has been faking it…

Initially, it started out a little slow but gradually, it started gaining its momentum. The story is told from Jane’s perspective mostly and also Frankie, Jane’s boyfriend, who falls into a woman named Natasha’s charm. Towards the middle of the book, with the start of the baby shower–things start getting interesting with Jane finding out that Lexie is faking her pregnancy. Jane being a loyal friend tells Sophie who dismisses her and the two friends stop talking. It was really intense what with Jane finding out about Frankie and soon, the ending got really interesting. I kind of predicted the ending but nonetheless, I was hooked into the book from start to finish! The author did a good job of drawing the reader into the story. I started liking Jane as in my opinion, she is a strong and courageous woman. I was glad “SPOILER ALERT” that she and Sophie did not continue being friends .

This is quiet an unputdownable thriller that will keep you up all night–worth four stars!

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

Hello and welcome to my Amazon author page – thank you for your interest in me and my books! My official author biography is below…

S.E. Lynes is the Amazon #1 best selling author of THE HOUSEWARMING, VALENTINA, MOTHER, THE PACT, THE PROPOSAL, THE WOMEN, THE LIES WE HIDE, CAN YOU SEE HER? HER SISTER’s SECRET and her latest, THE BABY SHOWER, out on preorder NOW for publication March 1st.

A former BBC Producer, she has lived in France, Spain, Scotland and Italy and is now settled in Greater London. After completing her MA, S E Lynes taught creative writing at Richmond Adult Community College for ten years. She now combines writing, mentoring and lecturing in Richmond Borough.

Lynes has also published three children’s books in Italy: IL LEOPARDO LAMPO, LA COCCODRILLA INGAMBA, and the bilingual LA SCIMMIA SPIRITOSA/THE FUNNY MONKEY, all available at Amazon.it

Title:- The Last House Guest

Author:- Megan Miranda

No. of pages:- 369 pages

Date published:- June 20th 2019

Genre:- Psychological Thriller

Rating:- 3/5 stars

Never overstay your welcome…

One year ago, Avery’s best friend Sadie was found dead – dashed on the rocks the night of the infamous end-of-summer party. To Avery’s disbelief, the police quickly rule Sadie’s death a suicide.

A year later new evidence surfaces that suggests Sadie was murdered. Evidence that places Avery under suspicion. Grief-stricken and ostracized, Avery must clear her name before she’s branded a killer…

The Last House Guest was in Reese Witherspoon’s book club list so I decided to check the book out–I am having mixed feelings about the book.

Avery’s friend Sadie disappeared on the night of the summer end party. Her body was later found and the police ruled it out as suicide. Later on the police confirmed that Sadie was murdered and Avery was the main suspect. Avery must do anything to clear her name and find the real killer.

The story is mainly told from Avery’s point of view and divides the time between the days before the party to the present day. Initially, it was a slow burn, now very fast paced and it kind of got boring but towards the end, it got interesting with some twists along the way. The ending was OK. However, it wasn’t that of a great thriller but in my opinion it was an OK one for me.

Overall, I give this book a three star rating.

Megan Miranda is the New York Times bestselling author of ALL THE MISSING GIRLS, THE PERFECT STRANGER, and THE LAST HOUSE GUEST, a Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick. She has also written several books for young adults, including COME FIND ME, FRAGMENTS OF THE LOST, and THE SAFEST LIES. She grew up in New Jersey, graduated from MIT, and lives in North Carolina with her husband and two children.

Her next adult suspense, THE GIRL FROM WIDOW HILLS, will be published on June 23rd, 2020.

Follow @MeganLMiranda on Twitter and Instagram, or @AuthorMeganMiranda on Facebook.

http://www.meganmiranda.com