Book Review: The Tupelo Grove Series

Colleen Coble and Rick Acker begin their Tupelo Grove series with What We Hide. Other readers in the Christian Fiction Reading Challenge suggested these books really need to be read in order. Thus, I took their advice. Thankfully, the pages flew by and I couldn't stop reading. Plus, the authors kept me guessing until the end. I love that!

Teacher Savannah Webster finds a dead body at Tupelo Grove University. Even though she is currently separated from her lawyer husband Hez, she calls him in to try to clear her name. He wants to convince her he has changed, but she is hesitant to trust again after tragedy ripped their relationship apart. Someone is selling off artifacts from the university's collection. Who is trustworthy?

Every page uncovers a new secret or an unexpected wrinkle. If Savannah is cleared, will her sister Jess be arrested for embezzlement and two murders? How much does Jess really know? Savannah's feelings for Hez simmer and her faith in him is restored by his drive to find the truth. But, the stakes are high and the criminals will pull out all stops to keep their crimes hidden.

Where Secrets Lie offers another adrenaline-rush story. Savannah and Hez continue to try to unravel the artifact smuggling scheme. Danger intensifies. Savannah's job is at risk. Hez's health is compromised. The plot thickens. Their relationship, and the survival of the university, is in danger.

The final installment of the Tupelo Grove series is When Justice Comes. But, will justice flow like a river? Both Savannah and Hez are desperate to win custody of their nephew, but his criminal grandfather holds great power and allure over the boy and the courts. The book holds plenty of moments where characters can only rely on prayer for God's intervention.

I enjoyed this Christian thriller/romantic suspense series. Each book has a compelling plot. The characters interact in believable ways. Savannah and Hez face plenty of tension and realistic conflict. Clearly, both played a role in the dissolution and restoration of their relationship. While things move at a frantic pace, the reader roots for the triumph of good and the defeat of evil.

Book Review: The First Time I Saw Him

The First Time I Saw Him is the riveting sequel to Laura Dave's best-selling book, The Last Thing He Told Me. This book sits at #61 in Suspense Thrillers on Amazon. It is, again, a page-turner. I cruised through in a few days. It was a fairly clean read. No unnecessary blood, guts, and gore and only mild cursing (for emphasis in the crisis moment).

The book picks up where the first installment left off, with the missing husband making a momentary appearance in Hannah Hall's life. Within pages, she receives an anonymous warning to flee because her and her daughter's lives are both in danger. I do wish I had taken time to re-read the first book, to remember more of the elements leading up to this mystery. Still, it could be read as a stand-alone, I'm guessing. The author sums up enough to get the reader up to speed.

Thankfully, these books provide good talking points. They are likely popular with a younger audience because of Reese Witherspoon's endorsements. The first book is now a series on Apple TV. As an older reader, it is always beneficial to keep in touch with what young people are reading. I wonder if my daughter-in-law has read these two books. Maybe I should ask. 

Book Review: The Last Thing He Told Me

A friend read The Last Thing He Told Me, by Laura Dave, because her daughter-in-law was reading it. The book provided a way of connection between the two of them. Thus, I selected it as an audio book for my car rides. I've only known of one book my daughter-in-law and I have both read, but this sounded like one she might pick up. It was a riveting story. There may have been minimal cursing, but it was a clean read. Amazon bills it as an editor's pick for Best Mystery, Thriller and Suspense. Here's Amazon's teaser:

"Before Owen Michaels disappears, he smuggles a note to his beloved wife of one year: Protect her. Despite her confusion and fear, Hannah Hall knows exactly to whom the note refers—Owen's sixteen-year-old daughter, Bailey. Bailey, who lost her mother tragically as a child. Bailey, who wants absolutely nothing to do with her new stepmother.

"As Hannah's increasingly desperate calls to Owen go unanswered, as the FBI arrests Owen's boss, as a US marshal and federal agents arrive at her Sausalito home unannounced, Hannah quickly realizes her husband isn't who he said he was. And that Bailey just may hold the key to figuring out Owen's true identity—and why he really disappeared.

"Hannah and Bailey set out to discover the truth. But as they start putting together the pieces of Owen's past, they soon realize they're also building a new future—one neither of them could have anticipated."

I appreciated the engrossing tale. The pacing was excellent as Hannah and Bailey pursue clue after clue. This is a tale of hard-forged trust and fractured families. I waited with anticipation to see whether Bailey would warm to her stepmother. Teens are difficult to sway (for that matter, even adult children are difficult to sway) when their parent bestows love upon someone other than their mother. I wasn't sure the ending would satisfy, but I think it played out in a way that was best for each character. If you love domestic mysteries, this popular book is worth a look.

 

Book Review: Cold Light of Day

The person seated next to me at the Sara Brunsvold author talk mentioned a flyer on the back table for a Christian book club. I've never taken part in a Christian book club. While I don't attend the church that held the author talk, I relished the idea of reading Christian books (as so many books these days veer into territory I just don't wish to explore). So, I contacted the number on the flyer and attended my first meeting. They were discussing two books because they had devoted the previous meeting to making centerpieces for the tables at the author talk. I knew I'd never complete 2 books, so I picked the one that sounded interesting to me, Cold Light of Day, by Elizabeth Goddard. It is the first book in the Missing in Alaska series. (The other was a fantasy re-telling of the Biblical story of Joseph.)

I've never read a Goddard book before. Turns out she's a prolific award-winning writer and has 60 books to her credit. Sometimes that's a good thing. Sometimes it leads to formula-following. I'm guessing, not having read any before, that this one followed her standard structure. Publishers love to stick with authors they know can lure in masses of readers. Christian publishers seem driven by profit just as much as secular publishers.

Cold Light of Day takes place in Alaska - thus the "cold." Not sure what the "light of day" in the title indicated, although the whole book was driving to truths coming into the light of day. So maybe that was the intent of the title. Because this is an action/thriller novel, the story begins with a helicopter happening upon a rescue scene of a woman drowning in a frigid Alaskan lake. The man swimming to help is a mysterious new resident in the town of Shadow Gap, Grier Brenner.

Much of the story focuses on the tension of attraction between Grier and the police chief, Autumn Long. Autumn wonders why Grier moved to their isolated Alaskan town and why his skills have prepared him so well for helping her battle a new string of crimes. It is true the tension (both in action and romance) keeps the reader turning pages. Goddard certainly knows how to up the ante. The writing is smooth and enticing.

I guess I struggled with the whole genre mash-up. It is billed as a "Contemporary Christian Romantic Suspense Thriller Set in Alaska." I'm good for a contemporary book and one set in Alaska (loved reading about Alaska in Kristin Hannah's The Great Alone). What felt uncomfortable was the insertion of Christian sentiments into the thriller story line. I've complained before about Christian fiction, because so often authors seek to insert a Christian message and that insertion feels intrusive. For me, this was the case in this novel. Tensions are rising and the character immediately stops and contemplates some Christian tenet or idea. It's not that I quibble with difficulties driving us to God, it is just that the references to scripture passages felt unnatural in the midst of life-threatening scenarios. It was like saying, "We interrupt this dramatic scene to share with you a Biblical principle."

In the end, I decided not to join the book club. They focus on Christy award winners and nominees. Doing so ensures well-written and popular books, but my book selection is more broad. Plus, in learning the upcoming titles, many were ones I had no interest in reading (just not into Amish speculative or even Biblical historical fiction and I feared another two might prove difficult as they focused on dementia and hospice). They were very kind and inviting. However, I fear I overshared in my introduction, telling them more than they wanted to know. I may reach out again at the end of the year to learn their titles for 2025. I am certain I would be welcome in the group. Plus, knowing Christian fiction is safe from the equally intrusive agendas in most secular fiction always puts my mind at ease.

Book Review: We Were Never Here

I read Andrea Bartz's We Were Never Here for my May book club meeting. An endorsement on the front cover, by bestselling author Megan Miranda, bills it as "Incredibly tense and atmospheric; a sharp, unsettling thriller about power, obsession, and the inescapable grip of the past." This psychological mind-trip was intense. I described the book to my youngest son, saying it isn't my usual fare (not that I'm against thrillers - I love a wild ride - but haven't been in the mood for intense). Then, I added, "They'll probably make it into a movie, so you won't have to read the book."

We Were Never Here is about best friends Emily and Kristen, who take backpacking trips to foreign countries. Compulsively readable, the book spins a tale of trauma that tests the bonds of trust and friendship. A sexual assault during their travels the previous year left Emily deeply disturbed. Kristen had interrupted the assault and killed the assailant. Fearful of foreign justice systems, they hid the body. The book opens with their current trip to Chile. Kristen takes a man back to the room and Emily leaves her time and space. Yet when she returns to their shared room, she finds Kristen has killed a second time to foil an assault. Once again they dispose of the body.

When Emily returns to her home in Wisconsin, the only person she can talk to about this traumatic event is Kristen. But they must be careful. Moreover, Kristen is acting like nothing happened at all. Emily questions how well she really knows her best friend. Will their heavy secret keep Emily from developing her relationship with her boyfriend, Aaron? Why is Kristen stalking Emily and her friends?

I do expect this to be made into a movie. Yet, the Netflix plans never got off the ground. It would make for a very engaging drama with lots of psychological tension and plenty of twists and turns. If only they could make the movie without overexposure during the sex scenes. The book handled them discreetly, focused primarily on the women's feelings of danger. The assaults serve as springboards for the psychological games that follow.

Book Review: The Good Sister - Highly Recommend

What a riveting read! My mind has swirled with thoughts of The Good Sister ever since I read the first page. I've mentioned it to my family. I've exclaimed about the intricate plot and story this author weaves. So glad I didn't return this to the library unread as tempted when the due date loomed. I was game for a thriller and loved escaping into the microcosm of these sisters. The title is so apt!

Written from two rival perspectives, this story paints a picture of twin sisters who are as different as night and day. One sister, Fern, struggles with autistic tendencies and challenges. I adored her! It was like reading a female version of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime. Her intriguing perspectives are often laugh-out-loud funny! The other sister, Rose, keeps a diary to process her current relational difficulties with her husband. She also writes about the trauma they experienced growing up with their mother. The story hinges on Rose's deep desire for a baby and Fern's eagerness to make that dream a reality by serving as a surrogate.

I enjoyed contemplating so many aspects of the sibling bond. Plus, I devoured the clues, trying to figure out the truth. The writing is excellent, sweeping the reader in and downstream. The characters are unique and their voices clear. I marvel at how expert authors manage the art of pacing. Each snippet from two perspectives comes in well-timed waves. This will be one of my favorite reads of the year. The story was so engaging that, even though the characters live a lifestyle that departs from my moral compass, I lapped it up anyway. If you want to dissect a well-written novel, you would do well to start with this one. I cannot wait to seek further books by Sally Hepworth!

Book Review: You Are Not Alone (thriller)

Since I recently read another book with this same title (entirely different and written for parents of prodigals), I felt I should identify this title. I wondered if this might be a book I'd have to set aside. I devoured a previous page-turner (An Anonymous Girl) by this writing duo, Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen, but worried this one might have inappropriate passages. What a pleasant surprise! Apart from a few (careful, detached) descriptions of some sexual attacks, this book was cleaner than most modern thrillers. The authors even referred to foul words rather than include them (when a young girl heard her mother express curses). The story enticed and held my interest.

When Shay Miller watches a woman fall to her death in front of a subway train, it devastates her. Lonely and disillusioned, she attends the woman's memorial service, hoping to learn more about her. Instead, she meets a few of the woman's glamorous friends. They bend over backwards to be helpful. As they slowly suck her into their sphere, she must decide if they are friend or foe.

With fully believable characters and a fast-moving plot, You Are Not Alone is alluring. I loved Shay's specific affinity for statistics and data. The story kept me guessing throughout. And, as I mentioned, despite covering some dreadful details, it handled such aspects with grace and poise. I'm hoping this writing team continues to churn out psychological thrillers and hoping future ones provide a clean read. 

Book Review: The Night Olivia Fell

Christina McDonald's debut novel, The Night Olivia Fell, presents an intriguing premise and contains a significant moral against deception and infidelity. The police call single mother, Abi Knight, to tell her that her teenage daughter has had an accident. At the hospital she learns that Olivia fell from a bridge. Although the girl is brain-dead, they must keep her on life support because she is pregnant. Yet, despite bruises on Olivia's wrists, the police fail to investigate. Abi wonders why they are not investigating and sets out to unravel the truth. But truth is a rare thing for her. Indeed, Abi has hidden the truth from Olivia as much as Olivia has hidden the truth from her mother.

As debut thrillers go, it was a gripping story. I enjoyed the opportunity to walk a mile in someone else's shoes and to ask myself the difficult question: how well do I know my kids? The premise fully hooked me, but the two-dimensional characters and predictable actions were disappointing. The author kept me guessing, however, and I was wrong in several suppositions. In the end, for me, the mother was too clingy, the daughter too duplicitous, the background story predictable, and the ending unsatisfactory. Still, it was an engrossing tale with great potential. I think this author holds promise if she learns to paint her characters with a broader stroke and avoid stereotypes (wounded, controlling mother, quietly defiant daughter, power-hungry politician, etc.).

Book Review: An Anonymous Girl

Once again, I stumbled onto a book written by two women, a concept I find so alluring. Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen work well together. I was hesitant because their New York Times best-selling book, The Wife Between Us, concerns infidelity and jealousy (I haven't read it). The comparison titles, Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train, didn't encourage me in the slightest. Indeed, at the beginning of An Anonymous Girl, I thought I might have to set the book aside, worried the content might veer off into racy alleys I didn't want to traverse. And it wasn't a wholesome read (protagonist is promiscuous and antagonist is insidious), but I marvel at the authors' expert ability to weave this intricate tale and hold me riveted through hundreds of pages, unable to set it aside for a moment.

The premise lured me in and kept me reading when I felt apprehension. By the time I was midway through, you couldn't tear me away from the book. Jessica Farris is a make-up artist who signs up for a psychology study to make easy money. By answering a questionnaire on ethics and morality, you make $500. The questions are probing and the research professor, Dr. Shields, won't settle for timid answers or lies. She's determined to get to the heart of the subject's moral compass. But something about Jessica (Subject 52) induces Dr. Shields to take the study to a whole new level. With pressing financial needs (help for her disabled sister) and the promise of even greater compensation, Jessica agrees without realizing what it might involve. As things unravel, Jessica gets caught up in the maelstrom. What is the truth? Should she lie? Who can she trust? What motive propels the study? Is this study, on ethics and morality, ethically and morally sound?

The book lived up to the accolades for The Wife Between Us, listed on the back cover: "A fiendishly smart cat-and-mouse thriller." (The New York Times); "Suspenseful and spring-loaded." (The Washington Post); "Buckle up, because you won't be able to put this one down." (Glamour) Indeed, I devoured the book ravenously in two days.

Probably the thing that enticed me the most was contemplating how seemingly innocuous choices can have far-reaching consequences. Two characters in the book take small actions that result in devastating trauma and loss for individuals they love. I am at just such a crossroads myself. As the book grappled with issues of morality, faithfulness, loyalty, and truth-telling, I thought of my own dilemmas arising from innocent, unintentional actions. In the end, my enjoyment of the complexity of the tale, the skillful writing, and the well-paced plot, overruled my hesitations stemming from the less wholesome aspects.

While the authors tastefully shied away from graphic descriptions, simply stating "she slept with him," the unwholesome aspects kept me from highly recommending this book. Still, I must admit it is a well-written, cleverly planned, and carefully executed thriller. I don't regret reading it and will continue to ponder the issues for days to come.

Book Review: The Breakdown

What would you do if you saw a car pulled over to the side of the road but, due to pounding rain, failed to stop only to find out later that the driver was murdered? Would guilt keep you from speaking out? For Cass, the guilt is compounded by a sense of unease as she begins to forget things. Others might be able to pass it off as stress, but Cass knows her own mother had early-onset dementia. It doesn't help that she feels the killer is after her because she continually receives phone calls with dead air on the other end of the line. Is she being watched? Will the killer come after her next?

The audio version of The Breakdown offered excellent narration by Georgia Maguire along with a bonus interview with the author (always a plus in my eyes). I was thoroughly engrossed in the story and marveled at the author's expertise in detailed plotting. It was a very well-done psychological thriller. Now, I'm eager to check out B.A. Paris's other bestseller, Behind Closed Doors. If it is as suspenseful as this one, it is sure to be a riveting read.

Book Review: While You Were Sleeping

The front of While You Were Sleeping bears this tag: "A gripping psychological thriller you just can't put down." So I wondered, as I prepared to write this blog, what makes a really great thriller stand above the rest? But when I googled "qualities of a good thriller," I discovered this Writer's Digest article that clarified the difference between a mystery and a thriller. It says that in a mystery, the protagonist follows clues to solve an already committed crime, while a thriller "details the prevention of a crime before it has been committed." Hmm. That's a distinction I never knew. Still, I think this IS a gripping psychological thriller, instead of merely a mystery. However, I don't know if it carried off all the characteristics of a "good" thriller or even if I agree with the WD list.

At Bookish.com, I found a more compelling list, along with examples of each essential quality. I would say that Kathryn Croft nailed some of these characteristics and failed in others. Her book was a page-turner, but not one that would belong on the Bookish list of quality mysteries and thrillers. While I didn't get a strong sense of place, the novel did have a gripping start (indeed, the premise is what hooked me).

Tara wakes one morning to find she is naked and in her neighbor’s bed. Not only that, her neighbor lies next to her stabbed to death. She has no memory of how she ended up there. The last thing she remembers is enjoying a glass of wine with the neighbor. Intrigued? I was. How's that for opening with an action scene?

The novel also managed a human/flawed hero. Tara attempts to cover up her presence in the neighbor's home and to ferret out the clues for herself. With a clear page-turning pace (another quality), lots of clues are discovered (essential quality) and twists abound. However, here is where I began to feel less-than-satisfied with the execution of this thriller.

Clue after clue mounted, casting suspicion on almost every other character in the book (her unhinged, obsessive daughter, her estranged husband, her husband’s lover, a stalking colleague, the neighbor’s wife, her sister, her sister’s boyfriend, etc., ad infinitum). Suspicions shifted left and right. Yet, I never felt drawn to a single one of the characters and the willful suspension of disbelief was stretched fairly thin. When Tara falls for the inspector, I wanted to throw the book across the room. Lie after lie after lie unraveled in the story, to the point where the reader couldn't rely on anything offered up.

In the end, this novel failed to produce the final quality mentioned in the Bookish article, the quality of making the reader want to read the story all over again. No thank you. Once was enough! It did teach something, however (a quality from the Writer's Digest list). It taught the age-old adages: "the truth shall set you free!" and "oh, the tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive."

Book Review: The Woman in Cabin 10

Even though I wasn't a huge fan of Ruth Ware's thriller, In a Dark, Dark Wood, I decided to give the author another shot when I read the premise behind this novel, The Woman in Cabin 10. The book is about a travel magazine journalist who is invited aboard a press junket voyage of an exclusive cruise ship. While on board, she believes she witnesses a woman being thrown overboard. She is frustrated when the security officer fails to believe her report and even more flummoxed when all the passengers are accounted for.

The book begins with the journalist, Laura Blacklock, experiencing a break-in in her London flat. Has that break-in caused her to be overly anxious or to feel undue fear while she is on board the ship? Did she really hear the splash and see the mark of blood on the neighboring veranda window or was it merely her imagination and nerves at play? Can she be trusted as a reliable narrator when she is on antidepressant medication for anxiety or when she drinks more than she should?

All of these questions stir within the reader as the story unfolds. I was gripped and entertained by the process of listening to the audio version of this book. I did enjoy this book, with its multiple twists and turns, far more than Ware's last offering. However, my chief complaint was with a formatting issue from the audio version. The tracks were unbearably long. One track went on for over 32 minutes. This would be all fine and dandy if I were listening on a device that would stop and restart wherever I had last been in the story. Sadly, the player I use by my treadmill only allows me to stop the track and restart from the beginning of each track. Thus, I would finish my workout and be six minutes into a track, never knowing whether I would require another two minutes or another thirty minutes to finish the track. Groan! Why, oh why, couldn't they have provided three to five minute tracking?

My only other complaint was that you end up absolutely hating Blacklock. She is a whiny, drunken, neurotic narrator and you know from the start to be suspicious of her version of things. Still, if you can get past the annoyance with her character, she does live through a riveting story.

Book Review: I'm Thinking of Ending Things

I don't remember when I put my name on the hold list for this book, or even why, but something about its description in the new acquisitions e-mail must have enticed me. I can't decide how I feel about it. On the one hand, it was an incredibly intense, yet quick read. On the other hand, it completely creeped me out. Yes, it was a thriller, but also a philosophical quest into the nature of identity and loneliness.

Here's the blurb from the inside cover: "In this deeply suspenseful and irresistibly unnerving debut novel, a man and his girlfriend are on their way to a secluded farm. When the two take an unexpected detour, she is left wondering if there is any escape at all. What follows is a twisted unraveling that will haunt you long after the last page is turned.... Reid explores the depths of the human psyche by questioning consciousness, free will, the value of relationships, fear, and the limitations of solitude.... Tense, gripping, and atmospheric, this novel pulls you in from the very first page ... and never lets you go."

I'd have to agree with so much written there. It was deeply suspenseful and irresistibly unnerving. It did, indeed, haunt me. I wasn't anticipating how creepy it would get. While I don't mind being creeped out now and again, it left a bit of a dissatisfied, bad taste in my mouth at the end. Too creepy, I guess.

Book Review: Love You More

In my search for another audio book, I discovered Lisa Gardner's thriller, Love You More. I was so intrigued by the first several riveting chapters that I decided to search up the titles of this author's other books to see if I had read anything else by her.  It turned out that I hadn't, but in the process of checking, I discovered other books with these same characters, so I had a heads up that somewhat ruined the climax of the story for me. I will attempt to write this review without ruining it for any of my readers.

Love You More opens with state trooper Tessa Leoni faced with the simple question "who do you love?" and seconds later, her husband lies dead on the floor. Tessa's fingerprints are on the gun and she is a beaten-up, bruised mess. But the biggest question of all surrounds the whereabouts of her six-year-old daughter, Sophie. Detective D.D. Warren is determined to put all the pieces together and find the daughter or reclaim her body. Did Tessa shoot her husband in self-defense? Did she also murder her daughter and hide the remains? Can she race against time to reclaim what is hers and clear her name? Or is she a bad cop with a history of previous murder?

With twists and turns and unexpected trails, this first-rate thriller is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat wondering who exactly is the bad guy and whether or not that person will come to justice. Add in the tension Detective Warren feels because she has just discovered her own pregnancy and you get a feel for the emotional tug of the story. Parental love is a powerful force and Tessa Leoni refuses to go down quietly. I will happily seek out more thrillers from this author (although I will have to be careful when listening because it did contain a fair amount of foul language - but then, my library only has three other books in audio version of the ten books in the D.D. Warren series).

Book Review: Keep Quiet - Highly Recommend

While the last Lisa Scottoline book I read wasn't necessarily a big hit with me, this one certainly was. Keep Quiet was the best Scottoline thriller I've read yet! The book was captivating from the very first sentence. The premise hooked the reader. Moreover, if you are a parent of a driving teenager, you cannot help but put yourself in the shoes of the dad in this story. Scottoline nailed this one and I have been raving about it to anyone who will listen (I've already persuaded my sister, mother, and Bryce's girlfriend - a reluctant reader - to give it a try)!

Jake Buckman hopes that by picking his son, Ryan, up from the movies, he will be able to spend some quality time in the car working on their struggling relationship. The sixteen year old begs to drive the last bit home, on a deserted road, and even though Jake knows that it violates his son's learner's permit restrictions, he agrees anyway. That decision propels the two of them into a nightmare of unbelievable proportions when Ryan looks away for a moment on a blind curve and hits something in the road. The next split-second decision seals their fate and binds them together in a horrifying secret that threatens to implode the entire family, including the life of Jake's wife, Pam, an upstanding judge.

Scottoline is a master at plotting. She increases the emotional tension in the book by steady increments, throwing barb after barb into the pot of trouble. What results is a roller-coaster ride of emotional resonance and an inability to put the book down. Although I listened to the book in audio form, I felt a strong desire to check out the hard copy of the book as well, so that I could analyze exactly how well the plot was executed. If I had been simply reading the hard copy, I have no doubt that I would have completed the book in one or two sittings. It is just that riveting.

Scottoline also wowed me with her outstanding skill for providing not only entrancing first lines for each chapter but also alluring concluding lines. Every chapter began with a bang and ended on a note of pure enticement. I could only hope to emulate that fine skill in my own writing. Each chapter propels the story along in a steady stream of character and plot development.

While I did figure out the ending in advance, it was still enjoyable getting to the point of revelation. Scottoline expertly played a game of cat and mouse throughout the entire book. Just as the reader catches up to the clues, new clues are laid down to alter the understanding of what is fully going on. I almost want to go back through the book and outline the plot progression because the book is such an excellent example of a well-plotted story.

Even if you aren't a big fan of thrillers, this book will grab you by the throat and refuse to let you go. Your heart will ache for the characters in the story. Moreover, you will be torn between a desire for justice and mercy. And if you are a parent, well ... the story will resonate with your obvious longings to protect your child.

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I was surprised to see one star reviews on Amazon. Apparently, there are readers who felt the characters and their actions were unbelievable. Just goes to show you that every individual approaches a book with personal preferences and expectations. I still highly recommend the book, but thought I should mention that it did garner some negative reviews on Amazon. You be the judge - I doubt you'll be disappointed if you pick up this book (even if you agree with those naysayers that the characters behave in unbelievable ways).

Book Review: Save Me

The boys had two extra days off school for the weekend of Valentine's Day. We made plans to visit Big Splash Adventure water park in Southern Indiana for a few days. Whenever we go to the water park, I try my hardest to bring a book I already own (as opposed to a library book) because of possible water damage. I lucked out when I found a Lisa Scottoline novel in the library's bookstore a few weeks back. I snatched it up (Scottoline is known for her riveting women's thrillers) - good thing, too, because I dropped the book in a puddle of water and completely ruined the cover page of the book.

I must say, all the revision books I have been reading were fresh in my mind as I read this thriller, Save Me. Scottoline certainly knows how to pack powerful story plot points throughout her novel and I was able to clearly identify them and acknowledge what they did for the plot structure of her book. In other words, I found myself reading as a writer, instead of merely reading for enjoyment. The plot structure in this book was foolproof. The reader is pulled along into the story as the main character encounters increasing opposition throughout the tale.

Rose McKenna is very concerned about her daughter, Melly, who is being bullied by another girl in her class, Amanda. Rose decides to volunteer as a lunchroom aide in order to get a clearer vision of what is going on for her daughter. Unfortunately, just as she begins to confront Amanda about making fun of her daughter's facial port-wine birthmark, the unthinkable happens and Rose is thrown into the moral dilemma of deciding which girl to attend to first after the cafeteria explodes and fire rages. Even though Rose assists Amanda toward an exit before breaking down the door to the handicapped restroom to rescue her own daughter, she is caught up in a community uproar based on her decisions in the moment. She stands to lose everything ... her marriage, her children, and her freedom.

Just when you think things have heated up thoroughly, Scottoline pours more gasoline on the fire and the plot thickens. Rose is convinced that she must do the investigating if she is going to find answers to the many questions surrounding the school fire and the deaths associated with it. She puts herself in harm's way several times in her efforts to find the truth. This book will grab ahold of you and not let you go until everything comes clear.

I couldn't help but put myself in Rose's shoes and imagine how devastating the simple act of volunteering could be for a person. The author notes, at the end of the book, that the story germ came from a conversation she had with a friend over what you would do if you had one car seat and had to transport your child's friend home with you - would you put your child in the car seat or the friend? This little moral dilemma led to a rapid-fire, action-packed story about a woman who must decide who to save - her child or the bully? Scottoline's characters and conflicts are realistic and riveting and her plot structure is breathtaking in its precision.

Now, after admiring the writing skill demonstrated, I must vent a few things that I disliked about the book. While the characters are realistic, I didn't get a strong feeling for the marriage relationship demonstrated in the novel. Moreover, the main character eventually morphed into something ridiculous as the author included statements about moms being action-heroes. It grew more and more unbelievable as she took on the role of super-sleuth and investigated everything on her own after dropping her beloved children (aren't they the ones she is supposedly fighting for and desperate about possibly losing) off with friends. Perhaps the emphasis on plot structure became an obstacle to enjoying the tale as a way to think through a delicate moral issue. Indeed, it is probably equally true that plot cannot trump character or the reader comes up dissatisfied with the outcome. Still, even with those caveats, I thought it was a roller-coaster ride of a tale and Scottoline's fans will certainly eat it up.

Book Review: What She Knew

What She Knew is exactly the kind of book my blogging friend Sheila wouldn't pick up. It contains her book kryptonite of something horrific happening to a young child. I, myself, was deeply saddened when the initial germ of this book actually played out in national news this week with the disappearance and eventual discovery of Noah Chamberlin. When the what if you've created for the sake of a story, is so entirely plausible and possible, it kicks the story up a notch. While I was able to disconnect and read without putting myself in the narrator's shoes, it was still an uncomfortable, haunting story.

When Rachel Jenner's husband left her and married another woman, she was left with a deep ache and the daunting task of primary custody of their eight-year-old son, Ben. It is her husband she is thinking of when Ben asks if he can run ahead during their walk in the woods. He would encourage the boy's independence, so she makes the decision to allow him to run with his dog to the rope swing on his own. It is something they've done every Sunday for months and months. He certainly knew the way. Yet, somehow, he is now missing and every hour that passes submerges her deeper into a mother's worst nightmare.

The story is told from multiple perspectives through blog entries, therapy transcripts, newspaper clippings, and the dueling narration from the mother and the chief detective on the case. I thought it was somewhat cumbersome, but did understand the author's purpose in selecting that format. In this manner, the reader is allowed to see multiple perspectives. Moreover, social media response is typical in this day and age, so its inclusion was entirely understandable.

While I didn't dislike the book, it wasn't a book I feel compelled to encourage others to read. The writing is good and the premise is enticing, but I didn't come away with an overwhelmingly positive reaction to the tale. Here's what I liked: the author does an outstanding job of getting inside the mind of a parent who is facing such a devastating loss and mystery. I appreciated the page-turning suspense of the story. I was so absorbed in the story that I became unaware of the author (this is definitely the mark of good writing).

Several areas simply bothered me. It felt like the story barely progressed at all in the first 200 pages. Once the premise was set in motion, no progress on the case was made and it was simply providing background information on the characters (who they are and where they are coming from). At the 200 page mark, the story kicked into gear and became the page-turner it is billed as on the back cover. But, even with more action and deeper trails into the mysterious disappearance, the details felt sensationalized. There are multiple characters who have a dead child in their background. The carnage of human baggage each character carries just got to be a bit too much to believe. There's a revelation about a long held secret. The detective battles his demons. His partners have equivalent demons in their backgrounds affecting their actions. I began to feel there wasn't a single normal (untraumatized) person in the entire story. I began to think "Okay, what is the author going to throw at us next in an attempt to wrangle an emotional response from the reader?"

As far as psychological thrillers go, this is probably considered a good one. It did keep the reader guessing about the truth and how the conflict will finally resolve. I didn't grow fond of any of the characters, but I was eager to get to their true identities. You wonder why the police officer is suffering from PTSD. You wonder if Rachel is, indeed, who she says she is. But, still, I came away unconvinced. Thus, even though the writing was sound, the story just didn't appeal to me in the final analysis.

Book Review: In a Dark, Dark Wood

I had my doubts about this book, In a Dark, Dark Wood. I almost set it aside, but I was already 70 pages in and felt somewhat invested. Moreover, the premise had intrigued me and I truly did want to find out what was about to happen. Just wishing it hadn't taken so long to get to the crux of the matter and without the trashy behavior.

Leonora Shaw (known to her friends in the past as "Lee" but now going as "Nora") is shocked and perplexed when she is invited to a hen party (I'm guessing this is the British ritual where the bride-to-be gathers with several girlfriends for a last hurrah girl's weekend away) for her old best friend, Clare. She hasn't been in contact with Clare for a full decade, but is eager to know why Clare would want to invite her. Instead of firing off an e-mail to ask directly, she decides to attend the gathering.

Here's where the story got a bit off-track and into territory I was uncomfortable with. First off, there's a man in the party (sure, the guy is gay, but how does this work as a girl's weekend?). Secondly, they begin to party in what must be fairly standard behavior for such occasions: tequila shots, cocaine, and games of "I have never..." Frankly, the story could have been told just as effectively without those unsavory bits, but once again, perhaps the author felt inclined to include such behavior because that is what sells books these days. Who knows.

The premise remained interesting and I persevered. The small cast of characters form an unlikely group, completely unaware that they are not alone in their isolated house in the woods. Nora awakens in a hospital bed, attempting to piece together the events leading to that point. She remembers blood on her body, running frantically through the woods, encountering a car and having some sort of accident, but other details remain fuzzy.

The story is very similar to an Agatha Christie mystery - isolated house, small cast of characters, murder, endless possibilities of motives, and the intrigue of attempting to ferret out the truth. Although I didn't feel drawn to any of the characters and didn't really root for anyone in particular, I did think it was fairly good for a debut novel. I was eager to keep reading to find out what truly happened and who was responsible. I feel like I should have figured it all out long before I did. But, it left me hanging and reading at a frantic pace. I did have to suspend belief on several questionable links in the plot, but I was perfectly willing to do so. I liked it better than The Girl on the Train, but perhaps still would have liked a story written by Christie instead.

Book Review: The Hangman's Daughter

It was kind of funny. When I went to the book club meeting where we selected our eleven books for the year, I brought my list, which included markings for books I'd already read, books I would probably go ahead and read even if they didn't end up being selected by the group, and only one book marked as something I was not interested in at all. Two of our selections were ones I've already read, but would indeed be willing to read again. Three selections were ones I had marked to be read regardless. And, the one book I didn't want to read at all, well  ... that made this month's selection: The Hangman's Daughter.

I wasn't excited about reading a book about an executioner. Nor was I thrilled that the book promised to explore cries of witchcraft  in seventeenth century Bavaria and to include the appearance of a character known by the people as the devil, who boasts a hand of visible bones. None of that appealed to me in the slightest. I really thought about not reading the book at all and just skipping March's club meeting. I declared to my husband that I was only giving the book 50 pages to make my decision. Somehow, at the end of 50 pages, I wanted to read on to find out what was going to happen and who was responsible for the crimes being committed in the small town of Shongau.

From the beginning, the reader learns that the executioner is not thrilled about his job, but feels resigned to follow in the footsteps of his ancestors. Then, dead children begin to show up. The first is pulled from the icy waters of a raging river, with multiple stab wounds and a strange mark etched into his skin. The mark is taken for a symbol of witchcraft and immediately the town suspects the midwife (who deals in many natural remedies or brews for childbirth and its complications). I was sucked in. I wanted to know who was killing the children (three were murdered) and to what purpose. I wanted to find out if the town would indeed employ the executioner to torture the midwife into a confession so they could tidy things up by burning her at the stake.

Potzsch certainly manages to keep the suspense alive and to up the ante over and over again. Just when you think the hangman and the young town doctor (who is disgracing his father by falling for the hangman's daughter) will come to harm in their quest for the truth, they manage to escape and a further development is revealed. The remaining children hold the key to the mystery, but in fear they are hiding out in an undisclosed place.

So, I have to admit that I enjoyed the novel more than I anticipated. Still, it wasn't without fault. I was jarred by the constant use of phrases which seemed far too modern for the time frame established. It was translated, so perhaps the translator is responsible for the modern terminology. While the book held my interest, it felt like the author was trying hard to maintain a frantic pace of action. It seemed more thriller than historical fiction (or perhaps it was just that the historical bits didn't seem to ring true always). Even though I discovered that this is merely the first book in a series, I can say with certainty that I won't be seeking out the rest of the books. Just not my thing (although better than I expected).

Book Review: Her

Somewhere when I read a review of The Girl on the Train, it included information about this book, Her, by Harriet Lane. When I saw it at the library, I felt compelled to pick it up. If you listen to the numerous accolades written about this novel you will be expecting something monumental and frankly, a whole lot better than what it turned out to be. The critics have called it "compelling," "gripping," "chilling," "captivating," "spellbinding," "mesmerizing," "nail-biting," and "haunting." It is true, I am haunted by the ending.

The teaser declares "You don't remember her - but she remembers you." It is billed as a story about a woman who recognizes someone who has done her wrong in the past, but the woman from the past no longer recognizes her. This woman goes on to stalk the dreaded person from the past, with the goal of revenging the long-festering ill done to her. Okay, I admit, I was pulled in. I was captivated. I felt compelled to discover what that horrible wrongdoing was and how it would be revenged. It seemed to take forever to get to the moment of reveal and revenge.

Oh my goodness! When I finally discovered just what this young woman unconsciously did (nothing to justify the revenge sought), and then when it ended the way it ended, I was beyond miffed. I was outraged. How horrible! How tragic! How unjust! I hated the main character. I cannot abide the idea of the numerous ways she sucked this unsuspecting woman into her present life and tortured her without any hint of what she was actually doing.

I cannot recommend this book. It does indeed haunt me. I cannot wait to read something positive and uplifting. I want to fill my brain with good vibes. This book was disturbing, to say the least. Yes, I turned pages fairly quickly, but if I could I would unread it!