Mystery

Book Review

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“She knew that someday, her feelings would transform into something else entirely, something beautiful and strong, and the memories would still ache but with a sweet sort of sadness—the way sorrow often does, given enough time.”⁣

Three generations of witches must come together to solve a twenty year old mystery in the small town Yarrow, Kentucky as the witches are known for their shadow garden. Their magic can cure any headache and the fruits of that garden can bring a special quality to the local bourbon distillery where one day every year, a shot of Bonner Bourbon will make your worst memory disappear. But, twenty years ago on that day, the town gave up more than a memory and forgot the entire summer where someone died and the other person disappeared.

This was such a delight! I absolutely loved every single part of it and I can’t believe it’s a debut and i am looking forward to more books by this author.There is more than one romance that goes on in this novel and i love and appreciate that the author focused more on the romance between the older characters than younger. Not that I didn’t like it but it really gave it more of an adult feel and made me more invested in the book itself and I found all the characters interesting and unique with real flaws that made it easy to relate and feel empathy for. The dynamics between the characters felt very real and I did appreciate how the author kept up the suspense till the end as i was turning the page in anticipation about what would happen next. What I absolutely loved the most was the idea of the shadow garden taking pain and turning it into something beautiful in a metaphoric sense of healing from painful experiences. That actually made me tear up and it was executed so well and it could’ve been botched and lost the powerful meaning of what healing really is. All in all, it was a fun, exciting, and heartwarming tale so please check it out!

book Review

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“Men don’t have to pay attention the way we do. Men die because they make mistakes. Women? We die because we’re female.”

In horror movies, the final girl standing is the who’s left when all said is done. The one who survived while others including loved ones, friends, and others around her are gone, the one who fought back and made it to the end of the movie but what really happens to the brave souls who did what they needed to make it to the end? Well as I’m sure you would think anyone who survived something like this is need of extensive therapy and that is exact what happens once they get out of it. These brave women try to not let it define them as they work through their pain together in therapy as a group but what happens when one of the girls doesn’t show up for a session? The others know something is sinister is happening and they must act quickly before they get picked off one by one until there are no more final girls left.

This book was quite a wild ride and one that I didn’t expect to be so all over the place. This is my second book that I’ve read by Hendrix and I do like how he mixes in witty and dry humor as it makes it so more interesting and how he writes horror is done really well with keeping up the suspense throughout till the end.It did take some time to like some of the characters especially Lynette, I found her annoying but I did appreciate how different they were from one another. They seemed like such a odd bunch but the dynamics between them felt very real and not forced or awkward and the ending was absolutely bonkers. Being a horror novel, this book was filled with gore and gruesome acts of violence but it didn’t bother me as much as it would’ve years ago because I’m older and I do enjoy good slasher films from the time to time. If you’re into slashers, you might check this out but if you have a queasy stomach then I would skip this one.

Book Review: Once UPOn A River

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“There are stories that may be told aloud, and stories that must be told in whispers, and there are stories that are never told at all.”

On a dark midwinter’s night in an ancient river Thames, an extraordinary event takes place where the regulars tell stories to while away dark hours, when the door bursts open on a grievously wounded stranger with a lifeless body of a child in his arms. A miracle happens as hours later, the girl stirs and returns to life leaving all those around in shock wondering how she came back to life. Those who dwell on the river bank apply all their knowledge to try and solve the mystery of who this young girl is and what happened to her that would leave her for dead only to come back to life hours later. The town is full of questions and that gets deeper as three families arrive claiming that the young girl belongs to them.

I wasn’t sure what to expect but the more I got into the story, the more invested I became with how the story developed. It does cross into different genres of fantasy, historical fiction, mystery, and magical realism and I was really impressed with how it was done and how smooth the transition was. If handled wrong, I don’t know that I would’ve enjoyed it as much as I did and the addition of fairy tales was what I loved the most. What was really interesting was how the author intertwined reality and supernatural into the story and I thought it was done really well and it’s something that could’ve gone the opposite if not handled the right way. This is a fine line that I think about often and I think most people do and something that is thrilling for them. This book was magical and fun so I highly recommend it!

Book Review

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I may be ruthless but I am not cruel. I think it’s one of the things that Ana likes about me, I do bad things when must but I try to be good.

By day Kiki De Souza and Ana Lezama De Urianza are proper seventeenth century ladies. But when night falls, they trade in their gowns and silk for swords and muskets venturing out into the vibrant, buzzling, crime-ridden streets of Potosi in the Spanish Empire’s Viceroyalty of Peru. They spend their time gambling, crime fighting, and falling desperatly in love with one another. But, on the night Kiki’s engagment to Viceroy’s son is announced, her older brother heir to the family fortune is found murdered. The two embark on a investigation to find what happened to Kiki’s brother and if they’re not too careful, they might find themselves falling into the same trouble as he did.

What a fun retelling of The Three Musketeers with a twist. The majority of the book was very entertaining and faced paced but the one that was missing was the suspense. I didn’t really any danger especially with the villains as you know who they are once they’re mentioned so it was a bit predictable. But, it wasn’t something that really held me back from enjoying the rest of the novel and even though I don’t read YA novels that much anymore, this was a quick and easy read. Though I feel like this could work for older YA and maybe even New Adult cause it does have that kind of feel and I didn’t find anything too cheesy. Ana and Kiki, the two main characters were very fun and i love the banter between the two and although I did like the romance, I think they also work very well by themselves. At first, I found the romance a little rushed because it was very in your face but as time passed on, I started to really enjoy the romance and found it endearing. The chemistry between them sealed the deal for me as I felt that it was very real and even more so that they not only found happiness with each other but themselves. A great read so check it out!!

Book Review: The Murder of Mr. Wickham

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The happily married, Mr. Knightley and his wife Emma are throwing a house party, bringing together distant relatives and new antiquates, characters beloved by Jane Austen fans. It will be a delight for everyone but all that is dashed when a unwelcome guest, Mr. Wickham shows up and it’s very obvious that no one is thrilled to see him as his latest financial scheme has earned him a long list of enemies, including people attending the party. As the party starts, secrets are to be revealed and tensions start to flare with everyone wishing Mr. Wickham would’ve never come at all. But they’re all shocked when the uninvited guest ends up murdered. To solve the mystery, they need someone who isn’t a suspect in the case and that falls on two of the youngest guest, Jonathan Darcy and Northranger Abbey and the two must put aside their poor first impressions before an innocent person is hanged.

This was a really fun who-dun-it and I absolutely loved how it was a retelling featuring Jane Austen’s leading literary characters as she’s one of my favorite authors. I thought the story was nicely done but I do wish that she would’ve added a bit more suspense and action in some of them because it did feel a bit boring at times. It did get chunky but at least the ending didn’t feel so rushed and wasn’t something that I predicted. I am planning on reading more retellings of historical fiction mysteries because I did really enjoy this one and hopefully will find more as enjoyable. If you’re looking for a fun and entertaining who-dun-it than this is it for you!

BOOK Review: ONe Of The Girls

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It was supposed to be the perfect weekend vacation for Lexi’s upcoming wedding that was just around the corner and all the girls were excited about spending it soaking up the sun, drinking martinis, and having fun while trying not to get into too much trouble. But, beneath the dangerous undercurrents, suspicious between the women began mount as each women is hiding a secret and someone is trying to make sure that Lexi’s wedding never happens and that one of them doesn’t leave the island once the trip is over. If the women don’t put aside their suspicious before it’s too late, there may not even be a wedding.

While the start was pretty slow, it picked up towards the middle and I was hooked till the end. The writing was what really helped me stay invested and I loved how well throughout the characters were and Lexi and Bella were the ones I liked and related to the most. It was a little challenging with so many POV’s and some weren’t as interesting as the others but I got used to it. There were surprises that I didn’t see coming which is always a good sign of a mystery living up the hype and being true to the genre. A lot of times there are books that I’ve read that were proposing but I could tell early on what was going to happen. So all in all, it was a fun and exciting thriller!!

BOOK REVIEW: JUST LIKE HOME

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“This house, the house her father built, the house where her mother would die—this place was safe. This place knew her. This place was where she belonged.”

As much as Vera wanted to disobey her mother’s words to come home, she knew that she couldn’t continue to run anymore. She had to face the memories that she had buried deep never to think about them again, to the home that she grew up in and the home of a serial killer. To make matters worse, she’s not alone as there is a parasitic artist is living in the guest house while also stripping up her childhood home. Even though he swears, he’s not the one writing letters in her father’s handwriting, she can’t help but be on her guard a bit more when he’s around. In order to deal with her past, she must face the secrets that will be discovered in the foundations of the notorious Crowder house.

This book was so fucking creepy but at the same time so freaking good. I was on the edge of my seat as I turned the page as I didn’t know what to expect but I didn’t think it would be this creepy. The writing really helped set the mood and I found myself very invested from the beginning and even though it was slow in some parts, I felt as though the pacing was right. Vera is quite an interesting and intriguing character and I did feel for her especially during the parts about her childhood in particular the relationship with her mother. I think that’s something I strongly related to her as I’ve had my own problems with my mother but not to this extent. It’s always hard to read about relationships like this and I thought the way the author handled it was very well done and cheesy. Vera’s family is incredibly complicated, I mean what do you do when you’re the child of a infamous serial killer? This is a spooky and fun book that will leave you wanting more so I highly recommend it.

Book Review

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So, you’re Cat’s new pet, huh?”

After a difficult year at NYU, aspiring writer Lora Ricci feels like things are starting to turn around when she lands an summer internship with Elle, a famous fashion magazine. Upon her arrival, she meets Cat Wolff, the contributing editor and soon Lora finds herself spending more and more time with Cat. Their friendship over the course of the internship leads to Lora dropping out of NYC to be Cat’s ghostwriter and Lora feels like all this is good to be true but at the same time she’s willing to make the move. But, Lora begins to wonder if she made the wrong choice as Cat’s perfect exterior begins to crack leaving Lora to question who she really is.

This was such a wild ride and I love how it unfolded from beginning to end. I found the way of using text messages, emails, phone calls transcripts as a way to tell the story was very interesting. It did take some time to get used to that because most books aren’t done that way but I did like it for the most part. The plot was super interesting and I did find it hard to put the book down because I had to find out what happened next. As for the characters, I found Lora and Cat very interesting and the dynamics between felt very real and although Cat did some very dumb things, I did feel for her at times. All in all, I enjoyed it and if you’re looking for a good mystery thriller, this is it!

Book review

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“Maps are love letters written to times and places their makers had explored.”

For as long as Neil Young can remember cartography has long been her passion and it’s one she shared with her father, Dr. Daniel Young who is a legend in the field and Neil’s personal hero. But, the pair had a nasty falling out due to an old map that she had found and haven’t spoken since he fired her and destroyed her reputation. When Neil hears the tragic news that her father was murdered, she soon finds that out that map that drove them apart is incredibly rare and even if old wounds resurface, Neil knows it’s her duty to find out what happened to her father.

Finally got around to reading this and I’m glad that I did. While it did take sometime to get into story, I did enjoy the plot, characters, and how it developed until the end. I didn’t even really know what Cartography was in depth before this book and it actually made me more interested in it. The way that Shepard weaves into the writing added to the plot and it was very interesting to learn and read more about. What really made me invested into the book were the characters and the writing as I found it engaging and each character were well written with flaws, quirks, and I did enjoy the dynamics with each character. Overall, it was a very good read!