She Lies in Wait by Gytha Lodge |ARC Review

 

She Lies in Wait by Gytha Lodge

Published: January 8, 2019

Publisher: Random House

Pages: 368

Genres: mystery, thriller, suspense, police procedural, contemporary fiction 

Rating: 4 stars

Recommend to fans of: mystery and suspense books, people who rock climb 

Foodie Vibes: orange juice and vodka for the wild parties the teenagers had 30 years ago 

 

Synopsis: 

Six friends. One killer. Who do you trust? A teen girl goes missing after a night of partying; thirty years later, the discovery of her body reopens a cold case in an absorbing novel featuring a small-town cop determined to finally get to the truth—for fans of Tana French and Kate Atkinson.

On a scorching July night in 1983, a group of teenagers goes camping in the forest. Bright and brilliant, they are destined for great things, and the youngest of the group—Aurora Jackson—is delighted to be allowed to tag along. The evening starts like any other—they drink, they dance, they fight, they kiss. Some of them slip off into the woods in pairs, others are left jealous and heartbroken. But by morning, Aurora has disappeared. Her friends claim that she was safe the last time they saw her, right before she went to sleep. An exhaustive investigation is launched, but no trace of the teenager is ever found.

Thirty years later, Aurora’s body is unearthed in a hideaway that only the six friends knew about, and Jonah Sheens is put in charge of solving the long-cold case. Back in 1983, as a young cop in their small town, he had known the teenagers—including Aurora—personally, even before taking part in the search. Now he’s determined to finally get to the truth of what happened that night. Sheens’s investigation brings the members of the camping party back to the forest, where they will be confronted once again with the events that left one of them dead, and all of them profoundly changed forever.

This searing, psychologically captivating novel marks the arrival of a dazzling new talent, and the start of a new series featuring Detective Chief Inspector Jonah Sheens.

 

Review:

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House and Gytha Lodge for an ARC ebook copy to review. As always, an honest review from me. 

She Lies in Wait is quite an addictive read. This mystery captures my attention from the very beginning and didn’t let up. The author creates suspense in part by alternating chapters, between present day and the night Aurora died. As soon as we get another clue, we can’t be sure what’s the truth or a lie.

The book was especially suspenseful, because everyone had something to hide, even  one of the police detectives. As a reader, I didn’t know who to trust, but also wanted to believe that everyone was innocent. The mystery and tension was great.

A few parts I found myself getting a little lost, but nothing that dramatically affected the story. Also I much preferred the friends as teenagers and the police as adults. The friends as adults weren’t as intriguing and tension filled as it could have been. 

Overall, a really good book in the genre. I definitely recommend giving it a read!

 

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Do you love being able to guess the killer correctly early on, or never figure it out yourself?

 

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New Release | A Bad, Bad Thing by Elena Forbes

 

A Bad, Bad Thing by Elena Forbes 

Published: December 1, 2018

Publisher: Severn House Publishers 

Pages: 320 

Genres: mystery, police procedural, crime, thriller

Rating: 2 stars 

Recommend to fans of: romantic relationships getting in the way of work, criminals helping out the cops

Foodie Vibes: coffee and leftovers to keep you going when you’re busy 

 

Synopsis: 

Eve West, a police officer with a hidden past, is drawn into a dark and complex case when she’s asked to investigate a miscarriage of justice.

A highly effective police officer, albeit one who keeps her past carefully hidden, Eve West is suspended from duty after a police operation goes catastrophically wrong. Receiving help from an unexpected quarter – a criminal she put away many years before – Eve feels she has no choice but to agree to his request to investigate a possible miscarriage of justice in return. But why is a hardened criminal like John Duran so keen to help a fellow-inmate convicted of the murder of a stable-girl? And why has he chosen Eve to look into the case?

Teaming up with crusading journalist Dan Cooper, Eve begins to uncover disturbing flaws in the original investigation. But as her past is dragged to the surface, she comes to realize she has been plunged into a case more complex and sinister than she ever imagined.

 

Review:

Thank you to NetGalley, Severn House Publishers, and Elena Forbes for an ARC ebook copy to review. Sorry about the late book review. I was out of power due to a winter storm for 3 days, so I’m a bit behind on book reviews. As always, an honest review from me. 

I ended up DNFing this book. It’s not bad but only okay. I found myself not really getting into the read. Despite all of the action, drama and suspense my interest wasn’t held enough to warrant me continuing to read the book.

I think one of the main reasons I didn’t connect with the book was that I didn’t connect with the main character. That’s one of the most vital elements for me loving a book.

The plot does have promise though. There’s intense drama and lots of police investigations. Also a criminal reaching out to a cop makes for an interesting read. 

So if you connect with the story at the beginning, then A Bad, Bad Thing is probably for you. Unfortunately the book wasn’t a good match for me as a reader. 

 

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What You Missed Wednesdays – Police Procedural Edition

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

 

What You Missed Wednesdays is exactly as it sounds!

Book reviews of each week’s genre of choice that you might have missed, and I think you should really hear about.

3 Books a Week with 3 Words/Phrases to Describe Them 

Click on the title of each book to be taken to my full review.

I hope you find new books that you’re excited to add to your TBR!

———————————————————————-

 

A Secret to Die For by Lisa Harris

3.5 stars

Conspiracy theories, PTSD, hackers and power grids

Add to your Goodreads TBR

 

Truth and Lies by Caroline Mitchell 

4 stars

Engrossing quick paced read, serial killer family member, reminds me of the TV show Criminal Minds

Add to your Goodreads TBR

 

Triple Threat by Camryn King

3 stars

Behind the scenes look at the professional basketball world, romantic drama, professional journalism skills used for sleuthing 

Add to your Goodreads TBR

 

___________________________

Well there you have it!

Another edition of What You Missed Wednesdays.

Keep coming back each Wednesday for more Can’t Miss Books!

Which book(s) are you now adding to your TBR?

___________________________

Come say hi!

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Perfect Girls by Alison James

 

Perfect Girls by Alison James

Published: September 18, 2018

Publisher: Bookouture

Pages: 333

Genres: thriller, mystery, psychological thriller, suspense, crime

Rating: 4 stars

Recommend to fans of: twisted psychological thrillers, can’t get enough of them books, the horrors of modern day techonlogy

Foodie Vibes: tea and biscuits but beware …

 

Synopsis:

Phoebe. Tiffany. Melissa. They all made one little mistake…

When twenty-five-year-old Phoebe Stiles opens the door to her perfect apartment she doesn’t realise it’s the mistake that will kill her…

The body of the beautiful English girl is discovered months later – dumped behind the back of a department store. But who was the stranger she let into the safety of her home?

As Detective Rachel Prince pieces together the mystery surrounding Phoebe’s death, another young, blonde girl is found brutally murdered and abandoned in the grounds of an old theatre.

In the most dangerous case of her career, Rachel must track down the faceless individual to stop the body count rising. But to uncover the shocking truth, Rachel has to put herself at risk… can she catch the twisted killer, before they catch her?

 

Review:

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture, and Alison James for an ebook copy to review. As always, an honest review from me.

Perfect Girls is a perfectly addictive novel. A psychological thriller that uses all of the modern day technology and social media advances to truly scare you. The author didn’t resort of cliches to make the book work. Definitely a unique and chilling novel. Perfect for a creepy Halloween read!

The detective from England ends up going to Hollywood to investigate the death of a young woman, who previously lived in her country. The local police wrap up the case quickly, but Rachel has some lingering doubts. Following her hunches, she crosses the country to investigate until she can figure out the truth. 

The book pulled me right in and captivated me throughout the whole read. I thought the premise and little details made for a unique, complex and intriguing story. The author was great at making me feel as if I was right there, especially with her descriptions of scent. Such little details, but they make the book that much better. 

The mystery was great. However the romance, which didn’t play much of a role, was kind of annoying. I could have done without it completely. Since it wasn’t featured much, it didn’t really bother me though. 

Overall, a phenomenal mystery that uses technology and social media to keep you guessing until the very end. 

 

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Have you read this book yet? What did you think? 

ARC Review | The Goodnight Song by Nick Hollin

 

The Goodnight Song by Nick Hollin

Published: September 17, 2018

Publisher: Bookouture

Pages: 283

Genres: psychological thriller, police procedural, mystery, suspense

Rating: 2 stars

Recommend to fans of: twisted family psychological thrillers, lovers of the first book in the series

Foodie Vibes: takeout pizza – easy and filling on the go
Synopsis:

Gifted criminal profiler Nathan Radley has a unique way of thinking that allows him to empathize with the twisted killers he helps capture.

But Nathan a dark secret. He has more in common with the criminals he hunts than anyone could dare to imagine. He lives in constant fear of losing control of his own dark desires…

When the headless body of a policeman is dragged from the Thames – an exact enactment of one of his oldest and darkest fantasies, only ever confessed in the pages of his teenage diary – Nathan finds himself the main suspect in the most twisted case of his career.

Someone has his diary and is leaking pages to frame him for the disturbing murders he has spent his whole career trying not to commit.

As more bodies surface and more extracts are released, Nathan has no choice but to go in search of the killer to clear his name. He knows it’s someone dangerous, he knows it’s someone he trusted, but how many precious lives will be lost before he can work out who?

A nail-biting and unputdownable thriller that fans of Peter James, Angela Marsons and Rachel Abbott will adore.

 

Review: 

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture, and Nick Hollin for an ARC ebook copy to review. As always, an honest review from me.

The book follows a criminal psychologist who works for the police. His twin brother is a serial killer and taunted him endlessly in the last book. His actions have continued to haunt the criminal psychologist throughout this book as well. The premise appears to be the setup for an action packed intriguing read. However it falls short. 

At the beginning the story jumps around making it difficult to tell what’s a memory, flashback, reality or something else. Perhaps if I had read the first book in the series it would have made more sense. Also I’m not sure exactly why, but I never got into the book. It didn’t intrigue me, and found myself reading it solely to finish. There was nothing outright bad about the book, but I simply didn’t connect with it. 

The story had a lot of action and suspense. And for sure plenty of spine tingling creepiness.

The Goodnight Song unfortunately missed the mark for me.

 

Truth and Lies by Caroline Mitchell

 

Truth and Lies by Caroline Mitchell

Published: August 30, 2018

Publisher: Thomas & Mercer

Pages: 348

Genres: mystery, thriller, suspense, police procedural, psychological thriller

Rating: 4 stars

Recommend to fans of: twisted serial killers, police procedurals, characters to root for, the TV show Criminal Minds

Foodie Vibes: home cooked meals alternating with bad police station coffee

 

Synopsis:

Meet Amy Winter: Detective Inspector, daughter of a serial killer.

DI Amy Winter is hoping to follow in the footsteps of her highly respected police officer father. But when a letter arrives from the prison cell of Lillian Grimes, one half of a notorious husband-and-wife serial-killer team, it contains a revelation that will tear her life apart.

Responsible for a string of heinous killings decades ago, Lillian is pure evil. A psychopathic murderer. And Amy’s biological mother. Now, she is ready to reveal the location of three of her victims—but only if Amy plays along with her twisted game.

While her fellow detectives frantically search for a young girl taken from her mother’s doorstep, Amy must confront her own dark past. Haunted by blurred memories of a sister who sacrificed herself to save her, Amy faces a race against time to uncover the missing bodies.

But what if, from behind bars, Grimes has been pulling the strings even tighter than Amy thought? And can she overcome her demons to prevent another murder?

 

Review:
Thank you to NetGalley, Thomas & Mercer, and Caroline Mitchell for an ebook copy for review. As always, an honest review from me.

Truth and Lies pulled me in right from the beginning. I was so engrossed in the story that I hardly stopped to take notes for my book review. The character of Amy, a Detective Inspector, made the entire book work. She’s the daughter of a serial killer and is being contacted by her imprisoned mother. Forced to unearth haunting memories of her childhood to solve the case.

I really enjoyed the creepy multilayer story. It reminded me of a Criminal Minds episode but set in the U.K. And Criminal Minds is my favorite TV show, so that’s good all around. The evil from Amy’s mother was so far reaching. It impacted many people and made for a great novel.

At the beginning I had trouble figuring out which police personal were which. As the story went on, it made more sense. Also, I wish the characters were more developed. Now this isn’t always possible with an intense police procedural. I really want to get to know Amy better and find out what happens to her next. I hope there’s a sequel!

 

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