Goodreads

Release date: August 31, 2023

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Synopsis:

She thought she’d escaped her poisonous past…

Thirteen years ago, Maggie Ellis left her small town and vowed to never return. In her rearview mirror were two men she loved and an ominous secret that would forever haunt her.

Now, tragedy has brought her back, and she’s determined to forget that fateful night. But in a town like Myers, with familiar faces and chilling memories lurking around every corner, moving on is easier said than done.

Before the ink can dry on the closing documents for her new residence, Maggie begins to feel unsettled. In every room, there’s the unmistakable sensation she’s being watched. The strange sounds, odd smells, and bizarre occurrences only add to her paranoia.

There’s something sinister about her new home…

When she discovers the devastating truth about the house and its grim history, Maggie’s worst fears are realized. In order to survive, she must unearth the secrets she’d always planned to keep buried.

After all, they say that home is where the heart is, but as Maggie knows, home is also where the skeletons lie.

Seamlessly blurring the edges between psychological thriller and romantic suspense, million-copy bestselling author Kiersten Modglin brings us a dark and twisted romantic thriller, perfect for fans of Verity , Tell Me Lies , The Ghost Writer , and YOU .

Review:

This is a bit of a departure from the authors usual style of super fast paced thrillers, it’s more of a subtle slow burn and it’s also a romantic suspense which I have been obsessed with lately. There are two timelines, a now and then that switches back and forth in alternate chapters and almost every chapter ended with a new question making it impossible for me to stop turning the pages. There was an emotional component here too, definitely great for fans of angsty romance and the combination of that and a creepy house, the authors signature twists and an unsettling vibe just worked really well for me. Fans of the author will be pleased I think and if you’re new to her work this is a fantastic place to start.

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the author for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: August 29, 2023

Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Synopsis:

Two women. An office filled with secrets. One terrible crime that can’t be taken back

Dawn Schiff is strange. At least, everyone thinks so at Vixed, the nutritional supplement company where Dawn works as an accountant. She never says the right thing. She has no friends. And she is always at her desk at precisely 8:45 a.m.

So when Dawn doesn’t show up to the office one morning, her coworker Natalie Farrell—beautiful, popular, top sales rep five years running—is surprised. Then she receives an unsettling, anonymous phone call that changes everything…

It turns out Dawn wasn’t just an awkward outsider—she was being targeted by someone close. And now Natalie is irrevocably tied to Dawn as she finds herself caught in a twisted game of cat and mouse that leaves her wondering: who’s the real victim?<

But one thing is incredibly clear: somebody hated Dawn Schiff. Enough to kill.

Review:

One thing I know when I pick up one of the authors books is that I’m going to get a story that is pure entertainment and just a blast to read. Her books are the very definition of popcorn thrillers and beg to be read in just a couple of sittings and that’s exactly what I did with this one. Fairly early on I knew where this one was probably going and I was right for the most part. The big twist that happened when it switched to part two was predictable for me but there were some smaller, but still fun twists that I didn’t guess that helped make this a pretty solid read for me. If you’re looking for a juicy book that is addictive this is it, I was definitely never bored despite having aspects figured out and I wanted brain candy when I started it and no one does that better than this author.

Overall rating: 3.5/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Release date: September 19, 2023

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Synopsis:

From the author of the New York Times bestseller and #1 Netflix movie Luckiest Girl Alive comes an extraordinary novel inspired by the real-life sorority targeted by America’s first celebrity serial killer in his final murderous spree.

January 1978. A serial killer has terrorized women across the Pacific Northwest, but his existence couldn’t be further from the minds of the vibrant young women at the top sorority on Florida State University’s campus in Tallahassee. Tonight is a night of promise, excitement, and desire, but Pamela Schumacher, president of the sorority, makes the unpopular decision to stay home—a decision that unwittingly saves her life. Startled awake at 3 a.m. by a strange sound, she makes the fateful decision to investigate. What she finds behind the door is a scene of implausible violence—two of her sisters dead; two others, maimed. Over the next few days, Pamela is thrust into a terrifying mystery inspired by the crime that’s captivated public interest for more than four decades.

On the other side of the country, Tina Cannon has found peace in Seattle after years of hardship. A chance encounter brings twenty-five-year-old Ruth Wachowsky into her life, a young woman with painful secrets of her own, and the two form an instant connection. When Ruth goes missing from Lake Sammamish State Park in broad daylight, surrounded by thousands of beachgoers on a beautiful summer day, Tina devotes herself to finding out what happened to her. When she hears about the tragedy in Tallahassee, she knows it’s the man the papers refer to as the All-American Sex Killer. Determined to make him answer for what he did to Ruth, she travels to Florida on a collision course with Pamela—and one last impending tragedy.

Bright Young Women is the story about two women from opposite sides of the country who become sisters in their fervent pursuit of the truth. It proposes a new narrative inspired by evidence that’s been glossed over for decades in favor of more salable headlines—that the so-called brilliant and charismatic serial killer from Seattle was far more average than the countless books, movies, and primetime specials have led us to believe, and that it was the women whose lives he cut short who were the exceptional ones.

Review:

If you like complex and incredibly well written Literary style thrillers this one was really good. This one has depth and is not the kind of book where you’ll want to rush through in one sitting, it’s the kind of books that makes you want to slow down and really take your time with it in order to fully appreciate the story the way the intended to tell it. It’s not splashy and twisty, it’s deeper than that and is much more about the women affected by a serial killer than the exploitation of his victims and his heinous crimes. The dual timelines were equally intriguing to me and both Pamela and Ruth had such distinct and well developed voices that I was very engaged with them both. There were so many powerful themes here, sisterhood, womanhood in general, societal expectations and stereotypes and painful loss and grief. Everything about this one just felt so thoughtful and that left such an impact on me as a reader, the only other book I read recently that left me with the same feelings and overall impression was On the Savage Side. Highly recommended, there was so much to take from this book.

Overall rating: 4.5/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: September 5, 2023

Publisher: Thomas & Mercer

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Synopsis:

On a weekend voyage, the power-hungry children of an aging billionaire are unprepared for a storm of deceptions in a novel about ruthless family ambition by USA Today bestselling author Kaira Rouda.

You are cordially invited to an overnight voyage on the Splendid Seas.

An invitation to Catalina Island from billionaire CEO Richard Kingsley. For his sons, Ted and John, and their wives, it’s an opportunity to curry favor, gain control of a real estate empire, and secure their family’s futures. For the controlling patriarch, succession is a contest. He and his newest wife won’t make it an easy win.

Then Richard’s estranged live-wire daughter, Sibley, crashes the party. She’s the least of the night’s surprises. As the stakes for the inheritance of the Kingsley legacy are raised, the beautiful waters of the Pacific look more like a menacing illusion.

Let the games begin for a family who has everything money can buy, and has used lies, deception, and more to keep it. This weekend one of them will be crowned heir. One is in line to lose everything. That’s the plan. But in the coming storm, so much can go dangerously wrong.

Review:

There’s something about the authors books that keep pulling me back year after year even if my ratings of them aren’t the best. I’m not sure what keeps me coming back exactly but something about her style always ends up speaking to me. Maybe it’s because I know what to expect from her, I know I’ll get unlikable characters that are just fun to read about alongside a plot that is total brain candy, they almost feel like taking a break and provide a much needed escape. This time around you get a family of narcissists who hate each other and they’re taking an overnight luxury cruise together. So the setup was fun, I like a locked room style mystery and the cattiness and drama this family provided was entertaining enough. Things did start to feel repetitive fairly quickly but I was interested to see where it would go and I have to say, I was kind of surprised with the direction it took. If you like dramatic stories about bickering families fighting over power and money this one was decent.

Overall rating: 3.5/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: August 29, 2023

Publisher: Atria

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Synopsis:

Thirty-three-year-old Abby Stern has made it to a happy place. True, she still has gig jobs instead of a career, and the apartment where she’s lived since college still looks like she’s just moved in. But she’s got good friends, her bike, and her bicycling club in Philadelphia. She’s at peace with her plus-size body—at least, most of the time—and she’s on track to marry Mark Medoff, her childhood summer sweetheart, a man she met at the weight-loss camp that her perpetually dieting mother forced her to attend. Fifteen years after her final summer at Camp Golden Hills, when Abby reconnects with a half-his-size Mark, it feels like the happy ending she’s always wanted.

Yet Abby can’t escape the feeling that some­thing isn’t right…or the memories of one thrilling night she spent with a man named Sebastian two years previously. When Abby gets a last-minute invi­tation to lead a cycling trip from NYC to Niagara Falls, she’s happy to have time away from Mark, a chance to reflect and make up her mind.

But things get complicated fast. First, Abby spots a familiar face in the group—Sebastian, the one-night stand she thought she’d never see again. Sebastian is a serial dater who lives a hundred miles away. In spite of their undeniable chemistry, Abby is determined to keep her distance. Then there’s a surprise last-minute addition to the her mother, Eileen, the woman Abby blames for a lifetime of body shaming and insecurities she’s still trying to undo.

Over two weeks and more than seven hundred miles, strangers become friends, hidden truths come to light, a teenage girl with a secret unites the riders in unexpected ways…and Abby is forced to reconsider everything she believes about herself, her mother, and the nature of love.

Review:

I always know when I pick up a book by the author that it’ll be an enjoyable read, I truly just love her style and appreciate how she explores various topics in a way that feels important yet not heavy handed. While Abby is the main character here there are several switching viewpoints that brought some dimension to the story. I know next to nothing about cycling but I appreciated learning about it here especially as it’s importance to Abby us revealed along the way. The body positivity and acceptance piece here was well done and I think many people, especially women will relate to at least some piece of it. If you like books about friendships, love and relationships, and family alongside some hot button topics this was great.

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: August 22, 2023

Publisher: Berkley

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Synopsis:

Jane is unhappy. 

A struggling midlist writer whose novels barely command four figures, she feels trapped in an underwhelming marriage, just scraping by to pay a crippling Bay Area mortgage for a house—a life—she’s never really wanted. 

There’s only ever been one person she cared about, one person who truly understood her: Thalia. Jane’s best and only friend nearly a decade ago during their Creative Writing days at Oxford. It was the only good year of Jane’s life—cobblestones and books and damp English air, heady wine and sweet cider and Thalia, endless Thalia. But then one night ruined everything. The blood-soaked night that should have bound Thalia to Jane forever but instead made her lose her completely. Thalia disappeared without a trace, and Jane has been unable to find her since.

Until now. 

Because there she is, her name at the top of the New York Times bestseller list: A Most Pleasant Death by Thalia Ashcroft. When she discovers a post from Thalia on her website about attending a book convention in New York City in a week—“Can’t wait to see you there!”—Jane can’t wait either. 

She’ll go to New York City, too, credit card bill be damned. And this time, she will do things right. Jane won’t lose Thalia again.

Review:

Give me a book with a sociopath as one of the main characters and I’m all in, there’s something about a character that just owns who they are, even if it’s dark and disturbed that just really works for me. This book flips back and forth between present day and nine years ago when Jane and Thalia first meet. I get annoyed when there’s some big secret from the past timeline sometimes, especially when the author draws it out to the point of torture but that didn’t happen here which was so refreshing. You find out at an appropriate time what happened in the past and then the story really began to move along at a rapid pace for the remainder of the book. I really liked the direction the author took and was surprised at many of the twists, super solid and well executed. If you like thrillers with unlikable and dark characters with interesting plots try this I had a lot of fun with it.

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: August 8, 2023

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Synopsis:

Terence Bailey is about to be released from prison for breaking and entering, though investigators have long suspected him in the murders of six women. As his freedom approaches, Bailey gets a surprise visit from Maddison Logan, a hot, young influencer with a huge social media following. Hours later, Maddison disappears, and police suspect she’s been kidnapped—or worse. Is Maddison’s disappearance connected to her visit to Bailey? Why was she visiting him in the first place?

When they hit a wall in the investigation, the FBI reluctantly asks for Rachel’s help in finding the missing influencer. Maddison seems only to exist on social media; she has no family, no friends, and other than in her posts, most people have never seen her. Who is she, really? Using a fake Instagram account, Rachel Krall goes undercover to BuzzCon, a popular influencer conference, where she discovers a world of fierce rivalry that may have turned lethal.

When police find the body of a woman with a tattoo of a snake eating its tail, the FBI must consider a chilling possibility: Bailey has an accomplice on the outside and a dangerous obsession with influencers, including Rachel Krell herself. Suddenly a target of a monster hiding in plain sight, Rachel is forced to confront the very real dangers that lurk in the dark corners of the internet.

Rachel Krall, the true crime podcaster star of Megan Goldin’s acclaimed Night Swim returns to search for a popular social media influencer who disappeared after visiting a suspected serial killer.

Review:

I was really excited to be back in this world, the first book in the series was a solid read for me and I was looking forward to seeing what Rachel was up to. One of the things I liked most about the first book was the podcast aspect, it was really well done and I wanted more of that than what was given here but that’s a minor gripe. The first quarter of this one was really good for me, strong pacing and an intriguing plot but things did slow down for the middle sections quite a bit. Normally that would bother me but it actually didn’t this time, maybe it was because I enjoyed the influencer plot line or maybe I just liked seeing the growth of Rachel’s character but it did work pretty well for me. The suspense part of the story was great and some of the smaller twists came as a surprise to me, definitely higher tension in the very ending that bumped up my rating. If you liked The Night Swim I think you’ll like this too.

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.