Goodreads

Release date: September 17, 2024

Publisher: Mulholland Books

Genre: Thriller, Horror

Synopsis:

A new mom in need of help opens her door to her long-estranged mother—only to invite something much darker inside—in this “fast-paced and frightening debut” (Rachel Harrison) about the long shadows cast by family secrets, perfect for readers of Grady Hendrix or Ashley Audrain.

Flora is a new mom enamored of her baby girl, Iris, even if she arrived a few weeks early. With her husband still deployed, Flora navigates the newborn stage alone. But as the sleepless nights pass in the loneliness of their half-empty home, the edges of her reality begin to blur. 

Just as Flora becomes convinced she is losing her mind, a surprising guest shows up: Flora’s own mother, to whom she hasn’t spoken in years. Can they mend their fraught relationship? Or is there more Flora’s mother isn’t telling her about the events that led to their estrangement? 

As stranger and scarier events unfold, Flora begins to suspect the house is not as empty as she once thought. She must determine: is her hold on reality slipping dangerously away? Or is she, in fact, the only thing standing between a terrifying visitor and her baby? 

Review:

Wow this one was wild! I don’t read much horror but every year around this time I try to read a few and then the description of this one just sounded really good to me and it totally was. I loved that it was a balance between really strange and bizarre happenings and the regular occurrences of being a new mother, it made it all the more frightening to me because it seemed like the crazy shit that was happening to Flora may actually be possible. This was very creepy and pretty gory, think descriptions of gross stuff and you definitely get that here, but it is horror so I expected to be grossed out and I was. The author captured some of those unique experiences that new mothers face but she did it with a supernatural twist and I have to say, it was clever. If you don’t mind dark and disturbing this was pretty good!

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: October 1, 2024

Publisher: Bantam

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Synopsis:

When a young woman is found dead on her college campus, her sister doesn’t believe it was an accident—and her search for answers leads her closer to home than she ever would have imagined in this thrilling debut novel from an exciting new talent.

Maya can’t wait to return to Princeton for Reunions—it’s been a decade since she graduated, but she is looking forward to seeing old faces and reminiscing about her college days. And this year is even more special because her little sister, Naomi, is graduating.

But what should have been a dream weekend becomes Maya’s worst nightmare when she gets a call no one ever wants—Naomi is dead. The police are saying it’s an accident, but Maya suspects there is more to the story than they are letting on.

As Maya pieces together the months leading up to her sister’s death, she starts to realize how much Naomi hid from her. Naomi had joined Sterling Club, the most exclusive social club on campus—the same one Maya belonged to—despite Maya’s warnings. And if she had to guess, she’d say Naomi was also tapped for the secret society within it. 

The more Maya uncovers, the more terrified she becomes that Naomi’s decision to follow in her footsteps might have been what got her killed. Because Maya’s time at Princeton wasn’t as wonderful as she always pretended it was—after all, her sister wasn’t the first young woman to turn up dead. Now every clue is leading Maya back to the past…and to the secrets she’s kept all these years.

Review:

If you like to read somewhat seasonally and tend to gravitate towards dark academia in the fall this would be an excellent choice for you! I love a campus novel and add in secret societies, sisters and some mysteries and I’m hooked. This flips between sisters Maya in the past and present and Naomi in the months leading up to her death and while the chapters were mostly short, the pacing was more steady. This isn’t a one sitting type of read, it’s the kind where you wanna sink your teeth into it and spend some time with it which is exactly how I read it. Though there is one core mystery there are several other threads making this such a multifaceted read and the author also explored race and privilege in this setting in such a smart and gripping way. It had a ton of depth and substance so if you like mysteries with layers try this.

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: September 18, 2024

Publisher: Boldwood

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Synopsis:

Welcome to the town of Starr’s Fall, where Autumn can feel like it goes on forever, and two people have a chance to fall in love… The leaves are falling, with a crispness to the air, along with the scents of coffee and pumpkin spice, past a half-empty street of shuttered storefronts and a bandstand that has seen better days…

Just like the whole town of Starr’s Fall, thinks Laurie Ellis – as she and her beloved dog Max head to collect the store keys. Maybe she has seen better days, too, but she’s certainly ready for a new start—and to leave her past behind. Still Laurie wonders whether she made a terrible mistake in coming to lovable but shabby Starr’s Fall. Will she even find customers for her pet store and bakery, never mind a community to welcome and accept her?

Not according to Joshua Reilly, the handsome but grumpy manager of the bookstore across the road, who claims he’s never heard of anything so ridiculous as a bakery for dogs.

But Laurie remains stubbornly undeterred. She’s starting over, right here. Not least because she has another secret reason for being here… one she isn’t telling anybody, at least not yet, as it involves her own tragic past.

What she doesn’t yet know is that a clue to the mystery is hidden deep in Joshua’s bookstore. And he doesn’t yet realize that Laurie herself might be the key to mending his own battered heart… for Laurie and Joshua and the whole town, it’s going to be a fall to remember.

Review:

I don’t know about you but I’m so ready for some cooler temperatures, yes I’m wishing summer away but I’m so over the heat. If you are feeling like you’re ready for fall this was a delightful little seasonal read that I enjoyed. I wanted the feeling of a cozy fall in a quaint town and that’s exactly what I got. Things aren’t exactly perfect in Starr’s Fall though and I appreciated that it wasn’t exactly your typical small town romance, it still delivered in its own unique way. Laurie was the sweetest character with some sad trauma in her past and I really like the journey the author took her on. Her relationship with Joshua was a slow burn and this one is closed door so just a little kissing which made this one really sweet and tender. Definitely recommended if you want a cute romance, fun fall activities and a charming and quirky small town.

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: September 3, 2024

Publisher: Dial Press

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Synopsis:

Is love on the small screen better than the real thing?

Brynn’s happy ending has gone up in flames. She’s newly divorced and living with a roommate – Josh – to afford her mortgage. At least she’s got Carson’s Cove to binge – her beloved 90s teenage soap.

So when a birthday cake shows up on her and Josh’s doorstep, Brynn makes a wish for her own happily-ever-after.

The next morning, she doesn’t wake up in her apartment. She’s in Carson’s Cove… and Josh is there too. Except they’re not Brynn and Josh; they’re the sweetheart and the bad boy.

Will they stick to the script, or will real love change the story forever?

A young divorcee finds herself in the ideal world of her favourite 90s nostalgia TV show, in this second-chance romantic comedy from the author of This Spells Love.

Review:

I was so charmed by the authors last book, This Spells Love and I was charmed once again with this one, just in a different manner. I’m loving the trend of more romances with magical realism being traditionally published, there’s something so whimsical and fun about them that provides a true escape for me, so I hope this is a trend that continues because it really works for me. If you were a fan of 90s teen soaps/dramas on TV like I was you will enjoy the nostalgia this one brought! The idea that Brynn gets to not only visit the fictional show and town that brought her so much comfort over the years, but that she may be able to change the ending? SO fun and such a cute concept that totally delighted me. There’s nothing here that’s too heavy, it’s light and fun but also has depth in the characters and a solid romance that I was rooting for.

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: August 27, 2024

Publisher: Boldwood

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Synopsis:

What happens when a getaway becomes the holiday from hell? 

Dean and Amber are on vacation in a secluded lakeside resort, hoping to fix the cracks in their marriage. Their only companions are the couple next door, Sophie, a beautiful redhead, and the mysterious Marc, who appears to be hiding something.

Before long Amber begins to suspect the couple aren’t who they say they are. Obsessed with uncovering the truth, she digs into the couple’s past.

As she struggles to rekindle her marriage while investigating the couple next door, Amber soon realises that she can’t trust anyone.

Just who is the enigmatic couple next door? And are some secrets better off staying buried?

Review:

This was one of those entertaining and fast paced reads that was enjoyable enough, as long as you don’t mind a far fetched plot, which I don’t. Amber gets a sense right off that the couple staying next door to them is hiding something and I found myself siding with her husband when he just wanted her to leave them alone, so it was a little hard for me to connect with her at the start. She is a determined woman though and once she really started digging into Marc and Sophie things got interesting and I found myself more engaged and connected to her. Things spiral and again, go a bit off the rails but I had fun with the direction the author took and thought for pure entertainment purposes this was a twisty and enjoyable read.

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the author for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: August 13, 2024

Publisher: Blackstone

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Synopsis:

Former track star Sean Kenney has been gone far too long. Two years ago, unable to bear the weight of his own failures, he left a wife, two daughters, and the rest of his family in his hometown of East Carlisle, New Jersey. But now the unthinkable has called him home. Grasping at an opportunity to seek forgiveness from his children, Sean struggles to make sense of the devastating death that has shaken the Kenney family to its core. Ignoring the advice of his sister and his old track coach, Sean follows clues that only he seems to see, fighting toward the truth of what really happened that day, after he received a final call from the one person he always looked up to. Part family saga, part thrilling mystery, The Brothers Kenney ponders questions of nostalgia and the meaning of home — and pursues truth and redemption as assiduously as it pursues the identity of a killer.

Review:

This is way less thriller than I expected it to be, it does have a mystery but it’s more family saga than anything else so heads up there. I even found the mystery aspect to be a little lacking for me in the end, but where this worked well for me was in the characters themselves. The exploration of the Kenney families complex dynamics was interesting to me and the addition of some pretty shocking secrets and lies helped to maintain my attention. If you’re in the mood for a character driven mystery try this!

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: July 23, 2024

Publisher: Thomas & Mercer

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Synopsis:

They never considered how his wife might react, or that by the end of the summer a man would be dead. But Blakely always got her way, and the others followed her lead—even when they knew it was dead wrong.

The girls had been friends from day one at Camp Pendleton, a haven for gifted children. But their senior summer was different. When Mr. Crosby, the handsome tennis coach, wound up murdered after a reckless lie, Blakely, Grace, Meg, and Thera swore themselves to secrecy. And never spoke to each other again.

Until now. Twenty years later a sinister note claiming to know what they did brings them back together. And once again Blakely is pulling the strings.

Unfolding in a dual timeline, If You Tell a Lie is a disturbing journey into the dangerous, sometimes deadly consequences of peer pressure—with a bone-chilling twist you’ll never see coming.

Review:

This one had a lot of potential for me in the beginning, I was fairly invested in finding out exactly what had happened in the long ago summer but unfortunately the end ruined it for me. The author always does a really good job at exploring the psychological side of things in her books, (I’ve read most of them) and her background gives her an edge into the way people behave that always fascinates me. So there was still that strength here and she explores grooming, the effects of peer pressure and many more dark issues here with a keen insight. Where she lost me was the constant need to suspense disbelief and then the ending felt rushed and abrupt with so many questions left hanging. Having so many unresolved issues kept me from rating this higher but I’m sure I’ll read the author again in the future because many of her books have been great for me.

Overall rating: 3/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: July 30, 2024

Publisher: Ballantine

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Synopsis:

When Nina’s father dies, she is left something in his will: a gleaming dream vacation home in a balmy tropical paradise.

Still grieving her father’s death, Nina learns she has inherited property in the British Virgin Islands—a vacation home she had no idea existed, until now. The house is extraordinary: state-of-the-art, all glass and marble. How did her sensible father come into enough money for this? Why did he keep it from her? And what else was he hiding?

Once an ambitious medical student, Maria is a nanny for the super-rich. The money’s better and so are the destinations where her work takes her. Just one more gig, and she’ll be set. Finally she’ll be secure. But when her wards never show, Maria begins to make herself at home, spending her days luxuriating by the pool and in the sauna. There’s just one rule: Don’t go in the basement. But her curiosity just might get the better of her—and soon she’ll wish her only worry was not getting paid.

Review:

This was an odd one for me, for a good portion I was very into it and really enjoyed wondering what exactly was going on. Initially you hear from Nina as she travels to this property she never knew her father owned until he passed and Maria a nanny to the super rich as she waits for her next assignment to start. I liked both women’s viewpoints but Maria’s a bit more as her situation brought more tension and suspense. Somewhere along the way things lost me though, especially the last quarter or so. Once things start getting revealed I found it to be silly and outlandish and I just didn’t buy into the explanations behind most of it. I’m not usually too judgey when it comes to things being too over the top but I found the motivations beyond ridiculous. I seem to be in the minority here though.

Overall rating: 3/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: July 23, 2024

Publisher: Emily Bestler/Atria

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Synopsis:

Mayhaven is the best keep secret in Massachusetts. Tucked between old cedars and a spring-fed lake, the Mayhaven beach club has long been the ultimate escape to understated exclusivity. It’s the place where Darcy Birch is supposed to be experiencing the best summer of her life, but there are a few things standing in her way. Her high-strung mother won’t stop hovering over her, her father is consumed by his job as president of Mayhaven, where she works as a summer camp counselor and things are not as rosy as they seem, and her neurodivergent little brother is struggling to live with a measure of independence not everyone is ready for.

Then there is the matter of the new neighbors. Flick Creevy, his mother, and stepfather have arrived in town, parking their enormous RV, not to mention all-night music and clouds of marijuana, in the Birches’s perfectly landscaped backyard.

Flick is not interested in the perfect summer or the girl next door. Pushed to get a job at Mayhaven by his mother, who had her eyes on a new life for their family, his own eyes have been opened to the ways of the upper crust. Even though Mayhaven prides itself on being an inclusive association of good New England families with good New England values, the fact either you’re on the inside or the outside.

As the heat of summer increases, it’s soon clear that the members of Mayhaven will have to struggle to stay cool in this sharply written and refreshing new novel that is perfect for fans of Elin Hilderbrand and Jennifer Weiner.

Review:

I don’t have a ton to say about this one, it wasn’t a bad read but it wasn’t all that memorable either. It was easy, shortish and fast paced and I never thought about setting it aside but it really won’t have any long lasting impact on me either. I did enjoy the setting of a country club over the course of a summer and I always like getting several POVs which you get here but it was very predictable and the ending was a little rushed. While you could easily read this in a day on the beach there is some heavier subject matter so I’m not sure if I would classify this as a beach read per se. Maybe that’s where I’m struggling, it needed to pick between a light summer read and one with more substance and depth instead it straddled the line and was just ok for me in the end.

Overall rating: 3/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: July 16, 2024

Publisher: St. Martins

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Synopsis:

The Precipice is a legendary, family-owned hotel on the rocky coast of Maine. With the recent passing of their father, the Bishop sisters—Iris, Vicki, and Faith—have come for the weekend to claim it. But with a hurricane looming and each of the Bishop sisters harboring dangerous secrets, there’s murder in the air—and not everyone who checks into the Precipice will be checking out.

Each sister wants what is rightfully hers, and in the mix is the Precipe’s nineteen-year-old chambermaid Charley Kelley: smart, resilient, older than her years, and in desperate straits.

The arrival of the Bishop sisters could spell disaster for Charley. Will they close the hotel? Fire her? Discover her habit of pilfering from guests? Or even worse, learn that she’s using a guest room to hide a woman on the run.

With razor-sharp wit, heart, thrills, and twists, Jamie Day delivers a unique brand of SUMMERTIME SUSPENSE.

Review:

I really enjoyed the authors previous book, it was such a fun summer thriller and I hoped this would be the same but there was something off about this one for me. One of the biggest issues I had was the pacing, there were several parts and each time it switched it seemed kind of jarring and just threw me off. I liked the locked room aspect and usually enjoy trying to figure out whodunnit with a small cast of characters to chose from but the people here were honestly just annoying and pretty awful. There was a lot of backstory about all of them that takes you out of the action, and then when you’re put back in things were so far fetched and over the top it was hard to take it seriously. I’ll definitely give the author another chance in the hopes her next book is more like her debut.

Overall rating: 3/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.