Category: Throwback Thursday

#ThrowbackThursday Dark Matter by Blake Crouch

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Goodreads|Amazon
Release date: July 26, 2016

Publisher: Crown

Genre: Science Fiction, Thriller

Blurb:

“Are you happy with your life?” 


Those are the last words Jason Dessen hears before the masked abductor knocks him unconscious. 


Before he awakens to find himself strapped to a gurney, surrounded by strangers in hazmat suits. 


Before a man Jason’s never met smiles down at him and says, “Welcome back, my friend.” 


In this world he’s woken up to, Jason’s life is not the one he knows. His wife is not his wife. His son was never born. And Jason is not an ordinary college physics professor, but a celebrated genius who has achieved something remarkable. Something impossible.


Is it this world or the other that’s the dream? And even if the home he remembers is real, how can Jason possibly make it back to the family he loves? The answers lie in a journey more wondrous and horrifying than anything he could’ve imagined—one that will force him to confront the darkest parts of himself even as he battles a terrifying, seemingly unbeatable foe.


From the author of the bestselling Wayward Pines trilogy, Dark Matter is a brilliantly plotted tale that is at once sweeping and intimate, mind-bendingly strange and profoundly human—a relentlessly surprising science-fiction thriller about choices, paths not taken, and how far we’ll go to claim the lives we dream of.

Review: 

I’m joining in again with Throwback Thursday which was created by my good friend Renee at It’s Book Talk. She started this weekly feature as a way to highlight old favorites and read books that have already been published. I have so many older books on my TBR that get ignored in favor of review copies and I figure participating in Throwback Thursday will help me to read at a least one older title a week!

Dark Matter is a book way outside of my usual preference and one that I’ve had sitting on my Netgalley shelf for far too long. I originally requested it last year because everyone I knew was raving about it and I have a serious case of fear of missing out. I finally decided to grab it this week and I’m completely blown away. I am SO glad that I took a chance on a book that’s outside of my comfort zone, it paid off in a big way. 

This book was like nothing I’ve ever read before and that may be because it’s not my go to genre but I don’t think so. I still firmly believe that DM is highly original and insanely creative even within it’s genre. It defied all of my expectations and then some and has such an insane premise that I’m not even going to attempt to speak to it because I know I wouldn’t be able to discuss it in the manner that it deserves. Just think mind bending matrix/inception type of stuff, it’s actually best not to think too hard about the details anyway. 

The biggest surprise for me here was how deeply and intricately complex this book was. Yes, it’s highly intelligent and deals with topics that are beyond my normal level of comprehension but Crouch details scientific methods in a way that even a dummy like me could understand. This was a surprisingly emotional read for me, no one warned me that it would make me cry! It was so thought provoking and touched something right at my core, I’m just mind blown by how much I loved this book. 

If you’re like me and have been on the fence about this one, give it a try. I don’t think anyone will be disappointed, it’s intense, profound, smart and extremely well written. I can’t say enough good things about how this book made me feel and that’s one of the main reasons I love to read in the first place, to feel something outside of my everyday life. 

Overall rating: 5/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy. 

#ThrowbackThursday You by Caroline Kepnes 

26 Comments


Goodreads|Amazon
Release date: June 16, 2015

Publisher: Atria/Emily Bestler

Genre: Thriller

Blurb:

When a beautiful, aspiring writer strides into the East Village bookstore where Joe Goldberg works, he does what anyone would do: he Googles the name on her credit card.


There is only one Guinevere Beck in New York City. She has a public Facebook account and Tweets incessantly, telling Joe everything he needs to know: she is simply Beck to her friends, she went to Brown University, she lives on Bank Street, and she’ll be at a bar in Brooklyn tonight—the perfect place for a “chance” meeting.


As Joe invisibly and obsessively takes control of Beck’s life, he orchestrates a series of events to ensure Beck finds herself in his waiting arms. Moving from stalker to boyfriend, Joe transforms himself into Beck’s perfect man, all while quietly removing the obstacles that stand in their way—even if it means murder.

Review:

I’m joining in again with Throwback Thursday which was created by my good friend Renee at It’s Book Talk. She started this weekly feature as a way to highlight old favorites and read books that have already been published. I have so many older books on my TBR that get ignored in favor of review copies and I figure participating in Throwback Thursday will help me to read at a least one older title a week! This week I chose You as it was highly recommended by many people and it won the poll I posted on Twitter haha. 

I have a confession to make. Sometimes when a book is super over hyped I refuse to read it just to be stubborn. Why? I don’t even know really, sometimes I think it’s because if I wind up hating it I’ll just be irritated that I gave in. Or maybe it’s because I like knowing I have a highly recommended book in my TBR to look forward to. So that’s why I’ve avoided You for the past two years but I finally felt like it was time for me to see what all of the fuss was about and I’m really glad I quit being so damn stubborn and gave in.

Joe has one of the most oddly unique and powerfully strong voices I’ve ever read. It’s told in the second person as he is speaking directly to the object of his obsession, Beck which gave this such an intimate feeling. He rants, raves and rambles incessantly but it really works well here. It also gives you an extremely in depth look into the mind of a sick and deranged individual, so why in the hell did I like Joe so much?! I really did, despite his many flaws I enjoyed him and was kind of charmed by him even though it creeps me out just typing that. He captivated me and I couldn’t wait to see what he would do or think or say next. 

This is a super dark tale of obsession and manipulation that had me feeling uneasy and nervous the entire time. The creepiness level is at an all time high, some of the lengths Joe will go to are downright disturbing. It is sexually explicit with strong language, just a heads up for people that may not like that. But it’s also insanely well written and has an almost hypnotizing style, it’s honestly not like anything I’ve ever read before. I’ll be picking up the sequel, Hidden Bodies very soon!

Overall rating: 4.5/5

#ThrowbackThursday Still Missing by Chevy Stevens

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Goodreads|Amazon|Author Website

Release date: July 6, 2010

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Blurb:

On the day she was abducted, Annie O’Sullivan, a 32-year-old realtor, had three goals—sell a house, forget about a recent argument with her mother, and be on time for dinner with her ever-patient boyfriend. The open house is slow, but when her last visitor pulls up in a van as she’s about to leave, Annie thinks it just might be her lucky day after all.

Still Missing interweaves the year Annie spent as the captive of a psychopath in a remote mountain cabin, which unfold through sessions with her psychiatrist, with a second narrative following the events after her escape—her struggle to piece her shattered life back together and the ongoing police investigation into the identity of her captor.

Review:

I’m joining in again with Throwback Thursday which was created by my good friend Renee at It’s Book Talk. She started this weekly feature as a way to highlight old favorites and read books that have already been published. I have so many older books on my TBR that get ignored in favor of review copies and I figure participating in Throwback Thursday will help me to read at a least one older title a week! I read my first Chevy Stevens book a few months ago, Never Let You Go and LOVED it, so I’ve been wanting to go back and read her earlier books ever since.

This is told using a really cool narrative style, each chapter is actually a session between Annie and her therapist as she details the day of her abduction and the year she was held captive, then it follows her up to the present day. Annie had such a strong, unique voice and I loved the conversational feel it had. Her ordeal was harrowing and at times very uncomfortable to read about, but I was still very gripped, this was an addictive read. 

There were plenty of shocking events, I was dying to know how Annie managed to escape and I did not predict that whole scenario at all. I love abduction stories and I’m especially intrigued by the aftermath and Annie’s growth and development was great. It was horribly sad and tragic to see how much she changed and how damaged she was, it broke my heart. 

This was one creepy read with unpredictable twists and turns galore, I can’t wait to read the rest of Stevens books and have a feeling they’ll be coming up on my TT posts quite a bit in the future. 

Overall rating: 5/5

#ThrowbackThursday Fear Nothing by Lisa Gardner

23 Comments

I'm finally joining in with Throwback Thursday and I'm SO excited! Renee at It's Book Talk created this weekly feature as a way to highlight old favorites and read books that have already been published. I have so many older books on my TBR that get ignored in favor of review copies and I figure participating in Throwback Thursday will help me to read at a least one older title a week!

Goodreads|Amazon|Author Website

Release date: January 7, 2014

Publisher: Dutton Books

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Blurb:

My name is Dr. Adeline Glen. Due to a genetic condition, I can’t feel pain. I never have. I never will.

The last thing Boston Detective D.D. Warren remembers is walking the crime scene after dark. Then, a creaking floorboard, a low voice crooning in her ear… She is later told she managed to discharge her weapon three times. All she knows is that she is seriously injured, unable to move her left arm, unable to return to work.

My sister is Shana Day, a notorious murderer who first killed at fourteen. Incarcerated for thirty years, she has now murdered more people while in prison than she did as a free woman.

Six weeks later, a second woman is discovered murdered in her own bed, her room containing the same calling cards from the first: a bottle of champagne and a single red rose. The only person who may have seen the killer: Detective D.D. Warren, who still can’t lift her child, load her gun, or recall a single detail from the night that may have cost her everything.

Our father was Harry Day, an infamous serial killer who buried young women beneath the floor of our home. He has been dead for forty years. Except the Rose Killer knows things about my father he shouldn’t. My sister claims she can help catch him. I think just because I can’t feel pain, doesn’t mean my family can’t hurt me.

D.D. may not be back on the job, but she is back on the hunt. Because the Rose Killer isn’t just targeting lone women; he is targeting D.D. And D.D. knows there is only one way to take him down:

Fear nothing.

Review:

I got behind on this series, I'm sure it was because I got on Netgalley and I became overwhelmed with review copies, but when I was trying to decide what book would be my first pick for TT, this was an obvious choice for me. I love Gardner, she's one of my favorite authors and this D. D. Warren series is so great. Luckily I'm only two books behind so I should be caught up soon.

One of my favorite things about Gardner's books is that she doesn't shy away from hard hitting subject matter and she always keeps things fresh and interesting. This is told from D. D.'s POV as well as Adeline Glen who is a psychiatrist helping D. D. with pain management. Adeline doesn't feel pain at all and this was utterly fascinating to me. On top of a totally interesting premise, the characters are deeply complex and so interesting. D. D. is waylaid with a serious injury and she was so out of sorts. She's the type of detective that can't function without work so her seeing her struggle was another engrossing aspect to the story.

I mentioned earlier that Gardner is a hard hitting author but I want to point out that her books are very graphic and violent. There's always a grittiness to her plots and this was one very dark. You have a killer using sick and twisted methods and sisters whose father was a brutal killer as well, so there are quite a few disturbing scenes. Think Karin Slaughter in terms of style, I love this type of writing but wanted to make it clear that this book is very graphic in case that's not your thing.

There were so many gut punching twists that discussing the plot would just ruin things. If you've never read a Gardner book before, I can highly recommend this series if you're a thriller fan. She's a fantastic storyteller and her writing is captivating AND D. D. is such a great lead character.

Overall rating: 5/5