mystery

Review: The Pursuit by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg

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I am addicted to these Fox and O’Hare novels. Federal agent O’Hare and genius criminal/informant Fox work together to catch super bad guys across the globe. Working so closely together, they’ve managed to peek into each other’s personal lives… and even fall in Like. 

The Pursuit gives the reader a double whammy. The pair finish a case in the beginning chapters and quickly land a new case… One they can’t even put on the books. One that sends them to Belgium and the Paris underground. It’s a con. Maybe the biggest con they’ve ever pulled. And their lives depend on them making zero mistakes. 

Part comedy, part MacGyver, and part Ocean’s Eleven, The Pursuit is the perfect light read to get me laughing and holding tight to the edge of my seat in the same chapter. I’ll read them as fast as Goldberg and Evanovich can write them. 

-calliope 

Buy THE PURSUIT

Review ~ Before I Wake by C.L Taylor. 

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C.L Taylor is perhaps better known in the U.K, but I believe she is going to be a popular author over this side of the pond as well. Befor I Wake, or The Accident, as it’s called in the U.K., focuses on a 17 year old girl who is in a coma after an apparent suicide attempt. Charlotte’s family are trying to come to terms with not only the medical issues, but also the fact that Charlotte felt the need to jump out in front of a bus.

However, it’s when Charlotte’s mum, Susan, finds her daughter’s diary with “I can’t keep this secret much longer” written down, that the real mystery begins. 

Was Charlotte’s accident an act of malice, or a tragic case of not having the will to live? 

This is an interesting read. It presents dual narratives and the characters are given a good amount of room to breathe and develop. 

A quick and simple read, this is great for those summer days sitting in your garden with a nice iced drink! 

Enjoy!

Pegasus. 

Buy Before I Wake

Review: The Sister by Louise Jensen

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I hate it when I wait too long to review a book.  And I know I’m not alone in that sentiment.  It’s not that we completely forget what the story was about.  It’s just that we are such voracious readers that sometimes characters and storylines from various books mesh together into one big bookish blob.  But still, I would be neglecting my role as a reviewer of “books that must be read” if I didn’t mention this little gem.

When Grace loses her best friend, Charlie, her world comes to an end.  Connected from childhood, everything she knows involves Charlie.  She just can’t come to grips with her death, with secrets left behind and questions unanswered.  So she digs.  She looks for answers to just who Charlie was.  And in the process, she uncovers more than she expected in the form of Charlie’s unknown sister, Anna.  Here’s where things start to get weird.  Grace begins to forget things, to lose things.  She’s sure someone is following her.  And the people around her are acting very strange.  Is she going crazy?  Or is something more sinister at work?

This debut novel is a thriller in the truest sense.  It plays tricks with your mind and leaves you guessing all the way while at the same time making it seem as if you’ve figured it out.  And of course there’s a fantastic twist that you’ll never see coming!

~Thalia

Buy It Now:  The Sister

 

Review: Sunshine Beach by Wendy Wax

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This fun 4th in a series is set in the St. Pete’s area of Florida – near the famous pink castle, Hotel Don Cesar. 

In Sunshine Beach, a group of women find a run down property and hope to renovate it for their cable show “Do Over.” Problem is, the property has a mystery behind it, and the current owners are reluctant to sell. 

You’ll enjoy following Maddie, Avery, Nikki and Kyra — and their significant (and not so significant) others — as they try to solve a mystery, nail down their love lives, and use the paparazzi to their best advantage. 

I’ll admit that the characters and their relationships to each other confused me at first. Then I realized I hadn’t read the first three in the series! So if you want to pick up this cute summer read, do yourself a favor and read book 1 – Ten Beach Road – first. 🙂

-calliope

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Review: The New Neighbor by Leah Stewart

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I love a book with an ambiguous title.  What exactly does “new neighbor” mean?  Is that a good thing or a bad thing?  And who is the new neighbor?  Even better when the story itself is just as much of a conundrum.

Margaret is alone, but she prefers it that way.  Living for ninety years means she’s seen and heard her share of things.  So she’s fairly content (or so she claims) to live out the rest of her years in her little house by the lake with her mystery novels to keep her company.  Then one day she notices a new neighbor across the lake.  Mildly curious at first, she schemes her way into finding out who exactly this person is.

And Jennifer…who is she really and where did she come from?  Surely she and her young son, Milo, have some kind of history somewhere.  But when you change your name and cut ties to your past, that must mean you’re running from something.  Of course Margaret is intrigued as she fancies herself somewhat of a mystery buff.  The deeper she digs, the more questions she has.

The bigger mystery is, who has more to hide? Is it Jennifer with her new name and her desire to make her son forget everything they left behind? Or is it Margaret with her burning need to finally tell her story to someone who will listen?

This book was such a thriller from the beginning ’til the very end. The author does an outstanding job of dragging you along, feeding you little tidbits along the way to keep you following. You just know that some kind of big secret is going to be revealed, but you’re never quite sure who that secret is going to be about. It’s not until the last chapter that it all comes together. And it’s what you expected while not being what you expected. Intrigued? Good!

~Thalia

Buy It Now: The New Neighbor

Review: Death of a Nurse by MC Beaton

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25747142This was an okay read for me. Not a brilliant read, but certainly not a rotten one either. I can easily imagine having rated the book higher if I were more familiar with Hamish and his very quirky acquaintances. I love thriller crime stories, but perhaps murder mysteries of the good old-fashioned Agatha Christie style just aren’t really my cup of tea…However, since I’ve never actually read Agatha Christie I can’t really say that for a fact…

I did read enough to know that I would like to go to the start of the series and see if I can fall in love with Hamish as I see so many other fans have. I do see his appeal, however, coming into his entire weaponry of charm (hahahahaha) unprepared was perhaps my downfalling. I think I needed to gradually introduce myself to him and all of his charms…not just jump in buck naked and unprotected**….

**I hope you note my sarcasm and see that although I didn’t rate this book as high as I might have that I am very much worthy of learning up enough to become an avid fan

Until next time…

Urania xx

Review copy provided by Netgalley for an honest review

Buy it now Death of a Nurse by MC Beaton

Review ~ The Travelers by Chris Pavone

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imageThis is the third installment from Chris Pavone that includes The Expats – Pegasus’ review, The Expats – Urania’s review And then The Accident – Pegasus’ review. As is Pavone’s M.O., once again, we are transported to a world of traveling and European locales.

The Travelers is a travel magazine, one of the last in a dying business of print media. Its senior reporter, Will Rhodes, is on assignment in Argentina, when he is approached by a woman who he ends up sleeping with and then being told that he must join the CIA due to his carte blanche access to foreign locations. Yes, I wouldn’t blame you if you had puked whilst simultaneously caused yourself ocular strain by the eye rolling. However, bear with me…. From here, Will is thrust into an espionage world where nothing is what it seems.

This is not a unique storyline, but with all the different locations, the double crossing, characters who have multiple motives, and fast pace chapters, The Travelers, is truly a fun and exciting read. The characters are good enough (although I feel as though they could have had more room to develop), if not a little one dimensional, but let’s face it, this isn’t type of novel that necessarily requires it.

Whilst all three novels are definitely stand alone, Pavone has managed to interweave some characters and plot points that you’ll probably recognize if you read the books in order of publication (The Expats, The Accident, and The Travelers). This books is solidly entertaining and well worth reading if you enjoyed the previous two.

Until next time,

Pegasus.

The Travelers: A Novel

Review: Sister Eve and the Blue Nun by Lynne Hinton

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I adored the first book in this series, and I love Sister Evangeline’s character so much that I keep reading the next in the series. Blue Nun is number three, and although there was too much history and Blue Nun factual information (like a documentary!) for me, I still enjoyed the terrific characters and dialogue. 

In this book, Sister Eve returns to the convent for a long weekend, only to happen upon a murder. Like any literary amateur sleuth, Eve ignores police instructions to stay out of the investigation, and she gets herself into a bit of trouble here and there. Thankfully there’s her private eye dad and a handsome police detective to save Eve as she catches the bad guy and solves the case! 

-calliope

Buy SISTER EVE AND THE BLUE NUN

Review – The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

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22557272There’s nothing I find more eye-roll inducing than lazy marketing campaigns that rely on previous successes. So when I heard that this book was “the next Gone Girl” (a book I enjoyed quite a bit), well, you can safely assume that the eye-rolling commenced! This is why I left it a looonnnggg time before I decided to read this one; I wanted the hype to die down and to not be bombarded and influenced by all the reviews.

The book has three different narrators – all with their skewered version of events. We have Rachel, Anna, and Meghan. All three women have cause to be labeled an unreliable narrator – a trope that seems to have utilized tenfold since Gone Girl was published to international praise. However, for me, it turns into a bit of pity fest, and I lose a connection with the characters.

As mentioned above, perhaps my biggest gripe with this novel was indeed the portrayal of the characters. Without giving too much away, one group of the characters were given these complex, emotional issues (that quite frankly didn’t get the depth of exploration they deserved), and another group are painstakingly 2 dimensional. Having equally flawed and indeed, despicable, characters was one of the reasons I really enjoyed Gone Girl (Yes, I know, I keep comparing the two – but hey, the comparison was already made by the marketing), and in this case, Hawkins tries to get you to dislike certain characters, but just doesn’t have the necessary push-off-the-cliff-dedication.

I will give Hawkins her dues though: The Girl on the Train did keep me reading (or listening in this case), and it is entertaining. It might not be a When Harry Met Sally “I’ll have what she’s having” kinda experience, but it is definitely a quick entertaining read. Give this one a go, and if you’ve also read Gone Girl, let us know in the comments how you think the two compared and if you thought that maybe it is an unfair comparison.

Until next time,

Pegasus

The Girl on the Train

Review: The Bourbon Kings by J.R. Ward

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01 aba Yep. This is going to be another fun series by Ms. Ward.

There is no better word, to describe this family, than to say it’s dysfunctional. I mean the stories and behaviors of these people are downright shocking! At one point I was cringing and then tearing up a bit. There are so many puzzle pieces that need to be found, it’s CRAZY!! I have so many ideas but when it comes down to it, I bet they’re all wrong. So I’m going to hold on tight and enjoy the ride.

I’ll admit I was a bit lost and confused with the first few chapters. I’m so used to the BDB, so learning new names and places was a bit daunting for me, but then I figured it out.

“I can’t change what happened and I know there’s no going back…all I ask is that you don’t fall for appearances, okay? You’ve had ten years around this family, but I’ve been with them and the people who surround them all my life. That’s why you’re the one I want. You’re real. You’re not capable of being what they are and that’s a very, very good thing.”

Watching the drama unfold was exactly like a soap opera would be. Intrigue, romance, lies, and above all, secrets. Lots and lots of secrets.

I can’t wait for the next book!!!

~Melpomene

Buy The Bourbon Kings