missing person

Review: We Told Six Lies by Victoria Scott

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Young love is hard, y’all. All those emotions and hormones and stuff running wild. It’s easy to see how feelings could get out of control. But how far is too far?

Molly is missing. Just disappeared. And of course, the first place the police look is at her boyfriend Cobain. But he’s just as perplexed as the authorities are. He would never hurt her. After all, she’s his everything. Before Molly came into his life, he was just existing as he wandered through life. Molly brought the light to his world. And now she’s gone.

Cobain is determined to find out what happened to Molly. He knows more than what he’s told the police, and he has a suspect list. Did he really know Molly, though? What secrets was she hiding from him?

There’s A LOT going on with this story. It’s told from two different perspectives as well as shifting from past to present. Surprisingly, though, it’s easy to follow and suspenseful enough to keep you reading until the twisty end.

~Thalia

Buy It Now: We Told Six Lies

Review: Sadie by Courtney Summers

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I’ve enjoyed other stories by Courtney Summers so it’s a logical assumption that her newest one would be a winner for me as well. And that assumption would be correct.

Sadie is on a mission. Some might call it a death wish. She prefers to look at it as a revenge mission, finding and killing the person responsible for her younger sister’s death.

Unlucky enough to have a neglectful mother, but lucky enough to have each other, Maddie was everything she lived for. Her purpose in life was to protect Maddie, to give her as normal of an upbringing as possible. Tragically, in the end she couldn’t save her. But she can punish her sister’s killer.

There are two stories going on at once here. We hear Sadie’s tale as she travels across the country hunting down a murderer. But we also hear West McCray’s voice as he narrates his podcast after Sadie disappears. He takes us back in time as Sadie takes us forward until they meet in the middle.

A good story, although I wasn’t especially crazy about Sadie for some reason. It took me a bit to get into the flow of things, reading excerpts from West’s interviews. The ending was a bit predictable but there were a few surprises along the way.

~Thalia

Buy It Now: Sadie

Review: Swimming Lessons by Claire Fuller

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Sometimes you start a book and, within the first couple of pages, know it’s going to be one of those books that you can’t put down. And then other times, the start of the story doesn’t really grab you. But you stick with it because you just have a feeling…

When Flora rushes home to be by the side of her injured father, she knows there will be unpleasant memories to face. The disappearance/presumed death of her mother has haunted the family for years. And it doesn’t help matters that her dad believes he’s seen her around town recently. Can Flora finally discover the truth about what happened? And what other secrets will be uncovered in the process?

This is one of those stories that got better and better with each page. Suspenseful, yes. But not in the manner you’d expect. The story unfolds bit by bit, alternating between past and present and largely in the form of letters left behind by Flora’s mother. And the ending is good, still leaving some questions unanswered as many great stories do.

~Thalia

Buy It Now: Swimming Lessons

Review: Liar, Liar by Lisa Jackson

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I’ve loved Lisa Jackson for a very long time. She writes one heck of a whodunnit. Her latest offering is no exception.

It’s been 20 years since Remmi last saw her mother. An explosion in the desert, a shooting, missing children, and then Didi Storm was gone. Nobody knew what happened to her, even her teenage daughter. A minor celebrity in her day, Didi slowly slipped off the radar. Interest is renewed, however, when a mysterious author writes a tell-all book about Didi’s life. And then there’s the jumper, a woman clearly trying to look like Didi leaping to her death. Or was she pushed? Oh and let’s not forget Remmi’s infant sister and brother, both missing since the night of Didi’s disappearance. And last but not least, Noah, an almost love interest who coincidentally also went missing that night.

Seems like a lot going on, I know. But trust me, it goes together. And everything fits, slowing coming together to complete the puzzle. A nice little mystery with a great storyline and interesting characters.

~Thalia

Buy It Now: Liar, Liar

Review: Bring Me Back by BA Paris

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There’s a thread of commonality in most psychological thrillers. Jilted lover, mental illness, murder and mayhem…it almost reads like a recipe. Many of them are still very good, though. However, I’m always excited when I read one that’s so far off that path that it rocks my reading world.

It’s been 12 years since Layla disappeared. Suspected at first of causing her harm, Finn has finally moved on. Quite unexpectedly, he’s found love and happiness with Ellen, Layla’s sister. But just as they are ready to begin planning their wedding, the memory of Layla rears its head. At first they brush it off as coincidence, maybe even someone playing a cruel joke. Eventually, though, there’s no denying that Layla, or someone pretending to be her, is back. The question is, what does she want? And where has she been all this time?

Outstanding. That’s about all I can say about this one. It’s dark and foreboding and you just know something bad is going to happen. And I gotta admit, I’m pretty good at figuring things out before the very end. But even I didn’t see this one coming!

~Thalia

Buy It Now: Bring Me Back

Review: This Is Not a Love Letter by Kim Purcell

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Teenage love is hard, no doubt.  Surely this is the person you’ll be with for the rest of your life, right?  And there’s no possible way you can live without them, is there?

For young Jessie, it all becomes a bit overwhelming.  Sure, she loves Chris with all her heart.  And she can’t imagine her life without him.  But when things start moving a bit too fast, getting a bit too permanent, she decides to slow it down a bit.  Just a break, she tells, him.  Just one week.  A chance to take a step back and breath for a minute.

And then Chris disappears. And she wants him back.  But it’s too late.  She makes all kinds of promises to herself and everyone else.  If only he’ll come home, things will be different.  She didn’t really want a break.  She’s sorry, she misses him, things will be better than ever.  If only it were that simple.

This story is all kinds of things at once.  It’s a love story, sure.  But it’s also a mystery. Exactly what did happen to Chris?  It’s also an excellent take on teenage issues.  A great read!

~Thalia

Buy It Now:  This Is Not a Love Letter

Review: The Hundred Lies of Lizzie Lovett

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A couple of years ago, I discovered the magical world of ARCs.  Oh the joy in receiving a book before the “rest of the world”, being able to dive into it before anyone else can get their hands on it.  But the best part of reading advanced copies for me is finding new authors with outstanding debut novels.  Such is the case with this one.

Hawthorn has never been one to follow along with  everyone’s idea of normal. She doesn’t fit into any group at school, has one good friend, a hippie for a mom, and an active imagination.  So when Lizzie Lovett mysteriously disappears, Hawthorn takes it upon herself to find out just what happened to the town’s golden girl.

But she takes things a bit too far, as with most things she does.  Working in the diner where Lizzie was employed, visiting the woods where she was last seen, getting friendly with Lizzie’s boyfriend…all in the name of solving a missing person’s case.   And of course, she gets more than she bargained for.

This is an interesting book to review.  I’m not quite sure what it is.  A mystery, sure, but not in the truest sense.  A story of teen angst and drama, possibly.  But aren’t all teens full of angst and drama?  A romance…maybe a tad.  In any case, it’s good.  Hawthorn is funny, and she’s admirable as a leading teen character.  And the ending is satisfying with every question being answered.  A good story!

~Thalia

Buy It Now:  The Hundred Lies of Lizzie Lovett