Sarah
3.5 stars
The premise of this pulled me in, with social media being the huge platform it now is I enjoy reading about how it could go wrong, with how much information people post online about where they are, what they're doing, selfies, pictures of food etc and then how much hate spews from other people for no reason other than to make themselves feel better and make the other person feel worse or suicidal.
We have a Twitter killer, @bemykiller, who, if you send them a message will pick someone to kill, the #bemykiller trends and people die. When Hazel, who makes documentaries and is our main character, finds out that an old friend of hers, Meredith, has been killed by the Twitter killer, she decides to investigate and try to find out what happened. Shenanigans ensue and it gets violent.
There are a lot of characters to contend with in this, most of the notes I made are names and who people are and how they connect to the story, it's a slow start and the violence is quite extreme considering this is a mystery/thriller rather than a horror.
I did enjoy the story as a whole but it can get confusing with all those people and I would've loved to see Fun Central, the abandoned amusement park where they go to film a documentary, be more of a character, as that's what kept me reading, thinking more would happen there that would take this from a 3.5 star book to a huge 5 star book. Alas, that did not happen.
Will still keep my eyes open for more by this author as he does write well and I'm hoping I'll enjoy one of those more than this.
Huge thanks to Richard Parker, Bookouture and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
Prologue - 31st January 1976
3 children watch as another child's body, wrapped in a flour sack, is buried under an apple tree. ‘I wonder which one of us will be next'. (I'm paraphrasing here, it has more info than that but this is the pertinent bit in my eyes)
Told over 9 days from 30th December 2014 to 7th January 1015.
When a woman is found strangled in a church, DI Lottie Parker is called in to find out what the frack is going on. Lottie is still mourning the death of her husband and hasn't really got her head together yet, she has 3 children who she doesn't seem to be able to communicate with and she just throws herself back into work.
There are more deaths as she tries to figure it out and some of it hits too close to home.
I thoroughly enjoyed this!! Lottie is a wonderful yet damaged character, she's having a hard time and not being able to spend as much time with her children as she can is difficult for her but they remind her too much of the husband she lost and she still grieves over him.
The story has it's slow points but that's just so you can catch your breath from everything else that's going on. There's a lot of secrets and lies, sexual abuse of children (not graphic but upsetting none the less) and the grief, anger, hopelessness and pain associated with it.
I would say I'm looking forward to the next one but I've already read, and loved, it so the review will be coming in the next half an hour or so!!
Huge thanks to Patricia Gibney, Bookouture and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinion are my own
The start of this book is horrifying and heartbreaking but it's done for a reason, it's not done for the sake of doing it, it's to move the story forward and give you a glimpse into the horror.
The main part of the book begins not long after the end of the first book, Lottie is still trying to hold things together in the aftermath of the previous book but throws herself into work rather than really facing it.
As she's going to work a young woman arrives at her door with her son, she asks Lottie for help and then disappears. When a woman is found dead later that day she wonders if it could be the same woman, then more women are found dead and Lottie and her team have to catch the killer before he strikes again all while trying to find the young woman and her son.
Another wonderful story from Patricia Gibney!! We're drawn straight back into Lotties world and we see how she and her family are coping, she's still trying to avoid conversations and thinks that by ignoring it, it will go away, when we all know that is never the case.
I am now waiting for the 3rd book in this series as I want to know what trouble she gets herself into the next time :)
Huge thanks to Patricia Gibney, Bookouture and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
This was a very, very quick read because of how well it flows, it's full of humour, there's some gruesome and violent bits but it's not too bad, the different places they go while in the Glass Vault are well described and immersive.
It ended a little abruptly for me but now I know there's another book coming I can wait for that to see if what I want to happen, happens.
To say I don't read very much YA at all, I really quite enjoyed it and am anxious (I'm always anxious!) to read the next one.
Huge thanks to Candace Robinson and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
When Mount Ararat in Turkey decides to throw a proper tantrum the resulting avalanche uncovers a huge cavern in its side, one that, geologically, shouldn't be there. We are then introduced to Meryam and Adam, an engaged couple who do lots of climbing and adventuring together which they then write about and make videos about.
They, along with their guide friend Feyiz (who was on the mountain when it threw a strop) and a small band of other guides, race to the cavern to be the first inside to discover what secrets it holds. Could it be Noah's Ark? There are some who believe it is.
As soon as they reach the cavern and are inside, shit starts to get weird and horrifying. What is in the coffin? Why is it covered in bitumen? Why are people going bat crap crazy? I'll leave that for you to find out!!
I've enjoyed the writing of Christopher Golden since I first picked up one of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer books he's written, and been a part of, so I knew I had to get my sneaky little hands on this and I'm so very glad I was approved for it!
Wonderfully described surroundings, well developed characters, mystery, supernatural shenanigans, violence and craziness all melding together to create a fast paced and exciting read.
My eyes are now peeled for other books by Mr Golden that are more like this and less YA because if they ARE like this, I know I'm gonna love them!!
Huge thanks to Christopher Golden, Headline and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
I've been sitting here for a while now trying to work out what to say about this book and to write a cohesive review (my reviews don't usually end up that cohesive anyway really!) and I just don't know what to put.
I liked it but it wasn't as good as I thought it would be yet it wasn't terrible. What I'm trying to say is it's a so-so book that i feel pretty blah about.
Best. Review. Ever. Sigh
Huge thanks to Amy Schumer, HarperCollins UK and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
This is the sort of book I love, the day to day of a SOCO and the trials and tribulations they face as they do their jobs.
There's not much more for me to say about this as the blurb pretty much says it all.
It's an enjoyable, informative and eye opening read and it's funny too. I really loved it.
Huge thanks to Larry Henderson, Kris Hollington, Thistle Publishing and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
I may have rated this book higher if it was the first one in the series that I'd read, I read the 6th book first Saturday Requiem so I knew about certain things that may have shocked me had I not read that one first.
It's nice to see how it all started, even though I don't know much about Frieda and her backstory, I know her friends and the interplay between them.
The story flows a little slower than the other one I've read but it can take a book or two before a writer gets into a groove they are comfortable with and then the stories and character development just flows out.
I have the last book in this series, Sunday Morning Coming Down, and will be getting to that one soon.
Huge thanks to Nicci French, Penguin UK - Michael Joseph and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
Welcome back to Hazel Rock, Texas, we're now at the book barn (oh how I've missed you!!), Princess the albino Armadillo (still not allowed one, not sure if I can find one rocking about in Nottingham though) and Charli Rae and the wonderful characters who surround her!
This time there are cowboys wandering around the town for the big Rodeo event and fundraising action, we all know there will be shenanigans and they start pretty quickly!!
The story flows really well, the characters are well drawn out, there's humour, I love the humour, wonderful interplay between the characters and there's the book barn which is one of the reasons I love this series, the other reason is Princess <3
Huge, huge thanks to Kym Roberts, Kensington Books and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
This is the first graphic novel I've read in this series but it certainly won't be the last!!
The illustrations are gorgeous, dark yet somehow vibrant, violent and empowering, well written story with characters I want to follow forever.
My words can't express how wonderful this is, I just urge everyone to pick it up and fall into the story and illustrations of this wonderful Steampunk story.
My eyes are now fully open to more by Joe Benitez both in this series and anything else he brings us! So much LOVE!!
Huge thanks to Joe Benitez, M. M. Chen, Diamond Book Distributors and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
This is the first time I've read any Heart and Brain stuff but I plan to read more by The Awkward Yeti as soon as I can get my hands on them!
It's a quick and funny read, relatable and has some laugh out loud bits that I won't tell you about now, you'll have to read it and find out for yourself.
Huge thanks to The Awkward Yeti, Nick Seluk, Andrews McMeel Publishing and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
I've seen a few of these floating around on Facebook but wasn't sure where to actually find a collection of them, I'm so glad I found this on NetGalley and delighted when I was approved.
It's a very quick read but it's fun and made me laugh a few times as it's relatable and my boyfriend said some of it's me too!
Will be keeping my eye out for more books by this author as they're fun and quick.
Huge thanks to Loryn Brantz, Andrews McMeel Publishing and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
Hendrik is such a wonderful character!
The shenanigans he gets up to with his friends at the care home are funny, moving, sneaky and awesome!
I read this over a few days, needed to make it last and to be a slightly more lighthearted read than my usual choice of book, it worked a treat!! I was thoroughly invested in Hendrik and all this friends and didn't want the year to end.
The good thing though is that there is another book but I'm going to have to learn Dutch to read it:)
Huge thanks to Hendrik Groen, Penguin UK - Michael Joseph and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
Enjoyable read about the criminals in Brooklyn, will be re-reading this to try and figure out all the Mafia connections, who was in which family, who they killed, who they had problems with etc.
It's fascinating how intertwined it all was and I want to read more about it.
Huge thanks to Craig McGuire, WildBlue Press and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
I do love me a good serial killer book and this is one of them!!
Suzanne has settled into her life, it's not exactly where she wanted to be but she's comfortable until she receives a phone call from Rose Anderson, someone she doesn't know but who has been living with her estranged father for years. She agrees to meet Rose to collect the belongings Rose says she has for her, thus starts the descent into the despicable mind of Don.
Manipulative, cruel, heartless and sociopathic, he's just the kind of father you don't want to have, reading through his diaries and seeing the pictures he kept, it gives me chills just thinking about it.
We have a lovely steady build up and we meet a well mixed cast of characters who bounce of each other well, the diaries are cruel and crudely written but explain, as much as they can, his state of mind.
It's a well written story and I would LOVE to read a sequel to see where everything goes after this but, alas, that will not be the case as the author passed away in April of this year. It is now left to our own imagination as to how it all ends up.
Really good read, highly recommended.
Huge thanks to Lesley Welsh, Bookouture and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
Told from the perspectives of Catherine (the wife and mother) and Simon (the husband and father) both then and now we see how their marriage and life together fell apart.
Simon leaves, only he knows why, holding onto his truth about their life and what the consequences will be. Catherine is left in pieces, not knowing why Simon is gone or where he can be, she's left with their children and to try to piece life back together without him.
Until 25 years later when he appears at their house and begins to tell his story.
This story grips you and doesn't want to let go, you need to know exactly what is happening, how he'll justify leaving all those years ago, how to justify his actions.
As it builds you know something big is coming, I worked it out but I still enjoyed how it was all built and the aftermath is short but as I think it should be.
Really enjoyed it though, read it in a couple of sittings and will now get to the other John Marrs book that I need to read!
Huge thanks to John Marrs, Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
Spiders!!!
Now I have your attention I will try and draw you into this this action packed book!
Ed Reardon is obsessed, he's spent his life following in his grandfathers footsteps, searching for something in the Amazon, something that will justify his grandfathers work and will bring him some sort of peace. As he moves further into the Amazon he comes across something that puzzles and intrigues him, something that he needs to talk to his ex about, entomologist Rebecca Riley, something with eight legs and bigger than she's seen before!
This is a spider filled, action packed and ‘Congo' reminiscent book and one I thoroughly enjoyed!
We have the spiders, the humour, the action, the tension and the hope for a sequel as we run along head first into it all.
You take each step with these characters, curling up with them in their tents at night, walking through streams, climbing walls and watching the spiders as they protect their home.
I love books about spiders and am extremely lucky that I managed to be approved for this. I am throughly hooked and wait patiently for anymore books the author chooses to write!
*Huge thanks to W.W. Mortensen and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own *
In Scotland the lives a book shop with a wonderfully sarcastic owner, weird customers and slightly offbeat staff, this diary is so good that I am seriously considering a road trip up there to try and become a squatter in the shop among all the books.
I won't be allowed to live there any other way unless I become a squatter and try to claim squatters rights, I need to do some research about that to see if it's a feasible plan strokes chin while thinking
I this in a couple of sittings as I didn't want it to end and don't know why it's taken me this long to review it, naughty me.
Huge thanks to Shaun Bythell, Serpent's Tail, Profile Books and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
Good start to a new cozy series, I love the main character and her relationships with her friends and the town folk in general.
One character I hated! when you read it you will know exactly who I mean and I really, really wanted to see them hit very hard in the groinal area multiple times with heavy objects but that might just be me.
I have the 2nd book in this series on my kindle and I think I'm gonna have to pick it up to get back into this world. Hopefully I'll be able to post a review quicker than I have been doing!
Huge thanks to Sharon Farrow, Kensington Books and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
When Fortune, who's been living and working in Dubai, finds out that his estranged daughter Sophie has gone missing he jumps on the first plane back home to London to find out just what the heck is going on. The police think she's either committed suicide or has run away so they're pulling back the investigation as they think it's, basically, a waste of their time and resources.
Fortune is not having that so takes it upon himself to do a little investigating of his own especially when he finds out that she's the target of an online troll, the story slowly unravels, as does Fortune.
The build up and clues are well done as you continue to read to find out what the actual fuck is going on.
I've found, that if I'm struggling to get into a book, then listening to it on audio gives me the boost to get it read, I read faster than the normal audio book speed, and speeding it up just sounds wrong, so it annoyed me enough, when I was trying to listen and read along, to just stop listening and actually read the damn book. Once that happened I flew through it.
Will be on the lookout for other books by this author and see what they're like.
Huge thanks to D.B. Thorne, Atlantic Books, Corvus and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
House that used to be a sanitarium? Check! Gothic creepiness? Check! Mysterious goings on? Check!
Just my sort of book.
Flew through this in a day back in June 2017 but only now getting around to reviewing it (oh the shame!)
Thoroughly enjoyed this story and the shenanigans it contains but I just wish it was creepier and scarier, that's the only downside to this book, everything else was all good and I will definitely be reading more by this author.
Huge thanks to Wendy Webb, Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
What began as a way for people to get un-cut drugs in a safe place soon began growing into somewhere for everything from guns and poisons to human organs to be bought and sold. This was not what Ross Ulbricht, aka Dread Pirate Roberts, had in mind when he started the Silk Road.
In this book we meet lots of players in the game as we read how it all started and how DPR was eventually captured.
I'm not going to say much more as I think you should read it and make your own mind up about the entire thing. I did really enjoy it though and raced through it, to say I read this in May 2017 and still remember most of the book as I'm writing this in Jan 2018, tells you how much I enjoyed it.
Huge thanks to Nick Bilton, Penguin Random House UK, Ebury Pub and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
Werewolves, Bavaria, gruesome violence and a twist ending comes together well for this very, very quick read, perfect to jump into when you have a spare few minutes or need a quick break from other books you may be reading.
Huge thanks to Jason Parent, Corpus Press and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own
All I need to say is that I loved this book!
True crime books are my jam and I could quite happily sit and read them all day, which, to be fair, is what I've been doing for the last week now and am still not bored of them.
Will absolutely be picking up all the Crime Buff's Guide books as they're informative and highly addictive.
Huge thanks to Ron Franscell, WildBlue Press and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own