Devi Nair
Please mind before reading. Entire review is a spoiler with the suspense almost written down. Please don't read my review if you have not read the book.
I could not understand the ending. All the while Billy was showing shady traits, and all of a sudden the suspect changed just like that. I did not like the flow of the story line. Katia could have very well put up multiple suspects. Billy should not have been brought under the lime light at all. He was going through PTSD, he could not have possibly murdered people. There was no reason to hint otherwise.
Because of that, the entire thrill went away. It could have been better. The portrayal of Karin, Dhati, Abby were wonderful. Mac felt like a needless side character. Everyone else was literally non existent except for the Father X, who was quite obvious for a suspect. Even the Parsons felt shady right from the start.
Except for Billy line up, everything went well. But just coz of Billy, my rating is 3 stars
The story starts like those CBI detective series, with a random group of people finding a body while playing golf. Mystery starts right from the first page and takes on pace with each chapter. Initially, the writing is slightly slow with more descriptions regarding the characters' state of mind. But as the story progressed, the writing improved, interest increased and story became fun to read. Classic who-dunnit with enough twists and turns to keep you interested, flipping through the pages. Abby Sanders is shown as a perfect detective with a perfect family (somewhat too good to be true kind of family, in fact, but it went with the story so no negative feelings about it). The victim was yet another too-perfect girl who got murdered for being at the wrong place at the wrong time. The suspects list kind of diminishes by itself and the mystery unravels right in front of your eyes. The end came very much like the CBI tele series, but was still interesting enough to give a satisfaction when you close the book.
I would definitely recommend it to all cozy readers. Looking forward to reading more of Judy's books. This one definitely grabbed my interest.
The story is really interesting and brings out the close female friendship - almost like Sex and the City. Today in the era, where we have improved so much on our societal norms about women, but still living in India where women forgo their friendship for family commitments, such books are a refreshing change and inspiration to build and reconnect to the girlfriends. The friendship between Jean and Rosie initially begins like a parasitic relationship where Jean leans on Rosie to get on with all the happenings in her life. Jean starts of as a very negative character with so much anger in her life about all the events. Slowly Rosie rubs off her and jean eventually begins to change her attitude towards her life and the people in her life.
Rosie, however, is shown as a totally unbelievable character. She is too good to be true. A person being so much positive in life is something that I find really difficult to believe (incidentally there are times when even Jean says the same in the book)
Overall I found the book enjoyable so far. The purchase of the next book will depend on the note that I end the book with. So long till then.
The written language was not up to the mark. There were too many exclamations and expressions which were not required to be written down. Many times, over explanations of situations made the reading experience a bit childish. It felt like a chick lit written for kindergartens.
It could have been much better with such a cute story
The only reason why the rating is 3 stars is because of the drag that was there all through the book. There were a lot of unnecessary explanations and situations placed all through out the book which made it around 100 pages longer than it should have been.
The story was lovely, though. It is always refreshing to read about girl pals who stick with each other through thick and thin. The characters were shown very realistic and had issues which we could relate to - insecurities, inability to say no to our loved ones, inability to say no to others, guilt when something goes wrong even when it is of no fault of ours, etc.
But the story could have been so much better and shorter, which would have made the read even more enjoyable.
Thursdays at Coconuts is a book I would recommend to those who like chick lits and also who could read faster by skipping the non-important parts of the book.
Harlan Coben has a talent, which very other authors have. And that talent is to create a story so brilliant that you can never stop reading until the end. Stay Close follows the same lead. All through the story, there is an indication of a certain killer, in the last few pages, Coben brings one smoke screen killer and then drum rolls into the original killer, who turns out to be a completely unsuspected character.
The story line has no flaw at all. The characters are totally believable and made to be as much humane as any of us. Since it is a mystery, you cannot read it over and over again, but as soon as I forget what the mystery was, I plan to re-visit this story once again some time in future, just for the kick.
Yet another brilliant book by this brilliant author. A must recommendation for all mystery lovers.
This is very similar to “Before I Sleep” by SJ Watson. But the similarities end at the concept. Where SJ Watson kept the readers enthralled and at the edge of their seats till the very end of the book, Liane Moriarty has done just the opposite of it. There are very few pages that I have completely read. Even if you were to skip a couple of chapters, you would realize that you haven't missed much of the story. The story drags along so much that you almost want to just read the ending and get it done with.
And that is almost what I did.
The climax of the story is too rushed, which is an irony since every other detail is mentioned. At the end of the book, there is a very incomplete feeling which begs you to compensate by reading a good book soon.
I am sure Liane Moriarty is a good author as I have read quite a number of good reviews about her books in general. But this one, unfortunately, is not at par with the perception those reviews give. Avoid this one if you are looking for a good thriller.
An interesting book. It does not have only one love story and that creates some spice in the book. There is not much love scenes. The focus is purely on romance so it is more fun to read the book. Libby being shown as a romance writer, it gives the story a more life like setting. Everything about the book is relatable to the real life. There is no Adonis type hero and crazy antics.
It is a sweet little love story set up in real life
Christmas romance books are always fun to read. And this one was just as fun as expected. Love stories normally take the same route and this one did too. But every book has a little bit of author's soul in it, and no matter how much similar love stories can be, that part of author's soul does come out.
This really left a warm feeling which is so much essential on a cold Christmas evening. A perfect read by the fire side
Unfortunately I could not go ahead and finish the book. It was too much distracting. The entire focus appeared to be on cakes and recipes and cookies.
My Buddy tells me that the other book of the series are good. So I am gonna go back and read all the books from the start. Sometimes you cannot judge a book by it's cover. Similarly this time I am not judging the series by a single book. Maybe the other books are better
Friends, please comment and advice
When I first came across the book via a buddy to read together for April, I was not sure if it would be interesting enough. The summary stated that the book was written backwards. On the first glance, it means nothing.
But the moment you finish the first chapter, which incidentally is the last chapter of the book, you get hooked to it. The story unfolds upside down. But by the time you reach to the last chapter, which is actually the first, you are shell shocked at the suspense.
The book is a roller coaster ride in reverse. An experience which is must have for every suspense lover. Amazing book. Thank you Shelly for introducing me to ti
An OK paranormal book on witches and cats. The focus was on white witches and their cats, so there are some chapters on the cats' POVs too. The transition between human and cat POV is smooth and does not hamper the flow of reading. The suspense was also not identifiable till the end so it was yet another bonus point to the book.
It was interesting to read, but not every engaging to say that I loved it. Just an OK addition to the cozy mystery list
Another OK paranormal cozy mystery. White magic was prominent. The protagonist Willa feels slightly loose in the head. Although she can see ghosts, she still lets her own personal feeling cloud her judgement. I could figure out the killer pretty easily and thus the ending was no surprise. Still, shall go ahead with the series
A brilliant book. The entire story is said through a series of entries in a Review book kept at the count of a Guest House. The guests are quirky and fun and have a lot of interesting things to say to the owner, Annie. Annie is yet another funny character with amazing wit. The book is literally a read-till-the-very-end because you cannot just stop laughing.
I would really recommend it to everyone who likes chick lit
A brilliant suspense thriller by SJ Watson. Buddy reading it with Shubham was fun in itself. But the book was also too much fun. The thriller did not come till the very end. Every step raised a question without any answer which just kept building up the suspense.
Watson created a perfect story line and kept up the writing style to build the suspense till the reader cannot take it anymore. The climax was intense and fulfilling with all the questions answered and a happy ending. An amazing suspense thriller.
Another beautiful addition to the collection. I can never get enough of Ginny, Jen, Annie, Kiki and their family. Love them to bits like my own best friends.
This story takes us through their midlife crisis, pregnancy, insecurities, finances and the way they have to maintain the precious life they have all built together. An amazing one. Totally must read.