Book Review: DAUGHTER OF MINE by Megan Miranda

 

Title: DAUGHTER OF MINE

Author:  Megan Miranda

Read: April 2024

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟1/2

 

Book Description:

 

When Hazel Sharp, daughter of Mirror Lake’s longtime local detective, unexpectedly inherits her childhood home, she’s warily drawn back to the town—and people—she left behind almost a decade earlier. But Hazel’s not the only relic of the past to return: a drought has descended on the region, and as the water level in the lake drops, long-hidden secrets begin to emerge…including evidence that may help finally explain the mystery of her mother’s disappearance.

My musings:

 

I love Megan Miranda’s books – she is the queen of the atmospheric, character driven slow-burn, with intriguing interpersonal dynamics between her characters, which add an extra layer to her mysteries. As with many of her other books, DAUGHTER OF MINE started off as a slow simmer, setting the scene, but it didn’t take long for the tension to build.

 

After the death of Mirror Lake’s beloved local detective, Perry Holt, his daughter Hazel returns home to join her two brothers and attend his memorial service. The town has been in the grip of a severe drought, which has caused the lake’s level to drop to an all-time low, revealing all kinds of sunken treasures in its depth. Hazel arrives just in time to see an old car being pulled from the mud, setting her sense on high alert. After her mother left the family home never to be seen again when Hazel was fourteen, she is afraid that the car might be somehow related to her disappearance. But there is another surprise in store for Hazel when she finds out that she is the sole heir to her father’s estate. She is convinced that her father is trying to send her a message from beyond the grave – but how can she find out what he was trying to warn her about?

 

As with all of Miranda’s novel, DAUGHTER OF MINE was cleverly constructed, with many red herrings and an underlying sense of danger and menace that had my hairs standing on edge as I was trying to work out the mystery. I love books where the reader finds out clues at the same time as the main character, with the great unknown creating a sinister foreshadowing. Together with Miranda’s hallmark atmospheric setting, all of these elements worked perfectly together to keep me on the edge of my seat the whole time, especially as the body count in the small town was beginning to mount.

 

If you love a good slow-burn with a small town setting and atmospheric nature backdrop, then you can’t go past Megan Miranda’s books. Every time I read her latest novel, I am wondering which is my favourite – and DAUGHTER OF MINE is a definite contender (though I think that THE ONLY SURVIVORS is still number 1 on my list). 

Book Review: THE BELL IN THE LAKE and THE REINDEER HUNTERS by Lars Mytting

 

Every now and then you stumble across a book that just takes your breath away, and THE BELL IN THE LAKE and its sequel THE REINDEER HUNTERS fell into that category for me! I loved everything about this story, even though it also broke my heart into a million pieces.

 

Set in a small remote village in Norway in the late 1800’s, we get to meet the unforgettable characters that will soon worm their way into our hearts and minds. Astrid Hekne, the beautiful and clever daughter of a local landholder, who yearns to get out of the confines of her village and a different life. Kai Schweigaard, the young pastor who has just been posted to the village and has ambitious plans for the town, hoping that his progressive ideas will elevate his status and give him a ticket to grander locations. And Gerhard Schoenauer, the young German architect who has been sent to draw up plans of the church before it gets sold, dismantled and moved all the way to Germany. Butangen’s stave church features like a character itself, with its myth about the “sister bells” and its strong connection to the community, so it’s little wonder that its fate is strongly tied to that of its parishioners.

 

With a strong sense of place and time and a setting so vivid that I thought I was in Norway, the book took me on one unforgettable journey I only came out of reluctantly, dazed and completely emotionally wrung out. Mytting tells his tale so convincingly that his characters came to life for me, and I remember them as flesh and blood people whose fate touched me in ways only few fictional characters can. A heads up: have some tissues ready because I cried floods of tears!

 

Despite being 400 pages long, the story came to an end way too soon, but the good news was that there is a sequel! THE REINDEER HUNTERS takes the story up where THE BELL IN THE LAKE ended, with a new, younger generation of Butangen residents now in the forefront of the novel. Myttings trilogy (I can’t wait for the third instalment, which hasn’t been released yet) is deeply steeped in history and folklore, making it an interesting as well as educational read. Be prepared to spend hours googling “stave churches” after reading it. I was also fascinated by the details about midwifery and the knowledge of the midwives in the late 1900’s, with so many challenges to overcome, distance and poverty amongst them. Mytting’s keen observations of human behaviour fill his novels with tales of love & hate, jealousy & forgiveness, kindness and compassion and greed and the dynamics of a small remote community steeped in tradition and folklore. Here the progressive ideas of a young pastor may not be kindly received by all, and the ideas of the church often clash against more traditional views.

 

There is so much more I could say about these wonderful novels but I will leave it at that and urge you to pick them up for yourself. You will be rewarded with a story that will stay with you for a long time, and some magnificent armchair travel to Norway (which makes me want to go out and buy a ticket right now to explore it for myself). I can’t wait for the release of the third book in the trilogy to find out more about the fate of the sister bells and the sisters’ weaving depicting Skrapanatta.

Book Review: THE HALF MOON by Mary Beth Keane

 

Title: THE HALF MOON

Author:  Mary Beth Keane

Read: February 2024

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 all the stars!

 

 

Book Description:

 

Malcolm Gephardt, handsome and gregarious longtime bartender at the Half Moon, has always dreamed of owning a bar. When his boss finally retires, Malcolm stretches to buy the place. He sees unquantifiable magic and potential in the Half Moon and hopes to transform it into a bigger success, but struggles to stay afloat.

His smart and confident wife, Jess, has devoted herself to her law career. After years of trying for a baby, she is facing the idea that motherhood may not be in the cards for her. Like Malcolm, she feels her youth beginning to slip away and wonders how to reshape her future.

Award-winning author Mary Beth Keane’s new novel takes place over the course of one week when Malcolm learns shocking news about Jess, a patron of the bar goes missing, and a blizzard hits the town of Gillam, trapping everyone in place. With a deft eye and generous spirit, Keane explores the disappointments and unexpected consolations of midlife, the many forms forgiveness can take, the complicated intimacy of small-town living, and what it means to be a family.

 

My musings:

 

This is my first book by Mary Beth Keane, and I absolutely loved the way she portrays the ups and downs of a marriage scarred by loss and thwarted aspirations. Jess and Malcolm once were the perfect couple – young, in love and full of hope they embarked on fulfilling their dreams. Jess threw herself into her law degree, whilst Malcolm still manages the Half Moon, the bar he once wants to own himself. Things are going well until one of their shared dreams falls through: that of starting their own family. After the loss of their infant daughter, their reality becomes endless rounds of fertility treatments and disappointments. When Malcolm makes a rash decision against Jess’ advice, the strain on the marriage proves too much and Jess leaves him.

 

Now, Malcolm is running the bar on his own, battening down the hatches just before a raging blizzard hits town. With the bar closed for a few days, Malcolm knows he won’t be able to pay his bills and faces the loss of his business, making him question every decision he has ever made ….

 

Keane is an astute observer of human relationships and her description of the couple’s marriage rang true and deeply touched my heartstrings. Here are two people who loved another, unmoored by tragedy. Will they find their way back to one another? Or is it already too late? The NOW part of the story plays out over just a week, but we get to find out all the details of what brought Jess and Malcolm to their present situations – I dare you not to shed a tear or two here!

 

THE HALF MOON was a touching, thought provoking, well written and wonderfully observed study of a marriage and what really matters in life, as well as one of overcoming adversity. I became so deeply engrossed in the audiobook that I just wanted to keep listening until I could find out how this story would play out. My first favourite read of the year – I now must go back and read the author’s other books!

Update: I have since read ASK AGAIN, YES by Mary Beth Keane and have found the same keen observations about human relationships as in THE HALF MOON. However, as a personal preference I much prefer novels that play out over a shorter time period to those who span whole lives, so THE HALF MOON remains my favourite.

Book Review: HAS ANYONE SEEN CHARLOTTE SALTER? by Nicci French

 

Title: HAS ANYONE SEEN CHARLOTTE SALTER?

Author:  Nicci French

Read: March 2024

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 all the stars!

 

Book Description:

 

A nerve-tingling and atmospheric thriller from master of suspense Nicci French about two families shattered by tragedy and the secrets that have been waiting decades to be revealed.

 

On the day of Alec Salter’s fiftieth birthday party, just before Christmas 1990, his wife Charlotte vanishes. Most of the small English village of Glensted is at the party for hours before anyone realizes Charlotte is missing. While Alec brushes off her disappearance, their four children—especially fifteen-year-old Etty—grow increasingly anxious as the cold winter hours become days and she doesn’t return. When Charlotte’s coat is found by the river, they fear the worst.

 

Then the body of the Salters’ neighbor, Duncan Ackerley, is found floating in the river by his son Morgan and Etty. The police investigate and conclude that Duncan and Charlotte were having an affair before he killed her and committed suicide.

 

Thirty years later, Morgan Ackerley, a successful documentarian, has returned to Glensted with his older brother Greg to make podcast based on their shared tragedy with the Salters. Alec, stricken with dementia, is entering an elder care facility while Etty helps put his affairs in order. But as the Ackerleys ask to interview the Salters, the entire town gets caught up in the unresolved cases. Allegations are made, secrets are revealed, and a suspicious fire leads to a murder. With the podcast making national news, London sends Detective Inspector Maud O’Connor to Glensted to take over the investigation.

 

My musings:

 

It’s no secret that Nicci French are on my list of favourite writers, and I will snap up anything they write as soon as it comes out. So when I found out that HAS ANYONE SEEN CHARLOTTE SALTER? was available on audio, I settled in for a long and enjoyable read.

 

French are masters of characterisation and keen observers of the human psyche, a trait that made their latest book another 5-star read for me. It started off slowly, setting the scene: 15-year old Etty is the first to become alarmed when her mother fails to turn up for her husband’s 50^th birthday party. My alarm bells rang when everyone around her dismissed her fears as groundless, but when Charlotte Salter failed to appear after a few days, it became obvious that something was badly wrong here. Soon after, the body of the Salters’ neighbour and family friend is found dead in a nearby river. The police, eager to solve both cases, conclude that he must have taken his own life after feeling remorse for killing Charlotte. Case closed.

 

Thirty years later, the Salter children return to the family farm to clear out the house and organise for their father Alec, who is suffering from dementia, to go to a nursing home. Ever since their mother’s disappearance, the Salter children (now adults) have drifted apart, and even now refuse to open up about how Charlotte’s absence has affected them. It’s not until the two sons of the other victim decide to publish a podcast looking closer into the two deaths that they have to confront their past – with unexpected results.

 

HAS ANYONE SEEN CHARLOTTE SALTER? was a psychological thriller of the best kind. From the slow exploration of the two families’ grief and confusion, to the mystery surrounding Charlotte’s disappearance, this character driven tale kept me enthralled from beginning to end. In typical French fashion, nothing was as straight forward as it seemed, and there were plenty of surprises in store as we got a look into the past. I particularly loved how French describe the fallout of Charlotte’s disappearance on all her children, affecting their lives far into adulthood – especially Etty, whose personality has been totally transformed by grief.

 

As with most Nicci French novels, the story here had a deep emotional effect on me, and I still pondered the Salters’ story long after the book had concluded. Having lost my mother at a young age, I particularly related to the effect of grief on a young (and older) Etty.

 

Summary:

 

Lovers of slow burning, character driven mysteries will appreciate the way French unravel this cleverly constructed tale and their insight into the effects of crime on the victims’ families. One of my favourites so far this year!

 

Book Review: TOM LAKE by Ann Patchett

 

Title: TOM LAKE

Author:  Ann Patchett

Read: February 2024

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 all the stars!

 

Book Description:

 

In the spring of 2020, Lara’s three daughters return to the family's orchard in Northern Michigan. While picking cherries, they beg their mother to tell them the story of Peter Duke, a famous actor with whom she shared both a stage and a romance years before at a theater company called Tom Lake. As Lara recalls the past, her daughters examine their own lives and relationship with their mother, and are forced to reconsider the world and everything they thought they knew.

Tom Lake is a meditation on youthful love, married love, and the lives parents have led before their children were born. Both hopeful and elegiac, it explores what it means to be happy even when the world is falling apart. As in all of her novels, Ann Patchett combines compelling narrative artistry with piercing insights into family dynamics. The result is a rich and luminous story, told with profound intelligence and emotional subtlety, that demonstrates once again why she is one of the most revered and acclaimed literary talents working today.

My musings:

 

Every now and then a book comes out of left field and totally steals your hear. TOM LAKE was that type of novel for me, jumping from a random book exchange find ("If I don't like it I just bring it back") to my first 5 star read of the year.

Set on a cherry orchard in those first few surreal early months of the pandemic, it tells the story of a family thrown together in lockdown, trying to make sense of the past and the present. I loved the concept of Lara telling her three grown daughters about her youth and musing about how her life was irrevocably changed by the events of one long ago summer. Tackling themes like first love, betrayal, friendship, dreams, loss and the choices we make, its underlying message is that life can turn in a heartbeat and derail the track we're on. Lara has long learned the wisdom some people never achieve: to see what's really important in the big picture and to live the moments. If there is one thing that the pandemic showed us, it's the importance of family and those little snatched joyful moments we often take for granted.

Just as Lara brings her character Emily to life, Pratchett presents us with a cast of unforgettable people who seemed as alive to me as someone I've known for years. Lara muses that she will grow too old to play Emily, and yet her fictional character spoke to me across the ages. I related as much to the younger Lara as to the mother telling her life story to her three grown daughters, trying to make them understand. Written with insight and a lot of heart, the story touched some deep sentimental core in me, making me feel warm and fuzzy one minute and sobbing my heart out the next. What a wonderful read this was! I am so sad to leave this story and am experiencing the biggest book hangover right now.

Book Review: ANNA O by Matthew Blake

 

Title: ANNA O

Author:  Matthew Blake

Read: February 2024

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟

 

Book Description:

 

We spend an average of 33 years of our lives asleep. But what really happens, and what are we capable of, when we sleep?

Anna Ogilvy was a budding twenty-five-year-old writer with a bright future. Then, one night, she stabbed two people to death with no apparent motive—and hasn’t woken up since. Dubbed “Sleeping Beauty” by the tabloids, Anna’s condition is a rare psychosomatic disorder known to neurologists as “resignation syndrome.”

Dr. Benedict Prince is a forensic psychologist and an expert in the field of sleep-related homicides. His methods are the last hope of solving the infamous “Anna O’”case and waking Anna up so she can stand trial. But he must be careful treating such a high-profile suspect—he’s got career secrets and a complicated personal life of his own.

As Anna shows the first signs of stirring, Benedict must determine what really happened and whether Anna should be held responsible for her crimes.

Only Anna knows the truth about that night, but only Benedict knows how to discover it. And they’re both in danger from what they find out.

Joining the ranks of Gillian Flynn, A. J. Finn, and Alex Michaelides, Matthew Blake delivers the thriller of the year: a dark, twisty, and shocking mystery about a young woman who commits a double murder while sleepwalking, and then never opens her eyes again.

My musings:

 

Even with my shiftwork induced obsession with sleep, I was surprised to find out that the average person spends 33 years of their life asleep. 33 years of ZZZZ! But would I willingly sacrifice any of those blissful moments under the doona for more productivity? The answer is no. And yet there seem to be people who can multi-task and combine sleep with some amazing / terrifying feats, such as killing someone whilst sleepwalking. This is the crime Anna O has been accused of, and yet she cannot face trial, since she has never woken from her slumber since the fateful night her two friends were murdered four years ago.

 

Dr Benedict Price is a forensic psychologist specialising in sleep disorders and related crimes. As an expert in his field, he is tasked with the tricky job of waking Anna from her slumber. Facing issues in his own personal life and the ethical dilemmas that his job brings, Benedict has some reservations about the whole project, and yet cannot resist the opportunity to be involved in such a fascinating case. But will waking Anna put them both in danger?

 

I loved the whole premise of sleep disorders, sleepwalking and crimes committed whilst fast asleep and greedily hoovered up all the little morsels of insight into some case studies the author mentions along the way – I would have loved much more of this! But whilst I felt the science behind the novel fascinating and well presented, the actual thriller part of the book seemed to stall and lack in places, especially in the later half. I felt that both Benedict as well as Anna lacked character development, and despite its twists and turns, I guessed parts of the outcome of the story long before the final reveal. So perhaps this was not the thriller of the year for me, but as an original premise it made for hours of interesting reading and intrigue and I mostly enjoyed it. If you find sleep in general fascinating, then this book should definitely be on your list!

Books that chill

Do you love books that chill you to the core and send shivers down your spine? Then here are two special treats for you!

THE PREY by Yrsa Sigurdardottir

 

Yrsa Sigurdardottir is one of my favourite authors when it comes to Nordic Noir novels, and I just can’t get enough of her own special blend of crime with a liberal seasoning of horror / the supernatural. If you have ever been to Iceland then you will understand how these spooky vibes perfectly fit the wintery landscape, and her latest book is no exception – if you love to be chilled, then this book is definitely for you!

 

As in many of her other novels, the author weaves several separate strands into a multi-faceted narrative. We hear about two couples who have gone missing near a remote glacier. Then we meet Hjövar, who is working on an isolated radar station and is dismayed by strange noises and sightings in the snowy landscape surrounding the building. And then there is the mystery surrounding a pink child’s show found in the childhood home of two brothers, who cannot account for its origin. What do all these stories have in common? You will have to read the chilling tale that unfolds from here to find out.

 

Sigurdardottir is the queen of atmospheric settings, using the adverse weather and bleak landscape to her full advantage to spin a spooky tale. I had the fortune to visit some of the locations in this novel a few years ago, so it was like revisiting Iceland all over again. Lucky for me that my encounters were a lot less scary, and I had enjoyed a great breakfast at the Viking Café, so have fond rather than chilling memories of the area.

 

As usual with Yrsa Sigurdardottir’s novels, THE PREY made for thrilling reading from beginning to end and I couldn’t tear myself away. If you love a good spooky mystery then I can highly recommend THE PREY!

A HAUNTING IN THE ARCTIC by C. J. Cooke

 

Wow, WTH have I just read? Despite its rather unimaginative name, A HAUNTING IN THE ARCTIC was a scary, atmospheric mind-f*** of a read that left me not only scared out of my wits, but also made me re-analyse everything I had just read. A blend between horror and Nordic-noir, it had atmosphere in spades, the kind where the setting is an evil, menacing character in itself. The horror vibe is further aided by the chapters set in the past, featuring a young woman abducted onto a whaling ship and subjected to unspeakable suffering.

 

The very same whaling ship, The Ormen, is now rotting away on a remote beach on the coast of Iceland, about to be towed out to sea and destroyed. Dominique, an urban explorer, has taken this last opportunity to visit the stranded vessel and publish her podcast from there. But that night, she is joined by a group of young scientists with their own agenda.

 

I will leave it at this. There is no way to get into this story without giving spoilers, and I wouldn’t trust myself to keep things straight, anyway. And just when I thought I knew what was going on, the whole theory went down like the Ormen into the unfathomable depths of my psyche.

 

For readers who are squeamish, I would not recommend this book, but anyone looking for a spooky, atmospheric read that will leave you speechless, this one is a definite contender! Weaving together history, folk tales, a bit of the supernatural and a bleak, forlorn setting, this was horror of the best kind.

Book Review: BEYOND THAT, THE SEA by Laura Spence-Ash

 

Title: BEYOND THAT, THE SEA

Author:  Laura Spence-Ash

Read: March 2024

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 all the stars!

 

Book Description:

 

As German bombs fall over London in 1940, working-class parents Millie and Reginald Thompson make an impossible choice: they decide to send their eleven-year-old daughter, Beatrix, to America. There, she’ll live with another family for the duration of the war, where they hope she’ll stay safe.

Scared and angry, feeling lonely and displaced, Bea arrives in Boston to meet the Gregorys. Mr. and Mrs. G, and their sons William and Gerald, fold Bea seamlessly into their world. She becomes part of this lively family, learning their ways and their stories, adjusting to their affluent lifestyle. Bea grows close to both boys, one older and one younger, and fills in the gap between them. Before long, before she even realizes it, life with the Gregorys feels more natural to her than the quiet, spare life with her own parents back in England.

As Bea comes into herself and relaxes into her new life—summers on the coast in Maine, new friends clamoring to hear about life across the sea—the girl she had been begins to fade away, until, abruptly, she is called home to London when the war ends.

Desperate as she is not to leave this life behind, Bea dutifully retraces her trip across the Atlantic back to her new, old world. As she returns to post-war London, the memory of her American family stays with her, never fully letting her go, and always pulling on her heart as she tries to move on and pursue love and a life of her own.

As we follow Bea over time, navigating between her two worlds, Beyond That, the Sea emerges as a beautifully written, absorbing novel, full of grace and heartache, forgiveness and understanding, loss and love.

My musings:

 

BEYOND THAT, THE SEA is one of those rare books that come out of nowhere and totally steal your heart. Taking part over a time span of thirty years, the book tells the story of eleven year old Beatrix, who has been evacuated from war torn London to live with a family in America until the end of WWII. Whilst her parents had hoped that the separation would be a short one, it’s five long years until Beatrix can return home again, and then she has been fundamentally changed by her time with the Gregory family.

It’s hard to believe that BEYOND THAT, THE SEA is a debut novel because it is not only insightful and wise, but also written with such skill that the characters immediately came to life for me. As someone who has left my country of birth at a young age to live far away from my origins, I could relate to Beatrix’s sense of estrangement when returning to London after spending her formative years in a place where the culture was significantly different from that of her homeland. I also found it heartbreaking that she was expected to let go of the bond she had formed with her foster family during those early adolescent years, when she was especially vulnerable and far from her own family. In the time of snapchat and facebook it is sometimes hard to remember that not all that long ago it was a lot more difficult to stay in touch, even though I loved the concept of a chess game playing out through “snail-mail” postcards.

BEYOND THAT, THE SEA made me feel warm and fuzzy and teary in equal measure. I shed may tears when I though of Mrs G’s grief of losing the foster daughter she had taken in with such generosity and had come to love as her own. On the other hand, I understood the grief, resentment and jealousy Bea’s mother is experiencing, having to let her child go to another family, who are fortunate enough to escape the horror of war through the sheer luck of fate. One passage where Bea’s mother lashes out at the Gregory family for “living such a good life and eating lots of food” whilst people in London live in daily fear of bombs and have to survive on hard rations resonated with me – especially how the lottery of where you are born determines so much of your fate.

BEYOND THAT, THE SEA is a slow, character driven story exploring the meaning of family and belonging. It also reminded me of my own privilege and to be grateful that I raised my own children in peace and never had to make those terrible choices Bea's parents were forced to contamplate, out of love for their child. Written with a wisdom that will resonate through all ages, this book deeply touched me and will stay in my mind for a long time to come.

Book Review: TO THE RIVER by Vikki Wakefield

 

Title: TO THE RIVER

Author:  Vikki Wakefield

Read: March 2024

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 all the stars!

 

Book Description:

 

The Kelly family has always been trouble. When a fire in a remote caravan community kills nine people, including 17-year-old Sabine Kelly's mother and sister, Sabine confesses to the murders. Shortly after, she escapes custody and disappears. Recently made redundant from marriage, motherhood and her career, journalist Rachel Weirdermann has long suspected Sabine made her way back to the river-now, twelve years after the 'Caravan Murders', she has the time and the tenacity to corner a fugitive and land the story of the year.

Rachel's ambition lights the fuse leading to a brutal chain of events, and the web Sabine weaves will force Rachel to question everything she believes. Vikki Wakefield's compelling story is about class, corruption, love, loyalty, and the vindication of truth and justice. And a brave dog called Blue.

My musings:

 

After a somewhat disappointing start to my reading year, it came as a wonderful surprise to stumble across an unexpected gem, TO THE RIVER, a beautifully drawn story of resilience and justice despite disadvantage and corruption.

Sabine Kelly has been on the run from the law for 12 years after being accused of setting fire to a caravan park when she was only seventeen, killing nine people, including her own mother and sister. Journalist Rachel Weidermann has been fascinated by Sabine’s story since she first read about it and has been tirelessly investigating Sabine’s fate in the hopes of locating her and being able to write an expose’ that will save her flailing career. Through a weird twist of fate, Rachel and Sabine meet, setting a chain of events into motion that will put them both in danger.

I loved Sabine from the start, despite her murderous reputation, and my heart broke for her as we get to find out more about her childhood and years on the run. Rachel was initially a bit more difficult to warm to, but in the end she won me over as well. Wakefield writes with insight and a lot of heart, which shines through in all her characters. Each and every one of them (including Blue, the blue heeler) quickly took on shape in my head until they felt like real flesh and blood people as familiar to me as old friends. Further complimented by the backdrop of an atmospheric river and small town setting, the story soon swept me up and kept me captivated until the end, and I was sad to turn the last page and lose the connection to characters that had become very dear to me in the process of reading.

TO THE RIVER was the first book I have read by Vikki Wakefield but it won’t be my last – I just loved her writing style and the way she portrayed her characters. It’s always exciting to discover a new author to love, and I look forward to reading many more of her novels in future.

Book Review: FIRST LIE WINS by Ashley Elston

 

Title: FIRST LIE WINS

Author:  Ashley Elston

Read: March 2024

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 all the stars!

 

Book Description:

 

Evie Porter has everything a nice, Southern girl could want: a perfect, doting boyfriend, a house with a white picket fence and a garden, a fancy group of friends. The only catch: Evie Porter doesn’t exist.

My musings:

 

What a fun read this book turned out to be! Twisty, original and well plotted, it really stood out from other thrillers I have read this year. 

Evie Porter (not her real name) is a con artist (or perhaps a spy or secret assassin, we don’t really know at this point), employed by her mysterious boss, Mr Smith, who she has never laid eyes on. He only communicates with her through middle-men, endowing her with a new identity, location and job description. Evie has just been assigned a new mark: Ryan Summers, head of a large trucking company. But this job feels different in many ways. Not only because Evie actually LIKES Ryan and doesn’t want to screw him over, but she also has suspicions about the motives of her boss. Is this a genuine job or a test? Is she in danger? This is as much as I am going to say, because it’s best to go into this story blind to get the most out of its insane twists and turns and appreciate just how cleverly it has been plotted from the start.

 

I loved Evie as a protagonist. She is clever, resilient and plucky, which makes for an exciting, fast-paced read as she pitches her own mind against that of her mysterious and very dangerous boss. 

 

If I had thought at the beginning of the book that this story might follow a well-trodden path, then I was soon very pleasantly surprised that there was absolutely nothing predictable about Evie and the decisions she made. In a time when thrillers are flooding the market, it’s very hard to find a true original gem, but FIRST LIE WINS definitely fits into that category. I got so invested in the story that I was sad when it ended, even though the finale was most satisfying.

 

If you are tired of predictable thrillers, then this one is definitely for you!