Book Review: DARK CORNERS by Megan Goldin

 

Title: DARK CORNERS

Author:  Megan Goldin

Read: October 2023

Expected publication: out now

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

 

Book Description: 

 

Terence Bailey is about to be released from prison for breaking and entering, though investigators have long suspected him in the murders of six women. As his freedom approaches, Bailey gets a surprise visit from Maddison Logan, a hot, young influencer with a huge social media following. Hours later, Maddison disappears, and police suspect she’s been kidnapped—or worse. Is Maddison’s disappearance connected to her visit to Bailey? Why was she visiting him in the first place?

When they hit a wall in the investigation, the FBI reluctantly asks for Rachel’s help in finding the missing influencer. Maddison seems only to exist on social media; she has no family, no friends, and other than in her posts, most people have never seen her. Who is she, really? Using a fake Instagram account, Rachel Krall goes undercover to BuzzCon, a popular influencer conference, where she discovers a world of fierce rivalry that may have turned lethal.

My musings:

 

Now this was a real thriller in every sense of the word! If I had been thoroughly intrigued by Rachel Krall in THE NIGHT SWIM, I have now totally fallen for this intelligent, plucky, kick-ass character in DARK CORNERS.

 

Rachel Krall is intrigued when she is invited by the FBI to talk to prisoner Terry Bailey, a man convicted of aggravated burglary but also under suspicion of having killed several sex workers. Police are concerned that he is somehow involved in the disappearance of a young social media influencer, Maddison Logan, who hasn’t been seen since visiting Terry in jail two days ago. Since Maddison’s caravan has been found abandoned in a nearby state forest, with video evidence that suggests she was taken by force, police are speculating that Terry’s alleged accomplice is involved and time is running out to find her alive. The only lead the police have is a scribbled note Terry passed to Maddison during her visit, which clearly shows Rachel’s name.

 

In true Rachel Krall fashion, she is not intimidated by the increasing danger the investigation puts her in and resists the FBI’s efforts to get her out of the way once her visit has proven to be a dead end. Being both intelligent and nosy, Rachel asks the right questions to the right people, which leads to a surprising discovery – one that may put her in danger herself.

 

I loved everything about this thriller, from the intriguing premise to the clue-by-clue reveal. As in THE NIGHT SWIM, Rachel Krall’s popular true crime podcast features as a separate POV, telling part of the story from the perspective of the victims. This unique approach not only gave the book a very contemporary and relevant edge, but it also humanised the silent victims of crime – the relatives of the dead and missing left behind with their grief. I also appreciated how Goldin managed to incorporate a villain’s POV without going over the top or giving away spoilers prematurely, which is a fine balancing act not always achieved by crime writers. As the tension mounted it became impossible to put the book down, as I had to find out the answers! As an aside, I found the subplot of BuzzCon and the world of social media influencers most intriguing. I also loved getting to know Rachel a bit better and – whilst usually not a fan of romance in crime thrillers – was enjoying the hopeful and positive vibe it presented here.

  

Summary:

Edgy, taut and very cleverly plotted, this was a total winner for me and I cannot recommend it highly enough. I can also fully vouch for the audio version, which made the podcast elements sound authentic and lent different voices to the characters.

Book Review: NONE OF THIS IS TRUE by Lisa Jewell

 

Title: NONE OF THIS IS TRUE

Author:  Lisa Jewell

Read: September 2023

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟

 

Book Description:

 

Lisa Jewell returns with a scintillating new psychological thriller about a woman who finds herself the subject of her own popular true crime podcast.

Celebrating her forty-fifth birthday at her local pub, popular podcaster Alix Summers crosses paths with an unassuming woman called Josie Fair. Josie, it turns out, is also celebrating her forty-fifth birthday. They are, in fact, birthday twins.

A few days later, Alix and Josie bump into each other again, this time outside Alix’s children’s school. Josie has been listening to Alix’s podcasts and thinks she might be an interesting subject for her series. She is, she tells Alix, on the cusp of great changes in her life.

Josie’s life appears to be strange and complicated, and although Alix finds her unsettling, she can’t quite resist the temptation to keep making the podcast. Slowly she starts to realise that Josie has been hiding some very dark secrets, and before she knows it, Josie has inveigled her way into Alix’s life—and into her home.

My musings:

 

Have you ever met one of your birthday twins, a person born on exactly the same day as you? I remember being at work one day, taking a woman’s details, and it turned out we were born merely an hour apart, albeit in different parts of the globe. A strange bond, nonetheless.

 

Josie Fair is having her 45^th birthday dinner with her husband at a local restaurant when she overhears people at a nearby table who are having a merry party for one of their group. As strange coincidences go, this woman, Alix Summers, is also celebrating her 45^th birthday. Josie finds out that the two women were not only born on the same day, but also in the same hospital. This chance encounter may have been the end of it, but now that Josie has found Alix, she will not let her go that easily.

 

I admit that stalkers and uninvited houseguests are some of my worst anxiety triggers in thrillers, so this book kept me up all night! As tensions escalated, I had to keep reading until I had all the answers, which was way past my bedtime (I advise to start this book when you have lots of free time).

 

NONE OF THIS IS TRUE is probably one of Jewell’s darkest books and one where she takes the unreliable narrator theme to an extreme (as hinted in the title). As a very seasoned and talented storyteller, she ratcheted up the tension slowly but steadily until it was impossible to put the book down. There were quite a few hair-raising moments (and a few EEEEWWWW ones, too), and I felt like helplessly watching a train speed towards the abyss. Considering this unbearable tension, I felt that the ending lost a bit of steam and felt strangely anti-climatic to me, though overall this did not detract from the unique premise of the story. I loved the podcast and Netflix-series style of the novel, which gave it a very contemporary feel and allowed for short, punchy chapters and different POVs without losing its flow.

  

Summary:

 

In summary, NONE OF THIS IS TRUE showcases Jewell’s talent as a storyteller and creator of original storylines. Like other thrillers that rely on untruths and hidden secrets, it’s best to go into this one blind and let it take you on a journey. It certainly kept me enthralled until the very end and not much sleep was to be had until I found out the answers.

Book Review: YELLOWFACE by R. F. Kuang

 

Title: YELLOWFACE

Author:  R.F. Kuang

Read: August 2023

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟

 

Book Description:

 

Authors June Hayward and Athena Liu were supposed to be twin rising stars: same year at Yale, same debut year in publishing. But Athena's a cross-genre literary darling, and June didn't even get a paperback release. Nobody wants stories about basic white girls, June thinks.

So when June witnesses Athena's death in a freak accident, she acts on impulse: she steals Athena's just-finished masterpiece, an experimental novel about the unsung contributions of Chinese laborers to the British and French war efforts during World War I.

So what if June edits Athena's novel and sends it to her agent as her own work? So what if she lets her new publisher rebrand her as Juniper Song--complete with an ambiguously ethnic author photo? Doesn't this piece of history deserve to be told, whoever the teller? That's what June claims, and the New York Times bestseller list seems to agree.

But June can't get away from Athena's shadow, and emerging evidence threatens to bring June's (stolen) success down around her. As June races to protect her secret, she discovers exactly how far she will go to keep what she thinks she deserves.

With its totally immersive first-person voice, Yellowface takes on questions of diversity, racism, and cultural appropriation not only in the publishing industry but the persistent erasure of Asian-American voices and history by Western white society. R. F. Kuang's novel is timely, razor-sharp, and eminently readable.

My musings:

 

Have you ever dreamed of writing your own novel? Of sitting in some romantic café scribbling in your notebook and penning the next bestseller. Of having your book grace the front window of bookshops worldwide. After reading Kuang’s novel you may have a more sober perspective of the publishing industry. I never thought it would be easy to be a published author, but hadn’t imagined just how many minefields are lying in wait for any aspiring writer, including the questions at the heart of YELLOWFACE: who owns a story? Who is allowed to tell a story? Does your story have to mirror your own culture and experiences?

 

YELLOWFACE was peppered with ethical and moral dilemmas, and I fluctuated between empathy for June and horror at what she was doing. Many reviewers have stated that June is a thoroughly unlikeable character who is very obviously in the wrong, and many delighted in her downfall. And yet I found Kuang has created a character who is both morally reprehensible and also vulnerable, lonely and insecure. June always has justification for her actions, and some were strangely compelling, like watching a movie about a robbery and knowing it’s a crime, yet having some appreciation for the planning and thought that had gone into it. Hard to explain … Things got even more complex as Athena’s character was cast in a different light later in the novel, blurring the lines further.

 

I was particularly intrigued by the issue of cultural appropriation. Is a writer only allowed to write characters from their own cultural backgrounds? Where are the boundaries? Can you write a police novel or a medical thriller without ever having worked in those fields? I am sure that everyone has an opinion on this, and I imagine it’s a hotly debated issue, which made June’s justifications for her theft and reinvention all the more interesting.

 

All in all, YELLOWFACE is a brilliant, thought-provoking satire that delves into many of the issues encountered in the publishing industry today. With intriguing characters and many ethical questions, it made for fascinating reading from beginning to end. Entertaining and scandalising in equal parts, YELLOWFACE is one of the most original books I have read this year so far. 

Book Review: THE LAST THING TO BURN by Will Dean

 

Title: THE LAST THING TO BURN

Author:  Will Dean

Read: August 2023

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 all the stars!

 

Book Description:

 

On an isolated farm in the United Kingdom, a woman is trapped by the monster who kidnapped her seven years ago. When she discovers she is pregnant, she resolves to protect her child no matter the cost, and starts to meticulously plan her escape. But when another woman is brought into the fold on the farm, her plans go awry. Can she save herself, her child, and this innocent woman at the same time? Or is she doomed to spend the remainder of her life captive on this farm?

My musings:

 

If you have been told by your doctor to reduce your stress levels, then stay clear of this book! THE LAST THING TO BURN is one of the most suspenseful, harrowing and disturbing psychological thrillers I have read in a long time, and yet I loved every nail-biting minute of it. No, it hasn’t done my stress levels any favours, but boy this was good!

 

I’m not usually a fan of captivity thrillers but had devoured and loved every book written by Will Dean so far and knew that it wouldn’t disappoint. Someone who can toss a handful of characters into a single bland setting and yet create tension that makes your hair stand on end like you’ve just stuck a pin into a powerpoint – that person is a true artist in my mind.

 

Jane (not her real name) and Len live in a little old farmhouse on a windswept plain somewhere in the less picturesque parts of England. Or perhaps this is doing the countryside an injustice, because Jane hasn’t had the chance to go anywhere else to explore the scenery. She makes no secret of the fact that she is a captive and would do anything to escape the hell Len is subjecting her to on a daily basis. That is probably all you need to know before delving into the story. Buckle up for the ride though, because just when you think it couldn’t get any worse, there’s another surprise in store for you.

 

Dean uses the little, bland things that make up everyday life to create an atmosphere so tense you could cut it with a knife. The secret is in the detail, and he is a master observer. I never realised how much murderous rage can be released inside me when the right triggers are being sprung. Dean doesn’t use preposterous plot twists or over-the-top conspiracies to spin his tale and capture the imagination, but each scene is so visceral, so powerful that it almost inflicts physical pain. Now this, readers, is a REAL psychological thriller. I carried Jane inside me even during the times when I wasn’t reading, like one of those heavy nightmares that still casts a shadow over the whole day even though you know it’s not real. To imagine that Dean’s book is based on real stories of people trafficking is almost too much to bear.

 

I’ll be totally honest when I say that THE LAST THING TO BURN is not an easy or comfortable read, and there are some very dark themes at play here. But to call it anything less than brilliant would be doing it an injustice. Crafted by a master storyteller, this psychological thriller will stay with you long after the last page has been turned. Enter at your own risk!

Book Review: SOMEONE ELSE'S SHOES by Jojo Moyes

 

Title: SOMEONE ELSE’S SHOES

Author:  Jojo Moyes

Read: July 2023

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 all the stars!

 

Book Description:

 

Who are you when you are forced to walk in someone else’s shoes?

Nisha Cantor lives the globetrotting life of the seriously wealthy, until her husband announces a divorce and cuts her off. Nisha is determined to hang onto her glamorous life. But in the meantime, she must scramble to cope--she doesn’t even have the shoes she was, until a moment ago, standing in.

That’s because Sam Kemp – in the bleakest point of her life – has accidentally taken Nisha’s gym bag. But Sam hardly has time to worry about a lost gym bag--she’s struggling to keep herself and her family afloat. When she tries on Nisha’s six-inch high Christian Louboutin red crocodile shoes, the resulting jolt of confidence that makes her realize something must change—and that thing is herself.

My musings:

 

Let me introduce my feel-good book of 2023! It’s often obvious in the first few pages whether we will love a book, in the way we relate to the characters, and I felt instantly drawn to Sam Kemp and her daily struggles. Even the prickly Nisha Cantor was strangely compelling, perhaps also aided by the wonderful audiobook narration, which gave her quite a unique voice.

 

What would you do if you had to walk in someone else’s shoes for a day (or more), quite literally? After a mix-up at the gym, Sam finds out the hard way as she stumbles off to a stressful work meeting with important clients, teetering precariously on Nisha’s expensive red Louboutin heels.

 

The concept of walking in someone else’s shoes is not new, but taken so literally it made for a most intriguing and very “visual” read. I could picture the two women clearly and forged an instant emotional connection with both of them. I laughed, I cried, my heart full of rage one minute, and full of love and hope the next. Ultimately, the story soothed my soul and set my world back on its right axis – and I really needed that at the time. Moyes writes with the warmth, humour and conviction of a master story teller, and thee wasn’t a moment I didn’t enjoy. I was sad when the book ended, though it was a very satisfying finale!

 

Do yourself a favour and pick up this heart-warming, uplifting story to recharge your batteries and restore your faith in the power of female friendships, new beginnings and discovering your own inner lioness.