Tag: thriller books

The Villa by Rachel Hawkins 🌟Arc Review 🌟

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Thank you Netgalley and Publisher for this Arc!!!

I am freaking out! This was incredible!!!! If you haven’t read a Rachel Hawkins book yet then this is the one! This is the one to read because it absolutely hooked me and had me on edge from start to finish. Not only that but the story itself was so creative and unique, just mind blown 🤯 Soooo good!

There is Emily, the main character. Author of a series of cozy mysteries but going through a harrowing divorce (her ex-husband is horrible). She goes to Italy and Villa Aestas to spend the summer there with her best friend, Chess. But is Chess really a friend?

And, the mystery of this Villa is intense. Emily starts digging up all these secrets about a real tragedy that happened in the 70’s. I got to see another story unfold and how it affects Emily and Chess.

But what is the real ending? There is so much manipulation and greed from all the characters, past and present, that the true outcome becomes fuzzy.

This is the best thriller I’ve read in a long time and I highly recommend it!

Out January 3, 2023!

The House in the Pines by Ana Reyes 🌟 Arc Review 🌟

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This is a really mind twisting and fairly disturbing thriller about how an imaginative and open mind can be manipulated by the wrong person to cause harm.

This was a really intriguing read.  I saw in the acknowledgements that this author was inspired to write this from their thesis for their MFA.   I absolutely love that little piece of information because it adds a bit of background to where this story came from within the author.

The main character,  Maya, is going through so much right now.  Klonopin withdrawal mixed with some irresponsible drinking.   She sees a video online of a woman dying seemingly from nothing except the fact that this woman was with a man that was familiar to Maya and a history she’s been trying to forget.

Out January 3, 2023!

Come Out, Come Out Whatever You Are by Kathryn Foxfield 🌟 Arc Review 🌟

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This was a thrilling read but, unfortunately, the characters (the main character, Lex, especially) just got on my nerves! A high level of arrogance is not my thing, ya’ll!

However, the story was so creepy and cool. A reality TV show putting five strangers together in a spooky spot for a night to see who lasts till morning. Except, in this case, things got way too real.

The Umber Gorges is a cave system that’s been locked up for years now because people who go in sometimes never come out. The local story is that the ghost named the puckered maiden steals their hearts and is even an object of some very strange town rituals.

Out November 29, 2022!

Five Survive by Holly Jackson 🌟 Arc Review 🌟

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Thank you Netgalley and Publisher for this Arc!!

OMG!!!! This. This. This. This is a thriller!!! This!! Forget what you think a good thriller is and just read this! As soon as possible. I thought my teeth were going to break bc I was clenching my jaw so hard, ya’ll! This is beyond…. I shall call it: a jawclenching, heart racing, thriller masterpiece.

Six people go on a road trip from Pennsylvania to the Gulf for spring break. Four of them are high school students and two are in college. One of the reasons they are in an RV to travel is because Red can’t really afford a plane ticket so her best friend Maddy planned this trip with that in mind. It’s a good group but there is immediate tension already because Maddy’s pre-law brother, Oliver, puts himself in charge. (It’s incredibly annoying).

When they arrive in South Carolina to stop for the night at a camp site, they get lost and wind up in the middle of nowhere. (And, as someone from SC, I can promise that getting lost in the middle of nowhere there is seriously the freaking middle of nowhere and it’s so scary, lol) . However, this seems to be no random just getting lost, especially when all the tires and the gas tank are shot out. There is a sniper in the woods. They communicate through a walkie talkie. And, the sniper wants to know a secret that only one of them can tell. But who is it? And, what is the secret?

This book is incredible. The author really illustrates how basic humanity can be lost and turned into something horrifying and ugly in a situation like this that is so frightening and puts a group in such a vulnerable position.

I recommend this for all fans of thrillers!

Out November 29, 2022!

Friends Like These by Jennifer Lynn Alvarez 🌟 Arc Review 🌟

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Talk about toxic!! Whew… this was a wild ride and it had my head spinning with the possibilities in this intense small town thriller.

I think this was the point, but I didn’t really like any of the characters. Plus, right from the start, the author throws the reader into the middle of one of the worst things that could happen at a party… or anytime, anywhere really.

When Jessica is ready to leave a huge summer party the TV suddenly turns on and she sits in horror watching her boyfriend hook up with her ex- best friend. This story continues with a missing persons case and much more. So be ready and hold on bc this does not slow down!

Out November 1, 2022!

The Family Game by Catherine Steadman 🌟 Arc Review 🌟

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This thriller had everything I wanted; family secrets, a dangerous game and major twists!

Harry, or Harriet, has moved to NYC from London with her boyfriend. The holidays are just starting, and he proposes in the middle of the skating rink at Rockefeller Center. Harry thinks she’s in for a wild ride already this holiday season with the prospect of meeting the Holbeck family, but she has no idea.

When Harry meets the whole family at Thanksgiving she learns that she will have to prove herself if she wants to keep her secrets. And, this “old money” family’s idea of that comes in the way of games that some may say are a bit cruel.

This thriller had me the whole way through and I definitely recommend it! Also, it’s a great holiday thriller!

Out October 18, 2022!

Lavender House by Lev AC Rosen 🌟 Arc Review 🌟

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Found family, lgbtqia+ in the 1950’s and a murder mystery! There is not much more that my soul could ask for.

A very popular soap maker dies and her wife wants someone to solve the case, but kinda secretly bc of her and her household’s lgbtq status at that time. In other words, just trying not to draw attention. That’s where the main character comes in. A disgraced cop who was just fired for being found in a compromised position during a police raid at a gay club.

He meets the lgbtqia family of Lavender house and gets a feel for what a real found family is. That he shouldn’t have to hide a part of himself to be accepted and loved. This story touches on homophobia during the 1950’s and can be quite triggering but I think it was done in a good way. I also really enjoyed the murder mystery, especially because it kept me on my toes till the end.

Out October 18, 2022!

Content Warnings for homophobia, violence and death

After Dark with Roxie Clark by Brooke Lauren Davis 🌟 Arc Review 🌟

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Thank you Netgalley and Publisher for this Arc!

This was such a fun ya murder/mystery. It revolves around family sticking together, appreciating the past and a few ghost stories as well.

Roxie gives ghost tours about her ancestors that had some sudden and surprising deaths over the past 150 years or so. Her sister has been in mourning for her once boyfriend for over a year but things are about to change. Roxie’s sister, Skylar, has a plan to find her boyfriends murderer herself, and of course, Roxie is there to help.

This book is exciting and fast-paced with some interesting twists and turns! A good read for spooky season!

Out October 4, 2022!

Content warnings for gun violence, murder, some gore and grief.

The Christmas Murder Game by Alexandra Benedict 🌟 Arc Review 🌟

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What a perfectly cozy Holiday thriller!

This follows Lilly, a quiet but kind designer that winds up getting wrapped up in family drama when her Aunt dies and her last letter requests Lilly to join a 12 days of Christmas game to win the family mansion.

Lilly’s mother committed suicide in the maze behind this huge house when Lilly was very young. However, as the game begins and Lilly unravels anagrams in the clues, she realizes there is a lot more to learn about her mother and family… especially, when the other cousins begin to be murdered one by one.

This really gave me great fall and winter/holiday vibes. The perfect read to snuggle up with a blanket and some hot cocoa!

Out October 4, 2022!

Content warnings for violence, death, murder, some gore.

Stay Awake by Megan Goldin 🌟 Arc Review 🌟

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Thank you Netgalley and Publisher for this Arc!!

Wow! An amazing thriller! Fast-paced and full of so many twists. Simply put, this was so much fun to read.

Liv has a memory issue unlike any I’ve ever heard of before. Every time she fails asleep she forgets everything that has happened in the past 2 years. So when she wakes up, she is confused and believes it’s always the same day from 2 years ago. However, she becomes a suspect in a murder and the story follows her along with the detectives trying to solve the case. And, this stays exciting the whole way through!

I am delighted I got a chance to read this early and am also happy to say that I definitely recommend this to fans of thrillers!

Out August 9, 2022!