thriller

The Last Mrs. Parrish-Liv Constantine

I don’t often compare books to Gone Girl, and while it is a deliciously twisted plot, it more reminds me of that story because the main characters in both novels are horrible.  I genuinely hated the main character in The Last Mrs. Parrish but my anger made me want know what happens to her.

Amber Patterson is a sociopath. She is intelligent, cunning and extremely manipulative. Her current target is the spouse of Daphne Parrish, the incredibly handsome and rich Jackson Parrish. Her plan is to befriend Daphne and become close to Jackson. While we watch her plan unfold it becomes clear that not everything in the life of the Parrish’s is as perfect as it seems.

The Last Mrs. Parrish is 390 pages and took me three days to read.

I give this book a 4 out of 5 for its awesome ending and completely stomach turning characters. I loved this book and how it plays out! Thank you Harper for sending me this advanced copy!

Here’s to the adventure of finding a novel novel!

Lacey

A Simple Favor-Darcey Bell

I’m so sorry I’ve been such a slacker! Between our wedding/honeymoon trip to Montana, our wedding reception and returning to work I’ve been completely swamped! Luckily, I’m getting back into the swing of things and have started reading pretty heavily again.

When Stephanie’s friend Emily asks her to pick up her son from school, Stephanie thinks nothing of it and if anything, is honored to be trusted by someone as intriguing as Emily. But when Emily doesn’t pick up her child, Stephanie starts to become panicked. She knows that Stephanie’s husband is out of the country and doesn’t want to over react but is at her wits end after a few days of Emily not contacting her back. What happened to her friend? The mysterious Emily loves her son dearly and would never abandon him. But as time passes Stephanie realizes she may not know her “friend” at all.

A Simple Favor is 298 pages long and took me three days to read.

I am rating this book a 2.5 out of 5. While I enjoyed reading this novel it had very heavy elements of Gone Girl and while I loved Gone Girl to pieces, it bothers me when books rely so heavily on this hook.

I would recommend reading it but beware of very similar themes.

Here’s to the adventure of finding a novel novel!

Lacey

The Lying Game- Ruth Ware

I love Ruth Ware. I was a huge fan of both In A Dark, Dark Wood and The Woman In Cabin 10 and have previously done reviews on both. So, naturally, I bombarded Scout Press and they were kind enough to send me an advanced copy of her latest, The Lying Game, coming out July 25th.

Our story follows four best friends reunited by a text in the middle of the night. “I need you” from their friend Kate can only mean one thing, something is very very wrong. Our lead, Isa, rushes to her friends aid bringing her back to her old boarding school which holds quite a few memories, even some that are criminal. A bone has been found near Kate’s childhood home and the four women will do anything to protect not only their friend, but their own lives from being torn apart by this discovery.

The Lying Game is 370 pages long and took me 4 days to read.

Again, I love Ruth Ware and enjoy her writing style so much! I really enjoyed this story and the loops it took me through so I’m giving it a 4 out of 5. I highly recommend this book to any and everyone!

Thank you so much to Scout Press for sending me this copy!

Here’s to the adventure of finding a novel novel!

Lacey

I’m Thinking Of Ending Things- Iain Reid

I hate being scared. When I’m scared I freak out and don’t want to be home by myself and when I hear noises outside I think someone is coming to kill me. Completely rational, I know. That being said, EVERY ONCE IN AWHILE I can tolerate it and actually like the adrenaline rush. This book certainly covered those bases.

The voice of our story is unnamed but she is traveling to meet her boyfriend Jake’s parents for the first time. Although she knows this is a big step in a relationship her heart is just not feeling the same way as Jake so she is feeling uneasy about this experience. We get a sense that the family dynamics within the home are unusual and are not ideal. I feel like this story is better left with as little information as possible given prior to reading. All I can say is HOLY CRAP, YOU HAVE TO READ THIS BOOK.

I’m Thinking of Ending Things is a short 210 pages long and I read it in one sitting.

This novel is super imaginative and scared the beejesus out of me so I’m giving it a 3.5 out of 5. If you like being scared then pick this book up now!

Here’s to the adventure of finding a novel novel (even if it’s scary!)!

Lacey

Since We Fell- Dennis Lehane

Dennis Lehane is the man. He’s written two of my favorite books, Gone Baby Gone and Shutter Island so least to say, when I received his new book “Since We Fell” in the mail I completely freaked out. I requested this book from Ecco without entirely knowing what it was about which I’ve been trying to do more often but OBVIOUSLY it’s a Dennis Lehane novel so I wasn’t too worried about not liking it.

Rachel Childs was once a reporter with her whole life ahead of her. She was an up and coming star at the t.v. station employing her who knew she could make it big. When she is assigned to cover a disaster in Haiti her entire world changes. She becomes obsessed with exposing the world she is surrounded by while she is there. This difficult subject matter pushes her to the point of a breakdown. After her public meltdown, she essentially becomes a hermit. When she runs into an old acquaintance, Brian, after her current husband divorces her, she falls for him fast. She ends up marrying Brian who helps her with her anxiety about the outside world. But when she catches Brian in a lie, her entire world comes crashing down. Does she even know this man that she’s in love with?

Since We Fell is 418 pages long and took me 5 days to read.

I give this book a 3 out of 5 for keeping me guessing. It has a slow start and took me awhile to really get into it but once I did I was sold. Lehane’s writing has a quality that keeps you thinking about the book weeks after you’ve finished.

Thank you Harper Collins/Ecco for sending me this great addition to my Dennis Lehane collection!

Here’s to the adventure of finding a novel novel!

Lacey

The Dry-Jane Harper

If I could write like this as my debut novel, I’d quit my day job.

The Dry takes place in Australia in a small town that is deep in drought. Federal Agent Aaron Falk is returning to his hometown for the first time in 20 years since he was chased out as a young man. What seems to be a clean cut case of murder-suicide committed by his former best friend, doesn’t sit right with Aaron. Luke and Aaron grew up with each other and were best friends for years. While they do have a shaky past due to the incident which caused Aaron to be chased out of town, he still doesn’t believe Luke could kill his wife and son. When Luke’s parents ask Aaron to dig into this case he is extremely hesitant as this is not his area of expertise but agrees because he feels he owes it to them. Not only will this case drag Aaron back into his hometown where he is not welcome, he will also have to dig into his own past to figure out if it is the cause of Luke’s death.

The Dry is 326 pages long and took me 4 days to read.

I give this novel at 3.5 out of 5 for a captivating story that genuinely keeps you questioning every character. This book is graphic and nature and may upset those with a weak constitution.

Thank you Flat Iron Books for sending me this copy!

Here’s to the adventure of finding a novel novel!

Lacey

The River at Night- Erica Ferencik

Aside from being in a hammock with a good book, on a river is my favorite place to be. When my fiance and I decided to get married in Glacier National Park in Montana, the first thing I wanted to make sure we do while we are there is go white water rafting. So since I’m wedding planning and thinking about our great big Montana adventure in September I finally picked up this book. Oh man. This book is nuts! Good thing it’s fiction or I’d reconsider going out into the wilderness!!!

Every year Wini and her three middle aged best friends Pia, Sandra and Rachel go on a girls trip to catch up and spend some quality time. Pia, the queen bee of their friend group, chooses to go on a white water rafting trip in Maine. The others are weary as they are not what you’d call outdoorsy but they follow along because they never miss their girls trip. Once they are on the river they find white water rafting may not only endanger their friendship but also their lives.

The River at Night is 292 pages long and took me three days to read.

I reallllllly enjoyed reading The River at Night. It was a fresh of breath air from my usual addiction to “missing girl” thrillers. I give this novel a 4 out of 5 for giving me some serious chills and making me reconsider my own wilderness adventures.

Thank you to Scout Press for sending me a copy of this great book!

Here’s to the adventure of finding a novel novel!

Lacey