Fiction by Samantha Downing
Lottie Moore is an elderly woman who just wants to take it easy and be left alone in her old age. Unfortunately, when you have a criminal past, it can be difficult to truly relax. Complications can keep arising...
This book was surprisingly great fun! (Which you wouldn't expect, given that the protagonist is an old lady who happens to be a serial killer.)
Fiction by Joshilyn Jackson
Penny's twin sister Nix died tragically five years ago, and Penny has been floundering ever since. Now she's embarking on a new career as a police officer, hoping to bring some kind of justice into the world and at least partially assuage her guilt for not being able to save her sister.
But then she gets her very first murder case, and the victim is not a stranger. In fact it's one of the very people Penny holds morally responsible for Nix's death. Penny didn't kill him, obviously, but neither is she particularly interested in bringing the guy's killer to justice. She also wants to keep her new job... or does she?
This was a really good book, as expected from this fabulous author.
Fiction by Karin Slaughter
This is number EIGHT in the Will Trent series, which merged up with Grant County series back in book four (I think) and just kept going. GBI Agent Will is still dating medical examiner Sara Linton (protagonist of the previous series) at the beginning of this story, but trouble is coming...
Will not-quite-ex-wife Angie is coming back to stir things up, and there's been a body found in an abandoned building in downtown Atlanta. Plus, Will has failed to make a rape charge stick to a famous athlete; his months of hard work failed to overcome the mountain of money thrown at the case by the athlete's management. Could all of these things end up being connected?
This was an exciting mystery with several surprises.
Fiction by Sally Hepworth
Pippa and Gabe live with their two little daughters on the Australian coast in a house with a breathtaking view. Unfortunately, they also live right next to cliff which is a popular spot for suicide jumpers. In the year or so they've been living there, seven people have come to the cliff's edge, and seven times Gabe has patiently talked them out of killing themselves.
Gabe is incredibly good-looking, sensitive, kind, and full of fun, and it seems everyone longs to be his friend. In contrast, Pippa sees herself as kind of pedestrian, a caretaking type who prefers staying the background of life. But it's Pippa who earns the money for the family and who carefully monitors Gabe's emotions and keeps him stable.
But then the eighth person comes to the cliff's edge, the person who will succeed in jumping. This event really throws Pippa and Gabe, and exposes the cracks in their marriage that have been brewing for years.
This was a great story, as I would expect from Sally Hepworth!
Fiction by Mary Kubica
Lily and Christian are the titular Nice Couple in this story. They are young professionals looking to start a family soon, but at the beginning of this story something happens that threatens them. The reader begins to see that under their nice exteriors, Lily and Christian are willing to do anything to preserve their reputations, even if it's not so nice.
This book was okay but too slow for a thriller. It did have a surprise twist at the end.
I also read by this author: Local Woman Missing
Fiction by Freida McFadden
This book started out a little tedious but got interesting about halfway through. The ending was a surprise! There are a couple of sequels; I might give them a try.
I also read by this author: The Coworker
Fiction by Chevy Stevens
The missing realtor on Vancouver island was a pretty famous case to begin with. Then when she was miraculously found almost a year later after an harrowing hostage ordeal, Annie O’Sullivan’s name was even more well-known. But Annie feels like she’s still missing in a way; she can’t get over her fear that she could be abducted again and media attention is worse than unhelpful. Can Annie return to any kind of normal life?
This was an exciting and unsettling story with some surprises.
I also read by this author: Always Watching
Fiction by Catherine Ryan Howard
But then Morningstar decides they need a ghostwriter and that Emily is going to have to repay them by being one. So Emily ends up interviewing a famous athlete who may or may not have killed his wife.
This was an exciting thriller with several surprises. I love this author!
Fiction by Taylor Adams
This book had twist after twist after twist. I loved it!
Amazon Prime Kindle Fiction by Nicola Sanders
Amy used to be a dance teacher, but now she is only Jason's wife. Since their marriage, Jason has taken control of every aspect of Amy's life, watching her every minute and trying to catch her deceiving him. She had foolishly signed over all of her money to him to "invest" for her; now she has no resources and no way out. Even her mother takes Jason's side in their arguments, refusing to believe that Amy is being abused.
When her mother offers her a ticket to a cruise ship vacation, Amy is desperate to take it and try to get away. Her mother means for the trip to be for both Amy and Jason, but Amy tells her husband that she'll be traveling with her mom and is relieved when he believes her. Or does he?
This was an exciting story with several surprises! (And one over-the-top twist at the end that I don't 100% buy.)
I also read (FREE!) from Amazon Prime Kindle: The Sideways Life of Denny Voss
Fiction by Heather Gudenkauf
Five people are competing in a reality show called "One Lucky Winner," each hoping to win a prize of ten million dollars. But this competition is long on hype and short on details; no one knows what exactly the competitors will be required to do or how they have been chosen. And the challenges will be streamed live at unexpected times, not recorded and aired on a schedule.
Supposedly these things are meant to make the show different and exciting, but also they serve to keep everyone guessing and the contestants off-balance. But it quickly becomes clear that there is something strange going on behind the scenes....
This was a fast-paced an exciting story, but the plot was WAY over the top. I couldn't help but think it stretched the reader's willing suspension of disbelief to the breaking point. And I felt like the characters were less likeable and believable than they could have been. Still, it was pretty fun to read.
I also read by this author: This is How I Lied
Fiction by Gregg Hurwitz
At the beginning of this book, Nate Overbay has climbed to the eleventh floor of a bank building and is preparing to jump off a ledge when he sees a robbery in progress through the window. Will he give up on his suicide plan and try to intervene? So begins an exciting thriller with lots of surprises...
I also read by this author: Tell No Lies
Fiction by Freida McFadden
Natalie's coworker Dawn is a bit of a weirdo, but since Dawn is in accounting and Natalie is in sales, they don't have to interact too much. Except one day Dawn doesn't show up to work, which never happens because she's punctual to the point of obsessiveness, and Natalie gets concerned. Soon it turns out that Dawn is missing, and may even be dead! But why do the police think that Natalie might have done something to Dawn?
This was an exciting story with good characters and several surprises. Thanks to my sister-in-law for recommending it!
Fiction by Sophie Stava
Sloan Caraway is a liar, and she admits it. Well, she admits it to herself at least. At the very beginning of this book she tells a nice-looking single dad at the the park that she is a nurse named Caitlin. But Sloan is wearing scrubs because she is a nail technician, not a nurse. And it turns out the dad is not exactly single...
Soon "Caitlin" is ingratiating herself with the dad AND his wife, and angling to get herself hired as a nanny. But is she going to be able to keep track of all the lies she had told when she's there long-term? And what if her fake nursing skills are really needed?
This was a really exciting thriller that kept me guessing!
Fiction by Gregg Hurwitz
Then Daniel discovers three other similar letters meant for different people. Can he prevent more bloodshed? And what did these potential victims do, if anything, that they are being punished for? And especially, what does this whole thing have to do with Daniel himself?
All these questions are answered by the end of the story. This was an exciting story with several surprises, although some of the twists were a bit over the top.
Fiction by Steve Cavanagh
At the beginning of this story, Amanda has only one goal: to kill Wallace Crone, the man who got away with murdering her daughter. But she gets caught stalking him and is slapped with a restraining order and court-ordered counseling.
Then in a support group she meets another bereaved mother named Wendy, a woman who is equally obsessed with the man responsible for her daughter's death. Amanda gets an idea that she and Wendy can help each other. Like the Hitchcock movie Strangers on a Train, they decide to swap murders. But can they really go through with it?
This was a very exciting thriller with several surprises!
I also read recently by this author: The Plea
Fiction by Catherine Ryan Howard
Social media influencer Natalie O'Connor suspects that her husband Mike is hiding something from her after she finds a charge on his credit card for Shanamore Cottages, a seaside resort in western Ireland. He claims to have never heard of the place, but Natalie is unconvinced and sets out to go there herself on the spur of the moment.
Meanwhile, Mike has no idea where Natalie has gone and eventually files a missing persons report. That report gets the attention of a small-time internet reporter named Audrey, who runs with the story. Will Audrey find Natalie alive? Or is it already too late?
This was an exciting mystery thriller with several surprises!
I also read recently by this author: The Nothing Man
Fiction by Gregg Hurwitz
This was an exciting thrill ride of a story about a woman who goes on a trip to Mexico and ends up in a terrifying situation. It was impossible to put down!
I also read by this author: You're Next
Fiction by Catherine Ryan Howard
"The Nothing Man" is the name given by the Irish press to a serial killer who foils police by leaving no traces of himself behind. Although he stopped killing over fifteen years ago, people still remember that name, so when a new book comes out with that title, it draws a lot of attention.
But it especially draws the attention of the Nothing Man himself, an old guy named Jim who works as a department store security guard and who is secretly pleased with himself for getting away with his crimes. Jim becomes obsessed with the book and its author, Eve Black, a woman whose whole family he had killed. He is desperate to know what Eve remembers about the night of the murders, although she had been only twelve at the time and was hiding in a bathroom.
This was an exciting premise and a great thriller story.
I also read recently by this author: The Liar's Girl
Fiction by Adrian McKitry
