The First Mistake by Sandie Jones

The First Mistake 

by Sandie Jones

ARC - Available 6/11/19

Available on Amazon

Rating (1-5) 📘 📘📘📘📘
Genre - Domestic Thrillers, Psychological Thrillers, Suspense Thrillers
Format - Softcover
Pages -

*Amazon Blurb*

THE WIFE: For Alice, life has never been better. With her second husband, she has a successful business, two children, and a beautiful house.

HER HUSBAND: Alice knows that life could have been different if her first husband had lived, but Nathan’s arrival into her life gave her back the happiness she craved.

HER BEST FRIEND: Through the ups and downs of life, from celebratory nights out to comforting each other through loss, Alice knows that with her best friend Beth by her side, they can survive anything together. So when Nathan starts acting strangely, Alice turns to Beth for help. But soon, Alice begins to wonder whether her trust has been misplaced . . . The first mistake could be her last.

*My Review* 

This is an author that doesn't disappoint. Right from the beginning, this book will pull you in and not let you go. It drops bombshell after bombshell leaving you wondering who did what and how it couldn't happened. I never couldn't predicted the ending.

Though I absolutely loved this book, there were a few things that I couldn't stop thinking about and think that they should have been a bit differently or left out. I will discuss these after a spoiler warning. I have ever posted a spoiler before and have actually wrote really short reviews as to avoid them, but I am making an exception here. If you have read this book (or like spoilers) then scroll down.......

SPOILER APPROACHING 

Here it is.......


Ok, so when Alice comes across her dead husbands photo on Facebook showing current activity, why didn't she go to the police? Seriously...if the love of your life suddenly appears on social media you wouldn't contact Facebook to see if the account was accurate. You'd go to the police. My immediate thoughts were that maybe he wasn't killed in the skiing accident and that he'd been hurt suffering amnesia.
Also. towards the end when everyone's parts are revealed....it started to get a bit sloppy. Again, I really did enjoy the book so I'm not trying to make it seem bad. But 2 people wait 10 long years for revenge. That just seems like an awfully long time to pretend you like, or in Nathans case love, a person. If it was 5 years....maybe, but not 10.

Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children 

by Ransom Riggs

Book #1

Available on Amazon

You can also buy the entire box set of all 3 books by clicking here.

Rating (1-5) 📘 📘📘📘📘
Genre - Teen & Young Adult, Historical Mysteries & Thrillers, Time Travel Fiction , Mystery & Thriller, Action & Adventure
Format - Hardcover
Pages - 348

*Amazon Blurb*

A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of very curious photographs. It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive. A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.

*My Review* 

What a fun book this was!!! Imagine being a young child and listening to your grandfather tell you amazing stories of when he was younger. Only the stories he's telling couldn't possibly be real.....could they?
Follow Jacob on a journey as he discovers that all the tall tales his grandfather told WERE real and not only are they real, but they will need Jacob's help to save them.
What's more amazing is not only are the people and the places real, but still as he'd left them. How? You'll have to read the book to find out.

Camino Island by John Grisham

Camino Island by John Grisham

Available on Amazon

Rating (1-5) 📘 📘
Genre - Amateur Sleuths, Crime, Suspense, Thriller
Format - Hardcover
Pages - 304

*Amazon Blurb*

A gang of thieves stage a daring heist from a vault deep below Princeton University’s Firestone Library. Their loot is priceless, impossible to resist.

Bruce Cable owns a popular bookstore in the sleepy resort town of Santa Rosa on Camino Island in Florida. He makes his real money, though, as a prominent dealer in rare books. Very few people know that he occasionally dabbles in unsavory ventures.

Mercer Mann is a young novelist with a severe case of writer’s block who has recently been laid off from her teaching position. She is approached by an elegant, mysterious woman working for an even more mysterious company. A generous monetary offer convinces Mercer to go undercover and infiltrate Cable’s circle of literary friends, to get close to the ringleader, to discover his secrets.

But soon Mercer learns far too much, and there’s trouble in paradise—as only John Grisham can deliver it.

*My Review* 

I was surprised to find this book pretty disappointing. It has an amazing beginning that just kind of leads into a boring story that drags. To make matters worse, the ending (in my opinion) was awful.

I thought that it was going to be suspenseful with the way things begin. Very important and expensive valuables are stolen from a library vault. It is not a clean getaway and the FBI immediately has a suspect. From there things get, well, not as interesting. It feels as if you are then jumping all over trying to keep track of the characters, only to end up with Mercer and Bruce. The story then seems to revolve around just them and looses interest. The ending was the worst part for me as. I was a "happy ending" that a fairy tale would have, not a suspense book.

Behind Closed Doors by B. A. Paris

Behind Closed Doors

by B.A. Paris

Available on Amazon

Rating (1-5) 📘 📘📘📘📘
Genre - Domestic Thrillers, Psychological Thrillers, Suspense
Format - Audio-book

*Amazon Blurb*

Everyone knows a couple like Jack and Grace. He has looks and wealth; she has charm and elegance. He’s a dedicated attorney who has never lost a case; she is a flawless homemaker, a masterful gardener and cook, and dotes on her disabled younger sister. Though they are still newlyweds, they seem to have it all. You might not want to like them, but you do. You’re hopelessly charmed by the ease and comfort of their home, by the graciousness of the dinner parties they throw. You’d like to get to know Grace better.
But it’s difficult, because you realize Jack and Grace are inseparable.
Some might call this true love. Others might wonder why Grace never answers the phone. Or why she can never meet for coffee, even though she doesn’t work. How she can cook such elaborate meals but remain so slim. Or why she never seems to take anything with her when she leaves the house, not even a pen. Or why there are such high-security metal shutters on all the downstairs windows.
Some might wonder what’s really going on once the dinner party is over, and the front door has closed.

*My Review* 

Jack and Grace are the perfect couple or are they.... are things really what they appear to be?
The book shifts easily between the past and the present. You learn how they met, about Grace's sister with down syndrome, the quick engagement, the wedding and then who Jack and Grace really are.
From the outside they seem like the perfect couple with the perfect house, but as you read you learn that the perfect life that was dreamed up couldn't be farther from the life that they are living.
I knew right from the beginning of the book that there was something not right with the marriage. What I couldn't tell was if it was Jack or if it was Grace. It didn't take long to figure it out and then I just kept trying to figure out how it would all end.

I was kept on the edge of my seat as I listened to this book and more than once I caught my self saying "What!". You'll find lots of twists and turns with an epic ending.

Everything I Do by M.C. Frank

Everything I Do

by M.C. Frank

ARC

Availble on Amazon

Rating (1-5) 📘 📘📘📘📘
Genre - Medieval, Historical Romance, Fiction
Format - PDF

*Amazon Blurb*

A robber and a princess.
A girl disguised as a boy.
A medieval re-imagining of the legend of Robin Hood packed with adventure, sacrifice and romance.

Robin Hood, hidden deep in the Sherwood Forest, is fighting to restore the crown to its rightful king, surrounded by faithful friends, green leaves and clear skies. Burdened with secrets, betrayal and an incredible responsibility, he struggles to stay alive and keep the starving people fed. One day, a boy saves him from the Sheriff’s poisoned arrows. Robin, impressed by the slender youth’s courage and skill, takes the boy with him to the forest.

Only, the boy is not a boy.

In the castle of Nottingham, a maiden who used to be a princess is forced to obey the wishes of a tyrannical Sheriff. She dons on male clothes and trains to become a fierce assassin, vowing to catch the greatest criminal in the kingdom. But when she saves Robin Hood’s life nearly losing her own, she is rescued by the outlaws.

When Robin and the “boy” meet, two worlds collide, resulting in unimaginable danger and intense romance. Who will survive when they learn each other’s secrets? What happens when the assassin falls in love with her victim?

*My Review* 

M.C. Frank does it again! This author has a way to make you not only "see" the book, but feel like you're actually there. I've never read the original Robin Hood (gasp, I know) so I can't compare the two, but this version was amazing.

So there's Robin Hood, the guy who everyone knows...the whole steal from the rich and give to the poor. Then of course the rest of the outlaws that all live in the forest. But who is this young boy that finds himself saving Robin's life? It's not a young boy at all, but an a young girl who has been sent to kill Robin Hood. She has trained for so long to assassinate Robin and get the revenge that she seeks, yet she keeps letting each opportunity pass by. Why? She can't love him, he's the enemy, right?

The Silent Wife by A.S.A. Harrison

The Silent Wife

by A.S.A. Harrison

Availble on Amazon

Rating (1-5) 📘 📘
Genre - Psychological Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Suspense
Format - Audiobook

*Amazon Blurb*

Jodi and Todd are at a bad place in their marriage. Much is at stake, including the affluent life they lead in their beautiful waterfront condo in Chicago, as she, the killer, and he, the victim, rush haplessly toward the main event. He is a committed cheater. She lives and breathes denial. He exists in dual worlds. She likes to settle scores. He decides to play for keeps. She has nothing left to lose. Told in alternating voices, The Silent Wife is about a marriage in the throes of dissolution, a couple headed for catastrophe, concessions that can’t be made, and promises that won’t be kept. Expertly plotted and reminiscent of Gone Girl and These Things Hidden, The Silent Wife ensnares the reader from page one and does not let go.

*My Review* 

I always enjoy books that are told from two different points of view. This one includes Jodi and Todd.  I give much credit to Jodi for being able to go that far in denial of her husbands infidelity that she is able to continue on like nothing is wrong. Then again, when you have nothing, there's not much to lose. The book didn't see to have much suspense to me as I was basically able to predict what was going to happen right from the beginning. I think it would've been better if Jodi had a bit of a temper in her or if Todd had some kind of backbone, instead of being pushed around by his mistress.

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The Girl In The Forest by Carmen Weiz

The Girl In The Forest

by Carmen Weiz

Availble on Amazon

Available on Book Depository

*Author Requested Review*

Rating (1-5) 📘📘📘📘
Genre - Romantic Suspense, Suspense
Format - Paperback
Pages - 336

*Amazon Blurb*

From the pine tree forests of Switzerland, a thriller-romance which will take your sleep away…

A sad twist of the destiny catapults Anna, young Brazilian woman, into a reality greater than her.
Driven by desire to help and make the good, she’ll find herself slave of human trafficking gangs, in the hands of merciless torturers ready to sell her to the richest bidder.
Only using her cunning she’ll be able to escape, helped by the Swiss officer Thomas Graff, a man with an icy heart and past he can’t leave behind. The crash between two different cultures that will make sparks fly!
This is Anna’s story, undeservedly a victim like many other women. Among intrigues, betrayal, crimes and games of fate, the young lady will fight for freedom and love.

My Review* 

I was unsure of this book when I first started. I thought it was going to be more about Anna and what had happened to her and less of Anna and Thomas. Either way, I ended up enjoying it.

Anna finds herself rescued and her life basically saved, by Thomas, who just happened to be in the right place at the right time (let me not fail to mention that it was actually the do who saved her). I never understood how people can have such a strong connection to someone they have never met before, but I guess that's where the saying "love at first sight" comes from. And although they don't know it, that's exactly what has happened to Thomas and Anna. The question is, will Thomas be able to realize it in time? Will Anna have wasted time on him?

I found Thomas a hard character to like. He has a very rough exterior due to a previous relationship, but it was years prior. I wanted to smack him in the face and yell at him to man up and get over it.

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The Darkest Evening of the Year by Dean Koontz

The Darkest Evening of the Year

by Dean Koontz

Availble on Amazon

Available on Book Depository

Rating (1-5) 📘
Genre - Horror, Suspense,Psychological Thrillers, Paranormal Suspense
Format - Audiobook

*Amazon Blurb*

Amy Redwing has dedicated her life to the southern California organization she founded to rescue abandoned and endangered golden retrievers. Among dog lovers, she’s a legend for the risks she’ll take to save an animal from abuse. Among her friends, Amy’s heedless devotion is often cause for concern. To widower Brian McCarthy, whose commitment she can’t allow herself to return, Amy’s behavior is far more puzzling and hides a shattering secret.

No one is surprised when Amy risks her life to save Nickie, nor when she takes the female golden into her home. The bond between Amy and Nickie is immediate and uncanny. Even her two other goldens, Fred and Ethel, recognize Nickie as special, a natural alpha. But the instant joy Nickie brings is shadowed by a series of eerie incidents. An ominous stranger. A mysterious home invasion.

And the unmistakable sense that someone is watching Amy’s every move and that, whoever it is, he’s not alone.

Someone has come back to turn Amy into the desperate, hunted creature she’s always been there to save. But now there’s no one to save Amy and those she loves.

*My Review*

This book was, well, unsatisfying. I was quite disappointed as I generally enjoy books by Dean Koontz. I hope that maybe it was the fact I was listening to it as an audio book instead of reading it, but I am fine with other audio books.

I felt lost and confused throughout most of the story. I didn't know if it was about a dog, Amy or what. It wasn't until the last maybe 1/4 of the book did I figure it all out. Even then, it didn't make much sense to me.

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Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Gone Girl

by Gillian Flynn

Availble on Amazon

Available on Book Depository

Rating (1-5) 📘📘📘📘📘
Genre - Murder Thriller, Suspense
Format - Hardback
Pages - 415


*Amazon Blurb*

On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer?

My Review* 

This book, WOW! A happy couple soon faces the struggle of both becoming unemployed. Well, it's not really a struggle for Amy since she has quite the trust fund. But after her parents borrow most of it and Nick borrows the rest to start a bar after they move back to his home town to help care for his sick mom, what's left for Amy. Still she has their 5 year anniversary to look forward to. Except that on that special day she ends up missing. All signs point to Nick, a not so wonderful husband. It's always the husband, isn't it.

This book switches between Nick and Amy's point of view. Remember, what you see isn't always as it appears and what you read isn't always the truth.

The Death Cure by James Dashner

The Death Cure

by James Dashner

Availble on Amazon

Book #3 in The Maze Runner Series
Available on Book Depository

Rating (1-5) 📘📘📘
Genre - Fiction, Young Adult
Format - Audiobook

*Amazon Blurb*

WICKED has taken everything from Thomas: his life, his memories, and now his only friends—the Gladers. But it’s finally over. The trials are complete, after one final test.

What WICKED doesn’t know is that Thomas remembers far more than they think. And it’s enough to prove that he can’t believe a word of what they say.

Thomas beat the Maze. He survived the Scorch. He’ll risk anything to save his friends. But the truth might be what ends it all.

The time for lies is over.


My Review* 

This book was definitely better than the previous in the series, The Scorch Trials, in which all they seemed to do was walk. In The Death Cure, the kids were on the defense towards Wicked and were tying to end the testing that was going on. The were fighting to remember what is real, what is not and also to get free.
Even though I enjoyed this book better than The Scorch Trials, I didn't like the ending. Is it possible for a group of kids to overtake a group of adult scientists to save the world?

The Scorch Trials by James Dashner

The Scorch Trials

by James Dashner

Availble on Amazon

Book #2 in The Scorch Trials
Available on Book Depository

Rating (1-5) 📘📘
Genre - Fiction, Young Adult
Format - Audiobook

*Amazon Blurb*
Thomas was sure that escape from the Maze would mean freedom for him and the Gladers. But WICKED isn’t done yet. Phase Two has just begun. The Scorch.
The Gladers have two weeks to cross through the Scorch—the most burned-out section of the world. And WICKED has made sure to adjust the variables and stack the odds against them.
There are others now. Their survival depends on the Gladers’ destruction—and they’re determined to survive.
Friendships will be tested. Loyalties will be broken. All bets are off.


My Review* 

I didn't enjoy this one as much as the first in the series, The Maze Runner (you can read that review here). The entire book seemed to be about everyone walking thru a desert. Honestly, it reminded me of Lord of the Rings with all the walking. The characters still don't seem to have much personality.

I feel like I can't really write much more of a review as there wasn't anything going on in the book.