Showing posts with label domestic thriller. Show all posts
Showing posts with label domestic thriller. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 28, 2026

Review - Buyer Beware

Title:  Buyer Beware
Author:  Catherine Ryan Howard
Publisher:  Simon & Schuster
Genre:   Mystery & Thrillers
Format:  Kindle ARC
No. of Pages:   288
Date of Publication:   July 28, 2026
My Rating:   3 Stars

DESCRIPTION:

From the internationally bestselling author of 56 Days, a page-turning thriller about two women whose shattered lives come crashing together around a house whose secrets could bury them both.

If these walls could talk, they’d scream...

When Ellie moves to 1 Delaney Row, she hopes to find a fresh start—a place where no one knows her name, her history, or her secrets. But what she doesn’t know is that her new home is already hiding someone else’s secrets—and the people determined to keep them are watching her.

As Ellie starts to unravel the house’s disturbing backstory, coming closer to the shocking mystery at its center, she unwittingly puts herself on a deadly collision course not just with her new home’s history, but with her own as well.

A puzzle box of a thriller full of mind-boggling twists and turns, Buyer Beware is a chilling exploration of the dark secrets that any house can hold—and of the lengths we’ll go to start over.


MY THOUGHTS:

The house at One Delaney Row has finally been sold. What the seller never disclosed, however, was the home’s dark and unsettling past. This is a detail that proves to be far more than a simple oversight. Ellie, desperate for a fresh start and carrying secrets of her own, is relieved to have found the perfect place to begin again. But almost immediately after moving in, she can’t shake the unnerving feeling that someone is watching her.

This story unfolds through multiple perspectives. While Ellie is the primary protagonist, readers are soon introduced to Erin and Hannah, whose lives become intricately connected - not only to one another, but also to a man named Jason.

There is another unforgettable character in this novel as well: the house itself. Told in a compelling then-and-now structure, this atmospheric domestic thriller gradually peels back the layers of the home’s disturbing history. As the truth begins to emerge, one question lingers: has Ellie unknowingly become the house’s next victim?

The dual timelines add an extra layer of suspense. In the present, Ellie grows increasingly anxious, paranoid, and ultimately terrified as the sensation of being watched intensifies. In the past, readers first meet Erin, a brilliant eighteen-year-old who believes she has found love with Jason. Years later, Hannah enters Jason’s life, unaware of the shadows that surround him.

How do Ellie, Erin, and Hannah’s stories intertwine? What role do their carefully guarded secrets play in the mystery surrounding One Delaney Row? Although the novel takes its time establishing its characters and atmosphere, the pace steadily builds until the tension becomes impossible to ignore. 

Catherine Ryan Howard skillfully layers secrets, deception, and unexpected twists into a gripping psychological thriller that kept me eager to uncover the truth. Despite the slow start, by the time the final revelations arrive, every carefully planted clue falls into place, delivering a satisfying and thought-provoking conclusion that lingers long after the last page.

Many thanks to Simon & Schuster and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Catherine Ryan Howard is an internationally bestselling crime writer from Cork, Ireland. Her debut novel, DISTRESS SIGNALS, was shortlisted for the CWA John Creasey/New Blood Dagger. THE LIAR'S GIRL (2018) was shortlisted for the Edgar Award for Best Novel. REWIND (2019) was shortlisted for Irish Crime Novel of the Year and is currently being developed for screen by Clerkenwell Films (Misfits, Lovesick, The End of the F***ing World.) THE NOTHING MAN was a no. 1 Irish Times bestseller and a no. 1 Kindle bestseller (UK) and was shortlisted for Irish Crime Novel of the Year. Her latest novel, 56 DAYS, was published in August 2021. It is a thriller set in lockdown that Catherine wrote while she was in lockdown.



Friday, June 14, 2024

Review - The Next Mrs. Parrish


Title:    The Next Mrs. Parrish
Author:  Liv Constantine
Series:   Mrs. Parrish #2
Publisher:  Harper Paperbacks
Genre:   Mystery & Thrillers    
Format:  Kindle 
No. of Pages:   336
Date of Publication:   June 14, 2024
My Rating:   5 Stars
DESCRIPTION:

Daphne and Amber Parrish are thrust back into each other’s lives upon the resurgence of a long-forgotten threat, forcing a vicious game of cat and mouse where everything is on the line, in this thrilling sequel to the million-copy-bestselling Reese’s Book Club pick


Amber Patterson Parrish has come a long way from being an invisible wallflower. Her hard work and immaculate planning have paid off now that she’s a prominent socialite, but that doesn’t mean there haven’t been bumps along the way. Less than a year since her husband Jackson’s tax-evasion scandal, Amber is still at the top of the Bishops Harbor community pecking order, free to do as she wishes while Jackson sits in prison. But that freedom is quickly coming to an end. With Jackson getting released from prison, Amber’s time—and money—is vanishing.

Meanwhile, Daphne Parrish left Bishops Harbor after her divorce from Jackson Parrish, swearing she would never go back. But when one of her daughters runs away from home, desperate to see her father, Daphne agrees to return for the summer to allow him supervised visits. Once out of prison, Jackson swears he’s a changed man, but Daphne knows all too well that he can’t be trusted.

When a ghost from Amber’s past emerges looking for revenge, the three of them find unlikely allies in one another, but who is playing who? When all is said and done, they’ll have to fight tooth and nail for everything they have left in this zero-sum game.

With shocking turns and entertaining characters, The Next Mrs. Parrish will make you rethink everything you thought you knew about duplicity and betrayal.


MY THOUGHTS:

Bestselling authors Liv Constantine debuted with the million copy seller, The Last Mrs. Parrish in 2017. They have written four novels since then, but now their fans get to see what happened to Daphne and Amber Parrish after Amber's envious antics got her exactly what she wanted, and more, when she was successful at getting her new husband Jackson sent to prison due to a tax evasion scandal. Amber has Jackson right where she wants him and she is sitting rather pretty as she is now at the top of the pecking line in the Bishops Harbor community where she now resides. With Jackson's release date now coming quickly, Amber's plans need precise adjustments.

Meanwhile, Daphne Parrish lost everything when Amber's envy and greed supplanted her marriage to Jackson, and with two daughters, she finds herself struggling, especially when her older daughter Tallulah not only misses her father, but runs away. With Jackson's impending release, the only thing that Daphne feels she can do is to travel back to Bishops Harbor with the girls in order to facilitate supervised visits with their father. However, Daphne thought she put the entire Amber/Jackson drama in her rear view, but she soon learns that is not the case.

Although this book is the sequel to quite a successful book, it definitely takes on quite a different direction. Not only is Jackson proving to be just as conniving as Amber this time around, but a spotlight is shown as to what happened between Jackson and Daphne during the years they were married - namely, and significantly - domestic violence. Reading of DV (even in past tense) is never easy, and while the first book I felt like I was watching a train heading for a crash, this book gave me quite a different vibe. 

While Amber and Jackson are working on out-conniving one another, there is a new character who enters the story, and her name is Daisy Ann, and she proves to be nearly as vindictive as Amber. Daphne was in both the previous book and this one the most likable of the trio, it was quite interesting and often shocking to see the depths Amber, Jackson and Daisy Ann went to when they were working their schemes. Meanwhile, there is Tallulah and what kind of person she feels her father is and how wronged she feels about being away from him.
 
What an addictive thriller, and one that I loved as much as the first book. I had the opportunity to get the first book as an audiobook from my library, and I read this one immediately afterwards, which only intensified my connection to all of the characters - the adults and even the children. This book was a one-sitting read that kept me captivated from beginning to end.

Many thanks to Bantam and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS:

About Liv

Liv Constantine is the pen name of sisters Lynne Constantine and Valerie Constantine. Lynne and Valerie are Wall Street Journal and USA Today international bestselling authors with over one and a half million copies sold worldwide. They are Library Reads Hall of Fame authors.  Their books have been translated into 29 languages, are available in 34 countries, and are in development fozr both television and film.  Their books have been praised by The Washington Post, USA Today, The Sunday Times, People Magazine, and Good Morning America, among many others. Their debut novel, THE LAST MRS. PARRISH, is a Reese Witherspoon Book Club selection.



Lynne
Lynne is a former marketing executive with a master’s degree  from Johns Hopkins University. She has explored coral reefs all over the world, sunken wrecks in the South Pacific, and fallen in love with angelfish in the Caribbean. When Lynne’s not writing, you can find her curled up with her Labrador and Golden Retrievers reading a good book or walking the beach thinking up devious plans for her characters.

Lynne also writes The Jack Logan series under the pen name L.C. Shaw. To learn more about her other books, visit lcshawauthor.com or connect with her on Instagram or Twitter @LCShawAuthor.

Lynne serves as the Vice President, Education and Members Services of International Thriller Writers.

Valerie
Valerie has always loved books and spent many nights reading by the light of her bedside lamp until 3 a.m. She lives with her husband and their brilliant Cavalier King Charles DaVinci.

Early in her career she served as a White House Assistant in the President’s Scheduling and Advance Office planning presidential trips and travel and has visited over forty foreign countries. When she’s not writing, you won’t find her, as she and her husband will be traveling to some faraway destination. Valerie has a degree in English Literature from University of Maryland where she graduated summa cum laude.

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BLOG TOUR - The Woman at My Wedding


DESCRIPTION:


I’ve dreamed of this day forever. But will it be my last?

My stomach flutters as I try on my shimmering wedding dress with my two closest friends. In just a few weeks I’m going to marry the man of my dreams. I can’t believe the next time 
Nathan sees me it’ll be when I walk down the aisle. I’ve never told him my real name, and I hate lying to him. But it’s for his own good, and nobody could love him more than me. I’ve been through so much; don’t I deserve this happiness?

As I’m gazing at my reflection in the mirror, there’s a knock on the door and when I open it my heart leaps into my throat. Right in front of me is 
someone I hoped I’d never see again: my mother-in-law.

Nathan doesn’t speak to her, and the estrangement has been a huge relief to me. Because Debbie knows my secret. And she could ruin everything…

From the moment she sweeps in, it’s clear that if I don’t let my mother-in-law stay, she won’t stay quiet about my dark past. But 
she has no idea how far I’ll go to stop her destroying everything I’ve worked for.

But when I realise my friends have been lying to me too, I wonder if my mother-in-law is really the person I need to worry about. 
Is there another woman in my life who is determined not only to ruin my wedding, but to take my life?

An utterly heart-pounding and nail-biting new novel from bestseller L.G. Davis. This twisty, gasp-out-loud thriller is perfect for fans of Gone Girl, Teresa Driscoll and Freida McFadden.


BUY LINK 

https://geni.us/B0CW1KRQMXsocial


Title:   The Woman at My Wedding
Author:  L.  G. Davis
Series:  Broken Vows #1
Publisher:  Bookouture 
Genre:   Psychological Thriller 
Format:  Kindle ARC
No. of Pages:  297
Date of Publication:  June 13, 2024
My Rating:   4 Stars

MY THOUGHTS:

Brynn has recently moved to Stoneview, and despite having a rather stressful career, she is beyond thrilled that she is about to marry Nathan, a successful lawyer. Her marriage to Nathan will open a lot of doors for her, including the fact that she will have more money than she ever dreamed of.


Brynn is happy with those whom she chose to stand with her at her wedding, including Hannah, who will be her maid of honor. Brynn is also over the moon that she has befriended Eleanor, an old friend of Nathan’s, and someone she feels extremely comfortable with.


There is more than one hitch in Brynn’s wedding plans. These include the arrival of Debbie, and although she and Brynn share bad blood, Debbie acts as if everything is okay, sets her bags down and progressively makes Brynn more nervous. Debbie’s arrival is only the tip of the iceberg. Brynn receives  a threatening note along with a smashed wedding cake topper. Brynn realizes that she is headed towards doom, but there is no way to stop it.


Although Brynn is the primary protagonist, there is an unnamed character, referred to as “The Woman”, and it is her dialogue that takes the reader along for the rocky ride that Brynn is on, but is powerless to stop. With a few twists thrown in, this first book in the Broken Vows series by L. G. Davis was a thoroughly engaging read, and led me right to the second thrilling book, The Missing Bridesmaid. 


Many thanks to Bookouture and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.



Title:   
The Missing Bridesmaid
Author:  L.  G. Davis
Series:  Broken Vows #2
Publisher:  Bookouture 
Genre:   Psychological Thriller 
Format:  Kindle ARC
No. of Pages:  310
Date of Publication:  June 13, 2024
My Rating:   4 Stars

At the end of the first book in this Broken Vows series, The Woman at My Wedding, Brynn’s plans went awry. Now it is several years later, and Hannah and Nathan are planning their wedding. One of their bridesmaids will be their six-year-old daughter Lennie. The circumstances that surround the relationship between Hannah and Nathan is set in place in the end of the first book in this series.

Hannah begins to realize that all that glitters is not gold. In fact, her perfect life and the idyllic future she imagines begins to crumble, and she is powerless to stop it. While the train wreck that proves to be Hannah’s life all of a sudden, there are other avenues and twists that this book takes. For one thing, the way the book begins shows readers that there is a lot to consider when it comes to young Lennie. Meanwhile, Nathan is away on an important case, but soon receives bad news that soon show the erosion of this expectedly perfect coupling between him and Hannah. 

As a reader, I quite enjoyed being able to read both of the books in this series back-to-back. As an intelligent reader, there was no doubt that things could get really bad for Hannah, but boy, it was a fun ride watching things unfold. As Hannah’s life slowly unravels, young Lennie depends on and confides in her imaginary friend Whisper. Those chapters, with Lennie’s POV throughout the book, definitely increased the tension as this story unfolded, thus making this book a real nail-biter. 

Many thanks to Bookouture and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Liz's story began in a refugee camp in Angola, where she spent the first eight years of her life. After that, she spent some years in Namibia (her home country), South Africa, and Germany. She now lives in Vienna, Austria, with her husband and two children. Liz wrote her first full-length novel at eighteen and hid it in a box under her bed. Several others soon followed it. Her passion lies in writing edge-of-the-seat psychological thrillers that give readers the same rush they would get on a rollercoaster.


AUTHOR SOCIAL MEDIA 

Twitter: @LGDavisAuthor

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LGDavisBooks

Instagram: @lgdavisauthor

TikTok: @lgdavisbooks

Website: author-lgdavis.com

 

Author email sign up: https://www.bookouture.com/l-g-davis/



Monday, May 27, 2024

BLOG TOUR - My Daughter’s Lies

 

  

DESCRIPTION:

In the middle of my beautiful daughter’s eighteenth birthday party, silence falls as I unfold my speech, my heart bursting with everything I want to say. But when I look down I see a note, and my world stops: She’s not who you think she is.

Ruby was our miracle baby. I would have done anything to become a mother, and when she finally arrived, I held her in my arms, looked in her blue eyes and swore I would never let anything harm her. Now she’s everything I could have dreamed of. I don’t even think about all the years of heartache I went through before she was born.

So when I get the strange warning at her birthday party, I ignore it, hiding it in my bag with trembling hands. Someone is simply jealous of her.

But as I watch my daughter, things I’ve been trying to ignore come flooding back to me – Ruby’s odd disappearances, her whispered arguments with her best friend, and a memory from her sixth birthday which still breaks my heart to remember.

I need to know the truth about who she really is, but digging into my daughter’s secrets might reveal my own. As the party draws to a close and the confetti is swept away, I gather my courage. I’ve spent eighteen years trying to forget my own mistakes, and it could only take a moment for everything to fall apart.

Do I risk tearing my family apart to keep my daughter safe? Because when my secrets come out, I could lose my precious girl forever…

A completely compelling and heart-wrenching read about the strength of a mother’s love for her child. Perfect for fans of Liane Moriarty, Amanda Prowse and Susan Lewis.

Buy Link:


You can sign up for all the best Bookouture deals you'll love at: http://ow.ly/Fkiz30lnzdo

Title:   My Daughter’s Lies
Author:  Julia Roberts
Publisher:  Bookouture 
Genre:   Women’s Fiction 
Format:  Kindle ARC 
No. of Pages:  297
Date of Publication:   May 23, 2024
My Rating:   4 Stars 

MY THOUGHTS:

It is Ruby’s 18th birthday party, and it is rather a glamorous event. Planned by her beloved Aunt Sadie, Ruby’s father was supposed to present a speech in Ruby’s behalf, but he asks Ruby’s mother Melissa to deliver the speech instead. Melissa heads to the podium, begins looking at the pages of the speech she had written for her husband, and she finds a note that states: “She is not who you think she is.”

Was the note about Ruby? Or was it about Melissa? In dual timeline fashion (2023 and 2004), a slow reveal of secrets and lies is uncovered. More than that, the way that it was written with more than one POV enhances the drama in this compelling story. This domestic drama by Julia Roberts had some intriguing twists, surprising me more than once.

Many thanks to Bookouture and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Julia was born in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, and began her career as a professional singer/dancer. This enabled her to travel the world in her late teens storing up experiences she has since included in her writing.

Following roles as a hostess on The Price is Right and a member of the Beadle’s About ‘hit squad’ in the 1980s, she became a TV Presenter and filmed features for Sky Sports before launching the QVC shopping channel in 1993 where she still presents today. Having always wanted to write, she penned her first book, a memoir sold on QVC, in 2013 and has since written seven full length novels, two novellas and several short stories.

http://www.juliarobertsauthor.com/ 
https://www.facebook.com/JuliaRobertsTV
https://www.instagram.com/juliagroberts/
https://twitter.com/JuliaRobertsTV

Sign up to be the first to hear about new releases from Julia Roberts here: https://www.bookouture.com/julia-roberts



Wednesday, May 10, 2023

BLOG TOUR - The Summer Holiday



DESCRIPTION:

One loving couple. One surprise guest. One week to destroy everything…

When the doorbell rings, I take one last look round the villa. The nuts and olives are in bowls; the white wine is chilling in the fridge; everything is ready for my old college friend, the guest I’m dying to impress.

When I open the door, 
Coco steps from the dusty street into the cool tiled hall, as effortlessly beautiful as ever. But then her face freezes in horror, her mouth falling open. I turn to see my husband Jeff behind me, his eyes wide, his cheeks pale.

After a moment, they both smile, pretending nothing happened at all. But I know what I saw.

This holiday was meant to rescue my marriage, not ruin it.

But the connection between my friend and my husband isn’t what I thought.

All three of us have something to lose, and something to fight for.

And when the truth comes out, 
not all of us will survive…

From the no.1 bestselling author S.E. Lynes comes a brilliantly gripping thriller that will have you racing through the pages and gasping out loud at the twists. Fans of Paula Hawkins, Lisa Jewell and Gillian Flynn will love The Summer Holiday.

BUY LINKS:
Amazon: https://geni.us/B0BTTHG7PBsocial
Apple: http://ow.ly/t5UO50MKcmT
Kobo: http://ow.ly/ZP6Z50MKckh
Google: http://ow.ly/Q0rS50MKcpm

MY THOUGHTS:

Title:   The Summer Holiday
Author:   S. E. Lynes
Publisher:  Bookouture
Genre:   Psychological Thriller 
Format:  Kindle ARC 
No. of Pages:  336
Date of Publication:  May 9, 2023
Rating:    4 Stars

You know your spouse. That sixth sense speaks very clearly at times. Kate and her husband Jeff are away at a holiday in Spain. Kate is shocked when she sees somebody she knew when at university, and her name is Coco. It takes time to approach her, but when she does, she invites her and her family to dinner. Coco shows up alone, and Kate cannot help but really wonder about the look that passes between Coco and Jeff. Despite the charged glance that passes between them, they act as if they don’t know one another. Kate knows her instincts are not far off. Something is wrong. But it is about to get far worse. Worse than she ever could have imagined. 

Kate buries her pain in bottles of alcohol. Her marriage to Jeff is unfulfilling. Their teen daughter Lou is just about an adult and did not accompany them to Spain. Without Lou with them, and with Jeff filling his days with anything not to do with Kate, she realizes just how lonely she really is. Meeting Coco again after decades just might fill the void in Kate’s life, even if only for the duration of the holiday. 

Meanwhile, that charged look that had passed between Jeff and Coco? Well, not only does it connect back to their university days, but something alights between them now. With Jeff and Coco bonded by a secret that might never be revealed, Kate’s life is about to be truly upended. 

More domestic suspense than psychological thriller, this was truly a riveting read. The ending left me shocked, but not surprised, as the secret that had been hidden for decades was just enough to change the course of several lives. With multiple POV’s, and a fast pace, this thrilling story by S. E. Lynes is one that I won’t soon forget.

Many thanks to Bookouture and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

A former BBC Producer, S.E. Lynes has lived in France, Spain, Scotland and Italy and is now settled in Greater London. After completing her MA, she taught creative writing at Richmond Adult Community College for ten years. She now combines writing, mentoring and lecturing in Richmond Borough.

Author Social Media Links
Website: susielynes.wixsite.com/website
Bookouture Email Sign Up: https://www.bookouture.com/se-lynes

Tuesday, February 14, 2023

BLOG TOUR - Stone Cold Fox

DESCRIPTION:

A compelling debut novel about an ambitious woman who, after a lifetime of conning alongside her mother, wants to leave her dark past behind and marry the heir to one of the country's wealthiest families.

Like any enterprising woman, Bea knows what she’s worth and is determined to get all she deserves—it just so happens that what she deserves is to marry rich. After a lifetime of forced instruction in the art of swindling men by her mother, Bea wants nothing more than to escape her shadow, close the door on their sordid past, and disappear safely into old-money domesticity.

When Bea finds her final mark in the perfectly dull blue-blooded Collin, she’s ready to deploy all her tricks one last time. The challenge isn’t getting the ring, but rather the approval of Collin’s family and everyone else in their tax bracket, particularly his childhood best friend Gale. Going toe-to-toe with Gale isn’t a threat to an expert like Bea, but what begins as an amusing cat-and-mouse game quickly develops into a dangerous chase. As the truth of Bea’s past threatens to come roaring out, she finds herself racing against the clock to pass the finish line before everything is exposed.
 
Title:   Stone Cold Fox
Author:  Rachel Koller Croft
Publisher:   Berkley Books
Genre:   Domestic Thriller
Format:   Kindle ARC
No. of Pages:   368
Date of Publication:   February 14, 2023
My Rating:   5 Stars

In this incredible debut novel by Rachel Koller Croft, Bea is a woman who uses her past to shape her future. Raised by a conwoman of a mother, Bea knows all the tricks. However, she doesn’t want to follow in her mother’s footsteps. Instead Bea plans on marrying into a very wealthy family. Having set her sights on Collin, an average man in many ways, except for the fact the he and his family are mega rich, Bea is determined to get what she wants. While she might not even love Collin, Bea has her entire future planned with him.

Things don’t go easily for Bea. While Collin is easy, his family notsomuch. Then there is Gale, Collin’s best friend since childhood. They all believe that Bea wants to marry Collin for his money. Well, she does. But, is that the point? No, not really. She know what she wants, and that is all that matters. The problem is Bea’s past. She needs to get the deed done, to become Collin’s wife, before her past is exposed.

Bea is a character that you love to hate. In fact, I couldn’t help but think of Joan Collins’ character in the TV show Dynasty. However, there was just something about Bea that brought out my empathic side. The more I read this book, the more I liked her. With her scheming and conniving nature, she definitely gave me pause, but there was so much more to Bea as the story was developed. It was  impossible not to be drawn to Bea. To connect with her. To see her side of things. Kudos to Ms. Croft for penning such a stunning debut novel.

Many thanks to Berkley Books and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

Please enjoy my YouTube video review - 



ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Rachel Koller Croft is a novelist and WGA award nominated screenwriter in Los Angeles where she has scripted projects for Blumhouse, Sony Pictures Entertainment and Comedy Central, among others. She lives by the beach with her husband, Charles, and their rescue pitbull, Juniper.

Stone Cold Fox, coming February 14, 2023 from Berkley & Penguin Random House, is Rachel’s debut novel and AVAILABLE TO PREORDER.

Torn Hearts, an original country music horror film from Blumhouse & Epix, starring Katey Sagal, is available ON DIGITAL and streaming on PARAMOUNT+ or AMAZON PRIME.