After reading Those People Next Door (I read this book as an ARC entitled Perfectly Nice Neighbors which I believe is the UK title but it’s on Amazon as TPND) I read that the author’s other books were legal thrillers which surprised me because the court case was a real low part of the book. … Continue reading
The Writing Retreat was really a wacky, over-the-top horror-thriller. Unfortunately, it was so badly paced and written that it flopped. It should have leaned into how impossible and camp the setup was but never did. It was almost embarrassing to read. I was puzzled the whole time about when it was supposed to take place. … Continue reading
I’m going to start by saying that Prom Mom doesn’t come out until July but I was lucky enough to get an ARC on Netgalley. I wanted to write this while the book was fresh in my mind–as soon it was downloaded I started reading. Continue reading
There is a lot to love about The Verifiers by Jane Pek. The interesting main character, a timely mystery about the ethics of online dating and data collection, a mysterious research group/detective agency, sibling and parent issues, urban bike riding, a realistic NYC backdrop. So much material and depth there. What dropped it down to three … Continue reading
I’ve read Amanda Eyre Ward’s books for nearly 20 years and was so disappointed by The Lifeguards. I didn’t love her last book but it was better than this one. I used to count on her to deliver a book about women and some sort of contemporary issue in an interesting, thoughtful way. I didn’t … Continue reading
White Smoke by Tiffany D. Jackson is fun book that ties in a lot of topical issues like prisons, blended interracial families, poorly treated mental illness, veganism, peanut allergies, predatory televangelists, drug use and gentrification into a spooky ghost/horror story. The ending was incredibly abrupt. Bizarrely so. I got it from the library and truly … Continue reading
I came across this one in a NYT column and put it right on my holds list. It sounded intriguing–a man with three wives found dead near his rural compound. What a disappointment! I’m not entirely sure if Marilyn Stasio actually read the book. I didn’t get the impression from Black Widows or interviews with … Continue reading
I found A Spy in the Struggle a little puzzling. The concept was unique and I like how it touched on real issues and was topical (there is even a Covid-19 reference) but the main character was so flat. Her thinking was very black and white and childlike. It was very difficult to believe she … Continue reading
Rachel Reads Books 