Posted in Mystery, Police Procedural

Don’t Miss: Survivor in Death

Survivor in Death – J.D. Robb
Brilliance Audio – Susan Ericksen
Mystery, Police Procedural
February 1, 2005
4.9 ⭐️

Nine-year-old Nixie Swisher’s entire family is slaughtered and she is the only survivor. This case baffles Eve Dallas who has inadvertently become Nixie’s guardian. This is one of the hardest cases for Eve because it involves a child and brings back some of Eve’s darkest memories. It was heart-wrenching, but showed Eve in a more vulnerable light. 

Nixie tore my heart out. She suffered such a huge tragedy but was so brave and determined to help Eve find the killers. She’s a character that has always stuck with me.

I will say this every time I review a book from this series: If you need a good audiobook series, I implore you to try this one starting with Naked in Death. Susan Ericksen makes the characters come alive with her brilliant narration.

❓ What character stood out to you and was hard to forget?

Posted in Mystery & Thriller

Don’t Miss: All The Dangerous Things

All the Dangerous Things — Stacy Willingham
Macmillan Audio — Karissa Vacker
January 10, 2023
9 hrs 59 min
Thriller, Mystery
4.5 ⭐️

Thank you to @macmillan.audio and @librofm for the #gifted audiobook.

Summary: One year after Isabelle’s son, Mason, is kidnapped from his crib in the middle of night, she is still relentlessly looking for answers. She doesn’t sleep, she loses time, and she wonders how she could have let this happen. In a quest for answers, she agrees to be interviewed by a true crime podcaster who digs further into her life than she could imagine. It makes her start questioning herself and her memories of that night.

💭 Having not read A Flicker in the Dark, this was my first experience with Stacy Willingham’s writing. The pacing of this story started slow as all the characters were identified, but it moved at lightning pace once it got going. The flashback scenes, while important, slowed the story.

Isabelle’s insomnia being introduced at the very beginning set the stage for a possible unreliable narrator situation. As the story progressed, it was hard not to want her to succeed in finding all the answers. As she started to trust Waylon, his motive for telling her true crime story in his podcast became suspect to me.

There were several great twists, only one of which I figured out before it hit the story. I love being surprised when the plot takes a turn I don’t expect. 

Overall, this was a captivating read that kept me guessing to the end.

Posted in Mystery, Police Procedural

Don’t Miss: Divided in Death

Divided in Death – J.D. Robb
Brilliance Audio – Susan Ericksen
January 26, 2004
4.5 ⭐️

In the 18th book of the series, Eve investigates the death of Blair Bissel, whose wife, Reva works for Roarke. All indications point to Reva murdering her husband after finding out about his affair with her best friend. But something doesn’t add up for Eve.

As a case, this is interesting because it involves Roarke’s business and some major players in the government. This means that Eve’s team has to hunker down in her home office to work covertly. What I loved most about this book though is the struggles with Eve and Roarke’s relationship as they find out something about her childhood. Roarke is a man of action and wants to take care of it, but Eve needs to handle it on her own. I personally don’t love when these two are in conflict, but it added an needed element to the story.

This is my 4th listen through this very long series, so I feel personally connected to these characters. If you need a good audiobook series, I implore you to try this one starting with Naked in Death.

Posted in Domestic Fiction, Mystery

Don’t Miss: Remarkably Bright Creatures

When an animal is your most trusted confidante, all your secrets are safe.

Needing something to keep her busy after her husband died, Tova Sullivan took a job working the night shift at Sowell Bay Aquarium. One night while cleaning, she encounters Marcellus, a Pacific Octupus. Only he’s not in his tank. Instead, he’s tangled in cords in the staff break room. This begins an unlikely friendship between the two, and Marcellus is determined to help Tova learn what happened the night her son disappeared.

💭 This was 1000% a Bookstagram Made Me Do It and I am so happy I was influenced. I was so charmed by both Tova and Marcellus from the very beginning.

When we meet Cameron and start learning his story, it took me awhile to adapt to his voice and how he ties in with the rest of the story. Quite frankly, at first I resented the time away from Marcellus that I had to spend reading about Cameron.

However, as we learned more of Cameron’s story, I began to run theories on how he was connected. It kept me reading and guessing!

My only real complaint is there wasn’t enough Marcellus! I can’t wait to read more from this author if all the stories are as charming as this one.

Posted in Contemporary Fiction, Mystery

Don’t Miss: Big Summer

“You are fine, just the way you are… Bodies come in all shapes and sized. Don’t let anyone make you feel any differently.”

Daphne has been living her life as a plus sized influencer who is being courted by a new plus-size designer to rep her line. It has taken Daphne some time to get to a place in her life where she can put her “mean girl” friend, Drue, behind her. But Drue shows up with an apology and a proposition for Daphne to be in her wedding, and Daphne can’t resist the pull of her former friend. Is Daphne headed for more heartbreak?

When I got this book, it looked like a fluffy summer read, but it turned out to be so much more. The main character, Daphne, is plus-sized, and Jennifer Weiner handled this issue so well. Body shaming that leads to body positivity. Daphne is a true heroine. Parts of this book were hard to read because Daphne was so relatable and her struggles were easy to internalize.

Unbeknownst to me, this also has a great little murder mystery involved too. It reads kind of like a cozy mystery as Daphne and her crew are actually the people who get to the bottom of the mystery. I enjoyed this part of the story immensely.

Jennifer Weiner never disappoints with her real women characters and engaging plot lines!

Posted in Mystery, Police Procedural, Suspense

Don’t Miss: The Hidden One

What secrets are hidden behind the face of a trusted person?

Thank you to Minotaur Books and Macmillan Audio for the complimentary digital and audiobook for review.

When a beloved, missing Amish bishop’s remains are found, Kate Burkholder is asked to investigate. Making the situation more complicated, Kate’s first love, Jonas Bowman is accused of the murder. 

Yet another Burkholder book that I loved. This one gives us a glimpse into Kate’s young life through flashbacks which leads to an even deeper understanding of the character we have grown to love. There are already so many facets of the Amish community to learn about and the mystery in this one brings some new ones to light. The mystery behind this one is profound.

Kathleen McInerney is Kate’s voice. So much so that when I heard her narrate another book, I was like “Why is Kate Burkholder here?!” 🤣 Another brilliant narration!

I can’t wait until Kate’s next adventure in Painter’s Mill!

Posted in Literary Fiction, Mystery

Don’t Miss: The Maid

“I am your maid. I’m the one who cleans your hotel room, who enters like a phantom when you’re out gallivanting for the day, no care at all about what you’ve left behind, the mess, or what I might see when you’re gone.”

Thank you to Penguin Random House Audio for the complimentary audiobook for review.

What Molly the Maid sees in the first part of this novel is the body of Mr. Black in one of the rooms she’s assigned to clean. This sends Molly on a crazy journey to find who did it, when she’s the main suspect! With the supporting cast at the Regency Grand Hotel, Molly must figure out who is behind Mr. Black;s murder before she winds up in jail.

Molly is one of my favorite characters ever! She is quirky and literal, has trouble with social clues and sees everything at face value through the wisdom of her Gran. As a reader, we were able to pick up the clues and cues that Molly missed and I wanted her to find the good eggs in this hotel basket. The “clue” style locked room mystery also made it enjoyable to read.

I absolutely loved this book! You need to read it, or better yet, listen to it so you get the full impact of Molly’s character!