Little Syllables: The Blog
Review - Speak of the Devil by Rose Wilding
I received a free galley from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Speak of the Devil is a thriller that hooks you from the very first page. On New Year’s Eve, seven women find themselves in a room with a dead man—or part of him, at least. All of them have a motive for his murder, but each of them denies committing the crime.
This story follows these seven women, as well as the detective in charge of discovering the killer. The reader sees these women in the aftermath of the murder, as well as in flashbacks of their experiences with the victim. We discover motives right along with Nova, the detective, and the case becomes increasingly complex. It becomes clear that Jamie (our murder victim) was abusive throughout his life, so the stories of these women cover decades.
This is a story about a horrible, manipulative man, and the women he betrayed and destroyed. It’s also a story about how society disregards abuse victims and abusers often get more chances than they should.
This book kept me interested until the end, though the solution to the mystery felt rushed at the very end of the book. I liked the characters and thought they were well-written and complex. I also enjoyed how motives were unveiled one by one and flashbacks are interwoven with the days following the murder.
Trigger Warnings:
Sensitive readers should know this book contains sexual content, graphic violence, rape, mental illness, drug and alcohol abuse, forced outing, homophobia, and suicide.
Review - See It End by Brianna Labuskes
I received a free galley of this book from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Summing It Up
See It End is Brianna Labuskes’ latest thriller and the third installment in her “Dr. Gretchen White” series.
This book begins with a confession by detective Lauren Marconi and a plea that Gretchen not investigate the murder. Of course Gretchen can’t resist. She teams up with Assistant DA Lochlan Gibbs, determined to prove her friend’s innocence and find out the truth.
This murder mystery is entwined with the larger mystery of what happened to a series of kidnapped boys. Marconi is convinced the boys’ cases are connected, plus she has a personal reason for seeking justice for the boys. Her search ultimately leads to her arrest while Gretchen and Gibbs work feverishly to free her.
Although it’s the third book in a series, it works well as a stand-alone novel. Labuskes didn’t give me the whole backstory, but there was enough explanation of the earlier books without it feeling overwhelming. And I had enough information to understand the characters and their relationships.
I Loved
This book has both great characters and a great mystery. I especially loved the main character, Gretchen, who embraces and works with her personal flaws. Gibbs works as a perfect foil for her character, and I loved how they played off each other throughout the book.
This book kept me guessing until the end, which is just what I like in a thriller! I suspected five or six different characters throughout the book, and I was very satisfied by how it all wrapped up at the end.
Content Advisory
Sensitive readers should be aware that this book contains mentions of child abuse, kidnapping, murder, and pedophilia.
Read It
See It End by Brianna Labuskes will be available April 18, 2023!
Review - What Have We Done by Alex Finlay
I received a free galley of this book through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
What Have We Done is a thriller by Alex Finlay (side note: I’ve also read Every Last Fear and gave that one 5 stars). This new book follows a group of teens who met in a group home, went their separate ways, and grew up into very different people with a shared past. Now someone is after them all.
We have Jenna, a suburban stepmom with a secret; Donnie, a washed-up rockstar; Nico, a gambling addict turned television professional; Ben, a successful federal judge; and Arty, a wealthy tech head. And they’re all being targeted by the same assassin, who seems to be able to be in two places at once. Once they figure out that all of them were targeted, they begin to work together to figure out who is responsible.
Just like in his previous books, Finlay offers an intriguing mystery and a twisty tale. This one kept me turning pages, and I read it quickly. The author has interwoven memories into the present storyline very well. The reader uncovers things gradually, along with the characters. The characterization was very well done—each of the targets is unique, but believable.
Despite these things, in the end, I found myself unsatisfied with the book as a whole. I felt that the plot was trying to be too intricate. It was difficult to parse out which details were important for the mystery and which weren’t. Perhaps that was intentional on the author’s part, but I found it distracting. Too many red herrings along the way made the actual solution to the mystery underwhelming. And a tacked-on ending felt unnecessary.
Overall, I thought this was a good mystery, but not a great one. If you’re in the mood for a quick read, a thriller with an intricate plot and a good variety of characters, this book could fit the bill. Sensitive readers should know this novel contains violence, mentions of sexual assault, child abuse, and drug references.
What Have We Done is available now!
Review - The Maze by Nelson DeMille
I received a free advanced copy from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
The Maze is the latest installment in DeMille’s John Corey series. These are contemporary detective stories. In this book, John is recently retired from his job in federal law enforcement. He’s enjoying some downtime at his uncle’s summer house when he’s approached by an old flame and a job offer with a private investigation firm.
Sometimes it doesn’t work to jump into a series in the middle, but DeMille does a decent job of catching a reader up with John’s history without getting too bogged down. I never felt like I was missing anything about the protagonist/narrator that would have helped the story.
Although DeMille is a prolific author, I had never read any of his books before. I didn’t realize what I was getting into.
Let’s just say that John Corey is portrayed as “a man’s man” and a “cop’s cop.” He’s a hyper-masculine, chauvinistic character with a fair number of ex-wives and ex-girlfriends in his wake. He rebels against authority and is a smart-ass. He’s borderline belligerent and obviously objectifies women. And yet somehow, this man keeps getting women to sleep with him.
So I had a hard time getting into this book because I really did not like John Corey.
But the mystery that is set up was intriguing enough to keep me reading, hoping John would grow on me. Spoiler alert: he didn’t.
John is entangled in an off-the-books investigation of a private investigation firm that smells of corruption. He gets hired on as a consultant at the firm and quickly alienates most everyone there, compromises the investigation, and nearly gets himself killed. He also has time to hatch elaborate plans and join in for the “Thirsty Thursday” strip show, courtesy of his new employer.
In the process, he does help uncover some crimes and corruption, culminating in an intense chase sequence where John is outnumbered and outgunned. Then, the book ends so suddenly that the reader isn’t given concrete answers on some of the book’s biggest mysteries.
This book was a miss for me, though I have to give DeMille credit for creating an intriguing mystery, a plausible conspiracy, and establishing backstory without overwhelming a reader new to the series. The Maze was released October 11.
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Review - Secret Lives by Mark de Castrique
I received a free advanced copy from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Secret Lives by Mark de Castrique is an awesome thriller that kept me guessing until the end. The book is firmly grounded and very believable, with complex characters and an intricate plot.
The thing I liked most about this book was the characters—especially Edith. I love a strong female lead, and Edith was surprising and very human. Edith is an elderly landlady, a former FBI agent, and our clever detective. She carries this story from start to finish.
An unexpected benefit of reading this book was that I learned a fair bit about cryptocurrency. The story follows a group of FBI and Secret Service agents through a murder investigation, which is mixed up with a financial fraud case. Cryptocurrency is a big feature here, including how to exchange it, how to access it, and how to protect it. Whether or not the details provided in the book are accurate (which is beyond me), it felt believable and real to me.
Secret Lives is an awesome thriller that kept me guessing.
Ultimately, I gave this book 5 stars. It is excellently written, the characters are complex, and the mystery is a wild ride.
To keep the mystery going, the author casts suspicion on several different characters. There were several moments in the book when I thought I’d figured it out, but I kept guessing until the climax, when the true villain is unveiled.
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Review - The Heights by Louise Candlish
I received a free advanced copy through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Louise Candlish is not a new author for me. I read and enjoyed The Other Passenger last year (click here for my review). The Heights was a quick read for me. It kept me turning the pages!
The Heights is a story about obsession and revenge. It’s also a story about stories and the power the storyteller has to control the narrative. The novel is built around the premise that Ellen Saint is taking part in a memoir-writing class and the story we read is written by her. As the story progresses, it becomes increasingly clear that she is not the most reliable narrator. She is paranoid, obsessive, and over-protective.
Then we see things from Vic’s perspective. Vic is the father of Ellen’s teenage son, Lucas. Getting a new perspective helps the reader see Ellen differently, though it is unclear who the narrator is in this third-person POV. Vic is shown as a conflicted man. At this point in the book, it’s difficult to know who is trustworthy—if anyone. And I think this was intentionally done to throw the reader off balance.
Candlish does an excellent job of balancing characterization with the limitations of the POV she has chosen. Those limitations help increase the mystery as the reader is left wondering who to believe and whose side to take.
The Heights by Louise Candlish is available now.
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Review - We Live Next Door by Laura Wolfe
I received a free review copy from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
We Live Next Door is a thriller that pleasantly surprised me. It tells the story of Jessica, a wife and mother, who has moved back into her childhood home. Now one of the (most hated) neighbors has died, and Jessica is suspicious, even though nobody else really seems to be. Jessica becomes borderline paranoid as she works to solve the mystery, and at times, seems slightly unhinged. But it turns out that she’s seeing some problems that everyone else is missing.
The plot of this novel was really well done. The characters were believable and the relationships complex. Jessica is mostly likeable, though sometimes a bit naïve. I had big issues with her husband Mark. I won’t give anything away by telling how that situation resolves, but just know that it does.
This book involves a lot of relationships and relationship issues. It’s about how we know our neighbors (and friends, and parents, and spouse) a little too well, or maybe not as well as we think we do. It also deals with domestic violence, infidelity, drug use, and of course, murder. Even though it is a murder mystery, I felt that this book was ultimately about motherhood, looking beyond outward appearances, and following your dreams.
We Live Next Door by Laura Wolfe comes out November 5.
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Review - The Field of Wrongdoing by Lili St. Germain
I received a free ARC from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.
The Field of Wrongdoing was a tough read for me. This mystery/thriller is gritty, violent, and shocking. It is definitely not for readers sensitive to sexual violence, murder, kidnapping, gore, child abuse, drug use, or language. I found the description of the book to be misleading as well.
I do think the premise of this book is a good one. The characters are generally well-written. The mystery is intriguing. I have no problems with the writing beyond the graphic content. This book follows Leo and his girlfriend Cassie, starting with a gruesome discovery outside Leo’s home (note: not in a field and not discovered by Cassie, as the book description indicates). This event changes their lives in awful ways and neither of them are ever the same afterward.
Later on, Leo is involved in a car accident, the circumstances of which send him to prison for 8 years. The story picks back up when he is released and returns home. Another teenage girl goes missing soon afterward, and the police try to pin her disappearance on Leo. Cassie eventually discovers the truth about these crimes.
I won’t give too much away, but all the crimes in the story are linked. There is also a subplot about Leo’s siblings and mother, which is also disturbing and violent. Pretty much all of the characters in this book are terrible people who make awful choices. A few side characters are okay, like Amanda and Chris, but they have very little to do with the story as a whole. There is not much redemption for anyone and there is a lot of sex, violence, and death. Yes, the ultimate “bad guys” get what’s coming to them, but other peripheral characters get no answers.
I decided ultimately to give this book three stars because I think it was well-written and well-plotted. I couldn’t give it more stars because I hated most of the characters and I don’t enjoy reading the sort of graphic content found in this book.
The Field of Wrongdoing is available now.
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Review - In Another Light by A.J. Banner
I received a free advance copy from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
I have read a lot of books this year. At one time, I was reading 3-4 books each week. That has significantly dropped off lately. I have found myself delving deeper into certain things, distracted by other things, and not reading as quickly.
Thriller to the rescue!
Whenever I need something to get me reading again, or to make me feel like I’ve made progress in a book, I pick up a thriller. A.J. Banner’s In Another Light fit the bill and did not disappoint. I read the entire book in one day. The story kept me turning pages and kept me up late to finish.
This book tells the story of Phoebe, a mortuary cosmetologist. The reader is introduced to her gradually—her past unfolding one step at a time. This fits well with Phoebe’s character. She seems reserved and private. She has few friends. We eventually discover the events that have led her to her current state of depression and hopelessness.
Then the mystery really sets in when a familiar face shows up at the mortuary. Phoebe’s search for answers about the mystery woman leads her on a winding path. She attempts to unravel her past and present in somewhat ill-conceived ways. Let’s be clear: she makes some awful choices.
I felt like this was a pretty solid mystery with a great premise. It’s about secrets people keep, even from those they are closest to. It’s about family. It’s about love and trust—and forgiveness. Ultimately, it’s about Phoebe learning to move on (or not) from the tragic events of her past.
I did find some portions of the plot and characterization to be a bit far-fetched. Some of the coincidences were too convenient for me to believe.
In the end, this is a book I would recommend as a quick read for fans of the genre. I found Phoebe to be a believable character and I enjoyed following her story for the most part. The premise of the story was intriguing, though it possibly could have been better executed.
In Another Light is available now!
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Review - The Family Tree by Steph Mullen & Nicole Mabry
I received an advanced copy from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
I read a fair number of thrillers and mysteries, so I’m always keen to snap up advanced copies in those genres. I really respect a mystery author who can lead the reader along, dropping clues, and then completely surprise them at the end. This book was trying to be one of those mysteries, but the execution was not great.
The Family Tree is told from two different perspectives: Liz, a young woman seeking to learn more about her biological family, and an unidentified (until the end) serial killer. I feel like this book had a great premise, possibly inspired by some real-life criminal cases solved using familial DNA. But the authors seemed to struggle to make the protagonist (Liz) likable and relatable, and to lead the reader toward the solution. Instead, readers are stuck tagging along with Liz, who makes terrible decisions, alienates those closest to her, and rushes into danger, only solving any mysteries by accident. And the big mystery—the identity of the killer—was a big disappointment for me. I don’t want to spoil too much, but let’s just say the killer’s identity seems to come out of nowhere.
Another problem I found with this story is the epilogue, which sets the stage for a sequel, maybe? We spend an entire novel getting to know the main characters, only to suddenly have two additional characters thrown in at the last second. They seemed like an afterthought. This book left me with a lot of unanswered questions because the authors didn’t provide the breadcrumbs to lead me organically to the solution.
This book was not a total miss. It kept me turning pages and I read to the end. I thought some portions were well-executed, such as the premise of how the serial killer operated and the storyline of the victims. I found most of the characters to be rather one-dimensional and unnatural, though I did like Liz’s cousin Andie and her boyfriend Travis.
One thing I will say about this book is that it is pretty clean for a thriller about a serial killer. There isn’t much adult language or sexual content. So readers who are sensitive to those things, but still want to read the genre may find the book appealing in that way.
The Family Tree by Steph Mullen and Nicole Mabry is releasing October 5, 2021.