Tag: Suspense

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: The Book of Cold Cases by Simone St James

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Review: The Book of Cold Cases by Simone St James

I can’t even begin to tell you how much of a fan I am of Simone St James! I have read every single one of her books and she is absolutely an auto buy author for me. I had her latest novel pre ordered for MONTHS in advance. I am just a massive fan girl. Her books (especially the more recent ones) are the perfect mix of murder, ghosts, horror, and gothic. I can’t say enough good things about her books just read them if you haven’t already! Especially the newest books like The Broken Girls and The Sun Down Motel.

I didn’t think a book could top The Broken Girls and then along came The Sun Down Motel. I loved them both for different reasons and then this book came along! Besides being a massive St James fan girl, the thing that drew me to this book was the setting! This book is set in Oregon and there is something about the Pac NW that really works for murder books!

Since I live in Oregon (which has been home to its fair share of serial killers) I was eager to see my state come alive under St James’s pen. Clear Lake Oregon (which is where the book is set) is both a fictional place and a real place if that makes sense. There isn’t a coastal town, or any town for that matter that is called Clear Lake as it is in the book, but there is an actual mountain lake called Clear Lake (which is stunning by the way and a must see if you travel to Oregon!). But even if it’s a fictional town, the accuracy and the haunting feel of the Pac NW was captured perfectly in this one and added so much to the atmosphere!

Continue reading “Review: The Book of Cold Cases by Simone St James” →
Book Critic, Book Review, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: The Golden Couple by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Review: The Golden Couple by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen

Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen have been writing domestic thrillers for the last few years and I love this writing team! I especially loved their first novel together, The Wife Between Us. After reading that one I was super excited to check out the next book which was just ok for me but that said, I enjoyed their writing style and was eager to read other collaborations.

When this book came up for review I was familiar enough with the authors names and the quality of novels they put out so I was obviously on board with a review. While the second book I read wasn’t my fav, it was still enjoyable and sometimes you have a a book that just doesn’t live up to the first and that’s ok, it isn’t a deal breaker for me so I looked forward to this one being like a redemption book for me.

Collaborative works can sometimes be tricky. Each author has their own unique voice and style so trying to mesh those two together can sometimes be a challenge. I have been fairly lucky in my reading of collaborative novels as most have been well written and interesting but sometimes the different styles can be obvious, however with these two authors their different styles have really worked well together.

Continue reading “Review: The Golden Couple by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen” →
Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Review: A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham

Where are my murderionos at? If you like your thrillers with a hefty dose of murder this is for you! It’s been a long time since I have stayed up late into the night reading a thriller. A romance—sure, but my thrillers lately have been really meah to be honest. However this book caught my eye early on when I picked it as my Book of the Month selection a few months back. I love chilling novels that include murder and serial killers and this book sounded right up my alley!

But lately my reading time has been limited so I downloaded this one to listen to at work and running errands. I absolutely loved the narrator, she had a great reading voice and the male voices she did weren’t unbearable to listen to so I count that as a win! I gotta tell you, I found myself driving around randomly just to listen to this one a little bit longer. I really enjoyed it, but that doesn’t mean that I loved everything about it (more on that later).

If you love your thrillers with more murder rather than creepy moodiness, you will defiantly love this book. I find that so many thrillers these days are just about creating a mood or feel and many just focus on making readers feel uneasy without really having much of a story. Theres such a focus on domestic thrillers that really don’t have much to do in the way of murder so lately I just haven’t read many thrillers because of this, however this one was much more murder-y and I was all about that!

Continue reading “Review: A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham” →
Books, Reading

Special Feature: From a Dark Horizon (Gregor Reinhardt #4) by Luke McCallin

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Special Feature: From a Dark Horizon (Gregor Reinhardt #4) by Luke McCallin

It’s no secret how much I love WWI historical novels but so many of them have a strong romance element which is totally fine and in fact I often prefer it, but there are times when I want something a little different to sink my teeth into. When I saw this book I knew this was exactly what I had been looking for—a WWI thriller. I am a bit of a military history nerd and when I saw that this book had a lot of military history as well as a strong mystery/thriller component I was all about it!

This is the fourth book in the Gregor Reinhardt series and while I haven’t heard of this series before this book, I already know this is a series I will be reading in it’s entirety. I am reading this book over winter break, it promises to be a quick read with a lot to sink my teeth into and even if it’s number four in the series, the early reviews I have read are saying you can jump around in the series without much trouble. This book has been getting rave reviews already and I cannot wait to read it. It isn’t the typical WWI novel I would read but at the same time I am dying to read it!

It is out now and a perfect match for the thriller reader on your holiday shopping list! Luke McCallin’s Gregor Reinhardt seris has a big fan following and I am eager to see what all the fuss is about! But many readers are saying many of the same things—that this series is action packed, full of great history, thrills and a mystery that promises to keep readers guessing until the very end. Do not miss this one, it’s out now and I will be finishing it before the year is over I am sure so be watching for my review!

Continue reading “Special Feature: From a Dark Horizon (Gregor Reinhardt #4) by Luke McCallin” →
Books, Reading

Special Feature and Excerpt: Down a Dark River by Karen Odden

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Special Feature and Excerpt: Down a Dark River by Karen Odden

Down a Dark River by Karen Odden

Publication Date: November 9, 2021
Crooked Lane Books
Hardcover & eBook; 336 pages

Series: An Inspector Corravan Mystery, Book One
Genre: Historical Mystery

In the vein of C. S. Harris and Anne Perry, Karen Odden’s mystery introduces Inspector Michael Corravan as he investigates a string of vicious murders that has rocked Victorian London’s upper crust.

London, 1878. One April morning, a small boat bearing a young woman’s corpse floats down the murky waters of the Thames. When the victim is identified as Rose Albert, daughter of a prominent judge, the Scotland Yard director gives the case to Michael Corravan, one of the only Senior Inspectors remaining after a corruption scandal the previous autumn left the division in ruins. Reluctantly, Corravan abandons his ongoing case, a search for the missing wife of a shipping magnate, handing it over to his young colleague, Mr. Stiles.

An Irish former bare-knuckles boxer and dockworker from London’s seedy East End, Corravan has good street sense and an inspector’s knack for digging up clues. But he’s confounded when, a week later, a second woman is found dead in a rowboat, and then a third. The dead women seem to have no connection whatsoever. Meanwhile, Mr. Stiles makes an alarming discovery: the shipping magnate’s missing wife, Mrs. Beckford, may not have fled her house because she was insane, as her husband claims, and Mr. Beckford may not be the successful man of business that he appears to be.

Slowly, it becomes clear that the river murders and the case of Mrs. Beckford may be linked through some terrible act of injustice in the past—for which someone has vowed a brutal vengeance. Now, with the newspapers once again trumpeting the Yard’s failures, Corravan must dredge up the truth—before London devolves into a state of panic and before the killer claims another innocent victim.

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | BAM | IndieBound

Continue reading “Special Feature and Excerpt: Down a Dark River by Karen Odden” →