Tag: Thriller

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Special Feature: Three Debts Paid (Daniel Pitt #5) by Anne Perry

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Special Feature: Three Debts Paid (Daniel Pitt #5) by Anne Perry

Historical mystery serial killer themed by Anne Perry? Need I say more?! Anne Perry is a rather prolific writer with a large fan following and multiple series under her belt. I have read some of her mysteries and found them smart, well written, and interesting. I wish I had found her books early on in my reading career since there are just so many great ones to choose from!

This latest book is from the Daniel Pitt series which isn’t too many books into the series (only five at this point!). I have skipped around with Perry’s books and series and I always feel like she does a good job catching readers up to speed with the main characters and their relationships as well as other larger plot points in the larger series not just for the immediate book. So I would feel comfortable saying new readers of Perry’s books could likely pick up any book in the series and feel fairly caught up and able to dive in to enjoy a great mystery.

The thing that appealed about this one to me was the serial killer plot. I think serial killer stories are always so fascinating and I am so excited to see how this one plays out in a historical mystery setting. It also sound like there is going to be an interesting character study and room for character growth in this one with the lead protagonist Daniel Pitt having to deal with a potential killer who is also a respected friend. I love when there are stories like this where the main character has to try and remain objective—it always makes for great character building in novels! This one is out now so if you love historical mysteries this might be the book you are looking for!

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

Review: When Blood Lies (Sebastian St Cyr #17) by C. S. Harris

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Review: When Blood Lies (Sebastian St Cyr #17) by C. S. Harris

The Sebastian St Cyr mystery series has been a favorite of mine for quite some time. I started off reading the series randomly and our of order and then I went back and started from the beginning and read them all again in order. I absolutely love this series even if at times it feels a little scripted meaning it follows a formula. I still have loved the mysteries and characters so much and every time I see a new book is coming out I absolutely rearrange my calendar for it!

If you like smart historical mysteries with some grit that doesn’t transition over into ‘disturbing’ then this is a great series for you. As I said, I have read the books out of order and was ok, however I did feel like I connected with the characters and the larger narrative much better after reading the series beginning to end. If you haven’t read the series beginning to end but maybe most of the book then you should be ok with this one, however if you haven’t read the other books at all, I would say this probably isn’t the one you want to start with.

This book focuses on Sebastian’s own family history that has been teased through a number of other books in the series. It’s basically what I would call the ‘ultimate’ mystery for Sebastian and the larger narrative. So if you haven’t read all of the books you can probably get by with having only read a few but if you haven’t read any then I think new readers will be lost in this book or at the very least miss all the nuances and significances of the story.

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Review: The Long Weekend by Gilly Macmillan

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Review: The Long Weekend by Gilly Macmillan

Author Gilly Macmillan is known for writing some darker mysteries so when this one came up for review, I was intrigued enough to check it out. I know that a lot of psychological thriller and mysteries tend to be more twisty and dark and I love reading mysteries like that. For me my favorites are either classic Agatha Christie style mysteries or the dark twisty modern psychological thrillers!

This one actually sounded like it might blend both the classic mystery with the darker twists that more modern thriller are known for so I was super excited see how the two merge together. I haven’t read a mystery in a while that does this and to be honest, the one I did read just wasn’t for me (The Guest List) so I wasn’t exactly sure that this was going to be a perfect match up but I was at least willing to give it a go.

I have Macmillan’s books on my radar over the years and I know that she has had a lot of fans who enjoy her books so that says to me she is a seasoned writer and tried and proven talent with a big fan base. This gave me the assurance that I would be reading a quality mystery an it was that. It actually was a little different than I was expecting but pretty good none the less!

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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!

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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.

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