Book Review: The Woods Are Waiting (By Katherine Greene)

A big thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane for an ARC of The Woods are Waiting by Katherine Greene. This was my introduction to the author, and the premise was incredibly intriguing. Read on to find out how this thriller fares.

Genre: 

Thriller, Mystery

Blurb:

Cheyenne Ashby has lived under the shadow of her mother’s eccentricities all her life. Constance Ashby is the protector of the small town of Blue Cliff, keeping at bay the evil entity that haunts the surrounding forest. When three children are found dead in the forest, out-of-towner Jasper Clinton is convicted. But Cheyenne, unable to bear the weight of her family traditions, superstitions, and responsibilities, leaves her town and turns her back on her mother and on the two people who matter the most to her – Natalie and Jackson.

Five years later, another child goes missing. The event leaves Constance Ashby a wreck. Cheyenne returns to fulfill her duty and take care of her mother. She faces her past once again and tries to rebuild the broken relationships with those that she still loves. But, as Cheyenne and Natalie realize, there’s only one way to bury that past and resolve the events that have pushed the town into an increasing frenzy of fear and anger – face the evil that lives in the woods.

Overall Rating:

8 out of 10 stars

Plot:

9 out of 10 stars

Characterization:

10 out of 10 stars

Primary Element:

10 out of 10 stars for its mystery; 7 out of 10 stars for its thrill

Writing Style:

10 out of 10 stars

Part of a Series: 

No.

Highlighted Takeaway:

A great mix of mystery, creepiness, and the emotional struggles that come with life’s tough decisions, The Woods Are Waiting is an excellent debut by Katherine Greene, making her an author to watch.

What I Liked:

The Woods Are Waiting does justice to a not-uncommon theme – a small town set in its ways and beliefs, plagued by hauntings of an unknown being, and rife with unrest in the aftermath of tragedy. What it gets right is:

• the characterization of the two protagonists and multiple supporting persons, each holding their own, with their own voice, and their own growth,
• the emotional conflicts that accompany the tough decisions you have to make sometimes and their aftermath,
• the vulnerability and strength in relationships of all kinds,
• the setting, especially that of the forest, and its impact on the people and the events they experience,
• a mystery that keeps you guessing right till the end

What I Didn’t Like:

While there was little to specifically dislike in Katherine Greene’s debut thriller, the only thing that would have made it better was a little more creepiness. There was significant focus on the ‘creature within the woods’, but there was just something lacking in the effect the narrative had; it left you curious more than unsettled, which is what I was expecting given the setting and theme.

It also moves steadily, but at a slow(ish) pace, picking up in intensity after the 70% mark. That doesn’t in any way affect the outcome, but I definitely found the ‘face the evil’ aspect to be introduced much later than the blurb had me believe.

Who Should Read It:

You’ll enjoy Katherine Greene’s work if you like thrillers with emotion and mysteries with supernatural elements. It’s perfect for fans of Tim Weaver’s David Raker series (because of their similar settings, especially The Dead Tracks) or Mark Edwards (because of their similar themes, especially The Retreat).

Who Should Avoid:

Trigger Warning: The Woods Are Waiting does involve crimes against children, although it is non-violently handled. However, if that’s a particularly sensitive topic for you, I’d definitely recommend avoiding this one.

You could also skip this if thrillers with supernatural themes aren’t a favorite.

Read It For:

A story that excellently combines a creepy mystery and the complexities of relationships and emotions.

I really enjoyed The Woods Are Waiting and finished it within a couple of days. It’s definitely a book that keeps you turning the pages. If you’re looking to try a new author with immense potential, you can pre-order your copy of Katherine Greene’s debut here. It goes on sale in July 2023.

Share recommendations of your favorite thrillers in the comments below. And, as always, thank you for stopping at The Book Review Station!

This post contains affiliate links. The Book Review Station may earn a small commission, at no additional cost to you, if you use these links to purchase books. Thanks!

– Rishika

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Better to avoid: A review of No One Will Hear Your Screams by Thomas O’Callaghan

A big thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book. I thought the blurb was really interesting and I tried really hard to like the book. But at the end of it, No One Will Hear Your Screams by Thomas O’Callaghan was just a disappointing read.

I’m taking a slightly different approach in this review, primarily because I found it a bit difficult to get through the story. I didn’t want to close it as a DNF, so I’m just going to summarize what I felt after ensuring I completed it.

Genre:

Mystery, Suspense

Length: 

352 pages

Blurb:

Lieutenant John Driscoll begins investigating a series of murders in NYC. The perpetrator is twisted, as evidenced by his actions. But what’s driving him? And will Driscoll win the fight against the evil that the murderer epitomizes?

Overall Rating:

1 out of 10

Plot:

1 out of 10

Characterization:

1 out of 10

Primary Element:

2 out of 10 for its few random plot twists that did end up adding some elements of surprise.

Writing Style:

2 out of 10

Part of a Series:

Yes, it’s the third book in the John Driscoll series but can be read as a standalone.

A little more:

No One Will Hear Your Screams has some great reviews. Unfortunately, it just did not work for me. Here are a few reasons why:

1. Characters were very one dimensional. There was good, there was bad, and there was very little depth to either. Maybe that was because the character of the protagonist, Driscoll, has been developed over the series, maybe not. Either way, there was little in way of development that made you really associate with the characters, consequently leaving you un-invested in anything that happened to them.
2. Random arcs that went nowhere. I’m not even sure why these plot points were added other than for shock value.
3. Which brings me to my next point – random shock value. There were some seriously graphic scenes, which could affect even those who’ve read tons of violent suspense. They could have honestly added a whole other layer to the story but didn’t, because they were incredibly haphazardly placed instead of being part of the theme and the antagonist’s MO.
4. One small, but extremely irritating, point was the constant and childish interaction between two characters that were, until that point, shown to be capable, functioning adults. Put together, they become bickering toddlers. Not only was it uncharacteristic, it was just cringey to read because literally no one behaves like that.
5. Lastly, the writing, story, and persons were just all over the place. Connections between characters, motives, psyche, and even the past of the characters (which was shown to have some effect on the present) were just explained enough to take the story a step forward without really painting a picture. With nothing being delved into, you just end up reading a series of loosely tied events.

Should you read it?

Writing a book is tough work, which is why I really tried to find something that I liked in No One Will Hear Your Screams. It just didn’t work for me though. I would not personally recommend it to anyone because there are a lot of mystery and suspense novels out there that would probably be a better choice.

Drop a comment below if you’d like to share why you loved or hated No One Will Hear Your Screams by Thomas O’Callaghan. As always, thanks for stopping by and taking the time to read my review!

Until the next read…

– Rishika

Average Read – Great End: A Review of Rain Will Come by Thomas Holgate

Shout out to NetGalley for an ARC of Rain Will Come by Thomas Holgate. Reading and reviewing it took longer than expected, but here we are (finally)!

Genre:

Thriller, Mystery

Length: 

302 pages

Blurb:

Paul Czarcik is a veteran of the Illinois Bureau of Judicial Enforcement. He has no shortage of vices, is a loner, and is the Bureau’s best detective. When a seemingly open and shut case of double murder doesn’t sit right with him, he digs deeper… and finds an obscure connection to the gruesome murder of a Texas judge. Before long, Czarcik’s hunch brings him up against a killer who is nothing like any murderer he’s met before… and who is not yet done. When the killer challenges Czarcik, the detective accepts. And sets forth on a game of cat-and-mouse that mocks him at every step and threatens to turn the case into the first one Czarcik can’t win.

Overall Rating:

7 out of 10

Plot:

8 out of 10

Characterization:

6 out of 10

Primary Element:

8 out of 10 for its thrill (how will this end??!)

Writing Style:

6 out of 10

Part of a Series: 

Maybe, maybe not. As of now, not.

Highlighted Takeaway:

The end – did not see that coming.

What I Liked:

Although the story is pretty linear and as such doesn’t allow for too many twists, the author – Thomas Holgate – manages to get a few in, all of which are fun and relatively unexpected.

What I Didn’t Like:

The characterization was too clichéd. Every character was the textbook version of what it should be, without enough shades of gray (think typical anti-hero with a heart of gold).

Also, there were these random words that pivoted from the general, casual flow of the language. They really pull you out of the story, unfortunately, and I definitely could have done without the abruptness.

Who Should Read It:

Anyone who enjoys relatively gory thrillers. This has a real ‘how is he going to hurt this one?’ vibe going. Definitely a plus for those who don’t mind some (and occasionally, a lot) bloodshed.

Who Should Avoid:

Anyone who can’t stand too much violence. Rain Will Come is not for the faint-hearted.

Read It For:

The anti-hero with a heart of gold. Yes, really! It may be clichéd but, for the most part, it works. Would have helped to have Czarcik be just a bit more… empathetic, though.

Rain Will Come releases on 1 April 2020 by Thomas & Mercer. It’s the debut novel of Thomas Holgate who has, as per his NetGalley bio, written television movies, series, and feature films, along with nonfiction books and magazine pieces under a pseudonym.

While the book has its drawbacks, I would definitely read more of Thomas Holgate’s work, especially for its dark themes and theoretically justifiable violence. If you like that kind of stuff, I’d recommend picking up Rain Will Come.

As always, thanks for stopping by and taking the time to read my review. 🙂

– Rishika

 

Too unrealistic to really enjoy: A Review of The Perfect Mother by Caroline Mitchell

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an ARC of this book. It looked super interesting and had its good parts, but overall made for a read that just wasn’t that great.

Read on to know why.

Source: Goodreads

Genre:

Thriller, Suspense

Length:

368 pages

Blurb:

Finding out she’s pregnant after a one-night stand leaves young and broke Roz, terrified. She knows she wants to bring her baby into the world. But she doesn’t want it to have the same chaotic upbringing that she had had. Determined to do what’s best for her child, she signs up on an elite adoption service website. Within days, she is on the way to New York to meet with a celebrity power couple whose names she doesn’t yet know, leaving behind her only friend. Sheridan and Daniel are wealthy and kind, and the perfect parents that Roz could have wanted for her baby. Within hours of meeting Sheridan, she has signed away her freedom until the baby’s birth so that Sheridan can pass the event off as her own pregnancy. Once settled in their basement suite, Roz begins to realize that not everything is as welcoming as it seems. And when she finds out that there had been another woman who’d moved into the suite before her, a woman who had simply disappeared, she realizes that she may have made a terrible mistake. Her baby is the only reason she believes she’s alive. What happens when her due date, which is coming closer by the day, arrives?

Overall Rating:

5 out of 10

Plot:

5 out of 10

Characterization:

3 out of 10

Primary Element:

6 out of 10 for its suspense

Writing Style:

7 out of 10

Part of a Series:

No.

Highlighted Takeaway:

An endearing writing style, which is strongly representative of Irish slang and mannerisms.

What I Liked:

The Perfect Mother has an interesting basic premise. It reads smoothly, and moves fast enough. Unfortunately, these aren’t enough to overshadow the negatives of the book.

What I Didn’t Like:

Characters were just too shallow and behaved in the most irrational ways possible. I know that tough situations can call for strange behaviors, but this was just too implausible. Also, the characters are not fleshed out. They act and do what the situation demands more than the story building around the characters and how they would actually react.

Another thing that really got to me was how convenient everything was in the story and the characters’ reactions. It felt like the author had a very obvious predetermined arc and that everything and everyone played a role to fulfill it, consequently making the story too unrealistic to associate with or really enjoy.

Who Should Read It:

I would not actively recommend this book to anyone because if it’s a suspense or thriller novel that you’re looking for, there are definitely many other options out there that would do better.

Who Should Avoid:

Anyone who does not like shallow characters and a storyline based on convenient inputs rather than a fleshed-out book where story and characters build off of one another.

Read It For:

If anything, the endearing mannerisms and slang that the writing style offers.

I still think Caroline Mitchell’s work could be good, if her writing style is anything to go by. I may or may not try another one of her books, but would have definitely loved to see her style combined with better characterization and story development. All in all, The Perfect Mother by Caroline Mitchell was not a great read, and not something I would actively recommend.

If you’re interested in reading it though, The Perfect Mother is expected to release on 14 January 2020.

Thanks for stopping by!

– Rishika

Reminiscent of Stuart MacBride’s Misfit Mob: A Review of The Sleepwalker (by Joseph Knox)

I saw Joseph Knox’s The Sleepwalker in my Goodreads feed, and saw that it was available to read and review on NetGalley. So naturally, I had to get myself a copy (because of my obvious and possibly unhealthy love for the mystery/thriller genre). Three days later, I’m done with the book and can’t help but feel how similar the experience of reading it was to reading A Dark So Deadly by Stuart McBride (review here), which introduced readers to the Misfit Mob.

Here’s why The Sleepwalker was even better than A Dark So Deadly.

Source: Goodreads

Genre:

Thriller, Mystery

Length: 

328 pages

Blurb:

Martin Wick was sentenced to death for the slaughter of an entire family. But Wick had no memory of the crime, earning him the nickname ‘The Sleepwalker’. Ten years later, Wick is dying in a hospital, under police watch. Detective Aidan Waits is part of the police protection detail that has only one job – watch Wick and try to find out the location of Wick’s last victim. But then, an attack leaves Wick and another policeman dead, and another gravely injured. And with his dying breath, Wick tells Waits something that sends him down a dangerous path where demons from his past, the search for the truth, and the threats of his present come crashing together. Will this be the end for Waits’ career and life? Will Waits fight the dangers that will pull him deeper into the storm from which there’s no return? Or will he embrace that darkness and the release it will bring?

Overall Rating:

8 out of 10

Plot:

7 out of 10

Characterization:

8 out of 10

Primary Element:

7 out of 10 for its mystery

Writing Style:

8 out of 10

Part of a Series: 

Yes, this is Book 3 of the Aidan Waits series. Book 1 – Sirens – has actually been on my list for a while. While I didn’t want to give up on the chance to read The Sleepwalker, I definitely felt like I should’ve started from Book 1. If you’re picking Joseph Knox as a new author to follow, start at the beginning – at Sirens.

Highlighted Takeaway:

Aidan Waits’ sour persona. It may have rubbed the other characters wrong, but I absolutely loved the way he was.

What I Liked:

Joseph Knox builds an intricately woven plot on the foundation of great characterization. The Sleepwalker reads really well, moves fast, and is also wonderfully human in its characters’ strengths and weaknesses.

What I Didn’t Like:

If I had to pick something, it would be the fact that the book wouldn’t have been complete without reference to its prequels. But, that very reference is what has now left me knowing more than what I would’ve liked to know about those very prequels. So if you pick this book up as a standalone read, you will enjoy it. But if you want to read the whole series, start with Sirens instead for a more complete experience.

Who Should Read It:

Anyone who loves books set in the United Kingdom, especially if you like the works of Stuart MacBride.

Who Should Avoid:

Anyone who does not like books where the main protagonists are a little too dark; where they’re not anti-heroes, they’re just confused individuals trying to make the best of a situation and survive until they can be bothered to.

Read It For:

Aidan Waits’ struggle against himself and the hand he’s been dealt, as he tries to determine whether the effort is worth it at all.

A big thank you to NetGalley, Joseph Knox, and Transworld Publishers for an ARC of this book. The Sleepwalker comes out on 11 July 2019. Make sure to grab a copy if you love thrillers.

– Rishika

Enjoyable and Intriguing: Review of The Woman In Our House by Andrew Hart

After I read Tell Me A Secret (review here), I’d more or less sworn off of books that tried to imitate the niche genre highlighted by Gillian Flynn. Which is why I picked up The Woman In Our House with some reservations. The blurb was intriguing, but would the book focus more on the thrill factor as I’d hoped or go down the rabbit hole of a main female character’s self-pity was something to be seen.

Thankfully, it met expectations. And made for a captivating read. Before I go ahead, I’m sending NetGalley a big thanks for an ARC of this book! The Woman In Our House comes out on 18 June 2019.

Source: Goodreads

Genre: Suspense, Psychological thriller

Length: 347 pages

Blurb:

Anna Klein and her husband decide to hire a live-in nanny when she decides to return to work as a literary agent after her second child turns a little over 6 months old. Oaklynn Durst arrives after numerous interviews and with stellar references. The children take to her immediately, leaving Anna feeling a little unwanted even as she remains thankful for Oaklynn and being able to go back to work. But when the children begin suffering from sudden illnesses and bruises, Anna begins to worry that Oaklynn may not be what she seems. But are her own insecurities driving her suspicion, or did she really put her children and even herself and her house under the care of a lying, scheming woman who wouldn’t hesitate to hurt any of them?

Overall Rating: 7 out of 10

Plot: 8 out of 10

Characterization: 8 out of 10

Primary Element: 7 out of 10 for its thrill and suspense

Writing Style: 8 out of 10

Part of a Series: No

Highlighted Takeaway: 

The plot. Let’s just say, “You will not see some things coming at all!”

What I Liked:

Characterization, especially that of the main protagonist, Anna Klien, was really well done. She wasn’t over the top or too self-pitying. In fact, she was just the right amount of neurotic and self-aware to make it easy to empathize with her, and even associate with her in many places.

What I Didn’t Like:

Similar to Tell Me A Secret, the men were only present when convenient. Even Anna’s husband is more ‘her husband’ than ‘a supporting character’. Given that he actually had a role to play in the book, there should have been a little more focus on him.

Who Should Read It:

Anyone who enjoys a good suspense read, because it is surely that while definitely not being a ‘mess with your mind’ style psychological thriller. Those who like Mary Higgins Clark’s older books would probably like this one.

Who Should Avoid:

Anyone who doesn’t like books that focus on women as central characters. The women in this book aren’t unrealistic in all action and thought in this book, but it’s still predominantly a woman-centric story.

Read It For:

Reminding yourself that the world still has those people who don’t exactly believe in the “live and let live” ideology, and that things aren’t always as they seem.

Thanks for stopping by and reading my book review. Say Hi! in the comments below!

– Rishika

 

Review: Into The Darkness (By Sibel Hodge)

Source: Goodreads

Length:

My rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Eighteen-year-old Toni wants to study criminal psychology to be able to help people, especially children, affected by the evil deeds of which psychopaths are capable. But a week before her university course begins, she discovers something horrifying in the deepest corners of the internet. Before she is able to wrap her head around what she’s seen, she finds herself attacked, abducted, and locked in a dark cell. With no help from the police, Toni’s mother turns to an old friend for help. Ex-SAS operative, Mitchell, has seen the worst that the world and its people have to offer. He knows that evil is not a concept of fairy tales, but a very real threat that can exist in the form of anything and anyone. Uncaring about the law and only concerned with quick justice, Mitchell is a vigilante with a mission – bring Toni home safe, no matter what it costs.

DS Warren Carter has been a detective for so long that the job and the growing lack of justice are beginning to make him grow weary. He is two weeks away from retiring from the force and taking up a different job. Then, he’s called in to investigate the double murder of a simple, seemingly normal couple. Nothing is what it seems in the case. DS Carter is short on staff and has almost no support from his overbearing, bureaucratic boss. Yet, he won’t let the case go, relying on the instincts that have always had his back to try and solve the cold-hearted, heinous crime. But the case isn’t simple, and DS Carter finds himself falling into the depths of a world that is more twisted and evil than he could have ever imagined.

Time is running out for Toni as Mitchell tries desperately to find her in a world of shadows where anonymity is pivotal. And DS Carter is beginning to question everything he’s ever known. The Missing, the Vigilante, and the Detective are caught in a dangerous game, one that offers threats at every turn, and that none of them may win.

The Bottom Line:

An interestingly told thriller that does not shy away from the gory stuff, hits you in the face with the truth that you’d rather never know, and spins an intricate, well-plotted tale that is not made any less enjoyable by its predictability.

My take:

Writing in the first person isn’t always easy. Not too many people like the approach so you have to be exceptionally good at it to ensure that your audience can associate with the character they’re following. Writing from different points of view consistently isn’t easy either. It’s altogether too easy to get their personalities mixed up, and end up with one’s style seeping into the other.

Yet, Sibel Hodge does both these things with brilliant precision in Into the Darkness. 

The story follows a vigilante who believes that justice is best served instantly, a missing girl whose desire to help people takes her into the depths of unspeakable horror, and a detective who’s been worn down by the injustices he’s witnessed in his career but still, desperately, needs to trust in the legal system. All three are gray characters, and Hodge’s style allows you to follow their internal battles and really get into the story. She doesn’t break their characterization at all, which adds to the association that readers develop for the characters.

The story itself is quite interesting. It is based on a topic that has been done previously (in movies and books) – the dark web – but still manages to be fresh in its approach. It’s also painfully graphic, so those who aren’t used to too much gore may have a few cringe-worthy moments while reading. When you look beyond the near-horrific narrations though, you see that it’s less about the activity and more about the people behind it. Into the Darkness focuses a lot on what people, good and bad, are really capable of; on how far someone can go, how malleable their morals can become, if they’re motivated by greed and insane fetishes, or the desire to help people and enable justice.

The book proceeds at a good speed, taking you from one POV to another and back as you turn pages wondering just how (and even if) these three arcs meet. It’s not immensely unpredictable, but there are definitely some shock-factors. The characters within the story have apparently made appearances previously in other works, but the story is complete in itself. All in all, Into the Darkness is a well-paced, intriguing thriller; and while I wouldn’t say that this should be the next book you should read, it definitely should be on the TBR pile of anyone who enjoys the genre or wants to venture into it.

Recommended to:

• those who enjoy thrillers
• those who enjoy multi-POV or first-person focused books (both these aspects are done extremely well)
• those who like crime fiction

A big thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an ARC of this book. It led to me discovering some very interesting characters and a new author to follow. Share your thoughts on how you liked (or are waiting for) Into the Darkness and any other books by Sibel Hodge in the comments section below.

Into the Darkness releases on 3rd June, 2018.

– Rishika

 

 

Review: The Retreat (By Mark Edwards)

Source: Goodreads

Length: 335 pages

My rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Horror novelist, Lucas, decides to travel back to the town he grew up in, taking up residence in a writer’s retreat as he works on his latest novel. He hopes that the peaceful town and surrounding forests will help him get over his writer’s block and finish the book that his agent and editor are waiting for. But within days of arriving, he discovers the tragic past of the woman who runs the retreat.

Two years ago, Julia’s husband, Michael, died while trying to save their daughter, Lily, from the river that ran near their home. Lily’s soft toy floating in the river had been the only indication that she’d even fallen in. But the police never found her body. Julia believes that her daughter is still alive. Caught in limbo, she’s not able to even mourn the death of her husband. After the tragedy, she turned their home into a writer’s retreat as the only way to save herself from going broke and to keep her mind away from the loss that tore at her every day.

Lucas’ interest in Julia’s story grows every day. Until he finds himself doing everything he can to find out what really happened to Lily that day. But as Lucas continues to search for answers, eerie events begin to unfold at the retreat. Someone, or something, is watching from the shadows. Lucas soon discovers that something is amiss in the events of the day when Michael died. And that a dark secret plagues the town, the retreat, and the forests surrounding the house – a secret that will always remain protected, no matter the cost.

The Bottom Line:

The Retreat has an intriguing storyline and hits all the right notes on suspense, thrill, eerieness, setting, and pace, making for a fast, engaging read.

My take:

What I liked the least about The Retreat was Julia. Although you do feel for her after everything she’s been through, she comes across as a little too annoying, too often. Of course, the woman lost her husband and her daughter and is living in a state of limbo. So you can understand the irritating attitude. But what I couldn’t understand about it was how Lucas seems to be oblivious to her flaws. The dynamic between them, for that reason, didn’t make all that much sense to me. Still, it wasn’t the worst, could be written off as the result of the experiences they’d had in life, and was the only slightly irritating part about the book. And the rest of it more than makes up for this.

The story is quite intricate, with a lot of things happening across decades, leading up to the events of the present. The characters are all well defined and have a good real-ness to them. They are all incredibly human in their arrogance, humility, successes, and failures, and in their good and bad. That is what makes the story so relatable – you can actually imagine everything that happens really taking place in a similar setting. It’s also got great suspense and a great setting. It pulls you in right from Page 1 and keeps you hooked throughout.

The best part about the book, though, was its thrill. The Retreat isn’t one of those books where scary faces look out at you from the dark. The thrill it evokes is more subtle and, consequently, incredibly effective. It’s one of those books where the creepiness is brought on by that feeling that you’re being watched, when the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, but when you turn around there’s no one there. Yet, you know that someone, or something, was there. It’s the kind of thrill that gets under your skin and stays there, making you a little jumpy at sudden sounds and dark areas. That’s why it stays with you longer and really makes you experience everything that’s happening in the book.

I received The Retreat from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. It’s the second Mark Edwards book I’ve gotten from them and although the first one I’d read – The Lucky Ones – was quite good (you can read the review for that here), this one was definitely better. Edwards, who I’d started following after The Lucky Ones, is definitely one of the better (newer) thriller writers and I would love to read more from him. What really makes his work interesting is the variety he brings. It’s not just serial killer thrillers. Edwards writes different stories that just come to him, and while all are of the thriller genre, each of them has a different take on the category. The Retreat, especially, does more than enough justice to the psychological thriller genre under which it’s pitched, which is quite refreshing because (lately) too many books are sold as psychological thrillers when just ‘thriller’ would be more suitable a tag.

I’d strongly recommend The Retreat to:

• fans of thrillers and crime fiction novels
• anyone who wants to try out a new thriller author (I’m sure you’ll enjoy Edwards’ style)
• those who want a thriller with a twist

A big thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an ARC of The Retreat! The book released on May 10, so grab your copy right away!

Share your thoughts on The Retreat or any other books you’d like to recommend in the comment section below!

– Rishika

Review: The Neighbor (By Joseph Souza)

Source: Goodreads

Length: 352 pages

My rating: 1.5 out of 5 stars

Leah and her husband, Clay, move from Seattle to Maine along with their eleven-year-old twins so that Clay can fulfill his dream of opening his own brewery. Leah envisions a life where she’s part of a thriving community in a plush neighborhood, surrounded by a loving family, and good friends with whom she can bond and share things large and small. Instead, she gets a husband who’s too busy to ever be around, twin kids who have no friends, and an empty neighborhood which is the result of a housing project abandoned midway. Now, all her hopes of building strong friendship bonds rest on the only other couple in the neighborhood. But Clarissa and Russell Gaines are aloof and uninviting. Leah’s interest in Clarissa begins as a potential friend. But the more the couple stay distant, the more Leah’s interest grows. Until it becomes an obsession that affects every part of her life. Before she can control it, she’s sneaking into her neighbor’s home, taking small objects, and allowing her envy of their elegant lifestyle to grow. Then she finds Clarissa’s diary. As she begins to read through the private pages, she discovers that Clarissa’s life isn’t as comfortable as it seems. Secrets run deep between the couple, secrets that have a direct effect on the mysterious kidnapping of a local college girl. Equally obsessed with the disappearance of the student, Leah finds herself investigating the crime even as she hopes that a solution would help bring Clarissa closer to her. But Leah has her own secrets that she doesn’t want exposed. As she begins to lose herself in her obsession, secrets, reputations, relationships, and even lives begin to come under threat. Yet, Leah pursues, unaware of the fact that things are even stranger than they seem. And that discovering the truth may not give her what she wants. In fact, it may shatter lives forever.

The Bottom Line:

The Neighbor is made slightly interesting with a lot of layers, but they fail to hide the fact that the book is nothing more than the unpleasant story of two whiny, selfish, clueless adults who you just cannot like.

My review:

Thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Books for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Psychological thriller. As riveting as Gone Girl. Twisted. Page-turner.

These are some of the terms you’d find associated with The Neighbor. I completely agree with the last one, but definitely not the others. In fact, my allegiance lies with those reviews and reviewers who chose to express themselves (while speaking about The Neighbor) with terms like illogical plot, shallow and unlikable characters, and unbelievable actions.

The Neighbor has a lot going on. There’s a missing girl. There’s a lonely housewife who wants some friends with whom she can connect. There’s a murder. There are secrets. There are a whole lot of references to racism and discussion on the topic. There are marital concerns. There’s alcoholism. And there is some BDSM-esque kinkiness tossed in too.

The problem is that all these aspects are just annoying.

To better explain, I need to mention that the book is written from the perspectives of Leah and Clay. And it starts with Leah, who is so dang annoying, saying that she gets “giddy with excitement” when she steps out of the house to good weather. It was actually difficult to continue reading after that start. But a twist thrown at you a couple of pages later gives you hope and keeps you going.

There are innumerable twists in The Neighbor. And that’s the reason you want to know what happens next, the reason you turn page after page. There is a lot of stuff going on, most of which can add interesting elements. But what you can never get away from is the fact that, at its very essence, the story is about two incredibly selfish, annoying, and oddly stupid people – Leah and Clay.

These are two individuals who live life in their own bubble of misunderstanding (regarding each other). They are both alcoholics in denial who are quick to (hypocritically) blame each other. There are a few moments where they seem to show an inkling of self-awareness. Until it’s drowned in their go-to habit of making excuses. All in all, they are incredibly unlikable as human beings, spouses, and parents.

As a result, you don’t really care that anything is happening to them or that they’re facing a problem. You’re more interested in discovering which of the events is a lie, which isn’t, and what’s really going along. The only people you feel for in the book are Leah and Clay’s kids and their dog, and that’s mainly because they are stuck with terrible people for no fault of their own.

Leah and Clay’s relationship and the way the book is told from their perspectives is what makes people draw the similarity to Gone Girl, I think. To be honest, similarities do exist. But the intentional, selfish twistedness of the characters in Gone Girl also made them associable. You could actually envision people like that – those who would do what it took to get what they wanted. It’s what made the book uncomfortably good (check out my review of Gone Girl here for more deets on that!). In The Neighbor, the characters are selfish but too clueless. I mean, seriously – Leah’s only goal in life is, “I want to be Clarissa’s friend.” These are selfish people who are too lost to actually do anything about what they want, except for crib when things do change. And that just makes them annoying, especially in their abrupt bipolarity (seriously, they keep contradicting themselves in consecutive sentences until their motivation, meaning, and drive is completely lost on the reader).

Putting the Gone Girl comparison aside, The Neighbor is just not a likable book. It’s got some suspense and enough storytelling power to keep you turning the pages. But the many social problems it addresses seem to just be layers on an otherwise dry story of two not-nice people.

So should you read The Neighbor? I’d say give it a pass. There are other psychological thrillers out there that have real depth in their stories, that go deep into the chaos that is the human mind and what it can make one do. Try one of them instead. If you still want to give The Neighbor a shot – it releases on 24th April 2018.

Want to share your thoughts on The Neighbor? Drop a comment below!

– Rishika

Review: Never Rest (By Jon Richter)

Source: Goodreads

Length: 242 pages

My rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Salvation Island has a disturbing history, one that has left a shroud of darkness over the island. Ex-police inspector, Chris Sigurdsson, had experienced this darkness first-hand when he’d spent one week on the island investigating a case. The week had left him with terrifying experiences that still haunted his memories. Now, five years later, he has left his police life behind to become a successful private detective with a good reputation.

Then Erina Brennan calls him. She tells him she wants his help in finding her estranged husband, David Lithgow. A writer suffering from bipolar disorder, Lithgow had gone to Salvation Island in search of inspiration. Erina had lost all contact with him days ago. Chris decides to explore the case a little more before taking it up, unable to resist the macabre pull of the mysterious island; and unable to deny his growing desire to meet Carin Mason, the police officer he’d worked with on the island case five years ago, the woman who he’d wanted to call after, but hadn’t.

When Chris reaches the island, he finds much more than he’d bargained for. Lithgow had hurled himself into the depths of the island’s terrifying past. Chris tries to make sense of what Lithgow had been doing before he’d disappeared in the hope that it would help him find the man. But he finds only growing chaos instead. Before he realizes, he gets pulled into a world of insanity where reality and fantasy, past and present begin to merge. And as Chris soon discovers, his mind is not the only thing he risks losing. Salvation Island has more secrets than anyone could have imagined. And someone is hell-bent on keeping them protected, even if it means killing anyone who discovers the truth.

The Bottom Line:

Terrifying at times while being a page-turner throughout, this book does extremely well until the very end where, in some ways, it falls short of excellent.

My review:

Thanks to NetGalley and Bloodhound Books for an ARC of this book.

Never Rest is not for the faint of heart. It is chaotic, insane, and disturbing. Incredibly graphical, it does not just tell you about the madness inside someone’s mind, but takes you right into its depth. It starts and ends by making your skin crawl. And it keeps the pace up in between, too. Chaotic in a good way, it keeps pulling you into labyrinths of thoughts and ideas that mingle with reality, until the line begins to blur.

The characters are easy to associate with, while not being too two-dimensional. They’ve got some complexities, but are not highly complicated individuals, making them very relatable. There are aspects of the story (and to some of the characters) that, in retrospect, seem highly improbable. But this isn’t something you would notice in the flow of the story and, in fact, the oddity adds to the thrill of the tale.

The only part that left me wanting is the end. The story is well written and comfortably fleshed-out. But the end seems a bit hurried, leaving a few things unanswered and some things to the reader’s choice. While the latter isn’t a problem, a few pages extra may have made the former less of a problem.

There are three stories over three timelines referenced in the book. A disturbing past, Chris’ first case, and the current case. While the first and third are well explained, the second seems to only appear in brief mentions. As it turns out, this is because the second story is the main plot of Book 1 in the Chris Sigurdsson series (Deadly Burial). (Now I wish I’d read that first.) The end of Never Rest leaves you slightly dissatisfied because it leaves you with a lot of questions. The next book in the series will probably answer some of them (I hope).

The main thing I realized about the book is that it reminded me a lot of the work of Simon Beckett – specifically, Written in Bone (you can read my review of that great book here). It’s got this spooky, chaotic, disturbing feel that is hugely compelling and intriguing.

I’m going to read Richter’s first book, Deadly Burial, very soon. I don’t know if my experience with Never Rest would have been different had I read the first book before. What I do know is that you can read Never Rest as a standalone or start here at least, and other than a few things seeming random, you won’t really be lost.

Highly recommended to:

• fans of Simon Beckett
• fans of Tim Weaver
• crime fiction and thriller fans
• fans of psychological thrillers (this actually does check the boxes for both psychology and thriller)

Never Rest released on 30 March 2018, and is available in both paperback and Kindle editions. Let us know what you thought of Never Rest or Deadly Burial (or just say Hi!) in the comments below.

– Rishika