Category: Suspense

Family, Mystery, Suspense, Teens, Women

God of the Woods by Liz Moore

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Description

“Extraordinary…Reminds me of Donna Tartt’s 1992 debut, The Secret History…I was so thoroughly submerged in a rich fictional world, that for hours I barely came up for air.” – Maureen Corrigan, Fresh Air, NPR

When a teenager vanishes from her Adirondack summer camp, two worlds collide.

Early morning, August 1975: a camp counselor discovers an empty bunk. Its occupant, Barbara Van Laar, has gone missing. Barbara isn’t just any thirteen-year-old: she’s the daughter of the family that owns the summer camp and employs most of the region’s residents. And this isn’t the first time a Van Laar child has disappeared. Barbara’s older brother similarly vanished fourteen years ago, never to be found.

As a panicked search begins, a thrilling drama unfolds. Chasing down the layered secrets of the Van Laar family and the blue-collar community working in its shadow, Moore’s multi-threaded story invites readers into a rich and gripping dynasty of secrets and second chances. It is Liz Moore’s most ambitious and wide-reaching novel yet.

My Thoughts

I requested to review this book because of the location – a camp and community in the Adirondack Mountains in my home state of New York – and also because of my childhood fascination with sleep-away camp. The financial and social circumstances of my family were not those that made the possibility of sleep-away camp attainable, but that didn’t stop me from reading everything I could find about camp experiences, both good and bad. The mystery here is as bad as you can get – a camper disappears. And not just any camper, but the daughter of the wealthy family that owns the campground. The ensuing story covers the full-on search for the camper but also expands to recount the mystery surrounding the disappearance of the camper’s brother 10 years prior.

Told in short-form, alternating viewpoints, I admit I sometimes found it hard to keep everyone straight. However, the stories of two people provided the thread holding it all together – those of Judyta and Tracy, a rookie cop and the closest friend the lost camper had on-site. Their insights to both the camper and to the search process hold the story together.

Tbh, I have little sympathy for “poor-little-rich-girl” stories, but Moore does a decent job of humanizing the women in this story, especially Alice, TJ, and Barbara. I found the end very satisfying, for both plot lines – the death of Bear Van Laar and the disappearance of his sister Barbara. I found myself whipping through the final 20% of the story just to find out what happened.

Definitely recommended.

Publication Date: July 2, 2024
Published By: Penguin Group Riverhead
Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy

Books About Books, Family, Mystery, New Releases, Reading, Suspense, Women

Return to Wyldecliffe Heights by Carol Goodman

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Description

Jane Eyre meets The Thirteenth Tale in this new modern gothic mystery from two-time Mary Higgins Clark Award–winner Carol Goodman, about a reclusive writer who is desperate to rewrite the past.

Losing yourself inside of a book can be dangerous. Not everyone finds their way out.

Agnes Corey, a junior editor at a small independent publisher, has been hired by enigmatic author Veronica St. Clair to transcribe the sequel to her 1993 hit phenomenon, The Secret of Wyldcliffe Heights. St. Clair has been a recluse since the publication of the Jane Eyre-esque book, which coincided with a terrible fire that blinded and scarred her. Arriving in the Hudson Valley at St. Clair’s crumbling estate, which was once a psychiatric hospital for “wayward women,” Agnes is eager to ensure St. Clair’s devoted fans will get the sequel they’ve been anticipating for the past thirty years.

As St. Clair dictates, Agnes realizes there are clues in the story that reveal the true—and terrifying—events three decades ago that inspired the original novel. The line between fact and fiction becomes increasingly blurred, and Agnes discovers terrible secrets about an unresolved murder from long ago, which have startling connections to her own life. As St. Clair’s twisting tale infiltrates Agnes’s psyche, Agnes begins to question her own sanity—and safety. In order to save herself, Agnes must uncover what really happened to St. Clair, and in doing so, set free the stories of all the women victimized by Wyldcliffe Heights. 

My Thoughts

Carol Goodman never fails to deliver a riveting, complicated, and suspenseful story and she has succeeded admirably here. Goodman excels in writing complex relationships, often mother-daughter, that span generations, and the saga of Wyldecliffe Heights certainly provides plenty of family drama. There is the horrifying secret from the past, combined with the damaged younger protagonist, combined with the creepy history of the house as an asylum that all come together to create a story that doesn’t stop.

While there are nods to Jane Eyre and The Thirteenth Tale, this is an original and cleverly plotted story with a great twist at the end. This will appeal to fans of Simone St. James and Eve Chase, but also to Goodman’s legion of readers. Her books just keep getting better! I’ll be adding this to my recommended Spooky Season reads this year for sure.

Publication Date: July 30, 2024
Published By: William Morrow
Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy

Mystery, New Releases, Suspense, Women

The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Description

Secrets. Lies. Murder. Let the festivities begin…

The deliciously twisty new locked room murder mystery from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Guest List and The Paris Apartment.

It’s the opening night of The Manor, and no expense, small or large, has been spared. The infinity pool sparkles; crystal pouches for guests’ healing have been placed in the Seaside Cottages and Woodland Hutches; the “Manor Mule” cocktail (grapefruit, ginger, vodka, and a dash of CBD oil) is being poured with a heavy hand. Everyone is wearing linen.

But under the burning midsummer sun, darkness stirs. Old friends and enemies circulate among the guests. Just outside the Manor’s immaculately kept grounds, an ancient forest bristles with secrets. And the Sunday morning of opening weekend, the local police are called. Something’s not right with the guests. There’s been a fire. A body’s been discovered.

It all began with a secret, fifteen years ago. Now the past has crashed the party. And it’ll end in murder at…The Midnight Feast.

My Thoughts

Fans of domestic suspense will thoroughly enjoy this riveting story. Foley has crafted an irresistible narrative that blends the present day with a dark, dark past. Her cast of characters, especially Bella and Francesca, crawl out of the pages and into your brain until you can’t stop turning pages just to find out what happens.

What really hooked me here was the dual narrative of the secret-in-the-past plot line that binds Bella and Francesca and the creepy parallel story featuring a local legend of menacing birds. Twists and turns abound and I admit to a couple parts where I wanted to throw the book against the nearest wall because the tension was too much.

This will make a fantastic summer reading experience but I might recommend saving it for spooky season in the fall. It will definitely make my list of haunting reads in October.

Publication Date: June 18, 2024
Published By: William Morrow
Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy

Cozy, Historical, Mystery, New Releases, Romance, Suspense, Women

The Hudson Collection by Jocelyn Green

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Description

Step into the beguiling world of 1926 New York and discover the power of resilience, friendship, and love from award-winning author Jocelyn Green.

Elsa Reisner’s lifelong dream of working as an ornithologist at the American Museum of Natural History is fading as the job begins to drain her passion. But fate takes an unexpected turn when she is assigned to catalog the bequest of a recently deceased patron whose Gothic country mansion holds secrets and treasures waiting to be discovered.

As Elsa delves into her task, she forms an unlikely bond with the estate’s delightful gardener and her daughter, as well as an architectural salvage dealer who still bears scars from the Great War. Together, they embark on a thrilling treasure hunt for a missing relic intended to safeguard the servants’ futures before the estate is sold. At the same time, Elsa’s body seems to betray her with new symptoms from a childhood disease that isn’t through with her yet.

With the brooding veteran and her handsome colleague joining the search, Elsa must navigate the tangled web of secrets and hidden motives along with the changing state of her health. As her deadline looms ever closer, will she be able to secure a new life for her friends before the estate slips from their grasp?

My Thoughts

Reminiscent of the old gothic romances of the 70’s, The Hudson Collection features a plucky heroine who teams up with a damaged but noble man to aid a young girl and her family in danger of losing their home. Elsa is one of the most appealing heroines I’ve come across recently – smart, vulnerable, and very brave. The story is very well-developed with action starting almost immediately and not stopping until the very end.

The historical elements here are fascinating, with dives into New York’s elite society scene post World War I, the polio epidemic and the far-reaching effects of medical research, and post-war mental health challenges for returning soldiers. If you’re tired of blood-and-gore mystery & suspense novels that focus on the most horrifying aspects of the human psyche, this book is for you. It is a captivating, gentle mystery that keeps your attention page after page.

Recommended.

Publication Date: June 4, 2024
Published By: Bethany House
Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy

Family, Historical, Mystery, Suspense, World Literature

The Heron Legacy by Leona Francombe

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Description

Charles Fontaine returns to Europe to sell his family’s ancestral domain and finds that a twelfth-century legend still haunts the property. Clues lead him to a parchment relating the curious tale of a village seeress, whose music enchanted a nobleman with shadowy ties to the present-day Fontaine family. With the help of a famous medievalist and enigmatic woman from his youth, Charles draws ever closer to the truth of this tale and its stunning historical revelation…and to his own buried past. “”The Heron Legacy”” is a novel of modern suspense in which history roams freely, its breath still warm.

My Thoughts

This lovely, gentle book contains a deceptively gripping plot and a wonderful set of characters who will stay with me for a long time. The concept of chivalry runs strong and true through the narrative as the reader follows Charles de la Fontaine (or Charles d’Outre-mer) as he grows from a thoughtful boy obsessed with history to a man grown in the image of his father (or is he?)

The chapters describing Charles’ relationship with his beloved Uncle Theo are some of the most interesting and touching in the story and truly drive the narrative forward. Charles’ fascination with the chivalrous knights of the Crusades and the cognitive dissonance of their actions (killing for God) help create an exciting and deeply moving story.

The author is exceptionally skilled at storytelling – keeping a consistent pace, introducing new characters and bombshell information at just the right time, and crafting an ending that wraps up all the loose ends. I’ll be recommending this for sure.

Publication Date: June 25, 2024
Published By: BooksGoSocial
Thanks to Book Sirens for the review copy

Book Tour, Mystery, Mythology, Partners In Crime, Summer Reading, Suspense, Uncategorized, Women

The Light Beside the Sea by Connie di Marco

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

June 3-28 Virtual Book Tour
Zodiac Mysteries

So many deaths . . . An elusive shaman, a creature of the underworld, here to unleash evil or bring justice to the wronged?

San Francisco astrologer Julia Bonatti has been haunted for years by the hit and run death of her fiancé, Michael Sefton. The driver of the vehicle was never apprehended. The lone witness to the accident spoke to no one and now is dead. Even the cold case detective assigned to the case died before any resolution was found. Every time Julia thought she might be getting close to an answer, each clue led only to a dead end.

Michael, a graduate student, had just returned from an archeological dig in Guatemala when he was killed. But why did he mail his journal to Julia for safekeeping before his return home? What was he afraid of? Why did another graduate student fall to his death on that trip? And now, another man connected with that journey has been murdered closer to home. And the murderer hasn’t finished.

When Julia finally finds the courage to delve into the journal Michael sent to her years before, she learns of the undercurrents, jealousies and anger among members of the group. She begins to understand the pressure and fear her fiancé was coping with and his suspicions of their University mentor who was most likely engaged in unethical and illegal behavior.

But events soon take a darker turn when Julia finds a likeness of the Maya god Hunhau, god of death and the underworld, on her doorstep. A strange man covered with markings and tattoos keeps appearing to her but no one else seems to see him. With guidance from another professor, she’s introduced to a world she never knew existed.

Is the man she sees human? And is he under the sway of the Maya god of death?

Will he unleash evil or is he here to right a wrong done to his people?

Julia must move quickly or her death will be the next.

My Thoughts

Di Marco’s Zodiac series has become one of my favorites. It blends the complexity of astrological research with compelling plots and appealing characters to deliver a mystery just this side of the term “cozy.” There is plenty of humor and quirky characters to be sure, and not a lot of blood and gore, but the intricate nature of the plot is what nudges this out of the cozy category for me.

DiMarco has done her research and delivered a story that includes a fascinating look into Mayan culture while at the same time exploring the often complicated relationships among the humans filling out the story. This one is very satisfying as it brings some closure to Julia regarding the death of her fiancé, which I anticipate leading to some new and equally entertaining mysteries in Julia’s future. Will be recommending this one on my summer reading lists, for sure.

Book Details

Genre: Traditional mystery
Published by: Indie
Publication Date: May 6, 2024
Number of Pages:370 est
ISBN: 979-8989009596 | eBook 9798989009589
Series: The Zodiac Mysteries, Book 5
Book Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Shortlinks

Website https://pictbooks.tours/qKbHG
Goodreads https://pictbooks.tours/H2Ymu
BookBub https://pictbooks.tours/JwvvE @Connie_di_Marco
Instagram https://pictbooks.tours/gmVce @Connie_di_Marco
Twitter https://pictbooks.tours/NtPhy @askzodia
Facebook https://pictbooks.tours/oDfJe @connie.di.marco.author
Amazon Series Page Zodiac Mysteries https://pictbooks.tours/EytgS
Amazon Book https://pictbooks.tours/PpWF8
BN https://pictbooks.tours/boIzv
Goodreads https://pictbooks.tours/4QVy3

Author Bio

Connie di Marco is the author of the Zodiac Mysteries featuring San Francisco astrologer Julia Bonatti, a woman who never thought murder would be part of her practice. The Light Beside the Sea is the fifth novel in the series. Earlier books are The Madness of Mercury (Zodiac #1), All Signs Point to Murder (Zodiac #2), Tail of the Dragon (Zodiac #3), Enter a Wizard, Stage Left (an e-book prequel novella), and Serpent’s Doom (Zodiac #4).

Writing as Connie Archer, she is also the author of the national bestselling Soup Lover’s Mysteries from Penguin Random House: A Spoonful of Murder, A Broth of Betrayal, A Roux of Revenge, Ladle to the Grave and A Clue in the Stew. You can find her excerpts and recipes in The Cozy Cookbook and The Mystery Writers of America Cookbook. Visit her website at ConnieArcherMysteries.com. Facebook.com/ConnieArcherMysteries and X/Twitter@SnowflakeVT.

Connie is a member of the Mystery Writers of America, International Thriller Writers, Crime Writers Association (UK) and Sisters in Crime.

Partners In Crime Book Tours

Mystery, New Releases, Suspense

The Liar’s Bones by Morag Pringle

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Description

Cold waves surround the woman, soaking her hair before pushing her onto the black rocks at the bottom of the cliff. She should gasp for air, but she doesn’t move at all…

Rachel McKenzie has trust issues. That’s what happens when your father murders your mother and gets away with it for years. Tormented by her past, Rachel seeks justice for others, investigating suspicious deaths in the remote and rugged Scottish Highlands.

So, when Rachel hears about a drowned woman on the windswept island where her estranged family lives, she’s driven to investigate. Ellen Hargreaves was a newcomer to the isolated isle, but the locals describe her fondly, especially her love of archaeology and the notebook where she wrote down everything she saw. A notebook that Rachel can’t now find…

The island’s sergeant wants to label Ellen’s death an accident, but Rachel is convinced there’s more to the story. Her instincts prove right when she discovers that Ellen found a human bone before her death. Had Ellen stumbled onto a dangerous secret?

Rachel is determined to find the truth. But then a teenage girl goes missing shortly after talking to her, and Rachel realises that she has exposed an innocent girl to a twisted killer. Heart pounding and wracked with guilt, Rachel works around the clock to find the vanished girl. But will she get there in time?

My Thoughts

Readers who like a blend of police procedural with familial and village drama will surely enjoy this debut series from Morag Pringle. The setting on the remote islands of Uist combined with a complex, well-developed mystery will draw readers in and keep them glued to page after page.

Protagonist Rachel McKenzie has the potential to become a favorite character. She’s smart, resilient, and empathetic, fully determined to speak for the dead and find answers.

Pringle is equally skilled at plot development, dialog, and description. Her descriptions of the remote and sometimes desolate Uist landscape are some of the best I’ve read. As I worked my way through the book, I kept thinking that Ann Cleeves’ successor has arrived.

Very well done.

A compulsively gripping crime thriller set in the atmospheric and stormy Scottish Highlands. Perfect for fans of Elly Griffiths, Rachel McLean and Rachel Caine.

Publication Date: May 20, 2024
Published By: Storm Publishing
Thanks to Netgalley for the book

Book Tour, Historical, Mystery, Partners In Crime, Suspense

The Twisted Road by A.B. Michaels

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

May 23 – 29, 2024 Book Blast

Barrister Perris Mysteries

Jonathan Perris Can’t Save His Clients…
Until He Saves Himself 

1907 

Rising from the devastation of a massive earthquake and fire, San Francisco is once again on the move. But a strike by streetcar drivers threatens to halt the Golden City in its tracks. Protests turn to violence and violence leads to death. Soon a young guard is convicted of willfully killing a protester and the public is out for blood. 

Jonathan Perris, an immigrant attorney from England, has opened a law firm with an eye toward righting wrongs, and the guard’s conviction may fall into that category. But the talented barrister soon finds his newfound career shaken by a tragic event: the gruesome homicide of the beautiful and mysterious Lena Mendelssohn—a woman he’s been squiring around town. It’s difficult to run a law firm when you’ve been arrested for murder.

Don’t miss your chance for a limited time sale! Grab The Twisted Road for $1.99!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

Book Details:

Genre: Historical Mystery
Published by: Red Trumpet Press
Publication Date: May 21, 2024 
Number of Pages: 422
ISBN: 978-1-7337863-4-8 (Paperback) 978-1-7337863-0-0 (ebook)
Series: Barrister Perris Mysteries, Book 1
Book Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Goodreads

Shortlinks:

Website   https://pictbooks.tours/oEBK1
Goodreads     https://pictbooks.tours/PnSRo
BookBub      https://pictbooks.tours/wzsUv
Twitter   @ABMichaelsBooks    https://pictbooks.tours/v2MJv
Facebook    @A.B.MichaelsWriter    https://pictbooks.tours/PkJ4W
Pinterest @abmichaelsbooks    https://pictbooks.tours/1i06G

Author Bio:

A.B. Michaels

A native of California, A.B. Michaels holds masters’ degrees in history (UCLA) and broadcasting (San Francisco State University). After working for many years as a promotional writer and editor, she turned to writing the kind of page-turning fiction she loves to read. She writes historical fiction (“The Golden City” series, which takes place in Gilded Age San Francisco) as well as contemporary romantic suspense (“Sinner’s Grove Suspense.”). “Barrister Perris Mysteries” is her latest endeavor, based on characters introduced in “The Golden City.” All of her books are stand-alone reads.

Michaels lives in Boise, Idaho with her husband and two elderly, four-legged “sons” (16 and 17!) who don’t seem to know they’re just dogs. She is an avid reader, traveler, quilter and bocce player, as well as a mediocre but enthusiastic golfer.

Catch Up With A.B. Michaels:
ABMichaels.com
Goodreads
BookBub – @ABMichaels
Pinterest – @ABMichaelsBooks
Twitter/X – @ABMichaelsBooks
Facebook – @A.B.MichaelsWriter

Partners In Crime Book Tours
British, Historical, Magical, Mystery, New Releases, Romance, Suspense, Time Slip

The Murderer Inside the Mirror by Sarah Rayne

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Description

Another day, another grand scheme! The thieving Fitzglen family are back in this second instalment of the spellbinding Theatre of Thieves gothic mystery series set in Victorian England.

London, 1908. The Fitzglens, one of London’s leading theatre families and part-time thieves, are plotting their next scheme when they receive terrible news about Great Uncle Montague. He’s been killed in a tragic accident at his Notting Hill home.

Montague will be much missed, not just for his talent in art forgery, but his death provides an unlooked-for opportunity: the chance to search for his infamous iron box. No one knows what it contains – if, that is, it even exists – but Jack Fitzglen is certain it has to be something highly valuable . . . or extremely dangerous. Why else would the grand master of storytelling have refused to even drop a hint?

Jack is amazed when he finds the box – and even more amazed by its contents. An unknown play by one of Ireland’s leading playwrights, entitled The Murderer Inside the Mirror. Jack reads the first few pages, and is struck by a nameless feeling of dread. But even he has no idea what kind of dangerous adventure the manuscript will take him on – one which will tangle him in revenge, madness . . . and murder.

This unsettling gothic historical mystery, following Chalice of Darkness, will appeal to fans of Daphne du Maurier, Laura Purcell, Rebecca James, Sarah Waters and Stuart Turton.

My Thoughts

Sarah Rayne rarely disappoints and in The Murderer Inside the Mirror she has delivered another tense, clever, and engaging mystery featuring the Fitzglens, one of her series families.

Rayne is exceptionally skilled at telling stories that alternate time periods and/or have some sort of time travel or past life connection. Here, the Fitzglen clan of actors and thieves find themselves embroiled in a mystery surrounding a previously-unknown play written by a well-known author which disappears as mysteriously as it was found. The search for the manuscript reveals a complicated web of scandal, betrayal, and love spanning centuries.

Rayne’s books are always well written and this is no exception. The plot will keep readers engaged, and will appeal to fans of mysteries, romance, and history. If you’re new to this author, check out her earlier series. All are terrific reads.

Publication Date: June 4, 2024
Published By: Severn House
Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy

Family, Folktales, Suspense, Teens

Rick Riordan Presents: It Waits in the Forest by Sarah Dass

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Description

The very first thriller from Rick Riordan Presents! Drawing from the darkest corners of Caribbean mythology, acclaimed author Sarah Dass crafts a chilling tale of magic, murder, and how far we’ll go to protect what’s ours—perfect for fans of Angeline Boulley and Tiffany D. Jackson.

Unlike the other residents of the small Caribbean Island of St. Virgil, Selina DaSilva does not believe in magic. With a logical mind and a knack for botany, Selina used to dream of leaving the island to study Pharmacology—until a vicious, unsolved attack left her father dead and her mother in a coma.

Now her guilt over her mother’s condition keeps her tethered to the island, relegated to conning gullible tourists with useless talismans and phony protection rituals. But when one of those tourists ends up at the center of a string of strange murders, the truth that Selina has been denying can no longer be avoided: there is evil lurking in the forests that surround St. Virgil. Another thing that can’t be avoided? Selina’s ex-boyfriend Gabriel, newly employed at the local newspaper and eager to put his investigative skills to use.

Desperate to put an end to the killings and claim justice for Selina’s family, these two former lovers race to find answers. But evil bides its time. And as long-buried feelings and long-hidden secrets about Selina’s family’s past begin to reveal themselves, only one answer remains—and it waits in the forest.

My Thoughts

A Rick Riordan and Sarah Dass collaboration produces a dynamite book? Shocker, I know.

This is everything I expected and more. It’s an ancient trope at the heart of the story, but Dass drapes the old “selling your soul” skeleton with plenty of modern dress. There are some great plot twists and one really terrifying underwater scene near the end that only further reinforced my irrational fear of swimming in anything but a pool with a defined bottom.

The Rick Riordan Presents series has introduced me to so many new stories from world folklore. This one is another winner.

Publication Date: May 14, 2024
Published By: Disney Publishing Worldwide
Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy