Benjamin Stevenson: Everyone in My Family has Killed Someone

In the first in a series, Benjamin Stevenson show that families have secrets worth killing for:

Ernest Cunningham has not been welcomed by his family in many years, but with a family reunion set to occur he has been given a pardon to attend. Ern knows that this will be one reunion to remember as someone decided that it needed to be at a ski resort (he could kill someone for that), and well everyone in Ern's family has killed someone so not the best idea to bring them all together, especially when someone is hellbent on bringing up the past and some of those deaths. 

This was such a clever book (and you can tell that Ern knows how clever he is) and I loved that it had more of the classic feel of a who-don it. While the title may imply that there is death happening everywhere in the book, they do not happen all at once, or even the main timeline of when the book occurs. This kind of muddies the waters a bit (but in a good way) as you try to puzzle out who has the most motivation for murder in the present time as they have all killed someone at one point or another. I was able to figure one of the twists before the end but not the Main twist that was very well done.

In order to enjoy this book you have to like that the narrator of the story is going to be talking directly to the reader. Stevenson uses this to give the readers some additional hints throughout the book as to who the murderer is as well as to recite little tidbits that he gave at the beginning of the book. I have not read too many books that use this to engage the reader, but I liked it in this book and thought that it worked well with the story.

You will also need to keep all the characters straight in this book as there are quite a few and well they all have some skeletons in their closets that they would not only like to forget but not let you know about as well. I will point out that the title says killed and not murdered.

Personally think this book was worth the hype a few years ago and really enjoyed the way that Stevenson decided to tell this murder mystery. I'll be checking out the other books in this series to see if they can hold up to this one.

Enjoy!!!

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CJ Leede: Maeve fly

In her debut novel, CJ Leede has a love letter to Los Angeles and the horrors that happen there:

Maeve Fly knows that she has to hide her true self from everyone else in the world. By day she works as the Ice Queen at the happiest Place on Earth and she LOVES her job. Being a Princess helps keep her grounded. By night, Maeve likes to haunt the seedier areas of LA, but still keeping her mask in place. When she meets her best friend's brother, Gidion, something shifts, something changes, something new, a new person and Dynamic Maeve has never had before but one that might just be deadly.

I will admit I went into this book almost blind, the cover drew me in and I saw some review that stated it was dark and disturbing but the first half of the book I wasn’t sure if we were reading the same book as everyone else. Yes, Maeve is a little odd but it felt like I somehow ended up in a hockey romance, a weird one I will give you that but still a hockey romance. However, one you get to the 75% Leede finally lets the gloves off.

Once you get to the 75 % part, this book becomes unhinged deranged and psychotic, honestly Leede does not hold back past that mark. Part of me wishes that it would have been this dark from the beginning but I get that Leede was trying to show how much Maeve has been pretending to be the Monkey the whole time but I wish the mask had come out a bit sooner.

Maeve is such an interesting character. She loves working as a Disney Princess and that is how she wants people to see her and it such a juxtaposition of what she thinks and what does with Gideon and then when the mask fully comes off later in the book it’s pretty crazy.

The romance aspect with Gideon sweet at times, as he just seems to get Maeve (or at least what she shows him) but also messed up and they have some same kinks and weirdness in the bedroom but to each their own. As I said I was not expecting so much romance in this book. I also wish there was a chapter or two or a new book that was Gideon’s POV to see what he truly thought of Maeve and his motives with her.

What an ending. It is one of those that you either like or dislike, and for me I liked the ending as it was not so typical but at the same time I want to know more. What will Maeve do next?

This book was a bold move for a debut novel, but I am here for it. I enjoyed the character Leede created n Maeve and I look forward to seeing what Leede comes out with next.

Enjoy!!!!

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Brynne Weaver: Butcher & Blackbird

Brynne Weaver shows what happen when two serial killers find each other:

Sloane and Rowen have a darker side and one that they do not share with other. In a chance encounter, sparks fly and a competition ensues between the two of them. The competition where they are given a name of someone who needs killing and the person who hunts and kills them win that round. The more they interact the more a friendship is born and then more. But can two serial Killers really make it in a real relationship or is it just a matter of time before they are on someone else's hit list. 

Alright, I will admit that I read this because I was fully influenced by social media, with all the praise (honestly, I think I saw maybe one bad review and the person didn’t like the triggers in the book) I was seeing and how dark and different the books was. I am pretty sure this book will hook most people right from the beginning, the first sentence even. I know I felt invested, wanted to know how it was going to play out and I thought this was going to be a darker read based on what happens at the beginning. But for me, this book was only good read as it totally missed on my expectations of how I thought a Serial Killer romance play out.

I don't know if it is me (alright it is probably me, I’ve read some dark stuff) but where was the dark and disturbing parts of this book. Am I the only one who thought this book was going to be darker than it was? I mean there were some dark elements but with a list of trigger warnings a page long I thought I was getting something dark and twisty, but this was more along the lines of comedic dark than anything else. I feel if one is going to include a page of triggers or warnings in a book that book better delivery on the darkness aspect. Maybe it is just me, and yes, the cannibalism does happen, but more in a creepy way than a dark way, I don’t know I was here for the darkness, and it felt more like a light grey to me.

I liked the relationship between Butcher and Blackbird. It's really cute actually for two serial killers to find each other and admire each other's work and support each other in their chosen field/way of said work. I mean you take the serial killer aspect out of it and isn't that what a healthy relationship is supposed to be. I also enjoyed the banter between the two of the and of course the competition between then is great and just how they go about their killing in different ways.

This book does not get spicy until the latter part which surprised me. I wasn’t mad about it, more shocked than anything else when people were talking about how spicy it was I was expecting it to be constant aspect. And to be totally honest there are spicier books out there.

Once I got past this not being the book I wanted it to be, I did enjoy reading it. Enough to continue on in the series, I don’t think so though.

Enjoy!!!

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Sally Hepworth: The Good Sister

Sally Hepworth shows that sisters are close and they keep their secrets even closer.

Twins Fern and Rose could not be more different, but they have always had each other. Rose always made sure that Fern new what the right thing to was and Fern new she could trust Rose, until one night, one act Fern made a mistake that haunts her. Fern now works at her local library, her and Rose have dinner a few nights a week. She avoids anything that is over stimulating and has a very structured life, as living outside of a routine can be dangerous. When Rose tells fern she cannot get pregnant, Fern sees it as an opportunity to repay Rose for all she has done for her. Now all Fern needs to do is find some to be the father but Fern's mission will shake everything she knows about herself and her family.

This is the second book that I have read by Hepworth and I was really looking forward to it as I really enjoyed Darling Girls. I am sad to say that I had a hard time getting into this book, it was slower than i thought it would be the last 25% is when things really pick up

I think part of my problem with this book is that I had things figured out pretty much from the beginning. I could tell there was something off with the relationship between the sisters and that things were not what they seemed, even with the flashbacks that we get from Rose, I could just tell that something was off. For me this took the suspense out of the book for me, as I had basically figured out where it was going to go. There were a few avenues where Hepworth tries to throw the reader off, but I do not think that they were done expertly. 

My favourite part of this book is 100% the relationship between Fern and Wally, the way they just understand each other is just amazing. I love that Wally would challenge Fern on certain aspect but knows how to respect that she gets overstimulated when she goes out and takes measures to help her cope with that. Never once does Wally make Fern feel like less and that is the same with Fern towards Wally as well. I also appreciate Hepworth having people in a relationship who are neurodivergent.

So this was not quite the psychological thriller I wanted it to be, it was still a good read for Fern and Wally, it just not quite what I was expecting.

Enjoy!!!!

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Rachel Gillig: One Dark Window

In her debut novel one woman is the key to saving a Kingdom, but she is more than she seems:

In the mist-locked Kingdom of Blunder, Elspeth may look like a normal noble woman but she carries a secret, she has a monster inside her. Elspeth calls him Nightmare, from the Nightmare card that she touched all those years ago. Elspeth has access to the magic of the Nightmare card but all magic has a cost. When Elspeth meets the Captian of those meant to hunt her kind, Ravyn, she beleives she is done for, but what she does not expect is that he has his own plans and needs her help to gather all 12 of the Providence Cards, the key to cure the mist and sickness of the Kingdom. Elspeth knows that magic has a cost and it may just take all of her.

This is Gillig's debut novel, and what a debut. I wish that all Fantasy debuts were this good. I would not have realized that this was a debut novel other than searching to see what else Gillig had written on goodreads. I loved the magic system, Nightmar and Elspeth as the FMC.

I like that this book is a fatanys but one that is not too confusing and the magic system is unique enough to stand out. The magic system plays with the age old addage that ever time one uses magic there is a cost. I like when magic has a price, I find that this way most characters are more cautios when they use it for fear what the consequence may be or will this be the last time they are able to use it.

Elspeth is a great FMC, she is both strong but niave as well and with Elspeth we get Nightmare as well. I see Nightmare as a grandfather figure to her, as they have been together so long. He may speak in riddles to her but at the same time he is overly protective of her as well. He also keeps secerts from her, and I enjoyed finding them out along with Elspeth.

I was not entirely sold on the romance between Elspeth and Ravyn. It felt forced, like I know it a pretend courting type of thing but still felt forced and almost insta in a way. I get this is a duology and things may move faster for relationships but i just couldn’t get behind their relationship 

That ending. I dont think you can read this book and not ahve a need to pick up the second book in this series. I cannot wait to read the second book in this series

Enjoy!!!!

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Hannah Grace: Wildfire

Hannah Grace is back with the next story with Maple Hills Student, and this time we're headed to Summer Camp:

While Celebrating a year end party, Russ and Aurora (Rory) end up in a drinking game and eventually in Russ' bed. Russ, who is not as confident as many would think, blow his chance to get to know Rory more after their night together. Russ and Rory both thought that they would be able to escape their lives by working as camp counselors far away from Maple Hills, but are surprised to find the other one there. Russ and Rory are very aware of the rule of no staff fraternizing, and that if they break that rule they will be sent packing back to the lives they were trying to escape, but sometimes rules are made to be broken.

As this is the second book in a series, you may want to go back and read the first book in the series, Icebreaker, but you don’t NEED to. While we are introduced to Russ in Icebreaker, he is obviously not the main character in that one. And don’t go into this one thinking that it will be another Icebreaker, it is not, way more sweet and slightly less spicy this time around.

I really enjoyed this book and personally thought it was slightly better than Icebreaker, I just felt that Russ and Aurora relationship felt more real. Even though they had hooked up when they first met, I thought that they had a stronger foundation in their relationship, and I mean when you have to deal with kids all day you really get to see what people are like. Plus kids won't let them get away with anything.

As we don’t really get to know Russ in the first book, other than he is the quiet and awkward one, which is really used throughout the book. I love that Russ was not your typical hockey guy, who is overconfident and can do whatever he wants. Russ is a great book boyfriend completely cinnamon bun of a guy and I am here for it.

I was hit and miss with Rory. There were times I liked her, times I felt for her (he Dad is a piece of work), but times when I didn’t understand why she wanted Russ to open up right away with her, even when she stated she did not want a relationship. I think the farther I get into the book the more I liked her and sympathized with her and what she had gone through and was going through with her family.

I really enjoyed the second book in the Maple Hills series. I loved that Grace changed things up in this one with it not occurring on the ice or even close to ice. I look forward to reading the third book in this series.

Enjoy!!!!

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