56 Days by Catherine Ryan HowardMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
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Review: The Last House on Needless Street
The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona WardMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
First of all, the narrator, Christopher Ragland, does a fantastic job with this book. He uses different voices to create the various characters. This story begins with following the protagonist, Ted, who lives in his house with his cat and daughter. The initial conversation that Ted is having seems off somehow, and to me, it was because he speaks as though he is significantly younger, like a small boy who still calls his parents Mommy and Daddy. The reader/listener must decide if this character is a fully grown man, a young person or an intellectually challenged man. I went into the story completely blind and I highly recommend doing it this way. It makes it a little tougher to stick with the beginning as the story is laid out but it is completely worth it. This story is a well crafted, slowly building story and the twists during the last 25% were great. There were some pieces of the story that I anticipated but other parts that I never expected.
Hats off to the author and the narrator for a job well done!
#TheLastHouseonNeedlessStreet #Netgalley #MacmillanAudio #ChristopherRagland
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Review: Survive the Night
Survive the Night by Riley SagerMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I am always looking for the latest Riley Sager novel and am so thankful to the publisher and NetGalley for approving an eARC. Wow. I had seen some mixed reviews but this was a fun read for me. I adore Sager’s writing and for me, this did not disappoint at all.
The concept is centered around a female college student who had an argument with her best friend and roommate who then was murdered by a serial killer the same night. Charlie, the surviving roommate, blamed herself to the point that she cannot function and decided to leave school for awhile. She is leaving her boyfriend of the past year as well. In order to leave school at the time she does, she places a flyer on the ride board to see if any other students are going her direction so that they can share the ride. She immediately found someone and jumped at the chance. Things quickly spiral downhill as she realized that this guy is a stranger to her and then she began to suspect that he was lying to her the entire time. Her radar was activated and she tried to figure out what to do. Many twists and turns later the story unfolds in an intriguing way. This is a page turner of a book and I read it in a day. I loved all the classic movie and music references as well. That was a terrific addition.
Highly recommend!
#SurviveTheNight #Netgalley #HodderandStoughton #HodderPaperbacks
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Review: The Therapist
The Therapist by B.A. ParisMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
This was a fun and quick thriller that centers around a woman who moves into a newly purchased house that her partner has acquired in a gated and elite community. She tries hard to meet the neighbors and become friendly with them. Early on after moving into the home, she throws a get together with the neighbors and a man shows up who was uninvited but plays himself as being one of the neighbors who the couple have not met yet. Then he returns on a different day and claims to be a private investigator who is trying to look into the case of a murder that has occurred at the home this couple is now in. The police believe they have arrested the correct person and the case has been closed. Over time, unusual things begin to happen and the protagonist is desperate to solve the mystery. Twists and turns occur throughout the story leaving you turning the pages to find out the full story.
This is a fun, page-turning beach read for the summer.
#TheTherapist #Netgalley #StMartinsPress
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Review: The Maidens
The Maidens by Alex MichaelidesMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Another page-turner from Michaelides!
This story is a dark academia, totally atmospheric story about the therapist who recently lost her partner when he died. They had been caring for a girl that was in need of parents as a small child and who is now at university at Cambridge. Their daughter, Zoe, was approached by a visiting professor who is from the USA. He has the unusual custom of choosing a group of girls at university that he considers the most impressive and talented and invites them to a secret group, The Maidens. They are all attractive and intelligent young women who have come from privileged backgrounds. Then the member closest to Zoe is missing and found dead. This starts Mariana’s attempts at solving the mystery of who was behind the murder.
The thriller nature of the story was great. If you have read his first novel, there is a lot of similarities here. This maybe due to how recently I read The Silent Patient.
My only critique is the ending is over-the-top in parts and then a let-down in other aspects.
Overall, I really enjoyed this and would recommend it.
#TheMaidens #Netgalley #CeladonBooks
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Review: Madam
Madam by Phoebe WynneMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I had lowered by expectations going into this book because some people did not enjoy it. I loved the atmosphere of the setting and the creepy vibes of the elitist boarding school. This is a story centered around a young teacher named Rose who was invited to become a Classics teacher at Caldonbrae, an elite boarding school in Scotland. From the start, she is not sure why she was singled out for the job but ultimately decides it would be a great opportunity for her teaching career.
Rose moves to Scotland from England and has an apartment on the campus and does some duties monitoring one of the dorms. Creepy things start to happen early in the story, with the prior Classics teacher’s departure and mystery surrounding this. In addition, the girls at the boarding school, who are mostly from wealthier and prestigious families in the UK, are leveled with the upper girls seemingly unconcerned with taking their A levels or attending university. They also have done very little earlier work in Latin or Classics reading. Rose has a rough time and then is accused of touching a student that she doesn’t really know and an investigation into this ensues.
The story develops into a dramatic ending, although I do see why people disliked the ending. It seems a bit of a let down after the whole story leading up to it. It resolves the story but seems simplistic compared to the remainder of the story.
I listened and read the book. The narrator, Nathalie Buscombe, does a great job creating the atmosphere and the nuances of each character. I would definitely recommend this narrator and enjoyed the book.
#Madam #NetGalley #StMartinsPress #MacmillanAudio
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Review: You Will Remember Me
You Will Remember Me by Hannah Mary McKinnonMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
This story has all the twists and turns and creepy, atmospheric plot to keep you turning the pages.
It is a multi-faceted love story, first between a step-sister and her older, handsome, step-brother, Asher. His father and her mother fall in love when the kids were 12 and 15 and Maya develops an instacrush on Ash. He has girlfriends but then goes on to leave their hometown in Maine when he meets his new partner, Lily. They develop a life together in Maryland but both have things from their past that they are trying to escape. One day Ash goes for one of his nightly swims and then goes missing. Lily is desperate to discover what happened to him and decides to search for him.
This plot is well thought out and intriguing. I enjoyed the interactions and pacing of the story as well. The characters were true to themselves throughout the story. This has a love story, a mystery, unreliable narrators and multiple POVs. There is a lot here for anyone that enjoys a psychological thriller.
Definitely recommend.
#YouWillRememberMe #NetGalley #Harlequin #MIRA
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Review: Couple Found Slain: After a Family Murder
Couple Found Slain: After a Family Murder by Mikita BrottmanMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
This true crime, non-fiction account of the forensic mental health system over several decades was incredibly accurate and disturbing. This is the story of Brian Bechtold, a 22-year-old man who wandered into a police department in Port St. Joe, Florida and confessed to killing both of his parents. This crime was occurred in Maryland where the family was living and therefore Brian was arrested and tried in Maryland. He was found guilty by reason of insanity or what was called "not criminally responsible". He was sentenced to "treatment and incarceration" in a state mental facility for the "criminally insane". The system at the time was one of maximum security with step down units based on good behavior. A problem with this approach is that it is incredibly subjective. In addition to this, there is very little true review of a case. In other words, the history and documentation that is in place from the beginning remains an active part of the chart throughout the sentence. When new doctors and nurses assume care for the individual, they often adopt the previous diagnoses rather than "start over" and formulate their own diagnosis. Therefore, Brian, who was highly intelligent and educated, was stuck in a monotonous loop of mediocre or poor treatment and lack of new ideas.
From my personal experience having worked in the forensic unit of a psychiatric state hospital, I can absolutely see both sides of this situation. From the caregiver side, it would be difficult to have the resources and time to fully review and rediagnose every person you care for when taking over from a previous provider. In addition, resources for treatment options are limited as is staffing. This can lead to less than stellar care. However, I can absolutely see that the person who is admitted to a facility may feel as though they have done everything right after they are admitted and yet are no closer to discharge and feel like there is no hope.
I believe that the other issue is that mental healthcare has gone to a rehabilitation model, where the expectation, on both sides, is for functional improvement and ultimately the ability to resume as normal a life as possible. The ability to control impulses and take care of activities of daily living is a goal that may be obtainable or not. The decision that someone is at risk to themselves or others is a vital consideration as well. I have seen people who do rehabilitate and can be safely discharged to a forensic group home and then some do return to their homes. I have also seen the opposite situation, where the mental health issue is intractable and the likelihood of fully returning to society outside of a psychiatric institution is low.
This book brings up some excellent points and was a great read. I was allowed an early release of the audiobook. I flew through it, knowing many of the places and the situations. It gives a fantastic look at how this system works, or doesn't work, and is highly worth the time. The narrator, Christina Delaine, did a great job with this as well.
#CoupleFoundSlain #Netgalley #MacmillanAudio
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Review: The Book of Accidents
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