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Thai Drama Review: Not Me

Thai Drama Not Me is a drama of wasted potential
Check out its review on the blog now!!

Title: Not Me, He… Is Not Me

Episodes: 14

Genre: Romance, Mystery, Action, Thriller, Suspense, Family, Politics, College, Friendship

Story: 6 out of 10

Characters: 7 out of 10

Cinematography: 6 out of 10

Thai Drama Not Me is a drama of wasted potential

Poster of the Thai Drama Not Me

Story

White and Black had been separated after their parents’ divorce. However, years after, when White…

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Publication Day: January 11th, 2022

Rating:  ★★★★

A Flicker in the Dark features Chloe Davis, who at 12 years old was living in a small town where girls were disappearing all summer, only for her father to be arrested at the end of summer for all of their murders. Now nearing the 20 year anniversary, Chloe is a psychologist in private practice, engaged— only for young girls to start going missing all over again.

The beginning of this novel really draws you in and makes you keep turning pages! Chloe turns out to be a very unreliable narrator, one who is grasping onto her happiness. The plot is really interesting and atmospheric reads are my absolute favorite. While the book gets to a point where it isn’t as page-turning as it initially was, it does constantly keep you trying to figure out the plot and guess what’s going on, and it does pick up and grip you again! I thought the ending was satisfying and the best plots are ones that make sense to a certain degree when you figure out what really happened/is happening, like this one did.

This was a great read from one of my favorite publishers recently; they have just been a powerhouse of putting out some of my recent favorite thrillers! I’m in a cabin in the middle of the mountains with almost no internet so I missed publication day by a day, but happy publication day! Thank you so much to Minotaur Books, Stacy Willingham, and NetGalley for this copy.

Saylor Rains

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Publication Day: April 5th, 2022

Rating:  ★★★★

Amazing, twisting plot.

A copycat serial killer is murdering people, each different in method but all famous cases from the past. Detectives Cara Elliott and Noah Deakin are trying to hunt down the true killer. At the same time Jessica Ambrose is on the run after being accused of being the arsonist who set the fire killing her husband. With the help of suspended detective Nate Griffin, she discovers a shocking connection to the copycat killer and the arson.

A culmination of crimes committed all leading up to one tantalizing finale. This is apparently Sam Holland’s debut novel, and it was a very thought out plot. There are murders, plot twists, darkness, suspicion, shifting tension, and all of the things that make a great thriller. I was definitely glued to this book— I had to know who did it!

One of my favorite things about a book is when they have amazing, well rounded, flawed characters. The one things that dragged for me about this book was that some of the main characters started off hard to empathize with and/or were borderline unlikable. After dipping into the plot more, this didn’t matter as much, but I do find that liking the characters and rooting them makes a book SO much better, because then you’re rooting for them to win, you’re hurting when they hurt, you’re overall getting all of the emotions that a great book makes you feel. I think that would have put this book over the top.

Thank you to Sam Holland, HarperCollins, and NetGalley for the pleasure of getting to read an arc of this book.

Saylor Rains

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Publication Day: January 4th, 2022

Rating:  ★★★

Rachel Hawkins is a great author which drew me to this book. In

Reckless Girls

the characters, their voices, and their interactions all feel very genuine and compelling. The mood is set incredibly well.

Lux and her boyfriend Nico are hired to sail two women to an island in the pacific. What starts off as a trip of a lifetime, fun opportunity quickly spirals out of control after they get to the island. Lux is a very fun character in this story, and you get to see the background of how a lot of characters met. This is a very atmospheric read, which Rachel Hawkins excels at creating. Meroe Island is not all that it seems.

I think this book starts off great and lost me a little toward the end. It is a nice and quick read, easy, and again the characters are very enjoyable. To me it wasn’t an extraordinary book beyond that. I don’t want to give anything away, but I want to say that if I knew even more of the characters and their past or if we just had a bit more in the way of breadcrumbs to piece together everything would be more believable in the end.

Thank you to Rachel Hawkins, St. Martin’s Press, and Netgalley for the copy of this arc.

Saylor Rains

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Publication Date: December 14th, 2020

Rating:  ★★★

My heart breaks over and over for Detective Casey White.

A woman’s body washes up on the beach with striking similarities to a case from a couple years back involving the ex-sheriff, Jericho Flynn, Casey’s romantic partner. Days later another woman is found, and both of them have ties to Jericho’s past. Every clue uncovered seems to incriminate her loving partner more and more, and time is running out to catch this killer before he catches her.

Saltwater Graves was a good story, it would make a good episode of a crime drama to use as background noise when I’m doing other things, but it wasn’t an edge-of-my-seat/can’t-put-it-down thriller. The procedural aspect of this book was fun to read and was just like watching CSI or Bones as they try to find out what happened to the victims. The book doesn’t really get into its crescendo until the third or fourth quarter of the book, until then I wasn’t crazy about it. I did find myself so sad and heartbroken for Casey toward the end of the book as she faced one loss after another in rapid succession and couldn’t catch a break. I also found the ending to be unsatisfactory, I’m sure there will of course be another installment in the Detective Casey White series, but this ending wasn’t one urging me to read on. I do applaud the author’s ability to break my heart for Casey.

I was mostly excited for this book because of the fact that the setting, the Outer Banks, is where I live and grew up. For me, I feel like it was a mistake on my part because this wasn’t an Outer Banks setting this was more like a Virginia Beach setting through and through and the inaccuracies drove me up a wall, but that’s just a personal grievance of mine and did not affect the rating I gave this book.

Thank you to NetGalley, B.R. Spangler, and Bookouture for the ARC of this book.

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Saylor Rains

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Rating:  ★★★★★

Oh. My. God.
I am officially a huge fan of Lisa Jewell.

Watching You is a story of family secrets, affairs, hidden malicious sides, and an unexplained murder to top it all off. In a neighbourhood where seemingly everyone is watching someone. This book was written in such an interesting format, chronologically telling the story with an excerpt every few chapters from police interviews with some of the characters. It makes for such an interesting read and leaves you trying to figure out who did it the whole time.

The characters are phenomenal because of the fact that they all have their positive and negative traits and behaviors, making them very well rounded personality-wise, but also leaving each of them each with possible evidence, opportunity, or motive to be the killer. While reading you are constantly adjusting your theory.

I was so pleased with myself for making the right connections throughout the story and figuring it out, but some things still popped out and shocked me! The most jarring part of the whole book that knocks the air out of you: the epilogue. Just read it and see.

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Saylor Rains

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Rating:  ★★★★★

Trumanell Branson disappeared a decade ago, leaving behind a town that never forgot and people who never stopped trying to find her. Odette Tucker, the town’s youngest cop and one with personal ties to Trumanell and her family, is sliding down a slippery slope as she tries to solve this mystery and the one of the missing girl who showed up in a field with only one eye.

No description I give this book could do it justice. I’m heartbroken. This was one of those books that grabbed a hold of my nerves and my heart and just didn’t let go. The powerful imagery, complex plot, and atmospheric writing made for one of the most interesting books this year. The middle of this book made me gasp out loud, the change halfway through something you couldn’t have guessed.

This was a slow read that I definitely took my time with, but I didn’t ever lose my patience with it.

We Are All the Same in the Dark

grabbed my attention and wouldn’t give it back until I finished it. This story had so many layers built into it, it was a masterpiece of a “who-done-it” and makes the reader suspicious of every character at least once. Sip this one slowly like a fine wine and enjoy.

Thank you to Ballantine Books, Julia Heaberlin, and NetGalley for this arc.

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Saylor Rains

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Release Date: March 2nd, 2021

Rating:  ★★★★★

Every Last Fear reads like the best kind of crime drama playing right before your eyes. Matt Pine comes back to his NYU dorm after a night of partying to the worst news possible news; his entire family who were on vacation in Mexico was just found dead. What at first looks like an accidental gas leak turns out to be so much more and it has everyone wondering: could this relate to the murder that put Danny Pine, Matt’s older brother, in prison seven years ago.

The unique plot was built on real characters with multifaceted lives. Each chapter revealed new plot and more layers to the story, causing the reader to constantly adjust their theory on what happened. The constantly changing perspective, where everyone has a different piece of the puzzle, is engaging and gives butterflies just like all good thrillers.

The web that Alex Finlay was able to weave in this novel was intricate and fascinating. The things this family went through all because of one night are heartbreaking. The ending was satisfying. I had to mentally decompress after the amount of action my heart just went through. Every Last Fear is a new favorite of mine.

Many thanks to Alex Finlay, St. Martin’s Press, and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this incredible ARC.

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Saylor Rains

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The Vanished Boy

Looking for a short thriller novel with twists and turns? Check out The Vanished Boy by Harmony Kent. If you’re a Law & Order: SVU fan, then this book may be right up your alley! #writingcommunity #bookreview #indiebookclub #mystery #thriller

Looking for a short thriller novel with twists and turns? Check out The Vanished Boy by Harmony Kent. If you’re a Law & Order: SVU fan, then this book may be right up your alley! Check out my book review below to get a feel.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 5 out of 5.

This book is exactly how I picture a true suspense, thriller novel to be. At first, I was a little weary of the pace – it was slow for the first…

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