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Book review: Serpentine by Jonathan Kellerman
Title: Serpentine
Author: Jonathan Kellerman
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Random House
Publication date: 4th February 2021
My rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
Summary:
‘LAPD homicide lieutenant Milo Sturgis is a master detective. He has a near-perfect solve rate and he’s written his own rulebook. Some of those successes–the toughest ones – have involved his best friend, the brilliant psychologist Alex Delaware. But Milo doesn’t call Alex in unless cases are “different.”
This murder warrants an immediate call: Milo’s independence has been compromised as never before, as the department pressures him to cater to the demands of a mogul. A hard-to-fathom, mega-rich young woman obsessed with reopening the coldest of cases: the decades-old death of the mother she never knew.
The facts describe a likely loser case: a mysterious woman found with a bullet in her head in a torched Cadillac that has overturned on infamously treacherous Mulholland Drive. No physical evidence, no witnesses, no apparent motive. And a slew of detectives have already worked the job and failed. But as Delaware and Sturgis begin digging, the mist begins to lift. Too many coincidences. Facts turn out to be anything but. And as they soon discover, very real threats are lurking in the present.‘
My review:
Detective Milos Sturgis and psychologist Alex Delaware work together on a complex case that leads them to a set of bizarre locations and suspicious characters. The cold case soon turns interesting as the team connect the seemingly unbelievable coincidences to discover that most characters are not who they seem.
Jonathan Kellerman features his most prominent writing traits in Serpentine including his excellent ability to paint a picture of a crime scene and lure the reader into a sense of false security as the crime develops into a race against time. This trait is also one of the key highlights in Serpentine and encouraged me to keep reading despite several slower paced parts in the middle.
The two main characters, Milos Sturgis and Alex Delaware, worked well together and I enjoyed the insightful feedback from both the detective’s view and psychologist’s experience. Whenever one missed an important detail the other would point it out and vice versa and their teamwork was extremely important towards the end when surprising relationships between the characters emerged.
I struggled with the monotonous and matter-of-fact writing style which did not veer far from direct speech and few dispersed descriptions. I realise that this is the preferred style of the author however it didn’t suit many of the adrenaline filled scenes and often read too much like a movie or play script.
Serpentine boasts a set of delightful characters and an impressive plot. It kept my interest until the very end with a surprising reveal and promise for more action in the next book in the series.
Serpentine is out to buy today!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing a free advanced reader’s copy in exchange for my honest review.
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Book review: An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen
Title: An Anonymous Girl
Author: Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Publisher: Macmillan
Publication date: 27th December 2018
My rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
Summary:
“‘Seeking women ages 18 – 32 to participate in a study on ethics and morality. Generous compensation. Anonymity guaranteed.
When Jessica Farris signs up for a psychology study conducted by the mysterious Dr. Shields, she thinks all she’ll have to do is answer a few questions, collect her money, and leave. But as the questions grow more and more intense and invasive and the sessions become outings where Jess is told what to wear and how to act, she begins to feel as though Dr. Shields may know what she’s thinking…and what she’s hiding. As Jess’s paranoia grows, it becomes clear that she can no longer trust what in her life is real, and what is one of Dr. Shields’ manipulative experiments. Caught in a web of deceit and jealousy, Jess quickly learns that some obsessions can be deadly.“
My review:
My favourite element in Thrillers is the deceit and trickery used to allure the reader into a false sense of security and there is no doubt that this author duo dominates this superbly, as shown by their previous co-written books. I was instantly convinced by the blurb and could not wait to discover how they would incorporate the psychological manipulation into the story line.
In terms of storytelling only, this book left a lot to be desired. Many parts were overshadowed by the characters’ thoughts and emotions and it often felt like the main character, Jessica, was constantly analysing Dr Shields’ every move. The pace was uneven throughout and only picked up speed towards the end. However, the unexpected twists were nicely distributed and well executed.
Character development is a key feature in An Anonymous Girl and one which the authors mastered with ease. Jessica is an unreliable narrator and her constant questioning was sometimes irritating however this was contrasted by the fierce and cold Dr Shields and her husband. I didn’t know who I could trust and my suspicion for all three characters only increased with the twists. By the end I was wrong about many of my original feelings towards them which further highlights the distortion and cunning nature of these characters.
Ethics and morale are analysed in an interesting way however failed to truly backup the message the authors were trying to deliver. The questions in the survey were intimate and stimulating with the possibility to be interpreted in multiple ways. However, after reading Jessica’s answers it almost felt as if the authors were consciously trying to steer the reader towards the idea that her wrongdoings were sinful and draw more attention to her actions and behaviour. I would have preferred a more open minded approach to the ethics behind the survey as it seemed like this was purposefully done with the intention to justify Dr Shields’ decision to choose Jessica as her subject for the study even though her answers were not that shocking or appalling from an ethics standpoint.
The premise of An Anonymous Girl is original and exciting. The set of interesting characters and focus on the difference between right and wrong set the scene for a gripping thriller with several unexpected twists. It was an enjoyable book despite the lack of clear direction in the story line at times however I appreciate that it is mostly a character driven book. Fans of psychological thrillers will find a lot to love about this book.
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Book review: After All I’ve Done by Mina Hardy
Title: After All I’ve Done
Author: Mina Hardy
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Publisher: Crooked Lane Books
Publication date: 10th November 2020
My rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
Summary:
“She’s lost her best friend, her husband–and possibly, her mind.
Five months ago, an accident left Diana Sparrow badly injured and missing a few months of her memory. As if that’s not enough, she’s started having recurring nightmares about the night of the accident. Dreams that feel so real, she’s left questioning: maybe she didn’t just slide off the road into a ditch. Maybe, just maybe, she hit something. Or someone.
She can’t turn to her former best friend Val, who’s been sleeping with Diana’s husband Jonathan for months, but she might find some comfort in newcomer Cole Pelham. Yet the closer they become, the more Diana begins to wonder what really happened that night–and how Cole might be connected. Worse, it seems everyone else could be involved, too.
Who was with her that night? What really happened? As her life unravels thread by thread and the dreams become too real to ignore, Diana will have to face the unthinkable–and do the unforgivable.“
My review:
After All I’ve Done starts with a lot of promise. Although the memory loss plot has been incorporated many times before in Thrillers, there were extra layers of mystery and doubt right from the first chapter which carried through to the end. The book was always filled with tension and suspicion which led to a very cryptic mystery, forcing the reader to anticipate the characters’ intentions from the little background that is disclosed on the main character, Diana.
Thrillers often feature either too many characters or so few that the plot is watered down however After All I’ve Done stars the right number of characters and a perfect balance between character development and plot. I couldn’t connect with Diana as I felt that she was too untrustworthy and sometimes too dull for a main character. However, the other minor characters such as the mother-in-law and best friend dipped in and out of each chapter with ease and encouraged me to speculate on their motive which I always enjoy.
My main concern with this book at the beginning was the possible predictable twist and ending. I believed that my theory was too farfetched despite the multiple hints throughout the book and especially given how twisted and wrong such an outcome would be but unfortunately my guesses were right. I finished this book feeling somewhat shocked and unsettled however I applaud the author for bravely analysing twisted family relationships and for not being afraid to push boundaries to the extreme. Although I didn’t entirely like the direction it took, the added suspense and mystery surrounding Diana’s accident kept me invested until the end.
After All I’ve Done is out to buy now!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing a free advanced reader’s copy in exchange for my honest review.
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Book review: The Girls in the Snow by Stacy Green
Title: The Girls in the Snow
Author: Stacy Green
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Publisher: Bookouture
Publication date: 19th October 2020
My rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
Summary:
“In the remote forests of Stillwater, Minnesota, you can scream for days and no one will hear you. So when the bodies of two fifteen-year-old girls are discovered frozen in the snow, Special Agent Nikki Hunt is sure the killer is local: someone knew where to hide them and thought they’d never be found.
Home for the first time in twenty years, Nikki sees that the whole town had been frantically searching for missing best friends Madison and Kaylee, and when she finds out who Madison’s step-father is, she becomes desperate to lead the case. John was once the person she trusted most in the world, who stood by her when she was just sixteen and her parents were murdered. Who supported her when she identified their killer, Mark Todd.
But when Nikki arrives at the Sheriff’s office, she’s confronted by protesters eager to see Mark freed. With new evidence that could clear his name, Mark has appealed his conviction and his brother Rory begs Nikki to take a look at what they’ve found.
Nikki knows she must focus on the killer at large, but Rory makes her wonder if she put her trust in the right people all those years ago. Are Madison and Kaylee’s deaths connected to her parents’ murders? And can she face up to her past before another life is taken?“
My review:
Madison and Kaylee, two fifteen-year-old girls, are found frozen in the forests of Minnesota and Special Agent Nikki Hunt is called to the case. Nikki’s past quickly catches up to her as she recalls the horrific murders of her parents not too far from where the two girls were murdered. What follows is a race against time to catch the killer as Nikki also battles with her own memories of the day her parents died.
New series in the Mystery/Thriller genre often need a feisty and mysterious main character and I was not disappointed to find that Nikki Hunt fits that criteria perfectly. I was intrigued by her history and her connections to Stillwater. The parallel story line involving her parents’ killer, Mark Todd, was an interesting addition and created further tension and intricacy in the already gripping plot involving the two murders.
The bitter and freezing cold backdrop created an even more intense atmosphere and a remarkable setting for a murder. Although the descriptions are simple and straightforward, the setting was superbly illustrated and a nice touch to complement the plot.
With its impressive setting and interwoven story lines, The Girls in the Snow proved to be a strong start to the Nikki Hunt series. I can already see several directions the series may take and would be interested to to see which direction it follows and what future adventures Nikki will face.
The Girls in the Snow is out to buy now!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing a free advanced reader’s copy in exchange for my honest review.
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Book review: The Vow by Debbie Howells
Title: The Vow
Author: Debbie Howells
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Publisher: Avon
Publication date: 15th October 2020
My rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
Summary:
“Two weeks before her wedding, a stranger stops Amy in the street and warns her she’s in danger. Then that night, Matt, her fiancé, doesn’t come home. Desperate, Amy calls the police – but when Matt fails to emerge, she’s forced to call off her wedding day.
Then another man is reported missing, by a woman called Fiona – a man meeting Matt’s description, who was about to leave his fiancée for her. He was supposed to be moving in with her – but instead, he’s vanished.
Amy refuses to believe Fiona’s lover can be her Matt – but photos prove otherwise, and it soon becomes clear that Matt has been leading a double life. As the police dig deeper, two conflicting, yet equally plausible stories emerge from two women who allegedly have never met.“
My review:
Amy is convinced that she has found the love of her life and is excited for her wedding, soon to take place. Her world is turned upside down when her fiancé, Matt, disappears mysteriously with no trace. The investigation ultimately brings the police full circle when they suspect that Amy is involved in Matt’s disappearance. This is a common plot line in thrillers and has been done many times before so I was glad to see some other characters, such as Fiona, introduced to break up the stereotype and create a sense of unease.
One of the strongest features in The Vow is the never ending mystery the author weaves into the story line. Matt is painted as a secretive and possibly manipulative character however it is clear from the start that both Amy and Fiona have a dark side which they are trying to hide. It was impossible to understand who the victim was in these circumstances and I thoroughly enjoyed the ping pong approach of deceit and lies as the plot progressed.
Unfortunately the characters were too mediocre and uninteresting to fully grab my attention. I could empathise with both Amy and Fiona and I found Amy’s daughter, Jess, a nice addition however none of these women had any unique attributes to keep me invested in their development.
Although I wasn’t fully invested in this book, there were some interesting writing techniques, such as changing POVs and an unknown narrator from 1996 which stood out and created a never ending sense of mystery. Full of suspense and tension, The Vow promises to be a hit for thrill seeking readers.
The Vow is out to buy today!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing a free advanced reader’s copy in exchange for my honest review.