Author: megs14malloy

Review: Break Me Down by Anna Downes

~ megs14malloy

Break Me DownBreak Me Down by Anna Downes
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up **

Break Me Down is a Macmillan Audio Original from popular Thriller author, Anna Downes. This is told via an exceptional full cast and features mixed media elements that work very well in the audio format.

The story follows a former child star, Georgia Lane, after she moves to L.A., determined to make a career comeback.

Georgia quickly learns, however, that behind the glitz and glamour of Los Angeles life lies a cutthroat entertainment industry not for the faint of heart, and her past success doesn’t promise anything in the now.

She meets a man named Henry, also an aspiring actor, who ends up inviting her to audit a class at the elite acting school he attends. The school’s head teacher soon takes a special interest in Georgia, and offers her a spot at The Studio.

Marianne’s teaching methods are very unconventional, but Georgia sees it as a potential path to unlocking her true potential. The deeper Georgia and Henry go with their involvement in The Studio, the further it pushes them apart.

Are Marianne’s bizarre teaching tactics actually helping her students, or is it actually her own perverse form of psychological warfare against them?

The content of Break Me Down was good, it was solid, though it didn’t contain anything Earth-shattering. Long-term, I’m not sure how much I’ll be able to recall of the story.

I do feel like watching Georgia fall deeper and deeper into The Studio was compelling, but yeah, not particularly mysterious, suspenseful, or thrilling. It was more interesting because it was so much of a train-wreck.

I also wasn’t crazy about Georgia and Henry’s relationship, so wasn’t connected with that aspect. It never felt like he had the right intentions to me. He was hard to read.

My enjoyment of the story itself is closer to a 3, or 3.5-star, however, I’m rounding up simply because the audio production was so good. The full cast, the various sound effects, it was really, really well done.

If you’re an audiobook fan, and enjoy things that have sort of a docuseries feel, such as Daisy Jones and the Six, this is absolutely worth the listen. Thank you, Macmillan Audio, for providing me for a copy to read and review!

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Review: The Perfect Marriage (Perfect #1) by Jeneva Rose

~ megs14malloy

The Perfect Marriage (Perfect, #1)The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

On paper, Sarah and Adam have the perfect marriage. The couple live in a beautiful home, and Sarah has an extremely successful career as a Defense Attorney in Washington, D.C., while Adam gets to pursue his passion in writing.

But in truth, Adam’s grown tired of Sarah’s focus on her career. She’s constantly working, and yeah, maybe he is even a little jealous of her success.

Adam begins to pursue another passion in the form of a young waitress named Kelly Summers. He uses their 2nd-home as a rendezvous point with his mistress, which is perfect because Sarah never goes there.

Adam’s other life gets suddenly exposed, however, when he is arrested for Kelly’s murder. The young woman was found murdered in the bed at the lover’s retreat, shortly after Adam was known to have been there.

Being the best in the business, there’s no one better to take on Adam’s defense than Sarah; conflicts of interest be damned. Even though he’s broken her heart, Sarah agrees to take on his case. He’s her husband and in spite of his betrayal, he still deserves the best defense. Doesn’t he?

The Perfect Marriage follows the deeply twisted lives of this power couple via both Sarah and Adam’s perspective. I loved the dual narration of the audiobook, and would recommend that format.

Initially, I wasn’t sure if I was going to round up to 4-stars, but after thinking about it for a couple of weeks, I really feel it deserves it. This was so fun. It’s so messy, but all the more engaging because of that. I seriously never knew what was going to come next

It’s true that the plot probably won’t be the most memorable long term, but Rose got so devious with it, I gotta give her love for that. There were so many twists, and although there’s not a ton of substance, it’s a hella good time.

I would recommend this for Readers who love fast-paced Domestic Thrillers, bordering on diabolical. Get your popcorn ready, cause you’re gonna want it!

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Review: Lucky Day by Chuck Tingle

~ megs14malloy

Lucky DayLucky Day by Chuck Tingle
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars**

Lucky Day follows MC, Vera, a lover of statistics and her fiance, Annie. Vera sees the world in an interesting way, via numbers and stats. As an academic, she’s found a great niche for herself and a peaceful domestic life.

On a day they are supposed to be celebrating the publication of her book, and she’s prepping to come out to her Mom, a world-wide cataclysmic event occurs.

Countless individuals across the globe are killed in truly horrific ways, yet Vera survives. The event comes to be known as the Low Probability Event.

A few years later, though Vera survived, she’s certainly not thriving. She’s negative, bitter, secluded and hardly-functioning. When a government agent shows up at her home to recruit her to help study the event, she’s apathetic about it at best.

However, she does agree and sets out with Agent Layne as they investigate the LPE. Their relationship evolves into a sort of buddy cop movie dynamic as they examine the most chaotic events ever penned.

This was a strange one. It was good. Tingle is a great writer, there’s no denying that. For my personal taste though, it wasn’t quite a hit. It felt like Tingle wrote it as a way to work through an existential crisis. It was compelling in that way, but never succeeded in holding my interest.

I can appreciate the thought and skill that went into the creation of the story, but it continually lost my attention the longer it went on. Certain concepts would capture my attention, but then those would play out and it would be on to the next thing, and my interest would wane again.

I loved the set-up; meeting Vera and quickly getting to the LPEs that started it all. That was wild. It’s one of those, what the hell am I reading moments, which is always fun.

I also could understand Vera’s reaction to the events. She was easily the most apathetic MC I’ve ever read from, but considering the circumstances, it made sense, NGL.

I try to always stay positive, but I’m not sure where my headspace would be had I been through the series of events she’s been through. So, that aspect, the trajectory of her character, was quite believable.

I also enjoyed Agent Layne and the dynamic that develops between the two. I think for me, it was just a little too chaotic and uneven as far as keeping my interest. Overall though, it’s solid and creative. The audiobook narration was great, and I know a ton of Readers are going to love this one.

Thank you to the publisher, Tor Nightfire and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review.

Even though this isn’t a new favorite for me, I truly appreciate Tingle’s creative energy and fluid writing style. I will most definitely be returning for more!!

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Review: The Possession of Alba Diaz by Isabel Cañas

~ megs14malloy

The Possession of Alba DíazThe Possession of Alba Díaz by Isabel Cañas
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars**

I will not be cured…but neither will I be caged.

🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤

In 1765, a plague sweeps through Zacatecas, Mexico, forcing our MC, Alba, along with her family, to flee the city and seek refuge at a property owned by her fiance, Carlos’s, family.

The property is an active silver mine and many of Carlos’s family members are there, involved in the day-to-day operations, including a black sheep cousin, Elias, whom Alba finds quite intriguing.

Living there is a bit of shift in lifestyle for Alba, but she’s not hating it. One day on a tour, she actually gets to venture into the mine, and wanders off a little on her own to explore.

Big mistake and let this be a lesson to us all.

Alba has a disturbing first experience in the mine, including auditory hallucinations that shocked and confused her. She became disoriented and feared herself lost. It’s after this initial exploration that events start trending into negative territory for Alba.

She begins hallucinating, sleepwalking and experiencing strange convulsions. She also starts having dark thoughts that are completely out of the norm for her.

Fearing for her sanity and her life, Alba ends up befriending the last person she should, and seeking solace through his company. As the two try to figure out what’s going on with her, they boldly face enemies from all sides.

Heck, yeahhhhh! Isabel Cañas has done it again. The Possession of Alba Diaz is dripping in atmosphere, and full of an unsettling dread. How does Cañas make me love Historical Fiction?

Answer: With the atmosphere, that’s how!

Granted caves, or anything cave adjacent, such as, oh, I don’t know, silver mines, are definitely a real life fear of mine, so Cañas played right into that with this novel.

I have had great success with Cañas’s novels in the past and this one did fall more into my comfort zone, as far as content goes, than the previous two. I love a possession story, and although this is a very slow burn, I feel it paid off.

Cañas definitely has a feel, or a formula, to her work. I’d be able to tell it’s one of her novels, even if I hadn’t seen her name on the cover. Her MCs have similar vibes, but I like it. I always know what I’m getting myself into and it keeps me coming back for more.

In addition to following Alba, we also get Elias’s perspective and I adored him. I’m so glad that it was a dual narrative, because I felt like he brought so much.

His backstory was very interesting, and though he was such a sweet cupcake, he was treated terribly by his family, but that’s a whole other thing. Both he and Alba were out of their element at this place, and I liked that they were able to be there for each other through some crazy stuff.

At the end of the day, this was a very satisfying reading experience. I always appreciate how much time and care it seems Cañas takes with the settings of her stories and building a sense of uneasiness.

I also like the real history she peppers throughout, and how the land/area always feels like such an important part of the story. I would probably put this last out of her three books in overall enjoyment order, but I still really, really liked it. I’m just an Isabel Cañas stan; what can I say?!

Thank you to the publisher, Berkley, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I can’t wait to see what this author releases next. We’ve had haunted properties, vampires and possessions, what are we getting next!?

I will be on the edge of my seat until we find out. Whatever it is though, you better believe I will be first in line for a copy.

I cannot wait!

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Review: The Resurrectionist by A. Rae Dunlap

~ megs14malloy

The ResurrectionistThe Resurrectionist by A. Rae Dunlap
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Resurrectionist is set in Edinburgh in 1828.

We’re following James Willoughby, who left a somewhat posh lifestyle in Oxford behind in order to pursue the study of surgery in Edinburgh, a city known to be a trendsetter in medical advancements.

The regular University isn’t enough though. He wants to be able to work with human cadavers, for which he’ll need to enroll in a private surgeon’s school, the cost of which is sadly out of his price range.

Nevertheless, James is determined, and ready to strike any sort of a deal he can to become a student. Aneurin MacKinnon, a handsome young dissectionist, offers him the opportunity, but it comes at a cost, and James will have to work for it in ways he never could have imagined.

In short, this wasn’t at all what I expected, but I still ended up really enjoying it. I expected Horror, but got more of a straight-up historical fiction story, heavy with interpersonal drama. Nevertheless, I was sucked in.

Admittedly, Historical Fiction isn’t a genre I gravitate towards, but the rich gothic vibes of this definitely saved it for me. I was impressed.

James was a little naive, but that made him endearing. He was also determined and not afraid to put in the work. I was rooting for him to get everything he wanted, in spite of the world fighting against him in many different ways.

I also loved Aneurin, or Nye, who plays a big part in the story. He added a bit of dark intrigue. There were moments I couldn’t quite figure him out, but enjoyed trying.

Overall, this succeeded in grabbing my attention, and although it’s not something I would necessarily reach for if I had known more about it, I’m glad that I did pick it up.

Thank you to the publisher, Kensington Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I’m looking forward to checking out more from this author!

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Review: The Legacy by Jere Cunningham

~ megs14malloy

The LegacyThe Legacy by Jere Cunningham
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Originally released in 1977, The Legacy by Jere Cunningham has been lovingly-reissued by Valancourt Books as part of their Paperbacks from Hell collection.

I was lucky enough to be gifted the full set for Christmas a couple of years ago, and have been slowly making my way through them when the mood strikes. For the record, I’ve loved them all so far. There’s something about dipping into a classically-told Horror story that’s just so cozy!

In this story, we meet David Rawlings, an ambitious young doctor, and his lovely family, as they inherit David’s childhood home after his father’s untimely death.

When David is notified that his somewhat estranged father has passed unexpectedly, he is in a bit of shock. His father was always such a strong man. He seemed untouchable. What could have happened?

In order to see to the arrangements, and meet with his father’s attorney, David packs himself and his family, including his wife, Sandra, their young daughter, Melanie, and beloved Doberman Pinscher, Streak, into the family car and makes the journey to small town Mississippi.

The property is outstanding. Sandra is struck by its vastness and beauty. At first she’s hesitant to remain there for the 7-weeks asked in the Will, but eventually she comes around.

The family starts to settle in, but from the start disturbing occurrences are happening around the property, including another death. David becomes convinced his father’s death wasn’t from natural causes, or an accident.

Something is going on here, and he needs to figure out what, because now the rest of his family is at risk.

The Legacy captured my attention with the rich Southern Gothic atmosphere. I loved how it was slowly built through the descriptions of the property and surrounding area.

The way events rolled out, building the suspense and intrigue, I felt it was masterfully done. I grew to love this family and was so worried about them ((particularly, the dog, of course)), because things were feeling so dangerous and uncertain.

There was inclusion of a few local characters as well that only helped to enhance the story, IMO. You could tell that some of the locals, friends of his Dad’s, knew what was going on, but they weren’t sharing the info with David, which was frustrating.

The occult elements truly amp up as the story continues, and it all filled me with a complete, nail-biting, sense of dread. It really was a great build. Two thumbs up.

Additionally, the Southern Gothic atmosphere was chef’s kiss and the trope-filled plot kept me on my toes. I would have given it a full 5-star rating, if it weren’t for some animal content that made it less enjoyable for me. There were parts with the dog I had to skim…

Overall though, a great, slow burn, classic-feeling Horror story that I recommend to any true fan of the genre. I def need to read more from this author.

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Review: Too Old for This by Samantha Downing

~ megs14malloy

Too Old for ThisToo Old for This by Samantha Downing
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars**

Lottie Jones has worked hard to gain the quiet life she’s currently living in her retirement, and she’s enjoying it. It wasn’t easy, changing her name, moving to a small town, and putting her past behind her.

All that is threatened to be upended though, the day Plum Dixon shows up on her doorstep. Plum is an investigative journalist whose been digging into Lottie’s past, wanting to include her in her podcast; her True Crime podcast.

This just will not do. Even though Plum claims she just wants to clear her name, Lottie knows that’s never going to happen, because the things they say about her are true.

Plum has greatly underestimated whose door she just knocked on…

Too Old for This is like a breath of fresh air in the saturated Thriller market, where it sometimes feels like you’ve read everything before.

Downing did an incredible job of creating Lottie’s character. It’s messed up, you shouldn’t be rooting for her, she’s doing awful things, but somehow, you do. At least, I did, and I’m not ashamed to admit it.

We get to follow everything she does after Plum shows up, some of it will make your toes curl, and other things, like bingo nights with her friends, seem so wholesome. I guess it’s true, we all contain multitudes.

This story is a ride, almost guaranteed to surprise you. There are so many twists and turns. Just when you think it can’t get any crazier, it does.

Overall, I had a blast with this. I Buddy Read it with a friend, and we both really enjoyed it, plus it was very fun to discuss. I highly recommend it for Readers who are looking for something unique and who aren’t shy about a little murder.

Thank you to the publisher, Berkley, for providing me with a copy to read and review. Downing did not disappoint!!

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Review: The Grin in the Dark (Spine Shivers) by J.A. Darke

~ megs14malloy

The Grin in the Dark (Spine Shivers)The Grin in the Dark by J.A. Darke
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Hamid has a night of babysitting ahead of him, but he doesn’t mind. It’s for his twin cousins and they’re pretty easy. They’ll probably be asleep the whole time anyway and his Aunt and Uncle’s house is cool.

He figures he’ll binge some t.v., eat great snacks, and before he knows it, the night will be over. But as we all know, things frequently don’t go as planned.

The night starts to go sideways on the drive there, when he and his Mom hear over the radio about an escaped convict in their area. That’s creepy, but the prison is pretty far away, so Hamid tries to block it from his mind.

After his Aunt and Uncle leave, he settles into their big comfy couch and starts his t.v. marathon, until the power goes out. Hamid’s night is about to become the worse night of his life…

Y’all, I’m not sure why I thought it would be a good idea to read this book while home alone at night in my dark bedroom with only my book light to guide me. This story terrified me, and I’m not joking.

I was texting my sister while I was reading it, because I was so scared, I didn’t want to leave the bedroom to go to the bathroom, and after a few Adult Beverages, I was reaching a dangerous territory.

This is a YA Horror Novella, so I don’t want to say too much more about what happens in this book, as it comes in at just over 100-pages. I will, however, leave some buzzwords and phrases in case you need further prodding to pick it up:

babysitting, clowns, inclement weather, power outage.

I wouldn’t say the writing was the best I’ve ever read, but it succeeded in doing what it set out to do. Additionally, I loved the illustrations and execution of the scares. P.S. I am ended up hiding this after I finished it, because I could no longer abide it being in my bedroom.

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Review: The Widows’ Guide to Skulduggery (The Widows’ Detective Club #3) by Amanda Ashby

~ megs14malloy

The Widows’ Guide to Skulduggery (The Widows’ Detective Club #3)The Widows’ Guide to Skulduggery by Amanda Ashby
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

The Widows’ Guide to Skulduggery is the 3rd-book in Amanda Ashby’s Cozy Mystery series, The Widows’ Detective Club.

As the name suggests, the stories center around a group of older women, all widowed, who work together and end up solving mysteries in their local area. Our MC is Ginny Cole, who after recently losing her husband, moves to the village of Little Shaw looking for a fresh start.

We get all of the stories from Ginny’s perspective and I think Ashby has done an incredible job building out her character. I adore her so much.

When Ginny moves to the area, she gets a new job at the local library, and also gets befriended by a group of women, who really take her under their wings, as she begins the process of trying to move on with her life after the loss of her beloved husband.

At this point, she’s solved a couple of cases with her friends and they’re all becoming quite comfortable with their new labels as amateur sleuths.

The mystery kicks off at wedding, when the canine ringbearer uncovers a skull that happens to have belonged to a local woman who was killed 20-years prior.

The wedding was already tense, as the two families hail from rival villages, so the skull is the nail in the coffin so to speak. The police get called in, and the ceremony gets called off.

Ginny and the rest of the widow detectives feel terribly for their young friend who has called off her wedding. They suspect that someone may have placed the skull there purposefully in order to break the couple up, but who would do such a terrible thing?

With a few suspects in mind, they kick off another stellar investigation, which ends up spanning 2-towns, 2-decades and involves a colorfully-catty set of characters.

While I wouldn’t say the mystery of this 3rd-installment, was the most intriguing for me, probably my least favorite of the series thus far, TBH, I’m nevertheless so comfortable with this group of characters at this point, I hardly minded.

I like being with them. I’d be down for any mystery they want to get involved in. Additionally, I feel like every series has books you connect with more than others, and even though this wasn’t my favorite, it was still a lot of fun.

It could just be that it is a different sort of mystery. It doesn’t read as a straight up murder mystery from the start, though it does eventually turn in that direction.

I’m genuinely pleased with it overall. It got wild, and I loved how the Widows really put themselves out there in this one. They were each following leads, thinking on their feet and working together in a super compelling way.

Thank you, Storm Publishing, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I am quite fond of this series at this point, and as mentioned, love the women in this group.

I hope they’re back in many more mysteries to come!!

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Review: Lakewood by Megan Giddings

~ megs14malloy

LakewoodLakewood by Megan Giddings
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Lena’s Grandmother was the matron of their little family, helping to take care of both Lena, and Lena’s Mom, who suffers from a chronic illness. So, when Lena’s Grandma passes away, it leaves a big hole in that regard.

Soon it’s clear that the family has a lot of debt and practically no income. Lena must therefore do whatever she can to try to make ends meet for her and her Mom.

Even though she’s enrolled in college, Lena knows she needs to get high-paying work as soon as she can, which may mean putting her studies on hold for awhile. Unfortunately, the job market is depressing as heck and not offering her a lot of opportunities.

Starting to despair, Lena then learns about a chance to participate in some sort of medical or psychological experiment. She’s intrigued. After pursuing it, it seems almost too good to be true.

The downfall, she’ll have to move from home, to the remote town of Lakewood. Her Mom would be alone, which makes her most nervous of all, but arrangements can be made.

With her participation, Lena will get free housing and the pay is very high, more than she could ever make anywhere else given her current options. Additionally, free healthcare for both her and her Mom. She can’t pass that up.

She has to keep her participation 100% secret though. She needs to lie to family and friends. She even signs an NDA to that effect. Luckily, they’ve come up with a believable cover story for her.

The heart of the story follows Lena moving to Lakewood and taking part in the program. She’s recording everything that happens each day, at least what she can remember, writing it down in a letter format and then hiding it, for reasons I won’t go into here.

I liked the way Giddings chose to format Lena’s perspective. It felt very personal, the way she was recounting all that was happening. I felt like that friend receiving the letters.

I also found Lena to be a very empathetic character. She was so honest about everything, and as the Reader, you see this young person struggling, she’s got so much on her plate, and she’s willing to do anything to help her family. Including potentially putting herself at risk.

She’s smart, she’s tough, she’s someone you root for through thick and thin. Lakewood is full of mysteries and the experiments continually get stranger and more dangerous.

The other people who are participating all add their own levels of drama and intrigue to the story as well. The way this softly intensifies throughout is chef’s kiss. I would realize in various moments that I was feeling fear, but I had no idea why. It made for such a cool reading experience.

While it did have a bit of a slow start, I think the pay off was well worth sticking with it. I appreciated the spotlight it shined on medical experimentation and the racial injustices historically witnessed in such practices.

Side recommendation for the non-fiction book, Medical Apartheid: The Dark History of Medical Experimentation on Black Americans from Colonial Times to the Present, that I feel could pair nicely with reading this one.

Overall, I think this is a stellar debut. It left me with a lot to think about. I loved the tone and mood of the writing, the topics explored, and Lena as a protagonist. I would recommend it to fans of When No One Is Watching and The Other Black Girl.

For me, it was the shadow organization feel that I really vibed with. The uneasiness of following Lena’s day-to-day existence in this strange place, with even stranger things happening to her, it was powerful. I’m looking forward to picking up more from Megan Giddings!

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