Author: megs14malloy

Review: The Disinvited Guest by Carol Goodman

~ megs14malloy

The Disinvited Guest: A NovelThe Disinvited Guest: A Novel by Carol Goodman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

I added The Disinvited Guest to my TBR just prior to its release knowing one thing, that it was set in Maine. Since that is my home state and the cover had such an ominous feel, I figured I should pick it up and give it a go.

When my library hold on an audiobook copy came through the morning I was leaving for a solo road trip to Maine, I figured it was serendipity and I should take advantage of it.

I downloaded this baby so fast, I left no room for second-guessing myself and I dove in. I didn’t even refresh my memory by reading the synopsis, although truth be told, I’m not sure I ever read the full thing to begin with.

Either way, I was surprised when I discovered that this story is based around a contagious virus situation where people are quarantining themselves away from the outside world.

This story takes place years after the 2020-pandemic and we follow Lucy Harper, who is still a bit traumatized from that time and actually has some lingering health effects.

Lucy’s husband, Reed, has a generational family home on an isolated island off the coast of Maine and the couple decide to head there to wait out this newest virus.

They plan to quarantine on the property with Reed’s sister and her girlfriend, Lucy’s best friend and her husband, as well as Reed’s best friend from childhood, who still lives in the area and helped provision the island for their stay.

What could possibly go wrong with this situation? It’s sounds fool proof…

Obviously, I am being sarcastic AF, because we all know all sorts of things are going to go wrong. Basically, anything that possibly can, will.

The island and property itself have a dark and murky past. Lucy, an author, is interested in that history and does a bit of poking about trying to learn more. She ends up finding an old diary of one of Reed’s ancestors and the Reader gets entire excerpts from that.

The historical aspect was something that I wasn’t expecting at all. While at times, I would have preferred to have been in the present, particularly towards the beginning, I ended up really enjoying it.

I also liked how the tension climbed in the present the longer they were stuck on the island. It was such a difficult situation and with no way out, people were definitely on edge with one another.

Additionally intriguing to me, was that Lucy’s perspective started to feel like she was losing her grip on reality a bit. She became so immersed in the diary that sometimes it became hard to decipher past from present.

Was the island haunting her, or was it just a by-product of her environment; of being so isolated?

This was my first Carol Goodman book. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but I got her number now. This got wild. I’m talking really wild as it was building to the climax.

I’ll be honest, I found The Disinvited Guest to be sort of ridiculous, but luckily, it was also a ridiculously entertaining road trip audiobook!!

I was shouting things at the characters, providing my own running stream of commentary. I must have looked completely unhinged driving down the highway.

It was fun. I enjoyed it. It kept me entertained for my entire drive to Maine and I’m thankful for that.

It was a long drive. I would definitely be interested in checking out more of Goodman’s work! If you’ve got recommendations, drop them below…

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Review: All Her Little Secrets by Wanda M. Morris

~ megs14malloy

All Her Little SecretsAll Her Little Secrets by Wanda M. Morris
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars rounded up**

I loved my time reading All Her Little Secrets. Ellice Littlejohn was an interesting main character and I really meshed well with Morris’s writing style.

I listened to the audiobook and was completely swept up into the story. It was really well done with the narration just fitting to the story perfectly.

Wanda Morris has a second book releasing in October of this year, Anywhere You Run and it is loosely connected to this novel.

The main character of the new novel, I believe, is a side character in this novel and I’m looking forward to learning more of her backstory.

If you are looking for an engaging and thoughtful Legal Thriller to keep you at the edge of your seat, you should absolutely give All Her Little Secrets a try.

IMO, Wanda M. Morris is one to watch. This was an impressive debut. I selfishly hope Morris, a corporate attorney, has quit her day job, because writing is her jam!!

((although I am more than confident she’s a phenomenal attorney as well…))

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Review: Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney

~ megs14malloy

Daisy DarkerDaisy Darker by Alice Feeney
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When Nana is turning 80-years old on Halloween and invites you to visit her at her tired, gothic-feeling home on a tiny, tidal island, you go. Even if you can’t stand the rest of your family, you go.

And that’s indeed what happens for Daisy Darker’s family, assembled via Nana’s wishes for the first time in years.

Nana’s been a little fixated on her 80th ever since that palm reader told her it would be her last birthday.

In fact, it may be because of this that she has chosen this birthday to gather her entire family, including her son, Frank, ex-daughter in law, Nancy, three granddaughters, Rose, Lily and Daisy, one great-granddaughter, Trixie and a man named Connor, who has been a sort of unofficial member of the Darker family for years, to air some things.

This also may be the reason why she decides to read her Will to them all that night.

All are not necessarily pleased by Nana’s proclamations, but what can they do. What’s done is done, isn’t it?

As the clock strikes midnight, Nana’s crumpled body is then discovered on the floor of the kitchen. She’s dead, but was it an accidental fall, or did something more sinister happen?

After Nana’s death, everyone is panicked. It’s creepy being trapped on a remote island with a dead body, but there’s literally no way off and a storm has halted communication with the mainland.

The fun doesn’t stop there though, think And Then There Were None. No one is safe…

Daisy, the youngest of the granddaughters, has always been Nana’s favorite, even though she’s been mistreated by the rest of her family for years.

Well, that’s not necessarily true, Trixie, Lily’s often-neglected daughter, is always kind to her Aunt Daisy, so at least Daisy has two allies within the family; not a total loss.

This story is actually narrated entirely by Daisy, so getting insights into the family from her perspective is quite interesting indeed. She doesn’t hold back any punches when describing her relatives, that’s for sure.

In addition to the present drama, we also get a past perspective, taking us through Daisy’s childhood and most memorable times at the Darker seaside manor.

Connor, the man mentioned above, is a large part of these childhood memories, as that’s when he first came on the scene and essentially became a member of the family.

I had a fantastic time with this book. The audiobook absolutely enraptured me.

There was so much about this that I loved, from the classic-feeling mystery vibe, to the over-the-top family drama, bad-acting characters and claustrophobic setting.

This is my favorite book of 2022 so far and something superbly jaw-dropping would have to come along to change that, I think. This is next level.

I loved how this story was told. The set-up at the house with Nana was terrific, the use of the creepy poems to enhance the mystery, as well as the alternating timelines helped to build-out this story beautifully.

If I were to wish upon a star, I would wish that I had written this book. Alas, I am pretty sure that doesn’t work and Alice Feeney beat me to it. Perfection.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Macmillan Audio, for providing me with a copy to read and review. This blew me away. What a delight!

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Review: Don’t Let in the Cold by Keely Parrack

~ megs14malloy

Don't Let in the ColdDon’t Let in the Cold by Keely Parrack
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

On their first night home alone together, new step-sisters, Lottie and Jade run into a whole host of problems.

The first being, they don’t know each other at all, but are suddenly expected to act like sisters. Are they even going to be able to get along?

With their parents rushing off on a quick one night honeymoon, the girls are left to their own devices at Jade’s Dad’s Tahoe cabin.

One would think that it couldn’t be too bad. It’s one night. Even if they lock themselves in separate bedrooms for the night, they should be okay, right?

But many, many, many, many things are not going to work in their favor that night. For example, there are strangers lurking about the remote cabin, including a young man named Alex and his adorable dog.

Then there’s the solar flares that cause a massive blackout, causing the cabin to lose power and all connection to the outside world.

It doesn’t stop there though, ultimately the girls are forced out into the cold, bleak wilderness, in the midst of a horrendous blizzard as they struggle through every obstacle known to man to try to reach help.

Speaking of struggles, I had my own struggles trying to get through this one. I listened to the audiobook, thinking my annual road trip to Maine for Labor Day weekend would be the perfect time to listen to it.

I am a huge fan of Survival Thrillers, or Horror novels, and this sounded like it would be right up my alley. Sadly, that didn’t turn out to be the case.

I quickly found the whole thing ridiculous and not in a good way. Oftentimes ridiculous can be hella fun, but it has to be engaging. This felt monotonous to me and never-ending.

The characters were bland and there was a completely unnecessary romance thrown in. With everything they were going through, was finding love truly needed?

Honestly, this felt like the author sat down and compiled a list of forty-five things that could go wrong if you were staying at a remote cabin in the mountains and then connected all of those things with lightly-entertaining filler content.

I know that’s harsh, but clearly I’m burnt that this is what I spent almost my whole solo car trip listening to. I was relieved when it was over.

Nevertheless, as we all know reading is highly subjective. Just because this one didn’t work for me, doesn’t mean it won’t work for you.

Please don’t take my word for it. If the synopsis sounds interesting to you, give it a shot, you may end up loving it!

Thank you to the publisher, SOURCEBOOKS Fire and Dreamscape Media, for providing me with copies to read and review. I appreciate it very much.

I am glad that I picked this one up. Even though it wasn’t necessarily my cup of tea, I would have always wondered about it otherwise.

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Review: Almost There (Twisted Tales #13) by Farrah Rochon

~ megs14malloy

Almost There (Twisted Tale, A)Almost There by Farrah Rochon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Almost There is the 13th-installment in Disney’s Twisted Tales YA-series. These can be read in any order, as they each follow different characters and their stories are completely unrelated.

The point of this series is to take our favorite Disney tales, twist one element and explore what would have happened if that twist had actually occurred. Think of it as a sort of alternate history for Disney stories.

It’s Tiana’s turn to take center stage in this magical volume set in 1920’s New Orleans. I’m sure many of you love The Princess and the Frog as much as I do and it was so nice to return to that setting and characters through this story.

The twist in this tale involves a deal that Tiana agrees to make with the notorious Dr. Facilier. Even though Tiana only makes the deal because she feels backed into a corner, it still provides her with all of her deepest desires: her own restaurant, T&J’s Supper Club, her friends safe, and her beloved father’s return.

Unfortunately, sometimes when things sound too good to be true, they are. As Tiana finds herself navigating her new reality, she also begins to notice strange occurrences popping up everywhere around her.

It ends up being a race against both time and evil forces, but luckily Tiana has her good friends Naveen and Lottie on her side. New Orleans is getting creepy and it’s pretty clear Facilier has something to do with it. Can Tiana and friends set things right before she loses everything she holds dear?

Almost There was great. I flew through it so quickly. It was such a treat to be back in this setting, 1920s NOLA, with this fantastic and nuanced set of characters.

I really appreciate what Rochon was able to do with this story. I felt transported. The atmosphere was very well done. A strong addition to the series!!

I did listen to the audiobook and as always, Disney does a great job with that format. The narration was fantastic, perfect for these characters.

I definitely recommend this story to fans of this series, or The Princess and the Frog movie. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed if you pick it up.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Disney Books and Disney Audio, for providing me copies to read and review.

I am a huge fan of this series and am looking forward to continuing on with it!

My current ratings for the Twisted Tales series:

1. What Once Was Mine (Tangled): 4.5-stars rounded up
2. Reflection (Mulan): 4-stars
3. Almost There (The Princess and the Frog): 4-stars
4. Go the Distance (Hercules): 3.5-stars rounded up
5. As Old As Time (Beauty & the Beast): 3.5-stars rounded up
6. Straight On Til Morning (Peter Pan): 3.5-stars rounded up
7. Mirror, Mirror (Snow White): 3.5-stars rounded up
8. Unbirthday (Alice): 3.5-stars
9. Conceal, Don’t Feel (Frozen): 3.5-stars
10. A Whole New World (Aladdin): 3-stars
11. Part of Your World (The Little Mermaid): 2-stars

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Review: Dead Flip by Sara Farizan

~ megs14malloy

Dead FlipDead Flip by Sara Farizan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars**

When they were kids, Cori, Maz and Sam were best friends; three peas in a pod. The trio were always together, bopping around, getting into childhood mischief.

As they grew older though, things began to change. One fateful Halloween night cracks appeared, the three had a bit of a spat and Sam took off on his own. That was the night Sam disappeared without a trace.

In 1992, five years have passed since Sam disappeared, but the aftershocks of that tragedy are still felt every day by Maz and Cori. They have never forgotten him.

After Sam vanished, Maz and Cori’s friendship dissolved. Maz and his family moved to a nearby town, so the two didn’t even go to the same school anymore. They went their separate ways; tried to move on.

Now it’s their Senior year and Maz is a track star at his school, with a penchant for partying. That’s all surface level though, what he’s really doing is hiding from his past.

Cori is the queen bee at her high school. A pretty, popular girl, a shoe-in for Homecoming Queen, who secretly pines for another girl, Janet, loves Horror movies more than anything and feels like she needs to hide who she truly is.

Cori is adept at plastering on a smile and pretending all is well, when really she is just passing time until things might be different.

The old friends lives are turned upside down when Sam suddenly reappears. While this would be an exciting and jaw-dropping turn of events, the most shocking thing is, he still appears to be 12-years old, the age he was when he disappeared.

The friends cannot explain it, but they believe it has something to do with a pinball machine they used to play at a local store. A haunted pinball machine?

They need to keep Sam hidden until they get this figured out. Luckily, Cori’s parents are out of town, so that at least provides a safe haven. But as the trio begins to spend time together again, it’s clear not all is well with Sam. He didn’t return quite the same.

As increasingly disturbing events begin to plague Maz and Cori, the race is on to solve this mystery, before anyone else gets hurt.

I absolutely adored every moment I spent with this story. It’s told through alternating timelines. The first is 1987, when the trio are kids. You get to know them, the dynamics of their friendship group, as well as the events leading up to and the aftermath of, Sam’s disappearance.

A young boy going missing, in such a small town, was a huge deal. It was felt by the whole community and Farizan did a great job of examining that.

The other is in 1992, leading up to and following Sam’s return. Through this format you get a lovely coming-of-age feel to this quirky YA Horror tale.

I really enjoyed the format and all of the characters. I found Farizan’s writing to be extremely engaging. I was loving every moment. Granted, I am right around the same age as these characters, so getting the alteranting 1987 and 1992 timelines was so nostalgic for me.

I have seen this compared a lot to Stranger Things and I do sort of get that, but it’s also very much it’s own thing.

I was definitely picking up that vibe, but you know what else I was picking up? You know the movie Big, the whole pinball element of this reminded me of the fortune-teller machine, Zoltar, except in this, Sam returns smaller than his friends, not bigger.

I loved the mystery behind what happened to Sam. It was so interesting. Watching Cori and Maz come together to try to help Sam, while also trying to solve the mystery was a ton of fun.

I always love some amateur sleuthing and I was captivated by the whole process. This was just pure fun, all the way, exactly what I needed for the chaotic end of summer. I was absolutely surprised by this one. It swept me away.

My slight critique would be that I felt like some of the events at the conclusion were too quick, up-in-the-air and not necessarily explained to my liking. Regardless, that’s simply personal taste. It was close to perfection for me.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Algonquin Young Readers, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I cannot wait to pick up more from this author!

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Review: Stinetinglers by R.L. Stine

~ megs14malloy

Stinetinglers: All New Stories by the Master of Scary Tales (Stinetinglers, #1)Stinetinglers: All New Stories by the Master of Scary Tales by R.L. Stine
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Stinetinglers: All New Stories by the Master of Scary Tales is exactly that. An all new collection of spooky tales from the master of Horror for Young Readers, R.L. Stine.

I’m sure you know him and if you are like me, you may love him. You may have loads of nostalgia for those classic Goosebumps stories.

I was so stoked when I heard the news that he had a new collection releasing, just in time for Autumn, featuring 10-new spooky tales.

I listened to the audiobook for this and had an absolute blast with it. It’s fairly short, coming in at just over 5-hours, and it kept me completely engaged from start-to-finish.

The narration was so expressive and captivating. I thought numerous times how much fun this one would be to listen to on a family road trip.

I also really enjoyed how, as an introduction to each story, R.L. Stine wrote a bit about his inspiration and motivations for writing each story. This aspect reminded me of The Bazaar of Bad Dreams by Stephen King.

Personally, I feel like having that extra insight from the author on a short-story collection makes it even more memorable and in a way, personal.

Overall, I had a blast with this collection. I flew through it and honestly enjoyed every story. It’s a great example of Stine’s style and fulfilled all my nostalgia needs.

Thank you to the publisher, Macmillan Audio, for providing me with a copy to read and review. Stinetinglers is fun for the whole family this Spooky Season!

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Review: All of Our Demise (All of Us Villains #2) by Amanda Foody and Christine Lynn Herman

~ megs14malloy

All of Our Demise (All of Us Villains, #2)All of Our Demise by Amanda Foody
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

All of Our Demise is the finale to the All of Us Villains duology.

This Dark YA Fantasy, featuring a magical competition to the death, is penned by the dream duo of Amanda Foody and Christine Lynn Herman.

If you haven’t read the first book, please proceed with caution. There may be some things mentioned in this review that some would consider spoilers.

I will not be hiding them.

After the conclusion of Book 1, the limits of the tournament are beginning to erode. The status quo shaken.

The public is now more involved with the process than ever before, with Reporters flocking to the historic battlegrounds, turning the pain and misery of the Champions into entertaining fodder for everyone else.

It’s basically the Capital during the Hunger Games. The magical contestants are bona fide celebs.

Additionally, a dead boy has returned, now influencing the tournament and out of nowhere a new champion has entered the ranks, looking to dismantle the tradition entirely.

The champions end up divided into two groups: those who wish to proceed as normal and those who wish to break the curse, thus ending the tournament forever.

This book was freaking intense. I reread the first book, All of Us Villains, just prior to starting this and I am so glad I did.

This is quite a detailed world and it is very fast-paced. Therefore, I have a tendency to race along, excited to get to the conclusion of the action. Occasionally this causes me to forget fine details.

The first book is really where we are learning the bulk of background on our main characters and their families. I was super glad to have that refresher before getting into this one.

Luckily, I loved that one so much and really had fun revisiting the story. This installment builds beautifully off of everything that occurred there. It was a seamless transition from one book to the next; very well done.

I loved how in this one, our main characters shift themselves into essentially two opposing teams. There are those who want to end the tournament and those, mainly those whose families have gained the most from the tradition, who want things to remain as they are.

This seems relatable to the real world, doesn’t it?

We do follow the same characters here as we did in the first book. I was glad for that. I was a little concerned we were going to move on to new perspectives, as sometimes happens. I’m glad the authors stuck with the characters we already know and love.

I did see so much character growth for each of these mains. As they interacted with one another more, it helped to reveal a deeper side to their personal wants and motivations. There were some great arcs; particularly for me, Allistair and Gavin.

I think this is such a fun duology, dripping with dark atmosphere, engaging characters and non-stop action.

My head was left spinning. There was so much covered in this book alone. Overall, a great continuation, with a more than satisfying conclusion!!

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

I seriously hope this isn’t the last collab we see from Foody and Herman. All of Our Demise releases tomorrow, Tuesday, August 30, 2022.

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Review: The Counselors by Jessica Goodman

~ megs14malloy

The CounselorsThe Counselors by Jessica Goodman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

With numerous YA Thrillers being released every month, three things about The Counselors made it stand out for me:

Jessica Goodman’s name, this cover giving me nostalgic-campy vibes and the line in the synopsis that states, a twisty new thriller about three best friends, one elite summer camp, and the dark secrets that lead to a body in the lake.

I had a bit of a wait before the audiobook became available through my library, but it was well worth it. Particularly since it is narrated by the fabulous, Phoebe Strole.

This narrative follows Goldie and her two best friends, Ava and Imogen. The girls developed a friendship years ago at the prestigious Camp Alpine Lake. They were campers when they first met, but now as young adults, all three stayed on at the camp as counselors.

Goldie is the only one of the three who is local to the area though, so she has been anxiously awaiting summer and with it, Ava and Imo’s return. Truth be told, Goldie wouldn’t even have been able to attend the camp initially if her parents didn’t work there.

Generally, the campers are from very well-off families. Because of this, there has been a bit of tension over the years happening between those involved in the camp and the local community.

Goldie is the odd exception that has experience with the situation from both sides.

She has mixed feelings about it. Also, even though Ava and Imogen are her best friends, she does keep a lot from them. Goldie was involved in an incident that led to her senior year of high school being a virtual hell on earth.

She kept that from them. Now that Ava and Imogen are returning to town, Goldie wonders if she will need to tell them. The thing that happened was big local news. She doesn’t want them to hear about it on one of their many ventures into town.

Stress, upon stress, upon stress.

When a local boy, who played a very big part in Goldie’s worst year ever, ends up dead in the lake at the camp, Goldie’s summer takes a sudden dark turn.

What was he even doing there? Locals aren’t allowed on the grounds of the camp. Had he been looking for her?

As Goldie digs into this unexplained death, she uncovers truths she could have never imagined. Her whole world is suddenly and viciously turned asunder.

The Counselors is a great YA Summer Thriller, with all the nostalgic campy vibes that I was looking for, as well as a solid friendship trio. I really enjoyed my time getting to know Goldie, Ava and Imo.

The camp and its relationship to the surrounding area was also quite engaging. I live in a resort-type community as well, so I definitely could relate to a lot of the dynamics that Goodman was exploring. I thought that provided an interesting context to the overarching story.

The mystery was well-developed and paced. It kept me glued to the story. When I wasn’t reading it, I wished that I was. The ending got wild, but it was so fun.

This is pretty close to a perfect summer read. I’m looking forward to picking up more from this author soon!

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Review: The Last Town (Wayward Pines #3) by Blake Crouch

~ megs14malloy

The Last Town (Wayward Pines, #3)The Last Town by Blake Crouch
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Last Town is the concluding book in Blake Crouch’s Wayward Pines series.

I read the first two books last Fall, but for some reason, as often happens, I then failed to pick this one up. Sometimes when things are so good, you just don’t want them to end.

Luckily for me, this is a very memorable story, so I had no problem picking this one up even though almost a year had passed. I hadn’t forgotten a thing.

The truth of Wayward Pines, even the idea of it, is so horrifying that it is seared into my brain from now until forevermore.

After the reveals of the second book, which had huge repercussions for the entire town, things get much worse. Much, much worse.

Ethan Burke has ticked off Pilcher and that results in Pilcher cranking up for a temper tantrum of epic proportions. He’s about to unleash a community-wide shitstorm, pretty much the equivalent of a 10-year old flipping over a game of Monopoly because they’re losing.

This installment was non-stop action from the very start. It’s dropping you off directly where the action left off. There’s no time to pause.

It’s bleak. Not going to lie. For the majority of the book, I felt pretty helpless with regards to my favorite characters. How the heck are they going to get out of this?

It seemed the end was near. I mean I could feel it, watching the percentage run down on my kindle. It was coming. What was it going to be?

Overall, I am satisfied with this ending. I wouldn’t have guessed the ending and I can’t argue with it. This was a tough one. The world was what it was. There were no easy answers.

I think Crouch did an exceptional job over the course of these three books building out this world and providing characters that the Reader could care about. I loved many of these characters and it was sometimes tough to read about the things they went through.

I would definitely recommend this series. Even though it is a bit of an older series, it’s absolutely worth picking up!!

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