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Review: Scariest. Book. Ever. (Goosebumps House of Shivers #1) by R.L. Stine

~ megs14malloy

Scariest. Book. Ever. (Goosebumps House of Shivers, #1)Scariest. Book. Ever. by R.L. Stine
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Holding true to the overall feel of the franchise, this first book in the Goosebumps House of Shivers series is the perfect way to dip your toe into Spooky Season.

I was so excited when I heard the news that Stine was releasing another branch in the Goosebumps tree. This entire franchise holds a special place in my heart and based on this cover alone, I was stoked to check this one out.

This cover gives me total original series vibes!

In this story, we follow twins, Betty and Billy, whose parents need to travel to Europe for two weeks for work. They can’t take the kids with them, so end up dumping them off at the home of their mysterious Uncle, who they don’t even know.

This is total Goosebumps adult logic. They barely slowed the car down, just booted them right out the door.

The kids are left to meet their Uncle on their own. Frankly, they’re freaked out. Not only is this man practically a stranger, but his house is creepy as heck, set on the edge of a very ominous seeming forest.

You can imagine what happens from there. It did have a similar formula to earlier works, but I’m fine with that. It was exciting, fast-paced, included some fun adventure, a bit of mystery and spooky creatures as well.

One of the elements of this that stood out to me was that it had a good antagonist. It gave the story some gripping tension and some believably scary moments for this Children’s age group too.

I would absolutely recommend checking this one out if you are a Goosebumps fan, or if you have a Young Reader in your life who you would like to introduce to the franchise. I think this is a great place to start.

In other good news, the second book in this series, Goblin Monday is set to release in March 2024. I’m already looking forward to it and you should too!

Thank you so much to the publisher, Scholastic, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I read this in an evening and had a fabulous time with it!

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Review: Rouge by Mona Awad

~ megs14malloy

RougeRouge by Mona Awad
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.75-stars rounded up**

Rouge is the 2023-release from Mona Awad. It’s my second novel from this author, the first being All’s Well.

I actually felt very similar to this one that I did All’s Well, except I enjoyed the content and messages of this one more.

In this story we meet Belle, a lonely shopkeeper, living in Montreal, with a penchant for skincare and watching skincare videos. When Belle’s mother, Noelle, unexpectedly dies, Belle has to travel to her mom’s home in Southern California to settle her estate.

As she’s there and begins to dig into her mother’s life, she finds Noelle had built up considerable debt and was living a lifestyle that raises a lot of questions about her death.

The mystery thickens when a woman in red appears at the funeral offering clues about Noelle’s life. These clues, along with a pair of red shoes, help Belle to find Maison de Méduse, a lavish, yet eerily cult-like salon to which her mother was completely devoted.

This is where Belle, like her mother before her, becomes obsessed with the mirror, and the Alice in Wonderland-like world that exists behind it.

Rouge is described by the publisher as being a surreal descent into the dark side of beauty, envy, grief, and the complicated love between mothers and daughters. With black humor and seductive horror, Rouge explores the cult-like nature of the beauty industry.

I did get all of these things, but only wish I could have understood what was going on in the second-half of the story more. It started strong, then lost me.

As with All’s Well, I loved the beginning, but as Belle got more involved and invested in the world of Maison de Méduse, the narrative went so far into fever-dream territory, that I’m afraid the majority of it went over my head.

Therefore, by the time I got to the end, I couldn’t decipher what I’d read. Honestly, the latter half, I had pretty much given up on true understanding and was more invested in the lyrical writing and word play.

I think for people who have loved Awad’s stories in the past, or people who love weird fiction in general, particularly with beautiful writing, you should read this.

I’m glad I picked it up. It was beautiful. I did love the modern Dark Fairy Tale quality of the story. I could actually see this being turned into a great movie, or limited series. Maybe I would understand it more in that format.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Simon Element, for providing me with a copy to read and review.

I know so many Readers are going to love this, even if it wasn’t 100% for me.

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Review: No Child of Mine by Nichelle Giraldes

~ megs14malloy

No Child of MineNo Child of Mine by Nichelle Giraldes
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

No Child of Mine follows Essie Kaur, an ambitious young woman who has recently found out that she is pregnant for the first time.

Essie is in a very loving marriage with her husband, Sanjay, whom she adores, but in spite of that, Essie is less than stoked about the news.

In fact, privately, she’s pretty upset about it. Essie is currently in law school, almost through, ready to take the bar exam early the following year, how is she going to make that work now? The baby will be three months old when she is supposed to sit for the bar?

Essie keeps a lot of her feelings to herself; well, most of them honestly. She’s afraid people will judge her for not having the ecstatic, happy reaction society teaches us we are supposed to always have.

She wants to be happy. She loves the little being growing inside her, she really does, but that love is being shadowed by a lot of other darker emotions right now.

As the Reader, we sit inside Essie’s head as she struggles with these emotions, her changing body, her changing relationship and her ever changing reality.

While some of it borders on repetitive, I feel like as a person who frequently suffers from repetitive thoughts, it still made sense to me. I could imagine being Essie and having these same exact thoughts over and over.

In addition to Essie’s perspective, we also get a historical perspective following two women, Isabelle and Anna.

It’s unclear initially how these women are connected to Essie and her story, but as their narrative evolves it becomes clear where it is going. This aspect adds the impetus behind some of the darker elements in the present perspective.

Particularly, what’s going on with Sanjay.

As a soon to be 45-year old woman, who made a conscious decision at a very young age to never have children, these types of stories revolving around pregnancy and early motherhood either drive me crazy, or I end up connecting to them in a powerful way.

Regardless of the final outcome, I do enjoy picking up stories that involve these themes, because I like to see what sort of new elements, or perspectives, various authors will bring.

I think Giraldes did a great job of writing Essie’s perspective.

To me, Essie’s concerns and emotional struggle was 100% believable. She was a woman who had a plan for her future, who had sacrificed to reach her goals, and so close to the finish line had everything up-ended while her husband still got to live his dream.

I was nodding along in many parts, even yelling words of support for her. The only issue I had with this story really, and it’s a minor one, was the connection between the historic perspective and Essie’s present perspective.

For me, there were times, when it felt a little too disjointed. By this I mean, the transition between the two sometimes seemed jarring; like it wasn’t as fluid as I would hope.

Essie’s sections felt so straight forward, but for Isabelle and Anna, my brain was working overtime trying to figure out why it was even included. Because of this, for at least the first half, every time it switched perspectives, it kicked me out of the story.

At times, I felt a bit like I was reading two separate books.

With this being said, there is a certain reveal that happens, where after that, it started making sense. Plus, additional things were happening in the current perspective, where you could feel that distinct influence from the past.

Giraldes brought it around. It was eventually cleared up and tied together by the end. Although, one final nit-pick is the ending was too abrupt for my tastes.

Overall though, this is a very solid story. I think it provides a lot of food for thought, as far as a women’s role in the modern world, as well as interesting commentary on women’s issues spanning generations.

Thank you to the publisher, Poisoned Pen Press and Dreamscape Media, for providing me copies to read and review. I found this quite absorbing and am looking forward to picking up more from this author.

Also, I would definitely recommend the audio format. The narrator did an incredible job bringing it to life and making it compelling. I feel like it’s a great way to take in this story.

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Review: The Sight by Melanie Golding

~ megs14malloy

The SightThe Sight by Melanie Golding
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

🎪🎠🎪🎠🎪🎠🎪🎠🎪🎠🎪🎠🎪🎠🎪🎠🎪

The Sight is the latest release from Melanie Golding, author of Little Darlings and The Hidden. I enjoyed both of those books so much. I loved the dark atmosphere and eerie sense of dread that permeated both.

Because of that, I was really excited to pick this one up. After completing The Sight, I would still consider myself a fan of Golding’s writing, but unfortunately, this story just didn’t do much for me.

I only have myself to blame. I really didn’t do much investigation into this one prior to reading it. I sort of just anticipated a similar feeling story to the earlier works mentioned above, and it was comped to Stranger Things.

Sadly, this didn’t feel like those previous works at all, nor did it feel like Stranger Things. I felt no dread, no urgency, no suspense and no mystery. It felt very general Literary Fiction, which is admittedly, not my cup of tea.

I was happy to have a copy of the audiobook, which I did feel was well narrated. Otherwise, it probably would have taken me weeks to get through this.

I can see that there is a solid story here and I think for people who enjoy the feel of a slow-burn Literary Fiction novel, this could be a good fit. Particularly, if you enjoy stories set in a carnival environment.

I’m not sure if I have much else to say. I’m sort of at a loss. The story does nothing wrong, it just wasn’t what I was looking for, nor what I would generally tend to pick up. My most dominant feeling while reading it was boredom.

In spite of this, I would recommend that everyone who thinks this sounds intriguing, give it a shot. Reading is highly subjective, as we all know, and your experience may be completely different than mine. In fact, you could end up with a new favorite.

I would caution against putting to much stake in the comp to Stranger Things in the synopsis though. I don’t see that comparison at all and I think if you go into this wanting that, like I did, you could be disappointed.

Thank you to the publishers, Crooked Lane Books and Dreamscape Media, for providing me with copies to read and review. Regardless of my experience with this one particular story, I look forward to picking up Golding’s next release!

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Review: Secrets Never Die by Vincent Ralph

~ megs14malloy

Secrets Never DieSecrets Never Die by Vincent Ralph
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Secrets Never Die is a YA-Horror/Thriller release from Vincent Ralph. With a cover that screams 90s-Horror to me, I was super excited to pick this one up.

I listened to the audiobook on a solo road trip and it was a pleasant way to pass the time. The audio narration is good, it sounds young-feeling and fits the story well.

Admittedly, my attention wavered, but I’m not sure if that was necessarily the story, or my mind being on vacation.

This story follows teenaged, Sam and his close-knit friend group. They have an annual tradition of holding private funerals for their secrets at an abandoned hut in the woods, which they call the Dark Place.

Suddenly, those secrets are coming back to haunt them in eerie and unexpected ways.

Sam, once a promising child star, had his career tank after a terrifying fire at his home. This event is heavily tied to the current events, but how?

There’s blackmail, dangerous secrets and lots of head-scratching twists and turns. Sam isn’t sure who he can trust.

Even his friends are starting to feel like potential threats. How far will Sam be willing to go to bury the past and free himself from his own deeply held secrets?

This was a good time. As far as YA Horror-Thrillers go, it does read a little on the younger side, in my opinion. Maybe more in the Tween category.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with that, I am just pointing it out so that you can decide whether or not that would suit your tastes. For me, personally, I enjoy Horror-Thrillers from Childrens, all the way up through Adult, so it doesn’t bother me at all.

Content-wise, this is a decent, fast-paced story. It would probably go direct to video if it were a movie, but again, there’s nothing wrong with that.

I think for me, I just found the narrative a little hard to track. Sam’s personal story was compelling, but his friends lacked memorability to me and I had a difficult time distinguishing between them.

These difficulties could perhaps be due to the audio format, but I’m not sure about that. I consume A LOT of stories via audio and that’s not a common problem for me.

I think, personally, I would have just liked to see a bit more character development to go along with the action.

Also, some of the darker elements felt a bit all over the place; like perhaps too much was going on at one time. That could 100% be personal taste though.

Overall, I think this is a solid story. A fun way to pass a weekend and I know a lot of Readers, particularly the Teens this is intended for, will really enjoy this.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Wednesday Books and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with a copies to read and review. I would definitely be interested in picking up more from this author!

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Review: The Girls from Hush Cabin by Marie Hoy-Kenny

~ megs14malloy

The Girls from Hush CabinThe Girls from Hush Cabin by Marie Hoy-Kenny
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

The moment I heard about this YA Thriller involving a sleepaway camp and featuring a gorgeously ominous cover, I knew that I needed to read it ASAP.

A bonus for me was that The Girls from Hush Cabin is a debut for Marie Hoy-Kenny and we all know, I love checking out author debuts. It’s such an exciting moment!

In this story we meet a group of four teens, Holly, Zoe, Denise and Calista, who have been friends since they used to bunk together at Camp Bellwood Lake. Unfortunately, after the closure of the camp, the girls drifted apart a bit.

They’re brought together again unexpectedly after the tragic death of their beloved counselor, Violet. They all want to attend her services to pay their respects, so they decide it would be best to go together.

Since Zoe lives in the same town that Violet did, the other girls travel to Zoe’s to stay for the duration of events.

The girls have definitely changed over the years, but if there is one thing they can agree on it’s that Violet’s death is suspicious as heck.

They believe she could have been murdered and that her death could be related to the incident that caused the closing of the camp. The thing is, each one of the girls is keeping her own secrets about that particular summer and may know more about the incident than they’re letting on.

If someone was willing to kill Violet over it, could they all be in danger too?

The girls want to uncover the truth, whatever the risks. They feel like they owe it to Violet, even if it means exposing some hurtful truths of their own.

I had so much fun with this. I don’t care what anyone says, this is a dramatic, OTT page-turner. Hoy-Kenny delivered exactly what I wanted and expected.

I thought the story was well told. I liked the structure of it, starting with how we met each of the girls and then also, that we got all of their perspectives.

As mentioned, they each had their own secrets, memories and experiences with Violet and learning all that stuff helped to build out the substance of the story.

This is super dramatic. The girls make every scene a dramatic scene, but they’re teens who just lost a good friend. Only one of them had really ever experienced that kind of loss before, so this is a whole new experience for them.

I think for characters this age, it all made sense. Not only was there external drama, there was also a lot of drama just amongst the four girls.

Ultimately though, I liked how they worked together and ended up evolving through a lot of their disputes. Some of the things, I personally would have found hard to forgive, so good on them.

There were also some side characters bringing a lot of intrigue and dramatic flair as well. Violet’s Mom, Mrs. Williams, was a particular favorite of mine.

If you read this, you’ll easily understand why. All I could picture while reading her was Jennifer Coolidge, who I absolutely adore.

As this gets closer to the conclusion, things really amp up. This definitely went places I wasn’t expecting. My jaw dropped more than once; such a thrill ride.

Overall, I just think this is a fun time. It might not make my top 10 list, out of the 100s of books I read this year, but I still think it is a great freaking debut and I can’t wait to read more from this author.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Blackstone Publishing, for providing me with a copy to read and review.

I think Marie Hoy-Kenny is a great addition to the YA Thriller space. I’m looking forward to her next release!

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Review: It Found Us by Lindsay Currie

~ megs14malloy

It Found UsIt Found Us by Lindsay Currie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars**

It Found Us is the latest release from my personal Queen of Spooky Middle Grade, Lindsay Currie.

Upon seeing this cover, I knew I would need to get my hands on this ASAP. I mean, look how creepy it is. It’s stunning!

In this story we meet 12-year old, Hazel Woods, an aspiring detective, who puts her skills to the test while trying to solve the case of a missing teenager.

Hazel has always wanted to be a detective, but her biggest dream currently is to start her own podcast focusing on cases she’ll solve. So far, her cases have been small. That’s really all her neighborhood has to offer.

That is until the night her brother’s best friend, Everett, mysteriously disappears.

On the night Everett disappeared, he’d been at the local cemetery, playing an epic game of hide-and-seek with Hazel’s older brother, Den, and some other kids.

Hazel, who had overheard the boys plans, had sneaked after her brother, unbeknownst to him to observe what would happen in the purportedly-haunted cemetery. She saw it as the perfect opportunity to do some sleuthing on whether or not it is actually haunted.

At the conclusion of the game, all the other hiders were found by the seeker, but Everett seemed to have just vanished. As scared as they were, the kids knew they had to let some adults know and an investigation begins.

Hazel and Den believe the police aren’t looking in the right places though, so they decide to undergo their own investigation, along with Hazel’s best friend, Maggie.

The kids dive into the history of the cemetery and the lives of some the souls that may be buried there. Will their chilling search for evidence reveal what happened to Everett? And will they be able to get him back before it’s too late?

This was so cute and fun. It reminded me a lot of Scritch Scratch as far as the mystery elements went, so if you enjoyed that one, you should definitely check this one out.

Hazel was a fabulous MC. She’s so determined to start her podcast and even though she hasn’t been able to convince her parents to allow her to do it yet, she’s not giving up.

I love watching characters work hard toward a goal and Hazel was overflowing with grit and optimism. I also loved her sleuthing skills. The way she tackled the mystery and her clue journal were impressive.

Her clue journal was also a great device for helping to track the progression of the story. Hazel would go through the list of clues they had discovered so far in relation to the mystery. I thought this was a really fun aspect, particularly for the younger readers.

I also appreciated how Currie connected the history of this town and cemetery into the story. She always brings some interesting historical aspects to her stories that are so fun and compelling.

There’s also great atmosphere and healthy relationships amongst the characters. I loved the kids working together, particularly Hazel and Den. It’s always refreshing to see siblings get along and support one another.

Overall, I found this to be well-written, engaging and lot of fun. I would definitely recommend this to all readers of Spooky Middle Grade, regardless of age.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Sourcebooks Young Readers, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I will pick up anything Lindsay Currie writes and this book is a perfect example of why.

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Review: Night of the Living Queers: 13 Tales of Terror & Delight, Editors — Shelly Page and Alex Brown

~ megs14malloy

Night of the Living Queers: 13 Tales of Terror & DelightNight of the Living Queers: 13 Tales of Terror & Delight by Shelly Page
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Night of the Living Queers: 13 Tales of Terror & Delight is a fun, spooky-time YA-Anthology full of great representation and diverse stories.

This is the perfect collection to get you in the mood for Fall!!

Editors, Shelly Page and Alex Brown, did an incredible job bringing together a great assortment of authors to contribute to this collection.

I loved how each story takes place on Halloween night, when there is a rare Blue Supermoon. It’s thought this special occasion could open up our world more easily to all sorts of supernatural and creepy occurrences.

It was fun to see how each of these authors took that prompt, that setting, if you will, and created something unique and engaging, all of their very own.

Anthologies can be tough sometimes, because it’s rare to connect with each and every story equally, but for me, this was well-rounded and exciting enough to keep me hooked throughout.

Of course some stories fit my personal tastes more than others, but I can absolutely see how every single Reader will be able to find something within this collection to enjoy and connect to.

I really enjoyed so many of these of stories and cherished how different they all were from each other. It never felt repetitive, or overdone.

Some of the standouts for me were: The Visitor by Kalynn Bayron, A Brief Intermission by Sara Farizan, The Three Phases of Ghost Hunting by Alex Brown and Nine Stops by Trang Thanh Tran.

My favorite story overall was Anna by Shelly Page. This one just had everything I love to get myself geared up for a solid spooky season. It had a babysitter, twins, a ouija board, an attic and a ghost. I mean, what is not to love about that!?

Finally, I will just say how much I appreciate the thought and care these editors and authors put into this collection. The vast and inclusive representation is so important and I feel like they all did a great job creating super fun and creepy stories, while also being mindful of the original intent of the collection.

I would absolutely recommend this anthology as a way to get yourself in the mood for the Spooky Season. It’s the most wonderful time of the year and books that showcase that are my favorite kinds!

Thank you so much to the publisher, Wednesday Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I’d love to read more from every one of these authors!

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Review: Mister Magic by Kiersten White

~ megs14malloy

Mister MagicMister Magic by Kiersten White
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars**

Mister Magic is the sophomore-Adult release novel from beloved author, Kiersten White. With a cover that could hang in an art gallery, this one caught my eye right away.

After my experience with Hide last year though, I was slightly concerned about picking it up. I’m happy to report that this is incredibly compelling and kept me glued to the pages, wanting to know more, the entire way through.

I do feel like I cheated a little though. In my friend, Debra’s review she mentioned that she wished she had read the Author’s Note first.

I felt that exact same way about Hide and thanks to her jogging my memory, I decided to do that here. So, before I even started the first chapter, I flipped right to the back and read the entire Author’s Note.

Honestly, I do feel like doing that had a positive impact on my experience. Frankly, I’m glad I did it that way.

Just being able to keep in mind the author’s inspirations and motivations, which I wouldn’t have known had I not read that first, while reading helped to provide a bit of context for a lot of the more emotional bits of the story.

In this one, we’re following a group of adults, who once starred together on a hit-Children’s television series, Mister Magic. The show stopped airing 30-years ago, after a supposed accident on set.

Over the years, Mister Magic has become more of an urban legend than a show. You can’t watch it any where, no tapes exist and no one can seem to really remember anything specific about it, including the actors themselves.

At the start of the story, the group of actors, once known as the Circle of Friends, is reunited under the guise of filming a documentary of the show. Together they return to the actual property where the show was once recorded.

The property itself is disturbing from the beginning. It’s remote, set in a desert landscape and the house has some odd architectural choices. It got my hackles up right away.

The group of old friends are going to be staying in the main house during the course of the documentary, shooting confessional/interview-type footage in the basement.

It’s through their time at the house, their interactions and their interviews that the full picture of Mister Magic begins to fill in. The revelations are shocking to say the least.

I found this to be an incredibly interesting story. The premise was like nothing I have ever read. It was so mysterious from the start and I loved White’s creative use of mixed media to make the phenomenon of Mister Magic feel more real for the Reader.

There was just something about the idea of this program that was creepy to me. How many people could talk about it, remembered it being a part of their lives, but couldn’t list a single real fact about it.

It reminded me of like Captain Kangeroo from my own childhood. The vibes felt sort of similar. I loved that show as a kid. I remember being mesmerized by it, but I can’t recall a single tangible thing about it. It’s so weird.

It had such a dark and ominous feel, even before I had any clue where it was going, I sort of felt afraid. Particularly because of one of the main characters, Val’s, reaction to the house and the idea of the show.

I also feel like it stayed intriguing throughout. White just kept building and building on the idea the show, and its history, right up to the shocking conclusion.

Admittedly, the end slipped a bit, IMO. It got a little too heavy-handed in the messaging and seemed to go off the rails as far as delivering easily understood action. Overall though, a hugely successful comeback!

Thank you to the publisher, Del Rey, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I’m so glad I gave this one a shot!!

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Review: The Raging Storm (Two Rivers #3) by Ann Cleeves

~ megs14malloy

The Raging Storm (Two Rivers #3)The Raging Storm by Ann Cleeves
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars rounded up**

The Raging Storm is the third release in the Two Rivers series by beloved Mystery author, Ann Cleeves.

This Police Procedural Mystery series follows Detective Matthew Venn. I loved the first book in the series and have been hooked on it ever since. I feel like I have been waiting for this release for so long and it did not disappoint!!

The setting for this story is the small village of Greystone, Devon, a place Venn is very familiar with. He spent time there as a child, and due to personal reasons, has since parted ways with the community.

This might sound ominous, and it sort of is. If you’ve read the previous books, you’ll know, but basically, Matthew was raised in a very religious household; part of the Barum Brethren, who have many members living in Greystone.

Matthew’s sexuality, among other things, forced his separation from the group and family. Even the thought of returning makes him uncomfortable, but he’s a professional and goes where he must.

Duty calls after the body of minor-celebrity sailor, Jem Roscoe, has been discovered in a dinghy anchored off Scully Cove. The residents of Greystone are shocked.

Roscoe, who grew up there, had returned after many years away and was renting a cottage. He just came back a few weeks ago, who could possibly want him dead?

Everyone seemed to find his presence entertaining. Many were curious as to why he came back. When asked, he claimed to be waiting for a visitor, but never indicated who. Could this person be the one responsible for his death?

Matthew, along with his team members, Jen Rafferty and Ross May, head to Greystone to investigate this highly mysterious death.

As they begin their investigation, talking with the locals and digging into the lore and history of the town, they discover this mystery may run much deeper than they initially expected. As mentioned, Roscoe did have roots in the community, even if he had been away for many years.

With storm fronts ripping through the small town, the investigation takes many unexpected turns as we rushed towards the surprising and satisfying conclusion.

I had so much fun with this. The audiobook is fantastic. I definitely recommend that as a format for this story.

I love Matthew as a character. He is smart, dedicated, but also still processing his childhood and schism from his family and community. This makes him feel vulnerable at times. He’s healed a lot, is happily married and obviously successful in his career, but those old insecurities sneak up on him sometimes.

I feel like his character is just so relatable and I think a lot of Readers will be able to really connect with him.

In addition to a compelling leading man, these novels contain exceptionally well-plotted mysteries. I loved how this one evolved over the course of the story.

You can tell from the very start that Cleeves is a veteran-Mystery writer. This lady knows what she is doing. All you have to do is sit back, relax and take it all in.

I love mystery stories set in small towns and this one is a perfect example of why. As the detectives began questioning the locals, they certainly learned a lot. There are so many connections and everyone knows each other’s business.

It was interesting that Jem Rosco, who was originally from the town, had gained some celebrity. They all had opinions on that, whether it was based on who he was when he was young, or assumptions they made about his character now. I loved how he created such a fervor just by returning to town.

The rumor mills were churning even before he got himself killed. That may sound harsh, but seriously, the town was just a’clucking about his return.

I would definitely recommend this series to anyone who enjoys Police Procedural Mysteries. I think this whole series is just incredible. The writing is fantastic, the characters well-developed and the mysteries all super compelling.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Minotaur Books and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review. I cannot wait for the next book!!!

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