Book Review #21 - SISTERS by Patricia MacDonald

 

SISTERS by PATRICIA MACDONALD

About the book

Two sisters.
One’s good as gold.
The other’s committed the ultimate crime.
Alex is still reeling from the death of her parents in a tragic car accident when she makes a shocking discovery — a secret in her mother’s past
Alex’s mother had a baby daughter just after she left high school. A baby she gave up for adoption.
But when Alex decides to search for her long-lost sister, she is in for a horrifying surprise . . .
Could finding her long lost sister be the biggest mistake Alex Woods has ever made?

 

About the Author

 

Patricia MacDonald is an internationally-bestselling author of thrilling suspense. Her previous novels include Suspicious Origin, Stranger in the House, Not Guilty, and the Edgar Award-nominated The Unforgiven. 

My take

Sisters is a psychological thriller about two sisters, who never knew about the existence of the other. Alex Woods’ parents die in a car crash, and when she returns to her big, empty house after completing her college, her attorney hands her a letter written by her mother, telling her that she had a baby in her teenage years, whom she gave up for adoption.

Depressed from the loss of both of her parents, Alex gets pulled in by curiosity about this newfound step sister and she sets out to find her. Soon she finds out that her sister, Dory Colson, is in prison, for the alleged murder of her sister Lauren. Lauren was the biological child of the Colson’s, and Alex learns that Lauran was a very successful upcoming singer, who was killed by Dory out of jealousy.

Alex decides to find out what really happened, and meets the Colson’s, who seem extremely hostile towards Dory, the Ennis family - their neighbours, and Marisol, a law student who is trying to get Dory a retrial on the behalf of Justine initiative, which helps those who got sentenced by a mistrial.

The story that unfolds thereafter is better not revealed, but it is full of twists and turns, leaving us wondering what exactly happened.

The story is told from the POV of Alex, and her emotions as she goes through phases of anger, sadness, denial, happiness over her loss, finding a half-sister, dealing with her (sister’s) parents, and the new romance kindled inside her in the form of Seth are beautifully depicted. The character of Dory stays true to herself, and even though she seems a bit rash and rough, she is not unlikeable. The twist at the end is worth reading the book for.

The flow of language is nice and easy. The cover page is beautifully designed.

I rate this book 5 stars.

 

Book review #20 The arrangement by Kiersten Modglin

 

The arrangement by Kiersten Modglin

 

About the book

The arrangement was just meant to fix their marriage.
No one was supposed to get hurt.
But when the rules of this open marriage are broken, the consequences are sinister.

Ainsley Greenburg is a fixer.
It's what she prides herself on.

So, when she realizes her marriage is at its breaking point, she makes a decision to repair it, no matter the cost. Approaching her husband to propose the arrangement is supposed to be the hard part, but Peter agrees to the salacious plan almost immediately.

The rules are simple:

·       They will each date someone new once a week.

·       They will never discuss what happens on the dates.

Soon, though, the rules are broken, turning terrible mistakes into unspeakable consequences.
When the only person they can count on to keep their darkest secret is each other, new questions and deceits surface. Can they truly trust the person they share a life with, or will the vicious lies that have mounted over the years destroy everything they've built?

Once, Peter and Ainsley vowed to stand together forever, but as they push boundaries of deception, suspicion, and temptation, each begins to wonder if 'til death do us part may come sooner than they'd intended

 

My take

This book initially seemed like a book about a husband and wife, going through a midlife crisis, who mutually agreed upon polygamy as the last resort that will save their marriage, and ignite the spark that once existed between them, but in no time, it turned into the most twisted story ever.

Ainsley and Peter, both get their own weekdays to go out and have one night of fun while the other stays at home and looks after their three kids. To avoid complications, they make certain rules, one of which, is not to date anyone known, and to use a separate dating app, under different names, so that no one can trace them.

So Ainsley meets Stefan and Peter meets Mallory. And for a while, it seems the plan is working. Both begin looking at each other like they never have in years.

But both are hiding secrets. And when the man Ainsley met begins to get obsessed about her, follows her to her house, the secrets begin tumbling out.

The book was slow paced initially, and I felt like it was going to be more on the lines of a domestic story with infidelity being the highest twist. But soon a murder happens, and thereafter, the story is extremely fast paced, every other chapter revealing something that blows the mind. None of the characters are what we think them to be, and the author keeps us guessing right till the end.

The story is told from the POV of Ainsley and Peter alternately, and that helps shape the story in a certain way. The flow is lucid and easy, and the incidences keep us hooked to know what happens next.

I personally loved the cover page design, which is suggestive, aesthetic and at the same time mysterious. I rate the book 4.5 stars.

 

 

Book review #19 Don't believe her by Jane Heafield

Don't believe her by Jane Heafield

About the book

A weekend getaway leads to a deadly game of deceit between two cunning sisters-in-law in this British psychological thriller.

Though Lucy and Tim have been married for years, she has never gotten along with his sister. So when they plan a weekend in the country, they certainly don’t expect Mary to show up. But it’s Mary who’s shocked when she arrives to find Tim missing. His belongings are gone, there’s a bloodstain on the floor, and Lucy’s story doesn’t add up.

Lucy insists that he left her, but Mary suspects foul play. When the police are called, each woman tells her own story—but Detective Reavley doesn’t trust either of them. Accusations of affairs and violence only add to the tension, but soon explosive secrets come to light that no one could have expected.

About the author

Jane Heafield works in healthcare, but in her free time she writes stories. 

My take

Lucy and Tom are a couple with the usual differences a married couple has. Mary, Tom's sister hates Lucy and vice versa. So when Tom disappears from the rental cottage Lucy and Tom were vacationing at, Mary is convinced that Lucy has murdered him, and Mary leaves no stone unturned to get anyone she meets to believe this, including the police.

Lucy's story certainly doesn't add up, and there are some large gaping holes in her version of events, she ever keeps changing that version, yet she denies she has anything to do with Tom's disappearance.

The story alternates between the POV of Lucy and Mary. Both the main characters are equally dis-likable, and I am not sure whom the reader hates more. Their rivalry just makes us weary.

Neither of them is telling the truth. But the first person POV spoiled the reliability of the story for me when the final twist came. Like I always say, when the main character is unreliable, the story is better to be read in third person. Because no one lies to themselves in first person. So the ending seems completely unrealistic and far fetched.

The flow of the story was easy and even though the theme was good, and fast paced, the shoddy base on which the story is built takes off its charm.

The cover is beautifully designed, and one star from my rating is entirely for the cover.

I rate it 3 stars.

Book Review #18 - The passenger by Daniel Hurst

 

The passenger by Daniel Hurst

About the book

She takes the same train every day. But this is a journey she’ll never forget.

Amanda is a hardworking single mum, completely focused on her job and her daughter, Louise.  She’s been saving for years and now, finally, she can afford to give up work and chase her dream.

But then, on her commute home from London to Brighton, she meets a charming stranger - who seems to know everything about her.

He delivers an ultimatum . She needs to give him the code for the safe where she keeps her savings before the train reaches Brighton - or she’ll never see Louise again.

Convinced that the threat is real, Amanda is stunned, horrified. She knows she should give him the code, but she can’t. Because she also knows there is a terrible secret in that safe which will destroy her life and Louise’s too…

About the author

Daniel Hurst is the author of several popular psychological thrillers including Til Death Do Us Part and The Tutor, as well as The Influencing Trilogy.

He is also the creator of The 20 Minute Series, the series of books which readers have called “original” and “addictive.”

You can visit him at www.danielhurstbooks.com

My take

Amanda, a single mother to seventeen-year-old Louise, is a hardworking woman, who commutes daily from Brighton to London for her nine to five job. Her dream has always been to be a full time writer, and finally she has saved enough money to give wings to her dream, and she is serving the last few days of her intimation. But she has no idea about the stranger following her from quite some days, who knows a lot more about her than she can even imagine, and is about to blackmail her into giving up her life savings in return of her daughter’s safety. But the safe that treasures her money back at home doesn’t contain just money. It contains something that could destroy Amanda’s and her daughter’s lives. What does she do?

The story is extremely fast paced and the build up is tense. Seventy percent of the story happens during the one hour transit from London to Brighton, yet it is extremely gripping. The story shuttles between the POV’s of the four main characters of the story, Amanda, Louise, the stranger and his partner in crime, James. The narrative also shuffles between the past and the present. But even though the theme is simple, the incidents that keep unfolding one by one keep us hooked. The narrative slowly peels off layers after layers of each character, and soon we realize, there is no black and white, everything is in shades of grey. The relationship between Amanda and Louise, and the way it changes after everything they go through has been picturized realistically. The last twenty percent is extremely action packed, and one is forced to keep reading right upto the end.

I noticed a few typos, but other than that, there is no downside. The book cover is also intriguing, and is catching enough to make a reader pause and take a look.

So overall, one of the best, gripping novels, I rate it 4.5 stars

 

 

Book Review #17 Verity by Colleen Hoover

Verity by Colleen Hoover

About the book

Lowen Ashleigh is a struggling writer on the brink of financial ruin when she accepts the job offer of a lifetime. Jeremy Crawford, husband of bestselling author Verity Crawford, has hired Lowen to complete the remaining books in a successful series his injured wife is unable to finish.

Lowen arrives at the Crawford home, ready to sort through years of Verity's notes and outlines, hoping to find enough material to get her started. What Lowen doesn't expect to uncover in the chaotic office is an unfinished autobiography Verity never intended for anyone to read. Page after page of bone-chilling admissions, including Verity's recollection of the night their family was forever altered.

Lowen decides to keep the manuscript hidden from Jeremy, knowing its contents would devastate the already grieving father. But as Lowen's feelings for Jeremy begin to intensify, she recognizes all the ways she could benefit if he were to read his wife's words. After all, no matter how devoted Jeremy is to his injured wife, a truth this horrifying would make it impossible for him to continue to love her.

My Take

Verity is dark, twisted and disturbing, yet a terrific page turner.

It's the story of Lowen Ashleigh, a small time author who has run out of money following her mother's cancer treatment. Lowen's literary agent Corey, who was also her ex, brings her an unusual offer - an offer to complete three books in the Virtue series of the best selling author, Verity Crawford.

As luck would have it, Lowen meets Jeremy Crawford, Verity's husband, by accident, even before she meets him for the publishers meeting. Initially, Lowen has her own doubts, but Jeremy convinces her that she can do it. Lowen is also desperately in need of money, and has been evicted from her rented apart ment. So she gets invited to stay over at the Crawford's house, a big sprawling property overseeing a lake, to go over Verity's office and plan the outlines for the forthcoming novels.

As Lowen starts living in their house, she learns about the tragedies this family has gone through. They have recently lost their twin girls, and now Verity is indisposed following a car wreck. Crew, their five year old boy, seems to be the only thing that brings life to the house.

While going through Verity's work, Lowen finds a secret autobiography written by Verity, and she can't resist the temptation of reading it, convincing herself that she will be better able to understand how Verity's mind works, which will help her complete the remaining novels in the series.

However, the autobiography turns out to be a dark, twisted and sordid tale, and Lowen begins questioning everything that is happening around her. At the same time, she begins noticing weird things in the house that Jeremy doesn't seem to notice at all.

The story flits between Lowen's POV and the chapters between Verity's autobiography. The description keeps us hooked and tense throughout as we keep wondering what exactly happened. The language is lucid and flowing, yet simple. At one point I sort of predicted the end, but I was wrong. So the twist at the end was definitely a surprise for me.

There are some very sensitive and graphic scenes described, so the reader has to be mentally prepared to read it. And there is lots and lots of sex. Some of which, I felt, was unnecessary, and distracting. Some part seemed a bit stretched, slightly unbelievable, but still it takes the story forward.

But over all, I loved this edge of the seat gripping tale. It kept me awake till I had read the last word. I rate it 3.5 stars.