Search

Search only in certain items:

The Girl on the Train
The Girl on the Train
Paula Hawkins | 2016 | Mystery, Thriller
10
7.6 (173 Ratings)
Book Rating
2015 has only just begun, and already we may have one of the year's best suspense novels on our hands. This book follows Rachel, an alcoholic who has developed a fantasy life in her head for an attractive couple she sees in their home from her commuter train every day. When the wife of said couple goes missing, she can't help but involve herself in the mystery, which rather unsurprisingly winds up further complicating her life. The story moves back and forth in time, and is told from the perspectives of Rachel, her ex-husband's new wife Anna, and the missing woman Megan (who Rachel initially refers to as Jess in her fantasy). No one in the story seems to be trustworthy, as they all hide information and/or outright lie to each other in order to achieve their goals, which makes getting to the bottom of things that much more challenging for everyone, including the reader. Despite all the characters being heavily flawed, most of them come across sympathetically, which helps one actually care about their fates. Rachel in particular is well fleshed out, and comes the closest to being outright likable, which is quite a feat considering how unbalanced she is. The plot moves along at a very brisk pace and builds up to such a suspenseful conclusion that it is a hard book to put down. It may be a little dark for some people's tastes, but I found it to be one of the most entertaining books I've read in a long time.
  
40x40

Kristy H (1252 KP) rated The Lucky One in Books

Mar 26, 2020  
The Lucky One
The Lucky One
Lori Rader-Day | 2020 | Thriller
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Alice Fine's life is defined by the fact that as a young child, she was kidnapped from her backyard. But her father, a policeman, defied the odds and found Alice within hours. However, the crime terrified her parents, who moved to Chicago to try to forget about the past. Still the kidnapping haunts Alice, who spends her time on a website called the Doe Pages, devoted to finding the missing--dead or alive. As she's scrolling through one day, Alice sees a familiar face: that of her kidnapper, so many years ago. Before she knows it, Alice and some others from the Doe Pages are working to find the man before he can hurt another. During their search, they meet Merrily, a woman searching for the same man for entirely different reasons. And Alice begins to dig deeper, she will uncover secrets that have long meant to be buried.

This was my first book by Lori Rader-Day and overall, I enjoyed it. I will read more by her, I'm sure. I did find the book a little choppy and hard to follow. There was just something that slowed it down for me. I also could never quite figure out why Merrily was so invested in finding Rick, Alice's missing person. I was never fully invested in the characters, including Alice or Merrily.

Still, there are a lot of mysteries to solve here and much to keep the reader guessing. The book is intricately plotted, with lots of twists. It's often captivating and certainly interesting. 3.75 stars, rounded to 4 here.
  
The Gold Digger (True Colors #9)
The Gold Digger (True Colors #9)
Liz Tolsma | 2020 | Crime, Fiction & Poetry, History & Politics
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
This book is about two sisters though one seems to be doing something quite fishy. That fishiness seems to come out when a brother comes to town looking for his missing brother. We have Belle Gunness who seems to cry a lot or seem to be mean.

Why does the town seem to pick on a guy named Ray? Ingrid seems a bit naive about what her sister is doing but she loving her sister and children. Is her sister Belle a murder or looking for easy money? The town seems to think nothing of it when men go missing or think they just leave suddenly.

We do see that Ingrid and Nils seem to connect after meeting each other. They seem to take their time getting to know each other and courting. The plot of this story is deep and detailed. The story is done well. It just seems like found out who the killer is quite quickly. It just seems that Nils had to convince Ingrid and the town sheriff or the real killer and not the one they keep pulling in to question.

There are some surprises when it is all revealed and solved. Though there is still a twist at the end as well. There seem to be a mystery and lots of crimes. This is good in the sense that it tells some history of American crime and historical fiction and crime. It is a true crime. I rate this 4.5 Moons (stars).
  
Prisoners (2013)
Prisoners (2013)
2013 | Drama, Mystery
9
6.8 (6 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Hugh Jackman (1 more)
Jake Gyllenhaal
How Far Would You Go
Prisoners- is a excellent movie. Its very sad and depressing movie. It ask you the question of "how far would you go if your daughter gets kidnapped/missing"? "What whould you do"? Denis Villeneuve does a excellent job. The whole cast is excellent.

The plot: Keller Dover (Hugh Jackman) faces a parent's worst nightmare when his 6-year-old daughter, Anna, and her friend go missing. The only lead is an old motorhome that had been parked on their street. The head of the investigation, Detective Loki (Jake Gyllenhaal), arrests the driver (Paul Dano), but a lack of evidence forces Loki to release his only suspect. Dover, knowing that his daughter's life is at stake, decides that he has no choice but to take matters into his own hands.

Aaron Guzikowski wrote the script based on a short story he wrote, partially inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart", involving "a father whose kid was struck by a hit and run driver and then puts this guy in a well in his backyard". After he wrote the spec, many actors and directors entered and exited the project, including actors Christian Bale and Leonardo DiCaprio and directors Antoine Fuqua and Bryan Singer.
Ultimately Guzikowski would credit producer Mark Wahlberg for getting the project on its feet, stating, "He was totally pivotal in getting the film made. That endorsement helped it getting the film made."

Its a excellent film.
  
40x40

Lindsay (1786 KP) rated Real Murder in Books

Sep 26, 2019  
Real Murder
Real Murder
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
There a murder or murders that no one want to unsolved. It seem that their a killer that has yet to be answered. It all starts with the discovery of the missing sheriff deputy Mike Gardner and his cruiser in the lake.

There are more mysteries to solve and it all get started once Joshua and Cameron some what gets involved. Joshua on the case with his case and Cameron deals with a case that involes a sweet old lady that is her neighbor and named Dolly. Cameron wants to find closer or answers for a mother that lost her son.

Who killed Ava Tucker and her young man? Are they all connected or not? Why was Mike looking into a local hooker murder and is it a family secret that got him killed? Hunter seem like he want to find his fathers killer. You will be surprised at how it ends.

Laura does a remarkable job of bring her characters to life. You feel the their love for each other. Tracey seem to have found her love in Hunter Gardner. Will they marry and have a happy life together. We see how Cameron and Joshua deals with their marriage issues and their love for each other as well. They seem to work well together.

If you are a mystery fan or murder fan. Then you are missing out on these author books. Lauren Carr books are must read books. She will have you leave satisfied but hungry for more. This book was no different. I love how they are all intertwined.