David McK (3600 KP) rated Bird Box (2018) in Movies
Aug 23, 2020 (Updated Jan 17, 2023)
Starring Sandra Bullock, this was sold on the (strong) imagery of a blindfolded woman leading two equally blindfolded children through a river journey - the film, later, makes it clear that this is because a mysterious entity has decimated the population, driving whoever sees it (we don't) mad and causing them to commit suicide.
The film is actually told in both the 'now' of the journey and '5 year previously' (when this first started happening), with Sandra Bullock's character of Malorie heavily pregnant and trapped in a house with other survivors - we know, of course (they're not in the 'now'!) that they're all going to be bumped off one by one, but the suspense is in the how and when.
The ending also, apparently, is a lot less dark that the book on which it is based, and I still have little idea why the film is even called Bird Box!
A Little Class on Murder
9.0
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When mystery bookstore owner Annie Laurance is invited to teach "The Three Great Ladies of the...
2 bus journeys.
That's roughly how long it took me to read this, from virtual cover to virtual cover (and on my second attempt - I don't think I was in the right mood the first time around), after it was recommended to me by a friend.
As I'm pretty sure was the authors intent, I got a definite feeling of a 'Suicide Squad' setup out of this, with the story told from the point of view of a member within that team. I also got the distinct feeling that this was more of a taster, if you will, more of a trial run to see if the idea worked than a full formed and fledged novel in its own right.
Think a short story in an omnibus collection, or something along those lines - something to introduce readers to the characters and the world they inhabit and to (hopefully) whet the readers appetite for further entries.
In that regard, as least, and for me: job done.
Hazel (2934 KP) rated What His Wife Knew in Books
Feb 20, 2022
Oscar is found dead by his brother at the bottom of Cloud Drop; a note is found which just says "sorry" and his wedding ring in his car - a slam bunk you might say but his wife, Beth, is having none of it and the more she delves, the more she realises her husband is not who she thought he was but neither are those around her.
This was proper good! The story was compelling with plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing and although I guessed the main twist, it didn't ruin the story for me at all as it was great getting there. The main characters are excellent and well developed and the pace is good.
All in all, a great psychological/domestic thriller and one which I would recommend to lovers of this genre.
Thank you Penguin Random House UK and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.
Hazel (2934 KP) rated Still Standing (Matt Standing #3) in Books
Dec 31, 2022
When Pete Green apparently commits suicide whilst taking a break in Thailand, his twin brother smells a rat; Matt agrees to accompany him to find out how Pete died and repatriate his body back to the UK. On arrival, it quickly becomes apparent that things are definitely not what they seem and things quickly go downhill and it's going to take all Matt's SAS training and guile, as well as a little intel from a certain "Spider" back in the UK, to get out of the trouble he finds himself in.
Well written, fast paced with great characters and an excellent story, this is a great read that I wouldn't hesitate to recommend to others and my thanks go to Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of Still Standing.
Greed (Seven Princes of Sin #4)
10.0
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Left homeless and penniless after her husband's death, Isabel faces more bad luck. Her apartment...
Dark Contemporary Fantasy Erotica Romance TRIGGER WARNINGS: Profanity
An American Conspiracy
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"Secrets are the fuel that keeps this city burning. I thought I could play the game better than...
thriller political thriller
David McK (3600 KP) rated The Valley of Fear in Books
Apr 13, 2024
The Hound of the Baskervilles (natch)
A Study in Scarlet
The Sign of Four
The Red-Headed League
The Final Problem
.. and a few others whose name I cannot currently recall.
None of them, however, were this one.
Like "The Hound...", this was a later-written story, but is also set before Holmes encounter with Moriarty at the Reichenbach Falls. And like "A Study in Scarlet", it's also very much split into distinct sections: the first section in which Holmes and Watson are called to the English countryside to investigate a murder (or is it suicide?), and the a whole other section set in the United States of America filling in the backgrounds of the principal actor of the first section.
Being new to me, also, I have to say I did wonder - until the reveal! - just how this whole section (and the mention of the Pinkerton Detective Agency) fitted into the first part.
Perhaps because of its novelty (to me), I also fairly enjoyed this.
Bridge at the Beach (A Clyde Smith Mystery #4)
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Clyde’s idyllic afternoon in the surf with his mates is interrupted by the news that there’s...
Crime Thriller Series
Gold Rush
6.0
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We give celebrities a power they don’t deserve. Power they haven’t earned. What happens when...
Trigger warnings: sexual assault Trigger Warnings: rape Trigger Warnings: suicide Trigger Warnings: eating disorders and drug taking