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Winner of the 2019 CWA Dagger New Blood Award for Best First Crime Novel In an isolated country...
Surviving the Holocaust and Stalin: The Amazing Story of the Seiler Family
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The horrors of Auschwitz, Bergen-Belsen and labor camps were just the beginning of the struggle to...
Emanuela Orlandi and Ettore Majorana: Two Italian Mysteries Resolved?
10.0
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Discover the captivating true stories of Emanuela Orlandi and Ettore Majorana in this compelling...
Shadowman (Shadow #3)
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Erin Kellison’s Shadow series darkens with this evocative and gripping romance between a fae lord...
Urban Fantasy Romance
Merissa (12069 KP) rated Some Kind of Truth in Books
Apr 19, 2024
SOME KIND OF TRUTH is a dark mystery crime thriller about a reporter on the search for truth. Steve James has gone through his own trauma that is similar to that of the girl on the USB stick he anonymously receives. After receiving the approval of his editor, he goes to small-town USA - Hanover if you want the particulars - to find out just what happened.
This was a good story that had me turning the pages, even as I suspended reality. Steve, and the local journalist helping him, Amy, go around the town and surrounding areas, going into houses, and making discoveries that should have been reported to the police.
There were a few errors that I spotted, just as Lance Corporal Lewis Brenner changing to Lance Corporal Kyle Brenner and Private Lewis Lomax. They weren't enough to spoil my reading but they were noticeable.
Steve was a sympathetic character to begin with, but his constant musings about drink and alcohol became monotonous, even knowing the reasons why he used them as a crutch. He can see things others might miss, although he is not infallible.
A dark and gritty story that I can definitely recommend.
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Apr 13, 2024
This was a good story that had me turning the pages, even as I suspended reality. Steve, and the local journalist helping him, Amy, go around the town and surrounding areas, going into houses, and making discoveries that should have been reported to the police.
There were a few errors that I spotted, just as Lance Corporal Lewis Brenner changing to Lance Corporal Kyle Brenner and Private Lewis Lomax. They weren't enough to spoil my reading but they were noticeable.
Steve was a sympathetic character to begin with, but his constant musings about drink and alcohol became monotonous, even knowing the reasons why he used them as a crutch. He can see things others might miss, although he is not infallible.
A dark and gritty story that I can definitely recommend.
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Apr 13, 2024
Amy Christmas (170 KP) rated The Perfect Victim in Books
Nov 17, 2017
Twists that you don't expect (3 more)
Great writing
There are multiple story threads
Easy to connect to the characters and care about the events of the story
A small amount of cliché plot devices (1 more)
Can get bland in some areas
Keeps you hanging
I bloody loved this book. I usually hate these kinds of mystery thrillers and only like the very best the genre has to offer, and this definitely impressed.
You read from Sophie Kent's point of view, a journalist on the job, and there has been a murder. It isn't long before people start to point fingers at people one of them being Charlie Swift, Sophies co-worker. As evidence keeps turning to him further bolsters by his disappearance Sophie struggles to accept that Charlie could murder a woman.
Sophie does her job and investigates, stating one step ahead of the police's investigation and uncovers a broken childhood, a religious cult, burning bodies, and several murders.
What makes this book so good in my opinion is that it isn't solely focused on the murder and the characters have their own story arcs, their own problems.
Sophie had a younger brother Tommy who supposedly died of drug use, a fractured relationship with her father and DCI Durand keeps coming to her rescue but out of personal gain or affection is the question. There are struggles within the police force and the more important characters have lives.
I would recommend this book to no end, and that's coming from someone who usually dislikes these kinds of books.
You read from Sophie Kent's point of view, a journalist on the job, and there has been a murder. It isn't long before people start to point fingers at people one of them being Charlie Swift, Sophies co-worker. As evidence keeps turning to him further bolsters by his disappearance Sophie struggles to accept that Charlie could murder a woman.
Sophie does her job and investigates, stating one step ahead of the police's investigation and uncovers a broken childhood, a religious cult, burning bodies, and several murders.
What makes this book so good in my opinion is that it isn't solely focused on the murder and the characters have their own story arcs, their own problems.
Sophie had a younger brother Tommy who supposedly died of drug use, a fractured relationship with her father and DCI Durand keeps coming to her rescue but out of personal gain or affection is the question. There are struggles within the police force and the more important characters have lives.
I would recommend this book to no end, and that's coming from someone who usually dislikes these kinds of books.
Suswatibasu (1701 KP) rated Time: The Kalief Browder Story in TV
Sep 19, 2017
Bawled like like baby, heartwrenching, horrific and utterly disgusted
It's been a while since any TV series or film has affected me as much as the Kalief Browder story. I think it made me feel nauseous at one point. The level of hideous injustice Browder faced, more so the fact he was just a boy, is worse than most police corruption cases covered by the media.
An innocent boy was held without trial, without conviction for three years in one of the most notorious prisons (Rikers Prison) where he was beaten senselessly by correction officers and inmates alike. He was then held in solitary confinement for 322 days (UN calls 15 days a human rights violation), tortured, starved and attempted suicide. This is New York. This is the American justice system.
When he was eventually released his mental health suffered, and it just gets worse and worse. I won't say anymore before I burst into tears again.
There are some remarkable interviews in here with Kalief's family, who were torn to shreds, top speakers such as Attorney General Eric Holder, "The New Jim Crow" author Michelle Alexander, journalist Shaun King, and even Jay-Z and Rosie O'Donnell, who were close friends. The biggest take away is how broken the system is / intended racial segregation and how important it is for the civil rights movement to join forces with the greater American populace to stop further injustices.
Seriously keep the tissues at hand. This is a hundred times more disturbing than Making A Murderer and The Keepers.
An innocent boy was held without trial, without conviction for three years in one of the most notorious prisons (Rikers Prison) where he was beaten senselessly by correction officers and inmates alike. He was then held in solitary confinement for 322 days (UN calls 15 days a human rights violation), tortured, starved and attempted suicide. This is New York. This is the American justice system.
When he was eventually released his mental health suffered, and it just gets worse and worse. I won't say anymore before I burst into tears again.
There are some remarkable interviews in here with Kalief's family, who were torn to shreds, top speakers such as Attorney General Eric Holder, "The New Jim Crow" author Michelle Alexander, journalist Shaun King, and even Jay-Z and Rosie O'Donnell, who were close friends. The biggest take away is how broken the system is / intended racial segregation and how important it is for the civil rights movement to join forces with the greater American populace to stop further injustices.
Seriously keep the tissues at hand. This is a hundred times more disturbing than Making A Murderer and The Keepers.
Billie Wichkan (118 KP) rated The Missing Sister in Books
May 22, 2019
Belle Hatton has embarked upon an exciting new life far from home: a glamorous job as a nightclub singer in 1930s Burma, with a host of sophisticated new friends and admirers. But Belle is haunted by a mystery from the past - a 25 year old newspaper clipping found in her parents' belongings after their death, saying that the Hattons were leaving Rangoon after the disappearance of their baby daughter, Elvira.
Belle is desperate to find out what happened to the sister she never knew she had - but when she starts asking questions, she is confronted with unsettling rumours, malicious gossip, and outright threats. Oliver, an attractive, easy-going American journalist, promises to help her, but an anonymous note tells her not to trust those closest to her. . .
Belle survives riots, intruders, and bomb attacks - but nothing will stop her in her mission to uncover the truth. Can she trust her growing feelings for Oliver? Is her sister really dead? And could there be a chance Belle might find her?
This book is an interesting mix of mystery and romance set in 1930s Burma, and swaps between the stories of Belle, a nightclub singer and Diana, her mother. This novel has mystery, tension, violence and romance.
The setting in colonial Burma was beautifully written. It was an easy read and I enjoyed this story and would recommend.
I received a copy of The missing sister by Dinah Jefferies from the publisher via NetGalley, the review is my own opinion.
Belle is desperate to find out what happened to the sister she never knew she had - but when she starts asking questions, she is confronted with unsettling rumours, malicious gossip, and outright threats. Oliver, an attractive, easy-going American journalist, promises to help her, but an anonymous note tells her not to trust those closest to her. . .
Belle survives riots, intruders, and bomb attacks - but nothing will stop her in her mission to uncover the truth. Can she trust her growing feelings for Oliver? Is her sister really dead? And could there be a chance Belle might find her?
This book is an interesting mix of mystery and romance set in 1930s Burma, and swaps between the stories of Belle, a nightclub singer and Diana, her mother. This novel has mystery, tension, violence and romance.
The setting in colonial Burma was beautifully written. It was an easy read and I enjoyed this story and would recommend.
I received a copy of The missing sister by Dinah Jefferies from the publisher via NetGalley, the review is my own opinion.
Sassy Brit (97 KP) rated The Dark Net in Books
Jun 5, 2019
The Dark Net by Benjamin Percy is a complex story in which the horror is the realisation that it could happen to all of us, and we’d be unable to stop it!
There’s a large cast of characters at the beginning, which I have to admit you could easily lose track of, and it’s not everyone’s preferred writing style, but you just know there’s a reason these people are mentioned straight up and that they are all going to meet somewhere along the storyline to make sense of it all. As I read this it was like I had a movie playing out in my mind. We see shots of a dodgy run server group in one scene. Next we meet Hannah with a high-tech prosthetic that restores her sight, but can’t understand why she can now see shadows surrounding certain people. Then there’s Lala a technophobic journalist, (Hannah’s auntie ), Mike the gun hoarder who sees things that can’t possibly be there, Derek a genius hacker and, to top it all, a virus spreading through the net that had a very old-school, Shaun Hutson, evil, demonic force feel to it. Who can stop this evil presence from getting out of control and fight back?
Dark, creepy, urban-techno horror with an old-school, supernatural feel that I particularly enjoyed. What would we all do if the devil got inside our homes, schools, offices through our computers? Who’d save us? Not our anti-virus protection, that’s for sure!
There’s a large cast of characters at the beginning, which I have to admit you could easily lose track of, and it’s not everyone’s preferred writing style, but you just know there’s a reason these people are mentioned straight up and that they are all going to meet somewhere along the storyline to make sense of it all. As I read this it was like I had a movie playing out in my mind. We see shots of a dodgy run server group in one scene. Next we meet Hannah with a high-tech prosthetic that restores her sight, but can’t understand why she can now see shadows surrounding certain people. Then there’s Lala a technophobic journalist, (Hannah’s auntie ), Mike the gun hoarder who sees things that can’t possibly be there, Derek a genius hacker and, to top it all, a virus spreading through the net that had a very old-school, Shaun Hutson, evil, demonic force feel to it. Who can stop this evil presence from getting out of control and fight back?
Dark, creepy, urban-techno horror with an old-school, supernatural feel that I particularly enjoyed. What would we all do if the devil got inside our homes, schools, offices through our computers? Who’d save us? Not our anti-virus protection, that’s for sure!
Lenard (726 KP) rated A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019) in Movies
Nov 22, 2019
Based on a magazine article written by an Esquire investigative reporter assigned a profile on Fred Rogers, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is the Tuesdays With Morrie adaptation of the man who guided generations of children through the perils of childhood. Opening in the style of the famed PBS series Mr. Rogers Neighborhood, we begin by learning the story of journalist Lloyd Vogel, a man very much in need of a change in attitude. He harbors a lot of father issues. The editor of Esquire wants him to write one of the articles for an issue on Heroes, but everyone has read his work and is afraid to talk to him. That is,except for the one man in the world who never judges others until he has walked in his shoes. In other words, you need to know a person in order to really be able to know someone. Tom Hanks is a national treasure and perfectly captures the heart and soul of a man who exuberates compassion and willing teaches everyone the most important lesson of life. Matthew Rhys capably plays Lloyd as he comes to grips with all the buried feelings of the childhood he had which turned him into the man he is. Chris Cooper stands out as Jerry, the father who abandoned his family when life became too rough. Overall, the movie is good, and the movie achieves its goal: telling the story of how one person can make a huge difference in the lives of others just by listening.