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Pretty Little Wife
Pretty Little Wife
Darby Kane | 2021
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Slow to start, but ultimately an intriguing and unique thriller

Lila Ridgefield's husband is missing. A beloved high school teacher, his boss, colleagues, and brother cannot believe that Aaron Payne would just disappear. He's certainly not the type to simply not show up for work one day. As for his wife, Lila is known more for her cold and quiet demeanor (and, let's be honest, her beauty). She's also pretty confused, because the last time she saw Aaron, she was rather convinced she was looking at his dead body. So where's his car she left behind--and the body? Investigator Ginny Davis is called to look into Aaron's disappearance. At first it seems unrelated to that of a missing local student. But the more Ginny digs, the more she starts to wonder. And the more Lila digs, the more she fears her husband is still alive.

"Despite all her careful planning, he was gone. She had to find Aaron before he found her."

Well, this was quite a book. The beginning was a bit slow for me--it took too long to get to the exciting part, and it was repetitive. It felt like bits and pieces were rehashed over and over. I wanted to shake Lila and tell her to get on with it!

But, once everything gets moving, this is quite an exciting thriller. The last fourth of the story especially is incredibly electrifying and, for the most part, keeps you guessing. (I had a decent idea about whodunnit, but it didn't diminish my enjoyment at all.) I loved the concept of a mystery where the woman kills her husband, yet the main story is, surprise: he disappears anyway. The dynamic between cunning Lila, whom you're never sure you can trust, and Ginny, who is a straightforward and honest investigator, is excellent. I enjoy a book with strong female protagonists and these two are excellent.

Overall, even though this dragged for a bit, it's certainly worth a read. For one thing, it's different, which is so refreshing in the thriller genre. It's also dark, intriguing, and surprising. 3.5 stars, rounded to 4 here.

I received a copy of this book from HarperCollins Publishers and Netgalley in return for an unbiased review.
  
The Shrine of Jeffery Dahmer
The Shrine of Jeffery Dahmer
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
39 of 250
Book
The Shrine of Jeffery Dahmer
By Brian Masters

Once read a review will be written via Smashbomb and link posted in comments

AN UNSPEAKABLE CRIME

When he was arrested in July 1991, Jeffrey Dahmer had a severed head in the refrigerator, two more in the freezer, two skulls and a skeleton in a filing cabinet.

A DEPRIVED ACT

But if anything could be more disturbing than the brute horror of this scene, it was the evidence that Dahmer had been using these human remains not only for sexual gratification, but as part of a dark ritual of his own devising -- to furnish a shrine to himself.

A KILLER, BEYOND OUR UNDERSTANDING
________________________________________

The Shrine of Jeffrey Dahmer offers a chilling insight into the mind of a serial killer and reveals the horrors within.




This had me gripped! After watching Des which is a tv adaptation of the UK serial killer Denis Nielsen who killed in similar ways to Dahmer this author came to my attention. This delved deeper into Dahmers life and childhood it’s so easy to place blame when in fact this was a very sick individual! We could argue he was a victim of the very poor mental health system. The book is very well written every well researched it in no way glorifies the hideous crimes committed by Dahmer but it does bring to your attention the thin line the mental health sits on. This poor men and their families I did find a few parts very hard to stomach and read and it keeps you questioning all the way through I think my husband got annoyed at me constantly trying to discuss or read certain bits out to him just so I could process them myself!

It’s a fascinating subject in the sense do we decide between nurture vs nature, control and no control is there that part of the brain missing in men like Dahmer that says no stop missing? Also it brings to light very slack policing also shines a bad light on those professionals that didn’t pick up those warning signs could some of these men’s life been saved? .
I guess it’s something we will never know!
  
40x40

Laura Doe (1350 KP) rated Mirrorland in Books

Jul 1, 2021  
Mirrorland
Mirrorland
Carole Johnstone | 2021 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
10
9.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
This book was not at all what I expected, but in the best way.

We start off with Cat flying back from America to Edinburgh after her twin sister El has gone missing. Cat goes back to Edinburgh to find that her twin and her husband, Ross, have moved back into El and Cat’s childhood home. Whilst there, memories of their shared past start to come back to Cat but she spends most of the time trying to work out if they’re real memories or memories of the fantasies that the girls made up and played out. The main part of the girls’ childhood was a place that they called Mirrorland, a hidden tunnel that led to a locked wash house that they used to play in most of their childhood. As more and more memories come back, Cat has to deal with the trauma that occurred during their childhood. At the same time, she also has to deal with her sister missing and presumed dead. Cat is adamant the whole time that El isn’t dead and that she would know if she was as she would “feel” it, being identical twins she could always feel her sister’s pain. Cat also has to deal with her feelings for Ross resurfacing as he was also a large part of their childhood and she has never got over her feelings for him.

There were so many twists and turns in this book, that I had a hard time telling what was real from what was fantasy and it really put me in the mindset of Cat and her struggle to separate the two. I thought for the last part of the book that I had it all figured out, but in the last couple of chapters Carole Johnstone really threw a spanner in the works and changed everything again. Whilst a little confusing at times, it was good because it did make you empathise with Cat and how she was remembering things that had happened in her past.

Thank you to Carole Johnstone and Pigeonhole for allowing me to read this book in return for an honest review, I loved it!
  
All He Needs (My Truth #1)
All He Needs (My Truth #1)
Ann Grech | 2019 | Contemporary, LGBTQ+, Romance
8
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
one teeny little niggle . . .
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.

Caden has lusted after his straight friend, Mason, for some time. Add in Rick, and Caden thinks he’s nuts for wanting two men. Then Caden’s snowboarding career is ended by a silly stupid mistake on his part, and he needs to go home to help his sister with her imminent arrival. But home is half-way across the globe and Caden doesn’t know if he’ll ever get back to New Zealand. When Caden is faced with a devastating loss, Mason and Rick come running to help THEIR man. Because Caden is THEIRS, they just need him to see it.

I loved this, a LOT!

All three guys have been lusting after the other two for some time, and it was great watching them all come together, even if it took such a loss to Caden for make everyone see.

All three guys have a say, in the first person. Each change occurs as the chapter changes and each change is clearly headed.

It’s not overly explicit, but it IS heart breaking in places. Caden’s loss, then the possibility he might lose his baby niece, and the way his father has dealt with everything up to now. His dad does comes good though, and I think Mason and Rick were great for Dad as well as Caden.

I have just one thing, that stops in getting 5 stars.

I felt I was missing some information on each of the guys stories, some back history that I wasn’t getting. Like there was another book before this one that I should have read.

Were these guys in another series, even as secondary characters? I’m not sure EXACTLY what I was missing, but you all know I’m all about sharing my feelings, and THIS feeling stayed with me right through the whole book!

Still, a very enjoyable read, that I stayed up way past my bedtime to finish in one sitting. It would be great to catch up with all of these guys, Dad included, at some point.

So, ONLY because of that niggly feeling.....

4 stars

**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
  
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