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Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Behind Every Lie in Books

Mar 19, 2020

Behind Every Lie

Christina McDonald | 2020 | Mystery, Thriller

8.0

(2 Ratings)

Book Rating

When Eva Hansen wakes up in the hospital, burned and battered after being struck by lightening, she learns a horrible fact: her mother, Kat, is dead. Even worse, the police tell her Kat was murdered. It quickly appears Eva is their number one suspect, having been found unconscious down the street from her mother's home. After the lightening strike, Eva can't remember what happened, but some clues from her mother's home lead her to London, her mother's former home, where she works to unravel both Kat's past and her own. But it quickly becomes apparent that someone doesn't want Eva uncovering her mother's secrets. And the more Eva begins to remember the events of that evening, the more danger she is in.

"Memories could be come distorted, twisted to suit the teller, or ignored and forgotten, pushed away. I should know. I'd been doing it for years."

This was my first book by Christina McDonald, but I'll definitely be tracking down her first book now as well. This was a spellbinding thriller, which I found quite difficult to put down. It's told in the alternating perspectives of Eva, in present-day, and her mom, Kat, in the past. The format works quite effectively and somehow gives the book a frenetic, frantic pacing and feel.

It's hard to know if Eva is telling us the truth, as she's been struck by lightning (!) and alludes to previous problems, too. Kat quickly emerges as a mysterious and dynamic character, too. As their stories unfold and start to converge, I was quite fascinated and intrigued, and the pages just flew by. I guessed quite a bit, but it didn't diminish my enjoyment at all, and I enjoyed all the twists and turns. (There's much more than Kat and Eva, but I don't want to spoil anything!)

Overall, I'm glad I followed all the #bookstagram hype and picked this one up. It was a quick, intense read. Different and engaging! 4 stars.

Kudos

Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2165 KP) rated Coconut Layer Cake Murder in Books

Mar 23, 2020

Clearing Lonnie

Hannah Swensen, owner of The Cookie Jar, has been ordered to rest – it came straight from Doc himself. But a trip to California to help a friend pack up is cut short when Hannah’s younger sister, Michelle, calls in a panic. There’s been another murder in Lake Eden, and Michelle’s boyfriend, Lonnie, is the prime suspect. After a night out with friends, Lonnie took a drunk woman home only to pass out on her couch. The next morning, he wakes up to find her dead in her bedroom with no memory of anything after he passed out. Since Lonnie is a detective with the police department, most of them can’t investigate since they are friends with the suspect. Naturally, Hannah immediately flies home, but can she figure out who is the killer?

If you haven’t read the last few books, be aware this one spoils some pretty major things by necessity since they had a major impact on Hannah’s life. Those up to date on the series will be happy to learn we get an answer to the cliffhanger from the last book early on. This book is a return to the status quo of a few entries ago. After a slow start, the pacing gets better once Hannah returns home. There is still plenty of talk about cooking, however, but we get clues and red herrings until we reach the climax. The characters are all here, and I enjoyed seeing them, but there is little in the way of actual character development. That includes the love triangle, which is back in play here. We get another nineteen recipes, and I think I gained weight reading about them. They certainly sound delicious. Fans who have stuck with this series will enjoy this outing. If you are new, don’t jump in here but go back to the beginning to see why we love these characters.

Kudos

Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2165 KP) rated Murder Makes Scents in Books

Feb 26, 2020

Stella Returns Home with an Unexpected Souvenir – Danger

Stella Wright is taking a break from the Wick & Flame, her candle shop on Nantucket, to attend a perfume conference in Paris with her mother, Millie, who is one of the speakers. The conference ends abruptly, however, when Stella and Millie are part of a crowd that witnesses a man being stabbed right in front of them. After being questioned by the police, they return home to the island, assuming their only connection to the crime is behind them. Stella quickly begins to think that trouble has followed them home. Is she correct? What might their connection to the murder be?

When I first heard this book was going to start in Paris and move the action to Nantucket, I was worried the author wouldn’t be able to pull it off. From the pacing standpoint, I didn’t have any issues with this book since the story picked up quickly. The book uses a MacGuffin to ignite the plot, and that’s where my issue was. I just couldn’t buy into it. Having said that, I still found the story compelling since the stakes were personal for Stella. I flew through the book in a couple of days because I had to know what was going on. The climax is a bit over the top, but it fits the plot well. Due to the nature of the story, we don’t see as much of the supporting cast from the original, but the new characters more than make up for it. They are perfect at being suspicious without being obviously the villain. Unfortunately, there are also a few timelines issues in the story, but nothing that affects the plot, just stuff that annoys me. We get some tips for making candle molds and a delicious sounding cranberry pie recipe at the end of the book. Even with my issues, I was glad I read this book.