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I received this book from YA Reads as part of the blog tour in return for a fair and honest review.

The second in the series sees Mike off at university and Rowan trying to finish her last year of school. She is still living with the Andersons and is trying to ignore her family as best she can. She is doing a pretty good job of it too until she hears her father is back in town and then it all goes belly up. Trina reappears and makes herself a nuisance as usual, and as usual, it appears that only Rowan and her friend Jess, can see what she's up to. Everyone else is taken in and fooled by her deceptions.

This book is just as raw as the first one although the circumstances are now slightly different. You will still feel for Rowan as she tries to do the right thing and make her house of cards as stable as possible. I was very pleased with the outcome of her relationship with Mike although I won't say more than that to ensure I don't spoil it for anyone one. Rowan certainly grows in this book and I was pleased to see her making plans for herself and looking to the future.

This series is one that is raw, gritty and full of pain. It is also an exceedingly good read that will draw you in and make you feel the main female's emotions.
  
Ghosts of Winter (Grey Areas #2)
Ghosts of Winter (Grey Areas #2)
Brad Carl | 2015 | Crime, Romance, Thriller
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Following his flight from Gable, Iowa after getting inadvertently involved in a drug war, Barrett Grayson is determined to stay on the run from the FBI. However some bad news from home makes him re-evaluate his actions. Back in Gable the fallout from the fateful night of Chum's party continues with the local police and DEA determined to track down the missing drugs and the cartel prepared to stop at nothing to get hold of them instead. Meanwhile Claire can't shake thoughts of 'Henry Fields' from her head.

The first book in this sage was good; this second is even better. Carl is a very talented author who can move seamlessly between emotional and romantic to crime drama without missing a beat. As with the first book, despite a large cast of characters each one is depicted with incredible realism.

The thrust of the saga is that black and white don't exist, that everyone has shades of grey and has to make decisions which may be compromising or morally questionable, and that is brought into sharp relief here with what would normally be 'good guys' and 'bad guys' both blurring a lot of lines and meeting in the middle.

Despite being the second in a sequence of four books this does have its own plot which moves to a satisfying conclusion but obviously leaves all the main players in place for the next book. Anyone who picks this up and reads it will not be disappointed.
  
Mermaid Mysteries
Mermaid Mysteries
Diane Vallere | 2019 | Mystery
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Go Under the Sea for this Novella Collection
This collection contains three mystery novellas that take the reader under the sea for stories starring three mermaid sisters, the daughter of the leader of their community of Sirenia. Up first, Zoe finds a mystery after she rescues a diver at a shipwreck she loves to explore. Next, Kyra discovers something strange happening at the vault of cultural treasures. Finally, Ava must step into leadership earlier than expected when someone kidnaps Mother.

Each of the three novella is only 90 pages each, so they are easy reads, but they are delightful. They are part coming of age tales, and watching the sisters grow is remarkable. We get to see the other characters from three sets of eyes, so it is fun to see how the different sisters view those around them. The undersea world is brought to life with a delightful attention to detail; there are many elements that made me smile, and I’d love to dive in for a visit if I could only breath underwater. The mysteries themselves are good and compelling. One ended a bit abruptly, but that was a minor complaint. If you want to try something different with your mysteries, this collection is for you.

NOTE: The novellas were originally released individually as ebooks before being combined into this electronic and print collection. Make sure you aren’t buying the same content a second time, but by all means, buy it once.
  
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Kate (493 KP) rated The Silent Patient in Books

Apr 12, 2020  
The Silent Patient
The Silent Patient
Alex Michaelides | 2019 | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
10
8.3 (39 Ratings)
Book Rating
Great twist (0 more)
Gripping read - kept me guessing
This is one of the best books I have read and I have read a lot. I was gripped from the very start and it was good going back and forward from past to present as the full story starts to come together.
I read a lot of crime books and can usually guess the perpetrator and the motive usually quite quickly but this book had me guessing. When Alicia and Theo's story merge and everything falls into place this was something I could never have guessed. It all made sense and you kind of say 'oh yeah'. When I got to this part of the book I had to finish this. I couldn't put it down all the way through. I finished it in 2 days.
I started to feel for Theo. Alicia's silence was frustrating me and I was just the reader. The things happening in his personal life were awful and I wanted to tell him what do as he was on a bad path. But it is surprising hoe your feelings for a character can change so quickly. This happened with a few characters but mainly Theo.
Anyone who reads and enjoys crime books should definitely give this book a read. It is a different type of crime book.
The book exceeded all expectations based on the blurb.
I would read other books from Alex Michaelides.