Tag: mystery

Reviews

Behind Her Eyes Review

by amyleighreadsLeave a Comment on Behind Her Eyes Review

*BEWARE OF SPOILERS*

Louise is a single mom, a secretary, stuck in a modern-day rut. On a rare night out, she meets a man in a bar and sparks fly. Though he leaves after they kiss, she’s thrilled she finally connected with someone. When Louise arrives at work on Monday, she meets her new boss, David. The man from the bar. The very married man from the bar…who says the kiss was a terrible mistake but who still can’t keep his eyes off Louise.

Louise I enjoyed as a character. Her perspective being the other woman in a marriage was interesting to read from especially since she’s quite relatable. Some of the decisions she makes like continuing her friendship with Adele were not the greatest but I can see why she would want to.

Adele I honestly thought was inconsequential at first. I figured this was just mainly focus on David’s infidelity’s and finding out that he was actually behind the fire that killed her parents. I definitely didn’t think she would progress into the sociopathic character she was portrayed to be in the end. I was very much intrigued and entertained by the way she played Louise and orchestrated everything, to say I was shocked would be an understatement.

David is a tricky one. I can understand the predicament he has found himself in being stuck in this marriage with Adele but if he would of just come clean from the start like he wanted to none of this would of happened. I think he is just as culpable as Adele and I feel like there should of been some ramifications for being an accessory. He is still a cheater at the end of the day and there was nothing really about the man that appealed to me. I don’t understand why Adele and Louise are both so enamored by him, we only ever see him drunk and crazed most of the time.

The overall pacing was very well done. Though not a lot happens for about 3/4 of this book I still felt compelled to continue reading and figure out what Adele was going to do next and what was this secret she was holding over David’s head. I liked the supernatural element, it gave the book a little excitement, especially after Louise figured it out.

⭐️4/5 stars That last twist at the end was mind blowing!!

Reviews

All Her Little Secrets Review

by amyleighreadsLeave a Comment on All Her Little Secrets Review

*BEWARE OF SPOILERS BELOW*

Ellice Littlejohn seemingly has it all: an Ivy League law degree, a well-paying job as a corporate attorney in midtown Atlanta, great friends, and a “for fun” relationship with a rich, charming executive—her white boss, Michael. But everything changes one cold January morning when Ellice goes to meet Michael… and finds him dead with a gunshot to his head.

Ellice was definitely an interesting character. I honestly didn’t think she had much to hide per se but as the story progresses and we find out more of her secrets I felt sad for her. She had a traumatic upbringing and even though she managed to escape her circumstances she was left feeling immense guilt for leaving her little brother there. Which is obviously why she kept bailing him out and loaning him money. I liked to see her kind of devolve as she delves further into the mystery behind Michael’s death and who she thought was behind it.

I think it would of been more interesting if this was a dual perspective from Sam’s point of view as well. He is so wrapped up in this whole conspiracy and he eventually pays for it with his life. I still feel like he could of gave us more insight into what they had to deal with in childhood and it could of been a fascinating to see how contrasting their lives are now.

I did however really enjoyed the flashbacks to Ellice’s past. I like that there was more to her than what we originally perceived. Vera I adore and I liked the fact that she is still a major factor in both Ellice and Sam’s life and they continue to visit and show their love for her. It added a lot of depth to the storyline and showed us why Ellice acts the way she does and her reasonings behind her decisions she’s made in her life, like keeping her little secrets.

In terms of the actual mystery surrounding Michael’s death and who was behind it, I was underwhelmed. I just feel like there wasn’t enough high stakes moments that could of upped my entertainment factor. I want to be shocked and even though there were some twists throughout the plot I didn’t foresee it was all that interesting to find out. Talks about shipments and deliveries and gun orders to find out about a secret deal that leads to a conspiracy was boring.

⭐️2/5 stars I was just a little bored at times..

Reviews

The Paris Apartment Review

by amyleighreadsLeave a Comment on The Paris Apartment Review

*SPOILERS AHEAD*

Jess needs a fresh start. She’s broke and alone, and she’s just left her job under less than ideal circumstances. Her half-brother Ben didn’t sound thrilled when she asked if she could crash with him for a bit, but he didn’t say no, and surely everything will look better from Paris. Only when she shows up – to find a very nice apartment, could Ben really have afforded this? – he’s not there.

Jess’s character felt new and fresh to me. I liked the fact that she’s led a completely different life to Ben and even though they’ve had their differences and grown apart she doesn’t give up her search. She’s definitely wary of those around her and I appreciated how she didn’t just take everyone’s word at face value and dug around a little more to unearth all the dirty little secrets.

The multiple POVs were a great touch I think. It made it easier to differentiate between all the different characters and added depth to the plot. Learning what everyone was doing prior to Ben’s disappearance and seeing how they all weave together was very satisfying.

The setting of this apartment building in Paris was fantastic. We really get a sense of just how gritty and dark Paris can be and how one’s perception of a place can just be so wrong. Having all the secret passages between the apartments and the mysterious nature of the concierge added to the overall tone of the book.

In terms of all the different twists and reveals it was very dramatic for sure. I can’t say it was the most shocking thriller book I’ve read but I feel like the entertainment factor was so high that I was just happy to go along for the ride. In retrospect the main twist was quite obvious but during my read I really didn’t predict any of the main plot points which made for a easy and fun experience.

⭐️4/5 stars I was here for the drama of it all!

Reviews

Local Woman Missing Review

by amyleighreadsLeave a Comment on Local Woman Missing Review

*A FEW SPOILERS*

Shelby Tebow is the first to go missing. Not long after, Meredith Dickey and her six-year-old daughter, Delilah, vanish just blocks away from where Shelby was last seen, striking fear into their once-peaceful community. Are these incidents connected? After an elusive search that yields more questions than answers, the case eventually goes cold. Now, 11 years later, Delilah shockingly returns. Everyone wants to know what happened to her, but no one is prepared for what they’ll find….

First of all reading from Delilah’s point of view those first few chapters where we find out what happened to her was horrible. I can’t imagine being in that situation, being abused and starved on a regular basis for years and still having the courage to fight and break free from her captors. It really showed her resilience and perseverance and I was glad she was able to escape from those horrors and find her way back to her family!

Meredith on the other hand I didn’t really care all to much about. She clearly has taken on too much with her two jobs and taking care of Leo and Delilah, letting things go where she would of otherwise taken a lot more serious. I don’t understand why she didn’t just tell her husband about what was going on with Shelby and that malpractice case as well as the threatening texts she was receiving. She claims to love and trust him more than anything yet she’s keeping all of these secrets from him, struggling to maintain her lifestyle and feeling guilty about sending her son to day care when she doesn’t even really need to work.

I was confused as to why we were getting the perspective from Kate but she definitely added much needed context and diversity to the storyline. I can’t say I was particularly attached to either of them but their dynamic was interesting to read from and to get an outside but still close look at the aftermath of Meredith and Delilah going missing. Leo’s perspective was my favourite though! I loved his candour and unapologetic nature of his thoughts and feelings. He has had to deal with a lot growing up under the shadow of this tragedy and more often than not he is overlooked and unappreciated.

The pacing started off a little slow for me and I found myself getting disinterested the first half of the book. But then when we start finding out about what happened to Shelby and then when all of the timelines converge and we get the full truth it all felt a bit rushed. I can’t honestly say this would be a believable scenario that would ever play out, it was a little over the top and ridiculous but still entertaining and unpredictable!

⭐️3/5 stars Good not great!

Reviews

One by One Review

by amyleighreadsLeave a Comment on One by One Review

*Definite spoilers below*

Getting snowed in at a beautiful, rustic mountain chalet doesn’t sound like the worst problem in the world, especially when there’s a breath-taking vista, a cosy fire, and company to keep you warm. But what happens when that company is eight of your co-workers…and you can’t trust any of them?

I definitely preferred Erin over every other character in this book. I felt like she was the most fleshed out and we got more of a background with her and how she ended up at the chalet. I thought she was a very realistic character and all of the choices that she made would be the same if I was in that situation. I felt very sympathetic towards her and I liked the way she thinks and how she managed to figure out in the end who was behind it all!

Liz was written in a way that kind of forced sympathy from the reader on to her. Always being forgotten by the other Snoop employees and just disappearing into the background. In hindsight, there are definitely clues spread throughout the course of the plot that point to her but they weren’t so obvious to me. I don’t see how she thinks she’s the victim in all of this, sure she had something horrific happen to her and Eva really leaned on that and used it to manipulate her but to resort to killing people is just a bit of a stretch to me.

There was just a lot of characters and not enough time for me to get to know them all and differentiate between them. We got a little bit of history and background on each of them but not enough for me to remember each of them specifically. Usually I don’t really care for learning too much about each of the characters but when we are in a forced proximity setting I would like to be able to recognise each of them.

Other than that I really enjoyed the story and how the plot unfolded. The pace was on the slower side for the majority of the book but once the avalanche happens things really speed up and I was on the edge of my seat from there. I’m still quite new to the mystery/thriller genre so a lot of the plot twists and tropes I haven’t come across yet and everything is still fresh and exciting for me and I thought the same for this book!

⭐️4/5 stars Atmospheric and suspenseful!