⭐️⭐️☆☆☆ Every so often, a book comes along with a premise that sounds like a surefire winner. Brittany Butler’s The Syndicate Spy is one of those. A futuristic, female-led spy syndicate battling over dwindling oil supplies in a climate-altered world? Count me in. Sadly, the story never quite lives up to its promise. I don’t wish to be unkind, after all, writing a book is hard work, but the pacing is uneven, with stretches of clunky exposition slowing the action to a crawl. The world-building, while creative, often feels more like background noise than an integral part of the story. Juliet Arroway, the lead spy, has plenty of potential but […]
Read more...Tag Archives: arc
When Stephanie Goes Rogue, You Go Along for the Chaos
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Stephanie Plum has survived exploding cars, disastrous stakeouts, and endless doughnut runs, but in Going Rogue, the danger feels personal. When Connie—steady, tough-as-nails Connie—gets kidnapped, Stephanie and her merry band of misfits launch into action. The ransom? A mysterious coin tied to murder, mobsters, and more chaos than even Trenton can handle. What follows is classic Evanovich: a wacky chase, more near-death moments than any bail bond agent should endure and laugh-out-loud antics from Lula and Grandma Mazur. Add in the ongoing tug-of-war between Morelli and Ranger, and you’ve got another zippy romp that’s equal parts mystery, comedy, and popcorn entertainment. Do the hijinks sometimes feel familiar after 29 […]
Read more...
Tanner, Louise, and One Wild Ride
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 stars) What do you get when you throw together an eighty-four-year-old spitfire with a suitcase full of secrets and a twenty-one-year-old gamer girl who’d rather hide under the covers than face real life? In Colleen Oakley’s The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise, you get a hilarious, heart-squeezing road trip that proves friendship has no age limit. Louise hires Tanner as her reluctant caretaker, but before either of them knows it, they’re on the run—destination unclear, motives questionable, and plenty of “wait, WHAT just happened?” moments along the way. The dialogue is whip-smart, the characters are quirky and lovable, and Oakley sneaks in just enough mystery to […]
Read more...
Secrets, Sisterhood, and Spies on Martha’s Vineyard
Martha Hall Kelley, one of my favorite historical fiction novelists, delivers another captivating tale in The Martha’s Vineyard Beach and Book Club. The title is a bit misleading—it isn’t really about a book club—but what unfolds is far richer and more intriguing. The dual timeline begins in 2016, when Mari Starwood travels from California to Martha’s Vineyard with nothing but a name on a scrap of paper. There she meets Elizabeth Devereaux, a reclusive painter whose family story reshapes Mari’s understanding of her own past. The heart of the novel, though, lies in 1942. Sisters Cadence and Briar Smith struggle to hold their farm together while U.S. troops train on […]
Read more...
A Dark and Twisty Honeymoon Gone Wrong
4.5 stars Talk about dysfunctional families! Everyone in Karin Slaughter’s This Is Why We Lied has secrets, but only one of them is a killer. From the first scream at McAlpine Lodge, the tension never lets up. This locked-room mystery—the 12th book in the Will Trent series—had me hooked from the start. Will Trent and Sara Linton just wanted a quiet honeymoon. Instead, they stumble upon a murder and a web of lies so tangled it’s hard to know who to trust. Mercy McAlpine, the lodge manager, dies whispering her last words to Will, and every family member and guest quickly becomes a suspect. Mercy’s abusive ex, her ice-cold parents, […]
Read more...
Edge-of-Your-Seat Espionage: The Beijing Betrayal Ends the Ryker Series with a Bang
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ If you love political thrillers that move fast and hit hard, Joel C. Rosenberg’s The Beijing Betrayal should be at the top of your list. This is the final installment in the Marcus Ryker series, and Rosenberg doesn’t just stick the landing—he lights the runway on fire. Ryker’s latest mission sends him to Pakistan to hunt down the world’s most dangerous terrorist. What he finds instead is a nightmare scenario: a cutting-edge lab, a deadly virus, and a sinister plan that could wipe out millions. Meanwhile, Washington is distracted by tense trade talks with Beijing—unaware that China is quietly prepping for a full-scale invasion of Taiwan. What follows is […]
Read more...
Secrets, Surprises, and a Story Within a Story: A Refreshing Turn for Rimmer
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ The Midnight Estate is a fresh departure for Kelly Rimmer, and I was here for it. Known for emotional historical fiction, Rimmer shifts gears with a dual-timeline mystery full of family secrets, buried truths, and a book that just might know too much. When Fiona inherits her family’s crumbling estate, she also discovers an unfinished manuscript that echoes her own life. The story-within-a-story device is a fun twist and adds another layer of intrigue. I appreciated how the timelines played off one another, slowly revealing hidden connections and long-held grudges. While some call it “gothic,” I didn’t really get that vibe. Yes, there’s an old house and some dark […]
Read more...
A High-Octane Battle Between Good and Evil
Dark Angel, the second entry in Brian Andrews and Jeffrey Wilson’s Shepherds series, delivers a gripping and intense military thriller with a unique faith-based twist. Former Navy SEAL Jedidiah Johnson is back, now training with the Shepherds, an elite organization of warriors tasked with confronting spiritual threats. But the challenge of stepping into his role as the rookie leader of a new team is just the beginning. Jed’s visions of an imminent overseas attack force him into action, and what follows is a pulse-pounding mission that blurs the line between the seen and the unseen. Andrews and Wilson skillfully weave together elements of counterterrorism, faith, and supernatural warfare, creating a […]
Read more...