29 Seconds is the story of Sarah, a young mother of two who is a professor at an university. Sarah and her husband have temporarily separated (actually, he left, and we never really meet him). Sarah is hardworking and driven, and is hoping to get a permanent contract at the university this year to stabilize things for her family. However, she has several run ins with the department chair, a known philanderer, where he attempts to pressure her into sexual favors to secure her spot at the university. Sarah can’t see a way out of this sticky situation, as previous women have accused Professor Hawthorne of similar behavior, and then had their careers spiral down the drain. However, after Sarah rescues a little girl, her father offers an opportunity to Sarah to make anybody disappear. Sarah must decide if the reward is worth the risk, and where does she go from here?

The strengths, as I see them - T.M. Logan did a wonderful job of writing characters to fulfill their part in this tale. The story was fast paced and relevant.

The timing of 29 Seconds is relevant to today, with connections to the “me too” movement. As a working mom of 2, I identified with Sarah in that regard. 29 Seconds has a very rapid pace, and I anxiously read, wondering what Sarah would do. However, I found myself stopping to reread a couple of times - glad I had this on my kindle for the search feature - Professor Alan Hawthorne is occasionally referred to as Professor Alan Lovelock. At one point, I thought I missed a character. I’m still not sure if his name was Professor Alan Lovelock Hawthorne, Professor Alan Hawthorne, Professor Alan Lovelock, or if Lovelock or another name was actually a nickname. Perhaps, since I do have an advance copy, there was a name change from an earlier version, and in a few instances, the change was missed? Regardless of his name, the Professor is a truly despicable, entitled jerk, and I despised him throughout.

Although I didn’t enjoy 29 Seconds as much as Lies, it is stills a good thriller with multiple twists that I’d recommend to readers of the genre. The US version comes out on Tuesday, September 10th! Amazon link is below.

Never Tell, by Lisa Gardner, will be out in paperback next week!! I received this book as an ARC from the publisher, but it was before I started this blog. So, I’m going to post my review and a link - the paperback comes out on August 6th!!

Lisa Gardner’s Never Tell is an excellent continuation of the Flora Dane series.  Flora and DD were reluctant partners in previous books, but now, their working relationship has significantly improved.  They work together well to piece together the clues of this mystery, and their teamwork is instrumental.  The story is told from multiple character viewpoints, which keeps the reader on their toes and engaged.  I particularly enjoyed how Lisa Gardner metered out information from chapter to chapter, so that we gradually learn additional details about the first murder in Evie's life, that of her father.  As the details are revealed, we get little clues as to the final solution, but the reader cannot be quite sure until the final twist occurs.  Another great read from Lisa Gardner! Looking forward to the next one!

​The paperback comes out on August 6th, but you can pre-order it on Amazon using the link below.  Enjoy!!

Ruth Ware doesn’t disappoint with her newest novel, The Turn of the Key!! Edge of your seat thriller, captivating, and keeps you wondering....
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Rowan Caine is a young lady that has worked as a nanny and in a daycare center. Rowan responded to an ad for a live in nanny that she saw in the newspaper, and was swept up to Heatherbrae house in Scotland for an interview. Things seem too good to be true while she is at her interview - the children are well behaved, the mom is attentive and friendly, and the family is incredibly wealthy and offering an astounding yearly salary to Rowan. Rowan excitedly accepts the job and wraps things up in London to return to Heatherbrae. From here, things rapidly get strange. Rowan is left to care for the children and piece together what is causing the problems - is Heatherbrae haunted by the ghosts of its past, or is there a more earthly explanation for these troubles?

One of my favorite things about Ruth Ware’s books is how different, yet captivating, they all are. The Turn of the Key is written in a completely different style from her previous books, as it is a collection of letters written by Rowan. The letters start out short and choppy, as Rowan can’t quite decide how to start. However, they rapidly move into longer letters that unveil the nail biting tale that unfolded at the Heatherbrae house. I couldn’t put this one down, and was continuously working to piece together the clues given to us. However, the ending still surprised me, and I reread it just because I was so surprised!!

Another great thriller from Ruth Ware- I need you people to hurry up and get this book when it is published (August 6th) and quickly read it so we can talk about it!!!! Thanks to Simon & Schuster for the advance copy!!

#TheTurnoftheKey #RuthWare #SimonandSchuster

I just finished The Whisper Man, and WOW!!! Talk about a thriller!! I couldn’t put this mystery down...we won’t talk about how late I was up reading. And of course, the thunderstorms we had last night were a nice background to a kidnapping story/murder mystery.

The Whisper Man takes place in the seemingly sleepy little town of Featherbank. However, years ago, a serial killer that later became known as the Whisper Man kidnapped and murdered 5 little boys. Although the Whisper Man was caught, the final boy’s body was never found. Twenty years later, a little boy disappears, and children are again reporting hearing whispering at their windows. This is Pete’s worst nightmare - as the detective who worked the case, he always feared that the Whisper Man had an accomplice, and now it seems to him that he failed, as other little children are in danger.

Jake is new to town - he moved here with his father, Tom, for a fresh start after the death of his mom. Jake has imaginary friends, but something seems different when he reports hearing a voice whispering at his window. As the adults in his life work to help Jake adjust to life without his mother in a new town, they soon discover that they should have been paying closer attention to Jake’s imaginary friends.....

The Whisper Man was gripping!! Such a good mystery!! This book kept me on my toes and I was anxiously reading to find out how the story would develop. Several different characters were narrating at different points in the story, but it was always very clear whose viewpoint was being used to tell the tale. Throughout the book, clues were given to the reader about the different mysteries presented. One thing that I really as a reader was that once the solution was revealed, these clues clicked into place like puzzle pieces. They were enough to intrigue the reader, but not give things away. Alex North did a nice job of maintaining this delicate balance throughout. As the topic revolves around the kidnapping and murder of young children, The Whisper Man may not be for everybody. However, if you can stomach that topic (very little detail on the violence overall), you should read this book!! Great for those that love mysteries and thrillers!!

​The Whisper Man, by Alex North, will be published on August 20th. See the link below to order on Amazon. Thank you to Celadon Books for the advance copy!!