Book Review: Into The Water, by Paula Hawkins

Genre: Mystery
Date Published: May 2017
Publisher: Riverhead Books
# Of Pages/Listening Time: 386 pages/11 hours 30 minutes

Goodreads | Audible

Synopsis: In the last days before her death, Nel called her sister. Jules didn’t pick up the phone, ignoring her plea for help. Now Nel is dead. They say she jumped. And Jules has been dragged back to the one place she hoped she had escaped for good, to care for the teenage girl her sister left behind. But Jules is afraid. So afraid. Of her long-buried memories, of the old Mill House, of knowing that Nel would never have jumped. And most of all she’s afraid of the water, and the place they call the Drowning Pool . . .

My Rating:

 ★★★

.....For being good...but not impressive.

Book Review: The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest (Millennium #3), by Stieg Larsson

Genre: Crime Thriller
Date Published: May 2007
Publisher: Knopf
# Of Pages/Listening Time: 563 pages/20 hours 20 minutes

Goodreads | Audible

Synopsis: The stunning third and final novel in Stieg Larsson's internationally best-selling trilogy.
Lisbeth Salander - the heart of Larsson's two previous novels - lies in critical condition, a bullet wound to her head, in the intensive care unit of a Swedish city hospital. She's fighting for her life in more ways than one: if and when she recovers, she'll be taken back to Stockholm to stand trial for three murders. With the help of her friend, journalist Mikael Blomkvist, she will not only have to prove her innocence, but also identify and denounce those in authority who have allowed the vulnerable, like herself, to suffer abuse and violence. And, on her own, she will plot revenge - against the man who tried to kill her, and the corrupt government institutions that very nearly destroyed her life.
Once upon a time, she was a victim. Now Salander is fighting back.

My Rating:

 ★★★★★

.....For being a fantastic feminist read!

Book Review: The Girl Who Played With Fire (Millennium #2), by Stieg Larsson

Genre: Mystery thriller
Date Published: June 2006
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
# Of Pages/Listening Time: 503 pages/18 hours 40 minutes

Goodreads | Audible

Synopsis:
The Expose
Millennium publisher Mikael Blomkvist has made his reputation exposing corrupt establishment figures. So when a young journalist approaches him with an investigation into sex trafficking, Blomkvist cannot resist waging war on the powerful figures who control this lucrative industry.
The Murder
When a young couple are found dead in their Stockholm apartment, it's a straightforward job for Inspector Bublanski and his team. The killer left the weapon at the scene - and the fingerprints on the gun point to only one direction.
The Girl Who Played with Fire
Ex-security analyst Lisbeth Salander is wanted for murder. Her history of unpredictable and vengeful behavior makes her an official danger to society - but no-one can find her. The only way Salander can be reached is by computer. But she can break into almost any network she chooses...

My Rating:

 ★★★★★

.....For still being awesome!

Book Review: The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (Millennium #1), by Stieg Larsson

Genre: Mystery Suspense
Date Published: August 2005
Publisher: Knopf
# Of Pages/Listening Time: 465 pages/16 hours 19 minutes

Goodreads | Audible

Synopsis: A spellbinding amalgam of murder mystery, family saga, love story and financial intrigue.
It’s about the disappearance forty years ago of Harriet Vanger, a young scion of one of the wealthiest families in Sweden . . . and about her octogenarian uncle, determined to know the truth about what he believes was her murder.
It’s about Mikael Blomkvist, a crusading journalist recently at the wrong end of a libel case, hired to get to the bottom of Harriet’s disappearance . . . and about Lisbeth Salander, a twenty-four-year-old pierced and tattooed genius hacker possessed of the hard-earned wisdom of someone twice her age—and a terrifying capacity for ruthlessness to go with it—who assists Blomkvist with the investigation. This unlikely team discovers a vein of nearly unfathomable iniquity running through the Vanger family, astonishing corruption in the highest echelons of Swedish industrialism—and an unexpected connection between themselves.
It’s a contagiously exciting, stunningly intelligent novel about society at its most hidden, and about the intimate lives of a brilliantly realized cast of characters, all of them forced to face the darker aspects of their world and of their own lives.

My Rating:

 ★★★★★

.....For having an awesomely strong female character.

Book Review: Career Of Evil (Cormoran Strike #3), by Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling)

Genre: Detective Mystery
Date Published: October 2015
Publisher: Mulholland Books
# Of Pages/Listening Time: 492 pages/ 18 hours

Goodreads | Audible

Synopsis: When a mysterious package is delivered to Robin Ellacott, she is horrified to discover that it contains a woman’s severed leg.
Her boss, private detective Cormoran Strike, is less surprised but no less alarmed. There are four people from his past who he thinks could be responsible – and Strike knows that any one of them is capable of sustained and unspeakable brutality.
With the police focusing on the one suspect Strike is increasingly sure is not the perpetrator, he and Robin take matters into their own hands, and delve into the dark and twisted worlds of the other three men. But as more horrendous acts occur, time is running out for the two of them…
Career of Evil is the third in the series featuring private detective Cormoran Strike and his assistant Robin Ellacott. A mystery and also a story of a man and a woman at a crossroads in their personal and professional lives

My Rating:

 ★★★★ 1/2

.....For Being A Great Re-read!

Book Review: The Perfect Couple, by Elin Hilderbrand

Genre: Contemporary Mystery
Date Published: June 2018
Publisher: Little, Brown, and Company
# Of Pages/Listening Time: 466 pages/12 hours

Goodreads | Audible

Synopsis: From New York Times bestselling author Elin Hilderbrand, comes a novel about the many ways family can fill our lives with love...if they don't kill us first.
It's wedding season on Nantucket. The beautiful island is overrun with summer people--an annual source of aggravation for year-round residents. And that's not the only tension brewing offshore. When one lavish wedding ends in disaster before it can even begin everyone in the wedding party is suddenly a suspect. As Chief of Police Ed Kapenash digs into the best man, the maid of honor, the groom's famous mystery novelist mother, and even a member of his own family, the chief discovers that every wedding is a minefield--and no couple is perfect. Featuring beloved characters from THE CASTAWAYS and A SUMMER AFFAIR, THE PERFECT COUPLE proves once again that Elin Hilderbrand is the queen of the summer beach read.

My Rating:

 ★★★

.....For being enjoyable, but not totally satisfying

Book Review: The Silkworm (Cormoran Strike #2), by Robert Galbraith/J.K. Rowling

Genre: Contemporary Mystery
Date Published: June 2014
Publisher: Mulholland
# Of Pages/Listening Time: 455 pages/17 hours 20 minutes

Goodreads | Audible

Synopsis: When novelist Owen Quine goes missing, his wife calls in private detective Cormoran Strike. At first, Mrs. Quine just thinks her husband has gone off by himself for a few days—as he has done before—and she wants Strike to find him and bring him home.
But as Strike investigates, it becomes clear that there is more to Quine's disappearance than his wife realizes. The novelist has just completed a manuscript featuring poisonous pen-portraits of almost everyone he knows. If the novel were to be published, it would ruin lives—meaning that there are a lot of people who might want him silenced.
When Quine is found brutally murdered under bizarre circumstances, it becomes a race against time to understand the motivation of a ruthless killer, a killer unlike any Strike has encountered before...

My Rating:

 ★★★★★

.....For exceeding my expectations on the re-read

Book Review: The Cuckoo's Calling (Cormoran Strike #1), by Robert Galbraith/J.K. Rowling

Genre: Contemporary Mystery
Date Published: April 2013
Publisher: Mulholland Books
# Of Pages/Listening Time: 455 pages/ 16 hours

Goodreads | Audible

Synopsis: The Cuckoo's Calling is a 2013 crime fiction novel by J. K. Rowling, published under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith.
A brilliant mystery in a classic vein: Detective Cormoran Strike investigates a supermodel's suicide.
After losing his leg to a land mine in Afghanistan, Cormoran Strike is barely scraping by as a private investigator. Strike is down to one client, and creditors are calling. He has also just broken up with his longtime girlfriend and is living in his office.
Then John Bristow walks through his door with an amazing story: His sister, the legendary supermodel Lula Landry, known to her friends as the Cuckoo, famously fell to her death a few months earlier. The police ruled it a suicide, but John refuses to believe that. The case plunges Strike into the world of multimillionaire beauties, rock-star boyfriends, and desperate designers, and it introduces him to every variety of pleasure, enticement, seduction, and delusion known to man.
You may think you know detectives, but you've never met one quite like Strike. You may think you know about the wealthy and famous, but you've never seen them under an investigation like this.

My Rating:

 ★★★★★

.....For being a highly enjoyable re-read

Kaleidoscope (Madame Karitska #2), by Dorothy Gilman

Genre: Paranormal mystery
Date Published: 2002
Publisher: Ballantine Books
# Of Pages/Listening Time: 256 pages

Goodreads

Synopsis: Next to the incomparable Mrs. Pollifax, Dorothy Gilman’s best-loved character is the mysterious Madame Karitska, who is blessed with a powerful gift of clairvoyance that attracts to her a stream of men and women craving help with their misfortunes, desperate to know what the future holds. . . .

When a brilliant young violinist dies in a horrific accident, Madame Karitska has only to hold the victim’s instrument in her hands to perceive the shocking truth. But when an insecure wife asks whether her husband will abandon her to join a sinister cult, Madame Karitska–as wise as she is lovely–chooses not to reveal all that she foresees. And when an attaché case is suddenly dropped into her lap by a man fleeing a crowded subway, she knows it’s time to consult her good friend Detective-Lieutenant Pruden.

A nine-year-old accused of murder, a man dying a slow death by witchcraft– for the hunted and the haunted, Madame Karitska’s shabby downtown apartment becomes a haven, where brilliant patterns of violence, greed, passion, and strange obsessions mix and disintegrate with stunning, kaleidoscopic beauty.

Once again Dorothy Gilman exercises her own uncanny power to render readers spellbound.

My Rating:

 ★★★★

.....For being a fun (if slightly disorienting) sequel

The Curse Of The Pharaohs (Amelia Peabody #2), by Elizabeth Peters

Genre: Historical Mystery
Date Published: 1981
Publisher: Dodd, Mead, and Company
# Of Pages/Listening Time: 285 pgs (my edition)/10 hours

Goodreads | Audible

Synopsis: Victorian gentlewoman Amelia Peabody Emerson does not relish the joys of home and hearth. For while she and her husband, the renowned archaeologist Radcliffe Emerson, dutifully go about raising their young son, Ramses, Amelia dreams only of the dust and detritus of ancient civilizations. Providentially, a damsel in distress--coupled with a promising archeological site--demands their immediate presence in Egypt. The damsel is Lady Baskerville, and the site is a tomb in Luxor recently discovered by Sir Henry Baskerville, who promptly died under bizarre circumstances. Amelia and Radcliffe arrive to find the camp in disarray, terrified workers, an eccentric group of guests...and a persistent rumor of a ghost on the grounds. Now the indomitable Amelia must battle evil forces determined to stand between her and her beloved antiquities--and make her foray into the truth a most deadly affair...

My Rating:

 ★★★★★

.....For being an excellent and even comical reread!

Book Review: The Clairvoyant Countess (Madame Karitska #1), by Dorothy Gilman

Genre: paranormal mystery
Date Published: 1975
Publisher: Doubleday & Company
# Of Pages: 179 pgs

Goodreads

Synopsis: Another irrepressible heroine by Dorothy Gilman, who has already captivated thousands of readers with the zany adventures of the CIA's sprightly and most unorthodox spy, Mrs. Emily Pollifax.
But Madame Karitska, the "clairvoyand countess", has a style all her own: the unpredictable result of psychic powers, an exotic past, and enough eccentricities to prepare everyone she meets to expect the unexpected.
Madame Karitska has just set up shop reading fortunes in her small apartment when a when a chance encounter with Detective-Lieutenant Pruden of the Police Department embroils her in an exciting swirl of intrigue, mystery, and mayhem. A skeptical lieutenant soon discovers an extraordinary woman.
Murder, robbery, voodoo possession, a witch's curse, a missing person--Madame Karitska can and does handle them all, to the consternation and amazement of everyone concerned.

My Rating:

 ★★★★★

.....For being a very enjoyable paranormal mystery novel with a memorable protagonist

Book Review: Crocodile On The Sandbank (Amelia Peabody #1), by Elizabeth Peters

Genre: Historical/Romantic Mystery
Date Published: 1975
Publisher: Dodd, Mead, and Company (this edition by Grand Central Publishing)
# Of Pages/Listening Time: 262 pgs/ 10 hours

Goodreads | Audible

Synopsis: Amelia Peabody, that indomitable product of the Victorian age, embarks on her debut Egyptian adventure armed with unshakable self-confidence, a journal to record her thoughts, and, of course, a sturdy umbrella. On her way to Cairo, Amelia rescues young Evelyn Barton-Forbes, who has been abandoned by her scoundrel lover. Together the two women sail up the Nile to an archaeological site run by the Emerson brothers--the irascible but dashing Radcliffe and the amiable Walter. Soon their little party is increased by one--one mummy, that is, and a singularly lively example of the species. Strange visitations, suspicious accidents, and a botched kidnapping convince Amelia that there is a plot afoot to harm Evelyn. Now Amelia finds herself up against an unknown enemy--and perilous forces that threaten to make her first Egyptian trip also her last...

My Rating:

 ★★★★★

.....For continuing to entertain me!

Book Review: A Murder In Time (Kendra Donovan #1), by Julie McElwain

Genre: historical mystery thriller
Date Published: A[ril 2016
Publisher: Pegasus Books
# Of Pages: 492 pages

Goodreads | Audible

Synopsis: Beautiful and brilliant, Kendra Donovan is a rising star at the FBI. Yet her path to professional success hits a speed bump during a disastrous raid where half her team is murdered, a mole in the FBI is uncovered and she herself is severely wounded. As soon as she recovers, she goes rogue and travels to England to assassinate the man responsible for the deaths of her teammates.

While fleeing from an unexpected assassin herself, Kendra escapes into a stairwell that promises sanctuary but when she stumbles out again, she is in the same place - Aldrich Castle - but in a different time: 1815, to be exact.

Mistaken for a lady's maid hired to help with weekend guests, Kendra is forced to quickly adapt to the time period until she can figure out how she got there; and, more importantly, how to get back home. However, after the body of a girl is found on the extensive grounds of the county estate, she starts to feel there's some purpose to her bizarre circumstances. Stripped of her twenty-first century tools, Kendra must use her wits alone in order to unmask a cunning madman.

My Rating:

 ★★★★

.....For being a good debut mystery novel, with a time-traveling twist and a lot of spunk!

Book Review: Rebecca, by Daphne Du Maurier

Genre: Classic Romantic Suspense
Date Published: August 1938
Publisher: Doubleday
# Of Pages/Listening Time: 449 pages/14 hours 48 minutes

Goodreads | Audible

Synopsis: Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again....

The novel begins in Monte Carlo, where our heroine is swept off her feet by the dashing widower Maxim de Winter and his sudden proposal of marriage. Orphaned and working as a lady's maid, she can barely believe her luck. It is only when they arrive at his massive country estate that she realizes how large a shadow his late wife will cast over their lives - resenting her with a lingering evil that threatens to destroy their marriage from beyond the grave.

First published in 1938, this classic gothic novel is such a compelling tale that it won the Anthony Award for Best Novel of the Century.

My Rating:

 ★★★ 1/2

.....For belatedly grabbing my interest.

Book Review: The Woman In Cabin 10, by Ruth Ware

Genre: Mystery thriller
Date Published: June 2016
Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press
# Of Pages: 352 pages

Goodreads

Synopsis: From New York Times bestselling author of the “twisty-mystery” (Vulture) novel In a Dark, Dark Wood, comes The Woman in Cabin 10, an equally suspenseful and haunting novel from Ruth Ware—this time, set at sea.
In this tightly wound, enthralling story reminiscent of Agatha Christie’s works, Lo Blacklock, a journalist who writes for a travel magazine, has just been given the assignment of a lifetime: a week on a luxury cruise with only a handful of cabins. The sky is clear, the waters calm, and the veneered, select guests jovial as the exclusive cruise ship, the Aurora, begins her voyage in the picturesque North Sea. At first, Lo’s stay is nothing but pleasant: the cabins are plush, the dinner parties are sparkling, and the guests are elegant. But as the week wears on, frigid winds whip the deck, gray skies fall, and Lo witnesses what she can only describe as a dark and terrifying nightmare: a woman being thrown overboard. The problem? All passengers remain accounted for—and so, the ship sails on as if nothing has happened, despite Lo’s desperate attempts to convey that something (or someone) has gone terribly, terribly wrong…
With surprising twists, spine-tingling turns, and a setting that proves as uncomfortably claustrophobic as it is eerily beautiful, Ruth Ware offers up another taut and intense read in The Woman in Cabin 10—one that will leave even the most sure-footed reader restlessly uneasy long after the last page is turned.

My Rating:

 ★★★ 1/2

.....For being a fast-paced thriller

My Thoughts:

Well that was interesting!

The book ended rather abruptly for me, although that was mainly because I had an ebook copy, which included a preview chapter for another book. I thought I was only 90% done, and suddenly the book is over. I should have paid attention to the chapter menu. Lesson learned!

Anyway, this was an intriguing thriller. The murder mystery strongly reminded me of Agatha Christie's novels, although the setup of the story turned into something rather unique. Each part ends with some type of e-mail/internet exchange or newspaper report, which implies that something disastrous is going to happen later in the book, but you can't really be sure what. The setup is brilliant in that it keeps you reading. Because you know something bad is going to happen, you read through the slower parts a lot more quickly.

The solution at the end was not what I was expecting. I'm not sure if I liked it or not. Without giving away any spoilers, all I can say is that it's different from what I thought it would be.

Overall, if you like mystery thrillers, this is worth a look. It's a very, very quick read, with several good plot twists. Check it out!

Book Review: The Shining Girls, by Lauren Beukes

Genre: Thriller
Number Of Pages/Listening Time: 374 pages/ 10 hours and 33 minutes

Goodreads | Audible

Synopsis: "The future is not as loud as war, but it is relentless.  It has a terrible fury all its own."
Harper Curtis is a killer who stepped out of the past.  Kirby Mazrachi is the girl who was never meant to have a future.
Kirby is the last shining girl, one of the bright young women burning with potential whose lives Harper is destined to snuff out after he stumbles on a House in Depression-era Chicago that opens onto other times.
At the urging of the House, Harper inserts himself into the lives of the shining girls, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.  He's the ultimate hunter, vanishing into another time after each murder, untraceable--until one of his victims survives.
Determined to bring her would-be killer to justice, Kirby joins the Chicago Sun-Times to work with the ex-homicide reporter Dan Velasquez, who covered her case.  Soon Kirby finds herself closing in on the impossible truth...
The Shining Girls is a masterful twist on the serial killer tale: a violent quantum leap featuring a memorable and appealing heroine in pursuit of a deadly criminal.

My Rating:

★★★ and a 1/2

....For being interesting and different.

My Thoughts:

Book Review: The Haunted Bookshop, by Christopher Morley

Genre: Mystery, Classic
Number Of Pages: 95 pages

Goodreads | Leafmarks

Synopsis: Aubrey Gilbert stops by the Haunted Bookshop hoping to sell his services as an advertising copywriter. He fails to accomplish his goal, but learns that Titania Chapman, the lovely daughter of his most important client, is a store assistant there. Aubrey returns to visit Titania and experiences a series of unusual events: He is attacked on his way home from the store, an obscure book mysteriously disappears and reappears, and two strange characters are seen skulking in a nearby alleyway. Aubrey initially suspects the bookstore’s gregarious owner, Roger Mifflin, of scheming to kidnap Titania, but the plot he eventually uncovers is far more complex and sinister than he could have ever imagined.
A charming ode to the art of bookselling wrapped inside a thrilling suspense story, The Haunted Bookshop is a must-read for bibliophiles and mystery lovers alike.

My Rating:

★★ and 1/2

...for going in a direction that I ended up not liking very much

My Thoughts:

This is definitely not what I had expected.

At first I thought that this would be a ghost story, but it turns out I was wrong there.

Then I figured it was probably going to be some type of romantic comedy, but no. Turns out that wasn't the case.

Now I realize that this is in fact a mystery novel, with tie-ins to World War I. I will not say anything more, because I'm not one to spoil things.

I will say that I am a little disappointed though. The mystery/thriller aspect seemed rather unnecessary; the book could have kept with the plot line of Titania discovering the benefits of being a bookseller, and with the bookshop becoming more successful because she's there. That alone would have been enough. The added tie-in to World War I and the Germans made the book a little too busy and rambling.

I did enjoy the beginning however. My favorite part is what is said on the placard at the front of the bookshop:

"This shop is haunted by the ghosts of all great literature, in hosts; We sell no fakes or trashes. Lovers of books are welcome here, No clerks will babble in your ear, Please smoke--but don't drop ashes!--Browse as long as you like. Prices of all books plainly marked. If you want to ask questions, you'll find the proprietor where the tobacco smoke is thickest. We pay cash for books. We have what you want, though you may not know you want it. Malnutrition of the reading faculty is a serious thing. Let us prescribe for you. By R. & H. MIFFLIN, Proprs."

I just love that. I wish all bookshops had something similar to welcome readers in.

Would I recommend this read. Weeellll....maybe. It is a classic (it was originally published in 1919), and therefore contains an enticing piece of history. It is also a bit of a thrilller, though you won't realize it until about a third of the way in. It just wasn't for me I guess.

Book Review: The Girl On The Train, by Paula Hawkins

Title: The Girl On The Train
Author: Paula Hawkins
Date Published: January 13th, 2015
Publisher: Riverhead Books
Source: Audible
Length: 336 pages, 10 hours and 59 minutes on audiobook
Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Goodreads | Shelfari | Audible

A debut psychological thriller that will forever change the way you look at other people's lives.
Rachel takes the same commuter train every morning. Every day she rattles down the track, flashes past a stretch of cozy suburban homes, and stops at the signal that allows her to daily watch the same couple breakfasting on their deck. She’s even started to feel like she knows them. “Jess and Jason,” she calls them. Their life—as she sees it—is perfect. Not unlike the life she recently lost.
And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough. Now everything’s changed. Unable to keep it to herself, Rachel offers what she knows to the police, and becomes inextricably entwined in what happens next, as well as in the lives of everyone involved. Has she done more harm than good?
A compulsively readable, emotionally immersive, Hitchcockian thriller that draws comparisons to Gone Girl, The Silent Wife, or Before I Go to Sleep, this is an electrifying debut embraced by readers across markets and categories.

Book Review: The Hidden Staircase, by Carolyn Keene

The Hidden Staircase by Carolyn Keene
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Hidden Staircase, by Carolyn Keene
★★★ and 1/2


Synopsis: Nancy Drew is on the case, trying to solve the second mystery of her career. When Nancy's friend Helen asks her to come stay at Twin Elms to try and catch the ghost that has been frightening Helen's Aunt Rosemary and Miss Flora, Nancy readily accepts the assignment. Exhibiting total fearlessness and constant level headedness, Nancy uses her deductive reasoning to try and outsmart the ghost. Along the way, Nancy's lawyer father is kidnapped in what at first appears to be an unrelated incident, or is it?
In A Sentence: Quick, cute, and fun.

Book Review: Gone Girl, by Gillian Flynn

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Gone Girl, by Gillian Flynn
★★★ and ½ (rounding up to 4)

Synopsis: On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne's fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick's clever and beautiful wife disappears from their rented McMansion on the Mississippi River. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn't doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife's head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media--as well as Amy's fiercely doting parents--the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he's definitely bitter--but is he really a killer?
As the cops close in, every couple in town is soon wondering how well they know the one that they love. With his twin sister, Margo, at his side, Nick stands by his innocence. Trouble is, if Nick didn't do it, where is that beautiful wife? And what was in that silvery gift box hidden in the back of her bedroom closet?
In A Sentence: This book scares me…