Tuesday, March 10, 2020

The perfect mother by Caroline Mitchell

Roz never intended to get pregnant, and it has left her with very few choices.  She's too Catholic to get rid of the baby, and she can't have a relationship with the babies father, so her only choice is to offer the baby up for adoption.  Wanting to give her baby the best chance of a good life, Roz signs up with an adoption agency, and she soon finds herself connected with a couple that seem perfect for her and her baby.  They are wlling to pay for her to come and live with them in New York through her pregnancy, and they will give her money that will set her up with a new life.  It's an offer that is too good to be true, the only catch is that Roz will need to agree to serecy because they want to pass the baby off as their own. 

Jetting off to New York is the start of an adventure for Roz, because although she has talked to the wife on the phone, she doesn't know exactly who they are.  The couple will only reveal who they are once Roz has signed a non disclosure agreement, and with very few choices left Roz signs the agreement and is introduced to the couple - Hollywood power couple Sheridan Sinclair and Daniel Watson.  It's overwhelming for anyone, especially a naïve Irish girl like Roz, and she is too in awe of the couple to question some of the odd things that seem to be happening.  Sheridan is by turns warm and friendly and old and controlling. Roz tries to get on with her, but Sheridan seems determined to control every aspect of her life.  When Roz starts finding articles about Sheridan and Daniel in unexpected places she can't help but feel a little paranoid, but as time marches on and she feels more and more like a prisoner she comes to realise that she has no idea who she is dealing with - and that she is completely at Sheridan's mercy.

The perfect mother is a tense psychological thriller that starts with a bang sometime near the present, and then goes back in time to bring you up to the present day through chapters that show you what is happening from the point of view of Roz and Sheridan.  The characters are well developed, and while the three main characters of Roz, Sheridan, and Daniel are the ones that have the most development and presence, thought has gone into the other characters in the book and they are developed enough to find their own places in the story without overwhelming the main characters.  The setting is interesting and lends itself to all sorts of possibilities, and it is all too easy for your mind to run away with the possibilities.

It is tempting to jump to conclusions through the novel, and there are little seeds and hints that make you want to guess what is coming - but in the end things did not go where I was expecting them too (somewhat unusual when you read heaps of crime and thrillers).  This was an excellent read, and I will be looking for more books from Caroline Mitchell to see if her other books are as good as The perfect mother.

If you like this book then try:

Reviewed by Brilla

Tuesday, February 25, 2020

Deadly little scandals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Deadly little secrets is the sequel to Little white lies and this review contains ***SPOILERS*** if you have not read the first book in the series. As always I highly recommend reading any series by Jennifer Lynn Barnes in order for the most enjoyment.

Sawyer Taft made a deal with the devil (her maternal grandmother Lillian Taft) that she would spend her debutante season for a mix of materialistic (cold hard trust fund in the form of a college fund) and personal reasons (to find the mysterious father her mother never talks about).  It all went about as well as can be expected for someone who was raised on the wrong side of the tracks, and against the odds Sawyer managed to find her place in her family and her families wider social circles.  She also managed to find the identity of her father, and the fact he is her uncle has left her reeling and undecided about what to do.  Part of her wants to tell Lily that they are half sisters rather than cousins, but after all the drama in the previous months it just seems like it will do nothing but cause pain - Lily doesn't deserve that, and Sawyer doesn't want to risk their friendship.

With the arrival of warmer weather the Easterling family, with Sawyer in tow, head to their lake house on Regal Lake.  Sawyer has no idea what to expect, but the mansion like lake house has plenty of room for the whole family, and for Lily and Sawyer there is an added surprise - on their beds are some understated boxes that welcome them as prospects to join the White Gloves.  Lily knows all about the White Gloves, and knows what an honour it is to be chosen as a potential member - even if Sawyer thinks it is just one more strange thing wealthy families do.  When they discover human remains during one of the White Gloves outings, Sawyer and her friends are drawn into the mystery of who the remains belong to, as well as what happened to the third girl who was part of the pregnancy pact that resulted in Sawyer.  Life is never simple and straight forward for Sawyer, especially when it comes to her family, and this time the secrets she is trying to uncover could have deadly consequences.

Little white lies was a fantastic read, and it was going to take a really good story to match it - and Jennifer Lynn Barnes has delivered once again.  I read Deadly little scandals in a single day because I didn't want to put it down.  The pace is perfect, with a balance between current events, events that lead up to current events, and a peak into the past that has lead to the present events (not saying anymore you need to read it for yourself).  Sawyer and her world are once again brought to perfect life, the story moving along at a decent clip, leading you down a path of discovery and dropping clues for you along the way - another chance for you to see if you can figure out what is happening before the big reveal at the end. 

Barnes is a very adept storyteller, not just because she creates characters you care about, but also because she can balance a fast pace with enough details and moments to keep you connected to the story.  You care about Sawyer and her family, and it is all too easy to understand the difficult position she is in, and why she feels the way she does.  Barnes also has a great sense of humour, that comes through with some of the moments in the book, as well as some of the situations and the way people handle things that do happen.

This doesn't feel like the end for Sawyer and her family, and I sincerely hope that there is more to come because this is a fantastic series that appeals to teen and adult readers alike.

If you like this book then try:




Reviewed by Brilla

Wednesday, February 19, 2020

Nine Elms by Robert Bryndza

Being involved with a high profile case is supposed to help advance your career and set you on the fast track to detective and higher - but for Kate Marshall it turned into a disaster.  Attacked by the killer and left badly injured, she then has to suffer through the public scrutiny and criticism of her involvement with the case - and the killer.  Kate may have suffered the physical attack, but the public attack leaves her career in tatters and it takes her years to rebuild her life and shake off the after effects of the attack.  Living in a small coastal town and teaching at a local University has given her purpose, and her background as a former police officer makes her the perfect person to lecture on cold cases.

It has been fifteen years since the original Nine Elms killer was caught and sentenced for his crimes, and it seems as though someone has decided to take the case from closed and cold to open and hot.  Kate has no idea there is a copycat on the loose until a body is discovered near where she lives.  Drawn into the case by the proximity of the murder and a request from a family to help solve a cold case, Kate finds herself dragged back into a past she would rather forget.  As she digs into the past Kate gets closer and closer to the truth, and closer and closer to a deadly danger that she won't see coming.  With her past and present colliding, Kate will have to be on her guard because she may have escaped the Nine Elms killer and brought him to justice, but that is not the end of the danger.

I have read a few books from Robert Bryndza and was eager to pick up Nine Elms when I saw it at my local library - and I was not disappointed.  I have seen a few reviews that have talked the book down, but it feels like they picked up the book with different expectations about what the book would be and were therefore disappointed.  Kate was an interesting character and while she may be a little cliché in some respects that is almost always the case when you are introduced to a new character, there is only so much character development you can do in a book without drowning the reader in detail.  Bryndza created a story and background that was interesting and kept up your interest, bringing the past into the present through the cold case and memories - effective and provided clues and hints about what to look for without hitting you in the face.

Nine Elms was a great start for a series, and hopefully there will be more stories in the series, though it is not necessarily clear how the story can move forward at the moment.  Was a thoroughly engaging and enjoyable read - both for me and my senior citizen mother.

If you like this book then try:

Reviewed by Brilla

Saturday, February 15, 2020

Unleashed by Amy McCulloch

Unleashed is the sequel to Jinxed and this review contains ***SPOILERS*** if you have not read the first book in the series.  I highly recommend reading this series in order, so make sure you read Jinxed before reading this review.

Lacey Chu wakes up in hospital confused about how she ended up there, and even more confused when she realises almost a month has passed with her unconscious in the hospital.  Retuning home is somewhat surreal, especially with her mother acting strangely.  The feeling only gets worse when she discovers that she has been expelled from Profectus because she no longer has the required level of baku, and she can't even access the help they give scholarship students to buy a baku so they can attend.  Returning to St Agnes is a strange feeling, but that's nothing compared to the sudden reappearance of Jinx who warns her not to let her little baku Slick.  

The warning comes in time to stop Lacey from being updated by Slick, an act that would have wiped all ambition from her mind.  Suddenly it all makes sense, the sudden change in her mothers behaviour, and why she saw the changes she did in Monica Chan when she discovered her hidden in the depths of the Moncha building.  Discovering the secret is only part of the battle, how can she expect to bring down a corrupt company when everyone is so dependent on their baku?  With her friends by her side, and with a little help from Jinx, Lacey starts fighting back against the forces that are trying to control the world through Moncha, but is going to be an uphill battle and the other side is prepared to fight dirty and deadly to get what they want.

Unleashed is the sequel to Jinxed and completes a brilliant duology.  McCulloch has kept up the pace from Jinxed, keeping a strong focus on the characters who are at the heart of the story but also keeping up the tension and pace of the story.  I was a little surprised that I powered through the story so quickly, it was so absorbing and addictive that I didn't want to put it down, and it was so well written that it almost reads itself!  A must read series for fans of thrillers with just a touch of conspiracy theories and corporate bad guys.

If you like this book then try:
  • The Jewel by Amy Ewing
  • The Ones by Daniel Sweren-Becker
  • Wither by Lauren DeStefano
  • Honor among thieves by Rachel Caine & Ann Aguirre
  • Red queen by Victoria Aveyard
  • The girl of fire and thorns by Rae Carson
  • The scorpion rules by Erin Bow
  • Adaptation by Melinda Lo
  • The forest of hands and teeth by Carrie Ryan
  • XVI by Julia Karr
  • The glass arrow by Kristen Simmons
  • The 100 by Kass Morgan
  • Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
  • The testing by Joelle Charbonneau
  • Proxy by Alex London
  • ACID by Emma Pass
  • Reboot by Amy Tintera
  • XVI by Julia Karr
  • In the after by Demitria Lunetta

Reviewed by Brilla

Sunday, February 9, 2020

Jinxed by Amy McCulloch

Lacey Chu has one goal, to get into Profectus Academy so she can work for Moncha - the company that is the only place to work if you want to work on the next generation of baku.  It is a simple goal, one she has worked and studied towards for years - both officially and unofficially.  Officially she has worked hard at St Agnes to get the grades needed to get into Profectus, but she has also been unofficially preparing by repairing her mothers baku when things go wrong.  Lacey knows her father worked for Moncha before he disappeared, and dreams of proving herself as a companioneer.  

When she gets notification that she didn't make it into Profectus it is a bitter blow, but then she finds a badly damaged baku and it seems as though her fortunes are changing.  Jinx is unlike any other baku she has ever met before, although on the outside he appears to be like any other cat baku.  Baku are designed to replace smart phones, a creation that is part technology and part companion, something to keep you connected to the world but also to provide company.  As Lacey brings Jinx back to life and cleans him up it becomes clear that he is not your average baku, and when she is suddenly accepted into Profectus after all she finds that the world of baku is more complicated and twisted than she realised.  There is a dangerous secret hidden inside the world of Manchu and the baku, and uncovering the secret is just the start of a deadly game of cat and mouse.

Jinxed is a deftly written story that blends together some of the classic themes of science fiction and thrillers.  From the outside the world Lacey lives in is pretty much perfect, with a benevolent corporation that looks out for its clients and staff like a family, but that is just what is projected on the surface and Lacey is soon travelling down a twisted path learning the 'truth' about the world around her.  I connected with Lacey straight away, and her world spirals out in layers that make it easy to absorb what is happening in her life and in the world around her.  I loved the fact that McCullouch was not afraid to use elements of classic science fiction 'dystopian' worlds in her thriller, and that she didn't let her character development suffer to keep the story 'slick' and she didn't drift too much into cliché.  

This is a brilliant start to the series and I was very glad that I discovered this series after book two (Unleashed) had already been released because waiting too long for a sequel would have been torture!

If you like this book then try:
  • The Jewel by Amy Ewing
  • The Ones by Daniel Sweren-Becker
  • Wither by Lauren DeStefano
  • Honor among thieves by Rachel Caine & Ann Aguirre
  • Red queen by Victoria Aveyard
  • The girl of fire and thorns by Rae Carson
  • The scorpion rules by Erin Bow
  • Adaptation by Melinda Lo
  • The forest of hands and teeth by Carrie Ryan
  • XVI by Julia Karr
  • The glass arrow by Kristen Simmons
  • The 100 by Kass Morgan
  • Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
  • The testing by Joelle Charbonneau
  • Proxy by Alex London
  • ACID by Emma Pass
  • Reboot by Amy Tintera
  • XVI by Julia Karr
  • In the after by Demitria Lunetta

Reviewed by Brilla

Monday, February 3, 2020

Desperate Creed by Alex Kava

Desperate Creed is the fifth book in the Ryder Creed series, and while it can be read as a stand alone novel I highly recommend reading the series in order starting with Breaking Creed, Silent Creed, Reckless Creed, and Lost Creed otherwise this review contains ***SPOILERS***.

The last few months have been a roller coaster for Ryder Creed - he finally found his long lost sister, but finding her was only the start.  Brodie has lived through some harrowing experiences, and even though she is now safe, those experiences have left a mark.  Ryder and Hannah have been patiently coaxing her along, giving her support and try to gently push her boundaries to help her adapt to life outside captivity, but it is a slow process.  With an impending visit from their mother looming over them, Brodie is more unsettled than usual and having terrible anxiety about the mother who she has been told wants nothing to do with a bad child like her.  Having Ryder there to act as a buffer is really important, but as fate would have it, a terrible storm is bearing down on them and it will bring tornadoes in its wake - which means that Ryder and his fellow handler Jason will be out on the road trying to help rather than at home to act as the buffer Brodie so desperately wants.


To complicate matters even more, Hannah's friend Francine “Frankie” Russo is about to enter the race of her life to make it to Hannah and Ryder.  When she receives a call early in the morning from one of her coworkers she doesn't think much of it, they have been working closely together, but when she hears his murder over the open phone call she realises she is in trouble.  Frankie goes to the Police for help, but there isn't a lot to go on and when she figures out that they know who she is she begins a race across the country to reach Hannah and Ryder, and their promised help from FBI agent Maggie O'Dell.  With the killers on her tail, it will take all of Frankie's skills and helpful paranoia to keep her safe until she can share her story with Maggie - but there is more than one storm bearing down on her, and it's not just the contract killers she has to worry about, there are killer storms out there too and they don't discriminate.

I love the Ryder Creed series, not just because of the amazing working dogs, but also because Ryder seems to get himself into all sorts of interesting situations - usually with FBI Agent Maggie O'Dell by his side or in hot pursuit.  Desperate Creed is something of a break from the other books in the series, mainly because the recovery of Brodie has added some rather spectacular changes into his life, which is great but also leads to some rather interesting things he needs to deal with.  The story arc was what you would expect from a Ryder Creed novel, but there was the interesting element this time of two very different stories that blended together across the novel - at times it risked making it feel like two different books, but it slowly eased together enough to make sense and make one story arc.  

There were a few things that were phrased oddly, or where there was what felt like spelling and grammar mistakes, but as I am not American this may be things we don't say that Americans do.  Not the strongest book in the series, but in many ways it feels like a transitional book, the series moving from being about a desperate search to find his sister, to his sister is home and he can start life as normal.  Not a bad book by any means, but not my favourite book in the series so far.

If you like this book then try:

Reviewed by Brilla

Monday, January 27, 2020

The spider heist by Jason Kasper

Blair is minding her own business, desperately trying to hold onto her third waitressing job, when a mysterious man offers her a job.  When she is unceremoniously fired from her job, Blair is left with little choice but to discover what he wants.  Her mystery man, with the mysterious job offer, turns out to be Sterling - and his offer really is too good to be true.  He has a buddy who needs some help to get his dating mojo back, and all Blair has to do is hang out with him at the bar and get him to loosen up - though she will get a bonus if she can get him to take her home.  It seems like a sweet deal, but when Blair manages to wrangle an invite back to his place she finds herself dragged into a very messy situation - messy for her, but also for the group of men who take her and her 'date' hostage.

Blair is not an ordinary waitress, she is a former FBI agent who left the Bureau under a cloud and after several months in prison.  Her skill set and training make her a terrible hostage for her would-be captors find that out the hard way, but they are determined to carry out their plan even with a trouble making Blair in tow.  When Blair is identified from footage taken at the bank, it causes a massive headache for the heist crew and for Blair, because now their carefully laid plans are slowly unravelling.  Blair knows that something isn't right with the heist crew and the way they are working, but can she figure out what is happening before her world implodes?  And will the heist crew be able to pull off their great escape, or will Blair and the intense FBI scrutiny about her being their lead to the downfall of the entire mission?

I picked up The spider heist because it was on a new books list and couldn't resist giving it a try after reading the blurb.  I read a lot of crime, thriller, and action books and I have a definite preference for books that are punchy and fast paced, without a lot of excess description to drag the story down.  Picking up the book to read the first few chapters and see what it was like turned into sitting still for a few hours and reading the book in one session because I didn't want to put it down.  Told from the different perspectives of (mainly) Blair and Sterling, the story unfolds with neither side being fully aware of what is happening with the other person, which adds some nice tension and a chance to understand the characters and story rather than having information rammed down your throat.  The other main characters add depth to the story, as well as providing opportunities for the story to grow and be more than a two dimensional cliché (which so many action/crime/thrillers can so easily become).  

A great read, and hopefully the next book in the series - The sky thieves - will be just as good!


If you like this book then try:


Reviewed by Brilla

Friday, January 24, 2020

Lost by James Patterson and James O. Born

Detective Tom Moon is part of an FBI task force in the city of Miami, tasked with tackling international crime and people smuggling.  When the task force gets a tip off about a human trafficker bringing a group of children and teens into the States, they act on the tip and manage to capture him - saving the group from who knows what fate in the process.  Saving them from an uncertain fate should be the end of their involvement for Tom and the rest of the task force, but Tom can't help but stay involved in the process, especially when the authorities plan on sticking the children in a detention centre until they can be flown back to Europe.  Connecting with the kids gives Tom and greater understanding of how they ended up being trafficked, but also makes him more determined to bring down the smugglers - especially when he discovers that there might be a connection to a local Russian gangster.

Wrangling his way into the role of guardian angel taking the kids back to the Netherlands, Tom soon finds that he has set himself on a path that will see his case collide with that of national police detective Marie Meijer.  Marie is tough as nails and determined to stop people smugglers in their tracks, even if that means crossing paths with her own Russian gangster.  She knows who's to blame for the people smuggling, but it will take hard evidence to bring down Hanna Greete and her brother Albert.  For their part, Hanna and Albert have been caught between impossible choices, because they are now thoroughly in debt to the Russians, who want payment in blood or diamonds if they can't get cold hard cash.  It is a race against time, and with the Russians involved there is a strong chance that it will become a bloody mess.

I'm not ashamed to admit that I like reading (most) James Patterson books (there are some librarians who don't like him that much), and Lost was definitely one of the good ones.  You know what to expect with a good James Patterson book - strong lead character, a story that jumps into the action straight away, a supporting cast of characters that are more realistic than perfect, a conundrum or villain that has a high cost if you fail, and at characters on 'both sides' of the story.  For me personally I think I enjoyed this a little more because of the connection to the Netherlands, though not so enjoyable that the Dutch characters were not usually the 'good guys'.  

I have seen some reviews that have panned the book, saying it takes over 100 pages to get into the story, but I didn't see it that way - it feels like the start of a new series and with any new series their is always a certain amount of world building and character building that has to take place so you can settle in and enjoy the ride with an understanding of who-is-who and what-is-what.  This was a great read, and I really hope there are more books in the series because I liked Detective Moon and the fact he kind of reminds me of Detective Michael Bennett, but also has his own voice and story.

If you like this book then try:
  • The end by James Patterson and Brendan DuBois
  • The witnesses by James Patterson and Brendan DuBois
  • Private by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
  • The nowhere child by Christian White
  • Vodka doesn't freeze by Leah Giarratano
  • Spare me the truth by C.J. Carver
  • Orphan X by Greg Hurwitz
  • Eeny meeny by M.J. Arlidge 
  • Crimson lake by Candice Fox
  • The better sister by Alafair Burke
  • The killing kind by Chris Holm
  • Breaking Creed by Alex Kava

Reviewed by Brilla

Thursday, January 16, 2020

The case of the spellbound child by Mercedes Lackey

The case of the spellbound child is the latest book in the Elemental Masters series, and while you can read it as a standalone novel you will get the best out of it by reading the books in the series that also feature Nan and Sarah.  This review contains ***SPOILERS*** for the rest of the series, so I highly recommend that you read these books in the series first: The Wizard of London, Home from the sea, A study in sable, A scandal in Battersea, and The bartered brides.

Nan Killian and Sarah Lyon-White have proven themselves to be shrewd and tenacious investigators for their patron Lord Alderscroft, combining their psychic and medium talents with good old fashioned detective skills learnt through their association with Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson.  Their reputation of being skilled investigators has spread beyond their own social circle, and with the general public believing that the great Sherlock Holmes is dead, people are coming to Watson to solve their cases.  

Their association with Holmes leads them to Dartmoor, where a mother and father are desperate to find their missing children.  The children were sent out onto the moor to forage for food after they spilled the limited food the family had to share for dinner, but they never returned.  Searching for the children in the close knit communities of Dartmoor will be a challenge, because not only is magic involved but also because everyone knows one another and looks out for their neighbours.  As the team from London tries to untangle the mystery of what has happened to the children, they don't realise that they are in a race against time because the children are in danger, and their very lives are at stake.

The case of the spellbound child was a much anticipated treat after I started reading the series in December and read from start to finish in publication order - and it was much easier reading with the rest of the series so fresh in my mind.  This is another book in the series that features Sherlock Holmes and John and Mary Watson, and it is interesting how the series has split into two very distinct styles - the ones that are very much fractured fairytales with elementals and elemental magic as the focus, and these books in the series which are more about mysteries and untangling the mysteries with ghosts and mind reading as the main skills.  

The relationships between Nan and Sarah, their ward Suki, and their friends is interesting, but I can't help but think about the original books in the series a little wistfully as they were closer to traditional fairytales and just seemed to be about Lackey's imaghination and her world rather than borrowing from the world of Sherlock Holmes.  I have to say this was also another book where it was a struggle at times to figure out what was being said at times because of the 'accents' the people were speaking in and how they were written - this has bugged me with other series but seemed worse in this one.  A good addition to the series, especially after having read them all in the weeks leading up to reading it, but I hope we get a few more of the other half of the series again soon.

If you like this book then try:

Reviewed by Brilla