Review: The Forgotten Girls by Sara Blædel

The Forgotten Girls by Sara Blædel

Goodreads rating: 3.55

Pages: 312

Genre: Adult, Thriller, Crime, Mystery, Nordic Noir

Date published: February 3rd, 2015 (USA)

My rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads // Buy this book: Paperback

Synopsis

In a forest in Denmark, a ranger discovers the fresh corpse of an unidentified woman. A large scar on one side of her face should make the identification easy, but nobody has reported her missing. After four days, Louise Rick—the new commander of the Missing Persons Department—is still without answers. But when she releases a photo to the media, an older woman phones to say that she recognizes the woman as Lisemette, a child she once cared for in the state mental institution many years ago.

Lisemette, like the other children in the institution, was abandoned by her family and branded a “forgotten girl.” But Louise soon discovers something more disturbing: Lisemette had a twin, and both girls were issued death certificates over 30 years ago.

As the investigation brings Louise closer to her childhood home, she uncovers more crimes that were committed—and hidden—in the forest, and finds a terrible link to her own past that has been carefully concealed.

My review

After a bit of a disappointing read (by a Portuguese author), The Forgotten Girls came to the rescue – a breath of fresh air! This is the seventh book in the Louise Rick series, which I have read completely out of order. I started with the ninth and latest book, The Lost Woman, which I really liked, and now I’ve gone back in time to read the previous books.

So the book begins with a rather stressful and intense prologue, in which a woman is running through the woods, escaping from someone. Then, she is found dead. As you can probably guess, I was hooked right from the beginning – which is why it only took me a couple of days to finish it. This could easily be read in one sitting though, it’s incredibly gripping!

The plot is amazing and very well thought-out. Blædel combines a creepy and cold atmosphere with asylum-related shenanigans. AND she also writes lovely characters that you end up caring for – what more could you want? I don’t know about you, but there’s something about asylums and institutions of the sort that just gives me chills, so they’re the perfect addition to a crime book.

In comparison to The Hypnotist, I enjoyed this one better. Why? Well, mainly because, as I mentioned in my review, The Hypnotist should be shorter than it is. The story drags on for too long and it’s a very descriptive book. However, I was pleased to see that The Forgotten Girls is not like that. In my opinion, a crime book should be short and sweet and straight to the point. Otherwise, you kind of distract the reader from the crime and whodunnit, don’t you? Is it just me who thinks so?

One thing I really enjoyed was how I did not predict how the case would unravel or how the story would end. The Portuguese edition is 300 pages long and I only had a suspition at about page 230. And it wasn’t even right!!! I love that, there’s nothing worse than a predictable book, am I right? Especially a crime book!

There were quite a few moments that made me laugh or chuckle – these characters are everything, I love them all! I also think Louise’s motherly worries are endearing, I liked seeing that part of her and not just the badass detective side. Also, she has such an awful but interesting and intriguing past, and I’m dying to find out more about it in the next books!!

Fun fact: Sara Blædel will be at a book signing here in Lisbon next week and I CANNOT tell you how excited I am to go there and meet her!!

Overall, this book is really freaking good. It’s disturbing. It’s gripping and addictive. It doesn’t drag on, it’s straightforward. It’s everything I want in a crime/thriller book and, for that, it deserves the highest rating!

★★★★★ 5/5 stars

Have you read this book? What about the other books in the series? Let me know in the comments! ♡

I hope you enjoyed reading my thoughts on The Forgotten Girls and if you’d like, check out my other book reviews!

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Thank you so much for reading,
I’ll see you in my next post ♡

A Court of Frost and Starlight | Sarah J. Maas (spoiler-free + spoilery section)

A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J. Maas (Throne of Glass #3.1)
Goodreads rating: 4.39

Pages: 224

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance

Date published: May 1st, 2018 (USA)

My rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads // Buy this book: Paperback & Hardback

Synopsis

The Winter Solstice. In a week. I was still new enough to being High Lady that I had no idea what my formal role was to be. If we’d have a High Priestess do some odious ceremony, as lanthe had done the year before. A year. Gods, nearly a year since Rhys had called in his bargain, desperate to get me away from the poison of the Spring Court to save me from my despair. Had he been only a minute later, the Mother knew what would have happened. Where I’d now be. Snow swirled and eddied in the garden, catching in the brown fibers of the burlap covering the shrubs My mate who had worked so hard and so selflessly, all without hope that I would ever be with him We had both fought for that love, bled for it. Rhys had died for it.

My review

YOU GUYS. IT’S OUT AND I’VE ALREADY READ IT. MY HEART CANNOT TAKE THIS MUCH EMOTION!!

Okay, first of all, words cannot express how happy I am about diving back into this world. If you know me, you know ACOTAR is my favorite series (besides Harry Potter), and you also know that Feysand is my religion. The best couple of all the books I’ve read in my life, hands down 👌🏼💕

Secondly, WE HAVE EVERYONE’S POINT OF VIEW OH MY GOD YESSSSSS!!!!! I cannot tell you how excited I am that I got to read from Mor’s, Cassian’s and Azriel’s POV. Like I cannot handle myself, I LOVED getting a glimpse into their minds and thoughts. Just amazing okay? 😍 The only one that didn’t get a POV was Amren, for unknown reasons. 🤷🏻‍♀️ I don’t really get why, but I’m sure we’ll see more of her in the future – as well as Nesta, who also got a couple of chapters with her POV 🙌🏼

Thirdly… WHY IS IT SO SHORT I NEED A FULL NOVEL!!! I am DYING to read the next book – especially considering the sneak peek at the end. Really, Sarah?? You couldn’t just combine the whole thing and make it one giant book for me to inhale?? God, now I have to wait ANOTHER year 😭 I feel like rereading the whole series when my physical copy of this book gets here, even though I have SO MANY unread books to get through… we’ll see what happens 😅

I know a lot of people felt like this book was unnecessary and that the story was over, the series should have ended with A Court of Wings and Ruin. And to that I say: what the fuck!? There is SO MUCH unfinished business, so many things to explore, so many characters to develop… I honestly could read one of these books every year, I don’t think I would ever grow tired of it ♡♡

This novella takes place during Winter Solstice, which is a big thing in Velaris. We follow the Inner Circle, plus some other characters, as they prepare for the celebrations – with a lot of serious business mixed in there. I won’t tell you anything else because I went in not knowing much, so I wish that same experience on you! ☺️

If you can’t tell, I really freaking loved this book, even though it’s heartbreakingly short 😩 I grinned the whole time, everything just made me so happy, I’m so glad I could read about my babies again 😁

The sneak peek ends on a cliffhanger, and I am so intrigued to see what happens next, I can’t wait to have that in my hands 😍

★★★★★ 5/5 stars

 

Click for spoilery section

Wonderful things I want to mention – illustrated with quotes

Rhys being the usual sweetheart, making sure Feyre was doing alright during her period and caressing her. Also the fact that we now know how periods work for fae women!!

“It’s my job to fuss. And besides, you fuss plenty. Over far more trivial things.”

“Your cycle isn’t trivial.”

“I was in a little bit of pain—”

“You were thrashing on the bed as if someone had gutted you.”

“And you were acting like an overbearing mother hen.”

“I didn’t see you screaming at Cassian, Mor, or Az when they expressed concern for you.”

“They didn’t try to spoon-feed me like an invalid!”

Rhys chuckled, finishing off his food. “I’ll eat regular meals if you allow me to turn into an overbearing mother hen twice a year.”

Tamlin is a goddamned mess and I felt terrible, even though he deserves it. But holy shit is he down, I hope he’ll get over it in the next books, I really felt bad for the guy… the decay was overwhelming.

Tamlin didn’t speak, didn’t offer any explanations for the vacant house. For the rooms we passed, some of the carved doors cracked open enough for me to behold the destruction inside.
Shattered furniture, shredded paintings, cracked walls.

Rhys being deep and romantic and ruining all my standards for boys 🙃

“You were born on the longest night of the year.” His fingers again stroked down my back. Lower. “You were meant to be at my side from the very beginning.”

The humor of every single character had me laughing out loud – I love them all so much, god damnit 😩

“He’d seen Nesta in that particular pose, too. He called it her I Will Slay My Enemies pose.

Cassian had named about two dozen poses for Nesta at this point. Ranging from I Will Eat Your Eyes for Breakfast to I Don’t Want Cassian to Know I’m Reading Smut. The latter was his particular favorite.”

“We have thirty minutes,” he said with remarkable smoothness.

“And it takes you two hours to get dressed,” Mor quipped through the door. A sly pause. “And I’m not talking about Feyre.”

“Pick on someone your own size,” Cassian said to Amren, shoveling roast chicken into his mouth. “I’d feel bad for the mice,” Azriel muttered. Mor and Cassian howled, earning a blush from Azriel and a grateful smile from Elain—and no shortage of scowling from Amren.

The fact that one of the Inner Circle traditions during the Solstice is a snowball fight… warriors in a snowball fight!!! 😂 Also the part that comes after said fight 😏

“Three Illyrian warriors,” I said. “The greatest Illyrian warriors. Are having a snowball fight.”

Mor’s eyes practically glowed with wicked delight. “Since they were children.”

“They’re over five hundred years old.”

THE SEX SCENES LORD HELP ME
THE WALL… THE FUCKING WALL!!

Also the possibility of a FEYSAND BABY!?!??! I am NOT okay

“Last week had been so stupidly busy and I’d been so desperate for the feel and taste of her that I’d taken her during the flight down from the House of Wind to the town house. High above Velaris—for all to see, if it weren’t for the cloaking I had thrown into place. It’d required some careful maneuvering, and I’d planned for months now on actually making a moment of it, but with her against me like that, alone in the skies, all it had taken was one look into those blue-gray eyes and I was unfastening her pants.

A moment later, I’d been inside her, and had nearly sent us crashing into the rooftops like an Illyrian whelp. Feyre had just laughed.

I’d climaxed at the husky sound of it.”

What is there not to love in this book? I can only think of one thing: its length 😅

 

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Have you read the ACOTAR series? If not, do you plan on starting it? Let me know in the comments! ♡

I hope you enjoyed reading my thoughts on A Court of Frost and Starlight and if you’d like, check out my other book reviews!

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Thank you so much for reading,
I’ll see you in my next post ♡

The Kind Worth Killing | Peter Swanson

The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson

Goodreads rating: 4.03

Pages: 415

Genre: Adult, Thriller, Crime

Date published: February 3rd, 2015 (USA)

My rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads // Buy this book: Paperback & Hardback

Synopsis

Delayed in London, Ted Severson meets a woman at the airport bar. Over cocktails they tell each other rather more than they should, and a dark plan is hatched – but are either of them being serious, could they actually go through with it and, if they did, what would be their chances of getting away with it?

Back in Boston, Ted’s wife Miranda is busy site managing the construction of their dream home, a beautiful house out on the Maine coastline. But what secrets is she carrying and to what lengths might she go to protect the vision she has of her deserved future?

My review

A few months ago I buddy-read Her Every Fear, also by Peter Swanson. Back then, I already knew people liked The Kind Worth Killing better, but I didn’t know it would be this good.

Going into it, I knew the basics of the story from reading and watching reviews but I had no idea this was where the story would go. I absolutely loved everything about this book, and I wish it was a bit longer so that we could get a glimpse at some of the characters’ lives in the future.

I thought about it constantly, turning the idea around in my mind like looking at a diamond from every possible perspective, looking for flaws or cracks, looking for guilt or second thoughts, and I found none. All I found was the renewed conviction that [character] was a monster that I needed to slay.

This book is quite the ride. The plot twists in it are absolutely delicious and unpredictable (with the exception of one of them, which I saw coming) – and when you think the author can’t surprise you anymore, here comes another surprise!

It is midterms time, but I absolutely devoured this book every chance that I got. It’s so addictive, all I wanted to do was find out what would happen next!

I was fascinated by her raw beauty while at the same time realizing that she would not age well. Her face, rounded and doll-like, would turn puffy, and her pinup body would sag. But she wouldn’t grow old, would she? I was going to kill her, wasn’t I?

It features a few of the things I most love about thrillers: fucked up and flawed characters, secrets, suspense, investigation and stalking. Combine these into one, and add a good plotline, and chances are I’m going to LOVE the book!

I loved how everyone in this book was hiding something. Secrets always make me 100 times more interested and invested in the story. I love learning about a character’s dark past, I feel like it adds a lot to the reading experience.

I’d watched her for an hour one night, as she sat in her red leather chair, her legs tucked up under her, reading a hardcover book. While she read she absentmindedly twirled a long strand of hair in a finger. A cup of tea next to her sent up a ribbon of steam.

The fact that the story is told from multiple points of view makes it a much more thorough read. Not only do you see everything that happens, instead of what one of the characters sees/experiences, but it also enhances how one story can originate such different versions, depending on the person.

As always, Swanson’s writing read very nicely, and his books are quick reads, which I definitely appreciate during exams season 😋

As always, I was amazed by how the author was able to connect everything and bring back tiny details to wrap it all up. It is truly fascinating!

★★★★★ 5/5 stars

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Have you read The Kind Worth Killing? Did you like it as much as I did? Let me know in the comments! ♡

Overall I highly recommend that you pick up Swanson’s books – especially The Kind Worth Killing. So far, I haven’t been disappointed by his work, and I am DYING to get my hands on his new book that just came out!😄 Great writing, a solid plot and genius plot twists are some things that perfectly describe this book.

I hope you enjoyed reading my thoughts on The Kind Worth Killing and if you’d like, check out my other book reviews!

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Thank you so much for reading,
I’ll see you in my next post ♡

Review: Restore Me by Tahereh Mafi (spoiler-free)

Restore Me by Tahereh Mafi (Shatter Me #4)

Goodreads rating: 4.38

Pages: 448

Genre: Young Adult, Dystopia, Romance

Date published: March 6th, 2018 (US)

My rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads // Buy this book: Paperback & Hardback

Synopsis

Juliette Ferrars thought she’d won. She took over Sector 45, was named the new Supreme Commander, and now has Warner by her side. But she’s still the girl with the ability to kill with a single touch—and now she’s got the whole world in the palm of her hand. When tragedy hits, who will she become? Will she be able to control the power she wields and use it for good?

My review

I’ve been trying to write a review for this book since I finished it a couple weeks ago, and I still don’t know what to say.

As you might know, Tahereh Mafi is one of my favorite authors, and her Shatter Me series is in my top 3 series of all time. This being the case, I was beyond excited to read this book, and I got the ebook as soon as it came out.

I devoured every single page, extremely excited to be back in this world and to read about my favorite characters. Needless to say, I loved the shit out of Restore Me – I mean, Tahereh did write it, and anything written by her is amazing.

Here are some of my favorite things about it:

• Panic attack rep, which is not very common
• The conversations that took place
• Juliette being a badass bitch
• Warnette, obviously
• Anything Kenji says, ever
• Realistic reactions to things
• Lots of bonding
• Political intrigue
• THE FUCKING PLOT TWISTS
• THAT ENDING OH MY GOD GIVE ME THE NEXT BOOK PLEASE
• New (sassy) characters

Overall, I just want to tell you that, if you haven’t already, you need to start this series. It’s such a great story, and I just want to shove the books in everyone’s faces and force them to read them 😅

★★★★★ 5/5 stars

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Have you read Restore Me? Any predictions for what’s to come? Let me know in the comments! ♡

I hope you enjoyed reading my thoughts on Restore Me and if you’d like, check out my other book reviews!

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Thank you so much for reading,
I’ll see you in my next post ♡

Review: Strange Medicine by Mike Russell

Strange Medicine by Mike Russell

Goodreads rating: 4.03

Pages: 146

Genre: Adult, Fiction, Mystery, Anthology

Date published: May 5th, 2016 (UK)

My rating: ★★★☆☆

Goodreads // Buy this book: Paperback

Synopsis

We recommend the following prescription: Strange Medicine – weird and wonderful stories for all that ails you. Strange Medicine is a fantastic collection of extraordinary tales of transformation by UK weird-fiction author Mike Russell. If you love the strange, surreal and unusual or if you are just looking for something different, Strange Medicine is for you.

My review

Firstly, I’d like to thank the author, Mike Russell, for sending me this book in exchange for an honest review.

Strange Medicine is an anthology that contains eight strange short stories. When they say this book is strange, they are not kidding. Reading it, I felt like I was in one of my weird dreams that I sometimes have, in which nothing makes much sense – which I’m sure was exactly what the author intended.

The stories in this anthology are very short – one of them is 5 pages long – so this is a VERY quick read. I read the whole thing in a couple of hours, so if you’re looking for something like that, definitely give this a go.

The writing is easy to read, although in the first story, called Flock, there is a constant repetition of the main character’s full name, which kind of threw me off. But that doesn’t happen in any of the other stories, so it’s not a big deal.

On another note, the cover of this book (and Russell’s other book) is amazing, and so is the merch for StrangeBooks. If you’d like to check out the merch, click here.

Here is a very short synopsis for each of the stories:

Flock – man still goes to work every day after business closed down 12 years prior. One day, he meets someone on the train and everything changes.

Seventy-Two Bricks – man sees the same bridge in different places wherever he goes

Telephone – six weird phone calls between a man, a woman and a telephone

Mime – a story that features mime suicides and mime school; what’s real, and what isn’t?

Mr. Dennis and the Universe – man walks around with mysterious metal box; quite the morbid story 😅

Spy – hospice resident is being watched and followed

Brain – the story of a man and his stone

Shish – a story about a fish named Shish

Favorite quote

Sometimes the suffering of one individual is so great that it renders unjustifiable any purpose that the universe could possibly have.

Overall, I enjoyed the book, but I will say it’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea 😅 These stories are all original and unusual, but since they’re strange, people might not enjoy reading them.

★★★☆☆ 3/5 stars

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Have you read Strange Medicine? What are your thoughts on it? Let me know in the comments! ♡

I hope you enjoyed reading my thoughts on Strange Medicine and if you’d like, check out my other book reviews!

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Thank you so much for reading,
I’ll see you in my next post ♡

Review: The Dinner by Herman Koch

The Dinner by Herman Koch

Goodreads rating: 3.89

Pages: 310

Genre: Adult, Thriller, Mystery

Date published: November 5th, 2013 (UK)

My rating: ★★★☆☆

Goodreads // Buy this book: Paperback

Synopsis

A summer’s evening in Amsterdam and two couples meet at a fashionable restaurant. Between mouthfuls of food and over the delicate scraping of cutlery, the conversation remains a gentle hum of politeness – the banality of work, the triviality of holidays.

But the empty words hide a terrible conflict and, with every forced smile and every new course, the knives are being sharpened… Each couple has a fifteen-year-old son. Together, the boys have committed a horrifying act, caught on camera, and their grainy images have been beamed into living rooms across the nation; despite a police manhunt, the boys remain unidentified – by everyone except their parents.

As the dinner reaches its culinary climax, the conversation finally touches on their children and, as civility and friendship disintegrate, each couple shows just how far they are prepared to go to protect those they love.

My review

The Dinner is, unfortunately, my first disappointment of the year. Don’t get me wrong: it’s not a bad book, it just didn’t meet my expectations 😔

I read Abby’s review of this book, and she absolutely loved it. It’s one of her biggest recommendations, so I was very excited to read it. However, it wasn’t as good as I thought it would be.

Firstly, although it wasn’t genius, the plot had some potential. A family’s secrets and conflicts that are revealed to us as they eat dinner in a fancy restaurant. Sure, sounds intriguing. But it didn’t keep me interested at all. The revelations weren’t as bombastic as I expected them to be, so they fell a bit flat, in my opinion.

Koch writes in a way that reminded me of Ian McEwan – it has a literary fiction tone to it. There is one part where the author reveals something to us, but he doesn’t actually tell us what it is exactly, he just hints at it. I hate it when authors do that 😅 He also goes on about things that aren’t directly related to the plot, like social issues and the way people in higher social classes act. It bored me, to be honest, I just wanted to get to the juicy stuff.

Usually, when I start a thriller/mystery novel, I can’t put it down. In the reviews I read for The Dinner, people said they could not put this book down. However, I took several weeks to finish this book. I can’t put my finger on why exactly I didn’t even feel like reading it – it just didn’t grasp me, I guess.

One thing I really liked, however, was the element of the ‘unreliable narrator’. It adds something to the story because you can’t trust them, which is a nice touch. If you have any recommendations of books with unreliable narrators, definitely leave them in the comments, as I seem to enjoy them.

Overall, I enjoyed the book, but it definitely isn’t a book that I loved, which is a bummer. I really wanted to like it 😅

★★★☆☆ 3/5 stars

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Have you read The Dinner? Did you like it? Let me know in the comments! ♡

I hope you enjoyed reading my thoughts on The Dinner and if you’d like, check out my other book reviews!

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Thank you so much for reading,
I’ll see you in my next post ♡

Review: The Chalk Man by C. J. Tudor

The Chalk Man by C. J. Tudor

Goodreads rating: 3.89

Pages: 352

Genre: Adult, Thriller, Crime, Mystery

Date published: January 9th, 2018 (USA)

My rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads // Buy this book: Paperback & Hardback

Synopsis

In 1986, Eddie and his friends are just kids on the verge of adolescence. They spend their days biking around their sleepy little English village and looking for any taste of excitement they can get. The chalk men are their secret code; little chalk stick figures they leave for each other as messages only they can understand. But then a mysterious chalk man leads them right to a dismembered body, and nothing will ever be the same.

In 2016, Eddie is fully grown, and thinks he’s put his past behind him. But then he gets a letter in the mail, containing a single chalk stick figure. When it turns out his other friends got the same messages, they think it could be a prank… until one of them turns up dead. That’s when Eddie realizes that saving himself means finally figuring out what really happened all those years ago.

My review

Well, here is another favorite! From the moment I picked it up, I couldn’t get this story out of my head – I needed to solve this mystery… 🕵🏻‍♀️

The Chalk Man is a very gripping thriller that features a whole lot of fucked up characters. Each one has their own secrets, their own mistakes, and even if you don’t see it right away, absolutely everything is connected. It’s amazing, I don’t know how authors do it 😅

Never have regrets. You make a decision, and you make it for the right reason at the time. Even if it proves to be the wrong decision later, you live with it.

The plot is not a leading part of this book, I consider this to be a character-driven book. There are five central characters in this book – one of them, Eddie, is our main character and narrator. Eddie and his friends Hoppo, Gav, Mickey and Nicky are around the age of twelve in 1986, which means half (maybe more) of this book is about a group of kids and set in the 80’s. This makes it have a similar feeling to It by Stephen King, or the Netflix show Stranger Things. If you’ve seen either the movie or the show, you will most likely be reminded of them as you read The Chalk Man.

Never assume. Question everything. Always look beyond the obvious.

The quote above sums up the way this story should be approached. No one is who you think they are – which is something I love in books – and everyone has deep, dark secrets. It’s a great cast of characters, all extremely fucked up.

The whole book has a cold and creepy atmosphere to it that reminded me of Into the Water by Paula Hawkins. I remember having the same chilling sensation when I read that one, which I am rather fond of. I like it when thrillers transport you to an alternative reality in which you just get lost in the story and what’s happening, and you constantly have shivers because everything is so eerie.

Never have regrets. You make a decision, and you make it for the right reason at the time. Even if it proves to be the wrong decision later, you live with it.

There is a great deal of murder, religion/religious discussions, and also abortions, as one of the characters is a doctor who performs them. The fact that it is set in the 80’s means some of the prominent themes of this book are extremely controversial, as was the reality in said time period. There is also an emphasis on the dichotomy between Christian belief and abortions, as you would expect. There are also serious bullying and rape situations that occur in the story, so you should be aware of that before going into it.

Right at the end of the book, there is a huge and shocking revelation that completely blew me away, and made this story SO much better. Amazing, twisted ending!

Secrets are like arseholes. We all have them. It’s just that some are dirtier than others.

Amongst all the creepy happenings and descriptions, I actually found myself laughing a lot through this book. The characters are hilarious, they kind of have the same sense of humor as me, so that made me enjoy it even more. This book has it all!!

★★★★★ 5/5 stars

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Have you read The Chalk Man? What did you think about the horrid ending? Let me know in the comments! ♡

I strongly recommend that you pick up this book, it’s an amazing thriller that is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat. They’re not kidding when they say this is the thriller of the year 😄

I hope you enjoyed reading my thoughts on The Chalk Man and if you’d like, check out my other book reviews!

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Thank you so much for reading,
I’ll see you in my next post ♡

Review: The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

Goodreads rating: 4.07

Pages: 352

Genre: Adult, Thriller, Mystery

Date published: January 9th, 2018 (USA)

My rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads // Buy this book: Paperback & Hardback

Synopsis

When you read this book, you will make many assumptions.
You will assume you are reading about a jealous wife and her obsession with her replacement.
You will assume you are reading about a woman about to enter a new marriage with the man she loves.
You will assume the first wife was a disaster and that the husband was well rid of her.
You will assume you know the motives, the history, the anatomy of the relationships.
Assume nothing.

My review

Trigger warnings: domestic violence, stalking, controlling and manipulative behavior, alcoholism

Going into this book, I was expecting a stalking story – a wife who stalks the woman her husband left her for. Boy, was I wrong! The Wife Between Us is a domestic thriller with an intricate plot and web of characters, and it completely blew me away. I am sure this one will be one of my favorite reads of the year.

Starting with the characters, no one is who you think they are, so there are like dozens of moments of realization, which made it incredibly gripping for me. I couldn’t stop thinking about this book and how fucked up the situations in it were. Each character plays an important role, even if you dismiss them as insignificant.

Just a side note: this story had a few elements that were eerily similar to my own life, and that was freaky 😄 For example, one of the characters is named Vanessa and she used to have a German Shepherd named Duke. I AM NAMED VANESSA AND USED TO HAVE A GERMAN SHEPHERD NAMED DUKE. WHAT THE FUCK!?!? Ok, rant over hahaha I just had to mention it 😋

The writing was very nice, the whole book read quite quickly. I’m not sure whether both authors wrote different chapters, but I didn’t really notice much of a difference in the writing from chapter to chapter. The writing is very flowy and fast-paced, which I definitely appreciate in thriller novels.

To me, the plot of this book is its strongest point. The authors did an INCREDIBLE job. I didn’t see most of the twists coming, neither did I ever think the story would go where it went. Also, there are several times in which the authors connect two completely distinct situations, and that’s when you have a “HOLY SHIT!” moment. Amazing.

That ending, though. Oh my god. No one would EVER suspect this was where it would go. And if anyone saw it coming, you are a fucking psychic and I worship you, because that was the best, most mind-blowing ending the authors could have come up with.

 

★★★★★ 5/5 stars

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Have you read The Wife Between Us? What did you think about that mind-blowing ending? Let me know in the comments! ♡

In conclusion, I definitely recommend that you pick up this book, it’s a GREAT domestic thriller that will surely mess with your mind.

I hope you enjoyed reading my thoughts on The Wife Between Us and if you’d like, check out my other book reviews!

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Thank you so much for reading,
I’ll see you in my next post ♡

Review: Almost Midnight by Rainbow Rowell

Almost Midnight by Rainbow Rowell

Goodreads rating: 4.31

Pages: 144

Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Date published: Nov 2nd, 2017 (USA)

My rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads // Buy this book: Hardback

Midnights was originally published in My True Love Gave To Me, which I already own, and Kindred Spirits was published as a World Book Day title not too long ago, which I had already read. I know what you’re thinking – why the hell did I buy this book, then? Well, I couldn’t resist the cuteness. I mean look at it… Also, it was on sale for like 40% off on BookDepository, so I had to get it!

Midnights

★★★★★ 5/5 stars

This lovely story follows Mags through about four different New Year’s Eves. She is a bit shy, which means she struggles to fit in at the New Year’s parties her friend Alicia throws every year, and also makes it so that she constantly rejects Noel’s (her best friend) requests to dance with him.

“That was a good catch – but I was actually trying to lure you out onto the dance floor.”

“That was a coffee table, Noel.”

“There was room for two, Margaret.”

I related so much to Mags, you have no idea!! A friend of mine throws a New Year’s party every year, and I am always that person that just looks at their phone the whole time, or I start cleaning up or helping with the food and stuff like that. I just am not the type of person to be dancing with everyone at a party, you know? So that really hit home for me, as you can tell haha Another thing that resonated with me was the sort of “unrequited love” that is present in the story, but I won’t go into detail on that part.

“That’s so gross,” Mags said

“Kissing?”

“No… kissing is fine. What’s gross is using New Year’s Eve as an excuse to kiss someone who might not want to kiss you. Using it as a trick.”

Overall, Midnights is absolutely perfect to read during the holiday season – it literally took me less than an hour to read it, by the way! The characters are very fun and lovable, and the setting is, obviously, very adequate for said season. As for the plot, cliché as it may seem, it is absolutely addicting, and you won’t want to put it down. In fact, I wish we had more than just this short story about Mags and Noel – that happens with everything Rainbow Rowell writes, she always leaves you wanting more!

“I need you to be my person. I need to see you. And hear you. I need you to stay alive. And I need you to stop kissing other people just because they’re standing next to you when the ball drops.”

Rowell’s writing, as always, is fabulous. She truly is one of the best contemporary romance writers, in my humble opinion. Not to mention it was one of her books that got me into reading! ♡

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Kindred Spirits

★★★★★ 5/5 stars

This was the first short story I ever read, and I’m so glad I read it!! Sooo cute and funny and heartwarming.

This story follows our main character, Elena, who is a big Star Wars fan. Since a new movie is coming out, she decides to queue outside the theater (4 days prior to the premiere), expecting there to be a huge line of all these cool and fun people dressed in Star Wars costumes. However, when she gets there she finds two other people only. That was it. The whole line.

“Time for a little midday siesta – the Force asleepens”

Throughout the plot, we see how Elena copes with her disappointment in the size of the line, and how she tries to make fun happen with a shy guy, and a crazy (much older) man who is probably more obsessed with Star Wars than anyone she’s ever met.

It really captures how common interests can bring people together, no matter how different they are from one another.

“Are you some sort of Star Wars purist?”

The characters were super funny and witty – and sometimes awkward -, and they kept making nerdy jokes about Star Wars. There isn’t much of a plot, really, but what we see happen during the story is very funny, and the ending – although it’s kind of a cliffhanger – was great.

“I haven’t slept in a week,” Gabe said. “I think you can die of that. I think I’m dead”

It’s the perfect story for when you’re craving something cute and witty, and great if you don’t know what to read. And it’s so short, you can just pick it up and read it in less than an hour. It is, basically, a cute story about nerds, and who could not love that?!?

Note: most of the text in this review is copied from the one I posted on Tumblr, back when I first read the story.

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Have you read any of Rainbow Rowell’s books/short stories? Which book is your favorite? Let me know in the comments! ♡

In conclusion, I definitely recommend that you pick up Rainbow Rowell’s short stories – they’re brief, but delicious! I hope you enjoyed reading my thoughts on Almost Midnight and if you’d like, check out my other book reviews!

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Thank you so much for reading,
I’ll see you in my next post ♡

Review: Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas

Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas (Throne of Glass #2)

Goodreads rating: 4.49

Pages: 418

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance

Date published: Aug 27th, 2013 (USA)

My rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads // Buy this book: Paperback & Hardback

Synopsis

From the throne of glass rules a king with a fist of iron and a soul as black as pitch. Assassin Celaena Sardothien won a brutal contest to become his Champion. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown. She hides her secret vigilantly; she knows that the man she serves is bent on evil.

Keeping up the deadly charade becomes increasingly difficult when Celaena realizes she is not the only one seeking justice. As she tries to untangle the mysteries buried deep within the glass castle, her closest relationships suffer. It seems no one is above questioning her allegiances—not the Crown Prince Dorian; not Chaol, the Captain of the Guard; not even her best friend, Nehemia, a foreign princess with a rebel heart.

Then one terrible night, the secrets they have all been keeping lead to an unspeakable tragedy. As Celaena’s world shatters, she will be forced to give up the very thing most precious to her and decide once and for all where her true loyalties lie… and whom she is ultimately willing to fight for.

My review

Let me just preface this post by saying I am seriously addicted to this series. I finished the first book on Wednesday night, and already finished this one this evening – mind you, I had a test today, and I barely studied because I was that hooked!! All the hype makes total sense after reading it!

Her salary as King’s Champion was considerable, and Celaena spent every last copper of it. Shoes, hats, tunics, dresses, jewelry, weapons, baubles for her hair, and books. Books and books and books. So many books that Philippa had to bring up another bookcase for her room.

This was an amazing sequel, and way better than the first book, that’s for sure! I found the plot to be very intriguing and, as any of SJM’s plots, very intelligent. I honestly don’t know how she comes up with these things!! Every little detail she mentions will come into play later, and everything just connects so flawlessly. She is absolutely genius.

She wouldn’t mind working with him – but not in the way Roland meant. Her way would include a dagger, a shovel, and an unmarked grave.

As I said in my review for Throne of Glass, I don’t usually enjoy 3rd person narrative, but it REAAALLY works for this series, and I’m beginning to like it more.

There are some quite scary scenes in here, and also a looooooot of emotional stuff, so definitely be prepared for an emotional roller coaster!

She had mountains of unread books sitting in her rooms but didn’t feel like reading any of them.

I’m OBSESSED with the OTP here, and I’m praying that they will stay together. PLEASE let them stay together I love them so muchhhhhh
I liked the OTP in the first book, but I don’t think anything could beat the current one, to be completely honest. My ship has sailed, friends.

“She’s just one girl.”

Though his guts were twisting at the thought of her in this place, (…) he gave the man a grin. “Then you’re really in for a surprise.”

I also felt as though there was a fair amount of character development, which I am always here for! Some of the characters matured a lot, or at least that’s what I gathered as I kept reading.
I love these characters so much it hurts *sobs*
My favorite characters are: Celaena, Chaol, Dorian, Mort, Nehemia and Ress (although he’s not often present, I really like the guy – he’s probably the only sane person in this entire series, tbh)
Despite there being amazing characters whom I love, I should warn you that 80% of the characters in this series are absolutely despicable and need to die like yesterday.

“I bet you wipe your ass with gold.”

“I don’t think that would be very comfortable.”

Unfortunately, I was spoiled for the big revelation at the end, so I already knew what would happen. That did take something away from my reading experience, but I absolutely loved Crown of Midnight nonetheless, and it wouldn’t make any sense to lower the rating based on an external factor. So, I will be giving it 5 stars, without a second thought.

My rating

I reeeeeeaaaally really love this series, and this book is my favorite so far. I absolutely recommend that you start reading the Throne of Glass series. I thought nothing would come close to the ACOTAR series, but I think this one will be at the same level for me, and that’s saying a lot.

If you’ll excuse me, I’ll go dive right into the third book now.

★★★★★ 5/5 stars

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Have you read the ToG series? Which book is your favorite? Let me know in the comments! ♡

I hope you enjoyed reading my thoughts on Crown of Midnight and if you’d like, check out my other book reviews!

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Thank you so much for reading,
I’ll see you in my next post ♡