Foster sisters, Krystal and Nichole have always been there for each other so when Krystal gets a call that Nichols has been committed to a psychiatric hospital, she will do anything to help her.

This was a twisted ride! The story goes back and forth from present day to the sisters’ past in foster care. I enjoyed both parts of the story, but really loved the last told from Nichole’s perspective.

Lucinda Berry is a former clinical psychologist so she knows how to write a great psychological thriller. She delves into her characters’ psyche and makes us question what is true and what is not. Although I didn’t find either sister particularly likable, I did enjoy reading their story and to see what led Nichole to do what she did.

There’s a big twist at the end that pulled the story together and gave me that WOW moment I look for in a thriller. I look forward to reading more of Berry’s books.

Thank you NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 stars rounded up - full review to come!

Delta Dawn (yes that is her name) is a photographer who takes photos of children’s birthday parties for New York City’s elite. When Delta is hired to photograph Natalie Straub’s party, she finds herself wishing she was no longer behind the lens, but a part of the scene. She ingratiates herself into the Straub’s lives by offering to babysit for Natalie, befriending her mother, Amelia, and finding chances to interact with her father, Fritz. Now Delta finds herself enjoying the finer things in life that the Straub family is accustomed to. Once she moves into a garden apartment in their townhouse, we see that photographs aren’t all that Delta can manipulate.

I was really looking forward to reading this book because I love a good psychological thriller, but I had some issues with it. It was so implausible to me at times. The Straub family just accepts Delta into their lives and allow her to babysit their daughter without doing a background or reference check, really? Some of the decisions Delta makes were so out there that I found them unrealistic as well. I did think this book was fast-paced and kept me intrigued the entire time. It was a page-turner for sure, but I had hoped for more from the ending.

I listened to the audiobook, which the author narrates. I thought she did a great job and definitely enjoyed this on audio. Overall, I would recommend Mary Dixon Carter’s debut novel, but only if you’re willing to suspend your disbelief.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Ava Greene is a flight attendant who is turning in her wings now that she is engaged and going to start the stable life she’s always dreamed of. She is excited that her last flight has a 24-hour layover in Belize. That is, until she finds out that Jack Stone is also working this flight. Jack is handsome and flirtatious, but Ava doesn’t like him. They met years ago, but it seems Jack has forgotten that night and how humiliating it was for her.

The Layover is a romantic comedy that takes us all over the United States and eventually to Belize where the story really gets hot! There is definitely something between Ava and Jack from their first interaction, but besides the fact that Ava does not like him, she’s also keeping a secret from him and everyone else on their crew. As the chemistry between them heats up, we can see that Ava is going through some inner turmoil, wondering if the steady life she hoped for or if a life in the skies is what’s best for her.

This is a slow burn, enemies to lovers story, but at about the 50% mark, the story definitely picks up. I flew through the second half of the book. I really liked Jack as a character. Although Ava describes him as a bad-boy, player throughout the book, there is a lot more depth to his character. The scenes where he was being flirtatious and playful were great, and I enjoyed learning about his past. My problem is that I didn’t really like Ava. She is so rude to Jack based on something that happened years ago and rumors she has heard about him. Jack may tease her at times, but he is never as mean to her as she is towards him.

Gen, another flight attendant, is a secondary character that I loved. She brings some comedic relief to the story, and I really looked forward to the parts of the book with her in them. I’d be willing to read a spin-off of Gen’s story!

The Layover is Lacie Waldon’s debut novel, but I definitely look forward to reading more by her.

Thank you NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

This was one of most anticipated books of 2021. A retelling of Peter Pan! Sign me up!

Five years after Wendy Darling’s brothers go missing in the woods behind her house, children from the town she lives in begin to disappear. When she nearly runs over a mysterious boy named Peter, she realizes he’s the same Peter from the stories her mother told her of Peter Pan. They join forces to try to help the missing children and uncover what really happened to her brothers all those years ago.

What I loved:
The characters
New takes on an old classic
The meaning of the shadow

What I didn’t love:
Long chapters
Slow burn

I enjoyed the modern take on Wendy and Peter Pan and liked the way they were written. I especially liked Peter and looked forward to the parts of the story he was in. There’s a lot of background from the original story, and some creatively written parts that weren’t part of the original that I felt made this story a great retelling. However, I felt that some of the chapters were very long and drawn out. This book is definitely a slow burn, but definitely worth the read if you’re a fan of Peter Pan.

Lara has always had a crush on one person – Chase Harding – the school’s quarterback and all around good guy. That is until she meets Jasmine the summer before senior year. Now that Chase is interested in Lara, why can’t she stop thinking of Jasmine? When Jasmine shows up at their high school for senior year, will Lara stay with the boy of her dreams or end up taking a chance on a different kind of love.

Cool for the Summer by Dahlia Adler is a fun, young adult romance. I enjoyed the love triangle aspect and having a main character that is bi-sexual. Chase was my favorite character. He was so sweet and genuine, and I was rooting for him and Lara to stay together. I did not love Jasmine as a character. She was rude and standoffish, and I honestly could not see what Lara saw in her. I am a big fan of YA, but did find this one a little too full of teenage angst and drama for my liking. I do think the author did a nice job with showing how Lara figured out her identity and accepting herself.

I listened to this on audiobook and the narrator, Natalie Naudus did a fantastic job. She is becoming one of my favorite audiobook narrators.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

When four Wall Street colleagues are brought to a closed office building for a team building, they find themselves in an escape room scenario. They not only need to solve the puzzles to figure out why they are trapped in this elevator, but they also need to get out alive.

The book alternates chapters from the past where we see how these co-workers were in their office environment to present day when they are trapped in the elevator. We learned so much about each of these characters and how working in the cutthroat world of Wall Street shaped them into the people they are in the present day.

Megan Goldin did an excellent job of making you feel like you’re in the elevator with these characters. I felt claustrophobic while reading the story, and if I wasn’t afraid of elevators before, I certainly am now! These characters are all start out ruthless, but we see their lives fall apart the longer they’re in the elevator together and the more their secrets come out. It’s hard to say anything else without giving too much of the plot away so I just highly recommend that you read this one especially if you like thrillers or locked room-mysteries.

Three months ago, Lena Nguyen’s twin sister Cambry committed suicide in the middle of nowhere Montana, on Hairpin Bridge, also known as Suicide Bridge. Lena does not believe her sister actually committed suicide so she drives from Washington to meet with the state trooper, Corporal Raymond Raycevic, who supposedly found Cambry’s body. Lena is determined to find out what really happened to her sister that night on Hairpin Bridge.

I loved No Exit by Taylor Adams. That book had all the makings of a great thriller so I was extremely excited when I won an advanced copy of Hairpin Bridge from a Goodreads giveaway. Sadly, this one did not live up to my expectations though.

The story is told from a few different perspectives/timelines. Present day where Lena is confronting Ray, blog posts written by Lena the day prior to her meeting him, and what we think is Cambry’s story which were my favorite parts at first, but then it became unclear to me if it was really her story or Lena’s idea of Cambry’s story. This does become clear later on. The book has three sections, and I really loved the first section. It was a complete page-turner for me with some parts that had my heart racing. I had to know what was going to happen next. When I got to part two, I was still very invested, but then things started to get weird. I cannot say more than that without giving away spoilers.

I found the ending drawn out and disappointing. There was a lot going on, and I did not find it believable. I wanted to love Hairpin Bridge as much as No Exit, but it just was not for me.

Thank you Goodreads, NetGalley, and Joffe Books for my advanced copies in exchange for my honest review.

What did I just read? Seriously, I'm trying to really understand what I just read.

This book is more literary fiction in my opinion than mystery or thriller. Literary fiction is not my favorite genre, but I really loved the synopsis of this story. It sounded like it had all the makings of a great thriller, and when they blackout happens and these six people are stranded in this house with no WiFi, cable, or phone service, I expected a lot to happen. Things happened, but I still cannot make sense of them. The story does touch on race and class, but not enough, in my opinion, for it to meet my expectations.

On another note, I didn't really need to know how horny the wife, Amanda was because she was on vacation. I listened to the audiobook, and I feel like I heard the word horny at least 50 times if not more, in the first 15 minutes. There was also a lot of unnecessary talk of bodily fluids, masturbation, and random nudity.

The worst part for me though was the ending or lack there of. It just ended without an explanation as to what was happening. It's frustrating to invest time in a book and wonder why you bothered.