The Comfort of Distance is an investigative mystery/crime story told from a multi perspective point of view. The plot revolves around human bones being found near an RV Park/Camping site leaving the local police and town folk to think it is a mountain lion preying upon unlucky hikers. In order to stifle rumors about mountain lions lurking near the site, Sgt. Hank LeGris calls on his brother, Dr. Sebastien Grey, to investigate the remains found and determine if these people were killed by an animal or if they were murdered. As the investigation proceeds, more remains are found and another possible crime is committed, leading police and Dr. Grey to believe the remains are from people who have been murdered. Succumbing to the pressure to preform well and solve these cases, Sebastien must lead the team on a wild chase littered with critical thinking, attention to detail, and overall brilliant reasoning.

This book was a really great depiction of a multi-genre novel. It hits on investigation, great character developments, some romance, and a lot of forensic study. The progress of the story was very well paced and the characters were all very vivid and developed realistically. There were a few cringe worthy moments when Sebastien was forced to face his 'awkward anxiety' yet it wasn't to the point of embarrassment, I didn't feel like he was just a ball of anxiety and I could see him coming out of his shell and becoming a more well rounded human. The other characters in this story are very likable as well, they felt like real people and weren't your average 'dumb cop' or 'lazy thug'. The romance aspect of this story was also very enjoyable, I am not a huge fan of romance but this one was very slow paced and didn't feel like it needed to revolve around the growth of the two characters relationship, they had things outside of their newfound liking to focus on.

Overall, this book was very good. I enjoyed reading it and I learned a little bit about anthropology and some of the process of what happens when human remains are found. The author did a really good job of incorporating reality into this story and it didn't feel like a huge information dump either.

A Dark and Secret Place is a psychological thriller that had me near terrified to read this late at night. The story itself is very interesting and had me intrigued the whole way through. I will say there were some parts I did find uncomfortable and some instances I was confused as to what some of the plotlines had to do with the story in general, but I think the author was able to tie up the loose ends near the end of the novel. Overall, this book was really intriguing and it was a good spooky read.

Heather returns to her late mother's house after learning that her mother has committed suided. In hopes to figure out as to why her mother killed herself, Heather finds letters between her mother and the notorious Red Wolf killer, who has been behind bars for the majority of Heather’s life. As she learns more about her mother's past and has the opportunity to meet with Michael Reeve, the famous Red Wolf Killer, tensions rise as a copycat killer emerges from the shadows. Heather must do everything she can to figure out why her mother was associating with Michael and if she can stop the copycat killer, even if it means returning to the place where it all started.

I want to thank NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for providing me with an ARC of this book. Publication Date : June 8th, 2021

#NetGalley #ADarkAndSecretPlace #CrookedLaneBooksPublishing

The Wives by Tarryn Fisher is a psychological thriller about a woman, Thursday, who has to share her husband, Seth, with his two other wives. Their arrangement is settled and the wives aren’t allowed to meet each other, and thats alright with Thursday until she sees Seths other wife’s name on a hospital bill. Drawn to figure out what attracted her husband to his other wife Hannah, Thursday looks her up and travels to their home. Once she arrives, she’s sees Hannah and notices Hannah has some bruises and she seems very skittish. Thursday has to decide if she tells Hannah the truth about her and Seth, or if she should just settle back into her arrangement with her husband. But everything isn’t what it seems, and turns out Hannah is pregnant.

This book was pretty good, I didn’t really enjoy the ending but I do love an unreliable narrator. I was surprised by how it turned out and I love that it had me guessing almost the entire time. I wasn’t too keen on the whole “polygamy” aspect of the book, but I guess it did add to the storyline.

Kink is a wonderful collection of short stories that plays on BDSM, sexual intimacy, and possessing a kink. Each story is written by a different author, many of them are very intriguing, and I was expecting to learn more about the roles of BDSM participants, but I was surprised to find myself actually drawn into the stories themselves. The stories are told with such elegance yet such grit, I found myself admiring how each author was able to portray such emotion and human characteristics, reminding us that we are all human and we all have such desires. Most of these stories were enjoyable, there were a few that I didn't quite understand but overall I enjoyed this collection of short stories.

I'd like to thank NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for this ARC.

The Ghost Tree is about a small town with a dark and evil past that haunts its unsuspecting residents. Lauren must be the savior of her town but all she wants is to live a normal life and just forget, just like everyone else has. But once the residents start remembering what evil events have taken place over the years, she must fight to remember and break the hold this evil has over her town.

I really enjoyed the setting of this novel. I love that it takes place in a small town in the 80’s and the fact that the characters are so telling for their time. This book was such a fun read and I enjoyed the way the story is told from multiple perspectives. There was not a single slow moment during this book and it had me on edge from the very beginning, it also had me scared to pick it up right before bed. I think this book was very well written and it ended in such a way that you could expect more to come from Christina Henry.

Winter Counts is about a Native American vigilante “thug, Virgil Wounded Horse, who is hired to take care of business that the Federal Government refuses to touch on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota. But when his line of work turns personal, he has to decide if he can trust the feds to make the right choice or take matters into his own hands. This crime thriller gives us a closer look at reservation life and the failed criminal justice that plagues many reservations across the country.

I loved this story so much, I could not put it down. I was so fascinated by the authors ability to draw on his own experiences and intersperse them with a believable fictional story. I thought the writing was so beautiful and the words used by the author had me enthralled nearly the whole time. I was very excited to learn more about Native American culture and reading this book gave me a glimpse of what reservation life is like. This book also touches on an important topic of how crimes are prosecuted on a reservation, it sheds light on the injustices still plaguing the Native American people. Not only that, but it provides us with the tools to learn more about culture and how we can better educate ourselves about the criminal justice system relating to reservations.