Review: Secrets Never Die

Secrets Never Die by Vincent Ralph
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's/Wednesday Books for gifting me an early copy. Below you'll find my honest review.

This one was an absolute roller coaster. I love when a book has short chapters coupled with great chapter ends, because it really feeds my "one more chapter" behavior and I can tear through them.

Secrets Never Die really built the tension well, starting off a bit slowly on the weird happenings, and then speeding up fast. Have you ever ridden Rock 'N' Roller Coaster at Walt Disney World? If you haven't you load into the vehicle, then pull around a corner and wait about 25 seconds. You get a 3 second countdown, and then you rocket from 0 to 60 in mere seconds. That's kind of how this book went. We had a brief set up, and then BAM - you need to know what's going on, what's happening, what everyone's secrets are so you just keep doing one more loop (reading one more chapter) until it's 5am and you have to be up in two hours.

I did have to give this one four instead of five stars. I wasn't entirely satisfied with the explanation/ending, and felt like it needed a little bit more. Maybe more hints dropped throughout the book so there was a tiny chance of figuring it out?

All in all, highly recommended fun YA mystery/thriller/suspense read. I'll definitely be adding the author's other books to my TBR.

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Review: Dead Mountain

Dead Mountain by Douglas Preston
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and Grand Central Publishing for gifting me an early copy. Below you'll find my honest review.

Everyone who follows my reviews know that I am *huge* Preston & Child fans - their individual books and their co-written ones. Pendergast is one of the series I have followed the longest, and this is the fourth book in a spinoff of the Pendergast series starring two breakout characters who have played key roles in Special Agent Pendergast's cases, Nora Kelly and Corrie Swanson.

These two are a fantastic duo. They have their areas of expertise, and they mesh them together really well to solve cases. They always have some tension, as they have certain areas of their jobs that require following certain protocols, and that can be frustrating to the other party. Corrie has grown so much since we first met her in Still Life with Crows, and Nora's introduction in non-Pendergast (but Smithback-including) "stand-alone" Thunderhead seems ages ago in her development as well. They've both come so far, personally and professionally, and been through so much. I love watching them work together to solve cases.

I also really enjoy the secondary characters in this spin-off series. Agent Sharp, introduced in this book, is a fresh new face with a lifetime of experiences that really drive his character. Nora's brother Skip is present, of course, and always finding himself getting into hot water somehow. Homer Watts makes an appearance again, and I really adore the growing relationship he has with Corrie. Some other characters are mentioned, along with events of both prior Nora/Corrie books AND some of their histories (like Still Life with Crows and Thunderhead). I really loved that their pasts are mentioned, as long-time followers of the Preston & Child "Pendergast-verse" will appreciate the references and feel nostalgic, like I did.

All in all, a strong entry in the series, though I felt a little like the Sheriff Hawley/Skip situation felt like it was tacked on and not necessarily vital to the story, other than to just provide a storyline for Skip... but to be fair, that could also be setting up for future confrontations, so might just be some extra world building.

I'd give it a 4.5 out of 5, rounded up to 5.

Highly recommended, but with the caveat - start where you want, but you will be spoiled on a dozen books' worth of character development and a MAJOR event from the Pendergast series if you start here. I'd suggest reading every single one of them! They're worth your time and money.

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Review: Tides of Fire

Tides of Fire by James Rollins
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thanks to William Morrow for gifting me an early copy of this novel. I really appreciate it! Below you'll find my honest review.

Sigma Force never fails me. Every single one of their books gives me the adventure and high stakes thrills that I am looking for out of an adventure/techno thriller, super high quality and with characters I really love (or love to hate).

This one had some seriously global stakes involved, and explored a place that humans have yet to venture far into - the ocean. It's stated that we only have mapped a small percentage of the ocean floor enough to see things the size of the plane crash... like 0.5% of it. That means we know more about space than we do about the hidden depths on our own planet.

This book posits some explanations for some gaps in science in a way that I absolutely enjoyed - the creation of the moon and the pieces left behind, the evolutionary track record of octopi, life-form bases other than carbon, what coral and symbiosis can do. It also delves deep into the human psyche, showcasing both heroes who will do what it takes to save the world and villains who will do whatever it takes to prove themselves, based on their insecurities, to be the superior creatures they want to be. It shows the depravities people are willing to undertake to gain advantages, and the destructive forces that can be led by nationalism.

Overall, Sigma Force is one of my longest-followed series, and will continue to be so, because Rollins knows how to write a darn good novel.

And guys... the end of this one... explosive. I can't believe we have to wait for the next. I needs it now!

Highly recommended, and always, caveat: if you haven't read the rest of the series, you're missing a lot of plot and character development, so do yourself a favor and catch up. :)

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Review: Mister Magic

Mister Magic by Kiersten White
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and RHPG Ballantine Del Rey for gifting me an early copy. Below you'll find my honest review.

I absolutely loved Hide, so when I got news of Mister Magic, I was so excited! This one is a little less horror and a lot more paranormal mystery, with sides of trust issues, childhood trauma, and blocked memories.

I really loved the characters in this one - you could feel their bonds (and the wounds to those bonds) through the pages. You knew that you both could and couldn't trust any of them, which made for a really fun read.

Honestly, one of the things I loved about it is the allegory that it is to the author finding her way out of a very controlling and strict religion, and how it was subtle in the story and then made obvious in her acknowledgements.

Highly recommended, and I'll read any more of her adult books the instant I can lay my hands on them. I also want to catch up on her YA catalogue.

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Review: Dark Corners

Dark Corners by Megan Goldin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the gifted early copy. Below is my honest review.

I really like Rachel Krall! This is the second book about her from Megan Goldin and the fourth Goldin book I've read overall. Loved them all!

In this one, Rachel finds herself pulled into a seemingly random investigation due to the words of a random prisoner doing time, who also happens to be a suspected serial killer. FBI agent Joe Martinez brings her into, hoping her presence will get the prisoner to talk in another case. Of course, things go completely bonkers from there, and it turns out that the web is much more tangly than previously suspected.

The killer in this one is terrifying and disgusting, and it really makes you think about how often you trust strangers.

Definitely give this one a read. I don't feel like it really gave anything away from the first in the series, but I always recommend reading all books in a series first. I think you could get away with not reading it in this case, but why would you skip the first one when it's good too?

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Review: None of This Is True

None of This Is True by Lisa Jewell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and Atria books for gifting me an early copy of this book. Below you'll find my honest review.

This was my first novel by Lisa Jewell, and it will NOT be my last. This story was a total mind-screw in all the good ways. You didn't know who to trust. You could see the characters get sucked into a world of crazy, completely oblivious to the impending doom (or completely ignoring all the red flags).

There are some potential trigger warnings for this one, including things that involve kids and older adults, domestic violence, alcoholism, etc.

Overall, this one was sufficiently twisty and turny, and a really compelling read. Once I get about 40% of the way in, it got extremely difficult to put down until I had finished.

Absolutely smashing success at creating a gripping thriller. Definitely will read more of hers, and highly recommend this one to thriller/suspense novels.

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