Review: The Secrets of the Little Greek Taverna by Erin Palmisano

The Secrets of the Little Greek Taverna

by Erin Palmisano

Release Date: May 7, 2024

2024 Grand Central Publishing

Paperback Edition; 352 Pages

ISBN: 978-1538757499

ASIN: B0CH84LNRV

Audiobook: B0CKLTMKWQ

Genre: Fiction / Romance / Magical Realism

Source: Review copy from publisher

3 / 5 Stars

Summary

In a village on Naxos lies a gorgeous guest house and taverna that never opened. Cressida’s husband died suddenly three years ago – the taverna was their dream – but she’s been too lost in grief to keep that dream alive.

Marjory "Jory" St. James, a young traveler who always feels more at home on the move, arrives on Naxos in the middle of the night as if summoned by the island. She quite unexpectedly becomes Cressida’s very first guest.

Jory quickly discovers that this island vacation is more than just a sightseeing adventure as all of the women in town are more than what they seem. But when a hotel group offers to buy Cressida's taverna, it's going to take all of Jory and Cressida's drive and expertise to keep that from happening.

 

My Thoughts

The Secrets of the Little Greek Taverna is the type of book that I don't read very often as I am not usually interested in books about romance, but as it was set in Greece I thought, why not? I definitely enjoyed the setting and still want to visit the place, I loved the friendship theme running through the story lines, and I definitely enjoyed Cressida's cooking even if I can't eat most of it due to having Celiac Disease.  But a girl can dream about food, can't she? To be honest, I think it reminded me of those days when I would cook with my mom and my grandmother as I was feeling nostalgic reading those pages.  

The main story revolves around Jory, but I never really thought her character was all that interesting. There were times when she came across as snobbish, judging anyone with money to be the same as her grandparents who had this tendency to look down upon anyone who didn't, including Jory and her mother.  I understand how it was meant to come across, but it made Jory seem very judgmental herself.  To be honest, I actually preferred Cressida and enjoyed the scenes she was in far more. I also thought she had the largest character development arc as she went from this woman who was struggling with her grief to someone who knew what she wanted and went after it.  She didn't do it alone however, and the friendship theme was strong throughout the book.  Because of the number of women involved in this book, I did feel like most of their character arcs were a bit on the shallow side and I would have like to have known a few of them a bit better. 

The setting made me want to pack and go to Greece now as I love these small-town settings. Cressida's guest house sounds like a place I would love to stay as I prefer those over big, showy hotels and driving around on mopeds to explore the island sounds ideal. Once you get past all of that however, you realize the story is lacking, both in sizzle for the relationship as well as in plot development. And I don't mean smut, I mean I just didn't buy the attraction between Jory and Shane as the 'sizzle' didn't really work for me. I did enjoy their story, but overall, there was just something missing.

Verdict

The Secrets of the Little Greek Taverna was a fun little diversion, but it didn't really have any depth to it. I enjoyed the setting, but thought the characters and the story line were mediocre.  It's not that I didn't enjoy it, I just would have liked a bit more depth to the romance between Shane and Jory, and maybe more character development on Jory's part to make her more empathetic. However, if the author ever decides to write another book with these characters, I will definitely pick it up.

 

Review: Now You Are Mine by Amanda Brittany

Now You Are Mine

by Amanda Brittany

Release Date: September 9, 2024

2024 Boldwood Books

Ebook ARC; 299 Pages

ISBN: 978-9836171782

ASIN: B0D3P6CCKC

Audiobook: B0D94QPKG4

Genre: Fiction / Mystery

Source: Review copy from publisher

2.5 / 5 Stars

Summary

When Polly signs up to an art retreat in the Lake District, it's an escape from the stress of recent months, when a stalker preyed on her and her friend.

It's also an opportunity to find out more about her family as Polly believes her biological mother once lived here, at Lakeside House. But things quickly turn sinister. The previous owners supposedly took their own lives here, years before – and the glamorous new owners are now receiving disturbing threats. Someone is sabotaging Polly's artwork. The five other guests on the retreat all seem to be hiding something.

Then one of them goes missing.

My Thoughts

Now You Are Mine is one of those books that intrigued me because of the mystery surrounding her mother and her family. Plus, I like stories that revolve around sinister events from the past whereby the net generation has to go hunting for clues about mysterious disappearances and secrets. How I love secrets! This had all the elements that I love in a story. So, where did it go wrong? Well, I actually found a lot of it implausible and although I can suspend some level of belief, there is definitely a limit. And I wasn't a fan of the main character.

The overall character development was one-dimensional which made it really difficult to root for the characters or really care what happened to them. I didn't really care that they were written in both first and third person as I don't think that was the problem, but I am writing this almost two months later from my notes, and if I hadn't written those notes, I would not recall who was who as they were all bland. 

The first part of the book was the most interesting for me as I was intrigued by the mystery and I was interested in the setting and the threatening notes the new owners were receiving.  You have Polly's artwork being tampered with, some of the characters are behaving weirdly, other characters are definitely hiding things from their friends and their significant others, and then one of them just disappears.  Looking at all those things, it should have been a fascinating read, but the execution of it all just didn't work and felt excessive, like the author was trying too hard to create all of these strange scenarios, but couldn't keep track of all the threads.  And because the characters weren't all that engaging, I just couldn't get invested in the story and what was happening, flipping through the pages just to get to the end. 

I did enjoy the atmosphere of this book and thought the setting was intriguing, but then I love tunnels and secrets, so that was the part I enjoyed the most. I was actually grateful for the multiple POV as it gave me a break from Polly's story line as I found her irritating at times, and it was nice to learn what happened in the past and how it affected the future.  

Verdict

Now You Are Mine had a lot of elements that were interesting, but issues with character development and pacing definitely impacted the overall reading experience.  Some of the twists were a bit hard to believe, and overall, I found the book to be a bit forgettable with an average plot and average characters.

Review: A Rough Way to Go by Sam Garonzik

A Rough Way to Go

by Sam Garonzik

Release Date: May 7, 2024

2024 Grand Central Publishing

Hardcover ARC; 384 Pages

ISBN: 978-1538743362

ASIN: B0CH81ZN6F

Audiobook: B0CJCVS5VY

Genre: Fiction / Mystery

Source: Review copy from publisher

2 / 5 Stars

Summary

Peter Greene spends his days taking care of his toddler, Luke; staying on the right side of The Moms in his local beach town; and hanging out with his surf buddy, Frank. Isolated from his former life in finance, and frustrated by his current “out of work” existence, he worries that if he sits around the house for much longer, his workaholic wife might start to lose patience with him. He has few escapes aside from surfing and the love he has for his son.

But when the body of wealthy Wall Street investor Robert Townsend washes up on shore one morning, nothing about the incident makes sense to Pete, and he’s completely bewildered when the death is ruled an accidental drowning.  But when he takes his concerns to the police, they ignore him—so he decides to investigate on his own. Sustained only by the unquestioning devotion of his three-year-old sidekick, Pete starts looking into Townsend’s eccentric relatives and employer, the ruthless and secretive private equity firm GDR. But has Pete deluded himself with this misguided quest for redemption? Or has he uncovered something sinister enough to risk his life, and even his family?

 

My Thoughts

A Rough Way to Go was exactly that, rough. While the title had to do more with the death of the victim, it could aptly refer to the story line itself as it was sometimes rough reading and the dialogue made me wince quite a few times. Peter and his character development however, was one of the the stronger elements of this book, in particular his inner monologue.

So, Peter is a stay at home dad looking after his toddler son, Luke. His character was quite interesting and I was intrigued enough by him to want to know how they ended up in this small town, what happened to his career, and why he and his wife were having some difficulties. He is naturally inquisitive and when one of his buddies is discovered by the beach, he is not satisfied with the answers he gets from people as the time lines and what he knows don’t line up.  And now we have the problems with the other characters in this book. For whatever reason, most of them were antagonistic towards Peter and his investigation, even when he had some good information to relay.  This led to some unfortunate dialogue between characters that almost put me to sleep or made me roll my eyes.  Peter’s inner monologue was quite interesting, and sometimes comical, but as soon as they opened their mouths, things went awry and I found myself rushing through those parts. Why? I don’t know. It just didn’t work, make sense, or fit the character, or something felt off.

The plot moves along at a snail’s pace, which doesn’t always bother me if the content is full of tension and makes sense, neither of which happened here.  At a basic level, I could see where it was going, the author trying to make it seem so much bigger than it was, something that often happens in real life if all the conspiracy theories on social media are to be believed, so I liked what was happening, how it was made to seem more political and bigger as the story progressed, but then got turned on its head. I just didn’t necessarily like the way it was done.  I also think more could have been done with some of the characters, including Pete’s wife Lauren. I’m all about reading between the lines, but sometimes I want something concrete as well. And don’t get me wrong, I love stories where the story is a lot simpler than it looks as so many books are political. I love it when an author sends you in that direction, but then it ends up being something completely different. But when it is tedious getting there, you can also lose a reader which almost happened to me.

Verdict
A Rough Way to Go actually had a lot going for it, with an interesting concept, and there were definitely flashes of good writing. Pete was a great written character and I wish the other characters had been written the same way rather than being used as tools to prevent Peter from investigating.  If conflict was needed in this book, I’m sure what was happening with his wife would have been enough as she was particularly annoying and I was looking for something to happen between them.  While this one was a little rough for me, I will definitely take a look at another book by this author as there was a lot of potential in his writing.

 

Review: The Hardwick Heath Killer by Michelle Kidd

The Hardwick Heath Killer (DI Nicki Hardcastle, Book #3)

by Michelle Kidd

Release Date: July 16, 2024

2024 Joffe Books

Ebook ARC; 331 Pages

ISBN: 978-1835265550

ASIN: B0CTHQJYBW

Genre: Fiction / Mystery

Source: Review copy from publisher

3.75 / 5 Stars

Summary

The call comes at midnight on a stormy March night. A body has been found hanging from a tree on Hardwick Heath. In the dead man’s pocket is a handwritten SORRY. LIFE IS JUST TOO HARD. LOVE TO YOU ALL.

Detective Nicki’s instincts tell her this was no suicide — but someone has gone to a lot of trouble to make it look like one.

Three days later, a second body is found floating in a pond, just a few miles away. But the victim didn’t drown.

The police are treating the deaths as separate cases. Then Nicki uncovers a link between the two dead men — and the case takes a shocking twist.

As she unearths a series of secrets stretching back twenty years, Nicki and her team find themselves in a race against time before more people die.

 

My Thoughts

The Hardwick Heath Killer is the third book in the DI Nicki Hardcastle series, and while it was enjoyable, I did feel it lacked the tension of the first two books, and I wasn’t as engaged in the main story line as I was in the previous stories.  This book does focus quite a bit on the kidnapping of Nicki’s brother all those years ago, and I really enjoyed how that tied into the first two books. 

Nicki is an engaging MC and I really enjoy her character. She is a pretty sharp detective and investigator and is determined to follow through on every lead despite pushback from those around her.  I found her to be quite empathetic; perhaps it’s her personal struggles and the grief over losing her brother all those years ago that make her seem so relatable, it’s hard to say.  And while she has strong supporting characters around her, Nicki’s strength and determination really make her stand out from all the other characters.

I absolutely loved the setting and the atmosphere as I felt it added a depth to the story through a fascinating background and historical richness that only such a setting can provide. I love it when an author intertwines history and uses the setting to add depth to the story line and this author does this very well.  The twists and turns were quite interesting, but I did feel the story was a bit choppier than in previous novels and wasn’t quite satisfied with the main mystery. It felt like it was there to fill in the gaps between Nicki’s search for her lost brother and sometimes lost momentum. It’s not that it wasn’t interesting, it just felt it wasn’t going anywhere and felt rushed so the author could get to the other story, which was the search for the brother.  

Verdict
The Hardwick Heath Killer was a good entry into this series, but I don’t feel the tension was quite as high as in the previous two books. That being said, the author does tie together all the loose ends, maybe not in a way that satisfies everything, and leaves the door open for some interesting plot lines in future books.  While you don’t necessarily have to read the previous books in this series, I do recommend it as you will get some information for this book that is explained in the earlier books.  I am looking forward to the next installment in this series.

 

Review: The Unfinished by Cheryl Isaacs

The Unfinished

by Cheryl Isaacs

Release Date: September 3, 2024

2024 Heartdrum

Ebook ARC; 336 Pages

ISBN: 978-0063287389

ASIN: B0CSPJJY98

Audiobook: B0CSLJKKNZ

Genre: Fiction / YA / Horror

Source: Review copy from publisher

3.5 / 5 Stars

Summary

When small-town athlete Avery’s morning run leads her to a strange pond in the middle of the forest, she awakens a horror the townspeople of Crook’s Falls have long forgotten.

Though Avery had heard whispers of monsters from her Kanyen’kehá:ka (Mohawk) relatives, she’s never really connected to her Indigenous culture or understood the stories. But the Elders she has distanced herself from now may have the answers she needs.

When Key, her best friend and longtime crush, is the next to disappear, Avery is faced with a choice: listen to the Kanyen’kehá:ka and save the town but lose her friend forever…or listen to her heart and risk everything to get Key back.

 

My Thoughts

The Unfinished is an interesting young adult horror story that weaves elements of the author’s indigenous culture with elements of her own imagination, focusing quite a bit on generational pain and one’s identity.  It is full of tension and supernatural lore rather than gore, but I enjoy a good psychological horror as much as the other and I enjoyed the author’s exploration of trauma, regret, friendship, and self-growth.  But while I enjoyed the overall story, the pace was somewhat slow or erratic, and the tension was simply not there.

Avery is the main character and her flaws and her choices drive the story. Full of angst about her future as well as her relationships with her friends and family, she makes some poor choices that affect the rest of the community.  Because of a choice she makes, she awakens an ancient evil and begins seeing things around her. Her behaviour is drive through what she sees, but she offers little explanation to others and the visions simply vanish at some point so I am unsure as to why they were there to begin with.  I did think the interactions with those around her made sense as she was unsure about her future, had pressure on her to get a good scholarship due to her family situation, so her reactions made sense. I did really like her thoughts with regards to her heritage and how disconnected she felt to her people; the growth in this area was very well written and I like the fact the author clearly shows how complicated and difficult the path will continue to be, but she has to make an effort as well.

The overall pacing of the book was somewhat erratic; I really enjoyed the first part of the book as it was a bit creepy and the supernatural aspects were quite fun. But honestly, when the action started picking up towards the middle, there were a couple of things that slowed down the narrative. First of all, Avery’s constant introspection really had no place in these sections of the story as it takes away from the tension. You have these creepy people coming after you, but you have time to reflect on life’s choices at that moment? And second of all, the ragged man and company could have been utilised in a way that made them scarier. Personally, in real life, I would be running as fast and as far as I could, not having a discussion with my friends at that moment.  Make it scary by increasing the tension and the danger. The reader can understand Avery’s growth through her actions as well as her thoughts. There doesn’t need to be an explanation EVERY SINGLE TIME.

Verdict
The Unfinished definitely had a lot going for it, but I don’t feel it lived up to its promise.  And while it was still enjoyable, I did wish for more suspense and tension as the pacing was slowed down quite a bit through too much inner monologue going on.  Again, I think authors sometimes forget readers can pick up on clues of growth and other things through a character’s actions, we don’t need to read paragraphs of their thoughts as well.  And while I enjoyed the subtle aspect of the pond and what it represented, some of the backstory was glossed over, something I think would have been interesting. I would recommend this book if you like a character who experienced significant growth which included learning more about her indigenous culture.  

 

Review: Trespass Agaisnt Us by Leon Kemp

Trespass Against Us

by Leon Kemp

Release Date: July 16, 2024

2024 HarperTeen

Ebook ARC; 304 Pages

ISBN: 978-0063324855

ASIN: B0CLJYCHJQ

Audiobook: B0CLMJKM7G

Genre: Fiction / Horror

Source: Review copy from publisher

 

3 / 5 Stars

 

Summary

Two years ago, Riley visited the abandoned and allegedly haunted religious reform school Dominic House with his boyfriend, Ethan, and his best friends, Colton and Vee. Ethan never came out. Colton’s leg will never quite heal, Vee is branded as hysterical, and Riley has horrific scars as a reminder of that night.

Now, at eighteen, Riley hasn’t exactly moved on, but he’s kept away from all things paranormal. Until legendary ghost chaser Jordan Jones shows up with an offer: return to Dominic House with her to film an episode of her Spirit Seekers TV show.

Riley may have vowed never to return, but he has unfinished business at Dominic House. With a reluctant Colton and Vee at his side, Riley is determined to find out what happened to Ethan once and for all.    

 

My Thoughts

Trespass Against Us was quite atmospheric and I definitely found it creepy at times. Because the story features three characters who have been traumatized by a past event, the author does make use of flashback episodes in order to compare the present and the past, something I enjoyed as I was able to compare the reactions of the characters from the previous scenario to now and understand a bit of their character development.  Riley, Vee, and Colton nearly died the first time at the haunted house, so understanding how their enthusiasm for exploring haunted houses changed to experiencing major trauma was important to the story line and I do think the author did that very well.

The plot moved along rather quickly and I did find it quite gripping at times.  Having shadows around you and constant whispering would have sent me right out the door so I always admire when characters stick around to discover what is occurring in a setting such as this.

For me, the main issue I had with the story was the character development as I just didn’t connect with any of them and they felt pretty one-dimensional.  There were a few discrepancies within the story line and I couldn’t help rolling my eyes every time Jordan referred to Riley and company as ‘kids’ considering they were 18 years old.  Even if Jordan and her crew don’t believe in ghosts, they could respect the fact that something serious happened to Riley and his friends a couple of years ago and leave the poor jokes at the door. Also, considering someone did not return from the previous stay at the house, why people would want to hide what they saw/heard/experienced is beyond me. If this is just a means to create suspense, I don’t think lack of communication works very well as a trope as it’s pretty annoying.

Verdict
Trespass Against Us had a nice creepy atmosphere with a dual timeline that I enjoyed. While the pacing was quick, it could be erratic and sometimes skipped over previous things that were mentioned as if the reader would forget they were there, and the character development needed work as I had difficulty empathizing with any of them. That being said, it was still interesting and I would definitely read another book by this author.
                  

 

Review: The House that Horror Built by Christina Henry

The House that Horror Built

by Christina Henry

Release Date: May 14, 2024

2024 Berkley

Ebook & Audiobook ARC; 317 Pages

ISBN: 978-0593638217

ASIN: B0CFPKP9PF

Audiobook: B0CGRYRD4W

Genre: Fiction / Horror

Source: Review copy from publisher

 

1 / 5 Stars

 

Summary

Harry Adams loves horror movies, so it’s no coincidence that she accepted a job cleaning house for horror-movie director Javier Castillo. His forbidding gray-stone Chicago mansion, Bright Horses, is filled from top to bottom with terrifying props and costumes as well as glittering awards from his career making movies that thrilled audiences—until family tragedy and scandal forced him to vanish from the industry.

Javier values discretion, and Harry always tries to keep the house immaculate, her head down, and her job safe. Then she hears noises from behind a locked door, noises that sound remarkably like a human voice calling for help. Harry knows not asking questions is a vital part of keeping her job, but she soon discovers that the house may be home to secrets she can’t ignore.

 

My Thoughts

The House that Horror Built was a huge disappointment for me. I wasn’t a fan of the main character as she whined for pretty much the entire book, and that’s in between hearing things that go bump in the night and just carrying on like it’s nothing because, after all is said and done, she is a single mother and nothing is worse than that. Can you hear the sarcasm there? I spent 300 pages listening her whine about being a single mom. It wasn’t being a single mom that was the problem, it was the fact she had a huge chip on her shoulder and as soon as anyone said anything negative about riding buses or doing anything she did with her son, she immediately got defensive and really annoying. 

Harry was the MC and was the most contradictory character in the book. You were witness to her thoughts about everything and everyone, but she constantly judges people which leads her to leap to ignorant conclusions about them and events, waves off things likes things moving in the house as if they are nothing, and bases all of her current problems on her childhood which is also contradictory as her suffering during that time period doesn’t really align with her current behaviours, only being used as an excuse for them. Most of her worries really amounted to nothing so the backstory was kind of useless in this situation.  She thinks of herself as this strong person who makes good decisions for her son, but I definitely did not see her this way at all.

The rest of the characters are kind of lumped into one-dimensional ones that I couldn’t really separate or name after having read the book.

The plot was so slow and nothing really happened for about 80%. I really wish I had DNF the book as it was a waste of my time.  Most of the time was spent with Harry cleaning the house, worrying about money and how she was going to find another apartment, and that was pretty much it.  Yeah, the backstories were thrown in there somewhere, but they didn’t really enhance the plot at all. The last 20% is where all the action happened, but it happened so fast I am not really sure what exactly happened. So, we’ve got nothing, nothing, nothing, plot, ending, done. Where’s the tension, the mystery, the action?

Verdict
The House that Horror Built just annoyed me to bits. I love haunted houses, I love horror, but I did not love this.  Books don’t have to be gory to scare the crap out of me, and even if there had been some type of mystery included I may have elevated my rating, but there really was nothing I could grasp. The plot and the character development just weren't there. This was a very painful read. And while I do not recommend this book, consider taking a look at some of the other books by this author, such as The Ghost Tree.

Review: Heads Will Roll by Josh Winning

Heads Will Roll

by Josh Winning

Release Date: July 30, 2024

2024 G.P. Putnam's Sons

Ebook ARC: 314 Pages

ISBN: 978-0593544693

ASIN: B0CM5LXFZY

Audiobook: B0CMJSH7WZ

Genre: Fiction / Horror

Source: Review copy from publisher

3 / 5 Stars 

Summary

After sitcom star Willow tweeted herself into infamy and had to be dragged blind-drunk out of a swimming pool, her agent shipped her off to the woodsy and wonderfully anonymous confines of Camp Castaway. Tucked away in the trees of upstate New York, Castaway is a summer camp for adults in desperate need of leaving behind their mistakes, their social media accounts, their lives. No real names, no phones…no way to call for help. But the peaceful vibe is shattered when a terrifying woman pops shrieking from the wardrobe in Willow’s room. Soon after, one of the campers vanishes. Is Willow about to get cancelled all over again, this time for good? Soon, terror grips the group, campers begin to lose their heads—literally!—and Willow and her new friends are on the run. 

 

My Thoughts

Heads Will Roll has an intriguing cover page which is what originally drew me to this book. I love reading camp horror, no matter how many tropes are included as they can be campy and fun and remind me of my teen years when my friends and I had sleepovers and watched these things ad nauseam.  And though there was quite a bit of atmosphere in this book and I enjoyed the inclusion of the Knock-Knock Nancy local legend and how it was woven into the story, I don’t think the overall story quite worked.  

Willow is the main character although you get a few chapters from other characters’ POV. While I enjoyed her character and waited to find out what she actually did to deserve being cancelled, I don’t feel like there was much character development as she felt very much one-dimensional.  I did like how she thought some things through before doing them and liked some of the references to previous movies and such as that was fun. Because so much happens in a book such as this one, you don’t really get a chance to know all of the characters before they are…knocked off?

The plot moved along rather quickly, and while I definitely enjoyed the first half of the book for its suspense and intrigue, the second half kind of lost its momentum for me as it became a bit repetitive. Don’t get me wrong as there is plenty of slash and gash, but the pace was affected when the slashing started and this affected the overall tension.  To be honest, I wasn’t sure how I should take the book; was it a serious slasher or was it a campy summer camp slasher making fun of the genre? Either way, the first half of the book was better than the second half even if the terror level was supposed to be higher in the second.

Verdict
Heads Will Roll was still a fun book and I did enjoy it quite a bit. There were some moments that stood out where I was caught unawares and I thought the overall concept was fun as it seems to have that feeling of summer camp and what it’s like when things go creepily wrong. I did think the both the plot and character development were a bit lacking as the plot seemed to become a bit repetitive in the second half and it lost momentum as it focused more on the slasher element. I also wasn’t a fan of the ending as it felt like things were somewhat unresolved.  Overall though, if you like slasher camp novels, I would give this one a try.