NetGalley ARC | The Lost House

I received a free ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Rating | ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Forty years ago a young mother and her infant daughter were found buried in the snow in the small village of Bifrost, Iceland. The mother's throat was slashed and the baby had drowned. The case remains unsolved, though after the husband took their son and left for California, that seems to be enough proof for the villagers that he'd murdered his wife and daughter, but escaped justice for lack of evidence.

Fast forward to the present, Agnes is determined to clear her gradfather's name. He passed away a year prior, and Agnes needs a distraction from her own life as she recovers from a serious leg injury and the recent break-up with her girlfriends, while dealing with an addiction to painkillers because of said injury. Agnes accepts an invitation from Nora Carver, a true crime expert, to be interviewed for her podcast on the topic. Agnes heads off to Iceland to figure out what happened to part of her family all those years ago.

Upon Agnes's arrival, she learns that a local girl has been reported missing. She had last been seen at a party at Agnes's old family home where her grandparents, father, and aunt once lived. The home has a new owner who kept the home much the same as it had been forty years earlier. Now the outsiders, Agnes and Nora, have two investigations on their hands, as it couldn't possibly be a coincidence, could it? Nora's focus is drawn to the current case and Agnes must get to the bottom of her family story, no matter what revelations come to light. Either her grandfather was a murderer, or not. One way or another, she will find out what people are willing to do to protect themselves, their families, and their secrets.

The landscape of Iceland is practically a character in itself and I enjoyed that immensely. Iceland in the winter is not for the faint of heart and seeing Agnes struggle with this as she tries to understand what happened to her family was an important part of this well-written mystery. The author sets the scene brilliantly, and you really feel like you are there with Agnes every step of the way.

The build-up of suspense was incredible, as Agnes tracks down every last person she can who knew her grandparents. The clues unfold slowly and we hear most of the stories from friends and neighbors, but not in a way that felt like an info-dump. We also know going in that obviously someone is not telling the whole truth, and Agnes must figure out whose recollection is purposely not accurate. We get to know the characters really well in this way and the author did a wonderful job keeping voices distinct. Through Agnes the reader can determine viable suspects, though nothing felt obvious or out of place, like it was thrown in to make the answer clear. It was hard to know who to trust as more and more was revealed.

I really loved this book quite a lot. The author masterfully told a compelling story that kept me reading; I had to know the answer. Agnes has to overcome so much to find the truth, given her own difficulties with the injury and addiction on top of thinking about what it could possibly mean for her if her much-loved grandfather turns out to be the murderer.

Highly recommended

NetGalley ARC | All We Lost Was Everything

I received a free digital ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Rating | ⭐⭐⭐⭐

A few months ago River's dad died when their house burned down. Her mom up and dipped months before that. She lives with her aunt and works at a diner with her best friend, Tawny. Then there's cute waiter Logan and her ex-boyfriend Noah who make things more complicated. When new information comes out about the fire that killed her dad, it's all River can think about. For so long it was assumed to be an accident, but now River's not so sure.

So, I don't read YA for romance. I like murder mysteries/thrillers and that's it. River and Logan felt like insta-love, which I always find very weird. Luckily, their relationship was not the entire focus and the mystery and the twists that came with it were enough to keep me going.

In regards to the relationship, this definitely reads more like older YA and I would not let Eleanor have a go at it yet. The characters are beginning-college age-ish so it is upper YA anyway.

I really liked the mystery and had so many questions about River's parents, the fire, and her mom's disappearing act. It was an engaging read, even if the characters sometimes came across as cardbord cutouts of certain tropes. Some things I saw coming, some I didn't, and it was not the worst way to spend a couple hours.

Recommended.

Book Review | Damnation Island: Poor, Sick, Mad, and Criminal in 19th-Century New York

Rating | ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This book was absolutely horrifying and engrossing at the same time. I could not put it down.

In 1928 NYC purchased an island in the East River and called it Blackwell's Island. For the next hundred years the complex of buildings were supposedly a safe-ish place for the insane, poor, sick, and criminal. The author shows us what daily life was like for those living on the island, as well as those who worked there. We hear from the people trapped there, city officials who sent them away, reformers who knew it was not the solution, and journalists trying to shed light on the abusive and inhumane practices. We also are taken on a deep dive of the politics surrounding the on-going use of the island, how 'charity' was put into practice, and all of the horrific 'therapies' patients were subjected to.

Different facilities were built to care for each of the groups mentioned above. Great in theory, but not entirely accurate in practice. Due to funding (or lack of), staffing (or lack of), food (or lack of), and/or medication/supplies (or lack of), these populations often mixed together and the results are as awful as you would expect. With massive overcrowding, sometimes inmates were assigned to a different facility than was appropriate. And as a cost-saving measure, convicts were assigned jobs as attendants in one of the other buildings. It went as well as you would expect.

That was not the vision the city had for this project when it first began. Originally the plans were, naturally, to find humane ways to care for these populations with the highest needs. The initial plan was for a facility to house up to 200 people. There was no intention of mixing any of the populations, especially not those in the penitentiary with the mentally ill, One can see right away why that would be a receipe for disaster, a situation ripe for further abuse of those least able to defend themselves. When the building was nearly at capacity in the first few weeks, the city realized they had a much bigger problem on their hands. The asylum had to be enlarged repeatedly, and still there was never enough room for everyone. And for the doctors and nurses truly trying to do good and help those in their care, it must have been overwhelming to know that there was never enough of anything to truly help - not enough money, not enough staff, not enough supplies and food and medications. Of course, you also had those who did not care about treating patients humanely, which made an already-unbearable situation infinitely worse.

We might think we are doing so much better today, but let's be realistic. The mentally ill and the criminal are still housed together, only now it's in jails and prisons, where those with metal illness get zero treatment and they are subject to abuse again at the hands of fellow inmates. While treatments in psychiatric facilities are better now, prisons are not. Prisons are the new asylums for those who do not have access to treatments and medications and money/insurance to pay for these things that the psych facilities can provide.

The author did a fantastic job showcasing each facility on the island and how they operated. As we all know, people (mainly women) could be committed for pretty much anything, and that's exactly how Blackwell Island found itself at capacity so soon after opening. For a century, people sent to the island were subjected to absolutely disgusting living conditions. Food was often spoiled and rotting, and there was much physical abuse. It will also surprise no one that racism was also at work, and while conditions were terrible for everyone, it was usually even worse for Black patients and inmates. Plus we all know how well-liked the Irish were at this time, so their treatment was also as awful as you would expect.

This is a very well-researched and interesting read. The author had access to surviving documents and really brought to life individuals who lived and died on the island. It is a difficult read, but an important one. The complete disregard for human life over the decades of operations is heartbreaking and something that stayed with me long after I finished this one. There were certainly bright spots in the story, reformers who saw what was happening and tried to stop it, but were met with resistance at nearly every turn.

The author ends with a look at Rikers Island now, and asks if we are really doing much better today. You can probably draw your own conclusion.

Highly recommended.

Mini Reviews | Books About Books

Rating | ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Agatha Christie is the greatest crime fiction writer in history. I love her clever use of poison in so many of her novels. It adds another level of mystery; there are so many ways and kinds, the possibilities seemingly endless. Christie carefully selected each poison, practically making it a character itself.

I absolutely loved this book. Harkup has written several books like this, looking at the science behind some of our most beloved characters or authors. There's one on Dracula, Frankenstein, and Shakespeare. That one is my most favorite and you can find the review HERE.

Harkup looks at a variety of poison, over a dozen altogether. Each chapter follows the same template, but given how many different types she discusses, it did not feel repetitive or like it was dragging.

First, the author gives a summary of the book she is using to showcase Christie's skill with the specific poison. Then she begins discussing the poison itself. She gives a history of how it developed, the chemical make-up and science of how it works within the body, symptoms of poisoning, how it's detected, and if there are antidotes.

I definitely would recommend this for Christie fans, and also crime fiction fans in general. Such a fun read!

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Rating | ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Full disclosure, Frankenstein is not my favorite. I read it once, years ago. But because I really enjoy this author's work, I gave this one a try and was pleasantly surprised.

While the likelihood of Shelley's methods working in 1818 were non-existent, Harkup looks at the science of the time and the scientists working to make all kinds of discoveries and break-throughs in various fields. Luckily, we are still quite a ways off from being able to do so in our time, as well. Even so, the author explores all the yucky goodness you would expect from a book about a monster put together by dead body parts - the stories of body snatchers, tests to determine rate of decay, etc.

In addition to exploring the scientific advancements at the time, Harkup also writes a significant biography of Shelley as well. I do not know much about her but the basics, and had no idea she was so young when she wrote the book, nor the circumstances surrounding it. I knew a bit more about her mother, but enjoyed learning about her as much as the science of the most famous monster in history.

The author also provides quite a biography of the novel as well. She recounts the writing challenge proposed at Villa Diodati, to write stories to scare one another on that dark and stormy night, then how the book fared when it was first published in 1818, and again when it was revised and reissued in 1831.

Despite no more than a passing interest in Mary Shelley and Frankenstein, this was a fantastic read and I really enjoyed it. I think this is a must-read for fans, and those with an interest in the science of the time period.

NetGalley ARC | No One Can Know

I received a free digital ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Rating | ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Kate Alice Marshall is a rare author who writes both YA and Adult really, really well. It's a tough thing to do, but she's phenomenal and I will read everything she ever writes. This is her second Adult novel, and I absolutely devoured her first, What Lies in the Woods. While that novel is still my favorite, this one was an excellent follow-up.

Fourteen years ago, sisters Juliette, Emma, and Daphne were forced to leave home. Their parents were brutally murdered in said home, so Juliette went off to college while Emma and Daphnew went into foster care. Emma has not seen or spoken to either of her sisters since then, and none of them have talked about what happened that night, or what they saw - even as Emma became the prime suspect in the investigation.

In the present, Emma and her husband must relocate after he loses his job and she finds out she is pregnant. Since all three sisters share ownership of the house, one of them can't just sell it on their own, but any of them can live there.

So, that's exactly what Emma has to do when there are no other options for her and her new little family.

Emma has never talked to anyone about that night, not even her husband. When she finally gives him the gist of it, he is shocked to say the least. But Emma being back home has stirred up some trouble - people in town still talk, convinced she is guilty. The case is still open, so the police are eager to finally have another chance to get Emma to confess. And best/worst of all, Emma's reappearance at home brings Juliette and Daphne back as well.

The author is highly skilled in the area of developing and maintaining complex relationships among her characters and she does an exceptional job with these three very different sisters. Juliette was the good one, always quick to follow the rules and do as her parents asked. Emma was the rebellious one, Juliette's complete opposite. The baby, Daphne, was something else altogether - content to hide in plain sight, observing all that goes on around her, perhaps a bit psychotic?

All three were somehow involved that night, though if that involvement equals murder, the author is quick to provide all kinds of clues and twists to keep readers on their toes.

They are bound together forever not just because they are family, but because of what happened that night. They continue to keep secrets from each other and Emma has to wonder just what either sister is not telling her. Yet it was Emma who found her sisters standing over their parents bodies, Juliette shivering and soaked with water, Daphne covered in blood.

And it was Emma who took charge immediately, constructing a timeline that would ensure all were accounted for at all times, that would protect them from being implicated.

This time around though, Emma can only focus on her unborn baby, and will do whatever she must to protect her child - even if it means no longer covering for one of her sisters.

This one truly had be hooked from beginning to end. Watching the dynamic between the sisters play out in both past and present points of view ensured that one would not easily guess the identity of the killer. I'm usually pretty good at that, but this one got me, for sure.

On the note of the timelines and points of view - this sounds like it could be overwhelming, but it is a strength of the author to give her characters unique and distinct personalities and voices. I did not have to constantly go back to the start of a chapter to see who was speaking.

All three were so frustrating at times because it was clear that everyone was hiding something, but just how those secrets fit with the murders was revealed slowly, peeling back layer by layer. But given the fact that these girls endured serious trauma in their formative years, it does make sense that they're all kind of not quite normal. First they lost their parents, then they lost each other.

I can happily say that I was left guessing for quite a long time as to what actually happened that night. Marshall is an incredibly gifted writer who gives possibilities and takes them away, all while leaving plenty to mull over in the mean time. I suspected pretty much every single character at one point or another.

Highly recommended.

NetGalley ARC | Last Girl Breathing

I received a free digital ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Rating | ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Eight years ago the rain started, and wouldn't stop. Water levels rose and the dam broke. Families were caught in the flood and several lives were lost. Among those was Lucy's little brother. While she was able to help save many, Clay was not one of them, and his body was never recovered. Despite having just been a child herself, this is a heavy burden Lucy continues to carry.

Slowly but surely the town rebuilt what had been destroyed and they tried to move on, though this singular event shaped so many of the characters' lives from that point on. Lucy and her friends came of age, bound together by the trauma of losing so many.

Fast forward to the present day and Lucy is about to graduate from high school. She's also looking forward to competing at the Olympics in the air rifle competition. But then her stepbrother Martin goes missing and the search leads to the same area of land where Clay died nearly a decade earlier.

Everyone has secrets, including Lucy. She knows what her stepbrother was up to the day he vanished, but she isn't sure who she can trust with that information. It turns out Martin was asking questions about the dam and why it broke, questions someone didn't want anyone to know the answers to.

And then the search for Martin turns into a murder investigation, though he is only the first victim of several. All clues start pointing toward Lucy's ex-boyfriend, Neil. She is sure he isn't responsible, and is determined to find the real killer. Even so, Neil is arrested and Lucy knows she does not have much time to prove he is innocent.

This story was immensely engaging and despite me having read so many in this genre, there were times where I suspected nearly every single character in the book; everyone looked guilty in one way or another. The author does a fantastic job of creating fully fleshed-out characters, distinct despite a somewhat larger cast to keep track of, and I did not feel overwhelmed trying to remember who was connected to who, and how.

This is a well-written, emotionally-charged novel. The author weaves a fantastic story with plenty of twists and turns, a little misdirection, and a lot of trauma. It's impossible not to be pulled into this little corner of the world in rural Kentucky. Lucy is compelling main character, one who is easy to root for as she tries to understand what is happening to this place she loves so much.

Highly recommended.

Book Review | The Secret Poisoner: A Century of Murder

Rating | ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I went back and forth on this one, debating 3 or 4 stars because it did get repetitive at times, but in the end the amount of research the book contains won out.

The Victorians loved a good murder, and this book is a social history on one particular kind of murder - poison. The nineteenth century was peak-time for poison, though it had obviously been available many centuries earlier. The author addresses the class and gender issues of those most likely to use which poisons and why.

1800s England was a time when the poisoner reigned supreme, going head-to-head with authorities to commit their crimes for various reasons. Authorities had quite the uphill battle. Testing for poisons was in its infancy, with the first textbook on these toxins and their effects being published in 1814. But the field took off rapidly and by mid-1800s work was being conducted at hospitals and universities to study various poisons, how to detect them, and possible antitdotes.

The author takes care to look at the evolution of issues which many times led to these crimes - to get rid of spouses, parents, or children - sometimes to collect the insurance money. There are also cases of employees taking revenge on their employers. She also focuses on scientific developments of detecting poisons and how these crimes were prosecuted.

For a long time aresenic was the most common poison used and this one is the main focus. It was the easiest to get a hold of, as it was used to kill rats and no one batted an eye when a woman purchased large amounts. Thus, it was also the poison most commonly used by women to commit their crimes because they had easy access to it.

This was a time when science and law were starting to work together, sort of. As doctors and scientists developed methods for detecting poisons, egos inflated big time. No longer would prosecution have to rely only on reports of the victim's symptoms prior to death and hope it was enough to (sometimes wrongfully) convict. Instead, these doctors and scientists became "expert witnesses" for both prosecutors and defense teams, as we are familiar with today. Issues arose quickly, however, with the men most often trying to one-up each other with their knowledge, overwhelming juries with scientific explanations that they didn't wholly understand, and frustrating the public when a verdict was given that was clearly incorrect.

The repitition that bothered me comes in the format of the book. Each chapter begins with a specific case. We learn about the victim and killer, the course of events that led to the victim becoming ill, whether or not they died, and exhumations when necessary if poison was not considered a possibility immediately following the death. Then the trial, and executions of the convicted.

After the specifics on the importance of said case, the author discusses how this case contributed to the development of detecting poisons or the laws necessary to keep poisons out of the hands of the public. We are introduced to the men involved in either aspect and their work.

While all of this is necessary, it did make for a slog to read sometimes. I would sometimes skim the cases to see the gist of what happened, then focus on the developments in science and law as a result.

Even so, I would still recommend this one to anyone with an interest in this fascinating period.

Book Review | The Lady in the Cellar: Murder, Scandal and Insanity in Victorian Bloomsbury

Rating | ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Not having the answer is sometimes a fact of life. There's something about Victorian-era murders that are deeply fascinating to me. Maybe because the Victorians were super obsessed with murder themselves and it's interesting to be obsessed with people who are obsessed with murder.

Living in a boarding house in the Victorian era was not uncommon, and naturally there were varying degress of respectability associated with various homes. Some were well-kept, fully-staffed, and catered to this with a bit more money. Others, not so much.

Number 4 Euston Square in Bloomsbury was definitely the former. The home provided comfort and hospitality to many tenants over the years it was in operation, though one disappeared without a trace and what followed was an absolute chaotic series of events.

While tenants paid rent, something not included was coal to heat one's room. When a new resident was moving in, space needed to be cleared in the cellar to accompany the coal the gentleman brought for his stay. In that space was discovered the badly decomposed body of a former tenant, Matilda Hacker. She'd not been seen in two years, yet she'd never left the property. Clearly someone in the home had killed her, but who? One of the owners? An employee, or fellow resident? Yet even now, there is still no clear-cut answer. Given the clotheslines tied tightly around her neck, all that is certain is that she was murdered.

Matilda Hacker's life was as puzzling as her death. The wealthy heiress had never married and was in her sixties at the time of her death. She preferred to dress as a young girl desite her age (which is not a big deal now, but then it was seen as absolutely ridiculous). There is some conflicting information about her final years regarding her behavior and it is likely that some kind of mental illness was the root cause of either or both scenario being true. Matilda often used aliases and moved constantly around the city and country despite owning property, convinced that she was being stalked. She also was avoiding paying taxes on her land, so the aliases came in handy for avoiding the law as well as the supposed stalkers.

The shear amount of research that went into this book makes it worth the read. The author uncovered heaps of information about all of those involved, from those trying to solve the case to those who desperately wanted their roles to remain hidden. You will not be surprised by the policework in 1879, no dount if you are interested in this corner of the Victorian era, you've read plenty about Jack and what the constables were up against in trying to solve those murders. But the author details their work in such a way that you see their hard work and so badly want them to get their man (or woman).

The story is well-written and I feel like it really presented life as it was in the late 1870s. Readers are completely immersed in the Victorian world brought vividly to life, while attempting to figure out what happened to cause the death of Matilda Hacker.

Highly recommended.

NetGalley ARC | Win Lose Kill Die

I received a free digital ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Rating | ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Morton Academy is not for the faint of heart. The students are highly competitive and high-achievers. They have been accepted to the elite school based on academic excellence and the pressure to stay on top is intense. But one by one, the best of the best are targeted and through this series of murders it becomes clear that someone is willing to eliminate their competition in order to come out on top. There are plenty of suspects - members of the 'Jewel and Bone' secret society, the charming new student, a teacher with a not-so-clean past, or the rumored cult that may or may not exist.

Our main character is Liz. At the end of the previous school year, she was injured in an accident and spent the summer trying to recover. As the students around her begin to die, she sticks closet to her group of friends, but wonders who is really trustworthy. Given her head injury, things are not always clear. I LOVE unreliable narrators.

I'm a total sucker for a good murder mystery set in any kind of boarding school, so I tend to hold these kinds of books to a higher standard, because I love them so much.

The author did a great job building up the suspicion of various characters. While there was not a lot of room for character development given how quickly things moved, I did not feel like the characters were cardboard or indistinguishable. They each had enough of a unique voice that it was easy to keep them straight.

The ending SEEMS like it comes out of nowhere, but if you pay attention to who is at every crime scene, you'll figure it out pretty quickly. I'm kind of embarassed it took two deaths and a rusty old nail for me to figure it out.

Sociopaths are fun.

Highly recommended!

Book Review | Dead Mountain: The Untold True Story of the Dyatlov Pass Incident

Rating | ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is one of those cases that will haunt me forever. I so badly want to know what happened on that cold February night in 1959 on Dead Mountain to send nine young adults who were experienced hikers cutting their way out of their tents, half-clothed, mostly shoeless, into the freezing night. When they did not return home at the expected time, eventually a search party would find their bodies about a mile from their campsite. Some had varying sign of violent injuries (including 3rd degree burns, singed hair, chunks of flesh missing, etc), the majority died of hypothermia; some alone, some together, but all 100% dead with elevated levels of radiation on clothing.

It's not as though Russia would be very forthcoming with any information or details, so unfortunately I think everything we already know is all we will ever have. There is quite a bit of research here and the author uses contemporary sources - including journals and photos of the hikers. There is also some access to government records, but probably not everything. The author even retraced the path taken over sixty years ago, and interviewed those connected to the case - including the only survivor, Yuri Yudin, who had to turn back due to a medical issue.

There are numerous theories about what occurred on the mountain that night, that vary from logical to outlandish, and everything in between. Some insist there was an avalanche or some kind of violent wind patterns that created some kind of massive snow tornado but more dangerous. Then there are those who beleve it had to do with aliens (it's almost never aliens). Some think those native to the region were responsible for the deaths, or that some kind of wild animal attacked. Perhaps they witnessed something they were not meant to, or Russia was testing some new secret weapon and they got caught in the crossfire, and so on and so on. I can only imgine how the never-ending theories frustrated and hurt their families, in addition to the crushing weight of simply not knowing.

The author moves back and forth in time, telling their story through the journals and photos left behind in 1959, and then in the years he spent researching and retracing their final steps. The journals and photos were crucial for the hikers; all but one were students at the Ural Polytechnic Institute and members of the school's hiking club. Daily they documented their activities, which would help prove they were prepared and qualified for their Grade III certs. While nothing in the journals or photos show anything amiss or give any clues as to what killed them, we see them in their last days, enjoying themselves and having fun even as they're working extremely hard.

I would not necessarly call this the 'untold' story of the events, though his theory is the first time I've come across this idea; like some of the other logical ones, it makes sense. After considering everything known about the mountain and the hikers, Eichar posits that infrasound (low-frequeny sound waves) generated by the curve of the mountains and the high winds as they passed over is the culprit. These sound waves, according to his theory, could have caused physical discomfort and led to irrational behavior due to the mental distress and feelings of panic.

In the last chapter the author presents his theory in narrative form, describing what the events of the evening could have looked like that led to nine healthy, strong, young people disappearing into the night, completely unprepared for the elements. I feel like this was written in a respectful way, despite it being speculation.

In the end, all we know is that eight men and two women started the journey to earn their Grade III hiking certification. Yudin survived only because he could not continue the hike due to a sciatica flare-up. As painful as sciatic nerves are when they are raging, this ultimately saved his life. The other nine continued on, and were never seen alive again.

Highly recommended.

NetGalley ARC | Thin Air

I received a free digital ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Rating | ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This was a lot of fun and quite a roller coaster ride - as long as you don't think too hard about it. With YA thrillers and murder mysteries there always has to be some suspension of belief for any aspect, and this book is no different, but it was still a great locked-room type read - technically there is more than one room, they're on a private jet, but you get what I mean.

Twelve contestants are aboard an eight hour flight to Paris from the US, on their way to participate in a contest that comes with a major cash prize. Unfortunately for eleven of them, one has decided to better their odds by killing off the competition.

Emily is our main character and there were definitely times I had to remind myself she is a teenager and teenagers often make really stupid decisions. She is there to compete because the money would be a godsend for her and her mother, who are living in poverty. The money would provide for her to go to college, and a better life for both of them.

Once the contestants start dying, the game becomes real and Emily has to decide who to trust - including her BFF's boyfriend, who also made the cut to compete. Loyalties are ever-changing as more information comes to light and there were plenty of twists and turns that even had me guessing. I've read so many of this genre that it is hard to be surprised anymore, but I am happy to report that this one kept me guessing for a while. Emily had plenty of secrets of her own as well that gradually are forced to the surface.

With twelve characters it was hard to get to know all of them well, becuase the author had to also balance that with keeping the killer's identity hidden. Still, I did not feel like they were flat or caricatures. There was enough to differentiate most of them, and we get to know a few pretty well.

The whole thing felt very claustrophobic, which is I suppose it the point, and it was done very well. The tension and stress was palpable throughout and the pacing contributed well to this. I tend to read fiction pretty quickly and this was no exception, because I had to know who the killer was.

Recommended.

Book Review | Taylor Swift by the Book: The Literature Behind the Lyrics, From Fairy Tales to Tortured Poets

Rating | ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I don't think non-fans truly understand the depth and complexity of the stories that Taylor tells through her music, or the recurring themes from album to album. This is probably the book I would recommend to those who are not fans, but don't hate her just to say they hate her. It breaks down so many literary references that Taylor brings to life, even ones that I missed because I was scream-singing or ugly crying to some of my most favorite songs.

One author is a lit prof and the other an actor in musical theatre, so each have their area of expertise and absolutely know what they are talking about. I always go into these Taylor books cautiously, because you never know what might end up just being a cash-grab with no real substance that rehashes basic entry-level info that any casual fan might know.

Luckily, that is not the case here.

Anyone who has a remote interest in literature will catch the numerous references to The Great Gatsby and Alice in Wonderland (beyond the obviously titled 'Wonderland' from 1989, one of the greatest pure synth pop albums of all time). However, Taylor is also inspired by the Romantics, Gothic fiction, Postmodernism, and more. She is Dr. Swift after all (has an honorary PhD from NYU), so Taylor knows her stuff.

While Feder is a lit professor, the book remains an easier read and explains things in an academic way without being too dense. This is definitely important for younger readers and those who are not super familiar with literary eras but want to know how those informed Taylor's eras.

I am torn on the book's organization, which is why I rated four stars instead of five. The authors chose to go chronologically, which makes sense because then over time you see how themes developed and which references she continued to draw on. The downside to this is that there is some repetition from album to album, which would have made grouping songs thematically make more sense. But then the reader would miss out on the chronilogical growth, so really there are pros and cons to each.

Each album is accompanied by a reading list, which I found really cool. I like that the authors really dug into authors of each era and did not recommend titles or authors that many might already know. Of course we get Shakespeare and Greek mythology, but there is so much more that they offer up that keep with the themes Taylor was exploring on a particular album. The authors also did the reverse, offering playlists of Taylor's songs that matched up with different novels. The attention to detail and type of information offered here truly is far-reaching.

Highly recommended.

Author Gift | Expletives Not Deleted

I received free digital and physical ARCs and final copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Rating | ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The first thing I must do is apologize to you, Mr. Acord, for not getting this review posted in anything that could be remotely considered timely. I enjoy your work and devoured the book quickly. But reviews have been harder for me the last couple years and what I have posted, has been practically forcing myself to sit down at gun-point and write, instead of just reading, reading, reading.

In 2020 I read Acord's first book, Sub-lebrity: The Queer Life of a Show-Biz footnote and absolutely LOVED it. you can find my review HERE. Acord's writing style makes you feel like you're having a conversation with him. You could be best friends, chatting over dinner, getting drinks after a show, anything. I liked the book so much, I went and found his web series Old Dogs & New Tricks. It's fantastic as well.

I was so excited then when Acord offered advanced copies of his new book (in 2023. I'm a terrible person). He is a talented writer, witty and clever. All of the characteristics I loved in the first book were here as well, which makes for another fantastic book that is a must-read.

So, where to begin, but at the beginning? Acord tells us from the start, "I've been trying very hard lately to not become a grumpy old queen. I fear I am not being entirely successful."

There are plenty of things Acord was annoyed about when he penned this one, and it's likely he's still annoyed with those things, because some are even worse now. He touches on a variety of topics in this eclectic collections of essays. We get the heavy ones, like racism, cancel culture/culture wars, maga/the idiot-in-chief, and more. But he leaves plenty of room for lighter pieces as well, and it is a testament to his writing skills that he is successful with both. I know that no matter what topic Acord is tackling, he will be unflinchingly honest, and that kind of honesty is a breath of fresh air these days.

As in his first book, Acord takes us back to life in Indiana as he was growing up. I especially enjoyed his essay, "Am I a 'They'?" as he thinks back to his preferences in childhood for horses, books, and Barbies instead of GI Joe and cops and robbers. He concludes that he may actually be a They after all, but has reached the point in his life where he might just be "a bit too old to make a radical lifestyle change now" (page 150).

Acord also keeps us in the present as well, in the essays about cancel culture, facebook, and all this exhausting racist reactionary bullshit that followed President Obama's election as our first Black president. These essays are timely and hit the nail on the head each time. Acord is intelligent and concise without being preach-y. And as I said before, always, always honest.

Highly, highly recommended.

Double Shot: Non-ARC and NetGalley ARC | The Agathas

 

I read The Agathas on a rec from another blogger and loved it so much that I snagged book two, The Night in Question, as soon as it was available on NetGalley.

The Agathas | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I am always cautious when it comes to books using Agatha Christie in any way, either as 'modern re-tellings', or using her/her novels as inspiration for the characters to solve whatever mystery they've stumbled upon.

Here, I can gladly say that I LOVED book one. It's incredibly well-done and a solid mystery in its own right, while paying homage to the greatest mystery writer of all time.

Side note: I have seen a ton of bloggers over the years compare this to A Good Girl's Guide to Murder. I HATED that book and it was absolute trash. HERE is my review, if you're interested. The Agathas is a million times better.

Anyway, book one.

A year ago one of the most popular girls in school, Alice, disappears without a trace after a bad break-up with her boyfriend Steve. Steve promptly begins dating Alice's best friend Brooke, who quickly becomes the ex best friend. There's a huge confrontation and then Alice is just gone. The town is in shock, worried that something terrible has happened to her.

Yet, Alice returns five days later and gives no explanation or information on where she went, why she left, or how she returned. Just like her idol, Agatha Christie.

Fast forward to present day, when Brooke disappears after a huge fight with Steve. She storms off and the next day everyone finds out she never made it home. Of course Steve is the main suspect - it's ALWAYS the boyfriend. Until it isn't. But maybe it was in this case - you just have to read for yourself to find out.

Brooke's grandmother offers a massive reward when Brooke's body is found; some at first wondered if Brooke was simply pulling an Alice, and would come home in a few days.

The police zero in on Steve right away and despite the bad break-up, Alice is convinced they have the wrong guy; she knows Steve, and Steve is not a killer. So, Alice teams up with her tutor, Iris, who has her own reasons for wanting to leave town and never look back. She's definitely NOT one of the popular crowd and can't wait to get out. The reward money would completely change her life, and allow her the freedom to leave Castle Cove for good.

Turns out Alice is a huge fan of Agatha Christie, and with her books as their guides, she knows she and Iris can solve the murder. The only problem is, Castle Cove is hiding many more secrets than who killed Brooke Donovan. The teens have no idea what they are getting themselves into, and chaos ensues.

I absolutely loved the first book. I read it in a matter of hours, it was that good and I just could not put it down. I loved the friendship between Iris and Alice, and the depth we see in both of them. The story is told in alternating viewpoints and thought there were times when I had to double-check who the narrartor was, each had a unique voice.

I would compare this to One of Us is Lying, one of the best YA books of all time. Not in terms of plot, but in vibe, clever plot and twists, strong character voice, and an overall entertaining mystery. If you read a lot of YA thrillers/mysteries, the ending probably won't surprise you, but it was an ending that made sense. It's not something that comes out of left field, unlike a certain other YA book I mentioned above.

I like that even though Alice was considered an outcast after her disappearing act, Iris and her friends didn't dwell on it. The new friends that Alice makes accept her, and together they all figure out what happened to Brooke. I also love that the teens were presented in an authentic way. Their development and the investigation make sense, because both are huge fans of mysteries and true crime, so they use the knowledge gleaned from that to solve Brooke's murder. They don't just become super sleuths out of nowhere.

I also appreciate the nods to Christie thrown in here and there, in addition to Alice's singular devotion to the Queen of Crime. Here is the start of a series that I think actually lives up to the hype, and one that Christie would not at all be embarassed of inspiring.

Highly, highly recommended.

The Night in Question | ⭐⭐⭐⭐

In book one, a mystery is alluded to several times involving Levy Castle, the reason the town of Castle Cove has its name. It was at Levy Castle that Mona Moody, a famous movie star from the 1940s, died under mysterious circumstances after jumping/falling from a balcony. This mystery is expertly interwoven with the current-day attack that Iris and Alice find themselves involved in during their school's Sadie Hawkins dance.

Side note: my biggest issue with the book is the dance itself. The characters are dressed all fancy for this dance, what the heck? When I was in high school, this was the one dance that was decidely NOT fancy. The girls ask the boys, and then wear matching or similar outfits. I have never heard of a Sadie Hawkins dance being a homecoming or prom-like event. Is this just me????

Anyway.

We are a few months removed from book one and during the course of the school dance, Alice takes the opportunity to explore what she believes was a crime scene decades ago. Just like she knew Steve could not have killed Brooke in the first book, Alice is sure that police also screwed up the Mona Moody investigation as well.

Unfirtunately for Alice, she is sidetracked when she litrally walks into a new crime scene involving two of her former friends, Rebecca and Helen. Rebecca is sprawled on the floor in a pool of blood and Helen is standing over her. Rebecca has been stabbed and knocked out, Helen is holding a letter opener. Adding to the case against Helen is the fact that a few hours earlier, everyone witnessed a fight between them over the fact that they ended up wearing the same dress to the dance. Helen does herself no favors by running away from Alice, while insisting she is innocent.

The police immediately assume Helen's guilt, which makes sense given the scene. But they conveniently ignore the fact that Helen is not also bloodied, something that surely would have happened if she were the one who had stabbed and bludgeoned Rebecca. But given their track record, Iris and Alice are not waiting around for CCPD to arrest the wrong person; they are determined to find the culprit first.

To make matters worse, during the chaos a mudslide occurs that makes it impossible to get to or leave the castle.

But once Alice and Iris are on the case, they realize they are hurtling rapidly into a bigger mystery than they first thought, because there are signs that indicate Rebecca's attempted murder is connected to Levy Castle and Mona Moody's death 80 years earlier.

There was a bit of a gap between when I read the first and second books, so I was happy to note that the authors recapped things throughout the second book. It's understandable, given the amount I read, that I would forget details, no matter how much I loved the previous book. It was nice to not have to go back and re-read that one before starting this one.

This is a fantastic series. It's clever, funny, and actually a mystery. The characters continue to develop and evolve. Twists actually make sense, and the pace is quick without being overwhelming. I loved seeing the two plots come together, as this time the characters dealt with some pretty heavy topics aside from death.

Highly, highly recommended.

Publicist/Marketing Gift via NetGalley | Tangled Vines: Power, Privilege, and the Murdaugh Family Murders

I received a free digital ARC from the publicist/marketing team via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Rating | ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I don't usually pay much attention to current big crime type stories. I only heard of this one because my favorite singer talked about watching a documentary on it, a couple years ago.

I can't think of a better motto for this family than "absolute power corrupts absolutely".

The author does a phenomenal job tracing the family lineage, and it is clear from the start that they are, in fact, corrupted with power. We see the family rise from humble beginnings and grow into a dynasty, with the first three Randolph Murdaughs serving as the solicitor for the 14th circuit for a total of 87 years. To say the family controlled their little kingdom is an understatement.

Yet it is not because of their stranglehold on the Lowcountry that we know of them. Nor is it because of the 100 year-old family law practice that made them millionaires. Instead, it is because of the most recent patriarch's conviction for murdering his wife Maggie and son Paul that we know the secrets this family would have preferred to keep hidden.

Those secrets include two other deaths, which can be classified as homicides based on the evidence provided. There's Gloria Satterfield, the family's long time housekeeper, who practically raised Buster and Paul. She fell down the stairs at one of the family homes and died. There is the question, however, of how she fell, or if she was pushed. Alex told her sons he would take care of them, the family would take care of them, they would "sue" him to be able to get money to survive. Instead, all that money went to Alex and Gloria's sons not only lost their mother, but also a chance for financial help in the wake of her death.

Stephen Smith's death is also quite questionable, given the location of his car vs. his body on a rural road late at night. It was classified as a hit and run, despite there being literally no evidence to support this conclusion. Smith had been a classmate of Buster's and there were rumors of a relationship, of Buster possibly being gay, etc. The Murdaugh family did what they do best and hid any possible connections. Smith's case was re-opened after Alex's arrest, and investigators stated that information they uncovered during their investigation of the disgraced former lawyer led to them doing so.

Then there's also the case of the death of Mallory Beach, who was killed in a boating accident the night she and some friends were on the Murdaugh's boat, with a highly intoxicated Paul at the helm. It was no secret to anyone about how awful Paul was when he was drunk. He'd pick fights, hit his girlfriend, was basically an all around trash bag of a person, and refused to let anyone else drive his boat. The accident left several of the teens injured, and Mallory missing. Yet Paul somehow escaped any kid of consequences for the the death he caused and it was clear to all that the Murdaugh's really could get away with anything.

And as if murdering his wife and son wasn't enough, the crimes he'd committed for years in the lead-up to those murders would've been enough to put Alex Murdaugh away for a long time. It turns out he'd been embezzelling from his clients, millions of dollars over who knows how many years. Within all that, there are the many years of drug addiction, which Alex needed the money for, as well as to continue supporting the life that he and his family had always been accumstomed to living.

For decades the Murdaugh family was untouchable. Outwardly the family was a pillar of strength for the community, upholding law and order. Yet underneath the shiny veneer were layers of protection by those they paid off in order to keep their influence spreading far and wide over their domain. Just when think they could not possibly get away with one more thing, they do. Easily. It's truly gross just how much this one family had for a century. And even though Alex never became solicitor like his father, grandfather, and great grandfather, he did volunteer part time in the solicitor's office. He could hide his money laundering, embezzelling, and drug use behind his family name, because who would belive that the Murdaughs were not as upstanding as they appeared?

June 7th, 2021 triggered the beginning of the end. Alex discovered the bodies of Maggie and Paul at one of their homes and he naturally assumed once again that his word about what happened would be accepted as the gospel truth, and he'd be able to continue doing what he'd always done.

Not this time.

Instead, investigators did their jobs for once where the Murdaughs were involved.

As a result, the Murdaugh dynasty came to an inglorious end when Alex was found guilty of Maggie and Paul's murders, though far to late for their many, many victims over the years.

I think it was crucial for the author to include a detailed background of the family from the beginning. Men like Alex Murdaugh are made, not born. The wealth and privilege available to those that came before him set Alex up to be the entitled monster he became. This does not absolve him from anything. He could have chosen to not be a shitty human being. He could have chosen to give money to his clients that they won, he could have chosen to not cover for Paul with Mallory's death, he could have chosen to NOT murder his wife and son. But the environment in which he was raised made it seem as though he was entitled to whatever he wanted.

Even if you've seen documenteries about the family, I would still recommend the book. I feel like the author had much more time and opportunity to really delve into the family history, which is critical to the story as a whole.