"Fireside Chat with a Grammar Nazi Serial Killer" Book Review

My Rating: 5 ★★★★★ Stars


A true psychological thriller in which the protagonist takes extreme measures to encourage authors to improve their grammar. Well, if that isn’t a strange plot then I don’t know what is; however, it worked and surprisingly, it was well executed.

I enjoyed the story but there needs to be more in order to be more memorable. A bit of history on the characters as well as knowledge of their present life, motivations and personality would be a delight to read.

Digital Reviewer’s Copy received in exchanged for my honest and unbiased review.

"Little Monsters" Book Review

My Rating:  ★★★★☆ 4 Stars

It’s the cover. Something about that darn cover reeled me in; I can’t put my finger on it because it’s such a simple piece of art! But reeled me in it did and I am glad that (sometimes) I judge a book by its cover.

Kacey is the new girl who has recently moved to Broken Falls – to a charming life with her father’s family; one that has proven to be much different from the one she had led up to that point. 

Broken Falls is the kind of town where everyone is nice and welcoming. To her surprise, Kacey is inducted into a petite circle of two – meet Bailey and Jude.
The duo makes Kacey feel included in everything that they do – sneaking out at night, parties etc. however, Kacey is left out of one of the biggest parties of the year, causing her to feel completely left out. She wants answers, she wants to know why they are all so suddenly acting strangely distant toward her but Kacey will never be able to ask Bailey why because Bailey doesn’t return home that night. 

Awesome premise. Equally awesome delivery.

Little Monsters was a deliciously, mystery-laden book you can’t help but love because of the page-turner plot. The plot and execution was inherently satisfying due to its puzzle feel. I wouldn’t refer to this little gem as compelling, but it was sure gripping! 

I could feel the near-splitting tension, the back and forth speculation of whether Kacey played a part in the disappearance of Bailey. Whether Bailey was truly missing or just seeking attention. Whether Andrew was the killer. Whether Whether Whether.

No matter how many conclusions I came to, I did not arrive at the conclusion that the author presented. I did not foresee the twist until the author began the big reveal. 

And THAT, is what I love about books – the unpredictability, the guessing, the rollercoaster ride, the complexity of twists to the point where you give up guessing. 
I found myself speed reading to get to the end of many scenes; I haven’t speed-read in a while! 

A note those out there: Be careful who you call your friends.

Digital copy received from publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

"One Of Us Is Lying" Book Review

My Rating:   ★★★★★ 5 Stars

I was highly astounded after finding out that this is a debut novel. 
Debut Novel you say? Why yes!

The author seems to be a well-established writer with a few published novels out there already. But I digress; let’s get into the review of the actual book and not how surprised I am by the quality of the writing.

One of Us Is Lying has a brilliant plot with enough twists to make the ride a dizzy journey. 
The “Bayview Four”, as individuals, were the quintessential, most popular cliques found in any given high school, much like we’ve seen in the Breakfast Club. 
We had the jock, the princess, the straight ‘A’ student and the delinquent; and as the author said, One of Us is Lying was initially inspired by The Breakfast Club. 
The characters were, in no way, superficial. They all had depth and dark secrets which influenced their actions. I appreciated how they weren’t one-dimensional and how the author put time into creating solid characters. 
The peripheral characters were also interesting and had me wondering if they were involved in the death of the victim. I found myself taking notes and trying to solve the mystery before the big reveal, which I kind of did. 

The relationship between the characters genuinely grew. It didn’t feel forced even though the characters were, in a sense, forced to gravitate toward each other because of the situation they were in. 
I could feel when things started changing and when they began getting closer, not just because they were all murder suspects, but because they realized that they did have something else in common. 
Naturally, I felt more of a connection toward Bronwyn, it could be because she was the first character’s POV which showed up, or it could be that I identified with her the most. In turn, I also felt a connection toward Nate, and thus, their relationship and POV held my attention more than the others. I ended up looking forward to reading their stories and seeing their relationship grow. 

There was an underlying theme which I won't mention which becomes quite prominent toward the end. The author was brilliant and creative in the way she presented this theme, yet it was heartbreaking in its truth. Social media plays such a great part in our lives these days and can connect us to others who share our interests, all the good, as well as the destructive interests that we may have; and teenagers are so easily influenced by others, especially when they seek acceptance from others. I was angry at a peripheral character in particular, knowing that she could have prevented something from happening if only she had spoken to someone. 

I know this was just a fictional book but it presented us with a sad reality that needs to be addressed. Some teenagers/Young adults around the world do not seem to fully understand the severity of situations and thus consequences occur which cannot be reversed (in many cases). 
My wish is that if this book is read by a high school student, or a college student who is experiencing something similar to what went on in the book that he/she will do something, speak up, get help.


I really did enjoy this book and I am looking forward to reading more from this author. 

Digital Copy provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest, unbiased review.

"The Ghost Files (The Ghost FIles #1)" Book Review

My Rating ★★★★☆ 4 Stars

What a pleasant surprise!

I’ve had this book sitting in my kindle library for the past year collecting cyber dust.

I loved(ish) the tone of the narrator.

The plot was even better – a girl seeing dead people and is helping to solve a string of deaths of which her foster sister is a victim.

I really liked the book! I only knocked off 1 star because of the relationship between the main character and a certain secondary character of the law.

I won’t go into details here. No sirree. Find out for yourself J  

"The Devil's Prayer" Book Review

My Rating: ★★★★☆ 4 stars

Thanks to the author and NetGalley for granting me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I like my torture books with enough torture and gore to make me cringe. This book, to a certain extent and in certain areas throughout made me very happy; however, it is not solely torture, as you can see from the premise given. The Devil’s Prayer presented us with a rollercoaster of themes – history, romance, horror/gore, violence and abuse among others.

Following the death of her mother Denise Russo, who abandoned her two children a few years ago with no warning, Siobhan Russo travels across the world to the convent where her mother lived. In search of answers, she is given a book with her mother’s confessions. There, Siobhan learns of the horrors her mother went through and her subsequent deal with the devil in order to take revenge on those who wronged her.  

For the historical aspect, this book was very well-researched. I like when authors take the time to research before writing a book. It gives me the sense that they are truly committed to the success of their book and will work hard to produce it rather than give a lackadaisical attempt.

However, toward the end, the history became a bit overwhelming and took away from the plot. I found myself simply reading the words just so I could move forward to read the actual plot. Lots of history in there that I didn’t much care for, but I do understand why it was filled with this much information. The author wanted to present us with all this history to make the story more believable and to leave us wondering where history ends and fiction begins. The history was a fundamental part of the story, but I disliked history class, always have and always will.

The other parts were really well done and I was hooked. I won’t give details, it’s better to find out on your own. 

"The Couple Next Door" Book Review

My Rating: ★★★★★ 5 Stars

Many thanks to Random House UK, Transworld Publishers and NetGalley for granting me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This goes into my "I won't forget you" book pile. 

The Couple Next Door is such a simple (in the best way possible), well-written, unpretentious book which gets into the story and does not stray off topic, not even once. 

I was not bombarded with useless similes, or overly descriptive passages, nor annoying inner dialogues which tends to take away from the plot. This was well-written and straight to the point. 

When I say well-written I don't mean lyrical prose to the likes of Alice Hoffman or more recently the epicly written The Summer That Melted Everything (another title in my "I wont Forget you" book pile). In this instance, well-written simply means no preamble, straight to the point, every sentence pushed the plot forward and no wasted words/unnecessary sentences. I loved the writing style so much. 

The premise does not do justice to this immaculate plot. 

It is filled with uncomfortable revelations, brilliant twists, family secrets, manipulation, blackmail, a web of lies - everything which makes for a highly entertaining and gripping read. 

As the plot unwinds you'll be holding on to the edge of your seat, just waiting to get the whole truth.

I look forward to reading more from this author.

"Last Seen Leaving" Book Review

My Rating ★★★★☆ 4 stars

Book received from Publisher via Net Galley. You know something's wrong when civilians do a better job at solving mysteries than the police, and it's even worse when its a teenager solving that mystery. Last Seen Leaving was such a pleasant surprise. At one point (to me) it felt a bit similar to Papertowns, a pretentious book I detest and wasted a few precious hours reading; but that's only because I wasn't sure of the direction the book would take, and I was HOPING it didn't follow suit. This held my interest and I found myself speed reading through scenes, needing to find out what happens next. Some characters were likeable, others tolerable, one was necessary for the progress of the plot while one was trivial. All in all a fast-paced read that I totally recommend