Book Review ~ The Bat by Jo Nesbo

Title: The Bat
Author: Jo Nesbo
Published: 2013

Summary
Inspector Harry Hole of the Oslo Crime Squad is dispatched to Sydney to observe a murder case. Harry is free to offer assistance, but he has firm instructions to stay out of trouble. The victim is a twenty-three year old Norwegian woman who is a minor celebrity back home. Never one to sit on the sidelines, Harry befriends one of the lead detectives, and one of the witnesses, as he is drawn deeper into the case. Together, they discover that this is only the latest in a string of unsolved murders, and the pattern points toward a psychopath working his way across the country. As they circle closer and closer to the killer, Harry begins to fear that no one is safe, least of all those investigating the case.

Thoughts: 
Okay first off I this book started off so good. I was invested and wanted to know more about Harry, Andrew and the woman that was killed. Then I am not sure where or what happened. We went from oh that makes sense to… scratch my head and a lot of what the ever-loving hell? I just got so lost and found that by mid-way I was done and tired. I didn’t care anymore for Harry or his troubles. I damn sure didn’t care about the big OMG shocker that was supposed to come and yet it did nothing for me. I got to the point that while I figured out who the killer was and was right, I just didn’t enjoy it. The satisfaction was gone by the time we went through all the wallowing in drunkenness and yet WOW magically we pulled out the killer from our drunk ass and POOF we are amazing. So yeah that didn’t turn out the way I thought it would go. And I have to say I was sorely disappointed. I only read this one so that I could find a new series and I really wanted to read the Snowman as it was a movie tie in but, alas I am glad now I didn’t waste my time.

This is not one I would recommend to anyone. I just didn’t like it and was not invested by mid-point. I forced myself to continue to read it as I wanted to finish the book.

Book Review ~ The Hypnotist by Lars Kleper

Title: The Hypnotist
Author: Lars Kleper
Published: 2011

Summary
In the frigid clime of Tumba, Sweden, a gruesome triple homicide attracts the interest of Detective Inspector Joona Linna, who demands to investigate the murders. The killer is still at large, and there’s only one surviving witness—the boy whose family was killed before his eyes. Whoever committed the crimes wanted this boy to die: he’s suffered more than one hundred knife wounds and lapsed into a state of shock. Desperate for information, Linna sees only one option: hypnotism. He enlists Dr. Erik Maria Bark to mesmerize the boy, hoping to discover the killer through his eyes.

It’s the sort of work that Bark has sworn he would never do again—ethically dubious and psychically scarring. When he breaks his promise and hypnotizes the victim, a long and terrifying chain of events begins to unfurl.


Thoughts: 

I have to say this book started off with a bang and I found myself forced to continue to read it all the way through. Until, that is, the flashbacks happened. I have no idea what it was but, those flashbacks completely pulled me out of the story telling. I understand now that I've finished it why it was important, however it just felt as if someone took the past and plopped it down in the middle of a book expecting it all to work. I have no idea if it was just not the style I am use to or if it really was that jarring. After that I just couldn't seem to get back into the story. I ended up skipping the flashback and skimming the rest of the novel. Add to it there were 2 mysteries happen and that alone through my world off. There is just something about this book that I can't put my finger on that was not enjoyable. Don't get me wrong when I first picked it up it was amazing but then about 400 pages it I just fizzled out with reading and wanting to know more. The characters were not that interesting towards the end and overall I wasn't that impressed with the main detective. Part of me kept waiting for Joona to be a gruff detective I could just fall in love with and move along. However, that was not the case. This detective is so egotistical and so "I was right wasn't I" attitude that I found that I actually hoped for once he would be wrong just so we could see how he would deal with that situation.

Weirdly enough while I did enjoy the book I felt that if they had cut 100 pages or so I would have ranked it so much higher on Goodreads. As of now I have given it 3 out of 5 stars. I would still recommend it but not with the fury that I did when I started. 

Reading Challenge 2020

I’m thrilled to be joining the Cloak and Dagger Reading Challenge this year. I love mystery and crime novels!

Challenge Rules:

• You can read any book that is from the mystery/suspense/thriller/crime genres. Any sub-genres are welcome as long as they incorporate one of these genres.
• You don’t need a blog to participate but you do need a place to post your reviews to link up. (blog, Goodreads, Instagram, etc.)
• Make a goal post and link it back here with your goal for this challenge.
• Books need to at least 100 pages long. Please no short stories.
• Crossovers with other challenges are fine.
• The Challenge will run from Jan. 1st to Dec. 31st. (Sign up ends March 15th)

We still have our facebook group so if you haven’t joined we would love for you too! Here’s the group’s link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/350512171977943/. It’s a closed group so just ask to join and we’ll let you in.

There will be a monthly link-up so we can see what everyone’s reading – and probably add some to our own tbr lists. At the halfway mark and at the end we will have a giveaway for those participating.

We’ll continue to use the hashtag #CloakDaggerChal.

Levels:

5-15 books – Amateur sleuth

16-25 books – Detective (This is where I am going to aim)

26-35 books – Inspector

36 – 55 – Special agent 

56+ books – Sherlock Holmes

Review ~ Final Girls by Riley Sager

Title: Final Girls

Author: Riley Sager
Copyright: 2017
Type:  Suspense/Thriller
Pages: 342
Series: no

Reason for Reading: 

I heard on the Bookriot that it was an interesting read and I thought it was one I should check out. 

Summary:

"The Final Girls need you. . . .  The Final Girls are tough, everything survivors should be.  But the new threat is clever, ominous, even closer than you suspect. You are about to gasp. You might drop the book. You may have to look over your shoulder. But you must keep reading.  This is the best book of 2017."—Lisa Gardner, New York Times bestselling author of Find Her

Ten years ago, college student Quincy Carpenter went on vacation with five friends and came back alone, the only survivor of a horror movie–scale massacre. In an instant, she became a member of a club no one wants to belong to—a group of similar survivors known in the press as the Final Girls. Lisa, who lost nine sorority sisters to a college dropout's knife; Sam, who went up against the Sack Man during her shift at the Nightlight Inn; and now Quincy, who ran bleeding through the woods to escape Pine Cottage and the man she refers to only as Him. The three girls are all attempting to put their nightmares behind them, and, with that, one another. Despite the media's attempts, they never meet.

Now, Quincy is doing well—maybe even great, thanks to her Xanax prescription. She has a caring almost-fiancé, Jeff; a popular baking blog; a beautiful apartment; and a therapeutic presence in Coop, the police officer who saved her life all those years ago. Her memory won’t even allow her to recall the events of that night; the past is in the past.

That is, until Lisa, the first Final Girl, is found dead in her bathtub, wrists slit, and Sam, the second, appears on Quincy's doorstep. Blowing through Quincy's life like a whirlwind, Sam seems intent on making Quincy relive the past, with increasingly dire consequences, all of which makes Quincy question why Sam is really seeking her out. And when new details about Lisa's death come to light, Quincy's life becomes a race against time as she tries to unravel Sam's truths from her lies, evade the police and hungry reporters, and, most crucially, remember what really happened at Pine Cottage, before what was started ten years ago is finished..

Thoughts:

This book surprised me. I didn't expect to enjoy it as much as I did. It constantly had me on guard and questioning what I thought I knew vs what I did know. I was definitely on the edge of my seat while reading it. There were constant twist and turns, some I expected while others completely took me by surprised. I have to say my favorite part is when Quincy flashes back to the night in the cabin when it all went horribly wrong. It was a mystery inside a thriller inside a mystery due to the flashbacks of the original crime and what is currently happening with the final girls. 

I have to say the twist and turns are what kept me on the edge of my seat. There were a few plot devices that I didn't care for but managed to overlook them due to the fantastic story and writing that comes with this books. It is one of the few books I read in 2017 that I can say I recommend with most of my conversations. 

Goodreads: 4 out of 5 stars

Would you recommend this book to others? I already have recommended this numerous times. 

Review ~ One Scream Away by Kate Brady

TITLE: One Scream Away
AUTHOR: Kate Brady
COPYRIGHT: 2009
TYPE: Suspense/Romance
PAGES; 464
SERIES: Yes strangely enough this is.

REASON FOR READING: Reading Romance sent me the Arc.

Summary : {From Goodreads}
Killer Chevy Bankes is a master of disguise, and just paroled, he's coming after the woman who sent him to jail, the beautiful antiques expert Beth Denison. A set of antique dolls brings Beth into his sight, and inspire Chevy's disturbing crimes as he draws closer to Beth and her young daughter. Chevy sends the dolls to Beth one-by-one and she soon realizes that these antiques carry the same marks as his victims, signaling that the final piece in his collection will be for her.


Neil Sheridan gave up his FBI shield five years ago, but his best friend Rick, a cop, pulls him in as a consultant on a case involving a serial killer who is eerily similar to a murderer Neil encountered in the past. The investigation leads Neil to Beth's doorstep, and he is certain she isn't telling him the truth. Neil is the only one who can get through Beth's defenses and, as they grow closer, discover the secrets that Beth is hiding about her fateful night with Chevy.

THOUGHTS/OPINION:
First off I'm not a HUGE suspense/thriller romance reader. I like them every once in a while and when I feel like it a good one really hits the spot. This one didn't work for me. A lot of it was the characters. I know a lot of people will find the contradiction refreshing but I didn't. I felt that the heroine was SUPER weak one moment and than TOO tough the next. I understand that she had been through a lot of horrible crap and nightmares ect. are par for course but one moment she is ready to blow his head off, while the next she is shaking so bad simply being reminded of his name...

Another thing I didn't care for was how fast the hero came in and took over the heroine's life and she was fine with it.

Now that was all the bad things let me talk about the parts I liked:
I enjoyed the villain/bad guy he was well rounded or as rounded as a psycho killer can be. I was actually able to understand his breakdown and why he did what he did. That was very interesting.

All in all I thought the plot with the suspense was handled well, the background story of how the characters came together was also well done and the dolls used was wonderful.

While I didn't care for this book I feel that others might enjoy it based on the plot and tactics used. Even though this book didn't work for me I would pick up another by this author

Are you keeping it or passing it on? Passing on it.

SCORE: 4 out of 10

Revenant by Carolyn Haines

Revenant by Carolyn Haines

BOOK DESCRIPTION
When a decades-old mass grave near a notorious Biloxi nightclub is unearthed, reporter Carson Lynch is among the first on the scene.
The remains of five women lie within, each one buried with a bridal veil - and without her ring finger.

Once an award-winning journalist, Carson knows her career is now hanging by a thread. This story has pulled her out of a pit of alcohol and self-loathing, and with justice and redemption in mind she begins to investigate. Days later two more bodies appear, begging the question - is a copycat murderer terrorizing Biloxi, or has a serial killer awoken from a twenty-five-year slumber?

MY THOUGHTS
If you like mysteries then this is a book you might enjoy. It had a nice twist at the end that kept me guessing. Just when I thought I had figured it out I was wrong. The sub plots were just as good not mystery detailed but still good. And it had my one weakness a person whose hit bottom and has to drag their sorry butts back up.

Things I Liked
~ Although rough around the edges I enjoyed the main character Carson. She had a hard life and she was trying to pull it together. Although the only reason was the murder it still didn’t matter at least she tried.
~ As I said above the mystery was pretty good and had an excellent twist. Just when I thought I had it poof something else happened. However, the twist was still believable and I did enjoy it.

Things I Didn’t Like
~ I didn’t appreciate how Carson treated the men in her life. Yes it was understandable she lost a great deal but still she treated them harshly.
~ There was a sub story of her friend Jack that I didn’t think was important enough to tie into the overall story.

Rating ~ B

Additional Info
~ Published: 2007
~ Price: $6.99
~Favorite Author Book: This is the only one I’ve read
~ Author Website: http://www.carolynhaines.com/

Review ~ Cain and Abel by Michelle Perry

TITLE: Cain and Abel
AUTHOR: Michelle Perry
COPYRIGHT: 2005
TYPE: mystery/suspense
PAGES; 326
SERIES: no

REASON FOR READING: I had read one of her books before and loved it. Just wanted to see what this one was about.

SUMMARY: {From goodreads}
Brutally battered wife Jessica Ramsey fakes her death and flees to Tennessee to make a new life for herself and her young son. But five years later a chance encounter with his twin brother reveals her new identity. And nobody fools Cole Ramsey twice

THOUGHTS/OPINION:
While the suspense was good and the overall plot was okay it felt as if the suspense was the only thing holding the book together. Would Cole get her or not?

Things I enjoyed:
I did enjoy seeing a woman who had been in an abusive relationship get out of it and survive. And not just one our main character Jessica but Alex and Cole (twins) had a mom in the same type of relationship.
I was glad that Alex wasn’t like his father and the cycle of abuse didn’t continue

Things I didn’t care for:I didn’t like the ending. It was a little off for me like she was maybe going to do another book with these same people involved or something. It just didn’t flow right for me.

Are you keeping it or passing it on? passing

SCORE: 5 out of 10

Anything Else: .This isn’t one of her better books but I still enjoyed it enough to have to know what would happen.