Snow falls softly outside Molly Bradley’s home on a frigid January night. Inside, half a dozen close friends are gathered to celebrate the fortieth birthday of Molly’s psychologist husband, Jay. Candlelight gleams against dark wood, wine flows, and the house rings with laughter. Everybody loves Jay, Molly most of all. Yet next morning, Molly discovers Jay dead on the floor of his office, his throat brutally slashed.
After decades working with the Boston PD, Detective Rita Myers has grown accustomed to the banality of evil—the murders that make no sense beyond bad luck or a tragic brush with the worst of humanity. But Jay Bradley’s murder isn’t random, or a mere crime of opportunity. Rita is convinced that someone in the couple’s small circle killed him. Someone who was celebrating with them that night.
Devastated, Molly tries to make sense of her husband’s death. Jay was her rock, the only person who really understood the nightmare she lived through long ago. He knew the horrors she’s kept hidden even from her friends. But shocking revelations are making her question if Jay was all he seemed to be—and whether someone else knows her past too. And until Molly figures out who she can really trust, she won’t be able to stop herself becoming the next target . . .
ALL THE DARK PLACES
Terri Parlato
In the first couple of pages, maybe even within the first few lines, you could tell there was a hesitation to the writing.
We open the book from Molly’s perspective and if there wasn’t another POV my rating would’ve been lower. Molly’s character from conception to execution including the narrator’s choice was built for a lighter piece of fiction. This book however is crime fiction.
Molly’s character is ungrounded and feels like she was created secondarily, as an afterthought. She is presented as the main character, yet she is not the one who the light is shining on. She amongst the other, very well-formed characters, stands out as weak.
When we are in the other perspective, we are with Rita. Rita is a veteran and is constructed as such. She is chiseled and intimidating. I think her character was strong enough for her to be continued on in a series.
When we are with Rita, in her chapters it is reminiscent of listening to older Sue Grafton novels. There is an expectancy to what is coming; if you miss it the first time, don’t worry. The author will most certainly rehash the important details.
Imagine that when you are with Molly you are reading women’s fiction and when you are with Rita you are reading crime fiction. It felt like that big of a difference, from tone to pacing, dialogue, and narrator choices. Rita’s perspective felt better executed.
The mystery is very straightforward, so much so that other things must be introduced to make the first storyline seem more interesting and twisty. And I didn’t feel it was very successful in doing so. The action is tepid. There are several passages where things are wrapped up with little explanation, skipping over scenes where action-filled details are required and then in other cases, too much explanation is given, bogging down the reading experience.
I did appreciate most of the characters and I think Parlato’s strong hand is creating characters that feel real and are distinguishable from one another.
I gave this one three stars and think it will split the line between readers who want a solid mystery and those looking for something a little soapier.
This one comes out December 27, 2022
Thanks to Netgalley, RB Media, and Recorded Books for the advanced copy!
ALL THE DARK PLACES… ⭐️⭐️⭐️
One year ago, Isabelle Drake’s life changed forever: her toddler son, Mason, was taken out of his crib in the middle of the night while she and her husband were asleep in the next room. With little evidence and few leads for the police to chase, the case quickly went cold. However, Isabelle cannot rest until Mason is returned to her—literally.
Except for the occasional catnap or small blackout where she loses track of time, she hasn’t slept in a year.
Isabelle’s entire existence now revolves around finding him, but she knows she can’t go on this way forever. In hopes of jarring loose a new witness or buried clue, she agrees to be interviewed by a true-crime podcaster—but his interest in Isabelle’s past makes her nervous. His incessant questioning paired with her severe insomnia has brought up uncomfortable memories from her own childhood, making Isabelle start to doubt her recollection of the night of Mason’s disappearance, as well as second-guess who she can trust… including herself. But she is determined to figure out the truth no matter where it leads.
ALL THE DANGEROUS THINGS
Stacy Willingham
ALL THE DANGEROUS THINGS by Stacy Willingham stars Isabel, Izzy, to those close to her.
Isabel hasn’t had a night’s sleep in a year to be exact.
That was the night her toddler son Mason was taken from his crib while she and her husband slept a bedroom or two away.
Life hasn’t been the same for Isabel since that fateful night.
Now Isabel spends her days and nights in a hazy fog, her body and mind suffering from lack of sleep. The only one still holding on to hope that her son will one day be returned, she tours the true crime circuits talking about her son and his disappearance, her only way of keeping his case alive.
We meet up with Isabel on a day when she is presented with an opportunity to investigate Mason’s disappearance with a podcaster. It seems like the only way to further the search for Mason so she agrees.
Whooo!
Will Isabel finally be able to solve this horrible mystery of her son’s disappearance?
This is my second Stacy Willingham book. I read her January 2022 release, A FLICKER IN THE DARK, and loved it. So I added her name as someone to follow and when this synopsis came out I got even more excited to read it.
The combination of the character’s insomnia, the podcast, and the mystery of the disappearance made me want to know how it would all add up.
There are two POV’s that are equally strong. And you are never bored. One pov has to do with the other but each could be self-contained. Both POV’s have complete story arcs and resolutions.
My favorite thing about the book is how cloistered it was yet I could not figure it out until the very end.
It felt like a Rubik’s cube. There are only a handful of characters introduced. There are very few options. And it felt like magic when everything lined up and all of those breadcrumbs left through the chapters came to such a complete and beautiful resolution.
I cannot wait for the next one Willingham!
I recommend it to all readers but especially those who enjoy thrillers. This was a good one!
ALL OF THE DANGEROUS THINGS…⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Look for this one January 10, 2023!
Thanks to Netgalley, Libro.FM, St. Martin’s Press, Minotaur Books, and Macmillan Audio for the advanced copies!
Ever since business mogul Clive Reynolds disappeared twenty years ago, the name “Reynolds” has become synonymous with “murder” and “mystery.” And now, lured by a cryptic note, down-on-her-luck photographer Morgan Mori returns home to Black Harbor and into the web of their family secrets and double lives. The same night she photographs the Reynolds holiday get-together, Morgan becomes witness to a homicide of a cop that triggers the discovery of a long-buried clue.
This could finally be the thing to crack open the chilling cold case, and Investigator Ryan Hudson has a chance to prove himself as lead detective. If only he could stop letting his need to solve his partner’s recent murder distract him. But as Morgan exposes her own dark demons, could her sordid history be the key to unlocking more than one mystery?
THE WIDOWMAKER
Hannah Morrissey
This is my second Black Harbor novel. I first came across Hannah Morrissey and the Black Harbor novel series in a sampler I read with Minotaur Books.
The first book HELLO, TRANSCRIBER set a tone for the series and THE WIDOWMAKER is an excellent follow-up.
These books are dark, bleak, and atmospheric. This is the perfect time of year to read THE WIDOWMAKER as temperatures drop and the days are shorter.
THE WIDOWMAKER stars Morgan Mori a photographer who has been hired to take photos of a holiday event for the infamous Reynolds Family.
After the event, Morgan makes a stop at a convenience store where events unfold that change the course of her life.
The strength of this book by far is the author’s ability to create an atmosphere. Morrissey is adept at going dark but knowing where to draw the line. Most of the time I felt she was effective at this skill. However, there were a few times when Morrissey was vague where I wanted explicit.
The plot itself has pockets of disbelief that you have to buy into for the story to make sense. Certain details of the story verged on fantastical.
Whatever you want to call it, I enjoyed my time reading it.
I was granted access to the audiobook version of this title and one thing I did want to point out was a few miscues with the narration of Hudson.
There is a segment of dialogue during a victim witness statement in which the characters begin to animatedly rap. I had to rewind to make sure I heard correctly.
Unfortunately, it completely took me out of the story, and felt misaligned with the tone and texture of the scene and actually the entire book.
Hudson is such a quirky and interesting character. I felt like the narrator’s performance detracted from the positive aspects of Hudson’s character rather than adding to it.
I felt THE WIDOWMAKER was a solid second book in the series. It comes out on December 6, 2022!
Thanks to Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for the advanced copy of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review!
THE WIDOWMAKER…⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
