One of Us Is Lying (One of Us Is Lying #1) by Karen M. McManus

 

Five high school students find themselves in detention but soon one will be dead and the other four will be suspects in a murder. 

The story unravels as each character's point of view is revealed and with that secrets, fears, flaws and lies are divulged, making a cast of interesting yet stereotypical characters (which I didn't mind at all).  

Characters grow, evolve and learn life lessons. This is a book, I could easily see turning into a binge worthy Netflix series!      

There is something nostalgic about this book with a mix or modern day that made me feel that I was a teenager back in school,  watching it unfold,  snickering in the hallways with my friends and contemplating who the guilty party is and suspecting everyone! 

Super fast read, can be read easily in one day or less! Don't leave this in your to be read pile as long as I did.

Home Before Dark by Riley Sager

                                                                         

Home Before Dark is quite a thriller! It spooked me a bit and I don't spook easily! Riley Sager has a flair for writing thrillers and her words pull you into her novel. Be prepared to be obsessed!

Do you remember Amityville? If you don't  google it now because Sager obviously got some of her backstory from it and put a modern twist on this novel.

Twenty-Five years ago, Maggie Holt, just a young child fled her home of  Baneberry Hall in the middle of the night with her parents. Her father wrote a nonfiction novel about the families ordeal in the home. It became infamous and when Maggie Holt returns to renovate the home after her fathers death, the small town people aren't exactly thrilled to see her.

Things go bump in the night and the events of the book unravel as presented nearly word for word.

Maggie begins to question if the story her father wrote was indeed real as she previously had doubts about its authenticity. 

This is a book within book story (which is one of my favorite types and seldom done right!). Maggie's father, Ewan's book is weaved into the story and it has a very different voice and feel to it. Expect to get some spidey senses especially if you're reading past midnight and home alone! 

The Book of Two Ways by Jodi Picoult

The Book of Two Ways by Jodi Picoult
Expected publication: September 22nd 2020

This is a difficult review for me to write because I typically enjoy Jodi Picoult's novels but this is my least favorite novel of hers. I felt as though my brain was being bombarded with information I didn't want to know or care for and as a result of that I found myself getting lost over and over again. Egyptology is interesting to a degree but the over abundance of it just left me drained resulting in me  putting the book down over and over again.  I spent so much time looking up and researching information from this read that I ended up feeling like I was tasked with a project rather than just being able to enjoy a read. 

The gist of this book is that a woman named Dawn, survives a plane crash and has some kind of moment and rather than returning to Boston to be with her husband and daughter, she jumps on a plane and goes back to Egypt to met her previous lover. 

In typical Picoult fashion the book flips back and forth, telling several stories from the past and current day. We find out that Dawn is a Death Duola, her marriage is on the rocks and has a daughter who is shy and struggles with her weight. 

The Death Duola portions were the most interesting part of the book and I wish that it had taken a larger portion of the story as opposed to Egyptology. As the Death Doula is more interesting, makers her  character is more likable and is probably more relatable to readers. 

The ending was not satisfying to me as a reader but I understand it. I am glad that I read this book because I have enjoyed so many of Picoult's other reads and am a long time fan but I would not recommend it to a first time reader of Picoult's.

* I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.