The Dry by Jane Harper

My edition: Kindle Unlimited w/ audiobook
Pages: 329
Time/Narrator: 10 hours/ Stephen Shanahan
Series: Aaron Falk #1
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Published: Jan. 2, 2018
Rating: 3 stars

Synopsis:

A small town hides big secrets in this atmospheric, page-turning debut mystery by award-winning author Jane Harper.

In the grip of the worst drought in a century, the farming community of Kiewarra is facing life and death choices daily when three members of a local family are found brutally slain.
Federal Police investigator Aaron Falk reluctantly returns to his hometown for the funeral of his childhood friend, loath to face the townsfolk who turned their backs on him twenty years earlier.
But as questions mount, Falk is forced to probe deeper into the deaths of the Hadler family. Because Falk and Luke Hadler shared a secret. A secret Falk thought was long buried. A secret Luke’s death now threatens to bring to the surface in this small Australian town, as old wounds in bleed into new ones.

Review:

I have this on both kindle unlimited and audio. I read most of the book and then listened to the end while cooking dinner, Wy played his video game, and JB (our son) played in his walker.

I highly suggest reading this instead of listening. It helps when the book goes into a flashback. There were a couple of times I got a bit lost but then realized it was a flashback. But the audio is still good. I just feel like it’s a book that needs to be physically in front.

I am in the minority when it comes to this book. I liked it and the ending was one that I didn’t guess. Though I feel like it didn’t live up to the hype. At first, while an easy read I wasn’t interested. I didn’t have the feeling of I needed to know who did it. I didn’t have that feeling of being on the edge of my seat. I missed what everyone else raved about in their reviews.

Great writing. Just didn’t live up to the hype for me.

Ugly Beautiful by Sean-Paul Thomas

My edition: Kindle Unlimited
Pages: 200
Rating: 2 stars
Synopsis:

‘Contains some Scottish dialect, strong language and Graphic scenes of violence in parts.’

A Scottish gangster with a tormented past, goes on the run after an earth shattering tragedy that rips his world apart. Running for his life he disappears into the heart of the gorgeous Scottish highlands to lay low in a secluded cottage before plotting his next move.

But when he discovers the body of a beautiful young amnesiac woman lying unconscious near his hideaway retreat, things take a chilling turn for the worst, especially when he tries to coax the mysterious beauty into unraveling her own forgotten past, unaware of the sickening acts of terror which are about to be unleashed.

Review: ***Warning: Spoiler Alert!!!***

When I first started this book I was confused. It was also hard for me to follow what some of the Gary people were saying because it was written in a thick Scottish dialect. Our hero Jason ends up coming home to surprise his wife, only to find her in bed with his father. Jason ends up killing both in a blind rage.

He leaves town for his secluded cottage that his uncle had left him. On his way up he spots a beautiful blonde hitchhiker. He pulls over for her but as she starts for his car he drives away. After a couple days Jason finds a woman on a morning run. He takes the woman back to his cottage. She wakes up with no memory of who she is.

Over the next couple days Jason and as he named her, Haley start falling for each other. They decide that they are going to get away from the highlands and start a new life. When passing a farm house Haley starts to feel something. Jason notices and decides to take her to the farm house to see if she can remember anything.

Haley remembers something alright. She remembers she has a twin sister who is a psychopath. Her sister ends up tying Jason up and torturing him. Jason though isn’t alone. His old pal Gary is there. Gary though has the worst end of the torture.

Throughout this time we don’t know where Haley is, she had just disappeared. One time when Jason is coming to he sees Haley. She really is there. Her sister is sleeping and she was able to visit Jason. When Jason says they can run for it, Haley knows she can never get away from her sister. No matter what.

In this case she is right. Haley has a split personality. She is herself and her sister. When she was younger her father shut her and her real twin sister in the basement. He wouldn’t let them out until one of them ends the other. Haley’s sister won that battle, but since they were so close Haley’s sister allowed some of Haley to live inside of her. Haley’s sister was then taught how to kill. The dad started her off with animals then moved her up to humans. Her torture was getting worse with each victim. Haley wasn’t having anymore and she fought with her sister. She ran and ran until she fell down of exhaustion. When she came to well that is how the story began.

Jason talks Haley into letting him go. She does with hope that Jason can help her get rid of her twin sister.

I won’t give the end away. What I have told you so far is up to 57% of the book. I thought it was weird. I fully didn’t understand what was happening at times. This story did have potential. It started out slow then it went by really fast. I didn’t believe the love between the Jason and Haley. It seem all to insta-love but not believable. The end was dull.

Redeeming Rhys by Mary E. Palmerin

My edition: Kindle Unlimited
Pages: 160
Series: Stand-Alone (So far)
Rating:
Synopsis:

Are people born pure?

Is evil learned, or is it birthed into one’s soul, like a fallen angel who was previously par of graciousness?

Rhys is decayed, black, and bad. He cut distortion out of his life years before, but he let her live; his only way to gain redemption once more.

As his sinful needs blanket him with dread, he seeks penance from the soul he saw as a second chance.

Is absolution too late for Rhys?

**Warning, dark scenes depicted heavily throughout this novel. Read the Author’s disclaimer carefully before proceeding with this title.**

Review: One, two, Bad Boy is coming for you. Three, four, Little Girl it’s too late to lock your door. Five, six, Bad Boy is about to show you sick. Seven, eight, Bad Boy is gonna filet you like steak. Nine, ten, never see Momma or Daddy again.

What the hell did I just read?

Rhys is wanting absolution for his sins. The only one to give it to him is Wren. When Rhys was a little boy, he use to be beaten by his step-father. Everyday he was told he was a bad boy and that he needed to repent for his sins. One day he finally snapped.

Ten years later Rhys wants to find the one he let get away, Wren. Rhys is pretty messed up in the head. But so is Wren. Wren is Rhys step sister that he let live after he killed both of their parents.

I DNF this book at 83%. It was too dark for me and I couldn’t go on. This book made me physical and mental and emotional ill. I just couldn’t finish it.

The Cabin by Natasha Preston

My edition: Kindle received from Netgalley

Pages: 336

Series: Stand-Alone

Synopsis: Off of Goodreads

There may only be one killer, but no one is innocent in this new thriller from Natasha Preston, author of The Cellar and Awake.

When Mackenzie treks to a secluded cabin in the woods with six friends, she expects a fun weekend of partying, drinking, and hookups. But when they wake to find two of their own dead and covered in blood, it’s clear there’s a killer among them.

As the police try to unravel the case, Mackenzie launches her own investigation. Before long secrets start to emerge, revealing a sinister web of sins among the original seven friends. The killer is still free. Every one of them is a suspect. And Mackenzie starts to realize that no one is innocent...

Rating: 2 stars

Review: I received this from Sourcebooks and Netgalley for an honest review.

Well I don’t know what to say. With a blurb like that it sounded amazing. I started reading a few pages and wasn’t really liking where it was going. There was a lot of drinking. There were teenagers having sex. Oh and two of them come up murdered. The next few things I have to say is going to need this picture.

I’m seriously going to spoiling a couple things so IF you want to read this book do not go on.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I see you went on… fine it’s your own fault that the book will be ruined. I warned you!

Mackenzie and her friends are going to a cabin in the middle of the woods. Hmmm…

Oh did I mention they just graduated from a… I think high school. Sorry I don’t know the U.K. school system well and I’m a bit lazy and don’t want to look it up and try and to understand it. Plus I’m writing this review.

Anydick, we have a bunch of teenagers going to a cabin in the middle of the woods. Most of the group don’t like Josh. Unfortunately the cabin they are going to is Josh’s so they really can’t say much to him about not coming. Also his mysterious brother comes along. A brother that Josh barely knows. Of course Mackenzie, who by the way is our perfect boring attractive girl, thinks the brother, Blake, is hot. Of course right! Oh did I mention he gets under Mackenzie’s skin?

Who knew that was going to happen?

Well lets get past all the drinking and sex to the next morning. Mackenzie wakes up next to Blake after the night. They get dressed and go downstairs. Mackenzie then goes into the kitchen to make tea. Guess what she finds…

If you guessed two dead bodies of her friends, then you guessed right. Ding. Ding. Ding. Sorry you didn’t win anything.

Well with two people dead, not really sad to see them go *COUGH* Josh *COUGH*, the police start to question everyone. The police think that it is one of the friends. There were no signs of forced entry. There were seven people in the house and two end up dead. It turns out they were stabbed during the night and no one heard anything.

Reason why, they were drugged. Now they have a detective following them around and everyone in town thinks that one of them is the killer.

Now I got around 26% when I really just couldn’t care anymore and skimmed the rest of the book. I found out who was the killer and a ton more drinking. I’m surprised one of them hasn’t died of alcohol poisoning. And if I was drugged by one of my friends by them using alcohol I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t continue to drink around them.

I didn’t really like the story. From what I did get was a lot of drinking with teenagers, sex, and a murder. Pretty much a crappy horror film without everyone dying at the end. This could have been a good book but the author told not showed. The narration was putting me to sleep. Mackenzie was an alright heroine, her thoughts could have been written a bit better.

Would I recommend this, most likely not.