Mini-Reviews: Week of 2/7/22-2/11/22

Mending Fences by Sherryl Woods

Two families. One incident that changes all their lives. We meet the Carters and the Dobbs, they have been best friends for a while from the children to the mothers, but habits of the Carters trinkle into the Dobbs household. Emily Dobbs must decide how important is her friendship with Marcia Carter and if keeping her daughter Dani safe. This was an intense book for me that truly shows how quick people change when terrible things happen. Support that you’ve relied on disappears leaving questions unanswered until you get to the twist in the story. I really enjoyed this book and how things unraveled, but also frustrated about Dani staying silent too long.

This is My American by Kim Johnson

This book is about Tracy, daughter and sister trying to keep her family intact while clearing their name. She is a strong character and incredibly determined to bring to like the racism and unfair treatment of her father and brother’s cases. While Tracy fights for her family she uncovers a history of wrongdoings that affects not only her family, but another one, which is the shocking reveal in the story. This is a book worth reading.

The Arrangement by Kiersten Modglin

Who says marriage is boring? It’s not in this book. Ainsley and Peter make an arrangement to see other people to repair their marriage. Was it a bad idea? Most definitely. Once their arrangement starts it uncovers incidents that Ainsley and Peter will have to get themselves out of. This was a great read of weaving through chaos, secrets, and unsuspected reveals. Loved it!

The Apothecary Poison by C. J. Archer

This is book three in the Glass and Steele series, we meet back up with Matt and India on the search for Dr. Hale in hopes that he can lead them to Chronos. Matt’s health is not well, and he still needs to get his watch fixed. When Dr. Hale is murdered, Matt becomes the primary suspect. Matt and India are running out of time. This book had unsuspected twist and had me anticipating what would happen next. I loved that it was harder to figure out who killed Hale. I also love the series carrying over the mission on finding Chronos. I cannot wait to read the next book in this series.

A Treacherous Curse by Deanna Raybourn

This is book three in the Veronica Speedwell series, Veronica and Stoker on looking into the disappearance of Stoker’s former expedition partner. It seems there have been unfortunate events happening around this expedition especially with a shadowing figure stalking about. I enjoyed the book and the reveal, but it took a little bit longer to get into it. This may be because I listened to the audiobook. I will continue this series because overall I am really it and look forward to reading the next book.

Have you read any of these books? What are your thoughts? Let me know in the comments.

Book Review: Not A Happy Family by Shari Lapena

I’m a sucker for a Shari Lapena thriller and Not A Happy Family may just be my favorite. I would love to see this one made into a movie.

About The Book

In this family, everyone is keeping secrets—even the dead.

 Brecken Hill in upstate New York is an expensive place to live. You have to be rich to have a house there, and Fred and Sheila Merton certainly are rich. But even all their money can’t protect them when a killer comes to call. The Mertons are brutally murdered after a fraught Easter dinner with their three adult kids. Who, of course, are devastated.

 Or are they? They each stand to inherit millions. They were never a happy family, thanks to their vindictive father and neglectful mother, but perhaps one of the siblings is more disturbed than anyone knew. Did someone snap after that dreadful evening? Or did another person appear later that night with the worst of intentions? That must be what happened. After all, if one of the family were capable of something as gruesome as this, you’d know.

 Wouldn’t you?

Purchase at Amazon/ B&N

My Thoughts

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I loved this book. The intrigue. The suspense. The mystery upon mystery right up to the reveal. I was all for it. The Merton family has some serious issues. The father is mean and pits his children against each other. The mother, Sheila didn’t have a backbone to me. The children Jenna, Catherine and Dan all have personal issues going on but also issues with their parent. Aubrey, their aunt is noisy and doesn’t really care about her nieces and nephew, but concerned about her brother, Fred’s business.

After Fred and Sheila Merton are murdered, in the rest of the book you’re trying to find out which of the children did it, or if the aunt or the maid, Irena did it. I had a feeling it was one of the children and even though evidence pointed to all of them, I figured out who it was quickly. I was invested in the characters and the plot, which I read in a couple of hours.

Lapena does a great job placing twists and turns at the right time within the story. Her characters are complex and mysterious but keep your attention. I love her writing style and will continue to read her thrillers. If you’re looking for a good thriller with a great mystery element, this book is for you.