The Hunted Girls Review

Stumbling through the pitch-black forest, twigs scratching her bare feet, she sobs as she imagines her children crying for their mommy to put them to bed. By now everyone will know she is missing. Please, please let me find the way home. Before he comes back.

As Agent Nadine Finch rushes to investigate the murder of newlywed Nikki Darnell in Ocala National Forest, Florida, fear floods her body. She swore she’d never set foot here again, not since the case fifteen years ago which tore her life apart. But taking in the triangular cuts scarring Nikki’s perfect pale skin, she knows she must put her own traumatic past aside to find justice for Nikki’s inconsolable husband.

Discovering water in Nikki’s lungs, and certain the triangular wounds were made by arrowheads, Nadine must convince her team of her terrifying theory: that Nikki was hunted down and drowned before being left for them to find. But what monster would do such a thing? And why? Then another woman, a mother of two, is discovered in the woods, tell-tale arrow marks all over her body.

Recognizing the victim as a local waitress, Nadine fears the killer has started attacking women known to her. And the moment she traces the arrow heads to a nearby outdoors store, her own partner disappears.

Frantic, Nadine follows the trail to a lonely cabin deep in the Florida wetlands where she finally learns the heart-stopping truth. To save one of her own, she must confront a deadly hunter obsessed with the case that’s haunted her whole career. Will Nadine have to make the ultimate sacrifice to stop him taking more innocent lives?

This book is definitely for the faint at heart but oh my gosh what a gripping and compelling read and one of the things that I liked about it the most is that although it covers a serial killer as do most books of this genre, the investigators involved in hunting the serial killer seemed different and fresh.

This is the second book in a series and although I read it as a stand alone and was perfectly able to do that, the backstories of the characters made me want to read the others. The writing, character development, narrative and storyline all coincided to make this a really clever book and one that I couldn’t put down. Highly recommended 5 stars.

The Music of Bees Review

I was provided The Music of Bees by Eileen Garvin as an ARC through NetGalley in return for an honest review. All opinions are my own and thanks is extended to the author, publishers and NetGalley for allowing me to do so.

Forty-four-year-old Alice Holtzman is stuck in a dead-end job, bereft of family, and now reeling from the unexpected death of her husband. Alice has begun having panic attacks whenever she thinks about how her life hasn’t turned out the way she dreamed. Even the beloved honeybees she raises in her spare time aren’t helping her feel better these days.

In the grip of a panic attack, she nearly collides with Jake–a troubled, paraplegic teenager with the tallest mohawk in Hood River County–while carrying 120,000 honeybees in the back of her pickup truck. Charmed by Jake’s sincere interest in her bees and seeking to rescue him from his toxic home life, Alice surprises herself by inviting Jake to her farm.

And then there’s Harry, a twenty-four-year-old with debilitating social anxiety who is desperate for work. When he applies to Alice’s ad for part-time farm help, he’s shocked to find himself hired. As an unexpected friendship blossoms among Alice, Jake, and Harry, a nefarious pesticide company moves to town, threatening the local honeybee population and illuminating deep-seated corruption in the community. The unlikely trio must unite for the sake of the bees–and in the process, they just might forge a new future for themselves.

Beautifully moving, warm, and uplifting, The Music of Bees is about the power of friendship, compassion in the face of loss, and finding the courage to start over (at any age) when things don’t turn out the way you expect.

The story is essentially a tale of three people struggling with inner anxiety and grief. They come together by chance at an Oregon bee farm, finding healing and friendship. The backgrounds that they have, the experiences that they have lived through, the expectations that they have and so much more could not be different from each other and yet they come together in what is a intense, heart destroying and unique read. If I had to liken it to another style of novel I would instantly say if you loved Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine then you will love this novel.

A vert well deserved 4 stars.

Black Water Sister Review

I was provided Black Water Sister by Zen Cho as an ARC through NetGalley in return for an honest review. All opinions are my own and thanks is extended to the author, publishers and NetGalley for allowing me to do so.

Jessamyn Teoh is closeted, broke and moving back to Malaysia, a country she left when she was a toddler. So, when Jess starts hearing voices, she chalks it up to stress. But there’s only one voice in her head, and it claims to be the ghost of her estranged grandmother, Ah Ma. In life Ah Ma was a spirit medium, the avatar of a mysterious deity called the Black Water Sister. Now she’s determined to settle a score against a gang boss who has offended the god–and she’s decided Jess is going to help her do it.

Drawn into a world of gods, ghosts, and family secrets, Jess finds that making deals with capricious spirits is a dangerous business. As Jess fights for retribution for Ah Ma, she’ll also need to regain control of her body and destiny. If she fails, the Black Water Sister may finish her off for good.

I adored this Contemporary Fantasy set in Malaysia that deals with some hard-hitting themes such as abuse, homophobia, racism and rape. I found the characterisation amazing and fell in love with Jessamyn, the narrative was the perfect pace and kept me engaged throughout. There was also a great level of world building which allowed me to perfectly imagine the world and see myself in it.

All in all a great read and I will be searching out more of Zen Cho’s works. A well deserved 4 stars.

The Other Black Girl Review

I was provided The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris as an ARC through NetGalley in return for an honest review. All opinions are my own and thanks is extended to the author, publishers and NetGalley for allowing me to do so.

Twenty-six-year-old editorial assistant Nella Rogers is tired of being the only Black employee at Wagner Books. Fed up with the isolation and microaggressions, she’s thrilled when Harlem-born and bred Hazel starts working in the cubicle beside hers. They’ve only just started comparing natural hair care regimens, though, when a string of uncomfortable events elevates Hazel to Office Darling, and Nella is left in the dust.

Then the notes begin to appear on Nella’s desk: LEAVE WAGNER. NOW.

It’s hard to believe Hazel is behind these hostile messages. But as Nella starts to spiral and obsess over the sinister forces at play, she soon realizes that there’s a lot more at stake than just her career.

I loved this novel that was slow burning at the start before reaching its suspense filled climax at the end. It has been compared as The Stepford Wives meets Get out and I would say it had more Get Out vibes for sure and I was totally within the books grasp from the very start.

The story line itself is intriguing and interesting and the characters are so well written and captivating. I didn’t find a single page of this book boring if anything I felt genuine fear whilst reading it and an intense dislike for some of the acts that characters were carrying out.

My only criticism was that I found the ending frustrating and even more frustrating that I cannot go into why without giving spoilers … so spoiler alert without giving away anything to major I found it intensely frustrating that after receiving so much prejudice, discrimination and hate from a privileged group in society, to then have your own people turn on you also left me with a feeling of utter hopelessness and despair that left me with boiling blood and an intense rage. However, I appreciated the reasons why the author did this and so although it frustrated me, I appreciate the power of doing just that. I just felt that following such a build up and tension that I was left with lots of questions and needing more in terms of the backstory and generally just more information.

However, this didn’t take away from the experience and it is still a strong 4 star read for me.