lifestyle

1. The Secrets of Us – Krystal and Nichole are lifelong friends – so close they call themselves sisters. They survived a traumatic childhood, escaping in the dark of night vowing to never discuss the events that took place. Then Krystal gets a phone call that Nichole has been arrested for setting her house on fire and trying to kill her husband. Krystal can’t believe it and rushes to Nichole’s side to figure out what really happened. But Krystal knows Nichole’s secrets and her past and struggles to believe that she may have committed this heinous crime. The book was a bit slow at times but overall had tons of twists and turns that kept me guessing the whole time. Rating: 8

2. All the Dangerous Things – This book has had a ton of buzz and it was really enjoyable. Lots of twists and turns constantly making throwing me off my theories of what really happened. LOL Isabelle’s son, Mason, is kidnapped out of his crib one evening and seemingly vanishes. Isabelle is distraught and broken over it though she feels in her heart that he isn’t dead and will be returned to her at some point. While she tries to do everything to get her story out there, she is approached by a podcast host who wants to feature her story on his podcast. Hopefully giving it more attention to help get it solved. But Isabelle soon realizes that the podcast host could have an ulterior motive and she is unsure whether she can trust him. While grappling with terrifying memories of her own traumatic childhood, Isabelle feels hopeless and at her wits end. She hopes that during her search for Mason, she can find him and answer questions of her own about her childhood. Rating: 8.5

3. Delta County – I had high hopes for this book but it was a dull read for me. Heather Matthews moves back to her hometown of Delta County with her husband who was her high school sweetheart. Though they love their hometown, it brings with it a lot of heartache and tragedy for Heather. Moving back makes her face these tragedies all over again and she is forced to get answers for the death of her parents and recent disappearance of her high school best friend. The truth behind the tragedy is not what Heather is expecting and hits closer to home than she would like. The book was a slow read for me and then the last two chapters gave me whiplash with what happens – it felt like an odd way to end the book. Rating: 7

4. The Personal Assistant – An easy and enjoying thriller (though it is a tad predictable about halfway through). Alex is an influencer that has amassed a successful following of almost 1 million Instagram followers. They follow her upbeat messages and glimpse into her happy family life. When Alex wakes up on morning after a night celebrating her 1 million follower milestone, she is alerted to a controversial post that she has made on her own Instagram. She doesn’t remember making it but it’s damning and her audience immediately turns against her. Alex reaches out to her personal assistant for help but is unable to reach her. As the day goes on, Alex begins to worry that maybe her personal assistant is the one that hijacked her IG profile and in turn her career. While Alex tries to pick up the pieces amongst this possible career-ending scandal, the police come to her door in search of her personal assistant who is now officially a missing person. Though Alex claims to know nothing about what could have happened to her assistant, Alex’s husband holds more secrets than she knows. Even though I guessed the ending halfway through, it is fast paced and really entertaining! Rating: 8.5

5. On a Quiet Street – One of the best thrillers I have ever read!!!! I truly didn’t expect much because I hadn’t heard many people talking about it, but they absolutely should. It is fantastic and good from the very first chapter! Three women live on a quiet street in an upscale suburb in Oregon. Things seem picture perfect from the outside but behind closed doors, these women are struggling separately with really difficult issues. Paige lost her son recently in a tragic unsolved murder, Cora thinks her husband is cheating and Georgia seems to stay to herself and never want to come outside. As the women come to know each other through random circumstances, they all must bond together to protect each other from the men in their lives. Rating: 9.5

6. The Soulmate Equation – This was not my favorite Christina Lauren book but I did really enjoy it. All of her books have a similar feel to them and they are comforting to read. Jess and her best friend frequent a coffee shop every day and see the same gorgeous man come in every morning for his coffee. Her best friend initiates conversation with him one day only to find out his name is Dr. River Pena and runs a DNA-based matchmaking company. He invites both Jess and her friend to come to their corporate headquarters and try the service. When Jess takes the test, she finds out she is nearly perfectly compatible with Dr. Pena himself! The company asks Jess if she will be willing to see if the matchmaking service is accurate and get to know Dr. Pena. She agrees though hesitantly because Dr. Pena is not the most engaging nor warm person. However what develops is surprising to them both and may just indicate that the matchmaking algorithm is correct. Rating: 8.5

1. Every Last Secret – I figured the story out pretty quickly but that didn’t take away from the enjoyment of this thriller! Cat and William Winthorpe are wealthy figures in the community and William owns a very successful tech company. His company hires a new life coach named Neena and she slowly becomes a divisive figure in Cat and William’s relationship. Cat quickly catches on to Neena and her motives and decides to beat her at her own game. Rating: 8

2. Golden Girl – I enjoy Elin Hildebrand books though most of them are very much the same. Vivian is a successful author living on Nantucket with her family when she is struck and killed on one of her morning runs. The family is devastated and Vivian has to watch them struggle with their grief from the afterlife. Vivian’s death becomes a focus for the entire community and the case seems to be getting cold with no solid leads. Eventually secrets are revealed and the authorities think they may have a suspect and try to get justice for Vivian’s family. Rating: 8

3. Stay Awake – This book kept me guessing until the very end. Liv wakes up one night on the way home from a bar and in the back of a cab with no knowledge of her current situation. She arrives at her home only to realize that she no longer lives there and hasn’t for the past two years. She’s confused and notices that her hands and arms are covered in writing that says “don’t fall asleep”. Liv soon realizes that she has no memory of the last 2 years and forgets everything once she falls asleep. She tries to figure out what has caused the memory loss and what possible trauma her mind could be protecting her from. And then her ex-fiance is found dead and Liv can’t remember if she had anything to do with his death. She is racing against the clock to clear her name without any knowledge of her past or a possible alibi. Rating: 8.5

4. The Cabin in the Woods – An easy thriller to get through – a great weekend read. Rose is on the run – taking up residence at a remote cabin in the woods. She goes into town to get supplies but doesn’t want to raise any flags or speak to anyone for fear that she could be found. The story oscillates between Rose’s current life and the years that brought her to this point. Rose’s past life seemed picture perfect and almost out of storybook. Until she meets a woman in the bathroom of a charity function and is told the most horrific things. Rose tries to decide if these allegations are true and if so, she needs to take her young daughter and leave immediately. But things don’t go as planned and she is then forced to go into hiding. Rating: 8.5

5. The Perfect Child – I could not put this book down!!!! One of my favorite reads of the year so far! Janie is a young girl that is found abandoned and brought to a local hospital for care. One of the physicians on her case develops a fondness for her and decides to apply to be her foster parents until her case is cleared. Janie seems to have a horrific history of abuse and neglect so Christopher and his wife Hannah try to be patient with her and support her in the best way. But Janie is difficult and her behaviors become increasingly scary and dangerous. Hannah tries to find out more of Janie’s past and the truth is even more terrifying. Despite the warning signs, Christopher and Hannah move forward with adopting Janie which forever bonds them to her. Christopher still thinks Janie is capable of being rehabilitated but over time Hannah knows that Janie is pure evil and fears for their safety. This book will keep you on the edge of your seat!!!! Rating: 9

6. The Chain – This book is wildly unrealistic but was absolutely gripping and so hard to put down! The story is terrifying and even though it was so crazy, I couldn’t help but get so emotional throughout it. Rachel’s daughter is abducted in broad daylight while waiting for the school bus. And when the kidnappers contact Rachel to request ransom, they tell her that in order to get her child back she must kidnap another child and keep the “chain” going. The kidnappers own child was taken and they took Rachel’s child in order to get theirs back. Rachel will do anything to get her daughter back, but can she really kidnap another family’s child and make them go through what she is going through? Rating: 9