Review of "The Mistake: A Psychological Thriller" by K.L. Slater

Rose Tinsley, who's lived in Newstead all her life, is the librarian at the Newstead Library - one of the smallest in Nottinghamshire County.



When budget woes dictate that the library might close, Rose becomes very concerned about her job. Employment opportunities have been scarce in Newstead since the coal pits closed decades ago, and Rose - who has HUGE anxiety issues - CAN'T move away from the security of her home and her 'safety routines.'

Rose's troubles stem from things that happened sixteen years ago, when she was a naive 18-year-old college student. At that time Rose met a man - thirtyish Gareth Farnham - who was in Newstead to manage a construction project. Rose was flattered by the attentions of the handsome 'older man', and would sneak around to meet him behind her parents' backs.



Step by step Gareth manipulated Rose into isolating herself from her family and friends. He also convinced her to accede to his increasingly intrusive demands. Gareth wanted to control every aspect of Rose's life - from the movies she saw, to the flavor of ice cream she ate, to her college plans. When Rose resisted Gareth's 'requests', he became furious and made ominous threats.



In time, Rose tried to break away from Gareth.....but it was harder than she'd hoped.

At about this time, another tragedy occurred in Rose's life. One sunny afternoon Rose took her 8-year-old brother Billy to Newstead Abbey - to fly his kite - and the little boy disappeared.



His body was found two days later.

Rose and her parents were devastated by the loss and never fully recovered. Though a culprit was tried and convicted for Billy's murder, Rose became neurotically fearful. She developed compulsive behaviors like bulimia and hyper-awareness of her surroundings. From that time on Rose has been constantly looking over her shoulder for stranger-danger; has hardly ever left town; has been afraid to go out after dark; has been unable to leave her windows open; has been compulsively locking her doors; and so on.



To add to her woes, Rose lost both her parents a few years after Billy died.

Now, sixteen years after Billy's death, Rose is living a quiet, mundane, not-so-happy life. She has little fun and no friends - except for her elderly, next-door-neighbor Ronnie.



Ronnie has always been extremely solicitous of Rose's family, and Rose reciprocates by looking in on her housebound neighbor and doing his grocery shopping.

One day Ronnie is hospitalized with the flu and Rose decides to tidy his house - to thank him for being such a fine person.



While Rose is in Ronnie's attic, she finds something that casts doubt on the identity of Billy's killer. In fact, it's possible the wrong person has been imprisoned for the crime. No matter the consequences, Rose feels she MUST discover the truth.

The book alternates back and forth between 16-years-ago and the present. In the past, Ruth interacts with her parents; plays with Billy; goes to school; hangs out with her best friend Cassie; volunteers at the library; dates Gareth; and so on.



In the present, Rose goes to work; chats with the library patrons; shops at the local co-op; binges and purges; locks herself in the house; etc. Most importantly, Ruth follows up on the discovery she made in Ronnie's attic, despite getting an ominous note that says 'Let Sleeping Dogs Lie.'



The book is an engaging psychological thriller, but I'm not as big a fan as many other readers.

First, most of the story is told from Rose's point of view, in a 'step-by-step' format. I have a problem with this kind of narrative, which tends to be circumscribed and slow-moving.

Second, I have an issue with Rose as a character. Though I understand a teenage girl being infatuated with a dashing older man, Rose seems overly foolish. She constantly makes excuses for Gareth's terrible behavior; believes whatever he says; and gives in to him against her better judgement. Even as an adult, Rose has trouble dealing with the manipulative creep. I just don't like to see a character being such a doormat (and a little whiny to boot).

I do like the book's ending, and for that I give Rose three cheers.....rah rah rah Rose!!

Though I have some criticisms, I'd recommend the book to fans of psychological thrillers.

Thanks to Netgalley, the author (K.L. Slater), and the publisher (Bookouture) for a copy of the book.

Rating: 3 stars

Review of "The October List: A Suspense Novel" by Jeffery Deaver

Jeffery Deaver tried a different approach with this mystery, which begins with the last chapter and works backwards to the first chapter. Thus things happen that seem inexplicable in the moment.....but lead to "AHA" moments as you keep reading. It's good fun once you get used to it.

I don't want my review to be a spoiler, so I'll just give a brief description of the plot.

*****

Gabriela McKenzie is the office manager for investment counselor Charles Prescott, whose company - Prescott Investments - has an office in Manhattan. When Prescott comes into possession of a secret document called the 'October List' - reputed to be worth a lot of money - he steals all his clients' assets and skips town with the list.



Gabriela is questioned by the police, but isn't able to tell them anything about her boss's whereabouts.



One of Prescott's clients, Joseph Astor, lost $400,000 when the investment counselor absconded with the company's loot. Joseph wants his money back AND he wants a copy of the October List. So Joseph - a very creepy guy - kidnaps Gabriela's six-year-old daughter Sophie and calls the officer manager with a ransom demand. He wants $500,000 and the list, or little Sophie will suffer the consequences.



Gabriela finds a copy of the October List in Prescott's office, but can't locate his assets - so she doesn't have the money.



Gabriela is beside herself with anxiety, but her acquaintance - venture capitalist Daniel Reardon - has a company that's dealt with kidnappers before.....since executives in foreign countries frequently get snatched for ransom. Daniel offers to lend Gabriela the money AND to provide two associates who'll drop off the ransom and (hopefully) retrieve young Sophie.



As the book opens, Gabriela is waiting to hear news about the ransom exchange.



The story works backward from there, and - as we move along to the beginning of the tale - there's plenty of action. This includes: a break-in; a shooting; a fatal traffic accident; a severed finger; a romantic tryst; meetings with a Russian crime boss; police surveillance; a double murder; and more.



The are plenty of surprises in the story, and it's all very entertaining.

Deaver did a great job with the 'backwards story' format; I think he must have constructed a detailed flowchart/spreadsheet to keep all the story elements straight....so credit to the author.

I'd recommend the book to mystery fans in the mood for something a little different.

Rating: 3 stars

Review of "The Broken Ones: A Supernatural Suspense Novel" by Stephen M. Irwin

On "Gray Wednesday" the Earth's poles suddenly reverse, world electronics are thrown into disarray, and ghosts suddenly appear. Every human being gets their own ghost, visible only to themselves, who shadows them 24/7.



The ghosts are so disturbing that some people go insane and ghost-induced murders become pardonable offenses.





Three years later police detective Oscar Mariani starts to investigate the torture/murder of a teenage girl who has a strange 7-pointed star carved into her stomach.



This is an especially distressing case for Oscar because he badly injured a teenage girl when the sudden appearance of his ghost on Gray Wednesday caused him to swerve his car.



Oscar's police colleagues and superiors want him to hand off the case but Oscar refuses. The disappearance of additional girls convinces Oscar that a serial killer is at work, and - despite many barriers thrown in his path - Oscar continues to hunt the murderer.



Oscar's investigation leads him to bizarre and dangerous situations that endanger his and his police partner's lives. It's an engrossing story that contains supernatural creatures, bad cops, beautiful women, disgraced friends and more...all leading to a satisfying conclusion.

Rating: 3 stars

Review of "The Wife Between Us: A Novel" by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen

To avoid spoilers, which is especially important for this book, I'm going to provide a bare bones review - just to give you an idea what the story is about.

*****

Years ago - when Vanessa was attending college in her home state of Florida - she was outgoing, happy, and the social director of her Chi Omega sorority.



After graduation Vanessa was living in New York City and riddled with anxiety - nervous about flying, going out alone at night, scary movies, and other things.



Vanessa was teaching pre-school during the day, working as a bartender at night, and coping with her insecurities as best she could when she met Richard - a handsome, wealthy, 36-year-old hedge fund manager.



Richard was attentive, sophisticated, fun, and - most of all- reassuring about Vanessa's fears.

Vanessa and Richard fell in love, got married, moved to the suburbs, and planned to start a family.



Some years later the couple divorced.



Vanessa is now living with her Aunt Charlotte in New York City and working as a fashion consultant at pricey Saks Department Store.



Vanessa has lost a lot of weight, can't sleep, and is drinking WAY too much. For his part, Richard is involved with his beautiful office assistant Emma.



When Vanessa hears that Richard and Emma are engaged, she loses it. Vanessa pretends to be ill, neglects her job, and starts acting out....determined to prevent Richard and Emma's nuptials.



The story alternates back and forth between the past and the present. In the chapters set in the past we learn about Vanessa's mother; her college experiences; her move to NYC; and her best friend/roommate Samantha - with whom Vanessa does facials, eats Chinese take-out, and watches movies.



We also follow Vanessa's engagement to Richard and their marriage.



In the present, we tag along as Vanessa tries to derail her ex-husband's wedding, much to his chagrin. At one point Richard threatens to get a restraining order if Vanessa doesn't stay away from Emma and himself.



The story is interesting, the characters are well-developed, and there are some big shockers (which seems to be de rigueur for current books).



I empathized with Vanessa and admired her solicitude for her aging Aunt Charlotte. I also liked Samantha, a good and caring friend who planned a wonderful bachelorette party. I had an inkling about one of the surprises, but certainly didn't guess them all. So well done, Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen.

On the downside, the story is slow in places, has a plotline that's somewhat derivative, and should wrap up more quickly after the climax (IMO). The final sections are too drawn out, with too much blather and too little action.

All in all, 'The Wife Between Us' is a well-wrought suspense novel that I would recommend to mystery fans.

Thanks to Netgalley, the authors (Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen), and the publisher (St. Martin's Press) for a copy of the book.

Rating: 3 stars

Review of "The Dark Vineyard: A Bruno, Chief of Police Mystery" by Martin Walker

In this 2nd book in the 'Bruno, Chief of Police' series, the French police detective investigates arson and murder. The book can be read as a standalone.

*****



Police Chief Bruno Correges of Saint-Denis, France is on the spot when a fire destroys a field of genetically modified crops (GMOs) and a nearby barn - which unexpectedly contains a batch of office equipment.



Bruno becomes suspicious of the local ecolos (green party members), who vehemently oppose GMOs.



He questions Alphonse, the elderly, hippie leader of the "greens' and his foster son Max, a handsome young man who works for a local wine maker and hopes to become a vintner himself.





Alphonse and Max claim to know nothing about the fire. Bruno isn't convinced but he has no proof and is reluctant to accuse the locals because of his love for Saint-Denis and its people.

To heighten the mystery, the burned GMO field is owned by a shadowy corporation called Agricolae that did not have the proper permits to grow the crops. The national police arrive to look into the arson, including Bruno's old flame Isabelle, a detective who recently moved to Paris.



There's angst between Bruno and Isabelle because she wants big city opportunities while Bruno is determined to remain in Saint-Denis.

Meanwhile a partnership of foreign wine makers - led by Monsieur Dupuy and Fernando Bondino - arrive in Saint-Denis with an offer to take over the local vineyards.



This foreign syndicate plans to use cutting edge techniques to make wine, attract tourists, run hotels, and so on. To add to the goings on, a beautiful Canadian girl named Jacqueline - also a wine expert - takes a job with a local wine maker and has liaisons with Max and Fernando.



Before long there are physical fights over Jacqueline and two peculiar deaths, all of which engages Bruno's attention. Bruno is also concerned that the foreign wine syndicate will harm Saint-Denis, unlike the mayor - who thinks they're a great idea. In between investigating the arson, looking into the peculiar deaths, and trying to derail the wine syndicate Bruno engages in romance, has a fabulous barbecue, and hobnobs with an interesting array of friends/acquaintances - including an old friend who's dying of cancer.



Much of the charm of this series is the ambiance of the French countryside, which is on vivid display once more in this story. All in all this is an enjoyable mystery with engaging characters, an interesting (if not totally realistic) plot, and a satisfying climax that ties everything together. An entertaining light read.

Rating: 3.5 stars

Review of "No Safe House: A No Time For Goodbye Thriller" by Linwood Barclay

In this sequel to 'No Time For Goodbye' the members of the Archer family (more or less inadvertently) get involved in serious criminal activity. The book can be read as a standalone.

*****

The Archer family - dad Terry, mom Cynthia, and teen daughter Grace.....





.....experienced serious personal trauma so it's not a surprise that Cynthia is over-protective of her daughter.



In the spirit of rebellion Grace dates a juvenile delinquent and ends up breaking into a house to 'borrow' a sports car for a joy ride.



Coincidentally someone else has also broken into the house. Before long a gun goes off and things go seriously belly up.

In an attempt to protect Grace from the consequences of her actions the Archers need help from an old acquaintance - known criminal Vince - who has been using 'respectable houses' to hide loot acquired in his criminal enterprises.



At the same time another set of killers has become interested in these houses - apparently looking for a specific mysterious object. This all leads to a complicated plot in which Vince needs to quickly recover all the loot from the safe houses before the police or the rival killers get to it.



Terry becomes unwillingly caught up in these plans, as does Grace.



Meanwhile Cynthia, to avoid constant arguments with rebellious Grace, is taking a break from the family.



She's temporarily moved into an apartment building and become acquainted with a down-on-his-luck techie who now walks dogs, and a landlord who still pines for a long lost love.



There's a somewhat complicated relationship between the characters that overshadows their interactions: Vince was seriously injured several years before when he was helping the Archers, which he still resents; Grace is friendly with Vince's somewhat shady stepdaughter Jane - who was Terry's former student; Grace's boyfriend is the son of a thug in Vince's gang, and so on.

The story is a somewhat suspenseful page-turner but most of the characters are not likable and the plot strains credulity. Just a so-so thriller.

 Rating: 3 stars