Review: Hanging by a Thread

The title fits perfectly to this YA crime novel, but although the cover is a masterpiece, the book is too long a read. Clare, is overly analytic, having several reaction moments throughout the book where she just has to pause ... and ask herself:  should I text him back, or not? Is my friend acting strange, or is she simply stressed? 

And then there is this old friend from another town named Lincoln who she keeps wanting to call but never does. Did I really need to know about this guy?

Take away all the unnecessary fluff and I would give this 4 stars, easily. The crime scene is well done and the suspects interesting. 

Why not give it a try? 

Review: Ten

When you hurt someone with intent,

with cruelty,

your actions are a crime.

Your betrayal, your backstabbing,

your character assassination....

Steps must be taken to protect the innocent starting now.

Vengeance is mine.

And so begins this terrifying tale of justice. Gretchen McNeil impresses her fans from the very start of the book with a detached yet captivating first chapters. We won't kid ourselves by denying the resemblance between Ten and Agatha Christie's And then there were None. But although Christie exhausted her readers by dedicating a chapter to each character in the book, McNeil concentrated on Meg and put us right into the story. 

The house reminded me a lot of The Woman in Black movie since the characters either had to take a boat or swim, to cross from one end to the other. A good rule when writing a horror story is to choose a scenario where the characters are trapped, and McNeil succeeded at that as well. 

The problem for me was the consistent back and forth action between the boat house and the main house. As well as one electrifying death that seemed too difficult to pull through. 

Not for the faint hearted. 

Feature & Follow Friday

Feature & Follow Friday 

Once you answer be sure to leave me your link so I can follow you back

Q: What is the last book that made you cry?

 

A: Twenty Boy Summer. A girl who cannot grieve the love of her life because no one is allowed to know they dated. Gah!

Caught my arrow # 1

Caught my Arrow is a meme originally known as IMM and hosted by The Story Siren featuring books that were purchased, borrowed or received that week. 

So far this week

I won an ARC of Sever (3rd book of The Chemical Garden Trilogy) Thanks First Reads

And purchased Solitary (Escape from Furnace)  

Just in case that isn't enough to last me through the weekend I also borrowed Finale from the library

What will you be reading this weekend?

Review: Dead to You

This book should have been sponsored by Kleenex.

All it takes is one moment and your life can be ruined forever. In the case of a child abduction, not only is one life ruined but several. After Ethan disappeared his parents wouldn't stop arguing  His younger brother Blake, fell into the background. Even a ''replacement'' child was born. But now that Ethan has returned to his family, can things go back to normal?

Nooooo! Hence, why the book is so interesting.

By having Ethan remember nothing from his traumatic past, what McMann did was create a different type of tragedy. Here we have a young man who has no memory whatsoever and thus just wants to move on with his life, while the rest of the family are the ones who are stuck forgetting what happened and dealing with guilt and trust issues, often taking it out on him.

Written with an edgy realistic voice, Dead to You, is a heartfelt novel that will leave you praying for a sequel.  

Also by Lisa McMann

Crash