Genre: Mystery Thriller

Continuing my reading journey through Riley Sager’s novels (completely out of order I may add), Final Girls is Sager’s first published thriller though technically not his first written novel as Sager is a nom de plume for Todd Ritter who had previously written a trilogy series and standalone book. The final girl is a common trope in various forms of slasher/horror media but Sager’s novel is an uncommon story that focuses on what happens to that said final girl after they experience one of the most traumatic moments of their life. Final Girls answers that question with Quincy Carpenter, a baking blogger who has put that traumatic event behind her until another mass slaying survivor Sam arrives at her apartment building’s front door. This is my fourth Sager thriller novel that I’ve read and despite it being published years before the other Sager novels, it showcases very similar hallmarks to what people have come to expect from his stories. Unfortunately this novel also has the same drawback as his other works, namely a slow beginning and a well-written, albeit uneventful first half. However like his other works, the strong and intelligent female main characters, twists on familiar narratives and scenarios,…

The following review is based on a complimentary ARC provided by Sourcebooks Landmark via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Part unsolved crime journalism, part familial teenage drama, Julie Clark’s The Ghostwriter is a split perspective thriller featuring storytelling within storytelling. Slow and meticulously paced, this novel follows author Olivia Dumont who is forced to confront her past and her family’s dark history when she accepts a ghostwriting job for her own father Vincent Taylor, a popular and famous author whose life is haunted by accusations that he murdered his two siblings fifty years ago. Featuring a well planned out (and at times tragic) story full of twists and surprises, The Ghostwriter is an engrossing read that transports the reader back to the 1970’s. While subjectively some of the familial drama and teenage sibling quarreling wasn’t my preferred genre or content, I still found Clark’s novel to be well-constructed, complex, and an interesting read. Alternating back and forth between Olivia’s interviews with Vincent retelling events from his youth and the first-person perspective experiences of several characters in the 1970’s, The Ghostwriter has a lot of different plot elements carefully woven together. Despite being recapped out of chronological order and…

Richard Osman’s series has already been heavily read and reviewed so I won’t be quite as detailed as I usually do since the major points of discussion have already been covered. Despite what the genre and synopsis of the book may imply, The Thursday Murder is as much of a senior citizen themed character drama as it is a murder mystery novel and therefore one must adjust their expectations to its crossover intentions. If reading and reviewing this novel purely as a murder mystery investigation procedural story, The Thursday Murder Club is generally an above average, light-hearted affair that’s quite cozy and easy to pick up (although also just as easy to put down and leave down as it’s a bit slow in places). Taken at face value, the murders reveals and movements are mostly functional, albeit slightly convoluted with certain plot developments coming a bit out of left field. I found it to be fine personally, but too ambitious and twisty for its conclusion to pull the whole case back together. However, The Thursday Murder Club’s strongest element in my opinion is the moments where Osman focuses on the lowkey laughs and allows its senior characters to reflect on…

Freida McFadden’s Never Lie is a thriller / psychological crime thriller that has a great plot, some wild (and polarizing) twists, and a premise involving found evidence that never gets old (in this case, tape recordings from therapy sessions). On paper, this should be a standout but unfortunately the execution with the details and the prose left a lot to be desired for me. The biggest twist near the conclusion is a great idea that simply conflicts with the rest of the narrative and makes the entire book’s plot unbelievable. Starting off with the good, Never Lie’s setting at a remote manor that also served as a home office for a mysterious psychiatrist was a great setup. The premise involving found audio tapes recorded by Dr. Adrienne Hale and her clients is a narrative concept I love and the snowed-in setup was a great narrative choice to not only trap Tricia and Ethan in the manor, but to also serve as a plausible source for the odd noises due to snowfall. The core crime mystery involving Adrienne’s sudden disappearance a few years ago and reliving her last known days through the tapes and a split narrative was a page-turner; I…

Bury Your Gays’ title alone is one way to get someone’s attention followed by an earnest bit of social commentary on media culture wrapped up in a comedically ridiculous premise. Sub 300 pages complimented by a casual and functional prose, Chuck Tingle’s Bury Your Gays is a light campy horror novel that is easy to like and has a lot of things going on. With bits of body violence/gore, homophobia, and child neglect, it’s not always a rosy read, but it’s still quick and generally light-hearted. Despite appreciating its aspirations and blend of different elements, I personally found it to be a bit dry to read and disjointed in content. It’s certainly ambitious with its themes and plot, but it feels like it was trying to do too much without excelling at any one area. An established screenwriter known for campy horror movies/tv-shows with underlying queer elements, the narrative switches back and forth between the present day in LA vs Misha’s memories of his upbringing. Without giving away too many spoilers, these flashbacks are told out of chronological order and are meant to give the reader insight into how Misha’s interest in storytelling was shaped by a tumultuous childhood where…