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ARC Book Review: Such Charming Liars by Karen M. McManus

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Mystery
Length: 384 pages
Author: Karen M. McManus
Publisher: Penguin Books
Release Date: August 1st, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

The newest mystery from the author One of Us Is Lying, the Queen of thrillers, Karen M. McManus! When mother-daughter grifters set out on their final job, the heist gets deadly and dangerously personal.

For all of Kat’s life, it’s just been her and her mother, Jamie—except for the forty-eight hours when Jamie was married and Kat had a stepbrother, Liam. That all ended in an epic divorce, and Kat and Liam haven’t spoken since.

Now Jamie is a jewel thief trying to go straight, but she has one last job—at billionaire Ross Sutherland’s birthday party. And Kat has figured out a way to tag along. What Kat doesn’t know, though, is that there are two surprise guests at the dazzling Sutherland compound that weekend. The last two people she wants to run into. Liam and his father—a serial scammer who has his sights set on Ross Sutherland’s youngest daughter.

Kat and Liam are on a collision course to disaster, and when a Sutherland dies, they realize they might actually be in the killer’s crosshairs themselves. Somehow Kat and Liam are the new targets, and they can’t trust anyone—except each other.

Or can they? Because if there’s one thing both Kat and Liam know, it’s how to lie. They learned from the best.

Thank you GetUnderlined for the gifted ARC.

TWISTY.

I enjoyed this one a lot! I’ve been up and down with McManus books, but this was a hit. I liked the premise and was curious to watch things unfold. I really liked the two main characters and how they handled everything and worked together. There’s even a small sub-plot romance that was sweet too.

A little slow of a start to feeling very engaged with what was going to happen next. The second half was filled with some good twists and I really enjoyed how it ended too. It’s entertaining and kept my attention.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Mystery
  • Language: low
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: moderate
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: gun violence, murder, stealing, domestic abuse (recounted), brief scene of attempted suicide

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ARC Book Review: Liar’s Test by Ambelin Kwaymullina

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Rating: ★★
Audience: YA Fantasy
Length: 272 pages
Author: Ambelin Kwaymullina
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Release Date: May 21st, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A gripping YA fantasy with a deadly contest to win a crown, a fierce heroine determined to right the wrongs done to her people, and a smoldering love story that could change everything…

I didn’t want to rule the Risen. Wreak a little havoc upon them, though? That was something else entirely.

Bell Silverleaf is a liar.

It’s how she’s survived. It’s how all Treesingers have survived, after they were invaded by the Risen and their gods. But now—thanks to some political maneuvering—Bell is in the Queen’s Test. She’s one of seven girls competing in deadly challenges to determine who rules for the next twenty-five years. If Bell wins, she’ll use the power to help her people and get her revenge on the Risen.

But Bell doesn’t know how much she’s been lied to. She’s part of a conspiracy stretching back generations, and she’s facing much bigger dangers than the Queen’s Test. She’s up against the gods themselves.

Getting hold of that crown might just be the least of her problems.

Thank you to GetUnderlined for the free book.

I AM SO CONFUSED.

This book confused me. There wasn’t enough world building for me to understand anything and I was constantly in a state of befuddlement as I tried to piece together the land, the rules, and the magic system.

The summary even mentions a romance, there is no romance. There is one kiss, with no relationship buildup.

I guess I kind of liked the side character friends Bell had?

And the writing style didn’t work for me. There was a severe lack of dialogue for much of the book and it made it hard to connect with characters.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Fantasy
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kiss
  • Violence: low-moderate

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ARC Book Review: The Reappearance of Rachel Price by Holly Jackson

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Mystery/Thriller
Length: 448 pages
Author: Holly Jackson
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Release Date: April 2nd, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

From the author of the multimillion bestselling A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series and Five Survive comes a new true-crime fueled mystery thriller about a girl determined to uncover the shocking truth about her missing mother while filming a documentary on the unsolved case.

Lights. Camera. Lies.

18-year-old Bel has lived her whole life in the shadow of her mom’s mysterious disappearance. Sixteen years ago, Rachel Price vanished and young Bel was the only witness, but she has no memory of it. Rachel is gone, long presumed dead, and Bel wishes everyone would just move on.

But the case is dragged up from the past when the Price family agree to a true crime documentary. Bel can’t wait for filming to end, for life to go back to normal. And then the impossible happens. Rachel Price reappears, and life will never be normal again.

Rachel has an unbelievable story about what happened to her. Unbelievable, because Bel isn’t sure it’s real. If Rachel is lying, then where has she been all this time? And – could she be dangerous? With the cameras still rolling, Bel must uncover the truth about her mother, and find out why Rachel Price really came back from the dead . . .

From world-renowned author Holly Jackson comes a mind-blowing masterpiece about one girl’s search for the truth, and the terror in finding out who your family really is.

Thank you GetUnderlined #GetUnderlinedPartner for the free book.

PRETTY TWISTED.

The first almost 100 pages of this is kind of a slog, prepare now, keep going, the book gets infinitely better. Once things got going though I found myself devouring the pages trying to figure out what had happened to Rachel Price. I found it full of good twists and turns. It’s that right level of corrupt without feeling like too much for me but also bringing all of the atmospheric vibes I love about a good thriller.

I loved that Bel landed in this gray zone about her choices and working to uncover the truth. I was absolutely following her into every snuck away moment and confrontation. She might come off as an unlikeable character, but I liked her plenty. I also really liked how messed up this family was. It worked for the plot and showcased a lot of morality choices that will leave you thoughts.

Holly Jackson is easily one of my favorite thriller authors and this was another great read for me. Unhealthy characters, an enigma of a plot and a few moments where my jaw was hanging open.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Thriller
  • Language: low-moderate
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: moderate-high
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: murder, attempted murder, kidnapping, imprisonment

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