In Secret, an entire class was in a bus accident that killed all but six students. Their post-accident counselor calls them in for one last session, in which he says that there are three murderers among the six students. Those three have one week to find a way to answer for their crimes, and then he, Mitomo, will take his evidence to the police. The students all become afraid, and one even attacks another, Odzu, who admits he saw a student standing among all the accident victims after the crash. Another student blackmails that student, telling him to kill Mitomo,

but he ends up getting caught. He admits to killing one of the students on the bus due to feelings of shame about a crush and then jumps off a building.

(spoiler show)

Well, the premise is kind of dumb, unless Mitomo has something he's hiding. I wish I had written down his exact wording, because now I'm wondering if maybe he's one of the three murderers. Otherwise, I can't think of a good reason for him to announce to people who have killed before that he knows what they've done and has evidence, and that they could always kill him if they decide they don't want to atone and don't want to get caught. Also, I'm just generally disgusted at Mitomo's complete disregard for ethics and for the safety of the students he was, in theory, supposed to be helping.

This could have at least been tense and suspenseful fun, despite the problems with the premise, except that the execution was incredibly boring. Also, the artwork made it too hard to tell the students apart. Instead of sitting back and enjoying the story, I kept having to flip back and forth through the volume in an effort to figure out which characters were which.

One thing I wondered: what was up with all the rabbit masks? Sanada had one, as did Shuma. The cover art indicates that they're going to be important, but so far there isn't any info on why certain students have them and what they mean.

At the moment, I have no plans to continue reading this series.

 

(Original review posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.)

It truly saddens me to be writing a review of the very last novel written by Ruth Rendell, whom the literary world lost on May 2, 2015. I’ve been a longtime fan of Ms. Rendell’s work.  She will be very much missed in the literary world and by this reader.

 

As for her last book, it’s a perfect blend of suspense and tension. As always, Ms. Rendell built her storyline to make the most of each sentence, like a spider weaving each strand of silk in its web.  It’s a page turner that will draw you into the dark story of Carl Martin, who rents part of his inherited home to a fellow who blackmails him and how Carl’s life begins to unravel.  Ms. Rendell is a master of psychological suspense and has created a memorable character in Carl Martin and you’ll cringe as you watch him sink deeper and deeper into unstable chaos.  While we can’t always agree with Carl’s actions, it’s hard not to empathize with him.  I’d prefer not to say too much about the storyline and let Ms. Rendell weave her own magic in her readers’ minds.

 

If you aren’t familiar with Ruth Rendell’s work, then this last book of hers will open up much wonderful reading time ahead for you, as she wrote over 60 novels, most under her own name but also some under her pseudonym, Barbara Vine. Her sharp insight into the human mind and her wry humor make her books must reads.  I’ve heard her work described as “cozy mysteries” but I don’t see that at all.  Most of her work, including this one, gives me chills and while they may not be excessively gory, they’re certainly not cozy.  Recommended.

 

This book was given to me by the publisher through Edelweiss in return for an honest review.

his is the fourth book in the Ghostly Southern Mystery series. All four books have been released this year, starting in March. Since this one seems to be the last, at least for the immediate future, they are a perfect length for binge reading the series so far. And as the events in the books take place over just a few months, the ending of one leads right into the beginning of the next.

The tension between Emma Lee and her sister Charlotte Rae has steadily grown over the series thus far and eventually comes to a head that you won't want to miss. Additionally, Jack Henry has a big decision to make, leaving Emma Lee in uncertain about their future. Throw in the usual antics of Zula Mae and Emma has her hands full in this installment.

This is the book where Emma Lee really starts to figure out how to help her murdered clients and not worry so much about the "Funeral Trauma" label. With a second body turning up and a third person in a coma, Emma Lee has to figure things out quickly... or she might be next.

One of the things that I liked about this story is how much Emma Lee has come to terms with her "Inbetweener" status. She has gained confidence in both herself and her abilities. This is the first of the four books that didn't end with a set up for the next book, but I am hoping that we will see more of Emma Lee in the future. This was a fun read and I gave it 3 stars.

Special thanks to Edelweiss and Witness for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I loved this Case file from the PBI, I was quickly drawn within the story, trasnfixed to the pages while Devon, Frankie & Fang work to solve the case. Sarah is off with the Amazon's, I'm not really sure what she's doing, hopefully Jami can put some light to her side of things soon. What a case this file is, leaving you guessing, full of twists & turns...

'Remote Paranoia' is "PBI Case File" number 5 in the series, it can be read by itself or you can read the series in order... I would recommend reading it in order. I CAN NOT wait to read what case comes next for the PBI.