I received a copy from Netgalley.

It’s been a long time since I’ve started a book and finished it in the same day. I’ve only rated three books five stars this year and this was one of them. I love rich people stories and even more ones about regular people who are thrown into that over the top glamorous world.

In this book teenager Avery, a studios, smart girl is just looking to finish high school and earn a college scholarship. She lives with her older sister Libby and Libby’s questionable asshole boyfriend Drake. While she adores her sister she hates the boyfriend who’s cruel and manipulative in that making you think everything wrong is your fault when it’s not way.

Then everything changes when Grayson Hawthorne shows up with a request for Avery and Libby to attend his grandfather’s will reading. His multi billionaire grandfather. Avery is dumbfounded. She’s never heard of the man. And yet finds out she’s been left his fortune. From sleeping in her car she’s suddenly the richest teenager in the world.

Much to the chagrin on the Hawthorne family, the four grandsons, their mother and her sister. Naturally they’re furious. Avery has to now figure out how this all happened, and no one in the Hawthorne family is happy she’s there. There’s a complex mystery to solve, clues are left for Avery and the boys.

This is one of those compulsive you have to know what’s going on mysteries. I can’t say much for character development, everything felt a little generic and seen a million times before in the family dynamic. I didn’t get much of a sense of personality from Avery other than resourceful, smart and determined. Though her reactions to the situations she found herself thrown into were very believable.

What drove this novel forward for me was the mystery. It’s impossible to recap without being spoilery, the plot is so twisty turny. It has a brilliant narrative that makes the reader keep guessing. While the characters aren’t very fleshed out, there was some delightful banter throughout, the relationships grew more complex throughout the characters. I didn’t guess who the baddie was and it’s one of those…why didn’t I see this coming from a mile away?!?!? reveals. The tension builds wonderfully throughout to the final climax…which was almost in a weird way a bit anticlimactic. It does however, leave on a cliffhanger. I need more.

Thank you to Penguin Random House Children’s UK.

Loved the re-read 

Book source ~ Tour

Within these pages are five stories told by Dr. Watson about his pal Sherlock Holmes. Five short stories about small jobs that Holmes (and he) have solved. The writing does a wonderful job of pulling me into not just each story but that particular time. I have not read all there is to read about Holmes and I haven’t seen more than a couple tv shows/movies, so I am no expert on the subject. All I know is I love this collection of tales detailing jobs of no big consequence to Holmes, but extremely important in the grand scheme of his work. No job too big or small as long as it piques his interest. These are right up his, and my, alley.

5 STORIES

The Holborn Toy Shop

The Legacy of Doctor Carus

The Train From Plymouth

The Whitehall Papers

The Grosvenor Square Furniture Van

I received a copy from Netgalley.

This one was immensely enjoyable. Even though the main character was a bit of a moron. It was modern day set but reminded me of 70s style horror films. It would have worked really well in that setting.

However, it was a bit of a silly story but still fun (in a dark and twisted sorted of what the fuck is going on and why am I reading this???way). Despite how ridiculous the plot got it was hard to tear your eyes away and made for a good page turner. I think I read this one in a few sittings.

The story starts with the main character Aidan sat in a bar drowning his sorrows over a stale marriage. He and his wife have just had their first child but they’re not getting along. Bemoaning his woes to a beautiful stranger he accidentally voices he wishes his wife was dead. The beautiful woman just happens to be their new neighbour Regina, who has just moved in the house next door.

Regina worms her way into the life and Aidan and his wife, even befriending the wife to a point, becoming comfortable enough with them to even babysit their child. Before long Aidan is utterly entranced by Regina and falls deeper and deeper under her beguiling spell. After tragedy strikes Regina is there for comfort and before long has started to open Aidan’s eyes to a world of sexual pleasure he never knew.

She introduces him to a secret sex club she’s part of and each “level” of the club things get darker, more twisted and more depraved. All coalescing around a certain black magic ritual on a certain date and a certain time requiring one big ass sacrifice Aidan has unwittingly become a part of.

It’s all quite moronic and the more stupid things Aidan does, he gets in too deep and finally realises he needs help but the reach of the secret club is goes higher than he could have ever imagined. He’s over his head and trying to figure things out before time runs out.

Despite the bizarreness and disturbing nature of the plot I kind of loved Regina as a character. She was wicked and unapologetic about it once she had Aidan in her claws. Aidan was likeable enough just kind of dim. It did get a bit bloody towards the end and more and more stupid as the novel went on.

However, regardless of the ridiculousness of the story as I said earlier once you get into it it’s impossible to put it down. There was a fairly amusing twist at the end of the last chapter. (Very reminiscent of a certain Stephen King book).

This is the third book I’ve read by this author and certainly one I will be continuing to read.

Thank you to Netgalley and Flame Tree Press for approving my request to view the title.