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The Off Season by Amber Cowie was a thrilling, insidious ride that had me trusting no one.


Having just married someone who she had only met 6 months previously, Jane is left wondering what she really knows about her new husband as she goes off with him and his daughter to a remote location where he will be doing renovations on a hotel.

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Granite Harbor by Peter Nichols is a competent thriller with an interesting premise

I was immediately intrigued by this book because of the storyline involving a serial killer which had me wanting to pick it up. The fact that the case is potentially tied to one from so long ago only added to my interest as it raised so many questions – why the long break, if it was the same killer or a copycat, etc. – and I found myself wanting these answers and trying piece together the tidbits of information for myself. The chase for the killer and delving deeper into the case was definitely interesting and had me wanting to see the end result.

This one was… OK. I didn’t love it, I didn’t hate it. It wasn’t the most shall we say, “thrilling” book I’ve read and at times dragged, but it had me interested enough to want to see it through to the end. At times it felt like a bit of a slog to get through, particularly in the beginning of the book in getting to know characters with scenes that felt at times unnecessary. This also brings me to the fact that I felt little connection for the characters as I had no real interest in learning about them or reading gratuitous scenes that held little other purpose than delving into their lives a bit more. For the most part they were a bit bland for me and I felt little investment in them as a result.

All together, it’s an interesting premise, though for me it fell a bit flat. I do think enjoyers of thrillers, particularly those that like the opportunity to get into the head of the killer, will enjoy this read. There is quite a bit of background on the killer from their perspective throughout the course of the novel, which for me was a bit of a slog, as well as difficult to read at times (trigger warning for animal cruelty and death if you are like me and don’t like this). However, that’s not to say it’s a bad book, it just wasn’t my favourite read of the year.

Granite Harbor follows the investigation of a serial killer that has landed in a small Maine town. Alex, one of the main point of view characters is investigating the murder of a local boy, one who was friends with his own daughter who is devastated by the loss. There is a particularly distinct signature that the serial killer uses that raises a lot of questions in the investigation and ties back to another case from 16 years ago that has Alex wondering if it is the same killer returned after a long hiatus.

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The Gathering by C. J. Tudor was a thriller with heavy horror vibes that I was immediately sucked into.

The overall atmosphere was one of a heavy horror influence a la your old school vampire (vampyr in this novel) stories where they are vicious blood suckers, and something to be feared. But on top of this there is the focus more on a story of a thriller-like nature, with the horror aspect being more of a world-building tool than actual horror-esque events taking place (such as serial murders and the note of constant fear to the story).

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Lisette Marshall’s Queens of Mist and Madness is full of wonderful characters

Queens of Mist and Madness takes place immediately after the events at the end of the previous book. Thank goodness for this because I was shook by the cliffhanger ending and not having immediate answers.

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The Hemlock Queen is a slow burn filled with political intrigue, high fantasy world building and interesting magic systems.

It does take a bit of time to really feel like the plot is going somewhere, but it’s entirely worth the wait with how satisfying the story always comes together in these books.