VBT# The Woman in Room 9- Tim Adler - August 2025 I'm absolutely loving my journey with Zooloos Book Tours - psychological thrillers are completely in my wheelhouse, and The Woman in Room 9 delivered exactly the kind of twisty, mind-bending narrative I crave. Tim Adler has crafted a story that immediately reminded me of Matthew Blake's Anna O , sharing that compelling blend of medical mystery and psychological suspense that keeps you questioning everything. The premise hooks you from page one: Susan Gummer awakens from a decade-long coma, only to discover she's the prime suspect in her former fiancé Jamie Mawdsley's murder. Her memories are fragments - finding Jamie's blood-soaked body, fleeing in terror, then darkness after being struck by a taxi. It's a setup that perfectly exploits our fascination with unreliable narrators and buried truths. What I particularly appreciated was Tim Adler's handling of the amnesia trope. Rather than using memory loss as...

Review: Between Friends - Natalie Banks - August 2025 There’s something about small-town thrillers that always gets under my skin—in the best way. Maybe it’s the way secrets seem to cling to the corners of familiar places, or how friendships from our youth can hold both comfort and danger. Between Friends by Natalie Banks was one of those reads that pulled me in with its haunting nostalgia and didn’t let go until the final, jaw-dropping twist. Madison Andrews returns to her hometown after a decade away, and from the moment she steps back into her childhood home, you can feel the tension simmering. Her mother has died , her memories are fractured, and her former best friend Imogen is still there—smiling like nothing ever happened. But something did. Something big. And it’s wrapped around the disappearance of Olivia, the third member of their once untouchable trio. I loved how this book captured the complexities of girlhood—the fierce loyalty, the envy, the secrets whispered in sleepov...

Review: What If? What If? - Suzanne B. Miller - May 2025 Every now and then, a book comes along that feels like it was written just for you. When I was approached to read What If? What If? by Suzanne B. Miller and saw it was set in New Zealand—specifically Hamilton—I knew I had to say yes. What I didn’t expect was how deeply this story would resonate with me, not just as a reader, but as someone who’s lived through many of the same moments. The story follows Jasmine, a council archivist whose life is shaped by her OCD—nicknamed “Medusa.” Her condition is portrayed with such honesty and compassion, and I found myself relating to her work life more than I expected. Before I was made redundant from Tauranga City Council, I held a similar role, scanning and profiling old council documents. Reading about Jasmine’s day-to-day felt like revisiting a chapter of my own life. The setting was another highlight. Having visited Hamilton, I could vividly picture the Garden Square by the Library a...

VBT# Woman Missing - Kaelin Wennerberg - August 2025 Have you ever read a book that completely frustrates you, and then you find yourself yelling "Nooooooooo!" as you turn the last page? That was absolutely me with Woman Missing, and honestly, I'm still kicking myself because it's been a few weeks since I finished it and I cannot for the life of me remember the main character's name. Yet somehow I can recall every other character and plot twist with crystal clarity. (Let's call our protagonist "J" for the sake of this review – don't judge me!) Wennerberg throws us straight into chaos from page one. J is desperately trying to win back her ex, Mikey, when a drunken night ends in absolute tragedy. She gets behind the wheel intoxicated and strikes a man, killing him. But here's where it gets chilling – with his dying breath, he warns her that "they" wouldn't be happy and would come after her. Those ominous words haunted me throughou...

Review: Wild Dreamers - Margarita Engle - April 2024 Some books arrive in your life like a whisper on the wind—and Wild Dreamers was one of those for me. I received this beautiful hardback as a birthday Bookstagram gift (thank you to my lovely bookish friends—you know who you are!), and while it wasn’t the easiest read, it left me with a quiet sense of wonder. Written in verse by the ever-poetic Margarita Engle, Wild Dreamers tells the story of Ana and Leandro—two teens with heavy pasts and hopeful hearts. Ana lives out of a car with her mother after her father’s militant actions land him on the FBI’s most wanted list. Leandro battles anxiety after fleeing Cuba on a raft. Their paths cross one moonlit night in a California wilderness park, and from that moment, their connection blooms—both scientific and magical. I’ll admit, the verse format took me a while to settle into. It’s not my usual cup of tea, and I found myself rereading lines to catch the rhythm and meaning. But once I let g...

Review: Witchycakes - Book #1 Sweet Magic - Written by Kara LaReau and Illustrated by Ariane Moreira - August 2025 There’s a certain kind of book that feels like it was baked just for you—warm, sweet, and sprinkled with a little bit of magic. Witchycakes: Sweet Magic is exactly that kind of treat. A huge thank you to RandomHouse Kids for sending me the paperback copy—it’s been a joy to read, and I’m already counting down the days until Book #2! In the heart of Shelville, nestled inside the coziest magical bakery you can imagine, lives Blue—a witch-in-training with a heart as big as their delivery basket. While Mama conjures up enchanted scones and pies, Blue pedals around town helping neighbors with kindness, cleverness, and a dash of spellwork. Whether it’s cheering someone up or solving a quirky problem, Blue’s adventures are full of warmth and whimsy. Ariane Moreira’s illustrations are pure delight—full-color, expressive, and bursting with charm on every page. It’s the kind of bo...

Review: The Spy and I - Book #1 My Spy - Tiana Smith - February 2024 July is always a special month in my house—birthday cake crumbs on the counter, candles that never quite blow out in one go, and of course, a mailbox brimming with bookish surprises thanks to my lovely bookstagram birthday groups. One of the gems that arrived this year was The Spy and I by Tiana Smith, and let me tell you, it was like unwrapping a nostalgic hug from my teenage reading days. Growing up, I devoured every page of The Gallagher Girls and The Squad series. I even had a soft spot for the gloriously campy spy flick DEBS. So when I cracked open The Spy and I, I was instantly transported back to those adrenaline-fueled, girl-power-packed stories I adored. This one reminded me a lot of The Blonde Identity by Ally Carter—sisters tangled in espionage, mistaken identities, and a dash of romantic tension that keeps you guessing. Our heroine Dove is a computer penetration tester (basically a tech-savvy genius), an...

Review: A Five Letter Word for Love - Amy James - December 2024 As someone who still starts her morning with a hot cuppa and a cheeky round of Wordle (yes, even when the cat’s meowing and the toast is burning), I was instantly charmed by Amy James’ A Five Letter Word for Love. Add in the setting—Prince Edward Island, the very soil that gave us Anne of Green Gables—and I was sold before page one. This story felt like a warm cardigan on a chilly day. Emily, our heroine, is stuck in a job she doesn’t love—receptionist at a local auto shop—while dreaming of museum halls and curated exhibits. It reminded me so much of the TV show Shifting Gears with Kat Dennings, where Riley returns home and finds herself working in her dad’s garage, unsure of what she truly wants. Emily’s journey mirrors that same heart-tugging question: what if your dream isn’t out there, but right here? The spark in this tale comes from an unexpected place—Wordle. Emily and John, a quiet mechanic with a knack for puzz...

Review: Pieces of Me - Shaun Allan - July 2025 Poetry rarely finds its way onto my reading list. As someone who typically gravitates toward the thrillers and family sagas that populate my usual Zooloos Book Tours selections—stories brimming with romance and suspense—I approached Shaun Allan's Pieces of Me with curiosity rather than expectation. What I discovered was something profoundly different from my comfort zone, yet deeply necessary. Having lost my mother almost twelve years ago this December, when I was just twenty-seven, I found myself unexpectedly confronted by familiar echoes of grief . Shaun Allan's words became a mirror, reflecting experiences I recognized. Poetry, Shaun Allan demonstrates, transcends mere wordplay. It becomes emotion given tangible form—a sacred space where grief, hope, love, and uncertainty don't just coexist but dance together in harmony. Throughout this collection, we traverse the shadowy depths of mortality, loss, and mental health struggl...