Review: Close Call - Book #3 Kate Green Series - Elise Hart Kipness - August 2025 You know those moments where life gets so hectic that even your beloved books start gathering dust on the nightstand? That was me  deep in a reading slump, work absolutely swamping me, wondering if I'd ever find a story that pulled me back in. Then a gorgeous PR box landed at my door from the wonderful Elise Hart Kipness, and just like that, the slump was over. Inside was Close Call, Book #3 in the Kate Green Series, and honestly, it felt like it had been sent at exactly the right moment. The story drops us straight into the electric world of the USTA Tennis Championship and if you know me, you know I am an absolute sucker for sports woven into a thriller. Tennis in books especially has a special place in my heart; fans of Carrie Soto is Back, you'll understand the vibe completely. There's something about the high stakes of competitive sport that pairs so naturally with tension-filled storyt...

Review: Find the Girl - Book #5 Detective Morgan Brookes - Helen Phifer - January 2022 Hello lovely readers, grab yourself a cuppa and settle in, because today I'm sharing my thoughts on Find the Girl by Helen Phifer - another title found at the Xanadu Book Exchange in Papamoa and it's a mixed bag, if I'm honest with you! The premise genuinely hooked me from the very first page. That opening image a silk eye mask dotted with blood-red spots lying on an empty sleeping bag, the tent door fluttering open towards silent, dark woods  is the kind of atmospheric scene that makes you want to check you've locked the back door. Helen Phifer absolutely knows how to set a scene, and for those of us who love a good camping trip, it gives you serious second thoughts! Detective Morgan Brookes is a character I warmed to quickly. She's determined, instinctive, and carries just enough personal baggage to feel real rather than fictional. When she discovers that a missing woman's...

Review: Killer Story - The Truth Behind True Crime Television - A Memoir - Claire St. Amant - February 2025 You might already know that alongside running this little corner of the internet, I write a true crime column over at Gothic Bite Magazine ( https://gothicbitemagazine.rip / ) so when Killer Story landed on my radar, it felt less like a happy accident and more like fate. One of my reading goals for 2026 is to tackle at least one non-fiction book a month, and I'm thrilled to say I've been keeping that promise to myself. This memoir? Absolutely the right book at the right time. Claire St. Amant spent nearly a decade working as a journalist and TV producer for heavyweights like 48 Hours and 60 Minutes, chasing the country's most gripping true crime stories. And what I adored about this book is that it pulls back the curtain on a world most of us only ever glimpse through our screens. We see the polished final product,  the dramatic interviews, the tearful families, the ...

A Chatter of Bones & Baby’s Breath Suzanne Phillips Publication date: April 21st 2026 Genres: Young Adult From acclaimed author Suzanne Phillips comes this compelling novella collection–gritty coming-of-age stories in narrative and verse that Kirkus Reviews calls “haunting and heartbreaking. . .an unflinching look at surviving trauma.” A CHATTER OF BONES Kaitlyn has come to rely on Olivia, the woman who rescued her from human trafficking, but is learning to trust her instincts and lean into her hard-earned strength. All of this will be challenged when a monsoon bears down on their remote spread, a mountain lion, flushed out of the surrounding hills by the weather, attacks, and human visitors push Kaitlyn to face her deepest fears. BABY’S BREATH Teen poet bares the geography of her heart and the “no care” foster care system as she mourns the mother she lost, releases dreams of reunification, and accepts that the only life she can live is the one in front of her. Recomm...

Review: First Girl to Die - Book #4 Detective Morgan Brookes Series - Helen Phifer - October 2021 You know that feeling when you settle into your favourite reading chair with a fresh cup of tea, crack open a new book, and somehow end up standing in the kitchen at midnight because you simply could not put it down? That was me with First Girl to Die. I genuinely had to remind myself to breathe. A little side note before I dive in,  this was another wonderful secondhand find from Xanadu Book Exchange in Papamoa. If you haven't browsed their shelves yet, honestly, what are you waiting for? So many of my best reads have come home with me from that place, and this one was no exception. This is the fourth book in Helen Phifer's Detective Morgan Brookes series, and while I'd recommend starting from the beginning just because Morgan is such a richly built character, you can absolutely pick this one up cold and be utterly gripped. Phifer is wonderfully generou...

Review: Love and Roses - Suzanne D. Williams - January 2014 You know those moments when you're scrolling through your Kindle, a cuppa going cold beside you, and you stumble across a book you'd completely forgotten was sitting there waiting for you? That was me with Love and Roses by Suzanne D Williams , a little hidden gem tucked away in my library, and I am so glad I clicked on it that day! I went into this one completely blind, no blurb refresh, no re-reading the synopsis, just diving straight in  and honestly, sometimes that's the very best way to read a book. What unfolded was such a sweet second-chance romance, and I mean sweet in the most wholesome, heartwarming way. We meet Ian, a man who believed he was happily married, until the devastating discovery that his wife had actually hired a hitman to have him killed. Thankfully, that hitman turned out to be an undercover cop , talk about dodging a bullet, quite literally! Ian does what so many of us do when life falls ...