Review: Across The Vanishing Sky - Book #1 Starlight Grove - Catherine Cowles - March 2026 I recently received this book as part of a bookstagram birthday group I belong to, and I have to say what a gift. It had been sitting on my wishlist and my want-to-read list for a while, so seeing it show up felt like fate finally giving me a nudge. I didn't know much going in, just that it was a small-town novel with a romantic suspense edge, and honestly, that was the perfect amount of mystery to start with. The story opens with our main character, Braedyn, hiking with her best friend Nova. They get separated for just a moment  and Nova vanishes without a trace. The police chalk it up to a bear attack or the river sweeping her away, but Braedyn knows in her gut that someone took her. My heart broke for her right from those first pages. Fast forward one year, and Braedyn has packed up her life and her son to move to Starlight Grove, determined to return to the spot where Nova disappeare...

Review: The Good Ones - Polly Stewart - June 2023 I'll be upfront: I picked this one up on a quiet Sunday with the intention of just reading a chapter or two. A few hours later I surfaced, bleary-eyed and thoroughly unsettled. That should tell you everything you need to know about Polly Stewart's The Good Ones. Twenty years ago, Nicola shared what sounds like a perfect, golden day at the lake with her closest friend Lauren,  a rare, child-free afternoon that felt like a gift. When Nicola declined to stay overnight and drove home to her mum, she had no idea it would be the last time she'd ever see her. The next morning she returned to find blood and no Lauren  and a town that eventually decided she'd simply walked away from her life. I found that part particularly chilling: that a woman can disappear and the community's answer is just to shrug and move on. Nicola never bought the official story, but she also couldn't stay. The weight of sm...

Review: Nine Missing Girls - Steena Holmes - March 2026 As a long-time fan of Steena Holmes, I was absolutely thrilled to dive into Nine Missing Girls. Holmes has a wonderful way of blending emotional depth with gripping suspense, and this book delivered exactly what I was hoping for. It’s the kind of thriller that keeps you turning the pages late into the night ,definitely one of those “just one more chapter” reads. At the heart of the novel is Detective Meri Amber, the FBI’s leading child abduction specialist. Meri has dedicated her entire career to finding missing girls, but her mission is deeply personal. Twenty years ago, her own sister vanished, and that loss fuels every case she takes on. For Meri, each missing girl is a reminder of the sister she never stopped searching for. It adds a powerful emotional layer to the story, making every investigation feel incredibly real and urgent. What makes Nine Missing Girls stand out is its structure. The book follows nine separate cases , ...

Review: The Dead Husband's Cookbook - Danielle Valentine - August 2025 There's something wonderfully cozy about curling up with a book that centers around food, recipes, and the warmth of a kitchen until that comfort turns deliciously sinister. That's exactly what Danielle Valentine serves up in The Dead Husband's Cookbook, which I devoured on the Libby Library App. I'd already fallen for Danielle Valentine's YA thrillers, so I was eager to see what she'd cook up for adult readers. Let me tell you, this didn't disappoint. What makes this book particularly charming is how it weaves actual recipes throughout the story and it's like getting a cookbook and a thriller all in one satisfying package. The book-within-a-book structure reminded me of Catherine Ryan Howard's The Nothing Man, adding layers of intrigue that kept me turning pages late into the night. The premise is absolutely mouthwatering: Maria Capello, a beloved celebrity chef with her ow...

Review: The Widower - D.L Fisher - September 2025   I’ve officially hit pause on romance reads for now—nothing personal, but they’re just not holding my attention lately. The silver lining? I’m finally ahead of schedule with my Zooloo’s Book Tours reviews (a small miracle in itself!). And The Widower by DL Fisher was the perfect pick to keep me hooked and on track. This one picks up three months after The Stepson, though you don’t need to have read it to dive into the drama. That said, a little background never hurts. We’re dropped into a tangled web of suspicion, secrets, and suburban unease. Marnie’s husband Mark—cheater and confirmed murderer—has left behind a trail of chaos. But not everyone’s convinced he was the real villain. Whispers around the neighbourhood suggest Carrie’s stepson TJ might be the one with blood on his hands. When another woman goes missing, TJ becomes the prime suspect. Carrie’s torn—she wants to believe in him, but the evidence is stacking up. And just w...

Review: I Know You Saw Her - Ann Girdharry - May 2025 ⭐ ARC provided by Zooloos Book Tours ⭐ Ann Girdharry delivers a compelling and atmospheric psychological thriller in I Know You Saw Her , a novel brimming with secrets, twisted relationships, and a haunting past that refuses to stay buried. Five years ago, Fiona's older sister Amy disappeared without a trace, shattering her world. In the years that followed, Fiona not only lost her sister but her parents as well, leaving her completely alone. With the fifth anniversary of Amy’s disappearance approaching, Fiona is determined to uncover the truth. Under a false name, she rents a room in the very house Amy was staying in before she vanished — and that’s where things start to unravel. The house’s owner, a grieving woman who lost her daughter at a young age, is immediately a suspect— especially since Amy bore a striking resemblance to her late child. Add to the mix Harry, the owner's nephew, whose father also disappeared on t...

Review: If You Can Hear This - Faith Gardner - November 2024 I always get excited when authors who I have loved and enjoyed previously release new titles as you await in anticipation with the hopes that they will be just as good as the previous releases you have read from the author. If You Can Hear This was a great read in the fact that I didn't see the twists coming, but the downside for me was that I felt I didn't have closure with this book when the mystery was solved and I felt the theme of the book wasn't as detailed as it could have been. With podcasts and interviews and the world of social media now being the most common method to solve unsolved cases and missing people, it made sense that Faith used that as the basis of the thriller. Posey Spade and her dad have just moved to a new small town as her father is taking over as Editor/ Chief of the local newspaper and Posey is following in his footsteps by being on the school paper and breaking those big stories. The...

Review: The First Death - Book #4 Columbia River Series - Kendra Elliot - June 2023 Sometimes, when you’re in a reading slump, it’s comforting to revisit your favorite authors who never disappoint. For me, Kendra Elliot is one of those writers, and The First Death was the perfect choice to reignite my thrill for thrillers. This gripping novel masterfully combines suspense, emotion, and an intricate plot that will leave readers unable to put it down. The story begins with an intense opening: siblings Marcus (7) and Rowan (5) are abducted but manage to escape. Rowan is rescued by a Search and Rescue (SAR) team, but Marcus vanishes. Fast forward 25 years, and Rowan has turned her trauma into a purpose, becoming a SAR professional alongside her loyal dog, Thor. Every year on Marcus’s birthday, she embarks on a private mission to search for him—or at least his remains. This year, she discovers a female body and a small boy's remains. Could this be Marcus? The narrative alternates be...

Review: Crimson River - Book #5 The Edens Series - Devney Perry - June 2023 I had been looking forward to this one possibly the most since Indigo Ridge as I knew it had more of a romantic suspense feel to it. Crimson River is Lyla Eden's story and it starts innocently with Eloise begging her to take a day of self-care, for Lyla this means grabbing her hiking gear and following her favorite trail. However, this will be one hiking trip she will never forget as it almost ends in death for her. While Lyla is hiking, she stumbles upon a man hunting and he spots her and freaks, instead of running he starts to strangle her and then stops before she dies.  It turns out that the mystery man has a name - Cormac Gallagher and he is someone who has been on the run for the past four years as his wife and two of his children were found murdered - the oldest child- a body was never found. Enter Vance Sutter - he is a cop from the same town Cormac lives and has been tracking him down and following...