The Boy from the Woods by Harlan Coben

"How far would you go to save millions of lives, Wilde?"
"...life is lived in the gray. Life is lived in the nuances."

This is an entertaining standalone suspense and mystery novel by a prolific writer who's had a couple of his books adapted to Netflix miniseries. The main character is the boy from the woods - his name is Wilde, and he was found ages ago as a feral child who had been living on his own in the local state forest in the Ramapo Mountains outside Westville. "It's like Mowgli in the 'Jungle Book' movie" He was adopted and years later becomes a partner with his foster sister in a PI business and still lives in Westville in a special home in the woods. Wilde is connected to Hester Crimstein, a 70-something defense attorney and local television celebrity, through her deceased son, David, and is godson to David's son Matthew. Wilde and David had been good friends so when Matthew asks Hester to find a missing friend, Hester engages Wilde to help. The plot evolves further when another teen later goes missing as well and his wealthy parents need Wilde and Hester to help them with sensitive issues involving a presidential candidate who some feel is the "most dangerous man in America." NO SPOILERS.

This was quite the convoluted tale with a heavy political theme and actually didn't reveal as much about the main character, Wilde, as I had hoped. The story line was fairly predictable and long-time readers will probably recognize some familiar characters, especially Hester. The narrative is straight forward and everything is tied up neatly for the reader. I wonder if Coben intentionally didn't give too much information about Wilde so to revisit his character in the next book. I've read all the standalones by this author and will likely read the next as they are all so similar in basic ways to provide a good diversion for a couple of hours.

Thank you to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the e-book ARC to read and review.

This is a standalone and not part of a series although there are some reoccuring characters.
Genre - mystery, suspense

Flowers on her Grave (Detective Katie Scott #3) by Jennifer Chase

A fast-paced police procedural/crime thriller --the third installment in a series featuring Detective Katie Scott of the Pine Valley Sheriff's Department.

Katie has been promoted to head the cold case division by her uncle who happens to be the Sheriff. She has a part-time partner, Deputy McGaven, who also works patrol on alternate days. Katie is a vet with history of two tours as a K-9 operative in Afghanistan. She suffers from anxiety and PTSD and has finally sought some therapy. She has a new man, Chad, in her life and things are going well for her.

Katie and Chad attend an anniversary party at the home of Katie's uncle and aunt. The next morning, as is their tradition, she shows up to the house to find her uncle dazed and bloody and her aunt dead in the laundry room. Immediately, the Sheriff is arrested and Katie -- though officially barred from the case -- begins her own shadow investigation with the help of her mentor, Nick. Meanwhile, Katie and McGaven are looking into a cold case murder that occurred many years ago as well as a missing persons case. Katie is determine to prove that her uncle did not kill her aunt and to solve the other old cases as well. NO SPOILERS.

Katie Scott is the typical female detective of this genre. Headstrong, rebellious, doesn't follow rules or procedures, and somehow manages to get all kinds of support and backup to follow her down into danger. After 3 books, I find her irritating. Everyone is always asking how she is and despite her PTSD and anxiety, she manages to get the job done taking huge risks herself and endangering other people as she goes off on her own without telling anyone her plans. And does back-up show up in time when she needs it? I can't figure how she keeps her job -- oh wait, she's the Sheriff's niece. Anyway, the story is decent though convoluted. I didn't guess the identity of the killer and there were plenty of red herrings and suspects though the motive was ever so very teeny tiny slim. Lots of convenient coincidences for sure. It was a quick, easy read over a couple of hours. I will most likely want to read the future books in this series as I'm invested.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this e-book ARC to read and review.

This is the third book in a series and I've read both #1 and #2 in order.
Genre - police procedural, crime thriller

A Conspiracy of Bones (Tempe Brennan #19) by Kathy Reichs

"What is real and what is not?"

North Carolina is humid and sticky in the summertime heat. Dr. Temperance (Tempe) Brennan, exiled from the MCME after a new boss replaced her colleague, Larabee, becomes involved in an extremely complicated investigation along with her PI friend, Skinny Slidell. This is the 19th book in a popular, long-running series featuring the forensic anthropologist and is another entertaining and compelling read. I've been hit and miss following the release of new novels by this author, and can attest to the ease of dropping in out of order. Reichs gives plenty of background so that you won't feel lost.

A faceless corpse discovered in the woods, a cold case involving a missing child, a conspiracy-crazed talk show host, a hidden and rehabbed missle silo ready for the apocalypse, and so much more combine to give Tempe and her cohort a seriously challenging situation. Compound all that as Tempe is recovering from surgery after discovering that she has a brain aneurysm with Andrew Ryan (her Canadian boyfriend) being back in Montreal and not around to provide a foil for her intensity. The truth will take a long time to uncover and require Tempe to do some very frequent self analysis as she navigates the twists and turns of this unusual web with more questions than answers. Who is the dead man and what happened to him are only a small part of the big picture. NO SPOILERS.

I like the first person narrative and I like the character that is Tempe Brennan. She's complicated, super smart, and sometimes very funny. I enjoy the forensic details and I relish reading how Tempe's mind works though she's a bit determined and not as cautious as she should be. The writing is excellent and, even though there are a ton of characters to keep straight, the strings are all nicely tied together. It's fun to read how Tempe learns and uses new technology and how she works all the angles of a particular problem or issue. I definitely recommend this series. Even though the TV show, BONES, is based loosely on the persona that is Temperance Brennan, the books have a lot of differences to that whole set-up and are so rewarding to read. I can't wait for #20 in the series.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for this e-book ARC to read, review and recommend.

This is #19 in the series but can be read as a standalone.
Genre - forensic anthropologist, mystery

Knock Knock (DI Dan Lockhart and Dr. Green) by Chris Merritt

This is the first book in a new series featuring DI Dan Lockhart of the Putney MIT and Dr. Alexis (Lexi) Green, a psychologist with the NHS. Although she's been seeing Lockhart as a patient, a series of linked murders forces him to use her expertise to help develop a profile of the killer. The murders are brutal and all the victims are women. There's no shortage of suspects but the case and investigation are going nowhere despite the team working full out. NO SPOILERS.

A very well-written crime thriller and police procedural with an unusual theme to motivate the killer. It held my interest and I definitely want to learn more about the two main characters as well as those who are part of Lockhart's MIT 8. There's a bit too much hinting of more than professional interest between Dan and Lexi and, honestly, I don't want to see a romance there. Hopefully Dan will stay focused on finding out what happened to his missing wife...

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this e-book ARC to read, review and recommend. I've read the 3 books in the Zac Boateng series and look forward to the second in this one.

This is the first book in a new series. I plan to read them in order.
Genre - police procedural, crime thriller

Some Days are Dark by Miranda Smith

"People aren't all bad or all good...Pain comes in all sorts o' shades, honey."

This is a debut that I'd categorize as domestic drama with a mystery at its core. Who killed Dane Miller on that hot July night in Whitaker, Tennessee?

Since she found the body, police initially question his wife, Olivia Miller. She's the prime suspect for awhile but then, a confession by Marcus Rowe, a small-time thief, takes the pressure off until he later recants and is set to be released. Olivia, living in the condo that she and her dead husband had shared, is now back in the spotlight. Though she's not unhappy he's dead, she wants to clear her name but has no idea exactly who her husband was after all. That's because she's a pill popper, a party girl and a big drinker. In fact, she had left her nice home and former husband, Frank Grier, to be with Dane. In addition, she had to give up custody of her son to Frank because of all the attention focused on her as the possible killer. Her life is a big mess and someone needs to answer for the murder. NO SPOILERS.

I really dragged through this one and I'm not sure why it wasn't able to hold my attention and interest. Part of the issue, I'm sure, is that I absolutely couldn't stand Olivia and the rest of the characters in the story really weren't all that likeable either. Dane was a loser, for sure, but Olivia wasn't exactly a real catch herself. All her decisions were made under the influence and they were all mostly bad. The narrative is told in alternating BEFORE and AFTER chapters detailing all events that led up to the crime and then everything that happens when Dane is shot. A journalist with a popular blog and dreams of writing a best-selling true crime novel shows up in town to try to get some answers for his followers and wants Olivia to help him out. But everyone has secrets and tells likes (as always) and it takes awhile to get the whole story. The writing was good, it's just that the plot wasn't anything new and I'm sure most will have the whole thing sussed out before the halfway mark. It lacked any tension or suspense for me and I just wanted confirmation and to be done.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this e-book ARC to read and review. I would look at a new title by this author in the future.

This is a standalone and is not part of any series.
Genre - domestic drama, mystery

Dead Wrong (DC Maggie Jamieson #2) by Noelle Holten

This is the second in a crime thriller series featuring DC Maggie Jamieson. This installment has her returned to Stafford Police Station after a secondment in the Domestic Abuse and Homicide Team (DEAD INSIDE - BOOK #1) that ended the career of the criminal known as The Chopper -- Bill Raven -- who was convicted and now serving life in prison. Back with the team at the Major and Organized Crime Department, she finds that Raven has suddenly claimed his innocence in the death and dismemberment cases and may now be released. In addition, she's being accused of coercing testimony. Of course she's livid as she knows she had him dead to rights, but his solicitor has filed an appeal. Before that can get off the ground, a bag of body parts is found in a bin and the female is identified as Lorraine Rugman, the woman Bill Raven had claimed killing in what he is now calling a confession drug from him during a drug induced psychosis. Soon, two other body bags are found and, with Raven behind bars, some think that he may be innocent after all. But not Maggie Jamieson who is convinced that he's involved despite forensics showing that the women found were recently killed. So who is killing these women two years after Raven initially claimed he'd done it? It can't be Raven as he's been locked up, coming off heroin, and getting treatment from the prison psychologist. Now, it's up to Maggie and the rest of the team to find the real killer and tie Raven to the crimes. NO SPOILERS.

This was straight-forward police procedural and the narrative moves between different points of view as the case is worked. I didn't find myself becoming particularly attached or interested in any of them as all are fairly one-dimensional. A disconnect occurs because, although Maggie is a DC, it seems like she leads the others around almost taking charge of the case and everyone just lets her. There is very little about anyone's personal lives in the story, but Maggie's bisexuality is mentioned as almost an aside with nothing ever coming of any romance within. The DI allows Maggie a lot of leeway and eventually the case is solved and it's proved that Maggie was right about her theories of course and not much of a surprise. It all ends rather quickly without much explanation of the relationship between Raven and the killer. I'm over him so I hope we're done with all that and can move on to something more interesting hinted at by the cliffhanger ending. All in all, there was just nothing much new here to separate this from the standard detective series so I truly hope that, in future books, Maggie becomes more three-dimensional. I will definitely want to read #3 to see.

Thank you to NetGalley and One More Chapter (HarperCollins Publishers) for this e-book ARC to read and review.

This is the second in the series and has different characters to the first so could possibly be read out of order or as a standalone. I don't recommend that.
Genre - police procedural and crime thriller

The Diary of a Serial Killer's Daughter by L.A. Detwiler

"We'll believe what we want to...People will believe the story we sell to them, even if it clearly isn't true."

Ruby Marlowe knows all about secrets. She's grown up keeping them -- from age 7 she realizes that something about her father is not normal and very scary. He doesn't know that she's watching him very carefully and learning a lot about what he is doing although she has no way of understanding why he's doing it. But Ruby loves her daddy and he has always taken care of her. It's been the two of them, alone in their isolated house by the fields and the woods. The two of them, alone, don't need anyone else. But Ruby is growing up and her being "different" is making things hard. Daddy has taught his daughter well. NO SPOILERS.

This is some sick stuff here. Told in diary format, Ruby details her thoughts and feelings about her life as the daughter of a serial killer who's driven by a darkness that engulfs Ruby as well. I don't really care for the style, especially the entries Ruby makes at an age where most children can't express themselves very well or write at that level. It's definitely twisted and sad and awful and I couldn't help but wonder how the family avoided any protective services intervention. It was an extremely fast read and I found myself unable to put this horror story down, hoping that somehow Ruby would be able to be saved. Nothing about this was predictable, which was different for me, but I can't say I enjoyed it. I also can't say I liked any of the characters but I did feel quite sorry for Ruby growing up as she did, keeping herself to herself, and also being privy to her father's secret life. That father-daughter bond was unbreakable since all they had was each other.

I am not sure what type of psycho chiller thriller fan would like this with its very dark subject matter. Be warned! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this e-book ARC to read and review.

This is a standalone and is not part of any series.
Genre - psycho thriller, twisted, dark, disturbing

Her Broken Wings (Detectives Kane and Alton #8) by D.K. Hood

It seems that Black Rock Falls, Montana, must be a sociopathic serial killer magnet and, this time at Halloween, another has found his way to the small town by the mountains. The bodies are coming fast and furious and Sheriff Jenna Alton and Deputy Dave Kane enlist the help of FBI operatives in a nearby town to help them nab this one known as the Chamelon Killer. Lots of grisly murders and a host of suspects keep the detectives busy. This 8th book in the series has lots of action and many different characters to keep readers fully engaged and rapidly turning the pages. Even though the outcome is predictable, it was an entertaining police procedural and crime thriller.

I've read all the previous books in the series and will continue to do so. Kane and Alton have a work partnership as well as an obvious personal connection. Their relationship is a co-dependency and they certainly have plenty to do in "Serial Killer Central" as the crime rate in Black Rock Falls is off the charts!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this e-book ARC to read and review.

This is the 8th book in the long-running series that should be read, from the beginning, in order.
Genre - police procedural, crime thriller

The Red Lotus by Chris Bohjalian

"...[he] would be called, with the gallows humor of the beleaguered who fear that death is but a sneeze distant, the Rat King."

A timely global thriller that hits all the right notes in the current atmosphere -- basically it's a suspenseful story about a plague bacteria carried by rats. So, if you are triggered by reading about rats, you definitely are going to want to avoid this. There's a lot of detail.

But, back to the story. A young man, Austin Harper, works at a large university hospital in New York in the fundraising and development wing. His girlfriend, ER physician, Alexis Remnick, accompanies him on a trip to Vietnam, ostensibly on a bike tour but Austin claims he also wants to find the sites there where his uncle died and his father was wounded when they were posted there during the Vietnam War. When Austin doesn't return to the Villa Haldina Hotel in Hoi An after a solo bike ride one afternoon, Alexis contacts the local police and the Consulate. When the FBI legal attaché stationed at the US embassy gets involved the search for the missing Austin Harper shifts into high gear. As things evolve, Alexis discovers that she did not know Austin well at all and it turns out that he was involved with something completely unexpected and terribly wrong. NO SPOILERS.

Just read this. I really enjoyed it, not only because of the medical and science facts which I love, but the story is fast-paced and so realistic. The anticipation of what was going to happen kept me flipping the pages and I only wish I could have had a couple of hours to read it all in one sitting as I was always thinking about what was going to happen next whenever I had to put it down. Chris Bohjalian is an excellent writer (I've read every one of his books) and he always manages to surprise me by tackling so many different topics and does an incredible amount of research. I learned a lot about rats and disease; I'll be thinking about all the possibilities and suffer some anxiety for awhile. I thought he did a good job of giving us characters that were interesting and relatable. I was going to wait to read this closer to publication date, but the lure was too strong and I succumbed.

Thank you to NetGalley and Doubleday Books for this e-book ARC to read, review and recommend.

This is a standalone and is not part of any series.
Genre -- medical, global thriller, plague, RATS

You Are Not Alone by Greer Henricks and Sarah Pekkanen

"...numbers affect the way people see you."

Shay Miller, 31-years-old, single, recently downsized, lives with roommates Sean (who she secretly loves) and his girlfriend, Jody. Nothing is going so well in her life and her apartment is no longer the happy haven it used to be so one Sunday she decides to head out and find a nice place to work on her resume. She grabs a latte and heads for the subway when the event that changes her life takes place right in front of her on the platform: a young woman jumps in front of the train. Shay can't get over the shock and finds herself a bit obsessed finding out about the woman and the circumstances. That's when she meets Cassandra and Jane Moore -- friends of Amanda Evinger, an emergency room nurse who committed suicide by train. Soon things are looking up for Shay and it's all because the sisters have taken her under their wing. But they have a reason for this and Shay has no idea what they have planned for her. NO SPOILERS.

Told in the alternating points of view of Shay and the sisters, the reader gets a slow revelation of everything that has happened in the past as well as the current situation between them. At the beginning of every chapter narrated by Shay, there is a paragraph of a relevant statistic as Shay is very much a person who sees the world in terms of stats and data. Since she's a data analyst, she compulsively keeps data books "the way other kids kept diaries." Slowly the pieces start to fall into place and the reason for instant friendship between Shay and the sisters becomes clear. I enjoyed the story and it had a good amount of suspense but somehow, being a bit perverse, I wanted a different ending. Oh well, it was entertaining and it's a quick read. This is the third psychological thriller I've read by this duo and their collaboration and imagination keep me coming back for more. I definitely enjoyed all the data!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this e-book ARC to read and review.

This is a standalone and is not part of any series.
Genre -- psychological suspense thriller

Come From Away -- Welcome to the Rock

This is a hardcover inside look at the hit musical. The book, music, and lyrics by Irene Sankoff and David Hein with text by Laurence Maslon. A foreword by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

If you're a fan of the music and the story behind this totally fabulous hit musical, then you won't want to miss the chance to read about the development of the show. Inside are photographs and interviews with the community of Gander people who hosted the "come from always" or "plane people" on September 11, 2001. In a matter of hours after the US airspace was closed due to the terrorist attacks, 38 planes landed in Gander, Newfoundland, with a total of 6,595 strangers from all over the world. In addition to a full set of lyrics, there are the cut scenes and historical background of the island and surrounding towns as well as a narrative of actual events that took place there. The Gander people stepped up and took in these plane loads of men, women, and children -- they fed them, housed them and gave everything they had to their welfare while also providing emotional support during this horrific time. The last plane departed Gander on Sunday, September 16, 2001 and nothing for any of them would ever be the same.

This is a fabulous, uplifting and also heartbreaking story of what it means to be selfless and giving. All I could think as I closed the last page was that I wanted to be "an Islander" too. If you get an opportunity to see this musical, please don't pass. It's up there in my top 5 now. The book was well done and provided me with what I always crave -- more details, facts, information.

I got this from my local library and highly recommend it.

Non-fiction standalone not part of any series.
Genre - books based on a true story made into a Tony Award winning musical.

My Perfect Wife by Clare Boyd

I'm going to step away a bit from my usual review style as starting by giving my own synopsis of the plot would actually be a disservice as it's much too complicated to reduce to a paragraph. Simply pick this one up and read what is essentially a slow simmer tale of domestic suspense that builds tension with every chapter. I thought I had this pretty much all figured out after the first couple of chapters. In a way I did -- but the way this author breaks it all out is quite masterful.

The characters -- well, I'm not going to lie -- I didn't care for any of them really. Emotional, unstable, indecisive, trusting, naive, willful, obstinate, weak, and strong. Definitely unreliable narrators who alternate chapters telling their version of the story and the reader is unable to figure out whose is accurate. Lots of secrets and lying going on of course as usual in psychological thrillers and both Heather Shaw and Elizabeth Huxley are complex packages of longing and desire. Whose version of Lucas Huxley bears out after all? NO SPOILERS.

Did I mention that it's a slow burner? That bears repeating because it seemed to take forever to get to the rising action with lots of what appeared to be irrelevant detail and description. But, hang in there as the last third of the book brings all the drama to the forefront and it's quite hard to guess what will happen next. I found it all quite satisfying and read it all in basically a single sitting.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this e-book ARC to read, review and recommend.

This is a standalone and is not part of any series.
Genre -- domestic suspense, psychological thriller