Thriller – Page 3 – Jill's Book Blog

Review: Forever the One.com

Title: Forever the One.com
Author: Connie Y. Harris
Genre: Romance, Thriller
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Source: Publisher
Format: Ebook
Release Date: May 6, 2024
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

No stranger to trouble as a Texas Game Warden, Mariah Michaels fearlessly enforces the laws that protect wildlife. However, when an unknown stalker imperils her life, she’ll need help neutralizing the threat.
Plagued by the limitations of his disability, Marine veteran-turned-security specialist, John Armstrong, joins an online dating site in search of love and an end to his loneliness. But he gets more than he bargained for when the woman of his dreams responds to his profile as a perfect match.
While they pursue a long-distance relationship, blazing a trail from Florida to Texas, the stalker’s actions escalate, putting Mariah and everyone close to her at risk. In over her head, she’s counting on John, who must face his worst fear and rise above his disability to save her, but will her faith in him be enough?

Review:

This was a very suspenseful romance. I liked the inclusion of different abilities. John was a veteran who used a wheelchair and a service dog. It was interesting to see how he was able to do everything himself with some assistance from special devices. Mariah’s mother had dementia, which added some complications to their investigation. This story was intense and fast paced, and it had me on the edge of my seat the whole time!

Forever the One.com is a great suspenseful romance!

Thank you The Wild Rose Press for providing a copy of this book as part of a paid campaign!

Content warnings: stalking, PTSD, animal abuse, fire, dementia

Have you read Forever the One.com? What did you think of it?

Review: Blood Lasts Forever

Title: Blood Lasts Forever
Author: Jeff Gunhus
Genre: Thriller, Contemporary
Publisher: Seven Guns Press
Source: iRead Book Tours
Format: Ebook
Release Date: November 11, 2024
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Not every death is a tragedy.

When fifteen-year-old Wyatt Bucks is found dead in the Sagasett River, the small town of Chambers breathes a collective sigh of relief. Wyatt was a troubled youth, feared and despised by many. But his death, deemed an accident by the local sheriff, leaves a chilling legacy that will haunt the town for decades.

Twenty years later, Mitch Ansel, now a middle school teacher, receives a call that resurrects the nightmares of his past. Alongside his old friends, the Fab Five, Mitch is forced to confront the dark secret they’ve buried for years—a secret that ties them to Wyatt’s death.

As the friends reunite at a remote cabin, they must navigate a web of deceit, fear, and violence. Each carries scars from the past, but none are prepared for the revelations that await them. Mitch’s terrifying visions of Wyatt and the relentless pull of their shared guilt threaten to unravel their lives and sanity.

Review:

Blood Lasts Forever is a creepy and suspenseful thriller. It is the scariest book I’ve read in a long time. I made the mistake of reading it before I went to sleep, and then I was wide awake for a long time! There were some very disturbing scenes, but I think it justified the murder that happened when the main characters were kids. Check the content warnings before reading this one.

Blood Lasts Forever is a suspenseful thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat!

Thank you iRead Book Tours for sending me a copy of this book as part of a paid campaign!

Content warnings: child abuse, sexual assault, animal abuse, animal death, murder, PTSD, hallucinations, body horror

Have you read Blood Lasts Forever? What did you think of it?

Review: A Hush at Midnight

Title: A Hush at Midnight
Author: Marlene M. Bell
Genre: Thriller, Contemporary, Mystery
Publisher: Ewephoric Publishing
Source: iRead Book Tours
Format: Ebook
Release Date: September 1, 2024
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

A manipulator.

A fatal plan for revenge.

Award-winning author of the Annalisse series, Marlene M. Bell, brings distant friends together in the rural South only to have one of them become the victim of a brutal crime of passion.

Once celebrated for her show-stopping pastries and irresistible desserts, former celebrity chef Laura Harris is now making headlines for a far darker reason.

Laura has been accused of murder.

How could this petite chef have brutally smothered the beloved small-town matriarch, World War II ferry pilot veteran, Hattie Stenburg? Hattie wasn’t just a pillar of the community; she was Laura’s confidant and mentor. The shocking twist? Hattie’s will contained recent changes, bypassing next-of kin and leaving her entire fortune and historic estate to Laura.

As Laura scrambles to clear her name, she uncovers sinister secrets lurking beneath the town’s idyllic surface. The real murderer is always one step ahead, leaving taunting clues and threatening Laura to leave Texas—or face deadly consequences. With time not a luxury, Laura must untangle the web of deceit before the killer makes her the next victim.

In “A Hush at Midnight,” Marlene M. Bell twists an amateur sleuth crime mystery into a race against the clock to solve her mentor’s murder.

Review:

A Hush at Midnight was a thrilling mystery. There were many subplots that made the mystery a little more complex, and most of them were connected in the end. The writing was descriptive and beautiful. It created a full and vivid picture of the setting in my mind.

A Hush at Midnight is a suspenseful thriller!

Thank you iRead Book Tours for providing a copy of this book as part of a paid campaign.

Content warnings: death of parent (off page), cancer, strangulation, death, stalking

Have you read A Hush at Midnight? What did you think of it?

Review: Fall Into Me (The Fall Trilogy #2)

Title: Fall Into Me (The Fall Trilogy #2)
Author: Arden Coutts
Genre: Romance, Thriller, Contemporary
Publisher: CEI Media LLC
Source: Author
Format: Paperback
Release Date: June 4, 2024
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

A night of passion, a world of vengeance, and a dangerous game of cat and mouse. Will Marcus and Kee fall for each other or fall to the dangers around them?

Kee and Marcus have been playing a game of emotional cat and mouse and have finally surrendered to their desires. After a passionate night together, they find themselves falling for each other. However, their newfound happiness is abruptly shattered when Marcus disappears without a word.

Confused and hurt, Kee wonders why Marcus would leave her without any explanation or information about his whereabouts. Little does she know, he has embarked on a dangerous mission.

As Marcus plunges into the treacherous world of vengeance, he faces numerous obstacles and life-threatening situations. He relies on his cunning, physical prowess, and unwavering determination to navigate the murky waters of retribution.

Meanwhile, Kee struggles with her conflicting emotions—torn between worrying for Marcus’s safety and feeling betrayed by his sudden departure. She embarks on her own journey of self-discovery as she seeks answers about Marcus’s motives and contemplates the nature of their relationship.

Will Marcus survive the perils he faces along his path of revenge? Will he find redemption and make it back to Kee? And can Kee find it in her heart to forgive him for leaving her in the dark?

Review:

Following the events of Fall Into Midnight, Kee and Marcus have fallen for each other. After a night of passion, Marcus runs away to Russia without telling Kee. He’s on the hunt for his nemesis Dimitri’s daughter, who was connected to Marcus’s father’s murder. Kee joins Marcus’s friends to travel to Russia and save him.

This was such a great sequel in the Fall Trilogy. The characters were all introduced in the first book, so the action started right away. There’s romance but there’s also a lot of danger that the characters face. I’m excited to read the third book soon!

Fall Into Me is a great suspenseful romance!

Thank you Arden Coutts for sending me a copy of this book.

Content warnings: death, kidnapping, torture, blood, sexual assault

Other books in the series:

Fall Into Midnight (The Fall Trilogy #1)
We All Fall (The Fall Trilogy #3)

Have you read Fall Into Me? What did you think of it?

Review: Fall into Midnight (The Fall Trilogy #1)

Title: Fall into Midnight (The Fall Trilogy #1)
Author: Arden Coutts
Genre: Romance, LGBTQ, Thriller
Publisher: CEI Media
Source: Author
Format: Paperback
Release Date: September 30, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Gyrating to the beat and downing shots isn’t Dr. Hannah Winter’s cup of tea. But when a good friend drags her out of the sanctuary of her sunroom for a rare night out at Club Midnight, a chance encounter with an enigmatic bouncer ignites an undeniable spark of passion she can’t resist. Working at Club Midnight comes with a heavy price that Gray Alexander has grown weary of paying. But even as the treacherous underworld associated with her work threatens to destroy her, the love of a sweet-faced, ginger-haired doctor may be her saving grace. As Hannah and Gray seize their unexpected chance at love, they quickly realize the very place that pulled them into each other’s orbit may inevitably tear them apart…

Review:

Dr. Hannah Winters goes to Club Midnight one night with her best friend and her two bodyguards. Despite not wanting to be there, Hannah has a chance encounter with one of the security guards, Gray, and she can’t get her out of her mind. Gray’s job at Club Midnight also involves getting into dangerous situations with her boss. Hannah and Gray quickly fall for each other, but their relationship is tested when their lives are threatened.

This was such a great, intense romance. Gray and Hannah had steamy chemistry. There was a surprising twist at the end of the story that I didn’t see coming. I’m so glad there are more books in this series because I loved these characters!

Fall into Midnight is a great start to the Fall Trilogy!

Thank you Arden Coutts for sending me a copy of this book!

Content warnings: stabbing, drugging, sexual assault, shooting

Other books in the series:

Fall Into Me (The Fall Trilogy #2)
We All Fall (The Fall Trilogy #3)

Have you read Fall into Midnight? What did you think of it?

Review: Return to Midnight

Title: Return to Midnight
Author: Emma Dues
Genre: Thriller, Contemporary
Publisher: Thomas and Mercer
Source: Firefly Books Distributed Lines
Format: Paperback
Release Date: August 27, 2024
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

On the anniversary of a savage mass murder, a survivor returns to the scene of the crime―and all its buried secrets―in a twisting novel of suspense.

Nearly ten years ago, five Ohio university students were murdered in an off-campus Victorian home. The media dubbed it the Midnight House Massacre. Ever since, survivor and novelist Margot Davis has wanted to forget it, and never again utter the killer’s name. Until she’s compelled to write her side of the story. To do that, she’s returning to Midnight House.

It’ll be a chance for Margot to reconnect with other survivors, heal the trauma, and dispel the ugly conspiracy theories of obsessed true crime fanatics. But when news of Margot’s book gets out, she receives a threatening note that demands she stop lying. Or else. It chills Margot’s blood. Because she hasn’t been telling the whole truth.

As the threats continue, each more sinister than the last, a journalist comes to Margot with new suspicions about that brutal October night. Now, to save her own life, Margot must reveal her well-guarded secrets―ones that, for good reason, she’s been too terrified to share.

Review:

Almost ten years ago, five college students were massacred in their home called Midnight House. Margot Davis was one of the survivors, and she’s still traumatized from the murders of her best friends. Another one of her best friends was convicted for the murders, but he has always maintained his innocence. Margot decides to finally tell her side of the story and write a book about the murders, so she returns to Midnight House, which is now owned by her friends and other survivors, to do research. However, when her book is announced, Margot starts getting threats, telling her to stop lying about the massacre. Margot does have secrets from her college years, but she can’t figure out who would threaten her about them. She must figure out who is sending the threats before she’s the next victim.

This was the scariest thriller I’ve read in a long time. It was creepy and fast paced. I was hooked right from the first page. I was on the edge of my seat for most of the book. There were some graphic scenes, that were more like a horror story, but the suspense made this a thrilling read!

Return to Midnight is a thrilling debut!

Thank you Firefly Books Distributed Lines for sending me a copy of this book!

Content warnings: death, blood, vomiting, stabbing, overdose, gaslighting

Have you read Return to Midnight? What did you think of it?

Review: Bright and Tender Dark

Title: Bright and Tender Dark
Author: Joanna Pearson
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Bloomsbury Books US
Source: Publisher
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: June 4, 2024
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

For readers of Notes on an Execution and I Have Some Questions for You, a wire-taut literary debut about a murder on a college campus and its aftermath twenty years later.

Days after the dawn of Y2K, beautiful, charismatic nineteen-year-old Karlie Richards is found brutally murdered in her campus apartment. Two decades later, those who knew Karlie-and those who just knew of her-remain consumed by her death. Among them is her freshman year roommate, Joy, now middle-aged and mid-divorce, living in the same college town and desperate for a new beginning. When she stumbles upon a twenty-year-old letter from Karlie, Joy becomes convinced the man in prison for her murder was wrongfully convicted. Soon she is diving deep into the dark world of internet conspiracy theorists and amateur sleuth blogs and bouncing off others touched by the long, sensational aftermath of this crime. They include KC, the trans night manager at the building where Karlie was killed; Sheri, the mother of the man serving time; and Jacob Hendrix, the charming professor with whom, Joy knows all too well, Karlie was romantically entangled before her death.

Jumping between 2019 and 1999, Bright and Tender Dark takes us from the era of Reddit threads and online obsession to the evangelism-infused culture of the late ’90s to reveal what really happened to Karlie. It is a compulsively readable, prismatic literary debut that brilliantly mines the mythology of murder, the power of urban legend, and the psychological urge to both protect and exploit what you love but cannot have.

Review:

A week after Y2K, Karlie Richards was found murdered in her apartment. A developmentally delayed young man was convicted of her death, but that has never sat right with Joy, Karlie’s former college roommate. Twenty years later, Joy decides to investigate Karlie’s death herself after finding a letter written to her from Karlie. There are many people who were involved in Karlie’s life and were interconnected in their small college town. This story is told through alternating timelines and perspectives to show what happened to Karlie.

This was an intense thriller story. It had a literary format, with each chapter following a different character and alternating between the years 2000 and 2019. Karlie was brutally murdered, but the man who was put in prison for it was convicted because his disability made him vulnerable. It was tragic. Most of the characters had dark pasts and lots of secrets. There were a few loose ends that I would have liked to have been tied up at the end of the story, but I liked that the whole story of Karlie’s death was given to the reader.

Bright and Tender Dark is a dark literary thriller.

Thank you Bloomsbury Books US and Bookinfluencers.com for providing a copy of this book for a sponsored campaign.

Content warnings: murder, rape (off page), suicide (off page), dog attack,

Have you read Bright and Tender Dark? What did you think of it?

Review: High Society

Title: High Society
Author: Daniel Kalla
Genre: Thriller, Contemporary
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Canada
Source: Tandem Collective
Format: Paperback
Release Date: May 28, 2024
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

From internationally bestselling author Daniel Kalla comes a twisty psychological thriller about a pioneering psychiatrist hiding dark secrets, in the vein of The Golden Couple by Hendricks and Pekkanen and Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty.

At sixteen, Holly Danvers barely survived the car accident that killed her father. While she has no memory of the crash, it took an ayahuasca treatment, a native plant-based psychedelic therapy, in the jungles of Peru for her to emotionally recover. Twenty years later, Holly is a sought-after psychiatrist determined to use her expertise with psychedelics to treat patients suffering from addictions. Ignoring the risks, she embarks upon an unproven new protocol with miraculous results. But her success in probing the traumas of her patients and the secrets they keep is short-lived.

When one celebrity client goes public with his recovery and another overdoses after accusing Holly of improprieties, her world is turned upside down. With her career on the line, Holly reaches out to her mentor—and estranged husband—Dr. Aaron Laing, for advice and comfort. But he has a different agenda, and it soon becomes clear that it will be up to Holly alone to figure out why her clients are relapsing and dying. To accomplish that, she will have to risk her life and revisit her own deep-seated trauma.

Review:

At sixteen, Holly Danvers was in a car accident that killed her father. Her grandfather took her on a trip so South America where she was given psychedelics to recover from the trauma, which inspired her future work as a psychiatrist. Now, twenty years later, Holly is working with a group of patients to use psychedelics to overcome their addictions. It’s a risk because it isn’t an official treatment. However, after one experimental treatment, one of her patients accuses Holly of abusing her. The patient overdoses before she can go public with her accusations. Holly suspects there’s something more to the sudden overdose, which is followed by more suspicious behaviour from her patients. Holly must figure out what’s happening with her patients before her career is ended.

This was such a great thriller! I don’t like medical things in books, so I was a little skeptical about this one, but the medical scenes were fairly short. The chapters were short, which made it a fast paced read. I was surprised at the ending because the person I suspected wasn’t behind everything. I highly recommend this thrilling page turner!

High Society is a great thriller!

Thank you Tandem Collective and Simon and Schuster Canada for providing a copy of this book.

Content warnings: addiction, overdose, suicide, murder, needles, hallucinations, fire, car accident

Have you read High Society? What did you think of it?

Review: Seven Faceless Saints (Seven Faceless Saints #1)

Title: Seven Faceless Saints (Seven Faceless Saints #1)
Author: M.K. Lobb
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Thriller
Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers
Source: Purchased
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: February 7, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

In the city of Ombrazia, saints and their disciples rule with terrifying and unjust power, playing favorites while the unfavored struggle to survive.

After her father’s murder at the hands of the Ombrazian military, Rossana Lacertosa is willing to do whatever it takes to dismantle the corrupt system—tapping into her powers as a disciple of Patience, joining the rebellion, and facing the boy who broke her heart. As the youngest captain in the history of Palazzo security, Damian Venturi is expected to be ruthless and strong, and to serve the saints with unquestioning devotion. But three years spent fighting in a never-ending war have left him with deeper scars than he wants to admit… and a fear of confronting the girl he left behind.

Now a murderer stalks Ombrazia’s citizens. As the body count climbs, the Palazzo is all too happy to look the other way—that is, until a disciple becomes the newest victim. With every lead turning into a dead end, Damian and Roz must team up to find the killer, even if it means digging up buried emotions. As they dive into the underbelly of Ombrazia, the pair will discover something more sinister—and far less holy. With darkness closing in and time running out, will they be able to save the city from an evil so powerful that it threatens to destroy everything in its path?

Discover what’s lurking in the shadows in this dark fantasy debut with a murder-mystery twist, perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo and Kerri Maniscalco.

Review:

Roz Lacertosa has been devastated since her father was killed on the battlefield. It made her want to rebel against the system that put him in the war, by using her powers as a disciple of Patience. Damian Venturi is the captain of security at the Palazzo, which houses disciples of the seven saints. When the disciple of Death is found murdered, Damian is asked to investigate by himself, but he ends up teaming up with his childhood friend Roz. Roz is also investigating some strange murders outside of the Palazzo. They notice similarities between the murders, but as they search for answers, they discover dark secrets that put their whole world in danger.

This book was a thrilling murder mystery. It was fast paced and intense. Roz and Damian were in opposing positions. Roz was a disciple of Patience, but she resented her powers because it was the people in charge of the disciples who killed her father. Damian had not been chosen by the saints as a disciple, so he was considered one of the unfavored in society. While Roz resented her powers, Damian wished he had them. The story ended on a bit of a cliffhanger so I’m excited to read the sequel!

Seven Faceless Saints is a thrilling fantasy!

Content warnings: death, death of parent, gun violence, poisoning

Other books in the series:

Disciples of Chaos (Seven Faceless Saints #2)

Have you read Seven Faceless Saints? What did you think of it?

Review: One Perfect Couple

Title: One Perfect Couple
Author: Ruth Ware
Genre: Thriller, Contemporary
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Canada
Source: Tandem Collective
Format: Paperback
Release Date: May 21, 2024
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

A high-tension and ingenious thriller following five couples trapped on a storm-swept island as a killer stalks among them.

Lyla is in a bit of a rut. Her post-doctoral research has fizzled out, she’s pretty sure they won’t extend her contract, and things with her boyfriend, Nico, an aspiring actor, aren’t going great. When the opportunity arises for Nico to join the cast of a new reality TV show, The Perfect Couple, she decides to try out with him. A whirlwind audition process later, Lyla find herself whisked off to a tropical paradise with Nico, boating through the Indian Ocean towards Ever After Island, where the two of them will compete against four other couples—Bayer and Angel, Dan and Santana, Joel and Romi, and Conor and Zana—in order to win a cash prize.

But not long after they arrive on the deserted island, things start to go wrong. After the first challenge leaves everyone rattled and angry, an overnight storm takes matters from bad to worse. Cut off from the mainland by miles of ocean, deprived of their phones, and unable to contact the crew that brought them there, the group must band together for survival. As tensions run high and fresh water runs low, Lyla finds that this game show is all too real—and the stakes are life or death.

A fast-paced, spellbinding thriller rife with intrigue and characters that feel so true to life, this novel proves yet again that Ruth Ware is the queen of psychological suspense.

Review:

Lyla is a scientist who is struggling with her research. When her boyfriend, Nico, an aspiring actor, asks her if she wants to go on a reality show with him, she reluctantly agrees. They travel to an island in the middle of the Indian Ocean to film the new reality show, One Perfect Couple. Lyla expects to be voted off the show first, since she doesn’t like reality shows. After a storm the first night, everything goes wrong. Their communication from the rest of the world is cut off, and they have limited supplies. Now, the couples don’t have to worry about being eliminated from the show. They must worry about surviving.

This is my new favourite Ruth Ware book! It was so creepy and intense. There was a bit of a behind the scenes look at the making of a reality show, but most of the book was about survival. I couldn’t guess what would happen next so I was really kept on the edge of my seat!

One Perfect Couple is an intense summer thriller!

Thank you Tandem Collective and Simon and Schuster Canada for providing a copy of this book!

Content warnings: death, murder, suicide, blood, drowning, diabetes

Have you read One Perfect Couple? What did you think of it?