Review: The White City

The White City by Karolina Ramqvist
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is one of the most claustrophobic books that I've read, but it's a mental sensation I got, not a physical one.

Karin is living with her baby daughter Dream in a big, isolated house. There's no heat, it's dirty and there's almost nothing to eat. Her partner was some kind of big criminal (he's no longer in the picture) and despite his promises of nothing bad ever happening to them, she's alone and none of his "business partners" has done anything to help her. He´s gone and she's alone and broke. Also, the authorities have already told her they're taking the house and the car from her.

The sensation of everything closing in around her is real, as she travels to the city, white with snow, to search for John's friends and partners and find out if there's any money left for her.

You can feel Karin's physical discomfort, her almost mental breakdown, the cold and the grime surrounding her. But just when everything seems to be against her, she finds the resources and help to turn everything around.


I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: French Rhapsody

French Rhapsody by Antoine Laurain
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Even the most staid people can have an amusing and fun life in their youth. Such is the case of Doctor Alain Massoulier, who in his middle age receives a letter that has been lost in the mail for more than 30 years.
Alain was the guitarist for the new wave group "The Holograms", and sent a tape to a record company, never receiving an answer. Now, so many years later, he learns that the company was interested in them. The band broke up as nothing ever happened to encourage them to keep on playing, but now Alain is determined to find them and rebuild the group.

The book portrays all of the group members and hangers on, who have taken separate and quite dissimilar paths: there´s a right wing extremist, an artist, a hotel owner, a new age guru, an antiquarian, and a businessman.

The book portrays not only French Society, but modern society in general. As Im about the same age as the characters in the group are, I related 100% with the description of the 80's, the music, the clothes, etc. It's deep and light at the same time, and can be quite funny. When you think things are on a certain path, the plot will turn and leave you quite surprised.

Great book!

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Nineveh

Nineveh by Henrietta Rose-Innes
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

For someone that hates bugs as much as I do, this would not be the ideal selection. Curiously, I didn't mind the bugs at all, and there are quite a few of them.

Katya Grubbs (quite a good name for someone in the pest business) is not an exterminator, as she values the lives of the creepers and crawlers she is called to erase from this earth, but a relocator, taking them where they will thrive and live happily ever after, without bothering any humans.
Her father was also in the business, but a traditional exterminator and quite a nasty human being.

When Katya is hired by a local (and very rich) businessman to eradicate the pests in an estate he constructed (the Nineveh of the title), she is faced with a huge problem. The whole place is uninhabitable due to some very strange bugs. To her surprise, her father was involved before her in this, which is not good news.

Good plot, good characters, a very good book from a new to me author.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: The Confidant

The Confidant by Hélène Grémillon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a dual timeline novel, that alternates between 1975 and the years before-during-after WWII.

In 1975, in Paris, Camille has just lost her mother when she receives a long, unsigned letter. She tries to find the anonymous sender to no avail, and she keeps getting letters about a woman named Annie and a man called Louis, describing their lives during the Second WW. Somehow, she feels this must be related to her, but doesn't understand why or how.

I thought I'd had my share of WWII books, but this one reads as a mystery, which happens to be one of my favorite genres, and although it speaks of the horrors of the war (no way not to mention them), it's more about the people.

It's also about Camille and the decisions she will make with her life, and how the letters influence her 30 years later after the events the letters narrate.

Great book, beautifully written and translated.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: The Whole Art of Detection: Lost Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes

The Whole Art of Detection: Lost Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes by Lyndsay Faye
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

While I did like this book and enjoyed reading it, I didn't love it.
My mistake, perhaps, as the same has happened to me with the "remakes" of Agatha Christie's books. You have great characters, good plots and amazing writers but the whole doesn't seem to gel together.

I've been a Sherlock Holmes fan since I was quite young, and I've re read most of the books several times. The plots are very smart and Sherlock Holmes and Watson flow through the books, where their personalities complement each other and grow with each book.

In this book, some of the stories were much better than others, that is that I found them quite uneven. Also, I can't picture Holmes and his relations with women as they are described in this book. And Watson is not as interesting as in the original stories.

Overall, a pleasant read but not comparable to the original.


I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: The Front Seat Passenger

The Front Seat Passenger by Pascal Garnier
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Another small-great book by Pascal Garnier.

When I first started reading this book, there was a sense of dèjá vu. A man learns his wife has been killed in an accident; she was a passenger in a car driven by her lover. The widower, Fabien, then decides to stalk and befriend the lover's widow.

The part where the plot is not like any other one is that it was written by Pascal Garnier, a master in describing strange people, with many issues, in strange circumstances. Most of the characters in the books I've read by Garnier are not what you can call "normal".

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: The Suicide Shop

The Suicide Shop by Jean Teulé
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

In a not so distant future, where religions are all mixed into one and smiling is not a normal thing, the Tuvache family owns a suicide shop. That is, a shop full of artifacts to aid the general and depressed public in ending their life swiftly and safely.

The family is composed of Mishima, the father, Lucrèce the mother, Marilyn the daughter and Alan and Vincent, the sons. Perfect names for their profession.

But Alan, the youngest is not normal. He smiles, he sees life as beautiful and in a subtle way, changes all that surrounds him.

This little book (it's less than 200 pages long) is full of black macabre humor. And the ending... the ending is perfect!

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Two Lovers, Six Deaths

Two Lovers, Six Deaths by Gretta Mulrooney
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I have a love-hate relationship with these series.

For one, the plots are very good! In book 3, Tyrone Swift is asked by the ex-wife and now widow of a man that has just killed himself to find out what really happened, as he was accused of killing his girlfriend. Sounds complicated, but it's very well developed and the characters are extremely well constructed.

The hate part refers to Swift's private life. The relationship with Ruth, his ex girlfriend and the relationship she has with her awful husband are just not very believable. Sure, I've heard about co-dependency, but this takes it too far. How can a strong man like Swift be such a wimp when it comes to Ruth?
Anyway, it's a series I like and I look forward to new books in it,

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Shadow Over the Fens

Shadow Over the Fens by Joy Ellis
My rating: 0 of 5 stars

Good follow up to "Crime on the Fens".

DI Nikki Galena is now living in the Fens, and DS Easter is again part of her team.
As soon as she's getting settled into her new home, her neighbor commits suicide. This later turns out to be a murder.
Also, someone seems to be stalking Easter and something/someone from his past is making him question his new life.

There's more murders, lots of action and a good plot, but somehow I felt the first book had a better, more believable plot.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Deadly Crimes

Deadly Crimes by Michael Hambling
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I'm definitely in a minority here. After reading many reviews, I'm still not convinced it's an amazing book, although I did find it easy to read and enjoyable.

My issues are the same as in book 1: the story is good, well crafted and delivered, but the writing feels choppy and too colloquial, simple.

There's two stories going on: The "mystery" part which starts with the body of a man lying on a local landmark and then we have Sophie's life history, which is based on another mystery and gives us a better insight into her character, which is something I do like in a book.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Dark Crimes

Dark Crimes by Michael Hambling
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

First in the DCI Sophie Allen series.
The book starts with the murder of a young woman, while she walks back home at night, after work. This is followed by the murder of her mother, strangled at her house. More murders follow and we have a serial killer for sure.

The story is very good, with the usual twists and turns, well plotted and delivered, the ending is very good and for me, quite unexpected.

The part that fell flat for me was all the praise that DCI Allen receives, even from herself. "She felt a mixture of pride in the fact her work was recognized... she saw the genuine enthusiasm and respect in her new assistant's face". Maybe I'm a grinch, but I just didn't buy it that she's always congratulating, thanking her team and that almost everybody adores her. I'm used to strong women that for the same reason step on everyone's toes. This is a murder investigations! There's tension, not good will always. Also parts of the dialogue/descriptions were a bit too simple. I liked the way the team worked together, even if it's their first joint investigation.

But overall, a good book and I will certainly read the next book in the series.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: A Darker Sky

A Darker Sky by Mari Jungstedt
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I've always wondered how books by two authors are written. In this book the writing is quite smooth, so it feels as if it's the work of only one author.

I'm a big fan of Scandinavian writers, but curiously this is the first one I read by Mari Jungstedt, and it does not take place in a cold climate, but in Gran Canaria, Spain.

A Swedish journalist living in Gran Canaria is covering the murder of a Swedish tourist. The author gives us an interesting view of the ex-pats living on the island and the tourists. When more deaths happen, Sara Moberg, the journalist, chief Diego Quintana, from the police and Kristian Wede, a former investigator who now works for the Swedish consulate, join forces to find the killer.

Good beginning of the series, will read book 2 for sure.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.



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Review: The Girl and the Rat

The Girl and the Rat by Jari Järvelä
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The good thing about this book: very well written, full of action, well described characters and situations.

The bad: Book 2 in a series, and I do feel you have to read the first one to grasp all about Metro, a graffiti artist and her friends. They live rough and have traveled from Finland to Germany, where they try to save a mural by Banksy. There's a whole lot of things going on, as this small anti-establishment group are causing chaos with their painting all around town.

Probably this was a book that is too young for me, but all in all, quite interesting.


I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Duplicity

Duplicity by Jane Haseldine
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is another book where I have to say that although I liked it, Book 1 was -for me- much better, but I do look forward to book 3 in the series.

We find Julia Gooden, trying to save her marriage, while working and taking care of her 2 sons. Her husband, a lawyer, is working on a high profile case against a big mobster.
When a bomb explodes in the courthouse, severely hurting David, Julia's husband, she is convinced Rossi, the criminal is responsible for it.

Julia, with Navarro faithfully helping her, will search for answers that put both her and her family in danger.
I still can't imagine why a mother of two young boys can put herself in so much danger, which is probably why I didn't like this book as much as the first one. Julia does silly things in that book also, but her main concern is her boy's safety, in light of what happened to her brother years before. But, we do get an insight into Julia and Navarro's past relationship, which I did feel was needed.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Unpunished

Unpunished by Lisa Black
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Book 2 in the Gardiner & Renner series.

This time, Maggie Gardiner, a forensic scientist is called to a crime scene: A body has been found in a newspaper office, an apparent suicide.
Jack Renner is part of the investigation team.
There's a complicated relationship between them, as Renner not only a policeman, but a vigilante, a cop that takes justice in his own hands, and Maggie is the only one that knows it.

As more murders happen, they must find a way to work together without compromising the investigation.

I don't recommend reading this book alone, as there are many references to the first one in the series: "That Darkness".

While I found this a very good book, it took me a long time to "get" into it, and I think I prefer book 1, as I found this one to be on the slow side. There was too much talk about the newspaper industry and how it's slowly dying.


I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: The Shadow Land

The Shadow Land by Elizabeth Kostova
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The more books I read by Elizabeth Kostova, the more I like this author. "The Historian", "The Swan Thieves" and now "The Shadow Land", all amazing.

It all starts with a "misunderstanding". Elizabeth Boyd, a young American woman, has just landed in Bulgaria. The taxi she takes to her hostel takes her to the wrong place, where she helps a Bulgarian family into another car. She realizes she has mistakenly kept a bag belonging to this family, and that she must return it as it contains human ashes.

Helped by Bobbie, her new cab driver who soon turns into a friend, she travels across the country searching for them.

Part mystery, part historical fiction, we discover along with Alexandra the history of a country that has suffered immensely.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Dangerous to Know

Dangerous to Know by Anne Buist
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Welcome back, Natalie King!

After having serious personal issues, Natalie King has spent a time in a psychiatric ward and now has exiled herself to the country, trying to lead a quieter life.

But that's not possible at all. It's just not in her personality.

And as the world is small, she finds out that the wife of her new boss is an old "enemy". Not a good situation in which to be, especially as the boss uses Natalie as a personal therapist and downloads all his personal problems on her. There's a certain strange attraction between Frank, the boss and Natalie, which adds to the story. His first wife died shortly before giving birth and his new wife is also pregnant. Will history repeat itself?

Though less complex a story, and with less characters than in Book 1, this book lives up to the first one in the series.

Will there be a book 3 in the series? I certainly hope so!

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Medea's Curse

Medea's Curse by Anne Buist
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Such a good book! Great start to the Natalie King, Forensic Psychiatrist Series.

Natalie King, the main character, is as complicated and unconventional a person as you'll ever find. Besides being a forensic psychiatrist, she sings in a band, rides a motorcycle, has affairs with married men and has her own mental health problems.

The book deals with very hard issues: mothers suspected of killing their children, pedophile rings, stalking.

I like that the main character is flawed but very human. She's strong even when things gets more and more difficult with each page, and the stories she hears from her patients (and her own) are enough to get anybody down. Add to it that her personal life is kind of messy and you have very complex story.
But the more complex it gets, the more it got me hooked. It's a great book, and one I recommend fully


I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Blood's Echo

Blood's Echo by Isabella Maldonado
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Good debut book by Isabella Maldonado.

Veranda Cruz works in law enforcement in Phoenix, Arizona. She is obsessed with fighting the drug cartels, especially the Villalobos cartel. Living in a country where the cartels are day to day news, it's very vivid and well described.

I like the strong character that Veranda is, I also love her family who stands together always, and that there's a love interest in the book.

My only "but" is that the Spanish expressions sometimes sound wrong to me, but I have to take into consideration that I'm a native Mexican speaker and that the Spanish in the book is different from mine, as it's Tex-Mex and the idioms and expressions are not the same.

Looking forward to Book 2 in the series.

3.5 stars

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Curious Minds

Curious Minds by Janet Evanovich
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

My first Janet Evanovich book (this one written in collaboration with Phoef Sutton)
I've read that she is one of the best cosy mystery writers, and her books have been recommended by many friends.

Sadly, this book was just ok with me. Janet Evanovich fans, please don't hate me

The plot, in a nutshell, is the following: Emory Knight is am eccentric billionaire. Riley Moon is a lawyer just a week into a new job in an investment firm when she is ordered to make Emerson invest his inheritance with them.
There's missing gold, evil characters and some very bizarre situations.

It's a funny, light book, and for me, forgettable. But, I'm still in for reading other books written by this author, just not these series.


I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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