Tag: mystery

Twenty-Seven Minutes by Ashley Tate

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Twenty-Seven Minutes is an absolutely compelling story about a car accident which occurred a decade ago and the horrific trauma which the survivors have lived with through their lives and how because of the tragedy the directions of their lives were changed forever. As the full story of the incident which took place on a bridge is relayed, it comes out that there were twenty-seven minutes which were unaccounted for. The book slowly goes back and relays what happened that fateful night and how those who survived remember the accident.

So, what happened during those twenty-seven minutes?

A decade has passed since a high school student, Phoebe Dean died in a car accident which occurred on a dangerous bridge in the small town of West Milner. Phoebe was perfection. Beautiful, smart and excited about leaving this small town with her brother Grant and moving to the big city and becoming someone.

Although those who were in the car on the bridge that rainy night, have foggy memories of just what happened, the one thing they have in common is that the accident and death destroyed their own lives, and they were changed that night.

Especially Grant, who was in the truck with his sister. He was a football star going places. Now, years later he can barely keep a job and drinks too much. Then there is Becca who was also in the truck and can’t remember much, but Grant has told her what happened, and they have had a pact never to tell. Becca has had a massive crush on Grant all these years, and Grant to this day always keeps Becca at arm’s length because she had issues before the accident and now is even worse.

At the time of the accident, the Sherrif always felt something was off about what went wrong on the bridge and felt there were extra minutes, twenty-seven to be exact which were unaccounted for. But they stuck to their story, and nothing could be proven.

And then there is June who was also in high school with the group and although was not at the bridge that evening, is now alone. Her mother has just died and her brother Wiley, who had been a troublemaker at the time, ran away years ago and her mother was devastated, and the town basically disowned them when he left and when her mother passed no one even came to the cemetery.

Now, with the memorial days away, and a vote to tear down the bridge coming up, Grant and Becca are beside themselves. You see, they know what happened on the bridge…or so they think. Someone knows…

Twenty-Seven Minutes will have you on the edge of your seat, engrossed in the story trying to figure out just what happened that night. And when all is revealed, just know it will shock and surprise you to your core!

Thank you #NetGalley #PoisenedPenPress #AshelyTate #Twenty-SevenMinutes for the advanced copy.

The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins

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The Heiress is a mystery in whose characters are mostly unlikable, with a suspenseful curious plot about greed, deep secrets, narcissism and murder…lots of murder. With one shocking twist after another, it will continually keep you enthralled and on your toes! It is so juicy!

It all begins with the disappearance of a young girl named Ruby McTavish from a very, very wealthy family who live on estate named Ashby House in North Carolina. She disappears during a picnic. Gone as if she never existed. Her mother, devastated falls to pieces. But, months later, a man emerges with Ruby and says he took her because his own daughter had died, and his wife was beside herself. End of story, right? Well, not really…

With Ruby back and a new sister born named Nellie, the emergence of hatred between not only them, but other family members begin. It is obvious that this is not your regular family, and as time passes you see that the McTavish’s get whatever they want. And as Ruby grows up, she realizes she must follow in her father’s footsteps as she is the heiress apparent. At a young age Ruby marries her first of four husbands. You see, they all seem to die…and she also decides to adopt a son. His name is Cam. 

As Cam grows up, as close as he is to his mother, or as close as she allows him, he sees the spectacle of the McTavish clan and realizes there is something wrong with them and eventually leaves and marries a woman named Jules. But when his uncle passes away, he must return to the famous Ashby House estate because you see, he is now the heir as Ruby died a while ago. The rest of the family needs money and he holds the purse strings, so he must put his fears and memories aside and go visit a place he has not stepped foot in for years. So as Cam and Jules, who seems excited at the prospect of seeing the infamous house, ascend on Ashby, he feels the hatred coming off his relatives, Nellie, his cousins Ben and Libby. The only ones left with the McTavish name. And they have an agenda and it’s not good!

Through a series of letters Ruby has written, we begin to see what dark family secrets have been hidden for years. How Ruby kept them all at bay and how she was able to keep secrets from them never to be found. But who were the letters meant for?

And as the jealousy and greed of those still alive begin to become apparent, Cam decides he needs to walk away again from this dysfunctional, evil group of relations. But Jules isn’t so sure. You see she has her own secrets. 

Can evil run in a family? Is it genetic? The Heiress will not disappoint and will keep you guessing until the end. Which of these materialistic, self-absorbed, egotistical relatives will finally try to burn the McTavish name down? The answer will shock you!

Thank you #NetGalley #St.Martin’sPress #RachelHawkins #TheHeiress for the advanced copy.

The Christmas Appeal by Janice Hallett

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The Christmas Appeal is a novella which once again follows the kooky bunch of actors who make up the Fairway Players, the acting troop who appeared in Hallett’s first novel, The Appeal. Most of the characters are new, but we do have a few of the cast from the original. A few things are the same. There is backstabbing, jealousy, revenge and oh yes, a murder! It is hilarious and in her enjoyable writing style, emails and texts, which makes for a quick delightful read.

Set during Christmas, a time of Peace on Earth and Goodwill, the Fairway Players have clearly not received the message. The Fairway gang under a new husband-wife directing team in Lower Lockwood, England some of whom are determined to unseat the couple. They seem to not be able to do anything right! So, while trying to put on a Christmas pageant, Jack and the Beanstalk, which of course some feel is stupid, they all seem to try and make each other miserable.

The production is for the children, which they all seem to have forgotten as they continue to fight and make fun of each other. The proceeds are to benefit the church which needs a roof repaired. But the beanstalk which had been used in a production years ago is in need of a cleaning as it will be the center of the story. Oh, how it will be the center!

But of course, everything begins to fall apart immediately, and as the date of the show nears, the beanstalk is deemed too big, the sweets are needed for the bags of goodies for the children, and unfortunately more patrons keep getting invited. Also, rumors begin to swirl about there being something terribly wrong with the beanstalk. The “candy” is delivered day of and as for the beanstalk, well of course during the show a skeleton falls out of it. But the audience thinks it’s part of the show and therefore the performance is deemed brilliant! Much to some people’s chagrin.

So once again we have our two levelheaded lawyers on the case with their now retired boss. They begin to sift through all the emails, texts, etc. to see if they can find out just what happened and how a body could have been left in the beanstalk for years and no one seem to know.

So, who on earth is the dead body? Who spread the rumor of there being something terribly wrong with the beanstalk? Will this be the end of the Fairway Players? With a few cameos from characters from The Appeal, The Christmas Appeal is a laugh out loud mystery which does not disappoint, and even if you think you’ve got it all figured out well, you’re probably wrong!

Happy Holidays!

The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose

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Well, the maid we all love and adore, Molly Gray is back in The Mystery Guest. With the charm and heart from the first story, The Maid, we are again excited to learn what she has been up to lately, as well as a bit of her backstory, with her loving and forevermore gran, Flora, her teacher of all things. Molly has come a long way since we were first introduced to her, but she continues to be the honest, thought-provoking, sensitive, intelligent woman we have grown to treasure.

Since we last read about her, Molly has been promoted to head maid at the prestigious yet infamous Regency Grand Hotel, living with her boyfriend Juan in her gran’s apartment. Juan is away visiting his family when of course, another death occurs.

J.D. Grimthorpe, a famous mystery writer is about to make an important announcement about himself, and he has chosen Molly’s hotel to make the statement. Although he has not written a book in a very long time, it is the hope of his fans that he will tell them he is coming out with a sequel to his bestseller from years ago.

But just before he is going to make the announcement, he keels over and dies. It is soon discovered that someone has poisoned him. Now, Molly’s new maid-in-training, Lily is frightened because she thinks it’s always the maid. But Molly has faith that with a bit of investigating, the Regency Grant Hotel will be exonerated.

As Molly’s frenemy, Detective Stark once again is put on the case and of course eyes Molly suspiciously, Molly knows she did not kill the man. But unfortunately, Molly has a deep dark secret. When she was young, she and her gran had worked as maids for the Grimthorpe household, and it did not end well.

As she flashes back to that dreadful time, she begins to remember more about what happened when they worked for the mysterious writer. But clues of his death are sparse and when she sees her dear friend Mr. Preston doing something illegal, well her head begins to spin.

As Molly tries to put the clues together, realizing Grimthorpe was not a very nice person and anybody could have wanted him dead, the suspects begin to add up and she must find the killer before it ruins the reputation of her wonderful hotel.

The Mystery Guest is sleuthing at its best, and our Molly is as sweet as honey as she brilliantly and true to herself discovers the truths behind the dead man. Cannot wait to see where Molly goes next!

Thank you #NetGalley #BallentineBooks #NitaProse #TheMysteryGuest for the advanced copy.