RoroblusMumReadsReviews/Rants

3.5* **SPOILERS** I hate cheating in books, so my attitude towards the book and the holier-than-thou big sister changed to less favourable once that came out.  This book wouldn't have worked without the cheating, so I'm in 2 minds about it. The author put together a well-adhered tale, but with unlikeable characters. Cheating is bad enough in my book, no pun intended, but doing it to your spouse and sibling is a no-no. It made me want them to be found out. And maybe one day they will, hurting 4 innocent people. Like with Madeleine McCann, Tillie's parents threw money at the case, had the means to keep the search alive. The coincidence that happened and turned out to be true, felt believable. The red herring/s were decent. The cheaters were not, and their spouses deserved more, although one suspected cheating.  ARC courtesy of NetGalley and HQ for my reading pleasure.

4.85* Sad for more than only the victim and her son, with a 'bad guy' that was also, to a large degree, a victim of events that'd upended life in 20** This book technically could be read as a standalone - I didn't pick book 3 up until recently - as enough is given that you'd be clued into Jim's world. What's strange is tjat his wife is completely absent and I wondered if there was trouble in paradise. Tbh, I'm not sure they're on the same page in respect of the issue they're facing, so... So, the storyline was excellent and well plotted. The little kid with his protective, mistrusting mother, was such a strong character. He was believable because of her past, what she taught him, and his own strength of character. The ultimate baddie was believable too, and whilst his plan in motion was unforgivable, what motivated him was love and desperation. He'd become hardened by things in his recent life, and he was a stone-cold killer. Rarely have I fe...

4.5* Very nearly a 5* read, other than the Aidan-inclusive, not-really-that-believable ending. This is another charming and well-written book featuring 30-something landscape gardener, Ali, and her student-to-be nephew Gavan. Nothing to do with solving mysteries, or so you'd think. The killing was sad. An innocent, decent person killed because of someone's jealousy and sick mind. Someone that almost went hidden but for a couple of heavy handed comments that made me clock their identity but not their motive. Did said motive come from a trauma and its consequences? Not sure, and I'm not sure that somewhere along the lines a professional assessment for routine stuff wouldn't have brought this to light. But, as a bad guy, this person worked, and I hope they get belts and braces thrown at them and do heavy time. To snuff out not one but two lives, because diddums got hurt once upon a time, and to ruin several others, without remorse or consideration, made him incapable of re...

2.5* Hmm, the best wasn't saved for last. Kind of anticlimactic. What's nice about this book: Fyn is sweet and quite literal, as he's not really been around anyone other than his herd. His lack of guile made me smile. His friendship with his bestie./Seeing the godlings/kittens in kittens form, although Aine is quite precocious./A reunion at the end, and a change that I suspected would happen. What's not so good: very little happens. Hadeom - his true identity was the biggest, unsubstantiated anticlimax of the tale - spends much of the tale asleep and then catatonic./The fight between Fyn and his brother, Pax, that came to nothing in the end./ When Fyn and Hadeom get together at just under 80% of the tale gone. One short but sweet sex scene, avowals of love that lacked depth, believability and feelings./The anticlimactic human interference thing - all bigged up yet all gone in 2 pages. Danger that was never there, or felt like it was never there.  It ends in a way that l...

4* Excellent intro to this author, just a pity it ends before we see what gets dished out to the killer, and see his mindset. This is fast-paced, creepy, and had me thinking the worse would happen to more than one innocent - I'm including the lovely dogs here - and it was a brilliant intro to this author. I'd have liked to know more about Kate Marino and her relationship with her estranged-of-sorts dad. About her marriage and being widowed. About her life since both events. About her relationship with her daughter and MIL. Maybe there'll be tidbits in future tales? This was an excellent tale although I did wonder why no one thought that the killer might well be someone trusted and known. It kind of seemed a bit obvious despite the few plants at red herrings. Still, it's very readable and though animals were hurt, they didn't die, which is a huge plus in my book, no pun intended.

4* Unlikable protags, but very readable. She's a firestarter. Twisted firestarter. And a liar. And in need of psychotherapy. And a good(ish) little sister. And a better daughter at the end than I'd ever be to someone like her dad. And someone not likeable. This is a complex book if you think about Red' issues. Her twin's death. Her part in saud death. Scarlett who lives in her head. Her deliberate distance from her brother that she maybe feels some affection for, if indeed she's capable of any. Her understandable estrangement from her father. Her losses. Her actions. Her dishonesty. Her lack of conscience. Her Teflon coating, it seems. But, it's a twisted book. But it's not a nice book, just one that draws you in. In my case it was because I wanted to see her caught, or if not, learn a lesson and make some changes. I don't think she did, cos she's a firestarter, a twisted firestarter. ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Headline for my reading pleasure.