THE GIRL UPSTAIRS by Jessica R Patch

 4* Soooo good. The use of 'her' and the leads moving away had me thinking the obvious, but omg, so many twists in this one!

I'm new to this author's works, and boy, what an intro. I was totally wrong thinking 'Bastard, you had an affair whilst your wife was miscarrying?' but that was because the author totally didn't use anything more than  the actual word 'her' and hinted at a lot more, emphasising how handsome Stephen was, and how Gwen felt she'd let herself go, and how he'd uprooted himself for her, at strains in their marriage and so on. Big time didn't clock. 

The storyline is sad and freaky, and ugh, what a horrible bunch of people, as it turns out. But, too, what courage and determination on Gwen's part, what strengths with the mind games being played. Stephen's total lack of interest in Tara - big shocker of a reveal - did bug me. As did Gwen's unwillingness to share the baby with anyone other than the real estate agent - again, a good inclusion and red herring - but I still wasnt clued in until THAT scene. Sad, cathartic and the start of a kind of journey back to better mental health for her.

Gwen made mistakes in her adult life, which haunted her and Stephen, but she also came back with a vengeance in the ending of the tale, righting a wrong that she'd been done, healing herself, providing the start of healing to others, and getting the start of a HEA that felt deserved. This was a tale that had me WTF'ing time and time again. An excellent introduction to the author.

ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Harlequin Romance, for my reading pleasure.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

ALWAYS YOU AND ME by Dani Atkins

5* Even though I don't believe in HEAs anymore, this book had me crying because of THAT ending. I'm going to try and review without spoilering, but ugh, I started the book almost in tears and ended it in actual tears, and with hope that sometimes love does last.  This book is so much more than a second chance at love. It's about loving, and being loved by, flawed characters whose lives with each other had their time, and when that time was gone, the love continued. Like Finn and Matt by Charlie Winters, this is a book I loved but won't ever read again. A part of me can't believe the author went there with the ending, but another part of me, the romantic-but-hurt part, wants to believe in the power of everlasting love.  ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for my reading pleasure. 
Read more

HER BEAUTIFUL LIFE by Brianna Labuskes

4* What a read. Started off with something mundane, turned into something totally shocking. I wasn't sure I'd like this tale of a former roomie/bestie going to interview a trad wife, some 10/11 years after their lives diverged, following a fallout, for a celebrity piece. I was a bit surprised at the lack of awkwardness and tension between the former friends, and didn't expect the tension from the actual eventual source. I absolutely didn't expect the plot, which was really, really well done, if you can cope with the plotting, the (occasionally) flawed rationale, the not-really-likable journalist/writer, Holland, and the iceberg-type trad wife, Cat/Catriona. Add in various very, very good red herrings (staff, scared kids, a creepy teen, a domineering husband, a mysterious death - still not clarified at the end, cops that don't have big-city cop instincts or mistrust, mental health, a possible psychopath), and you have a very, very well-done, well- dovetailed tale tha...
Read more

THE FIX by Mia Sheridan

4* Wasn't prepared for that opener, but a good tale, especially as an intro to this author. The opener to this tale is brutal but leads to an ultimately happier event 11 years down the line. I wasn't expecting what I read, so it was a bit of a shocker, although it was great to see both Cami's mental strength and her physicality saving her. I think the author did well to skip the years in between, not dwelling on the pain, trauma and loss.  The tale does need a bit of a dose of suspension of disbelief that in only 2 days, Cami and Rex saved the day, but then again his past, expertise and contacts made things believable.  The ending is a big of a POW! The kind of thing that can only happen in America with their ridiculous gun laws. But, the victim deserved it. And, if only there were more hot mics IRL in 2025 USA, and if only people were prepared to find their big girl and big boy pants and speak up. Sorry, I digress, but there's just so much that's wrong with that co...
Read more