BLOG TOUR: Kill Creatures - Rory Power

Last summer, Nan's three best friends disappeared into Saltcedar Canyon.

She's spent the year since grieving their loss and avoiding questions about what happened that night. Now, on the anniversary, she's ready to say goodbye, and so are the girls' families, who have reconvened to hold a memorial. But their vigil is interrupted by the shocking return of one of the missing girls alive. Everybody is overjoyed. Everybody, that is, except Nan, who was pretty sure they were dead.

After all, she's the one who killed them.

• Atmospheric, fast-paced and vividly realised, Kill Creatures is a book about secrets, jealousy, violence and revenge.

• Perfect for fans of A Good Girls Guide to Murder and Gone Girl.

 

What did I think?

I am so pleased that I have added YA to the list of genres that I read as Kill Creatures by Rory Power is a little gem of a thriller.  It's quite a short book at 269 pages but it is packed with thrills, secrets and danger.

I spent the first couple of pages feeling sorry for Nan as the family and friends of three missing girls gather to remember them on the one year anniversary of their disappearance.  Their bodies have never been found and nobody knows what happened to them, except Nan.  Nan knows exactly what happened that day so she is shocked when one of the girls returns alive.  

It's such a good twist to the story that throws Nan into turmoil as she thought she had got away with murder but now someone else knows what happened too.  As the story flicks back and forth between then and now a multicoloured picture starts to take shape as all of the pieces of this fantastic jigsaw gradually slot into place.

Gripping, addictive and twisty, Kill Creatures is a book that is impossible to put down once you pick it up.  YA is shaping up to be a genre not to be missed with cracking thrillers like Kill Creatures just waiting to be discovered and devoured.  A highly recommended read.

I received an ARC to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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About the author:

Rory Power grew up in New England, where she lives and works as a story consultant for TV adaptation. She received a Masters in Prose Fiction  from the University of East Anglia, and is the New York Times bestselling author of Wilder Girls, Burn Our Bodies Down, and In a Garden Burning Gold. 

• https://itsrorypower.com/ 

• instagram.com/itsrorypower/ 

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BLOG TOUR: While We're Young - K.L. Walther

A whirlwind romance inspired by Ferris Bueller’s Day Off about four friends whose hearts are broken and mended over the course of an epic senior skip day—from the bestselling author of The Summer of Broken Rules!

Grace, Isa, and Everett used to be an inseparable trio before their love lives became a tangled mess. For starters, Grace is secretly in love with Everett, who used to go out with Isa before breaking her heart in the infamous Freshman Year Fracture. And, oh yeah, no one knows that Isa has been hanging out with James, Grace’s brother—and if Grace finds out, it could ruin their friendship.

With graduation fast approaching, Grace decides an unsanctioned senior skip day in Philadelphia might be just what they need to fix things. All she has to do is convince Isa to help her kidnap Everett and outmaneuver James, who’s certain his sister is up to something.

In an epic day that includes racing up the famous Rocky steps, taste-testing Philly's finest cheesesteaks, and even crashing a wedding, their secrets are bound to collide. But can their hearts withstand the wreckage?

 

What did I think?

As soon as I saw that While We're Young was inspired by Ferris Bueller's Day Off I just had to read it and I was not disappointed; it was everything I expected it to be and more.  It may be a YA book but adults will love it too.

Anyone who has seen the film will notice some similar scenes and the scattering of references that pay homage to the John Hughes classic.  I absolutely loved these little nods to one of my favourite films but there is so much more to this wonderful book.

The characters are so well developed they almost pop out from the page and they all have their own little hangups and characteristics that really endeared them to me.  Grace is the main character but I also loved her brother James and her two best friends Isa and Everett who haven't been speaking to each other since they dated and broke up.  Grace sees an opportunity to bring her little friendship group back together again but it will involve them all bunking off school.

Incredibly entertaining, sweet and heartwarming, While We're Young is so much fun to read and it left me with a great big smile on my face.  I definitely plan to read it again to relive the fun, high jinks and emotion that delighted me from start to finish.  

I received an ARC to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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UK.Bookshop.org

Amazon

About the author:

K.L. Walther was born and raised in the rolling hills of Bucks County, Pennsylvania surrounded by family, dogs, and books. Her childhood was spent traveling the northeastern seaboard to play ice hockey. She attended a boarding school in New Jersey and went on to earn a B.A. in English from the University of Virginia. She is happiest on the beach with a book, cheering for the New York Rangers, or enjoying a rom-com while digging into a big bowl of popcorn and M&Ms. And listening to Taylor Swift on repeat, of course. 

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BLOG TOUR: Betrothal & Betrayal (The Empress Irini series Book 1) - Janet McGiffin

Seventeen-year-old Thekla needs her quick wits and knife to track down her betrothed, a soldier who has left her at the altar for the third time. Elias the monk travels with her to Constantinople where she meets Irini of Athens, an extraordinarily beautiful orphan her same age who has been brought by powerful Emperor Constantine to marry his son, Co-Emperor Leon. The two women join forces to survive this vigorous capital of the Roman Empire of the East which is rocked by religious and political strife. But will Thekla help the ambitious and ruthless Irini of Athens find the power that she craves?

What did I think?

Betrothal & Betrayal is set in 8th century Greece and this is a period of history I knew nothing about until I turned the pages of this fabulous book.  With a 17 year-old protagonist, it's in the YA genre but it's hugely enjoyable for adults too.

Thekla is a very strong female character and you certainly don't want to mess with her as she has a knife and she's not afraid to use it.  When her groom doesn't turn up for the wedding, she sets off to Constantinople to find him.  Myrizikos either needs to marry her or break off the betrothal, but Thekla finds that looking for her betrothed is like searching for a needle in a haystack.

What I loved most about this story (apart from Thekla herself) is the real historical figures in the cast of characters.  There is also an actual cast of characters list in the back of the book, which proves really useful as I sometimes lost track of who was who.  I was also delighted to find maps of the Roman Empire and Constantinople at the beginning of the book.

As Thekla is the main character, you could be forgiven for forgetting that this is the Empress Irini series and Irini's part grows bigger as the book progresses.  Irini is another strong female character and again, she is one I wouldn't want to cross.  Irini is married to the Emperor's heir and she is determined to become Empress, despite some devious attempts by other members of the Emperor's household to send her back to Athens.

Entertaining, enlightening and evocative, Betrothal & Betrayal is a wonderfully vivid piece of historical fiction that brings 8th century Constantinople to life and I really enjoyed my virtual visit.  I can't wait to read more of the series to see what happens to Thekla.

I received an ARC to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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About the author:

Janet McGiffin divides her time between her apartment in Manhattan, her family in Washington State, and her friends in Athens, Greece. She was born in Fairfield, Iowa into a newspaper family and learned to write copy as a teenager by writing obituaries for the Ellensburg Daily Record in Washington state. After university, she worked for the Milwaukee Health Department where she gained first-hand knowledge for her best-selling mystery series published by Fawcett Press, NY, featuring Doctor Maxine St. Clair, an ER doctor in an inner-city hospital. She worked as a press officer for the Washington state senate, then moved to Athens, Greece where she wrote grant proposals for small non-profit women’s organizations in Mediterranean countries. She also wrote a humor column for the Athens News newspaper with field archaeologist Adrian Vrettos, wrote two English language easy readers for Cambridge University Press, UK, and a series of hiking articles for greecetravel.com. She researched her Byzantine-era Empress Irini Series through extensive travel in Greece, followed by six months of research at the Bodleian libraries in Oxford, England. She enjoys hiking in Greece, England, Wales, and Scotland.

Instagram: @janetmcgiffinauthor 

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Vile Stars - Sera Milano

How can the things you love hurt so much?

 

17-year-old Luka isn’t looking for love. She’s trying to piece her life back together after a heartbreaking loss. But when she meets the gorgeous and charismatic Cosmo under a meteor shower at the Greenwich Observatory, it feels like destiny has played a hand. Surely theirs is a love written in the stars.

 

But Cosmo isn’t what he seems, using Luka's love for him to slowly take control of her life. As the pandemic starts to make headlines and lockdown sets in, she is trapped emotionally and physically in a coercive relationship. Luka’s friends and brother can see what’s happening, but struggle to reach her. Something will have to be sacrificed so Luka can set herself free – but what will be left of her when she does?

He tells me I’m the only one who can save him. But loving him is stealing the best of me.

 

What did I think?

Vile Stars is a YA novel but you don’t have to be a young adult to read it as my youth is long gone and I absolutely loved it.  

It’s written in the form of letters and a podcast with short paragraphs from different people’s perspectives.  It’s a very modern way to write and it gave the novel a depth I wasn’t expecting as it really feels as if the characters are talking to you.

It starts with a bang in chapter one and you just can’t get the haunting scene out of your mind.  So with the opening chapter in mind, you know how it’s going to end but you just can’t stop reading and hurtling at full speed towards that devastating conclusion.  Sera Milano has perfected the art of the hook as I was completely riveted from start to finish.

This is not a traditional love story; it’s dark and horrifying as Cosmo draws Luka into his web, gradually alienating her from her friends and family.  Luka’s friends never give up on her but Cosmo’s grip is firm and he chips away at Luka’s mind until she is a shadow of her former self.

The story is hard to read at times, although it’s never graphic, it’s more the level of mental abuse that Cosmo inflicts on Luka.  It’s frightening that people don’t see what is happening to them, as their partners are so crafty and conniving.  Cosmo is a vile character and if only one reader recognises their own mentally abusive and controlling partner in him, then Sera Milano’s work here is done.

Fresh, powerful and haunting, Vile Stars is a novel that will stay with me for a very long time.  I really can’t recommend it highly enough.

My rating:

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Ghosted - Emily Barr

Ariel's accidental meeting with a handsome stranger called Joe is completely perfect; they have a connection like she's never known before. They exchange numbers and agree to meet when he is back from a trip to France. But when Ariel messages him, the number Joe gave her is disconnected. He's ghosted her. She assumes she will never see him again.

Except she does. Again and again.

Ariel returns to the place she and Joe met, and is stunned to find him there, not in France as he said he'd be, and behaving as if he has no idea who she is.

It turns out that their first meeting has been life-changing for them both, actually it's even more than that for Joe. But what do you do when - with every day that passes - you're literally growing apart from the best person you've ever known . . . ?

 

What did I think?

Oh my goodness, this beautiful book almost broke me; it’s so emotional and I struggled to hold in my tears at the end.  It’s a highly original love story and a very intriguing mystery that ensures the reader can’t bear to tear their eyes away from the page. 

Officially a YA book, Ghosted can also be read and enjoyed by adults.  Although the characters are teenagers, their age becomes irrelevant as I was swept away with emotion due to the beautiful love story.  I absolutely adored Ariel and Joe, a couple who appear destined to be together despite the years that separate them.

It’s like a cross between Groundhog Day and Ghost as Ariel and Joe meet each other for the first time, over and over again.  Joe went missing before his school trip to France and nobody knows what happened to him.  Ariel is determined to solve the mystery of Joe’s disappearance but in doing so, she might lose him forever.

Ghosted is filled with so much emotion that it is both heartbreaking and heartwarming.  The romance and mystery together is a winning combination and I would absolutely love to see it made into a film.  It’s a book I would read again and I can easily see it becoming a favourite book of mine; one that I will return to again and again to experience the wonderful story within.

My rating:

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You'll Be the Death of Me - Karen M. McManus

From the international bestselling author of One of Us Is Lying comes a brand-new addictive thriller.

Ivy, Mateo and Cal used to be close - best friends back in middle school.

Now all they have in common is a bad day. So for old time's sake they skip school together - one last time.

But when the trio spot Brian 'Boney' Mahoney ditching class too, they follow him - right into a murder scene.

They all have a connection to the victim. And they're ALL hiding something.

When their day of freedom turns deadly, it's only a matter of time before the truth comes out . . .

It's Ferris Bueller's Day Off with murder, perfect for fans of One Of Us Is Lying and A Good Girl's Guide To Murder. This explosive new thriller is impossible to put down.

What did I think?

I already own a few of her books but You’ll Be The Death of Me is the first Karen M. McManus book I have read and I was certainly not disappointed.  It even looks good on the outside with stunning purple spredges!

Although it’s YA fiction as it’s set in and around a school, it holds its own against many of the adult thrillers I have read over the years and I found it gripping, mysterious and entertaining throughout.  

I loved the dynamic between Ivy, Mateo and Cal, who, like every set of teenagers, have been through their ups and downs of friendships blowing hot and cold.  They are each harbouring secrets about their past relationship and this causes extra tension when they are thrust together again (right in the middle of a murder investigation) on the day they decide to skip school.

There’s a lot to untangle in this story but I loved every second of it.  For anyone who has ever loved Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, you will absolutely love this book!  It not only reminded me of this fantastic film but also pays homage to it.  I’m not even sure that Ferris would have got out of this scrape in one piece!

Fast-paced, gripping and hugely entertaining, I loved You’ll Be The Death of Me and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it.

My rating:

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