Category: Leaves Books

What You Never Knew – Jessica Hamilton

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Would you return to a family-owned island 30 years after an event that ripped your family apart? In Jessica Hamilton’s new psychological thriller What You Never Knew, Jane Bennett did just that….

When she was a child, June Bennett‘s family spent their summers on Avril Island in Lake Champlain. The Island had been gift to Avril Bennett from her new husband.

This family tradition ended tragically one night when June‘s father abruptly left his family. Now 30 years after that night, June discovers what she was told about her father‘s abrupt exit from their family may not have been the truth.

After the tragic death of her older sister May and her mother, June discovers that contrary to what she and May were told by their mother Avril Island was never sold after the family split apart!

So to help overcome her depression regarding the deaths and get her life back on track, June returns to Avril Island.

When she returns she discovers that the son of the  family’s handyman West Keen, has in fact, been taking care of their cottage. It seems that West also left the Island just ten days after Jane‘s father left his family.

Are the two disappearances connected?? The more June digs into the past the more she discovers there are “things she never knew“

About What You Never Knew

What You Never Knew is Jessica  Hamilton‘s debut as a novelist. She was born in Australia but grew up and resides in Canada. The book was published by Crooked Lane Books in April of 2021.

Thoughts About What You Never Knew

Overall, I thought What You Never Knew was a really good novel. The characters were well developed and there was a lot to like with each one.

Hamilton uses two narrators to tell the story. And while I’m not a fan of alternating narrators it works in this book. The narrators are June and her sister May (or May‘s spirit). It works because while May doesn’t know all that happened that night behause she has repressed those memories. she does know more than June.

Another aspect of the book, that bothered me. was the fact that June went to the Island ALONE! Then when she first visits the cottage it’s like they left it yesterday! It was 30 years…..no way these days the electrical and or pipes etc would still be in that house!

Then when Ezra Keen son of the handyman West shows up and it explains he has been taking care of and watching the place, I guess I felt better.

Overall, I found What You Never Knew a  well pace novel with a strong storyline and well-developed characters.

Sister Dear’s author Hannah Mary McKinnon‘s comment on the back cover of the box sums it up pretty well for me

Eerie and compulsive..this debut had me riveted right from the start. Well plotted and with  beautifully drawn characters, this is an excellent read.

Recommended to…..

Through the years What You Never Knew was not The type of book I normally read. My reads were manually either action thrillers from authors like Robert Ludlum , Brad Thor and Vince Flynn, or detective/private eye mysteries from folks like Janes Le Burke, William G Tapply or Lawrence Block.

However, lately I have read several psychological thrillers with involving families. So if I were recommending this book to othersI,  guess I would recommend it to fans of; Mary Kubica, Liv Constantine, Joshilyn Jackson and another new author Taylor Adams., and many more authors of this ilk unknown to me!!

My Rating

The Goodreads rating for this book was 3.77 out of 5. My Rating on Goodreads was 4.00 but if I could break it down farther it would probably be 3.85 or so. Really good but those little things still bother me somewhat. But I will still be on the lookout for Jessica Hamilton’s next book!

Links for the Further Exploration of the Books of Jessica Hamilton

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The Wife Stalker – Liv Constantine

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 Ok so I guess it’s time to put to rest the idea that abbook like The Wife Stalker is not the type of book I typically read. I guess it’s more appropriate to say it’s one of the various types of books I read. In fact I’ve read more of these types of books than science fiction so far the year.

The Wife Stalker is a fine Psychological Thriller. There are no serial killers lurking in its pages just two women fighting over one family. One a young woman Piper Reynard  has experienced tragedies in her life. And she is trying to create a new life with a husband who comes with two children. The other Joanna is trying to save her marriage and protect her husband and those same two children.

The Wife Stalker is composed of alternating chapters written from the point of view both Piper and Joanna. Throughout the book Piper struggles trying to get her new step-children  to accept her. While Joanna tries to dig into Piper‘s past to prove she is not who she says she is and is actually a threat to the children.

Throughout  the book I found myself rooting for both women. I felt sorry for Piper as she struggle with her new stepchildren. While her actions left me wondering if she was a threat to them. And what Joana was discovering lex. To to wonder if Piper really wasn’t who she said she was.

The results of  both Joanna‘s search and Piper‘s actions led me to believe the book was not going to end  well for anyone. Boy was I wrong. Wait for it! You won’t  be disappointed.

The Bottom Line 

The bottom line is The Wife Stalker is a very good psychological thriller. I am starting to learn there is a difference between action thrillers, which I am a big fan of, and psychological thrillers, a genre of which  I am learning to become a fan.

The Wife Stalker a 2020 release is the third book by Liv Constantine. Liv Constantine, I learned from reading the cover of this book, is the pen name sisters Lynne and Valerie Constantine. Anyway I will be checking out their other two books The Last Mrs. Parrish and The Last Time I Saw You.

Book 41 of 2021

Links for the Further Exploration of the Novels of Liv Constantine

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A Good Kill from John McMahon. Book 3 in a Great Series!

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Ok so I had started this post as a welcome back post, but Ill’ll save that doesn’t the next post let’s just get back to the mysteries. And here’s a good one…….


A Good Kill (Detective P.T. Marsh #3)

Today I finished A Good Kill by John McMahon.  It is book 40 for 2021 and book 3 in McMahon’s Detective P.T.Marsh series. I read The Good Detective, the first book in the series in December of 2020 and book two The Evil Men Do in February of this year.

The Story

P.T. Is a detective with the Mason Falls police department in northern Georgia. In this instalment P.T.and his partner Remy Martin are called to a Magnet school in Mason Falls where a potentially active shooter is holding three students and a teacher hostage in the Art Room.

The shooter has already killed one teacher. Soon P.T. has the shooter in his crosshairs….should he take the shot?   A call from the Georgia governor to whom Marsh owes a favor and a threatening move by the shooter results in an answer of yes. It was a “good Kill right? It’s question that haunts P.T.for the rest of the book.

After  the shooting case is turned over to the Feds, P.T. and Remy are assigned to a double homicide investigation. In addition P.T is still haunted by the murder (made to look like an accident) off his wife and son. Marsh is still trying to find who hired his wife’s killer and why?

My Thoughts on John McMahon and the P.T.Marsh Series

I have really  really enjoyed all three of the books in this series! I guess that’s why I’ve read all three in around seven months! Everything about these books is terrific. Both the characters and the storylines are interesting, suspenseful and believable.

So Check Them Out IN ORDER!! As for me, I’ll have to wait until 2022 when John MCMahon will be introducing a new character!

Series Links

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About John McMahon

The Residence -Andrew Pyper – A Haunted White House!

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So this morning I didn’t do my typical workout first thing. Instead I finished reading The Residence by Andrew Pyper. It’s the first book I’ve read by Pyper and the 27th book I’ve read in 2021.

About Andrew Pyper

Andrew Pyper is a Canadian author hailing from Stratford, Ontario. He has a B.A. and M.A. in English Literature from McGill University, He also has a law degree from the University of Toronto. However , he has never practiced law.

His novel, The Demonologist, won the 2014 International Thriller Writers Award for Best Hardcover Novel, and was a #1 bestseller in Canada.

The Residence is his 11th novel and the 5th published  by Simon & Shuster.

About The Residence

The Residence is a ghost story set in the White House during the administration of Franklin Pierce. While I never really found the book overly scary, I did find the overall story intriguing.

Franklin Pierce is one of the Presidents that you don’t really learn a lot about in school. I had read previously about the Pierce’s losing their son Benjamin (Bennie) in a train accident  It’s Bennie’s death and Jean Pierce’s attempts to contact him in  the afterlife that is central to the story.

While I didn’t love the book I did find it an interesting read. When I was in the middle of the book I decided I wanted to know more about Franklin and his wife and family. So I googled “best books about Franklin Pierce”. There are only a couple of biographies the most recent was written by Michael Holt and is part of The American President Series. So I checked at my library for the book and it’s on its way to me!

Summarizing, The Residence was for me an ok read (3/5 stars). It kept me interested to the end but didn’t provide a lot of scary moments. However, there were a few thought provoking moments about slavery and the creation of our nation. So check it out! As for me, I’ll be checking out some of Pyper’s other books.

Finally,  I was going to write about the rest of my morning in this post. However,  since I went on and on about The Residence I think I’ll post this and tell you about my morning in my next post!

Links for the Further Exploration of the Books of Andrew Pyper.

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Romeo’s Way (Mike Romeo #2) – James Scott Bell

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…..

Romeo’s Way -James Scott Bell
Book 22 – Romeo’s Way (Mike Romeo #2) – James Scott Bell

Through the years I have had many of my favorite mystery and thriller characters whom I liked because of their wise-cracking and  often times self-deprecating nature. Mike Romeo has joined that group. In fact, he may be the current leader of the group! And with his espousing of philosophical quotes, he may be in a group all by himself. For me he may be the most interesting character in the mystery genre.

In Romeo’s Way, Mike is hired by a political candidate, who is being accused by his opponent, of having an affair. Mike is tasked with going undercover and joining the opposition’s campaign team to discover what’s happening. And the path leading to the final solution is a wild twisting one!

Romeo’s Way was a quick read. It was a well interesting throughout the book so the pages just flew by.

When I went to store the book on my Goodreads shelf I saw that Romeo’s Way was the winner of the International Thriller Writers Award for beat e-book original. In my opinion it is a well-deserved award.

Additionally, while I have several books on my “to be read” library shelf, I wouldn’t be surprised if I snuck Romeo’s Hammer  book #3 in the series into the mix!! So Check it out!

Links for the Further Exploration of the Writing of James Scott Bell

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A former trial lawyer associated with one of L.A.’s top law firms and later working out of an independent office, JAMES SCOTT BELL is now a full-time, award-winning suspense writer. He lives and writes in Los Angeles. You can visit his website at www.jamessottbell.com.

Ragnar Jonasson -The Darkness -Hidden Iceland #1 Starts a Thrilling Series!

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The Darkness - Ragnar Jonasson

My first introduction to the works of Ragnar Jonasson was Nightblind. I read Nightblind in 2018 and while i was reading book 2 in the series, the series was already up to book #5. Additionally, Ragnar started a second series in 2018 the Hidden Island series. That series was up to book #3 in 2021 when I read The Darkness.. Anyway, as I discovered the books I got really confused about what book number I read in what series! Here is book ! in the Hidden Iceland Series The Darkness

The Darkness

The Darkness features Detective Inspector Hulda Hermannsdóttir of the Reykjavík police. A 64 year-old widow she is waiting out her time until she can retire at 65. However, her employers have other ideas and soon Hulda is forced into an early retirement. She is given two weeks to go home and wait until her official retirement begins.

Rather than being allowed to  continue to work  on her caseload, she is told she can work on a cold case of her choice.

Hulda chooses the case of a young Russian woman whose body had washed up on an Icelandic shore a year earlier. A cursory investigation was completed. The death was declared a suicide and the case is quietly closed.

As Hulda starts to dig into the case, she quickly realizes it may not have been a suicide but rather a murder.

As the novel progresses the reader is provided two parallel story lines told in flashbacks

One story line involves a mother who had to place her illegitimate baby daughter in a care facility because she couldn’t afford to take care of her. And their struggles throughout the child’s life.

The other story is about a young women who is taken on a trip to an isolated and dangerous valley in the Icelandic mountains.

All three converge to provide a very dramatic ending to The Darkness.

Gregg Hurwitz’s writes on the cover of The Darkness ..” I dare you not to be shocked” and I do too !!

Final Thoughts 

The bottom line – I really liked the book. I thought Hulda’s character the was both interesting and well developed. Additionally, I also know that I had some of the same feelings as I approached and moved into retirement. Now, I can’t wait to move onto The Island and The Mist


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About Ragnar Jonasson

Ragnar Jonasson is author of the award winning and international bestselling Dark Iceland series.

His debut Snowblind, first in the Dark Iceland series, went to number one in the Amazon Kindle charts shortly after publication. The book was also a no. 1 Amazon Kindle bestseller in Australia. Snowblind has been a paperback bestseller in France.

Nightblind won the Dead Good Reader Award 2016 for Most Captivating Crime in Translation.

Snowblind was called a “classically crafted whodunit” by THE NEW YORK TIMES, and it was selected by The Independent as one of the best crime novels of 2015 in the UK.

 

 

My August Reads Start in Spain with Peter May’s A Silent Death

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While on many days in August it was too hot to run, I did get a lot of books read! I read six books in August and while that’s not a lot for many readers it’s a good amount for me.

One of the questions I like to ask, when I’m summarizing the books I’ve read is: “where did my reading take me?”. Well in August it was to a variety of locales, including outer space. My first stop was southern Spain!

A Silent Death - Peter May

A Silent Death – Peter May

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I requested this book from my library in January of 2020. Thanks to Covid 19 and the subsequent closing of the library, the book didn’t become available  until July. Which is why it is an August read.

About A Silent Death

In A Silent Death Peter May took me to Spain. The book opens with John Mackenzie – an ingenious yet irascible Glaswegian investigator being sent to Spain to transport a known ex-pat fugitive Jack Cleland back to the U.K.

Cleland had been living in Spain under an assumed name. He was captured when police arrived at his home, they thought someone had broken in. When the police arrive and  they enter the house the Cleland accidentally kills his pregnant wife. He then blames the young female arresting officer and vows revenge!

Prior to MacKenzie’s arrival Cleland escapes while being transported and vows to destroy the young officer Cristina Sanchez Pradell and her family.

An important member of Cristina’s family is her Aunt Ana. Anna has been deaf-blind for the entirety of her adult life: the victim of a rare condition named Usher Syndrome. Ana is the centre of Cristina’s world therefore  a key paw  in Cleland’s cruel plan.

Mackenzies quest becomes thwarting Cleland’s plan before he destroys Christina life and that of her beloved Aunt.

Thoughts About Peter May and A Silent Death

Peter May is one of my favorite authors. I particularly liked his Lewis Trilogy set in the Outer Hebrides Islands of Scotland. As well as, his more recent stand alone novels. His writing is always terrific and his stories original and exciting. Additionally his characters always memorable. John Mackenzie, Ana and to a certain extent Cleland join that group.

I enjoyed A Silent Death a lot. However, I would say it ranks below a few of his other stand-alones like Runaway, Entry Island and Coffin Road in my opinion. Of course, if I think about it longer, I’ll probably change my mind!

The bottom line any book by Peter May is well worth reading. So  Check it Out!

Next stop the Mediterranean Sea and Greenland as James Rollins’ and his Sigma Force take me on  The Last Odyssey. Ok

Links for Further Exploration of the Books of Peter May

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Nightblind – Ragnar Jonasson – Dark Island #2 an Outstanding Trip to Iceland

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Originally posted in December 2018 -updated Nov 2025

Nightblind is the second book in Ragnar Jonnasson’s Dark Iceland series. It is the first book by Jonasson that I have read. Since the I have read 4 out of the 6 books in the series. It seems that I am constantly re

Siglufjörður - the setting - Nightblind- Ragnar Jonasson

The Story

Siglufjörður is an isolated village only accessible via a small mountain tunnel. The small close-knit town is one where no one locks their doors. In Nightblind their world is rocked when a policeman is killed at a quiet house with a disturbing past.

The murdered officer was Ari Thór’s partner. Thor would have been on-duty the night of the murder but he had called out sick. Thor and the town’s former police chief are tasked with the job of unraveling the mystery. It’s complex mystery involving the compromised new mayor. Along the way the reader is also given glimpses of a psychiatric ward in Reykjavik where a patient writes about his confinement and the reason for it!

My Thoughts

All in all, it was a good visit. I enjoyed both the plot and the characters. Nightblind is the second book in Jonasson’s  Dark Iceland series.and you can bet I’ll be visiting Iceland again. First, to find out what happened prior to Nightblind in Snowblind and then after in Blackout! I can’t wait.

Ragnar Jonasson – “IS THIS THE BEST CRIME WRITER IN THE WORLD TODAY?” (THE TIMES) // “NEXT-GEN NORDIC STAR” (LA TIMES)

After visiting Ragnar’s website I discovered the following

Nightblind has won the 2016 Mörda Award – Dead Good Reader Award for Most Captivating Crime in Translation. Nightblind, translated by Quentin Bates and published by Orenda Books, is is the second book in the Dark Iceland series to be published in the UK.

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About Ragnar Jonasson

Jonasson is author of the award winning and international bestselling Dark Iceland series.

His debut Snowblind, first in the Dark Iceland series, went to number one in the Amazon Kindle charts shortly after publication. The book was also a no. 1 Amazon Kindle bestseller in Australia. Snowblind has been a paperback bestseller in France.

Nightblind won the Dead Good Reader Award 2016 for Most Captivating Crime in Translation.

Snowblind was called a “classically crafted whodunit” by THE NEW YORK TIMES, and it was selected by The Independent as one of the best crime novels of 2015 in the UK.

Rights to the Dark Iceland series have been sold to UK, USA, France, Germany, Italy, Canada, Australia, Poland, Turkey, South Korea, Japan, Morocco,”’

Goodreads

 

  • The Mörda Award was a specific category within the Dead Good Reader Awards, celebrating the best in translated crime fiction. The Dead Good Reader Awards were annual, public-voted prizes for crime and thriller novels, presented during the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate, UK. 
  • Purpose: To recognize and celebrate a captivating crime novel that has been translated into English.
  • Winner example: In 2016, the Mörda Award for Captivating Crime in Translation was won by Ragnar Jonasson’s Nightblind,

Loner by Hildur Sif Thorarensen. Everything You’d Want in a Nordic Mystery!

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NSo over the last several days,, after finishing Steve Hamilton’s Dead Man Running, I have finished two more books. The first was Loner by Hildur Sif Thorarensen. It is her debut novel and will be book #1 in the Oslo Mysteries series.

About Hildur Sif Thorarensen.

Hildur was born in Iceland but is currently living in Norway. Although, spending most of her adult years at the University, she’s been writing ever since she was a little girl and alongside Medical studies and a Master’s in Engineering, has also taken a year in Creative Writing.

Loner was written in Iceland and published in 2016. The English version of the book was published this year. Currently, she is writing the sequel. The sequel is to be concurrently published in both Icelandic and English. The anticipated release date is to be in early 2019. I for one can not wait.

About Loner

 

Loner, a police procedural finds  Oslo police detectives searching for a gruesome serial killer. From Amazon

Which is worse, trying to catch a cunning killer leaving decapitated women in the woods, or trying to tame an unconventional forensic psychiatrist that seems determined to go his own way?

The Oslo autumn is creeping in with its cold spells and Homicide Detective Julia Ryland is feeling pretty content with her team of three, but when the FBI behavioral analyst, Alexander Smith, is thrust upon her, the crisp autumn air doesn’t feel as refreshing anymore. A young Icelander is found dead, an arrow piercing his heart and the extensive list of his former lovers suggests that many long nights are ahead. The murdered lothario suddenly becomes the least of their problems as headless corpses start appearing in the woods, positioned in terrifying ways and on their bodies they find messages that don’t seem to have any meaning at all.

My Thoughts

 

Loner reminds me of several of the police procedural that I read. It’s like Bosch where Bosch is kind of the lone wolf and there are other detectives working on the case. In this case the odd man Alexander Smith is not a detective. He instead is a forensic psychologist. That makes him even more of an outsider, who needs to prove himself. He also has just moved to Norway. His mother is Norwegian and his father American. When his parents divorced his mom mother back to Norway.Alexander often visited but now has moved back to help her with her illness

.Alexander’s boss is Julia Ryland the head detective trying to hold the team together. Other team members are Hercules and Eric each with their own problems. Together they are an interesting cast of characters. Additionally, you can add the  serial killer to the cast of interesting characters. He was a stuttering member of the Jehovah’s Witnesses.

Loner’s plot was consistently interesting and the pace of its unfolding kept me turning the pages rapidly. The ending of the book was satisfying and left me ready for the next installment! I think Tara Sariban of Bloody Murder Podcast sums up Loner nicely…

An atmospheric thriller with a heavy dose of humour that will have you laughing and full of suspense at the same time. The surprising plot developments made it impossible to put down!

Michael Koryta – How It Happened is a Winner!

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How It Happened - Michael Koryta

Originally posted June 2018 Revised Updated April 2026

A Goodreads friend always opens her reviews with the first sentence of the book being reviewed. I thought of her, when I started Michael Koryta’s latest book.

First Sentence: I’d never seen him before the day we killed him.

The Story

That statement comes from the confession of. Kimberly Crepeaux to the double murder of Jackie Pelletier and Ian Kelly in the Maine town of Port Hope. Kimberly gave her confession to FBI special agent Rob Barrett. Barrett had been assigned the case because of his interview skills. Additionally, he has past connections to Post Hope. Barrett spent his summers with his grandfather in the town and his former girlfriend reporter Liz Smith lives nearby.

In her confession Kimberly told Barrett how the murders happened. According to Kimberly, the  murders happened on a night when she was cruising with Cass Odom and Mathias Burke. The trio is drunk and high when they kill Jackie accidentally. They then murdered Ian, the only witness to the crime. 

Because Burke was hard-working owner of a lawn and house care service and Kimberly a druggie, no one in town except Barrett, believed Kimberly’s story.  All Barrett needs to close the case are the bodies.

At this point I don’t want to give away more of the plot but two questions arise.

First, Will finding the bodies confirm Kimberly’s story?  

Secondly, Will not finding the bodies destroy Barrett’s career? All BECAUSE he still believes her story?

Bottom Line:  

I have read many of Koryta’s books both his stand alone novels like The Program and Those Who Wish Me Dead. along with several of his Lincoln Perry series books. And they are all good reads.

However, I think I like this one the most. I just loved the way the story flowed. When I first started the book which begins with Kimberly’s confession, I thought where does he go from here. Well, from there he spun a wonderful tale. A tale that proved you may think you have it all figured out,but in reality you don’t know jack!!

The bottom line Is that Michael Koryta’s books keep getting better and better. And  in my opinion How It Happened may be his best work yet! Additionally, I think he may have created in Rob Barrett and Liz Smith characters that we may see again. At least I hope so. Actually, I hope we will see Lincoln Perry and Mark Novak (Rise the Dark and Last words) again!

Here’s what author Nelson DeMille writes about How It Happened.…

“Michael Koryta is one hell of a writer, and HOW IT HAPPENED is one hell of a murder mystery. It’s a tribute to Koryta’s craftsmanship and skill that the reader…can’t put the book down until the last layer of the onion is peeled away to reveal the truth at the core of this gripping tale…. A remarkable achievement that rises high above the genre.”

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Michael Koryta

About Michael Koryta

Michael Koryta is a New York Times-bestselling author whose work has been translated into more than 20 languages and has won or been nominated for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, Edgar® Award, Shamus Award, Barry Award, Quill Award, International Thriller Writers Award, and the Golden Dagger. They’ve been selected as “best books of the year” by numerous publications.

 

Visit the Michael Koryta Page