3 Quick Reviews – Good Bad Girl, All the Dead Shall Weep, & Where the Dead Sleep

I received this book for free from the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Good Bad Girl by Alice Feeney
Narrator: Katherine Press, Stephanie Racine
Published by Flatiron Books, Macmillan Audio on August 29, 2023
Genres: Fiction / Thrillers / Suspense
Length: 9 hours 20 minutes
Pages: 320
Format: ARC, Audiobook
Source: Publisher
Goodreads
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Sometimes bad things happen to good people, so good people have to do bad things.

Our Queen of Twists, bestselling author of Daisy Darker and Rock Paper Scissors Alice Feeney, returns with another thrilling mystery filled with drama and her trademark surprises.

Twenty years after a baby is stolen from a stroller, a woman is murdered in a care home. The two crimes are somehow linked, and a good bad girl may be the key to discovering the truth.

Edith may have been tricked into a nursing home, but at eighty-years-young, she’s planning her escape. Patience works there, cleaning messes and bonding with Edith, a kindred spirit. But Patience is lying to Edith about almost everything.

Edith’s own daughter, Clio, won’t speak to her. And someone new is about to knock on Clio’s door...and their intentions aren’t good.

With every reason to distrust each other, the women must solve a mystery with three suspects, two murders, and one victim. If they do, they might just find out what happened to the baby who disappeared, the mother who lost her, and the connections that bind them.

In the style of Daisy Darker and Rock Paper Scissors, Good Bad Girl is a thriller in which nobody can be trusted and the twists come fast and furious.

I enjoyed this book! It has been a while since I last picked up any of Alice Feeney’s work so I decided that I should give this book a try. We get several different points of view to sort out but it didn’t take long before I was completely hooked. Edith has been in a care home which is the last place she wants to be. The only thing that she looks forward to is the time that she spends with one of the staff, Patience. In addition to those two POVs, we also meet Clio (Edith’s daughter) and Frankie who is looking for her daughter. There were quite a few twists and turns worked into the story and while I did guess some of them there were enough surprises to hold my interest.

I listened to the audiobook and thought that both of the narrators did a great job with the story. Katherine Press and Stephanie Racine both did a wonderful job of bringing this cast of characters to life and I do believe that having more than one narrator helped since the story contained several different points of view. I thought that both narrators had very pleasant voices which complimented each other’s nicely. I am certain that their performance only added to my enjoyment of the story. I would not hesitate to recommend this book to others and look forward to reading more of Alice Feeney’s work in the future.

I received a digital review copy of this book from Macmillan Audio and Flatiron Books.

I received this book for free from the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

All the Dead Shall Weep by Charlaine Harris
Series: Gunnie Rose #5
Published by Gallery Books on September 5, 2023
Genres: Fiction / Fantasy / Dark Fantasy
Pages: 256
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
Goodreads
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#1 New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author returns with the fifth installment in the bestselling Gunnie Rose series as sisters Lizbeth Rose and Felicia as well as brother Eli and Peter, are reunited in Texoma only to break apart before the Wizard’s Ball held in San Diego, which will determine all their fates.

Following the murderous events of the “gripping…thrill-ride” (Karin Slaughter) Serpent of Heaven, Lizbeth Rose is awaiting the arrival of her sister Felicia and her husband’s younger brother Eli in Texoma. Both needed to leave the seat of the Holy Russian Empire in San Diego after Felicia’s burgeoning wizardly power in death magic became the reason for kidnapping and assassination attempts from her mother’s family of high-powered wizards in Mexico.

Yet bad news has traveled ahead of them, as Eli is called back to San Diego, taking Peter along with him, splitting them apart in more ways than one as their enemies’ plans for revenge come to fruition. In this fifth installment in the beloved and bestselling Gunnie Rose series, #1 New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Charlaine Harris has crafted a family drama of murderous and magical thrills.

I had a great time with this book! Since the previous book in the series was told entirely from Felicia’s point of view, I expected that this book would be as well. I was pleasantly surprised to find that this book is told from Lizbeth’s point of view in addition to Felicia’s. Felicia and Peter travel to Texoma to visit with Lizbeth and Eli only for trouble to come to town almost immediately. Eli and Peter decide to follow the men who shot up their town only to find themselves in deeper trouble.

I found this installment to be rather exciting. Lizbeth is going through some difficult things in this book and my heart hurt for her more than a little bit. All four of these characters find themselves facing dangerous situations and I couldn’t wait to see exactly how things would work out for them. They are dealing with changes in their personal life at the same time that they are facing almost impossible odds which only makes the situation more difficult. There were a few things that happened that I believe will have a big impact on future books. I do recommend this series to others but I would definitely suggest starting with the first book. I have had a lot of fun getting to know this wonderful group of characters and enjoyed the alternative world that this author has created. I cannot wait to see what might happen next!

I received a digital review copy of this book from Gallery Books.

I received this book for free from the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Where the Dead Sleep by Joshua Moehling
Narrator: LInda Jones
Series: Ben Packard #2
Published by Dreamscape Media LLC, Poisoned Pen Press on August 15, 2023
Genres: Fiction / Thrillers / Suspense
Length: 9 hours 56 minutes
Pages: 320
Format: Audiobook
Source: Publisher
Goodreads
Amazon | Audible | B&N | Kobo | Libro.fm

"One of the best new voices in the mystery genre." —William Kent Krueger, New York Times bestselling author

"Observant and authentic (and funny, too)...the literary descendant of Fargo and Mare of Easttown." —Adam White, bestselling author of The Midcoast

A small town's dark secrets turn deadly...

When an early morning call brings Deputy Ben Packard to the scene of a home invasion, he finds Bill Sandersen shot in his bed. Bill was a well-liked local who chased easy money his whole life, leaving bad debts and broken hearts in his wake. Everyone Packard talks to has a story about Bill, but no one has a clear motive for wanting him dead. The business partner. The ex-wife. The current wife. The high-stakes poker buddies. Any of them—or none of them—could be guilty.

As the investigation begins, tragedy strikes the Sheriff's department, forcing Packard to make a difficult choice about his future: step down as acting Sheriff and pursue the quiet life he came to Sandy Lake in search of, or subject himself to the scrutiny of an election for the full-time role of Sheriff, a job he's not sure he wants.

There's a hidden history to Sandy Lake that Packard, ever the outsider, can't see. Bad blood and old secrets run deep. But an attempt on Packard's life means he's getting uncomfortably close to the dangerous legacy of the quiet Minnesota town. And someone will do anything to keep it hidden.

I thought that this was really good! This is the second book in the Ben Packard series and I can assure you that it reads perfectly fine as a stand-alone since I had no idea that it was part of a series until I sat down to write this review. I liked this one well enough that I would certainly like to go back and check out the first one as soon as time permits.

Acting Sherriff Ben Packard is called to the scene of a murder early in this book. The victim was found shot in his bed in an apparent robbery. His wife heard the gunshot but didn’t see the perpetrator. The victim led a rather complicated life and the story took us in several directions in trying to solve this case. While all of this is going on, Ben must decide whether to run for the permanent position of sheriff or go back to being a detective. He isn’t sure if he has a chance of winning an election because he isn’t sure that the town will vote for him due to his sexuality. I loved that the mystery was able to keep me guessing and I really grew to like Ben both as a character and as a detective.

Linda Jones does a wonderful job with the narration of this book. I thought that she did a wonderful job of bringing this cast of characters to life by adding just the right amount of emotion to her reading. I liked the voices that she used for the various characters and believe that her performance only added to my overall enjoyment. I would definitely recommend this book to others and hope to read more of this author’s work very soon.

I received a digital review copy of this book from Dreamscape Media.

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