Tag: Net Galley

Book Recommendation – Everyone On this Train is a Suspect

You may remember that I stumbled on Benjamin Stevenson’s Everyone in my Family Has Killed Someone last year and I just loved it! You can find my review of it here:

Book Recommendation: Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone

I have been waiting a long time for the follow up sequel – Everyone on This Train is a Suspect. Thanks to the good folks at NetGalley and Mariner Books, I was able to read an advance copy of it. It did not disappoint.

The main character of the book is again Ernest Cunningham. In this sequel, he has had great success with his first book (Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone) and comes face to face with some authors who are, well, much better known than he is. Here is the Goodreads synopsis:

Ernest Cunningham returns in a deliciously witty locked room (train) mystery.

When the Australian Mystery Writers’ Society invited me to their crime-writing festival aboard the Ghan, the famous train between Darwin and Adelaide, I was hoping for some inspiration for my second book. Fiction, this time: I needed a break from real people killing each other. Obviously, that didn’t pan out.

The program is a who’s who of crime writing royalty: the debut writer (me!), the forensic science writer, the blockbuster writer, the legal thriller writer, the literary writer, and the psychological suspense writer.

But when one of us is murdered, the remaining authors quickly turn into five detectives. Together, we should know how to solve a crime. Of course, we should also know how to commit one.

How can you find a killer when all the suspects know how to get away with murder?

It is just as entertaining as the first book. Ernest will, as he did in the first book, keep you abreast of things that you need to know. He offers up hints as to what is coming, etc. That was one of the things that I loved about the first book.

We see a bit of insecurity in Ernest this time around. He is the newly successful writer who is now among all of these other writers and he feels that he really doesn’t belong. He feels that way because he really didn’t come up with the story he wrote, he just wrote down what he experienced. He didn’t actually come up with the plot. He feels these other authors are way above his level of writing.

Now, his publisher wants another book from him. We learn fairly quickly that he has – nothing. No idea, no story, no nothing! Well, that is until one of the authors is murdered. The events that unfold on the trip come together and wind up being this story.

Once again, I was guessing right up to the end. Benjamin Stevenson does such a wonderful job in keeping you guessing. I love that we get the thoughts of Ernest and how he speaks directly to the reader at times. How it all plays out and how it all comes together is like wrapping a Christmas present – everything falls into place and it is tied up with a nice ribbon on top. 

I loved it just as much or more than his first book. I truly hope that there might be another book in the future. I enjoyed this so much!

Thanks again to Net Galley and Mariner books for allowing me to read such a wonderful mystery!

Weekend Book Recommendations

With my shift change, my drive is a bit longer because of traffic. It doesn’t bother me, though, because it gives me a bit more time with the audio books I am listening to. The extra time (and extra day’s commute) is also allowing me to get through each book a little faster than before.

A few friends of mine have been on vacation and posting photos on Facebook. Many of the pictures show my friends in hammocks, on the beach, or by a campfire. All of those photos include a book they are reading. So I figured I would post the last couple books I read as suggestions … in case you are looking for something to read this weekend.

Circle of Death – James Patterson and Brian Sitts

Last May I stumbled on the first book of this series and I enjoyed it a lot. It took me back to the Shadow radio shows I used to listen to. I blogged about that book here:

The Shadow Knows!

At the time, I had hoped that there might be a sequel and Circle of Death is it. This one was a bit harder to get into, but that may be because I listened to the audio and didn’t physically read it. The narrator was a bit bland. Over all it was ok. I bet if I had read it instead, I would have liked it more.

Here is the Goodreads synopsis:

When a ruthless killer seeks to overturn the world order, our only hope is vigilante justice.

Since Lamont Cranston – known to a select few as the Shadow – defeated Shiwan Khan and ended his reign of terror over New York one year ago, the city has started to regenerate. But there is evil brewing elsewhere. And this time the entire world is under threat. Which is why Lamont has scoured the globe to assemble a team with unmatched talent.

Only their combined powers can foil an enemy with ambitions and abilities beyond anyone’s deepest fears. As their mission takes them across the globe and into the highest corridors of power – pushing them beyond their limits – can justice prevail?

Just Another Missing Person – Gillian McAllister

Wow! This book was awesome! There were so many twists and turns and I loved every second of it.

I read this one because the author wrote one of the best books I’ve read this year – Wrong Place, Wrong Time. I wrote about it here:

Book Recommendation: Wrong Place, Wrong Time

While I saw some things coming, there were things that blindsided me. It was such a good read.

Here is the Goodreads synopsis:

22-year-old Olivia has been missing for one day…and counting. She was last seen on CCTV, entering a dead-end alley. And not coming back out again.

Julia, the detective heading up the search for Olivia, thinks she knows what to expect. A desperate family, a ticking clock, and long hours away from her husband and daughter. But she has no idea just how close to home this case is going to get.

Because the criminal at the heart of the disappearance has something she never expected. His weapon isn’t a gun, or a knife: it’s a secret. Her worst one. And her family’s safety depends on one thing: Julia must NOT find out what happened to Olivia – and must frame somebody else for her murder.

If you find her, you will lose everything. What would you do?

This clever and endlessly surprising thriller is laced with a smart look at family and motherhood, and cements Gillian McAllister as a major talent in the world of suspense and a master of creating ethical dilemmas that show just how murky the distinction between right and wrong can be.

Other “book” Things

A blogger friend told me about a site called NetGalley. You can request books not yet published and review them on your blog. I signed up and am excited to start reading. There are two books I had on my Amazon Wish List that aren’t due to be published until next year. I requested them hoping to get the chance to read them.

I’ve never really did a “review” before, but I’m sure going to try. Wish me luck with that.

I have three physical books from the library that I am hoping to get done with before they are due. One of them was recommended by my blogger friend, Beth. So far I am loving it and I’ve found myself laughing out loud already.

As always, I would love to hear your recommendations – I’ll add them to my “want to read” list.