Dangerous Girls

Dangerous Girls
by Abigail Haas
Published by Simon Pulse
400 pages
Genre: mystery, New Adult, literature
Thanks to edelweiss for the preview
5 / 5


Faithful readers, you need to give me a moment or two to collect myself, because this book - THIS BOOK.

Crikey.

I don't know how to discuss it without giving away things, so if you want to go in completely clean and know nothing, then quit reading now, go buy a copy, and come back. Seriously. I want everyone who reads this book - and that better be ALL OF YOU - to come back and discuss it in the Comments Section. I haven't wanted to talk about a book this much since Gone Girl.

I will warn you before I get to anything that is seriously spoiler-ish. Otherwise, there may be a few mild spoilers contained herein.

Do you find yourself getting caught up in televised court cases, particularly the armchair analysts who proclaim they can read body language of the jurors (or even the defendant) and whose opinions influence ours? Even dangerously so? And what about those defendants? What do we make of them? How can we tell if they're truly innocent or guilty? Or could it be that they fall in that nebulous area of "not guilty"?

Abigail Haas tells the story Anna Chevalier and a group of fellow high school seniors, students at a hoity-toity Boston private school, who head to Aruba for spring break. It's their last vacation together before college, and the kids just want to cut loose and have some fun. As we get to know them, though, we discover that they tend to be the cutting loose and having fun sort of crowd, so Aruba seems almost superfluous.

But anyway.

While there, Elise, Anna's best - and I mean BEST - friend gets murdered, and the police start looking at Anna and her friends. They ultimately charge Anna and her boyfriend Tate, and Anna begins to fight for her freedom. She quickly realizes that everyone, including, apparently, Tate, thinks she's guilty of murdering her bestie. But Anna resolutely professes her innocence. She is determined to be found innocent, even in the face of an increasingly large mountain of evidence against her.

When we read books that are narrated by a character, we have to ask ourselves if the narrator is reliable or not. Agatha Christie addressed this in The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, when we found out that our narrator withheld important information from us. It is crucial that we believe Anna. She needs us to believe in her innocence. If she can't convince us, how can she convince the judge? But even though she is the narrator, Anna's is not the only perspective we have. We also get transcripts of news shows that analyze everything about Anna, from her in-court demeanor to how she acted after learning of Elise's murder, to even how she appears when walking in the prison yard. But can we take them seriously? I mean, we all saw those photos of Amanda Knox canoodling with her boyfriend after the two supposedly committed murder. Amanda says they were comforting each other during a stressful time. The TV shows said it was proof of callousness. We have to believe Anna. We simply must.

The problem is that Anna is not all that likable. Really, no one is in this book, aside from Anna's father and legal team. Neither Anna nor any of her friends are what you'd call "good people." They are spoiled, self-involved, over entitled teenagers who are selfish to a fault. This actually helps us believe Anna, though, because she knowingly reveals herself, including her considerable arsenal of negative characteristics. She is, in a word, a bitch. A very big one. Her friendship with Elise is all consuming to her; Elise sort of rescues Anna, and Anna's gratitude is complete. But it's also reciprocated. Elise is as obsessed with Anna as Anna is with her. When Anna begins dating Tate, it naturally creates friction. I thought this was exceptionally well done by Abigail Haas, who nails the teen angst and jealousy that abound when one friend falls in love and the other does not.

Anna unfolds her story with flashbacks, including the first day she meets Elise. We see the progression of their friendship, as we also see the progression of Anna's trial. She is stunned that people believe she murdered a girl whose friendship was her life. We feel for her when she is betrayed, we become increasingly anxious as the trial progresses, desperate for Anna to be found innocent.

The thing is, there are no innocent people here. Even Anna seems to recognize that. She acknowledges that everyone played a part in Elise's death, even if they didn't kill her. As she tells her story, Anna - perhaps unwittingly - puts her and her friends' lifestyle and mores under inspection. Weren't they asking for trouble, to some extent? As Anna observes about another character, all that perfection has to go somewhere, doesn't it? What happens when it becomes too much, when the effort to keep everything the way you want it proves futile?

Do you find out whodunit? Yes, you do. Will you be surprised? Let me just say that there are a few plot twists, but if you read carefully, one of them won't shock you, but another one (or two) could. As for the identity of the murderer, clues are dropped. But I think you will be shocked at who it is.

And that's when I want you to come back and discuss. Please tell me. Did you see? Did you know? And do you think that there was a certain relationship there?

I really liked this one, kids. I really, really did. It isn't perfect - there are a couple of gaps and some consistency issues - but it will grip you by the throat and not let up until you turn the last page.

The Why of Things

The Why of Things
by Elizabeth Hartley Winthrop
Published by Simon & Schuster
320 pages
Genre: literature
Thanks to edelweiss for the preview
5 / 5


The unspoken arrangement between parent and child is that the child will bury the parent. Not the other way around. When any child dies, it is sad and heartbreaking, and we find ourselves left asking "why."

The Jacobs family faces this question as they continue to grieve the death of eldest daughter Sophie, nearly a year earlier. We slowly come to understand how Sophie died, but we, like her parents and two sisters, keep asking why.

The family is forced to face the whys when they arrive at their summer home in Gloucester. Within minutes, fifteen-year-old Eve, now the oldest daughter, finds tire tracks that lead into the water-filled quarry across the street. Rescue vehicles arrive, but they take too long for Eve, who eyes the air bubbles with increasing desperation.

It is this death, of a stranger named James Favazza, that forces the Jacobses to rip off the thin scab that started to form over the wound left by Sophie's death. Each member of the family adjusts / grieves / survives in his or her own way, and James's death reveals those differences to them.

Anders Jacobs attempts to make peace with his daughter's death by burrowing into security. He protects his heart by unintentionally distancing himself from his wife Joan and daughters Eve and Eloise. He's there, he's around, but he is not present. When Joan gives him a series of scuba diving lessons, Anders is loath to take them. They make him uncomfortable. He attempts to answer the "why" by tracking down an address he found crumpled in a trash can in Sophie's room.

Knowing that another mother lost her child, Joan finds herself drawn to James Favazza's mother. Even as she worries that James's mother will judge her, Joan is convinced the two will understand each other. She can't understand her husband, although she thinks she does, and she needs to understand someone.

Eve's process is raw and realistic. Alternating between anger with her sister and deep sadness, Eve wants to prove that James's death was not suicide or an accident. She's convinced it was murder, and she sets out to prove it.

Seven-year-old Eloise adjusts in a different way. When she finds dead animals, she wants them buried. She insists on it.

As we discover the details behind Sophie's death, we learn less about James's. The message here is clear and unflinching: we may never know the whys, much less understand them. We are called to live, however, and to do so, we must learn to accept that unanswered whys are a part of life.

This book ... oh, this book. It is so lyrically and evocatively written that you will feel a loss when it's over. You get to know the characters so well, and you find yourself wanting to throw an arm around them and comfort them. It seems strange to say I enjoyed a book about adjusting to life after the death of a child, but I did. It's just so good.

Winthrop does not shy away from the tough questions. She may not answer them, but that's part of the lesson you learn.

Entwined with You

Entwined with You (Crossfire, Book 3)
by Sylvia Day
Published by Berkley Trade
368 pages
Genre: erotica, romance
3.5 / 5


Gideon Cross.

Those two words ought to stir your quiver, girls. If they don't, then you need to begin here (Bared to You), continue here (Reflected in You, which I just realize I have never reviewed ... must fix that). You need to connect with Gideon Cross, who puts the MAN in man.

For reals.

As a caution: this review will include information from the first two books, so if you haven't read them, stop what you're doing and READ THEM. Then come back, read this review, and go get a copy of Entwined with You.

When last we left Eva and Gideon (le swoon), they were facing their next step together after Gideon murdered the man responsible for abusing and terrorizing Eva. This one picks up right after that, as our happy couple navigates those stormy waters.

The murder pops up here and there in this book, and the threat it poses for Gideon and Eva looms over them throughout. Other issues come into play as well, and by "other issues," I mean, "too damn many." At one point, Eva even wonders what else can happen to her and Gideon, pointing out that every time they start to gain some equilibrium, something - or someone - comes on the attack.

I had issues with Eva in Bared to You. I thought she took off running too quickly, and I could not see what Gideon found so attractive about her. In fact, I asked Sylvia Day that very question on Twitter and was told that Gideon saw some of himself in Eva. Both were victims of sexual abuse, both were protective of their hearts, both enjoyed some frisky relationships in the past.

In this book, I finally came to love Eva. She is firmly on Gideon's side, and she appreciates him and what he brings to her life. In one scene, she reacts with her typical knee-jerk reflex, but as she examines what has pissed her off, she comes to see that Gideon wants nothing more than to protect her and make her happy. The "old" Eva would have taken off and run. This Eva sticks around.

Oh, she does run at one point, but not so much from Gideon as from herself. She isn't fleeing their relationship or him, but rather trying to make peace with a mistake she believes she made.

We continue to learn more about Gideon and Eva, and we continue to love that hunka hunka burnin' love that is Gideon Cross.

Which brings me to the sex scenes.

Strap on your vibrators, girls. It might just be possible that Sylvia Day has outdone herself.

There is loads (no pun intended) of hot headboard rockin' in this book. One particularly memorable interlude takes place on Gideon's plane, and it is shattering. He and Eva rock headboards, walls, nightclubs, bathrooms. No place is off-limits, and thank goodness for that. Gideon connects with her through sex; he needs sex with Eva because he believes theirs, for all of its rawness and fierceness, is pure. It cements their union. When Eva wants to burrow into Gideon's core, when she wants to help heal him, she does so through sex. She understands its importance to him.

And, of course, his stamina is a fantasy that makes Christian Grey grind his teeth with envy.

As hot as the sex scenes are, though, the rest of the plot disappoints. There are WAY too many things going on, and they do nothing but serve to muddy the story. I get it, Sylvia Day. You want us to keep reading. But trust your characters; trust that you have created two people we care about and want to continue to read about, if for no other reason than their scorching sexy times. You don't need to throw all these different loose ends at us to keep us reading. Good grief. In this one alone, we have a surprise pregnancy, a potential Russian mob connection, a suicide attempt, extortion by sex tape, and an illicit affair between two former lovers. It's too much. Pare back to what matters: Gideon and Eva.

The good news is that it looks like we might be in for a fourth installment in Gideon's and Eva's story. The bad news is that it does have to end sometime.

Secret Sister

Secret Sister
by Emelle Gamble
Published by Marsha Nuccio
Genre: literature; mystery
Thanks to NetGalley for the preview
3.5 / 5


Two women are such good friends - have been forever - that they call each other their "secret sister." But one horrific day, they are in a car accident and one of the women dies. How does her secret sister recover? How does she go on?

One thing you learn in this book is that there are different types of survival. Roxanne drives the car that kills Cathy (whose last name is Chance ... I mean ... grab that frying pan and beat yourself over the head with it), so she bears some survivor's guilt. Roxanne lost all memory of the crash, as well as chunks relating to her life; she doesn't even remember her own name. She has to survive that, as does her mother, who is forced to adjust to a daughter who does not recognize her. Nick Chance, Cathy's husband, must survive the loss of his wife. The women's friend Bradley must survive the physical loss of one friend and the emotional loss of the other. Even Cathy's dog faces questions of survival.

This is sort of two books in one. In the first part, Roxanne must come to terms with the accident. There are mysteries afoot: Roxanne must come to terms with the accident, she needs to try and recoup her lost memories, and she needs to make sense of the flashes of what she does remember. Her memories are confusing and unsettling. Once she does, the second half kicks in, and we have Roxanne's attempt to regain her lost life.

The narration comes from the perspectives of Roxanne, Cathy, and Nick. At various times, you will hate one or all three of them. These are some self-involved people, and sometimes while reading this book, I wanted to quit and go read about people I like. But I kept reading. The story seeps into you, and you find yourself wanting to know what happens next. What is up with those memories Roxanne has? And as the memories clarify, more questions are asked. You will want to know the answers.

There is some romance here, and even some sexy times. Don't get too excited, though. The true romance is the friendship between Roxanne and Cathy, and the sexy times are not wildly explicit.

I will not give away much about this book, nor should you go looking for spoilers before reading it. You will want to enjoy the plot twists (even if you see one of them coming), and you will want to enjoy the wild ride(s). At the end, you will have some questions. The ending is not as neat as it appears, and you will find yourself asking "what if ..."

It's a good book, even if the characters are occasionally annoying.

P.S.: the cover for this book is atrocious. For reals. Publishers, you need to fix that, post haste.

Runaway Groom

Runaway Groom
by Sally Clements
Published by Creative Space
Genre: chick lit; romance
Thanks to NetGalley for the preview
3 / 5


So your sister is getting married. Happy times, right? But what if she invites the guy who seven years ago all but abandoned her at the altar?

April Leigh can't understand why her sister June (yeah ... I, too, kept wondering if we'd meet May) insists on asking Matthew Logan to come to her wedding. From April's perspective, Matthew ran off and jilted her sister. But what June wants, June tends to get, as April's friends continue to point out to her.

And there is my issue with this book: April so rarely figures out anything on her own.

She's a likable girl, and you can't help but root for her. But her life seems to have happened to her, as opposed to because of her. She's one of those people who lets life affect her, rather than the other way around. She landed in fashion design because that's how things worked out, not because she had a particular inclination toward it. She tracks down Matthew to beg him to forego attending June's wedding not because she once had a crush on him and wants to reconnect, but because she thinks it's best for June. She takes up running because Matthew needs some help with a client. She lives in an apartment located above the coffee shop where she works. As I read this book, I kept wondering what April would be like if she went out and attacked life rather than wait for things to happen to her.

So she goes to see Matthew, and let's just say that her teenage crush is rekindled. As far as Matthew is concerned, his former fiancee's little sister has grown up quite nicely. Due to quirky circumstances - again, not because of anything April does, but rather because of what happens to her - she moves in with Matthew. Separate bedrooms, OF COURSE. They're clearly attracted to each other, though, and you can imagine which one makes the first move. Go ahead. Guess.

The ending provides more of the same. April waits, and life happens.

This is a quick, fun read, and there are some sexy times. Not a whole lot, nor is there a tremendous amount of detail, but you get the sense that Matthew knows what he's doing. You also understand his concerns regarding a relationship with April, even if you want to knock him upside the head.

There are plot holes here and there, but let's face it. You don't read books like this with tremendous concern about plot coherency. You read them because their romances are cute, sweet, and maybe a little hot.

I just wish April had a little more oomph to her.

True Love

True Love
by Jude Deveraux
Published by Ballantine Books
464 pages
Genre: romance; chick lit
Thanks to edelweiss for the preview
4 / 5


This is the first Jude Deveraux book I've read. I know, right? She's über-popular, writes oodles of books, yet I hadn't read one prior to this. Am I sold on her? Welllllllll ....

Alix Madsen is fresh out of school for architecture when she is bequeathed a most unusual demand after a family friend passes away: go live in the woman's home for one year. That's about the total of what Alix is told. She is not informed that the house is haunted by a ghost who wants her to get to the bottom of a family mystery, nor is she told that the ghost only appears (supposedly) to women in the family or that her mother used to spend a month every summer in the home (she claimed to be in a Colorado cabin) or that her father mentored renowned hot architect Jared Montgomery Kingsley, a man Alix professionally idolizes.

On the surface, this is a mystery. Several, in fact. There is the task Alix unknowingly has: what happened to Valentina, the ghost's true love? Then there are other mysteries. What is Adelaide Kingsley's relationship with Alix's family? Why can Alix see this ghost? And what's going on with that ghost anyway?

The story lines will grab you. Alix is a likable character, a girl with a good amount of spunk but not so perfect that she turns you off. We can see why Jared, Mr. Commitment Phobe, is drawn to her. And we certainly can see why she likes him. He's enough to make you want to commission a design, just so you can meet him. They are drawn to each other, but wary. Does she like him because of Jared the Architect or because of Jared the Man?

This is the first in Deveraux's Nantucket Brides trilogy, and you do meet the other two future brides. The whole lot of people in this book are quirky in that New Englander way that is so typical in novels (see: Higgins, Kristan), but you will find yourself wanting to move there and be their friend. Deveraux packs this book with a LOT of characters - some predictable and way too familiar; others fresh and intriguing - and to her credit, you feel as if you get to know them. Yes, we have some questions, particularly about Alix's mother (what's up with that little activity that caused the demise of her marriage, for instance), and you get the feeling that the book could have ended about fifty pages sooner. But it's fun. And sometimes fun is exactly what you're in the mood to read.

Alix and Jared's romance is not explicit or overly detailed. We get a few somewhat tame peeks into the bedroom, and those scenes are nicely detailed and written. I know there are readers out there who do not prefer the hot headboard rocking of Tiffany Reisz or Sylvia Day (or you, Christian Grey), and for them, Jude Deveraux offers a solid alternative.

I look forward to getting to know the other Nantucket brides, and I hope that I get to see more of Jared along the way.

Love or Money

Love or Money
by Peter McAra
Published by Escape Publishing - Harlequin Enterprises Australia
132 pages
Genre: chick lit; romance
Thanks to NetGalley for the preview
3 / 5

What do you do if your mother desperately needs an expensive operation and you recently inherited your grandmother's beloved Australian beach home? Such is the conundrum facing Erin in this breezy book.

On the surface, it seems her decision is simple: sell the home. But in this romance novel that occasionally masquerades as a treatise on the coastal environment, Erin's apparently easy decision is made a whole lot tougher by two things: (1) Granny loved the hell out of that house and trusted it to Erin's safe keeping, and (2) there is a hot man involved who doesn't want her to sell.

The closer Erin gets to Hamish Bourke, her grandmother's executor, the less inclined she is to sell. Too bad the pesky issue of Mom's heart operation won't go away.

I'm not one who typically enjoys sweet books, but I did enjoy this one. Erin occasionally annoyed me when she became a bit self-righteous; we know your mother is dying, Erin. We know. WE KNOW. So you can quit beating that drum. I found myself not caring about her mother, though, which I suppose speaks more to my cold hard heart than it does to Peter McAra's writing. The mother is also sent up as a selfless saint, so I can understand why Erin wants to save her life. And if the ending comes about a bit too tidily, then all the better for Erin and Hamish.

Ah, Hamish. He has his own set of issues, and perhaps his reasons for wanting to control Erin's decision are not entirely noble. Or maybe they're entirely too noble? Hamish's personal life is turbulent, to say the least, so maybe he needs to preserve the beach home because he needs some sort of reliable stability. Or maybe he really is concerned about preserving Grandma's beloved homestead.

I'll admit to occasional boredom with this book, largely because every time there was dramatic tension, it was too easily resolved. Where the romance is concerned, it is very tame. If you want hot headboard rocking, this is not your book. But overall, it's cute, sweet, and enjoyable. As summer reads go, it works well.