michelles_book_nook's reviews
260 reviews

Bloodline by Jess Lourey

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challenging dark tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

⚠️ CW: violence, racism, sexism, classism, kidnapping, rape, incest and brief mentions of cancer and parental death ⚠️ If you liked The Stepford Wives and enjoy dark and thrilling storylines then this one is for you! In a tale inspired by real events, pregnant journalist Joan Harken is cautiously excited to follow her fiancé back to his Minnesota hometown. After spending a childhood on the move and chasing the screams and swirls of news-rich city life, she’s eager to settle down. Lilydale’s motto - “Come Home Forever” - couldn’t be more inviting. And yet something is off in the picture-perfect village. The friendliness borders on intrusive. Joan can’t shake the feeling that every move she makes is being tracked. An archaic organization still seems to hold the town in thrall. So does the sinister secret of a little boy who vanished decades ago. And unless Joan is imagining things, a frighteningly familiar figure from her past is on watch in the shadows. Her fiancé tells her she’s being paranoid. He might be right. Then again, she might have moved to the deadliest small town on earth. This book was so good, and makes you feel uncomfortable from the very beginning as if at any second everything will fall apart and just when you think you've figured it out it hits you with another mind blowing twist. It's difficult to review without giving spoilers but it's one of those reads that really gets in your head. Overall, I highly recommend this book.
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Heartstopper Volume 4 by Alice Oseman

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5.0

The Vanishing Season by Dot Hutchison

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

⚠️ CW: kidnapping, domestic abuse, narcissism, child death, cancer and mentions of rape and murder ⚠️ It is a very rare occurrence for me to give every book in a series 5 stars but this series absolutely deserves it and this was the perfect ending! 8 year old Brooklyn Mercer has gone missing and as accustomed as FBI agents Eliza Sterling and Brandon Eddison are to such harrowing cases, this one has struck a nerve. It marks the anniversary of the disappearance of Eddison’s own little sister. Disturbing, too, is the girl’s resemblance to Eliza, so uncanny they could be mother and daughter. With Eddison’s unsettled past rising again with rage and pain, Eliza is determined to solve this case at any cost. But the closer she looks, the more reluctant she is to divulge to her increasingly shaken partner what she finds. Brooklyn isn’t the only girl of her exact description to go missing. She’s just the latest in a frightening pattern going back decades in cities throughout the entire country. In a race against time, Eliza’s determined to bring Brooklyn home and somehow find the link to the cold case that has haunted Eddison, and the entire Crimes Against Children team, since its inception. This book was yet again another hard hitting rollercoaster from Dot Hutchison, but as well as it being just as haunting and gripping as the others in this series I particularly loved the character development within the team and the found family aspect especially with how the storyline wrapped up at the end. This is easily a series that will stay with me for a long time and I can't wait to read more by this author. Overall, if you're a lover of dark thrillers and crime fiction then I highly recommend this series but make sure to check the CW's for each book as they do contain some graphic topics and content.
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The Summer Children by Dot Hutchison

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challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

⚠️ CW: murder, domestic abuse, child abuse, sexual abuse, paedophilia, rape and sexual assault ⚠️ I think at this stage it's safe to say that Dot Hutchison has become one of my favourite authors! 😍 When Agent Mercedes Ramirez finds an abused young boy on her porch, covered in blood and clutching a teddy bear, she has no idea that this is just the beginning. He tells her a chilling tale of an angel that killed his parents and then brought him here so Mercedes could keep him safe. His parents weren’t just murdered. It was a slaughter, a rage kill like no one on the Crimes Against Children team has seen before. But they’re going to see it again. An avenging angel is meting out savage justice, and she’s far from through. One by one, more children arrive at Mercedes’ door with the same horror story. Each one a traumatized survivor of an abusive home. Each one chafing at Mercedes’ own scars from the past. And each one taking its toll on her life and career. Now, as the investigation draws her deeper into the dark, Mercedes is beginning to fear that if this case doesn’t destroy her, her memories might. This was one hell of a read. It had me hooked and feeling a rollercoaster of emotions all the way to the end. I've said it before and I'll say it again, the way Dot Hutchison is able to write such dark and gut wrenching situations is so hauntingly beautiful. Overall, I highly recommend this book and the series as a whole but please check the CW's before reading.
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The Roses of May by Dot Hutchison

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challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

⚠️ CW: murder, eating disorder, rape and suicide ⚠️ Dot Hutchison really nailed it again with this one! Four months after the explosion at the Garden, a place where young women known as the Butterflies were kept captive, FBI agents Brandon Eddison, Victor Hanoverian and, Mercedes Ramirez are still entrenched in the aftermath while helping survivors in the process of adjusting to life on the outside. With winter coming to an end, the Butterflies have longer and warmer days of healing ahead. But for the agents the impending thaw means one gruesome thing, a chilling guarantee that somewhere in the country another young woman will turn up dead in a church with her throat slit and her body surrounded by flowers. Priya Sravasti’s sister fell victim to the serial killer years ago. Now she and her mother move every few months, hoping for a new beginning but when she ends up in the madman’s crosshairs the hunt takes on a new urgency. Wow I think it's safe to say this author has become one of my new favourites! Her writing style is so hauntingly beautiful and captivating that I just speed through her books, and if this one is anything like the first book is this series then it will stay with me for a long time after. It is so hard to review without giving spoilers but it is filled with twists and turns and a bombshell ending as well as the creepiest dual pov chapters that will give you all the eerie feels. Overall, if you love dark serial killer reads then this series is definitely one to pick up!
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The Butterfly Garden by Dot Hutchison

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

⚠️ CW: kidnapping, paedophilia, sexual assault, rape, childhood trauma, murder and suicide ⚠️ If you like darkly challenging and emotional  thrillers that really get under your skin then this one is for you! Near an isolated mansion lies a beautiful garden. In this garden grow luscious flowers, shady trees and a collection of precious 'butterflies' who are young women who have been kidnapped and intricately tattooed to resemble their namesakes. Overseeing it all is the Gardener, a brutal, twisted man obsessed with capturing and preserving his lovely specimens. When the garden is discovered and a survivor is brought in for questioning, FBI agents Victor Hanoverian and Brandon Eddison are tasked with piecing together one of the most stomach-churning cases of their careers. But the girl, known only as Maya, proves to be a puzzle herself. As her story twists and turns, slowly shedding light on life in the Butterfly Garden, Maya reveals old grudges, new saviors, and horrific tales of a man who’d go to any length to hold beauty captive. But the more she shares, the more the agents have to wonder what she’s still hiding. Wow this book had me absolutely hooked. It was such an emotionally and mentally challenging read but it also had an extra element of creepiness because it all felt so real. Dot Hutchinson writes in such a haunting but beautiful way that really brings the story to life and truly makes you feel so many of the emotions of the victims throughout. Overall, I highly recommend this book, but please take into account the CW's as it is quite graphic and disturbing.
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Lost Girls: An Unsolved American Mystery by Robert Kolker

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challenging dark hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

5.0

⚠️ CW: murder, domestic abuse, drug use, addiction, child abuse, sexual abuse, rape and mental illness ⚠️ This is one of the hardest hitting true crime books that I've read in a long time! One spring evening in 2010, Shannan Gilbert went missing in the Oak Beach, Long Island. No one who had heard of her disappearance thought much about what had happened to her as she was a Craigslist escort who had been fleeing from one of her customers, but no one could be sure why. The Suffolk County police seemed to have paid little attention to the case, until seven months later when an unexpected discovery near the remote Gilgo Beach turned up four bodies. But none of them were Shannan. They were Maureen Brainard-Barnes, Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman and Amber Lynn Costello. Like Shannan, all four women were petite, in their twenties, and had come from out of town to work as escorts, and they had all advertised on Craigslist and its competitor, Backpage. But unbeknownst to everyone, this was just the tip of the iceberg. This case is equally heartbreaking and infuriating at the same time. The fact that these poor women and their families were unable to get any justice solely based on how their case was treated due to their work is mind boggling to me. They were all human beings and deserved to be treated as such. As for the writing though, I absolutely loved how Kolker humanised these women after how they were treated and portrayed their stories with empathy, care and compassion, as well as giving their stories so much attention in the impeccably detailed research he did. Overall, I highly recommend this book!
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Murder in the Family by Cara Hunter

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mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

⚠️ CW: murder, racism, child abuse and mentions of drug use ⚠️ If you're looking for an incredibly explosive, mind boggling and page turning read then you need to read this book! In October 2003, Luke Ryder was found dead in the garden of his family home in London, leaving behind a wealthy older widow and three stepchildren. Nobody saw anything. Now secrets will be revealed, live on camera in a genius true crime tv show. A group of experts re-examine the evidence with shocking results. Does the team know more than they’ve been letting on? Or does the truth lie closer to home? This read was absolutely incredible and read like a true crime book. The twists and turns were utter perfection and I would have happily binge read this in one sitting if I could. From the dynamic between the characters, to the mixed media throughout, to the unravelling storyline. Everything was perfect. And this may just be my new favourite read of the year! Overall, I highly recommend reading this one if you're a crime fiction fan.
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The Cutting Season by M.W. Craven

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challenging dark tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? N/A
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

⚠️ CW: violence, murder and cannibalism ⚠️ If you're looking for a dark and thrilling crime fic then this one is for you! Dangling from a hook in a meat packing plant isn't how DS Washington Poe wants to spend his weekend. He's been punched and kicked and threatened, and when a contract killer arrives it seems things are about to go from bad to worse. He goes by the name of the Pale Man and he and his straight razor have been feared all over London for twenty years. But Poe knows two things the Pale Man doesn't. Although it might seem like a hopeless situation, Poe has planned to be here all along. More importantly, a nerdy, computer whizz-kid called Tilly Bradshaw is watching his back. And now things are about to get interesting. This short read was a good introduction to these characters for me as this is my first time reading from this author and these beloved characters. It really gripped me throughout but I don't think this read allowed me to get to grips with the characters like a full length book would so I hope to read more from these characters in the future so I can get to love them as much as everyone else. As I always say, I think short stories are so hard to get right but this one was written really well. Overall, I definitely recommend giving this one a read.
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The Family Remains by Lisa Jewell

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challenging dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

⚠️ CW: murder, child abuse, domestic abuse, gaslighting, rape, blackmail, grooming and suicide ⚠️ Wow Lisa Jewell certainly didn't disappoint with this sequel to The Family Upstairs and I absolutely adored it! On an early June morning in London a bag of human bones is discovered on the foreshore of the Thames leading to DCI Samuel Owusu being called to the scene as he quickly sends off the bag for forensic examination. The bones are those of a young woman, killed by a blow to the head many years ago. Also inside the bag is a trail of clues, in particular the seeds of a rare tree which lead DCI Owusu back to a mansion in Chelsea where, nearly thirty years previously, three people lay dead in a kitchen and a baby waited upstairs for someone to pick her up. The clues point toward a brother and sister in Chicago searching for the only person who can make sense of their pasts and with four deaths, an unsolved mystery and a family whose secrets can't stay buried forever the story is far from over. This book was so intricate and complex from start to finish and had me absolutely hooked. The breadcrumb trail of information throughout as you slowly piece together various pov's, character developments and pieces from the first book truly grip you and take you on such an incredible rollercoaster ride of twists, turns and shocking revelations. Overall, I cannot recommend this book highly enough!
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