nzlisam's reviews
1100 reviews

Incidents Around the House by Josh Malerman

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dark mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

Incidents Around the House was one of my most anticipated reads for 2024, and as it turns out my biggest letdown.

Pros:

The descriptions of Other Mommy’s appearance scared the beejeezus out of me.

It terrified me how the entity wasn’t just bound to the house, but could haunt Bela, anywhere, anytime.

Bela’s innocence, such as mispronouncing the word ‘reincarnation’ as ‘carnation’ unaware of just how much danger she was in freaked me out.

Cons:

All the characters were insufferable, including Bela.

Most of the plot was boring – endless discussions of sleeping arrangements, eating, drinking, dancing, arguing grew tiresome.

The ending was underwhelming, and kind of predictable.

I don’t mind a child narrator, nor it being written in a unique way to accommodate this. Room by Emma Donahue 100% worked for me. The short, unstructured, unformatted sentences utilised here didn’t.

The dialogue was cringy.

What was with the existential rantings adults employed when talking to Bela? I’ve never heard of parents sprouting philosophy like this to an eight-year-old child. It was so weird.

I have Birdbox through audible, but not sure I’ll ever read it now. Someone please tell me it’s better than this?

 
My opinion is very much in the minority – most of my Goodreads friends have highly praised Incidents Around the House, but I’m unable to recommend this title.
Margo's Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe

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dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

If you enjoyed Netflix’s The Maid you’ll love Margo!

Margo has always known she was white trash. Her birth was the result of a one-night stand between a Hooters waitress and a married pro-wrestler. At the time her mother didn’t even know her father’s real name, only his ring alias. Now, 19-year-old freshman Margo is in the same predicament, pregnant by her older married community college professor. Within weeks of her son Bodhi’s birth she has quit college, been fired from her waitress job, two out of three of her roommates have moved out, and the father of her baby has ghosted her. Out of options, and desperate to make quick money, Margo creates an account on OnlyFans uploading topless photos of herself in order to gain paid subscribers.

Margo was in a bind and had a steep learning curve ahead. But as tough as things were for her Margo was resilient, determined, savvy, intelligent, and had a straightforward, honest, sarcastic way of narrating. She was also irresponsible and overly trusting. I was completely in her corner rooting for her to succeed and find happiness. My heart broke for her as she was barely twenty and had been let down by everyone her entire life. All she wanted was support and love. No wonder she wanted a baby who would love her unconditionally. I would’ve preferred more focus on Margo adjusting to new motherhood instead of her financial woes as her interactions with Bodhi were hilarious, but I can’t really complain as it was explicitly stated in the title what the focal point would be.

I couldn’t help being entertained over Margo’s experience with OnlyFans and other social media. Yes, she was being exploited, but the combination of Margo’s business sense, detailed research, and writing skills (she was majoring in English in college) meant she had the control, well as much as she could in that situation anyway – not saying it was all smooth sailing. The writing was blunt and direct and included graphic descriptions of male and female genitalia, bodily functions, sexual content and sexual slang, and drug use. I wasn’t fazed as it fit the tone of the novel and the personality of the narrator, and was usually conveyed in an amusing way, but to decide if this book is the right fit for you, I suggest listening to or reading a sample first.

I flitted between the kindle and audio, and the audio was phenomenal, read by Elle Fanning, the perfect voice for Margo, and the cover image even looks a lot like her. And it’s lucky I loved her performance as Apple TV is turning Margo’s Got Money Troubles into a limited series, and Elle Fanning is set to star. Yay!

If you enjoy reading about characters who are a train wreck, yet are strong, tough, and fascinating then I highly-recommend Margo’s Got Money Troubles. I adored it!
Where Butterflies Wander by Suzanne Redfearn, Suzanne Redfearn

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Will a family that’s so broken ever be able to heal!

Six weeks ago, the Egide family – Leo, Marie, and their three children, Hannah (15), Brendon (12), and Penelope ‘Pen’ (8) – suffered a loss so great that they can no longer live in the house where it happened. So, they’re spending the summer in a small town in New Hampshire, at the large estate Marie inherited from her grandfather twenty years ago, which has sat vacant ever since. The plan is to get it ready to sell, but living in a cabin in the woods on the property is a woman named Davina (whose own life has been marred by tragedy). Davina had a verbal agreement with Marie’s grandfather that she could live at the cabin as long as she needed, and she has no intention of leaving. Battle lines are drawn – a feud that will divide the Egide family, divide the community.

‘It’s easy to cast stones when you’re not the one being asked to make the sacrifice.’

Where Butterflies Wander was a novel about a family in crisis – Marie’s grief, bitterness, jealousy, resentment and anger was often so strong that it hindered her children’s healing journey. Even though I had a huge amount of sympathy and empathy for what Marie was going through, her selfishness and entitlement meant I liked her character the least, so it was a relief that I only had to spend every sixth chapter in her head. Every family member, plus Davina narrated. Davina, Hannah, and Pen were my favourites. The novel was beautifully written, and the multiple POV’s and short chapters meant this was a quick, steady-paced read. The story reminded me a lot of something Jodi Picoult might write. And while it wasn’t as impacting or shocking as Suzanne Redfearn’s, In An Instant, it was still a powerful and emotional read focusing on trauma, recovery, and forgiveness. I’m glad I read it!

I’d like to thank Netgalley, Lake Union Publishing, and Suzanne Redfearn for the e-ARC.
We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer

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challenging dark mysterious tense fast-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

3.0

The author has a creative imagination, but I wasn’t sold on the way it was written! 

Eve Palmer, and her partner Charlie Bastion fix up old houses with the intention of flipping them for a profit, and their current home – 3709 Heritage Lane – in the backcountry of Oregon is their most ambitious project to date. One Friday night, Eve and their dog Shylo (no harm comes to the dog btw) are alone in the house, waiting on Charlie’s return, when the doorbell sounds. 

Eve reluctantly opens the door to a family of five – Thomas, his wife Paige, and their children, Kai, Newton, and Jenny. Turns out Thomas grew up in the house, and since they were passing, he was hoping to show his family the interior. They seem harmless, so Eve agrees. But the tour stretches on forever, and finally just when they’re about to leave, Jenny, their youngest, goes missing… And that’s just the start of the bizarreness… 

Unhinged and mind-bending! I savoured the idea of this, the concept, the cleverly concealed clues and hints, the insertion of news articles, interviews, relevant articles, etc, the chilled-me-to-my-bone ending, and the place it ended. However, the way it was written just didn’t do it for me – it was all over the show – choppy, hard-to-keep-track of plot, some downright awful dialogue, and inconsistent character behaviour. I appreciate that given the trippy and strange plot, the writing needed to contain a certain amount of surrealism especially the further into the novel things got, but it was this way from the beginning, which made it hard to connect with any characters as they were all odd from the beginning, therefore tough to care about. For me the most terrifying part of a horror novel is when your characters are living their lives as if everything is normal, only to be confronted with something supernatural or paranormal, and it would’ve worked with this plot and not lost anything.  I’ve seen a similar plot work in a TV show, and another book, and the characters were 100% better – can’t name either obviously due to spoilers. 

It will be interesting to see if the Netflix movie will get it right (for me). 

P.S. The title is all kinds of awesome. 
One-Star Romance by Laura Hankin

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing sad 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? Yes

5.0

No one-star rating from me! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 

On the night Angus Stoat proposes to Gabby Alvarez in a NYC midtown bar, Gabby’s best friend Natalie Shapiro meets Angus’ best friend Rob Kapinsky for the first time. Their banter is fun and flirtatious, there’s a definite vibe, but Natalie has a boyfriend and Rob has a plane to catch so they somewhat reluctantly part ways, but occasionally text over the next year and a half. 

Their second meeting at Angus and Gabby‘s wedding is decidedly less friendly, in fact it’s downright hostile. Natalie now hates Rob because he had the nerve to give her first novel a one-star rating on Goodreads. Rob feels justifiably disappointed in Natalie after what he discovered she’d written on page 28. 

But, over the years they keep crossing paths, unable to avoid each other because of their shared connection through their best friends. And every time they come into contact, they can’t help being drawn to one another, and unwittingly an attraction is growing between them. Will Natalie and Rob ever admit that they have feelings for one another? 

Out of all the contemporary romantic comedies that I have rated five stars this year, and this includes Katherine Center’s, The Rom-Commers and Emily Henry’s, Funny Story, Laura Hankin’s, One-Star Romance is my top favourite for 2024. I would even go as far as to say that it’s one of my top romances of all time. I loved it! If I had to compare it to anything I would say that it shares commonalities with the Katherine Heigl 2010 movie, Life as We Know it, and the TV series Love Life (2020) starring Anna Kendrick. 

One-Star Romance contained several of my most favourite romantic tropes including enemies to lovers, hate to love, slow-burn, forced proximity, forced to share a bed, love triangle, and open-door (although not quite all the way 😉). The book was sexy, sweet, emotional, touching, hilariously funny, and the author nailed every character's reactions, emotions, and dialogue in all situations. Due to the time jumps the plot never grew stale, and I thoroughly enjoyed the ways these brief windows into their various life stages furthered, stalled or derailed, and eventually cemented Natalie and Rob’s relationship. The timeline took place over a ten-year period (2013-2023) and also (briefly) included COVID. Natalie narrated more chapters than Rob with the occasional third-party chiming in. 

I adored Natalie and Rob, both together and separately. Yes, Natalie was a hot mess at times, and she didn’t have her head screwed on as much as the other characters, and her harsh treatment of Angus was unwarranted, as was her possessive jealous streak towards Gabby, yet her flaws only endeared her to me more, and as someone who is also resistance to change, I found her hugely relatable. Furthermore, Natalie was only twenty-four at the beginning of the novel, so of course she didn’t have it all together. 

Getting back to Angus, I adored him. How could anyone not love Angus, Natalie? 😡 I would be forever indebted to Laura Hankin if she wrote an Angus like character as a male romantic lead for a future plot. Not that Rob wasn’t amazing as well, I adored him just as much as Angus, but it was refreshing to enjoy a secondary romance as much as the main one. There was also a third romantic pairing that was all kinds of awesome as well but that one needs to remain under wraps. 

One-Star Romance was also a novel about the enduring power of friendship – the highs and lows, the unwavering loyalty, the strain and toll of maintaining a close bond when one is out growing the other, and lives are moving in different directions – separated by geography, career, marriage and family. 

The author read her own audiobook and if she ever decides she needs a back up career (based on this book my vote is no) she would definitely excel as a narrator of contemporary romances. Flawless! 

Honestly, I never wanted this book to end, I even put off listening to the last 20% just to prolong it. Every moment I spent with these characters was gratifying, and I will definitely be re-reading this one to experience it all over again. 

I cannot wait to pick up Laura Hankin’s backlist. 

P.S. I adored Gabby and Angus’s invitations. They were so fun and unique. Not like the boring ones I come up with. 

P.P.S. I suspected this was going to be a spectacular read when the author’s epigraph was a quote from Dodie Smith’s, I Capture the Castle. 
Unravelling Oliver by Liz Nugent

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

5.0

Liz Nugent is now an Auto-buy Author! 

Those who thought they knew Oliver Ryan were shocked to learn that he had assaulted his wife Alice so badly that she resides in a coma, unlikely to recover. The couple had been married for nearly thirty years and Oliver has never displayed any violent tendencies, has he? But can their memories of the man be trusted? Because hurting Alice is far from the worst thing Oliver has done. 

Last year, I finally got around to reading Liz Nugent, and Unravelling Oliver is now the third novel I have read by her, and all have been five star reads. Right from the first page Oliver was a cold, manipulative, controlling, bully, but how he came to be that way definitely wrecked me, not that it excuses his actions as an adult. The various POV’s of those who encountered Oliver in life-altering ways were all interesting, exciting and tense. The majority of the book read like a contemporary drama saga but with chilling undertones, and once the entire story was revealed, I was left shocked and stunned. 

The audiobook was one of the best I’ve ever read. A different narrator voiced each character and every aspect of their various personalities shone through – loved the various Irish and French accents, and the chapter narrated by Alice’s disabled brother, Eugene, was incredible – I listened to it twice. 

I’m so happy to have discovered Liz Nugent, I have another library audiobook of hers coming up which I can’t wait to dive into. Unraveling Oliver is a not-to-be-missed must read. As was Strange Sally Diamond and Skin Deep. 
The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I swooned, laughed, cried, and clapped my hands in delight over The Rom-Commers! 
 
L.A – Legendary screenwriter Charlie Yates has successfully written almost every genre – except for romantic comedy. But when his hand is forced in order to get another of his scripts produced the results are disastrous. His manager has read a draft, and it is terrible. 
 
Texas – Ten years ago, Emma Wheeler won a writing scholarship to an exclusive college, and her speciality was rom-coms. But a tragic accident on a family camping trip to celebrate her high school graduation forced her to give it all up to care for her invalid father, and younger sister. 
 
An astonishing stroke of luck sees Emma on her way to L.A to assist her favourite screenwriter of all time. She has six weeks to rewrite Charlie’s script into something unforgettable. And by doing so she may just convince Charlie that love really does exist. 
 
The Rom-Commers is my favourite by Katherine Center thus far, although I still have a few to read. I’m a sucker for a forced proximity romantic trope as well as the ordinary everyday person meeting someone famous especially someone they’ve admired, obsessed over, for years. 
 
There were so many scenes I loved between Emma and Charlie – the power-washing (I need that game in my life), the edge-of-the-cliff, the donuts, and their every interaction involving the pool and diving board. 
 
Romance aside, Emma’s tragic past, and everything her and her family had been through, and were still going through, was heart-wrenching and elevated the novel even more. Every conversation Emma had with either her father or her sister was real, raw, and heartfelt. 
 
Due to his own insecurities, because he no longer believed in love, and since he wasn’t privy to Emma’s innermost thoughts (like us readers were) meant that at times Charlie came across as kind of a jerk in regard to his treatment of Emma. It’s an outdated trope, and I understand why some readers won’t stand for it, but for me as long as he’s not an arsehole by the end of the novel I’m more forgiving. 
 
Now to the audiobook – I can’t fault the actual reading itself, but the narrator had an annoying habit of exhaling after sentences which is a pet peeve of mine with audiobooks as it’s really distracting and it’s all I can focus on. 
 
Katherine Center remains an auto-buy author for me. The thing I love most about her books is that they’re so much more than just a romance between the two leads. Well, that, and they always include happy endings for everyone. 
 
P.S. I was thrilled over Jack Stapleton making a couple of cameos, and that Hannah Brooks was mentioned (The Bodyguard is my second favourite Katherine Center). 
Swan Song by Elin Hilderbrand

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective relaxing sad 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

Elin Hilderbrand’s Last Hurrah was Pure Escapism! 

It’s the start of the summer and the arrival of the elite, cultured, seductive Richardsons – husband and wife Bull and Leslee – has Nantucket locals in an excited frenzy. 

Everybody who is anybody is dying to be invited to one of the extravagant, exclusive parties at their newly-purchased, twenty-two-million-dollar, seaside mansion – 888 Pocomo Road – but only a select few will be deemed worthy to glide its halls. 

Fast forward to August and the Richardsons are persona non grata. What happened? 

Then on the evening of August 22nd a double tragedy strikes the Richardsons. While partying out to sea aboard their yacht (with some non-locals) they receive a call from the Fire Chief to say their house is ablaze. And when their boat docks, they are one person short – a young woman is missing presumed to have gone overboard. Did she fall? Did she purposefully jump? Or was she pushed? It’s time for the Richardsons to face the music. 

Swan Song was an indulgence. I relished all the juicy interpersonal melodrama, scandalous behaviour, betrayals, sweet romances, emotional highs and lows, side of mystery, and immense wealth and privilege. It was hard for me not to daydream over what it would be like to be one of these characters living the dream in a lap of luxury on Nantucket (lobster rolls, yes please). The descriptions of 888 Pocomo Road and everything within its walls (clothes, food, etc) were hilariously insane – fascinating yes, but such an over-the-top waste of money. There were a good mix of spoilt unlikeable characters coupled with more down-to-earth ones to keep me happy and entertained. 

It’s the fourth in a series but can be enjoyed by itself. I’ve only read #3 The Perfect Couple (5 stars), meaning some of the characters were familiar to me, but most were new to Swan Song and specific to this story. And any that were regulars were introduced with all the relevant information from the previous instalments. 

I’m sorry to report that after thirty fictional books set on Nantucket, Elin Hilderbrand is retiring so sadly Swan Song is her last release. I wish her the best, and luckily for me I still have a lot of her backlist to read including the first two in this series. 

I devoured the audiobook, and Laurence Bouvard was sensational. I see she has also narrated some of this author’s previous books which makes me so happy. Elin Hilderbrand read the final chapter which left me misty-eyed. 

A poignant and touching send off! 
A Talent for Murder by Peter Swanson

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adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

A Talent for Murder was gripping stuff! 

First came A Kind Worth Killing, then A Kind Worth Saving, and now we have A Talent for Murder, and all three have totally and utterly bowled me over with their shocking and unpredictable twists, and fast-paced, edge-of-my-seat plots. Just like the first two books in the series this suspenseful domestic noir thriller can be enjoyed as a standalone, but you'd be missing out on some screwed up, mind boggling character histories if you intend to skip them. 

I recommend going into this one blind, so I've decided to skip a synopsis in order not to give a thing away. All I'll say is that one page in and I was already engrossed in Josie's story. In this series pretty much all of the characters are unlikable, and uuntrustworthy, but their predicaments suck you in, and some of them you just can't help caring if they live or die. There was quite a bit of ‘tell’ rather than ‘show' backstories included, but they were exciting, tense, and interesting enough for it not to bother me. 

I have no hesitation in recommending A Talent for Murder. Just don't get too attached to anyone, as you never know what direction the story is going to take. 

I’d like to thank Netgalley UK, Faber & Faber, and Peter Swanson for the e-ARC.

UK Release Date: 4th July 2024.
Summer Romance by Annabel Monaghan

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Summer Romance was deliciously delightful! 

4.5. 

It’s the two-year anniversary since Ali Morris lost her mother to cancer, and exactly one year later her husband Pete announced he was leaving her. (Yes, you heard that right, he asked for a divorce on the anniversary of her mum’s death. Pete’s a tool!) 

Understandably, Ali’s been struggling to cope, she’s still grieving both losses, and at thirty-eight years old is now a single mum to three kids and a dog. But what starts as a ‘meet ugly’ in the dog park turns out to be a surprise ‘meet cute’ – new-guy-in-town-for the-summer Ethan not only appears to find her attractive but also seems genuinely interested in her. Maybe a summer fling is just what Ali needs? And there’s something familiar about Ethan? 

My favourite contemporary romances are those that are light, fun, sweet, and amusing with a side of serious real-world issues and Summer Romance delivered on all counts. I appreciated that Ali and Ethan didn't exist in a vacuum and faced many internal and external obstacles - were constantly interrupted by children, animals, neighbours, family, friends, ex’s and professional and personal obligations. One of my favourite romantic tropes is the toxic ex or ex’s as I like knowing that the characters are going to get their happily ever after this time around and get to experience how they deserve to be treated and loved. Another romantic trope I enjoy is a first person single POV, as I like not knowing what the romantic interest is feeling, and in this case, whether Ethan would stay or leave at the end of the summer. This small New York town sounded amazing - what with the beach, and the family-owned inn and diner - love a small-town, close-knit, ‘everyone-up-in-each-others-business’ romance. 

Kristen DiMercurio narrated the novel in a lively, vibrant way, and used a wide range of emotions for Ali’s voice. She nailed every note - my kind of audio listen. 

I’ll definitely be hunting down Annabel Monaghan’s backlist.