Kristin Downer – #NerdProblems https://www.nerdprobs.com For all your nerdy tendencies Mon, 17 Jan 2022 18:59:35 +0000 en hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.8.3 https://www.nerdprobs.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/cropped-ClYUxnzi_400x400-32x32.jpg Kristin Downer – #NerdProblems https://www.nerdprobs.com 32 32 BOOK REVIEW: One Step Too Far by Lisa Gardner https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-review-one-step-too-far-by-lisa-gardner/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=book-review-one-step-too-far-by-lisa-gardner https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-review-one-step-too-far-by-lisa-gardner/#respond Mon, 17 Jan 2022 18:59:32 +0000 http://www.nerdprobs.com/?p=6878
Rating

Title: One Step Too Far
Author: Lisa Gardner
Publication: January 18, 2022
Publisher: Dutton
Genre: Thriller, Mystery
Pages: 410

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SYNOPSIS: (From Goodreads)

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Lisa Gardner, a thrilling new novel that sends Frankie Elkin into the woods in search of a lost man–and the shocking truth about why he went missing in the first place.

Frankie Elkin, who readers first met in Before She Disappeared, learns of a young man who has gone missing in a national forest. Law enforcement has abandoned the search, but a crew of people led by the young man’s father are still looking. Sensing a father’s desperation, Frankie agrees to help–but soon sees that a missing person isn’t all that’s wrong here. And when more people start to vanish, Frankie realizes she’s up against something very dark–and she’s running out of time.

REVIEW:

**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**

Holy cow! This book is phenomenal. I know you are probably thinking I am biased because I usually love Lisa Gardner’s books, but she has definitely done it again. If possible, she went up a notch. Or maybe it’s like a belt where you have to puncture a new hole on your own because there were no more notches left? It’s that good.

One Step Too Far follows Frankie Elkin on another trip as she looks for a missing man that disappeared in a national forest. I have to say, this is far off what Lisa Gardner typically writes about when it comes to setting. Only once before that I can remember did we end up in the wild on a hunt. Of course, this is the second time we are seeing Frankie Elkin, and her cases of missing people are bound to take her to some weird places.

With that said, I have to tell you how much I love Frankie Elkin. While she is closed off and tries to not build ties to any one place, she is very relatable to a lot of people and I feel like we got to see that side of her in this story. I also came to love a lot of the characters as well. Nemeth was that interesting, dad-type. He was in charge, but he would pay respect where respect was do. Bob was probably one of my favorites along side the human/dog duo. Who doesn’t like an adorable dog? All the characters had so many layers and Gardner did a fantastic job of letting us peel those back piece by piece. This slow build of characters and their backgrounds really added to the story. I was suspect of everyone from the beginning. Slowly I started weeding people out as I got to know them. But… I NEVER SAW THE ENDING COMING. Complete shocker.

This story is a jaw clenching, cover your face, one eye open type of suspense. So many times I was devouring the pages, but also trying to look away because I was scared of what was going to happen. Think jump scare but in book form. How does someone even do that? Well, the thriller writer Queen, Lisa Gardner, figured it out. I was on the edge of my seat. Constant suspense, even in the “quiet” moments of the story. I was constantly questioning and trying to figure out who was doing what. I could not put this book down. I’m usually good at figuring things out along the way, but I was even convinced everyone would die in the end because I had no idea how people were going to survive this. I contemplated ghostly involvement at one point. Gardner had me stumped.

So basically if you are a living, breathing human, you should read this book. It doesn’t matter if you don’t typically like suspense or thrillers. This book is SO good. I’m a big fan of Detective D.D. Warren from Gardner’s books, but Frankie Elkin has won my heart! I cannot wait for more Frankie. Here’s to hoping Lisa Gardner starts writing a few books a year to appease my thriller appetite! One Step Too Far is going on my favorites list. Possibly my favorite Gardner book of all time… so far.

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Kristin’s Top 5 Recommended Reads of 2021 https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/kristins-top-5-recommended-reads-of-2021/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=kristins-top-5-recommended-reads-of-2021 https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/kristins-top-5-recommended-reads-of-2021/#respond Wed, 12 Jan 2022 11:00:00 +0000 http://www.nerdprobs.com/?p=6819 I think 2021 was a good year for me in books. I read 55 books, although my initial goal was 60. I had to lower it because… well… life. With that said I find that a trend took place. You’d think in years where sad things take over our news with Covid, death, war, elections, etc. that I would like to read happy stories. Apparently that is untrue.

All of my books for 2021 that I rated in my top 10 were either mystery/thriller or Historical Fiction, which is not always the happiest of books. Those were the ones that jumped out at me and man, there were some amazing books. If I had to pick one that was my favorite of the year, it would be Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica. Such a good book. I am actually interested in listening to the audiobook to see if the voices I created in my head match that of the voice actors for the books. Also… when will this be made into a movie? The other mystery/thrillers I read were very twisty, a lot of psychological drama, and really unique. That was important. And of course, my annual Lisa Gardner book. Her books are phenomenal and ALWAYS make my top books of the year.

The other half of my reads were Historical Fiction. I love a good World War II story. They are my go to in historical fiction and I always enjoy them. I love the ones that tell a story about the good side; the ones that are fighting to help those be locked up or taken against their will. I love a good hero story and a good survival story. My favorite historical fiction in my top ten is probably The Auschwitz Photographer, which is based on the life of Wilhelm Brasse, a real life auschwitz prisoner who was a political prisoner and photographer. Therefore he was assigned to take photos of all the prisoners, experiments, etc. It was a fascinating story and the things he did are the reason we have documented proof of some of the things that went down. There were also stories of woman who went above and beyond what women were really allowed to do back then and helped us win that war.

So while my books weren’t exactly happy, they were filled with intense, interesting stories and characters worthy of praise and recognition. I hope 2022 readings are equally as good. Check back next year to find out what I think. Until then, here are my top 10 favorites books of 2021.

The Sorority Murder by Allison Brennan

Lucas Vega is obsessed with the death of Candace Swain, who left a sorority party one night and never came back. Her body was found after two weeks, but the case has grown cold. Three years later while interning at the medical examiner’s, Lucas discovers new information, but the police are not interested.

Lucas knows he has several credible pieces of the puzzle. He just isn’t sure how they fit together. So he creates a podcast to revisit Candace’s last hours. Then he encourages listeners to crowdsource what they remember and invites guest lecturer Regan Merritt, a former US marshal, to come on and share her expertise.

New tips come in that convince Lucas and Regan they are onto something. Then shockingly one of the podcast callers turns up dead. Another hints at Candace’s secret life, a much darker picture than Lucas imagined–and one that implicates other sorority sisters. Regan uses her own resources to bolster their theory and learns that Lucas is hiding his own secret. The pressure is on to solve the murder, but first Lucas must come clean about his real motives in pursuing this podcast–before the killer silences him forever.

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Before She Disappeared by Lisa Gardner

Frankie Elkin is an average middle-aged woman, a recovering alcoholic with more regrets than belongings. But she spends her life doing what no one else will–searching for missing people the world has stopped looking for. When the police have given up, when the public no longer remembers, when the media has never paid attention, Frankie starts looking.

A new case brings her to Mattapan, a Boston neighborhood with a rough reputation. She is searching for Angelique Badeau, a Haitian teenager who vanished from her high school months earlier. Resistance from the Boston PD and the victim’s wary family tells Frankie she’s on her own–and she soon learns she’s asking questions someone doesn’t want answered. But Frankie will stop at nothing to discover the truth, even if it means the next person to go missing could be her.

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Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica

Shelby Tebow is the first to go missing. Not long after, Meredith Dickey and her six-year-old daughter, Delilah, vanish just blocks away from where Shelby was last seen, striking fear into their once-peaceful community. Are these incidents connected? After an elusive search that yields more questions than answers, the case eventually goes cold.

Now, 11 years later, Delilah shockingly returns. Everyone wants to know what happened to her, but no one is prepared for what they’ll find….

In this smart and chilling thriller, master of suspense and New York Times best-selling author Mary Kubica takes domestic secrets to a whole new level, showing that some people will stop at nothing to keep the truth buried.

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Never Saw Me Coming by Vera Kurian

Meet Chloe Sevre. She’s a freshman honor student, a leggings-wearing hot girl next door, who also happens to be a psychopath. Her hobbies include yogalates, frat parties, and plotting to kill Will Bachman, a childhood friend who grievously wronged her.

Chloe is one of seven students at her DC-based college who are part of an unusual clinical study for psychopaths—students like herself who lack empathy and can’t comprehend emotions like fear or guilt. The study, led by a renowned psychologist, requires them to wear smart watches that track their moods and movements.

When one of the students in the study is found murdered in the psychology building, a dangerous game of cat and mouse begins, and Chloe goes from hunter to prey. As she races to identify the killer and put her own plan into action, she’ll be forced to decide if she can trust any of her fellow psychopaths—and everybody knows you should never trust a psychopath.

Never Saw Me Coming is a compulsive, voice-driven thriller by an exciting new voice in fiction, that will keep you pinned to the page and rooting for a would-be killer.

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The Necklace by Matt Witten

The clock ticks down in a heart-pounding crusade for justice

Susan Lentigo’s daughter was murdered twenty years ago—and now, at long last, this small-town waitress sets out on a road trip all the way from Upstate New York to North Dakota to witness the killer’s execution.

On her journey she discovers shocking new evidence that leads her to suspect the condemned man is innocent—and the real killer is still free. Even worse, her prime suspect has a young daughter who’s at terrible risk. With no money and no time to spare, Susan sets out to uncover the truth before an innocent man gets executed and another little girl is killed.

But the FBI refuses to reopen the case. They—and Susan’s own mother—believe she’s just having an emotional breakdown. Reaching deep, Susan finds an inner strength she never knew she had. With the help of two unlikely allies—a cynical, defiant teenage girl and the retired cop who made the original arrest—Susan battles the FBI to put the real killer behind bars. Will she win justice for the condemned man—and her daughter—at last?

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The Auschwitz Photographer by Luca Crippa, Maurizio Onnis

The Nazis asked him to swear allegiance to Hitler, betraying his country, his friends, and everything he believed in.
He refused.

Poland, 1939. Professional photographer Wilhelm Brasse is deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau and finds himself in a deadly race to survive, assigned to work as the camp’s intake photographer and take “identity pictures” of prisoners as they arrive by the trainload. Brasse soon discovers his photography skills are in demand from Nazi guards as well, who ask him to take personal portraits for them to send to their families and girlfriends. Behind the camera, Brasse is safe from the terrible fate that so many of his fellow prisoners meet. But over the course of five years, the horrifying scenes his lens capture, including inhumane medical “experiments” led by Josef Mengele, change Brasse forever.

Based on the true story of Wilhelm Brasse, The Auschwitz Photographer is a stark black-and-white reminder of the horrors of the Holocaust. This gripping work of World War II narrative nonfiction takes readers behind the barbed wire fences of the world’s most feared concentration camp, bringing Brasse’s story to life as he clicks the shutter button thousands of times before ultimately joining the Resistance, defying the Nazis, and defiantly setting down his camera for good.

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The Girl from the Channel Islands by Jenny Lecoat

The year is 1940, and the world is torn apart by war. In June of that year, Hitler’s army captures the Channel Islands—the only part of Great Britain occupied by German forces. Abandoned by Mr. Churchill, forgotten by the Allies and cut off from all help, the Islands’ situation is increasingly desperate.

Hedy Bercu is a young Jewish girl who fled Vienna for the island of Jersey two years earlier during the Anschluss, only to find herself trapped by the Nazis once more—this time with no escape. Her only hope is to make herself invaluable to the Germans by working as a translator, hiding in plain sight with the help of her friends and community—and a sympathetic German officer. But as the war intensifies, rations dwindle and neighbors are increasingly suspicious of one another. Hedy’s life is in greater danger every day. It will take a definitive, daring act to save her from certain deportation to the concentration camps.

A sweeping tale of bravery and love under impossible circumstances, Hedy’s remarkable story reminds us that it’s often up to ordinary people to be quiet heroes in the face of injustice.

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The Shadow Man by Helen Fields

He collects his victims. But he doesn’t keep them safe.

Elspeth, Meggy and Xavier are locked in a flat. They don’t know where they are, and they don’t know why they’re there. They only know that the shadow man has taken them, and he won’t let them go.

Desperate to escape, the three of them must find a way out of their living hell, even if it means uncovering a very dark truth.

Because the shadow man isn’t a nightmare. He’s all too real.

And he’s watching.

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The Lost Girls of Paris by Pam Jenoff

1946, Manhattan

Grace Healey is rebuilding her life after losing her husband during the war. One morning while passing through Grand Central Terminal on her way to work, she finds an abandoned suitcase tucked beneath a bench. Unable to resist her own curiosity, Grace opens the suitcase, where she discovers a dozen photographs—each of a different woman. In a moment of impulse, Grace takes the photographs and quickly leaves the station.

Grace soon learns that the suitcase belonged to a woman named Eleanor Trigg, leader of a ring of female secret agents who were deployed out of London during the war. Twelve of these women were sent to Occupied Europe as couriers and radio operators to aid the resistance, but they never returned home, their fates a mystery. Setting out to learn the truth behind the women in the photographs, Grace finds herself drawn to a young mother turned agent named Marie, whose daring mission overseas reveals a remarkable story of friendship, valor and betrayal.

Vividly rendered and inspired by true events, New York Times bestselling author Pam Jenoff shines a light on the incredible heroics of the brave women of the war, and weaves a mesmerizing tale of courage, sisterhood and the great strength of women to survive in the hardest of circumstances.

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Every Last Fear by Alex Finlay

“They found the bodies on a Tuesday.”

So begins this twisty and breathtaking novel that traces the fate of the Pine family, a thriller that will both leave you on the edge of your seat and move you to tears.

After a late night of partying, NYU student Matt Pine returns to his dorm room to devastating news: nearly his entire family—his mom, his dad, his little brother and sister—have been found dead from an apparent gas leak while vacationing in Mexico. The local police claim it was an accident, but the FBI and State Department seem far less certain—and they won’t tell Matt why.

The tragedy makes headlines everywhere because this isn’t the first time the Pine family has been thrust into the media spotlight. Matt’s older brother, Danny—currently serving a life sentence for the murder of his teenage girlfriend Charlotte—was the subject of a viral true crime documentary suggesting that Danny was wrongfully convicted. Though the country has rallied behind Danny, Matt holds a secret about his brother that he’s never told anyone: the night Charlotte was killed Matt saw something that makes him believe his brother is guilty of the crime.

When Matt returns to his small hometown to bury his parents and siblings, he’s faced with a hostile community that was villainized by the documentary, a frenzied media, and memories he’d hoped to leave behind forever. Now, as the deaths in Mexico appear increasingly suspicious and connected to Danny’s case, Matt must unearth the truth behind the crime that sent his brother to prison—putting his own life in peril—and forcing him to confront his every last fear.

Told through multiple points-of-view and alternating between past and present, Alex Finlay’s Every Last Fear is not only a page-turning thriller, it’s also a poignant story about a family managing heartbreak and tragedy, and living through a fame they never wanted. 

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BOOK REVIEWS: My Darling Husband by Kimberly Belle https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-reviews-my-darling-husband-by-kimberly-belle/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=book-reviews-my-darling-husband-by-kimberly-belle https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-reviews-my-darling-husband-by-kimberly-belle/#respond Mon, 10 Jan 2022 17:58:20 +0000 http://www.nerdprobs.com/?p=6858
Rating

Title: My Darling Husband
Author: Kimberly Belle
Publication: December 28, 2021
Publisher: Park Row
Genre: Domestic Thriller
Pages: 331

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SYNOPSIS: (From Goodreads)

Everyone is about to know what her husband isn’t telling her…

Jade and Cam Lasky are by all accounts a happily married couple with two adorable kids, a spacious home and a rapidly growing restaurant business. But their world is tipped upside down when Jade is confronted by a masked home invader. As Cam scrambles to gather the ransom money, Jade starts to wonder if they’re as financially secure as their lifestyle suggests, and what other secrets her husband is keeping from her.

Cam may be a good father, a celebrity chef and a darling husband, but there’s another side he’s kept hidden from Jade that has put their family in danger. Unbeknownst to Cam and Jade, the home invader has been watching them and is about to turn their family secrets into a public scandal.

REVIEW:

**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**

Domestic thrillers are probably one of my favorite types of thrillers to read because, let’s be honest, people are crazy! There are always good stories of secrets, and lies and everything in between. Kimberly Belle nailed it with all that. I have never read a book by Belle before, but now I will be on the lookout.

When I first started reading this on day one, I honestly was a bit confused. It jumps back and forth in time from current to past and also between individuals you are reading from. I’m not a huge fan of a layout such as this because it can be hard to keep things straight. So, my first day was a bit slow on the pick up because I was trying to keep everything straight and I took frequent breaks from reading.

Then I hit about the 20% mark in the book and all holds were removed. I read the rest of the book in one day. I finally fell into a groove of who I was reading and if it was past or present. It’s really not as confusing as I probably make it sound. It just took me a few to catch on. The central part of this book is definitely lies and deceptions between family. While it may not seem that way, that was what I took at the end. While the thrilling part throughout is definitely center stage, there are a lot of underlying lies that led to where you are in the book.

My favorite character was hands down Beatrix. That girl is feisty! She was fun to read and you just want to high five her a lot. I think she brought the book up a notch because I want a kid just like her. There were a lot of twists and turns as the story goes on that literally had me gasp out loud as I read it. Then there was the ending. MIND BLOWING. All the pieces literally fell together all at once and I caught myself saying “oh my god” out loud. Fun and interesting characters, a unique and twisty story to keep you hooked, and a truly shocking ending. I can’t wait for more from Kimberly Belle.

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BOOK REVIEW: The Maid by Nita Prose https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-review-the-maid-by-nita-prose/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=book-review-the-maid-by-nita-prose https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-review-the-maid-by-nita-prose/#respond Tue, 04 Jan 2022 17:10:10 +0000 http://www.nerdprobs.com/?p=6822
Rating

Title: The Maid
Author: Nita Prose
Publication: January 4, 2022
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Genre: Mystery
Pages: 280

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SYNOPSIS: (From Goodreads)

Molly Gray is not like everyone else. She struggles with social skills and misreads the intentions of others. Her gran used to interpret the world for her, codifying it into simple rules that Molly could live by.

Since Gran died a few months ago, twenty-five-year-old Molly has been navigating life’s complexities all by herself. No matter—she throws herself with gusto into her work as a hotel maid. Her unique character, along with her obsessive love of cleaning and proper etiquette, make her an ideal fit for the job. She delights in donning her crisp uniform each morning, stocking her cart with miniature soaps and bottles, and returning guest rooms at the Regency Grand Hotel to a state of perfection.

But Molly’s orderly life is upended the day she enters the suite of the infamous and wealthy Charles Black, only to find it in a state of disarray and Mr. Black himself dead in his bed. Before she knows what’s happening, Molly’s unusual demeanor has the police targeting her as their lead suspect. She quickly finds herself caught in a web of deception, one she has no idea how to untangle. Fortunately for Molly, friends she never knew she had unite with her in a search for clues to what really happened to Mr. Black—but will they be able to find the real killer before it’s too late?

A Clue-like, locked-room mystery and a heartwarming journey of the spirit, The Maid explores what it means to be the same as everyone else and yet entirely different—and reveals that all mysteries can be solved through connection to the human heart.

REVIEW:

**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**

The Maid was labeled as a cozy mystery, which was a bit outside my usual reading. I love mystery novels, but I love when they are dark and gritty. I figured this one sounded interesting enough to give it a chance and I was not disappointed.

At first, Molly was a bit weird to read. Her demeanor and behavior definitely shows she is different, but not in a bad way. She is precise and doesn’t understand social cues the same. They never say, but I would guess maybe on the spectrum somewhere having personal experience. I quite liked her though. She is pretty blunt and says what she thinks because she doesn’t read social queues the same as most. Sometimes what she said had me laughing out loud because it was just so blunt the other people in the story didn’t react well. It was nice to read from a characters point of view that is different than most characters in a book. A breath of fresh air, if you will.

The story was also well organized and told. I love the attention to detail Prose used in descriptions and explanations. I loved the “gran always said” moments. I also had a fondness for many of the other characters and a hard suspicion about many as well. The point is, Prose drew out strong feelings regarding things in this book and I love when an author does that.

The ending wasn’t as shocking, as I saw who was the bad guy, but then the very end gave me a little enlightenment and I was mind blown. Molly is not as different as you’d think.

Either way, I quite enjoyed this book. The initial pick up was a little slow, but when it did get moving, it moved smooth and kept me interested. I look forward to reading more from Prose and encourage anyone who likes a nice clean, page-turning mystery to pick up The Maid now!

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BOOK REVIEW/Q&A: The Sorority Murder by Allison Brennan https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-review-qa-the-sorority-murder-by-allison-brennan/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=book-review-qa-the-sorority-murder-by-allison-brennan https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-review-qa-the-sorority-murder-by-allison-brennan/#respond Tue, 28 Dec 2021 11:00:00 +0000 http://www.nerdprobs.com/?p=6795
Rating

Title: The Sorority Murder
Author: Allison Brennan
Publication: December 28, 2021
Publisher: MIRA
Genre: Thriller
Pages: 407

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SYNOPSIS: (From Goodreads)

Lucas Vega is obsessed with the death of Candace Swain, who left a sorority party one night and never came back. Her body was found after two weeks, but the case has grown cold. Three years later while interning at the medical examiner’s, Lucas discovers new information, but the police are not interested.

Lucas knows he has several credible pieces of the puzzle. He just isn’t sure how they fit together. So he creates a podcast to revisit Candace’s last hours. Then he encourages listeners to crowdsource what they remember and invites guest lecturer Regan Merritt, a former US marshal, to come on and share her expertise.

New tips come in that convince Lucas and Regan they are onto something. Then shockingly one of the podcast callers turns up dead. Another hints at Candace’s secret life, a much darker picture than Lucas imagined—and one that implicates other sorority sisters. Regan uses her own resources to bolster their theory and learns that Lucas is hiding his own secret. The pressure is on to solve the murder, but first Lucas must come clean about his real motives in pursuing this podcast—before the killer silences him forever.

REVIEW:

**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**

I don’t know how I have never read an Allison Brennan book (that I can remember) before when I am such a hard core mystery/thriller lover, but now I regret not having read them sooner. The Sorority Murder sounded like something I was going to enjoy based on the synopsis, but I greatly underestimated how much I would enjoy it.

The book follows Lucas Vega as he does his senior year capstone project on a 3 year old cold case right at his very university. He is lucky enough to get the help of Regan, ex U.S. Marshal, and they go on a whirlwind trip of investigating, interviewing, and solving this insane mystery.

I love this book. It hooked me early on and I literally couldn’t put it down. I was reading when I shouldn’t have been reading and I was reading while dropping my book on my face at night because I just wanted to see what would happen next. The story was not rushed, nor was it too long. The details were just enough to leave me with the ability to create possibilities in my head on what was happening and who may be guilty. I LOVE Regan. She is like my spirit animal. Lucas was a bit annoying, but in a little brother way. He did things and you just wanted to shake him and scream, “What are you thinking?” I also really like Regan’s dad. He was protective, but stood back and let Regan do her own thing. Reminds me of my own dad. The story also flowed extremely well. There was a lot of information thrown at us, but it wasn’t overwhelming. It was like watching a puzzle come together; piece by piece. I also felt like the way the law enforcement portion was handled seemed very well researched. A lot of books do things and you automatically think the real police would never do that. Not this book. I definitely think she did her due diligence to make sure it was accurate, as well as a great story.

I have no complaints about this book. It was literal thriller perfection. Gripping from the beginning with a fantastic story and setting. The characters were relatable and well developed. And the mystery kept you turning pages almost faster than you can read. I cannot wait to read all of Brennan’s books to see if they are just as good as this one. A must read this winter!

Q&A with Author Allison Brennan (Provided by HTP Books)

Q: Please give a one sentence pitch for The Sorority Murder.

A: Amateur college podcaster sets out to solve a three-year-old campus murder.

Q: Obvious question, but were you part of sorority?

A: Nope! In fact, I’m a college drop-out … 

Q: Why do you think thrillers are so popular?

A: Thrillers are, at their core, stories about justice. A good thriller is also a story about human nature – the good and the bad. People are complex, and no one is wholly good or wholly bad, and thrillers often explore those nuances – but with a focus on how the story is told. Pacing is super important for a thriller. I’ve written both thrillers and mysteries – The Sorority Murder is structured more like a mystery, with a crime that needs to be solved, a slow burn as clues and evidence and hints of menace draw in the reader as the case develops and there is more at stake.

But in the end, thrillers and mysteries must satisfy the reader by giving them answers to the story questions in a fun, interesting, suspenseful way.

Q: Where do you get your ideas? Of course, from your imagination, but do you read, see or hear something that clicks?

A: Ideas come from everywhere … but for me, it’s mostly a combination of different ideas that blend to create a story. When the different ideas – coming from my imagination, the news, a story I read, a comment someone makes, a photograph that draws me in – hit me in just the right way, I get my own story idea. It’s never just one thing.

For The Sorority Murder, for example, I had wanted to write a story about a US Marshal, because it’s not often done. But I already have a series with FBI agents, so I thought – what about a former US Marshal? Why did she leave service? Who is she? So that was in the back of my mind, thinking about Regan Merritt (her name popped into my head, so I was really thinking about her character a lot.) Then, one of my daughter’s was talking about a podcast she was listening to. It had nothing to do with crime, but she sent me a link to an article about podcasts, and in it was a link to a true crime podcast. I love true crime – I always have. So I listened to a couple of episodes, all about unsolved crimes, and I started thinking, what if I had a podcast about an unsolved crime? Would that be interesting? I shelved it for awhile because I couldn’t think about how to make a podcast into a written thriller that would also be interesting and suspenseful. Then one of my daughters was looking at colleges. NAU was one of them – and I love Flagstaff, it’s an interesting town with a lot of history. Then something clicked and I thought, what if a student had a podcast? How would that work … and what case would he investigate? I knew it would have to be a cold case otherwise the police would still be investigating. And, because he’s an amateur and a student, Regan popped into mind – what if she went home to Flagstaff to lick her wounds about a tragedy, and she helped my student with his podcast? And the story was born. I had no idea who the killer was, who the suspects were, the motivation, anything. All I knew was that my podcaster Lucas had a secret and I couldn’t wait to find out what it was.

Q: Are you a plotter or panster?

A: I prefer the term “organic writer.” I do not plot. I hate plotting, writing outlines, anything that might tell me how the story resolves itself. I want to discover the end with my characters. 

Q: Do you have any tips for would-be writers?

A: Read a lot, write a lot. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes and then learn from them. Be bold. Write because you love it. 

Q: What do you like to do when you are not writing?

A: When my kids were younger, I loved spending time with them – going to their games, concerts, taking them to the movies, watching television. Now that my kids are almost grown – and three are out of the house! – I really miss that. I read a lot (of course!) … not as much as I would like. I probably read a book a week (not including for research) when in the past (before I was published) I used to read at least 3 books a week. I’ve recently dived into audio books, which I listen to while walking every morning. I also love baseball (go Giants!) and hiking in the mountains (nothing too steep, but if the trail is flat I can go for miles!) and I’m always on the hunt for good Mexican food.

Q: What books are you reading now?

A: I just finished Nora Robert’s THE OBSESSION on audiobook. It’s one of her older romantic suspense titles and I loved it. She is the master of the craft. Next up is JD Robb’s FORGOTTEN IN DEATH, which I’ve had on my shelf for a few months but between deadlines and Christmas, I haven’t had time to pick it up. I love the series, and will most likely sit down and read it in one or two sittings.

Q: Can you read other author’s books when you are writing yourself?

A: Yes – I write every day, so if I didn’t read other authors, I would never read! I try to read every day, but I’m a binge reader – I like to read a good book in 2-3 sittings, tops. I’ll admit, before I was published, I finished every book I started. Now? I have far too many books I want to read, so if it doesn’t grab me in a couple of chapters, I’m willing to put it down and start something new.

Q: What is your favorite season and why?

A: Fall. I love the change of colors and cool, breezy days. I also love rain, though we don’t get enough of it in Arizona!

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BOOK REVIEW: I’m a Therapist, and My Patient is Going to Be the Next School Shooter by Dr. Harper https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-review-im-a-therapist-and-my-patient-is-going-to-be-the-next-school-shooter-by-dr-harper/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=book-review-im-a-therapist-and-my-patient-is-going-to-be-the-next-school-shooter-by-dr-harper https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-review-im-a-therapist-and-my-patient-is-going-to-be-the-next-school-shooter-by-dr-harper/#respond Wed, 15 Dec 2021 11:00:00 +0000 http://www.nerdprobs.com/?p=6787
Rating

Title: I’m a Therapist, and My Patient is Going to be the Next School Shooter
Author: Dr. Harper
Publication: January 27, 2019
Publisher: Dr. Harper Therapy
Genre: Horror, Short Stories
Pages: 120

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SYNOPSIS: (From Goodreads)

I’ve seen it all… A boy who planned to be the next school shooter. A patient with OCD whose loved ones really did suffer every time he missed a ritual. A choir boy who claimed he was being molested — not by a priest — but by God Himself. A patient with PTSD who gave me nightmares. A husband and wife who accused each other of abuse, and only one of them was telling the truth.

And how could I ever forget, Patient #220.

The problem is, my patients have a habit of dying. Sometimes I wonder if I’m the common denominator. Or maybe that’s just the cost of taking on exceptionally broken clients.

Either way, I’ll never stop trying to help.

REVIEW:

I came across this book on Facebook in one of my book groups I’m part of. I was instantly intrigued and knew I had to read it. How interesting of a concept to get to peak inside patient files, even if they are fiction, and read from that aspect of the story. Not something I have done before. So I was all in.

Each “patient file” ended up having a link of sorts as a whole, but each one was about a different patient over the course of a lengthier bit of time. All in the eyes of the therapists notes.

I don’t like to be harsh, but right off the bat I knew I had been fooled a bit. While, yes, I knew this book was fiction and probably a bit… glamorized… to make it more interesting, I was expecting better. Better writing. Better story telling, Better story. The behavior of the characters was very out of character for who they were. A therapist who is basically stalking his patients at times, and treating his assistant completely innaporpriately. He even says, “I’m not proud of my actions” on more than one occasion. Any therapist that has to say that should not be a therapist anymore. Even a fake book therapist.

I was really excited to read this series because there are a bunch of books that have really interesting, catchy titles, but unfortunately I likely will not read more. While this was a quick, short read, it was just too much. Too unbelievable for me. I prefer a more based in reality type of story.

However, I always encourage you to read for yourself. Just because I did not like it does not mean you will not like it. So pick it up, check it out. It doesn’t take long to read and you never know. This might hit the spot for you.

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BOOK REVIEW: The Ballerinas by Rachel Kapelke-Dale https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-review-the-ballerinas-by-rachel-kapelke-dale/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=book-review-the-ballerinas-by-rachel-kapelke-dale https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-review-the-ballerinas-by-rachel-kapelke-dale/#respond Tue, 14 Dec 2021 11:00:00 +0000 http://www.nerdprobs.com/?p=6782
Rating

Title: The Ballerinas
Author: Rachel Kapelke-Dale
Publication: December 7, 2021
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Genre: Teen, YA Fiction
Pages: 296

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SYNOPSIS: (From Goodreads)

Fourteen years ago, Delphine abandoned her prestigious soloist spot at the Paris Opera Ballet for a new life in St. Petersburg––taking with her a secret that could upend the lives of her best friends, fellow dancers Lindsay and Margaux. Now 36 years old, Delphine has returned to her former home and to the legendary Palais Garnier Opera House, to choreograph the ballet that will kickstart the next phase of her career––and, she hopes, finally make things right with her former friends. But Delphine quickly discovers that things have changed while she’s been away…and some secrets can’t stay buried forever.

Moving between the trio’s adolescent years and the present day, The Ballerinas explores the complexities of female friendship, the dark drive towards physical perfection in the name of artistic expression, the double-edged sword of ambition and passion, and the sublimated rage that so many women hold inside––all culminating in a twist you won’t see coming, with magnetic characters you won’t soon forget.

REVIEW:

**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**

I love books about dancers. I’m not sure if it’s because I absolutely cannot dance or that I did a few years of ballet as a child, but they are my absolute favorite. There are usually some good dramas intertwined in them. So needless to say I had high expectations. I’m sad to say they did not match up.

Full disclosure, I did not finish this book. Not because it was just a terrible story, but because it was a slow story. I read a lot and I have a lot of books I want to read. I don’t have time to spend weeks on a book because it doesn’t have a hook. I liked some of the characters and the setting, but it was so very slow to pick up. At 30% I still didn’t have any general idea of where the story was going and it was jumping back and forth between current time and the past, which caused even more confusion. So while I tried and pushed forward as much as I could, it came to a point that I just decided it wasn’t a book for me and put it down. The only thing keeping it from a one star review was that it wasn’t bad writing. It was just boring for me.

I’m not saying this book is horrible. I just couldn’t get into it enough to decide to finish it. It was just… meh… to me. But I always encourage people to read on their own. See how it vibes with you as an individual. I always like to give authors two books to see if it’s just their writing style so I will be picking up another book by Rachel Kapelke-Dale to see how I enjoy it. Let me know what you think after you read.

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BOOK REVIEW: The Upside of Falling by Alex Light https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-review-the-upside-of-falling-by-alex-light/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=book-review-the-upside-of-falling-by-alex-light https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-review-the-upside-of-falling-by-alex-light/#respond Mon, 13 Dec 2021 13:00:00 +0000 http://www.nerdprobs.com/?p=6777
Rating

Title: The Upside of Falling
Author: Alex Light
Publication: February 18, 2020
Publisher: Harper Teen
Genre: Teen & YA Fiction
Pages: 284

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SYNOPSIS: (From Goodreads)

It’s been years since seventeen-year-old Becca Hart believed in true love. But when her former best friend teases her for not having a boyfriend, Becca impulsively pretends she’s been secretly seeing someone.

Brett Wells has it all. Being captain of the football team and one of the most popular guys in school, he should have no problem finding someone to date, but he’s always been more focused on his future than who to bring to prom. When he overhears Becca’s lie, Brett decides to step in and be her mystery guy. It’s the perfect solution: he gets people off his back for not dating and she can keep up the ruse.

Acting like the perfect couple isn’t easy though, especially when you barely know the other person. But with Becca still picking up the pieces from when her world was blown apart years ago and Brett just barely holding his together now, they begin to realize they have more in common than they ever could have imagined. When the line between real and pretend begins to blur, they are forced to answer the question: is this fake romance the realest thing in either of their lives?

REVIEW:

I was looking for a light read for my rides to work. I love a good audiobook. I happened to come across The Upside of Love by Alex Light on Hoopla through my library. Let me tell you, it was so cute!

The story follows Becca as her and football star Brett make an agreement to pretend to be boyfriend and girlfriend for the sake of their own personal issues. Obviously that is not going to go as easy as planned. Nothing ever works the way you intend it to. I really like Becca. She reminds me a lot of myself. A bit of a homebody, always carrying a book. The supporting characters were equally as interesting and relatable. I quite liked Brett. I think some would find him your typical “dude bro”, but he was so much deeper than that. I found the reality of his life to be refreshing. Everyone thinks he’s this perfect guy with no problems, when in the background he has a lot of issues that he is dealing with.

While the storyline was predictable, I knew that going in. I chose it because I wanted an easy read with a good story. I definitely got that. I loved the independence of Becca and the growth from all the characters. I enjoyed the ups and downs of the story and the intensity of some of the issues that arose. It added just enough drama to the story where it wasn’t just a typical romance. It also falls under YA Fiction, which is one of my go to reads.

Overall this story was cute, fun to read, with a bit of drama twisted in. I would recommend it to anyone looking for something to enjoy with depth. I’ll check out more from Alex Light going forward.

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BOOK REVIEW: Uglies by Scott Westerfeld https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-review-uglies-by-scott-westerfeld/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=book-review-uglies-by-scott-westerfeld https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-review-uglies-by-scott-westerfeld/#respond Sun, 12 Dec 2021 17:36:17 +0000 http://www.nerdprobs.com/?p=6773
Rating

Title: Uglies
Author: Scott Westerfeld
Publication: May 10, 2006
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Genre: Teen, YA Fiction, Science Fiction
Pages: 448

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SYNOPSIS: (From Amazon)

Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can’t wait. In just a few weeks she’ll have the operation that will turn her from a repellent ugly into a stunningly attractive pretty. And as a pretty, she’ll be catapulted into a high-tech paradise where her only job is to have fun.

But Tally’s new friend Shay isn’t sure she wants to become a pretty. When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world—and it isn’t very pretty. The authorities offer Tally a choice: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. Tally’s choice will change her world forever.

REVIEW:

My book club selected Uglies as our read for November. I am not big on science fiction, so I was a little hesitant on whether I would enjoy this book. I was pleasantly surprised.

The story follows Tally, who is about to become a Pretty and get all the joys that come with it. However, she meets Shay who tells her things she’s never heard. Then when it’s finally her time.. things go awry. I did not initially love the characters I was meeting. Tally is very naive and that naïveté was a bit irritating to say the least. I wanted to scream at her every time she had a thought about what she had been told her whole life and that everything else was a lie. It was infuriating to see how brainwashed she was because that is what she was told. Made me want to shake her and make her think for herself, no matter what she chose to believe at that point.

I wouldn’t say I liked any of the characters really. I really enjoyed the storyline. It reminded me a lot of the Divergent series. Same concept. The characters annoyed me greatly until I got out of the city and then I enjoyed those characters. But honestly, I really did not like Tally even then. Shay was fun at the end of the story as well. I only point this out because of the strong feelings I had for the characters. I always feel a book is better if you feel strongly about the characters themselves. It makes the story even better.

With that being said, the story flowed really nicely. I like the inner monologues we got from Tally as we read along and all the things she was trying to process in her mind. We could see her growth because of it and it made the story deeper. My only issue with the book is that it ended on a cliffhanger. I knew there were more books, but I was still frustrated with a cliffhanger. Now I have to read the next book asap!!! I was going to do it anyway.

Overall Uglies is intriguing, interesting, and leaves me wanting more at the end. Thank goodness there is more! Pick it up and check it out if you are fans of The Selection, Divergent, Hunger Games or other books similar.

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BOOK REVIEW: At the End of Everything by Marieke Nijkamp https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-review-at-the-end-of-everything-by-marieke-nijkamp/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=book-review-at-the-end-of-everything-by-marieke-nijkamp https://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-review-at-the-end-of-everything-by-marieke-nijkamp/#respond Mon, 06 Dec 2021 12:00:00 +0000 http://www.nerdprobs.com/?p=6769
Rating

Title: At the End of Everything
Author: Marieke Nijkamp
Publication: January 25, 2022
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Genre: Teens, YA Fiction, Mystery, Thriller
Pages: 400

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SYNOPSIS: (From Goodreads)

The Hope Juvenile Treatment Center is ironically named. No one has hope for the delinquent teenagers who have been exiled there; the world barely acknowledges that they exist.

Then the guards at Hope start acting strange. And one day…they don’t show up. But when the teens band together to make a break from the facility, they encounter soldiers outside the gates. There’s a rapidly spreading infectious disease outside, and no one can leave their houses or travel without a permit. Which means that they’re stuck at Hope. And this time, no one is watching out for them at all.

As supplies quickly dwindle and a deadly plague tears through their ranks, the group has to decide whom among them they can trust and figure out how they can survive in a world that has never wanted them in the first place.

REVIEW:

**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**

I am a huge fan of Marieke Nijkamp. I have read previous books by her (links below) and her books are always so gritty. So let’s start there. I read At the End of Everything with the idea that I was going to get the same grittiness I got from This Is Where it Ends and Before I Let Go. I was not disappointed. At the End of Everything has that same general story line that a lot of other authors stay away from because its not generally happy. However, I quite love books like this. They are real and raw and make you feel things.

First I want to warn everyone, this is not a happy book. Not saying it doesn’t have a happy ending… I won’t give away anything there. But the general topic is not a bright one. This book follows a group of kids living in a facility for kids who have done something criminal or behaved very badly. These kids are quickly left to their own means when a crazy illness takes over the world outside. Sound familiar?

This story gave me a little anxiety. Probably because it reminded me a lot of Covid-19 and the anxiety and stress that surrounded the last few years of our lives in the real world. However, this is different, I assure you. It’s a much worse virus than Covid, so while it could be triggering from some, it’s not as realistic as our current situation, although could be if you think about it. This story has a lot of hard hitting topics. Child abuse, drugs, depression, anxiety, childhood delinquency, assault, hunger… the list goes on. But it is written SO well. The story jumps between a few key characters and their P.O.V.’s. These characters have all different kinds of backgrounds and represent all kinds of people.

Overall the story was a hard one to read because it had such a similarity to our current ongoing pandemic, but the way the story was written and watching the character’s growth during such a hard time was so interesting to read. Nijkamp always does a great job with writing deep and meaningful characters that go through a crazy journey to get to where they end up, whether that be a good or bad place is another thing.

This was a great story. Well written, takes you on a journey with the characters, interesting individuals introduced throughout, and multiple viewpoints from people of all backgrounds. It’s a melting pot of perfection. I can’t wait for Nijkamp’s next book.

Check out our previous reviews of Marieke Nijkamp’s other books below.

This Is Where It Ends

Before I Let Go

Even If We Break

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