THORNBIRD......THE TOWN'S NEW GIRL KEEPS HER REAL NAME A DEEP, DARK SECRET.....(****).....

 Thornbird by E. Kennedy (2026)

     You can't help but being swept up in the story of this New-Girl-In-School YA thriller. Because no new girl in school ever faced as many disturbing challenges as Ryan Shipley. The first of them being that her real name's actually Gabrielle Thorn, the daughter of infamous serial killer Gabriel Thorn. Currently awaiting execution 10 years after his crimes, Thorn murdered and buried his female victims in as yet undiscovered locations. Little Gabrielle survived the slaughter but her mother did not. Taken in and cared for by her grandmother until the aged woman's passing, Gabrielle (now Ryan) must now move back to her original home town. to live with her aunt and uncle and teen cousins Jasmine and Connor.

     Living in the the little town of Starling under a pseudonym proves a necessity for Ryan. The murders. the mystery of the victims' remains and and impending execution of her father have stirred up a bonfire of anger among to the residents and a renewed mass media/social media feeding frenzy.. There's no telling what chaos and harassment might erupt around Ryan if her identity was revealed.

     But even as she struggles to keep her deepest secret, Ryan still finds her life upended in multiple ways. Anonymous messages threaten to expose her real name. To her increasing worry, her new school's star quarterback/golden boy has quite taken to her, a boy whose late mother was Gabriel Thorn's final victim. And the FBI now presses her to search her darkest childhood memories for any clues that could lead to the bodies of the murdered women and at last closure for their grieving families.

     Holy teen angst.....and you thought YOU had it tough in high school......

Author E. Kennedy keeps this book moving at a breakneck, one-day-read pace and as the dread and suspense pile up on Ryan, all manner of stunning twists and surprises reveal themselves, some of them unspeakably horrific and heartbreaking. 'Thornbird' definitely goes on my list of 'Top YA Page-turners' for this year. and that should sum up this review as best I can.

       4 stars (****).

WHISPER CREEK.....A FARM FAMILY BESIEGED BY MOTHER NATURE AND HUMAN VILLAINY.....ALL AT ONCE....(****)

 Whisper Creek by Allison Brennan (2026)

     Out in the farmlands of Texas, torrential rain is coming down in sheets. Roads flooded out, fields turned to swampy mud......and worse than that, there's a trio of thugs on the loose, serving as minions for the malignant land-grabbing town bigwig who plans to buy out properties he covets... ....or else. So before this storm-tossed night's over, there's bodily harm coming down on the farm......

     Now that's what I call a 4 star recipe for a page turning thriller that combines warm family drama with Mother Nature and human villainy both on the rampage during one terrible stormy night. Fasten your pickup truck seat belts, it's going to be one bumpy perilous ride, courtesy of author Alison Brennan.

     Ellen McKenna, widowed after the tragic accidental death of her husband, struggles to keep her farm afloat, with all four of her children pitching in, even the youngest. But ongoing storms have already left the land flooded and it looks like the worst one yet is well on its way.. Jake, her oldest, discovers a neighbor grievously wounded by gunfire and the perpetrators, just like the storm are just getting started, with the threat of more violence yet to come.

     The increasing suspense and danger only escalate from this point on and like every great thriller should, 'Whisper Creek' had me putting off all manner of everyday things, so I could keep turning the pages. What helps put the book in that category is author Brennan bringing to life the entire McKenna family with all their hopes, dreams, quirks, flaws and good old fashioned Texan gumption. You can't help but care for this brood as you fear for them. And the book surely doesn't spare the McKennas not even a little bit, throwing one traumatic life-threatening moment after another at them.

     Superb heartfelt storytelling moving to a thrill-a-minute pace. No wonder I stopped everything I was doing to finish this book.

     4 stars (****).

CHECKING YOU OUT.......BOOKS, BOOKSTORES, LIBRARIES, KITTENS, SECRET ROMANCING....AND EVEN MORE KITTENS....(****)

 Checking You Out by Jennifer Chen (2026)

     Enormous loads of cuteness to unpack here. Two lead characters overwhelmingly cute. And both of them lovers of a wildly best selling and yes, cute fantasy novel series. Both equipped with loving, loyal and, dare I say, cute friends. If that isn't enough sheer cuteness for you, how about dozens and dozens of fluffy, mischievous, insanely adorable and.....you guessed it, cute kittens.

     One last thing to pile on top of this Mt. Everest of cuteness. Libraries! Bookstores galore! And books, books.....and oh yes, more books.

     Is there anything unpleasant lurking in this Garden of bookish, kitten-ish, Eden? Indeed, there is, with our male lead Dylan a survivor of merciless bullying during middle school through high school. So much so that he's hidden away his love of reading and now presenting himself as distinctly un-literary, and interested mainly in his prowess as a tennis player.

     Dylan's secret life makes it doubly hard for him as he's crushing hard on book-aholic LIzzie, lifelong lover of the same fantasy series that Dylan adores. but still too shy to admit to publicly. And despite his supposed interest only in tennis, Lizzie's beginning to fall just as hard for Dylan as they work together in an animal shelter, bottle feeding and caring for countless litters of captivating kittens that come flooding into the shelter..

     In no time at all, this 'You've Got Mail' storyline turns into 'You've Got Books' with Dylan and Lizzie exchanging anonymous messages tucked away in library books, with each of them, of course, not knowing that the wonderful sweet book lovers they're communicating with are.......each other..

     The simplicity of the writing here would lead me to believe this book is pitched more for tweens but I couldn't help but feel charmed by author Jennifer Chen's enthusiasm and deep empathy for her characters. (Though I really do wish she'd consulted a thesaurus for synonyms for "cute", whose overuse gets tiresome awfully fast

     The lure of books, libraries, bookstores, kittens and secret romance sucked me in right away, but I realize that some readers may feel like they're munching on a jumbo State Fair cone of YA cotton candy. But then again, what's wrong with a book that wants nothing more than to make you and all the characters in it feel good together? In this day and age,I say you can't have enough of them. So there's my 4 stars and I'm stickin' to 'em.

       4 stars (****).

SELF HELP FOR SERIAL KILLERS.......FOR THIS MARRIED COUPLE, IT'S TOUGH BALANCING WORK 'N SLAY....(****).....

 Self-Help for Serial Killers by Asia Mackay (2026)

     Wonderful news to know that Hazel and Fox, that beautiful/handsome couple of "A Serial Killer's Guide to Marriage" are back in action once again.......living their best lives while depriving a whole slew of better-off-dead guys of theirs. But the murderous misadventures of this deadly duo wouldn't be nearly as much fun as they are without author Asia Mackay to throw every variety of obstacles, complications and plot twists in their way.

     And trials and tribulations aplenty keep Hazel and Fox in a constant state of anxiety and suspicion of everyone around them. They're a family now, with irrepressible toddler Bibi and baby Reggie, .........so it's tough to balance their parental responsibilities with their private crusade to rid the world of assorted rapists, abusers and all around rotten men. Fox, deep in midlife crisis and loss of mojo, turns to therapy to navigate his crumbling self-confidence and fear that he's no longer a worthy husband and co-killer for Hazel.. Hazel, meanwhile, copes with the 24/7 demands of a newborn and a new powerful enemy she's made out of the formidable mother of one of Bibi's pre-school bullies.

     That's only the least of their troubles. Our favorite kill-happy couple have also run afoul of an international criminal organization who've sent out their dreaded expert top assassin, 'The Chameleon' for one last job before his retirement........and guess which married couple sits on the top of his hit list. As if that's not enough on their plates, there's also the relentless Interpol agent sniffing about, curious as to how dead bodies seem to pop up in Hazel and Fox's wake wherever they go.

     Author Mackay never forgets to leaven all this marital mayhem with generous portions of dark humor and wit sharper than one of Hazel's favorite knives. This couple's reversal-of-fortunes never cease, along with twists both surprising and wickedly ironic. . No matter how much our lovebirds plan to combine marriage and murder as a lifestyle go off the rails, you'll still want them to succeed........and hopefully continue the chaos in another series entry.  I, for one, can't wait.....

       4 stars (****).

SOMEONE ELSE'S HUSBAND.......FROM KILIMANJARO TO PARK AVENUE.....IT'S JUST MURDER OUT THERE......(****)

 Someone Else's Husband by Kimberly McCreight (2026)

     Among the uppercrusts of New York City, no picture perfect storybook marriage ends up more tangled in webs of adultery and murder accusations than that of Gretchen and Richard Falk. It turned out Gretchen's worries about her beloved husband joining his old college buddies to climb Africa's Mount Kilimanjaro were well founded. Because joining the otherwise all male expedition was beautiful New York artist Frankie Callahan, hopefully on the verge of critical acclaim and financial success with an upcoming gallery exhibition.

     The exhausting climb to that famous summit ends in tragedy for one of Richard's friends but also fosters a possible much-more-than-friendly bond between himself and Frankie. But then two weeks later, with the adventure's survivors all back in New York, Richard's charged with with Frankie's brutal murder,..... her body's missing but detectives find her apartment (and some of Richard's clothing) soaked in blood. A traumatized, horrified Gretchen and her three grown children try to cope with the very public spectacle of a loving husband and father accused of such a heinous crime.

     Author Kimberly McCreight certainly knows how to deepen the mystery and suspicions here. The book deftly unfolds multiple timelines exploring the emotions, twists and turns of Frankie and Richard's lives during that perilous ascension of Kilimanjaro. And there's clearly more than meets the eye going on in Gretchen's life as well during that pivotal two week period before Frankie's slaying at the hands of.........well, that's for us readers to find out, isn't it. And you most definitely won't want to stop turning the pages until you do, with no end of surprises in store.

     I love a thriller that manages to combine all those NYC entitled one-percenters (and their wayward kids) with a complex mystery and a serious, honest look at the complexities of love and marriage. This book easily checks off all those boxes. By all means put this one on your latest reading list.

     4 stars (****).

BEACH THRILLER......DON'T HIT THE BEACH OR THE POOL WITHOUT THIS ONE......(****).

 Beach Thriller by Jamie Day (2026)

     What better book to read on a beach than this one, a twist crammed mystery set in a scenic little Massachusetts coastal town..........where there's almost as many hidden dark family secrets as there are shells on the sand.

     Actually, this Jamie Day page turner can be enjoyed just as much in the Fall or the dead of winter or any time at all, but if you've gotten into previous Day thrillers like I have, you'll want to grab hold of it ASAP..

     The newest resident of Beauport Mass. is novelist Holly Sinclair, whose meager book royalties and low finances force her to move in to her family's dilapidated seaside cottage. Along with the peeling paint and sagging woodwork, the house fills Holly with painful memories of her late older sister. Holly's convinced Anna's tragic, so-called accidental death connects back to the ultra wealthy Carmichaels, the sort of Beauport royal family whom Anna worked for as a server. And Holly's certain, despite the obnoxious town cop who tells her otherwise, that Anna's death constitutes an unsolved murder and that the Carmichaels hide a whole closet full of skeletons in their castle-estate.......complete with an ominous turret tower hiding who-know-what..

     While trying to start to new novel to help her dire bank account, Holly ends up providing shelter and care for Jade, an outwardly tough but vulnerable teen girl runaway. And her worries for Jade only become worse when the girl takes a job with the dreaded Carmichaels, including the imperious matriarch Maeve and her suave son Conrad.. When the fearless Jade takes it upon herself ,on Holly's behalf, to conduct an undercover investigation into the mysterious family..........well, a reader can prepare for all manner of breathless events and stunning reveals.

     Once again, Jamie Day hits the bullseye here, and I felt there's way more heart and soul packed into these characters than I've seen in previous Day thrillers, which is all to the good.........since the suspense doubles up when you start to hear yourself muttering internally..."no, no, don't go in there!" Whatever kind of reading list you're working on......I'd recommend putting "Beach Thriller" somewhere high up on it.

     4 stars (****).

THE BREAK-UP RETREAT...... A JOURNALIST UNDERCOVER.....OUT TO PUT THE BRAKES ON THE BREAK-UP THERAPIST........(***1/2)

 The Break-Up Retreat by Camilla Sten (2026)

     If there's anything we know for sure about psychological thrillers set in remote so-called 'wellness' retreats, it's this.

     Nobody's going to get well. Somebody ( maybe multiple somebodies) are going to get dead. And you can safely bet that a spoonful of sugar won't make the therapy go down.

     Undercover journalist Isobel Anderssen hopes to pull the curtains back on the Himlafall Clinic run by world famous therapist and best selling author Dr. Martina Hastings. The 'good' doctor and her deep-in-the-Swedish-woods clinic exclusively cater to healing, improving and correcting the lives of hurting women devastated by toxic relationships that always lead to break ups.

     But Isobel suspects there's deep trouble in paradise. Ugly rumors of mistreated, abused patients and possibly even some who've mysteriously disappeared and never heard from again. Infiltrating Himlafall as a would-be patient, she hopes to find out what's going on, with the help a a dear lifelong friend who's secured a job as one the clinic's staff assistants.

     As you can imagine, nothing goes right for Isobel. Ominous clues abound, and she didn't count on the charismatic, supremely self-satisfied Dr. Martina knowing full well how to captivate and dominate her patients.....including Isobel. The therapy sessions carry an unsettling atmosphere of cruel intimidation and the dread and suspense start to escalate until all bad things come to a head.......on what else? A dark and stormy night.

     As long as the book stuck to the unfolding plot in the clinic itself, I found it briskly paced, well crafted and working up a good amount of chill inducing shivers and anticipation for whatever comes next. But then every so often author Camilla Sten goes down the psychology rabbit hole, filling up the pages with endless texts memorandums , case history blah-blah-blahs.....and it rarely does anything except bring the book's momentum to a grinding halt......practically begging a reader to skim through it. .

     But I don't want to miss pointing out the finale's a real cinematic corker, slightly flirting with all out horror. amid all the revelations. Which, come think of it, makes me want to round it up to a 3.5 rating. You'll get the feeling that Dr. Martina would've been better off recommending Haagen-Dazs and Netlfix romcoms for break-up therapy instead of her own loony ideas.

     3 & 1/2 stars (***1/2).