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).

YOU WON'T FORGET ME......ROCK 'N ROLL AND ROMANCE.....REAL AND FAKE.....AND ON TOUR......(****)

You Won't Forget Me by Mazy Eddings (2026)

     This is one busy, busy book and I don't mind admitting that if one of its intentions was to make a reader fall head over heels for the lead character....then mission accomplished.

     Author Mazy Eddings packs a whole of content in here to surround the primary tale of a a rocky but always sweetly passionate sapphic romance. There's an unflinching look, both funny and dramatic at the struggles of a fledgling rock 'n roll band, trying to create their music and make themselves heard.. But that's an uphill battle fought in the pop music trenches 0f record label machinations and bookings in dingy bars and clubs. And then there's always the vast social media universe of of instant critics hovering over the every move of those who dare to live their lives in the public eye.

     This is what faces 23 year old singer songwriter Cubby Clark, whose efforts to put her feelings into meaningful words and music seem constantly derailed by the ups and downs of her rock group and her own turbulent love life. Ex band member Conner, also Cubby's ex boyfriend has moved on to an overnight smash solo career.. But it's a career built on a hit song portraying Cubby as a poor excuse for a girlfriend, both in and out of the bedroom.

     Betrayed, enraged and and deeply hurt by being cast as a pop music villainess in the media, an already anguished Cubby gives in to her label owner's plan for an American tour to feature a deliberately fake romance between Cubby and band mate Harry. This only adds all new troubles on top of Cubby's realization that her lifelong love for Darcy, fellow band member and friend since childhood, is far, far more than platonic.

     Author Mazy Eddings expertly has you literally aching for Cubby as her passion to create and her passion for Darcy collide along with her temperamental clashes with the band and Connor's insidiously false public portrayal of her.. Being young and given to spur of the moment wrong decisions, you can't help but silently cheer her on to find a way into daylight, into the music she lives to compose.......and the girl she can't live without.

     By the time 'You Won't Forget Me' finishes , you feel like you've been served a 10 course meal...... the rock music life in all its contentious, rambunctious glory, the electric joys of crafting music, the treacherous navigation through media jungles.......and finally pure overpowering love. And that's a whole lot more than I ever expected from a book with that usual familiar cover of two girls gazing dreamily at each other.

        4 stars (****).

ROCKET'S RED GLARE.......BUT HALF THE BOOK'S NOT THERE.....(**).

 Rocket's Red Glare by James Patterson and Matt Eversmann (2026)

     I have aways loved James Patterson for his fast pacing, succinct brief chapters and compelling stories you can't stop reading. And I couldn't wait to plunge into this bullet-riddled, global terrorism action-adventure he co-wrote with Matt Eversmann. A five star rating seemed practically a done deal.

     No deal.

     Not when you plow through a breathless thrill packed book only to have it abruptly come to a dead stop, leaving multiple plot points dangling. It's equivalent to watching a rip roaring action movie where the projector breaks down halfway through. Or a similarity to those end credits teasers of superhero movies, which lead you to realize that the 2 & 1/2 hour movie you just sat through was nothing more than an extended trailer for the sequel.

     Not cool, Mr. Patterson. Not cool at all.

     Let's be clear, I have no problem with thrillers that leave a few tantalizing plot threads in their final pages, as long they play fair and offer readers a measure of closure in regard to the current story we've committed to and read.

     "Rocket's Red Glare" functions as nothing than a colossal teaser for a subsequent book....if in fact authors Patterson and Eversmann get around to publishing one.

     I'll not waste time getting into plot details , other than it follows a formidable independent Paramilitary force contracted by the U.S. government to take on a massive terrorist attack on American soil. Not an easy task, considering the amount of double-agents and moles sprinkled into the mix. As far as the book proceeds, it does deliver, in typical James Patterson fashion, non stop battles and surprises.

     But sorry, as much of a Patterson fan as I am, I'm in no way recommending this book to anybody unless it's published with the blatantly missing second half restored.

     2 stars (**). and that 's being overly kind, considering what a come-on grift this book is.

     

       

SKYRING WATER.....SLAMBANG GLOBAL THRILLS THAT TURN UP THE TEMP ON THE COLD WAR.....(****)

 Skyring Water by Louis L'Amour and Beau L'Amour (2026)

     For anyone who only associates Louis L'Amour's name with westerns, this book, revised, expanded, co-written and restored by his son Beau will come as a huge revelation.

     Often I felt overwhelmed reading this thrilling, exhaustively researched adventure. By the time I finished I felt like I'd plowed through enough geo-political chicanery, graduate level physics,, death defying, breathtaking escapes, battles and explosive violence that could fill over 50 books by Alistair MacLean, Clive Cussler, James Rollins and Frederick Forsythe. At times, this book just plain wore me out.

     We're back in 1961 where some remnants of World War II still simmer and fester and the new Cold War grows hotter by the minute. Surviving hardcore Nazis, still holding dreams of a Fourth Reich, have inserted themselves back into the society, politics and scientific communities of the many countries around the world.......awaiting to seize their opportunity to achieve world domination.

      Amid the perils of this new nuclear world, the expected clashes that come with the rise of emerging nations serve as the bread and butter of former OSS operative, expert diver and arms dealer Mike Fowler.. He's partnered with (and at times mentored by) former Nazi commander and scientist Anton Voss, a man with no end of secrets in his past. And now they're in hot pursuit of the greatest potential prize for soldiers-of-fortune such as themselves.......a hidden, sunken German U-Boat supposedly holding a cargo of 30 million dollars in stolen Nazi gold.......(try to imagine the value adjusted for 2026 inflation.....)

     But Fowler and Voss are far from alone in their quest. Hot on their heels come a host of enemy-rivals....... - the most vicious 'Fourth Reich' cabal imaginable along with Israeli Intelligence, Mafia thugs and a duplicitous CIA officer whom MIke Fowler has despised since their World War II experience together. The search for the gold laden Nazi sub finally leads all of them to the arctic waters at the southern tips of Chile and Argentina.......but there's way more than mere gold awaiting them.

     I have to admit there are more than a few times when the L'amours' staggering amount of research into history, weaponry international espionage and science threaten to bring the overall propulsive momentum of the book to a dead stop. But one thing nobody has to wait long for here........the rip-roaring, bloody gun battles and hand-t0-hand combat that erupt on a regular basis.

     Readers who loved and dearly miss those clock-is-ticking, global high adventures that dominated bestseller lists and films throughout the 1960's and 70's, 'Skyring Water' provides a one stop shopping bonanza. Top notch for this genre.

      4 stars (****).

 

MAN OF MY DREAMS......HOW DID HER FICTIONAL GUY TURN UP FOR REAL? AND WHO'S STALKING THE AUTHOR?......(****)

 Man of My Dreams by Olivia Worley (2026)

     I can always depend on a swiftly paced twist-filled read from author Olivia Worley. And this one not only delivers that well, but comes up with a wild wild triple-whammy of a final revelation.........which I had to stop and read extra carefully to make sure I was fully comprehending it after picking my jaw up from the floor.

     Romance writer Ivy Harcourt, currently basks in the success of her new bestseller, a modernized re-invention of "Wuthering Heights" (but with a happier ending that she'd wistfully dreamed for Heathcliff and Cathy.). Her new work-in-progress features a charming dreamboat architect named Liam. And, as the strangest of fates would have it, whom does she encounter one day in a meet cute but a charming dreamboat architect named.......well, do I even have say it out loud?

     So how is this far-fetched life-imitates-art coincidence even possible? How did this guy manage to literally walk right off of Ivy's rough-draft pages and into her real life, capturing her heart so quickly? All manner of suspicious, unsettling little things begin to pile up in her mind about too-perfect-to-be-true Liam and something even more anxiety inducing plagues Ivy. She's being stalked by someone with knowledge of her darkest long repressed family tragedy......someone who appears to know the terrible truth of that nightmarish moment she's managed to block out of her mind.

     Suspense, dread and surprises start quickly tumbling through the storyline, which made 'Man of My Dreams' a lightning fast one day read for me. And then topped off by that super Jumbo twist......which to be honest, requires you either go with it or stare at the book muttering "you gotta be kiddin' me, right? Seriously?"

     But personally, in a book like this, I'm not looking for hardcore, down-to-earth reality and I love it when thriller authors take a swing for the fences to come up with a finale to knock a reader upside and down and sideways.. So thank you, Ms. Worley for taking that grand slam swing that had me shaking my head for its sheer outrageous daring. Had a fine time with this one.

     4 stars (****).

ROAD TRIP......ROMANCE, MYSTERY SISTERLY BONDING AND GREEN, GREEN IRELAND......(****)

 Road Trip by Mary Kay Andrews (2026)

     Mary Kay Andrews arrives just in time with a refreshing summer cooler of a book. It's a warmhearted cocktail mixed with budding new romances, mysteries to solve, even a slight touch of mayhem and all of it transpiring in a cozy Irish town right out of "The Quiet Man".

     We start back in Savannah Georgia, where estranged sisters Maeve and Therese Dunigan face a sea of troubles following the death of their beloved mother. On the eve of her tenure, Maeve's lost her position as a college professor., a cruel blow for someone who's spent her life as a strict rule follower. Therese, her complete opposite in outlook and personality lives her life as a freewheeling would-be actress almost always in a state of unemployment. The sisters discover their dementia-afflicted mom donated her life savings to a shady televangelist, forcing her take out an all new second mortgage on her house.......which neither of her daughters could ever hope to now pay. Their last hope lies in selling a forgotten, family heirloom potentially worth millions......a portrait by a distinguished, famed artist that somehow connects back the sisters' Irish roots.

     In their quest to authenticate the painting, the Dunigan sisters travel to Tarrytown Ireland to unravel the many mysteries surrounding their great-grandmother and the aristocratic family who accused her of murder after she'd been compelled to sail off to an adventurous new life in America.

     Though like oil and water together, Maeve and Therese rediscover their sisterly bond and make a formidable team, piecing together a tale of love, courage, brazen criminality and even murder most foul. And it surely doesn't hurt that Maeve's helped by Liam, that personable maker of Irish whiskey she's fallen for......and vice versa.

     Leave it to Mary Kay Andrews to smoothy weave all these characters and plot elements into one comforting and charming package, making the book as much of a scenic, heart-filled and eventful vacation for her readers as it is for Maeve and Therese. And who can resist an armchair trip through those lush green Irish hills and valleys?

      4 stars (****).