THAT'S NOT MY NAME.....TWO MISSING GIRL MYSTERIES ON A COLLISION COURSE...(*****)

 That's Not My Name by Megan Lally (2024)

            Everything you'd ever want in a suspense thriller is jammed into this whirlwind read. A character placed in ever increasing, excruciating jeopardy, a wrongly accused boy racing to rescue his missing girlfriend, for which the sheriff and entire town holds him responsible. And urgent parallel storylines that compel you to feverishly zip through the pages at record speed until (as you knew they would) converge into a breathless finale.

             Not to mention a gasp out loud twist on top of everything else piled in here.

              I'm wary of going into plot details, because it's best to plunge into a book like this with only a slight glimpse of its basic set-up. First, a teen is girl found injured and unconscious in a roadside ditch, then stricken with amnesia when she awakens. Her distraught father rushes to her side, equipped with valid, conclusive proof she is in fact his daughter Mary. In a nearby town, tormented teen Drew had inexplicably let his girlfriend Lola walk home on a remote road. So it stands to reason that her disappearance now renders him a prime suspect and town pariah.

             All that's left for me to say......the suspense generated as these two separate stories race to collide dials up to unbearable levels. And I'd advise that no one start reading it in the evening unless they plan to stay up the rest of the night to finish it. And that's what I'd call a description of a 5 star thriller to go way high on your TBR list.  (*****)  Fine way to start the new year with some thrills 'n chills.......

THE MYSTERY GUEST.....MOLLY THE MAID TIDIES UP ANOTHER MUDER (*****)

 The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose (2023)

            To come right to the point, this is a pure delight to read, a 5 star charmer (yep, that's *****) and a worthy sequel to this author's 2021 "The Maid" (see BQ's review from 1/6/22.)

            If you read "The Maid", then bear with me a little as I briefly to explain Molly The Maid. Raised by her beloved grandmother, Molly's adorable, brilliant but confounding to those who can't comprehend how she processes her interactions with the world around her.

          Though the two books never diagnose her, it's clear that Molly falls somewhere on the scale of high functioning autism.  It may seem odd that such an extraordinary perceptive girl chooses hotel housecleaning as her calling. You needn't worry, because the swanky 5 star hotel that employs Molly more than tests her genius level mental abilities.......since she finds herself both suspect and amateur detective whenever guests are found murdered.  (I guess the place doesn't have a butler to pin it on....)

            This time around, it's a crusty, curmudgeonly best selling mystery writer who goes belly up at a hotel publicity event just as he's about to make some huge announcement.  And Molly knows she's bound to come under suspicion.....as a child she encountered the old crank when tagging along with her Gran, who worked as maid in the author's huge mansion.

            Twists and turns, duly follow, as well as many funny scenes where Molly's unique personality exasperates the woman detective in charge of the investigation. 

             With the holidays almost upon us, BQ highly recommends you treat yourself to "The Mystery Guest"....and if you haven't picked it up yet, make it a double feature with "The Maid" as well. Molly's famous for turning rooms into "a state of perfection". Also a  good way to describe her two adventures, each of them a 5 star (*****) romp to cozy up with.

EVERY TIME YOU GO AWAY.....SEPARATED AND TRAUMATIZED, TWO SOULMATES STRUGGLE TO RE-CONNECT....(*****)

 Every Time You Go Away by Abagail Johnson (2023)

         For all of us readers who embrace a compelling story of broken young souls, this one's guaranteed to put your heart through the wringer........many times over.

          You'll know from the start that this is no ordinary childhood-to-adolescence coming of age for next door best friends and neighbors Ethan and Rebecca. It's Ethan's grandparents' house he lives in, because he's regularly abandoned there by his drug addict mother as she endures perpetual in-and-out rehabs. When she bounces back into Ethan's life to reclaim him, Rebecca suffers from watching her childhood best friend constantly taken in and out of her life.

             Reunited again at 17 years old, the separate tragedies of their lives serve to overwhelm and thwart their obvious, aching attraction for each other. Ethan's spent an unbearably sad childhood still devoted to his wayward mom, even while inflicted with abuse and neglect by her and and her string of lowlife boyfriends. And on his latest return, he finds Rebecca now permanently wheelchair bound, the result of a tragic accident that also took her father's life.

           It takes a truly skilled author to bring such characters to life, to make them so real and vivid that your hopes soar every time you sense they're edging ever closer to what they feel for each other..........and then crush you to pieces when their troubles and long suppressed anger and hurt drive them apart. Abigail Johnson most definitely has the skills required.....and anyone with a heartbeat will find themselves hard pressed to finish this book with dry eyes.

            If you positively live for 5 star emotional reads, I'd bump this one to the top of any TBR list.

PERFECT SHOT....A VERY SPECIAL AGENT HUNTS DOWN A TICKING HIJACKED NUKE...(*****)

 Perfect Shot by Steve Urszenyi (2023)

           Wow. And double wow. I tore through this book faster than the bullets that come flying in all directions at Special Agent Alexandra 'Alex' Martel. For every reader who loves diving into a non-stop, perpetual motion international thriller. this one's a must.......this is the epitome of Action-Adventure with two capital "A"s.

          FBI Special Agent Martel, combat veteran, ex-paramedic and world class sniper is on loan to Interpol for her 'particular set of skills'. And she's instantly plunged into thwarting an attempt by terrorists to swipe a nuclear warhead.

            But in this world of increasing, dire global threats and double dealing espionage, nothing (and nobody) is what they appear to be. And that includes a murdered young woman whom Alex once befriended in Paris and now revealed as an MI5 British agent......an agent who may have died uncovering intel related to Alex's hunt for the stolen warhead.

            Up against continuous violent action, Alex finds herself at odds with her new unwanted partner CIA special operative Caleb. But you can bet your Sig Sauer firearms they've got each other backs when bullets and fists start coming at them at every twist and turn of the plot And once Alex is provoked into action, it doesn't bode well for her many assailants.

           From the opening firefight to the slam bang clock-ticking-down finale, 'Perfect Shot' gave me perfect thrill ride, guaranteeing I'll be first in line to read Alex's next adventure. And I'm pretty sure everyone's figured out by now that I'm talking 5 star review here.,,,,,, (*****)

THE PORCELAIN MAKER.....EPIC, LOVE, SUSPENSE, DANGER, ARTWORK......AND HIMMLER! (*****)

 The Porcelain Maker by Sarah Freethy (2023)

 

         What a stunning debut novel.........and what a heart-wrenching, immersive reading experience this was. This book captivated me on so many different levels. It begins as an intriguing family mystery at a Cincinnati auction house in 1993 and then plunges backward into the darkest, most horrific era of world history.

         As the evil of Nazis and fascism spreads across 1920's Germany, we're introduced to star-crossed lovers Max and Bettina, both brilliant creative artists in their respective fields. Max is an Austrian Jewish architect planning the Autobahn and Bettina's already making a name for herself as a groundbreaking avant-garde artist.

        Like many others, Max and Bettina unwisely remain in Germany until it's too late to escape. Captured and sent to Dachau concentration camp, Max survives by his talent for sculpting porcelain figurines for no less than Nazi commander Heinrich Himmler.

           While desperately trying to contact Max,, Bettina joins a resistance movement by marrying a repulsive SS officer for the purpose of spying on him. The non stop peril these two artistically gifted soulmates find themselves in reaches excruciating levels of suspense and overpowering heartbreak.

           In those 50 years later flash-forwards, Max and Bettina's story is painstakingly pieced together by Bettina's daughter Clara, the person seeking out figurines at that Cincinnati auction, the ones possibly crafted at Dachau. And here's where author Sarah Freethy delivers all the emotional gut-punches guaranteed to leave readers shaken and tearful.

           With its sweeping epic history, aching romance and unbearable tension, I'd consider this as one of the Must Reads of this or any year. An absolute 5 star bell ringer. (*****)

WEST HEART KILL......MORE OF AN MFA THESIS THAN A NOVEL....(**)

 West Heart Kill by Dann McDorman (2023)

             I'm at a complete loss as to whom this book would appeal to beyond graduate students or doctoral candidates seeking M.F.A.'s or PhD's in literature.

             Yes, there's a murder mystery that sporadically wanders and in and out of the book, but about 75 per cent of "West Heart Kill" is devoted to an exhaustive academic treatise on the murder mystery as a literary art form.......origins, beginnings, histories, the breakdown of all the sub-genres and their individual tropes. And the author uses the actual plot he's concocted as a sort of a slide-show visual aid for his 'Murder Mystery 101' college course lectures.

               While I admire the ambitious intent here, it makes for a tedious, annoying read. And I really began to run out of patience with the book as it swung back and forth from its whodunit storyline to the author's meticulous analysis of the characters and events as they apply to his literally forensic research into mystery genres. 

               The story used to illustrate the lectures involves a private eye who managed an invite to an uppercrust hunting lodge on the July 4th weekend of 1976. The vast upstate New York club's membership consists, naturally of ultra-wealthy families afflicted with endless dysfunctions and secrets........infidelities, shady finances, dark histories, and tragic accidents that maybe weren't accidental. So with such a toxic collection of individuals, more dead bodies don't come as a big surprise.

                 Once I realized the author's pushing these obnoxious characters around like chess pieces to illustrate his points, I lost all interest in who did what to whom. All the academia stuff does display some sharp wit from time to time, as do the P.I.'s interrogations of the various suspects.... and halfway through the book, Dann McDorman gives up on prose altogether, reducing the mystery sections to simple Q. & A's or in the form of stage play excerpts. 

                Just as well, since the plot's only used for the author's power point presentation anyway. English majors who read mysteries may get some overall entertainment out of this, but as for me....... sorry, but I didn't sign on for a college course. 2 stars (**).

THE HORROR AT PLEASANT BROOK.......THE GORE, THE MERRIER.....(*****)

 The Horror At Pleasant Brook by Kevin Lucia (2023)

            This book holds no interest in being some kind of mainstream, all-demographics=included type of frightfest. Prepare yourself for a deep deep dive into a bottomless abyss of nihilistic carnage.

           We're talking hardcore, take-no-prisoners horror in all caps here........ drenched in nightmarish imagery, indescribable agonizing deaths, and enough gore that would require Hoover Dam to contain it all

            . And I promise I don't exaggerate. It's been awhile since I came across a book so dedicated to taking a reader on such an uncompromising hellish ride. And I loved every oozing blood-drenched page of it.

              Pleasant Brook's a sleepy little slip of a town nestled up among the Adirondacks. Unfortunately for its sparse population, one of its residents got a hold of an ancient relic, a grotesque mask that spawns a demonic entity who feeds on humankind. Not only feeds, but converts its horribly slaughtered victims into an army of similar creatures, all of them hive-connected to 'The First'.....human victim zero.

              From that point on the town's reduced to a small core number of terrified people who find themselves tasked with wiping out this horrific scourge........which begs the question, can any of them survive the climactic battle?

             And I should mention that author Kevin Lucia does a more than worthy job in fully bringing these characters to life so you care deeply for them and fear for their lives every step of the way.

            Just keep in mind, this one's not for casual browsers of mild scares and a slightly chilly atmosphere. This is 5 star raw meat, suitable for only the hardiest of horror lovers. Don't say you weren't warned.......5 stars (*****).