'THE WOMEN IN WHITE'......IN THE 1960'S, FOUR WOMEN WITH PARANORMAL GIFTS ENDURE DISTURBING EXPERIMENTS.....

 The Women in White by Sarah Pekkanen (2026)

     This extraordinary thriller, bouncing between present day and 1964, left me saddened and angered on behalf of the four lead characters. As young women in '64, Betty, Helen, Kathleen and Ivy participated in ESP experiments conducted by a distinguished and intensely driven University professor of parapsychology. Over 60 years later, Betty, widowed, wheelchair bound and living a lonely hermetic existence, still wonders what became of the women with whom she formed such a deep sisterhood bond of shared experiences.......

     Betty enlists Riley, the new young caregiver she's just hired, to help her discover what became of her long ago friends. This leads to the flashback stories of each of these four ESP volunteers........and the terrible unforeseen toll the experiments took on their lives. Betty and Riley's investigations also seem to provoke some unknown person with just as much interest in the experiments now as there was in the past.

     Author Sarah Pekkanen, draws upon actual histories of parapsychology testing while she deftly evokes what the 1960's were like for young intelligent women like Betty and her friends. They cope with the Professor treating them either like children or lab rats and the various societal expectations put upon them to behave as dutiful wives and mothers. Your heart breaks for them as the experiments become more tortuous and their personal lives start to crumble.

     Surprises, danger and a twist reveal await Riley and Betty before their questing for answers comes to an end.. But even in the midst of closure, you can still sense the melancholic memories of women whose remarkable powers united them as they were patronized and mistreated.

     Fascinating, compelling read, all the way through. 4 stars (****).

'THE HARDEST ONES TO FOOL'....A TRIPLE DECEPTION LEADS TO MURDER.....AND EVEN MORE WILD DECEPTIONS.....

  The Hardest Ones to Fool by Christina Li (2026)

     I was stunned by lead character Amelia Wu when I first started this book. Is this over achieving high school senior out of her mind? Under three different names and identities, she got three different boys from three different schools to fall in love with her? And while she's carrying on these triple romances with three sons of wealthy families, she runs the risk of encountering somebody who either knows her as Amelia or the other two fake personas she's performing.........which, we all know is bound to happen.....maybe more than once.

     These monumental deceptions, co-conspired by Amelia and her best friend Ingrid, also involve Amelia scamming the boys' families out of thousands of dollars which leads us to ask that burning question. If there some deeper motive involved here than just a lower middle class girl fleecing the rich, powerful and entitled one-percenters?

     Indeed there is, and Ingrid's mysterious "accidental" death after an all night party sets Amelia to investigating a host of suspects including her three so-called boyfriends. This throws her into an unlikely alliance with Jackie, her equally overachieving senior class frenemy and rival for Valedictorian. Together, they're a formidable duo.......and maybe something more that neither of them counted on.

     Author Christina LI keeps this incredible plot at a constant boil with more and more layers of duplicity and fraud to peel off as the story barrels on to its apparent conclusion. And I do mean apparent ,before the book finally detonates its massive Third Act reveal with a stinger on top.........guaranteed to leave you staggered by its sheer audacity. .

     Great twisty fun to had here. All dedicated fans of YA mysteries shouldn't let his one escape their 'read right away' list.

     4 stars (****).

'THE HUNTED' A THRILLER TO KEEP YOUR BLOOD RACING......AND THE BLOOD SPILLING......

 The Hunted by Steven Max Russo (2026)

     Still trying to catch my breath after this one......

     And now I've got to try to catch up on all the other books I stopped reading (not to mention numerous household chores) that I put on hold once this book had me in its vise-like grip.

     Yes, it's that kind of thriller you look for when you're in the mood for an adrenalin pumping, page-turning, up-all-night read. One that hits the ground running (and shooting) and never stops till there's countless rounds fired and a sizable body count.

     It takes no time at all to get caught up in the ultra dangerous world of Ophelia Harris, a former CIA analyst and now a field operative for the Grendel Security Group......essentially a private company of mercenaries for hire, conducting clandestine black ops, 'this-never-happened' missions for whatever government agency pays them.

     Ophelia's latest assignment for her boss Gerhard Mueller goes horribly wrong, with every Grendel operative dead except her.......and leaving her in possession of huge amounts of cash raised to fund insurgents in Middle East wars. Enraged and judging her a renegade traitor, Mueller sends out one hit team after another to terminate Ophelia when she returns to the U.S.........and there may be something else fueling his fury besides an operation gone south.

     But Mueller clearly underestimates Ophelia's formidable skills and determination to survive. And he didn't count on on her running into former Army Ranger Austin Medford, who remembers seeing Ophelia in action during his Afghanistan deployment. Once he aids her during yet another hit team assault, Austin realizes he's now joined her in Mueller's crosshairs. The hunt for the both of them is on.......until the hunted decide to turn the tables

     Virtually non-stop tension, suspense and explosive action follow, with Ophelia, Austin and their adversaries unleashing all manner of state-of-the-art weaponry upon each other. And through it all, Ophelia emerges an an all too human and vulnerable heroine, who does her best to avoid the carnage around her, even if her foes don't.

     Armchair adventurers who haven't yet discovered this book should be putting it right to the very top of their 'must read' lists. And prepare to stop everything else you're doing once you've started it.

     5 stars (*****).

'PAINT ME LIKE YOUR DEAD GIRLS'.....A PSYCHO PAINTER LEFT HIS MODELS ART-BROKEN......AND BLOODLESS.....

 Paint Me Like Your Dead Girls by Cynthia Murphy (2026)

     I don't know art but I know what I like......and I like nothing more than an art-inspired YA mystery bloodily decorated with nightmare-inducing paintings and gruesome exsanguination murders. And it just so happens that this book fills that aching need to watch a determined Nancy Drew-ish teen manage to link turn-of-the-century serial killings to a current and all too active psychopath copycat.

     Fliss Keller, to the amazement of her Art Historian father, comes across a long sought after disturbing portrait of an agonized man presumably just before his unknowable, terrible death. The painting to the excitement of the art world, completes a set that includes four equally notorious, haunted faces. They're the faces of four young women who look as if death itself has also come for them.......paintings already on display in the art gallery Fliss's dad oversees.

     Secret papers Fliss discovers in the back of the painting might imply it's the work of a serial killer artist and the accompanying four portraits are those of his victims, modeling for him before they died at his hands. While she's co-housesitting with her best friend Izzy, Fliss's dogged research traces the killer and his prey back to the early 1900's........but someone else has been busy too. Someone who, inspired by the five paintings has taken to murdering women in the same manner as the original demented artist.

     The art world premise intrigued me from the start and author Cynthia Murphy keeps the pacing swift and the pages flying by. And as obvious as it played out, I still thrilled to that banger of a horror movie grand finale, with Fliss facing off, as you knew she eventually would, with the scares of a surprise cuckoo perp who's nuttier than a warehouse full of peanut M & Ms. Great, breathless and very cinematic stuff.

     Creepy good fun, with even a touch of romance thrown in. With an art gallery where you might rather dive out the window than exit through the gift shop.

      4 stars (****).

'THE HALF LIFE'.....IN 7O'S SUNNY ITALY, A NAVY WIFE COPES WITH ADULTEROUS ROMANCE.....AND RADIOACTIVITY.....

 The Half Life by Rachel Beanland (2026)

     This is one of those richly imagined books that sweeps you into a different (but still very contemporary) time and place.......with vividly drawn characters and some real history as a backdrop for the lead heroine's life altering journey. I don't often immerse myself in lengthy literary fiction but this one really had me in its grip.

     We're back in the early to mid 1970's, where 23 year old South Carolina girl Eileen marries naval officer Paul Archer, who's in the long training programs to eventually attain his own nuclear submarine command. Paul's assignments take him and his bride to the picturesque Mediterranean island of Maddalena, where the U.S. Navy has established a submarine station for monitoring the safety and maintenance of the subs' nuclear reactors.

     It's an idyllic and but turbulent setting that Eileen finds herself hurled into........a foreign country, whose customs and language she tries to absorb as she navigates her way through the duties and etiquette expected of navy wives. The Italian islanders fear and distrust the navy's ability to keep radiation from the subs out of their ocean environment and the rise of the country's agitating anti-American Communist party only fans the flames.

     Eileen's independent spirit and sharp intelligence can't help but emerge, often putting her at odds with Paul and the whole U.S. Navy culture, where she's supposed to only play the role of supportive wife. But her embrace of new found Maddalena friends includes a growing romantic relationship with a young Italian investigative journalist (who's got the navy in his crosshairs). And amidst all these complications, the erupting anti-Navy protests combined with catastrophic nuclear sub mishaps put Eileen's life and marriage at a pivotal crossroads.

     Author Rachel Beanland brings all of this to page-turning life- the stunning Mediterranean islands, the push and pull of actual events (such as the fall of both Richard Nixon and the Vietnam war, the chaos of 70's Italian politics, and the alarming science of the dangers ushered in by the Atomic age. And then throw in that passionate adulterous affair to all that and you've got yourself one doozy of a read.

     My highest recommendation goes to this one. And I for one can't wait for some streaming service to turn this into an all night binge-worthy mini-series.

      5 stars (*****).

     

'HOT GIRL MURDER CLUB'.....IN LA LA LAND, THESE GIRLS TURN '#ME TOO' INTO '#YOU DIE'.....

 Hot Girl Murder Club by Ashley Winstead (2026) 

     In no way could I reasonably defend this book's tumultuous collision of multiple tropes, its crazy character development and its loony turns of plot. Nor would I even try.

     But I had soooo much guilty pleasure fun reading it, I simply cannot deny it its four stars. Hot Girls forever....long may they reign and bring moguls the pain......
  
     It's an overheated combination of pop culture toxic waste, pop music and some bloody girl-boss revenge on the Patriarchy of sybaritic Hollywood......and then all of that put into into a blender with hot button divisive politics, domestic terrorism and the sadism of entitled entertainment industry power players..

     Or in simpler terms, it's a Party in the USA.

     All of the above swirls around pop sensation Scout Sage and her coterie of empowered drop dead gorgeous women. Do these stunners really comprise some kind of hit-babe squad dedicated to arranging suspicious deaths of the most notorious entertainment industry abusers of women?

     L.A. detective Gray Holloway comes to think so, investigating Sage and company and at the same time moonlighting as a 'bottle girl at a shady club, serving up drinks to big tipping VIPs. (and no, I swear I'm not making up that last part.) Gray and Sage share more in common than hunter and quarry - years ago, they both lost beloved sisters at the hands of......well that's another two stories slowly revealed in flashbacks.

     I could go on and on about all the other subplots tossed into the stew here including the ominous rise of a filthy rich bigwig turned populist political candidate, an investigative reporter digging into the mysteries of the Sage posse, and a progressive activist who's trying to hitch a ride on Sage's fan base.....but I'm exhausted just writing this paragraph. Think of this book as a three ring circus of Tik-Tok melodrama and Instagram insanity. And not everyone's coming out of it alive.

     One of those books you can have yourself a ball reading, without believing a minute of of it, Strife-styles of the Rich and Infamous. We hate 'em, we love 'em......especially when they're piled up a mile high in a book like this one.

     4 stars (****).

'KILLER VIBES'.....HE'S LAZY....HE'S STONED.....BUT MAYBE A COOL NEW COOL PRIVATE EYE

  Killer Vibes by Jack Friday (2026)

     I am happy to be among the first to welcome an all new quirky detective who promises to become the most unlikely crime solver ever. But give him a shot because he's brighter than he looks and the first case that falls into his lap involves severe home renovation, a stash of cash in the wallpaper, vicious thugs, a lost lost cousin, a sexy bank officer and lethal explosives.

     Peter Key's a shiftless, bisexual Texas slacker who holds no great ambitions beyond getting high and doing as little as possible. Suddenly, via a recently passed away long lost uncle, he's the inheritor of a crumbling Austin mansion. The place looks ready for 10 episodes of "Hoarders" and to Peter's dismay, also comes with massive debt from loans the uncle took out from the local bank. The neighborhood also comes equipped with a host of aggressive, intrusive people who want Peter to sell them his house immediately.

     But our budding, would-be ace detective smells something rotten besides the junk piled up in his dumpy abode. And it all leads to the tangled web his uncle left behind and whose traffic accident death appears more suspicious than ever. . Luckily for Peter, he manages to fall under the protection and mentorship of a seasoned Private Eye. That's a good thing indeed considering the sinister threatening people who've come out of the woodwork. none of them with Peter's best interests at heart.

     I loved the undercurrent of dry, dark humor that runs throughout the book and I only wish there was more of it or at least a little more overt. I got a kick out of watching the initially unwilling Peter discover his perceptive talent for sniffing out who's up to no good and why. To everyone's surprise, including his own, Peter finds something he's actually good at. And his exciting climactic showdown with a truly creepy major villain is reminiscent of John Dl McDonald's 'Travis McGee' series.

     So I extend a warm welcome to Peter Key as he joins the hallowed halls of oddball detectives and look forward to his next case (as well as the little Scooby-Doo bunch of friends and allies he collected on this first outing.

     4 stars (****).

'THE SIMP'........A STRIVING ACTOR FROM INDIA.....SWIMMING AMID THE HOLLYWOOD SHARKS....

 The Simp: A Novel Without A Hero by Roshan Sethi (2026) 

     Disturbing, cringe inducing, vicious and unforgiving in its satire.......and ultimately, a sad depressing commentary on its lead character and the shark infested waters of the toxic ocean he chose to swim in.

     But once I started "The Simp", I couldn't turn away from it. Readable to the max, the book felt like I'd spent time rubbernecking a horrendous one car traffic accident happening in slow motion.

     Flawed as he is, I felt compelled to follow the calamitous journey of struggling actor from India Raj Ladlani. Raj is but one of multitudes of aspiring (and perspiring) actors trying to break into L.A.'s film and TV industry......where actors have a better chance of hitting the PowerBall Lottery than snagging even a small role. Raj tries to persevere, knowing that if ever given the opportunity, he's capable of gifted work. And he's encouraged by Anthony, his beloved mentor and acting coach.

     With the goal of a flourishing acting career more likely out of his reach than ever, Raj takes on a different kind of performative work...... ..getting hired as an administrative assistant to a married Hollywood power couple, an impossible job that's a combination of secretary and indentured slave. Raj plays the role of a groveling, simpering, always solicitous toady so well that he actually annoys and confounds his employers. Film director Jim and his wife Anna,, both working on scripts, treat Raj with a mixture of entitled contempt alternating with surprising moments of friendship and dependency.

     But through all his time spent with Jim and Anna, Raj struggles to contain the simmering anger boiling within him and the urge to break away from the 'Simp' role he's playing in real life all to0 well. And when he finally does.......the chain reaction of events becomes nothing like anyone would expect.

     Author Roshan Sethi creates a truly one-of-a-kind character in Raj, whose efforts to become the hero of his own story keep you in a state of constant wincing on his behalf. The book's cleverly set in the early post-COVID years, with film industry's oncoming embrace of diversity and representation. The knowing, witty evisceration of Hollywood power players and the pampered bubble they live is brutal......(and given their behavior and the general quality of their creative output, well deserved..)

     Fascinating from beginning to end and not kidding about its declaration as 'a novel without a hero'. But I still couldn't stop reading to the very last bittersweet moment.

      4 stars (****).

'PRETTY DEAD THINGS'....CONTESTANT BEAUTIES AND MOMS....DEEP IN THE DARK HEART OF TEXAS.....

  Pretty Dead Things by Kelsey Cox (2026)

     Nothing promises more nasty fun than a Heartland beauty pageant packed with past murderous secrets, overbearing pageant moms, teen contestant rivalries, an unsolved missing girl case, an oncoming dark 'n stormy night..........and dead bodies poppin' up here and there, just to make things interesting........

     Kelsey Cox delivers all of the above in "Pretty Dead Things"", so welcome to the Lone Star Princess Pageant of Anhalt Texas, where staying alive is the key to make it to the end of the show..

     It takes a chapter or two to sort out the moms and their contestant daughters. Pageant organizer and all around ruthless force-t0-be-reckoned with Kennedy Claire thinks daughter Sara Lynn is a shoo-in for the crown, just as Mom was 25 years ago. Melanie, still wounded from Kennedy Claire's adolescent Mean Girl bullying, has high hopes for her own daughter Hannah. Recovering alcoholic Cat worries that her daughter Olivia's chances (and life) are threatened by Kennedy Claire, The cutthroat KC wasn't above dirty tricks sabotage to assure her own win and now appears willing to do the same for Sara Lynn.

     Adding to this bubbling stew comes the return to town of Ingrid, whose beloved twin sister Isabelle was the girl who went missing just before that pageant of 25 years past. Ingrid always blamed Izzy's then boyfriend Ben, who was deeply suspected but never charged.......and wouldn't you know it.....he's back in town too, just as literal storm clouds gather around pageant night. As the saying goes......none of this stuff bodes well for anybody.

     As you could imagine, everything that transpires next makes for fast addictive reading. And for those of us who positively live for final chapters that uncork all manner of outrageous twists......you'll not go away disappointed. "Pretty Dead Things" continues the time honored tradition that no good beauty pageant should go unpunished.

     4 stars (****).

'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 IN ONE NIGHT....

 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....

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 (****).