Skip to main content

Featured

Book Review: Such a nice girl by Andrea Mara

Such a Nice Girl by Andrea Mara was my first book by this author, and the premise immediately drew me in. The idea behind the story was intriguing and I found myself hooked from the start, eager to discover what had actually happened. One of the strengths of the novel is its twists. For much of the book I believed I had figured out the direction the story was heading in, only to be proven wrong. Mara does a great job keeping the reader guessing, and the tension around the mystery kept me turning the pages. However, the characters didn’t work quite as well for me. While the fear and desperation of parents whose daughters have gone missing is understandable, the behaviour of the two mothers sometimes felt exaggerated and unrealistic. At times their actions felt more frustrating than believable. I also found the opening section a bit repetitive, and there were a few plot elements that felt slightly far-fetched, seemingly included to create additional twists. Despite these issues, I still ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Book Review: The Drowning Place by Sarah Hilary

This was my first experience reading Sarah Hilary, and I went into it hoping to discover a new detective series to follow. Overall, this turned out to be an enjoyable read, though one that clearly feels like a series opener.


The beginning was on the slower side, focusing heavily on introductions, backstory, and the private lives of the characters. While this is often necessary in the first book of a series, it did make the pacing feel a bit drawn out at times. One aspect that didn’t fully work for me was the inclusion of characters seeing and speaking to ghosts. I understand the intention behind it, showing how the past lingers and haunts, but I personally felt there were more effective ways this could have been conveyed.


Where the book really worked for me was in its twists and character work. The writing was strong, the mystery kept me engaged, and both the DI and DS felt layered and well-developed. By the end, I was invested enough to want to see where the series goes next.


Overall, a solid start with clear potential for future installments. A 3.5-star read for me.


Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Vintage for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

If you like my reviews you can also follow me on 

Goodreads 👉🏼 Click here

and

Instagram where I post a lot of other fun bookish content 👉🏼 @readingchapters1


 

Comments

Post a Comment