TESSA TALKS BOOKS

Thank you Flat Iron Press for the free digital book!

🦋Good Bad Girl by Alice Feeney 🦋

One-word review: Unpredictable 

Emojis: 🫨🤯😵‍💫😳

Rating: 5🌟s

My thoughts:

Good Bad Girl by Alice Feeney is the story of four women, three suspects, two murders, and one victim. The lives of the four women – Patience, Frankie, Clio, and Edith – intersect and intertwine into another Feeney spellbinding and unpredictable psychological thriller where I felt dizzy from all the twists and turns.

I have yet to read an Alice Feeney book that does not thoroughly confuse, entertain, and shock me. Good Bad Girl is no exception to this. I loved all the twists and turns, even though they drove me mad. Just as I thought I had it all figured out, the story would go in another direction, and everything that I figured out fell in a thousand pieces on the floor around my reading chair. And, just as I got tantalizingly close to the answers, I realized that I had no idea. And the end left my jaw on the floor, and I’m still trying to put it back where it belongs.

I don’t want to say much more about the story because I want you all to enjoy it as I did – with nothing but the faith that Feeney will give you a psychological thriller that will twist your brain into a knot then make it explode by the end.

Thank you Gallery Books for the free digital book!

🦋All the Dead Shall Weep by Charlaine Harris 🦋

One-word review: Tension-filled

Emojis: 🤠🪄🐎

Rating: 5🌟s

My thoughts:

Gunnie Rose series. I wouldn’t advise reading it as a standalone, as each book builds on the ones that come before it, and the backstory is essential for your reading experience.

Something about this installment of the series made me feel so sad. So many plot lines pulled at my heartstrings, and the story felt like a transition to a much bigger story to come. Good doesn’t really win definitively, though there are small victories. My sadness reminded me how much I’ve come to care about these characters and adore them.

The pace is breakneck, making this easily an afternoon read. For the first time, half-sisters Felicia and Lizbeth Rose (Gunnie Rose) share the narration, which I found interesting, though I would have liked to have seen more of a differentiation in their voices.

This series, a mixture of fantasy, alternate timeline, historical, and Western, never ceases to engage, entertain, and immerse me in a well-developed world full of complexly layered characters. Though this story read much like a transition, it reminded me why I hold such deep feelings for the characters, particularly Elizabeth Rose and her sister, Felicia.

Thank you Wednesday Books, for the free digital book!

Enola Holmes and the Mark of the Mongoose by Nancy Springer 

One-word review: Authentic

Emojis: 🕵️‍♀️🐕🫥

Rating:  4 ½🌟s

My thoughts:

Enola Holmes is such a great character. She is a staunch suffragist and, as such, is modern for her times. She is also older than her years. This all comes together and creates some very entertaining, often laugh-out-loud, moments perfectly timed in an otherwise severe and even violent mystery. She is a gem in the YA cozy mystery world.

I found the historical elements very interesting. This story took on rabies in 1800’s England, and it’s another dark topic (often the focus in these mysteries is a darker element). I already knew some about how inoculations were created and delivered. Still, Springer makes it so real in her telling. Rabies is so scary, especially back then, and I felt that terror and tension reflected in the story.

I also loved the mystery. Sherlock and Enola working, not so much together, but in tandem, is amusing. The brother/sister relationship is fascinating as neither character is demonstrative about their feelings, which is actually a sentiment that is very true of the times, too. But they are also very similar, and this is where the fun comes into play. The mystery was focused and fast-paced, more so than in previous installments, and I greatly appreciated that. It also felt very authentic, as Enola gets into considerably dangerous scrapes, and her life is at stake.

Enola Holmes is a YA cozy mystery series that is authentic and entertaining for the adult or YA reader.

Thank you Wednesday Books for the free digital book!

🦋Secrets Never Die by Vincent Ralph 🦋

One-word review: Over-the-Top

Emojis: 🔥🏚️🤫

Rating: 3.5🌟s

My thoughts:

Secrets Never Die begins in an utterly creepy manner that I just loved. It was so creepy that I wondered if the story would be too scary for me. I’m happy to say that it wasn’t. It has a tremendous atmospheric quality, perfect for the story.

I also loved that the story is fast-paced and focused, with short chapters. It’s easily an afternoon read that immerses you in the story and thoroughly entertains. The premise and twists reminded me of the original Pretty Little Liars with the over-the-topness of it all, but that’s something you either love or you don’t. This is not a realistic or particularly original story; it’s just pure entertainment.

The characters are all very interesting, though I wouldn’t say they are particularly well-developed. Sam leads this story, and it’s his first-person point of view that the reader follows, except at one point when someone else takes over for a brief time. Sam has some pretty big secrets, but still, he manages to tell the story clearly and concisely. His five-year-old sister, Molly, stole the show, though, or at least my heart. She is delightfully precocious and takes some fantastic pictures.

There are many twists and turns to enjoy in this story, and of course, with secrets being in the title, you know there will be many surprising revelations. I figured out the surprise person behind it all early on, but that’s okay because this story is more about the journey, not the destination.