👋🏻 We’re entering prime reading season and it’s been awhile since I’ve shared a good read. So here’s 20 of them I’ve read this year to get you started.
20 books I’ve read & recommend:
- The Stranger in Room Six by Jane Corry ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5/5) I was so bewildered by the abruptness of Belinda’s opening scene that I had no choice but to finish this book. Add in an old woman with a past, an even older house with deadly secrets and a mystery narrator? I was all in to track down who the stranger was in room six. This would be a great read for fall.
- My Husband’s Wife by Alice Feeney ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5/5)
Alice Feeney sure has a way of creating spaces I want to runaway to and hideaway in. This time it’s Spyglass, an enchanting old house in Hope Falls, where nothing is as it should be. A woman returns from her run and her key doesn’t fit in the lock. Another woman, eerily similar to her, answers the door. And her husband insists that the stranger is his wife. One house. One husband. Two women. Someone was lying. I ate this Feeney novel up like her work tends to make you do. - Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5/5) Yes, I read it. Yes, I loved it. Yes, some readers may be missing the mark on the many layers to this contemporary thriller. I thoroughly enjoyed the way Burke captured the delicate charade of public perception on social media as someone who is chronically online. Not to mention the strong lessons that can be learned from misinformation and neglect. I have a feeling I’ll continue to find myself picturing scenes from Yesteryear for years to come.
- The Mad Wife by Meagan Church ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5) This one is for the Sylvia Plath and historical fiction lovers. Inside the mind and home of 1950’s housewife Lulu Mayfield is a wild ride that I would recommend to any parent past the thick of postpartum – as it touches on very real and raw emotional states and decisions made throughout history.
- Nine Lives by Catherine Steadman ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5/5) Nine Lives was nostalgically reminiscent of the 1997 Disney movie That Darn Cat. Recently divorced, Frankie moves into a glamorous London neighborhood with her Persian cat, Blue. As she attempts to settle into her new life, mystery ensues when Blue comes home with “HELP ME” written on his collar. Next thing you know, you’re strolling the streets and homes of London from a cat’s eye view using a cat cam to save someone you hope is real. I loved every second of this book with each of its twists and turns.
- It’s Not Her by Mary Kubica ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5) The plot kept me going on this one. Think dysfunctional family vacation turns brutal crime scene and missing persons case all in one. I didn’t love all aspects (or characters) of this book, however, the real mystery behind the plot’s climax was worth seeing through to the end.
- The Wrong Daughter by Dandy Smith ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5) Your older sister goes missing one night while your parents are away. Years later, a woman claiming to be her is found by police and the truth about her disappearance may finally come to light. This was a filler novel that I picked up out of pure availability and I ended up getting wrapped up in the storyline before I could think twice.
- The Good Mothers by Caitlin Weaver ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5) A domestic thriller that loops in motherhood and sisterhood all in one, welcome to Wildwood Lane. The ramshackle house with a yellow door is a safe haven for the single mothers and their children inside. An orthodox, communal way of living that Lacey finds herself in awe of as she battles her conspiracy theorist ex-husband for custody of their only son. But how far will she really go for the women of Wildwood Lane? And how far have they already gone to give her the life she truly wants?
- Count My Lies by Sophie Stava ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5/5) The epitome of these tangled webs we weave, Count My Lies had me laughing out loud at the audacity of the main character and her little white lies. Kicking off with a claim that she’s a nurse, Sloane Caraway finds herself with the opportunity to become a nanny for the privileged Lockhart family. The reality inside their New York brownstone might be more than meets the eye and Sloane is certainly not the only liar. I flew through the pages of this novel and wish I could reread it for the first time.
- The Wrong Sister by Claire Douglas ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5) Treating your sister to a getaway weekend with her husband with no children, what could go wrong? Well, pretty much everything from Tasha’s perspective once she receives the call that her lookalike sister, Alice, is in intensive care and her husband has been killed. As she’s still trying to process how this tragedy could occur, a note arrives. “It was supposed to be you…” The Wrong Sister was another great popcorn thriller from Claire Douglas to cozy up with.
- Anatomy of An Alibi by Ashley Elston ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5) I almost didn’t finish this one. In fact, I stopped reading it for two months and came back to it. I am glad that I did. At the time of her husband’s death, Camille Bayliss was seen at Chantilly’s Bar sipping a Negroni. Her classic red lips and designer heels leaving her unforgettable. But that woman wasn’t actually Camille Bayliss. It was Aubrey Price, the woman she conspired to switch places with for 12 whole hours. The question is why? For lovers of law drama, this attorney centric thriller was the perfect mix of analytics, smart women, and who-the-hell-actually-did-it.
- Dying To Meet You by Sarina Bowen ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5) After reading The Five Year Lie by Bowen, I needed to read their newest thriller. Rowan Gallagher is actually a mess. On paper, it might not look that way – an astounding architect and devoted single mother taking on a high-profile historic restoration. But when her ex ends up dead, in front of that acclaimed historic mansion, and she was literally stalking his location minutes before his time of death? Yeah, she’s a mess.
- It Could Have Been Her by Lisa Jewell ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5) Our queen, Lisa Jewell – she could not write something that I will not read. Her latest novel was a steady ride that opens with Jane Trevally finding a lost dog. This silly little white dog leads us to an old house, as Jewell’s novels often do, where Jane is confronted with a crossroads that has haunted her for the last 25 years. This is a signature dark and atmospheric read.
- Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3.5/5) Lucy and Savvy are the golden girls of small town Plumpton, Texas – or at least they were until the morning Lucy shows up covered in her best friends blood without a memory of the night before. Now the rumors of what happened that night are being dredged up by the hit true crime podcast, “Listen for the Lie” and Lucy must return home to find the truth. Even if that means facing her own memories of her friend’s final moments.
- The Five Year Lie by Sarina Bowen ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3.5/5) Five years ago, Ariel Cafferty found out the love of her life was dead. This morning, she received a text from him asking her to meet him under the candelabra tree. What else is she supposed to do other than go? When no one is there to meet her, the mysterious text takes her on a twisted path to learn what really happened all those years ago.
- Habits of the Sea by Shea Ernshaw ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5) Shea Ernshaw has such a significant way of transporting you to the worlds of her writing. Habits of the Sea swept me away much like the Atlantic swept Clay Lockhart’s land from the Scottish coast in the wake of his family’s death. A beautiful tale of timelines, this book follows Ellie Mills as she gives way to the inevitable pull of the disappearing island and the man who resides upon it who has seemingly never aged.
- The Woman Next Door by Penny Batchelor ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5) You’ve just returned home from a relaxing vacation in the sun when the doorbells rings. The voice on the other side of the door instantly sends you into fight-or-flight. This is exactly what happens to the main character when she finds that a menace from her past is now her next door neighbor. This was another filler thriller that I flew through and is perfect for a quick read.
- Caller Unknown by Gillian McAllister ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3.5/5) On holiday in Texas from the UK, Sloane is looking forward to nothing more than starting off the first day with her daughter Lucy. That is, until Lucy is no where to be found in their rental cabin and there is a cell phone left in her place. When Sloane picks up the ringing phone, a catastrophic chain of events is set in motion and she will be forced to truly learn what it means to be a mother.
- Don’t Close Your Eyes by P.S. Cunliffe ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3.5/5) On an average morning, Catherine is beginning to lose patience when her husband, Simon is nowhere to be found. He was supposed to take their son to nursery. Did he really not come home last night? Why isn’t he answering the phone? Before she knows it, the police are knocking on the door with the news that her husband is missing, presumed dead. But how? She won’t rest until she finds him. But no rest leads to blurred days and then comes another knock on the door – a woman claiming your husband wasn’t really who you thought he was. Don’t Close Your Eyes was a frantic thriller that you’ll have to finish to see where the hell Simon is.
- This Story Might Save Your Life by Tiffany Crum ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5) Benny Abbott and Joy Moore host a lucrative and beloved podcast about stories of survival “against all odds”. Their bestie dynamic is alluring and entertaining as they share hilarious renditions of near-death experiences. It’s no longer fun and games, however, when Benny shows up to record one morning and Joy’s house is full of shattered glass and nothing else. This Story Might Save Your Life will make you laugh and have you on the edge of your seat as Benny races against the clock to prove his innocence while finding his best friend – if it’s not already too late. A special one for the podcast junkies and fans of Lisa Jewell’s None of This Is True, I thoroughly enjoyed the audiobook version of this tale.
My favorite?
stephreeds 