Book Review: The Writer by James Patterson and J.D. Barker

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The Writer by James Patterson and J.D. Barker  was published on March 17, 2025. It opens with Detective Declan Shaw at a closed subway station trying to work up the nerve to commit suicide when he receives a call from his partner about a break in and homicide at the home of a true crime author. Shaw makes his way to the crime scene to work the case, and in a turn of events, Declan comes under scrutiny in another case loosely connected to this new case. I received an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of The Writer  from NetGalley and Little , Brown, and Company for free in exchange for my honest review. I'm appreciative that my request for this book was approved. With this story opening with the main character trying to commit suicide, I almost didn't go any further with the book. However, I am glad I stuck with it as it took me on a fantastic ride and had my emotions all over the place. There were so many twists and turns that just when I thought I had it all figured out, there was ...
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Book Review: The Train by Diane Hoh

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book review the train

The Train by Diane Hoh opens with Hannah, Kerry, Mack, and Lewis, along with other students from Parker High School, boarding a train in Chicago for a cross country school trip to San Francisco. Once on the train, they find out a deceased student from their school was being transported back to his parents, and the friends start admitting to how horribly they had treated Frog before he died. Then, horrible things started happening to them on the train, and it seems like Frog is out for revenge.

Rereading this book as an adult and having read most of Agatha Christie's books, The Train loosely reminded me of Murder on the Orient Express but in reverse. This book also has a very Stephen King vibe to it but is kid friendly. With that being said, I still am a bit jumpy from reading it as an adult.

This is a book that I originally read when I was either a tween or a teen. Usually when I reread books from my childhood, I generally remember what happens as I work my way through the book. However, I didn't recall most what happened in The Train except one or two small things, so it was like reading it for the first time again. One of the things I remembered was the small typo in the way a sentence was worded. You'll have to find it for yourself though.

What I loved about this book is that it deals with something that still goes on in schools today . . . bullying. Hopefully, if a kid reads this book today, it will resonate with them about the consequences of bullying can have. Once all the main characters revealed the nasty things they had done to Frog, it made me incredibly sad for this fictional character and really impacted me even as an adult. I know this is only a book of fiction, but people in real life can be so cruel and don't realize what their actions can do to people.

I gave The Train by Diane Hoh five out of five stars because of how well written it is and has stood the test of time. If you liked this book, I recommend April Fools by Richie Tankersly Cusick.


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