Book Review: Lie In The Tide by Holly Danvers

-
Image
Lie In The Tide by Holly Danvers opens with four high school friends meeting up in Cape Cod, Massachusetts for a reunion of sorts. When one of them doesn't show up, and no one can get a hold of her, the other friends are desperate to find out what happened. NetGalley, thank you for the Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of this novel. I requested a copy of this book based on their synopsis and the author. When my request was approved, I was thrilled. The story started off well and kept me wanting to know more. Early on, I thought I had everything figured out, but much to my surprise, there was a plot twist I didn't count on.  I won't say more as to not spoil it for others. It's an easy read and perfect to take on vacation. Although I enjoyed Lie In The Tide by Holly Danvers a lot, I wish there was more action in the first half of the book. The second half was action packed, and I found myself rushing to finish the story to see if my gut instinct was correct. As for the charact...
Post a Comment

Book Review: Claire, Darling by Callie Kazumi

-
Suspense NetGalley ARC Book Review of Claire, Darling by Callie Kazumi
Claire, Darling by Callie Kazumi was published on March 11, 2025 by Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine / Bantam. It opens with Claire finding out that her fiancé, Noah, isn't working where he said he was and is now ghosting her. Claire must find out why.
Book Review: Claire, Darling by Callie Kazumi

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine / Bantam for providing me with an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of Claire Darling by Callie Kazumi for free in exchange for my honest review. I was absolutely thrilled when my request for a copy was approved because the synopsis was so good.

From the beginning, I absolutely loved the main character of Claire and her work friend named Sukhi. Throughout the novel, we learn about Claire's past and how terrible her mother was towards her. I kept hoping that somehow we would learn who Claire's father was and would eventually connect with him. It's really no wonder Claire had no self confidence as an adult, but I really empathized with her and liked her. 

Sukhi is the best friend that a woman could ask for! She always has Claire's back no matter what and sticks by her. I disliked Noah immensely. He's a complete jerk who is constantly cheating on everyone! As for Lilah, you couldn't exactly blame her for the way she acted and didn't deserve what happened to her.

Throughout the entire story, I was totally team Claire and was rooting for her. That is until the end of the book, which totally blindsided me. I dislike unreliable characters intensely. I know this is a bit of a spoiler, but I have to mention this was the reason I ended up giving Claire, Darling by Callie Kazumi only four stars out of five stars ... well, that and I hate bad endings. It gave off vibes of The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins and Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. Up until the ending, I was completely enchanted with the story and couldn't wait to find out what happened. 

Follow The Running Bibliophile On Social Media

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Book Review: The Dare by Natasha Preston

-
Image
The Dare by Natasha Preston is a young adult horror novel about Marley and her friends Atlas, Lucia, and Jesse are seniors in high school.  The senior pranks are fun and lighthearted until Rhett starts doling out dares that are more serious.  Will Marley and her friends survive? A huge thank you to NetGalley for the Advanced Readers Copy of The Dare  by Natasha Preston.  The last book I read by this author was so well written, I knew I wanted to give her latest story a try. The first thing I noticed about the story is it's reminiscent of R.L. Stine's Fear Street series, which brought back all the feels from my childhood.  Pretty quickly, the storyline shifts and is eerily similar to the movie I Know What You Did Last Summer .  It's at this point that I became disappointed with the book and almost stopped reading it.   Additionally, there were other parts t hat reminded me of The Secret Diaries by Janice Harrell.  So, overall, The Dare wasn't ...
Read more

Book Review: The Business Trip by Jessie Garcia

-
Image
The Business Trip by Jessie Garcia is about two women from Madison who are completely different from one another and are on an airplane bound for Denver, Colorado. Jasmine is a waitress and is escaping an abusive relationship. Stephanie is a news director for a local news station headed to a news conference. Friends and family of both women receive texts that they've met a man named Trent. Then, both women disappear. Panic starts to set in with loved ones. Who is Trent, and what has he done to them? I'd like to thank NetGalley for the Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) that they sent to me for free in exchange for my honest review. The synopsis of The Business Trip intrigued me, and I was excited to dive into the book. The story hooked me from the very beginning. I was rooting for Jasmine to escape her boyfriend and live happily ever after. I was also rooting for Stephanie to find the happiness she was looking for. Then, the book took a very disturbing turn, and I ended up loathing J...
Read more

Book Review: Dirty Thirty (Stephanie Plum, #30) by Janet Evanovich

-
Image
Book Review: Dirty Thirty (Stephanie Plum, #30) by Janet Evanovich Dirty Thirty (Stephanie Plum, #30) by Janet Evanovich  is the latest installment in the Stephanie Plum book series and opens with Joe Morelli asking Stephanie to dog sit his dog Bob while he is out of town testifying at a trial.  The typical chaos ensues when Stephanie has to bring Bob along to apprehend all of her FTAs and has her asking herself if she wants to be married. Each book in this series typically follows the same formula and is wrapped up in a neat, tidy bow at the end.  It's because of this that I enjoy the series . . . I always know that Stephanie is going to get herself into some sort of trouble and need Ranger or Morelli to help her, and the bad guy is always caught.  Sometimes, I just need something familiar and predictable to read.  And, I don't mean that in a bad way either because it allows me to escape reality and gives me a few chuckles along the way.  It's like the ...
Read more