Nightcap Books

BOOK INFO

Title: Until I Find You

Author: Rea Frey

Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin

Publish Date: August 11, 2020

Genre: Psychological Thriller

Series: na

My Rating: 4/5

BOOK BLURB

2 floors. 55 steps to go up. 40 more to the crib.

Since Rebecca Gray was diagnosed with a degenerative eye disease, everything in her life consists of numbers. Each day her world grows a little darker and each step becomes a little more dangerous.

Following days of feeling like someone’s watching her, Rebecca awakes at home to the cries of her son in his nursery. When it’s clear he’s not going to settle, Rebecca goes to check on him.

She reaches in. Picks him up.

But he’s not her son.

And no one believes her.

One woman’s desperate search for her son . . .

In a world where seeing is believing, Rebecca must rely on her own conviction and a mother’s instinct to uncover the truth about what happened to her baby and bring him home for good.

MY REVIEW

After a fall in the park, Rebecca (aka Bec) realizes the baby in her care is not her son. Bec suffers from a degenerative eye disease and lives as a blind woman. She finds it difficult to get the police and her friends to believe the baby isn’t hers. After all, they believe the baby looks like her son.

Bec is an intriguing character. Losing her sight is challenging enough, but Bec has also recently lost loved ones. Her husband passed away nearly a year ago and her mother passed weeks ago. She’s also become more anxious about her son. When she claims her son has been taken and another baby left in his place, no one seems to believe her. How and when could such a thing happen?

Until I Find You is a compelling story with well-developed characters. Suspenseful, dramatic, and enjoyable.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Books by Rea Frey:

1. Not Her Daughter
2. Because You’re Mine
3. Until I Find You
4. Secrets of Our House
5. Don’t Forget Me

BOOK INFO

Title: The End of Her

Author: Shari Lapena

Publisher: Pamela Dorman Books

Publish Date: July 28, 2020

Genre: Psychological Thriller

Series: na

My Rating: 5/5

BOOK BLURB

A long-ago accident–and a visitor from out of the blue. . .

Stephanie and Patrick are adjusting to life with their colicky twin girls. The babies are a handful, but even as Stephanie struggles with the disorientation of sleep deprivation, there’s one thing she’s sure of: she has all she ever wanted.

Then Erica, a woman from Patrick’s past, appears and makes a disturbing accusation. Patrick had always said his first wife’s death was an accident, but now Erica claims it was murder.

Patrick insists he’s innocent, that this is nothing but a blackmail attempt. Still, Erica knows things about Patrick–things that make Stephanie begin to question her husband. Stephanie isn’t sure what, or who, to believe. As Stephanie’s trust in Patrick begins to falter, Patrick stands to lose everything. Is Patrick telling the truth–is Erica the persuasive liar Patrick says she is? Or has Stephanie made a terrible mistake?

How will it end?

MY REVIEW

Stephanie and Patrick are a married couple struggling with being new parents. A woman from Patrick’s past appears, and starts raising questions about the death of Patrick’s first wife. Patrick fears the questioning will raise doubts about him and destroy his family and his career. Stephanie believes Patrick when he says it was an accidental death, but she starts to suspect there is more to the story.

Told using multiple points of view. There are a lot of characters, but the main characters are Stephanie, Patrick, and Erica. Erica is the woman from Patrick’s past. She says he killed his first wife. Patrick says it was a tragic accident. Stephanie believes her husband. In addition to these characters, there are several other characters and subplots. These include Niall (Patrick’s business partner), Nancy (Niall’s wife), Hanna (Stephanie and Patrick’s neighbor), and Cheryl (mother of Devin). There are connections between the different people and events, but some things could have been left out. With so much going on, it did seem a little chaotic at times.

The End of Her is a gripping domestic suspense with secrets, betrayals, and unlikable characters. Fast and fun read with plenty of twists.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

Books by Shari Lapena:

1. The Couple Next Door
2. A Stranger in the House
3. An Unwanted Guest
4. Someone We Know
5. The End of Her
6. Not a Happy Family
7. Everyone Here Is Lying

BOOK INFO

Title: He Started It

Author: Samantha Downing

Publisher: Berkley

Publish Date: July 28, 2020

Genre: Psychological Thriller

Series: na

My Rating: 4/5

BOOK BLURB

From the twisted mind behind mega hit My Lovely Wife comes the story of a family—not unlike your own—just with a few more violent tendencies thrown in….

Beth, Portia, and Eddie Morgan haven’t all been together in years. And for very good reasons—we’ll get to those later. But when their wealthy grandfather dies and leaves a cryptic final message in his wake, the siblings and their respective partners must come together for a cross-country road trip to fulfill his final wish and—more importantly—secure their inheritance.

But time with your family can be tough. It is for everyone.

It’s even harder when you’re all keeping secrets and trying to forget a memory, a missing person, an act of revenge, the man in the black truck who won’t stop following your car—and especially when at least one of you is a killer and there’s a body in the trunk. Just to name a few reasons.

But money is a powerful motivator. It is for everyone.

MY REVIEW

Beth and her siblings, Portia and Eddie, are forced into a road trip to fulfill their deceased grandfather’s wishes and get their inheritance. The road trip is a repeat of one they did when they were kids. The trip includes stops at odd roadside attractions, and brings back a lot of unsettling memories.

Beth is the narrator for this dysfunctional family’s road trip. Flashbacks to the original trip are told as they follow the same route and make the same stops. The new trip includes Beth and Eddie’s spouses, so there are five adults on one crazy trip. The tension is high, everyone is keeping secrets, and nobody is happy.

An ill-fated road trip. Greedy, thieving, and lying characters. Dark humor, family drama, and shocking twists. He Started It is a wickedly fun read.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

Books by Samantha Downing:

1. My Lovely Wife
2. He Started It
3. Sleeping Dogs Lie
4. For Your Own Good
5. A Twisted Love Story
6. Too Old for This

BOOK INFO

Title: The Vacation

Author: T.M. Logan

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

Publish Date: July 21, 2020

Genre: Psychological Thriller

Series: na

My Rating: 4/5

BOOK BLURB

It was supposed to be the perfect getaway: Kate and her three best friends, spending a week with their families in a luxurious villa in the south of France. Through the decades they’ve stayed closer than ever, and seven days of drinking crisp French wine and laying out under the dazzling Mediterranean sun is the perfect celebration of their friendship. But soon after arriving, Kate discovers an incriminating text on her husband’s cell phone.

A text revealing that he’s having an affair.

And that the other woman is one of her best friends.

But which one?

Trapped in paradise with no one to trust, Kate is determined to find out who has put her marriage—and a lifelong friendship—in jeopardy. But as she closes in on the truth, she realizes that the stakes are higher than she ever imagined. Everyone on the trip has secrets…and someone may be prepared to kill to keep theirs hidden.

MY REVIEW

A group of friends go on a vacation with their families. One of the women suspects her husband is having an affair with one of her friends.

The friends – Kate, Rowan, Jennifer, and Izzy – have known each other since college. The trip is to celebrate the women turning 40 that year. Kate is married to Sean and they have a teenage daughter and 9-year-old son, Rowan is married to Russ and they have a 5-year-old daughter, Jennifer is married to Alistair and they have two teenage sons, and Izzy is single with no children. They all have very different family dynamics.

Various points of view are used in The Vacation, but the main POV is Kate. Soon after arriving at the villa in France, Kate sees an incriminating text on her husband’s phone. She thinks he’s having an affair with one of her friends, but she has no idea which one. She soon realizes all of her friends seem to be hiding something. As their week together passes by, the tension between families and friends grows.

The Vacation is a slow-burning domestic thriller. This is an enjoyable read for fans of slower paced thrillers with lots of drama. Fantastic summer thriller. This book was also published under the title The Holiday.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Books by T.M. Logan:

1. Lies
2. 29 Seconds
3. The Vacation
4. The Catch
5. Trust Me
6. The Curfew
7. The Mother
8. The Dream Home