Review: The Summer She Went Missing

The Summer She Went Missing by Chelsea Ichaso
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Audio narrated by Amy McFadden.

A lot of frustrating teenage moments and the narrator's voice was kind of annoying but otherwise this turned out to be a pretty addictive thriller.

The story follows Paige as she works to uncover all the secrets around the disappearance of her best friend, Audrey. Along for the ride is Audrey's brother, Dylan, and if the two get distracted by their own romantic drama, well, they're only teenagers after all.

I definitely tuned out a bit when the hardcore Teen Tropes set in, but then I'd find myself backtracking because I'd missed a juicy bit of drama. So I imagine this would hit harder reading a physical copy.

That said, it's likely I'd have put pieces together a little faster if I'd read the physical. The beauty of audio is my focus wanders so suspects sneak up on me a lot more. This story was great for that because there were so many twists.

I feel like there were a lot of unbelievable aspects to the story but these also seemed to be intentionally explained away by the author through character musings or observations. For example, Paige begins to think a certain conclusion about Audrey that to me didn't make sense, but it's later explained away as a coping mechanism. I didn't buy it, so it never sat right with me.

There are so many teenage stereotypes here, and it had me rolling my eyes quite a bit. Still, somehow it held my attention throughout and by the end I was desperate to put all the pieces together and figure out what had happened.

Bit of a mixed read, but overall I enjoyed it. I think it would have landed better with me if I hadn't listened to the audio and had read the book physically instead. But then, if I'd had to read instead of listen I may never have picked it up in the first place.

With thanks to Netgalley for an audio ARC

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Review: Nemesis Games

Nemesis Games by James S.A. Corey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Wowww what an exciting, tense read! Had a great time getting to know these characters a little better, but it was not fun going through everything with them.

This one diverts a little from Protomolecule drama, and instead we're seeing our four heroes doing things a little more personal. It may seem like a slower pace at first for some, but I enjoyed learning more about these characters and what drives them. I've not yet read any of the associated short stories so I've got a burning curiosity about all their pasts and this helped soothe that a little.

Naturally, things go awry and get a little tricky for everyone. I'm always blown away by the scale of how badly things go for this little team, and this installment in the series was no exception. Very dramatic happenings, and each various storyline was equally brutal.

That being said, I felt a lot for Naomi this time around. Amos had some sh*t to deal with but he's tough - he can take care of himself. Naomi is a badass but she was put through the ringer and I was so invested in everything that was happening to her. This book gave me so much more respect for her character.

I LOVED the reappearance of Bobbie, and I'm hoping she'll stick around for a while, now.

Overall, it was more character-driven this time around but the stakes were about the same, making for a tense, more personal kind of thriller. I really enjoyed it.

On to the next one!

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Review: You'll Never Know I'm Here

You'll Never Know I'm Here by Kiersten Modglin
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Yikes.

This audiobook was narrated by Stacy Gonzalez who was ... enthusiastic. I enjoyed her storytelling but it also stressed me out a bit because she seemed so breathless for most of it.

This was a pretty quick audio listen, though the story was a little thin. It revolves around a group of online 'book influencers' who have decided to meet up in person in the middle of nowhere. Because that would definitely be my first pick when meeting online friends for the first time.

I did enjoy the group coming together and getting to know one another in person - I think that's something a lot of us with online friends will relate to. Lena had some interesting delusions about Ethan, and it was a bit of a weak plot point, but it did mix things up a bit I guess. Wasn't looking forward to everyone coupling up but the group seemed to get along in general so the dynamics worked okay.

The murder plot is super thin and I never felt the thrills I think it was trying to deliver. I feel like close inspection would reveal some gaping plot holes - I found the way police dealt with things to be quite questionable and it soured me a little towards the story. I wanted better twists and stronger moments that swept me up in the story, but instead I had a lot of questions about the way things were playing out.

Overall, it just seemed a little weak to me, and the final reasoning for everything put me off completely. It was such a weird angle to take and I didn't buy it one bit. But I hadn't been blown away by the rest of the story so I was already disappointed by the time I got there.

An easy listen, but not particularly strong. I didn't hate it, but it won't be one that stays with me.

With thanks to Netgalley for an audio copy

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Review: To Cage a God

To Cage a God by Elizabeth May
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

The narration was fantastic but the story was SO DULL.

Firstly, this audiobook was narrated by Sofia Engstrand and she was fantastic. Her voice was lively and emotive and it was easy enough to distinguish between the different characters. I did still have to listen at x1.75 speed but otherwise it was done really well.

Sad that the story was just so plain. It really was just a romance novel posing as fantasy. This was ALLLLL about the hookups and the tension between the two couples, and the story itself mostly went nowhere.

It's 'Russian inspired' fantasy, which means a lot of big words and a multitude of nicknames for people that left me plenty confused. I was quite grateful to be listening because I think if I'd had to read all these names I would have eventually given up. There also seemed to be a lot of repetition of Sera's full name which seemed unnecessary.

I like this idea of gods being caged inside human bodies but it really seemed under-utilised to me. The 'dragons' felt more like a metaphor for emotions than actually badass gods.

Katya (I don't remember which of her names was the regular one, sorry) was probably my fave character because at least she had a goal beyond getting laid. She seemed the most well-rounded and fleshed out, though at times I really questioned what she was doing.

Being a dull story AND an audiobook, my mind drifted plenty of times, but I never seemed to lose the thread of what was happening - it was just that slow. It was also the first time I haven't had the e-book to read along with and it was quite tough to not be able to check words and spellings and things for deeper understanding.

Apparently it's a duology but I cannot see where it goes from here. I don't know what else there could be to write a whole other book about. I couldn't even make it through the 'bonus chapter' because I was so done with this story and it's self-centred characters.

And on that subject, Vitaly was one of the most annoying fellas I've read in a while. I'm really tired of arrogant assholes being love interests in fantasy. WE DESERVE BETTER.

With thanks to Netgalley for a copy of this audio

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Review: Cibola Burn

Cibola Burn by James S.A. Corey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Another addictive installment, though I wanted more than what I got.

I really love how much this series keeps me on my toes - it's wildly unpredictable and I never know what it's building towards.

Characters are a whole lot of fun, and there's always someone you love to hate which really adds to the tension.

I was rather frustrated for a lot of this one - our guys just could not catch a break! And humans just so intent on killing one another ... it drove me crazy.

I think that's the crux of why I wanted more - everything about the protomolecule has fascinated me from the first book and this just didn't give me as much progression there as I wanted.

Epilogue sets up for something fun to come, though, so I'm very much looking forward to book 5!

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Review: The Housemaid

The Housemaid by Freida McFadden
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Wow this was GREAT!!

Fantasy audiobooks are out, thrillers are IN!

This is actually the FIRST TIME I listened to an audiobook with rapt attention. I heard every word! Normally my attention drifts because I'm always doing something else at the same time (normally playing video games) but this time around I was HOOKED!!

I really enjoyed the way this switched between storytellers. Fantastic opening, thrilling chapter cliff hangers throughout, questionable behaviours ... just loved listening to this one! Took some real wild turns.

The characters are all pretty sketchy so you know anyone could be to blame and it takes a while to work out what's going on. The ending was fantastic.

Really enjoyed this thriller - it's given me a second wind for the genre!


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