psychological suspense – Books Dani Likes

Sometimes I Lie by Alice Feeney

Hello Kittens! Sometimes I Lie is one of those books where I thought I knew what I was getting into before I even opened the cover, but the reading experience ended up being completely different from expectations. This title was everywhere for a while and it has been out for some time now, so I am extremely grateful that no one ruined the plot twists for me. This is a twisty plot with an unreliable narrator who will have you guessing what is real many times before the end. For fans of modern psychological suspense, this is a definite must-read and I wouldn’t be surprised to see this story transformed for the screen sometime in the next few years.

Title: Sometimes I Lie

Author: Alice Feeney

Author website: https://www.alicefeeney.com/

Publisher: Flatiron Books

Publish date: March 23, 2017

ISBN: 9781250144843

Buy the Book: Amazon, Barnes and Noble

Amber Reynolds is 35-years-old, is married to Paul, and is in a coma. Thus this book starts off with the first twist from the very first chapter. The reader will follow Amber backwards in time, unraveling the lost memories of what led to her coma along with flashes from her childhood which help the reader get to know who Amber really is. Amber is in a coma, aware of everything that is going on around her but unable to move and unable to remember how she got in this situation. Her husband, Paul, and her sister, Claire, are frequent visitors in her hospital room, and Amber believes she has reason to fear them both…if only she could remember why. Lastly, a mysterious visitor who she can’t identify is sneaking in and out of her room whispering sinister things in her ear…if he is real and not one of her dreams that is.

As you read, you won’t know who to trust. Did Paul hurt Amber? Did he cheat on her? Why is Amber afraid of her sister? Why does her childhood factor into this? Is Amber guilty of cheating? What is real in Amber’s life and what has she imagined and why? Who is the mystery man in her room? Did Amber bring this on herself? I loved how much tension the dream sequences in this book built up. Just when you think Amber is remembering something significant, you discover that she is dreaming, but her dreams are all significant, with specific takeaways. The ending weaves all of these differing pieces together and answers so many questions. It was highly satisfying in that respect.

Sometimes I Lie is the debut title from writer and journalist Alice Feeny. Considering how much buzz I have been hearing about this book for the past several months, I was surprised by how slowly it started off. There are a lot of important foundation points that are built in the first several chapters, but there are so many competing narratives, and with an unreliable narrator who can’t trust herself to parse out what is real and what is not, it can be a little tedious for the reader. That being said, even now, several hours after having finished the book, I am still doubting that I understand everything that happened in the end. I have seen some people compare this book to Gone Girl, and I can see that in the sense that it almost reads as though it were two different books. Half the book is spent positing potential theories of what is going on, and the other half is spent allowing the mind to unwind the truth that is stranger than fiction. An extremely engaging ending, and a very promising start from this writer.

Disclaimer: Not necessary. I waited so long to read this one that I was able to get it from my library.

My rating:

lemonade_icon 2 glasses of lemonade= a book that you could probably recommend to family and close friends. They may not like everything that’s in it, but they’re not going to start sending you cards with holy scripture written in them as messages to get you back on the path of righteousness after reading them either.

There are definitely some disturbing scenes in Sometimes I Lie, including stalking, rape and murder. I know murder isn’t generally mentioned when it comes to thrillers, being somewhat expected, but the murders in this book were a little ghastly. While the writing is strong, the content could make some uncomfortable. Keep the recommendations on this one to those whose reading preferences you know well.

The Marsh King’s Daughter by Karen Dionne

Hello Kittens!

I have for you this week a novel of psychological suspense from an established author. This one has been out for a little while and it has been stalking my TBR pile for months. I don’t remember a lot of fanfare when this one came out, but a few blogs mentioned it and I saw it in a few of the trade reviews and I am so glad that I gave it a try. It gave me goosebumps, and I had to put it down at one point because I started hearing noises around the apartment (it was my cat, the scamp). Enjoy!

Title: The Marsh King’s Daughter

Author: Karen Dionne The Marsh King's Daughter

Author Website: http://www.karen-dionne.com/

Publisher: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, New York

ISBN: 9780735213005

Release Date: June 13, 2017 (hardback) April 17, 2018 (paperback)

Genre: Psychological Suspense

Buy the Book: Amazon Barnes and Noble

The Marsh King’s Daughter will appeal to those of you who love stories that feel like they were ripped from the headlines. I can remember staying glued to the television when they found Jaycee Dugard, and this story fed that inner desire to know as much about these types of kidnappings as possible. Our narrator for this story is Helena Pelletier, and at first glance she seems like a reserved but otherwise normal wife and mother living in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, but this is a woman who is keeping secrets from everyone. Helena is enjoying a day out with one of her daughters when she hears news that would be welcome to most people: her father is in town. The problem is that she receives this news via a radio alert because her father has just escaped from a maximum security prison where he is serving a life sentence for crimes committed against Helena and her mother.

The authorities are desperate to find her father, but so is Helena, so she can send him back to prison herself. As she hunts him through the swamps of the Upper Peninsula she will confront her conflicted past relationship with the man that most of the world views as a monster. Think of this story as Emma Donoghue’s Room with an adult narrator and several adventure sequences.

Helena is a gripping character and the ways she attempts to rectify her former life with her current one will keep you engaged throughout the story. There is a fair amount of space spent describing the natural characteristics of the swampland that could read a little dry if it’s not your thing, but it definitely helps the reader get into the proper desolate mindset.

This is a solid story with a plot that could be off-putting to some and absolutely gripping to others. You may think you have it all figured out, but Dionne throws in the perfect number of plot twists all the way to the end and Helena is a far more complex character than it at first appears.

No disclaimer: I got this one from my local library and you should too!

My rating:

lemonade_icon 3 glasses of lemonade= a book that you could recommend to coworkers and friends you don’t know very well.

Bring Me Back by B.A. Paris

Hello Kittens! Today I present for your reading pleasure, a novel of psychological suspense that is going to have you hooked until the last page. It came out a few days ago on the 19^th (which was a big pub date for a lot of titles that I’ve read recently). This one kept me engaged for two days of very enjoyable suspense. I am a big fan of this genre, and I especially love to find a new author. I am going to be adding B.A. Paris to my automatic TBR list from now on. Without further ado!

Title: Bring Me Back

Author: B.A. Paris

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

ISBN: 9781250151339

Pub Date: 06/19/18

Genre: Psychological Suspense

Buy the Book: Amazon Barnes and Noble

What an amazing psychological suspense novel! I think readers of this genre are going to love this one, but it is going to have a broader appeal because it lacks some of the gore and graphic detail that many titles have been trending towards in the last few years.

Bring Me Back is the story of Layla and Finn…and also of Ellen and Finn. A short time into their intense relationship, Finn and Layla go on vacation together and on their way back Layla disappears without a trace. Finn has trouble getting the police not to suspect him or murdering Layla, but once he convinces them, he spends years wondering about what happened to Layla, often envisioning the worst and blaming himself.

But then, almost a decade later, he meets Ellen, Layla’s older sister, at a memorial service to mark the anniversary of Layla’s disappearance. Ellen is extremely different from Layla, and their relationship progresses at a slower pace, but they are soon engaged. As they overcome the gossip of people who think their engagement is improper, Finn and Ellen began finding items that remind them of Layla. It seems Layla may be back, and neither of them knows how to feel about it. Neither of them can figure out why Layla won’t come out in the open so they can all deal with this, and the story takes a sinister turn when Layla’s symbols and messages start to turn against Ellen. It’s possible the town gossips aren’t the only ones who don’t approve of this wedding. But what does Layla really want from Finn and Ellen? Where has she been all this time? And what will answering those questions cost them all?

This was a fast-paced story, rich in details that had me hooked from the first few chapters. At 304 pages, this is a quick read that I got through in less than two days. While I thought I had the major plot twist figured out about halfway through the story (and I did), I was still dying to get through the rest of the story to find out how all of the threads came together. This is some of the best psychological suspense that I have read in a while. I had never heard of B.A. Paris before this, but I will definitely be going back to read her earlier novels, Behind Closed Doors and The Breakdown. There’s just enough violence, with a little gaslighting mixed in to make you question Finn’s sanity and Layla’s, with multiple perspectives extremely well-represented.

Disclaimer: I received access to an e-galley of this title from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

My rating: This genre isn’t for everyone, but there’s not really any gore and no swearing (at least none that I remember) so I give it:

lemonade_icon 4 glasses of lemonade= a book you could recommend to a book group or anybody who reads. You might find controversial subject matter, but it is handled delicately.