BOOK CLUB ☆ remember how I caught up?? it's been a while and now I have.. so many to share

HELLO FRIENDS back at it with another book club, it has been a sec, I waited too long to do this, and now I have a wild amount of titles to share. doing things slightly differently than last time with this post to make it easier to scroll through!! (also... didn't realize I ALSO had Just the Nicest Couple on my last post... I guess enjoy a second review LMAO)

this time I also added short & sweet breakdowns of what these books are about in case any of them pique your interest!

NO ONE CAN KNOW by KATE ALICE MARSHALL ★★★☆☆

three girls’s parents were murdered and no one, including the girls, have any idea what happened. police think it was them but have no proof, and eventually the girls all go their separate ways into adulthood. many years later, facing financial issues, one of the girls moves back into the family home, an unprompted family reunion takes place (kinda), and the girls seek answers.

the most notable thing about this book to me was how truly difficult it was to follow along with who was who. it’s told from each of the sister’s POV, and… I kept getting confused. I thought this was my bad for maybe not paying as much attention as I could’ve, but then I found out my friend also listened to this audiobook and had the same issue?? story itself wasn’t anything exceptional, but it was an entertaining read.

THE HOUSE IN THE PINES by ANA REYES ★★★☆☆

a girl comes across a video while doomscrolling that shows a woman randomly keeling over and dying while sitting across from a man at a diner. the girl instantly recognizes the man in the video as being none other than the guy who her high school best friend also randomly and mysteriously died in front of. she has some questions and concerns.

I was actually pretty surprised with how this book ended up going – from the description, I expected it to have some kind of fantasy/sci-fi plot to it, but I was very wrong about the direction it took. the plot twist was very unexpected, but.. it felt like it took an unnecessary amount of time to get there.

JUST THE NICEST COUPLE by MARY KUBICA ★★★★☆

a girl’s best friend’s husband goes missing. she confesses to her own husband that she was likely the last person to see this missing man. she also hides this from her best friend as she watches her grieve despite having vital information about his potential whereabouts. a story about really, really shitty interpersonal relationships.

this book is absolutely WILD. very well written, lots of suspense built up, and the end makes you have an unimaginable amount of pity for a specific character, as quite literally everyone does them so, so dirty. super entertaining and would HIGHLY recommend

THE QUIET TENANT by CLEMENCE MICHALLON ★★★★★

when a man’s wife dies, her parents, who owned the house he lives in, kicks him and his daughter out. unfortunately for him, he has been hiding the secret of the woman he has locked in a shed in his backyard. somehow this girl persuades him to take her along instead of killing her (which the killing part isn’t out of bounds for him, as he has told this poor woman about all of the other women he has killed). she ends up living with this man and his daughter as a “roommate”, and as expected, things inevitably don’t work out in that situation.

oh this book was so good yall,, super super cool concept and great execution. told primarily from the captive woman’s POV, but also told from the man’s daughter’s POV, as well as another woman who has a really.. creepy and invasive and inappropriate crush on the man who she doesn’t know is a serial killer (there are also extra tiny chapters told from the POV of his other victims). 

LOCAL WOMAN MISSING by MARY KUBICA ★★★★☆

a young girl is taken and kept in a dark basement for eleven years, until she barely escapes, leaving another boy behind. she returns to her family and everyone desperately tries to reintegrate back into a family… it is not easy.

this book had so many different twists in it?? at moments it was hard to follow since we kept going to different points in time, but aside from that, this one was a wild ride (and worth it!!)

EVERY LAST LIE by MARY KUBICA ★★☆☆☆

a husband dies in a car crash, leaving a wife and young daughter behind. the daughter, who survived the crash and escaped unscathed starts saying creepy shit and causes her poor grieving mother to second guess everything that happened.

I was so excited to partake in another book from this author since the first two I listened to were BANGER, but unfortunately, we all make mistakes, and imo this is one of the author’s mistakes. the best part of this book is the portrayal of a grieving wife and mother. the worst part is that I feel like this book was a waste of my time.

THE STOLEN HOURS by ALLEN ESKENS ★★★★☆

a woman is nearly killed by being thrown into a river, and eventually, a detective and a prosecutor get together and compare notes and form a really girlboss team against a crusty mouth breathing man who has covered his tracks well. 

this book… slaps. I loved that characters involved were strong women who were on their own personal missions to find out what happened, seek justice for female victims, and end a spree of crimes. the book itself went back and forth a bit between characters who don’t meet up until well into the book (not my favorite story telling technique bc my brain is so small sometimes and I easily get lost) but dear god this book is worth it just for climax and how things go down ?? I don’t want to give any spoilers, but like… the main character does something that is really violent but like… in a funny way? I,,, it was so good. my jaw was on the floor.

LISTEN FOR THE LIE by AMY TINTERA ★★★★☆

a girl’s past is forcibly brought back up as a successful true crime podcaster begins covering the unsolved case of the murder of her best friend. 

THIS BOOK WAS SO SEXY it was one of those that really thrived in an audiobook format. we go back and forth between hearing from the main character and hearing the “released” podcasts from the podcaster. the characters themselves were SO entertaining – I really related to the main character in this book because she has SUCH a… negative? pessimistic? bitchy? view on things, and girl?? me fucking too. her grandmother is also so insanely funny and I loved their interactions throughout the entire book. solely from the writing alone, this was one of the most enjoyable books I’ve read just because every time the main character said something snippy, I felt like I was standing behind her cheering her on because her comments were just.. so funny. so real. so good. biggest criticism is the unwanted romance subplot that you can see from a mile away but like.. did I truly want it to happen? no. was it necessary to the story? no. I’m sure a lot of people are cool with it, and it really isn’t that big of a deal… but I just wanted a silly little mystery.

SHARP OBJECTS by GILLIAN FLYNN ★★★☆☆

a reporter is sent to her hometown to cover a murder and a disappearance of two teenage girls. her mother is weird, her step sister is weird, and they unfortunately stay weird for the entire book.

I’m,, I’m gonna be honest. I really don’t remember a lot of this one?? I remember the end “twist” which was like… good I guess? but I was just so not invested in this book at any point LMAO

TWENTY SEVEN MINUTES by ASHLEY TATE ★★★☆☆

ten years after a young girl died in a car accident, many questions and doubts are brought to light as those involved harbor secrets regarding the incident – primarily the question of why did her brother, the driver, wait twenty seven minutes to call the police? 

the concept of this book was super cool, the execution was a little less cool than that, but the very obvious unwell mental state of one of the characters kept me interested. girlie is NOT well, which is really easy to see from the beginning of the book, and I don’t know about you guys, but I personally LOVE, and I mean LOVE!!!!, crazy girls in media. go off girls. absolutely pop off. go crazy, it’s so entertaining, I’m so excited to see what y’all are gonna do. (there’s also a big twist in here that I guessed from the beginning and it felt so good that my hunch was right)

SOMEONE IS ALWAYS WATCHING by KELLEY ARMSTRONG ★★★★★

following the death of their principal and a violent and erratic outburst from a student, a group of friends seeks answers to the questions piling up, find WAY more questions, and end up not being able to trust themselves, much less each other.

this book got me so sucked in with a crazy girl at the beginning and then the plot just keeps thickening and once the plot twist is revealed?? y’all WHAT??? I had no idea where this book was going to go, but the twist was SO unexpected and SO interesting??? there’s also a good romance subplot in this one PLUS one of the girls is a huge bitch and has a moment of being crazy and I love her for both of those things.

THOSE EMPTY EYES by CHARLIE DONLEA ★★★★☆

a girl’s family is murdered and as she is led from the crime scene, she is labeled as “empty eyes” by a news reporter. between her expression leaving her family’s home (which.. girl was literally in shock, so valid), as well as the police initially attempting to charge her for the murders, the public labels her as the murderer even long after she is proven innocent. ten years later, a case the law firm she works at has taken on starts showing similarities to the murders of her family.

AND THERE HE KEPT HER by JOSHUA MOEHLING ★★★☆☆

a burglary seeking prescription medication goes wrong, leaving two teenagers missing… that’s… that’s the plot.

this book was okay! a little easy to guess where things are going throughout most of it, but it was still a good read. I,, wish I had more notable opinions on this one ?? but tbh that’s all I got

14 WAYS TO DIE by VINCENT RALPH ★★★☆☆

a teenage girl signs up for a life vlogging series run by a production company in the hopes of bringing light to her mother’s murder, hoping a public cry for help will eventually unmask the serial killer who took her own mother’s life, as well as over a dozen more women after her.

easy to follow and an entertaining read!! concept is wild because it’s literally multiple teenagers getting their lives livestreamed on Youtube (all of the kids were picked for shocking life experiences) and I don’t know how or why anyone thought that would be a good idea BUT it surprisingly doesn’t go horribly for the kids that grown ass adults are trying to make money off of. 

SAVING NOAH by DR. LUCINDA BERRY ★★★★★

a teenage son who is an honor student and solid athlete confesses to his parents that he has sexually assaulted two much younger girls that he was doing swimming lessons for. set after he is released from a rehabilitation treatment center, their family dynamics and life as a whole are greatly changed.

I don’t know how I stumbled upon this one on Libby, but dear god this book exceeded ALL of my expectations. the audiobook itself was on the shorter side (less than 7 hours) so I figured it was low commitment (most audiobooks I listen to are around 9-12 hours long), and I am SO SO SO glad I picked this up. a very humanizing take on a very stigmatized subject. if you have mommy issues, this book will especially hurt your feelings, as this mother’s unconditional love truly knows no bounds. this book hurt my feelings and made me literally sob. easily my favorite book on this post!!

ONE OF OUR OWN by DR. LUCINDA BERRY ★★★★☆

a suicide prevention hotline volunteer takes a call from a teenage victim of SA. doing everything to keep the girl alive, the volunteer breaks the rules and provides her personal number to the caller, unintentionally putting herself in the middle of a situation that changes her life.

alright I really need to dive into literally everything this author has ever put out because this one was a banger, too. an even SHORTER audiobook, (less than 4 hours, the shortest one I’ve ever seen) but so much happens and the story itself is so well done and SO good. miss berry writes such intricately woven family dynamics with bumps along the way that really give you the “do I know this person as well as I think I do?” vibes and it’s so good.

I truly don't have the energy to proof read this (I have been sitting at my computer writing everything out for a while and I... wish to not be sitting in my chair) so my apologies if there are any typos. I am just a girl

♡ Chrissy