"Final Girls" by Riley Sager

Genre: Thriller
Format: Kindle
Publication: July 2017
Cover Rating: 5/5 Stars

From Goodreads: Ten years ago, college student Quincy Carpenter went on vacation with five friends and came back alone, the only survivor of a horror movie–scale massacre. In an instant, she became a member of a club no one wants to belong to—a group of similar survivors known in the press as the Final Girls. Lisa, who lost nine sorority sisters to a college dropout's knife; Sam, who went up against the Sack Man during her shift at the Nightlight Inn; and now Quincy, who ran bleeding through the woods to escape Pine Cottage and the man she refers to only as Him. The three girls are all attempting to put their nightmares behind them, and, with that, one another. Despite the media's attempts, they never meet.

Now, Quincy is doing well—maybe even great, thanks to her Xanax prescription. She has a caring almost-fiancé, Jeff; a popular baking blog; a beautiful apartment; and a therapeutic presence in Coop, the police officer who saved her life all those years ago. Her memory won’t even allow her to recall the events of that night; the past is in the past. 

That is, until Lisa, the first Final Girl, is found dead in her bathtub, wrists slit, and Sam, the second, appears on Quincy's doorstep. Blowing through Quincy's life like a whirlwind, Sam seems intent on making Quincy relive the past, with increasingly dire consequences, all of which makes Quincy question why Sam is really seeking her out. And when new details about Lisa's death come to light, Quincy's life becomes a race against time as she tries to unravel Sam's truths from her lies, evade the police and hungry reporters, and, most crucially, remember what really happened at Pine Cottage, before what was started ten years ago is finished.

My Thoughts: My mind is BLOWN. Every time I thought I knew what was going down in this book I was proven wrong and slammed by another plot twist. Lately I've been devouring thriller novels like crazy. So I feel like I've gotten pretty good at detecting what's going on and who the killer is early on, but Final Girls threw me on a roller coaster ride. This is one of those books that will stay with me long after I've finished it. I'll still be thinking about Quinn, Sam, and the rest of the characters for months to come.

Right now, I'm just too stunned to even know what to say and how to articulate my praise for this book. I mean, I had HIGH expectations for this one. I'm one of those weirdo's who loves slasher films/ novels so when I came across this my first reaction was "Oh yes!" It's right up my alley. But there have been many times where I've thought that before only to be disappointed. Well, obviously that was not the case with Final Girls. If you love a good thriller, or enjoyed the best (in my humble opinion) of the 90's horror genre like Scream you will LOVE this book!

Bottom Line: I'm recommending this one to everyone.

My Rating: 5/5 Stars

"Till Death" by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Genre: Romantic Suspense
Publication: February 2017
Format: Kindle
Cover Rating: 4/5 Stars

From Goodreads: It’s been ten years since Sasha Keaton left her West Virginia hometown . . . since she escaped the twisted serial killer known as the Groom. Returning to help run her family inn means being whole again, except for one missing piece. The piece that falls into place when Sasha’s threatened—and FBI agent Cole Landis vows to protect her the way he couldn’t a decade ago.

First one woman disappears; then another, and all the while, disturbing calling cards are left for the sole survivor of the Groom’s reign of terror. Cole’s never forgiven himself for not being there when Sasha was taken, but he intends to make up for it now . . . because under the quirky sexiness Cole first fell for is a steely strength that only makes him love Sasha more.

But someone is watching. Waiting. And Sasha’s first mistake could be her last. 


My Thoughts: Lately I've been on this huge romantic suspense/ horror kick. So when I discovered that I had not in fact already read JLA's new thriller Till Death I immediately grabbed it up and devoured it in two days (which is pretty great for me right now since most of my day is spent trying to catch up with my two year old). Like every other JLA book out there, this book was a page turner and never had a boring moment. As I've said in my previous post, I pretty much think JLA is Queen. That's not me fangirling, that's just the truth. The woman spins out book after book and they all are original and at the very least above 3 stars for me. So, bottom line: I love JLA and all her books are fantastic and unique and have something for everyone in them.

That being said, while I did really enjoy Till Death it wasn't my favorite book of hers. Not that it didn't absolutely rock, but I kind of figured out who the killer was REALLY early on which was disappointing for me. Maybe I'm just getting good at mysteries though because I've been reading so many. Regardless, I would still recommend this book to anyone who loves a good thriller.

My Rating: 3/5 Stars

"The Dead List" by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Genre: YA Thriller/ Mystery
Format: Wattpad
Publication: April 15, 2015 by JLA
Cover Rating: 4/5 Stars

My Thoughts: The Dead List is a precious gift from the Awesome One (also known as Jennifer L. Armentrout or JLA) to all of her fans. It was published a few months ago on the site Wattpad and it's FREE for however long the Awesome One so feels inclined for it to be.

But for real, on to the review. I'm a huge JLA Fangirl (in case you couldn't tell) and there's a reason for that. She cranks out novels like nobody's business and they never disappoint. They're always good and delicious and leave you wanting more. The Dead List is no different.

Meet Ella:  She's your average high-school girl, who's just trying to move on with her life after a mutual break up with her boyfriend/ best-friend. But someone doesn't want Ella to move on. Someone knows about Ella's tragic past, and they're not about to let her forget. After narrowly escaping an attack herself, Ella watches on the sidelines as her peers start to disappear, only to show up dead later. But then she starts to notice a trend. Something... or someone actually, connects them all. Someone who Ella failed when she was young and naive. And now someone out there wants revenge on all of those involved.

Here's the thing: If you like those 90's campy pyscho killer horror flicks (like Scream), you will love The Dead List. Of course, there's great character development and the plot has plenty of twists and turns, but what I really loved was the nostalgia of it. It's no secret that I love cheesed horror films and the 90's, so this was like getting a Godivia Chocolate Cheese Cake (because they're boss) AND a glass of your favorite wine!

Bottom Line:  I would definitely recommend this book, and I would also tell you to read it ASAP. Because while JLA hasn't mentioned taking it off Wattpad anytime soon, why would you wait and chance it?

My Rating: 4/5 Stars

"Black Ice" by Becca Fitzpatrick

Genre: YA Thriller/ Mystery
Format: Paperback ARC; 390 pages
Publication: October 7th, 2014 by Simon & Schuster
Cover Rating: 5/5 Stars
Links: Goodreads, Amazon, Book Depo, B&N

From Goodreads: Sometimes danger is hard to see... until it’s too late. 

Britt Pfeiffer has trained to backpack the Teton Range, but she isn't prepared when her ex-boyfriend, who still haunts her every thought, wants to join her. Before Britt can explore her feelings for Calvin, an unexpected blizzard forces her to seek shelter in a remote cabin, accepting the hospitality of its two very handsome occupants—but these men are fugitives, and they take her hostage. 

In exchange for her life, Britt agrees to guide the men off the mountain. As they set off, Britt knows she must stay alive long enough for Calvin to find her. The task is made even more complicated when Britt finds chilling evidence of a series of murders that have taken place there... and in uncovering this, she may become the killer’s next target. 

But nothing is as it seems in the mountains, and everyone is keeping secrets, including Mason, one of her kidnappers. His kindness is confusing Britt. Is he an enemy? Or an ally? 

BLACK ICE is New York Times bestselling author Becca Fitzpatrick’s riveting romantic thriller set against the treacherous backdrop of the mountains of Wyoming. Falling in love should never be this dangerous…

My Thoughts: First of all, I want to give a HUGE thank you to my Book BFF and fellow GReep, Anna (from Annaberry Reads) for being so awesome and trusting me to borrow her very own ARC copy of this book!

Black Ice ended up being amazing. I loved it. I even loved it MORE than Becca's first series, Hush, Hush. It was just this gripping, page turner, that I could NOT put down. Seriously, I stayed up until 3:00 am on a work day to read it. My boss was not a happy camper, but I didn't regret it.

I'm not going to lie, when I first started reading it I had my doubts.While I loved the premise and the plot itself, the MC, Britt, was just plain DUMB. She made very stupid, cliche horror movie, decisions. I found myself cringing at her idiocy and rolling my eyes at her inability to be self sufficient. BUT, and this is a big but, it worked. Somehow, the amazing Becca Fitzpatrick made me fall in love with this clueless teenager. And of course, Britt ends up coming into her own and her character gets stronger as this story goes on, redeeming herself from her earlier flaws.

What about the mystery, you ask? Well, it totally kept me guessing until the last possible second when you see how the clues start coming together. The whole time you are questioning EVERYONE, and feeling sorry for Britt because you start to think maybe you could have Stockholm Syndrome too, and you completely understand where she's coming from.

Simply put, Black Ice was one of the best thrillers I have read in quite some time. I would highly recommend it to anyone who loves a good mystery or just YA in general.

My Rating: