Mystery, Thriller, and Suspense: Best and Worst of My Recent 'Whodunit' Reads
Recent mystery & thriller reviews and recommendations, anticipated releases of 2024 and more.
Hello fellow readers, I hope you all had a great start to the new year. May it be full of love, happiness, joy, and good books!
Recently I’ve been drawn to thrillers and mysteries. I really wanted to read something addictive that got my full attention. Some books managed to do it, others - not so much.
In this edition, I share my reviews on some mystery and thriller novels that I recently read. If you read any of them, let me know what you think in the comments!
First Lie Wins
by Ashley Elston
This book was so addictive I had to binge-read it. 4,5 stars!
This is a story about Evie Porter, a girl who has everything she dreamed about - a loving boyfriend, a big house, and a garden. The only thing is - Evie Porter doesn’t exist. In her line of work, the identity comes first, then the location, and then the mark. Although she is very good at what she does, this job is not like the other - especially after her real identity that she worked so hard to keep clean just walked into town. Now Evie can’t afford to make mistakes - she has to play the game and stay ahead.
The book is narrated from different timelines, slowly unfolding the events of the past and the present. The story is unique, addictive, and engaging and has plenty of twists and turns which quickly drew me into the book from the very first pages and kept me on my toes throughout. There is always a reason why we learn about something - it all comes together in the end.
Overall, I really enjoyed this complex and clever story of a strong, intelligent, and resourceful woman. I also liked the ending that felt like it made total sense (this doesn’t happen very often for me with the endings).
This is the only reason I didn't give this book 5/5 is that despite the elaborate plot twists, some of them were predictable and I wasn't as surprised as I wished I would be. Still, thanks to brilliant storytelling this book is very enjoyable and it will thrill you. I definitely recommend it if you’re into mysteries and thrillers - you won’t regret this one. It would also make a perfect beach or travel read, I imagine.
My favorite quotes from the book:
"Mama always said to be successful in life you need to do three things: learn everything you can, try your hardest, and be the best at what you do."
"You can tell a lot about a person by the way they act when they are left waiting too long."
While I was reading it, I could see all the events happening like in a movie, so I was excited to learn that the adaptation is already in development with Hulu, and we’ll see it on the screens. Can’t wait!
Before We Were Innocent
by Ella Berman
The book centers on three friends - Bess, Joni, and Evangeline - who, ten years ago, traveled to Greece for a summer vacation before going off to college. But only two of them came back. After Evangeline’s death, Bess finds herself living in the shadow of her past. When Joni shows up at her doorstep ten years after the tragedy, Bess is forced to confront the past and question everything she believes in.
The story is narrated by Bess, and how much you enjoy this book depends on how much you like this girl. To be honest with you, I was annoyed with Bess throughout the entire book, which ruined the reading experience for me. But there are more reasons why this book is no more than 3.5 stars.
Despite being 28 years old, Bess acts and thinks like she is 18. Her weakness, passivity, and lack of control over her life make her an unlikable protagonist. Things simply happen to her. It’s like I’ve been in the mind of an indecisive, weak-willed character and I didn’t like it. With all due respect to the tragic events she endured, I couldn’t empathize with her.
Beyond the unsympathetic main character, the book is also a case study on unhealthy female friendships. The bond between the so-called best friends is full of tension, abuse, toxicity, and control. Maybe you don’t know better when you’re 17 and we all do stupid things when we are young, but the characters' foolishness consistently angered me.
And the cherry on top of this book is its slow pace. I wish it was a slow burner, but it's just a lengthy story full of overthinking. I was slightly bored during the first half and tempted to put the book down and DNF it. I pushed through somehow and the narrative gained momentum in the second half, giving it a much-needed vigor and saving me from giving this book 2 stars.
There are a few things I took away from this book:
Whatever we hear is not exactly the true story. People love a good story, so they find any evidence that fits the puzzle of the story they want to tell. But it doesn’t mean it’s the whole, real story.
The way we deal with trauma is different. We process it in our own, unique ways, and there is no right or wrong way to do so.
My favorite quote:
…life is about being fucking terrified and still showing up and turning yourself inside out because you know that loving someone gives them the power to break you, but that maybe, one day, you might just be lucky enough to stumble across another human who recognizes you exactly as you are and who will spend the rest of their life learning how to strike a match to fill your darkness.
If you liked this book, you might also enjoy Penance.
Penance
by Eliza Clark
What is important to understand upfront is that it’s basically a book in a book. Written by a struggling author Alex Z. Carelli, his true crime book Penance is a controversial attempt at telling a story of a murder. To elevate the book for commercial and critical success, Carelli tells his truth and interprets facts in a way that makes a good and engaging story for the reader.
Many things that felt boring, annoying, and cringe throughout the book, so to spare you the details, I’ll list some highlights:
It touches upon themes like bullying, social media presence, teenage friendships, politics, and journalism, among others. While some topics are addressed properly demonstrating Clark’s knowledge of the issue, others felt very random to me (e.g. how was Brexit relevant to the story?).
There was so much context to every story, character, and event that I often felt like fast-forwarding the narrative. I also constantly got lost in the characters and who is who.
Carelli’s book is poorly written, incoherent, and dull. Since this was my first book by Clark, I was wondering if it’s her writing or if she made the book bad on purpose?
Similar to Before We Were Innocent, Penance addresses an important issue of subjectivity and how truth can be bent - you can tell a completely different story based on the same facts.
I had my doubts about the book from the moment I read the blurb (which I didn’t get). To be fair, I’m still not sure I get what the book is about - bad journalism, teenage relationships, true crime? If there is anything about this book that screams crime, it’s the length of it.
I tried to like this book - I pushed through and read it fully, hoping it would get better but that never happened. I hesitate between 2 and 3 stars because even 3 feels like too much.
P.S. I will try and stay away from books about toxic teenage friendships - seems like my tolerance for it is very low. 🙃
P.P.S. If you enjoy mysteries as much as I do, here’s the collection of the best thrillers of 2023 by Book Riot.
Anticipated releases of 2024
Now for the good news - many exciting books are coming up in 2024 (yay!). So here’s my top:
Fiction
The Life Impossible by Matt Haig (contemporary, adult fiction)
Release date: August 29, 2024
The Great Divide by Cristina Henríquez (historical fiction)
Release date: March 5, 2024
Funny Story by Emily Henry (romance, contemporary) - my personal can’t wait! More about Emily Henry’s books here and here
Release date: April 23, 2024
The Pairing by Casey McQuiston (romance, LGBT) - I wrote here about another book by Casey which I loved
Release date: August 6, 2024
How to Solve Your Own Murder by Kristen Perrin (thriller, cozy mystery)
Release date: March 26, 2024
The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley (mystery, thriller)
Release date: June 18, 2024
Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez (romance, contemporary)
Release date: April 2, 2024
You Like It Darker by Stephen King (thriller, horror)
Release date: May 21, 2024
Non-fiction
My Side of the River by Elizabeth Camarillo Gutierrez (memoir)
Release date: February 13, 2024
Slow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment Without Burnout by Cal Newport (personal development, productivity)
Release date: March 5, 2024
Supercommunicators: How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection by Charles Duhigg (psychology, personal development)
Release date: February 27, 2024
Grief Is for People by Sloane Crosley (memoir, mental health)
Release date: February 27, 2024
The Age of Magical Overthinking: Notes on Modern Irrationality by Amanda Montell (psychology, self-help)
Release date: April 9, 2024
Thanks for reading this far!
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I’m always happy to hear from you, so if you want to share some thoughts on the books, feel free to reach out or leave a comment under this post.
Happy reading!
Liza
I am so thankful to find another person who did not like Penance - I truly thought I was the only one! The teenage slang dialogue was insufferable and I could not even finish - I may try to speed read through the last 20% just so I can review it