Book Review: They Want Us Dead by CL Montblanc
🐾🐾🐾🐾 — Trust no one—especially the people telling the story.
Review Date: April 26, 2026 | Release Date: April 28, 2026
This one wastes zero time pulling you into the chaos—and then it just keeps tightening the screws. They Want Us Dead blends the addictive energy of true crime obsession with a locked-room mystery that feels unsettlingly modern.
Sam Tombs is such a compelling narrator—driven, sharp, and deeply rooted in something real: the need to amplify voices that are often ignored. Their passion for highlighting crimes against LGBTQ+ teens gives the story emotional weight beyond the typical “teens in danger” thriller. It’s not just about survival—it’s about truth, visibility, and who gets remembered.
The setup is instantly gripping: a group of young true crime creators trapped in a creepy Victorian mansion? It practically dares you not to binge it. But what makes it stand out is the tension between the characters—especially Sam and Dylan. Their enemies-to-reluctant-allies dynamic adds humor, bite, and just enough vulnerability to keep you invested between the twists.
And the twists? Sharp. Suspicious. Constant. Every character feels like they could be hiding something, and the story leans hard into that paranoia. You’re not just trying to figure out the killer—you’re questioning everyone, including the people you want to trust.
There’s also an underlying commentary about online culture, performative activism, and the ethics of turning tragedy into content, which adds another layer to the suspense. It makes you think while still delivering that edge-of-your-seat pacing.
Overall, it’s eerie, fast, and socially aware—a YA thriller that actually has something to say while keeping your heart racing.
I had the opportunity to read this book ahead of publication, and these are my honest thoughts.
Book Review: Playing for Keeps by Bella North
🐾🐾🐾🐾 — When fake love feels real… who’s brave enough to admit it first?
Review Date: April 26, 2026 | Release Date: April 27, 2026
This one sneaks up on you in the best way.
What starts as a classic fake dating setup quickly turns into something softer, deeper, and honestly a little bit painful in all the right ways. The chemistry between Serena and her football-star best friend is immediate—but it’s the history between them that really gives this story its weight. Every glance, every joke, every “we’ve always been like this” moment carries the kind of tension that makes you want to yell just kiss already… for real this time.
Serena is easy to root for. She’s strong without being hardened, hopeful even after being burned, and trying to move forward while still untangling herself from a past that won’t quite let go. Her desire for something real—something lasting—feels incredibly grounded, which makes the fake relationship even more emotionally risky.
And then there’s him. The classic “I don’t do love” hero… but with a twist. His fear isn’t arrogance—it’s rooted in the belief that he’ll hurt the people he cares about. That quiet, self-protective instinct makes every moment he softens toward Serena feel earned. You can feel the internal push-and-pull as he tries to keep things light while everything between them is getting heavier.
The fake dating element is chef’s kiss. Public kisses, staged appearances, that one moment where things shift and suddenly it doesn’t feel like acting anymore… it’s all here. But what really works is how the story leans into the emotional consequences of pretending. Because when the lines blur, someone always risks losing more than they planned.
This is for anyone who loves:
- best friends who already know each other too well
- the slow realization that “fake” feelings aren’t fake at all
- and that quiet, terrifying moment when love becomes real
Soft, swoony, and just angsty enough to keep your heart invested the entire way through.
I had the opportunity to read this book ahead of publication, and these are my honest thoughts.
Book Review: Safe Haven by Lily Parker
🐾🐾🐾🐾 — A love that never let go—only waited to be fought for.
Review Date: April 19, 2026 | Release Date: April 23, 2026
This story leans hard into the kind of romance that feels both tender and quietly intense—the kind where the past never really lets go, no matter how much time has passed.
Bailey is a character you can’t help but root for. She’s built a life out of writing love stories, but there’s a lingering ache beneath everything she does—a sense that she never got her own. That emotional undercurrent makes every interaction feel heavier, especially when Rhett walks back into her life like unfinished business she can’t ignore.
Rhett is exactly the kind of hero that hits—protective without being overbearing, guarded but deeply emotional underneath it all. His presence shifts the entire atmosphere of the story. The tension between him and Bailey isn’t loud—it simmers. It’s in the glances, the almost-touches, the weight of everything they never said.
What really elevates this book is the blend of romance and suspense. The stalking element adds a constant sense of unease, making Bailey’s vulnerability feel real and urgent. But it also gives Rhett a reason to step back into her world—and once he’s there, it’s impossible for either of them to pretend the past doesn’t still matter.
The small-town setting of Cedar Shores adds that cozy, tucked-away feeling while still holding space for tension. It feels safe… until it doesn’t. And that contrast works so well with the emotional arc of the story.
At its core, this is about second chances—not just at love, but at being seen, chosen, and fought for. And watching Rhett slowly become the man Bailey always wrote about? That’s where this story really lands.
I had the opportunity to read this book ahead of publication, and these are my honest thoughts.
Book Review: The Caretaker by Marcus Kliewer
🐾🐾🐾🐾 — A slow, suffocating descent into ritual horror that feels impossible to escape.
Review Date: April 19, 2026 | Release Date: April 21, 2026
Some stories unsettle you from the first page—but The Caretaker goes a step further, pulling you in so completely that you don’t realize how deep you are until it’s far too late.
Marcus Kliewer builds this story on atmosphere, and it’s relentless in the best way. The Oregon Coast feels vast, isolated, and wrong from the start—less like a setting and more like something watching. Macy Mullins walks into what should be a simple, three-day caretaking job, but the deeper she goes, the more reality begins to unravel around her. The horror doesn’t rely on loud moments or jump scares—it creeps in slowly, tightening its grip scene by scene until escape feels impossible.
Macy is such a strong anchor for the story. Her motivations—financial pressure, responsibility, the weight of trying to keep everything together—make her feel real in a way that makes every choice hit harder. You understand why she stays. You understand why she doesn’t run. And that makes the horror feel even more suffocating, because it’s not just about what’s happening—it’s about how trapped she already is before things even begin.
What lingers most is the use of ritual and repetition. “Follow the Rites…” isn’t just a phrase—it becomes a rhythm, a pull, something that feels inescapable. The story leans into that sense of inevitability, like something ancient has already decided the outcome and Macy is simply moving through the motions of it.
Eerie, claustrophobic, and deeply unsettling, this is horror that sticks with you. Not just a haunted house story—but something bigger, darker, and far more cosmic.
I had the opportunity to read this book ahead of publication, and these are my honest thoughts.
Book Review: The Happy Family by Daniel Hurst
🐾🐾🐾🐾 — A perfectly twisted portrait of obsession, identity, and revenge.
Review Date: April 19, 2026 | Release Date: April 20, 2026
Some stories pull you in slowly. The Happy Family drags you under from page one and refuses to let you breathe until the very end.
At its core, this is a story about identity, control, and the terrifying fragility of what we call “family.” The premise feels deceptively simple—someone has lost everything, and someone else has taken her place—but the execution is anything but. Daniel Hurst builds tension in layers, peeling back truths so carefully that you’re constantly questioning what’s real and who deserves your sympathy.
What makes this book so addictive is the shifting perspective on what “happy” really means. Every scene feels like it’s hiding something just beneath the surface—every smile, every interaction, every seemingly normal moment carries an undercurrent of unease. You don’t just read this story—you watch it unravel, piece by piece.
The narrator’s voice is sharp and emotionally charged, driven by grief, obsession, and a need for justice that blurs into something much darker. And just when you think you’ve figured it out? The story pivots. Then pivots again. The twists aren’t just shocking—they reframe everything you thought you understood.
This is one of those thrillers where trust is a liability. You won’t know who to believe, and honestly… you won’t even know if you should believe yourself by the end.
Dark, gripping, and impossible to put down—this is psychological suspense at its most compulsive.
I had the opportunity to read this book ahead of publication, and these are my honest thoughts.
