Welcome to Litsy!

I wasn't expecting too much from this fairly short read, however, it grabbed my attention from the start. Due to the length of the book, the characters were fairly shallowly developed, & it wasn't as scary as I hoped though, & for that reason I have rated it 3⭐

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2108638851

586 pts #WinterGames2021 #MistletoeManiacs

I thought Vonny & Seth were written sympathetically even when they make questionable decisions. There were plenty of twists & turns to keep the plot moving along. There is quite a lot of graphic violence in the book, & the prologue is rather shocking & briefly involves animals - I wish I had been forewarned. 4🌟

Thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Head of Zeus, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4423001593

A short dark Christmas-themed read. There wasn't really room to develop the characters much as it was under 200 pages, & most of the narrative focused on the case - apart from the irritating tendency of the supposedly strong female character to keep going googly-eyed over her handsome boss 🙄 I also didn't get the mismatch of the date being 1899 yet Star Trek being mentioned in the text. 2.5⭐

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2319868038

Big old house full of secrets & hidden rooms (✔), a treasure hunt game to win the deeds to said house (✔), squabbling relatives all wanting to inherit (✔), snowstorm cuts them off from the outside world just as the murders begin (✔). Unfortunately it was only half as good as it promised, mainly down to the insipid MC & obvious plot. Still it was set at the perfect time of year to read now, & I did enjoy it enough to finish it. 3⭐

5,816 pts

I loved Bring Me Back by the author, but this one is very disappointing. The writing style is still up to par, but the main character was irritatingly passive, & the plot was so obvious, I figured it all out after 2 chapters & only read to the end to see if I was right about everything. 2⭐

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2043867137

656 points #WinterGames2021 #MistletoeManiacs #TBRReads

I have to say, I've never read a book where I instantly couldn't care less about 99% of the characters. The only one who was mildly tolerable was Nina & she was rather boring to be honest. Shallow. Vacuous. Dreadful. 1⭐

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4290772425

#TBRReads #WinterGames2021 #MistletoeManiacs

1,336 pts

An intriguing & clever fictional explanation for the true-life disappearance of Agatha Christie, who went missing for 10 days in 1926. I see that this book received mixed reviews, but I rather enjoyed it. I've had this on my shelf for several years, & now wished I had read it earlier. I rate it 3.5🌟

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2253237763

896 pts

#WinterGames2021 #MistletoeManiacs #TBRReads

This was an average read. It is refreshing to see an author include an MC with a disability but not make the character reliant upon that as their entire character. None of the characters are particularly nice. Overall the pace & plot were okay but the characters need distinguishing from each other more. 3⭐

My thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Avon Books UK, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4139843233

I do so look forward to a new Riley Sager book & this one is a belter of a read. It starts off quite slowly, but as things pick up, the tension mounts, & I found myself flying through the final 40% of the book. It requires a hefty suspense of disbelief -but if you can do that, the twists keep on coming, & you won't be disappointed. 5🌟

My thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Hodder & Stoughton, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

Nero starts off wanting to avoid becoming like his formidable mother who poisoned her way through husbands & to power with abandon, but he is gradually seduced (in more ways than one - eek!) to Agrippina's way of thinking. When he becomes Emperor he tries to throw off her influence & a battle of wills begins. It was a good read but there was just something missing for me so I rate it 3.5🌟

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2185384671