Pretty Girls by Karin Slaughter

Pretty Girls by Karin Slaughter
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - in and out over 3 days

Pages - 432

Publisher -

Source - Bought

Blurb from Goodreads

Twenty years ago Claire Scott's eldest sister, Julia, went missing. No one knew where she went - no note, no body. It was a mystery that was never solved and it tore her family apart.

Now another girl has disappeared, with chilling echoes of the past. And it seems that she might not be the only one.

Claire is convinced Julia's disappearance is linked.

But when she begins to learn the truth about her sister, she is confronted with a shocking discovery, and nothing will ever be the same...


My Review

This is my first Karin Slaughter, it won't be the last, my goodness it is jaw dropping. We hear from Julia's father in journal like entries peppered through the book. Julia was the much loved older sister of Claire and Lydia who disappeared and her family never got over it. Claire is married and the book opens at a bar with her and her husband, they nip up a wee alley and the unthinkable happens. Lydia, her sister is a mum and couldn't be living a different life from Claire, Claire has money galore, Lydia is making ends meet and the girls haven't spoken in many years. Claire doesn't rock the boat, Lydia is firey and will kick off and say what needs said, when circumstances bring the two together the past can no longer stay in the past.

So guys there is a lot of shocking and shady stuff in this, predatory behaviour, really sick bad people, abuse, murder, SA, exploitation, secrets, lies and a family torn apart by the disappearance of their loved one and the past.

The book is really dark at times and just when you think it can't get any darker or shocking BAM, rug pulled out. I thought I had a dysfunctional family LOL. The depravity of some folk may make some scenes difficult to read but my God you will struggle to put this down. I know I have others of hers on my tbrm, we won't be leaving it so long to get to the next one, just need to find it/them on my five bookcases, 5/5.

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Hideaway by Dean Koontz

Hideaway by Dean Koontz
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 4 days

Pages - 413

Publisher - Mass Market Paperback

Source - Bought

Blurb from Goodreads

Strange visions plague a man after he survives a near-death experience in this chilling thriller from #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz.

Surviving a car accident on a snowy mountain road is miraculous for Lindsey Harrison, but even more so for her husband, Hatch, who was clinically dead for eighty minutes.

After experimental procedures bring Hatch back to life, he awakens with the terrifying feeling that something is it out there . But it soon becomes apparent that the evil stalking Hatch is within him—a dark force of murderous rage that hides within us all...


My Review

Lindsey and her hubby Hatch are plunged into a freezing river, Hatch is clinically dead for eight minutes. However a doc has been working on Resuscitation with his specialised team to bring back people after they have been clinically dead for longer than the normal resuc time. Hatch is a perfect candidate and things are looking up. There is a sadistic depraved killer on the loose, not only is he killing and desecrating the bodies but he believes he is more than human and desperate to get back into Hell. When Hatch is back living his life he starts getting horrific and terrifying visions, seeing through the eyes of the killer. If Hatch can see into the killer, can the killer see through him and is he and or his family at risk?

The book is different, the resus stuff was interesting to read and different. The killer is a shocking vile creep, zero regard for human life and the more he desecrates the body as an offering to the devil the more chance he feels he has getting back into Hell, the only place he feels he has ever really belonged.

It is a different type of book, a mix of medicine and revival (only for the start of the book really), the sadistic serial killer and his killing spree, the visions between the two. Hatch trying to get back to normal, both him and his wife had been lost in grief and now they have a new lease of life & look to bring another into their family who btw I absolutely loved, sassy.

Bit of a mixed bag but I liked it, creepy, eerie and a bit of everything mixed in, 4/5.

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Plague by Dean Koontz

Plague by Graham Masterton
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 2 days

Pages - 384

Publisher - Head of Zeus

Source - Bought

Blurb from Goodreads

-A horrifying story, a deadly prophecy

Oceans are infested, beaches turn black, cities reek with poisonous pollution. The entire eastern seaboard of the United States has been sealed off - all those attempting to flee the contaminated zones will be shot!

As men, women and children murder and loot in a world gone mad, one man and his daughters struggle to survive. The bond of love between them strengthens and grows as they fight desperately to keep their fragile hold on hope - and life.

Father and daughter - caught in a terrifying world ravaged by an unknown, virulent, super-plague. Will an antidote be found... in time?


My Review

Echoes of the stand and a crossover of Covid - despite this being written in the 1970s that is the vibes I was getting. A small child infected, potentially patient zero with what turns out to be highly infectious and huge kill rate. Set in America, kicking off in Miami, when the medics try to warn the government they of course know better and give faff and lip service to the media. By the time they actually pay attention it has spread far and wide, society as we know it has gone to pot and every man is for themselves.

Ooft guys this is a very very dark read and will have multiple triggers for folks to approach with caution. Like I read loads of horror, true crime, dark stuff (in amongst fluffy/light) but I was a bit like God this is rough. I think maybe because we went through (and even now) such a lackadaisical/selfish response/period when the pandemic hit and even now you still see people very me me and not caring about their fellow man. So I think that hit a bit hard for me. You have chaos as society falls apart, folk robbing the dead, lack of care for human life and then the degenerates who use/abuse people they come across. Like there are no morals (well some of the characters do) and there are episodes of abuse/desecration of bodies, SA so just go into it knowing it is dark/dark themes and quite brutal.

Koontz really does create very believable worlds/characters and shows the good and bad sides of humanity. I thought it was well written, kept you hooked with a mixed bag of characters but it was pretty dark, soulless and some will love how it wraps up, some not so much, 3.5/5.

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Ash by James Herbert

Ash by James Herbert
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - in and out over 10 days

Pages - 693

Publisher - MacMillan

Source - Bought online

Blurb from Goodreads


David Ash – detective of the paranormal – is sent to the mysterious Comraich Castle, secluded deep in the Scottish countryside, to investigate a strange, high-profile case: a man has been found crucified – in a room that was locked. The reports suggest that the cliff-top castle is being haunted . . .

Who – or what – is the reclusive hooded figure that Ash has seen from the window walking across the courtyard in the dead of night?
What are the strange, animal-like sounds that come from the surrounding woods?
And why are the castle’s inhabitants so reluctant to talk about what they have seen?

. . . what Ash eventually discovers is truly shocking.



My Review

This is a re read for me, I first read this in 2012 not realising it was a trilogy and I think it absolutely affected my enjoyment, despite both times getting a 3* rating. I would absolutely advise reading the first two books as it gives you better insight into Ash's character, the theme for the actual book and alerts you to it being all about the supernatural.

Ash is put forward to go to Comraich Castle to investigate a horrific crime and unexplained goings on, David has been very much a skeptic despite his job being an investigator of the supernatural. If you read the previous books you will appreciate why David has since had a change of heart and sets to investigate. However the Castle has a grim past, it is occupied by some of the most loathsome humans of our time and evil is drawn there. Restrictions are put upon Ash as they must protect their "elite" clients who "live" there. Names from the past history appear as characters and links and secrets of folk we mere everyday Joes think have passed appear in Comraich.

It is a weird tale with some dark and horrifying scenes that may turn the stomach of some readers, rape, cannibalism, incest, horror, death, ghosts and that is just touching on some of it. Supernatural goings on, claustrophobic scenes all with the hallmark of Herbert, if you are familiar with his past work you will be fine with this. Some of it is fantastical needing to suspend belief, as is with a lot of Herbert's writing. Despite being almost 700 pages I felt it could have been longer, the ending felt unfinished and for me, somewhat unsatisfactory although I know many love it just as it is. Always the signs an author has done their job when leaving the reader wanting more, for me though I need lots of closure and answers hence it just being 3/5.

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Review - Undead (omnibus) by John Russo

Undead by John Russo
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Time take to read - 2 days

Publisher - Titan Books

Pages - 306

Source - The Works bookshop

Blurb from Amazon

Zombie Double Bill!

George A. Romero's classic 1968 film Night of the Living Dead launched a new era of gut-munching mayhem, terrorizing moviegoers and launching the zombie movie phenomenon. John A. Russo co-wrote the screenplay for the movie and turned the flesh-eating frenzy into two horrific, blood-drenching novels, collected here in one terrifying volume. Undead is a gruesome, suspenseful horror at its best.


My Review

This book is a double whammy of zombie, two stories in one book. The first one is Night of the Living Dead, this is the same story as the movie. We open with a journey to their fathers grave and proceed to the graveyard with a brother and sister, Barbara and Johnny. Johnny is angry with Barbara and starts teasing her about the dead coming to get her, he sees a man approaching and says heres one now. Little realizing it is indeed coming and launches an attack leaving Barbara with no choice but to flee. She comes upon an abandoned house and meets Ben soon after, Barbara is in a state of shock and soon the undead are surrounding the house and wanting their warm flesh.

The book follows the movie fairly closely, from what I remember. It is a tale of survival, humans reacting how you would expect them to whilst trying to survive a flesh eating zombie outbreak. It is really good, I liked the movie when I saw it years ago however I actually preferred the book.

The second book is Return of the Living Dead, this is a bit more widespread, the first story is almost completely around one house and a handful of people. This one we see quite a few characters, spread over locations and it is actually set with the previous outbreak mentioned and linked in. Some people are still cautious with the previous outbreak and act on any newly deceased person, just in case. The outbreak this time starts again, fairly quickly with some throwback to the last outbreak which I actually thought was well done as too often it is just a new tale. There is a range of issues dealt with and again different human reactions to the outbreak however this one shows the more deprived aspect and darker nature of some of our fellow humans. In some of the scenes the acts of the humans is worse than the cannibalism of the undead is actually worse.

As both books are set over a day or two it isn't purely about survival but also human behavior, how some people will look out for only themselves, behave appallingly and how others will step up to the mark when it is called upon. Certainly different from most of the zombie books I have read, I liked these stories although felt there was quite a few similarities in how they transpired and ended. 3/5 for me and I would of course read any more zombie tales I find by this author, I will actually need to look and see what, if any, they have available.

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