Author: Christina McDonald

The Younger Wife by Sally Hepworth My rating: 4 of 5 stars A slow burn domestic suspense/family drama with elegantly drawn characters that are intriguing, compelling and flawed. The story is character-driven, with much of the suspense coming from the structure. The story begins from an unknown person at the wedding of Stephen and Heather,…

Where I Left Her by Amber Garza My rating: 5 of 5 stars A tense and gripping tale of a mother’s worst nightmare, a daughter who’s missing, and the discovery that everything she thought she knew about her daughter has been a lie. Whitney is a bit of a helicopter parent and has some misgivings…

That Night by Gillian McAllister My rating: 5 of 5 stars Would you help your sibling hide a body? Clever and enthralling, That Night is about the night Frannie hits a man with her car while on vacation with her siblings. Instead of calling the police, she calls her siblings, and together they bury the…

Destroy Me by Karen Cole A very exciting premise that moves with a slightly slower pace toward the big reveal. Suspenseful with twists, shady suspects and red herrings, it was a short, quick, interesting read, but it ultimately ended up being just ok for me. Psychological suspense fans might be interested in giving this one…

The Broken Girls by Simone St. James My rating: 5 of 5 stars Riveting and wonderfully irresistible! If you don’t think you enjoy ghost stories, think again. The Broken Girls is perfectly executed from start to finish. Told in dual storylines, past and present, it manages to be a haunting mystery, historical fiction, and a…

Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica My rating: 5 of 5 stars Holy wow, this book!!! This is suspense at its finest. Dark secrets, ingenious and surprising twists, characters you root for every step of the way. Local Woman Missing is one of my favorite books of the year. A cheating wife. A kidnapped girl.…

False Witness by Karin Slaughter My rating: 5 of 5 stars Wow! My mind is absolutely blown! What a brilliant book. It’s dark, gritty and fast-paced, everything you want in a thriller, but it’s so much more than that. It’s a story of two sisters who share a heart-breaking secret from their past. Leigh has…

We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker My rating: 4 of 5 stars A staggeringly beautiful story of love, loss, loyalty and revenge, and with one of the best protagonists I’ve ever read. Duchess Radley is just 13 years old, a girl who is a self-confessed outlaw who doesn’t take anything from anyone. She’s…

Watch Me Disappear by Janelle Brown My rating: 5 of 5 stars A beautiful, riveting story, Watch Me Disappear is a propulsive novel showing the danger of secrets, and how the cost, especially for those we love the most, can be deadly. A richly told character-driven novel that is atmospheric, irresistible, and gorgeously layered, it…

Broken Harbour by Tana French My rating: 5 of 5 stars I love anything that Tana French writes, and the Dubliner Murder Squad books are right up there with some of the best police procedurals out there. These books aren’t exactly fast paced, but are more a slow burn with the characters so stunningly portrayed…

Falling by T.J. Newman My rating: 3 of 5 stars I can see why this book has been optioned for film and how the action-packed scenes could lend itself to Hollywood. And there’s so much good about it! A high-concept idea where a pilot has to choose between his family and the lives of those…

Choose Me by Tess Gerritsen My rating: 4 of 5 stars Tess Gerritsen is an auto-buy author, so of course I was eagerly awaiting Choose Me, and it did not disappoint. Smart, chilling, cleverly plotted, plus a protagonist I could really get behind. I adored Detective Frankie Loomis and thought the character elements of her…