Author: Christina McDonald

He Said He Would Be Late by Justine Sullivan My rating: 5 of 5 stars A pacey, compelling tale of obsession that’s also an insightful and intimate look at marriage and the many vulnerabilities of new motherhood, this gorgeous debut truly shines! View all my reviews

A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham My rating: 5 of 5 stars All the stabby stars for this one, and what a *perfect* Halloween read! What a stunning debut! Fierce and bold with an elegant, atmospheric heart, I couldn’t put this southern Gothic thriller down. Our protagonist, Chloe, is compelling despite her many…

The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave My rating: 5 of 5 stars *This* is my kind of book! Smart, textured, wholly absorbing and absolutely heart wrenching, the story grabbed my attention and didn’t let go until I turned that last page. Beautifully written, richly evocative, with characters that are flawed yet relatable,…

Paper Ghosts by Julia Heaberlin My rating: 5 of 5 stars After reading (and LOVING!) We Are All The Same In The Dark, I downloaded a number of Julia Heaberlin’s backlist books. Paper Ghosts was up first, and it is hands down one of the most original, unique premises I’ve ever read! Is he the…

The Quarry Girls by Jess Lourey My rating: 5 of 5 stars Part coming of age, part whack-you-in-the-throat thriller, this gripping, pacey story is unique and wonderfully twisty, leaning into our worst childhood fears and telling a tale of secrets as dark as the tunnels the characters explores. Urgent, unsettling, and sharp as a knife,…

The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware A twisty, atmospheric thriller with a killer premise, this one also has something of a Dickensian vibe about it, with it’s over-the-top money collector and it’s chilling, Gothic house. There’s a lot of stammering and waffling by our protagonist (and why is her throat always “stiff”?), and…

The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth My rating: 5 of 5 stars Sally Hepworth’s best book yet! Everything about it was pitch perfect, from the structure to the plotting to the characterisation and the atmosphere. Wonderfully twisty, pacey and unique, The Soulmate is the perfect suspense/thriller. Gabe and Pippa Gerard have moved into their dream house,…

The Things We Do to Our Friends by Heather Darwent A story of heading off to college and trying to fit in with the ‘popular’ crowd, and the things that can go wrong. The book had promise and was well written, but unfortunately I found it so tedious and such a slog to get through…

Stillhouse Lake by Rachel Caine My rating: 5 of 5 stars Wow! The opening scene had me utterly hooked! Intense, chilling, suspenseful, engrossing, Stillhouse Lake is the most intense thriller I’ve read in quite a while. With a knockout premise about a woman who has no idea she’s married to a serial killer and what…

When She Returned by Lucinda Berry Eleven years ago, Kate disappears from a Target parking lot. Her daughter and husband move on, with the husband eventually remarrying. Except then Kate returns. But as the family unravels, shocking revelations show that Kate isn’t exactly who she said she was, and her return is more sinister than…

The Prisoner by B.A. Paris My rating: 4 of 5 stars A quick, easy read with a unique hook and some breathtaking suspense, especially in those early chapters. The story starts with a bang when Amelie is kidnapped and held in a completely pitch-black room. The storytelling in these chapters is impressively rich and descriptive,…