Author: Christina McDonald

Rapid Falls by Amber Cowie My rating: 5 of 5 stars Cleverly plotted and utterly compelling, Rapid Falls is that rare story where you root for every single character – even those who may be the worst people of all. It’s sharply insightful while still being compassionate; creepy, while still being a beautiful exploration of…

To Tell You the Truth by Gilly Macmillan My rating: 5 of 5 stars A dazzling thriller with a compelling and unreliable narrator, To Tell You The Truth is fresh, bold and ferociously smart. The story begins with our protagonist, Lucy, a successful thriller author with a dark past – her little brother Teddy went…

A Beginning at the End by Mike Chen My rating: 5 of 5 stars “Some things cannot be undone. There is no reset. But we as a people can be smarter, better, and more focused on keeping it at bay. All of us carry this responsibility.” A few weeks back, I asked some fellow readers…

White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo “One cannot change what one refuses to see.” White Fragility is a powerful, thought-provoking, enlightening and deeply meaningful book. It raises startling points about how white people have specific, sometimes unconscious, biases towards race while thinking we are colorblind.…

Reviving the Hawthorn Sisters by Emily Carpenter My rating: 5 of 5 stars A Southern Gothic novel that floats effortlessly between past and present. In the past we follow Dove Jarrod, an evangelist who preys on the faithful to make them believe they’ve been healed. In the present, Eve, Dove’s granddaughter, who learns that beyond…

The Chalet by Catherine Cooper My rating: 3 of 5 stars A time hop mystery about a ski chalet death and the people involved. An interesting story that kept me reading to find out what happened. The start starts with a lot of describing skiing and learning to ski, which went on a bit. I…

The First to Lie by Hank Phillippi Ryan My rating: 5 of 5 stars A flawlessly written mystery with twists around every corner, The First To Lie is a timely story about deceit, justice and revenge, all centered around the devastation wrought by a large pharmaceutical company and the family that owns it. Addictive and…

Behind the Red Door by Megan Collins My rating: 5 of 5 stars Spellbinding, poignant and atmospheric, Behind The Red Door is one of those rare stories you can get utterly lost in. With writing so richly evocative I could vividly imagine every detail, this is a mesmerizing tale in which family bonds are broken,…

My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite My rating: 5 of 5 stars A dark, compelling literary thriller told in a sparse, almost wry commentary. I absolutely loved My Sister, The Serial Killer, a pacey serial killer thriller set in Nigeria. We immediately meet Korede, who’s been summoned by her sister, Ayoola, with the…