A richly layered mystery full of pleasing paranormal elements from a master of the genre.
A man who suspects he witnessed a murder asks a podcaster for help solving the crime.
Months ago, author Ambrose Drake blacked out under mysterious circumstances during a writers’ conference in San Diego. When he woke up, he discovered his latent talent for aura-reading had intensified to a full-fledged psychic ability. Ambrose can now open a window in his mind and “read” a person’s aura with such accuracy that he can predict their future actions. Unfortunately, this new talent comes with terrible side effects: vivid nightmares and bouts of dangerous sleepwalking. His family convinces him to go to a sleep-study clinic in Carnelian, California, but instead of finding answers there, he witnesses a murder. Convinced no one will believe him, he phones in a tip to Pallas Llewellyn, one of the hosts of the Lost Night Files, a popular podcast that investigates paranormal mysteries. Pallas and both of her co-hosts also experienced bouts of amnesia followed by an enhancement of their paranormal abilities, and they hope their podcast will help them uncover the truth about what happened to them. Pallas and Ambrose quickly realize they might both have been unwilling test subjects…but to what end? They team up and use the podcast as cover for their investigation. Pallas and Ambrose uncover evidence that indicates the murder might be a small part of a larger conspiracy involving powerful hallucinogenic drugs being tested at the sleep clinic. The relationship between Pallas and Ambrose begins with wary suspicion and evolves to friendship, but the romance between them is never more than a subplot. This book is the first in a new series, and the interesting paranormal world and unsolved plotlines will keep readers clamoring for future titles.
A richly layered mystery full of pleasing paranormal elements from a master of the genre.Pub Date: Jan. 3, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-593-33782-0
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Berkley
Review Posted Online: Oct. 11, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2022
A book about revenge that’s more punishing than purposeful.
A woman from a matriarchal society kidnaps a prince from a neighboring kingdom, planning to force him into marriage.
Five hundred years ago, the wife of the abusive king of Amarra prayed to her goddess for mercy; in return, the goddess granted every woman in the country the ability to rule over men. Amarra’s queens have governed with vengeance ever since, creating a fiercely violent matriarchy. Now, 21-year-old Olerra Corasene, a gifted military strategist and powerful general, is competing with her cunning and devious cousin, Glenaerys, to be the next queen. Since Glen is trying to secure the throne by currying favor with the wealthy nobles, Olerra decides on a different tactic, the time-honored Amarran tradition of kidnapping a husband. Her target is a good-looking younger prince from the neighboring country of Brutus, but she accidentally and unknowingly nabs Sanos, the king’s eldest son and heir to the throne. She drags Sanos back to Amarra, where he’s treated with all the contempt for men that is normal in her society: He’s dressed as a sexual plaything, forced to shave his beard and body hair, leashed and restrained for bad behavior. Olerra can’t understand Sanos’ objections to this treatment, and the ensuing power struggle makes up most of the plot. Marketed as romantasy, Levenseller’s first adult novel falls flat as both romance and fantasy. There is little connection or chemistry between Olerra and Sanos, and since both are more caricature than character, neither experiences the kind of growth that creates challenging or interesting romantic relationships. In addition, the worldbuilding is paper thin. Amarra is a world built on reverse misogyny, but the motifs, imagery, and scenes often read more like a brainstormed list (a penis guillotine!) than a fully realized attempt to say something meaningful about women’s rage.
A book about revenge that’s more punishing than purposeful.Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2025
ISBN: 9781250379375
Page Count: 368
Publisher: FEIWEL
Review Posted Online: July 4, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Amateurish, with a twist savvy readers will see coming from a mile away.
A woman accused of shooting her husband six times in the face refuses to speak.
"Alicia Berenson was thirty-three years old when she killed her husband. They had been married for seven years. They were both artists—Alicia was a painter, and Gabriel was a well-known fashion photographer." Michaelides' debut is narrated in the voice of psychotherapist Theo Faber, who applies for a job at the institution where Alicia is incarcerated because he's fascinated with her case and believes he will be able to get her to talk. The narration of the increasingly unrealistic events that follow is interwoven with excerpts from Alicia's diary. Ah, yes, the old interwoven diary trick. When you read Alicia's diary you'll conclude the woman could well have been a novelist instead of a painter because it contains page after page of detailed dialogue, scenes, and conversations quite unlike those in any journal you've ever seen. " 'What's the matter?' 'I can't talk about it on the phone, I need to see you.' 'It's just—I'm not sure I can make it up to Cambridge at the minute.' 'I'll come to you. This afternoon. Okay?' Something in Paul's voice made me agree without thinking about it. He sounded desperate. 'Okay. Are you sure you can't tell me about it now?' 'I'll see you later.' Paul hung up." Wouldn't all this appear in a diary as "Paul wouldn't tell me what was wrong"? An even more improbable entry is the one that pins the tail on the killer. While much of the book is clumsy, contrived, and silly, it is while reading passages of the diary that one may actually find oneself laughing out loud.
Amateurish, with a twist savvy readers will see coming from a mile away.Pub Date: Feb. 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-250-30169-7
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Celadon Books
Review Posted Online: Nov. 3, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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