Saturday, January 4, 2025

The Lost House by Melissa Larsen

 

My thoughts

This is my first book by this author. I look forward to reading more.

This book was slow to start for me but it did pick up and the ending was great. The author definitely wrapped it up great. 

A murder was committed in 1979 in a small town in Iceland. A woman and her baby girl. The baby was frozen and the mother's throat was slit. Everyone suspected the husband did it. He took their son and left. 

In 2019 Agnes goes to Iceland to meet a podcaster, Nora, who is investigating the deaths of Agnes's grandmother and aunt all those years ago. A girl has gone missing and of course there has been a search for her now. The house that Agnes's grandfather and father lived in has become a place for people to hang out and gawk about what happened back in 1979. That is where the other girl went missing from too. 

You get a lot with this story. A murder or two. A missing young woman. A drug addiction. A kidnapping. You uncover the truth as you read but that last part is the best. When most of the actual action and the reveal happens. 

The setting of this story is great and the timeframes. It goes back to what happened in 1979 only a few times to keep you knowing what happened and then who did it. You meet several of the townspeople and most are very likable. This book was good but not great. I do say it's worth reading, You may love it more than I did. I did like it. It kept me guessing for sure. Parts kept me on edge too. I believe it was well written. It was a quick read for me. 

Thank you #NetGalley, #StMartinsPress, #MacmillanAudio, for this ARC. This is my true thoughts about this book. 

3 stars

About

In Melissa Larsen's The Lost House comes the mesmerizing story of a young woman with a haunting past who returns to her ancestral home in Iceland to investigate a gruesome murder in her family.

Forty years ago, a young woman and her infant daughter were found buried in the cold Icelandic snow, lying together as peacefully as though sleeping. Except the mother’s throat had been slashed and the infant drowned. The case was never solved. There were no arrests, no conviction. Just a suspicion turned into a the husband did it. When he took his son and fled halfway across the world to California, it was proof enough of his guilt.

Now, nearly half a century later and a year after his death, his granddaughter, Agnes, is ready to clear her grandfather’s name once and for all. Still recovering from his death and a devastating injury, Agnes wants nothing more than an excuse to escape the shambles of her once-stable life—which is why she so readily accepts true crime expert Nora Carver’s invitation to be interviewed for her popular podcast. Agnes packs a bag and hops on a last-minute flight to the remote town of Bifröst, Iceland, where Nora is staying, where Agnes’s father grew up, and where, supposedly, her grandfather slaughtered his wife and infant daughter.

Is it merely coincidence that a local girl goes missing the very same weekend Agnes arrives? Suddenly, Agnes and Nora’s investigation is turned upside down, and everyone in the small Icelandic town is once again a suspect. Seeking to unearth old and new truths alike, Agnes finds herself drawn into a web of secrets that threaten the redemption she is hell-bent on delivering, and even her life—discovering how far a person will go to protect their family, their safety, and their secrets.

Set against an unforgiving Icelandic winter landscape, The Lost House is a chilling and razor-sharp thriller packed with jaw-dropping twists that will leave you breathless.

Friday, January 3, 2025

Leave No Trace by Jo Callaghan

 

My thoughts

This is the second book in the Kat and Lock series. Jo Callaghan has created very likable characters with these two. One is a female DI and the other is an AI who they are trying to use in the course of investigations. 

In this book Kat and Lock are looking for a suspect who has hung a man on a cross and removed his ears. Who would do such a thing. His fiance possibly? Maybe his best friend? Or is something much more sinister at play?

When Kat gets the call about a man being found hung on a cross she immediately starts trying to figure out what happened and why it happened. Before it happens again. In four days it does happen though. Her boss of course doubts her ability to solve the case but she doesn't give up. Kat has a wonderful team and they are all working overtime to solve these murders. 

A reporter is letting people know things before Kat can get a handle on things. Kat wants this solved before another murder can happen. Her partner, the AI, is working with her by looking at videos and reading everything as fast as he can. 

I have to say that this was an excellent book. A first rate follow of the first book, In The Blink of An Eye. You get to know more about each character and how they work. How well they all get along. While I did figure out who the killer was and why it certainly did not take away from the story. Not in the least. I was on the edge of my seat when things came to a head and Lock(AI) was talking to the murderer. And at a few other times I found myself holding my breath. I also cried a few times. This book was so good but also needs to come with a trigger warning for sure. It contains talk of a rape, a drug induced rape. Date rape drug use and other things. But it's still a wonderful book and well written.

This author has a series here that I believe will keep getting better and better. I'm looking forward to the next installment already. 

Be sure and read the Acknowledgments at the end as it contains some info. My heart goes out to this author and her family. 

Thank you #NetGalley, #RandomHousePublishing, for this ARC. 

Five big stars.

About

When the body of a man is found crucified at the top of a hill in the British midlands, AIDE Lock—the world’s first AI Detective—and Detective Kat Frank are thrust into the spotlight as they are given their first live case. When a second body is found the police issue an extraordinary warning to local males aged between 30 and 40 years old:

• Avoid drinking in pubs
• If you must go to a pub, do not leave alone
• And definitely do not leave a pub with a stranger

With the national media and local men in an uproar, Kat and Lock have to combine their instincts and algorithms to catch the killer before they can strike again.

 

The Lost House by Melissa Larsen

  My thoughts This is my first book by this author. I look forward to reading more. This book was slow to start for me but it did pick up an...