Known to the Victim

Title: Known to the Victim
Author: K.L. Armstrong
Published: June 25, 2024 by Doubleday Canada
Format: Kindle, Paperback 344
Genre: Thriller
Source: My thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.

First Sentence: Prologue. The day my mother was murdered wasn’t the worst day of my life.

Blurb: When Amy Gibson's mother is brutally murdered by her boyfriend, Amy's world is completely undone. Overcome with grief and heartache, she withdraws from everything around her—college, her friends, her entire life. Until her estranged half-brother, Oliver, saves her, pulling her back into her life and giving her family. Giving her a home.

Eight years later, she's picked herself up and has worked hard to move forward. She’s the host of a popular true crime podcast that focuses on crimes against women committed by their partners and is finding purpose and healing through helping women in ways she couldn't help her mother.

And then Oliver is accused of the unthinkable—something that is so unlike him. Something that horrifies Amy. But desperate to save the only family she has, she sets out to prove her brother's innocence.

But as the days pass and more information about Oliver and his past slowly comes to light, Amy begins realizing that nothing is ever as it seems—especially when it comes to family. (GoodReads)

My Opinion: A slow, meandering start—the kind that makes you wonder if you accidentally picked up a snoozer instead of a thriller. But hold on. Just when you’re about to nod off, BAM! A “wait, what” moment smacks you awake. Suddenly, you’re focused and questioning everything.

The protagonist is Amy Gibson. She’s got brains—PhD-level brains—but common sense? Not her strong suit. You’d think academia, her past life experiences, and podcast would prepare her for life’s curveballs, but nope. She’s like a deer caught in the headlights, stumbling through a maze of secrets and danger.

What some may not know is that K.L. Armstrong is the same Kelley Armstrong behind the Rockton, Haven’s Rock, and Rip Through Time series. Unlike Armstrong’s other female characters, Amy’s no kickass detective or fierce time traveler. Nope. She’s more like a gullible puppy chasing its tail. Unfortunately, the books that lured us to Armstrong’s world? Strong, smart women taking charge is missing from this book.

When readers crack open an Armstrong thriller, we want action from page one. No dilly-dallying. So, let’s keep our heroes on point because life’s too short for foolish protagonists.

“Known to the Victim” is the final K.L. Armstrong standalone thriller. Previous titles are The Life She Had, Wherever She Goes, and Every Step She Takes.

Gone to Hot Pot

Title: Gone to Hot Pot
Author: Vivien Chien
Published: May 21, 2024 by Minotaur Books
Format: Kindle, 55 Pages
Genre: Short Story
Series: Noodle Shop Mystery #9.5

First Sentence: No sooner had I walked five hundred feet in to Asia Village, than I hear a voice yell from behind me, “Megan Riley!”

Blurb: While Lana is away on a business trip, Megan Riley, best friend and roommate, is on doggie duty. Things between Kikkoman—Lana’s loveable black pug—and Megan go smoothly, except they both have a case of cabin fever, thanks to another treacherous Cleveland winter. When Megan comes up with the idea to take Kikko to Asia Village after a grooming appointment, she never imagined that the wrinkly little dog would disappear right under her nose.

Megan enlists the help of Kimmy Tran who is more than willing to help with the task. She even goes as far as naming their recovery Operation Pu Pu Plunder. Kimmy quickly involves—to Megan’s dismay—many Asia Village shop owners, employees, and even a few regular customers to assist in tracking down clues in search of Lana’s missing dog.

And though Megan begrudgingly appreciates the help of Lana’s beloved work community, she has just one rule for all of Don’t. Tell. Lana.

My Opinion: Reading along, I wasn’t sure what the point of this short story was. Then, two-thirds of the way through, I had my duh moment and realized it was the perfect vehicle to refamiliarize readers with the quirky characters of Asia Village shopping plaza and to introduce a new character. Sometimes, I can be very dense. So, get to reading, catch up on Lana’s world, and then you will be ready for Peking Duck and Cover.

I Hope This Finds You Well

Title: I Hope This Finds You Well
Author: Natalie Sue
Published: May 21, 2024 by William Morrow
Format: Kindle, 343 Pages
Genre: Fiction

First Sentence: There will be questions. Ones I don’t have socially acceptable answers for.

Blurb: As far as Jolene is concerned, her interactions with her colleagues should start and end with her official duties as an admin for Supershops, Inc. Unfortunately, her irritating, incompetent coworkers don’t seem to understand the importance of boundaries. Her secret to survival? She vents her grievances in petty email postscripts, then changes the text color to white so no one can see. That is until one of her secret messages is exposed. Her punishment: sensitivity training (led by the suspiciously friendly HR guy, Cliff) and rigorous email restrictions.

When an IT mix-up grants her access to her entire department’s private emails and DMs, Jolene knows she should report it, but who could resist reading what their coworkers are really saying? And when she discovers layoffs are coming, she realizes this might just be the key to saving her job. The plan is simple: gain her boss’s favor, convince HR she’s Supershops material, and beat out the competition.

But as Jolene is drawn further into her coworkers' private worlds and realizes they are each keeping secrets, her carefully constructed walls begin to crumble—especially around Cliff, who she definitely cannot have feelings for. Eventually she will need to decide if she’s ready to leave the comfort of her cubicle, even if that means coming clean to her colleagues. (GoodReads)

My Opinion: As layoffs are whispered about, the office staff at Supershops begin to become unhinged. Jolene, an admin, decides to use a white script to leave a little extra frustration in her emails, and out of the blue, they are discovered. This leads to a reprimand and computer surveillance. Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on your level of curiosity, the IT big brother has accidentally given Jolene reading permissions to all messages and emails within her group. Now, a good person would report this to HR. She tried to, but they didn’t seem interested, and hilarity and retribution ensued.

Jolene soon realizes that all is not as it appears with her co-workers, and her insight might allow her to keep her job. The only problem --she now knows everyone’s innermost secrets, and should she decide to use it against them, what type of person would that make her. Well, employed for one.

Everyone working at a cubicle farm will find this book laugh-out-loud funny. The personalities are relatable, wondering if they would make the same choices and eventually thinking about the deeper costs while watching those around you crumble.

My only drawback with the book was the HR guy. Would an HR representative risk everything even if they felt their job was shredding their soul? But then again, Jolene did need an outside interest.

Illustrated Girl

Title: Illustrated Girl
Author: Josephine Angelini
Published: July 2, 2024 by Sungrazer Publishing
Format: Kindle, Paperback 264 Pages
Genre: YA Fantasy****
Source: My thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.
Series: The Chronicles of Lucitopia #1

First Sentence: Fifteen Days. I still can’t believe my time sis almost up. Three hundred and fifty days have passed since I got myself into this mess, and now I’ve only got one choice left to make.

Blurb: Ever wish you could travel inside your favorite book and become the main character? Of course you have. Everyone has. But if you ever manage to pull it off, here’s a tip. Timing is everything…

Take Holly for example, who after saying a spell is transported inside a fairytale called The Chronicles of Lucitopia, a magical world infested with grifter grandmas, halitosis-riddled bandits, and devoid of any functioning toilets.

Holly becomes Princess Pleasant exactly as she wished, but she gets there too late, right after an evil sorcerer turns Lucitopia into a tetanus-ridden hellhole. And now, it’s up to Holly to make things right.

With the help of a freakishly handsome, yet frustratingly virtuous knight, Holly sets out to fix her story, but she only has fifteen days left to do so or she risks being stuck in Lucitopia for the rest of her life, which may prove to be a short one considering she’s overdue for her shots. (GoodReads)

My Opinion: I think this is my favorite book of the year. Part folklore, part adventure, and a lot of humor and quirkiness. You will want to read this in one sitting to keep the momentum going and from the beginning, you will ask yourself what-if. It is the itchy part in the back of your brain that has you trying to connect magical dots and not being able to turn the pages fast enough.

Holly makes a deal that plunges her inside of her favorite book. Little did she know that she would be fighting for her life in a disease-ridden place, with bad food, and seriously scary creatures. Now, as Princess Pleasant, Holly has fifteen days to save Torvold the Bold’s life, help him save the Virtues, outmaneuver the evil sorcerer Asphodel in a great battle, and save the good people of Lucitopia. This is a lot to ask of a girl from Fresno. Oh, and she must kiss a real boy for this spell to be broken or she will be stuck in this realm forever.

I did not want to finish this book. I did not want this story to come to an end. This is the first book in the series, but the way it ended, I am now wondering if the rest will be companion books instead of a continuing series.

The Illustrated Girl is for readers who enjoy lighthearted fantasy from a writer who understands how to keep a story clean, with butterfly moments, and can add the right pop of humor and possibly a well-placed tear.