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(Note:  While this review will not contain spoilers for Banished, it may inadvertently reveal plot surprises from its predecessor, Forbidden.  As always, I recommend reading books in a series in order.)

After witnessing the man to whom she's betrothed kill the man she loves, Jayden believes she has lost everything.  Estranged from her tribe, separated from her family, and on the run from Horeb—her bloodthirsty fiancé—the desperate 18-year-old combs the desert to confirm a rumor that her beloved Kadesh yet lives.  Alive, but gravely wounded, Kadesh insists they flee to the far-off southern lands of his birth.  Only there, in a place of peace, can he safely wed Jayden, making her his Princess of Sariba.  Longing for a happily ever after far from the clutches of the vile Horeb, Jayden joins Kadesh's caravan of soldiers for the lengthy and dangerous journey. 

Although she's thrilled to be on her way, Jayden can't rest easy.  She worries about Horeb, who's only weeks away with his own army; about her lost sisters, whom she may never see again; about her young bodyguard, who may not be as trustworthy as he seems; and about Kadesh, who appears to be keeping important secrets from her.  How well does Jayden really know the man she's following to Sariba?  Will he fulfill the promises he's made to her or abandon her in a foreign land?  With danger lurking around every sand dune, Jayden must decide where her loyalties really lie.  All she wants is safety for herself and her family.  Where will she find it?  In Tadmur with a man who's loathsome but powerful or in Sariba with Kadesh, the prince she loves but hardly knows?  As she fights for survival, Jayden must decide whom to trust—with her love, her lot, and the lives of everyone she loves. 

I've been a big fan of Kimberley Griffiths Little ever since I discovered her middle grade "bayou books" a few years ago.  Although her YA trilogy takes place far, far away from the Louisana swampland, the series has everything I've come to love about Little's storytelling—a vivid, atmospheric setting; colorful, intriguing characters; a compelling, fast-paced plot; and a sprinkle of magic that spices her novels with that something special that is hard to describe but easily identifiable as vintage KGL.  Banished, the second book in the series, blends all of these elements to continue the riveting story begun in Forbidden.  Although I found Banished a tad more predictable than its predecessor, I still raced through it, unable to stop until I knew what happened to Jayden.  Since there's one more book in the trilogy (Returned, coming February 2017), it's a given that our heroine will not find her HEA quite yet.  Banished is a satisfying read in and of itself, true, but it will definitely leave you hungering for Returned.  All I can say is, February, come soon!  

(Readalikes:  Forbidden by Kimberley Griffiths Little; also, the publisher compares the trilogy to Cleopatra's Moon by Vicky Alvear Schecter and The Red Tent by Anita Diamant)

Grade:

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

for brief, mild language (no F-bombs); violence; blood/gore; sensuality; and (non-graphic) references to rape, prostitution, and sexual slavery

To the FTC, with love:  I received an ARC of Banished from the generous folks at HarperCollins.  Thank you!

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Heptonclough is an idyllic little town on the moors in Northern England.  Gareth Fletcher and his American wife, Alice,  are thrilled to find a beautiful house there that seems perfect for them and their three young children.  Tom, Joe, and Millie have plenty of room to roam, even if their favorite playground has become the old church cemetery next door.  

Expecting a warm country welcome, the Fletchers are dismayed by the chilly reception they receive from the townspeople.  A series of silly pranks convince the family that someone is not only watching them, but also trying to drive them away.  As the pranks become more intense, Tom seems especially disturbed.  Convinced he's being haunted by a dead girl, the 10-year-old tries to convince the people around him of looming danger.

Harry Laycock, a vicar from Newcastle, is also new to Heptonclough.  Charged with re-opening the church next to the Fletcher's house, which has been closed for the last ten years, he's as spooked as Tom.  Something's not right in Heptonclough—he feels it, too.  It can't be a coincidence that three toddler girls died in the church during its closure, can it?  With little Millie scampering around the church grounds, Harry feels a distinct sense of foreboding.  Is the youngest Fletcher in danger?  Or is Harry's imagination working overtime, just like Tom's?  

When Joe and Millie go missing in turn, it's up to the newcomers to figure out what's really going on in a small town with big secrets.  

I've mentioned that I'm a big Sharon/S.J. Bolton fan, yeah?  At least a time or two (or three or ten ...), I'm sure.  This is because the author always delivers a taut, twisty story that hooks me right from the start and keeps me riveted until the very end.  Always.  Hence, my book-binging, blog-burbling, Bolton-bent fangirling.  She's good, y'all.  Her books are not for the feint of heart (or stomach), but if you're down for a gritty, gripping thriller, she's your girl.

Before writing the Lacey Flint series, Bolton penned several standalone thrillers.  Blood Harvest is the third (after Sacrifice in 2008 and Awakening in 2009).  It's a creepy gothic thriller with an atmospheric setting, intriguing characters, and the surprising twist and turns that are Bolton's particular forte.  Both utterly compelling and deeply disturbing, Blood Harvest is another addicting page turner that I just could not put down.  It's not my favorite of Bolton's standalones (that would be Little Black Lies), but it's just as compelling as all her other books.  I should know because I've read—no, devoured—them all. 

(Readalikes:  Reminded me of other Bolton thrillers, especially Awakening)

Grade:

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

for language (a dozen or so F-bombs plus milder expletives), violence, blood/gore, sexual innuendo, and disturbing subject matter

To the FTC, with love:  Another library fine find

(Image from Barnes & Noble)

(Note:  Although this review will not contain spoilers for Lost, it may inadvertently reveal plot surprises from earlier Lacey Flint mysteries.  As always, I recommend reading books in a series in order.  Actually, with Sharon [S.J.] Bolton, I advise reading her novels in order of publication.  That way you can avoid spoilers for all characters, including minor but recurring ones.)

After barely surviving her last case (Dead Scared), Detective Constable Lacey Flint is in no condition to do her job.  She's on sick leave, a temporary reprieve she wants to make permanent.  Hiding out in her flat, Lacey refuses to accept any communication from the Southwark police.  Not even from Detective Inspector Mark Joesbury, who stands by the confession he made to her on a dark night at Cambridge University.  His feelings for Lacey won't allow him to abide by her request to leave her in "peace."

Although she's not on the beat, Lacey can't ignore the murders that have London on high alert.  Four young boys have been killed and another is missing.  She doesn't want to get involved, but Lacey's concerned for her neighbor, an 11-year-old boy who is often left home alone.  Barney Roberts wants to ask DC Flint to help him find the murderer, but he doesn't want to freak her out, especially since he's pretty sure he knows the identity of the killer.  Instead, he goes to her with a more benign request, a plea to help him find his mother who disappeared when Barney was four.  Lacey agrees, even though the darkness inside her makes it difficult for her to step outside her own pain.  

In the meantime, Lacey's superiors are on the hunt for a killer who handles the bodies of dead boys with a gentle, almost womanly touch.  DI Tulloch has always suspected the intensely private Lacey of harboring homicidal tendencies.  Is this her work?  Barney's suspicions hit even closer to home.  Can Joesbury and Tulloch root out the murderer before more boys end up dead?  Has DC Flint finally gone over the edge?  And what of Barney's mother—can Lacey help a suffering boy find the answers he needs?  Can she protect him from the monster who preys on boys like him?  Or is she, in fact, the killer for whom all of London is searching?

You may have noticed that I'm a little obsessed with the Lacey Flint series by Sharon (S.J.) Bolton.  These mysteries are so addicting that I finally binge-read them all one weekend just so I could get on with my life already!  Even though all the books are gritty and gruesome, I find DC Flint appealing enough to follow anywhere.  She's an intriguing heroine—tough, mysterious, and brave.  And yet she has flaws that are sometimes shocking, but always humanizing.  A fascinating leading lady for sure!  I missed Lacey's narrative voice in Lost, the third installment in the series, which is told mostly from perspectives other than DC Flint's.  Still, the novel's plot is just as twisty and compelling as those of its predecessors, meaning that—once again—I was up until the wee hours rushing to the end of a Sharon Bolton book because I couldn't sleep without finishing.  These books are that addicting.  I literally have a tough time putting them down.  See why I had to read them all in one go?  Only problem is now I'm yearning for more Lacey Flint.  When will she make a re-appearance?  Even her creator doesn't know.  How will I cope with that kind of uncertainty?  I don't know, y'all, I just don't know ... #bookaddictproblems

(Readalikes:  Other books in the Lacey Flint series, including Now You See Me; If Snow Hadn't Fallen [novella]; Dead Scared; A Dark and Twisted Tide; and Here Be Dragons)

Grade:

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

for language, violence, blood/gore, innuendo, mild sexual content, and disturbing subject matter

To the FTC, with love:  Another library fine find

(Image from Barnes & Noble)

(Note:  While this review will not contain spoilers for Dead Scared, it may inadvertently reveal plot surprises from its predecessor, Now You See Me.  As always, I recommend reading books in a series in order.  Actually, the best way to read S.J. [Sharon] Bolton's books is in order of publication—that way you can avoid spoilers concerning all characters, especially minor but recurring ones.)

A string of gruesome suicides at Cambridge University has everyone on edge.  Evi Oliver (whose back story is told in Blood Harvest), the head of student counseling, thinks there's more to the story, especially since the dead women all complained of similar problems—disturbing nightmares, terrifying hallucinations, crippling insomnia, etc—prior to their deaths.  This "coincidence" has all her Spidey senses on alert.  Something strange is going on at the university and she wants to know what.  Luckily, Dr. Oliver has friends in high places.  

Not entirely convinced that anything sinister is going on, Detective Inspector Mark Josebury is nevertheless tasked with finding answers.  The only way to do that, he knows, is to send in an undercover agent.  Unfortunately, Detective Constable Lacey Flint is perfect for the job.  Not only does she look younger than her 27 years, but she's as scarred and vulnerable as the students who allegedly ended their own lives.  If someone is indeed luring susceptible women to their deaths, that someone should find Lacey Flint especially alluring.  Joesbury has more than a passing interest in Lacey's welfare; despite his reluctance, he gives her the job.

Lacey moves into a room recently vacated by a first-year medical student who tried to commit suicide by lighting herself on fire.  As she makes discreet inquiries around campus, the detective finds herself plagued by the same issues the dead women experienced.  Is it just the stress of the investigation getting to her?  Or has Lacey become the target of someone's cruel jokes?  Is she the next victim of a sadistic killer or does her enemy exist only in the murky depths of her tortured mind?  How can Lacey find answers for Joesbury when she doesn't even know what's going on in her own head?

I fell in love with the vulnerable but tough-as-nails Lacey Flint when I first met her in Now You See Me by S.J. Bolton.  She's a complex heroine, a woman who is full of surprises—and secrets.  This makes her endlessly fascinating to me.  I would probably read any story that featured such a rich, compelling lead character, but Bolton is an author who knows how to deliver on multiple levels.  Like Now You See Me, Dead Scared combines an intriguing cast with a didn't-see-that-coming plotline that unfolds with unrelenting tension to create the kind of mesmerizing, mind-twisting page turner that is literally impossible to put down.  Although I've come to expect this winning combination from Bolton, I'm still taken by surprise at how thoroughly she hooks me with this formula.  Every.  Single.  Time.  Dead Scared is grim and gritty, to be sure.  It's also gripping.  So much so that once you start the book, you won't be able to stop.  Consider yourself warned.

(Readalikes:  Other books in the Lacey Flint series, including Now You See Me; If Snow Hadn't Fallen; Lost; A Dark and Twisted Tide; and Here Be Dragons)

Grade:

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

for language (a dozen or so F-bombs, plus milder expletives), violence, blood/gore, and disturbing subject matter

To the FTC, with love:  Another library fine find