(Image from Barnes & Noble)

DI Adam Fawley knows that most domestic crimes are committed by people the victim knows, often those with whom he or she lives.  So, when 8-year-old Daisy Mason goes missing after a costume party at her Oxford home, he focuses first on her family.  With an obsessive, appearance-obsessed mum, a cold, distant dad, and a strange, moody older brother, Daisy's family certainly seems off, if not flat-out guilty.  One thing is for sure—they're all hiding something.  Did one of them kill the little girl?  Fawley is determined to find out.

While Fawley's got his own problems to deal with, rifling through the Masons' dirty laundry is bringing all kinds of disturbing secrets to light.  Questioning neighbors and acquaintances isn't helping make the Masons look any more innocent.  Still, the evidence isn't coming together quite enough to convince Fawley that he's found his killer.  What really happened to Daisy Mason?  If a family member didn't kill her, who did?  As puzzling as the mystery has become, it's going to get a lot twistier before the case is closed ... 

Close to Home is a debut novel by English mystery writer Cara Hunter and the first in her series featuring DI Adam Fawley.  Although it's not exactly pulse-pounding, the novel is tense, well-plotted, and suspenseful.  The Masons and their associates are almost wholly unlikable, but Fawley is sympathetic if not super original or exciting.  While I figured everything was not quite as it seems, the "unexpected" twist at the end of the book caught me at least a little bit by surprise. I enjoy a mystery that keeps me guessing; overall, this one did that.  I'm not exactly chomping at the bit to get my hands on In the Dark, the next installment (which comes out in July), but I'll definitely read it.  If the books get better as they go, I'm all in for this promising new author and series.

(Readalikes:  Reminds me of British domestic thrillers by Gilly Macmillan, Erin Kelly, etc.)

Grade:

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

for strong language, violence, and disturbing subject matter

To the FTC, with love:  I bought a copy of Close to Home at Barnes & Noble with a portion of the millions I make from my lucrative career as a book blogger.  Ha ha.

(Image from Barnes & Noble)

I usually craft my own plot summaries, but Never That Far, Carol Lynch Williams' newest, isn't the easiest novel to describe.  The publisher's version says everything that needs to be said in one succinct paragraph, so I'm going to go with it:

After her grampa dies, the last place Libby expects to see him is sitting on the edge of her bed.  But that's what happens the night after his funeral.  Even more surprising is that Grampa has three important things to tell her: first, that she isn't alone or forgotten—"The dead ain't never that far from the living," he says; second, that she has "the Sight"—the ability to see family members who have died; and third, that there is something special just for her in the lake.  Something that could help her and her father—if she can find it.  Libby and Grampa try to help her father heal from his grief, but it will take all of Libby's courage and her gift of Sight to convince her father that the dead are never truly gone.  

(Image from Barnes & Noble)

Ruby Flood is thrilled when the couple who has been raising her make a stunning announcement—they are not her birth parents.  Relieved not to share blood with the cruel, abusive couple, the 13-year-old runs away from their home, determined to find her real parents.  Ruby sets off into the Forest of Dean armed only with a suitcase and the otherworldly protection of Shadow Boy, her imaginary—and only—friend.  

Soon, Ruby comes upon a ragged group of siblings living on their own in a crumbling mansion in the forest.  Although not all of them are keen on having another mouth to feed, they take her in and make her part of their unconventional family.  The situation suits Ruby just fine, but it's not long before she begins to realize that not everything is what it seems in her surrealistic new life.  It's difficult to tell what is real and what is not in the woods; all Ruby desires is the truth.  Can she trust her new family to help her on her quest?  What secrets are they hiding from Ruby?  She's about to find out ...

It's tough to describe The Doll Funeral, an odd and disquieting novel by Welsh author Kate Hamer.  While it's compelling and lyrical, it's also dark, depressing, hopeless, and sad.  Although I appreciate its lesson about family not always being about blood, I didn't end up loving this story.  It was a pretty meh read for me.  Bummer.

(Readalikes:  Um, I can't think of anything.  Can you?)

Grade:

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

for language, violence, depictions of illegal drug use, and disturbing subject matter

To the FTC, with love:  Another library fine find

(Image from Barnes & Noble)

Perfect Set, the newest LDS rom-com from Melanie Jacobson, sparkles with the author's trademark warmth and wit.  All the things that Mel does so well are here—a fun, upbeat setting; smart, spunky characters; bright, humorous banter; and a sweet, swoony romance.  Add in a singles ward full of faithful new adults who do real things like watch sports on Sunday, drink Coke (gasp!), flirt shamelessly, judge each other unfairly, even stab each other in the back (figuratively, of course), and you're pretty much guaranteed an entertaining read.  Perfect Set is certainly that.  Although I didn't love Bree and Kade could have used a stronger personality, I definitely felt the chemistry between the couple.  Jacobson always delivers a satisfying HEA, so although the plot is predictable, it's still exciting.  This isn't my favorite Jacobson novel (that would be Southern Charmed), but Perfect Set remains a light, enjoyable romance, the kind of well-written fluff that's made for beach reading and poolside indulging.  If you're a fan of clean, engaging love stories, then you're definitely going to want to dip in. 

(Readalikes:  Reminds me of other rom-coms from Melanie Jacobson, especially Second Chances.  It also reminds me of romances by Brittany Larsen, Tiffany Odekirk, and Jenny Proctor)

Grade:

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

for mild innuendo and references to illegal drug use

To the FTC, with love:  I received a finished copy of Perfect Set from the generous folks at Covenant in exchange for an honest review.  Thank you!

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