Tag: arc

2.5 star, YA

ARC Review: My Contrary Mary by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton and Jodi Meadows

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: Mary #1

Welcome to Renaissance France, a place of poison and plots, of beauties and beasts, of mice and . . . queens?โ €
โ €
Mary is the queen of Scotland and the jewel of the French court. Except when she’s a mouse. Yes, reader, Mary is an Eรฐian (shapeshifter) in a kingdom where Verities rule. It’s a secret that could cost her a headโ€”or a tail.โ €
โ €
Luckily, Mary has a confidant in her betrothed, Francis. But after the king meets a suspicious end, things at the gilded court take a treacherous turn. Thrust onto the throne, Mary and Francis are forced to navigate a viper’s nest of conspiracies, traps, and treason. And if Mary’s secret is revealed, heads are bound to roll.

**My Contrary Mary comes out June 22, 2021**

Thank you Edelweiss and HarperCollins for this copy in exchange for an honest review.

Iโ€™ve been a fan of the Lady Janies since their first collaborative work, My Lady Jane, came out. With humor and plenty of witty asides to us readers, these ladies can really draw you into their version of history full of the miraculous and happy endings. My Contrary Mary follows this same line of storytelling, the first in Iโ€™m assuming a series of ladies named Mary instead of Jane. However, sometimes like a joke that repeats itself a bit too much in a comedic routine, it just loses its initial appeal.

Continue reading “ARC Review: My Contrary Mary by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton and Jodi Meadows” →
4.5 star, YA

ARC Review: The Box in the Woods by Maureen Johnson

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: Truly Devious #4

After solving the case of Truly Devious, Stevie Bell investigates her first mystery outside of Ellingham Academy in this spine-chilling and hilarious stand-alone mystery from New York Times bestselling author Maureen Johnson.

Amateur sleuth Stevie Bell needs a good murder. After catching a killer at her high school, sheโ€™s back at home for a normal (that means boring) summer.

But then she gets a message from the owner of Sunny Pines, formerly known as Camp Wonder Fallsโ€”the site of the notorious unsolved case, the Box in the Woods Murders. Back in 1978, four camp counselors were killed in the woods outside of the town of Barlow Corners, their bodies left in a gruesome display. The new owner offers Stevie an invitation: Come to the camp and help him work on a true crime podcast about the case.

Stevie agrees, as long as she can bring along her friends from Ellingham Academy. Nothing sounds better than a summer spent together, investigating old murders.

But something evil still lurks in Barlow Corners. When Stevie opens the lid on this long-dormant case, she gets much more than she bargained for. The Box in the Woods will make room for more victims. This time, Stevie may not make it out alive.

**The Box in the Woods comes out June 15, 2021**

Thank you Edelweiss and HarperCollins for this copy in exchange for an honest review

Did you think the story was over? Guess again.

Our favorite high school sleuth, Stevie Bell, is out for the summer. At home, you guessed it, bored. Whatโ€™s a summer after you (technically) solved the cold case murder mystery of the century? Well, time to jump into another case, right?

While I, maybe like a lot of you whoโ€™ve perhaps read the trilogy, thought that was the end, boy am I glad that thereโ€™s more! I think I loved this one even more than the previous books. Why? Because:

A) itโ€™s a self contained murder mystery within this one book instead of spread across 3 books where I will forget details and lose suspense with the wait time between novels

B) we already know Stevie and her friends well that itโ€™s like slipping on old shoes and seeing them at their best (or worst) without unnecessary fanfare

Continue reading “ARC Review: The Box in the Woods by Maureen Johnson” →
4 star, YA

ARC Review: Donโ€™t Breathe a Word by Jordyn Taylor

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Present Day:
Eva has never felt like she belonged… not in her own family or with her friends in New York City, and certainly not at a fancy boarding school like Hardwick Preparatory Academy. So when she is invited to join the Fives, an elite secret society, she jumps at the opportunity to finally be a part of something.

But what if the Fives are about more than just having the best parties and receiving special privileges from the school? What if they are also responsible for keeping some of Hardwickโ€™s biggest secrets buried?

1962:
There is only one reason why Connie would volunteer to be one of the six students to participate in testing Hardwickโ€™s nuclear fallout shelter: Craig Allenby. While the thought of nuclear war sends her into a panic, she canโ€™t pass up the opportunity to spend four days locked in with the schoolโ€™s golden boy. However, Connie and the other students quickly discover that there is more to this โ€œtestโ€ than they previously thought. As they are forced to follow an escalating series of commands, Connie realizes that one wrong move could have dangerous consequences.

Separated by sixty years , Eva’s and Connieโ€™s stories become inextricably intertwined as Eva unravels the mystery of how six students went into the fallout shelter all those years ago . . . but only five came out.

**Donโ€™t Breathe a Word comes out May 18, 2021**

Thank you Edelweiss and HarperCollins for this copy in exchange for an honest review

Donโ€™t Breathe a Word is another successful story that combines dual POVs across different timelines that mesh together in a compelling read. In the present day, Eva finds herself sent off to a private boarding school literally last minute (thanks, mean family). Trying to fit into a crowd that has grown up together since the fifth grade is super tough. Enter a group who IS willing to take her under their wing. Little does she know, this group functions more like a secret society than a regular bunch of friends. The question is, are they harmless or are they hiding something more sinister?

Continue reading “ARC Review: Donโ€™t Breathe a Word by Jordyn Taylor” →