Series: The Amateurs

Review Round Up | Last Seen, The Proposal, and This Lie Will Kill You

Posted January 18, 2019 / Book Reviews, Review Roundup / 1 Comment

In an effort to cut down on posts and burnout, my Review Roundups will feature 2-4 books I’ve read or listened to recently. Sometimes they’re newer releases and sometimes they’re all backlist titles. My ARC reviews usually get the solo treatment. Enjoy the mini reviews! I can’t believe this series is over… hopefully! The ending wasn’t exactly ambiguous but I suppose there’s always a chance Shepard continues the series multiple times a la Pretty Little Liars. Jokes aside, this was a REALLY strong end to this trilogy! The main issue I had throughout all of the books was that I was disconnected from the characters. I never warmed up to them or felt anything for them – didn’t care about the ships, was uninterested in any of their personal lives, etc. I’m not sure if, again, it’s because it was a mystery and I was on edge or not trusting anyone? But I just could never get on board with them. I think it’s an interesting twist when you know who the murderer/culprit is AND get to read from their point of view. Sometimes it can take a little bit of the fun out, but that was certainly not the case here. There were SO MANY twists and connections that were built throughout the whole trilogy that I never would have picked up on. Just because you knew the killer and what he was doing, definitely did not mean that you knew why he was doing it or how he picked his victims. […]

Review Round Up | Kissing Max Holden and Follow Me

Posted December 4, 2017 / Book Reviews, Review Roundup / 3 Comments

In an effort to cut down on posts and burnout, my Review Roundups will feature 2-4 books I’ve read or listened to recently. Sometimes they’re newer releases and sometimes they’re all backlist titles. My ARC reviews usually get the solo treatment. Enjoy the mini reviews! My sister lent me her copy and has been bugging me for MONTHS about reading it. I can’t say that I blame her now that I’ve finished it. What a wonderful contemporary I didn’t know I needed! I had just went through a binge of mysteries and other non-contemporaries when I decided I should give this one a try. It ended up being so perfect that I read it in one sitting and stayed up until 3 AM to finish. I would call this fluff, but it’s a liiiittle more serious that fluff often implies. There is a LOT going on, family-wise, in this book. I absolutely hated her dad the entire time I was reading and was hoping she would tell him off at some point. The familial relationships were incredibly complex, both for Max and Jill. Max’s dad was recovering from a stroke that changed their relationship and, as I mentioned, Jill’s dad was basically a dickhead. I loved seeing her relationship with her stepmom grow throughout the book too. The romance was solid. I love childhood friends/neighbors-to-more SO much, because you can just feel the history bubbling into something new. They had a solid base to build a real (romantic) relationship and it showed […]

Review: The Amateurs

Posted November 23, 2016 / Book Reviews / 2 Comments

Initial Excitement I think everyone knows at this point how I feel about Sara Shepard? If you don’t, check this post out. I’ve read all of her YA books/series and 1 out of 3 of her “adult” books. She’s one of my favorite authors because her books are so quick and easy to read; I’m second-guessing my theories of whodunnit until the very end. I knew that reading this book would further propel me out of my reading slump, so it was released at the perfect time. I’d also like to point out that any book set in Connecticut is going to make me excited! Quick Summary Five years ago, a high school senior named Helena disappeared from her backyard in Connecticut. Her case remained unsolved and amateur detectives on the Case Not Closed website recently opened it again. Helena’s younger sister, Aerin, posts for help and Seneca is on the case. She used to be obsessed with it and is ready to dive in with two other members of the board – Maddy and Brett. They all head up to Connecticut over spring break to help Aerin, learn more, and hopefully crack the case. Storytelling, Setting, and Feels If you’ve read other Sara Shepard books you’re probably sitting here thinking that it sounds the same as her other series. Yes, they all seem to involve some kind of mystery and/or murder, a group of teens coming together to solve it, and other drama along the way. I have to say – […]