Book Previews: Spoiler‑Free, Straight From Me

Mad Mabel By Sally Hepworth Copyright 2026 344 Pages I’m only on page one, and I’ve already decided that if I don’t grow up to have the personality of Mabel, I’ll simply pack my things and go live in the woods as a failure. She is hilarious. Not “exhale slightly through your nose” funny — I mean full‑volume, unattractive cackling. And I’m barely past the opening chapters. I’ve said it before, but spicy old ladies are my Roman Empire. My comfort genre. My emotional support dem

Just Another Missing Person Gillian McAllister Copyright 2023 377 pages Here we have a missing girl. Shocking, I know — the title was so subtle. But this isn’t your run‑of‑the‑mill missing‑girl situation. No, no. This is the kind where she strolls into a dead‑end alley and then… simply does not stroll back out. Vanishes. Poof. Gone. Did she teleport? Slip into a parallel universe? Get abducted by aliens who were running behind schedule? I had questions. I still have questions

The Caretaker Marcus Kliewer Copyright 2026 295 Pages The prologue in this one kicks open the door with every cliché question imaginable. Who? Where? WHAT fresh supernatural nonsense is happening in these woods and why does it feel like the trees are judging me. Something weird is brewing out there — and honestly, if you tell me it’s happening on the coast of Oregon (which sounds like a place you reach only by taking a wrong turn in a fairy tale), I’m not surprised. Nothing i

The Passengers John Marrs Copyright 2019 337 Pages This is book two in the “Dark Future” series, and let me tell you: the future of self‑driving cars has officially swerved off the highway, through a guardrail, and into a flaming ditch. The supposedly unhackable cars? Yeah, they’ve been hacked. And instead of taking their Passengers to Target or soccer practice, they’re chauffeuring them straight to their deaths. Very “Titanic,” except the iceberg is Wi‑Fi. We get to watch th

Wanting Daisy Dead Sue Watson Copyright 2025 296 Pages Okay, Daisy. Sweetie. Gurl. What on EARTH were you doing in your early twenties to rack up this many people who would happily shove you off a cliff? I mean… respect, I guess? Most of us are out here trying to keep one group chat from turning against us, and she’s collecting murder motives like they’re Pokémon cards. Truly iconic behavior. Six college housemates went in. Five came out. And those five? Oh, they are a buffet

Then She Was Gone Lisa Jewell Copyright 2017 356 Pages We start this one off on a somber note. A tragic story of a daughter, vanished. At 15, Ellie left for the library and never returned home. Her family, shattered in that uniquely silent way grief tends to settle, never stopped hoping she’d walk back through the door. We get glimpses of Ellie’s life before — GCSE stress, first‑boyfriend butterflies — but the story really follows her mother, Laurel, ten years later, trying t

Peanut may have napped through this read, but I sure didn't! The Woman in the Library Sulari Gentill Copyright 2022 250 pages In this one, we’re following an Australian author as she starts drafting her new book — literally chapter by chapter — while some mystery man in Boston reads along and provides “cultural context,” which is a polite way of saying he’s giving running commentary like he’s auditioning for a podcast no one asked for. And listen… I cannot decide if I like th

The Astral Library Kate Quinn Copyright 2026 293 pages I’m starting this review with a definition because the title of this book slapped me with a word I have never used in my daily life. If you already know it, congratulations — you win the gold star, the spelling bee, and probably custody of the brain cell I dropped somewhere in chapter three. Astral (adj.): relating to a nonphysical realm where psychic and paranormal nonsense apparently clock in for their 9–5. Anyway. Ente

Served Him Right By Lisa Unger Copyright @2026 369 Pages Served Him Right. I haven’t even cracked this book open and I’m already buzzing with anticipation. I don’t know who he is or what unforgivable nonsense he pulled, but I do know this: I adore a well‑executed revenge plot. So yes, Miss Nice Hostess Lady, please show me to my table and bring me the house cocktail — something chilled, citrusy, and garnished with a twist of vengeance. Because I have a feeling Lisa is about

Five Found Dead By Sulari Gentill Copyright @2025 299 Pages Well, if I haven’t stumbled onto the perfect first book to blog about, then call me a liar and toss me off the caboose. This one kicks off with all my favorite murder-mystery ingredients: a brother/sister duo (finally — siblings doing something other than arguing over the remote), plus a supporting cast straight out of the Clue board that’s been left in my grandmother’s attic. We’ve got the writer, the lawyer, the ma