Nothing More to Tell by Karen M. McManus

 

“Be sure to keep your friends close . . . and your secrets closer.

Four years ago, Brynn left Saint Ambrose School following the shocking murder of her favorite teacher—a story that made headlines after the teacher’s body was found by three Saint Ambrose students in the woods behind their school. The case was never solved. Now that Brynn is moving home and starting her dream internship at a true-crime show, she’s determined to find out what really happened.

The kids who found Mr. Larkin are her way in, and her ex–best friend, Tripp Talbot, was one of them. Without his account of events, the other two kids might have gone down for Mr. Larkin’s murder. They've never forgotten what Tripp did for them that day. Just like he hasn’t forgotten that everything he told the police was a lie.

Digging into the past is bound to shake up the present, and as Brynn begins to investigate what happened in the woods that day, she begins to uncover secrets that might change everything—about Saint Ambrose, about Mr. Larkin, and about her ex-best friend, Tripp Talbot.

Four years ago someone got away with murder. The most terrifying part is that they never left.” - taken from Goodreads.

This story is Karen McManus at her finest. Dark academia and a renewed interest in a four year old unsolved murder set the stage when Bryn Gallagher returns to Sturgis, Massachusetts after moving away. When she lands her dream job with a true crime show, Bryn is tasked with gathering new information on Mr. Larkin’s death at St. Ambrose School. After being placed on a committee with her former crush turned nemesis, Tripp Talbot, to plan a memorial garden for Mr.Larkin, her curiosity about his death begins to get the best of her. Can Bryn uncover mMr. Larkin’s killer or will she be next?

Visit Karen M. McManus’ website.

Mister Impossible by Maggie Stiefvater (Dreamer trilogy book 2)

 

SPOILER ALERT! If you haven’t read the first book in the series, Call Down the Hawk, Stop! I don’t want to ruin the story for you.

Check out Book Series Recaps for a refresher of the first book.

Please visit the Recaptains blog if you need a refresher of the first book.

“Something is happening to the source of the dreamers' power. It is blocked. Diminished. Weak. If it goes away entirely, what will happen to the dreamers and those who depend on them?

Ronan Lynch isn't planning to wait and find out. Backed by his mentor, Bryde, he is ready to do what needs to be done to save the dreamers and the dreamed . . . even if it takes him far from his family and the boy he loves.

Jordan Hennessy knows she will not survive if the dreaming fails. So she plunges into a dark underworld in order to find an object that may sustain her.

Carmen Farooq-Lane is afraid of the dreamers -- which is why she's agreed to hunt them down. The closer she gets, though, the more complicated her feelings become. Will the dreamers destroy the world . . . or will the world be destroyed trying to eliminate the dreamers?”- taken from Goodreads.com

This is the book where we get to dive deeper into the character of Ronan Lynch and his dreamer abilities. We also get to learn more about the other Lynch borthers, Declan and Matthew, and how the dreamer curse affects the family. Jordan and Hennessy have become tangled into the lives of the brothers Lynch. I did not know where Ronan’s journey was leading him until that cliffhanger ending. I am so glad that I waited to read this book just before the epic conclusion is published. 

The story concludes with Greywaren, on Oct. 18, 2022.

Visit Maggie Stiefvater’s website.

The Drowned Woods by Emily Lloyd-Jones

 

“Once upon a time, the kingdoms of Wales were rife with magic and conflict, and eighteen-year-old Mererid “Mer” is well-acquainted with both. She is the last living water diviner and has spent years running from the prince who bound her into his service. Under the prince’s orders, she located the wells of his enemies, and he poisoned them without her knowledge, causing hundreds of deaths. After discovering what he had done, Mer went to great lengths to disappear from his reach. Then Mer’s old handler returns with a proposition: use her powers to bring down the very prince that abused them both.

The best way to do that is to destroy the magical well that keeps the prince’s lands safe. With a motley crew of allies, including a fae-cursed young man, the lady of thieves, and a corgi that may or may not be a spy, Mer may finally be able to steal precious freedom and peace for herself. After all, a person with a knife is one thing… but a person with a cause can topple kingdoms.” - taken from Goodreads.

This book is set in the same world as the author’s The Bone Houses but comes with a completely new set of characters. Mer is a water diviner who is trying to stay out of reach of a ruthless prince who has used her in the past. She unknowingly identifies the water sources of his enemies so that he could have the wells poisoned.. When the prince’s former spymaster and Mer’s “keeper” comes to her with a proposition to unseat the prince, she joins in.

 Part fantastical fairy tale, part heist, my favorite character in this story was the Corgi. This story is based on the Welsh myth of cantre’r gwaelod. Fans of The Bone Houses will enjoy the epilogue.

Visit Emily Lloyd-Jones’s website.

Ashes of Gold by J. Elle (Wings of Ebony book 2)

 

SPOILER ALERT! If you haven’t read the first book in the series, Wings of Ebony, Stop! I don’t want to ruin the story for you.

“Rue has no memory of how she ended up locked in a basement prison without her magic or her allies. But she’s a girl from the East Row. And girls from the East Row don’t give up. Girls from the East Row pick themselves back up when they fall. Girls from the East Row break themselves out.

But reuniting with her friends is only half the battle. When she finds them again, Rue makes a vow: she will find a way to return the magic that the Chancellor has stolen from her father’s people. Yet even on Yiyo Peak, Rue is a misfit—with half a foot back in Houston and half a heart that is human as well as god, she’s not sure she’s the right person to lead the fight to reclaim a glorious past.

When a betrayal sends her into a tailspin, Rue must decide who to trust and how to be the leader that her people deserve…because if she doesn’t, it isn’t just Yiyo that will be destroyed—it will be Rue herself.” - taken from Goodreads.

I loved Rue’s unbending desire to restore her people’s magic and end the lies of the Chancellor. Unfortunately, the story drug on to the point that I was losing interest. Finding out the backstory of the Chancellor was great and trying to figure out who betrayed Rue was maddening. I am glad that I did finish the book.

Visit J. Elle’s website.

A Venom Dark and Sweet by Judy I. Lim (Book of Tea Book 2)

 

SPOILER ALERT! If you haven’t read the first book in the series, A Magic Steeped in Poison, Stop! I don’t want to ruin the story for you.

“A great evil has come to the kingdom of Dàxi. The Banished Prince has returned to seize power, his rise to the dragon throne aided by the mass poisonings that have kept the people bound in fear and distrust.

Ning, a young but powerful shénnóng-shi—a wielder of magic using the ancient and delicate art of tea-making—has escorted Princess Zhen into exile. Joining them is the princess' loyal bodyguard, Ruyi, and Ning's newly healed sister, Shu. Together the four young women travel throughout the kingdom in search of allies to help oust the invaders and take back Zhen's rightful throne.

But the golden serpent still haunts Ning's nightmares with visions of war and bloodshed. An evil far more ancient than the petty conflicts of men has awoken, and all the magic in the land may not be enough to stop it from consuming the world…” taken from Goodreads.

The conclusion of this story finds Ning and k on separate journeys after Ning discovered k's true identity. Trying to uncover who's behind the poisoned tea and the rise in power of Kang's father, our two heroes join forces half way through to formulate a plan to restore Zhen to the throne. The story does drag in parts but the ending doesn't tie up everything in a neat bow.