Welcome to Murder Week by Karen Dukess

 

Title: Welcome to Murder Week

Author:  Karen Dukess

Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press

Release Date: June 10, 2025

In this delightfully funny and heartfelt new novel from the author of the “bittersweet page-turner” ( The New York Times ) The Last Book Party , an American woman travels to the English countryside when she discovers tickets her late mother had purchased for a murder mystery simulation in a small British town.

When thirty-four-year-old Cath loses her mostly absentee mother, she is ambivalent. With days of quiet, unassuming routine in Buffalo, New York, Cath consciously avoids the impulsive, thrill-seeking lifestyle that her mother once led. But when she’s forced to go through her mother’s things one afternoon, Cath is perplexed to find tickets for an upcoming “murder week” in England’s Peak a whole town has come together to stage a fake murder mystery to attract tourism to their quaint hamlet. Baffled but helplessly intrigued by her mother’s secret purchase, Cath decides to go on the trip herself—and begins a journey she never could have anticipated.

Teaming up with her two cottage-mates, both ardent mystery lovers—Wyatt Green, forty, who works unhappily in his husband’s birding store, and Amity Clark, fifty, a divorced romance writer struggling with her novels—Cath sets about solving the “crime” and begins to unravel shocking truths about her mother along the way. Amidst a fling—or something more—with the handsome local maker of artisanal gin, Cath and her irresistibly charming fellow sleuths will find this week of fake murder may help them face up to a very real crossroads in their own lives.

Witty, wise, and deliciously escapist, Welcome to Murder Week is a fresh, inventive twist on the murder mystery and a touching portrayal of one daughter’s reckoning with her grief, her past—and her own budding sense of adventure.

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A cozy mystery with a side of romance!

Cath is in her thirties. She is an optician who took over the practice when her boss retired. Her former boss now lives with her, and she leads a tranquil, predictable life. When Cath was young, her mother left her with her grandmother. Over the years, her mother has drifted in and out of her life—showing up briefly before disappearing again. Now her mother has died of a stroke, and Cath doesn’t know how to feel about it; she’s been mostly absent for Cath’s entire life.

Then Cath finds tickets for a paid murder-mystery simulation in a small town in England. She decides to go, and several things happen at once: she meets the charming local bar owner, Dev Sharma; she’s assigned two friendly housemates and teammates, Wyatt Green and Amity Clark; and for some reason, she feels an inexplicable connection to the town even though she has never been there before.

Welcome to Murder Week was super entertaining. It made me want to participate in one of these events—I would love to do it. It sounds like so much fun. Wyatt and Amity made excellent secondary characters, and the romance played out beautifully. Quite enjoyable.

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

Her Every Fear by Peter Swanson

 

Title: Her Every Fear 

Author: Peter Swanson

Publisher: William Morrow

Release Date: January 10, 2017 

Growing up, Kate Priddy was always a bit neurotic, experiencing momentary bouts of anxiety that exploded into full-blown panic attacks after an ex-boyfriend kidnapped her and nearly ended her life. When Corbin Dell, a distant cousin in Boston, suggests the two temporarily swap apartments, Kate, an art student in London, agrees, hoping that time away in a new place will help her overcome the recent wreckage of her life.

Soon after her arrival at Corbin’s grand apartment on Beacon Hill, Kate makes a shocking discovery: his next-door neighbor, a young woman named Audrey Marshall, has been murdered. When the police question her about Corbin, a shaken Kate has few answers, and many questions of her own—curiosity that intensifies when she meets Alan Cherney, a handsome, quiet tenant who lives across the courtyard, in the apartment facing Audrey’s. Alan saw Corbin surreptitiously come and go from Audrey’s place, yet he’s denied knowing her. Then, Kate runs into a tearful man claiming to be the dead woman’s old boyfriend, who insists Corbin did the deed the night that he left for London.

When she reaches out to her cousin, he proclaims his innocence and calms her nerves--until she comes across disturbing objects hidden in the apartment and accidentally learns that Corbin is not where he says he is. Could Corbin be a killer? What about Alan? Kate finds herself drawn to this appealing man who seems so sincere, yet she isn’t sure. Jet-lagged and emotionally unstable, her imagination full of dark images caused by the terror of her past, Kate can barely trust herself, so how could she take the chance on a stranger she’s just met?

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Not The Holiday!

Kate Priddy has decided to swap homes with her distant cousin, Corbin Dell. Corbin is moving to London for six months for work, and during that time Kate will stay in his upscale Boston apartment on Beacon Hill while he stays in her flat.

For Kate, this is a huge step. She was almost killed by her ex-boyfriend, and since that terrible night she has become increasingly paranoid, with worsening anxiety and a vivid worst-case-scenario imagination.

When she arrives in Boston and reaches Corbin’s apartment, she sees a woman banging on the door next door. Kate immediately senses something is wrong with the young woman who lives there. The next morning, the police are on the scene—and yes, Kate was right. Corbin’s neighbor, Audrey Marshall, is dead.

Soon after, Kate meets two men. The first is Alan Cherney, a tenant in the same building who lives directly across from Audrey’s apartment. The second she encounters while leaving the building to get something to eat; the young man tells her he used to be Audrey’s friend and is convinced Corbin killed her.

Alan tells Kate that Corbin used to see Audrey—he saw them together from his apartment—yet Corbin denied even knowing her.

Could Corbin be a killer? Is Kate’s life in danger?

Her Every Fear was addictive, with good twists and a little bit of everything. The constant need to know what was really going on kept me turning pages or accelerating the speed of my audiobook! 

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

Save Me by Mona KastenMaxton Hall #1

Title: Save Me

Series: Maxton Hall #1

Author: Mona Kasten

Publisher:  Berkley

Release Date: July 1, 2025

The first book in the international bestselling Maxton Hall series—now a Prime Video streaming series—in English for the first time.

They come from different worlds, and yet they are meant for each other.

Money, glamour, luxury, power—Ruby Bell couldn’t be less interested in these things if she tried. After being awarded a scholarship to one of England’s most prestigious and expensive private schools, Maxton Hall, all she wants is to keep her head down, work hard, and get accepted to Oxford. She keeps her distance from everyone, especially the arrogant, rich, and extremely handsome James Beaufort, ringleader of the school’s party boys.

When Ruby discovers a scandalous secret about the Beauforts, she is suddenly on James’s radar. It only gets worse when James is forced to work with her to plan the school's annual gala. Yet the more time they spend together, the more they realize they share much more than they thought.

Falling for James Beaufort was never part of her plan, yet Ruby can’t help but let her feelings sweep her away. But James must make a decision for himself: will he choose what’s expected of him, or what he feels for her?

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I had to read it!

I keep seeing Maxton Hall on my feed, and it’s already a Prime Video series!

Ruby Bell attends Maxton Hall on a scholarship. She comes from a non-affluent family and keeps her home life completely separate from her school life. She has one close friend, Lynn, and she’s part of the events committee. Ruby’s only goal is to gain admission to Oxford—if she gets in, she’ll be the first in her family to attend college.

Then she uncovers a secret that makes the bad-boy lacrosse captain, James Beaufort, discover who she really is. He starts making her life difficult—but also more exciting. She can’t seem to escape him, especially when he’s assigned to the events committee too.

There are quite a few interesting characters. Of course, I was rooting for Ruby—she deserved to succeed in her dream. I liked James too, once I could see how his relationship with Ruby evolved from enemies to friends and then to something more. James’s sister, Lydia, was also likable, and so was Ruby's sister.

The cliffhanger only made me want to continue with the next book in the series. Now I can also start the TV show…

Cliffhanger: Yes

4/5 Fangs

Academy of Outcasts by Larry CorreiaAcademy of Outcasts #1

 

Title: Academy of Outcasts

Series: Academy of Outcasts #1

Author: Larry Correia

Publisher: Aethon Books

Release Date: October 7, 2025

All Oz Carnavon ever wanted was to become a master mage.Except, to do so requires the natural gifts or wealth necessary to secure an appointment to one of the prestigious magical academies in the Core City at the center of the seven realms. Oz had neither.

He was born without magical talent, serving in the elemental plane of fire, a nightmarish hellscape of treacherous lava and vicious monsters, where life is cheap, and escape is rare. But Carnavons never give up.

When Oz fakes his death to get out of his family’s contract and crosses the Nexus gate to sneak into the Core, everything seems to be going according to plan… Until he gets blamed for an assassination attempt on the fire realm’s ambassador.

Now, Oz must become a fugitive in a vast magical city, while trying to earn a place among the magical academies which have nothing but disdain for his kind.

And the clock is ticking, because in one week, the most dangerous wizard in the realm of fire is coming to track him down and drag him back to hell.

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I liked this new world.

The Academy of Outcasts stars Oz Carnavon. Oz was born into the plane of fire in Fogo, where he and his family live in servitude. He dreams of becoming a mage, but unfortunately, he was not born with the gift. What he does have is tremendous determination. Oz decides to teach himself the craft, fakes his own death, and flees the plane of fire to seek acceptance into one of the prestigious academies in Core City, the heart of the seven realms.

His quest is interrupted almost immediately: as soon as he crosses over, an attack is launched, and Carnavon is blamed for it. Time is running out. The authorities are hunting him, and it seems unlikely he’ll reach any academy in time.

The Academy of Outcasts is packed with action. Carnavon is extremely easy to root for—he’s worked incredibly hard for the little power he’s gained, and he’s already lost so much. Along the way, he picks up both friends and foes, and the supporting cast is full of memorable characters.

I'm excited for the next book, Magic and Bullets.

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

Their Double Lives by Jaime Lynn Hendricks

Title: Their Double Lives

Author: Jaime Lynn Hendricks

Publisher: Scarlet

Release Date: May 20, 2025

Living a double life always comes with a cost.

A down-on-her-luck waitress at a posh New Jersey country club, Kim Valva couldn’t be living a more different life from the carefree socialites she serves. Her live-in boyfriend recently cheated on her, her social life is in shambles, and her dog needs a life-saving surgery that she can’t afford. Then her luck seems to change when a mysterious figure identifying themself only as The Stranger contacts her with an offer she can’t refuse: Put a pill in the new member’s drink and, when he dies, she’ll have enough money to fix her dog and her life.

Her target turns out to be Tony Fiore—Kim’s bad boy ex-boyfriend from high school. Fifteen years have passed, and he now goes by Anthony Fuller. He’s cleaned up, made tens of millions, and his gorgeous fiancée, twenty-two-year-old PJ Walsh, is on his arm.

PJ had her own agenda from the second she met Anthony. Find him, trick him, marry him, kill him. It was supposed to be easy, but she finds that while living her double life, the lines blur between who she is and who she’s pretending to be.

Stunned to see Tony again, Kim can’t bring herself to go through with spiking his drink. Instead, it is PJ who dies horrifically at the table just as dinner ends. Was someone else at the club—member or worker—tasked with poisoning PJ just as she had been instructed to do to Tony? Who would want both of them dead? With no one to trust and The Stranger to answer to, Kim must peel back the layers of deceit to reveal a deeply buried truth, more shocking than she could ever imagine…

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The whole time, I just wanted the dog to get his surgery!

Kim Valva is a waitress at a posh New Jersey country club. She’s single after her boyfriend walked out. Her only love now is her wonderful dog, Murphy. But Murphy needs expensive surgery, and Kim has no idea how to pay for it. Then she gets a call from “The Stranger,” who offers her money—but in exchange, she must kill a new member at the club. At first, Kim is undecided, but she’ll do anything for Murphy.

When the day arrives, she realizes the target is her high school boyfriend, Tony Fiore. Tony now goes by Anthony Fuller, and he’s rich and well-connected. When Kim sees Tony, she knows she can’t kill him. She decides to return the money The Stranger had given her—when suddenly Anthony’s young fiancée, PJ Walsh, dies instead!

Was there someone else who wanted to kill Tony, and they killed PJ by accident? Or were both of them the intended targets?

The Double Lives turned out to be a pretty twisted novel with revenge at its core. Kim was a likable character, but the best part was that no dog died in this book.

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

 

The Perfect Murder by Amanda McKinney

 

Title: The Perfect Murder 

Author: Amanda McKinney 

Publisher: Storm Publishing

Release Date: September 18, 2025 

Every bestselling thriller needs the perfect murder. Savi Portman just wrote one—and now it’s coming true.

Savi Portman’s debut cozy mystery has made her a #1 bestseller and publishing’s newest star. When life gets tough, writing is her escape.

Until someone commits a murder straight from her work-in-progress thriller.

Surveillance cameras place Savi near the scene that night. Witnesses say they saw her. The evidence is mounting—but she swears she was home asleep.

Savi has written the perfect crime. Now she has to prove she didn’t commit it.

Once you start reading, there’s no turning back. A keep-you-up-all-night page-turner for fans of Alice Feeney, Freida McFadden and Listen for the Lie.

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A perfect murder?

Savi Portman has just become the number-one writer after the massive success of her debut cozy mystery. Everyone wants to talk to her and see her. Her publisher is eager for a second book, but Savi can’t seem to write another cozy. Instead, she wants to write a psychological thriller. Every day, the words pour out onto her laptop, and she can’t stop. Then the unthinkable happens: a man is murdered exactly the way Savi described a character’s death in her manuscript.

How is this possible?

Soon, the police are knocking on her door—and she becomes the number-one suspect.

Why is this happening?

Who is setting her up?

The Perfect Murder was pretty addictive, with twists that landed at just the right moments. Savi is quite a character! Was she being framed, or was she guilty? You’ll have to read the novel to find out.

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

Everyone Here Is Lying by Shari Lapena

Title: Everyone Here Is Lying 

Author: Lying by Shari Lapena

Publisher: Pamela Dorman Books

Release Date: July 25, 2023

Another thrilling domestic suspense novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Couple Next Door

“The most addictive book I've read in ages—so slick and disquieting and clever. Just brilliant.” —Lisa Jewell, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Family Remains

“Lapena is a master of manipulation.” —USA Today

Welcome to Stanhope. A safe neighborhood. A place for families.

William Wooler is a family man, on the surface. But he’s been having an affair, an affair that ended horribly this afternoon at a motel up the road. So when he returns to his house, devastated and angry, to find his difficult nine-year-old daughter, Avery, unexpectedly home from school, William loses his temper.

Hours later, Avery’s family declares her missing.

Suddenly Stanhope doesn’t feel so safe. And William isn’t the only one on his street who’s hiding a lie. As witnesses come forward with information that may or may not be true, Avery's neighbors become increasingly unhinged.

Who took Avery Wooler?

Nothing will prepare you for the truth.

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What happened to Avery?

Nine-year-old Avery Wooler is missing.

What we know from the very beginning: William Wooler is having an affair with his neighbor, Nora. William is a physician, and Nora has been volunteering at the same hospital. The day Avery disappears, Nora ends the affair, and William arrives home earlier than expected. He finds Avery alone. She says she was sent home from school and walked. In a rage, William strikes her. He apologizes and decides to leave. That’s the last thing we see.

Detectives Gully and Bledsoe are assigned the case of the missing child. They soon realize that many people in the neighborhood are hiding secrets, and any of them could be responsible. Of course, William quickly becomes the prime suspect. Did he do it?

I enjoyed Everyone Here Is Lying, but not as much as the other books I’ve read by her. There were a few good red herrings. I guessed part of the mystery fairly early, but the other part caught me by surprise. The ending, though it felt a bit rushed, was satisfying in a fist-pumping kind of way.

Cliffhanger: No

3.5/5 Fangs