Blade by Wendy Walker

 

Title: Blade 

Author: Wendy Walker

Publisher: Thomas & Mercer

Release Date: February 1, 2026

From USA Today bestselling author—and former competitive skater—Wendy Walker comes a chilling psychological thriller set in the cutthroat world of elite figure skating.

Ana Robbins was an Olympic star in the making—until tragedy forced her to leave that world behind. At the age of sixteen, she gave up her dream and never looked back. Fourteen years later, she’s a successful defense attorney, revered for her work with minors. But when her former coach turns up dead, Ana lands right back where it all began, and abruptly The Palace, a world-renowned skating facility nestled high in the mountains of Colorado.

Ana returns to The Palace to defend the young skater accused of the brutal crime—Grace Montgomery. Despite her claims of innocence, all evidence points squarely at Grace’s guilt, and she’s days away from facing charges of first-degree murder.

But Ana’s investigation dredges up childhood memories of her own, triggering the fear that permeates this place where she once lived and trained far from home as an “Orphan.” With a blizzard raging outside, and time running out for Grace, Ana is determined to uncover the truth—even if it means exposing her own secrets that she buried here long ago.

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Ana Robins is a successful defense attorney who specializes in defending minors. She is driven to help children who have endured terrible trauma because she knows it all too well from her own experience. When she was just thirteen, her parents sent her to “The Palace,” a world-renowned skating facility in Colorado, to train under Coach Dawn Sumner. There, she met three other girls: Kayla, Indy, and Jolene. Since none of their parents were present, the four of them were called “the Orphans.” All four suffered at the hands of the coaches, the psychiatrist, and the mothers of the other skaters who lived nearby.

Over a decade later, Ana is called back to The Palace when Jolene’s daughter, Grace Montgomery, is suspected of killing the assistant coach, Emile. Returning to that place causes all of Ana’s buried memories to resurface. So many secrets are about to come out—including the ones only Ana knows.

The novel uses a Now and Then timeline, although it felt like most of the book took place in the “Then” timeline, which made parts of it feel somewhat immature. Furthermore, the denouement felt unsatisfactory to this reader. I don’t know… it wasn’t my favorite by this author. So many bad people were able to get away with terrible things for far too long, with very few consequences.

Cliffhanger: No

3.5/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by Thomas & Mercer via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Dear Debbie by Freida McFadden

 

Title: Dear Debbie 

Author: Freida McFadden

Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press

Release Date: January 27, 2026

A brand new twisted thriller that will have you cheering "good for her!" from the #1 New York Times bestselling and global sensation Freida McFadden, author of The Housemaid!

Sometimes, enough is enough…

Debbie Mullen is losing it. For years, she has compiled all of her best advice into her column, Dear Debbie, where the wives of New England come for sympathy and neighborly advice. Through her work, Debbie has heard from countless women who are ignored, belittled, or even abused by their husbands. And Debbie does her best to guide them in the right direction.

Or at least, she did.

These days, Debbie’s life seems to be spiraling out of control. She just lost her job. Something strange is happening with her teenage daughters. And her husband is keeping secrets, according to the tracking app she installed on his phone. Now, Debbie’s done being the bigger person. She’s done being reasonable and practical. It’s time to take her own advice.

And now it’s time for payback against all the people in her life who deserve it the most.

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Excellent. A 5 for me!

Debbie Mullen is having a bad day. A magazine was supposed to photograph her beautiful garden, but a neighbor decided to steal her spotlight. Both of her daughters are hiding things from her, and she knows she has to protect them. In addition, she’s sure her husband is keeping secrets from her. Lastly, her boss is calling her into the office, and she’s not sure what he wants to discuss.

Debbie, who has a high IQ and once attended MIT but never graduated, is unraveling—and anyone who gets in her way will feel her wrath.

My favorite book by Freida McFadden is Brain Damage, but Dear Debbie is a very close second. I love Debbie Mullen. She was fantastic—absolutely stellar in her sense of justice. I loved everything about this book, and I can recommend it to anyone looking for a thriller that will be hard to forget. Also, if you’ve never read Brain Damage, I strongly recommend you fix that.

Cliffhanger: No

5/5 Fangs

The Quiet Neighbor by J.D. Barker

 

Title: The Quiet Neighbor 

Author: J.D. Barker

Publisher: Hampton Creek Press

Release Date: January 27, 2026

A heart-stopping tale of family secrets, buried trauma, and the lengths a mother will go to save her child, even when that child might not want to be saved.

Cynthia Burrows thought she’d built the perfect life—successful law career, loving husband, beautiful daughter. But when eighteen-year-old Tori vanishes without a trace, Cynthia’s carefully constructed world begins to crumble.

The school says Tori was excused by family. Security footage shows her leaving with an older man. And the boy she was supposed to date? His name sends chills down Cynthia’s spine—Alexander Beaufort.

That’s impossible. Alexander Beaufort is the serial killer who destroyed Cynthia’s childhood, murdered her best friend, and forced her into witness protection twenty years ago. He’s supposed to be locked away forever.

But someone is playing a deadly game, leaving clues that drag Cynthia back to her darkest memories. With only three days to find her daughter, she must confront the monster from her past and the shocking secrets Tori has been hiding.

In this quiet suburban neighborhood, everyone has something to conceal. And some neighbors are more dangerous than others.

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Don’t read the blurb!

I’m so happy I didn’t—otherwise I would have known too much going into this novel.

We get two timelines and the mysterious voice of a “Journal.”

In “Then,” there are Samantha and Vicky—two teenage girls from different sides of the tracks. We know something terrible happens to one of them, but we don’t know what or by whom.

In “Now,” there is Cynthia Burrows, happily married to David, with an eighteen-year-old daughter, Tori. Everything seems fine until Cynthia discovers that Tori never went to school and no one has seen her. Cynthia starts freaking out. She knows horrible things can happen to young women. Her fear is confirmed when she receives a phone call from the person holding Tori: she has three days to figure out where her daughter is before Tori is killed.

As a fan of J.D. Barker, I couldn’t pass this one up. From the beginning of The Quiet Neighbor, I was hooked. Cynthia was desperate to find her daughter and wouldn’t stop at anything. She was in full mama-bear mode, which I can appreciate. I guessed most of the plot, but I was still entertained. A few things bothered me—like Cynthia not discussing things with David from the moment she knew Tori was missing, or the way she disregards the police and their investigation. She went wherever she wanted, which in real life wouldn’t have happened. Despite this, I was all in until the last page.

Cliffhanger: No

3.5/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by Hampton Creek Press via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.