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I opened my favorite social app for a bit of harmless scrolling—and instead discovered a whole new kink I didn’t know I had. Masked men, tattoos, knives, and just the right amount of menace? Yeah, my FYP knows me too well. So when Lights Out promised a morally grey, knife-wielding lead and a fast-paced, dark fantasy that blurs the line between fear and desire, I had to read it. Spoiler alert: it delivered. Let’s talk about it.
Some books start slow. This one? It crashes through the door at 2 a.m. with a mask, a blade, and a look that says “you’re mine.”
We meet Aly on a night shift—burned out, running on caffeine, and desperately in need of a little release. Enter her favorite guilty pleasure: a masked thirst-trapper who plays with knives like foreplay and somehow manages to turn millions of viewers into obsessed fangirls without ever showing anything explicit. The tension? Criminal. The mystery? Delicious.
And guess what—he’s not just a pretty mask. He’s Josh. Real, local, and deeply unhinged. His roommate once hooked up with Aly, and now Josh? He’s spiraling. He breaks into her house while she’s at work (because of course he does), records a thirst trap in her bed, and starts texting her like it’s the most natural thing in the world. Red flag? Maybe. But this is dark romance, and we eat that up.
And that’s all before the 6% mark.
By 10%, we’re already getting a car BJ scene in a snowstorm, sliding across icy roads like it’s just another Tuesday. It’s fast. It’s reckless. It’s giving morally gray with extra black.
Then—boom—Netflix drops a true crime doc about Josh’s father. Serial killer? Victims are sex workers. Suddenly, we’re spiraling into legacy trauma, bloodlines, and questions you don’t want the answers to.
This book is a fever dream in leather gloves. If you’re into obsessive men, voyeurism, masked danger, and a sprinkle of knife play, “Lights Out” might just scratch that itch.
BUT—let’s keep it real.
Coming off of Haunting Adeline, it’s hard not to compare. Zade ruined me in the most hauting, sexy way. He redefined what it means to be dominant, and Josh… well, Josh doesn’t quite fill that shadow. He’s dark, yes—but not pitch black. There’s chaos here, but it feels like the rainy-day version of the genre. Less bloodlust, more brisk foreplay. And the sex scenes? Fast, steamy, but missing that something—that slow-burn build, the mind games, the anticipation that leaves you breathless.
So where does that leave me? At a solid 3 stars. Still addictive (I hit 50% in under an hour), still bingeable, and definitely a ride—but if you’re looking for something truly dark, this won’t drag you into the abyss.
Still, if you’re just dipping your toes into the genre, or you want a twisted escape without completely wrecking your soul, Lights Out is a wild, slightly softer storm worth stepping into.
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Ever wonder what happens when grief turns into grit? In today’s post, I’m diving into The Missing Half, a gripping new mystery from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of All Good People Here and host of the Crime Junkie podcast. This story follows Nic Monroe, a woman whose life has been stuck in neutral ever since her sister vanished without a trace seven years ago. Just when she’s at her lowest, another woman haunted by a similar loss enters her life—Jenna Connor, whose sister disappeared in the same eerie way. What starts as a chance encounter becomes a desperate partnership, as the two search for the truth behind their sisters’ disappearances—no matter what it costs. Let’s talk about why The Missing Half is the kind of mystery that stays with you long after the last page.
The book opens on a rather bleak note, with Jenna spotting Nic Monroe at the family-friendly pizza joint where she works—a place known for cheap, greasy slices and noisy kids. Nic immediately notices Jenna sitting alone, sipping a soda, and the fact that she’s in a children’s restaurant without a child raises red flags. Suspicious, Nic alerts her manager, silently hoping the woman isn’t a pedophile—or worse, a journalist.
But as Jenna’s shift ends, she calls out to Nic and reveals something that grabs her attention: her sister has gone missing too. That gets Nic off her bike and finally ready to listen. Jenna explains she found her sister’s journal and is convinced the two disappearances are linked. She believes they can work together to catch the killer—a case the police have already given up on.
I really enjoy how the two women team up and investigate, but I can’t help but hope they find their sisters before they themselves vanish. As their search deepens, they manage to speak to a friend of Kasey’s, who tells them about a shady man named McLean—a known abuser and rapist who somehow keeps slipping through the justice system. Disturbingly, he also owns a plot of land deep in the woods. It’s suspicious, but without evidence, there’s no warrant—and no way to search private property.
They later meet with a former detective at a diner, someone who clearly knows more than he’s letting on and seems to be protecting the very psychopath they’re after.
There’s one thing that really bothers me—something no true crime author ever talks about: it’s not okay to play detective online or outside, especially for safety reasons. Sure, we can hope the killer’s a tech-illiterate fool, but realistically, pretending to be a sleuth in real life without serious resources is dangerous. I kind of expected this to be addressed, especially since the author hosts a true crime podcast and should know just how risky this stuff can get—not just cold cases, but even those.
At some point, we need to draw a line between fiction and real-life tragedy.
It’s all fun and games until someone’s standing outside your house—outside those safe little internet walls.
At one point, I thought I had figured out who the killer was, and I was expecting it to be them—but the ending completely caught me off guard. I finished the book in under 24 hours. I actually really enjoyed it. I’m giving it a 5/5. I won’t say more because I don’t want to spoil anything… but should I start dropping hints?
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Neighbors Gwen, Aimee, and Lisa don’t just share morning coffees and playdates—they also share their deepest secrets. In their quiet East Bethesda community, the three women seem to have everything under control—until Gwen’s husband is found murdered after one of their regular Friday night dinners. From that moment on, their perfectly curated lives unravel, exposing a tangled web of lies, betrayals, and revenge.
And here comes my dilemma: why do I keep reading domestic thrillers when they annoy me? 🙃 Seriously, this genre has taken over the past two years—broken marriages, infidelity, secrets swept under the rug. And me? I’m not here for the oh, the sorrow part. I’m here for the who’s sleeping with whom and how. I love uncovering the secret lives of characters, but dull affairs between bored spouses and their neighbors? Not my thing.
And guess what? I found out who’s sleeping with whom, and… wow. I did not see that coming. But aside from Anton’s murder and the fact that Aimee’s husband is hiding a lot while Lisa is keeping secrets from hers, nothing really happened in the first half of the book. I kept flipping the pages, waiting for something to hit me.
Well, it didn’t hit me exactly, but the book did take some unexpected turns. Still, the author chose to focus on the WRONG couple. Seriously, the main affair was so bland that I don’t think I’ve ever read a romance—of any kind—so utterly lacking in chemistry. Meanwhile, the other couples, the ones who actually had potential for chaos? They stayed in the background.
And the ending? Not surprising. I saw it coming. As for Aimee, I feel like she could have been a much stronger character, but in the end, her husband’s secrets weren’t shocking enough to justify all the drama. I wanted something intense, something jaw-dropping, but instead, it all felt… vanilla.
Decent, but way too tamed for my taste.
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A best-selling author. A mother. A murderer…
Mackenzie Casper, a brilliant student, is overshadowed by her mother, a best-selling author known for her dark thrillers. After her mother dies in an apparent accident, fans around the world mourn her loss— but investigators begin to suspect foul play. On the day of the memorial, Mackenzie receives mysterious letters from a fan, each containing chilling pages from her mother’s diary. As Mackenzie reads, she uncovers shocking family secrets and discovers the sinister truth behind her mother’s rise to fame. What starts as a search for answers soon turns into a terrifying revelation: sometimes fame can lead to far worse than murder.
This wasn’t my usual kind of thriller, but something about the premise intrigued me in a way no other book has lately. And wow—once I started reading, I was completely hooked! It has everything: crime, mystery, accidents, famous authors, and, of course, the inevitable cheating men (who, let’s be real, I could do without). That kind of character doesn’t interest me much, but thankfully, Kenz—our sharp, level-headed protagonist—does. I loved how she methodically unraveled the secrets of her mother’s past, and I couldn’t help but hope for some sparks between her and her friend EJ. Seriously, EJ is such a stud.
One of the things that made this book so immersive was the setting. A luxurious villa with a gothic-style office full of secrets? Yes, please! The atmosphere pulled me in so completely that I found myself sneaking in reading time at work. Naughty, I know, but when a book is this good, it demands your full attention.
For two days, this story had me on edge, completely wrapped up in its mystery. And today, on a rainy afternoon—the kind that soothes the soul like nothing else—I finally turned the last page. And let me tell you, that ending? Perfection. It’s rare that a thriller delivers exactly the kind of conclusion I hope for, but this one did. I couldn’t have asked for a better payoff.
This book is officially one of my all-time favorites, the kind that earns a permanent spot on my bookshelf. If you’re looking for a gripping, atmospheric thriller that keeps you hooked until the very last word, this is it.
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This psychological thriller follows three women—Margot, Anna, and Liv—each hiding dark secrets. The story begins with a chilling scene: a woman trapped inside a towering bonfire, moments from death. Flashing back eleven months, Margot, a washed-up TV star, and her friend Anna observe the arrival of the glamorous Liv and her seemingly perfect family. As the women form a fragile friendship, Liv begins to sense something sinister lurking beneath their polished facades. As lies spiral and tensions rise, Bonfire Night looms with a deadly conclusion—someone is about to burn, but who?
My first John Marrs book—hello, glad to be here!
I really enjoyed the dynamic between Margot and Liv. It’s obvious they can’t stand each other, yet somehow, they manage to make Anna look like the most innocent woman in the neighborhood. I can’t wait to see which one of them goes up in flames by the end. I also loved that the book started in December, but I have to say, I was disappointed that the author skipped over Christmas—once a Christmas lover, always a Christmas lover!
Now, to keep it short and spoiler-free—all three of them are absolutely unhinged. To be honest, I almost DNF’d this book by the 30% mark because, despite the short chapters, I was bored. But I’m so glad I kept going because the twist at the end completely changed my mind. I did not see that coming! The story really picked up in the second half, and while I expected something different, I never imagined that.
I think I’ll be picking up more books by Marrs, even if his characters are a tough pill to swallow.
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Siri play, Kaien Cruz Dangerous.
Poe Webb has built a career on secrets. As the host of a wildly popular true crime podcast, she invites people to anonymously confess their darkest deeds—no guarantees, no protection, just the thrill of an audience hanging on every word. Once the episode ends, she wipes the slate clean. No names, no faces, no lingering guilt.
Until he shows up.
The voice on the other end of the mic isn’t just any confessor—he claims to have murdered Poe’s mother years ago. But there’s one glaring problem: Poe already knows who killed her mother. And she knows he’s dead. Because she made sure of it.
Now, the past Poe thought she’d buried is clawing its way back, and she’s forced to question everything. Who is this man? What does he really know? And most terrifying of all—what if she got it wrong?
From the USA Today bestselling author of The Dead Girl in 2A and The New Neighbor comes a chilling psychological thriller that dares to ask: Are murderers always the villains? Or are some truths better left unspoken?
I didn’t expect this book to grip me so fast. I hoped with all my heart that it would be good—I’d just slogged through two or three bad thrillers after reading Beautiful Ugly by Alice Feeney. And it wasn’t just because her book was amazing. Those others were just bad.
But Tell Me What You Did? It unlocked something in me—curiosity and fear. The curiosity to figure out what the hell was happening and how Poe’s life would unfold after that infamous episode with her mother’s real killer. And the fear of the unknown. Poe sits comfortably in her little house, talking to all sorts of weirdos—if not outright murderers—and somehow, that made me feel unsafe in my own home, miles away from her reality. This is a hardcore thriller, guys.
Alice Feeney may have opened the door for my 2025 reading, but wow—this is my second five-star book in two months, and that amazes me. I just finished it, and I’m still thinking about it while painting my nails with 151 Warm Cacao by Sally Hansen—because my mom raised me right.
I decided to take a break at midnight, turned on the coffee machine, and made myself a cup. I needed a girl break after this book.
I’ll definitely read more from this author. I loved the protagonist—even if she wasn’t the best person out there, I understood her perfectly. I wouldn’t change a single thing she did. The ending surprised me—not gonna lie—and her interactions with the killer throughout the book… wow. They made me question everything—my instincts, my beliefs, even myself.
This is a flawless 5/5, sharp as sterling silver—an absolutely gripping read. Highly recommend!
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I spent all Christmas eagerly waiting for Alice Feeney’s Beautiful Ugly because I just knew it was going to be incredible. It helps that she’s one of my favorite authors. But even so, I didn’t expect the story to hook me as deeply as it did.
The story is narrated by Grady, a man in his 40s who’s trying to win back his wife’s affection. His wife is a successful journalist who covers controversial topics, and she goes missing on her way home. She was supposed to arrive early to celebrate Grady’s return to the New York Times bestseller list.
Her disappearance wasn’t entirely shocking—after all, she often stirred up the lives of the rich and powerful. But I expected her to come back. Instead, things spiral for Grady. He loses their home because, before vanishing, his wife withdrew large sums of money from their joint account. Now, it’s just Grady, his dog, and his literary agent, Abby’s aunt—a fierce, wealthy woman in her 70s who has seen it all in the publishing world.
To help Grady get back on his feet (and out of his grief), she offers him access to a secluded cabin on an island—a property inherited from another famous author she used to manage. With the keys in hand and some financial backing, Grady heads to the island with his dog, hoping to write his next bestseller.
The island is… odd, to say the least. With only 25 residents spread across 10 square kilometers, it’s eerily quiet. Things take a turn when Grady starts seeing his missing wife around the island. Is it her? Or just his mind playing tricks?
As Grady begins to settle in, he meets the local sheriff, who invites him to dinner with her sister. During the evening, her sister mentions that a woman vanished from the island a year ago under mysterious circumstances. Shortly after, the body of an unknown man is discovered—someone no one on the island seems to recognize.
It’s a bit chilling if you think about it. Even more so when you consider that Grady isn’t exactly in the best mental state—he’s sleep-deprived and drinks a little too much.
The island is fascinating, full of mysteries and an odd collection of quirky residents. Interestingly, there are far more women than men living there. Sure, the natural beauty of the place makes sense, but I wouldn’t want to stay on an island like this, no matter how picturesque it is.
The book itself is fantastic. I loved every twist, and the horror elements added an extra layer of tension that worked so well. The ending wasn’t what I expected—though I had partially guessed what might happen—but it still managed to surprise me.
For me, this book is a solid 5/5 stars. I thoroughly enjoyed the journey, and it might just be my favorite book of the year. That said, I’m still processing how I feel about the ending.
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For as long as they can remember, Jessica, Norah, and Alicia have been told how lucky they are. As young girls they were rescued from family tragedies and raised by a loving foster mother, Miss Fairchild, on an idyllic farming estate and given an elusive second chance at a happy family life. But their childhood wasn’t the fairy tale everyone thinks it was. Miss Fairchild had rules. Miss Fairchild could be unpredictable. In a moment of desperation, the three broke away from Miss Fairchild and thought they were free. When a body is discovered under the home they grew up in, the foster sisters find themselves thrust into the spotlight as key witnesses. Or are they prime suspects?
A thriller that got my attention from the start, it’s a super good one because it’s super fast paced which I love. The fact that the sister weren’t even sisters… they grew up together at Miss Fairchild’s house of horrors who abused them shamefully and the story goes between a talk at the therapist, the on going investigation to find out who was burried under the house and the girls’s childhood. A shaking story but a good one.
I’ve believed for half of the book that Miss Fairchild is the body under but when the girls have to stay the night in the tiny town they grew up in for further questioning they end up meeting with the rest of the girls in a bar where at some point Miss Fairchild appears. It’s such an intense feelings of how abuse can fuck you over even years after, even if you live in a different reality now… it’s shocking.
Okaaaay, I loved this book, the story in itself is wild, it’s good but the last 2-3 pages… fucked me spinning. Gosh it was so good! The characters were on point, a novel, a crime novel about 3 sisters bound from their abused childhood omg… It’s so scary to think that these kids lived with Miss Devil in itself Fairchild.
Highly recommend.
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I love seeing the moon at dawn, when the sun just disappeared and the moon smiles on the sky, when the day turns into the magical and full of stars night. Love seeing it with my chest against the steering wheel and my eyes wide open in the summer sky. Listening to rock’n roll songs from the old radio, love songs… The desert surrounding me. The moon compeling me. The sound exciting me. Cheap motels near by, diners all around me, the smell of summer intoxicating me. I am free. Mountains of sand all around me… The night is young and so am I and I drive by, listening to songs of freedom.
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Reading in the Mountains 