Member Reviews
I must firstly apologise for the amount of time it has taken me to provide a review of this book, my health was rather bad for quite some time, something that had me in hospital on numerous occasions and simply didnt leave me with the time I once had to do what I love most.
Unfortunately that does mean I have missed the archive date for many of these books, so It would feel unjust throwing any review together without being able to pay attention to each novel properly.
However, I am now back to reading as before and look forward to sharing my honest reviews as always going forward. I thank you f0r the patience and understanding throughout x
This book was very well written, and was really an entertaining and thrilling psychological thriller! A young girl is sold to a sex trafficking ring, and she manages to escape a few years later. This was really a thrilling read, and I will read more by Ms Whelan in future.
I discovered the talented A.B Whelan after reading the unputdownable If I had two lives. Therefore when I saw another book of hers on NetGalley I hit the Request button faster than you can say 'request'. This Love Kills Me is the story of a missing presumed dead author who seemingly had everything going for her in life. I would describe this book as suspenseful bit not go so far as to thrilling... Not for me. The first few parts of the book was great. The characters were solid and the plot was unpredictable. I loved hearing Annies side of the story. Now that was thrilling...a bit. Brooke on the other hand was such a grey character I loved her but what a complicated woman! I don't think I can get her out of mind even though I finished reading this book days back! As for the plot, I kept thinking this is like a spanish telenovela but had strong elements if suspense and there was a dash of paranormal stuff for a while. Put together the plot was interesting and I had hoped for a killer or big reveal at the end. I kept waiting for that mind blowing moment that never came. In my personal opinion the ending was a letdown. I found Annie's & Brooke's subplot the most compelling yet harrowing! This is a story I won't likely forget in a while. A. B Whelan is one author to watch out for!
Thank you NetGalley, Burbank books, and A. B. Whelan for this arc!
An interesting take on a revenge thriller story. The characters were well fleshed out and while I couldn’t really connect with any of them, I found Anna quite “the actress” and her behaviour left me wanting to know more of her psychological traits.
Overall it’s an enjoyable read that will leave you wondering what would you do if something like that happens to you.
Very grateful to the publisher for my review copy
This book was engaging and very well written. The topics were a bit confronting but I still really liked it.
This is a thriller that isn’t necessarily one that I found to be a favorite but I will say that it did leave a lot to be pondered both while reading and after finishing.
When famed millionaire fantasy author Juila Rose disappears from a cruise ship people have suspicions. Was she pushed or did she fall? Could this married mother of one young boy have intentionally jumped?
Three years after her disappearance, a young woman who is also very beautiful, who calls herself Annie Adams shows up in Manhattan. She, with the help of Julia’s former attorney, establishes herself as the new estate manager of the Rose family. However, Annie most definitely is not there to help make Julia’s husband any wealthier. In fact, she’s there to find out who killed Julia and to make them pay. When Annie becomes obsessed with not only just trying to figure out the possible killer but also with Julia’s widower, she starts to see just how high the price for justice can be.
Now this was alright but you find out (not a spoiler!) that ‘Annie’ knew Julia from when they were both forced into a certain thing. It’s not pleasant at all but it’s what lead ‘Annie’ to seek out the justice she’s now looking for. It’s explored a bit so I’ll leave it to you to see all that happens but there is violence against women and sexual abuse so be aware.
This story was mostly well written. I just never found myself able to quite like the main character. I thought some of the things that certain characters did, especially this character, didn’t make sense to me.
However, in the end you do get some closure on many counts and throughout the story the plot is mostly clear and the book is quick to get through.
A big thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and anyone I may have accidentally missed for the review copy.
Have never read this author before but with definitely be reading ore of her books. I loved the storyline and.the characters really made this book .memoreable. Real
Loved this book.
Compelling thriller, written well, you’ll get sucked in by the interesting characters.
A really good read made easier by the talented writing.
Wow, wasn’t expecting such a phenomenal, realistic read; but it definitely was one! Very well written, with great characters that are developed in a realistic way! Multilayered and tense! Highly, highly recommend!
I loved this book so much!! I am shocked that I am just now reading a book by this author.
This story had me on the edge of my seat until the end, I read this book in one sitting, it is a very suspenseful, binge-worthy read for sure.
A housewife who takes up writing, she becomes a huge hit and top of the NYT best-selling authors. That was her husband's dream, so while she feels guilty at stealing his dream, her millions get dished out to his family members. When she wants to stop them from sucking her dry!! Something goes terribly wrong for her on the annual family cruise..
The mysterious disappearance of a successful author and mother on a family cruise is the crux of this engaging story. When another young woman starts to look into this disappearance a few years later, it throws everyone surrounding the disappearing writer under a cloud of suspicion...
I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This book had multiple storylines going around, I personally was more invested in story of her past in the Brothel than her present revenge storyline.
I thought her whole fixture on Tony, going from hate to lust in a split second was not believable, and her whole relationship to Brooke was far- fetched too.
My last fleeting thoughts was, wouldn't it be a jaw- dropped if the B wasn't Bill, Barbara, but Brooke?
It felt like there were two competing stories here and the MC was very selfish and kind of childish. I liked it well enough but not enough that it will stick out in my mind. Thanks Netgalley for the digital copy in exchange for an honest review.
I like the story. It seems so real and belivable. At some poits cruel because oh minorty abusal themes. I like this confusion Annie Adams had in mind but she managed to remain human.
Annie worked for an attorney who was quite obsesed to find the true haw her client, an famous author gone missing Brook is determinated to found what really happened the day Julia Rose disapear on the boat. Annie knows more and starts to help her. She has got Julia's diary. How she get it I can not tell but I can tell all her in law family is suspected. Of course the gold medal of suspects go to the husband. But is he the killer or someone else? Read this book of passion and dreams, rescue. Strong and feminist. Love kills but also bring and safe lifes.
Special thanks to Netgalley.com and Burbank Book for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
Wow! Quite a read! Totally didn’t expect the subplot, and it definitely kept my interest in the book - great ending!
When a famous author dies under mysterious circumstances with no body recovered and a lot of money at stake it is bound to raise suspicious. However the family is treating it like an accident so things settle down as the years progress. However three years after the death a mystery woman named Annie show up on the family's door step claiming to be able to help now widower, Tony, make a lot of money. But as her obsession with finding out what happened to Julia grows so does her involvement with Julia's family, and it is that involvement that leads her down a dark path full of danger, and deception. I really enjoyed everything about this book! It gave you everything I love as a reader, a fast paced story that I was unable to put down, characters I loved and characters I loved to hate, lots of mystery and a story line that I will be talking about for a long time to come. Whelan knocks this book out of the park again and just earned her spot as one of my favourite top thriller authors. I can't get enough of her books and if you haven't read any of them before then I highly suggest that you do but get ready for a life long commitment because no one else will be able to compare to the pure gold that she puts forth. Great read, just like all of her others this is one that will have you talking about for a while, so check it out.
To celebrate William and Barbara Rose's 35 wedding anniversary - the two go on a cruise to Cabo. Their son, Tony and his wife (millionaire author) Julia Rose accompany them.
On just the second day at sea, Tony reports that his wife is missing - this to the ship's Captain. Tony mentions also that Julia had drank the night before and was acting out...
It turns out that someone did argue with Julia on the night in question. Unfortunately, the CCTV was unable to capture the identification of who she was arguing with. After the argument, the CCTV did show Julia walking alone.
Accident? Suicide? Homicide? MISSING???
However, we learn that someone is out for revenge...
Yet - is Julia still alive?
An amazing story. HIGHLY recommend!
Many Thanks to Burbank Books and NetGalley for a great read.
This is a story told by Annie, assistant to lawyer Brooke, it is an investigation into the murder of Julia who was once a famous author until she fell over the side of a cruise ship. Annie and Brooke are trying to find out who pushed her overboard deliberately. Was it her husband Tony or one of the other members of his despicable family who had all been living off of Julia’s money which she was about to withdraw?
The tension mounts from the first page and builds throughout the chapters. Topics range from infidelity to hypochondria to selfishness to child sex trafficking as well as murder. Each is handled with a deft touch.
If you want to read an intriguing mystery that centres around a murder and dysfunctional family, look no further.
I could not put it down thoroughly enjoyable book with lots of twists and turns.
I just read "This Love Kills Me", by A.B. Whelan. The story focusses on the death of a beloved woman and mother of a small child, who is thrown off a boat during a cruise with her husband and his family. After three years and no answers, the quest for the truth continues which an on-line group who wants justice, a former lawyer, and a mysterious young woman who has led a troubled life of her own and wants to see justice done to the young woman.
While the premise is promising and some parts of the book were indeed interesting, there was too much that didn't capture my interest. I did finish the book, because I wanted to know who the killer was, but even that reveal left me dissatisfied. First of all, the main character was extremely flawed which made her rootable, but she made so many bad decisions in the book, that I became irritated with her. Second of all, there were alot of subplots which were not satisfactorally answered for me. If I write about them here, I will give away too much.
Suffice to say that the ending was not what I hoped it would be. I was disappointed with the ending and relieved that the book was over so that I could read something else. I felt the author's writing style was a little young for my taste. There were parts of the story which made me uncomfortable to read and there were so many sub stories that were introduced but not expanded on.
Thank you to Net Galley for providing me with a free copy. I wish I enjoyed this novel more, but at the end of the day, it just wasn't my favourite.
#thislovekillsme, #whodidit, #mysterythriller
Thanks to NetGalley and Burbank Books for an advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review.
2 stars
Trigger warning-rape.
Too many inconsistencies in the story that I found distracting. I spent way too much time going back and rereading parts to see if I remembered things correctly. I should have DNF earlier.
Main character Annie makes one awful choice after another.