I absolutely loved this book. The story was engaging and I had no idea where the twists were going to go.

I.am.Evil..

Oh, what a twisted, evil book this one is! I love Faith Gardner and her books and the Jolvix series has to have the most five star reviews in any series by me. This is the first one not set in the Jolvis universe and it may be even more crazy then those books.

This one stars Olivia West who quickly becomes friends with Eliza Hunter and gets accepted inth the Hunter household as a honorary daughter. Things are all fun and loving until Olivia mentiones to Eliza that she plans to murder someone. Things quickly esclate as The Hunter family is no stranger to murder. Talk about bad decisions.....

This book is fast and well paced. It's told from the POV of all the Hunter family members as well as Olivia as things quickly intertwine. Every character is perfect and interesting. And the ending! This book totally sticks the landing and we should always remember, "Practice makes Perfect"

Another quality thriller from Faith Gardner and higly recommended.

I really appreciate Mirror House Press for giving me a free copy of this book to read for a honest review and it has a publication date of January 11, 2024.

Carson, Angela, Ezra, and Eliza are The Hunter's. A happy family with a nice home. A family any one would be envious of. That includes Eliza's new best friend, Olivia.

Olivia just moved here and her and Eliza hit it off instantly. Eliza is completely smitten with her new friend until Olivia starts saying things and doing things which have Eliza questioning her sanity. Eliza thinks it may be better to let this friendship cool off but that doesn't make Olivia happy at all. If she can't have Eliza then she'll have the next best thing, her brother, Ezra.

When Olivia's father goes missing the Hunter's agree to take her in temporarily so she isn't forced into foster care. This is Eliza's nightmare and Ezra's dream come true. The parents are clueless about the dynamics at play but Olivia knows exactly what she's doing and before too long the Hunter's may be the hunted. Or are they?

I assure you nothing is what it seems but to say more would be bad reviewing etiquette. *zips lips*

As you all know I am a huge fan of Faith Gardner and her Jolvix series so when I received the opportunity to download her latest stand-alone thriller I was stoked. Having just finished this I can tell you all right now - DO NOT READ the synopsis on Goodreads. I'm glad I didn't before I started or I would have been pretty disappointed in how much the synopsis reveals.

I assumed this was an adult thriller but, for me, this read very much like a YA thriller. I think a younger me would have LOVED this one but older me just *liked* it. It was okay, totally readable, but I was never wowed by anything that happened. I did not care for the parents at all. Angela made absolutely no impression on me. She was so aloof that I just couldn't get any kind of vibe from her other than boring. Carson gave me so many cringe moments. With all his rapping and rap music references. I know he was being written like a *cool* dad but it failed in my opinion. He was like a caricature. I also didn't care for the way he talked about and ogled Olivia. Super cringe.

I will say that the ending was done well and I was satisfied in this books conclusion. If you sign up for her newsletter you can read a bonus epilogue to this story.

I love Gardner, I will read all of her books, but this one wasn't a perfect fit for me, unfortunately. 3 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and Mirror House Press for my complimentary copy.

Faith Gardner

We Are the Hunters

Initial reaction:
Here is the broken record again, but I repeat myself… Faith writes it and I am smite than reading to get lost in her books. I got so addicted to the Jolvix Episodes but I am also so excited to read something else, something not set in a future far away, that’s most likely annihilating me by my inability to use technology 🤣 ok, joking aside, I am so excited! Truth be told, not many authors excite me anymore. So often it’s, been here, done that, read one, have read them all. But not with Faith! I already know that I will get something that I have not read before! See, my excitement is already the length of a review and I have not even started! So yeah, that’s me before diving into this, see you in the other side!
*****

I like the cover, a lot. It’s so typical for her - in a good way. It’s like a sense of forbearance… you kind of know what’s coming, but it’s still the unexpected. I love the sly smile of the female on the lower right.
******

This felt different to her other books and I take that as a sign of her talent. She is not stuck in One universe, one story, she can extend beyond that.
I liked the character dynamics. Like usually they are very dimensional and much deeper than what they seem at the first glance. Faith is a master at crafting diverse characters, of you wanting to trust them and believe them, but you only find yourself doing ring what you know and what to believe. Also, there is my guilty pleasure in books, deranged families and a lot of craziness. I loved it. I sucked up every word I read, like the greedy fangirl that I am 🤣🙈

But putting that fangirling aside, this is a very, very solid thriller. My heart will always be stuck in the Jolvix universe, but this comes so very close. I loved the action, the suspense, this was an excellent read!

Thank you to netgalley and Mirror House Press for my free gifted copy. I was under no obligation to review. All opinions are my own.

This family dynamic is very unusual! That felt very unique to.tje story and kept me hooked immediately.

“We’re not bad people. It’s just that sometimes, in life, you come to a place where it’s you or someone else. That’s nature. That’s survival. It’s simple math. You or them. Who do you choose?”

Thank you to @netgalley and Mirror House Press for an arc of Faith Gardner’s new thriller!

The blurb for this new thriller had me intrigued so I was excited when I got approved to read it. And let me tell you I wasn’t disappointed!
On the surface everyone seems happy and perfect, but you don’t really know what’s going on under the surface. As the book went on, the more you realized the characters were not what you thought. I did like how the author made the characters relatable because many of us struggled with our sense of self, peer pressure, and trauma at a young age.
To me this book reminded me of a Lifetime movie. The way a certain character is made out to be “bad” but not everyone sees that until later on and the drama that unfolds throughout. I like how the plot played out but I do wish we could’ve gotten more of Carson & Angela’s past. I feel like that would’ve given more insight to how things played out at the end.

Overall a decent thriller! Definitely going to check out more of Gardner’s work.

Wow wow wow! Talk about one crazy story with a deranged family! My kind of book! Hell yeah! This was a nice break from a few lousy read’s I’ve had recently. That’s just what I needed.

Olivia has a new friend, Eliza Hunter. Olivia is mesmerized by Eliza, as she comes from a glamorous family, in her mind. As they begin to spend more time together, she also starts to fall for Eliza’s brother, Ezra.

Carson and Angela Hunter are Eliza and Ezra’s parents. Olivia is captivated by them as well. Carson, the cool dad who’s a journalist, specializing in true crime stories. Angela, a youth psychiatrist. However, there are some dark secrets that lie within this wicked family.

When Ezra and Olivia start dating, Olivia talks of murdering her abusive father. From there this story just goes balls to the wall! Get ready for a wild ass ride!

This was my first Faith Gardner book and definitely won’t be my last! Glad I saw some other reviews from her other works that piqued my interest. Thank you to those who mentioned her.

Publication date January 11th, 2024
Right around the corner.
Huge thanks to Mirror House Press, NetGalley, and Faith Gardner for an ARC. All opinions are my own.
4.5 ⭐️

Well that was a serious mind.... You know what! Great book! But a definite crazy one! This book had suspense, intrigue, action, murder, mystery, A seriously crazy who done it?, A fantastic plot twist and so many crazy twist and turns! The storyline was very interesting and a little out there but had me glued to my Kindle! I definitely recommend reading this book as it was chilling but well worth reading! Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

I almost exclusively read thrillers and after a while the same old tropes get stale. We Are the Hunters is the antithesis of stale. This book kept me on my toes and wanting more. I also appreciated how the author incorporated songs into the scenes of the book. It encouraged me to make a full movie of the scenes with soundtrack and all. The full effect made the book scenes reverberate through my brain in a tantalizing way. I also looked up other books by this author as soon as I finished reading which is the highest compliment I can give. Thank you to Mirror House Press and Faith Gardner for allowing me to read this ARC.

Wild, wonky, and wonderfully wicked........

Faith Gardner knows those little intricate cobwebbed places in the human mind. The places that linger long after the last page is read. And then they start to take on a life of their own. Prodding, pushing, and gesturing and giving voice to those creepy realizations that the real monsters in life don't hide under your bed. They're the two-legged kind that pass you in the grocery store or sit ever so close on the crowded subway. People, baby, people.

The Hunter family dwells within a typical middle class house along a street lined with trees and children at play. Dr. Angela Hunter, psychiatrist with a home office, tends her blooming rose garden. Not a hair out of place or a smudge in her make-up. Carson, her husband, is a has-been true crime mystery writer. It's been a while. He still tries to hunker down with a promise of a best seller. Eliza, sixteen, tutors young ballet fledglings in the summer. Eliza has taken to a Goth look that camouflages her authentic self. And Ezra, her brother, zeroes in on all things strange while concentrating on the even stranger.

Gardner introduces a pivotal mechanism that spins life in a rapidly downward spiral. One decision, one unexpected chance, or one lone individual who can toss life down the drain in sheer seconds. Enter Olivia West. Olivia is the true rolling stone. But what Olivia has gathered is more like poison ivy than moss. She and Eliza are besties. However, Olivia has her eyes set on Ezra. Ezra will soon get caught up in this tangled web weaved tightly in his direction. And what will be the impact on the entire Hunter family? Oh, just you wait and see. Baboom!!

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to Mirror House Press and to the talented Faith Gardner for the opportunity.

How much of an impact can one person have on a normal family? Is there any such thing as a normal family? The Hunters certainly appear normal; mom is a psychiatrist, dad is an author, brother is a typical reclusive teen, and 16-year-old Eliza spends her summer teaching ballets to young children. As it turns out, the Hunters are harboring secrets and just a few months after Olivia and her father move to town those secrets are in danger of being exposed. How far will they go to protect each other?

One section I highlighted from the book is, "Carson is well aware that people are complex. They aren't all good or bad." Faith Gardner is an author who is well aware of this. She creates multidimensional characters; most of whom embody this duality that exists in all of us and, for me, that is one of the things that sets her apart from many of her contemporaries.

I requested and received an advance reading copy in exchange for my honest review. After having discovered Faith Gardner's work this year, this was her eighth book I have now read.

Thank you, NetGalley and Mirror House Press for the copy of They Are The Hunters by Faith Gardner. The Jolvix books by Gardner are fun, futuristic reads so I wasn’t prepared for this absolute thriller that knocked my socks off. If you’re looking for a shocking, unique story, this is it.