Everyone Who Can Forgive Me Is Dead by Jenny Hollander

Title: Everyone Who Can Forgive Me Is Dead by Jenny Hollander

Publisher: St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books

Release Date: February 6, 2024

Charlie Colbert is the editor-in-chief of a major magazine who seemingly has the perfect life. She's successful at her job and engaged to a wealthy heir to a publishing empire. One thing she's hell-bent on forgetting is an event from her past. A survivor of "Scarlet Christmas", Charlie suffers from memory loss and survivor's guilt. She wants nothing more than to move on but a relative of one of the victims wants to dig everything up. They want to release a movie about the events of that night.

Charlie doesn't want that to happen. She's afraid that the truth will come out about that night and the lies she has built her life on will unravel. She's desperate to stop the films release and is worried about the lengths she will go to.

Told from Charlie's point of view, the book alternates between the present and through the past. The past is told as Charlie has sessions with her therapist in an effort to recover the pieces of the past that she's forgotten. As the movie's release is announced it's a race to figure out what happened, and figure out why she's carrying so much guilt. Will the answers crumble her carefully constructed life?

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. There were a few twists and turns that kept me guessing. The ending was okay, with everything tied up neatly, but it worked for this book. It's a solid debut novel, and I'm looking forward to seeing what the author comes up with next.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Minotaur Books for an advance reader copy of this book.

Little Secrets by Jennifer Hillier

Title: Little Secrets by Jennifer Hillier
Publisher: St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books

I was hesitant to read this book because it includes a child abduction and I'm the mom of two. Abduction is one of my biggest fears. I knew I would read it anyway because I liked a previous book from the same author and I am so glad I did.

A few seconds is all it took for Marin Machado's perfect life to fall apart. She's Christmas shopping in a place packed with people with her son Sebastian and is looking to buy that last perfect gift. He's tired and cranky and he wants a treat, she's tired and cranky and she just wants some caffeine. She lets go of his hand for a minute to answer a text and in an instant he's gone. Surveillance video shows that he left with Santa Claus.

Let that one sink in for a minute. Kids all over the world love Santa and think he's safe. Some wouldn't give leaving with him a second thought.

Move forward a year and a half later and the case is cold. The FBI has no new information. As frustrating as that is, it's the reality for many across the country. Marin and Derek are more like roommates than husband and wife. Derek seems to have given up on Sebastian as well as giving up on Marin. She is determined to find out what happened to her son, good news or bad. She hires a P.I. who comes to the same conclusion as the FBI, they simply have no leads to go on.The P.I. has discovered Derek's little secret however. He's having an affair with a younger woman named Kenzie.

This energizes Marin and gets her moving out of the rut she's been living in. The anger of betrayal fuels her. Her son may be gone and her life may be in shambles but no one is going to take her husband. This is one thing she CAN fix.

This book goes through a series of twists and turns from there. Marin goes about taking care of this younger woman in an unexpected way and once she sets the ball rolling the pace of this book kicks into high gear. All sorts of secrets are uncovered, from Derek to Marin to her best friend Sal to Kenzie. 

You simply cannot skim this book. There are a million little "secret" details hidden along the way that will make sense as the ending gets pulled together. This book was a well written puzzle that I read in one sitting because I just HAD to keep going. Mystery and thriller fans, this one is for you!

Many thanks to Netgalley.com, St. Martin's Press, and Minotaur Books for giving me and advance copy to read in exchange for an honest review.