ARC Review: The Survivor by Andrew Reid

The Survivor
Author: Andrew Reid
Publication: Minotaur Books (March 24, 2026)

Description: A hijacked New York subway train, an anonymous killer, and a young man trapped by his hidden past converge in a breathless, breathtaking thriller

Do not turn off your phone
Do not get off the train
I know who you really are

Fired and walked out by security on his first day at his new job in New York City, Ben Cross thought his day couldn't get worse. But he couldn't be more wrong. Getting on the 1 train headed uptown, Ben starts receiving text messages from an anonymous killer, showing that they've already killed someone, then pointedly killing another as they got off the train to prove they aren't bluffing and to ensure Ben follows orders. But Ben wasn't picked at random―he has a history that no one is supposed to know.

At the same time, A NYPD detective, Kelly Hendricks, is on punishment duty with the transit police. The first one on the scene after the first murder, she gets on the train to find out what is really going on.

Switching rapidly between Cross and Hendricks, as the hijacked 1 train heads from South Ferry to 181st, the secret to the killer lies in Ben's own history―why he's been targeted and punished.

My Thoughts: This was a tense and twisty thriller. Things begins when new hire Ben Cross is walked out of his new job by security on his first day. Naturally upset and almost broke, he wonders how he will get back home. The subway wins despite his claustrophobia. 

No sooner has Ben sat down that he begins to get text messages. They are definitely threatening telling him to stay on the train and not turn off his cell phone. The messages escalate. He's told to find a passenger and keep him from leaving the train. When Ben fails, he sees the man shot on the subway platform.

The shooting brings in the police in the person of Detective Kelly Hendricks of the NYPD. She's been assigned to the transit police after she objects to being patted on the ass and threw the patter, a superior officer, into a table of refreshments. She knows her career has hit a roadblock but she's still a cop. 

Believing that the shooter got back on the train, she leaves to try to catch up to the subway and arrives at a further station just in time to be present for an explosion the kills a woman and wounds many. Ben had been told to keep the woman on the train but had failed to convince her. Kelly does manage to get on the train as it leaves the station. 

The bombing brings in Homeland Security in the person of Agent Paul McDiarmid and his assistant Hoyt. McDiarmid's agenda is to make himself look good. If that takes multiple casualties, he views it as the cost of doing business. 

The story is told from all three viewpoints, Ben, Kelly and McDiarmid are all trying to figure out who is causing this chaos and what they want. Ben thinks he knows that it has something to do with a past he had hoped was deeply buried. 

This was an engaging thriller that was packed with tension and secrets. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

Audiobook Review: Promise Not to Tell by Jayne Ann Krentz

Promise Not to Tell
Author: Jayne Ann Krentz
Narrator: Susan Bennett
Series: Sons of Anson Salinas (Book 2)
Publication: Recorded Books (January 2, 2018)
Length: 10 hours and 40 minutes

Description: A broken promise reveals a terrifying legacy in this electrifying novel from the New York Times best-selling author of When All the Girls Have Gone.

Seattle gallery owner Virginia Troy has spent years battling the demons that stem from her childhood time in a cult and the night a fire burned through the compound, killing her mother. And now one of her artists has taken her own life, but not before sending Virginia a last picture: a painting that makes Virginia doubt everything about the so-called suicide - and her own past.

Like Virginia, PI Cabot Sutter was one of the children in the cult who survived that fire - and only he can help her now. As they struggle to unravel the clues in the picture, it becomes clear that someone thinks Virginia knows more than she does and that she must be stopped. Thrown into an inferno of desire and deception, Virginia and Cabot draw ever closer to the mystery of their shared memories - and the shocking fate of the one man who still wields the power to destroy everything they hold dear.

My Thoughts: PROMISE NOT TO TELL is the middle book in the Sons of Anson Salinas trilogy. Seattle gallery owner Virginia Troy needs a private detective to look into the death of one of her artists. The local police have called it suicide, but Virginia has her doubts.

Virginia goes to Cabot Sutter to investigate. Both Virgina and Cabot were raised in a cult and nearly lost their lives when a fire was set outside the locked barn where the children were sleeping. The cult leader set the fire and escaped. Virginia was raised by her grandmother and Cabot was raised by Anson Salinas, the police officer who rescued the children in the barn. 

Cabot, Anson, and Cabot's two adopted brothers have long believed that the cult leader got away despite his proclaimed death when a boat he had stolen exploded in the ocean. Virginia's artist is also a survivor of the cult and worked out her nightmares in a series of paintings. Her last painting seems to show the cult leader in modern dress which convinces Cabot that he is still alive. 

Besides the hunt to discover if the cult leader is still alive, Cabot is also dealing with family issues. The grandfather who never acknowledged him has died and has left Cabot something in his will. A lawyer is being very persistent about wanting Cabot to sign a paper which will give him a $25 thousand inheritance. He could use the money, but something just doesn't seem right about the lawyer's need for a speedy resolution to the settlement.

Virginia and Cabot also learn that there might be some money involved in the cult too. They learn that some of the women including both of their mothers found a way to divert funds into a secret account. Now someone who might or might not be the cult leader wants the money and believes that Virginia has the key to locating it.

This was an entertaining story. I liked the relationship between Cabot and Virginia who are both still dealing with the trauma of being in a cult and almost dying while trying to escape it. This was a nice romance and a nice mystery too. 

I bought this one November 20, 2022. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: Daughter of Egypt by Marie Benedict

Daughter of Egypt
Author: Marie Benedict
Publication: St. Martin's Press (March 24, 2026)

Description: Known for her “delightful blend of historical fiction and suspense” (People), New York Times bestselling author Marie Benedict, returns with a sweeping tale of a young woman who unearths the truth about a forgotten Pharaoh―rewriting both of their legacies forever.

In the 1920s, archeologist Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon of Highclere Castle made headlines around the world with the discovery of the treasure-filled tomb of the boy Pharaoh Tutankhamun. But behind it all stood Lady Evelyn Herbert―daughter of Lord Carnarvon―whose daring spirit and relentless curiosity made the momentous find possible.

Nearly 3,000 years earlier, another woman defied the expectations of her time: Hatshepsut, Egypt’s lost pharaoh. Her reign was bold, visionary―and nearly erased from history.

When Evelyn becomes obsessed with finding Hatshepsut’s secret tomb, she risks everything to uncover the truth about her reign and keep valued artifacts in Egypt, their rightful home. But as danger closes in and political tensions rise, she must make an impossible choice: protect her father’s legacy―or forge her own.

Propelled by high adventure and deadly intrigue, Daughter of Egypt is the story of two ambitious women who lived centuries apart. Both were forced to hide who they were during their lifetimes, yet ultimately changed history forever.

My Thoughts: This is a book about two women almost 3000 years apart but similar in their desires to break the bonds of the acceptable and expected for women. 

Lady Evelyn Herbert is a devoted amateur archaeologist in the 1920s. She's the daughter of Lord Carnarvon and a student of Howard Carter. She is especially interested in Hatshepsut who assumed the rank of pharaoh and whose tomb had never been discovered. She is eager to get to Egypt and be part of the dig despite her mother's desire that she stay at home and do all sorts of society things including finding an acceptable husband. 

Hatshepsut was a woman who became pharaoh. She was the daughter of a pharaoh and a priestess. When her father died, she married her half-brother and was his Regent until he came of age. She bore him a daughter. When he died, she became the regent for the next pharoah who was her husband's son. Her goal was to consolidate her power to make a strong future for her daughter and this boy. The best way to do this was to become his co-pharaoh despite opposition from other relatives primarily one of her father's other wives and her family. 

I liked the way the two parts of the story intertwined. I also liked seeing the rising Egyptian nationalism growing in Evelyn's time shepherded by another strong woman who was stepping out of her traditional place. Madame Zaghloul took over the nationalist party when her husband was exiled from Egypt and formed a coalition of Egyptian women from all walks of life to agitate for independence. 

I enjoyed this story and learning more about two intriguing women. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (March 16, 2026)

 It's Monday, What Are You Reading? is now hosted by Kathryn at The Book Date.

It’s Monday!  What Are You Reading is where we gather to share what we have read this past week and what we plan to read this week.  It is a great way to network with other bloggers, see some wonderful blogs, and put new titles on your reading list.

Want to See What I Added to My Stack? links to Stacking the Shelves hosted by Marlene at Reading Reality.

Other Than Reading...

This was a roller coaster weather week. From 51 degrees for a high last Sunday to 29 for a high temperature on Friday, the temperature kept dropping and the snow kept coming. Weirdly, most of the snow came in the evenings or overnights. We made solar power every day except Tuesday. We got 2.2 inches of snow on the 9th, 3.6 inches on the 10th, 6.3 inches of snow on the 12th, and 3.1 inches of snow on the 13th. 

The snow on the 12th and 13th came with winds and kept my brother from going to work on the 13th because our street hadn't been plowed. He was supposed to start work at 8 AM. I went to bed at 2AM the night before and was awakened with a noise I hadn't heard before at about 7:30. He was ringing the doorbell because he had shut the garage door so snow wouldn't blow in and his remote door opener didn't work to let him open it again. On the positive side, now I know what the doorbell sounds like. 

We were on the edge of a snow event again last night, but it looks like we only got a couple of inches of new snow. 

I did get out of the house a couple of those days because I had prescriptions to pick up. Since my pharmacy is at a grocery store, we also did some shopping. Bill made corned beef and cabbage on his day off. We still have some leftover corned beef for this week. 

I spent a lot of time reading, watching Braves Spring Training, and watching the World Baseball Classic. I finished fewer books than I had hoped but two of them were more than 500 pages long and a third was over 400 pages. Also, my current audiobook is weighing in at almost 16 hours. 

I finished setting up my posts on my April calendar and used some Audible Credits to get two books that I want to read in April. I'm still waiting for another of the books I want to read in April to be released. I think that one will be available on March 31.

I also added five new review books to my stack including the second book in the Antique Hunter's series which was a surprise offer from Atria. I recently read and reviewed the third book in the series and had added the second book to my Amazon wishlist. Now, I have a review copy which I put on this week's reading stack. 

This week I have my annual wellness visit with my Primary Care Doctor. Otherwise, the week is appointment free. 

Read Last Week

• The Barn Identity by Diane Kelly (Review, March 31) -- 8th House-Flipper mystery has a pregnant Whitney investigating the death of a journalist who was writing a story about the old barn she and Buck are renovating into apartments. My review will be posted on March 25.
• Dawn in Eclipse Bay by Jayne Ann Krentz (Audiobook, mine since December 3, 2025) -- Second in the Eclipse Bay trilogy of romantic suspense stories. My review will be posted on April 2.
• Family Lies by Karen Rose (Review, March 31) -- Fourth San Diego Case Files mystery centers around Akiko. My review will be posted on March 26.

• Calculated in Death by J. D. Robb (Audiobook Reread)
• Jules Cassidy, P.I. by Suzanne Brockmann (Kindle, mine since February 2) -- Latest in the Troubleshooters series stars Jules who has left the FBI and is opening a Troubleshooters office in LA. Excellent story. My review will be posted on March 27.
• The Escape Game by Marissa Meyer & Tamara Moss (Review, April 7) -- YA mystery taking place at a reality TV show that has teens compete as teams in escape rooms. Great characters and interesting puzzles and mystery. My review will be posted on March 31.

Currently

• Carving Shadows into Gold by Brigid Kemmerer (Audiobook, mine since February 18)
• Blood Trail by Matt Query & Harrison Query (Review, April 7)

Next Week

• The Book Witch by Meg Shaffer (Review, April 7)
• The Antique Hunter's Death on the Red Sea by C. L. Miller (Review, February 17, 2026)
• The Lost Book of Elizabeth Barton by Jennifer N. Brown (Review, April 14)

• Cat on a Hot Tin Woof by Spencer Quinn (Review, April 14)
• Fire Must Burn by Allison Montclair (Kindle, mine since January 16)
• Black Rose by Nora Roberts (Audiobook; Mine since March 11)

Reviews Posted

• No One Knew by Kendra Elliot (Audiobook, Mine)
• You Did Nothing Wrong by CG Drews (Review copy)
• The Antique Hunter's Murder at the Castle by C. L. Miller (Review copy)

• Stakeouts and Strollers by Rob Phillips (Review copy)
• The Somewhat Wicked Witch of Brigandale by C. M. Waggoner (Review copy)
• Missing by E. A. Jackson (Review copy)

Want to See What I Added to My Stack Last Week?

Review:

• The Antique Hunter's Death on the Red Sea by C. L. Miller (Review, February 17, 2026)
• Griffin Speaker by Jan M. Flynn (Review, May 5)
• Dungeons and Danger by Elizabeth Penney (Review, May 26)

• Skyring Water by Louis L'Amour & Beau L'Amour (Review, June 2)
• Murder at the Spirit Lounge by Jess Kidd (Review. June 16)

Bought:

• Black Rose by Nora Roberts (Audiobook, Audible Credit)
• Red Lily by Nora Roberts (Audiobook, Audible Credit)

• The House Saphir by Marissa Meyer (Kindle, Gift Card)
• Rules of the Game by Nora Roberts (Kindle, Gift Card)

What was your week like?

ARC Review: Missing by E. A. Jackson

Missing
Author: E. A. Jackson
Publication: Atria/Emily Bestler Books (March 17, 2026)

Description: In this unputdownable crime thriller for fans of Tana French, a detective returns to a thirty-year-old case—an infamous disappearance in London—that has haunted her entire career and now may jeopardize her future.

In August 1990, London is suffering through an unprecedented heatwave when baby Bella Carpenter is snatched through the open window of her hotel room. Detective Inspector Martha Allen is assigned the high-profile case and, knowing that it could make or break her career, is determined to find Bella.

When a young woman named Nell Beatty walks into the police station with a baby who appears to be Bella, and whom Nell claims she found on a bench, it seems that the mystery is solved. Her family, the police, and the press are overjoyed at her return. But DI Allen isn’t convinced, something about Nell’s story doesn’t ring true. As much as she wants to continue, however, now that the baby is safe, she’s ordered to close the investigation.

Thirty years later, Nell Beatty is found dead. Now a superintendent, Allen has never really gotten over her doubts about the Carpenter case and can’t resist doing a little digging on her own time, eager to find out what happened to Nell, and her involvement in the baby’s disappearance all those years ago. But will her efforts uncover something darker than she could have ever imagined? And what is she risking as she tries once and for all to reveal the truth?

My Thoughts: Detective Inspector Martha Allen is assigned the case of a baby disappearing from a hotel room. Mr. and Mrs. Carpenter have come to London for a short vacation along with their six-month old daughter Bella. It's 1990 and this is a high-profile case. It is also a baffling one. Allen is already dealing with institutional prejudice against women and the early stages of a pregnancy. 

As Allen interviews the hotel staff and hotel guests, she comes to the conclusion that the husband somehow did away with his infant daughter. However, there is no proof to be uncovered. She can't convince her colleagues of her conclusions either. 

Then three or four days later, after Allen's hope is lost, a young woman named Nell Beatty walks into the police station carrying a baby who appears to be the missing baby Bella. Nell claims to have found her on a park bench and, recognizing her from the many photos, brings her in. Intense questioning ensues but she holds to her story. When she is dismissed, Nell disappears. Her address, phone number and employer are all bogus.

The Carpenters seem overjoyed to be reunited with their daughter and the case is closed. But Allen is left with questions that never quite go away despite a successful career as a police officer.

Then in 2020, Nell Beatty's body is found on a park bench and all of Allen's earlier questions resurface. The investigation into Nell's death involves looking back at that older kidnapping case and trying to learn what happened to Nell in the years in between.

This was an engaging thriller. I enjoyed watching Allen's career trajectory. I was intrigued with the way a case could haunt a woman's life and career. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

Audiobook Review: No One Knew by Kendra Elliot

No One Knew
Author: Kendra Elliot
Narrator: Stephanie Nemeth-Parker
Series: Noelle Marshall (Book 2)
Publication: Brilliance Audio (January 6, 2026)
Length: 8 hours and 48 minutes

Description: For a detective and an FBI agent, two seemingly disparate murder investigations collide with a twist in an explosive novel of suspense by a Wall Street Journal bestselling author.

In the crisp mountain air of central Oregon, a teenage girl’s search for discarded cans leads to a horrifying discovery: a body, brutally murdered and abandoned in the woods. The case falls to Deschutes County Detective Noelle Marshall, who finds herself navigating a community steeped in secrets, suspicion, and distrust of outsiders—especially law enforcement.

Miles away, FBI Special Agent Max Rhodes investigates a different kind of darkness—chatter about a violent uprising from a shadowy militia group preparing for war. The two cases seem worlds apart. But as Noelle digs into the murdered man’s past and Max closes in on the source of the terror plot, their paths begin to converge in a terrifying way. This was no random killing. It was a message. A merciless killer and a hidden army are operating in the same shadows, and finding the link between them is the only thing standing between a single murder and a full-blown massacre.

My Thoughts: The second Noelle Marshall thriller begins with a young woman discovering a body while she is searching for cans to recycle. Noelle is called in to investigate and also befriends the young woman who has been living on her own since her father disappeared.

Meanwhile, Noelle's boyfriend FBI Special Agent Max Rhodes is investigating the rumors that a shadow militia group is preparing for some sort of attack. 

As more bodies appear, including one in a judge's car trunk, Noelle and Max's cases come together. Events from Max's past look like they are also part of these new cases. 

This was an engaging thriller. I liked the way Noelle and Max are getting closer. I liked the way the suspense built to a startling terror event. 

I bought this one January 16, 2026. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: The Somewhat Wicked Witch of Brigandale by C. M. Waggoner

The Somewhat Wicked Witch of Brigandale
Author: C. M. Waggoner
Publication: Ace (March 17, 2026)

Description: A practical witch must sabotage her beloved son's ascension to the throne in order to keep the kingdom from ruin, in this delightful cozy fantasy from the author of The Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry.

Once upon a time, a somewhat wicked witch named Gretsella lived in a cozy little cottage in the Dark Forest of Brigandale. She dispensed herbs and tinctures at reasonable prices, met with her slightly oddball coven on a regular basis, and had absolutely no need of any further company whatsoever, thank you very much. But then one afternoon, Gretsella came home to find a screaming infant on her doorstep.

Against all her better judgement, she took the baby in. She named him Bradley.

Eighteen years later, Bradley has grown into a bafflingly likable young man under Gretsella’s extremely tolerant—one might even say doting—eye. But the witch’s hopes for an unremarkable yet fulfilling life for her son are shattered when small woodland animals start prophesying that he is the lost prince and should ascend to the throne. Bradley ignores Gretsella’s advice that prophecies and talking chipmunks are to be avoided at all costs, and sets off for the capital. But soon confusion and chaos are reigning, and scheming courtiers are using Bradley for their own ends. Sometimes a witch has to roll up her sleeves and take matters into her own cauldron. So Gretsella resolves to bring about the downfall of her darling son…

My Thoughts: This cozy fantasy tells the story of Gretsella who is a witch living in the Dark Forest of Brigandale. She sells herbs and tinctures, meets with her oddball coven, and is perfectly happy. Then one day she discovers a baby on her doorstep.

Gretsella takes the baby in, names him Bradley, and raises him. Members of her coven gifted him with beauty, politeness, and a powerful right hook. They also told her that he was the son of the deposed monarch, but she planned to raise him to lead an utterly unremarkable life.

However, when Bradley turns eighteen, he is discovered by knights who want him to overthrow the current despot and take the throne. Gretsella tries very hard to discourage him from taking the path. She believes that he will be happiest living in the village, being a hairdresser, and playing ball with his friends. 

Bradey doesn't take her advice and heads off to the city to secure his new fate. He manages to overthrow the king, but he doesn't know anything about ruling a kingdom. He calls on Gretsella to come help him. She still has her old plan and works to find a way for Bradley to stop being a king and come home. 

This was an engaging fairy tale filled with all sorts of humor. Bradley is beautiful but not very bright. Gretsella is wicked but not very wicked. The other characters are also well-developed. I especially liked Gretsella's unusual coven. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.