I've Been Reading -- Imaginary Strangers

 Imaginary Strangers by Minka Kent

After surviving a brutal childhood, Camille has spent her own years as a mother being better, vowing that her own children will never have less than her absolute best. She guards her secrets carefully, never letting the details of her previous life slip. Then her six-year-old daughter begins sharing songs and pictures from her new friend at school, frightening evidence that "Imaginary" knows things no one should. I started this one in the morning and seriously considered rescheduling the rest of my day so that I could just stay home and keep reading. It's thoroughly engrossing and entertaining, but lost a bit of momentum in the final chapters.

Disclosure -- The publisher provided me with an advance review copy.  

{I've Been Reading} On The Surface

On the Surface by Rachel McGuire

I started reading this book early in the morning and after a few chapters was seriously considering whether I could cancel my plans for the rest of the day and keep reading. Sailing with the Foxes is a small Youtube channel telling the story of two cruisers, Dani and Sawyer, and their trip around the world. They're broke and haven't made it very far, but the two have big plans. After blacking out at a late night party, Sawyer wakes up alone in the cabin of their boat with no idea how he got back aboard. Dani has vanished, leaving behind her passport, camera, and other valuables. Immediately, rumors begin to fly. Did Dani drown during one of her daily swims? Did she flee an abusive relationship? Did Sawyer kill her? If this is reminding you of recent news stories, the characters in the book make that same comparison. I had some guesses about Dani's fate and wasn't completely wrong, but the plot was a lot more complex than I first expected it to be. I absolutely LOVED this one! 

What Fire Brings by Rachel Howzell Hall

The setting is what really creates the tension in this thriller. Topanga Canyon is a tinder box with one road in and out and it's fire season. Bailey Meadows has just moved in with author Jack Beckham, posing as an author-in-residence while she's really a private investigator in training, there to investigate a disappearance in the canyon. There are a lot of missing women in this book, both in real life and in Jack's novels.  At times, I struggled to keep them all straight. The author did an amazing job of depicting the fear that comes with approaching wildfires and some of the revelations at the end were completely unexpected. 

Disclosure -- The publishers have provided me with advance review copies.