Friday Fives - Five Quick Reviews for Books I've Read Recently

I'm taking a bit of a break from my usual Friday Linkups to try something a little different.  I'm in a list making kind of mood so I thought I'd start making random five lists.  Sometimes they'll be bookish other weeks not so much. This week I'm sharing 5 quick reviews for books I've read recently.

1.  The Family Remains by Lisa Jewell - I really enjoyed The Family Upstairs so I was so excited to dive into the sequel.  While I did enjoy it I don't think this book quite lived up to the previous book.  I think this is because one of the primary POVs was Henry who just constantly makes me cringe.  I did enjoy Lucy's son Marco taking an active narration role and I liked hearing the story of Lucy's ex-husband's new wife Rachel.  This is a story of people at their absolute worse and the good people around them.  It wrapped up several of the still loose threads from the previous book  and, as always with a Lisa Jewell book, kept me hooked.  This isn't as strong as the previous book but if you read and enjoyed the first book this is a must read.  My Rating: Really Liked It (4 Stars)

2.  The Sanatorium by Sarah Pearse - This was okay.  The setting is brilliantly creepy and I like Elin as an investigator even though she drove me absolutely crazy as a character with her constant handwringing and second guessing of herself.  I could have done without her issues with her brother and her focus on her younger brother's death years ago.  It detracted from the main mystery and just added to her angsty-ness.  I listened to the audio and I'm not entirely sure I would have made it through if I was reading the print version.  Elin did become more confident as the book went on and when the plot finally gained some traction I did enjoy it.  I will probably listen to the 2nd book but this isn't super high on my must read list.  My Rating: Okay (2.5 Stars)

3.   Cold-Hearted Rake by Lisa Kleypas - This is the first book in Kleypas's Ravenel series but the 2nd that I've read.  Kathleen and Devin are a good match.  Kathleen comes across a bit strong in the next book so seeing her story and getting to know her better was really nice.  What really sold this book for me was the side characters.  I love Pandora, Cassandra, and Helen and I really loved Devin's brother West.  His change as the book progresses was really wonderful to watch as well as his relationship growth with the rest of the characters.  He kind of stole the show for me!  My Rating: Really Liked It (4 Stars)

4.  The Janes by Louisa Luna - I have both books in the Alice Vega series but this one appealed to me more so even though it was the 2nd book I jumped in here.  While there are mentions of the first book I had no issue starting here.  Vega has been called in to assist the San Diego police when a Jane Doe is found clutching a piece of paper with Vega's name and she promptly pulls in Max Caplan (Cap) to assist.  They plunge into the world of human trafficking and corrupt systems and all the dark twistiness that goes with that.  This was quite a ride and just when I thought things were wrapping up it took another turn or two.  This was a lot darker then my usual read and while I'm not always in the mood for it when I'm wanting something grittier I will pick up more from this author.  My Rating: Liked It! (3.5 Stars)

5.  The Sun Down Motel by Simone St James - This is my second book by Simone St James this year (and in total) and I think I enjoyed this one even more than the first book I read.   The story is told in two timelines - the first being Carly in 2017 and the second is her aunt Viv in 1982.  Viv disappeared from her job as a night clerk in 1982 and Carly has come to this small New York town to find out what happened.  There are couple of crazy coincidences that occur but I enjoyed this read so much that it didn't really matter.  I loved Carly's roommate and the kind of security guy at The Sun Down and The Sun Down itself is practically a character with its intensely creepy atmosphere.  I found myself absolutely hooked as both Carly and Viv got caught up into the events happening around them all centering around The Sun Down.  I'm looking forward to reading more by this author! My Rating:  Really Liked It! (4.5 Stars)