SOMETHING I KEEP UPSTAIRS

4 stars out of 5

Okay, this one's pretty creepy. I'm not a huge fan of the paranormal just because I have to put my "scientific" brain on hold; on the other hand, I can't totally discount the possibilies. I guess what that means is I got quite a kick out of this book once I decided to just go with the flow.

It starts off innocently enough; after his grandmother dies, teenager Billy Hasler's best friend David Spivey inherits her Wood Island home off the coast of New Castle, New Hampshire (apparently granny wanted to bypass her daughter, David's mother). What a great place to hang out, the boys assert as they gather friends together for some pre-college partying.

But in books like this, nothing is as it seems. To be sure, the house isn't; and all too soon, it becomes evident that none of the people associated with the house aren't, either. There are quirky house "rules," appearances, disappearances and reappearances and tons of things that go bump in the night - all signaling a danger that no one understands nor want to believe.

But this story isn't mine to tell - it's for other readers to discover just as I did. And once I get my head back to some semblance of normal I'll thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for allowing me to get creeped out by way of a pre-release copy. If "yikes" is your style, don't hesitate to give it a go.

Something I Keep Upstairs by J.D. Barker (Hampton Creek Press/Simon & Schuster, May 2025); 492 pp.

THE WRITER

5 stars out of 5

Sir Walter Scott's "Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive" never was more meaningful than in this impossible-to-put-down adventure. Nothing is as it seems, at least for very long; every "Aha!" moment - and there are plenty - is followed by a sharp intake of breath and a "But wait..."

At a crucial decision moment in his life, NYPD Detective Declan Shaw gets a call telling him to get to a crime scene stat. In a building occupied by the hoity toity and well-heeled, he finds a woman covered in blood sitting next to a very dead body. She's Denise Morrow, author of best-selling true-crime novels. The dead guy is her husband David, a health-care executive. That's a bit strange, but not nearly as much as the fact that she refuses to let anyone near her except Declan, who's never even met her.

Needless to say, almost all the evidence points to Denise as her husband's killer. Still, Declan and his partner, Jarod Cardova, think something is off (well, besides her insistence on having Declan present). Why on earth would she want him, and only him, on the case? In fairly short order, Declan learns that she's writing a soon-to-be-released book on an old murder case involving a 14-year old girl in 2018 - a case that was closed when the murderer was arrested and convicted despite his pleas of innocence - even from the jail cell he now occupies. Why would that matter? It was Declan who led the investigation and produced the evidence that put the guy away. And now, it seems, Denise has come up with some new evidence of her own.

Readers, of course, see the events as they unfolded back then and in real time from various perspectives; the devil, of course, is in the details. And I wish - oh how I wish - I could offer up a sample of just one. But no; I have no intention of spoiling even a single one of those "Aha" moments for others who want to read it (and if you don't, you'll be missing out on an exhiliarating ride). All I can say is this one's another winner for sure - a don't-miss standalone that will have you chilled, thrilled and aghast from beginning to end. My thanks go to the publisher, via NetGalley, for letting me in on the whole thing by way of a pre-release copy. Wowser!

The Writer by James Patterson and J.D. Barker (Little, Brown and Co., March 2025); 400 pp.

A CALLER'S GAME

 5 stars out of 5

It's hard to believe that much of what happens in this totally engrossing book could ever be possible, although given the recent pre-Inauguration Day events that rocked our nation, the concept may not be all that far-fetched. In the end, it matters not; my only question is, can I give this one 6 stars?

While I admit I do not like to be interrupted once I reach about the 75% mark, starting dinner and heading off to bed almost always take precedence over finishing whatever book I'm reading. This one, though, is the first for which I threw tradition to the wind and told my husband that if he couldn't wait to eat till I'd finished, he'd just have to head for the kitchen and fend for himself. For the record, that's because the action starts to build right from the first page and picks up steam all the way to the end, when I literally said, "Whew!"

Jordan Briggs is the host of a popular radio talk show, broadcast from the SiriusXM Building in the heart of New York City. She's brash, runs a tight ship together with her in-the-booth sidekick Billy and cherishes her 11-year old (equally brash) daughter Charlotte. On this day, a caller named Bernie insists that she play a game; she must choose which way she'd prefer to get around the city - by taxi or Uber.

Down on the street near Jordan's building, homicide detective Cole Hundley has been temporarily demoted to traffic duty because of a transgression involving the daughter of one of his superiors. Suddenly, all hell breaks loose as explosions start to happen all around. As Cole stands near a taxi, the driver takes a call asking to speak to Cole; it's a man named Bernie, who says he's sent a bomb to Jordan's floor and gives Cole a choice: Stay and try to help the cab driver, who's been wired to a bomb, or leave and try to intercept the bomb in the building before it detonates.

Cole ends up taking off toward the building, managing to get inside amid smoke from the blasts and police attempting to cordon off the surrounding streets. From her broadcast booth, caller Bernie continues his "game," demanding that Jordan make impossible choices that suggest Bernie may be trying to even the score from a disastrous event that Jordan engineered years ago. Whatever his reason, it's clear he's a technological wizard who's way ahead of anyone who tries to stop him - including Cole, who quickly is forced into channeling Bruce Willis in "Die Hard" as he races against time to get to a finish line that keeps moving (with my own heart pounding every step of the way).

In short, this is one book that truly lives up to the "thriller" description - if you are comfortable on the edge of your seat, this one's for you. Thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for allowing me to read and review a pre-release copy. And oh, yeah, if a movie based on this book isn't already in the works, it should be. Whew!

A Caller's Game by J.D. Barker (Hampton Creek Press, February 2021); 445 pp.