My Book Reviews for January 2026 (Part One)
My Book Reviews for January 2026 (Part One)
My Book Reviews for January 2026 (Part One) comprise several thrillers, a podcast-style mystery and a short story collection. All are independent reviews of advance copies. I thank the authors, publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity.
Deedee and Caitlin are two very different young women:
Deedee has a loving partner, whose parents have welcomed her into their family. She has become a police officer in her small Irish hometown.
Caitlin is estranged from her alcoholic mother, lurches from one rough sexual encounter to the next. She quit Ireland at eighteen and now pickpockets her way around London.
Yet they are also very similar:
Both are belittled at work.
Both tend to self-sabotage and struggle to control their tempers.
Both suffer from the trauma of nine-year-old Roisin’s disappearance twenty years ago. Roisin was Deedee’s sister and Caitlin’s friend.
Both blame Caitlin.
When her mother dies, Caitlin is forced to return to Ireland. There to greet her is Deedee, determined to hound out an admission of guilt.
Seasoned crime thriller readers may anticipate some of the twists, but that’s not important. This is a slow-burn, character-led literary thriller that deploys visceral interiority to depict the two protagonists.
A strong debut.
When We Were Evil by S.B. Caves
Twenty-five years ago, Ruby was the fifteen-year-old convicted of a murder that rocked the nation and led to her being vilified in the media. After serving her sentence, she has spent her adult life taking cash-in-hand jobs, altering her appearance, changing her name and moving on before her past can catch up with her. But now she has been tracked down by a documentary film maker, who wants her to tell her story ahead of a planned Netflix series that could destroy her reputation all over again. Reluctantly, Ruby agrees to record interviews for the documentary.
The author creates suspense as details of Ruby’s childhood of abuse and abandonment and a blow-by-blow account of the shocking murder are revealed. Ruby is portrayed as a flawed but rounded character, while other key players remain shadowy so the reader doesn’t know who to trust.
This fluently written story is reminiscent of a standalone by Michael Wood. Fans of the trope may well enjoy this thriller.
From the blurb: Connie Cross was a trusted pharmacy assistant when she was arrested for the gruesome murders of at least seven strangers. Now, she's serving a whole-life order for the shocking crimes she refuses to explain. Olivia Lang never forgot Connie, the awkward teenager from a south London estate she first met while working for the police. Twenty years later, Olivia is desperate to understand what made Connie turn into a murderer. But as she begins to uncover the truth about the UK's most notorious female serial killer, Olivia risks revealing secrets she's kept hidden for years.
This is less of a thriller and more of a fluently written psychological study of the two protagonists.
We delve into Connie’s psyche as the horror of her childhood with a loving but mentally ill mother and a violent father is revealed.
Gradually, through her prison visits to the serial killer, former police officer Olivia not only learns what motivated Connie but also faces the flaws and secrets in her own life.
For fans of tense, slow-burn fiction.
What Happened Last Summer by Laura Pearson
Extracted from the blurb: Everyone remembers where they were when they heard that AJ Silver had died. In summer 1996, there was no avoiding the story that America's biggest teen pop sensation had plunged to his death on a rollercoaster at a family-run amusement park in rural England. Twenty-seven years later, podcaster Danny has spent hundreds of hours interviewing everyone who was there that fateful day: workers, friends, family… the people who gained from his death, and the people who lost everything… Perhaps it wasn’t such an accident after all.
This is part mystery and part exploration of life choices, the disintegration of a family and the salvaging of relationships. Told entirely in podcast format, it includes the viewpoints of the popstar’s parents and brother and the owners of the amusement park and their two children.
Fans will be intrigued. Another surefire hit for this popular author.
Ever since Storm's younger brother was murdered, she has seen danger round every corner. She gains a reputation for crying wolf, so when she witnesses a murder, no one believes her. No one except her neighbour Lena, a retired detective. Together the two women hunt for the killer.
This is a twisty mystery/thriller, with cosy overtones in the style of writing. Fans of Lesley Kara's books will really enjoy this one.
Best Offer Wins by Marisa Kashino
From the blurb: Margo’s life, her marriage, her family, her career are dangerously out of control and all she needs is a new home to get them all back on track. So when the ideal house comes up, desperate measures are called for. A little online stalking. Some sneaky surveillance of the property in question. Befriending the owner. But when your best offer might not win, then you just need to do what it takes…
This is a fluently written dark comedy thriller about a heated housing market and the increasingly desperate and crazy measures Margo takes to secure her dream home.
I Could Be Famous by Sydney Rende
A fluently written collection of short stories on the themes of sex, celebrity and self-image. For readers looking for something different.
So those are My Book Reviews for January 2026 (Part One). I’ll be posting My Book Reviews for January 2026 (Part Two) at the end of the month.
My New Newsletter
My new Substack newsletter will provide writing tips for emerging writers. This first post – My Writing Year 2025 – gives a snapshot of what I got up to last year and explodes the myth of the thousand-words-a-day word count, and the second discusses the value of writing buddies. Subscribe for free: Dr Rachel Sargeant | Substack