Skip to main content

The Appeal by Janice Hallett

 

Title: The Appeal

Author: Janice Hallett

Genre: Crime/Mystery

Published: Original Release 1/14/21 New Hardback Release 1/25/22 by Atria Books

I received a copy for review from the Publisher through NetGalley for review.

An appeal to earn the money for a young girl's cancer treatment is such a great cause. How could anything go wrong? The Appeal is a fascinating epistolary novel following law students as they sift through emails and texts preparing for the appeal for a crime committed while a wealthy friend group and drama club is earning money for one of the most influential families child's treatment. 

The best most striking element of this story is the format in which is told. The modernized epistolary style is very engaging. It puts the reader in the middle of the same evidence as the law students are reading it. This was a fun way to try to unravel the mystery of what was happening within this friend group, and how things went so wrong. 

The characters were not always likable in some cases, but they were never boring. They were all fascinating and many possible motives and suspects are brought to the forefront as secrets are revealed. This book is hard to put down, and reads very quickly. I would highly recommend this crime book if you want to be sucked in to the drama, deceit, and unbelievable stories of these friends.

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Riding the Nightmare by Lisa Tuttle

  Title: Riding the Nightmare Author: Lisa Tuttle Genre: Horror Short Story Collection Published: 8/22/23 by Valancourt Books I received a copy for review through NetGalley.  This new collection from a Lisa Tuttle collects stories previously published between 1986 and 2017 with a new expanded version of 'The Dragon's Bride'. The stories seem to fit together in that they all explore unconventional types of relationships from the female prospective. The plots themselves are varied. Some worked better for me than others. This is a great release from Valancourt Books from this great author of Nest of Nightmares and Familiar Spirit. Ride the Nightmare:   Being second to a man in an open marriage isn't easy. For Tess it brings on a prophetic nightmare.The nightmare imagery is great. 4 stars Bits and Pieces: A woman realizes the men that leave her life leave parts of themselves behind. In the pursuit of creating a perfect man she goes to great lengths to get what she wants. 
Post a Comment
Read more

Boys in the Valley by Philip Fracassi

  Title: Boys in the Valley Author: Philip Fracassi Genre: Religious Horror/ Coming of Age Published: July 11, 2023 by TOR Nightfire  I received a copy for review through NetGalley. It is not easy growing up in a turn of the century group home for boys run by priests like the orphans in this religious horror story. Peter is a 16 year old orphan trying to choose between becoming a priest and being with the girl he loves. The toughest things the boys have to deal with are punishments from overzealous staff and small food rations until one night the sheriff rolls in with someone he believes to be possessed. That is when all hell breaks loose. This was a super scary thrill ride of a novel. The characters were all developed so well. There are characters to love and some to hate, but none are one sided. Well, except the demon who is all evil. The boys have had to deal with so much in their lives and I did not want anything to happen to them. If you cannot handle reading harm coming to ch
Post a Comment
Read more

Spin a Black Yarn by Josh Malerman

Title: Spin a Black Yarn Author: Josh Malerman Genre: Horror/Speculative Fiction Published: August 15, 2023 by Random House I received a copy for review through NetGalley.   Spin a Black Yarn is a collection of 5 novellas that have memorable new spins on common genre norms. Malerman takes on a haunted house, a serial killer, space travel, dangers of AI, and revenge. These are very familiar yet his stories are wholly unique and surprising as these themes are turned on their head. These are novellas I will not soon forget. Half the House is Haunted explores a brother and sister's relationship growing up in a house that was half haunted. What does that mean? Which half? 4 stars Argyle follows a dying man's confessions of dark twisted desires that he never acted on. This was really disturbing and effective story despite his lack of actual murder. 5 stars Jupiter Drop is about a man dealing with a tragic accident that decides to take a vacation to Jupiter where he will be able to
Post a Comment
Read more