On a Quiet Street

On a Quiet Street

by Seraphina Nova Glass

Blurb:

The perfect neighborhood can be the perfect place to hide…

Who wouldn’t want to live in Brighton Hills? This exclusive community on the Oregon coast is the perfect mix of luxury and natural beauty. Stunning houses nestle beneath mighty Douglas firs, and lush backyards roll down to the lakefront. It’s the kind of place where neighbors look out for one another. Sometimes a little too closely…

My Reaction:

Well, I like the cover, and the title is okay... Based on the blurb, I was expecting something a little gossipy and maybe slightly trashy—something inspired by the old Desperate Housewives TV dramedy, which could be okay, since I'm just borrowing it through Amazon.  Desperate Housewives may well be the intended vibe, but it just didn't work for me.  

I found the plot ridiculous.  The irritating characters' behavior is nonsensical and frustrating, to the degree that I lost all patience with them, so I stopped reading at 28%.  

After skimming some of the unfavorable reviews (and completely ignoring the many who apparently loved it), it doesn't sound like I'm missing out on much.  DNF, and relieved to move on to something fresher!

A Flicker in the Dark

A Flicker in the Dark

by Stacy Willingham

Blurb:

When Chloe Davis was twelve, six teenage girls went missing in her small Louisiana town. By the end of the summer, Chloe’s father had been arrested as a serial killer and promptly put in prison. Chloe and the rest of her family were left to grapple with the truth and try to move forward while dealing with the aftermath.

Now 20 years later, Chloe is a psychologist in private practice in Baton Rouge and getting ready for her wedding. She finally has a fragile grasp on the happiness she’s worked so hard to get. Sometimes, though, she feels as out of control of her own life as the troubled teens who are her patients. And then a local teenage girl goes missing, and then another, and that terrifying summer comes crashing back. Is she paranoid, and seeing parallels that aren't really there, or for the second time in her life, is she about to unmask a killer?

My Reaction:

I'm having difficulty rating this one, because I enjoyed reading most of it, but at the same time, there is room for improvement.  Some of the twists are predictable, though you're kept in enough doubt that it's still very readable in that respect—plus I'm always curious about how the finer details will work out.  

One of my main annoyances with this book is the way characters sometimes behave so illogically.  I know, real people do that, too, but... Eh, it frustrates me.  It can also be irritatingly repetitive, some of the metaphors really don't work for me, and at times the science and police procedures are questionable at best.  However, I still found it an interesting enough read.  

I'd certainly consider reading more by this author.