The Keeper

 

The Keeper by Tana French
3/31/26; 496 pages
Viking/Penguin 
Cal Hooper #3 

The Keeper by Tana French is highly recommended literary, character-driven crime fiction and the final novel in the Cal Hooper trilogy. Set in the small village of Arknakelty, Ireland, interpersonal dynamics play a vital role as a dangerous, threatening scheme is uncovered.

When Rachel Holohan goes missing, the community searches for her until her body is found in the river.  She was about to be engaged to Eugene Moynihan, the son of Tommy, the local big shot whose family has controlled the village for decades. Retired Chicago detective Cal Hooper finds himself pulled into the turmoil of generations-old grudges and power struggles as Rachel's death brings many questions, rumors, and divisions between villagers to the forefront. The highly volatile and contradictory opinions of individuals clash and tensions run high throughout Arknakelty. The tension even enters the relationship between Cal and Lena. 

The writing is wonderfully atmospheric and detailed, creating a specific place and setting which is inhabited by a unique set of characters. The suspense rises slowly, sometimes very slowly, as the mystery and subsequent life-long feuds reach a climax. The characters are all brought to life and much of the tale is told through dialogue. Reading this novel is an immersion into life in a small, remote Irish village.

The biggest problem is the pacing, which, on the one hand, can feel glacially slow, but, on the other hand, allows the detailed, nuanced characters and setting to come to life. Initially, I enjoyed the details but then for much of the first half of the novel it made the pace feel too slow for a mystery novel. The second half does pick up, but, at almost 500 pages, it still felt like the whole novel could have benefited from a bit more editing to tighten it up. Admittedly, I missed a book in the series and suffered for my neglect. This is a series where you will benefit from reading all the novels in order: The Searcher, The Hunter, and The Keeper.

The Keepers is a great choice for those following the series and enjoy literary, character-driven mysteries. Thanks to Viking/Penguin for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.     

How to Be Okay When Nothing Is Okay

 

How to Be Okay When Nothing Is Okay by Jenny Lawson
3/31/26; 288 pages
Viking/Penguin 

How to Be Okay When Nothing Is Okay by Jenny Lawson is a highly recommended self-help guide filled with genuine and humorous heartfelt advice for anyone suffering from self-doubt, depression, anxiety, ADHD, creative blocks, distraction, overthinking, and paralysis. That's quite the list and yet Lawson offers her collection of more than one hundred coping strategies for it all.

The book is organized into twelve parts with very short chapters. You can read it straight through or pick and chose sections you may need for a quick boost or reset of your mind. The opening sections will tell you what the short chapters in that section will help you with and the chapter titles will also assist in that endeavor. There are photos, illustrations, and quotes throughout the text.

There were several quotes which I immediately highlighted as they spoke to me right now, which accentuates the intended purpose of the guide. One was the fact that terrible moments make amazing stories which you can share and laugh about. A mantra I have fully embraced for years. Another reminder was something I'm currently struggling with doing, the observation that being kind also means being kind to yourself and removing yourself from bad situations, something that can be easier said than done. An additional tip was that the greatest gift you can give is to share the hard times, the traumatic and terrible things. Even though it may traumatize you, it can also serve to heal those wounds.

Now there were also sections that didn't speak to me right now, but that is the whole purpose of this guide - it will assist you in areas where you need help when you need it. If you are not familiar with Lawson, take note that she is shares deeply personal anecdotes, her humor can be dark, and she can use profanity. 

How to Be Okay When Nothing Is Okay is a mental health guide that offers entertainment and understanding. Thanks to Viking/Penguin for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

Killing Me Softly

 

Killing Me Softly by Sandie Jones
3/31/26; 320 pages
St. Martin's Press 

Killing Me Softly by Sandie Jones is a recommended domestic thriller featuring a cast of disagreeable characters behaving badly and keeping secrets.

Charlie, an up-and-coming chef, and Freya, a charity’s fundraiser, are a picture-perfect loving couple, or are they? When a spectacular fallout at a dinner party with Charlie's boss is followed by the police at their door the next morning with news that Charlie’s car has been involved in a hit-and-run accident. This is followed by the two turning on each other and their true natures being revealed. Accusations, guilt, deception, and vengeance are all involved as the two turn on each other look for someone to blame. Adding to the mix are schemes underway by friends and family.

This is definitely a page turning popcorn thriller. All the characters are insanely conniving as they protect their secrets and make their own evil plans. The narrative alternates between Freya and Charlie’s perspectives while closely following the collapse of their marriage along with an abundance of cunning duplicity from everyone. Unreliable narrators can be an interesting narrative choice, but, honestly, there isn't one likable character present in this tale of domestic turmoil.  As everyone plots behind each other's backs, the stakes rise along with the tension. 

The pacing is a bit off-kilter through the first half of the plot and although stuff happens, for all the drama it still seems slow. Then it picks up the pace as everyone's actions become more suspicious and secrets are outed. Everyone is double-faced and shrewd. There is a shocking twist at the end, but at that point it was expected but did up the thriller aspects of the novel. When down, I felt like I had read this book before but with a better presentation. 3.5, rounded down to 3.

Killing Me Softly is a good choice for those who enjoy domestic thrillers with unreliable, disagreeable characters. Thanks to St. Martin's Press for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.    

The Uganda Protocol

 

The Uganda Protocol by Jeffrey James Higgins
3/31/26; 454 pages 
Severn River Publishing
Nathan Burke #4

The Uganda Protocol by Jeffrey James Higgins is a highly recommended international thriller and the fourth novel featuring Nathan Burke. 

FBI Special Agent Nathan Burke is at the airport to take custody of terrorism suspect Imam Omar Yemeni. What he finds instead is a plane full of deceased passengers and Yemeni is no where to be found. This sets into motion an international manhunt for Yemeni, who has many contacts helping him evade being caught. Clearly he and his cohorts are planning something big. Burke needs to find him and thwart the plan.

At the same time Leila Kabiri works as a court interpreter. She is an Iranian immigrant who fled her homeland with her neurodivergent son Darius and mother. As she begins her work as an interpreter, foreign operatives and those working for them begin to contact and threaten her and her family unless she provides them with inside information, placing her in an impossible situation.

This is a well-written, action-packed international thriller in which the tension and suspense keep rising throughout the novel. Time is critical and the conspiracy is global. The stakes are high both internationally and personally as it seems the faction of terrorists is widespread and their actions are planned. As with many thrillers some disbelief must be set aside but this can easily be done along with accepting Burke's seemingly superhuman capabilities. He is an intelligent investigator and exceptionally capable agent who can follow any clues.

The Uganda Protocol can be read as a standalone novel even though it is the fourth book in the series. There is enough general background given on Nathan Burke within the narrative for those who appreciate character development. Everyone reading for the globe-trotting action and heart-stopping action will also be fully rewarded. Those following the series won't want to miss this outing for both the non-stop action and because there are big changes hinted at during the end of the novel. Admittedly, I was hesitant to read this based on current affairs, but after pushing through my misgivings, it proved to be an enjoyable thriller. 

The Uganda Protocol is a great choice for readers who enjoy international thrillers. Thanks to Severn River Publishers for providing me with an advance reader's copy via Edelweiss. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

No Good Deed

 

No Good Deed by Katherine Kovacic
3/31/26; 336 pages
Poisoned Pen Press 

No Good Deed by Katherine Kovacic is a highly recommended character-driven mystery set in the Australian Outback.

Rena is a retired geologist and currently on the cross-country trip she and her husband Tom had planned before he passed away. As she is driving her kitted-out truck on the Great Northern Highway in Western Australia headed for her first destination she notices a burning vehicle off the road and immediately pulls off to see if she can help or stop the fire from spreading. There is no help for the victim inside so Rena calls the police and waits for them. After a few questions the police ask her to stay in the area by the nearby town of Fitzroy Crossing. 

She soon discovers two things. First the area is a proposed site for diamond mining to begin operations and the the community is divided over the action. Then Rena learns that the victim in the vehicle is thought to be a geologist she knew decades earlier. Intrigued by the situation, Rena decides to start looking into the death, especially because it may be related to her area of expertise.

After an attention grabbing opening, No Good Deed features an even-paced plot, even slow at times, that relies more on character development and personal interaction over action, thrills, and twists. While Rena and the police conduct their own separate investigations, the connection to diamonds becomes clear. This make geology which focuses on the exploration for minerals and mining a major plot-point so it helps if this is also an interest of the reader as it becomes important to the plot. The case also becomes increasingly dangerous and threatening toward the end. 

The key to enjoying this novel is Rena. She is portrayed as a complicated, fully-realized, intelligent older woman with strengths and weaknesses. She is grieving the loss of her husband and admits that having a focus and problem to solve will help her mindset. She is certainly a novice sleuth, but the skills she developed as a geologist are useful in noticing details and knowing areas of interest to investigate. Her friendship with much younger Aitch was a welcome addition to the narrative. 

No Good Deed is a good choice for those who would enjoy an even-paced mystery focused on character development over non-stop action-packed twists. Thanks to Poisoned Pen Press for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.     

From the Dust

 

From the Dust by David Swinson
3/31/26; 320 pages
Little, Brown and Company 

From the Dust by David Swinson is a highly recommended murder mystery/police procedural set in a small town in Upstate rural New York.

Retired police detective Graham Sanderson spent years in Washington, DC, as a homicide detective. After his father's death and that of his wife three years earlier, Graham moves into his father's home to look after his brother, Tommy, who suffers from PTSD and agoraphobia. He was hoping for a quiet, peaceful retirement when the local police chief, William Finn, a family friend, asks him to assist brand new detective Mike Gottert with two murders that seem to be connected. Both bodies were found with the same kind of stab wounds. Graham reluctantly agrees to help.

It is always a pleasure to read a well-written police procedural where evidence is collected, people are interviewed, and all the clues are logically uncovered and followed up on as the investigation proceeds. The plot moves at an even pace, picking up toward the end. There aren't multiple wild twists or unbelievable developments along the way, yet suspense rises as the investigation proceeds. You will understand that this rural area is not somewhere where multiple murders are common, but people will also know a bit more about what their neighbors are up to, where they go, and who they see, so a connection between victims is quickly uncovered.

Graham and Tommy are interesting characters and both have had complicated backgrounds which aren't completely revealed here, but may be in a future novel. We know Tommy suffered from abuse at the hands of their mother. Graham also starts a relationship with the woman who owns the bakery in town. 

From the Dust is a great choice for those who appreciate procedurals set in a small town where a crime is logically investigated. Thanks to Little, Brown and Company for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

Killed to Order

 

Killed to Order by Jan Jekielek 
Forewords by Sam Brownback, Joseph Varon 
3/17/26; 264 pages
Skyhorse

Killed to Order by Jan Jekielek is the very highly recommended account of egregious human rights abuses by the CCP. The sub title says it all: The Organ Harvesting Industry of China and the True Nature of America's Biggest Adversary. This is a well-researched account of the nefarious practices of the CCP. 

There is no question that Killed to Order is a difficult book to read based on the atrocities perpetrated by the CCP. Journalist Jan Jekielek, Epoch Times senior editor and host of the show “American Thought Leaders,” does an excellent job taking a plethora of information from reputable sources and combining it with his own research. The result makes a compelling case for the essential need to reconsider our approach to the CCP, especially as they increasingly show that they are a threat to our liberty and  freedom. 

For years there have been news stories, books, and other sources indicating that China is involved with forced organ harvesting and selling organs to people around the world. These organs are harvested from Uyghurs, Falun Gong practitioners (also known as Falun Dafa), and Taiwanese prisoners, along with other targeted groups of undesirable people. As Dr. Joseph Varon makes clear in his introduction: This is not a medical scandal nor an ethical gray zone or policy failure. It is the weaponization of medicine itself. Transplant tourism creates the death on demand and forced organ harvesting. If we do not condemn this evil practice, our silence is complicity in allowing these crimes against humanity.

In the CCP human life has no value beyond an assigned measurable worth - their social credit score - and the party is obsessed with complete control and any action can be justified. The ruling elite always come first. Starting with the human rights abuses, especially the state-sanctioned harvesting of organs, Jekielek exposes the inner workings of the CCP and their regime built on deception, coercion, and control.  Technology will be stolen. Secret police stations are established across Western countries. For them, every technology must have dual usage, especially military applications. Think Covid. 

The book is divided into two parts. Part one covers the ongoing organ harvesting from live people. Part two delves into the history of the CCP and their regime.  Others have tried to get some of this information out for years. Before reading, I had watched an interview between Jan Jekielek and Mike Row. More recently he joined Dr. Bret Weinstein on a Darkhorse Inside Rail.

Killed to Order is an excellent choice for those who follow current events, specifically human rights violations and other atrocities perpetrated by the CCP. Thanks to Skyhorse for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.