DRB Reviews...Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth 

Rating: 4.5/5 "Lovable"

What an endearing read! I have wanted to read this for awhile and when my daughter's boyfriend bought me an Indigo gift card, I had to buy this book!  I fell in love with Mabel instantly and related to her childhood bullying. Although a sad story, I love the triumph in this novel. This was a perfect read after reading The Calamity Club.

It was a fast popcorn read and the pages turned super quickly. I gave it a 4.5 rating as I would have loved a little more depth in the story line. I guess I just wanted everything filled out a bit more, more back story, more character development...I think I just really loved the story and wanted more! 

Synopsis: Mad Mabel is a dark domestic thriller about 81-year-old Elsie Mabel Fitzpatrick, who lives as a sharp-tongued curmudgeon in Melbourne. Although this novel explores why Elsie is called Mad Mabel and explores the dark side, there is a beautiful shining light on the other side as Elsie is loved and adored by her neighbours and a small child, Persephone. I loved reading about a character in her 80's, it was bold and new with a different perspective that I deeply enjoyed.

This is a must read for 2026 for sure!

#madmabel
#dawnrodger
#sallyhepworth
#indigobooks
​#newrelease

DRB Reviews...The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett

Rating: 6/5 "Best Book of the Year" HANDS DOWN!

This is the best book I have read not only this year but in many! The characters were so rich, and the story telling completely all consuming. Stockett weaved humour through out and I found myself laughing out loud more times than I can count. Truthfully, I am so sad to have closed the book for the last time. I actually re-read the last few chapters while holding my breath, just mesmerized by the ending. 

Synopsis: Set in Oxford Mississippi during the Great Depression, three women discover the hardships first hand as their lives crumble apart around them. As their world's collide, the women form an unlikely sisterhood and band together to reclaim their lives without government support, and fight against institutional sexism and poverty. 

When I read the synopsis for the first time, I wasn't sure I would like the book, I love historical fiction but am not a fan of the Great Depression era. Plus, the sheer size of the book was intimidating to me. However, Stockett made me fall in love with Meg, Birdie and Charlie and I honestly don't know how I will cope without them. The size didn't matter in the end, because all I really wanted was more pages!

My favourite book of all time is Anne of Green Gables, this book is in second place. It has the same rich story telling and character development, but has a more adult theme and feminist view point.

BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR!

www.dawnrodger.ca
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#thecalamityclub
#indigo
#kathrynstockett
#dawnrodger
#newreleases

DRB Reviews...The House Across the Lake by Riley Sager

Rating: 4/5 "Eerily Ghostly" 

I bought a copy of this book from a library book sale. The best kind because I love it when hard cover copies are protected with dust jackets. I saved this for a summer vacation read and it has been on my TBR for awhile now, for at least a few years. 

I just came back from a vacation in Algonquin Provincial Park. I felt this would be a PERFECT book to read at the lake. Very appropriate indeed. See picture below. Let me tell you though, this was NOT a book to read at night when there were no outdoor lights or stars out. The supernatural elements in this story gave me the creeps!

​Synopsis: Casey is a widowed alcoholic that is hiding from her career as an actress and the public eye at her family's lake house. To pass the time, she uses binoculars to spy on her glamorous neighbours across the lake, Tom and his supermodel wife Katherine. Casey witnesses what looks like domestic troubles and suddenly Katherine disappears without a trace. Spying on the house becomes a complete obsession, but everything takes an unexpected turn into the supernatural and Katherine is beginning to question her drinking and her sanity. 

I honestly loved this book. I didn't rate it a 5/5 as it wasn't my favourite of Sager's, but it was a perfect vacation read and I am not disappointed. How can anyone be disappointed with any of Sager's thrillers anyway!

www.dawnrodger.ca

#rileysager
#ahouseacrossthelake
#dawnrodger
#thriller
#booktok

DRB Reviews...Heart of Glass by Jennifer Hillier

Rating: 5/5 "Chilling"

I chose Heart of Glass as my August book of the month selection and boy it didn't disappoint. What a jaw dropping chilling thriller. I was so excited to be able to support another Canadian author. 

Synopsis: Three best friends met a drifter at the local amusement park; shortly after one of them was found murdered. A serial killer called The Carnival Killer confessed. Fast forward 25 years, and he recants the confession and forces the two best friends left behind to confront the dark secrets of their past when a new body surfaces in their hometown. 

There is nothing better than a serial killer thriller. But what sets Heart of Glass apart is the overlapping of a possible second serial killer overlapping with the first set of crimes. I loved the deep female bond and friendship highlighted in this novel. It explores the evils of social media and reality television in the modern era and the impacts it has on relationships. I am extremely sad I have finished this book. It is one that I didn't want to end. 

Absolutely no spoilers in my reviews, however I do have to say the revenge scene has got to be the most satisfying chapter I have read in my life. Hands down! Kudos Hillier, and thank you for that.

www.dawnrodger.ca

#jenniferhillier
#heartofglass
#bookofthemonth
#canadian
​#dawnrodger

DRB Reviews...Imposter by LJ Ross

This book was recommended by Crime by the Book on Instagram. As the saying goes, home is where the heart is, well my heart is in Ireland. Once I discovered that Imposter was set in Ireland I was hooked. 

Rating: 4/5  "A page turner"
Synopsis:  Dr. Alexander Gregory is pulled back into the field as an elite profiler and travels to a tight-knit community in the remote, scenic hills of County Mayo, Ireland. He is called in to help the local police a solve a gruesome murder of a local mother. Facing a killer who is hiding in plain sight as "one of their own," Alex must battle internal police politics, his status as an unwelcome outsider, and his own internal demons to crack the mind of a cunning predator.

I loved this book. It was small and devourable, and read easily. It reminded me of a good ol' Agatha Christie novel; the perfect "whodunnit".  I loved the Irish details and dialect, it made me feel like I was home with family. 

The ending will leave you speechless...what a twist (shhh...there were two!) I highly recommend this book and will be looking into getting the other 5 books in the set of 6: Imposter, Hysteria, Bedlam, Mania, Panic and Amnesia...all part of the Dr. Alexander Gregory Series.

www.dawnrodger.ca

#dralexandergregory
#ljross
#imposter
#dawnrodger
#whodunnit

DRB Reviews...It Could Have Been Her by Lisa Jewell

Rating: 5/5 "Dark"

Oh my goodness what did I just read? Like seriously! Lisa Jewell is one of my most favourite authors of all time and I couldn't wait to receive this new release this summer! Unfortunately, I was in the depths of reading other books when it came in the mail and I took it on vacation to read but never picked it up. When I got home, I chose to listen to the audiobook while painting and redecorating our gym for the upcoming colder months. I am so glad I did. The audiobook has an entire full cast of narrators, something I have never experienced before...and it was so much better than one single narrator! The story came to life!

The synopsis: The main character Jane, finds a lost terrier while walking on her country estate. When the teen staying with the dog vanishes, Jane traces the pet to a creepy house unlocking repressed childhood trauma and unearthing decades of dark family secrets. What I loved most is the character Jane is a fifty-five year old single woman, who developed into a "Miss Marple" type of detective; I found her adorably appealing and lovable. But man did she uncover some serious darkness. 

I honestly believe only Jewell can create that eerie dark house setting, and in this novel it's called Thornwood House. Jane discovers this rundown Hampstead house and is caught cold in her tracks when she realizes that it is trigging terrifying memories from a visit to that very same house twenty-five years prior.  Jewell has a gift, and it's telling the dark secrets of unsettling houses.

I highly recommend this book to any Jewell fans who loved the book The Family Upstairs. Thornwood House might just be creepier!

www.dawnrodger.ca

#lisajewell
#newrelease
#icouldhavebeenher
#dawnrodger
#thriller

DRB Reviews...The Carpool Detectives by Chuck Hogan

Rating: 5/5 "Riveting"

Oh my, where to start with this review! I was away on vacation, enjoying a digital free, unplugged break from the world and walked into a cozy book shop on Main Street, Huntsville. It was a beautiful little shop. While my daughters were browsing, I sat down in one of their comfy chairs and was facing the True Crime Section. Instantly, this bold red cover popped out at me, and I read "The Carpool Detectives: A true story of four moms, two bodies and one mysterious cold case." I was instantly intrigued. I got up and picked it up, turned it over and began reading to discover that these four women, during COVID, solved an old cold case.  I HAD to buy it! When I got back to the cabin, I started it right away and boy what a ride. 

I learned quickly that this true crime story was a 15 year old unsolved mystery with no chance of being reopened any time soon, as the lead detective on the case retired. The crime: A married couple vanished alongside millions of unaccounted funds. They were later found dead just outside of their vehicle at the bottom of a steep ravine. The four women dug through dense court files, visited the potential crime scenes, and untangled massive financial fraud, ultimately risking physical danger to crack open the cold case and in turn, found personal reinvention all during the pandemic. It gave them purpose, friendship and lit their intellects on fire when everyone else was doing homeschooling and baking bread. 

Did I love it? Every blooming page! I couldn't put it down. I love the true crime genre in general, but this story was so appealing as it included a deep female bond that was so pleasantly satisfying. I highly recommend this book to those who don't even like true crime as the book reads like a fictional thriller. 

www.dawnrodger.ca

#thecarpooldetectives
#chuckhogan
#dawnrodger
#truecrime

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DRB Reviews...Summers Never Over by Darby Bozeman

Rating: 4/5 "Perfect Popcorn Read"

If you ever went to summer camp, this book is for you! Do you remember the scary stories at night, sitting by the camp fire? Or perhaps, late into the night, when darkness overcomes the cabins, and you are whispering the scary stories to each other in the pitch black? The Phantom will come alive for you and you are going to want to read this book!

Five years after a stalker called "The Phantom" caused a fatal camp fire, Greer Olsen is forced back to Dread's Cove following her mother's sudden death. Returning for the camp's grand reopening, Greer must confront her grief, her two ex-boyfriends, and a web of deadly secrets left behind by her deceased friend.

Summers Never Over was my June Book of the Month pick! It didn't disappoint. I loved the summer camp scene, it brought back so many memories for me. I read this book in 24 hours. It was completely devourable and I desperately tried to figure out who The Phantom was. No spoilers here but I wasn't a fan of the ending, the epilogue fell a little flat for me, hence why the 4 stars and not 5. But, this is a definite must summer must read.

www.dawnrodger.ca

#summersneverover
#darbybozeman
#summerreads
#dawnrodger
​#bookofthemonth
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DRB Reviews...It's One of Us by J. T. Ellison

Rating: 4/5 "Shocking"

What the heck did I just read? This book left me in awe...and constantly checking my moral code. But, I loved it!  

It's One of Us is a domestic psychological thriller like nothing I have read before. Olivia Bender is an interior designer who is struggling with severe infertility and multiple miscarriages. Her world shatters when the police arrive with DNA evidence proving that the prime suspect in a brutal murder investigation is her husband Park's biological son—despite the couple having no children together. Like wth? And as you keep turning the pages it gets wilder and wilder!

I bought this kindle read on a daily BookBub deal and it didn't disappoint. I loved reading it on my kindle at night before bed. There was always something exciting around the corner...and no spoilers here...but this book got my brain buzzing! It really made me think about the things we just accept and trust in this world. 

Trust me, it will send you spiralling!

www.dawnrodger.ca
#dawnrodger
#itsoneofus
#jtellison
#psychologicalthriller

DRB Reviews...Lady X by Molly Fader

Rating: 5/5 "Empowering!"

I have been anxiously awaiting the release of this book since I first saw it as a Goodreads giveaway. The instant it was released I rushed out to Indigo to buy it. I am going to make a big statement here but this is honestly my favourite thriller of 2026! This book embodies the MeToo movement and captures female empowerment perfectly. I am incredibly sad that I have finished it, I really didn't want to stop turning the pages. 

Lady X is a dual timeline feminist thriller, that bounces back and forth between the 1970's and the present. After Margot's famous actor husband is exposed in a public sexting scandal, Margot escapes the paparazzi and returns to her childhood home in Pittsburgh to her sister, with her teenage daughter in tow. While cleaning the attic, the three uncover evidence linking their mother/grandmother to "Lady X," a notorious 1970s vigilante who exposed abusive men—revealing that her family's deepest secrets may be even more shocking than her husband's.

This novel was a fantastical story of the female bond in sisterhood, friendship, and mother/daughter relationships. It brought to the light women's suffering and men's indifference and captured the MeToo movement perfectly.  I personally loved the parallel line to the Son of Sam, I felt it rooted the novel into the historical time line well, acting like an anchor in the past. 

Lady X is about revenge, female liberation and autonomy. It is about bringing into the light abuse against women, and about conquering the "good fight." Honestly, there is nothing better than this book!

www.dawnrodger.ca

#metoo
#mollyfader
#ladyx
#dawnrodger
​#newrelease