Category: Thiller / Suspense

(Mostly) Human Resources by Grace Viall

On By TracyIn Check Content Warning/Triggers, Contemporary, Debut Novel, Horror, Mystery, New To Me Author, Paranormal / Fantasy, Romantasy, Thiller / Suspense, Tracy's ReviewsLeave a comment

(Mostly) Human Resources (Entity Case Files, #1)(Mostly) Human Resources by Grace Viall

Tracy’s Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Series: Entity Case Files #1

Release Date: August 4, 2026

Alexys Keane works as a human resources manager for Entity, a company specializing in understanding, classification, conservation and management of cryptids. She is in charge of district 13, which is located primarily in the Appalachian Mountains in West Virginia. She manages 4 wardens who investigate cryptid sightings in the field. So, when one of her wardens goes missing, she heads to West Virginia to find him. She arrives at the hotel where her warden Elliot Harman had been staying to learn that he left the previous day. She plans to follow him, when Nic Dyre, the head of Research and Cataloging for Entity and the most annoying (and good looking) man she has had the misfortune of working with shows up to “help”.

Nic Dyre feels a bit guilty, he had spoken to Elliot (unofficially) about rumors of sightings of the Hollow Walker, an ancient monster that has never been cataloged, Nic would love nothing more than to find the monster and be the youngest R&C manager to ever record an unknown monster, but he never intended for Elliot to go looking for the beast alone! When he learns that Elliot is missing and Alexys is going to look for him, he decides to tag along. But Alexys is not having it and tries to ditch him at every turn. Eventually, after a rather terrifying solo expedition into the woods, she agrees to work with him and what they find will be more than they ever could have imagined.

This book was 100% not what I was expecting, I read the blurb and thought it was going to be a sort of monster-infused low-key rom-com. And while there were monsters aplenty, there was nothing funny or romantic about this book. The book was more horror than romance, and I can only assume that Alexys and Nic will team up in future installments and presumably have some sort of romance, but it didn’t happen in this book. Overall, I liked the writing style and would consider reading the next installment.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher/author. All opinions in this review are my own. *

 

Stolen in Death by J.D. Robb

On By BarbaraIn Audiobook, Barb's Reviews, Futuristic, Mystery, Part of a Series, Thiller / Suspense3 Comments

Stolen in Death (In Death, #62)
Barbara’s rating: 5 out of 5 Stars
Series: In Death #62
Publication Date: 2/3/26
Period: Future New York – September, 2061
Number of Pages: 368

Over thirty years ago, who would have thought this series would still be as strong, interesting, and unique as it was in that very first book? Over the same 30+ years, we’ve only covered about three years in Eve and Roarke’s time. WOW! I sincerely hope we get another thirty years.

Roarke’s past has surfaced before, but in Stolen it takes center stage. Not only does the loot from a long-ago heist reappear, but so does Magdelana—in her full malevolent glory. You may remember her from a previous book, where Roarke and Eve thwarted her attempt to drive a wedge between them. She didn’t take that defeat lightly, and this time she’s out for complete and total revenge. Nothing is off the table—murder, theft, attempted murder—it’s all fair game.

A dispatch summons Eve from a formal gala to the death scene of Nathan Barrister, a rich and powerful man and the head of Zip. While examining the scene, Eve discovers an open vault filled to the brim with priceless stolen items—some taken decades ago. Nathan couldn’t have stolen them himself; he was only a child when some of the thefts occurred. So who did? Why were the items left behind? And why would a stealthy thief commit murder when they could have gotten away clean?

Eve approaches every case with fierce dedication, but when someone attempts to murder her, everyone—from the Chief to the sketch artist—becomes personally invested in tracking down who hired the attacker. Unfortunately, the would-be killer is himself killed while trying to escape, taking crucial answers with him.

I both read the book and listened to the audio version, and each offers something special. Narrated by Susan Ericksen—who has voiced every book in the series—the audio truly brings the story to life. I’ve listened to them all, and she is consistently excellent. Her character voices are so ingrained in my mind that I hear them even when reading the text. Each performance is unique, well-paced, and expertly delivered.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a great suspense story. While the series is set in the future, that future no longer feels so distant. The imagined technology is intriguing (and often very desirable), and the supporting characters are delightful—richly developed, full of personality, and extremely likable.

This is a wonderful story and can certainly be read as a stand-alone. However, to fully appreciate the depth of character growth and relationships, I suggest reading at least the first four books. I know recommending all sixty-one previous titles sounds daunting, but I promise—you won’t regret it.

Happy reading!

I voluntarily read an early copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

View all my reviews