Bet you don't hear me say this a lot about thrillers, but here's a fun one, everybody!

Meredith McCall is a psychiatrist dealing with her own personal tragedy. In the midst of her grief and guilt, she can't help but be drawn to the one person who must understand how she feels. When she sees him one day on the street, she feels the impulse to follow him. But what starts out innocently enough soon turns into something more. And when he shows up in her office as a patient, Meredith knows it can't possibly be a coincidence. Can it?

I pretty much judge psychological thrillers by two criteria—how riveting they are and how much eye-rolling they induce in me. Obviously, I want maximum of the former while keeping the latter to a minimum. And this story totally ticks both boxes.

I think the word unputdownable gets thrown around a lot when it comes to books, but this one definitely fits the bill. In fact, I dare you to pick it up and then try to put it down. There's something so eminently readable and binge-worthy about this story, and I couldn't help but want to read just one more page.

In terms of twists, I think that gets made into a big deal with this genre. But whether you'll be surprised here will probably depend on a few things, namely how many other books of a similar vein you've read. There are usually only a few ways such a story can play out. And since I've read a bunch, I wasn't that surprised. But it didn't take anything away from the story for me and I enjoyed it nonetheless, regardless of the surprise element.

If you're going to read this book, it's probably best to go in blind as is the case with any book of this genre. But maybe the one thing to know to set expectations correctly is that under the big umbrella of psychological thrillers, this bends heavily towards romantic suspense. While it isn't a romance, it does have heavy sexual undertones and some spicy scenes, which totally makes sense since Vi Keeland is an author known first and foremost for her romance books. In fact, this looks to be her first foray into the thriller genre, and if it's anything to go by, I definitely can't wait for more.

Readaroo Rating: 4 stars

Am I getting too old and cynical for romances? Say it ain't so!

I have trouble passing up books with the word "bodyguard" in its description (cue "I Will Always Love You" by Whitney Houston). In fact, I picked up the first book of this series solely because I wanted to read this one. The princess and the bodyguard is a pairing as old as time, not to mention absolutely swoon-worthy, and before I cracked open the first page, I was filled to the brim with anticipatory glee for all the fun I was about to have.

And for the most part, I enjoyed the story itself. It was a bit long-winded, but compared to instalove, I'll take a slow burn any day. While this didn't break any new ground and is pretty much what you'd expect from the trope, it was still fun. Rhys the Bodyguard is all like I take security very seriously ma'am, and Bridget the Princess is all like you can't tell me what to do. I'm totally on board with that.

And yet. Yet, yet, yet. I feel like something was missing. Was it better chemistry, more snarky banter? I'm not sure. All I know is what I got felt like a paler version of what it could've been. Or maybe the problem is me and I built this up so much in my head, nothing could possibly meet it.

One thing I do know for sure is that Ana Huang's male characters are a bit too much for me. They're so sexed up and possessive, it's hard to take them seriously. They way they talk and act, you'd think they came straight from the chest-thumping Stone Age. No other man can even look at their women, lest glares and threats erupt from their mouths. They're constantly like, Who do you belong to? Me! And that's more or less verbatim.

And the sex scenes. Ugh, I feel like such an old fuddy duddy for saying this, but they were so frequent and unrealistic in that porny way, I was cringing with embarrassment for the characters. I enjoyed the first third of the book so much more simply because there was no sex in it. But the last two-thirds felt like every other scene was dramatic sex, and I was so over it.

It's hard to really enjoy a story if I'm cringing my way through so much of it, and that's what happened here. Obviously, romances are personal, and this is clearly a case where my tastes just don't quite line up with the author's. And there's nothing wrong with that. Plenty of readers love this series; I just wish I were one of them.

Readaroo Rating: 3 stars

Wow, this was so over the top. Usually I reserve my suspension of disbelief skill for thrillers, but it sure came in handy here.

Sometimes I look at my long TBR, and nothing strikes my fancy. I just want to take a break from it all. I want something light and fun, a guilty pleasure if you will. And this totally fit the bill. Ana Huang has been on my list of authors to try, and this seemed like the right book to start, both being her most popular and having the irresistible grumpy/sunshine trope.

Of all the romance tropes out there, grumpy/sunshine is probably my all-time fav. What's not to like about a happy, bubbly gal poking fun at and slowly thawing the heart of an uptight, don't-know-how-to-smile guy who takes everything too seriously? So I was all set to enjoy the heck out of this from beginning to end, the way you would any guilty pleasure.

And I loved the beginning. There was so much funny banter, I had a smile permanently affixed to my face. Facial pain is generally bad, but when it comes from smiling too much? Sign me up any day.

But then as the story went on, it became too much. Ava is the most sunshine of all sunshine girls (Alex's nickname for her is even "Sunshine"), while Alex is so ruthless he threatens ruin and death upon anyone who gets in his way, including those who have the gall to talk to his girl. Okaaay. It's one thing to be dark and broody, but to be so jealous as to actually be murderous? Come on! I love grumpy as much as the next reader, but that's taking it a step too far.

And the villains in here are such caricatures of villains, with their face all "twisted" into a "hideous mask", complete with eyes that "gleamed with delighted malice" and mouth spreading into a "mocking smile". And that's right after you confront them, when they could just deny everything and no one would be the wiser.

Still, to the book's credit, I chomped it up in a jiffy, so I must've been entertained through all the shenanigans even if they were a bit much. And I feel strangely compelled to continue with the series, the ultimate sign of a guilty pleasure working its magic. So there you have it, my first Ana Huang.

Readaroo Rating: 3 stars

How did Colleen Hoover ever think up this dark and twisted tale? It is so unique, so completely shocking that it blows away every other suspense story I've ever read.

Lowen is a struggling writer when she gets an offer too good to pass up. Jeremy, the husband of successful author Verity Crawford, hires Lowen to complete Verity's series when his injured wife is unable to do so. Once Lowen arrives at their home to start compiling notes and do research, she discovers an unfinished manuscript that looks to be Verity's autobiography. What is written in those pages will horrify and haunt anyone who reads it.

So many books advertise as suspenseful thrillers, but hardly any of them cause my heart to blip even a little. (I know, I'm a stone cold reader.) But this book! There is such a deliciously creepy atmosphere that permeates throughout and it got me good. I'll admit to heart palpitations, cold clammy hands, and being startled at the smallest noises. And as the story progresses and we find out more and more, the tension ratchets up to almost unbearable levels.

There was never any hope for me. I was hooked from the very first page. There is a creativity to this story that makes it hard to look away. I've never read anything like this, not even close. As a result, every page was a surprise and I just wanted to keep going. And as the truth gets darker and more tortuous, I had no choice but to hold on for the ride of my life.

This book employs one of my favorite formats, a story within a story. I've loved pretty much every book I've come across that uses this format, and it works especially well here. The interspersing of the inner manuscript with the outer story allows us to find out what's going on at the same time that Lowen is figuring things out.

I cannot believe this is Colleen Hoover's first thriller. Reading this feels like watching a master at their craft, setting the bar higher than I ever thought possible. This story is so astonishing and unsettling and completely original. It will stay with me for a long time.

Readaroo Rating: 5 stars!