Category Archives: Anna Snoekstra

October 28, 2018 · 11:57 pm

Review: The Spite Game by Anna Snoekstra

Title: The Spite Game by Anna Snoekstra
Publisher: MIRA
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 320 pages
Book Rating: B

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

Everyone does bad things when no one is watching

Mercilessly bullied in high school, Ava knows she needs to put the past behind her and move on, but she can’t—not until she’s exacted precise, catastrophic revenge on the people who hurt her the most.

First, she watches Saanvi. Flawlessly chic and working hard at a top architectural firm, Saanvi has it all together on the surface. But everyone does bad things when they think no one is watching and Ava only wants what’s fair—to destroy Saanvi’s life the way her own was destroyed.

Next, she watches Cass. She’s there as Cass tries on wedding dresses, she’s there when Cass picks out a cake, she’s there when Cass betrays her fiancé. She’s the reason Cass’s entire future comes crashing down.

Finally, Ava watches Mel. Mel was always the ringleader and if anyone has to pay, it’s her. But one tiny slipup and Ava realizes the truth: Mel knows she’s being watched, and she’s ready to play Ava’s games to the bitter end.

Review:

The Spite Game by Anna Snoekstra is a compelling and suspenseful mystery that is somewhat dark and just a bit twisted.

A decade after finishing high school, Ava cannot forgive or forget the bullying she experienced at the hands of mean girls Saanvi, Cass and Mel.  Over the years, she has stalked, harassed and tried to ruin the women along with one young man who also pulled a vicious prank on her. Ava will go through periods of time where she resists her obsession, but she finds it impossible to let the past go.  As she waits to speak to a detective about one of the women who is currently missing, Ava cannot help but reflect back on the horrendous last year of school and how she has exacted her revenge on the girls who tortured her.  What will Ava reveal to the police about the disappearance of the woman whose bullying left deep emotional scars on Ava?

Following a deeply traumatic event, Ava, her mum and older sister Beatrice move to a more rural area yet Ava refuses to change schools. She is inching closer to becoming part of Saanvi, Cass and Mel’s clique and she is delighted when they finally add her to their close-knit group. Mel is their undisputed leader and the girls follow along with whatever plan she devises. However, Ava’s friendship with the girls is uneasy and she is often an unwitting victim to their pranks. She falls victim to a final humiliation that ends their relationship and sets the stage for Ava’s obsession with making them pay for their actions.

The chapters alternate between Ava waiting to speak to detectives and flashbacks of her school years and her revenge on the girls. She is rather unrepentant as she  looks back on how she has attempted to destroy Saanvi, Cass and Mel’s lives. The tension builds to a fever pitch as the narrative slowly wends its way to finding out what happened to the missing woman.

The Spite Game is riveting mystery that is quite intriguing. The characters are not at all appealing yet it is impossible not to understand Ava’s quest for vengeance. The plot is well-developed and  the suspense keeps the pages turning at a blistering pace. Anna Snoekstra  brings the novel to a conclusion that is completely unexpected yet quite satisfying. A very clever mystery I greatly enjoyed and recommend to fans of the genre.

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Filed under Anna Snoekstra, Contemporary, Harlequin, Mira, Mystery, Rated B, Review, The Spit

October 16, 2017 · 11:57 pm

Review: Little Secrets by Anna Snoekstra

Title: Little Secrets by Anna Snoekstra
Publisher: MIRA
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 336 pages
Book Rating: C+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

What happens when ambition trumps the truth?

A town reeling in the wake of tragedy

An arsonist is on the loose in Colmstock, Australia, most recently burning down the town’s courthouse and killing a young boy who was trapped inside..

An aspiring journalist desperate for a story

The clock is ticking for Rose Blakey. With nothing but rejections from newspapers piling up, her job pulling beers for cops at the local tavern isn’t nearly enough to cover rent. Rose needs a story—a big one.

Little dolls full of secrets

In the weeks after the courthouse fire, precise porcelain replicas of Colmstock’s daughters begin turning up on doorsteps, terrifying parents and testing the limits of the town’s already fractured police force.

Rose may have finally found her story. But as her articles gain traction and the boundaries of her investigation blur, Colmstock is seized by a seething paranoia. Soon, no one is safe from suspicion. And when Rose’s attention turns to the mysterious stranger living in the rooms behind the tavern, neighbor turns on neighbor and the darkest side of self-preservation is revealed.

Review:

Set in a slowly dying town in Australia, Little Secrets by Anna Snoekstra is an intriguing mystery that begins with arson and quickly moves to the creepy porcelain dolls being left for the townspeople’s children.

Rose Blakey’s mom and stepfather are forcing her to move out of the family home and she is counting on a cadetship with a newspaper to help her realize her dream of becoming a journalist. In the meantime, her hometown of Colmstock is plagued by a series of fires and unfortunately, the latest fire claimed the life of thirteen year old Ben Riley.  When a porcelain doll is delivered to her home that bears an eerie resemblance to her younger sister Laura, Rose is shocked to discover a few other children have also received similar gifts.  In an order to jumpstart her journalist career, Rose writes a sensational story that is published by a tabloid. Under intense pressure, the police investigation fails to uncover any leads. Rose’s subsequent articles ratchet up the town’s fears but they lead to unintended consequences.

Rose and her best friend Mia are working dead end jobs at the local tavern. While Mia seems resigned to remaining in Colmstock and marrying a local, Rose is ambitious and cannot wait to leave the economically depressed town behind. Growing desperate following numerous rejections for her articles, she eagerly takes advantage of the uneasiness of the town’s residents following young Ben’s death and the deliveries of the frightening dolls. Rose also exploits the cops who visit the tavern to get insider information for her titillating articles. As events begin to spiral out of control, how far is Rose willing to go in her pursuit of her ambitions? How many people will suffer the consequences of her actions?

Little Secrets is a rather slow-moving novel and quite frankly, none of the characters, including Rose, are particularly likable.  The storyline is interesting and the town’s decay, the townspeople’s fears for their safety and their economic struggles are palpable. Despite the unlikable characters, the bleak setting and the story’s slow pace, Anna Snoekstra brings the novel to a twist-filled conclusion that very neatly ties up all the various story arcs loose threads.

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Filed under Anna Snoekstra, Contemporary, Harlequin, Little Secrets, Mira, Mystery, Rated C+, Review, Suspense

September 19, 2016 · 11:58 pm

Review: Only Daughter by Anna Snoekstra

Title: Only Daughter by Anna Snoekstra
Publisher:MIRA
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 288 pages
Book Rating: B

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

In this chilling psychological thriller, one woman’s dark past becomes another’s deadly future 

In 2003, sixteen-year-old Rebecca Winter disappeared.  

She’d been enjoying her summer break: working at a fast-food restaurant, crushing on an older boy and shoplifting with her best friend. Mysteriously ominous things began to happen—a presence in her room at night, periods of blackouts, a feeling of being watched—though Bec remained oblivious of what was to come.

Eleven years later she is replaced. 

A young woman, desperate after being arrested, claims to be the decade-missing Bec.

Soon the impostor is living Bec’s life. Sleeping in her bed. Hugging her mother and father. Learning her best friends’ names. Playing with her little brothers.

But Bec’s welcoming family and enthusiastic friends are not quite as they seem. As the impostor dodges the detective investigating her case, she begins to delve into the life of the real Bec Winter—and soon realizes that whoever took Bec is still at large, and that she is in imminent danger.

Review:

Only Daughter by Anna Snoekstra is a riveting mystery that is written in a split narrative that takes place during two different time periods.  In 2003, the story takes place in the days leading up to Bec Winters’ disappearance.  In the present, the story begins when a young woman who closely resembles Bec takes her place to avoid arrest.  Both story arcs are compelling but the events leading up to Bec’s disappearance are the most chilling.

After being picked up for shoplifting, a young woman makes an impetuous decision to tell authorities her name is Bec Winters.  Since she bears an eerie resemblance to the missing girl, the police have no reason to doubt her claim and she is quickly reunited with “her” family.  Fooling the family seems to be easy enough but the imposter has a more difficult task of convincing the real Bec’s best friend Lizzie Grant. The imposter must also endure in depth questioning from the detective on the case, Vincent Andopolis.  An excellent actress with an uncanny ability to read people, she manages to evade answering Vincent’s many questions about her kidnapping but he seems to growing suspicious of her.  Although Bec’s parents and twin brothers Andrew and Paul seem to harbor no doubts about her identity, the imposter begins to grow uneasy with the family’s increasingly strange behavior.

The flashbacks detailing the days before Bec’s disappearance begin with normal teenage behavior. She hangs out with her best friend Lizzie in between working her shifts at a fast food restaurant. At home, Bec’s parents dote on Andrew and Paul while mostly ignoring Bec and chastising her for not spending about time with her brothers.  As strange things begin occurring at home, Bec turns to Lizzie and her co-workers to help exorcise her ghosts.  Shortly after a disagreement with Lizzie, Bec vanishes without a trace after a late shift at work,  leaving everyone, including the police, stymied about what happened to her.

A suspense-laden debut by Anna Snoekstra, Only Daughter is an intriguing mystery that has plenty of twists and turns. Bec’s story arc grows increasingly ominous as the bizarre events she is experiencing become more frightening. The present day storyline is full of tension as the imposter tries to keep everyone from realizing she is not Bec. Both story arcs reach their denouement at the virtually the same time and although a little far-fetched, the novel’s conclusion is full of stunning plot twists. An all around spellbinding mystery that fans of the genre are sure to enjoy.

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Filed under Anna Snoekstra, Contemporary, Harlequin, Mira, Mystery, Only Daughter, Rated B, Review, Suspense