Psychological Thriller | Book Chatter

Havoc
By Christopher Bollen
Harper, December 2024, 256 pp.

The Short of It:

Quirky. Fun. Batshit Crazy.

The Rest of It:

Eighty-one-year-old widow Maggie Burkhardt came to the Royal Karnak to escape. But not in quite the same way as most other guests who are relaxing at this threadbare luxury hotel on the banks of the Nile. ~ the publisher

A luxury hotel on the banks of the Nile? Yes, please. Except, the Royal Karnak is dusty and threadbare and coming out of a pandemic shutdown. It has lost its luster, but for Maggie, recently widowed, she considers the staff her family, and the hotel, her home. It still possesses all the charm she needs, and the people within it are an added bonus.

Except, Maggie isn’t all that she seems. Older, yes, sweet, certainly can be, but she has a nose for trouble and has no problem sticking it into people’s business if she sees a reason to do so. Here, I will tread carefully so as to not give anything away.

If she sees a married couple whom she suspects is not happy, Maggie to the rescue. Inquisitive children seen with a single parent? What’s the story there? Where is the father? She befriends these folks as a service of sorts, whether it’s welcomed or not but this gets her into trouble.

As endearing as she is to the hotel staff, and loyal too, she is carefully warned by her beloved hotel manager, that she is 80 and should be living a life of peace and calm. Not running around in the ungodly heat. She takes these warnings lightly and does what she sees fit to do.

I can’t go into more without giving the story away. This is definitely a wild, crazy read and the title is fitting. HAVOC is what you will experience while reading this one. It’s very well done, in my opinion, but I’d put the book down and say to myself, “Phew, that is outright crazy” and then pick it right back up again.

The characters are very well drawn. My book club chose this book for discussion this month and at first I wasn’t sure there would be enough to discuss but oh boy, there’s plenty. There are two main characters in this book and both are off kilter which makes it a wild, fun read.

Highly recommend.

Source: Borrowed
Disclosure: This post contains Bookshop.org affiliate links.

The Midnight Feast
By Lucy Foley
William Morrow & Company, 9780063003101, June 2024, 368pp.

The Short of It:

In the end, disappointment.

The Rest of It:

“It’s the opening night of The Manor, the newest and hottest luxury resort, and no expense, small or large, has been spared. The infinity pool sparkles; the “Manor Mule” cocktail (grapefruit, ginger, vodka, and a dash of CBD oil) is being poured with a heavy hand. Everyone is wearing linen.

But under the burning midsummer sun, darkness stirs. Old friends and enemies circulate among the guests. Just outside the Manor’s immaculately kept grounds, an ancient forest bristles with secrets. And it’s not too long before the local police are called. Turns out the past has crashed the party, with deadly results.” ~ from the publisher

This story alternates between when these characters were young, and them as adults. As youths, I was taken in by the story. But the adult characters were such crashing bores. I’ve read two other Foley books and enjoyed them quite a bit, but this one lost me every time the story turned to the present.

As a mystery, nothing is surprising and some of the antics are quite juvenile and ridiculous. I’m okay reading a book for its entertainment value but about halfway through that desire left me but I pushed through to finish it.

I know some people enjoyed this one but I do not recommend it. Read one of her other books.

Source: Borrowed
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

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