Publishing Date: September 17, 2013
Publisher: HarperCollins
Pages: 368
My pitch: At my store, we have a table titled "thrilling reads" - during a shift of fixing up books, I picked this up because I had seen a trailer for it and didn't realize it was a book first. I saw that the protagonist's name was Christine, so instantly I was intrigued. A woman wakes up with no memory of where she is, does not recognize the man she's in bed with, and when she looks in the mirror, she has aged. Christine wakes up every day not remembering and she is told by Ben, her husband, that she suffered memory loss from an accident. As Christine uncovers the truth about her past and what really happened, things get extremely complicated. It is one of those keep-you-constantly-guessing reads. It reminded me a lot of Marcela the TV series, and I think fans of that show will definitely enjoy this! I haven't watched the movie adaptation yet, but I definitely plan to!
Available for purchase: Indigo/Chapters - Kobo - Book Depository
Publishing Date: August 23, 2016
Publisher: Doubleday Canada
Pages: 320
My pitch: This story touches on a difficult subject and on a scenario that no parent ever wants to get in. Marco and Anne are next-door having dinner with their friends one evening and because their sitter canceled, they couldn't find anyone to watch their child. Instead of bringing the baby to the dinner, they left the baby next door and checked on the child every half hour and used the baby monitor. Of course, chaos struck the couple & the child goes missing. As a detective attempts to uncover the mystery and try and locate the child, more horrible truths start coming to light. The couple begins to doubt one another, they start to doubt their friends and family while the safety of their child is at the center of it all. I read this in one sitting and I could not put it down. I was so intrigued and I felt like I was watching an episode of Criminal Minds.. (I think you can tell now from my two suggestions that I have a thing for crime shows). I also really liked the character Anne and empathized with her throughout the entire story.
Available for purchase: Indigo/Chapters - Kobo - Book Depository
Disclaimer: A copy of this book was sent to me by PRHC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Publishing Date: May 3, 2016
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Pages: 384
My pitch: Another book that tackles a dark subject again... during a dark night, a mother loses grasp of her child and her son dies in a tragic car accident. The hit-and-run is never solved and there are many dead leads and the mother attempts to move away to deal with the loss of her child. I really can't say too much more than that. But please listen to me when I say, this book is a must read. I picked it up after one of my friends raved about it and I have to tell you, it is the first time ever reading a book that I felt the author geniunely tricked the reader. I remember getting to a moment in the book and going "WAIT! WHAT?" and I had to flip back and re-read a few pages because I was astonished. The book is so incredibly clever and I love how the entire story unravels. I just could not put this book down and I enjoyed it so much. I can definitely see why it was a Staff Pick of the month book. If you are new to Gripping Lit, this is the one to start you off. It is simply amazing!! Can't say enough good things about it. (Also.. currently reading Mackintosh's new one and that is also really good.. full review to come ;))
Available for purchase: Indigo/Chapters - Book Depository
Disclaimer: A copy of this book was sent to me by PRHC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Other books I'd like to mention but I already wrote full reviews on are:
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins - Full Review HERE!
With Malice by Eileen Cook (YA Grip Lit) - Full Review HERE!
Let me know in the comments below what other holiday gift guides you'd like to see!
