YVONNE’S SHORTIES #277 – Grown // Peril At End House // Deadly Cry

Time for another round of Yvonne’s Shorties! Since I have a huge pile of backlog reviews of the books I read during my break, I will be featuring an extra book in my shorties posts until I’ve caught up. This time around a highly impactful YA contemporary, an entertaining classic and a very successful detective thriller.

Title: Grown
Author: Tiffany D. Jackson
Genre: YA, Fiction, Contemporary
First published: September 15th 2020
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Finished reading: January 7th 2022
Pages: 368

“And if I love him hard enough, maybe, just maybe, I can keep the dark side away.”

Grown was a TBR jar pick and it took me surprisingly long to actually get to it (almost four months). I’m kind of kicking myself now, because it turned out to be such a powerful read! Sure, reading this story definitely makes you feel uncomfortable, with the focus on grooming and abuse, but it’s also a story that needs to be out there. While I do think the references to both grooming, abuse, addiction and the crime itself were a tad too abstract to be 100% effective, as a whole there is no doubt that Grown still makes a statement. Enchanted helps show us just how hard it is getting out of an abusive relationship once you are ‘trapped’, and how difficult it is for victims to have their voice heard and be believed in the first place. I do have to say that I felt a bit of a lack of cohesion between the present POV where Korey is dead and the story has more of a mystery feel and the rest of the plot… I can’t put my finger exactly on the why, but somehow the transition didn’t feel as smoothly as it could have been. That said, there is no doubt that Grown is still a very harrowing and compelling read that is definitely worth your time.

Title: Peril At End House
(Hercule Poirot #8)
Author: Agatha Christie
Genre: Classics, Mystery, Suspense
First published: February 1932
Publisher: HarperCollins
Finished reading: January 7th 2022
Pages: 287

“To detect a crime before it has been committed – that is indeed a rare difficulty.”

I always try to read at least a couple of Agatha Christie books each year, and I decided to get my first dose of Hercule Poirot in early this year. Peril At End House is already book number eight and once again a very satisfying read. There is just something about Hercule Poirot’s character and the way he thinks that simply works; sure, he is quite arrogant and full of himself, but somehow it’s strangely charming in his case. Hastings adds his own two cents of course, and they have another intriguing case on their hands in Peril At End House. The multiple narrow escapes from death by the young Nick Buckley of course immediately intrigue our detective, and with multiple suspects and an unclear motive Poirot will have his hands full. Without doubt another successful story and I will be looking forward to the next one.

Title: Deadly Cry
(DI Kim Stone #13)
Author: Angela Marsons
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Detective
First published: November 13th 2020
Publisher: Bookouture
Finished reading: January 10th 2022
Pages: 373

“What are you waiting for?”
“The reveal, Keats. You’re like a good crime novel; you always save something for the end.”

This detective series is easily one of my favorite discoveries of 2021 and I have just the final few books left to fully catch up… Deadly Cry is already book number thirteen of a series that shows no signs of slowing down. I always have such an excellent time with these main characters, and it has been great to follow them on their journey and see them grow. There are once again personal references to the past as well as new developments, which is one of the reasons why it’s best to read this series in order… You will be missing out on background otherwise. That said, the case itself stands on its own, and it’s another fascinating one. We have the main case with a serial killer and kidnapping twist as well as a separate investigation lead by Stacey at the same time, so lots of different leads, twists and suspense to keep you busy along the way. Deadly Cry is exactly my kind of detective thriller and it’s been great to see Alison pop up again as well… I can’t wait to read the next one to learn more about the personal developments of the team!