Favourite books : Mystery

I’ve been meaning to write this post for a while now but never got around to do it because I didn’t know which books to choose. So I thought I’d break it down a bit. First of all, if you are a book worm like me, and you are not a member of Goodreads then please change that as in yesterday. Second of all, invite me and we can be book buddies!!!

Now I have to say, that since I started working, I just haven’t gotten around to read as much as I would like (I plan on changing that though). But not to worry, there are some books that will always be a favourite of mine and I am here to share. If you haven’t read any of these then please check out my Goodreads profile before giving it a go and see if we have similar tastes in case you end up disliking one of my favourites and put some evil curse on me for wasting hours of your life. But I think I’ll happily take the risk with this post.

#1 Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult

Goodreads Rating: 3.89 avg

There comes a time (in my experience) in every book worm’s life when they feel as if there are no more extraordinary stories left to discover. I picked this book up when I felt that need to find a story to stretch my imagination and to fulfil the burning desire to read something powerful – and I could not put it back down.

The story follows a girl named Jenna who is searching for answers to the mysterious  disappearance of her mother, Alice, from the tranquil elephant sanctuary that she and her husband (Jenna’s father) managed more than a decade ago. Jenna forms an unlikely alliance with Virgil Stanhope, the detective who worked on the investigation at the time, and Serenity Jones, a medium for missing people.

“I think grief is like a really ugly couch. It never goes away. You can decorate around it; you can slap a doily on top of it; you can push it to the corner of the room—but eventually, you learn to live with it.”

“In the wild, an elephant mother and daughter stay in close proximity their whole lives; I hope I am that lucky.”

“I’m the princess in an ivory tower, except every brick is made of history, and I built this prison myself.”

“Dreaming is the closest the average human gets to the paranormal plane; it’s the time when the mind lets down its guard and the walls get thin enough for there to be glimpses to the other side. That’s why, after sleeping, so many people report a visit from someone who’s passed.”

When I reached the end of the book my mind was left reeling. The effort and research that must have been poured into creating this masterpiece is something I truly appreciated. Her detailed descriptions of elephant behaviour ignited a fascination that I never before realised I had. It’s now on my bucket list to go to the Kruger National Park and see these beautiful, sensitive giants that I’ve only had the pleasure of watching on National Geographic.

#2 The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty

Goodreads Rating: 3.94 avg

The blurb asks you to take a moment and imagine that you find a letter addressed to you by your husband beyond the grave. It then asks for you to imagine discovering that letter while he is still very much alive… Now I can be rather nosey if I feel I have a reason to be, so this book had me instantly intrigued.

We follow the lives of three women during a time when they are facing their own life challenges. Their paths eventually intersect when the husband’s long guarded secret leaves a lasting impact on them all.

“Falling in love was easy. Anyone could fall. It was holding on that was tricky”

“None of us ever know all the possible courses our lives could have and maybe should have taken. It’s probably just as well. Some secrets are meant to stay secret forever. Just ask Pandora.”

“A son is a son until he takes him a wife; a daughter is a daughter for all of her life.”

#3 Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty

Goodreads Rating: 4.16 avg

Liane Moriarty once gain takes us on a journey following the lives of three women, each at a crossroads. And while we attempt to sort through the heap of scattered puzzle pieces that make up their lives, there is a murder investigation close to being solved. The author keeps you hooked right up until the very end – because you see, we are not only left wondering who the murderer could be; we are also trying to figure out who was murdered.

“All conflict can be traced back to someone’s feelings getting hurt, don’t you think?”

“When someone you loved was depending on your lie, it was perfectly easy.”

#4 Never Never by Colleen Hoover

Goodreads Rating: 4.26 avg

Best friends since they could walk. In love since the age of fourteen.
Complete strangers since this morning.
He’ll do anything to remember. She’ll do anything to forget.

How can you not be intrigued by a blurb like THAT? And so lil innocent, unsuspecting me reads it and I am still trying to pick up the pieces of the trainsmash that it has left me with. Why thank you Colleen Hoover, how nice of you to throw me off a cliff after always (just that one time that I did not) posting such positive reviews on your books.

I can’t for the life of me write anything more to accurately describe my feelings about this series, so I thought this would give you an idea:

– Nihaad