Book Review: "My Darlings" by Marie Still

This book was utterly unhinged and crazy, yet I couldn’t get enough of it! I think it’ll be running through my brain for a long while.

Eloise seems to have it all—a wealthy husband, a breathtakingly beautiful mansion just outside Washington DC, a talented daughter, and a circle of close friends. She’s even the president of the PTO at her daughter’s prestigious private school.

She’s also a serial killer. And her need to kill seems to be increasing.

As she searches for her next victim, drama within her circle of friends creates chaos. Eloise is always the problem-solver, the one who offers solutions. But the chaos offers her opportunities.

There’s someone out there with their eye on Eloise. They know what she’s doing and they know what she’s capable of. Can they stop Eloise before she destroys everyone in her path?

You’ll want to check the trigger warnings on this book. It’s so twisty and crazy and goes gloriously off the rails. There are multiple narrators and the story shifts between past and present. I know one thing: Marie Still is definitely an author I’ll be following from now on!!

Book Review: "Here One Moment" by Liane Moriarty

“If free will doesn’t exist, if all your decisions and actions are inevitable, are you still required to apologize for them?”

It seemed like an ordinary flight on an ordinary day. Yes, there were delays, but ultimately, the plane took off and headed for its destination.

Unexpectedly, an older woman stood up and got out of her seat. At first, no one paid her much attention. But then she started telling each passenger something—the cause of their death and the age at which they will die. Some were told they will die many years into the future, yet some were told their deaths will be sooner and, in some cases, more tragic.

Is this some sort of joke, some sort of scam, or does the woman really know of what she speaks? After the flight lands and the passengers go on their way, the woman’s predictions haunt them. Should they change the trajectory of their lives to avoid any possibility of dying the way she predicted? No one knows for sure until the first few deaths occur.

The narrative that follows traces a number of the passengers and how their lives are affected by what they were told. It also focuses on the woman and the story of her life, and how she came to the moments on the plane.

I felt like this book had a lot of potential but was just way too long. I definitely got attached to many of the characters, but the woman’s narrative never grabbed me, and it seemed to take me out of the story. Ultimately though, the book’s message of living in the moment and not having regrets is a good one.