Monday, June 12, 2017

Summer Reads: The Fifth Petal


Crown; 448 pages; Amazon
Probably the best way to hear about a new book is  by word-of-the-mouth, which is exactly how heard about The Fifth Petal by Brunonia Barry. I kept noticing other book bloggers were reading the title, so I signed up to review an electronic galley several weeks ago.

Set in Salem, this murder-mystery centers around a teenager boy being murdered on Halloween night. John Rafferty, aka the chief of police, believes the boys death is somehow connected to the notorious cold case known as "The Goddess Murders," in which three young women, all descendants of accused Salem witches, were murdered on Halloween night in 1989!

John teams up with one of the 1989 victim's daughter, Callie Cahill. While all the clues points to the local historian Rose Whelan as the killer, John and Callie believe someone or something else is the murderer. Maybe even something supernatural!

Final Thoughts: By the cover alone, I would have guessed The Fifth Petal was a young adult supernatural love story. However, I was completely wrong, and I'm glad I was mistaken, as I'm getting tired of the those types of stories. As it turns out, The Fifth Petal is a good old-fashioned murder-mystery that just happens to be set around Salem. I was hooked to this tale after reading just a few pages. The author does a wonderful job creating interesting characters, great descriptions, and an intriguing plot.

Overall, I loved reading The Fifth Petal, and I highly recommend it to other readers. I might have to reread this one around Halloween.



* I received a complimentary copy in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own. 


About the Author: Brunonia Barry is the New York Times and international best selling author of The Lace Reader, The Map of True Places, and her latest book: The Fifth Petal. Her work has been translated into more than thirty languages. She was the first American author to win the International Women’s Fiction Festival’s Baccante Award and was a past recipient of Ragdale Artists’ Colony’s Strnad Invitational Fellowship as well as the winner of New England Book Festival’s award for Best Fiction. Her reviews and articles on writing have appeared in the London Times and the Washington Post, and the Huffington Post. Brunonia co-chairs the Salem Athenaeum’s Writers’ Committee. She lives in Salem with her husband Gary Ward and their dog, Angel. Gary and Bru are the organizers of the Salem Literary Festival.

No comments:

Post a Comment

I adore reading reader feedback! I will, however, remove all spam and pointless comments.

Please take note that I have the right to delete comments from this site. Please only post constructive and respectful feedback.