Liz Between The Lines

If you were given the opportunity to take a DNA test that reveals exactly who your DNA match is, would you take it? And if you were already in a relationship with someone, would you want to find out if the person is your DNA match? Let's say the person isn't your match, do you stay? Do you seek your match? How far would you be willing to go to find The One ? Judy's life feels stagnant so when conversations with her DNA match warm her intestines, she figures she has nothing to lose by flying across the world to be with him. Except - he doesn't know she's coming and he's not the only one who'll be surprised. When Christopher isn't killing women, he's either stalking them on apps or reading up on serial killers and mental illness. When he signed up for his DNA match, he did not expect to be completely distracted by her. Do opposites really attract? Also, what's the opposite of a serial killer? Mandy hadn't even spoken to her DNA match wh...

Disclaimer: I am just an avid thriller and suspense reader; not an expert. This recipe is based on nothing but my observations and what I like when reading. Suspense, Crime or Mystery Thriller books are some of the highest earning genres of books (2nd only to Romance/Erotica). With so many books already published, how do authors still manage to write bestsellers? I've decided to compile a recipe from what I've observed from a few of my favourite authors. 1. UNRELIABLE NARRATOR  This is the main ingredient in The Perfect Thriller recipe. Unreliable first person narrators do not necessarily lie (except Amy Dunn from Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl) but give the reader just omit enough material information to steer the reader in the direction they want them to go. Your narrator must be pretty convincing for this to work. 2. TRUST and SECRETS I love a mess. Fragile relationships between the characters due to a lack of trust or keeping secrets from each other helps drive th...

Day 11 of Lockdown and 5 books later, I've just finished Cross Her Heart by Sarah Pinborough. This is the second thriller I've read by Sarah. (The first was Behind Her Eyes - another thriller I've recently discussed with 2 friends and still enjoyed.) Lisa has lived a sheltered life, constantly looking over her shoulder, for the past 10 years with just her teenage daughter (Ava), her best friend (Marilyn) and her job for company. Lisa's overprotective parenting style strains the mother-daughter relationship, but if Ava knew what Lisa's history entailed, she'd understand. Ava thinks she's the most mature 16 year old woman and the rest of her friendship circle is simply childish - at least that's what he tells her. He is just one of Ava's many secrets, vaguely shared with her best friend Jodie. The sassy Marilyn has been Lisa's pillar of strength, both in and outside the workplace, for as long as they've known each other. Lisa and her ...

In between all the traveling I did during my month-long winter holiday (follow my travel blog Vagabond and Beyond for my mini adventures) I obviously had a few literary companions on the road (and in the air). Here are a few of the books I enjoyed the most. 1. The Partner by John Grisham I read a John Grisham book at least once every 6 books, so it only made sense to have John accompany me to Johannesburg after a tough semester. Click  here to read the review.  2. My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult When Sarah and Brian's second child needs a blood donor and none of them are a match, they decide to have a baby whose genes are a perfect match for their older daughter. What was meant to be a once off donation turns into a lifetime of medical procedures and bone marrow donations until Anna sues her parents for rights to her own body. Nothing is morally black or white for the Fitzgerald family as they use one daughter to keep their other daughter alive. A lot of p...