With Malice by Eileen Cook + Giveaway



Title:  With Malice
Author: Eileen Cook
Publisher:  HMH Books for Young Readers
Release Date:  June 7, 2016
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Fiction / Suspense Thriller
A read about a teenage girl who wakes up in a hospital bed and cannot remember the last six weeks of her life, including the accident that killed her best friend--only what if the accident wasn't an accident?


Eighteen-year-old Jill Charron wakes up in a hospital room, leg in a cast, stitches in her face and a big blank canvas where the last 6 weeks should be. She comes to discover she was involved in a fatal accident while on a school trip in Italy three days previous but was jetted home by her affluent father in order to receive quality care. Care that includes a lawyer. And a press team. Because maybe the accident...wasn't an accident. Wondering not just what happened but what she did, Jill tries to piece together the events of the past six weeks before she loses her thin hold on her once-perfect life.


"Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep." The opening line of With Malice by Eileen Cook is simple, yet gives you a sense of suspense. Maybe because it's the title of the book.  I don't typically read descriptions from the back of the book.  There are many times in my early reviewing days that it just doesn't translate well in the story, so I've taken a new approach since last year, and it's worked so far. Back to With Malice. With a title like that, you would surely expect some form of psychological suspense/thriller or mystery. And spot on it is. 
With Malice is definitely a page-turner. Clearly based on the Amanda Knox trial, which by the way I did not follow, but surely heard about it since it was ALL over the news every day; the story of With Malice follows Jill, a book-smart teen on an educational program abroad in Italy, and what happened that cause the death of her best friend.  As Jill wakes up in the hospital with amnesia, not remembering the last 6 weeks of her life, we as readers follow her ordeal from that moment on. We are privy to Jill's thoughts and what others see during those 6 weeks from that point on, through her perspective with memory flashes, intersperse with statements of the investigation interviews by detectives and internet posts of the case. With Jill as the main suspect, the ultimate mystery of did she or did she not drives the story captivating us with excitement of what comes next. What new development will unfold as the story progress? As you start feeling sorry for Jill, a Yale-bound A-student, questions also pop up and makes you, yourself wonder the possibility.   It was a quick read, because you want the answer yourself, and boy, the twists towards the end will shock you. Maybe not for some, but for me, I was, by the honesty of it.  Throughout, the comparison or confusion between the truth and one's memory, which can be altered seems so real that you start wondering if what we're reading really happened (in the book, that is).  With Malice will have you  engrossed to the very last page.



NOTE:  I received an ARC of this book through Rockstar Book Tours for an honest review.  All opinions expressed are my own. For my review policy, please see my Disclosure page.


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Eileen Cook is a multi-published author with her novels appearing in eight different languages. Her books have been optioned for film and TV.  She spent most of her teen years wishing she were someone else or somewhere else, which is great training for a writer. Her newest book, WITH MALICE, will be out in June 2016. She’s an instructor/mentor with the Simon Fraser University Writer’s Studio Program.

You can read more about Eileen, her books, and the things that strike her as funny atwww.eileencook.com. Eileen lives in Vancouver with her husband and two very naughty dogs and no longer wishes to be anyone or anywhere else.

TO CONNECT WITH EILEEN: Website | Twitter | Goodreads | Facebook | Instagram



3 winners will receive finished copies of WITH MALICE, US Only.





Week One:
5/30/2016- The Cover Contessa- Interview
5/31/2016- MEREADALOT- Review
6/1/2016- Such a Novel Idea- Guest Post
6/2/2016- A Gingerly Review- Review
6/3/2016- Twinning for Books- Interview

Week Two:
6/6/2016- Just Commonly- Review
6/7/2016- Novel Novice- Guest Post
6/8/2016- Wandering Bark Books- Review
6/9/2016- Literary Meanderings - Interview

6/10/2016- A Dream Within A Dream- Review


                                                                                                                                                                      

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Thank you for reading my posts. For full blog information and links to giveaways, head over to the blog: http://justcommonly.blogspot.com.

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