Thank you William Morrow, #partner for the advanced copy of The Vanishing Kind and Minotaur Books, #partner for the advanced copies of White King & The Unlucky Ones, in exchange for my honest reviews. Thank you also to Macmillan Audio for the gifted ALC.
You all know how much I love my series and these books are the latest installments in 3 series I really love!
THE VANISHING KIND by Alice Henderson
Published: March 4, 2025, William Morrow
Summary:
From highly acclaimed author Alice Henderson comes the eagerly anticipated and electrifying fourth book in the Alex Carter series, in which the wildlife biologist encounters anti-immigrant vigilantes, rugged terrain, and threatening intruders in search of a sleek, powerful, and furtive animal—the jaguar.
When wildlife biologist Alex Carter is tasked with locating jaguars on a vast desert preserve in New Mexico, she is ecstatic. While jaguars once roamed throughout the Southwest, they are now endangered, with only a handful remaining, and Alex hopes some of the sleek and elusive creatures have found their way to the protected sanctuary.
Meanwhile, an archaeological team is excavating the gravesite of a sixteenth-century Spanish conquistador on a neighboring piece of land. Curious about the dig, Alex meets the team and, while learning about their discoveries, she encounters a dangerous group of anti-immigrant vigilantes roaming the area, threatening the archaeology team, demanding they leave. And when the militants learn of Alex’s mission, they become bent on stopping her. Because jaguars are federally endangered, the vigilantes worry that if Alex finds them, concessions will be made so that wildlife can cross the border wall. And they want no one crossing it…
And then there are the strange holes that keep appearing on the preserve—Who is digging them, and what are they looking for?
As tensions mount, Alex soon finds herself in a fight for her life against those who would prevent her from restoring jaguars to their historical habitat.
My thoughts:
This series, what I would terms eco-thrillers, has just completely fascinated me and this latest one is no exception. We follow wildlife biologist and conservationist Alex Carter to New Mexico where she is looking for the elusive jaguar. Along the way, she encounters many dangers, including some of the humankind. I love how much I end up learning from these books about endangered species in general and the animal Alex is hunting in specific.
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WHITE KING by Juan Gomez-Jurado
Published: March 11, 2025, Minotaur Book
Summary:
Antonia Scott returns in the explosive climax in this sequel to the international bestselling book and streaming series, Red Queen.
Antonia Scott has an unusually gifted forensic mind, whose ability to reconstruct crimes and solve baffling murders is legendary. She’s the lynchpin of a top-secret project, Red Queen, created to work across borders and behind the scenes to solve the most devious and dangerous crimes, those that are beyond the skills of the regular police forces.
But the Red Queen project is under attack on all fronts. Across Europe, its agents are murdering each other and cases from the past, long believed resolved, are rearing their deadly heads again. At the center of it is the mysterious Mr. White, who has been weaving a web around Antonia for a very long time. He is as smart and capable as her but, unlike her, he’s a psychotic killer who has isolated Antonia Scott. Jon Gutierrez, Antonia’s protector and the only person she trusts, has been kidnapped. Antonia’s husband has been killed and her remaining family is in hiding. With Jon’s life at stake, Mr. White gives her a seemingly innocuous challenge: solve three crimes and bring the perpetrators to justice. The only way to keep Jon alive is to play Mr. White’s game, but can even Antonia win a game when she can only see part of the board?
My thoughts:
This trilogy was a surprise hit for me and while I was sad to read this book, knowing this was it…I also was excited to finally get answers to all the questions I had up to this point. This was as addicting and fast-paced as I expected and I ended up reading it in one sitting. I loved that we got a deeper understanding of Antonia – she really is such a fascinating character. And I will never forget the partnership between her and Jon. I am happy with how this ended…but I’m still going to hope for more!
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THE UNLUCKY ONES by Hannah Morrissey
Published: March 25, 2025, Minotaur Books, Macmillan Audio
Summary:
A police transcriber-turned-novelist returns to Black Harbor to help solve the case of her ex-husband’s murder in the newest riveting Black Harbor mystery by acclaimed author Hannah Morrissey.
Black Harbor is a tinderbox. Temperatures and violent crime have both risen to all-time highs, a new drug razes the city, and the scene to which Sergeant Nikolai Kole responds is anything but a rote homicide. In the back of a clubhouse lies a body wrapped in garbage bags and doused in bleach.
It isn’t just any body. Tommy Greenlee, the ex-husband of Kole’s former lover, Hazel, has been shot several times and left for dead. What’s more…the killer left what appears to be a calling card.
Elsewhere, Hazel is haunted by her memories of Black Harbor. Lured there after eight years, she returns to find out who killed Tommy and why. Now back in Kole’s orbit, their love affair can hardly pick up where it left off. They both used each other to their own ends before, which begs the question: would they do it again?
With the atmosphere growing more volatile by the second, Hazel and Kole call a truce, and as they work together to solve this murder, they will not only unearth Black Harbor’s deepest, darkest secrets—they’ll each have to face their own.
My thoughts:
I love the way this tied to Hello, Transcriber – though if you haven’t read that one yet, you’ll still be fine. But seriously…you need to read that book – it’s fantastic!!! And this time around, we not only get Hazel’s POV but also Kole’s. There’s such tension in this story and the writing is so atmospheric and gritty. I find myself holding my breath as I make my way through these books…it’s that good!
Audio thoughts:
This was amazing on audio, with Angela Dawe and Robb Moreira doing a fantastic job bringing Hazel and Kole to life.
Have you read any of these books or do you plan to? Do you prefer series or stand-alones?
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