"The Killing Jar" by Jennifer Bosworth

This was provided as an ARC to me from the publisher but the review is my own.

This is not for the reader who's looking for a quiet read. This is an original, creepy look at what can happen when a person fools themselves into making choices that not only hurt others but themselves. It's a new way of looking at stories about addiction and self loathing, pain and loss, the misunderstandings that happens between family, and the secrets that can cause repercussions further down the line. It is a woven web of ethereal potential dripping with a deadly resin. In other words, totally worth the late nights.

Once upon a time there was a little girl who did something so heinous that it has haunted her all her life. The act itself was horrible enough, the reason why is what marks Kenna as an abomination. Her decision has cost her the most important things in the world, her mother and her twin sister but what she does in order to rectify the consequences of that day in the woods will be what lead her to the secrets of who and what she truly is. In order to exist she must kill and there are others like who are willing to teach her about her powers but in the midst of this safe enclave lies the greatest danger of all to Kenna. Even among these kindred souls she is one of a kind and what must be done to capture the feeling of belonging and unity may cost her more than she ever realized.

Definitely worth the read, just make sure you're willing to turn off the lights after.

"Mrs. Jeffries Defends Her Own" by Emily Brightwell

When a businessman is found shot to death in his office Inspector Witherspoon is all ready in the middle of a case and Mrs. Jeffries is not expecting to have to solve yet another murder. But when the visitor that appears at her door appeals to her for help in order to prevent from being labeled a murderer she realizes that not only must she get involved in order to safe family but she will have to do so without arousing the attentions of Inspector Witherspoon nor the odious Nivens who is determined to oust Mrs. Jeffries and her cohorts as the real reason for the Inspector's success rate. With so many obstacles in her way Mrs. Jeffries may need to branch out in new directions to find out the who, what, where, how and most importantly why. And what she discovers may change her understanding of the husband she loved so dearly.

Another installment in this great series.