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Hello judges, participants and readers alike!

Today we bring you the judges' reviews for all the books that were registered into the Mystery/Thriller genre, winners or no!

Please keep in mind that these are the individual judges opinions, and different judges have different review styles and techniques. If you are not satisfied with your review, we unfortunately cannot do anything more, but we are deeply sorry if you feel that way.

A massive thank you to all the judges who put in so much effort to write these reviews, you guys rock!

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Diaries Of A Deranged Scientist - Blottedpaper99

The book doesn't have a proper cover. The summary looks good, I don't see the plot of the book. It doesn't look like the book had been proofread and for some reason, many of the "I" s from the sentences are missing. Instead of using big words, it would be better to fix your punctuation and grammar. Many aspects of the book don't add up and there is too much information which isn't required. The plot of the book (based on the title) has a lot of potential so instead of writing and writing and writing, maybe take some time to figure out what's going to happen first and proofread before publishing.  

Who Killed Dan Merlin? - Buttkicker2293

The book has a good cover but I don't see how it matches the plot? The cover does suit the book but it doesn't have much, if any, connection with the plot in my opinion. The summary is very hooking and makes me want to read it and find out more about the book. The prologue starts off well but then it kinda becomes repetitive. The chapters don't give off any kind of feeling. It's like they are just words on paper (which they are) but books usually make you feel some sort of emotion. The grammar is okay but can be improved. The punctuation is alright. The plot of the book has great potential, you just need to add some emotions to your writing and fix the grammatical errors. Also, I feel like your first chapter (not the prologue) is an information dump. We don't need to know about what previous criminal they caught.  

Midnight Darlings - DracoNako

The summary of the book is good. It is slightly confusing so you may want to reword that or something but it catches my attention and makes me want to read the book. The prologue is nice and to the point. Again, it captures my attention. Your grammar and punctuation is great. I love the plot of the book, its very well thought out and the way it is told to the reader is very creative as well.  

Shut Up and Dance - Sam_le_fou

The book has an interesting title, I wouldn't have understood it had you not explained it. The grammar and punctuation is really good. The plot is very interesting and I love how the third person POV matches the book, the book wouldn't have made much sense had it been first person. The cover matches the book well as well.  

The Quiet Unravelling of Jamie Winchester - KelseyMcHartley

The summary is well worded but it isn't really drawing me in. The first chapter of your book is really good, it doesn't let me put the book down at all. I like the plot, it's very interesting. Its different. I like how you've kept your chapters casually worded and not too many big words, it's much easier to read it. There's slight humor as well which eases the mood which, in my opinion, is pretty necessary after the prologue of the book. Great grammar and punctuation.

(Special note: Your book was soooo close to placing, great job - The Shadow Team)

Like Minds - MistressCara

Summary - now this premise of the blurb speaks louder and with charisma. right off the bat, the author reveals bits and pieces of the plot without giving much away. it's well-structured with the main character and the setting of the story. amazing job!

First Chapter - it is very immersive and intriguing, and it leaves the readers with a short but effective cliffhanger. however it is a bit cliche and predictable, since obviously the readers know it's bound to happen. but, the author crafted the scene with great execution that reveals the character as a whole and flesh-out person. the description is overall excellent and very well done!

Character development - through the chapters that i read, it is hard to put down this book. the author has a talent in driving the plot forward as well as showing how each characters is feeling and thinking. this is something that many people cannot pull off, yet the author did an amazing job. the way the author crafted emotions is very interesting and touching, it's beautiful. 

Facade - Always_001

Summary - the blurb is interesting enough for the readers to read on, but fell short since it seems overdone with the whole 'rich heiress, supermodel'.

Prologue - i enjoy this is a short but leaves enough story and plot of what the book is about, however, it seems the story unfolds as a script or textbook. overall, it was good but a little boring. the character doesn't seem realistic since they acted stiff and one-dimensional

Character development - overall the protagonist reflects as flat and one-dimensional character and remains the same throughout the story. work on developing the character more, for instance, describe their thoughts, motives, and personality and really placed them through dialogues or internal thoughts, etc. things like that would help craft your characters even more.

Grammar - several typos i see is using incorrect form of dialogue tags and punctuation, along with incorrect paragraph formatting.

Plot - a bit confuse of what the plot is when chapter five begins. it seems the author piles more and more characters into the plot and it really shows down the storyline and the pace of the book. it seems for like every character, there is bound for a point of view for them. stick at least 2 or 3 characters at most when it comes to pov changes. make sure to sort this out and let the readers know who's who. as for the plot, it seems it's mostly dialogues and scene setup, but nothing else that drives the story forward.

Don't Look Out Your Window - m3gan_nicole

Summary - very short and to the point, and the blurb leaves enough mystery and intrigue to let the reader curious enough to read on

First chapter - enjoy the first chapter, the voice of the character reflects the tension and suspense. although a few points are knocked off since it sort of fell flat near the end of the chapter.

Character development - the character development did not show until chapter 3 which, also, the plot starts to unravel. overall, there's not much to say since the character is very realistic and the author did a great job on showing the tension and fear

Plot - despite the suspense of the plot, the author adds a sprinkle of humor to lighten up the mood which not a lot of people could pull off. the humor feels natural and not too jarring and the readers can live up to the thrill but also enjoy the interaction between the characters. as for the pacing, the author put in a lot of thought on this, and it is not too slow or fast-paced. amazing work!

Rewrite The Stars - YourrAwkwardWriterr

Cover - (It's pretty but doesn't relate much to title)

Summary - (didn't catch me, punctuation too confusing)

1st chap/prologue - (intriguing but could be rearranged to add more mystery)

Plot - Your characters have potential, especially the male, but your female's development was a bit strange to me. She was however funny and relatable. There's some work to be one with grammar, punctuation really needs to be reviewed (more commas, careful with where you place question marks, etc). Also some tense issues (you mix present and past tense, you should pick one and stick to it!). The plot is interesting, I was definitely curious and intrigued. Overall I enjoyed this, but you do have some work to do to polish your novel. Good luck to you!

ELEMENTAL - torontomendes

First off, you may consider reclassifying this as Paranormal and see what happens. That's the vibe I got the whole time I was reading, but maybe that's a personal feeling.The score might seem harsh, but I actually really liked your book. The characters were sort of typical YA but I still enjoyed them, the grammar was, for the most part, correct (a few punctuation issues and structural errors, but nothing that took away from the story too much). The plot is really intriguing! But what made you lose points was your summary (or lack of one, I should say) and your prologue that was a tad confusing. I would consider moving the first part of chapter 1 to your prologue, and have chapter one actually start with your first character introduction. But, overall, I like what you've started and I actually plan to keep an eye out for your upcoming updates. Good luck to you! 

 Red Isn't Always Love - wordsmith21

First off, consider using the flashback in chapter one as a prologue, or putting it at the very beginning of your chapter instead: it's interesting and mysterious, and may draw in more readers. Your main character was interesting, but the "villain" was overly evil for an unknown reason, which bugged me (but maybe you describe this later on in your story, so I apologize if that's the case). Grammar was alright but your punctuation and structure really need some work. In dialogues, remember to use "..." instead of '...', and add a space between the last mark and the next word, it would make your dialogues easier to read and understand. Your plot fit the mystery/thriller category quite well and was intriguing: I'm definitely curious about how things develop for Lyla. Good luck to you!  

A Puppet To Her - DaphneBoyden

Unfortunately, I'm not part of this fandom, so I did my best to judge what I could. Because you're submitting this story to contests, maybe consider writing a prologue that sort of explains previous events, to help clueless judges like myself? Without having read prequels or other books of yours, it was hard to understand.That being said, your grammar was mostly good - just tense changes you need to be careful with, a few typos and punctuation errors. The characters were well-developed, however I'm unfamiliar with the context, so I can't add more to that. The plot was intriguing, almost scary, making you wonder: why Petra? Who is doing this to her? How? So, good job there. Overall, I enjoyed your writing. Good luck to you!  

Stockholm Syndrome - alwaysoldenough

Wow, I was instantly sucked in and didn't want to stop reading. The characters were well thought out (love the main character's name, btw), your grammar was almost perfect (just a few typos, but barely noticeable), your dialogues were great and the plot screamed mystery/thriller. A little overuse of semi-colons (I get it, I used to do that too, it's an easy fix!) but otherwise, your book was excellent. I'll keep reading because I genuinely want to know what happens. Good job!  

The Secret In Our Town - AlliCNewly

Overall, this has much promise. There were only 3 chapters to go by, but the summary drew me in, the characters were well thought out and the idea of the plot is interesting. Very few grammar issues, just a few typos, nothing major. I really enjoyed your descriptions of high school! Totally brought me a good decade back, I was impressed and giggled quite a bit. I look forward to seeing more, you got me hooked! Good luck.  

Blackquest 40 - jeff_bond

I'm speechless. I feel like there's nothing I can say, because this is a polished, professionally written book. I'm not super techny (more like not at all) but you had me almost understanding everything going on without having to re-read sentences. Main character is edgy, funny, and sharp, your grammar is excellent, and the plot is intriguing. Very much enjoyed this, and I'm not usually much for thrillers. Congrats!  

#youlikeit - MonicaPrelooker

This has "thriller" written all over it. I'm impressed: colourful, mature characters, excellent grammar, and a plot that instantly drew me in - obviously, since it starts off with murder. I have a feeling this book hides WAY more and has super unexpected twists and turns... and I only read five chapters. I'll keep reading! Good job, and good luck!  

Mine - hellocheeky

Overall, this story has promise. Your characters are well written, but the pace is a little too fast to really get to know them. I understand this is meant to be a short story, but adding more description - to your characters AND to the setting in itself - to immerse your readers, would add significantly to your book. Also, please be careful with your tenses: there is a lot of confusion between past/present, and it's best to choose one of the two and stick to it. A few punctuation and grammatical errors, but your vocabulary is good and the plot is definitely mysterious. Keep it up, and good luck!  

Disappeared - MairaDawn

This was nothing like I expected it to be. It actually reminded me briefly of "White Collar" (TV show) because of how Susannah and Charles met (I loved that show, so this is a compliment, FYI). Aside from that, your short story totally took me by surprise. I think your cover could be better suited to the story - without revealing too much of the surprising plot. Your summary could be expanded, and the few grammar and punctuation errors could easily be fixed, and this would be near perfect.I really had only one complaint: I wish you would develop this into a longer book!! The way you ended it left me speechless (again, this is a compliment) and I can see you doing wonders with this idea if you were to expand it. Good job!  

The Case - 1tharbie

Though your plot is a smidge cliche, it could have potential! The main character is decently developed, but her lifestyle is a little hard to believe (her apartment?! her job?! wow, it's a little easy for her). Your summary was good, but the further I read, the more grammar, spelling and punctuation errors I found (throughout your story), making it hard to read your story. You should consider proofreading and working on those mistakes to make your tale more enjoyable.Also, quick note: use "..." instead of '...' for dialogues, and don't forget to use "I" instead of "i" when using the 1st person. "Sons" instead of "son's". Just to name a few repetitions you could easily address and fix.Review your formatting a little, use more comma's to make your sentences breathe, and you'll get results. Please continue your story, I encourage you to post more as it seems it's headed in an interesting direction. Good luck to you!