The Other Half Lives (Culver Valley Crime) by Sophie Hannah

Synopsis:

Ruth Bussey knows what it means to be in the wrong - and to be wronged. She once did something she regrets, and was punished excessively for it. Now Ruth is trying to rebuild her life and has found a love she doesn't believe she deserves. Aidan Seed is a passionate, intense man who has also been damaged by his past. Desperate to connect with the woman he loves, he confides his secret: he killed a woman called Mary Trelease. Through her shock, Ruth recognises the name. And when she's realised why it's familiar, her fear and revulsion deepen. The Mary Trelease that Ruth knows is very much alive...

My review:

From time to time I go back to my own library of paperbacks I have collected over the years and pick out a real cracker. And this was definitely one of them. Second novel by Sophie Hannah that I have had the pleasure to read and happy to say there are another three on my shelves that I can look forward to reading.

Sophie has a real talent in getting the reader involved in the story, not giving anything away until the last few pages and letting you get completely engrossed in the lives of all the characters.

When Ruth turns up at the police station to see Charlie Zaylor, she has no idea that this one step will start an avalanche of events that will change her live and the lives of all of those she loves. The man she loves told her that he killed a woman called Mary Trelease. But to Ruth that’s not the problem. The problem is that she know the woman and she is very much alive.

From there on things spiral very quickly and events from decades ago have to be brought up to surface in order to understand the present. The characters have a real live to them which forces the reader to experience their emotions and have a proper relationship and involvement with the story.

Fabulous book, a proper page-turner.

My rating: 5/5

Available to purchase from:

Amazon UK

Amazon US

The House on Rectory Lane by Stuart James

Synopsis:

Jake and Kate live in Camden, London and have had enough of the hassle with parking, overbooked restaurants and burglaries.

After an altercation with a stranger who pulls a knife on Jake, they take their son Sean and move to a house in the woods. It’s their dream home, or so they think.

People in the village warn them they shouldn’t have come.

Neighbours are overly friendly and who was the face at the window Kate saw late at night?

They find a tape hidden in the loft of their new house, a homemade video recording of the previous family, the Prescotts. What they view, chills them to the bone.

They realise that the family living there before them have disappeared and now, they could be next....................

My review:

Wow. What a rollercoaster of a book. I am still trying to process everything that has happened in this brilliant, fast-moving page-turner.

Jake and Kate have had enough of the bad air, bad traffic and high crime whilst living in London and all they want is a nicer place for their little boy Sean to grown up in. And when Jake gets confronted with a homeless man drawing a knife at him and they interrupt a burglar in their own flat, the time seems perfect for the move.

Now picture a small town, country lanes, woodlands, lakes, seclusion and a five bedroom house in a quiet spot that has just come on the market and is available straight away. Talk about right time and right place.

But as they old saying goes, if things look too good to be true, they usually are. With a stranger telling Jake they need to leave, the house being broken into, previous owners missing and a sinister DVD found in the loft of their new home, the dreams are shattered and the family find themselves the new targets of someone who will not stop at anything to get them out of the house.

It’s brilliant. There are twist and turns on every page and the story keeps on unravelling until the last page of the book.

Thank you to the author and TBConFB for access to this book in return for an honest review.

My rating: 5/5

Available to purchase from:

Amazon UK

Amazon US

Liar Liar (DC Charlotte Stafford #3) by Sarah Flint

Synopsis:

A faithful dog lies wounded beside the mutilated body of its owner. 

A woman is discovered bound and gagged, dead in her own bed. 

Both are police officers. 

Both have a red rose at their side... worryingly more will follow...

Lies and accusations abound but who is behind the murders and why are the victims being targeted?

Charlie, Hunter and the team must find the killer targeting their own before another body is found.

My review:

This is the third novel in the DC Charlie Stafford series and what a rollercoaster this was. The books just seem to get better and better. Sarah Flint doesn’t give anything away until the right time and the right place and this novel is a proof of that.

When a body of a police officer is found, it sends shock waves through the whole organisation.  And when Charlie and her boss Hunter arrive at the scene and see the gruesome crime for themselves, it leaves them feeling angry and determined to catch whoever did this and to prevent any further officer deaths.

But with no witnesses, no DNA traces and no clear suspects, Charlie and her team hit a wall. That is until another two bodies are found. Someone has it in for the authority and they are not afraid to use some brutal force to let everyone know exactly what they think.

This one is personal and every member of the team is feeling the pressure. In this book I feel that Sarah Flint became even more of a master of investigations, there was more detail into the evidence and psychology of the killer. It was fab to read, a real page turner and I cannot wait to read the next book. The book also continues the complicated story of Charlie’s relationship with her friend Ben and I am intrigued as to where the next book takes them – I am rooting for them, but we’ll have to wait and see.

This is another excellent book for lovers of all things crime. Nothing is given away until the right time arrives and the reader is kept guessing until the last minute.

Thank you to the publisher, author and NetGalley for access to this book in return for an honest review.

My rating: 5/5

Available to purchase from:

Amazon UK

Amazon US

Nearly Dead (Detective Alec Ramsay #0) by Conrad Jones

Synopsis:

The renovation of a remote farmhouse on the outskirts of Liverpool uncovers a chamber of horrors but the crimes are historical. DI Alec Ramsay must sift through the evidence to identify both the victims and the perpetrators, while trying to dismantle the dangerous drug gangs that plague the city. 

The prequel to The Child Taker, this book is a must for fans of the Alec Ramsay series.

My review:

I was so confused as to what rating to give this book right up until the last page. I started of thinking this was about 2 stars for me, then moved to 3 about half way through and ended up with 4 so it's an obvious grower for me.

Firstly I need to say that I have never read any other books by Conrad Jones and understand that this is a prequel to a series already published. Knowing that I now fully understand the journey this book took to set the scene for the first book in the series.

However the blurb was a complete fluke for me. I went back to the blurb numerous times whilst reading the book thinking I was reading the wrong book as the blurb suggested that the book takes of when something terrible is found at an old farmhouse. This doesn't happen until well into the book. 

For me this was a little too much. Very gritty, detailed torture and murder scenes, drug and money underworld - a world I am not that familiar with as a reader (or otherwise I am happy to say). There are a lots of different characters that keep popping up and dropping like flies and until it came to the farmhouse and things started to slot into place more. So in that way this was actually very cleverly written as it really does make the reader want to delve into that dark world again and read the first book in the series.

Overall - to start with I didn't think this was for me, but now I think I will look out for this author again.

Thank you very much to TBConFB and the author for access to this book.

My rating: 4/5

Available from:
Amazon UK
Amazon US

The Haunting of Highdown Hall (Psychic Surveys #1) by Shani Struthers

Synopsis:

"Good morning, Psychic Surveys. How can I help?"

The latest in a long line of psychically-gifted females, Ruby Davis can see through the veil that separates this world and the next, helping grounded souls to move towards the light - or 'home' as Ruby calls it. Not just a job for Ruby, it's a crusade and one she wants to bring to the High Street. Psychic Surveys is born. 

Based in Lewes, East Sussex, Ruby and her team of freelance psychics have been kept busy of late. Specialising in domestic cases, their solid reputation is spreading - it's not just the dead that can rest in peace but the living too. All is threatened when Ruby receives a call from the irate new owner of Highdown Hall. Film star Cynthia Hart is still in residence, despite having died in 1958. 

Winter deepens and so does the mystery surrounding Cynthia. She insists the devil is blocking her path to the light long after Psychic Surveys have 'disproved' it. Investigating her apparently unblemished background, Ruby is pulled further and further into Cynthia's world and the darkness that now inhabits it. 

For the first time in her career, Ruby's deepest beliefs are challenged. Does evil truly exist? And if so, is it the most relentless force of all?

My review:

I have already read the newest novel featuring Psychic Surveys with Ruby Davies, Theo, Ness and Corinna. However this is the first book in the series and it introduces the team to the readers. Psychic Surveys is a small business created with customers and spirits in mind. Ruby and her team of psychics work hard to help spirits find their way to the light and cross over to the other side.

As business is picking up and Ruby meets the web designer Cash (who sounds rather dashing), the company receives a call from Highdown Hall. An angry spirit of a high profile 1950s actress Cynthia Hart still resides in the mansion, taking over the first floor rooms and not letting anyone anywhere close, which unsurprisingly doesn’t go down well with the new owner.

The team get tangled up in Cynthia’s very secretive personal live and realise very early on that to help her move on, they will first need to uncover the exact events that eventually led to her untimely death. She is angry and hurt, but above all she seems to be petrified.

I love Ruby and her team and Cash seems to just slot in perfectly too. Ruby has such a beautiful, forgiving outlook on life and all people living and dead. She definitely meets her match at Highdown Hall, but she never leaves an unhappy spirit behind and works hard to help everyone to get where they need to get to.

My rating: 5/5

Available to purchase from:

Amazon UK

Amazon US

The Ice Twins by S.K. Tremayne

Synopsis:

A year after one of their identical twin daughters, Lydia, dies in an accident, Angus and Sarah Moorcroft move to the tiny Scottish island Angus inherited from his grandmother, hoping to put together the pieces of their shattered lives.

But when their surviving daughter, Kirstie, claims they have mistaken her identity – that she, in fact, is Lydia – their world comes crashing down once again.

As winter encroaches, Angus is forced to travel away from the island for work, Sarah is feeling isolated, and Kirstie (or is it Lydia?) is growing more disturbed. When a violent storm leaves Sarah and her daughter stranded, Sarah finds herself tortured by the past – what really happened on that fateful day one of her daughters died?

My review:

The Ice Twins was my introduction into the world of author S.K. Tremayne. And what an experience this was. I don’t think my breathing has slowed down yet and I feel like I need to be looking over my shoulder. I might even start hating the dark again.

The novel starts innocently enough with the bereaved Moorcroft family of mum Sarah, dad Angus and their surviving twin Kirstie, preparing to move from London to an isolated little island in the Hebrides. It looks beautiful, will solve their financial trouble and just maybe it will give them the fresh start they all need. They have lost nearly everything since the death of Kirstie’s identical twin sister Lydia, but this move could bring them closer and forget about the past as much as they could.

But past doesn’t stay in one place. You carry it on your shoulder and it jumps out of the shadows when you least expecting it. Both Sarah and Angus are grieving. They are also full of distrust and anger towards each other and the one person suffering the most is Kirstie, which becomes obvious when she tells her mum that she is not Kirstie, she is Lydia and that Kirstie is dead. This sparks a massive snowball effect of bad decisions, more secrets and events that this little family just cannot survive.

I was on the edge of my seat. I had half of the book still to read last night but I had to finish it there and then. I couldn’t go another day without knowing how this would end and what really did happen.

Fabulous book and I am most definitely looking forward to reading more by this author. If you are looking for a psychological thriller that will keep you up at night and that gives nothing away until the last few pages, then this is for you.

My rating: 5/5

Available to purchase from:

Amazon UK

Amazon US

Cold Christmas (DCI Antonia Hawkins #4) by Alastair Gunn

Synopsis:

In the small village of Cold Christmas there's a church that faces the wrong way . . . What has it to do with the three dead men found in a London flat? DCI Antonia Hawkins has a killer to catch. Only she can't predict what is waiting for her at the end of the chase.

Nobody remembers the young men entering the abandoned London flat a few weeks ago. Nobody cares if they left. Until the unbearable smell of decay.

DCI Antonia Hawkins is called in to view the dead men; three, lying neat in a row. There's no damage to the bodies, no obvious cause of death. Is this a suicide pact? Or is that just how it's meant to look?

If there is a link between the three very different men then Hawkins needs to find it, and fast. Because unless she does, more are going to die. And they might not all be strangers.

My review:

When I got this book I haven’t realised that it’s part of a series. This is the forth book in Detective Inspector Antonia Hawkins series and although it did read fine as a standalone book I would have preferred to read them in order as there were hints throughout the book at previous cases and her personal life, which has now put me off reading the previous book – I feel I already know too much.

Three decaying bodies with no obvious signs of how they died left arranged on the floor of an abandoned flat. DCI Hawkins and her team are stuck on finding a motive, let alone the killer. But as they start to dig deeper into the victims’ history and as they retrace their footsteps, the team uncover a much deeper meaning to the deaths of the young men.

This is a great, fast paced crime novel. I really enjoyed learning about Toni’s live as well as the work she does and how the whole team work together. Her personal life with fiancé Mike seems to be woven well into the story and keeps the novel on a more human, believable level.

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for access to this book in return for this honest review.

My rating: 4/5

Website: www.alastairgunn.com

Available to purchase from:

Amazon UK (published 16 November 2017)

Amazon US (published 01 February 2018)

Scavenger Girl: Season of Atchem by Jennifer Arntson (Scavenger Girl #1)

Firstly I would like to say a very Happy Birthday to Jennifer and happy publication day. And thank you very much for letting me be part of your author journey.

Jennifer Arntson

Author, dreamer, and sworn enemy of Caillou

Jennifer Arntson has a long history of crafting tales that people find unbelievable, but often true. As an observer of human and social development through the ages, a curiosity of faith, and dedication to the underprivileged of the developing world, Jennifer finds her creative outlet in stories and fables. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and two children, and a mini-farm of otherwise useless animals where the family eagerly caters to their every need.

Synopsis:

Stripped of their birthright and shunned by the people of Ashlund, Una and her family are forced to live on the fringe of society as Scavengers. When the family experiences a sudden change of circumstance, Una takes new freedoms, free from the Authority, her family and possibly her fate. Pulled between the life she's always known and a world where status and rituals are everything, Una struggles to understand a culture that has rejected her family and celebrates death. Time is running out and she can't stop thinking about what she fears the most: the coming of her womanhood and her subsequent price when she's taken to the Sellers Stage. As the Festival of the Three Moons draws near and she learns who she really is, will Una find the courage to do what it takes to ensure her family's survival, or will she find the faith to follow her heart?

My review:

I love a bit of fantasy and this book fits right into that genre. The synopsis I was sent didn’t give too much away which is how I kind of prefer to receive books. I can then really make up my own mind.

Right from page one you are thrown into the harsh world of Ashlund, where Citizens live by strict rules under the power of the priests and the threat of being excluded from the high society. On the other side of the coin you have the Scavengers (or Reclaimers). They live on what they can grow and find and make themselves. They also live in constant fear of being hunted, tortured and murdered by the Authority, who makes this their sport of choice.

Una is a teenage girl on the brink of womanhood, who has only ever known living as a Scavenger with her parents and two brothers. But things are starting to change. With the upcoming Atchem festival where girls are pretty much sold based on whether they are fertile or not, strange things start happening around her. She has dreams that too real; a horse they reclaim seems to understand every word she says.

And then there is Blue. The Citizen that pays Una the attention a lover pays to his sweetheart. And behind Una’s back a plan is being hatched between Una’s parents and Blue’s grandfather that would change her life forever.

But revelations within her own family threaten everything Una knows and she sets of on a dangerous path decisions that will shape everyone’s future. The bonds within her family are threatened and only her own instinct and understanding can stop a disaster.

I don’t want to give any more away. I loved the book and can’t wait for the next installment. A massive thanks to the author for sending me the book – I was very happy to share my review.

My rating: 5/5

Website: www.scavengergirl.com

Available to purchase from: free e-book on publication day 21/10/2017

Amazon UK

Amazon US

The Eleventh Floor (This Haunted World #2) by Shani Struthers

Synopsis:

A snowstorm, a highway, a lonely hotel…

Devastated by the deaths of her parents and disillusioned with life, Caroline Daynes is in America trying to connect with their memory. Travelling to her mother’s hometown of Williamsfield in Pennsylvania, she is caught in a snowstorm and forced to stop at The Egress hotel – somewhere she’d planned to visit as her parents honeymooned there.

From the moment she sets foot inside the lobby and meets the surly receptionist, she realises this is a hotel like no other. Charming and unique, it seems lost in time with a whole cast of compelling characters sheltering behind closed doors.

As the storm deepens, so does the mystery of The Egress. Who are these people she’s stranded with and what secrets do they hide? In a situation that’s becoming increasingly nightmarish, is it possible to find solace?

My review:

This is another cracker from the fabulous Shani Struthers. I love a good ghost story and Shani has got this brilliant talent in creating a believable world that you get lost in so easily.

The story follows Caroline, travelling through the states following the foot path of her parents. She gets caught in a snow storms and ends up having to stay at the old-fashioned hotel that she heard so much about from her mother. The Egress hotel has its charms but Caroline senses something strange within it walls.

Caroline meets various characters at the hotel and they each seem to have secrets and troubles of their own. There is also something sinister residing within the hotel’s corridors and following some terrible nightmares Caroline start fearing the strangeness of the place and how it is changing her, however the hotel has also given her the charming David for a company and she tries to focus on that as the happy part of her stay.

But this story is not just about fear and ghosts, it’s about a person’s journey, it’s about love and hate and history that can change someone’s path. I think this is so far my favourite book by Shani (well maybe on the same level as The Venetian). I suspected what was going on about half way through the book, but it still got a couple of tears out of me when it was done.

As I said this is a fabulous book for those long autumnal evenings, with the wind howling behind the windows and in the chimneys.

Thank you to the Shani and TBConFB for access to this book in return for this honest review.

My rating: 5/5

Website: www.shanistruthers.com

Available to purchase from:

Amazon UK

Amazon US

The Break by Marian Keyes

Synopsis:

Amy's husband Hugh isn't really leaving her.

At least, that's what he promises. He is just taking a break - from their marriage, their children and, most of all, from their life together. For six-months Hugh will lose himself in south-east Asia, and there is nothing Amy can say or do about it.

Yes, it's a mid-life crisis, but let's be clear: a break isn't a break up - yet . . .

It's been a long time since Amy held a briefcase in one hand and a baby in the other. She never believed she'd have to go it alone again. She just has to hold the family together until Hugh comes back.

But a lot can happen in six-months. When Hugh returns, if he returns, will he be the same man she married? And will Amy be the same woman?

Because falling in love is easy. The hard part - the painful, joyous, maddening, beautiful part - is staying in love.

My review:

Fabulous book and Marian Keyes is back to her best. I still enjoyed her previous novel but I feel that The Break is the Marian Keyes we all know and love. Her humour is there, her brilliant insight into people’s relationships is there and well, the book has it all.

I loved Amy and Hugh. Well….I hated Hugh for a while, but with Marian’s magical descriptions of the turmoil of emotions people go through in a lifetime of one relationship, I had to grow to love Hugh too.

Hugh and Amy were far from perfect, but they had it all. Until they didn’t. This book shows perfectly how easy is to jump on the bandwagon and throw blame at the obvious person, the one that has left everyone else behind. But life is never that easy and both Hugh and Amy are brilliant examples of how self-growth is important for people to be able to invest their true self in the relationships they have with all people around them.

I loved the book. It brought me to tears quite a few times as I think most people will be able to identify themselves with some parts of the story. Is shows quite clearly that things are never what they seem and that we have to put to correct effort and work into our lives to feel fulfilled.

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for access to this book in return for this honest review.

My rating: 5/5

Website: www.mariankeyes.com

Available to purchase from:

Amazon UK

Amazon US (24 October 2017)

The Treatment by C.L.Taylor

Synopsis:

Cecelia Ahern’s Flawed meets Never Let Me Go in the pulse-pounding YA thriller from the Top Ten Sunday Times bestselling author of The Escape.

“You have to help me. We’re not being reformed. We’re being brainwashed.”

All sixteen year old Drew Finch wants is to be left alone. She's not interested in spending time with her mum and stepdad and when her disruptive fifteen year old brother Mason is expelled from school for the third time and sent to a residential reform academy she's almost relieved.

Everything changes when she's followed home from school by the mysterious Dr Cobey, who claims to have a message from Mason. There is something sinister about the ‘treatment’ he is undergoing. The school is changing people.

Determined to help her brother, Drew must infiltrate the Academy and unearth its deepest, darkest secrets. Before it’s too late.

My review:

A fab, fast-paced young adult fiction book full of good characters and twist and turns. I thoroughly enjoyed it and hope there is a second instalment.

Drew and Mason are pretty much normal teenagers, one rebelling against the world, the other one keeping head down and out of the way. When Mason is sent away to the Reform Academy, everything changes. And when Drew gets the mysterious message in the hands of Dr Cobey, things get plain dangerous.

Drew decides to be brave and see for herself what sort of treatment this revolutionary school delivers and gets herself enrolled through basically making herself seems like a bad egg. She soon realises there is much more to that place then strict regime and therapy.

Great story that never really stops with Drew as the main character, which you can’t help but like and spur on throughout the book.

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for access to this book in return for this honest review.

My rating: 4/5

Website: http://cltaylorauthor.com

Available to purchase from:

Amazon UK

Amazon US