Veronika Jordan's Blog, page 102

The Other Couple by Cathryn Grant

They planned a dream vacation. They got a trip to hell.

Maggie and Brad are on vacation at Lake Tahoe when they meet another couple, Skye and Joe. The four hit it off so well that Maggie invites their new friends to share her beautiful lakeside rental. What she doesn’t realize is Skye and Joe aren’t just some random couple. They have been watching Maggie and Brad, have chosen them carefully….

#TheOtherCouple @CathrynGrant @inkubatorbooks @damppebbles #damppebblesblogtours Facebook @damppebblesblogtours 

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And now, when they discover that Maggie has a secret which could destroy her marriage, they start turning the screws, pushing their own sinister agenda. But have they chosen their victim wisely? Or does Maggie also have a dark side?

As the pressure builds, what should have been a dream vacation begins to look more like the inner circle of hell. Before it’s over all four will be changed forever – and at least one of them will be dead…

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My Review

This was really good and so exciting. I woke early Sunday morning – it was my birthday – and just had to finish it. Just when you thought there couldn’t be any more twists there was another and another. I did guess one of them – I think we were supposed to – but I never guessed the final one. Never underestimate the quiet ones, the ones who everyone thinks are a bit dim and just go with the flow.

Brad and Maggie are on holiday at Lake Tahoe. Their rented home is beautiful, luxurious, secluded and peaceful. And too big for the two of them. Then they go out for a drink and it all changes. Joe and Skye engineer the initial meeting and Brad and Maggie have no idea they are being targeted. They seem so nice and friendly. Especially Skye. Poor things. They drove all the way from Florida in a van and their rental fell through. They were conned. Maggie invites them to stay in their huge house. Brad is cross. He feels that he and Maggie need this holiday to talk about their marriage and reconnect.

But all is not as it seems. Who are these people really and what do they want? We can guess but they don’t – yet. Because Maggie has a secret and Joe knows what it is. He wants money to keep quiet – lot’s of it. But Maggie is not playing ball. In the meantime Skye is connecting on Facebook with Maggie’s friends, including her lover Darren, who also happens to be a client of Brad. Now Brad’s marriage counselling business is also at risk, as well as their marriage. Maggie has a lot to lose. So she decides to fight back and that is when the trouble really starts.

Many thanks to @damppebbles for inviting me to be part of #damppebblesblogtours

About the Author

Cathryn Grant writes psychological thrillers, psychological suspense, and ghost stories. She’s the author of twenty-three novels. She’s loved crime fiction all her life and is endlessly fascinated by the twists and turns, and the dark corners of the human mind. When she’s not writing, Cathryn reads fiction, eavesdrops, and tries to play golf without hitting her ball into the sand or the water. She lives on the Central California coast with her husband and two cats. Cathryn is the author of The Good Mother, The Assistant and other psychological thrillers. The Other Couple will be Cathryn’s fifth novel with Inkubator books. 

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Social Media:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/CathrynGrant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CathrynGrant.Writer/

Website: https://www.cathryngrant.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cathryngrant_fiction/

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Cathryn-Grant/e/B004G1I484?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_3&qid=1566901527&sr=8-3

Afraid of the Christmas Lights: An Anthology of Crime Stories

by Mark Billingham, Val McDermid, Rachael Blok, Heather Critchlow, Sara Collins , Elle Croft, James Delargy, Clare Empson, Jo Furniss, Sophie Hannah, T.E. Kinsey, N.J. Mackay, S.R. Masters, Phoebe Morgan, Dominic Nolan, Robert Scragg, Victoria Selman, Kate Simants, Adam Southward, Harriet Tyce

Festive Shorts from the Biggest Stars in Crime Fiction

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My Review

Some of my favourite authors amongst these including Victoria Selman, Phoebe Morgan and James Delargy. I’ve selected a few of the ones I enjoyed the most to review.

An Unexpected Present by Phoebe Morgan

I love the very dark humour in this story. Calmly wrapping up her dead husband in Christmas paper – ‘Marks and Spencer’s paper isn’t cheap’ she thinks, ‘I was glad I’d be able to put it to good use’, and worrying that ‘the turkey isn’t going to cook itself’.

This was hilarious in that I just murdered my husband but I mustn’t let dinner spoil kind of way. Absolutely brilliant.

Hunted by Victoria Selman

Victoria gives us another dark story but this one has a real twist at the end. Did you guess? Short and sweet.

Especially at Christmas by Adam Southward

The darkest story of all. Even I struggled to find any humour in this one. Very clever and absolutely chilling.

Fresh Meat by Elle Croft

We kind of all guessed what was going to happen but it didn’t matter. The moral of the tale is never mess with a crazy cat lady. And anyone on Pigeonhole knows that you NEVER mess with the cat. Loved this story.

The Switch by James Delargy

This is so cleverly written. The narrator is telling us about a woman who killed her husband and two small children and is about to be executed. No humour here. He is talking to her in her last few moments before they pull the switch. The bit where they shave her head before she is electrocuted really got to me (I had to Google why they do this). This story stands out from all the others because it is so poignant and sad. I am a huge fan of this author and rightly so. So glad we got rid of the death penalty in this country years ago. It makes me shudder how they can still do this in some states of the US.

A Dog is for Life, not just for Christmas by Robert Scragg

Us Pigeons love a doggy tale just as much as we love a kitty tale (as long as the animals don’t get hurt) so this one was perfect. Never let your morals get in the way when someone hurts an animal. They must get their just desserts. Brilliant.

The Vigilante by Clare Empson

Just when I thought it couldn’t get any better, along comes my favourite. David loves Charles Dickens. A Victorian superhero. He also loves his wife. I read this story with tears in my eyes ( I admit I’ve been very emotional since hearing that the Bristol Zoo of my childhood memories is closing – well re-locating but that’s not the point). I digress. How beautiful and sad and totally original.

Many thanks to The Pigeonhole and my fellow Pigeons for making this such an enjoyable read.

Christmas Cookie Cozies: A Holiday Cozy Mystery Anthology

2020 is going to be the coziest holiday season yet with cozy mysteries from Ava Mallory, Summer Prescott, Jenna St. James, Laina Turner, Gretchen Allen, Joanna Campbell Slan, S. C. Merritt, Minnie Crockwell, Mona Marple, Rachael Stapleton and Loraine Hudson – along with their favourite holiday cookie recipe!

#ChristmasCookiesCozies2020 @damppebbles #damppebblesblogtours Facebook @damppebblesblogtours 

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A fabulous collection of ‘long’ short stories – each one is almost a novella – with recipes at the end of each one. Cookies and Crime could be a fitting title for the whole collection but Caramelized Casualty has to be my favourite. I have listed each story with its resume followed by my own short review. And who better than to review stories about cookies than the cookie monster herself – Cookiebiscuit!

Many thanks to @damppebbles for inviting me to be part of #damppebblesblogtours

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Summer Prescott – Hang Out the Stalkings
Someone is stealing Nancy’s cookies…will they steal her holiday spirit too?

I loved this story! But then it’s about a dog – Dolly the Poodle (she’s fine so don’t worry) – who gets stolen from the doggy grooming parlour while having a shampoo and clip. It’s sweet and heart-warming and I confess I shed a tear or three at the end. Poor Nancy. Who knew what rivalry went on in suburban dog parlours. There’s a mystery a-paw…

Laina Turner – Cookies and Crime
What is supposed to be a joy-filled awards ceremony for the Romero Boy Scouts turns out to be anything but when Jean Sartor, Scout co-leader, drops dead on stage. Trixie lands herself on the suspect list since she baked Christmas cookies for the ceremony. She knows she didn’t poison Jean, but who did?

A simple tale of murder, greed, lust and secrets. But who is guilty? More than one I suspect and Trixie is determined to find out – even though she is a suspect and is putting her own life in danger.

Rachael Stapleton – Christmas, Corpses & The Gingerbread Flip Flop
When house flippers Jack Young and Juniper Palmer purchase a colourful Queen Anne home, Juniper assumes the exterior gingerbread trim will be the most outlandish thing to see. That is until a prominent wine merchant dressed as Santa is murdered and Jack’s mother is caught on the naughty list.

I loved the supernatural element in this. Juniper can see ghosts. The type that come back to tell you about unfinished business. You usually then find out it’s a trick or even worse, aliens, but Juniper can really see them. I love a good haunting. It made the story for me.

Jenna St. James – Christmas Cookie Caper
When Ivy O’Brien learns her mother has been injured at the annual Couples Christmas Cookie Contest, she runs to the rescue. Looks like she needs to fill in for her mother and hunky policeman Anthony Romano has to help bake the cookie and question the suspects. Between dough-making disasters, nips of peppermint Schnapps, and rolling pin thefts, the pair slowly whittle down their suspect list.

Hilarious! The characters like Christmas Carol are so ridiculous but they made me smile. And Mr Ashcroft lining up the snowmen and worrying that one of his precious collection of rolling pins is missing. There’s even a ‘love’ interest in this one or at least the beginnings of one between Ivy and Romano. I have to admit this one was amongst my favourites.

S. C. Merritt – Caramelized Casualty
With the annual holiday unveiling of a giant gingerbread village quickly approaching, Kate Kennedy’s stress level is sky high. When one of the event’s diva celebrity chefs turns up dead, Kate decides she has no choice but to team up with the town’s newest detective if she’s going to pull off the big event. Can she expose the killer in time to save the event?

Love this. Those celebrity chefs are so up themselves. I hope they are not all like this in real life. A touch of dark humour (well more than a touch) and budding romance in this one. The murder puts Kate in a very sticky situation and her career depends on solving this viscous crime. Whoever thought you could be caramelized to death? Another favourite.

Gretchen Allen – Lost Claus
Charlotte Moss is one tough cookie, but her new job as Mrs. Claus isn’t what she expected. When Santa goes missing and a body is found, the most wonderful time of the year looks bleak.

Set in a shopping mall with three Santas, each with his own Mrs Claus and accompanying Elf. Who knew competition for the annual bonus could be so fierce? Olive wants to partner flirty Daniel but new girl Charlotte has taken her position, ex-Mrs Claus Erin has been murdered, Santa’s little helper Owen is acting very suspiciously and Kris (is that Kris Kringle?) has gone missing. Who dunnit? Charlotte is determined to find out.

Mona Marple – The Santa Run is Murderous Fun
Emily Monk’s run out of excuses not to take part in the annual Santa run, but the festivities are threatened when the long-running Santa Run champ is found dead the day before the race.
With a killer to be caught, and a Christmas dinner to be bought, Emily needs to think fast if she’s going to solve this case before Santa comes.

When the author is called Ms Marple, there has to be a mystery to solve. This one is based in England and it shows instantly in the writing style. I don’t know if they have Santa Runs in the US (I expect they do) but there’s always one in our local park here in Cheltenham. It’s big here – like Santa himself. Time for Emily, with the help of Uncle Cornelius, to solve the murder.

Loraine J. Hudson – Holly Jolly Misdeed
First, it’s a thieving Santa. Next, it’s a prowler that threatens Jenny’s peace. It all seems to revolve around a box of cookies.  Why? And what’s next?  

No bodies this time just a mystery over a box of cookies. Actually I loved this one. Poor Jenny stumbles upon an intruder searching through the gifts under the Christmas tree. She hits them over the head with a hockey stick and six year old daughter Ashley thinks mum has killed Santa. Once the perp is locked up Jenny spots a prowler in the garden. What could they be after and are the crimes connected? We’ll have to find out.

Minnie Crockwell – Death by Cookie
Sallie Chilcoat decides to get into the holiday spirit by baking up a batch of cookies for her lakeside condominium neighbours only to have one of them turn up dead – with the remains of her cookies! Did Sallie kill her neighbour with her vegan cookies?

Sallie doesn’t really do ‘neighbourliness’. She keeps herself to herself. But being Christmas, she decides to make some vegan cookies and leave them at her neighbours’ doors. Until she discovers an ant infestation and runs round looking to see if the cookies are still in the hallway. But one door is open and when she goes in she finds more than ants.

Ava Mallory – Christmas Cookie Catastrophe
When Consuelo “Cookie” Alvarez inherits a bakery from her aunt Birdie, she doesn’t expect to take her late aunt’s place in the Christmas Cookie Bake-Off. Now she has two weeks to perfect the super-secret recipe, but there are major obstacles in her way: she can’t bake, the recipe is missing, and her competitors are a who’s who of shady characters.

This story is about the theft of a recipe and no-one gets murdered. It’s a nice little yarn with a cast of unusual characters. A cozy Christmas tale with just a hint of possible romance.

Joanna Campbell Slan – How the Cookie Crumbles
Cara Mia Delgatto never met her maternal grandmother. But Nonie Josephina reaches out from the grave with a message for Cara: I left behind a treasure! Can Cara Mia find it before Santa comes to town?

A tale of four generations from Great-Granddad Poppy down to 20 year old Tommy, who everyone seems to want to hug, and their friends and family. Another cozy ‘mystery’ with a lovely, happy ending. No murders, no poisoned cookies, just a lot of love.

Purchase Links:

US Amazon – https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08K97KLJ9

UK Amazon – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08K97KLJ9

Kill a Stranger by Simon Kernick

They took your fiancée.
They framed you for murder.
You’re given one chance to save her. To clear your name.
You must kill someone for them.
They give you the time and place.
The weapon. The target.
You have less than 24 hours.
You only know that no-one can be trusted…and nothing is what it seems.

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My Review

Very clever plotting with lots of twists and turns. Who can you trust? Well probably no-one. I found parts of this hilarious (I hope I was supposed to). These are the parts where Matt is concerned. Matt is a handsome actor, whose only TV role of any merit was as a police officer in Night Beat. He met Kate in Sri Lanka and stayed there to be with her. When confronted with her kidnapping and attempts to save her, he really hasn’t a clue and turns into Frank Spencer from Some Mothers do ‘ave ’em.

Kate is the most suspicious. Has she really been kidnapped or did she stage it herself. And if she did then why. Sir Hugh Roper is her father, but for years he had nothing to do with her. Her mother was the cleaner with whom he had a little dalliance. Ex-wife Diana is a gold-carat bitch who hates Hugh’s illegitimate offspring. Her own daughter Alana died and son Tom is the black sheep who has been disinherited. Any of them could be guilty.

DCI Cameron Doyle doesn’t trust any of them. He thinks they are all lying. He could be right.

When Matt discovers Kate has been kidnapped he will kill to get her back. Literally. He will have to murder someone in exchange for her safe release. Then it’s a race against time to save her. Don’t bother I say! She’s not what or who you think. It’s a great, fast-paced read that will keep you up at night trying to guess the truth.

Many thanks to The Pigeonhole and my fellow Pigeons for making this such an enjoyable read.

About the Author

Simon Kernick (born 1966 in Slough, Berkshire) is a British thriller/crime writer now living in Oxfordshire with his wife and two daughters. He attended Gillotts School, a comprehensive in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire. Whilst he was a student his jobs included fruitpicker and Christmas-tree uprooter. He graduated from Brighton Polytechnic in 1991 with a degree in humanities.

Kernick had a passion for crime fiction writing from a young age and produced many short stories during his time at polytechnic. After graduating Kernick joined MMT Computing in London in early 1992, where a relative was the Chairman and Managing Director. Kernick was a key member of the sales team and was very highly regarded. However, he left the company after four years in the hope of trying to secure a publishing deal. Despite interest from a number of publishers Kernick was unable to secure a deal, so he joined the sales force of the specialist IT and Business Consultancy Metaskil plc in Aldermaston, Berkshire in 1998 where he remained until he secured his first book deal The Business of Dying in September 2001. His novel Relentless was recommended on Richard & Judy’s Summer book club 2007. It was the 8th best-selling paperback, and the best-selling thriller in the UK in the same year.

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Dead Already by Tim Adler

What if someone you accidentally killed came back to haunt you?

When the perfect crime results in the kidnap and murder of Megan, his only child, East End villain Mickey Speight is grief stricken. But now, nearly thirty years later, Megan sends a message to her father, gone-to-ground in present-day Margate.

#DeadAlready @timadlerauthor @NightsBooks @damppebbles #damppebblesblogtours Facebook @damppebblesblogtours 

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As the messages from his dead daughter keep coming, Mickey teams up with a young American female therapist to discover whether this really is a voice from beyond the grave, or if somebody has loomed out of Mickey’s past wanting revenge. Someone is fingering Mickey’s collar and Mickey doesn’t like it.

Mickey realises that he must haunt the old East End boozers, betting shops and strip clubs of his youth if he’s to find out what really happened to his daughter.

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My Review

I love books that are set in places I’ve been to – I was in Margate in the summer as well as a couple of years ago. I think it’s a great place, with a great atmosphere and the Turner Contemporary is amazing. Not the kind of place you would find Mickey Speight though. He’s more the strip joint type. An old East End lag.

I love the way Mickey’s parts of the book (we also hear from Taybor and others) is written in his ‘voice’ even when he is not speaking as such. It’s a great story-telling technique, one I often try to imitate. Now I am no judge of East End villains never having met one, but the way Mickey ‘tells’ the story seems very authentic.

I did struggle a bit with the bad language (and I’m not just talking about the ‘f’ word) I have to admit – it’s the second book in two weeks where I’ve had to put my feelings aside – but I guess it was normal to them. Or maybe I’m just a prude when it comes to swearing.

Mickey and his wife Linda run the St George’s pub in Margate. It’s basically a lap dancing club. It’s Mickey’s pride and joy. There is no funny business or drugs or hard porn – he doesn’t approve – and he takes care of his ‘dancers’. Again I’m out of my depth. We don’t see that kind of thing in Cheltenham – except during Cheltenham Races when we get mobile lap dancing venues. I jest not.

But Mickey has an enemy, Mr Khan, a property developer, who will go to any lengths to get Mickey to sell up so he can build houses on the land. Again, you need to understand that some of the ‘racist’ language used here (I’m not going to say what as I know Amazon won’t approve my review) is how the old villains spoke to each other. Again, the author is being authentic. It’s a bit like showing everyone smoking in a 1970s cop show on TV. People are offended and complain, but they did it.

Detective Chief Inspector June Taybor, a week off retirement, is the police officer who led the original investigation into the disappearance of Mickey’s daughter Megan, and here she is again, facing her nemesis.

Mickey is not a very likeable character, but there is just enough sympathy there to make you want to keep him alive. Only just. It goes without saying that the story is very good, but for me it was the final third that really gripped me. This is where it all started to change. The twist was such a shock – even if you guessed one bit of it, the truth was much cleverer. Poor Mickey – he never knew what hit him (metaphorically speaking). The whole outcome was just brilliant and a bit sad to be honest.

And the lesson to be learnt. It may be the East End way but never take the law into your own hands. It just doesn’t pay.

Many thanks to @damppebbles for inviting me to be part of #damppebblesblogtours

About the Author

Tim Adler is a journalist and former commissioning editor on the Daily Telegraph, who has also written for the Financial Times and The Times.

His debut self-published thriller Slow Bleed went to number one in the US Amazon Kindle psychological thriller chart. Its follow-up Surrogate stayed in the top 40 psychological thrillers for more than a year. Bestselling crime author Peter James said of Tim’s third novel Hold Still, “Adler’s engaging style and sharp pace kept me glued”.

The Sunday Times called Tim’s most recent nonfiction book The House of Redgrave “compulsively readable” while The Mail On Sunday called it “dazzling”. Tim’s previous book Hollywood and the Mob was Book of the Week in The Mail On Sunday and Critic’s Choice in the Daily Mail.

Tim is a former London Editor of Deadline Hollywood, the US entertainment news website.

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Social Media:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/timadlerauthor

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/timadlerauthor/

Website: http://www.timadlerauthor.com/

Purchase Links:

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3muXuk3

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/3mzdYaG

Waterstones: https://bit.ly/2Jev2EB

Foyles: https://bit.ly/37QgS71

Crime and Justice by Martin Bodenham

What if we could no longer trust DNA profiling, the silver bullet of our criminal justice system? For years, we’ve relied on it to solve decades-old crimes, convict the guilty, and liberate the innocent from death row. But what happens to that trust when a crime lab scientist is leaned on to manipulate the evidence or, worse still, lose it altogether?

Ruthless Seattle mayor, Patti Rainsford, announces her candidacy for state governor. She’ll do anything to succeed. When her son is arrested for the rape and assault of a seventeen-year-old girl, Rainsford’s political career is in jeopardy.

#CrimeandJustice @MartinBodenham @DownAndOutBooks @damppebbles #damppebblesblogtours Facebook @damppebblesblogtours 

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Detective Linda Farrell is assigned to investigate. After twelve years working in SPD’s sexual assault unit, her career is drifting, not helped by the single-minded detective’s contempt for police protocol and the pressure of her failing marriage. The high-profile rape case is a rare chance to shine and maybe even get her life back on track. Nothing will stop her seeking justice for the young victim.

With a mountain of personal debt and his wife’s business on a knife-edge, Clark Stanton is facing financial meltdown. Then a stranger offers him a lifeline in return for a favour. As the manager of Seattle’s crime lab, all Clark has to do is make the rape kit evidence against the mayor’s son go away.

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My Review

A police drama with a difference. Not my usual feast of murder and bodies piling up. This one is about politics and the lengths some people will go to in order to move up the political ladder. In this case it involves corruption, a rape case that won’t go away and an attempt to manipulate evidence by switching the DNA.

Detective Linda Farrell just won’t let go. She knows something is wrong but she can’t prove it. Because DNA never lies, but people do.

Linda’s marriage is falling apart, her son is misbehaving at school, her career is going nowhere and her boss is fed up with her changing her mind about this very high profile case.

Clark is just an ordinary guy married to Anna. They have two lovely kids who he adores. He’s the manager at the crime lab where they will be examining the samples taken from Chace Rainsford and from the victim in order to get a match. Patti Rainsford wants to be the next senator but her son Chace can’t keep his pants on. All she needs is for his DNA to disappear and no-one will know what he did. But how to make Clark play ball – easy when you have a minder like Jeff Peltz. And blackmail is a simple thing isn’t it. Because Peltz knows they always roll over when you push hard enough and threaten their family.

There were so many times when I wanted to scream at Clark. Don’t do it! Go to the police! It’s not worth it. And Linda is still chomping at the bit, determined to get a conviction

Then just when you think it’s all sorted the actual ending – not the ending but the ending ending will have you gasping. It did me. Brilliant twist. I can’t stop thinking about it.

Many thanks to @damppebbles for inviting me to be part of #damppebblesblogtours

About the Author

Martin Bodenham is the author of the crime thrillers The Geneva Connection, Once a Killer, and Shakedown. Crime And Justice is his latest novel.

After a thirty-year career in private equity and corporate finance in London, Martin moved to the west coast of Canada, where he writes full-time. He held corporate finance partner positions at both KPMG and Ernst & Young as well as senior roles at several private equity firms before founding his own private equity company in 2001. Much of the tension in his thrillers is based on the greed and fear he witnessed first-hand while working in international finance.

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Social Media:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MartinBodenham

LinkedIn: https://ca.linkedin.com/in/martin-bodenham-8228307

Website: https://www.martinbodenham.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/martinbodenham/

Purchase Links:

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/38jJq90

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/3n1kLKz

Google Books: https://bit.ly/2IcS4LS

Waterstones: https://bit.ly/32oUnlX

Barnes & Noble: https://bit.ly/3p99Yjx

Gravity Is the Thing by Jaclyn Moriarty

The adult debut from bestselling, award-winning young adult author Jaclyn Moriarty—a frequently hilarious, brilliantly observed novel—that follows a single mother’s heartfelt search for greater truths about the universe, her family and herself.

Twenty years ago, Abigail Sorenson’s brother Robert went missing one day before her sixteenth birthday, never to be seen again. That same year, she began receiving scattered chapters in the mail of a self-help manual, the Guidebook, whose anonymous author promised to make her life soar to heights beyond her wildest dreams.

The Guidebook’s missives have remained a constant in Abi’s life—a befuddling yet oddly comforting voice through her family’s grief over her brother’s disappearance, a move across continents, the devastating dissolution of her marriage, and the new beginning as a single mother and café owner in Sydney.

Now, two decades after receiving those first pages, Abi is invited to an all-expenses paid weekend retreat to learn “the truth” about the Guidebook. It’s an opportunity too intriguing to refuse. If Everything is Connected, then surely the twin mysteries of the Guidebook and a missing brother must be linked?

What follows is completely the opposite of what Abi expected––but it will lead her on a journey of discovery that will change her life––and enchant readers. Gravity Is the Thing is a smart, unusual, wickedly funny novel about the search for happiness that will break your heart into a million pieces and put it back together, bigger and better than before.

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My Review

It took me a while to get into this book. There’s a lot of self-discovery and looking inwards and truth-seeking that I hate to admit that I found a bit tedious. It’s all rather flowery and overlong at times. I sometimes wished it would just get on with the story. Maybe if I had more time to savour the beauty of the words I would have enjoyed the first half more.

Abigail is a lovely character, though at times you wish she would stop blaming herself for everything that has gone wrong in her life. Such as the disappearance of her brother Robert after his MS diagnosis and the devastating breakup of her marriage (he was a selfish idiot). Then she gets an invitation to a retreat to learn the truth about the Guidebook she received as a teenager.

Intrigued but sceptical, she goes along and meets a variety of wonderful (and not so wonderful) people. Together they will embark on a journey that will change all their lives.

About two-thirds of the way through I really began to love and enjoy the story. There’s still a little too much musing and not enough action for me, but it was starting to grip me now and I couldn’t wait for the next stave (reading with online book club the Pigeonhole you get one ‘stave’ a day for ten days). I had to find out what happened to Robert. We all did.

I nearly forget about Oscar. He’s Abi’s four year old son. The star of the show. He’s adorable and hilarious. Some of the things he says reminded my of my four-year old granddaughter Holly and did make me laugh. Everywhere he and Abi go he has to take ‘everyone’ with them – everyone being not teddies or Action Man (that dates me) type toys, but bits of plastic with no human attributes and then play goodies and baddies with them. Now at this point I have to admit that when I was a child I had to take some of my teddies to the cinema or café and I would line them up on the spare seats in pairs. There’s something you don’t admit to every day!

And then there’s Wilbur. We all love Wilbur but you’ll have to read the book to understand why.

PS I nearly forgot to say I cried towards the end. Well probably for most of the last part. But in a good way.

Many thanks to The Pigeonhole and my fellow Pigeons for making this such an enjoyable read.

About the Author

Jaclyn Moriarty is an Australian writer of young adult literature.

She studied English at the University of Sydney, and law at Yale University and Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, where she was awarded a PhD.

She is the younger sister of Liane Moriarty. She was previously married to Canadian writer Colin McAdam, and has a son, Charlie. She currently lives in Sydney.

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Fallout (The Nick Sullivan Thrillers Book 1) by Karla Forbes

Blackmail. Complacency. A nuclear threat turned real.

A group of unknown terrorists are blackmailing the British government with a quantity of plutonium left over from the Cold War.

Only one man knows their identity and can prevent a disaster, but he is on the run for a murder he didn’t commit and has no intention of being found.

#Fallout @KarlaForbes @Darkstrokedark @damppebbles #damppebblesblogtours Facebook @damppebblesblogtours 

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Whilst the authorities attempt to track him down, they pin their hopes on the thought that a bunch of amateurs wouldn’t have knowledge of how to deal with nuclear technology, and the worst they could manage might be a dirty bomb. After all, everyone knows it’s not really that dangerous: people run away from the explosion, and the radiation drifts harmlessly into the atmosphere.

But what if the terrorists had found a way to keep the radiation near to the ground, and to encourage people to hang around, breathing in death? What if when you invite them to their own slaughter, they come willingly? It would be dangerous then, wouldn’t it? The clock is ticking…

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My Review

I’m exhausted after that! I must stop using the term ‘roller-coaster of a ride’ but I can’t think of anything else appropriate. The tension and excitement never let up.

Poor Nick! One minute he’s a rich financial whizz kid with a posh house, a beautiful wife and an Aston Martin – the next he’s witnessed the brutal murder of his friend by three unknown men, but no-one believes him and he is on the run. He has motive you see, and opportunity. But to say much more would be a spoiler.

Ed is his childhood friend and the only person he can turn to for help. But Ed is a Police Officer and to help a murderer on the run (even if he is innocent) would put his job in jeopardy. But someone else wants to help – Ed’s sister Annelies, who has always had a crush on Nick – but she wouldn’t would she?

The three men Nick witnessed have a quantity of plutonium left over from the Cold War. They are going to use it to blackmail the government into handing over 60 million quid’s worth of diamonds in exchange for not releasing a number of plutonium ‘dirty bombs’ into the atmosphere. And Nick is going to follow them. They have a car and a white van. Why do they need two vehicles? What exactly is in the back of the van and why is it kept padlocked? The mysteries – and the bodies – are piling up and the plot gets more and more complicated. Once I got to around two-thirds of the way through, I just couldn’t stop reading. It was too exciting.

In her Twitter profile it says that Karla writes about: ‘murder, terrorism, blackmail, revenge, war, death and plutonium’. I think that sums it up nicely don’t you think.

Many thanks to @damppebbles for inviting me to be part of #damppebblesblogtours

About the Author

Karla Forbes first began writing books when she was twelve years old. Heavily influenced by Ian Fleming, she wrote about guns, fast cars and spies. Naturally, she knew nothing of her chosen subject and was forced to use her imagination to make it up as she went along. These books, half a dozen in total, ended up being thrown out with the rubbish. Several years later, she dabbled in a futuristic sitcom and a full length horror story. Although both of these efforts were also consigned to literary oblivion, at least no one could have accused her of being in a genre rut.

She began writing properly more than twelve years ago and her first book, The Preacher was published on Amazon in July 2011. Thirteen books in total are available to download from the Amazon kindle book store. She writes about ordinary people who find themselves in extraordinary situations and she aims for unusual but scarily believable plots with a surprising twist.

She moved from Sussex to Scotland in 2020 and is enjoying the stunning scenery and friendly people but feeling less enthusiastic about the weather.

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Social Media:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KarlaForbes

Website: http://karlaforbes.yolasite.com/

Purchase Links:

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3l711os

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/3l3oqqJ

The Heat by Sean O’Leary

Jake is a loner who works nights in a Darwin motel and lives at the YMCA. He’s in love with Angel, a Thai prostitute who works out of the low-rent Shark Motel.

#TheHeat #SeanOLeary @damppebbles #damppebblesblogtours Facebook @damppebblesblogtours 

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A vicious murder turns Jake’s life into a nightmare. He must fight for his life on the heat-soaked streets of Darwin and Bangkok in the wet season, to get revenge, and to get his life back.

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My Review

This is a short, snappy, fast-paced read. Not my usual genre. Very strange to have a first person narrative written by a main character (Jake) who is schizophrenic, a casual drug user, wastes his money on stupid bets which you know he’s going to lose (I could have slapped him at these times) and is highly aggressive and keeps getting into fights, but still has a sense of moral duty when it comes to helping others. And no-one else, including horrid police officer Cooper, can understand why Jake loves prostitute Angel and will do anything to help her and avenge her murder.

I cannot pretend that I didn’t find some of this book quite shocking. Without being sexist and making sweeping generalisations, I felt that this is a book written by a man for men. It’s not just the trivialisation of the rife prostitution in Bangkok (just something that goes on) or the police corruption in Darwin, but the use of bad language throughout, the sex, the constant drug use by almost everyone Jake knows, and the violence that lurks everywhere. I found some of the graphic descriptions rather distasteful but the story is so good I did not let it distract me. I’m a big girl now. I can handle it.

It’s definitely not a slow burn. It’s like being hit over the head with a stone in a sock – not that I’ve ever experienced that, thank goodness. It smacks you in the face like Jake’s punches from Tommy and then gives you a good kicking for good measure. It will not be for everyone so be warned if you are easily offended and stay clear. However, if you love a ride as fast as Bangkok’s motorcycle taxis, then read this. It’s clever, exciting and…well you’ll have to read it to find out. Excellent stuff.

Many thanks to @damppebbles for inviting me to be part of #damppebblesblogtours

About the Author

Sean O’Leary has published two short story collections My Town and Walking.  His novella Drifting was the winner of the ‘Great Novella Search 2016’ and published in September 2017. He has published over thirty individual short stories and is a regular contributor of short fiction to Quadrant, FourW, Sudo, Close to the Bone (UK) and other literary and crime magazines. His crime novella The Heat, set in Darwin and Bangkok, was published in August 2019. Drifting and The Heat are both available on Amazon. His interviews with crime writers appear online in Crime Time magazine.

He has worked in a variety of jobs including motel receptionist, rubbish removalist/tree lopper, farm hand, short-order cook and night manager in various hotels in Sydney’s notorious Kings Cross. He has lived in: Melbourne; Naracoorte; Sydney; Adelaide; Perth; Fremantle; Norseman; Geraldton; Carnarvon; Broome; Yulara; Alice Springs; Kakadu; Darwin and on Elcho Island-Galiwinku. He now lives in the northern suburbs of Melbourne, thinks that test cricket is the greatest game of all and supports Melbourne Football Club (a life sentence). He writes every day, likes travelling and tries to walk everywhere.

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Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/seanolearyaustralianwriter

Website: http://seanolearyauthor.simplesite.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/oleary4119/

Purchase Links:

Australian Bookseller link:  https://www.busybird.com.au/shop/the-heat/ 

Amazon AU: https://www.amazon.com.au/Heat-Sean-OLeary/dp/1925949184

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Heat-Sean-OLeary/dp/1925949184

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/35NihZp

The Keeper by Jessica Moor

When Katie Straw’s body is pulled from the waters of the local suicide spot, the police are ready to write it off as a standard-issue female suicide. But the residents of the domestic violence shelter where Katie worked disagree. These women have spent weeks or even years waiting for the men they’re running from to catch up with them. They know immediately: This was murder.

Still, Detective Dan Whitworth and his team expect an open-and-shut case–until they discover evidence that suggests Katie wasn’t who she appeared. Weaving together the investigation with Katie’s final months as it barrels toward the truth, The Keeper is a riveting mystery and a searing examination of violence against women and the structures that allow it to continue, marking the debut of an incredible new voice in crime fiction. 

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My Review

This was not an easy read. The kind of story that makes you think. Do you have your own prejudices when it comes to abuse? Are you constantly questioning why these women can’t leave their husbands or partners? Val says at one point that women often leave their partners five times before they finally leave for good. And is it always the woman or do men get abused as well?

Katie is a young woman, with a mother suffering from terminal cancer.

Jamie meets Katie one night and he slowly starts to control her when she is at her most vulnerable. He seems so nice. People call him a ‘keeper’. But Jamie is a different kind of keeper. That was then.

This is now. DS Whitworth is old school policing. Tired, jaded and prejudiced. But he’s still a good copper. So when the body of a young suicide victim – Katie Straw – turns up in the river, the women at the shelter where she worked know different. But can they convince Whitworth and young sidekick DC Brookes, that it was murder. Because they know something, but are too scared to tell.

During the journey to discover what really happened, we also learn the stories of the other women at the shelter – drug addict Jenny, Lynne and her daughter Peony, Angie who has suffered abuse at the hands of her husband for forty-nine years, Nazia – beaten by her own brother and Sonia with her two boys. Then there is Val who runs the shelter. Not a very likeable character, but she doesn’t need to be. She does what has to be done and if you don’t like her, well that’s tough – as tough as she is herself.

Some other readers thought all these extra characters were unnecessary. But this is not a simple police procedural. It is more than a novel about catching a killer. It is about domestic abuse. Val helps the women hide from their abusive partners. DS Whitworth has seen it all. He is not convinced that Katie killed herself. It’s just a feeling, but he needs evidence. Or witnesses, and they don’t have either. Even when they find out that Straw wasn’t Katie’s real name they don’t seem to be able to find out the truth – it can’t be that difficult nowadays. Or why she was running away and who from.

On a number of occasions, we are asked to question whether it is women like Val who are prejudiced against men. Statistics show that men can also be victims of domestic abuse, but they are even less likely to seek help. Admitting you are being battered by a woman half your size is embarrassing isn’t it? When a man speaks up at a meeting he is treated as a trouble maker. There is no budget for male victims to seek protection, he says. Whitworth passes it on. They mumble about statistics and lack of resources. I wondered again whether Lynne was actually the abuser. She doesn’t really like her daughter and the little girl seems to prefer her ‘abusive’ father Frank. I’m not sure whether we are supposed to read it this way.

I feel this book could have done more to show that not all men are either prejudiced or abusers and not all abusers are men.

Many thanks to The Pigeonhole and my fellow Pigeons for making this such a thought-provoking read.

About the Author

Jessica Moor studied English at Cambridge before completing a Creative Writing MA at Manchester University. Prior to this she spent a year working in the violence against women and girls sector and this experience inspired her first novel, Keeper.

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