Louise Leighton’s life has fallen apart, all because of one fateful night. Her husband is an adulterer, her sister is his mistress, and soon, Louise will lose everything she owns. But she never imagined she would lose her daughter.
Eighteen-year-old Brooke Leighton is missing. It’s up to Louise and the Metropolitan Police to find her. Has Brooke run away? Or has she been taken against her will? And can Louise aid the investigation without mentioning the night where all of her troubles began?
If she mentions that night, she will incriminate her daughter for heinous crimes. But if she doesn’t, she may never find Brooke; and if she has been abducted, the person who took her may come for Louise, too.
Sometimes the past comes back to kill you.
My thoughts: Louise discovers her husband has been sleeping with her sister and walks out of her life, leaving him, their children and her clients without any explanation. She’s struggling with her own secrets and can’t cope with this news as well.
Someone has started leaving her dead robins at the house in the countryside, she’s freaked out but it gets much worse when daughter Brooke goes missing and she has to tell the police. But she doesn’t reveal the terrible secret that has been tearing her daughter apart and destroying her too.
The night in question is something she just can’t tell anyone, but someone out there knows what happened, someone knows what they did and now Louise and Brooke must pay.
Creepy, chilling and shocking, this is a clever and gripping exercise in suspense, things are revealed slowly, leaving you wondering what Brooke and Louise did and who is watching them. The police are kept in the dark but increasingly aware that something very bad is going on. Unfortunately they’re too late to put a stop to things that have been in motion for a year, and need to be resolved in blood.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own
When artist Eloise Ford hears that human remains found in an abandoned mine are believed to be those of long-missing teenager Elizabeth King, the shock sends her reeling.
It can’t be true. Eloise knows this for a fact because… she is Elizabeth King.
Now, her carefully curated life in Cornwall is falling apart. Her husband is acting strangely, her children aren’t speaking to her and she can’t sell a painting for love nor money. But much more worrying are the signs that someone knows exactly who she is… and why she had to vanish thirty years ago.
Eloise needs answers. Is her son’s ex-girlfriend just plain annoying… or does she know something? Will the detection skills of the online ‘Truth Seekers’ group prove more than amateurish? What’s the real story behind those village newcomers?
And just how far would she go to keep her family, her friends, and her fraudulent life, safe?
Born in Cyprus, Jo Jakeman worked for many years in the City of London before moving to Cornwall with her husband and twin boys. She is the author of One Bad Apple. Find out more at www.jojakeman.com
My thoughts: This was an interesting twist on the missing person trope in crime fiction. A body is found but it can’t be the person the police originally think because she’s alive and well and living under a different name.
So now, Eloise’s perfectly controlled perfect life – husband, two kids, dog, art gallery, yoga every week, is about to be upended. She needs to identify the body and work out who put the body there, before they find her, because it’s quite possible they want her dead too.
Her son’s on/off girlfriend Holly is into true crime and has joined a private chat room online that is keen to investigate the case too, and Holly has volunteered to look into things locally. She’s also rummaging through Eloise’s house and finds her own clues – including one that makes her believe someone in the house knows something.
After a rather eventful car ride from Sheffield back down to Cornwall, Eloise and Holly join forces to solve the case. But this requires them to trust each other.
Clever, funny, full of twists and turns, with two intriguing protagonists, who have to dig into Eloise’s history, one she hoped she’d left behind, to find out who is threatening her present.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for a review, but all opinions remain my own.
We’re celebrating the highly-anticipated release of Blackwicket by Bea Northwick this week! Make sure to treat yourself to a copy on September 9th. It’s the perfect read for the ‘Ber months!
Blackwicket (Dark Hall #1)
Release Date: September 9, 2025
Genre: Gothic Romantasy
Gothic Romantasy
Enemies to Lovers
Morally Grey Everyone
Monstrous LI
Female Rae
Slow Burn to Spice
Magical Organized Crime
Gothic Horror
Home is where the curses are.
In the coastal town of Nightglass, Blackwicket House looms on the cliffs, far from the charming streets bustling with wealthy visitors seeking to experience a bit of real magic. Once an esteemed Inn with a reputation for healing, it now serves only as a grim warning to anyone tempted by curses. With Fiona Blackwicket, its sole caretaker, newly deceased, it stands empty – a dangerous thing for Blackwicket House to be.
Compelled out of hiding by the sudden death of her sister, Eleanora Blackwicket is forced back to her infamous family home with hasty intentions to bury Fiona and return to her life on the run. Her plans are waylaid when the Brom, an underworld organization specializing in black-market magic, catch wind of her presence and turn an interested eye on her rumored affinity for curse eating.
To complicate things, Victor Harrow, a ruthless yet alluring inspector for the anti-magic government agency, The Authority, has arrived in Nightglass. His one job: to cripple the Brom and anyone associated with them, including, and especially, the last Blackwicket.
But there’s something more sinister to Inspector Harrow than his government agenda, a violent history intrinsically linked to Eleanora’s darkest secret, one that could jeopardize her life and open a long-hidden door to the worst kind of magic, setting all the monsters free.
Contains scenes of consensual sexual intimacy, moments of graphic gun violence, magical violence, endangerment of children (no on-page graphic violence against children), mentions of past sexual assault (no graphic on-page assault), retribution, and sibling death.
Detective Bec Pope is waiting in Heathrow departures when the call comes in: a body has been found in a quiet Bloomsbury cemetery. Her long-overdue holiday is over before it begins.
It’s no ordinary crime scene. The smartly-dressed young man hasn’t just been murdered. The killer has left a message – a pentagram, brutally carved into the dead man’s chest.
Then a second victim is discovered on a patch of scrubland in Bermondsey. Another young man, killed at midnight, just like the first. The same five-pointed symbol etched into his flesh.
Bec is on the hunt for a ruthless killer unlike any she’s faced before. If she is to crack the case, she must discover what the symbols mean. And why these victims were targeted.
With the press circling and the entire city on edge, Bec’s running out of time in a case that grows darker by the hour. She needs to stop the killer before midnight strikes – and another life is taken.
Jez Pinfold taught English and Film Studies in London for twenty years, including eight years as Head of English. Before landing in secondary teaching he had various jobs, including roadie, sound engineer, guitar tutor and teacher of English as a foreign language. After writing, his other passion is music. He plays guitar in a rowdy covers band currently called The Maverick Detectives, although they frequently change their name to avoid becoming too recognised and succumbing to the trappings of fame.
My thoughts: This is a twisted case, the killer leaving an inverted pentagram carved into the flesh of their victims – it implies some dark purpose behind their crimes.
Detective Bec Pope and her team can find no connections between the two victims, and they need to work out the person responsible before anyone else comes to harm. Then it takes a very personal turn.
This was a really clever, gripping read, I had no idea where the twists and turns were going and the killer is remorseless, taunting the detectives, especially Bec, with whom they seem to have become a little obsessed.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own
When the system isn’t working, work outside the system.
A search for a missing man thrusts Rand Scott into the dark realms of homelessness, drug dealing and sex clubs.
Kirsty Moore wants to find her brother Johnny, a one-time rock star. The police also want him – for murder. And there are others looking who don’t play nicely.
A simple job turns deadly as Rand uncovers a world where money talks louder than the screams of innocent bystanders.
Graeme Cumming lives in Robin Hood country. He has wide and varied taste in fiction, but a particular leaning towards the darker side – though he’s very pleasant when you meet him.
Borderline, the first book in his new crime series was released in 2025 and already gained praise from readers.
When not writing, Graeme is an enthusiastic sailor (and, by default, swimmer), and enjoys off-road cycling and walking. He is a past President and Education Director at Sheffield Speakers Club. He also reads (a lot) and loves the cinema.
For more information about Graeme and his books, you can check his website
My thoughts: Rand Scott used to be a police officer, now he’s working outside the official system, helping the homeless, and investigating a missing man, who might be on the streets somewhere.
There’s a lot more however to the case than first appears, some rather nasty criminals are also looking for the missing man, Johnny Moore, and they don’t mind beating up anyone who gets in their way. Unfortunately they picked on the wrong person.
Dragged into a murky underworld where criminals cross big business arms dealers, Rand has to tread carefully, everyone here prefers to shoot first and ask questions later, if at all. He’s also fending off the local police, including his former boss (and what a dodgy piece of work he is) and trying to give his friend Liv the collar.
Nothing is ever easy in his world and this is a nightmare, still, he’s got his sense of humour – the vehicles registered in the names of famous musicians made me laugh. And if he survives, there’s always that trip to Rotterdam to look forward to.
Funny, smart, and with plenty of twists and turns, this is an enjoyable and entertaining read.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
Ivanhoe meets Phryne Fisher in this medieval adventure of a woman sleuth.
Toledo, 1193: A city of scholars, secrets, and simmering tensions.
When Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine’s Jewish spy is found dead, whispers of treachery reach all the way to England.
Rebecca DeToledo, a gifted healer and wealthy Jewish heiress, arrives under royal orders to investigate at the School of Translators. Her mission quickly turns perilous as she faces threats to her life and a sudden battle over her inheritance.
Assigned to guard her is Sir John of Hampstead, a disillusioned crusader burdened with knowledge that could threaten King Richard’s release from captivity. Forced into this partnership, he must protect Rebecca while grappling with his own prejudices.
As they navigate Toledo’s complex alliances, where Christians, Jews, and Muslims coexist in fragile peace, they uncover a web of secrets reaching deep into the cathedral. Can Rebecca and John unearth the truth before they become the next targets?
For fans of historical sleuths, slow-burn tension, and secret missions cloaked in royal intrigue.
My thoughts: I really enjoyed this book, I liked Rebecca a lot, she was an interesting character, a trained medic in a time when most were men and bloodletting for medical reasons was a favoured treatment, that more often than not, did nothing beneficial. She’s trusted by Eleanor of Aquitaine – Queen of France, then of England, probably one of the most powerful women in history.
Tasked with looking into the death of the Queen’s man in Toledo, Rebecca and John of Hampstead (a somewhat disgraced knight) find themselves in the bustling Spanish city where Christians, Jews and Muslims live and work alongside each other, slightly uneasily.
The School of Translators was a real place, and there scholars worked at translating ancient manuscripts into Castilian (a dialect of French mixed with Spanish) and Latin from Hebrew and Arabic. It must have been a fascinating place.
But it’s also a place where competition thrives and the various scholars jostle for position. The dead man was known to be boastful, unpopular and a creep. His landlady’s son had kicked him out after he made unwelcome advances to his sister, his colleagues disliked him and he was just generally quite unpleasant.
Rebecca also has to deal with a family issue, her aunt and cousin have been living in her father’s house and running the family business. Her father’s will left everything to her, which doesn’t go down well with her relatives who choose to contest it. This is a complication she doesn’t need and distracts from the investigation.
But as she has decided to stay in Toledo and set up a clinic, she must contend with the traditions and gossip of her community. She doesn’t want to marry but that won’t stop the matchmaking at the synagogue.
I’m looking forward to more of Rebecca’s adventures in Toledo with Sir John as her ever-present shadow, causing gossip of its own, as they work for the Queen.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
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Happy release day to Kate Valent! We highly recommend you book a room at this inn. Especially if you love cozy fantasy!
The Driftcap Inn (Innkeepers of Itharos Book 1)
Release Date: September 8, 2025
Genre: Cozy Fantasy
magic inn
found family
secrets/hidden truths
second chances (as in redemption and not second chance romance)
sunshine boy x shy boy
mm subplot
Welcome to The Driftcap Inn, a cozy perch among the clouds. Drift on in and stay awhile!
In all of Itharos no inn is more enchanting—or peculiar—than The Driftcap Inn, a cozy haven in the sky carved from a giant floating mushroom. Its owner, Eino the Wanderer, enjoys a life of breathtaking views and freedom from the petty wars and political intrigue of the kingdoms below. But a home set adrift in the vast, empty skies can also be unbearably lonely.
When a handsome and enigmatic apothecary named Joren comes aboard, an unexpected companionship blossoms between the two men, stirring the possibility of something deeper. But their peaceful journey through the clouds is shattered when a string of unsettling events threatens to send Eino’s home plummeting to the ground.
Something wicked is spreading its roots across The Driftcap Inn, and Eino suspects there’s much more to it than just bad luck. With dark secrets surrounding every guest and danger creeping ever closer, Eino must decide who he can trust with his life — and with his heart.
In this pulse-pounding thriller from bestselling writer Chris Carter, criminal behavior psychologist turned LAPD detective Robert Hunter finds himself engaged in a brutal game to the finish with a ruthless opponent. But no matter what moves Hunter makes, death is coming….
At the Los Angeles International Airport, the body of a twenty-year-old woman is discovered. The autopsy reveals that she had been tortured and murdered in a most bizarre way—but the surprises don’t end there. The killer likes to play, and he left something behind for the cops to find.
LAPD Detective Robert Hunter is assigned to the case but almost immediately a second body turns up. Surrounded by new challenges as every day passes, Hunter finds himself chasing a monster—one with a dark past and whose desire to hurt people and thirst for murder can never be quenched.
My thoughts: After the vacation that wasn’t, Robert Hunter returns to LA to be faced with a new case, another gruesome and violent one. He and Garcia are called out to a body by the airport, the victim was brutally tortured to death, and she won’t be the last.
Taunting the detectives by leaving the message I AM DEATH with each poor victim, the duo feel like they’re getting nowhere, until the killer makes a mistake that will bring Hunter to his door.
Another shocking and gripping case for Hunter and Garcia – there’s a method of murder in this one that actually succeeded in making me flinch, I am pretty unshockable most of the time. The story has a dual narrative, with a clever twist, and the identity of the killer, and their motivation is something you won’t see coming.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
Scott and Blair Bagby are a happy, successful English couple living in the suburbs with their teenage son and Great Dane. Life seems good, until one beautiful spring morning when a detective inspector knocks on their door asking if their son is home, unleashing an unspeakable horror that blows apart the life they thought they had.
Police have discovered bodies buried deep in the Peasedale forest and the inspector suspects one is Jamie, the final victim of a brutal and prolific serial killer. But Jamie’s death is unlike all the others, starting with his emergency phone call that leads to a macabre burial ground near a dilapidated hunting shack and creates shocking suspicions.
With bone deep grief threatening to destroy their marriage and their sanity, Scott and Blair set out to investigate Jamie’s death, a journey that not only upends their perceptions of who they are, but torturously reveals they may not have known Jamie at all…
Heidi Field was raised in the beautiful countryside of the South of England with her parents and her two sisters. In her twenties she was a freelance Sports Massage Therapist. She achieved a Degree in Zoology at the age of thirty and then went on to raise two boys and became the stepmother of three more young children. She still lives near her family home with her partner, their Great Dane and the children that have yet to fly the nest.
In her early forties Heidi completed a Masters in Creative Writing at Winchester University. She entered the course hoping she would become a children’s fantasy writer and left with a burning desire to write contemporary mysteries and thrillers. Heidi wanted to put relatable people in extraordinary situations, challenge them, push them to their limits and watch them fight for their sanity. The Other Boy is her first novel.
My Facebook author page is: Heidi Field Author @HeidiField11 @heidifield.bsky.social
My thoughts: Sad, shocking and chilling, Scott and Blair’s quest to find answers to their son’s death at the hands of a sadistic killer lead them to unexpected and disturbing places. Grieving but unable to let go of Jamie’s last hours, they hunt for the titular other boy, a friend of their son’s who might just have been helping his killer.
Blair especially struggles with her grief, manifesting a version of Jamie that only she can see in order to cope with the loss. Time at an inpatient clinic helps her come to terms but only answers will help her finally let him go.
Scott, an investigative journalist, doggedly follows every lead, chasing down a burglar and hunting through his son’s things. He too wants answers, but more for Blair than himself.
Combining an exploration of parental grief with a quest for truth and answers to Jamie’s death, this is an unusual and highly enjoyable thriller.
*This is a repost of a review from earlier this year, to help promote this book. All opinions expressed remain my own.
It’s the one piece of evidence that will crack the case . . . but is it too shocking to reveal?
A murdered student. A secret buried in the past. A killer who’s still watching.
Detective Steph Warwick is halfway through her Christmas shopping when she gets the call. The body of a young man has been pulled from the icy River Witham.
The victim is Max Barsby, a quiet, hardworking archaeology student with no enemies – or so it seems. But Max didn’t drown. He was murdered. Bludgeoned over the head and left for dead. With the university all but deserted for the holidays, Steph finds herself with few leads and even fewer witnesses.
Meanwhile, Special Constable Jane Bell is investigating a routine break-in when she stumbles across an unexpected link to Max. As Jane and Steph’s paths cross once more, Steph reluctantly brings the warm-hearted mother-of-two into the fold – knowing Jane can reach people – and places – that she can’t.
Their enquiries unearth a mysterious girlfriend, a controversial dig site, and a discovery someone will kill to protect. But when Jane finds a piece of evidence too explosive to share, her silence may prove deadly – for both of them.
Janice was born and grew up in West Lothian, Scotland. After completing an English degree at St Andrew’s University, she moved to London where she lived for ten years doing an assortment of jobs. Her passions are reading, writing, and walking in Scotland and the Lake District. She lives in Lincolnshire with her husband and two sons.
ramblingmads 