‘There’s a package on the porch,’ my husband calls as he leaves for work. I rip open the brown paper and find three books inside. I didn’t order them.
A week ago, my new neighbor was murdered in exactly the way described in the first book. Her name was Naomi Sheller. I’ll never forget the first time I saw her — frozen in the middle of the grocery store, eyes wide with terror. Days later, she’s found dead in the woods. Her husband, Eric, is led away in handcuffs.
The second book has another murder in it. And the victim sounds exactly like me. We moved here from New York City to raise our daughters somewhere safe. But now I think I made a terrible mistake.
The police don’t believe me. My husband thinks I’m paranoid. But I’m not. Because whoever sent these books . . . knows exactly where I live.
T.J. Brearton is a bestselling novelist and screenwriter. He is the author of the novels Gone and Dead Gone, both of which have ranked among Amazon Kindle’s top 100. His Titan trilogy has been an international best-seller. With Ted Magee, Brearton wrote Bare Knuckle, a martial arts film, and wrote and directed Breathe, about amateur MMA fighter Lane Buzzell on an undefeated streak. He has written more than a dozen novels, mostly crime thrillers, including one paranormal mystery, and published short fiction in numerous literary journals. He lives in the Adirondack Mountains of New York with his wife and three children where he writes full time, takes out the trash, and competes with his kids for his wife’s attention.
My thoughts: Lainey’s new neighbours seem a bit odd, the husband is really friendly but the wife is incredibly withdrawn and quiet.
Next thing she knows, her new neighbour is dead, and her husband is suspect number one. Then a box of books is delivered, and each one is a crime, the first one has a murdered neighbour. Life imitating art? Who sent them? Could it be the killer?
As Lainey carries out her own investigation, hoping to stop another one of these books coming to life, she might be putting herself into danger.
Full of twists and turns, this is a shocking small town thriller with an intelligent protagonist and a killer you won’t suspect.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
He once destroyed everything she loved. Now, only he can save her from ruin. Can she forgive, and even love, her enemy?
In this dark, immersive tale, the author of STRANGE EDEN returns to colonial Nassau to continue the story of Eliza Sharpe’s volatile marriage to Charles Sharpe.
1792: In the aftermath of her lover Jean’s death, Eliza harbors a secret that threatens to make her fraught situation even worse. She is carrying his child. But when the clairvoyant slave Cleo comes to her aid, the solution holds devastating consequences.
Charles, meanwhile, is engaged in his own secret dealings. When he reveals his plans to Eliza, she is forced to do the unthinkable: to reframe the man she’s viewed for so long as an enemy, into an ally, perhaps even a friend. Perhaps more.
Events directed by Lord Dunmore’s insatiable greed threaten to destroy their shaky reconciliation. Clandestine political meetings emerge as the other colonists seek an end to the corruption on the island, and they turn to Charles for leadership. But the governor of the Bahamas wants him dead, and he’s hired the perfect man for the deed.
Can Eliza forgive the man she once viewed as a monster? Or has the desperation and darkness that lurks within the walls of Pleasant Hall finally driven her to madness?
Gina Giordano always had an insatiable curiosity and a penchant for history. Born in New York City, she is a writer, artist, and a conjurer of the past. She holds a BA in history and a master’s degree in historical fiction from New York University, and has traveled to over sixty-five countries across the globe. When she is not climbing ancient ruins or exploring forgotten palaces, she enjoys swimming with sharks in remote pristine waters. Her debut novel, Strange Eden, was longlisted for the 2023 Bath Novel Award.
My thoughts: The second book in the trilogy opens with Eliza hiding a secret, one that could have serious consequences for her and her marriage.
But the dangerous and volatile governor of the island still has her in his sights, as well as Charles, who is fast becoming a thorn in Dunmore’s side. The decisions made push Charles further into making serious changes and supporting the pushback against the way the governor rules over The Bahamas.
All of the tumult pushes Eliza and Charles into a new understanding and begins to heal some of the trauma of the past.
Eliza’s growing powers show her more glimpses of the past and the deep pain at the island’s heart and in Charles’ own past.
The book ends on a shocking cliff hanger, book three hopefully will deliver the answers.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own
The brand-new gripping crime thriller in the popular Detectives Roy and Roscoe series.
A murdered beauty influencer. A buried secret waiting to surface. A killer who’s already one step ahead.
In the picturesque Warwickshire town of Queensbridge, a retired nurse escapes to her hotel room looking for peace from the chaos of her great-nephew’s rowdy thirtieth birthday party. But to her horror she witnesses a brutal crime from her balcony — a young woman strangled in the room opposite.
Detective Sergeant Sunita Roy — staying at the same hotel after attending a nearby wedding — is first on the scene, and quickly realises this isn’t a random attack. The victim, glamorous beauty influencer Candy Goodhope, was living a double life — and everyone close to her has something to hide.
Roy’s boss, DCI Gavin Roscoe, takes charge of the investigation, and as the pair follow the trail, another brutal killing tears through the town. Roy is sure there’s a link between both murders, but Roscoe isn’t convinced.
But as Roy digs deeper, she closes in on a secret so dangerous someone will kill to protect it.
Because in this town, the past never stays buried — and even the dead still have a voice.
Tony Bassett is a former journalist who worked on regional and national newspapers in Britain for more than 40 years. He mainly reported on crime, show business, human interest and consumer topics. Now retired, he writes crime fiction.
Tony is best known for his series of novels set in the West Midlands featuring Detective Chief Inspector Gavin Roscoe, an experienced detective and family man, and his sergeant, law graduate and resourceful problem-solver Sunita Roy.
His latest novel, VOICES FROM THE DEAD (Book 8) begins in the picturesque Warwickshire town of Queensbridge where a retired nurse escapes to her hotel room from a rowdy birthday party, looking for peace. But to her horror, through a window, she witnesses a brutal crime — a young woman being strangled in the new wing of the building.
Detective Sergeant Sunita Roy —attending a wedding in the same hotel — is first on the scene, and quickly realises this isn’t a random attack. The victim, glamorous beauty influencer Candy Goodhope, was living a double life — and everyone close to her has something to hide.
The fifth book in the series, HEIR TO MURDER, was judged first in the Mystery and Suspense (Police Procedurals) category in the American Fiction Awards in June 2024. Other books in the series (in order) are: MURDER ON OXFORD LANE; THE CROSSBOW STALKER; MURDER OF A DOCTOR; OUT FOR REVENGE; and IT NEVER RAINS.
A collection of the first three books was published in May 2024 under the title THE MIDLANDS MURDERS: Detectives Roy & Roscoe box set (Books 1 – 3). The whole series has been released by London publishers The Book Folks, part of Joffe Books.
Tony has also written a stand-alone thriller, SEAT 97, about a man shot dead at a London concert hall (published by The Book Folks) while two further works (the crime novel Smile Of The Stowaway and the spy novel The Lazarus Charter) were published by The Conrad Press.
Tony first developed a love of writing at the age of nine when he produced a junior school magazine. A few years later, his local vicar in Tunbridge Wells staged his play about Naboth’s Vineyard. At Hull University, Tony was judged Time-Life Magazine student journalist of the year in 1971.
Tony, who has five grown-up children, is a Life Member of the National Union of Journalists. He lives in South-East London with his partner Lin.
My thoughts: Witnessing a murder through her hotel window is a shock, but the witness, a retired nurse, has the presence of mind to call for help. Luckily DS Roy, Sunita, is at a wedding in the same hotel and is first on the scene. A young woman has been strangled.
She’s a local hairdresser and influencer, last seen very drunk in the hotel bar earlier that day. The police find DNA linked to a supposedly dead man at the scene, which sends them in the wrong direction, but they quickly get back on track.
Why would anyone want to kill Candy? She might not have appealed to everyone, but she wasn’t a terrible person. Her two friends/employees are at a loss. Her husband and her boyfriend have alibis, and her husband would more likely do away with his rival than his wife.
It must be someone in her circle. Could it date back all the way to her school days?
When a retired teacher from the same school is found murdered in her home with a nail gun, the police wonder if there is a link between the two killings. It seems slim, but as they dig into the past, certain things come to light that suggest someone with plenty to hide.
A satisfying ending, with twists and turns along the way for the team of detectives. The motives are dark and the means rather ad hoc but they get their man in the end. Very enjoyable.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
All Dante wants is to be left alone in the small New Zealand town no one’s heard of. No drama. No bodies. No questions. But then, of course, the orchid convention comes to town, and Dante is knee deep in suspects, intrigue, and red herrings.
On top of all this, Dante must navigate a mysterious woman from his past, cat issues, and the terrifying prospect of a first date. And he has to do it while fighting his instinct to solve problems the old-fashioned way: permanently.
The ‘Retired Assassin’s Guide to Orchid Hunting’ is a cosy paranormal mystery with found family, ghosts, a grumpy assassin and a sunshine gardener.
Come for the murder, stay for the cat, the gardens, and the New Zealand country charm.
Author Bio – Naomi is a writer living in New Zealand. When not busy writing or raising her twin son and daughter, she spends her free time (ha!) surfing, kitesurfing, and retrieving her shoes from Max the dog.
My thoughts: I loved this, I hadn’t read the previous book (now corrected) and hadn’t seen this one advertised, so was very happy to read it and share it all with you!
Funny, darkly so, with at least one murder, a cranky retired assassin, a maybe retired jewel thief who likes investigating, a detective who isn’t sure he should be so charmed by criminals, a gardener who sees ghosts, a hot date, a fat cat. A mystery.
It has it all, I thought it was terrific, I am very excited for more of this series. Just tremendous fun.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
The guest list for Brit and Joe’s joint bachelor-bachelorette weekend is small and exclusive: the bride, the groom, the best man, a work friend . . . and me, the maid of honor. I’ve planned every detail to make this a celebration none of us will ever forget.
Expect daytime drinking, poolside lounging — and a White Lie Party designed to help us share all our little secrets. After all, confession is good for the soul . . . and one of us is hiding something truly killer.
Don’t forget to save the date!
Love, The Maid of Honor x
A tense and breathless psychological thriller with a mind-blowing twist you won’t see coming. Perfect for fans of Lucy Foley, Ruth Ware, Freida McFadden, Shari Lapena, Riley Sager – and anyone who’s ever wondered what secrets their friends are really keeping.
D. L. Fisher is the bestselling Amazon and Audible author of domestic thrillers. She resides in North Carolina with her husband, five children, and adorably naughty beagle. When not plotting her next big twist, DL enjoys diving into thrillers and immersing herself in true-crime podcasts.
My thoughts: It’s a rather small joint bachelor/ette party for Brit and Joe, just them, his best man, her maid of honour and one work friend. They’re booked into a stunning house in the middle of nowhere on a Caribbean island, with a hurricane imminent, oops.
As the weirdest party starts to fall apart and secrets force themselves to the surface, it becomes apparent that someone else is there, someone with a grudge and no qualms about killing. Can the truth truly set you free or will the body count rise?
Dark, twisted and shocking, this is one weekend no one will forget in a hurry.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
Welcome to the tour for Vic Sinclair’s Grimdark fairytale, Fablenoir. The next book Rose Read Undead comes out early this year!
Fablenoir
Release Date: September 2024
Genre: Dark Fairytale/ Urban Fantasy/ Grimdark
Morally gray characters
Antiheroes
Dark fairy tale retellings
Grimdark undertones
First-person detective novel
Urban fantasy with epic scope
Hidden worlds
Fifteen years after climbing the beanstalk, giants are the least of Jack’s concerns…
Twisted fairy tale figures roam our world in this deliciously dark, exhilarating new Urban Fantasy series, featuring familiar characters from mythology and fables clashing and conniving in a metropolitan cesspit that runs on chaos.
Amid rumors of necromantic cults, children vanishing from the city’s streets and men crying werewolf, down-and-out Detective Jackson Slade of the NYPD is at his lowest. Blacklisted by the corrupt department he works for, he finds himself winding up in the same grimy bars every night, nearly drinking himself to death and relying on mysterious magick beans to pick himself back up.
Until, one night, he stumbles upon a gruesome crime scene that will change the course of his life dramatically. When he finds the shattered corpse of egg-shaped billionaire media mogul Dick Dumpty, Jack finds himself reluctantly teaming up with the notoriously cold-blooded outlaw Goldilocks, and together they spiral into the horrifying magickal underbelly of New York City, caught in the middle of a war between the corrupt and the even more corrupt.
Coming up against forces such as the grizzly gang leader Papa Bear and the crooked giant-descendant head of the NYPD Chief Cole, Jack and Goldilocks set in motion an explosive chain of events that will change the world, for better or for so much worse…
Triggers: Drug addiction, kidnapping, allusion to sexual assault, themes of human trafficking, body horror, injury detail, alcoholism
My thoughts: What do you get if fairy tale and nursery rhyme characters are real, live in New York and a lot of them are serious criminals? Fablenoir.
Jack Slade (once slew a giant, there was a beanstalk, he doesn’t like to talk about it) is a detective falling apart, he’s an alcoholic, addicted to mind altering magic beans, his boss Captain Cole is corrupt, he’s about to be fired, oh and a giant egg almost landed on him.
Dumpty’s dead, Goldilocks needs Jack’s help to take down Papa Bear and his drug empire. A lot of women and children have been going missing, Cole doesn’t want to know and Jack’s in serious trouble.
It’s a fast paced, high octane, race against time, corruption and Jack’s high in order to try to unravel the chaos in New York. There’s a secret cabal of officers trying to bring down Cole, a Charming governor who seems powerless to stop the rot and a Mad Hatter performing really disturbing experiments in his basement.
If you like your fairy tales dark and creepy, you’re in the right place.
The Killer His most valuable possession has been stolen. Now he must retrieve it, at any cost.
The Girl Angela Wood wanted to teach the man a lesson. It was a bag, just like any other. But when she opens it, the worst nightmare of her life begins.
The Detective A journal ends up on Robert Hunter’s desk. It soon becomes clear that there is a serial killer on the loose. And if Hunter can’t stop him in time, more people will die. Starting with Angela.
If you have read it You must die
My thoughts: Hunter and Garcia are back. And this time they’re drawn into a case that puzzles them. Someone left a serial killer’s diary in the mailbox of the head of the forensics unit. It was hand delivered and is very disturbing. It seems to chronicle the killings of a deeply disturbed individual who hears voices compelling him to carry out increasingly violent and vile murders.
Hunting firstly for whoever dropped it off, they meet Angela, a streetwise pickpocket who is now in way too deep as the killer knows she took his book. The LAPD need to keep her safe, as a witness, and now a vulnerable target for a monster.
But they also need to find the killer and stop him before he takes another life. The diary reveals more and more details of his life, of why he does what he does. And the pair of detectives are disturbed. Especially after he contacts Hunter directly. He wants his diary back. Or more will die. Including Angela.
This is another tense and unnerving case for the Ultra Violent Crime Unit. A killer without remorse, who sees his kills as just another day at the office, and a victim Hunter feels responsible for.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
The husband: in over his head with no way of knowing the truth. The mistress: blinded by love, betrayed by her family… The neighbour: will stop at nothing to protect the life he has fought to create. The wife: a woman bent on revenge, but how far is she willing to go…?
My thoughts: This short story from thriller writer Jack Jordan might be brief but it packs a punch all the same.
Told from multiple view points, the unravelling story lays out how a woman who will stop at nothing goes about dismantling her husband’s life to hold onto tight control. She sees off the mistress, the blackmailer, every possible threat to her perfect life. Her husband has recently learned that she’s probably capable of murder, and now he’s seen how she manipulates things to her advantage. He won’t be going anywhere, unless she says so.
Clever, dark and with a few twists, this is a tense thriller about betrayal, secrets and how we don’t always know the person we sleep beside.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
For a hundred years, the residents of a rural Welsh village have been hiding the truth.
Now, a newcomer has started digging around, uncovering more than just buried secrets.
Retired detective, Graham Williams, has moved to Bethgelert for a fresh start, determined to put the horrors of last year behind him. He has seen his fair share of disturbing scenes, but nothing prepares him for what he sees hanging in the gnarly old tree outside his front window.
Only one man can help him uncover the truth …
Stephen Mallow has come a long way since he helped solve the mystery of Cherry Hollow. When his old nemesis calls and asks for help, he jumps in the car, ignoring the pain in his head and the hole in his heart. He’s ready to take on another weird and creepy small town mystery.
These two unlikely allies, whose main form of communication is bickering, start to work together to dig up the disturbing secrets of ‘The Hanging Tree’, but they soon realise there’s more to the story than they first thought.
A teenage girl is missing. The town butcher isn’t telling them everything. The tree seems to be speaking to Stephen …
Jessica Huntley is an author of dark and twisty psychological thrillers, which often focus on mental health topics and delve deep into the minds of her characters. She has a varied career background, having joined the Army as an Intelligence Analyst, then left to become a Personal Trainer. She is now living her life-long dream of writing from the comfort of her home, while looking after her young son and her disabled black Labrador. She enjoys keeping fit and drinking wine (not at the same time).
My thoughts: There’s a slight air of Hot Fuzz here (one of my favourite films), with a small town full of secrets that date back years, though no insane gun fights, just an intensely disturbing air of menace and some possibly evil banana bread.
Having retired from the police and bought a cottage on the outskirts of the village, Graham might think he’s put his time solving crimes behind him. Until he sees a scarecrow hanging from a noose in the big tree behind his house. Standing tall at the top of a hill, the oak is probably hundreds of years old. And there’s a growing call for it to be pulled down.
At the village council meeting, Graham learns about the tree’s history and why it’s regarded so negatively. But there’s some things he isn’t told and as events take a dark turn and he becomes convinced there’s more to the stories he’s heard, he calls in an ally. Stephen Mallow, investigative journalist, and dedicated researcher.
Only Stephen has been dealing with issues of his own, issues that leave him somewhat compromised. As the two men search for answers, Stephen’s problems become more pronounced. Will he manage to stay the course or will Graham find himself alone?
Tense, gripping and sinister, this is a cleverly written and smart thriller.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
Everything familiar to Eliza has been ripped away. Even worse, the cruel deed was done by her own hands.
Nassau, Bahamas, 1791…
Eliza Sharpe, recently wed to a mysterious and brooding soldier, departs for the West Indies with him to begin their new life.
Once there, she realizes their marital arrangement is ill-fated and that she has made a disastrous choice. Charles, the man she finds herself bound to, is nothing short of a monster.
On their very first night in New Providence, her innocence is irrevocably shattered. The walls of her new home hide a dark family secret, and Eliza realizes that the freedom she sought within marriage is a worse cage than the constraints she faced before.
Eliza struggles with her new existence, her exposure to Charles’ explosive temper, the brutality of slavery, and her isolation as she tries to grow accustomed to life on distant shores. The only source of comfort she finds is swimming in the startlingly clear ocean, an activity Charles expressly forbids.
As she attempts to flee her deteriorating situation, an unexpected encounter with a beguiling stranger named Jean offers a promise of escape. Despite the dark rumors that swirl around her recent acquaintance and his mysterious past, he captures Eliza’s interest, and ultimately, her heart―with deadly consequences.
On an island where nothing is as it appears, Eliza is confronted with the harsh realities of living on the fringe of empire, of womanhood, and the overt corruption that festers in the governor’s mansion on the hill. Will she ever be able to secure her freedom―and possibly even find redemption in love?
Gina Giordano always had an insatiable curiosity and a penchant for history. Born in New York City, she is a writer, artist, and a conjurer of the past. She holds a BA in history and a master’s degree in historical fiction from New York University, and has traveled to over sixty-five countries across the globe. When she is not climbing ancient ruins or exploring forgotten palaces, she enjoys swimming with sharks in remote pristine waters. Her debut novel, Strange Eden, was longlisted for the 2023 Bath Novel Award.
My thoughts: Eliza wants out of her existence in England, where at 24 she is considered an old maid. But her sheltered, privileged existence doesn’t prepare her for marriage. Marrying the next man to ask for her hand is a terrible mistake, one she cannot undo. Charles is a violent, controlling monster.
Practically kept prisoner in her new home, thousands of miles from anywhere familiar, where she can’t even rely on the slaves that look after her – after all they belong to her husband, and the cook raised him and seems to be unable to see who he really is.
She had no idea life could be like this, for herself and certainly not the slaves, she tries to defend them, to stop her husband and his overseer from abusing them, and makes matters worse.
No wonder then, that she falls for Jean, a handsome stranger who, while he is Charles’ friend, is so different from the cruel and brutish men around her.
But love cannot last in this false paradise as Eliza learns to her cost. She still cannot escape, society has no place for a woman like her, in the Bahamas or back in England.
Dark, moving and at times incredibly chilling. This is a reminder of the true underbelly of humanity – of its violence and abuse of others, Charles might be monstrous, but he is far from alone in that.
I felt sorry for Eliza, her gender, her class, all conspire against her. Twenty-four seems so young to me now, but to the society at the time, she was getting on. She probably felt she had no real choices, and Charles turned on the charm while she was still under her father’s protection.
The Bahamas now is very different to then, and it can be hard to imagine how truly horrendous life was for the abducted and enslaved Africans who lived there and worked the plantations. They had no choices at all about their lives, and Eliza might feel a prisoner, but they really are. Harrowing.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
ramblingmads 