The most dangerous people are those with nothing to lose. Who don’t care if they live or die.
Simon Peake does care… he just isn’t sure about what right now. The ex-soldier’s life is as close to rock bottom as it gets. He needs a job and he needs a quiet life. What he gets is a whole load of mess working for New York-based Irish mobster Harry Lafferty. A job that requires him to use his special skills on some very unsavory people. His relationship with Harry’s niece isn’t exactly conducive to a quiet existence either…
As Peake tries to walk the fine line between surviving in this new life, and atoning for his old one, he struggles on both counts. And when his past comes back to bite him, and those closest to him are threatened, the reckoning will be merciless for anyone who stands in his way.
Rob Sinclair is the million copy bestseller of over twenty thrillers, including the James Ryker series. Rob previously studied Biochemistry at Nottingham University. He also worked for a global accounting firm for 13 years, specialising in global fraud investigations.
My thoughts: Simon Peake is a troubled man, former army, he’s spent time in prison for serious assault. He’s clearly been damaged by his past experiences, leaving him prone to bursts of violence that leave the unlucky person who pushed him in pieces. Getting a job as a driver for the head of an Irish-American crime family might not be the best idea. Sleeping with the boss’ niece definitely isn’t.
As he gets drawn into the Laffertys’ world, the violence around him increases, a dangerous place for a volatile man. Then his past comes crashing into his present, putting the few people he cares about in danger.
A thriller driven by one man’s attempts to put his life into some sense of order, while the demons of his past play havoc with his mind and eventually come to take revenge.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own
A Victorian asylum. A woman imprisoned. A deadly secret.
England, 1875. London journalist, Harris Mortimer, visits a Hampshire lunatic asylum to investigate society’s treatment of the insane, only to find himself in a fateful encounter with a beautiful woman claiming to be wrongly incarcerated.
Horrified by a series of murders, he soon becomes drawn into the strange world of the asylum and begins to wonder who is truly mad and who is sane.
Back in London, Harris meets Nancy Carter, a young woman striving to become a music hall star. Nancy’s shocking act, based on madness and murder, has uncanny parallels with Harris’s recent experiences in Hampshire.
Is it all just a coincidence? To what lengths will one person go to exact their revenge?
As the fates of Harris and Nancy intertwine, they are about to discover the terrible consequences of uncovering the truth.
Music, madness and murder collide in this thrilling historical mystery for fans of Stacey Halls, Jessie Burton and Elizabeth Macneal. A perfect book club fiction selection, Murder at the Lunatics’ Ball discusses themes of social control, the female lunatic stereotype, and the struggle by women to earn their bread and find their voice in Victorian England.
R S Leonard was born in Cheshire, England, and after a long stint in London, then Hampshire, now lives back in her home county.
She’s always had a deep love of storytelling and history, inspired, no doubt, by her mum encouraging her to get the utmost out of the public library as a kid. She has a PhD in Nineteenth-Century Literature and Culture and MAs in Creative Writing and Victorian Studies. These inspired her recently-published second historical mystery novel, Murder at the Lunatics’ Ball, as well as her first, The Body, the Diamond and the Child.
My thoughts: This was an interesting read, with several very surprising twists along the way.
Journalist Harris Mortimer is sent to write about the modern asylum for The Times newspaper, a family friend happens to be the senior doctor at one in Hampshire, and is here he meets both inmates and staff, although at times he struggles to see who is truly mad.
He also meets Titania Rossetti, a beautiful patient who seems to be terrified of something or someone at the asylum. He’s told she suffers from a specific type of melancholy – an Ophelia – heartbroken from lost love. This was an actual diagnosis. There is a weird focus on women needing to fit into specific categories at the asylum, and Harris finds the whole thing peculiar.
The titular murder does indeed take place at a ball (of sorts) organised for the inmates. It won’t be the only one. Shocking and depraved, the murderer is among the residents, both patients and staff, and Harris is on the frontline. The reporting makes his name and on returning to London he is riding high.
Meanwhile Nancy Carter, actress, returns home too. She’s been away, supposedly in Birmingham, but on return must get back into her sister’s good books and rebuild her performing career.
As Harris spins into madness, Nan works to build a new, successful life, and leave any evidence of the recent past, and her activities, behind her.
There were times when I didn’t think Harris was particularly bright, especially when Miss Rossetti and her friend Miss Millais meet him for tea. There are clues about his beloved’s reality but he just can’t seem to see them.
Nan is a brilliant character, both monstrous in her rage and revenge, her strange stage act that plays with murder and madness, but also sweet and beguiling, trying to find a way to take care of what’s left of her family.
This was an incredibly interesting and clearly well researched book, I am interested in the treatment of mental illness historically as it varies wildly and so much of it seems utterly barbaric. What Titania experiences demonstrates this, while some doctors are keen to treat their patients gently and with kindness, others prefer the more inhumane ideas that preceded them. But the true madness lies elsewhere in this story.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
Della Wilde has set aside her dream of moving to Paris to study at the renowned Le Cordon Bleu, choosing instead to support her family torn apart by war. By night, she works at the prestigious Ambrose Café, serving the city’s elite – she feels utterly invisible. Until a chance encounter with rebellious Alice Winters, the daughter of a powerful MP, upends Della’s world.
Alice is a woman caught between duty and desire. She secretly yearns to be an artist but is expected to marry a respectable suitor and raise a family. Della, with her sharp wit and quiet strength, is unlike anyone she has ever known. She makes Alice feel alive. So she draws Della into her orbit – first as a muse for her secret art, then as something infinitely more intimate.
But in a world where reputations are easily shattered, their growing bond is a danger that threatens not only their futures, but those around them. As Alice risks scandal and Della faces the consequences of following her heart, they must will they allow others to choose their path, or dare to forge their own?
Inspired by her childhood fascination with old films which led to a career as a Film Archivist, Carryl’s debut novel The Forgotten Life of Connie Harris is a dual timeline story set against the immersive backdrop of cinema. Originally from the Isle of Wight, Carryl now lives in Devon with her husband, son and a cat called Ditsy who keeps her company while she types.
My thoughts: Set in a time when being openly in a same sex relationship was illegal and dangerous, this follows the lives of two young women, Della and Alice, as they meet, fall in love and risk everything they have.
Della works in the kitchens of the Ambrose, making beautiful cakes and dainty patisserie for the well heeled customers. After a wild birthday party that she made the cake for, she discovers birthday girl Alice asleep under a table in the ballroom. Smuggling her out so as not to draw attention (Alice’s father is an MP) the two women feel a connection.
They’re from different worlds, Alice’s life is whirl of parties and lunches, playing both the wild party girl and the dutiful daughter. Della is the only member of her family currently drawing a wage, the war having taken her father and two eldest brothers. Her mother is prone to bouts of depression and she has three more brothers at home. She can’t risk scandal or losing her job.
But neither woman can deny the spark between them. Unfortunately there are jealous eyes upon them and when things turn ugly, they have to face up to the fact that not everyone is happy for them. They find a true friend in Alice’s family butler, and she learns her parents’ secrets. Can they stay together in the face of opposition that threatens to tear them apart?
Insightful, written with compassion and care, this is a love story that we don’t often see, proof that there have been queer couples hiding in plain sight all along, not just “good friends” but forced to play a terrifying game of hide and seek. Thankfully that has changed in many ways, and women like Alice and Della can love openly.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
Cairo, 2010. As the vast city swelters in the summer heatwave, anti-government protesters take to the streets.
When visiting businessman Geoff Ward is kidnapped, his client Khaled and Khaled’s sister, Layla, a prominent activist, set out to find the Englishman. Meanwhile, back in the UK, Geoff’s wife, Angie, frustrated by her feelings of helplessness and the government’s apparent ineffectiveness, contacts an old family friend, Shimon, to ask for help.
Who has taken Geoff and why?
Can his would-be rescuers work together to find him?
And how will Angie and her two teenage children cope with his disappearance?
Anthony Etherington has written several teleplays and screen dramas. One of these, Yellow Dragon and the Red Fox, won Best Screenplay awards at the European Independent Film Festival and the International Film Festival of Wales in 2014. Two of his short scripts – Flotsam and Gemma’s War – have been filmed and can be viewed on YouTube. His debut novel, Europia, was published in 2022. Some Other Eden is his second novel.
My thoughts: I found this book very enjoyable, with its fast-paced action and several different strands of plot woven together. When businessman Geoff is abducted in Cairo, Egypt, his wife Angie, back home in England, is understandably terrified. Some Foreign Office agent tells her to let officialdom do it’s thing, but as time moves on, she loses faith in the system and takes matters into her own hands.
Geoff’s client Khaled feels responsible and is eager to help, between him, his sister and his close friend in the police, he thinks he might be able to get some answers. Angie has also asked family friend Shimon to go to Cairo and help, his background means he has useful skills.
Geoff fights to maintain his sanity in the terrible situation he finds himself in. He has no idea why he’s been targeted, he’s not wealthy or important, not connected to the government or anything like that. A copy of Ivanhoe given to him by one of his captors helps him keep going as he waits to see what fate has in store for him.
Weaving these narratives together, we also learn about how Geoff met Shimon and the close bond the two men share. What happens will change their lives, and their families forever. Gripping, intense and full of gasp-out-loud moments.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
Connie Maguire has always lived in the shadows. Battling low self-esteem, she has spent her life prioritising her only child — and he has flourished, becoming Ireland’s newest rugby star. On the day of her milestone birthday, with Liam’s career about to soar, Connie finally believes she might achieve some happiness. Then tragedy strikes in the dark of night, changing everything.
On Ireland’s rugged west coast, the past refuses to stay buried, and Connie must finally confront the devastating truth of what happened on the night that destroyed so many lives. This powerful exploration of motherhood, guilt and redemption questions whether we can truly be free from the mistakes of our past.
Hailing from Navan, Co. Meath, Domhnall works as a travel journalist, columnist and author. He writes extensively for the Irish and British media, with work regularly appearing in the Belfast Telegraph, Woman’s Way, The Sunday Times and the Irish Examiner. Domhnall has received many prestigious honours for his writing, including the 2025 Travel Extra Travel Journalist of the Year award. Mercier Press published his novels Crazy for You and Colin and the Concubine. His début novel, Sister Agatha: the World’s Oldest Serial Killer, was released in 2016. As an actor, he appeared in the award-winning series Ros na Rún for nine seasons.
My thoughts: This was really interesting and gripping. Connie has just been released from prison and needs to find somewhere safe to stay, she can’t go back to the village she’s lived in her whole life, her son’s in Portugal, her best friend’s in Spain and there isn’t anyone else.
As she travels across Ireland to find safety, she is forced to reckon with the events that lead to her imprisonment. At her fortieth birthday party, after a night of drinking and dancing, tragedy struck. And she paid the price. But some think she should still be locked up and the truth is not quite as straightforward as the one she told in court.
This is intelligent, engaging and fascinating. Connie raised her son alone, and his success means everything to her, even at the expense of her own freedom. Can she reach a place of safety or have her actions poisoned everything?
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
How many times would you let your child get away with murder?
When you look down at your newborn baby, you realise they were right, those smug parents you’ve always rolled your eyes at: you’d do literally anything for your child. To make them happy, keep them safe.
So when Joseph Carver wakes one night to find his teenage son Max scrubbing the kitchen, hands wet with blood and panic flooding his voice as he promises it was an accident, he didn’t mean to do it, Joseph does the only thing he can. He helps Max bury the body.
Joseph thinks that’s the end of the nightmare. Until he finds Max with stricken eyes and bloody hands once again . . .
You’d do anything for your child – even cover up a murder.
SAM LLOYD grew up in Hampshire, where he learned his love of storytelling. These days he lives in Surrey with his wife, three young sons and a dog that likes to howl. His first three thrillers, The Memory Wood, The Rising Tide and The People Watcher were published to great critical acclaim.
My thoughts: There are a lot of dead bodies in this book, and lots of clever twists too. Joseph helps his son Max cover up what Max says is a terrible accident, but not reporting it is a serious crime. Especially when the brother of your victim is a psychopath who won’t stop till he finds out what happened.
Then Max, oops, kills someone else. But this isn’t a stranger, and it’s a little too close to home. Joseph is taking bigger risks and his wife’s getting suspicious. If he can just get Max through the summer and off to med school then it’ll be fine. It’s not fine.
Things get crazier and crazier, the whole family get drawn into the chaos, and then more twists turn everything you think you know upside down. I was absolutely hooked and lost count of the corpses. There’s also a strain of pitch black humour or possibly hysteria running through this very dark, very bloody book. Highly recommend.
*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 twistiest murder mystery you are ever likely to read?
A story about a family that does the unthinkable in order to save the life of one of its beloved members?
Both?
Or something else altogether?
You’ll have to read until the very last word in order to find out…
You think it will never happen to you: the ring of the bell, the policeman on the doorstep. What he says traps you in a nightmare that starts with the words, ‘I’m afraid…’
Sally Lambert is also afraid, and desperate enough to consider the unthinkable. Is it really, definitely, impossible to escape from this horror? Maybe not. There’s always something you can do, right?
Of course, no one would ever do this particular something – except the Lamberts, who might have to. No one has ever gone this far. Until Sally decides that the Lamberts will…
Sophie Hannah is a Sunday Times, New York Times and Amazon Kindle UK No. 1 bestselling author and her books have sold millions of copies worldwide. She writes contemporary psychological thrillers and, at the request of Agatha Christie’s family and estate, the new series of Hercule Poirot novels. She lives in Cambridge with her family.
My thoughts: Sophie Hannah is one of my very favourite writers, so getting to read this and be on the blog tour is very exciting.
Without spoiling the story, I actually think I would go further than the Lamberts if I was in their position. I would actually kill and get away with it (I have read so much crime fiction, watched CSI in every US city and so many other crime shows, I am pretty sure I could leave no trace).
The Lamberts, are a pretty ordinary family, Sally’s a bit quirky certainly, but other than that pretty normal. The document that purports to reveal what really happened is a mishmash of things, in some semblance of order, but the narrator is a question mark. Who is telling the story of the Lamberts and what happened?
When a member of their family is accused of a crime, Sally springs into action, rounding up her children and husband and going in search of allies. She knows that no one in her family committed this crime, but is at a loss as to how to prove it, and how to keep them all safe.
The story that unfolds will tell us everything we need to know about the Lamberts, their village, its residents, the Gaveys (boo! hiss!), the so-called crime, the truth about that incident, some history, and what happened next. Or will it? You will have to decide what you can believe.
Funny, very clever and a little confusing in a “huh? What?” way, this is a very different sort of crime novel but hugely enjoyable and entertaining.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
Adam’s wife, Maryanne, vanished without trace whilst on holiday in southern France, more than two years ago. Unexpectedly, he receives an enigmatic message. It prompts him to return to the scene of her disappearance. His efforts to piece together what happened force him to reexamine their relationship, coupled with his feelings of guilt.
Retracing events that led to that fateful day, he soon learns that his return has not gone unnoticed, and his efforts to find Maryanne are far from welcome. Adam is joined in his search by Abigail, Maryanne’s daughter from a previous marriage. It is February. The mistral is battering the streets and dark corners of the ancient towns across this area of France.
As more of Maryanne’s past is revealed, the search, enmeshed in a world of intrigue and deceit, with its past rooted in antiquity, becomes increasingly dangerous. They discover that some will do anything to stop them from uncovering the final, terrifying truth.
Robert Cole trained as a clinical psychologist but spent most of his career within the corporate business world, both in the UK and overseas. He has held senior positions in Human Resources within a number of large global companies.
Mistral is his second novel and is a powerful and sweeping drama set amongst the vineyards and picturesque towns and villages of the Languedoc and Provence areas of the South of France.
His well-received first novel, A Breeze Across the Aegean published in 2020, draws on his affinity with Greece and its diverse islands. He is currently working on a sequel.
In addition to the UK he has lived in Singapore, Cyprus, the Netherlands and South Africa. Currently he divides his time between Surrey and Uzes in France.
My thoughts: The mistral is a fierce wind that batters parts of France in winter and spring, this ferocious weather makes it unlikely for many tourists to be visiting, so Adam stands out even more as he hunts for clues to his missing wife’s location. The strange postcard he received convinces him that she’s still alive and in the region. But no one he speaks to, especially the artist Jean, will admit to knowing anything.
He’s joined by Maryanne’s daughter, Abigail, she too has never given up hope of finding her mother. Together they search for her. Fragments of memory of Abigail’s childhood in Dublin, the people her artist grandmother hosted at her home, come back to her, and the pair wonder if there’s a connection.
Adam’s friend Caroline, who lives in the region, helps him, despite not being keen on Maryanne, and he worries that his wife’s history of mental illness and disappearances, including taking Abigail to a house not far from where she disappeared, as a child. They find that place, but it’s been abandoned.
As they look into the photographer Jean, and his strange brother, who both think they’ve seen before, a curious connection between Maryanne and the cult of Mary Magdalene emerges. Could this have something to do with her whereabouts?
Both Adam and Abigail risk their own lives to find out the truth and get answers to what became of Maryanne, why she vanished when she did and where she’s been for three long years. The police have stopped looking but Adam has never given up hope.
Clever, full of twists, shocking moments, obsession and darkness, as well as the terrifying wild boars, sangliers, who make their homes in the forests and mountains of this part of France, this was an enjoyable, if sinister read. Adam and especially Abigail are great protagonists, brave, resourceful and incredibly lucky.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
We’re celebrating the release of Hate to Haunt You this week with a tour! Follow along for reviews and other great content – #rrbtHatetoHauntYouTour
Hate To Haunt You (Afterlife Incorporated Book 2)
Release Date: June 16, 2025
Genre: Sapphic Urban Fantasy
Slow burn
Hurt/comfort
Ghosts
Grim reapers
You always haunt the ones you love.
First, I got stuck as a ghost in the suburbs of Toronto. Now my reaper roommate is dying. Dying! Reapers aren’t even supposed to get the sniffles.
Turns out, we’re connected, and I don’t just mean a shared love of pineapple on pizza. Kelly and I have a rare and dangerous bond that’s draining my favourite reaper’s very essence away. If we don’t figure out how to break the link, Kelly is headed for a permanent sabbatical.
Now we’re exploring creepy corners of Afterlife, making risky deals with paranormal weirdos, and—worst of all—I might be falling for the reaper I’m literally haunting to death.
Being dead has never been easy, and there’s no way in hell I’m facing it alone. It’s time to save Kelly, even if it means breaking my own heart in the process.
Hate to Haunt You is the second instalment in the Afterlife Incorporated urban fantasy trilogy. It cannot be read as a standalone. Kelly and Ember’s romance? Still a work in progress.
My thoughts: I loved the first book in this series and was so excited to read this, I fell off my bed when I opened the email with my copy attached! Honestly, I am that clumsy.
After the crazy events of book one things have started to improve in Afterlife, and Ember is bored of all the constant meetings to discuss things. She wants to start getting things done, but none of the reapers have signed up to help.
Luckily her roommates and Kelly, her personal reaper and friend, are there to keep her spirits up, they’ve even got a new cat, that hopefully isn’t secretly a god-like being (aren’t they all, at least in their own minds?)
But something is very wrong with Kelly and it might be the connection between ghost and reaper that’s causing it. Their journey to uncover the problem and find a solution will take them to all sorts of new (to Ember, anyway) parts of Afterlife, bring them face to face with a soul-sucking ghoul, and stretch their connection to its limits. Also Ember might be falling in love with Kelly, if that’s even possible.
I really enjoyed this secret outing for Ember, Kelly and their friends, which was definitely darker than book one, but really gave the characters room to grow, for us to see more of Afterlife, and set up book three (yes!) to be even more shocking and probably make me cry. Kelly’s apathy about what’s happening to them was a bit frustrating and I felt for Ember, trying to do everything she could to save her friend, with Jupiter and X trying to help, even though as living people there were places they couldn’t go. I think after however long Kelly has been undead (I don’t know how reapers see themselves) they’re just not sure how to react anymore.
At Prebbles Flying Circus, the daring Eliza Gray captivates audiences with her breathtaking feats on horseback. Yet beyond the applause, she harbours a longing to find the family she lost as a child and discover who she truly is.
Fate, however, takes an unexpected turn when Eliza is unceremoniously knocked down by a curricle driven recklessly by Raven, Earl Purfoy. Dazed but intrigued, she cannot help but notice Purfoy’s commanding presence.
For his part, the dashing lord, is mortified at his carelessness and resolves to assist the spirited yet intriguing young woman. He deposits her in the care of his dearest friends, Corinna and Alick Wolfe, who encourage Miss Gray in her search for her family and sponsor her entry into London society. The glittering balls and scurrilous gossip of the ton are a far cry from the circus ring and Eliza finds herself the subject of intense speculation and unwelcome advances.
As a most accidental debutante, Eliza has to navigate the complexities of high society and her new friendships. Her quest for family and belonging becomes perilously entwined with Zadoc Flynn, an American heir in search of an English bride, and the unfathomable Lord Purfoy.
Can Eliza uncover the truth of her past and the family she longs for? And will it be Mr Flynn or Lord Purfoy, or indeed her new female friends, who help her find her place in the world?
In a tale of courage, passion, and self-discovery, this lost orphan must decide where she truly belongs.
Jane Dunn is an historian and biographer and the author of seven acclaimed biographies, including Daphne du Maurier and her Sisters and the Sunday Times and NYT bestseller, Elizabeth & Mary: Cousins, Rivals, Queens. She lives in Berkshire with her husband, the linguist Nicholas Ostler.
My thoughts: It was nice to be reunited with some of the characters from An Unsuitable Heiress (although this can be read as a standalone) as Eliza Grey runs away from the circus to society, rather than the usual way round.
Desperate to find out where she comes from and whether her family are looking for her, she flees the only home she knows and almost gets squashed by Earl Purfoy’s curricle as he races home late at night.
Rescued by the Earl and taken to the home of his best friends’ and neighbours’ the Wolfes, she finds herself with kind and generous people who offer her help and support. Corinna Wolfe, having had a similar search for family some years before (see An Unsuitable Heiress) understands Eliza’s desire for family and offers to help her as much as she can.
As Eliza searches and spends time with her new friends, she and Raven Purfoy are drawn to each other, but a rival in the form of American Zadoc Flynn offers to take her back with him to raise his race horses in Kentucky. Raven is so busy worrying about other things (stupid things tbqh) and almost misses the chance to tell Eliza how he feels.
As Eliza finally finds out where she comes from and some family she can connect with, will she return to the circus, head to America or become Countess Purfoy?
Romantic and with a bright and determined protagonist, who wants to make her own way in the world, not depend on kindness or take advantage, this is a Regency tale with modern sensibility. 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.
ramblingmads 