Category: reviews

blog tour, books, reviews

Blogathon: Home Coming – Isabel Ashdown

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Welcome to The Starlings… sun, sea and neighbours to die for.

Security, a sparkling sea view and the best kind of neighbours – The Starlings gated community has it all. Here, doors are left open, children run free, and at the heart of it all is the entrepreneurial Gold Family, who first dreamed up this aspirational vision of ‘Dorset’s Safest Community’. To the outside world the popular family appears glitteringly blessed… until an idyllic party takes a dark turn and one of their number is found slumped at the foot of the clocktower. Who knows what really happened? And what answers are harboured within the old building, the former Highcap Mother and Baby Home?’

PREORDER ONE GIRL, ONE SUMMER NOW – A BRAND NEW EMOTIONAL PAGETURNER SET IN THE BEAUTIFUL COASTAL TOWN OF HIGHCAP, DORSET.

My thoughts: The Starlings was built as a workhouse, the became a mother and baby home and finally an asylum before finally being abandoned. Purchased by the Golds and developed into a beautiful new complex of homes, but it’s ghosts still haunt the buildings and the residents.

Katrin Gold was probably the last baby born in the mother and baby home, and despite a childhood in care, she isn’t interested in finding her birth parents. But other residents, like Anne, also born in the home, feel differently. Digging into The Starlings’ past brings up tensions among the new neighbours.

Katrin is also dealing with family issues, her husband is cheating on her, her sister-in-law is a mess, her young niece needs her support. Things seem to have deteriorated since they all moved in.

Frida, Katrin’s teenage niece, needs her mother, but she’s permanently out for the count, she’s been suspended from her boarding school, and no one seems to care what happened to her.

When a terrible accident happens at The Starlings, the police start to dig in to the tangled lives of its residents and find all sorts of secrets. Clever and gripping, this is a really enjoyable thriller about secrets and family.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.

blog tour, books, reviews

Blog Tour: Boys Who Hurt – Eva Björg Ægisdottir, translated by Victoria Cribb

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Fresh from maternity leave, Detective Elma finds herself confronted with a complex case, when a man is found murdered in a holiday cottage in the depths of the Icelandic countryside – the victim of a frenzied knife attack, with a shocking message scrawled on the wall above him.

At home with their baby daughter, Sævar is finding it hard to let go of work, until the chance discovery in a discarded box provides him with a distraction. Could the diary of a young boy, detailing the events of a long-ago summer have a bearing on Elma’s case?

Once again, the team at West Iceland CID have to contend with local secrets in the small town of Akranes, where someone has a vested interest in preventing the truth from coming to light. And Sævar has secrets of his own that threaten to destroy his and Elma’s newfound happiness.

Tense, twisty and shocking, Boys Who Hurt is the next, addictive installment in the award-winning Forbidden Iceland series, as dark events from the past endanger everything…

Born in Akranes in 1988, Eva moved to Trondheim, Norway to study for an MSc in Globalisation when she was 25. After moving back home having completed her MSc, she knew it was time to start working on her novel. Eva has wanted to write books since she was 15 years old, having won a short story contest in Iceland.

Eva worked as a stewardess to make ends meet while she wrote her first novel. The book went on to win the Blackbird Award and became an Icelandic bestseller. Eva now lives with her husband and three children in ReykjavÍk.

Victoria Cribb studied and worked in Iceland for many years. She has translated more than 25 novels from the Icelandic and, in 2017, she received the OrðstÍr honourary translation award for services to Icelandic literature.

My thoughts: returning to Iceland’s dark side as Elma returns to work after maternity leave, with a man’s body in a holiday cottage, a violent murder that at first seems to make no sense. The victim doesn’t have any enemies, or close friends. His mother happens to be Elma’s rather odd neighbour, and stuck on paternity leave Sævar has been watching her, curious about her behaviour.

A box found in the attic of Elma’s old place, that has moved with them, contains a diary from the 90s, and possibly an answer to Elma’s case.

I really like this series, the cases have been so clever and twisty  – and this is no different. Elma’s case is all about secrets and a terrible tragedy from years before, some people never forget and never forgive. The writing is so good, I was totally gripped and couldn’t put it down.

*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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Blog Tour: The Secret Life of a Lady – Darcy McGuire

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Never Underestimate a wallflower!

Lady Hannah Simmons is a quintessential wallflower, unassuming, dowdy yet ignored by most. But underneath her plain exterior, Hannah is hiding a thrilling secret!

Unbeknownst to the rest of the
ton, she is Queen Victoria’s leading femme fatale, slipping unnoticed through the streets of London and listening to scandalous whispers from lords and ladies. But with daggers in her stockings and pistols in her pockets, Hannah’s mission is to apprehend a deadly killer.

Private Investigator to the Prime Minister, damaged, yet devastatingly handsome ex-war hero Duke Robert Killian always puts duty first. However, when he finds himself competing with the intriguing
Lady Hannah on the same daring task, his blood boils with frustration – and desire! Is it possible to seduce this vexing woman whose not afraid to put herself in danger and achieve the upper hand?

Hannah enjoys Killian’s attempts to distract and tempt her, but she has never faced an adversary she couldn’t overthrow. And Killian has never met a challenge he couldn’t conquer…until now. The gauntlet has been thrown. Can they finish their jobs and resist the temptation?

Keep your friends close…and your enemies even closer!

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Darcy McGuire is an award-winning New Zealand-born writer now living in the Pacific Northwest. She will write a five-part Victorian romance series for Boldwood, focused on a group of ‘Deadly Damsels’.

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My thoughts: I really liked Hannah, she’s a pretty kickass Victorian heroine, with her sensible boots hidden under her skirts, along with several knives and at least one gun.

Duke Killian, former Lieutenant General, turned Government agent, is on the same case as Hannah – that of a murdered maid, who was buried alive. But he’s distracted by Hannah, and then some.

It goes from a bit flirty to very spicy as they agree to trade secrets for “favours” and start falling for one another. But they don’t forget the case, and getting justice for Sarah Bright. But there’s more to the case than one death – and hopefully there’s more stories to come with Hannah and Killian.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.

blog tour, books, reviews

Blog Post: A Body in the Henhouse – Kate Wells

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The time for celebrations is over…

Jude Gray’s farm is going from strength to strength, and even though her grumpy neighbour has concerns about the new campsite in the lower field, she is undeterred.

When a hen party arrives for a weekend away, she does her best to cater for their celebrations. But with a sheep needing urgent care – an accidental mishap or something more nefarious? – she finds
herself consulting the group, which coincidentally contains four vets.
When one of the hens goes missing, it becomes clear there are more sinister forces at play, and someone is targeting her farm. With the help of close friend Detective Inspector Binnie Khatri, Jude
once again dons her amateur sleuthing hat.

They uncover a web of deceit, affairs and rivalries, but will they find the perpetrator before events turn murderous?

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Kate Wells is the author of a number of well-reviewed books for children, and is now writing a new cosy crime series set in the Malvern hills, inspired by the farm where she grew up.

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My thoughts: this series goes from strength to strength, with another clever crime for Jude and police pal Binnie to unravel. Jude has set up a campsite in one of her fields and is hosting a hen party of vets for a long weekend of walks and barbecues.

One of the hens goes missing and has left her phone and purse behind, the other women suspect foul play as there’s no sign of her and her car’s still parked in front of the field. 

Is Jude’s grumpy neighbour involved? Especially after some of her sheep are poisoned, he’s always complaining about her business and interfering. Or is something more sinister going on?

It’s also Sebbie’s fourth birthday and Jude is adding more animals to the farm, thinking that she can turn a paddock into a petting zoo to encourage more customers. Or just because animals are super cute and Sebbie gives them all excellent names.

It’s another enjoyable and clever read, with twists and turns. I didn’t see the truth about the missing hen coming at all, it’s so well done and shocking. Can’t wait for the next one.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.

blog tour, books, reviews

Blog Tour: Vengeance – Saima Mir

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For two years, Jia Khan has been running her late father’s organised crime business in the north of England. So far, her authority has remained unchallenged, but now things are beginning to unravel.

When she finds her father’s notebook recounting his arrival from Pakistan in the 1970s, it awakes an old family feud that could have devastating repercussions for Jia. And worst of all, one of her staff lies brutally slain, his corpse displayed provocatively in her garden despite her sophisticated security.

Someone is getting dangerously close. Could there be a traitor in Jia Khan’s trusted inner circle?

Saima Mir has written for The Times, Guardian and Independent. Her debut novel, The Khan, was a Times Bestseller, a Guardian best crime and thriller and a Waterstones Thriller of the Month. Her essay for It’s Not About The Burqa (Picador) appeared in Guardian Weekend and received over 250,000 hits online in two days. She contributed to the anthology The Best, Most Awful Job: Twenty Writers Talk Honestly About Motherhood. Saima grew up in Bradford and now lives in London.

My thoughts: Jia Khan has cemented her role at the top of her father’s criminal organisation but she’s also inherited his enemies. Finding her dad’s 1970s diary she learns how he started his empire building, and who he crossed to do so. 

When her enemies strike directly at her and her family, Jia knows she has to hit back hard, and make it clear that she is the Khan and no one can topple her. She also makes some changes to her organisation that will bring it up to date and strengthen her position. 

This was another gripping instalment of Saima Mir’s crime series, Jia is a really interesting character and this book really develops more of her, the way she manages her organisation and the complicated relationships she has with her family and employees.

*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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Blog Tour: The Little Book of Extraordinary Cats – Anita Kelsey

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Discover the captivating world of fabulous felines in The Little Book Of Extraordinary Cats.

Join Anita Kelsey on a journey through fifteen remarkable tales celebrating the courage, resilience, and affection of our beloved feline companions, from pioneering space traveller Félicette to therapy cat London Meow. Whether you’re a cat lover or seeking heart-warming stories of human-animal connections, this book is a must-read.

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Anita Kelsey holds a first class honours degree in Feline Behaviour and Psychology
(work based BA Hons) and runs a vet referral service dedicated strictly to the diagnosis and treatment of behaviour problems in cats. She is also a qualified cat groomer and specialises in grooming challenging or phobic cats.

Anita, a strong advocate of a vegan lifestyle, is based in East Sussex but consults all over the UK as well as international requests. She lives with her husband, a music producer, and 1 Norwegian Forest cat, Kiki.

Her first book ‘Claws. Confessions Of A Professional Cat Groomer’ was published by John Blake in 2017 with her second book, Let’s Talk About Cats self published via Amazon worldwide in 2020. The Little Book Of Extraordinary Cats is Anita’s third book.
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My thoughts: this charming collection of real life felines is perfect for the animal lover in your life (especially if that’s you)  illustrated with portraits of each cat, the chapters capture not just the thing that makes each one unique and worthy of celebration but the impact of their life on their human friends.

My cat Ted had a good sniff of this book – it’s what he does, and declared it acceptable.

We often think of cats as being aloof and disinterested (as they can be) but this collection shows that they’re also clever, funny, companionable and a boon to humanity – especially those who save lives and offer joy and comfort to the humans they know and meet.

*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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Blog Tour: Service Model – Adrian Tchaikovsky

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Murderbot meets Redshirts in a delightfully humorous tale of robotic murder from the Hugo-nominated author of Elder Race and Children of Time.

To fix the world they must first break it, further.

Humanity is a dying breed, utterly reliant on artificial labor and service.

When a domesticated robot gets a nasty little idea downloaded into its core programming, they murder their owner. The robot discovers they can also do something else they never did before: They can run away.

Fleeing the household they enter a wider world they never knew existed, where the age-old hierarchy of humans at the top is disintegrating into ruins and an entire robot ecosystem devoted to human wellbeing is having to find a new purpose.

Sometimes all it takes is a nudge to overcome the limits of your programming.

Adrian Tchaikovsky was born in Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire, and headed off to university in Reading to study psychology and zoology. For reasons unclear even to himself, he subsequently ended up in law. Adrian has since worked as a legal executive in both Reading and Leeds and now writes full time. He also lives in Leeds, with his wife and son. Adrian is a keen live role-player and occasional amateur actor. He has also trained in stage fighting and keeps no exotic or dangerous pets of any kind – possibly excepting his son. Tchaikovsky’s critically-acclaimed Elder Race was shortlisted for a Hugo Award and for the inaugural Ursula K. Le Guin Prize. Other notable works include The Expert System’s Brother and Made Things.

My thoughts: I really liked the main protagonist – a valet bot who goes by Uncharles for most of the book. Some terrible quirk of his programming caused him to slit his master’s throat, and flee his home. Things are very confusing for him from then on out – he discovers a world that has fallen apart, where humans have mostly disappeared and robots aren’t coping well either.

When he meets The Wonk, a rather peculiar and tatty individual at Central Services, they end up on a road trip together, one with very different aims. Uncharles just wants a new human master to serve, the Wonk wants answers.

I always enjoy the worlds the author creates, even this tragic dystopia, Uncharles is so naive but it’s that innocence and willingness to keep trying that allows him to keep going. His lack of emotion and inhuman nature are the very things he needs in this strange new world. He and the Wonk make a great team. There’s lots of references to the Wizard of Oz, which definitely seems to be an influence, if the Wonk and Uncharles were Dorothy and the Tin Man.

Humans have built robots to do almost everything for them and made themselves obsolete but then the robots have also become pointless as so many of them have lost their roles, like Uncharles or the Librarians. Finding new ones in the changed world might give them a sense of purpose.

*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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Blog Tour: Newport Writers Anthology Two

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We are a diverse group from south Wales with over 20 members, covering a broad age range and a variety of styles within the sphere of writing. We include poets, novelists, writers of flash fiction and short stories, plays and film scripts.

We published an anthology in February 2020 entitled Newport Writers – An anthology of poetry and prose. Available from Amazon in paperback and for Kindle.

We met on Zoom during the pandemic, but have now found a venue in central Newport where we can get together with plenty of space for social distancing.

We hold an Open Mic night once a month at popular Newport coffee shop Horton’s, and in the summer of 2021 we participated in several spoken word events.

Some members of our group are available to read and offer critique, and we have a proofreader among our membership.

Email us at newportwritersgroup@gmail.com

Facebook: Newportwritersgroup

Twitter: @NewportWriters

My thoughts: the Newport Writers return with their second anthology of poetry and short fiction. There’s a really interesting selection of work on display here, ranging from science fiction and fantasy to contemporary pieces.

I really enjoyed reading the group’s work – there’s some very talented writers here, some very deserving of more eyeballs (attention agents and publishers!)

If you’d like to see what I’m talking about, check them out on social media and on Amazon.

*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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Blog Tour: The Fascination – Essie Fox

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The Fascination is now available in paperback, so to celebrate this excellent Gothic slice of historical fiction I am re-sharing my review from the hardback tour.

Orenda Books

Victorian England. A world of rural fairgrounds and glamorous London theatres. A world of dark secrets and deadly obsessions…
Twin sisters Keziah and Tilly Lovell are identical in every way, except that Tilly hasn’t grown a single inch since she was five. Coerced into promoting their father’s quack elixir as they tour the country fairgrounds, at the age of fifteen the girls are sold to a mysterious Italian known as ‘ Captain’ .
Theo is an orphan, raised by his grandfather, Lord Seabrook, a man who has a dark interest in anatomical freaks and other curiosities … particularly the human kind. Resenting his grandson for his mother’ s death in childbirth, when Seabrook remarries and a new heir is produced, Theo is forced to leave home without a penny to his name.
Theo finds employment in Dr Summerwell’ s Museum of Anatomy in London, and here he meets Captain and his theatrical ‘ family’ of performers, freaks and outcasts.
But it is Theo’ s fascination with Tilly and Keziah that will lead all of them into a web of deceits, exposing the darkest secrets and threatening everything they know…
Exploring universal themes of love and loss, the power of redemption and what it means to be unique, The Fascination is an evocative, glittering and bewitching gothic novel that brings alive Victorian London – and darkness and deception that lies beneath…

Essie Fox was born and raised in rural Herefordshire, which inspires much of her writing.

After studying English Literature at Sheffield University, she moved to London where she worked for the Telegraph Sunday Magazine, then the book publishers George Allen & Unwin – before becoming self-employed in the world of art and design.

Always an avid reader, Essie now spends her time writing historical gothic novels. Her debut, The Somnambulist, was shortlisted for the National Book Awards, and featured on Channel 4’s TV Book Club.

My thoughts: this is a dark and beautiful book about three young people facing adversity and danger, finding their family and happiness despite the odds. Keziah and Tilly are twins, but Tilly stopped growing as a child and their father sells them to a stranger – known as Captain.

Their paths cross with Theo, mistreated and abandoned by his miserable and cruel grandfather, dreaming of becoming a doctor.

It is only a few years later when the three meet again that their lives become entangled as Tilly is kidnapped. Together with the twins’ friends they set out to rescue her and discover the truth about Theo’s family and find a home, and a family of their own.

It’s beautiful as well as sinister, amongst the collections of Theo’s grandfather and then that of the doctor. There’s a lovely little twist right at the very end too. And romance blooms for some of the characters, the wicked are punished, people are reunited and wrongs are undone. It’s a bit Shakespearean as it ends with a wedding, as many of his comedies do, which is fitting for Tilly, playing a fairy queen on stage.

The author’s day job as a historian of the Victorian era means this is a well researched and intelligent story, beautifully brought to life, the characters mix with real life figures, and could themselves almost be real, they certainly feel it. Keziah steps out of the page in her chapters, with all the hopes and dreams of a young woman, even amid her reality. Theo too feels very alive, his struggles and desires to make a difference at odds with the rotten world of his grandfather. Magical and moving.

*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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Blog Tour: Rogue Hero – Rob Sinclair

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When a mystery bystander stops an assassination attempt on a prominent politician, it sparks a national search that captivates the nation…

Curtis Delaney watches the footage play out on the news, and immediately recognises the unidentified hero. He hasn’t seen his brother Finn in six years. He doesn’t know where he’s been in that time, or what he’s been doing. But there’s one thing he does know: Finn is no hero.
Curtis is determined to find his brother, but equally, Curtis is no detective. A husband and lawyer (and not the ‘good’ kind), with a mortgage and responsibilities, Curtis isn’t cut out for delving into whatever seedy business Finn has gotten involved with. But when armed men turn up on his doorstep, claiming to be FBI, he quickly realises he’s been left with no choice.

The hunt for the truth will take them from the Capitol building in Washington, to the sun-kissed beaches of Mexico, and the cold streets of London, uncovering secrets of fraud, blackmail and murder. Can the brothers reunite before the real hero is discovered by the wrong people?

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Rob Sinclair is the million copy bestseller of over twenty thrillers, including the James Ryker series.
Most recently published by Bloodhound, Boldwood will publish his latest action thriller, Rogue Hero, in June 2024 and will be republishing all the James Ryker series over the coming months.

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My thoughts: I wasn’t sure if this was going to be my sort of book at first, but I really enjoyed it. Curtis isn’t much of a detective, he’s a lawyer who helps rich people get richer and his marriage is slowly falling apart. But when he spots his estranged brother on the TV one night, the “hero” who saved a senator from gun men, he decides he can’t just ignore it – he has to find his brother.

It’s not that easy, Finn doesn’t seem to want to be found, and none of his old friends have anything nice to say about him. Chasing breadcrumbs, Curtis is running out of ideas until a woman (and her barely restrained PI) literally tackle him in the street. They’re looking for Finn too. 

What follows is a hunt across the globe, following clues based on Finn’s last known job and whereabouts – working for a dubious billionaire in Mexico. Now, this is something Curtis knows a bit about -dodgy dealings. Did Finn find something out that got him into trouble?

Fast paced, clever and gripping, this was a really enjoyable and fun read. Curtis is out of his depth most of the time and I couldn’t help but feel sorry for him as he gets involved with the FBI, gangsters, international crime and brings chaos into his quiet life.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.