Category: reviews

blog tour, books, reviews

#TeamDaniels Double Review: Without a Trace & Her Last Request – Mari Hannah

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A FATAL CRASH

A plane on route from London to New York City has disappeared out of the sky. This breaking news dominates every TV channel, every social media platform, and every waking hour of the Metropolitan Police and US Homeland Security.

A PRIVATE TRAGEDY

The love of DCI Kate Daniels’ life was on that aircraft, but she has no authority to investigate. This major disaster is outside of her jurisdiction and she’s ordered to walk away.

A SEARCH FOR THE TRUTH

But Kate can’t let it lie. She has to find out what happened to that plane – even if it means going off book. No one is safe.

And there are some very dangerous people watching her…

My thoughts: when Kate believes Jo is on a plane that has just been destroyed, she leaps into action, crashing into the investigation and demanding full access. Bright is playing catch up getting the paperwork in place, and as the case builds, it seems there’s a link not to terrorism, but to a murder in Kate’s own back yard. Could this all be about a war between drug dealing gangs in Northumberland?

Kate is recruited to help the FBI to investigate and get justice for the flight’s passengers, which may or may not include Jo. This case is personal and then becomes something so much bigger than Kate could imagine, and also incredibly local. It’s all hands on deck and it could end up costing the MIT everything.

A Hidden Clue

A victim leaves a note for the SIO who will investigate her death. This not what DCI Kate Daniels expects to find concealed at a crime scene.

A Desperate Plea

The note contains a last request: ‘Find Aaron’. But is Kate searching for a potential second victim, or a killer?

The Countdown is on…

Following the clues, Kate becomes the obsession of her adversary who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. Will she find Aaron before he does?

My thoughts: imagine you know that you’re going to die, in fact, you’re going to be murdered. Would you carefully leave a trail of evidence to lead the police to your killer? Ensuring that they can’t reach the one person you’d do anything to keep safe in the process.

Kate’s newest case has a victim so determined to protect someone and ensure their killer ends up where he belongs. But only if Kate can figure out all the clues and follow the trail left behind. It’s a clever, complex case, and Kate needs to ensure the team is at their best, but after the events of the last book, they’re still reeling.

This series just gets better and better, the cases more intriguing, complex and ingenious. And Kate finally starts to understand the concept of a work/life balance, as opposed to her eat sleep breathe the job behaviour. Thankfully the ever loyal Hank Gormley is always right behind her, trying to stop her going off the rails completely.

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

blog tour, books, reviews

Blog Tour: Dead Sweet – Katrin Júlíusdóttir, translated by Quentin Bates

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When a celebrated government official is found dead after his surprise birthday party, a young police officer uncovers a terrifying world of financial crime, sinister cults and disturbing secret lives. Icelandic politician KatrÍn JÚlÍusdÓttir’s award-winning, breathtaking debut, and first in a chilling series.

When Óttar Karlsson, a wealthy and respected government official and businessman, is found murdered, after failing to turn up at his own surprise birthday party, the police are at a loss. It isn’t until young police officer SigurdÍs finds a well-hidden safe in his impersonal luxury apartment that clues start emerging.

As Óttar’s shady business dealings become clear, a second, unexpected line of enquiry emerges, when SigurdÍs finds a US phone number in the safe, along with papers showing regular money transfers to an American account. Following the trail to Minnesota, trauma rooted in SigurdÍs’s own childhood threatens to resurface and the investigation strikes chillingly close to home…

Atmospheric, deeply unsettling and full of breakneck twists and turns, Dead Sweet is a startling debut thriller that uncovers a terrifying world of financial crime, sinister cults and disturbing secret lives, and kicks off an addictive, mind-blowing new series.

KatrÍn received the Blackbird Award, an Icelandic crime-writing prize, for her first novel, Dead Sweet. Her debut novel was reviewed well by critics and hit the best-selling lists in the first weeks after publication. KatrÍn has a political background and was a member of Parliament from 2003 until 2016. Before she was elected to Parliament, KatrÍn was an advisor and project manager at a tech company and a senior buyer and CEO in the retail sector, as well as the Managing Director of a student union during her uni years.

Translator – Quentin Bates escaped English suburbia as a teenager, jumping at the chance of a gap year working in Iceland. He is the author of a series of crime novels set in present-day Iceland (Frozen Out, Cold Steal, Chilled to the Bone, Winterlude, Cold Comfort and Thin Ice which have been published worldwide. He has translated all of Ragnar JÓnasson’s Dark Iceland series.

My thoughts: this was really good, but also really awful because when the truth comes out about the victim, Óttar, he turns out to have been one bad man and I didn’t really want the cops to find his killer, because weirdly I felt bad for them – not him!

SigurdÍs is a really good investigator, even if she does go off on her own – she just wants to prove to her bosses that she’s a great cop and not keep getting left out of investigations or given paperwork to shuffle.

I really hope this grows into a series as I was completely hooked, the writing (and Quentin’s brilliant translation work) was so gripping and compelling, even as I realised, oh no, he’s guilty of really gross and horrible things, I wanted to keep reading.

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

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Blog Tour: The Beggar and the Ghost – Vincent Holland-Keen

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At the very moment when Daniel Littlewood decides to end his worthless life, he’s not himself any more.He’s the suave and deadly hero of a Hollywood dream filled with fast cars, beautiful women and jetsetting intrigue.As fantasy and reality begin to collide and a global conspiracy threatens the fate of the world, the only question is,𝙅𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙗𝙖𝙙𝙡𝙮 𝘿𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙚𝙡 𝙇𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙡𝙚𝙬𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙨𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙬𝙨 𝙪𝙥 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚…

The Beggar and The Ghost is Part One in the stunning high concept thriller Eidolan Trilogy. Part Two coming Summer 2024.

Vincent lives in Leeds with his wife and an assortment of plush hippos. As a child he was constantly disappointed that his wardrobe didn’t open into Narnia, but eventually realised writing about excitement and adventure is a lot less stressful than living it. He works for a major metropolitan university doing the kind of IT that doesn’t involve telling people to switch it off and on again.

My thoughts: this was quite interesting, Daniel’s life is falling apart, it can’t get much worse but now he’s having strange blackouts and waking up in someone else’s body, someone else’s life. In which he seems to be a kickass assassin or something. If only he could work out what’s going on.

As he flips back and forth between his two lives – the rubbish old one and the exciting but terrifying alternate one, he’s spiralling and the two lives are slowly scaring him. Especially as his dream one is edging into reality, and reality is bad enough.

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

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Blog Tour: The Waitress – Emily Shiner

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Secrets can be kept. If you’re willing to pay the price.

Anne Marie’s life isn’t easy. She’s a single mom in a dead-end waitressing job with a beater car and bills to pay. Adding to the pressure, her teenage son, Dave, is out of control, and no matter what she does, Anne Marie can’t seem to get through to him.

Then, out of the blue, Dave completely changes. He’s kind, he’s thoughtful, he helps out around the house and looks after his mom. Anne Marie can’t believe her luck.

Until she discovers the reason for her son’s sudden transformation – he’s done something really awful and he’s terrified he’ll be caught. Even worse, someone out there knows about it and they’re blackmailing him.

Anne Marie is desperate to protect her son and knows she has to somehow stop the blackmailer. But how?

As she considers her choices, Anne Marie realizes she may be taking the first steps on a path that will lead her straight to the gates of hell.

How far is she willing to go to save her only child?

Goodreads – Buy Link

Emily Shiner always dreamed of becoming an author but first served her time as a banker and a teacher. After a lifetime of devouring stacks of thrillers, she decided to try her hand at writing them herself. Now she gets to live out her dream of writing novels and sharing her stories with people around the world. She lives in the Appalachian Mountains and loves hiking with her husband, daughter, and their two dogs.

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My thoughts: Anne Marie is trying to keep all the plates spinning – her dead end waitressing job, her struggle to pay the bills, her son Dave, who’s getting into trouble at school. But after a hit and run on their street, Dave changes for the better. Can it last and does he have anything to do with the death of their elderly neighbour?

When he finally opens up to her, it’s with the horrifying news that he did indeed hit their neighbour and somebody saw – now they’re blackmailing him. He needs his mother’s help to get the blackmailer off his back. And from there it all spirals out of control.

Anne Marie no longer has any control of what’s going on, and increasingly her son, who’s not a particularly nice person, is and he doesn’t care who he has to hurt to get his own way.

There are twists and turns along the way, as Anne Marie’s life falls apart, all the things she’s scrabbling to hold onto are escaping her and she’s on her own with no one to turn to. I felt sorry for her, she’s lost in her own life and nothing seems to be improving. Even when she tries to take back control it goes wrong. The final twist was gasp worthy, but no spoilers here.

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

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Blog Tour: Season For Murder – Anna A Armstrong

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Enjoy a visit to the idyllic Cotswolds where the blackberry jam is delicious, the pumpkins are ripe and a killer is plotting death.

Vivian Plover is an unlikely murderer but needs must. If her bumbling husband is ever going to reach the exalted office of Lord-Lieutenant, Vivian, in sensible shoes, twin set and pearls has some murderous work to do. She is beset by challenges, from her godson’s fake fiancée to Dee’s meddling.

With the worthies of Little Warthing falling foul of accidents, can Dee FitzMorris thwart her scheme or will she find herself yet another victim?

Rarely has murder been so amusing.

Indulge in this quirky and humorous cozy crime novel that will keep you entertained from start to finish. Set in modern-day England, amidst the charming British Cotswold countryside, “Season for Murder” delivers a captivating blend of mystery and comedy. With its light-hearted atmosphere and engaging whodunit plot, this British detective series is a must-read for fans of cozy crime murder mysteries.

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My thoughts: this was an entertaining murder mystery, that was only a mystery to the characters. The killer was known to me (and all readers) from the offset. But her reasoning is of course completely bizarre.

Vivian wants her husband to be Lord-Lieutenant, whether he wants to or not, without even knowing if he’s in the running or what the people who decide these things think. She’s decided it has to happen and anyone who gets in her way will simply have to go. Including Dee FitzMorris, purely because Vivian thinks she’s a nuisance. And then there’s godson Tom’s “fiancèe” Emily, she’ll have to go too,as Vivian thinks Tom should marry her choice of bride.

Vivian should see someone about her god complex issues – instead she embarks on blackmail and attempted murder, but isn’t exactly a great killer. She almost offs her husband by accident at one point.

As the strange murder attempts continue, Dee and her family are confused by it all. Who is trying to kill these unconnected village residents, even the police are at a loss.

There’s plenty of other village goings on to enjoy too, fetes, new residents, Dee’s many attempts to drop off jars of jam, Tom and Emily’s blossoming love affair, it’s all very charming. And funny, this book did make me giggle.

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

blog tour, books, reviews

Blog Post: Clytemnestra’s Bind – Susan C. Wilson

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The House of Atreus is spiralling into self-destruction—a woman must find a way to break the family curse. Queen Clytemnestra’s world shatters when Agamemnon, a rival to the throne of Mycenae, storms her palace, destroys her family and claims not only the throne but Clytemnestra herself. Tormented by her loss, she vows to do all she can to protect the children born from her unhappy marriage to Agamemnon. But when her husband casts his ruthless gaze towards the wealthy citadel of Troy, his ambitions threaten to once more destroy the family Clytemnestra loves. From one of Greek mythology’s most reviled characters—a woman who challenged the absolute power of men—comes this fiery tale of power, family rivalry and a mother’s burning love.

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Author Bio:

Susan C Wilson has a degree in journalism from Napier University and a diploma in classical studies from the Open University. She has worked in such environments as the Scottish Courts and the Scottish Parliament. As a writer she loves to explore what makes us human: the eternal motivations, desires and instincts that cross time and place. She also aims to make ancient stories resonate with a modern audience, through historical fiction and contemporary retellings. Her debut novel, The House of Atreus: Clytemnestra’s Bind was longlisted for the Mslexia Novel Competition 2019 and will be published by Neem Tree Press in June 2023. This is the first of an epic trilogy and explores the Greek myth of Queen Clytemnestra from a feminist perspective.

Author Website

Author Twitter: @BronzeAgeWummin
Author Instagram: susancwilsonauthor

My thoughts: Greek tragedy is full of unhappy women and tragic families, the House of Atreus is particularly full of terrible deaths. Atreus murdered his nephews and fed them to their father, who brought an army to tear down Atreus. Agamemnon and Menelaus’ avenged their father’s murder and seized the throne of Mycenae, but then Agamemnon did something terrible in order to garner a fair wind for the attack on Troy – yes that one.

This book follows the story of Agamemnon’s wife, the unhappy Clytemnestra. Her first husband, Tantalus, is murdered by Agamemnon (his cousin) as is her infant son, and she is forced to marry their killer. Menelaus marries her sister Helen, who eloped to Troy with Paris and started off that whole war.

Agamemnon is not kind or loving, not to his wife or their children. He’s a bully and a killer, so it’s no surprise Clytemnestra falls for his foster-brother, with whom she plots his downfall, should he survive Troy.

The play cycle The Orestaia (named for their son Orestes) is where this story is most familiar to me – from studying it at uni many years ago, and of course from The Iliad. So it was interesting to actually get Clytemnestra’s perspective. She’s a character in these earlier works, but like most Greek women in the poems and plays, she’s mostly silent. Things happen to her, she has little agency.

This book gives some of that back to her. It’s a violent, bloody story but that was the world she lived in. One where murder and revenge play out in every day life.

Her love for her children, Iphigenia, Electra and Orestes, as well as her murdered infant son, are what sustain her through her horrible marriage to Agamemnon. It will be interesting to see how the author chooses to tell the next part of this bloody and brutal tale.

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

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Blog Tour: After the Sleepover – Kerry Wilkinson

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“Gone. They’re gone.” Dylan’s wide-eyed mother bites her nails in desperation. “All three kids. They wanted to sleep outside. But I went to check this morning and… the tents are empty. They’re gone.”

Twenty-five years ago: teenage Leah had a sleepover with her three best friends. By morning, the other girls were missing. This small town has been searching for answers ever since. Now it’s happened again…

Three boys decide to camp in a field next to one of their homes. When dawn comes, dew glistens on their empty tents.

Overgrown farmland is searched. Three distraught families are desperate for news. A mother herself now, Leah’s heart breaks as terrible memories flood back…

Leah thought she knew what happened at the sleepover years ago but now another three children are missing. What if she was wrong? And how far will Leah have to go, to finally discover the truth, before it’s too late?

A completely addictive psychological thriller packed with twists, that will have you up all night racing through the pages. After the Sleepover can be enjoyed as a standalone read, and anyone who loves Shari Lapena, Lisa Jewell, or The Perfect Marriage won’t be able to put it down.

Amazon

Kerry Wilkinson is from the English county of Somerset but has spent far too long living in the north. It’s there that he’s picked up possibly made-up regional words like ‘barm’ and ‘ginnel’. He pretends to know what they mean.

He’s also been busy since turning thirty: his Jessica Daniel crime series has sold more than a million copies in the UK; he has written a fantasy-adventure trilogy for young adults; a second crime series featuring private investigator Andrew Hunter and the standalone thriller, Down Among The Dead Men.

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My thoughts: Leah is only finally coming to terms with the secrets she learnt about her own friends’ disappearance when the mother of a teenage boy the same age as her son asks for her help. She was at school with Leah and now she’s living every mother’s nightmare – her son and his friends have disappeared…or have they?

Leah is uncomfortable supporting Jennifer, a woman she barely knows, but does it anyway, she’s a good person and feels sorry for her.

However when Jennifer’s son reappears, minus his friends, with a weird story about being kidnapped by a man who threatened to kill them “like those girls”, with what Leah knows, something isn’t quite right.

Turning to her dad, despite him being the last person alive she would normally contact, Leah does some digging. And actual bones are found on Jennifer’s land too. Something very strange is going on.

Shocking, twisting and full of gasp out loud moments, this is a great follow up to The Night of the Sleepover although you don’t have to have read it to enjoy this. Leah is a wonderful protagonist, willing to help people but not gullible or naive enough to fall for everything people say. Putting her amateur detective skills to work preventing a sort of copycat from getting away with it pushes her to reconsider how she’s seen by the people in her home town.

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

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Blog Tour: Make Her Pay – Miranda Rijks

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Leonie has the perfect life. Someone wants to take it away.

Leonie is living her best life. Still in her twenties, she’s beautiful, successful and has just met Markus, the man of her dreams.

But Leonie has a secret. Ten years ago, she was involved in an accident in which another driver died. Leonie shouldn’t have been behind the wheel that night – no license, no insurance – so she fled the scene. And ever since, she’s been struggling to deal with the terrible guilt.

Now, as her wedding to Markus draws near, it seems someone is out to get her. It’s little things at first – botched work appointments, a cancelled bridal dress – but it soon escalates into a terrifying campaign which threatens her business, her family and even her life.

Leonie, caught up in a relentless nightmare, has no idea why anyone would set out to destroy her. Until she realizes there’s a link to the accident that happened all those years ago.

Someone knows what she did. Someone is determined to make her pay.

Goodreads – Buy Link

Miranda Rijks is a writer of psychological thrillers and suspense novels. She has an eclectic background ranging from law to running a garden centre. 

She’s been writing all of her life and has a Masters in writing. A couple of years ago she decided to ditch the business plans and press releases and now she’s living the dream, writing suspense novels full time. 

She lives in Sussex, England with her Dutch husband, musician daughter and black Labrador.

This is her twentieth psychological thriller with Inkubator Books.

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My thoughts: this was twisting, clever and dark thriller about revenge, guilt and the terrible ways people betray one another.

Leonie was involved in a terrible car accident as a teenager, and her parents covered it up. She thinks there were no survivors and has had to live with that guilt – and her dad’s controlling ways, ever since.

But someone wants to destroy her life, someone wants to make her suffer and they’re closer than she thinks.

After marrying the man of her dreams – Markus, who turns out to not exactly be who he said he was. She thinks life is set, until he dies. Then things start to unravel and she ends up fighting for her life, right back where it all started years ago.

Can Leonie survive her worst nightmare, and can she finally break free from her parents and their control over her life?

Right up until the very end the plot takes sudden turns and throws new curveballs, leaving you wondering how it can get worse. Gripping and entertaining stuff.

Click on the image for more on the tour

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

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Blog Tour: Mourned by Men – Katie Frendreis

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We’re celebrating the release of Mourned by Men this week, and if you love fantasy mixed with Greek mythology, you are going to want to read it!

Mourned by Men 1800x2700

Mourned by Men

Publication Date: December 12, 2023

Genre: Historical Fantasy/ Greek Mythology

Her mother told them they were daughters of a god. But can the children of gods hurt? Can they die and fail like any other mortal?

Penthesilea knew her life was different. Growing up on the lush island of the Amazons, she and her sister lived on the cusp of two worlds—the warlike one of men and the soft and mothering one of women. But Amazonian girls learn to fight, to defend their home, to battle their enemies. They are neither soft nor cold, neither fully female nor male in their traditions. However, the outside world breaks their peace, and Pen finds her sister drawn to the men outside in a way she herself cannot understand. When tragedy befalls the sisters, Pen and her warrior women journey to Troy, the site of the legendary war between friend and foe, where the Amazon queen must decide between tradition and a new sort of life that only she can define.

The Trojan War made famous Hector, Achilles, and Aeneas, but there are also Penthesilea and her Amazons and a host of legendary characters, their stories stripped of magic and deus ex machina, bared to the world as simple men and women, struggling against the often-deadly fates foretold in myth.

Available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble

About the Author

katie hshot

Katie Frendreis grew up in Chicago, reading mythology and illustrating her own fantastical adventures. This is her first published novel. She earned her BA in Classical Civilization from Loyola University and has worked in such diverse places as museums, dance studios, and funeral homes. Collecting hobbies like some people collect stamps, she also draws, paints, teaches tap dancing, and trains as an aerialist. She currently lives just outside Chicago with her husband, an adorable fruit bat/dog, a massive collection of books, and a rather large Lego community in her basement.

Katie Frendreis

My thoughts: Penthisilea (her name means “mourned by men”) is the queen of the Amazons at the time of the Trojan War, and according to Homer, dies on the battlefield. Interestingly her warrior women fight for Troy, honouring a long connection between King Priam and her mother.

Greek mythology is littered with terrible men, and this story has several – Paris spoilt son of Troy who quite frankly should know better than to steal the wife of a belligerent Greek king – Menelaus (another terrible man), then there’s Heracles (wife killer, child killer, reason a lot of people end up dead), Theseus (general shit) who marries her sister Hippolyta, has a son with her (Hippolytus) and then decides he wants a different wife. Hippolyta’s terrible death, defending him, doesn’t stop him from being a terrible person either.

Penthisilea only really likes Priam, his son Hector and Hector’s killer, her enemy the Greek hero Achilles, who treats her with respect. Otherwise she’s not keen on men. Can’t really blame her.

This is a really interesting retelling of the life of another incredible character from Greek mythology to file alongside those of Circe, Penelope, Medea and Ariadne (another of Theseus’ victims).

Book Tour Schedule

December 11th

http://rrbooktours.com Landing Page

https://www.instagram.com/emerald.moon.reads/ – Review

https://justmeandmyblogreviews.blogspot.com/ – Review

https://www.instagram.com/fathomsamidstthelines/ – Review

https://www.instagram.com/bookgrlobsessed/ – Review

https://www.ladyhawkeye.com/ – Feature

December 12th

https://www.instagram.com/joyreadingbooks/ – Review

https://instagram.com/redbookreview – Review

https://www.instagram.com/robin.bookish.escape/ – Review

https://www.instagram.com/tkeyahreads?igshid=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA%3D%3D – Review

December 13th

https://www.instagram.com/_books.in.wonderland_/ – Review

https://www.instagram.com/fionaisreading/ – Review

https://www.instagram.com/bookwyrmlayne/ – Review

https://www.instagram.com/bookmarkedbymaddie/ – Review

https://www.instagram.com/bookreviewsbytaylor/ – Review

http://www.ismellsheep.com/ – Feature

December 14th

https://www.instagram.com/calhoun.crew/ – Review

https://www.instagram.com/jlreadstoperpetuity – Review

http://ramblingmads.com – Review

https://www.instagram.com/bookloversamantha?igshid=NzZlODBkYWE4Ng%3D%3D – Review

https://www.instagram.com/cupcakes_books – Review

https://www.instagram.com/authormariereed/ – Feature

December 15th

https://www.instagram.com/countrymamaswithkids – Review

https://www.instagram.com/emmabeeslibrary/ – Review

https://www.instagram.com/excavating.my.tbr/ – Review

https://www.instagram.com/thebookishbrunette20?igshid=MTNiYzNiMzkwZA%3D%3D – Review

https://www.instagram.com/alibraryforfairies/ – Review

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

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Blog Tour: Between the Lies – Louise Tickle

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When it comes to families, is anyone a reliable witness?

Cherry Magraw can never forget the date her mother and brother were killed – the night of her ninth birthday. When her father was jailed for their murders, she lost everyone she loved.

Twenty years later, Cherry is a freelance journalist investigating domestic abuse and the secret world of the family courts, when she gets a letter from her father – still in prison for the killings – which contains a startling request.

From that point on, her past becomes entangled with her work, dismantling everything Cherry thought she knew about her family tragedy and plunging her into a dangerous of game of cat and mouse. Will her history cloud her judgement about another desperate family? And how far will she go to save someone else’s children?

If you buy a copy direct from the publisher, there’s a free shipping offer with code XMASFREE. The first chapter is also available on the Bath Publishing website to give you a taste of the book.

My thoughts: based on her experience as a journalist covering family court, Louise Tickle has written a complex and thought provoking book.

Cherry is now a journalist with an interest in domestic violence cases and family court, but as a child she was present when her father killed her mother and younger brother after a night of terror. He also scarred her for life. He is in prison but Cherry has gaps in her memory of that night and he might be the only person who can help her fill them.

She has also been drawn into the fraught custody case of Kathie and Ed. She claims he’s a master manipulator, using threats, physical violence and coercive control to stop her from escaping him with their two young children. He says she’s a liar.

With an unsympathetic judge who doesn’t seem to really care, Kathie grows more and more frantic, and despite promising to stay neutral Cherry’s own experiences colour her reactions and after a frightening moment with Ed, she’s more concerned than ever. But there’s no evidence that he’s dangerous.

Domestic cases are always very complicated, a lot of what happens is in the home with no witnesses, except maybe the children, and it can be difficult to demonstrate what has been going on.

There are lots of shocking moments and heartstopping twists as the novel builds towards its ending – played out against the North Wales coastline where Cherry grew up in the care of her loving aunt and uncle.

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