Category: reviews

From the author of 46% Better Than Dave, which was shortlisted for the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize for Comic Fiction 2020, comes Murder All Inclusive.

When somebody starts murdering authors during a writers’ retreat, can miserable, second-rate novelist Freddie Winters catch the killer before it’s too late?

Curmudgeonly, mediocre crime novelist Freddie Winters unexpectedly finds himself invited to a mysterious writer’s retreat in a fancy hotel in Spain. While he makes the most of the free food and drink – and begrudgingly gives talks and teaches classes – the hotel is thrown into chaos as someone starts murdering the other authors and industry figures. Finding himself the prime suspect, Freddie decides to use his crime-writing skills to investigate for real, so he can clear his name and find out what’s really going on.

Before long the other writers are trying to get in on the action, keen to be the one who solves the case. Everybody wonders why the killer is leaving scrawled-in copies of an old murder mystery at the scene of each killing. Most concerned are the author of that book – legendary crime writer Edward Cross – and his duplicitous agent, who also happen to be at the event, and clearly have a dark secret they’re desperate to protect.

Alastair Puddick has written three novels: The Unexpected Vacation of George Thring, Killing Dylan and 46% Better Than Dave, which was shortlisted for the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize 2020.

Alastair has spent the past 20 years writing for a variety of magazines, websites and corporate clients. His work has spanned many different paths, from jetting off to exciting cities around the world to writing about dating advice, data centres, technology and the exciting world of flooring. He also once wrote an agony advice column posing as Elvis Presley’s ghost.

My thoughts: I’ve been to a few crime writer festivals (Hi Capital Crime!) but thankfully no one was murdered at them. Or at any book events I’ve been to. But this one, set at a sunny Spanish resort, hides a killer with a real grudge against some of the guests.

It’s also very, very funny. Despite the presence of so many crime writers, they’re all a bit clueless as to who it might be and why. You’d think after creating so many terrible murders and brilliant detectives, they might be a bit more savvy, but maybe it’s all the sun and free booze boiling their brains!

Luckily grumpy, greedy, somewhat struggling author Freddie Winters has a bit more of an idea and is hot on the case. Although the local police would rather he wasn’t. Besides, he’s a suspect – don’t leave the hotel is the warning.

As the body count rises and the event teeters on the edge of collapsing into chaos, Freddie has been putting the pieces together while stuffing his face – it is all you can eat after all.

Highly enjoyable, fun, entertaining stuff and hopefully it won’t encourage anyone to carry out a real life copycat situation at the next crime writers event!

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

The twisting twenty-fifth instalment of Lesley Cookman’s much-loved Libby Sarjeant series.

Libby Sarjeant is deep into rehearsals for the annual pantomime when a body is found in a doorway two weeks before Christmas – and Libby and her friend Fran are called into action once again, when
their investigation leads them to a local brewery and the sale of many of its pubs.
With the help of a team of local publicans, can Libby and Fran unravel the case before it’s too late?
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Lesley started writing almost as soon as she could read, and filled many Woolworth’s exercise books with pony stories until she was old enough to go out with boys. Since she’s been grown up, following a varied career as a model, air stewardess and disc jockey, she’s written short fiction and features for a variety of magazines, achieved an MA in Creative Writing from the University of Wales, taught writing for both Kent Adult Education and the WEA and edited the first Sexy Shorts collection of short stories, in aid of the Breast Cancer Campaign. Lesley is a member of the Society of Authors and the Crime Writers’ Association.
Lesley has also written pantomimes performed all over Britain, and published a book on how to do it!
Learn more about Lesley by visiting her blog.
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My thoughts: this was a lot of fun, as this series always is, full of laughs, despite being a murder investigation (the bit where Libby and Fran comment on the absurdity of calling crime novels “cosy” made me laugh).

Despite it being panto season, and Libby playing the Fairy Godmother, she still finds time to help Ian and the local police out asking questions about the deceased and his family. The family owned a brewery and a number of pubs and other property, but have been divesting themselves of a lot of it recently. Something iffy seems to have been going on, did Dickie try to stop it and lose his life or was there something else?

Libby has a good knack in getting people to open up and talk, even when they’re a bit suspicious, they trust her reputation and her various links to the local community over the police.

I had a great time reading this book, and I can’t wait till next time.

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

It is 5:30 am on Clio’s forty-fifth birthday and her hated ex is lying dead on her doorstep. Even worse, this is no accident. Someone’s killed him…
When single mum Clio’s ex Gary turns up dead on the doorstep of her caravan – the one she’s been forced to live in ever since he stole every penny she had – there’s only one suspect. Her.
What’s more, she doesn’t remember much about the night he was killed – not just because of the forgetfulness that’s been plaguing her along with the hot flushes – but because she definitely had one too many cocktails with her two best friends Amber and Jeanie.
Clio does remember them talking about how much they all hated him though. And, in the frame for murder, she has to ask herself – if she didn’t kill Gary, who did? One of his many enemies? Or someone a little closer to home? And can she and her friends find the real killer before it’s too late?
Unputdownable mystery set on the English coast – perfect for fans of The Thursday Murder Club, Bad Sisters, and How to Kill Your Family.
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Katie Marsh wrote five bestselling, uplifting women’s fiction novels before turning to cosy crime for Boldwood. Previously published by Hodder, the first in her new crime series How Not To Murder Your Ex, following the fortunes of the Bad Girls Detective Agency, will be published in December 2023.

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My thoughts: Clio didn’t kill her awful ex-husband but she certainly has a lot of reasons why she might. But so do quite a few other people, it turns out. Gary is a pretty terrible person and quite frankly it’s impossible to feel sorry for him.

Although Clio does end up in custody at one point, thankfully her besties – Amber, a former police detective with something to prove, and Joanie – a sleep deprived mother on twins currently on mat leave, are on hand to solve the case and stop Clio taking the blame for something she didn’t do.

Funny, entertaining, with a cast of very relatable and rather brilliant protagonists, this was a lot of fun and a good start to a new crime series.

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