Tag: crime fiction

A freak accident. An impossible choice. But what was…

THE FIRST LIE

When Paul Reeve comes home to find his wife in the bathroom, bloodied and shaking, his survival instinct kicks in.

Alice never meant to kill the intruder. She was at home, alone, and terrified. She doesn’t deserve to be blamed for it. Covering up the murder is their only option.

But the crime eats away at the couple and soon they can’t trust anyone – even one another…

My thoughts:This was a lot more twisted and complicated than it first appeared. As the secrets and lies stack up and the mental states of both Paul and Alice appear to deteriorate things become more complex and a conspiracy comes to light.*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

She’ll care for you. Until you’re dead.

Maureen might be getting on in years but she’s fiercely independent and smart as a whip.

But when she falls and injures her ankle, her daughter Alva is convinced Maureen can no longer take care of herself and is determined to get her some help – which comes in the shape of local caregiver, Dolores.

Maureen tries to say no, she’s fine on her own, but it’s not so easy to get rid of Dolores. She seems to be everywhere, poking her nose into every corner of Maureen’s life, implying to Alva that her mother is getting senile and will soon need constant care.

Maureen feels as if she’s under siege 24/7. And she knows in her heart that there’s something not right about Dolores… But no one will listen.

Then one of Dolores’s other charges dies in mysterious circumstances and Maureen realises she may be fighting for a lot more than her independence.

Because once Dolores has you in her care, death may seem like a sweet release.

Amazon UK Amazon US

Jackie Morrissey lives in County Dublin and worked for many years in adult education. Her job took her into colleges and prisons all around Ireland, and introduced her to a range of interesting people. She loved the buzz of teaching, but came to hate the tyranny of correcting assignments. She has written throughout her adult life and has had many short stories published, one of which won the Molly Keane Short Story award. She has also been a regular contributor of short pieces for the Irish radio program Sunday Miscellany. About four years ago, she took the decision to write full time. The psychological thriller Before I Die is her first published novel.

My thoughts:

This is something I genuinely worry about – the carer who’s out for whatever they can get. As someone with mental health issues, married to a disabled person I fear being left, like the elderly victims in this book, with someone who presents a different face to the outside world.

That being said, most people in the caring professions are nice and would never turn into Dolores.

I liked that the heroine is an older woman – Maureen is in the Miss Marple mold of a sleuth who many overlook due to her age.

There were some genuinely chilling moments and a satisfying denouement, a very impressive debut novel all round.

*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 beautiful young social-media star goes missing.

But who took her?

When controversial internet celebrity Violet Armstrong vanishes in the middle of a scorching Peak District summer, the case sparks a media frenzy.

The clock is ticking for DI Meg Dalton and her team to find Violet before online threats explode into real-life violence. And then the blood and hair of a young woman are found in an empty pig trough at the local abattoir…

The more Meg finds out about this unnerving case, the more she becomes convinced that something very, very bad has happened to Violet. With temperatures rising and the press demanding answers, the case is about to take a terrifying turn…

My thoughts:

One of the grimmest things I’ve seen on TV was a drama where human remains were found in a pig pen. Pigs will eat literally anything, including each other.

Which is why I was a bit perturbed by this starting at a pig farm – disposal by pig being very efficient.

Roz Watkins is a cracking writer and this was a gripping read, her characters are believable and realistic, the Peak District a backdrop to twists and turns taking in animal rights campaigners, social media and farmers.

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

As the Hughes family celebrate bonfire night, a terrible accident leaves the garden shed in flames – and father and grandfather Thomas trapped inside.
Tragic though it is, Thomas’s death passes without suspicion – until a local journalist makes accusations of a police cover-up in the press. WPC Trudy Loveday is sent to investigate, and asks coroner Clement Ryder to help.
But the more questions the two ask the less clear the case seems. There’s no evidence of foul play, and yet the dead man’s family are obviously hiding something. Then there are Thomas’s dubious business practices – was someone out for revenge?
All Trudy and Clement know for sure is that everyone is lying – and that they must find the truth…

My thoughts:

Families are strange things – a many headed beast made of people who may not like each other but have a connection regardless.

This family is full of secrets, hatred and anger. Patriarch Thomas is a cruel man and his death isn’t exactly mourned.

The pairing of Loveday and Clement is an interesting one, the young PC and older coroner make a unique team, combining their skills and knowledge.

I enjoyed this book, in a way it reminded me of a Golden Age locked room mystery – there was only a few suspects and witnesses, it took place in one garden. A clever concept for a police procedural style novel.

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

What could be so bad that a six-year-old stops talking?

Domestic violence isn’t only perpetrated by men. Ask Paul Jackson who is on remand, accused of stabbing his wife, Michelle. As he reveals his reality behind their troubled marriage, it seems that only his six-year-old knows what really happened. But she’s trapped in her own world of silence.

Amazon

Maria Frankland’s life began at 40 when she escaped an unhappy marriage and began making a living from her own writing and becoming a teacher of creative writing.
The rich tapestry of life with all its turbulent times has enabled her to pour experience, angst and lessons learned into the writing of her novels and poetry.
She recognises that the darkest places can exist within family relationships and this is reflected in the domestic thrillers she writes.
She is a ‘born ‘n’ bred’ Yorkshirewoman, a mother of two and has recently found her own ‘happy ever after’ after marrying again.
Still in her forties, she is now going to dedicate the rest of her working life to writing books and inspiring other writers to also achieve their dreams too!

Website Twitter

My thoughts:

Domestic violence is often portrayed as only happening to women, but increasingly men are coming forward as victims too. When I worked at a charity that supported victims of crime, there was an increasing awareness of this fact and more organisations are being established to support these men.

However women are more likely to be victims and this fact makes proving them as perpetrators harder. Partly because men are often physically larger and stronger and also we don’t believe they can be victims – we live in a society that insists that men be strong and in charge.

This then is a timely story of a complicated and troubled marriage, with a jealous and domineering wife and a husband who tries to keep things together.

When Michelle dies of a suspicious stab wound and Paul is charged with her murder, the secrets in their marriage come to light. Their daughter, Emily, is six and so traumatised by witnessing the event that she stops speaking – a condition called selective mutism, often developed by children in stressful situations (I once worked with a little girl who had this and it is very sad).

The bulk of the plot takes place in the courtroom where Paul faces a murder charge. Revealing the past through witness statements and evidence is an interesting device, offering some insight into the way legal arguments are set forward.

There’s a very unexpected twist at the end too (no spoilers).

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

Who knew her secret? And what happened that night?

‘I loved it, those twists!’ B A Paris, Sunday Times No.1 bestselling author of Behind Closed Doors and The Dilemma

‘A cracking page-turner’ Cara Hunter, Sunday Times bestselling author of All the Rage

On the hottest day of the year, Caroline Harvey is found dead in Suffolk. Her body is left draped over a cot – but the baby she was looking after is missing.

Hundreds of miles away, Siobhan Dillon is on a luxurious family holiday in France when her husband, Callum, is arrested by French police on suspicion of murder.

As Siobhan’s perfect family is torn apart by the media in the nation’s frantic search for the missing baby, she desperately tries to piece together how Callum knew Caroline.

What happened that night? Was Caroline as innocent as she seemed – or was she hiding a secret of her own?

My thoughts:

So I totally got the guilty party wrong when reading this and playing guess the murderer, the twists at the end were very clever, and the title suggests the babysitter as the villain not the victim so I was wrong footed from the start, which shows just how good Phoebe Morgan is at what she does.

This was a cracking read, lots of red herrings and turns, really, really good stuff. I’m not sure what more I can say really!

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