Tag: crime fiction

Someone is watching…. No one is safe

The once tranquil woods in a picturesque part of Lenchester have become the bloody stage to a series of ritualistic murders. With no suspects, Detective Chief Inspector Whitney Walker is once again forced to call on the services of forensic psychologist Dr Georgina Cavendish.
But this murderer isn’t like any they’ve faced before. The murders are highly elaborate, but different in their own way, and with the clock ticking, they need to get inside the killer’s head before it’s too late.
For fans of Rachel Abbott, Angela Marsons and L J Ross, Ritual Demise is the seventh book in the Cavendish & Walker crime fiction series.

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Sally Rigby was born in Northampton, in the UK. She has always had the travel bug, and after living in both Manchester and London, eventually moved overseas. From 2001 she has lived with her family in New Zealand (apart from five years in Australia), which she considers to be the most beautiful place in the world. After writing young adult fiction for many years, under a pen name, Sally decided to move into crime fiction. Her Cavendish & Walker series brings together two headstrong, and very different, women – DCI Whitney Walker, and forensic psychologist Dr Georgina Cavendish. Sally has a background in education, and has always loved crime fiction books, films and TV programmes. She has a particular fascination with the psychology of serial killers.

Check out her website for a FREE prequel story.

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My thoughts:

I really enjoy the Cavendish & Walker books so it was a pleasure to read this, the seventh novel, which find DCI Walker and Dr Cavendish once again hunting for a serial killer in Lenchester.

I love the fact that at least one character always comments on how a small British city seems to have so many serial killers, something few crime series’ ever acknowledge.

The protagonists feel like old friends after so many cases solved together, and don’t grate on each other as they did way back in book one, having settled into a comfortable working style.

My favourite character however, remains the prickly pathologist, Claire, who doesn’t like to be rushed and doesn’t have time for the various theories the others proffer.

An enjoyable, well written and very clever thiller, I think this might be the best one yet.

*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 pretty market town of Sterndale is a close-knit community where everyone thinks they know everyone else.

But at a lavish summer wedding a local celebrity is discovered slumped in the gardens, the victim of a violent assault that leads to a murder investigation.

As the police search for answers, suspicion and paranoia build – and the lives of the locals are turned upside down.

Secrets that lurk beneath the pristine façade of Sterndale come to light as detectives close in on the truth…

A gripping and moving thriller with the emotional drama of series like BROADCHURCH and LIAR this is the perfect read for fans of Cara Hunter, Heidi Perks and Claire Douglas.

My thoughts:

This had lots of red herrings and potential suspects lined up, easily misleading the reader (in this case me) down paths that went nowhere.

A nice, knotty crime novel that had a pleasing ending implying that people can change and make amends for past misdeeds.

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

LUCY IS MISSING
Her husband Scott claims to have no idea where she is. But his behaviour suggests otherwise, and rumours begin to swirl about the seemingly perfect couple…

A BODY IS FOUND
DS Kate Munro is already investigating another murder, when she learns that it was Lucy who first reported the body of the victim floating in a lake.

AND TIME IS RUNNING OUT
But with Lucy still missing and both investigations leading Kate into dangerous waters, she must quickly piece together the link between the two crimes. Before it’s too late…

My thoughts:

This was a clever thriller, tying into conspiracy theories, preppers, intense paranoia and the good old the-husband-probably-did-it of crime writing.

But just when you think you know what happened, another body pops up, and off DS Munro and team go to try and find another link, another killer.

Suitably twisting and with several nicely placed red herrings, this was an enjoyable read.

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

Vintage Crimes will be a CWA anthology with a difference, celebrating members’ work over the years.

The book will gather stories from the mid1950s until the twenty-first century by great names of the past, great names of the present together with a few hidden treasures by less familiar writers.

The first CWA anthology, Butcher’s Dozen, appeared in 1956, and was co-edited by Julian Symons, Michael Gilbert, and Josephine Bell. The anthology has been edited by Martin Edwards since 1996, and has yielded many awardwinning and nominated stories in the UK and overseas.

This new edition includes an array of incredible and award-winning authors: Robert Barnard, Simon Brett, Liza Cody, Mat Coward, John Dickson Robert Barnard, Simon Brett, Liza Cody, Mat Coward, John Dickson Carr, Marjorie Eccles, Martin Edwards, Kate Ellis, Anthea Fraser, Carr, Marjorie Eccles, Martin Edwards, Kate Ellis, Anthea Fraser, Celia Fremlin, Frances Fyfield, Michael Gilbert, Paula Gosling, Celia Fremlin, Frances Fyfield, Michael Gilbert, Paula Gosling, Lesley Grant-Adamson, HRF Keating, Bill Knox, Peter Lovesey, Mick Lesley Grant-Adamson, HRF Keating, Bill Knox, Peter Lovesey, Mick Herron, Michael Z. Lewin, Susan Moody, Julian Symons Herron, Michael Z. Lewin, Susan Moody, Julian Symons and Andrew Taylor Taylor.

Martin Edwards (Editor) is the author of eighteen novels, including the Lake District Mysteries, and the Harry Devlin series. His ground-breaking genre study The Golden Age of Murder has won the Edgar, Agatha, and H.R.F. Keating awards.

He has edited twenty eight crime anthologies, has won the CWA Short Story Dagger and the CWA Margery A lingham Prize, and is series consultant for the British Library’s Crime Classics. In 2015, he was elected eighth President of the Detection Club, an office previously held by G.K. Chesterton, Agatha Christie, and Dorothy L. Sayers.

The CWA CWA (Crime Writers’ Association) was founded in 1953 by John Creasey, and organises the prestigious CWA Dagger Awards which celebrate the best in crime writing. The CWA is a pro-active, thriving and ever-expanding community of writers based in the UK but with a reach that extends worldwide.

My thoughts:

This was an excellent collection of crime stories spanning the 1950s until close to the present day.

Short stories are often where crime writers’ talents shine, so many of crime fiction’s greats wrote short stories, which pack the crime, the solving and the solution in neat, clever parcels. Perfect for dipping in and out of.

And the joy of all that genius is contained in the this volume. The stories are clever, cunning and shrewd, much like the detectives solving them.

I’ve read several of the authors included, and it’s interesting to see the differences and similarities between their short stories and longform work. The stories included are all very enjoyable and easily read as standalone works.

The CWA does a lot of work to not only promote living writers but ensure that older stories are not lost and can be enjoyed by readers long after they were first published.

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

A family’s past pursues them like a shadow in this riveting and emotional novel of psychological suspense by the Amazon Charts bestselling author of All the Little Children.

American journalist Rose Kynaston has just relocated to the childhood home of her husband, Dylan, in the English village of his youth. There’s a lot for Rose to get used to in Hurtwood. Like the family’s crumbling mansion, inhabited by Dylan’s reclusive mother, and the treacherous hill it sits upon, a place of both sinister folklore and present dangers.

Then there are the unwelcoming villagers, who only whisper the name Kynaston—like some dreadful secret, a curse. Everyone knows what happened at Hurtwood House twenty years ago. Everyone except Rose. And now that Dylan is back, so are rumors about his past.

When an archaeological dig unearths human remains on the hill, local police sergeant Ellie Trevelyan vows to solve a cold case that has cast a chill over Hurtwood for decades.

As Ellie works to separate rumor from fact, Rose must fight to clear the name of the man she loves. But how can Rose keep her family safe if she is the last to know the truth?

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After spending a decade as a broadcast journalist for the BBC, Jo Furniss gave up the glamour of night shifts to become a freelance writer and serial expatriate. Originally from the United Kingdom, she spent seven years in Singapore and also lived in Switzerland and Cameroon.

As a journalist, Jo worked for numerous online outlets and magazines, including Monocle and the Economist. She has edited books for a Nobel laureate and the palace of the Sultan of Brunei. She has a Distinction in MA Professional Writing from Falmouth University.
Jo’s debut novel, All the Little Children, was an Amazon Charts bestseller.
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My thoughts:

This was a really interesting and enjoyable read, dealing with memory, guilt and rumour.

Rose uncovers a web of intrigue surrounding a suspicious death at her in-laws’ home and terrible rumours of child abuse. Determined to uncover the truth and free her family from these past tragedies she applies her journalistic skills to uncovering the truth.

This was really gripping, full of red herrings and muddled recollections – having two of the characters suffering from dementia and not being able to fully differentiate the past and the present means both Rose and sergeant Ellie Trevelyan miss vital clues and have to work harder to solve the series of deaths uncovered.

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

Jackson Birkman has the perfect life: the lead role on the popular detective show “Dispatching David,” millions of adoring fans, celebrity status, and a beautiful girlfriend. After five seasons, “Dispatching David” has just been cancelled. With the final episode quickly approaching, Jackson is worried about more than just his future acting career. His once massive fortune is dwindling and his girlfriend Clara is pressuring him to propose.

When Jackson unexpectedly dies on the set of the TV show during filming, everyone speculates whether it was suicide or murder. Why would Jackson commit suicide? If it was a setup, who would want Jackson to die? And most importantly, what was the motive of the murderer? As the investigation continues, Officer Wilson inches closer to the truth, uncovering Jackson’s secrets. She begins to think no one really knew Jackson at all, but is determined to solve the case, no matter the cost.

As the investigation continues, Officer Wilson inches closer to the truth, uncovering Jackson’s secrets. She begins to think no one really knew Jackson at all, but is determined to solve the case, no matter the cost.

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Nichole Heydenburg earned her Bachelor’s Degree in English with an emphasis in writing and a minor in theatre from Adrian College in 2014. Her one act play “The Hidden Story” won a playwriting contest and was performed at her alma mater in 2015. She also had several poems published in “The Oxcart” literary magazine. Nichole has been working full-time as the Content Manager for a start-up company for 3 years. When she isn’t writing, Nichole enjoys going on adventures with her husband, reading, playing board games, and the occasional mimosa. “The Long Shadow on the Stage” is her first novel. She currently resides near Asheville, NC with her husband, Zed.

To stay up to date on news about her second novel, as well as read writing and self-publishing tips, subscribe to her monthly newsletter on her website.

My thoughts:

A twisted tale of love, friendship and fame. Edgar and Jackson have been friends all their lives, Jackson and Clara are engaged.

Jackson has secrets, could those secrets be what gets him killed?

Twisted and dark, this story weaves between narrators, showing you glimpses of the killer as well as the victim, his friends and the officer determined to solve the case.

The ending leaves enough hanging that the brave Officer Wilson could easily be on the case and tracking the killer into a second book. *I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour but all opinions remain my own.