Tag: crime fiction

Freya and Carole are back on an antique hunting adventure in the sequel to the international bestseller, The Antique Hunter’s Guide to Murder.

When a painting vanishes from a maritime museum, and a dead body is found nearby, the newly established Lockwood Antique Hunter’s Agency, Freya Lockwood and her aunt Carole, are called to investigate. Following a lead that takes them aboard a glamorous antiques cruise sailing toward the Red Sea in Jordan, they quickly discover that the ship‘s art gallery is filled with stolen antiquities.

Each antique is also listed in Freya’s late mentor’s journals that detail unsolved cases. In chasing a murderer with a stolen painting, they may have found something more sinister than they could’ve imagined . . .

Their hunt soon turns deadly when they learn the enigmatic and dangerous art trafficker named The Collector could be on board. But on a ship full of antiques enthusiasts – plus some unexpected familiar faces – will Freya and Carole be able to discover The Collector’s identity and stop his murderous plans before the ship docks? Or will the killer strike again?

Cara Miller started working life in publishing as an editorial assistant for her mother, Judith Miller, on the Miller’s Antique Price Guide to Europe before she went into hospitality and events. After she had children, she decided to follow her long-held dream of becoming an author and began writing full-time. She was an Undiscovered Voices winner in 2022 and was showcased in the UV 2022 anthology. She lives in a medieval cottage in Suffolk with her family.

This book was written in consultation with international antiques expert Judith Miller (1951–2023), a regular specialist on the BBC’s Antiques Roadshow. Judith was also the co-founder of the bestselling annual Miller’s Antiques Price Guide, which started in 1979. She went on to write more than 120 books on antiques and interiors.

My thoughts: Freya and Carole are settling into their new lives in Arthur’s antique business and looking for their next case, which comes in the form of a stolen painting at a maritime museum. There’s also been a murder, but the police are dealing with that, so they can focus on the painting.

It’s listed in one of Arthur’s journals, and the trail leads them to a cruise down the Nile to Jordan, where several experts are due to give talks on antiques and a range of items is on display. Stolen items, including the painting.

Chasing it will lead them into danger, as there’s plenty of people on board with their own motives, interests in the antiquities and possibly even the mysterious Collector. Friendly FBI agent Phil also happens to be on board, along with furious thief Bella.

Freya has tech support in the form of new employee Sky, but is she who she claims to be, or is she somehow connected to the Collector?

Carole is even more flamboyant than ever in kaftans and neon, while Freya is having to overcome her natural shyness and give talks in Arthur’s stead, as well as risk her life to expose the criminals in their midst and attempt to get the painting back for the museum, even if it isn’t exactly authentic.

Arthur had a lot of secrets, and was probably double crossing some very dangerous people, some of which Freya encounters on this adventure  – not that staying home is much safer, thank goodness for the villagers.

Great fun, funny and witty. I’m already looking forward to the next book, when they head off to Scotland following the next of Arthur’s journals and his list of stolen treasures.

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

Lesley Hamilton is starting a new life in Florence when she discovers a dead
neighbour. An inexplicable mistake leads her to Paolo Bianchi, an individual
unaffected by usual human emotions. His involvement in crime leaves him living in
the shadowy fringes of society where decisions are made for him. When he is left to his own devices, his actions lead to tragic consequences, not just for himself but also for all those lives he touches.

As Paolo’s life unravels, Gianfranco Valdi and his Caribinieri team must unpick the
threads that lead to Paolo and his connection with organised crime.

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Laura Jane Smith began writing seriously in 2019 when she took early retirement
after a 34-year career in education. She lives in Perthshire in Scotland, where she
enjoys gardening, walking, theatre and going to the cinema, as well as cycling and
cross-stitching.
Her interest in writing came not just from her own reading but also from the
process of teaching others about reading, writing and understanding the written word.
The ideas for her first novel came from her experiences in education and
travelling in Europe, as well as her enjoyment of a well-told psychological thriller.
She focuses on human behaviour and individual motivation when faced with life-changing events and difficult decisions.
Relationships are at the heart of the novels. The decisions made by the characters and the relationships they develop drive the plot. The inspiration for this first novel, Listen to Mother, came initially from a trip to Florence in 2011. However, the main inspiration was a desire for others to experience the world from the viewpoint of someone with highfunctioning autism whose struggles with the reality of life result in his joining a world in the shadows

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My thoughts: This was a really interesting way of writing a crime novel, setting it both before and after the central crime, giving the perpetrator all the opportunities to stop and reconsider his plan, and then showing the aftermath, the investigation, the pain wrecked on the victims’ families and the almost inevitable end for the killer.

Lesley has moved to Florence, a stunning city, with the intention of writing a novel, but discovering the body of a neighbour sets into motion a terrible chain of events. I’m not sure I’d agree with her actions and the decisions she makes, bringing into contact with a killer and also with the detective she falls in love with.

Paolo, our assassin, is a strange man, obsessive and still following instructions left by his dead mother (hence the title). It is only quite far into the book before anyone says that he’s autistic, and while his condition isn’t why he becomes a killer, it does govern how he goes about his job and the way in which he behaves when events get beyond him. I found him quite sinister, not because of his autism, more the stalking behaviour and the wearing of black leather gloves, even to do the gardening.

I liked Lesley and Diego, their deaths are awful, but the detectives who investigate were pretty decent and I like Gianfranco and Violetta a lot, I hope we see more from them in a future 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.

In the rugged wilderness of Dartmoor, school teacher Sophie Parsons vanishes without a trace during a weekend trek. For Detective Inspector Jacob Knox, Sophie’s disappearance stirs unsettling echoes of a previous case involving another woman who vanished in the same desolate moorland six months earlier.

As Knox delves deeper, he uncovers the complexities of Sophie’s personal life, including a secret affair with a charismatic colleague and a tense relationship with her long-term boyfriend, Peter. But Sophie’s tangled love life is just the beginning of Knox’s troubles. A local legend about a beast stalking the moors resurfaces, fueling public fear and media speculation. Is it just a myth, or could something more sinister be at play?

With time running out and the possibility that two women have been claimed by the moor, Knox faces his toughest case yet—one that will test him professionally and personally. As the case unfolds, Knox realizes the dark truths buried beneath the surface of Sophie’s life may be the key to unlocking the mystery.

Introducing DI Jacob Knox, Hollow Ground is a gripping crime thriller set in the eerie
beauty of Devon’s Dartmoor, blending elements of mystery, suspense, and psychological depth to explore the blurred lines between human vulnerability and the unknown.

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Freya Wallace is a crime writer based in Devon. Her debut novel, Hollow Ground, introduces DI Knox in the first book of an atmospheric new series set against the backdrop of her local area. A lifelong reader, she always wanted to see a gripping crime series unfold in the place
she knows best.
When she’s not writing or reading, Freya can be found walking her two German Shepherds
along the local beaches.

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My thoughts: This was a really good, tense, crime thriller. Women have been going missing on Dartmoor – not an easy place to find a missing person. The local police are up against it, not helped by rumours that the infamous beast of legend is roaming once more.

As DI Knox and his team dig into Sophie’s life, trying to work out what her connection to the previous victim might be, if any, and whether she was targeted or just convenient, they uncover her secrets, do either her longterm boyfriend or colleague lover have anything to do with her disappearance?

Knox’s personal life also becomes more complicated in the form of his troubled brother, he wants to help him but needs to focus on the case. There’s also potential romance with her dog walker, Lucy, but when does he have time to date, there’s missing women and a dangerous person to find.

Clever, twisting and totally gripping, this is a great start to hopefully a new series of crime set in Devon.

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

Six thriller authors. One writing retreat.
You’d die to be on the guest list . . .

The Host
Legendary mystery author J. R. Alastor’s books are sold all over the world, but no one knows his real name. After years hiding in the shadows, he has sent out six invitations to an exclusive murder mystery retreat on his private island.

The Assistant
Mila del Angél has been hired to ensure the week runs smoothly. She has yearned for revenge on a ghost from her past for years – and this could be her chance to get it.

The Players
The six bestselling thriller writers accept their invitations without question – it’s an opportunity any author would kill for.

The Game
What should have been a week of trope-filled games takes a sinister turn when one guest is found dead, and the others find themselves in the midst of a nightmare drawn from Alastor’s
dark imagination. They may have written thrillers – but now they and Mila must survive one…

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ANDE PLIEGO began writing stories when she discovered she could actually wield her overactive imagination for good.
A lover of stories with teeth, she writes books involving mind games, dark humour, general murder and mayhem, characters pushed to the edge of themselves, and most importantly, finding the hope in the dark.
When not reading or writing, she can usually be found dabbling in art, scheming up her next trip, or making constant expeditions to the library.
Born in Florida, raised in France, and having left footprints all over the globe, Ande is settled in the Pacific Northwest, USA, with her craftsman husband and little son.

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My thoughts: I really, really enjoyed this. It was just a very “me” book, thriller writers on a murder mystery weekend that ends up in more murder than expected, on a deserted island. Hello, have you ever read any Agatha Christie? Ever seen the movie Clue? Do not go on this retreat.

Obviously as a reader I am delighted that authors continue to send their characters into red flag draped bad ideas. But I will not be accepting invitations to these things. People always get killed. Messily, and entertainingly, yes, but I want to live to read more blackly comic, twisted, fun things like this.

I’m still not 100% a Mila fan, I think she still needs to deal with some stuff, but I do love a Final Girl or two. Even a Final Boy.

There are twists galore, as the victims end up killed like their characters, and someone has a very personal vendetta. Can you work out who J.R is? I didn’t quite get there fast enough, and there are clues to how it’s all connected. But the characters don’t have all the pieces.

Lots of fun, really enjoyed it, cannot wait to see what Ande does next.

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

Three newlywed couples arrive on Bali’s Honeymoon Island expecting two weeks of
bliss. Some of them will die.

Bestselling author Jane E. James’ twistiest thriller ever.

White beaches, endless cocktails . . . and murder.

Which of the couples will make it off the island alive?
Samantha: ‘Nathan hired me as his children’s nanny. Now I’m the third Mrs Price. Nathan collects wives like he collects designer suits . . . and tires of them just as
quickly. Whatever happens, he must never find out my secret.’

Angelika: ‘My handsome new husband worships the ground I walk on. He’s accepted my past. But no one else on the island can know what I used to do for a living.’

Timothy: ‘I love our son — but I wish we hadn’t brought him on our honeymoon. His tantrums are ruining everything. What my husband doesn’t know is that I’ve been
here before . . .’

Welcome to Honeymoon Island. Where secrets come to die . . .

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Jane E. James is a bestselling author who likes to create chilling reads that appeal
to fans of psychological suspense thrillers, mysteries, and dark fiction. Her novels
are packed with plot twists and turns that keep the reader guessing. All of them are
standalone novels.
Jane is an animal lover and lives with her cat, Hero, in a small country village near
Stamford, Lincolnshire in the UK, which is known for its quirky tea shops and
cobbled streets. Rebecca, Carrie, The Woman in Black and Wuthering Heights are among some of Jane’s favourite reads.

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My thoughts: Nobody at this luxury honeymoon resort is entirely happy to be there and a lot of them are keeping secrets from their new spouses.

Before the honeymoon is over, quite a few people will be dead, and their killers may not be facing the justice they deserve. It’s a complicated mess, as it turns out several of the guests (and even some of the staff) know each other from before they arrived in this idyllic paradise, and in most cases, before they got married.

As everyone’s dirty little secrets start to come tumbling out, someone takes it into their own hands to keep things quiet. And the reverberations through the resort are shocking. Who will survive the honeymoon from Hell?

Gripping, darkly humorous at times, twisted and highly enjoyable.

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

How well do you really know the people you love?

After her parents are killed in a tragic accident, Amelia Simpson retreats from her old life and moves to the sleepy Isle of Wight to be near her grandmother, her last remaining family.

But as the people closest to her start to die and secrets from her parent’s past are uncovered, Amelia is forced to question everything she thought she knew about her childhood and the people that she loved the most.

In order to find the killer, Detective Inspector Jennifer Stone will have to delve into Amelia’s past where she learns that there’s no such thing as a perfect family and that stopping them may end up costing her everything that she holds dear.

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Scott Englefield grew up on the Isle of Wight. Despite being surrounded by idyllic beaches and woodland walks, he was often to be found with his head buried in a book.

His love of reading endured into adulthood and now he spends his free time writing crime and psychological thrillers, often having to stop to fend off his cat James who believes his keyboard is the perfect place to sleep.

He is in his mid-forties (and feels it) and lives with his wife, son and cat in the East of England.

He grew a beard once – his wife hated it

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My thoughts: Amelia lives on the Isle of Wight with her boyfriend, her gran, her only living relative lives nearby. Her parents died in a car crash when she was younger.

Everything seems normal until someone close to her is murdered, and then her car goes missing. She thought the recent vandalism at her florist shop was a rival business, but maybe it’s part of something more. She doesn’t have any enemies…that she knows of.

Luckily DI Stone and her team are willing to dig into her past, her parents and hunt for the truth, but someone close to the case may be a little more involved than they thought.

Clever, intense, the mystery narrator is sinister and clearly troubled, and with several great twists, this was a very enjoyable read.

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

Discover one of the most suspenseful crime thrillers you’ll read this year. Winner of the Joffe Books Prize.

TRUST NO ONE.

Johannesburg, 1980s Apartheid South Africa. The neglected streets hum with tension as Augustine flees her vengeful ex-boyfriend with nothing but her child and the clothes on her back, terrified he will find her.

Because she also possesses a dangerous secret.

One he will kill for. One he will never stop hunting her for.

But Augustine is rescued by a wealthy white housewife who takes pity on her, offering both employment and refuge. Or so she thinks.

It might seem that she is safe inside the walls of the prosperous Diamond family home, but outside her every move is watched. Her sanctuary has become her prison.

In this city, where trust is a rare commodity, Augustine has made a mistake that could cost her everything.

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I had written short stories, poems and travel journals under a pen name, Bianca M., and been published in South African magazines and journals in the 90s. I had also been published in various poetry journals around the same time, in England. But had not been writing steadily for some years, focussing instead on my career and family. Whenever I am in London, I take short courses at the Literary Consultancy. My assessments are also done at the LC.

I have self-published this novel on Amazon in August 2022.

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My thoughts: This was really good, Joffe Books often bring new (to me) writers to the fore and this is no exception. I am really pleased that I got to read this for the blog tour and can recommend it to all of you.

Set in 1980s Johannesburg, during apartheid, we first meet Augustine and baby Justice as she runs away from her white boyfriend, her former school teacher Teddy. She’s taken with her some things that could get him into serious trouble – more serious than the law he’s breaking by being with her.

Taken in by the Diamond family as a maid and nanny to their infant son Nicholas, she thinks she landed on her feet. But after Kimberley Diamond dies, she’s in danger again.

Meanwhile Teddy has hired a PI, Segert, to find Augustine and his son. And more importantly the proof of his crimes that she’s stolen. Not that he shares that little detail.

Segert takes over the story as he hunts for Augustine, becoming increasingly concerned that hardly anyone seems to care that’s she gone. Certainly not her parents, but a friend, Rosalind, helps him to search for her.

What he discovers is tragic and criminal and someone will go to great lengths to protect this secret. It will take years to prove the crimes that Augustine unwittingly became a part of. She just wanted a better life for herself and her son, instead she became the victim of terrible men and miscarriages of justice that allowed them to get away with their crimes for a long time.

Shocking, moving and tragic, this was a powerful and intense read that had me hooked from the beginning. I really liked Augustine and Segert too. He was a total slob, but he loved his dogs and was determined and dedicated to his cause. I can’t wait to see what else this author writes.

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

When the body of a young woman is discovered at an outdoor music festival, Detective Kay Hunter’s investigation stalls almost as soon as it starts.

Because the killer has left no trace, and the victim’s identity is unknown.

Amidst a media backlash, and faced with thousands of potential suspects, Kay must piece together the last hours of the woman’s life before her killer can escape.

But when Kay finds out the truth, her discovery will shake her investigation team to its core…

A Fatal Silence is the 14th book in the Detective Kay Hunter series from USA Today bestselling author Rachel Amphlett, and perfect for readers who love fast-paced crime fiction.

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Before turning to writing, USA Today bestselling crime author Rachel Amphlett played guitar in bands, worked as a TV and film extra, dabbled in radio, and worked in publishing as an editorial assistant.

She now wields a pen instead of a plectrum and writes crime fiction with over 30 crime novels and short stories featuring spies, detectives, vigilantes, and assassins.

A keen traveller and accidental private investigator, Rachel has both Australian and British citizenship.

You can find out more about Rachel and her books at http://www.rachelamphlett.com. 

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My thoughts: Musical festivals do suffer from crime, but not like this. When the body of a young woman is found by litter picking volunteers, the police swing into action. Her fingers have been cut, so there’s no prints, and she isn’t carrying any ID.

Unfortunately the sheer number of people in the park makes narrowing down the suspect list a bit tricky. Lots of work for the team, as they try to solve the case.

Full of shocking moments and a huge twist that sends the case national, this is an excellent slice of police procedural crime fiction. The team are hard working and dedicated, determined to solve the case and get justice for their victim.

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