Moscow, 1958. At the height of the Cold War, secretary Lois Vale is on a deep-cover MI6 mission to identify a diplomatic traitor. She can trust only one man: Johann, a German journalist also working covertly for the British secret service. As the trail leads to Vienna and the Black Sea, Lois and Johann begin an affair but as love grows, so does the danger to Lois.
A tense Cold War spy story told from the perspective of a bright, young, working-class woman recruited to MI6 at a time when men were in charge of making history and women were expendable. Authentic details are provided by the 1958 diary kept in Moscow by the author’s own mother, who worked for British intelligence.
Deborah Lawrenson spent her childhood moving around the world with diplomatic service parents, from Kuwait to China, Belgium, Luxembourg and Singapore. She read English at Cambridge University and worked as a journalist in London. She has written ten novels, including two Death in Provence mysteries as Serena Kent, and her writing is praised for its vivid sense of place.
My thoughts:This was utterly gripping and really, really good. I’ve had a bit of a love of Russian history since my A Levels and a very memorable trip to the country (the hotel we stayed in is mentioned in the book!) and it was interesting to read something set during an infamous period of time – when the Cambridge spy ring was being unmasked.
It was also really interesting to have the story from a female perspective, inspired by the author’s mother’s own role as a secretary at the British Embassy and as an MI6 operative. Most spy thrillers are full of gungho action and men who are either very dashing or the extreme opposite (like Jackson Lamb from Mick Herron’s Slough House series), they are very rarely female.
Lois is indeed a secretary, but she’s also under orders from MI6, and her job is a cover. She’s been sent to see if she can work out if anyone on the embassy staff might be passing information to the Russians. She’s been told not to trust anyone but German journalist (and fellow spy) Johann.
At times she feels completely out of her depth, and her very strange flatmate and colleague doesn’t help matters. There are important things to do, possible defectors to locate, Russian tails to shake off, and the very real possibility of romance.
Things do go somewhat awry, and far from anyone she can ask for advice, Lois has to essentially wing it. But can she do the job?
I really liked Lois, I liked her determination, the way she wanted to stay the course, even when things were going wrong all over the place. She’s level headed and practical, willing to improvise to get the job done. A really enjoyable, intelligent thriller.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
Inspector Henry Tibbett is taking a much-needed holiday from his job at Scotland Yard with his wife Emmy. Headed for a spot of skiing in the Italian Dolomites and some first-class people-watching, Tibbett’s worries blissfully melt away. That is, until a fellow guest who boards the ski lift alive at the top of the mountain is found dead when the lift touches bottom. Another dead body turns up, and then another, and it becomes clear that Murder has come to the mountain.
Patricia Moyes (1923-2000) was an acclaimed British mystery novelist, best known for her long running series featuring Inspector Henry Tibbett. The tenth book in the series, Who Saw Her Die?, was nominated for an Edgar Allan Poe award, and Moyes was inducted into The Detection Club, presided over by Agatha Christie, in the same year. Her early career also included work as a radar operator in the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force; as a screenwriter – with credits including the Robert Hamer film School for Scoundrels and Roald Dahl’s Tales of the Unexpected –; as an assistant editor for Vogue magazine; and as a translator.
My thoughts: This was a lovely classic crime story, set on a mountain in Italy. Asked to assist when one of his fellow travellers is murdered, DI Tibbett and his wife Emmy start investigating the other hotel guests. Among the people on the mountain is a murderer.
Uncovering all sorts of other dodgy goings on in this supposedly quiet and peaceful place, Tibbett sets a trap for the killer, he’s pretty sure he’s worked it all out.
Highly enjoyable and at times quite funny, I particularly liked Emmy, I can’t wait to see how crime ruins the Tibbetts next holiday.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
Atlantic City’s shady history comes to life when a magician with a mysterious past races to discover her friend’s killer before he strikes again, but finds herself falling for the prime suspect, who holds the secret to her true identity.
ZIGZAG GIRL by Ruth Knafo Setton is a noir-tinged feminist thriller where The Prestige meets Knives Out in Atlantic City’s haunted magic underworld. When brilliant young magician Lucy Moon discovers her best friend murdered inside the infamous sawing box that killed a performer decades ago—a black rose stuffed in her mouth, the same signature from Lucy’s own buried past—she’s thrust into a deadly game where every suspect is a master of deception and the killer seems to know secrets about her she’s spent a lifetime hiding. Racing to unmask a murderer before they strike again, Lucy must navigate Atlantic City’s shadowy criminal networks, resist falling for a charismatic magician who might be the killer, and confront the ghost of a glamorous 1940s assistant whose unsolved murder in that same box echoes through time—all while performing the most dangerous trick of her life: discovering who she really is before her past catches up with her. With its intoxicating blend of illusion, murder mystery, and gothic atmosphere, this cinematic thriller delivers a visually stunning world of stage magic, a complex heroine forced to unmask herself to catch a killer, and a powerful exploration of women who create their own magic to survive in a world designed to make them disappear.
Born in Morocco and raised on tales of djnoun and desert wonder, I’ve sailed around the world three times teaching university students aboard ships, studying magic and collecting stories of the impossible. I’ve been sawed in half and in thirds, broken free from straitjackets, and learned the art of illusion from masters across the globe. I transformed these adventures into Zigzag Girl, a thriller set in Atlantic City’s glittering casinos and the haunted Pine Barrens of New Jersey—where I stood at the grave of the Jersey Devil and felt the dark heart of my killer. In this shadowy landscape where magic meets menace, my protagonist must use every trick she knows to survive.
My thoughts: This was a clever and at times chilling murder mystery set amongst the late night magic crowd in Atlantic City. Lucy is the daughter of a famous magician and set to introduce her new act with two of her best friends when one of them is brutally murdered.
Despite being warned off by the cops, Lucy investigates, and as she does, she learns the truth about her own origins and the ghost of a murdered magician’s assistant from the 1940s that haunts her.
Full of twists and turns, untrustworthy people and masks, Lucy must navigate her way between truth and fiction to draw it the killer without falling victim herself.
*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 man’s body is found in a Kentish hop field, his brutal death marked by horrific injuries.
As Detective Kay Hunter begins to investigate, the case quickly reveals itself to be anything but routine. The local farming community is tight-lipped, the victim’s background is unclear, and the evidence uncovers a trail of conflicting stories and long-held secrets.
With the media and her superior officers demanding answers, Kay must navigate the lies and unravel the truth to solve one of the most complex murder investigations of her career.
In a landscape shaped by tradition and silence, some secrets are buried for a reason.
What Evil Hides is the fifteenth book in the bestselling Detective Kay Hunter series, and perfect for readers who love twisty murder mysteries.
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.
My thoughts: Some farm workers harvesting hops discover a murdered man, his body cruelly disfigured amongst the bines. The police can’t work it out, it looks like it might be ritualistic, but there hasn’t been anything else locally.
As they investigate both the farm where the body was found and the deceased’s life, they’re left with more questions than answers. There are traces of three suspects, and the farm has a few disgruntled former employees. Was the victim chosen intentionally or at random? Is the farm being attacked or something else? An area of poisoned crops raises more questions.
Can the team solve it before headquarters passes it over to another DI to try to unravel the answers?
Another clever and interesting case from Rachel Amphlett, one of the best crime writers around.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
Winter’s Season by R.J. Koreto unfolds against a city shaped by wealth, secrecy, and social division. The story follows a man whose work places him at the fault lines of power and danger, where private lives intersect with public consequence and justice is anything but assured.
When a young woman of means is found murdered, the crime sends quiet shockwaves through a society invested in keeping its truths hidden. Captain Winter is drawn into the case not because it is public, but because it is dangerous to ignore. A former soldier hardened by war, Winter now serves as Whitehall’s discreet emissary, navigating influence and violence without the protection of formal law.
His investigation forces him into uneasy alliances. A nobleman from his youth grants access to elite circles, while a brilliant Jewish physician brings insight grounded in careful observation rather than assumption. The case takes a more perilous turn with the return of Barbara Lightwood, a former lover whose intelligence and social reach place her close to information Winter cannot obtain elsewhere. Her refusal to fully share what she knows reopens unresolved history and clouds Winter’s judgment at the moment he can least afford it.
As the truth reaches further than anyone dares admit, Winter must confront both the crime and the personal cost of pursuing justice alone.
R.J. Koreto has been a merchant seaman, book editor, journalist and novelist. He was born and raised in New York City and decided to be a writer after reading “The Naked and the Dead.” He and his wife have two grown daughters and divide their time between Rockland County, N.Y., and Martha’s Vineyard, Mass. Visit R.J. at his website and on Facebook and Instagram.
Excerpt
The captain said goodbye to his colonel and a few other officers, and the butler saw him out. He walked to the nearest stand and engaged a hackney cab to Bow Street Court. A few heads turned as he entered the building, but no one accosted him. A clerk gave him the barest nod but said nothing as he entered a room.
A few minutes later, the captain came out. He was no longer in his regimentals, but in rather shabby outfit, almost rural, with a slouch hat. Down the hall, he entered another room, where a squad of Bow Street Runners awaited—constables, employed by the local court at Bow Street, to keep order and seize felons. Winter suppressed a grimace. They were poorly trained and poorly paid, but it was pretty much all London had for law enforcement. Many still thought the idea of a formal professional constabulary too much government interference—too un-English. So, the Runners would have to do. At least they were willing and obedient.
“We have already gone over where you should be standing,” said the captain. “You know how important it is you aren’t seen.” There was more than instruction in his voice—there was menace.
“Yes, sir,” said the most senior constable present.
“Then take your places. I’ll be along shortly.”
Moving quickly, he left the building and walked along dark streets that became progressively dirtier and more dangerous. He saw men hiding in the shadows, those who preyed on the weak and unaware, but nothing happened to him.
Eventually he came to a building that was well-lit, at least by the neighborhood standards. It was certainly the noisiest venue in the street. The cracked and faded sign marked it as The Three Bells.
The Captain entered—a few were eating off dirty plates, and almost everyone was drinking beer, or something stronger. Slatternly women laughed and tried to slip away from the half-drunk men who loudly pursued them. Some allowed them- selves to be caught, and there was more laughter and then a talk of money. The whole room smelled of smoke and grease, and the floor was sticky from weeks of spilled ale.
Few paid attention to the captain, but a fat man walked up to him surprisingly quickly for someone of his bulk.
“Oh captain, I am so pleased, do you think—”
“Shut up. Where’s Sally? She was suitable last night, and she’ll be suitable tonight.”
“Sally—oh there she is.” He pointed to a tallish girl wearing more makeup than an actress. A large man in worker’s clothes, probably a stevedore, thought the cap- tain, had grabbed her and placed her on his lap. She didn’t seem to mind.
The captain strode over, grabbed the woman by her wrist, and pulled her off the man’s lap.
“Come, my girl, we have an appointment as you well know.”
She yelped with surprise, then gave a shrug and followed. The large man stood up.
“See here—I saw her first,” he said. His accent wasn’t London, which explained everything.
“Good for you,” said the Captain, and pulled the girl across the room. The big man started to follow, but two of his friends grabbed him.
“Now Jake, no need to cause trouble,” said the first, who was clearly local.
“Cause trouble? I’ll flatten him—” “No, you won’t. You don’t know, you’re new here. For God’s sake, that’s the Captain, a soldier, they say he was, and you don’t want to start something with him—I’ve seen what happens to those who do—”
“That’s right,” chimed in the other friend, also a Londoner. “Remember Big Nick—used to be here, no one stood up to him, but he challenged the Captain…” he shuddered.
“And what happened?” asked a skeptical Jake. Both men look their heads.
“We never saw him again. He wasn’t arrested. They didn’t find his body—he was just…gone. So just stop thinking about it. There are plenty of other girls.”
But Jake still felt he had to make a show of standing up for himself. “So, you’re telling me it would be a mistake to call him out?”
“Your last mistake,” said the first man. Then very softly, as if he was afraid of his words, he said, “He’s called Winter. If you’re thinking of staying in this part of London, you would do well to remember that name.”
From the author
“Every generation thinks it invented sex” is a quote attributed to science fiction writer Robert Heinlein. That becomes the fun part of historical fiction! I write mysteries, but I typically have a romantic subplot, and I enjoy imagining what love affairs were like at different times.
In Winter’s Season, my latest book, army veteran Captain Winter investigates crimes in Regency-era London. He’s a ladies man—a type very much around today! But the cultural differences of the time put restrictions on how any romance could proceed. Winter comes from a modest background, but his bravery in the face of an accident elevated him to the gentry. We don’t think about this much anymore: Catherine, Princess of Wales, did not come from royalty or even the aristocracy.
But this is 1817, and Winter’s love life is as unmoored as his social position. His landlady introduces him to her farmgirl niece, Charity. They share a background, and when she shows some shrewd insights into his personality, it looks like this romance is going somewhere. But she knows Winter’s closest friend is an earl, and she is a woman who makes preserves and helps cows give birth. She bursts into tears just imagining if she married Winter: trying to fit in at a dinner presided over by a Regency-era countess.
It doesn’t work well at the other end either: As part of his investigations, Winter wrangles an invitation to the most elegant ball of the London Season. Darkly handsome, he catches the eye of more than one debutante. Lady Mary Salmonberry is entranced by him and can’t stop blushing in his presence. But Winter knows it cannot go further. “Mothers sent their daughters here to find an appropriate husband. And that won’t be someone of my background.”
The world changes, however. I wrote a novel that takes place partly at the end of World War I and into the early 1920s. What separates the classes now?
In this book, we have another earl and another commoner: A military nurse and one of her patients fall in love at an army field hospital. On the wards, there is nothing to indicate that he is an aristocrat and that she is the daughter of a bookkeeper. Those distinctions, I found as I researched, started falling apart under the Kaiser’s guns. They never disappeared entirely—they’re still around—but the lines blurred.
And so, the nurse and the earl marry after the armistice. A friend visits them in the 1920s and the new countess opens the door to admit him, being the first countess to do that herself. No butler? No footman? Of course not: they were all dead on Flanders Field. Unlike Captain Winter’s farmgirl, the nurse fits right into the manor house. She doesn’t have to worry about presiding over elaborate dinner parties and slipping into elaborate dresses; those are all in the past. And no one has to teach the nurse-turned-countess how to open the door herself.
Love has not changed. But the new world makes it a lot easier to manage. And at the end of the day, that’s what I like about writing historical fiction: placing emotions like love, which never changes, into the context of a world that changes radically and frequently.
One final word: love comes in all forms. In an Edwardian-era series I wrote, I introduced two young women. They are close friends—indeed, they love each other. They have independent incomes and are not looking for husbands. At the end of the book, for companionship, they buy a house where they can live together
“Umm…are they lesbians?” asked my editor.
“They love each other, and that’s enough,” I said. Were they lesbians? I don’t know and I’m the author. When it comes to love, even my fictional characters deserve some privacy.
Jane Trevally is walking her dogs on her country estate one May afternoon when a small white dog appears. The teenaged girl that had been staying nearby with the dog is nowhere to be found, and Jane decides to return it to his registered owner hours away in London, in the deepest backwaters of Hampstead. But when Jane arrives, she is immediately unsettled—because she has a dark history with this house.
The man who answers the door tells her the dog, Hugo, must have been stolen from the Heath, but Jane very much doubts that is true. Through the window, she catches a glimpse of a haunted-looking woman, not the missing girl she’d hoped to find.
Facing a crossroads similar to the one that first led her to this home twenty-five years ago, Jane knows that the house holds the key—to the missing teenager, to the lost dog, and to dark secrets they’d all rather leave buried.
Lisa Jewell is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of twenty-four novels, including Don’t Let Him In, None of This Is True, The Family Upstairs, and Then She Was Gone, as well as Invisible Girl and Watching You. Her novels have sold more than fifteen million copies internationally, and her work has also been translated into over thirty languages. Connect with her on X @LisaJewellUK, on Instagram @LisaJewellUK, and on Facebook @LisaJewellOfficial.
The villagers of Westleham are excited for the first village cricket match since the end of the war. But Martha Miller has more pressing concerns – namely, the sudden reappearance of her husband, Stan, missing for two years and acting as though nothing has happened.
Martha doesn’t know what to feel, especially now that his return threatens her growing fondness for the kind-hearted village vicar, Luke. Yet she’s not the only one unsettled by Stan’s return…
As the match begins and the crowd cheers, Stan suddenly collapses – dead before he hits the ground. And all eyes turn to Martha.
To clear her name, she must uncover the truth about Stan’s missing years and his sudden reappearance. But in a village this small, everyone has something to hide.
Will Martha’s amateur sleuthing find the real killer or will she pay the price for someone else’s deadly deed?
Let the investigation commence!
Find out if Martha and Luke can catch the killer in a brand new Martha Miller mystery from bestselling author Catherine Coles, perfect for fans of Lee Strauss and Beth Byers!
Catherine Coles writes bestselling cosy mysteries set in the English countryside. Her extremely popular Tommy & Evelyn Christie series is based in North Yorkshire in the 1920’s and Catherine herself lives in Hull with her family and two spoiled dogs.
My thoughts: The sudden reappearance of husband Stan sends Martha into a spin, he’s accompanied by two friends and has apparently been happily living in Brighton for the last two years. He swears he’s come to put things right, put her cottage into her name, and is very shocked to discover that the money he sent her through the village solicitor never reached Martha.
And when he suddenly drops dead on the Cricket Green in the village’s first match in several years, everyone looks at Martha. The spouse is always the first suspect after all. But there are plenty of other people who might have felt strongly enough to do away with Stan, and Martha is determined to prove her innocence.
A clever and highly enjoyable slice of historical crime fiction set in the English countryside, where murderers lurk and the police always need a hand solving the case!
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
Someone pushed my boyfriend under a train. Everyone thinks it was me.
The police say he took his own life. But there were four other people at the tube station that day – and I know one of them killed him.
So I flee to Tidesong, my family’s crumbling clifftop house in Cornwall. Here I can grieve Marcus. Come to terms with his betrayal. And work out what really happened. I think I’m safe here. Then the message flashes onto my laptop: Marcus didn’t jump. He was pushed. I know it was you. Someone’s watching me. Someone has followed me here. Someone knows my secrets – or thinks they do. And they won’t stop until I pay for what they think I’ve done.
Sadie Ryan is the bestselling psychological author of three novels. Alongside her writing she works fulltime, and loves to take walks in the Cheshire countryside where she lives with her rescue dog. In her past re-incarnations she was a model, worked in advertising and ran a coffee shop. She speaks fluent Spanish a little French and adores Italy and Italian food—lots of Italian food, and is partial to a an odd glass of wine or two!
My thoughts: This was really good, tense and compelling. Told from multiple perspectives, the narrative builds up to a dramatic confrontation between all our different narrators, bringing their versions of events together, hoping to get at the truth of not just what happened to Marcus on that Tube station platform, but also Sophie, who died in Bibby’s arms some years before and whose death has haunted several people all this time.
Bibby has retreated to her family’s house in Cornwall to mourn but the events of Marcus’ death have followed her and so have the other people who were on the platform the day he died, and they want answers. Can Bibby satisfy their demands or will this sad story claim another 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.
As the sticky heat of August settles over Florence, Dan Armstrong is ready for a well-earned break— sightseeing with fiancée Anna, daughter Tricia and her fiancé Shaun. But when a British man is found dead inside the city’s magnificent Duomo, Dan’s plans quickly change.
The victim, Tristan Angel, is a super-wealthy arms dealer with a saintly name and a devilish reputation. But what was he doing in the cathedral, and who decided to make it his final confession?
At Angel’s opulent villa in the hills of Fiesole, Dan and Commissario Virgilio encounter a colourful cast of suspects—each one hiding secrets and none too eager to talk. As tempers rise and the heat outside grows ever more intense, Dan and his four-legged sidekick, Oscar, must sniff out the truth before the killer strikes again.
T. A. Williams is the bestselling author of the Armstrong and Oscar cozy mystery series. Trevor studied languages at University and lived and worked in Italy for eight years, returning to England with his wife in 1972. Trevor and his wife now live in Devon.
My thoughts: Yay! Another case for Dan Armstrong and the true hero, canine Officer Oscar (it’s official, Virgilio says he’s a vital part of the police) and he does of course find an important piece of evidence, and is rewarded with steak.
When the owner of an arms company is shot in the confessional of the Florence Duomo, the stunning cathedral, the Santa Maria del Fiore, there are almost too many suspects, and the international spy agencies (the ones with names like MI6 and CIA) are very interested. Angel’s company had some, interesting, clients.
But the main suspects are the group of people he brought with him. Almost all of them are employees of the company in one way or another, and some of their relationships go a long way back. Oh, and his not very happy ex-wife just happens to be in Florence too.
Dan can’t help but get involved, even though his daughter and her fiancé are visiting, as well as Anna and her daughter too. He’s supposed to be looking at wedding venues, not catching criminals. I always feel a bit sorry for Anna, Dan’s priorities go; Oscar, crime, Anna.
Obviously I really enjoyed this – I love this series, and this one reminded me I really must go back to Florence and have a proper look around – I was 14 last time and don’t remember much of our day trip to the city other than how hot and crowded it was!
So join Dan and Oscar on another fiendish and clever case, filled with some larger than life characters (Eddie), spies, weapons dealers and a very patient fiancée in Anna.
*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 killing like no other. A killer more twisted than he’s ever seen before. A case that will test him to the limit. Has Robert Hunter finally met his match?
‘Do you believe the Devil exists, Detective?’ the officer at the end of the line asks. ‘Because if you don’t . . . I’m sure you will once you get here.’
Robert Hunter is called to the most vicious crime scene he has ever attended. It is made even more disturbing when the autopsy reveals a poem, left by the killer, inside the body of their victim.
Soon, another body is found. The methods and signature of the murder differs, but the level of violence used suggests that the same person is behind both crimes. Hunter’s fears are confirmed when a second part of the poem is found.
But this discovery does more than just link the two killings – it suggests that this is the work of a serial murderer.
With no forensic evidence to go on, Robert Hunter must catch the most disciplined and systematic killer that he has ever encountered, someone who thrives on the victims’ fear, and to whom death is a lesson that needs to be taught.
From #1 Sunday Times and multi-million copy bestselling author, Chris Carter, comes the most compelling and ruthless Robert Hunter thriller yet.
My thoughts: Called to a truly gruesome murder Hunter and Garcia find even their stomachs turning, and they’ve seen some grim things.
As this case unfolds, they’re truly stumped, there appears to be absolutely no connection between the victims, and no explanation as to the motive driving the killer. Each crime scene is even more disturbing than the last and the MO is different each time, the only link is a line of some sort of poem left with each victim. But it isn’t something that was published, so it continues to leave them puzzled. Until Hunter spots something in a crime scene that might just help them solve this one…
Another disturbing, and awful, but ingenious case. A sort of sins-of-the-father reasoning and a murderer who wants to deliver a lesson that no one will forget.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
ramblingmads 