My #BlogTour #BookReview of #TheSpyCoast by #TessGerritsen @tessgerritsen Published by #Bantam @RandomTTours @annecater

Maggie Bird is many things. A chicken farmer. A good neighbour. A seemingly average retiree living in the seaside town of Purity. She’s also a darned good rifle shot. And she never talks about her past.

But when an unidentified body is left on Maggie’s driveway, she knows it’s a calling card from old times. It’s been fifteen years since the failed mission that ended her career as a spy, and cost her far more than her job.

Step forward the ‘Martini Club’ – Maggie’s silver-haired book group (to anyone who asks), and a cohort of former spies behind closed doors. With the help of her old friends – and always one step ahead of the persistent local cop – Maggie might still be able to save the life she’s built.

The Spy Coast is the first novel in the Martini Club series.

My Review…..

I couldn’t wait to start reading The Spy Coast by Tess Gerritsen, it sounded so good!

The novel introduces us to Maggie Bird, a chicken farmer who lives in Maine, USA…but she is also a darn good shot and it turns out a retired CIA spy. She has a close group of friends who are also in the same boat, and they all have a plan, in case anything from their past arrives….and in the Spy Coast it does, for Maggie.

A dead body in the middle of her driveway! However, this body of a woman had knocked on her door the day before looking for an old colleague! And so begins a dangerous journey where things from Maggie’s past start to make her comfortable, quiet life explode with danger.

The story is told from multiple points of view including the local Police Chief Jo Thibodeau, and the Ex-Spys of The Martini Club, who all help to hunt down the perpetrator who is threatening Maggie.

I loved the cast of characters and Maggie herself, as she’s really kick ass! I loved the twisty plot where we went back in time and found out about some of her missions and also the investigation now. I found The Spy Coast an excellent rollercoaster ride with a thrilling ending. I can see that this will turn into a really good series, and for fans of Tess Gerritsen its a must-read.

A great novel with plenty to offer for crime fiction fans, a solid 4 star read.

Internationally bestselling author Tess Gerritsen took an unusual route to a writing career. A graduate of Stanford University, Tess went on to medical school at the University of California, San Francisco, where she was awarded her M.D.

While on maternity leave from her work as a physician, she began to write fiction and in 1987, her first novel, Call After Midnight, was published. It was just the first of 32 suspense novels that she’s written over a 36-year writing career. She also wrote a screenplay, “Adrift,” which aired as a 1993 CBS Movie of the Week starring Kate Jackson.

Tess’s 1996 medical thriller, Harvest, marked her debut on the New York Times bestseller list and her novels have hit bestseller lists around the world ever since. Among her titles are Gravity, The Surgeon, Vanish, Listen to Me, and her upcoming spy thriller, The Spy Coast, which has just been optioned by Amazon Studios for a television series. Her books have been translated into 40 languages, and more than 40 million copies have been sold around the world.

Her series of novels featuring homicide detective Jane Rizzoli and medical examiner Maura Isles inspired the hit TNT television series “Rizzoli & Isles,” starring Angie Harmon and Sasha Alexander.

She lives in Maine.

You can buy The Spy Coast HERE

You can connect with Tess Gerritsen WEBSITE X  FACEBOOK INSTAGRAM

My #BookReview of #HisFavouriteGraves by #PaulCleave @PaulCleave published by @OrendaBooks #Orendabooks

To catch a killer…
Maybe you’ve got to be one…
 
Acacia Pines, USA. Sheriff Cohen’s life is falling apart – his father accidentally burned down the retirement home, his wife has moved out, and his son is bullying other kids at school.
When high-school student, Lucas Connor, is abducted, Cohen sees a chance to get his life back on track – to win back his wife and scoop the reward money offered for Lucas’s safe return.
 
But as the body count rises, it becomes clear that Cohen’s going to have to make the kind of decision from which there’s no coming back … a decision with deadly consequences…
 
A furiously paced, edge-of-your-seat thriller exposing the dark underbelly of small-town life, His Favourite Graves is also a twisted and twisty story of father-and-son relationships, and the one last gamble of a desperate man to save everything…

My Review –

Huge thanks to my Book Chum Amanda for kindly gifting me a signed copy of His Favourite Graves by Paul Cleave, from the excellent Indie Bookstore Berts Books.

I’ve read all of Paul Cleave’s previous novels, and I was excited to get into His Favourite Graves.

We start off with the abduction of a schoolboy, Lucas Connor, in what appears to be an opportunistic event however what transpires from this is a thrilling page-turner that will leave you feeling uncomfortable at the actions of the main characters.

Sherrif Cohen’s life is in freefall and this leads him to act in a way that is totally out of character for a Sheriff…. or is it? I really felt that His Favourite Graces is Paul Cleaves’s most trippy and twisty novel to date, I did not see the plot coming and the twists and turns make for shocking and quite uncomfortable reading. How far would you go to be able to put your life back on track?

Paul writes with the ease of father and son relationships, the power of bullying in children and in adults, the despair of losing a parent to dementia and how a normal man can become so ostracised by his own emotions that he will act in a desperate and totally out of character way.

Another fabulous novel from Paul Cleave, if you’ve liked all his other novels you will love Huis Favourite Graces, I think this may be his best yet.

A huge 5-star read from me.

Paul Cleave is an internationally bestselling author who is currently dividing his time between his home city of Christchurch, New Zealand, where all of his novels are set, and Europe, where none of his novels are set. His work has been translated into fifteen languages. He has won the Ngaio Marsh award for best crime novel in New Zealand, he won the Saint-Maur book festival’s crime novel of the year in France, has been shortlisted for the Edgar Award and the Barry Award in the US, and shortlisted for the Ned Kelly award in Australia. When he’s not writing, he spends his time swearing on a golf course, swearing on a tennis court, or trying to add to his list of 25 countries where he’s thrown his Frisbee.

You can buy His Favourite Graves HERE

Here is my question-and-answer session with Paul from March 2022

You can follow Paul Cleave on TWITTER INSTAGRAM FACEBOOK

Paul Cleave’s website HERE

My turn on the #BlogTour #BookReview of #TheSaved by #LizWebb @LizWebbAuthor published by @AllisonandBusby on 25.1.2024

She thought his death was the worst thing that could happen . . . then he came back

Nancy and Calder are moving from London to an isolated slate island, off the west coast of Scotland. Nancy is focused on their new beginning, but is increasingly unsettled by the stark island, the mysterious inhabitants and Calder’s dark past, which he’s kept hidden from her.

Then one of Nancy’s nightmares plays out in real life: she finds Calder’s boat upturned in the bay, his body adrift in the icy water. He’s clinically dead with no heartbeat. But miraculously the doctors manage to bring him back to life. Everyone thinks he has made a full recovery, but Nancy doesn’t recognise the man who has come back from the dead.

As secrets, lies and bodies begin to wash up on the island, Nancy must come to terms with the fact that despite the fresh start, sometimes the slate cannot be wiped clean.

My Review

Thank you to Allison & Busby for sending me a copy of The Saved to read and review.

We meet Nancy & Calder on a ferry to a remote Scottish Island, where they are going to live happily ever after, escaping the rat race and past mistakes to live a fairy tale ending…..or do they?

Fate intervenes and Calder is found unconscious in the sea, he is actually dead due to the cold but after being rushed to hospital and carefully warmed up he is revived and makes a full recovery…..or does he?

An eerie tale of love, obsession, relationships, twisted love and what happens when one action is taken and takes you down a path to destruction. The writing style is compelling and the descriptions of the Scottish Islands and its inhabitants are very well written. I found this a slow start but after it starts to get going the twists and turns make for a breathless read.

If you like novels that lay bare the intricacies of relationships and how lies and half-truths slowly burn love away, then The Saved is the book for you. A great cast of characters and the two lead characters are very well described.

A gripping slow build read 3 stars.

I’ve done a ton of different jobs since leaving school, but have finally ended up doing what I’ve always want to do and become a full-time writer, publishing two books and working on my third.
I started out training as a classical dancer, which was a wonderful obsessive world for an introvert/extrovert like me – but I had a back injury and had to quit. So, I learnt to touch type and worked as a temp secretary across London for all sorts of different companies, from energy firms to clerical insurance to the British Library, while simultaneously going to night classes at the wonderful City Lit, to get into university at age 23.I left university with an English degree and zero idea of what I wanted to do, so worked as a cocktail waitress, as a nude model for art classes and in a stationery shop. I had a stab at acting, but was truly terrible – though I did have a small part in one episode of Lovejoy as a con-woman. I started doing stand-up open spots in comedy clubs and gradually got paid work. For ten years, I performed stand-up up and down the country. (Cheeky, irrepressible, witty, perceptive, refreshing, fun, charming, good-humouredly raunchy and bubbling with effervescence – unforgettable. The Scotsman.)  I also worked as a voice over artist on ads like Persil, Organics and Kellogg’s: ‘It’s not too heavy, and it’s not too light, it’s – Just Right – new from Kellogg’s.
I started doing bits of freelance script reading and eventually got a job at the BBC as an assistant script editor in Radio Drama. I worked my way up to being a Producer and produced a huge range of plays, comedies, book adaptations and book readings. When I had my son, I went freelance in radio production. But I really wanted to stop producing other people’s work and write my own, so I took the plunge and did the excellent 6-month novel writing course at the Faber Academy Jan 2019 and started a book. It was tough and all those occasions when I’d blithely swiped red lines through writers’ work when I was a producer, came back to me! Later that year I did NaNoWriMo 2019 – a brilliant online initiative where writers across the world all try to write 50,000 words in the month of November. I took my initial idea and bashed out a full rough draft. When coronavirus hit, I wasn’t working and thought it was ‘now or never’ to complete my book.  I did some excellent short online writing courses at Curtis Brown Creative, and every week I showed bits of my writing to a small band of writers who had stayed together from my Faber course, as we met up in our weekly Zoom calls.  And eventually I had a manuscript. My debut novel The Daughter came out in the UK in 2022 with my wonderful publisher Allison & Busby in May 2022 and was also sold to publishers in Serbia (Vulkan), Germany (Goldmann) and Norway (Vigmostad & Bjorke). I had a launch at Waterstones and appeared at Scotland’s ‘Bloody Scotland’ crime writing festival, at Burgh House in London and at local library events.
My first novel was set in North London and I was ‘writing about what I know’. For my second novel I decided to leave my comfort zone and research a subject and place that were totally alien to me. I explored the phenomenon of unusually late heart attack survival in freezing temperatures and visited the slate islands off the west coast of Scotland. My second novel The Saved comes out in the UK in Jan 2024 and has already sold in Germany (Goldmann).
I’m currently writing my third book.

You can buy The Saved HERE

You can connect with Liz Webb on her website HERE

My #BookReview of #SnowFall by #JornLierHorst @LierHorst published by @MichaelJBooks #WilliamWisting

Detective William Wisting returns for another spine-tingling mystery. . .

When the body of an Australian backpacker is found in Spain, an online group of amateur true crime sleuths springs up around the world, attempting to solve the mystery of her death.

Foremost on the message boards is Astri, a young Norwegian woman whose feverish pursuit takes her closer than anyone else to solving the case.

But just as she prepares to publicly unravel the mystery, she goes offline.

No one in the group has heard from her since.

When William Wisting is sent to investigate, he is plunged deep into a fascinating world of unorthodox investigators, whose connections are as vague and varied as their abilities. But in a dangerous case where nothing is as it seems, these online detectives may be the best hope he has for solving the mystery – before another victim falls . . .

My review…..

For those that follow me,you know I’m a huge fan of William Wisting and Jorn Lier Horst is one of my favourite authors, with that in mind I couldn’t wait to read Snow Fall.

Firstly let me say a huge thank you to Penguin Micheal Joseph who seem to be publishing the Wisting books each year, and the excellent work of Anne Bruce of translating these novels.

Having read all the previous Wisting books and enjoyed them all, this is one of my favourites. the plotline is easy to follow and involves Wisting getting involved with a group of online true crime sleuths as a dead body turns up in Norway that is linked to another case in Spain.

The ease at which the story unfolds and the cast of supporting chrachters is truely exceptional, I loved the inclusion of a group of true crime fanatics who from all over the world want to help solve a crime, being a huge true crime fan myself, this really resonated with me.

The plot also includes Line and Amalie, Wisting daughter and Granddaughter and I love that this part of his life is shared with the reader, and Line is such a fabulous character!

I didn’t guess the outcome until it was revealed in the novel, and I was totally engrossed all the way through ( as always )… if I could read a new Wisting book each month I’d be so happy, ever wanted to unrea something and start again?

So as always, Jorn Lier Horst remains a master at his genre of Nordic Crime Fiction and Snow Fall deserves a 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ star rating.

Jørn Lier Horst is one of Norway’s most experienced police investigators, but also one of Scandinavia’s most successful crime writers. He writes engaging and intelligent crime novels that offer an uncommonly detailed and realistic insight into the way serious crimes are investigated, as well as how both police and press work. His literary awards include the Norwegian Booksellers’ Prize, the Riverton Prize (Golden Revolver), the Scandinavian Glass Key and the prestigious Martin Beck Award.

You can follow Jorn Lier Horst on X/TWITTER INSTAGRAM FACEBOOK

Jorn Lier Horst has his own website HERE

My #BookReview of #DeathInBlitzCity by #DavidYoung @djy_writer published by @ZaffreBooks

1942. HULL, EAST YORKSHIRE – It is the most heavily bombed city outside of London, but for the sake of national morale the Hull Blitz is kept top secret.

Newly posted Detective Chief Inspector Ambrose Swift cannot believe the devastation he finds. But for Swift and his deputies – Sergeant Jim ‘Little’ Weighton and Women’s Police Auxiliary Kathleen Carver – it’s murder, not the war, that looms large.

When a series of sadistic killings is blamed on locally-stationed American GIs, Swift soon discovers not all is what it seems. The stench of racism and corruption goes to the very top.

But finding the real killer will prove just as dangerous as the falling bombs. Because powerful forces cannot let the war effort be undermined – not even by the truth . . .

My Review…..

Well, Death In Blitz City has been sitting on my bookshelf since I stumbled on it about 7 months ago, so I thought Id give it a go and I was not at all disappointed!

From the outset we meet the newly posted from London to Hull, Detective Chief Inspector Ambrose Swift. Survivor of WW1, albeit with one arm missing and a hefty prosthetic in its place, but he is an astute and knowledgable Detective, who likes to get the job done. Written with such care and with obvious research into soldiers returning to society after WW1, he is a very likeable chap.

With his two trusty sidekicks the giant, bare knuckle fighting Sargeant Jim “Little” Weightman and Womens Police Auxillery Kathleen Carver, they set about trying to find out who murdered a young woman during an air raid.

What follows is a gripping tale of wartime suspicion and racism, that I was quite shocked to read about, a sadistic murderer must be caught and even when up against barriers these three will find them.

Superb sense of place and I loved the dialogue, it seemed so “of the time”, in fact I felt like I was transported back to WW2 with all the devastastion and tension, Death In Blitz City really is a superbly well written wartime police thriller.

A 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ star read from me, I just hope we can get a publisher onboard as id love to read book 2! My ideal WW2 crime fiction novel.

DAVID YOUNG was born near Hull and, after dropping out of a Bristol University science degree, studied Humanities at Bristol Polytechnic. Temporary jobs cleaning ferry toilets and driving a butcher’s van were followed by a career in journalism on provincial newspapers, a London news agency, and international radio and TV newsrooms. He now divides his time between Twickenham and a writing base on Syros in Greece, and in his spare time supports Hull City AFC

You can buy David Young’s books HERE

You can connect with David Young on WEBSITE TWITTER/X INSTAGRAM FACEBOOK

My turn on #TheGlassWoman #BlogTour by #AliceMcilroy @alice_mcilroy published by @DaturaBooks @rkbookpublicist

When you wake up without your memories, who can you really trust?

Pioneering scientist Iris Henderson chose to be her own first test subject for an experimental therapy, placing a piece of technology into her brain. At least, this is what everyone tells her. Trouble is, Iris is now without her memories so she doesn’t know what the therapy is or why she would ever decide to volunteer for it.

Everyone warns her to leave it alone, but Iris doesn’t know who to trust. As she scratches beneath the surface of her seemingly happy marriage and successful career, a catastrophic chain of events is set in motion. Secrets will be revealed that have the capacity to destroy her whole life, but Iris can’t stop digging.

My Review …

Huge thanks to Datura Books for my copy of The Glass Woman.

The Glass Woman by Alice Mcilroy explores the gripping tale of Iris Henderson, a woman who wakes up in a hospital bed devoid of her memories.

Lost in a labyrinth of uncertainty, she struggles to discern who she can truly trust in her newfound reality. As Iris grapples with her amnesia, she is confronted by a stranger named Marcus, who claims to be her husband. However, she fails to recognize him, casting doubt on the authenticity of their relationship. The disconcerting nature of her circumstances only intensifies as the narrative unfolds. Intriguingly, Iris learns that she willingly volunteered to participate as the inaugural test subject for an innovative AI therapy.

Astonishingly, she discovers that she is not only the patient but also the brilliant scientist responsible for developing this experimental treatment. This revelation plunges Iris into a perplexing moral and existential dilemma. Throughout her journey, Iris encounters numerous individuals who caution her against unearthing the truth. Despite the warnings, her curiosity persists, compelling her to delve deeper into the façade of her ostensibly idyllic marriage and successful career.

The Glass Woman is a riveting exploration of identity, trust, and the consequences of unyielding curiosity. Through Alice Mcilroy’s masterful storytelling, I was ensnared and gripped in Iris Henderson’s tumultuous journey, questioning their own perceptions of memory and uncovering the depths of human resilience.

Will Iris ultimately find solace in the truth, or will her insatiable desire for answers lead to her downfall? Only by following Iris’ relentless pursuit can we truly comprehend the extent of the psychological labyrinth she must navigate to reclaim her memories and discover the truth beneath them.

A very thrilling, creepy and excellent novel – 4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Stars.

Alice McIlroy was born in London. She graduated in English and has a post-graduate in Law. She completed Faber Academy’s novel-writing programme and has taught English in state schools in London and Milan. Her writing has been longlisted for the Stylist Prize for Feminist Fiction and Grindstone International Novel Prize. The Glass Woman is her debut novel.

You can buy The Glass Woman HERE

You can connect with Alice Mcilroy on X/TWITTER  INSTAGRAM

My #BookReview of #Argylle by #EllyConway published by #Bantam #5Stars

One Russian magnate’s dream of restoring a nation to greatness has set in motion a chain of events which will take the world to the brink of chaos. Only Frances Coffey, the CIA’s most legendary spymaster, can prevent it. But to do so, she needs someone special.

Enter Argylle. His life came to a crashing halt as a teenager. Since then he has been treading water, building barriers between himself and the world. Until one moment of compassion and brilliance will bring him to the attention of the most powerful woman in the secret world.

Coffey knows all about Argylle’s dark past. She knows it haunts him. But she also knows it may give him the skills to join the team going up against one of the most powerful men in the world. His crash course in espionage will take him from the jungles of Thailand to the boulevards of Monaco, from the monasteries of Mount Athos to a forgotten cavern buried deep in the mountains.

It is a deathly rollercoaster ride that will either make him – or break him…

My Review…..

I was lucky enough to win a Waterstones voucher during the Advent competition season, and I had seen Argylle so thought I would use the voucher to purchase it.

I was totally immersed in the world of Aubrey Argylle from page one. we are introduced to him after reading about a Russian Right Wing Billionaire, who is in search of something called The Amber Room.

Aubrey Argylle is a really lovable character, orphaned after his parents die in a plane crash only to find they were drug dealers, and so his life was thrown into turmoil. But after years of healing he gets an invite to join the CIA, after a heroic event that he participated in.

There then follows a page turning thrilling romp thru several Countries with action and villains, on the trail of Nazi Gold to get to the prize before the Russians.

I loved Argylle, this is a debut novel and I thought Elly Conways writing and plot was brilliant, a great cast of varied characters and an adventure in many different settings which were all written so descriptively, the book ran like a movie in my mind.

The first in a new series, I can’t wait to read book two! If you like spy thrillers and boys own adventures then Argylle is the book for you. A solid 4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ read and a great debut!

Soon to be a Movie!!

My #BookReview of #RazorbladeTears by #SACosby @blacklionking 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A Black father. A white father. Two murdered sons. A quest for vengeance.

Ike Randolph has been out of jail for fifteen years, with not so much as a speeding ticket in all that time. But a Black man with cops at the door knows to be afraid.

The last thing he expects to hear is that his son Isiah has been murdered, along with Isiah’s white husband, Derek. Ike had never fully accepted his son but is devastated by his loss.

Derek’s father Buddy Lee was almost as ashamed of Derek for being gay as Derek was ashamed his father was a criminal. Buddy Lee still has contacts in the underworld, though, and he wants to know who killed his boy.

Ike and Buddy Lee, two ex-cons with little else in common other than a criminal past and a love for their dead sons, band together in their desperate desire for revenge. In their quest to do better for their sons in death than they did in life, hardened men Ike and Buddy Lee will confront their own prejudices about their sons and each other, as they rain down vengeance upon those who hurt their boys.

My Review…..

Ike Randolph, a Black father, has been out of jail for fifteen years and is leading a peaceful life with his wife, trying to bury his criminal past. But when he receives the news of his son Isiah’s murder and that of his white husband, Derek, Ike is shattered. Although Ike had never fully accepted his son’s choices, he is determined to seek justice.

Derek’s father, Buddy Lee, an ex-con with a criminal record, is also grieving his son’s death and wants to find the murderers. Ike and Buddy Lee have nothing in common except their love for their dead sons and their criminal past. Despite their differences, they unite to seek revenge against their sons’ killers.

As Ike and Buddy Lee delve deeper into the investigation, they confront their own prejudices about their sons and each other. They also encounter unforeseen obstacles as they navigate the dangerous world of crime. Their determination to do right by their sons in death drives them forward, even as they struggle to reconcile their feelings about their own pasts.

During their quest for vengeance, Ike and Buddy Lee uncover shocking secrets that threaten to upend everything they thought they knew about their sons. With the stakes higher than ever, they take dangerous risks that put themselves and others in harm’s way.

In the end, Ike and Buddy Lee’s search for justice leads them to a violent showdown with the people responsible for the murders. Their actions have unforeseen consequences as both men face impossible choices. Yet, they remain united in their love for their sons and their determination to make things right.

Razorblade Tears is a thriller that will keep readers on the edge of their seats. With its complex lovable characters, intricate plot, and powerful themes of grief, redemption, and revenge, it is a must-read for anyone looking for an emotional rollercoaster ride.

S.A Cosby is an utter genius and I am a huge fan! A 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Star read.

You can connect with Shawn Cosby on INSTAGRAM X/TWITTER FACEBOOK