Book Review – Page 2 – Judefire33

My #BookReview of #Drowning by @T_J_Newman published by @simonschusterUK on 8.6.2023

Flight attendant turned New York Times bestselling author T. J. Newman – whose first book Falling was an instant international bestseller and the biggest thriller debut of 2021 – returns for her second book, an edge-of-your-seat thriller about a commercial jetliner that crashes into the ocean, and sinks to the bottom with passengers trapped inside, and the extraordinary rescue operation to save them.

The Blurb……..

Six minutes after takeoff, Flight 1421 crashes into the Pacific Ocean. During the evacuation, an engine explodes and the plane is flooded. Those still alive are forced to close the doors—but it’s too late. The plane sinks to the bottom with twelve passengers trapped inside.

More than two hundred feet below the surface, engineer Will Kent and his eleven-year-old daughter Shannon are waist-deep in water and fighting for their lives.

Their only chance at survival is an elite rescue team on the surface led by professional diver Chris Kent – Shannon’s mother and Will’s soon-to-be ex-wife – who must work together with Will to find a way to save their daughter and rescue the passengers from the sealed airplane, which is now teetering on the edge of an undersea cliff.

There’s not much time.

There’s even less air.

With devastating emotional power and heart-stopping suspense, Drowning is an unforgettable thriller about a family’s desperate fight to save themselves and the people trapped with them – against impossible odds.

My review…….

I must say a huge thank you to Polly at Simon and Schuster for being so kind and sending me a proof copy of Drowning! It is treasured!!

Now this will be a really hard review to write as I do not want to give anything away! As you can see from the above blurb we join Will Kent and his 11 year old daughter Shannon aboard Flight 1421, 6 minutes after takeoff when the worst thing that can happen, happens, an engine bursts into flames….. OR SO YOU THINK….

This book is an absolute MASTERPIECE of thriller writing, it grabs you round the throat from the very first page and shakes you damn hard all the way through until the end! I cannot explain how marvellous Drowning is, it read like a movie, I could not do anything else but read it, I was totally gripped and needed to know what was going to happen next. There are plot twists, and just when you think things cannot get any worse… they do! I was shouting ” Oh No” several times, I cried, I laughed, and I was utterly breathless and wrung out at the end… in fact I felt like I had been on Flight 1421!!

TJ Newman is just an unbelievable author and she has found a niche in the thriller market, you can tell from her own experiences as an Air Hostess that she brings those to her writing, but she also researches her subjects well, and this really helps to bring Drowning alive.

I would expect Drowning to be made into a movie, like her first book Falling, because Damn, it is THAT good!

I think this will be my book of the year as I fail to see how any other author can beat the thrill ride and emotional turmoil that is Drowning! If there’s one book you read this year, it has to be Drowning…go and get it pre-ordered now!

A huge 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ star review from me ( It needs to be 500!💥)

T. J. Newman is a former bookseller and flight attendant whose first novel *Falling* became a publishing sensation and debuted at number two on the *New York Times* bestseller list. The book was named a best book of the year by *USA TODAY* and *Esquire*, among many others, and has been published in over thirty countries. The book will soon be a major motion picture from Universal Pictures. T. J. lives in Phoenix, Arizona. *Drowning* is her second novel.

You can Pre-Order Drowning HERE

You can follow TJ Newman on TWITTER INSTAGRAM FACEBOOK

You can sign up to TJ Nerwman’s website HERE

My #Review of #eighteenseconds by @LouiseWriter published by @MardleBooks on 27.4.2023

Family is the best thing in your life. And the worst.

My mother once said to me, ‘I wish you could feel the way I do for eighteen seconds. Just eighteen seconds, so you’d know how awful it is.’

I thought about it. Realised we could all learn from being in another person’s head for eighteen seconds. Eighteen seconds inside Grandma Roberts’ head as she sat alone with her evening cup of tea, us girls upstairs in bed. Eighteen seconds inside one-year-old Colin’s head when he woke up in a foster home without his family. Eighteen seconds inside the head of a girl waiting for her bedroom door to open.

Writer, Louise Beech, looks back on the events that led to the day her mother wrote down her last words, then jumped off the Humber Bridge. She missed witnessing the horror herself by minutes.

Louise recounts the pain and trauma of her childhood alongside her love for her siblings with delicious dark humour and a profound voice of hope for the future.

Thank you to Mardle Books for kindly sending me an early proof of Eighteen Seconds.

Im not sure what drew me to this memoir by author Louise Beech but I’m so glad, which is a strange thing to say about such a touching and horrific memoir.

This book will not be for everyone, it deals with mental health issues, abuse, suicide and fractured families, that said this is such an uplifting book, and what comes from reading it, is hope, hope that through the darkest of times, we can overcome and find joy and love in those around us, that support us and love us for who we are, not what we’ve been through.

Louise Beech writes with assured honesty and dark humour ( I’m just going to add here that growing up with a chronically ill Mother, my Brother and I have learnt this art, an example…when our Mum used to go to the local chest hospital ( she had chronic asthma ), there was a sign on entering saying “Dead Slow”, well us being kids laughed at it, and I remember my Mum also laughing but my Dad got very cross with us all!), in fact, I actually felt Louise coming off the pages and talking just to me. What an absolute talent, to be able to look back and write of past and current horrors BUT move forward and learn to work through the very situations and emotions that can floor anyone, to survive and become an excellent writer is amazing, to have used writing as a way of dealing with some of the awful things that happened to Louise and her siblings, is such an uplifting event.

My overall feeling when I had finished Eighteen Seconds was that I just wanted to find Louise Beech and give her the biggest hug ever! Not because I feel sorry for her but because I’m in awe of her talent and ability to move on with her life in such a positive way. obviously, I’m not able to do this, but should I ever meet Louse Beech I shall definitely give her a huge Jude hug!.

A touching, heartfelt, moving, horrific and uplifting memoir and well deserving of 5 Stars.

Louise’s debut novel, How to be Brave, was a Guardian Readers’ pick in 2015 and a top ten bestseller on Amazon. The Mountain in my Shoe longlisted for the Guardian’s Not The Booker Prize 2016. The Sunday Mirror called Maria in the Moon ‘quirky, darkly comic, original and heartfelt’. It was also a Must Read in the Sunday Express and a Book of the Year at LoveReadingUK. The Lion Tamer Who Lost was described as ‘engrossing and captivating’ by the Daily Express. It also shortlisted for the RNA’s Romantic Novel of the Year and longlisted for the Polari Prize 2019. Call Me Star Girl hit number one on Kobo. It also longlisted for the Not The Booker Prize and won the Best magazine Big Book Award 2019. This Is How We Are Human was a Clare Mackintosh August Book of the Month 2021. Audiobook memoir Daffodils came out in 2022, and novel Nothing Else too. Her memoir is coming in paperback as Eighteen Seconds April 2023.
Louise also writes as Louise Swanson.

You can buy Eighteen Seconds for £9.19 HERE

You can visit Louise’s website HERE

You can follow Louise on TWITTER INSTAGRAM FACEBOOK

My #bookreview of #BrokenHeartsandZombieParts by @WHusseyAuthor published by @Usborne on 11.5.2023

A Big Gay Rom-Zom-Com with Heart

Jesse Spark has a broken heart and in a few short weeks he’ll require major surgery to repair it – which means he only has a month to accomplish two almost-impossible tasks.

1) Shoot his epic zombie movie on a shoestring budget if he has any hope of getting into film school. 2) Fall in love before this surgery lands him with a huge scar – because how will anyone ever fancy him after that?

Sex Education meets Love, Simon – with fake zombies – in this savagely funny gay YA romance about body image, self-acceptance and falling in love, all while shooting a low-budget zombie flick!

Fun, fresh and authentic, this is the feel-good hit of #hotboysummer, perfect for fans of Alice Oseman, Ciara Smyth and Adam Silvera.

Hugest of thanks to William Hussey for sending me a copy of Broken Hearts & Zombie Parts, it is treasured.

So Broken Hearts & Zombie Parts is a “Big Gay Rom-Com” that’s aimed at teenagers (13+) , and I know its been 40 years since I’ve been a teenager but my body may be failing but my mind is still young! I can vividly remember being a teenager and realising I was “different” because I didn’t like boys, and the struggles I had coming to terms with that and eventually coming out in my early 30’s. In the 80’s we had very little in the way of role models or indeed books to help those of us from middle class, Christian households. BUT how I wish I had had a book like Broken Hearts & Zombie Parts, to give me confidence to express who I wanted to be. Of course nowadays I’d like to think the majority of children and young adults do HAVE that opportunity as times have thankfully changed.

William Hussey has managed to write and utterly fantastic, hilarious, touching, and excellently plotted novel. Our main character Jesse Sparks has just been diagnosed with a heart issue after collapsing at the Ferrivale High School Prom (embarrassing!) and he has just 4 weeks to make an epic zombie movie Zombie Honeymoon, on a budget of zero, if he has any chance of getting in to film school. He also wants to find a boyfreind before his body is hideously disfigured, becuase then noone will want him!

His 2 best friends Casper Loomis and Morgan Adeyemi-Perera, have agreed to help in this quest as always. I must say the way William Hussey has written the scenes at the Hospital for Jesse’s treatments are absolutely stunning, I know this is because He himself had a life saving operation, but to be able to write this into the plot as a 17 year old boy and in a language anyone can understand is superb.

The characters are written with love and care and i instantly fell in love with Jesse and his quirky ways, but all the main characters are just so vividly written and loveable, Mr Hussey is a real Pro at this!

The novels plot is fast moving and gripping, at no point did i feel bored, in fact i couldn’t wait to find out what was going to happen next, and have i mentioned how utterly hilarious it is? I was laughing out loud at so much, which is a rare talent that not all authors can achieve!

William Hussey has managed to write a marvellous book with issues that affect teenagers everywhere, in a comedic and knowledgeable way, issues such as body image, sexuality, bullying, life threatening medical procedures, friendships, dementia and dysfunctional families, oh and of course Zombies!

This is a magical novel, its touching, its funny, its heartfelt and its above all REAL! if I was a teenager today I’d be getting all my mates to read it! Fans of Alice Osman’s Heartstopper series will love Broken Hearts & Zombie Parts. This book is a bookbanger and will surely become a best seller, and it so deserves it.

A Big Gay 5 Stars from me!

William Hussey is an award-winning author of over a dozen novels. From thrillers for Young Adults to gripping whodunnits for grown-ups, he has written in almost every genre of fiction. His latest books include the highly-anticipated KILLING JERICHO (April 2023), the first in a brand new series featuring crime fiction’s first Traveller detective, and the acclaimed political thriller for teens, THE OUTRAGE.
His other titles for children and Young Adults include Hideous Beauty, Witchfinder: Dawn of the Demontide, Witchfinder: Gallows at Twilight; Witchfinder: The Last Nightfall; Haunted; The Nightmare Eater; and Turn Her Face To The Wall.

You can Pre-Order Broken Hearts & Zombie Parts HERE

You can follow William Hussey on TWITTER INSTAGRAM FACEBOOK

You can sign up to William Hussey’s Newsletter HERE

My #BookReview of #CanticleCreek by #AdrianHyland published by @ultimopress

Canticle Creek is a twisty crime thriller set in small town Australia.

When Adam Lawson’s wrecked car is found a kilometre from Daisy Baker’s body, the whole town assumes it’s an open and shut case. But Jesse Redpath isn’t from Canticle Creek. Where she comes from, the truth often hides in plain sight, but only if you know where to look. When Jesse starts to ask awkward questions, she uncovers a town full of contradictions and a cast of characters with dark pasts, secrets to hide and even more to lose.

As the temperature soars, and the ground bakes, the wilderness surrounding Canticle Creek becomes a powderkeg waiting to explode. All it needs is one spark.

Something drew me to the cover of Canticle Creek, and when i read the blurb I knew why. I love Australian novels, and Adrian Hyland is another new one for me.

This is a really gritty and sticky novel. Set in a small outback town full or prejudice and racism, the author writes with authority on both these subjects and manages to weave a very strong plot.

The characters were well written and I really felt myself investing with each turn of the page, Jesse Redpath our lead, is a bloody hard nut Ozzie Cop who goes to the small town of Canticle Creek to see whether the police there are doing their jobs properly, in looking into a young criminal known to her that has been charged with murder after events in the town. She takes her Dad along with her and so embarks on a mission to seek the truth, which leaves her in danger.

I loved the way Canticle Creek was written, the language is pure Australian slang which makes it so more realistic, however i did have to google a few words, but that’s a plus because I learnt something whilst reading!

A gripping crime thriller, set in the sulty, dry heat of the Australian summer, with relatable characters and a brilliant plot.

Another excellent novel from Ultimo Press, 5 star rating from me.

Adrian Hyland **spent many years in the Northern Territory, living and working among indigenous people**. He now teaches at LaTrobe University and lives in the north-east of Melbourne. His first novel, Diamond Dove won the 2007 Ned Kelly Award for Best First Fiction.

You can buy Canticle Creek HERE

You can visit Ultimo Press HERE

#BookReview of #WhatTheShadowsHide #DIRidpath #9 by @WriterMJLee published by @CaneloCrime

To love and to cherish, till death did them part…

‘A brilliant thriller’ The Sun

Two desiccated bodies are found in each other’s arms in the bricked up room of a derelict Victorian warehouse. After six months of work, the police have nothing and Ridpath is finally called in to investigate. Dubbed the Romeo and Juliet murders by the press, so many questions remain unanswered.

Who are they? Why were they there? Who killed them? And why was the coroner so keen for him to work on this particular case?

Ridpath is plunged into his most difficult investigation yet, in a race against time to discover the truth. Has an unknown serial killer been operating in Manchester for the last twenty years?

Fast-paced, vicious and utterly compelling, the latest Ridpath novel is perfect for fans of Mark Billingham and Damien Boyd.

I’ve been reading the DI Ridpath novels since I stumbled upon them a few years ago, so I was excited to get into What The Shadows Hide.

For those that don’t know MJ Lee’s Detective Inspector Thomas Ridpath is working for Manchester Police in the Major Investigations Team and he is also on loan to the Coroner as a Coroner’s Officer. Both these jobs can run smoothly together but also they can run poor Ridpath ragged, and so is the latest case.

Two bodies are found in a building that is due to be demolished, they were is a sealed room and Ridpath is called into find out who they were and their killer with only 8 days, as the Chief Constable then wants to shut down what is known as the Romeo and Juliet enquiry. On top of this his boss and friend at the coroners office, Mrs Challinor is brutally attacked and lays in a coma in hospital. Ridpath and his team are then given a temporary Coroner , who is very unlike Mrs Challinor and who I couldn’t stand!

Throw into this the fact that after loosing his wide Polly, Ridpath has to also bring up his only Daughter Evie, an intelligent 13 year old, but also one who does need her father around, and you have the makings of an excellent novel.

This is a fast paced story and the usual cast of supporting characters are there to help Ridpath during this latest adventure. I always love the attention to detail that MJ Lee expresses, the inner workings of a Coroner’s Officer and also the Police procedural sides are expertly written, and very realistic.

The story grips you and doesn’t let you go until you gat to the dual climatic ending. I read What The Shadows Hide over 2 days, and didn’t guess the perp until the very last minute, which is always the sign of a well written thriller.

Each Ridpath novel is set out in a similar format, but that doesn’t mean they are repetitive or staid, every one I’ve read has been excellent and well written. If you like a UK based thriller which looks at things from a different point of view to some of the others, whose central character Ridpath is portrayed as a hard working, intelligent, emotional man, then this series is for you.

I give What The Shadows Hide 4 ⭐️ stars.

Martin spent 25 years of his life working for advertising companies in London, Hong Kong, Taipei, Singapore, Bangkok and Shanghai. As a copywriter and a creative director, he has won awards from Cannes, One Show, D&AD, New York, the LIAA, and the United Nations.
He’s written four historical crime novels. The latest, ‘The Irish Inheritance’, a Jayne Sinclair, Genealogical Mystery, will be published on June 15, 2016.
When he’s not writing, he splits his time between the UK and Asia, dancing with his three year-old daughter, researching his family histrory, practicing downhill ironing, single-handedly solving the problem of the French wine lake and wishing he were George Clooney.

You can follow M J Lee on TWITTER FACEBOOK

M J Lee has his own website HERE

You can buy What The Shadows Hide HERE

My #BookReview of #Slaughterhousefarm by @TOrrMunro published by @HQstories on 25.5.2023 #CSIAllyDymond #2

A family secret worth killing for…

In the dead of night, 72-year-old Miriam Narracott is found wandering on Exmoor, holding a knife and covered in blood. Inside the family farmhouse lies the body of her adult son, Gabe.

CSI Ally Dymond is on compassionate leave, but when approached by the new DI, recently arrived from London and eager to have Ally’s keen eye and local knowledge on the case, she finds herself being drawn back in.

With their only suspect Miriam unwilling – or unable – to talk, the team must dig into the family’s history to uncover a motive. Instead they find evidence that Gabe was involved with a criminal network, suggesting a completely different chain of events. But if Miriam isn’t the killer – then who is?

The gripping second novel in the CSI Ally Dymond series.

Thank you to HQ Stories for very kindly sending me a proof copy of Slaughterhouse Farm.

After reading Breakneck point last year which I absolutely raved about and reviewed with a 5-star rating, I was super eager to get started on the follow up, Slaughterhouse Farm.

We meet our brilliant lead character again, CSI Ally Dymond, in her Devon village where she and her daughter Megan are still recovering from the attack that happened in Breakneck Point. (If you don’t know then you really need to buy and read book 1 in the series! )

Ally is on compassionate leave and is questioning herself as to whether she returns to role as a CSI for Devon & Cornwall Police Force. With her daughter nearly dying after a brutal attack, and still recovering, as a Mum she is putting her daughters welfare first, all be it with Megan getting stronger everyday, Megan is starting to get fed up with being wrapped in cotton wool.

I love the way Ms Munro has woven so much emotion into what is a crime fiction novel, its done with such prowess, and certainly shows another side to anyone working with the Police Force. The dynamic between mother and daughter is wonderful and I loved this part of Slaughterhouse Farm.

The plot is fast moving and easy to follow, but not so easy that I guessed the outcome! The cast of supporting character’s is really well written and they fit in perfectly with the storyline.

I’m not going to give anything away, but this is an explosive crime fiction novel that’s full of surprises, some good and some bad!

As a follow up and book 2 in the series, Slaughterhouse Farm is excellent and Ms Munro is a hugely talented author. At 406 pages long, I read Slaughterhouse Farm in 2 days, I could not put it down!.

A must for fans of crime fiction series that hit the police procedural mark plus the realistic emotions of people whose lives are affected by crimes.

My rating – 5 stars!

T. Orr Munro was born in Hampshire to an English mother and a Greek-Armenian father who later moved to Devon. After university she trained as a CSI, then became a secondary school teacher. She changed career at 33 to become a police and crime journalist. She has since returned with her family to live in North Devon, the setting for Breakneck Point. Her time as a CSI provided much of the inspiration for the novel, shining a light on what happens behind the crime scene tape.

You can Pre-Order Slaughterhouse Farm HERE

You can follow Tina Munro on TWITTER INSTRAGRAM

My #bookreview of #AllOfUsAreBroken by @FionaAnnCummins published by @panmacmillan on 20.7.2023

It’s been a long time since the Hardwicke family has been on holiday. But thirteen-year-old Galen has wanted to see the wild dolphins at Scotland’s Chanonry Point for as long as she can remember, and her mother Christine – a lone parent since her beloved husband left – is determined she gets her wish. But their serene trip is about to be interrupted.

When DC Saul Anguish is called to investigate the shooting of an ex-police officer in Midtown-on-Sea, Essex, he quickly discovers that this is the first in a string of killings by Missy and Fox, a damaged young couple hell-bent on infamy, their love story etched in blood. In pursuit, Saul follows their trail north.

The paths of the Hardwickes’ and the deadly couple are about to collide. When Saul and his forensic linguist partner, Blue, arrive on the scene, they witness the unthinkable: a mother forced to make an impossible choice.

Saul must uncover the truth about the couple. But can he find the strength to lay the ghosts of his past to rest before they break him

Thank you so much to Fiona Cummins for my signed copy of All Of Us Are Broken.

There are some authors and some books that as soon as you receive them you forget every other book and have to read them right away…All Of Us Are Broken, was one of mine.

This is a follow-up to the much-raved-about Into The Dark with DC Saul Anguish as our lead character, and as fans of the first book will know, he is a dark and unique detective who finds a kindred spirit in one of the CSI team.

All Of Us Are Broken gallops off the page from the opening prologue, this is an immense work of art, and in my opinion Fiona Cummins’s best novel to date.

I was totally obsessed and could not put this book down, the plot is brilliant, it’s hyper-tense, it’s twisty, it has surprises and it is violent and oh-so dark, but there’s also a smattering of heartbreaking sadness. these characters are all so well written and with each page we see their layers peeled off to meet the real them! This is a thriller that will have your skin crawling with anxiety and the way Fiona Cummins writes to keep the reader literally on the edge of their seat is amazing, a talent, not every author can do well, but Fiona is the MASTER at tension and keeping the reader gripped in the story!

I really loved All Of Us Are Broken, that title sums up the plot and storyline so well! I loved the well-written landscapes, the graphically gory murder scenes, they delve into the character’s psyche, and the way the story just grabbed me from page 1. This is an almost horrifically violent book, so if you don’t like gore and violence it may not be for you, but I just loved it! The creep of anxiety that spread down my spine as the story gains its pace was utterly marvellous!

This will be one of my books of the year, and deserves so much more than 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars! A definite binge-read for thriller fans!

Fiona Cummins is an award-winning former journalist and a graduate of the Faber Academy, where she now teaches her own Writing Crime course. She is the bestselling author of five crime thriller novels, all of which have received widespread critical acclaim from household names including Val McDermid, Lee Child, David Baldacci, Martina Cole and Ian Rankin. Three of her novels have been optioned for television.
Rattle, her debut, has been translated into several languages and Marcel Berlins wrote in The Times: ‘Amid the outpouring of crime novels, Rattle is up there with the best of them.’ Fiona was selected for McDermid’s prestigious New Blood panel at the 2017 Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, where her novel was nominated for a Dead Good Reader Award for Most Exceptional Debut. A sequel, The Collector, was published in February 2018 and David Baldacci described it as ‘A crime novel of the very first order’.
Her third novel – standalone thriller The Neighbour – was published in April 2019. Ian Rankin called it ‘creepy as hell’. Her fourth novel When I Was Ten, an Irish Times bestseller, was published in April 2021. Into The Dark, Fiona’s fifth novel, was published in April 2022 and was described by Sarah Vaughan, author of Netflix smash-hit Anatomy of A Scandal, as ‘Complex. Inventive. Twisty. Unsettling.’ The Daily Mail said it was ‘breathtakingly good’. Her sixth novel, All Of Us Are Broken, will be published in July 2023.
When Fiona is not writing, she can be found on Twitter, eating biscuits or walking her dogs. She lives in Essex with her family.

You can Pre-Order All Of Us Are Broken HERE

You can follow Fiona Cummins on TWITTER INSTRAGRAM FACEBOOK

My #BookReview of #TheFields by @erinyoungauthor published by @HodderBooks

IT STARTS WITH A BODY-a young woman found dead in an Iowa cornfield, on one of the few family farms still managing to compete with the giants of Big Agriculture.

For Sergeant Riley Fisher, newly promoted to head of investigations at the Black Hawk County Sheriff’s Office, an already horrific crime takes on a personal edge when she discovers the victim is an old friend, from a dark past she thought she’d left behind.

Rumour travels fast in small towns, while sweltering heat and state-wide elections only add to the pressure-cooker atmosphere. When another body is found, Riley is in danger of being engulfed by the fear and the frenzy. Something deeply disturbing is out there – and it reaches far beyond Black Hawk County.

Beautifully written and masterfully crafted, The Fields is a stunning crime debut.

Well we all know that towering tbr pile? So The Fields has been on my shelf for ages, but as I had a book spring clean, I thought I would give it a go.

And holy moly what a book! Set in the cornfields of Iowa, the novel starts with the finding of a female in the middle of a corn field in the high heat and humidity of Summer. This book has such epic descriptions of the Iowa countryside and sprawling scenery, Erin Young has totally captured the landscape here, and having been freaked out by Children Of The Corn as a teenager, the sense of dread and tension really helped me to love The Fields.

The plot is fantastic involving Genetically Modified Crops, Politics, Murder, Cannabalism and betrayal. We meet Sargent Riley Fisher in the sweltering heat of the corn field with the first horrifically injured body, and we follow her throughout the novel. Riley is from the small Midwest town and has her own secrets from the past that she struggles to keep a lid on when we find out that the murder victim is a childhood friend.

I loved Riley’s character and in fact all the characters are extremely well written and they sit well into the novel. It had me thinking of novels like The Dry by Jane Harper, because of its attention to detail with the settings, the weather, the townsfolk and the small Black Hawk County Sheriff’s Office. But that does not take away what a fabulous novel this is. It has a great pace that keeps the reader fully engaged and I was really invested in the plot and storyline. How Big Agricultural Companies are always looking at ways to produce more crops and get more money, the greed that comes with that and how that may take people down an illegal path.

Brilliant just brilliant is my take home from The Fields, very well written and so atmospheric and tense. I loved Riley Fisher and hope I don’t have to wait too long before I get to read about her and her family in the future.

Superbly written and gripping another 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ read from me.

Erin Young’s debut thriller, THE FIELDS, was inspired by an article about the menacing power of Big Agriculture. A decision to set the novel in Iowa, corn-capital of the world, led her to make a fascinating journey across the state, from chance encounters with cops and farmers to an audience with a local mayor, shooting Glocks and getting caught in supercell storms, from the state capitol to the state fair. Having grown up in a fishing village in Devon, she is drawn to the claustrophobic dramas of rural small-towns and the secrets they hide.
Erin Young is the pseudonym of acclaimed historical novelist, Robyn Young, author of eight internationally bestselling novels. She has been published in 19 languages in 22 countries, selling two million books worldwide. THE FIELDS is her first contemporary thriller. She lives and writes in Brighton, England.

You can buy The Fields HERE

You can follow Erin Young on TWITTER FACEBOOK

Erin Young has her own website HERE

My #bookreview of #WhenWeFall by @aoifejclifford published by @ultimopress on 3.5.2023

In the wild, coastal town of Merritt, Alex Tillerson and her mother make a shocking find on the beach. The police claim it’s an accidental death but there are whispers of murder and that it is not the first.

‘It isn’t strangers you need to worry about here. Blood lines run deep and in unexpected places. Every victim, every accused, we’ll know. The past runs alongside us all the time. Some days it spills into the open.’

Bella Greggs was found dead at the bottom of a ravine but drowned in salt water. Maxine McFarlane was pulled from the ocean but with no water in her lungs. Black feathers were found with both bodies but what do they mean?

As Alex fights for answers to honour the dead, and to discover why her mother fled town as a teenager, good people keep looking the other way, memories become unreliable and secrets threaten to reveal the past.

Alex discovers the truth never dies but it can kill…

Aoife Clifford was born in London of Irish parents, studied Arts/Law at the Australian National University, and now lives in Melbourne. Aoife is the author of best selling literary crime novels, Second Sight, runners up in 2019 for Crime Book of the Year in the Davitt Awards, and All These Perfect Strangers, which was long listed for both the ABIA General Fiction Book of the Year and the Voss Literary Prize. She has been shortlisted for the UK Crime Association’s Debut Dagger among other prizes. Her award-winning short stories have been published in Australia, UK and US.

Hugest of thanks to James at Ultimo Press for sending me a copy of When We Fall.

I’m always on the lookout for new Australian crime fiction and authors, it amazes me how there are so many talented authors in one Country! And I love Outback Noir and Australian novels.

When We Fall is a griping novel that’s part crime fiction and also literary fiction. Set in a smalltown in Australia with all the prejudices and rumours that exist in these towns, we meet Alex Tillerson a Barrister who has had to come back to her home town from the city to look after Denny, her Mum who is suffering from Dementia. On the first morning they are taking a walk along the shoreline when Denny stumbles onto a find that completely changes the whole reason for Alex’s stay in Merritt.

This is a wonderfully descriptive story that covers the emotional side of dealing with ageing parents, and the effects of murder on a small town. Alexi s driven by her compassion and sense of righteousness to help in the search for a murderer, which leads her into danger.

I loved When We Fall, there’s a diverse set of characters and they are very well observed, I found this an easy read and the plot was excellent, keeping me guessing all the way until the end. If you like small town Australia and all the claustrophobia, atmosphere and prejudices that go with it and strong female lead characters then this will be the book for you.

A very solid 4 star read.

Released on 3.5.2023 in the UK you can buy When We Fall HERE

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My #Review of #TheWhiteLady by #JaquelineWinspear Published by @AllisonandBusby on 21.3.2023

1947. Elinor White, known locally as ‘the White lady’, is living a solitary, quiet life in a grace-and-favour cottage in the Kent countryside. Unbeknownst to her neighbours, she is the veteran of two world wars, a trained killer and a former intelligence agent.

Yet Elinor’s private and seemingly tranquil existence conceals a past trauma that comes to the fore when she is drawn into the predicament of a local man entangled with one of the most dangerous crime families in London.

A treacherous path lies ahead, but it may be one that ultimately leads Elinor to a future unshackled by her own painful history.

Thank you so much to the wonderful Allison & Busby for gifting me a copy of The White Lady.

I’d never heard of Jaqueline Winspear before seeing this book, But I’m so glad I have now!

The White Lady is a riveting and gripping thriller set just after the second world war in the UK, in 1947. We meet Miss Elinor White, who lives a very quiet life in the countryside and keeps herself to herself- her nickname is “The White Lady”. However, she has a fabulous past – a veteran of WW1 and WW2, a trained killer and an ex-spy!

This novel starts with events in 1947 then through Elinor’s eyes we travel back in time to WW1 and her childhood when she was living in Belgium, we find out how Elinor and her family helped to fight the Germans during the first world war years before fleeing to England and then taking up arms again during WW2.

I loved The White Lady, it is written in such a way that it was an easy read. It is a bit like a girl’s own adventure with the events that Elinor White gets up to, but it is written with a nod to history and all those women who worked for or were killed working for the Special Operations Executive during the second world war. Jaqueline Winspear has managed to write a fabulous fast-paced thriller with authentic characters and the plots are brilliant, I could not put it down! The descriptions of the settings during both wars were fantastic and vividly written.

The ending is quite a climax and it’s left in such a way that I hope there will be a follow-up novel!.

A great read, thrilling and addictive – 5 stars from me.