My Ten Favourite Reads of 2023

It does not feel like twelve months since I last sat down to select my favourite reads of the year, yet here we are.

It hasn’t been the best of years in terms of getting reviews onto the blog. I’ve still been reading but I started the year on an extremely busy contract (the day job) and it was draining – at the end of a long day the last thing I could do was open up another laptop screen. Then in the summer my crazy busy contract finished – I flew home early from my summer holiday to begin the second crazy busy contract of the year (day job part the second) – again lots of reading but, again, not so many reviews added to the blog.

This has made me even more determined to share my ten favourite reads of the year. There have been many cracking books which I shouted about as I read them but I want to showcase my favourites (particularly as there are still a couple of weeks to go until Christmas and I hope you may consider gifting some of these suggestions).

So without further ado (and in no particular order) I present the ten books which gave me the most pleaure in 2023

Paris Requiem – Chris Lloyd

I start with Paris Requiem. I read this back in February, had the pleasure of hearing Chris Lloyd speak about this book at September’s Bloody Scotland Festival and I have been recommending this particular title for 11 of the 12 months in 2023. It’s a crime thriller set in 1940s Paris. The lead character is a French cop and he is trying do do his job while the German army is occupying the city and putting their own leaders in positions of power in the city.

For Eddie Giral there’s just one question…why has a man he recently put in prison just turned up (very, very dead) in the office of a Parisian night club?

https://www.waterstones.com/book/paris-requiem/chris-lloyd/9781409190325

The Last Line – Stephen Ronson

It’s another book set during the Second World War but this time the action takes place in the South East of England and the hero of the tale is a former soldier who finds himself accused of a particularly nasty murder and has to prove his innocence. Along the way he will become embroiled in a mystery surrounding a missing refugee and also find himself facing off against some particulary dangerous “businessmen”.

A terrific debut novel from Stephen Ronson who delivers a perfectly paced, gripping thriller which I knew was a certain inclusion in this list as I rushed through the last few chapters. I was dying to see how this story ended but at the same time I really didn’t want it to end.

https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-last-line/stephen-ronson/9781399721233

The Darkest Sin – D V Bishop

It’s another historical crime thriller but this story takes place in Florence, Italy in the year 1537. The second of three Cesare Aldo books by D.V. Bishop that I read this year. I could honestly have selected any one of the three (City of Vengeance, The Darkest Sin and Ritual of Fire) to make this list as I virtually devoured each story back to back..it got to the point I was beginning to develop an Italian accent!

The Darkest Sin got the nod due to the sinister nuns, the sublimely clever twist of getting a very different story for those that had read City of Venegance than those that had not read CoV and also Aldo being a terrific character I want to read about again and again.

If you haven’t read D.V. Bishop yet I implore you to get that put to right immediately.

https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-darkest-sin/d-v-bishop/9781529038842

The Sun Down Motel – Simone St James

Here is the best ghost story I read this year. A haunted motel? A small town with secrets? A dangerous predator? Yes please!

In 1982 Viv took a job as the night receptionist at the Sun Down Motel. But Viv vanishes one night and is never found again. In 2017 Viv’s neice, Carly, comes to the Sun Down Motel to try and discover what happened to her aunt – she discovers more than she could ever have expected.

This is a terrifically creepy tale and a damned good mystery too. If you don’t do supernatural then it’s not for you but miss out at your peril.

https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-sun-down-motel/simone-st-james/9781405962315

The Institution – Helen Fields

This book is not for the faint of heart. I do like my crime thrillers to be on the darker side but Helen Fields has delivered a particularly grim situation and (excuse the prison pun) but it’s shackles off on the dark and gritty narrative.

In the world’s most secure prison hospital a nurse is murdered, her child abducted and the clock is ticking to recover the infant and catch a killer. It’s a locked room mystery but with everything ramped up to the absolute maximum.

I’ve always enjoyed books by Helen Fields but this really raised the bar.

https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-institution/helen-fields/9780008533519

The Devil You Know – Neil Lancaster

Regular visitors will know that I generally favour reading about recurring characters than I enjoy stand-alone novels. The Devil You Know is the newest title in the terrific Max Craigie series (book 5). Having devoured each of the previous Craigie novels I feel this series is only going from strength to strength with The Devil You Know simply blowing me away with page after page of thrills and action.

At the risk of incurring your temporary wrath – I got to read an early copy of The Devil You Know and it’s not on general release until March 2024. But let me assure you…it is well worth the wait. Why not pre-order your copy so you don’t miss out. Really….don’t miss out.

https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-devil-you-know/neil-lancaster/9780008551322

The Hotel – Louise Mumford

If The Sun Down Motel was the best horror novel I read this year, The Hotel is the best chiller. Not a full horror novel but suitably chilling and with a plot that had me thinking “Blair Witch” when the protagonists take video footage of their nocternal visit to an old, abandoned hotel high on the Welsh coastal clifftops.

Great characters, a clever mystery story and a hugely enjoyable read which just flowed from first page to last. Hunt this down and check out The Hotel

https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-hotel/louise-mumford/9780008589943

Murdle – G T Karber

I love puzzle books. I love logic puzzles and I love murder mysteries. That’s Murdle in a nutshell. A collection of fun mystery puzzles which challenge the reader/player to solve the clues and discover the murderers. Grab a pen, Grab This Book and enjoy something charmingly different.

https://www.waterstones.com/book/murdle/g-t-karber/9781800818026

The Silent Man – David Fennell

Another dark crime thriller and another absolutely cracking read. This thriller has a serial killer, a gangster with a vendetta against a cop and her family and it packs tension and twists into every chapter.

I hadn’t read David Fennell’s earlier books and I am correcting that oversight already – this story just hit the ground running and I just kept turning the pages. This is the kind of book I love to find – a story which immediately makes me feel I need to read all the other books by the same author.

https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-silent-man/david-fennell/9781804181737

The Stranger Times – C.K McDonnell

This was an audiobook listen and it made me laugh out loud so many times that I just could not leave it off this list. Falling firmly into the fantasy realms I loved the manic chaos of The Stranger Times (a weekly newspaper of odd, unexplained and the totally bonkers aspects of life). The boss is a sweary, drunk, the new reporter is making it up as she goes along, the tech support is a young teenager and the office manager tolerates them all (just).

Elsewhere a dark magician is breaking the rules and has a brutal monster under his control which he will unleash onto Manchester (and the World) if he can overcome those that would oppose him.

I’d bought book 2 of this series long before I heard the last chapters of book one. So Much Fun.

https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-stranger-times/c-k-mcdonnell/9780552177344

That’s my ten. I left out some really good books by authors I love to read and I wish I could have included more than ten books in my “Ten Favourite Reads” list but I work with numbers all day and to have a list of ten with more than ten books would make me positively antsy.

I shout about books every day of every week over on social media – I am @grabthisbook and if you follow me on Twitter/X I will endeavour to continue to flag up terrific reads through 2024 and beyond.

Enjoy what you read and share the booklove.

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March 8

The Institution – Helen Fields

They’re locked up for your safety.
Now, you’re locked in with them.

Dr Connie Woolwine has five days to catch a killer.

On a locked ward in the world’s highest-security prison hospital, a scream shatters the night. The next morning, a nurse’s body is found and her daughter has been taken. A ransom must be paid, and the clock is ticking.

Forensic profiler Dr Connie Woolwine is renowned for her ability to get inside the mind of a murderer. Now, she must go deep undercover among the most deranged and dangerous men on earth and use her unique skills to find the girl – before it’s too late.

But as the walls close in around her, can Connie get the killer before The Institution gets her?

I recieved a review copy from the publishers via Netgalley

If you like a slick and cleverly plotted thriller with tension ramped up to the max and the darkness of the subject matter to be as dark as the bottom of the deepest coal mine…then it is time to get The Institution into your life. This is quite a read and I really, really enjoyed it but I’d forgotten Helen Fields doesn’t pull the punches when putting her characters through the wringer – proceed with caution.

The Institution is a prison for dangerous killers. Each inmate in the isloated, high-security ward has committed multiple murders, is considered to be dangerous and can hold no real expectation of ever being freed. They are closely guarded and under the medical care of a team who provide psychological care but also employ any type of restraint or chemical assistance to keep their charges docile and calm. It’s a thankless place to work and there’s a high level of frustration on show amongst the staff. One employee appears to have been more popular than others but my use of “was” in the previous sentence may give an indication as to her fate.

A murder in a locked ward where all the inmates are known killers. A kidnapping too. Into this maelstrom comes Dr Connie Woolwine. She is going undercover on the ward to try to use her profiling skills to work out which of the convicted killers was responsible for the murder of the poplular young nurse. But there’s a real time pressure as the woman’s kidnapped daughter isn’t expected to live unless she can be found and returned to her family quickly.

This is a story where I can’t really share much about the plot without slipping into dangerous “spoiler” territory. The crimes described are brutal and could be upsetting for some readers. The locked room mystery element of the book is wonderfully set up and really had me scratching my head. There are obviously unpleasant characters in the story as there is a secure wing full of violent killers. But the staff that Connie finds herself working beside are equally complex and unpleasant too.

There are only a few people that Connie can trust and the nature of her undercover role will mean she is often cut-off from their support. Watching Connie cope with the intensity of her situation made for utterly compelling reading and when cracks start to show, well that is when Helen Fields really gets into the tension groove. I hit a point in the story where I realised there was no way I’d stop reading The Institution until I actually finished the whole book.

Another terrific thriller from Helen Fields – she always delivers.

The Institution is available in hardback, digital and audiobook format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0B85RCGXM/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i1

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May 14

Decades: Compiling the Ultimate Library with Helen Fields

The Library is growing and week on week fabulous books are being added to the shelves. If tentative plans pan out there may even soon be a twist which nobody saw coming. I am loving inviting guests to join me and share their reading recommendations. I had hoped this feature would allow some fabulous books to be showcased but the enthusiasm I see each week for the new books my guests discuss has far exceeded my expectations. Thank you all for making each new Decades post the best part of my blogging week.

So what is Decades?

I am curating the Ultimate Library. I started with no books and have been inviting guests to select five books they would like to see added to the Library shelves so we can compile a collection of the best books. There are just two rules my guests must follow:

1 – You can select ANY five books
2 – You can only select one book per decade and you must select from five consecutive decades.

Today I am joined by Helen Fields. Helen is the fourteenth Decades guest and has added five outstanding titles to the Library. To be honest I cannot believe it took fourteen guests before two of her selections made their way into the Library – Iconic. You can try guess which two I had in mind.

I’ll hand over to Helen and allow her to introduce herself (I never like to do the introductions incase I miss something important) and then she will share her five recommended reads.

DECADES

An international best-selling author, Helen is a former criminal and family law barrister. The last book in her detective series, ‘Perfect Kill’ was longlisted for the Crime Writers Association Ian Fleming Steel Dagger in 2020, and others have been longlisted for the McIlvanney Prize, Scottish crime novel of the year. Helen also writes as HS Chandler, and has released legal thriller ‘Degrees of Guilt’. In 2020 Perfect Remains was shortlisted for the Bronze Bat, Dutch debut crime novel of the year. The series has been translated into 18 languages, and also sells in the USA, Canada & Australasia. Her historical thriller ‘These Lost & Broken Things’ came out in May 2020. Her first standalone thriller – The Shadow Man – from HarperColllins was published in 2021. Her next book comes out in February 2022 but she’s not allowed to tell you the title yet!

Helen can be usually be found on Twitter @Helen_Fields. For up to date news and information her website is at www.helenfields.co.uk. For Facebook check out Helen Fields Author.

A Town Like Alice by Nevil Shute (1950)

Honestly, if this book doesn’t make you cry at least once when you’re reading it, then you have no soul. I will die on this hill. It is one of the most affecting books I’ve ever read. I couldn’t read anything else for months after I finished this book.

Papillon by Henri Charrière (1969)

I fell in love with the Steve McQueen (original) movie first which prompted me to read the book, and I’m so grateful that I did. A (mostly) autobiographic story of a man incarcerated on various French colony islands who faces cruelty and hardships beyond belief before his death defying escape. I promise, you will join him in that cell as you read.

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S Thompson (1971)

More journalism than fiction. An explosively colourful tale of the highs and lows of Vegas. Drugs, sex and rock n roll. It’s seedy, it’s insightful, as well as funny and (in its time) very shocking. Just razor-sharp writing and an unfiltered look at America’s depths.

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood (1985)

Atwood said she didn’t write anything in this book that hadn’t actually happened somewhere in the world, to the extent that calling it dystopian fiction is almost misleading. One of those books that came around again, and maybe we listened more carefully the second time. Atwood’s writing never gets too clever for itself. She does two things brilliantly in their simplicity: character and plot. This is one of the books that will define humanity in the future.

Captain Corelli’s Mandolin by Louis de Bernieres (1994)

Just because I loved it. Stunning escapist fiction with a superlative sense of time and place. For a brief moment in time absolutely everyone was reading this book. Didn’t we all fall just a little bit in love?

Did you spot the iconic book of its era? Yep, could easlily be any of the five. Thanks to Helen for finding time to share her selections. It never stops being a thrill when my most-read authors join me here at Grab This Book.

If you would like to visit my Library and see all the selections which have been made thus far then you just need to click this link: https://grabthisbook.net/?p=5113

DECADES WILL RETURN

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October 6

Ten To Try

Regular visitors will know that I love crime novels and action thrillers. You may also have realised that I particularly enjoy when authors write an ongoing series with recurring characters. As it has been a while since I wrote a blog post that didn’t just focus on a single title, I thought it would be fun to bring together a list of ten series which I particularly enjoy/enjoyed and maybe help introduce some great new stories to your TBR piles!

Sarah Hilary

Marnie Rome is one of my favourite recurring characters. She is a London based DI, normally partnered with DS Noah Jake and Sarah Hilary seems quite happy to put both her lead characters through some significant traumas.

The latest book in the series, Come and Find Me, has just released in paperback and is my favourite of the series so far.

Sarah’s Amazon Page https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sarah-Hilary/e/B009X3U5BE/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1538845664&sr=8-1

Michael Wood

DCI Matilda Darke is a Sheffield based cop. We first meet her in For Reasons Unknown and learn that she is trying to rebuild her life and her career after personal tragedy impacted on the case she was working on. Michael Wood has created a great character in Darke but the supporting characters in her team make these stories even more enjoyable.

Michael’s Amazon page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Michael-Wood/e/B015CWYVFA/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1538845727&sr=1-1

John Sandford

I have been reading Lucas Davenport “Prey” thrillers by John Sandford since the early 1990’s. Each new book is eagerly anticipated and there are now over 25 titles in the series. Sandford has also created a spin-off series which focuses on one of Davenport’s colleagues, Virgil Flowers, which frequently has cameo appearances for characters from the Prey novels.

Simon and Schuster are soon to bring the first book in the series Rules of Prey back into print in the UK for the first time in a number of years. Seek it out! https://www.amazon.co.uk/John-Sandford/e/B000AQ8P4W/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1

Douglas Skelton

I couldn’t have a list of books without a Scottish author. I could easily mention Ian Rankin, Val McDermid or Stuart MacBride but I am going to recommend Douglas Skelton’s Davie McColl series. As much of my list will focus on police procedurals I love that Skelton’s recurring character, McColl, is not one of the good guys but a Glasgow gangster.

These are great stories on the darker side of crime fiction and how refreshing to have a recurring anti-hero.

Douglas’s Amazon page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Douglas-Skelton/e/B001K7TR10/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1538846474&sr=1-1

J D Robb

Futuristic thrillers from JD Robb sees Detective Eve Dallas tracking down killers in New York City. There are over 50 books in the “In Death” series and I am hooked. The supporting cast are brilliantly defined and the crimes are wonderfully varied from book to book. I could read each of these books multiple times.

The JD Robb Amazon Page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/J.-D.-Robb/e/B000APT7Y0/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1538846055&sr=1-2-ent

Marnie Riches

To surprise that Marnie Riches makes this list. Her George Mackenzie thrillers have consistently received 5* reviews from me. These are dark and engaging stories with a strong, no-nonsense lead character. Previously only available a digital releases the books are all now available in paperback and have just received a US release too.

Marnie’s Amazon Page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Marnie-Riches/e/B00WBJZ364/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1

Paul Finch

The Mark Heckenburg series is a particular favourite of mine. Paul Finch pulls no punches and his stories are as far from “cozy” as you could expect to find. If you were to look up “page-turner” in the dictionary I am quite sure there would simply be a picture of a Paul Finch book. If you like your crime fiction on the darker side then these are for you.

Paul’s Amazon Page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Paul-Finch/e/B0034PPAH6/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1538846181&sr=1-1

Terry Pratchett

If you think Terry Pratchett has no place on a list of crime story recommendations then you have clearly never heard of the Ankh Morpork City Watch. Samuel Vimes is the ultimate “copper” and his officers include a 6 foot tall dwarf, a werewolf, a troll and a Nobby Nobbs (who has a note to confirm he his human). The Watch are first introduced in Guards! Guards! – just because there are dragons does not mean these are not crime stories!

Terry’s Amazon Page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Terry-Pratchett/e/B000AQ0NN8/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1

Angela Marsons

How do you know an author is doing something right? Watch the reaction in the book blogging community when their new book is announced. When an Angela Marsons book is announced the buzz in incredible, TBR lists are abandoned to get the new Kim Stone thriller read as quickly as possible. It is hard to disagree with an army of readers who place these books at the top of their wishlists!

Angela’s Amazon Page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Angela-Marsons/e/B00J6D3914/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1538846309&sr=1-1

Helen Fields

The “Perfect” series by Helen Fields is very well named. These Edinburgh based police thrillers see Luc Callanach leaving Interpol to come and work for Police Scotland. The timing of his arrival in Perfect Remains seems fortuitous as there are some very nasty things happening in Edinburgh. Another series which favours a darker tons as Helen Fields seems to have a particularly vivid imagination and devises some gruesome crime scenes for her characters to investigate.

Helen’s Amazon Page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Helen-Fields/e/B006M3SPSS/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1538846357&sr=1-1

By no means an exhaustive list but I limited myself to ten authors and everyone included has written books that have brought me hours of entertainment and reading escapism.

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September 5

Perfect Silence – Helen Fields

When silence falls, who will hear their cries?

The body of a young girl is found dumped on the roadside on the outskirts of Edinburgh. When pathologists examine the remains, they make a gruesome discovery: the silhouette of a doll carved in the victim’s skin.

DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach are struggling to find leads in the case, until a doll made of skin is found nestled beside an abandoned baby.

After another young woman is found butchered, Luc and Ava realise the babydoll killer is playing a horrifying game. And it’s only a matter of time before he strikes again. Can they stop another victim from being silenced forever – or is it already too late?

My thanks to Sabah at Avon Books for my review copy and the opportunity to join the blog tour.

Death, Taxes and a brilliant Luc Callanach book from Helen Fields…the certainties of life!

Perfect Silence was as dark, twisted and unflinching as I had hoped it would be. The “Perfect” series is very well named and Perfect Silence reaffirmed why these books are always the first series I will recommend when I am asked “What should I be reading?”

Dark days in Edinburgh when the body of a young woman is found on a roadside. Badly mutilated yet abandoned while she was still alive, the girl has had sections of her skin cut out of her abdomen – the missing skin forms the shape of a doll.

With no obvious clues (and no leads for the police to follow) a second woman disappears. Her young baby is found abandoned and inside the baby’s pram is a doll made from human skin.

Realising that time is against them Luc and Eva (along with the increasingly brilliant supporting characters) confront the possibility that a sadistic serial killer is operating in their city.

Ava’s attentions are divided by a spate of attacks on Edinburgh’s homeless drug users. A new variant of the drug Spice is debilitating users and turning them into shambling zombies, oblivious to their environment. Someone has been “branding” these catatonic users and slashing a deep cut into their cheek. As the victim count rises we see the damage increasing too.

Ava is under pressure from her boss to deliver results, not least because her boss feels Ava could threaten her position. No spoilers here but this storyline was a highlight of my reading year!

Everything was great in Perfect Silence. A really nasty murder spree. A strong and unpleasant second string of attacks. A squad room at Police Scotland of likeable and engaging characters and the wonderfully compelling writing of Helen Fields keeping the action going to the very last page.

I look forward to these books more than any other. If you are not already reading Helen Fields then I am sorry to say you are really missing out.

Perfect Silence is published by Avon Books and is available in paperback, digital and audiobook. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Perfect-Silence-Callanach-Crime-Thriller-ebook/dp/B079KMDGDV/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1536086379&sr=8-1&keywords=helen+fields

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January 25

Perfect Death – Helen Fields

There’s no easy way to die….

Unknown to DI Luc Callanach and the newly promoted DCI Ava Turner, a serial killer has Edinburgh firmly in his grip. The killer is taking his victims in the coldest, most calculating way possible – engineering slow and painful deaths by poison, with his victims entirely unaware of the drugs flooding their bloodstream until it’s too late.

But how do you catch a killer who hides in the shadows? A killer whose pleasure comes from watching pain from afar? Faced with their most difficult case yet, Callanach and Turner soon realise they face a seemingly impossible task….

My thanks to Sabah at Avon for my review copy and for the opportunity to launch the Perfect Death blog tour.

By the time I hit “publish” on this review Perfect Death will be in shops and available to download. Buy a copy now…this is a brilliant book.

Luc Callanach and Ava Turner are back for a third outing. Happy Days.

Perfect Death feels much more like an Ava story. Luc is still very much present so panic not! Events early in the story (no spoilers) lead to a shock revelation. Ava wants to investigate and find answers to questions she never imagined she would be asking yet she cannot let anyone else know what she is looking into. This dilemma means Ava will work solo and cannot rely upon Luc’s council or support. What she has to face (alone) is bigger and more dangerous than she could have imagined.

Luc is tasked with investigating the death of a young woman who died as a result of a drug overdose. Her naked body was found on a grassy hillside in the heart of the Edinburgh but her family are adamant she would never have taken drugs.

A second suspicious death gives a suspicion that foul play is involved. However, with virtually no similarities in the cases the connection between the two deaths so tenuous Ava’s boss will not entertain the notion that there is a calculating serial killer working in Edinburgh.

Following events in Perfect Prey Ava is now Luc’s boss and the shift in dynamic of their relationship is fun. Still friends, but with Luc being deferential to Ava’s rank, the pair seem almost seem less assured in each other’s company. I have really enjoyed the “Moonlighting-esk” relationship between the two lead characters and Perfect Death only adds to the intrigue.

Moonlighting…it was a big deal in the 80’s – just go with it.

I cannot say enough good things about the Luc Callanach books. If you love crime fiction and are not reading Helen Fields then you are missing out on one of the best new voices in your favourite genre.

Perfect Death is published by Avon books and is avaialbe in paperback and digital format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Perfect-Death-bestseller-Callanach-Thriller-ebook/dp/B077MNKFTL/ref=la_B006M3SPSS_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1516824675&sr=1-3

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November 25

Perfect Remains – Helen Fields

On a remote Highland mountain, the body of Elaine Buxton is burning. All that will be left to identify the respected lawyer are her teeth and a fragment of clothing.

In the concealed back room of a house in Edinburgh, the real Elaine Buxton screams into the darkness…

Detective Inspector Luc Callanach has barely set foot in his new office when Elaine’s missing persons case is escalated to a murder investigation. Having left behind a promising career at Interpol, he’s eager to prove himself to his new team. But Edinburgh, he discovers, is a long way from Lyon, and Elaine’s killer has covered his tracks with meticulous care.

It’s not long before another successful woman is abducted from her doorstep, and Callanach finds himself in a race against the clock. Or so he believes … The real fate of the women will prove more twisted than he could have ever imagined.

My thanks to Avon Books for my review copy

Earlier this year I reviewed Perfect Prey by Helen Fields. I liked that book (a lot) and gave it a five star review. Before I read Perfect Prey I had read Perfect Remains, the book which introduced Luc Callanach, but as I read it while I was on vacation I did not get a chance to write up a review. Time to catch up…

I Love, Love, Love Perfect Remains.

Helen Fields introduces Luc Callanach to Edinburgh – he is trying to rebuild a career after a scandal at work has forced him to leave France and settle in Scotland. Callanach is half French and half Scottish and seemingly 100% drop-dead gorgeous – he will fit right in at Police Scotland.

Watching Callanach settle into his new surroundings and face down the battles against new colleagues (who are trying to exert their own claim to be the station’s Alpha Male) was great fun. He needs to prove his ability to a hostile crowd and can only rely upon the support of his fellow DI – Ava Turner.

Luc is thrown in at the deep end when a missing persons investigation becomes a murder case. The body of Elaine Buxton has been found in the hills, dental records confirming the charred remains are that of the missing woman. However, the reader knows that Elaine Buxton is not dead – she has been hidden in a deep, dark backroom of a house in Edinburgh. If nobody is looking for Elaine then what hope does she have for rescue?

This is a phenomenal introduction to a new character and one of the stand-out reads of 2017. I raced through Perfect Remains, rolled immediately into Perfect Prey and I cannot wait until Luc Callanach returns in Perfect Death. So, so good.

Perfect Remains is published by Avon Books and is available in digital and paperback format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Perfect-Remains-gripping-breathless-Callanach-ebook/dp/B01D4WRF9O/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1511637645&sr=1-1&keywords=perfect+remains

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August 3

Perfect Prey – Helen Fields

Welcome to Edinburgh. Murder capital of Europe.

In the middle of a rock festival, a charity worker is sliced across the stomach. He dies minutes later. In a crowd of thousands, no one saw his attacker.

The following week, the body of a primary school teacher is found in a dumpster in an Edinburgh alley, strangled with her own woollen scarf.

D.I. Ava Turner and D.I. Luc Callanach have no leads and no motive – until around the city, graffitied on buildings, words appear describing each victim.

It’s only when they realise the words are being written before rather than after the murders, that they understand the killer is announcing his next victim…and the more innocent the better.

My thanks to Sabah at Avon for a review copy of Perfect Prey and the chance to join the tour.

One day.

A single day.

I started Perfect Prey at 8.30am this morning in a Starbucks coffee shop and at 11.58pm this evening (well now yesterday evening) I finished the last chapter. It was fantastic. I am enjoying a summer where I seem to be only choosing great books to read but Perfect Prey has been a wonderful high point.

Luc Callanach was first introduced in Perfect Remains – he arrived in Edinburgh from France where he had worked for Interpol. Luc now works for Police Scotland, his arrival and the problems which forced his move to Scotland are covered in Perfect Remains – reading the books in order is recommended but not essential.

If you are a fan of crime fiction then reading both books IS essential. Helen Fields is making Edinburgh a very nasty place to be and I am loving her work. Her tales are dark, the crimes that Callanach is called to investigate are both graphic and disturbing and I found both Perfect books utterly gripping.

In Perfect Prey Edinburgh is rocked by a series of high profile brutal killings. Over a very short space of time 3 vicious deaths have shocked the residents of the capital and the reputation of the city world-wide is suffering. Pressure is placed on Callanach and his colleague, Ava Turner, to come up with results (and fast). What is not helping is the presence of an old flame of Ava’s. He is also a cop – up from London to work on a high profile tech/internet operation, his presence unsettles Callanach as the two do not hit it off. It also disrupts the effective working relationship that Callanach and Turner had established. With the two at loggerheads the investigations stutter – they are reliant upon their colleagues to keep communications flowing.

With little progress being made and more lives in danger, Callanach reaches out to two contacts from outwith the Police. By going off radar and involving civilians he risks his career but who can he really trust when vital information from the investigations is leaking to the press?

I want to tell you about evil murderers. I want to discuss Luc and Ava. I want to share all the great twists and that terrible thing that happened….but they would all be spoilers and you really need to find them out for yourself. What I really need is for it to be January 2018 so I can read the next book.

Perfect Prey is a must read. The Callanach books are already firmly established as a series I want to follow. Don’t let these books pass you by – brilliant, brilliant stories.

Perfect Prey is published by Avon and is available now in paperback and digital format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Perfect-Prey-DI-Callanach-Thriller/dp/0008181586/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1501715565&sr=8-1&keywords=helen+fields

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