March 4

Anglesey Blue – Dylan H Jones

Anglesey BlueA Gripping New Serial Killer Thriller

MURDER. BETRAYAL. REVENGE.

It’s not the homecoming Detective Inspector Tudor Manx was expecting, but solving the case is just the start of his problems.

Recently transferred from the London Met to the North Wales Constabulary, Detective Inspector Tudor Manx has come to Island of Anglesey hoping for a quiet life.

But his hopes are dashed when a brutally mutilated body is found crucified to the bow of a fishing boat sending shockwaves through the peaceful community.

Manx’s faces pressure to solve the case quickly equipped with an inexperienced team.

Is the body a message or a premonition of more murders to come?

Adding to his mounting problems, Manx’s troubled past returns to haunt him. Manx left the island after the disappearance of his younger sister, Miriam; a cold case that still remains unsolved.

Can Manx solve the case before the body count rises?

How will he cope when he is forced to choose between his family and his duty as a police officer?

 

My thanks to the team at Bloodhound Books for my review copy and the opportunity to join my very first Bloodhound tour.

 

Picking up a book by an author I have never read before is always a bit of a thrill for me. You can read the book blurb or you can have a story recommended by a friend, but it is not until you start to read a book for yourself that you can know if you are going to enjoy the next few hundred pages. I knew from pretty early on in Anglesey Blue that I was going to enjoy it.

First there is DI Tudor Manx, adjusting to life in Anglesey after a transfer from London (and under a bit of a cloud within the force), he gives the reader an outsiders-eye view on life in the town. His team are a relatively inexperienced bunch of coppers – life in small town Wales doesn’t seem to compare to that of London’s Met police so Manx will have to drive, encourage and motivate his colleagues if they are to make any progress with a murder enquiry.

Yup Murder. There is a decidedly dark tone to Anglesey Blue which I delighted in. Bodies cropped up, a particularly nasty drug dealer (with his hired muscle) is looking to establish new distribution channels on the island for their new drug of choice. Manx and his team will have their work cut out but for a reader it is a highly entertaining challenge.

One of the best ways to hook me in a story is to have great dialogue between the characters, not just the conversations which will drive a police investigation but the chat amongst colleagues and friends. Dylan H Jones absolutely nails this for me – the station chatter, the flirtatious barmaid, the meeting of parents concerned about drugs on the island…it was so well written that I wanted to keep reading as I was enjoying not just the crimes and investigations but the camaraderie amongst the characters.

There are many crime novels out there to choose from but miss Anglesey Blue at your peril, it’s a gem.

 

Anglesey Blue is published by Bloodhound Books and is available now in paperback and digital format.

You can order a copy here.

Anglesey Blue Tour

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June 4

Harvest Festival – Karl Drinkwater

Harvest Festival

 

First the birds went quiet. Then the evening sky filled with strange clouds that trapped the heat below. Now Callum wakes, dripping in sweat. Something has come to his isolated Welsh farm. If he’s going to keep his family alive during this single night when all hell breaks loose, he’ll have to think fast. And when he sees what he’s facing, he suspects even that may not be enough.

 

One of my own purchases this one but special shout-out ‘thanks’ to Sarah Hardy from By The Letter Book Reviews  who wrote the review that made me buy Harvest Festival.

 

A shorter review as this is a novella and I don’t want to spoil too much of Harvest Festival as the fun is in the unknown in this one.

On a remote Welsh farm a family awake to find intruders on their property. Callum leaves the safety of the home to investigate who is snooping around his farmyard – what he finds is both shocking and terrifying and now Callum has made himself and his family into targets.

What begins as a picture of a typical family scene soon flips into a terrifying fight for survival.  I enjoyed how the author took time to ensure we cared about Callum and his family before the peril kicks in. Once the danger had arrived the pace picked up and remained relentless.

Harvest Festival was a straight through, single sitting read. I really enjoyed where the author took the story and the finale left me hoping Callum’s family would come through unscathed – sadly I cannot tell you if they did…no spoilers!

 

Harvest Festival is published by Organic Apocalypse and can be ordered here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Harvest-Festival-Karl-Drinkwater/dp/1911278088/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1464993546&sr=8-7&keywords=harvest+festival

 

 

 

 

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