From The Bookshelf – Page 23

Presumed Dead – Mason Cross

‘What do you know about the Devil Mountain Killer?’

THEN

Adeline Connor was the Devil Mountain Killer’s final victim. After she was gunned down, the murderer disappeared and the killing spree ended.

NOW

Carter Blake has been hired to do what he does best: to find someone. But this time he’s hunting a dead girl – Adeline Connor’s brother is convinced she’s still alive.

But this town doesn’t want an outsider digging up old business. And as Blake gets deeper into the case, it starts to become clear that the murders didn’t just stop fifteen years ago.

The killer is on the hunt again.

My thanks to Lauren at Orion for my review copy

Presumed Dead is the fifth Carter Blake novel by Mason Cross. It is also the Carter Blake novel I have enjoyed the most – no slight on the previous four books (this is a series I love) but Presumed Dead gave me everything I want from my thrillers and I virtually inhaled it.

Housekeeping first: don’t be put off by the fact it is the fifth title in the series, other than knowing it features the return of the lead character Presumed Dead can very much be enjoyed without reading the earlier books. And you *will* enjoy it, it is a cracking read!

Blake is back doing what he does best, finding someone who is missing. However, history shows that the girl he is asked to track was the last victim of a serial killer, a killer that was never caught. Adeline Connor is presumed dead, the crime scene at which the Devil Mountain Killer abruptly ended his murderous spree was soaked in her blood. Police recreated the murder scene and likely sequence of events and there was no realistic way that Adeline could have survived, yet her brother maintains that more than 10 years later he has seen his sister alive and well. Blake is asked to find her.

The challenge for Blake is to work out who is telling him the truth. If the police are sure a murder took place they will not welcome someone trying to prove they made a mistake. Is the victim’s brother a reliable witness? Does the desire for his sister to be found cloud his common sense and judgment. The residents of the town where events unfolded do not want to dwell on those past events and they certainly don’t want to consider the killer may still be around – this would be a problem should a dead body (or two) turn up after Blake starts asking questions…

Did I mention how much I loved reading Presumed Dead? Brilliant, brilliant story telling from Mason Cross. If you have not yet discovered the Carter Blake books then this is the perfect opportunity to find out why readers look forward to each new release.

Presumed Dead is published by Orion and you can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Presumed-Dead-Carter-Blake-Book-ebook/dp/B076PS8BSJ/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1524388910&sr=1-1&keywords=presumed+dead+mason+cross

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April 15

The Fear – CL Taylor

Sometimes your first love won’t let you go…

When Lou Wandsworth ran away to France with her teacher Mike Hughes, she thought he was the love of her life. But Mike wasn’t what he seemed and he left her life in pieces.

Now 32, Lou discovers that he is involved with teenager Chloe Meadows. Determined to make sure history doesn’t repeat itself, she returns home to confront him for the damage he’s caused.

But Mike is a predator of the worst kind, and as Lou tries to bring him to justice, it’s clear that she could once again become his prey…

My thanks to Sabah at Avon for the chance to join the blog tour

My first CL Taylor thriller and I had high expectations as I have been very aware of the praise my fellow bloggers shower upon her books. I was not disappointed, The Fear is a very readable, fast flowing story which takes on an unsettling subject matter and makes it a compulsive reading experience.

Fronting the story is Lou Wandsworth, when she was a schoolgirl she fell for one of her teachers – he made her feel special and understood the problems she faced when it seems nobody else was paying attention to her. The reader sees Lou’s infatuation with her teacher growing but we also see that the teacher has singled out Lou for his attentions and we know exactly what his intentions are. It makes for unsettling reading.

The relationship develops and Lou runs away to France with her teacher. Only when they reach the continent does Lou begin to realise that she may have made a terrible mistake.

Now, almost 20 years later Lou becomes aware that the first man she loved, who has cast a shadow over her life ever since that trip to France, may not have changed his ways and is still showing too much interest in young schoolgirls. But will she be able to make the police understand her concerns? If not then is there anything which Lou can do to protect young Chloe Meadows from making all the same mistakes that Lou made? Not if Chloe does not want to be helped.

As I was reading The Fear I was struck by the different perceptions I had about a number of the characters. It is hard to explain why without straying into “spoiler territory” but characters who have been victims in the past will take proactive action around new events and you wonder if their decisions are justified. I had thought that this would make a brilliant book for a reading group or book club – turns out I am not alone in that thought as there are discussion questions included at the end of the story…nice touch!

While the subject matter may be unsettling for some readers, I thoroughly enjoyed The Fear. It takes on a harrowing topic and CL Taylor delivers a twisty and unsettling story. However, it also contains that crucial and magical “one more chapter” element which ensures you want to keep reading – you will feel you must find out what happens to the characters.

The Fear is published by Avon Books and is available in digital, paperback and audiobook format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fear-sensational-thriller-Sunday-bestseller-ebook/dp/B07566QWH4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1523783169&sr=8-1&keywords=the+fear+cl+taylor

Follow the tour:

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April 10

Scot Free – Catriona McPherson

Lexy Campbell fell in love and left her native Scotland for a golden life in California—hitched to a hunk, building her marriage counseling practice, living the dream. Six months later she’s divorced, broke, and headed home. There’s just one last thing. Lexy’s only client—sweet little old Mrs. Bombarro—is in jail for murdering her husband with a fireworks rocket. Lexy knows the cops have got it wrong; all she needs is a few days to prove it and somewhere cheap to sleep at night. But checking into the Last Ditch Motel leads Lexy to a whole new cast of characters with troubles of their own.

My thanks to Midnight Ink for my review copy which I received through Netgalley

Being a Scottish blogger I always enjoy the chance to read about Scottish characters who have left these glorious lands to find pastures new. So when I read the description for Catriona McPherson’s Scot Free I could not resist the chance to read about Lexy Campbell.

Lexy has left Dundee and moved to California where she is married to a hunky American guy and building up her business as a marriage counselor. Life seems rosy for Lexy (well apart from contending with extremely warm Californian days) until it all starts to go wrong. Catching her hubby in a functional clinch with another woman soon brings her married life to an abrupt end.

A return to Scotland seems inevitable but there is just one small matter commanding Lexy’s attention – one of her clients has been jailed for murdering her husband with a firework. As a lady in her vintage years, Mrs Bombarro seems a quite unlikely killer – not least because she was just about to divorce (amicably) the man she is accused of blowing up. Lexy cannot sit by and watch this poor lady take the rap for this horrible crime so an impromptu investigative career is born.

What follows is a wonderfully fun story of fireworks, friendships and families (with lots more of the fun and a lot less alliteration). Catriona McPherson absolutely nails the humour throughout and I cannot remember a book which has made me laugh as often as I did while reading Scot Free. Lexy is fabulous and brings Scotland to California exactly how I had hoped – she has the caustic wit, nails the one liners and takes a delightful down to earth viewpoint to her American colleagues.

There is a good murder mystery to enjoy in Scot Free and I loved watching Lexy piecing together clues and trying to interrogate possible witnesses. As she bumbles her way towards the truth she will cross paths with the local cops who also seem somewhat bemused by the unpredictable Scottish lass in their midst.

Reading should be fun and I can honestly say that Scot Free was one of the most fun reads I have picked up for quite some time. Scot Free feels like a perfect summer holiday read. Sunshine and laughs – ideal.

Scot Free is published by Midnight Ink and is available in digital and paperback formats. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Scot-Free-Last-Ditch-Mystery-ebook/dp/B071VXZD1H/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

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March 18

Scared to Death – Rachel Amphlett

“If you want to see your daughter alive again, listen carefully.”

When the body of a snatched schoolgirl is found in an abandoned biosciences building, the case is first treated as a kidnapping gone wrong.

But Detective Kay Hunter isn’t convinced, especially when a man is found dead with the ransom money still in his possession.

When a second schoolgirl is taken, Kay’s worst fears are realised.

With her career in jeopardy and desperate to conceal a disturbing secret, Kay’s hunt for the killer becomes a race against time before he claims another life.

For the killer, the game has only just begun…

Rachel Amphlett has just released the 5th Kay Hunter book (Call to Arms) and I have already seen some cracking reviews for it already from my fellow bloggers. Expect to see a review here in due course too as this is a series I really enjoy.

But what if you don’t want to jump into a series at book 5? Many readers (myself included) prefer to join a series at the first book and watch the characters develop. So I am jumping back in the Kay Hunter timeline to review Scared to Death, the first book and where the fun begins.

Not that there is much fun to be found for Kay as we start Scared to Death. A kidnapped girl, two distressed parents who have paid the ransom and not told the Police of the family plight and the shadow of an incident at work which Kay is trying to move on from. That’s just her work life – at home there has been a significant incident which Kay cannot just brush off and it is fascinating watching how she reconciles work pressure with home anxieties.

Unfortunately the recovery of the kidnapped girl ends in tragedy – it seems the kidnapper (now a killer) had no intention of letting the girl survive and she was held in a perilous location from which she could not have expected to be saved. The motivation behind this cruel stunt becomes clear as the story unfolds and it made for an intriguing twist for the reader, making it clear that Kay and her colleagues would have their work cut out.

Having read several of Rachel Amphlett’s books I knew that Scared to Death would be a story I enjoyed – I was not disappointed. What lifted the enjoyment was the fact I “read” it as an audiobook – so technically Alison Campbell read Scared to Death and I just got to listen in. The narration was brilliantly done – some audiobooks I will pass on when I don’t enjoy the narrators style – but Alison Campbell nailed this for me and I will now likely join her again for Call to Arms (book 5) rather than read it myself again.

In short, if you have yet to read Rachel’s brilliant Kay Hunter series then you are missing out. Scared to Death is the easy starting point but all the books can be read as stand alone. If you like an audiobook then you can’t go wrong with this offering, great story, terrific reader and more of the same to follow.

Scared to Death is available in digital, paperback and audiobook. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Scared-Death-Detective-detective-thriller-ebook/dp/B01N9DS5NG/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

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March 15

Burnout – Claire MacLeary

My husband is trying to kill me: a new client gets straight to the point. This is a whole new ball game for Maggie Laird, who is trying to rebuild her late husband’s detective agency and clear his name. Her partner, Big Wilma, sees the case as a non-starter, but Maggie is drawn in. With her client s life on the line, Maggie must get to the ugly truth that lies behind Aberdeen s closed doors. But who knows what really goes on between husbands and wives? And will the agency s reputation and Maggie and Wilma s friendship remain intact?

My thanks to Sara at Saraband for my review copy and the opportunity to join the blog tour.

A return to Scotland’s Granite City and the chance to join up with Harcus and Laird, Aberdeen’s newest Private Investigators.

Fresh from events in McIlvanney-prize-listed Cross Purpose we have a distressing new problem for our leading ladies to contend with. Sheena Struthers wants to engage Harcus and Laird to investigate her husband – she is convinced that he is trying to kill her and fears for her life. While Maggie is concerned and keen to help the distressed woman, Wilma is not so sure. Keeping an eye on the time and energies involved in domestic investigations she is keen for Maggie to ditch Mrs Struthers and concentrate on working more reliable and financially rewarding cases. The two disagree but Maggie is not prepared to turn her back on a woman who is calling for help.

In this post-Weinstein era and with #MeToo still very much in the public eye Burnout is an extremely important addition to the voices and stories which is helping lift the lid on unwelcome and unacceptable attitudes. While Sheena Struthers is insisting her husband is harming her there is little proof to support her claims and Burnout highlights the problems which victims (and prospective prosecutors) face.

As we read further into the book we read of a couple where the woman is unhappy and subjected to unwelcome attentions of her husband. His demands and desires totally at odds with her own but she sees no escape from his control. We don’t get to know who the couple are but reading their encounters was an uncomfortable and somewhat distressing experience. Yet Claire MacLeary is not done there, other relationships are subjected to scrutiny and she lifts the lid on the “secret” lives of a few characters. Readers are taken into the home of a young couple with a small child where the husband is oblivious to the exhaustion and unhappiness of his wife. Maggie’s daughter appears with a new beau in tow and Maggie is very unimpressed with the attitude of the boy towards her daughter. Even Big Wilma is going to have a few bumps in her relationship with her husband. We get to see some stark realities over attitudes, expectations and the desperation that can come from a lack of respect. It is all handled really well by the author who does not sugarcoat any of the issues she is addressing.

This is powerful storytelling but the focus is never lost on the investigations which are ongoing. The dry humour we expect is also very much in attendance and the larger than life Big Wilma never fails to disappoint – she even treats herself to a trip to a strip club for Ladies Night.

Harcus and Laird are quite unlike any other characters I am reading – they have self-doubt, worry about paying the bills, feel the world is almost on the brink of slipping away from them yet they have a will and determination to succeed and it makes them joyful to read.

Burnout is published by Contraband and is available in digital and paperback format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Burnout-Claire-MacLeary/dp/1912235110/ref=sr_1_1_twi_pap_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1521071707&sr=8-1&keywords=burnout+claire+macleary

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March 14

Closer Than You Know – Brad Parks

Disaster, Melanie Barrick was once told, is always closer than you know.

It was a lesson she learned the hard way growing up in the constant upheaval of foster care. But now that she’s survived into adulthood – with a loving husband, a steady job, and a beautiful baby boy – she thought that turmoil was behind her.

Until the evening she goes to pick up her son from childcare, only to discover he’s been removed by Social Services. And no one will say why.

A terrifying scenario for any parent, it’s doubly so for Melanie, all too aware of the unintended horrors of ‘the system’. When she arrives home, her nightmare gets worse – it has been raided by Sheriff’s deputies, who have found enough cocaine to send her to prison for years. If Melanie can’t prove her innocence, she’ll lose her son forever. Her case is assigned to Amy Kaye, a no-nonsense assistant Commonwealth’s attorney. Amy’s boss wants to make an example out of Melanie, who the local media quickly christens ‘Coke Mom’.

But Amy’s attention continues to be diverted by a cold case no one wants her to pursue: a serial rapist who has avoided detection by wearing a mask and whispering his commands. Over the years, he has victimized dozens of women in the area – including Melanie. Now it’s this mystery man who could be the key to her salvation. or her ultimate undoing.

My thanks to Lauren at Faber for my review copy and the chance to join the tour

Melanie Barrick is having a bad day but she does not know how bad things are going to get! She is running late to collect her son from his childminder. Knowing the pursed lips of her so-strict childminder and the associated financial penalties for a late pick-up are waiting for her she arrives to collect her baby to find the door bolted shut. She hammers on the door, convinced she is being “punished” for her tardiness only to be told that her son has already been collected by Child Services.

As the nightmare unfolds Melanie returns home to discover the house has been sealed off as a crime scene. The police have raided her home following “Intelligence Received” and found a significant drug stash, things are not looking good for Melanie – the media quickly dub her Coke Mom and the local prosecutor is keen to boost his political ambitions and secure a fast conviction for Coke Mom.

Melanie has no idea where to turn. She does not have much money behind her, her husband is still pursuing his studies so cash is tight. She has lost her son, her freedom and she has no idea why – Melanie is totally innocent of all charges which have been raised against her.

Away from Melanie’s troubles the readers are also following a second story. Amy Kay is the assistant Commonwealth’s attorney and she has been chasing leads on an unwelcome investigation into a serial rapist. Amy recognizes “Coke Mom” Melanie as she was one of the victims of the rapist. It is clear the two stories are destined to cross but Brad Parks will expertly spin out the story to ensure you keep reading long into the night to see how that happens.

Closer Than You Know was a brilliantly entertaining read. Last year I read Say Nothing by Brad Parks and at the end of the year I included it in my best of the year list of recommendations. Having read Closer Than You Know I think it is safe to say that Mr Parks writes books which I love to read.

A five star page-turner…which is exactly what I want a book to be.

Closer than you know is published by Faber & Faber and can be ordered here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Closer-Than-Know-Brad-Parks-ebook/dp/B078HM3NMK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1521020706&sr=8-1&keywords=closer+than+you+know

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March 13

The Darkness (Hidden Iceland) – Ragnar Jonasson

A young woman is found dead on a remote Icelandic beach.

She came looking for safety, but instead she found a watery grave.

A hasty police investigation determines her death as suicide . . .

When Detective Inspector Hulda Hermannsdóttir of the Reykjavik police is forced into early retirement, she is told she can investigate one last cold case of her choice – and she knows which one.

What she discovers is far darker than suicide . . . And no one is telling Hulda the whole story.

When her own colleagues try to put the brakes on her investigation, Hulda has just days to discover the truth. A truth she will risk her own life to find.

My thanks to Laura at Michael Joseph for my review copy and the chance to join the blog tour

Hulda Hermannsdóttir is an experienced and respected investigator working for Reykjavik police. When we first meet Hulda she has identified a hit and run driver and coaxed a confession from the woman. The victim of the hit and run was a known pedophile and during the confession the driver admits that she knew the man she hit had targeted her son. Hulda returns to the her boss, ready to confirm the case can be closed only to find that her boss has recruited a replacement investigator who will be taking over Hulda’s job…her retirement has been brought forward and she is expected to leave within the next couple of weeks.

Hulda had known retirement was looming but it had always been on her own terms and she was looking at completing a few more months of work before accepting the inevitable fate and the lonely prospect of retirement. Hulda’s husband had died some years previous to events in the story (a massive heart attack) and with no other family and few friends Hulda almost seemed afraid of the prospect of retirement. So when she is given just a few days to wrap up her work she wrangles an assurance from her boss that she can work a cold case (of her choosing) to keep herself occupied during the last days of her employment.

Hulda begins to look into the drowning of a Russian immigrant who had been seeking approval to come to live in Iceland. It soon becomes apparent to Hulda that the original investigation has been very poorly handled and she starts to dig a little deeper into the last known activities of the dead girl. There is speculation that the girl may have been working as a prostitute and that the stress of waiting for approval (or not) to come and live in Iceland, may have been too much for her to cope with.

Hulda’s investigations soon ruffle the wrong feathers and unwittingly, while following up on a lead, she accidentally alerts a suspect in a different investigation to the fact the police may have him on their radar. Needless to say Hulda is not flavour of the month with her employers. They want to put a stop to Hulda’s interfering and time will be called on her career – retirement looms large. So begins a race against time for Hulda – can she find out what happened to the Russian girl before her boss calls time on her career?

As with previous Ragnar Jonasson novels which I have enjoyed, the investigation undertaken by the police is thorough and well plotted out. What differs in this outing is the time pressure placed upon Hulda and the lack of support she seems to receive from her colleagues. I should also point out the importance of the title: The Darkness. This is a dark novel and there is a bleakness for the characters too. Hulda is facing the prospect of a lonely retirement. In flashback scenes which pepper the story we read of a mother struggling to provide a level of care for her daughter. Hulda meets asylum seekers who are anxious to escape drama in their home countries and find a better life in Iceland – their plight and hope for a free life is both compelling and tragic. There are other equally dark moments which I cannot touch upon in a review but they really had an impact upon me as I read – some twists which were truly shocking and unexpected.

Seriously good storytelling from Ragnar Jonasson. Bring The Darkness into your day…much more enjoyable than it sounds!

The Darkness releases on 15 March and you can order your copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Darkness-Hidden-Iceland-Book-One/dp/0718187245/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1520900061&sr=1-1

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March 6

Horoscope: The Astrology Murders – Georgia Frontiere

Dr. Kelly Elizabeth York has spent her life helping people solve their problems. A celebrity astrologer and psychologist with a devoted following, she now finds herself in the unlikely and terrifying position of helping the police and the FBI determine the identity of a serial killer—who just may be targeting her. No matter how careful she is, Kelly knows that she will have to confront darkness, an energy so black it could challenge everything she believes in.

Until now, Kelly has lived a comfortable, fulfilling life in her Upper West Side brownstone, with her housekeeper, Emma, and her loyal Siberian husky, King, by her side. Yet when four beautiful young women are found murdered, astrological signs carved into their thighs, she is drawn into a mystery whose clues may lead back to an astrological reading gone terribly awry.

I received a review copy from the publishers through Netgalley

Sometimes I have the opportunity to read a book and it takes me a lot longer to get to it than I originally envisaged. This is just one contributing factor to the phenomenon we bloggers refer to as “Blogger Guilt”…too many books and too little time. Horoscope: The Astrology Murders has been in my TBR queue for far too long and had slipped so far down my list of Kindle titles it had unfortunately gone off my radar. A recent trawl for something “different” to read brought Horoscope to the top of the reading list and I can finally share a review.

Kelly York is an astrologer who has built a strong reputation in her chosen field. She will perform astrological readings to guide people making important life choices and enjoys the supportive role she offers. Kelly accepts that not everyone believes in her work but her patience and methodical reasoning means she will defend her career against the doubters and show why there is merit in the service she performs.

It should be noted that there were several quite detailed examples of astrological interpretations and readings interspersed through the book. I cannot comment upon the accuracy of the information, but the detail and authority with which it was conveyed leads me to believe the author knows her stuff.

Kelly is housebound in Horoscope, she suffers agoraphobia and is terrified at the prospect of leaving her property. She has a housekeeper who helps (but is unaware of Kelly’s condition) and her faithful K9 companion keeps her company too. However, Kelly will soon have her peaceful sanctuary shattered – she starts receiving threatening phone calls. Someone who seems to know her every move and wants Kelly to experience fear as incidents around her home make her wonder if the danger is much closer than she thinks.

Outside of Kelly’s beautiful home there is a killer targeting vulnerable lonely women. He breaks into their homes under cover of night before raping and strangling each of his victims. Each of the dead women has a sign of the zodiac carved into their leg. The FBI are investigating but the killer is not leaving them any meaningful leads.

Kelly calls in the police over the threatening calls and the connection between the rapist and the threatening calls is made. We face the prospect of a murderer closing in on Kelly and she remains confined to her house.

An entertaining serial killer thriller. The murderer is a chilling figure and you root for Kelly from the outset – she is struggling to keep her agoraphobia a secret from her family and friends and the last thing she needs is the additional terror at the thought of being someone’s target.

Horoscope is published by Violet Mountain Press and is available for order here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Horoscope-Astrology-Murders-Georgia-Frontiere-ebook/dp/B00NZ96EBW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1520290141&sr=8-1&keywords=Georgia+Frontiere

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February 15

Before It’s Too Late – Sara Driscoll

In this powerful K-9 crime thriller, FBI Special Agent Meg Jennings and her trusted search-and-rescue Labrador, Hawk, must race against the clock before a diabolical killer strikes again…

Somewhere in the Washington, D.C., area, a woman lies helpless in a box. Beneath the earth. Barely breathing. Buried alive. In Quantico, the FBI receives a coded message from the woman’s abductor. He wants to play a game with them: decipher the clues, find the grave, save the girl. The FBI’s top cryptanalysts crack the code and Special Agent Meg Jennings and her K-9 partner, Hawk, scramble to the scene of the crime. Cryptic clues lead them astray and by the time they solve the puzzle, it’s too late. But the killer’s game is far from over . . .

Soon another message arrives. Another victim is taken, and the deadly pattern is repeated—again and again. Each kidnapping triggers another desperate race against time, each with the possibility of another senseless death. That’s when Meg decides to try something drastic. Break the Bureau’s protocol. Bring in her brilliant sister, Cara, a genius at word games, to decipher the kidnapper’s twisted clues. Meg knows she’s risking her career to do it, but she’s determined not to let one more person die under her and Hawk’s watch. If the plan fails, it could bite them in the end. And if it leads to the killer, it could bury them forever . . .

My thanks to Jen Danna and Kensington Books for a review copy, received through Netgalley.

Last year I reviewed the first FBI K-9 novel Lone Wolf and fell in love with a fictional labrador called Hawk. Hawk is a search and rescue dog working for the FBI in the canine unit, his handler is Special Agent Meg Jennings and together they make a formidable team. Lone Wolf saw the duo on the track of a bomber who was targeting government buildings and it was a powerful and engaging read.

Meg and Hawk are back for a second outing in Before it’s too Late and this time the action is taking place much closer to home.

The FBI receive a coded message – a woman has been kidnapped and if the FBI can crack the code in the message then they will be able to locate the missing woman and rescue her. If they don’t solve the puzzle in good time the woman will die. A game from the kidnapper with a deadly twist.

Meg and Hawk are involved in the chase to rescue the woman but their chances of success are slim. When a cryptic clue throws the FBI off track it is too late to save the woman. Meg takes the failure hard but the kidnapper/killer is not done yet and a second woman is abducted, the alert is raised when her dog is spotted running free.

I am avoiding plot spoilers but suffice to say Meg becomes close to the action as she blames herself for not saving the first kidnap victim and she will not rest until she sees the killer brought to justice.

The FBI K9 novels have been a welcome and refreshing addition to my kindle. I love the dynamic between Meg and Hawk (and the other dogs which appear through the stories). After the thrill of hunting the bomber in Lone Wolf, the change to a sadistic killer in Before it’s too Late was equally welcome as I love a serial killer tale.

I hope that more FBI K9 stories shall follow, not enough dogs in my crime fiction and these warm my heart.

Before it’s too Late is published by Kensington and can be ordered here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Before-Its-Late-F-B-I-Novel-ebook/dp/B01N7NZL8T/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

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February 11

Gallery of the Dead – Chris Carter

‘Thirty-seven years in the force, and if I was allowed to choose just one thing to erase from my mind, what’s inside that room would be it.’

That’s what a LAPD Lieutenant tells Detectives Hunter and Garcia of the Ultra Violent Crimes Unit as they arrive at one of the most shocking crime scenes they have ever attended.

In a completely unexpected turn of events, the detectives find themselves joining forces with the FBI to track down a serial killer whose hunting ground sees no borders; a psychopath who loves what he does because to him murder is much more than just killing – it’s an art form.

Welcome to The Gallery of the Dead.

My thanks to Rhiannon at Simon & Schuster for my review copy and the chance to join the blog tour.

I can only say good things about Gallery of the Dead as I absolutely loved it. It’s a dark but totally gripping read in which Robert Hunter finds himself attending a murder scene and believing that the killer has been too efficient for this to have been his first kill.

From the opening chapter I was hooked – a woman arrives home, she potters through the rooms whilst chatting to her cat. It seemed all too normal, too domesticated and so I expected something nasty was about to happen. Reading on my mind was whirring with possibilities over what Chris Carter could have in store…would she find something horrible? Is there someone in her house? Will she receive a terrifying phone call? From the very first paragraphs you are drawn in and you want to keep reading as you are sure something bad (really bad) is about to happen.

And it does.

Boom – he got me. And for the next few hundred pages Chris Carter was not letting me go – Gallery of the Dead is one of those rare gems where you don’t want to stop reading and the action and twists and shocks just keep coming. “One more chapter?” Hell no…I can give it another hour – at least.

Hunter is back in top form too (this is book 9 in the series). Gallery of the Dead can be read entirely on its own, wholly self contained and easy to enjoy without knowing the back story. His analytical mind and sharp eye quickly identifies “marks” left on the body of the victim (no spoilers here) and using the police database to search for similar occurrences he alerts the FBI to the murder he is investigating.

The FBI have already been aware of the killer (this is not his first murder) and they propose a liaison with the police. The agent heading up the FBI taskforce is aware of Hunter’s skills and is keen to have him on board – but if you get Hunter you get his partner too and with that comes a wisecracking cop who will rub up the FBI agents in the wrong way. I loved the friction and rivalry between police and FBI and it was only made better by Hunter’s reaction to the sniping around him!

If you like a serial killer story, one which will not hold back on the grim detail and the sadistic nature of a murderous mind then you need to seek out Chris Carter’s books. Gallery of the Dead is a brilliant read – entertainment to the max.

Gallery of the Dead is published by Simon & Schuster and is available now in hardback, audiobook and digital format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Gallery-Dead-Robert-Hunter-9/dp/1471156346/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1518307286&sr=8-1

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