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To Die in June – Alan Parks

A woman enters a Glasgow police station to report her son missing, but no record can be found of the boy. When Detective Harry McCoy, seconded from the cop shop across town, discovers the family is part of the cultish Church of Christ’s Suffering, he suspects there is more to Michael’s disappearance than meets the eye.

Meanwhile reports arrive of a string of poisonings of down-and-outs across the city. The dead are men who few barely notice, let alone care about – but, as McCoy is painfully aware, among this desperate community is his own father.

Even as McCoy searches for the missing boy, he must conceal from his colleagues the real reason for his presence – to investigate corruption in the station. Some folk pray for justice. Detective Harry McCoy hasn’t got time to wait

I received a review copy from the publishers and was invited to join the blog tour by Anne Cater of Random Things Blog Tours.

It is time for my annual trip back to 1970’s Glasgow to reunite with Harry McCoy, Wattie, Stevie Cooper (McCoy’s oldest friend and one of Glasgow’s biggest gangsters) and Jumbo – Cooper’s garden-loving dogsbody. There are other characters I can expect to pop up as I dip back into the world Alan Parks has created (albeit that world is Glasgow of yester-year) but I always know these familiar faces will command my full attention until I reach the last page of the book. I seldom know when a new book is due out but I am always looking out for the next book by Alan Parks and I’ve never been disappointed with the stories he spins.

To Die in June is the sixth McCoy thriller and events are set during the heat of the 1975 summer. It begins with a missing child. A young boy is not in the family home when his mother comes down the stairs in the morning. She rushes to the police station, hysterical and demanding help. McCoy initiates an immediate search of the area but when he visits the family home to speak with the woman’s husband he is told there is no missing child. The search is called off and McCoy’s standing with his new colleagues at Possil police station dips even further than he could have anticipated.

Possil is McCoy and Wattie’s new home. There are changes taking place – Glasgow Police is becoming Strathclyde Police and while the transitions for the force are phasing in McCoy and the increasingly capable Wattie have been relocated. Their relationship with their new colleauges is fractious but for McCoy there is an opportunity to align himself with the other officers stationed at Possil but to do so will mean turning a blind eye to some of their activities and even applying a strong arm, when necessary, to get the outcomes needed. There will be a share of any spoils if he does and with his chaotic personal life seeming to take a turn for the better – McCoy is now in an unexpected relationship with one of Scotland’s leading actors and even McCoy is realising he needs to smarten up a little to be seen with her. This burgeoning relationship leads to some wonderful cameos, particularly early in the story when McCoy finds himself at a swanky Scottish Awards dinner.

But To Die in June isn’t all about sipping wine at posh functions. Out on the streets of Glasgow it looks like someone is giving the rough sleepers a toxic concoction to drink. At least that’s what McCoy believes. His colleagues are quick to point out that it is not unusual for the less fortunate citizens to start drinking anything they can get their hands on and early deaths are not uncommon given the toxins they regularly pour down their throats. Regular readers will know McCoy’s own father is one of the homeless souls and McCoy’s sensitivity to the plight of the homeless is not somthing his colleagues are quite so quick to give time to. But McCoy is concerned when his father’s drinking friends are telling him some of their number are dying after drinking a particularly toxic mixture. Wattie trys to convince McCoy he is reading too much into a few random deaths but McCoy isn’t so quickly convinced and the time he spends looking for a link between these deaths is putting a strain on his relationship with Wattie who is trying to cover the official investigations which the pair should be concentrating on.

As we have come to expect from Alan Parks there are critical events bubbling away and their importance may not always be apparent to the reader. Until suddently that subtle bubbling explodes into a very big deal and McCoy has a huge problem on his hands. That’s when you realise how smoothly Parks has sneaked some really important clues into the story, the very best sleight of hand, and McCoy’s life is in turmoil again. Alan Parks just keeps getting better and better – every new book feels more assured and that’s from a point where he was already setting a very high bar.

Glasgow never felt more unpredictable and it’s the dirty, rough city of old. There’s rival gangs buslting for superiority, gangsters trying to establish “legitimate” business interests, a religious group to be investigated (forcing McCoy to quash his natural distrust of all things faith-related), unhelpful and unethical police officers working to their own agenda. McCoy walks a dangerous path between these factions and he remains one of the very best protagonists in crime fiction at this time.

To Die In June is a five star read. The Harry McCoy series should be required reading for anyone calling themself a fan of Crime Fiction.

To Die in June is available in hardback, digital and audiobook format. You can order a copy here: https://www.waterstones.com/book/to-die-in-june/alan-parks/9781805300786

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April 27

The Monk – Tim Sullivan

To find a murderer, you need a motive . . .

THE DETECTIVE DS George Cross has always wondered why his mother left him when he was a child. Now she is back in his life, he suddenly has answers. But this unexpected reunion is not anything he’s used to dealing with. When a disturbing case lands on his desk, he is almost thankful for the return to normality.

THE QUESTION The body of a monk is found savagely beaten to death in a woodland near Bristol. Nothing is known about Brother Dominic’s past, which makes investigating difficult. How can Cross unpick a crime when they don’t know anything about the victim? And why would someone want to harm a monk?

THE PAST Discovering who Brother Dominic once was only makes the picture more puzzling. He was a much-loved and respected friend, brother, son – he had no enemies. Or, at least, none that are obvious. But looking into his past reveals that he was a very wealthy man, that he sacrificed it all for his faith. For a man who has nothing, it seems strange that greed could be the motive for his murder. But greed is a sin after all…

I recieved a review copy from the publisher. My thanks to Anne Cater of Random Things Blog Tours for the opportunity to host this leg of the blog tour.

Tim Sullivan’s DC George Cross novels have been on my radar for some time. One of the best things about being a bookblogger is knowing every single day you will more than likely become aware of a new book which someone has loved. You mentally take note and vow to read said book. Then you realise there are simply not enough hours in the day to read all the books you want to read. But the regular and recurring praise for the George Cross thrillers were such that I was determined to find time to read them. And I am so glad I did!

First the housekeeping; The Monk is book five in the series and I haven’t read the previous four. There’s always going to be a different reading experience for returning readers than a new reader will encounter – characters are more familiar and those returning readers know various elements of their background. That said, I had no problems following events in The Monk and was comfortable with the characters and their dynamics within the story. If, like me, you are new to DS Cross you can dip into the series here and not feel lost.

And I do feel you should consider dipping in as The Monk was terrific, a murder mystery where the reader follows the investigation alongside the police. You will hear facts and learn of events at the same time as the police and that linear narrative was a real treat, I felt I was involved all the way through the process which is something of a rarity in my recent reads.

The police had been alerted to a missing Monk, he had not seen seen by his cloistered brethren for a few days. So when a dog walker finds a battered, bloody and very dead man wearing a monks robes it’s not too much of a stretch for them to identify the victim of this brutal crime.

The real challenges begin here for DS Cross and his colleagues. Who would want to kill a Monk? Why was this such a brutal crime? They head to his monestary to begin their investigation and learn more about how Brother Dominic lived his life before his shocking death. What they find is a quiet, popular man who kept his previous life, before the church, a secret from his brothers.

Secrets never stay secret for long in a murder investigation and Cross learns Brother Dominic was once a successful city banker, before the Financial Crisis of 2008. Did something happen all those years ago which had someone holding a grudge? More recently Brother Dominic had upset a high profile businessman when his expert valuation of a religious artefact priced the piece significantly below what had been paid for it. Could a wealthy and ruthless entrepreneur have arranged for the death of a Monk?

Discovering the truth was reading joy. I got wholly engrossed in the story and immediately vowed to catch up on the earlier George Cross books. Great fun – read it!

The Monk is available today and can be bought in hardback, digital and audiobook format. You can order a copy here: https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-monk/tim-sullivan/9781804545607

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March 27

Her Deadly Game – Robert Dugoni

Keera Duggan was building a solid reputation as a Seattle prosecutor, until her romantic relationship with a senior colleague ended badly. For the competitive former chess prodigy, returning to her family’s failing criminal defense law firm to work for her father is the best shot she has. With the right moves, she hopes to restore the family’s reputation, her relationship with her father, and her career.

Keera’s chance to play in the big leagues comes when she’s retained by Vince LaRussa, an investment adviser accused of murdering his wealthy wife. There’s little hard evidence against him, but considering the couple’s impending and potentially nasty divorce, LaRussa faces life in prison. The prosecutor is equally challenging: Miller Ambrose, Keera’s former lover, who’s eager to destroy her in court on her first homicide defense.

As Keera and her team follow the evidence, they uncover a complicated and deadly game that’s more than Keera bargained for. When shocking information turns the case upside down, Keera must decide between her duty to her client, her family’s legacy, and her own future.

My thanks to Sophie Goodfellow at FMcM Associates for the opportunity to join the Blog Tour for Her Deadly Game and for the review copy I recieved to participate in the tour.

Her Deadly Game is one of the best books I have read for ages, I absolutly loved the mix of courtroom thriller and muder mystery. From the very early pages the reader is presented with a brutal murder, a vulnerable victim and what seems to be a clear-cut case for the police and the prosecution. But then the doubts and distractions creep in. There are strange elements at the murder scene which lead Defence Lawyer. Keera Duggan, to believe the case against her client – the victim’s husband – can be strongly contested. But if Vince LaRussa did not kill his wife, then who did?

There were so many elements to Her Deadly Game which I loved that I’m not sure where to start and I know I will not do the book justice.

I will start with Keera – a dogged warrior in the courtroom and daughter of a well known courtoom brawler – her father’s reputation as a fighter and the best man to have in your corner when the case is going against you is legendary. But Keera’s father has been battling an addition for too long and his reputation for hitting the bottle has cast something of a cloud over his status in the courtrooms. Keera has joined the family firm (against her will) after leaving the state prosecution service following a failed relationship with one of the lead prosecutors. He has engineered Keera’s caseload to be reduced to scaps and she knew his vindictive nature would mean her career would stall.

Next high point from Her Deadly Game was the crime. A woman home alone for the evening is shot in the back of the head. The police determined she had three visitors over the course of the evening. A family lawyer, her oldest friend then her husband returned home from a charity event. It was the victim’s husband (Vince) that found her body but the family lawyer and her friend both claim they left the house while Ann LaRussa was still alive. It appears Vince did kill his wife yet there is no evidence that would link him to the crime.

The crime scene has some random and unexplained things. Airconditioning turned off on one of the hottest days of the year. A broken glass on the floor, a strange mark on a kitchen appliance. Are any connected to the murder? If so then how? Puzzling out the crime scene will keep Keera distracted and frustrated but there’s a mysterious figure keen to help her enquiries (albeit indirectly).

Before an explanation can be found the prosecution decide to move for a fast trial and seek conviction of Vince LaRussa for the murder of his wife. Vince is determined to prove his innocence and feels stalling a trial would make him look guilty so a fast move to a courtroom drama happens.

The next great element of Her Deadly Game. I LOVE courtroom dramas when they are played out as well as this one. Keera is up against her former lover (extra edge) and neither side is willing to make concessions. The niggle continues into their trial and there are confrontations and mind games from both sides. The judge is notoriously strict so she isn’t entertaining the unpredictable displays from the legal teams. It all makes for cracking reading.

Suffice to say there were plenty of twists to the case, surprises in the ongoing investigations too and I found the story utterly compelling. The author sets up lots of questions as the story unfolds and the challenge for the reader is to try to work out where they may be heading. My curiosity was piqued very early on and until I reached the finale no other books were getting a look in – this was all I wanted to read!

I would be happy if I enjoyed all my books as much as I did this one

Her Deadly Game publishes in Hardback, digital and audiobook format on 28 March 2023. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B09V575VRP/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

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March 12

City of Vengeance – D.V. Bishop

Florence. Winter, 1536. A prominent Jewish moneylender is murdered in his home, a death with wide implications in a city powered by immense wealth.

Cesare Aldo, a former soldier and now an officer of the Renaissance city’s most feared criminal court, is given four days to solve the murder: catch the killer before the feast of Epiphany – or suffer the consequences.

During his investigations Aldo uncovers a plot to overthrow the volatile ruler of Florence, Alessandro de’ Medici. If the Duke falls, it will endanger the whole city. But a rival officer of the court is determined to expose details about Aldo’s private life that could lead to his ruin. Can Aldo stop the conspiracy before anyone else dies, or will his own secrets destroy him first?

Reviewing my purchased copy of City of Vengeance

If asked, I’d tell you that I don’t really read a lot of historical fiction. However, over the last twelve months I seem to be spending far more time in the past and that’s been a bit of an eye opener for me. Suddenly it seems there’s a whole new range of titles calling out to me and I am going to make the time to read them.

Part of the reason behind my recent conversion towards historical crime is that I have chosen a few crackers to read. Just last week I was giving a five star review to a story set in occupied Paris of 1940 and today; another five star read but this time the story is set in Florence in 1536. Beautiful Florence but D.V. Bishop is going to show us the darker side of the city too. The action will move from the courts of the leaders of the city, to the brothels, the churches, the prison and the guardhouse. Some characters will appear in all of these locations – some will pop up in areas they really shouldn’t be and that will keep Cesare Aldo a busy man.

We meet Aldo as he is returning to Florence – he is escorting a wealthy businessman who has concerns about his personal safety (and that of his money) as he travels home from business meetings. Aldo is to see him safely through the dangerous paths and the open spaces in the Italian countryside. But in the opening paragraphs of City of Vengeance Aldo’s worst fears are realised and the two men are ambushed. A fight ensues and the reader gets to see Aldo in the thick of the action. He was a soldier, he’s now an officer in the city guard and as well as being an astute investigator he can more than handle himself in a fight. Usually. It is a terrific opening to the story and as the dust settled I knew I was going to get on well with Cesare Aldo.

When he is safely home the real intrigue begins. A wealthy moneylender is murdered in the Jewish sector of the city. A young man is battered to death, his sexual preferences deemed an abhoration to soneone. Plots to disrupt the power at the top of Florence. Aldo will be drawn into each of these issues, his reputation and his life will be put on the line while he tries his best to execute his duties to the best of his abilities.

D.V. Bishop keeps multiple storylines flowing and interweaving without letting the pace drop or the action stagnate. There are clear villains for readers to oppose, you want to see them topple. But there is also a nice collection of allies for Aldo with an equally satisfying number of players that cannot be easily put into categories. This third group are the most intruging as their motives are not always clear and Aldo the least of their concerns – you can’t help but feel some of these characters will return in future and their interests will overlap with Aldo’s story again. It all feels part of the author’s broader plan to bring readers to sixteenth centrury Florence and get them invested in the life of the city and the players that will define its future. I am very much here for the ride.

I said that I was going to make time to read more historical fiction and that time starts immediately – I am returning to Florence and picking up Aldo’s story. The second book, The Darkest Sin, is going to be my next audiobook listen, I don’t want to wait any longer than is necessary to find out the consequences of Aldo’s decision right at the end of City of Vengeance.

City of Vengeance is available in paperback digital and audiobook. You can buy a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B08G1HJVVW/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i1

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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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January 4

Mirrorland – Carole Johnstone

One twin ran. The other vanished. Neither escaped…

DON’T TRUST ANYONE
Cat’s twin sister El has disappeared. But there’s one thing Cat is sure of: her sister isn’t dead. She would have felt it. She would have known.

DON’T TRUST YOUR MEMORIES
To find her sister, Cat must return to their dark, crumbling childhood home and confront the horrors that wait there. Because it’s all coming back to Cat now: all the things she has buried, all the secrets she’s been running from.

DON’T TRUST THIS STORY…
The closer Cat comes to the truth, the closer to danger she is. Some things are better left in the past…

I received a review copy from the publishers via Netgalley

In 2022 I read and reviewed fewer books than I wanted. I began 2023 with a determination to read some of the titles I hadn’t managed to get to last year and make sure I reviewed them too! Doesn’t seem too much to ask for a bookblogger…

As the New Year bells rang out I was finishing Mirrorland by Carole Johnstone. Scottish based, a dark and twisty story (gothic is a word which I have seen used more than once in connection with this story) and extensive use of flashback chapters to a time when twins Cat and El were children.

Their childhood is very much central to the story set in current times (2018 as it turns out) as the characteristics of each twin is embedded during their troubled formative years and when we first meet Cat in 2018 the sisters have not spoken for many years, Cat is living in America while El has remained in Scotland and is married to their childhood friend Ross. But Cat is finally making the return trip to Scotland as El has taken her boat out to sea and both El and the boat are missing.

Cat is utterly convinced that El is alive. As a twin she would know if something had happened to her sister. When she returns to her childhood home (where El and Ross now live) she starts receiving strange messages – warnings – and then emails begin to arrive each seem to be from El who is sending Cat on “treasure hunts” similar to those the girls played many years before. Cat believes the language and the clues can only have come from her sister, so where is she and why is she hiding from her husband and twin?

Carole Johnstone makes excellent use of flashbacks to past events to reveal more and more about the relationship between El and Cat, El and Ross and Ross and Cat. But pivotal to the story is Mirrorland. The place where the girls spent their childhood – a fantasy construct within their house and garden where clowns, pirates were real, they could hide from The Witch in their house and live out the stories they enjoyed.

If truth be told I did sometimes lose track of what was a fantasy memory and what was Cat on a present day treasure hunt – reading in a busy Christmas house was not condusive to keeping firm hold of the story thread. It got to the point where I was doubting everything all the characters were saying, I doubted their actions were genuine and I second guessed everything as it happened. This is what I want from a thriller – that uncertainty and the need to find out what actually happens kept me coming back for chapter after chapter.

A good start to my reading year as I had fun with Mirrorland.

Mirrorland is published by HarperCollins and you can order a copy here: https://www.waterstones.com/book/mirrorland/carole-johnstone/9780008361426

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November 23

The Pain Tourist – Paul Cleave

A young man wakes from a coma to find himself targeted by the men who killed his parents, while someone is impersonating a notorious New Zealand serial killer … the latest chilling, nerve-shredding, twisty thriller from the author of The Quiet People

How do you catch a killer…When the only evidence is a dream?

James Garrett was critically injured when he was shot following his parents’ execution, and no one expected him to waken from a deep, traumatic coma. When he does, nine years later, Detective Inspector Rebecca Kent is tasked with closing the case that her now retired colleague, Theodore Tate, failed to solve all those years ago.

But between that, and hunting for Copy Joe – a murderer on a spree, who’s imitating Christchurch’s most notorious serial killer – she’s going to need Tate’s help. Especially when they learn that James has lived out another life in his nine-year coma, and there are things he couldn’t possibly know, including the fact that Copy Joe isn’t the only serial killer in town…

My thanks to Anne Cater of Random Things Blog Tours for the opportunity to host this leg of the blog tour for The Pain Tourist. I was provided with a review copy by the publishers, Orenda Books, but I am reviewing a copy I purchased through Kobo.

I picked up The Pain Tourist and read the blurb. A coma patient who has a dream-world from the time he was seemingly oblivious to events which were unfolding around him. Pain, Coma, Medical Bracelet on the cover and I am strapping myself in for a medical thriller. Reader I was totally wrong with my first assumption (which became a theme when I started trying to second=guess where Paul Cleave was taking the story) this is a dark crime story with killers, liars, cheats and ne’er-do-wells. Everything you want from a good crime thriller really – oh and there is actually a doctor too so a little bit of the medical thriller I had expected.

Central to all the events is James Garrett. He wakes one night as masked men have entered his family home and are holding his parents at gunpoint. James scrambles to alert his older sister and she manages to get out a window to try and summon help. Sadly for the other family members the gunmen aren’t happy at the prospect of leaving the Garrett home with nothing to show for their energies. James and his parents are all shot before the men leave the house – only James will survive but it takes extensive medical intervention to keep him alive and his small body goes into a coma for nine years.

Paul Cleave opens The Pain Tourist with the gripping account of the Garrett family plight. We then spin forward nine years to the point James starts coming out the coma. Many things have changed, the police officer investigating the original attach on the Garrett home has retired from active service. Younger colleagues need to pick up the threads of the investigation but the killers are still out there and it doesn’t take long for them to learn James is awake and he could be considered a threat if he can help police to identify his attackers.

Another seemingly dormant investigation is about to cause police a headache though. Initallly it looks like a notorious serial killer who escaped the police may have started killing again. However, a copycat murderer seems more likely and this creates a whole new problem. If someone wants to imitate a killer how far will they go to get the thrill or satisfaction they seek? Detective Inspector Rebecca Kent is caught up in both cases and her attention will be stretched as she is run ragged by both cases.

With two big cases to juggle Paul Cleave keeps the reader hooked with a canny use of short, punchy chapters. There’s always a new drama or trigger point arising in one of the cases and as we get deeper into the stories new layers of intrigue are unpeeled which draws the reader deeper into events. It is a difficult book to put down – each chapter seems to end with a need to keep you reading and with over one hundred and forty chapters there is a lot of story to be told.

As with all good stories it is the characters which will determine if you lose yourself to events. James Garrett is a fascinating one. He spent nine years in a coma and during this time he seems to have constructed a new world (coma world) where his family follow a very different path than the tragedy they faced in our world. But when James comes out of his coma his doctor realises the two worlds may overlap and where they do a murderer hides.

This may seem a fantastical construct but the author grounds the premise with some scientific explanation. Now these explanations may, or may not, be true science facts – but in a crime story I am more than happy to roll with what I am reading. It sounded legit! It also let me buy into the contribution that James makes to the investigations which are central to the story.

The Pain Tourist is a novel I will find easy to recommend, engaging multi-layered story and strong characters you want to read about. Plus finding out what The Pain Tourist from the title actually refers to was a real mind-blown moment. Dark.

The Pain Tourist is published by Orenda Books and is available in paperback and digital format. You can order a copy here: https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-pain-tourist/paul-cleave/9781914585487

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November 3

The Silent Dead – Marnie Riches

She was lying as if asleep on the wooden kitchen floor, beneath the fridge covered with a child’s colourful crayon drawings. But her frozen expression showed she would never wake again…

When Detective Jackie Cooke is called out to the scene, she’s expecting a routine check. The bottle of pills on the kitchen table, next to the note with the single word SORRY written in a shaky hand, make it seem obvious what’s happened. But Jackie is shocked when she recognises her old schoolfriend Claire – and she is convinced Claire would never take her own life.

Determined to dig deeper, Jackie soon discovers evidence that proves her right: a roll of notes has been thrust down the victim’s throat. And when she finds another woman killed in the same way, she realises someone may be targeting lonely single mothers. As Jackie talks to Claire’s distraught children, one of them too young to understand his mummy is never coming home, she vows to find answers.

Both victims were in touch with someone calling himself Nice Guy – could he be the killer? Pursuing every clue, Jackie is sure she’s found a match in dead-eyed Tyler, part of a dark world of men intent on silencing women for daring to reject them. But just as she makes the arrest, another single mother is found dead – a woman who never dated at all.

Forced to re-evaluate every lead she has, with her boss pressuring her to make a case against the obvious suspect, Jackie knows she is running out of time before another innocent woman is murdered. And, as a single mother herself, she cannot help but wonder if she is in the killer’s sights. Can she uncover his true motivation and put an end to his deadly game… or will he find her first?

I received a review copy ahead of the blog tour but I read my own purchased copy. Thanks to Sarah Hardy and Bookouture for the opportunity to take part in the tour for The Silent Dead.

I’m going to cut to the chase – The Silent Dead is terrific. I raced through the story and got totally lost in Jackie Cooke’s life as she finds herself investigating the death of an old school friend.

Readers join the story as a mother drops her young son at nursery for the day. The teary parting from the boy and the heartwrench for his mum will be all too familiar for many parents and it’s an early indication of how Marnie Riches is going to play on our emotions over daily challenges and experiences. Grounding the backdrop to a murder story with elements of daily life, which we can all relate to, made everything seem more personal in The Silent Dead. After leaving her son in the care of his nursery teacher we follow Claire back to her house – it’s the last journey she will make as death awaits her.

When Detective Jackie Cooke responds to the call of a suicide she is shocked to see an old friend from her school days. She finds it hard to believe her friend would take her own life and Jackie has suspicions there may be more to Claire’s death than initially meets the eye. Jackie raises these concerns and finds her combatative boss is less than keen to read too much into matters. The evidence is a single parent with money worries who she left a note to say “sorry”. But Jackie isn’t convinced and wants to dig a little deeper. It turns out she had reason to be suspicious.

The Silent Dead takes Jackie and her colleagues deep into an investigation which will see them bashing heads with objectional ex-husbands, working girls, internet dating sites and facing the problem of the angry incels who live online and seek others who listen to their hateful rantings. Marnie Riches is very good at bringing disturbing and problematic people into her stories and showing the damage they can do when left unchecked. She shines a light on the worst of human nature and weaves compelling crime thrillers around the darker elements many of us choose to ignore (if we even know they are out there).

When not taking on the dark forces Jackie has her work more than cut out for her at home. She is a new mum who also has two older twins causing chaose at home. Returning to work early from her maternity leave, following the sudden breakdown in her marriage, Jackie is juggling work and family commitments. She is stressed, hormonal, frustrated and permanently exhausted – she felt one of the most realistic lead characters I have encountered for some time. Everyday problems ARE problems, not enough hours in the day, missing her kids, unable to get full parental support at parents night – all so relatable to many of us. This recognisable human dynamic of the day to day grind does add to the realism of the story and everyone wants to get behind Jackie and see her pull through and get some respite. If only it were that simple!

As I said at the start of this review – I really enjoyed The Silent Dead. I keep coming back to read more and more of the books Marnie Riches writes as I find them so readable. Pacing is fantastic, characters can be fun, serious and deadly dangerous and the story just flows. More of these will be very welcome.

The Silent Dead is published by Bookouture and is available in paperback, digital and audiobook format. You can order your copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0B3DQDSJ4/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

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October 24

Marple: Twelve New Stories

A brand new collection of short stories featuring the Queen of Crime’s legendary detective Jane Marple, penned by twelve remarkable bestselling and acclaimed authors.

The first print run will be a true collector’s edition with a gold foiled design on the cover board

This collection of twelve original short stories, all featuring Jane Marple, will introduce the character to a whole new generation. Each author reimagines Agatha Christie’s Marple through their own unique perspective while staying true to the hallmarks of a traditional mystery.

Naomi Alderman
Leigh Bardugo
Alyssa Cole
Lucy Foley
Elly Griffiths
Natalie Haynes
Jean Kwok
Val McDermid
Karen M. McManus
Dreda Say Mitchell
Kate Mosse
Ruth Ware

Miss Marple was first introduced to readers in a story Christie wrote for The Royal Magazine in 1927 and made her first appearance in a full-length novel in 1930’s The Murder at the Vicarage. It has been 45 years since Agatha Christie’s last Marple novel, Sleeping Murder, was published posthumously in 1976, and this collection of ingenious new stories by twelve Christie devotees will be a timely reminder why Jane Marple remains the most famous fictional female detective of all time.

I received a review copy from the publishers (Harper Collins) via Netgalley

In 1989 Queen released an album called The Miracle. They were the only band I would really listen to at that time in my life and I remember it clearly. At the same time I was on an Agatha Christie reading marathon. I had borrowed an Agatha Christie novel from my favourite aunt and it sparked my love for Poirot, Jane Marple, Tommy and Tuppence and all the other characters that crop up over the dozens of books. I remember those years very fondly.

Spin forward to 2022 and I am listening to a brand new Queen song (which had been left off The Miracle album by the band in 1989) and I am reading twelve new Miss Marple stories. Pinch me – I may be dreaming! Never would I have thought either of these things would have been possible.

As much as I enjoyed the new Queen single, reading Marple was the better of the two experiences.

If there is an Agatha Christie fan in your family then this book is an essential read for them – casts an eye towards Christmas here. I had a good look at the hardback copy before I posted my review and it is absolutely stunning – under the dust jacket are all the signatures of the contributing authors (in gold) which almost makes me want to display that on my shelves rather than the cover depicted above.

I have never found a collection of short stories where I have enjoyed every single story. In this collection of twelve Marple tales there are some contributions I enjoyed more than others and there was only one where was irked by the outcome. That’s a fantastic return for me as I don’t normally enjoy a short story collection. But in the case of Marple the continuity of the central character negated my normal frustration. I find a collection of individual (random) stories being too “bitty” to fully embrace for any length of time.

I’ve no intention to run through each of the stories and break down my thoughts on each – this review would run out of control if I tried that. What I will say is Jane Marple finds herself overseas in the theatres of USA, on a cruise ship and she frequently nips around the UK visiting friends and relatives or dining at University tables. Everywhere she goes those “twinkling blue eyes” see problems, upset and (most importantly) to the truth behind some shocking incidents. This is what we all wanted to see in these stories and fans will not be disappointed.

Not every case involves a murder, I did wonder if that would be the case, and it was pleasing to see not all the authors bumped off a character. Each story gives a good demonstration of the famous Jane Marple observation powers and more than once she will place herself in danger when a murderer realises this seemingly harmless old woman could expose their cleverly concealed criminal activites.

There is fun to be found in Marple – the idea of a second Murder at the Vicarage made me laugh out loud. The determination of Miss Marple and her friends to indulge in many a sherry (why not?) crops up in more than one tale. And there were many mentions of the nephew Raymond who seems to delight or frustrate in equal measure. While I am not sure if Marple would be a great introduction to the character – there are quite a few nods to the source material – for existing fans the opportuinty to read new stories featuring Jane Marple is an unexpected delight and I am extremely grateful to all the contributing authors for making that possible.

Marple is available in Hardback, Digital and Audiobook format. You can order a copy here: https://www.waterstones.com/book/marple-twelve-new-stories/agatha-christie/naomi-alderman/9780008467319

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October 18

The Dying Squad – Adam Simcox (audiobook)

WHO BETTER TO SOLVE A MURDER THAN A DEAD DETECTIVE?

When Detective Inspector Joe Lazarus storms a Lincolnshire farmhouse, he expects to bring down a notorious drug gang; instead, he discovers his own dead body and a spirit guide called Daisy-May.

She’s there to enlist him to the Dying Squad, a spectral police force made up of the recently deceased. Joe soon realises there are fates far worse than death. To escape being stuck in purgatory, he must solve his own murder.

Reluctantly partnering with Daisy-May, Joe faces dangers from both the living and the dead in the quest to find his killer – before they kill again.

I am reviewing my bought copy of the audiobook of The Dying Squad

The blurb (above) actually contains spoilers for the first few chapters of the book. Probably just as well as it would be really tricky to try to review The Dying Squad while trying to keep quiet the fact the lead character, Joe Lazarus, is dead. Not that Lazarus knows it immediately. We join him on a stakeout as he prepares to bring down a gang who have been providing drugs to the local community. The property under surveliance is an isolated farmhouse but when Lazarus enters the property he finds two suspects dead in the hallway and – shockingly – his own dead body in an upstairs room.

Throughout this introduction Lazarus is being accompanied by Daisy-May. She strolled over to speak with him while he was watching the farmhouse and then, despite all his warnings, she followed him into the property and was with him when he discovered his body. Daisy-May is dead too. But she has had more experience at being dead and it is her job to guide him into his afterlife and into purgatory.

No rest for Joe Lazarus, he has a job to do for the woman that runs purgatory. She needs Lazarus to return to earth and find his killer. He will have Daisy-May for company and she will help him investigate and to understand what he can and cannot do now that he is dead. Having Lazarus and Daisy-May together for so much of the story means their interactions need to be fun and by God they are. I loved the zippy one-liners, the sass and the sarcasm. Daisy-May is such a strong character and I loved listening to her keeping Lazarus in check.

One element of The Dying Squad which I really enjoyed was the way Adam Simcox built up the real world, the afterlife and how the characters traverse between the two. Then there are the citizens of purgatory – a mass of lost souls or a sinister collective seeking a purpose? I wasn’t sure how they may fit into the story but contrast that to the evil forces (both on this earth and beyond it). There are bad guys in The Dying Squad and there are REALLY bad guys. The author can dispense some particularly nasty punishment to his characters when a fate worse than death is a geninue threat that will keep them focused on their mission.

It’s clever and creative storytelling in The Dying Squad and as all the “normal” rules are suspended I really did not know what may lie ahead for Lazarus and Daisy-May. Adam Simcox does a great job of developing his key characters, I was buying into their stories right from the first pages and the shocks they expereinced were equally shocking to me. Terrific fun to read – or to listen to in my case.

The audiobook is narrated by Sophie Aldred (soon to be seen back on our television screens reprising her role as Ace in Doctor Who). As a long time fan of the Big Finish Doctor Who audio adentures I have listened to Sophie Aldred’s voice on more dog walks than I can count. As such, listening to her reading The Dying Squad was an absolute treat. She captured the feisty nature of Daisy-May superbly and brought the gravitas and drama for Lazarus as he contended with the changes in his life (beginning with his death). I have a short list of favourite audiobook narrators but after hearing The Dying Squad I will need to make that short list a little bit longer.

The Dying Squad comes with lashings of darkness and you’ll need to have an acceptance for fantasy in your crime stories to enjoy this book as much as I did. Personally I couldn’t get enough of this story and because I was a little late to the party in discovering The Dying Squad the sequal, The Generation Killers, has already been released. Reader – I have bought that too.

The Dying Squad is available in paperback, digital and audiobook format. You can order a copy here: https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-dying-squad/adam-simcox/9781473230767

Category: 5* Reviews, Audiobook, From The Bookshelf | Comments Off