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Comic Book Catch-up

As comic book heroes command more and more screen time at our local cinemas, and it now seems cool to be a “comic book nerd”,- I have been spending some time recently reading through the source material…proper comic books.

I have been reading comics for over 30 years and I am loving seeing the heroes I grew up with suddenly finding their way into so many new households. As a book blogger it would be remiss of me not to showcase some of the great graphic novels I have enjoyed (mainly) recently.

JAMES BOND – VARGR

After a mission of vengeance in Helsinki, James Bond returns to London and assumes the workload of a fallen 00 Section agent. His new mission takes him to Berlin, presumably to break up an agile drug-trafficking operation. But Bond has no idea of the forces gathered in secret against him, the full scope of an operation that’s much scarier and more lethal than he could possibly imagine. Berlin is about to catch fire… and James Bond is trapped inside. Dynamite Entertainment proudly presents VARGR, the debut storyline in the all-new James Bond comic book series, as crafted by masterful writer Warren Ellis (Transmetropolitan, The Authority) and artist Jason Masters (Batman Incorporated, Guardians of the Galaxy).

If a good story on audiobook can be ruined by the narrator then the equivalent issue for graphic novels is that the art can let down a book. Here we are with Vargr. It is a James Bond story from the talented Warren Ellis and I really liked his take on Bond (darker and edgy). The bad guys were perfectly pitched, the danger Bond faces felt very appropriate within the franchise and I liked how the peril shifts as the books develop.

Unfortunately I did not enjoy the artwork in the book and this tainted the reading experience for me. If a story is going to rely upon images revealing some of the twists and surprises and is not dialogue driven then the pictures need to be sufficiently clear to appreciate these twists.

Good story, not a great book, but I would read more in this series.

JUSTICE LEAGUE VS SUICIDE SQUAD

The members of the Justice League are Earth’s most powerful and famous superheroes…but they aren’t the only team in town.

The Suicide Squad strikes from the shadows and does the jobs too dirty for superheroes to handle. Under the iron fist of Director Amanda Waller, these monsters and maniacs have operated in total secrecy…until now. Batman is on their trail and the Squad’s existence isn’t something he or the Justice League can tolerate. It must be shut down.

But while the heroes and antiheroes are distracted fighting each other, twisted mastermind Maxwell Lord assembles a nightmarish army of DC’s deadliest villains to take out both teams!

I love a big “event” and when DC bring together the Justice League and the Suicide Squad that can certainly be considered a BIG story to get to grips with. Full credit to writer Joshua Williamson as he does a great job with a large cast and he keeps the story zipping along.

Action happens after the recent DC Rebirth events (to allow you to place the timing) and despite being billed as Justice League vs Suicide Squad there is a lot more going on in this book than a simple head to head smackdown.

We do get the expected confrontation quite early into the book, however, once the dust settles we have a significant story flip and some of the dynamic changes between characters. I really enjoyed the opportunity to see some of these DC characters put into this spotlight.

Artwork is a boost to the book too. Colourful, clear and with reader enjoyment put to the fore it was a gorgeous reading experience, no squinting at shaded sketches to try decipher what was happening!

The story collects Justice League vs Suicide Squad 1-6, Suicide Squad 8,9 and 10 and also Justice League 12 and 13…a good number of issues which makes this a longer read for us to enjoy.

SPIDER-MAN: TORMENT

Collects Spider-Man #1-5. Webs, fangs and voodoo drums! A vengeance-seeking villain binds another Spider-Man foe to her will, but can they really resurrect a third to triple-team the wall-crawler?

Torment was the story which flipped me from occasional comic book reader to serious comic collector. I remember being blown away by Todd McFarlane’s artwork and this story of The Lizard on a relentless drive to kill Spider-man was not like any story I had encountered before.

Has time been kind to Torment? It was 1990 when I first read it and Spidey has gone through some major changes since then but I was happy to find that I enjoyed revisiting this story.

A series of brutal murders in New York leads Peter Parker to suspect that a monster is stalking the city. The Lizard appears the most likely suspect, however, the brutality of the killings is not typical of his old foe.

Readers see that The Lizard is being influenced by a witch using blood and voodoo rituals to control her “pet”. Her motives become clear as the story develops but her magic is powerful and Spider-man is weakened and vulnerable as his battles with The Lizard have drained him – can Spider-man overcome the ferocity of these foes and get home to Mary Jane?

Art is distinctive. The story a powerful introduction to a new title and as a single volume it was a great read.

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September 13

The Coffin Path – Katherine Clements

Maybe you’ve heard tales about Scarcross Hall, the house on the old coffin path that winds from village to moor top. They say there’s something up here, something evil.

Mercy Booth isn’t afraid. The moors and Scarcross are her home and lifeblood. But, beneath her certainty, small things are beginning to trouble her. Three ancient coins missing from her father’s study, the shadowy figure out by the gatepost, an unshakeable sense that someone is watching.

When a stranger appears seeking work, Mercy reluctantly takes him in. As their stories entwine, this man will change everything. She just can’t see it yet.

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

A ghost story and a historical chiller (which was the first unexpected twist). I hadn’t realised that The Coffin Path didn’t have a modern day setting and I enjoyed the mental shift moving the already remote Scarcross Hall back through time.

Scarcross Hall houses Mercy Booth, she lives with her father and they farm sheep on the inhospitable land. As we first encounter Mercy a stranger has approached the edge of their property – he is looking for work and gets taken on as shepherd and farmhand.

Life is tough at Scarcross and the sheep are precious – their sale will provide the coin to keep the household fed and warm through the hard winter months. It is of considerable concern, therefore, when sheep and lambs start to disappear – their bloody bodies to be found ripped and slashed…valuable resources callously ruined.

Mercy faces other problems. Her father’s health is failing and she is increasingly reliant upon the farmhands. As a single child Mercy expects to inherit Scarcross but property and land is not left to daughters – in England of olde the son inherits. Mercy’s father would see her married if he could – Mercy has other ideas and is relying upon her father’s promise that he will leave her Scarcross.

Adding a chilling twist to events is a series of unexplained phenomenon plaguing Scarcross Hall. Mercy’s father is missing his treasured inkwell and some ancient coins. Their housekeeper seems to have a sixth sense and foretells of problems which shall accompany the finding of the coins. Strange sights at night, moving furniture in locked rooms and other unexplained incidents add a delightful chill to The Coffin Path.

A great read this one, ghost story, mystery, social commentary and a thumpingly good historical thriller makes The Coffin Path well worth seeking out.

The Coffin Path is available in paperback, digital and audiobook format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Coffin-Path-perfect-ghost-story-ebook/dp/B06WLQLCKH/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1536693665&sr=8-1&keywords=the+coffin+path

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September 10

Thirteen Days by Sunset Beach – Ramsey Campbell

It’s Ray’s and Sandra’s first family holiday in Greece, on the island of Vasilema. The skies are cloudier than anywhere else in Greece, and they’re intrigued by local eccentricities―the lack of mirrors, the outsize beach umbrellas, the saint’s day celebrated with an odd nocturnal ritual.

Why are there islanders who seem to follow the family wherever they go? Why do Sandra and the teenage grandchildren have strangely similar dreams? Has Sandra been granted a wish she didn’t know she made?

Before their holiday is over, some of the family may learn too much about the secret that keeps the island alive.

My thanks to Flame Tree Press for my review copy and to Anne Cater of Random Things Tours for the opportunity to join the blog tour for Thirteen Days By Sunset Beach

Greece is the setting for Thirteen Days By Sunset Beach and we are on holiday with a very English family. Ray and Sandra arrive at their chosen resort first – the rest of their family are due the next day.

As Sandra and Ray settle into their accommodation we note that their hosts are a little odd, possibly distracted. There are cryptic comments which Ray and Sandra do not seem to be picking up on, a lack of mirrors, the strange custom which requires their hosts to knock on doors twice and wait to be invited into the room.

Both have a restless first night and Sandra gets bitten on her neck – local bugs must be out in force. But these niggles are soon forgotten when the rest of their family arrive – kids and grandkids and all the fun they bring.

If I am being honest I felt sorry for Ray and Sandra – their family irritated the life out of me and their quiet holiday appears less-so when the family squabbles kicked off! But everyone is determined to enjoy their vacation and it is not long before they are venturing into the local town and meeting some of the residents.

Again the peculiar cryptic warnings are suggested. Some ignored, others dismissed as language or communication concerns. The reader knows strange things are afoot and the warnings of not venturing out at night, no mirrors in the rooms, bite marks on three of the family does seem to allude to a very familiar threat.

Ramsey Campbell is a master of horror fiction and you know that the story he will spin around Sandra, Ray and their extended family is not going to be one of a relaxing summer break. There is evil abroad and it is far from certain that the holidaymakers will survive unscathed.

Another strong addition to the Flame Tree Press collection who are bringing some cracking horror thrillers to our bookshelves.

Thirteen Days By Sunset Beach is published by Flame Tree Books and is available in paperback, audio and digital format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Thirteen-Sunset-Fiction-Without-Frontiers/dp/1787580326/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1536528825&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=ramsay+campbell+sunset+beach

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September 9

Overkill – Vanda Symon

When the body of a young mother is found washed up on the banks of the Mataura River, a small rural community is rocked by her tragic suicide. But all is not what it seems.

Sam Shephard, sole-charge police constable in Mataura, soon discovers the death was no suicide and has to face the realisation that there is a killer in town. To complicate the situation, the murdered woman was the wife of her former lover. When Sam finds herself on the list of suspects and suspended from duty, she must cast aside her personal feelings and take matters into her own hands.

To find the murderer … and clear her name.

My thanks to Orenda Books for my review copy and the chance to join the Overkill blog tour.

I read a lot of crime thrillers and this means I read many death scenes of incidental characters . Then I wait for the main protagonist to arrive and puzzle out who killed these incidental characters. The murder in the opening chapter of Overkill was one of the most distressing and upsetting I can recall.

I had no previous knowledge of the characters and didn’t know why the murder was happening but it troubled me. When a book opens with such a dynamic impact I know I will enjoy the next few hours I shall spend with it. And so it turned out to be the case.

Overkill is a terrific read. Lead character is Sam Shephard, local cop to a small New Zealand town. Everyone knows everyone else, nobody can believe a murderer could be in their midst but everyone will be suspicious of Sam if the victim is the wife of Sam’s ex.

Working to clear her name, find a killer and totally not to build bridges with a grieving widower who she may still be attracted to…Sam will face constant challenges to prevent the seemingly motiveless murder being investigated.

First Vanda Symon book I have read – on the strength of Overkill I sincerely hope it us not the last.

Overkill is published by Orenda Books and is available in paperback, digital and audiobook. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Overkill-Sam-Shephard-Vanda-Symon-ebook/dp/B079YY122L/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1536448567&sr=8-1&keywords=vanda+symon+overkill

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September 8

The Siren And The Spectre – Jonathan Janz

When David Caine, a celebrated skeptic of the supernatural, is invited by an old friend to spend a month in “the most haunted house in Virginia,” he believes the case will be like any other. But the Alexander House is different.

Built by a 1700s land baron to contain the madness and depravity of his eldest son, the house is plagued by shadows of the past and the lingering taint of bloodshed. David is haunted, as well. For twenty-two years ago, he turned away the woman he loved, and she took her life in sorrow.

And David suspects she’s followed him to the Alexander House.

My thanks to Anne Cater at Random Things Tour for the chance to join the blog tour and to Flame Tree Press for my review copy.

Over recent weeks I have been extremely fortunate to have enjoyed some of the new titles being published by Flame Tree Press. They are assembling a cracking collection of horror tales, each new read has left me unsettled and thoroughly entertained.

The Specter and the Siren is a haunted house story – there is more (much more) to it than that but events do centre around Alexander House and David Caine’s experiences while he stays in the house.

Caine is an author noted for his cynicism towards the supernatural and an old school friend invites him to live in Alexander House – an old property with a dubious past and the reputation for ghostly experiences. If he writes a book on his experiences then there is a hope the interest generated in Alexander House will turn the property into a money-spinner for his friend.

From the moment the reader is taken into the Alexander House there is a tangible sense of gloom and foreboding. Caine feels it too and we realise that despite not believing in the supernatural he does get nervous easily and is not enjoying the dark, creaking house. Things are about to get considerably more terrifying for Caine.

The house does not sit in isolation. Caine has a neighbour, a retired gentleman who enjoys fishing on the river (Alexander House sits on an isolated peninsula and is surrounded by water). Another neighbouring house shelters the most dysfunctional family I can recall. The parents are permanently drunk or stoned. Hard-core pornography streams constantly on their television and the mother, Honey, has insatiable desires – Caine being fresh meat. Her husband is a willing participant is violent physical abuse and their kids try to find a “normal” in this toxic environment.

These neighbours will both help and hinder Caine as he tries to adjust to his new living arrangements and he is going to need all the help he can get. Alexander House is not a happy residence and Caine is sitting in the heart of danger.

Jonathan Janz has delivered a truly unsettling read which horror fans will love. The history of Alexander House is horrific and it it not content to remain “history” – Caine and his friends are in more danger than they could possibly have realised.

Loved this – even though it freaked me out!

The Siren And The Spectre is published by Flame Tree Press and can be bought in paperback and digital format. A copy can be ordered here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Siren-Spectre-Fiction-Without-Frontiers-ebook/dp/B07GVQJHTX/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1536399131&sr=8-1&keywords=the+siren+and+the+spectre

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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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September 1

Blood Ribbon – Roger Bray

When Brooke Adams is found battered, bleeding, and barely conscious, the police are at a loss as to who her attacker is or why she was targeted. Then, PI Rod Morgan turns up convinced that Brooke’s attack is the latest in a string of unsolved disappearances dating back thirty-five years. The police, however, aren’t convinced, leaving Brooke and Rod to investigate the cases themselves.

As secrets from the past start unravelling it becomes a maze, deeper, darker, and far more sinister than either of them could have imagined. Will they find Brooke’s attacker before he strikes again, or will that one secret stay buried forever?

My thanks to Anne Cater of Random Things Tours for my review copy and the chance to join the blog tour

After spending a short time away from reading crime thrillers it was very gratifying to settle down with Blood Ribbon and be able to get my teeth into a cracking serial killer tale.

I loved the lead character, Brooke, as Roger Bray takes time to properly introduce her and develop a strong backstory for Brooke before placing her into a perilous situation. Our killer also gets an early introduction so we know there is a bad guy lurking out there waiting to be brought back to the fore.

As the intro blurb explains, Brooke is attacked and left for dead – only just escaping a grim end on a quiet beach. While recovering from her incident she is approached by an investigator who believes that Brooke was meant to be the next victim of a Serial Killer who had been preying on women over a long number of years.

Brooke and Morgan (the investigator) start their own hunt for a killer – as you may expect uncovering dangerous secrets is a hazardous business and Brooke will be in danger again.

Two sittings was all it took to read Blood Ribbon. Not that it is a short book, it is very readable and Brooke’s story made me want to keep reading. Roger Gray has spun a great tale which readers are sure to enjoy and I am keen to read more of his work.

Blood Ribbon is exactly the kind of crime story I enjoy and I really enjoyed curling up with this book at the end of a long, busy day – perfect escapism.

Blood Ribbon is available in digital and paperback format and you can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Blood-Ribbon-theres-secrets-digging/dp/0995351198/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1535793940&sr=8-1

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August 31

Crack Apple & Pop – Saira Viola

Tony is a handsome young boxer is forced into a life of crime after suffering a vicious blow in the ring.

Seduced by the glitz and glamour of London and mentored by charismatic gang lord Don March he rises rapidly up the crime ladder until he spies an opportunity to start a semi-legit Natural Highs business.

Bank-rolled by an eccentric British dandy and accompanied by a cast of starry misfits including a 3ft tall blue-haired money man, an Etonian drug mule, two dominatrix debt collectors, a dodgy lawyer and a host of demi-celebs, Tony carves out a life for himself in a city where money creates its’ own morality.

All seems to be going well until in the shadows, a Bollywood mobster threatens to derail their plans.

Chaos ensues, of course it does – wonderful, beautiful, visceral chaos.

The deft wit of Hammett meets the vivid poetics of Chandler: Crack Apple and Pop is slick smart and razor sharp. A gritty and sometimes metafictive slice of London noir.

A city of artful dodgers, yardie gangsters, kinky aristos, cocaine dusted starlets and social thrill seekers where everyone’s hustling and everyone’s getting high.

Whether it’s law, finance, the music biz, or the boxing ring: money is king. And only the ones prepared to risk everything will survive…

My thanks to Emma at Damppebbles for arranging the blog tour and to Fahrenheit Press for my review copy.

Fahrenheit Press release books which are dark, edgy, “noirish” and their regular readers love the unpredictable stories on offer.

Crack Apple & Pop is not going to be to everyone’s taste. It is cleverly written, loaded with lives and stories, anecdotes and glimpses into the lives of colourful characters but cosy crime fans will not embrace the darkness on offer here.

As a Scottish blogger I review a fair few Scottish crime thrillers – the biggest gripes I see about Scottish books I love is that “local dialect” upsets some of Middle England. Crack Apple & Pop is pure London (and not the pleasant BBC Radio 4 London voices). There is slang, drug references, gang culture and dozens of vulnerable lives being manipulated by the powerful.

The reader is taken to snapshots of different scenes, a return to the lead characters then an aside to a random encounter. Everything feels 100mph and there are so many incidents which may shock or amuse. I find it hard to do describe how it feels to read (as you can clearly see).

An example: the opening chapters are about a developing boxing career. The rhythm of the writing is amazing in that it is punchy, it weaves and bobs and bruises the reader then it is over and all slows and the pattern of writing changes.

This happens over the story – fast scenes are sharp, stacatto or spiked. Then slower, calmer scenes are detailed and comfortable. It is very cleverly done as it changes the feel of the story.

If you want to read a character driven book this has to be a contender. It is lives laid out for our inspection – these may not be happy lives so proceed with caution.

Crack Apple & Pop is published by Fahrenheit Press and is available in digital and paperback format. You can order a copy here: http://www.fahrenheit-press.com/books_crack_apple_and_pop.html

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August 29

Keep Her Silent – Theresa Talbot

Oonagh O’Neil is back with another dark and chilling investigation.

‘Do that which is good and no evil shall touch you‘

That was the note the so-called Raphael killer left on each of his victims. Everyone in Glasgow – investigative journalist Oonagh O’Neil included – remember the murder of three women in Glasgow which sent a wave of terror through the city. They also remember that he is still at large…

When the police investigation into the Raphael killings reopens, Oonagh is given a tip off that leads her straight to the heart of a complex and deadly cover-up. When history starts to repeat itself, it seems the killer is closer than she thinks. Could Oonagh be the next target…?

My thanks to the publisher for my review copy and the opportunity to join the Blog Tour.

I am very excited to join the blog tour for Keep Her Silent as I loved the first Oonagh O’Neil thriller and have been dying to see what Theresa Talbot had in store for us this time.

Housekeeping: Oonagh first appeared in The Lost Children which was originally entitled Penance. You can order a copy of The Lost Children by clicking on the title and I highly recommend that purchase. Reading the first novel is not essential to reading and enjoying Keep Her Silent but there are one or two references early in the book to past events so just remember that Oonagh had a life before the events in Keep Her Silent began.

Oonagh is an investigative reporter and as such there are a number of interesting and upsetting cases brought to her attention. Readers get some background detail on the two cases which will dominate the story – Theresa Talbot makes good use of flashback sequences to show crimes being committed then spins back to Oonagh and the investigations she is conducting. A very efficient and satisfying way of keeping events ticking along at a high pace.

Blood contamination and the impact upon innocent hospital patients is very much in the spotlight in Keep Her Silent. Oonagh is made aware of the corrupt nature in which blood was aquired and the lack of regard paid towards the risk of contamination. It makes for chilling reading and the lengths which officials and governments went to in covering up the practice will have your alarm bells ringing.

Closer to home and Oonagh is also looking into the conviction of a Glasgow wife and mother who was institutionalised years earlier for killing her husband and young son. The Glasgow police are also reviewing this double killing as it connects to a cold case which the Powers At Be want closed.

The underlying reasons and practices behind both these investigations are complex. As a reader I felt my perceptions of many incidents being challenged and Theresa Talbot does a fantastic job of showing how unfortunate victims continue to be undermined by those in positions of power or authority. Those they should have been able to trust or to rely upon for help.

Keep Her Silent is a brilliant read. Oonagh is a great lead character who really could do with cutting a break – her personal life also makes for tricky reading and you just want her to do well and confront some of her inner demons.

I have no hesitation in recommending Keep Her Silent – it is a five star read.

Keep Her Silent is published by Aria and is currently available in digital format. You can get your copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Keep-Her-Silent-gripping-thriller-ebook/dp/B07DWXW76X/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1535493303&sr=8-3&keywords=theresa+talbot

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August 23

The Aladdin Trial – Abi Silver

An elderly local artist plunges 100 feet to her death at an overstretched London hospital and the police immediately sense foul play. The hospital cleaner, a Syrian refugee and loner, is arrested for her murder. He protests his innocence, but why has he given her the story of Aladdin to read, and why does he shake uncontrollably in times of stress?

Judith Burton and Constance Lamb reunite to defend a man the media has already convicted. Together they uncover not only the cleaner’s secrets, but also those of the artist’s family, her lawyer and the hospital.

A new Burton and Lamb legal thriller from the author of the acclaimed The Pinocchio Brief.

My thanks to Lightning Books for my review copy

This review is long overdue. Now that summer holidays are over, my kids have returned to school and “normal” is slowly returning I can try to catch up on writing reviews of my summer reads. I wanted to start with a good one so The Aladdin Trial was an easy choice in that regard.

The lead characters, Judith Burton and Constance Lamb, first appeared in Abi Silver’s The Pinocchio Brief. While reading the first book will give you a little extra detail on their background (and give you a great story to enjoy) you will not be disadvantaged in coming “cold” to The Aladdin Trial which can easily be read as a stand alone thriller.

In this story we have a distressing tale of an elderly artist taking a tumble from a hospital balcony and falling to her death. Suspicions are raised that this may not have been an accident and the police turn their attention to a hospital cleaner, a refugee from Syria, who had befriended the woman during her stay.

Judith and Constance will represent the cleaner in court but evidence is mounting up against their client and he is not providing his legal team with any reliable information with which they can defend him.

Away from the legal fact-finding and court preparations the reader also gets to see the children of the artist coping with the fallout of her death (and I assure you that no pun was intended there). Unbeknown to her children the artist had accumulated some personal wealth down the years and has drafted a will which requires certain conditions to be met before her children will inherit. Those conditions, while not unreasonable, show that the woman expected certain duties or responsibilities to be met by her offspring before they can inherit. Watching two adults (and their partners) trying to change their ways made for fascinating and frequently awkward reading.

Lots of twists and turns through the story made The Aladdin Trial a great story to spend time with over my holiday. If you like a courtroom drama then add Abi Silver to your reading lists – two goodun’s…and counting!

The Aladdin Trial is available in paperback and digital format and you can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Aladdin-Trial-thriller-acclaimed-Pinocchio-ebook/dp/B07C8BB466/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1534798231&sr=8-1&keywords=the+aladdin+trial

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