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Your Deepest Fear – David Jackson

‘Sara! Remember! Victoria and Albert. All I can say. They’re here. They’re-‘

These are the last words Sara Prior will ever hear from her husband.

As DS Nathan Cody struggles to make sense of the enigmatic message and solve the brutal murder, it soon becomes clear that Sara is no ordinary bereaved wife. Taking the investigation into her own hands, Sara is drawn into a world of violence that will lead her in a direction she would never have suspected.

For Cody, meanwhile, things are about to get personal in the darkest and most twisted ways imaginable . . .

My thanks to the publisher for my review copy which I received through Netgalley and to Tracy Fenton for the opportunity to join the blog tour.

Where to start with this beauty? David Jackson has delivered a storming read, darker than the average police thriller. Delightfully creepy moments are plentiful as he pits his lead character (Nathan Cody) against his mysterious nemesis – a masked stranger responsible for the death of Cody’s partner and for mutilating Cody himself.

This is the fourth Nathan Cody book. Cody is very much a man defined by his past and as such readers will benefit from reading the earlier titles (A Tapping At My Door, Hope To Die and Don’t Make A Sound). However, everything you need to know about Cody’s background is nicely covered in Your Deepest Fear so there is no chance you will fail to understand the significance of some of the bigger moments in this book.

Cody is investigating a brutal murder. The victim has been subjected to a prolonged attack prior to death which would have meant he suffered greatly before the end. There is nothing in the mans background which would have given cause for suspicion or may have brought him into contact with the ‘wrong types’. So why was this man chosen for such an unpleasant death?

The victim’s widow is also causing problems for Cody. She found her husband’s body after he had left a message/call for help on her answer phone. Contained in the message was a possible clue to identify his killers but she cannot work out what the clue means. At least that is what she is telling Cody.

Despite having a murder to solve Cody is distracted in Your Deepest Fear. This is because his own Deepest Fear is coming back to taunt him. The clowns. The terrifying clowns who tortured Cody and left him broken have returned. Their leader wants to play a game with Cody…the prize is the chance for Cody to discover the identity of his tormentor. But the game will be dangerous and Cody will have a high price to pay for the information he wants.

I don’t know if I can do Your Deepest Fear justice in a review without spoiling too much of the story. It is a wickedly good read. Cody is put through an emotional wringer yet the clowns always seem one step ahead of him. David Jackson has pitched the terror in the cat and mouse game perfectly.

Some books you just don’t want to put down. Count Your Deepest Fear on that list – it has a story guaranteed to draw you in. Simply brilliant.

Your Deepest Fear is released on 16 May 2019 and is published by Zaffre in hardback, digital and audiobook format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Your-Deepest-Fear-darkest-thriller-ebook/dp/B07JWBG9X4/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=david+jackson&qid=1557773893&s=gateway&sr=8-1

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June 15

Exquisite – Sarah Stovell

A chilling, exquisitely written and evocative thriller set in the Lake District, centring on the obsessive relationship that develops between two writers…Bo Luxton has it all – a loving family, a beautiful home in the Lake District, and a clutch of bestselling books to her name.

Enter Alice Dark, an aspiring writer who is drifting through life, with a series of dead-end jobs and a freeloading boyfriend.

When they meet at a writers’ retreat, the chemistry is instant, and a sinister relationship develops… Or does it?

Breathlessly pacey, taut and terrifying, Exquisite is a startlingly original and unbalancing psychological thriller that will keep you guessing until the very last page.

My thanks to Karen at Orenda for my review copy and to Anne for the opportunity to join the tour.

Bo is a writer, she will be running a writing class in the Lake District and is scanning submissions from hopeful candidates. One piece stands out from all the others, it is raw it is angry and edgy and it calls to Bo. The author, Alice Dark, receives an invitation to attend the course and she gets her fees paid which makes it possible for her to attend.

For Alice the invitation to travel from the South coast to the Lake District gives her the chance to make a break from the rut which she has found herself in. She is living with an artist, he is 10 years older than Alice and seems content to spend his time slapping out some touristy pictures to keep himself in beer and fags. He will drop everything to find a party and shows no sign of responsibility. Staying with him has been the easy option for Alice but she recognises life is slipping by.

Alice scrapes what she can to get to the course, she is considerably younger than the other attendees but her natural charm and easy going nature ensures she is welcomed by the other attendees (particularly the males). But it soon becomes clear to the reader that Bo and Alice are going to click – even if Alice is slightly slower to realise the extent of Bo’s fascination with her until the course is drawing to an end.

The writing week ends and the two women part, for the present, but narrative of Exquisite switches to a series of email communications between the women. We see their lives continuing and watch pondering what the other may be doing but through their email we read of a developing relationship. Bo is married but when her husband is due to leave on a business trip for a few days she implores Alice to return to the Lake District – uncertain of what the future may hold (and aware Bo is married with young children) Alice makes the trip.

What follows is a love story which then starts to spiral out of control. Bo’s husband is the “jealous type” so she asks Alice to keep their relationship a secret, delete emails and keep a low profile. How each woman will handle the time they spend apart will dictate how the story unfolds, it’s no surprise that the path of “true love” will not run smoothly – but is it even love?

The reader will see both sides of the story. There are power-plays, manipulation, anxiety and many, many tears. Shall we say this is a bit of an emotional rollercoaster?

I am seeing lots of love for Exquisite and I can understand why – it is a troubled love story, brilliantly constructed and the writing is top notch – plus Sarah Stovell has thrown in some nasty twists for her characters. I personally found it swung a little too far towards a love tale but didn’t pull it far enough into back into thriller territory. This means we are falling out of my comfort zone of reading and I find those books harder to consider objectively and comment upon accurately.

As I read I was looking for comparisons and two films sprang to mind (and when I name them you will realise how little I get to see films these days)…Single White Female and The Hand That Rocks The Cradle. Now I loved both those films – strong stories and formidable characters and I consider them good stories to be compared to, I don’t have a comparable book reference.

So Exquisite – loads going for it and it will be loved by many (but I don’t think I am a typical representation of the target audience).

Exquisite is published by Orenda Books and is available from 15 June in paperback and is already available in digital format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Exquisite-Sarah-Stovell-ebook/dp/B06Y661QRC/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1497477225&sr=8-1

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