Killer Reads – Grab This Book

A Known Evil – Aidan Conway

A serial killer stalks the streets of Rome…

A gripping debut crime novel and the first in a groundbreaking series, from a new star in British crime fiction. Perfect for fans of Ian Rankin.

A city on lockdown.
In the depths of a freakish winter, Rome is being torn apart by a serial killer dubbed The Carpenter intent on spreading fear and violence. Soon another woman is murdered – hammered to death and left with a cryptic message nailed to her chest.

A detective in danger.
Maverick Detective Inspectors Rossi and Carrara are assigned to the investigation. But when Rossi’s girlfriend is attacked – left in a coma in hospital – he becomes the killer’s new obsession and his own past hurtles back to haunt him.

A killer out of control.
As the body count rises, with one perfect murder on the heels of another, the case begins to spiral out of control. In a city wracked by corruption and paranoia, the question is: how much is Rossi willing to sacrifice to get to the truth?

My thanks to Sahina and the Killer Reads team for my review copy and the chance to close out the blog tour.

A Known Evil takes readers to Rome and drops us straight into the action. A killer is at loose in the Eternal City and detectives Rossi and Cararra are leading the investigation, we shall follow their progress as they hunt for The Carpenter.

With an early murder in the story to catch my attention it was not long before the stakes were raised higher – the killer strikes again and leaves another damaged body for the police to find. A cryptic note left on the bodies (written in English) gives the Italian police something to ponder and it seems the murderer may even be taunting them.

But everything is going to become much more personal for Rossi when his girlfriend is attacked and left in a coma. The couple’s relationship had seemed rocky in the lead-up to the incident and the long hours Rossi was working had been creating issues. However, when his involvement with a victim means Rossi will be sidelined from the investigation the story starts to evolve and move on from “just” a serial killer tale to a much bigger and more commanding drama.

Another murder victim is identified as the daughter of a prominent member of the justice system. The father of the victim mourns her death but Rossi suspects there may be more to the murder than initially meets the eye and he is not convinced the grieving father is sharing all his suspicions with the police. Twists and turns will follow and the investigation will become extremely political and some sinister players will emerge onto the scene.

A Known Evil is very cleverly crafted – starting out on relatively familiar territory and letting the reader enjoy a murder investigation but scaling up the scope of the story as the book unfolds. There are some tension filled moments, car chases through the tight city streets and the story rocks along very nicely (aided by short and snappy chapters which make ‘one more chapter’ so much easier to accept).

Crime fans who enjoy a political wrangle in their stories, conspiracy lovers and anyone that enjoys an engaging and clever drama – here is your next read.

A Known Evil is published by Killer Reads. The digital version is available now and the paperback shall be available in April. You can order copies here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Known-Evil-gripping-thriller-Detective/dp/0008281173/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1520552269&sr=1-1

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September 10

Copycat – Alex Lake

Imitation is the most terrifying form of flattery…

Which Sarah Havenant is you?

When an old friend gets in touch, Sarah Havenant discovers that there are two Facebook profiles in her name. One is hers. The other, she has never seen.

But everything in it is accurate. Photos of her friends, her husband, her kids. Photos from the day before. Photos of her new kitchen. Photos taken inside her house.

And this is just the beginning. Because whoever has set up the second profile has been waiting for Sarah to find it. And now that she has, her life will no longer be her own…

My thanks to Felicity at Harper Collins for my review copy and the chance to join the blog tour

I always enjoy when I pick up a new thriller and find that it unsettles me. Not that I enjoy being unsettled – but if a book can give me pause for thought and make me feel nervous or apprehensive for the characters within, then I know it’s going to be a good book!

Copycat did just that. We first meet Sarah Havenant and an old friend returns to town and tries to catch-up through Facebook. But a curious question to Sarah causes some confusion – which Facebook profile was hers? She only operates one account on Facebook so why should their be confusion over which may be the correct profile for her? A Google search reveals that there ARE two Facebook accounts for Sarah Havenant. Not two people sharing the same name – two people sharing the same life, the posts on the second account show Sarah’s home, her family and have updates which reflect things Sarah has actually done. But Sarah did not post any of this information so where did this second account come from?

She speaks with her husband and friends about this strange discovery but nobody seems to give it too much concern and most believe it may be a prank.

The reader then gets a sneaky look into the events through the eyes of a watcher – we know that Sarah is now a target. We can see that someone has a plan and that the future for Sarah is going to be unpleasant as this mysterious watcher is looking to ruin Sarah’s life. You don’t know who this may be and you don’t know why Sarah has been chosen for this malicious attack – but you WANT to know and you will keep reading.

As you get further into Copycat you become more involved in Sarah’s life. We see how her paranoia increases as it becomes clear that the Facebook account was just the start of the problem. Someone is impersonating Sarah online. They are sending messages to her friends and pretending that they are Sarah, meetings are arranged or cancelled without Sarah’s knowledge and her friends start to query whether Sarah may be imagining everything. It does not take long before everyone notices a change in her behaviour and it starts to have a detrimental impact on her relationship with her family and friends.

Copycat is a chilling read which sees the gradual attempt to unpick somebody’s life and shatter everything they have worked hard to build. Sarah comes under intense pressure and then Alex Lake raises the stakes even higher. A brilliant, tense read where your natural curiosity will compel you to keep reading to find how Sarah can fight back against this unseen menace – but can she fight back or will she lose everything?

Thriller fans, Copycat is a proper treat and absolutely a book that you should be looking to read.

Copycat is published by Harper Collins and is available in paperback and digital format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Copycat-unputdownable-thriller-bestselling-author-ebook/dp/B06XK848QD/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

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July 28

Her Deadly Secret – Chris Curran

A young girl has been taken. Abducted, never to be seen again.

Joe and Hannah, her traumatized parents, are consumed by grief. But all is not as it seems behind the curtains of their suburban home.

Loretta, the Family Liaison Officer, is sure Hannah is hiding something – a dark and twisted secret from deep in her past.

This terrible memory could be the key to the murder of another girl fifteen years ago. And as links between the two victims emerge, Joe and Hannah learn that in a family built on lies, the truth can destroy everything…

A story which unfolds from the point of view of three families. The key players in my eyes were Joe and Hannah, they are in a dark, dark place as their daughter Lily is gone.

The police are investigating Lily’s disappearance and they have Family Liaison Officer, Loretta, working with Joe and Hannah. Loretta is there to provide support to the family at a difficult time but she is also expected to establish a bond with a view to obtaining information about Lily which could help the investigation. Unfortunately for Loretta Hannah is virtually catatonic and hardly speaks. Meanwhile Joe is doing what he can to get Hannah to speak with him but he is acutely aware that the police suspect he may even be involved in Lily’s murder. Joe had been away from the house quite frequently prior to Lily’s disappearance so he finds he cannot answer Loretta’s questions about Lily’s behaviour of late.

Unable to gain any significant information from Hannah or Joe we see Loretta coming under increasing pressure from her boss. Not helping her situation is a bullying colleague and, at home, a recent separation from her husband problems with the behaviour of one of her kids.

Two families down and we turn to Rosie. Years ago Rosie’s sister was murdered and her father was arrested and jailed for killing his eldest daughter. Now Rosie’s father is out of prison and she learns that her mother has allowed him to return home. Having cut off communications with her father years prior to events in the story, Rosie’s mother tries to encourage her to come meet her father – they both believe that someone knows her father is innocent of the killing…he received letters whilst in prison in which the anonymous sender indicated they knew he did not kill his daughter. Rosie is determined to find out who may have written the letters.

With three narrative threads to keep track of I thought Chris Curran did a great job of keeping each of the families interesting and under pressure. You want to keep reading to find out how they will overcome their immediate problems, plus you know that there is a reason there are three viewpoints to a single story – at some stage you expect paths to cross, I just didn’t know where that may happen. The only way to satisfy that curiosity was to read more and more chapters.

I read of many murders, kidnapping and violent attacks during the normal blogging year but the suffering of Joe and Hannah troubled me more than I am used to. Perhaps it is because most tales focus on the killer or the investigation and less so upon the family of the victim? Sharing Hannah and Joe’s grief and watching them struggle to comprehend the position they are in was unsettling and I put this entirely down to Chris Curran’s sympathetic unpicking of their lives.

I refer to books like Her Deadly Secret as “people stories”. Now I know that most books are “people stories” but this is a tale which is very much driven by the characters and their lives, we don’t rely upon clever action set pieces. No witchcraft or demons are lurking in the cellar and is unlikely the TARDIS will land to allow The Doctor to put everything to right. This is pure human and emotional drama and it works very well. Highly recommended.

Her Deadly Secret is published by Killer Reads and can be ordered here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Her-Deadly-Secret-gripping-psychological-ebook/dp/B06Y5ZFF1Z/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

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April 19

A Room Full of Killers – Michael Wood

Eight killers. One house. And the almost perfect murder…

Starling House is home to some of Britain’s deadliest teenagers, still too young for prison.

When the latest arrival is found brutally murdered, DCI Matilda Darke and her team investigate, and discover a prison manager falling apart and a sabotaged security system. Neither the staff nor the inmates can be trusted.

The only person Matilda believes is innocent is facing prison for the rest of his life. With time running out, she must solve the unsolvable to save a young man from his fate, and find a murderer in a house full of killers…

My thanks to the Killer Reads team for a review copy which I received through Netgalley

The third in the DCI Matilda Darke series and A Room Full of Killers is another cracking read from Michael Wood.

A story set primarily within a secure facility where teenage boys, too young for prison, are incarcerated. They are moved from around the country to Starling House on the outskirts of Sheffield. Their crimes the shame of their family (where their family were not victims) and their notoriety splashed across newspaper headlines. Away from the spotlight they are held together in Starling House, a poorly resourced institution where the facility manager is doing everything in her power to keep things ticking over.

A new entrant to Starling House is about to upset the balance and the pressure which has been building is about to blow. A murder – the victim laid out in a public room and stabbed multiple times. The suspects: all the residents or a staff member pushed too far? A problem for the police as there is no obvious motive – all the young criminals were locked into their rooms for the night so how did someone have freedom to roam around and kill a fellow resident.

Crime readers will love the “locked room” puzzle which Michael Wood has devised. When the police attend a crime scene where they know there are already known killers in their midst it throws a highly entertaining curveball and watching Matilda Darke and her colleagues contend with this unwelcome problem is great fun.

As for Matilda, she has had a tough time of it in the first two novels and the memory of a very high profile failure is not going away in A Room Full of Killers. I have been enjoying the ongoing story arc which has been hanging over Matilda in the first three books and it is nicely brought on this time around. NB each book can stand alone, the arc is well explained as is key to Matilda’s character.

Matilda Darke should become a familiar character to anyone that enjoys crime fiction. Michael Wood is building a great series here and you want to ensure you are here for the journey.

A Room Full of Killers is available in digital format, and paperback from 18 May 2017. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Room-Full-Killers-Matilda-thriller-ebook/dp/B01LKXFZZ0/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1492548578&sr=1-1

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December 5

Jackie Baldwin – Dead Man’s Prayer Q&A

I am delighted to welcome Jackie Baldwin to Grab This Book. After successfully managing to hide from me for the full weekend at Bloody Scotland I was finally able to catch up with Jackie and we had a chat about her debut novel, Dead Man’s Prayer.

I always like to start by asking my guests to introduce themselves and to get an early plug in for their book – the floor is yours.

Hello, everyone,

My name is Jackie Baldwin. For most of my working life I have been a solicitor, specialising in family and criminal law. Latterly, I trained as a hypnotherapist and now work from home. I live in Dumfries, SW Scotland. My novel, Dead Man’s Prayer was published by Killer Reads, Harper Collins on 2^nd September this year. The Paperback was released on 1^st December and can be ordered here.

For those that have not yet read Dead Man’s Prayer what can we expect?

It is a police procedural set in Dumfries and featuring DI Frank Farrell and DC Mhairi McLeod. It opens with the murder of an elderly priest which is soon followed by the abduction of toddler boys from nursery. In a small force with limited manpower these investigations put Farrell and his team under unprecedented pressure. He becomes concerned that his mental health may be unravelling but must push himself to the limit and beyond to bring the investigations to a conclusion before someone else winds up dead.

Tell me about Frank Farrell, I know he is a DI but it seems he has followed an unusual career path to get to where he is in Dead Man’s Prayer.

You could say that! He entered a seminary straight from school and became a Roman Catholic priest. He subsequently suffered a complete mental breakdown for reasons that become apparent and felt forced out of the priesthood. He fully recovered and applied to join the police.

I make no secret of the fact I love Scottish crime fiction but I will confess to not having read many books set in Dumfries. Did you feel a pressure to represent your hometown in a good light or do you know the area so well it made it easier to capture the locational feel?

I did worry about that a bit so I took the decision to make up a few streets and names if I was implying something negative. I will have had the original in mind when writing but only someone who lives here would be able to guess exactly where I am referring to. I feel I portrayed Dumfries in a positive light overall. I have lived here for all but about seven years so I know the town and the wider region of Galloway like the back of my hand. It has everything you could possibly wish for and the terrain offers up lots of challenges as well as myriad places to dump a body.

Dead Man’s Prayer is your debut novel, how long had it been a work in progress before you were signed up by your publisher?

Eleven years! Isn’t that awful? I wrote the first draft in around two years, edited it for another year then sent it out to a few agents. A couple of really good ones asked to see the whole MS but ultimately didn’t take me on. I put it away for several years as life was busy with work and kids. I then attended the first annual ‘Crime and Publishment’ weekend of masterclasses at Gretna which really ignited my passion for writing again. I came home, blew away the cobwebs and embarked on a massive rewrite which took the best part of two years. I was planning to send it out to agents again when someone posted on Facebook in March of this year that Killer Reads, Harper Collins was open for submissions. It had never occurred to me to submit to a publisher direct. I fired it off with zero expectations and was shocked to receive an offer of publication two weeks later. They have a really quick publishing model. My feet barely touched the ground.

There must be a long build up waiting for publication date to roll around. Now that Dead Man’s Prayer has been released and has been available for a few weeks how have you found the experience?

Thrilling and terrifying in equal measure! The fun side is hearing from readers who have loved your book. The scary part for me was having to promote the book and become more visible. I set up a Twitter account and, at first, would jump a foot in the air when my phone pinged but I’m really enjoying it now and have connected with lots of lovely people on there. I had no clue that this whole blogosphere even existed. It was like stepping through a portal into a parallel universe. A steep learning curve!

We were both at Bloody Scotland this year and, although we kept missing each other, I did see you on the main stage in the Albert Hall. Can I ask how your weekend went and can you explain what your official role was?

I had a great time! It’s such a friendly festival. I came up with a few friends from my crime writing group. I was one of twelve debut Spotlight authors which meant I had to appear before the panel, ‘Into The Dark,’ which featured authors, James Oswald, Craig Robertson and Malcolm Mackay, and read for three minutes from my debut novel. I also had my first experience of being miked up with what bore a passing resemblance to an endoscopy tube. My novel had only been out for a matter of days at the time so it was something of a baptism of fire but a wonderful opportunity!

Can I ask if there is a new project underway?

Yes, I am writing a second DI Farrell novel at the moment. I also have plans for an American serial killer novel and an American Sci-Fi crime novel.

Are you a bookworm? If I were to see your bookcases what sort of books could I expect to see?

Totally! I had to drastically prune my book collection when we decided to move to a smaller house once the kids were grown. I was ruthless and boy did I regret it. Afterwards, I felt quite bereft as if part of me was missing. Like a plant that has been savagely chopped, books are now creeping back into my house and making themselves at home. In fact, I need another new bookcase… I read quite widely, Crime, Sci-fi, Literary, Jane Austen. Whatever takes my fancy, really. I don’t do Romance or chick lit though. Too many years as a divorce lawyer!

Dead Man’s Prayer is published by Killer Reads and the paperback and digital book is available now: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dead-Mans-Prayer-gripping-detective-ebook/dp/B01DT37ZIE

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December 1

The Bad Things – Mary-Jane Riley

Alex Devlin’s life changed forever fifteen years ago when her sister Sasha’s two small children were snatched in broad daylight. Little Harry’s body was found a few days later, but Millie’s remains were never discovered.

Now Jackie Wood, jailed as an accessory to the twins’ murder, has been released, her conviction quashed by the Appeal Court. Convinced Jackie can reveal where Millie is buried, Alex goes to meet her.

But the unexpected information Wood reveals shocks Alex to the core and threatens to uncover the dark secret she has managed to keep under wraps for the past fifteen years. Because in the end, can we ever really know what is in the hearts of those closest to us?

My thanks to the Killer Reads team, I received a review copy through Netgalley

Alex Devlin is a journalist – as we join her at the start of the story it seems she is struggling to bring up her teenage son on her own with a very limited budget. Her son is unhappy as he wants to join his friends on a school trip, for Alex it just seems a cost too far. An argument seems likely but Alex’s world is suddenly turned upside down when she hears a news bulletin announcing Jackie Wood has been released from prison after 15 years…the woman who was an accessory to the murder of Alex’s niece and nephew – twins who were not even of school age.

A harrowing event in the life of Alex and her family and one that will now have to be confronted again. Alex wants to meet Jackie Wood – interview her – and (hopefully) find what happened that fateful day when her nephew Harry died and his sister Millie disappeared. But before any meeting can take place Alex has to face her own sister, the grief that Alex is feeling is 100 times worse for the twins mother.

As The Bad Things unfold we are given a greater insight into the terrible feeling of loss that the family suffered. But the story does not just focus on the family – another key player in the events in The Bad Things is Detective Inspector Kate Todd. She was a young police officer when Jackie Wood was arrested and has made her way up the ranks, however, the memory of finding young Harry’s body has left a lasting impression on Kate and which still impacting upon her personal life.

A domestic thriller which is handled with splendid sensitivity by Mary-Jane Riley. The events at the core of The Bad Things, a murdered child and his missing sibling, make for hard reading for any parent but at no stage do you feel there is an attempt to reach for a shock factor. It is the emotion amongst the survivors which carries the story so well.

I found The Bad Things to be a gripping story, there are layers of deception to be peeled back and one or two mysterious characters floating about where you are not quite sure how they may feature in the plot. The author teases out clues and reveals which made it harder for me to be confident I knew where the story was heading. Too hard it seems as my best attempts at solving the 15 year old mystery were miles away from accurate.

Well written, nicely paced and downright disturbing at times – The Bad Things is one to watch out for.

The Bad Things is available in paperback and digital format: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00Y7ME6F2?keywords=the%20bad%20things&qid=1448840246&ref_=sr_1_1_twi_kin_1&sr=8-1

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August 13

Acoustic Shadows – Patrick Kendrick

A thriller that will take you on a heart-pounding, pulse-racing rollercoaster ride. Perfect for fans of Harlan Coben, Lee Child, and Michael Connelly.

Erica Weisz, a new substitute teacher in the small town of Frosthaven, Florida has a dangerous secret. When two gunmen attack the school where she works, it becomes impossible to keep the truth buried. Erica is in the witness protection program and the man who is meant to be protecting her has sold her out. Wounded and running for her life she must learn to trust the only person who can help her, Florida Department of Law Enforcement Agent Justin Thiery. But Thiery has his own personal demons to overcome if he is to save Erica and find redemption for himself.

Thanks to the Killer Reads team for my review copy which I received through Netgalley

Acoustic Shadows opens with a Hell of a bang – we follow Erica Weisz on her walk to work in the Elementary School in a small Florida school. However, before her day can get started the school comes under attack from two gunmen. However, these killers are not randomly targeting the young students, they seem to be looking for someone in particular.

When confronted by one of the gunmen Erica manages to draw a pistol from her bag and kill the shooter before he can harm her or her students. During the ensuing chaos Erica finds herself face to face with the second gunman and this time she does not escape unscathed.

The authorities are struggling to make sense of the incident. Why was the school targeted? Why did Erica bring a gun to school? And most importantly – who is this young teacher that was able to save the school children? Agent Justin Thiery is brought in to assist local law enforcement agencies, a political move which does not sit well with the town’s police force. But before any answers can be provided Erica disappears.

Acoustic Shadows is a chase novel which unfolds at breakneck pace and keeps readers gripped. We follow Erica’s escape from the aftermath of the shooting. We learn (slowly) of the reasons Erica may have been a target and we get to see her pursuers and follow their progress in tracking her down.

I really enjoyed Patrick Kendrick’s action adventure, it drew me in and kept me reading well into the night. Normally I will have three or four books on the go at one time, after starting Acoustic Shadows I did not turn to any other books until this was finished.

Acoustic Shadows is published by Killer Reads/Harper Collins and is available in paperback and digital formats.

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April 27

22 Dead Little Bodies – Stuart MacBride

A short novel featuring Aberdeen’s finest investigative duo, Acting DI Logan McRae and DCI Roberta Steel.

CID isn’t what it used to be…

It’s been a bad week for acting Detective Inspector Logan McRae. Every time his unit turns up anything interesting, DCI Steel’s Major Investigation Team waltzes in and takes over, leaving CID with all the dull and horrible jobs.

Like dealing with Mrs Black – who hates her neighbour, the police, and everyone else. Or identifying the homeless man who drank himself to death behind some bins. Or tracking down the wife and kids of someone who’s just committed suicide.

But when the dead bodies start turning up, one thing’s certain – Logan’s week is about to get a whole lot worse…

My thanks to Killer Reads for my copy which I won in one of their fun (and frequent) competitions.

It is a new Logan McRae story and it is as good as I hoped it would be. McRae and Steel are back in fine form and 22 Dead Little Bodies brings their on their stories in this short novel.

There are two central investigations running through the book: a suicide ‘rescue’ in Aberdeen makes McRae a YouTube star, yet the man that he is trying to save has caused some problems for Police Scotland’s finest – they cannot locate his family.

McRae then has an unfortunate encounter with a serial complainer who wants the police to arrest her disruptive neighbour. Investigations reveal that the there is a deep rooted fiction between the warring neighbours – can DCI Steel really resolve months of fighting just by raising her voice to them?

Fans of Stuart MacBride can rest assured that this is a great fun read. There are the usual combination of laugh out loud moments and genuine moments of dark horror as Mr MacBride revisits the bleaker side of life too.

22 Dead Little Bodies is exactly what I enjoy reading and reminds me that I still have The Missing and the Dead waiting for me.

22 Dead Little Bodies is published by Harper and is available now in Hardback and digital format.

Stuart MacBride is on Twitter: @StuartMacbride

www.StuartMacBride.com

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