PTSD – Grab This Book

Only The Dead Know – C.J. Dunford

After a traumatic military tour in the Middle East, Daniel “Uneasy” Truce returns home with PTSD. Something happened there. Something he never wants to come out.

A few hand shakes later, Truce lands a new job in a ragtag investigations unit. He may be emotionally awkward, but he’s got a knack for reading body language. Problem is, his boss hates him. Calls him mentally unsound. She gives Truce the dirty work. That’s how he ends up with “the crazy old bat” case.

At 11 a.m. every morning, June drops by her local police station to report a murder she witnessed. Initially the cops took her seriously. They visit the alleged victim’s home to find him very much alive. But June won’t give up, and her daily appearances become a nuisance. Truce is tasked to investigate. To shut her up. Soon June winds up dead-hit by a car. Was it really an accident? Truce thinks there’s more to the case. That maybe someone just doesn’t want the truth to come out …

I received a digital review copy from the publisher through Netgalley.

Daniel “Uneasy” Truce is a former soldier who now works for the police in Scotland. He leaves his days in the army behind him yet the memory of the experiences are still very much with him and Truce is a PTSD sufferer.

His boss is no fan of Truce and does not value his contribution to the squad so when a serial complainer visits her local police station each day to report the same crime Truce is sent to meet her. The complainant is June, a feisty widow who manages to convince Truce that she has indeed witnessed a murder. The only problem is that the alleged victim is still very much alive.

Truce is an expert on body language and firmly believes that June is telling the truth – or what she understands to be the truth. So how can he persuade his grumpy boss that the old “time waster” may have witnessed a crime? His problem intensifies when June is the victim of a road traffic accident – is this a tragic coincidence or was June murdered?

Only the Dead Know was really enjoyable reading. CJ Dunford tells a great story and this was nicely paced – I just wanted to keep reading. Truce was an engaging lead character and his personal life looks like it is going to keep us entertained when he returns in future outings as the book is billed as ‘the first book in the Daniel ‘Uneasy’ Truce Mystery series’.

This is exactly the type of story I enjoy. A police procedural, a nicely plotted mystery to try and solve, realistic characters (June’s pals were perfectly depicted) and a twist I had not expected – makes for a happy reader.

Only The Dead Know is available in digital format and you can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Only-Dead-Know-Daniel-Mystery-ebook/dp/B07B6752H2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1529931954&sr=8-1&keywords=only+the+dead+know

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April 12

Dog Fight – Michael J Malone

Kenny O Neill, a villain with a conscience, returns in a hard-hitting thriller of exploitation, corruption and criminal gangs. When Kenny s cousin, Ian, comes to the aid of a fellow ex-squaddie in a heap of trouble, he gets caught up in the vicious underground fight scene, where callous criminals prey on the vulnerable, damaged and homeless.

With Ian in too deep to escape, Kenny has no option other than to infiltrate the gang for the sake of his family. Kenny is an experienced MMA fighter, as tough as they come, but has he found himself in the one fight he can never win?

My thanks to Sara at Contraband for my review copy

Dog Fight…even the title makes Michael J Malone’s new novel sound dark and dangerous. It’s not misleading. Dog Fight is a Kenny O’Neill story and it doesn’t matter how big-hearted Kenny can be – he is still one of Glasgow’s gangsters and dark and dangerous goes with the territory.

A homeless ex-soldier is given the opportunity to make a few quid if he will take part in an underground fight club. Though not as fit as he once was, the former soldier fancies his chances and sees the opportunity to get some much needed cash. It soon becomes clear that this offer may not have been made with his best intentions at heart.

Although I said this was a Kenny story, his cousin Ian also features heavily. Ian is ex-military and has accumulated a few demons in the past – most notably a drug habit which he has managed to vanquish. Ian is still in touch with some of his former squad mates and it is while visiting one of his pals that the path of the story is set. Ian’s mate is suffering, injured and disabled in action and with anger issues that he struggles to control. He has borrowed lots of money to fund a drug habit and to buy gifts for his son. But when the loan needs repaid and the enforcers are sent to collect Ian is going to get in the way. After a confrontation with the ‘wrong people’ Ian receives an offer which will give him the chance to earn a few quid.

Meanwhile Kenny has his own problems to contend with. He is dealing with the aftermath of events in Bad Samaritan (no spoilers from me) and an unexpected domestic drama will shake up his family. When his cousin Ian suddenly vanishes Kenny needs to call on his contacts to track him down, however, information comes at a price and Kenny will need to pay the price to find his cousin.

Dog Fight does give the reader much to contemplate. The underground fight club gives us some brutal scenes to read through and the morality of exploiting vulnerable former soldiers was unsettling. Malone is highlighting how poorly retuning soldiers are treated when they try to resume a “normal” life. PTSD and lack of a support network is a real problem and the vulnerabilities are brought to the fore by the author who is almost challenging the reader to help tackle this issue.

Kenny’s story is nicely developed too and it is easy to see why he is a firm favourite with returning readers. You don’t have to have read any of the previous novels to pick up and enjoy Dog Fight, the book stands well on its own, but knowing the backstory will enhance enjoyment.

Dog Fight can be dark, gritty and unflinching but there is humour energy and there are uplifting scenes too. Michael J Malone can’t half tell a good story – this is a beauty.

Dog Fight is published by Contraband and is available now in both paperback and digital format. Order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dog-Fight-Kenny-ONeill-2/dp/1910192775/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1491427752&sr=1-1&keywords=michael+j+malone

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November 4

My Sister’s Bones – Nuala Ellwood

Kate Rafter is a high-flying war reporter. She’s the strong one. The one who escaped their father. Her younger sister Sally didn’t. Instead, she drinks.

But when their mother dies, Kate is forced to return home. And on her first night she is woken by a terrifying scream.

At first Kate tells herself it’s just a nightmare. But then she hears it again. And this time she knows she’s not imagining it.

What secret is lurking in the old family home?
And is she strong enough to uncover it…and make it out alive?

My thanks to Annie at Penguin Random House for my review copy

Another book that I picked up without knowing what lay ahead – no description on the cover of my proof copy so everything which happened, from the first word, was totally unexpected. It is a really refreshing way to read a story and in the case of My Sister’s Bones it made all the twists more shocking.

We meet Kate, she is a reporter and has been covering events in Syria but it quickly becomes apparent that Kate is struggling. She has been detained and her mental stability is being examined by a psychologist. If Kate cannot convince the doctor that she is of sufficiently sound mind and not a danger to the public (and herself) she may be sectioned under the mental health act. So for the first section of the book we have Kate under a microscope as her life is picked apart.

Kate’s story makes for uncomfortable reading. A difficult upbringing in a house with a drunken father. A family tragedy. A sister she cannot connect with and who now spends her days in a drunken haze. Then there is the not-insignificant trauma of reporting from war torn Syria…Kate’s stories seem to focus on how the conflict is impacting on families and children.

As Kate is interrogated, her worst memories are exposed, analysed and discussed. She is nearing breaking point. But from a reader’s perspective it is fascinating reading – the author has brilliantly captured the horror that Kate experiences while in Syria and it makes the problems she encounters on her return home all the more upsetting.

The narrative does not just follow Kate – we get a look at her sister Sally too. Sally the drunk. Sally the girl who alienated her sister and didn’t stand up to her dad. Sally who has her own tale to tell. Sally who has her own problems, her own demons. Sally who is possibly more complex and conflicted character I have encountered for some time.

This story of two sisters is going to be memorable, there are both going to face tough times, there are shocks a plenty and more than once I had to revise my guess as to where the story may be heading. Well worth adding to your reading queue.

My Sisters Bones is published by Penguin and is available in digital format here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/My-Sisters-Bones-Nuala-Ellwood-ebook/B01HYTW6NS/ref=sr_1_1_twi_kin_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1478298576&sr=1-1&keywords=my+sisters+bones

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