Day: May 21, 2020

Book reviews, Police procedural, Psychlogical thriller

Before I Say I Do by Vicki Bradley – Book Review

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PUBLISHERS BLURB 

Winner of the inaugural Write here, Right Now Prize 2018, in partnership with the Bradford Literature Festival, a debut by experienced Met Police detective constable

Her dream wedding is about to become her worst nightmare.

Julia is nervous and it’s not just because she’s about to get married. There’s a lot that her soon- to-be husband, Mark, doesn’t know – and she is determined to keep it that way.

As she walks down the aisle, spotting Mark is his tailored suit, she knows she is taking her first steps to happiness- her past can’t catch her now. He turns to face her…

But it isn’t Mark in the beautiful suit – it’s his best man. Because Mark is missing.

And Julia’s past is closer than she thinks.

Perfect for fans of Luckiest Girl Alive by Jessica Knoll and Now You See Her by Heidi Perks
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MY REVIEW 

On Julia and Mark’s wedding day, Julia walks down the aisle but Mark has disappeared.

The police are called as Julia is certain this is more than just cold feet. So Detective Alana Loxton begins the investigation. 

It turns out Mark has a lot to hide, but so does Julia. Is his disappearance linked to events in her past?

This is a clever, well plotted and twisty thriller that’s gripping from start to finished. 

Thank you to Anne Cater and Random Things Tours for the opportunity to participate in this blog tour,  for the promotional materials and an eARC of the book. This is my honest, unbiased review.

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR 

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Vicki Bradley is a detective constable in the Metropolitan Police Service. She has had a varied career, as a uniformed response driver in Brent and then as a detective Constable in Southwark CID. She has managed High Risk Sex Offenders and worked on the Serious Organised Crime Command. She is currently on a 5-year career creak to focus on her writing. Vicki completed a Creative Writing MA at City University in 2016. Before I Say I Do won the Write Here, Right Now competition, came 3rd in the First Novel Prize and has been shortlisted for the Virago New Crime Writer 2017 and Peters Fraser and Dunlop Prize 2016. She enjoys travelling the world and climbing mountains. Vicki lives in London with her husband. 

Book reviews

PM Press – Submission Call

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Wow, Holland House Books have a new imprint called PM Press…….And they are calling for submissions…exciting stuff, so here’s their blurb…..

 

We are a Kindle-First imprint of Holland House Books that specialises in crime, thriller and dystopian fiction. Phaidra Robinson and Mia Skevington set up PM Press in April 2020 in order to pursue their respective loves of true crime and detective fiction. Our background of Literary Fiction at Holland House Books means that we bring an expectation of and experience in producing high quality books to these genres. An inaugural imprint, this is the time for authors to submit their work for the chance to be one of our founding book releases.

 

We are looking for most types of crime and thriller fiction, from the classic English whodunit through to police procedurals, or classic noir through to mind-bending psychological thrillers. Maybe you want to introduce us to a dystopian future. We want well-written, satisfying work – a good twist and convincing characters are the ways to our hearts. It may be cosy and comfortable or dark and disturbing… or something completely different.

 

If you have a completed novel or novella which you believe may fit, then send us:

 

1) The first fifty pages of your work.

2) A synopsis of your work (maximum two pages).

3) A covering letter with a brief overview – we do NOT need you to do a brilliant ‘pitch’ or the kind of blurb which would go on the back of the book. The basic story, main character(s) and the general themes is all we need.

 

These documents should be Word Documents, size 12 in a standard font, with a line spacing of 1.5.

 

Please email us at pmpress@hhousebooks.com and address them to the Editor Phaidra Robinson.

 

PM Press Social Media Links:

Email: pmpress@hhousebooks.com

Website: https://pmpress9.wixsite.com/pmpress

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PMPressHHB 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pmpresshollandhouse/ 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/PMPress1 

 

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Book reviews, Police procedural, Thriller

In Plain Sight by Marion Todd – Book Review

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I am pleased to be taking part in the blog tour for In Plain Sight and am reposting my review.

 


PUBLISHERS BLURB 

A child’s life is at stake. Which of the residents of St Andrews is hiding something – and why?

When a baby girl is snatched from the crowd of spectators at a fun run, the local police have a major investigation on their hands. DI Clare Mackay and her team are in a race against the clock when they learn that the child has a potentially fatal medical condition. 

As Clare investigates she realises this victim wasn’t selected at random. Someone knows who took the baby girl, and why. But will they reveal their secrets before it’s too late?

The second instalment from an exciting new Scottish detective series. Perfect for fans of Alex Gray, Rachel Amphlett and D. K. Hood.

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MY REVIEW 

#2 in the Detective Clare Mackay series, but can also easily be read as a stand-alone.

A very young child has been abducted while her parents were watching a commotion at a charity fun run.

Detective Clare Mackay was about to take part in the run so was on the scene immediately, but no sign of baby Abi.

When they find out Abi has a heart condition and needs regular medication to keep her alive, this becomes a tense race against time.

Can they find Abi before it’s too late?

This is a clever, well plotted police procedural that’s so much more involved. There’s a missing child, a thorough investigation with plenty of possible suspects, office politics, an overly ambitious senior officer and well developed characters. A truly gripping and thoroughly entertaining read. I’m already looking forward to the next in the series….

Thank you to Tracy at Compulsive Readers for the opportunity to take part in this blog tour. This is my honest and unbiased review.

 

You can preorder a copy here( available from 20 February) : 

https://amzn.to/2GPWsMJ

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR 

 

Marion grew up in the City of Dundee, now home to the magnificent V&A Museum. Always a keen writer, she has had point-of-view pieces published in the Dundee Courier and short stories in My Weekly magazine. She won first prize in the Family Circle Magazine Short Story for Children Competition in 1987.

More recently, Marion has turned her hand to crime fiction and was one of only six commercial fiction writers selected to pitch to an industry panel at XPONorth in Inverness in 2017. In 2018 Marion was long-listed for the Sunstory Award and the Scottish Arts Council Short Story Award. This year she was short-listed for Dundee Rep’s Stripped programme. She is represented by Northbank Talent Management and her debut novel, See Them Run, will be published as an eBook by Canelo on 31 October 2019.

Before becoming a full-time writer, Marion worked as a lecturer, candle-maker and hotel lounge pianist, a job which provided rich material for her novels. When she isn’t writing, Marion can be found tussling with her jungle-like garden and walking in the beautiful Scotish countryside.

Marion lives in North East Fife overlooking the River Tay and is a sometime babysitter for her daughter’s unruly but lovable dog. (Courtesy of Goodreads)

Book reviews, Memoir

Girl With A Gun by Diana Nammi and Karen Attwood – Book Review

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PUBLISHERS BLURB 

Diana Nammi became a fighter with the Peshmerga when she was only seventeen. Originally known as Galavezh, she grew up in the Kurdish region of Iran in the 1960s and 70s. She became involved in politics as a teenager and, like many students, played a part in the Iranian Revolution of 1979. But the new Islamic regime tolerated no opposition, and after Kurdistan was brutally attacked, Galavezh found that she had no choice but to become a soldier in the famed military force.

She spent twelve years on the front line, and helped lead the struggle for women’s rights and equality for the Kurdish people, becoming one of the Iranian regime’s most wanted in the process. As well as being the startling account of Galavezh’s time as a fighter, Girl with a Gun is also a narrative about family and resilience, with a tragic love story at its heart.

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MY REVIEW

Girl With A Gun is the memoir of Diana Nammi, who at 17 was a Peshmerga fighter in the battle against the radical Islamic regime. 

This gives a real insight into her life during this terrible, turbulent time.

It tells of the effects of this conflict on the ordinary person in the Kurdish population and their day to day struggles. 

So well written it’s clear Diana is an incredibly strong and brave woman and this tale is both tragic and heartbreaking at times and also a testament to what can be achieved. Thought provoking to say the least.

Thank you to Anne Cater and Random Things Tours for the opportunity to participate in this blog tour,  for the promotional materials and an eARC of the book. This is my honest, unbiased review.

 

Book reviews, Psychlogical thriller

The Secrets Of Strangers by Charity Norman – Book Review

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PUBLISHERS BLURB 

A compelling and fresh premise leads to a tense, humane, and touching novel’. Claire McGowan.

A regular weekday morning veers drastically off-course for five strangers whose paths cross in a London café – their lives never to be the same again when an apparently crazed gunman holds them hostage.

But there is more to the situation than first meets the eye and as the captives grapple with their own inner demons, the line between right and wrong starts to blur. Will the secrets they keep stop them from escaping with their lives?

Another tense, multi-dimensional drama from the writer of the Richard & Judy bestseller After the Fall.

‘Masterful, heartbreaking and compelling . . . a moving hymn to humanity’

Erin Kinsley, bestselling author of Found

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MY REVIEW 

Neil is a rough sleeper.

Abi is a lawyer.

Mutesi is a nurse for a care home…..

These three people are following their usual morning routines as they pop into the Tuckbox cafe in Balham for the usual breakfasts and coffees.

Robert is the owner and Rosie the waitress.

Just a usual morning until Sam arrives with a shotgun, shoots Robert and holds the others hostage…..terrifying.

As the story unfolds you learn of each of their lives and the secrets they hold.

I found this to be such a compelling read. It’s so well written and really captures your attention from the very start. The fear the hostages experience is palpable and the tension is gripping. But it also tells of compassion and how you never know just what is going on in the lives and the circumstances of those around you. 

A tense, heartbreaking and utterly engrossing thriller from start to finish. Brilliant and I loved every emotion filled minute. 

Thank you to Anne Cater and Random Things Tours for the opportunity to participate in this blog tour,  for the promotional materials and an eARC of the book. This is my honest, unbiased review.

 

You can buy a copy here: https://www.hive.co.uk/Product/Charity-Author-Norman/The-Secrets-of-Strangers/24738264 or here: https://amzn.to/2LLDdpT 

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR 

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Charity Norman was born in Uganda and brought up in successive draughty vicarages in Yorkshire and Birmingham. After several years’ travel she became a barrister, specialising in crime and family law. In 2002, realising that her three children had barely met her, she took a break from the law and moved with her family to New Zealand. THE SECRETS OF

STRANGERS is her sixth novel.