Perfect Crime – Helen Fields ~ Blog Tour.

Back of the book :

Stephen Berry is about to jump off a bridge until a suicide prevention counsellor stops him. A week later, Stephen is dead. Found at the bottom of a cliff, DI Luc Callanach and DCI Ava Turner are drafted in to investigate whether he jumped or whether he was pushed…

As they dig deeper, more would-be suicides roll in: a woman found dead in a bath; a man violently electrocuted. But these are carefully curated deaths – nothing like the impulsive suicide attempts they’ve been made out to be.

Little do Callanach and Turner know how close their perpetrator is as, across Edinburgh, a violent and psychopathic killer gains more confidence with every life he takes…

What I think :

It seems there is a Serial killer at large in Edinburgh.

DI Luc Callenach and the team haven’t got much to do so when four bodies turn up almost one after the other, they are secretly relieved. Each death is looking very much like suicide, however after looking into the deaths the team discover that it’s murder. Very odd ones at that. Are they connected ? It would seem that they are. So then the team have their work cut out trying to find the culprit before they kill again ….

Meanwhile, Luc again has his own battles to face, this time when he visits a care home and the person he visits later turns up dead ! Can poor Luc ever catch a break ?

This is the fifth book in this wonderful Scottish series. (How can it be that many already ?)

We are back once again with the team, with Luc and Ava heading it up, it promises lots of murder and grittiness. It’s so nice to be back with all the characters. They are beginning to feel like old friends.

This serving starts slowly, then picks up the pace, with lots of brilliant twists and turns, it’s pretty dark in places. You don’t want to put it down without knowing what’s going on, with an ending that really is brilliant !

Yes, another excellent book from this excellent author.

I give this one 9/10.

Published by Avon Books on 18/04/2019

As always, a huge Thank you to the lovely Sabah Khan for the review copy of the book in return for an honest review.

Here for your reading pleasure is an extract of the book.

Extract :

Not physically, I can say that with a high level of certainty. We know from high-fall victims who survive that their brain protects them immediately prior to impact. They pass out or go into a sort of impending trauma fugue. Very few have any memory of impact at all. In this man’s case, I can tell you death was so instantaneous that he wouldn’t have had time to have registered the pain. The back of his head hit the concrete hard enough to flatten a section of his skull. Shall I turn him over for you to see?’

‘No need. I’ll take your word for it,’ Ava murmured.

‘Very wise, but I’m afraid I have a caveat to your question about his having suffered, and it’s linked to why you’re here at all.’ The door opened and a white-suited figure entered. ‘Luc! Come and join us. We were just getting to the heart of the matter.’

‘Hey.’ Ava smiled at him. ‘Sorry to deny you your final few hours of leave. Were you doing anything fun?’

Luc shook his head. ‘I was at the gym. I ate too much in Paris. Got to get back in shape.’

It was a lie, but Ava let him get away with it. Callanach had the sort of slim build and washboard stomach that most men could only dream of.

‘Didn’t have gyms when I was your age,’ Ailsa grumbled as she pulled over a mobile light with a magnifying glass on a flexible arm. ‘We went for good long walks, didn’t sit in front of screens for hours at a time and we certainly didn’t spend all our spare cash on food that was more saturated fat than protein.’

The Garden of Lost and Found – Harriet Evans

Back of the book :

Nightingale House, 1919. Liddy Horner discovers her husband, the world-famous artist Sir Edward Horner, burning his best-known painting The Garden of Lost and Found days before his sudden death.
Nightingale House was the Horner family’s beloved home – a gem of design created to inspire happiness – and it was here Ned painted TheGarden of Lost and Found, capturing his children on a perfect day, playing in the rambling Eden he and Liddy made for them.
One magical moment. Before it all came tumbling down…
When Ned and Liddy’s great-granddaughter Juliet is sent the key to Nightingale House, she opens the door onto a forgotten world. The house holds its mysteries close but she is in search of answers. For who would choose to destroy what they love most? Whether Ned’s masterpiece – or, in Juliet’s case, her own children’s happiness.
Something shattered this corner of paradise. But what?

What I think :

1919.

When Liddy finds her painter husband Ned burning his most famous painting in his studio at Nightingale House, the family home, she doesn’t quite know what to do … Then a few days later her husband is dead and all it seems is gone …

Now.

Juliet is Liddy’s great-granddaughter, her life is pretty awful right about now. Her 3 children seem troubled, especially her teenage daughter. And her husband is probably having an affair. And then her job at the auction house is terminated. So when she receives a letter from her great-grandmother (who incidentally has been dead for around 15 years) telling her that she now owns Nightingale House it seems heaven sent. Before long she has left her husband and packed her and the children up and gone to Nightingale House where she spent many happy times in the holidays as a child growing up. It’s whilst she there that she discovers secrets from the past That could shape her future ….

I always absolutely adore Harriet’s books, so when I received a review copy of this one a few months ago, after doing a squeal and a happy dance around the room I placed it on my ever growing TBR. Every now and then I would eye it up willing April to come around quicker so I could read this beauty.

Let me tell you that I wasn’t disappointed, this book was everything and more that you would expect from this brilliant author. An excellently epic story of love, loss and family. It’s expertly set on two time lines, now (Juliet) and late 1800’s – early 1900’s (Liddy) It tells a complex story of family secrets that the family were hoping never to be told. With a host of brilliant characters that seem to become real, it makes up a brilliant twisty story that draws you in right from the first page to the last.

Talking of the last page, this is one long tale of 554 pages ! (My copy was an arc so I’m not sure if the published copy will have the same number of pages) But absolutely worth it because its brilliant !

Go out and buy this excellent book now !

I give this gorgeous tale 10/10.

Published by Headline Review on 18/04/19.

A big thank you to Becky Hunter at Headline for the review copy of the book in return for a honest review.

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When Liddy was a child, always afraid,

She had dreamed of her own home, hidden away where no-one could find her.

Where she could be safe.

Then Ned had brought her here and for a few years everything had been perfect.

Utterly perfect.

As summer soared into the garden and then faded away again, the silken light of golden September giving itself to the mist and damp of autumn and the darkness of winter, the question that had haunted Liddy kept coming back to her.

Do you pay for happiness like that ?

Perhaps, yes, perhaps you do ….

The Missing Sister – Dinah Jefferies ~Blog Tour.

Back of the book :

Belle Hatton has embarked upon an exciting new life far from home: a glamorous job as a nightclub singer in 1930s Burma, with a host of sophisticated new friends and admirers. But Belle is haunted by a mystery from the past – a 25 year old newspaper clipping found in her parents’ belongings after their death, saying that the Hattons were leaving Rangoon after the disappearance of their baby daughter, Elvira.

Belle is desperate to find out what happened to the sister she never knew she had – but when she starts asking questions, she is confronted with unsettling rumours, malicious gossip, and outright threats. Oliver, an attractive, easy-going American journalist, promises to help her, but an anonymous note tells her not to trust those closest to her. . .

Belle survives riots, intruders, and bomb attacks – but nothing will stop her in her mission to uncover the truth. Can she trust her growing feelings for Oliver? Is her sister really dead? And could there be a chance Belle might find her?

What I think :

Rangoon, Burma 1936.

Belle has just arrived in Rangoon on the boat from England. Whilst aboard she strikes up a friendship with the lovely Gloria. Gloria is very knowledgeable and seems to know everybody. But is she really everything she seems … ?

Belle’s father has recently died so she needs to support herself, she’d had a job in a friends book shop in England but nothing that she could make a career out of. What she really wanted to do was sing. After months of trying she’s finally managed to secure a job as a singer in a hotel nightclub in Rangoon. So here she is, about to start her new life.

However she also has another reason to be in Rangoon …

Whilst sorting through her fathers belongings in his house after he died, she finds two newspaper cuttings. After reading them she realises that she had an older sister that she never knew about. It would appear that her sister, Elvira had been kidnapped as a newborn baby, never to be seen again. Her parents had been living in Rangoon at the time as her father had been a District Magistrate there.

Belle feels an overwhelming urge to find out what happened to her elder sister. Is Elvira still alive ? And what exactly happened to her ?

So she embarks on a dangerous path to the truth. Along the way she meets people that are willing to help in her quest, but also she encounters problems and also things that endanger her life.

Will she ever find out the truth of what happened to the sister she never knew she had …?

I have read all of Dinah’s books and I always thoroughly enjoy them. She has this wonderful knack of writing about love, loss and family all woven together to make a brilliant tale. As soon as you start reading you are immediately spirited away and to a faraway land with such fabulous descriptions you can almost feel the sun on your face and the sand under your feet.

Excellently formed characters that you can really identify and really empathise with. The story is told from Belle’s perspective in 1936 and also from her mother Diane’s in 1920’s.

There is plenty to keep you interested with lots of things happening, the story moves along pretty fast. I thought this one felt was slightly different, but in a good way, from Dinah’s other books.

Another excellent read from the queen of the historical novels !

I give this 10/10.

Published on 21/03/19 by Penguin Books

As always a huge thank you to Georgia Taylor for the review copy of the book in return for a honest review.

Envy – Amanda Robson ~ Blog Tour.

Back of the book :

She wants your life – and she’ll do anything to get it…

Erica has always wanted to be exactly like her neighbour, Faye: beautiful, thin, and a mother. But Faye’s life isn’t as perfect as it seems – she has a terrible secret, and slowly but surely, it is threatening to destroy her and everything she holds dear.

When Faye’s daughter Tamsin goes missing after school, the police turn to Erica. But is Erica the only one who has been enviously watching Faye? Or is there another threat hiding in the shadows…?

What I think :

Erica watches Faye.

Everyday.

Faye walks past Erica’s flat most days to take her daughter to school. Erica wants to be Faye, she wants to be a mother to her children and a wife to her husband. But most of all Erica wants to be beautiful.

Erica wants Faye’s life …

Faye’s life isn’t that easy though, she has to work at everything she does. She has to go to exercise classes to stay fit and slim to maintain her ‘perfect’ body. So she can hopefully get the next modelling job. Being a mother wears her out and finds it a relief when her eldest child is at school.

Erica lives in a mouldy flat that has no heating, she hasn’t got a permanent job and she looks after her friend mouse. Mouse lives in the upstairs flat and has a few issues of his own. Erica is also over weight.

When the worst happens and Faye’s eldest daughter Tamsin goes missing, does Erica have anything to do with it … ?

Or maybe, does it have something to do with the terrible secret that Faye has been keeping … ?

I loved this authors two other novels ‘Obsession’ and ‘Guilt’ so when I was asked to be on the Envy blog tour I jumped at the chance.

After my initial tussle with the writing style, (one that I always have with this author) I settled down to enjoy this dark and sometimes unsettling thriller.

Each chapter belongs to each character, so you know what’s going on in each characters minds and from their perspective. I did feel quite sorry for Erica at times and also for Faye as they’ve both got their own problems and issues to deal with.

I must admit I didn’t guess the outcome of this one, it was completely unexpected.

I really liked this obsessive, stalkerish, twisty dark tale and give it a well-earned 9/10.

Published on 04/04/19 by Avon Books.

As always a huge thank you to the lovely Sabah Khan for the review copy of the book in return for an honest review.

Here for your reading pleasure is a small extract from the book ….

Extract :

I watch you walk past, faster than usual because of the sudden heavy rain, which has really caught you out. You are not even wearing a raincoat. Your normally bouffant hair is wet and flat. Why don’t you wear a hat, just in case? Are you too cool for that, Faye?

After you have gone, the cold of my flat begins to sink into my bones and I find myself shivering. I have been living here for two years, surrounded by fingers of mould, which creep up the tile grouting and form a black mist on the walls. The central heating doesn’t work. I have tried contacting the landlord, but he never replies. Sometimes I use a fan heater, but it doesn’t really help. It just circulates overheated air making me feel so claustrophobic that after about twenty minutes I turn it off. So most of the time in winter I walk around my flat wrapped in a scratchy old blanket. Mouse says I look like a tramp in it, so I try not to wear it when he is around. Not that he comes here very often. His flat is so much more comfortable than mine; I usually visit him there.

I sit, feeling empty inside. Coping with each day has, for many years, been a struggle. A plethora of temporary jobs. No focus. But it’s become easier in the last six months. Since I started to follow you. Since I started spending time with Mouse. It’s raining today, so I cannot follow you. When it rains I need to check on Mouse.

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My Sister’s Lies – S.D Robertson ~ Blog Tour

Back of the Book :

For a decade, Hannah’s life has been pretty close to perfect – she has a great job, she’s married to Mark, and her child-free existence means she’s free as a bird. The only sadness in her life is a fall-out with her sister Diane, who hasn’t spoken to her in over ten years. But now Diane is on her doorstep – and this time, she’s got her teenage daughter Mia in tow.

When Diane asks if Mia can stay with Hannah and Mark for a few days, Hannah is glad of the chance to get to know her niece. But as the days turn into weeks and Diane doesn’t return, Hannah begins to worry. Why hasn’t her sister been in touch?

Diane is carrying a devastating secret that will destroy Hannah’s carefully constructed life. But how much is she willing to reveal – and when will she pick her moment?

What I think :

Hannah has a pretty good life, she and husband Mark don’t have any worries. They have a lovely home and Mark has a brilliant job and Hannah’s dream of being an author is about to come true.

They are childless, but that’s exactly how they want it.

So when Hannah’s sister Diane turns up on her doorstep with her fourteen year old daughter, Mia, Hannah has a bit of a surprise. She is quite shocked, as the two sisters had a huge row just after their mother died and haven’t spoken since. That was eleven years ago !!

Hannah has an even bigger shock when Diane asks if she and Mark can look after Mia for a while while she sorts out some issues that have arisen. They have never looked after a child before so they are pretty nonplused to say the least, but agree to. As Diane leaves she hands Mark a letter, inside is a letter addressed to him dropping a huge bombshell …

Diane becomes uncontactable over the next couple of days, even Mia finds it difficult to get in contact with her mother. Nobody seems to know where she is and what she up to. She is gone for almost two weeks.

Then the unimaginable happens and Diane is found dead on the railway tracks close to her home, she has committed suicide.

But why … ?

What was secrets was she keeping …. ?

I quite liked this story, although I did guess what was going on about half way through, but it didn’t ruin it in any way. I think that it was quite reminiscent of an early Susan Lewis, who is one of my most favourite authors so that wasn’t a bad thing.

This story that has some brilliant characters that tackle some quite difficult issues, such as suicide and illness. It also tells of how a family pulls together in times of crisis and that if you’ve got family then you’ve always got support.

I must admit though that I did think that the story did feel slightly unfinished, so maybe there might be another book with Hannah and Mark as the main characters ?

I enjoyed this book and give it 8/10

Published by Avon Books on 21/03/19.

As always a huge Thank you to the wonderful Sabah Khan at Avon Books for the review copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.