Review: The Hunters by Chris Kuzneski

Thursday 30 April 2015 0 comments
Title: The Hunters
Author: Chris Kuzneski
Publisher: Headline
Publication Date: 3rd January 2013
Pages: 528
ISBN: 9780755386499
Source: Library
Rating: 3.5/5
Purchase: Amazon
The Hunters: Financed by a billionaire philanthropist, this elite team - an ex-soldier, an historian, a computer whiz, a weapons expert, and a thief - is tasked with finding the world's most legendary treasures.

The mission: Fearing a German victory in WWI, the Romanian government signed a deal with Russia to guarantee the safety of the country's treasures. In 1916, two trains full of gold and the most precious possessions of the Romanian state - paintings, jewellery, and ancient artefacts - were sent to the underground vaults of the Kremlin. But in the turmoil of war, the treasure was scattered - and lost. Almost a century later, the haul is valued at over 3.5 billion dollars. Despite hundreds of attempts to find it, its location has remained a mystery... Until now.

Can the Hunters find the treasure and succeed where all others have failed?

Review: A Seaside Affair by Fern Britton

Wednesday 29 April 2015 0 comments
Title: A Seaside Affair
Author: Fern Britton
Publisher: HarperCollins
Format: Paperback
Publication Date: 26th March 2015
Pages: 448
ISBN: 9780007468577
Source: Lovereading Review Panel
Rating: 4/5
Purchase: Amazon
When the residents of the Cornish seaside town of Trevay discover that their much-loved theatre is about to be taken over by a coffee chain, they are up in arms. It is up to Penny Leighton, hotshot producer and the vicar’s wife, to come up with a rescue plan. Armed with only her mobile phone, she starts to pull in some serious favours.

The town is soon deluged by actors, all keen to show their support and take part in a charity season at the theatre. One of the arrivals is Jess Tate, girlfriend of TV heartthrob Ryan Hearst. His career is on the rise while her own is in the doldrums. But everything is about to change. Trevay must put on the show of its life – but can the villagers, and Jess, hold on to the thing they love the most?

Review: Game of Scones by Samantha Tonge

Tuesday 28 April 2015 0 comments
Title: Game of Scones
Author: Samantha Tonge
Publisher: Carina
Publication Date: 20th April 2015
Pages: 384
Source: NetGalley
Rating: 3.5/5
Purchase: Amazon
Growing up, Pippa Pattinson's summers were spent in the idyllic Greek island fishing village of Taxos. There she spent many long hazy days determinedly ignoring thoughts of the life her parents had mapped out for her (a dreary-but-secure banking job and obligatory sensible husband!) Instead she daydreamed of running her own tea shop - serving the perfect scones -with mocha-eyed childhood friend Niko by her side...

Arriving back in Taxos for the first time in years, with suave boyfriend Henrik, Pippa barely recognises the tired little town - but is relieved to catch glimpses of the quaint, charming village she's always loved. Together Niko and Pippa put together a proposal to save Taxos from tourist-tastic ruin, and at the heart of their plan is Pippa's dream project - The Tastiest Little Tea Shop in Taxos. It's time for Pippa to leave her London life behind and dust off her scone recipe that's guaranteed to win over both locals and visitors. And amidst the rolling pins and raisins, it seems romance is blossoming where she's least expecting it...

Review: Inspector of the Dead by David Morrell

Monday 27 April 2015 0 comments
Title: Inspector of the Dead
Author: David Morrell
Publisher: Mulholland Books
Publication Date: 24th March 2015
Pages: 352
ISBN: 9780316323932
Source: bookbridgr
Rating: 3.5/5
Purchase: Amazon
The year is 1855. The Crimean War is raging. The incompetence of British commanders causes the fall of the English government. The Empire teeters.

Amid this crisis comes opium-eater Thomas De Quincey, one of the most notorious and brilliant personalities of Victorian England. Along with his irrepressible daughter, Emily, and their Scotland Yard companions, Ryan and Becker, De Quincey finds himself confronted by an adversary who threatens the heart of the nation.

This killer targets members of the upper echelons of British society, leaving with each corpse the name of someone who previously attempted to kill Queen Victoria. The evidence indicates that the ultimate victim will be Victoria herself. As De Quincey and Emily race to protect the queen, they uncover long-buried secrets and the heartbreaking past of a man whose lust for revenge has destroyed his soul.

Based on actual attempts to assassinate Queen Victoria, Inspector of the Dead brilliantly merges historical fact with fiction, bringing a bloody chapter of Victorian England to vivid, pulse-pounding life.

Review: The Doris Day Vintage Film Club by Fiona Harper

Saturday 25 April 2015 0 comments
Title: The Doris Day Vintage Film Club
Author: Fiona Harper
Publisher: Mills & Boon
Publication Date: 23rd April 2015
Pages: 384
ISBN: 9780263253399
Source: NetGalley
Rating: 5/5
Purchase: Amazon
Claire Bixby grew up watching Doris Day films at her grandmother’s house and yearned to live in a world like the one on the screen – sunny, colourful and where happy endings with chiselled leading men were guaranteed. But recently Claire’s opportunities for a little ‘pillow talk’ have been thin on the ground.

Until she meets mysterious Dominic. Nic is full of secrets but their connection is instant. Could he help Claire finding the Hollywood ending she’s been searching for? Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps…

Guest Post: Top 5 Doris Day Films by Fiona Harper


Today I am thrilled to be posting a guest post from Fiona Harper to celebrate publication of The Doris Day Vintage Film Club. Fiona and her main character Claire are discussing their favourite Doris Day films. As so many reviewers have admitted to never having watched a Doris Day film, hopefully you might find some inspiration!

Review: Girls on Tour by Nicola Doherty

Friday 24 April 2015 1 comments
Title: Girls on Tour
Author: Nicola Doherty
Publisher: Headline
Publication Date: 23rd April 2015
Pages: 352
ISBN: 9781472218803
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 4/5
Purchase: Amazon
Poppy is bound for Paris, the City of Love. Could this be her chance to end her epic dry spell?

Lily is en route to her cousin's wedding in LA, where she's willing to break a few rules to land her dream role.

Maggie can't wait for her romantic ski holiday in Meribel - until it goes seriously off-piste.

Rachel packs for a glamorous Roman holiday, but a blast from the past is about to sabotage la dolce vita.

The girls get together and fly to Manhattan. But someone's been hiding a big secret in the Big Apple...

Hilarious, romantic and unputdownable, Girls on Tour is an irresistible series of interlinked stories about four ordinary girls who have extraordinary fun in faraway places. Follow them in an unforgettable year that includes breaking up, making up, new jobs and some big surprises ...

Review: Time of Death by Mark Billingham

Thursday 23 April 2015 0 comments
Title: Time of Death (Tom Thorne, #13)
Author: Mark Billingham
Publisher: Little, Brown
Publication Date: 23rd April 2015
Pages: 464
ISBN: 9781408704813
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 5/5
Purchase: Amazon
The Missing: Two schoolgirls are abducted in the small, dying Warwickshire town of Polesford, driving a knife into the heart of the community where police officer Helen Weeks grew up and from which she long ago escaped. But this is a place full of secrets, where dangerous truths lie buried.

The Accused: When it's splashed all over the press that family man Stephen Bates has been arrested, Helen and her partner Tom Thorne head to the flooded town to support Bates' wife - an old school friend of Helen's - who is living under siege with two teenage children and convinced of her husband's innocence.

The Dead: As residents and media bay for Bates' blood, a decomposing body is found. The police believe they have their murderer in custody, but one man believes otherwise. With a girl still missing, Thorne sets himself on a collision course with local police, townsfolk - and a merciless killer.

Review: The Love Shack by Jane Costello

Wednesday 22 April 2015 1 comments
Title: The Love Shack
Author: Jane Costello
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Publication Date: 23rd April 2015
Pages: 496
ISBN: 9781471129278
Source: NetGalley
Rating: 5/5
Purchase: Amazon
Life's great when you're 29 years old with a gorgeous girlfriend and fulfilling job. Until you have to move back in with your mum . . .

Dan and Gemma have found their dream first home, but the asking price is the stuff of nightmares. The only way they'll ever save enough for the deposit is by moving in, rent-free, with Dan's mum.

It's a desperate solution, but it's only for six months. And Gemma's determined to make it work, no matter how bad things get.

But between Dan's mum's kitchen karaoke, her constant innuendos, irrepressible argumentative streak and - worst of all - her ham and pineapple curries, life back at home would test the patience of two saints. Which Dan and Gemma most definitely are not.

Then, as they're trying to convince themselves it will all be worth it, Gemma's past comes back to haunt her. And suddenly the foundations of their entire relationship are shaken to their core…

Review: Hidden by Emma Kavanagh

Tuesday 21 April 2015 0 comments
Title: Hidden
Author: Emma Kavanagh
Publisher: Century
Publication Date: 23rd April 2015
Pages: 352
ISBN: 9781780892047
Source: NetGalley
Rating: 4/5
Purchase: Amazon
HE'S WATCHING: A gunman is stalking the wards of a local hospital. He's unidentified and dangerous, and has to be located. Urgently.

Police Firearms Officer Aden McCarthy is tasked with tracking him down. Still troubled by the shooting of a schoolboy, Aden is determined to make amends by finding the gunman - before it's too late.

SHE'S WAITING: To psychologist Imogen, hospital should be a place of healing and safety - both for her, and her young niece who's been recently admitted. She's heard about the gunman, but he has little to do with her. Or has he?

As time ticks down, no one knows who the gunman's next target will be. But he's there. Hiding in plain sight. Far closer than anyone thinks...

Guest Post: Research, Research, Research by Emma Kavanagh

Emma Kavanagh's blog tour for her second novel Hidden continues today with a guest post from Emma all about research. I loved Hidden and my review can be read here


HE'S WATCHING: A gunman is stalking the wards of a local hospital. He's unidentified and dangerous, and has to be located. Urgently.

Police Firearms Officer Aden McCarthy is tasked with tracking him down. Still troubled by the shooting of a schoolboy, Aden is determined to make amends by finding the gunman - before it's too late.

SHE'S WAITING: To psychologist Imogen, hospital should be a place of healing and safety - both for her, and her young niece who's been recently admitted. She's heard about the gunman, but he has little to do with her. Or has he?

As time ticks down, no one knows who the gunman's next target will be. But he's there. Hiding in plain sight. Far closer than anyone thinks...

Review: The Cake Shop in the Garden by Carole Matthews

Monday 20 April 2015 1 comments
Title: The Cake Shop in the Garden
Author: Carole Matthews
Publisher: Sphere
Publication Date: 23rd April 2015
Pages: 448
ISBN: 9780751552157
Source: NetGalley
Rating: 4/5
Purchase: Amazon
Fay Merryweather runs her cake shop from her beautiful garden. She whips up airy sponges and scrumptious scones, while her customers enjoy the lovely blossoms and gorgeous blooms. Looking after the cake shop, the garden and her cantankerous mother means Fay is always busy but she accepts her responsibilities because if she doesn't do all this, who will?

Then Danny Wilde walks into her life and makes Fay question every decision she's ever made.

When a sudden tragedy strikes, Fay's entire world is thrown off balance even further and she doesn't know which way to turn. Can Fay find the strength to make a life-changing decision - even if it means giving up the thing she loves the most? Life, love and family are about to collide in The Cake Shop in the Garden.

My Week in Books #16

Saturday 18 April 2015 3 comments
Blog Milestone


I have been blogging for just 13 months and a few days ago I hit 100,000 views. For me, this is a massive achievement and I am always appreciative of anybody who reads my blog. Stats show that I have a good mix of unique visits and returning visits and the shares from fellow bloggers and authors definitely brings traffic, which is another thing I am really thankful for!

Review: No Other Darkness by Sarah Hilary

Friday 17 April 2015 2 comments
Title: No Other Darkness (DI Marnie Rome, #2)
Author: Sarah Hilary
Publisher: Headline
Publication Date: 23rd April 2015
Pages: 416
ISBN: 9781472207722
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 5/5
Purchase: Amazon
Two young boys.
Trapped underground in a bunker.
Unable to understand why they are there.
Desperate for someone to find them.
Slowly realising that no-one will...

Five years later, the boys' bodies are found and the most difficult case of DI Marnie Rome's career begins.

Her only focus is the boys. She has to find out who they are and what happened to them.

For Marnie, there is no other darkness than this...

Review: Omega Dog by Tim Stevens

Thursday 16 April 2015 0 comments
Title: Omega Dog
Author: Tim Stevens
Publisher: Self-published
Pages: 281
Source: Purchased
Rating: 3.5/5
Purchase: Amazon
Joe Venn is down on his luck. A Marine and police detective lieutenant, he was kicked off the Chicago force for getting a little heavy-handed while cleaning up the streets. Now he’s eking out a living as a private eye in downtown Manhattan, on a road to nowhere.

His life’s about to get a whole lot worse…

When Venn is arrested for a murder he didn’t commit, he’s given a choice.

Track down a missing professor of neurochemistry, in an operation that’s so politically sensitive even the FBI can’t be allowed to touch it.

Or face life in prison.

Hall of Fame Review: The Vintage Guide to Love and Romance by Kirsty Greenwood

Wednesday 15 April 2015 1 comments
Title: The Vintage Guide to Love and Romance
Author: Kirsty Greenwood
Publisher: Pan
Publication Date: 9th April 2015
Format: eBook
Pages: 400
ISBN: 9781447247326
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 5/5
Purchase: Amazon
Jessica Beam is a girl who knows how to party. Only lately she's been forgetting to turn up for work on time. Or in clean clothes. Down on her luck, out of a job and homeless, Jess seeks the help of her long-lost grandmother.

Things aren't going well for Matilda Beam, either. Her 1950s Good Woman guide books are out of print, her mortgage repayments are staggering and her granddaughter wears neon Wonderbras.

When a lifeline from a London publisher arrives, the pair have an opportunity to secure the roof over their heads - by invigorating the Good Woman guides and transforming modern, rebellious Jess into a demure vintage lady.

The true test of their make-over will be to capture the heart of notorious London playboy Leo Frost and prove that Matilda's guides still work. It's going to take commitment, nerves of steel and one seriously pointy bra to pull this off . . .

Review: Runner by Patrick Lee

Tuesday 14 April 2015 0 comments
Title: Runner (Sam Dryden, #1)
Author: Patrick Lee
Publisher: Penguin
Publication Date: 19th June 2014
Pages: 416
ISBN: 9781405914994
Source: Won
Rating: 4/5
Purchase: Amazon
Ex-soldier Sam Dryden was done being a hero. But when, acting on instinct, he hides a terrified young girl from a group of well-armed pursuers, his fate is sealed.

Rachel can't remember much, but she knows she was imprisoned by the men trying to kill her. And that she is important to them.

In Dryden, though, Rachel has found the perfect protector.

But hunted and on the run, it's only as Rachel's memory returns that Dryden begins to fully appreciate the scale of the dangers they face. And then only one thing matters:

Don't. Get. Caught.

Review: The Dead Room by Chris Mooney

Monday 13 April 2015 0 comments
Title: The Dead Room (Darby McCormick, #3)
Author: Chris Mooney
Publisher: Penguin
Publication Date: 6th August 2009
Pages: 464
ISBN: 9780141039879
Source: Library
Rating: 4/5
Purchase: Amazon
A mother and her son have been executed in their home and fingerprint matches show their attacker died twenty years ago.

But how can dead serial killers return to haunt the present?

The answers lie in the darkest shadows of The Dead Room.

When CSI Darby McCormick is called to the crime scene, it's one of the most gruesome she's ever seen. But the forensic evidence is even more disturbing: someone watched the murder unfold from woodland behind the house - and the killer died in a shoot-out two decades earlier.

The deeper Darby digs, the more horrors come to light. Her prime suspect is revealed as a serial killer on an enormous scale, with a past that's even more shocking than his crimes, thanks to a long-held secret that could rock Boston's law enforcement to its core.

Review: NYPD Red 3 by James Patterson

Friday 10 April 2015 0 comments
Title: NYPD Red 3
Author: James Patterson & Marshall Karp
Publisher: Century
Publication Date: 9th April 2015
Pages: 384
ISBN: 9781780892740
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 3.5/5
Purchase: Amazon
Hunter Alden, Jr., a billionaire businessman, has it all: a sexy wife, a brilliant teenage son, and an ever-growing fortune. But his perfect life shatters one horrific night when he discovers the severed head of his chauffeur, stuffed in a bag marked, in blood, with his son's initials. Now his son is missing, and the price to get him back might be too high--even for one of the world's richest men.

When NYPD Red, the elite task force for New York City's most high-profile crimes, takes the case, Detective Zach Jordon and his partner--and ex-girlfriend--Kylie MacDonald have never seen anything so unspeakable. As the investigation continues, Zach and Kylie realize that the closer they get to the truth, the more their own lives are in danger.

Review: The Day We Disappeared by Lucy Robinson

Thursday 9 April 2015 0 comments
Title: The Day We Disappeared
Author: Lucy Robinson
Publisher: Michael Joseph
Publication Date: 9th April 2015
Pages: 432
ISBN: 9781405911603
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 5/5
Purchase: Amazon
Annie has a secret. But if she's not going to tell, we won't either. It's a heart-breaking secret she wishes she didn't have - yet Annie isn't broken, not quite yet. Especially now there's someone out there who seems determined to fix her.

Kate has run away. But she's not going to tell us why - that would defeat the point of running, wouldn't it? It's proving difficult to reinvent herself, however, with one person always on her mind.

Scratch beneath the surface and nobody is really who they seem. Even Annie and Kate, two old friends, aren't entirely sure who they are any more. Perhaps you can work it out, before their pasts catch up with them for good . . .

Review: Past Crimes by Glen Erik Hamilton

Wednesday 8 April 2015 0 comments
Title: Past Crimes
Author: Glen Erik Hamilton
Publisher: Faber & Faber
Publication Date: 5th March 2015
Pages: 336
ISBN: 9780571314584
Source: Publisher
Rating: 4/5
Purchase: Amazon
If my grandfather's letter had stopped at the comma, I would have tossed it in the trash... only the last three words mattered. If you can. That passed for please, in the old man's way of talking... If you can scared me a little.

Meet Van Shaw - soldier, ex-con - as he returns to his native Seattle after a decade's self-imposed exile. Answering voices from his past, he finds a whole heap of trouble, and himself the prime suspect in the brutal attack on his grandfather. Drawn back into the violent, high-stakes life he tried to leave behind, he has to try and see right from wrong amid the secrets and resentments of those he was once closest to.

Review: Unravelling Oliver by Liz Nugent

Tuesday 7 April 2015 7 comments
Title: Unravelling Oliver
Author: Liz Nugent
Publisher: Penguin
Publication Date: 9th April 2015
Pages: 240
ISBN: 9780241965641
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 4.5/5
Purchase: Amazon
Oliver Ryan is a handsome and charismatic success story. He lives in the suburbs with his wife, Alice, who illustrates his award-winning children's books and gives him her unstinting devotion. Their life together is one of enviable privilege and ease - enviable until, one evening after supper, Oliver attacks Alice and beats her into a coma.

In the aftermath, as everyone tries to make sense of his astonishing act of savagery, Oliver tells his story. So do those whose paths he has crossed over five decades. What unfolds is a story of shame, envy, breath-taking deception and masterful manipulation.

Only Oliver knows the lengths to which he has had to go to get the life to which he felt entitled. But even he is in for a shock when the past catches up with him.

Review: From Liverpool With Love by Lyn Andrews

Monday 6 April 2015 0 comments
Title: From Liverpool With Love
Author: Lyn Andrews
Publisher: Headline
Publication Date: 4th December 2014
Pages: 400
Source: bookbridgr
Rating: 4/5
Purchase: Amazon
A heartwarming Liverpool saga from the bestselling author of THE HOUSE ON LONELY STREET and LIVERPOOL ANGELS for readers of Dilly Court and Katie Flynn

In 1920s Liverpool, Jane, her little brother Alfie and their mother Ellen have faced the horrors of the workhouse together. But when Ellen dies, two very different paths open up for the siblings.

Jane is sent to work in the Empire Laundry and builds a new life for herself with the neighbours who take her in. She finds solace there and the promise of a happy future when she falls for Joe, their eldest son.

But Alfie absconds from the workhouse and embarks on a life of crime. When their paths cross once more, Alfie turns on his sister. His plans will jeopardise every happiness she hoped for...

Review: Next to Die by Neil White

Friday 3 April 2015 3 comments
Title: Next to Die
Author: Neil White
Publisher: Sphere
Publication Date: 26th September 2013
Pages: 416
ISBN: 9780751549447
Source: Purchased
Rating: 4/5
Purchase: Amazon
Joe Parker is Manchester's most ingenious criminal defence lawyer.

Sam Parker is Manchester's most tenacious homicide detective.

Both bear the burden of the unsolved murder of their sister fifteen years earlier. And both have a stake in a new series of murders that has shaken their city to its core.

Ronnie Bagley is locked up and facing trial for the murder of his girlfriend and baby and there's only one lawyer he wants to defend him: Joe Parker. As Joe takes to the courtroom to represent Ronnie, little does he know that Bagley is smarter than anyone has given him credit for, and soon Joe will find himself pitched against his own brother, Sam, in a race to outwit the most terrifying serial killer the city has ever seen.

It isn't long before Joe and Sam's shared past comes crashing into the present in a pulse-pounding race to find out who is NEXT TO DIE...

Review: Prey by James Carol

Thursday 2 April 2015 0 comments
Title: Prey (Jefferson Winter, #3)
Author: James Carol
Publisher: Faber & Faber
Publication Date: 26th February 2015
Pages: 384
ISBN: 9780571322312
Source: Publisher
Rating: 3.5/5
Purchase: Amazon
Has Jefferson Winter finally met his match?

Six years ago a young married couple were found brutally stabbed to death in their home in Upstate New York. Local police arrested a suspect who later committed suicide. But what if the police got it wrong?

Ex-FBI profiler Jefferson Winter is drawn into a deadly cat-and-mouse game with a mysterious female psychopath as she sets him a challenge: find out what really happened six years ago.

The clock is ticking and, as Winter is about to find out, the endgame is everything...

Review: Eeny Meeny by M.J. Arlidge

Wednesday 1 April 2015 0 comments
Title: Eeny Meeny (D.I. Helen Grace, #1)
Author: M.J. Arlidge
Publisher: Penguin
Publication Date: 8th May 2014
Pages: 448
ISBN: 9781405914871
Source: Won
Rating: 4/5
Purchase: Amazon
The girl emerged from the woods, barely alive. Her story was beyond belief. But it was true. Every dreadful word of it.

Days later, another desperate escapee is found - and a pattern is emerging. Pairs of victims are being abducted, imprisoned then faced with a terrible choice: kill or be killed.

Would you rather lose your life or lose your mind?

Detective Inspector Helen Grace has faced down her own demons on her rise to the top. As she leads the investigation to hunt down this unseen monster, she learns that it may be the survivors - living calling cards - who hold the key to the case.

And unless she succeeds, more innocents will die . . .

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