Review: Safe With Me by K.L. Slater

Title: Safe With Me
Author: K.L. Slater
Publisher: Bookouture
Publication Date: 3rd November 2016
Pages: 324
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 4.5/5
Purchase: Amazon

Thirteen years ago someone did something very bad to Anna. Now it’s her turn to get even …

Anna lives a solitary existence, taking solace in order and routine. Her only friend is the lonely old lady next door. She doesn’t like to let people to get too close – she knows how much damage they can do.

Then one ordinary day Anna witnesses a devastating road accident and recognises the driver as Carla, the woman who ruined her life all those years ago. Now it’s Anna’s chance to set things straight but her revenge needs to be executed carefully …

First she needs to get to know Liam, the man injured in the accident. She needs to follow the police investigation. She needs to watch Carla from the shadows…

But as Anna’s obsession with Carla escalates, her own secrets start to unravel. Is Carla really dangerous or does Anna need to worry about someone far closer to home?

Hall of Fame Review: Then She Was Gone by Luca Veste

Title: Then She Was Gone
Author: Luca Veste
Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK
Publication Date: 28th July 2016
Pages: 448
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 5/5
Purchase: Amazon

Tim Johnson took his baby daughter out for a walk and she never made it home. Johnson claims he was assaulted and the girl was snatched. The police see a different crime, with Johnson their only suspect.

A year later, Sam Bryne is on course to be elected as one of the youngest MPs in Westminster. He's tipped for the very top ... until he vanishes.

Detectives Murphy and Rossi are tasked with discovering what has happened to the popular politician - and in doing so, they unearth a trail that stretches into the past, and crimes that someone is hell-bent on avenging.

Review: When She Was Bad by Tammy Cohen

Title: When She Was Bad
Author: Tammy Cohen
Publisher: Transworld
Publication Date: 21st April 2016
Pages: 386
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 4/5
Purchase: Amazon

YOU SEE THE PEOPLE YOU WORK WITH EVERY DAY.

BUT WHAT CAN'T YOU SEE?

Amira, Sarah, Paula, Ewan and Charlie have worked together for years - they know how each one likes their coffee, whose love life is a mess, whose children keep them up at night. But their comfortable routine life is suddenly shattered when an aggressive new boss walks in ....

Now, there's something chilling in the air.

Who secretly hates everyone?

Who is tortured by their past?

Who is capable of murder?

Review: The Missing by C.L. Taylor

Title: The Missing
Author: C.L. Taylor
Publisher: Avon
Publication Date: 7th April 2016
Pages: 400
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 4/5
Purchase: Amazon

You love your family. They make you feel safe. You trust them.

But should you…?

When fifteen-year-old Billy Wilkinson goes missing in the middle of the night, his mother, Claire, blames herself. She's not the only one. There isn't a single member of Billy's family that doesn't feel guilty. But the Wilkinson’s are so used to keeping secrets from one another that it isn't until six months later, after an appeal for information goes horribly wrong, that the truth begins to surface.

Claire is sure of two things – that Billy is still alive and that her friends and family had nothing to do with his disappearance.

A mother's instinct is never wrong. Or is it?

Sometimes those closest to us are the ones with the most to hide…

Review: Between You and Me by Lisa Hall

Title: Between You and Me
Author: Lisa Hall
Publisher: Carina
Publication Date: 17th March 2016
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 5/5
Purchase: Amazon

They say every marriage has its secrets.

But no one sees what happens behind closed doors.

And sometimes those doors should never be opened …

Sal and Charlie are married. They love each other. But they aren’t happy. Sal cannot leave, no matter what Charlie does – no matter how much it hurts.

Hall of Fame Review: In Her Wake by Amanda Jennings

Title: In Her Wake
Author: Amanda Jennings
Publisher: Orenda Books
Publication Date: 10th February 2016
Pages: 360
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 5/5
Purchase: Amazon

A perfect life... until she discovered it wasn’t her own.

A tragic family event reveals devastating news that rips apart Bella's comfortable existence. Embarking on a personal journey to uncover the truth, she faces a series of traumatic discoveries that take her to the ruggedly beautiful Cornish coast, where hidden truths, past betrayals and a 25-year-old mystery threaten not just her identity, but her life. Chilling, complex and profoundly moving, In Her Wake is a gripping psychological thriller that questions the nature of family - and reminds us that sometimes the most shocking crimes are committed closest to home.

Review: Viral by Helen FitzGerald

Title: Viral
Author: Helen FitzGerald
Publisher: Faber & Faber
Publication Date: 4th February 2016
Pages: 272
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 2/5
Purchase: Amazon

So far, twenty-three thousand and ninety six people have seen me online. They include my mother, my father, my little sister, my grandmother, my other grandmother, my grandfather, my boss, my sixth year Biology teacher and my boyfriend James.

When Leah Oliphant-Brotheridge and her adopted sister Su go on holiday together to Magaluf to celebrate their A-levels, only Leah returns home. Her successful, swotty sister remains abroad, humiliated and afraid: there is an online video of her, drunkenly performing a sex act in a nightclub. And everyone has seen it.

Ruth Oliphant-Brotheridge, mother of the girls, successful court judge, is furious. How could this have happened? How can she bring justice to these men who took advantage of her dutiful, virginal daughter? What role has Leah played in all this? And can Ruth find Su and bring her back home when Su doesn't want to be found?

Review: The Girl You Lost by Kathryn Croft

Title: The Girl You Lost
Author: Kathryn Croft
Publisher: Bookouture
Publication Date: 5th February 2016
Pages: 280
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 4/5
Purchase: Amazon

Eighteen years ago, Simone Porter’s six-month-old daughter, Helena, was abducted. Simone and husband, Matt, have slowly rebuilt their shattered lives, but the pain at losing their child has never left them.

Then a young woman, Grace, appears out of the blue and tells Simone she has information about her stolen baby. But just who is Grace – and can Simone trust her?

When Grace herself disappears, Simone becomes embroiled in a desperate search for her daughter and the woman who has vital clues about her whereabouts.

Simone is inching closer to the truth but it’ll take her into dangerous and disturbing territory.

Simone lost her baby. Will she lose her life trying to find her?

Review: The Girl Who Broke the Rules by Marnie Riches

Title: The Girl Who Broke the Rules
Author: Marnie Riches
Publisher: Maze
Publication Date: 20th August 2015
Pages: 391
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 4.5/5
Purchase: Amazon

When the mutilated bodies of two sex-workers are found in Amsterdam, Chief Inspector van den Bergen must find a brutal murderer before the red-light-district erupts into panic.

Georgina McKenzie is conducting research into pornography among the UK’s most violent sex-offenders but once van den Bergen calls on her criminology expertise, she is only too happy to come running.

The rising death toll forces George and van den Bergen to navigate the labyrinthine worlds of Soho strip-club sleaze and trans-national human trafficking. And with the case growing ever more complicated, George must walk the halls of Broadmoor psychiatric hospital, seeking advice from the brilliant serial murderer, Dr. Silas Holm…

Review: Untouchable by Ava Marsh

Title: Untouchable
Author: Ava Marsh
Publisher: Transworld
Publication Date: 7th May 2015
Pages: 384
Source: Purchased
Rating: 4/5
Purchase: Amazon

Stella is an escort, immersed in a world of desire, betrayal and secrets. It’s exactly where she wants to be. Stella used to be someone else: respectable, loved, safe. But one mistake changed all that.

When a fellow call girl is murdered, Stella has a choice: forget what she’s seen, or risk everything to get justice for her friend. In her line of work, she’s never far from the edge, but pursuing the truth could take her past the point of no return.

Nothing is off limits. Not for her – and not for them.

But no one is truly untouchable.

Review: Malicious Intent by Kathryn Fox

Title: Malicious Intent
Author: Kathryn Fox
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Publication Date: 7th November 2005
Pages: 484
Source: Purchased
Rating: 3.5/5
Purchase: Amazon

Dr Anya Crichton, a pathologist and forensic physician, finds that work is sparse for the only female freelancer in the field. Between paying child support, a mortgage and struggling to get her business off the ground, Anya can't yet afford to fight her ex-husband for custody of their three-year-old son, Ben. When Anya is asked to look into the seemingly innocent suicide of a teenager, Anya notices similarities between the girl's death and several other cases she is working on with her friend and colleague, Detective Sergeant Kate Farrer. All the victims went missing for a period of time, only to be found dead of apparent suicide in most unusual circumstances. As Anya delves deeper, the pathological findings point to the frightening possibility that the deaths are not only linked, but part of a sinister plot. Nothing can prepare her for the terrifying truth...

Review: A Killing of Angels by Kate Rhodes

Title: A Killing of Angels (Alice Quentin, #2)
Author: Kate Rhodes
Publisher: Mulholland Books
Publication Date: 4th July 2013
Pages: 352
ISBN: 9781444738803
Source: Purchased
Rating: 4/5
Purchase: Amazon

At the height of a summer heatwave, a killer stalks the City of London.

The avenging angel leaves behind a scattering of feathers with each body - but why these victims? What were their sins?

Psychologist Alice Quentin only agrees to help out on the case because she owes Detective Don Burns a favour. But soon she finds herself deep in the toxic heart of the Square Mile - a place where money means more than life, and no one can be counted innocent.

Review: First One Missing by Tammy Cohen

Title: First One Missing
Author: Tammy Cohen
Publisher: Doubleday
Publication Date: 2nd July 2015
Pages: 320
ISBN: 9780857522771
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 3.5/5
Purchase: Amazon

There are three things no-one can prepare you for when your daughter is murdered:

- You are haunted by her memory day and night

- Even close friends can't understand what you are going through.

- Only in a group with mothers of other victims can you find real comfort.

But as the bereaved parents gather to offer support in the wake of another killing, a crack appears in the group that threatens to rock their lives all over again.

Welcome to the club no one wants to join.

Review: Little Black Lies by Sharon Bolton

Title: Little Black Lies
Author: Sharon Bolton
Publisher: Bantam Press
Publication Date: 2nd July 2015
Format: eBook
Pages: 400
ISBN: 9780593069202
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 5/5
Purchase: Amazon

What's the worst thing your best friend could do to you?

Admittedly, it wasn't murder. A moment's carelessness, a tragic accident - and two children are dead. Yours.

Living in a small island community, you can't escape the woman who destroyed your life. Each chance encounter is an agonizing reminder of what you've lost - your family, your future, your sanity.

How long before revenge becomes irresistible?

With no reason to go on living, why shouldn't you turn your darkest thoughts into deeds?

So now, what's the worst thing you can do to your best friend?

Review: Burnt Paper Sky by Gilly Macmillan

Title: Burnt Paper Sky
Author: Gilly Macmillan
Publisher: Piatkus
Publication Date: 5th February 2015
Pages: 480
ISBN: 9780349406374
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 4.5/5
Purchase: Amazon

Rachel Jenner turned her back for a moment. Now her eight-year-old son Ben is missing.

But what really happened that fateful afternoon?

Caught between her personal tragedy and a public who have turned against her, there is nobody left who Rachel can trust. But can the nation trust Rachel?

The clock is ticking to find Ben alive.

WHOSE SIDE ARE YOU ON?

Review: The Three by Sarah Lotz

Title: The Three
Author: Sarah Lotz
Publisher: Hodder
Publication Date: 26th February 2015
Pages: 480
ISBN: 9781444770384
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 3.5/5
Purchase: Amazon

Black Thursday. The day that will never be forgotten. The day that four passenger planes crash, at almost exactly the same moment, at four different points around the globe.

There are only four survivors. Three are children, who emerge from the wreckage seemingly unhurt. But they are not unchanged. And the fourth is Pamela May Donald, who lives just long enough to record a voice message on her phone. A message that will change the world.

The message is a warning.

Guest Post: Nikki Owen on Inspiration

Today I am excited to be a part of the blog tour for Nikki Owen's brilliant debut novel The Spider in the Corner of the Room. A thought-provoking and at times quite gripping story that I have no hesitation in reccommending. You can read my review here, and in the meantime I hope you enjoy this guest post from Nikki about her inspiration for writing The Spider in the Corner of the Room.

What was your inspiration for writing The Spider in the Corner of the Room?

I love a good daydream. It rocks, right - that act of staring into space, mouth hanging open like a fish on the deck of a boat, dribble drooling from the corner of your lips (or, you know, maybe not…). It can be your best, most influential look. And why? Because daydreaming is an inspiration.

Author Interview: Lucy Atkins

The Other Child is the latest novel from Lucy Atkins and it is a really great book. It is available to buy now and you can read my review here. In the meantime I hope you enjoy reading this Q&A with Lucy.

Can you introduce The Other Child for readers who don't know what it is about?

The Other Child is a story about a catastrophic marital secret. Tess, is a photographer and single mother, falls in love with Greg, a paediatric heart surgeon. He’s American, and when he’s offered his dream job back in Boston they relocate from London, along with Tess’s little boy Joe. But Tess has fallen unexpectedly pregnant, and life in the affluent Boston suburb isn’t straightforward: creepy things start happening in the big rented house – Tess knows she is being watched, the neighbours are behaving oddly, Joe is distressed and homesick, the pregnancy feels fragile - and then, in the basement, Tess finds something that threatens to destroy everything she loves.

Review: The Other Child by Lucy Atkins

Title: The Other Child
Author: Lucy Atkins
Publisher: Quercus
Publication Date: 4th June 2015
Pages: 400
ISBN: 9781782069874
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 4/5
Purchase: Amazon

Sometimes a lie seems kinder than the truth ... but what happens when that lie destroys everything you love?

When Tess is sent to photograph Greg, a high profile paediatric heart surgeon, she sees something troubled in his face, and feels instantly drawn to him. Their relationship quickly deepens, but then Tess, single mother to nine-year-old Joe, falls pregnant, and Greg is offered the job of a lifetime back in his hometown of Boston. Before she knows it, Tess is married, and relocating to the States. But life in an affluent American suburb proves anything but straightforward.

Unsettling things keep happening in the large rented house. Joe is distressed, the next-door neighbours are in crisis, and Tess is sure that someone is watching her. Greg's work is all-consuming and, as the baby's birth looms, he grows more and more unreachable. Something is very wrong, Tess knows it, and then she makes a jaw-dropping discovery...

Review: Half the World Away by Cath Staincliffe

Title: Half the World Away
Author: Cath Staincliffe
Publisher: Constable
Publication Date: 4th June 2015
Pages: 336
ISBN: 9781472117977
Source: Review Copy
Rating: 4.5/5
Purchase: Amazon

Newly graduated photography student Lori Maddox spends the year after university travelling and visits China where she finds work as a private English tutor. Back in Manchester, her parents Jo and Tom, who separated when Lori was a toddler, follow her adventures on her blog, 'Lori In The Orient'.

Suddenly communication stops and when the silence persists a frantic Jo and Tom report her missing. It is impossible to find out anything from 5,000 miles away so they travel out to Chengdu, a city in the south-western province of Sichuan, to search for their daughter.

Landing in a totally unfamiliar country, with no knowledge of the customs or language, and receiving scant help from the local authorities, Jo and Tom are forced to turn detective, following in their daughter's footsteps, tracing the people she mentioned in her posts, interviewing her friends, colleagues and students. It's an unbearably difficult challenge and, as the days pass, the fear that Lori is lost for good grows ever larger.