Category: Mystery/Thriller

#BookReview Left You Dead by Peter James @peterjamesuk @PGCBooks @panmacmillan #PeterJames #LeftYouDead #RoyGrace

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#BookReview Left You Dead by Peter James @peterjamesuk @PGCBooks @panmacmillan #PeterJames #LeftYouDead #RoyGrace Title: Left You Dead

Author: Peter James

Series: Roy Grace #17

Published by: Pan Macmillan on Jul. 1, 2021

Genres: Mystery/Thriller, Police Procedural

Pages: 512

Format: Paperback

Source: Publishers Group Canada

Book Rating: 8.5/10

NO BODY. NO TRACE.
NO CRIME?

Niall and Eden Paternoster start their Sunday the same way they always do – with a long drive, a visit to a country house and a quick stop at the local supermarket on the way home.

But this Sunday ends differently – because while Niall waits and waits in the car park for Eden to pick up supplies, Eden never returns. She’s not waiting for him at home, and none of their family or friends have heard from her.

Gone without a trace, Niall is arrested on suspicion of her murder. When DS Roy Grace is called in to investigate, it doesn’t take long to realize that nothing is quite as it seems – and this might be his most mysterious case yet . . .

Sunday Times number one bestseller Peter James returns with the latest installment in his award-winning Roy Grace novels – now a major TV series.

Review:

Intricate, twisty, and clever!

Left You Dead is a well written, perfectly paced police procedural that sees Detective Superintendent Roy Grace and his team investigating the sudden disappearance of Eden Paternoster, a young woman who seems to have vanished without a trace after her husband dropped her off at a local Tesco, and even though the husband seems to be the most likely suspect from the very start something just doesn’t seem to fit, and this case may actually be a lot more complicated than anyone could have imagined.

The writing is effortless and smooth. The characters are devious, astute, and committed. And the plot, including all the subplots, unravel and intertwine into a mysterious tale full of twists, turns, manipulation, deception, desperation, red herrings, police politics, familial drama, and personal tragedy.

Overall, Left You Dead is addictive, crafty, slightly emotional, and unbelievably already the seventeenth novel in the Roy Grace series and even though this one is a little meatier at just over 500 pages, I still have yet to read a book by James that didn’t captivate, satisfy, and highly entertain me and I’m happy to say this latest one is also no exception.

This book is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

              

 

 

Thank you to PGC Books for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Peter James

Peter James is the international bestselling author of many award-winning novels. His Detective Superintendent Roy Grace series, set in Brighton, has been translated into thirty-seven languages with worldwide sales of over eighteen million copies, and has given him eleven consecutive Sunday Times number ones. In 2015 WHSmith customers publicly voted him the Greatest Crime Author of All Time and in 2016 he became the recipient of the coveted CWA Diamond Dagger lifetime achievement award for sustained excellence. Peter has also written a short story collection, A Twist of the Knife, and his standalone titles include Perfect People and The House on Cold Hill. He has also co-written a non-fiction account of Brighton’s toughest cases with former detective Graham Bartlett entitled Death Comes Knocking. The Perfect Murder, Dead Simple and Not Dead Enough have all been turned into smash-hit stage plays. All his novels reflect his deep interest in the world of the police. Three of his novels have been filmed and before becoming a full-time author he produced numerous films, including The Merchant of Venice, starring Al Pacino and Jeremy Irons. He divides his time between his homes in Notting Hill, London and near Brighton in Sussex.

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#BookReview Her Last Breath by Hilary Davidson @AmazonPub @ThomasAllenLTD #HerLastBreath #HilaryDavidson #Thomas&Mercer

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#BookReview Her Last Breath by Hilary Davidson @AmazonPub @ThomasAllenLTD #HerLastBreath #HilaryDavidson #Thomas&Mercer Title: Her Last Breath

Author: Hilary Davidson

Published by: Thomas & Mercer on Jul. 1, 2021

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 301

Format: Paperback

Source: Thomas Allen & Son

Book Rating: 8/10

From the bestselling author of One Small Sacrifice comes a suspenseful thriller about a dead woman who predicted her own murder—and the sister who won’t let the truth be buried.

When her beloved sister Caroline dies suddenly, Deirdre is heartbroken. However, her sorrow turns to bone-chilling confusion when she receives a message Caroline sent days earlier warning that her death would be no accident. Long used to being a pariah to her family, Deirdre covers her tattoos and heads to Manhattan for her sister’s funeral.

The message claimed Caroline’s husband, Theo, killed his first wife and got away with it. Reeling from the news, Deirdre confronts Theo on the way to the cemetery, and he reveals both his temper and his suspicion that Deirdre’s “perfect” sister was having an affair.

Paranoid and armed with just enough information to make her dangerous, Deirdre digs into the disturbing secrets buried with Caroline. But as she gets closer to the truth, she realizes that her own life may be at risk…and that there may be more than one killer in the family.

Review:

Sinister, twisty, and simmering!

Her Last Breath is a gripping, sophisticated, domestic thriller that delves into the dynamic and intricate bonds between family members and reminds us that everything is not always as it seems and behind all those smiling, happy faces often hides an abundance of secrets, lies, and swirling emotions.

The writing is menacing and tight. The characters are complex, secretive, and troubled. And the plot told from alternating perspectives is ominous and intense as it subtly twists, turns, and unravels all the personalities, motivations, actions, and relationships within it.

Her Last Breath, at its core, is a novel about deception, familial strife, marital discord, manipulation, jealousy, obsession, justice, and murder. It’s menacing, intense, creepy, and overall, in my opinion, a satisfying whodunit.

 

This book is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

         

 

 

Thank you to Thomas Allen & Son for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Hilary Davidson

“Her voice is a fresh and welcome addition to the noir landscape.”
— Los Angeles Review of Books

Hilary Davidson was a journalist before she turned to the dark side and started writing crime fiction. Her novels include the award-winning Lily Moore series—The Damage Done, The Next One to Fall, and Evil in All Its Disguises—the bestselling Shadows of New York series—One Small Sacrifice and Don’t Look Down—and the standalone novels Blood Always Tells and Her Last Breath. She is also the author of some fifty short stories. Her fiction has won two Anthony Awards, a Derringer Award, and a host of other accolades. Toronto born and raised, she moved to New York City in October 2001. She is also the author of eighteen nonfiction books.

Photo by Anna Ty Bergman.

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#BookReview Runner (Cass Raines #4) by Tracy Clark @tracypc6161 @KayePublicity @KensingtonBooks #Runner #TracyClark #CassRaines

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#BookReview Runner (Cass Raines #4) by Tracy Clark @tracypc6161 @KayePublicity @KensingtonBooks #Runner #TracyClark #CassRaines Title: Runner

Author: Tracy Clark

Series: Cass Raines #4

Published by: Kensington Books on Jun. 29, 2021

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 304

Format: Hardcover

Source: Kaye Publicity

Book Rating: 8.5/10

Chicago in the dead of winter can be brutal, especially when you’re scouring the frigid streets for a missing girl. Fifteen-year-old Ramona Titus has run away from her foster home. Her biological mother, Leesa Evans, is a recovering addict who admits she failed Ramona often in the past. But now she’s clean. And she’s determined to make up for her mistakes—if Cass can only help her find her daughter.

Cass visits Ramona’s foster mother, Deloris Poole, who is also desperate to bring the girl home. Ramona came to Deloris six months ago, angry and distrustful, but was slowly opening up. The police are on the search, but Cass has sources closer to the streets, and a network of savvy allies. Yet it seems Ramona doesn’t want to be found. And Cass soon begins to understand why.

Ramona is holding secrets dark enough to kill for, and anyone who helps her may be fair game. And if Ramona can’t run fast enough and hide well enough to keep the truth safe, she and Cass may both be out of time.

Review:

Gritty, engaging, and propulsive!

In this engrossing fourth instalment in the Cass Raines series, Runner, Clark has written a fast-paced thrill ride that takes us into the life of the tenacious PI Cassandra Raines as she takes on a new case to find a fifteen-year-old foster care runaway who seems to have a lot of concerned people out on the icy Chicago streets looking for her, but as clues start to surface, and motivations don’t seem to be quite as altruistic as they first appeared, it will quickly become a race against time to find and protect Ramona from those who supposedly care.

The writing is tight and intense. The characters are raw, vulnerable, and resourceful. And the plot unravels quickly into a suspenseful mix of twists, turns, manipulation, familial drama, lies, secrets, corruption, coercion, violence, and murder.

Overall, Runner is a fast-paced, tortuous, complex tale by Clark that does an exceptional job of reminding us that money and greed can easily sway perspective and is, in fact, often the root of all evil.

 

This book is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

           

 

 

Thank you to Kaye Publicity & Kensington Books for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Tracy Clark

Tracy Clark is the author of the highly acclaimed Chicago Mystery Series featuring ex-homicide cop turned PI Cassandra Raines, a hard-driving, African-American protagonist who works the mean streets of the Windy City dodging cops, cons, killers, and thugs. She received Anthony Award and Lefty Award nominations for her series debut, Broken Places, which was also shortlisted for the American Library Association’s RUSA Reading List, named a CrimeReads Best New PI Book of 2018, a Midwest Connections Pick, and a Library Journal Best Books of the Year. In addition to her Cass Raines novels, Tracy’s short story “For Services Rendered,” appears in the anthology Shades of Black: Crime and Mystery Stories by African-American Authors. A native of Chicago, she works as an editor in the newspaper industry and roots for the Cubs, Sox, Bulls, Bears, and Blackhawks equally. She is a member of Sisters in Crime, PI Writers of America, International Thriller Writers, and a Mystery Writers of America Midwest board member.

Photo courtesy of Author's Goodreads Page.

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#BookReview Dead by Dawn by Paul Doiron @pauldoiron @MinotaurBooks @StMartinsPress #MinotaurInfluencers #PaulDoiron #DeadbyDawn #MikeBowditch

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#BookReview Dead by Dawn by Paul Doiron @pauldoiron @MinotaurBooks @StMartinsPress #MinotaurInfluencers #PaulDoiron #DeadbyDawn #MikeBowditch Title: Dead by Dawn

Author: Paul Doiron

Series: Mike Bowditch #12

Published by: Minotaur Books on Jun. 29, 2021

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 304

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Minotaur Books

Book Rating: 8.5/10

Maine game warden Mike Bowditch finds himself in a life-or-death chase in this new thriller in the bestselling mystery series by Edgar Award nominee Paul Doiron.

Maine game warden Mike Bowditch is fighting for his life. Ambushed on a darkened winter road, he plunges his Jeep into a frozen river and must escape drowning beneath the ice. Surviving the crash is only the first challenge he faces in a nightlong battle to stay alive and one step ahead of his unknown, heavily armed pursuers. To outwit them and return to his friends and family, none of whom knows where he is, Bowditch must dissect the hours leading up to the ambush and solve two riddles: who are these people who desperately want him dead and what has he done to incur their wrath?

Review:

Shady, intense, and incredibly atmospheric!

In this adrenaline-pumping, twelfth instalment in the Mike Bowditch series, Dead by Dawn, Doiron has written a fast-paced, sinister thriller that finds Maine game warden Mike Bowditch in a race against time to save his life from the elements of a harsh, New England winter and a team of criminals determined to keep their illegal enterprises hidden when his reopening of a suspicious drowning case involving a local professor triggers a chain of events that end with himself and his unusual, wolf sidekick, Shadow plunging into the icy depths of the Androscoggin River.

The prose is crisp and rich. The characters are intelligent, relentless, and resourceful. And the plot, using a back-and-forth, past/present style, is a menacing tale of mischief, mayhem, corruption, manipulation, impulsivity, depravity, heinous violence, and murder.

Overall, Dead By Dawn is a gritty, engrossing, action-packed thrill ride by Dorion that is highly entertaining, a little disturbing, and the perfect choice for anyone who enjoys a really good survivalist tale.

 

This novel is available on June 29, 2021.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

            

 

 

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press – Minotaur Press for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Paul Doiron

A native of Maine, bestselling author PAUL DOIRON attended Yale University, where he graduated with a degree in English. The Poacher’s Son, the first book in the Mike Bowditch series, won the Barry award, the Strand award for best first novel, and has been nominated for the Edgar, Anthony, and Macavity awards in the same category. He is a Registered Maine Guide specializing in fly fishing and lives on a trout stream in coastal Maine with his wife, Kristen Lindquist.

Photo by Mark Fleming.

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#BookReview The Newcomer by Mary Kay Andrews @mkayandrews @StMartinsPress #TheNewcomer #MaryKayAndrews #StMartinsPress

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#BookReview The Newcomer by Mary Kay Andrews @mkayandrews @StMartinsPress #TheNewcomer #MaryKayAndrews #StMartinsPress Title: The Newcomer

Author: Mary Kay Andrews

Published by: St. Martin's Press on May 4, 2021

Genres: General Fiction, Women's Fiction, Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 448

Format: Hardcover

Source: St. Martin's Press

Book Rating: 8/10

In trouble and on the run…

After she discovers her sister Tanya dead on the floor of her fashionable New York City townhouse, Letty Carnahan is certain she knows who did it: Tanya’s ex; sleazy real estate entrepreneur Evan Wingfield. Even in the grip of grief and panic Letty heeds her late sister’s warnings: “If anything bad happens to me–it’s Evan. Promise me you’ll take Maya and run. Promise me.”

With a trunkful of emotional baggage…

So Letty grabs her sister’s Mercedes and hits the road with her wailing four-year-old niece Maya. Letty is determined to out-run Evan and the law, but run to where? Tanya, a woman with a past shrouded in secrets, left behind a “go-bag” of cash and a big honking diamond ring–but only one clue: a faded magazine story about a sleepy mom-and-pop motel in a Florida beach town with the improbable name of Treasure Island. She sheds her old life and checks into an uncertain future at The Murmuring Surf Motel.

The No Vacancy sign is flashing & the sharks are circling…

And that’s the good news. Because The Surf, as the regulars call it, is the winter home of a close-knit flock of retirees and snowbirds who regard this odd-duck newcomer with suspicion and down-right hostility. As Letty settles into the motel’s former storage room, she tries to heal Maya’s heartache and unravel the key to her sister’s shady past, all while dodging the attention of the owner’s dangerously attractive son Joe, who just happens to be a local police detective. Can Letty find romance as well as a room at the inn–or will Joe betray her secrets and put her behind bars? With danger closing in, it’s a race to find the truth and right the wrongs of the past.

Review:

Heartwarming, mysterious, and colourful!

The Newcomer is an offbeat, intriguing tale that takes us into the life of thirty-three-year-old Letty Carnahan, who after discovering her sister Tanya’s murdered body and a magazine clipping featuring the Murmuring Surf Motel, flees with her four-year-old niece from NY to the west coast of Florida, where unbeknownst to her Tanya’s past unsavoury friendships, secrets, behaviour, and acquaintances will finally come to light.

The prose is amusing and light. The characters are multilayered, quirky, and endearing. And the plot is an engaging tale of familial drama, loss, grief, deception, theft, murder, kindness, suspicious personalities, taking chances, community, happiness, and love.

Overall, The Newcomer is a humorous, action-packed, entertaining tale by Andrews, and even though it’s not my favourite novel by this author, I still think it’s a satisfying, enjoyable pick for any summer day you’re planning to spend at the beach.

 

This novel is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

 

           

 

 

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Mary Kay Andrews

Mary Kay Andrews is the pen name of American writer Kathy Hogan Trocheck, based in Atlanta, who has authored a number of best-selling books under the Andrews pen name since 2002.

Trochek graduated from the University of Georgia with a journalism degree in 1976. She worked as a reporter at a number of papers, and spent 11 years as a reporter for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution before leaving to write fiction full-time in 1991. She published ten mystery novels under her own name between 1992 and 2000, and switched to the Andrews pen name in 2002 to author Savannah Blues, which marked a change in her style to more Southern-flavored themes.

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#BookReview It Takes Two to Mango by Carrie Doyle @carriedoylek @PPPress #ItTakesTwotoMango #CarrieDoyle #TroubleinParadise #inkedinpoison

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#BookReview It Takes Two to Mango by Carrie Doyle @carriedoylek @PPPress #ItTakesTwotoMango #CarrieDoyle #TroubleinParadise #inkedinpoison Title: It Takes Two to Mango

Author: Carrie Doyle

Series: Trouble in Paradise #1

Published by: Poisoned Pen Press on Jun. 29, 2021

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 360

Format: Paperback

Source: Poisoned Pen Press

Book Rating: 8/10

It’s all fun in the sun until someone turns up dead

After Plum Lockhart’s job as a travel magazine editor is eliminated in corporate cuts, she decides she’s sick of cold winters in NYC and fruitless swiping on dating apps—what she needs is a dramatic change of scenery. On a whim, she accepts a job as a villa broker and moves to a beautiful Caribbean island.

However, paradise isn’t as perfect as it seems: the slow pace of island life, the language barrier, and a cutthroat office rival make Plum question leaving her old life behind. But when a client is found dead in the jacuzzi of Casa Mango—a property Plum manages—she knows she’s really in a jam. With a killer loose on the island Plum will have to deal with a stonewalling police chief, a string of baffling clues, and a handsome Director of Security to solve this deadly case!

Review:

Atmospheric, witty, and highly entertaining!

It Takes Two to Mango is a cosy murder mystery set on a beautiful island in the Caribbean that features Plum Lockhart, a magazine editor who, after losing her coveted job in NYC, heads to Paraiso to work as a villa broker at a luxurious resort. But things don’t go as smoothly as she would have liked, and after one of her first renters dies under mysterious circumstances, she will have to join together with the patient, hunky Director of Security, Juan Kevin Muñoz, to try and solve the case as quickly as possible.

The writing style is light and whimsical. The characters are sharp, quirky, and impulsive. And the plot is a pacey whodunit full of amateur sleuthing, red herrings, deduction, attraction, suspects, island living, and new beginnings.

It Takes Two to Mango is the first book in the Trouble in Paradise! series, and if you enjoy a charming mystery with idyllic settings, unique characters, and a touch of romance, then this novel is definitely the perfect choice. It’s a fun, quick, enjoyable read, and I am definitely looking forward to reading whatever Doyle decides to cook up for these characters next.

 

This novel is available on June 29, 2021.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

 

       

 

 

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Carrie Doyle

Carrie Doyle is the best selling author of multiple novels and screenplays that span many genres, ranging from cozy mysteries to chick lit to comedies to Young Adult.

A born and bred New Yorker, Carrie has spent most of her life in Manhattan, with the exception of a six-year stint in Europe (Russia; France; England) and five years in Los Angeles. A former Editor-in-Chief of the Russian edition of Marie Claire, Carrie has written dozens of articles for various magazines, including countless celebrity profiles. She is also a screenwriter, and her movie Intern (co-written with Jill Kargman) premiered at the Sundance Film Festival.

Carrie has three books that will be published in 2021: Death on Bull Path (the fourth book of the Hamptons Murder Mystery Series); The Murder Game; and It Takes Two to Mango (the first book of the Trouble in Paradise Series.)

Carrie currently splits her time between New York and Long Island, with her husband and two teenage sons.

Photo courtesy of Author's Website.

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#BookReview Hostage by Clare Mackintosh @claremackint0sh @Sourcebooks @sbkslandmark #Hostage #ClareMackintosh #bookmarkedbylandmark

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#BookReview Hostage by Clare Mackintosh @claremackint0sh @Sourcebooks @sbkslandmark #Hostage #ClareMackintosh #bookmarkedbylandmark Title: Hostage

Author: Clare Mackintosh

Published by: Sourcebooks Landmark on Jun. 22, 2021

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 400

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Sourcebooks Landmark

Book Rating: 9/10

You can save hundreds of lives. Or the one that matters most.

A claustrophobic thriller set over twenty hours on one airplane flight, with the heart-stopping tension of The Last Flight and the wrenching emotional intensity of Room, Hostage takes us on board the inaugural nonstop flight from London to Sydney.

Mina is trying to focus on her job as a flight attendant, not the problems of her five-year-old daughter back home, or the fissures in her marriage. But the plane has barely taken off when Mina receives a chilling note from an anonymous passenger, someone intent on ensuring the plane never reaches its destination. Someone who needs Mina’s assistance and who knows exactly how to make her comply.

It’s twenty hours to landing. A lot can happen in twenty hours.

Review:

Intense, propulsive, and terrifyingly realistic!

Hostage is a menacing, locked-door thriller that sweeps you 35,000 feet up into the air and onto World Airways Flight 79 as it makes its inaugural 20-hour nonstop flight from London to Sydney with 353 excited passengers, a conscientious cabin crew, an attentive, desperate mother of a child targeted by terrorists, and a cunning, manipulative environmentalist who’s determined this flight may never reach its destination.

The prose is sharp and crisp. The characters are distraught, frightened, and courageous. And the plot told from multiple perspectives unfolds and unravels quickly into a suspenseful tale of unforeseen twists, well-timed surprises, moral dilemmas, mind games, manipulation, tension, unease, violence, and murder.

Overall, Hostage is without a doubt a clever, claustrophobic, masterfully plotted page-turner that keeps you on the edge of your seat from the very first page and ultimately leaves you surprised, shocked, thoroughly entertained, and if you’re like me, ready to start it all over again to figure out what you possibly could have missed the first time around.

This book is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

            

 

 

Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Clare Mackintosh

Clare Mackintosh is an award-winning New York Times and international bestselling author. She spent twelve years on the police force in England and has written for Guardian (UK), Good Housekeeping, and other publications. Translated into forty languages, her books have sold more than two million copies worldwide. Clare lives in North Wales with her husband and their three children.

Photo by Astrid di Crollalanza.

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#BookReview A Distant Grave by Sarah Stewart Taylor @SSTaylorBooks @MinotaurBooks @StMartinsPress #MinotaurInfluencers #ADistantGrave #SarahStewartTaylor #MaggieDArcy

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#BookReview A Distant Grave by Sarah Stewart Taylor @SSTaylorBooks @MinotaurBooks @StMartinsPress #MinotaurInfluencers #ADistantGrave #SarahStewartTaylor #MaggieDArcy Title: A Distant Grave

Author: Sarah Stewart Taylor

Published by: Minotaur Books on Jun. 22, 2021

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 432

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Minotaur Books

Book Rating: 8.5/10

In the follow up to the critically acclaimed The Mountains Wild, Detective Maggie D’arcy tackles another intricate case that bridges Long Island and Ireland.

Long Island homicide detective Maggie D’arcy and her teenage daughter, Lilly, are still recovering from the events of last fall when a strange new case demands Maggie’s attention. The body of an unidentified Irish national turns up in a wealthy Long Island beach community and with little to go on but the scars on his back, Maggie once again teams up with Garda detectives in Ireland to find out who the man was and what he was doing on Long Island. As the strands of the mystery lead Maggie to a quiet village in rural County Clare and back to her home turf, they also lead her in range of a dangerous and determined killer who will do anything to keep the victim’s story hidden forever.

With the lyrical prose, deeply drawn characters, and atmospheric setting that made The Mountains Wild one of 2020’s most anticipated summer reads, Sarah Stewart Taylor delivers another gripping mystery novel about family, survival, and the meaning of home.

Review:

Complex, sophisticated, and sharp!

In this latest novel by Taylor, A Distant Grave, we head back to Long Island, where Detective Maggie D’arcy finds herself once again immersed in an investigation that will take her from the streets of NY to the green hills of Ireland when an Irish international aid worker with a complicated past is found suspiciously murdered on the beach in Bay Shore Manor Park.

The writing is absorbing and meticulous. The characters are multifaceted, intuitive, and persistent. And the plot, including all the subplots, unravel and intertwine methodically into a sinister mix of twists, turns, red herrings, secrets, deduction, mayhem, manipulation, corruption, politics, violence, and murder.

Overall, A Distant Grave is a dark, crafty, intriguing tale by Taylor that is thoroughly entertaining and undoubtedly another highly satisfying addition to the Maggie D’arcy series.

 

This book is available on June 22, 2021.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

            

 

 

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press – Minotaur Press for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Sarah Stewart Taylor

Sarah Stewart Taylor grew up on Long Island and was educated at Middlebury College and Trinity College, Dublin. She lives with her husband and three children on a farm in Vermont where they raise sheep and blueberries.

Sarah is the author of THE MOUNTAINS WILD, an atmospheric thriller about a Long Island homicide detective named Maggie D'Arcy who returns to Ireland twenty-three years after the unsolved disappearance of her beloved cousin Erin in the Wicklow Mountains. When a young woman disappears and new evidence from Erin’s case is found, Maggie will have to uncover the truth about the Irish man she's never stopped loving and, in order to help Irish police save the missing woman, the truth about who Erin was and what happened to her.

It will be published by Minotaur Books on June 23, 2020.

Sarah is also the author of the Sweeney St. George mystery series, about an art historian who studies funerary art, "the art of death," from Minotaur Books. The first book in the series, O’ Artful Death, was nominated for an Agatha Award for Best First Novel.

Her non-fiction has been published in The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, and many other publications.

Photograph courtesy of Author's Goodreads Page.

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#BookReview Evil Games by Angela Marsons @WriteAngie @GrandCentralPub #AngelaMarsons #Evil Games #DIKimStoneSeries

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#BookReview Evil Games by Angela Marsons @WriteAngie @GrandCentralPub #AngelaMarsons #Evil Games #DIKimStoneSeries Title: Evil Games

Author: Angela Marsons

Series: DI Kim Stone #2

Published by: Grand Central Publishing on Apr. 13, 2021

Genres: Mystery/Thriller, Police Procedural

Pages: 384

Format: Paperback

Source: Grand Central Publishing

Book Rating: 10/10

Detective Kim Stone learns the heard way that the greater the evil, the more deadly the game in this gripping psychological thriller from USA Today bestselling author Angela Marsons.
 
When a rapist is found mutilated in a brutal stabbing, Detective Kim Stone and her team are called in to bring a swift resolution. But as further disturbing events come to light, it soon becomes clear that there is someone even more sinister at work.

With the investigation gathering momentum, while also trying to expose the secrets of a sick pedophile ring, Kim finds herself in the sights of a lethal individual undertaking their own twisted experiment.

Pitted against a dangerous sociopath who seems to know her every weakness, for Detective Stone, each move she makes could be deadly. As the body count starts to mount, Kim will have to dig deeper than ever before to stop the killing. And this time–it’s personal.

Review:

Captivating, dark, and incredibly chilling!

Evil Games is a skillfully crafted, perfectly executed police procedural that highlights just how easily vulnerable people can be swayed and manipulated into doing some of the most horrific things and reminds us that the most heinous of evil often lives comfortably amongst us merely concealed behind masks of normality.

The writing style is edgy and brisk. The characters, including the scarred, tormented, intelligent heroine, are genuine, driven, and persistent. And the plot is a sinister rollercoaster ride of twists, turns, secrets, deception, violence, manipulation, deviance, child abuse, rape, violence, revenge, and murder.

I have to admit that over the past six years that I’ve been reviewing novels, I’ve seen a lot of Angela Marsons books floating around and am shocked that it has taken me this long to finally pick one up. Evil Games is a disturbing, sinister, enthralling tale that has everything you look for in a riveting thriller, including multilayered characters and juicy, complex storylines, and even though it does have a lot of triggers that will prevent some people from being able to read it, I for one loved it and am eagerly looking forward to getting my hands on some of the other DI Kim Stone novels in the series as soon as possible.

This book is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

            

 

 

Thank you to Grand Central Publishing for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Angela Marsons

Angela Marsons is the USA Today bestselling author of the Detective Kim Stone series, and her books have sold more than four million copies and have been translated into twenty-seven languages. She lives in the Black Country, in the West Midlands of England, with her partner and their two Golden Retrievers. She first discovered her love of writing at junior school when actual lessons came second to watching other people and quietly making up her own stories about them. Her report card invariably read “Angela would do well if she minded her own business as well as she minds other people’s.” After writing women’s fiction, Angela turned to crime — fictionally speaking, of course — and developed a character that refused to go away.

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#BookReview The Bullet (Eve Duncan #27) by Iris Johansen @Iris_Johansen @GrandCentralPub #TheBullet #IrisJohansen #GrandCentralPub

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#BookReview The Bullet (Eve Duncan #27) by Iris Johansen @Iris_Johansen @GrandCentralPub #TheBullet #IrisJohansen #GrandCentralPub Title: The Bullet

Author: Iris Johansen

Series: Eve Duncan #27

Published by: Grand Central Publishing on Jun. 8, 2021

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 400

Format: Hardcover

Source: Grand Central Publishing

Book Rating: 8/10

Eve Duncan and Joe Quinn must protect the life of a brilliant scientist so that she can live long enough to bring her discovery to the world, in this fast-paced thriller from #1 New York Times bestselling author Iris Johansen.
 
Diane Connors is a dedicated doctor with the world’s biggest secret, a discovery that could have shocking global ramifications.  But while conducting private research trials, word has gotten out. The wrong people have heard the news and now want to hide Diane’s achievement for their own ends.

With nowhere else to turn, Diane finds herself on the doorstep of the last man she wants to ask for help: her ex-husband, Joe Quinn. Joe has remarried, and he and his wife, Eve Duncan, seem blissfully happy in their quiet, rural life until they are faced with the challenge of risking it all—even their marriage itself—for the greater good …

Now Eve is trapped in a web of murder and deceit as powerful enemies rush to cover up the truth, determined that Diane’s discovery goes with her to the grave—even if Eve and Joe get buried with her.

Review:

Suspenseful, turbulent, and action-packed!

The Bullet is an ominous, intense thrill ride that introduces us to Joe Quinn’s first wife, Diane Connors, a scientist in need of a little help and protection when her discovery and research into a medicinal plant that can cure practically any ailment makes her a prime target for Joshua Nalan, a ruthless billionaire willing to go to whatever lengths necessary to secure Diane’s research for himself.

The prose is tight and brisk. The characters are well informed, vigilant, and reliable. And the plot is a well-paced, menacing tale full of tension, desperation, obsession, adventure, cruelty, violence, murder, and a touch of the paranormal.

Overall, The Bullet is another sinister, complex, solid addition to the Eve Duncan series by Johansen that I would have to say is not my favourite novel in this long-running series but is still definitely a highly satisfying one.

 

This novel is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

           

 

 

Thank you to Grand Central Publishing for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Iris Johansen

Iris Johansen is a New York Times bestselling author. She began her writing after her children left home for college. She first achieved success in the early 1980s writing category romances. In 1991, Johansen began writing suspense historical romance novels, starting with the publication of The Wind Dancer. In 1996 Johansen switched genres, turning to crime fiction, with which she has had great success.

She lives in Georgia and is married. Her son, Roy Johansen, is an Edgar Award-winning screenwriter and novelist. Her daughter, Tamara, serves as her research assistant.

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