BLOG TOUR: You Had It Coming - B.M. Carroll

 

WOULD YOU SAVE THE MAN

WHO DESTROYED YOUR LIFE?

When paramedic Megan Lowe is called to the scene of an attempted murder, all she can do is try to save the victim. But as the man is lifted onto a stretcher, she realises she knows him. She despises him. Why should she save his life when he destroyed hers?

Jess Foster is on her way home when she receives a text from Megan. Once best friends, the two women haven't been close for years, not since the night when they were just the teenage girls whom no-one believed; whose reputations were ruined. All Jess can think is, you had it coming.

Now Megan and Jess are at the centre of a murder investigation. But what secrets are they hiding? Can they trust one another? And who really is the victim?

What did I think?

It's really unusual to have a paramedic as a main character and I loved the moral dilemma that Megan is faced with in You Had It Coming.  You can't help but wonder what you would do in the same circumstances and as tempting as it would be to put a pillow over his face and press down, a paramedic is there to save lives not end them.

When barrister William Newson is despised by so many people, it's impossible to guess who killed him and I didn't even try to work it out as I was so engrossed in the story anyway.  The chapters are told from three points of view: paramedic Megan who is first at the scene, Megan's old friend Jess who swore to kill William Newson at the end of their trial and detective Bridget whose job it is to find out the truth.  

There are excerpts from Jess and Megan's trial scattered between the chapters and I loved these although it did make me rather incensed at the way defence lawyers turn the tables on the victims.  It made me wonder how defense lawyers can do that job, it must be difficult to defend someone when they know they're guilty so they must really have to distance themselves and just do their job.  Personally, I couldn't do it but it did give me pause for thought and I love it when books have points like this that make me continue to think about it long after I have turned the final page.

It felt like a number of professions were put under the microscope in You Had It Coming; not only paramedics and lawyers but also the police.  Bridget constantly puts her job before her family and she's so lucky to have such an understanding husband.  It's just a shame that Bridget's work/life balance is so top heavy as she is missing out on so much family time but her job is never ending as crime never sleeps.  

The well developed, strong female characters carry the story effortlessly and I found myself completely engrossed in this extremely well-written novel.  Filled with tension and suspense, You Had It Coming is an incredibly intriguing murder mystery that invites so much discussion that it would be perfect for book clubs.  It's a book I will continue thinking about for a very long time.

I received an ARC from the publisher to read and review for the blog tour; this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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About the author

B.M. Carroll was born in Blarney, a small village in Ireland. The third child of six, reading was her favourite pastime (and still is!). Ber moved to Sydney in 1995 and spent her early career working in finance. Her work colleagues were speechless when she revealed that she had written a novel that was soon to be published. Ber now writes full-time and is the author of ten novels, including Who We Were, published by Viper in 2020. Find her on Twitter @bmcarrollauthor.

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The Party - Lisa Hall

It was just a party. But it turned into a nightmare.

When Rachel wakes up in a strange room, the morning after a neighbour’s party, she has no memory of what happened the night before. Why did her husband leave her alone at the party? Did they row? Why are Rachel’s arms so bruised? And why are her neighbours and friends so vague about what really happened?

Little by little, Rachel pieces together the devastating events that took place in a friend’s house, at a party where she should have been safe. Everyone remembers what happened that night differently, and everyone has something to hide. But someone knows the truth about what happened to Rachel. And she’s determined to find them.

What did I think?

In my experience, I have found you can always guarantee shocks and surprises galore in a Lisa Hall book and The Party is no different.  The opening chapter guarantees that you will race through this book with your heart in your mouth as Rachel tries to piece together the events from the night before.

Rachel and her husband are invited to a New Year's Eve party at a neighbours house but Rachel wakes up on New Year's Day in a strange bed without her husband and a very bad feeling that something terrible has happened, only she has very little memory of the party.  As the days pass, Rachel asks questions of everyone who was there but none of her friends and neighbours have anything to say that will help her and some of them don't even believe her, but Rachel won't stop until she finds out the truth of what happened to her at the party.

I loved the character of Rachel; she is so determined and despite all of the knock-backs she won't give up on her quest for the truth.  I think I suspected virtually every single character at one time or another as Lisa Hall has cleverly laid out so many red herrings in the reader's path.  

The Party is a Like a game of Cluedo; all of the suspects are laid out in front of you with clues scattered around for you to gather but yet again, I was foiled by Lisa Hall (I bet she is unbeatable at Cluedo).

I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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BLOG TOUR: Dark Chaper - Winnie M Li

An astonishing and unique novel inspired by the author’s own story.

Vivian is a cosmopolitan Taiwanese-American tourist who often escapes her busy life in London through adventure and travel.

Johnny is a 15-year-old Irish teenager, living a neglected life on the margins of society.

On a bright spring afternoon in West Belfast, their paths collide during a horrifying act of violence.

In the aftermath, each is forced to confront the chain of events that led to the attack.

Inspired by true events, this is a story of the dark chapters and chance encounters that can irrevocably determine the shape of our lives.

What did I think?

If I could only write one sentence about this book it would be: Dark Chapter is a disturbing and compelling book but quite simply STUNNING!  I could no more tear my eyes from the page than I could forget to breathe.  As difficult as it was to read at times, it was quite impossible to stop reading.

Vivian has come to Belfast to see the sights, but gets more than she bargained for when she is raped; shocked and stunned, she reports the crime but as much courage as that took, she needs to call on greater strength to see it through.  Seeing the crime from both sides is shocking and surprising and I can't even begin to imagine what Winnie M Li has been through in order to call upon such emotions.

The Prologue of Dark Chapter sets the pace, where I felt sick with fear and my heart raced with the increasing tension as we hurtled towards the inevitable conclusion.  Although there are no chapters, which usually would annoy me, but in this case I barely blinked, I raced through the 5 parts of the book: part 1 the time leading up to the event, part 2 the aftermath, part 3 the arrest of Johnny, part 4 the trial and part 5 new beginnings.  What I found amazing, was that I didn't feel sorry for Vivian, I felt every emotion with her.  I felt as if the crime had been committed against my very own person and I was as MAD as hell.

Dark Chapter deserves every accolade that is coming its way, and I'm sure there will be many.  To write a book filled with such emotion showing both sides of a story is nothing short of exceptional.  As such abuse seems to be in the news recently, this is a book that is both very current and also very timeless.  Seeing the story from both sides is both mesmerising and jawdropping, making Dark Chapter an absolutely stunning work of fiction, with a disturbing ring of truth.

I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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