Black Summer (Washington Poe #2) - M.W. Craven

After The Puppet Show, a new storm is coming . . .

Jared Keaton, chef to the stars. Charming. Charismatic. Psychopath . . . He's currently serving a life sentence for the brutal murder of his daughter, Elizabeth. Her body was never found and Keaton was convicted largely on the testimony of Detective Sergeant Washington Poe.

So when a young woman staggers into a remote police station with irrefutable evidence that she is Elizabeth Keaton, Poe finds himself on the wrong end of an investigation, one that could cost him much more than his career.

Helped by the only person he trusts, the brilliant but socially awkward Tilly Bradshaw, Poe races to answer the only question that matters: how can someone be both dead and alive at the same time?

And then Elizabeth goes missing again - and all paths of investigation lead back to Poe.

What did I think?

Having absolutely loved The Puppet Show, the first book in the Washington Poe series, I wondered how M.W. Craven could possibly write a book good enough to follow it.  Well he's only gone and done it with Black Summer; a book that is as unputdownable as it is unforgettable, but more about that unforgettable part later.

I have to admit to being slightly disappointed that my favourite analyst, Tilly Bradshaw, didn't feature from the start but it's more realistic and in-keeping with Poe's solitary characteristics not to have them joined at the hip.  The compelling plot more than made up for Tilly's initial absence and what a plot it is.  It had me on the edge of my seat, scratching my head and admittedly holding back a bit of vomit at times.  It's so very clever and highly original that it keeps the reader on their toes and I decided to enjoy the ride and save the inevitable headache from trying to second guess the unguessable.

I don't want to give away any spoilers but I just have to mention the unforgettable part of the book for me.  It's all down to M.W. Craven's brilliantly vivid and descriptive writing and I now have my own proof that 'the book was better'.  The story in Black Summer revolves around a famous chef and there's a particular dish that is served to Poe which had my stomach heaving.  I paused to google it and found that the same dish had been featured in the TV show Billions.  Now I've seen and enjoyed every episode of Billions but could only vaguely remember the dish in question when I saw images from the episode.  M.W. Craven's writing is so exquisitely evocative that reading about something made so much more of an impression than seeing it on the screen.  Bravo Mr. Craven!

Black Summer is an outstanding follow up to The Puppet Show and it would read very well as a standalone too.  With a breathtakingly brilliant plot and characters that are second to none, Black Summer is an unmissable book.  Scooping a full house of stars, this is a very highly recommended book.

I chose to read an ARC in ebook format and then bought a paperback for my M.W. Craven collection; this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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BLOG TOUR: The Evidence Against You - Gillian McAllister

Izzy's father is finally released from prison, seventeen years after he was convicted of murder.

Izzy wants nothing to do with him. But then her father writes her a letter, begging her to believe he's innocent.

Against her better judgement, Izzy is tempted to believe him. But how can she?

Because the woman they say he killed was Izzy's mother . . .

What did I think?

Gillian McAllister is one of those authors where you know you're guaranteed a great read when you pick up their book and The Evidence Against You, Gillian McAllister's fourth novel, is no exception.  Being first published in 2017, I still think of Gillian McAllister as a new author but, with four cracking thrillers under her belt already, she certainly seems to have caught the writing bug, which is excellent news for us readers.

I really loved the character of Izzy; she is filled with so much emotion that all of her feelings spill out of every page.  Her family was snatched away from her in an instant when her father was imprisoned for killing her mother.  Izzy has taken over the running of her mother's restaurant, Alexandra's, mainly as a way to keep her mother's memory alive as Izzy's love is for ballet not food.  So when Izzy's father, Gabe, is released from prison he knows exactly where to find her.

Izzy's feelings for her father are so mixed.  Naturally, she is confused, as she was quite a daddy's girl when she was younger (weren't we all), but all of the evidence points to the fact that her father killed her mother, Alex.  When Gabe gets the chance to speak to Izzy, you can feel her defences crumbling as he adds the crucial ingredient of doubt; but the other man in her life, her husband Nick, is a police analyst and he keeps reminding Izzy that her father was convicted so he must be guilty.  Right?

I experienced a see saw of emotions whilst reading The Evidence Against You as the evidence and facts all point to Gabe's guilt but he continues to profess his innocence, as do all convicted criminals.  So who do you believe?  I loved the flashbacks to the time around Alex's death, with viewpoints from both Gabe and Izzy.  It's really interesting to see both sides of a story and to see how easily you can jump to conclusions from hearing just part of a conversation.

I know without a doubt that Gillian McAllister will be at the top of the charts with everything that she writes but as much as I enjoyed The Evidence Against You, something didn't quite give it the full five star experience for me.  I didn't really connect with the characters, although they are expertly fully formed, and the story interested, but didn't fully grip me.  I guess it might depend on whether you believe Gabe's version of events or not, as to whether you'll get that jaw dropping moment at the end.

The Evidence Against You reminded me of one of those adventure books you may have read when you were younger, where you can choose your own path in the story.  Whether you are on Gabe's side or not will determine your experience of The Evidence Against You; either way you're in for a mighty fine story written by one of the finest young authors around at the moment.  Keep an eye on this author; Gillian McAllister is setting out for world domination, so make sure you read all of her books right now!

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

My rating:

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BLOG TOUR: What Happened to Us? - Faith Hogan

Carrie Nolan is devastated when she is dumped by Kevin Mulvey after more than a decade without even a backwards glance! On reflection, she has sacrificed her own long term happiness establishing their critically acclaimed Dublin restaurant and pandering to his excessive ego.

Meanwhile Kevin can’t believe his luck. Valentina, their new waitress is a stunner, the kind of girl that turns heads when she walks in a room and surprise, surprise she has chosen him! He is living the dream!

Carrie seeks solace from a circle of mismatched friends who need her as much as she needs them. Jane, who struggles to run the pub on the opposite side of the street, Luke, who has stopped drifting while his father settles in a nearby nursing home and Teddy, a dog who asks for nothing more than the chance to stay by Carrie’s side.

With Christmas just around the corner, all is not quite as it seems and a catastrophic sequence of events leads to the unthinkable...

How far do you need to fall before you learn the true value of family and friends? And is it ever too late to start again...

What did I think?

I absolutely adore Faith Hogan's books so I was really eager to read her latest book, What Happened to Us?  With a main character that you will instantly take to your heart, this is a beautiful story of relationships and friendship with a surprising twist of fate.  

Carrie and Kevin seem to have the perfect partnership: a long standing relationship and owners of a prestigious restaurant in Dublin.  When Kevin drops a bombshell that he is dumping Carrie for their sexy Columbian waitress, Valentina, Carrie thinks her world has ended.  With Valentina eager to get her claws into Kevin's business too, Carrie feels more and more pushed out.

Taking a step back from the restaurant, Carrie spends more time with Jane Marchant who owns a pub over the road.  It may seem like an unlikely friendship but fate has played a hand in this one, especially when handsome Luke and cute dog Teddy enter Carrie and Jane's life.  It just shows that some things are meant to be.

I loved the characters in this book, from lovable Carrie to detestable Valentina with spineless Kevin in between.  Carrie has such a huge heart and Kevin clearly didn't deserve it so I was delighted when he gets a taste of his own medicine with Valentina.  I also loved the story around Jane who has kept her pub running after being widowed despite being scared to be on her own.  The growth of her friendship with both Carrie and Luke left a warm fuzzy glow around my heart; something that Faith Hogan always seems to manage to do through her beautifully emotive writing.

What Happened to Us? is a heartwarming story of love, loss, friendship and new beginnings that completely captivated me and effortlessly spirited me away to Dublin for a short while. 

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

My rating:

Buy links

Kobo: http://bit.ly/2Pv3cCJ
iBooks: https://apple.co/2BBjSpp

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2o3aMrV
Google Play: http://bit.ly/2OHDsSO

About the author:

Faith was born in Ireland and currently lives there with her husband, four children and two fussy cats. She gained an Honors Degree in English Literature and Psychology from Dublin City University and a Postgraduate from University College, Galway. She was a winner in the 2014 Irish Writers Centre Novel Fair- an international competition for emerging writers. When she’s not writing, she’s an enthusiastic dog walker and reluctant jogger.

Follow Faith

Twitter: @gerhogan

Facebook: @faithhoganauthor

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The Dish - Stella Newman

Laura is a food critic for a magazine, a job she acquired not due to her experience or qualifications but due to her love of food and her descriptive writing skills.  Not to mention that the boss is also an old family friend, so Laura turned to Roger for a job after her divorce.

After the abrupt end to a disastrous date, Laura goes to a cafe for a bacon sandwich only to find that the last one has been sold to another customer.  She then plumps for a custard doughnut, but is served a jam doughnut instead.  You've guessed it, the bacon sandwich guy has also now ordered the last custard doughnut!  This prompts Laura to strike up a conversation with the guy, Adam, and barters with him for the doughnut that Adam agrees to share (ahhhh).  

Laura and Adam start dating, but Adam is a chef and his shifts are a nightmare so they find it difficult to meet up.  On one of their dates, Laura finds out that Adam is a chef at a new restaurant in London, a restaurant she visited before she met Adam and about which she has written a scathing review that is soon to be published.  Laura debates whether to tell Adam about the review but as time goes on, it gets harder to tell him.  Then the review is published and all hell breaks loose.

This was what I call a "no brainer" read - it all turns out as you expect in the end.  The food descriptions were excellent and you could almost smell them at times but I didn't really warm to Laura or Adam.  I also thought that the constant printing of Laura's email exchanges with various recipients was a little boring and pointless.  

This would be a good holiday read for chick-lit lovers.

I received this e-book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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