BOOKSTAGRAM TOUR: The Gap (The Schelldhardt Series Book 2) - S. Frogley

For fans of blurred-reality stories like Inception, The Matrix, and The Truman Show.

It’s all in your mind…

The gap is the place where our intentions meet our actions.

The gap is the place where our failings are exposed.

All humanity exists in the gap.

The gap is the next global battlefield, and the war has already begun.

Two organisations are locked in battle to control the mysterious gap.

Schelldhardt, the largest company in the world, is using its powerful online reach to divide the global population.

The Friary is a secretive institution aiming to stop them.

Lana Carter is a young woman searching for her sister, Grace. Grace was working for Schelldhardt before her sudden disappearance. Enlisting the help of another former Schelldhardt employee, Joe Massey, Lana must unravel Grace’s fate and shape the ultimate destiny of the gap.

A new speculative thriller and sequel to The Path of Good Response.

 

What did I think?

The Gap is the sequel to The Path of Good Response and I would recommend reading the books in order otherwise it might feel like falling down the rabbit hole on acid.  It's a real mind-bender of a book and I was completely mesmerised from start to finish.

The Schelldhardt company is still going strong and Lana Carter plans to infiltrate the headquarters based on a ship to find out what happened to her sister Grace who used to work for Schelldhardt.  She needs the help of Joe Massey, who we met in book one, but Joe is more of a secondary character in this book.

It is so incredibly thought-provoking and quite scary to see how people's minds can be accessed and manipulated.  Yes, it's fiction but honestly I could totally see it happening in real life in the future.  We already rely on AI for many things but it did make me wonder how much we can trust AI and I would be both horrified and not surprised if our smart devices were hypnotising us in our sleep to access our memories.  YIKES!!!  I'll probably not sleep again now that I've thought of that.

The Gap is a very imaginative and highly original speculative thriller.  If you're looking for something different to read then look no further; this is a scarily realistic and action-packed thriller that I would highly recommend.

I received a gifted paperback to read and review for the Love Books Tours bookstagram tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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BOOKSTAGRAM TOUR: The Path of Good Response (The Schelldhardt Series Book 1) - S. Frogley

For fans of blurred-reality stories like Inception, The Matrix, and The Truman Show.

What if there were a way to make a perfect decision? If poor choices, even addictions, could be controlled from within the mind.

Schelldhardt is the largest company in the world and will do anything to grow. When Joe Massey is unexpectedly offered a role aboard Schelldhardt’s luxurious corporate headquarters at sea, his main priority is Rachel. Joe has trailed Rachel through school and university into the workplace and cannot imagine life without her.

Realistic dreams disturb Joe’s sleep as he is drawn deeper into a dark corporate world. As an inexperienced graduate, his opinion seems far too important to Schelldhardt. Why is he really there? The deposed CEO, Arnold Shendi, may have Joe’s answers, though Shendi has secrets of his own.

A new speculative thriller, set aboard a vast ship at sea.

 

What did I think?

The Path of Good Response is quite a short book with 303 pages but it incredibly thought-provoking and action-packed.  S. Frogley has gone for for quality over quantity in his gripping speculative thriller and the best news is that this dystopian series is continuing.

Joe is madly in love with Rachel but unfortunately for him, Rachel sees Joe as just a friend.  When Joe is offered an intriguing new job, he will only accept it if Rachel can come too.  I mean it's sweet but also a bit obsessive and if I was Rachel I think I would be running in the opposite direction.  It's well described as for fans of The Truman Show as once I started to read the book I wasn't sure what or who was real and what wasn't.  Mind-blowing but great!

There's a lot more to the story than first meets the eye and I loved all of the twists, turns and mysteries just waiting to be discovered along the way.  The chapters are quite short too so I kept reading 'just one more chapter' and finished the book a lot quicker than I expected.   I asked myself some of the questions that Joe was presented with and honestly, I wouldn't like to answer them, especially not in a real life situation.

Gripping, intriguing and mind-blowing, The Path of Good Response is one of the most provocative speculative thrillers I've read.  I can't wait to find out what happens next and I don't have to wait long as I have The Gap (book two) waiting (im)patiently on my bookshelf.

I received a gifted paperback to read and review for the Love Books Tours bookstagram tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

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The Hiding Season - A.C. Glass

Maya Landry is in desperate need of a fresh start.

Alone and heartbroken, she finds work as a caretaker at an exclusive ski resort for the elite in the mountains of Montana. Quiet and empty in the summer months, it's the perfect escape.

All Maya wants is to be alone. But she's not alone on the mountain. Someone else is there. A killer with his next victim in his sights.

After Maya finds a body, she must run for her life. One man tells her that he can save her. But can she trust him? Is he everything he claims to be?

Only one thing is certain: the killer will stop at nothing. And Maya is the only witness to their crime . . .

 

What did I think?

Ava Glass is one of those authors where I don't read the blurb, I just know I will love the book and The Hiding Season is no exception.  I couldn't put it down!

Maya's life is about to change and not for the better.  Her husband has left her and she just needs to get away from it all so she takes a caretaking job in the off-season of an exclusive resort and the solitude is just what she needs...until she finds a dead body.  Now that Maya is a witness she has a target on her back.  Eeeeeek! 

It's a very twisty tale as Maya goes on the run in various guises as she hides in new cities with different identities.  She has a little help from some mysterious characters from the security services but they are Mysterious with a capital M and I wasn't sure who she could trust.  I really felt for Maya every time she had to run, especially when she had made friends and started to make a new life for herself.

I think my eyes were on stalks as the book neared its conclusion and I didn't know how it was going to end but I couldn't read fast enough to find out.  It is filled with so much action, twists and drama that it would make fantastic mini series or film so I wouldn't be surprised to see it on Netflix in the future.

Blisteringly fast-paced, tense and gripping, The Hiding Season is impossible to put down once you pick it up and it kept me reading way past my bedtime.  Now this is what I call a page-turner - it's simply brilliant!

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

My rating:

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BOOKSTAGRAM TOUR: The Facade - Angela Clegg

She built the perfect life. Now someone is determined to destroy it. 

Tara Mayfield fought her way out of the gutter to build her very own fairytale. Once a girl with nothing, she is now the successful CEO of a beauty empire, with wealth, influence and a devoted husband who believes in the woman she has become. But Tara has never told him the whole truth.

When two million pounds connected to a powerful crime boss vanishes, Tara is framed for the theft. Suddenly the criminal world is closing in on her again, and the man who helped her rise from nothing now believes she has betrayed him.

With dangerous enemies demanding answers and the police starting to uncover secrets from her past, Tara has only days to find who's trying to ruin her. Because this isn't just about stolen money. Someone believes Tara once got away with murder, and they're determined to drag her back into the darkness she fought so hard to escape.

Now Tara faces an impossible choice: tell the truth and risk losing everything she's built, or protect her perfect life by becoming the woman she once was…

The Facade is a fast-paced crime thriller about secrets, revenge and a past that won't stay buried, perfect for fans of Lisa Jewell and Gillian McAllister.

 

What did I think?

The Facade is Angela Clegg's debut novel and what a corker it is.  It grabbed my attention from the start and kept me riveted throughout.

Businesswoman Tara is such an intriguing character.  I felt sorry for her at first when her past very publicly comes back to haunt her but she is one tough cookie and she didn't need my pity as she is more than capable of looking after herself.  Just how capable she is becomes very apparent as the book progresses.

The tough female main character reminded me a little of the early Martina Cole books but less sweary.  The story twisted and turned to keep me on my toes and I could never tell what was going to happen next.  It is quite dark and gritty in places but incredibly entertaining and I loved it.  It's like a cross between The Sopranos and Eastenders with danger and drama around every corner.

Filled with tension and suspense, The Facade is a fabulous debut novel and I will be keeping an eye out for what Angela Clegg writes next.  I enjoyed it and think it's well worth a read.

I received a gifted paperback for the LBT Bookstagram Tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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Hope There's Someone - Lee Stewart

In the decaying streets of Sunderland, twenty-one-year-old Chris Paige is barely holding on as guardian to his volatile, grieving thirteen-year-old-sister, Jess. When Jess vanishes one day, Chris's desperate hunt for answers unearths a devastating family truth - one that could destroy them both.

Raw, unflinching, and impossible to put down, Hope There's Someone is a gripping story of sibling loyalty, buried trauma, and how far one man will go to protect what little family he has left.

For fans of Shuggie Bain, Trainspotting, and This Is England. This is a raw and darkly funny portrait of grief, poverty, and lost potential in Modern Britain.

What did I think?

I always get a thrill out of seeing my local area in books and Lee Stewart’s fiction debut is set in Sunderland.  I wasn't really sure what to expect from the cover and the description but this is an absolutely cracking novel that's full of drama and it hooked me from the start.

I really felt for Chris who has given up has place at university to look after his sister when their mam dies.  Chris and Jess are both grieving but Chris is struggling to make ends meet and Jess, with her teenage mood swings, doesn't make life any easier for him.  Money has to come from somewhere and Chris inevitably gets tangled up with some dodgy characters.

The story took so many twists and turns as the past and present played out and I was completely riveted.  I have to admit that I made an assumption about their mam's cause of death but I couldn't have been more wrong.  Now that's what I call sharply plotted.  Well played, Mr Stewart!  Well played indeed.

Hope There's Someone is a dark and gritty novel that is filled with shocks and surprises.  It has a young protagonist that you instantly root for and I loved every minute of it.  Lee Stewart is one to watch and I'm going to be shouting about this book for a very long time.  An easy five stars for this unmissable and unforgettable crime thriller.

Many thanks to the author for sending me a digital ARC; this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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BLOG TOUR: The Boy in the Photo - Hilly Barmby

This unbelievably twisty read will have you glued to the pages late into the night. Anyone who loves Freida McFadden and Gillian Flynn won’t be able to put down The Boy in the Photo!

Kaz Emmerson, brother Mark and sister Livy are devastated after the death of their parents in a car crash. Surely it was just a terrible accident, wasn’t it?

After the funeral, the three try to rebuild their lives as best they can. Livy turns her focus on her husband and young son. Mark immerses himself in work and rebuilding his social life. Kaz escapes the pain with bestie Elise, taking off to Spain for a couple of weeks for sun, sand and sangria.

While on holiday, Kaz and Elise chance upon the mysterious and handsome Ryan. They both like him. As it turns out, he lives rather close to home and when they return to the UK they meet up. But who will he pick?

The three siblings gather with their family lawyer who leaves them with a deep sense of unease. What is he not telling them? Curious, Kaz ploughs into the family paperwork stored in the attic of their parents’ grand country home. After a shocking discovery, she is embroiled in a family mystery that threatens to unravel everything. Who exactly is the boy in the photo with their father? Why is there a man sneaking around their garden taking photos? When more horrifying things happen, who can they trust? Is there someone who will stop at nothing to destroy them?

 

What did I think?

Hilly Barmby is one of the authors whose books I read without looking at the blurb as I know I will enjoy the book and The Boy in the Photo is no exception.  It is so mysterious and intriguing that I couldn't put it down until all the secrets had been revealed.

After a devastating car crash in which their parents lost their lives, the three Emmerson siblings are dealing with their grief in their own way.  Kaz is more of a main character and a holiday with her best friend is just what she needed, especially when a handsome man catches her eye.  Kaz isn't sure whether Ryan likes her or her friend Elise and I wasn't sure about him at all, but then I'm naturally suspicious in books, especially those written by Hilly Barmby,

The will should be straightforward as there are only the three siblings...aren't there?  This is where the mystery surrounding the boy in the photo comes in and it's a great hook.  I was very intrigued and had to put on my virtual running shoes so I could race through the book as fast as possible to the breathtaking conclusion.

There are so many twists and turns in the book but it's not confusing or difficult to keep track of.  It's tense, suspenseful and twisty, which are all the hallmarks of a cracking psychological thriller.  Highly recommended.

I received a gifted paperback for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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Hobeck Books

Amazon

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BLOG TOUR: The French Vendetta (Charles Holborne Legal Thriller Book 11) - Simon Michael

When London barrister Charles Holborne travels to rural France in 1970, he is hoping for a quiet escape. Instead, he finds a village still ruled by old loyalties, buried secrets, and unresolved guilt. 

A woman has disappeared. Accusations resurface. And the past,shaped by fear and silence during the Nazi occupation, begins to intrude on the present. As Holborne is drawn deeper into a case the village believes it has already judged, he discovers that justice here is fragile – and truth can be more dangerous than lies. 

Moving between wartime France and the uneasy peace decades later, The French Vendetta explores how communities rewrite history to survive, and what happens when moral compromise is mistaken for justice. 

A gripping historical crime novel about memory, prejudice, and the long shadow of war.

 

What did I think?

As a huge fan of the Charles Holborne legal thrillers series, I couldn't wait to read book 11, The French Vendetta, and I was not disappointed.  It's another outstanding instalment in this fantastic series and it also works particularly well as a standalone with it being set in France.

Charles and Sally are newly married and they are taking a well-deserved break in France with their young daughter Leia.  Things don't go quite to plan and when Sally is taken ill Charles contacts his father's old friend who offers his cottage in the countryside to recuperate.  Well this doesn't sound much like a legal thriller, I hear you say, but it wouldn't be a Charles Holborne book without a court case and this very unusual one is well worth waiting for.

The whole village is brought to life through Simon Michael's exquisite descriptive writing and I felt as if I was there with the Holbornes.  Tensions are high in post-war France as friends and neighbours became enemies during the war.  It is difficult to read about anti-Semitism but it's important to be reminded of such horrific prejudice and Simon Michael writes about it with sensitivity, honesty and respect.

I always love catching up with Charles and the balance between his personal and professional life is perfectly weighted as always.  Charles and Sally are characters that I have grown to love over the years and I feel very protective of them, especially when they are put in harm's way and Charles doesn't half get himself into some scrapes!

Bursting with intrigue and suspense, The French Vendetta is an unforgettable, thought-provoking and powerful novel that I wouldn't hesitate to recommend.  To quote myself from book one, The Brief, The French Vendetta is "absolutely unputdownable", as is the whole series.

I received a gifted paperback to read and review for the online book review tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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BLOG TOUR: Festival Days (The Clapham Trilogy book 3) - Julie Anderson

May 1951

Celebration is in the air with the Festival of Britain and for the first time in years the mood is one of hope rather than hurt.

For Detective Constable Faye Smith, London is not as safe as it seems. The criminal underworld is gaining strength, enjoying a lively existence below the surface. Then two bodies are found in the war-time shelters, a man and a woman. Who are they?

What’s their story? Why were they murdered and how did they end up in the shelters?

Meanwhile, Ellie Peveril is busy with a celebration of a different kind. Ellie does all she can to support her friend but has her own worries, with ex-fiancé Patrick Havistock looming in the shadows. Faye, keen to unravel the mystery of the double murder, finds herself tangled up in crimes that stretch far beyond a simple killing.

Faye and Ellie must face their toughest case yet as their lives change, irrevocably, for the future.

What did I think?

Festival Days is the third and final book in The Clapham Trilogy and it's a real firecracker.  I only joined the series at book two so I enjoyed catching up with DC Faye Smith again but you can definitely read it as a standalone and still enjoy it.

Set in 1951, Faye is a woman in a man's world and it's unheard of to have a woman on the force in the 1950s but her colleagues are more accepting of her now.  Faye's latest case that this book centres around is quite tricky as it looks like a gangland execution so she needs all the help she can get.  

Faye's friend Ellie should be looking forward to her wedding day but she is convinced her ex-fiancé will turn up to ruin her day.  Even with all her own worries, she finds a way to help Faye but it puts her in grave danger.  What a wonderful friendship they have!  It makes me quite sad that this is a trilogy and not a long-running series as I could read more about these amazing characters.

Incredibly atmospheric, gripping and tense, Festival Days is a fantastic conclusion to an outstanding trilogy.  Whilst I'm sad it has come to an end, it does give me the opportunity to read book one for the first time and experience the trilogy in its entirety.  This is a highly recommended read that is sure to pick up new fans to the series.

I received a gifted paperback to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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Hobeck Books

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BLOG TOUR: The Strange Lives of Eleanor Teague - M K Hill

There's something wrong with Haddon Hall...

In 1876, Eleanor Teague lives in a lonely house far from the glamorous London Society she once knew. Confined to Haddon Hall by agoraphobia, bedevilled by nightmares of the death of her daughter, and haunted by the guilt of a terrible crime she committed, Eleanor depends on the household servants and on her husband Ezra, who is kind, patient… and controlling.

But when an apparition appears at her bedside, and mysterious voices urge her to find the 'Shadow House', she’s convinced an uncanny presence dwells within the walls of Haddon Hall, and that the staff are lying to her – they, in turn, fear she’s descending into madness.

As Eleanor’s world starts to fracture, the very foundations of Haddon Hall seem to shake. Why is the attic room locked? What is the Shadow House? Who is the strange woman in the woods?

The shocking truth will shatter everything Eleanor thought she knew about her life.

A haunting, high-concept thriller with a jaw-dropping twist, The Strange Lives of Eleanor Teague will enthral readers of John Marrs, Gillian McAllister and Stuart Turton. 

What did I think?

Wow!  What an absolute corker of a book!  It's not a spoiler to mention the jaw-dropping twist as it's stated in the blurb but it is MINDBLOWING!  

The main character of Eleanor Teague is complex and I really felt for her.  Not only is she grieving for her young daughter but she is filled with guilt over her death.  It's no wonder that she's frightened to leave the house.  Luckily for Eleanor, she lives in a large house with servants and her doting husband Ezra so she is well looked after...or so it would appear.

Mental health wasn't even considered in Victorian times so Eleanor is just seen as a weak and hysterical woman.  Haddon Hall is both her sanctuary and her prison and now it looks like it's haunted too.  Eleanor doesn't know what to believe or who to trust and the suspense and tension ramps up with every turn of the page.

Mind-bending, addictive and highly original, The Strange Lives of Eleanor Teague is completely unpredictable and incredibly suspenseful.  I was already hooked on the book when M K Hill delivered an ingenious twist that really pulled the rug out from beneath me and I take my hat off to you, sir!  The Strange Lives of Eleanor Teague is unmissable and highly recommended.

I received a digital ARC to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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Waterstones

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About the author:

M.K. Hill was a journalist and an award-winning music radio producer before becoming a full-time writer. He's written the Sasha Dawson series - The Bad Place, The Woman In The Wood - and the Ray Drake series - The Two O'Clock Boy and It Was Her - as well as acclaimed psychological thriller One Bad Thing, and the espionage thriller Zero Kill. He lives in London.

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BLOG TOUR: Jan the Dutchman (Mike Kingdom Thrillers Book 6) - David Jarvis

When a deadly enemy from her past appears alive and well, can Michaela ‘Mike’ Kingdom finally face up to her demons?

On holiday in The Gambia, Terry Bailey is enjoying his retirement from MI6 when he receives a shock. He spots a man in a car. It’s a fleeting glimpse. But it’s enough. He swears it is Jan the Dutchman, a drug overlord linked to a Colombian cartel. It can’t be Jan, as Jan is dead. Terry should know, he killed him.

Only one other person knows that Terry killed Jan – Michaela ‘Mike’ Kingdom, a CIA analyst based in London. Seven years ago, Jan had orchestrated the ambush in Holland that had killed Mike’s husband Dylan leaving her severely injured.

Was Terry tilting at windmills, Dutch windmills, or was Jan really alive seeking revenge? Terry tells Mike about the sighting and it re-opens wounds they both thought were long-healed.

It is now the beginning of a race to find Mike’s nemesis. But where to start? All Mike knew for certain is that he was not called Jan and he wasn’t a Dutchman. Apart from that, the search should be straightforward, shouldn’t it?

Jan the Dutchman is a thought-provoking and gripping sixth geo-political thriller that will delight fans of Frederick Forsyth and Mick Herron.

 

What did I think?

I was late to the party where the Mike Kingdom thrillers are concerned as I jumped in at book five but it's definitely a case of better late than never as they are fantastic. Jan the Dutchman is book six in the series and it's an absolute belter.  I think you could read it as a standalone and you will be hooked on Mike's story, like I was with the previous book.

Mike (Michaela) thought Jan the Dutchman was dead after causing the death of her husband and leaving her injured.  Now Jan is back and wants to finish the job, which puts Mike in terrible danger.  With her wedding day just around the corner, will Mike and Wazz get to the registry office on time?

Wow!  I could not put this book down!  The pacing is blisteringly fast and the plot is sharper than a razor blade.  There is so much going on, but it never gets confusing, and I think I was gripping the book tighter and tighter when Mike started to get closer to identifying Jan and the danger levels ramped up.  That ending, though!  Chef's kiss, Mr Jarvis!

Exciting, suspenseful and highly original, Jan the Dutchman is an outstanding thriller that kept me riveted from first page to last.  A very highly recommended read that is sure to result in new fans of this magnificent series.

I received a gifted paperback to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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Erased - Miha Mazzini

She Doesn't Exist.

Neither Does Her Baby.

Now What?

When a “software error” erases Zala from the system, she discovers that officially, she and her newborn don’t exist.

As Zala fights desperately to prove her existence, and save her child from adoption, she uncovers the Kafkaesque reality of Slovenia’s system — one that erased 25,671 citizens on February 26, 1992.

A chilling thriller about bureaucracy as violence, and one mother’s battle against the state. 

What did I think?

Oh my word, Erased by Miha Mazzini is an emotional and heartrending book that is astonishingly based on real events.  It just blew my mind that this could happen but also reminded me how easy it is to press the delete button on a keyboard.  I thought identity theft was scary but deletion of identity is even worse!  This isn't an imaginative dystopian novel; this deletion actually happened in Slovenia in 1992. Wow!

Zala is about to give birth to her first child so she attends her local hospital, only to be told that she doesn't exist on the computer system.  She is accused of being an illegal immigrant and presented with a bill for her hospital stay, oh and the hospital is keeping her baby.  I can only imagine what Zala felt like and I had feelings of shock, outrage and devastation as I followed every step of her journey as she fights for her baby and her identity.

It's an incredibly emotional read as I really felt for Zala as she is on her own.  She is a very strong character though and there's nothing more powerful than a mother fighting for her child.  Miha Mazzini's evocative writing brings Zala to life so the reader can't help but take her to their heart.  I actually forgot that it was a translated novel when I was reading it so I have to give a shout out to the impeccable translation by Gregor Timothy Čeh.

Shocking, disturbing and harrowing, Erased is a poignant and thought-provoking novel that really makes you think about your own electronic identity and how easily it could be erased.  I would highly recommend this outstanding book to readers of all genres.

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

My rating:

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The Shrine (The Detective's Daughter book 10) - Lesley Thomson

A decades-old murder. A haunting legacy. A plot for revenge.

Stella Darnell knows her partner Jack is hiding something. After following him one evening, she discovers he's been consulting a psychic in a desperate attempt to reach his dead mother. A sceptic by nature, and feeling betrayed by his lies, Stella fears what this means for their relationship.

Seeking distraction, she accepts DI Toni Kemp's invitation to join her for a holiday in a small village in Gloucestershire. But the visit is derailed when a body is discovered at a shrine where a woman died decades earlier.

Drawn into the investigation, Stella must confront the legacy of a once-famous psychic whose shadow still hangs over Prestbury – while in the darkness, someone bent on revenge waits patiently for the perfect moment to strike...

Perfect for fans of LJ Ross and Kate Rhodes, this is the tenth gripping mystery in this must-read series that can be enjoyed in any order.

What did I think?

The Shrine is book 10 in The Detective's Daughter series but don't be put off if you haven't read any of the earlier books as it works brilliantly as a standalone.  I joined the series at book 8 so it was great to catch up with Stella again but there's enough information about her personal history for new readers to not feel lost.

This story is told from a dual point of view as we follow Stella's investigation and learn Jane's heartbreaking story.  The way that the stories interweave is breathtaking and I was completely riveted from start to finish.  It's like a double hook with the mystery of the present day murder and the avenging of an older tragedy.  Add in the story of the famous village psychic and the book becomes impossible to put down.

The beauty of The Detective's Daughter books, thanks to Lesley Thomson including concise recaps where necessary, is that you can pick each one up and enjoy the self-contained mystery without having to know Stella's history.  It does, however, make you want to find out and I definitely want to read the earlier books in the near future.

Compelling, intriguing and incredibly atmospheric, The Shrine is an entertaining and enthralling mystery with a fantastic female main character who virtually pops out of the page.  Another cracker from Lesley Thomson and a highly recommended read.

I received a gifted hardback to read and review for the Rachel's Random Resources blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Purchase links:

UK

US

About the author:

©Michael White

Lesley Thomson is the bestselling author of The Detective’s Daughter series, which has sold over 850,000 copies worldwide. The tenth instalment, The Shrine, marks a major milestone in the acclaimed series. Renowned for her atmospheric, character-driven mysteries, Thomson’s writing has been likened to Barbara Pym for its keen psychological insight and wit. Her debut, A Kind of Vanishing, won the People’s Book Prize, cementing her reputation as a distinctive voice in crime fiction. She lives in Sussex with her partner and their dog. 

Visit her website at www.lesleythomson.co.uk

Social Media Links:

Instagram: @lesleythomson

Twitter: @LesleyjmThomson

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BLOG TOUR: The Commune - Danny Dagan

Escape the rat race. Join our commune. Don't worry, it will be fine…  

Luke Stonebride flees London for a fresh start in a remote, off-grid commune. Nine days later, he is found in a coma. His fellow commune members lie lifeless in the forest.

Was it the work of a brutal intruder or something darker lurking within?

To find out, we need to go back to the beginning: a rainy day in July, a clearing in the forest, thatched cabins and woodsmoke – and the ominous signs of the dangers to come.

 

What did I think?

Whoosh!  That's the sound of me being blown away by Danny Dagan's fantastic novel The Commune.  Danny Dagan is a local author based in Northumberland and I totally missed his debut novel The Game but I will definitely be adding it to my TBR after reading this outstanding book.

I was riveted by the dual timeline of before and after the tragic events in the Northumbrian countryside.  There's a continual sense of unease and life in the commune is not as idyllic or simple as new resident Luke expects.  Luke is also running away from something and he's not the only character with secrets to hide.

Sandra Saint-John, the sister of the commune leader is quite a character and I don't mean that in a good way.  She's more bothered about her inheritance than the death of her sister Dorothy and nephew Joel.  Dorothy's will leaves the commune to the fellow members and with one of them still alive Sandra hires a private investigator to prove that that Luke killed the others and therefore can't profit from a bequest.

I really liked Alex Czerniak who Sandra hires to investigate the deaths at the commune.  His wife Mary is a Detective Chief Inspector and there seems to be a decent amount of pillow talk going on regarding this case.  Alex and Mary do work well together off the books, whilst keeping it professional in the public eye. 

The rugged Northumbrian countryside is almost a character in its own right and it is very easy to imagine living off grid up in the sticks. Without giving away any spoilers, I loved the nod to a local landmark in such an unusual way that it made me smile. Simply brilliant!

Unputdownable, unpredictable and unmissable, clear your schedule when you pick up The Commune as you won’t be able to put it down until you’ve devoured every single word.  Danny Dagan is clearly a very talented writer and he’s certainly one to watch.  Very highly recommended.

I received a gifted paperback to read for the Love Books Tours bookstagram tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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