BLOG TOUR: Crucial Black (Relic Black Thriller Book 2) - Colin Garrow

I really enjoyed the first book in the Relic Black Thriller series, Terminal Black, so I am delighted to be taking part in the Rachel's Random Resources blog tour for the second book in the series, Crucial Black.  You can find out about the book below and scroll down to read an extract.

A brace of corpses. A bone-crunching machine. A new recruit.

Now employed by an Inverness organised crime gang, former petty thief Relic Black is teamed up with hitman Ali McKay, the man he almost killed a few weeks earlier. As the team tidy up the loose ends after the shooting, gang member and bent cop DI McKenzie must investigate the disappearance of two people, knowing Relic and Ali have already disposed of the bodies.

Meanwhile, Rebecca’s unpopular colleague DI Swinney, suspects her of involvement in the shooting. Knowing one of the bodies currently taking up space in the mortuary remains anonymous, he discovers the man’s identity. Can Swinney uncover the truth, dig the dirt on McKenzie and regain his former status with the DCI, or will the gang step in to stop him?

Warning - strong language and adult situations throughout.

Crucial Black is book #2 in the Relic Black Thriller series set in Inverness, Scotland.  

NB book #2 is not a standalone – the series must be read in order.

Purchase links:

Amazon

Smashwords

Extract

DI Ray Swinney has suspicions about his colleague DI McKenzie and believes she may be linked to the villain known as Relic Black. Unfortunately, he has no idea how to tie them together…

Divisional HQ, Old Perth Road, Inverness 9:26am

Behind his desk in the corner of the office, Detective Inspector Raymond Swinney stares across at the display board where only a few days ago several mugshots were exhibited. One of those which has been removed depicted the face of the man known as Relic Black.

Swinney rubs his chin the way Sherlock Holmes might when pondering a complex case. Though it’s been explained to him that petty-thief Black gave a statement exonerating him in the murders of Carl Palfreyman and/or the individual known as Toothbrush Man, Swinney isn’t convinced. How can an arsehole like that be allowed to get away with anything? To make things worse, Swinney doesn’t quite believe that the bloke with one eye missing is the one currently taking up space in the mortuary. And why doesn’t he believe it? Because Rebecca Fucking McKenzie’s got her lesbian paws all over it.

He sighs. Trouble is, he can’t prove anything. Even if he could, she’d waggle her arse and talk her way out of it. What’s needed is to find a link between McKenzie and Black, if there is one, and pin something on her that’ll stick.

But as his old dad used to say, that’ll not get the bairn a new coat. With a sigh, he forces himself back to reality and studies the mugshots on the FBI’s ten-most-wanted page. It’s hardly relevant to Scottish crime, but he likes to imagine one of these tossers might turn up in Inverness one day, allowing the soon-to-be-lauded DI Swinney to make a name for himself. And maybe claim the reward, though he’s not too sure about the ethics of such things. One of the faces—the bearer of several aliases, including Stig Halvorsen—looks vaguely familiar but for the moment he can’t work out why. Clicking through the hundreds of villainous mugshots in his memory, he stares at the image on the screen, trying to place where he’s seen the man before.

Then it hits him.

Standing, he walks across to the display board where the remaining crime scene photos from Wester Dalziel have been arranged. His eyes swivel between the ones showing the two dead men, both shot in the head. One, he knows, is the man identified as Carl Palfreyman. The other one is taken from a few feet away and shows a man wearing an eye patch. And this man has a big nose and a wide mouth.

Swinney struggles to keep his excitement in check but despite his efforts, lets out a low moan of what can only be described as pleasure. One of the plods walks past and gives him a funny look.

‘What?’

‘Nothing, sir.’

‘Fuck off, then.’ He pauses. ‘Hang on a minute.’

The young copper turns and walks back. ‘Sir?’

Keeping his voice low, Swinney says, ‘What’s yer name, son?’

‘Kikelomo, sir.’

Swinny looks him up and down. ‘Not from round here, are ye?’

‘No, sir. I’m from Lossiemouth.’

‘I meant—’

‘I know what ye meant, sir.’ He smirks in that condescending manner Swinney is used to.

Swinney coughs. ‘Didn’t ye pick up Inspector McKenzie this mornin?’

‘I did, sir.’

‘Just out of interest, where did ye pick her up from?’

The young man grimaces, glances across at McKenzie’s empty desk. Next to it, DC Koch is busy tapping away at his computer. ‘Some place on Gordonville Road.’

Swinney flaps his hand. ‘Oh, aye. That’s where…thingummy lives…’

The copper doesn’t bite.

‘Don’t fuck about, son. Who lives there?’

Another grimace. ‘I’m not meant to say, sir.’

‘Aye ye are. Ye’re meant to say to me. Who lives there?’

‘I believe she works at the hospital.’ He gives a short nod and walks away before he’s given the chance to drop himself even further in the shit.

Swinney has a bit of a think. The hospital. That could mean the mortuary, which could mean quite a lot. Ruminating on the possibilities, he turns his attention back to the photo and something else comes to mind—a phrase bandied about by the woodentops suggested Toothbrush Man looked a bit like the actor Daniel Craig. Staring at the image, Swinney notes there is a resemblance, but this man’s nose is too long, his mouth too wide. But there is enough of a resemblance to consider that the body of this man—the not Daniel Craig lookalike—might feasibly have been substituted for the real Toothbrush Man.

About the author:

Colin Garrow grew up in a former mining town in Northumberland. He has worked in a plethora of professions including taxi driver, antiques dealer, drama facilitator, theatre director and fish processor, and has occasionally masqueraded as a pirate. 

His short stories have appeared in several literary mags, including SN Review, Flash Fiction Magazine, Word Bohemia, Every Day Fiction, The Grind, A3 Review, 1,000 Words, Inkapture and Scribble Magazine. He currently lives in a humble cottage in Northeast Scotland where he writes novels, stories, poems and the occasional song.

He also makes rather nice vegan cakes.

Social Media links:

Twitter https://twitter.com/colingarrow 

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/colinngarrow/ 

Website https://colingarrow.co.uk/  

Bookbub https://www.bookbub.com/profile/colin-garrow 

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/colingarrowthewriter

TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@colingarrowauthor 

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BLOG TOUR: Fanning Fireflies (The Limerent Series Book 3) - LS Delorme

There is something rotting in Harrisville.

It's 1944 and Veronica works so she can afford to eat. Maybe one day she will save enough to own the home her family is living in, but for now, she doesn't have time for fanciful thoughts, or much else. She doesn't have time for the fire whispering to her, the ghosts trying to talk to her and the son of her boss, who can't stop staring at her. She definitely doesn't have time to think about Lazlo, the handsome black soldier that she processed at the draft office, but she can't seem to stop herself. As her ability to ignore Lazlo evaporates, so does her self-imposed ignorance about her hometown. There is, and always has been, something rotten in Harrisville. It shouldn't have been a surprise. After all, Veronica works in the cigarette factory, where corpses hide in the tobacco with the roaches.

 

What did I think?

I was drawn to Fanning Fireflies by the stunning cover and it as mesmerising inside and out.  I didn't realise it was the third book in The Limerent series when I started to read it and it can definitely be read as a standalone but I now want to read the earlier books.

Set in 1944, it's shocking to see the prejudices that people experienced in our not so distant past.  Love doesn't see the colour of your skin so when Veronica meets Lazio she can't stop thinking about him and vice versa.  Lazio is sent to fight in World War II but he writes to Veronica and he meets her every night in his dreams.

Veronica works in a cigarette factory and she has a gift (or a curse) that enables her to see ghosts and there are a surprising number of them in the factory.  When women from the town start going missing, the coloured residents are blamed but Veronica's gift holds the key to what is really happening to the missing women.

Mixing fantasy with historical fiction and romance, Fanning Fireflies is a genre-busting novel that completely blew me away.  It's so beautifully written and completely mesmerising that I couldn't put it down and I couldn't stop thinking about it long after I turned the final page.  The love story is just stunning and it adds an abundance of light to the shocking darkness of the racial prejudice.  A highly recommended read and one I will definitely be reading again.

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

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon

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BLOG TOUR: Mary I: Queen of Sorrows - Alison Weir

A DESTINY REWRITTEN. A ROYAL HEART DIVIDED.

Adored only child of Henry VIII and his Queen, Katherine of Aragon, Princess Mary is raised in the golden splendour of her father's court. But the King wants a son and heir.

With her parents' marriage, and England, in crisis, Mary's perfect world begins to fall apart. Exiled from the court and her beloved mother, she seeks solace in her faith, praying for her father to bring her home. But when the King does promise to restore her to favour, his love comes with a condition.

The choice Mary faces will haunt her for years to come - in her allegiances, her marriage and her own fight for the crown. Can she become the queen she was born to be?

MARY I. HER STORY.

Alison Weir's new Tudor novel is the tale, full of drama and tragedy, of how a princess with such promise, loved by all who knew her, became the infamous Bloody Mary.

 

What did I think?

Mary I: Queen of Sorrows is the third book in the Tudor Rose series but it can definitely be read as a standalone as I haven't read the first two books but I absolutely loved this book.  I will definitely be seeking out the other books in the series to complete my collection.

I love reading historical fiction set during the Tudor period, although I have mostly read about Henry VIII and Elizabeth I.  I think I have overlooked Mary I as she gets so much bad press but perhaps to understand the actions that led to her nickname Bloody Mary we have to understand the woman who is wearing the crown.  Alison Weir gives us such a wonderful glimpse of Mary as a daughter, a princess, a woman and a queen.

It's quite a chunky book at 527 pages (including the author's notes, which are well worth reading) but it is very easy to read as it feels so authentic; it's almost as if Mary herself is talking throughout the book.  I certainly saw Mary in a different light and, although she is well deserving of the name Bloody Mary, I can understand more about how all of the bloodshed came about.

Authentic, engrossing and fascinating, Mary I: Queen of Sorrows is an unmissable book for historical fiction fans and it's worth buying the hardback for the stunning endpapers.  A very highly recommended read and an easy five stars. 

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

My rating:

Buy it from:

UK.Bookshop.org

Amazon

About the author:

Alison Weir is a bestselling historical novelist of Tudor fiction, and the leading female historian in the United Kingdom. She has published more than thirty books, including many leading works of non-fiction, and has sold over three million copies worldwide.

Her novels include the Tudor Rose trilogy, which spans three generations of history’s most iconic family - the Tudors, and the highly acclaimed Six Tudor Queens series about the wives of Henry VIII, all of which were Sunday Times bestsellers.

Alison is a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and an honorary life patron of Historic Royal Palaces.

alisonweir.org.uk 

@AlisonWeirBooks

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The Temp - Kelly Florentia

 

What if your dream job became your worst nightmare?

Bella seems to have it all – a beautiful home, a brilliant career, a loving husband and teenage daughter, and supportive family and friends. The only thing missing is her body confidence.

So, when her PA goes on maternity leave, she decides against hiring a temporary assistant and employs a personal trainer instead. Why squander hard-earned cash on a temp when she could put the money to better use? Surely, she deserved some happiness after years of being a mum, wife, and housekeeper.

But little did she know Frank would want more than tightening her glutes and toning her biceps. Angry and frustrated for making the wrong choice, Bella sacks Frank and hires a temp, Daisy.

Daisy has settled in nicely. She thinks she’s landed a great job. But if Bella thinks she can happily move on, as if Frank never existed, she may have to think again…

What did I think?

Oh what a tangled web you weave, Ms Florentia!  The Temp had my brain twisting and turning so much it's a wonder I wasn't dizzy!

Bella appears to have the perfect marriage but it's a slippery slope when you start hiding things from your other half.  Tom is a bit of a scrooge when it comes to the family finances so Bella has to hide the fact that she has hired a personal trainer at the gym.  Bella wishes she hadn't hired Frank when he won't take no for an answer and she can't get rid of him.

As if Frank appearing everywhere Bella turns isn't enough to drive her mad, she now has to hire a temp to cover her assistant's maternity leave.  It just so happens that the perfect candidate turns up without Bella having to advertise the position.  Uh-oh the alarm bells were positively deafening in my head when Daisy turns up out of the blue.

The plot twists and turns as the reader tries to work out what's going on with both Frank and Daisy but I would have never worked it out in a million years.  Reading books such as this is the one occasion when I'm more than happy to be wrong!

Compulsive, twisty and incredibly gripping, The Temp is a fantastic thriller that entertained, shocked and surprised me.  I absolutely loved it and would definitely recommend giving it a read.

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

My rating:

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BLOG TOUR: Never Closer - Margot Shepherd

On an ordinary day in 2017, Jo receives a phone call about her 18-year-old daughter, Jessie. It is the call that every parent dreads. In 1940, 17-year-old Alice ties on her facemask and enters a laboratory to harvest a potential new miracle drug called penicillin. The lives of these women become entwined when Jo finds Alice’s diary in a vintage handbag. Past and present overlap and merge as life-changing events resonate for them all across the gulf of time.

This is a story about a diary opening a door on the past, chronicling a young woman’s determination to succeed against all odds, while unknowingly inspiring others to step into a better life. Set against the backdrop of the Second World War, the infancy of antibiotics and a modern medical emergency and its consequences, it not only reminds us how fortunate we are to live now, but also serves as a stark warning about the fragility of life and the dangers of complacency.

 

What did I think?

Oh wow!  What a debut from Margot Shepherd!  I had to actually double check that Never Closer was a debut as it is so beautifully written.  I don't think I can even begin to tell you how much I enjoyed Never Closer and no review I write could really do it justice, but I'll try my best.

The dual timelines in the story are both riveting and I love that the past storyline is told via an old diary that Jo finds in her friend's vintage shop.  Jo didn't realise how linked her life would be to Alice's until her daughter battles for her life against a deadly infection.  An infection that would have claimed many more lives if it wasn't for Alice's work harvesting penicillin in 1940.

I loved the story of penicillin and it's so sad that Alexander Fleming's name is the only one that springs to mind when you think of this life saving drug.  Yes, Fleming discovered it but he did nothing with it and it's only thanks to the work of Professor Howard Florey and the ‘penicillin girls’ that we have access to penicillin today.  If only Fleming had taken a few more steps to further his discovery into development, so many more lives could have been saved especially during World War II.

Captivating, immersive and thought-provoking, Never Closer is an unforgettable book that I will be recommending for a long time to come.  Blending historical fact with enthralling fiction, Margot Shepherd is an exciting new voice in historical fiction and definitely one to place on my watch list.  Very highly recommended - don't miss this book, historical fiction fans!

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

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon

About the author:

Margot Shepherd is a British author who was born in Yorkshire where she spent her childhood. She now lives in rural Sussex with her husband and Springer Spaniel, Genni. When she’s not writing she works in medical research at the University of Surrey. She writes about family relationships with a particular emphasis on women and science from a female point of view.

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BLOG TOUR: Profile K - Helen Fields

He’s going to kill you. He just doesn’t know it yet.

Midnight Jones is an analyst trained to understand the human mind. But everything changes when, in the course of her work, she discovers Profile K’s file – because K stands for killer, and she knows that someone more dangerous than she could have ever imagined walks among them.

Midnight knows what Profile K is capable of before he even commits his first crime. But as the news rolls with the brutal murder of a local woman, no one believes what she tells them: that he is capable of so much worse.

Profile K will kill again – and, terrifyingly, Midnight realises that the moment she found his file was the moment she became his next target. Because Profile K is coming for Midnight – and the only way to escape with her life is to find him before he finds her…

The million-copy bestseller is back with a dark, terrifying journey into the mind of a psychopath that will keep you riveted until the very last page.

 

What did I think?

OMG!!! Helen Fields has done it again - her new novel has completely blown me away. Profile K really has the wow factor and I couldn’t put it down.  It's just fantastic from start to finish and deliciously dark and disturbing, as you would expect from a Helen Fields book.

Midnight Jones has a moral dilemma when the test results she’s reviewing reveal a Profile K.  The 'k for killer' profile was set up as a joke as nobody expected anyone to actually be a Profile K. It must be a mistake in the system, surely?  Midnight doesn’t think so but her bosses tell her to forget about it but then the bodies start mounting up.

I absolutely loved Midnight Jones.  Not only does she have a great name, she also has a heartbreaking backstory which sees her being the main carer for her twin, Dawn.  Midnight can't risk losing her job as she needs to work to pay for Dawn's care and it's so expensive that she has no money left over for a life of her own.

The pacing is fast and furious and I simply couldn't read fast enough.  I felt like my eyes were on stalks as I opened them as wide as I could to devour the words as quickly as possible.  It was great to see Connie Woolwine make an appearance, although Profile K is a complete standalone novel so you don't need to have read any other Helen Fields books to enjoy it.

Intense, gripping and enthralling Profile K is an edge of your seat nail-biting rollercoaster of a book and it’s one not to be missed.  Very highly recommended.

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

My rating:

Buy it from:

UK.Bookshop.org

Amazon

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Pop Idle: 30 years on the road as a professional singer - Dave Dawson

Like hordes of others, best-selling author Dave Dawson has spent decades crisscrossing the country as a solo full-time professional musician. During his 30 years on the road, he has performed thousands of shows before tens of thousands of people, yet still remains one of the army of anonymous entertainers who literally sing for their supper, as part of the Never Ending UK Tour. From pubs to clubs, dives to luxury hotels, theatres to gardens, and hen nights to care homes, there’s hardly a live environment that he hasn’t encountered, enjoyed or endured.

Along the way, he’s had brushes with fame and fandom, strippers and stalkers, crooks and colourful characters, pissed-up punters and prima donnas… and has banked a wealth of experience at the brunt of the live music circuit.

In this, his fifth book, Dave takes the reader with him as he encounters the Great British Public head on with only a microphone stand and an ad-lib to hide behind. Alongside light-hearted and cautionary tales, Pop Idle provides an invaluable insight into the pleasures and perils that await anyone dedicated or mad enough to want to forge a path into the music industry at the bottom rung of the showbiz ladder

Dave Dawson, under the pseudonym Dave Philpott, is the co-author of the cult comedy bestsellers, Dear Mr. Kershaw, Dear Mr Pop Star, Grammar Free In The UK and Dear Catherine Wheel.

 

What did I think?

What an eye-opener!  When I've enjoyed listening to singers in a pub or club, I've never really thought about what goes on behind the scenes although I could imagine some of it, especially the difficulty getting paid part.  Dave Dawson's Pop Idle is a no holds barred 30 years in the life of a singer and it's as interesting as it is entertaining.

Dave Dawson would be the answer if I was ever asked the question: "If you could have a pint with anyone past or present, who would you choose?"  I could listen to his stories for hours if they're anything like the anecdotes in this fabulous book.

Behind the glitz and glamour there is blood, sweat and tears.  This book made me laugh so often but it also made me think about how hard it actually is to make it in the music business.  Cash is indeed king and it's no secret that artists get ripped off by agents and record labels, but it's even harder to get hard-earned money out of a pub or club.

Written with honesty and humour, Pop Idle is the most entertaining and hilarious non-fiction book I have read this year.  A highly recommended read.

I received a digital ARC from the author and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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