When two young boys discover human bones buried beneath a tree in a trailer park, Detective Josie Quinnraces to join her team at the scene. She used to play in those woods as a child, happier outside and away from her abusive mother, Belinda Rose.

Josie’s past crashes into her present when a rare dental condition confirms the bones belong to a teenage foster-child who was murdered thirty years ago. A girl named Belinda Rose…

Josie hasn’t seen her mother in years but, with an undeniable connection between her mother and the dead girl, does she dare track her down?

Just as Josie gets closer to uncovering a secret that will shatter her world forever, another body is uncovered. It’s suddenly clear that someone very close to Josie will stop at nothing to keep the truth buried forever.

Her Mother’s Grave is available now in ebook and paperback, the ebook is currently only £1.99.  You can purchase a copy of both here.

My Review:

I so love finding a new series by a new author and Her Mother’s Grave is definitely a series I will be more of soon.

There is just something about the author’s fantastic writing style that draws you in and makes you feel involved in the book.  Despite having not read any of the previous books I immediately felt interested and connected to the story which doesn’t usually happen so quickly when I come so late into a series.

I adored Josie who was obviously a very together and capable women in her job as police chief but who showed her softer side when it came to dealing with her past.  Through alternate chapters we come to realise how awful and harrowing her childhood had been which really made me feel for her.  I also admired her greatly for being able to move on from it and make such a success of her life.

The book features one of the most detailed autopsies that I’ve read and I found it utterly fascinating to find out more about what they look for and how they discover what has happened to a victim.  Despite having read loads if crime books I didn’t know a lot of the stuff so I found that very interesting.

The book is very fast paced and I was soon drawn into the story, especially as after developing a bit if a soft spot for Josie I want to see how things would end.  The investigation soon becomes personal and it was heartbreaking at times to read about how it was affecting Josie and the others around her.  The investigation seemed very real with not everything being obvious instantly and Josie having to work things out.  There were lots of twists and turns that kept me guessing and I found myself reading faster and faster as I soaked up every detail of this fabulous book.

This is the first book by this author that I have read and I can’t wait to go back and read the other books in this series.  Despite this being the third book in the series I feel it can be read as a standalone as anything you need to know is explained.

Huge thanks to Bookouture for my copy of this book via Netgalley and to Noelle for inviting me onto the blog tour.

About The Author:

Lisa Regan is an Amazon bestselling crime novelist. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in English and Master of Education Degree from Bloomsburg University. She is a member of Sisters In Crime, Mystery Writers of America and International Thriller Writers. She lives in Philadelphia with her husband and daughter.

www.lisaregan

Good afternoon everyone, I’m thrilled to be handing over to my lovely guest reviewer Kirsty today for her spot on the Dortmund Hibernate blog tour.  Kirsty is in the process of setting up her own blog (sob!) so do look out for it as it’s coming soon!

Dortmund Hibernate is available now in ebook and paperback, with the ebook currently only £1.99.  You can purchase a copy of both here.

Before I share Kirsty’s review with you here is a little bit about the book.

Book Synopsis:

Psychologist Dr Magnus Paul is tasked with the patients of Dortmund Asylum – nine criminally insane souls hidden from the world due to the extremity of their acts.

Magnus has six weeks to prove them sane for transfer to a maximum-security prison, or label them as incurable and recommend a death sentence under a new government act.

As Magnus delves into the darkness of the incarcerated minds, his own sanity is challenged. Secrets squeeze through the cracks of the asylum, blurring the line between reality and nightmare, urging Magnus towards a new life of crime…

The rural western town of Dortmund and its inhabitants are the backdrop to the mayhem on the hill.

It’s Silence of the Lambs meets Shutter Island in this tale of loss, fear and diminishing hope.

Kirsty’s Review:

Not sure where to start with this book – so much to say! My first tip, DO NOT start this book in the dark on your own!! This book creeps into your mind and lurks there waiting for dark – I don’t mind saying I was checking under my bed for monsters that first night.

I initially didn’t get on with the main character Magnus, I found him very self-centered and arrogant. As the book progresses you learn more about his background and motives and that certainly helps to make him more well-rounded to the reader. The side characters in this book are well written and all have a great part to play, of all of them, I especially liked Walter, he was good and honest with clean motives.

When you are first introduced to Dortmund and the asylum you get an instant creepy vibe – the descriptions of the place leave you with a very dark and desolate feeling that adds to the whole atmosphere of the book. In this first section you are also introduced to the ‘nine’ that inhabit the asylum, all of whom tell their story to Magnus. If you are not a fan of graphic violence and strong language I would probably avoid this book. There are scenes/retellings of torture, rape and murder and also some racial slurs which some may find offensive.

The atmosphere and tension really ratchet up though out this book and I struggled to put it down once I hit the half way mark as so much was going on and I was desperate to reach the conclusion. And boy does it deliver – several moments that made me go ‘how did I miss that?!’ I actually felt tense reading this book.

If you love a dark and twisty book this is one for you, thank you to the author and Rachel at random resources for a copy to review.

About The Author:

C.J. Sutton is a writer based in Melbourne, Australia. He holds a Masters in journalism and creative writing, and supports the value of study through correspondence. His fictional writing delves into the unpredictability of the human mind and the fears that drive us.

As a professional writer C.J. Sutton has worked within the hustle and bustle of newsrooms, the competitive offices of advertising and the trenches of marketing. But his interest in creating new characters and worlds has seen a move into fiction, which has always pleaded for complete attention. Dortmund Hibernate is his debut novel, and is released by Crooked Cat Books on July 18. It is available for pre-order now – mybook.to/dortmundhibernate

Good evening I’m excited to be on the blog blitz for The Second Cup by Sarah Marie Graye today as part of the first anniversary blog blitz for The Second Cup by Sarah Marie Graye. And I’m sharing an extract from the book, talking about the moment Olivia finally gets rid of Matthew out of her life for good.

The Second Cup is available now in ebook and paperback.  The ebook is currently only 99p but you can buy a copy of both here.

Before I share my extract with you here is a little bit about the book.

Book Synopsis:

Would your life unravel if someone you knew committed suicide? Theirs did.

FAYE knows her heart still belongs to her first love, Jack. She also knows he might have moved on, but when she decides to track him down, nothing prepares her for the news that he’s taken his own life.

Faye is left wondering how to move forward – and whether or not Jack’s best friend Ethan will let her down again. And the news of Jack’s death ripples through the lives of her friends too.

ABBIE finds herself questioning her marriage, and wondering if she was right to leave her first love behind. Poor OLIVIA is juggling her job and her boyfriend and trying to deal with a death of her own. And Jack’s death has hit BETH the hardest, even though she never knew him.

Is Beth about to take her own life too?

This is dark chick-lit and intelligent women’s fiction at its best. Perfect for fans of Maggie O’Farrell, Elizabeth Strout, Dorothy Koomson and Amanda Prowse.

Extract:

He storms out of the lounge and out of the flat. The front door slams behind him. After a millisecond of worrying, I realise I no longer care. A sense of peace descends me, and my flat, for the first time in months.

I’m channelling Beth again. Beth is reaching into the cupboard under the sink and digging around for the roll of black bin bags. Then she’s pulling them off the roll one at a time, filling them haphazardly with clothes and DVDs, wrapping bulky jumpers round the X-box in an attempt to protect it – although maybe that bit is me channelling myself because I can’t bring myself to drop it into the black bag from a great height in the hope that it breaks.

Am I being kind? Or do I just want to make sure he keeps busy enough with his games not to miss me?

I don’t stop until all of his stuff is in bags, knotted at the top, piled in the hall. Then I clean. Everything. Scrubbing him out of my life forever.

I’m awake seven minutes before my alarm is due to go off. I have a heightened sense of the day beginning. I didn’t hear any banging or swearing last night, so I’m assuming Matt didn’t come back to the flat.

A peek through the gap in my bedroom door reveals black bin bags innocently staring back at me from where I neatly piled them the day before. He’s not here.

What would Beth do? I have no idea. But while I mull it over, I get myself ready for work, eating a decent breakfast for the first time in weeks. I usually struggle with more than a piece of toast in the mornings, but I’m ravenous.

I pick up the Dairylea box from the bottom shelf of the fridge, but it’s so light I know it’s empty before I open it. Why put it back in the fridge empty?

I open the cupboard by the cooker and reach for the peanut butter – my toast-topping back-up. Thankfully, there’s enough caked on the inside of the glass to thinly cover two pieces of toast.

And after wolfing them down I eat the rest of a packet of chocolate digestives except for the two at the top that felt slightly mushy.

I make myself a strong coffee. Today is the kind of day that needs a bitter kick of caffeine.

What would Beth do? As I hesitantly sip my disgusting coffee, I wander round my little flat, taking in how it feels alien and more like home at the same time without Matt’s stuff coating every surface.

I walk into the hallway and stare at the front door of the flat, worried that Matt will come through it any moment. I stare at the distressed-effect coat hooks that now hold just my summer jacket, winter coat and a couple of forlorn scarfs.

I notice the stains round the lock from where hands have been too many times – a patch I missed when I cleaned the flat. Doors. Skirting boards. What else did I miss?

My eyes gaze down to the second lock. The deadlock. The lock to which Matt has no key. I don’t need to know what Beth would do: I know what I would do – what I will do.

I’m back in the kitchen, I throw the rest of the coffee down the sink, and then dive into the mess that is the draw above the pan cupboard, the one filled with all the rejected and anonymous items of life, the ones too important to throw away, but meaningless or pointless in everyday life.

I feel around through the assault course of paperclips and rubber bands, push aside the stockpile of batteries and the fluff-coated depleted roll of electrical tape. And there it is. The key to my freedom.

I take out my posh writing set from the next drawer and write Matt a note, telling him about the funeral, the cremation, Maggie’s ashes waiting to be picked up. I fold it, put it in an envelope, wincing at the taste as I lick the envelope to seal it.

I open the front door and pile the black bin bags in a heap outside, then place the envelope addressed to Matt on top. Then I take my coat down off the pegs and quickly shrug my arms into the sleeves, grab my bag, and pull the door shut behind me.

I put the freedom key in the lock and use all my force to try and lock it. It locks first time.

About The Author:

Sarah Marie Graye was born in Manchester, United Kingdom, in 1975, to English Catholic parents. The second eldest of five daughters, to the outside world Graye’s childhood followed a relatively typical Manchester upbringing… until aged nine, when she was diagnosed with depression.

It’s a diagnosis that has stayed with Graye over three decades, and something she believes has coloured every life decision, including the one to write a novel.

Graye wrote The Second Cup as part of an MA Creative Writing practice as research degree at London South Bank University – where she was the vice-chancellor’s scholarship holder.

First published in July 2017, The Second Cup was: longlisted for the Book Viral 2017 Millennium Book Award; a finalist in Read Freely’s Best Indie Book 2017; a finalist in the 12th Annual National Indie Excellence Awards; a semi-finalist in the Online Book Club 2017 Book of the Year Award; and a “distinguished favorite” in the 2017 NYC Big Book Awards.

Graye was diagnosed with ADHD in November 2017… and published an extended edition of The Second Cup in February 2018 so she could diagnose one of her characters with the same condition.

Graye is currently working on her second novel, The Victoria Lie, which is expected to be out later in 2018.

About 

Book Synopsis:

We can’t choose the strangers we meet.

As the guests arrive at beautiful, remote Mitchell’s Inn, they’re all looking forward to a relaxing weekend deep in the forest, miles from anywhere. They watch their fellow guests with interest, from a polite distance.

Usually we can avoid the people who make us nervous, make us afraid.

With a violent storm raging, the group finds itself completely cut off from the outside world. Nobody can get in – or out. And then the first body is found . . . and the horrifying truth comes to light. There’s a killer among them – and nowhere to run.

Until we find ourselves in a situation we can’t escape. Trapped.

My Review:

An Unwanted Guest is a classic style murder mystery that is very atmospheric and totally gripping.

My interest was piqued immediately with the description of the isolated hotel which seemed to just shout that something big was going to happen.  Though the book starts of fairly innocently with everyone meeting each other and getting on quite well things take a sinister turn the next morning with the discovery of a dead body.  What happened and who is the murder?

The character’s back stories are gradually revealed throughout the book and it soon becomes apparent that everyone has secrets in their past.  The author keeps everyone guessing as to who the murder was and I found i kept changing my mind as to who it was. The tension in this book is intense and I felt myself reading faster and faster as I desperately wanted to find out who it was and why they did it.

I have read all of this author’s previous books but I felt this was her best yet.  Other people are comparing it to Agatha Christie but as I’ve never read one of her books I can’t confirm that.

Huge thanks to Anne Cater and Transworld publishers for my copy of this book and for inviting me onto the blog tour. If you like gripping, classic style murder mysteries you’ll love this book.

About The Author:

Shari worked as a lawyer and as
an English teacher before writing
fiction. Her debut thriller, The Couple
Next Door, was a global bestseller.
Her second thriller, A Stranger in the
House, has been a Sunday Times and
New York Times bestseller.

Good afternoon, I’m excited to be finally sharing my review of The Factory Girls Of Lark Lane today.  Thanks so much to Kim Nash for being so lovely and understanding when due to a teething baby I couldn’t post yesterday.

The Factory Girls Of Lark Lane is available now in ebook and paperback now.  The ebook is currently only £1.99.  You can purchase a copy of both here.

Book Synopsis:

1940, Liverpool: Best friends Alice Turner and Millie Markham work for the war effort at Rootes munitions factory, making shell caps and Halifax bombers. Alice’s sweetheart Terry is home from the front for a brief period of leave, and the women are excitedly planning a whirlwind wedding.

But the honeymoon is soon over, and the ever-present air raid sirens quickly bring Alice back down to earth. When a terrible explosion at the factory leads to a tragic death, and a loved one is announced missing in action, it’s only their friendship and the support of the other factory girls which help to keep Alice and Millie’s spirits up.

As the war stretches on with no sign of an ending, can Alice and Millie help one another make it through – and find happiness even in the darkest of times?

The Factory Girls of Lark Lane is a heart-wrenching family saga about women in World War 2, the strength of friendship, and hope. If you’re a fan of Nadine Dorries, Diney Costeloe and Kitty Neale, you’ll love Pam Howes!

My Review:

I’m such a huge fan of this author’s books so was thrilled to be able to read an early copy.

The thing I love most about this author’s books is her ability to take the reader to another time and place so that you feel fully immersed in the story.  I felt transported to wartime Liverpool like I was there alongside the girl’s experiencing everything first hand.

The story follows best friends Alice and Millie, their lives both working in the munitions factory and their life outside the factory too.  I loved learning a little more about the work they undertook in the factories and the conditions they had to work in.  Although I did know that women worked in factories I hadn’t read much about it before so found this part of the story fascinating.  The author cleverly includes war events into the story which seem so natural and never forced.  I enjoyed learning more about living with rationing and how creative some people had to be to get by.

This was quite a fast read for me as I really loved the story and the characters so wanted to keep reading to find out what would happen to them.  There was always something happening or a new bit of historical detail to discover which I loved and kept me turning the pages as I eagerly absorbed it all.

This is the fourth book by this author I have read, having previously loved her Mersey Trilogy.  If you like fantastic, well researched historical fiction then you’ll love this book.

Huge thanks to Kim Nash from Bookouture for my copy of this book and for inviting me onto the blog tour.

About The Author:

Book Synopsis:

What would you do if you discovered you had a brother you never knew existed?

On her deathbed, Freda Duckworth confesses to giving birth to an illegitimate child in 1944 and temporarily placing him in a children’s home. She returned later but he had vanished.

What happened to the child? Why did he disappear? Where did he go?

Jayne Sinclair, genealogical investigator, is faced with lies, secrets, and one of the most shameful episodes in recent history as she attempts to uncover the truth.

Can she find the vanished child?

This book is the fourth in the Jayne Sincalir Genealogical Mystery series, but can be read as a stand alone novel.

Every childhood lasts a lifetime.

My Review:

The Vanished Child is an absolutely fantastic piece of historical fiction that manages to be both heartbreaking and heart warming at the same time.

The story is told from two points of view, one from 2017 follows Jayne trying to help her stepmother try to find her lost brother while the other follows her brother Harry in 1951 and his experience as a child migrant to Australia.  Although I found both stories interesting I did prefer Harry’s story as although I had heard of the awful situation that the migrants found themselves in I didn’t know much about what happened.  The fact that this story is based on actual events makes for hard reading at times and I definetly had tears in my eyes reading about what happened to them.  How anyone could have treated children that way is mind boggling. I hoped they realised and felt sorry about what they had done in years to come.

Harry was also my favourite character as he seemed such a lovely, cheeky boy at first who seemed able to get some fun out of his situation.  It was quite heartbreaking to read about his experiences and the problems he had because of them.  I really wished I could have given him a hug or rushed in and adopted him myself and his feelings were quite palpable at times.

I found it fascinating to read more about how a genealogist works and how they manage to find long lost relatives.  It’s something I really want to do when I get the time as Id love to discover more about my family.

Huge thanks to Rachel from Rachel’s Random Resources for my copy of this book and for inviting me onto the blog tour.  If you like dual timeline stories based on real facts that makes you cry and laugh you need to read this book.

About The Author:

Martin has spent most of his adult life writing in one form or another. As a University researcher in history, he wrote pages of notes on reams of obscure topics. As a social worker with Vietnamese refugees, he wrote memoranda. And, as the creative director of an advertising agency, he has written print and press ads, tv commercials, short films and innumerable backs of cornflake packets and hotel websites.

Book Synopsis:

Till death do us part…

After leaving her marriage to jealous, possessive oncologist Maxwell, Lily and her six-year-old son have a second chance at happiness with headteacher Sebastian. Kind but vulnerable, Sebastian is the polar opposite of Maxwell, and the perfect match for Lily. After a whirlwind romance, they marry, and that’s when things start to go wrong…
Maxwell returns to the scene, determined to win back his family, and events soon spiral out of control. Lily and Sebastian find themselves not only fighting for their relationship, but also their lives…
Chilling, dark and terrifying, Do No Harm is a taut psychological thriller and a study of obsession, from one of the most exciting new voices in crime fiction.

My Review:

Ooh another absolutely fabulous book from this amazing author.  I loved this book it was such a brilliant, gripping but unsettling book but one that I feel will be quite difficult to review as I don’t want to give away any spoilers.

This book was fiendishly clever and drew me in from the start with hints at things not being quite right.  Events in the book soon get murkier and murkier as suspicions are thrown after increasingly sinister things happen.  I must admit I found myself holding my breath at some of the events in the book as I waited to see how things will turn out, unable to put the book down as I desperately needed to know what would happen next.  Its amazing to see how things can spiral downwards at such a fast rate and how much people can believe something when there isn’t much evidence.

The story is told from the point of view of both Lily and Sebastian as well as a third mystery person whose identity isn’t clear but who its easy to assume who it is.  This made for very interesting reading as when things happen in the book the reader is aware of some things that the characters aren’t aware of which further increases the tension and pace of the book.  I found myself wanting to shout at the characters for not realising things that were blatantly obvious to me.

The ending was so freaking good! Wow I wasn’t expecting that or for the culprit to be the person I thought it was, very cleverly done by the author.  It was one of those books that had me scrambling back through the book to revisit certain parts to see if I should have realised earlier.What a manipulative, calculating character who still makes my skin crawl days after finishing the book.  When you realise who they are and understand exactly what they’ve done you will feel the same I’m sure! So well plotted and developed by the author, easily one of my favourite reads this year!

Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and Karen from Orenda publishing for my copy of this book.

About The Author:

Lucy V. Hay is a novelist, script editor and blogger who helps writers via her Bang2write consultancy. She is the associate producer of Brit Thrillers Deviation (2012) and Assassin(2015), both starring Danny Dyer. Lucy is also head reader for the London Screenwriters’ Festival and has written two non-fiction books, Writing & Selling Thriller Screenplays, plus its follow-up Drama Screenplays. Her critically acclaimed debut thriller The Other Twin was published in 2017.

Book Synopsis:

Lizzy Beresford is at home alone when she hears a strange noise. Running downstairs to check, she discovers a threatening letter addressed to her. But who sent it?

As Lizzy receives more unsettling messages, she begins to doubt those closest to her – her boyfriend, her neighbours, her friends. Because the mystery sender seems to know everything about her.

And they want to destroy her perfect life.

Desperate for answers, Lizzy contacts her sister, Emma. She used to be her best friend. But they haven’t spoken in years. Not since the terrible argument which tore their relationship apart…

Surrounded by secrets and lies, can Lizzy trust her sister? Or is the shocking truth more dangerous than Lizzy ever imagined?

My Review:

The Secret Sister is a fantastic new book from a very talented author.  The thing I love most about her books is how the reader is drawn immediately into the story and the characters world, so you feel like you belong there. The flow of the book is brilliant and makes the book easy to read, with the short chapters helping to increase your reading speed as it makes the story develop quicker.

I loved the characters the author has created in this book.  I had a soft spot for Lizzie who seemed to be a lovely, normal person who seems confused that someone would be obsessed with her.  She was definitely a great character to get behind and I wanted to find out how her story would end. I also loved Pippa, her work colleague who seemed a lovely, bubbly character.  Her attitude towards her friends was hilarious and I loved that she used what she knew if them to get more sales from the shop.

This book has lots of amazing twists and turns which definetly kept me on my toes.  Just when I thought I knew what was going on something happened which turned the story in a completely new direction.  I also didn’t have a clue as to who the mysterious note writer could be so found myself suspecting everyone which definetly kept me turning those pages as I needed to find out what was happening.

This is the third book by this author that I have read and it definitely won’t be my last.  Huge thanks to bookouBook for my copy of this book via Netgalley and for inviting me onto the blog tour.

About The Author:

Shalini Boland is a USA Today bestselling author of psychological thrillers ‘THE GIRL FROM THE SEA’ (No 1, US Audible charts), ‘THE BEST FRIEND’ (No 2, US Audible charts), ‘THE MILLIONAIRE’S WIFE’ (No 9, UK Kindle charts), ‘THE SECRET MOTHER’ (No 2, US Kindle charts), THE CHILD NEXT DOOR (No 11, UK Kindle charts).

THE SILENT SISTER is now available to preorder!

Shalini lives in Dorset, England with her husband, two children and their cheeky terrier cross. Before kids, she was signed to Universal Music Publishing as a singer/songwriter, but now she spends her days writing psychological thrillers (in between school runs and hanging out endless baskets of laundry).

Be the first to hear about her new releases here: http://eepurl.com/b4vb45

She is also the author of two bestselling Young Adult series as well as an atmospheric WWII novel with a time-travel twist.

http://www.facebook.com/ShaliniBolandAuthor
http://www.shaliniboland.co.uk

I’m so thrilled to be kicked off the blog tour for Dead Of Night by Michael Stanley.  I’m a huge fan of this author so you can imagine my excitement when I was asked to review his new book.

Dead of Night is available now in ebook and paperback now, you can purchase a copy of both here.

Book Synopsis:

When freelance journalist, Crystal Nguyen, heads to South Africa, she thinks she’ll be researching an article on rhino-horn smuggling for National Geographic, while searching for her missing colleague. But within a week, she’s been hunting poachers, hunted by their bosses, and then arrested in connection with a murder. And everyone is after a briefcase full of money that may hold the key to everything…
Fleeing South Africa, she goes undercover in Vietnam, trying to discover the truth before she’s exposed by the local mafia. Discovering the plot behind the money is only half the battle. Now she must convince the South African authorities to take action before it’s too late. She has a shocking story to tell, if she survives long enough to tell it…
Fast-paced, relevant and chilling, Dead of Night is a stunning new thriller that exposes one of the most vicious conflicts on the African continent…

My Review:

Dead Of Night is another fantastic read from a fantastic author.

As always with this author’s books the descriptions of Africa are brilliant.  South Africa is a stunningly beautiful place and the author’s vivid descriptions of the natural beauty made it very easy to imagine.  I felt like I was there walking along with the characters experiencing everything first hand.

I loved the main character Crystal she’s an incredibly strong minded, able women who doesn’t let much stand in her way.  Her courage in going to South Africa to look for Michael and the way she conducts herself during the investigation was very impressive.  She seemed to be a very warm hearted, friendly women which made her very easy to like.

The information about smuggling I found fascinating as it was a subject I knew little about.  Niavely I didn’t think it was that common anymore but this book helped me realise what a big problem it still is.  The huge risks that the smugglers take to get their goods our of the country was quite shocking to read about, as were the variety of things that they tried to sell.  It’s amazing to think people still want that kind of thing.

This was a fast, easy read for me that I found very hard to put download.  The writing just flows and the story progresses in such a way that I felt fully immersed in the book and intrigued as to how it would all work out.  The chapters are quite short which makes it easy to pick up in spare moments to read one more chapter.

Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Orenda Publishers for my copy of this book.  If you like beautifully described, fast paced thrillers with a great female protagonist then you’ll love this book.  I definitely can’t wait to read more from this author.

About The Author:

Michael Stanley is the writing team of Michael Sears and Stanley Trollip. Both were born in South Africa and have worked in academia and business. Their Detective Kubu series has been critically claimed and an international bestseller, picking up multiple awards since first publication. Dead of Night marks a new departure for the duo.

Book Synopsis:

A powerful debut exploring the dark side of Cornwall – the wrecking and the drowned sailors – where poverty drove villagers to dark deeds…

Shipwrecks are part of life in the remote village of Porthmorvoren, Cornwall. And as the sea washes the bodies of the drowned onto the beach, it also brings treasures: barrels of liquor, exotic fruit, the chance to lift a fine pair of boots from a corpse, maybe even a jewel or two.

When, after a fierce storm, Mary Blight rescues a man half-dead from the sea, she ignores the whispers of her neighbours and carries him home to nurse better. Gideon Stone is a Methodist minister from Newlyn, a married man. Touched by Mary’s sacrifice and horrified by the superstitions and pagan beliefs the villagers cling to, Gideon sets out to bring light and salvation to Porthmorvoren by building a chapel on the hill.

But the village has many secrets and not everyone wants to be saved. As Mary and Gideon find themselves increasingly drawn together, jealousy, rumour and suspicion is rife. Gideon has demons of his own to face, and soon Mary’s enemies are plotting against her…

Wrecker is available now in ebook and hardbackback, you can purchase a copy of both here.

My Review:

Wrecker is a fantastic, atmospheric and quite dark piece of historical fiction that I really enjoyed.

The author is very good at setting the scene and I really felt transported to the Cornwall of the past.  Cornwall’s myths and legends as well as the local dialogue is cleverly interwoven into the story which further helped evoke 18th Century Cornwall for me. The author has clearly done his research and I found it fascinating to learn more about the history behind the book.

Wrecking was quite an emotional practice to read about, especially when the shipwreck caused death.  The people who did it or who stole from the dead must have been desperate to do it as I don’t think it’s something I could have done.  The descriptions of what Mary sees when she visits the ship wrecks makes for quite hard reading at times, especially when it involved children .I did find myself skipping the passages that described those scenes.

I wasn’t entirely sure if I liked the main character Mary.  On one hand I liked her don’t care attitude towards a lot of things and felt sorry for her for having to visit the ship wrecks in order to provide for her family.  However she comes across as quite bitter about her position in life and vain as she cares a lot about her looks which meant I wasn’t able to warm to her.  I found myself thinking she’d be a lot happier if she just accepted her position and her looks as a lot of people seem to like her.

For a historical fiction novel this was surprisingly fast paced with lots of stuff happening that helped keep my interest.  The story is quite unusual and I wanted to keep reading to learn more about the history of place and to find out how it would end. I’m always slightly dubious when a novel is described as being like Daphne Du Maurier as she’s one of my favourite authors, but I did feel that it was justified this time as the styles are similar.

Huge thanks to Joe Thomas from HQ stories for my copy of this book via Netgalley and for inviting me onto the blog tour.

About The Author:

Noel O’Reilly is a writer and editor, now focusing on fiction. He studied English Literature at Goldsmiths, University of London, and formerly worked as an English teacher in London. He is an award-winning journalist and currently edits two magazines and contributes to a website for an international publisher.

A keen musician, he plays saxophone and guitar and has performed with various jazz and blues bands, including the Brighton Jazz Cooperative. He has written a musical and a number of comedy sketches and performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and venues including London’s Tram Shed, Boulevard Theatre in Soho and Melkweg in Amsterdam.

Noel spent a year living in Barcelona, commuting to his day job in London via EasyJet, and now lives in Brighton with his family.

Wrecker, Noel’s debut novel, is set in a remote fishing village in nineteenth century Cornwall which is steeped in pagan superstition. It explores the themes of religion and morality from a woman’s point of view and will be published by Harper Collins imprint HQ in summer 2018.

@noeloreilly

www.personneltoday.com