Book Synopsis:
Alice Teale walked out of school at the end of a bright spring day.
She’s not been seen since.
Alice was popular and well-liked, and her boyfriend, friends and family are desperate to find her.
But soon it’s clear that everyone in her life has something to hide.
Then the police receive a disturbing package.
Pages from Alice’s precious diary.
Who could have sent them? And what have they done with Alice?
Alice Teale Is Missing is available in ebook and paperback now. The ebook is currently only 99p. You can purchase your copy using the link below.
My Review:
I really enjoyed this dark gripping read, which was the first thriller I’ve read from this talented author. I’m a huge fan of his historical books so I was very curious to see what his thrillers would be like.
This book drew me in from the start with its intriguing storyline and the lovely writing which made it very easy to read. The story is told from the point of view of the two detectives investigating Alice’s disappearance and I enjoyed following them on their investigations. I particularly liked that the story starts at the beginning of their investigation as it was fun to be involved from the start. The story is interspersed with extracts from Alice’s diary where we start to learn a little more about the real Alice which I thought was cleverly done, particularly as it was written in a different tone to the rest of the book. Some of the passages were quite revealing and made me think more was going on then I originally thought.
Interestingly I liked both the main characters, despite not being keen on Lucas Black at the beginning, he grew on me as the story progressed. I liked how he could show different faces to the world and be a gruff guy sometimes but be almost caring at others. Beth, as a new police officer, gives a fascinating insight into what being on an investigation means and how tricky it can be earning respect as a newbie. I liked how the author includes her real feelings into the story so she’s not just a professional cop but also a human being capable of getting frustrated and annoyed with people, though she tries her best to hide it. I thought they made a very good team and hope that they might appear in future books.
The tension and mystery in the book is slowly increased as the story goes on and I had many scenarios running through my head as to what might have happened. The pace isn’t overly fast to begin with as the author sets the scene but I found myself enjoying watching Beth and Lucas work together as well as learning about Alice so I didn’t mind this. The last quarter of the book is very gripping however and I found it very enjoyable to see everything unfold, with the ending being very satisfying.
Huge thanks to Sriya for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book. I’ll definitely be reading more books from this author in the future!
About The Author:
Howard Linskey is a best-selling author of crime and historical fiction published in seven countries. His debut novel ‘The Drop’ was voted one of the Top Five Thrillers of the Year by the Times newspaper and ‘The Damage’ was voted one of its top summer reads. His David Blake series was optioned for TV by Harry Potter producer, David Barron.
Howard writes a series of north-east set, crime fiction novels for Penguin Random House featuring investigative journalists Tom Carney and Helen Norton, as well as Detective Sergeant Ian Bradshaw.
His historical novels are set in WW2. ‘Hunting the Hangman’ tells the story of the assassination of Nazi general and architect of the Holocaust, Reinhard Heydrich in Prague in 1942. ‘Ungentlemanly Warfare’ follows SOE agent Harry Walsh into occupied France.
Originally from the north east of England, Howard now lives in Herts with his wife Alison and daughter Erin.
Howard was featured on CBS Reality true crime TV series ‘Written In Blood’ .
Howard’s web site is http://www.howardlinskey.co.uk
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