Book Synopsis:

How can you uphold a lie when you know it might destroy your family?

It is 1356, seven years since the Black Death ravaged Meonbridge, turning society upside down. Margaret, Lady de Bohun, is horrified when her husband lies about their grandson Dickon’s entitlement to inherit Meonbridge. She knows that Richard lied for the very best of reasons – to safeguard his family and its future – but lying is a sin. Yet she has no option but to maintain her husband’s falsehood… 

Margaret’s companion, Matilda Fletcher, decides that the truth about young Dickon’s birth really must be told, if only to Thorkell Boune, the man she’s set her heart on winning. But Matilda’s “honesty” serves only her own interests, and she’s oblivious to the potential for disaster.

For Thorkell won’t scruple to pursue exactly what he wants, by whatever means are necessary, no matter who or what gets in his way…

De Bohun’s Destiny is available in ebook now for the fabulous price if £3.99 or if you are a kindle unlimited member you can read for free! Get your copy using the link below.

My Review:

I can’t believe I’ve not read anything by this author before as I thought this was a brilliantly researched, immersive and fascinating book that really brings the fourteenth century to life.

Firstly the author has clearly done her research as the reader is thrown into fourteenth century life with all the rules, hardship and unfairness it involved. This book had all the drama you’d expect with the class divide and the difference between daily life for the poor versus the rich vividly described. I haven’t read many books set in this time so I eagerly absorbed all the fabulous details.

There are some brilliant characters in this book. I especially liked the two female characters, Margaret and Matilda who were both strong woman in a time when it was difficult to be a strong woman. The ‘villans’ Sir Boune and his sons are also great characters to read about, especially as the reader is privy to all their devious plotting which made for a very exciting read. I found I really enjoyed reading about all of them and following their story throughout the book.

This is a surprising gripping book with lots of action to keep the reader firmly glued to the page. I soon found myself completely immersed in the story and I loved the extra little details the author used to help bring the story to life. I felt I wanted to keep reading to find out what happens but also to slow down and enjoy it as I didn’t want it to end.

This is the third book in the series but I thought it could easily be read as a standalone as anything you need to know is explained. I’m very interested to go back and read the other books in the series as I am eager to revisit the fascinating world the author has created. I hope this isn’t the last in the series!

Huge thanks to Rachel from Rachel’s Random resources for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book. If you like fascinating, unusual historical fiction you’ll love this book!

About The Author:

To join “Team Meonbridge”, and receive updates on my books and the occasional request for your help or feedback, go to http://bit.ly/joinmeonbridge.

Carolyn Hughes was born in London, but has lived most of her life in Hampshire. After a first degree in Classics and English, she started her working life as a computer programmer, in those days a very new profession. It was fun for a few years, but she left to become a school careers officer in Dorset.

But it was when she discovered technical authoring that she knew she had found her vocation. She spent the next few decades writing and editing all sorts of material, some fascinating, some dull, for a wide variety of clients, including an international hotel group, medical instrument manufacturers and the Government.

She has written creatively for most of her adult life, but it was not until her children grew up and flew the nest, several years ago, that creative writing and, especially, writing historical fiction, took centre stage in her life.

She has a Masters in Creative Writing from Portsmouth University, and a PhD from the University of Southampton.

Book Synopsis:

WHAT IF SOMEONE WANTED YOUR FAMILY DEAD?

‘A tour de force’ SUNDAY TIMES

‘ A real gripper of a read’ PETER JAMES

‘Twist follows twist at a breathtaking pace’ DAILY MAIL
___________________________

It’s one of the most disturbing cases DI Fawley has ever worked.

The Christmas holidays, and two children have just been pulled from the wreckage of their burning home in North Oxford. The toddler is dead, and his brother is soon fighting for his life.

Why were they left in the house alone? Where is their mother, and why is their father not answering his phone?

Then new evidence is discovered, and DI Fawley’s worst nightmare comes true.

Because this fire wasn’t an accident. It was murder.

And the killer is still out there…

No Way Out is available now in ebook and paperback. The ebook is currently only 99p. You can purchase a copy of both using the link below.

My Review:

No Way Out is a realistic, gripping crime thriller that I couldn’t put down! I found myself hiding in the kitchen trying to read a few more pages and taking my kindle everywhere with me in the hope I could read a bit more.

Our house going on fire is one of my worse nightmares, especially if the kids were at home so I felt myself immediately drawn into the story. It led to lots of discussions with my husband about what we’d do if a fire started and led to us purchasing an escape ladder. I therefore read this book with a lot of anticipation and dread as my mind went through all of the scenarios that could happened.

The story is told from multiple points of view, which is a little confusing to start with but I soon got used to. It was great to follow the investigation as well as getting an insight into the drama happening in the detectives lives. This made the detectives seem a lot more real and meant I had a lot of empathy for them and all they were going through. They make a great team and it was lovely to see the interactions between them.

I’m normally quite good at guessing what has happened in a book but the many twists in this book made it impossible to figure out. Just when I thought I had figured it out something would happen which would have me scrambling in a completely different direction. The tension in this book slower increases as things get more complicated which makes the book hard to put down as I needed to know what was going on.

This is the third book in the series but can easily be read as a standalone, like I have done, as anything you need to know is explained. It might help to have read the books in order just so you knowing more about the background of the detectives but it doesn’t detract from the story not knowing everything that happened.

Huge thanks to Ellie from Penguin Books for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book via Netgalley.

About The Author:

I’m lucky enough to live in the city I write about. Oxford will be familiar to crime fans across the whole world because of the fabulous Morse novels and TV, but my version of the town is a long way from the beautiful ivy-clad colleges. A much edgier place where the crimes are darker and closer to home.

I’ve always been a voracious reader and viewer of crime – I’ve learned so much from the outstanding writing that we now see on crime TV like Line of Duty or Broadchurch, and I’ve tried to recreate the experience of watching series like that for my readers. I love true crime TV as well – my husband used to tease me about it but now just nods sagely and says ‘research’ !

What else about me? I have pet cats who do their best to distract me whenever I get close to a keyboard (if you have cats, you’ll know), I love travelling, spending time with friends, and I have never knowingly turned down a glass of champagne….

Book Synopsis:

Mary Shields is a moody, acerbic probation offer, dealing with some of Glasgow’s worst cases, and her job is on the line. Liam Macdowall was imprisoned for murdering his wife, and he’s published a series of letters to the dead woman, in a book that makes him an unlikely hero – and a poster boy for Men’s Rights activists.

Liam is released on licence into Mary’s care, but things are far from simple. Mary develops a poisonous obsession with Liam and his world, and when her son and Liam’s daughter form a relationship, Mary will stop at nothing to impose her own brand of justice … with devastating consequences.

Worse Case Scenario is available in ebook and paperback now. You can purchase a copy of both using the link below.

My Review:

I’m big fan of this author so I was very excited to be invited onto the blog tour for this her latest book, though slightly nervous about whether it would be as amazing! I needn’t have worried as Worse Case Scenario is a fantastic, dark, gritty but hilarious book that I thoroughly enjoyed!

I loved the main character Mary . Yes she’s not the most caring lady at times but she’ll do anything for her family which really endeared her to me. She’s rude, crude and very funny which made her very entertaining to read about. She’s a bit older than most detectives I read about but she was just as fiesty and clever, not letting her age or menopausal symptoms get in her way!

Although this is a fairly short book the author has managed to pack a lot of action and fun into its pages. There are some incredibly funny moments that had me laughing out loud but also some fairly embarrassing moments that had me cringing. Some of the language and descriptions are quite crude at times and might not be to everyone’s taste but they do help bring Mary to life.

Overall this was a fast, entertaining read and I can’t wait to read more from this author. I’d love for this book to be main into a film as it would be great to see Mary brought to life!

Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Karen from Orenda publishers for my copy of this book which I received in exchange for an honest review.

About The Author:

Helen FitzGerald is the bestselling author of Dead Lovely (2007) and nine other adult and young adult thrillers, including My Last Confession (2009), The Donor (2011) and most recently The Cry (2013), which was longlisted for the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year. Helen has worked as a criminal justice social worker for over ten years. She is one of thirteen children and grew up in Victoria, Australia. She now lives in Glasgow with her husband and two children.

BookSynopsis:

Nurse Trudy Genova is making plans to take her relationship to NYPD detective Ned O’Malley to the next level, when she lands a gig as medical consultant on a film shoot at the famed Dakota apartment building in Manhattan, which John Lennon once called home. Then star Monica Kiley goes missing, a cast member turns up dead, and it appears Trudy might be next. Meanwhile Ned tackles a mysterious murder case in which the victim is burned beyond recognition. When his investigations lead him back to the Dakota, Trudy finds herself wondering: how can she fall in love if she can’t even survive?

Readers of Death Unscripted, the first book in the Trudy Genova Manhattan Mystery series, will find the same pleasures in this sequel: fast pacing, engaging characters, twists and turns on the way to a satisfying close. From the award-winning author of The Nora Tierney English Mysteries, this second series is a winner. Once again M.K. Graff reveals her talents in crafting this delightful mix of amateur sleuth and police procedural.

Part procedural, part cozy, Death at the Dakota is a well-crafted and highly entertaining mystery.- Bruce Robert Coffin, #1 bestselling author of the Detective Byron mysteries.   

Death At The Dakota is available in paperback now. You can purchase your copy using the link below.

My Review:

Death At The Dakota was a clever and surprisingly gripping cosy mystery which was very entertaining.

Trudy was a fantastic main character who I immediately liked. She’s very clever and astute which made following her whilst solving the murder mystery very interesting. She’s also incredibly funny and often had me laughing out loud. I wanted to keep reading learn more about her.

The murder mystery was very intriguing and I enjoyed watching it unravel. The clues and twists are slowly revealed at a nice pace which helped keep my interest in the book. Some of the twists were quite surprising and I felt I enjoyed trying to work every out alongside Trudy.

I thought this was an easy read that was great to lose myself in for hours. Although it is the second book in the series it’s easily read as a standalone, like I’ve done.

Huge thanks to Emma from Damp pebbles tours for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book.

About The Author:

Marni Graff is the Award-winning author of The Nora Tierney English Mysteries, and The Trudy Genova Manhattan Mysteries.
The Nora Tierney English Mysteries feature American Nora living in England. THE BLUE VIRGIN received First Prize in the Mystery and Mayhem Award for Best British Cozy from Chanticleer Review and is set in Oxford. THE GREEN REMAINS takes Nora to the Lake District and murder follows and won the same award for Best British Cozy. THE SCARLET WENCH , shortlisted for the same award, finds Nora involved in finding the murderer from a visiting theatre troupe living amongst her and her son at the lodge where she’s staying. A copy of SW is in the archives of the estate of Noel Coward, as all of the chapter epigrams are lines from his farce, “Blithe Spirit” which figures in the action. The fourth, THE GOLDEN HOUR, finds Nora visiting Brighton, Cornwall, and her beloved Oxford, with key action in Bath. The entire series has also been narrated for Audible books by British actress Nano Nagle and are available on Kindle.

The first Trudy Genova Manhattan Mystery, Death Unscripted, is based on Graff’s real-life work as a medical consultant for a New York movie studio. Trudy has that job, too, but in her case, murder follows. This is the book P. D. James insisted Graff write and is dedicated to her. The book was named a finalist for the IAN Awards and was shortlisted as Best Mystery from Chanticleer Media. Book 2 in that series, DEATH AT THE DAKOTA, is slated to publish Spring 2019. Lucinda Gainey narrates the Audible’s of the Trudy Genova series, and these are also on Kindle.

Graff is Managing Editor of Bridle Path Press, an author’s cooperative based out of Baltimore, MD, and writes this crime review blog, Auntie M Writes.

Also known as Auntie M, MK and Marnette, Marni grew up in Floral Park, NY. She currently resides in rural North Carolina, and lives on the Pungo River, part of the coast’s Intracoastal Waterway.
She is the author of screenplays, stories, essays and poetry, in addition to the two mystery series. Her creative nonfiction was most recently seen in Southern Women’s Review,  Fine Line Anthology and, and Shelf Pleasures. Her poem about Amelia Earhart in an anthology of poems dedicated to the pilot that is on display in Earhart’s hometown museum.

Book Synopsis:

THE WORLD HAS ENDED. AT LEAST WE STILL HAVE DOGS.

My name’s Griz. 
I’ve never been to school, I’ve never had friends, in my whole life I’ve not met enough people to play a game of football. My parents told me how crowded the world used to be, before all the people went away, but we were never lonely on our remote island. We had each other, and our dogs.
Then the thief came. 
He told stories of the deserted towns and cities beyond our horizons. I liked him – until I woke to find he had stolen my dog. So I chased him out into the ruins of the world.
I just want to get my dog back, but I found more than I ever imagined was possible. More about how the world ended. More about what my family’s real story is. More about what really matters.

A Boy And His Dog At The End Of The World is available in ebook and hardback now. You can purchase your copy using the link below.

My Review:

A Boy And His Dog At The End Of The World is a beautiful, surprising story with a very moving message. It’s a book that is hard to review as I don’t won’t to give away any spoilers, which is also firmly stated at the front of the book!

The story follows Griz as he ventures out into a post apocalyptic, changed world to rescue his dog from the complicated Brand. The journey takes the reader through a world that is at times recognisable but also very different. The eerie, entrancing but isolated world is a sparsely populated one as humans have gradually died off. Some of the descriptions in this book are very beautiful and I loved the image of nature taking back control. Griz makes lots of shocking discoveries on his moving journey to find his dog and it was fascinating to travel through this new world with him where people have to scavenge to survive.

I absolutely loved Griz and warmed to him straight away. He’s only a boy but seems quite mature at times as he has all the survival skills needed to get by. He is an incredibly endearing character that seemed so clever at times that I had to stop reading to admire what he’d just done but so vulnerable on the other that I wished I could give him a hug. His love for his dog is incredibly touching and was incredibly moving to read about.

The author slowly increases the tension in this book making it very gripping. I so enjoyed going on this journey with Griz and I will be recommending this book to everyone.

Huge thanks to Tracy Fenton for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Orbit publishers for my copy of this book.

About The Author:

C. A. Fletcher has children and dogs. He lives in Scotland and writes for a living. Follow him on twitter at @CharlieFletch_r or find out more about A BOY AND HIS DOG AT THE END OF THE WORLD here: http://www.orbitbooks.net/a-boy-and-his-dog/

Book Synopsis:

…**THIS IS A GOVERNMENT ALERT**IF YOU EXHIBIT SYMPTOMS,  STAY IN YOUR HOMES**PLEASE REMAIN CALM AND DO NOT ATTEMPT THE RESCUE OF OTHERS**THIS IS A GOVERNMENT ALERT**IF YOU EXHIBIT SYMPTOMS,  STAY IN YOUR HOMES**PLEASE REMAIN CALM AND DO NOT ATTEMPT THE RESCUE OF OTHERS**THIS IS A GOVERNMENT ALERT**…

IT STARTS WITH ONE PATIENT
A woman is dying in an Italian hospital, coughing up blood, convulsing and barely conscious.
BEFORE IT SPREADS TO THE TOWN 
Dr Alana Vaughn, an expert from NATO, confirms everyone’s worst fears: the woman has the highly infectious disease that swept through Europe eight hundred years ago. The Black Death.
AND TAKES THE CITY
The sickness is spreading so quickly that soon the outbreak becomes a global pandemic. Markets crash and governments fall as quickly as the citizens they govern.  
THEN THE COUNTRY
As panic takes hold and the death toll climbs, the consequences become horrifically clear – Alana must discover a way to stop the disease or it will be the end of us all.
THEN THE WORLD – AND WE ALL FALL DOWN

At the height of an epidemic, what kind of person will you become? Think Contagion meets The Da Vinci Code in the next heart-stopping thriller from the internationally bestselling author Daniel Kalla.

We All Fall Down is available in ebook now and in paperback on the 2nd of May 2019. The ebook is currently only 99p. Purchase or pre-order your copy using the link below.

My Review:

We All Fall Down is an incredibly fast paced thriller that is impossible to put down. The idea of something as horrific as the black death coming back is a truly scary thought and one that makes for fascinating reading. I remember watching a program that says the black death has been discovered again so this added an extra element to the story as it made it very real.

The story is told from two points of view. One follows Alana as she tries to treat and stop the spread of the black death in modern day Italy. The other takes the reader back to 1348 and the huge outbreak then. I found this very interesting especially as it highlighted the difference between lifestyles of the people and treatments that were available for the victims.

I really enjoyed this book and found it incredibly thrilling which made it very hard to put down. There is lots going on between the two timelines to keep the reader interested and the eerie mystery of the monastery kept me firmly involved in the story. I had lots of guesses about what was going on but I was wrong about most of them which added to my enjoyment of the book.

Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Harriet Collins from Simon and Schuster for my copy of this book. If you like historical thrillers you’ll love this book!

About The Author:

Daniel Kalla is the internationally bestselling author of Pandemic,Resistance, Rage Therapy, Blood Lies, Cold Plague, and Of Flesh and Blood. His books have been translated into eleven languages, and two novels have been optioned for film. Kalla practices emergency medicine in Vancouver, British Columbia. Visit Daniel at DanielKalla.com or follow him on Twitter @DanielKalla.

Book Synopsis:

In the tumultuous aftermath of the First World War the Wilson brothers head in opposite directions: Richard, interned in Austria throughout the conflict, returns to England; Edward, a junior officer, is dispatched from Italy to Vienna as part of the British Army’s relief mission.

For Edward, it will be a return to the city and to love. But it will not be the same city: Vienna is no longer the administrative heart of an Empire, merely a provincial capital ravaged by starvation, and paralysed by the winter snows. Will it be the same love? 

In London, Richard is employed in the ministerial heart of government, and soon dazzled by the Under Secretary’s vision for a new, federal Europe. But for the new to exist the old must be replaced; and the Habsburg Emperor, on his estate near the Czech border, revolution all around, refuses to go. One man is sent to make sure that he does. 

With the brothers estranged by distance and time, their lives become unknowingly entwined in a shadowy plot – and it seems the end of the war is only the beginning of their struggle.

The Passing Tribute is available in ebook and paperback now. The ebook is currently only £1.19. You can purchase copy of both using the unaffiliated link below.

My Review:

I haven’t read many books set in the period between the two world wars so I was very intrigued to read this book and perhaps find more about it. Although it is a slightly quiet period historically, it was obviously a time of quite big turmoil for people as they struggled to cope with what we know now as PTSD but which was diagnosed for the most part at the time. It must have been very difficult for people to have to deal with all the horrific memories and how much the war had changed their loved ones.

The story follows brothers Edward and Richard as they travel to peace missions in the aftermath of world war one . The author has obviously done a lot of research into this period and I found it fascinating to find out more about it. The descriptions of the countries are wonderfully described and allowed me to really imagine the settings in my mind. It was quite poignant to realise how much the world and the two brothers had changed.

My favourite character was Millie who is a very fun, confident nurse who helps Edward on his mission. She helped to bring a bit of light relief to a quite serious story and I found that I enjoyed reading about her.

The writing style is very clever but does take a bit of getting used to. It is very descriptive which isn’t meant as a criticism as the descriptions help add to the story but might not be to every readers taste. The author has used old fashioned language and some quite hard words which made it difficult at times to get a reading flow going as I had to keep looking up a few words. I think this is probably just my experience though and a more classic reader would really enjoy this book.

Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Unbound for my copy of this book which I received in exchange for an honest review.

About The Author:

Simon studied modern history at UCL and received an MA in Imperial and Commonwealth History from King’s College London. His research has led to an enduring fascination with the politics of empire and the causes of both world wars, which has informed his novels to date.

Born and raised in London, he has lived and worked in France for much of the past decade as a Real Tennis Professional. He is thinking of becoming Anglo-Saxon again. 

The Passing Tribute is his second novel. It is the sequel to The Long Drawn Aisle.

Book Synopsis:

Let me tell you a story, about a man I knew, and a man I know…

Mr Baxter is ninety-four years old when he falls down his staircase and grudgingly finds himself resident at Melrose Gardens Retirement Home.

Baxter is many things – raconteur, retired music teacher, rabble-rouser, bon viveur – but ‘good patient’ he is not. He had every intention of living his twilight years with wine, music and revelry; not tea, telly and Tramadol. Indeed, Melrose Gardens is his worst nightmare – until he meets Gregory.

At only nineteen years of age, Greg has suffered a loss so heavy that he is in danger of giving up on life before he even gets going.

Determined to save the boy, Baxter decides to enlist his help on a mission to pay tribute to his long-lost love, Thomas: the man with whom he found true happiness; the man he waved off to fight in a senseless war; the man who never returned. The best man he ever knew.

With Gregory in tow Baxter sets out on a spirited escape from Melrose, bound for the war graves of Northern France. As Baxter shares his memories, the boy starts to see that life need not be a matter of mere endurance; that the world is huge and beautiful; that kindness is strength; and that the only way to honour the dead, is to live.

Baxter’s Requiem is a glorious celebration of life, love and seizing every last second we have while we’re here.

Baxter’s Requiem is available now in all formats. Purchase your copy using the link below.

My Review:

This is a beautifully written though emotional book which will stay with me for a long time. The author has managed to create a wonderful story of friendship and lost love that was a very interesting read.

Baxter was a wonderful main character that I quickly warmed to. I felt very sorry for him when he is forced into the retirement home but I enjoyed watching his relationship with Greg develop and learning more about his past life. I think its quite sad that in our busy lives it is easy to write off elderly people and not think of them as having a past. It was therefore very interesting, though sad to realise what had happened in Baxter’s life which had obviously had long lasting effects. Greg was another endearing character and it was lovely to see how his friendship with Baxter helped and guided him.

This isn’t particularly a fast moving book and there isn’t a lot of action in it, though this doesn’t stop it from being a very compelling read. The story is a very emotional one as we learn more about the characters and I felt it unfolded in real time which made me warm further to the characters. I found myself thinking about this book long after I had finished reading and will look forward to reading more from this author. I have seen a few other reviewers comparing him to Matthew Quick which I would agree with as the style is similar. I’m looking forward to reading more from him in the future.

Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and to the publishers for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

About The Author:

Matthew Crow was born and raised in Newcastle. Having worked as a freelance journalist since his teens he has contributed to a number of publications including the Independent on Sunday and the Observer. He has written for adults and YA. His book My Dearest Jonah, was nominated for the Dylan Thomas Prize.