Speaking of could be worse … I had a cracking month reading wise. Some absolutely brilliant books at my disposal and I gobbled them up. 17 books finished and only one of them a novella. Yes – there were a lot of Bank Holidays, but I’ve also had a really busy month at work so managing to finish so many great titles again makes me very happy. Here they are:
After That Night by Karin Slaughter The Generation Killer by Adam Simcox One by Eve Smith Weyward by Emilia Hart You Can’t See Me by Eva Björg Ægisdóttir The Opposite of Lonely by Doug Johnstone Fearless by MW Craven Children of the Mist by Douglas Skelton Zero Kill by MK Hill The Clearing by Simon Toyne Buried by Jeffery Deaver Fear the Silence by Robert Bryndza Scarlet Ribbons by Mark L Fowler The Ungrateful Dead by Adam Simcox Black Thorn by Sarah Hilary All Of Us Are Broken by Fiona Cummins A Game Of Lies by Clare Mackintosh
I’ve had a couple of pieces of book post this week and very excited by both of them. First up was Let Me In by Claire McGowan (20 June) courtesy of Riot Communications and Thomas & Mercer. I also received the rather pretty Someone Like Her by Awais Khan (17 August) courtesy of Orenda Books. Looking forward to reading them both.
L-R: Let Me In; Someone Like Her
No new Netgalley and no new book buys … so far. Who know what will happen when I have time off.
Books I have read
All Of Us Are Broken by Fiona Cummins (20 July)
The electrifying new crime novel from the award winning author, Fiona Cummins, author of Into the Dark and Rattle. It’s been a long time since the Hardwicke family has been on holiday. But thirteen-year-old Galen has wanted to see the wild dolphins at Scotland’s Chanonry Point for as long as she can remember, and her mother Christine – a lone parent since her beloved husband left – is determined she gets her wish. But their serene trip is about to be interrupted. When DC Saul Anguish is called to investigate the shooting of an ex-police officer in Midtown-on-Sea, Essex, he quickly discovers that this is the first in a string of killings by Missy and Fox, a damaged young couple hell-bent on infamy, their love story etched in blood. In pursuit, Saul follows their trail north. The paths of the Hardwickes’ and the deadly couple are about to collide. When Saul and his forensic linguist partner, Blue, arrive on the scene, they witness the unthinkable: a mother forced to make an impossible choice. Saul must uncover the truth about the couple. But can he find the strength to lay the ghosts of his past to rest before they break him?
A Game of Lies by Clare Mackintosh (20 July)
They say the camera never lies. But on this show, you can’t trust anything you see. Stranded in the Welsh mountains, seven reality show contestants have no idea what they’ve signed up for. Each of these strangers has a secret. If another player can guess the truth, they won’t just be eliminated – they’ll be exposed live on air. The stakes are higher than they’d ever imagined, and they’re trapped. The disappearance of a contestant wasn’t supposed to be part of the drama. Detective Ffion Morgan has to put aside what she’s watched on screen, and find out who these people really are – knowing she can’t trust any of them. And when a murderer strikes, Ffion knows every one of her suspects has an alibi . . . and a secret worth killing for.
Deadly Autumn Harvest by Tony Mott ( 30 July)
A series of bizarre murders rocks the beautiful Carpathian town of Braşov. At first there’s nothing obvious to link what appear to be random killings.
With the police still smarting from the scandal of having failed to act in a previous case of a serial kidnapper and killer, they bring in forensic pathologist Gigi Alexa to figure out if several murderers are at work – or if they have another serial killer on their hands.
Ambitious, tough, and not one to suffer fools gladly, Gigi fights to be taken seriously in a society that maintains old-fashioned attitudes to the roles of women.
She and the police team struggle to establish a pattern, especially when resources are diverted to investigating a possible terrorist plot. With the clock ticking, Gigi stumbles across what looks to be a far-fetched theory – just as she realises that she could be on the murderer’s to-kill list.
I am on a roll! It won’t last – too many days out and days away planned over the coming weeks to sustain this pace. But hey – I’ve read nearly all books I intended to review in July! Can’t be bad. Busy enough week on the blog – recap below:
#Review – No Sweet Sorrow – Denzil Meyrick #Review – The Seventh Victim – Michael Wood #Review – The Spider – Lars Kepler #Review – We Can Be Heroes – Paul Burston #Review – Her Last Promise – Catherine Hokin
No blog tours this week – but a week full of reviews and also a cover reveal for a book I’m really looking forward to.
And that’s my lot. I’m playing catch up with reviews and trying to cram in a few more reads while I can. Off to Londinium on Thursday to attend the book launch of No Ordinary Day by Matt Johnson and John Murray, about the investigation into the murder of WPC Yvonne Fletcher. Have to be on my very best behaviour too as I think there will be more than one or two former and current members of the Constabulary present (not that I have any reason to be concerned being the upstanding citizen that I am …
