Caroline

I haven't read a lot of historical fiction to date, but this might well be the book to bring about a change in my reading matter. The fact that it's book one of a mystery series is purely coincidental. 😉

The justice alluded to in the title is ex-magistrate, Robert Belstrang. Belstrang is approached by his Catholic neighbour, John Jessop, with a plea to help find his son Thomas, whose last known whereabouts is London. 📜⚖️

The year is 1616, and King James is on the throne. The London that Robert Belstrang finds himself in is very different to the London he remembers from his days at court. It's not long before his inquiries into the whereabouts of Thomas Jessop reach the ears of the young man's puppetmasters, and Robert soon finds himself in a lot of trouble. 📜⚖️

Although a bit of a slow burn, there are plenty of twists to keep the story from becoming boring. I liked Robert Belstrang. He may be past his prime, but he is obstinate and will let nothing get in the way of his task. He also has some empathy for the Jessops, despite their being Catholic. 📜⚖️

I enjoyed this book immensely, and look forward to the next in the Justice Belstrang series. 📜⚖️

Thanks to Boldwood Books and Netgalley for the ARC.

This title will be available on June 23rd.

I'm not going to lie, when I started reading this, I balked at the "R" word. I'm just not into romance novels, you see. I'm more of a monsters-under-the-bed, serial-killer-in-the-wardrobe kind of girl. So I hesitated, but then I decided to plod on, and boy was I glad I did, because I actually, wait for it... enjoyed this. Yes, you read that right. I. Enjoyed. This. Book. Surprised you, huh? Well no one was more surprised than me. 🙀

If Books Could Kill follows Roxie, reader of romance novels, who wishes she could be the protagonist in the next book by her favourite author, Anna Matthews. By a quirk of fate, Roxie's wish comes true. There's just one problem; Anna has decided to change direction, and instead of a romance novel, Roxie finds herself in a crime thriller. Now do you see why I enjoyed it? 😸

It wasn't just the fact that there were killers on the loose that had me zipping through this. No siree. The characters, good and bad alike, were likeable. There was plenty of humour, sometimes bordering on the farcical, but that just made me enjoy it all the more. There was the inevitable romance, but honestly guys, I was too invested to care by then. And now I'm going to make a wee confession. There was one poignant scene towards the end that caused me to shed a tear. Yep, you read that right too. I. Shed. A. Tear. 😿

I doubt I'll start reading bodice rippers anytime soon, but I'm glad I didn't give up on this particular book. I would have missed a treat. 😺

Thanks to Michael Joseph Books and Netgalley for the ARC.

This title will be available on June 18th.

I loved The Pinnacle. Loved it, I tell you. It is definitely one of my favourites from this year, and as I hadn't previously read anything by Abir Mukherjee, it was a great starting point. 💻🇮🇳

I know you want to know what I loved about The Pinnacle. Everything peeps, everything, but mainly:

- The location, which is Mumbai, (a place I'm only familiar with thanks to The Best Marigold Hotel and its sequel.)

- The fact that this is a crime thriller.

- The wonderful characters. From the best to the worst, I loved them all. 💻🇮🇳

I suppose you want to know what it's about. Without giving too much away, The Pinnacle is a skyscraper in Mumbai, where the uber rich reside, safe in the knowledge that its security is state of the art. Then one of its residents, the queen of Bollywood, is found dead in her apartment, stabbed whilst she slept. 💻🇮🇳

What follows is a twisty tale that takes us through the streets of Mumbai, where we encounter many colourful characters. There is also a subplot, involving the dead woman's PA. 💻🇮🇳

There's a lot of humour throughout, verging on slapstick at times, but somehow, it felt right. 💻🇮🇳

I really loved The Pinnacle. I hope you do too.

Thanks to Random House UK and Netgalley for the ARC.

The Secrets We Hide is one of the twistiest police procedurals I've read recently, and that's how I like them. I also like that Slaughter got straight down to business with the prologue. Opening with the murder was always going to reel me in. 🎣

We're back in North Falls for this, the second book in the Emmy Clifton series. It's six weeks since the events of We Are All Guilty Here came to their shocking conclusion, and when we meet Emmy, she is at her mother's funeral. On the way to a family gathering at cousin Taybee's house, Emmy, accompanied by son Cole and sister Jude, takes a short cut through a residential area of North Falls. That's when they hear a gunshot. 🚔

The investigation that follows takes many turns, and has a rogues gallery of suspects, from the abusive husband, to the former lover with a temper he can't control. The final reveal is a heartbreaker. 🚔

As with all of Slaughter's books, the themes, and people, are dark. Domestic abuse, crooked cops, blackmail and murder feature heavily. 🚔

Character wise, I'm glad Jude stayed in North Falls. She, rather than Emmy, is my favourite character, and I'm interested to see what she does going forward. 🚔

All told, I really enjoyed this book, and I love that it ended on a cliffhanger because that means there will be another instalment. 🚔

Thanks to HarperCollins UK and Netgalley for the ARC.

This title will be available on June 18th.

To mark the 100th anniversary of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, HarperCollins UK will be publishing a special edition of the novel. I was lucky enough to be invited to read an ARC, and what a treat it was. 🗡️

As with last year's special edition of And Then There Were None, the final chapter of this Christie classic has been omitted, giving the reader the opportunity to try and solve the mystery alongside Poirot and his new sidekick, Dr. James Sheppard. 🗡️

Once again I had a lot of fun with this. As I hadn't read this before, nor watched its TV adaptation, I knew as much as Inspector Raglan or Poirot. There was quite a pool of suspects to choose from, and a few well placed red herrings too. 🗡️

When I got to the end, and was satisfied with my investigation, I downloaded the final chapter to see if I was right. 🗡️

To say I thoroughly enjoyed this book would be an understatement. That missing final chapter made the reading experience a lot more enjoyable, and my not having read the entire Christie back catalogue certainly helped. 🗡️

Thanks to HarperCollins UK and Netgalley for the ARC. This title will be available on June 4th.

I've been a fan of this series since Every Dead Thing was first published, and have read every single one more than once. A River Red With Blood has the honour of being the first in the series that I have listened to rather than read, and what an experience it has been. Jeff Harding has done a sterling job of narrating what is, in my opinion, the best Parker book post pandemic. 🩸

The usual cast of characters are here; Parker, Angel, Louis, and the Fulci brothers, Paulie and Tony. We also meet some characters we haven't met for some time, the rabbi Epstein, and medium Sabine Drew. 🩸

A River Red With Blood is a dark, disturbing story of kidnapping, rape and murder. During the course of his investigation into the death of a boy who had run away from his school, Parker encounters many creepy, decidedly evil individuals. And then he learns of the return of one of his nemeses. 🩸

The overall darkness of the book is balanced out by the humourous banter between Parker, Angel and Louis, and by the very presence of the Fulci brothers. 🩸

While the supernatural elements are kept to a minimum, there are some revelations, and it will be interesting to see where they take us. 🩸

I love this series, and I plan to circle back to the beginning and listen to every single book. 🩸🎧

I haven't been reading these anthologies in sequence, but this volume is my favourite to date.

Once again Tony Medawar has selected forgotten classics from the golden age of detective fiction, in this, the second book in the Bodies From the Library series. 🔎

Authors include Margery Allingham, Dorothy L Sayer, Edmund Crispin and Agatha Christie. 🔎

My personal favourite was Room to Let by Margery Allingham, a radio script about an unsolved murder, the victim of which may have been Jack the Ripper. 🔎

If you love tales from the golden age of detective fiction, then this is the book for you. 🔎

Not as good as its predecessors, but still an entertaining anthology. My personal favourite was The Magnifying Glass. 🔍

I liked the premise for this; a female serial killer eliminates men who have wronged her. A sort of female Dexter, if you will. There, however, the similarity ends because, while I loved Dexter, I couldn't warm to Yrsa at all, and lord knows I tried. 💉

I didn't dislike Honey, but it didn't excite me as much as the blurb for it did. That doesn't mean it's a bad book. Only you can decide that, by reading it for yourself. Just because it didn't set my world on fire doesn't mean it won't do so for you. 💉

As I said, I didn't dislike it. It had its moments, such as Yrsa's first, unintentional, kill, or her attempt to kill a well known misogynist. 💉

Yrsa comes across as very cold and unapproachable. Indeed, there is an instance of a student making a complaint about her. She does have a softer side though, as evidenced by her interactions with her father, and her frequent visits to her neighbor, Blake. 💉

Despite not loving it, Honey engaged me enough to want to finish it and find out how it ends for Yrsa. Again, you'll have to read it for yourself because I'm not going to tell you. 💉

Thanks to Harper Collins UK and Netgalley for the ARC.

This title will be available on May 7th.

I love a locked room mystery, me. I also love a side order of dark humour with my locked room mystery. A main character that's a bit of a maverick is a bonus. This book ticked all those boxes, and then some. 🚢

Jack Parlabane, our maverick, is an investigative journalist, trying to solve a decades old mystery. It's not long before he finds himself in the middle of a murder mystery onboard an ocean liner. 🚢

With three generations of one entertainment family, a business man keen to buy the puppet show that made them famous, and assorted fans of the show, there's quite a lot going on before we even get to the murder. There's also quite a lot of characters. That said, I enjoyed this. I really, really did. There's dark humour aplenty, and enough intrigue to keep the little grey cells ticking over. 🚢

This is the ninth book in the Jack Parlabane series, but the only one that I have read to date. This didn't hamper my enjoyment in any way. I may even circle back to the beginning some time. 🚢

Thanks to Little Brown and Netgalley for the ARC.

This title will be available on May 7th.

Five people are waiting for a train: a woman and her young son, an elderly lady, a gambler, and a business man. Their train is due at the station in five minutes, and when it arrives, one of these five will die. 🚝

The pages almost thrum with the tension that runs through this book. We, the readers, are spectators to what unfolds on this station platform. From the moment Gideon throws his mother's phone, we know that something bad is going to happen. Well actually, we know before then, because the author has told us so, but this incident serves to bring it home. From that moment on, further incidents occur until it is anyone's guess as to who will die, because there is no question now that someone will. 🚝

An incident at another station means the train is delayed by several minutes, causing some anxiety amongst the five, and some secondary characters who are also waiting on the platform. I was feeling pretty anxious myself at this point. 🚝

We are also treated to five interludes, where we learn the back stories of these five people. It soon becomes apparent that at least two of them know each other. 🚝

I enjoyed Five immensely. The back stories of the main protagonists were interesting, and at times poignant, more so because I knew one of them was going to die. While they weren't particularly likeable (yes, even the child) I certainly wasn't wishing death on any of them. I did, however, guess correctly who the unlucky person would be. 🚝

Thanks to HQ and Netgalley for the ARC.

This title will be available on May 5th.

I may have mentioned this before, but it's worth saying it again... this is a fun series. It may be cosy, but it's also very entertaining, with a wonderful cast of characters. 🗡️

How to Cheat Your Own Death is the third book in the Castle Knoll series. Author Kristen Perrin has stuck with the dual timeline narrative that served her so well in the first two books. The setting for this one is London, where Annie, preoccupied with her own fortune, is visiting her artist mother, Laura. Before you can say turpentine, Annie discovers a body in a skip behind her mother's house. This is the present day timeline, told from Annie's POV. 🗡️

The second timeline is 1968, and is told from the POV of Annie's great aunt Frances, in the form of diary entries. In this timeline there is a murder, with a modus operandi almost identical to that in Annie's timeline. Are the two connected? 🗡️

The story moves on at a steady pace. The dual timeline might not be to everyone's liking, but for me it was a further glimpse into Frances's life and how she came to be the keeper of so many secrets. All told, this was a most enjoyable read. 🗡️

Thanks to Quercus Books and Netgalley for the ARC.

This is the third installment in the Bodies From the Library series, an anthology of short mysteries from the golden age of detective fiction. 🔍

There's quite the mixed bag here, and a lot of authors I'd not heard of before. 🔍

My favourite story in the collection was The Incident of the Dog's Ball by Agatha Christie. My least favourite was Grand Guignol by John Dickson Carr which, I must admit, I DNF. 🔍

All in all though, this was an entertaining collection that made perfect bedtime reading. 🔍

I borrowed this title from Borrowbox.

I'm not a die hard Bowie fan, but I do appreciate his music, his many transformations, and his wonderful music videos (Ashes to Ashes springs to mind.) I've read other biographies of Bowie, and I didn't think there was anything more I needed to know. Then I saw this particular book on BorrowBox. The title intrigued me. I just had to know. 🎸

David Bowie and the Search for Life Death and God does exactly what it says on the tin. This is a deep dive into Bowie's search for spiritual enlightenment. It seems that he changed his religion as often as he changed his persona. Be it Buddhism, Gnosticism or Occultism, he tried them all. Not for Bowie organised religion. 🎸

As Ormerod takes us through Bowie's spiritual journey, he shows us how the different stages are reflected in the music. I'm afraid a lot of this went over my head because, as I said, I'm not a die hard fan. It still made for interesting reading though. 🎸

Many thanks to Random House UK and Netgalley for this ARC because, without you, I may well have missed out on this absolute cracker of a book.

This, right here, is my kind of book. First and foremost, it's a police procedural with a pair of mismatched detectives in the shape of DS Joseph Ashe, aka Dash, and DI Laurie Bower. What made it more engaging for me was the oh so gentle hint of the supernatural. That folks, was the clincher. 🏹

Ghosties aside, The Drowning Place is actually very, very good. DI Bower is on secondment to Edenscar, from Salford, and almost immediately finds herself investigating a triple murder which has shocked the whole community. As the investigation progresses, events take on a more sinister turn. 🏹

Dark, and twisty, the story moves along at a steady pace. Joe is a very likeable character, and definitely the ying to Laurie's yang but, like Cooper and Fry, or Dalziel and Pascoe, they are a good fit. 🏹

I was so sure I knew who the killer was, and felt vindicated when my suspect was arrested, but then the author threw a curve ball that I definitely didn't see coming. Brilliant! 🏹

If you're looking for a book that's guaranteed to mess with your head, then allow me to present Yesteryear for your perusal and enjoyment. This folks, is one of those books that has you muttering "wtf!!!" almost constantly. It's bonkers, but it's also very entertaining. 🐄

The story is told from the POV of Natalie Heller Mills, a good Christian wife, mother and influencer. Yesteryear is the ranch where Natalie and her family live their idyllic life. But all is not as it seems. 🐄

That's as much background as I'm willing to give. Trust me guys, this book is just twist after twist, revelation after revelation. Natalie, who spends an inordinate amount of time trying to be likeable for her Instagram followers, is anything but. I can't begin to tell you how much I disliked her. But it was her vileness that made this so enjoyable. 🐄

To be honest, apart from the children, none of the characters are particularly likeable. Caleb, Natalie's husband, is a conspiracy theorist, and her father-in-law Doug, has presidential aspirations. 🐄

It's not too much of a stretch to imagine the events portrayed in Yesteryear occurring in real life. Truth is often stranger than fiction, after all. 🐄

Thanks to 4th Estate Books and Netgalley for the ARC.

Another little collection of short stories by Agatha Christie, all set during Spring. All of Christie's well known sleuths are here again, getting to the bottom of these mysteries in their own, inimitable way.

There was just one story in this particular collection, that I had read before, thus making it an enjoyable read.

I read this title on BorrowBox.

A new Wisting investigation is always something to look forward to. Admittedly, The Lake has been sitting around on the TBR for a few weeks, so I decided it was high time I took myself off to Larvik to see what Wisting and Nils Hammer were up to this time. 🚐

The lake of the title is Lake Farris, whose water level has dropped significantly during a very hot summer. A metal detectorist, searching along the lake bed near his summer cabin, finds a gold initial necklace that he recognises as belonging to a teenaged girl who went missing in Sweden four years previously. 🚐

In another section of the dried up lake bed, a motorcycle is found, along with its rider, a youth who went missing eight years previously. 🚐

What follows are two intense investigations by Wisting and his team, as they try to piece together what befell the young man, and whether or not the missing girl's remains are buried in the vicinity of the lake. 🚐

As with all of the Wisting books, this is a slow burn, but it's worth it. There are the inevitable twists and red herrings, not to mention the final reveal in the investigation into the missing girl. 🚐

The Thursday Murder Club make a welcome return in The Impossible Fortune. We kick off proceedings with a wedding, that of Joyce's daughter Joanna, to Paul. Naturally, all the gang are there, and it is during the reception that Elizabeth is approached by the best man, Nick Silver, who fears for his life. Could this be what Elizabeth needs now that she must endure life without her beloved Stephen? 🦊

The gang are not quite ready to give up sleuthing, and happily embark on their quest to discover who might want to kill Nick, and why. 🦊

Ron, meanwhile, has his own problems, in the shape of his son-in-law. Help comes from an unexpected source. 🦊

This was an engaging read, with plenty of thrills and some light hearted moments. 🦊

I read this title on BorrowBox.

Having read an ARC of the second book in the Mrs. Sidhu series some weeks ago, I decided to circle back to its predecessor, Mrs. Sidhu's Dead and Scone. 🥯

This is cosy mystery at its best. Mrs. Sidhu is to Slough and its environs what Miss Marple was to St. Mary Mead, if Miss Marple was a widowed caterer with a grown up son who still lives at home with his mum. 🥯

Reading the books in reverse order meant that I was familiar with the main characters. 🥯

I'm not going to go into detail about the plot. Suffice to say that Mrs. Sidhu becomes involved in a murder investigation when she takes on a catering job at a wellness retreat in Berkshire. Wherever Mrs. Sidhu goes, chaos follows but, like Miss Marple, Mrs. Sidhu has excellent observation skills. 🥯

Red herrings abound, but when the final reveal comes, it all seems glaringly obvious. 🥯

I read this title on the Borrowbox app.

I've always enjoyed B.A Paris' books. They're twisty and suspenseful, and oh so good. When I Kill You is no exception. 🗡️

Meet Nell Masters. Nell works for a charity, in a management role. She lives in a mews house that was left to her by her great aunt. She has a small circle of friends, and is in a relationship with Alex. It sounds like an idyllic life. But Nell has a secret past. And now she has a stalker. 🗡️

The first half of the book is told across two timelines, past and present. Both are told from the POV of Nell. It is in the past timeline that we learn what Nell's secret is. 🗡️

Like many of Paris' books, When I Kill You is more than a little bit sinister. Paris ramps up the suspense chapter by chapter, and leaves you guessing right to the bitter end. 🗡️

Thanks to HQ Publishing and Netgalley for the digital ARC.

I love folk horror, I cannot lie, and David Barnett's previous books in this genre have been on my want-to-read list for a few months now. When the opportunity to read an ARC of Scratch Moss presented itself, I could not resist. Before I was halfway through, I had ordered the other two from the library. But I digress. I'm here to tell you about Scratch Moss, and all the reasons why you should read it. 🖤

Scratch Moss is a small Lancashire town, that was home to the miners, and their families, of Scratch Moss colliery. The colliery, on land owned by Lord Brody of Scratch Moss Hall, began operating in the 1860's, and was eventually closed in 1985. 🖤

That's the backstory to the colliery, but there is another story running parallel to that, the story of the consequences of destroying a sacred Barrow, and the story of Red Clogs, the bogeyman of Scratch Moss. 🖤

The story of Scratch Moss is told across several timelines; 2025, 1985, 1945, 1905, 1865 and AD85. What I love about this is we go back in time in forty year increments, then jump back to AD85, before moving forward again in the same increments. Thus we learn the identity of Red Clogs, and his connection to Scratch Moss. 🖤

This is a bleak tale, set as it is in the industrial north, with the miner's strike forming part of its backdrop. But it's the superstition and folkloric symbolism that provide the eerie, and sometimes menacing, atmosphere. 🖤

I loved Scratch Moss, despite how much it unsettled me. I now eagerly await my library reservations. 🖤

Thanks to Canelo Books and Netgalley for the ARC.

This was quite the page turner. Hard to believe it's a debut. 🩸

How to Get Away With Murder is a book-within-a-book type thriller. When a 14 year old girl is found murdered in London's Holland Park, one of the items found at the scene is a copy of a book called How to Get Away With Murder. The author, Denver Brady, boasts at the beginning of the book that he is "the most successful active serial killer in the Western world". Was the victim murdered by Denver Brady, or by a copycat? 🩸

We follow the investigation from the perspective of DI Sam Hansen, who is part of the team at New Scotland Yard tasked with trying to find Denver Brady, and the victims he writes about in his book. 🩸

We are also treated to chapters from Denver's book, which is basically a manual for the would-be serial killer. But are the murders Denver describes real, or just the product of a very sick mind? 🩸

I liked this a lot. There was enough suspense to keep me reading, and a cute little dog with a wonky leg that melted my heart. 🐕When things turned a little darker towards the end, I found myself hoping that this wouldn't be the last I heard from Sam Hansen. 🩸

Thanks to Random House UK and Netgalley for the digital ARC.

In her introduction, author Liz Nugent states that she had not written a book like this before, she was trying something new, and she warned that there might come a time when the reader would want to throw said book at the wall. She wasn't wrong.

This is an extremely dark book, with themes that some may find triggering. These include:

- Alcoholism

- Substance Abuse

- Sexual Assault

- Grooming

- Rape

The story centres around the Cooper family who live in Boston, namely sisters Erin and Ruby. Spanning three decades, it chronicles the lives of the sisters, and an incident in 1999 which saw the family divided; while Ruby and her mother, Maureen, move to Dublin, Erin and her father, Doug, remain in Boston.

As well as wanting to hurl my kindle at the wall, I found myself shouting WTF quite a lot. I've gone through every emotion imaginable whilst reading this book, that's how bloody good it is.

I found it incredibly difficult to like Ruby, and I have to be honest, Erin annoyed me a wee bit too.

Despite, or maybe because of, its dark themes, I loved The Truth About Ruby Cooper. What transpires within its pages are thankfully rare in real life, but it's interesting to read them from this perspective.

Thanks to Penguin Sandycove, Penguin Random House UK and Netgalley for the digital ARC.

This is a pretty decent psychological thriller. Sure, there were a couple of things that annoyed me (more about that later), but the twists, and the darker aspects, more than made up for them. 💻

The premise is simple enough. The central character, Rose, on passing a bookshop, notices a book in the window, Diary of an Octopus by Emily Harper. The title resonates with her. On skimming through the book she realises why. It's a fictionalised version of the diary she wrote when she was 13. She wrote it on a laptop. The last time she saw said laptop was the day she accidentally left it at a coffee cart at the airport. The diary is her confession.... to a murder.💻

As with most psychological thrillers, all is not as it seems. The themes, as expected, are dark: gaslighting and psychological abuse, misogyny and murder. 💻

Although I felt some sympathy for Rose, I was astounded by her naivety when it came to Emily Harper, so-called author of Diary of an Octopus. As for Emily herself. Ugh! Over inflated ego and a sense of entitlement. 😫 And don't get me started on Chet Bellamy. 😫

All in all, this was the kind of dark, twisty psychological thriller that I enjoy. 💻

Thanks to Source Books UK and Netgalley for the digital ARC.