Little Girl Lost - Carol Wyer

Kindle Edition Publisher: Bookouture Published: 19/01/17 Pages: 375 Amazon Uk Link: Here GoodReads Link: Here Book given in exchange for an honest review via Netgalley.

The Blurb

A perfect family hiding disturbing secrets. A killer who wants the truth to be told.

A teacher goes missing under suspicious circumstances.
A millionaire is murdered at a local reservoir.
For Detective Robyn Carter, there’s no obvious link between the men. But as she starts to delve into the cases, her investigations lead her to Abigail, perfect wife and mother to beautiful little Izzy. What was Abigail’s connection to the victims? And why is she receiving threatening messages from an anonymous number?

But as Robyn starts to inch closer to finding the killer, Izzy is abducted.

Unless Robyn gets to the twisted individual in time, a little girl will die …

My Thoughts

This book has the most disturbing first chapter of any book I have read. After reading the first chapter I had to put the book down and consider if I wanted to read a story with this subject matter. Thankfully I gave it a go and thoroughly enjoyed the tale of love, hate, secrets and revenge. The story continues the trend of being told by multiple female voices, including the killer over various timeframes. The identity of the Killer wasn't hard to guess because it was made quite clear who it was early on.

The story moves at a good pace and you dont get bogged down with frivolous unnecessary background of the characters. I enjoyed the relationship between Robyn Carter and Ross but at times felt that the dialogue between them was unrealistic and a bit robotic. The writing created suspense and did keep me guessing about who was involved or what secrets they were keeping even if not the identity of the killer. A great start to a new series.

Lies - T M Logan

Kindle Edition Publisher: twenty7 Published: 17/01/17 Pages: 418 Amazon Uk Link: Here GoodReads Link: Here Book given in exchange for an honest review via Netgalley.

The Blurb

WHAT IF YOUR WHOLE LIFE WAS BASED ON LIES? A gripping new psychological thriller of secrets and revenge.

When Joe Lynch sees his wife enter an underground car park in the middle of the day, he's intrigued enough to follow her down.

And when he sees her in an angry altercation with family friend Ben, he naturally goes to her defence - and doesn't for a minute believe the accusations Ben makes against her.

It's pure misfortune that, just as the clash becomes violent and Ben is knocked unconscious, Joe's son has an asthma attack, and Joe has to take him to safety.

It's just that, when Joe comes back to check Ben's OK, he's disappeared.

And that's when Joe receives the first message . . .

My Thoughts

Everyone Lies, Everyone has secrets. Joes Lynch is just about to find out that just about his whole life is a lie.

Soppy, old before his time, average Joe. To be honest it was no wonder what happened to him did. Joe Lynch is a wet lettuce of the highest order and by god he needs a slap to wake him up. He got it.

This book has been likened to one of my favorite authors Tom Bale and to be fair I can see the comparison. Both are high energy in your face danger and tension from the first page and the writing is very good in particular the dialogue. However the ending was a let down for me, it was like watching an episode of the BBC show "Death In Paradise" and that isn't a bad thing by the way, its just that we spend the whole book filled with tension and not knowing who is telling the truth then on a train journey back our average Joe slots all the clues into place becomes a cross between Sherlock Holmes and Action Man and nearly everyone lives happily ever after.

Having said that I really did enjoy this book, it was so nearly a 5*. I would definitely read more of T M Logans writing. It did everything a book of this genre should and if I stop being a picky so and so it did have a unexpected, if somewhat mad ending.

Behind Her Eyes - Sarah Pinborough

Kindle Edition Publisher: Harper Collins Published: 26/01/17 Pages: 320 Amazon Uk Link: Here GoodReads Link: Here Book given in exchange for an honest review via Netgalley.

The Blurb

David and Adele seem like the ideal pair. He's a successful psychiatrist, she is his picture-perfect wife who adores him. But why is he so controlling? And why is she keeping things hidden?

As Louise, David's new secretary, is drawn into their world, she uncovers more puzzling questions than answers. The only thing that is crystal clear is that something in this marriage is very, very wrong. But Louise can't guess how wrong – and how far someone might go to protect their marriage's secrets.

My Thoughts

The mystery/thriller genre has been crying out for something a bit different for a while. The girl who/on/in/with story has quickly become tedious purely because of over saturation the same could also be said of the quirky female detective with a past that catches up with her and a mother in a home type of story. Both been done to death.

This Book is something different. A good different.

I enjoyed this book immensely. I had no idea where it was going until it got there and just when I thought it was over I was slapped round the face and told otherwise. I'm not going to write a 500 word synopsis analyzing the ins and outs of the relationships and story lines so you don't have to read the book, Just buy it, Read it and enjoy it.

This book is all about the ending and getting there is a tense, mind messing delight. The characters are written in a way that had me liking them all at some point, except strangely Louise's son.

This book could quite easily have been a episode of Reece Shearsmiths Inside No9 or the equally as brilliant Charlie Brookers Black Mirror.

I enjoyed it. A contender for book of the year already.

Love You To Death - Caroline Mitchell

Kindle Edition Publisher: Bookouture Published: 11/11/16 Pages: 320 Amazon Uk Link: Here GoodReads Link: Here Book given in exchange for an honest review via Netgalley.

The Blurb

Twenty years ago you were forced to give your daughter up. Now she’s back. Or is she?

Women who’ve had to give up children for adoption are being killed. A knock at their front door begins a nightmare from which they will never wake up.

East London Detective Ruby Preston and her team must hunt down a disturbed individual before someone else is taken. But when bodies start turning up, staged in perfect, domestic scenes, it carries the echo of a memory in Ruby's mind. The tinkling of a music box. A mother and child reunion...

Then just as Ruby thinks they've made a breakthrough, she receives a sinister email, and the case takes a terrifying personal twist.

Can Ruby catch the killer before they strike again? Or will her troubled past catch up with her first?

My Thoughts

With over 100 5 star reviews on Amazon I am obviously in the minority here but I was disappointed by this book. I have read and enjoyed all of Caroline Mitchells Jennifer Knight series of books, so I was very much looking forward to this new series with Detective Ruby Preston at the helm.

I never connected to any of the characters and at times I felt I could have been reading a parody, particularly the Serial Killer chapters. The story itself was a good one and I hadnt guessed who the killer was but maybe that was because I found it hard to have much of an interest. I also felt that Ruby Prestons wasnt very original and I felt like I had read it before. Not much more I can say, I didnt get on with this one at all. Shame.

The Gift - Louise Jensen

Kindle Edition Publisher: Bookouture Published: 16/12/16 Pages: 320 Amazon Uk Link: Here GoodReads Link: Here Book given in exchange for an honest review via Netgalley.

The Blurb

The perfect daughter. The perfect girlfriend. The perfect murder?

Jenna is given another shot at life when she receives a donor heart from a girl called Callie. Eternally grateful to Callie and her family, Jenna gets closer to them, but she soon discovers that Callie’s perfect family is hiding some very dark secrets …

Callie’s parents are grieving, yet Jenna knows they’re only telling her half the story. Where is Callie’s sister Sophie? She’s been ‘abroad’ since her sister’s death but something about her absence doesn’t add up. And when Jenna meets Callie’s boyfriend Nathan, she makes a shocking discovery.

Jenna knows that Callie didn’t die in an accident. But how did she die? Jenna is determined to discover the truth but it could cost her everything; her loved ones, her sanity, even her life.

My Thoughts

So we kick off the new year with another Bookouture author and yet another 5 star review for a truly great book.

I can only imagine what it must be like to be given another chance at living because someone else has died, although you may have been gifted the chance to live, the physical and psychological side effects must be life changing. The daily reminder that you have someone else inside you would be enough but to then suffer from Cellular Memory, giving you flash backs and memories from the organs donator would be enough to drive you mad.
Wether or not Cellular Memory is real or not, Being the skeptic that I am I have my doubts, doesn't really matter and Louise Jensens writing is so persuasive that if she wrote to me telling me the world was flat or a Businessman and reality TV star was President of the USA, I would believe her.

Its a brilliantly crafted story that had my emotions and thoughts all over the place. I changed my mind over and over undecided on what had happened and who could of done it. Was Jenna Psychotic? Was it Murder? Was it important to get some sleep or feed the kids or just read one more chapter?. The ending was perfect for me. Totally unexpected. The Book has also made me think about Organ donation and I have now signed up to the NHS Organ Donation Register