Blog Tour Book Review / After the Eclipse by Fran Dorricott

A stunning psychological thriller about loss, sisterhood, and the evil that men do, for readers of Ruth Ware and S.K. Tremeyne

Two solar eclipses. Two missing girls.

Sixteen years ago a little girl was abducted during the darkness of a solar eclipse while her older sister Cassie was supposed to be watching her. She was never seen again. When a local girl goes missing just before the next big eclipse, Cassie - who has returned to her home town to care for her ailing grandmother - suspects the disappearance is connected to her sister: that whoever took Olive is still out there. But she needs to find a way to prove it, and time is running out. 






Published:     5th March 2019
Publisher:  Titan
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Stand-Alone
Source:  Review Copy from Publisher

MY REVIEW

I just could not put this book down!!  This is only my second book that I have marked as 5 stars this year so far.

With this story, we follow Cassie in two different time lines.  You have Cassie when she was younger and at the time when her sister went missing right about the time of an eclipse.  You then have the older Cassie who has returned to  her home town when another girl goes missing, just in time for the next solar eclipse.  There are so many similarities between the disappearance of Cassie's sister and the girl who has just gone missing in the present day that Cassie can't help but thinking that they are linked in some way, so she starts to investigate.

Yes, this story does have aspects that are pretty typical for thrillers but there were a few twists and turns in this story that I really were not expecting and I have to be honest and say that I really did not figure out the ending before it happened.  That one did really surprise me!!

A really surprising thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Blog Tour Book Review / The Shape of Lies by Rachel Abbott

Yesterday, Scott was dead.
Today, he’s back.
And Anna doesn’t believe in ghosts.Fourteen years ago Scott was Anna’s boyfriend. She loved him, but he ruined her life. When he died, she should have been free.

But today Scott is on the radio, talking about her. Threatening to spill her secrets.

Anna is a mother, a wife, and head teacher of a primary school. And she’s a very good liar. She has been lying about herself for so long, she doesn’t really know who she is any more.

Anna used to think she was a good person. She made one stupid mistake, and now she is having to pay for it – over and over again.

Scott is the only person who knows the truth about her past. But how can Scott be alive?

Soon, DCI Tom Douglas is going to knock on her door looking for answers. But Anna is already running scared: from the man she used to love; the man she watched die all those years ago; the man who has come back to life.

She has one week to find him. One week to stop him.

Published:     19th February 2019
Publisher:  Black Dot Publishing
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Book 8, DCI Tom Douglas
Source:  Review Copy from Publisher

MY REVIEW

A truly creepy read.  We follow Anna who, she believes, has just heard her old boyfriend Scott on the radio hinting at secrets that only they shared.  The only problem is, she believes that Scott is dead.  Se had thought that she left that secret long behind her.  She had already started a new life with a new family, who had no idea of her past or her big secret.

Although I suspected what the ending would be, I still enjoyed the ride and following Anna as she tries to piece together what is happening to her now and relive what happened to her and Scott in the past.

A truly creepy suspense read that you can pick up as a stand-alone read or read as part of the DCI Tom Douglas series.

Rachel Abbott website http://www.rachel-abbott.com

Twitter account https://twitter.com/RachelAbbott

Facebook www.facebook.com/rachelabbott1writer

AMAZON BOOK LINK (these link to the appropriate Amazon according to country)

The Shape of Lies http://mybook.to/The-Shape-of-Lies

Amazon author link http://author.to/Rachel-Abbott

Blog Tour Book Review / The Revenant Express by George Mann

Sir Maurice Newbury is bereft as his trusty assistant Veronica Hobbes lies dying with a wounded heart. Newbury and Veronica’s sister Amelia must take a sleeper train across Europe to St. Petersburg to claim a clockwork heart that Newbury has commissioned from Fabergé to save Veronica from a life trapped in limbo.

No sooner do they take off then sinister goings-on start to plague the train, and it is discovered that a mysterious cultist is also on board, determined to recover a precious artefact. Can Newbury and Amelia defeat him before he carries out his terrible revenge?

But as Newbury and Amelia hurtle towards the only thing that can save Veronica, they uncover a terrible secret that could threaten the lives of everyone on board. A secret linked to Veronica’s past…

Published:     12th February 2019
Publisher:  Titan Books
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Book 7, Newbury and Hobbes
Source:  Review Copy from Publisher

MY REVIEW

George Mann is a relatively new author to me who is fast becoming a favourite.  In 2018 I read and loved his Wychwood duology (duology at the moment but I hope there may be more...…) and I was really excited to pick up another one of his books.

I will start by saying that I have not read the previous books in this series and, to be honest, I wish I had and that is something I am certainly going to remedy when I get my hands on the previous books.  Although this is one of those books that you absolutely can pick up as a stand alone away from the series, I had the feeling that there was something I was missing in the background of the characters, which I would pick up easily had I read the previous books.

The above said, I enjoyed the mystery in this novel, the whodoneit element is an element in a novel that I particularly enjoy so that was a huge part of why I thoroughly enjoyed this.  For it, it also had an element of comedy in parts, especially nearer the beginning of the novel where Sir Maurice is on a train with a lady (who I won't identify as I am not sure whether that is a spoiler for previous books or not) and there is someone at the door wanting to come in thinking there is a serious problem but the problem Sir Maurice has is that there is a dead body in his room.  The way that scene was handled and what they did made me giggle.

A really enjoyable whodoneit mystery that I am looking forward to picking up more and learning more about this world.

Blog Tour Book Review / Don't Turn Around by Amanda Brooke

She died.

You’re next.

Now he’s coming for you 

Ten years ago, Jen’s cousin Meg killed herself after failing to escape an abusive relationship.

Now, Meg’s ex is back and Jen’s domestic abuse helpline has started getting frightening calls from a girl who knows things about Meg – details that only the dead girl or the man who hurt her could have known…

As Jen starts to uncover the past, someone is determined to stop her. Can she save this young woman from Meg’s fate? Or is history about to repeat itself?

Published:     24th January 2019
Publisher:  HarperCollins
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Stand-Alone
Source:  Review Copy from Publisher

MY REVIEW

It must be the season for slow burning thrillers, which I do love to read.  In this story, we follow Jen.  Jen's cousin committed suicide ten years ago and Jen has not yet made her peace with it.  With her aunt, Jen works and helps run a helpline for victims of domestic abuse.    We follow Jen as she suspects that either Meg is not dead or someone is playing a cruel trick on her.  Mix that with the fact that Meg's old boyfriend is back in town, that means Jen is constantly on edge and waiting for something to happen.

I really enjoyed this story.  It was slow paced but did have a few twists and turns along the way.  Although I did guess the ending about half way through the novel, that didn't stop me enjoying following Jen as she discovers for herself what was wrong.  Finding out the truth, genuinely was disturbing...