Tag: bloghounds

4.5*, blog tours, book review, psychological thriller

#blogtour Strategy by Anita Waller @anitamayw @bloodhoundbook

if only I could read faster

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My Review:

This is the third Anita Waller book that I have read and I will definitely be reading more. When I heard that the author had written a sequel to 34 Days, I knew that I had to read it. I had really enjoyed 34 Days and was intrigued to know what had happened after.

I have to admit that when I started to read Strategy I did wonder whether 34 Days had really warranted a sequel, was there really enough left to tell about the Carbrook family? Well, I should have trusted the author and the publishers Bloodhound Books, who have a solid reputation for producing excellent books.

I do recommend that you don’t read Strategy until you have read 34 Days as although the book provides plenty of reminders about what had happened in the first book I think that you would miss out, not only on a great read but also truly understanding the story.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Strategy, it really did complete the story from 34 Days and, like the original, it provided plenty of twists and turns. It isn’t a long book but it is long enough to suck the reader back into the lives of the Carbrook family, reminding us what the family have been through and truly caring about what happens to them next and once again Waller hasn’t given them an easy ride.

Blurb:

 

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Strategy by Anita Waller

 

How much can one family take?  
Jenny Carbrook murdered three people to make it look as though there was a serial killer at work in Lincoln, when the only person she wanted to kill was Ray Carbrook, her father-in-law, who had raped her the week before her marriage to Mark, Ray’s son.  
Jenny wrote letters detailing her crimes in order to protect everyone she loved, but was forced to go into hiding before retrieving the evidence against her.  Not only did she leave the letters behind but also her young daughter, Grace.  
Now Jenny has a plan, a strategy, to get the letters back. But it’s not only the letters that Jenny has in her sights…

 

About the author:

anitawaller

Anita Waller was born in Sheffield, South Yorkshire in 1946. She married Dave in 1967 and they have three adult children, Matthew, Siân and Kirsty along with seven grandchildren ranging in age from Brad at 23 down to baby Isaac at 2 ½ years.

She began writing when she was around 8 years of age, writing ‘compositions’ at junior school that became books with chapters.

In 1995 she sent Beautiful to a publisher and as they reached the contract stage the publisher went into liquidation. It was all to do with Eric Cantona and leaping over the barrier – don’t ask!
As a result, the book was consigned to the attic in dejected disgust but in 2013 it was dragged out again for an enforced complete re-type. The original was written on an Amstrad 8256 and the only thing that remained was one hard copy.

Anita is not a typist and it was painfully reworked over two years, submitted to Bloodhound Books who, within three days of reading it, offered her a contract. 31 August 2015 saw its release into the wide world.

Following the outstanding success of Beautiful, she began a sequel on 27 December 2015, finishing it on 19 March 2016. The new novel, Angel, was launched on 7 May 2016.

34 Days followed, with its launch in October 2016. This was a huge success, particularly in the United States. While this, her third book in the psychological thriller genre, was flying out in all directions, she began work on her fourth book.

Winterscroft was a change in genre. It is a supernatural tale, set in Castleton, Derbyshire, and its release date was February 2017.

 While she was writing Winterscroft, it became very clear from reading reviews that a sequel to 34 days was needed, and she began work on that. Bloodhound Books will be launching her latest work, Strategy, on 10 August, 2017.

 So where next? Her current work in progress is going by the working title A Legal Issue, and once again is a psychological thriller.

In her life away from the computer in the corner of her kitchen, she is a Sheffield Wednesday supporter with blue blood in her veins! The club were particularly helpful during the writing of 34 Days, as a couple of matches feature in the novel, along with Ross Wallace. Information was needed and they provided it.

Her genre is murder – necessary murder.

Links:

Amazon page:   https://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=anita+waller

Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/anitawaller2015

Website:  http://anitamayw.wixsite.com/anitawaller

Twitter:   www.twitter.com/anitamayw

 Beautiful:

www.amazon.co.uk/Beautiful-Anita-Waller-ebook/dp/B014RCH5WM/

 Angel:

www.amazon.co.uk/Angel-Anita-Waller-ebook/dp/B01DR4USZC/

 34 Days:

www.amazon.co.uk/34-Days-Anita-Waller-ebook/dp/B01IP6YE0M/

 Winterscroft:

www.amazon.co.uk/Winterscroft-Anita-Waller-ebook/dp/B06XMY3JD3/

 Strategy:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1912175487/ref=x_gr_w_bb?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_w_bb_uk-21&linkCode=as2&camp=1634&creative=6738

4*, blog tours, book review, psychological thriller

#review The Second Captive by Maggie James @mjamesfiction @BloodhoundBooks #blogtour

if only I could read faster

BLOG TOUR (5)

My Review:

The blurb to The Second Captive really appealed to me. The concept of the captive starting to see their kidnapper and keeper not as the enemy but as someone that they care about (Stockholm Syndrome) is fascinating to me.

I found The Second Captive got me into the story really quickly, I wanted to keep reading, no, I had to keep reading, especially once Beth was kidnapped. I had to know how she was going to escape and how was Beth going to cope once she did.

I really liked how the story was told, the first half is told by Beth and her kidnapper Dominic. This meant that we got to understand what was behind his decision to kidnap Beth and keep her in his basement for so long. While I certainly didn’t like Dominic, I did appreciate reading his thoughts and processes. Once Beth manages to escape, and this is no spoiler, we know from the first chapter that she does, the story is told by Beth and her mother, Ursula, with a small amount from Dominic too. This worked really well. I liked that we didn’t hear from Beth’s family while she was missing, it meant that the whole focus of the book was on what was happening inside the cottage that Beth and Dominic lived and that we were never quite sure what efforts had been put in place to find Beth by her family.

Having had every aspect of her life controlled by Dominic it was never going to be easy for Beth once she broke free. Fearing disappointment from her mother Beth tried to keep her ordeal secret, but of course, this isn’t as easy as it sounds. This was the only part that I thought The Second Captive strayed into the ‘not quite believable’ side, and that was a shame but it didn’t spoil the book in any way.

Overall, I think that The Second Captive by Maggie James is an excellent psychological thriller that will appeal to many readers. I’ll definitely be reading more from Maggie James.

Blurb:

 

Second Captive final
The Second Captive by Maggie James.

 

Beth Sutton is eighteen years old when she is abducted. Held prisoner in a basement, she’s dependent on her captor for food, clothes and her very existence. As the months pass, her hatred towards her imprisoner changes to compassion.

 But Beth cannot forget that her abductor is also a killer. And she has evidence to prove it…

 Then Beth escapes

 Can Beth escape from the prison that she has found herself in?

 And is there a relationship between love and fear?

 

About the author:

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Maggie James is a British author who lives in Bristol. She writes psychological suspense novels.

 Before turning her hand to writing, Maggie worked mainly as an accountant, with a diversion into practising as a nutritional therapist. Diet and health remain high on her list of interests, along with travel. Accountancy does not, but then it never did. The urge to pack a bag and go off travelling is always lurking in the background! When not writing, going to the gym, practising yoga or travelling, Maggie can be found seeking new four-legged friends to pet; animals are a lifelong love!

Links:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MJamesFiction/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/mjamesfiction

Goodreads Author Page: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/828751.Maggie_James

Blog: http://www.maggiejamesfiction.com/blog

Website: http://www.maggiejamesfiction.com

4*, blog tours, book review

Blog Tour & Review: No Safe Home by Tara Lyons.

if only I could read faster

nosafehome

My 4* review:

I have to admit that I haven’t read the first book in the DI Hamilton series, In The Shadows, but I don’t feel that this mattered. I quickly got into this book and its characters. I have read The Caller which Tara Lyons co-wrote with M.A. Comley which I really enjoyed (and am still waiting for the next in the series, nudge nudge), so I was keen to read more by the author.

As a single parent, I think that the premise of No Safe Home got under my skin, my home is my sanctuary and the thought of someone coming in and hurting myself and/or my children is frankly horrifying.

The story of No Safe Home focuses on Katy, a single mother whose home is no longer her safe place. Thankfully she fought off her attacker but now she needs to face her past and learn to trust others in order to save herself and her son.

I really liked the characters in this book, the investigation team trying to help Katy and solve the horrific murders were all interesting and the newcomer, Rocky, particularly so. I hope to read more about him in the future as I think that he’s a great character. DI Hamilton, as leader of the team he showed us why he is the leader, but that he also had his Achilles heel, something that makes him feel more human and interesting.

The author writes well, creating believable characters and an engaging storyline. I will for sure be reading In The Shadows and look forward to reading more from Tara Lyons. Definitely an author to look out for.

Thank you to Bloodhound books for a copy of No Safe Home by Tara Lyons.

Blurb:

Detective Inspector Denis Hamilton is haunted when the suspicious death of a teenage girl triggers suppressed memories. With a stalker targeting vulnerable women in Central London, and his team rapidly diminishing, Hamilton must conquer his emotions before another family is destroyed.

In a sleepy town in Hertfordshire, Katy has worked hard to rebuild her life after leaving behind everything she knew. But when her past catches up with her, and her young son’s life is threatened, Katy must admit her true identity if she has any hope of surviving.

A home should be a safe place, shouldn’t it? But sometimes it is hard to know who you can trust…

London’s murder investigations team returns in the second novel from the bestselling author of In the Shadows.

 

No Safe Home by Tara Lyons is out now and available from Amazon UK and Amazon US.

blog tours, book extract

Blog Tour: Games People Play by Owen Mullen.

if only I could read faster

gamespeopleplay

Today is the final stop on the blog tour for Games People Play by Owen Mullen. I have content from the book and my extract carries on from where Emma The Little Bookworm left off.

Extract:

‘The water was freezing. What the hell had Jen been thinking? This was Scotland, for Christ’s sake. He swam to where he’d last seen her and went under. Mark was a good swimmer but it was dark. His frantic fingers searched until the pressure in his chest forced him to the surface. He took in as much air as he could and went back. Something bumped against him. He grabbed hold and dragged it up. Two boys ran into the water to help: the footballers.

They hauled her body the last few yards and Mark fell to his knees. Jennifer wasn’t breathing. People appeared on the beach, silent witnesses to the nightmare the day had become. Where had they been when he needed them? He shouted, half in anger half in desperation. ‘Somebody call an ambulance!’ The crowd kept a respectful distance, they believed what he believed, that he’d lost her. Jennifer’s face was white. Mark covered her mouth with his and breathed into her. His hands pressed against her chest demanding she come back to him. One of the boys took over with no better luck. Mark tried again, refusing to let her go. He pumped her heart, whimpering like a child, sobbing for himself as well as his wife. Jennifer’s eyes fluttered; she retched and vomited water. Mark turned her on her side and rubbed her back, whispering reassurance, blinded by tears, aware his prayers had been answered. A siren sounded in the distance; it was going to be alright. She was safe. They would be together again. The three of them. He raised his head and saw ambulance-men racing towards him across the sand. Mark jumped to his feet. They must have drifted… except the boat was there. His voice rose from a cry to a scream. ‘Lily. Lily!’ He spoke to the group who had offered nothing. ‘I left a baby here, somebody must’ve seen her.’ They stared, no idea what he was talking about. A new terror seized him. He ran a few steps up and down the beach, lost and afraid. The bag lay where Jennifer dropped it. But no push-chair. No sign his daughter had ever been there. Lily was gone.’

Sounds good doesn’t it?!! Games People Play by Owen Mullen is out now and available from Amazon UK and Amazon US.

Blurb:

A powerful new crime thriller:

Thirteen-month-old Lily Hamilton is abducted from Ayr beach in Scotland while her parents are just yards away.

Three days later the distraught father turns up at private investigator Charlie Cameron’s office. Mark Hamilton believes he knows who has stolen his daughter. And why.

Against his better judgment Charlie gets involved In the case and when more bodies are discovered the awful truth dawns: there is a serial killer whose work has gone undetected for decades.

Is baby Lily the latest victim of a madman?

For Charlie it’s too late, he can’t let go. His demons won’t let him.