#BlogTour Trap by Lilja Sigurdardottir

#BlogTour

Trap

by

Lilja Sigurdardottir

Hello everyone and welcome to my stop on the #BlogTour for Trap by Lilja Sigurdardottir. A huge thanks goes to Anne Cater from Random Things Tours, Orenda Books and the author Lilja for a copy of this book to read and review.

"A cracking follow up to a brilliant thriller, a must read for all crime fans"

Blurb:

Happily settled in Florida, Sonja believes she's finally escaped the trap set by unscrupulous drug lords. But when her son Tomas is taken, she's back to square one.... and Iceland. Her lover, Agla, is awaiting sentencing for financial misconduct after the banking crash, and Sonja refuses to see her. And that's not all.... Agla owes money to some extremely powerful men, and they'll stop at nothing to get it back. 

With her former nemesis, customs officer Bragi on her side, Sonja puts her own plan into motion, to bring down the drug barons and her scheming ex husband, and get Tomas back safely. But things aren't as straightforward as they seem, and Sonja finds herself caught in the centre of a trap that will put all of their lives at risk... 

Set in Reykjavik still covered in the dust of the Eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption, and with a dark, fast paced chilling plot and intriguing characters, Trap is an outstanding original and sexy Nordic crime thriller, from one of the most exciting new names in crime fiction.

Review:

When I agreed to do the #BlogTour to this book I was unaware it was part of a trilogy and this was book two. Due to my OCD in reading books in order I went on and ordered Snare (book one) and read that one first. My review of this was up yesterday and you can read that one first if you like.

I really loved Snare and scored that a 5 out of 5 so coming into this book I was excited but also fearful. How many books or films for that matter that are part of a trilogy or just have a sequel are ruined by the "next chapter"? Thankfully it did not take that long for me to relax and sit back and enjoy this book. Snare was a fast paced action packed book where the words just flew off the pages and Trap was no different. You get some books that have a great storyline but do not read very well, but both of these books read brilliantly. I am not the fastest of readers like some of my fellow book lovers and bloggers, but I read Trap in 3 days which is brilliant for me.

I really loved the characters in this book. The main ones are Sonja, Agla & Bragi. They are all linked in some way but have their own problems. Just like Snare the story flicked between them all and this helped with the speed of the book, as you were wanting to find out what was going to happen next on one character and then again at the end of the next chapter on another character and so on... It was great to see how the characters changed from book one and as the story went on they all found themselves further into trouble and it was exciting stuff to see how they handled this. This book had it's fair share of bad people who are all mixed up in either drugs, money laundering or murder and you cannot trust anyone of them. The evil characters are always the best aren't they? I don't know what this say about me though... Crime thrillers need good "baddies" for it to work and the ones in this story are wonderful.

Overall this book was cracking and gets high marks from me. I could not fault anything about this book at all and I really can't wait till book three is out. If you love crime thrillers like me then I would fully recommend reading this book. I mean, you can read it as a standalone but I think it is better if you read book one first as that way this book will make so much more sense..

About the Author:

Icelandic crime writer Lilja Sigurdardottir was born in the town of Akranes in 1972 and raised in Mexico, Sweden, Spain and Iceland. An award winning playwright, Lilja has written four crime novels, with Snare, the first in a new series, hitting bestseller lists worldwide. The film rights have been bought by Palomar Pictures in California. She lives in Reykjavik with her partner. 

Book Review: Snare by Lilja Sigurdardottir

Snare 

by 

Lilja Sigurdardottir

This was a book that I read on the back of agreeing to do a #BlogTour for Trap by Lilja Sigurdardottir. I am hosting the #BlogTour for this tomorrow (October 10th) so check back again to read the review on that. When I received Trap I found out that it was book 2 of a trilogy from this author. Due to my OCD of reading books in order I had to purchase book 1 beforehand. 

"A fantastic thriller, which you get sucked into from the start and can't let go"

Blurb:

After a messy divorce, attractive young mother Sonia is struggling to provide for herself and keep custody of her son. With her back to the wall, she resorts to smuggling cocaine into Iceland, and finds herself caught up in a ruthless criminal world. As she desperately looks for a way out of trouble, she must pit her wits against her nemesis, Bragi, a customs officer, whose years of experience frustrate her new and evermore daring strategies. Things become even more complicated when Sonia embarks on a relationship with a women, Agla. Once a high level bank executive, Agla is currently being prosecuted in the aftermath of the Icelandic financial crash.

Set in Reykjavik still covered in the dust of the Eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption, and with a dark, fast paced and chilling plot with intriguing characters, Snare is an outstanding original and sexy Nordic crime thriller, from once of the most exciting new names in crime fiction.

Review:

This book was one of those that you get sucked straight into. Within the first couple of pages I was hooked. The words just leapt off the page at a fast rate. This I found was the same all through the book. The chapters were very short which meant you could always read "just one more" and this really helped with the speed that I read this book at. I read this book in 5 days which is fantastic for me.

The story is based around three characters. Sonia the main character, Agla & Bragi. All three are linked to each other but they all have their own problems in life to deal with. I really liked how the booked flicked between the three, sometimes it was about just one character and other times it was mixed. I loved how each character was just like me and you but when times got tough and life gave them no option they had to lead a life of crime to get through life. It was not a case of that they wanted too but more that they were forced too. That gave another edge to the story as you were always wondering if they would get caught or not. The other characters in the book were also greatly written with a lot of them being the "Baddies" that ran the underworld in Reykjavik. If you have read my blogs before you know I love the bad characters best and a book is only as good as the baddies in my opinion.

Knowing this was book 1 of a trilogy, I was trying to work out how the ending would come as I read through the book. Will it finish on a huge cliff hanger or would it leave you asking lots of questions meaning you were desperate to read the next book. I found this finished on the later which I really enjoyed, I had so many questions I wanted answering that I could not wait to read the next book. Thankfully I had it waiting and will finish this today for tomorrows #BlogTour

I do try and be honest in my reviews and if there is something I do not like I will say as this is just my thoughts and opinions but I really could not think of any for this book.

I scored this book a 5 out of 5. I really loved it. If you love thrillers I fully recommend you give this a go. I found it refreshing that it was set in Iceland and not the UK/USA.

Have you read this book? what do you think? do you agree with me or not? I would love to know so let me know.

Speak soon (tomorrow)

CBailey31

Book Review: The Girlfriend by Michelle Frances

The Girlfriend

by

Michelle Frances

I picked up this book whilst shopping with my birthday gift vouchers earlier in the year. I have heard good things on Twitter about it and one of my work colleagues had read this and said it was good so I picked it up with another 5 books.

"The X-Files taught us to "Trust No One" this book proves they were right. A Cracking thriller"

Blurb:

A girl. A boy. His mother. And the lie she'll wish she'd never told.

Laura has it all. A successful career, a long marriage to a rich husband, and a 23 year old son, Daniel, who is kind, handsome and talented.

Then Daniel meets Cherry. Cherry is young, beautiful and smart but she hasn't had the same opportunities as Daniel. And she wants Laura's life.

Cherry comes to the family wide-eyed and wants to be welcomed with open arms, but Laura suspects she's not all that she seems.

When tragedy strikes, one of them tells an unforgivable lie - probably the worst lie anyone could tell. It is an act of desperation, but the fall-out will change lives forever.

Review:

This is Michelle Frances debut novel so I had no idea how the writing or story telling would be. Like I said before I had heard great things about this book, but sometimes that could be a problem as your expectations are already high and there is that worry that you could be let down. Thankfully though all was good. I got straight into this book from the off and never looked back. It was one of those books that you think you have been reading for ten minutes, but then you realise you are already a 100 pages in. The chapters were short, which I love in psychological thrillers as you can you have a lot of "just one more chapter" moments. This really added to the pace of the book. This was another book that took me just over a week to read which is really quick for me. I am getting a lot faster now with my reading and I am on course to smashing my target I set in January.

The story itself was brilliant, dark and so addictive. The X-files (one of my favourite TV shows of all time) taught us to "Trust No One" and this book proved they were right. Lie after lie by more than one character, just to get the upper hand and get what they really want. I have not really read anything along these sort of lines before and I thought it was great. There were more twists than you can shake a stick at and just when you thought it was over... Boom! another one.. 

I loved the characters in this book. The main ones were Laura, Cherry & Daniel. Cherry was my favourite. I found she had a very dark mind, and would not stop till she got what she wanted. It was great to follow her throughout the book. Would she get what she wanted or would she fail at the last hurdle?

Thinking about this book, I don't think there was anything I did not like about it. From start to finish it was brilliant and if you love psychological thrillers like I do you have to give this one a go. I think you will love it.

I scored this book a 5 out of 5. A quality debut novel. I cannot wait for Michelle's next novel. Because of this book I will automatically buy the next. Hopefully It was be as good as this one and won't let me down.

Have you read The Girlfriend by Michelle Frances? what do you think? Do you agree with me or not? I would love to know..

Speak soon,

CBailey31

Book Review: Cross Her Heart by Sarah Pinborough

Cross Her Heart

by

Sarah Pinborough

This book, I was always going to read. I read Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough and absolutely loved it, so it was a case of when rather that would I... I also could not wait for the paperback so got the hardback version on one of my frequent trips to the bookshop.

"An dark and sometimes evil story which grips you and leaves you wanting more"

Blurb:

Someone is living a lie... But who?

Is it Lisa?
Haunted by a tragic past, all Lisa wants is a quiet life with her daughter, Ava. And when she meets a new man, things seem to be falling into place. But Lisa is hiding a secret so momentous it could shatter her entire world...

Is it Ava?
When sixteen year old Ava saves a young boy's life, she becomes a local hero. But never in a millions years could she have anticipated the fallout of her actions...

Is it Marilyn?
Marilyn has the perfect life. Her husband, her job, her house - she seems to have it all. But she could never admit to her best friend Lisa the lies she tells herself to get through the day...

One moment will change these three women's lives forever. And the secrets they've been keeping could destroy them all.

Review:

Sometimes when you love a book so much, there is always that worry that when it comes to the next book the author has written it will be a let down. How can you follow a book up with something as good or if not better?? This has happened to me in the past and going into this book, it was my biggest fear. Thankfully though I was not let down as I absolutely loved this book and would even go to say it was better than Behind Her Eyes. From the very off you were sucked in and you just had to keep reading. The story flicked between the three main characters Lisa, Ava & Marilyn which I really liked as you followed the story from three different angles. But also, all three of them had big secrets which you were desperate to find out about. The chapters were short which helped with the pace of the book and there were plenty of "just one more chapter" moments meaning I went to work the next day very tired. I read this book in less than a week which is really quick for me and normally means that I have really enjoyed it.

This story has a very dark tale and I am sure a few people could find it upsetting. I however could not get enough of it and found that the evilness made the story better. I do wonder sometimes though what this says about me in general. 

The characters I found were also brilliantly written, not just the three main characters but all the supporting characters as well. I loved the fact that at one point I did not trust any of them and I felt that they all had something to hide. This was why I changed my mind so many times throughout the book as to how I thought this was going to end. 

Was there anything I did not like about this book? Nope, nothing at all.

I scored this book a 5 out of 5. It was amazing and like I said earlier I thought it was even better than Behind Her Eyes which I also loved. If you love thrillers like I do then I fully recommend you read this book.

Have you read this book? What do you think? Do you agree with me or not? I would love to know..

Speak soon,

CBailey31

#BlogTour The Bad Neighbour by David Tallerman

#BlogTour

The Bad Neighbour

by

David Tallerman

Hello and welcome to my stop on the #BlogTour for The Bad Neighbour by David Tallerman. Massive thanks goes to Anne Cater from Random Things Tours, Flame Tree Press and the author David Tallerman for an ARC of this book to review.

"A crime thriller that's dark and evil that leaves you wondering who are your neighbours and what secrets do they have" 

Blurb:

The Bad Neighbour is a gritty contemporary crime thriller set in the north of England, rooted in the author's personal experience of the region while drawing upon wider issues of racial intolerance, gang crime and police corruption...

When part-time teacher Ollie Clay panic buys a rundown house in the outskirts of Leeds, he soon recognises his mistake. His new neighbour, Chas Walker, is an antisocial thug, and Ollie's suspicions raise links to a local hate group. With Ollie's life unravelling rapidly, he feels his choices dwindling: his situation is intolerable and only standing up to Chas can change it. But Ollie has his own history of violence, and increasingly, his own secrets to hide; and Chas may be more than the mindless yob he appears to be. As their conflict spills over into the wider world, Ollie will come to learn that there are worse problems in life than one bad neighbour....

Review:

This is my first book that I have read by David Tallerman, so I went into this one with an open mind. Although from the off I was looking forward to it after reading what this was about and the fact that it was set in Leeds which is different to most other books I read that are set in the UK.

The book started off ok with the normal scene setting and introducing you to the main character Ollie Clay. I found the first quarter or so of the book a little slow if I am to be honest. Not in a bad way, it  just built the story up at a steady pace and because of this you were not hooked straight away.  

Once this period was over though, the book came to life and was jammed packed full of action which had twists here, there and everywhere. The more you read the darker it became and it became clear that you had no clue what secrets where coming on the next few pages and you got to the point where any of the characters could have something to hide. Whilst the first part of book was a bit slow to read the rest I flew through as the pages turned at a very fast rate.

I really liked the characters in this book. Ollie the lead character was great to follow and you knew he had a past, but knew nothing of what he did when he was younger, this gave the so called goody of the book a mysterious feel. Chas the evil next door neighbour was also great to follow. I don't know what it is about baddies in books but they seem so much better and more interesting. It may be just me and my love for Darth Vader the daddy of all baddies but there you go. Chas was a dark and chilling character and you were kept on the edge of the seat as to what he was going to do next.

Overall I really did like this book it was great. If like me it starts a bit slow then please keep with it. If you do like crime thrillers like me I believe you should give it a go and you will not be disappointed..

This book is published on 06 September 2018 and you can buy this on the link below:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bad-Neighbour-Fiction-Without-Frontiers/dp/178758027X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1532861542&sr=8-1&keywords=the+bad+neighbour+tallerman

About the Author:

David Tallerman is the author of the Digital Fiction Publishing fantasy adventure series The Black River Chronicles, so far comprised of Level One and the Ursvaal Exchange, as well as the novel Giant Thief (described by Fantasy Faction as "one of the finest debuts of 2012") and its sequels Crown Thief and Prince Thief, all published though Angry Robot. His crime debut is The Bad Neighbour published by Flame Tree Publishing

In his spare time, David watches inordinate numbers of movies, hikes, plays board games, and helps in the ethical submission, capture, and resettlement of troveless dragons...

Twitter @davidtallerman

Website: http://www.davidtallerman.co.uk/

#BlogTour Do No Harm by Lucy V Hay

#BlogTour

Do No Harm

by

Lucy V Hay

Hello and welcome to my stop on the #BlogTour for Do No Harm by Lucy V Hay. Massive thanks goes to Anne Cater from Random Things Tours, Orenda Books and the author Lucy V Hay for the copy of this book to review.

"A dark, twisted read of obsession, revenge and murder"

Blurb:

If I can't have you...… Nobody can

After leaving her marriage to jealous, possessive oncologist Maxwell, Lily and her six year old son have a second chance at happiness with headteacher Sebastian. Kind but vulnerable, Sebastian is the polar opposite of Maxwell, and the perfect match for Lily. After a whirlwind romance, they marry, and that's when things start to go wrong.... Maxwell returns to the scene, determined to win back his family, and events soon spiral out of control. Lily and Sebastian find themselves not only fighting for their relationship, but also their lives....

Chilling, dark and terrifying, Do No Harm is a taut psychological thriller and a study of obsession, with a killer twist that you will never see coming.

Review:

This is the authors second book and the first that I have read, so with all books like this I went into this with an open mind. What style of book will it be? Will I enjoy the plot lines? only time will tell...

This book was like a football match, a game of two halves. The first half was like no one wanted to attack too much and built from the back in a slow teasing way. When I say slow, not in a I want to give up on reading this but as each chapter went by you knew something was going to happen but it kept you waiting. The second half was like.. Crash, bang, wallop.. All out attack which kept going right to the end with twist after twist. At one point I could not trust any of the characters as the author dropped in little teasers for each of them that made your mind wonder. It was one of those books that you thought you had it all worked out around 3/4 of the way through and you were just waiting to congratulate yourself on jumping in the mind of the author, when she went and threw a curve ball. Then another, Then another and before you knew it you realised how wrong you were.. I really love books like this where you are so caught off guard it makes you sit up and the book dares you to put it down till you know everything.

The characters in this book were greatly written and I really liked all of them. As mentioned before you could not trust any of them, even to the point that I had even thought the main characters who were being terrorised were doing it to themselves. If you have children at school this book will make you question their teachers. Are they this friendly caring person who looks after your children or are they involved in some dark, twisted game of revenge and murder.

If you love thrillers like I do then I fully recommend this book to you. I thought it was cracking. If you find it slow to start with then please stick with it you will not be disappointed. This was my first Lucy V Hay book that I have read but it will not be the last.

About the Author:

Lucy V Hay is a novelist, script editor and blogger who helps writers via her Bang2write consultancy. She is the associate producer of Brit thrillers Deviation (2012) and Assassin (2015), both staring Danny Dyer. Lucy is also head reader for the London Screenwriters Festival and has written two non-fiction books, Writing & Selling Thriller Screenplays, plus its follow up Drama Screenplays. Her critically acclaimed debut thriller The Other Twin was published in 2017. She lives in Devon with her husband, three children, six cats and five African Land Snails...

2018: Half Year Book Review

2018: Half Year Book Review

July already? I know it's crazy really. The first 6 months of this year are over and only 6 more to go till 2019. This post is an update on how my first 6 months of the year have been from a reading point of view and what is in store for the rest of the year.

Firstly I hope that everyone has read some great books this year and not had too many disappointments. I have been quite lucky so far this year as I have only had one bad book which scored a 2 out of 5 (Review to come closer to the release date) and two 3 out of 5's. The rest have been 4 and 5 out of 5's.

Target:

This year I set myself a target of 26 books to read in 2018 and have used the Goodreads book challenge on their website to count these as usual. 26 to a few people might not be a lot of books, but, I am not the quickest of readers,. I am getting quicker as each new book is read though. 26 is also the highest number of books I have set myself to read in a year and having never actually reached my target (I know sorry) I set myself a big task. How am I doing? Well.... Currently I am half way between book number 15... Meaning at the half way stage I am actually above where I need to be to hit my 26 target. This has pleased me a lot, considering I have quite a lot going on in my life at the moment (I won't bore you with the details) so to be able to be where I am at the moment its a great feeling. Will I get to 26? Yes I will and I am more than determined to smash it.

#BlogTour:

 

#BlogTour is something that I had seen on social media all the time and picked up some great books from reading the blogs from other book reviewers. A #BlogTour is either a 10 day or month long tour for a book which one or two different Bloggers post each day their review of the same book. I have always wondered how you can get involved in these but never actually looked to do them. I think it is because I was never confident I would be any good at it.. But, at the start of the year I said sod it, why not? I found out how to get involved and put myself forward for these. As of today I have done four #BlogTours and loved it. I don't know why I was worried in doing them in the first place. A massive thanks goes to Anne Cater from Random Things Tours for all of her help in getting me started on these.

Top 3 so far:

My top three books that I have read so far are:

The Old You by Louise Voss

The Word is Murder by Anthony Horowitz

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart  Turton

Each of these books have scored a 5 out of 5 and you can read my reviews by finding them on the tabs at the top of my blog.

The next 6 months:

What have I got planned for the rest of 2018? Well... Hit my reading target of course. I have so many books on my TBR pile like I am sure you all have as well. Some old, some new. I am going to mix it up between the two and also try and read as many genre's as possible. I am currently reading The Girlfriend by Michelle Frances and loving it.  Next up I have Do No Harm by L V Hay which will be part of my next #BlogTour so please keep an eye out for July 23rd which is when I am hosting the tour. 

Social Media:

Remember you can follow me on social media for any updates. My details are:

Twitter: - @CBailey31
Instagram: - @CBailey3103
Snapchat: - @CBailey3103


Speak soon,

CBailey31

Book Review: Go Home, Afton by Brent Jones

Go Home, Afton

by

Brent Jones

This book was given to me by Melissa Robles from Kate Tilton's Author Services for an honest read and review. A massive thanks goes to Melissa for the ARC of this book and also to the author Brent Jones for allowing me to read this before it is published. I have never read a book by Brent Jones before so I went into this with an open mind.

"A dark and twisty tale about revenge and trying to commit the perfect murder"

Blurb:

We all wear masks, and Afton Morrison is no exception.

A small town librarian with a dark side, Afton, twenty six, has supressed violent impulses her entire life. Impulses that demand she commit murder.

Blending her urges with reason, Afton stalks a known sexual predator, intending to kill him. But her plan , inspired by true crimes and hatched with meticulous care, is interrupted by a mysterious figure from her past. A dangerous man that lurks in the shadows, watching, threatening to turn the huntress into the hunted.

Go Home, Afton is the first of four parts in a new serial thriller by Brent Jones. Packed with grit and action, The Afton Morrison series delves into a world of moral ambiguity, delivering audiences an unlikely heroine in the form of a disturbed vigilante murderess.

Review:

Before I even read this book I was excited, I mean who does not want to read about a librarian murderer? The book started off really quick and within the first few pages your mind was racing. It did not take that long for me to start to like the main character Afton. Afton is the person who says things that most people would never dare say out loud and this made me laugh. It kind of reminded me of myself, having been told many a time that I don't seem to have a filter. I really did like the twist of Afton being a librarian but having such dark thoughts. This really helped with speed of the book as you were desperate to find out  how her life and the story was going to span out. The story built along nicely and at a fast pace to an ending which left you wanting more.. I read this book in under a week, which is good going for me as I am not the fastest of readers. Overall it was not the longest of books so if you do not read that much or don't have time to read, this book will be perfect for you.

I found this book had a bit of everything. It had the dark side, but it also made you laugh, it showed that people struggle with families and also life itself and what choices you make in life depend of whether you  actually enjoy your life or not.

Was there anything I did not like about the book? Well.... Not so much did not like, but I would have loved to read a bit more about a few of the other characters that helped Afton along the way. I mean I may find out more in the next few books, but I liked these characters. It was just their part in the book was a little short.

I really liked this book and can't wait to read the next book in the series. I am also going to look at other books by Brent Jones to read as I found his storytelling very pleasing.

This book is out on 25 June 2018, with the second of the four book series See You Soon, Afton out on 7 August 2018. You can pre-order these at the authors website www.authorbreantjones.com/books 

Has anyone else read this book? I would love to know what you think.. Do you agree with me or not? Let me know..

Speak soon,

CBailey31

#BlogTour Rogue by J.B. Turner

#BlogTour

Rogue

by

J.B. Turner

Hello and welcome. Today I am hosting and opening the #BlogTour for Rogue by J.B. Turner. Massive thanks goes to Anne Cater from Random Things Tours and the author J.B. Turner for a copy of this book to review. This was my very first J.B.Turner book that I have read.

Blurb:

A deep-state US organization has a top-secret kill list - and a popular senator is on it.....

Nathan Stone was killed in action while serving as a covert CIA operative. Or so everyone thought. In reality he's become a ghost, a black-ops asset with a new identity and controlled by a secret government organization. The Commission has one aim: to hunt down and assassinate anti-establishment enemies of the state.

It's number one target is Senator Brad Crichton, an ambitious politician with growing support. Stone is ready to take him out, but his plan is soon compromised when the Commission's kill list is leaked to a journalist - whose own name is on the list too. And when the journalist tries to alert the senator , he I found dead in suspicious circumstances. Stone is closing in on Crichton, but must act swiftly to reach him before the truth does.

He knows that one wrong foot will put him in the firing line. But when national security is at stake, the hunter can quickly become the hunted.

Review:

With this being my first J.B. Turner book that I have read I went into this with an open mind. I had no idea of his writing or story telling. I was really looking forward to reading this though after reading what it was about.

From the very beginning of this book I was hooked. You were straight into the action and the scene was set. I love books like this where you are not having to read a quarter of the book to just get your bearings. It was just boom... He is to be killed, here is our man. The words leapt off the pages at a fast rate that before I knew it I was half way through the book. The story had loads of twists and turns that kept you wanting to read on. The chapters were nice and short which always meant that you could read "just one more chapter" even though you were tired and needed to sleep, and they were all packed full of action. I am not the fastest of readers but even I finished this book in under a week. As the book went on the story built and built leading up to an action packed super ending which I loved.

The characters were brilliantly written. I loved Nathan Stone the lead, a Jason Bourne type killer who had a troubled past and was trained by the US to serve his country as they needed him to. The Commission were a group I also really liked. A small group of ex-government leaders who were in charge of setting up and ordering the deaths of the people on the kill list. There was always a thought as you read on that could one or more of them be trusted, or are they not who they appear to be.  There were also lots of smaller characters that kept getting involved and you knew that if they did not drop their interest they could end up on this kill list as well.

This really is a cracking book, which I fully recommend you read if you, like me, love books of this genre. This is a new series of books by the author called the American Ghost series. I am so looking forward to the next book which is out in August and I will definitely be buying this. I will also be checking out previous books by J.B. Turner as if they are anything like this one I will be a very happy reader.

This book is published in paperback on 07 June 2018.

About the Author:

J.B. Turner is the author of the Jon Reznick series of conspiracy action thrillers (Hard Road, Hard Kill, Hard Wired, Hard Way and Hard Fall) as well as the Deborah Jones political thrillers (Miami Requiem and Dark Waters). He loves music, from Beethoven to the Beatles, and watching good films, from Manhattan to The Deer Hunter. He has a keen interest in geopolitics. He lives in Fife, Scotland with his wife and two children.

Check out his website on: - https://jbturnerauthor.com/

Book Review: Following On by Emma John

Following On

by

Emma John

This book I found on a day trip to Birmingham back in March. My wife and I always have to pop into book shops when we walk past them and this book was in the staff recommendation section. Having been a fan of cricket since the age of 4 or 5 (It's a family thing) I had to pick this up. I don't read non fiction books that often but this one I was really looking forward to reading.

"A cracking memoir that brought back so many memories of summer's watching Test cricket"

Blurb:

Michael Atherton is haunting my dreams. He's been making the occasional cameo for a year now. But this week he's popping up most nights....

It's one thing to be 14 years old and a loser. It's one thing to be the class swot, and hopelessly infatuated with someone who doesn't know you exist. But what kind of teenager is besotted with an entire sports team - when the players are even bigger losers than she is.

In 1993 Emma John was obsessing over the England cricket team. But what followed was one of the worst sporting streaks of all time - a decade of frustration and dismay that made the England cricket team a byword for British failure.

Nearly a quarter of a century on, Emma John wants to know why she spent her teenage years defending such a bunch of no-hopers. She seeks out her childhood heroes with two questions: why did they never win? And why on earth did she love them so much?

Review:

Cricket. You either love it or hate it. The haters will tell you that it is boring, or nothing happens, or it takes too long to play. The lovers though will tell you nothing but love and passion for a sport that has been played well over a hundred years. Whilst today the sport has taken a massive step to increase it's popularity by concentrating on the short game, or one day cricket. T20 games are now so popular that league tournaments around the world bid to get the best players to play and millions of pounds are spent to do this. There are cricket tours and tournaments being played in every month of the year. World Cups of different format's are also played more often.  But back in 1993 cricket was played so much less. For us in the UK we had a summer of 5/6 test matches and a few one day internationals and then nothing for months till the England team went on a winter tour. TV was different back then also. The home matches in the summer were on the BBC and you could never watch the winter tours live on TV so you had to listen to them on the radio or check via teletext. nowadays you have live cricket on TV from all around the world all year round. Sky Sports even have there own Sky Sports Cricket channel.

This book took my interest for a few reasons. One, I also like Emma loved watching the England games back then even if we were not that good. And two, Emma is only one year older than me so her memories and stories will be very similar to mine.

This book was brilliant, I loved it. It brought back so many memories for me from watching test cricket in the summer as a child. I may not have obsessed as much as to cut out articles from the press for my wall (although I did have football posters of my favourite Leicester City players) but when I was out playing cricket with my friends we would all pretend to be our favourite players different for batting and bowling. Depending on who we were playing that summer we would sometimes pretend to be them... Well they were better than us. Two of my all time favourite players are Curtly Ambrose the West Indian pace bowler and Shane Warne the Australian leg spinner. I have been very lucky to have seen both of these players play on a few occasions and I have such fond memories of this. Even though they were playing against England they were just so good you had to admire them.

Emma wrote with true honesty about her life as a teenager and her relationships with family and friends. Cricket was her thing and brought her great joy. The stories were funny and sometimes deep. I also love the fact it was a way of bonding with her mother growing up and not her father who loathed the sport. Emma classed herself as a loser, but for me and my cricket obsessed friends we would have classed her as a rock star.

As part of the book, Emma got to meet a lot of her heroes to interview including Mark Ramprakash, Jack Russell, Phil Tufnell and her one true love Michael Atherton. This I found really fascinating, majority of these players now work in the media covering the sport, but it was great to hear stories from them about playing cricket for England in the 90's. Some of the stories about going on winter tours made me laugh out loud but also made me think how on earth did some of these people (Phil Tufnell) play cricket after drinking so much the night before a game. 

Test Match Cricket has always been and always will be my favourite form of the game. Don't get me wrong, I do love 50 over cricket and T20 games but for me, the 5 day game is where it's at. The mental strength that players have to give 100% for is incredible, unlike most sports stars who play 2/3 hours at a time. I love the fact that you could be losing a game but with just 1 wicket the tides can turn in your favour as it is a battle till the end.

If you are a fan of cricket you will absolutely love this book, you must give it a go. I even think if cricket is not quite your thing but you love sport and follow a team you will enjoy this memoir of supporting a sports team.

Massive thanks goes to Emma John for the trip down memory lane.

Speak soon,

CBailey31

Book Review: The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle

by

Stuart Turton

This book is another that I had to buy after reading so many good things about it on Social media. As a massive fan of murder mysteries it did not take long for me to decide this. This book is Stuart Turton's debut novel so how this was going to read like I had no clue.

"WOW! A slick, wild, mind blowing, rollercoaster of a murder mystery"

Blurb:

Somebody's going to be murdered at the ball tonight. It won't appear to be a murder and so the murderer won't be caught. Rectify that injustice and I'll show you the way out....

It is meant to be a celebration but it ends in tragedy. As fireworks explode overhead, Evelyn Hardcastle, the young and beautiful daughter of the house, is killed.

But Evelyn will not die just once. Until Aiden - one of the guest summoned to Blackheath for the party - can solve her murder, the day will repeat itself, over and over again. Every time ending with that fateful pistol shot.

The only way to break this cycle is to identify her killer. But each time the day begins again, Aiden wakes in the body of a different guest. And someone is desperate to stop him ever escaping Blackheath....

Review:

Where do I start? This book was just WOW... I absolutely loved it. Murder mysteries are one of my favourite genre's to read and this one is up there as one of the best I have ever read. It is packed with twists and turns that keep you guessing (wrongly) all the way till the end. I don't want to sound like a lot of people that have reviewed this book, but it is so Agatha Christie.. Agatha Christie with access to a time machine I may add. It is set after the war so no modern technology for solving murders but with a sci-fi twist. The twist being that the day starts over again at the end of each day, with the main character waking up in the body of someone different every time. The one thing I really love about murder mysteries is that, yes, you are reading the book but you are also trying to solve the crime in your own head just like the characters are in the book. This book I kept having to set aside for a bit to try and think about it. If this was a puzzle this would be set to a hard level. This however does not mean if you are not as geeky as I am you will not love this book. If you are looking for something that is completely different and will blow your mind, this is the book for you. Did I get it right in the end? Nope... Nowhere near. 

The characters in this book were brilliantly written, ranging from upper class to working class, but when it comes to murder it does not matter what class you are. Another thing that was great about this book was the main character was 9 different characters (himself + 8 others) which meant you really got to learn quite a lot about so many of them. Each one picking up something different about the day and as the bodies keep turning up the more you could not trust any of them.

I scored this book a 5 out of 5.. An absolute brilliant read. As mentioned above this has moved up to near the top of my list of favourite books and I will definitely be reading this again some day. I can't wait to see what Stuart Turton will bring us next.

Have you read this book? what do you think? Do you agree with me or not? Let me know...

Speak soon,

CBailey31

Book Review: The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn

The Woman in the Window

by

A.J. Finn

This book was getting so much attention on social media, that when it came out I had to go and buy. I was really looking forward to reading this that it went straight to the top of my TBR pile. This was A.J. Finn's debut novel so as to how it was going to be written I had no clue.

" A great storyline which makes you wonder what goes on in your neighbours house"

Blurb:

It's been ten long months since Anna Fox last left her home. Ten months during which she has haunted the rooms of her old New York house like a ghost, lost in her memories, too terrified to step outside.

Anna's lifeline to the real world is her window, where she sits day after day, watching her neighbours. When the Russell's move in, Anna is instantly drawn to them. A picture-perfect family of three, they are an echo of the life that was once hers.

But one evening, a frenzied scream rips across the silence, and Anna witnesses something no one was supposed to see. Now she must do everything she can to uncover the truth about what really happened. But even if she does, will anyone believe her? And can she even trust herself?

Review:

I actually struggled to get into this book, I started to worry that it would be a big let down. I found it just a bit slow and nothing really happened for the first 70 pages or so. I am quite patient with most things in life including books that do not get me gripped. I mean I know a few people who would probably have given up on this one, but I have to finish the book even if it does not take my fancy.

Thankfully after the first 70 pages it started to get a bit exciting. The "frenzied scream" as described on the cover takes place and the story starts to flow so much quicker. Each chapter was left with questions that you needed answering and tempted you to carry on reading, even if you had other things to do. There was another little patch of where nothing happens about 3/4 of the way through the book but it was not as long as the start. The story then came to a crashing end with twists and turns that I did not see coming at all.  

The characters in the book were interesting to follow, Anna the main character had problems which were not only new to me but very interesting to read about. I felt for her not being able to go outside and put myself in her shoes to see what life would be like, like that. Anna was also the best nosey neighbour. Police sometimes say that a nosey neighbour is the police's best friend, but in this book, this what not the case. As the book went on you actually questioned whether you trusted her or not, or was she making everything up. All other characters in the book you could not trust at all. You knew someone was hiding something but had no clue which one. This I liked as it made the book so much more interesting.

Overall I did enjoy this book but I was not as happy as I was expecting to be. I think I preferred the storyline more to the actually book itself. The start and the bits in-between that were slow took a little of the enjoyment from it. I believe that they will be turning this book into a film and for once I think that this would really help my enjoyment of it. 

I scored this book a 3 out of 5. After checking Goodreads and other sites there is a lot of people who really loved it and there are so many 5 stars for this book. I may have to try it again some day to see if it was just me at that time. I would definitely read another A.J. Finn book though...

Have you read this book? what do you think? do you agree with me or not? let me know....

Speak soon,

CBailey31