Welcome to First Lines Friday: Flashback, where on the first Friday of the month I share the first lines from one of the older books on my shelves and try to tempt you to add it to yours.
“It’s that time of year again. The time the glacier gives up the bodies.”
Those eerie first lines are taken from Shiver, the sensational debut novel by Allie Reynolds that was published in January. I read this one in December last year and it featured on my favourite reads of 2020. You can read my review here.
About a month ago, I was excited to learn that a quote from my review had been used on the Norwegian copy of the book and today I received a copy in the post. I can’t describe how amazing and unreal it feels to see my name in print on an actual book. Thank you so much to Allie Reynolds for arranging this gifted copy. I will treasure it forever.
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SYNOPSIS:
They don’t know what I did. And I intend to keep it that way.
How far would you go to win? Hyper-competitive people, mind games and a dangerous natural environment combine to make the must-read thriller of the year. Fans of Lucy Foley and Lisa Jewell will be gripped by spectacular debut novel Shiver.
When Milla is invited to a reunion in the French Alps resort that saw the peak of her snowboarding career, she drops everything to go. While she would rather forget the events of that winter, the invitation comes from Curtis, the one person she can’t seem to let go.
The five friends haven’t seen each other for ten years, since the disappearance of the beautiful and enigmatic Saskia. But when an icebreaker game turns menacing, they realise they don’t know who has really gathered them there and how far they will go to find the truth.
In a deserted lodge high up a mountain, the secrets of the past are about to come to light.
Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Sharon Bolton’s latest breathtaking thriller. Thank you to Tracy at Compulsive Readers Tours for the invitation to take part, and Orion for the gifted eBook ARC.
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SYNOPSIS:
A golden summer, and six talented friends are looking forward to the brightest of futures – until a daredevil game goes horribly wrong, and a woman and two children are killed.
18-year-old Megan takes the blame, leaving the others free to get on with their lives. In return, they each agree to a ‘favour’, payable on her release from prison.
Twenty years later Megan is free. Let the games begin . . .
Richard & Judy bestseller Sharon Bolton is back, with her twistiest thriller yet.
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MY REVIEW:
“That summer was a time of neither hope nor promise but of certainty: they were the chosen ones, to whom the world belonged, and their lives, only just beginning, would be long and golden. How very wrong they were.”
Wow. Just, wow. What a ride! Breathtaking and compulsive, this book literally had my heart racing. It could even be her best book yet. Totally unputdownable, I even missed the Friend’s reunion I’ve been excited about for years as I couldn’t stop reading.
A story of friendship, secrets, sacrifice, betrayal and vengeance, The Pact focuses on a group of six teenage friends whose lives are changed forever when a dare goes tragically wrong. One of the group, Megan, offers to take the blame for what happened, but only on the condition that at any point she can ask any favour of each of the five others. Twenty years later she is released from prison and back to call in the favours. And that is when things start to go terribly wrong.
This book was everything I wanted and more. A nail-biting psychological thriller that was cleverly written, razor-sharp, pacy and twisty. A sinister sense of dread pervades the whole story, particularly after Megan’s return in part two. She is brilliantly written; an enigma whose memories and motivations are unclear, adding to the sense of foreboding that looms. This is an author who knows how to hook her reader, and she held me hostage, unable to turn away or stop reading as the cat and mouse games began and the horrors unfold.
The characters are compelling, flawed and often unlikeable. They make some terrible decisions that have devastating repercussions, but at the start they are young and entitled, so you give them some allowances for that. When we meet them again as adults we find that in their desperation and fear they make yet more terrible decisions and treat Megan atrociously. Especially after all she sacrificed for them to continue their lives untarnished. But despite all of this the author managed to make them enjoyable to read and I even liked them or felt sorry for them at times.
This book is an absolute tour-de-force. A rollercoaster ride full of so many twists and turns you’ll get book whiplash, it left me reeling with my jaw on the floor.
READ THIS BOOK.
Rating: ✮✮✮✮✮
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MEET THE AUTHOR:
Sharon (formerly SJ) Bolton grew up in a cotton-mill town in Lancashire and had an eclectic early career which she is now rather embarrassed about. She gave it all up to become a mother and a writer.
Her first novel, Sacrifice, was voted Best New Read by Amazon.uk, whilst her second, Awakening, won the 2010 Mary Higgins Clark award. In 2014, Lost, (UK title, Like This, For Ever) was named RT Magazine’s Best Contemporary Thriller in the US, and in France, Now You See Me won the Plume de Bronze. That same year, Sharon was awarded the CWA Dagger in the Library, for her entire body of work.
Published: March 23rd Publisher: Thomas & Mercer Genre: Suspense, Thriller, Psychological Fiction, Psychological Thriller Format: Hardcover, Kindle, Audio
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#Ad Welcome to my review of this gripping thriller. Thank you to Amazon Publishing and Thomas and Mercer for the gifted copy of this book.
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SYNOPSIS:
Number one New York Times bestselling master of suspense Dean Koontz takes readers on a twisting journey of lost love, impossible second chances, and terrifying promises.
A decade ago, Emily Carlino vanished after her car broke down on a California highway. She was presumed to be one of serial killer Ronny Lee Jessup’s victims whose remains were never found.
Writer David Thorne still hasn’t recovered from losing the love of his life, or from the guilt of not being there to save her. Since then, he’s sought closure any way he can. He even visits regularly with Jessup in prison, desperate for answers about Emily’s final hours so he may finally lay her body to rest. Then David meets Maddison Sutton, beguiling, playful, and keenly aware of all David has lost. But what really takes his breath away is that everything about Maddison, down to her kisses, is just like Emily. As the fantastic becomes credible, David’s obsession grows, Maddison’s mysterious past deepens―and terror escalates.
Is she Emily? Or an irresistible dead ringer? Either way, the ultimate question is the same: What game is she playing? Whatever the risk in finding out, David’s willing to take it for this precious second chance. It’s been ten years since he’s felt this inspired, this hopeful, this much in love…and he’s afraid.
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MY REVIEW:
The Other Emily is a gripping page-turner that had me guessing from start to finish. From the ominous and intriguing opening I was on tenterhooks. What had happened to Emily? And just who is Maddison? Could she really be David’s lost love? Or is she a mysterious doppelganger?
What I loved most about this book was the perpetual mystery. There’s nothing better than a book that genuinely surprises you, and this one did that again and again. What appeared to be happening seemed impossible and illogical, so you’re kept on your toes and it’s impossible to predict. It felt like the more we knew, the more the mystery deepened. As secrets were unfurled the tension rose and I was on the edge of my seat, my heart pounding as I waited for David to discover the truth about Emily’s disappearance.
The characters are all captivating and well-written. David was a great protagonist. He is likeable and easy to root for. His love for Emily is still so strong even after ten years and you can feel his heartbreak radiating from the pages. You want him to find the truth, but you also don’t because it is inevitably going to cause him even more pain. Maddison is suitably enigmatic and impossible to figure out. Common sense told me she wasn’t Emily but so many other things pointed to her being her. I couldn’t figure it out and decided to instead just enjoy the ride and see where the author took me. Ronny Lee Jessup is a fantastic villain. Both he and his house of horrors are chilling, disturbing and repulsive. I would cringe every time he was on the page and felt sick to my stomach at the thrills he got from hurting others and continuing David’s torment.
I’d obviously heard of Dean Kootz before. What thriller reader hasn’t? But this was my first time reading one of his books. I loved his style and the short, sharp chapters and am now wondering why it’s taken me so long to pick up one of his books. I will definitely be reading more of them in the future.
A tense, eerie, twisty and curious thriller, this was an entertaining read. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys the genre.
Rating: ✮✮✮✮✰
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MEET THE AUTHOR:
Dean Koontz, the author of many #1 New York Times bestsellers, lives in Southern California with his wife, Gerda, their golden retriever, Elsa, and the enduring spirits of their goldens, Trixie and Anna.
Published: April 23rd, 2021 Publisher: One More Chapter Format: Kindle, Paperback Genre: Mystery, Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Psychological Fiction, Crime Fiction, Hardboiled, Police Procedural
SYNOPSIS:
Psychopaths can take root in the unlikeliest soil…
DC Maggie Jamieson crosses paths once again with Probation Officer Lucy Sherwood when a domestic violence survivor stumbles into her new refuge, unable to speak, desperate for help.
Then another case hits Maggie’s desk. A young man has been murdered, and a curious constellation of black dots has been inked onto his cheek.
That’s when DCI Hastings goes missing and Maggie uncovers a shocking connection that turns the case on its head.
Every family may hide secrets, but not every family buries them…
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MY REVIEW:
“Psychopaths can take root in the unlikeliest soil…”
The DC Maggie Jamieson series has become a must-read series for me thanks to the author’s dark, twisty and sharply-written plots and compelling characters. Like the previous installments, this fourth installment doesn’t miss a beat and jumps straight into the action with a heart-pounding and mysterious prologue that sets us up for the tense journey we are about to be taken on.
It was great to be back with familiar characters. Even though these books can be quite hard-hitting, there is a comfort to the familiar characters that makes reading a series so enticing for me. This installment is probably the least hard-hitting of the author’s books so far, focusing more on Maggie’s personal life and how Lucy is coping with running her new refuge than on dark and malevolent characters. And as much as I like the twisted characters I enjoyed this change. But don’t let that fool you, there is still plenty of action and the team spend a lot of time investigating two pressing cases: the murder of a young man and the disappearance of DCI Hastings and his family. And as they dig deeper, they unveil shocking secrets that reveal the cases are connected in unexpected ways.
As with all of her books, Ms Holten addresses some tough topics in this book, including domestic abuse and self harm. While it is always written with honesty, it is also sensitive and real, showing things such as the struggle faced by survivors of abuse. Her villains are always scarily sinister, and this book does not disappoint in that regard. They may only appear for a short time, but they make quite the impact and lasting impression.
An unpredictable, gripping and suspenseful thriller, Dead Secret will have you on tenterhooks from start to finish. The author succinctly catches you up on past events, making it readable as both a standalone of part of the series.
Rating: ✮✮✮✮✰
TW: Domestic abuse, self harm
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MEET THE AUTHOR:
Noelle Holten is an award-winning blogger at http://www.crimebookjunkie.co.uk. She is the PR & Social Media Manager for Bookouture, a leading digital publisher in the UK, and worked as a Senior Probation Officer for eighteen years, covering a variety of risk cases as well as working in a multi agency setting. She has three Hons BA’s – Philosophy, Sociology (Crime & Deviance) and Community Justice – and a Masters in Criminology. Noelle’s hobbies include reading, attending as many book festivals as she can afford and sharing the booklove via her blog. Dead Inside – her debut novel with One More Chapter/Harper Collins UK is an international kindle bestseller and the start of a new series featuring DC Maggie Jamieson.
Thank you to Sarah at Book on the Bright Side Publicity and Promo for the invitation to take part in this tour and to One More Chapter for the eBook ARC. Please check out the reviews from the other bloggers taking part in the tour.
Published: April 29th, 2021 Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK Format: Hardcover, Kindle, Audio Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Crime Series
SYNOPSIS:
THE NEW EDGE-OF-YOUR-SEAT THRILLER IN THE NUMBER ONE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING TEMPERANCE BRENNAN SERIES
‘I await the next Kathy Reichs’ thriller with the same anticipation I have for the new Lee Child or Patricia Cornwell’ JAMES PATTERSON
‘Over the course of twenty books, Kathy Reichs and Tempe Brennan have thrilled readers with pacey, mazey tales . . . We readers are truly grateful’ IAN RANKINNO CRIME CAN STAY HIDDEN FOREVER
When a hurricane hits the Carolinas it uncovers two bodies, sharing uncanny similarities with a cold case in Quebec that has haunted Temperance Brennan for fifteen years.
At the same time, a rare bacterium that can eat human flesh is discovered in Charleston. Panic erupts and people test themselves for a genetic mutation that leaves them vulnerable.
With support from her long time partner Andrew Ryan, in a search that soon proves dangerous, Temperance discovers the startling connection between the victims of both murder cases – and that both the murders and the disease outbreak have a common cause . . .
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MY REVIEW:
When Hurricane Inara hits the Carolinas it unearths two bodies that bear a striking similarity to a cold case from her past that has haunted Temperance Brennan for fifteen years. Could they be connected?
Meanwhile, there is a new pandemic in Charleston; a rare, flesh-eating bacteria that is passed from animals to humans isspreading through the population at an alarming rate and causing panic among its residents.
As Temperance and her partner investigate, they find surprising links between not only the two murder cases, but also to the outbreak. And as they get closer to the truth, it becomes clear that someone will do anything to stop them…
The Bone Code is the twentieth installment in the infamous Temperance Brennan series. I haven’t read this series in probably close to a decade and I was excited to get back into it, but apprehensive about how easy it would be to do so. I needn’t have worried. Reichs catches up the reader with finesse, making those who’ve not read for years feel like you’ve never been away and making it easy for others to pick this up as a first foray into the series.
You’re guaranteed a fascinating case when you pick up one of Reichs’ books and this one was no exception. Granted, some of the talk about vaccines went over my head, but she does a great job of explaining complex medical and scientific jargon to those of us with no experience in the field. Unlike many books out at the moment, Reichs opts to mention Covid-19 in this book. But she takes a positive approach, consigning it to history and setting the book at a time when the virus has been conquered, mentioning it in the past tense. Obviously this is fiction, but it gave me a sense of comfort all the same to imagine myself in a world where the threat is overcome and we are living normal lives again.
Twisty, taut and tense, reading this was a great reminder of just how good Reichs is. I loved being back with Tempe. She is a fantastic character and I’d forgotten just how much I enjoy her and how fascinating I find the work she does. Intelligently and sharply written, I love how she expertly weaves together all of the intricate threads slowly in striking and unexpected ways. Addictive and consuming, I inhaled this book in under a day, unable to put it down once I’d started reading. It has definitely made me want to go back and read more of the books I’ve missed.
A darkly atmospheric thriller with a kick, this is one not to be missed. Even if you’ve never read Ms. Reichs before, I suggest you pick this up and find out for yourself why she, and Tempe, are some of the biggest names in crime fiction.
Dr. Reichs is one of only 100 forensic anthropologists ever certified by the American Board of Forensic Anthropology. She served on the Board of Directors and as Vice President of both the American Academy of Forensic Sciences and the American Board of Forensic Anthropology, and is currently a member of the National Police Services Advisory Council in Canada. She is a Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte.
Thank you to Anne at Random Things Tours for the invitation to take part in this tour and to Simon & Schuster UK for the ARC. Please check out the reviews from the other bloggers taking part in the tour.
The call comes on an ordinary Sunday afternoon to say your sister has been admitted to hospital with a serious head injury. But you don’t have a sister… do you?
You’ve never doubted your parents. You’ve loved them without question your whole life. But your stepmother is uncharacteristically speechless, and your father isn’t well enough to understand.
So you get in your car.
Turn the key in the ignition.
Knowing everything behind you is a lie.
Not knowing what lies ahead: the truth… or something far darker?
A deliciously dark and twisty tale of deception, secrets and family ties, The Liar’s Daughter is perfect for fans of The Girl on the Train,The Woman in the Window and The Family Upstairs.
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MY REVIEW:
Rona Halsall is one of my must-read thriller authors. So anytime I hear she has a new book coming out I jump at the chance to read it and be part of the blog tour. This latest book sounded as intriguing and entertaining as her others so I was excited to start reading.
She had me hooked with the intriguing prologue as Eva’s life is torn apart on that ordinary Sunday afternoon when she finds out she has a sister her parents never mentioned. A sister who is now in hospital with a serious head injury and needs taking care of. Feeling betrayed, Eva rushes to her side, reeling from the betrayal and searching for answers she feels only the mysterious Nancy might be willing to give.
This readable page-turner was so expertly written that it lulled me into a false sense of security. I should have known better than to get comfortable and think I had it all figured out. But I did. And then out of the blue she delivered one of her trademark twists that revealed a skillfully crafted hall of mirrors and turned everything I thought I knew on its head. I couldn’t read fast enough and was flying through the pages as the author took me on a wild ride packed with sizzling suspense. I’ll never underestimate Rona again!
The story is filled with compelling characters that may or may not be reliable. I don’t want to ruin the surprises in store for those yet to read the book, so I’m only going to talk about Eva. She was a likeable character that I found it easy to root for. Most of us have experienced that gut wrenching feeling when we discover someone we trusted implicitly has lied to us for a long time. I can only imagine how much more painful that is when it was your parents. Eva’s heartbreak, loss, confusion and sense of betrayal is palpable, Halsall putting us in her shoes as her whole world crumbles and she tries to rebuild it with the broken pieces of lies and truths that she never imagined.
Riveting, unexpected and tense, The Liar’s Daughter is another morally complex and emotional story from a sensational author.
Rating: ✮✮✮✮✰
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MEET THE AUTHOR:
Rona lives on the Isle of Man with her husband, two dogs and three guinea pigs. She has been a bookworm since she was a child and now she’s actually creating stories of her own, which still feels like a dream come true.
She is an outdoorsy person and loves stomping up a mountain, walking the coastal paths and exploring the wonderful beaches on the Island while she’s plotting how to kill off her next victim. She also makes sure she deletes her Google history on a regular basis, because… well, you can’t be too careful when you spend your life researching new and ingenious ways for people to die.
She has three children and two step-children who are now grown up and leading varied and interesting lives, which provides plenty of ideas for new stories!
Thank you to Bookouture for the invitation to take part in this blog tour and for the eBook ARC. Please check out the reviews from other bloggers on the tour.
Thanks for reading Bibliophiles. Until next time, Emma xxx
Published: April 1st, 2021 Publisher: One More Chapter Format: Paperback, Kindle, Audio Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Psychological Thriller, Suspense, Domestic Fiction, Crime Fiction
SYNOPSIS:
Four people walked into the dining room that night. One would never leave.
Matthew: the perfect husband.
Titus: the perfect son.
Charlie: the perfect illusion.
Rachel: the perfect stranger.
Charlie didn’t want her at the book club. Matthew wouldn’t listen.
And that’s how Charlie finds himself slumped beside his husband’s body, their son sitting silently at the dinner table, while Rachel calls 999, the bloody knife still gripped in her hand.
Classic crime meets Donna Tartt in this nerve-shredding domestic noir thriller that weaves a sprawling web of secrets around an opulent West London world and the dinner that ends in death.
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MY REVIEW:
All the stars for this sensational thriller that explores secrets, lies, vengeance, and the masks we wear.
It opens with a bang on the day of the murder; Matthew lies dead at the table and Rachel has the knife in her hand, confesses, and is taken into police custody, leaving Charlie and his son Titus shocked and bewildered. But there is are unanswered questions, riddles that need to be unravelled; why did Rachel confess to a murder she didn’t commit? And who really killed Matthew?
Charlie, Matthew and Titus are the picture-perfect family; affluent, good-looking and sickeningly happy, they have it all. Until Rachel comes into their lives. Charlie thinks there isn’t something quite right about her from the moment they meet, but Matthew won’t listen and invites her into their lives. A decision that will have devastating consequences and change all of their lives forever. Told in flashbacks leading up to the day of the murder and in the present day as they deal with the aftermath of Matthew’s death, I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough as the author immersed me in this tense and twisty tale.
This was my first time reading this author and I will definitely be reading more. Skillfully written, fast-paced and brimming with suspense, he kept me on the edge of my seat from start to finish. I had so many questions and very few ideas of what the answers could be. Jaw-dropping twists and revelations had my heart racing as the things built to a shocking climax that left me reeling.
Atmospheric, addictive and intoxicating, if you like thrillers then you need to read this book!
Rating: ✮✮✮✮✮
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MEET THE AUTHOR:
B P Walter was born and raised in Essex. After spending his childhood and teenage years reading compulsively, he worked in bookshops then went to the University of Southampton to study Film and English followed by an MA in Film & Cultural Management. He is an alumni of the Faber Academy and currently works in social media coordination for Waterstones in London.
Published: April 1st, 2021 Publisher: Harper Collins UK Genre: Mystery, Suspense, Crime Fiction, Domestic Fiction Format: Hardcover, Kindle, Audio
SYNOPSIS:
A perfect marriage…
Golden couple Annie and David Crayce have it all. A loving marriage, three beautiful children and a thriving family business. Life couldn’t be better. Until the unthinkable happens…
A perfect crime?
A piece of damning DNA evidence has arisen, placing David as the prime suspect of a murder committed twenty-years ago. Annie is sure her David is innocent. But if he isn’t guilty, then either his father or brother must be.
As the police investigate the cold case, so does Annie. Trawling through her old diaries, she begins desperately looking for answers. But it all comes down to a few lost hours she can’t solve.
And Annie begins to doubt the one person she thought she knew best… Her husband.
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MY REVIEW:
“The perfect family… until you scratch the surface and out come all the bugs.”
The Lost Hours is the story of a picture-perfect family who seem to have it all until a damning piece of DNA evidence shows there is a killer lurking among them. Is it David; the police’s prime suspect in the twenty-year-old case who swears his innocence? Or his father or brother; who also claim to know nothing about the death of the local teenager. The police and the family are all searching for answers in this compelling and emotional page-turner.
This story is every family’s worst nightmare: DNA evidence proves that someone in your family is linked to a murder but everyone swears they are innocent, and you don’t want to believe that someone you love, that you thought you knew, could have murdered a 17-year-old girl and then kept it hidden for twenty years. Told by dual narrators in dual timelines, it moves seamlessly between them to tell the story as it unfolds in the present day while also detailing events leading up to and immediately after Karen’s murder.
The author starts the story with the unearthing of Karen’s body not long after her disappearance and then jumps forward twenty years, immersing us in the world of the Cayce family. We get to know the family, and while they may be a little too perfect, a little too twee, and the children a little spoiled, I did like them. It is cleverly written, as allowing us to build this rapport with them before the shock of the DNA evidence leaves you with the same sense of disbelief Annie has that anyone in this family could be hiding such a dark secret. Combined with her evocative writing this makes it one of those books you really feel while reading; feeling all of the pain, confusion and torment that Annie and the others are going through.
For me, it was this emotional side of the story that I found most compelling. Seeing the mystery from that angle and watching as the family’s perfect world crumbled around them was what got my blood pumping and had me on the edge of my seat. I didn’t really vibe with Natalie, the detective investigating the murder. I found her annoying and it felt like she was allowing her own past to influence her investigation. I could have happily read the book without her point of view and think this would have been a five star read for me if the second narrator had instead been the mysterious murderer rather than Natalie.
The Lost Hours is a taut, twisty, atmospheric and heart-rending family drama with a mysterious twist that keeps you guessing. I would recommend this book, and this author, and look forward to reading more of her work in the future.
Rating: ✮✮✮✮✰
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MEET THE AUTHOR:
Susan Lewis is the internationally bestselling author of over forty books across the genres of family drama, thriller, suspense and crime, including One Minute Later,My Lies, Your Lies and Forgive Me. Susan’s novels have sold nearly three million copies in the UK alone. She is also the author of Just One More Day and One Day at a Time, the moving memoirs of her childhood in Bristol during the 1960s.
Susan has previously worked as a secretary in news and current affairs before training as a production assistant working on light entertainment and drama. She’s lived in Hollywood and the South of France, but now resides in Gloucestershire with husband James, two stepsons and dogs.
Thank you to Anne at Random Things Tours for the invitation to take part in the blog tour and to Harper Collins UK for the gifted copy of the book. Please check out the reviews from the other bloggers taking part.
Thanks for reading Bibliophiles. Until next time, Emma xxx
1906: Being a woman is dangerous, being different is deadly.
Maud Lovell has been at Angelton Lunatic Asylum for five years. She is not sure how she came to be there and knows nothing beyond its four walls. She is hysterical, distressed, untrustworthy. Badly unstable and prone to violence. Or so she has been told.
When a new doctor arrives, keen to experiment with the revolutionary practice of medical hypnosis, Maud’s lack of history makes her the perfect case study. But as Doctor Dimmond delves deeper into the past, it becomes clear that confinement and high doses are there to keep her silent.
When Maud finally remembers what has been done to her, and by whom, her mind turns to her past and to revenge.
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Maud has been locked in the darkness of Angelton Lunatic Asylum for five years. She doesn’t remember how she got here or what caused her madness. The only thing she remembers is the man in the marsh, an eerie and ghoulish figure that haunts her nightmares. But is he real or a figment of her imagination?
When Dr Dimmond says he wants to help her by exploring her unconscious it seems like someone is finally on Maud’s side. But as the hypnosis awakens her memories, Maud begins to wonder if some things were better off buried and forgotten after all…
WHAT. A. BOOK! It’s no secret that I love historical and gothic fiction, so this book had everything I could want and more. Claustrophobic, haunting and addictive, I couldn’t put this one down. It is exquisitely written, a creeping malice seeping from every page as the author transports you to the bleak, shadowy rooms of the asylum and the anguished recesses of Maud’s mind.
The depth of Coles’ research is clear in her striking imagery, the descriptions of the practices asylum staff use to treat patients, and in her thought-provoking exploration of topics such as the mistreatment of women and mental health, and the effects of psychological and physical imprisonment. The sense of dread, desperation and sheer helplessness are palpable, coming together to create an atmosphere that has you on the edge of your seat and your heart pounding as you wait for the secrets buried in Maud’s memory to be unlocked.
Maud is an unreliable narrator. While there is a suspicion early on that she might not be as mad as some of the doctors would like her to think she is, even she doesn’t trust what she tells herself. Reality shifts and cracks around her, echoes of memory stir and haunt her nightmares and hallucinations. She is an enigma to the reader, and herself. A woman fighting to be heard in a place where they want her to be silent.. She is an unlikely heroine, but shows herself to be much braver and stronger than anyone could have imagined at the start of the story.
The Asylum is a menacing, evocative, lingering and intricately woven novel. An example of storytelling and mystery at its finest, it is one fans of historical and gothic fiction won’t want to miss. Go read this book!
Rating: ✮✮✮✮✮
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MEET THE AUTHOR:
Karen was born in Taplow, Berkshire UK to rather nomadic parents. Countryside walks with her father instilled in her a lifelong love of nature, particularly wild plants, insects and amphibians. Karen is a painter and sculptor. As a child she was a voracious reader of fairy tales, myths and legends, and this led to a fascination with dark, Gothic literature. She now lives in Wales, not far from a town which once had three Victorian asylums. Their history inspired the writing of her novel, The Asylum.
The pictures above were part of the author’s inspiration when writing The Asylum. They are taken from the author’s Instagram page where she talks about each one in relation to Maud and the book.
Published: April 29th, 2021 Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK Format: Hardcover, Kindle, Audio Genre: Mystery, Suspense, Hardboiled, Police Procedural, Crime Series
SYNOPSIS:
The latest novel by the author of FIREWATCHING, by ‘a bold and brilliant new voice in crime fiction’  Sheffield’s beautiful Botanical Gardens – an oasis of peace in a world filled with sorrow, confusion and pain. And then, one morning, a body is found in the Gardens. A young woman, dead from a stab wound, buried in a quiet corner. Police quickly determine that the body’s been there for months. It would have gone undiscovered for years – but someone just sneaked into the Gardens and dug it up.  Who is the victim? Who killed her and hid her body? Who dug her up? And who left a macabre marker on the body?  In his quest to find her murderer, DS Adam Tyler will find himself drawn into the secretive world of nighthawkers: treasure-hunters who operate under cover of darkness, seeking the lost and valuable… and willing to kill to keep what they find.  That which was lost… will always be found again
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MY REVIEW:
He can’t bear to think of her that way, all cold and dead and wasting away in her grave beneath the rose bushes. He’d always pictured her whole, whenever he thought about her. All peaceful and sleeping. The way she’d looked when he buried her.”
On a cold winter night, a nighthawker – a treasure hunter who operates under the cloak of darkness – breaks into Sheffield’s Botanical Gardens to search for treasures buried beneath the flower beds and instead uncovers the arm of a murdered young woman. DS Adam Tyler is called in to investigate, drawing him and his team into the mysterious, tangled web of nighthawkers, hidden treasure, secrets and murder.
Russ Thomas’ debut thriller, Firewatching, was one of my favourite books of last year, leaving me eagerly awaiting its follow up. But with such excitement comes trepidation. Would Nighthawking live up to the brilliance of Firewatching? The answer is, yes. Like its predecessor, Nighthawking is a heart-pounding thriller that had me on the edge of my seat.
Being set in my hometown gives this series a special place in my heart, but that isn’t the only reason I love these books. They are exquisitely written, intricate and action-packed, bringing Sheffield to life not only in terms of the vivid imagery, but the atmosphere. When I first heard that this book would be set in the Botanical Gardens I was delighted as it is probably my favourite place in the city. I even went there just last week and loved how clearly I could picture every moment that happened there. It was a fabulous setting that the author has clearly researched extensively and I know that the Gardens will forever be synonymous with this book for me.
The author has filled this book with a cast of richly drawn, compelling and nuanced characters. The multiple narrators allow him to weave in the human elements of the story and offer us greater insight into their nature, behaviour and motivations, and drawing more empathy from us for certain characters by showing us the trauma and pain they have suffered. I loved being back with Tyler and his team, a realistic bunch who bicker and don’t always work together well. I like that Tyler isn’t your usual affable and charming protagonist. He is someone you warm up to and I think his spiky, zealous nature gives the books a bit of an edge over the ones with a more likeable central character. I was glad to see Mina Rabbani back as she is probably my favourite character. It was great to see her grow in confidence and come into her own over the course of this book and I’m looking forward to seeing what is in store for her next.
Complex, twisty, dark and exhilarating, Nighthawking is an addictive page-turner that keeps you guessing. This can be read as a standalone, but I would highly recommend reading them in order because they are simply fantastic thrillers. My only question after that nail-biting finale is how long do I have to wait until book three?
Rating: ✮✮✮✮✮
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MEET THE AUTHOR:
RUSS THOMAS was born in Essex, raised in Berkshire and now lives in Sheffield. After a few ‘proper’ jobs (among them: pot-washer, optician’s receptionist, supermarket warehouse operative, call-centre telephonist, and storage salesman) he discovered the joys of bookselling, where he could talk to people about books all day. Firewatching is his debut novel.
Thank you to Anne at Random Things Tours for the invitation to take part and to Simon & Schuster UK for the gifted ARC. Please check out the reviews from other bloggers taking part in the tour.
Thanks for reading Bibliophiles. Until next time, Emma xxx
