What I read in July 2024

I unfortunately do not have the energy to review every book I read or every game I play. I frequently say stuff on Twitter, but that's about it. I feel it would be nice to get back into the habit of monthly reads' plays so at least you know what I've been reading and gaming. So let's begin with the books! The games will be in a separate post

Due to being tired and unwell more than normal I didn't read a lot this month and that's ok

The Abandonned Empress by Yuna and Ina, Korean Manga, Excellent

The fact each page is full colour has me so happy! Trying not to be killed in her reincarnated life, this little Empress is smart, has the most beautiful clothes and a tale that I'm intrigued by and wish I could afford more than one book every 1-2 months. 

AdelAIDE by Melinda Salisbury, Young Adult, Dyslexia Friendly, Teen, Excellent 

And people wonder I don't like AI! this is edge of the seat reading. Review here.

 

 Peter Pan by J M Barrie, Classic Literaure, Okay 

Peter is the villain - he kills pirates! Literally! Glad I read it but won't reread. Review here.

 

Pirate Academy #1 New Kid on Deck by Justin Somper, Children's, 7 years +, Excellent

Adored Justin's Vampireate series, check out my review here.

Sunshine At the Cornish Bakery by Sarah Hope, Romance, Very good 

Who doesn't love a bakery themed read? Yes it made me want pastries a lot. But was a sweet romance. 

Shelter in Place by Nora Roberts, Thriller, Audiobook, very good

1st ever Nora Roberts book, long but extremely clever with plot twists. Looking forward to the other books I have of hers.

 

Review: AdelAIDE by Melinda Salisbury (Young Adult, Reading Age 8 years +, Dyslexia friendly, Thriller, 10E/10E)

 1st August 2024, Barrington Stoke, 144 pages, Paperback, Review copy

Summary from Barrington Stoke

Freya desperately wants to be a famous influencer, like her former best friend, Hye-jin, but no matter what she does, her posts flop. Until Freya’s stepdad arrives home with AdelAIDE, a home-assistant robot.

It quickly becomes clear that AdelAIDE is much more powerful than other home-assistant technology, and the thing AdelAIDE wants most of all is to help her new owners. Especially Freya.

AdelAIDE has lots of ideas to help Freya boost her profile and get more likes and followers. But when Freya starts to follow AdelAIDE’s more radical advice, things quickly spiral out of control …

Nayu's thoughts

Hot on the heels of 1st book Echostar I absolutely wanted to know what happens to Freya whose family welcomes the allegedly helpful piece of technology into her home. Because of all that went on in Echostar I was already on the edge of my seat and wondering what Mayhem would befall Freya. I felt sorry that she was falling into the trap of wanting to popular. She changed so much of herself because of AdelAIDE and almost none of it was for the better. I like when ads on my phone change to things I've been looking at, but the thought of devices listening in is so creepy.

Worse than her every move being monitored was what AdelAIDE wanted Freya to do. Freya was veering into getting a criminal record! Something that would seriously impact her future more than her drastic appearance changes. Her friends noticed the difference in her personality and it was interesting to see how they interacted with her. I loved watching the drama unfold page after page, and it seemed to get more horrifc the further I read. I am so hyped for the next book in the series, The Foundation out March 2025. I can't get enough of this series! 

Be sure to check out Melinda's website. 

Suggested read

Make sure to read book 1 Echostar in this thriller series Echostar by Melinda Salisbury (Young Adult, reading age 8 years, Dyslexia friendly, 10E/10E)

Review: Echostar by Melinda Salisbury (Young Adult, reading age 8 years, Dyslexia friendly, 10E/10E)

March 2024, Barrington Stoke, 136 pages, Paperback, Review copy

Summary from Barrington Stoke 

 Ruby Brookes and her best friend Deva have won free places at the Ash Tree Foundation Performing Arts Camp over the summer, but only if their school grades seriously improve. So when Deva suddenly starts getting high marks in all their subjects, leaving Ruby behind, she is confused and jealous.

Until she finds out Deva's success is down to EchoStar, a new app that's helping her get ahead.

Ruby is desperate to start using it too, but there is much more to EchoStar than she has imagined. Because EchoStar is always watching and listening …

Nayu's thoughts

I am not super fond of AI technology. Mostly it isn't needed, don't get me started on AI stealing artwork from original artists. I do not have any form of AI actively in my life that I know about, but I know how popular the machines are that can perform internet searches, play specific songs, add items to grocery lists and the list goes on. I was extremely intrigued by Echostar's premise and was heartily glad of an afternoon to read it as I couldn't put it down. 

I could understand Ruby's jealousy, why she didn't want to put the hard work in to improve her grades, and why she sneakily downloaded Echostar (and got her friend in trouble at the same time). I didn't like Ruby's actions, I could feel the danger of the app as she used it. Just how well Echostar knew Ruby was scary, and the mastermind behind it...well I feel Ruby will never be safe despite how it ended. There's always that unknown what if Echostar still kept tabs on her without her knowing? 

By the time Ruby realised it was a very bad app she couldn't delete it from her life, even though she tried. There was no benefit from using it, the depths of trouble Ruby was getting into risked more than not going to drama camp. It certainly had me eager for the next book, AdelAIDE. Ruby learnt major life lessons, as did her family, and the repercussions of her choices I feel will last a lifetime. 

Find out more on Melinda's website. 

Suggested read

Other fun thrillers include Burn Out by Robert Swindells (Young Adult, Reading Age 8 years +, Dyslexia friendly, 9/10E)

 

Review: Lie or Die by A J Clack (Young Adult, Thriller, 9/10E)

Don't let the chirpy cover fool you!

7th March 2024, Firefly Press, 304 pages, Paperback, Review copy

Book summary from Firefly Press

 Ten strangers trapped in a television studio

Forty-two remote cameras
 

One rule: Trust no one

When a casting call is announced for new reality TV show Lie or Die, Kass is tricked into auditioning by her best friend. Big Brother meets Mafia, Lie or Die pits contestants against each other as they try to discover who is a murderous agent and who is an innocent player. But when contestants start to turn up dead (the real kind, not the fake kind), Kass realises that not being eliminated and winning the game is the least of her worries. No longer a game of truth and lies, Kass and her friends are in a fight for survival. ‘Reality’ just got very real.

Nayu's thoughts

Hot in the wake of the thrilling BBC show The Traitors this young adult thriller is a perfect match for fans of the show (and if you haven't seen the show yet, do! I have seen most of the 1st season (not the finale as I can only watch at family's house due to lack of tv licence) and Lie or Die is far worse than traitors as people actually die. 

In the beginning Kass and her bestie Thea are the ones on the show, joining in a way that should have been an alarm bell for the chaos that follow. Kass is content as her other bestie Lewis is outside the sealed set, helping out the production in what feels like a dream come true role that runs into a distinct nightmare. At first the game feels fun, and the murders somehow go under the radar. How is that possible? Well you will have to read the book to find out how but in the world of TV where reality and fiction collide it is plausible for the contestants not to notice the deaths. There are warning signs for the reader but it takes Kass, Thea, and their rivals a lot longer to catch up. 

When the penny finally drops, and when the murderer starts laying clues, the tone of the show completely flips. It's impossible to know who to trust and who will die next. The mastermind behind the show is both extremely sadistic and very clever. Got to give credit where it's due, it took some planning to create the show and pull it off. The question is, can Kass and her friends survive alongside the other competitors and outwit the murderer? I'm not saying but the end itself is full of great twists and turns that made me glad I read it all in one sitting as waiting more than a few seconds to read on would have been agonising. 

I liked learning more about reality TV shows since I don't really watch them. The tension gets pretty intense, although it fell shy of completely wowing me as I feel spoiled since the Pretty Little LIars TV drama which blew my mind and made me less easily surprised in mysteries. Because of a certain incident Kass and Thea aren't actually getting along too well for a while, but when the murders become evident they team up because they both want to stay alive. Kass finds another ally, or so she thinks, but doing so also makes her look guilty. Lewis has to do all he can to help his trapped friends but his skills are severely limited for various reasons. There is a hint there may be a book 2 so I hope that will happen! 

Suggested read

Love a good scare? Check out The Retreat by Sherri Smith (Thriller, 10E/10E)

 

Blog tour: Sometimes People Die by Simon Stephenson (Thriller, 9/10E)

 1st September 2022, The Borough Press, Ebook, Review copy

Book Summary

The year is 1999. Returning to practice after a suspension for stealing opioids, a young Scottish doctor takes the only job he can find: a post as a senior house officer in the struggling east London hospital of St Luke’s.

Amid the maelstrom of sick patients, over-worked staff and underfunded wards a darker secret soon declares itself: too many patients are dying.

Which of the medical professionals our protagonist has encountered is behind the murders? And can our unnamed narrator’s version of the events be trusted?

Nayu's thoughts 

With hospitals being quite a large part of my life, I found the concept of murder in a hospital really exciting. Due to my passion for hospital dramas I understand almost all the medical terms and jargon and understood all the processes that the doctor carried out. Sometimes People Die is an accurate title, but sometimes people are also killed, which is the case in this book. What I liked quite a lot is the protagonist, who admittedly I and other characters felt could be the culprit for a time, is really far from perfect. He is not someone I can relate to on pretty much any level but that's why he was so interesting. Due to his shady past he is not in a great hospital, but he does meet some genuinely kind staff members. There are some who are not kind but he gets used to their abrupt manner. And thankfully he gets to move out of the initial accomodation because that just was not the best place for him.

I like that somehow throughout the entire novel (I think) he is never really named. He does end up in a relationship, but it felt like something he felt he ought to do rather than really wanted, which seemed so odd to me. He himself is not a bad doctor, he isn't the best but he does his job fairly well despite the weird deaths. There's definitely a sense of fear during the time he gets blamed for the murders, every time the police came I wondered along with him if it would be the time they would formerly arrest him. He develops a rapport of sorts with the investigating officers, although as the story progresses that doesn't necessarily help him out. There is a shocking turn of events which I won't spoil but does affect his previous addiction, and seeing him spiral was not pleasant, but he does eventually get the help he needs. He is the only one who feels that the alleged murderer is not necessarily the correct one, and he gets to journey out of London in the attempt to discover the truth which was a total shock and cleverly executed.

I liked the snippets about other historical murders that came every few chapters, but as the tension mounted in the plot I did find these distracting and while I suppose it was like an alternate point of view, I just wanted to get on with the story rather than learn how evil some doctors can be in the past. I probably won't reread this as a lot of the wow factor came from not knowing anything, but it is a really good thriller and I highly recommend it. I did sit down for several hours and couldn't stop reading until I finished it! 

Check out all the stops on the tour: 

Suggested read

For other good thrillers try No Smoke Without Fire by Claire S Lewis (Thriller, 9/10E)

 

Blog Tour: Ruthless Women by Melanie Blake (Thriller, Romance, 9/10E)

 

 18th February 2018, Head of Zeus, 464 pages, Ebook, Review copy

Book summary

On a beautiful private island off the coast of the UK, the cast and crew of glamorous TV show Falcon Bay are at breaking point.

Ratings are falling, and their new boss is inventing ever more dramatic - and impossible - storylines to get Falcon Bay back into the number 1 slot.

Director Farrah, lead actress Catherine and producer Amanda are the driven, ambitious women holding the show together. With so much at stake, they will stop at nothing to stay in the jobs they love and on the island they call home.

Can these women team up to bring down their rivals? Or will scandal, betrayal and ambition tear them apart?

 

Nayu's thoughts

Wow. I have just finished reading this and let me say the ending is impressive. There is so much to like about this, especially the strong, determined women who despite their mistakes keep fighting for what is right. The only reason this didn't get a top grade is because I had really wanted one of the women not to be so eager for romance - well, not even romance, but I'd wanted one to be someone I could relate to, even if they then went off the rails. The inappropriate for under 18s scenes are graphic and nothing is left to the imagination: I did skim read them only to see where they stopped. I'm more a left off the page girl for those topics, so a fair amount of blushing happened. However, I can see it was all keeping with the characters' personalities and was important to the plot. 

Moving on to the overall story, honestly I prefer this book to Melanie's previous book, The Thunder Girls, which I've read possibly because I have more interest in soaps - or should I say continuing dramas? - than the music industry, and find learning about film sets fascinating. It is important to point out that Melanie does a brilliant job of showcasing gender inequality in the film world, especially when it comes down to women becoming mothers. It is horrifying how mean the antagonists are, more so because it happens in real life outside of the book's pages too. It touches on the #metoo movement which is important for every person, no matter their gender. I can easily imagine those scenes in the book happening in the past and sadly in the present. I just hope the future will see changes to that. 

 

I promise the characters who are wronged get their revenge one way or another. I personally think it hints there may be a sequel one day, just because of how one is at the end. Farrah, Catherine and Amanda have strong personalities, some with admirable tenacity and inner strength despite not always taking life choices I would make. The way the women bond and band together when wronged is how it should be. All of them make mistakes they are not proud of. As someone who is sick a fair amount due to chronic illness rather than overindulgence in alcohol, I felt so sorry for the character who has a vomit accident in front of people. Yes it was her fault, but it is horrid being sick let alone over someone else with an audience. 

There is a lot of emotion and it's not a case of women being ridiculous. There is nothing ridiculous about them in this book, other than that some of the male characters are dimwits who completely underestimate them. The emotions surrounding each main character's current life are raw and powerful, even if they are at fault for their own circumstances. I don't have to have experienced all they did to connect with them on an emotional level, to want their lives to straighten out - especially their public humiliations. I'm human, I feel things, I have my own experiences to draw on and I can imagine the embarrassment the women felt as it dripped from the page. They may have caved a little under the weight of what was happening, but they all drew on their inner strength, leaning on each other literally at times when needed. Women can be ruthless, but when gathering together to fight a cause they are unstoppable. 

 

Because there was a lot of drug and alcohol abuse, neither of which I can relate to, I suppose the character I liked the most was Amanda who for the most part abstained from all that. She excused so much of her husband's behaviour, how he treated her at work and at home, but mercifully sees sense eventually, especially when he makes major errors regarding their daughter Olivia. I was aware before reading Ruthless Women, how women can be sidelined at work after they have a child, which is completely wrong. They are as capable as anyone else, and actually talented at multi-tasking, so should not be underestimated. I liked that the women weren't all in their 20s and 30s, it gave a different perspective to what was going on, showing that older absolutely does not mean past it or unfit to keep acting. Farrah was a bit too wild for me, and I did admire Catherine a lot because of her age and all she had experienced.

Shoutout to the shark who was cool for existing. I had actually expected there to be deliberate foul play by a certain someone against a certain someone, so it was nice to be surprised by that plot twist. Almost every plot twist was unexpected, a sign of great writing that I appreciate and like. I truly want a sequel to Ruthless Women, as I'm sure there is more drama to be had at Falcon Bay. Regardless of if that happens, I am definitely keeping an eye on Melanie's future books!

Find out more on Melanie's website, and her social media which includes Twitter. 

Blog Tour Do Her No Harm by Naomi Joy (Thriller, 10E/10E)

 

 August 20th 2020, Aria Fiction, 276 pages, Ebook, Review copy

Summary

On the 21st August Tabitha Rice disappeared without a trace. All the signs point to murder, but no signs point to a murderer. The easiest answer is her husband, Rick. But he protests his innocence and there is little proof he is the murderer.

Annabella knows there is more to the story than what the police are telling. Tabitha was her best friend and she vows to uncover the truth.

As Annabella delves further into the past, she uncovers sides to Tabitha that she never saw coming, and she finds herself asking the question... Was this murder? Or is there more to Tabitha Rice's story than meets the eye?

Nayu's thoughts

I want to sit here cackling like an evil genius because what Naomi created with Do Her No Harm was so clever. It is hard to talk about it now I have read the book, because every new piece of knowledge that Annabella uncovers about her missing friend is more than a little intriguing, and adds to the multiple layers of The Truth of it all. (By the way I meant the truth as in the truth of who did it: I had forgotten I'd read and reviewed another book by Naomi which is called The Truth and in the suggested read at the end of this review). She does seem to luck out with a lousy private investigator who I would have fired for his incompetance early on, but she clings to hope, determined not to give up. After it's over I think she'd agree it was all worth it, although her life was in danger a fair bit and I found it hard to breathe until help arrived for her. 

The true murderer is such a sick and twisted individual, managing to appear completely harmless despite being the exact opposite. They find Annabella to be a thorn in their puppet show, (yes I am badly mixing metaphors). The lengths they go to keep an eye on Annabella while she tries to discover their identity shows how screwed up they are. On discovering the truth I thought upon all the killer had done to cover their tracks, it's not just someone with an accidental killing, it was all calculated and incredibly warped way of thinking. 

Finding out the truth sets Annabella free to an extent, but she also has her own recovery from the investigation to deal with. Thankfully the epilogue goes through all that, so I finished the book happy with what happened next. There is no way she will ever forget the events of that time in her life, they were too intense to forget. I had to give up guessing who did it because there were a few options, ones Annabelle looked into and had to draw her own conclusions from. Let's just say I am thankful for the people she knows in her life or she would have met Tabby's fate. All I can say is it's a good one and you need to read it! 

Find out more on Naomi's Twitter account. 

Suggested read

Definitely check out another book by Naomi, Blog Tour: The Truth by Naomi Joy (Thriller, 10E/10E)

 

Blog tour: Hush Little Baby by Jane Isaac (Thriller, 10E/10E)

July 2020, Aria Fiction, 315 pages, ebook, Review copy

Book summary

Someone stole a baby...

One sunny day in July, someone took three-month-old Alicia Owen from her pram outside a supermarket. Her mother, Marie, was inside. No one saw who took Alicia. And no one could find her.They silenced her cry...

Fifteen years later, a teenager on a construction site sees a tiny hand in the ground. When the police investigate, they find a baby buried and preserved in concrete. Could it be Alicia?

But the truth will always out.

When Alicia disappeared, the papers accused Marie of detachment and neglect. The Owens never got over the grief of their child's disappearance and divorced not long after. By reopening the case, DC Beth Chamberlain must reopen old wounds. But the killer may be closer than anyone ever suspected.

Nayu's thoughts

Usually I love missing baby stories because I am desparate to see if there is a happy. Clearly there wasn't for the baby that was found. I am not saying if it is Alicia or not. My heart was sad upon reading the story because regardless of the baby's indentity, someone had killed a baby. Life is so precious, the most precious thing in the world and I never can get ]my head around those who take any life, most of a baby or a child who are so innocent.

Like any good thriller there are plenty of secrets to be uncovered. Quite a few were unexpectd and surprising. It was interesting to see how the Owens had coped after losing Alicia so long ago, each dealing with the grief differently. There was a fair amount of suspicion on them, but they were not the only ones involved in Alica's life. The killer's identity came as a surprise to me, what actually happened was also a surprise and made it harder to blame the killer. Justice finally gets served, but so does a lot of heartache.

Unfortunately a teen girl who finds the baby gets into trouble for why she was at the construction site with her family (if I remembered correctly) and I know she was at fault, but I felt so sorry for her, despite skipping school she had seen something that no person should ever have to see, especially not a teenager whose lives are by nature turbulent. Yes she was no angel, but she had  had a big shock and I hoped her family weren't too harsh on her truanting. I find it strange how attached I got to the girl, I expected to feel most sympathy for the Owens, and while I was sorry for them it was the girl who won my heart.

It will be a long time before I reread this book, because of the subject matter, but it is firmly on my reread shelf because of plot layers and wanting to see if the killer gives clues early on to their identity.

Find out more on Jane's website.

Jane Isaac is married to a serving detective and they live in rural Northamptonshire, UK with their daughter, and dog, Bollo. Jane loves to hear from readers and writers. You can reach her via her website at www.janeisaac.co.uk Sign up to her book club at http://eepurl.com/1a2uT for book recommendations and details of new releases, events and giveaways.Follow Jane:

Facebook: @JaneIsaacAuthor

Twitter: @JaneIsaacAuthor

Pre-orderlinks (not affiliate links)

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2AM9evY

Kobo: https://bit.ly/2TiC7Gv

Google Play: https://bit.ly/2Tp2tXf

iBooks: https://apple.co/2BLTfyz

Suggested read

A thriller involving a live child is Playdate by Alex Dahl (Thriller, 9/10E)

Blog Tour: Playdate by Alex Dahl (Thriller, 9/10E)

 

Check out the rest of the tour!

9th July 2020, Head of Zeus, 464 pages, Ebook, Review copy

Summary from Head of Zeus
It was meant to be your daughter's first sleepover.Now it's an abduction.
 
Lucia Blix went home from school for a playdate with her new friend Josie. Later that evening, Lucia's mother Elisa dropped her overnight things round and kissed her little girl goodnight.That was the last time she saw her daughter.
 
The next morning, when Lucia's dad arrived to pick her up, the house was empty. No furniture, no family, no Lucia.
 
In Playdate, Alex Dahl puts a microscope on a seemingly average, seemingly happy family plunged into a life-altering situation. Who has taken their daughter, and why?

 
Nayu's thoughts
It was an extremely happy few hours when I sat down and read Playdate. I do not have children, but even I know losing a child is the worst thing that can happen to a parent. Losing a child to someone who was trusted is as awful as it sounds. Although personally Elisa wasn't as careful as she could have been in checking out Josie's mother, but that's coming from my paranoid mind and not one of a preoccupied working mother. I do not know how she could bear to be away from Lucia as a flight attendant, even if she was only short haul so that she was away for a few days. Of course Elisa loved Lucia, that was never in doubt. Anyway I digress.

Knowing that Lucia was going to be kidnapped meant I was looking hard for clues that showed how unhinged Josie's mum was. She was a clever cookie, making sure to cover her tracks well. It was clear she was a nutter but you have to be to kidnap a child. She had her reasons, all be they on the crazy level. I felt sorry for her in so far as she was clearly mentally unstable to imagine and carry out a kidnapping. I admired how thorough she was in the kidnap, she knew exactly what to do to make it impossible for poor Lucia to be found. She was a bit cruel to her, but not too much. She truly loved Lucia and in her delusional mind she was mostly happy having Lucia as her second daughter with Josie. I say mostly because Lucia didn't always go along with her delusions, which made Josie's mum more unstable. What she does is absolutely horrifying. Don't worry, by the end of the book Lucia does make it home to her family, but there are other tragedies I didn't imagine when I started the book.

I loved how strong Lucia is. She knows, despite her young age, that she was in a tricky situation. She tried hard to escape several times, which never worked. She knew she had to keep Josie's mum happy to avoid being punished. In her heart she never stopped wanting to be free, despite all the manipulations Josie's mum does to her. She is one tough cookie, although occasionally I felt she felt a bit too wise for her age in her thoughts.

While I may not agree with Elise's life choices, there's no doubt how much she loves Lucia. Learning her daughter is kidnapped changes her view on life and people forever. It changes her relationship with her husband, exposing the cracks in it and makes them reevaluate their lives. Elise is only human, and I felt desperately sorry for her and her husband. No one deserves their child taken from them, the separation anxiety was palpable. Having the public and police spotlight on them both took it's toll. Self-blame was a key emotion,

Both Lucia and Josie are sweethearts. They clearly love being together, despite the awful circumstances that made them temporary sisters. They are away on a small level that what was going on wasn't right, but they worked together in keeping Josie's mum happy, kept a terrible secret, and gave each other comfort in what was a turbulant time for them.

I liked that the kidnap was to make Lucia part of Josie's and her mum's family, rather than a child being kidnapped for ransom. It forever changed everyone's lives, some for the better, others for the worse. Within a few chapters I knew Playdate was heading for my reread shelf, it is that good and while I know what happens I am looking forward to picking out more clues about Josie's mum's instability, and watching Lucia's inner strength grow under difficult circumstances.

Find out more by following Alex on social media:

Twitter: @alexdahlauthor
Instagram: @authoralex
Facebook: @alexdahlauthor
 

You can buy the book on these sites: 

 Amazon: https://amzn.to/2NyjGdC

Kobo: https://bit.ly/2BIHgBy

Google Play: https://bit.ly/3iewpjQ

Ibooks: https://apple.co/2BEgPwY

 

Suggested read
Check out Alex Dahl's other books including The Heart Keeper also about a mother and daughter whose lives are turned upside down. 

Blog Tour Crystal by Heather Burnside (Thriller, 9/10E)

Check out the other stops on the tour!

Crystal is the redhead.

June 2020, Aria, 368 pagers, Ebook, Review copy 

Summary from Aria Fiction

THE PIMP. When Crystal's pimp, protector and former lover, Gilly, dies of a drugs overdose Crystal is bereft. She refuses the paid protection of a rival pimp, determined to go it alone. But a vicious beating from a client leaves her feeling vulnerable and angry. 

THE JUDGE. Meanwhile, Crystal's daughter, Candice, is asking difficult questions about her job. Crystal decides it's time to make some changes, and, when a high-profile judge offers her payment to keep schtum about his nefarious activities, it gives her an idea. Perhaps other clients will also pay for her silence... 

THE REVENGE. Crystal engages on a revenge mission to rob, blackmail and expose her most depraved clients. But some of these men are highly dangerous and, if Crystal wants to exact her plan of revenge, she must accept the risks that go with it.

Nayu's thoughts

There is almost never a need to read a previous book in a series to understand the one currently being read, but I did reread The Mark by Heather to refamiliarise myself with Crystal, who I liked back then so was delighted when Heather said she would be in another novel. Yay! 

Crystal is quite a character in herself. In some ways she felt like a typical working girl in The Mark, but in Crystal she tries to turn her life around for the sake of her young daughter. She is far from perfect, and I think it may be her imperfections and the choices she makes in life which are so different to what I'd choose that make Crystal appealing to me. I did not agree with her day(night) job, or the side route she chose to go which placed her in danger, as it wasn't exactly above board (legal). I did admire her determination to better herself, thinking of the long-term goal of a stable life for her and her girl was rather different to short term fixes as a previous drug addict. It felt realistic that when she did make it to rehab (yay!) it wasn't for an ideal time due to circumstances, it was brutal but Crystal stuck true to her inner fighting self and kept on going. 

Having a kidnapping heightens any thriller, I am glad I set aside a few hours to read the entire novel as I don't see how people can put books down when it looked like Crystal's girl whose name eludes me right now was perhaps going to die. Yes kidnappings can go wrong very quickly, but her bravery while she waited for her mum to save her (brilliant scenes after that!) showed how Crystal's resilience has been passed down to her daughter. That is what saves them both, that and friendship, both old and new. 

I hope there may be one more book with at least a mention of how Crystal and her daughter are doing in the future, even if it is solely a mention I want her to be thriving, as she has come so far and I am proud of her! 

Find out more on Heather's website. 

Suggested read

Check out other books by Heather include The Mark by Heather Burnside (Thriller, 10E/10E)

Blog Tour: No Smoke Without Fire by Claire S Lewis (Thriller, 9/10E)

7th May 2020, Aria, 306 pages, Ebook, Review copy 

Book summary

Celeste has been running from her past for seven years. But now her past has found her. 

For seven years, Celeste has battled her guilt and shame over the tragic events that led to her little brother's death. But when her high-school boyfriend comes back into her life just as she gains a stalker, she wonders if there's more to the story than she realized.

Celeste is determined to discover the truth – but she's about to find out that when you play with fire, you get burned...

Nayu's thoughts 

My initial thoughts were that she was mostly innocent about her brother's death, she was no angel but she wasn't evil either. By the end I didn't know what to think. I liked the way that her stalker's viewpoint was put at the beginning of the chapter, with her story straight after, and it made me feel sorry for her. But bit by bit Celeste did things which were most definitely not good deeds. Yes I understand that she was angry to her ex teenage boyfriend, but what she did was criminal damage. Some of things that the stalker recorded were so awful that I wondered how she got away with it, and why she did them knowing that her actions could affect young lives. 

For a while I thought her ex-boyfriend was the stalker - it made total sense to me until the point I realised it was someone else. Even when the truth came out near the end, in moments that make me doubt Celeste's sanity and be unsure of who was speaking the truth, I was confused about what really happened. I understand what happened with her brother, but the reason for her stalker simply didn't seem to be explained, unless I was too tired when I read it and misunderstood the revelation. In most cases I would reread the book in time, but what happens with her stalker happened to a friend at university, and I just can't relive that. 

Overall the story is brilliant: I couldn't stop reading it, Celeste seems both vulnerable and an instigator of trouble. I usually feel sorry for a protagonist like her, and want her to be safe, but I couldn't because of the decisions she takes which walk her towards being a crazy person herself, like her stalker.. Perhaps her brother's death meant that she would be forever tainted, that she was predisposed to reckless behaviour and revenge. Knowing she was being stalked was terrifying, as I wanted to warn her to be careful, in case events turned sour and she got in trouble with the stalker. She is a character I won't forget for a long time, even if I am unsure of what was real and what was in her head. 

My favourite character has to be the long suffering Meghan, who was super kind to Celested, all things considered. Without her Celeste wouldn't have survived well. I did want to hit Celeste's friends on the head for being insensitive, even if they didn't know all the facts the should have been more considerate of how she was feeling. I did like how the themes of domestic violence were explored, that everything can seem fine on the outside of a home but the inside is a different matter.

Be sure to check out other stops on the tour! Which has a part 2 shown below

Blog Tour: The Truth by Naomi Joy (Thriller, 10E/10E)f

Check out other stops on the tour!

 5th Sepember 2019, Aria Press, 384 pages, Paperback, Review copy

Summary from press release

Perfect wife. Perfect life. Perfect crime.Anthony is not the man everyone believes him to be. 

And Emelia is not the woman he wants her to be.

Theirs was a whirlwind romance,Anthony was the doting boyfriend, the charismatic and successful career man who swept her off her feet. But now Emelia is trapped in a marriage of dark secrets and obsession. She is no more than something Anthony wants to 'fix', one of his pet projects.

Emelia has no escape from the life that Anthony insists on controlling, so she shares her story through the only means she can –her blog. Yet Anthony can never find out. Forced to hide behind a false name, Emelia knows the only way that Anthony will allow her to leave him, is death.

Trapped with a man she knows is trying to kill her, Emelia is determined that someone will hear her story and Anthony will meet his ends. That everyone will discover the truth.

Nayu's thoughts 

This is very much a Dun  Dun DUN!!!! kind of read. I am unapologetic for using this phrase quite a lot at the moment - it really fits the thriller! I have limited ability to retain information due to brain fog, which means I generally don't try to guess the plot of thrillers. I am grateful for this because it makes reading them even more of a surprise. There was no way I could have attempted to predict what happened to Emelia by the end of the novel. To say there are major surprises semi-frequently is a bit of an understatement. Bit by bit Emelia's life gets unravelled. She has a lot of secrets. 

From the start Anthony made me feel queasy. Knowing what he is doing to Emelia and watching on as she initially is powerless to oppose his domestic abuse was heartbreaking and instantly made me feel sorry for Emelia and want her to break free. I think Naomi wrote this scenario to create conflict with me as a reader, because Emelia isn't as helpless as the summary makes her seem. Yes her life is genuinely in danger, but she does something highly immoral which made me have doubts about her integrity. 

I wanted her to be free and safe from her tormentor, and I believe that although Emelia did something horrific, it was partially caused by her circumstances so she both is and isn't to blame for what happened. She could easily have used her talents and the few freedoms she had to reach out and get help to escape her life. She consciously chose to a degree of deception which ended up hurting people, including herself.

Reading with brain fog means I did get a bit confused over the plot a few times, but I know even readers with clear minds will be unsure what to think and believe about Emelia's life. She does lie and twist the truth, making this an automatic entry on my reread shelf just so I can try and spot the myriad of hints which must have been there. No one deserves abuse, ever. Emelia suffered due to circumstances outside her control, and ended up suffering more due to poor choices in how she could escape her prison. I always felt sorry for her, and did want her punished but feel she was punished enough by what she had to live through. 

Be sure to follow Naomi on social media: 

Facebook: @naomijoyauthor

Twitter: @naomijoyauthor

And you can buy the book in all good bookshops including: 

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2Mdblxi

Kobo: https://bit.ly/2H2dvvg

iBooks: https://apple.co/31AvG30

Google Play: https://bit.ly/2KwoYWq

Please note none of the links are affiliate links for me. 

Suggested read

A thriller which kept me on my toes recently that involves lying is The Heart Keeper by Alex Dahl (Thriller, 10E/10E)

 

Blog Tour: Best Friends Forever by Dawn Goodwin (Thriller, 10E/10E)

Check out the rest of the stops on the tour!

No, never.

August 2019, Aria Fiction, 364 pages, Ebook, Review copy

Book summary from press release

 Have you ever wanted to kill your best friend?Anna was the perfect wife. Perfect mother. Perfect woman. And now she's dead. Leaving behind her husband, David, and two young children their lives will never be the same. But Vicky will make sure life goes on...

These two women have been best friends forever, a lifetime of secrets lies between them and now Vicky is ready to step up into Anna's perfect shoes. But not everything is as it seems and as David begins to question Vicky's motives for walking into his life things might just get a little murderous.

The question on everyone's lips is, who killed Anna? And what actually happened on the night she died?

Nayu's thoughts

I'm fond of a good thriller (this one is a great one), and I love any story which heavily involves children, maybe because I have none and am eternally fascinated with how children think and act, in a non-weirdo kind of way. What you don't know is interesting, and while Vicky knew a little about Harper and Lewis, like me she fell in love with them. They are adorable! They are not perfect children, no child is perfect (or adult for that matter), but they do help cut through the grief of losing Anna. They are a big fat reminder that Anna is gone, which Vicky is painfully aware of, but they are one of the good things about Anna, which is a joy to read about, because Anna wasn't as nice as she seemed. 

A lot of times nice people are fully nice, but Anna is a case where nice was an external persona she wrapped herself in. She was downright awful to Vicky a lot of the time. Vicky obviously remembers those times as she struggles with the issues that her so-called best friend gave her. I liked how Dawn wove different timelines into the tale, because it shines a light on a past we only have Vicky's account of, it unlocks some mysteries that Vicky has in the present, and also gives a deeper understanding of who Vicky is. Vicky isn't entirely innocent just like Anna isn't. Dun dun DUN!!!!!! (I think you all know the music for that part.) 

Vicky both has and doesn't have an ulterior motive throughout the story. I think she had a vague idea of what she wanted to happen, but, understandably, she got used to living with David and the children, as seen when David's family come and disturb the nice routine Vicky has which makes her flustered and causes her to make decisions that aren't always wise. Did she kill Anna? Did David? Dun dun DUN!!!! 

Sorry, couldn't resist! Of course I am not going to tell you the answer - it would obviously spoil the plot more than alittle, and you really do need to read both timelines to understand the truth, which is a shocker. This is firmly on my reread shelf because of how much I like Vicky, despite her faults, and dislike Anna, because of how mean she is, and feel sorry for David too. So go read it! You won't regret it. 

Find out more from Dawn on her social media: 

Twitter: @DGoodwinAuthor

Facebook: @DGoodwinAuthor

Suggested read

For another single father tale check out  Fatal Option by Chris Beaky (Thriller, 10E/10E)

Novel Extract: Best Friends Forever Chapter 2

Vicky felt nervous as she rang the doorbell, which was silly because this house had been her second home for so long. But that was when Anna still lived in it. Vicky had known David a long time, but you could count on one hand the occasions they’d spent time alone.

She’d seen him at the funeral, of course. Not that she could remember much about it. She’d self-medicated with vodka in order to get through it. But she had been struck by how broken David had looked and she hadn’t known what to do with that. She wasn’t entirely sure what she had expected. He’d always been such a physical presence before, so to see him decimated, like an empty husk, had been a shock. Then her focus had shifted to Lewis and Harper, wide-eyed in their sombre, stiff outfits chosen specially for the occasion, and he had fallen out of her consciousness.

After that, it became harder to call him, ask him how he was, take that first step of reconnecting, especially as she was quietly battling with the gaping hole left in her own life. Anna had been her constant companion since they were thirteen years old, their only time apart being the university years when Anna had gone off to make something of herself (and meet David) while Vicky stayed behind and watched, an eyewitness to Anna’s much more exciting and privileged life. In those days, she had hoped that Anna would return to her; this time she knew without a doubt that she wouldn’t.

The only reason she had texted David last week was because the gnawing ache inside her couldn’t be ignored any more. She needed to maintain a connection to Anna somehow because without that, she felt like she was falling into a hole that she couldn’t claw her way out of, so she’d sent a tentative text. He hadn’t replied straightaway and she had tried not to read too much into it. But of course, she had analysed it endlessly, kicked herself for being too forward. The usual.

His reply came the next day. A simple message:

We’re okay. Kids would love to see you. David

She’d replied suggesting the following weekend when she didn’t have the dirt of a workday on her skin and they didn’t have the weight of school hanging over them.

And here she stood, her shaky knees clad in clean jeans that hung a little looser thanks to the most effective diet there is: grief. Anna would be pleased at that at least. Vicky’s hand hesitated over the doorbell, then she squared her shoulders, adjusted the heavy bag in her hand and pressed the buzzer.

The house next door had a Team GB flag attached to the aerial of their car. It flapped and twisted with the rise and fall in the breeze. Olympics fever was starting to grow, even though the opening ceremony was still weeks away. Vicky wasn’t all that interested and figured the excitement would peter out before long.

The door was flung open almost immediately by Harper, who rushed at her legs with force.

‘Hey, Bug! Wow, I’ve missed you! You okay?’ Vicky dropped the bag to the floor and knelt down to hug her back. As she released her, she felt a smaller body climb onto her back. ‘Lou-Lou! There you are!’ Lewis hugged her tightly around the neck, threatening to cut off her air supply, but she didn’t mind at all. She felt her heart lift a notch for the first time in a month as pure love flooded through her for her godchildren.