Category: C L Taylor

Sleep by C L Taylor

Synopsis: Seven guests. Seven secrets. One killer. Do you dare to SLEEP? All Anna wants is to be able to sleep. But crushing insomnia, terrifying night terrors and memories of that terrible night are making it impossible. If only she didn’t feel so guilty…

To escape her past, Anna takes a job at a hotel on the remote Scottish island of Rum, but when seven guests join her, what started as a retreat from the world turns into a deadly nightmare.

Each of the guests have a secret, but one of them is lying – about who they are and why they’re on the island. There’s a murderer staying in the Bay View hotel. And they’ve set their sights on Anna. Seven strangers. Seven secrets. One deadly lie.

My Rating: 2/5

My Review: Recently I have been selecting books that are the oldest on my to read list and this was one of them. I have read a few CL Taylor books and largely enjoyed then however this one for me was a bit of a miss. Anna is the lead character and we see her starting a new job in a remote area of Scotland, an Island named Rum. She is helping run a guest house in the hope that following a horrific accident she can get away and start again.

First up Anna was just annoying as a character, yes she had experienced trauma but she just grated on me and I don’t even know why (I seem to have a problem connecting with characters lately). The general premise is that there are 7 guest and they get trapped there because of bad weather an all sorts of things start happening. I got the impression this was maybe meant to be a little creepy but I just got irritated by the characters. I finished the book but in all honesty I didn’t care much because it all became a little bit unbelievable.

THE FEAR BY C L TAYLOR

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Synopsis: Sometimes your first love won’t let you go…
When Lou Wandsworth ran away to France with her teacher Mike Hughes, she thought he was the love of her life. But Mike wasn’t what he seemed and he left her life in pieces.
Now 32, Lou discovers that he is involved with teenager Chloe Meadows. Determined to make sure history doesn’t repeat itself, she returns home to confront him for the damage he’s caused.
But Mike is a predator of the worst kind, and as Lou tries to bring him to justice, it’s clear that she could once again become his prey…
 
Kat’s Rating: 4/5
 
Kat’s Review: It’s been a long while since I have read a CL Taylor so I was looking forward to getting stuck into something new. This subject matter may be a little too much for people as it involves child grooming (just a warning) but it was written extremely well. Lou Wandsworth is our main character and we meet her in the midst of a ‘surprise’ from her new boyfriend. Sadly that surprise triggers her emotions and she snaps! It appears that Lou’s old school teacher Mike had groomed her and she had been suffering with the consequences of that ever since. When she has to return to her old town and realises he lives there it sends her mind into overdrive. In addition when she considers confronting him she soon becomes aware that a he hasn’t changed and another girl is in danger.
 
Chloe Meadows is Mike’s intended next target and Lou makes it her mission to help her. There were many elements to this story and it made for incredibly engaging reading. There were times I felt I wasn’t reading quickly enough and I needed to know what happened. Plenty of tense and dramatic events which kept me page turning into the early hours. This book was definitely an emotional and at times dark book to read but utterly enthralling. Another great book by this author I thoroughly enjoy!

The Escape by C L Taylor

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Synopsis: When a stranger asks Jo Blackmore for a lift she says yes, then swiftly wishes she hadn’t.

The stranger knows Jo’s name, she knows her husband Max and she’s got a glove belonging to Jo’s two year old daughter Elise.

What begins with a subtle threat swiftly turns into a nightmare as the police, social services and even Jo’s own husband turn against her.

No one believes that Elise is in danger. But Jo knows there’s only one way to keep her child safe – RUN.

Kat’s Rating: 4.5/5

Continue reading “The Escape by C L Taylor”

The Lie by C L Taylor

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Kat’s Rating: 5/5

Available: Released 23 April 2015 – Kindle, Paperback, Kobo, Nook

Synopsis: This was no accident…Haunting, compelling, this psychological thriller will have you hooked. Perfect for fans of Gone Girl and Daughter. I know your name’s not really Jane Hughes . . .Jane Hughes has a loving partner, a job in an animal sanctuary and a tiny cottage in rural Wales. She’s happier than she’s ever been but her life is a lie. Jane Hughes does not really exist. Five years earlier Jane and her then best friends went on holiday but what should have been the trip of a lifetime rapidly descended into a nightmare that claimed the lives of two of the women. Jane has tried to put the past behind her but someone knows the truth about what happened. Someone who won’t stop until they’ve destroyed Jane and everything she loves . . Continue reading “The Lie by C L Taylor”

The Accident by C L Taylor

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My Rating: 4/5

Availability: Paperback, Kindle, Kobo and Nook (entitled Before I Wake)

Synopsis: Sue Jackson has the perfect family but when her teenage daughter Charlotte deliberately steps in front of a bus and ends up in a coma she is forced to face a very dark reality.

Retracing her daughter’s steps she finds a horrifying entry in Charlotte’s diary and is forced to head deep into Charlotte’s private world. In her hunt for evidence, Sue begins to mistrust everyone close to her daughter and she’s forced to look further, into the depths of her own past.

Sue will do anything to protect her daughter. But what if she is the reason that Charlotte is in danger?

My Review: Cally Taylor is certainly not new to the writing scene and has written two romantic comedy books under that name; however The Accident is her first in the suspense/thriller genre. The synopsis sounded pretty good and I was looking forward to getting stuck in. The story opens up with Sue Jackson visiting her daughter as she lies helplessly in a coma. Sue and her husband Brian have no idea why their teenage daughter Charlotte deliberately stepped in front of a bus resulting in her current state.

The writing was great from the very beginning and I found myself very drawn into the story. Sue is convinced that her daughter would not have deliberately stepped in front of a bus and is determined to get to the bottom of it. What follows is a woman’s determination to get to the truth no matter what the cost. The tension was pretty high especially as the book progresses. In addition to this storyline we get to read chapters of Sue’s past which goes a long was to explaining her current state of mind. Cally Taylor has gone all out to put you in the shoes of a Mother who is distraught and has to find the truth, and I think she has done that magnificently.

The past stories involving Sue and her ex James made you question the current situation even more. At times I even questioned Sue’s mental state wondering if her imagination was going into overdrive or if the things she had seen and heard were real. In just under a day and a half I had got to the last part of the book, but must admit the final few chapters left me feeling a little disappointed. I think the ending smacked of convenience too much for my liking and I was a little annoyed by that. With that to one side there is no way I could have rated it less than 4 as the writing and suspense was certainly up where it should have been. I for one will be looking out for future works by Cally in this genre and look forward to seeing what she comes up with next.