Category: Crime, Thriller, Mystery

You Belong to Me by Karen Rose (Baltimore #1)

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My Rating: 4/5

When I received KR’s latest book I wasn’t surprised to see it was a humdinger of a hardback at 480 pages. This was actually something I relished, a meaty book that I could get my teeth into.

In the past Karen Rose has been criticised for her style of writing with some saying that the romance element shouldn’t be there. I disagree and see nothing wrong in a crime or thriller novel having a splash of love about it.

In this particular book it took me no time at all to get straight into the heart of the story. The opening few chapters throw us into the world of Lucy Trask and the grisly discovery of a body. Lucy does follow a tried and tested type of character, a strong and independent woman with a murky past. I must say though, although it may seem a tires type of character, Karen Rose does it perfectly. Lucy Trask was a great character and a lot of the gripping elements of the story relate to her past and her current hidden secrets. JD Fitzpatrick is also a strong and cleverly written lead character. I wouldn’t be spoiling the plot by saying that the love interest is not hard to work out in this book but it was done subtly.

As ever Karen Rose’ strongest attribute is the crimes themselves. As usual we have a gritty and sometimes disturbing plot with a very high body count and a race against time before more people become victims. The crime scenes themselves are very descriptive and the tension runs pretty high too and I found myself sitting up a little more, and nudging my tush further towards the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen.

The story doesn’t let up pace throughout the whole book and the ending was a pretty good round up too. Overall it took me around three days to finish the book which isn’t surprising with the size of it. However, I didn’t once get tired of reading it and the story remained fresh throughout. I think her stories only get better and she manages to keep it interesting with the characters she creates. Overall, another great book by Karen Rose and one that I would highly recommend.

The Traitor by Kimberley Chambers (Mitchell/O’Hara #2)

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My Rating: 5/5

My, oh my! Considering that I only discovered KC a mere 3 months ago, I have managed to read all of her books including the latest release, the second in the trilogy of the Mitchell and O’Hara families. The upside to this is I have discovered a wonderful writer who has produced 5 absolute top notch books; however the downside is that I now have to wait a few months until the final part of the trilogy is released.

We pick up from where we left off with the Mitchell family in tatters. After Eddie Mitchell accidently killed his wife instead of Jed O’Hara he confesses and is awaiting his verdict. Frankie meanwhile is determined to make a go of it with Jed and is living with him and their children. Frankie’s twin Joey is in his own relationship and is steering well clear of the family as he can’t deal with all the upheaval. Seeing as I read part one so recently the characters were still fresh in my mind, but even if there had been a long gap, you can’t fail to remember these feisty families. KC has the knack of creating some real charmers in her books, and Jed has to be the worst yet. I detested him and his family but I like nothing more that loving or loathing characters, it’s the sign of a great writer.

Not only do we meet both the Mitchell and O’Hara family again but we get to see the lives they are all living and what they are all up to, especially where the family business is concerned. As usual we are thrown in at the deep end with all of them and that includes the family feud still slowly simmering away. Frankie and Joey are now grown up and I loved the fact that we got to see a lot more of their personalities. The plot itself is a continuation from the first book, although if you picked this up first by mistake it wouldn’t make that much of a difference as you get quite a bit of background too. Having said that I always think the first part gives you the ability to build the characters up and have a bit of history on them. The plot is as fast and nail bitingly exciting as the last one, if not more.

I almost dragged the last few chapters out because I didn’t want to finish the book as I knew I had a long wait until the next one. For those that read my reviews regularly you have heard it all before. For those that haven’t I will say it again. If you haven’t read Kimberley Chambers then I suggest you start….RIGHT NOW! Once again KC you have produced a first rate book and you truly are a fabulous author, just keep `em coming girl!

The Feud by Kimberley Chambers (Mitchell/O’Hara #1)

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My Rating: 5/5

Apologies for the length of this review but when a book comes along that is perfect, I feel the need to tell everybody about it. Shockingly, I had not even heard of Kimberley Chambers and only read her first book in October 2010. After reading the first one I realised that I may well have stumbled across a new talent that I feel is fast approaching the title Queen of Crime in the UK. After devouring the first I read her second and third book in quick succession. Her fourth book (this one), is the start of a trilogy featuring the Mitchell and O’Hara family.

As usual her breakneck speed of drawing you in takes you by surprise. We meet the Mitchell clan with the father Harry as the head of the family and his three sons Eddie, Paulie and Ronny. Kimberley Chambers has a fantastic style of writing where she spreads the book over the years without it being too little or too much. You see chunks of their lives as the year’s progress and she gets the balance absolutely spot on. The book starts in the seventies and progresses through to the late eighties. The Mitchell family have always had a long running feud with the O’Hara’s and as Harry decides to take a back seat he looks to Eddie to tale over his criminal empire.

Eddie is a fantastic character and he is everything you would expect and underworld gangster to be. He is fearless, ruthless and fiercely loyal. When he meets and marries the young Jessica, her family aren’t that keen but are aware they have no say in the matter. Over the years we see Jessica and Eddie have twins of their own Frankie and Joey. We see them not only as young children but later on as teenagers too. The main characters of the story are Jessica and Eddie and we see what it is really like for a woman being married to a man so high up in the underworld. We also see and learn a lot about Jessica’s parents Joyce and Stanley, her brother Raymond as well as he twins Frankie and Joey.

The story itself gives great background to why the feud started and what has happened to keep it at bay. As the chapters speed along we meet the O’Hara’s and see the two families interact. As time, and chapters, go by we see the feud start up again and the reasons why. The story itself doesn’t let up pace at all and just rushes towards a huge climax at the end of the book. I was shocked by the turn of results at the end and realise that this has ended well. Kimberley Chambers had finished and answered half the questions regarding the families, but has left it that I have so many more about what is to come.

The writing as usual is gritty and realistic with violence and language being a staple ingredient. If either of these things offends you, then maybe this wouldn’t be to your taste. For me, it just makes it so real and I literally could NOT stop reading. I started this last night and finished it this morning. The only negative is that I have to wait until the second installment is delivered to my door before I can get stuck in and find out what happens next. This particular book has had 33 customer reviews, and 32 of those rated it as 5 stars, that you won’t see very often!

Having only discovered KC as an author a mere 3 months ago, I am shocked that she is not more popular. I for one cannot believe that more people do not know about her. The friends that I have handed her books to are now as addicted as I am. Kimberley Chambers is certainly the BEST British crime writer I have discovered this year. Comparing her to Martina Cole is an insult to the standard of Kimberley Chamber’s books. As an ex- Martina Cole fan I can honestly say that Ms Cole should learn a thing or two by maybe picking up one of KC’s books.

Road Closed by Leigh Russell (Geraldine Steel #2)

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My Rating: 4/5

When I read Leigh Russell’s first book Cut Short, I enjoyed it but felt like the reader didn’t get to know enough about the characters. This was my main gripe with an otherwise really enjoyable debut novel. I had high hopes for the second instalment and thankfully I wasn’t disappointed. Having said that I think we have yet to see Leigh Russell’s finest work and next year I think book 3 will show that. It almost feels like with each book you read you are building up to the bigger picture of Geraldine’s life.

Initially I felt like again we weren’t seeing the real Geraldine and I was getting frustrated. However, by the time I finished this book I realised that this is perfect character building. She is a far from perfect person but is dedicated to her job. We see a lot more of her personal life in this book and it has given Leigh Russell a great platform for book three with a shock twist from Geraldine’s past. I realised by the end that this type of writing just made me want to pick up another book and read more about her, perfect tactics Ms Russell!

Billie Jo by Kimberley Chambers

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My Rating: 4/5

Billie Jo is an only child and is loved and adored by her father Terry. Terry and Michelle have been married for years and Terry is a well known villain in the area. Their marriage is far from perfect and their constant arguments are cause for concern to Billie Jo. Terry decides to confide in his young daughter that she won’t have to put up with her drunk and waste of space mother for too long as he has met somebody else. Terry is involved with his secretary and she is pregnant and he is determined to start afresh. Life is about to deal Terry a blow and it will shatter Billie Jo’s life.

Shockingly I only picked up my first Kimberley Chambers book at the end of last month. Since then I have gone and brought her first two books and devoured them both. The Betrayer was Kimberley’s 3rd book and was a first class read. Her second book published Born Evil I loved but it wasn’t a patch on The Betrayer. Seeing as Billie Jo was her debut novel I knew I would enjoy it but figured it wouldn’t be as good as her more recent stuff. It is obvious to me whilst reading her books that her writing got better and better with each book she produced. I cannot wait to get stuck into The Feud which is her fourth release. I think I didn’t give KC enough credit as this book was a corker too.

Her writing style like I have said before is NOT for the feint hearted. If you don’t like swearing then her books are a definite no-no. Her debut novel starts out by introducing us to Billie Jo Keane is a young girl who has to deal with her parents constantly arguing. Not only that, but her mother is a drinker who doesn’t care for Billie Jo and thinks only of herself. Within the first 30-40 pages I was enthralled by this eclectic mix of a family. The author has a great way of getting you into their lives very quickly and you feel a certain empathy with people very quickly.

Just as I was getting my teeth into the beginning of the story a shocking twist is thrown straight at you, and was one that I didn’t see coming. If I’m honest it threw me off balance and I wondered how the story would carry on. Thankfully I couldn’t have been more wrong and you soon realise that this event is the catalyst for Billie Jo’s life events.

The story is stretched over a few years and we see large segments of peoples lives lived and the outcome of each bad decision made. In the first third of the book I (as usual) had my favourites and the ones that I loathed. What surprised me is that I didn’t realise just how much that opinion would change by the end of the book.

The story itself is like I said pretty fast paced and with the initial shocking twist I wasn’t expecting too many surprises. Although there weren’t any major plot twists I was quite surprised how things eventually turned out. This book, like the other two I read were everything I want from a great crime read; characters that have real strong personalities, great settings with real authenticity, and a great plot. Kimberley Chambers can do no wrong in my eyes; she is a serious contender for becoming the number one British Crime writer this year. She is showing the public what crime writing should be about and I would imagine making a few of the `old-timers’ quake in their boots.

Highly recommended author, if you haven’t read her before give her a go and start at the beginning with Billie Jo, you won’t be disappointed.

Born Evil by Kimberley Chambers

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Debbie Dawson makes the fatal error of falling in love with Billy McDaid. When Debbie announces to her mother June that she is pregnant by the low life drug dealer Billy, June realises that life will never be the same. Debbie’s brother Mickey has just come out of a stint in prison and is determined to make his life better and that includes protecting his mother and sister. When Debbie gives birth to Charlie, it seems that the little boy is pure evil. Not only is he sadistic and nasty, he is about to be the start of what tears the family apart.

I have only recently discovered Kimberley Chambers having read The Betrayer which was a first class read. Born Evil was the second book Kimberley Chambers wrote and although I loved it, it wasn’t as good as The Betrayer. I think this is a sign that Kimberley Chambers is getting better with each book she writes.

Probably the first thing to note is that this book is gritty realism at its best and that includes swearing and violence. If this isn’t something you particularly like then maybe this isn’t the book for you. Having said that, it’s not something that bothers me and I think it adds to the realism of the characters and setting.

This book starts by introducing us to Debbie at a young age when she first meets Billy and we get to see just how destructive he is on her life. When she falls pregnant she decides that although young she wants to make a go of it with both Billy and the baby. I admit that although Debbie is the centre of the story I didn’t really warm to her that much. By the middle of the book I wanted to strangle her for her stupidity, and by the end of it I hadn’t made my mind up what sort of a person she was. The fact that I got so irritate by her can in my opinion only be a sign of good writing on the author’s behalf.

The book is staggered over the years and we see Debbie move on from her life with Billy to one where she spends time with her mum June and her brother Mickey. In addition to this we have Mickey’s best friend Steve who I adored. The story itself was weaker than her other book but only in the sense that I could see what was coming. Although this wasn’t as good as the first I read I still thought that it could walk all over the kind of books Martina Cole is producing right now.

CROSS FIRE BY JAMES PATTERSON (ALEX CROSS #17)

My Rating: 3/5

I feel a terrible burden when I pick up a James Patterson book these days. The man is a legend who has produced some fantastic work that has earned him the right to be called one of the bestselling authors of all time. A staggering figure is that in 2007 one in every fifteen hardback books sold was a James Patterson. I myself seem to have a love-hate relationship with his work.

Lately I haven’t been over enthused with any of his offerings and his best book in the last few months has been without a doubt `Worst case’ which is another popular series of books featuring Michael Bennett. It seems that all of his co-written books have been a pile of rubbish and it makes me wonder just how bad his books can get. I was however looking forward to his new release Cross Fire, his 17th in the Cross Series of books. When the book arrived my first thought was that this book would be the one that cemented my loyalty to JP and why I always pre-order his books no matter how disappointed I was with the last one.

In this latest instalment we again get drawn straight in at chapter one. JP’s infamous style of his short sharp chapters is there in abundance, which I confess I love. Alex is written exceptionally and as soon as you pick the book up you feel like you are getting reacquainted with an old friend. Nana is also still around as are the kids and you felt like you are once again part of the Cross’ hectic family life.

The story itself is the major let down for me. James Patterson in the past has come up with storylines that have had me staying up overnight to finish a book or being so engrossed that I miss my train stop. This book is certainly not up to what I would call his best standards. I thought the plot jumped and many of the chapters felt almost unfinished.

We see the re-appearance of an old adversary in the form of Kyle Craig. I was looking forward to this element of the story as you feel like you have seen Alex’ life up close and personal in all of his books. For me the first half of the book featuring Kyle Craig was okay but the second half was abysmal. It felt rushed and unfinished and had an element of laziness to it.

Overall the book was very average and again I finished it feeling that dreaded sense of disappointment returning. I don’t know why his books just don’t seem to hit the mark anymore and I find myself wondering if Alex Cross is running out of steam. In comparison his Michael Bennett novels are picking up pace and fast becoming favourites of mine. All in all, if you are expecting another corker in the Alex Cross series you may be disappointed.

The Betrayer by Kimberley Chambers

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My Rating: 5/5

Maureen Hutton lives on a council estate in the East End of London with her three children. Her husband was a waste of time alcoholic who never helped her and she has had to go it alone ever since. Maureen’s life over four decades sees the ups and downs of her family’s life. Unfortunately when she is told a secret that may tear her family apart she has no choice but to get rid of the betrayer before it is too late.

Okay first off, what planet have I been on? Why on earth I haven’t picked up a Kimberley Chambers book I do not know. What I do know is that every book she has written I have now ordered and I have no intention on missing out on her future releases.

Kimberley Chambers has written a book that reminded me of the first book I read by Martina Cole. Her style is something of a slap in the face. It’s hardcore reality and immerses you from page one. I actually picked this book up because of the rave reviews here on Amazon. Of each of her 5 books, none of them have rated less than 4.5 out 5 stars ranging from a minimum of 9 reviews up to way over the 30’s. This alone was enough to grab my attention. I randomly decided to choose The Betrayer as it had a whopping 15 reviews rating it as 5 star. Thankfully, all 15 people were right!

The book itself starts off by introducing us to Maureen Hutton in 1975. We meet her three children, Tommy the eldest son, Susan the middle daughter and her youngest son James. Living on a council estate in the east end of London in the seventies is difficult for anybody, but for Maureen it is all she knows.

Her children are all completely different and we watch as each of their lives revolves around decisions they did or didn’t make when they were younger. No matter what happens to them they can always rely on their Mum. The story picks up pace from the word go and we see Maureen’s eldest son Tommy make a choice that affects the rest of his life and that of his family. It sets the precedent for their futures and as usual Maureen is the glue that holds them all together.

Kimberley Chambers has an uncanny knack of making you feel like you are living their lives alongside them. The characters she created makes for real emotion towards each one and by around chapter five I had an intense loathing for Tommy Hutton. As the years progress we see her children grown up and break away from Maureen all doing their own thing. Some of their lives they keep secret from her for fear of upsetting her. Maureen’s daughter is also somebody that I instantly disliked although James, the youngest son I fell in love with.

The story itself immerses you into a world where drug addiction, the underworld and dysfunctional families is all part and parcel of everyday life. If you are easily offended then you may not like the language in this book but for me it is what makes it all the more real. There is no hiding from the reality of being brought up the way the Hutton’s were and everybody’d secrets get dragged out over time. I love the fact that the story was set over four decades and this just made the reality set in even further. I almost had a longing to find out what was going to happen and was annoyed that I couldn’t read faster.

Kimberley Chambers is genius and has produced a top notch book that Martina Cole and Mandasue Heller fans will love. She is certainly creating her niche and in my opinion is one her way to fighting for the crown of the best female crime writer around! If I was you and you haven’t heard or read Kimberley Chambers before, I suggest you start right now. Trust me, if you don’t you may well regret it.

The Family by Martina Cole

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My Rating: 3/5

Martina Cole used to be one of my favourite authors until recently. Hard Girls was an awful read and The Business was even worse. I was convinced that Martina Cole had lost her skill however I am pleased to see that maybe there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Don’t get me wrong, this book was not in the league of the books from her early days such as Ladykillers, but it was a massive improvement on her last two books.

Early on we are introduced to the Murphy family and we meet Phillip the head honcho. He emanates the self importance of being the leader of such an influential crime family. We meet Phillip and his family along with Christine very early on and learn how the family all came to be in a position of such importance.

I liked the fact that the book is set over many years with the early introduction of how Christine and Phillip met and the sort of woman Christine was. We see their love affair turn to marriage, children and lastly the solid family Phillip wants and expects. Phillip is the eldest of the children in the family and although the main story leads with him we get to see the effect he has on his brother Declan and sister Breda. They are both part of the family business and as such get caught up in all the drama.

The story itself was a vast improvement and it was a pretty fast paced read. There is lots of action and business very early on and the tension runs high in the book which I loved. Martina Cole has also slightly changed her chapter style for this book with many shorter chapters as each persons role and situation changes. I wouldn’t necessarily say this was a bad thing and I think it helped highlight certain key situations.

I liked the characters she created and loathed Phillip Murphy from the outset. Although I must admit that Christine just wasn’t a strong enough character in my book. She is the woman that is put into a situation where she no longer recognises the man she has married. This was a major opportunity in my opinion to develop her as a woman and to fight back. However, this doesn’t really seem to happen and she just drowns her world in drink and prescription pills.

The story itself is a typical crime and underworld family involved in business that can and does go wrong so from that point of view it was okay. Due to the storyline and Phillip Murphy the book was a surprisingly easy read. The thing that still bothers me is that this still seems to fall so short off the mark of what she used to produce. Whether that is because there is so much competition or whether MC has lost her touch, I don’t know. All I do know is that this was much better than the last two and I can only hope that her next one is even better and maybe we will see the Martina Cole of old.

Severed by Simon Kernick

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My Rating: 4/5

Former Soldier Dan Tyler is about to have a very bad day. He awakes to find himself in a strange bed with your girlfriend lying dead next to him. Not only is she dead but he is covered in her blood and according to the DVD in the machine, it was him who killed her. He is then instructed to deliver a briefcase to a shady address in East London and then wait for further instructions. There seems no way out for Dan so he has no choice but to follow his instructions and only hope he can survive the next 24 hours and uncover what really happened before he ends up dead too.

My first Kernick book was Relentless which I cannot praise highly enough. I then moved on to his most recent book The Last Ten Seconds which I loved too. I had really high hopes for this book but it didn’t quite live up to expectation for me.

Don’t get me wrong, it certainly wasn’t a bad book, but in comparison to the last two I have read it just wasn’t as good. The great thing about Simon Kernick’s writing is that he isn’t backward in coming forward. Each book I have read starts at 100 miles per hour and doesn’t seem to let up in pace. Normally the first few chapters are what grab you and pull you in. In this respect Severed is no different and he certainly manages to do this. However, the story was a little on the side of too un-realistic.

I must confess that although believability is good, the whole point of reading is for fun so if the realism isn’t there then it doesn’t bother me too much. Having said that, this story at times, fell too far over the boundaries of being far-fetched for my liking. That aside, everything else needed for a great read was there. The character Tyler is an ordinary guy who happened to have served in the Army for quite a while. It is pretty clear from the beginning that there are not many people he can trust or turn to for help.

His army training certainly helps with some of the situations he comes across though and pretty soon we meet many other shady characters. Aside from Tyler we don’t get to learn too much about the other people in the story unless they are absolutely necessary which makes a refreshing change. Sometimes there is too much background on characters, whereas with this it felt quite balanced.

The first half of the book is spent with Tyler following orders and suffering the consequences, whereas the second half of the book changes pace again with him fighting to get some kind of control back into his crazy day. The story is split over two days but the vast majority of the book is over 24 hours. Along the way we meet the likely suspects for Tyler’s set up but as the story progresses it appears that nobody is who they appear to be.

Yes, this book is a little unrealistic but the writing is fantastic. As a reader I am drawn into the plot (no matter how far fetched) and find myself wondering who is involved from page to page. Yes this book is escapism with a capital E but it is a worthwhile read. Towards the end of the book you are thrown a few plot twists which I liked and the story is finished with an Epilogue which wraps it all up nicely. I enjoyed this book, although not as much as Relentless but I will continue to work my way through the rest of his books and look forward to it.