RATED 5/5 – Best Crime Books and More

Hard Power by J B Turner (Jon Reznick #12)

Synopsis: Hard Power ―the follow-up to the electric Hard Exit ―is a riveting new thriller from bestselling author J. B. Turner. When Amy Chang, partner of NSA hacker Trevelle Williams―a friend of Jon Reznick―is found dead on a Manhattan subway, everyone says it was a suicide. But Trevelle knows that someone had been watching Amy’s every move, and he isn’t about to let them slip away. Trevelle calls on Jon Reznick to help him uncover what happened to Amy and protect Amy’s brother, Kevin Chang, a Hong Kong student-activist living in New York. Before long, two government organizations are hunting them, forcing the trio to go on the run. Will Reznick be able to pull himself out of another mess, or have things finally gone too far? As his pursuers close in, Reznick reaches out to Martha Meyerstein, FBI assistant director, for help―but with so many political forces at play, people are not always who they seem to be. With friends’ lives on the line, Reznick will have to summon all his black-ops skills, tradecraft, and killer instincts to keep both Trevelle and Kevin alive…but he might have to sacrifice his own life to do it.

MY RATING: 5/5

My Review: I absolutely love this series and this latest release is no exception. Jon Reznick’s friend and hacker Trevelle is the one who calls Jon for help this time, a far cry from the norm. However, the situation Trevelle finds himself in is far from the ordinary. Trevelle’s girlfriend Amy Chang is found dead and he is convinced, along with Amy’s brother Kevin, that it was no accident. Although Jon has no jurisdiction he as per the norm sticks his nose in to try and get to the bottom of what has gone on. It becomes clear pretty quickly that the situation Jon, Trevelle and Kevin find themselves in proves the theory that all is not right!

There is plenty of action pretty much from the off with this latest book and as usual Jon is determined for the truth even if it means falling out with the FBI assistant Martha (which he does plenty of)! I was a little on the fence with how the Jon and Martha relationship has played out but a part of me also understands the need for it. That aside I loved the pacing of the story and there was plenty of corruption and action top keep you entertained. Although there is a slight swerve into the arena featuring Chinese politics, I can forgive it as it didn’t detract from my enjoyment. I just hope we don’t see the author going politics heavy in future books.

Overall this is a fast paced and action packed story with a character you can’t help but love. A great series which I am thoroughly enjoying and would happily recommend.

After That Night by Karin Slaughter (Will Trent 11)

After That Night Synopsis:

Sara doesn’t think about that night.

About the attack.

About the way it tore her world apart.

About the man who did it, now safely behind bars.

She thought that night was over. Until a new victim appears…

And now a young woman’s life depends on Sara uncovering exactly what happened after that night…

My Rating: 5/5

My Review: Will and Sara are back and unfortunately for Sara when she sees to a young rape patient named Dani Cooper she has no idea that it will unleash her own tragic past. When Dani dies from her injuries Sara is determined to get to the bottom of who was responsible having no clue that she would be directly in the firing line. She ends up testifying against Tommy McAlistair and soon realises that there are links between Dani and her own brutal rape many years before.

The end result is that Will along with his partner Faith go behind their boss Amanda’s back to try and get to the bottom of it all. This also opens old wounds for Will as he is faced with speaking to his Aunt Eliza whom he loathes but has to work with to help Sara. The story progresses with multiple moving parts and frankly I didn’t want to put this one down. This was pretty gut wrenching in parts but was very well written and I found myself just continuously turning pages and getting completely lost in the story.

Whilst the underlying theme throughout the book may not sit well with some people (sexual assault/rape) I feel like it was done well and as this is something that has formed part of Sara’s character over many years it is fitting to see her working through this element of her past. Overall another brilliant book which I thoroughly enjoyed

The Good Daughter by Karin Slaughter

The Good Daughter Synopsis:

Twenty-eight years ago, Charlotte and Samantha Quinn’s childhoods were destroyed by a terrifying attack on their family home. It left their mother dead. It left their father – a notorious defence attorney – devastated. And it left the family consumed by secrets from that shocking night.

Twenty-eight years later, Charlie has followed in her father’s footsteps to become a lawyer. But when violence comes to their home town again, the case triggers memories she’s desperately tried to suppress. Because the shocking truth about the crime which destroyed her family won’t stay buried for ever…

My Rating: 5/5

My Review: This has been sitting in my to read pile for some time and I decided to finally opick it up and boy am I glad I did. The story starts by looking back in time to the loves of Samantha and Charlotte (Charlie) Quinn. Their Dad Rusty is a lawyer well known around town as he defends murders and rapists , and their mother Gamma is very unique but a doting and loving Mother. What happens to the family on night years ago leaves their Mother dead and the two girls devastated and traumatised.

Fast forward nearly 30 years later and we see Charlie still living near to her father and working as a defence lawyer. Something bad then happens to Charlie and she is literally catterpaulted into a horrendous situation which not only affects her, but the town she lives in and the people living there. I admit the first quarter of the book I was trying to get to grips with everything going on but as each element of the story unfolded I became utterly absorbed in the book and literally couldn’t stop reading. This truly does pack a punch and seems to pack suspense, drama, fear, adrenaline and sadness all into one story!

This story itself is pretty complex but is done in such a way that you are completely invested in the characters and their own battles that emerge. I can honestly say this was an exceptionally good read and one that I finished and was left wanting more. I sincerely hope we get to see these characters again as they were quite simply amazing!

Finding Family at The Cornish Cove by Kim Nash

Finding Family Cornish Cove Synopsis: Family is everything…

For years, Gemma has been running her late mother’s café with devotion, and when an opportunity comes to buy out her next-door neighbour and expand, she jumps at the chance.

She knows she will do her mother proud – keep her legacy going strong – but deep down she knows there’s still something missing.

But sometimes family are those you choose, or those who choose you! With a growing community of supporters cheering Gemma on, will she really spend the rest of her life alone? And with some new faces at her blossoming bistro, perhaps romance may also be on the cards?

My Rating: 5/5

My Review: Urghhh I wish I could just continuously read about this village and never stop it just lifts my spirits every time I read a book by Kim Nash! Her last book introduced us to Meredith who impulsively brought a lighthouse in Driftwood Bay in Cornwall. That first book not only introduced us to Meredith and Clem (the guy that renovated the lighthouse for her), but to other villagers and one of those was Gemma.

Gemma is the main focus of this book but even from the beginning I loved the fact we got updates on all the other characters living in Driftwood Bay. Gemma owns a cafe which was once owned by her Mother and she has the opportunity to expand. It’s a big leap but one she is willing to take. She didn’t quite bank on the issues she would run into when trying to get her dream to reality. There uis a newbie in town, Jude Adams and his daughter Occy ends up working for Gemma. Occy was a brilliant character and one that I warmed to instantly.

We get to learn a lot more about Gemma’s own life and her close relationship with her sister Lucy, who runs the local B&B with her husband. This book truly was an absolute gem. I read it in one day and around two sittings and rarely stopped for breath. An utterly enchanting read and I am absolutely gutted that I have to wait to read the next one. If you need a big fat hug and a feel good read this is the one for you!

Hopeful Hearts at Cornish Cove by Kim Nash

Hopeful Hearts Synopsis:

A perfect new start in Cornwall…

Meredith’s life is at a standstill. She’s stuck in a dead-end job, approaching fifty, and her dating life is a string of disasters. But one evening, while browsing the internet, she sees an ad for a lighthouse, and in a moment of impulsiveness, she makes a ridiculous bid for it.

With the help of local handyman Clem, she sets about renovating. And as they work together, a bond begins to form. But when Meredith finds out that Clem is keeping a secret from her, it changes everything. Will they find a way to build something more meaningful together?

My Rating: 5/5

My Review: I am primarly a crime and thriller reader but I adore this genre as its more escapist and light hearted and although I don’t read this genre often I certainly have my favourites and go-to authors. For more than 25 years I have relied upon authors such as Carol Matthews, Jill Mansell and more recently authors such as Paige Toon and Jo Thomas. However, Kim Nash is now pretty much the top of that list now. Her books are guaranteed feel good reads and somehow I ending up falling in love with the places she writes about and the people living there. Hopeful Hearts is absolutely no different.

Meredith is your average and ordinary woman but as she approaches fifty she makes one rather rash and impulsive decision which sort of changes everything for her. She brought a lighthouse without even seeing it and it means a move down to Cornwall. First off I really loved Meredith, I think as a fourty something woman I am sick of reading about women in their twenties! It is so refreshing to see women my own sort of age as the lead in a book. Meredith is very likeable but as soon as she moves down to Cornwall you just know she has made a mistake.

Once she arrives a whole manner of things of happen from having a disagreement with a local as soon as she gets there to realising she has to work on this lighthouse from top to bottom. The characters that make appearances throughout this book from Clem who ends up renovating the lighthouse with Meredith, to Lucy and Gemma, to Violet….all the locals make an appearance and they all form part of this amazing story set in Driftwood Bay.

I was completely engrossed with the story and characters and soon realised that I had read the book in a day and a half and felt bereft. Thankfully I had book two ready to go also set in Driftwood Bay and featuring characters we have already met (thank goodness). I really can’t explain why but these books are a sheer joy to read and just have that magic touch which enable you as the reader to completely lose yourself. I absolutely LOVED this book and would highly reccomend it to anybody.

BAD BLOOD BY ANGELA MARSONS (KIM STONE 19)

Synopsis: The victim is lying under the trees, arms lifted above his head, unnaturally still. His muscles are slack. His eyes are empty. There are no signs of life. But he is not quite dead…

When Detective Kim Stone races to the crime scene, there is no body waiting for her: the paramedics are desperately trying to save the victim’s life. But there is something very strange about the way the man was found, his arms raised above his head, his legs spread apart. When he dies on the way to the hospital, Kim is certain she’s on the hunt for a killer… but all evidence at the scene has been destroyed.

The dead man, Eric Gould, seems ordinary, until the team dig into his past. As a teenager, he was locked away for attacking his girlfriend, and Kim suspects he was hurting his fiancé now. Was someone trying to stop history repeating?

Then another man is found on the verge of death, his bones broken to force him into an unnatural shape. The team realise the killer is sending a message – the victims’ bodies are spelling out their sins. As boys, they were both part of a group of six who bragged about their terrible crimes. But they were children then, and when she sees the grief on the faces of their loved ones now, Kim swears to find answers.

Is someone finally getting revenge… or do they think these men are still dangerous? The killer is threatening to strike again, and the only way Kim can crack the case is by tracking down the rest of the six first.

But then a revelation about what one of her team is suffering makes Kim understand why people take the law into their own hands. Do these victims deserve what’s coming to them? Or is there even more to fear from their brutal killer?

My Rating: 5/5

My Review: I am not quite sure how Angela Marsons has managed and continues to produce such engaging stories with Kim and the team at the 19 books in stage! Many series tend to run their course and people tire of the characters or feel there is nowhere else to go. I feel like there is still plenty of life in this series and I am continuing to love every book as much as the last with this latest book being no excpetion.

This latest storyline and its crime scenes were bordering on the disturbed with vicitms being left not ‘quite’ dead. Yes you read that correctly. Although the first victim does end up dying it opens pandoras box into why a killer would leave somebody ‘not quite dead’ and in addition to this they seem to be laid out in a certain way. Kim and the team have their work cut out for them. In addition to the latest scene they are working I was keen to see how the storyline featuring Stacey panned out in this latest book.

I don’t want to say too much as I don’t want to spoil it for other people but Kim really does love her team members that is all I will say. I read this in record time and then once again berated myself for reading it too early. This now means I have a longer wait until the next one….an absolutely cracking series that shows no sign of slowing down.

THE BLOSSOM TWINS BY CAROL WYER (NATALIE WARD 5)

The Blossom Twins Synopsis: Their parents thought they were hiding…

One beautiful summer’s evening, thirteen-year-old twins Ivy and Erin Westmore snuggle down in a tent in their back garden, giggling and sharing secrets.

When their mother goes to wake the girls the next morning, their tent is empty.

The alarm is raised and Detective Natalie Ward is put onto the case. When the twins’ bodies are discovered on nearby marshland, covered with deep pink petals, an icy shiver travels down Natalie’s spine. Everything about the girls’ deaths reminds her of a horrifying case she worked on earlier in her career, which saw a killer of the worst kind placed behind bars.

The next day, that feeling is heightened when she receives a chilling note saying ‘I’m back’. Is this killer a copycat or did Natalie put the wrong person in prison all those years ago? In a small town, where no stranger goes unnoticed, what is Natalie missing?

Consumed by the case, determined to prevent more deaths, Natalie misses the fact that it is her attention the killer wants. And to get it, he has his sights set firmly on her precious daughter Leigh… Continue reading “THE BLOSSOM TWINS BY CAROL WYER (NATALIE WARD 5)”

DEADLY FATE BY ANGELA MARSONS (KIM STONE 18)

Deadly Fate The woman’s bright blonde hair floats in the breeze. She almost looks like she could be resting on the soft green grass. But her brown eyes stare unblinking up at the sky, and the final cut across her mouth is dark with blood. Her words silenced forever…

Late one evening, as the final church bell rings out, Sandra Deakin’s cold and lifeless body is found in the overgrown graveyard with multiple stab wounds. When Detective Kim Stone rushes to the scene, the violence of the attack convinces her that this murder was deeply personal. What could have caused such hate?

As the team dig into Sandra’s life, they discover she believed she could communicate with the dead. Was that why she was targeted? The last people to see her alive were a group of women who had a session with her the night before she was killed, and as Kim and her team pay them a visit, they soon learn each of the women is lying about why they wanted Sandra’s help…

Kim realises she must dig deep and open her mind to every avenue if she’s going to stand a chance at solving this case. And when she learns that Sandra was banned from the church grounds and had been receiving death threats too, she’s ever more certain that Sandra’s gifts are at the heart of everything.

But just when she thinks she’s found a lead, the broken body of a nineteen-year-old boy is found outside a call centre – a single slash across his mouth just like Sandra’s. Kim knows they are now racing against time to understand what triggered these attacks, and to stop a twisted killer.

But they might be too late. Just as Kim sits down at a local psychic show she discovers something that makes her blood run cold. Both Sandra and the call centre were named in an article about frauds. And this show stars the next name on the list. She looks around the audience with a feeling of utter dread, certain the killer is among them…SYNOPSIS: When a nineteen-year-old boy, Jamie Mills, is found hanging from a tree in a local park, his death is ruled a suicide. Detective Kim Stone’s instincts tell her something isn’t right. Why, when his mother is told, does she not break down in tears? And how could Jamie have climbed the tree with a recent injury?

Kim should be easing back into work gently after a harrowing case left her body and mind broken, but quickly taking charge of her team, Kim is shocked to learn that Jamie’s parents had sent him to a clinic to ‘cure’ him of his sexuality.

The clues to smashing open this disturbing case lie behind the old Victorian walls of the clinic, run by the Gardner family. They claim that patients come of their own accord and are free to leave at any time. But why are those who attended the clinic so afraid to speak of what happens there? And where did the faded restraint marks on Jamie’s wrists come from?

Kim makes a further chilling discovery – the head of the clinic, Celia Gardner, was sent there for conversion therapy when she was sixteen.

Then the body of a young woman is found dead by suffocation, her death also staged to look like a suicide.

Scarred from a previous case that nearly took her life, can Kim unearth the dark secrets within the Gardner family and is she strong enough to stop a terrifying killer silencing the clinic’s previous patients one by one?

Kat’s Rating: 5/5

My Review: Back with the team that Kim Stone runs is like going back home for a visit. Bryant her ever solid right hand man, Penn and Stacey and a murder case takes us right back into the heart of their lives. Sandra Deakin is found dead in a horrific manner and the team learn that she was a reasonably well known psychic. They need to work out if her job played apart in her death, and who would commit such a horrendous attack.

The fact that the murder victim was a psychic plays a key part in this book and it unravels a lot of personal feelings among the team as they each try to determine their personal views on psychics. In addition to the first murder, Kim also wants to learn more about the death of the homeless John Doe. Stacey ends up running a lot of background for the Sandy murder and in turn ends up crossing paths with somebody that I think her life difficult!

The team work tirelessly and as usual they end up with a result, and not one I entirely saw coming. As usual these books are so well plotted, packed full of threads and characters that you love. I am thrilled that this series shows no signs of slowing down even after book 18! I particularly liked the ending of this book and cannot wait to see how things pan out in the next one.

IN COLD BLOOD BY CAROLINE MITCHELL (DI AMY WINTER 5)

In Cold Blood Synopsis: DI Amy Winter faces her toughest case yet as a serial killer couple kidnap and hunt their prey. After capture, the victims are released from an unknown location each day. But freedom does not come easily as the victim’s injuries become more severe, and if they haven’t escaped by day four, they won’t live to see the fifth.

At five months pregnant, Amy is feeling backed into a corner as the father of her child, DCI Donovan, urges her to share the news. But Amy doesn’t want to be treated differently by her team, much less lose their respect when they discover she’s in a relationship with her DCI. When a call comes in from the killer asking to meet Amy, Donovan intercepts and sends a decoy in her place. But while officers are concentrating on the decoy, Amy is kidnapped from outside her home. She is the next victim, and the countdown begins.

After being bundled into the back of a van and driven to a desolate woodland, Amy’s heart sinks in her chest as she realises the killers have no intention of playing fair.

DCI Donovan is distraught as he discovers Amy is missing. When his team receives a taunting video, he is left in no doubt of the danger Amy and his unborn child are in. He must pull himself together to hunt the killer down. But with no clues and no location, there is only one person with intimate knowledge of how a killer’s mind works. Lillian Grimes – Amy’s serial killer mother. But can he persuade her to help him in time? As the days progress, Amy’s injuries grow more severe, and her team are locked in a desperate race against time.

Kat’s Rating: 5/5

My Review: DI Amy Winter faces her toughest case yet as a serial killer couple kidnap and hunt their prey. After capture, the victims are released from an unknown location each day. But freedom does not come easily as the victim’s injuries become more severe, and if they haven’t escaped by day four, they won’t live to see the fifth.

After being bundled into the back of a van and driven to a desolate woodland, Amy’s heart sinks in her chest as she realises the killers have no intention of playing fair.

LEFT FOR DEAD BY CAROLINE MITCHELL (DI AMY WINTER 3)

Left For Dead Synopsis: A victim on display. A detective on the rails.

Shopping with her sister, DI Amy Winter is admiring a Valentine’s Day window display of a perfect bride encrusted in diamonds and resplendent in lace—until she notices blood oozing from the mannequin’s mouth.

This is no stunt. A post-mortem reveals the victim was left to die on her macabre throne for all to see. When a second victim is found, it emerges that both women were ‘Sugar Babes’ arranging dates with older men online—and Amy finds herself hunting an accomplished psychopath.

As she tracks down the killer, Amy’s instincts go into overdrive when the charismatic head of the agency behind the display makes no attempt to hide his fascination with her serial-killer parents. What exactly does he want from Amy? With her own world in freefall as her biological mother, Lillian Grimes, appeals her conviction, Amy pushes the boundaries of police procedure when a third ‘Sugar Babe’ disappears…Is she as much at risk as the killer’s victims?

My Rating: 5/5

My Review: I started this series and have read books 1 and 2 back to back going straight onto book 3. This book was just as good as the last and I read this in a day and a half it was that good. Every opportunity was spent sneaking a few pages in until such time as I could actually sit and read a big chunk. While Amy is spending some time shopping with her sister she comes across a macabre window display and as she looks closer and realises that the ‘model’ is in fact a murder victim. All hell breaks loose and before you know it Amy and the team are working on this newest case.

The difference with this book is that we know who the killer is early on but that makes not one bit of difference to the story. If anything it amps up the drama and intrigue. We see Amy continue down a strange path with her mother the serial killer Lillian Grimes, as well as coming to terms with new working arrangements. DI Donovan is now her Boss and with her foot in both professional and personal camps where he is concerned she struggles to adapt.

This latest instalment flowed very well with lots packed into a book that flew by. This series is absolutely brilliant so far and I hope I continue enjoying the books as much as I have so far!