Tag: RATED 5/5

FEARLESS BY JESSIE KEANE

80651A3B-E0EF-4495-973F-6BFCB3A02F4C_4_5005_c

Synopsis: PLAY DIRTY. PLAY TO WIN.
 
From the top ten bestselling author Jessie Keane comes a gripping thriller featuring two women who will do anything to win the man they love.
 
Josh Flynn is the king of the bare-knuckle gypsy fighters. His reputation is un-blemished; his fist a deadly weapon.
 
Claire Milo has always loved Josh, they were destined to be together from the day they met. Two gypsy lovers with their whole lives ahead of them. If only Josh would find a different way of earning a living instead of knocking the living daylights out of another man in the boxing ring. One day, she knew something really bad was going to happen. She could feel it . . .
 
Shauna Everett always wanted what she couldn’t have, and nobody, especially Claire Milo was going to stand in her way. She’s had her eye on Josh Flynn for years and she knew just how to get him. If it meant playing dirty, then so be it. What had she got to lose?
 
In a world ruled by violence, crime and backstreet brawls, only one woman will win in Jessie Keane’s Fearless, but how low is she prepared to go to achieve that goal?
 
Kat’s Rating: 5/5
 
Kat’s Review: WOW! It’s been too long since I read a Jessie Keane book and luckily for me this one was sitting in my unread. I hadn’t read the synopsis before starting so had no clue what to expect. What I didn’t expect was an absolute belter of a book that had me reading into the early hours. Claire Milo and Josh Flynn are young teenagers who are part of the travelling community. They are head over heels in love and plan on marrying. However Josh is being touted as the King of the bare knuckle boxers and Claire loathes this part of his life. Shauna Everett is the same age as Claire and has her eyes set firmly on the prize of Josh Flynn all for herself.
 
This story stretched from the 1970s until present day and boy did it pack a punch. I don’t want to say too much about the storyline as you just need to read the stories of these three people and their extended family. I had NO idea where the story was gong I just knew I wanted to go along for the ride. Shauna is a character you just love to loathe and as for Josh I wasn’t sure how I felt about his as the story progressed. What I do know is that Jessie Keane TELLS a story, you don’t just read a book, you almost become ingrained into their lives and this is (IMO) what makes her such an amazing author. I never tire of her writing, characters and storylines. This book I must say is one I absolutely loved and would have no problem in recommending. I can’t wait to see if I have anything else left by this author to read, and if not then roll on a new book!

DEATH IS NOT ENOUGH BY KAREN ROSE (BALTIMORE #6)

F608A3E1-48C2-4336-9863-7CB88555E7B3_4_5005_c

Synopsis: When you’re after revenge… death is not enough.
Gwyn Weaver is as resilient as anyone could be. Having survived an attempted murder, she has rebuilt her life and reclaimed her dignity and strength. She’s always known about her feelings for defence attorney Thomas Thorne, but as her friend and a colleague there could be no chance of anything more… or could there?
 
Thorne has known violence and pain all his life. He’s overcome the hardships thanks to his own steel, and the love of his loyal friends. Now he’s thinking it might finally be time to let his guard down, and allow himself to let in the woman he’s always admired from afar.
 
Then Thorne’s whole world is torn apart – he is found unconscious in his own bed, the lifeless body of a stranger lying next to him, her blood on his hands. Knowing Thorne could never have committed such a terrible crime, Gwyn and his friends rally round to clear his name.
 
But this is just the beginning – the beginning of a brutal campaign to destroy Thorne, and everything he holds dear…
 
Kat’s Rating: 5/5
 
Kat’s Review: I absolutely LOVED this book and was so sad to end it as I know this is the sixth and final book in this series. Having said that, the course has naturally run it’s course and was SO enjoyable and it leaves me time to move onto other Karen Rose books. This last book mostly features Thomas Thorne who takes the lead as his worst nightmare comes back to haunt him. He wakes in his bed with a woman lifeless next to him and blood everywhere. Gwyn Weaver, Thorn’s business partner. was the one to find him and even though she herself has survived a horrendous ordeal she is determined to help Thorne find out what happened.
 
This book can be read as a standalone but it is SO much better when read as part of the series. I actually wish I had read all 6 books back to back as every one has been a fabulous book to read and this last installment is no exception. We see the return of all the characters in this series and as per the standard when one person is in danger that naturally means that they are all in the firing line. There was so much action packed into this as well as romance, family, friends, laughter and tears. At over 620 pages this is not a short read but I feel like this was a well balanced book and it didn’t feel that long at all. Another brilliant read by Karen Rose and a series I would highly recommend!
 
1. You Belong to Me (2011)
2. No One Left to Tell (2012)
3. Did You Miss Me? (2012)
3.5. Broken Silence (2013)
4. Watch Your Back (2013)
5. Monster In The Closet (2017)
6. Death Is Not Enough (2018)

MONSTER IN THE CLOSET BY KAREN ROSE (BALTIMORE 5)

DD3E9675-0A1A-4581-A912-A50D716688B2_4_5005_c

Synopsis: A mother is dead, and now her killer hunts the child that witnessed the brutal crime…
Private Investigator Clay Maynard locates missing children for clients, but has nearly given up hope of finding his own daughter, cruelly stolen from him by his ex-wife twenty-three years ago.
 
Equine therapist Taylor Dawson has chosen to intern at Daphne Montgomery-Carter’s stables so that she can observe the program’s security director – her father, Clay Maynard. Trying to reconcile the wonderful man she’s getting to know with the monster her mother always described, Taylor never expects to become the target of a real monster, the man who murdered the mother of the little girls she works with at the stable. Neither does she expect to fall for Ford Elkhart, Daphne’s handsome son, who is dealing with his own demons. As family and friends gather for a wedding, Taylor starts to imagine a permanent life in Baltimore.
 
But not if the real monster gets to her first…
 
Kat’s Rating: 5/5
 
Kat’s Review: I have read so many of Karen Rose books that I sometimes lose track of what series I have and haven’t read so was thrilled when I came across this and realised I had read up to book 4 so got stuck in and boy am I glad I did. This series of book sis about a group of people who are friends and they all seen to get a book in the series so it’s easy to pick them up as standalones. However, once I was a few chapters in all the familiar people were re-introduced to me and I felt like I hadn’t been away. The opener of this book is shocking but gripping all at the same time. A young girl Jazzie comes home from school and finds her Mother dead on the floor. What is worse is that the killer is still there so Jazzie hides. When the police investigate Jazzie clams up and refuses to speak while they hunt for her Mother killer.
 
Jazzie and her sister are put into a therapy programme where they are riding horses and that centre is run by one of the clan of people that are featured in this series. A new young woman named Taylor is working at the therapy centre as an intern but what everybody doesn’t realise is that she is there to find out about her Father and that will have huge repercussions for everybody! This book had me gripped from the first to the last page and I absolutely loved it. I was so pleased that I went straight out and brought book 6 in the series as I needed to know where everybody was now. And absolutely brilliant book and an even better series!

IF YOU COULD GO ANYWHERE BY PAIGE TOON

295A8626-005A-4EE7-8C2A-4CC03D8ECAF7_4_5005_c

Synopsis: HOW DO YOU FIND WHERE YOU’RE GOING, IF YOU DON’T KNOW WHERE YOU’RE FROM?
 
Angie has always wanted to travel. But at twenty-seven, she has barely stepped outside the small mining town where she was born. Instead, she discovers the world through stories told to her by passing travellers, dreaming that one day she’ll see it all for herself.
 
When her grandmother passes away, leaving Angie with no remaining family, she is ready to start her own adventures. Then she finds a letter revealing the address of the father she never knew, and realises instantly where her journey must begin: Italy.
 
As Angie sets out to find the truth – about her family, her past and who she really is – will mysterious and reckless Italian Alessandro help guide the way?
 
Kat’s Rating: 5/5
 
Kat’s Review: It’s been way too long since I read a PT book so I am playing catch up and the synopsis of this caught my eye. Angie lives in Australia and has big dreams of travelling the world. Sadly she is actually pretty sheltered and spends her time caring for her Grandmother. When her Grandmother passes away Angie is given a huge opportunity and she is determined to take the chance with both hands. Angie is unravelling elements to her life and additional family she knew nothing about so her first port of call is Italy.
 
PT has a wonderful knack of being so beautifully descriptive with places that you are transported for the ride too as a reader. Angie is a lovely character and as she discovers parts of herself and her life she knew nothing about you can see her growing as a person before your very eyes. Having read a fair few heavy crime thrillers lately this was a fabulous read that really took me out of the depressing dark places of those kind of books and took me on holiday! I managed to knock this book out in two sittings as it was so enjoyable. Going back to tried and tested authors that you know and love is a lovely feeling when you need a certain kind of book for your mood. A real pick me up book that I thoroughly enjoyed.

LYING BESIDE YOU BY MICHAEL ROBOTHAM (CYRUS HAVEN #3)

E908F4AD-EE9B-4640-824D-F24D71C18EBA_4_5005_c

Synopsis:Twenty years ago, Cyrus Haven’s family was murdered and only he and his brother survived. Cyrus because he hid. Elias because he was the killer.
 
Now Elias is being released from a secure psychiatric hospital and Cyrus, a forensic psychologist, must decide if he can forgive the man who destroyed his childhood.
 
As he prepares for the homecoming, Cyrus is called to a crime scene in Nottingham. A man is dead and his daughter, Maya, is missing. Then a second woman is abducted. The only witness is Evie Cormac, a troubled teenager with a gift for knowing when people are lying.
 
Both missing women have dark secrets that Cyrus must unravel to find them – and he and Evie know how the past can come back to haunt you . . .
 
Kat’s Rating: 5/5
 
Kat’s Review: I absolutely love this series and was looking forward to catching up with Cyrus and Evie. What I would say is that if you haven’t read the first two books I would advise you do. It certainly gives you the background on these two characters and explains a lot about their current situation. The story focuses on Cyrus brother Elias potentially being released from the secure hospital he is currently residing at. The other element of the story surrounds a dead man being found and the search for his missing daughter.
 
Evie is such a complex character but alongside Cyrus their strange and unorthodox relationship makes for compulsive reading. Evie is living with Cyrus as a lodger and decides to dip her toe into the world of work getting herself a job collecting glasses at a bar. What she doesn’t count on is being dragged into the case by being the last witness to see the missing woman alive.
 
I don’t want to expand on the storyline for fear of spoilers but the storyline as always is completely engaging from the first to the last page. I feel like we are getting to see Evie grow up and learn how to live like a normal person her age does. Alongside her Cyrus remains steadfastly single and dedicated to his job and looking after both his brother and Evie. I read this in two straight sittings and as soon as I was finished I wanted to read another. Disappointingly I have to probably wait the best part of a year for the next book. A brilliant book which I loved and would highly recommend.

MOONLIGHT OVER MUDDLEFORD COVE BY KIM NASH

4127C617-CB31-457F-8D22-F51DA847B0AB_4_5005_c

Synopsis: When thirty-four-year-old Nellie Wagstaff loses her job and discovers her fiancé is a cheating scumbag, she feels like her world has come crashing down. And that’s before the solicitor’s letter, informing her of her Aunty Lil‘s death.
 
Heartbroken, Nellie escapes to the beautiful seaside town of Muddleford in Dorset, where she discovers she’s inherited her aunt’s beach house, along with a gorgeous beach hut just for starters and finally meets the mysterious Norman who stole her Aunty Lil’s heart. Childhood memories of Muddleford come flooding back: long hot summers, the sea glistening beyond the sandy cove… and a stolen kiss with a boy called Jack.
 
Jack, now a devilishly handsome vet, has the local pet owners swooning over him, and as Nellie and he become close once more, and she gets used to gossiping with the locals and sipping wine at her beach hut with sand between her toes, she’s sure she can feel sparks flying once more. But just as she thinks she might be able to open her heart again, her newest frenemy, the glamorous Natalia, tells her a secret about Jack that changes everything.
 
Nellie will never know why her mother and aunt parted ways. She’ll sell the house, forget about Jack, and get back to real life. Because there’s nothing for her in Muddleford… is there?
 
Kat’s Rating: 5/5
 
Kat’s Review: Seeing as I read a lot of crime, thriller and mystery books I love to break it up with a good romantic or funny book, and when I realised I had the new Kim Nash book on my Kindle I was thrilled. A little bit of escapism was just what I needed. However I didn’t realise how much I would love this book. Nellie Wagstaff in the first chapter seems a little bit of a pushover if I’m being honest. However after the first few chapters I just fell in love with her. Nellie starts the day by having a job, a boyfriend, a wedding to plan and a house she shares with that boyfriend Callum. By the end of the day she has lost her job and her boyfriend and has no idea what to do. Her best friend Shivani (who I absolutely adored) is the one person who has her back while she wallows in her extremely bad fortune and figures out what she needs to do next.
 
When she receives a letter from a solicitor informing her of the death of her Auntie Lil she is in shock, however decides to go down to Dorest to speak with the solicitors. When she realises that her Auntie Lil has left her estate solely to Nellie she is in shock. She has to decide where her life goes from here and whether she decides to stay in a place she loved as a child and maybe get back in touch with her oldest friend from childhood.
 
This story is like a hot cup of tea and cake on a miserable and rainy day. I absolutely loved everything about it. The characters, the setting (Muddleford Cove sounds amazing), the story and everything in-between. Kim Nash is fast becoming the author in this genre I turn to, on the miserable days I need cheering up. Thoroughly recommend this book and this author if you love this genre.

CORNISH CLOUDS AND SILVER LINING SKIES BY ALI MCNAMARA

C001AE15-E648-4FA9-84B3-C061277C77A2_4_5005_c

Synopsis: Sky monitors her life like she does the weather, carefully and with a scientific eye. So, when she misses out on her dream job abroad and finds herself with no choice but to take a position on a tidal island off the Cornish harbour town of St Felix instead, she feels completely at sea. Worse still, she has to work alongside TV weatherman Sonny Samuels, who barely knows his storms from his tsunamis.
 
It doesn’t take long for Sky to become enchanted by the strange weather patterns over St Felix. Sonny is convinced they link to local folklore, but Sky knows her science too well to fall for that. Until she meets Walter, a local weather watcher with no qualifications beyond a lifetime of experience and Sky is forced to question everything she thought she knew about the weather, herself… and Sonny.
 
Kat’s Rating: 5/5
 
Kat’s Review: I absolutely love Ali McNamara books and was thrilled that I loved this one as much as I have loved most of her other books. Sky is a meteorologist who has been send to work in St Felix on Aurora Island. She gets there and expects to be working with just Talia a trainee but soon realises that the famous TV weatherman Sonny Samuels is also there for the duration. I read this book in literally two sittings and absolutely loved every bit of it. We get to see Sky slowly reveal her reasons for her mysterious symptoms surrounding her health. As Sky takes the journey we also get to see her develop a friendship with Sonny which started out as the complete opposite. I loved being back in St Felix with new characters as well as some older ones making appearances. There is a wonderfully magic way that Ali McNamara incorporates sensitive topics into beautiful storylines and this book is a wonderful read that I would have no hesitation in recommending.

ESCAPE TO THE FRENCH FARMHOUSE BY JO THOMAS

51w4KlhHdoL

Synopsis: Del and her husband Ollie moved to a beautiful village in Provence for a fresh start after years of infertility struggles. But six weeks after they arrive, they’re packing the removal van once more. As Del watches the van leave for England, she suddenly realises exactly what will make her happier…a new life in France – without Ollie.
 
Now alone, all Del has is a crumbling farmhouse, a mortgage to pay and a few lavender plants. What on earth is she going to do? After discovering an old recipe book at the market run by the rather attractive Fabian, Del starts to bake. But can her new-found passion really help her let go of the past and lead to true happiness?
 
Kat’s Rating: 5/5
 
Kat’s Review: I am a recent fan of Jo Thomas books and was pleased to see another one I had yet to read. Del is our lead character and she has been living in France with her husband Ollie. She has a moment of realisation as she decides that their relationship is over and she wants to make a go of it in France on her own. Once alone she wonders what on earth she has done.
 
Jo Thomas has an amazing knack of being so descriptive that you are in the place with the character. As we see Del start to tackle her current predicament we also get to meet other people living in her village. Del slowly starts to become a part of the village and creates new and lasting friendships. Stefanie becomes another character that has a huge impact in Del’s life along with Fabien and a number of other characters.
 
This story is escapism at it’s finest and was a pure joy to read. It transported me to somebody else’s world where village life and the farmhouse along with its lavender became the focal point. I really am a true JT fan now and will look forward to reading another book by this great author.

Dead Mercy by Noelle Holten (Maggie Jamieson 5)

NH DEAD MERCYSynopsis: A brutal murder…When a burned body is found with its teeth missing, DC Maggie Jamieson discovers that the victim may be the husband of one of her probation colleagues.

A dark history…As the body count rises, the team becomes increasingly baffled by how the victims could possibly be connected until a clue leads them to a historical case that was never prosecuted.

A terrible secret…In order to catch the killer, Maggie must piece together what happened all those years ago before it’s too late.

Kat’s Rating: 5/5

Kat’s Review: I absolutely loved this latest instalment of this series! DC Maggie Jamieson is back along with her colleagues Nathan, Kate and Kat and this time around the case starts with a man being found among the ashes following an office fire. That office belonged to the husband of a character we have seen before, probation officer Sarah Hardy. It’s clear pretty quickly that this is not a straightforward arson that went wrong but more a sadistic killer.

The subject matter is a little sensitive but is skilfully dealt with and incorporated into the storyline extremely well. The killer was probably the most intriguing part of this story for me and gives it an edge in my opinion. As more bodies turn up the tension cranks up another notch and that continues throughout the book. I have a nagging feeling about Maggie’s brother and am wondering where that element of the story will go. It was nice to see family member’s still included in the series and it’s always great to know the personal side of the characters. I also cannot wait to see where the author takes the storyline with the journalist Julie Noble!

This most recent installment certainly kept me turning the pages and I cannot wait to read the next book in this series!

The Friend by Dorothy Koomson

DK THE FRIENDSynopsis: What secrets would you kill to keep?

After her husband’s big promotion, Cece Solarin arrives in Brighton with their three children, ready to start afresh. But their new neighbourhood has a deadly secret.

Three weeks earlier, Yvonne, a very popular parent, was almost murdered in the grounds of the local school – the same school where Cece has unwittingly enrolled her children.

Already anxious about making friends when the parents seem so cliquey, Cece is now also worried about her children’s safety. By chance she meets Maxie, Anaya and Hazel, three very different school mothers who make her feel welcome and reassure her about her new life.

That is until Cece discovers the police believe one of her new friends tried to kill Yvonne. Reluctant to spy on her friends but determined to discover the truth, Cece must uncover the potential murderer before they strike again . . .

Kat’s Rating: 5/5

Kat’s Review: It’s been a while since I have read a Dorothy Koomson and I am now very glad I decided to pick this one up. The main storyline focuses in the beginning on Cece who has oved to Brighton with her three children following her husbands job opportunity. Cece is so easy to engage with as our main character and she is desperately trying to find her feet and meet new people in the area. She meets some of the school Mums namely Maxie, Anaya and Hazel but she soon realises there is something going on. All she knows is that it involves their other friend Yvonne.

What starts out as Cece just trying to meet new people seems to start a chain reaction that has consequences for everybody involved. I don’t want to say too much more about the storyline for fear of spoiling it for other people. What I will say is that this absolutely gripped me. As the chapters went by there seemed to be only more questions raised and the intensity seemed to rise with each chapter I read.

By the time I finished this I was truly sorry I had read so quickly. This was an all encompassing read that was absolutely brilliant and I would highly recommend