Blog Tour: The Lost Wife by Anna Mansell @AnnaMansell @Bookouture

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Goodreads|Amazon US|Amazon UK

Release date: July 28, 2017

Publisher: Bookouture

Genre: Women's Fiction

Blurb:

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Fans of Sheila O’Flanagan, Amanda Prowse and Kelly Rimmer will love The Lost Wife, the compelling story of a woman’s deepest secrets, and the friends and family who must learn to live without her.

‘An incredible, beautiful story of loss, love, forgiveness, moving on, overcoming grief, redemption and above all, hope.’ Renita D’Silva

When Ellie Moran passes away, she leaves her newborn son and husband Ed behind her. Their marriage was perfect, their lives everything they had hoped for. So why was Ellie keeping secrets from Ed?

Knowing he can never ask his wife the truth, Ed is struggling to cope. When the secrets threaten to tear his whole family apart, Ed turns to Rachel, the one person who sees him as more than just Ellie’s widower.

But then Rachel discovers something Ellie was hiding, something that would break Ed’s heart. Can Rachel help Ed to find peace without the wife he lost – and a second chance at happiness?

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for The Lost Wife!

Review:

This is broken up into three separate parts and is told from the viewpoint of Ed and Rachel. It begins in 2012 immediately after Ed loses his wife in a tragic accident just a few weeks after their son, Oli is born. Rachel is in her late twenties during this section and is trying to figure out what she wants out of life. Part two is where the two lead characters meet, Rachel works at the daycare where Ed takes Oli. The bulk of the story unfolds during part two and then part three is four years later. The pacing was dead on here, it was a really compelling read that had me hooked throughout.

This is the second book by Mansell and also my second time reading one of her novels and one of my favorite things about her writing is that there is such a lovely flow. Her style is absolutely beautiful, she writes in a really evocative way and Ed's story especially was touching and heartbreaking. I can't even imagine losing my husband, much less right after having a child and Mansell did such a wonderful job in creating his character. His grief was so raw and devastating, you could feel his pain flying off the pages and it totally broke my heart. Rachel was also very well crafted, she was relatable and kind.

This was ultimately an uplifting story, but there was so much heartache along the way, I did tear up a few times, but I also smiled quite a bit as well. Much like her first novel, things were left very open ended and while that's not always my favorite way to end a book, it truly works well here. The characters are so realistic that it's fitting when things are left a bit messy and unresolved, much like real life. I really enjoyed this one and would recommend it to anyone looking for an emotional read with heart.

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

About the Author:

 
 
 
 
 
Anna had a brush with 'fame' as a magician’s assistant back in 1977. She later decided that being sawn in half by her father, at barely 6 months old, was too submissive a role, vowing to channel the trauma in to something much more pro-actively creative. Having failed at acting, singing and professional murder mystery parties (she was ALWAYs the one to die!), she fell to something much more solitary: writing. How To Mend a Broken Heart is her first novel and her life was not on the line in order to write it, or her second: The Lost Wife. Anna lives on a dairy farm in Cornwall with her two children, her husband, and her ex-racing greyhound, Olive Dog.
 
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#ThrowbackThursday Fear Nothing by Lisa Gardner

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I'm finally joining in with Throwback Thursday and I'm SO excited! Renee at It's Book Talk created this weekly feature as a way to highlight old favorites and read books that have already been published. I have so many older books on my TBR that get ignored in favor of review copies and I figure participating in Throwback Thursday will help me to read at a least one older title a week!

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Release date: January 7, 2014

Publisher: Dutton Books

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Blurb:

My name is Dr. Adeline Glen. Due to a genetic condition, I can’t feel pain. I never have. I never will.

The last thing Boston Detective D.D. Warren remembers is walking the crime scene after dark. Then, a creaking floorboard, a low voice crooning in her ear… She is later told she managed to discharge her weapon three times. All she knows is that she is seriously injured, unable to move her left arm, unable to return to work.

My sister is Shana Day, a notorious murderer who first killed at fourteen. Incarcerated for thirty years, she has now murdered more people while in prison than she did as a free woman.

Six weeks later, a second woman is discovered murdered in her own bed, her room containing the same calling cards from the first: a bottle of champagne and a single red rose. The only person who may have seen the killer: Detective D.D. Warren, who still can’t lift her child, load her gun, or recall a single detail from the night that may have cost her everything.

Our father was Harry Day, an infamous serial killer who buried young women beneath the floor of our home. He has been dead for forty years. Except the Rose Killer knows things about my father he shouldn’t. My sister claims she can help catch him. I think just because I can’t feel pain, doesn’t mean my family can’t hurt me.

D.D. may not be back on the job, but she is back on the hunt. Because the Rose Killer isn’t just targeting lone women; he is targeting D.D. And D.D. knows there is only one way to take him down:

Fear nothing.

Review:

I got behind on this series, I'm sure it was because I got on Netgalley and I became overwhelmed with review copies, but when I was trying to decide what book would be my first pick for TT, this was an obvious choice for me. I love Gardner, she's one of my favorite authors and this D. D. Warren series is so great. Luckily I'm only two books behind so I should be caught up soon.

One of my favorite things about Gardner's books is that she doesn't shy away from hard hitting subject matter and she always keeps things fresh and interesting. This is told from D. D.'s POV as well as Adeline Glen who is a psychiatrist helping D. D. with pain management. Adeline doesn't feel pain at all and this was utterly fascinating to me. On top of a totally interesting premise, the characters are deeply complex and so interesting. D. D. is waylaid with a serious injury and she was so out of sorts. She's the type of detective that can't function without work so her seeing her struggle was another engrossing aspect to the story.

I mentioned earlier that Gardner is a hard hitting author but I want to point out that her books are very graphic and violent. There's always a grittiness to her plots and this was one very dark. You have a killer using sick and twisted methods and sisters whose father was a brutal killer as well, so there are quite a few disturbing scenes. Think Karin Slaughter in terms of style, I love this type of writing but wanted to make it clear that this book is very graphic in case that's not your thing.

There were so many gut punching twists that discussing the plot would just ruin things. If you've never read a Gardner book before, I can highly recommend this series if you're a thriller fan. She's a fantastic storyteller and her writing is captivating AND D. D. is such a great lead character.

Overall rating: 5/5

Blog Tour: The Mentor by Lee Matthew Goldberg @LeeMatthewG @pumpupyourbook

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Release date: June 13, 2017

Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Blurb:

Kyle Broder has achieved his lifelong dream and is an editor at a major publishing house.
When Kyle is contacted by his favorite college professor, William Lansing, Kyle couldn’t be happier. Kyle has his mentor over for dinner to catch up and introduce him to his girlfriend, Jamie, and the three have a great time. When William mentions that he’s been writing a novel, Kyle is overjoyed. He would love to read the opus his mentor has toiled over.
Until the novel turns out to be not only horribly written, but the most depraved story Kyle has read.
After Kyle politely rejects the novel, William becomes obsessed, causing trouble between Kyle and Jamie, threatening Kyle’s career, and even his life. As Kyle delves into more of this psychopath’s work, it begins to resemble a cold case from his college town, when a girl went missing. William’s work is looking increasingly like a true crime confession.
Lee Matthew Goldberg's The Mentor is a twisty, nail-biting thriller that explores how the love of words can lead to a deadly obsession with the fate of all those connected and hanging in the balance.

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for The Mentor!

Review:

As most of you know by now, I read a ton of thrillers so I'm always on the lookout for something within the genre that is fresh and unique. I've never read a thriller quite like The Mentor, it has a major literary vibe, it's highly intelligent and very tightly plotted, I loved it!

The premise of this was super interesting to me, I liked the insiders POV into the publishing industry, and as Kyle is an editor, I definitely got a fascinating look at the business of books. This is also a book within a book, (a bookception) another device that always intrigues me. I was hooked even before I actually started reading this, but I do want to point out that it's a bit of a slow burn in the first half. The groundwork is being laid for what is to come and while it was definitely enough to hold my attention, some may be expecting a faster pace right away. Right in the middle things start to move very quickly and that's when the real thrills and twists begin, there are some heart pounding moments and the pacing picks up to a relentless speed that took my breath away.

This had some really gruesome scenes and a deranged and depraved individual, this is definitely not for the faint of heart. There were some surprisingly funny moments as well that really helped to break the darkness up which is always a tool that I appreciate. There is also a subplot that deals with a cold case that was a great addition as well as characters that begin to unravel and descend into madness, the sense of paranoia was palpable and menacing.

This was far too twisty to allow me to discuss the plot further than what the blurb provides, but if that piques your interest and you can stomach some graphic scenes, you may like this one. Goldberg is an immensely talented writer and one that I will certainly be following, his ability to craft sinister characters and a tight plot is exactly what I look for in a solid thriller.

Overall rating: 4.5/5

About the Author:

Lee Matthew Goldberg’s novel THE MENTOR is forthcoming from Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin’s Press in June 2017 and has been acquired by Macmillan Entertainment. The French edition will be published by Editions Hugo. His debut novel SLOW DOWN is out now. His pilot JOIN US was a finalist in Script Pipeline’s TV Writing Competition. After graduating with an MFA from the New School, his fiction has also appeared in The Montreal Review, The Adirondack Review, Essays & Fictions, The New Plains Review, Verdad Magazine,BlazeVOX, and others. He is the co-curator of The Guerrilla Lit Reading Series. He lives in New York City.

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#CoverReveal Cold Blood by Robert Bryndza @RobertBryndza @bookouture

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I am absolutely thrilled to be helping to reveal the cover for the latest book in one of my favorite series! Cold Blood is book five in the Erika Foster series and I cannot wait to read it! Here's some more information about the book.

Blurb:

The suitcase was badly rusted, and took Erika several attempts, but it yielded and sagged open as she unzipped it. Nothing could prepare her for what she would find inside…

When a battered suitcase containing the dismembered body of a young man washes up on the shore of the river Thames, Detective Erika Foster is shocked. She’s worked on some terrifying cases but never seen anything like this before.

As Erika and her team set to work, she makes the link with another victim – the body of a young woman dumped in an identical suitcase two weeks ago.

Erika quickly realises she’s on the trail of a serial killer who’s already made their next move. Yet just as Erika starts to make headway with the investigation, she is the victim of a brutal attack.

But nothing will stop Erika. As the body count rises, the twin daughters of her colleague Commander Marsh are abducted, and the stakes are higher than ever before. Can Erika save the lives of two innocent children before it’s too late? She’s running out of time and about to make a disturbing discovery…there’s more than one killer.

Brilliantly gripping, Cold Blood will have you hooked from the first page and holding your breath to the heart-stopping and shocking ending.

Ahh doesn't that sound amazing?!? You can preorder on Amazon US and Amazon UK and it's released on September 20.

And finally, here's the cover!

Review: Mrs. Saint and the Defectives by Julie Lawson Timmer

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Release date: August 1, 2017

Publisher: Lake Union

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Blurb:

Markie, a fortysomething divorcée who has suffered a humiliating and very public fall from marital, financial, and professional grace, moves, along with her teenage son, Jesse, to a new town, hoping to lick her wounds in private. But Markie and Jesse are unable to escape the attention of their new neighbor Mrs. Saint, an irascible, elderly New European woman who takes it upon herself, along with her ragtag group of “defectives,” to identify and fix the flaws in those around her, whether they want her to or not.

What Markie doesn’t realize is that Mrs. Saint has big plans for the divorcée’s broken spirit. Soon, the quirky yet endearing woman recruits Markie to join her eccentric community, a world where both hidden truths and hope unite them. But when Mrs. Saint’s own secrets threaten to unravel their fragile web of healing, it’s up to Markie to mend these wounds and usher in a new era for the “defectives”—one full of second chances and happiness.

Review:

I have to start by gushing over the cover, it’s so great and perfectly sets the stage for what’s inside. Mrs. Saint and the Defectives was a charming, quirky read with some great themes and hidden gems.

Markie and Mrs. Saint do not have very much in common, Markie is introverted and has no desire to get involved in her neighbors lives, she wants to heal from her divorce and concentrate on her son, Jesse. Mrs. Saint is abrasive, bossy and crosses boundaries constantly, she is SO over the top but I couldn’t help but be charmed by her. The rest of the characters were a group of misfits and oddballs and each had a unique and quirky personality, but most importantly they were all relatable on some level.

There are so many great life lessons here and Mrs. Saint with her wisdom and guidance  teaches most of them. Family isn’t always about being blood related and sometimes bonds can be formed quickly and when you least expect it. I loved the last quarter, there were some unexpected surprises and a historical fiction vibe that was cool. There was a similarity to Maria Semple’s style her, so if you’re a fan of her work, you may like this.

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Review: Beneath the Surface by Sibel Hodge

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Release date: July 27, 2017

Publisher: Thomas and Mercer

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Blurb:

Dean Hudson didn’t look evil…so what could drive an ordinary boy to kill?

When the teenage son of Holly Gold’s school friend brutally murders his parents before killing himself, her sleepy home town is rocked by the sudden tragedy.

Appalled, Holly investigates. What could have caused the happy-go-lucky boy she remembers to commit such a heinous crime? When another teen commits suicide, she uncovers a horrifying link between the recent deaths and a dark conspiracy to hide the truth.

But someone doesn’t want Holly asking questions and, as she hunts for evidence to prove her theory, she’s dragged into a nightmare that threatens her life and her sanity. Then tragedy strikes again—and this time it’s closer to home…

Beneath the Surface is a gripping psychological suspense-thriller from the bestselling author of Duplicity, Look Behind You and Where the Memories Lie.

Review:

I've only recently become a fan of Sibel Hodge, I LOVED Duplicity and was so excited to see she had a new book coming out! The premise for this intrigued me, I love a good conspiracy, but I had no idea just how dark and devious this book would actually be.

This explores some really interesting and timely issues and I have to applaud Hodge for that. The main focus is unethical pharmaceutical companies, but she also touches on homelessness, teen suicide and mental health issues. I was floored by the lengths pharmaceutical companies will go just to make money, it was appalling and you can tell that the author did some heavy research. All of these issues were written about in a sensitive manner and were definitely eye opening for me.

I really like Hodge's style, but I have to admit that there was something missing for me here. I'm not sure exactly what it was, the pacing was a bit of a mixed bag. Some parts seemed to drag a little and others were super fast. It just didn't have the same great feeling that her previous psychological thriller and I also wasn't super connected to the lead character. Overall it was a pretty good read, there were surprises and great moments, just not my favorite from her.

Overall rating: 3.5/5

Blog Tour: Before You Were Mine by Em Muslin @Quaintrellem @NeverlandBT

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Release date: May 26, 2017

Publisher: Harper Collins

Genre: Women's Fiction 

Blurb: 

Sometimes hope has a way of changing everything…


Just hours after giving birth, Eli Bell is forced to give up her newborn baby daughter for adoption. Devastated, she tries desperately to rebuild her shattered life.

Then, over thirty years later, Eli catches sight of her daughter. And she knows that she must do everything to find a way back into her life. Even if it means lying…

While her husband Tommy must grow to accept his own part in the events of her early life, he can only try to save her before her obsession with the young woman ruins them both.


Don’t miss the breathtaking debut Before You Were Mine by Em Muslin! Perfect for fans of Jodi Picoult, Anne Tyler, Joyce Carol Oates.


Goodreads|Amazon US|Amazon UK
Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Before You Were Mine! 


Review: 

Any book with a focus on motherhood always effects me in some way, but I don't think I've read anything in quite awhile that has had such a profound effect on me and tugged at my emotions the way Before You Were Mine did. Eli was pregnant at just fourteen and her baby was taken from her against her wishes, such a heartbreakingly sad situation for such a young girl. She's never stopped thinking about her daughter and now, thirty two years later, she thinks she may have actually found her. I adored following Eli on her highly emotional journey, there was tears, laughter and so much heart.

Eli is one of those characters that steals a piece of your heart as soon as you meet her. She has an innocent charm, a simple easy way about her that I just loved. She's had so much pain and loss in her life yet she still perseveres, I admired her grit and spunk. She becomes obsessed with the idea that a random stranger in the grocery store is actually her long lost daughter and her pain was so honest and raw. I was so emotionally invested in the outcome and was ultimately satisfied in the end.

Muslin has a very eloquent writing style, she paints such a pretty picture with vivid descriptions and evocative language. I was captivated by the story she told and was sad to say goodbye to Eli when it ended, that's always a wonderful sign! This was an amazing debut, I look forward to seeing what Muslin comes up with next.

Overall rating: 4/5

About the Author: 


em muslin has worked in the film and television industry for over 20 years. She first fell in love with reading and writing after experiencing Judith Kerr's When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit. She hasn't stopped devouring books ever since. 
She loves words that capture an experience or emotion in a singular form: her current favourite, describing herself, isnemophilist. 
Em's writing career has included developing a script for a stage musical with Tina Turner, and writing a bitter-sweet comedy screenplay, Last Chance Saloon. 
Em's writing focuses on the texture of domestic life, relationships, family and the pressures of social convention. Her characters are often fighting to become the hero of their own story, searching for hope, despite the adversities that life inevitably brings.

Review: Little Sister by Isabel Ashdown @TrapezeBooks @IsabelAshdown

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Release date: July 27, 2017

Publisher: Trapeze Books

Genre: Psychological Thriller

Blurb:

A missing child. A broken mother. A sister who doesn't remember a thing.

After sixteen years apart sisters Jessica and Emily are reunited. With the past now behind them, the warmth they once shared quickly returns and before long Jess has moved into Emily's comfortable island home. Life couldn't be better. But when baby Daisy disappears while in Jess's care, the perfect life Emily has so carefully built starts to fall apart.
Was Emily right to trust her sister after everything that happened before?

Review:

Little Sister gripped me from the very first page and held me in it's grasp throughout the entire book. Baby Daisy is missing and the premise really pulled me in on an emotional level. Having a child go missing is a mothers worst nightmare and I could easily imagine the panicky, helpless feelings that would accompany this situation. It's told using dual narratives, that of both Jess and Emily and honestly, they both made me feel uneasy and wary. I was never quite sure which one was telling the truth and their versions of events were constantly at odds with each other. James is Emily's husband and I was suspicious of him as well, in fact I side eyed everyone of the characters at some point, which is exactly what I think is supposed to happen when I'm reading a good psychological thriller.

This entire book was twisty, but at the halfway mark things are really flipped on their head when Ashdown delivers a killer plot twist. The sisters have a complicated history that is slowly revealed and eventually you find out some dark secrets that added depth and intrigue. The relationship between sisters is always a fascinating dynamic to me and Emily and Jess definitely have a tangled past.

This was a really engrossing read that kept me on my toes and Ashdown's writing style was really crisp and effective. Full of dark moments and surprises galore, this was a very entertaining read. The ending was superb, just the type of conclusion that I appreciate, one that takes me off guard a bit, but in a good way.

Overall rating: 4.5/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Blog Tour: I Have Never by Camilla Isley @camillaisley @AuthorAimeeB

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Title: I Have Never
Author: Camilla Isley
Release Date: July 13th, 2017
Genre: Chick Lit

Twenty-nine-year-old Blair Walker is a girl with a plan, or more a girl with a list. A list of dos and don’ts to live the perfect life, land a dream career, and marry Mr. Right.

When Blair loses her job and gets dumped by her boyfriend all in one day, she starts to wonder if she’s had it all wrong. And what better way to find out than experience everything the list forbade?

With hilarious consequences, Blair will discover some items are trickier to tick off than she’d thought…

A laugh out loud romantic comedy perfect for fans of Lindsey Kelk, Sophie Kinsella, and Mhairi McFarlane. First Comes Love is a series of interconnected romantic novels. However, each book in the series can be read as a standalone novel.

Review:

Last year I read the first book in this series, Love Connection and I adored it! While you can easily read I Have Never as a standalone, there are characters from the first book in this one as well. Plus, Isley has the unique ability to come up with a totally fresh premise for her books that is always so much fun, why would you wanna miss out?!

Blair is the ideal chick lit heroine, she's sweet, a little sassy and hilarious. When her perfectly planned life starts to fall apart she decides to deviate from her list. What's on her list? Her rules for life, things like don't move in before you get a ring and don't get drunk. Instead of a bucket list it's basically the antithesis and the results were so funny! Richard from the first book is back, which totally made my day, I loved his character the first time around and catching up with him was a treat.

One of my favorite things about reading an Isley book is that I find myself smiling the entire time. There is so much humor and warmth in her books and her lead characters are always super relatable and down to earth. Her writing style is as witty and charming as the characters she creates, if you're a fan of this genre and haven't read one of her books you're missing out! I hear book three in this series is a Christmas read which just makes me even more excited!

Overall rating: 4.5/5

Thanks to the author and Aimee Brown for my review copy.

Check out the full tour-

July 13th

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July 22nd

A Stranger in the House by Shari Lapena @sharilapena

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Release date: July 27, 2017

Publisher: Bantam Press

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Blurb:

Why would you run scared from a happy home?

You're waiting for your beloved husband to get home from work. You're making dinner, looking forward to hearing about his day.

That's the last thing you remember.

You wake up in hospital, with no idea how you got there. They tell you that you were in an accident; you lost control of your car whilst driving in a dangerous part of town.

The police suspect you were up to no good. But your husband refuses to believe it. Your best friend isn't so sure. And even you don't know what to believe . . .

Review:

Last summer I was raving about Lapena's debut, The Couple Next Door, so naturally I've been super excited about reading A Stranger in the House. I was thrilled to find that many of the things that I loved about TCND were found in this book, there was the same great addictive quality to her writing, there were secrets galore and the ever so popular untrustworthy narrators.

The premise of this is fantastic with just the right amount of creepy and it starts with a bang. Karen is driving like a bat out of hell and she gets into a terrible accident. She doesn't remember anything about where she was, why was she in a rough part of town? Who was she meeting there? There are SO MANY questions, but I'm going to stop here because this is one of those books you need to go into as blind as possible in order to have the best experience.

Detective Rasbach is back which was a pleasant surprise for me as I really liked him in TCND. It was a great addition, it gives the book a series vibe without actually being a part of a series so if you haven't read Lapena's first book, you're fine to start with this one. There are no alternating timelines or crazy switches in perspectives here, though you do see things through the eyes of Karen, her husband Tom, her neighbor Brigid and Rasbach.

This was a true page turner, I read it in one sitting and was glued to every page. I loved not knowing who to trust and I changed my mind several times about who was being honest. There were many twists and turns and again, like in her debut Lapena kept the twists coming all the way until the end. I just love when an author can still surprise me in the last few pages!

If you're a fan of Lapena you'll love this and if you've never read her before but enjoy thrillers with an unreliable cast of characters with secrets, check this out. I think this will be another huge summer hit, don't miss it.

Overall rating: 4.5/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.