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Release date: November 9, 2022

Publisher: Bookouture

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Synopsis:

While Jamie’s cold, lifeless body lay in the morgue, Detective Kim Stone stared at the empty board in the incident room and felt her anger boil. Why were there no photos, details, or lines of enquiry?

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 – but it’s not her investigation and her temporary replacement is too busy waiting for the next big case to be asking the right questions.

Why would a seemingly healthy boy choose to end his life?
Why does his mother show no sign of emotional distress at the loss of her son?

Still mending her broken mind and body from her last harrowing case, Kim is supposed to be easing back into work gently. But then she finds a crucial, overlooked detail: Jamie had a recent injury that would have made it impossible for him to climb the tree. He must have been murdered.

Quickly taking back charge of her team and the case, Kim visits Jamie’s parents and is shocked to hear that they had sent him to a clinic to ‘cure’ him of his sexuality. According to his mother, Jamie was introverted and prone to mood swings. Yet his friend speaks of a vibrant, outgoing boy.

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 that attended the clinic so afraid to speak of what happens there? And where did the faded restraint marks identified on Jamie’s wrists come from?

Then the body of a young woman is found dead by suffocation and Kim makes two chilling discoveries. The victim spent time at the clinic too, and her death was also staged to look like a suicide.

Scarred from an ordeal that nearly took her life, is Kim strong enough to stop a terrifying killer from silencing the clinic’s previous patients one by one?

Review:

If you’re a fan of this series you know the previous book, Six Graves was an emotional rollercoaster leaving Kim in a dark place. I won’t say more just in case you haven’t read it, but IYKYK. So I wasn’t sure what to expect as far as Kim and her team are concerned but things were definitely off and it was unsettling. Just another layer added to the multitudes the author already has laid out for us readers and somehow she’s always able to tug at my emotions while reading a thriller, which is not an easy task. She does it with a deft hand too, I never feel toyed with and I trust her process and know that everything is well thought out and handled meticulously. All of that to say, it’s a rocky beginning for the team when this book begins but soon enough you’re thrust straight into the action per usual.

The author usually explores two different cases in each book and this was no exception. This is such a clever tactic because there is never a dull moment and it always adds even more tension and suspense to the story. This time Kim and company are investigating murders staged as suicides and it takes them inside the world of conversion camps. I knew very little about these horrific camps or clinics beforehand but as always Marsons took great care and an empathetic hand when exploring them. On the lighter side I always enjoy my time with Kim, Bryant, Penn and Stace and I devour any new information revealed about who they are and what makes them tick. The final chapter answered the long awaited question of Bryant’s name and I loved that it ended on a lighter note. Overall another fabulous read in an excellent series, if you’re a thriller fan and you’re not reading this series are you even a thriller fan?! 😉

Overall rating. 5/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: September 20, 2022

Publisher: Berkley Romance

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Synopsis: An intoxicating and sparkling new romance by New York Times bestselling author Jasmine Guillory.

Margot Noble needs some relief from the stress of running the family winery with her brother. Enter Luke: sexy, charming, and best of all in the too-small world of Napa, a stranger. The chemistry between them is undeniable, and Margot is delighted that she lucked into the perfect one-night stand she’ll never have to see again. That is, until the winery’s newest hire, Luke, walks in the next morning. Margot is determined to keep things purely professional, but when their every interaction reminds her of the attraction still bubbling between them, it proves to be much more challenging than she expects.

Luke Williams had it all, but when he quits his high-salary tech job in Silicon Valley in a blaze of burnout and moves back to Napa to help a friend, he realizes he doesn’t want to tell the world–or his mom–why he’s now working at a winery. His mom loves bragging about her successful son–how can he admit that the job she’s so proud of broke him? Luke has no idea what is next for him, but one thing is certain: he wants more from the incredibly smart and sexy woman he hooked up with–even after he learns she’s his new boss. But even if they can find a way to be together that wouldn’t be an ethical nightmare, would such a successful woman really want a tech-world dropout?

Set against a lush backdrop of Napa Valley wine country, nothing goes to your head as fast as a taste of love–even if it means changing all your plans.

Review:

Ohh this may be my new favorite from the author, I really enjoyed this sexy, flirty and fun book! I was initially drawn to the winery side of the plot, I just knew it would be such a fun and beautiful setting and it definitely was. I was instantly connected to Margot as she was incredibly likable and I was into the fact that she was older than Luke. Workplace romances are always interesting and since Margot and Luke decide not to pursue a romantic relationship because she’s his boss that added a engaging dynamic. Their chemistry was undeniable and seeing them struggle to keep things professional added to their sexual tension. Lots of spice in this one, also some tender and genuine moments too, overall a really great light romance read.

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: May 12, 2022

Publisher: Bookouture

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Synopsis:

It’s a typical teenage bedroom with posters covering the walls and clothes littering the floor. But the girl lying on her bed, wearing a delicate chain around her neck, is lifeless. A circle of red stains her white vest top and Kim feels a sharp stab of sadness. How had the girl’s mother looked down at her sleeping child and pulled the trigger?

When Detective Kim Stone rushes to the scene of a house fire, she’s shocked to discover it’s claimed the lives of two teenage children and their parents. But this tragedy is not quite as it seems. Each body is marked by a gunshot wound and the mother, Helen Daynes, is holding the gun.

The case sparks painful childhood memories for Kim who suffered at the hands of her own abusive mother. As she begins to untangle the dark web of secrets within the Daynes family, Kim and her team discover Helen had a history of clinical depression. But could it have driven her to murder her loved ones?

Then Kim uncovers a tiny, vital clue in Helen’s bedroom that throws the investigation wide open. Could someone else have killed the Daynes family?

With the case only just underway, a deadly threat is made to Kim’s own life. Years ago, she rescued two little girls from the clutches of a dangerous psychopath who has just escaped prison and is coming for her.

A witness protection officer glued to her side, Kim must bite back her fear, as she keeps digging into the Daynes’s background and soon hits upon a shocking secret from Helen’s past that could crack the case. With the remaining family members in danger, Kim is under pressure like never before.

The monster circling Kim raises the stakes when he threatens the life of another innocent victim. He’s leading Kim straight to him. Forced to go against direct instructions from her superiors, will that one fateful decision cost her more than her job?

An absolutely nail-bitingly tense page-turner that will have you gasping out loud. You won’t come up for air until you’ve reached the twisty, breathtaking ending. Fans of Karin Slaughter, Mark Billingham and Robert Dugoni will love Six Graves.

Review:

Well, it only took sixteen books but the author managed to scare the hell out of me with a prologue alone. It was an emotional sort of terrified too, the kind that really messes with your head and the feeling never left me throughout the whole book so be prepared to have your emotions toyed with! Despite the way I felt tortured I can still say that this was an incredible read and I highly recommend it, just wanted to prepare you for some emotional upheaval.

I usually try and slow down my pace when I read a new book in this series, I like to savor it and really spend some time with the characters but this time I read this in record time over just a couple of sittings. Between that prologue and the fact that there are two cases to draw you in I really couldn’t stop until it was over. Somehow, sixteen books in you are still learning more about Kim, her past is at the forefront of her mind as she works to solve a current case and there were additional layers pulled back that gave insight into who she is. Per usual the story is dark and dangerous but this is balanced out by the humor and camaraderie between Kim and the team where one minute you’re horrified by a new piece of evidence they’ve uncovered or the results of an autopsy reveal a new clue and then the next you’re laughing at something Bryant said to Kim. As much as the characters in this series need a break after what the author has put them through I’m already eagerly anticipating the next book and just know that once again I’ll have a new one to add to my favorites shelf alongside this one!

Overall rating: 5/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Release date: September 7, 2021

Publisher: Flatiron

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Synopsis:

Think you know the person you married? Think again…

Things have been wrong with Mr and Mrs Wright for a long time. When Adam and Amelia win a weekend away to Scotland, it might be just what their marriage needs. Self-confessed workaholic and screenwriter Adam Wright has lived with face blindness his whole life. He can’t recognize friends or family, or even his own wife. 
Every anniversary the couple exchange traditional gifts – paper, cotton, pottery, tin – and each year Adam’s wife writes him a letter that she never lets him read. Until now. They both know this weekend will make or break their marriage, but they didn’t randomly win this trip. One of them is lying, and someone doesn’t want them to live happily ever after.

Ten years of marriage. Ten years of secrets. And an anniversary they will never forget.

Review:

Is there anything better than being able to count on a thriller author to consistently surprise you?! In a genre that can oftentimes feel stale and repetitive AF seems to be that rare author for me that keeps things fresh and exciting time and time again and her latest is no exception.

Face blindness as a critical plot point was absolutely fascinating for me, the sheer idea of it is terrifying, seriously imagine not being able to recognize your loved ones by sight? So interesting! Besides that you have this married couple that both seem unreliable and untrustworthy from the jump, then there’s a third POV that I struggled to work out how they would fit into the narrative, but when all was revealed I was 🤯 I found it to be incredibly clever and I didn’t see where it was going. It was also fast paced, atmospheric and extremely addictive reading. Once again the author pulled one over on me and I loved everything about it!

Overall rating: 5/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: May 13, 2021

Publisher: Bookouture

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Synopsis:

Her stomach lurches as she sits in the windowless room. He throws her phone to the ground, grinds it against the floor with the heel of his shoe and brings his face closer to hers. There was no turning back now, her life as she knew it was gone.

When the lifeless body of a man is found on an industrial estate, Detective Kim Stone arrives on the scene and discovers he’s been tortured in the worst way imaginable.

But as she breaks the devastating news to the victim’s wife, Diane Phipps, Kim can’t help feeling that something isn’t quite right about the woman’s reaction.

Twenty-four hours later, the victim’s family disappears into thin air.

Then a second body is found staked to the ground in a local nature reserve.

Desperate to crack the case open quickly, Kim and her team unravel a vital clue – a fiercely guarded secret that links both victims and could cost even more lives.

A secret that some police officers are also protecting.

Faced with deceit from those she should be able to trust, family members who won’t talk, and local reporter, Tracy Frost, opening a can of worms on the case of a woman murdered by her husband a year ago – Kim is in deep water like never before.

Kim must find the motive if she is to find the killer who is systematically targeting and torturing his victims. But can she unlock the shocking truth and stop him before he strikes again?

Review:

You know those books that are all consuming type of reads, the ones where when something or someone from your real life interrupts you it takes a second for you to renter the real world and leave the fictional one behind? That was this sort of book for me, I am so attached to the world of Kim Stone and company that once I started this one I was truly absorbed and had a difficult time switching my mind off when I had to set it down. I found myself making dinner or folding laundry and thinking about the case the team was trying to solve. So I guess you could say this one got in my head and under my skin!

Marsons raised the stakes here, this is one of her darker, grittier and more disturbing books in the series and is a contender for one of my favorites. As always there was a fresh and intriguing new angle here, I swear the plot lines in this series just keep getting better and more fascinating and once again, I learned something new. So you have a tense and exciting plot and then as always you have the characters themselves, and just when I think they’ve been developed just about as far as they can be there’s another layer to them that gets peeled back revealing something new. Kim’s old nemesis Tracy Frost plays a large role here, mostly as a subplot and the repartee between these two cracks me up. Surprisingly I loved learning more about Frost and her personal life as well and will be interested to see what kind of role she will have in future books. The case was wrapped up in the end but the ending left me desperate for the next book, sort of a mini cliffhanger. Once again highly recommended by me, this series never lets me down and is always a guaranteed five star, heart pounding, twisty, intense must read.

Overall rating: 5/5

Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.

Goodreads

Release date: June 4, 2020

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Blurb:

He says he is innocent. So why did he lie?

Mathew Hillock was the last person to see eleven-year-old Jodie Willis alive. When her dead body turns up four days later in his garden shed, the police think he’s guilty of her murder. So do most people in the town. But there’s no DNA evidence to link him to the crime. 
Battling the weight of public opinion and mental illness due to a childhood head trauma, he sinks into a deep depression. 
Can Mathew do what the police failed to do and find evidence linking the real killer to the crime?
The Last One to See Her is a terrifying story of what happens when you’re accused of a crime and no one believes you are innocent.

Review:

Do you like your thrillers dark, fast paced, disturbing and wholly unsettling? Then allow me to introduce you to the work of Mark Tilbury. He’s one of the few thriller authors who I can count on to always deliver a story that is at once compelling and twisty and his latest is no exception. There’s a reason he’s referred to as Twisted Tilbury after all…

As much as I love a dark plot if you add in some great characterization then I’m really satisfied and this book had some fantastic characters. Some I just adored and some I hated beyond comprehension, but they were all very well drawn. The plot was also great, you have several suspects and no clue who the bad guy really is right until the end and I never saw anything coming ahead of time either. The tension is palpable the whole time but as you get closer to the end things reach a whole new level of tense and the end was powerful and satisfying.

Overall rating: 4.5/5

Thanks to the author for my review copy.