Blog Tour ‘n’ Book Review – The Lodger

The Lodger

She’s in your home…

Leigh Simons can’t say for sure what made her do it. A moment of madness, perhaps, but when the young, loud and gorgeous waitress at her favourite coffee shop reveals she is homeless, Leigh offers her the empty room in her house.

In your head…

Gina is the perfect lodger; Leigh, lonely and frustrated with her life, becomes infatuated with the woman – her boldness, her zeal. If only Leigh could be more like Gina…

And missing without trace.

So when Leigh returns from a work trip she’s shocked to find Gina missing. Where could the young woman have gone…and why?

Leigh fears that something terrible has happened – why else would Gina leave her?

But as she sets out to find her missing lodger, what Leigh discovers changes everything she knows about Gina….and her own life, too.

Purchase Link – https://amzn.to/3aPOkOg

Author Bio

Valerie Keogh is the internationally bestselling author of several psychological thrillers and crime series, most recently published by Bloodhound.

She originally comes from Dublin but now lives in Wiltshire and worked as a nurse for many years.

Her first thriller for Boldwood will be published in August 2022.

Social Media Links

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/2913036085376315

Twitterhttps://twitter.com/ValerieKeogh1

Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/valeriekeogh2/

Newsletter Sign Up:https://bit.ly/ValerieKeoghNews

Bookbub profile:https://www.bookbub.com/authors/valerie-keogh

My Review

The Lodger is a story that drags you into the plot, if only to scream and shout at the main character, Leigh, about so many things. She should have stood up to the creep at work and reported him sooner; she should have not let the boyfriend walk all over her …and she should never, never, never have taken in a lodger on a whim, no matter how kind of her it was to do so.

But that’s where we’re at now. Leigh has a lodger in Gina, a selfish boyfriend in Matt, and an anger management course to attend as a result of finally showing Bernard Ledbetter that his leery ways are not acceptable.
At this point, Gina seems to be the least of her problems. That is, until she returns from the anger management course to find Gina gone, clothes all packed up, and the briefest of notes saying, “I’m sorry.” Matt is in Salisbury where his teaching job is based, acting very oddly and cutting her phone calls short. So, Leigh returns to work to face Ledbetter, only to find he has not been in since she called him out, and everyone seems to have taken his side, blaming her for upsetting the ‘poor man’.
Is there any wonder she feels angry? She has so many unanswered questions: Why did Gina leave? Why is Matt being such a jerk? And why would anyone believe Ledbetter over her?

Things go from bad to worse when she hears movement in her house overnight, finds a disembodied hand in her garden, discovers Matt is lying to her about being at school, and questions are being raised about the missing Ledbetter.

So many twists, so many secrets … just when you believe one thing happened, along comes a swift change of direction to send you into another rabbit hole. If you don’t get giddy from all the twists, then are you even human? 😉

The Lodger is a fantastic thriller in the vein of “if it can go wrong, it will”. Leigh’s self-doubts and insecurities lead her to imagine all sorts of scenarios, and she feels that she’s being mocked for simply thinking those things could be possible. I think this phrase sums it up best:

Sometimes, the brain can overload, decide it’s not going to process anything else. And so it was with Leigh. This last week was the end of her capability.

Getting to the truth is complicated as there are so many layers to peel back, yet Leigh is left with a dilemma –to do the right thing or take the easy way out. Her decision might surprise you, but it will leave you believing in the ability to turn your life around … and if it means wearing more purple, then so be it.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author, and now I’ve learnt she has a vast back catalogue that I’m going to check out.

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As always,

Blog Tour ‘n’ Book Review – The Other Girlfriend

The Other Girlfriend

She loves him…

Lizzie Green once loved Tom Murphy with a passion that bordered on obsession. All she wanted was his love to be returned. Then one night something terrible happened and Tom left Lizzie broken hearted. She swore she would never let him hurt her again….

She loves him not.

Now, ten years later, Tom turns up on Lizzie’s doorstep still as charming as ever. Lizzie knows he still has the power to break her heart and destroy her life again. But Lizzie can’t say no to him….

Can she?

Purchase Link – https://amzn.to/3vNxKa9

Author Bio

Alex Stone, originally an accountant from the West Midlands, is now a psychological suspense writer based in Dorset. This beautiful and dramatic coastline is the inspiration and setting for her novels. She was awarded the Katie Fforde Bursary in 2019 and her debut thriller The Perfect Daughter was published by Boldwood in October 2021.

Social Media Links

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/AlexStoneWriter

Twitterhttps://twitter.com/AlexStoneAuthor

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/alexstoneauthor/

Newsletter Sign Up: https://bit.ly/AlexStoneNewsletter

Bookbub profile: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/alex-stone-69a67039-4aed-4e8c-9319-9e93eba46d5b

My Review

It’s been ten years since Lizzie last heard from Tom, her childhood friend and the source of her unrequited love. And now, here he is on her doorstep, claiming he only ever wanted to be with her.

She should be more suspicious, shouldn’t she? Especially since he dropped her friendship like a stone after that incident, leaving her broken-hearted and blaming herself for what happened that night.

Lizzie has to start over, she couldn’t face university any longer and gives up the writing course she had so loved to move to a different college … one where he, nor any of her old friends, will be. Reinventing herself as Beth, she takes a job in IT and lives out her days quietly, primarily as a result of her agoraphobia but also because of doubts about her own self worth.

And now he’s back, making himself at home in her house, insisting he was wrong to leave her all those years ago and that he never should have disappeared like that.

Tom is actually very unsettling, his behaviour suspicious, his intentions unclear – and Beth (Lizzie) is struggling to make sense of it all. Is he for real? Or is there something more sinister afoot?

It takes catching up with one of her old friends – one who was there that night – to make her realise that Tom’s motives are not as genuine as he’d have her believe.

And, what’s that? He wants her to publicly take the blame for what happened? Why now, after ten years? Can she put aside her feelings for him to find the truth?

The Other Girlfriend plays on Beth’s insecurities and Tom’s ability to manipulate her … and the truth, and the overall premise is tense. For me, it’s just too drawn out in getting to the crux of the story, Beth/Lizzie spends too much time in her head and overplays the victim card to the extent she becomes annoying for acting so gullible. Despite short chapters that make it a quick read, it takes a third of the book to discover what happened that night, when it’s pretty obvious from much earlier. That said, the ending is worth waiting for and validates Lizzie, allowing her to get the upper hand for once.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

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Book Tour – Future Skinny (plus giveaway)

Today is my stop on the Future Skinny tour! Check out this gripping psychological thriller and enter the giveaway for a chance to win one of five audio editions of the book!

Future Skinny Publication Date: May 24th, 2022

Genre: Psychological Thriller/ Suspense

TW: Body Dysmorphia/ Addiction

Casey Banks is a devoutly anorexic man who discovers he can see the future by binge-eating. His new plan? Perform visions for cash while staying thin by any means necessary. Reading futures proves to be lucrative, but when he ignores a vision of his girlfriend committing a grisly murder, it sets Casey on a dangerous path toward a destiny he’ll do anything to avoid.

Add to Goodreads

Excerpt

There he is.

The hotel room is dim, but Casey isn’t hard to find.

His body is a beacon of desperate protest underneath a forgiving silk tee. Bone thin. Skin bagging from every corner of his six-foot frame. A good guess would be one-hundred and twenty pounds. He has more hair, just not on his head. Fuzzy wisps of keratin on his arms and thick on the nape of his neck. Inky around the eyes, a dire pigmentation that frames the focus he is straining to hold on the stranger at the other end of the makeshift dining table.

Casey is binge-reading still, and by the look of him, he has been binge-reading far too often.

The spread between the two men is huge, was huge, most of the food has already been eaten.

The client’s eyes are wide but unmoved by the brittle hands Casey is using in lieu of utensils. The fingers clutching each next bite are topped with nail beds of blue. The knuckles on his index and middle are callused to the point of deformity. This client’s indifference is nothing new. Like all customers, he is there to hear his future. It has never mattered how the pig is slaughtered so long as the bacon tastes good.

Lylian is there too. She hasn’t left Casey yet, though their age difference looks as if it’s somehow doubled. Longer hair now, green eyes still bright, the only authentic shines in the room. Her arms are firmly folded atop a roadblock stance halfway between the client and the front door. At her size, her posture is hardly intimidating, but for someone so small, she can explode big.

The air stinks. It isn’t just the food. Beyond cooling grease and the chemically crafted scents of take-out littered about the table, the odors turn human quick. Inhale like you mean it and you can smell the sin. A half-century’s worth of intimacy baking in the manufactured heat of the room’s lone window unit.

The repugnant bouquet is married to the chomp, smack, and slurp of Casey’s consumption. He is eating hard. He is swallowing fast. Wet. In fact, everything feels wet. Rooms like this one have a squish to them that is everlasting. Stray spit won’t make much difference.

The bathroom door behind Casey is open. For now, the smell of upchuck is faint, maybe imagined. There is a beige sink, a matching toilet, and a poky little tub with a basin too small for anyone un-elfin. Any of the three are good for vomit. If Casey were to make sick prematurely, the carpet underfoot would hide it well: it’s a synthetic jumble of colors expertly designed to disappear manmade soils. Casey has a twenty-three-gallon Rubbermaid imitation at his side, just in case. Its corner-store price tag hasn’t been removed. Accidents happen. The only thing closer to Casey than this emergency bin are his and Lylian’s bug-out bags.

The client begins to fidget, he can’t keep his focus on the spectacle in front of him. He looks to the television, then to the table lamp, then back to the black screen of the TV. He actively works at fixating on anything that isn’t the redundancy of Casey eating and eating. There isn’t much to distract a person in this by-the-hour room. Perhaps inadvertently, he lands his gaze on the open black duffle at the end of the bed. The stacks of money define the bag’s canvas. The stranger’s attention sits on the opportunity, hanging there just long enough to visibly concern Lylian.

It starts with a twitch. Her arms uncross and she takes one step forward. Her eyes reach for Casey, but he is lost in his gorge, oblivious to Lylian’s subtle just-in-case preparations.

This client could be one of David’s thugs. Then again, any human being could: all ethnicities, a child, a senior citizen, religious or agnostic. David is an equal opportunity criminal, a true champion of diversity in the workplace.

Lylian puts a hand on the table lamp, wraps her fingers around its base. If this stranger decides to go rogue, she has all she needs to bash the back of his skull.

There is a mumble. It’s enough to break the client’s fixation on the bag of cash. He looks back to Casey, but Lylian remains committed.

“Did you say something’?” the client asks, the words passing through what is left of his jagged, flaxen teeth.

Casey struggles to form a comprehensible answer. His response works its way around the saliva-soaked mass he hasn’t stopped chewing. “How will the world know you?” he repeats.

“Are you askin’ me? You should be telling me.”

The loss of confidence in the client’s voice doesn’t go unnoticed by Lylian. Her grip tightens on the lamp’s base.

With his eyes shut tight, Casey goes adrift on his own question. He silently mouths it a few more times. Then, through quivering lips, he repeats it aloud, changing just the last word.

“How will the world know me?”

Available on Amazon

About the Author

Peter Rosch is what happens when a Polish drag-racing varsity bowler and a beautiful, but über paranoid, French Canadian Air Force brat get together on a disco dance floor in glorious Albuquerque, NM. An award-winning writer whose decades in advertising, music, and film introduced him to more than a few bad habits. He hopes it wasn’t for naught. Kirkus called his first novel, My Dead Friend Sarah, “a gripping story” in which “Rosch skillfully renders a unique story of a missing woman.”

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Not one but two cover reveals: What Lies Beneath & The Prodigal Mother

What Lies Beneath

Grieving father Joe Irons wants nothing but justice following daughter Lydia’s abduction and murder. But when police release prime suspect David Calderwood due to a lack of evidence, Joe feels compelled to act. In the dead of night he weighs up the moral implications of whether doing a bad thing for a good reason is justifiable. With Calderwood abducted and imprisoned in a cell beneath the stairs, Joe intends to obtain a confession no matter the cost.

When Joe learns that another child has been taken, he’s certain David is involved, and is in a race against time to break his prisoner, but wanting to hurt someone isn’t the same as physically doing it.

Invading David’s home, Joe begins to piece together how his captive thinks, picking up the investigation the police have left open. With a child’s life hanging in the balance, will Joe have what it takes to find the truth?

WHAT LIES BENEATH is an adrenaline-fuelled, high concept thriller that will appeal to fans of Adrian McKinty’s The Chain, and CJ Tudor’s The Other People.

What Lies Beneath

Pre-order Links 

UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/kindle-dbs/entity/author/B0057HQTHE

US – https://www.amazon.com/kindle-dbs/entity/author/B0057HQTHE 

Publication Date – 6^th June

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The Prodigal Mother

Five years ago, Abbie’s son Josh died during delivery. It’s taken this long for her and husband Mark to even think about trying to restart their family. Now eight months pregnant, Abbie won’t dare dream of a happy ending in case it is snatched away again.

When a stranger tells Abbie that Josh was switched at the hospital and is living under a new identity, Abbie desperately wants to believe it’s a second chance, but Mark isn’t as easily convinced, especially when the stranger’s mental health issues come to light. 

Abbie can’t find Josh without the stranger’s help, but she can’t risk the life of the child she is carrying. And she doesn’t know how far Josh’s new family will go to keep their secret buried.

Told at a breakneck pace, and with twists on every page THE PRODIGAL MOTHER is a gripping psychological suspense, perfect for fans of CL Taylor, Louise Jensen, and CJ Tudor.

The Prodigal Mother

Pre-order Links –

UK –  https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B09VMB4H59/

US – https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09VMB4H59/ 

Publication Date – 5^th September

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Author Bio

Stephen Edger is the Amazon bestselling author of psychological and crime thrillers, including Snatched, and the Kate Matthews series. Born in the north-east of England, he now lives in Southampton where most of his stories are set, allowing him to use his insider knowledge to deliver realistic and unsettling suspense on every page.

Away from writing, Stephen loves to read anything that will keep him awake at night. He’s also a passionate advocate for contemporary cinema and binge-watching the latest offerings from streaming services. He is married with a son and a daughter, and two dogs.

Social Media Links – www.facebook.com/AuthorStephenEdger 

https://twitter.com/StephenEdger

www.stephenedger.com 

As always,

Blog Tour ‘n’ Book Review – Between You and Me

Between You and Me

Is her new husband really who she thinks he is?

When young doctor Lauren Matheson meets Joe, an older divorced businessman, at a glittering poolside in California, it’s a chance encounter that seems life-changing for them both. Back home in London, their feelings only strengthen. But Lauren soon discovers that building a happy future with Joe is going to be an uphill struggle…

She’s determined to be a good stepmother to his children, four-year-old Toby and complicated teen Grace. But under the watchful eye of Meredith, Joe’s intimidating ex-wife, Lauren can’t seem to do a thing right. Why won’t Joe ever take her side against Grace? And what really happened between him and Meredith?

As her husband retreats into a cold, secretive version of the dashing man she met in California, Lauren starts to wonder if she’s made a costly mistake. Was Joe ever the man she thought she married?

Purchase Link – https://amzn.to/2Pu9BCM

Author Bio

Carol Mason is the Amazon Charts and Kindle #1 bestselling author After You Left (more than 300,000 copies sold), The Secrets of Married Women, The Last Time We Met, The Shadow Between Us, Send Me A Lover and Little White Secrets which hit the Bookstat digital bestsellers list top 3 in the week of its launch. She was born in the North East of England where most of her novels are set. She now lives in Canada with her Canadian husband, a rescue dog from Kuwait and a three-legged cat. When not writing, Carol loves to read, cook and binge watch Netflix.

Social Media Links

https://www.facebook.com/CarolMasonAuthor

https://twitter.com/CarolMasonBooks

https://www.instagram.com/carolmasonauthor

My Review

The last thing junior doctor, Lauren expected when she returned to London was to meet up again with Joe, an older guy she met on vacation in America. Their holiday fling didn’t go anywhere once he told her things were “complicated” for him at that moment. But now things have changed and the couple are free to pursue a relationship.

Within a short space of time, they marry and Lauren becomes step-mother to his two children – teenager Grace and four-year-old Toby. As you might expect, Lauren gets no easy ride from Grace, but does bond with Toby. That is until Joe’s ex-wife, and mother to the two kids, sticks her nose in. OK, so as their mother, Meredith obviously has rights and wants the best for her offspring, but treating Lauren like some unpaid help is not the way to go, especially when Meredith takes every chance to belittle and even mock Lauren’s attempts to build a rapport with the children. And where is Joe in all this? You might well ask! Mr Holiday-romance-turned-hubby is not exactly on his new wife’s side when things begin to go wrong. It seems Lauren can do nothing right, not even treat young Toby after an accident, despite being a medical professional

Frustrated and desperate for some support, Lauren’s checks out a forum for step-parents only to find a lot of hostility and animosity from many in her situation towards their step-kids. She does make one friend, though, but even then things aren’t as straightforward as they might seem.

There’s clearly more to Meredith’s story than we think. It comes to a head when she gets the bit between her teeth and sets out to destroy not only Lauren’s relationship with Joe and his kids, but also her career. Lauren is left fighting for her sanity, her career and her marriage in this twisty tale that makes for compulsive reading. A story of ordinary people living ordinary lives until someone throws a huge spanner in the works. The question is why … and can Lauren pick up the pieces? Will she even want to?

Highly recommended if you enjoy a solid family drama with a sinister edge.

For more news and reviews:

As always,

Reviews on Amazon UK as MeandtheMutts

Book Review – The Street Party

The party was supposed to be the highlight of the summer. If only I’d known that night would destroy our lives…

All the neighbours were laughing, drinking out of plastic glasses and getting along. I almost felt happy. Almost forgot about the terrible argument earlier and the sinister messages I’d been receiving from a strange address all week, threatening to expose the lies behind my perfect life.

As we finished with the red and gold fireworks and welcomed everyone back to our house, I believed that everything would be okay.

But I didn’t know who I was inviting in.

I never could have imagined what would happen here, in our home, after I’d gone up to bed.

Everyone saw something different.

It’s my daughter’s word against the story the boy from down the road is telling. But how can I find out what really happened that night without everyone finding out the truth about me?

Purchase Link

My Review

Honestly, this is a real slow-starter; I was halfway through the book before the street party events kicked in … and even further on before the real drama began. That said, there are a number of characters at play here, all wildly different and with their own baggage to bring to the party. Could those early chapters have been condensed? Probably. But having reached the end, I can say it was worth the wait.

The story focuses on a group of neighbours who live in the richest part of London – though not all can truly afford to be there. There are three women at the centre of the story

• Nella (future politician’s wife with lofty aspirations and more money than sense, and a desire to be seen to be doing good)
• Melissa (yoga queen and a very lovely stepmother but with an abusive husband)
• Ruby (florist, widowed, lives with her son and is very much on the edge of Nella’s group of helpers)

Nella plans on holding a fundraiser – not only will it make her look benevolent, but it won’t harm her husband’s political campaign either. So, she rallies her “friends” around. Melissa is Nella’s yoga teacher, and also best friend to Ruby who for the life of her cannot she why she has been invited to the inner sanctum.

Nella’s rather handsome husband – Marcus – is keen to get Ruby involved too, and offers to help out with getting her son an internship. Why he would do that is a mystery to Ruby (Could it be because her son is mixed race? Would a politician really be that shallow? ) However, Ruby is quite taken with Marcus’s attention … only to find out she is not the only woman he’s playing.

So, when the party finally begins, it looks like a great success. Until the police call around at Ruby’s house the next morning to speak to her son. Allegations have been made that will rock their world, its implications extending into the wider community too. No one is safe from the after effects of what is purported to have happened that night.

The story is told from the three women’s alternating viewpoints as they come to terms with the aftermath. It calls upon them to reflect upon their own situation, their behaviour, and the kind of world they want their kids to inherit. But, of course, neither woman will air their dirty laundry in public, and so the conundrum continues as to what really happened that night. Who is telling the truth? Who is covering for whom?

The final third of the book lived up to its “unputdownable” billing, though I still wouldn’t class it as a psychological thriller, more along the lines of women’s fiction with a suspense vibe.

What I didn’t like – apart from the slow start – was the constant dribble of “something’s going to happen soon” references, but I loved how the author grounded the characters (Ruby, in particular) in modern British cultural references. Of the three women, Ruby certainly came across as the most relateable.

Who I didn’t like – Melissa’s husband and Nella’s daughter top the list for me, but I loved Fin, Melissa’s stepdaughter, and Ruby and her son. The “good” characters were far from perfect, but the “baddies” were awfully good at being bad.

If you can tolerate a slow start, then you’ll be rewarding with a speedy ending that will leave your head spinning.

As always

 

Book Review – Baby Dear

Caro and Jeff Horne seem to have it all until they learn that Jeff is infertile. Caro married Jeff because her biggest wish was to be a mother, and he had the means to give their children a better life than she’d had. Jeff, who is besotted with Caro, is terrified he will lose her now they can’t have a baby.

Across town, Sharon is eight months pregnant and unsure if she really wants to be a mother. Soon her world will collide with Jeff’s. He wants to keep Caro happy and decides that getting a baby is the only way.   

Then Caro is accidently drawn into an underworld of drugs…

Meanwhile, Jeff is increasingly desperate to find a baby – but what lengths is he prepared to go to?

Is Sharon in danger, and will Caro ever have the family she’s always dreamed of?

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My Review

Baby Dear is a story that takes a few chapters to grab your attention, by virtue of getting to know all the characters, but then it draws you into a fast-paced roller-coaster of emotions and uncertainty.

The story starts with Caro and Jeff attending an appointment at the hospital in the hope of understanding what it’ll take for them to conceive a child. The news isn’t good: Jeff is infertile. Of course, there are options, IVF for one, but the consultant doubts that will be successful. Caro rules out adoption as she wants to be pregnant and give birth to her own child; Jeff rules out a sperm donor. The two of them are at odds, and this even brings into question the state of their marriage.

Caro questions her future with Jeff now he can’t fulfil her dream of being a mother. Jeff questions his future with Caro if he can’t give her a baby.

The lines are drawn, and since neither of them actually seem capable of conversation, they both retreat into their own worlds, assessing how they can resolve the gaping hole in their lives.

Unlike Caro and Jeff, Sharon and Craig Morrison are nowhere near ready for the new baby that is about to change their lives forever. It’s not that they never discussed having kids, just not now. As the due date falls ever closer, Sharon tries to consider a life with a baby and manages to convince herself that maybe she can still have it all. Craig, however, is not even willing to talk about it and buries his head in the sand.

Single mother of two, Julie Mayhew adores her kids, they’re the light of her life and she can’t imagine being without them. After work at the library, she finds Sharon out of breath outside, and sits with her awhile to check the mother-to-be is OK. The two women strike up a friendship. Sharon’s friends aren’t parents, so she latches on to Julie, encouraged that this other woman manages two children and a job on her own.

These three families find themselves connected when Jeff takes matters into his own hands. That he is able to take things as far as he does is frightening and tragic. His wife is unaware of his behaviour until it’s too late. (To be honest, Caro dismissed him easily once she learnt he’d not be able to father a child, and her own obsession is what triggers Jeff into doing the unthinkable).

The story develops in those three viewpoints.

Sharon warms to the idea of being a mother and, once the child is born all her concerns fade away … until a creepy man brings her flowers.

Julie helps Sharon out when Craig is nowhere to be found, and their friendship blossoms. Julie’s own life seems to be taking a turn for the better with the promise of romance in the air, and her little boy, Sam, is just a delight.

And Caro, well she just seems to think of herself until a young teen is found dead in Julie’s library, overdosed on ecstasy and then she worries if she might have been responsible somehow. It might seem like an odd divergence from the main plot, but it allows her to reunite with her nephew, who has a pivotal part in the story as things escalate.

Their lives change forever as the reality of what Jeff does hits home. His dramatic breakdown stems from the moment he learnt of his infertility, and his wife’s indifference to him sends him into an abyss of dark thoughts and ultimately even darker actions as he tries to “fix” everything.

Emotions run high here, as tragedy strikes. But who will get their happy ending?

Enjoy!

As always,

Book Review – The Happy Family

My family has just been reunited. So who is trying to tear it apart?

A mother who disappeared…
When Beth was 10 years old, her beautiful, wild mother Alice walked out and never came back. Beth’s life since hasn’t always been smooth sailing, but now she is happy and settled, with a successful career, a loving family and a beautiful home.

An unexpected visitor…
Then one day there’s a knock at the door. Alice has returned. Overjoyed to have the chance to rebuild their relationship, Beth invites her mother to move in.

A life that comes crashing down…
At first, everything seems wonderful. But then Beth’s friends begin to drift away, strange things start to happen at home, and rumours begin to circle about her past. As the mysterious events around Beth become darker and more dangerous, she is forced to question everything. Is somebody in her life trying to destroy her happiness? And how far will they go? 

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My Review

Clever! What a cool storyline … and that twist!

Practice manager, Beth has a happy life, two children she adores, a great job she loves and good friends (although all her best friends are much older than she is, around the same age as her mother – 😉 read into that what you will). And, talking of mothers, Beth’s mum walked out on her and her father some thirty years ago when Beth was ten.

After divorcing her husband, Beth not only has a good relationship with him but also with his new wife. Her dad is in a fabulous care home and enjoys being there, and Beth visits him often. She works hard, but has help from Robin to do the school run and keep the house clean. Everything is peachy.

And then, a knock at her door turns her life around, upside down and inside out. The woman who says her name is Alice is none other than her mother, complete with the three hearts tattoo on her neck. Beth is stunned, delighted, loss for words one minute and gibbering like an idiot the next. Her mother has returned.

After inviting her mother to stay a few days (at first), Beth can’t wait to tell her friends and family – even her dad – that Alice is back in her life. Everyone is thrilled for her, and totally accepting of Alice.

Weirdly, almost instantly strange things start to happen. Beth loses her keys a lot, the heating system goes bezerk, “accidents” happen and tempers start to fray as Beth seems to be losing her grip on everything, alienating loved ones … and drinking too much. When everything seems to be going wrong, Beth is glad to have her mum around for support.

There are lots of twists in this story, and just when you think things can’t get any worse for Beth, they do. A long-held secret – something which, since their move to Cheltenham after the childhood incident, only Beth and her father are aware of – suddenly has reared its very ugly head. Beth looks in danger of losing everything and everyone close to her until someone totally unexpected comes to her rescue – yet another fabulous twist. Who is Beth’s saviour? Well, while the twist is hugely surprising, it’s not too difficult to join the dots and find her guardian angel, though Beth does make a meal out of that task!

Overall, a compelling and addictive read that I raced through. Admittedly, it sagged a little in the middle as Beth’s paranoia spiralled out of control repeatedly, but the ending more than makes up for that. As does the witty dialogue and hilarious “menopause” chats she and her friends have at the beginning. As the title says, Beth really did have the happy family.

If you enjoy psychological or domestic suspense, then this book is for you. Give it a shot. You won’t regret it.

Thanks to the author, One More Chapter & Netgalley for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

As always,

Reviewed on Amazon UK as Meandthemutts

Cover Reveal – Between You and Me

Between You and Me

Is her new husband really who she thinks he is?

When young doctor Lauren Matheson meets Joe, an older divorced businessman, at a glittering poolside in California, it’s a chance encounter that seems life-changing for them both. Back home in London, their feelings only strengthen. But Lauren soon discovers that building a happy future with Joe is going to be an uphill struggle…

She’s determined to be a good stepmother to his children, four-year-old Toby and complicated teen Grace. But under the watchful eye of Meredith, Joe’s intimidating ex-wife, Lauren can’t seem to do a thing right. Why won’t Joe ever take her side against Grace? And what really happened between him and Meredith?

As her husband retreats into a cold, secretive version of the dashing man she met in California, Lauren starts to wonder if she’s made a costly mistake. Was Joe ever the man she thought she married?

Pre-order Link – https://amzn.to/2Pu9BCM

Publication Date – 22^nd June 2021

Author Bio

Carol Mason is the Amazon Charts and Kindle #1 bestselling author After You Left (more than 300,000 copies sold), The Secrets of Married Women, The Last Time We Met, The Shadow Between Us, Send Me A Lover and Little White Secrets which hit the Bookstat digital bestsellers list top 3 in the week of its launch.

She was born in the North East of England where most of her novels are set. She now lives in Canada with her Canadian husband, a rescue dog from Kuwait and a three-legged cat.

When not writing, Carol loves to read, cook and binge watch Netflix. 

Social Media Links https://www.facebook.com/CarolMasonAuthor

https://twitter.com/CarolMasonBooks

https://www.instagram.com/carolmasonauthor/

As always,

PS – I’ll be reviewing this one on publication day … and I can’t wait to get started. See you again then.

Book Review – Shadow Falls

You thought your little girl was safe at summer camp. You were wrong…

The little girl drags her eyes open, realizing she’s starting to fade. She tries calling out—“Daddy?”—using all her remaining strength. But she’s too late and her voice just isn’t loud enough…

When Detective Madison Harper arrives at a remote summer camp in Shadow Falls, northern California, her heart breaks for Jenny, the sweet little girl last seen splashing in the lake with her friends before she vanished. Peering into the silent cabins filled with rows of neatly made beds, Madison knows this idyllic place is hiding a terrible secret.

The girl’s parents are distraught, and the local police have no leads—they desperately need Madison’s help. She’ll do whatever it takes to crack this case, because it’s the only way back to the son she lost to the care system years ago when she was framed for a crime she didn’t commit.

But with the camp staff keeping tight-lipped and her new partner on the edge of a breakdown, Madison can’t find any truth to her instinct that there is more to Jenny’s perfect parents than meets the eye. Until she discovers a disturbing family portrait Jenny drew at the local library. Was this angelic girl more troubled than anybody knew? Was she in danger from those she trusted most?

One thing is certain, if Madison doesn’t find the answers soon, the lives of more innocent children will be at risk…

An absolutely unputdownable crime thriller that will keep you up all night! Perfect for fans of Angela Marsons, Robert Dugoni and Melinda Leigh. Previously titled Find My Child.

Amazon UK

My Review

My first psychological thriller of the year, and what a way to start. I must admit that it’s a bug-bear of mine whenever the book’s subtitle insists on calling the story unputdownable or absolutely gripping – because, all too often, that is not the case, for me, anyway – however, this is one book where such a claim is 100% valid.
That this is the first in the series is another reason to dive in, because the two main characters – Nate & Madison – have really interesting stories to tell, both having been imprisoned on murder charges and both keen to prove who set them up.

Shadow Falls sets the reader up for a fascinating ride if we’re to believe their own issues will be met head on in future books. But, back to the plot in question … Nate is hired by the grandmother of a missing 12-year-old girl, who feels police efforts to find her granddaughter have not been thorough enough. As a PI (without license), Nate is ready to investigate. His own experience of being wrongfully imprisoned has put justice centre stage in his life, and if he can also expose police corruption or negligence, then so much the better.

Madison, having served her time, is desperate to find out who set her up too, but she lacks the financial resources to start her own investigations. She persuades Nate that, as a former cop, she can help him with the investigation and asks that he then helps her out afterwards.

Both characters are wounded by their experiences and focusing on something else outside of their own lives helps them to function. At first, there is some awkwardness between them. Nate is way more sceptical of Madison’s cop-like methods, and her directness doesn’t sit well with him. As time goes on, though, they settle into their roles and complement each other.

In the pursuit of the missing girl, they head off to a summer camp where suspects seem to crop up all over the place. With the help of Brody, an ex-police dog, they start to eliminate options while finding more twists and turns that lead them temporarily off-track, until a series of mistakes by the girl’s abductor (now potentially her killer too) allows them to put the pieces of the puzzle together. Although, this is not without putting themselves in great danger first.

It’s a thrilling story that held my attention. An exciting plot with original main characters, whose own back stories will no doubt prove just as fascinating to follow in future books in the series. I’ll be keeping an eye out for book two.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for an ARC of Shadow Falls (previously titled Find My Child) in exchange for an honest review.

As always,