Moon Road

By Sarah Leipciger

5 Stars

It’s irksome to her, how well she knows this man, how much he has changed and how exactly the same he is …

Kathleen and Yannick have not spoken for nineteen years, not since what happened with their daughter.

Now, there’s unexpected news from the other side of the country, and the call for a road trip they can only make together.

This is a great story. A road trip unlike any other. It’s one of those wonderfully written books with the characters really living in it. No super humans,  just ordinary people with their thoughts and problems we can all identify with. It has a way of holding the reader so that you’re eager to see what happens next, as a good read should. I absolutely loved this book. 

It’s due to be published on the 16th May 2024. 

My thanks to #NetGalley for this free ARC in exchange for my honest review. 

The Family Experiment

by John Marrs

5 Stars

The world’s population is soaring, creating overcrowded cities and an economic crisis. And in the UK, breaking point has arrived. A growing number of people can no longer afford to start families let alone raise them.

But for those desperate to experience parenthood, there is an alternative. For a monthly subscription fee, clients can create a virtual child from scratch who they can access via the metaverse and a VR headset

This is another great read by John Marrs. It’s inventive and original plus being easy to read. The book is well paced and with revelations revealed as the book progresses much more is discovered about the ‘parents’ of the virtual children.

I enjoyed this book. I’m not usually a sci-fi fan but anything by this author I am happy to read. He just has this way of conveying the future as totally believable and not too far out of reach of the present. The twists continue throughout the story and it has a terrific ending twist.

My thanks to #NetGalley and #PanMacmillan books for this free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

To the Dogs

By Louise Welsh

4 Stars

Jim Brennan is flying high. Against all odds, he is a big man at the university, tipped for the head job and an office at the top of the ivory tower. He has a beautiful, accomplished wife and two healthy children. Jim drives an Audi, and his dog is a pedigree bichon frisé. Not bad for the son of a hardman who grew up in a room and kitchen.

But for every person who’s watched his progress and wanted to hitch a lift, there’s someone else desperate to drag him back down. When his son Elliot is arrested on drugs charges, Jim is approached by men he thought he had left safely in his past. Their demands threaten his family, students and reputation.

I really enjoyed this book. It’s just a little different with believable characters and a well paced story. It’s a book with everything, I found. The lead character is an academic with no detectives in sight. It’s about threat, corruption but also about a family trying their best to keep safe in the modern and tainted world. It’s a great read.

My thanks to #NetGalley for this free ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Wiregrass

By Adrian Hyland

4 Stars

Nash Baker was once a celebrated cop, but his career was ended when he chose to take justice into his own hands. Now he’s living a quiet life in a small town caring for the local wildlife and trying to stay away from trouble.

Jesse Redpath has a new job in a new town, Satellite – the stormy weather that greets her first few days on the new beat seems like a sign for what’s to come. A local has died in what seems like an accident, but Jessie isn’t so sure that ‘accident’ wasn’t planned. All evidence seems to point to Nash, but Jessie’s not sure about that either.

This is the follow up to Canticle Creek, which I read and reviewed a few months ago. This is equally as good. Well written and paced. Believable characters that we can identify with. Great description and an intriguing storyline that holds attention to the end. There are lots of references to the previous book and, indeed, many of the original characters are here too. It does read like the next episode but it still works as a standalone story as well. On the whole it’s a great read.

My thanks to #NetGalley for this free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Fatal Witness by Robert Bryndza – Review

4 Stars

On the very evening Detective Erika Foster moves into a new house in Blackheath, London she stumbles on a the scene of a brutal murder. Assigned the case she discovers that the victim was a true-crime podcaster, about to reveal the identity of a local stalker who preys on young female students. All her notes and recordings have been stolen so Erika concludes the victims was about to reveal the stalker’s identity to the world. She was murdered to prevent this happening so the detective has a race against time to prevent further murders.

This is the seventh book in this series and the first that I have read. It works well as a stand-alone novel though. I like the way it’s written and the descriptions are very detailed. Might be too detailed for some. It’s a pacey story with plenty of twists. Perfect for those who like a police procedural with lots of action. On the whole, it’s an excellent read with a great twist at the end. A definite recommendation.

My thanks to #NetGalley, #RavenStreetPublishing and #RobertBryndza for this free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Truly, Darkly, Deeply by Victoria Selman – Review

Twelve-year-old Sophie moves with her mother, Amelia-Rose, from Massachusetts to London where they meet Matty Melgren. He soon becomes a big part of their lives but the adult’s relationship sours. At the same time, a serial killer begins targeting women who look like Amelia-Rose. Matty is convicted of the multiple murders but there are questions as to his guilt. Twenty years later Sophie is summoned to his prison as he is dying. Will her questions finally be answered?

This is a great story, well-written which I dived into right from the beginning. The believable characters resonate with truth but there is always something going on just outside that is hard to pin down. The pace of the tale is good making it difficult to put down before reading ‘just one more chapter.’ The story does flit back and forth in time but is easy to follow. A definite for Whodunnit fans and those who like easy-to-read mysteries. Plus, it’s got a great ending.

My thanks to #NetGalley, #QuercusBooks and #VictoriaSelman for this free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Chernobyl by Ian Fitzgerald- Review

Whenever there are arguments about the safety of nuclear energy, the name Chernobyl is raised. This book is a fascinating history of the USSR and the place of Ukraine in its hierarchy. It also goes some way to explaining how important Ukraine is to modern-day Russia.
This is an extremely in-depth look at what was, later discovered to be, an accident waiting to happen. Lack of knowledge, untrained staff and political pressure conspired together to cause this catastrophe.
This is a well-researched and written book, interspersed with illustrations. The level of detail is astonishing but never boring. It is a testament to how little was known about the effects of radiation on humans and the mistakes which were made. It highlights the fascinating change from focusing on nuclear weapons to harnessing it to create energy.

I enjoyed reading it, crammed with facts and interesting information. Having read other books and watched documentaries on the subject, I would place this book as one of the definitive works on this topic.

My thanks to #NetGalley, #ArcturusPublishing and #IanFitzgerald for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review

The Day We Died by Wendy Owens – Review

4 Stars

At ten years of age, Rachel discovers that the father she loves is a murderer known as “The Lipstick Killer” and her whole life is turned upside down. Her family decide to leave the persecution of their neighbourhood and start a new life in Chicago. They change their names and so Rachel becomes Sydney and she trains and becomes a crime scene technician. She is called to attend a homicide scene and is shocked to find the female victim wearing the same shade of lipstick her executed father used on his victims. Called Fire in the Sky, but it was discontinued years before. Then the bodies start mounting up.

This is a really easy book to read. Its straightforward language and steady pace draws the story along nicely. The pressure mounts as the story progresses making it one if those books that aren’t easy to put down. So don’t start reading it before bed! Several times I thought I had guessed the ending but then it twisted again. It has a brilliant ending too.

My thanks to #NetGalley, #VictoryEditingNetGalleyCo-op and #WendyOwens for this free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Devil’s Chimney by Adam Lyndon – Review

5 Stars

A prolific burglar is causing mayhem for the residents of sleepy Eastbourne. He breaks into houses in the early hours and if confronted threatens the occupants with a knife. That is until young police officer Rutherford Barnes and his partner Harriet Holden capture him in the act outside her house. The place is ransacked and a note is painted on a wall saying ‘DEAD COPS SLEEP LONG.’
A few days later Harriet’s battered body is found and Rutherford vows to discover who killed his partner and why?

This story is a police procedural, written by a serving police officer and you can tell that immediately. It starts well with twists and turns from the very beginning. Its descriptions are excellent, drawing the reader deeper into the story which progresses at a good even pace. I found it exceptionally well written with the twists continuing throughout the story, resulting in a breathtaking climax. Good characters and story make it a great read.

My thanks to #NetGalley, #JoffeBooks and #AdamLyndon for this free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Stories Of My Life by James Patterson – Review

4 stars

As the title suggests this is the story of one of the most productive writers of our age. It pulls you in immediately. Although I have read several of his novels I knew nothing about the man himself, apart from the fact that he is prolific.
It’s quite refreshing to read an autobiography which highlights failures as well as successes. The book has lots of short scenes, which I like, but may not appeal to everyone. By short I mean a page and a half and it does flit about a bit.
He relates his life story as though you, the reader, are a friend with whom he is having a conversation. It works very well and being in an interesting conversation you want more.
It’s a well-written story, as you would expect from a writer of his calibre.
One thing that stuck with me as I read it was that he, even to this day, writes with a pencil. I find that unusual but most of his story is quite unusual too, so why not?

My thanks to #NetGalley, #JamesPatterson and #RandomHouseUK for this free ARC in exchange for an honest review.