#Blogtour Meet Me When My Heart Stops by Becky Hunter

It's an absolute pleasure to take part in the Blogtour Meet Me When My Heart Stops by Becky Hunter.

About the Author

Becky Hunter lived and worked in London for several years before moving to Mozambique to volunteer with horses and try her hand at writing. A few years, a few destinations, and a few jobs later she had the idea that would become One Moment. Alongside writing, she now works as a freelance editor and publicist, splitting her time between Bristol and London, and constantly trying to plan the next adventure. Follow @Bookish_Becky on X

About the book

What if your soulmate could only ever be the love of your afterlife? 

The first time Emery dies, she is only five years old...  Emery is born with a heart condition that means her heart could quite literally stop at any moment. The people around her know what to do - if they act quickly enough there will be no lasting damage, and Emery's heart can be restarted. But when this happens, she is briefly technically dead. 

Each time Emery's heart stops, she meets Nick. His purpose is to help people adjust to the fact that they are dead, to help them say goodbye, before they move on entirely. He does not usually meet people more than once - but with Emery, he is able to make a connection, and he finds himself drawn to her. 

As Emery's life progresses, and she goes through ups and downs, she finds that a part of her is longing for those moments when her heart will stop - so that she can see Nick again. 

This is the story of two fated lovers who long for each other, but are destined never to share more than a few fleeting moments - because if they were to be together, it would mean the end of Emery's life. 

Review

I love it when a book or story takes you on more of a ride than you were expecting. It has all the ingredients of memorable romance, but it is far more than that. The balancing of the relationship threads around Emery's travel between life, and not quite in the land of the dead, is subtle and yet incredibly nuanced.

The threads create a web of connections with Emery sitting in the middle, and her actions and relationship with life itself create ripples of movement that impact everyone on said web. Her family is divided in their reactions to her condition, which means cracks begin to form. The need to protect and keep her safe from harm equals constant monitoring and restrictions.

Emery has a defiant reaction to her condition, which at first isn't connected to wanting to see the man on the other side. Eventually the defiance becomes self-destructive and becomes intertwined with the desire to see Nick again. Somewhere along the line the dance with death becomes an almost deliberate act, although I am sure Emery would disagree - she'd be deceiving herself of course. The willingness to take that risk is indicative of how she treats those around her and how she disregards the impact her risky behaviour has on those around her.

I really enjoyed the concept and would love to see this developed into a screen version - it has all the makings of the kind of idea that captures hearts indefinitely.

Buy Meet Me When My Heart Stops at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Corvus | pub date 21 March 2024 - Hardback £14.99. Also available in e-book. Buy at Amazon com.

#Blogtour The Babysitter by Emma Curtis

It's a pleasure to take part in the Blogtour The Babysitter by Emma Curtis.

About the Author

Emma Curtis was born in Brighton and now lives in London with her husband. After raising two children and working various jobs, her fascination with the darker side of domestic life inspired her to start writing psychological suspense thrillers. She has published five previous titles with Transworld:  One Little Mistake, When I Find You, The Night You Left, Keep Her Quiet and Invite Me In. Follow @emmacurtisbooks on X (the artist formerly known as Twitter).

About the book

Three women. Three secrets. - Claudia's life imploded ten years ago when she was convicted of the murder of her child. Now she has done the unthinkable and confessed to manslaughter in order to be granted parole - her only hope of finding out what really happened to Tilly.

Sara is married to Joe, Claudia's ex-husband, and they have a young child together. She finally has everything she ever wanted, but Claudia's release threatens the perfect life she has created.

Anna was the babysitter who let Claudia and Joe down on day their daughter disappeared. Married with a child of her own, Claudia's reappearance in her quiet cul-de-sac is an unwelcome surprise.

These three women are tied together in more ways than they realize. But only one of them is capable of killing.

Review

Admittedly, this did not start the way I expected it to - it's an excellent opening gambit. So simple and yet so consuming. The mother who will question ever moment, every person and each interaction going forward. Was there something obvious that could have changed the outcome of the evening?

Who could have imagined that one moment of assumption would lead to an endless horror of a nightmare. Claudia is stuck in time with a lack of answers whilst Anna has moved one, and Sara has more or less slid into the open space created by a tragedy.

There is an interesting moment towards the end, it sort of solidifies the state of mind of the perpetrator. Excuse as an explanation. If you hadn't then I wouldn't have had to. It's a very specific logic when they assign blame to a certain order of events. It's a special kind of manipulation I think, because it automatically kickstarts a thought process that makes the innocent party question their own actions. Just imagine if you hadn't done x before z.

It's a riveting and complex dark domestic psychological thriller, one that would work well as a mini series. Imagine the diversions, the sleight of hand, and ultimately the lack of real consequence, but hopefully eventually the truth.

Buy The Babysitter at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Corvus | Paperback Original £8.99, Pub Date: 12 October 2023. Also available in e-book. Buy at Amazon com.

#BloggerDay One Moment by Becky Hunter

Life or death. Love or loss. It can all happen in One Moment.

About the Author

Becky Hunter worked for many years in London in the publishing industry, before taking a career break in Mozambique, where she volunteered with horses and decided to give writing a go. She now works as a freelance book publicist. One Moment is her debut novel. Follow @Bookish_Becky on X (formerly known as the artist called Twitter).

About the book

One moment in time can change everything... The day Scarlett dies should have been one of the most important of her life. It doesn't feel fair that she'll never have the chance to fulfil her dreams - all because she stopped to help a stranger. And now, she's still... here - wherever here is - watching the ripple effect of her death on those she loved the most.

Evie cannot contemplate her life without Scarlett, and she certainly cannot forgive Nate, the man she blames for her best friend's death. But Nate keeps popping up when she least expects him to, catapulting Evie's life in directions she'd never let herself imagine possible.

If you could go back, knowing everything that happens after, everything that happens because of one choice you made, would you change the course of history or would you do it all again?

Review

I was pleasantly surprised by this book - it wasn't at all what I was expecting. A serious note on death, sisterhood and friendship. The realisation that our lives can change in the blink of an eye. One choice, one path taken - just one moment in time. In this case Evie makes a choice that leads to her death, and peculiarly she or her soul is left to see the aftermath of her tragic end.

See the reaction of people to her death, which is a bit of an eye-opener at times. In a way she is narrating her own death throughout the book. An unexpected event that opens up Evie, and her way of perceiving the world around her,  and gives her a new perspective. On the life she no longer gets to life, to finish with her goals achieved and all her dreams fulfilled. 

It's emotional and simultaneously beautiful - it captures the relationship between the two of them perfectly. Evie and Scarlett, best friends and roommates, but even best friends fight. Evie wonders whether she wants to be able to change the status quo if it changes things for the worse for her friend.    

It's a wonderful read about embracing what we are unable to control, and realising that sometimes some things are meant to be and should be left to evolve or not.  I look forward to reading more by this author in the future. She has a knack for spinning the kind of yarn readers really want to experience.

Buy One Moment at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher : ‎Corvus pub date 31 August 2023. Buy at Amazon com.

#Blogtour The Misper by Kate London

It's my turn on the Blogtour The Misper by Kate London.

About the Author

Kate London graduated from Cambridge University and worked in theatre until 2006 when she joined the Metropolitan Police Service. She finished her career working as part of a Major Investigation Team on the Metropolitan Police Service's Homicide Command. She has since written four novels in The Tower series, which is now a major ITV drama, starring Gemma Whelan. She is on Twitter @K8London. 

About the book

There's more than one way to go missing... When Ryan Kennedy is imprisoned after killing a police officer, he knows what he has to do. Keep his mouth shut about who he was working for, keep his head down, and rely on his youth to keep his sentence short. When he gets out, he'll be looked after.

Following the death in the line of duty of a fellow detective, DI Sarah Collins has left the capital for a quieter life in the countryside. But when a missing teenager turns up on her patch, she finds herself drawn into a much bigger investigation - one that leads her right back to London, back to the Met, and back to Ryan Kennedy, the kid who killed a cop.

This powerful novel from a former Met detective explores the devastation that organized drug-running gangs can wreak on young lives. It asks who deserves to be saved - and whether saving them is even possible...

Review

At first the story is a little bit like being in a glass funhouse and the reader has difficulty finding the right path. It's a bit choppy, but intentionally so, and what's really interesting is the way the main plot travels full circle and brings us back to where we think everything started.

The story begins with Ryan who kills and is convinced to stay quiet about certain details - a bit of prison time is worth it in exchange for being safe, right? His story leads us in a convoluted way to the disappearance of another young person, but what could the two things have to do with each other?

I like the fact the author has chosen a criminal element and scheme that is targeting the most vulnerable and youngest in our society. Easy pickings when it comes to influencing children and teens, reeling them in with things they might want and then moving the friendly relationship into a coercive one.

When you take the vulnerability of the victims into consideration, it's harder to define the lines between perpetrator and victim when they themselves commit a crime. It's a sophisticated scheme that keeps the big fish safe while the little fish in the pond do the crime and punishment. A never-ending wheel of criminal productivity churns consistently with a constant supply of young people.

It's an intriguing dive into modern organised crime, county lines is a crime everyone should be aware of, and this read gives a great glimpse at how complex it really is.

Buy The Misper at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher ‏: ‎Corvus; pub date 3 Aug. 2023. Hardback · £14.99, e-book also available. Buy at Amazon com.

#Blogtour One Moment by Becky Hunter

 It's a pleasure to take part in the Blogtour One Moment by Becky Hunter.

About the Author

Becky Hunter lived and worked in London for several years before moving to Mozambique to volunteer with horses and try her hand at writing. A few years, a few destinations, and a few jobs later she had the idea that would become One Moment. Alongside writing, she now works as a freelance editor and publicist, splitting her time between Bristol and London, and constantly trying to plan the next adventure. Follow @Bookish_Becky on Twitter

About the book

One moment in time can change everything... The day Scarlett dies should have been one of the most important of her life. It doesn't feel fair that she'll never have the chance to fulfil her dreams. And now, she's still ... here - wherever here is - watching the ripple effect of her death on the lives of those she loved the most.

Evie cannot contemplate her life without Scarlett, and she certainly cannot forgive Nate, the man she blames for her best friend's death. But Nate keeps popping up when she least expects him to, catapulting 

Evie's life in directions she'd never let herself imagine possible. Ways, perhaps, even those closest to her had long since given up on. If you could go back, knowing everything that happens after, everything that happens because of that one moment in time, would you change the course of history or would you do it all again?

Review

I was pleasantly surprised by this book - it wasn't at all what I was expecting. A serious note on death, sisterhood and friendship. The realisation that our lives can change in the blink of an eye. One choice, one path taken - just one moment in time. In this case Evie makes a choice that leads to her death, and peculiarly she or her soul is left to see the aftermath of her tragic end.

See the reaction of people to her death, which is a bit of an eye-opener at times. In a way she is narrating her own death throughout the book. An unexpected event that opens up Evie, and her way of perceiving the world around her,  and gives her a new perspective. On the life she no longer gets to life, to finish with her goals achieved and all her dreams fulfilled. 

It's emotional and simultaneously beautiful - it captures the relationship between the two of them perfectly. Evie and Scarlett, best friends and roommates, but even best friends fight. Evie wonders whether she wants to be able to change the status quo if it changes things for the worse for her friend.    

It's a wonderful read about embracing what we are unable to control, and realising that sometimes some things are meant to be and should be left to evolve or not.  I look forward to reading more by this author in the future. She has a knack for spinning the kind of yarn readers really want to experience.

Buy One Moment at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher  : ‎Corvus pub date 2 Mar. 2023. Buy at Amazon com.

#Blogtour The Silence Project by Carole Hailey

It's a pleasure to take part on the Blogtour The Silence Project by Carole Hailey.

About the Author

Carole Hailey completed the six-month Guardian/UEA novel writing course taught by Bernardine Evaristo, who imbued Carole with such a love for writing fiction that she abandoned her career in law to undertake an MA in Creative Writing at Goldsmiths, followed by a PhD in Creative Writing at Swansea University.

Carole was a London Library Emerging Writer 2020/21. The Silence Project is her first published novel and was shortlisted for the Bridport Prize Peggy Chapman-Andrews First Novel Award 2020 and highly commended by the judges. She lives in Wales with her husband and two rescue dogs. Follow @CaroleAHailey on Twitter

About the book

On Emilia Morris's thirteenth birthday, her mother Rachel moves into a tent at the bottom of their garden. From that day on, she never says another word. Inspired by her vow of silence, other women join her and together they build the Community. Eight years later, Rachel and thousands of her followers around the world burn themselves to death.

In the aftermath of what comes to be known as the Event, the Community's global influence quickly grows. As a result, the whole world has an opinion about Rachel - whether they see her as a callous monster or a heroic martyr - but Emilia has never voiced hers publicly. Until now.

When she publishes her own account of her mother's life in a memoir called The Silence Project, Emilia also decides to reveal just how sinister the Community has become. In the process, she steps out of Rachel's shadow once and for all, so that her own voice may finally be heard.

Review

Somewhere along the blurred lines of this story the reader will probably wonder whether the mother-daughter relationship or Rachel and the Community are at the core. The truth is it is always both, because Rachel is a multi-faceted character. She is both mother and voice of the people.

I have to admit I found the silence between Rachel and Emilia, and the impact it has on Emilia, very poignant. Long before the Event the mother discards the child in the name of her protest. Nothing is more important than what her silence is meant to achieve. In fact what a fascinating movement of protest - the loudest silence that is heard around the world.

Whilst reading this I experienced the same thing I did with Daisy Jones - the lines between fiction and reality became blurred, perhaps because the premise and enfolding scenarios are far too easy to imagine as fact. Also possibly because we are already living a semblance of a certain structure that resembles some of the Community goals the author alludes to. 

Power corrupts. Ideology consumes common sense. When one group decides the fate of others - in the name of the greater good, there will always be calculated casualties. Who decides the worth of life or weighs it up against the greater goal? The Community, right? The group forged on the sacrifice and strength of people like Rachel.

It's an incredibly clever and nuanced premise with many layers to unpack and dissect. I can imagine each core aspect will speak to in its own way to readers, whether it's the mother and daughter relationship, the Community or the silence itself. This is the kind of book that sows the seeds for existential conversations. It's an excellent read.

Buy The Silence Project at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher ‏: ‎Corvus pub date 9 Feb. 2023. Buy at Amazon com.

#BlogTour The Heretic's Mark by S.W. Perry

It's an absolute pleasure to take part in the BlogTour for the fourth book in the Jackdaw Mystery series - The Heretic's Mark by S.W. Perry.

About the Author

S.W. Perry was a journalist and broadcaster before retraining as an airline pilot. His debut novel, The Angel's Mark was listed for the CWA Historical dagger and was a Walter Scott Prize Academy Recommended Read 201. he lives in Worcestershire with his wife. 

Follow @swperry_history @CorvusBooks on Twitter, on Goodreads, onAmazon, swperry.co.uk, 

About the book

The Elizabethan world is in flux. Radical new ideas are challenging the old. But the quest for knowledge can lead down dangerous paths...

London, 1594. The Queen's physician has been executed for treason, and conspiracy theories flood the streets. When Nicholas Shelby, unorthodox physician and unwilling associate of spymaster Robert Cecil is accused of being part of the plot, he and his new wife Bianca must flee for their lives.

With agents of the Crown on their tail, they make for Padua, following the ancient pilgrimage route, the Via Francigena. But the pursuing, English aren't the only threat Nicholas and Bianca face. Hella, a strange and fervently religious young woman, has joined them on their journey. When the trio finally reach relative safety, they become embroiled in a radical and dangerous scheme to shatter the old world's limits of knowledge. But Hella's dire predictions of an impending apocalypse, and the brutal murder of a friend of Bianca's forces them to wonder: who is this troublingly pious woman? And what does she want?

Review

This story reminds us, the readers, how far Shelby has come over the years. From a devastated man consumed by grief to an incidental chess piece in the contentious political landscape of Elizabethan England.

This time he has become the target of a deadly campaign of vengeance, one that can end with his painful death and his loved ones in the same dangerous position. His reluctant kinda benefactor and spymaster Cecil suggests he leave the city post haste, which is where the story veers in a different direction altogether. 

On the run with his new wife Bianca they are joined by a young woman called Hella who straddles the veil. Her predictions rattle the science based thinking of the medical man and put them in more danger than the situation they left behind in England.

I think if you know your history - not that you have to to enjoy this fantastic historical crime fiction, then you appreciate the way the fiction is woven in with the historical facts. Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, a favourite of Elizabeth I and the stepson of her reported paramour, Robert Dudley. The second Earl of Essex was quick to use his import and influence at court to rid himself of opposition or perhaps in regards to his own violent fate - to weaken the position of the queen.

This plot, with Shelby as the innocent man accused, links into the actual facts of the tragic fate of Dr Roderigo Lopez, the queen's physician. A victim of malice and deceit. One of many who fell foul of the machinations and the political aspirations of a man on his own path towards self-destruction.

Perry is on par with the likes of Sansom, however I have to give him his dues, he has established himself as an equal and has become the author others will be and are compared to. The Jackdaw series is an exceptionally good read and is getting better with each book. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this author and the series.

Buy The Heretic's Mark at Amazon UK or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Corvus; pub date 1 April 2021. Buy at Amazon com. Buy at Bookshop org.

#BlogTour The Burning Sea by Theodore Brun

Today it's my turn on the BlogTour A Burning Sea by Theodore Brun. It's the third book in The Wanderer Chronicles series.'A brilliantly conceived Viking epic set in eighth-century Sweden and medieval Constantinople.'

About the Author
Theodore Brun studied Dark Age archaeology at Cambridge. In 2010, he quit his job as an arbitration lawyer in Hong Kong and cycled 10,000 miles across Asia and Europe to his home in Norfolk. A  Burning Sea is his third novel.

Follow on @theodorebrun on Twitter, on Amazon, on Goodreads, Visit theodorebrun.com, Buy A Burning Sea

About the book
Doomed to wander. Destined for glory.
Erlan Aurvandil has turned his back on the past and his native Northern lands, taking a perilous journey to the greatest city in the world, Byzantium. But as his voyage ends, Erlan is brutally  betrayed, captured and enslaved by a powerful Byzantine general.

Meanwhile, Lilla Sviggarsdottír, Queen of Svealand, has lost her husband and with him, her kingdom. Leaving her lands and people behind, Lilla journeys east on a new quest: to find Erlan and raise an army mighty enough to defeat her usurper.

But when she reaches the great city of Byzantium, she discovers a place in turmoil. A dark tide is rising against the Emperor from within his own court. As the shadows darken and whispers of war  begin to strengthen, Erlan's fate becomes intertwined with that of the city. Are they both doomed to fall, or can freedom be won in the blood of battle?

Review
I really wish I could start off this review by slating the bad guys, there are plenty of those, but more specifically the snitches who absolutely deserve stitches. The last few chapters are enough to make anyone want to grab a sword, spear and get involved in the conflict.

As I have mentioned before I love the fact Erlan isn't your typical flawless, brawny, incredibly handsome main character. Instead he is the cripple with a tragic past, someone treated like the underdog and yet underestimated because of this misconception. What the reader knows without a doubt is that although his heart belongs firmly to Lilla, he realises her duty comes before emotions.

Lilla finds herself at the mercy of yet another man, because her gender makes her subject to rules of men she is unable to establish and demand her rights, so she sets out to find the one man she can rely on one hundred percent. Following in his footsteps becomes a treacherous journey.

This is the third book in Brun's epic Viking story, The Wanderer Chronicles, which takes us back to eighth century Scandinavia and the characters end up in Byzantium. That in itself is makes the story one full of descriptive surroundings and historical tidbits that are often lost in the narrative of history as it is retold.

I feel as if Brun is taking it up a notch with every book, really taking the time to hone his craft and eradicate anything that could possibly be seen as a flaw. He is a natural storyteller, who spins multiple characters and storylines in a historical setting with both fictional and factual aspects to the story with such precision and ease. Definitely an author I would highly recommend and always return to.

On a side-note I want to just mention Aska - the character without whom the reader wouldn't always see Erlan for the person he really is, and for being the core driver of so many scenes. Oh, and I hope Brun is busy writing a new book - just saying.

Buy The Burning Sea (The Wanderer Chronicles #3) at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher : Corvus; pub date 3 Sept. 2020. Buy at Amazon com.

Read my review of A Sacred Storm by Theodore Brun.

#BlogTour The Girl from Widow Hills by Megan Miranda

Today it's my turn on the BlogTour The Girl from Widow Hills by Megan Miranda.

About the Author
Megan Miranda is the author of All The Missing Girls, The Perfect Stranger, and The Last House Guest, which was the August 2019 Reese’s Book Club x Hello Sunshine pick. She grew up in New Jersey, graduated from MIT, and lives in North Carolina with her husband and two children.

Follow @MeganLMiranda on Twitter, on Instagram, or @AuthorMeganMiranda on Facebook, on Goodreads, on Amazon, Visit meganmiranda.com, Buy The Girl from Widow Hills

About the book
Everyone knows the story of the girl from Widow Hills.
When Arden Maynor was six years old, she was swept away in terrifying storm and went missing for days. Against all odds, she was found alive, clinging to a storm drain. A living miracle. Arden's mother wrote a book, and fame followed. But so did fans, creeps and stalkers. It was all too much, and as soon as she was old enough, Arden changed her name and left Widow Hills behind.

Now, a young woman living hundreds of miles away, Arden is known as Olivia. With the twentieth anniversary of her rescue looming, media interest in the girl who survived is increasing. Where is she now? The stress brings back the night terrors of Olivia's youth. Often, she finds herself out of bed in the middle of the night, sometimes outside her home, even streets away. Then one evening she jolts awake in her yard, with the corpse of a man at her feet. The girl from Widow Hills is about to become the centre of the story, once again.

Review
It's hard being an urban legend, perhaps harder when the people around you have taken advantage of the turmoil and fear you went through as a child to profit from it. When you become so famous that heads turn when you walk in the room, people whisper when you walk by and some hungry journalist regurgitates your experience for the world to see on a fairly regular basis.

No wonder Arden is done with being the kid who disappeared and was miraculously found unharmed after a few days. Now she is Olivia, and Olivia doesn't have the same physical baggage as Arden, but unfortunately she does have the same psychological baggage.

Her shiny new undisturbed life takes a turn for the worst when she starts sleepwalking again, which is what got her into the predicament as a child. Then her sleepwalking self finds a dead man - in her yard and the evidence implies that she had something to do with his demise - she turns to a friend for help.

Miranda has this talent of combining reality with fiction when it comes to fears and scary scenarios. Why is the story so frightening at times? Perhaps because of the echoes of reality it brings with it. It's a clever ploy, because anything rooted completely in fiction will always leave the reader with a safe place to retreat to. If it is rooted in reality then the reader will often react with base responses.

The author plays the long game when it comes to this plot and lays plenty of crumbs that lead onto false yellow brick roads - only to blindside the reader with the truth at the end. Tension, doubt and fear bring this read to a fulfilling conclusion.

Buy The Girl from Widow Hills at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Hardback · £12.99 · 2 July 2020 · Ebook also available. Publisher: Corvus. Buy at Amazon com.

#BlogTour The Saracen's Mark by S.W. Perry

Today it's a pleasure to take part in the BlogTour The Saracen's Mark by S.W.Perry.

About the Author
S. W. Perry was a journalist and broadcaster before retraining as an airline pilot. His debut novel, The Angel's Mark, was listed for the CWA Historical Dagger and was a Walter Scott Prize Academy Recommended Read 2019. He lives in Worcestershire with his wife.

Follow @swperry_history @CorvusBooks on Twitter, on Goodreads, onAmazon, swperry.co.uk, Buy The Saracen's Mark

About the book
The third instalment of The Jackdaw Mysteries. A tale of conspiracy, murder and espionage in Elizabethan London and dazzling Marrakesh.

Betrayal has many guises...
London, 1593: Five years on from the Armada and England is taking its first faltering steps towards a future as a global power. Nicholas Shelby - reluctant spy and maverick physician - and his companion Bianca Merton are settling into a life on Bankside. But in London there is always a plot afoot...

Robert Cecil, the Queen's spymaster, once again recruits Nicholas to embark on a dangerous undercover mission that will take him to the back alleys of Marrakech in search of a missing informer. However, while Nicholas hunts for the truth across the seas, plague returns once more to London - ravaging the streets and threatening those dearest to him.

Can Bianca and Nicholas' budding relationship weather the threats of pestilence and conspiracy? And will Nicholas survive the dangers of his mission in a hostile city to return safely home?

Review
This is the third book in the Jackdaw Mysteries series, all of which can be read as standalone novels, however I highly recommend reading The Angel's Mark and The Serpent's Mark because they are both cracking reads. If you enjoy Sansom's Shardlake and historical crime fiction then Perry is an excellent choice.

Once again Nicholas Shelby is at the beck and call of Robert Cecil, the notorious spymaster of Elizabeth I. He is driven from his bed in the middle of the night by soldiers, which has his landlady and neighbours doubting his loyalty to the Crown. Robert Cecil does enjoy keeping his minions on their toes.

Cecil wants Shelby to travel to Morocco to learn about the healing and advances in the medical field from fellow physicians. The Muslim physicians hold the secrets of Eastern healing, which combined with Western science could open up a world of different healing. Sounds convincing, right? Yeh, we all know Cecil better than that. In reality he wants Shelby to help find a master spy who disappeared in Marrakech.

It's a spectacular historical crime read, which I have come to expect from this author.

This time Shelby and Bianca Merton get equal opportunity to shine at detecting, which gives them both greater depth as characters. Perry uses historical facts to drive the crime fiction forward. As a reader you become so immersed in the time period and surroundings that it is easy to forget where you are, which of course is the sign of a great writer. Pulls you in and refuses to let you go.

Although Perry is already receiving plenty of accolades for his work I am certain he is just getting started.

Buy The Saracen's Mark on Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Corvus; pub date 2 April 2020. Buy at Amazon com.

Read my reviews of The Serpent's Mark and The Angel's Mark by S.W. Perry.

#BlogTour The Lost Lights of St Kilda by Elisabeth Gifford

It's a pleasure to take part in the BlogTour The Lost Lights of St Kilda by Elisabeth Gifford.

About the Author
Elisabeth Gifford grew up in a vicarage in the industrial Midlands. She studied French literature and world religions at Leeds University. Her bestselling novel, Secrets of the Sea House, was shortlisted for the Historical Writers' Association's Debut Crown for Best First Historical Novel in 2014. She is married with three children, and lives in Kingston upon Thames.

Follow @elisabeth04liz on Twitter, on Goodreads, on Amazon, Visit elisabethgifford.com, Buy The Lost Lights of St Kilda

About the book
A sweeping novel set on the Scottish island of St Kilda, following the last community to live there before it was evacuated in 1930.

When Fred Lawson takes a summer job on St Kilda in 1927, little does he realise that he has joined the last community to ever live on that desolate, isolated island. Only three years later, St Kilda will be evacuated, the islanders near-dead from starvation. But for Fred, that summer is the bedrock of his whole life...

Chrissie Gillies is just nineteen when the researchers come to St Kilda. Hired as their cook, she can't believe they would ever notice her, sophisticated and educated as they are. But she soon develops a cautious friendship with Fred, a friendship that cannot be allowed to develop into anything more...

Review
The story begins with a prisoner of war called Fred dissociating himself with the torture he is subjected to and the possibility that he will die overseas, by imagining that he is back on the isle where he fell in love and the woman he left behind.

Chrissie is one of the natives of St Kilda, who had to be evacuated to the mainland. She has had to restart her life and adapt to her new circumstances. Her friendship with young Fred is becoming a distant memory, despite that her heart still hopes that she will see him again one day.

What the different storylines and characters have in common is their relationship with St Kilda. A place that leaves its mark on those who experience it. The tragedy of war and the equally tragic fate of an isolated community being thrust into mainstream society is told against the backdrop of the haunting beauty of the place they all yearn for.

I think it's difficult to pinpoint which element of the book is the most poignant, perhaps because they are all equally so, and to be fair Gifford does them all justice. The history of St Kilda, the beauty of the place itself and the relationship those who have visited or lived there have with St Kilda. Then the tragedy of years and lives lost to the conflict of war.

I can remember a few years ago reading a book about infant mortality and lockjaw on a remote Scottish isle, and the old unhygienic rituals at birth that led to the extremely high death rate - definitely worth reading up on, so kudos to the author for adding that historical tidbit to the story.

It's a story of kinship, love and loyalty - it's historical and literary fiction.

Gifford gives her readers heightened emotions, but without gratuitous details. Instead those emotions are delivered via breathtaking descriptive language and seen through the eyes of each character.

Buy The Lost Lights of St Kilda at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Corvus; pub date 5 Mar. 2020. Buy books by Gifford at Amazon com.

#BlogTour The Serpent's Mark by S. W. Perry

Today it's my turn on the BlogTour The Serpent's Mark by S.W. Perry. It's historical crime fiction with a riveting set of characters and a persuasive plot.

About the Author
S. W. Perry was a journalist and broadcaster before retraining as an airline pilot. He lives in Worcestershire with his wife.

Follow @swperry_history @CorvusBooks on Twitter #TheSerpentsMark, on Goodreads, on Amazon, Buy The Serpent's Mark

About the book
A smart and gripping tale of conspiracy, murder and espionage in Elizabethan London, ideal for fans of CJ Sansom, Rory Clements and SG MacLean.

Treason sleeps for no man...
London, 1591. Nicholas Shelby, physician and reluctant spy, returns to his old haunts on London's lawless Bankside. But, when the queen's spymaster Robert Cecil asks him to investigate the dubious practices of a mysterious doctor from Switzerland, Nicholas is soon embroiled in a conspiracy that threatens not just the life of an innocent young patient, but the overthrow of Queen Elizabeth herself.

With fellow healer and mistress of the Jackdaw tavern, Bianca Merton, again at his side, Nicholas is drawn into a dangerous world of zealots, charlatans and fanatics. As their own lives become increasingly at risk, they find themselves confronting the greatest treason of all: the spectre of a bloody war between the faiths...

Review

This is the second book in the Jackdaw Mystery series and it absolutely can be read as a standalone novel. The author gives enough back-info on the previous book to get an understanding of the characters, but without taking over the plot in this one.

Nicholas Shelby finds himself in a rut and without any occupation, after struggling to cope with the death of his wife and child. Once again spymaster Robert Cecil decides to put Shelby to good use by sending him to find out whether the young grandson of his wife's relative is in danger.

Samuel has the falling sickness (epilepsy) and is being treated by a physician called Arcampora. Shelby knows better than anyone that there is no cure for the illness, so how exactly is Arcampora treating him and why is Samuel's new stepmother keeping him so isolated from the world?

Simultaneously Bianca is dealing with her cousin Bruno, who appears to be up to no good. He has the kind of secrets that end up with someone's head being mounted on a stake.The two of them, both Bianca and Nicholas, end up being drawn into the midst of the kind of plot they would rather not be involved in. It's a case of wanting to help others ends up with them being at the forefront of spy-games and dangerous controversial secrets.

Side-note: The whole trepanning practice might have made me wince here and there, and as if the story wasn't enough to conjure up horrific images of heads and holes, and holes in heads, well the Author's note absolutely sealed the deal where that is concerned.

I can say without a doubt that I would pick up a S.W. Perry and eagerly await a new Jackdaw Mystery featuring Nicholas Shelby, just a much as I would a book by Sansom, and I love a Shardlake. Perry absolutely deserves the same kind of recognition for his compelling Jackdaw series.

It's historical crime fiction with a riveting set of characters and persuasive plot. I look forward to seeing where Perry takes this series next.

Buy The Serpent's Mark ( The Jackdaw Mysteries #2) at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Corvus; pub date 6th June 2019. Buy at Amazon com.

Read my review of The Angel's Mark by S.W. Perry

#BlogTour The Missing Years by Lexie Elliott

Today it's a pleasure to take part in the BlogTour The Missing Years by Lexie Elliott. It's a psychological thriller mixed with magical realism.

About the Author
Lexie Elliott has been writing for as long as she can remember, but she began to focus on it more seriously after she lost her banking job in 2009 due to the Global Financial Crisis. After some success in short story competitions, she began planning a novel. With two kids and a (new) job, it took some time for that novel to move from her head to the page, but the result was The French Girl, which will be published by Berkley in February 2018 - available to pre-order on Amazon now!

When she's not writing, Lexie can be found running, swimming or cycling whilst thinking about writing. In 2007 she swam the English Channel solo. She won't be doing that again. In 2015 she ran 100km, raising money for Alzheimer Scotland. She won't be doing that again either. But the odd triathlon or marathon isn't out of the question.

Follow @elliott_lexie on Twitter, on Facebook, on Goodreads, on Amazon, Visit lexieelliott.com

Buy The Missing Years

About the book
She thought she would never go back...
Ailsa Calder has inherited half of a house. The other half belongs to a man who disappeared without a trace twenty-seven years ago. Her father.

Leaving London behind to settle her mother's estate, Ailsa returns to her childhood home nestled amongst the craggy peaks of the Scottish Highlands, accompanied by the half-sister she's never taken the time to get to know.

With the past threatening to swallow her whole, she can't escape the claustrophobic feeling that the house itself is watching her. And when Ailsa confronts the first nighttime intruder, she sees that the manor's careless rugged beauty could cost her everything...

Review
Ailsa returns to the home of her childhood. The one her mother ran from when Ailsa's father disappeared with a bunch of diamonds. Now her mother is dead and Ailsa owns half a house she is unable to sell.

She returns to the Scottish Highlands with her half-sister Carrie, which sounds like an opportunity to bond. The two of them have a fractious and fragile relationship, which leads to mistrust, disagreements and misunderstandings. The hope is that the two of them will reconnect and instead of searching for the old bond, perhaps they can build a new relationship. On top of that Ailsa feels as if she has fallen into some kind of bizarre mystery that is the story of her life.

The Manse deserves character status in its own right. It lives, it moves, it breathes and it haunts. Ailsa isn't sure at first, and to be fair it's hard to differentiate between outside influences, human hand and something more sinister and inexplicable, but eventually she realises there is something more to the building she lived in as a child.

Between each chapter is a page, which sometimes reads as if Ailsa's father has written or spoken it himself. He is in this country or that continent. He is married, single or gay. He is so many things except with Ailsa. After a while it becomes clear that these are the scenarios she has imagined during the time he has been gone. Reasons to explain why he isn't with her. Why she isn't and was never important enough for him to come home again.

I loved this element of the book. Partly because it isn't clear where the info stems from and because it interjects so abruptly in the midst of the reality of her life. It's a little bit like her dreams, her subconscious and then her conscious self competing against each other simultaneously.

The same goes for the magical realism aspect of the read. It gives the story a haunting gothic vibe, a house as fortune-teller and the bodyguard, whilst emanating the pain of the past throughout its rooms and halls.

It's gripping, it pulls the reader in slowly with a captivating plot. It's a psychological thriller mixed with magical realism.

Buy The Missing Years at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Corvus; pub date 6 Jun. 2019. Buy at Amazon com.