#Blogtour The Detective by Ajay Chowdhury

 It's a pleasure to take part in the Blogtour The Detective by Ajay Chowdhury. 'The third Novel in the Award-winning Detective Rahman series - soon to be a major TV series produced by BBC Studios' 

About the Author

Ajay Chowdhury is the inaugural winner of the Harvill Secker-Bloody Scotland crime fiction award. He is a tech entrepreneur and theatre director who was born in India and now lives in London where he builds digital businesses, cooks experimental dishes for his wife and daughters and writes through the night. His children's book, Ayesha and the Firefish, was published in 2016 and adapted into a musical.

The Waiter is the first in his adult crime series about Kamil Rahman, an ex-policeman from Calcutta who has moved to Brick Lane in London. It has been optioned by BBC Studios. Follow up, The Cook, was published in May 2022 to critical acclaim and deals with the issue of homelessness. Ajay is currently writing and cooking up a storm for the next instalment. Follow @ajaychow on Twitter

About the book

From the award-winning author of The Waiter comes the third instalment in the Detective Kamil Rahman Mystery series.

On the verge of a four-billion-dollar deal, a tech entrepreneur from Shoreditch is found dead in a construction site, which leads to the discovery of three skeletons over a hundred years old.

But as fresh bodies turn up, can Detective Kamil – along with his friend Anjoli – prevent another murder? Desperate to prove himself on his first case for the Met, Kamil will stop at nothing to uncover the truth.

Review

This is the third book in the Kamil Rahman series and although each book can be read as a standalone novel I would recommend reading the other books to get the full gist of the main character and his story. How he evolves and takes certain paths is relevant to the premise and perhaps more so due to the way other characters perceive and treat him.

There is often an current of envy and borderline malicious banter when reference is made to how he made his way in his career, and that is combined with systemic racism. Insults wrapped up in the guise of locker room manly banter.

The premise takes the reader in two different criminal directions - current and past crimes. How the present unveils the secrets of the past and it's fascinating how the revelations of the past don't unravel and end the way you might expect. Reality, truth and justice become less important when money and power are on the agenda.

It's a riveting read that draws upon a multitude of story threads and weaves them into a big picture of connection, communication, six degrees of separation and how victims of past crimes are always waiting to claim their slice of justice. It will be interesting to see where this series goes.

Buy The Detective at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Harvill Secker; pub date 11 November 2021 ǀ £12.99 Hardback, audio and eBook. Buy at Amazon com.

#Blogtour #Audiobook Winter Night by Alex Callister

Winter Night written by Alex Callister performed by Ell Potter - Winter Night will be available exclusively on Audible from the 20th April 2023 at Winter Night by Alex Callister 

You can learn more about Alex Callister and the Winter series at www.audible.co.uk/series/The-Winter-Series-Audiobooks and acallister.com

About Alex Callister

Alex’s debut Winter Dark was short listed for Best Opening Chapter and Best Pitch at the York Festival of Writing and was the number one best selling Audible Thriller of the Year 2019. It was nominated for an Audie in 2020 and won the J.M.M. Audiofile Earphones award.

Alex read history at Oxford and the British School at Rome and was set for a career in academia until the beginning of the tech boom woke a life long interest in the internet. She has spent twenty years in the City studying the rise of technology and its transformative effect on industry. She describes the ‘internet of things’ as the internet of increased attack surfaces.

Winter Dark is dominated by Firestorm, eBay for the contract kill market. As an analyst in the telecoms and electronics sector at the height of the dotcom boom, Alex watched the internet sweep away barriers, break down borders, transform every industry. Ever since, she has been fascinated by its potential to facilitate crime – a potential that, to date, has yet to be fully realised. She spends her days visiting London’s high security hosting sites and speculating about what might be. Follow @CallisterAuthor on Twitter (bio via acallister.com )

About the Audiobook

Please note: This audiobook contains graphic adult content.

Winter Night follows a kick-ass unstoppable heroine with one big Achilles’ heel. That would be Winter. She’s been having kind of a bad week...

Firestorm 2, the plot to mine the data from the infamous murder-for-hire website, has been a success. But while Winter’s been held prisoner by Alek after saving his life, GCHQ has been ordering hits to eliminate every contractor on the site – and leaked footage of Alek and Winter together means she’s now public enemy number one.

Michael is driven by a mission: haunted by the memory of Aleksey, he must find Natalya and return Aleksey’s ring, to gain some closure. But his goal is hampered by a gruesome billion-pound hit which is suddenly, very publicly on his head. Still, at least he has Aveline in his corner – unless she’s been lying to him all along.

Brilliantly narrated by the award-winning actress and writer Ell Potter comes the fifth instalment of the Winter series. This electrifying thriller poses the question: when the good guys are still killers and the bad guys are in love with you, who can you trust? Can you ever really know what lies in another person’s heart?

Review

This is the fifth book in the Winter series and although I would recommend listening to all of the audiobooks, they can be read/listened to as standalone novels. For a better gist of the series, the characters, Winter and the world they have fallen into it's definitely worth having a listen.

It's not for the faint of heart - it's a tad gruesome, graphic and has adult content. It does come with a trigger warning. It actually reminded me a little of the harsh reality and brutal frankness of Crossing Lines and the crimes they encounter. I also thought the choice of narrator makes for a nice juxtaposition - you have the horrific truth of the world you're immersed in, which is countered by the soft slowly paced voice that is laden with emotion. I wonder whether that was intentional. Not just picking a good narrator, but picking someone with a voice that can carry both the heavy burden and the moments of possible lightness.

In a way the book seems to come full circle when you think back to the first chapter, realise how the core of the premise is brought tightly into the last chapter and the epilogue - only to implode just a tad in the last few moments. 

Kudos to the author for that ending, there's just no way I can't come back for more. I need to know what happens next. So many possible scenarios, outcomes and the who? Yeh, better get writing the next book.

Buy Winter Night at Audible Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Audible Originals, pub date 20th April 2023. Buy via Amazon com.

Winter Night - The Winter Series, Book 5, By: Alex Callister, Narrated by: Ell Potter, Length: 13 hrs and 15 mins, Original Recording Audiobook, Release date: 20.04.23, Language: English, Publisher: Audible Originals.

#Review I Will Find You by Harlan Coben

Another cracking read from the bestselling author Harlan Coben.

About Harlan Coben

With over 80 million books in print worldwide, Harlan Coben is the Number One New York Times author of numerous novels.  His books are published in 46 languages.  Along with Stay Close, he is the creator and executive producer of several Netflix television dramas including The Stranger, Safe, The Five and The Woods.  Larry Tanz, who oversees Netflix’s original programming for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, has commented on how Harlan does all the work himself – comes up with the ideas, watches the rough cuts of scenes, sits in on all the phone calls. 

Netflix recently re-upped their overall deal with Coben for several more years, adding among other books his acclaimed Myron Bolitar series. His TV series adaptation of Shelter for Amazon Studios—starring Jaden Michael and Constance Zimmer and based on Coben’s YA novel of the same name—will be released on Prime Video in the coming months.

Harlan Coben grew up in the Newark suburbs in New Jersey in the 60s.  After college he worked in the family travel company as a rep overseas.  He still lives in New Jersey with his wife Anne Armstrong-Coben MD, a paediatrician, and their four children.  He had his first New York Times bestseller when his children were very small.

Winner of the Edgar Award, Shamus Award and Anthony Award, Harlan is the first author to win all three.  In Paris, he was awarded the prestigious Vermeil Medal of Honor for contributions to culture and society by the Mayor of the city. He has won the El Premio del Novela Negra RBA in Spain, the Grand Prix de Lectrices in France, and the CWA Bestseller Dagger for favourite crime novelist here in the UK.  In December 2022 he was awarded the Raymond Chandler Award, Italy’s top lifetime achievement honour to a master of the thriller genre.  And on the sports side of things he is a member of the New England Basketball Hall of Fame from his playing days at Amherst College and the Little League Baseball inducted him into their Hall of Excellence in 2013. Follow @HarlanCoben on Twitter, Visit harlancoben.com

About the book

David and Cheryl Burroughs are living the dream - married, a beautiful house in the suburbs, a three year old son named Matthew - when tragedy strikes one night in the worst possible way.

David awakes to find himself covered in blood, but not his own - his son's. And while he knows he did not murder his son, the overwhelming evidence against him puts him behind bars indefinitely. - Five years into his imprisonment, Cheryl's sister arrives - and drops a bombshell.

She's come with a photograph that a friend took on vacation at a theme park. The boy in the background seems familiar - and even though David realizes it can't be, he knows it is. - It's Matthew, and he's still alive.

David plans a harrowing escape from prison, determined to do what seems impossible - save his son, clear his own name, and discover the real story of what happened that devastating night.

Review

Not sure what's worse, thinking you viciously murdered your very young child or knowing your child is out there somewhere and possibly in danger. David has lived the last few years in the belief that he committed the most unforgivable crime during an inexplicable blackout - he deserves to serve his remaining years behind bars.

His perfect family imploded five years ago, his now ex-wife has moved on and rebuilt her life, and he is a pariah to everyone who used to know him. The why, why would he do something so awful to the child he loved so dearly? The heavy burden of guilt is probably why he is willing to cling so fast to the possibility of his son being alive when his ex-sister-in-law shows him a blurry photo of a face in a crowd. Could be and it equally might not be, because the chances are super slim and just happen to be better than believing that he murdered an innocent child.

It's a fast-paced dark domestic thriller, which will probably end up becoming a mini series - this author certainly knows how to write with future development in mind. The plot plays with the idea of certainty, especially when it comes to evidence and the legal system, and how easy it is for good people to fall foul of said system.

Buy I Will Find You at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher ‏: ‎Century; pub date 16 Mar. 2023. Buy at Amazon com. Buy via Penguin.

#Blogtour Psyche and Eros by Luna McNamara

It's truly a pleasure to take part in the Blogtour Psyche and Eros by Luna McNamara. This is a feminist retelling you don't want to miss.

About the Author

Luna McNamara holds a master's degree from Harvard University in the study of women and gender in world religions. A lifelong lover of Greek myths, she has studied ancient Greek language and philosophy. She is currently a social worker living in Boston. Psyche and Eros is her debut novel. Follow @McnamaraLuna on Twitter, Visit lunamcnamarawriter.com

About the book

The greatest love story ever told...

Born into an era of heroes, a prophecy claims that Psyche - a Princess of Mycenae - will defeat a monster feared even by the gods themselves. Rebelling against society's traditions, she spends her youth mastering blade and bow, preparing to fulfil her destiny.

But she is soon caught up in powers beyond her control, when the jealous Aphrodite sends the God of Desire, Eros, to deliver a fatal love-curse. The last thing Eros wants is to become involved in the chaos of the mortal world, but when he is pricked by the very arrow intended for Psyche, he is doomed to love a woman who will be torn from him the moment their eyes meet.

Thrown together by fate, headstrong Psyche and world-weary Eros will face challenges greater than they could ever have imagined. And as the Trojan War begins and the whole of the heavens try to keep them apart, will they find their way back to each other...before it's too late?

Psyche and Eros has every single mythological ingredient readers could hope for: a fierce, aspirational female protagonist (this is definitely Psyche's story), a Herculean-like quest, all your favourite Gods and Goddesses wreaking havoc on mere mortals and set against the outbreak of the Trojan War.

Review

Not going to lie - absolutely freaking loved it. It's all the way up there when it comes to the fantastic retellings, reimagining and new interpretations of Greek mythology, although to be fair this is more than just that. The author has taken a chess board of a variety of mythologies and well-known personas, well maybe more of a smorgasbord, and moves them and makes slight changes to known narratives to create this riveting retelling. It's a reawakening.

Psyche is born under the glow or shadow, depends on how you see it really, of a prophecy that speaks of her future defeat of a monster. Just a minor problem with being perceived and treated as a possible heroine, society doesn't expect girls to save the day.

Eros is a wee bit bored, confused and even perplexed by humanity, especially the way mere mortals manage to take what he bestows upon on them and manipulate, destroy and abuse it. He is frustrated by his fall from status and having to bow to those once lesser and now in control. He has no choice when he is forced to deliver a curse, because Psyche has come to the attention of a green-eyed monster.

The two are destined to meet, collide and change their paths forever. Love under the constraints of a cruel curse or never the twain shall meet per the fine print of the same curse.

I can't recommend this enough, especially if you're embracing old material view through a different lens. Narratives, myths, gods, goddesses and mortals written through the eye of the needle called man. Let's turn up the volume a little louder on the silenced and unwritten perspective.

Buy Psyche and Eros at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Orion Fiction; pub date 25 May 2023, available in hardback, ebook and audio £16.99. Buy at Amazon com. 

#Blogtour Henry VIII: The Heart and The Crown by Alison Weir

 It's a pleasure to take part in the Blogtour Henry VIII: The Heart & The Crown by Alison Weir.

Six Wives. One King. This is the story you've been waiting for. You know their stories. Now it's time to hear his.

About the Author

Alison Weir is a bestselling historical novelist of Tudor fiction, and the leading female historian in the United Kingdom. She has published more than thirty books, including many leading works of non-fiction, and has sold over three million copies worldwide. 

Her novels include the Tudor Rose trilogy, which spans three generations of history’s most iconic family – the Tudors, and the highly acclaimed Six Tudor Queens series about the wives of Henry VIII, all of which were Sunday Times bestsellers. Alison is a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and an honorary life patron of Historic Royal Palaces. Follow @AlisonWeirBooks on Twitter, Visit alisonweir.org.uk

About the book

Alison Weir, No. 1 Sunday Times bestselling author of the Six Tudor Queens series, returns with the second in a captivating new trio of novels spanning three generations of history's most iconic family, the Tudors.

A young boy grows up dreaming of knights and chivalry. Harry is the second son. He is never meant to rule. But the death of his brother changes everything, and great destiny awaits this young prince. One day he will be the most infamous king in English history. - HENRY VIII. HIS STORY.

Review 

It's fascinating how a different perspective, added information and the ability to leave a very deeply embedded image of Henry VIII to the side, can result in meeting a completely new version of the infamous monarch.

I came away with a better understanding of the man he became and why and was able to feel empathy and sympathy for the boy, the man, and the king. It doesn't excuse his actions and choices, but the way the author has looked beyond the established narrative helps us to understand the possible motivation.

The glossing over of his years with Katherine and the deaths of their many infants -  it explains his obsession with an heir just a tad more, especially given the way he himself became the heir to the throne. The equally destructive obsession with faithfulness and that his wives be free of any suggestion of promiscuity, a point often driven home when it came to debating Katherine and her suitability as possible future wife to Henry.

I really enjoyed this, especially because it makes the seemingly erratic and often cruel decisions much clearer if seen through the lens of the spare who feels guilt for wanting to be king and then actually becoming the surviving heir. The child who loses the mother whose love, guidance and support could have raised a different man. The boy and young man who spends an entire lifetime subconsciously and consciously hearing and acting upon what his father taught him, a father who viewed him as a tool of power.

Weir takes the history we know by heart and makes it intriguing, but more importantly she makes us question well-known narratives and look for every voice in the story.

Buy Henry VIII: The Heart & the Crown at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher ‏: ‎Headline Review; pub date 11 May 2023 | Hardback, audio & e-book | £25.00. Buy at Amazon com. Buy via Headline.

#Blogtour Kill For It by Lizzie Fry

 It's a pleasure to take part in the Blogtour Kill For It by Lizzie Fry. 'A gripping feminist thriller, Dexter with a twist - how far would you go for the thing you want most?'

About the Author

Lizzie Fry is a debut author of high concept thriller The Coven (published by Sphere books), but you might know her better as LV Hay. LV’s books previous books were crime fiction: The Other Twin, Do No Harm (Orenda Books) and Never Have I Ever (Hodder). The Other Twin is currently being adapted for the screen by Agatha Raisin producers Free@Last TV. Follow @LizzieFryAuthor on Twitter

About the book

Would You Kill For It? The story pits young and upcoming journalist Cat against veteran reporter Erin. Cat is sick of not getting ahead at work so comes up with a sickening plan to literally grab the headlines ... and the only one who can stop her is Erin, but to do so she must put her own life at risk.

In the game of cat and mouse, there can only be one winner in the book advance readers are calling 'Killing Eve meets Nightcrawler.'

Review

Erin has made a choice, albeit allegedly a difficult one, career comes first and family somewhere at the end of the list. Her ambition has cost her an arm and a leg already, and now she has to make sure she maintains her slot at the top.

You would think that Erin would be able to understand the way Cat wants to succeed and get ahead. Stepping over others and being ruthless, perhaps more importantly teaching her that the most obvious path isn't necessarily the one you should take, but it will be the one others expect you to stay on. Both women want to succeed, but at what cost to either of them?

At the end of the day is it a case of two sides of the same coin. Does same recognise same? Is it ambition or a frustration about having to swim upstream against the sexism and misogyny, wouldn't that make someone do something extreme? In fact isn't that the real difference between Erin, Cat and you and I.

And where does that ending leave us? It's a bit like opening a door a few inches with the knowledge that just an inch of a slit could mean the return of something very dangerous indeed.

It's the kind of read I absolutely expect from the author - under either name. She loves to pit the worst of human behaviour, traits and reactions, against each other. This dark domestic read is also a psychological thriller with important themes driving the characters and the plot. Women as second class citizens in the workplace, especially when it comes to leadership level. Having to fight dirty to sit at the place they have earned at the table, what's worse is having to become one of guys to do just that or perhaps even become the victim of  someone abusing their power.

It's a riveting read with imperfect characters who make split second ruthless choices to get ahead and doing so move the obstacles in their way.

Buy Kill For It at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher ‏: ‎Sphere pub date 18 Aug. 2022. Buy at Amazon com.

#Blogtour A Mother's War by Helen Parusel

 It's a pleasure to take part in the Blogtour A Mother's War by Helen Parusel.

About the Author

Helen Parusel - I am from London but now live in Hamburg, Germany with my husband and daughter. I gave English lessons to retired Germans for twenty years and became intrigued by many of their wartime stories. My mother comes from Linz, Austria and I spent my summer holidays there for years which inspired my next novel. I have always loved reading and writing, and now finally have the time to devote to writing. Follow @HelenParusel on Twitter

About the book

Narvik, 1940. After Laila awakens to the sight of warships in the fjord, it isn't long before she turns resistor to the brutal Nazi regime. She is horrified when local girls begin affairs with enemy soldiers, yet against her own principles, she finds herself falling in love with German soldier, Josef.

Josef is not like the others. He becomes involved in helping her and the locals with resistance activities, risking his life on more than one occasion.

But then Laila finds out she is pregnant. With Josef sent to the Russian front, and Laila cast out by her family, she turns to a home for women which promises to care for her and her unborn child. But instead, she finds herself caught in a system of evil far beyond what she thought possible…

Review

Laila's first instinct, when her hometown is invaded, is to protect her family. The close family bond threatens to shatter when her emotions aren't willing to see every invader as the enemy. It's a choice that leaves her vulnerable and in danger when she inadvertently falls into a scheme created by the Nazi regime to ensure the master race survives and thrives.

The invasion of Norway by the Nazi's during World War 2, tends to be mentioned less frequently, although the repercussions remain deeply embedded in their heritage now. The important part they played in the Lebensborn scheme is also a part of history that isn't mentioned often. Playing an integral part in the handpicked and planned next generation of Aryans, thereby creating a legacy, but not in the way it was intended.

Up to 12000 children is a lot and it's a travesty that they haven't been recognised and compensated in some way for the abuse and mistreatment they have had to endure. Innocent children being used as scapegoats for the atrocities committed by an invading force driven by fantastical ideology - anyone using them to punish the Nazi regime is guilty of misplaced vengeance.

I enjoyed the way the author captured the tragedy of the historical events, whilst delivering a message of endurance, strength and connection.

Buy A Mother's War at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher ‏: ‎Boldwood Books; pub date 17 May 2023. Buy at Amazon com.