Reported Missing by Sarah Wray

One could argue that the real victim in this scenario is Rebecca. She has committed no crime other than being married to a suspect in the disappearance of a teenage girl. There is no concrete proof other than the fact that both Chris and young Kayleigh vanished on the same day. Does a simple coincidence have more sinister connotations or has Chris been leading a double-life?

The public believes Rebecca has been harbouring a deviant and they also think she supports him. The fact that she is searching for him seems to imply a sort of complicity. Her actions would be perceived as those of a caring and worried wife under other circumstances.

Rebecca starts to admit to herself, as the story progresses, that perhaps her life with Chris wasn't so picture perfect. She has a selective memory, which is probably why she finds it hard to accept the reality of his betrayal.

As I mentioned before, I think Rebecca is the real victim. She is completely vilified by nearly everyone she encounters, especially a certain group of youngsters. Her life has disintegrated into a fog of sleeping pills and alcohol. Her husband is presumed guilty just based on circumstantial evidence and a heck of a lot of rumours.

Wray has written a cracking read, there is no doubt about that, but I believe she deserves a kudos for perhaps unintentionally calling out the media and society for pointing fingers without proof. For showing the negative aspects of social and mass media where fake news and false rumours are prevalent and reputations are destroyed in the blink of an eye, and the actual truth has become almost inconsequential to the majority of people.

Buy Reported Missing at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer.

Follow @Sarah_Wray   and @bookouture Visit sarahwraywrites.co.uk

The Vanishing of Audrey Wilde by Eve Chase

Eve Chase has a thing for old houses and families, so it isn't a surprise that this story has Applecote Manor smack bang in the middle of the plot. Everything is woven around the families who inhabit or used to inhabit this house.

Chase creates a very nostalgic atmosphere, which is part of the charm of this book. The story wanders from past to present, and the chapters in the past are especially good. They evoke a sense of familiarity, warmth and belonging. The reader basks in the sun next to the river and feels the cool water as the girls swim in the river.

Throughout the book there is a sense of a presence watching over every event and word. Audrey Wilde is as much a part of the story, as her disappearance is.

Although this is in every sense of the word a mystery it is also a book about identity and coming of age. It is also a story about non-typical families. The patchwork family of the present is also haunted by their very own personal ghost. In fact the ghosts need to be laid to rest for both families to finally get some peace.

One day Audrey Wilde suddenly vanishes into thin air, and the mystery of her disappearance is something that her cousin Margot never really gets over. At a time when everyone has accepted the possibility that they may never find out the truth, Margot is almost obsessed with discovering what happened to her.

I loved the feel of this story, especially everything about Margot and her sisters. I thought that element of the story was strong enough for the plot without adding Jessie and her family to the mix. I also thought it was intriguing how the crime element never overshadowed the story, despite it being the thread that held everything together.

The truth isn't pretty at all, and perhaps that cold breath of brutality should have changed the whole feeling of the story, but it didn't. It remains a charming tale until the end.

Buy The Vanishing of Audrey Wilde at AmazonUK or go to Goodreads for any other retailer.

Follow @evepchase @MichaelJBooks

Girl Zero by A. A. Dhand

Girl Zero is an echo of the recent Rotherham child sex ring scandal with the added complication of a family swept up in the controversy of opposing religions. It is the second novel featuring Harry Virdee, who finds himself torn in multiple directions on both a personal and professional level.

His family, devout Sikhs, are unwilling to acknowledge or accept his wife, a devout Muslim. His wife finds herself in the same position, which means the two of them and their young son have no immediate family to support them or be part of their lives.

The message society should be receiving loud and clear is the number of vulnerable children who are falling prey to gangs of pedophiles and ephebophiles without anyone noticing or as we saw in Rotherham, they would rather deny than accept the reality that this type of crime is on the rise. There are scores of children falling through the cracks in the system, and becoming easy targets for child trafficking rings. The truth is so uncomfortable that the majority would rather look the other way than be confronted with the facts.

Harry finds himself balancing precariously on the boundaries of crime and the rule of law when his latest case turns out to be the corpse of someone who is really close to him. He has to make sure his brother doesn't break the rules he imposed on him, and juggle the hatred he receives from his family.

It's really great to read a story with a set of characters that doesn't fit into the usual and expected format. It makes for a more diverse and different set of problems or scenarios, which in turn allows readers to experience a little less white toasted bread with a bit of butter on it.

It's a fast-paced thriller with a lot of action, well let's say brutal beatdowns and characters with a serious lack of control instead.

Buy Girl Zero at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer.

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The Good Daughter by Karin Slaughter

Reading this book was somewhere between watching an intense tennis game with your head whipping back and forth, and being repeatedly slapped round the head with a crowbar. It starts with violence and ends the same way.

Rusty defends the indefensible. He represents the scum of the earth, the killers, the rapists and in general any kind of criminal.
Obviously even criminals have a right to a defence, it is a part of democracy and an important part of western society. They have rights just like every other person, however a lot of people disagree with that, especially when some criminals commit the most heinous of crimes. Unfortunately you can't kill every murderer or lock away rapists and throw away the key.

Charlotte, Samantha and Gamma become the victims of an act of vengeance when one of his clients decides to make Rusty pay. The evening ends with blood, gore and death. The girls witness the death of their mother and subsequently have to fight for survival, and one of them ends up in a shallow grave.

The story is trauma driven, and takes a close look at the legal system and the issue of morality. Someone has to defend the criminals, regardless of what the majority thinks it is part and parcel of the way democracy works. The question is whether those who defend them should have to risk life and limb to do so. Should they be vilified for simply following the rule of law.

The intensity keeps you on your toes, and the brutality may make you wince, but most of all the emotional turmoil makes this an invigorating read.

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Follow @SlaughterKarin

Blog-Tour: The Other Twin by L. V. Hay

Today is my stop on the Blog-Tour for The Other Twin by Lucy V. Hay. I've tried really hard to not let any major spoilers slip into my review of The Other Twin, mainly because it would give the whole damn plot away. However I would like to say kudos to the author for the Jenny storyline. It was done in a sensitive and yet very realistic way.

About the Author
Lucy V. Hay is a novelist, script editor and blogger who helps writers via her Bang2write consultancy. She is the associate producer of Brit Thrillers Deviation (2012) and Assassin (2015), both starring Danny Dyer. Lucy is also head reader for the London Screenwriters’ Festival and has written two non-fiction books, Writing & Selling Thriller Screenplays, plus its follow-up Drama Screenplays. She lives in Devon with her husband, three children, six cats and five African Land Snails.
Follow @LucyVHayAuthor  and @Orendabooks
Visit lucyvhayauthor.com
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About the book
When India falls to her death from a bridge over a railway, her sister Poppy returns home to Brighton for the first time in years. Unconvinced by official explanations, Poppy begins her own investigation into India’s death. But the deeper she digs, the closer she comes to uncovering deeply buried secrets. Could Matthew Temple, the boyfriend she abandoned, be involved? And what of his powerful and wealthy parents, and his twin sister, Ana?

Enter the mysterious and ethereal Jenny: the girl Poppy discovers after hacking into India’s laptop. What exactly is she hiding, and what did India find out about her?
Taking the reader on a breathless ride through the winding lanes of Brighton, into its vibrant party scene and inside the homes of its well-heeled families, The Other Twin is a startling and up-to-the-minute thriller about the social-media world, where resentments and accusations are played out online, where identities are made and remade, and where there is no such thing as the truth…

Review
The Other Twin is a psychological thriller meets sensuous mystery combined with important social constructs of our era. Hay invites the reader along on a breadcrumb trail of clues and red herrings. Nothing is what it seems and everyone is hiding their own version of the truth.

Poppy returns home after the death of her sister India. Everyone says it was a suicide but Poppy knows that something isn't quite right. She starts digging into the details of her sister's death and starts uncovering quite a few things she wasn't expecting.

Her return isn't without complications though, she is plagued by feelings of guilt because she chose to walk away from her lover and her family. A lot of people haven't forgiven Poppy for walking away away from her boyfriend Matthew.

I think the discovery of who Jenny really is and her connection to Poppy is one of the more subtle and yet poignant sub-plots in this story. Her identity wasn't a surprise, however the storyline woven around the topic was. I really enjoyed the way Hay approached the difficulty and controversy of it without letting it overpower the crime element of the story.

The Other Twin is a whirlwind of secrets and emotional turmoil. Hay takes the reader on a 'Behind the Keyhole' tour of picture perfect families and a lifetime of lies. Of course even picture perfect families have dark secrets, abusive family members and closets full of skeletons.

It's an invigorating read and one with plenty of surprises lurking in the shadows.

Buy The Other Twin at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer.

Read my review of Do No Harm and The Lynmouth Stories by L.V. Hay.

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The Lying Game by Ruth Ware

Isa, Kate, Thea and Fatima share an unusual bond. A friendship forged through the common denominator of being shoved off to boarding school.

During their time at school the four of them keep themselves amused with what they call the Lying Game. Nothing is too outrageous or cruel, which is probably why decades later their fellow school chums still believe a lot of lies or are still hurt by them.

When one of them calls for help the others come running straight away, like anyone in a really close friendship would...right? Hello, this is the real world. Dropping anything at the drop of a hat only happens in the movies or when there is a completely different reason. They share the kind of secret that destroys lives. That is the real reason.

The story wanders from past to present, giving the reader a glimpse of the girls as teens and in the present as women. They have families, careers and responsibilities. There is not much left of the foolish and carefree youngsters, who bathed in the warmth of the sun and skinny-dipped in the cool water near Kate's house. The truth is buried beneath the subconscious desires, the careless youth and lack of boundaries they all shared.

Ware always manages to capture the intimate emotional depths of each character without making them appear what they are, which is a figment of her imagination. It is what draws the reader in and keeps them wanting more. This is especially evident with Isa and Freya. The moments between the two of them are spot on, as are the descriptions of Isa and her bond with Freya, and her constant doubts.

Running simultaneously alongside the mystery is a breakdown and analysis of Isa's romantic relationship and the way it has changed since Freya appeared on the scene. Although the sub-plot was only a catalyst or platform for certain other scenes in connection with the main plot I felt the last chapter, indeed the last sentences, spoke the loudest and most poignant words about relationships in general.

Buy The Lying Game at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer.

Visit ruthware.com Follow @RuthWareWriter

Read The Woman in Cabin 10

#CoverReveal House of Lies by E.V. Seymour

A new cover and title for the gripping thriller previously known as Vixenhead.
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About the Author
Eve Seymour is the author of nine novels and has had a number of short stories broadcast on BBC Radio Devon. Educated in Malvern at an girls’ boarding school, which she detested, she spectacularly underachieved. Sixth form in Cheltenham proved a lot more interesting, enjoyable and productive.
After a short and successful career in PR in London and Birmingham, she married and disappeared to Devon. Five children later, she returned and began to write seriously. In a bid to make her work as authentic as possible, she has bent the ears of numerous police officers, firearms officers, scenes of crime, the odd lawyer and United Nations personnel. She also works by day as a freelance editorial consultant, specialising in crime fiction.
Eve lives with her second husband and often has a houseful of offspring, sons-in-law, partners, and a growing tribe of little ones. Nomadic by nature, she is planning another move very soon.
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About the book
A sudden disappearance…
When Roz Outlaw's partner Tom mysteriously vanishes, she knows his life is in danger. Tom has been distracted lately, afraid, as though he is being hunted…

A desperate search…
With the police showing little interest Roz knows it falls to her to find Tom. But as Tom's secrets are uncovered nothing can prepare Roz for the dark lies and twisted truths she finds. She thought she loved Tom, but quickly realises she has been living with a stranger – a man with murder in his past.

A house of evil.
The key to unlocking Tom's past lies in his childhood home – Vixenhead. A house of wickedness that keeps its secrets well hidden. Can Roz find Tom before it's too late or will the evil within Vixenhead claim her too

Read my review here

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