crime Archives - Page 7 of 16 - The Quick and the Read

Book Review: ‘Dear Little Corpses’ by Nicola Upson

If you haven’t yet discovered Nicola Upson’s excellent historical crime series, here’s your chance.

This novel takes place in the early days of World War Two as war is declared and children evacuated en masse to the country. The Suffolk village in which Josephine Tey is living ends up with a lot more evacuees than planned, forcing those who didn’t want to take children to open their homes – the scene in the village hall where the evacuees are being homed made me really think of ‘Bedknobs and Broomsticks’ in all the best ways! When a child goes missing, Tey and the villagers start asking questions and pointing fingers…

Ten books I should have shouted about before now!

I’ve hit a bit of a reading slump. It happens to the best of us – a run of good books but not peppered with the absolutely great ones. The ones you put down all other books for, ignore your phone and your family…yeah, those.

To find my inspiration, I had a look back at the books I’ve read this year and noticed that 10/73 had got my top mark of 5 stars on Goodreads. Now seems like a good time to revisit the top ten…in no particular order.

Turns out I really like crime fiction!

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Book Review: ‘Cat and Mouse’ by M J Arlidge

You pretty much know what you’re getting with an M. J. Arlidge crime novel – a high body count, scary and gruesome murders, lots of twists and DI Helen Grace doing her maverick thing along the way! This one is no exception and it’s a satisfying addition to the series.

In this book, a killer is targeting people in their Southampton homes – attacking when they are alone or vulnerable. DI Grace and her team are called in to investigate, but immediately struggle with finding the link between the victims. As the murders continue, the police investigation seems to be going nowhere and the stakes continue to rise. With DI Grace in danger herself, it’s a race against time to stop a killer.

Blog Tour: ‘From the Ashes’ by Deborah Masson

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for the latest in the series featuring DI Eve Hunter – ‘From the Ashes’ by Deborah Masson.

Thanks to Compulsive Readers/Random Things Tours for inviting me onto the tour and for my copy of the book in exchange for an honest review – as always, opinions are entirely my own. The paperback will be published in August 2022 by Penguin Books, although I believe the Kindle edition is available before this.

Book Review: ‘The Botanist’ by M W Craven

A new book by M W Craven is always a treat – usually a gory, gruesome, twisty treat, but a treat nevertheless!

This book – the fifth featuring Washington Poe and Tilly Bradshaw – is another excellent addition to the series. Regular readers will not be at all disappointed, but if you haven’t made the acquaintance of Poe and Bradshaw before then I’d recommend that you start with Book 1, ‘The Puppet Show’. This novel makes total sense as a standalone, but you really don’t want to miss the rest of the books!

Blog Tour: ‘The Binding Room’ by Nadine Matheson

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for this fantastic new slice of crime fiction!

Thanks to HQ for inviting me on the tour and for my copy of the book in exchange for an honest review – opinions, as always, are entirely my own.

Blog Tour: ‘Bad for Good’ by Graham Bartlett

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for this brand new, debut police procedural.

Thanks to Helen Richardson for inviting me on the tour, and to Allison and Busby for my review copy of the novel. As always, opinions are entirely my own.

Regular followers of my blog know that I love a crime novel. A debut crime novel? Even better – a chance to find a new favourite! A debut crime novel written by someone who really knows his stuff? Better still – and crime novelists probably don’t come much better qualified than Graham Bartlett, former Chief Superintendent and Police Commander of Brighton and Hove.

Book Review: ‘Under the Marsh’ by G R Halliday

This was my first introduction to DI Monica Kennedy – but I hope I’ll meet her again! Thanks to NetGalley for my copy in exchange for an honest review. This book is due to be published in July 2022.

The story opens with a notorious female serial killer asking to see DI Kennedy from her jail cell. The killer – Pauline Tosh – reveals the whereabouts of a body buried deep in the tidal marshes. Assuming this locates one of Tosh’s own victims, the police team rush to uncover the grave…and discover that things are far from as simple as they expect.

Book Review: ‘It Ends at Midnight’ by Harriet Tyce

Thanks to Rosie at Headline for my copy of this tense thriller! As always, opinions are entirely my own.

I loved the premise for this book! A murder at midnight on Hogmanay in Edinburgh – we know there’s a body right from the start. But whose is it? And why has this New Year’s Eve party led to murder?

Book Review: ‘Little Sister’ by Gytha Lodge

I’ve long been a fan of Gytha Lodge’s crime series featuring DCI Jonah Sheens so awaited the latest instalment with enthusiasm.

Thanks to Michael Joseph/NetGalley for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

The story opens with Jonah having a quiet drink in a pub garden when his peace is interrupted by the arrival of a teenage girl, Keely, covered in blood. She tells a story about her sister, Nina, who is missing. Jonah and his team scramble to find Nina, but Keely isn’t in any hurry to give up any clues. Instead, she relates the sisters’ story very much in her own time – and it is up to Jonah and the police team to work out whether Keely is a killer or a victim.