I love historical crime and this series ticks all the boxes for me (if we are OK with calling the 1960s ‘historical’!) – this isn’t my first book in this series and so I knew more or less what to expect. I wasn’t disappointed and actually think this is one of the stronger instalments in the series.
Continue reading Book Review: ‘The Midnight Hour’ by Elly GriffithsTag: investigation
Blog Tour: ‘Arrowood and the Meeting House Murders’ by Mick Finlay
I’ve been with Arrowood from the start of the series so I knew just what to expect in this fourth instalment – a fiendish mystery, grimy Victorian London and some great characters. Thanks to Mick Finlay and HQ for my copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, plus the invitation to join the blog tour.
Book Review: ‘Nighthawking’ by Russ Thomas
My review today is on the fabulous ‘Nighthawking’ by Russ Thomas, the second in the series of crime novels featuring DS Adam Tyler. Thanks to Jess Barratt at Simon and Schuster for the proof copy in exchange for an honest review – all opinions are entirely my own. This book is out now!
Continue reading Book Review: ‘Nighthawking’ by Russ Thomas
Blog Tour: ‘Both of You’ by Adele Parks
I’m usually more at home with police procedurals but when I was offered the chance to join the blog tour for Adele Parks’ new domestic thriller, I was keen to sign up. I’d heard great things about Parks’ books and this one sounded absolutely compelling.
The story is about two missing women. One, Leigh Fletcher, has left a husband and two adored stepsons in an average family home – the normal trials and stresses of raising children were present, but Leigh was happy and the family miss her very much. The second woman – Kai Janssen – has vanished from her wealthy Dutch businessman husband and glitzy penthouse apartment. Again, there was no discernible reason for her to leave. Two women, two devastated husbands, two very different lives – and it is down to DC Clements to work out where the women have gone any why.
I started this novel thinking it was a slow burner – the start of the novel gives us a lot of backstory about the two women and their domestic set-ups. However, this book soon had me in its grip and I raced through it because I was desperate to find out what had happened. In the process, I think I had pretty much everyone involved pinned as a likely culprit for the abductions – and was pretty much wrong on all counts.
This is definitely a book that will keep you guessing.
On top of the pacey plotting, I also found myself being caught up in the lives of the main characters – I particularly warmed to Leigh who seemed to be making a great job of the difficult role of stepmother to two boys whose mum had died when they were young. My heart actually hurt for the littlest boy who was desperate for news of the only mum he remembered. Much of Leigh’s domestic life seemed relatable and her husband a gentle giant who was lost without her. Kai and Daan (the Dutch husband) seemed much less engaging – but maybe that’s just my jealousy about not living their glamorous lives speaking there!
And that is pretty much all I can say without giving away some major plot elements,
I did enjoy this book a lot and was genuinely taken aback by the ending – again, I can’t say much more, but I really couldn’t see how it was going to end in a way that could tie up all the loose ends and resolve all problems. I do still have some questions and a few reservations – but nothing that detracted from my reading of the novel. I do wish that DC Clements had been a little more instrumental in the whole story – but that might be my love of detective fiction creeping in.
I’d recommend this to anyone who enjoys domestic thrillers – it is cleverly plotted, surprising and immersive. The characters are well-developed and interesting, even if a lot of them aren’t nice and certainly don’t play nice!
Thanks to Harper Collins, the HQ publicity team and NetGalley for my copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Blog Tour: ‘The Distant Dead’ by Lesley Thomson
Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for ‘The Distant Dead’ by Lesley Thomson, the latest in the Detective’s Daughter series.
Thanks to the publisher, Head of Zeus, for inviting me on the blog tour and for gifting me a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
From the Publisher:
A woman lies dead in a bombed-out house. A tragic casualty of the Blitz? Or something more sinister? Sixty years later, the detective’s daughter unearths the truth… From the number 1 bestselling author of The Detective’s Daughter.
LONDON, 1940
Several neighbours heard the scream of the woman in the bombed-out house. One told the detective she thought the lady had seen a mouse. Another said it wasn’t his business what went on behind closed doors. None of them imagined that a trusting young woman was being strangled by her lover.
TEWKESBURY, 2020
Beneath the vast stone arches of Tewkesbury Abbey, a man lies bleeding, close to death. He is the creator of a true-crime podcast which now will never air. He was investigating the murder of a 1940s police pathologist – had he come closer to the truth than he realised?
Stella Darnell has moved to Tewkesbury to escape from death, not to court it. But when this man dies in her arms, Stella, impelled to root out evil when she finds it, becomes determined to hunt down his killer and to bring the secrets he was searching for into the light…
My Review:
I was drawn to this book by the prospect of a dual narrative – 1940 and 2019 – because I love the idea of the events of the past having their echoes in the present day.
This book begins with the murder of a young woman, Maple Greenhill, in a house abandoned during the Blitz in London during the Second World War. Although her murderer is revealed early on, this crime continues to reverberate down the years as people involved with the original investigation are hiding secrets. When a true crime podcaster is murdered in 2019 in Tewkesbury Abbey, it seems he was about to reveal something about the 1940 murder…
I loved the premise of this book and the balance between 1940 and 2019 is managed well by the writer. As a sucker for historical fiction, I particularly loved the 1940 scenes and some engaging writing about London in the war.
This is the eighth book in the series to feature Stella Darnell who is (from what I gathered) a cleaner and private investigator who has ended up fleeing London and settling in Tewkesbury. However, her new job cleaning Tewkesbury Abbey doesn’t provide her with much escape from her investigative past and it isn’t long before she is at the centre of a new mystery.
I think this book would probably be slightly easier to follow if you have read the previous ones in the series. Although a lot of the back-story is explained, I did find it a bit tricky to remember some of the finer details and get a sense of some of the characters – I guess they would be familiar if you know the series.
That said, I liked Stella as a main character – she seemed strong and clever, resilient and engaging. I didn’t fully understand the situation with Jack, but I liked him too – and the marvellous Lucie.
The novel is really well plotted – it kept me reading as I tried to keep one step ahead of Stella and her investigations. I totally failed, fell for every red herring going and didn’t identify the final solution – hats off to anyone who does because it is very involved and cleverly revealed.
I’d recommend this especially to those who are already familiar with the series and the relationship between Jack and Stella, the cleaning agency and the reasons Stella is in Tewkesbury. For those new to the series, I’d still recommend the writer but perhaps suggest starting with book one. However, this writer clearly has lots to offer so do pick up a copy!
About the Author:
Lesley Thomson is the author of the Detective’s Daughter series of West London-set mysteries featuring private investigators Stella, a cleaner, and Jack, a tube driver. The first novel, The Detective’s Daughter, became an ebook phenomenon in 2013, staying at number 1 in the digital charts for 3 months. Since then, the series has gone on to sell 800,000 copies worldwide. Lesley is an active member of the UK crimewriting community, and appeared at several crime festivals in 2019, including CrimeFest, Harrogate, Morecambe & Vice and Capital Crime. She lives in Lewes with her partner and her dog.
Blog Tour: ‘Stealing the Spanish Princess’ by Bea Green
Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for ‘Stealing the Spanish Princess’ by Bea Green, a clever art crime mystery with an eccentric detective.
With thanks to Random Things Tours for my copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
From the Publisher:
In this captivating and dazzling art crime mystery, eccentric detective Richard Langley hunts for a 16th-century masterpiece by the artist El Greco.
The thief stole the priceless painting from an apartment in Kensington, London, and in the process knifed to death a Russian woman.
DCI Richard Langley from Scotland Yard’s Art and Antiquities Unit joins colleagues from Homicide as they pursue a trail that leads them to St Petersburg and then to Madrid.
Following closely in their footsteps is a maverick private investigator hired by the painting’s owner. Knowing how hard it is to sell on stolen artworks of that calibre, Richard wonders what the motive behind its theft might be.
The answer, when it comes, takes everyone by surprise.
My Review:
As someone who loves crime novels, I’ve always kind of wondered what kind of detective I’d make. However, my squeamishness would inevitably exclude me from anything too nasty or gritty or potentially unpleasant – so I’d kind of considered a place on the police art fraud team about my only option!
It turns out DCI Richard Langley – the focus of this novel – got my job.
In this book, DCI Richard Langley of Scotland Yard’s Art and Antiquities Unit joins forces with the Homicide team to solve the mystery of a missing painting and a dead woman. The painting’s Russian owner is keen to reclaim his painting – apparently verified as being by famed artist El Greco – and perhaps less concerned about the demise of his girlfriend, left bleeding in the bedroom where the painting was cut from its frame. Langley and his colleagues follow a trail that takes them across Europe and which leads to some interesting revelations…
I’ll admit that this book hooked me in from the start – a scene in which Langley is scrutinising a mummified foot and pondering the nature of looted antiquities. I found the art crime bits really interesting – I found out a lot about how paintings are verified, restored, copied and stolen.
Although DCI Langley seems to be a department of one (I guess there isn’t too much funding for his line of work when more pressing policing matters need attention), the addition of the Homicide team is welcome here. CI Abdul Hazim is an interesting partner to give DCI Langley on this case, but it is DI Eilidh Simmons who steals the show – she is my favourite character of the three and (I hope) a possible love interest for Richard if this book becomes a series. Please let this book become a series!
Richard himself is a likeable lead, although I wanted to know him a little better – I did have questions as he is a bit of an enigma in some regards. He comes across as an academic trapped in Scotland Yard and surrounded by people who neither understand nor care about his passion for art. The fact his office is deep in the basement and forgotten about is telling for the reader (but appreciated by Richard!) In my head, he’s like a sexy Indiana Jones of the art world…definitely a figure I can get behind!
Another really appealing aspect of this novel is the setting. Although the story starts in London, we also travel (with Richard Langley) to Madrid and St Petersburg – the latter instantly recognisable from my own travels there and I longed to wander the Hermitage Museum a little longer with my art expert.
I also loved that the missing painting was so much more than just an expensive stolen canvas. In the hands of the writer, this became a vivid portrait with a back-story and historical significance. I really wanted to see the picture so it was interesting to read in Bea Green’s biography (below) about the inspiration for the novel.
I’d heartily recommend this to those crime fiction fans who like a story told with intelligence, wit and verve. This isn’t your standard police procedural as the investigation is multi-layered, Europe-wide and not always totally above board (thanks to maverick private investigator Mike Telford). It is a fascinating and lively novel and I hope there will be more to come from this writer.
About the Author:
Bea Green has had a somewhat roving life as the daughter of a British diplomat. Her mother is Spanish and growing up Bea spent every summer at her grandfather’s olive tree farm in Andalusia. This olive tree farm was the inspiration for her contemporary romance book, La Finca.
Bea studied Art throughout school and then did Art History for two of her four years at St Andrews University, where she met her husband. She graduated with an MA in English Literature.
Her interest in art was fostered by her father and her Spanish grandmother. Her Spanish grandmother accompanied her to many of Madrid’s art galleries and several of El Prado’s paintings are fondly remembered in Bea’s art crime book, Stealing the Spanish Princess.
‘Stealing the Spanish Princess’ was inspired by a Spanish painting, Lady in a Fur Wrap, at Pollok House, Glasgow. When Bea wrote ‘Stealing the Spanish Princess’ there was a huge debate among art experts about the painting, with some claiming it was painted by El Greco. Some experts thought the painting was of Princess Catalina Micaela, daughter of the Spanish King, Philip II.
Bea Green has lived in Edinburgh since leaving St Andrews University, with her Glaswegian husband and two daughters. She also maintains close links with her family in Spain.
Blog Tour: ‘The Assistant’ by Kjell Ola Dahl
Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for ‘The Assistant’ by Kjell Ola Dahl, a twisty historical Nordic Noir thriller.
With thanks to Random Things Tours and Orenda Books for my copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
From the Publisher:
The new historical thriller from the author of the award-winning The Courier,
which was shortlisted for the CWA International Dagger and the Petrona Award.
The award-winning Godfather of Nordic Noir returns with a fascinating and richly authentic portrait of Oslo’s interwar years, featuring Nazis operating secretly on Norwegian soil and militant socialists readying workers for war…
Oslo, 1938. War is in the air and Europe is in turmoil. Hitler ’s Germany has occupied Austria and is threatening Czechoslovakia; civil war rages in Spain and Mussolini reigns in Italy.
When a woman turns up at the office of police-turned-private investigator Ludvig Paaske, he and his assistant – his one-time nemesis and former drug-smuggler, Jack Rivers – begin a seemingly straightforward investigation into marital infidelity.
But all is not what it seems. Soon, Jack is accused of murder, sending them on a trail which leads back to the 1920s, to prohibition-era Norway, to the smugglers, sex workers and hoodlums of his criminal past … and an extraordinary secret.
My Review:
Regular visitors to my blog will know I’m all about the setting…I love historical fiction that transports me to another time and place. With that in mind, I jumped at the chance to join the blog tour for this historical thriller set in prohibition-era Norway.
I’ll be honest – I had no clue that Norway had even had a prohibition era prior to reading this book. Every day’s a school day!
The novel opens with Jack Rivers, a smuggler of illegal alcohol and the main character in the book, on the run from the police after someone whistle-blows on his latest delivery. The book then cuts between this version of Jack in rural Norway in the 1920s and him in Oslo in 1938.
In the Oslo 1938 sections, Jack and his previous nemesis, Ludvig Paaske, have joined forces as private investigators and are asked to look into a possible case of marital infidelity. However, things aren’t so simple and they find themselves in a situation with much higher stakes…one that seems to lead back to Jack’s past.
As anticipated, the historical setting was just perfect for me. I loved the details about Oslo, especially the evocation of the slightly sinister waterfront area and all the places that sound gloriously exotic and fascinating to my very English ears – Oscarshall castle, Frognerkilen, Torggata, Besserud Station. Probably not remotely glamorous, but they add to the atmosphere of the novel beautifully and it does feel a little like walking the streets of Oslo with Jack.
The historical moment is also interesting – this is a Europe poised on the brink of war and little reminders infiltrate the events of the novel without overwhelming the narrative: a conversation about war, a reference to Hitler, a German ship in the port. It all adds a layer of tension to the plot as Hitler’s Germany begins to threaten the peace in Europe and civil war rages in Spain. This feels like a dangerous moment for Jack and Ludvig to be caught up in political affairs.
The plotting of the book is extremely clever – at first, I couldn’t imagine how Jack and Ludvig came to be working together given their 1920s lives. However, it all fits together neatly and the revelations come thick and fast once the pair begin working on the mysterious case. I loved how the lives of the main characters were so interwoven – there was a kind of claustrophobia in how they kept being drawn back to their past lives and connections.
This book – a stand alone, so no prior knowledge expected – would make such a perfect film. There were so many parts of the novel that seemed almost cinematic, not least the lit window that becomes a theatre for the watching Jack – it all made me think of Edward Hopper paintings and film noir. It would be extremely dark and atmospheric – this is a book of misty ferry journeys, grim autopsy rooms, car headlights slicing through darkness.
My only wish was for there to be more women in the novel. I guess it is a feature of both the genre and time period, but I really wanted some more strong female representation – just my personal preference!
Overall, this is a lively and engaging historical thriller. It ticks boxes for pace, plotting, twists, a fabulous sense of place, sinister atmosphere, dodgy dealings and some really shady people. I’d love to read more by this writer…and definitely think the film rights should be snapped up soon!
About the Author:
One of the fathers of the Nordic Noir genre, Kjell Ola Dahl was born in 1958 in Gjøvik. He made his debut in 1993, and has since published eighteen novels, the most prominent of which form a series of police procedurals-cum-psychological thrillers featuring investigators Gunnarstranda and Frølich. In 2000 he won the Riverton Prize for The Last Fix, and he won both the prestigious Brage and Riverton Prizes for The Courier in 2015 (published in English by Orenda books in 2019). His work has been published in fourteen countries. He lives in Oslo. Follow him on Twitter @ko_dahl
About Orenda Books
Orenda Books is a small independent publishing company specialising in literary fiction with a heavy emphasis on crime/thrillers, and approximately half the list in translation. Orenda Books was voted WINNER of the CWA Dagger for Best Crime and Mystery Publisher of the Year in 2020. They’ve been twice shortlisted for the Nick Robinson Best Newcomer Award at the IPG awards, and publisher and owner Karen Sullivan was a Bookseller Rising Star in 2016. In 2018, they were awarded a prestigious Creative Europe grant for their translated books programme.
Three authors, including Agnes Ravatn, Matt Wesolowski and Amanda Jennings have been WHSmith Fresh Talent picks, and Ravatn’s The Bird Tribunal was shortlisted for the Dublin Literary Award, won an English PEN Translation Award, and adapted for BBC Radio Four ’s Book at Bedtime. Ten titles have been short- or longlisted for the CWA Daggers; Doug Johnstone has been shortlisted (twice) for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Book of the Year and Helen FitzGerald, Matt Wesolowski and Will Carver have been long /shortlisted for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year.
Launched in 2014 with a mission to bring more international literature to the UK market, Orenda Books publishes a host of debuts, many of which have gone on to sell millions worldwide, and looks for fresh, exciting new voices that push the genre in new directions. Bestselling authors include Ragnar Jonasson, Antti Tuomainen, Gunnar Staalesen, Michael J. Malone, Kjell Ola Dahl, Louise Beech, Johana Gustawsson, Lilja Sigurðardóttir, Helen FitzGerald, Doug Johnstone and Will Carver.
www.orendabooks.co.uk
@OrendaBooks
Blog Tour: ‘A Bad Bad Thing’ by Elena Forbes
Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for this complex police procedural and the first in a series to feature DCI Eve West.
With thanks to Damp Pebbles for organising the tour and for providing a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
Blog Tour: ‘The Bone Code’ by Kathy Reichs
Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for ‘The Bone Code’ by Kathy Reichs, the latest in the forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan series of thrillers.
With thanks to Random Things Tours and publisher Simon and Schuster for my copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Blog Tour: ‘The Therapist’ by B A Paris
Thanks to the lovely people at Harper Collins for inviting me on the blog tour for ‘The Therapist’ by B A Paris, a tense psychological suspense novel that is out today!
My Review:
Continue reading Blog Tour: ‘The Therapist’ by B A Paris