Tag: series

Blog Tour: ‘Silent Graves’ by Sally Rigby

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Sally Rigby’s ‘Silent Graves’, the ninth book in the Cavendish and Walker crime fiction series.

This tour was organised by the lovely Emma at Damp Pebbles and I’d like to thank her and the author for my free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This book was published in paperback and digital formats on 15th January 2021.

Book Blurb:

Nothing remains buried forever…

When the bodies of two teenage girls are discovered on a building site, DCI Whitney Walker knows she’s on the hunt for a killer. The problem is the murders happened forty years ago and this is her first case with the new team. What makes it even tougher is that with budgetary restrictions in place, she only has two weeks to solve it.

Once again, she enlists the help of forensic psychologist Dr Georgina Cavendish, but as she digs deeper into the past, she uncovers hidden truths that hurtle through the decades and into the present.

Silent Graves is the ninth book in the acclaimed Cavendish & Walker series. Perfect for fans of L J Ross, J M Dalgleish and Rachel Abbott.

My Review:

I love police procedurals and doubly so when there’s a strong female lead – so I jumped at the chance to join this blog tour.

I hadn’t read any of this series before (this is the ninth book) but I managed just fine with it. This book works well as a stand alone – everything relevant is explained.

The opening pages introduce us to DCI Whitney Walker who is about to meet her new team in the shiny new Lenchester police station. She’s worked with some of them before, but there are new additions and she has a new boss – all very unnerving for her, but useful for those of us catching up with who’s who!

The team’s first case comes about when two bodies are found on farmland that is being developed for a housing estate. The two skeletons present a problem – this is clearly a historical case and there will be limited forensic evidence. When the bodies are established to be connected to the 1980 disappearance of two teenage girls, Walker and her team are faced with the difficulties of investigating a cold case with limited time – Lenchester Police are unwilling to fund a long investigation that might ultimately lead nowhere…

This is a solid police procedural with a good range of characters – Walker’s team are an interesting bunch, all recognisably real and human, from the slightly cocky new DS who has big career plans to the timid researcher whose brilliant work gets overshadowed by her more confident teammates.

Walker herself is also engaging – although she is slightly prickly and would be terrifying to actually work for, I think! Her friendship with Dr Georgina Cavendish, a forensic psychologist and another spiky character, is well developed and the two women have complementary skills that further the investigation.

I have no clue as to whether this is a realistic portrayal of police work – I did have a few questions – but it is an enjoyable and well-plotted police procedural. I thought there would be issues with keeping the momentum going on a 40 year-old case, but this is well managed and I was keen to keep reading.

I would recommend this to lovers of crime fiction with a strong (female) detective at the helm. It isn’t gruesome or full of peril, but it is an engaging and interesting read – and equally accessible whether you are a die-hard Cavendish and Walker fan or (like me) brand new to the series.

About the Author:

Sally Rigby was born in Northampton, in the UK. She has always had the travel bug, and after living in both Manchester and London, eventually moved overseas. From 2001 she has lived with her family in New Zealand (apart from five years in Australia), which she considers to be the most beautiful place in the world. After writing young adult fiction for many years, under a pen name, Sally decided to move into crime fiction. Her Cavendish & Walker series brings together two headstrong, and very different, women – DCI Whitney Walker, and forensic psychologist Dr Georgina Cavendish. Sally has a background in education, and has always loved crime fiction books, films and TV programmes. She has a particular fascination with the psychology of serial killers.


Check out her website for a FREE prequel story….. www.sallyrigby.com  

Social Media:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/SallyRigby4

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pg/Sally-Rigby-131414630527848/posts/?ref=page_internal

Website: https://sallyrigby.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sally.rigby.author/

Purchase Links:

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/373TnGQ

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/39ZDwL1

‘The Butcher of Berner Street’ by Alex Reeve

This is the third book in the series featuring Leo Stanhope, a hospital porter turned journalist living with a big secret that could jeopardise everything he has worked for. This series, set in Victorian London, has been a treat from the beginning and this is another satisfying instalment.

This book will be published on 12th November, 2020.

This story follows Leo as he investigates a murder in a backstreet gaff, a low-rent wrestling venue packed with it’s own cast of tough men, dodgy management and street urchins looking for shelter. Leo, struggling to make his name on the front pages of the newspaper, writes an article that gets all the wrong sort of attention and finds himself caught up in something he cannot control or understand.

The story here is pacey and there are plenty of false turns and red herrings to keep readers guessing. The setting is appropriately seedy and the characters interesting.

What will appeal to readers returning to the series is the cast of Leo’s friends – Rosie and her pie shop, Alfie and Constance, Jacob and family, even the familiar Constable Pallett – who are all here.

This probably could be read as a stand alone novel, but I would really recommend that you start at the beginning of the series as there is so much to enjoy for lovers of historical fiction.

If you would like a copy of this book, please use my affiliate link below – thanks for supporting my blog! I’ve also added a link for ‘The House on Half Moon Street’ in case you wanted to start at the beginning of the series:

Header photo with thanks to SHOT for sharing their work on Unsplash.

‘The Ghost Tree’ by MRC Kasasian

This lovely, funny, historical crime novel is now available in Kindle version – the hardcover is to be released on 3rd September (if you can wait that long!)

This is the third in the series of books featuring Inspector Betty Church, the only competent police officer in Sackwater, Suffolk. I’ve read all the previous books and Kasasian’s other series about Sidney Grice (who, along with his sidekick March Middleton, occasionally also pop up in the Betty Church books) so I knew what to expect here: a quirky crime story with eccentric characters and plenty of humour.

The story begins in 1914 when teenage Betty Church is playing rounders with a group of the local children in Sackwater. Her friend, Etterly Utter is last seen by the ‘ghost tree’, possibly in the company of a shadowy man, before she vanishes. Twenty six years later, Betty (now a Police Inspector) is called upon to investigate some human remains and the disappearance of Etterly again becomes her focus.

Many of the characters I loved from the previous novels are here, including daft Dodo, sleazy Banthony and love interest Toby. Also present are Church’s horrible but funny parents and the rest of the useless Sackwater Police crew. The humour is still very much present, although it’s bittersweet in the context of World War Two events closing in on Sackwater; the Dunkirk landings and RAF raids play small roles in the backdrop of the novel.

My only real criticism is that the book is quite slow-paced – I wouldn’t usually mind, but I did find the 1914 section quite long and was looking forward to getting back to the 1940s setting and the characters who I think are the strength of the book.

This is another satisfying installment in the series that would only have been improved by a trim of the flashback section. If you’ve followed the series to now, you won’t be disappointed. If you’re new to the series, enjoy! You have a cosy treat ahead!

I received a free copy of the book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Photo by Matthew Henry from Burst

You can buy this title using the link below – The Quick and the Read may receive commission at no extra cost to you. This link is for the Kindle version – the hardback is not yet available.