BLOG TOUR: Big Splash Circus by Karina Choudhrie

Big Splash Circus by Karina Choudhrie is set at the greatest show under the sea, The Big Splash Circus, where Lantern Fish is yet to discover his part in the show. Still searching for his special talent, his friends are keen to help as they don’t like to see him sad. Can you help to find his special talent? Get ready for the underwater adventure to begin.

Book Review: The Dinner Guest by BP Walter

“Four people walked into the dining room that night. One would never leave.”

Published earlier this year, The Dinner Guest by BP Walter follows four people who sit down at the table, ready for dinner: Matthew, the perfect husband. Titus, the perfect son. Charlie, the perfect illusion. Rachel, the perfect stranger. But one will never leave.

Book Review: It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover

“Just because someone hurts you doesn’t mean you can simply stop loving them. It’s not a person’s actions that hurt the most. It’s the love. If there was no love attached to the action, the pain would be a little easier to bear.”

Published in 2016, It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover follows 24-year-old Lily who hasn’t always had it easy. But that’s never stopped her from working hard for the life she wants. She’s come a long way from the small town in Maine where she grew up. So when she feels a spark with a gorgeous neurosurgeon named Ryle, everything in Lily’s life suddenly seems almost too good to be true.

Ryle is assertive, stubborn, maybe even a little arrogant. He’s also sensitive, brilliant, and has a total soft spot for Lily. But his complete aversion to relationships is disturbing. As questions about her new relationship overwhelm her, so do thoughts of Atlas — her first love and a link to the past she left behind. He was her kindred spirit, her protector. When Atlas suddenly reappears, everything Lily has built with Ryle is threatened.

Book Review: Pieces Of Her by Karin Slaughter

“She had dozens, even hundreds, of friends, but not one single person knew all of the pieces of her.”

The 2019 book from Karin Slaughter, Pieces Of Her follows Laura Oliver, the perfect small-town mum. Her daughter, Andrea, has grown up believing that she is the pillar of the community: a speech therapist, business owner and everybody’s friend. And she’s never kept a secret from anyone. But when Laura and Andrea are caught in a random violent attack at a shopping mall, Laura intervenes and acts in a way that is unrecognisable to her daughter. It’s like Laura is a completely different person – and that’s because, thirty years ago, she was. As elements of the past return and put them both in danger, Andrea is left to piece together Laura’s former identity and discover the truth – for better or worse – about her mother. Is the gentle, loving woman who raised her also a violent killer?

BLOG TOUR: You’ll Be The Death Of Me by Karen M. McManus

“It’s Ferris Bueller’s Day Off with murder.”

Set to be published in 2nd December, You’ll Be The Death Of Me by Karen M. McManus follows Ivy, Mateo, and Cal. They used to be close in middle school. So when Cal pulls into campus late for class and runs into Ivy and Mateo, it seems like the perfect opportunity to turn a bad day around. They’ll ditch school and go into the city. Just the three of them, like old times. Why did they stop hanging out, anyway?

As soon as they pull out of the parking lot, Cal knows why. Ivy’s already freaking out about missing class, and the truth is, they have nothing in common anymore. At least they don’t until they walk into the middle of a murder scene. Cal, Ivy, and Mateo all know the person lying on the ground of that building, and now they need to come clean. They’re all hiding something. And maybe their chance reconnection wasn’t by chance after all.

Book Review: As Good As Dead (A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder #3) by Holly Jackson

“One foot in front of the other, even if she had to drag them, even when the hole in her heart felt too big to keep standing.”

The third book in the A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder series released earlier this year, As Good As Dead by Holly Jackson picks up with Pip Fitz-Amobi who is haunted by the way her last investigation ended. Soon she’ll be leaving for Cambridge University, but then another case finds her. And this time, it’s all about Pip.

Pip is used to online death threats, but there’s one that catches her eye, someone who keeps asking: who will look for you when you’re the one who disappears? And it’s not just online. Pip has a stalker who knows where she lives. The police refuse to act and then Pip finds connections between her stalker and a local serial killer. The killer has been in prison for six years, but Pip suspects that the wrong man is behind bars. As the deadly game plays out, Pip realises that everything in Little Kilton is finally coming full circle. If Pip doesn’t find the answers, this time she will be the one who disappears…

BLOG TOUR: When The Dead Come Calling (The Burrowhead Mysteries #1) by Helen Sedgwick

“An atmospheric murder investigation unearths the brutal history of a village where no one is innocent.”

The first book in The Burrowhead Mysteries series, When The Dead Come Calling by Helen Sedgwick sees DI Strachan and her team of local police investigate the murder of psychotherapist Alexis Cosse who is found murdered in the playground of the sleepy northern village of Burrowhead. The investigation soon exposes a maelstrom of racism, misogyny and homophobia simmering beneath the surface of the village. Shaken by the revelations and beginning to doubt her relationship with her husband, DI Strachan discovers something lurking in the history of Burrowhead, while someone (or something) equally threatening is hiding in the strange and haunted cave beneath the cliffs…

Audiobook Review: The Couple At No. 9 by Claire Douglas

“It was the house of their dreams. Until the bodies were found…”

Released earlier this year, The Couple At No. 9 by Claire Douglas follows pregnant Saffron Cutler who moves into 9 Skelton Place with her boyfriend Tom. But when they set about renovating their new home, the last thing they expected was for the builders to uncover a body – let alone two. Forensics indicate the bodies were buried at least thirty years ago, meaning that the police need to speak to the cottage’s former owner – Saffy’s grandmother, Rose. But Rose is in a care home and has Alzheimer’s, so her memories are increasingly confused. She can’t help the police, but it is clear she remembers something. As her fragmented memories resurface and the police dig ever deeper, Saffy fears she and the cottage are being watched. What happened thirty years ago? Why did no one miss the victims? And what part did her grandmother play?

Audiobook Review: The Perfect Child by Lucinda Berry

“I wished I lived in a world where I didn’t know violence intimately, but I’d seen more than my fair share, given the work I did.”

Published in 2019, The Perfect Child by Lucinda Berry follows happily married Christopher and Hannah who have picture-perfect lives. All that’s missing is a child. When Janie, an abandoned six-year-old, turns up at their hospital, Christopher forms an instant connection with her, and he convinces Hannah they should take her home as their own.

But Janie is no ordinary child, and her damaged psyche proves to be more than her new parents were expecting. Janie is fiercely devoted to Christopher, but she acts out in increasingly disturbing ways, directing all her rage at Hannah. Unable to bond with Janie, Hannah is drowning under the pressure, and Christopher refuses to see Janie’s true nature. As Janie’s behaviour threatens to tear Christopher and Hannah apart, the truth behind Janie’s past may be enough to push them all over the edge.

Book Review: The Cutting Place (Maeve Kerrigan #9) by Jane Casey

“You’ve got to be in the club to know the truth.”

The ninth series in the Maeve Kerrigan series, The Cutting Place by Jane Casey follows DS Maeve Kerrigan who finds herself in an unfamiliar world of wealth, luxury and ruthless behaviour when she investigates the murder of a young journalist, Paige Hargreaves. Paige was working on a story about the Chiron Club, a private society for the richest and most privileged men in London. Then she disappeared. It’s clear to Maeve that the members have many secrets. But Maeve is hiding secrets of her own – even from her partner DI Josh Derwent. Will she uncover the truth about Paige’s death? Or will time run out for Maeve first?

Book Review: Thirteen (Eddie Flynn #4) by Steve Cavanagh

“The serial killer isn’t on trial. He’s on the jury…”

The fourth book in Steve Cavanagh‘s Eddie Flynn series and originally published in 2018, Thirteen sees con artist turned lawyer Eddie Flynn take on the celebrity murder trial of the century. They were Hollywood’s hottest power couple. Now one of them is dead, and husband Robert Solomon is charged with the brutal murder of his beautiful wife. All the evidence points to Robert’s guilt. But as the trial begins, a series of sinister incidents in the courtroom starts to raise doubts in Eddie’s mind. What if there’s more than one actor in the courtroom? What if the real killer is on the jury?

BLOG TOUR: Steve the Christmas Elf by Billy Dunne (Author) and Ben Whitehouse (Illustrator)

“A humorous and heart-warming story about a little elf called Steve and a little girl called May, who help each other find their way.”

Steve the Christmas Elf, written by Billy Dunne and illustrated by Ben Whitehouse, follows an elf called Steve busy making toys in the North Pole for the big day, suddenly wonders: what if the children he’s making toys for don’t exist? It’s not like he’s ever seen them… So on Christmas Eve, Steve sneaks on board Santa’s sleigh, to find out the truth.

BLOG TOUR: The Lost (Jonah Colley #1) by Simon Beckett

“A MISSING CHILD. A GRUESOME DISCOVERY. A SEARCH FOR THE TRUTH.”

Set to be published on 25th November and the first book in the Jonah Colley series, The Lost by Simon Beckett follows firearms police officer Jonah Colley who, ten years ago, was destroyed by the disappearance of his young son. Now, a plea for help from an old friend leads him to Slaughter Quay and the discovery of four bodies. Brutally attacked and left for dead, he is the only survivor. Under suspicion himself, he uncovers a network of secrets and lies about the people he thought he knew – forcing him to question what really happened all those years ago…

Book Review: No Exit by Taylor Adams

“The difference between a hero and a victim? Timing.”

The 2017 book by Taylor Adams, No Exit follows college student Darby Thorne who, on her way to Utah to see her dying mother, gets caught in a fierce blizzard in the mountains of Colorado. With the roads impassable, she’s forced to wait out the storm at a remote highway rest stop with four complete strangers.

Desperate to find a signal to call home, Darby goes back out into the storm where she makes a horrifying discovery. In the back of the van parked next to her car, a little girl is locked in a crate. There is no cell phone reception, no telephone, and no way out. One of her fellow travellers is a kidnapper. But which one?

Book Review: Indelible (Grant County #4) by Karin Slaughter

“There were good guys and bad guys, and to protect one, you did what you had to do to the other.”

The fourth book in Karin Slaughter‘s Grant County series and originally published in 2005, Indelible follows medical examiner Sara Linton and police chief Jeffrey Tolliver who take a trip away from the small town of Heartsdale. It should be a straightforward weekend at the beach, but they decide to take a detour via Jeffrey’s hometown and things go violently wrong when Jeffrey’s best friend Robert shoots dead an intruder who breaks into his home.

Twelve years later, Sara and Jeffrey are caught up in a shockingly brutal attack that threatens to destroy both their lives. But they’re not random victims. They’ve been targeted. And it seems the past is catching up with both of them.

Audiobook Review: Falling by TJ Newman

“Enjoy the flight.”

Falling by TJ Newman is set on board a flight to New York. There are one hundred and forty-four passengers on board, but what they don’t know is that the pilot’s family was kidnapped thirty minutes before the flight. For his family to live, everyone on the plane must die. The only way the family will survive is if the pilot follows his orders and crashes the plane.

Book Review: Just Haven’t Met You Yet by Sophie Cousens

“Tell me the story of how you two met…”

Set to be published on 11th November, Just Haven’t Met You Yet by Sophie Cousens follows journalist Laura who spends her life asking couples the all-important question, “How did you meet?”. She has built a career out of finding the most epic love stories for her column on relationships. The trouble is that Laura has never had her own meet-cute. Thirty years old and single, she is starting to wonder if she’ll ever have her sliding doors moment. So when Laura picks up the wrong suitcase at the airport on a work trip to the Channel Islands, she gets the sign she has always dreamed of. She knows it’s crazy, but she can’t help but think that the owner of the suitcase might really be the man of her dreams. If Laura job has taught her anything, it’s that when it comes to love, you can’t just let the opportunity pass you by. She must make it her mission to return the suitcase, and maybe, finally find the one.

Book Review: Lethal Game (DI Joel Norris #2) by Charlie Gallagher

“He knows your name. Where you live. The car you drive. If you don’t play, your family will die. If you lose, you will.”

Set to be published on 11th November, Lethal Game by Charlie Gallagher is the second book in the DI Joel Norris series which sees the DI alongside DS Lucy Rose begin to investigate the death of a young woman, murdered on a quiet country lane, they can’t imagine what lies ahead. This killer uses his victims like chess pieces in a life-sized contest, with the highest stakes imaginable. Now, Norris and Rose are pawns at the mercy of a twisted rulebook. Can they beat him at his own game before the next round begins and more innocent lives are taken?

Audiobook Review: Better Off Dead (Jack Reacher #26) by Lee Child and Andrew Child

“If Reacher is coming after you, you might be better off dead.”

The 26th book in Lee Child‘s Jack Reacher series and co-written by Andrew Child, Better Off Dead sees Reacher facing a new problem on a deserted road in Arizona, where a car has crashed into the only tree for miles around. Minutes later, Reacher is heading into town. To introduce himself to the shadowy crew who made it happen. Their boss has a terrifying reputation, and the stakes are high. Just to get in and meet him, Reacher is going to have to achieve the impossible.

Book Review: The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell

“You could not explain fear; you could only feel it, roaring through the silence and striking your heart still.”

Originally published in 2017, The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell follows pregnant Elsie who believed she was destined for a life of luxury. But widowed just weeks after her wedding and with her new servants resentful, Elsie has only her late husband’s awkward cousin for company. Or so she thinks…

Inside her new home lies a locked door, beyond which is a painted wooden figure — a silent companion — that bears a striking resemblance to Elsie herself. The residents of the estate are terrified of the figure, but Elsie tries to shrug this off as simple superstition. That is until she notices the figure’s eyes following her…