Category: abuse
+ abuse, child abuse, childhood, family, fiction, grief, lies, loss, love, marriage, motherhood, nineties, review, secrets, sisters
The Short Straw by Holly Seddon
Three sisters find themselves lost in a storm at night, and seek safety at Moirthwaite Manor, where their mother once worked. #TheShortStraw @hollyseddon @Tr4cyF3nt0n #CompulsiveReaders #blogtour They are shocked to find the isolated mansion that loomed so large through their troubled childhoods has long been abandoned. Drawing straws to decide who should get help, one sister heads back into the darkness. With the siblings separated, the … Read More The Short Straw by Holly Seddon
+ abuse, child abuse, childhood, Covid, family, fiction, grief, lies, lockdown, loss, love, motherhood, Psychological fiction, review, secrets, sisters, social distancing
Stay by Jane Bailey
I simply slung my rucksack on my shoulder and climbed into the car – and into the life – of perfect strangers.It was meant to be Caitlin’s perfect summer, but betrayed by her best friend and her boyfriend, she finds herself hitchhiking home alone, heartbroken, and penniless. When a smiling family pulls up on the roadside to help her on her way, she’s relieved – they … Read More Stay by Jane Bailey
+ abuse, alcoholism, child abuse, childhood, crime fiction, fiction, jealousy, journalist, murder, obsession, revenge, review, serial killer, thriller
Saving Grace by Cristina Slough
An ambitious reporter seeks a window into an obsessed killer’s mind—and is forced to take a hard look in the mirror, in this dark psychological thriller. It starts when a Cornwall fisherman finds a body in the ocean. The blood of the victim has washed away, but the angry message etched deep into the victim’s back is crystal clear: Grace—Number 1. It’s the kind … Read More Saving Grace by Cristina Slough
+ abuse, child abduction, child abuse, childhood, crime fiction, fiction, grief, loss, love, murder, revenge, review, thriller
Girls Don’t Cry by Peter Kesterton
A decade after his young daughter’s murder, a grief-stricken father’s need for justice puts his own life in danger as events spiral out of control . . . Ever since Caitlin Grady was released from prison, Darren has been tormented by rage and injustice. He finds himself venting online, where a stranger befriends him—and encourages him to seek revenge. #GirlsDontCry @Peter_Kesterton #RandomThingsTours @annecater @RandomTTours #BlogTour But Caitlin … Read More Girls Don’t Cry by Peter Kesterton
+ abuse, female friendship, fiction, friendship, holiday, lies, love, marriage, obsession, rape, relationships, review, secrets
The Girls of Summer by Katie Bishop
‘That place has been my whole life. Everything I thought I knew about myself was constructed in those few months I spent within touching distance of the sea. Everything I am is because Alistair loved me.’ Rachel has been in love with Alistair since she was seventeen. Even though she hasn’t seen him for sixteen years and she’s now married to someone else. Even … Read More The Girls of Summer by Katie Bishop
+ abuse, coming-of-age, depression, diary, family, fiction, grief, jealousy, lies, literature, loss, love, marriage, memoir, mental illness, murder, narcissist, obsession, psychiatric hospital, Psychological fiction, relationships, revenge, review, secrets
Killing The Girl by Elizabeth Hill
A perfect life, a perfect love – and a perfect murder. Loving Frankie was easy but teenage Carol wasn’t the only woman Frankie charmed. Tired of Frankie’s cheating ways, Carol kills him and buries him in her orchard. Forty years later Frankie’s grave will be found and Carol’s guilt revealed. As she writes her confession before they arrest her, she discovers other friends lied. … Read More Killing The Girl by Elizabeth Hill
+ abuse, child abuse, crime fiction, family, fiction, friendship, kidnapping, loss, murder, police drama, police procedural, revenge, review, Scotland, serial killer
The First Cut (A Jane Renwick Thriller #1) by Val Penny
It’s hard to escape a brutal past. A vicious killer is on the loose. Victims targeted include an academic and members of Edinburgh’s high society. When the Murder Investigation Team find out that the killer is connected to her past, DS Jane Renwick is banished to the side-lines and forced to look on as the manhunt ramps up at a ferocious pace. #TheFirstCut @valeriepenny … Read More The First Cut (A Jane Renwick Thriller #1) by Val Penny
+ abuse, adventure, alcoholism, autism, childhood, crime fiction, dark humour, family, feel-good, fiction, friendship, grief, lies, List, literature, loss, love, Malaya, marriage, mental health, motherhood, murder, obsession, Psychological fiction, relationships, review, secrets, superstition, thriller, writer
My Top 8 Books of 2023 – Part One
Here are my favourite eight books of the first quarter of 2023. One of these will definitely make it into my top three books of 2023. While I read a lot of crime novels all these books are other genres, as a crime novel needs to be totally unique and exceptional to make it into my favourites. So Pretty by Ronnie Turner Part way through … Read More My Top 8 Books of 2023 – Part One
+ abuse, crime fiction, dark humour, female friendship, fiction, friendship, kidnapping, lies, love, mental illness, murder, psychopath, review, secrets, serial killer, thriller, vigilante, writer
The Skull Keeper by Mariëtte Whitcomb
Best friends on social media, Allysa and Morgan share a love of three things: thriller novels, true crime, and keeping secrets from each other. As soon as Allysa asks Morgan to be her plus one at a funeral, Morgan jumps on the first available flight. Burying the dead might unearth the truth about what happened to Allysa’s brother twenty years earlier. She’s never believed … Read More The Skull Keeper by Mariëtte Whitcomb
+ abuse, family, fiction, grief, loss, love, marriage, motherhood, review, secrets, sisters, thriller
If She Lives (Harlow Series #3) by Erik Therme
Tess Parker knows tragedy better than most. After surviving the death of her daughter and kidnapping of her nephew, Tess is ready to return to normal life. #IfSheLives @ErikTherme @Zooloo’s Book Tours @zooloo2008 #ZooloosBookTours #blogtour But her troubled past has other plans, and when an old threat reemerges, Tess must seek the help of an unlikely ally to set things right. No matter what the cost. My Review It’s … Read More If She Lives (Harlow Series #3) by Erik Therme
+ abuse, brothers, care home, crime fiction, dark humour, dementia, domestic noir, fiction, jealousy, murder, review
Make Me Clean by Tina Baker
She will leave your surfaces sparkling.But she may well leave you dead… Maria is a good woman and a good cleaner. She cleans for Elsie, the funny old bird who’s losing her marbles, with the terrible husband. She cleans for Brian, the sweet man with the terrible boss. She cleans for the mysterious Balogan, with the terrible neighbours. If you’re thinking of hiring her, … Read More Make Me Clean by Tina Baker
+ abuse, child abuse, childhood, family, fiction, kidnapping, loneliness, obsession, relationships, review, thriller
So Pretty by Ronnie Turner
When Teddy Colne arrives in the small town of Rye, he believes he will be able to settle down and leave his past behind him. Little does he know that fear blisters through the streets like a fever. The locals tell him to stay away from an establishment known only as Berry & Vincent, that those who rub too closely to its proprietor risk … Read More So Pretty by Ronnie Turner
Bookchatter@Cookiebiscuit 