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Find out moreAll engrossing, pure escapist, nail-biting anxiety, mind bending terror and psychological twists. We’re not sure why it’s so appealing. Good though, isn’t it! You might also like to browse our Crime and Mystery category.
"Request: If you enjoyed this book please don't keep it a secret." The above is written by the Author on the last page of the book and this is one book that shouldn't be kept a secret! It has to be one of the funniest books that I have read in a long time. The humour and the style of writing allows the reader to think that this only happened in London last week that someone had won the Globobillions Lottery but no-one has come forward to claim the prize. Rumours abound straight away. Leo Morphetus is an addicted entrepreneur, always trying new ways to make a living. His latest being his Barista tricycle and himself selling coffees on the move. He has separated from his wife Helen and Amy his daughter. He stopped buying lottery tickets ages ago but the local shopkeeper and his wife are certain that he had bought a ticket and from them. The rumours start by them and soon the media is involved. Throughout the whole book Donna the newspaper reporter never gives up trying to uncover who won the ticket in order to get her big story. Events reach the stage where everyone is sure that Leo has won and he and his friend Vince decide to pretend that they have. Helen has a boyfriend Tony who now decides to blackmail Helen now he thinks Leo has actually won. Leo has promised to pay Poppy, a child with cancer, to go to the USA for treatment. The bank manager, desperate for a 'rich client', credits cash ignoring all rules and protocols into a joint account for Leo and Vince whereupon they go and lead the high life - especially Vince and his love for clothes - top hotels are booked and as the managers of the hotels think Leo is the winner, all bills are written off. Begging letters start, Leo's father in law who doesn't like him now is trying to push himself up the Council ladder by asking Leo to donate funds to his various projects, TV are now interested but read the book as there is more. The real winner happens to be a Muslim lady who can't accept the cash because of her beliefs, but wants to send her two daughters to university and despite taking advice form a Muslim lady counsellor she is not further forward with what she can do with the money as her culture does not allow gambling or to spend winnings. When Leo and Vince are at the stage where they have to confess, things work out in an unusual way and I won't say how or why as this is the best part of the book. The author has written one of those brilliant books that tend to come along from time to time and as stated at the top of this review I am not keeping it a secret. Read it you won't be disappointed!
Set mainly in Syria, this is a book about counter-intelligence and double-dealings during the conflict. It was interesting to get an idea of what is really going on behind the news. We are never quite sure who are the good guys and who are the bad guys, and there are some pretty nasty characters. The game keeps changing and the story has many twists and turns. There's plenty of action-imagine James Bond in a tight spot - and things don't always turn out as one might imagine. It's a cleverly constructed story, but one does need to concentrate as who is who can be confusing, I actually took notes to help me. The beginning gave us quite a lot of information and I had to re-read it a couple of times to set it in my head. The setting of the book seems well researched and convincingly portrayed. It's interesting to get a glimpse into other lands and their cultures from the safety of your own home. This book transports the reader into the somewhat dangerous life in the Middle East as it is at the moment. Chris Woolfenden, A LoveReading Ambassador
This elegantly engaging novel of detection sees an antiquarian book dealer, Anthony Sparrow, investigate the life and death of a leading haematologist. “Our effects really do give us away,” Sparrow explains. “‘Dead Men Tell No Tales’ as they used to say in the Westerns of my youth. Someone has to do it for them”. Which is exactly what Sparrow does when he pieces together the papers of a man who’d been “what I once yearned to be: a physician.” What follows is Sparrow’s presentation of, and commentary on, the diaries and papers of this physician. We learn of his court appearance, which saw him thusly questioned by a QC: ”So, Professor Anstruther, on what date did you become aware that the Factor VIII you were prescribing to your haemophiliac patients, made from pooled blood donations, might be contaminated by the AIDS virus?” As documents reveal details of complex medical cases, and patients who died, the professor’s personality and humanity come to the fore - his fragilities as a ninety-year-old, his sense of duty and care - as does a growing sense of conspiracy. When Sparrow reads that the professor was most likely smothered to death, he sets about investigating papers connected to the smotherer. With each narrative strand brimming with revelations and finely observed personal detail, this is a sharp and suspenseful mystery.
A challenging and provocative read, with some hair-raising action. Rose Shaw is living with insomnia and trauma, when a diary unexpectedly lands in her possession she finds herself in serious trouble. The first few chapters really set the tone, as ‘before' plays out in gasp-inducing action, you may well find yourself camping out on the edge of your seat, waiting, waiting, waiting… When the moment comes, oh my! This story has more than its fair share of bigots which makes for uncomfortable reading. Other stories enter the fray, piercing feelings, creating biting tension. Perhaps best not to expect a factually accurate tale in terms of police procedure and there were times when my eyebrows nearly took flight, however for pure adrenaline, heightened emotions and drama, ‘Night by Night’ has it all. So settle down, pop disbelief to one side, just sink into the story and read!
The latest thriller from the internationally bestselling author of The Lake of Dead Languages and The Other Mother, a story of mistaken identities and missed chances, forgiveness, and vengeance. Carol Goodman is, simply put, a stellar writer. -Lisa Unger, New York Times bestselling author of The Red Hunter ALICE gets off a bus in the middle of a snowstorm in Delphi, NY. She is fleeing an abusive relationship and desperate to protect... OREN, ten years old, a major Star Wars fan and wise beyond his years. Though Alice is wary, Oren bonds nearly instantly with... MATTIE, a social worker in her fifties who lives in an enormous run-down house in the middle of the woods. Mattie lives alone and is always available, and so she is the person the hotline always calls when they need a late-night pickup. And although according to protocol Mattie should take Alice and Oren to a local shelter, instead she brings them home for the night. She has plenty of room, she says. What she doesn't say is that Oren reminds her of her little brother, who died thirty years ago at the age of ten. But Mattie isn't the only one withholding elements of the truth. Alice is keeping her own secrets. And as the snowstorm worsens around them, each woman's past will prove itself unburied, stirring up threats both within and without.
A horrifying crime. Water-tight evidence points to a single suspect. Except he was seventy miles away, with an iron-clad alibi. Detective Anderson sets out to investigate the impossible: how can the suspect have been both at the scene of the crime and in another town?
The perfect couple. The perfect crime? Erin is a documentary filmmaker on the brink of a professional breakthrough; Mark a handsome investment banker with a bright future. They seem to have it all. But do they? On a dream honeymoon to the tropical island of Bora Bora, Mark takes Erin scuba diving. Everything is perfect. Until they find something in the water. Something that will change their lives forever. Erin and Mark decide to keep their discovery a secret. No one else need know; they trust each other implicitly. But someone else does know. And in situations like these, it is far better to trust no one, not even those closest to you ... Set to be the blockbuster read of the summer, this is an unmissable, fast-paced, jaw-dropping thriller from a debut writer destined for great things.
Concluding the ground breaking Nordic noir thriller trilogy set in 2068. Facing near impossible odds, Nero and his companions are forced to act outside the law. To protect the innocent, they will risk everything as they battle to defeat the ruthless and shadowy figures conspiring to take control of the city. The Eldísvík trilogy is riveting, rollercoaster ride. A story of survival, loyalty, betrayal and love that will appeal to fans of Jo Nesbo, Peter Hoeg and Lilja Sigurdardottir.
This highly readable slice of suspenseful noir sees a couple on the brink of losing everything. Emma thought she had it all with second husband Paul - a big house, new daughter Mollie, a fine step-dad for her son from her first marriage. But Paul’s been hiding things from her, not least the debts he’s been racking up, and the seriousness of his work situation. Forced to come clean (about some of his misdemeanors, at least) when he’s made redundant, they escape to the dilapidated French property Paul randomly bought during a holiday. While Paul flits between France and London - ostensibly for work - resourceful Emma turns things around by making a go of a bar business in their new village. But her blossoming is thwarted when a glamorous stranger infiltrates her life and a hideous web of deceit, blackmail, entrapment and violence unravels with heart-pounding urgency that will have readers rooting for Emma every step of the way. This is a real read-in-one-sitting-on-the-edge-of-your-seat kind of book.
Murder, mystery, and mayhem abound in this amusing action-packed read. I missed out on Volume One, ‘The Truth About Archie and Pye’ and though I would suggest starting at the beginning, I was still able to enjoy this mad caper of a story without feeling as though I had been left behind. This may be a mathematical mystery series with mentions of coding and bitcoins to be found (eeek) but I think I coped rather well as someone who finds maths, shall we say, challenging! Tom Winscombe narrates this story, he is trying to locate his girlfriend, stolen computers, lots and lots of answers, oh, and a snake! Tom usually wanders or jogs into the centre of trouble, dead bodies have a habit of turning up at the same time he does, and in terms of ability, just imagine the opposite of James Bond! Jonathan Pinnock writes with dash and verve, creating interesting characters and plenty of eyebrow raising situations. ‘A Question of Trust’ is an entertaining read, it is beautifully easy to fall into and really enjoyable.
Pieces of Her blew me away, it’s sharp, edgy, and compulsive. I foolishly started late in the evening and ended up keeping the early hours company for some time as I simply had to finish it! 31-year-old Andrea finds herself questioning everything she thought she knew about her mum Laura when a birthday trip ends in horrific violence, further danger rushes in and Andy desperately needs to find answers. The prologue encourages intrigue to bubble away nicely then, oh my word… chapter one! Chapter one brilliantly sets the scene before exploding in the most shocking way, I gulped, settled further into my chair and braced myself for the experience. Karin Slaughter has the ability to set a tale on fire, she fans the flames, and I needed my wits about me as the time frame changed and left my understanding floating for a while, searching for answers. Andy and Laura are fascinating characters, they challenged my thoughts and feelings in the best possible way. Incredibly stimulating and enthralling Pieces of Her has left me on a heart-hammering high!
Redemption is the latest memory man thriller in David Baldacci's Sunday Times bestselling series. FBI consultant Amos Decker discovers that he may have made a fatal mistake when he was a rookie homicide detective. Back in his home town, he's now compelled to discover the truth . . . Decker has returned to Burlington, Ohio, for a special reason. It would have been his daughter Molly's fourteenth birthday. Molly was brutally murdered four years ago in their home, along with his beloved wife, Cassie, and his brother-in-law. But then Decker is tracked down by a man he'll never forget: Meryl Hawkins, his first homicide arrest more than twelve years ago. Hawkins has been in prison serving a life sentence but was recently released due to a terminal illness. Decker now finds himself questioning what had seemed watertight evidence at the time - maybe he'd been a bit too keen to get that conviction? Could Hawkins really be innocent, as he's always claimed? If so, the killer is still out there - with a possible connection to a new crime. As the body count rises, and Decker and his former partner Mary Lancaster dig deeper, it looks as though there's a lot more to what they thought was a closed case.
Picture it. You’re going on holiday. The bags are packed and the family is ready, you’re at the gate, the plane is boarding, you’ve decided to start your brand new, especially purchased thriller right away. Suddenly, you’re immersed into the corridors of intrigue, conspiracy, murder, espionage and you don’t know who to trust. The plane has left without you. So has the family. You haven’t even noticed. At least you have a good book … and the whole house to yourself for a week!
This section is crammed with dangerously compelling adventures that will have your nails bitten and nervous system tested to the full. From Dan Brown, Stieg Larsson and James Patterson to Fred Vargas, Bernard Minier and C.J Sansom, there’s enough here to keep you ‘head-down and out-of-it’ for years. There’s certainly time to read one more before the family gets back from Torremolinos … and that’s where we come in!