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Short Book and Scribes

Tag: thriller

ShortBookandScribes #BookReview – Let the Dead Speak by Jane Casey

Posted on 24th October 2022 By Nicola

Let the Dead Speak by Jane Casey is published by Harper Collins in paperback, eBook and audiobook. A murder without a body Eighteen-year-old Chloe Emery […]

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Reviews

ShortBookandScribes #BookReview – Hope to Die by Cara Hunter

Posted on 26th September 2022 By Nicola

Hope to Die by Cara Hunter is published by Penguin Viking in paperback, eBook and audiobook. It looks like a burglary gone wrong, but DI […]

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Reviews

ShortBookandScribes #BookReview – The Girls Who Disappeared by Claire Douglas

Posted on 20th September 2022 By Nicola

The Girls Who Disappeared by Claire Douglas was published on 15th September 2022 by Michael Joseph in paperback, eBook and audiobook. My thanks to the […]

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Reviews

ShortBookandScribes #PublicationDay #BookReview – Your Word or Mine by Lia Middleton

Posted on 1st September 2022 By Nicola

Your Word or Mine by Lia Middleton is published today by Michael Joseph in paperback, eBook and audiobook. My thanks to Ella Watkins for sending […]

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Reviews

ShortBookandScribes #BookReview – The Serial Killer’s Daughter by Alice Hunter

Posted on 27th July 2022 By Nicola

The Serial Killer’s Daughter by Alice Hunter was published on 21st July by Avon. My thanks to the publishers for sending me a copy for […]

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Reviews

ShortBookandScribes #BookReview – The Family Remains by Lisa Jewell

Posted on 20th July 2022 By Nicola

The Family Remains by Lisa Jewell will be published on 21st July by Century in hardcover, eBook and audiobook. My thanks to Najma Finlay from […]

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Reviews

ShortBookandScribes #BookReview – The Bay by Allie Reynolds

Posted on 6th July 2022 By Nicola

The Bay was published by Headline on 23rd June in hardcover, eBook and audiobook. My thanks to the publishers for the proof copy of the […]

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Reviews

ShortBookandScribes #BookReview – The Guest House by Robin Morgan-Bentley

Posted on 29th June 2022 By Nicola

The Guest House by Robin Morgan-Bentley was published by Orion on 23rd June. My thanks to the publishers for the proof copy of the book. […]

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ShortBookandScribes #BookReview – The Daughter by Liz Webb #BlogTour

Posted on 20th May 2022 By Nicola

It’s my stop on the blog tour for The Daughter by Liz Webb. It was published by Allison & Busby yesterday in hardcover, eBook and […]

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Blog Tour, Reviews

ShortBookandScribes #BookReview – First Born by Will Dean #BlogTour

Posted on 6th April 2022 By Nicola

It’s my stop on the blog tour for First Born by Will Dean. My thanks to Jenny Platt from Hodder for the twin proof copies […]

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Blog Tour, Reviews

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shortbookandscribes

UK book blogger (Sheffield), Bookstagrammer and lover of all things bookish.
Just one person trying to read all the books.
Physical books only.

Ad/PR product. New review: The Christmas Magpie by

Ad/PR product. New review: The Christmas Magpie by Mark Edwards. Published by @michaeljbooks today!
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Noel and Dani have just moved into their new home and are looking forward to the upcoming festive season. Until, that is, odd things start to happen such as strange parcels left on their doorstep and a peculiar sense that something just isn’t right. Is one of their new neighbours watching them and leaving the parcels? Who can they trust? Alongside their story is that of a notorious serial killer who is incarcarated in the local prison.
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Not having read any of Mark Edwards’ other ‘Magpie’ books, I came to this one without any knowledge of who the serial killer is, which actually didn’t matter in the slightest although I think fans of the series might get a bit more from this novella. I enjoyed it for what it was and found it a nice, easy thriller to read.
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If you eschew the cosy Christmas vibe and prefer a festive chiller then The Christmas Magpie might be one for you.
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Thank you to the publishers for the proof copy.
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#bookreview #TheChristmasMagpie #festivenovella #novella #festivereads #fortheloveofbooks #bookish #ilovethrillers #thrillerfiction #shortbooks #reader #reviewer #reviewbooks #booksofinstagram📚 #bookblogger #booksread #shortbookandscribes

💚The Barbecue at No. 9 by @jennie.godfrey💚

💚The Barbecue at No. 9 by @jennie.godfrey💚

Look at this amazing box of goodies that @hutchheinemann have sent to me. A cap, an apron, a playlist, bookmarks and postcards, sweets, door hanger, magpie pins and of course a fabulous copy of the book. What a fantastic treat - thank you so much!

Synopsis:
It's the summer of 1985 and the residents of Delmont Close are preparing a neighbourhood barbecue to watch the biggest music event in history: Live Aid. A day like no other that will end having reached millions and changed the lives of all who attend.

House-proud Lydia Gordon, whose idols are Princess Di and Delia Smith, is determined to put on a show that will impress everyone - with her posh garden and state-of-the-art television, and her sweet husband and two children, Hanna and David.

But as the guests flood into number nine, so do all of the secrets that have been kept in the close.

Rita, a new neighbour from Australia, is hoping for a fresh start but harbours a shocking event in her past; Steve, a young Falklands veteran, battles his own demons; and Mr Wilson is surely too good-looking to ever be trusted.

But as the hours count down to the last performance of the night, it's Lydia who faces the heart-breaking truth that her immaculate home and flawless family might not be so perfect after all.

And if each of their neighbours is guilty of hiding something, so are the Gordons at number nine ...

#TheBarbecueAtNo9

Ad/PR product. New review: The Toll House by Carly

Ad/PR product. New review: The Toll House by Carly Reagon. Published by Sphere and out now.
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Kelda moves into the Toll House with her son, Dylan. It’s a fresh start for them in an unusual historic property in a fairly remote setting, but it isn’t long before things start to happen in the house that make them both feel very uncomfortable. Kelda finds a death mask hidden behind a wall and strange sights and smells start to occur. Alongside the modern day storyline is that of the last toll keeper in the mid 1800s and the two narratives start to converge until the reasons for the peculiar happenings become clear.
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I don’t consider myself to be susceptible to ghost stories and tales of supernatural episodes at all but I have to say that I found this book to be thoroughly creepy and some bits sent a chill down my spine. It felt as realistically possible as any ghost story can be and the historical aspects really added to the chill factor. From the descriptions of the toll house I was able to conjure up an image in my mind of the property with the sign on the wall and the carts and carriages that passed by for which a toll had to be paid. It all felt very eerie.
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The Toll House is well-written and I found it to be atmospheric and authentic. There was a nice little twist towards the end too which, whilst not necessary for the momentum of the story, was a clever addition. I really enjoyed this book and will look out for Carly Reagon’s other books, especially at this time of year.
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Thank you to the publishers who sent me a copy of the book on publication.
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#bookreview #TheTollHouse #ghoststories #supernaturalstories #fortheloveofbooks #eeriereads #ilovereading #booklover #reader #reviewer #reviewbooks #booksread #bookblogger #shortbookandscribes

October Reads and Book Post 📖 I had a good mont

October Reads and Book Post
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I had a good month’s reading in October with 9 books finished (as it was my 9 year blogging anniversary on the 25th the number nicely matches my blog years!). Here they are:

We Live Here Now by Sarah Pinborough
A couple move into a new home in the country but straightaway there is something off about the house. This is a really clever supernatural story but for some reason it didn’t really grab me.

#AWeddingForTheHomeFrontGirls by Susanna Bavin
This is book 4 in the series and it was my favourite so far as the girls from the salvage yard continue to navigate the war years.

#WomenOfWar by Louise Morrish
A fascinating story based on fact about a young suffragette who pretends to be a man and joins the army in WWI and the female doctors who treat her when she gets injured in France.

#TheMurderAtWorldsEnd by Ross Montgomery
A fun locked room mystery with unlikely crime-solving duo Stephen Pike and Miss Decima Stockingham trying to work out who killed the Viscount of Tithe Hall.

#TheTollHouse by Carly Reagon
A house with history and a death mask hidden behind a wall made this a genuinely spine-chilling ghost story.

#HoldtheDream by Barbara Taylor Bradford
The follow-up to A Woman of Substance and another re-read for me. The focus in this book is Paula, Emma Harte’s favourite granddaughter who she charged to ‘hold her dream’.

#TheReckoning by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles
#TheDevilsHorse by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles
#ThePoisonTree by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles
The Morland Dynasty series can literally do no wrong for me. Napoleon is finally defeated, there is happiness and tragedy for the family, the age of steam brings a rise for the railways and cholera lurks.
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Swipe to see:
Review books received in October
Books I bought in October including some with very pretty sprayed edges.
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What was your favourite October read?
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#OctoberReads #October2025Reads #OctoberReads2025 #monthlyroundup #monthlywrapup #historicalfiction #bookseries #ghoststories #sagabooks #crimefiction #bookblogger #reader #reviewer #booksread #reviewbooks #fortheloveofbooks #ilovereading #booklover #bookish #shortbookandscribes

Ad/PR product. New review: Murder at World's End b

Ad/PR product. New review: Murder at World's End by @mossmontmomery. To be published by @vikingbooksuk on 30th October.
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Murder at World’s End is the first book in a new series to feature Stephen Pike and Miss Decima Stockingham. Stephen goes to Tithe Hall on a tidal island in Cornwall in 1910, as a new member of staff, just at the point when Halley’s Comet is due to pass Earth. There was a public panic and many believed the comet would destroy the earth so as Stephen arrives he finds the Viscount frantically making some rather irrational preparations. When the Viscount is found murdered Stephen teams up with Miss Decima, the Viscount’s elderly aunt, to try and solve the locked room mystery.
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As settings go, this was a perfect one for a locked room mystery. Not only is it a tidal island but everything was to be sealed and everybody was to be enclosed in their rooms until morning, so how the Viscount met his death is a true conundrum. I liked the two main protagonists and can see how they will work well together in a series. Stephen is a bit hapless at times but a kind and thoughtful person. Miss Decima is foul-mouthed and sharp as a tack. As a crime-solving duo they fit perfectly.
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I didn’t see the denouement coming at all so that was a clever bit of plotting, Murder at World’s End is witty and incisive and good fun for those who enjoy a historical crime caper.
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Thank you to the publishers for the proof package.
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#bookreview #MurderAtWorldsEnd #historicalfiction #historicalcrimefiction #crimeseries #cornwall #fortheloveofbooks #bookblogger #reader #reviewbooks #reviewer #booksread #shortbookandscribes

Book Review: Women of War by @louisemorrish_books.

Book Review: Women of War by @louisemorrish_books. Published by @michaeljbooks and out now.
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Women of War tells the story of two remarkable women and their experiences in WWI. Edie Lawrence is a young suffragette and when war breaks out and she finds herself left with nothing, she decides to pursue her dream of being a journalist by dressing as a man and joining up as a soldier. When she is injured she is sent to a hospital set up by Dr Lucinda Garland who is in charge of a mostly female team. After her plans to set up a hospital in London were rejected by men who couldn’t countenance the idea of a female doctor, she works with the Red Cross in France to offer her invaluable services there instead.
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From beginning to end this is a story of plucky women metaphorically sticking two fingers up to anyone (any man) that says they can’t do something. The action all takes place over a few short months between August and December 1914 and portrays in all its horrors the hell of the First World War. Edie’s war is devastating - as soldiers returning from the front say to her, it’s basically a massacre. Lucinda and her colleagues deal with the fallout and the shocking injuries which are like nothing they have seen before.
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The leading female characters are based on real women and their courageous feats. Louise Morrish brings them to life in Women of War in alternating chapters from both Edie and Lucinda’s points of view. I found this to be an extremely engaging, heart-rending work of historical fiction, impeccably researched and so well-written.
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#bookreview #WomenOfWar #warfiction #firstworldwar #fortheloveofbooks #ilovereading #booklover #reader #reviewer #booksread #bookblogger #historicalfiction #histfic #shortbookandscribes

Ad/PR product. New review: A Wedding for the Home

Ad/PR product. New review: A Wedding for the Home Front Girls by Susanna Bavin. Published by @bookouture and out now.
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A Wedding for the Home Front Girls is the fourth book in this series and picks up where book three left off. Sally is about to wave goodbye to her husband Andrew as he goes off to join the war effort, Betty is newly and happily married to Samuel and Lorna is enjoying being back in a romance with George and taking it slowly after the problems they had the first time round. All three are still working at the salvage yard and it’s now 1941.
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I think this book is my favourite of the series so far. Perhaps it’s because I’m an old romantic and love a good wedding but I found it so lovely to see the girls come together and get stuck into helping to plan Lorna’s nuptials. As it’s wartime, nothing goes to plan and I found myself rooting for a happy ending for the handsome couple.
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There’s heartbreak too and I had to wipe a tear away but despite it all, there’s such hopefulness and camaraderie that I got to the end and closed the book with a satisfied sigh. I’m looking forward to book five but it will be bittersweet as it’s the final book in the series.
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A Wedding for the Home Front Girls is a delightful addition to the series and for any saga lovers the series as a whole is a must-read. I loved all the details of the wedding preparations and the dress, and it was a real pleasure to follow the girls as they went about their war work and their everyday lives.
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Thank you to the author for sending me a copy for review.
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#AWeddingForTheHomeFrontGirls #sagabooks #wartimebooks #fortheloveofbooks #reader #reviewbooks #bookblogger #reviewer #booksread #ilovereading #bookish #lovebooks #shortbookandscribes

#CoverReveal🥳🎉 #TheFamilyFriend by @claired

#CoverReveal🥳🎉

#TheFamilyFriend by @clairedouglasauthor sounds brilliant.

Preorder now ready for publication on 12th March 2026.

Synopsis:
When Imogen is told she’s inherited a country house near Bath, she thinks it must be a mistake. She last saw its owner, reclusive artist Dorothea Roe, sixteen years ago, during a tragic summer which changed her life for ever.
Now, with partner Josh in tow, it’s a chance for a fresh start.
But after discovering an old box with her name on it in Dorothea’s abandoned study, Imogen starts to believe the woman was trying to send her a secret message.
And when rumours begin to swirl that Dorothea was murdered, she starts to suspect that this gift might not be the life-line she thought it was.
Who would want to kill Dorothea?
Could it be tangled up in Imogen’s own dark family history?
And what if Imogen is now the one in danger?

@michaeljbooks

Ad/PR product. New review: Mix Tape by Jane Sander

Ad/PR product. New review: Mix Tape by Jane Sanderson. Published by Bantam and out now.
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Sheffield 1978 and Daniel and Alison are embarking on a teenage romance, boosted by their shared love of music. Daniel makes Alison a mix tape (remember those?!) and she’s never felt more loved than when she’s with Daniel, also finding a kind of safe haven with his family. Decades later, Alison has a very different life in Adelaide when a chance message from an old pal brings Daniel back into her life. They say you never forget your first love and although Daniel and Alison have made new lives, it takes no time at all until they’re settling back into rediscovering the invisible thread between them that has never been broken.
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Mix Tape is a lovely read, often one of emotional angst and very sad in places, but it’s ultimately uplifting too. Given that it’s about two people who are married to other people, the author hits just the right note to engender sympathy for Daniel and Alison from the reader which I don’t think is an easy thing to achieve with this kind of storyline. It’s nostalgic and I particularly loved being transported to late 70s Sheffield. The sense of place is strong and I felt glad that the author made my home city so recognisable whilst bringing the other locations of Edinburgh and Adelaide to life.
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Music is key to the story and so I enjoyed following the song choices throughout the book. It’s hard to long for an outcome that causes pain to some of the characters but I absolutely loved the ending, having a quiet little sob when I got there. I’ve been meaning to read this book since it was published. It’s taken me a while but I’m so glad I read Mix Tape. It’s a complex and moving story which is more than just a romance. I came for the love story and the Sheffield setting but stayed for the emotional and often messy journey the two main characters go on over such a long time. I thought it was a very enjoyable book.
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Thank you to the publishers for the proof copy which I've had for rather a long time 😳
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#bookreview #MixTape #lovestory #Sheffield #Sheffieldfiction #fortheloveofbooks #musicfiction #ilovereading #lovebooks #shortbookandscribes

September Reads #ANewHomeAtTheWartimeHotel by Ma

September Reads

#ANewHomeAtTheWartimeHotel by Maisie Thomas - the first in a new saga series. A lovely easy read and I’m looking forward to book two.

#59Minutes by Holly Seddon - a riveting story with an explosive premise which put me in the heart of a disaster scenario. What would you do if you only had 59 minutes until a nuclear missile hits?

#MemorialPark by Louisa Scarr - an excellent police procedural and second in the series to feature police dog handler P.C. Lucy Halliday. A current day missing child case combined with a cold case linked to DCI Jack Ellis.

#WhatTheWifeKnew by Lia Middleton - this book combines a legal thriller with a domestic drama going on behind the scenes. Very fast-paced and full of tension and mystery.

#MixTape by Jane Sanderson - I enjoyed this story of lost first love, particularly because part of it is set in Sheffield where Daniel and Alison first met.

#TheCampaigners by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles - book 14 follows on the depiction of the Napoleonic Wars up to the bloody battle of Waterloo and the defeat of Napoleon. Another fantastic instalment.

#AWomanOfSubstance by Barbara Taylor Bradford - I first read this epic tale of Emma Harte and her rise from a servant at Fairley Hall to one of the most powerful women of her time many years ago. I’ve always wanted to reread it but would it live up to my memories? Well yes, it did. I read it very slowly alongside other books because of its 800+ page length and I loved being back in Emma’s world.
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#SeptemberReads #September2025Reads #SeptemberReads2025 #monthlyroundup #monthlywrapup #fortheloveofbooks #ilovereading #historicalfiction #crimefiction #crimeseries #thrillerfiction #sagabooks #epicreads #reader #reviewer #reviewbooks #bookblogger #booksread #shortbookandscribes

Ad/PR product. New #publicationday review: What th

Ad/PR product. New #publicationday review: What the Wife Knew by @liamiddletonauthor. Published by today!
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I can never resist a legal thriller but What the Wife Knew combines the legal world and the buzz of a trial with a domestic drama going on behind the scenes. I felt this mixed it up quite nicely and offered a fresh addition to the psychological thriller genre.
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Francis Joseph is on trial for murdering his wife. His defence? She did it to herself. In a last minute change of representation, barrister Harry takes on the job of defending Frank at his trial. Waiting at home for Harry is Piera, his wife, a barrister herself but who is on maternity leave. What Harry doesn’t know is that Piera has a secret and it could ruin everything.
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I found this to be a very fast-paced read. The first section is all from Harry’s point of view as he undertakes to try and get Frank acquitted. I particularly enjoyed following the trial (written with great skill from an author who really knows what she is talking about), knowing that the outcome would shape the next section which is from Piera’s point of view and addresses what she’s hiding.
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It all unfolds in a quite exhilarating way and I flew through the pages. What the Wife Knew is easy to read yet full of tension and mystery until eventually I did indeed find out what the wife knew. I thought it was an excellent read.
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Thank you to the publishers for the proof copy and happy publication day Lia 🎉
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#bookreview #WhatTheWifeKnew #legalthriller #psychologicalthriller #grippingreads #fortheloveofbooks #ilovethrillers #booklover #bookish #shortbookandscribes

New review: Memorial Park by @louisascarrwriter. P

New review: Memorial Park by @louisascarrwriter. Published by @canelo_co and out now.
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I’ve been looking forward to reading Memorial Park since I finished the first in the PC Lucy Halliday series, Gallows Wood. I loved that book and knew there was a lot more to come for Lucy and DCI Jack Ellis and that was proved with the events of this second book.
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It begins with a three year old girl going missing. Lucy is a police dog handler and is called in with her newest dog, Iggy, to see if he can pick up any trace of a scent of little Rosie Logan. Whilst Jack and the team are working on this case, new information comes to light in the cold case of his childhood best friend, Theo, who went missing when both boys were eleven.
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I enjoyed the cold case aspects most of all (I find these cases particularly interesting in fiction) but it’s very difficult to read at times, utterly shocking and it made me emotional. I really enjoyed the two main characters’ progression through this book, a sense of closure for Jack and a tentative new beginning for Lucy. After I’d read Gallows Wood I noted down two things that were unresolved. One was resolved in this book and I’m looking forward to reading book three to see if the other one is brought to a conclusion.
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The dog handling aspect of these books makes for such an interesting and different focus. I wonder if Iggy will be needed for the next case, or if Moss, Lucy’s other dog, is required to use his special skills to search for a body. I found Memorial Park to be an excellent police procedural with a compelling storyline. I recommend it but do start with Gallows Wood so you understand the progression of the characters and the cases.
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#bookreview #MemorialPark #policeprocedural #policedogs
#crimefiction #crimeseries #ilovereading #fortheloveofbooks #booklover❤️ #reader #reviewbooks #reviewer #bookblogger #booksofinstagram📚 #shortbookandscribes

Ad/PR product. New review: 59 Minutes by Holly Sed

Ad/PR product. New review: 59 Minutes by Holly Seddon. To be published on 25th September by @orionbooks.
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59 Minutes has an explosive premise: what would you do if you only had 59 minutes until a nuclear missile hits? The story is told from the perspectives of three women: Carrie is in central London, an obvious target area for the bomb, and just wants to get home to her partner and child; Frankie is on a short break in Devon and doesn’t have much in the way of supplies to be able to hunker down and hope that shelter will save her; and Mrs Dabb’s daughter hasn’t come home from school at the usual time – where is she and can she make it back?
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The chapters are short and punchy, alternating between each main character, often with a cliffhanger to keep up the fast pace. It’s the situation we all hope we never have to live through and for each woman it becomes a race against time, as humanity descends into chaos and debauchery in the time that is left.
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There are some really strong plot surprises that I just didn’t see coming at all – bravo to the author for those. I did feel the last section could perhaps have been wound up a bit quicker but on the whole I found this to be a really riveting book which put me right in the heart of a disaster scenario that felt all too real and possible.
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Thank you to the publishers for the proof copy.
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#bookreview #59Minutes #thrillerfiction #fortheloveofbooks #ilovereading #bookblogger #reader #reviewer #reviewbooks #booksread #shortbookandscribes

Instagram post 18010033337619482

Instagram post 18010033337619482

Ad/PR product. New review: A New Home at the Warti

August Reads I had such a great reading month in A

August Reads
I had such a great reading month in August – ten books!! – but I’m under no illusions that it will continue now it’s back to school and the lazy summer holidays are over.

Here’s what I read:

#GettingAway by Kate Sawyer - I loved this story of one family through the holidays they take. Full of emotion and nostalgia.

#TheShellHouseDetectives by Emylia Hall - First in a series featuring Ally and Jayden who turn detective when a man is found at the bottom of the cliffs. I loved the setting and will be reading more in the series.

#APlaceInTheSun by Jo Thomas - I can never go wrong with a Jo Thomas. This one is set in Tuscany with a community kitchen and three feuding Nonna’s and it will make you hungry!

#TheHometownBookshop by Jenna Warren - A delightful book with a bookshop/seaside setting. Actress Charlotte returns to her home town to help with her sister’s bookshop which is run by stuck in his ways Greg.

#WatchingYou by Helen Fields - Absolutely gripping read with a twisty storyline, maverick characters and a killer with an agenda.

#TheLifeAndLovesOfBeccaValentine by Laura Pearson - An emotional read with a unique concept. Written with compassion and sensitivity.

The Best of Intentions by Caroline Scott - An inter-war story set at Anderby Hall where a community of artists have come together. It has a charm to it and some really well-drawn and interesting characters but it didn’t really gel with me overall.

#Unsound by Heather Critchlow - I love this series featuring crime podcaster and investigator, Cal Lovett. Unsound is dark, tense and devastatingly moving, as Cal deals with his sister’s murder trial alongside a new cold case of a missing Edinburgh student.

#TheVictory and #TheRegency by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles - Books 12 and 13 of the Morland Dynasty series and another two brilliant books.

Book post and stats on my blog post.
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#AugustReads #August2025Reads #AugustReads2025 #monthlywrapup #monthlyroundup #histfic #crimefiction #feelgoodfiction #shortbookandscribes

New review: Unsound by @heather.critchlow. Publish

New review: Unsound by @heather.critchlow. Published by @canelo_co and out now.
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Unsound is book three in the series featuring podcaster Cal Lovett and it's a series that I love reading. In this book Cal is living through the trial of the man believed to have killed his sister, Margot, a strand that has run through all the series so far. When he's asked to look at the cold case of an Edinburgh University student who went missing thirteen years earlier, it feels like more than he can handle but he agrees to take it on.
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This is a fantastic crime story written with such empathy that several times a lump formed in my throat. Cal is already struggling with his sister's case and so dealing with the investigation into what happened to Arran, alongside his daughter's first term at the same university that he was attending when he disappeared, really piles the pressure on him and he starts to shut down emotionally.
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Unsound is a dark, tense and devastatingly moving story that had me flying through the pages. I like the podcast element, although it doesn't account for that much of the book, and I always love a cold case storyline. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens next for Cal in book four.
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#bookreview #Unsound #crimeseries #crimebooks #fortheloveofbooks #booklover❤️ #ilovereading #bookblogger #reader #reviewer #booksread #podcast #shortbookandscribes

Exciting #CoverReveal 🥳🎉 #CallerUnknown by

Exciting #CoverReveal 🥳🎉

#CallerUnknown by @gillianmauthor will be published on 9th April 2026. It sounds heart-stoppingly brilliant and I can't wait to read it.
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Synopsis:
Simone's holiday to Texas was meant to be some much needed bonding time with her teenage daughter, Lucy.

On their first night in the desert, Simone wakes to find Lucy missing and a mobile phone in her place. The phone rings: Lucy has been taken and, in order to get her back, Simone must commit a crime.

As Simone prepares to follow the kidnapper's instructions, she feels certain that there is nothing she wouldn't do to save Lucy. But becoming a wanted woman is just the start...

@michaeljbooks

New review: The Life and Loves of Becca Valentine

New review: The Life and Loves of Becca Valentine by @laurapauthor. Published by @theboldbookclub and out now.
Note: the title was changed after I bought my copy.
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The Life and Loves of Becca Valentine has a unique concept: the idea that the children whose mother you may become are there at your side, from your own birth, hidden from view but awaiting their own conception. It sounds a bit bizarre but the way the story is written makes it incredibly plausible. There are four of them in the beginning, Samuel, Lucy, Thomas and Eliza and it's Eliza who narrates the story.
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Through her we witness Becca meeting Anthony and Ryan. Each of the siblings knows who their father is and from their potential conception dates they know that they can't all make it all the way to being born. It's an ingenious way to take what are essentially the ups and downs of Becca's romantic and home life and turn it into something even more intriguing, almost a race for life. The siblings can't help but think about themselves but they also want to do what is best for Becca, somebody they have spent years alongside.
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It's a lovely novel and quite an emotional one for the reader who not only sees Becca's difficulties, but also the beforelife situation as each conception date gets closer and closer. This is a book that is written with compassion and sensitivity, a love story in more ways than one. I really enjoyed it.
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#bookreview #TheLifeAndLovesOfBeccaValentine #emotionalfiction #lovelyreads #bookblogger #reader #reviewer #booksread #fortheloveofbooks #ilovebooks #bookish #bookphotography #shortbookandscribes

Ad/PR product. New review: Watching You by @helenf

Ad/PR product. New review: Watching You by @helenfields_author. To be published by @avonbooksuk on 28th August.
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Watching You is the DS Lively/Dr Connie Woolwine mash-up Helen Fields fans didn't know they needed but wonder now how they managed without it. DS Lively is an old-school, un-PC Edinburgh cop and Connie is an unconventional forensic profiler with some rather unique methods of getting to the bottom of what has occurred. Both have appeared in previous books, together and apart, but this book has them working closely together to try and solve a series of deaths.
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This is another completely gripping story from Fields. It has it all: a twisty storyline; maverick characters; a killer with an agenda; a love story element; and all the gory details of killings that I have come to expect from this author. I really loved how characters from other books were brought in and there's a very short paragraph near the end that absolutely made my heart sing with joy (no more spoilers but if you know, you know!).
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Watching You has everything I want from a crime thriller. It raised my heart rate with all the excitement and then lowered it again with a satisfied 'aah'. I have a feeling there's lot more to come for all my favourite characters. I can't wait!
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Thank you Laura Sherlock and the publishers for the proof copy.
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#bookreview #WatchingYou #crimethriller #policeprocedural #thrillerfiction #thrillerbooks #fortheloveofbooks #5starreads #bookblogger #reader #reviewer #reviewbooks #booksread #bookphotography #ilovereading #ilovethrillers #shortbookandscribes

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