BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU HEAR by Paul Pilkington

3 STARS

This novel turned out to be a novella, which in itself was okay, but left me feeling unsatisfied. The plot had the makings of what I had expected to be a real thriller, but unfortunately the author did not take advantage of the excellent premise.

George- racked by post-natal depression overhears her husband - whom she has given a terrible time over the months after their daughter's birth - saying that he was taking them all on a weekend away and that would be the end of it all. Of course, George doesn't ask him about this, but goes along with the weekend away in a cottage on a cliff edge.

This novel could have been full length and had wonderful twists and turns, with a breath-taking climax at the end, but the finish of this was very lame. I would loved to have given this more than three stars - and the cover is superb - but because of the brevity and ending, I feel three is as much as it earned.

DRAGON'S MOON by Rebecca Stroud

5 Stars

Well written and fast-paced, the story involves the murders of a pedophile ring at the very top, the US President being the leader. As the members of the ring are killed - or commit suicide - the arrogance of James Drake doesn’t allow for him to feel concern for anyone’s safety, including his own. An abuser since a teenager, his preying on his younger brother, Jon, is a precursor of what is to come. Jon, now a billionaire businessman, has never recovered from his brother’s victimisation or the deliberate running over of his only friend in life, his white German Shepherd.

Is Jon now taking his revenge or is there another Drake victim out there?

Needless to say, no spoilers here!

Short, sharp and to the point, this long "short" story never lets go, as events pile up with breathtaking speed. From the gruesome opening pages to the end, Stroud treats the reader to a thriller which is out of the box.

Well done indeed!

L.A. SNIPER by Steve Gannon

5 STARS

Steve Gannon's books are always good value. I have read the previous Dan Kane novels - all of them - and enjoyed them. This one was no exception.

Gannon manages to make the characters jump out of the page and as this is written in the first person from Kane's perspective, it was doubly satisfying. I liked the pacing, the quality of the writing and in-depth depiction of all the characters. The description of the technical aspects of a snipers 'work" are terrifying and it is a grim reminder that these killers do exist and practice their trade too many times in many countries.

I'm giving no spoilers - I just want to recommend this book most highly to anyone who might be thinking of buying it. You not be disappointed!

BROKEN by Ann Simko

5 STARS

I particularly like books where the author lives close to the edge! By that, I mean the author shows the reader who the perpetrator is and then manages to engage the reader right through to the end. Traditional plots, where the reader is not privy to the killer's identity, abound and are always good, but the former method of presenting a story is riding a fine line between losing tension and keeping the suspense up.

Ann Simko does this in spades!

Those who have read the first three Coyote Moon books will be familiar with the Thomas brothers, Dakota and Montana, but just in case, I won't do any spoilers. In Broken, Montana is forced out of his comfort zone by an infected appendix and this is where the fun starts! Determined to get back to the camp in which his Grandfather keeps the family safe, Montana is stymied by a snow storm, so is forced to stay in the house of the surgeon who operated on him who just happens to be young and beautiful. Unbeknownst to either of them, someone who is seriously mentally ill, is determined to bring down all those responsible - he thinks - for his wife's death a year previously. How Montana and those close to him

This is a well-written and exciting book, straightforward, with enough back-story to, with any luck, bring on a fifth in the series!

Highly recommended!!!!

DEAD SECRET by Richard Milton

5 STARS 

Firstly, I have to say that the paranormal is not my genre and I was invited to review this book. I did so with some scepticism, but despite a slow start, I became fascinated by the plot which Richard Milton rolled out.

Tony Gabrieli, a hard-nosed journalist, receives a mysterious summons from a solicitor - this is a British book - upon the death of his mother. Unbeknownst to Tony, his mother was involved with a mysterious group called The Chadwick Foundation. Astonished to discover that his mother was far more than the suburban housewife she purported to be, he receives a file of papers and a box in which is something equally amazing. So, Tony is introduced to the science of physiognomy and the dangerous, deadly sexual ritual which could get him killed.

Using clever back story, the plot starts at the French Revolution and follows on to the Second World War, as Milton lures the reader into the paranormal underworld, where governments play with lives and highly connected men and women buy and sell unthinkable objects for priceless sums.

After Tony meets the fascinating Eve and is introduced into her circle, he – and the reader – finally begins to understand just what he is facing. The disgraced scientist, Cesar Casimir, leads Tony into a deadly maze where he is forced to use his hitherto unacknowledged precognitive skills to stay alive...is Eve his lover or his killer?

The book begins energetically, but it took awhile for me to work out what was going on. At first reading it appeared that Tony Gabrieli was an ordinary journalist chasing a story, but as the story progressed, I became aware of a strong sense of foreboding. As I got to know the main character, I began to have grave concern for his safety – a mark of the talent of Milton – and was soon swept into the by-plays and dangerous secrets with which the characters are engaged.

I would have liked to have known more about Gabrieli’s mother – how she became a trustee of the Chadwick Foundation – but this was only part I felt could have been explained further. I didn’t particularly like the character of Eve, though I suspect that she was supposed to have this effect on the reader.

Thoroughly enjoyed this well written and intricate story and thought the ending was the only way it could have happened. No spoilers here!

Highly recommended.

SERENDIPITY HOUSE by Joyce DeBacco

 4 STARS

Firstly, the cover set the scene and the novel went on from there.

I liked the beginning where Sylvie takes off and keeps driving, realising that to go ahead with the wedding would be the worst mistake of her life, but I wanted to hear more from the family about what happened when she didn't turn up! However, there is a mystery in this book which explains much - no spoilers!

The characters are intriguing and the heroine one in whom I could invest concern. I wanted to slap the hero out a few times for his - typically male - ideas about how to conduct a relationship. Having had a "difficult" relationship with my mother which was not unlike Sylvie's with hers, I could understand the ongoing angst involved. Waiting for Sylvie to finally "turn the worm" as it were, was excruciating.

The only disappointment with this book was that none of the characters had an animal and I think a resident cat in a cosy, country town B & B is mandatory! :)

A very pleasant and - to a certain extent - laid back read.

LOST THE TITLE FOR THIS ONE. WILL SEARCH MY REVIEWS FOR IT!

Quite frankly, I wonder just how many serial killers are wandering around over there in America! Thankfully not too many when my husband and I were there two years ago and certainly not in Boston, a charming city which we thoroughly enjoyed and which is featured in this novel!

Cameron, a nurse, has managed to get over being unceremoniously dumped by her boyfriend three years previously and is finally finding her romantic feet again. She has the help of two flatmates - the unsociable Greg and the outgoing Karl. Now she is ready to move into a new apartment, and more than ready to start a new romance, which she does. However, fate has other things in store.

This a fast-paced plot which has more twists and turns than a cobra - but gory! It seems a serial killer who is devoted this craft is at work, and the final goal is, of course, Cameron.

I liked the character of Cameron, even though she does some really stupid things - as the heroine are wont to do in these situations - and over all I liked the book. I felt for the main male heroes - yes there are two, the detective and the Assistant District Attorney - but did pick the perpetrator about halfway through. This is did not impinge on my enjoyment of the whole.

I must say I do try to avoid books with serial killers in them now as the theme has been done to death with CSI and NCIS and all the usual suspects on TV, but this book was pretty good.

Good work!