REVIEW: A Murder of Magpies by Mark Edwards

A Murder of Magpies (The Magpies #2) by Mark Edwards

Genre: Psychological Thriller

Read: 29th June 2018

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★★★★ 4 stars

I'm not sure if I reviewed "The Magpies" and it has been so long since I read it but I know I loved it and it was seriously creepy in parts. 

If you haven't read "The Magpies", please do so first! This is a short sequel and to understand the psychology and fear you need to experience it firsthand FIRST!

So Mark Edwards has made us wait some years before giving us a sequel - which I didn't see coming - and after losing everything 5 years before - his house, his wife, his unborn child - Jame Knight fled to the other side of the world to Australia (my country - yay!) where he has buried himself since. He doesn't seem to be doing much except drinking and still slightly obsessing over Lucy Newton and the havoc she and her twisted husband and partner in crime wreaked on him and his wife Kirsty. 

Then one day in his new home of Fremantle, Western Australia, he runs into an old friend Brian - who incidentally wrote a book on Jamie and Kirsty's experience though he did change the names. It is then Brian lets slip he still speaks to Kirsty, that she has a daughter, but is no longer with her partner. He gives Jamie her phone number and Jamie toys with idea of phoning her when he gets a plea for help...on a forum dedicated to the Dark Angel murders and that of Lucy Newton. He discovers that Lucy is out of prison and up to her old tricks - torturing people with psychological mind games - as a woman called Anita lives in constant fear of her neighbour and Jamie knows that only he can help! So he jumps on a plane and heads back to England to a remote place called Ludlow in Shropshire. Stupid man.

He and Anita devise a plan to trap Lucy with enough evidence to take to the police and to stop Lucy once and for all.

What happens next I can't begin to describe without spoiling this wonderfully thrilling short read! But I can say you won't be disappointed, as twist after twist unravels with a final one at the end. 

TRIGGER WARNING
There are references to spiders and in all their creepiness in this book, so if you are an arachnophobe you may want to skip this book...or those pages at least. You will get a warning when it is about to happen.

REVIEW: The Daughter by Lucy Dawson

The Daughter by Lucy Dawson

Genre: Psychological Thriller

Read: 28th June 2018

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★★★★ 4 stars

"The Daughter" is the first book I have read by Lucy Dawson, so I wasn't sure what to expect. But it turned out to be a great psychological thriller despite not being not edge-of-your-seat kind of stuff.

It begins in November 1999 with Jess taking her 5 year old daughter Beth to school, where surprisingly, the head teacher - Simon Strallen - there turns out to be a guy Jess had a quick fling with after her mother died 5 years before. You do the maths. It wasn't hard to work out that Beth was actually his daughter and not her husband Ben's. This is discovered in the beginning so it's not much of a spoiler. However, things start to get interesting when Simon's wife, Louise, also a teacher at the school, cottons on to things and confronts her husband. However, all that is put aside when Jess gets the call that no mother wants to get - the one that says something has happened to her child. Jess and her husband Ben must then face life without their little ray of sunshine Beth. But life isn't even as simple as that. And so Jess's life spirals as she comes face to face with a choice she must make to save her husband.

Fast forward seventeen years and Jess is happily married to Ed, who incidentally knows ALL about her past - Simon, the affair, her marriage, Beth and Beth's tragic death - and now has a two year old son. So when they put their house on the market and begin looking around for another, nothing prepares Jess for the shock of what she is confronted with when her and Ed are given an exclusive viewing to a house just a few streets away. And soon Jess' past comes backs to haunt her as someone begins a cruel game of cat and mouse with her, taunting and frightening both her and their nanny, and enraging her husband Ed. Their house is broken into; all the clocks are set to the exact time Beth died; a mirror falls and breaks narrowly missing her 2 year old son; a magpie is left in the nanny's room. Someone knows about Jess' past. And someone wants Jess to pay.

So much happens in this book to give you cause to think "is it her?" or "is it him?" Though not so much edge-of-your-seat, more of a slow burn, some things are predictable some are not. I did work out who it was long before the end of the story but spent most of the time trying to figure out how and why. But the revelations at the end are both shocking as well as heartbreaking. 

But one thing is for sure...it all goes back to Beth. I was still left wondering about her death even after I finished the book. Did we really find out the truth? I'll leave it to you to judge for yourself.

REVIEW: The Chalk Man by C.J. Tudor

The Chalk Man by C.J. Tudor

Genre: Psychological Thriller

Read: 20th June 2018

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★★ 2.5 stars

I was so excited to read "The Chalk Man" as it sounded fascinating and above all thrilling judging by the synopsis and the reviews I'd read. By all accounts, I was in for a real treat, they said. But in the words of Eddie and his father:

"NEVER ASSUME." 

But I must be in the minority on this one. I found the Prologue promising but then it ventured into massive amounts of monologuing told from Eddie's perspective - both in 1986 and the present time of 2016. I'm not a fan of huge monologuing and prefer the connection between characters with dialogue - of which there was some, but not enough I feel. It was this that made the whole story drag on too slowly for my tastes. I couldn't connect with the characters and therefore I couldn't really grasp their personalities or them as people. To me, they seemed like just names on a page and not real people. However, I did read it to the end which I found a bit of an anti-climax. I just think it could have been written better. It certainly did have that creepy feel about it. It had an almost supernatural feel to it at times, particularly with Eddie's dreams and you found yourself questioning whether they were real or just a dream?

Actually, this book had a real Stephen King feel to it. I have seen some comparing it to "Stand By Me" but I've not read the book that is based on, but almost from the beginning I had the feeling of its similarities in part to "IT". I mean, we have five friends - Eddie, Fat Gav, Hoppo, Mickey and the single girl in their gang, Nicky. They are also about the same age as the group of friends in "IT". And Nicky had a sad homelife just as Beverly Marsh in "IT" did, and she being the lone female member of their gang. Just the whole story told from the perspective of 12 year olds with the adults just lingering in the background and then 30 years later they revisit the past. It really did feel like I was reading Stephen King. Some of the creepier aspects of the book - like Eddie's dreams with walking hands on fingertips, severed arms and leaf encrusted limbs all converging on him - reeked of King. So yes, in that respect, the book was creepy. As was the older man/teenage girl aspects also creepy. But it was still lacking...

The synopsis says four friends find a dead body in the woods and then 30 years later the chalk men come back to haunt Eddie with the past. But it takes over half the book to actually get to the murder and and to the body they find. It waffles on about everything else leading up to it in a long-winded way that makes you want to scream "just get to it already!"

I did like the connection in the present day between three of the present day characters. I thought that was a nice touch. But everyone else from the past that we revisit in the present just seem to be weak. Even the ending was a tad Stephen King and on the weak side. I really really struggled to connect to anyone in this book. Eddie just seemed to be a complete sad case who just never moved on, still obsessed with the girl he game the stupid name of "Waltzer girl".

I kept waiting for the story to take off and get better but it never did.

REVIEW: My Little Eye by Stephanie Marland

My Little Eye (Starke & Bell) by Stephanie Marland

Genre: Psychological Thriller

Read: 15th June 2018

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★★★★ 4 stars

When I began "My Little Eye" I was sure I would give it about a 2 to 3 star rating, as I found it a little slow to begin. Told from two perspectives - DI Dominic Bell (Dom) and Clementine Starke - the story weaves the online social media world into the real world and their respective attempts at solving the murders of women in London by the media-monikered "The Lover". I was more interested in the police procedural than the online social media aspect and felt it "got in the way" of a good story. However, as the story progressed it became a more addictive read and I found myself turning the pages to reveal just what Clementine knew that Dom (and the police) didn't, and how it was going to play out. 

What made the story interesting was Clementine's own backstory. Why she is who she is and why she is obviously more comfortable online that in the real world. My love for backstories made this a far more interesting read, and both Clementine and Dom have their own stories and secrets to tell (or keep) which gives them both character and substance. 

After reading another book previously that dabbled with social media and murder, I wasn't sure what to expect with this and I guess it clouded my judgement from the beginning as I didn't really enjoy the previous book as much. But as "My Little Eye" progressed it became clear that this was a book with a formidable story with strong key characters.

The online world is somewhere people can hide behind alias', nicknames, avatars and on the whole, be judge, jury and executioner in the world of opinion. The conversations between the online members using their Twitter handles added that extra realism to the story. But on the other side, there was an element of creepiness about it all. Why anyone would get involved in a group like this, go out and gather evidence and then report back to the group their findings is just a little too extreme for me. But it added that extra creepiness to it. Particularly when "Death Stalker" the self appointed leader of the group had every team member turn on their locations but refrained from revealing his own. No one seemed to know just who he was or why he was really doing this. He was the ultimate puppet master, and the team were his marionettes. I kept silently screaming to Clementine "Don't do it! Don't do it!" when she was undertaking tasks at Death Stalker's request.

And then there is Dom. He who has his own secrets and baggage with a past that is coming back to haunt him...in the form of the IPCC. But then he finds details of the case, previously (and still) undisclosed turning up in the media and cornered by a persistent freelance journalist with questions he should know nothing about. Someone is on his team leaking information. But who is the leak? He's not sure who to trust - both in the past and present - and he is not sure where he stands. Solving this case is paramount not just for the public's safety but for his own peace of mind and redemption.

As Clementine and Dom's world collides for but a moment, I wondered just where it would lead and then BAM! A twist is thrown in to turn the whole case upside down and soon Clementine finds herself in the firing line of both police and the online group.

I was a little disappointed that despite Clementine regaining her memory of what happened in the fire that killed her father and left her physically scarred, we didn't find out more as to "who" the dark shadow was or could have been. I can only hope the author will continue to explore this backstory. I hate unfinished stories.

A slow-burner to start, "My Little Eye" picks up pace to move steadily then roars to a finish that leaves us wanting more. Where do Dom and Clementine go from here? I guess we have to wait for the next book to find out.

REVIEW: The Missing Ones by Patricia Gibney

The Missing Ones (DI Lotti Parker #1) by Patricia Gibney

Genre: Psychological Thriller, Mystery, Crime Fiction

Read: 12th June 2018

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★★★★★ 5 stars

A fascinating debut thriller, this time set in Ireland, featuring new Detective Lottie Parker. The opening Prologue drew me in quickly as I love thrillers that have a backstory mystery from way back when. I feel it adds more depth to the current storyline and gives it that added edge. However, once it moved to the present day I found it difficult to engage with Lottie and the characters at first, and therefore found the opening chapters a little slow to get into. It didn't take long for my interest to take hold as the story unfolds within two timelines 39 years apart.

The key to this case is St Angela's, a former children's home - for unwed mothers, wayward children, you name it - now a formidable shadow in the centre yet overlooking the Irish town. Particularly chilling is the fact it is winter, making the building seem an even more isolated, imposing and intimidating structure. We see the story unfold both in 1975/1976 and in the present time within and around the confines of St Angela's, as Lottie delves into the secrets this building the Catholic Church, particularly the Bishop, seem at pains to cover. Meanwhile, the body count rises.

Lottie is an interesting character, though a little annoying at times. She lost her husband to cancer 3 years previously and still trying to come to terms with it as well as trying to engage with her three children who appear to fend for themselves a lot. What I didn't like was her relationship with her mother. I know some people do have a similar type of relationship with theirs but I don't, and I find it hard to comprehend such indifference to your own mother. In many books I read, most protagonists have difficult relationships with their parents (particularly mothers) and even on TV it's the same. It's as if there is no honour for one's parents. And sadly, Lottie's own relationship with her children looks to be heading in the same direction, particularly with her oldest Katie. However, having said that, it becomes clear that Lottie's relationship with her mother is paramount to the history of her own story and that of the book. I still don't like it and find it hard to correlate how so many people do.

Lottie's relationship with her DS Mark Boyd is an interesting one. He obviously wants more but she doesn't - still mourning her husband and the fact they work together would make it doubly difficult not to mention uncomfortable. Imagine the smirks and elbowing between the lads in the break room. I'm guessing Lottie wants to maintain the respect of her team and by pursuing a relationship with her DS she would probably lose that. So a good friend he remains. I love their banter and friendly fire with each other. They certainly make a good team.

The book throws a lot of clues and red herrings the readers' way, and in all makes for exciting and thrilling reading. There is loads of uncertainty as the pages turn with tons of suspense in the final 20-30%, as you wonder who to trust. Whilst I figured one or two parts of the story, there were still mysteries unveiled right up to the very end. And one I didn't see until just before it was revealed by a main player but right then it made perfect sense. The story had then come full circle.

"The Missing Ones" is a brilliant and thrilling read that grew on me after what I felt was a slow start that I couldn't put down until I had finished. I can't wait to read more by Patricia Gibney and get to know Lottie and Boyd that little bit more.

REVIEW: The Girls in the Water by Victoria Jenkins

The Girls in the Water (Detectives King & Lane) by Victoria Jenkins

Genre: Psychological Thriller, Mystery, Crime Fiction

Read: 8th June 2018

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★★★★★ 5 stars

What a debut! Thrilling and exciting from start to finish!

"The Girls in the Water" is our introduction to DI Alex King and DC Chloe Lane, a police procedural/serial killer thriller set in South Wales. I was hooked from the first pages, which is just how I like my books and I wasn't disappointed as I was thrown into the thrill-ride. What I particularly liked about this book was the "two mysteries" component, that you feel you are trying to solve a past and present crime at the same time. I've read a few like this and I love the way they are drawn together to tell the story of both past and present.

After the initial prologue, we begin with the body of a young woman found in the river in a local park. Her identity is a mystery and no one seems to know or even care that she is missing or dead. DI King and DC Lane are put on the case and desperately search for clues as to who she was and who knew her. When another girl goes missing, the race is on to find her before it's too late - and to find a link between these two girls and why they are being targeted.

But amidst the investigation, Chloe is soon distracted by a secret from her past. Someone is bringing up things she has buried and is taunting her with death of her brother. Was it a suicide? Or was he murdered? It is clear her mind isn't always on the job at hand as she tries to solve the mystery of her brother's death and his girlfriend's murder some 8 years before, despite the case being closed. And then a headline hits the papers that sends Chloe's world into a spiral as she finds herself suspended from duty. Someone definitely has it out for her.

This thrilling debut is a page-turner from start to finish and the character, whilst flawed in their own ways, are completely likeable. I love how they are both women on the case, when usually there is generally a male component in the team. I love the backstories of each of the women, and how each are far from perfect with their own sets of baggage - Chloe's struggles with her past and her self worth to Alex's failed marriage whilst sleeping with her ex-husband. I also love how these two stick together. Whilst Chloe seeks out Alex's help and advice but then runs in the opposite direction when she feels she's crossed a line, Alex still goes above and beyond to stand by her DC. Neither of them are perfect and they know that, but they don't martyr themselves either (like I feel some do in other books). Despite being flawed with their own sets of baggage, Alex and Chloe are strong and likeable characters that complement each other perfectly throughout.

There are so many different characters throughout the course of the story as it unfolds, as you find yourself questioning "is it him?" several times. There are both likeable characters and those I would happily hold under water myself, but one of the most haunting is the back story of the little boy neglected and abused by his mother. It is obvious this is the back story to the killer...but just which character does he grow into being? I admit, I had an inkling but his identity wasn't clear to me until right near the end (particularly as he went to great pains to disguise it) though I suspected just who his alter ego was and how he related to both stories. It was cleverly interwoven and quite genius, I felt. But maybe that's because I just loved it so much I can't find fault with this book at all.

I love how the setting is in South Wales - somewhere different than the usual London or Glasgow. Although I do love my British thrillers, so I really don't mind where they are set, but I do love that we are introduced to a new and fresh setting around Cardiff and South Wales. Not an important aspect, but something different. I'm just surprised to find the writer is Australian (like me - yay!) though lives in South Wales herself.

"The Girls in the Water" is just WOW! It is incredibly compelling, thrilling, exciting, page-turning...I loved it! The fact that it is a debut for this writer shows a certain promise I'm sure she can live up to. I can't wait to follow their journey some more...

REVIEW: Snapshot by Craig Robertson

Snapshot (Tony Winter #2) by Craig Robertson

Genre: Psychological Thriller, Mystery, Crime Fiction

Read: 2nd June 2018

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★★★ 3 stars

After reading "Random" (which I absolutely loved so much I wrote Craig Robertson to tell him), I had high hopes for "Snapshot". However, I found it very hard to get into. I'm not sure I liked Tony Winter, and I really don't much like Rachel Narey. Addy, however, I did like. And it is hard to read a series when you don't like the main characters.

The fact Tony Winter is a police photographer and not a detective is a different perspective. However, he has this macabre fascination with dead bodies that just isn't normal. It is almost creepy. He wants to be assigned the BIG cases with the most gruesome deaths so he can capture those moments, and he details it for the reader. He is incredibly eager to be involved in the team investigating the sniper shootings around Glasgow.

DS Rachel Narey is one of those "don't call me, I'll call you when I want you" kind of people. I found her annoying at times, when she thought Tony was trying to edge into the investigation. She is ambitious, which is probably another reason I didn't like her, as I'm not a fan of ambitious women. Maybe I have to read something else with these two in to see how I feel about them because I wasn't enamoured by them in this book. And I can't remember much of "Random" now - which Rachel Narey featured in - I just remembered I loved the book being from a different perspective I had read at that time.

I have to agree with another reviewer that the surprise was in who was behind the murders, not because of who he was but because his character was so weak. He wasn't really one of the main players. He wasn't one you would think of when reviewing the story. It felt like he was just thrown in. Maybe if there had been some more back story to this guy then it would be have been better. I wasn't surprised at all by it being an insider - I had worked that much out for myself long before Winter did - his character just needed more building throughout the course of the book, I feel.

Overall, "Snapshot" is a thrilling read. I did eventually get hooked but it took me a long time to do so...and I normally don't continue with books that take so long to get into. I think my biggest issue with the book was not the characters, but the topic - drug lords. They are everywhere and I am just not interested in them. I prefer something darker or random.

I was disappointed in this book especially the thrilling "Random", but it sufficed as readable. It is a macabre and dark story and definitely NOT for the fainthearted. If you don't like excessive blood and gruesome visceral detail of violent death then this book is not for you.