REVIEW: Flesh House by Stuart MacBride

Flesh House (DS Logan McRae #4) by Stuart MacBride

Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Crime Fiction

Read: 30th June 2017

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★★★★★ 5 stars

OMG! This is quite different from previous Stuart MacBride in the Logan McRae series. I like that it is focused on the one case instead of several throughout the course of the story, but....WARNING! If you have a weak stomach then steer clear of this one. It is graphic, gory in parts and if it were a movie it would be classified horror. Simply put: serial killer, abattoir, bolt gun, pithing rod (google it) and lots and lots of blood. This is a Wolf Creek in Aberdeen.

Having said that, it was a brilliant, if not gory, mystery. It still had the dark witty humour we are used to and that I love. The continual commentary on DI Steel's bra is cause for amusement, as is the banter between Steel and MacRae. And then there is the new love in DC Simon Rennie's life...lol. But amidst the usual humour and the tough case at hand, a tragedy so sad so shocking hits one of their own and tears their life apart.

So many emotions when reading not just this book, but each of them, makes Stuart MacBride one of my favourite authors.

REVIEW: BY Flower and Dean Street by Patrice Chaplin

By Flower and Dean Street by Patrice Chaplin

Genre: Thriller, Gothic, Paranormal

Read: 19th June 2017

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★ 1 star

What the...? Seriously? That's it?! 

I started this book due to its Tagline "Jack the Ripper" has returned. But what was mostly apparent was the incessant non-stop chatter between Connie and her husband Daniel and their friends Jane and Mark. No wonder Connie kept hearing voices...the bloody ones never stopped bloody nattering!! There was no psychological horror, just some weak attempt of Jack the Ripper and his victims possessing Connie's mind which only drowned out the incessant chatter that seemed to go on endlessly about her. 

I stuck with it in the hope it would get better. It didn't. Instead it ended abruptly with what was apparently Jack's voice indicating he's coming for her....and that's it! Halfway through it just ends and I turn the page to find it's another damn book called The Love Apple! Seriously, this book had potential but it failed to deliver. Too short to fit so much bloody useless chatter in and no real storyline. Connie just seemed to drift by as the book did.

REVIEW: Whatever Happened to Cousin Charlotte? by Henry Farrell

Whatever Happened to Cousin Charlotte by Henry Farrell

Genre: Gothic Horror, Psychological Thriller

Read: 6th May 2017

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Purchase: Not Available

★★★★★ 5 stars 

A fantastic quick read of gothic horror. This novella preceeded the movie "Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte", upon which it is based. I love the movie though it's been years since I've seen it I shall have to pull it out again. Who else but our beloved Bette Davis could play cousin Charlotte? And she did so to perfection.

REVIEW: Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? by Henry Farrell

Whatever Happened to Baby Jane by Henry Farrell

Genre: Psychological Thriller

Read: 5th May 2017

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★★★★★ 5 stars

Loved the movie. It has always been a favourite. I thought it was about time I read the book. It is a truly gothic horror tale well before its time, that is both creepy and sad. On the one hand you are sad for Blanche Hudson, the crippled sister imprisoned upstairs in her bedroom away from everyone. Then on the other you are sad for Jane, who is clearly mentally ill stuck in memories of the past that haunt her, unaware of reality and fantasy. She both loves and hates her more famous sister Blanche, living in the fantastical past in the early part of the century when she was once a child star. It is a sad tale, but creepy just the same. And well ahead of its time...

REVIEW: Cold Justice by Katherine Howell

Cold Justice (Detective Ella Marconi #3) by Katherine Howell

Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Crime Fiction

Read: 28th April 2017

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★★★★ 4 stars

It's been a while since I read Katherine Howell and thought it was about time again. As always, a pleasure reading such a setting as Sydney - all the places, names and areas all familiar.

As for the story...I enjoyed it greatly, except for Ella's parents and her controlling boyfriend. I suspected the killer about halfway through and the why of it. But even so, that never takes the joy out of a good story.

REVIEW: The Woman Before Me by Ruth Dugdall

The Woman Before Me (Cate Austin #1) by Ruth Dugdall

Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Crime Fiction

Read: 20th April 2017

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★★★ 3 stars

I actually enjoyed this book and kept turning the pages devouring each for more. But it was the ending that I found anti climatic and that let it down. You get the feeling all the way through the book that Rose is innocent only to have but one final tragedy twisted to be even more tragic. The whole tale was sad and tragic but the ending made Rose seem even more twisted. I had hoped she was just a poor grieving mother who'd known no real love in her life, obsessed with trying to hang onto the one person she loved but didn't really love her. It was a sad tale in all. And I can safely say the only person I liked in the whole story was Cate.

I didn't like Rose all that much but I liked her more than Jason who just took her for granted while remaining in love with his ex wife and sleeping with her still, fathering her new son whose murder Rose was imprisoned for. I didn't like Emma, Jason's ex wife and Rose's new friend, who complained about her lot in life when she had everything Rose ever wanted and took it all for granted. And I didn't like Dominic who was just an angry controlling husband who seemed somewhat put out that a baby disrupted his and Emma's life. I may not have liked Rose much, but I felt sorry for her and the hand she'd been dealt. And then the ending ruined that for me...

REVIEW: In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware

In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware

Genre: Psychological Thriller

Read: 17th April 2017

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★★★★ 4 stars

** spoiler alert ** Nora...not Lee. And Lee...not Leo.

I don't know why so many said they didn't like this book or any of the characters. The only ones I didn't like we're Flo and Clare. Flo because she was unhinged where Clare was concerned, practically worshipping her. And Clare because she seemed too perfect. Somewhat fake. I wasn't disappointed in the ending either because I didn't like her to begin with.

I wondered if I was the only one to pick up the "text" sent from James breaking off with Nora ten years before as not being from him at all. Long before Nora picked up on it towards the end. I picked up on it right away when it began "Lee..." James only ever called her Leo.

I wasn't disappointed that I guessed who was behind the whole charade. I thought it was a good read. I really enjoyed it and look forward to reading more from this author.