Category: suspense

mystery · suspense · thriller

*BLOG TOUR* The Weekend – L.H. Stacey ★★★★

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Blurb; That Lake. This house. His friends. They all know what happened to my boy. I know they do. And you… you have to help me find the truth…

A weekend to remember…

Ten years ago, deeply in love, I would have done anything for Thomas Kirkwood.

But on the night of our graduation, fuelled by drink and drugs, Thomas’s lifeless body was found floating in the Kirkwood family lake. That weekend changed everything, and I swore I would never return to Kirkwood manor.

A weekend to forget…

Now, ten years later, I have been invited back to the place that holds such terrible memories for me, to a memorial weekend for Thomas, organised by his still-grieving mother Ada.

But this is no ordinary weekend. This is a reunion to catch a killer…and I fear that I could be top of Ada’s list….

My Review; This was such a gripping read. It is a story about Thomas’s death in the past but also a reunion set in the present, where everyone comes back for a memorial but with a twist. It’s not a memorial I’d want to attend. Who killed Thomas? With tensions high and more deaths ahead, what is going on at this Manor? The story flicks from the past (ten years before) and the present, and it really is a who dunnit story until the final pages. The main character, Lizzie, was Thomas’s ex, and it seems not many people like her, but one person still does… Thomas’s brother William. With everyone under a spotlight, including the staff, will they find the killer? With family secrets uncovered along the way, this is a tense, fast-paced, and deadly read. It kept me guessing, and it wasn’t who I thought it was. Highly recommend. Enjoyed this one. A well-deserved four stars.

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mystery · suspense · thriller

*BLOG TOUR* The Perfect Girl – Kelly Golden ★★★★

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Blurb; He always said she was just a friend… What if she’d kill for more?

Sophie is perfect. She has blonde hair and blue eyes and when she smiles her wide, open, caring smile, her teeth sparkle. Everybody loves her. So would I, except she’s my husband Mike’s best friend, and sometimes they seem a little too close for comfort.

This summer, Sophie is renting the grand house next door, bringing over fancy wine, offering to babysit our beautiful three-year-old daughter. It’s nice, actually. She’s smart and funny. Maybe the way she is with Mike – squeezing his arm, tilting her head when she laughs at his jokes – is just how she is with everybody.

But then she says something that sends a shiver down my spine – does she know something about me she shouldn’t?

And when her new husband arrives, looking slightly too familiar, I realise my time is running out. My baby girl and I are in terrible danger.

Sophie really is perfect. She has me perfectly trapped. And as my world begins to crumble, I start to wonder: does Sophie just want to steal my husband, or has she planned the perfect murder?

My Review; This book messed with my head. It was a slow burn at first, getting familiar with the characters, the settings, relationships and backgrounds, etc. But boy, once this got going, it was so good. The author had me believing no one at one point. She has written such a clever, crafty, twisted, and messed up character in this story that she gets away with everything. I really hated her. Manipulative. The ending… WOW. How can you just end it like that? Come on. Seriously. I need answers. I need more. Please. I really enjoyed this read and fell in love with the little girl who I just wanted to take away from everything happening and run away with her. A well-deserved four stars. Highly recommend. Twisted. Gripping. Thrilling. Deadly.

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crime · Detective · Killers · mystery · suspense

*BLOG TOUR* Her Secret Past – Kerry Watts ★★★★

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Blurb; Jean Angus pours the last of the lukewarm tea into her chipped cup, shivering as she looks outside into the dark night. Her eyes are drawn to a slow movement not far from her cosy farmhouse. She’s not expecting visitors. And as the back door opens with a bang, she doesn’t even have time to shout for help.

On a dark winter night, the bodies of Malcolm and Jean Angus lie cold and still in a pool of blood in their kitchen. Detective Jessie Blake is called in to find out what happened to the reclusive pair.

Searching the couple’s property, Jessie learns about a vicious dispute with a nearby landowner, Rachel Ferguson, and when Jessie looks into Rachel further, she doesn’t expect what comes up. Rachel isn’t the person everyone thinks she is and a previous murder conviction just made her Jessie’s prime suspect.

The small Perthshire town begins to gossip about the double murder and Jessie’s own past comes back to haunt her when her abusive ex-husband begins to interfere in her new life. As the town starts a witch hunt against Rachel, Jessie is under pressure to find out what really happened in the farmhouse that night. Because if it isn’t Rachel, then who is the murderer living among them, waiting to kill again?

My Review; This is book three in a series, but it reads perfectly fine as a standalone. It took me a while to get into this one as it flicks between the past and the present (two separate cases, but very similar). This is a who dunnit and race against time to stop the killer. I loved the main detective, Jessie, who is dealing with her own problems while investigating. It is a story packed with twists, turns, and suspense. I honestly thought I’d guessed the plot, but I was so wrong. A jaw dropping ending. I enjoyed reading this. A well-deserved four stars from me. Would recommend the series as a whole.

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