Posts

THE KNAPDALE MURDERS by Daniel Sellers

4* Good red herrings in a tale with multiple characters, any number of which could've killed the awful Ellen.  Ellen seems to be a very twisted Hyacinth Bucket-type character; keeping tabs on everyone and their - in her eyes, misdemeanours - making threats; interfering in their business; reporting them; spreading rumours and more. We don't fully learn what motivates her, as she's killed in the first few pages. She seems to have been a half-decent sleuth, with a very unchristian heart, sadly. Did she deserve her ending? For most of the tale I thought she did, but when the killer was revealed, perhaps Ellen had been trying to do a form of...not quite good, maybe, but the right thing? I mean, she'd have still had an ego boost out of it had she succeeded in unmasking the killer, but some people got the closure they needed after far too many years.  The characters in this were decent as was most of the police work. I'm not sure that some of the police should've been ...
Post a Comment
Read more

BROKEN CIRCLE by Matt Brolly

4* Another good outing for Liam and Maya. It just seems a tad tiresome and unbelievable that the almost personality-less Liam is so sought after by so many females... So, the last part of my title - Liam's given a number by a female tech he casually knows, in an awkward scene for them both; it jarred. He's sleeping with Grace, an ex, because it's something to do. He'd have us think he's still got a thing for Millie, his son's former teacher who he just happens to bump into and can't get out of his mind despite knowing she had a new boyfriend in book 2, and was traumatised at what happened to her because of her connection to Liam. Kinda doesn't really ring true, as the guy lacks personality, social skills and is a workaholic. But, at the end, there might be hope for him in book 4. That aside, the book was decent, although he has almost no tine to be a part-time dad to George who's growing up fast and seems mature beyond his years, and is a pretty dece...
Post a Comment
Read more

TAKE TWO by Barbara Elsborg

* A touching, but not soppy, read with Barbara Elsborg's usual tugs on my heart; with a couple of guys brought together by fate - or maybe a higher power; with an organic mystery element that's seen through with devastating consequences. But remember, it's a BE tale, so it all works out 😃 I've never read a BE book that I've not enjoyed, and this is one of her most organic-feeling. It starts with a punch for both River and Newt - River's blow is devastating in how he may never regain control of his body, voice, mind and agency, and Newt's is devastating in how his life and future are taken away from him by betrayal by family, by people who should've loved and protected him. The two don't know of each other's existence until a good deed to a stranger results in Newt being offered a job in River's life. The tale is perhaps a bit slower than some of BE's, but that makes it more realistic as we see River's physical and mental struggles. T...
Post a Comment
Read more

JUDGE STONE by James Patterson and Viola Davis.

4* Brutal, sadly all too believable in the orange twat's 2026 USA. Decent storyline; decent, strong females; horrible, racist, hypocritical bandwagon rednecks who're most likely MAGAs. This book has gone there. It's fiction based on today's USA that's gone backwards in so many ways, bringing out the worst in people who've become emboldened because of that orange twat who's just a mouthpiece for all things horrible, shameful, racist, jealous, wrong and countless other negative adjectives. It's a sad reflection that makes me grateful to be a Brit, although we have a good few twats of our own who're giving Reform acceleration, frighteningly and sadly. But, we at least have backbone and we have courts that will hold people to task. It's a tale of a Black female judge who's respected by many; hated by many more who're racist, Caucasian, barely disguised MAGAs, including her peers. In one scene where she overhears how her peers describe her, in...
Post a Comment
Read more

THE PRINCE'S PLAYBOOK by Nora Phoenix

3.5* A decent storyline that thankfully is pretty much trope-free, although you do need to suspend disbelief a bit. This is a cute, romantic and if you can get over the prince-pauper thing - to use this purely as a comparison between the leads' backgrounds and upbringing - the tale works. Adan is sweet and family orientated, and he's got working-class parents who've sacrificed a lot for him. I loved that when he hit the big time, he insisted that they both retire. Nils didn't have a stick up his royal arse, which helped, but that was the bit that required suspension of disbelief, because who in 2026 isn't friends with Google? It didn't seem believable that no one clocked who he was.  The tale was plausible, giving them an organic reason to meet, but that both embraced being bi so easily and quickly felt a bit 'hmm...yeah...' Nils was more believable than Adan, so that's where the tale lost 1* for me. Too much immediate acceptance, not a worry about w...
Post a Comment
Read more

HARD TIME by Logan Ryles

5* Most probably a guy's book, but who cares when it's this perfectly executed, no pun intended. I'm not sure how many Mason Sharpe books there are, but despite not reading them all, I've never felt lost.  This one doesn't require you to have read any of the previous books. Tbh, I can't remember any, despite getting into this series in late 2024. So, Sharpe's minding his own business but stops for a hitchhiker, who's suddenly giving him vibes that cause his spine to itch. It's not so much the guy's answers but how he holds himself. Then, there's a shootout and a manhunt that takes Sharpe and Shane Hagan on a journey info mafioso NYC and up against cops, the FBI, the bad guys who keep coming, a crooked accountant and his lawyer who has the power to save Shane and his family. Were it not such a serious tale, I could just see Hannibal from The A-Team saying 'I love it when a plan comes together'. This has it all. 2 guys and a gal with ba...
Post a Comment
Read more

THE SCARECROW by P.F. Ford

3.5* Suspend disbelief a bit and this isn't too bad a read. Reminiscent of Norman Norman tales. This book jumps a fair bit from the 4th novella in this series. Nolan has been under investigation by 'internal affairs'/UK equivalent, has been cleared but has been demoted as a scapegoat. According to him. And, the female boss, Chalmers, I think, who took over from DCI James, apparently turned into a psychopath, although nothing is given in evidence or remotely touched on. I think the tale takes place some 20 years after the novella ends, and Cormac is on his early 40s.  So the crime/s and baddie/s in this book, especially with the supposed senior UK political connection need to be taken with a pinch of salt. A rather big one. It's happening in rural UK and a police force composed Cormac, his boss DI Carver and DS Aconna/'O'Connor' - whose name is used as a reason for a slightly didactic lesson in diversity and inclusion - are the ones tasked in taking these m...
Post a Comment
Read more