The Catch by T. M. Logan (Review)

The Catch by T. M. Logan

Blurb

Ed is delighted to meet his twenty-three year old daughter’s fiancé for the first time. Ryan appears to be the perfect future son-in-law. There’s just one problem. There’s something off about Ryan. Something hidden in the shadows behind his eyes. And it seems that only Ed can see it.

Terrified that his daughter is being drawn in by a psychopath, Ed sets out to uncover her fiancé’s dark past – while keeping his own concealed. But no-one believes him. And the more he digs, the more he alienates her and the rest of the family who are convinced that Ryan is ‘the one’.

Ed knows different. For reasons of his own, he knows a monster when he sees one…

Review

This book had been sat on my TBR trolley for several years so I thought it was high time I read it.

I will be honest I found this book very frustrating and nearly gave up on more than one occasion. The first half of the book was just far too unbelievable for me as Ed’s obsession was ridiculous and very annoying. Ed alienated everyone around him and basically destroyed his own life all because of a hunch and no real evidence. I began to really dislike Ed’s character and I was relieved when the narrative was taken over by Ryan.

The other characters weren’t great either and really lacked substance. I would have loved to have learned more about Abbie but all her character showed was that she was a teacher, loved cats and was blind to all else other than Ryan. Claire had a little bit more about her but the part at the end where she found Abbie was also verging on the unbelievable.

Ryan was probably the most interesting character in the book and to be honest I would have actually liked to have learned more about his past. However, my favourite character in the whole book was most definitely the cat!

All in all The Catch lured me in with its interesting blurb but the actual story was just completely lacking and the only reason I kept reading was because I find it impossible to DNF a book. I give this book 2 out of 5 Dragons.

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About the author

Tim was born in Berkshire and studied in London and Cardiff before becoming a national newspaper journalist. He lives in Nottinghamshire with his wife and two children, and writes in a cabin in the corner of his garden.

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The Seven Dials Mystery by Agatha Christie (Review)

The Seven Dials Mystery by Agatha Christie

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Blurb

A healthy young man dies in his sleep, despite the ringing of eight separate alarm clocks… Gerry Wade had proved himself to be a champion sleeper; so the other house guests decided to play a practical joke on him. Eight alarm clocks were set to go off, one after the other, starting at 6.30 a.m. But when morning arrived, one clock was missing and the prank had backfired with tragic consequences. For Jimmy Thesiger in particular, the words ‘Seven Dials’ were to take on a new and chilling significance…

Review

This is my next book in my Agatha Christie challenge and it did not disappoint as I do love a Superintendent Battle mystery.

Superintendent Battle isn’t really the main character in the books that he features in and it is more the delightful Bundle. Battle was in this book and he always seemed to be in just the right place at just the right time and although he appeared a clumsy country policeman with no clue what is going on that is all a front because actually he is shrewd, sharp and very clever. He lulls the enemy into a false sense of security.

However, Bundle is my absolute favourite character in this book, closely followed by her father, Lord Caterham. Bundle is a super fast driver with no fear behind the wheel or in life. She is definitely a character who takes life by the horns and isn’t even phased by sleeping in the same bed which a man died in literally a few days before. She also loves a mystery and soon starts to investigate what is going on following the death of Gerry Wade.

The other character I loved was Lady Coote. There was a very melancholy air about Lady Coote. She longed for a simpler life, a life before her husband made millions. She was quiet and often came across as socially clumsy and awkward but really she was very good at managing her husband and winning at bridge. She was a very cleverly written character who really added to the story.

I loved how this mystery developed and how it built up and I loved Christie’s little subtle digs at the ridiculous in the aristocracy and new money in the 1920’s. The comedy in this book was also brilliant and I couldn’t help laughing out loud whilst reading this book. I give this book 5 out of 5 Dragons.

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About the author

Agatha Christie (1890-1976) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections. She also wrote the world’s longest running play, The Mousetrap. She also wrote 6 novels under the name Mary Westmacott.

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Nephthys by Rachel Louise Driscoll (Review)

Nephthys by Rachel Louise Driscoll

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Blurb

Quiet and reserved, Clemmie is happy in the background. But although her parents may overlook her talents, her ability to read hieroglyphs makes her invaluable at the Egyptian relic parties which have made her father the toast of Victorian society.

But at one such party, the words Clemmie interprets from an unusual amulet strike fear into her heart. The beautiful and dangerous glyphs she holds in her hands will change her life forever.

Five years later, Clemmie arrives in Egypt on a mission to save what remains of her family. The childhood game she used to play about the immortal sisters, Isis and Nephthys, has taken on a devastating resonance and it is only by following Nephthys’ story that she can undo the mistakes of the past. On her journey up the Nile she will meet unexpected allies and enemies and, along with long-buried secrets and betrayals, Clemmie will be forced to step into the light.

Review

I was really excited to read this book and had it preordered for quite a while and I read it almost as soon as it arrived in my parcel box which is unusual for me.

I will be honest I did not gel well with this book. I really tried and there were parts that I enjoyed but I did struggle with the writing style and some of the characters. One of the elements I did enjoy was that the main character Clemmie was an asthmatic. As a fellow asthmatic I found it really interesting to see how asthma was treated in the Victorian period. It really made me realise how dangerous asthma was in that period as there really wasn’t any drugs to help if they had a bad attack.

The other element I loved was the descriptions of Egypt and how the Victorians visited the different locations. I also enjoyed the snippets of Egyptian myths that were included in the book and I would have loved to have had more of those and the descriptions of Egypt. The showing of how Egypt was plundered by tourists and so much history was either destroyed or taken was also good to see that it wasn’t covered up or skipped over but was made part of the story.

I did struggle with how much this book jumped around at times from the present to past and sometimes to dreams. I just felt like it detracted from the storyline and I found it slowed the pacing down quite a bit. I also struggled with Clemmie. Clemmie was a very frustrating character to me. At times she was just too naive and childish and although I know the Victorians were very superstitious Clemmie was broaching on the ridiculous.

This was a take it or leave it book for me, I did enjoy the scenes set in Egypt but I found the flashbacks all too frequent and I just wanted the story to get a move on and back to Egypt. I give this book 3 out of 5 Dragons.

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About the author

Rachel Louise Driscoll won the Curtis Brown Creative scholarship in 2020. Originally from the South West of England, she lives in the North East with her husband and cat, Cleopatra. Nephthys is her debut novel. She was inspired to write Clemmie’s story by an experience she had at a local museum as a child where she was allowed to hold a mummified ancient Egyptian cat. Enjoying the hours of avid research required, Rachel even wrote some of the book wearing a corset in order to capture Clemmie’s experience more accurately!

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The Frozen People by Elly Griffiths (Review)

The Frozen People by Elly Griffiths

Blurb

Ali Dawson and her cold case team investigate crimes so old they’re frozen—or so their inside joke goes. Ali’s work seems like a safe desk job, but what her friends—and even her beloved son—don’t know is that her team has a secret: They can travel back in time to look for evidence.

So far Ali has made trips only to the recent past, so she’s surprised when she’s asked to investigate a murder that took place in 1850. The killing has been pinned on an aristocratic patron of the arts and antiquities, a member of a sinister group called “The Collectors.” She arrives in the Victorian era during a mini ice age to find another dead woman at her feet and far too many unanswered questions. But when her son is arrested, Ali attempts to return home only to find herself trapped in 1850.

Review

I’ve only ever read one book by Elly Griffiths that wasn’t a Ruth Galloway book so I was very excited to read something very different from Griffiths. This book was definitely something different and not what I was expecting at all.

This book revolves around the character Ali Dawson who is part of a cold case team who investigates old cases and these cases can be very old. However, there is something quite different from the way this team solves the crimes. This team uses time travel to look for evidence and this leads to Ali going further back in time than she has ever been before. Ali finds herself investigating a murder whilst stuck in 1850.

I loved the character of Ali as she is a strong independent woman who has fought the odds to better herself. Oh and she is also a cat owner. Ali worked cleaning jobs to provide for her son and at the same time she gained a degree in history. She then got a job with the police and she worked her way up the ladder. Ali works every problem she is faced with methodically and nothing seems to phase her. Whilst Ali is stuck in 1850 there is also a murder mystery happening in the present day which involves Ali’s adult son.

I really enjoyed this book and I would love to learn more about Ali’s team. John is a true gentleman who we do get to see more of and you can’t help but root for. Once I got over how different this book is from Griffiths’ usual work I thoroughly enjoyed it and found the concept fascinating. There were also some big questions left that I would love to get answers for so I really hope there will be a second book. The narrative of this book was quite busy and there was a lot going on. I will be honest and say that I actually enjoyed the Victorian sections more than the present day and preferred the Victorian characters. I give this book 4 out of 5 Dragons.

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About the author

Elly Griffiths’ Ruth Galloway novels take for their inspiration Elly’s husband, who gave up a city job to train as an archaeologist, and her aunt who lives on the Norfolk coast and who filled her niece’s head with the myths and legends of that area. Elly has two children and lives near Brighton.

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A Three Dog Problem by S. J. Bennett (Review)

A Three Dog Problem by S. J. Bennett

Blurb

Amateur detective Queen Elizabeth II is back in this hugely entertaining follow-up to the bestseller The Windsor Knot, in which Her Majesty must determine how a missing painting is connected to the shocking death of a staff member inside Buckingham Palace.

At Buckingham Palace, the autumn of 2016 presages uncertain times. The Queen must deal with the fallout from the Brexit referendum, a new female prime minister, and a tumultuous election in the United States—yet these prove to be the least of her worries when a staff member is found dead beside the palace swimming pool. Is it truly the result of a tragic accident, as the police think, or is something more sinister going on?

Meanwhile, her assistant private secretary, Rozie Oshodi, is on the trail of a favourite painting that once hung outside the Queen’s bedroom and appears to have been misappropriated by the Royal Navy. And a series of disturbing anonymous letters have begun circulating in the palace. The Queen’s courtiers think they have it all ‘under control’, but Her Majesty is not so sure. After all, though the staff and public may not be aware, she is the keenest sleuth among them. Sometimes, it takes a Queen’s eye to see connections where no one else can.

Review

I read the first book in this series a few years ago but for some reason I have taken ages to pick the next book up despite loving the first book. I will not be making the same mistake with the third book.

I absolutely love the idea of this series and find the idea of the Queen being a super sleuth fantastic. I also love how this book really links in to events that were happening during the year 2016. The Queen has a new Prime minister to deal with, and it is uncertain times for Buckingham Palace the last thing the Queen needs to deal with is a dead body in the swimming pool and one of her paintings missing.

Rozie the Queen’s assistant private secretary knows what the Queen is like and knows her ability as a secret super sleuth. Rozie is on the hunt for the missing painting but at the same time she is also picking up little clues that help the Queen build up a picture of what is exactly going on within her kingdom.

As with the first book in the series the thing I love most about this book is the interactions the Queen and Prince Philip share. We have no idea what exactly went on between the Queen and Prince Philip behind closed doors but I can just imagine all the exchanges from this book actually happening. Each interaction made me smile and have a little giggle. Princess Anne also makes an appearance in this book which I hugely enjoyed. I also throughly enjoyed the scenes with the Queen and her dogs.

There are some wonderful characters in this book, each with their own histories and personalities. However, the real star of the book other than the Queen is Rozie. Rozie is loyal to the Queen and to her family. She helps people and tries her best to be friends with everyone. She defends the weak and does everything she can to help the Queen keep her sleuthing secret.

I love this book and I have bought the next book in series ready to read next month. I give this book a big 5 out of 5 Dragons.

Purchase Links

Bookshop.org | Waterstones | WH Smith

About the author

SJ Bennett was born in Yorkshire, England in 1966, and lives in London. An army child, she grew up travelling around the world. Her first novel was published when she was 42, after a varied career and lots of procrastination. She is the award-winning author of several books for children and teaches and podcasts about writing.

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Murder at the Christmas Emporium by Andreina Cordani (Review)

Murder at the Christmas Emporium by Andreina Cordani

Blurb

It’s Christmas at The Emporium, a bespoke gift shop hidden in the depths of London’s winding streets featuring handcrafted delights unavailable anywhere else. Tinsel coils around the wooden beams, lights sparkle in the windows and the open fire crackles comfortingly. As closing time approaches after a busy trading day, only a few customers drift towards the exit – but they find they cannot leave. The doors are locked.

What initially seemed an innocent mix-up turns sinister as the shopkeepers seem strangely uninterested in lending assistance. The festive cheer has all but disappeared among a growing feeling of unease – and then a chilling discovery is made in Santa’s grotto.

For those that survive the night, it will be a Christmas to remember.

Review

This is my first book by Cordani and I chose it because I loved the cover and the title of the book. Thankfully I was not disappointed!

I loved this book because it gave me real Charlie and the Chocolate Factory vibes with Agatha Christie vibes. It was a weird concoction which worked brilliantly together and although it was set in modern day London, at times you could almost say it was set in Victorian times with a bit of Dickens Christmas thrown in as well.

Montagu Verity is definitely the Willy Wonka character in this book. He is a born and bred showman but he also has a sinister side to him which starts to emerge as the story goes on. He also knows a disturbing amount about his special guests.

This book has historical flashbacks which helps build up the story and connects all the modern events together. Each chapter builds on what has happened before and starts to create a rich tapestry of facts for the reader to try and unravel.

I really liked the mix of characters in this book and although I struggled with Merry’s character to begin with she definitely became a favourite. I also really liked Fran and Knives. The descriptions in this book were stunning and it really made me want to visit a Christmas Emporium. I could not put this book down and give it 5 out of 5 Dragons.

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Purchase Links

Bookshop.org | Waterstones | WH Smith

About the author

Andreina Cordani is a writer and journalist who writes fiction for adults and young adults.

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Everyone this Christmas has a Secret by Benjamin Stevenson (Review)

Everyone this Christmas has a Secret by Benjamin Stevenson

Blurb

My name is Ernest Cunningham.

I’m not a detective. I just happen to have a knack for what makes mysteries – and murderers – tick. I’d hoped, this Christmas, that any killers out there might be willing to take a break for the holidays.

I was wrong.

So here I am, backstage at the Christmas show of world-famous magician Rylan Blaze, whose benefactor has just been murdered. From the magician’s assistant to the hypnotist, my suspects are all professional tricksters. Masters in the art of misdirection.

My clues are even more of a mystery:

A suspect covered in blood, with no memory of how it got there.

A murder committed without setting foot inside the room where it happens.

And an advent calendar. Because, you know. It’s Christmas.

Solving the murder is the only gift I want this year.

But can I catch a killer, and make it home for Christmas alive?

Review

I will be honest I picked this book up not realising it was part of a series but to be honest it worked fine as a standalone book and I didn’t feel the story lacked anything because I hadn’t read the previous books.

This book was a very easy read for me and I really enjoyed it being set in Australia. I think it was my first festive read set in a hot country. A real change from my usual wintery reads that I usually read this time of year. I also liked the main character Ernest Cunningham and I liked how he worked but I did find him a little bit big headed at times and this made him a little annoying.

I really enjoyed the storyline of this book and how Cunningham worked out who the murderer was. His methods were very methodical and he reminded me a great deal of Agatha Christie’s Poirot. The way it was all done was very clever.

The main problem I had with this book was that the characters were just rather unremarkable and very forgettable. Other than Ernest and maybe one other character I couldn’t tell you any of their names or anything really about them. I just felt like all the effort was put into the plot and not the characters which was a shame.

I did enjoy this book but I wasn’t bowled over by it and to be honest I’m not sure I will return to the world of Ernest Cunningham but maybe I will one day. I give this book 3 out of 5 Dragons.

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Purchase Links

Bookshop.org | Waterstones | WH Smith

About the author

Benjamin Stevenson is an award-winning stand-up comedian and USA Today best-selling author. He is the author of the globally popular ‘Ernest Cunningham Mysteries’, including Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone, which is currently being adapted into a major HBO TV series, and Everyone on This Train is a Suspect. His books have sold over 750,000 copies in twenty-nine territories and have been nominated for eight ‘Book of the Year’ awards.

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The Woman in Blue by Elly Griffiths (Review)

The Woman in Blue by Elly Griffiths

Blurb

In the next Ruth Galloway mystery, a vision of the Virgin Mary foreshadows a string of cold-blooded murders, revealing a dark current of religious fanaticism in an old medieval town.

Known as England’s Nazareth, the medieval town of Little Walsingham is famous for religious apparitions. So when Ruth Galloway’s druid friend Cathbad sees a woman in a white dress and a dark blue cloak standing alone in the local cemetery one night, he takes her as a vision of the Virgin Mary. But then a woman wrapped in blue cloth is found dead the next day, and Ruth’s old friend Hilary, an Anglican priest, receives a series of hateful, threatening letters. Could these crimes be connected? When one of Hilary’s fellow female priests is murdered just before Little Walsingham’s annual Good Friday Passion Play, Ruth, Cathbad, and DCI Harry Nelson must team up to find the killer before he strikes again.

Review

I love a Dr Ruth Galloway book and have now only one left to read from the series. Thankfully, this book did not disappoint and as usual I could not put this book down.

I’ve always loved Tudor history and I have seen so many references to pilgrimages to Walsingham so it was really fun to read a modern day book set around this place which has always been such a special place. There wasn’t really the archaeological link that most of the books from the series have but Griffiths came up with a very clever reason for Ruth being involved in these murder investigations and of course helping Nelson.

The shrines to the Virgin Mary at Walsingham are not the ideal place for Ruth who is an atheist and really not comfortable with anything Christian based due to her upbringing but because of an old university friend Ruth ends up in Walsingham quite a lot.

Hilary is Ruth’s old friend and she is receiving some rather nasty letters because she is a female priest. Due to Ruth’s past working with the police, Hilary decides to ask Ruth for advice but the situation soon escalates from threatening letters when one of Hilary’s fellow female priests is murdered. I really liked Hilary and it was nice to meet one of Ruth’s friends from her past. I like it when we meet Ruth’s friends from her past because it is quite clear that Ruth is not great at keeping in contact with people but I also love seeing how surprised she is when these people have changed. It makes me wonder whether Ruth thinks that she hasn’t changed at all and so always feels surprised when she sees others have. Ruth obviously has changed because we see it happening through the series.

There was one big inaccuracy in the book which annoyed me slightly. Ruth and Hilary are at the shrines where the monks used to live and they are judging the monks because of all the oyster shells you can see in the garden. Considering Ruth is an archaeologist and Hilary is also a trained archaeologist surely they know that in the monks’ time oysters were a poor man’s food. Yes, there was a lot of money in the church and some monks did live rather well but you can’t judge them for living well and privileged lives on the basis of oyster shells.

I was pleased that my favourite Cathbad was in this book more as I missed him in the previous book. He is such a good character who always brings a smile to my face.

I flew through this book and give it a big 5 out of 5 Dragons.

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Purchase Links

Bookshop.org | Waterstones | WH Smith

About the author

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The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins (Review)

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

Blurb

Rachel catches the same commuter train every morning. She knows it will wait at the same signal each time, overlooking a row of back gardens. She’s even started to feel like she knows the people who live in one of the houses. ‘Jess and Jason’, she calls them. Their life – as she sees it – is perfect. If only Rachel could be that happy.

And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough.

Now everything’s changed. Now Rachel has a chance to become a part of the lives she’s only watched from afar.

Now they’ll see; she’s much more than just the girl on the train…

Review

I have recently been going through some bookshelves in our house that have basically been neglected since we moved into the house seven years ago. Due to this I have discovered a load of books that I had forgotten about and this is one of them. I can’t believe I waited so long because once I started this book I could not put it down.

There were so many twists and turns in this book which really kept me on my toes. This book just kept surprising me and I loved it. I had a few suspicions about who the guilty party was. Some of my early thoughts were way out but I slowly started to work out who it was. The first thing that hooked me in was the prologue to the book. It really set the scene and made me want to know what it all meant. So of course I had to keep reading.

The other element I loved about this book was how it was written. The story is mainly told from Rachel’s point of view but we also have the point of view of other important characters as well and it really added an extra element to the story and threw in a few red herrings. The book is written as diary entries and in Rachel’s case she has a morning and evening entry to go with her train commute.

Rachel is such a tragic character who just needs someone to love her again and care for her. She desperately needs to find meaning and purpose in her life again but she can’t find the way so when she sees something from the train she finds a way to be part of something again and starts to find meaning in life again but the process is not pretty. I felt desperately sorry for Rachel but at times she really did frustrate me. I just really wanted her to succeed and become a better version of herself. Due to Rachel’s problems she doesn’t always remember things very well which adds to the story because the reader is left wondering what actually happened in those blank moments.

I can’t quite believe this is Hawkins’ first thriller novel because it is so accomplished and beautifully written that I would have thought she was a well established thriller writer. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and give it 5 out of 5 Dragons and I can’t wait to read another book by Hawkins.

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Purchase Links

Bookshop.org | Waterstones | WH Smith

About the author

Paula Hawkins (1972) is a British author best known for her book The Girl on the Train.

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Crimson Lake by Candice Fox (Review)

Crimson Lake by Candice Fox

Blurb

How do you move on when the world won’t let you?

12:46: Claire Bingley stands alone at a bus stop

12:47: Ted Conkaffey parks his car beside her

12:52: The girl is missing . . .

Six minutes in the wrong place at the wrong time—that’s all it took to ruin Sydney detective Ted Conkaffey’s life. Accused but not convicted of a brutal abduction,Ted is now a free man—and public enemy number one. Maintaining his innocence, he flees north to keep a low profile amidst the steamy, croc-infested wetlands of Crimson Lake.

There, Ted’s lawyer introduces him to eccentric private investigator Amanda Pharrell, herself a convicted murderer. Not entirely convinced Amanda is a cold-blooded killer, Ted agrees to help with her investigation, a case full of deception and obsession, while secretly digging into her troubled past. The residents of Crimson Lake are watching the pair’s every move… and the town offers no place to hide.

Review

I came across this book because my husband and myself really enjoy the TV series Troppo and when I found out it is based on a series of books I knew I needed to read them.

It took me a little while to get into this book and at first I wasn’t sure I was going to enjoy it but I am glad that I persevered because I soon really started to enjoy it and started to really like the characters.

Ted and Amanda were quite different in the book to the TV series but I think I actually liked them more in the book once I got used to the differences and their quirks. I really liked how you got to see Ted and Amanda’s vulnerabilities as the story goes on and how much they really do need each other. Ted’s lawyer really knew what he was doing when he threw Ted and Amanda together.

Ted and Amanda are working on a case together and their every move is being watched by the people of Crimson Lake. However, as they work on the case Ted begins to realise that something is also not quite right with the murder that Amanda was convicted for when she was a teenager.

I really liked how this book was written with the different threads of the story weaving together. We see flashbacks of Ted’s trial, and the events leading up to Claire Bingley going missing. We see flashbacks of Amanda’s crime and events leading up to it. I really liked how it all worked together and started to give the reader an idea of the bigger picture.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I’m really looking forward to reading the next book in the series as I want to see what Amanda and Ted get up to next. I give this book 4 out of 5 Dragons.

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Purchase Links

Bookshop.org | Waterstones | WH Smith

About the author

Candice Fox is the middle child of a large, eccentric family from Sydney’s western suburbs composed of half-, adopted and pseudo siblings. The daughter of a parole officer and an enthusiastic foster-carer, Candice spent her childhood listening around corners to tales of violence, madness and evil as her father relayed his work stories to her mother and older brothers.

As a cynical and trouble-making teenager, her crime and gothic fiction writing was an escape from the calamity of her home life. She was constantly in trouble for reading Anne Rice in church and scaring her friends with tales from Australia’s wealth of true crime writers.

Bankstown born and bred, she failed to conform to military life in a brief stint as an officer in the Royal Australian Navy at age eighteen. At twenty, she turned her hand to academia, and taught high school through two undergraduate and two postgraduate degrees. Candice lectures in writing at the University of Notre Dame, Sydney, while undertaking a PhD in literary censorship and terrorism.