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Dec 15, 2015

Guest Post

Guesting on this blog for the first time the awesome Wendy Foster Leigh


The Man on the Washing Machine, Susan Cox

Theophania Bogart has found the perfect city in which to hide from her frenetic past. San Francisco is the ideal city in which to hide from family scandals left behind in England. In San Francisco she begins a new life in the flats around Fabian Gardens. She lives above her shop specializing in soaps, scents, and your basic Bay Area kitsch. She falls into a routine of morning coffee, dog walking, and arguing with her irresponsible business partner. She is settling into the community until the day she sees a local handyman falling from a window across the garden. Something strange is going on in the neighborhood. When her business partner is also killed, Theo seems to be the perfect suspect.


Theo is an example of the plucky protagonist who goes into dark rooms without turning on a light or foolishly meeting a suspect in the silent garden. Perhaps the strangest incident in her escapade is the moment she walks into her laundry room and finds a stranger standing on her washing machine. He disappears quickly, and she goes on the search for both the murderer and the unknown man on the machine.


Sue Cox has written a mystery which demands that it become a series. Theo lives in a square surrounded by flats and businesses filled with future stories. The book is a comfortable read; however, has an edge to it that should appeal to readers who want a strong woman protagonist and a cast of peculiar characters.


The Man on the Washing Machine is the winner of Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel. Sue Cox has created a likeable character in the form of Theo and has introduced a neighborhood association with enough personality to make a reader curious as to what can happen next in Fabian Gardens.

Dec 1, 2015

A couple of xmas crackers

December is always a busy time of year at TKE, so while I remember here are a couple of cracking good reads for you to get your teeth into. Enjoy!

Splinter the Silence, Val McDermid

Carol Jordan just got a second chance, saved from a drink drive charge by a failure in procedure she is offered a chance to get her team, including psychologist Tony Hill, back together. A home office proposal, a floating murder investigation team headed by Jordan. Whilst Carol puts her people in place, Tony does his best to keep his feelings for Carol out of the way while he attempts to wean her off the booze.

The new unit's first case isn't official, it may not even be a case at all, just a series of random patterns that Tony identified which may or may not mean that the suicide of a prominent feminist blogger who took on the internet trolls and won is actually murder. It's a race against time to work out who the next victim might be and Jordan's team have made some powerful enemies who are out to scupper the unit's reputation before the paint is dry on their new office walls.

Ashley Bell, Dean Koontz

Novelist Bibi Blair still lives close to her parents in surfer's paradise Newport Beach,.  Her day starts like any other, until she can't pick up her coffee cup. She checks herself into hospital and gets the news no one ever wants to hear. She has a year to live, without chemo and radio therapy six months tops. Most would crumble under such a diagnosis Bibi looks death in the face and says "we'll see."

Overnight the cancer vanishes but the cure comes at a price. Bibi learns that she has been spared to save the life of another girl, Ashley Bell. If Ashley dies, Bibi will too. To keep her fiancee and family safe Bibi goes on the run, taking on the forces holding Ashley, who will do anything to stop her.

With the deadline fast approaching Bibi can't even trust herself. She's been using a memory trick that a man called 'Captain' taught her when she was six years old to keep herself in the dark as to how much danger she's really in.







Nov 19, 2015

One Man's Flag, David Downing

The follow-up to 'Jack of  Spies' finds Jack McColl in India in 1916 trying to keep a consignment of German guns from ending up in the hands of Indian rebels. McColl is doing his job although he can't help admiring the ideals of the rebels, if not their methods. Caitlin is still very much in his head but after his betrayal of her brother Jack's pretty sure she'd rather knife him than talk to him. For her part Caitlin has stayed in London and become a European correspondent her fearless nature and neutral status as an American journalist allows her to visit both sides of the trenches, too close for her own good in some cases.

Ireland and rumours of an uprising against the British are the flashpoint that brings the two back together on opposite sides once again and this time Caitlin is ready to betray Jack.


Nov 2, 2015

Great November Reads

If you haven't discovered JK Rowling's alter ego, Robert Galbraith you are seriously missing out. The Cormoran Strike series continues to develop the two main characters in Galbraith's latest, Career of Evil.

Strike and his assistant/partner Robin receive a gruesome delivery that links the sender to a rash of murders some undiscovered, some yet to be committed. Strike knows of four men in his past that have the degree of savagery required to carry out such an atrocity, problem is the police have set their sights on only one and for Strike and Robin time is running out.

This series keeps on getting darker, which is great because the characters of Strike and Robin just keep getting stronger.

There are a couple more new releases below, enjoy.


Hostage, Kristina Ohlsson

Säpo, Sweden’s version of Homeland Security is trying to deport a terrorist, Zakaria Khelifi, nothing unusual about that, the man has been a person of interest in several terrorist operations and they’re finally about to send him back to his country of origin. Until a bomb threat paralyses the seat of government along with a demand to free Khelifi.

Justice Department analyst Fredrika Bergman used to work for the police and finds herself back in her old role liaising between her old partner Alex Recht, the government and the abrasive but brilliant Eden Lundell head of  Säpo. Now they face a new danger, a plane that took off from Arlanda airport that morning has called in a bomb threat. The plane, bound for New York City carries a full complement of passengers. The hijacker’s demands are impossible to complete without American assistance and this sets in motion a response that could leave blood on the FBI’s hands. The pilot refuses to set the plane down and Fredrika, Alex and Eden are in a race against time to find a solution before the plane runs out of fuel or gets blown out of the sky.


A richly complex edge of the seat thriller.

American Blood, Ben Sanders

New Mexico is a world away from New York City. Marshall Grade, former NYPD undercover cop; now in the witness protection program is supposed to be laying low out here, except Marshall isn't that type. A local girl, Alyce Ray has gone missing and she resembles someone Marshall cared about back when he had a badge so he sets out to find her. 

Marshall figures he'll be atoning for his many undercover sins. The night Alyce went missing she was seen at a club frequented by drug dealers so Marshal starts shaking down local drug lords, which is guaranteed to upset them and Lucas Cohen the witsec officer tasked with keeping Marshall alive and out of trouble. It also brings Marshall to the attention of some of the worst elements of his past, chiefly the mob assassin known as ‘The Dallas Man’.

Oct 23, 2015

The Reckoning, Carsten Stroud

Stroud's trilogy comes roaring to its conclusion. Nick and Kate Kavanaugh's adopted son Rainey Teague still has 'the devil in him' and Nick and Kate whose marriage barely survived his 'illness' the last time are walking on broken glass around the subject.

Niceville is gearing up for something, the disappeared are coming back, residents are acting strangely, some are wearing headphones twenty four seven. What are they listening to, or blocking out?

Charlie Danziger, the man who took two in the chest protecting Nick's partner, Mavis Crossfire, a year ago is most confused to find himself alive (sort of) and drawn towards a plantation run by Glynis Ruelle on which the Reckoning is to take place.

If none of this review makes sense, get yourself Niceville and Homecoming before reading this one. I have loved this weird, wonderful gothic horror show of a series. If you took a tale of the deep south, horror, supernatural, present day police procedural and indian legends; blitzed them in a blender, seasoned with a dash of humour and set it cooking you might have an inkling of how accomplished a writer Stroud is. Can't wait to see what Stroud comes up with next.





Oct 14, 2015

The Searcher, Simon Toyne

Solomon Creed just walked away from a plane crash, he only knows his name because it is sewn into the jacket he’s wearing. His past is clouded and his future could be very uncertain indeed because the town he’s walking towards, Redemption Arizona, holds many secrets. Secrets he must uncover to save a man named James Coronado, a man he has never met.

While Solomon may have some unusual skills, time travel isn’t one of them which is a shame because James Coronado was buried that morning. All Solomon has to help him is a book by the Reverend Jack Cassidy, Redemption’s founder and the help of Coronado’s widow, Holly.

The fire caused by the plane crash isn’t the only thing headed straight for Redemption, the plane was carrying a precious cargo and the man that cargo was destined for? Well to say he’ll be upset at losing it would be an understatement. If the fire doesn’t take out Redemption, he’ll  raze the town to the ground himself.


Toyne, author of the Sanctus series gives us the start of another taut page turner of a trilogy.

Ghostly, Audrey Niffenegger

Ghostly is a collection of ghost stories perfect for Halloween. Haunted houses, haunted cottages, paintings that move, magic and cats to name just a few, as told by masters of the genre including Poe, M.R James, Kelly Link, Neil Gaiman, P.G. Wodehouse, Saki and Niffenegger herself. Whether you want that sense of creeping unease, full on scares or a laugh or two there’s something for everyone here.

Trigger Mortis (with original material by Ian Fleming) Anthony Horowitz

Trigger Mortis slots in neatly between Fleming’s ‘Goldfinger’ and ‘Thunderball.’

James Bond has whisked Pussy Galore back to London with him but their affair is rapidly losing its lustre and a new assignment beckons. Bond must protect England’s most famous racing driver from Russian sabotage. 

During his training and at the famous Nürburgring, Bond encounters driver Logan Fairfax and motoring journalist Jeopardy Lane. SMERSH rears its ugly head causing Bond to focus on their associate Jason Sin, a Korean millionaire who deals death using a pack of cards. Sin has classified photographs of a U.S. Vanguard rocket and Bond suspects a plan to destroy it on the launchpad. He doesn’t know how wrong he is.

Trigger Mortis is vintage Bond, with all the style, girls, car chases and thrills Fleming’s (and Horowitz’s) fans could ask for.

For those of you curious to know the 'original material' comes from a script Fleming wrote for a T.V show that never got past the pilot stage.

Oct 1, 2015

Ben Aaronovitch updated

My colleague Wendy was living in London for several months this year and when she came back she brought a list of new authors we should try out. Aaronovitch is at the top of that list for me. His first book Rivers of London (Midnight Riot in the US) was the choice for 'London Reads'.

I never thought I'd say the words perfect blend of grown up Harry Potter and police procedural but that's about the size of it. In Aaronovitch's London, magic is a lost art, there is only one magician left, Thomas Nightingale and he's a Detective Inspector with the Met in charge of a department that investigates crimes that don't have a natural cause. West Indian PC Peter Grant comes to Nightingale's attention when he interviews a most unusual witness to a murder, a ghost. Peter becomes Nightingale's apprentice and a whole new world opens up to him, a world of ghosts, vampires, vestigium, magical spells and rivers like the Thames which have their own guardians and diplomatic problems. With enough plot twists and characters that you can't help liking this is a great series to get into if you're a fan of the Bryant and May series by Christopher Fowler or you grew up with Harry Potter.

The books so far are
Rivers of London (Midnight Riot)
Moon over Soho
Whispers Underground
Broken Homes
Foxglove Summer
Hanging Tree
Lies Sleeping 

Sometimes one slips through the cracks

This is the problem with juggling so much stuff sometimes I drop a ball, In this case a big one.

The Drowning by Camilla Lackberg is out now and here is the blurb.

Fjallbacka resident Christian Thydell is a literary rising star. His novel, The Mermaid is having accolades heaped upon it and Erica Falck shares a publisher with him. Christian has been getting letters, threatening letters. Erica, heavily pregnant with twins, shares her concerns first with her husband, Detective Patrik Hedstrom; then with Gaby von Rosen, her and Christian's publisher. Patrik is juggling a slew of cases, working too hard to really take notice and Gaby feeds the story to the media to boost Christian's book sales.


When Patrik's missing persons case turns to murder and other close friends of Christian's are targeted, Erica is baffled. What is keeping them from talking, what secret are they willing to take to their graves rather than see it revealed. Only Christian knows the identity of the warped mind behind the letters and in order to protect his family he's decided he's going to give her exactly what she wants. And for Erica, tragedy is about to strike closer to home than she ever thought possible.

Sep 3, 2015

The Hanging Girl by Jussi Adler Olsen

I've had this arc less than a week, Olsen's work is compelling, he was my go to after I finished the Millennium Trillogy (and no I haven't read Girl in the Spider's Web, reviews are good but I'm still deciding) Here's the review for Hanging Girl.

A retiring police officer on Bornholm commits suicide in front of his colleagues and Rose blames Carl Morck. Carl did tell the officer that department Q was backed up with cases and couldn't accept his. Rose guilts Carl and Assad into going to Bornholm with her to investigate. What the trio find is an unsolved obsession, A young girl who died in a hit and run, her body found hanging in a tree. Carl reluctantly starts to dig into what turns out to be an electrifying case.

Other books that have just been published are In a Dark Dark Wood and Hollow Man. They are reviewed in the latest 'Live from the arc pile' podcast which went up on the website today, go check them out.



Sep 1, 2015

Legalese for overseas

Visitors, that is.

Google uses cookies and though they have tried to put a notice on my blog telling everyone this because I use some third party bits of code on the blog it didn't work. So here's the skinny, if you are reading this blog it is inserting some cookies into your browser as we speak. By continuing to read you are consenting to those cookies being added. You can remove cookies, I flush them out occasionally using a setting buried somewhere in the browser. I use Google Analytics because I'm interested in how many hits the blog and the website get on a daily basis and which countries my visitors are from.

Legalese complete. 

Aug 12, 2015

What I'm reading right now

Ghost stories, lots of them. For Halloween this year. Collections put together and contributed to by Audrey Niffenegger (Time Traveller's Wife) and John Connolly (Charlie Parker). Ghostly tales by Poe, MR James, Niffenegger herself, Neil Gaiman and many, many more, guaranteed to send a shiver down your spine. Both these collections, Ghostly and Night Music Nocturnes Vol II will be out just in time for Halloween. Boo!

I don't normally read bios, but

Browsing through the arcs the other day I came across, You're Never Weird on the Internet by Felicia Day. Yes, that Felicia Day, the internet phenom. This is a great bio to give any kid who feels they haven't found their niche in life. Newsflash, you can create your own niche, that's what Felicia has done and in her quirky voice she tells you all about it. Imagine having coffee with your quirky best friend and you'll get the tone of this bio, it came out yesterday go pick one up.

Here is the review;

Felicia Day is a homeschooled, self admitted odd duck she credits not having her weirdness 'schooled' out of her as one of the reasons for her success.

Day is smart, super smart (she holds degrees in Physics and Maths, she got into UT on a music scholarship) but she never felt she fitted in anywhere. Day discovered computer games when you still had to type in commands and your gender wasn't an issue.

In 2006, as a jobbing actress  she wrote, financed, helped film and starred in web series 'The Guild'
(at the time, Kickstarter was still on the drawing board and all did Netflix was rent discs by mail). The Guild ran for six seasons, not bad for something that started on a shoestring budget.

Felicia's stories about being recognized on the street (or not and she's okay with that), being caught tweeting during a Comic Con panel for Dr Horrible's Singalong Blog (she was on the panel not in the audience!), her addiction to World of Warcraft and how when  the whole 'success' thing hit it almost buried her. Felicia is a great example of what you can do if you don't follow the rules and ignore the people who tell you that you can't do something because it doesn't fit the system or their established ideas of 'how things are done'.

Jul 31, 2015

If you like Jo Nesbo

And oh do I, those Scandinavian's know how to put readers on the edge of their seats. The name Kristina Ohlsson may already be familiar to you. I on the other hand just discovered her. Ohlsson's newest book, Hostage is published in November set in Sweden, the US and at 35.000 ft. The complex plot weaves together themes of terrorism, international espionage, and family with pace, skill and plenty of insider knowledge. Unwanted, Ohlsson's first book featuring analyst Fredrika Bergman is now on my to read list.

Jul 2, 2015

If you're looking to see what's new for July

Head on over to the website, as sometimes happens in this game, I only reviewed a couple of books coming in July. They are crackers so I'll do video reviews for both of them.

I've got two on the go at the moment, 'Crack99' by David Locke Hall . True crime, that reads like a thriller and Simon Toyne's 'The Searcher' (called Solomon Creed in UK, don't get why they changed the title.)

Jun 29, 2015

Brutality, Ingrid Thoft

Fina Ludlow the shoot-from-the-lip Boston PI is back. Bostonians are suffering in the grip of a brutally cold winter but someone slogged through it to attack soccer mom Liz Barone in her own kitchen. Liz is on life support and her mom, Bobbi hires Fina to track down the culprit; working alongside the police.

Lieutenant Pitney isn’t thrilled to have Fina poking around in Boston PD’s investigation and Fina isn’t thrilled that Detective Menendez is single again. 

Fina has a number of suspects including Liz’s husband, her former team mates, and her employer NEU. Liz played soccer for NEU and she was encouraged to play through injuries and concussions which have left her with cognitive difficulties and Liz was in the process of filing a lawsuit against the University. She also worked at a research lab on campus. 

Fina doesn’t just have problems with the case, her friend Risa’s long lost aunt is pressuring Risa for one of her kidneys and Risa is having second thoughts about donating and the Ludlows, two in particular, have designs on Fina’s niece Haley. Rand wants his daughter to visit him and his new girlfriend in Miami and Fina’s domineering mother is insisting that Haley go. Fina’s going to have to stamp on some toes to protect Haley and this time her actions may just blow up in her face.

Jun 11, 2015

Book Deal!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes there are a lot of exclamation marks in the title and you would need a whole lot more to even come close to how thrilled I am that my amazing agent Judy has brokered a deal with Riverdale Avenue Books' Dagger imprint for three Nikki Doyle titles. We signed on the dotted line this week.

Way back when I was thinking of self pubbing, I got a Kirkus review done, bearing in mind that this was for a (allegedly) finished ms and we cut some storylines before arriving at a final final draft (like the graveside scene and the bad blood angle) it gives a pretty good flavour of Rollover.

For all the up to date news on publication, including dates, readings and all things Rollover head on over to FaceBook and  'friend' me or leave a comment with your email address and I will start compiling a mailing list (purely book related)

Here is the link to the Kirkus review if you want to check out my review on their site.









Jun 8, 2015

New for June

This month's crop includes, a new thriller by Jenny Milchman, the sophomore book from SJ Watson and a brand new debut with books, librarians, magic and circus folk from Erica Swyler. For the latest video reviews head back to the website and check out 'Live from the Arc Pile'
#5 Marry Kiss Kill and #6 Down Among the Dead Men coming soon

Second Life, S.J. Watson

In his second novel after the acclaimed ‘Before I go to Sleep’ Watson focuses on the dangers of online relationships. Julia used to be an up and coming photographer until her lover’s death in a Berlin squat sent her running back to England and into marriage with dull dependable Hugh. Life with Hugh, a heart surgeon, and their adopted teenage son Connor is smooth sailing until news hits that Julia’s younger sister Kate has been found dead in a Paris alleyway. Connor is Kate’s son and Kate had been making moves to get him back. 

At the funeral the family meets Anna, Kate’s flatmate. Anna reveals that she and Kate used to frequent online chatrooms to meet men for sex. Frustrated at the lack of information from Paris and struggling to deal with Kate’s death; Julia starts frequenting those same sites trying to draw out her sister’s killer. This second life is intoxicating, addicting and Julia has no idea that’s she’s the one being drawn out into the open... 

The Book of Speculation, Erika Swyler

Librarian Simon Watson's life is about to go over a cliff. His family home is this close to tumbling into the Long Island Sound, his job too. The book arrived just before that, unasked for, fragile and water stained, a present from a mysterious bookseller who found it at auction and somehow traced it to Simon.

Simon's family were circus folk, his sister Enola still is. Famed for the ability to hold their breath underwater for long periods of time the women in Simon's family still have an unfortunate habit of drowning. His mother died July 24th and according to the records in the book and his own research Simon learns that July 24th is a deadly date and begins to fear for his sister who turns up out of the blue as July 24th approaches.

Enola reads tarot cards, she still carries the pack her mother gave her, she comes with a heavily tattooed boyfriend and she keeps falling into trances. Simon delves into the book, the record of a travelling show from the 1700's, he uncovers magic, mystery, a love story that spans generations and the curse that rides along with it. Can he save Enola?

As Night Falls, Jenny Milchman

Sandy Tremont has a good life, a loving husband and a fickle teenage daughter Ivy but tonight two convicted felons aim to tear Sandy's world down brick by brick before fleeing for the Canadian border. The convicts didn't plan on a massive snow storm rolling in or on Ivy escaping into it. Will any of them survive the night?

May 14, 2015

'Say yes' week the latest chapter

Regular readers will know that I like to shake things up a bit. In between writing reviews for June, keeping the website in shape and starting a new writing project and work I've gotten myself into a routine, some might say a rut. The perfect time for another 'say yes' week.

Next week, whatever it is, I'll say yes to it (anything legal that is, if you want to rob a bank you're on your own!)

Apr 8, 2015

Trigger Warning by Neil Gaiman

One of my top five authors, Neil Gaiman is consistently inventive. From Sandman to American Gods and every place in between (Good Omens, the collaboration between Gaiman and Terry Pratchett is still a book that I can reread and find something new, I do not recommend taking it on a plane journey though, your laughter may annoy the person next to you) .

I picked up a copy of Trigger Warning weeks ago, another collection of short stories, with a warning at the front which is longer than most of the stories. Knowing that I had at least one Sherlock Holmes story and even a Doctor Who short to look forward to I planned to savour it one story at a time.

Didn't happen, I read the whole thing in one sitting. Trigger runs the gamut from a little poetry, to scary bedtime stories, skewed fairy tales, life changing honey, the battle of 2012  and Shadow (from American Gods) as well as the 11th Doc and Amy Pond and of course the world's greatest detective.

If you can read just one story and put the book down you have way more self control than I do. Just dive in, head first and enjoy Gaiman's playful imagination.

Apr 1, 2015

Killer Come Hither, Louis Begley

How far would you go to catch a killer?

Captain Jack Dana a  Marine brought home after being severely wounded in combat channels his experiences into writing.  His Uncle Harry, a partner in a leading New York law firm and closest thing Jack now has to a father gives Jack the space to write and the time to heal, he also helps him find a publisher. Jack is firmly in his debt and with two bestsellers under his belt, travels to Brazil to get to work on a third. Jack returns to terrible news, days after he left for Brazil, Harry hanged himself at his Sag Habour home. 


Harry's boss tells Jack that Uncle Harry was losing his mind and had to be retired to save his and the firm's reputation. Unable to swallow that line Jack starts to dig. Harry's remains now fit into an urn but he was smart enough to leave a trail for Jack to follow. With the help of Kerry Black, Harry's close associate and Scott Prentice, Jack's former college buddy turned CIA spook he traces Harry's death to one client in particular; a right wing blowhard who is about to take his network of companies public, while secretly continuing to fund terrorist organisations overseas. Before Jack can take him down he'll have to deal with a Slav hitman, vines of corruption that lead to the house and the senate and media slurs on his uncle's reputation. Jack uses those same media to set a trap for Harry’s killer, with himself as the bait.

Mar 25, 2015

Coming soon

I'd like to say a big thanks to all the new people coming to the blog this week. My Google Analytics report looks like a teenager's growth spurt right now. Welcome!

I'm reading The Whites by Harry Brandt and liking it so much that I'm going to do a video review.

Another new title, debut author Anne Flett-Giordano's Marry Kiss Kill, it screams 'beach read' in a really good way comes out in June. If Raymond Chandler and Chelsea Handler had a love child (fictionally speaking) it would be this book, good news is that Anne is hard at work on another, in between her TV writing (she has written for Frasier and Hot in Cleveland)

Another one to look out for is Brian Grazer's A Curious Mind, dropping in April. Grazer has been having what he calls 'curiosity conversations' (usually an hour long) with people ranging from Jim Lovell to former secretary of State Condeleeza Rice for years now. Pretty much since he entered the movie business; as a legal clerk delivering papers for Warner Brothers. And while a talk with Jim Lovell might have led to Apollo 13 becoming a movie it also was inspired by talks Grazer had with many others including Veronica De Negri, a  Chilean political prisoner whose incredible inner strength enabled her to survive unspeakable challenges.

These talks do not always go in the direction Grazer thinks they are going to, the ones with Isaac Asimov and Edward Teller would be prime examples.  You might think Grazer does this because he's well Brian Grazer movie producer but the truth is he's never not been curious. That curiosity, he feels is being bred out of our youth and this is his way of encouraging us to become curious all over again. If I were graduating this year I'd be intrigued and fascinated by this book.

Mar 23, 2015

Cool Books - the website

I name this website Cool Books. God bless her and all who sail in her.

Mar 11, 2015

Going live

Almost. Regular readers will notice a little addition on the top right of the blog. A link back to the website.  I have a couple of permissions to get on the book talk page and then we're on for launch. By all means hop over and have a look at the main page.




Mar 2, 2015

March is in like a lion

Reviews of lots of different genres this month, paranormal romance (Its MJ Rose, its good), history, bio and some cracking thrillers.

The Witch of Painted Sorrows, MJ Rose

Sandrine Salome leaves 19th Century New York, fleeing both her sterile marriage and her grief over her father’s death. Arriving in Paris she is drawn to the opulent home, Maison de la Lune, where her father grew up and where her grandmother, a famed courtesan, still holds court. She finds the house shuttered, her grandmother claims that the place needs extensive restoration and Sandrine believes her, at first.

Going by her maiden name Sandrine Verlaine she becomes enchanted by Paris and her rekindled desire to paint coupled with her exploration of all that is sensuous and passionate opens a passage to the past, to the original owner, La Lune. Parts of the house that have been closed off for centuries open for Sandrine and the young architect who will become her lover.

Her grandmother refuses to discuss family history with Sandrine, saying love destroys the women of the Verlaine line because it lets ‘her’ in but the arrival of Sandrine’s husband, convinced she has evidence that could bring him down causes Sandrine to unleash powerful forces that could lead to her destruction.


All the Old Knives, Olen Steinhauer

Carmel, California: the waitress seats two former colleagues, a still-pretty woman wearing a wedding ring and a careworn older man at the only non-reserved table in the overpriced restaurant. The couple, Henry and Celia, used to be lovers but this isn’t a cozy catch-up.

Henry is CIA, Celia used to be; until a disastrous airplane hijacking put the Vienna office under a microscope. Personally and professionally Henry and the rest of his team barely survived the fallout. Now, six years later, rumours of a mole have resurfaced and Henry has been sent to question everyone involved and bury the case once and for all.

Tonight’s meal comes with a side of revenge and betrayal

Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania, Eric Larson

For many of us who sat through history class, we think we know that the sinking of the Lusitania was the incident that brought the U.S. into WW1, and we are wrong.

Larson, hooked by the records of that last voyage presents a more expanded, no less disturbing view. He uses a myriad of documentation from Cunard, Woodrow Wilson’s papers, Winston Churchill’s memoirs and the log of U20 the U-boat that sank the Lusitania to bring the events surrounding the sinking to life.

The Bullet, Mary Louise Kelly

Caroline Cashion is an accomplished professor of French literature. She leads an academic life surrounded by a close and loving family; until a routine medical procedure takes everything she thinks she knows and shreds it into little pieces. 

Caroline has a bullet lodged in her neck, close to the base of her skull. Evidence of the murder of her real parents, this lump of lead could help identify her birth parents’ killer. Can justice be served over three decades later, or is the killer willing to come out of hiding to kill again.

Hammer Head, Nina MacLaughlin

Nina MacLaughlin’s day job as a journalist is steady, brings in a solid paycheck and yet she knows it isn’t what she wants to do for the rest of her life. Answering a Craigslist ad for ‘carpenter’s assistant: woman strongly urged to apply’ Nina tries out and gets the job. To start with she doesn’t know a Philips from a Flathead but she’s willing to learn and Mary is more than willing to teach her.  

Her work with Mary, an experienced carpenter takes Nina from typing virtual sentences in cyberspace to building physical lasting objects in the real world. Nina transforms her attitude, her body and her mind in the process.


An inspiring book, that shows us that there is more out there than the nine to five grind if we go looking for it. 

Feb 4, 2015

Complications

What would life be without all these complications? The website is still a work in progress, I changed the development software as the base program (ie free) wasn't giving the pages the right look. Can't wait to release the new site into the wild, however it won't go live until I'm happy with it.

Also (and this isn't a complication, this is a pleasure) my best friend is getting married next week which requires a road trip. Those of you who like your thrillers more Indiana Jones than Dan Brown might want to give Ben Mezrich's 'Seven Wonders' a spin and check out Knightley and Son K9, review below.

Knightley & Son K9, Rohan Gavin

The Knightley partnership of father and son detectives seems to have been in name only. Alan Knightley is back to pursuing the mysterious ‘Combination’ alone while Darkus and step-sister Tilly are back at school. Step-dad Clive’s TV show has been cancelled and he wants Wilbur, Darkus’ dog out of the house. Darkus and Wilbur, a doggy war veteran are sniffing around a case that involves, missing pets, dangerous Dobermans, strange noises coming from Hampstead Heath and some serious attacks on senior police officers, including Uncle Bill.

Something is roaming Hampstead Heath and as another full moon approaches, the Knightleys, Clive and a school girl wannabe reporter converge on the area; all attempting to catch the werewolf ( if it is a werewolf) before it eats any more high ranking law enforcement. Laugh out loud funny with plenty of scares, Sherlock Holmes fans of any age will eat this up faster than Wilbur can eat Bogna’s sausage stew. 

Jan 9, 2015

Fear the Darkness, Becky Masterman

In her world you’re either an amusement, useful or in her way.

Retired FBI agent Brigid Quinn may be stalking sixty but she can still take down a man half her age. Brigid’s Tucson based PI business is humming along, as is her marriage to Carlo. The Quinns have just lost Brigid’s sister and Brigid made a promise to take in her her niece, Gemma-Kate in that event and that could be the worst mistake she ever made. 
Within days of the girl’s arrival one of the family pets has fallen ill, Brigid investigating the case of a young man drowned in suspicious circumstances is concerned. She confides in her friend Mallory that the girl may have a little too much of the Quinn dark side about her but Brigid isn’t feeling quite like herself either. 

Unbecoming, Rebecca Scherm

Julie is from California, scraping a living restoring antiques in Paris. Grace is from Garland, Tennessee, she’s a wife and a thief. Grace became Julie after her husband and lover were arrested for looting a local country estate but it goes deeper than that. 

On the day that the boys are paroled, Grace is terrified that one of them will find her French bolt-hole and come to collect the treasure she absconded with, a treasure she no longer has. How far will she unravel before any survival instinct kicks in.

As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust, Alan Bradley

Flavia De Luce has been dispatched to Miss Bodycotes Female Academy in Canada and what a strange place her late mother Harriet’s alma mater is turning out to be! Several girls seem to have gone missing and Flavia, being Flavia finds a somewhat charred dead body on her first night at the academy. 

Bradley’s usual mix of humour and scientific knowhow are here along with Flavia’s introduction to the wider world beyond the ‘safe’ haven of Bishop’s Lacey.

New for 2015

A new year and a fresh start and fresh projects are popping up all over the place. Book four is almost finished, I'm working on a standalone (short story at the moment but it could become a novella) new books to read, a new website (which should be ready for launch in February) which will contain, video reviews amongst other goodies.

In the mean time enjoy these new releases!