Showing posts with label Suspense. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Suspense. Show all posts

Monday, March 9, 2026

The Weekend by T.M. Logan

                                                 


Ebook:  410 pages      

Genre:  Contemporary Thriller, Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Suspense.                                         

Publisher: 26 Feb 2026 - Bonnier Books UK  Zaffre Publishing Group

Source:  NetGalley

First Sentences: We're lost. Jason won't admit it but I can always tell by the way he walks: striding ahead full of confidence as if he absolutely knows where he's going.

Review Quote: A fiendishly gripping 'What would I do?' thriller, which explores what it takes to crack apart a group of lifelong friends. This is T.M. Logan at his finest, delivering a rocketing pace, whiplash twists, and a stylish denouement. ― Lucy Clarke - Author

Setting:   Yorkshire Dales, Northern England

My Opinion: 

I first discovered the writing of T. M. Logan a couple of years ago. He is now definitely on my list of favourite thriller writers and this is the third of his novels I have read and enjoyed.

What would you do if you came across a large amount of cash, previously hidden in what must have been thought to be a safe place! This is the moral dilemma facing six friends when they come across a rucksack full of money, whilst out hiking during a weekend break together in the Yorkshire Dales. The story line is full of secrets and lies as the situation escalates, to what for me were some unexpected twists.

A fast paced gripping read that will keep surprising you. A must read if you are a thriller fan.


Précis Courtesy of Goodreads:


Six friends. Five secrets. One holiday to die for . . .

Welcome to THE WEEKEND.


When a group of friends rent a converted farmhouse in the Yorkshire Dales, they have little idea that this one weekend may change the course of their lives forever.


While out on a walk, a storm descends and the friends take shelter in the mouth of an old lead mine. Inside, they discover a backpack filled with more money than they've ever seen.


Of course, they agree, they will hand the money to the police at the first opportunity. But as the storm continues and time passes, some of the party begin to think again. Because there are secrets festering at the heart of this group. Debt. Obsession. A career on the brink. Problems that could be solved instantly with an unexpected windfall.


And perhaps they don't know each other as well as thought they did.


Before long, six good friends find themselves sliding headlong into a world of deceit, treachery, betrayal and murder . . .


Previous Reviews: The Dream Home.   The Daughter

Author Profile:                                                                                                

                                      TM Logan profile image

Bestselling author TM Logan was a national newspaper journalist before turning to novel-writing full time. His thrillers have sold more than two million copies in the UK and are published in translation in 22 countries around the world including France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Germany, South Korea, Poland, Hungary, Serbia, Greece, Romania and the Netherlands.

He was born in Berkshire on the 19th of December 1975 and grew up in Reading, the youngest of three boys and a fully-fledged bookworm from a very young age. He read history at Westfield College, part of the University of London, and went on to do a postgrad at Cardiff University.

Wanting to write journalism seemed an obvious choice, and after five years as a reporter and then education correspondent on the Nottingham Evening Post he moved to London to work on the Daily Mail. The next move took him back to the East Midlands, where he worked for the University of Nottingham as a press officer, writing fiction in any spare time he could find. In January 2017 his first thriller was published. a few weeks later his current position as a deputy director in charge of the university’s communications team – was scrapped as part of a restructure. That was when he decided to take the plunge into writing full-time.

He lives in Nottinghamshire with his wife and two children, and writes in a cabin in the corner of his garden.


Photographs and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:

Goodreads Author Profile.    Amazon Author Page   Official Author Website

Twitter Profile.    Instagram Profile.   Facebook Profile


















  



Wednesday, September 10, 2025

Sun Trap by Rachel Wolf

                                                    


Ebook: 311 pages

Genre: Thriller, Suspense, Mystery

Publisher:  Aria and Aries: Head of  Zeus 2 Sep 2025

Source:  NetGalley

First Sentence:  The sand has turned everything orange. I blink but it doesn't shift. It's like the world has been coated with paint.

Review Quote:  'Totally gripping.' HARRIET TYCE

My Opinion:  

‘Sun Trap’ is a destination thriller set in Abu Dhabi. The female protagonist is Ellie an aspiring actress, who via rather unconventional methods lands herself a minor role in a film on location there. Things start to go seriously wrong for her when deaths, in fact murders start happening. All the cast members and crew find themselves implicated in one way or another as the tangled storyline unfolds.


I was disappointed with this novel both with the vacuous characters and the lack of atmosphere as each unrealistic situation arose. A story with great potential which will appeal to many but sadly not for me.

My thanks to Head of Zeus, the author and NetGalley for an opportunity to read and review  'Sun Trap' in return for an honest review.


Précis Courtesy of Goodreads: 

BE CAREFUL
Ellie has wanted to be an actor since she was a child so, when a role in a blockbuster film presents itself, she grabs it.

WHAT YOU
On the plane to Abu Dhabi to begin filming, Ellie overhears something she shouldn't – two people discussing plans for murder.

WISH FOR
Unsure if it's a misunderstanding, and not wanting to ruin her big break, Ellie remains quiet. Then ten members of the cast become nine...

Ellie needs to be careful – it's more than just her career on the line.

Because she isn't who she says she is.
And liars are always the prime suspect.


Author Profile

                                                     

                                             Rachel Wolf profile image

                                                            Courtesy of Amazon

Rachel Wolf is the author of luxury destination thrillers FIVE NIGHTS and SUN TRAP. Before writing, she worked in the travel industry, and her novels take inspiration from some of her travels.


Photographs and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:

Amazon Author Page.   Twitter Profile.   Instagram Profile

Friday, August 15, 2025

The Blue Hour by Paula Hawkins

                                       


Hardback:  310 pages                                                                                                 
Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Suspense
Publisher: Doubleday 2024
Source: Tywyn Public Library
First Sentences: The moon woke me, bright and close. It shed such a strange light over the sea, a dark kind of daylight, like looking at the negative of a photograph.
Review Quote: 
‘Vivid, extremely tense, unnervingly unputdownable. This is a superb, powerful read.’ Independent
Main Characters: Vanessa Chapman, James "Beck" Becker, Grace Haswell, Sebastian Lennox, Julian Chapman, Sir Douglas Lennox, Lady Emmeline Lennox, Helena Fitzgerald, Graham Bryant, Nicholas Riley, Isobel Chapman
Setting: Scotland, Eris, Scotland (United Kingdom)

My Opinion: 

Having read all of Paula Hawkins novels so far I can safely say that I have enjoyed this one the most.

In 'The Blue Hour' we have a mystery revolving around deceased artist Vanessa Chapman. The puzzle is slowly revealed to us by her close friend Grace Haswell with the help of James Becker.  James works for the Fairburn Foundation where he is in charge of all the artworks by Vanessa that were donated to them on her death. It is a tense and atmospheric story, the latter mainly due to the remote setting of Vanessa Chapmans home being located on the island of Eris in Scotland, which is completely cut off from the mainland for many hours a day and hers is the only house on the island. The tension is because of the secrets that all the characters have and that are only slowly revealed to the reader.

A chilling and dark novel that in my opinion is well worth reading.


Précis Courtesy of Goodreads:

Eris, an island with only one house, one inhabitant, one way out. Unreachable from the Scottish mainland for twelve hours each day.

Once home to Vanessa. A famous artist whose notoriously unfaithful husband disappeared twenty years ago.

Now home to Grace. A solitary creature of the tides, content in her own isolation.

But when a shocking discovery is made in an art gallery far away in London, a visitor comes calling.

And the secrets of Eris threaten to emerge . . .



Author Profile and Photo from Amazon

 
 Courtesy of Phoebe Grigor

PAULA HAWKINS worked as a journalist for fifteen years before writing her first novel. Born and brought up in Zimbabwe, Paula moved to London in 1989. Her first thriller, The Girl on the Train, has sold more than 23 million copies worldwide. Published in over fifty languages, it has been a Number 1 bestseller around the world and was a box office hit film starring Emily Blunt.

Paula's thrillers, Into the Water and A Slow Fire Burning, were also instant Number 1 bestsellers.



Photographs, Trailer and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites.

Saturday, August 2, 2025

The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley



Hardback:  416 pages      

Genre: Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Suspense                                         

Publisher:  Harper Collins 2024

Source: Tywyn Public Library

First Sentences: It's opening night of The Manor, the new jewel of the Dorset coastline.

Review Quote: ‘A high octane tale’ DAILY TELEGRAPH

Literary Awards: 
Audie Award Nominee for Mystery (2025)Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Mystery/Thriller (2024)She Reads Best of Award Nominee for Mystery, Thriller, & Suspense (2024)

Setting: Dorset, England

My Opinion: 

I first read one of Lucy Foley's novels in 2019 and this is now my fifth. Murder mysteries are not a favourite genre of mine but I enjoy her novels as I find the writing atmospheric with good characterisation.

'The Midnight Feast' is set in a luxury hotel during its opening weekend. The owner is Francesca who has inherited the house from her Grandfather. With the help of her husband Owen, the house has been renovated and turned into a well-being resort. Some of the locals are not happy about the development and remember only too well what happened there fifteen years ago. The story of events is told via dual timelines.

A slow burn of a story for me, apologies for the pun, not a spoiler, but there is a fire involved. It is not until the storyline is well evolved that the pace picks up.  Thriller fans will undoubtably enjoy this, I did but was not keen on the gothic folklore aspect.


Précis Courtesy of Goodreads


In the shadows of an ancient wood, guests gather for the opening weekend of The Manor: a beautiful new countryside retreat.

But under the burning midsummer sun, darkness stirs. Old friends and enemies circulate among the guests. And the candles have barely been lit for a solstice supper when the body is found.

It all began with a secret, fifteen years ago. Now the past has crashed the party. And it’ll end in murder at…


Previous Review:  The Paris Apartment.  The Guest List


Author Profile:                

                                   

                                                      Courtesy of Goodreads

In her own words from her Goodreads Profile

Hello and welcome to my Goodreads page! I’m the author of the murder mystery thrillers The Midnight Feast, The Paris Apartment, The Guest List and The Hunting Party — as well as the historical novels The Book of Lost and Found, The Invitation and Last Letter from Istanbul. 

I came to writing through a love of reading — I previously worked with books as a fiction editor, a literary agent’s assistant, a bookseller and a literary scout! 

Inspired by trips to the West Country and local folklore I began plotting my latest novel, The Midnight Feast. A midsummer heatwave, a setting with a past, a reunion that takes a dark turn. And so The Midnight Feast came to life.

Thanks to brilliant readers around the world, my novels have sold over five million copies, and been translated into multiple languages. I’m also a No 1 New York Times and Sunday Times bestseller. A life-long Agatha Christie fan, I also contributed to Marple, a collection of short stories featuring the legendary detective.


Photographs and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:

Lucy Foley Author - Facebook.   Twitter - Lucy Foley.    Goodreads Profile

Amazon Profile

Saturday, June 7, 2025

A Lesson In Cruelty by Harriet Tyce

                                          


Hardback358 pages                                                                                       

Genre: Mystery, SuspenseContemporary Fiction

Publisher: Wildfire, Headline 2024

Source: Tywyn Public Library

Review Quote: 'Tyce's denouement pulls things together skilfully and surprisingly.' Sunday Times

First Sentences: Just one more night. Then it's done. Anna has packed, a clear plastic bin bag that contains all her worldly goods - tracksuits, a few toiletries. A pile of letters tied with string, pushed into the middle of her clothes.

My Opinion:  I have read and enjoyed Harriet Tyce's previous novels, so was keen to read this one. As in her previous novels the suspense is such that I could not put it down, so it was a quick read. 

Three female protagonists, with three separate plots occurring. The novel is so well constructed that the reader is kept guessing as to how and when the stories connect and what then will be the outcome. The women are Anna who is just finishing a prison sentence, Lucy who is studying for a Law Degree at Oxford and finally Marie living in isolation in rural Scotland. The tension builds as the connections between the three women are revealed.

Recommended to anyone that appreciates a well written thriller.

Previous Reviews:  Blood Orange   The Lies You Told.  It Ends At Midnight


Précis Courtesy of Goodreads:

WHAT PRICE WOULD YOU PAY FOR THE PERFECT LIFE?

They say you can't always get what you want. But you can take it.

Anna wants a fresh start. She doesn't believe she deserves it, but after three years behind bars she has finally paid her dues. Most of them, anyway.

Lucy craves the attention of the only man she can't have, her alluring Oxford professor. He's married - not for the first time. Maybe she should be next in line?

Marie the recluse has been locked up for too long. She's not ready to be free, but some rules are meant to be broken.

Everyone wants a perfect life. But not everyone is prepared to take it.

Unless someone decides to teach them a lesson.


Author Profile:

                                                   Harriet Tyce

Harriet Tyce was born and grew up in Edinburgh. She graduated from Oxford in 1994 with a degree in English Literature before gaining legal qualifications. She worked as a criminal barrister for ten years, leaving after having children. She completed an MA in Creative Writing – Crime Fiction at UEA where she wrote Blood Orange, the Sunday Times bestselling novel. It was followed by The Lies You Told, another Sunday Times bestseller. It Ends At Midnight has just been published to critical acclaim. She lives in north London with her family and two dogs.



Photograph and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:

Amazon Author Page     Goodreads - Author Profile  Harriet Tyce - Author Offical Website

Twitter Account - Harriet Tyce.  Instagram - Harriet Tyce

Wednesday, May 28, 2025

A Good Mother by Michelle Dunne

 

                                                 book cover for A Good Mother

Ebook:   338 pages      

Genre:  Thriller, Mystery, Fiction                                    

Publisher: Storm Publishing  29th April 2025

Source: NetGalley

First Sentence: The lights from the rescue boats danced across the black water, each sweep bringing Jen Blake closer to the moment her world would end.

Review Quote:  ‘A riveting thriller.Reader Review, 

My Opinion: 

Michelle Dunne is an author I discovered thanks to NetGalley and this is the second novel of hers that I have read. 'A Good Mother' is a hard hitting domestic thriller which covers some difficult topics including domestic abuse and bullying carried out by some despicable characters.

Jen Blake and Lia Higgins have known each other for years and were once very close. Their children are still best friends having grown up together, but suddenly it seems something has come between them. Tragedy occurs and as the narrative progresses the tension and anxiety grow.

This is not an easy read but a worthwhile one.  Especially if it does nothing more than make you realise we should make time to listen to the ones we love. With thanks to NetGalley, Storm Publishing and the author.


Previous Review:    The Hotel Maid


Précis Courtesy of Goodreads:

Two mothers. Two daughters. One devastating truth.

Alex Blake was terrified of water, had been since she nearly drowned at age five. So when police find her body in the river and rule it a suicide, her mother Jen knows they’re wrong. But no one will listen to a grieving mother.

The police dismiss her. Her husband thinks she’s in denial. Even their neighbours, the Higgins family, urge her to accept the truth and move on. But something isn’t right. Why was Alex messaging Lia Higgins, Jen’s former best friend, the day she died? And why is Lia now so desperate to shut down Jen’s questions?

The more Jen digs into the perfect family next door, the more she realises Alex was keeping secrets. Dangerous ones. Someone knows what really happened to her daughter. And they’re determined to keep Jen from uncovering the truth.

A breathtaking, stay-up-all-night emotional page-turner about motherhood, friendship and betrayal. Perfect for fans of K.L. Slater, Lisa Jewell and Nicola Sanders.

Author Profile:                

                                         Michelle Dunne

                                        Courtesy of Goodreads Profile

Michelle Dunne was born in Cork, Ireland, she writes crime and thriller novels. 

This month,  August 2024 The Hotel Maid, will be released as part of a two book contract with Storm Publishing. This follows June Calloway, a maid who finds the body of a murdered woman in her hotel room, just as a child is reported missing on hotel grounds. 

Michelle also wrote While Nobody is Watching and The Invisible, a series of thrillers following former soldier and UN Peacekeeper Lindsey Ryan as she tries to adapt to her new life in the clutches of PTSD. The series is currently in development for television and is inspired by Michelle’s own experiences as an infantry soldier and United Nations Peacekeeper.

Michelle is organiser and programmer of the Spike Island Literary Festival – a crime-themed festival set in Ireland's very own Alcatraz!
 


Photographs and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:

Goodreads Profile.   Twitter Profile.   Amazon Author Profile

Thursday, March 20, 2025

The Midnight Hour by Eve Chase

 




                                               


Hardback:   385 pages

Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Suspense, Family Mystery, 

Publisher: Michael Joseph 2024

Source:  Tywyn Library

First Sentences: Any danger has surely passed. Cycling into the unfolding Paris morning, Maggie can breathe easily again.

Review Quote: ‘Mesmerising - a book you want to race back to’ - Lisa Jewell, author of None of This is True

My Opinion: 

This is the third title by this author that I have read and she is now a favourite author whose books I will always look out for.

In this dual timeline novel set in London and Paris during 1998 and 2019 Maggie and her much younger sibling Kit find themselves home alone when their mother does not return home one evening. Difficult to say more without spoilers but the story of what happened in 198 in Notting Hill unfolds whilst in the 2019 chapters, twenty years later secrets are coming to light.

A well crafted story of family secrets and intrigue with a satisfying ending after all the mysteries. Will appeal to readers that enjoy plenty of drama in the novels they choose to read.


Previous Reviews :   The Glasshouse  The Birdcage

Précis Courtesy of Goodreads: 

A glittering family. A Notting Hill house. Step into their secrets...

Notting Hill, 1998. Dee Delancey—loving mother, grieving widow, sometime model—heads out for the evening, blowing a kiss before vanishing down the crescent. She doesn't come home that night. Nor the one after...

Her reclusive teenage daughter Maggie refuses to accept she's gone—no one loses both parents in two years, do they? Forced to keep house and mother her maddening little brother Kit, Maggie shuns the help of Dee's chaotic small circle of friends, fearing the news reaching the tabloids and the authorities.

But she finds an unexpected ally in Wolf, an older boy with boxer's fists from the far end of Portobello, an unknown world of dark labyrinthine shops, dusty antiques, human warmth, and misrule, far from the big white villas. A place she feels safe.

But the clock is ticking. And a stranger is lurking. As dangerous forces close in, Maggie faces an impossible choice—she must protect her brother, whatever the consequences.

Twenty years later, when the mysterious new owner of the Delancey family's old house starts digging out a basement, secrets cannot stay buried for much longer...


Author Profile:         

  

The following is what Eve has to say about herself on her Author's Official Website.

I work in a writing shed in my Oxford townhouse garden, with Harry, my golden retriever, dozing at my feet. All my Eve Chase books have hatched in this shed, among the piles of books, coffee cups and notebooks, and, rather less literary, but no less essential, my gardening tools. (If I hit a sticky plot point, I’ll start weeding.) 

I’ve always been a huge reader - treasured library card in hand - and started writing short stories as a child, going on to study English Literature at Manchester University, where I set up a creative writing magazine and first got published as a journalist. Many years in women’s glossies and national newspaper magazines followed, working as an editor, feature writer and celebrity interviewer, meeting many wonderful, interesting people along the way, and travelling all over the world. 

As a reader, I’ve always loved storytelling that immediately sweeps you in and locks you there with seductive, lush settings, unfolding secrets and characters that are alive on the page - as a writer, I try to do this too.

Photographs and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:

Instagram Profile  Author's Official Website  Eve Chase - Facebook Profile

Twitter - EvePollyChase   Amazon Author Page  Eve Chase - Goodreads Author Profile

Tuesday, February 11, 2025

The First Husband by Elisabeth Carpenter

                                               


Ebook:  300 pages Kindle Edition

Genre:  Contemporary Psychological Thriller, Mystery, Suspense,

Publisher:  Bookouture,  4th February  2025 

Source:  NetGalley 

First Sentences: Two days until the wedding I have visited Lakeside Cottage only twice since that night almost eight years ago. It looks quite different to how it was then.

Review Quote: Wow!… gripping from the very start!… I found myself reading faster and faster, desperate to know what happened… A brilliant read!’ Goodreads Reviewer

My Opinion: 

I have never come across this author before, even though 'The First Husband' is her eighth psychological thriller.


The main protagonists are Leah and Matt who are about to get married. The novel tells the story of the few days leading up to this event, in the present day sections. We are also taken back to the time eight years ago when Leah's first husband disappeared. The suspense builds because just before the wedding takes place strange things start to happen.


A very quick and agreeable read but not particularly stimulating. As a fan of psychological thrillers I personally found it lacked depth, but is probably a good introduction to newcomers to the genre.

With thanks to NetGalley, Bookouture and the author for the opportunity to read and review.



Précis Courtesy of Goodreads: 

I thought my first husband was dead. But when I get a letter with his name on it just days before my wedding, it will tear my perfect new life apart… 

As we drive up to the gorgeous house by the lake with its red and yellow roses round the door, I breathe in the pure air and count my blessings. In two days’ time I’m getting married to Matt, my soulmate and the father of my beautiful boy. After all the pain of my past, my life now is perfect.

But later that night I hear a knocking outside. I find the back door swinging open and a card lying on the floor, addressed to me in familiar handwriting…

I can’t wait to see you. I’ve missed you so much. All my love, Callum.

Callum was my first husband. Eight years ago, when we were staying at this exact same place for my birthday, he disappeared.

All the people who were with me that terrible night are here for the wedding. My brother. His wife. My new partner Callum’s best friend. We all had reasons to hate Callum then. We all have reasons to lie now.

The police are sure Callum is dead. But as I look around at my loved ones, I wonder…

Does someone know what really happened that night?

Does someone know what I did?

And if Callum is back, is he the dangerous one… or is it one of us?


Author Profile:         

                                                                                                         

                                                       Elisabeth Carpenter                                                                                                                                                                        

                                              Courtesy of Amazon Profile

In the author's own words:

I'm the author of seven psychological thrillers, including 99 Red Balloons. The Family on Smith Street and, more recently, The Girl on the News, were published by Bookouture. My new book The First Husband is out 4th February 2025.

I live in Lancashire in the north of England with my family. When I'm not writing, I love watching films, travelling, and painting. Thank you so much for your interest. I really hope you enjoy my books. If you have, please feel free to leave a review. It's always good to hear what you think.


Photographs and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:

Facebook Profile.     Author Official Website.  Instagram Profile.   Twitter Profile

Amazon Profile