📖 Publication Day Review ~ Eighteen Seconds by Louise Beech

Mardle Books
27 April 2023

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this book

My mother once said to me, ‘I wish you could feel the way I do for eighteen seconds. Just eighteen seconds, so you’d know how awful it is.’

I thought about it. Realised we could all learn from being in another person’s head for eighteen seconds. Eighteen seconds inside Grandma Roberts’ head as she sat alone with her evening cup of tea, us girls upstairs in bed. Eighteen seconds inside one-year-old Colin’s head when he woke up in a foster home without his family. Eighteen seconds inside the head of a girl waiting for her bedroom door to open.

Writer, Louise Beech, looks back on the events that led to the day her mother wrote down her last words, then jumped off the Humber Bridge. She missed witnessing the horror herself by minutes.

Louise recounts the pain and trauma of her childhood alongside her love for her siblings with a delicious dark humour and a profound voice of hope for the future.

📖 My Review

We never know what is going on inside someone's head, we may think we do but its impossible to truly know another person's thought processes. However, in Eighteen Seconds, writer, Louise Beech, lays bare her thoughts and feelings as she shares this very personal account of her life, from her upbringing by a narcissistic, and negligent, mother, to the time when, in 2019, her mother jumped off the Humber Bridge, in a tragedy, which has had long lasting repercussions.

Eighteen Seconds is not an easy book to read and there were times when I had to stop and take a breather but there was never a second when I wasn't emotionally involved especially when the saddest moments of the author's life were shared in heartbreaking detail. Any personal memoir can sometimes feel intrusive and uncomfortable but Eighteen Seconds is none of these things. With skilful writing, which this author does so well, we are given a unique glimpse into her life, and that of her siblings, which is, at times, raw, brave and brutally honest, however, there is also tremendous energy, and the family's wry sense of humour and the obvious love between the siblings, brings some light relief. Tremendous credit must therefore go to the author for bringing the minutiae of her life into sharp focus and for allowing us a privileged glimpse into her family's painful past.

Over the last few years Louise Beech has written some of my absolute favourite novels, her writing is beautifully empathic and her ability to bring her characters to life is remarkable. It is humbling to now know that during some of her darkest days she was writing the novels which have come to mean so much to so many people.

About the Author

Louise's debut novel, How to be Brave, was a Guardian Readers' pick in 2015 and a top ten bestseller on Amazon. The Mountain in my Shoe longlisted for the Guardian's Not The Booker Prize 2016. The Sunday Mirror called Maria in the Moon 'quirky, darkly comic, original and heartfelt'. It was also a Must Read in the Sunday Express and a Book of the Year at LoveReadingUK. The Lion Tamer Who Lost was described as 'engrossing and captivating' by the Daily Express. It also shortlisted for the RNA's Romantic Novel of the Year and longlisted for the Polari Prize 2019. Call Me Star Girl hit number one on Kobo. It also longlisted for the Not The Booker Prize and won the Best magazine Big Book Award 2019. I Am Dust was a Top Six pick in Crime Monthly and a LoveReadingUK Monthly Pick. This Is How We Are Human was a Clare Mackintosh August Book of the Month 2021. Memoir Daffodils came out in audiobook 2022, as well as novel, Nothing Else. Memoir will come out in paperback as Eighteen Seconds 27th April 2023.

Twitter Twitter @louisewriter #EighteenSeconds

Website

@MardleBooks

📖 Book Review ~ Dirty Briefs by Dave Fendem

 

Ad Lib Publishers
Mardle Books


My thanks to the publishers for my copy of this book

From top to bottom – a shocking and hilarious journey through the legal profession unlike anything seen before.

Straight from the bowels of back street police stations, locked psychiatric wards and the criminal courts, these are the brazen tales of a bare-knuckle barrister.

For those who think that all barristers are high flyers blessed with fabulous incomes and sophisticated lives, this book will decisively re-inform you. It will dispel any myth that those we trust to steer the ship are any less maladjusted than the clients they represent.

Unapologetically rude and irreverent, welcome to the real world of criminal barristers; an unruly place where nudity, misappropriation of sex toys and dirty protests are not just for the accused, and where judges’ discomfort brings widespread joy.

📖 My Review...

I'm no expert on the criminal justice system and have no idea what goes on in the mysterious world of criminal defence however, as this book is written by someone who knows the system well it soon becomes a rather ironic account of what goes on behind the scenes with a criminal defence barrister. Well written, with entertaining anecdotes, the book made me smile with stories about incidents I never expected to find amusing.

At just over two hundred pages this comes in as a quick read which makes it the perfect sort of book to settle down with on a rainy afternoon. If you have an interest in the law and want to know more about some irreverent behind the scenes shenanigans then Dirty Briefs might be just your cup of tea.

About the Author

Twitter @DFendem

@AdLibPublishers @MardleBooks

Book Review ~ End of Innocence by Zoë Apostolides

Mardle Books
18 August 2022

Truly Unforgotten #1

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this book

 

End of Innocence is the first in a non-fiction series ('Truly Unforgotten') exploring UK cold cases.

This book focuses on the 1978 disappearance of Genette Tate. The 13-year-old schoolgirl vanished while out delivering newspapers on her bicycle in the Exeter countryside; no trace of her was ever discovered. With new and rarely seen comments from family, police and inside the courtroom, the story links her case to the earlier abductions of April Fabb (also 13), Christine Markham (9) and Mary Boyle (6). 

None of these unsolved cases was assumed to be linked until 1990, when a man was apprehended having just kidnapped a six-year-old girl. That man was Robert Black, a notorious murderer about whom relatively little has been written. Black was eventually charged with four murders and sentenced to life, though the true number of his victims was very likely far higher. Police were preparing to charge Black with Genette Tate’s abduction and murder when he died in prison in 2016.

My Review ..

End of Innocence sees the start of a new crime series which explores infamous and unsolved cold cases. This first book explores the history behind the unresolved disappearances of young girls spanning from the 1960s, the 1970s and right up until the 1990s, all of which may be attributed to the notorious child kidnapper, and murderer, Robert Black.

Without sensationalisng the tragedy of the disappearances of so many young lives the book relates the facts which were available at the time and the police responses to complex investigations which left them baffled. Without the use of modern day technology the investigations relied on 'good old policing' methods, namely door to door conversations and a heavy reliance on witnesses and with paper trails which stretched endlessly it was never easy to correlate information. Although most of these crimes were committed in broad daylight no-one saw ever what happened until a major breakthrough in 1990 when an competent witness saw an abduction take place, and at long last Robert Black was apprehended.

End of Innocence is an interesting and well put together dossier of one man's alleged crimes, the dedication of those investigative teams, up and down the country, who never gave up hope that one day they would be able to offer some sort of resolution to those grieving families who never came to terms with the devastating loss of a beloved child.

About the Author..

Zoë Apostolides has worked as a journalist for 10 years covering lifestyle, literature, art and education for the Financial Times, The Guardian, The Telegraph and others. She has ghost-written several memoirs and biographies and combines this with editorial work as a literary agent with a particular interest in crime, horror and narrative non-fiction across all genres.

Twitter@MardleBooks 

📖 Blog Tour ~ Murder by the Sea by David Howard and Robin Jarossi

Mardle Books
7 July 2022

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of the book and the invitation to the tour

There is something sinister about a British seaside town. On the surface they’re all funfairs and breezy promenades. Yet dig a little deeper in the sand and you soon uncover an underworld of murder, madness and mayhem… 

Murder by the Sea is a companion book to the long-running true-crime documentary series on CBS Reality. Since 2018 the programme has examined some of the most extraordinary murder cases in Britain’s seaside towns. From Blackpool to Bournemouth, Southport to Pembrokeshire, people love to be beside the seaside, but away from the piers, the arcades and beautiful beaches lurks some dark secrets. Ten of the series’ most powerful and shocking cases feature in Murder by the Sea (Vol 1).

From serial killers to a 1950s poisoner, from cruel husbands to an unusual murder by a mother and son, these are the true stories of wives, couples and families who had the misfortune to encounter a killer in their everyday lives. With complete access to the extensive interviews conducted by the TV production teams with detectives, forensic psychologists, witnesses and relatives, Murder by the Sea features exclusive additional material and insights that could not be included in the original episodes.

Stephen Akinmurele – Blackpool serial killer who preyed on retired women.

John Cooper – serial killer and rapist who terrorised Pembrokeshire and eluded police for two decades.

Paul Longworth – Southport boat club commodore who tried to disguise the murder of his wife as a suicide.

Pierre Legris – Bournemouth bigamist who bludgeoned to death a woman who thought she was his second wife.

Malcolm Green – notorious Cardiff murderer who killed a prostitute and his best friend.

Louisa May Merrifield – the Blackpool Poisoner hanged in 1953 for killing her employer.

Mitchell Quy – murdered and dismembered his wife in Southport and taunted police for failing to locate the ‘missing person’.

Robert Mochrie – former civil servant who murdered his whole family in Barry.

Mathew Hardman – the teen who disembowelled an elderly woman on the island of Anglesey because he wanted to be a vampire.

Penny John and Barry Rogers – mother and son who murdered Penny’s mother in Pembrokeshire.

TV series Murder by the Sea has been commissioned twice a year since 2018 because it has won a devoted audience and high viewing figures, reinforced by frequent repeats and occasional ‘bingewatch months’ on CBS Reality. Having covered cases from around the UK, from Scotland to the South Coast, Wales, the North East and even the Isle of Man, the factual series has nationwide appeal. Its success is built on reviewing chilling cases with the assistance of experts and former detectives to reveal the murderous motivations of husbands, family members and psychopaths, and how they were eventually caught. Away from the ice creams and seafront arcades, the series exposes the dark side of locations that are meant to be idyllic.

Brand new series 7 launches in September 2022 with another in January 2023.

📖 My Review..

I'm not an overly enthusiastic reader of true crime because to be honest I'm scared of reading about those evil individuals who inflict such torment, and torture, on their victims and I haven't watched the TV series Murder by the Sea but something about this book title intrigued me especially as the seaside is one of my favourite places to visit and here in the UK we have hundreds of miles of beautiful, unspoiled, coastline. However, having said that, there is sometimes something a little bit sinister about a seaside town, maybe it's the thought of so many people, each with their own stories to tell, who pass through the towns all year round.

Murder by the Sea looks in depth at ten of the most chilling murders which have taken place in those seaside resorts we all know and love. Both Blackpool and Southport are just a short drive away from me and yet I wasn't familiar with any of the three cases which took place in these towns and which are mentioned in the book. Sometimes these stories of murder are just snippets in a local news item but as this in-depth study reveals there is usually a lot more to discover about these complex, and rather sensational, murder investigations.

With impeccable research and a fine eye for even the smallest of detail, the authors have done a great job of presenting the factual evidence of these heinous crimes. Crimes which have fractured families and shattered the peace of small seaside communities who are still reeling from having a killer in their midst.

Perfectly possible to read with no prior knowledge of the crimes, Murder by the Sea works as an adjunct, or introduction, to this True Life TV crime series.

🍷Best read with...a stiff drink, or maybe even two..

About the Authors

Authors DAVID HOWARD is a documentary film maker and founder of the television production company Monster Films. A recipient of the Royal Television Society Award for journalism, his award-winning films include Interview With A Murderer (Channel 4) and Dark Son (BBC). He is the creator and director of the series Murder by the Sea. This is his first book. ROBIN JAROSSI is a freelance journalist and the author of The Hunt for the 60s’ Ripper. He is also an on-air contributor to true-crime documentaries on the BBC and CBS Reality, including Murder by the Sea.

Twitter @MardleBooks #MurderbytheSea

@MonsterFilmsUK

@RobinJarossi

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