📖 Book Review ~ The Wild Coast by Lin Anderson

 

Macmillan
3 August 2023

Rhona McLeod #17

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this book

A remote shoreline. A lethal killer.

The height of summer in Scotland. Small west-coast campsites are the go-to for wild campers and campervans. Remote, loch or beach-side, most occupy a field on a highland croft.

No CCTV. Small overnight fee paid for in cash. Friendly and ideal if you long for solitude, beauty and safety.

Until a lone camper disappears. Then another. It appears that a killer has found the perfect way to operate. Remote, unnoted and lethal.

Meanwhile in Glasgow , Police Scotland is facing allegations of sexual assault by its male officers. Young women from all walks of life have come forward to reveal the names of their police attackers. In that list is one DS Michael McNab.

Did McNab overstep the mark, or is the accusation against him a way of putting him

out of action forever?

📖 My Review..

I've followed this excellent crime series for several years and it is always with great excitement that I start a new book. The Wild Coast is now the seventeenth book in the Rhona McLeod series and is every bit as good as the previous sixteen books which make up this fascinating crime series.

In The Wild Coast we are quickly immersed in a story which has all the trademarks of this author's fine attention to detail.  The intricate descriptions of crime scenes which she does so very well are brought to life by Rhonda McLeod's whose own meticulous attention to detail, and her assistant, Chrissy's, bubbly personality, help to bring such charm to what are, often, quite darkly complex crime stories. In this story Rhona McLeod is called to investigate the discovery of a body on the coast at Arisaig which has been discovered inadvertently during a different investigation. 

With tanalising clues left at the scene of crime but with no real investigative leads, there are far reaching effects not just on the community but also within a lager police investigation into why young women are going missing and of their connection to other ongoing criminal activity. As always the myriad strands of a complex crime investigation get pulled ever tighter and with Rhona and Chrissy working hard to discover forensic evidence so DS McNab and DS Clarke are also facing their own challenges especially Michael McNab who always seems to find trouble waiting for him.

I raced through The Wild Coast, eager to read on and yet reluctant to finish as I know it will be a while before the next book is released. Looking forward to book number eighteen...😊

About the Author

Lin Anderson is best known as the creator of the forensic scientist Rhona MacLeod series of crime thriller novels, and for her part in founding the annual 'Bloody Scotland' crime writing festival.

Twitter @Lin_Anderson  #TheWildCoast

@panmacmillan

📖 Publication Day Book Review ~ All of Us are Broken by Fiona Cummins

 

Macmillan
25 July 2023

DC Saul Anguish #2

My thanks to the publisher and Laura Sherlock PR for my copy of the book

It’s been a long time since the Hardwicke family has been on holiday. But thirteen-year-old Galen has wanted to see the wild dolphins at Scotland’s Chanonry Point for as long as she can remember, and her mother Christine – a lone parent since her beloved husband left – is determined she gets her wish. But their serene trip is about to be interrupted.

When DC Saul Anguish is called to investigate the shooting of an ex-police officer in Midtown-on-Sea, Essex, he quickly discovers that this is the first in a string of killings by Missy and Fox, a damaged young couple hell-bent on infamy, their love story etched in blood. In pursuit, Saul follows their trail north.

The paths of the Hardwickes' and the deadly couple are about to collide. When Saul and his forensic linguist partner, Blue, arrive on the scene, they witness the unthinkable: a mother forced to make an impossible choice.

Saul must uncover the truth about the couple. But can he find the strength to lay the ghosts of his past to rest before they break him?

📖 My Review..

The dramatic, and nail-bitingly chilling, opening chapter sets the scene perfectly for this roller coaster of a drama which never loses pace or fails to serve up an emotional thriller which pulls you in and doesn't let go until the dramatic ending. Missy and Fox are perhaps two of the most unlikable protagonists I have ever come across and yet this talented author makes you feel an emotional connection to them even as their killing spree takes the story to a whole new level of horror. Countered against this evil is the inevitability of the lovely Hardwicke family, who have their own share of troubles, and who are inadvertently drawn into Missy and Fox's trajectory by simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

When I was reading this fabulously addictive crime novel all I could think of was what a wonderful TV drama it would be as both Missy and Fox, a modern day Bonnie and Clyde, would translate to television very well. By the time the story was done, and I read it over the space of one sitting as I literally couldn't put the book down without carrying it from room to room so I could snatch a few minutes to read some more, I felt like I had travelled everyone one of the hundreds of miles that Missy and Fox take towards their own inevitable destiny.

I won't spoil All of Us Are Broken by giving away any details about the plot as this is one story you really should read with no idea of what is about to happen next, so all I will say is that this is 320 pages of sheer brilliance, and it is, without doubt, my crime read of the year.

Twitter @FionaAnnCummins #AllOfUsAreBroken

@panmacmillan

@laurasherlock21

📖 Blog Tour ~ The Woolworths Girl's Promise by Elaine Everest

 

Pan Macmillan
16 March 2023

Woolworth Series #8

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this book
and the opportunity to be part of the blog tour

After losing her beloved fiancé at Ypres in 1917, seventeen-year-old Elizabeth Billington faces a lonely future estranged from her upper-class parents due to her association with Charlie Sayers and his working-class family. No longer able to live under her parent’s roof she is taken in by Charlie’s father, escaping the suffocating demands of her parents. Betty soon learns all too well about the realities of life after an accident at the Woolwich Arsenal munitions works. Spotting an advertisement for a nearby job at Woolworths, Betty starts on a new and thrilling journey starting at the bottom of the employment ladder in the well-known store. Her work journey leads her to Ramsgate in Kent to work in a newly built store and with it the chance of marriage, but can she ever forget Charlie and the promise she made to him…?

📖 My review...

After losing her fiancé Charlie at the Battle of Ypres Elizabeth Billington is disowned by her middle class parents so she takes refuge with Charlie’s working class family and for the first time in her life, Elizabeth must find the means of supporting herself. After a brief time working in an ammunitions factory Betty, as she is now known, takes up a lowly position at the nearby F W Woolworths store. Over time Betty starts grow in confidence making new friends in the process however, she must also learn how to cope with the challenges which lie ahead.

The Woolworth Girl’s Promise is a heartwarming story about love and loss and also about the continuing grief and sadness which was felt by so many women who had lost their loved ones during the First World War.  The historical spect of the story feels beautifully authentic and I especially loved the detailed description of how the Woolworth store operated and of the opportunities which were available for women to become part of the general workforce.

Whilst this is the eighth book in the popular Woolworth Girls series of historical sagas it is perfectly possible to enjoy the story as a standalone and yet for those who are familiar with the series it’s lovely to have the backstory of one of the popular characters. The author has made this series into something rather special bringing to life both the history and the camaraderie which existed amongst the working classes during the first half of the twentieth century and of course shining a spotlight on Woolworths which is so much part of our shared history.

About the Author

Elaine Everest, author of bestselling novels The Woolworths Girls, The Butlins Girls, Christmas at Woolworths and The Teashop Girls, was born and brought up in north-west Kent, where many of her books are set. She has been a freelance writer for twenty-seven years and has written widely for women’s magazines and national newspapers, both short stories and features. Her non-fiction books for dog owners have been very popular and led to her broadcasting on radio about our four-legged friends. Elaine has been heard discussing many topics on radio, from canine subjects to living with a husband under her feet when redundancy looms.

Twitter @elaineeverest #TheWoolworthGirlsPromise #WoolworthGirls

Facebook

@panmacmillan

📖 Book Review ~ The Goblin Market and Other Poems by Christina Rossetti

Pan Macmillan
13 October 2022

My thanks to the publishers fro my copy of this book

 

Two sisters, Laura and Lizzie, are enticed by the smells, sounds and sights of the goblin market, tempted by the ripe figs, plump cherries and fragrant berries. Whilst Lizzie resists, Laura is slowly destroyed by her insatiable longing for the goblin’s forbidden fruit.

Part of the Macmillan Collector’s Library; a series of stunning, clothbound, pocket sized classics with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover. This edition of Goblin Market & Other Poems features a preface by novelist Elizabeth Macneal and original illustrations by Laurence Housman.

Here is Christina Rossetti’s first critically acclaimed collection of poetry. Published in 1862, as well as ‘Goblin Market’ it contains some of her most treasured work, such as ‘A Birthday’, ‘An Apple Gathering’ and ‘Remember’. It launched her career as the foremost female poet of her time and, more than a century later, modern readers are still seduced by its symbolism and sensual language.

📖 My review..

First off I don't think my Kindle edition has done justice to the beauty of this pocket sized classic which has gold foiled edges, a ribbon marker and beautiful woodcut illustrations, however, putting that minor detail on one side for when I next go into a book shop to browse, this really is a special collection of some of the best of Christina Rossetti's work.

I had read snippets of The Goblin Market before but never in its entirety and I was entranced by the dark, and occasional erotic, imagery it contained, as sisters, Laura and Lizzie, are enticed by the forbidden fruit of the Goblin Market. Its lyrical fairy tale quality, belies the fluidity, strength, beauty and timely warning of Rossetti's words. 

Along with Goblin Market there are several other fine examples of Rossetti's best work which will appeal if you enjoy Victorian Gothic. Overall, this collection is a fine introduction to Rossetti's work as it contains some poems which are well known or, most certainly, it would make a perfect keepsake for those who are already familiar with her work and who admire Rossetti’s skilful use of both high drama and Victorian melancholy which is found in nearly all of her poems.

About The Author

Christina Georgina Rossetti (5 December 1830 – 29 December 1894) was an English writer of romantic, devotional and children's poems, including "Goblin Market" and Remember.She was a sister of the artist and poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti and features in several of his paintings.

Goblin Market and Other Poems by Christina Rossetti is published this week by Macmillan's Collectors Library.

Twitter  #ChristinaRossetti #GoblinMarketandOther Poems

@panmacmillan

📖 Publication Day Review ~ The Other Side of Night by Adam Hamdy

 

Pan Macmillan
15 September

Thanks to the publishers and Laura Sherlock for my copy of this book

The Other Side of Night begins with a man named David Asha writing about his biggest regret: his sudden separation from his son, Elliot. In his grief, David tells a story.

Next, we step into the life of Harriet Kealty, a police officer trying to clear her name after a lapse of judgment. She discovers a curious inscription in a secondhand book—a plea: Help me, he’s trying to kill me. Who wrote this note? Who is “he”?

This note leads Harri to David Asha, who was last seen stepping off a cliff. Police suspect he couldn’t cope after his wife’s sudden death. Still, why would this man jump and leave behind his young son? Quickly, Harri’s attention zeroes in on a person she knows all too well.

Ben Elmys: once the love of her life. A surrogate father to Elliot Asha and trusted friend to the Ashas.

Ben may also be a murderer.​

📖 My Review 

This is an interesting and rather unusual book with a reveal I cannot reveal without adding major spoilers so I won't even dare go there. What I can say is that The Other Side of Night is a cleverly written story which tests the limits of your imagination and reveals a complex plot which moves along at a considered pace and reveals its secrets slowly and carefully.

Many have said that The Other Side of Night is a book to read with no prior knowledge of where it is going and I have to agree with that premise and that is why this review is rather vague. Defying genre and refusing to conform to any stereotype, this is a cleverly put together story about love and sacrifice and whilst it caught my attention it frequently left me feeling a little bit puzzled.

Did I enjoy The Other Side of Night? Well now, there's the dilemma, I both did, and didn't, and maybe if you read it, you'll understand why.

About the Author

Adam Hamdy is a Sunday Times bestselling novelist and screenwriter best known for his thrillers, including the Scott Pearce series and the Pendulum trilogy. A finalist for the Glass Bell Award for contemporary fiction and previously selected for BBC Radio 2’s Book Club, Adam receives critical acclaim from peers and media alike. Previously a strategy consultant advising global businesses in the medical systems, robotics, technology and financial services sectors, he now works with studios and production companies on both sides of the Atlantic in addition to writing.

Twitter @adamhamdy #TOSON

@panmacmillan

@laurasherlockpr

Hist Fic Saturday ~ The Midwife by Tricia Cresswell

 

On Hist Fic Saturday

Let's go back to ....1848

Pan Macmillan
Mantle Books
17 February 2022

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this book

1838. After a violent storm, a woman is found alone, naked and near death, on the Northumberland moors. She has no memory of who she is or how she got there. But she can remember how to help a woman in labour and how to expertly dress a wound, and can speak fluent French. With the odds against her, a penniless single woman, she starts to build her life from scratch, using her skills to help other women around her. She finds a happy place in the world. Until tragedy strikes, and she must run for her life...

In London, Dr Borthwick lives a solitary life working as an accoucheur dealing with mothers and babies in the elegant homes of high society together with his midwife, Mrs Bates, and volunteering in the slums of the Devil’s Acre alongside a young widow, Eleanor Johnson. His professional reputation is spotless and he keeps his private life just as clean, isolating himself from any new acquaintances. But he is harbouring a dark secret from his past – one that threatens to spill over everything.

My Review ..

Naked and alone, and with no memory of who she is, our mysterious protagonist is taken in by an unfortunate couple who give her the name 'Joanna' but who then keep her in a life of penury. Eager to flee this miserable existence and without knowing where her expert medical knowledge comes from Joanna starts to build a new life for herself. Meanwhile in London, young Doctor Borthwick is making his name as an accoucheur looking after women in all stages of their pregnancy and delivery. In alternate chapters we get to know both of these characters really well as they live out their lives at opposite ends of the social divide.

There's a wonderful authenticity to The Midwife which I enjoyed especially the medical references which are both realistic  and well explained. Joanna's life in Northumberland is brought into stark contrast alongside Doctor Borthwick's more affluent London lifestyle with his comfortable house and servants. The juxtaposition of the two is well done with enough intrigue to keep the story flowing and with a nice twist in the tale which adds an interesting dimension.

The Midwife is well written historical fiction and a commendable debut novel.

Best Read with...strong coffee and a slice of cake.

About the Author

Tricia Cresswell is a retired public health doctor. She temporarily returned to work in spring 2020 in support of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and volunteered as a vaccinator. She achieved a Distinction in her Creative Writing MA at Newcastle University in 2017. Creative response to the climate emergency has now taken priority in her writing.

The Midwife is a winner of  Mslexia Debut Novel Award.

Twitter #TriciaCresswell #TheMidwife

@panmacmillan @MantleBooks

📖 Feature Friday on Jaffareadstoo ~ The Midwife by Tricia Cresswell

 

Welcome to Feature Friday

it's a warm space to a highlight a book coming soon which is on my book radar

and one I am looking forward to reading

Published on the 17th February 2022

Pan Macmillan

A haunting and moving debut, The Midwife by Tricia Cresswell is perfect for fans of The Familiars and The Binding.

1838. After a violent storm, a woman is found alone, naked and near death, on the Northumberland moors. She has no memory of who she is or how she got there. But she can remember how to help a woman in labour and how to expertly dress a wound, and can speak fluent French. With the odds against her, a penniless single woman, she starts to build her life from scratch, using her skills to help other women around her. She finds a happy place in the world. Until tragedy strikes, and she must run for her life...

In London, Dr Borthwick lives a solitary life working as an accoucheur dealing with mothers and babies in the elegant homes of high society together with his midwife, Mrs Bates, and volunteering in the slums of the Devil’s Acre alongside a young widow, Eleanor Johnson. His professional reputation is spotless and he keeps his private life just as clean, isolating himself from any new acquaintances. But he is harbouring a dark secret from his past – one that threatens to spill over everything.

📖

The early reviews I've seen of the book are encouraging, so I'm looking forward to reading The Midwife as I enjoy dual time stories. I trained as a midwife, so I'm always interested to see how the profession is portrayed in a historical setting.

So as they say....watch this space..

@jaffareadstoo #FeatureFriday #amreading

About the Author

Tricia Cresswell is a retired public health doctor. She temporarily returned to work in spring 2020 in support of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and volunteered as a vaccinator. She achieved a Distinction in her Creative Writing MA at Newcastle University in 2017. Creative response to the climate emergency has now taken priority in her writing.

The Midwife is available to pre-order from wherever you buy books

📖 Blog Tour ~ The Patchwork Girls by Elaine Everest

 

I am delighted to be opening this blog tour today

Pan Macmillan
14 October 2021

Thank to the publisher for my copy of this book
and ED Public Relations for the invitation to the blog tour

1939. After the sudden and tragic loss of her husband, Helen returns to her mother’s house in Biggin Hill, Kent – the one place she vowed she’d never go back to. Alone and not knowing where to turn, she joins the local women’s sewing circle to find some companionship and comfort, despite being hopeless with a needle and thread. These resourceful women can not only ‘make- do and mend’ clothes, quilts and woolly hats, but the fast-formed friendship with Lizzie and Effie mends something deeper in Helen too. When the reason for Helen's husband's death comes to light, her world is turned upside down yet again. The investigating officer on the case, Richard, will leave no stone unturned – but it’s not long before his interest in Helen goes beyond the professional. As she pieces together old fabrics into a beautiful quilt, will Helen patch up the rifts in her own life?

📖 My thoughts..

After the unexpected death of her husband, Helen Wentworth returns to her childhood home to live with her mother and stepfather. The house at Biggin Hill holds no happy memories for Helen and as soon as she arrives she is determined to find things to occupy her away from home. Joining the local sewing circle is the best thing she could have done as it encourages Helen not only to make new friends, who she comes to rely on, but she also develops quite a skill for patchwork quilting. However, we soon discover that it's not all about cups of tea and slices of cake as there is a darker element surrounding Helen's reasons for being back home and this mystery is cleverly woven into the story in a way which compliments Helen's need to discover the painful truth about her husband's untimely death.

It's really lovely to have a WW2 story which focuses on the make do and mend generation and the lively nature of the village sewing circle shows just how important these practical skills were, not only in keeping morale high, but also in providing useful practical skills which would be of great value as the war progressed. I particularly enjoyed the references to patchwork quilting, an enviable skill with so much history, and meaning, stitched into the intricate designs. 

The Patchwork Girls is a warm hearted story about the camaraderie which is so often found in small communities and whose shared experiences made such a difference to the way women, in particular, coped with the worry of impending war. There's an authenticity to the story and from the very start I felt as if I was standing firmly in 1939 as the author brings to life the uncertainty of living in a country on the cusp of war. Rationing beckons and already the spitfires are gathering at Biggin Hill as the villagers start to prepare for an unknown danger.

My picture

About the Author

Elaine Everest is the author of bestselling novels The Woolworths Girls, The Butlins Girls, Christmas at Woolworths and The Teashop Girls. She was born and raised in North-West Kent, where many of her bestselling historical sagas are set. She grew up listening to tales of the war years in her hometown of Erith, which has inspired her own stories.

 

Elaine has been a freelance writer for 25 years and has written over 100 short stories and serials for the women's magazine market. She is also the author of a number of popular non-fiction books for dog owners. When she isn't writing, Elaine runs The Write Place creative writing school in Hextable, Kent. She now lives in Swanley with her husband, Michael and their Polish Lowland Sheepdog, Henry.

The Patchwork Girls by Elaine Everest is out now, published by Pan Macmillan in paperback original, priced £7.99

Twitter @elaineeverest #ThePatchWorkGirls

@panmacmillan

📖 Blog Tour ~ The Rose Garden by Tracy Rees

 

Thrilled to be one of the stops on the closing day of this blog tour 

Pan Macmillan
2 September 2021

Thanks to the publishers for my copy of this book

and to Random Things Tours for the invitation to the blog tour

1895. Hampstead, London.

Olive Westallen lives a privileged, if rather lonely, life in her family’s grand Hampstead home. But she has radical plans for the future of her family – plans that will shock the high-society world she inhabits. For her new neighbour, twelve-year-old Ottilie Finch, London is an exciting playground to explore. Her family have recently arrived from Durham, under a cloud of scandal that Otty is blissfully unaware of. The only shadow over her days is her mother’s mysterious illness, which keeps her to her room. When Mabs is offered the chance to become Mrs Finch’s companion, it saves her from a desperate life on the canals. Little does she know that all is not as picture-perfect as it seems. Mabs is about to become tangled in the secrets that chased the Finches from their last home, and trapped in an impossible dilemma .

📖 My thoughts..

Eighteen year old Mabs Daley finds working on the London Docks to be harsh but with her younger brothers and sisters to support Mabs has little choice but to continue with this back breaking work, that is, until her friend tells her of a job, in service, in the home of the Finch family who have newly arrived in London from Durham. Employed as a companion to the melancholic, Mrs Finch brings Mabs into contact with twelve year old Ottilie Finch, who, left to her own devices explores London with all the enthusiasm of a child breaking free of the restrictions placed upon her by society. Meanwhile, Olive Westallen, a rather unusual, twenty eight year old, uses her family wealth to do good deeds but in doing so shocks polite society.

What follows is a detailed novel which explores the boundaries that Victorian women had placed upon them, not just by a patriarchal society who viewed independent women as something of an anathema, but also even in families, sensibilities could so easily be troubled by the wrong actions. Social attitudes were often greatly offended by doing and saying the wrong things to the wrong people and yet all three of these quite unusual characters found that once their lives started to intertwine a connection between them was allowed to flourish in the most unlikeliest of circumstances. The three voices of Mabs, Ottilie and Olive come cross loud and clear, from the poverty and hardship of Mabs’s family, the opulence of Olive’s Hampstead mansion, to Ottilie, and her rather fractured family, especially her mother, coming somewhere in the middle.

Beautifully written, with an authentic feel for time and place, the late-Victorian era comes alive in The Rose Garden. The author does a great job of bringing everything together in a compelling story which cuts across the social divide and explores family secrets, social mobility and the tentative emergence of women battling to have their voices heard in a male dominated society.

About the Author

Tracy Rees was the first winner of the Richard and Judy Search for a Bestseller competition. She has also won the Love Stories Best Historical Read award and been shortlisted for the RNA Epic Romantic Novel of the Year. A Cambridge graduate, Tracy had a successful career in non-fiction publishing before retraining for a second career practising and teaching humanistic counselling. She has also been a waitress, bartender, shop assistant, estate agent, classroom assistant and workshop leader. Tracy divides her time between the Gower Peninsula of South Wales and London.

Twitter @AuthorTracyRees #TheRoseGarden

@panmacmillan

@RandomTTours

📖 Blog Tour ~ The Killing Tide by Lin Anderson

 

Delighted to be on this blog tour today

Macmillan
5 August

Rhona MacLeod #16

My Thanks to the publishers for my copy of the book
and to Random Things Tours for the invitation to be part of the blog tour

When three bodies are found on a wrecked ship in the Orkney Isles, forensic scientist Rhona MacLeod is brought in to investigate.

After a fierce storm hits Scotland, a mysterious cargo ship is discovered swept ashore in the Orkney Isles. Boarding the vessel uncovers three bodies, recently deceased and in violent circumstances. Forensic scientist Dr Rhona MacLeod’s study of the crime scene suggests that a sinister game was being played on board, but who were the hunters? And who the hunted?

Meanwhile in Glasgow DS Michael McNab is called to a horrific incident where a young woman has been set on fire. Or did she spark the flames herself? As evidence arises that connects the two cases, the team grow increasingly concerned that the truth of what happened on the ship and in Glasgow hints at a wider conspiracy that stretches down to London and beyond to a global stage. Orcadian Ava Clouston, renowned investigative journalist, believes so and sets out to prove it, putting herself in grave danger. When the Met Police challenge Police Scotland’s jurisdiction, it becomes obvious that there are ruthless individuals who are willing to do whatever it takes to protect government interests. Which could lead to even more deaths on Scottish soil,

📖 My thoughts..

This sixteenth book in the Rhona MacLeod series of crime novels sees forensic scientist, Rhona, and her assistant Chrissy, caught up in a very complicated investigation which begins with a distressing case involving the death of a young woman in horrific circumstances and continues with the discovery of a Russian cargo ship which has been swept ashore in the Orkney Islands during a fierce storm which battered the whole of the area. DS Michael McNab and his investigative team are caught in the middle of both of these cases and with a race against time to discover what's going on, so it would seem that these two unusual cases are linked in some macabre way.

This talented Scottish crime writer has certainly found her niche with this series and with each successive book the stories just get stronger, and more complicated. I especially enjoyed watching how this complex plot would play out amidst the world of global gaming and the sinister repercussions add a chilling edge to what is, after all, a really compelling murder mystery. This story was particularly macabre and the isolated nature of the Orkney islands only adds to the brooding atmosphere of the investigation.

The characters, as always, are a great bunch, I'm equally at home with Rhona and Chrissy, as they use their forensic skills to make sense of the senseless, enjoying their utter professionalism in the face of great challenges, but laughing out loud with them at their banter over Chrissy's breakfast goodies. DS McNab and his investigative team add the necessary police procedural to the story but the complexity of the plots are lightened with snippets about McNab's complicated police and personal life. It is this authenticity of both characterisation, and plot, where the real magic of the stories lie and which continue to make this series so popular amongst crime readers.

I can't see this wonderful Scottish crime series finishing anytime soon as I am sure there are lots of readers, like me, who finish each story with a sense of satisfaction of a case well solved and who look forward eagerly to the next adventure for Rhona MacLeod.

About the Author

Lin Anderson is a Scottish author and screenwriter known for her bestselling crime series featuring forensic scientist Dr Rhona MacLeod. Four of her novels have been longlisted for the Scottish Crime Book of the Year, with Follow the Dead being a 2018 finalist. Her short film River Child won both a Scottish BAFTA for Best Fiction and the Celtic Film Festival’s Best Drama Award and has now been viewed more than one million times on YouTube. Lin is also the co-founder of the international crime writing festival Bloody Scotland.

Twitter @Lin_Anderson

#RhonaMacLeod #TheKillingTide 

@PanMacmillan

@RandomTTours  

📖 Blog Tour ~ Soul Sisters by Lesley Lokko

 

Delighted to host one of today's stops on this blog tour

Pan Macmillan
22 July 2021

My thanks to the publishers for my copy of the book
and to Random Things tours for the invitation to the blog tour

Since childhood, Jen and Kemi have lived like sisters in the McFadden family home in Edinburgh, brought together by a shared family history which stretches back generations. Kemi was educated in Britain alongside Jen and the girls could not be closer; nor could they be more different in the paths they take in life. But the ties that bind them are strong and complicated, and a dark family secret exists in their joint history. 

Solam Rhoyi is from South Africa’s black political elite. Handsome, charismatic, charming, and a successful young banker, he meets both Kemi and Jen on a trip to London and sweeps them off their feet. Partly influenced by her interest in Solam, and partly on a journey of self-discovery, Kemi, now 31, decides to return to the country of her birth for the first time. Jen, seeking an escape from her father’s overbearing presence, decides to go with her.

In Johannesburg, it becomes clear that Solam is looking for the perfect wife to facilitate his soaring political ambitions. But who will he choose? All the while, the real story behind the two families’ connection threatens to reveal itself – with devastating consequences.

📖 My thoughts..

The eponymous Soul Sisters of the story are Catriona Jennifer (Jen) McFadden born in Scotland and Kemisha (Kemi) Mashabane born in Rhodesia. The lives of the two girls become inextricably linked when Kemi, aged nine, is sent to live with Jen, and her family, in Scotland in 1978. In the rather stuffy atmosphere of Jen's family home in Edinburgh, the two girls, both very different, grow up as sisters and they find love, friendship and solidarity in their shared experiences. Over the years, this special bond will see Jen and Kemi set out on a complicated journey of discovery which will take them from Scotland, to England, and latterly to post-apartheid South Africa as they each seek to find their place in the complicated political world around them. 

When Solam Rhoyi comes into the story the tension starts to grow. He is an ambitious young politician whose family, as part of South Africa’s black political elite, is very much caught up in the post-apartheid world. This part of the story gives an interesting view of what it was like to live in South Africa, particularly during the political, racial and social changes which were happening during the nineteen-nineties, and we get a whole new perspective about the tensions which so dominated world news during this momentous time in South Africa's history.

Soul Sisters is a well written, inter-generational novel which spans almost ninety years. The author does a great job of keep the momentum alive, bringing place, people, race and politics alive in a story which takes us on a truly epic journey, from an isolated missionary settlement in Matabeleland, Southern Rhodesia, in 1921, through to modern day, Cape Town in 2010. 

About the Author

Lesley Lokko is a Ghanaian-Scottish architect, academic and novelist, formerly Dean of Architecture at City College of New York, who has lived and worked on four continents. Lesley’s bestselling novels include Soul Sisters, Sundowners, Rich Girl, Poor Girl and A Private Affair. Her novels have been translated into sixteen languages and are captivating stories about powerful people, exploring themes of racial and cultural identity.

Twitter #SoulSisters #LesleyLokko

@panmacmillan

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📖 Blog Tour ~ Secrets of the Jam Factory Girls by Mary Wood

 📖 On Hist Fic Saturday I am thrilled to host today's Blog Tour stop 📖


Let's go back to...1912

Pan Macmillan
13 May 2021

My thanks to the publishers for my copy of this book
and to Random Things Tours for the invitation to be part of the blog tour.

A heartwarming saga about female friendship

 from the bestselling author of The Jam Factory Girls.

Secrets of the Jam Factory Girls is a moving saga novel of friendship set in the heart of pre-WWI London from bestselling author, Mary Wood. 

Elsie’s worked her way up at Swift’s Jam Factory from the shop floor to the top, and now it’s her time to shine. But when she’s involved in an incident involving her half-sister Millie’s new husband, she is forced to keep it secret – the truth could threaten their sisterly bond. 

Dot is dogged by fear, coming to terms with her mother’s rejection of her. She should be enjoying the happiness she craves with her beloved Cess; instead, she’s trapped in an asylum, haunted by the horrifying cries of inmates. All she wants is to get married, but what chance is there for her if she’s locked away?

Millie is trying to build a life with her new husband. But the man she loves is not all he seems . . . Can the Jam Factory girls create the future they all deserve? This historical saga series begins with The Jam Factory Girls.

📖 My Thoughts..

Elsie, Dot and Millie are the eponymous jam factory girls and in this second book in the series we learn more about them as they continue to suffer through life's hardships at the turn of the twentieth century.

Those who have read the first book in the series will be familiar with the girls and of their connection to each other, so in this second book it was lovely to pick up with them again. However, as we discovered previously, life is never easy for them and they have much to overcome, particularly Dot who is facing her own trials and also both Elsie and Millie are finding that life never works out as you've planned.

The early part of the twentieth century, this book opens in 1912, was a time of great change and the author carefully includes references to the harsher side of life, but there's also the warmth and camaraderie of having close friendships in a time of great adversity. Blending the vernacular of the East End of London also gives a touch of realism and I enjoyed the authentic way in which the author weaves family and friendship dramas together. 

Secrets of the Jam Factory Girls certainly continues the historical saga in a meaningful way, and whilst it is perfectly possible to read this second book as a standalone I do think it would be beneficial to become acquainted with the Jam Factory girls in the first book in order to understand the complicated bonds which bind them all together.

Secrets of the Jam Factory Girls is both heartwarming and emotional and is a worthy continuation of this lovely series.

About the Author

Born the thirteenth child of fifteen to a middle-class mother and an East End barrow boy, Mary Wood’s family was poor, but rich in love. Mary raised four children and has numerous grandchildren, step-grandchildren and great-grandchildren. An avid reader, she first put pen to paper in 1989 and is now a full-time novelist. She is the bestselling author of numerous books, including The Abandoned Daughter and The Brave Daughters.

Twitter @Authormary #SecretsOfTheJamFactoryGirls

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📖 Publication Day Book Review ~ Daughters of Night by Laura Shepherd-Robinson

📖 Happy Publication Day 📖

Mantle
Pan Macmillan
18 February 2021

My thanks to the publishers for my copy of this book

Murder awaits in the illuminated night of Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens ...

London, 1782, Caro Corsham finds a woman mortally wounded in the bowers of Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens.

When the constables discover that the deceased woman was a high-society lady of the night, they stop searching for her killer - and it's up to Caro to seek justice.

But the hidden corners of Georgian society are filled with artifice, deception and secrets, and finding the killer will be harder, and more treacherous, than she can know ...

📖 My Thoughts..

Daughters of Night takes us right into the hidden and, it must be said, rather unpleasant underbelly of Georgian society, for this is not the world of polite soirées and decorous salons, but rather its focus is more in the shadowy places of London where link-boys light your way to places where five guinea whores ply their trade under cover of darkness.

For Caro Corsham, the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens holds no interest for on this night in August 1782 she is meeting someone who she hopes will have a solution to a dilemma, however, Caro is little prepared for what awaits her in the discreet bower normally reserved for those clandestine meetings of a more intimate nature. Instead of the answer she seeks, Caro finds instead a fatally wounded young woman, and it is this macabre discovery which opens up a scandalous mystery and which leads Caro into a dark and dangerous world filled with treachery, duplicity and deceit.

Taking us firmly by the hand, Daughters of Night strides forcefully through the mean and moody streets of Georgian London and with gritty authenticity throws us headlong into the shady world of Peregrine Child, the thief-taker who, employed by Caro, seeks solutions to questions no-one wants to answer, and in the process opens up the secretive world of female sexploitation. 

Totally  authentic and gloriously described, Daughters of Night has all the necessary elements for a clever murder/mystery, and yet it is so much more than a simple whodunit. It’s more of a thrilling ride through the hotchpotch of Georgian society, from the violent underclass of prostitution, to the intriguing world of art and politics, from shady money-lenders, to the raucous cries of the prostitutes who frequent the Whore's Club, there is never a moment when the story doesn't draw you into its vast and murky depths.

Those who have read this author's debut book, Blood & Sugar, will already be aware of just how good she is at recreating the dark side of Georgian England. Daughters of Night continues this theme in a highly entertaining, meticulously researched, historical thriller by an author who is absolutely at the top of her game. 

About the Author

Laura Shepherd-Robinson worked in politics for nearly twenty years before re-entering normal life to complete an MA in Creative Writing at City University. Blood & Sugar, her first novel, won the Historical Writers’ Association Debut Crown and the Specsavers/Crimefest Best Debut Novel prize; was a Waterstones Thriller of the Month; and a Guardian and Telegraph novel of the year. It was also shortlisted for the Crime Writers’ Association John Creasey (New Blood) Dagger and the Sapere Historical Dagger; the Goldsboro Glass Bell; and the Amazon Publishing/Capital Crime Best Debut Novel, as well as being longlisted for the Theakston’s Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year. Daughters of Night is her second novel.

Website

Twitter @LauraSRobinson #DaughterofNight

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🎄Blog Tour ~ Christmas with the Teashop Girls by Elaine Everest

 

🎄Delighted to host one of today's stops on this festive Blog Tour🎄

Pan Macmillan
15 October 2020

My thanks to the publishers and ed public relations for my copy of the book
and the invitation to be part of this blog tour

The friends return in a moving story of love, bravery and hope set in 1940 – a guaranteed winter warmer full of festive spirit. Bestseller Elaine Everest is the author of the much loved Woolworths Girls saga series. 

It’s late 1940 and the war feels closer to home than ever for Rose Neville and her staff at the Lyon’s Teashop in Margate. The worry of rationing hangs overhead as the Nippies do their best to provide a happy smile and a hot cup of tea for their customers. When a bombing raid targets the Kent coastline, Lyon’s is badly hit, throwing the future of the cafe into jeopardy. The light in Rose’s life is her dashing fiancé Captain Ben Hargreaves and she’s busy planning their Christmas Eve wedding. But she must also plan to take two new stepdaughters into her life and get on the right side of her wealthy mother-in-law, Lady Diana. Is Rose ready to become a mother? When Rose’s half-sister Eileen makes contact, it seems that Rose’s dreams of having a sibling are coming true at long last. But her friends begin to suspect that she’s hiding something… As the wedding draws near, the bombings intensify, putting everything and everyone Rose loves in danger. Only one thing is for sure: it will be a Christmas she never forgets . . 

What did I think about it..

This is such a lovely story and it's not overly festive so that it can be read at any time of year and yet there is a lovely Christmas finale which warmed my heart. 

The story starts in 1940 with a dramatic prologue which had me pondering throughout the story just how Rose and her mother, Flora could have found themselves in such a dangerous situation but the author very cleverly fills in all the missing pieces as the story concludes. Meeting up with Rose, Lily, Katie, and of course the indomitable Flora has been a real treat as we pick up where the first book, The Teashop Girls, left off. These stoical young women who work at the Lyons Tea Room in Margate have more than their fair share of drama especially when the town is targeted by enemy bombardment and most of their time is spent hunkered down in the air raid shelters. 

Throughout it all there is a real sense of camaraderie and everyone just seems to pull together and gets on with what needs doing. I especially loved the introduction of Lady Diana, Rose's soon to be mother-in-law, who despite her posh status, is far from being standoffish and soon brings her own special charm to to the Sea View guesthouse. Whilst Rose features strongly in the story it's not all about her and the other characters soon get their moments to shine, it was especially lovely to catch up with Mildred and Anya again.

Christmas with the Teashop Girls is a really lovely continuation of this WW2 saga. There's a genuine feeling of love and empathy from all the characters and the overriding sense of wartime spirit comes across in a heart warming story about love, life and friendship.

Christmas with the Teashop Girls by Elaine Everest is out now, published by Pan Macmillan, priced £7.99 as paperback original.

About the Author

Elaine Everest is from North West Kent and she grew up listening to stories of the war years in her home town of Erith, which features in her bestselling Woolworths Girls series. A former journalist, and author of nonfiction books for dog owners, Elaine has written over sixty short stories for the women's magazine market. When she isn't writing, Elaine runs The Write Place creative writing school in Hextable, Kent. She lives with her husband, Michael and sheepdog Henry.

Twitter @ElaineEverest #TeashopGirlsChristmas

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