Psychopaths Anonymous – Will Carver

Today I am joining the blog tour for Psychopaths Anonymous by Will Carver. Many thanks to Will and Orenda for providing me with a copy of the book, and also to Anne Cater at Random Things Tours for inviting me to take part.

BLURB:

When AA meetings make her want to drink more, alcoholic murderess Maeve sets up a group for psychopaths.

Maeve has everything. A high-powered job, a beautiful home, a string of uncomplicated one-night encounters. She’s also an addict: a functioning alcoholic with a dependence on sex and an insatiable appetite for killing men.

When she can’t find a support group to share her obsession, she creates her own. And Psychopaths Anonymous is born. Friends of Maeve.

Now in a serious relationship, Maeve wants to keep the group a secret. But not everyone in the group adheres to the rules, and when a reckless member raises suspicions with the police, Maeve’s drinking spirals out of control. She needs to stop killing. She needs to close the group. But Maeve can’t seem to quit the things that are bad for her, including her new man…

PURCHASE LINKS:

Amazon US

Amazon UK

REVIEW:

When I signed up for the blog tour for Psychopaths Anonymous, I didn’t realise that it was connected to Will Carver’s other books, most of which I have read, but one or two I haven’t. However, that really isn’t an issue and you do not need to have read them for this book to be a great read. That said, if you have read them, keep your eyes peeled for Easter eggs tucked within the pages of Maeve’s life.

Maeve is a character who I found difficult to relate to, although that is probably no bad thing as she is, by her own admission, a murdering psychopath. At first, the lack of connection made for slow reading but it wasn’t long before I found her (mis)adventures utterly compelling. By the conclusion of the book, I really didn’t want it to end because I was desperate to discover what was going to happen next in Maeve’s life – I am really hoping for a follow up at some point in the future.

Usually, the cover of a book is one of the first things I notice, but for some reason (I am blaming it on a medication change) I completely didn’t register what the cover of Psychopaths Anonymous actually was. It was only when I was reading another review that it clicked and I am so glad it did, because it is utterly brilliant.

Entering into a new Will Carver book, you can never be too sure exactly what you are going to get, as he is the master of surprises. The one thing that is guaranteed though is that you will never be disappointed by what you find.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Will Carver is the international bestselling author of the January David series. He spent his early years in Germany, but returned to the UK at age eleven, when his sporting career took off. He turned down a professional rugby contract to study theatre and television at King Alfred’s, Winchester, where he set up a successful theatre company. He currently runs his own fitness and nutrition company, and lives in Reading with his two children. Will’s latest title published by Orenda Books, The Beresford, was published in July. His previous title, Hinton Hollow Death Trip, was longlisted for the Not the Booker Prize, while Nothing Important Happened Today was longlisted for the Theakston’s Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year. Good Samaritans was book of the year in Guardian, Telegraph, and Daily Express, and hit number one on the ebook charts.

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The Great Silence – Doug Johnstone

I am welcoming a familiar face back to my blog today, as I join the tour for The Great Silence, book three in Doug Johnstone’s Skelf series. Many thanks to Doug and Orenda Books for providing me with a copy of the book, and to Anne Cater at Random Things Tours for inviting me to take part.

BLURB:

Keeping on top of the family funeral directors’ and private-investigation business is no easy task for the Skelf women, and when matriarch Dorothy discovers a human foot while walking the dog, a perplexing case presents itself.

Daughter Jenny and grand-daughter Hannah have their hands full too: the mysterious circumstances of a dying women have led them into an unexpected family drama, Hannah’s new astrophysicist colleague claims he’s receiving messages from outer space, and the Skelfs’ teenaged lodger has a devastating experience.

Nothing is clear as the women are immersed ever deeper in their most challenging cases yet. But when the daughter of Jenny’s violent and fugitive ex-husband goes missing without a trace and a wild animal is spotted roaming Edinburgh’s parks, real danger presents itself, and all three Skelfs are in peril.

Taut, dark, warmly funny and unafraid to ask big questions – of us all – The Great Silence is the much-anticipated third instalment in the addictive, unforgettable Skelfs series.

PURCHASE LINKS:

REVIEW:

Having read the previous books in the Skelf series, picking up this third book felt a little like returning home after an absence, and despite all the death and danger, the warmth of the kitchen, filled with the Skelf women, both blood and honorary, felt like a big hug in book form. I love the familiarity of a book series such as this where you can really get to know the characters and watch them develop.

Although The Great Silence is a tense thriller in places, and a dark comedy in others, there is a delicate sensitivity to the tone when writing about the funeral parlour side of Skelf life. The Skelfs are women who care deeply about their clients, putting everything else aside to treat them with dignity and respect, and this is one of the things l love most about this series. It would be all too easy to make this side of the business a source of humour, and I think it says a lot about the the author that he has resisted doing this.

Throughout The Great Silence, there is both heartbreak and danger for each of the women, and it was interesting to see their reactions to this, and how they have all changed since the first book. I particularly enjoyed seeing how Abi has grown up, although her role in this book is particularly upsetting. It was also great to see another side to Archie as he assists in one particular aspect of an investigation this time around.

The Great Silence is a gripping thriller, with some real edge of your seat moments, exactly as you would expect from Doug Johnstone, but it is his creation of wonderfully strong yet vulnerable characters that make the Skelf series stand out from all the other thrillers out there. I very much look forward to seeing what scrapes they get themselves into in the next book.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Doug Johnstone is the author of twelve previous novels, most recently The Big Chill (2020). Several of his books have been bestsellers and three, A Dark Matter (2020), Breakers (2019) and The Jump (2015), were shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Novel of the Year. He’s taught creative writing and been writer in residence at various institutions over the last decade – including at a funeral parlour ahead of writing A Dark Matter – and has been an arts journalist for over twenty years. Doug is a songwriter and musician with five albums and three solo EPs released, and he plays drums for the Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers, a band of crime writers. He’s also player-manager of the Scotland Writers Football Club. He lives in Edinburgh.

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Don’t forget to visit the other blogs taking part in the tour to read more about the Skelf women.

The Beresford – Will Carver

Today I am joining the blog tour for The Beresford by Will Carver. Many thanks to Will and Orenda Books for providing me with a copy of the book, and to Anne Cater at Random Things Tours for inviting me to be a part of the blog tour.

BLURB:

Just outside the city – any city, every city – is a grand, spacious but affordable apartment building called The Beresford.

There’s a routine at The Beresford.

For Mrs May, every day’s the same: a cup of cold, black coffee in the morning, pruning roses, checking on her tenants, wine, prayer and an afternoon nap. She never leaves the building. Abe Schwartz also lives at The Beresford. His housemate Sythe no longer does. Because Abe just killed him. In exactly sixty seconds, Blair Conroy will ring the doorbell to her new home and Abe will answer the door. They will become friends. Perhaps lovers.

And, when the time comes for one of them to die, as is always the case at The Beresford, there will be sixty seconds to move the body before the next unknowing soul arrives at the door. Because nothing changes at The Beresford, until the doorbell rings…

PURCHASE LINKS:

Amazon US

Amazon UK

REVIEW:

Having read a couple of Will Carver’s previous books, I was fairly confident going into this that I knew what to expect. How wrong I was!

The Beresford has the feel of being more than just a building. It becomes a character in its own right – in fact the central character through which the entire story revolves. It feels like a living, breathing being manipulating its residents to its will. Discovering the state Sythe had made of his apartment certainly had me wondering if somehow the building had influenced Abe to kill him as revenge for defacing the walls.

In my head, when I read that the building had been split, I expected the upper floors to be swankier than the very reasonably priced lower levels – I realised just how wrong I was as soon as Abe and Blair ventured up there, the description of what they discovered sending a shiver down my spine. Despite this, there is something about The Beresford that almost (almost) makes me want to live there. It feels strange to describe a book and a building housing so much murder as charming, but there was just something I can’t quite put my finger on that made me want to see it for myself.

Mrs May is utterly intriguing. I was dying (well, not in the sense her tenants were, but you know what I mean) to find out what secrets she was hiding and how she was connected to the building. There is an awful lot more to this old lady than meets the eye, and the revelations about her just kept on coming throughout the book!

Once again, Will Carver has produced an absolute triumph of a book that will leave you wondering about the tenants of The Beresford long after you have finished reading about them.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Will Carver is the international bestselling author of the January David series. He spent his early years in Germany, but returned to the UK at age eleven, when his sporting career took off. He turned down a professional rugby contract to study theatre and television at King Alfred’s, Winchester, where he set up his own successful theatre company. He currently runs his own fitness and nutrition company, and lives in Reading with his two children. Will’s latest title published by Orenda Books, Hinton Hollow Death Trip was longlisted for the Not the Booker Prize, while Nothing Important Happened Today was longlisted for the Theakston’s Old Peculiar Crime Novel of the Year and for the Goldsboro Books Glass Bell. Good Samaritans was a book of the year in Guardian, Telegraph and Daily Express, and hit number one on the ebook charts.

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Make sure you have a look at the other blogs on the tour to learn more about the tenants of The Beresford.

There’s Only One Danny Garvey – David F. Ross

It is my stop today on the blog tour for There’s Only One Danny Garvey by David F. Ross. Many thanks to David, and Orenda Books, for providing me with a copy of the book, and to Anne Cater at Random Things Tours for inviting me to take part in the tour.

BLURB:

Danny Garvey was a sixteen-year old footballing prodigy. Professional clubs clamoured to sign him, and a glittering future beckoned. And yet, his early promise remained unfulfilled, and Danny is back in the tiny village of Barshaw to manage the struggling junior team he once played for. What’s more, he’s hiding a secret about a tragic night, thirteen years earlier, that changed the course of several lives. There’s only one Danny Garvey, they once chanted… And that’s the problem.

A story of irrational hopes and fevered dreams – of unstoppable passion and unflinching commitment in the face of defeat – There’s Only One Danny Garvey is, above all, an unforgettable tale about finding hope and redemption in the most unexpected of places.

PURCHASE LINKS:

Amazon UK

Amazon US

REVIEW:

I can almost hear my friends and family falling off their chairs at the thought of me reviewing a book centred around the world of football, given that my interest in the sport is less than zero. I honestly couldn’t tell you what it was about this book that made me even consider reading it, but I am so glad that I did.

As you might expect from a book called There’s Only One Danny Garvey, the eponymous Danny takes the lead in telling this tale, ably assisted by some wonderful characters popping up throughout to share their take on a situation with us all. These asides were a real highlight of the book for me, written in a style that felt like the characters were speaking directly to you, sharing confidences and secrets. It was a really unusual take on the points of view changes that you so often find in books, and I loved it. I fell completely in love with each of the characters who took the time to share their thoughts. I know it sounds strange speaking about secondary characters as if they are real, but the writing style for these segments of the book really made me feel like I was talking to old friends.

There’s Only One Danny Garvey is a book about football, there’s no getting away from that, but it is also so much more. It is a book filled with so much emotion, and pain, and suffering, as Danny and his friends, family and neighbours come to terms with the events of the past that continue to haunt Barshaw. I was really taken by surprise by just how invested I became in the story. I even found myself rooting for the ragtag bunch of misfits who played for Barshaw!

If, like me, you might not tend to read sports based books, don’t let the football factor in this one put you off. If you do, you will be missing out on a truly special book.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

David F. Ross was born in Glasgow in 1964 and has lived in  Kilmarnock for over 30 years. He is a graduate of the Mackintosh School of Architecture at Glasgow School of Art, an architect by day, and a hilarious social media commentator, author and enabler by night. His debut novel, The Last Days of Disco was shortlisted for the Authors Club Best First Novel Award, and received exceptional critical acclaim, as did the other two books in the Disco Days Trilogy: The Rise & Fall of the Miraculous Vespas and The Man Who Loved Islands. David lives in Ayrshire.

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Betrayal – Lilja Sigurðardóttir

Today I am joining the epic blog tour for Betrayal by Lilja Sigurðardóttir. Many thanks to Lilja and Orenda Books for providing me with a copy of this book, and to Anne at Random Things Tours for inviting me to take part in the tour.

BLURB:

Burned out and traumatised by her horrifying experiences around the world, aid worker Úrsula has returned to Iceland. Unable to settle, she accepts a high-profile government role in which she hopes to make a difference again.

But her first day in the post, Úrsula promises to help a mother seeking justice for her daughter, who had been raped by a policeman, and life in high office soon becomes much more harrowing than Úrsula could ever have imagined. A homeless man is stalking her – but is he hounding her, or warning her of some danger? And the death of her father in police custody so many years ago rears its head once again.

As Úrsula is drawn into dirty politics, facing increasingly deadly threats, the lives of her stalker, her bodyguard and even a witchlike cleaning lady intertwine. Small betrayals become large ones, and the stakes are raised even higher…

The award-winning internationally bestselling author Lilja Sigurðardóttir returns with Betrayal, a relevant, powerful, fast-paced thriller about the world of politics, police corruption and misogyny that feels just a little bit to real…

PURCHASE LINKS:

REVIEW:

I seem to have had a little spate lately of reading books by Icelandic authors, and whilst I have enjoyed them all, I have sometimes struggled to connect with the characters, and have found the plots to be more event driven than emotion driven. I love books where characters really get under my skin and Lilja Sigurðardóttir has achieved this wonderfully in Betrayal. Each character is so deeply fleshed out, with their own secrets and reasons for their actions, their own secret suffering, that they just leapt of the page at me. That said, I found that although I warmed to each of the female characters in different ways, I was distrustful of almost all the male characters – whether this is because of the fact that there was more than one story thread relating to violence against women, or if it speaks more to my own frame of mind while reading, I am unsure. 

The story unfolds through the very different perspectives of the government minister, the bodyguard, the cleaner, the wife of a policeman accused of rape, and the apparently homeless chap. These people and their lives seemed so far removed from each other that it made me wonder how the separate threads would tie up, and this made for intriguing reading. These mysteries about how all these different personalities from so many walks of life would turn out to be interconnected drew me into the book so deeply and refused to release me from their grasp until the very last page.

Betrayal is the first book by Lilja Sigurðardóttir that I have read, but I know it will not be the last.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Icelandic crime writer Lilja Sigurdardóttir was born in the town of Akranes in 1972 and raised in Mexico, Sweden, Spain and Iceland. An award-winning playwright, Lilja has written four crime novels, including Snare, Trap, and Cage, making up the Reykjavik Noir trilogy, which have hit bestseller lists worldwide. The film rights have been bought by Palomar Pictures in California. She lives in Reykjavik with her partner.

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The Seven Doors – Agnes Ravatn

Today I am joining the blog tour for Nordic noir, The Seven Doors by Agnes Ravatn (translated by Rosie Hedger). Many thanks to Agnes, and to Orenda Books, for providing me with a copy of the book, and to Anne Cater at Random Things Tours for inviting me to join the blog tour.

BLURB:

University professor Nina is at a turning point. Her work seems increasingly irrelevant, her doctor husband is never home, relations with her adult daughter Ingeborg are strained, and their beautiful house is scheduled for demolition.

When Ingeborg decides to move into another house they own, things take a very dark turn. The young woman who rents it disappears, leaving behind her son, the day after Nina and Ingeborg pay her a visit.

With few clues, the police enquiry soon grinds to a halt, but Nina has an inexplicable sense of guilt. Unable to rest, she begins her own investigation, but as she pulls on the threads of the case, it seems her discoveries may have very grave consequences for her and her family.

PURCHASE LINKS:

Amazon UK

Amazon US

REVIEW:

The Seven Doors is a book of two halves for me. I found that the narrative felt strangely emotionless and entirely detached from the events of the book, which is not a style that I am overly keen on as it prevents me becoming entirely absorbed in the story. However, in spite of the style not being to my personal taste, I was drawn to Nina from the start, and intrigued by the story.

Nina struck me as a gentle soul, and I found it interesting to read about a character who was so successful professionally, and yet seemed somewhat downtrodden and unsure when surrounded by her more confident husband and daughter. I didn’t take to Nina’s daughter, Ingeborg, at all at first. She is as opposite to Nina as I think it is possible to be, coming over as rude and abrasive, only focusing on what she wants. I felt sorry for Nina trying to rein her in, with very little support from Mads.

Mari’s story unfolds slowly as Nina digs deeper into the mystery surrounding her disappearance, and is revealed to be desperately sad in so many ways. I just wanted to wrap her and her son up and protect them from the world.

Although the writing style wasn’t to my taste, I found myself enjoying this book and speeding through it to find out what was going on. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Agnes Ravatn (b. 1983) is a Norwegian author and columnist. She made her literary debut with the novel Week 53 in 2007. Since then she has written three critically acclaimed and award-winning essay collections: Standing Still (2011), Popular Reading (2011) and Operation Self-Discipline (2014). In these works, Ravatn revealed a unique, witty voice and sharp eye for human fallibility. Her second novel, The Bird Tribunal, was an international bestseller, translated into fifteen languages, winning an English PEN award, shortlisting for the Dublin Literary Award, a WHSmith Fresh Talent pick and a BBC Book at Bedtime. It was also made into a successful play, which premiered in Oslo in 2015. Agnes lives with her family in the Norwegian countryside.

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A Song of Isolation – Michael J Malone

Today I am joining the blog tour for A Song of Isolation by Michael J Malone. Many thanks to Michael and Orenda Books for providing me with a copy of the book, and to Anne at Random Things Tours for inviting me to take part in the tour.

BLURB:

Film star Amelie Hart is the darling of the silver screen, appearing on the front pages of every newspaper. But at the peak of her fame she throws it all away for a regular guy with an ordinary job. The gossip columns are aghast: what happened to the woman who turned heads wherever she went?

Any hope the furore will die down are crushed when Amelie’s boyfriend Dave is arrested on charges of child sexual abuse. Dave strongly asserts his innocence, and when Amelie refuses
to denounce him, the press furore quickly turns into physical violence, and she has to flee the country.

While Dave is locked up with the most depraved men in the country and Amelie is hiding on the continent, Damaris, the victim at the centre of the story, is also isolated – a child trying to make sense of an adult world…

Breathtakingly brutal, dark and immensely moving, A Song of Isolation looks beneath the magpie glimmer of celebrity to uncover a sinister world dominated by greed and lies, and the unfathomable destruction of innocent lives… in an instant.

PURCHASE LINKS:

Amazon UK

Amazon US

REVIEW:

A Song of Isolation is a powerful read, looking at the ripple effect of an accusation, how it affects more people than just the accused and the accuser, and how the media, in their endless hunt for gossip and scandal, can exacerbate a situation.

Malone looks at the emotional strain of life on a sex offenders unit, which actually made for difficult reading I found. I didn’t want to feel sympathy for the inmates, but as I flip-flopped between believing in Dave’s innocence and thinking he was guilty, I found myself thinking about things differently.

My hear went out to poor Amelie, so damaged by what happened in 2010, and just looking for a quiet life, but forced back into the limelight in the worst possible way. She feels like such a fragile person, and it was interesting to see how she dealt with the situation that she found herself in.

As the story moved on following Amelie and Dave, I found my thoughts drifting back to Damaris and wondering what became of her. I was both glad and sad when the story returned to her and we saw what had become of her and how damaged she was by the situation.

A Song of Isolation is a thought-provoking read, and Michael J Malone is a master at making you stop and reconsider situations from different perspectives.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Michael Malone is a prize-winning poet and author who was born and brought up in the heart of Burns’ country. He has published over 200 poems in literary magazines throughout the UK, including New Writing Scotland, Poetry Scotland and Markings. Blood Tears, his bestselling debut novel won the Pitlochry Prize from the Scottish Association of Writers. His
psychological thriller, A Suitable Lie, was a number-one bestseller, and the critically acclaimed House of Spines, After He Died and In the Absence of Miracles soon followed suit. A former Regional Sales Manager (Faber & Faber) he has also worked as an IFA and a bookseller. Michael lives in Ayr.

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Make sure you visit the other blog taking part in the tour for this thought-provoking book.

The Big Chill – Doug Johnstone

Continuing a run of returning authors that I seem to be having at the moment, I have the honour today of joining the blog tour for Doug Johnstone’s latest book, The Big Chill, book two his The Skelfs series. Many thanks to Doug, and to Orenda books, for providing me with a copy of the book, and to Anne Cater at Random Things Tours for inviting me to take part in the tour.

BLURB:

Haunted by their past, the Skelf women are hoping for a quieter life. But running both a funeral directors’ and a private investigation business means trouble is never far away, and when a car crashes into the open grave at a funeral Dorothy is conducting, she can’t help looking into the dead driver ’s shadowy life.

While Dorothy uncovers a dark truth at the heart of Edinburgh society, her daughter Jenny and granddaughter Hannah have their own struggles. Jenny’s ex-husband Craig is making plans that could shatter the Skelf women’s lives, and the increasingly obsessive Hannah has formed a friendship with an elderly professor that is fast turning deadly.

But something even more sinister emerges when a drumming student of Dorothy’s disappears, and suspicion falls on her parents. The Skelf women find themselves immersed in an unbearable darkness – but could the real threat be to themselves?

Fast-paced, darkly funny, yet touching and tender, the Skelf family series is a welcome reboot to the classic PI novel, whilst also asking deeper questions about family, society and grief.

PURCHASE LINKS:

Amazon UK

Amazon US

REVIEW:

The Big Chill sees us join the three Skelf women in the aftermath of the events of A Dark Matter, as each finds their own way to come to terms with what happened. Once again, the book moves between chapters told be each of Dorothy, Jenny and Hannah as they battle their own demons whilst dealing with an ever growing case list for their private investigation business, and an ever growing body count for the funeral business.

The book gets off to a dramatic start as one of Dorothy’s funerals is interrupted by a police car chase, resulting in both their first case to investigate and new body to bury. Although each of the cases investigated this time round tugs at the heartstrings for different reasons, I found this case to be particularly moving, and really quite emotional as the truth began to be revealed.

Proving he is a master of suspense as well as emotion, Doug Johnstone juggles the delicate new cases with thrilling drama as past events come back to haunt Jenny and her family. Johnstone’s writing moves seamlessly between these two areas, and in doing so made sure that I was entirely immersed in all the elements of the book.

In the Skelfs, Johnstone has created a wonderfully rich family of entirely believable characters, and I think everyone will be able to relate to at least one of these women at some level. The supporting cast round out the picture perfectly. Bring on book three so I can find out what happens next!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Doug Johnstone is the author of more ten novels, most recently Breakers (2019), which has been shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Novel of the Year and A Dark Matter (2020), which launched the Skelfs series. Several of his books have been bestsellers and award winners, and his work has been praised by the likes of Val McDermid, Irvine Welsh and Ian Rankin. He’s taught creative writing and been writer in residence at various institutions – including a funeral home, which he drew on to write A Dark Matter – and has been an arts journalist for twenty years. Doug is a songwriter and musician with five albums and three EPs released, and he plays drums for the Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers, a band of crime writers. He’s also player-manager of the Scotland Writers Football Club. He lives in Edinburgh.

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Hinton Hollow Death Trip – Will Carver

It’s time for another Orenda published book, as I join the blog tour for Hinton Hollow Death Trip, by Will Carver. Many thanks to Will and Orenda for providing me with a copy of the book, and to Anne Cater at Random Things Tours for inviting me to be a part of the tour.

BLURB:

It’s a small story. A small town with small lives that you would never have heard about if none of this had happened.

Hinton Hollow. Population 5,120.

Little Henry Wallace was eight years old and one hundred miles from home before anyone talked to him. His mother placed him on a train with a label around his neck, asking for him to be kept safe for a week, kept away from Hinton Hollow.

Because something was coming.

Narrated by Evil itself, Hinton Hollow Death Trip recounts five days in the history of this small rural town, when darkness paid a visit and infected its residents. A visit that made them act in unnatural ways. Prodding at their insecurities. Nudging at their secrets and desires. Coaxing out the malevolence suppressed within them. Showing their true selves.

Making them cheat.

Making them steal.

Making them kill.

Detective Sergeant Pace had returned to his childhood home. To escape the things he had done in the city. To go back to something simple. But he was not alone. Evil had a plan.

PURCHASE LINKS:

Amazon UK

Amazon US

REVIEW:

I have grappled with writing this review for some time – in fact it has been twelve days since I finished reading to now where I find myself finally ready to put words into sentences. This is not because I didn’t enjoy the book by any means, just that it is one of those books that is so totally brilliant in its construction that it completely blows your mind. Even now, I am fairly sure that whatever I say here simply won’t do the genius of Will Carver justice.

Hinton Hollow Death Trip marks the return of Detective Sergeant Pace, a character who I first met in the equally brilliant Nothing Important Happened Today although this is in fact his third outing. I really need to backtrack and read Good Samaritans, the first book in the series, although that said if you haven’t read the series, this book stands up perfectly well as a standalone.

The short disjointed sentences make for snappy reading, and although there was a part of me that wanted to heed Evil’s warning and turn away while I still could, there was a larger part of me that felt compelled to keep reading and find out just why I was being told to run for the hills!

Our narrator for our brief sojourn to Hinton Hollow, Evil himself, is a curious character. He feels almost reluctant to enact his true nature, wishing humans could be better, kinder, so that he needs to cultivate less evil to create a balance. However, in a world where genuine goodness is rare, and what was normal is now good and what was bad is considered normal behaviour, he feels compelled to create worse and worse acts, and this is not something that seems to sit comfortably with him. Although the innate evil of the human race is chilling, there is a dark humour to Evil’s observations and narration, and he has a surprising amount of empathy and a strong sense of justice. Over the course of the book, I found myself seeing not, as expected, a character to dislike, but instead one that I grew rather fond of in a strange way.

Hinton Hollow is a book full of uncomfortably truths, and Carver once again proves that he is an expert at tapping into the human mind, and getting right under the skin of his readers.

The worrying thing is that Hinton Hollow could so easily be the town I have lived in for my whole life, right down to the finer details of the cash machine theft, and reading it made me wonder just how far we had slipped from the safe, friendly place of my childhood.

Hinton Hollow Death Trip is not a light read, not a particularly comfortable one, but it is this that make it such a great book. It is far too near the knuckle to be easy reading, but it is a fascinating look at how little ripples can change people and entire communities forever. As unsettling as it was, it was totally gripping and I couldn’t put it down.

Anyone else who has read this book already, please feel free to get in touch. I have things I need to discuss that I cannot mention here without spoilers!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Will Carver is the international bestselling author of the January David series. He spent his early years in Germany, but returned to the UK at age eleven, when his sporting career took off. He turned down a professional rugby contract to study theatre and television at King Alfred’s, Winchester, where he set up a successful theatre company. He currently runs his own fitness and nutrition company, and lives in Reading with his two children. Good Samaritans was book of the year in Guardian, Telegraph and Daily Express, and hit number one on the ebook charts.

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Ash Mountain – Helen Fitzgerald

Today I am joining the blog tour for the brilliant Ash Mountain by Helen Fitzgerald. Many thanks to Helen, Orenda Books, and to Anne Cater at Random Things Blog Tours, for inviting me to be a part of the tour, and for providing me with a copy of the book.

BLURB:

Fran hates her hometown, and she thought she’d escaped. But her father is ill, and needs care. Her relationship is over, and she hates her dead-end job in the city, anyway.

She returns home to nurse her dying father, her distant teenage daughter in tow for the weekends. There, in the sleepy town of Ash Mountain, childhood memories prick at her fragile self-esteem, she falls in love for the first time, and her demanding dad tests her patience, all in the unbearable heat of an Australian summer.

As past friendships and rivalries are renewed, and new ones forged, Fran’s tumultuous home life is the least of her worries, when old crimes rear their heads and a devastating bushfire ravages the town and all of its inhabitants…

Simultaneously a warm, darkly funny portrait of small-town life – and a woman and a land in crisis – and a shocking and truly distressing account of a catastrophic event that changes things forever, Ash Mountain is a heart-breaking slice of domestic noir, and a disturbing disaster thriller that you will never forget…

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REVIEW:

From reading the blurb, I had assumed that Ash Mountain would be a family saga type novel, with secrets being revealed, rifts being healed, and the bushfire providing a little bit of background drama to it all. I was right in part, but my goodness was I wrong about the fire. It is almost a character in its own right as it advances on the town, leaving a trail of devastation in its wake.

Ash Mountain flits back and forth between the day of the fire, the days leading to the fire, and events thirty years previously, as we get to know Fran and her dysfunctional family. Everything about their stories and experiences feels very raw as they come to terms with their new lives, and, for Fran at least, the memories that returning to Ash Mountain stirs up. This human story on its own would be enough to keep me gripped by this book, as Helen creates a community of strong, relatable characters.

Like many other people, I watched the news of the recent bushfires in Australia, and I thought I had an understanding of what it was like over there, but this book brings the reality to life in ways that no news story did. Helen Fitzgerald captures the raw terror caused by an unstoppable, deadly fire in a way that caused an almost visceral reaction in me. It was painful to read about the utter destruction of lives, homes, wildlife, as the fire rips through the area.

In Ash Mountain, Helen Fitzgerald captures something that would previously have been unimaginable for people who haven’t lived through it and makes it real. This is a book that will stay with me for a long time.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Helen FitzGerald is the bestselling author of ten adult and young adult thrillers, including The Donor (2011) and The Cry (2013), which was longlisted for the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year, and is now a major drama for BBC1. Her 2019 dark comedy thriller Worst Case Scenario was a Book of the Year in both The Guardian and Daily Telegraph. Helen worked as a criminal justice social worker for over fifteen years. She grew up in Victoria, Australia, and now lives in Glasgow with her husband.

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