Category: Adult Fiction

‘Kiss My Cupcake’ – Helena Hunting

A romance to devour, and savour every moment of…

Blaire comes from a wealthy family of restaurant owners, but she has a dream of running her own business and making it successful on her own terms. Our first encounter with her is as she prepares to open her cupcake and cocktails shop. Things are looking good, but she’d not reckoned on Roman Knight who’s helping out his grandad by renovating the sports bar next door and installing some rather loud attractions.

First meeting between the two is explosive. They’re immediately wound up by each other, which we assume is the start of a great relationship eventually. Everyone around them can see where it’s going, but we have to go through the inevitable misunderstandings and problems first.

While it’s all quite transparent, the main characters are ones you can’t help but fall in love with. They’re far more alike than they want to let on, and the cast of surrounding characters also make for some amusing episodes.

From the off it was pretty obvious where we’d end up but every moment of this journey was great fun, and I’m so pleased that I was able to get my hands on this prior to publication.

‘Dark Waters’ – G.R. Halliday

 

In our second encounter with Detective Kennedy we have another puzzling crime, that goes beyond the worst thing you can imagine, and we learn a little more about this character and her backstory.

This took a little time to come together as the strands were so varied. Two mutilated bodies are found, and nobody can be sure if they’re linked, but the methods used on both bodies is eerily similar. Alongside this, we have a young woman (Annabelle) visiting the Highlands who is caught in a horrific crash when she swerved to avoid a young girl on the road. There’s also Scott, a Canadian tourist, who gets scared by some hostile behaviour towards him and then he meets a similarly awful fate which is linked to the mysterious appearance of a young girl immediately beforehand.

For a long time we switch between Annabelle’s experience waking up chained in a room and the investigation being led by Monica Kennedy. This lends a disconcerting quality to the book, where things take a long time to really get going. We know every detail will be relevant but there was almost a ‘real time’ quality to this that meant things didn’t happen at an implausibly rapid pace.

This is not one for the squeamish, and I was appalled at the levels of depravity shown by some of the characters in the book. Once again, I found myself curious to get more information about Detective Kennedy and what motivated her – though the little glimpses we get are certainly developing my idea of a wonderfully complex character.

A gritty read, but well worth it. Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for allowing me to read this prior to publication in exchange for my honest thoughts.

‘The Wicked Sister’ – Karen Dionne

 

The Wicked Sister is not going to be for everyone, but I found it illuminating.

Our story begins with Rachel, a young woman who has spent the last fifteen years in a mental hospital as she is convinced she killed her parents, discharging herself and heading for her childhood home. Police reports determine that at the age of eleven she could not have committed this crime, but having been found in the woods two weeks after their deaths in a catatonic state it’s easy to see why nobody pushed her to try and recall any details of that day. She heads there with a journalist desperate to find out more about this incident, but bizarrely she doesn’t want to let her sister or aunt know she’s there. Of course, we want to know why.

Once we get this teaser we jump back in time and have a character called Jenny narrating a shocking incident. She recalls the moment a neighbour’s toddler drowned in their pool, and her discovery that her daughter’s clothes were wet though she claimed to know nothing about what happened. This is followed by what seems a rather knee-jerk reaction to take her daughter and move the family to an isolated family hunting lodge. Her rationale is that she and her husband – both biologists – can undertake research and keep their ‘wild child’ away from others.

Initially I found this shift confusing as I wasn’t sure who Jenny was, or her significance. In-between following Rachel through her exploration of her family home in search of clues as to what happened, we learn more about Jenny’s family and their new life.

Watching Jenny and her husband deal with this eight year old manipulator was hard to read. There were so many odd signs about her behaviour and interactions, and I found it odd that they didn’t do more to try and understand their daughter Diane or manage her behaviour. Watching as she throws a stone at a bear cub to see how it reacts might be seen as childish curiosity, but when she is found putting a pillow over her baby sister’s face and reveals she’s done this on countless occasions the alarm bells were ringing loud and clear!

Before too long we work out that the baby sister in this incident is the Rachel also narrating our story. Knowing that whatever we’re reading Jenny talk about will end in the deaths of her and her husband lends a poignancy to so many of these incidents.

The story develops in a way that seems inevitable, though there are indications that different choices along the way could have resulted in a different story. Though there are some graphic depictions of animal cruelty that felt rather unnecessary, I was fascinated by the attempt to portray the mind of a psychopath and to show the impact of this condition in those around the person who has it. What I found frustrating was the countless opportunities so many had to prevent such awful things happening, and I was scared witless by the revelation that sometimes the truly wicked can be hiding in such plain view.

Huge thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this prior to publication.

 

‘We Are All the Same in the Dark’ – Julia Heaberlin

In this small town, we expect there will be secrets. So many people want to know what happened to young Trumanell Branson when she disappeared ten years ago. There are many who believe her brother, Wyatt, was responsible and they are watching, waiting to see if he will ever be found guilty of the crime they think he’s committed.

When he discovers a young girl lying in a field off the highway, it’s hard to know what to think. At this point we’re introduced to his ex-girlfriend, Odette, who happens to work for the police. She is convinced he’s innocent, but on the night Trumanell disappeared Odette had to flee the Branson home and was then in a car crash where she lost her leg. Determined to think good of the man she clearly still has feelings for, Odette helps him out.

As she helps the young girl, known initially as Angel, we uncover more about Odette, Wyatt and the town in which they live. We can see Odette is carrying out her own investigation, one which ultimately has serious repercussions.

Spanning years, this story is one that takes its time to resolve. It shifted and never settled until the closing stages, hinting at possible outcomes and ultimately showing us a pretty bleak stage.

Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this in advance of its August 11th publication in exchange for my review.

 

‘Darling Rose Gold’ – Stephanie Wrobel

Patty Watts and Rose Gold Watts…two names you’ll shudder to hear once you’ve ended this. While I felt sympathy for both characters, it’s hard also to not feel appalled by both.

Before you start reading, it’s clear this is a book that’s not afraid to plunge into the darkness. It heads straight for the darkest point you can find, roots around and then burrows deeper. I was expecting something pretty nasty, but as the dots started to join together and I got an inkling of where this might be going I almost feared reading on and having my suspicions confirmed.

Our story hinges on the dysfunctional mother and daughter combination. For years we are told Rose Gold was ill. That she was in and out of hospital, incapable of feeding and struggling to live. That eventually it was discovered her mother was making her ill. It’s no surprise that her mother is then imprisoned for her actions.

What surprised me was that we learn towards the end of Patty’s incarceration she is visited by Rose Gold. We learn they are attempting to restore their relationship, and that upon her release Patty is going to live with Rose and her son. Oddly, in spite of knowing her uncle committed suicide there and her mother was beaten there we are told Rose has bought her mother’s childhood home. There’s something odd going on, but it takes some time to work out just what.

The book alternates between two viewpoints and this is definitely a major part of the novel’s success. Hearing each character’s thoughts means we gain some understanding of their thought processes. We’re privy to their suspicions of each other, and the strange manipulative behaviour each exhibits in this bizarre, wholly dysfunctional relationship. We’re never sure who’s telling the truth, or who’s manipulating who.

By the time we approached the climax of the novel I really was amazed we’d taken this final turn. Chilling and emotionally terrifying behaviour from both characters and I couldn’t help but feel that neither deserved the fate they were dealt. There were no winners in this story, and though both Patty and Rose had their very obvious shortcomings I couldn’t bring myself to despise either of them because they were both, in so many ways, victims.

 

‘Boyfriend Material’ – Alexis Hall

Boyfriend Material was just what I needed right now…funny, a bit silly, romance in dollops (and not always where you’d expect it) and that feeling that things would work out just the way you knew they would even if there were bumps along the way.

Our story has two rather misguided souls as our central characters. Luc – son of two ex-rock stars, and who has a tendency to disgrace himself in public – and Oliver – lawyer who’s determined to keep control of everything around him. These two have met before, and not got on particularly well. But they are thrown together when Luc needs a ‘respectable’ date for a work event. Oliver agrees to be his fake boyfriend…so it’s just a matter of time before they end up together for real.

A bit like a rather over-the-top TV sitcom, there were somewhat excruciating jokes and some cliched characters. There were scenes where you could pretty accurately predict what was coming, almost down to the jokes. I didn’t particularly like the representation of the wealthy characters (too many cheap shots at something they seemed to have little awareness of), but the lurking irritations were very much on the outskirts of the central story.

Luc and Oliver might be infuriating in real life, but they seemed to bring out the best in each other and I was definitely rooting for them. Don’t expect anything unexpected here and you’ll be happy.

 

‘The Shadows’ – Alex North

Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read this before publication, and for the author for scaring me rigid with this foray into darkness that goes way beyond my worst nightmares.

This is, by its nature, a complex tale with a large cast of characters and taking place over many years. It focuses on the discovery of a child’s body, almost decapitated, surrounded by bloody handprints. Two boys are taken into custody having confessed to the murder, and the Detective investigating has a strange feeling about this case.

There are, indeed, links with other events and we quickly switch focus to a lecturer called Paul Adams. I don’t want to give too much away here, but we first meet Paul as a teen when the police take him in for questioning in a murder. A mutual friend has confessed to the murder (a body almost decapitated and surrounded by bloody handprints), and another friend has disappeared. Paul is cleared of any involvement, but he feels guilt for some reason. Of course, we want to know why.

Over time we learn some of the circumstances surrounding this situation. We learn about Paul as a teen and his worries about the influence one of his peer group, Charlie Crabtree, has over others. Charlie is presented as a rather disturbed individual, certainly manipulative, but we’re never sure how much of this is a real fear. However, having never been seen following these tragic events this is a character we’re definitely keen to know more about.

Having returned to his hometown for the first time in years when his mother becomes ill, Paul is a character that I was never wholly certain wouldn’t suddenly be revealed to be completely unreliable. He’s hiding things, and some of these revelations will have you shaking your head in disbelief.

It’s not spoiling anything to say that our questions are answered and a number of mysteries are cleared up. There’s a certain amount of gore and yet my overwhelming feeling at the end was a sense of wistfulness for the many losses that took place through this story.

 

‘When She Was Good’ – Michael Robotham

Call it an oversight on my part, but I have to confess to not having read the first book in this series. While I do think it might have helped me understand better the dynamics between our two main characters, there was enough here for this book to stand alone (and I’m hoping when I go back and read the first book it will offer a different perspective on some events).

The story focuses on psychologist Cyrus Haven who has his own demons, but this time it’s about a young girl – Angel Face, or Evie Cameron as he has come to know her – and Cyrus’s attempts to help her remain hidden when people from her past come looking for her. Through Evie’s memories and Cyrus’s investigations we learn a little more detail about what led to Evie being found at the age of ten in an abandoned house with the dead body of a petty criminal who had been tortured. Nobody is meant to know who the young girl found at this infamous crime scene is, but Cyrus does and through his work someone has come to make the connection.

It’s not giving anything away to say that Evie’s past is closely linked to some very important people and a suspected paedophile ring. We suspect a number of those who Cyrus comes into contact with, but we do eventually get some answers – even if not everything is tied up cleanly.

There are some unpalatable details, and hints of a darkness that is quite unimaginable. Given that a lot of detail is told through Evie’s memories/her perspective we are not given too much (which I’m pretty grateful for), though what we are told is enough to sicken and make the reader root firmly for Cyrus and those trying to put an end to such horrors.

Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read this prior to publication, and I’m looking forward to digging out book one and seeing how it began.

 

‘Home Before Dark’ – Riley Sager

In spite of the relatively eye-watering price it cost to get my hands on this, it was most definitely worth it. Home Before Dark is a book that depends on you not knowing certain details, but even having finished it I think it could stand up to a repeat reading to look for the clues I missed first time round.

Every house has a story to tell and a secret to share we’re told. Maggie Holt’s life has come to be defined by her parents’ ill-fated decision to buy ‘fixer-upper’ Baneberry Hall when she was a child. The family only lived there for 21 days – and something so awful took place within those walls that they fled one night, never to return.

Everyone in the surrounding area – and many others – seems to know the story of Baneberry Hall as Maggie’s father released a book chronicling their short time there. From the time they look around the property we know there is something odd going on. There are the ubiquitous paranormal hints with strange noises, unexplained atmospheric changes and events that would – with no exceptions – have most people scared…snakes appearing from the kitchen ceiling, record players mysteriously starting to play and repetitive thumping noises. The history of the house doesn’t help – with a number of unexplained deaths and the murder/suicide of the most recent owners.

We don’t learn much of this until some time later. Upon the death of her father, Maggie learns that she has now become the owner of Baneberry Hall and although nobody in her family wants her to return, she is determined to do so. Much as I questioned this, I do understand that with so much of her life defined by this book and the events described within its pages she wants answers. And, boy, does she get them!

I loved the way this book told us about Maggie’s experience in the present but interspersed it with excerpts chronicling the story of her father and mother, and what happened to the family. This was a great way of divulging snippets to help establish what happened while maintaining the tension created.

There are – as you might expect – a number of attempts to throw us off the scent. It was, in hindsight, clear that things were not quite as Maggie had been led to believe but I was open-mouthed as we reached the climactic moments…I can’t wait for others I know to read this and then to be able to discuss it with them.
Highly recommended.

 

‘Thirteen Storeys’ – Jonathan Sims

I received this book from Secret Readers, and was initially attracted by the suggestion of different tales merging to form a coherent whole. I was unsure about the extent to which this story could hold attention, but I feel it works overall.

Our main focus is the wealthy businessman Tobias Fell, who is found dead in his penthouse apartment. Nobody knows what happened to him and there are no signs of anything untoward. On the night of his death there were a number of guests from the building he owns invited to his home. None of them claim to have seen anything or know anything. What on earth happened?

Having told us there is something unusual about this occurrence, we are then given thirteen different stories. Each of these focuses on a different character, and the only thing they have in common is that they live in the building and have been experiencing strange events.

Naturally, some of the stories were more interesting than others. Few of the characters were particularly likeable, and each had something about them that appeared to make them unusual in some way. What was quickly clear, though, was that this building was not a positive place.

As the stories progressed I did feel that things were becoming a little repetitive. However, in light of the overall story – and once we have the closing scenes that we have spent the book waiting for – it becomes clear that this makes sense.

This was a little more graphic in parts than I was expecting, and I’m still unsure how much of this was real and how much was imagined. However, it certainly made clear the sometimes the real horror can be much closer to home!