The Team: A #psychological #thriller of wilderness survival by JL Raven #AudiobookReview #DebutNovel

Posted in Audiobook, Book Review, Mystery, Psychological, Survival, Thriller by Cathy

Author: JL Raven

Released on Audible: April 2020

Category: Psychological, Thriller, Survival, Audiobook Review

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The opportunity of a lifetime might get her killed.

When her boss comes down with a bout of food poisoning, lowly corporate accountant Lauren gets an offer she can’t refuse: Take his place at an exclusive team-building retreat with senior management.

The retreat is held at a remote lodge, and the rules are strict: No cell phones, no computers, and no contact with the outside world. Events take a sinister turn when a freak snowstorm leaves them trapped far from civilization…and Lauren discovers they aren’t alone in the wilderness.

An unavoidable last minute change of plan means Lauren Alexander joins a corporate team building retreat at a remote lodge in the middle of a national forest. It’s the chance to further her career if she can ingratiate herself into the tight circle of senior management. The four founders—Adam, Melissa, Yasmine and Rick—had built Agonarch Herbal Supplements into a successful company and were long standing friends since their college days. In charge of activities, catering, allocating the individual cabins for sleeping and basically anything else that was needed is Tiffany.

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30Jun2020

#GuestPost from Liz Mistry #Author of Broken Silence @rararesources @LizMistryAuthor #TuesdayBookBlog

Posted in Blog Tour, Crime, Fiction, Guest Post, Mystery by Cathy

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Broken Silence, courtesy of Rachel’s Random Resources.

Liz Mistry has kindly written a guest post discussing themes in Broken Silence.

Over to Liz…

The title Broken Silence is appropriate for this novel in so many ways. The themes in the novel are diverse, but each theme is about the adverse impact of silence on individuals and how important breaking the silence can be. So, I’d like to talk a little about some of the themes in Broken Silence.

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5Jun2020

The Latecomers by Rich Marcello @marcellor #BookReview #Metaphysical #ContemporaryFiction #RBRT #FridayReads

Posted in Book Review, Contemporary Fiction, Literary Fiction, Metaphysical, Mystery by Cathy

Author: Rich Marcello

Published: January 2020 by Moonshine Cove Publishing

Category: Contemporary Fiction, Spiritual, Mystical, Book Review

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Maggie and Charlie Latecomer, at the beginning of the last third of their lives, love each other but are conflicted over what it means to age well in a youth-oriented society. Forced into early retirement and with grown children in distant cities, they’ve settled into a curbed routine, leaving Charlie restless and longing for more

When the Latecomers and their friends discover a mystical book of indecipherable logographs, the corporeal world and preternatural world intertwine. They set off on a restorative journey to uncover the secrets of the book that pits them against a potent corporate foe in a struggle for the hearts and minds of woman and men the world over.

For Charlie and Maggie Latecomer it’s a second marriage for both of them. Their respective adult children don’t live within easy reach but the Latecomers love each other dearly and keep busy in early retirement with their artistic projects. Yet Charlie is restless and feels there should be more to life, regardless of age, and decides he needs to go to their cabin in Nova Scotia alone in search of the meaning of his life. Maggie is left angry at Charlie’s seeming disregard and self absorption, wondering what went wrong, beginning to question her beliefs and their relationship.

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28May2020

#ThrowbackThursday ~ Dead Water: Shetland Book 5 by Ann Cleeves #Audiobook #CrimeFiction

Posted in Audiobook, Book Review, Crime, Murder, Mystery, Police Procedural, Throwback Thursday by Cathy

Throwback Thursday this week is looking back at book five in one of my favourite series.

Despite my preference for starting a series from book one, I’m beginning with this one, which is actually book five. I’ve watched and enjoyed each season of the TV series, Shetland, and so I’m very familiar with the cast of characters. There are some differences between the two, mainly in Jimmy Perez’s looks and back story. Kenny Blyth, the narrator, is excellent and has a lovely Scottish lilt, which fits in well with the story and adds authenticity. Other accents are convincing too. The narrator of the four previous books has a middle to upper class English accent which I didn’t find engaging or appropriate for the setting.

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25May2020

Jar of Hearts by Jennifer Hillier ~ A Dark, Twisty Tale #PsychologicalThriller #AudiobookReview @JenniferHillier

Posted in Audiobook, Book Review, Crime, Mystery, Psychological, Suspense, Thriller by Cathy

Author: Jennifer Hillier

Performed by January LaVoy

Released on Audible: June 2018 by Macmillan Audio

Category: Psychological, Thriller, Mystery, Suspense, Audiobook, Review

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This is the story of three best friends: one who was murdered, one who went to prison, and one who’s been searching for the truth all these years . . .

When she was sixteen years old, Angela Wong—one of the most popular girls in school—disappeared without a trace. Nobody ever suspected that her best friend, Georgina Shaw, now an executive and rising star at her Seattle pharmaceutical company, was involved in any way. Certainly not Kaiser Brody, who was close with both girls back in high school.

Fourteen years ago the community of Sweetbay was rocked when sixteen year old Angela Wong went missing, never to be seen again. Now all these years later her remains have been discovered near her best friend, Georgina (Geo) Shaw’s childhood home where Geo’s father still lives. Geo and Angela, along with Kaiser Brody, now a Detective with the Seattle PD, were as close as friends could be in high school. Until Calvin James came on the scene. His presence changed, not only the dynamics of the trio but also their lives. What Geo carries with her from then on will affect her for years to come with devastating consequences.

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8May2020

The Taking of Annie Thorne by @cjtudor ~ ‘I know what happened to your sister’ #AudiobookReview #FridayReads

Posted in Audiobook, Book Review, Crime, Horror, Mystery, Psychological, Thriller by Cathy

Author: C.J. Tudor

Performed by Richard Armitage

Released on Audible February 2019

Category: Mystery, Thriller, Psychological, Horror, Audiobook, Review

One night, Annie disappeared.

There were searches, appeals. Everyone thought the worst.

And then, after 48 hours, she came back.

But she couldn’t – or wouldn’t – say what had happened to her.

Something happened to my sister. I can’t explain what.

I just know that when she came back, she wasn’t the same.

She wasn’t my Annie.

I didn’t want to admit, even to myself, that sometimes I was scared to death of my own little sister.

Life hasn’t been particularly kind to Joe Thorne. He was a loner as a youth, content to spend time with his young sister, until he became involved in the local gang lead by a cruel bully, Stephen Hurst, which was really when things began to go wrong for Joe. A schoolfriend’s tragic death, his sister’s disappearance and then the traffic accident that left him with a shattered leg, and that wasn’t the worst of it.

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4May2020

Missing You by Harlan Coben ~ Will Kat Get A Second Chance? #CrimeFiction #Thriller #Suspense

Posted in Book Review, Crime, Fiction, Murder, Mystery, Suspense, Thriller by Cathy

Author: Harlan Coben

Published: April 2014 by Orion

Category: Thriller, Suspense, Crime Fiction, Book Review

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It’s a profile, like all the others on the online dating site. But as NYPD Detective Kat Donovan focuses on the accompanying picture, she feels her whole world explode, as emotions she’s ignored for decades come crashing down on her. Staring back at her is her ex-fiancé Jeff, the man who shattered her heart and who she hasn’t seen in 18 years.

Two devastating events that happened around the same time, eighteen years previously, had a powerful effect on NYPD Detective Kat Donovan. Her father was murdered and her fiancé broke off their relationship without explanation. She hasn’t had another relationship since that meant anything to her. Kat’s friend Stacy bought her a subscription for a dating website, something she knew Kat would never do on her own. Feeling slightly obligated Kat trawls through the profiles and is stunned to see a picture of her ex fiancé on one of the profiles. Eventually, feeling she has nothing to lose, Kat makes contact.

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24Apr2020

When You See Me by Lisa Gardner ~ A Thrilling and Tense #PoliceProcedural #Thriller @LisaGardnerBks #FridayReads

Posted in Book Review, Contemporary, Crime, FBI Procedural, Mystery, Police Procedural, Suspense, Thriller by Cathy

Author: Lisa Gardner

Published: January 2020 by Penguin Random House

Category: Police Procedural, Thriller, Suspense, Mystery, Book Review

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FBI Special Agent Kimberly Quincy and Sergeant Detective DD Warren have built a task force to follow the digital bread crumbs left behind by deceased serial kidnapper Jacob Ness. And when a disturbing piece of evidence comes to light, they decide to bring in Flora Dane who has personal experience of being imprisoned by Ness.

When You See Me is a combination of two series and brings together Detective D.D. Warren, Flora Dane and FBI Agent Kimberly Quincy in a thrilling and tense ride with three strong, interesting and totally different female characters. Computer geek Keith, who has a passion for true crime and a tentative relationship with Flora, also joins the team. Several chapters from an as yet unnamed character whose suffering is slowly revealed are interspersed throughout the narrative.

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20Apr2020

The Art of Dying (Way of All Flesh #2) by Ambrose Parry #HistoricalFiction based on fact #Medical #Mystery @ambroseparry

Posted in Book Review, Crime, Historical Fiction, Medical, Murder, Mystery by Cathy

Author: Ambrose Parry

Published: August 2019 by Canongate Books

Category: Historical, Medical, Mystery, Crime, Book Review

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Edinburgh, 1850. Despite being at the forefront of modern medicine, hordes of patients are dying all across the city, with doctors finding their remedies powerless. But it is not just the deaths that dismay the esteemed Dr James Simpson – a whispering campaign seeks to blame him for the death of a patient in suspicious circumstances.