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.

In this sequel to The Way of All Flesh, which I really enjoyed, we find Will Raven in Europe, studying and learning, becoming a fully qualified doctor.

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16Apr2020

#ThrowbackThursday ~ The Axeman’s Jazz by Ray Celestin #Historical #CrimeFiction Based on True Events #Mystery #Thriller

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

This week’s Throwback Thursday is The Axeman’s Jazz, the first of a series of historical crime fiction, based on fact. I listened to the audio which was released in January 2015.

My Thoughts

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7Apr2020

I Am Dust by Louise Beech ~ A Haunted Theatre, A Murdered Actress @LouiseWriter #Murder #Mystery #TuesdayBookBlog

Posted in Book Review, Contemporary Fiction, Ghost Story, Murder/Mystery, Psychological, Supernatural by Cathy

Author: Louise Beech

Published: February 2020 by Orenda Books

Category: Psychological, Thriller, Murder, Mystery, Supernatural, Book Review

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The Dean Wilson Theatre is believed to be haunted by a long-dead actress, singing her last song, waiting for her final cue, looking for her killer…

Now Dust, the iconic musical, is returning after twenty years. But who will be brave enough to take on the role of ghostly goddess Esme Black, last played by Morgan Miller, who was murdered in her dressing room?

I Am Dust is a story of two halves which are brought together seamlessly as the story evolves—the events of 2005 and the impact they have on the present day. During that summer three friends and aspiring actors played a dangerous game, experimenting with an Ouija board, while rehearsing for their school production of Macbeth.

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31Mar2020

The Boy From The Woods ~ Now A Man with a Mysterious Past #CrimeFiction from @HarlanCoben #TuesdayBookBlog

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

Author: Harlan Coben

Narrated by Steven Weber

Released on Audible: March 2020

Category: Crime, Mystery, Thriller, Audiobook, Book Review

Thirty years ago, a child was found in the New Jersey backwoods.

He had been living a feral existence, with no memory of how he got there or even who he is. Everyone just calls him Wilde.

Now a former soldier and security expert, he lives off the grid, shunned by the community – until they need him.

Over thirty years ago a boy, thought to be around six to eight years old, was found living in the Ramapo Mountain Forest. How he survived no-one knew. The boy didn’t know his age, name or where he came from. He doesn’t remember his parents or any other adults and no-one came forward to claim him. But he did have a friend.

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25Mar2020

Six Wicked Reasons by Jo Spain ~ One Family…One Night…Ten Years of Lies #Psychological #Suspense @SpainJoanne @QuercusBooks

Posted in Audiobook, Book Review, Family Drama, Mystery, Psychological, Suspense by Cathy

Author: Jo Spain

Performed by Aoife McMahon

Published January 2020 by Quercus

Category: Pyschological, Suspense, Family Drama, Mystery, Audiobook, Review

It’s June 2008 and twenty-one-year-old Adam Lattimer vanishes, presumed dead. The strain of his disappearance breaks his already fragile family.

Ten years later, with his mother deceased and siblings scattered across the globe, Adam turns up unannounced at the family home. His siblings return reluctantly to Spanish Cove, but Adam’s reappearance poses more questions than answers. The past is a tangled web of deceit.

Set in Spanish Cove, a small village on the west coast of Ireland, Six Wicked Reasons focuses on the dysfunctional Lattimer family. The story begins with a celebratory reunion on a yacht. Adam Lattimer, the son and sibling the family feared dead had returned after ten years. Nine people, including Frazer Lattimer’s fiancé, had boarded but only eight left the yacht alive. When Frazer’s body was pulled from the sea it was evident the blow to the back of his head had killed him.

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17Mar2020

The Lantern Men (Ruth Galloway Book 12) by @EllyGriffiths ~ Murder/Mystery #TuesdayBookBlog

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

Author: Elly Griffiths

Published: February 2020 by Quercus

Category: Crime, Murder, Mystery, Police Procedural, Book Review

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Everything has changed for Dr Ruth Galloway.

She has a new job, home and partner, and is no longer North Norfolk police’s resident forensic archaeologist. That is, until convicted murderer Ivor March offers to make DCI Nelson a deal. Nelson was always sure that March killed more women than he was charged with. Now March confirms this, and offers to show Nelson where the other bodies are buried – but only if Ruth will do the digging.