BLOG TOUR EVERY LAST LIE BY MARY KUBICA

I am delighted to be taking part in this blog tour .

I have got a cracking q&a for Marys readers to get an insight into her mind!

Enjoy and do check out the other blogs taking part.

Here is a link to my review of the book which I shared previously. 

https://charlenejess.wordpress.com/2017/06/28/book-review-every-last-lie-by-mary-kubica/

1.Where do you draw your inspiration from?

Generally from my imagination, but for my latest novel, EVERY LAST LIE, I got the idea from a newspaper article, with a headline that said something to the effect of how a little girl’s nightmares helped solved the mystery of her father’s death.  From that, a story was born!

 

2. What does a day of writing look like?

I’m up everyday at 5am and spend the next few hours writing while the rest of my family sleeps.  During the summer months when the kids are off of school and home with me, those early morning hours are about all the time I have to write.  But during the school year, once the kids are tucked safely away at school and my husband off to work, I’m back at the computer, writing for the bulk of the day.  When I’m not writing, I’m plotting, which is something I can do absolutely anywhere, at any time.  

 

3. If you wasn’t an author what would you be?

Before writing my first novel, THE GOOD GIRL, I was a high school history teacher, which was a job I absolutely loved.  I left teaching when I started my family, thinking that by now – my kids are currently 11 and 9 – I’d certainly go back to it.  I had no idea that a new career would bloom within those years.  If I wasn’t writing, I’d be teaching.  

 

4. What do you do you relax..switch off?

If you asked most people in my life, they’d tell you I never relax!  But I enjoy running, reading, and love to binge watch programs on TV, namely The Missing, which is what I’m watching now.  Such a gripping show!

 

5. Do  you know when you start a book how it will end?

I don’t!  I’m not much of a plotter, but prefer to dive in with only my starting point and take a more organic approach to the process.  I need to spend time creating my characters and getting to know them before I can figure out where the story will go.  This sometimes requires heavy revision on the back end, to make sure the story is coherent and spoilers aren’t being revealed sooner than  planned, but it’s a method that works for me and one I love.

 

6. Any info on your next book for us readers?

My next novel, 11 DAYS, tells the story of Jessie – a young woman who ventures off to create a life for herself after losing her mother to cancer, only to discover she may not be the person she believes she is – and Eden, a woman struggling with infertility, who would do absolutely anything to have a child.  Look for it in 2018!

BLOG TOUR PERFECT PREY BY HELEN FIELDS

The second in the terrifying DI Callanach crime series. Fans of M.J. Arlidge will be hooked from the very first page.
In the midst of a rock festival, a charity worker is sliced across the stomach. He dies minutes later. In a crowd of thousands, no one saw his attacker. The following week, the body of a primary school teacher is found in a dumpster in an Edinburgh alley, strangled with her own woollen scarf.
DI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach have no motive and no leads – until around the city, graffitied on buildings, words appear describing each victim.
It’s only when they realise the words are appearing before rather than after the murders, that they understand the killer is announcing his next victim…and the more innocent the better.

Wow it was great to be back in the world of Helen and her dark and twisted mind.

I was ecstatic to be part of this blog tour after loving her debut book earlier in the year. 

Another incredible nail biting teeth clenching read …there’s not a single dull moment .

Gory dark chilling .

Fast paced and completely addictive I couldn’t put it down. 

I loved being back on the murky underworld of Edinburgh and in particular with these characters. 

It felt like we got a introduction with perfect remains and a longer meeting in perfect prey. 

We got to know them more and what makes them tick on a personal level .

 
I’m delighted there is going to be another book in this series and can’t wait to see what tricks Helen has in her bag .

I wish Helen every success with this book and will no doubt have more readers hooked !

As well as my review here is a exclusive extract to give you a sneak peek … and be sure to check the other blogs out taking part .
DC Christie Salter wished Callanach a quiet goodnight and went home to her new husband. She’d put off taking her sergeants exam for her wedding and honeymoon. When Callanach had advised against making the sacrifice, she’d laughed. Max Tripp went home to his twin brother with whom he was flat-sharing. The Chief went home to a wife who had tolerated him for no fewer than thirty years. Even miserable Sergeant Lively had someone waiting for him to get home so they could share a meal and stare at a mutually chosen television programme and forget the outside world.

Callanach retreated to an empty flat.
Scotland had been a new start for him, returning to the land of his long since dead father. But it had meant shedding the social circles and family comfort that had been at the centre of his world. He was trying, certainly. There was the gym, work, a good wine shop, places where people knew his name and greeted him with a smile. Beyond that, replacing old friends with new was time-consuming and soul-destroying.

He fired up the computer, waiting for his emails to appear and hoping desperately for contact from his mother. There was also the matter of checking that Astrid Borde had not been in touch. Since she’d falsely accused him of rape when they’d worked together at Interpol, then followed him to Scotland, he had worried every day that the nightmare might begin again. It hadn’t mattered that the rape allegation was entirely a figment of Astrid’s twisted imagination and a symptom of her obsession with him. The stigma of it had stuck. People he’d worked with for years avoided him. His closest friends grew guarded, then distant, finally disappearing altogether. Innocence, he had learned, was a technicality when sexual assault was involved. However many times he told himself to live in the moment, there was little escape from the impact of the past. Not when it still affected him as physically as it did.
Too restless to sleep and too tired to go out, Callanach checked out Lance Proudfoot’s online news blog again. He found a brief section outlining Proudfoot’s career history with publications in the US and Canada, as well as some of the larger British newspapers. His news coverage wasn’t bad. Less sensational than the tabloids, and less prone to navel-gazing than some of the broadsheets. There was an interesting editorial piece on the hacker thefts, with a side piece on the National Cyber Crime Unit, largely highlighting how far behind the offenders’ capabilities the police were, given the budget constraints and compared to the sort of money the gifted could earn in the private sector. DCI Joseph Edgar’s name popped up briefly and Callanach checked him out for something to do. Public school, followed by a law degree, chair of the debating society, with interests in cricket and rugby. Never married, steady career path. Callanach picked up his mobile to text Ava. He was halfway through it when there was a knock at his door. It was late, much later than he was used to being disturbed. Not that anyone ever knocked on his door.

‘Who is it?’ he called as he walked slowly through his lounge. There was no reply. Callanach peered through the spyhole.

BLOG TOUR THE ARRANGEMENTS BY SONYA LALLI

You can’t choose who you fall for…but it helps if there’s a list, right?
Raina, twenty-nine, is still unmarried much to the dismay of her family who 
think that by now she should have been married in a dream Indian wedding. 
The pressure to settle down reaches new heights when her grandmother, Nani, decides to play matchmaker in order to find her the perfect man. Eager not to disappoint her family, Raina goes along with the plan but when the love of her life returns – ex-boyfriend Dev – she’s forced to confront her true feelings and decide what she really wants. 

Firstly a big thanks to Lauren at orion for my copy to review. Also for having me on the blog tour to share am exclusive short story. 

I devoured this while out and about on buses .

I loved it.

It’s fresh funny and totally relatable as a single 30 something .

This gives the reader a real insight into a different culture and how they do things. And what happens when you want to break away from tradition. 

I loved the main character and her tales of dating .

But also this is about her finding who she is and what her worth is.

Really recommend for your summer read .

Published 10th August 

 The Arrangement, thirty-year-old, fun-living Serena is on the sidelines. She shares a mutual friend with the novel’s heroine Raina, and for a while dates one of Raina’s relatives. Even though Serena’s story doesn’t make it into my novel, I wanted to share a bit more about her own dating misadventures – and give you a few clues about what’s to come in The Arrangement! Read here and here to catch up on Serena’s story and read about her first date. 
“So who is lucky bachelor number two?” Serena stares at Shaylee sarcastically. “Who are we going for this time?”

“He’s not here yet.”

“No? But there’s so many good options.” She recoils around, and gestures towards a back booth full of young-looking guys. “What about that one? He probably got in here with a fake ID, but what does age have to do with anything?”

“Serena…”

“Or that one,” she says, discretely pointing at the man at the table next to them. “Sure, he’s with his wife but – ”

“I said I was sorry about Red Chinos, OK?” Shaylee throws her a pleading look. “But this guy is better. Promise.”

Serena shrinks back into the booth, and neither of them say much until a few minutes later, when Julien and another guy walk in. Shaylee gets up to meet them, kissing Julien on the cheek. They were both pediatricians, recently engaged, and annoyingly, really nice people. It was hard to be jealous of genuinely nice people. 

Shaylee and Julien seat themselves at the bar, while the other man treads carefully towards her, as if he’s as embarrassed as she is. He’s quite handsome –warm brown skin and kind eyes, black hair cropped short. An awkward wave later, and he’s sitting right across from her. 

“I have a feeling you are also here against your will,” he says, taking her aback. 

“I’m sorry, did Julien drag you here?”

He nods, but he’s smiling. “We just finished a shift, and I’ve been working for the last 36 hours. If I fall asleep, I promise you it’s me – not you.”

“Let me know if you want to use my purse as a pillow.” 

He laughs. “I’m Michael. I work with them at the hospital. ”

“I’m Serena. Shaylee’s friend.” She smiles, and then hesitates. “Your accent, it’s lovely. Where are you from?”

“South Africa. I began training here just over a year ago.” 

“Are you enjoying it?”

He’s smiling again, rubbing the varnish on the table with his hands. “Winters in Canada are very cold, Serena.”

She bursts out laughing. “You’ll get used to it.” 

“I’m not sure I’ll get used to being away from my family though.” He glances at something behind her, or perhaps, at nothing at all.

“My parents moved here from India when they were young,” she says after a moment. “Before FaceTime and Skype and email – back when they had to write letter because phone calls were too expensive. They missed their family a lot, too.” 

“And now?”

“Now they’re used to it, I guess.” Serena shrugs. “And they’re happy with the life they’ve made for us here.” 

“I do miss my family…” He’s playing with a coaster now, ripping the ends off in tiny pieces. 

“You miss someone else too, don’t you?” She leans forward on her elbows, not quite sure what she’s seeing in his eyes. “A girl back home?”

He looks up, rather startled. “Is it that obvious?”

“Someone get you a vomit bag because, Michael, you are love sick.”

Laughing, he shakes his head. “She just sort of snuck up on me.”

“Who’s she?”

“Olivia,” he says, without missing a beat. “A girl I went to medical school with. We were best friends – she had a boyfriend the whole time, of course – but she broke up with him right before I moved here.”

“And?”

“And we Skype… all the time.” He looks sad again. “Every day. Twice a day. Yet, here I am – and she’s back there.” 

“Tell her how you feel.”

“Serena, she knows how I feel.”

She shakes her head. “Tell her. So she hears it. So she really hears it.”

When it’s nearly 11 pm, Shaylee and Julien waltz over to break up the date, and remind Serena she has one left before midnight strikes. By then, she and Michael have exchanged phone numbers, added each other on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, and have made plans to eat at Kensington Market the following weekend. 

“Is it a date?” Shaylee asks her, after Michael and Julien have left. 

“No,” Serena says. “But I’ve made a new friend.” 

BOOK REVIEW ELEANOR OLIPHANT IS COMPLETELY FINE BY GAIL HONEYMAN

Eleanor Oliphant has learned how to survive – but not how to live. Eleanor Oliphant leads a simple life. She wears the same clothes to work every day, eats the same meal deal for lunch every day and buys the same two bottles of vodka to drink every weekend. Eleanor Oliphant is happy. Nothing is missing from her carefully timetabled life. Except, sometimes, everything. One simple act of kindness is about to shatter the walls Eleanor has built around herself. Now she must learn how to navigate the world that everyone else seems to take for granted – while searching for the courage to face the dark corners she’s avoided all her life. Change can be good. Change can be bad. But surely any change is better than…fine?

I have heard so much about this book from bloggers and authors alike . I was almost too scared to read in case it didn’t live up to the hype …. safe to say it lived up to it more and beyond .

This is a quirky story but woven with beauty as we meet Eleanor.  I finished this book an hour ago and I miss her already.  What a great character and I want to thank the author for her invention . I say thanks because myself like many others who will read this have been the type to not fit in. For whatever reason or maybe no reason and I genuinely believe many readers will connect and relate to Eleanor .

This is funny and sad in equal measures. 

It’s a love story but it’s one where the character learns to love herself . Also the reader will feel a surge of self respect for all their own quirks that make them unique .

We follow her on a journey of self discovery and letting go of the past in order to live in the present .

I can’t recommend this enough , a must read .

Life affirming and heart warming .

BOOK REVIEW HER HUSBANDS LOVER BY JULIA CROUCH

She stole her husband. Now she wants to take her life.
After the horrors of the past, Louisa Williams is desperate to make a clean start. Her husband Sam is dead. Her children, too, are gone, victims of the car accident in which he died. 
Sam said that she would never get away from him. That he would hound her to death if she tried to leave. Louisa never thought that he would want to harm their children though. 
But then she never thought that he would betray her with a woman like Sophie. And now Sophie is determined to take all that Louisa has left. She wants to destroy her reputation and to take what she thinks is owed her – the life she would have had if Sam had lived.
Her husband’s lover wants to take her life. The only question is will Louisa let her?

I have been dying to read this so was thrilled to find it in my local library. 

This is incredibly addictive and dark.

What you think is the truth may not be after all?

Who is the reliable narrator in this?  

Completely shocked me with the twists and turns and then the ending ! 

I was like no!!!! I need answers but very cleverly written to achieve that dramatic result .

Disturbing and chilling and everything you expect and more from a bestselling psychological thriller.

BOOK REVIEW AFTER I’VE GONE BY LINDA GREEN

STATUS UPDATE: You have 18 months left to live . . . On a wet Monday in January, Jess Mount checks Facebook and discovers her timeline appears to have skipped forward 18 months, to a day when shocked family and friends are posting heartbreaking tributes to her following her death in an accident. Jess is left scared and confused: is she the target of a cruel online prank or is this a terrifying glimpse of her true fate?

Amongst the posts are photos of a gorgeous son she has not yet conceived. But when new posts suggest her death was deliberate, Jess realises that if she changes the future to save her own life, the baby boy she has fallen in love with may never exist.

Wow what an incredible original exciting book.

I had this preordered for ages as love this authors books .

This is in a league of its own 

Fresh new and bold .

Dealing with a raw topic for me personally but written so well and will open readers eyes up to a horrible way of life .

Was gripped from page one .

It’s not very often I’m tempted to rush to the end to see what happens …I didn’t cheat but I was desperate to know. 

Facebook is a huge part of today’s society’s …funny enough my Internet is down so with no distractions I read even quicker! 

This will be nothing like you have ever read I promise you .

Dark and compelling and will haunt you ever after finishing the last page .

BOOK REVIEW GATHER THE DAUGHTERS BY JENNIE MELAMED

On a small island, cut off from the rest of the world, there’s a community that lives by its own rules. Boys grow up knowing they will one day reign inside and outside the home,while girls know they will be married and pregnant within moments of hitting womanhood. 

But before that time comes,there is an island ritual that offers children an exhilarating  reprieve.  Every summer they are turned out onto their doorsteps to roam wild:they run ,they fight, they sleep on the beach and build Camps in the trees.  They are free. 

It is at the end of one of these summers ,as the first frost laces the ground,that one of the younger girls witnesses something she was never supposed to see. And she returns home ,muddy and terrified, clutching in her small hand a truth that could unravel their carefully constructed island world forever .

Firstly thank you to Caitlin  at headline for my review copy.

This completely  exceeded my expectations. 

I loved it! Beautifully written with some shocking moments .

Tense atmospheric writing which captures the feeling of the young women who know their free days are coming to an end.

I am fascinated by cults and the psychology behind it. How others live their lives etc. 

Intense and chilling in some parts as we see what lengths others go to for their beliefs .

BOOK REVIEW THE STRANGER IN THE HOUSE BY SHARI LAPENA

Why would you run scared from a happy home?  

You’re waiting for your beloved husband to get home from work. 

You’re making dinner, looking forward to hearing about his data. 

That’s the last thing you remember. 

You wake up in hospital, with no idea how you got  there . They tell you that you were in an accident ; you lost control of your car whilst driving in a dangerous part of town.

The police suspect you were up to no good. But your husband refuses to believe it. Your best friend is not so sure . And even you don’t know what to believe. …

Firstly a huge thank you to Becky at transworld for my review copy.

A year ago I read a proof copy of this authors fantastic debut book the couple next door which is still flying off the shelves .

So of course like many bloggers and readers I was so excited to read her next book. I feel very lucky to have the opportunity. 

I devoured this in one go … gulp and it’s gone.

Addictive chilling and reels you in.

This author has a way to grab your attention and you are engrossed in the storyline  .

Also her characters are incredible and make you question who is telling the truth? And you think you know who they are and their motives for a shock to happen .

This lady knows how to write a thriller  !

Compelled me right through to the last page .

Published 27th July 

BOOK REVIEW GIVE ME THE CHILD BY MEL MCGRATH

Imagine that your doorbell rings in the middle of the night. You open the door to the police. Your husband’s eleven year old love child stands between them- a daughter you never knew he had.

Her mother has Been found dead in their south London flat. She has nowhere else to go.

WOULD YOU TAKE HER IN?

Firstly a big thank you to hq for my proof copy and having me on the blog tour Everything about this book is enticing ,the cover and title just scream read me.

A very dark read at times feeling quite uncomfortable. 

Who is telling the truth?

How many more secrets are there?

Who is the child?  And what impact will she have on the family?

Tense and full of mystery. 

A suffocating read tells the story of a complex story and family. 

Was really interesting to read about her job as a psychologist as I’ve had my own dealings with them both for me and my kids. 

Plus that feeling of instability you feel when you have mental illness as a parent . People doubt you.. even you doubt you.

Makes you think and ask questions?  What would you do in this situation? 

Do you ever really know someone?  

A great psychological thriller.

Do check out the other blogs taking part ,
Published 27th July 

BOOK REVIEW THE WOMAN IN THE WOOD BY LESLEY PEARSE

Maisy and Duncan have always had each other. Until the day they didn’t

One night in 1960, fifteen-year-old twins Maisy and Duncan Mitcham awake to find their father pulling their screaming mother from the house. She is to be committed to an insane asylum. It is, so their father insists, for her own good.

It’s not long before they, too, are removed from their London home and sent to Nightingales – a large house deep in the New Forest countryside – to be watched over by their cold-hearted grandmother, Mrs Mitcham. Though they feel abandoned and unloved, at least here they have something they never had before – freedom.

The twins are left to their own devices, to explore, find new friends and first romances. That is until the day that Duncan doesn’t come back for dinner. Nor does he return the next day. Or the one after that.

When the bodies of other young boys are discovered in the surrounding area the police appear to give up hope of finding Duncan alive. With Mrs Mitcham showing little interest in her grandson’s disappearance, it is up to Maisy to discover the truth. And she knows just where to start. The woman who lives alone in the wood about whom so many rumours abound. A woman named Grace Deville.

Firstly a huge thank you to the publishers for my copy as wasn’t expecting it .

I’ll be honest I’m not actually sure if I’ve read any of this authors books and seeing as she has wrote 24 before this one this is mad. So I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect and after reading I now want to read all her back log .

This completely blew my expectations! 

Once I started I couldn’t stop reading . Great characters but an even better storyline . 

This book had a lot going on, drama, family turmoil and unexpected friendships .

Lesley is a incredible storyteller and has the skill to captivate her readers. 

This was quite a dark read in some parts so I’m really intrigued to see if that’s similar in her other books.