This morning, I was packing up lunches, ironing, putting on the laundry I should have done last night. Now my precious daughter is accused of murder.
When ten year old cousins Maddy and Brianna are arrested for a terrible crime, Maddy’s mother Juliet cannot believe it. How could her bright, joyful daughter be capable of such a thing?
As the small village community recoils in horror, the pressure of the tragedy blows Juliet and her sisters lives apart. And things get even worse when their daughters retreat into a self imposed silence. Can anyone reach Maddy and discover the truth before her fate is sealed?
Juliet is crushed. Nothing will ever be the same for her darling girl. But she knows that to find out what really happened that day, she and her sister must unlock the secrets of their own terrible past, a past they swore never to speak about again…
MY REVIEW
This is the first book I have read by K.L.Slater but it certainly won’t be the last.
The story is quite fast paced and hooks you from the first page the clever thing at the beginning is that you don’t know which little girl did what as no names are used. Obviously we also don’t know if they are either of them guilty of assaulting the old lady which led to her death either. The story is told from different perspectives sometimes Juliet sometimes as Chloe, also jumping back into the past and how the sisters were raised. How each was treated differently by the parents more so the mother than anything. It’s very cleverly all put together with lots of things coming out having you guessing what is going on.
If your 10 year old daughter is accused of assaulting an old lady that led to her death along with her 10 year old cousin what would you do? You want to stand up for your daughter and not believe her capable of something so atrocious but your niece is involved as well and your sister is obviously there for her daughter. What strain does this put on a family. Can they survive? Also what family secrets are being kept and by who?
This is a really good read and I highly recommend it if you like your books to pack a lot in. A good psychological thriller.
This book is due for release on the 24th July available to pre order from Amazon now as ebook or paperback novel.
Thank you to #netgalley #Bookouture #K.L.Slater for the chance to read this ARC all opinions are my own and honest.
THE AUTHOR
Kim is the million-copy bestselling author of eight psychological crime thrillers.
For many years, Kim sent her work to literary agents and collected an impressive stack of rejection slips. At the age of 40 she went back to Nottingham Trent University and now has an MA in creative writing.
Before graduating in 2012, she gained literary agent representation and a book deal. As Kim says, ‘it was a fairytale… at the end of a very long road!’
Kim is a full time writer. She has one daughter, two stepsons and lives with her husband in Nottingham and Yorkshire.
When Genevieve’s seven year old son is found bleeding to death in his own home, she’s horrified when the police turn to her for answers. There’s no evidence of a break in, and parts of Genevieve story don’t seem to make sense. But could a mother really kill her own child?
Twenty four hours later, teenager Nora Florette is reported missing – and panic begins to spread. Someone is preying on the local children – and the police are caught in a race against time to catch the killer.
Detective Nick Fourcade and his partner Annie Broussard must uncover the truth about Genevieve’s past before it’s too late. Is she simply a grieving mother? Or is she a danger to them all?
MY REVIEW
This is the second book in the series with the married detective’s Fourcade and Broussard. I haven’t read the first book but after reading this one will certainly be adding it to my TBR pile. I like books that have lead characters that you can get to know and follow. Nick Fourcade has some anger problems whereas his wife Annie Broussard’s has a more calmer type of personality, so their relationship works, a bit like yin and yang despite there being some tensions in this book between them.
For Nick and Annie this case seems more personal having a five year old son Justin themselves, they can’t even imagine how they would deal with anything happening to him they are determined to solve this case.
The story is set in the swampy area of Louisiana. Nick and Annie get a call out in the middle of the night, to a scene no officer ever wants to be called out to, that of the murder of a seven year old boy who has been stabbed multiple times. The mother has also been attacked, Genevieve Gautier a single mum, managed to run to neighbours for help despite being injured herself. Genevieve has a somewhat murky past. So she is looked at as a victim and but also a potential suspect.
This story can be quite dark at times, as stories of neglected and abused children. The thirteen year old babysitter Nora Florette goes missing. Where is she? Pressure on the detectives to solve these crimes is on, as children are going missing and being murdered, which puts people on edge and fearful for their own children. The media presence doesn’t help with the pressure in fact it adds to it. There is a new boss in the Sherriffs office, with a tough guy image, which has been carefully nurtured through social media and traditional ways, making him popular among the public. Kelvin Dutrow is a more hands on guy, and him and Nick with his fiery temperament don’t always see eye to eye. But Nicks main focus is on solving this case even if it means getting the sack.
This is a book that not all readers will like at times it is very dark and disturbing, covering some complex scenes of the nature of abuse and the lengths some victims of abuser will go to even protect the abuser. The story is well written and makes for a really good read.
If you like your crime thrillers dark and disturbing this book is for you if you want somethings long the lines of a cosy murder mystery then this may not be your cup of tea.
I thoroughly enjoyed the whole book it flows nicely I like getting to know more about the characters and getting drawn into their lives. I can’t wait for book three in the series.
THE AUTHOR
Tami Hoag is the #1 international bestselling author of more than thirty books published in more than thirty languages worldwide. Renowned for combining thrilling plots with character driven psychological suspense, Hoag first hit the New York Times Bestseller list with Night Sins, and each of her books since has been a bestseller. She leads a double life in Palm Beach County, Florida where she is also known as a top competitive equestrian in the Olympic discipline of dressage.
Andrew, the manager of Shanamore Holiday Cottages, watches his only guest via a hidden camera in her room. One night the unthinkable happens: a shadowy figure emerges onscreen, kills her and destroys the camera. But who is the murderer? How did they know about the camera? And how will Andrew live with himself?
PAUSE
Natalie wishes she’d stayed at home as soon as she arrives in the wintry isolation of Shanamore. There’s something creepy about the manager. She wants to leave, but she can’t – not until she’s found what she’s looking for….
REWIND
This is an explosive story about a murder caught on camera. You’ve already missed the start. To get the full picture you must rewind the tape and play it through to the end, no matter how shocking…
MY REVIEW
This is one of those books that you just cannot put down once you start it. It has you guessing and then guessing again. Each character you are wondering if it’s them that has committed the murder.
Natalie is an instagrammer with a large following she is married to Mike, through her IG they have been able to move to a new house but as they are unpacking Natalie realises that a poetry book she had given Mike the day he proposed has gone missing. Then she posts on her IG account that she will be offline for a while. But she tells no one where she is going not even Mike.
There’s a camera placed in the bedroom and a shadow in the corner, with a knife there is stabbing. Is the killer male or female? All dressed in black. Who is dead?
Natalie goes to a tiny remote part of Ireland to Shanamore cottages. Where she is greeted by the very strange and unfriendly Andrew, she is hoping to be given cottage 6 but why? Andrew takes her to cottage 6 but he has forgotten to put the heating on, he has forgotten her welcome basket and he is hardly the friendly person you want to show you to your accomodation. Natalie is tired it’s been a long journey. She looks around the cottage which seems a little creepy with its huge back windows with no curtains. But why has she gone there? What led her there in particular and what is she looking for?
Audrey is a reporter on an online newspaper on the entertainment section, which is not where she wants to be. She wants to be reporting proper news. But then she is asked to go look into the disappearance of IG Natalie. Who has been missing a week but her husband didn’t report it why? Audrey is hot on the trail, she visits Mike but in the middle of asking him questions she is asked to leave by the Gardai. She receives an email from someone named Orla who says she has seen Natalie and she is staying at Shanamore Cottages. Audrey drives there and is put in room 6 at Shanamore what is so special here? Is Orla hiding something?
Richard is a local in the remote village, his nickname isIcky Ricky! Why? Despite the fact he is weird. He was looking through the large downstairs window at Natalie, scaring her, but then said he didn’t realise anyone was staying there and he was there to mend the microwave but was he? He sees Natalie later walking along the beach, he tries to talk to her but she is not interested, he persists, offers her a lift she is still not interested.
Jennifer is she having an affair with Mike? Is she delusional? Is she obsessed with Natalie? Is she a murderer? Who is Jennifer? Is she the woman Natalie has seen with the dark sunglasses?
Mike is married to Natalie, why didn’t he report her missing? Why wait a week? Is he having an affair? Why is there a credit card transaction for six hundred and thirty two euros on his statement?
Seanie has just become the local gardai at Shanamore where he used to go most summers with his sister Aoife. What happened to his sister years earlier? Is Seanie there for revenge? OT is it a coincidence he’s gone to this posting?
Andrew is the caretaker of Shanamore Cottages but he likes young girls. He watches his guest in her bedroom? Is he dangerous? Could he commit murder? Who was the woman looking from his bedroom window?
Who is the murderer? Why?
This book has so many strange characters in it and the timeline goes back and forth which at times I found confusing, but the story is so driven, each time you think you have something another thing happens to think no maybe you were wrong. It’s like Natalie is living in a fishbowl posting everything in her life. When she leaves a message to say she is having a break everyone spots a pink suitcase near the front door and are asking where she got it from.
I loved this book, the characters were mostly creepy they had one flaw or another, but it was edge of your seat tension all the way through. Right until the end. I just had to keep turning the pages. My only thing as I have said earlier the timeline back and forth I found a little confusing so to a certain extent I stopped relying on it and just read the book and worked it out from that.
If you like a really good psychological thriller I highly recommend this it certainly gets 5 out of 5 stars from me. Gripping and entertaining. I would have needed curtains at the full length windows in the lounge of the cottage or I would have been jumping at my own shadow.
THE AUTHOR
Catherine Ryan Howard was born in Cork, Ireland, in 1982. Her debut novel Distress Signals was published by Corvus in 2016 while Catherine was studying English literature at Trinity College Dublin. It went on to be shortlisted for both the IBA Books Are My Bag Crime Novel of the Year and the CWA John Creasey/New Blood Dagger. Her second novel, The Liar’s Girl, was published to critical acclaim in 2018. She is currently based in Dublin.
Jane Tennyson has worked hard to become the first female detective ever post to the infamous Flying Squad, or ‘the Sweeney’. But the Dirty Dozen is a notorious boys’ club, and Jane’s new colleagues make it clear that they don’t think a woman is up to the dangers of the job.
Dealing with some of London’s most ruthless armed criminals, who think the only good cop is a dead cop, is no joke. Determined to prove she’s as good as the men, Jane discovers from a reliable witness that a gang is going to carry out a massive robbery.
But she doesn’t know who they are, or where or when they will strike….
MY REVIEW
First of all I have a confession to make I have never read any of Lynda La Plante’s books, although after reading this one I’m not sure why. I have watched many things on the television developed from her novels, certainly Helen Mirren playing Jane Tennison.
I really enjoyed this book, it starts back in 1976, and for me brought back many memories as I was 14 at the time, so can relate to some of the things going on. The types of cars around, lack of technology we have now. Having to use a phone box because mobile phones didn’t exist, and many other things we now take for granted. Jane has just been assigned to the Flying Squad otherwise known as the Sweeney. She thinks this is a promotion, she is now a Detective Sergeant, no other woman has ever been an officer with the Flying Squad, however, it turns out that she is mistaken and all this is is an experiment, which she does find out a little way through the book. In the opening scenes Jane is thrown in at the deep end, before she can even meet Detective Inspector Murphy who she is supposed to report to she is dragged out on a job where a robbery is taking place, the other officers are all armed except for Cam who is OTFD (only the f..ing driver). When they reach where the robbery is taking place Jane is told to keep her head down and stay in the car. Lots of action taking place around her and then the robbers manage to flee. Much to the disgust of the Flying Squad, now they have to put all the pieces of the puzzle together and find out who this group of robbers are. Jane initially gets sent of with Dabs who seems really friendly and accepting of Jane, he is a scene of crime officer hence the nickname, Jane tells him she has worked other crime scenes previously, when she tells him she had worked with Paul Lawrence he is impressed. There is some explaining of what to look for and how to collect it and log it. Which when we think of scenes of crime now everything is much more advanced than back then.
From then on out Jane is up against mysogyny, it’s clear that the majority of the men don’t want her there, calling her treacle, which is apparently cockney for treacle tart – sweetheart, plonks, a name for female officers, it’s clear they feel she shouldn’t be there it’s a mans job. Which means she has to work twice as hard just to prove herself. Detective Inspector Murphy certainly doesn’t want her there, and is determined that this experiment will fail, as he will make sure of it. The only other female that works in the building is Katie who does office work, but she hates Jane on sight, and works with Murphy to do whatever she can to get Jane out although things may not go as she has planned. Jane has one familiar face amongst the men DS Stanley who she has worked with previously.
Jane gets sent out on what Katie and Murphy think is a wild goose chase but in fact she gets some good intelligence from the lead given, so that blows up in the faces of the ones who don’t want her there. It is through sheer doggedness and hard work that Jane tries to prove herself worthy of the job. She puts herself in danger a couple of times, but is so determined to do the work required. In the middle she has to deal with a bit of family drama with her sisters husband and her sister, which just adds to showing a different side to her.
I really enjoyed this book it was the fifth in the series from Tennison’s early years as a police officer but can easily be read as a stand-alone novel but I think I may have to get the previous books now to see how she got where she is so far. The writing is really well plotted, the characters are all drawn out well and you either like them or you don’t the criminals are quite nasty but they are armed robbers. The officers area mixed bag really some seem to come round to Jane as she proves herself others not so much.
This book is available to pre order now and will be available in shops or online as from the 22nd August 2019
I would like to thank netgalley and Bonnie Zaffre for letting me have an ARC of this book all views and opinions are my own and honest.
THE AUTHOR
Lynda La Plante was born in Liverpool. She trained for the stage at RADA and worked for the National Theatre and RDC before becoming a television actress. She then turned to writing – and made her breakthrough with the phenomenally successful TV series Widows. Her novels have all been international bestsellers.
Her original script for the much acclaimed Prime Suspect won awards from BAFTA,Emmy, British Broadcasting and Royal Television Society as well as the 1993 Edgar Allan Poe Award. Lynda has written and produced over 170 hours of international television.
You can follow Lynda on Facebook and Twitter @LaPlanteLynda.
Desperate to put her past in the rear view mirror, Finn Hunt leaves the Midwest for Phoenix, Arizona, where no one knows her story.
While she is working a dead-end job, a chance meeting with Philip Martin, son of a prominent U S Senator, leads Finn to a position as nanny for Amabel, his precocious four year old daughter. Quickly seduced into the Martin’s privileged world, Finn can almost believe she belongs there, almost forget the dark past that haunts her.
Then, in the stifling heat of a desert summer as the senator’s re-election looms, a strange woman begins to follow Finn, claiming a connection to Philip and threatening to expose the family to scandal. As Finn tries protect Amabel, and shield the Martins, she’s inadvertently drawn deeper and deeper into their buried secrets.
The family trusts Finn, for now, but it will only take one mistake for everything she holds dear – the Martins world, her new life- to fall apart …
MY REVIEW
This is a well written debut novel, however I did struggle with some of the story. The characters aren’t likeable or relatable. Finn is not Finn, she is known previously as Natalie. She has secrets of her own which is why she has run away and changed her name for a fresh start.
Starting off in a dead end job she gets offered the job of nanny to Amabel Martin the Grand daughter of U S Senator Martin. Amabel likes to embellish things a little but she is only four years old and it’s probably for attention. But it’s Amabel that tells Finn that she is being followed, because of things Amabel has said before Finn puts it down to her imagination initially. But who is being followed is it Finn or Amabel?
Finn enjoys being amongst the wealthy and powerful people she feels like part of the family and they trust her. But this family has secrets of their own, and now these secrets threaten to resurface as they tend to do with people with power especially when up for re-election but what are the secrets the Martins have? I didn’t find the story that much of a thriller as in edge of your seat thriller where you have to read the next page.
There is a plot twist about half way through the book that I didn’t see coming and the last part of the book just seemed really rushed. The dialogue was good I enjoyed that but sometimes there was just too much description which detracted from the story rather than add to it.
I think this author is one to look out for in the future.
Obviously this is just my opinion others may like this book more than I did. I would like to thank #netgalley and #macmillanpublishers for an ARC of this book all opinions are my own honest and unbiased.
THE AUTHOR
Kelsey Rae Dimberg received anMFA from the University of San Francisco and studied at Barrett Honors college of Arizona State University, where she was editor-in-chief of the literary magazine Lux, and received the Swarthout Award in Fiction. Girls in the Rearview Mirror is her first novel. Born in Seattle, Kelsey has lived in eight states, and currently resides in Milwaukee.
Returning early from a destroys date night with my husband, I know something is wrong the moment the wheels crunch the gravel drive of her home. Inside, the TV is on and a half eaten meal waits on the table. My heart stops when I find our little girl is alone in the house and our babysitter Sasha, is missing….
Days later when I am arrested for Sasha’s murder and torn away from my perfect little family, i’ll Wish I had told someone about the threatening note I received that morning.
I’ll hate myself for not finding out who the gift hidden inside my husbands wardrobe was for.
I’ll scream from the rooftops that I’m innocent – but no one will listen.
I will realise I was com-lately wrong about everything that happened that night…
But will you believe me?
MY REVIEW
Well I have to say this is one gripping read, there are more twists and turns than a rollercoaster. All the way through I was trying to work out what had happened to Sasha the babysitter, normally a very reliable young 17 year old, has she just left on her own? Has she been kidnapped by someone? Has she been murdered? I pride myself on trying to guess the ending before I get there but I will say this one had me. It is written so well and the ending will literally blindside you.
Libby and Sean seem like a happily married couple with their daughter four year old Alice. Sean has been married previously to Natalie, who has never got over their break up, and if Sean doesn’t do what she wants then he doesn’t get to see his fifteen year old son Dan. Sean’s mum Marion, has Alice, whilst Libby and Sean go to work, Sean is a local vet, and Libby has her own business catering for people, mainly cooking meals for dinner parties or conferences, not only is Sasha their babysitter but she also helps Libby out with her business on weekends. Fran is Libby’s best friend who she tells about everything.
The opening scenes of the book are Libby being arrested and taken away, but at this stage we don’t know what has happened to who. The chapters go back and forth from the past to the present so before the arrest and after the arrest. Mostly told through Libby, this book is written in the first person narrative.
Libby seems to be a constant bag of nerves throughout the book,I get the feeling that Sean has totally controlled her maybe without her even realising it. She really loves Sean. She cries a lot which Sean doesn’t like he is frequently telling her to pull herself together. She looks to him every time something is asked whether it’s by the police or anyone else, but a lot of the time he leaves it for her to answer. Except for when it comes to her business where she is more confidant. I didn’t like Sean and I didn’t like his ex wife as she just keeps popping up here and there. Someone left a note on Libby’s car telling her that Sean is cheating on her. Libby doesn’t know what to do she is beside herself so she calls Fran, for advice. Fran tells her to behave normally,otherwise if he isn’t cheating on her she will drive him away just by accusing him as it shows a lack of trust, and that it’s probably just someone playing a prank. I don’t think Libby can do normal. She basically confronts Sean about it and he tells her she is being ridiculous, saying it’s probably some school kids playing a prank. They agree to go on a date night and try to get things back on an even keel. This is when Sasha babysits, normally Marion, Sean’s mum would have Alice for them but she had something on at the church. When they get home from their night out Sasha is nowhere to be seen her phone is there as are all her school books. Libby frantically goes upstairs to check on Alice who is fast asleep.
After contacting Jan, Sasha’s mother to check if she has gone home they find she hasn’t been seen. Jan drives over, saying she will look to see if she can see her on her way in case she has decided to walk home, but when she arrives at Sean and Libby’s there has been no sign of her. This is when they decide its time to call the police. Who come out and initially say it could be a runaway, but feel something should be done as it’s not normal behaviour for Sasha. Detective inspector Doug Jones is running the investigation. But is Libby hiding things? Why is Sean lying or omitting bits out of his statement? Why does Alice say Natalie is a bad lady? What secrets does Marion have about Sean from when he was younger? Something happened when Sean was fifteen, his dad hardly speaks to him! Is Sean having an affair? If he is who is it with? Who is the gift wrapped up and hidden in the wardrobe for from Sean?
All these questions are going through your head as you are reading the book. The interviewing of Libby is well done and so real. I didn’t believe that Libby had done anything as she was so distraught about the missing girl. So you really felt for her when she was speaking to her solicitor and throughout the interrogation.
I sat until 3.30 in the morning having to finish this book I had to know who had done it. The ending really did throw me I never saw it coming. I was prepared for every other thing but what happened.
I highly recommend this book if you like a good psychological thriller this book is for you. Hooked from page one.
Thank you to #netgalley and #Bookouture, #samanthahayes for an ARC of this book all opinions are my own and honest. I give this book a rating of 5 out of 5.
It is available to preorder on Amazon now £1.99 for ebook and £8.99 for paper book due for release on the 20th August 2019.
THE AUTHOR
Samantha Hayes grew up in Warwickshire, left school at sixteen, avoided university and took jobs ranging from private detective to barmaid to fruit picker and factory worker. She lived on a kibbutz, and spent time living in Australia and the USA, before finally becoming a crime writer.
Her writing career began when she won a short story competition in 2003. Her novels are family based psychological thrillers, with the emphasis being on ‘real life fiction’. She focuses on current issues and sets out to make her readers ask ‘ What if this happened to me or my family?’
The photo fell from her grasp at the sudden thought of her sister. She stared at it, lying on the floor, remembering little Hattie with her big dark eyes in her stripy pink-and-white shorts, the ones she was wearing on the day she disappeared…
Detective Carrie Flynn has spent twenty years searching for her little sister, who was kidnapped and never found. Carrie was with Hattie on that hot summer day – she saw her sister’s abductor, but she was just a young girl herself, and remembers nothing. She’s never forgiven herself for letting Hattie down.
When the chance came to join the police force, Carrie didn’t hesitate, wanting to ensure that no more little girls grew up alone. Now she is facing her toughest case yet: Jordan Robinson, a quiet and bright young man, has disappeared by the canal on a cold winter’s night. Witnesses heard a splash, but Carrie hasn’t found his body. She knows the first days are vital to find. Missing person, and time is running out.
Jordan’s family are distraught, and Carrie is determined to bring their son home. But why does the mother not want to answer questions? Who is the mysterious girl next door? What secrets are the family hiding?
As Carrie searches desperately for Jordan, and digs into his past, she starts to realise his case may not be unique. Young and vulnerable men have been disappearing down by the water, their deaths labelled as suicides or accidents. When Carrie pulls out all the old files, she is sure: Jordan Robinson has been taken by a serial killer.
MY REVIEW
I was really looking forward to reading this book as the blurb really attracted my attention. However I found it a little slow going at the beginning. Set in Manchester there is a serial killer around called ‘The Pusher’ as he goes around pushing young men into the canal mainly young gay men. Jordan Robinson has gone missing is he the latest victim of The Pusher?
Emma, Jordan’s mum told him not to walk by the canal on his way home when he leaves for an evening out, she sits waiting anxiously for him to come home and has the news on the tv with the sound turned down until she spots Jordan’s scarf on the television tied to a railing near where the police are looking for a body in the canal. People had reported seeing someone walking along followed by a splash, and then no sign of anyone. Could that have been Jordan? Detective Sergeant Carrie Flynn is in charge of the case and takes over telling her partner Paul to watch the people watching events and not to let anyone leave she herself is also watching for any odd behaviour. Carrie had caught a glimpse of the Pusher the previous summer with his distinctive tattoo.
Despite the canal being searched they can’t find a body. Jordan’s family are not exactly helpful. Why are they keeping secrets? Most of the story is focused on Emma, the grieving mother,and her friend and neighbour Jade, but both are hiding secrets, and what are the secrets? Why aren’t they helping more?
This story jumps from character to character in the chapters but also the same day so day one, day two etc told from different perspectives which at times I found distracting. I like stories to sort of flow and not keep going back and forth, but that’s just my personal preference. I know other readers like books that do this.
The book focuses mainly on Emma And Jade and murder and not a great deal on Carrie Flynn or any of her team so we don’t get to learn much more about her than we already know from the blurb. Which I would have felt would have helped more if this is the start of a new series as you really want to engage with the characters.
Some of the plot twists were Fairly predictable, but overall this is a well plotted story, with lots of secrets. Hopefully next time we will get to know a little more about Carrie and her team.
If you like a psychological thriller with some police procedural in it then this is the book for you.
Thank you to #netgalley and #bookouture for an ARC of this book all opinions are unbiased and my own.
THE AUTHOR
J.M.Hewitt writes crime fiction and is the author of two previous crime fiction novels and has been published in two short story publications. Her work normally incorporates twentieth and twenty-first century events in far flung locations, and her novels explore the darker side of human behaviour. In contrast to the sometimes dark content of her books, she lives in the seaside town in Suffolk with her dog, Marley.
When she was ten years old she’d read all the books she owned, all those on her mothers bookcase and everything the library had to offer. She decided the only course of action to take was to write her own stories. Thirty years later she is still writing them.
After Jason is committed to a mental institution, he begins to uncover things he never knew before or things his mind shut out to protect him. Under the care of the facility’s doctors, he finds himself questioning what’s real and what’s not. What is the truth? What happened to him? Is his mind playing tricks on him?
What happened to his wife, Lisa? Where is Lea? Why can’t he remember what happened?
Meanwhile, Jerry is dangerous and unpredictable. He envisions a world where boundaries are broken down and he is free to enforce his narcisstic belief that he has a divine mission. Technology allows him the freedom to use his position of trust to play with peoples lives.
MY REVIEW
To be honest I am not really sure where to start with this review. It’s certainly different to the usual crime/thriller type of book I’m used to reading. This book is not for the faint hearted and at times can be quite disturbing and I admit I skim read a few bits that I found too descriptive.
The book starts with Jason in a mental institution he has no idea why he is there. He keeps asking about his wife, daughter and son but no one will tell him anything. He is then focusing on how to get out, or a way to contact the outdoor world as despite having a tablet device everything from the outside world is blocked. Eventually Dr Thompson tells him why he is there and what to expect. Jason was found guilty of having sexual relations with his daughter, his wife has murdered the daughter Lea, their son Matthew is nowhere to be found. Lisa his wife is also dead. Did Jason commit this crime? Where is Matthew their son. Jason doesn’t believe he has done what they say he has. Does he have two different personalities? Or has he been set up?
The next part of the book was about Jerry this is when it gets a little more graphic and harder to read. Jerry is a sexual predator, liking underage girls, installing cameras in numerous places where he can watch and listen to conversations and sex. He believes himself to be superior to anyone else. He says he belongs to the Elite Hunters believing his ancestors had fought savagely to protect their group. But now they have been replaced with drones and tanks. Leaving him redundant. He believes it is his job to mate and multiply. Some of Jerry’s scenes are quite disturbing.he preys in young underage girls. I was happier reading Jason’s chapters.
The plot came round nicely although at times I felt some of the things were repeated and I was disappointed with the ending.
I just can’t decide whether I enjoyed this book or not.
I would like to thank #netgalley for an ARC of this book all opinions and views are my own and unbiased.
THE AUTHOR
Jay Kerk was inspired to write A Predator and a Psychopath when he realised he was tired of reading thrillers with tame, predictable endings. Motivated by a recent documentary about an abduction that shocked the world, he decided to tell the story from the perspective of someone other than the detective. When he’s not writing, he likes reading, watching series and movies, and tennis.
