ARC - Dead Gone by Luca Veste

Dead Gone by Luca Veste
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - on and off for 2 weeks

Publisher - AVON

Blurb from Goodreads

DI David Murphy and DC Laura Rossi investigate the murder of a student at the City of Liverpool University. Attached to her is a letter from her killer, which details a famous unethical psychological experiment performed on the victim, resulting in her death. Convinced at first that the murderer is someone close and known to the victim, Murphy dismisses the letter as a bid to throw them off the scent…until more bodies are found, each with their own letter attached.

On the other side of the city, Rob Barker, an admin worker at the university, is dealing with his own loss. His partner has been missing for almost a year, with suspicion from all around her firmly pointed at him.

As the two seemingly unconnected events collide, it becomes apparent Murphy is chasing a killer unlike any he’s faced before.

One who kills to discover more about life..


My Review

A serial killer is loose in Liverpool, using innocent people to conduct horrific experiments on and leaving letters to taunt the police. DI David Murphy and his sidekick DC Laura Rossi are on the case trying to work out the killers motivation and victim selection process. The clock is ticking before another body shows up and another innocent person is snatched, the public wants answers, the press is relentless and the pressure is on the police.

For a debut novel it does quite well to grab and pull you in. Rob Barker is a main feature in this tale, his partner went missing and for a while he was a suspect. Almost a year has passed and he knows she is still around, with the murders being linked to his university the police are soon interested in speaking to him again. The story flips from the detectives, to Rob Barker, to the killer and back to one of the victims that we follow from the beginning. I think that is one of my complaints about the story, the chapters are well labeled so you know who it is talking but it jumps around a bit much for me.

The attacks are quite brutal and the pace goes along fairly quickly to keep the reader interested. DI Murphy has a shadow hanging over him that is referred to during the story but the reader doesn't find out until later what the chat is with that. I also felt it speeded up toward the end with the conclusion although it did have a few surprises along the way. Overall, I quite enjoyed it and would rate it as a 3/5. Thanks so much to AVON publishers for providing me with this ARC, you can buy this title yourself from all good retailers from 16th January, 2014.

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PRR - Shiver by Karen Robards

Shiver by Karen Robards
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 7 days

Publisher - Hodder & Stoughton

Blurb from Press Release

When she swore off love, he was the last man she imagined would steal her heart.

If driving a tow truck through the seediest part of town with a gun beside her means putting a roof over her son's head, then single mother Samantha is going to be the best repossession woman on the books. But when she hooks her truck up to a flashy BMW, the last thing she expects is to find a beaten, bloody man in the trunk - or to be catapulted into a terrifying fight to survive.

Daniel knows the drug runners who kidnapped him from protective custody will stop at nothing to see him dead. With his life on the line, his only option is to take his pretty saviour hostage and force her to help him.

Sam and her four-year-old son are in too deep. With ruthless killers on their trail, she must reluctantly trust this handsome, menacing stranger. And as Sam relinquishes control, she feels an unmistakable desire. But what is the price of falling for a man who operates on the edge of danger - her heart, her life...or both?


My review

Samantha is a young attractive single mum trying to keep her head above water, looking after her 4 year old and working as a repossession woman. It starts out as a normal shift, going to pick up an expensive flash BMW when she happens upon a battered, bloody and injured man. What follows is a fight for survival, not only for herself but for her son too.

This is a quick to get to the action type book however it isn't all about the crime and trying to survive. A lot of the book is centered around Sam and Marco aka Trey aka Danny and their attraction to each other *the hotness* and pulsing responses of their bodies they keep trying to fight. I don't normally read thriller-romance and I am not sure I like it, I really liked the thriller aspect of the story but I found it fairly unbelievable they way they behaved and reacted to each other considering the situations. Samantha's character comes across quite childish at times as she behaves like a struck teenager rather than the doting mother she is throughout some parts of the book, it is a tad conflicting.

The ending is a bit rushed and almost fantasy like in how it plays out however despite this I did still enjoy the story although I did get frustrated throughout. I think had it been a mostly thriller with a little romance it would have worked better. Maybe this just isn't my genre but as I said I did enjoy the actual crime side of it and the relationship between the two characters was fine too, it just seemed a lot of it inappropriate considering the danger they were in.

Tyler is her son and for a four year old he is very on the ball. I know from previous reviews I have seen a lot of people disliked this and found him to be unbelievable as a character but I actually liked reading about the kid. He was very advanced for a four year old and picked up on things that most kids that age wouldn't however as I said the book is very fantasy like in parts so I think it works. 3/5 for me, this is my first time reading this author and I would try another book by them but it wouldn't be my first to seek out. Thanks to Hodder & Stoughton for introducing me to a new author.

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Review - The Dark Side Of Night by Cindy Dees

The Dark Side Of Night by Cindy Dees
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Time Taken To Read - 3 days

Publisher - Harlequin

Blurb From Goodreads

Kinsey Hollingsworth's tropical-getaway plans didn't include dodging gunshots. Or a speedboat chase with Mitch Perovski, the tall and tempting spy who'd commandeered her boat. But the socialite would handle anything Mitch demanded--whether it meant going undercover or under the covers.

Mitch didn't work with partners. And although Kinsey proved she was more than a pampered heiress, she was no match for the assassin targeting them...or for Mitch's smoldering desire. He had to get through this one high-stakes task with her. But after a night in Kinsey's arms, could he walk away from their partnership for good?

My Review

This is the second book in a combo I bought when on holiday. Kinsey is a spoiled rich girl hiding out after a huge expose in the papers after a public split with her fiancé. Chilling out on her daddy's boat her day is turned upside down by Mitch and a spray of bullets. What follows is their emotional turmoil battling the passion and feelings they have for each other whilst trying to dodge the bullets coming from their enemy. Will they stay manage to fight their feelings for each other and manage to stay alive?

I did enjoy this book, a new series with new characters and whilst there is a steamy scene or two and a lot of imagining what they would do to each other, the story outside of all that is pretty good. There is action jumping off the pages pretty much right from the get go and I don't mean of the naughty variety - it has a really great action story.

Again she uses words that I don't see often in books and that reminds me of years ago, for example cagey "Another shrug. Cagey, he was". Or Kowabunga (I would use a quote but it gives a wee bit away about a particular scene and I don't do spoilers however if you grew up with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles this would have been a phrase you used a lot through your childhood.

The story got a tad fantastical near the very end and whilst I did enjoy it I was sitting going ok that would so never happen. If you fancy a book that is great for holiday and with some fantasy and a rough bad guy who is really a good guy then this is the book for you, 3/5 for me this time and I would read this author again.

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ARC - The First Cut by Ali Knight

The First Cut by Ali Knight by Ali Knight
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Time Taken To Read - 2 days

Blurb From Goodreads

Five years ago, Nicky's best friend Grace was brutally murdered.

No one was ever charged with this terrible crime and Nicky in her grief sought solace in the arms of Grace's widower.

They're now married but he is often out of the country for work, and when Nicky meets Adam, who is young, good-looking and obviously interested, she's tempted.

But what starts as an innocent flirtation leads to a terrible ordeal, and a dark secret. A secret that involves her husband, and Adam, and what happened to Grace all those years before.

Nicky finds herself fighting for answers. But when love is worth killing for, the price paid for the truth can be very high indeed...

My Review

We start off with the murder of Grace and quickly flip to present day. Nicky and Greg (Grace's then husband) are now married and things are far from perfect. He is always away for work, they aren't talking and things are just strained. Along comes a chance encounter and she meets Adam, young, fun and very flirty. Soon the fun turns to danger and Nicky finds herself caught up in murder, lies, deceit and a secret that will change everything.

I was gripped after the first few pages and really drawn in until soon after she meets Adam. Then things change dramatically and I found myself having to re read parts incase I missed something as it didn't seem to make sense. I found myself thinking that a few times in parts where characters would say something and I had to go back incase I was missing the link. The confusion did take away from my enjoyment as I kept trying to work out the what and why in different parts (sorry for being sketchy but I don't do spoilers in my reviews).


Another thing I liked about this book is the chapter length is a handful of pages between each (like James Patterson does) which means you can race through it inbetween doing your daily chores.I did enjoy the book and the things I liked far outweighed those I didn't and all of the confusion was pretty much cleared up and all the boxes ticked by the end. My first encounter with this author and I would read their work again. Thanks to Hodder & Stoughton for introducing me to yet another new author and giving me the chance to review this book. An on the fence 3/5 for me.

This book is available from all good retailers from the 5th of July 2012.

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