I Will Ruin You by Linwood Barclay

Today we have our review (non spoiler as always). Book blurb read out loud if you prefer than reading from the text. I also have captions as some folk struggle with my Scottish accent (I do slow it down and enunciate when reading the blurbs resulting in a poshy accent apparently lol shhh Laura). Click HERE for the book blurb to be read to ya.

Here is our non spoiler review, enjoy, perfect for reading anytime, we curled up with a blanket or duvet because it is freezing here.


I Will Ruin You by Linwood Barclay
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 1.5 days

Pages - 341

Publisher - HQ Stories

Source - Review copy

Blurb from Goodreads

In the latest novel from New York Times bestselling author Linwood Barclay, a teacher’s act of heroism inadvertently makes him the target of a dangerous blackmailer who will stop at nothing to get what he wants.

How would you react in a life-or-death situation?

It’s a question everyone asks themselves, but few have to face in real life. English teacher Richard Boyle certainly never thought he would find himself talking down a former student intent on harming others, but when Mark LeDrew shows up at Richard’s school with a bomb strapped to his chest, Richard immediately jumps into action. Thanks to some quick thinking, he averts a major tragedy and is hailed as a hero, but not all the attention focused on him is positive.

Richard’s brief moment in the spotlight puts him in the sights of a deranged blackmailer with a score to settle. The situation rapidly spirals out of control, drawing Richard into a fraught web of salacious accusations and deadly secrets. As he tries to uncover the truth he discovers that there’s something deeply wrong in the town—something that ties together Mark, the blackmailer, and a gang of ruthless drug dealers, and Richard has landed smack in the middle of it. He’s desperate to find a way out, but everyone in his life seems to be hiding something, and trusting the wrong person could cost him everything he loves.

What price will he pay for one good deed?


My Review

Ooft the opening chapter, an ex pupil comes to his old school with a bomb, teacher Richard Boyle goes directly to the threat and ends up making the news in their wee town. Despite Richard being the hero of the hour he soon finds himself in a situation of blackmail, something that could ruin not just his career, his life but everything he holds dear. Buckle in folks you are about to go on a wild ride!

The chapters are short (we LOVE that) and they switch between Richard and untitled but they basically focus on the other characters and back and forth. There is so much going on, Richards family life and responding to how he put himself in harms way and everything that follows. The people blackmailing Richard and their chaotic lives but also the people involved in their dodgy dealings. The other one being Marta, Richard's sister in law who is a cop and the interlinked between her investigation and things that bring crossover to her sister and Richard.

It is absolutely a thriller, page turner and does have some themes that folk may find triggering, drugs, sa mentioned, murder, violence, blackmail, relationship issues, investigation its a whole mixed bag. Despite going between characters it all flows well and has good pace, it has been a wee while since we read Barclay and we do have others on the tbrm. Perfect when you just want to escape reality and absorb into a whole world of choas, 4.5/5 for us. This is a standalone just make sure when you pick it up your day is clear because you are going to want to devour it!

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The Defence by Steve Cavanagh

The Defence by Steve Cavanagh
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - < 3 days

Pages - 320

Publisher - Orion

Source - Gfift

Blurb from Goodreads

The truth has no place in a courtroom. The truth doesn't matter in a trial.

The only thing that matters is what the prosecution can prove.

Eddie Flynn used to be a con artist. Then he became a lawyer. Turned out the two weren't that different.

It's been over a year since Eddie vowed never to set foot in a courtroom again. But now he doesn't have a choice. Olek Volchek, the infamous head of the Russian mafia in New York, has strapped a bomb to Eddie's back and kidnapped his ten-year-old daughter Amy.

Eddie only has 48 hours to defend Volchek in an impossible murder trial - and win - if wants to save his daughter.

Under the scrutiny of the media and the FBI, Eddie must use his razor-sharp wit and every con-artist trick in the book to defend his 'client' and ensure Amy's safety. With the timer on his back ticking away, can Eddie convince the jury of the impossible?

Lose this case and he loses everything.



My Review

If you have followed my reviews or bookish accounts (always_reading on insta, smbslt on TT/Twitter) then it is no surprise I LOVE Eddie Flynn. What may surprise is I came to the series late so still had the first three to read. This is book one in the Flynn series, Eddie is a lawyer but he also has a history of being a gifted conman, slight of hand, pickpocket etc. This makes Eddie unique in that he still has some contacts from his old life but he is also a good guy, he has morals too. He is forced to defend a bad guy with a huge empire and string of bad guys behind him and has no problem letting Eddie know just how high the steaks are, you lose my case you lose someone precious to you!

Ooft drama galore, we see Eddie work his magic/charm in the courtroom but also try to keep a step ahead of the bad guys who are watching his every move. Eddie is super cool under pressure and the curve balls just keep coming at him.

It is so nice learning a bit more about who Eddie is and where he got to the place he is today. If you have never read Cavanagh books before this is a perfect place to start, Eddie origins. If you have you can still read this as a standalone. Action, shocks, murder, skulduggery and some brilliant choices/play by Eddie when he is under so much stress and has so so much to lose. 5/5 for me, I have the next two in the series and can't wait to sink into them, just need to find which of my hunners of books shelves I have put them on!

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Bring Me Back by B A Paris Blog Tour

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for the newest offering by B A Paris "Bring Me Back". Please check out the other blog tour stops on the poster as you find, generally, all stops offer different content.





I have to include a picture of the book itself, the page ridges were yellow and I think small touches like that, matching the ink on the cover just draws you immediately to it.





Bring Me Back by B.A. Paris
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 1 day

Pages - 384

Publisher - HQ

Source - Advanced Review Copy

Blurb from Goodreads

A young British couple are driving through France on holiday when they stop for gas. He runs in to pay, she stays in the car. When he returns her car door has been left open, but she's not inside. No one ever sees her again.

Ten years later he's engaged to be married; he's happy, and his past is only a tiny part his life now. Until he comes home from work and finds his new wife-to-be is sitting on their sofa. She's turning something over in her fingers, holding it up to the light. Something that would have no worth to anyone else, something only he and she would know about because his wife is the sister of his missing first love.

As more and more questions are raised, their marriage becomes strained. Has his first love somehow come back to him after all this time? Or is the person who took her playing games with his mind?



My Review

Lets kick it off by saying I have read the author's previous books and really enjoyed them. I think she had a unique voice in her writing that draws you in quickly. We meet Finn McQuaid, talking about the night his girlfriend disappeared 12 years ago and the statement he gave the poilce, admitting it was not quite the truth! What a way to open a book eh, I am super nosey so needed to know why wasn't it the truth, why did he lie or omit details and of course what happened to his girlfriend Layla. We flip to the present day, Finn has moved on and has a new partner that may raise a fair few eyebrows. We flip from present to past, back and forth getting an insight into Finn's world, what things were like in the before and now with the past catching up.

Paris creates a great suspense, thrilling atmosphere, teasing the readers with snippets of details and you know very quickly something isn't right, but what? The chapters are relatively short which is great for dipping in and out however, if like me, one chapters turns into ten you will just race through. I wouldn't advise reading this if you are just wanting one chapter before bed as you will have a late night for sure.

There are three main characters really, Ellen the new(ish) partner of Finn, Finn himself and Layla, despite being missing she is still very there especially in the then throwbacks. We learn the kind of man Finn is, what he has endured and how Layla going missing has shaped him as a man. The breakdown of characters psych as they experience what I can only describe as a type of cat and mouse game and how that impacts not only on them but their relationships and interactions to those around them.

As I said I do really enjoy Paris's writing, I do hope her next book is already being penned and we don't have to wait too long for it. All the books are standalone's and I think Paris is an author for watching, she creates characters that despite liking or hating them you are left wanting more and more. I really enjoyed this book, 4.5 out of 5 for me, if you like page turners and being kept on your toes I think you will love this!

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Troll by D B Thorne

Troll by DB Thorne
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - just under 2 days

Pages - 366

Publisher - Corvus

Blurb from Goodreads

A gripping and explosive psychological thriller about a young woman who disappears in suspicious circumstances having been hounded by a vicious online troll.

Years ago, Fortune gave up on his daughter, Sophie, after a troubled adolescence. ow she's gone missing, vanished without trace. And after weeks of investigation, the police have given up on her, too.

Driven by guilt, and a determination to atone for his failures as a father, he takes on the search himself. He soon finds that his daughter had been living in fear of a vicious online troll who seemed to know far too much about her. Could Sophie's disappearance be linked to this unknown predator? Fortune is about to discovers that monsters which live online don't always stay there...



My Review

Fortune is a man who is career driven and his family life suffered as a result, he has a daughter Sophie, now in her 20's, whom he doesn't really know anymore. Sophie has a great career as a journalist and has overcome a lot from her troubled past but now she is the target of an online troll. When Sophie disappears and the police are reluctant to see the disappearance as her father does, Fortune risks his job and much more to make amends and find his daughter.

The book opens with Fortune at the police, the investigation is being reclassified and stepped down, Fortune is angry and takes matters into his own hands. We flip to Sophie and before she disappeared, her life and the then interactions with the troll who doesn't keep to just harassing online. We follow the two story lines, with the father in the present and flipping between locations, Dubai for Fortune and then he comes to London for Sophie.

Narration also flips about, Fortune is in third person, Sophie's is first person. There is a fair amount of switching going on and I would have personally preferred the chapters to be signposted who if not where. The chapters with Sophie are eerie as the threats, intimidation and targeting become more intense. The reader gets drawn into the dark spiral and decline as Sophie questions everything around her, it also makes you realise how vulnerable you really are. Fortunes is, I felt a bit slower, as he knocks about from pillar to post trying to get some answers and direction to find his daughter. Self exploration plays a part too as he recalls all he missed because of his job and unravel Sophie's background of mental health issues, which raises questions of what actually happened.

It is a busy wee book and I was ensnared from the front cover, my proof copy was a screenshot of an online post Sophie made about a physical attack and interaction with said troll. I couldn't wait to discover what actually transpired and what Sophie's fate actually was. The book is a bit like an onion, you know what is being offered but as you start to read & reveal the layers the story is about much more than a stalker/thriller. Family life, regrets, self exploration, personal growth, mental health issues and the ripples that can follow even when you are a healthy individual, stigma still follows you. I think the under layers really get you thinking and I did enjoy the psychological thriller/mystery elements. 3.5/5 for me this time, this was my first dance with this author, I would read them again. Thanks to Corvus for sending me a copy, all views as always are my own. Available to buy from all good retailers from 1st of June 2017.

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