Fifty Fifty by Steve Cavanagh

Fifty-Fifty by Steve Cavanagh
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 2 days

Pages - 320

Publisher - Orion

Source - Review copy

Blurb from Goodreads

Two sisters on trial for murder. Both accuse each other.
Who do YOU believe?

Alexandra Avellino has just found her father's mutilated body, and needs the police right away. She believes her sister killed him, and that she is still in the house with a knife.

Sofia Avellino has just found her father's mutilated body and needs the police right away. She believes her sister, Alexandra did it, and that she is still in the house, locked in the bathroom.

Both women are to go on trial at the same time. A joint trial in front of one jury.

But one of these women is lying. One of them is a murderer. Sitting in a jail cell, about to go on trial with her sister for murder, you might think that this is the last place she expected to be.

You'd be wrong.


My Review


We hear the emergency calls, placed by both sisters, each accusing the other of murdering their family, a very high profile individual. Big name lawyers are all over this, to represent the stable sister and for the sister who has had many problems in comes our fave, Eddie Flynn. Both sisters will go on trial, a joint trial, one is guilty, one is innocent but who?

I love Eddie Flynn and had bought the previous books, I think I started on number 4, I know I know, reading out of sequence, shocking. Anyway, as per I get caught up in other books and forgot to go back, then I picked this up. You can't help but like Eddie, bit rough around the edges, he has a background but he is a good guy. He doesn't defend folk unless he believes their innocence so he is, after speaking to her, going to defend Sophia. After a whole bunch of shady crap he is up against Alexandra's lawyer, someone he respects, she believes her client is innocent, both can't be telling the truth.

As the book progresses we get to know more about both defendants (and their lawyers) and inbetween the chapters we hear from the killer :O We know not who is it but they are vicious, calculating and will stop at nothing to keep their freedom and see their end plan!

Ooft had time permitted I would have read it in one sitting, I flipped back and forth on who it was but to be honest you are pretty much kept guessing along the way. Outwith the murder/trial there was some shady behaviour from a scumbag lawyer against his female employee, one lady in among "the boys club" - I was pretty invested in that story line too.

Pacey, twisty, shocking, engaging - I really do need to get my tbrm sorted and read the earlier Eddie books, 4.5/5 for me this time, absolutely recommend.

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Ashes by Christopher De Vinck Blog Tour

Today is my turn on the blog tour for Ashes by Christopher De Vinck, mine is the last stop on the tour, I have my review for my stop, enjoy.

Ashes by Christopher de Vinck
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 1 day

Pages - 352

Publisher - Harper Inspire

Source - Review Copy

Blurb from Goodreads

A deeply touching novel about two young women whose differences, which once united them, will tear them apart forever, during Hitler’s Nazi occupation of Belgium and France. Based on true events.

For fans of All The Light We Cannot See and Tattooist of Auschwitz.

Belgium, July 1939: Simone Lyon is the daughter of a Belgium national hero, the famous General Joseph Lyon. Her best friend Hava Daniels, is the eldest daughter of a devout Jewish family. Despite growing up in different worlds, they are inseparable.

But when, in the spring of 1940, Nazi planes and tanks begin bombing Brussels, their resilience and strength are tested. Hava and Simone find themselves caught in the advancing onslaught and are forced to flee.

In an emotionally-charged race for survival, even the most harrowing horrors cannot break their bonds of love and friendship. The two teenage girls, will see their innocence fall, against the ugly backdrop of a war dictating that theirs was a friendship that should never have been.



My Review


I always said I wasn't into historical fiction, maybe it is an age thing but I have read a few in the last few years and really liked this. This one I struggled to put down. Simone Lyon and Hava are best friends, the year is 1939, we are just at the run up to the war before it all kicks off. Simone's dad is a legend for his services in world war one. Hava is of Jewish faith, Simone of Catholic faith - both living with their families in Belgium, their friendship is strong, they are young, innocent and carefree. The strong covers the time period immediately before the war, during and after.

Guys it is an emotive read, some of the scenes are very distressing, the brutality of war, the way people are murdered, mistreated and the actual bile and hate that was allowed to flourish, mass murder! At the start of the chapters, mostly, we have quotes taken from Hitler's speeches, the Nuremberg trials that have the hairs on your arms standing. I haven't read much on the wars but everyone of course knows of them and the Holocaust, reading some of the words preached by these "humans" it just beggars belief.

The beauty of this story is it focuses on two innocents, bonded by friendship and despite the many horrors/dangers facing them their friendship is whole, beautiful, strong and loyal. We follow the destruction of their lives as they know it, the constant danger as the war progresses. Laughs, friendship, horrors of war, love, family, loyalty - the book delves into it all and brings humanity to life, bouncing off the pages, in both heart warming moments and horror. The writing draws you into the girls lives, living the smiles and tears along with the girls, it is emotive! 4.5/5 for me this time, this is my first time reading this author, I would absolutely read his other works and plan to look him up.

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The Drop by Michael Connelly

The Drop by Michael Connelly
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 2 days

Pages - 380

Publisher - Little Brown & Co

Source - Bought

Blurb from Goodreads

Harry Bosch has been given three years before he must retire from the LAPD, and he wants cases more fiercely than ever. In one morning, he gets two.

DNA from a 1989 rape and murder matches a 29-year-old convicted rapist. Was he an eight-year-old killer or has something gone terribly wrong in the new Regional Crime Lab? The latter possibility could compromise all of the lab's DNA cases currently in court.

Then Bosch and his partner are called to a death scene fraught with internal politics. Councilman Irvin Irving's son jumped or was pushed from a window at the Chateau Marmont. Irving, Bosch's longtime nemesis, has demanded that Harry handle the investigation.

Relentlessly pursuing both cases, Bosch makes two chilling discoveries: a killer operating unknown in the city for as many as three decades, and a political conspiracy that goes back into the dark history of the police department.


My Review

Bosch is back, working cold cases with his partner Chu, DROP (Deferred Retirement Option Plan) and applying for time before having to take actual retirement. When given a case that has some very weird hits Harry is ready to dig and examine everything, regardless of where it takes them, cause that is Harry. Then a spanner is in the works, he is ordered to focus on a live case, high profile and the orders are from high up, from a guy who has been hell bent of causing Bosch no end of crap. Is it suicide? Is it murder? Bosch is set to find the answers whilst pondering why his arch enemy, councilman Irvin, has requested, ordered Bosch to investigate.

Love Bosch, he is a good guy, he is a man on a mission - goes through everything no matter what the end leads to. We also see the family man side of him, I haven't read all of the previous Bosch books and do want to catch up, but this book sees his relationship with his daughter as a sideline to the main stories.

The book focuses on two cases, the new fresh one, was it murder? was it suicide? and the old one with DNA of someone who couldn't possibly be responsible. It is such a good story, pacey, shocking, twists and turns, rug pulled out from under you - well it did me. Bosch is a great character, I need to catch up with the others from the series and I hear there is a tv show too! 4/5 for me this time, keeps ya on your toes!

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A Dark and Twisted Tide by Sharon J Bolton

A Dark and Twisted Tide by Sharon J. Bolton
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 4 days

Pages - 448

Publisher - Bantam Press

Source - I think a pal sent me it

Blurb from Goodreads

Young policewoman Lacey Flint knows that the Thames is a dangerous place – after all, she lives on it and works on it – but she’s always been lucky. Until one day, when she finds a body floating in the water. Who was this woman and why was she wrapped so carefully in white burial cloths before being hidden in the fast-flowing depths?

DCI Dana Tulloch hates to admit it, but she’s fond of the mysterious Lacey. Even if she keeps on interfering in her investigations, and is meddling with the latest floater case. But now she's got to break some terrible news to her - news that could destroy Lacey's fragile state of mind.

And Lacey will need to keep her wits about her because there's a killer that's lurking around her boat, leaving her gifts she'd rather not receive . . .


My Review

So this is no.4 and I don't think I have read them all (I checked I have read 1,3 and now this) but it gives you enough you can read this as a standalone. Lacey has been through some amount of crap and as a result she is now working with the police marine unit. The cop she has a thing for is MIA and things aren't looking good. She discovers a body in the waters which means she keeps stepping on the toes of DCI Tulloch who she already has a bit of a touchy history with. Tulloch has her own personal life issues going on which we touch on in between human bodies wrapped like mummies and human trafficking - it is a busy book!

There is a bit, not too far in, that would have horror fans a tad squeamish, a body is pulled from the Thames and the examination and description is graphic, Bolton fare paints a scene! Lacey is dragged into yet another case, another psycho and it is creepy as well as dangerous.

Action packed, pacey, stalking, relationships, drama, death, there is constantly something going on and I didn't really have any suspects or clue to who the baddie was. Isn't it grand when you are pulled along right to the end! I have read Bolton before and absolutely will read her again, I don't think I have any more of hers on my tbrm, will get the one from this series I missed and check out, 3.5/5 for me this time.

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The Heatwave by Katerina Diamond

The Heatwave by Katerina Diamond
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 1 day

Pages - 400

Publisher - Avon Books

Source - Netgalley & bought a treebook copy

Blurb from Goodreads

One summer. One stranger. One killer…
Two bad things happened that summer:
A stranger arrived. And the first girl disappeared.

In the wake of the crime that rocked her community, Felicity fled, knowing more than she let on.

But sixteen years later, her new life is shattered by the news that a second girl has gone missing in her hometown.

Now Felicity must go back, to face the truth about what happened all those years ago.

Only she holds the answers – and they’re more shocking than anyone could imagine.

The heatwave is back. And so is the killer.



My Review

Sixteen years ago a girl went missing in Felicity's small town, she bolted and kept her mouth shut about what she knew. Now another has gone missing and Felicity feels compelled to go back because if the killer is back only she will be able to help find her.

The story goes between present day and back "then", then features Jasmine, a young girl whose closest friend is Felicity. The girls are so different but close and the then revolves around them, what happens to them and what they discover. Now is Felicity leaving her family and going back to the town she would rather have forgotten.

Lots of anticipation, psychological thriller, some unsettling themes. I wasn't sure how the then and now narrative linked in to everything and Diamond keeps you guessing throughout. Felicity seems a bit unhinged at times, reckless making you question and wonder what went down all those years ago, it certainly had a profound impact and maybe now she can address it. Some dodgy characters throughout and I found it hard to put it down because I wanted to know what happened, where it was going and if it was all connected. 4/5 for me this time, I am a fan of Diamond's writing, this is a standalone so you can start with this. I look forward to her next whether it is part of the established series or another new set of characters/standalone.

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Ghost Mine by Hunter Shea

Ghost Mine by Hunter Shea
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - as able in and out over 3 days

Pages - 304

Publisher - Flame Tree Press

Source - Bought copy

Blurb from Amazon

Deep in a Wyoming mine, hell awaits. Nat Blackburn is given an offer he can't refuse by President Teddy Roosevelt. Tales of gold in the abandoned mining town of Hecla abound. The only problem - those who go seeking their fortune never return. Along with his constant companion, Teta, a hired gun with a thirst for adventure, Nat travels to a barren land where even animals dare not tread. Black-eyed children, strange lights and ferocious wild men venture from the deep, dark ghost mine...as well as a sinister force hungry for fresh souls.


My Review

Nate and Teta are heading to Hecla, an abandoned mining town. Sent in by President Roosevelt to find the team sent before them, to uncover the mystery of where they went and the gold and why the town is abandoned? Nate and Teta have fought many fights, together and alone, the ugly sides of humanity and then some, nothing has prepared them for Hecla.


AHHHHHH you guys I LOVE an abandoned place/town/building, add into that some spooky, bump in the night, ghosty freakery. Hecla is an actual real place, of course I looked it up once I started to get into the story. Nate is a good guy, him and Teta have history and aren't afraid to go into battle, this appears to just be some AWOL soldiers. Once they hit their destination they quickly realise things aren't right, people are afraid and won't talk about Hecla, from friendly to aloof or hostile. Once they are inside Hecla, getting in is a lot easier than getting out.

Weird happenings, bumps in the night and an adversary no one could have forseen. Hairs on my arms went up at one point, I love abandoned building or town stories so this ticked a lot of boxes for me. I think this was the second book by Shea I have read, the other also had an abandoned building, I absolutely will be checking out his back cataolgue, 4.5/5 for me this time.

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The World According to Bertie by Alexander McCall Smith

The World According to Bertie by Alexander McCall Smith
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Time take to read - in and out over 4 days

Pages - 368

Publisher - Abacus

Source - Bought

Blurb from Goodreads

"The World According to Bertie" is the fourth in the series and revolves around the many colourful characters that come and go at No. 44 Scotland Street. McCall Smith handles the characters with his customary charm and deftness - the stalwart Tory chartered surveyor, the pushy mother, and, most importantly in this novel, the beleaguered Italian-speaking prodigy, Bertie. This is classic McCall Smith - clever, witty and entertaining - and beautifully illustrated. A chance encounter with Armistead Maupin in San Francisco inspired Alexander McCall Smith to write this series of novels based around the fictional No. 44 Scotland Street in Edinburgh's New Town.


My Review

First off I thought we were going to be getting a lot more of Bertie but I would say it was almost equal as the previous books, shared amongst the other characters. Poor Bertie is still terrorised by his mothers "good will" depsite now having a little brother he hoped her focus would be on. Poor Cyril is in trouble again, could it be the end for him this time? And how will Angus cope? We see a lot more of Angus and Domenica in this book too, Angus and the whole Cyril saga. Domenica questioning inviting her pal to come and watch her house whilst she travelled, because now Domenica is back, said friend seems to be staying put.

Big Lou is a bit more involved this time around, she has found love and as we all know, the course of true love doesn't often run smoothly. Pat and Mathew find themselves with some big decisions to make, with Pat - is hers anything to do with the reappearance of non other than self loving gorgeous but shallow Bruce.

Bruce is one of those characters, ugh, he will use anyone to get where and what he needs, he doesn't physically hurt them but well it is all about Bruce.

There is a lot of humour and dear Lord moments, as I said before it is a bit like friends or nosey neighbours. You get to watch and see the dramas unfold and have a bit of a chuckle from your own sofa. This is book 4, I will be reading the rest in the series, I need to buy book 5 when I get home, 3.5/5 for me this time.

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