Tropical Girl Reads

I wake in a bed, with a stranger leaning over me. She asks my name and I realise I don’t know what it is. I don’t know who I am or why I’m here…

I’m grateful to the people who rescued me. To the doctors, too, who brought me back from the brink of death.

But I see the suspicion in their eyes.

They don’t believe me when I say I don’t remember who I am. They are unsure if I can be trusted.

Am I the innocent victim? Or guilty of a terrible crime?

No one has reported me missing or come looking for me. But today, a bouquet of blood-red roses has been delivered to my room.

Am I in danger? Or is someone trying to help me?

Searching for anything in this town that might seem familiar, I’m cornered by a woman with wild eyes who calls me I name I don’t know. She tells me my brother is in danger and only I can save him.

But how do I know if I can trust her, if I can’t even trust myself?

No. of pages:- 341 pages

Publisher:- Bookouture

Date published:- 9th April 2021

Genre:- Thriller

I can say only one word–WOW!!! This book gripped me so hard that I simply couldn’t put the book down!! What will happen if you wake up all of a sudden and have no clue of who you really are and how you ended up in the hospital? Or the fact that you may be an innocent victim of a crime or maybe guilty of a crime you committed?

A woman wakes up in the hospital with no memory of how she ended up in the hospital. All she thinks is that her name is Sophie. After being discharged from the hospital, Sophie then finds a job in an abandoned house with Nathaniel as a caretaker. All Sophie remembered is that she had a brother named Miles who looked after her and she was determined to find out what happened to the brother. Meanwhile, the Detective Selena who is investigating her case is suspicious about her and turns out that she was Nathaniel’s ex.

As I have mentioned earlier, this book is an unputdownable filled with action packed twists and turns and I simply couldn’t wait to find what is going to happen in the end! Is the narrator’s name really Sophie or is it something else? Or is she running away from a crime or simply a victim of a crime? I was so curious to find out that I simple couldn’t put the book down and wait till the end! The ending left me breathless and I felt like I was watching a movie that I couldn’t stop to watch! So good and unputdownable that will take your breath away!!

A fast paced thriller filled with twists and turns that will keep you hooked into the story and keep you up all night–worth five stars!

Kelly Heard is a novelist from Afton, Virginia. She published poetry in literary magazines before signing her debut novel, Before You Go, with Bookouture.

Kelly prefers writing to most other pastimes, but you’ll occasionally find her in the garden, hiking, or exploring antique shops.

For more updates, follow Kelly on Twitter: @kheardbooks

Website: http://www.kellyheardbooks.com

She told my little boy a secret and now he’s gone…

Tucking her little boy Ollie into bed one night, Sarah notices his beloved teddy bear, which she bought him when he was born, is missing and in its place is a new toy given to him by her ex-husband’s new girlfriend, Laura. When she asks Ollie about it, he begins to shift uncomfortably, before whispering ‘Laura told me a big secret and she said I can never tell you’.

Sarah’s heart sinks. But when she raises her concerns, nobody wants to listen. To everyone else, Laura is the perfect stepmother and Sarah is just the jealous ex-wife. But Sarah knew the moment she met Laura she couldn’t trust her, from her overly perfect stepmother act to the way she evaded questions about her own history.

Soon Ollie is asking to spend more time with his dad and Laura, and shrinking away from Sarah. Then, when she calls to him in the garden one day, Ollie doesn’t answer back. The garden is silent. Ollie’s sandpit is empty. Ollie has disappeared.

Sarah and Steve are separated and together they have a son named Ollie. Now they are both seeing other partners–Sarah is seeing Joe, who is working in the law enforcements and Steve is seeing a woman named Laura, who is working in the hospice and who seemed to be having a mysterious past.. So when Sarah starts sending Ollie to spend the weekends with Laura and Steve, she finds odd things–the fact that Ollie had a bunny doll with one of his ears being cut off and a Whale doll given to Ollie by Laura. Then Sarah, finds some disturbing and mysterious things about Laura and wondered if she made a right decision to allow Ollie to spend the night with Laura.

This was her third book I have read and to me it was actually good! The story was intense and as a reader, I was wondering was Sarah was simply worried or jealous that Ollie seemed to be close to Laura? Though it was fast paced, there were not much twists and turns but the ending left me speechless and unexpected that I didn’t actually expect that ending!!! Character wise, I do feel sorry for Laura but I was also taking side of Sarah and Ollie sounded adorable. The situation seemed realistic to me. I also liked how as a backdrop and eventual twist at the end the author has put Joe’s relationship with his ex-wife Courtney. The writing was good and the author did a good job drawing the reader into the story.

Overall, an unputdownable book that will keep you up all night too! Worth four stars!

Bestselling Author, Sheryl Browne, writes taut, twisty psychological thriller. A member of the Crime Writers’ Association and the Romantic Novelists’ Association, Sheryl has several books published and two short stories in Birmingham City University anthologies where she completed her MA in Creative Writing. Sheryl has also obtained a Certificate of Achievement in Forensic Science and – according to readers – she makes an excellent psychopath. Sheryl’s latest psychological thriller MY HUSBAND’S GIRLFRIEND comes to you from fabulous BOOKOUTURE. Her previous works include seven previous psychological thrillers, all with Bookouture, and the DI Matthew Adams Crime Thriller series, along with contemporary fiction novels, The Rest of My Life and Learning to Love published by ChocLit.

Sheryl lives in Worcestershire UK with her husband and her rescue dogs, Brie and Pablo. She expects her family to grow, however. imminent arrivals being other rescue dogs with disabilities who need that extra special bit of love and care.

To find out more about Sheryl’s novels, go to http://www.facebook.com/SherylBrowne.Author/ or follow @SherylBrowne on Twitter. To find out more about Sheryl, go to http://www.sherylbrowne.com

A missing child. A single witness.

I am the girl on the platform.
When new mother Bridget catches her train home from London, she witnesses something terrible: a young girl is taken from the platform, right before her eyes. 

No one knows where I am.
But no one is reported missing and with Bridget the only witness, she is written off as an attention seeker. Nobody believes her – not even her own husband.

Can you find me? 
But Bridget knows what she saw, and becomes consumed with finding the little girl. Only she can save the child’s life… but could delving into the mystery cost Bridget her own?

No. of pages:- 393 pages

Date published:- will be published on 15th April 2021

Publisher:- Avon

Genre:- Psychological Thriller

On the way home from work, travelling by train, Bridget witnesses a kidnapping right in the platform of a train station. But the only problem was, she was the only one in the train who had witnessed the abduction scene and all the other passengers deny seeing the abduction. Was Bridget hallucinating? Maybe, as she was taking antidepressants. But Bridget believed that she didn’t hallucinate the scene and soon gets herself involved in finding more about the kidnapping, which involves ruining her relationship with her husband Tom and her own mother questions if Bridget was a good mother to her child Grace…

This was surprisingly a good fast paced thriller! An unusual plot with an unreliable narrator that makes the story more interesting. The writing was good and I was hooked into the story till the end! I felt rooting to the main character, Bridget even though she was an unreliable character. The ending to me was intense, gripping and unexpected that I was hooked into the ending! It was good!

Overall, this was a good fast paced thriller with twists and turns that will keep you up all night–worth five stars!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Avon for granting me this ARC! The review is based on my honest opinion only.

Bryony Pearce writes dark thrillers, both for young people and adults. Her Young Adult novels include, among others, award-winners Angel’s Fury, the Phoenix duology and Savage Island.
Her adult thrillers are published by Avon books.
Bryony also writes science fiction short stories for anthologies, published by Newcon Press.
Bryony lives in a forest with her husband, two children (a girl and boy) and cat. She loves chocolate, wine and books.
Before becoming a writer and a mother she went to Cambridge university, then worked in the Market Research sector in London.
She visits schools, festivals and events and loves it if people come and say hello … particularly if they have enjoyed her work.

Corinne’s life might look perfect on the outside, but after three failed IVF attempts it’s her last chance to have a baby. And when she finds a tiny part of a doll house outside her flat, it feels as if it’s a sign.

But as more pieces begin to turn up, Corinne realises that they are far too familiar. Someone knows about the miniature rocking horse and the little doll with its red velvet dress. Someone has been inside her house…

How does the stranger know so much about her life? How long have they been watching? And what are they waiting for…?

A gripping debut psychological thriller with a twist you won’t see coming. Perfect for fans of I See You and The Widow.

No. of pages:- 418 pages

Publisher:- HQ Digital

Date published:-September 14th 2017

Genre:- Psychological Thriller

Corinne seems to be having a perfect life and after failed IVF attempts, this was the last attempt she could have a baby. She was very close to her father who was apparently a renowned architect and her father had made a doll house for her and her sister. So when the parts of the doll house starts turning up in Corinne’s flat, Corinne gets confused and anxious…

I didn’t expect this book to be really good. So much of twists and turns at each chapter, fast paced that will keep you at the edge of your seat and the writing was good that I got engrossed into the story! The first part of the book was a little boring but soon towards the middle, the story got gradually interesting and fast paced with more and more odd and weird but cruel things happening to both Corinne and Ashley. The ending was a bit dramatic and unexpected though was a bit predictable as well, but nonetheless it was really good. This is the first book I have read from this author so I am looking forward to read more books from this author in future!

This book is unputdownable and worth four stars!

Phoebe Morgan is a bestselling author and editor. She studied English at Leeds University after growing up in the Suffolk countryside. She has previously worked as a journalist and now edits commercial fiction for a publishing house during the day, and writes her own books in the evenings. She lives in London and you can follow her on Twitter @Phoebe_A_Morgan, or find her blog about publishing and writing at http://www.phoebemorganauthor.com. Her books have sold over 150,000 copies and been translated into nine languages including French, Italian, Polish and Croatian. Her new thriller The Wild Girls will be published by William Morrow in the US. Her books are also on sale in Canada and Australia. Phoebe has also contributed short stories to Afraid of the Light, a 2020 crime writing anthology with proceeds going to the Samaritans, Noir from the Bar, a crime collection with proceeds going to the NHS, and Afraid of the Christmas Lights, with all profits going to domestic abuse charities. Her four thrillers can be read in any order:

The Doll House (2017)
The Girl Next Door (2019)
The Babysitter (2020)
The Wild Girls (coming April 2021)

The girl looked so peaceful, she could have been asleep. Except her eyes were open, blankly reflecting the flickering flames spreading towards her…

When firefighters discover the body of a teenage girl at an abandoned house, Detective Amanda Steele hurries to the scene. Dumfries, Virginia is a small town, yet no one seems to have any idea who the dead girl is until Amanda finds a dragonfly pin with the name Crystal engraved on it.

Working tirelessly, Amanda traces the pin to Crystal Foster, a thirteen-year-old who disappeared three years ago from her wealthy parents’ home. Breaking the news to the distraught parents won’t be easy, but the loss of her own daughter still haunts Amanda, and she knows this will bring them closure. But when Amanda goes to see the Fosters, they do not recognize the girl. She isn’t Crystal.

Before Amanda can react to this new development, she gets an urgent call. A fire has consumed another vacant house, and the remains of two more girls have been found. Who are these girls, and why are they being picked off? Amanda must stop this killer before the pattern continues, and the death toll climbs.

When Amanda receives a taunting note from the killer, she realizes that she holds the missing piece of this puzzle. The victims are connected to Amanda’s past, to a case she can never forget, and which almost claimed her life. As she follows the clues to their deadly conclusion, can she save more innocent lives… even if it risks her own?

An unputdownable, pulse-pounding mystery. Fans of Rachel Caine, Lisa Regan and Robert Dugoni will be gripped.

No. of pages:- 359 pages

Publisher:- Bookouture

Date published:- April 6th 2021

Genre:- Thriller

Second book of the Detective Amanda Steele series, the story starts off with a girl who was being strangled and the man sets a fire to that place. When Detectives Amanda and Trent come over at the scene, they discover that the girl was a victim of sex trafficking.

I do like the author’s writing style and I was actually hooked into the story, wanting to know who is the actual killer. This was fast paced actually with some twists and turns and just like her previous book, the victim is involved in a sex trafficking ring. The murders sounded a little brutal to me, but nonetheless I was hooked into the story and I didn’t even until I came to the end that I have finished the book! Detective Steele doesn’t seem to have a good relationship with some of her colleagues and so I cannot wait what is going to happen to her next in the third book of the series.

Overall, this was quiet an unputdownable fast paced thriller that will keep you hooked until the end–worth four stars!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC–the review is based on my honest opinion.

CAROLYN ARNOLD is an international bestselling and award-winning author, as well as a speaker, teacher, and inspirational mentor. She has several continuing fiction series and has nearly thirty published books. Her genre diversity offers her readers everything from cozy to hard-boiled mysteries, and thrillers to action adventures. Her crime fiction series have been praised by those in law enforcement as being accurate and entertaining. This led to her adopting the trademark: POLICE PROCEDURALS RESPECTED BY LAW ENFORCEMENT™.

Carolyn was born in a small town and enjoys spending time outdoors, but she also loves the lights of a big city. Grounded by her roots and lifted by her dreams, her overactive imagination insists that she tell her stories. Her intention is to touch the hearts of millions with her books, to entertain, inspire, and empower.

She currently lives near London, Ontario, Canada with her husband and two beagles.

I can see her, shouting with laughter as she swings as high as she can, her beautiful blonde curls flying out behind her. I can feel her tiny hot hand in mine, and my heart aches. My little girl. If only I’d listened to my gut. Then maybe she’d be safe here with me…

When five-year-old Molly Reynolds is snatched from the park in the small village of Otterfield, Detective Bernadette ‘Bernie’ Noel throws herself into the search, sick with worry for the quiet, sensitive little girl and her distraught mother.

Wasting no time, Bernie finds a small green cardigan under a bush in the park. It still has the smiley face sticker Molly won that week at school. It’s the first in a chain of clues – and Bernie can’t shake the feeling that it was left deliberately, as a message.

But Bernie encounters a wall of silence. Otterfield is a close-knit community, yet no one in the village seems to care that Molly is missing at all. Why?

And then Bernie makes a chilling discovery: twenty-five years ago, another little girl went missing from the area. Her name was Sophie, and all they ever found of her was her teddy bear, hidden under a bush. Now Bernie knows she’s in a race against time to save Molly’s life.

Bernie’s team work round the clock to find a connection between the two girls, and just when they think they’re making progress a devastating tragedy strikes at the heart of the case. Molly’s family have been hiding a secret, and now their little girl is in greater danger than ever.

Can Bernie outwit the most warped criminal she has ever faced and bring Molly home safe, or will another innocent life be lost?

A completely addictive crime thriller with mind-blowing twists that will have you reading late into the night. If you like Val McDermid, D.S. Butler or Angela Marsons, you’ll love Joy Kluver.

No. of pages:- 358 pages

Date published:- March 26th 2021

Publisher:- Bookouture

Genre:- Thriller

Molly, a toddler was last seen in the park–she was with her mother and the next minute, she was gone. DI Bernie starts investigating Molly’s abduction in this small neighborhood but it seems as if no one in the town wants to help with the investigation and there was another abduction that happened some twenty years ago, the main suspect being Molly’s grandfather Derek…

To me, this was a fast paced thriller–with some twists and turns. The writing was great and the author did a good job drawing the reader into the story. The characters are all likable, particularly the main character DI Bernie Noel, who seems to have a past. Finding Molly was so dramatic and realistic that I actually felt like I was in the part of that search with the police team! The ending was great and did not expect that ending!

I really enjoyed reading this book and I cannot wait to read the series–this is the first book of the DI Bernie Noel series.

Thank you Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC–this review is based on my honest opinion–worth four stars!

Joy Kluver has been an avid reader and writer since childhood. More recently she’s been escaping the madness of motherhood by turning her hand to crime novels. A book blogger, she’s also part of the First Monday Crime team and if you’ve been to any of their events it’s likely you’ve eaten one of her cookies. She also organises author talks for her local library. Joy lives in SW London with her husband and three children. ‘Last Seen’ is her debut novel and the first book in the DI Bernadette Noel series.

Joy is represented by Anne Williams at the Kate Horden Literary Agency.

You come to Soul Shrink to be healed. You don’t expect to die.

Two years ago, Fran’s sister Jenna disappeared on a wellness retreat in Gozo that went terribly wrong.

Tom Wade, the now infamous man behind Soul Shrink Retreats, has just been released from prison after serving his sentence for the deaths of two people. But he has never let on what happened to the third victim: Jenna.

Determined to find out the truth, Fran books herself onto his upcoming retreat – the first since his release – and finds herself face to face with the man who might hold the key to her sister’s disappearance. The only question is, will she escape the retreat alive? Or does someone out there want Jenna’s secrets to stay hidden?

The master of suspense is back. Prepare yourself for the latest heart-in-mouth rollercoaster ride from the Sunday Times bestseller.

No. of pages:- 400 pages

Publisher:- Avon

Date published:- April 29th 2021

Genre:- Thriller

I have always wanted to read C.L. Taylor’s books and was so excited when I got the ARC of this book. However, despite the lively expectations I had about the author, the book sadly did not live up to my expectations.

Two years ago, Jenna went missing while being on a wellness retreat in Gozo. Jenna was not the only victim–two more victims were found dead on that retreat and Tom, who was in charge of the retreat was sent to prison. Two years later, Tom was released from the prison and Kate his wife restarts SoulShrink. Meanwhile, Jenna’s family wants answers and Jenna’s mother Geraldine enrolls Fran, an IT fifty something old teacher to the retreat.

Initially, I do like the plot of the story. Writing was good, and in some parts, I was actually hooked to the story. It was a fast paced thriller. The story was told from the event happened two years ago in Jenna’s perspective and present in Fran and Kate’s perspectives. I like the development of romance between Jenna and Tom. The ending was dramatic and unexpected though the epilogue to me was a bit confusing to me at first. There were literally some parts, I was bored with. Nonetheless it was really a good thriller! Worth four stars!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Avon for the ARC. This review is based on my honest opinion.

C.L. Taylor is an award winning Sunday Times bestselling author of eight gripping psychological thrillers including SLEEP, a Richard and Judy Book Club pick for autumn 2019. Her books are not a series and can be read in any order:

2014 – THE ACCIDENT / Before I Wake (U.S. title)
2015 – THE LIE
2016 – THE MISSING
2017 – THE ESCAPE
2018 – THE FEAR
2019 – SLEEP
2020 – STRANGERS
2021 – HER LAST HOLIDAY

She has also written standalone two Young Adult thrillers: THE TREATMENT and THE ISLAND.

C.L. Taylor’s books have sold in excess of a million copies, been number one on Amazon Kindle, Audible, Kobo, iBooks and Google Play and have been translated into 25 languages and optioned for TV.

SLEEP won the ‘best ebook’ award in the Amazon Publishing Readers’ Awards. THE ESCAPE won a Dead Good Books award. THE FEAR was shortlisted in the Hearst Big Book Awards in the ‘Pageturner’ category.

C.L. Taylor lives in Bristol in the UK with her partner and son.

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