The Hunting Party

The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley

Published by Harper Collins

January 2019

In a remote hunting lodge, deep in the Scottish wilderness, old friends gather for New Year.

The beautiful one
The golden couple
The volatile one
The new parents
The quiet one
The city boy
The outsider

The victim.

Not an accident – a murder among friends.

A group of university friends spend New Years Eve at a remote lodge in the wilds of Scotland.  They spend every New Year together and this year it is Emma who has arranged the trip.  She is a veritable new-comer to the group, being Mark's girlfriend but she is determined to make an effort and create a memory no one will forget.  Things start badly when they discover that their train ticket seats aren't all together, but surely that's only a minor blip and won't spoil the actual trip itself.  When they arrive at the station they are greeted by Doug the gamekeeper and are prepped with the rules and regulations of being out in the wild, especially as the weather is about to get worse and they could be literally snowed in with no way in or out.  

The group have changed since their uni days, no one remains the same, and it is apparent from the offset that their is tension among them.  One couple have insisted on bringing their baby along, the men are all trying to be 'top dog' and well, something isn't sitting quite right amongst the girls either.  By the end of the trip one member of the party will be dead.  The question is who dies, and who killed them?

Lucy Foley brings up the whole question of friendships, and of whether these are sometimes maintained out of  the feeling of necessity rather than from an actual desire to want to remain friends.  There weren't many really likeable people in this story out of the group of friends, and I did spend most of the book wondering which of those was going to meet a gritty end - I wasn't sorry to learn who it was! Then came the next game - trying to work out who had killed them.  

The Hunting Party is a great atmospheric novel and worked well being set in the middle of nowhere to give it a darker edge.

Happy Reading

Miss Chapters x

Cuckoo

Cuckoo by Sophie Draper

Published by Avon

November 2018

There’s a stranger in your house…

When her stepmother dies unexpectedly, Caro returns to her childhood home in Derbyshire. She hadn’t seen Elizabeth in years, but the remote farmhouse offers refuge from a bad relationship, and a chance to start again.

But going through Elizabeth’s belongings unearths memories Caro would rather stay buried. In particular, the story her stepmother would tell her, about two little girls and the terrible thing they do.

As heavy snow traps Caro in the village, where her neighbours stare and whisper, Caro is forced to question why Elizabeth hated her so much, and what she was hiding. But does she really want to uncover the truth?

I'll be honest here, I actually only started reading this book on Monday ready for the blog tour today but do you know what, I flew through this and really enjoyed it.  I will say, and this is not meant negatively at all, but how many books just lately are about women on their own in creepy houses?  Or is just that I keep reading about them because that's my favoured genre?!

Anyway, our central character Caro (never Caroline) learns that her evil stepmother Elizabeth has died tragically - an accidental falling over a banister (as if!) and she and her estranged sister Steph have inherited everything, including the old farmhouse that was once their family home in Derbyshire.  Caro is currently living in a friend's flat in London but with the tenancy up soon this seems to have come at the perfect time.  The house needs sorting out and as she is an artist she can work from Derbyshire as easily as she can from London so she travels up instantly.  Her sister lives in New York so Caro is on her own to deal with Elizabeth's belongings and it isn't long before living in the house once again starts to trigger some peculiar memories.  

The villagers aren't particularly warming towards her, and Caro can't figure out why, but the young and handsome neighbour Craig seems to have taken a shine to her and takes her under his wing.  After recently ending a relationship though, Caro is more than a little wary but as things in the house continue to go bump in the night, and stuff is moved around seemingly on its own, she soon realises she needs someone on her side.

Some of the book reminded me a little of Angela Carter's  The Bloody Chamber as Caro is illustrating a  fairy tale book called The Pear Drum and other dark tales from the Nursery, which the reader may not be surprised to learn her stepmother also had a pear drum with which she used to taunt Caro when she was younger.  There are some snippets of the stories within the book and they are equally as dark as the ones Carter writes about.

Is some of Cuckoo predictable?  Yes, probably.  However it kept me turning the pages throughout and actually I thought it had a pretty good twist of an ending which if you know me, I love.  I can't stand a poor conclusion to a book.  Cuckoo is also only 99p on Amazon Kindle in the UK so surely that makes it worth a read?

Happy Reading

Miss Chapters x 

A House of Ghosts

A House of Ghosts by W.C.Ryan

Published by Bonnier Zaffre

October 2018

Winter 1917. As the First World War enters its most brutal phase, back home in England, everyone is seeking answers to the darkness that has seeped into their lives.

At Blackwater Abbey, on an island off the Devon coast, Lord Highmount has arranged a spiritualist gathering to contact his two sons who were lost in the conflict. But as his guests begin to arrive, it gradually becomes clear that each has something they would rather keep hidden. Then, when a storm descends on the island, the guests will find themselves trapped. Soon one of their number will die.

For Blackwater Abbey is haunted in more ways than one . . .

A House of Ghosts is one of those stories that is perfect for curling up in front of the fire with. Set on an island in the midst of winter in 1917, it is atmospheric and creepy (but not too scary).  We first meet Kate Cartwright and Captain Robert Donovan when they are both summoned by the Head of the Secret Intelligence Service (by a man known as C) to undertake a mission in espionage at Blackwood Abbey off of the coast of Devon.  Kate is known to the family as her parents are friends of the owner Lord Highmount, and with her (ex)-fiance Rolleson Miller-White, parents and Donovan (who is in role as a valet to Miller-White) head off for the island for a seance session in which Lord Highmount hopes to be able to contact his two sons who have been killed in France.  Kate's parents hope too to have some contact with their son Arthur, who is missing in action.

The weather, as you can imagine, is frightful and soon the islanders are cut off from the mainland.  Alongside those mentioned above, other members of the party include Madame Feda and Count Dimitri Orlov who both claim to be able to see and speak to the dead.  Little do they know that Kate also possesses the ability to see ghosts, and she is soon astounded by how many spirits are still gathered at Blackwater Abbey.  However, are the famed spiritualists all they claim to be?  The party also consists of Doctor Reid and his patient Private Albert Simms who is suffering from the effects of trench warfare.

Some plans have been stolen from the Highmounts who are responsible for manufacturing armaments to send to the front line, and it would appear that there is a person in the house who is prepared to kill to get their revenge, but who is it and can Kate and Donovan find out before their lives too are in danger? I thought this was a nice ghosts story and that it worked well.  It's been billed as a modern day Agatha Christie, and if you love her novels as I do, you won't be too disappointed by reading this I'm sure!

Happy Reading

Miss Chapters x

A Gathering of Ghosts

A Gathering of Ghosts by Karen Maitland

Published by Headline

September 2018

1316. On the wilds of Dartmoor stands the isolated Priory of St Mary, home to the Sisters of the Knights of St John. People journey from afar in search of healing at the holy well that lies beneath its chapel.

But the locals believe Dartmoor was theirs long before Christianity came to the land. And not all who visit seek miracles. When three strangers reach the moor, fear begins to stir as the well's waters run with blood.

What witchcraft have the young woman, the Knight of St John and the blind child brought with them?

The Sisters will need to fight for everything they hold dear as the ghosts of the Old World gather in their midst.

This is the latest of Karen Maitland's novels and possibly the darkest that I've certainly read.  Set on Dartmoor in the 14th Century, the plot centres around the Priory of St Mary and those who work there.  The Sisters of the Knights of St John are threatened by the arrival of two Knights who are determined that Prioress Johanne and the Sisters will bow down to them, and that their sacred well will come under their protection, as well as the taxes that they collect.  The Sisters have worries more pressing of their own to deal with though after the discovery of a dumb and blind boy by the well.  Who is this child and why has he been left at the Priory?  The death of Father Guthlac who predicts that nothing good will happen at the Priory should the child remain there worries some of the Sisters, and as unexplained phenomena begin to occur at the well, the child's life is indeed at risk, for there are those who seek to protect him, and those that think he brings with him a curse.

Outside of the Priory live the mining community, a band of men, women and children who are fighting to survive during the famine that is engulfing the country; some of them will stop at nothing to feed themselves and their families and it really is every man for himself across Darmoor.  When two strangers who meet on the moor come across the tinners their lives are changed forever - Todde who is on the run from him previous master, and Sorrel, a woman with a disfigured arm, who has been called by a woman's voice to travel to Dertemora where she meets a local family of witches.  

The setting is perfect for this story - wild, barren and desolate; the moors are captured brilliantly throughout the book and you can certainly try to imagine what it must have been like to have been there so many centuries ago.  There are fewer characters than in previous Maitland novels and actually I liked this as it meant I wasn't flipping back and forth trying to remember who was who, and it gives each character more of an opportunity to have more of a story-line and to be built up in more detail.  I think this is probably my favourite of her novels so far and a perfect read for an autumnal evening in front of the fire!

Happy Reading

Miss Chapters x  

The Death of Mrs Westaway

The Death of Mrs Westaway by Ruth Ware

Published by Harvill Secker

June 2018

When Harriet Westaway receives an unexpected letter telling her she’s inherited a substantial bequest from her Cornish grandmother, it seems like the answer to her prayers. She owes money to a loan shark and the threats are getting increasingly aggressive: she needs to get her hands on some cash fast.

There's just one problem - Hal's real grandparents died more than twenty years ago. The letter has been sent to the wrong person. But Hal knows that the cold-reading techniques she’s honed as a seaside fortune teller could help her con her way to getting the money. If anyone has the skills to turn up at a stranger's funeral and claim a bequest they’re not entitled to, it’s her.

Hal makes a choice that will change her life for ever. But once she embarks on her deception, there is no going back. She must keep going or risk losing everything, even her life…

I've read all of Ruth Ware's others books so of course when NetGalley offered up a copy of her latest novel I wasn't going to say no!  The Death of Mrs Westaway features an old country estate, a feuding family, dark secrets, and my favourite bit - tarot cards!  Harriet Westaway makes her living reading tarot cards for people on the pier in Brighton.  She is totally self-sufficient following the death of her mother in a hit-and-run accident some years earlier, and her father has never been made known to her.  One day she receives a letter from a solicitor to say that she has been named in her grandmother's will and must travel to Cornwall to find out what the bequest is.  

Hal (as she likes to be called) is somewhat sceptical, her grandparents are both dead, so surely the solicitor has made some sort of error.  However, with very little income, and a fierce loan shark on her back Hal thinks that she can probably scam the family into believing she really is the granddaughter they believe her to be.  After all she makes a living out of telling people their fortunes based on their appearances alone, so surely she can use this skill to her advantage?

Arriving at Trepassen House is nothing like Hal expected, and for the first time in ages, she is suddenly part of a family; albeit not an especially cosy one, but it feels right.  The housekeeper, however, seems to have taken an instant dislike to her and Hal isn't sure if she has already seen through her plan.  With trip wires, bulbs that are removed in the dark, and things that go bump in the night, Ruth Ware has conjured up a gothic style mystery for the modern day.  Families are never quite what they seem, are they?!

Happy Reading

Miss Chapters x

Daughter of Light and Shadows

Daughter of Light and Shadows by Anna McKerrow

Published by Bookouture

October 2018

The stranger stood in the doorway, smiling as if he knew her. His blue-green eyes were transfixing: strange, luminous – like the sea on a cloudy day. Faye felt a sense of shifting, like standing on wet sand as the tide washed in, burying her deeper and deeper…

Faye Morgan – beautiful, independent and lonely – runs her family’s small shop of magical curiosities like her mother and grandmother before her. She longs for an escape, unaware of the dark power that flows through her veins…

When Faye casts a spell into the sea one cold morning, her call brings her to the attention of the wild and impulsive faerie king Finn Beatha. Finn pulls Faye into an intoxicating new world, both magical and treacherous… and as bewitching as Finn himself, who seems to command every part of her when he’s near.

As Faye’s passion for Finn grows, so does her fear that she might be there for some darker reason... and that she could be trapped in Faerie forever. Is there something in Faye’s past connecting her to this place, to Finn? And dare she find out more when every moment draws her further away from her old world?

This is Anna McKerrow's first outing as an adult author following on from her fabulous Greenworld trilogy of books for YA readers (and those of us that love that genre too).  Daughter of Light and Shadows is set in Scotland, and centres around Faye, a local witch who can trace her heritage back to the witch trial days of King James.  She runs a local magic shop and is helped out by her friends Annie and Aisha (notice that there are three of them).  One day they decide to do a love spell as none of them are having any luck in finding romance and as magic should have it, two men walk into Faye's life.  The first is Rav, a local property owner who is setting up Abercolme's first big music festival (much to the chagrin of the locals) and the second is Finn Beatha, lead singer of  one of the band's headlining the festival.

Rav seems drawn to Faye, like he is under some kind of spell, and asks her to look at his house as he is convinced that it is haunted in some way.  Faye discovers that it has been built on a faerie road and the faeries are not happy with this.  The faerie king, Finn Beatha, pulls Faye into his world as his lover and she is torn between the passion of both men.  However the world of faerie must not be entered into lightly and Faye must decide whether her life remains in the mortal world or the other world with Finn.

To begin with I didn't know this book was part of a series but with only a handful of chapters left to read I soon realised that it wasn't going to reach any satisfying conclusion for it to be a stand-alone novel.  I'm intrigued to find out what role Finn is going to play in the next book because he is certainly going to return in some shape or form to the world in which Faye inhabits, and can she ever truly stay away from him or retract the promises she made to the faerie queen Glitonea.  It was interesting to see the author take a different direction from her witchcraft routes and enter into the world of the faeries.  Some have compared this to the Sarah J Maas novels but I would argue that you cannot compare as this is less fantasy based.  Also, do not think that this is a YA novel - even I gasped at some of the sex scenes!!!

Happy Reading

Miss Chapters x

Truly Madly Guilty

Truly Madly Guilty by Liane Moriarty

Published by Penguin

July 2107

'This is a story which begins with a barbecue in the suburbs. . .'

By the end of it a lifelong friendship will be in tatters, a marriage on the rocks and an innocent bystander dead.

In just one evening six lives will change for ever . . .

Following on from Big Little Lies was always going to be a challenge, for me as a reader anyway, as I fell in love with that book from the very beginning and was hooked to the final word, so when I finally picked up my copy of Truly Madly Guilty I guess I always thought it was never going to be quite as good.

Truly Madly Guilty follows three families whose lives are entwined by one fateful summer afternoon when they share a barbeque together.  They are Tiffany and Vid (the hosts) with their teenage daughter Dakota, neighbours Erika and Oliver and their friends Clementine and Sam plus their little girls.  Lets also not forget Harry, the old cantankerous neighbour who has a habit of ruining everyone's fun and the scene is set for an afternoon that will change the lives of everyone mentioned.

Two months later and Australia is hit by the worst rainfall in it's entire history and its making everyone on edge.  Clementine is a bundle of nerves facing her forthcoming cello audition, her children are behaving badly and Sam seems to have hit a mid-life crisis.  Despite being best friends for decades, her and Erika seem to be no longer talking to each other, and Tiffany is holding back a secret from her past that she hasn't even shared with Vid.

Liane Moriarty weaves back and forth from the present rainy day, to that summer's afternoon with ease.  Telling part of the tale and then snatching it back from you so that you are longing to find out what exactly happened on that day.  I'd worked out most of the plot by the end of the book but there was one moment that I hadn't expected and it left me gasping out loud when I read it.  This is an author who knows how to tell a tale and by the end I wasn't let down.  Okay, so it wasn't as good as Big Little Lies for me, but then I didn't think it ever would be. However it tried very hard to get there.

Happy Reading

Miss Chapters x

Perfect Silence

Perfect Silence by Helen Fields

Published by Avon 

August 2018

Helen Fields is back with her fourth novel featuring Detective Inspector Callanach.  Here's the blurb to give you a clue as to what it's all about...

When silence falls, who will hear their cries?

The body of a young girl is found dumped on the roadside on the outskirts of Edinburgh. When pathologists examine the remains, they make a gruesome discovery: the silhouette of a doll carved in the victim’s skin.

DCI Ava Turner and DI Luc Callanach are struggling to find leads in the case, until a doll made of skin is found nestled beside an abandoned baby.

After another young woman is found butchered, Luc and Ava realise the babydoll killer is playing a horrifying game. And it’s only a matter of time before he strikes again. Can they stop another victim from being silenced forever – or is it already too late?

And if that wasn't enough, here's an exclusive extract from the book....

Detective Inspector Luc Callanach brought his car to a halt on

the verge of Torduff Road. A pair of curious horses watched

passively over a six-bar gate as blue fl ashing lights destroyed

the early morning peace. Pulling a hoodie over his t-shirt, he

checked the time. Five thirty in the morning. The crime scene

investigators were in the process of erecting floodlights

around the scene to make up for the lack of sunlight. The

weak October rays wouldn’t touch the ground until six thirty

at the earliest. DCI Ava Turner pulled her car up behind his

and climbed out in sports gear that had already seen a work

out that morning.

‘Do you never sleep?’ he asked, as they fell into step together.

‘Is it a French thing, using a question as a greeting? Because

in Scotland we tend to say hello first. Surely you’ve been here

long enough to know that by now. What do we know about

the victim?’ she replied, rubbing her hands together furiously.

‘I haven’t seen her yet,’ he said, peeling off his gloves and

handing them to Ava. ‘Put those on, it’s freezing out here. It’s

quite a long way up the lane. The route’s long and narrow,

heading south towards the reservoir, so the squad have sealed

off a full mile section. Scenes of Crime are already getting started.

I gather it’s a single victim, young adult female.’

Ava showed a uniformed officer her identification as they

ducked under yellow tape. ‘The usual pathologist, Ailsa Lambert,

is on leave at the moment, so who’s looking after the body?’

she asked.

Perfect Silence is out right now in paperback and kindle editions.  Sleep well and don't have nightmares!

Happy Reading

Miss Chapters x

The Mystery of Three Quarters

The Mystery of Three Quarters by Sophie Hannah

Published by Harper Collins

23rd August  2018

The world’s most beloved detective, Hercule Poirot – the legendary star of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express and most recently The Monogram Murders and Closed Casket—returns in a stylish, diabolically clever mystery set in 1930’s London.

Returning home after lunch one day, Hercule Poirot finds an angry woman waiting outside his front door. She demands to know why Poirot has sent her a letter accusing her of the murder of Barnabas Pandy, a man she has neither heard of nor ever met.

Poirot has also never heard of a Barnabas Pandy, and has accused nobody of murder. Shaken, he goes inside, only to find that he has a visitor waiting for him — a man who also claims also to have received a letter from Poirot that morning, accusing him of the murder of Barnabas Pandy.

Poirot wonders how many more letters of this sort have been sent in his name. Who sent them, and why? More importantly, who is Barnabas Pandy, is he dead, and, if so, was he murdered? And can Poirot find out the answers without putting more lives in danger?

Hercule Poirot is back and yet again written by the wonderful Sophie Hannah.  Now I know that some die-hard Agatha Christie fans have hated the fact that Sophie has written these Poirot novels, but as a total fan of the queen of crime fiction I love them totally and you should too!  I can hear Poirot as I read these books, and I do think that Sophie Hannah has captured him on paper perfectly.  I also love the fact that in these books he has a new side-kick in the guise of Edward Catchpole who is the author of these novels and is always there at hand to lend a role in the police proceedings.

This book starts with a letter - one which accuses a woman of murdering a man she has never heard of, a Mr Barnabus Pandy, who apparently died whilst in the bath.  The author of this letter is one Mr Hercule Poirot!  After being accosted by this rather angry lady, Poirot finds himself blamed for the sending of not one, not two but four letters in total; all saying the same thing - that the recipient has murdered Barnabus Pandy!

This is enough for Poirot to investigate the case, despite the police ruling it an accidental death initially, and with Catchpole at his side, he visits the home of Mr Pandy to find out more about his demise from the women who lived with him - his daughters and granddaughter and to find out the truth.  But of course, as more seemingly unrelated characters are brought into play, we soon learn that not everyone is being honest with Poirot.

Did my own "little grey cells" work out whodunnit in this cleverly crafted plot?  No of course they didn't, but Poirot did in his own determinable style!  I can't wait for the next installment!

Happy Reading

Miss Chapters x

In Conversation with Claire Allan

Today I am in conversation with Claire Allan, author of Her Name was Rose. So without further ado, let's ask Claire some questions....

Any advice to anyone dreaming of becoming an author?

 JUST DO IT! The best advice I can give is just to write. Sit down and open a file on your computer, or take out a notebook and write something.

If it feels like a big task, set yourself a goal. 200 words maybe. Don’t overthink it. No author gets it right the first time, even the most experienced authors go through countless drafts before they have the book you eventually read. It doesn’t have to be perfect. It just has to be written!

Where do you get your writing inspiration from?

From everything! I’m a people watcher (I think most writers are), so I love to watch people interact and imagine what their story can be. I can also hear a phrase or a song, or sit in the sun on a lovely day and have a scene come into my head that becomes something much more. There are  stories happening around us all the time, in everyone’s life. My 18 years in journalism taught that me that so many people have these incredible life experiences that they don’t tend to talk about, and that the most extraordinary stories come from “ordinary” people.

What are you working on next?

I’ve just submitted the first draft of my second thriller ‘Apple of My Eye’ to my publishers. It’s a story about a mother’s obsession with her daughter and the steps she will go to to protect her child. I had great fun writing it and letting my imagination run wild!

If, heaven forbid, there was a fire, what possession would you grab first to save?

Assuming my family and pets were safe and well, it would have to be my laptop. Mostly because I’m not half as good at backing up my work as I should be and the thought of losing work is horrendous! Also I form a certain bond with my laptops. I’ve gone through four in my writing career so far and my current is my favourite. It’s the nicest to work on and I’ve it customised just how I want, complete with a sticker my daughter chose for the cover.

What five people, living or dead, would you choose to invite to a dinner party?

I probably should pick writerly sorts? Shouldn’t I? But in truth, I’d love to sit around a table with Oprah Winfrey (and sure, if she wanted to choose me for her book club that would be lovely!) and Michelle Obama for the inspiration and political chat. Marian Keyes for the literary chat and a good laugh. Michael Buble as he is my one true love and Jane Austen, to see what her take on the modern dating world would be.

Thank you Claire for taking part with in conversation with. You can follow Claire on Twitter @Claireallan or visit www.claireallan.com to see what she is up to! My review of Her Name was Rose will be up shortly but if you can't wait, you can grab a copy now (and the kindle edition is only 99p)!

Happy Reading

Miss Chapters x

The New Girl

The New Girl by Ingrid Alexandra

Published by Avon Books

October 2018

When Rachel moves into the spare room in Mary’s flat, everyone is quick to jump to the conclusion that there’s something strange about her. Everyone apart from Mary.

And when Rachel starts sleepwalking, the flatmates’ fears grow. But there’s something about the new girl that Mary can’t help but trust, and having recently escaped a toxic relationship, she needs the support.

Rachel becomes a friend and an ally, and Mary soon discovers that they have more in common than she ever could have imagined.

In fact, Rachel seems to know more about Mary than she knows about herself…

Ingrid Alexandra's novel The New Girl comes out in paperback in October but you can grab a copy on your kindle right now for the bargain price of 99p; perfect for reading by the beach or pool this summer.

Mary is an orphan following her parents' disappearance when she was in her teens, resulting in a wealthy inheritance. She's recently moved across Australia in a bid to escape from her ex-boyfriend Mark who is violent and has been threatening to kill her. No one else knows of her location about from her Aunt who despite Mark's most recent visit, isn't about to reveal where she is staying. Mary now lives in a flat with Ben and her best friend Cat.  In order to raise more funds the friends advertise for a new flatmate and it is left to Mary to show around applicant Rachel.  They instantly hit it off and Rachel soon moves in, though it appears that Cat isn't so sure about her.

Rachel starts to confess in Mary, asking her to keep her past secret from Cat and the two become even closer, prompting disharmony between the former friends; add to that a blossoming relationship between Ben and Mary and some odd phone calls from a mystery caller who can only be Mark.  Rachel's behaviour becomes a little odd; sleepwalking into Mary's bedroom at night and watching her sleep. The problem for the readers is that Mary drinks - so how reliable is her narrative, can the reader actually trust her past or even her present?!

The ending comes with a twist and is certainly a cliffhanger!

Happy Reading

Miss Chapters x

Fatal Inheritance

Fatal Inheritance by Rachel Rhys

Published by Doubleday

July 2018

London 1948: Eve Forrester is trapped in a loveless marriage, in a gloomy house, in a grey suburb. 
Out of the blue, she receives a solicitor’s letter. A wealthy stranger has left her a mystery inheritance but in order to find out more, she must travel to the glittering French Riviera. 

Eve discovers her legacy is an enchanting villa overlooking the Mediterranean sea and suddenly, life could not be more glamorous.

Alone in paradise, Eve must unlock the story behind her surprise bequest – before events turn deadly…

This is the second novel by Rachel Rhys (a.k.a. the crime writer Tammy Cohen) following her fabulous debut Dangerous Crossing last year and it doesn't disappoint.  Set in the French Riviera at the end of the second world war, the book is atmospheric, gripping and totally believable.  Sitting in the garden with the English sunshine this week I could almost feel myself transported to the heady coast of Southern France where the sky turns everything pink and everyone is beautiful.  

France in 1948 is nothing like its English counterpart.  Where rationing and make-do-and-mend are still in place in Britain, along the coastline of Cannes there is still a world of glitz and glamour and the rich and famous arrive there in droves expecting to be fully entertained.  

When Eve Forrester is summoned to a meeting with a solicitor she has never heard of before, it is not to expect to be travelling to France to discover what she is about to inherit.  Her dull, and quite frankly, annoyingly controlling husband Clifford doesn't want her to go, claiming it will all be a waste of time, but Eve is intrigued by the bequest and heads off alone to France to find out more about her surprising inheritance.

When she discovers she has been left a share in a beautiful villa overlooking the Riviera, she is suitably shocked, as are the family who own the rest of the property.  They presume that Eve has had an affair with the deceased, Guy Lester but Eve is more surprised than any of them, as she has never heard of this man before, let alone met him.

The family want nothing more than to sell the house and take the cash it will provide them, but slowly day after day, Eve begins to fall in love with the house and her new life.  However her refusal to part with her share in the property will lead to her downfall because someone wants her inheritance; with or without her permission, and Eve isn't as safe as she once thought she was.

With a whole host of glamorous characters in a fabulous setting, Fatal Inheritance is the perfect read for the summer but can you work out who is out to get Eve Forrester?  I certainly didn't!

Happy Reading

Miss Chapters x 

Sleeper 13

Sleeper 13 by Rob Sinclair

Published by Orion

June 2018

Smuggled to the Middle East as a child.

Trained as one of the most elite insurgents of his generation.

Forced to do things no one should, for a cause he couldn't believe in.

But as his brothers were preparing to kill, he was looking for a way out.

Now, on the eve of the deadliest coordinated attacks the world has ever seen, he finally has his chance.

He will break free and hunt down those who made him a monster.

He must draw on all his training to survive.

He is SLEEPER 13.

Now I'll be honest with you all, I'm not really a thriller so-of fan but Sleeper 13 sounded interesting enough for me to request to be part of the blog tour.  I've not read any of Rob Sinclair's books before (he's written a few others) so I can't comment on any of  his earlier works.  This book is set across the globe as there are a number of central characters, all seemingly unrelated but as you progress with the book you soon realise that they are connected in more ways than one.  

Aydin Torkal begins our story in France where he is desperate to leave the group where he is solely referred to as number thirteen; one of a group of children who have been brought up by the Teacher to kill those who do not follow their faith and beliefs.  Aydin knows that this move will not be easy, for the group will not just let him walk away without so much as a backward glance; in fact the only way in which the group will let Aydin leave will be by his death.

Across the globe in the Middle East we have Rachel Cox, a British secret service agent who has spent years tying to track down a group of children she believes have been trained and smuggled out of the area and who are plotting to carry out an horrific attack.  However those higher up than her are starting to believe that the evidence she has is not strong enough for her to continue her work - until that is the death of one of her informants, a charity worker called Nilay; a woman that Rachel believes has more information on this group of boys than anyone else she has met.

So how does this tie together you may be asking yourself?  Nilay is infact the twin sister of Aydin and when he learns of her death he vows revenge on those who carried it out.  So now the hunted becomes the hunter and Rachel Cox is going to find herself caught somewhere in the middle!

This is a great story, full of twists and turns and a real page-turner as you don't know where the story is going to take you to next.  What I can say is that there is a follow-up novel and I can't wait to find out what is going to happen in the sequel.

Happy Reading

Miss Chapters x

The Burning Chambers

The Burning Chambers by Kate Mosse

Published by Mantle

3rd May 2018

Carcassonne 1562: Nineteen-year-old Minou Joubert receives an anonymous letter at her father's bookshop. Sealed with a distinctive family crest, it contains just five words: SHE KNOWS THAT YOU LIVE.

But before Minou can decipher the mysterious message, a chance encounter with a young Huguenot convert, Piet Reydon, changes her destiny forever. For Piet has a dangerous mission of his own, and he will need Minou's help if he is to get out of La Cité alive.

Toulouse: As the religious divide deepens in the Midi, and old friends become enemies, Minou and Piet both find themselves trapped in Toulouse, facing new dangers as sectarian tensions ignite across the city, the battle-lines are drawn in blood and the conspiracy darkens further.

Meanwhile, as a long-hidden document threatens to resurface, the mistress of Puivert is obsessed with uncovering its secret and strengthening her power . . .

Having loved Kate Mosse's first trilogy of books set in France, I was super eager to get my teeth, as it were, stuck into her new series of books, once again set in the Languedoc region. This time we are transported to 1562 where the battle between the Huguenots and the Catholics is starting to come to fruition and lives can hang in the balance dependent on which faith you follow.  Minou Joubert and her family are Catholics and they own a bookshop in Carcassonne.  Her father has been ill for some time, and Minou has been running the shop for him whilst also caring for her younger brother and sister.  One day whilst at the shop she receives a mysterious letter that contains the words - "She knows that you live" but that is all; Minou has no clue as to the author of the letter or to whom the letter is referring to.

Our story then moves across France to Toulouse where the battle for religious supremacy is nearing a climax and Minou begins to spend more time with Piet Reydon, a man she initially met in Carcassonne but who has returned to Toulouse carrying a most sacred possession that keeps his life in danger.  

Kate Mosse now weaves a historical tale filled with characters both good and evil but whilst also maintaining that grip on historical fact so that you could actually believe that this story really did happen, and that these characters really did exist.  I can't wait to read the next instalment to find out what is going to happen next in this wars of religion trilogy and how on earth the reader is going to be transported from 16th century France to 19th century South Africa.  The mind boggles!

Happy Reading

Miss Chapters x

Almost Love

Almost Love by Louise O'Neill

Published by Riverrun

1st March 2018

When Sarah falls for Matthew, she falls hard.

So it doesn't matter that he's twenty years older. That he sees her only in secret. That, slowly but surely, she's sacrificing everything else in her life to be with him.

Sarah's friends are worried. Her father can't understand how she could allow herself to be used like this. And she's on the verge of losing her job.

But Sarah can't help it. She is addicted to being desired by Matthew.

And love is supposed to hurt.

Isn't it?

So this is the story of Sarah, her current love Oisin and her former lover Matthew.  The book weaves back and forth to the heady first days of meeting Matthew at the parent's evening where she is his son's art teacher, to the start of their in-clandestine relationship, it's demise and of her current situation with Oisin.  I don't know if anyone reading this could actually like Sarah, but maybe that is the point.  You want to slap or shake her into waking up, into seeing that her relationship isn't what she believes it to be, to take a look around and see the damage that it is doing not only to herself but to those around her too.  Only she doesn't and as a reader I could feel myself getting increasingly frustrated with her as the book progresses.

Matthew does not love Sarah, let's make that perfectly clear.  He wants sex and gets off on the thrill of meeting her in a hotel room for an hour or so to get his fill as it were.  Sarah spends her life looking down at her phone waiting for just a text from him whereby she will instantly drop everything and everyone in the process to be by his side.  Her friendships start to fall apart because of the choices that she is making and the only person who cannot see that damage that is being done is Sarah.

Fast forward to the present day and Sarah is in a loving relationship with Oisin, living in his parent's house.  His mother is a very successful artist and Sarah wants for nothing.  However, in this situation money doesn't buy you happiness and Sarah is constantly thinking back to her time with Matthew to the detriment of her relationship with Oisin, because no matter what he does or doesn't do, he isn't and never will treat her in the way that Matthew did.

This is an interesting take on the way that a relationship can take over your whole being and Louise O'Neill does just that in Almost Love though it doesn't necessarily make for pleasant reading at times.

Happy Reading

Miss Chapters x