Book reviews

Authors are readers too. Avid readers.

We also know what it’s like to write a book, so I only post reviews for books I finish. If a book’s not for me, I stop reading and move on.

At all times I aim to be constructive and fair, but it’s only my opinion. I no longer give ratings or stars, except on Amazon, Bookbub and Goodreads.

My tastes are almost exclusively crime fiction, though I venture beyond murders from time to time.

I hope the reviews will help you discover new authors and novels to enjoy.

Platform Mastery by Nick Thacker

22nd June 2021. This is a well-written and clearly explained guide to help authors build a solid platform. While a website remains the core of this platform, it’s only the ...
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Vanish Without Trace by Bill Kitson

20th June 2021. This is one of the best crime novels I’ve read for some time and definitely my top read of 2021 so far. A teenage girl doesn’t return ...
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The Hanging in the Hotel by Simon Brett

19th June 2021. This has become one of my favourite crime series. The books are beautifully written and cleverly plotted with a humorous underbelly of social comment, and engaging and ...
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Ryan’s Christmas by LJ Ross

17th June 2021. Thanks to a snow storm, Ryan, his wife Anna, and colleagues Phillips and McKenzie find themselves seeking shelter in Chillingham Castle. It’s remote, haunted and hosting a ...
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Cry to Me by J A Schneider

16th July 2021. There’s an emotional intensity to this story that builds and blows like the hurricane that’s about to strike. From the confusion and hysteria of the opening, where ...
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Sleeping Murder by Agatha Christie

15th June 2021. This final outing for Miss Marple is another convoluted mystery that requires all her skill and know how to solve. Gwenda is in England, looking for a ...
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An Occupied Grave by AG Barnett

11th June 2021. It took me a while to get into this crime story as the character of DI Brock seemed a little wooden. As someone who keeps his feelings ...
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Evil Crimes by Michael Hambling

This is another gripping and original crime story in the brilliant DCI Sophie Allen series. When questions are raised about a couple of suspected suicides, the local police call in ...
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Murder at the Museum by Simon Brett

3rd June 2021. This fourth outing for amateur sleuths Carole and Jude is another delightful caper, filled with the author’s customary wit and comic observation of the middle classes and ...
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Murder in Adland by Bruce Beckham

2nd June 2021. In the Lake District, at a company party for an advertising agency, one of the directors is stabbed to death in his room. This provides plenty of ...
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Loot by BL Faulkner

1st June 2021. Gold is at the heart of this entertaining and enjoyable thriller. As the bodies start to pile up, the story twists and turns to keep you guessing ...
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Murder at Home by Faith Martin

30th May 2021. The murder of Flo Jenkins appears motiveless. This elderly lady is well loved and close to dying from cancer. Why would anyone stab her in her own ...
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The Torso in the Town by Simon Brett

25th May 2021. This is the third book in the Fethering mystery series, feature chalk and cheese neighbours Carole and Jude. It starts with a dinner party at Pelling House, ...
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Harbour Street by Ann Cleeves

25th May 2021. This is another moody, complex murder mystery in the Vera Stanhope series. She seems to be at her best when she had few or no leads to ...
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The Glass Room by Ann Cleeves

19th May 2021. In this fifth outing for Vera Stanhope, the murder’s a little too close to home for comfort. Her neighbour, Joanna, is at a writers’ conference. An esteemed ...
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Missing Lies by Chris Collett

18th May 2021. In the seventh book in the series, Tom Mariner, now acting Detective Chief Inspector, has a lot going on in his personal life. It means he needs ...
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Don’t Turn your Back on the Ocean by Janet Dawson

13th May 2021. You’re always guaranteed something different and intriguing with private investigator, Jeri Howard. In this case her investigation has an environmental theme. While on holiday in Monterey, she’s ...
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The Birdwatcher by William Shaw

13th May 2021. All books should have an emotional impact on the reader. Some books entertain or inform. Others leave a deeper impression that lives longer in the mind and ...
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