#BlogTour The Prized Girl by Amy K. Green

Happy Publication Day to The Prized Girl by Amy K. Green, and it is also a pleasure to take part in the BlogTour for this fantastic psychological thriller.

About the Author

Amy K. Green – ‘I’m a Boston and LA based author. I also work as a Production Accountant, most recently on the 2019 film Little Women. Working in accounting on movies is a little like cleaning the costumes at Disney World; it’s not glamorous, but you get access to more behind the scenes details than you’d ever want.’

The Prized Girl is my debut suspense thriller.

Follow @amykgreen on Twitter, on Amazon, on Goodreads, on Instagram, Buy The Prized Girl

About the book

From debut author Amy K. Green comes a devastating tale of psychological suspense: a teen pageant queen is found murdered in a small New England town, and her sister’s search for answers unearths more than she bargained for.

Days after a young teenager named Jenny is found murdered, her small town grieves the loss alongside her picture-perfect parents. At first glance, Jenny’s tragic death appears clear-cut for investigators. In the murder of a former pageant queen from a safe and loving family, the most obvious suspect is a fan who got too close for comfort. But Jenny’s sarcastic, older half-sister Virginia isn’t so sure of his guilt and takes matters into her own hands to find the killer.

But for Jenny’s case and and Virginia’s investigation, there’s more to the story. Virginia, still living in town and haunted by her own troubled teenage years, suspects that a similar darkness lay beneath the sparkling veneer of Jenny’s life. Alternating between Jenny’s final days and Virginia’s determined search for the truth, the sisters’ dual narratives follow a harrowing trail of suspects, with surprising turns that race toward a shocking finale.

Review

I think it’s fairly clear that the world of pageantry has lost the majority of its fake gloss since the murder of JonBenét, and the author only dips ever so slightly into that world in this story. Just enough to show the obsessive and narcissistic nature of the parents who parade their children, and how their needs overshadow those of their children. And then the deviants who follow the children put on display like possessions. The ones who want to own them and much worse.

Jenny used to be a teen pageant girl until she decided she wanted to make her own choices, so she started to rebel and now Jenny is dead. Raped, murdered and left in the woods. Unfortunately her life has been less than stellar lately and her attempts to free herself from a strict and obsessive mother culminate in tragedy.

Virginia and Jenny are half-sisters, but blood doesn’t mean they are close – in fact it’s quite the opposite. Virginia is too busy dealing with her own demons to pay attention to the fact her teenage sister is crying out for help. When Jenny jumps over her own shadow to reach out to her the rejection sends her deeper down the rabbit hole of her own making.

It’s a captivating psychological suspense thriller – a riveting debut by a talented writer.

What I really enjoyed was the way Green was almost dogged in her determination to keep readers from grasping the truth. Teasing it here and there, then twisting the truth to then lie and back again. Also the lack of need for a fluffy candy floss ending, which is something I always like to see. I hope this is the first of many by Green.

Buy The Prized Girl at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: HQ, pub date 19 Mar. 2020. Buy at Amazon com.

#BlogTour Elevator Pitch by Linwood Barclay

Today it’s my pleasure to take part in the BlogTour for Elevator Pitch by Linwood Barclay

About the Author

Linwood Barclay is an international bestselling crime and thriller author with over twenty critically acclaimed novels to his name, including the phenomenal number one bestseller No Time For Goodbye. Every Linwood Barclay book is a masterclass in characterisation, plot and the killer twist, and with sales of over 7 million copies globally, his books have been sold in more than 39 countries around the world and he count Stephen King, Shari Lapena and Peter James among his many fans.

Many of his books have been optioned for film and TV, and Linwood wrote the screenplay for the film based on his bestselling novel Never Saw It Coming. He is currently working with eOne to turn the Promise Falls trilogy into a series.

Follow @linwood_barclay on Twitter, on Goodreads, Visit linwoodbarclay.com, Buy Elevator Pitch

About the book

It all begins on a Monday, when four people board an elevator in a Manhattan office tower. Each presses a button for their floor, but the elevator proceeds, non-stop, to the stop. Once there, it stops for a few seconds, and then plummets. Right to the bottom of the shaft.

It appears to be a horrific, random tragedy. But then, on Tuesday, it happens again, in a different Manhattan skyscraper. And when Wednesday brings yet another high-rise catastrophe, one of the most vertical cities in the world – and the nation’s capital of media, finance, and entertainment – is plunged into chaos.

Clearly, this is anything but random. This is a cold, calculated bid to terrorize the city. And it’s working. Fearing for their lives, thousands of men in women working in offices across the city refuse to leave their homes. Commerce has slowed to a trickle. Emergency calls to the top floors of apartment buildings go unanswered.

Who is behind this? What do these deadly acts of sabotage have to do with the fingerless body found on the High Line? Two seasoned New York detectives and a straight-shooting journalist must race against time to find the answers…

Review

I have had a healthy distrust of elevators since De Lift (1983) came out. Much like this plot is takes the innate distrust we have, or a some of us have at times, when it comes to trusting in a higher authority called engineering, mechanics, gravity and technology. Barclay plays a little with the blind faith we put in certain things. Our lives are filled with items, vehicles and mechanisms that make our lives easier, and because of that we don’t think twice before using them.

Not that I am advocating climbing eighty flights of stairs either, just to be clear.

There is one part of the book, a short poignant one, when one person reacts by having flashbacks to 9-11. The people who work in One World Trade Center must have to cope with incredible anxiety and shove away their fear on a daily basis.

Aside from the elevators acting as if they have a life of their own and murderous intent towards the general population, the city is also under siege from a terrorist cell. The question is whether the attacks and the lift accidents are linked in any way. A journalist seems to think that the solution lies a little closer to home. The problem is she is too personally invested in that actually being the case.

Barclay takes an object that is used by millions of people every day and turns it into a weapon of mass destruction. It’s perfect, the majority of buildings have at least one, especially in cities that are built vertically, as opposed to horizontally. You don’t have to load it – you just need to fill it.

It’s a crime thriller that plays with our innate fears and destroys the blind trust we rely on every day.

Buy Elevator Pitch at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: HQ; pub date 5th September 2019 – £20 Hardback – £9.99 eBook – 12.99 Audio Download. Buy at Amazon com.

#BlogTour The Kompromat Kill by Michael Jenkins

Today it’s also my turn on the BlogTour The Kompromat Kill by Michael Jenkins.

Enter the Giveaway below to Win 5 copies of The Kompromat Kill (Open INT)About the Author

I started climbing at 13, survived being lost in Snowdonia at 14, nearly drowned at 15, and then joined the Army at 16. Risk and adventure was built into my DNA and I feel very fortunate to have served the majority of my working career as an intelligence officer within Defence Intelligence, and as an explosive ordnance disposal officer and military surveyor within the Corps of Royal Engineers.

I was privileged to serve for twenty-eight years in the British Army as a soldier and officer, rising through the ranks to complete my service as a major. I served across the globe on numerous military operations as well as extensive travel and adventure on many major mountaineering and exploration expeditions that I led or was involved in.

I was awarded the Geographic Medal by the Royal Geographical Society for mountain exploration in 2003 and served on the screening committee of the Mount Everest Foundation charity for many years. It was humbling after so many years of service when I was awarded the MBE for services to counter-terrorism in 2007.

The Failsafe Query is my debut novel, with The Kompromat Kill, my second.

Follow @FailSafeQuery on Twitter, and FailSafeThrillers on Facebook, on Goodreads, Visit michaeljenkins.org, Buy The Kompromat Kill

About the book

They were preparing for decades – now it’s time to take them down.

When a British Diplomat is kidnapped in the heart of London, followed by a brutal double-assassination in Chelsea, MI5 braces for the threat of deep sleeper cells coming alive.

Hiding overseas with a price on his head, Sean Richardson is tasked to lead a deniable operation to hunt down and recruit an international model and spy. Moving across Asia Minor and Europe, Sean embarks on a dangerous journey tracking an Iranian spy ring who hold the keys to a set of consequences the British Intelligence Services would rather not entertain.

As Sean investigates deeper, he uncovers dark secrets from his past and a complex web of espionage spun from the hand of a global master spy. As he inches closer to the truth, the rules of the game change – and the nerve-wracking fate of many lives sits in his hands…….……..

Review

This is the second book in the Sean Richardson series, fast-paced action spy thrillers.
I really like the way Jenkins swoops in with the first chapter and then flies right back out again. I was genuinely surprised, but no worries the beginning drives the rest of the story in a low-key way to the very end.

An important part of the story is the way Sean, who has followed in the footsteps of his mother, comes to terms with the fate of his mother. It’s a well-balanced plot of closure and closet, backdoor and raincoat spies. Neither overshadows the other, which makes for a more compelling story in my opinion. As a reader you can enjoy the more emotional moments, whilst simultaneously indulging in the cut-throat and ruthless spy game.

It’s an intriguing espionage thriller. Jenkins captures the bold audacity of spy warfare over many decades and the victims that fall prey to the machinations of secrets and missions. Think Spooks with an international flair with a cold war mystique.

Jenkins is honing his craft. There is a clear difference between this second book in comparison to the first. Aside from that I also wonder how much of Sean is based on what the author has experienced himself. Its probably the reason the character is balanced, despite being a live action hero.

I also wouldn’t mind if Jenkins returned to the scene of the crime and East Berlin. Perhaps even back to what comes before the end of the first chapter.

Buy The Kompromat Kill by Michael Jenkins at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Failsafe Thrillers; pub date 19 Jun. 2019. Buy at Amazon com.

Enter the Giveaway below to Win 5 copies of The Kompromat Kill (Open INT)

Click here to Enter the  Rafflecopter giveaway

*Terms and Conditions –Worldwide entries welcome.  Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.*

#BlogTour Rock Hard by Bill Todd

Today it’s my turn on the Danny Lancaster BlogTour, this time with the book Rock Hard by Bill Todd. It’s an action packed read full of suspense and a main character who is making a name for himself.

About the Author

Bill is a journalist and travel writer who has visited more than 40 countries from the white wastes of Arctic Finland to the ancient deserts of Namibia. He loves a good wilderness. He received the Ed Lacy travel award in 2007.

Bill has written six crime thrillers featuring soldier-turned-investigator Danny Lancaster and was startled and delighted to be voted one of the 100 best crime authors in the WH Smith readers’ poll in 2015. He’s also written three short factual military histories. He lives to write although keyboard time has been cut lately with the arrival of grandson Theo.

Follow @williamjtodd  and @DannyLancaster3 on Twitter, on Goodreads, on Instagram, on Amazon, DannyLancasterInvestigates on Facebook, Visit billtodd.co.uk

Buy Rock Hard

About the book

When Danny Lancaster gets a call from an old friend it looks like a chance to swap work and women worries in Brighton for a sunshine reunion.

Danny hasn’t seen Pogo since they fought together in Afghanistan. They have war stories to retell, beers to drink. But Pogo is broke, sick and in serious trouble. It started in Gibraltar smuggling cigarettes to pay his debts. Now his Russian boss has taken on a dangerous job for a mysterious businessman. A priceless package must be smuggled into Europe across the narrow straits from Africa.But unseen eyes are watching. Lives are in danger. A game of Russian roulette is just the start of a deadly clash where two continents meet.

The two friends are way out of their depth. And Danny must make a decision. How far do you go to help the man who saved your life?

Review

This is the fourth book in the Danny Lancaster series, and although there are threads that reappear in the books they can all be read as standalone novels.

In this book Lancaster accidentally falls into a deep well of danger, when he visits an old army pal and gets completely blathered on a night out. Their liquid adventure is the beginning of domino stones falling across the world, all of them somehow connected to our military vet come detective.

It’s a brutal and vicious read. It’s also uncomfortable at times. Todd knows how to present fiction on a plate and serve it with a portion of brusque reality.

I think it is fair to say that Todd has a very specific style when it comes to plotting. Imagine drawing a spider web from the outside towards the inside instead of the other way round. Direct lines lead towards the centre and the interlinking threads are the various storylines and subplots in the story. Danny Lancaster is threaded through the web like the unwitting fly being drawn into whatever trouble awaits him.

Todd isn’t satisfied with any old scenario. His stories are ambitious and action-packed. It’s interesting how Lancaster often falls into the midst of everything almost by accident. He isn’t looking for trouble it just seems to come looking for him.

Lancaster doesn’t mind, perhaps part of him believes he has to excel at taking down the bad guys and saving his friends and himself to prove he is still the man he was before his injury. The truth is he isn’t and never will be. He is defined by his experiences and a more driven man because of it.

It’s an action packed read full of suspense and a main character who is making a name for himself.

Buy Rock Hard at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Buy at Amazon com.

Buy Rough Diamond, Death Squad, The Wreck of the Margherita (free download), Gargoyle Pixie Dog, Godlefe’s Cuckoo all by Bill Todd.

Read my review of Rough Diamond by Bill Todd.

#BlogTour Keep You Close by Karen Cleveland

Today it’s the last stop on the BlogTour Keep You Close by Karen Cleveland. This is a riveting psychological thriller with an espionage vibe.

About the Author

Karen Cleveland spent eight years as a CIA analyst, focusing on counter-terrorism  and working briefly on rotation to the FBI. She has master’s degrees from Trinity College Dublin and Harvard University. She lives in Northern Virginia with her husband and two young sons.

Follow @KarenCleve on Twitter, on Amazon, on Goodreads, Visit karen-cleveland.com

Buy Keep You Close

About the book

A strange sensation runs through me, a feeling that I don’t know this person in front of me, even though he matters more to me than anyone ever has, than anyone ever will.

You go into your son’s bedroom. It’s the usual mess. You tidy up some dirty plates, pick up some clothes, open the wardrobe to put them away.

And that’s when you find it. Something so shocking it doesn’t seem real. And you realize a horrifying truth…

Your own son might be dangerous…

Review

Steph has a successful career and is a workaholic, much to the dismay of her son and her mother. The only thing marring her life is the dark secret she has kept hidden for nearly two decades. She is completely thrown for a loop when a colleague drops by wanting to speak to her son about his online contacts and possible worrying behaviour.

Her initial reaction is shock, anger and disbelief, but then she knows something her colleague is unaware of. Something that implies his accusations could be true.

Lots of nice little misdirections and red herrings going on. Readers are definitely kept on their feet. Cleveland uses body language to insinuate deeper, darker and more insidious secrets than what Steph can see on the surface.

If you leave the plot aside for a moment I think the relationship and interactions between Steph and Zachary are indicative of something more dangerous in our society. A certain unknown variable that is hard to put a finger on, when our children move away from us so much that we can lose them completely. When they fall into the trap of radicalisation, because they are vulnerable and at an age where everything can seem enticing.

It’s easy to see why Steph is torn between believing her son is innocent and fearing he may be a complete stranger capable of the worst crimes she can imagine.

This is a riveting psychological thriller with an espionage vibe. It’s an enthralling read about love, the bond between mother and child, trust and most of all it’s about instinct. Is instinct enough to deter a crime or risk an entire career. Is a gut instinct enough to go on when it comes to someone you love endangering others? If push came to shove would you choose blood or the safety of others?

Buy Keep You Close at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Bantam Press;pub date 27 Jun. 2019. Buy at Amazon com.

#BlogTour Sister of Mine by Laurie Petrou

Today it’s a pleasure to take part in the BlogTour Sister of Mine by Laurie Petrou. It’s a murder mystery with the vibe of a psychological thriller, and it’s women’s fiction.

About the Author

Laurie Petrou has a PhD in Communication and Culture, and is an Associate Professor at Ryerson’s RTA School of Media in Toronto, where she is also the Director of the Masters of Media Production program. She has given several TEDx talks on subjects including gender and rejection. Laurie was the inaugural winner of the Half the World Global Literati Award in 2016, a prize that honours unpublished work featuring female protagonists, for her novel Sister of Mine. She now lives in a small town in Ontario wine country with her husband, a wine maker, and their two sons.

Follow @lauriepetrou on Twitter, on Goodreads, on Facebook, Visit lauriepetrou.com

Buy Sister of Mine

About the book

Two Sisters. One Fire. A Secret that won’t burn out.

The Grayson sisters are trouble. Everyone in their small town knows it. But no-one can know of the secret that binds them together. Hattie is the light. Penny is the darkness. Together, they have balance.

But one night the balance is toppled. A match is struck. A fire is started. A cruel husband is killed. The potential for a new life flickers in the fire’s embers, but resentment, guilt, and jealousy suffocate like smoke. Their lives have been engulfed in flames – will they ever be able to put them out?Review

The relationships between sisters are often complicated and fraught with emotion. When it comes to Peggy and Hattie it is also a bond created through guilt, anger, fear and the need to protect each other.

Peggy always feels as if she has to keep Hattie safe, despite being the typical older sister who finds her little sister annoying. Hattie is the unpredictable hothead with a penchant for getting into trouble.

They have a dysfunctional codependent relationship, which starts to disintegrate when the secrets they share start to take their toll on the two of them. What are they hiding? Will Peggy let Hattie blackmail her into the ultimate sacrifice?

Petrou delivers a nice little double-twist at the end, which puts the whole story into perspective. It’s a whirlwind of emotions and filled with haunting feelings of inadequacy, but also takes on difficult topics like domestic violence, misogyny and surrogacy.

It’s a murder mystery with the vibe of a psychological thriller, and it’s women’s fiction.

It’s an engrossing read, especially in regards to the sister’s relationship. The animosity, bitterness and paranoia is countered by the sisterly bond the two of them share. It’s definitely a book I recommend, because I know exactly what it’s like to share that type of bond. Messed up and hard to sever.

Buy Sister of Mine at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: No Exit Press pub date 20 Jun. 2019. Buy at Amazon com. Buy at No Exit Press.

#BlogTour What Lies Around Us by Andrew Crofts

Today it’s my turn on the BlogTour What Lies Around Us by Andrew Crofts. It’s a suspense thriller, with strong political, socio-economic and environmental issues, and a crime element to boot. About the Author

Andrew Crofts is a ghostwriter and author who has published more than eighty books, a dozen of which were Sunday Times number one bestsellers. He has also guided a number of international clients successfully through the minefield of independent publishing.

His books on writing include “Ghostwriting”, (A&C Black) and “The Freelance Writer’s Handbook”, (Piatkus), which has been reprinted eight times over twenty years.

Throughout his bestseller, “The Ghost”, Robert Harris quotes Andrew’s seminal book, “Ghostwriting”. Harris’s book went on to become a major movie by the same name, directed by Roman Polanski and starring Ewan McGregor as the eponymous ghost. The opening lines in Robert Harris’s book sum up Andrew’s philosophy:

“Of all the advantages ghosting offers, one of the greatest must be the opportunity that you get to meet people of interest”.

Andrew was on the Management Committee of the Society of Authors from 2012 to 2015. He lectures on the subject of making a living from writing at Kingston University, presents Masterclasses on the subject at The Guardian and frequently guests at writing workshops, literary festivals and in the media. He blogs regularly on matters pertaining to publishing, self-publishing and writing.

Follow @AndrewCrofts on Twitter, on Amazon, Visit andrewcrofts.com

Buy What Lies Around us

About the book

‘It is possible that since this book’s publication you will have heard that I have died in ‘suspicious circumstances’. Obviously I hope that will not be the case, but I believe it is worth taking the risk in order to get this story out there.

Why would one of Silicon Valley’s most powerful billionaires offer a British ghostwriter a million dollars to write the autobiography of Hollywood’s biggest star?

Only once he is living and working among the world’s richest and most beautiful people does the ghost realise that there is way more than a publishing deal at stake.

The ghostwriter must face the dark underbelly of the tech industry. He must face corruption and manipulation, come to blows with people who will do anything to remain at the top of their game and uncover the dark truth behind what it really means to be an influencer . . .

What Lies Around Us takes the reader into a world of myth-makers and power-brokers and reveals who is really running the world. Who is telling the stories and controlling the way we all think with a mixture of old media, social media and fake media?

Review

Would you sign an NDA without knowing to whom it refers, and agree to ghostwrite a book without knowing what the content is supposed to be? Is it just a matter of the price being right?

The price is it right for Andrew and perhaps more so because he is intrigued by the man doing the convincing. Who is behind the powerful billionaire? Has Andrew got himself into something he has no way to control?

What starts out as the dream job – ghostwriting a book for a famous person, someone Andrew has always admired, takes a turn towards the bizarre. Eventually he regrets signing that NDA.

Here’s the thing, it’s a book written by a ghostwriter called Andrew who has written a book called The Secrets of an Italian Gardener about a ghostwriter called Andrew who has written a book called The Secrets of an Italian Gardener. Are we still talking fiction here, perhaps a wee bit of fiction and a large portion of truth or small truths and lots of fiction?

I tell you what it puts a whole other layer of complexity on the read, because Crofts has intentionally spun the story in a way that leaves the reader pondering, thinking and doubting. I wonder if this element of bouncing the reader between reality, facts, opinion and fiction was supposed to leave us wondering about everything, even after putting this book down.

It’s a suspense thriller, with strong political, socio-economic and environmental issues, and a crime element to boot. Crofts lulls the reader into a false sense of ease with the first part of the read, and then takes them on a whirlwind of a ride for the second half.

Side note – If the author ever needs to look into another career path then I think he would make an excellent mentalist. The low-level persuasion techniques work – buys The Secrets of an Italian Gardener.

Buy What Lies Around Us at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Red Door Publishing Ltd, pub date 13 Jun. 2019. Buy at Amazon com.

#BlogTour A Long Shadow by Caroline Kington

Today it’s my turn on the BlogTour A Long Shadow by Caroline Kington. It’s a rural mystery, women’s fiction and suspense drama.

Enter the Giveaway below to Win 5 x PB copies of A Long Shadow (UK Only)

About the Author

Caroline Kington spent most of her working life in theatre and television, as a director, producer and founder of the fringe theatre company Antidote Theatre.

Since the death of her husband Miles Kington, the columnist and broadcaster, she has posthumously published three of his books: a humorous memoir of his illness, called How Shall I Tell the Dog?; a collection of his columns and other writings, The Best By Miles; and a collection of his celebrated ‘Franglais’ columns that had not appeared in book form before, Le Bumper Book of Franglais.

In her own right, she is the author of the Summerstoke trilogy of rural comedies. She insists that no character in the series is based on anybody from the small village near Bath where she has lived for many years. Nobody believes her.

Her novel A Long Shadow had its origins in a feature she made for Channel 4 News at the turn of this century about the pressures on farmers as a result of BSE and foot-and-mouth disease.

Follow @CarolineKington on Twitter, Buy A Long Shadow

Readers can order the book from the Lightning Books website at 50% off (with free UK p&p) if you enter this code at checkout – BLOGTOURSHAD

About the book

When farmer Dan Maddicott is found shot dead in one of his fields, he leaves behind a young family and a farm deep in debt. Although the coroner records accidental death, village rumours suggest he has taken his own life so that the insurance payout can save his family from ruin.

Dan’s wife, Kate, refuses to believe the gossip and is determined to prove to herself, and her children, that his death was an accident. But could it have been murder? Kate discovers a set of old diaries containing secrets that may reveal how Dan really died.

Set against the backdrop of the farming crisis of the turn of the millennium, Caroline Kington’s absorbing family drama also tells the secret history of another resident of the farm, decades before, whose tragic tale will come to have major repercussions in the present day.

Review

In the midst of the characters and the different story-lines is a fight to maintain control of a certain parcel of land. When local farmer Dan dies under tragic but suspicious circumstances the topic of ownership of the farm and surrounding areas becomes relevant again, which ruffles feathers and awakens sleeping dogs.

Kate finds herself alone with two children and the massive responsibility of a debt-ridden farm and employees who need jobs. She has to make a decision about standing up and shouldering the responsibility or passing the burden on to someone else. Sell up or buckle down and get on with it.

Kington also takes the reader back a few years to Dan, his life on the family farm, his close friends and how he meets Kate. However the book begins with the story of Susan in the 1940s, when she escapes from a mother and child institution. The author cleverly weaves the different timelines and stories in and out to create a set of circumstances that determines the lives of each one of them.

The story is presented via multiple timelines and characters. It shows us how a secret can travel across decades and influence the lives of many families, despite nobody knowing about it. The title is very apt, because it does cast a very long shadow.

It’s a rural mystery, women’s fiction and suspense drama. Even though everything is based on this one secret that casts ripples across the decades, Kington has also incorporated issues such as abuse, gender equality (Kate being accepted as the boss), and coming to terms with a sudden and unexpected loss.

Buy A Long Shadow at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any retailer. Publisher: Lightning Books (26 April 2019) Buy at Amazon com. Buy at Lightning Books.

Enter the Giveaway to Win 5 x PB copies of A Long Shadow (UK Only)

Click here to Enter the Rafflecopter giveaway

*Terms and Conditions –UK entries welcome.  Please enter using the Rafflecopter box above.  The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.*

#BlogTour Eye for Eye by J.K. Franko

Today it’s my turn on the BlogTour Eye for Eye by J.K. Franko. It’s a suspense thriller with the vibe of a psychological thriller. Is it still considered the corruption of the innocent when the innocent weren’t exactly squeaky clean to begin with?

About the Author

J.K. Franko was born and raised in Texas. His Cuban-American parents agreed there were only three acceptable options for a male child: doctor, lawyer, and architect. After a disastrous first year of college pre-Med, he ended up getting a BA in philosophy (not acceptable), then he went to law school (salvaging the family name) and spent many years climbing the big law firm ladder.

After ten years, he decided that law and family life weren’t compatible. He went back to school where he got an MBA and pursued a PhD. He left law for corporate America, with long stints in Europe and Asia.

His passion was always to be a writer. After publishing a number of non-fiction works, thousands of hours writing, and seven or eight abandoned fictional works over the course of eighteen years, Eye for Eye became his first published novel.

J.K. Franko now lives with his wife and children in Florida.

Follow @jk_franko on Twitter, on Goodreads, on Amazon,

Buy Eye for Eye

About the book

Leave no singing bones…

Roy and Susie are on a skiing holiday, trying to take a break from the constant reminders of their daughter, tragically killed by a careless driver. Out of the blue they meet Deb and Tom, another couple with a tragic past and a shocking proposal to put things right.

As the bodies accumulate, secrets are revealed and alliances crumble. Ultimate survival depends on following the rules for a perfect murder. And the first rule is… leave no singing bones.

Review

Roy and Susie are on holiday to take a step back from life and to come to terms with the death of their daughter. They meet a couple dealing with their own tragic circumstances. A proposition is made from one couple to the other, a deal of sorts. The kind of deal that will eliminate any moral boundaries a person has. A decision to go against the system.

This reminded me of a film I watched about 23 years ago. I connected so strongly with the main character and the premise that I never forgot about it. A parent who has to listen to her child on the phone, as she let’s someone into her home, who rapes and subsequently murders her. The mother is powerless on the other end of the phone. It was all about the mother who was not willing to let the rapist and killer of her daughter go until she had gotten her version of justice, his death. An eye for an eye. It made me wonder what I would do in a situation like that. Would I go to extreme lengths if I felt the legal system hadn’t done its job?

In essence this is what Franko wants the reader to do. To think about whether they would commit a murder or crime for someone else, so they could have justice or closure, and finally feel safe and at peace with the world again.

Although I am certain the majority would be happy to let the official system punish the criminal, there will be another large group of people who will be very vocal and loud about exacting their own type of revenge, but never actually do anything. Those two groups aren’t the ones I am talking about. A small percentage will without a shadow of a doubt, be willing to kill, maim or torture to ensure that the tormentor, abuser, rapist and/or killer of their loved one is annihilated.

There is a lot more to this plot than just the top layer and the initial suggestion of an arrangement. It’s much more deadly and twisted the further you go down the rabbit hole of murder and vengeance.

It’s a suspense thriller with the vibe of a psychological thriller. Is it still considered the corruption of the innocent when the innocent weren’t exactly squeaky clean to begin with?

Buy Eye for Eye at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Talion Publishing; pub date 1 April 2019. Buy at Amazon com.

#BlogTour The Life of Death by Lucy Booth

Today it really is a pleasure to take part in the BlogTour The Life of Death by Lucy Booth. It’s an interesting combination of paranormal urban fantasy, suspense and it’s a frank dialogue with the devil and his friend called death.About the Author 

Lucy Booth was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2011. She died in August 2016. During those five years she wrote this novel and it was her last wish to have it published posthumously.

Lucy was born in Suffolk, moved with her family to Solihull, Cyprus and Lymm, Cheshire where she attended Manchester High School for Girls before studying Behavioural Sciences at Nottingham University. On graduating Lucy moved to London to pursue her career as a freelance producer for various top of the range adverts & music videos.

In 2011 Lucy was diagnosed with breast cancer resulting in surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Undaunted, and with the great assistance of her friends, Lucy not only continued working and writing her blog (lucifersboob.blogspot.co.uk) of her ‘cancer experience’ in a typically forthright and humorous fashion but felt the urge to write a novel. The Life of Death is the result.

In 2014 the aggressive cancer returned. However, Lucy was determined to live her life to the full and to finish her novel before she died in August 2016.

Lucy was funny and brave and an inspiration to all who knew and loved her; she never allowed her cancer to define her and remained upbeat and positive until her last days.

She is much missed by her parents, Jackie and Alan, and sister, Analie, her many friends, her godchildren and, of course, her cat Oliver.

Buy The Life of Death

About the book

In 1590, I sold my soul to the Devil. I was twenty-three. Elizabeth Murra has been condemned to burn at the stake. As she awaits her fate, a strange, handsome man visits her cell. He offers her a deal: her soul in return for immortality, but what he offers is not a normal life. To survive Elizabeth must become Death itself.

Elizabeth must ease the passing of all those who die, appearin at the point of death and using her compassion to guide them over the threshold. She accepts and, for 500 years, whirls from one death to the next, never stopping to think of the life she never lived. Until one day, everything changes.

She – Death – falls in love. Desperate escape the terms of her deal, she summons the man who saved her. He agrees to release to release her on one condition: that she gives him five lives. These five lives she must take herself, each one more difficult and painful than the last.

Review

It is awful that Lucy Booth will never see the reaction readers will have to her book, because I am certain there will be plenty of accolades and positive words. It’s also a loss for readers that she will never be able to share more of her words and talent with us. Those thoughts, my thoughts, don’t come from a place of pity or generosity due to her tragic death either. I can be quite critical at times, but I know a writer and good storyteller when I encounter one, and Lucy Booth was a good one.

The story begins in 1590, when a young girl sells her soul to the devil. Just days before her death at the hands of bloodthirsty witch-finders, the rumours of her close connection to the devil have become her downfall. She makes a pact, a deal to become the door through which every soul must travel after it has ended. At the time it sounds like a great deal, but over time the immortality and emptiness of her existence wears thin. The experiences wear heavily on her body, as freedom and ‘life’ becomes like a claustrophobic coffin made of glass.

I enjoyed the way death became almost synonymous or interlinked with the thought of the devil. Instead of a heralding angel awaiting some of us with open arms or pointing us in the direction we are deserving of; up to heaven, down to hell or perhaps even somewhere in limbo. We are all awaited by the same entity and pass through the same portal, which in this case is death. Technically that is of course true. Death comes before any alleged judgement or ranking. Even if you aren’t religious – death still comes first to us all.

There is also no judgement, regret or fear of retribution, there is only nothing. No imagined scenarios painted and scribed by the hands of men over the many centuries, who speak of winged creatures and omnipotent powers who watch over life and lives.

It’s an interesting combination of paranormal urban fantasy, suspense and it’s a frank dialogue with the devil and his friend called death. Simultaneously this is a story of embracing the thought of what death is, who death is and where death takes us. It’s the acceptance of futility, of the inevitable and about looking death straight in the eye and demanding something more than it offers to you. Then finally acknowledging that even if you dance with devil in the pale moonlight, it won’t change the fact he determines what it says on your dance card.

I really enjoyed the read.

Buy The Life of Death at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Unbound: pub date 2 May 2019. Buy at Amazon com. Buy at Unbound.