Murder in Midwinter by Fleur Hitchcock

The bus stops for the millionth time and I look down at my phone for the millionth time. 

A little envelope appears in the corner of the screen., I click on it. 

It's from my sister, Zahra.

What you gonna wear to the party? 

Published by Nosy Crow in October 2016

Pages - 256

Summary

Sat on the top of a bus days before Christmas, Maya sees a couple arguing violently in the middle of a crowded Regent Street. They see her watching, she looks away, and the woman disappears. Maya goes to the police, who shrug and send her away. Then a body turns up… Now convinced she is a vital witness to a crime, the police send Maya into hiding in rural Wales. She resolves to get to the bottom of the mystery. Then the snow comes and no one can get out. But what if someone can still get in?

****

This is a perfect book for the season. Bring on the snow! Fleur Hitchcock has made me desperate for it, with this wintery, murder mystery. 

The book is aimed at the Middle Grade market, but it had an older feel to it. I would suggest that it would easily suit the younger YA crowd as well as Middle Grade. 

Maya is a fantastic main character. I think she is from mixed heritage, but it isn't really mentioned and I'm only guessing because of the names of the family members and the unusual white streak in her hair. She is courageous and bold, with a fantastic hobby. Maya likes to assemble and disassemble motor bikes. What an excellent role model she is.  She has a strong bond with her sister and will do anything to protect her. 

 I was thrown straight into the story from the first chapter and found myself quickly turning the page to find out what happened next. The plot takes us from the bustling streets  of London to the silent and lonely valleys of Wales. Maya doesn't really feel any safer there and can't wait to get back home. It doesn't help that her cousin, Ollie is so horrible to her. 

The plot keeps us on our toes through out the book and leaves you with an unexpected ending. Some of the final scenes had me gripping the edge of the seat. Especially all the scenes involving the horses. Any animal scene is guaranteed to break my heart. 

For those who love a fast paced, thrillingly tense Middle Grade read, this is the book for you. Definitely one for the Christmas stocking. 

Looking For JJ by Anne Cassidy

Everyone was looking for Jennifer Jones. She was dangerous, the newspapers said. She posed a threat to children and should be kept behind bars. The public had a right to know where she was. Some of the weekend papers even resurrected the old headline: A Life for a Life!

Republished by Scholastic in August 2013 for tenth anniversary.

Pages - 299

Summary

Three children walked away from the cottages on the edge of town toward Berwick Waters. Later that day, only two of them came back. Alice Tully knows exactly what happened that spring day six years ago, though it’s still hard for her to believe it. She’ll never be able to forget, even though she’s trying to lead a normal life—she has a job, friends, and a boyfriend whom she adores. But Alice’s past is dangerous, and violent, and sad... and it’s about to rip her new life apart.

******

This really isn’t an easy book to review. Coming to it from the perspective of a parent, I found my insides churning as I read it. This has to be one of every parent’s nightmares and when this book was originally published it would have been something that played heavily on every parent’s mind after the Soham murders. I know that this book is a completely different style of murder, but it still makes you feel uneasy reading it.

To be fair, I think Anne Cassidy has handled a very delicate topic extremely well and with great sensitivity and I can see why the book was so popular. The author has managed to gain your sympathy for Jennifer Jones. You realise she was just a child and the situation her mother had put her in, tipped her over the edge. She needed help early on and it seemed as though the justice system had lost sight of her needs. She was a boiling kettle about to overflow, yet no one picked up on it.

You felt sympathy for the adult, Jennifer Jones, she was full to the brim of self loathing, just waiting to be discovered. Every day was a waiting game for her and she struggled to live a normal life. Whether people felt she was entitled to a normal life, is a difficult question to answer, as emotions tend to be at their rawest when a child is hurt.

I liked the way the book is set out into three parts, so you get a sense of the past, present and future. I am curious to what happens to Jennifer after this book finishes, and will shortly be reading the recent sequel, Finding Jennifer Jones, because in my mind, I cannot see how a character like this can ever find peace and lay to rest the past. It must be something that wakes you up in the morning, and greets you as you lay down to sleep. Jennifer had accurately sensed how people would react to her secret and the author has written these with sensitivity for both parties involved.

An emotional read, that makes you question a crime from the other side. At times it was disturbing to read, but it is definitely a book that should be read and one I would vigorously hand out to every teenager to read.

Dead Silent by Sharon Jones

It had to be here.

The soles of his shoes squeaked from marble to wood as he ran between the choir stalls, swinging the torch beam like a whip that could beat back the night.

Published by Orchard in February 2014

Pages - 336

When Poppy Sinclair and her boyfriend visit snowy Cambridge, she doesn't expect to discover the body of a student - arms outstretched in the act of smearing bloody angel wings on the chapel's floor.
Suddenly, Poppy is faced with the possibility that the one closest to her heart might be the one committing the most malicious of crimes.
Dodging porters and police, dreading what she might find, Poppy follows the clues left by a murderer bent on revenge...
Long-hidden secrets are chillingly revealed, an avenging angel seeks forgiveness and red-hot vengeance must be quelled in the amazing new Poppy Sinclair thriller.

*****

I can’t help myself, but I really do love Poppy Sinclair. She really isn’t your average teenager. She overthinks everything and comes from the strangest mix of parents. On one side, she has her mum, who walks firmly on the Pagan side while her estranged father has found his calling within Christianity. Throughout this book, it is intriguing to watch Poppy’s internal struggle between Christianity and Paganism as she tries desperately to sit on the atheist fence, while events occurring around her make it very clear she won’t be able to sit there for long. Something is changing in Poppy and as she grows older it becomes more apparent which latent and unusual skills she has developed.

This book is set in Cambridge during the winter, just before Christmas and I found myself reminiscing fondly my days as a new adult in Cambridge. I felt the author captured the tone and the feel of the academic town and really brought it to life.  I was left with a yearning to revisit.

The prologue sets the scene perfectly and you realise straightaway that Poppy is about to be drawn into another murder mystery. Poppy comes across as the UK’s version of Nancy Drew, but with a few unusual added extras. It doesn’t feel contrived in any way that she is at the centre of a murder investigation again, which was one of the things I was worried about before reading it. She really does have an unfortunate knack of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

In this book, we learn more about the relationship between Poppy and her father, and discover exactly why it appears to have unravelled so disastrously. We also witness the next step in the relationship between Michael and Poppy, as Poppy stands on the threshold of losing her virginity. I really felt the author dealt with this in an honest and mature way, which would hopefully help other teenagers discuss this situation before rushing into anything they might feel uncomfortable with.

With an array of quirky and colourful characters, I whizzed through the book at great speed, to discover which one was the murderer. And yet again, I was dumbfounded by the truth, after following a line of red herrings.

I thought this was a brilliant second novel, which really establishes Sharon Jones as a crime writing YA author. I really do hope there will be more novels with Poppy Sinclair in the future, as I desperately want to know what happens between Poppy and Michael.

Cruel Summer by James Dawson

Against the white cliffs, the girl in the red dress was as vivid as a drop of blood. Even by moonlight, the rugged shoreline was visible for miles at sea: two vast cave mouths yawned, black stains scarring the chalk. The tide was coming in, advancing on a dark, rocky beach; the surf sighed over the shingle as the waves crept closer.

Pages - 321

Published by Indigo in August 2013

Book Summary

A year after Janey’s suicide, her friends reunite at a remote Spanish villa, desperate to put the past behind them. However, an unwelcome guest arrives claiming to have evidence that Jane was murdered. When she is found floating in the pool, it becomes clear one of them is a killer. Only one thing is for certain, surviving this holiday is going to be murder…

*****

Oh my goodness! This book blew me away. It’s always a bit hit and miss with me whether  I’ll enjoy a crime thriller, as it isn’t my preferred genre, but this book really knocked me sideways. It had me yearning for my Richard Laymon days.

Within the first chapter, you’ve made Ryan your new best friend. He is utterly adorable, full of humour and sparkles with energy and enthusiasm. The story continues in alternative viewpoints between Ryan and Alisha as they settle in to Katie’s villa. Alisha has come a long way from her drink fuelled days and she really has strength of character oozing out of her pores.  The holiday is the first time the group have been together since Janey died and they are all hoping to be able to finally bury the uneasiness that lingered like a shadow over them.  But as James Dawson says ‘Rylan assumed Janey’s death was the finale. Turned out, it was only the beginning…’ I could not have put it better! I can’t tell you what happens as you just need to read it, but I will say it’s like being punched in the face regularly when you least expect it.   I spent most of the book gasping loudly and screaming ‘NOOOOOO!’ I was on the edge of my seat the whole way through. I didn’t have a clue who the killer was and to be honest, I was rather shocked when I found out. I actually want to read it again, so I can spot the evidence that had been so carefully planted throughout the book.

The characters jump off the page, exploring their past, their futures alongside their sexuality. Ryan is probably my favourite as he talks about every situation as though it was a scene from his very own reality show. I kept thinking of The X Factor’s Rylan, as I read it, as he is fuelled by flamboyancy and loves to hold the spotlight permanently on himself.

This book could easily be made into a movie. It has all the right ingredients to follow successfully in the footsteps of films such as Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer. Also if you grew up reading the Point Horror books then you will love this one.

This seriously was a stunning book and I do hope James Dawson sticks with this winning formula, as he just made the 80’s murder mystery / horror style novel so cool again. 

Absent by Katie Williams

‘When you die,’ Lucas Hayes once told me, ‘It’s like every wound your body has ever had-every skinned knee, paper cut, pimple - opens up and says See? I told you so.’ Lucas had held Brooke Lee as she’d jittered and bucked, rolled and foamed, and - yeah - died, so I figured he knew what  he was talking about.

Published by Chronicle Books in May 2013

Pages - 180

Goodreads Summary

When seventeen-year-old Paige dies in a freak fall from the roof during Physics class, her spirit is bound to the grounds of her high school. At least she has company: her fellow ghosts Evan and Brooke, who also died there. But when Paige hears the rumour that her death wasn't an accident--that she supposedly jumped on purpose--she can't bear it. Then Paige discovers something amazing. She can possess living people when they think of her, and she can make them do almost anything. Maybe, just maybe, she can get to the most popular girl in school and stop the rumours once and for all.

*****

The premise for this book had my interest straight away. I am a sucker for a ghost story, especially if there is a bit of body borrowing going on. Right from the start, the story reminded me of A Certain Slant of Light. It had that sadness to it, knowing you can’t change things about your life once you die - sort of a finality about it. As the story progressed it had hints of Dead Rules about it too, especially when Paige has concerns about the way she died. However, the ending of this book definitely made it stand out in it’s own spotlight of uniqueness. I did not see that ending coming. Kudos to the author for originality.

Paige wasn’t my favourite character in this book. I found myself getting  annoyed with her own self importance and need to change everyone’s opinions about her death. However, she did manage to do some good deeds by the end of the book, but  I think the changes that occurred in characters were accidental rather than planned.  My favourite character had to be Evan. So thoughtful and understanding, showing a maturity beyond his spiritual age. I felt his life could have been so different, but I’m glad he felt remembered by the end.

The book is quite a short story but definitely worth reading. There is a natural beauty in the writing that I really loved. The book handles some difficult subjects such as teenage suicide and sexuality acceptance. The innocence and the emotions of each character were at times hard to read but the author edged them with a little humour to ease the pain.The scene with the revealing of the mural had me in tears. It’s significance and meaning was so beautiful and yet raw. I’m putting this author on my radar for all future books published.

Dead Jealous by Sharon Jones

It was a good place, a peaceful place. The kind of place where the past could lie, forever.

At the foot of the hill the lake was frozen in a dead calm, a dark mirror reflecting the clouds that rolled in above. Not that those weirdos down a the festival would be turning in any time soon. No, they’d be partying into the early hours, but still, best to do it now rather than wait.

Pages - 302

Published by Orchard Books in July 2013

Book Summary

People think of Mother Nature as a gentle lady. They forget that she's also Death...Sixteen-year-old Poppy Sinclair believes in quantum particles, not tarot cards, in Dawkins, not druids. Last summer, in a boating accident in the Lake District, Poppy had a brush with death. But the girl she finds face down in Scariswater hasn't been so lucky. As she fights to discover the truth behind what she believes is murder, Poppy is forced to concede that people and things are not always what they seem and, slipping ever deeper into a web of lies, jealousy and heart-stopping danger, she comes to realise - too late - that the one thing that can save her has been right there, all the time

******

I’m not normally one for contemporary thrillers, but  this book intrigued me. The debut author, Sharon Jones was a winner of the SCWBI Undiscovered Voices competition in 2012, which I was able to read excerpts from online and I desperately wanted to read more of one of the  winning entries.

From the prologue, my interest was captured. I wanted to know more. I needed to know more.  Who was talking? Who was being buried? There was no turning back for me. In the first chapter you meet the rather realistic protagonist, a normally rather sensible teen, dealing with a heavy load of teenage emotional baggage. Basically she has feelings she isn’t sure what to do with. Quickly, Poppy becomes embroiled in a murder investigation and you follow the book at a dramatic pace to find out just who the killer was. The writing is realistic and quite witty at times, yet heating up as the plot thickened. I found myself reading very fast  as each chapter left me wanting more. The secondary characters all stood out and some appeared even larger than life as they took centre stage - I’ve been left with a  huge soft spot for Bob, not to mention Dawkins.

There are a  few things that I really loved about this book. Firstly, this is the first teen plot I can remember that  has really cool adults in it. They haven’t been banished to the back of the beyond - Poppy has adults that actually care about and play an important part in the story. Shocker, eh! I was amazed at how well the author fitted them into the plot. And not only did she integrate them nicely into the story but she got away with it too, showing that not all adults need to abandon their children in fiction.

Secondly, I loved the relationship triangle that occurs between Poppy, Tariq and Michael. You’ll notice I’m calling it ‘relationship triangle’ rather than ‘love triangle’ because this book portrays  a realistic look at romance. Poppy isn’t falling in love within seconds of meeting someone; she might get all hot and bothered around Tariq, but Michael has been her friend since childhood. What’s a girl to do? So another plus for the story - no insta-love here.

Finally, I adored the setting. I thought it was very original and very British. All the tipis, caravans, and Druids really caught my interest. I haven’t read any other YA book that has used this kind of setting. I loved that although this book was contemporary, it had a subtle dash of paranormal thrown in that left you to your own conclusions about certain subjects mentioned.  The author has given this thriller a Jonathan Creek kind of feel to it and I for one, can’t wait for more.

The author definitely has a fresh and original voice which brings something exciting and new to the YA contemporary thriller market.  I know that the main character, Poppy, appears in the next book by this author and I’m totally intrigued as to how she will fall into another mystery that is waiting to be  solved.

Night School Blog Tour - C.J Daugherty's inspiration for the book.

Today I am happy to be hosting the third stop on the ATOM blog tour for Night School by C.J. Daugherty. I read this book before Christmas and I absolutely loved it. I will be publishing my review this afternoon at three. However if you want to find out how C. J Daugherty was inspired to write about Night School, then read on!

The Inspiration for Night School by C.J Daugherty

I’m the kind of person who’s always telling stories. Stories about my life, or just something that happened on this day, you know, the one when the lady did that thing that made me laugh… I’m the kind of person who gets told fairly often that she should ‘write a book, someday’.

But I never really thought I could do it.

Now and then I would try half-heartedly - I’d write a chapter here, or an outline there. But when I sat down to actually write, only really awkward, boring words would come out.

And eventually I’d give up and forget about it for another year.

One day in 2008, my husband and I were on holiday in Devon in November (I KNOW) it was freezing (inevitably) and we were scrambling up some cliff or another, and I was telling another hilarious story about my childhood when he interrupted me and said, “I bet you a bottle of champagne - the good kind - that if you sat down to write a book now - subject of your choice - you can do it.” When I demurred, he frowned and added, “I dare you.”

I have never in all my life been able to resist the lure of a dare I am fairly certain I’m going to win. And he knew that perfectly well.

So I started thinking.

When we first considered moving to the town in Surrey where we now live, we spent some time driving around the countryside near it. Along the way we passed the private boarding school at the edge of town where my husband’s sister had gone to school as a day student.

School was out at the time but the big, metal gates were open. So we turned in to the school’s short, curving drive. At the end of it stood a vast, Gothic-influenced Victorian building. I was stunned by how beautiful and scary it looked. I couldn’t imagine dropping a child off at those steps and just saying ‘Bye! See you in six weeks!”

That afternoon stayed with me. And after Jack dared me, I sat down one afternoon and tried to imagine what it would be like for a city girl like me to be summarily uprooted from my urban life and dropped into such a different world. What would that feel like? How would I react? How would the other students react to me?

I wrote the first chapter of Night School that day, sketching out the character of Allie Sheridan, with her troubled home life, dodgy friends and unsteady grades.

By the time I got to the end of that first chapter, I knew I had something. I loved Allie already. I could feel her emotions with her. I understood her. And I needed to know what would become of her.

Night School came out of that.

Thank you Christi for showing us how you were inspired. I would definitely like to see this school, although I couldn't imagine being dropped off either.

To find out more about C.J. Daugherty

Twitter: @CJ_Daugherty

Website: http://www.christidaugherty.com/index.htm

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/CJ-Daugherty/226429684069435

Remember to pop back at 3pm for my review of Night School. 

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Steig Larsson

Pages - 538

Book: Own copy

Published by MacLehose Press, an imprint of Quercus Books in 2008

It happened every year, was almost a ritual. And this was his eighty-second birthday. When, as usual, the flower was delivered, he took off the wrapping paper and then picked up the telephone to call Detective Superintendent Morell who, when he retired, had moved to Lake Siljan in Dalarna. They were not only the same age, they had been born on the same day - which was something of an irony under the circumstances. The old policeman was sitting with his coffee, waiting, expecting the call.

This book intertwines three very diverse characters from extremely different backgrounds and ties them tightly together until a forty year old crime is solved.

Henrik Vanger, is a tired old man, head of an international family run corporation, who just wants some peace of mind before death takes hold of him.

Michael Blomkvist has nearly lost everything after being taken to court for false information. Vanger hires him to solve a murder that a lot of people would prefer to keep hidden.

Lisbeth Salander, a streetwise delinquent with an autistic temperament, who is cold hearted, but very clever. An excellent computer hacker who will stop at nothing to find out the truth.

This was the book chosen for our Book Club and to be honest I was a little bit reluctant to read it at first.  I don't usually go within a half mile radius of a crime novel as they are normally far too real for my liking. I love paranormal and horror, because as far as I am concerned they are just pure fantasy. 

So with trepidation, I stepped tentatively into this book and found the prologue had me hooked. I realised I needed to have an answer to the big question that is presented in the first couple of pages. Unfortunately, the following two chapters nearly found  me deserting the book. I found that within those two chapters the translation of the book let it down a little. It was too information heavy for my liking, leaving me flailing in the wind. I didn't understand any of it. Everyone who had read the book, insisted that I continued the journey, which luckily proved the right decision.

SO, once I moved onto chapter three, I found myself being dragged, kicking and screaming through the story.  This is an incredible thriller. The story leads you down many different pathways and you begin to  feel like a child lost in a maze, tears on standby as you continually hit dead ends.

I have battled  with how to review this book, as I did enjoy it, but I struggled with aspects of it.

There are some scenes within the book that turned my stomach. I don't cope well with violent graphic sex scenes and I wish that I had been warned about them beforehand. I could see they were integral to the plot, due to the violent themes being explored.

I found the characters within the book rather a deranged bunch, all unable to commit to a normal loving relationship. I could not warm to them at all, but I believe they were created that way for a reason. Larsson did not want you to feel any emotional attachment to his characters.

The book consists of two different plot lines, one of which I loved one, the other surplus to requirements. The main thrilling story seems to be bookended by the rather tedious one.  Once the main crime had been solved by the end, I would have been happy to finish the book, being content that my curiosity had been rewarded. However, I still had to plod through the other story and unfortunately I lost interest in it.  Sorry! Perhaps if the opening story had been intertwined a little more throughout the book and solved at the same time as the crime, it might not have bothered me as much.

I know that many people out there have adored this book and it is an extremely good thriller, but personally I only loved the main crime story with in the book. However, I would definitely recommend reading this book and I do hope to continue with the series.   There are lots of extremely good reviews of this book on Amazon, so please do go and have a look. If you love crime thrillers, with a hint of Dan Brown, then this series is definitely for you.

The Restorer by Amanda Stevens

The Graveyard Queen Series Book 1
Pages - 376
Published by a Harlequin Imprint : MIRA Books in USA in April 2011
Book: From publisher via NetGalley

NEVER ACKNOWLEDGE THE DEAD.

NEVER STRAY FROM HALLOWED GROUND.

NEVER GET CLOSE TO THE HAUNTED.

NEVER, EVER TEMPT FATE.

My father’s rules.

I’ve never broken them…until now.

From the first line of this book, I was sucked in, it was just so powerful.  I don't think I have ever read a ghost book quite like it, in fact I am positive I haven't read one like this. 

Amelia Gray is a cemetery restorer who can see ghosts. However, unlike other ghost stories, her father has pleaded with her not to acknowledge them. By not acknowledging them she stops them from infecting her life and making it hell. She has always  managed to keep by her father's rule until she meets Devlin, a haunted policeman, who walks alongside his dead wife and daughter.

She is drawn into a world where murder investigations are priority, if not brutal.  Amanda aids the policeman, she is struggling to resist by trying to solve the mystery surrounding the symbolism found on each new grave.  Can she help to solve the murders without the ghosts realising she can see them. Can she keep the spirit world separate from reality.

I love that the ghosts in this book take on such a sinister role.  Amanda's resistance to acknowledging them adds an extra chill to this spine tingling novel.  This is spookiness at its best.  The book is set in Charleston, which gives it its rich Deep South flavouring. There is something intriguing about the blending of the Deep South and the spirit world. Especially with the introduction of cults and orders. Each character's background brings you closer to the killer.

The relationship between Devlin and Amelia is unbelievable. You can feel the sexual tension between them dripping off the pages. The intensity of their relationship intertwines effectively with the murder investigation.


This book will suck you in on impact. Imagine walking into a book, where all of a sudden, vines start shooting up and wrapping themselves tightly around your body in all different areas as you are pulled down into the plot. Each vine a new twist or a new layer you just were not expecting, until you are gripped so tightly in the story, you have to reach the end for release. That is how this book made me feel. With each new layer, I was on the edge of my seat.  In my mind, the same sentence kept repeating, 'Well, I didn't see that coming!' Nearing the end of the book, the plot is so thick, you haven't a clue who the murder is and I felt like I was sinking in a quagmire, never knowing what to expect next or whether I would ever find out the truth. At one point, I thought I knew who the killer was, but the author soon put pay to my theories.

The ending of the book tied up all the loose ends beautifully as the killer was discovered. However, the two main characters have unfinished business and I can't wait to watch their paths cross again. This book is brilliantly thrilling, crossing the paranormal novel with a murder investigation.

Amanda Stevens admits to being a taphophile (lover of tombstones) and her extensive knowledge of graveyards and gravestones is obvious throughout the book and I found it fascinating the information I learnt whilst reading it.

This is a powerful start to a great new series which I love already and I can't wait to read the next installment. I haven't been this excited about a teen series since Twilight!



The Graveyard Queen Series:
Prequel: The Abandoned (April 2011)
Book I: The Restorer (May 2011)
Book II: The Kingdom (November 2011)
Book III: The Prophet (May 2012)

The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting

Published in 2010 by Headline Publishing Group.

I read this book as part of the UK Book Tours organised by the lovely Lynsey.

Violet Ambrose wandered away from the safety of her father as she listened to the harmony of sounds weaving delicately around her. The rustling of the leaves mingled gently with the restless call of birds and the far-off rushing waters of the icy river that layed beyond the trees.
And then there was another sound. Something she couldn't quite identify. Yet.

The more Young Adult books I devour, the more my thirst for them intensifies! This book was quite an original concept to me.  The main character Violet is able to hear the echoes left by the dead.  Every time an animal or a person is murdered, they leave an echo which stays with the victim as well as the killer. Violet can always pick up on these and now has a garden full of reburied animals that only begin to lose their echo after they are laid to rest in peace.

Violet can live with her ability until a murderer enters her world killing young girls in the area. As more girls disappear, each one closer to home than the last, Violet realises that she can help to solve these murders and try and stop the killer committing any more. 

I don't normally enjoy books filled with suspicious murders, they tend to make me a little nervous as they are just to realistic for my liking,  but I read thoroughly enjoyed this one.  I am always in awe of the abilities the Young Adult characters tend to have, but this is one I am not yearning for.  I couldn't think of anything worse than being able to hear the echoes of the murdered, so I am little in awe of Violet being able to cope so miraculously well with this gift.

The book is written from two view points. You see the world through Violet's eyes as well as the killer's. It was interesting to see how his mind worked and you thought you could work out his next move, but I found I didn't always get it right. There are a few twists within the novel that I can honestly say I didn't see coming.


Not only does the book deal with Violet's dangerous quest to discover the killer, but it also deals with the change in her friendship with the local hottie Jay. They had grown up as friends and half way through the book they become a couple and it is utterly gorgeous. Jay is everything you want in a leading male; handsome, strong, patient and very protective.  His instincts to keep Violet safe are the most intense I have ever seen in a Young Adult novel.  I found myself sucked into the romance so easily. The passion is a little hot and heavy, especially where parents kind of leave them to it, but I know I am speaking with my parent head on there, rather than my lustful hormonal teenage head that got stuck back in the 8o's.  It is when I read books like this one, I regret being born before the birth of the modern Young Adult book. When I was a teenager,  Mills and Boons just didn't do it for me!

The story has a great build and by the last hundred pages I was frantic to find out how it would end. Always a good sign to me of a good book, when I am struggling to resist the temptation to read the last page!


There is a second book in the series called Desires of the Dead which comes out in March and I shall definitely be elbowing the teenagers out of the way to get my hands on a copy.

Two Mini Christmas Book Reviews

With the Christmas decorations now packed up in boxes and put away for next year, the Christmas cards recycled and the yummy mince pies but a memory on my lips, it is time to wrap up my Christmas reads and get the Christmas books put back on the library shelf ready for next Christmas. So here are my last two Christmas reads wrapped up in one post.

All I Want For Christmas by Amy Silver.

This was a delightful book set out in a diary format covering the two weeks leading up to Christmas. It follows the lives of three different women as they cope with the stresses and strains of Christmas. First up, you have Bea, the owner of the The Honey Pot, a local coffee shop / deli, who is determined to make this first Christmas for her son a happy one. Bea was widowed before her son was born and has been through a lot.  She has struggled to come to terms with her loss as anyone would.

Then you have Olivia, a girl born into a very rich family. She gets knocked down outside Bea's cafe and they eventually become good friends. Olivia is struggling to cope with catering for Christmas with her boyfriend's family as they all descend upon her. She also doesn't know how to cope with her boyfriend's marriage proposal and goes a little bit off the rails.

Lastly you have Chloe, the most cold hearted character I have met since Heathcliff. She does not give a hoot about who she tramples on and doesn't understand why her married lover doesn't want to spend Christmas with her. She is the Ice Queen and gets banned from the coffee shop.  A few twists and turns later and Bea and Olivia go out of their way to melt the Ice Queen's heart.

I really enjoyed this book. It was realistic but heartwarming at the same time. Don't expect lots of gushing romance and snow filled wonderlands, because you won't get it here. What you will get is real life, real problems buut with a  happy ending.  Bea was the strongest character in the book and you cannot help but feel a little sorry for her as she came to terms with her alcoholism.  It was very much an easy read and one that happily saw me through my congested days from Christmas to New Year.

A Christmas Guest by Anne Perry

I had imagined Anne Perry to be from the Catherine Cookson brigade, who I avoid like jellied eels.  Alas I admit to be so wrong. Anne Perry writes a brilliant Victorian crime novella in the style of Agatha Christie.  I really enjoyed reading this book and watching as the main character followed the clues to work out who committed the crime.

Mariah Ellison has been forced to spend Christmas with ex daughter in law and new husband, whilst her granddaughter goes to France for Christmas. She is not at all happy about the situation and makes herself the most inhospitable guest that she can be. Until another unexpected guest is forced upon the couple which changes everything.  Mariah dislikes her straight away and only really begins to see what a wonderful person she was after she is found dead the following morning. Mariah is convinced that she was given some kind of poison and sets off to the house of her relatives who rejected her at Christmas to tell them the sad news and secretly find out who killed her.

Anne Perry draws upon the hidden lives of many Victorians as they try to keep their secrets away from scrutiny.  Mariah herself suffered intensely during her marriage, but has never let anyone know the truth. It was not the way to create a scandal.  Whilst searching for the killer and helping the family come to terms with their loss, she finds a way of coming to terms with her own past and finds herself mellowing with time. 

From what I can gather Anne Perry uses a lot of the same characters in her other books. Mariah is the grandmother to Charlotte from the Charlotte and Thomas Pitt mysteries which I might just have to investigate. Mariah comes across as a stuffy, prudish old boor to begin with but by the end she has blossomed through my rose tinted glasses into a rather lovable and cuddly grandmother.

It was a lovely Christmas read, especially being able to view how the Victorians seem to wholeheartedly throw themselves into the Christmas preparations. Perry has done a remarkable job of bringing the Victorian traditions to life. I will definitely be including another one of Anne Perry's Victorian Christmas novellas in my reading pile next December.

The Red House Mystery by A.A Milne

Pages - 203

Originally published in 1922, republished by Vintage in 2009

In the drowsy heat of the summer afternoon the Red House was taking its siesta. There was a lazy murmur of bees in the flower-borders, a gentle cooing of pigeons in the tops of the elms. From distant lawns came the whir of a mowing-machine, that most restful sounds; making ease the sweeter in htat it is taken while others are working.

A.A. Milne returns to his beloved Hundred Acre Wood to create his one and only detective story. Whilst Pooh is off somewhere else having adventures with Tigger and Piglet, A.A. Milne is visiting the Red House within the woods, solving a murder case.

Red House is a busy country house with lots of guests enjoying a stay with the house owner Mr Mark Ablett. When Mr Ablett disappears and the body of his brother is found dead, the police step in, but are completely baffled by the case.

On the scene arrives a visitor, Mr Gillingham, who appoints himself as an amateur 'Sherlock Holmes. With the aid of his friend and house guest Bill, they set out to solve the crime.

I don't read a lot of crime novels but I did find this one intriguing. You were not left guessing in this book at all. You got to find out what had happened at the same time as the characters in the book, so you didn't feel like you had been sidelined or ignored.

By the end, you were very much aware of who had committed the crime, but a little unsure of the reasons why it occurred. But like all good crime novels, the end was wrapped up nicely.

In the introduction, you discover that A.A. Milne was passionate about detective novels. He wanted his book to be different from the ones he read. He was determined to write a book without a professional crime solver and he managed it with ease, and with unscientific amateur sleuth.

This book is definitely the fore runner for the cozy mysteries that adorn book shelves today. The murders are gently swept under the carpet and no gory descriptions are written to leave you with sleepless nights, hiding with the covers over your head. This book would delight hard core Enid Blyton fans, with its secret passages, red herrings and befuddled policemen. If Blyton had written grown up mysteries, then I feel this book would be the style she would write.

This book is a delightful read, full of interesting twists and turns, where the ending is neatly sewn up and a satisfied feeling occurs. I have to say a huge thankyou to Ana over at Things Mean A Lot, who brought this wonderful gem to my attention.