A ring lost for almost a century. A woman who needs a purpose and a fresh start. Allegra leaves the USA to travel to Ireland to try to reunite the ring with its proper owner.
The Lost House of Ireland is the fourth book in the Starlight Cottages series. It can be read as a stand alone novel although there are characters that feature in the earlier books.
Allegra is devastated by her father’s death. The chance discovery of a ring on a beach set her off on a trip to Ireland to distract herself from her grief. The ring has an inscription and she heads to Sandy Cove to find the owner of the ring or their descendents. I felt a huge emotional pull to Allegra’s story and that of the engaged couple who lost the ring.
The mystery of the past give Allegra a chance to forget her own troubles. She meets a family emboiled in a legal dispute over a will and the addition of the ring and the story behind it creates more tension. Meanwhile, she has the opportunity to heal her heart with the possibility of new love.
Once again the Irish landscape is brought to life through vivid descriptions. I enjoyed catching up with the characters I had met in the earlier books. Susanne’s books always play to the emotions and take the characters on a journey leaving the reader with an uplifting feeling overall.
The Lost House of Ireland is an enjoyable and warm novel about love and loss.
MEDIA PACK
Book: The Lost House of Ireland
Author: Susanne O’Leary
Pub Day: June 8th 2022
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About the Book:
An enchanting story about forgotten family secrets that will transport you to the charming village of Sandy Cove on the beautiful Irish coast.
Allegra Casey is searching for a new beginning. So when she discovers an engagement ring buried in the sand near her home in Cape Cod, the last place she expects it to lead her is to the west coast of Ireland. But when she arrives in the tiny village of Sandy Cove, she finds herself falling in love with the crashing waves, the picturesque coast and the warm-hearted people.
As soon as she settles into her cottage at the old coastguard station, Allegra meets her eccentric neighbours. They believe the ring belonged to Davina Courtney, whose family still live on the Strawberry Hill estate just outside the village. And when Allegra visits the old mansion, she meets the charming, enigmatic Max Courtney-Smythe, the great-nephew of the former owner.
As they try to solve the mystery of the long-lost ring, Allegra and Max grow closer, and it soon becomes clear that their feelings for one another are mutual. And as she spends more time with the local community, Allegra wonders if she’s finally found the place she can call home.
But the reappearance of the engagement ring causes problems among the heirs of the estate and, as Max suddenly grows distant, Allegra wonders whether she should never have travelled to Sandy Cove. Is thiswhere she will finally find true love, or is she destined to leave this magical place alone?
Fans of Mary Alice Monroe, Debbie Macomber and Sheila O’Flanagan will fall in love with this delightful, feel-good Irish romance.
AUTHOR BIO
Susanne O’Leary is the bestselling author of more than twenty novels, mainly in the romantic fiction genre. She has also written three crime novels and two in the historical fiction genre. She has been the wife of a diplomat (still is), a fitness teacher and a translator. Susanne now writes full-time from either of two locations, a ramshackle house in County Tipperary, Ireland or a little cottage overlooking the Atlantic in Dingle, County Kerry. When she is not scaling the mountains of said counties, or keeping fit in the local gym, she keeps writing, producing a book every six months.
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Jackie Cooke is six months pregnant but won’t let anything get in the way of catching a killer. The victim is a teenager with Down’s Syndrome and Jackie feels a close connection as her own brother had the condition and disappeared at a young age. The body has been dismembered and then pieces of another victim are found…
The Lost Ones is the first book in a new series that will feature detective Jackie Cooke and her team.
I have to start by saying that I LOVED Jackie’s character. I could really relate to Jackie as she is written in such a natural way that brings her character to life. There is some danger for Jackie and her baby as she chases down suspects which adds extra drama to the story.
I was so frustrated by her family and superiors not valuing her and taking her for granted. She is a working mum who tries to leave the horrors of her job at the front door. Her husband feels stifled being a house husband who wants to be in a band. She took a demotion at work and her replacement sees her as a threat so is trying to force her out (or could she be genuinely concerned about the pressure of the job on a heavily pregnant woman?)
We are introduced to the killer at the beginning of the books as they watch and plan. This is quite sinister and prepares us for the murder. The personal aspect of the case for Jackie is emotional and makes her even more determined to stop the killer. Tension and suspense were maintained well over the course of the book and the pace is quite speedy.
The Lost Ones was a gripping detective thriller and police procedural.
Book Description:
The girl is sitting upright, her dark brown hair arranged over her shoulders and her blue, blue eyes staring into the distance. She looks almost peaceful. But her gaze is vacant, and her skin is cold…
When Detective Jackie Cooke is called to the murder scene, she is shocked by what she sees. Missing teenager Chloe Smedley has finally been found – her body left in a cold back yard, carefully posed with her bright blue eyes still open. Jackie lays a protective hand on the baby in her belly, and vows to find the brutal monster who stole Chloe’s future.
When Jackie breaks the news to Chloe’s heartbroken mother, she understands the woman’s cries only too well. Her own brother went missing as a child, the case never solved. Determined to get justice for Chloe and her family, Jackie sets to work, finding footage of the girl waving at someone the day she disappeared. Did Chloe know her killer?
But then a second body is found on the side of a busy motorway, lit up by passing cars. The only link with Chloe is the disturbing way the victim has been posed, and Jackie is convinced she is searching for a dangerous predator. Someone has been hunting missing and vulnerable people for decades, and only Jackie seems to see that they were never lost. They were taken.
Jackie’s boss refuses to believe a serial killer is on the loose and threatens to take her off the case. But then Jackie returns home to find a brightly coloured bracelet on her kitchen counter and her blood turns cold. It’s the same one her brother was wearing when he vanished. Could his disappearance be connected to the murders? Jackie will stop at nothing to catch her killer… unless he finds her first…
An absolutely gripping crime thriller that will keep you racing through the pages. Fans of Kendra Elliott, Rachel McLean and Val McDermid will love The Lost Ones.
Author Bio:
Marnie Riches grew up on a rough estate in north Manchester. Exchanging the spires of nearby Strangeways prison for those of Cambridge University, she gained a Masters in German & Dutch. She has been a punk, a trainee rock star, a pretend artist and professional fundraiser.
Her best-selling, award-winning George McKenzie crime thrillers were inspired by her own time spent in The Netherlands. Dubbed the Martina Cole of the North, she has also authored a series about Manchester’s notorious gangland as well as two books in a mini-series featuring quirky northern PI Bev Saunders.
Detective Jackson Cooke is Marnie’s latest heroine to root for, as she hunts down one of the most brutal killers the north west has ever seen at devastating personal cost.
When she isn’t writing gritty, twisty crime thrillers, Marnie also regularly appears on BBC Radio Manchester, commenting on social media trends and discussing the world of crime fiction. She is a Royal Literary Fund Fellow at Salford University’s Doctoral School and a tutor for the Faber Novel Writing Course.
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A cold case with five dead men, none of them have ever been identified. Amateur sleuth Margot Renard is asked by a friend to investigate and she heads off to seek the truth.
Five Dead Men is the second book to feature Margot and I have previously reviewed the first book, Body on the Rocks.
Margot is invited to investigate and receives help from the local police officer Alia. I really liked the dynamic between the two women. Alia is following in her father’s footsteps but this leaves her in his shadow. She wants to spread her wings and possibly change career while Margot supports her by encouraging her confidence.
There are really only a couple of suspects so the emphasis of the plot is on uncovering the truth and finding evidence. There is a grittiness to the case as Margot finds a connection to a cannabis club in Barcelona. This creates added drama to the plot as the cold case warms up!
I felt that Margot was frequently in danger as the plot progresses and the tension increased. There is little graphic violence or forensic detail as the deaths occurred in the past, although the final chapters include some attacks as the drama escalates.
Five Dead Men in an enjoyable murder mystery.
Five Dead Men
When the bodies of five men are discovered in a secret vault at the villa Belle Époque, suspicion falls upon the villa’s former owner, enigmatic Pascal Deveraux.
Actor, gambler, general good-for-nothing – Pascal has lived a life of privilege and excess. But with no evidence to implicate him in murder, the case goes unsolved.
Called in to investigate the cold case, it’s not long before Margot’s enquiries re-open old wounds. Aided by policière municipale, Alia Leon, the investigation moves swiftly from the smugglers’ trails of the Pyrenees to the cannabis clubs of Barcelona. And it’s there, in the dark medieval streets of the city’s Gothic Quarter, that someone finds a reason to silence her.
Author Bio – Rachel Green is the pen name of a writer from the UK. Rachel has twice been longlisted for both the Bath Novel Award and the BPA First Novel Award, as well as being on the shortlist for the Capital Crime New Voices Award. Rachel lives in a tiny village in England, but travels frequently to the south of France where the stories from the Madame Renard Investigates series are set
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A merciless killer on the street of Southampton, a vengeful killer hiring assassins. DI Helen Grace faces two adversaries at once!
Cat and Mouse is the 11th book in the Helen Grace series but it is the first that I have read. There is an aspect of the plot which I assume relates to a previous book but it works as a stand alone novel.
The plot develops at a fast pace combined with short chapters so I sped through the pages, eager to find out what would happen next! There are two separate plot strands linked by the lead detective Helen Grace. She has an old enemy who has eluded capture and she needs to be constantly vigilant as an attack could happen at any time. Professionally, she is dealing with a series of brutal murders that seem to have no connection except for the manner of death.
Helen also has a big issue with her boss who wants her out. She has the support of her team, especially her sergeant Charlie who is also a close personal friend. But Charlie has her own relationship issues playing on her mind and in the second half of the book her loyalties are divided between her friend and her career.
I really enjoyed this book and loved the twists as the investigation progresses. The murders are shocking and the emotional response of the grieving relatives makes us root for Helen and her team. I also really liked seeing Helen’s enemies’ perspective, and knowing the danger she was in gave a great tension and anticipation.
Cat and Mouse is a fabulous police thriller and I need to read the other books in the series as I love Helen’s character.
CAT AND MOUSE
The new DI Helen Grace thriller
By M.J. Arlidge
Published in hardback on 9th June 2022 by Orion Fiction, priced £12.99
THE LATEST COMPULSIVE AND GRIPPING DI HELEN GRACE THRILLER BY THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER MJ ARLIDGE
When you think you’re safe,
When you think you’re all alone,
That’s when he’ll come for you…
A silent killer stalks the city, targeting those home alone at night – killing without pity or remorse.
As panic spreads, Detective Inspector Helen Grace leads the investigation, but is herself a hunted woman, her every step dogged by a ruthless killer bent on revenge.
As she tracks the murderer, Grace begins to suspect there is a truly shocking home truth that connects these brutal crimes…
Check the windows, lock the doors – this is a twisted page-turner that will prey on your darkest fears, in the way only M.J. Arlidge can.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Matthew (MJ) Arlidge has worked in television for the last twenty years, specialising in high-end drama production, including prime-time crime serials Silent Witness, Torn, The Little House and, most recently, the hit TV show Innocent. His debut thriller, Eeny Meeny, was the UK’s bestselling crime debut of 2014 and has been followed by nine more DI Helen Grace bestsellers including the latest, All Fall Down. In 2015, his audiobook exclusive Six Degrees of Assassination was a number-one bestseller.
TRIGGER WARNING: this book deals with mental health, suicide, self harm and child murder
Emma-Jane Glass is a psychotherapist and has recently written a paper on mothers that kill their children. She begins to receive threatening letters at home and work. Can she stay safe?
Doctor Glass is a psychological thriller which deals with some pretty big issues involving mental health.
Emma-Jane’s character develops over the course of the book. I feel that she loses her confidence as she becomes personally involved in a situation that derives from her professional status. There is plenty of danger and tension as Emma-Jane fears for her safety. However she remains committed to wanting to help people including the person who is threatening her.
There is a sub plot involving Lucy, a nutritionist who shares an office with Emma-Jane. I liked her character much more as she had a vulnerability from the start that I found easier to relate to. This sub plot also had a mental illness angle as the line between an eating disorder and a fetish blurs.
The writing style is incredibly sensuous and sensual at times. The descriptions are vivid with imagery that is a feast for the senses. It also has the effect of creating an emotional response in the reader especially when they relate to the scenes of suicide and child murder. There is a lot of physicality including some sex scenes and deaths. I found the dialogue to have a realistic feel which helped to bring the characters to life.
Doctor Glass is an intense novel about damaged people.
Book blurb:
THE DOCTOR WILL SEE YOU NOW.
Psychotherapist Emma-Jane Glass has prioritized work over leisure for far too long. She does whatever it takes to help her clients, and it’s bordering on professional obsession. When she publishes a controversial article about unstable mothers murdering their children, an anonymous letter arrives on her doorstep:
I will expose you.
Then, I will mutilate you…
Wait for me.
After she is abducted into the night, Doctor Glass finds herself at the mercy of a dangerous sociopath. But being a relentless doctor of the mind, she feels an urge to help her fragile captor, even if it might shatter her sanity—and her life. It becomes a game of survival, and only one mind can win.
For fans of deeply layered thrillers by Ruth Ware, Tana French, and Alex Michaelides comes the newest voice in psychological fiction.
About the author
Louise Worthington writes psychological fiction for fans of deeply layered thrillers and horror.
She has a passion for exploring the complexity and darker side of the human heart in psychologically-layered tales imbued with strong emotional themes and atmospheric settings from poisonous gardens, and medieval dungeons to an isolated property by the sea. Common themes are mental health disorders, family, motherhood, murder and revenge.
After gaining a degree in literature, she taught English in secondary schools and studied psychology. More recently she runs a farm with her husband in Shropshire and tutors teenagers in English.
She is the author of six novels, including the psychological thrillers Rachel’s Garden and The Entrepreneur, and the gothic horror, Rosie Shadow.
Doctor Glass came out on 11th April 2022, the first book in the Glass Minds series.
You can sign up to her newsletter and blog here: https://louiseworthington.co.uk
