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A broken hearted mother struggles to accept her son is sentenced to five years in prison. A Catholic priest wants to break the sanctity of the confessional. A killer is on the loose…

Broken is a wonderful mix of domestic drama, mystical mystery and serial killer thriller.

I LOVED this book! It is really tricky to review this without giving the major plot twist away…

Camilla Bramley-Jones is a middle aged woman whose son Christopher is convicted of fraud. She and her husband take in their grandson. Father Joseph Steedman is a priest with a dilemma and feels that offering his resignation is the only option. These two lives collide in an unexpected and captivating way.

Alongside the personal lives of these two main characters, there is also a serial killer at large. Father Joseph has to respect the sanctity of the confessional but that means letting a killer continue on his twisted mission. This subplot provides an extra layer of interest but does not dominate the plot.

The majority of the book is written through Camilla and Joseph’s first person perspectives. However, there is a section in the middle when we see other viewpoints. I really liked the distinct personalities of Camilla and Joseph, and their thoughts and feelings.

The ending of the book did not answer all of my questions about how or why, but I was completely satisfied with how the characters lives were resolved.

Broken was brilliantly thought provoking and a cracking good read.

I have previously reviewed At Death’s Door by Anna Legat.

Book Blurb

What if you lost the memory of who you are?
If you had to pick up the loose ends of life that wasn’t yours?
If you had to fight somebody else’s battles?
What would YOU do ?

Camilla’s life will never be the same after her beloved son Christopher is sent to prison .

Father Joseph’s faith is sorely tested when a deranged psychopath uses the sanctity of the confessional to gloat about his most heinous crimes.

Both Camilla and Joseph are paralysed by doubt and inaction.

But then their lives collide…

BROKEN explores where it takes a stranger to break through one’s bindings and inhibitions in order to do the right thing.
It is a story of a mother’s love for her son and a priest’s blind adherence to the seal of confession.
It is a story about Fate’s intervention.

Buy Links

Amazon UK https://www.amazon.co.uk/BROKEN-unsettling-domestic-thriller-guaranteed-ebook/dp/B09SRCGYRQ

Amazon US https://www.amazon.com/BROKEN-unsettling-domestic-thriller-guaranteed-ebook/dp/B09SRCGYRQ

Author Bio

Anna Legat is a Wiltshire-based author, best known for her DI Gillian Marsh murder mystery series. Murder isn’t the only thing on her mind. She dabbles in a wide variety of genres, ranging from dark humorous comedy, through magic realism to dystopian. A globe-trotter and Jack-of-all-trades, Anna has been an attorney, legal adviser, a silver-service waitress, a school teacher and a librarian. She has lived in far-flung places all over the world where she delighted in people-watching and collecting precious life experiences for her stories. Anna writes, reads, lives and breathes books and can no longer tell the difference between fact and fiction.

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Website: https://annalegat.com/

Belinda and Harry find themselves embroiled in another murder investigation, this time at Brabourne Gardens which houses a zoo. Harry takes on a role in security whilst Belinda is already on the board, More murders ensue…

Murder at the Gardens is the third book by Lisa Cutts to feature Belinda and Harry. I have read and reviewed book 1, Murder in the Village, but missed book 2 (time to go and read it!)

The main setting for this cosy murder mystery is in a zoo and there are some wonderful animal related incidents including dramatic rescues from enclosures. Belinda is on the board of the zoo whilst Harry takes on a security role but his first day doesn’t go to plan with the discovery of a murder victim.

There is no graphic forensic detail and I enjoyed the cameraderie with their police friend Vince. The plot develops at a reasonable pace and there are several murders which reduce the number of suspects but I still had no idea who the killer was. The style and tone of the writing is light hearted and there is also gentle humour at the expense of Belinda’s hapless brother Marcus.

I love the pairing of Belinda and Harry. She is passionate about animals and he is a retired police officer who once arrested her. The romantic tension between Belinda and Harry is intensified by the arrival of her former fiance Ivan. They haven’t admitted their feelings to each other so Ivan’s presence threatens to push them apart.

Murder at the Gardens is an entertaining and enjoyable cosy murder mystery and I look forward to the next one!

Author Bio:

Lisa Cutts is a full-time detective constable investigating murders for a living. When off duty she writes a fictitious version of her day job. She lives and works within the county of Kent with her husband and Labrador.

She is the author of the DC Nina Foster books, Never Forget and Remember, Remember. Never Forgot was longlisted for the Waverton Good Read Award 2013 and the winner of the Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Award 2014 for Best Thriller. She has also written four books in the East Rise Incident Room series, Mercy Killing, Buried Secrets, Lost Lives and Don’t Trust Him. All four centre around DI Harry Powell and his Major Crime Team battling to solve the latest murders within the county. Currently she is writing the Little Challham mysteries, cosy mysteries set in a fictional village in Kent.

She writes a monthly column, Behind the Tape, for Writing Magazine answering police procedural questions from other writers. In early 2016, she was honoured to become the Patron of Rochester Literature Festival and help establish Murderous Medway, an annual crime fiction festival packed full of amazing author panels. As well as being on BBC Radio 4’s Open Book, Lisa has twice appeared on This Morning to chat about TV crime dramas Broadchurch and Line of Duty.

https://www.facebook.com/lisa.cutts.505/

https://www.instagram.com/lisa_cutts/

https://twitter.com/LisaCuttsAuthor

Buy Link:

Amazon: https://geni.us/B09MLY2NQNsocial

1907. The vicar’s housemaid is murdered one stormy night. Local police constable William Palmer is desperate to solve the case and progress his career as well as impress his sweetheart Alice. There are three main suspects but all seem to have an alibi…

The Wickham Market Murder is the first in a new series of novellas to feature William Palmer and Inspector Bloomfield.

Evelyn Roberts is stabbed to death at the Wickham Market vicarage. She was unmarried and six months pregnant so the child’s father is immediately assumed to have a strong motive, but who could it be? Each of the suspects has an alibi so Palmer is forced to rely on the expertise of Inspector Bloomfield who arrives from Ipswich.

I really liked William Palmer’s character. He is keen and eager to impress his community as well as his superior officer. Bloomfield seemed over confident to me and I felt he was more interested in making an arrest than finding the killer. The focus was more on the police characters and their procedures in the 1900s than the victim or suspects.

The style of writing is quite modern and almost chatty. This felt a little anachronistic with the time period the novella is set in but I quite liked it as it felt quirky. There were a couple of final twists that I was pleased I had managed to guess. The ending is quite heartbreaking and I felt so emotional about the use of capital punishment in this case.

The Wickham Market Murder was an entertaining novella and I look forward to reading about William’s next case and finding out if his romance with Alice moves on.

Book Blurb

Suffolk, 1907. Wickham Market’s local constable William Palmer spends his days yearning to solve a significant case so he can earn his detective’s badge.

But Palmer is torn, because he is also in love with the school mistress Alice Kemp who doesn’t want to leave the village.

One night, the night of a dramatic storm, there is a murder. A housemaid – Evelyn Maud Roberts – is found stabbed to death at the local vicarage.

Palmer has his chance to make a name for himself.

The local doctor declares that Evelyn was six months pregnant.

And the vicar’s daughter, Charlotte Mellor, names three men who may have reason to commit murder; Walter Fisk, soon-to-be-master at the workhouse; Albert Nunn, the postman; Frederick Hawes, the slow-witted village boy in love with Evelyn.

Palmer investigates. But he only has so much time before Inspector Bloomfield – the veteran detective from Suffolk Police – arrives from Ipswich to take over the case.

And before the killer strikes again.

Buy Links

Amazon UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Wickham-Market-Murder-Bloomfield-Palmer-ebook/dp/B09SM3MNNR

Amazon US – https://www.amazon.com/Wickham-Market-Murder-Bloomfield-Palmer-ebook/dp/B09SM3MNNR

Author Bio

Iain Maitland is the author of three previous psych thrillers, The Scribbler (2020), Mr Todd’s Reckoning (2019) and Sweet William (2017), all published by Contraband, an imprint of Saraband. Mr Todd’s Reckoning is coming to the big screen in 2023.

Iain is also the author of two memoirs, Dear Michael, Love Dad (Hodder, 2016), a book of letters written to his eldest son who experienced depression and anorexia, and (co-authored with Michael) Out Of The Madhouse (Jessica Kingsley, 2018).

He is also an Ambassador for Stem4, the teenage mental health charity. He talks regularly about mental health issues in schools and colleges and workplaces.

Find out more about Iain at www.iainmaitland.net and twitter.com/iainmaitland

Follow him at:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/iainmaitland

Website: www.iainmaitland.net

DI Nash has a series of seemingly unrelated cases to investigate: drugs, arson and murder. The circumstances of each case is unusual and Mike’s unique thought process will be vital to catch the killer…

Burial Grounds is the 14th book to feature Mike Nash and his team. However it is the first book by this author that I have read and now I want to catch up!

Mike Nash is a great lead detective with a gift for making unlikely connections that then go on to solve investigations. He has a strong relationship with his whole team and is easy to like. I want to read the previous books to see how these relationships formed and how Mike’s character has developed. He has a settled home life and an understanding partner who copes with his frequent absence at mealtimes!

I liked the way that this book doesn’t feature just one crime as this felt realistic. The whole team are involved in a range of investigations so there are plenty of twists as links are explored. This makes the plot crammed full of the process of each case. The forensic detail is not particularly graphic and the procedural nature of police cases takes precedence.

Burial Grounds is an enjoyable police and crime novel.

BURIAL GROUNDS BY BILL KITSON

Detective Mike Nash thought that moving back to Yorkshire from London would give him a quieter life. Little did he know . . .

A young woman killed in a hit-and-run. A naked body in the cemetery. A local woman reported missing.

A young mother-to-be out for an evening jog is callously struck down in a hit-and-run.

Three weeks later, Detective Mike Nash is called out to the local cemetery. A naked body has been found — a body which definitely shouldn’t be there — placed face down on a grave.

The post-mortem reveals that the victim was restrained with manacles, and then drowned, his body kept upside-down in water for several days after death.

It’s soon established that the dead man was Andrew Derrick, who worked for a local IT company. Quiet, well-mannered, he kept himself to himself. The motive for his murder is a mystery.

Then a second body turns up in the cemetery, killed in the same macabre way. And another employee from the company is reported missing.

What connects them? DI Nash pieces the clues together . . . and finds himself on the trail of a ruthless killer who will stop at nothing to ensure the truth remains hidden.

A breathtaking crime thriller perfect for fans of Ian Rankin, J. R. Ellis, L. J. Ross, Angela Marsons, Janice Frost, David J. Gatward, J.D. Kirk, Helen H. Durrant, Joy Ellis, Biba Pearce, D.S. Butler or Peter Robinson.

WHAT READERS ARE SAYING ABOUT BILL KITSON:

 “Whenever I put it down, I couldn’t wait to pick it back up and start again.” Christine

 “I enjoyed this story so much that I finished it within a day. A maze full of surprises that readers of this author should be happy with. I honestly couldn’t fault it.” Kindle Customer

 “Absolutely suburb read, this author is incredible.” Cynthia D.

 “Another excellent read from the pen of Bill Kitson.” Keith H.

MIKE NASH

A highly talented detective, he was a rising star in the Metropolitan Police. Following a particularly gruesome case involving a sadistic serial killer, Nash turns down the chance of promotion and heads back to his native county of Yorkshire. He hopes that returning to his roots will bring peace of mind. However, although the pace of life seems gentler, the crimes prove no less horrific. His skills are tested to the limit by a series of violent crimes that threaten to ruin his plans for a more relaxed lifestyle. Nor is his secret ambition to settle down made any easier by his one weakness, a seemingly unquenchable thirst for female company. That is, until . . . ?

LOCATION

The books are set in a fictional rural North Yorkshire with a scattering of market towns, many small villages and countryside that changes from high moorland with dramatic crags, mountain tarns and sparse vegetation, to the gentler, lush agricultural land lower down the valley that is bisected by the river Helm. The town of Helmsdale is where Mike Nash and his team are based, in a sub-division of their headquarters in the larger town of Netherdale. Further to the west is Bishopton, also part of the hub our detectives cover.

BILL KITSON

Bill Kitson was born in Bradford, West Yorkshire. His father, a wool merchant, was a fan of crime books giving Bill access to his diverse thriller collection from a young age.

Educated at Ashville College, Bill worked in the family business before spending over thirty years as a bank executive. A keen cricketer and sportsman, the highlight of his career came when he umpired a one-day international at Lords.

He and his wife now live in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, where he writes crime, romance, and general fiction. Bill’s interests include Cricket, Crime, Crete, Cookery, Cryptic crosswords – and also Alliteration.

Photo Credit: J Brian Beadle

BOOKS BY BILL KITSON

DETECTIVE MIKE NASH THRILLER SERIES:

• WHAT LIES BENEATH

• VANISH WITHOUT TRACE

• PLAYING WITH FIRE

• KILLING CHRISTMAS

• SLASH KILLER

• ALONE WITH A KILLER

• BLOOD DIAMOND

• DEAD & GONE

• HIDE & SEEK

• RUNNING SCARED

• THE BLEEDING HEART KILLER

• CHAIN REACTION

• CUT-THROAT

• BURIAL GROUNDS

• DETECTIVE MIKE NASH BOOKS 1–5 BOX SET

• JOFFE BOOKS MURDER MYSTERY & SUSPENSE SHORT STORY COLLECTION

THE COWGILL FAMILY SAGA SERIES:

• BROTHERS AND SISTERS OF BYLAND CRESCENT

• STORM CLOUDS OVER BYLAND CRESCENT

• COMING HOME TO BYLAND CRESCENT

FOLLOW BILL ON

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GOODREADS

1940 Anya and Nikolai are trained as spies in Russia and sent to England. Present day: Laura discovers a hidden message in the walled garden of a stately home and wants to solve the mystery in order to forget her own personal problems…

Garden of Secrets is a dual timeline novel set in the 1940s and present day. The majority of the novel is set in the UK but some of the past timeline is set in Russia.

For personal reasons, Anya and Nikolai are both compelled to train to be spies. Russia is fighting alongside Nazi Germany but whilst on their mission, the political situation shifts as Russia and Germany become enemies. Their situation becomes compromised and the pair are desperate to stay together as well as not be shot as traitors.

In the present day Laura is dealing with an ex who cheated on her. Liam won’t take no for an answer but she adores the freedom of her work in the walled garden where she finds a secret buried beneath the willow tree. She begins hunting for further clues to explain the mystery and this helps to distract her from her broken heart.

I enjoyed both timelines equally and liked the historical mystery that unites the two. The pace of this book is rather slow to allow for the development of the characters who are presented through alternating chapters from each perspective. Anya and Nikolai do not reach England until halfway through the book but the frisson on romantic tension is there from the start. Laura’s tangled emotional issues frustrated me a little as she puts the happiness of others ahead of her own.

Garden of Secrets is an enjoyable dual timeline historical novel.

I have previously reviewed Under a Sky on Fire, and When The Nightingale Sings by Suzanne Kelman.

1940, England: A heart-breaking, unforgettable and powerful story about love, wartime secrets, and betrayal. Perfect for fans of Rhys Bowen’s The Victory Garden and Kristin Hannah’s The Nightingale.

When Anya is sent to rural England to work as a spy, she’s glad to escape a terrifying situation at home in war-torn Russia. But as she settles into life as a land girl, she fears she’s made a terrible mistake.

With her life at risk every day, she can only turn to her fellow informer, Nikolai, who she finds herself impossibly drawn to. They both desperately want to join the fight against the Nazis and when they are told Russia has switched allegiance, they start to believe their love might stand a chance.

But no one can ever know their secret history, and being together puts them in the gravest danger. So they devise a plan. If they’re ever separated, they will find their way back to each other. They just have to follow a series of secret coded messages. Clues no one else could possibly understand. Starting with a small key, left in the place that has become most precious to them: the secret garden.

Now, England: When Laura agrees to restore a beautiful garden in the grounds of an English stately home she sees the opportunity for a new start, away from heartbreak. But when she finds a box buried under the weeping willow tree, she is spellbound by its contents – a key and a cryptic note. As she begins to piece together the fragments of a love story that stretches across wartime Europe, Laura doesn’t realise it, but she is embarking on an unforgettable journey. One which will change her own life forever.

Author Bio:

Suzanne Kelman is a 2015 Academy of Motion Pictures Nicholl Finalist, Multi-Award-Winning Screenwriter and a Film Producer. As well as working in film she is also an International Amazon Bestselling Fiction Author of the Southlea Bay Series – The Rejected Writers’ Book Club, Rejected Writers Take the Stage and The Rejected Writers’ Christmas Wedding. Born in the United Kingdom, she now resides in Washington State.

https://www.suzannekelmanauthor.com/

https://www.facebook.com/suzkelman

https://www.instagram.com/suzkelman/

https://twitter.com/suzkelman

Buy Link:

Amazon: https://geni.us/B09RGD1VMWsocial

Audio:

UK: zpr.io/ZHdEfdPFKNie
US: zpr.io/hyTY6z7Us5Jd

Listen to a sample here:

https://soundcloud.com/bookouture/garden-of-secrets-by-suzanne-kelman-narrated-by-alison-campbell