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A spate of suicides among young people and DCI Jude Satterthwaite is concerned for the safety of his younger brother Mikey. A blogger and social media may be encouraging a positive image of suicide but is there something more sinister and deliberate behind the deaths…?

Death in the Woods is the sixth book in Jo Allen’s Jude Satterthwaite series and I have previously reviewed book 5: Death on the Lake.

This is quite a slow burner of a case as Jude and his team becoming increasingly concerned by a series of unconnected suicides. There is no direct evidence of wrongdoing and no obvious crime has been committed. But suspicions are raised about a local website and social media that seems to be encouraging further deaths by glamorising them.

The personal side to Jude’s life comes to the fore again as he continues to worry about his younger brother Mikey. I assume their past has been covered in previous books but thre is enough background information to let us understand his emotional  repsonse. Combined with this is his tangled relationship with fellow officer Ashleigh which is complicated by both their ex partners.

The book is written in the third person so we get a level of objectivity with the sensitive content. The setting is almost like an extra charcater as the locations are vividly described.

Death in the Woods carefully balances the police procedural plot with the personal life of the lead detective.

Death in the Woods

A series of copycat suicides, prompted by a mysterious online blogger, causes DCI Jude Satterthwaite more problems than usual, intensifying his concerns about his troublesome younger brother, Mikey. Along with his partner, Ashleigh O’Halloran, and a local psychiatrist, Vanessa Wood, Jude struggles to find the identity of the malicious troll gaslighting young people to their deaths. The investigation stirs grievances both old and new. What is the connection with the hippies camped near the Long Meg stone circle? Could these suicides have any connection with a decades old cold case? And, for Jude, the most crucial question of all. Is it personal — and could Mikey be the final target?

Purchase Links

Amazon UK https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09BG9BY1N

Amazon US https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09BG9BY1N

Author Bio –

Jo Allen was born in Wolverhampton and is a graduate of Edinburgh, Strathclyde and the Open University, with undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in geography and Earth science. She’s been writing for pleasure and publication for as long as she can remember. After a career in economic consultancy she took up writing and was first published under the name Jennifer Young, in genres of short stories, romance and romantic suspense. She wrote online articles on travel and on her favourite academic subject, Earth science. In 2017 she took the plunge and began writing the genre she most likes to read — crime.

Jo lives in the English Lakes, where the DCI Satterthwaite series is set. In common with all her favourite characters, she loves football (she’s a season ticket holder with her beloved Wolverhampton Wanderers) and cats.

Social Media Links –

https://www.facebook.com/JoAllenAuthor

https://twitter.com/JoAllenAuthor

https://www.instagram.com/joallenauthor/

Blake Claremont disappeared 10 years ago but now arrives home on the day of her father’s funeral. But is she really Blake? A Met Detective is in town: John Byron is visiting his former student PC Jane Hudson but does he have an ulterior motive for being there?

The Last Time She Died is a police and crime thriller and the cover hints that this is the start of a new series.

John Byron is on medical leave from his career in the Met. He travels to visit his former student Jane in Derbyshire and attend the funeral of local dignitary Gideon Fitzroy. Everyone is shocked when Blake Claremont, Gideon’s daughter returns after a whole decade away. Where has she been and why is she back?

Byron is unofficially investigating Gideon’s death but not letting the local police know. Gideon had left his role as MP quite suddenly before his death in a car crash. The crash was declared an accident but Byron’s superiors want to be sure. He is therefore on hand as events unfold with Blake’s reappearance.

The book is written in the third person and we see events covering a wide range of characters so that we can see their perspectives. There is plenty of tension as Blake’s reappearance threatens the stability of Gideon’s second family especially with a considerable inheritance at stake. Blake’s identity is in doubt and we see her mysterious conversations with other peripheral characters that make us question her motives.

The Last Time She Died has plenty of mystery strands wound together to make an intriguing plot. I enjoyed the developing relationship between Byron and Blake and look forward to the next book.

MEDIA PACK

Book: The Last Time She Died

Author: Zoë Sharp

Pub Day: Oct 20th 2021

Buy Links: 

Amazon: https://geni.us/B09B3JTTZWcover 

Apple: http://ow.ly/G6bu50FDsTL 

Kobo: http://ow.ly/ZvlX50FDsRy 

Google: http://ow.ly/Y7UZ50FEkwU

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Audible: 

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https://soundcloud.com/bookouture/the-last-time-she-died-by-zoe-sharp-narrated-by-tamsin-kennard

About the Book: 

She came back on the day of her father’s funeral, ten years after she vanished. But she can’t be who she says she is…

When Blake disappeared as a teenager, on a cold dark night, her father never reported her missing. She is presumed dead.

Now, ten years later, a young woman with white-blonde hair sits comfortably in the family living room and smiles at the shocked faces around her.

“Don’t you recognise me?” she says. “I’m Blake.”

Detective John Byron isn’t sure whether she’s telling the truth. But as he investigates, he soon realises no one is happy to see her.

And the people who should be welcoming her back with open arms know she can’t be Blake. Because they killed her the night she vanished…

Didn’t they?

From the bestselling author of the Charlie Fox books, The Last Time She Died will have you gripped until the last mind-blowing page. Fans of Cara Hunter, Kendra Elliot and Rachel Abbott will love this action-packed crime thriller.

Author Bio and Social Media 

Jess Harper and her mother have an incredibly close relationship. Too close, too insular, too unhealthy. Jess has finally found romance and freedom in the form of plumber Adam but her mother doesn’t approve. Then Adam goes missing, presumed dead…

The Perfect Daughter is an intense psychological thriller and is the first book that I have read by this author. It won’t be the last!

Ooh this book had my hackles up from the first pages! Poor Jess is belittled and controlled by her mother but is helpless to stand up for herself. She has been continually undermined and feels unlovable and unworthy. However, she sees her mother’s words and actions as evidence of love especially as her mum has protected her on numerous occasions.

The character of Jess’ mother Abigail is so well developed and is almost villainous from the start. Her insidiously controlling behaviour is deeply disturbing and I was desperate to yell at Jess to escape. Jess is likable but has no self confidence or friends, having internalised her mother’s negativity.

The book is written using alternating chapters of the past and present until the final quarter which stays in the present day. Jess is devastated when Adam’s van is discovered at the bottom of a cliff but there is no sign of a body yet. It soon becomes clear that their relationship had struggled and she finds herself a suspect as the police investigate. There are plenty of twists and, although I did guess most of them, I could not predict the ending!

The Perfect Daughter was a real page turner as truth and lies spiral together for a fascinating plot.

The Perfect Daughter book blurb:

The perfect daughter…

Jess Harper has spent her whole life trying to make her mum, Abigail happy and proud. And everything Jess does, from the clothes she wears, the job she has, the men she dates, are all approved by Abigail first.

The perfect boyfriend…

So when Jess announces that she has a new man in her life – plumber Adam – Abigail is less than impressed. ‘A plumber? Really, Jessica….’ Adam encourages Jess to break free from her mum’s manipulation, can’t she see what’s happening?

The perfect mother….

But Abigail is only doing these things to keep Jess safe, to protect her from getting hurt again…isn’t she?

Or the perfect liar?

Jess, caught in the middle, doesn’t know who to believe or trust. And then Adam vanishes without trace.

Now Jess is the police’s prime suspect and they want to know if Jess really is as perfect as she seems….

A gripping new psychological thriller for fans of Sue Watson, Shalini Boland and S.E.Lynes

Purchase Link – https://amzn.to/2WhQ8bE

Author Bio –

Alex Stone, originally an accountant from the West Midlands, is now a psychological suspense writer based in Dorset. This beautiful and dramatic coastline is the inspiration and setting for her novels. She was awarded the Katie Fforde Bursary in 2019 and her debut thriller The Perfect Daughter will be published by  Boldwood in October 2021.

Social Media Links – .

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/AlexStoneWriter

Twitter  https://twitter.com/AlexStoneAuthor

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/AlexStoneAuthor/

DCI Whitney Walker is on leave following the arrival of her granddaughter. However, her dedication to her work leads her to return early so that she can investigate the multiple murders of a family including three teenagers.

Dark Secrets is the 11th book to feature Whitney Walker and Georgina Cavendish. It is the first book that I have read by this author but I have now got the first 10 books to review, woohoo!

Arriving new to the series, I felt an instant affinity with Whitney Walker in the opening chapters. Her devotion to her family is immediately obvious. She has a lovely sense of humour and a strong friendship with Georgina Cavendish. George has a less positive relationship with her family and again I felt this created a realism to her character which made her instantly relatable.

The two lead characters have an irritable pathologist to contend with and a tragic and confusing case to investigate. Five members of a family are discovered dead, staged to sit around a table for a final meal they never ate. There are no obvious signs to indicate cause of death which is highly unusual.

However, professional and personal tensions soon emerge as it is discovered that the family are related to Whitney’s unpleasant superior officer. The author has carefully balanced the complexities of the criminal investigation with the personal stories of the police team. There are plenty of twists in the case and Whitney and George are determined and thorough in their approach in order to find justice for the victims.

Dark Secrets is a fab crime and police novel and I can’t wait to catch up with the characters’ lives in the first books in the series.

Book Blurb :-

Dark Secrets: A Cavendish & Walker Novel – Book 11

An uninvited guest…a deadly secret….and a terrible crime.

When a well-loved family of five are found dead sitting around their dining table with an untouched meal in front of them, it sends shockwaves throughout the community.

Was it a murder suicide, or was someone else involved?

It’s one of DCI Whitney Walker’s most baffling cases, and even with the help of forensic psychologist Dr Georgina Cavendish, they struggle to find any clues or motives to help them catch the killer. But with a community in mourning and growing pressure to get answers, Cavendish and Walker are forced to go deeper into a murderer’s mind than they’ve ever gone before.

Author bio:

Sally Rigby was born in Northampton, in the UK. She has always had the travel bug, and after living in both Manchester and London, eventually moved overseas. From 2001 she has lived with her family in New Zealand (apart from five years in Australia), which she considers to be the most beautiful place in the world.

After writing young adult fiction for many years, under a pen name, Sally decided to move into crime fiction. Her Cavendish & Walker series brings together two headstrong, and very different, women – DCI Whitney Walker, and forensic psychologist Dr Georgina Cavendish. Sally has a background in education, and has always loved crime fiction books, films and TV programmes. She has a particular fascination with the psychology of serial killers.

Follow her at:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Sally-Rigby-131414630527848
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sally.rigby.author/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/SallyRigby4

Purchase Links

Amazon UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B08ZLJKB46

Amazon US – https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08ZLJKB46/

Nurse Kate Palmer and her boyfriend Woody Forrest, a former police officer, are guests at a wedding when the groom drops dead at the altar. Kate desperately tries to save the groom but he is declared dead at the scene. A post mortem reveals poison… Kate then discovers that someone had previously tried to sabotage the wedding and other village weddings had been cancelled too…

A Body at the Altar is the 4th book to feature amateur sleuth Kate Palmer. I have previously reviewed the other books in the series: A Body In The Village Hall, A Body In Seaview Grange, and A Body at the Tea Rooms.

Kate cannot resist a new investigation especially as she feels threatened by the new police officer that her boyfriend seems friendly with. I love that these characters are in their 60s but they still have emotional intrigues and are well rounded and authentic. I hope I still have Kate’s energy in 20 years!

There are plenty of suspects as the plot unfolds. Several weddings have been cancelled and a poison pen letter writer has successfully destroyed their relationships. Kate searches for possible clues which allows the village and peripheral characters to be brought to the forefront. She needs to uncover motive to lead her to the killer but why would anyone want to sabotage weddings?

Kate’s relationships play a key role again. Her jealousy and own self doubt cast a shadow over her romance with Woody Forrest. Meanwhile her sister Angie is more settled and drinking less so I felt that their relationship was strengthened.

A Body at the Altar is a great addition to the series. This latest case has all the features of classic murder mysteries especially the poison pen letters and poison itself. I would LOVE to see these cosy mysteries turned into a TV series!

Author Bio:

Aged 18, Dee arrived in London from Scotland and typed her way round the West End for a couple of years before joining BOAC (forerunner of British Airways) in Passenger Services for 2 years and then as a stewardess for 8 years.

She has worked in Market Research, Sales and at the Thames TV Studios when they had the franchise.

Dee has since relocated to Cornwall, where she spent 10 years running B&Bs, and only began writing when she was over 70!

Married twice, she has one son and two grandsons.

https://twitter.com/dmacdonaldauth

Buy Link:

Amazon: https://bit.ly/3mJXoXy