TRIGGER WARNING: domestic violence
Sally’s husband Gordon is violent and controlling. She manages to escape one night and the only place she can turn is to her estranged family. Her father and uncle reject her but her sister Alison is delighted to be reunited. But Gordon refuses to let her go…
The Family Home is an intense psychological thriller set in the UK.
The opening chapter is pretty horrific. Sally’s fear was so palpable that I felt scared for her. The writing was so vivid and powerful yet incredibly difficult to read. Gordon is terrifying and I was desperate for Sally to run away. But out fo the frying pan and into the fire, as they say! She heads to her estranged family where she finds her father battling with dementia and she is rejected due to her mother’s past. Luckily she has her half sister Alison to rely on and stick up for her. But she doesn’t feel welcome and is living in fear that Gordon will find her, and he does…
The majority of the book is written from Sally’s perspective but there are some chapters that focus on Gordon. These heighten the tension as we realise he will stop at nothing. As well as her difficult present situation, Sally suffers from flashbacks and nightmares about the past. The writing is vivid throughout the book and I found that I cared about Sally and wanted her to find happiness after so much pain.
There are big hints about what may have happened decades ago and I did guess the twists. I thought that there was a bit too much repetition (many references to Sally looking like her mother, Alison and Peter arguing etc) which slowed the pace of the book a little. My credulity was stretched and the ending was quite abrupt.
The Family Home is very intense and the issue of domestic violence was handled very sensitively but explicitly.
The Family Home
IS BLOOD ALWAYS THICKER THAN WATER?
Sally has lived in fear of her husband long enough. But after twenty years of suffering, she has been left with nothing of her own and no one to turn to – except her estranged sister, Alison.
When Alison agrees to help Sally escape, she knows she must return to the one place she was told never to show her face again – the family home – and confront her father once more.
But soon, Sally begins to suspect that all is not as it seems, and as she is forced to face the ghosts of the past, she discovers there may be secrets hidden in her own memory that are best left buried . . .
A twisting and compulsive page-turner, with a shocking twist. If you love Keri Beevis, L H Stacey and K. L. Slater, you’ll love The Family Home.
Purchase Links
Author Bio – Born and raised in South East London, Lorraine lived and worked in South Africa, on the Island of Gozo and in France before settling on the Costa del Sol in Spain. She lives with her partner in a traditional Spanish village inland from the coast and enjoys sampling the regional dishes and ever-changing tapas in the local bars. Her knowledge of Spanish is expanding. To stop her waistline from doing the same, she runs five times a week.
Lorraine is the author of the D.I. Sterling series and two psychological thrillers, The Guest and The Family Home.
Social Media Links –
1954, Eva is called upon to act as a translator when a Greek Cypriot woman is arrested on suspicion of murdering her daughter in law. Zina is relying on Eva to help her but will her translation help the prosecution or defence?
The Unspeakable Acts of Zina Pavlou is based on a true crime story (don’t search in case of spoilers!)
Zina has travelled from her home country to England to live with her son and his family. There is instant conflict with her daughter in law and a few months later Zina is accused of her murder. Eva earns extra money acting as a translator for the police and is quickly immersed in Zina’s case.
I was swept up in the story of these two women. My emotions were mixed and evolved over the course of the book. Zina is put in an awkward situation as culture and family clash. The evidence against her is damning but she has been treated badly by her family. I felt sorry for her although her stubbornness added to her problems. The police want a quick conviction so are not seeking other suspects or motives. Eva has personal issues at home as well as her increasingly emotional involvement with Zina’s case.
The book is written in the present day to show Zina and Eva meeting and then Zina’s experiences in the recent past to show the lead up to the murder. The 1950s was brought to life vividly and the attitudes of the period underpinned the plot effectively. I thought that the author has researched the era and the case thoroughly to bring the characters and their situations to life.
The Unspeakable Acts of Zina Pavlou is a fascinating historical crime drama.
The Unspeakable Acts of Zina Pavlou
THEY HAVE TOLD SO MANY LIES ABOUT ME.
London, 1954. Zina Pavlou, a Cypriot grandmother, waits quietly in the custody of the Metropolitan police. She can’t speak their language, but she understands what their wary looks mean: she has been accused of the brutal murder of her daughter-in-law.
Eva Georgiou, Greek interpreter for the Met, knows how it feels to be voiceless as an immigrant woman. While she works as Zina’s translator, her obsession with the case deepens, and so too does her bond with the accused murderer.
Zina can’t speak for herself. She can’t clear her own name. All she can do is wait for the world to decide…
IS SHE A VICTIM? OR IS SHE A KILLER?
A compelling historical crime novel set in the Greek diaspora of 1950s London – that’s inspired by a true story – The Unspeakable Acts of Zina Pavlou is perfect for fans of Erin Kelly, Sara Collins, and Jessie Burton.
Author Bio
Eleni Kyriacou is an award-winning editor and journalist. Her writing has appeared in the Guardian, the Observer, Grazia, and Red, among others. She’s the daughter of Greek Cypriot immigrant parents, and her debut novel, She Came To Stay, was published in 2020. Follow her on and www.elenikwriter.com
Social Media Links –
AUTHOR Social Handles
Twitter: @EleniKWriter
Facebook: Elenikwriter
Website: www.elenikwriter.com
TRIGGER WARNING: domestic abuse
Lena is adjusting to a change in circumstances. Her boyfriend cheated on her and she was forced to find a new home. Things don’t run smoothly and something sinister is going on in her new street with poison pen letters and random acts of vandalism that start when she moves in. Will Lena be the next target or is she to blame?
Don’t Let Her In is a psychological thriller set in the UK.
Goodness, I felt extremes of emotion with this book! Gareth has treated Lena shabbily and her best friend Kate takes her for granted. But Lena allows herself to be treated like a doormat so my sympathy was limited. There are other despicable characters in the book as we meet Lena’s new neighbours.
The book is written from multiple points of view in the first person so we can see emotions and actions clearly. However the majority of the book centres on Lena. I don’t know if the varied first person perspectives were necessary although young Jolyon’s narrative was absolutely heartbreaking as he tries to make sense of his father’s violence.
There are some huge twists and I did guess them as there are some big hints. The plot has several strands to bring together (poison pen letters, Lena’s personal life, a murder, her neighbours’ secrets) and I thought everything resolved although my credulity was stretched considerably.
Don’t Let Her In is an enjoyable psychological thriller about secrets and lies in a small community.
Don’t Let Her In
The letters drop onto every doormat…
Lena just moved to Mandalay Close. She needed a new start, since her boyfriend cheated her out of the home and happy-ever-after she’d believed they were always going to share.
But on the day Lena moves in, letters begin to arrive for all her new neighbours. Letters that promise to expose everyone’s deepest, darkest secrets. Every house has received one – except for Lena’s.
Someone clearly wants to implicate her, to ruin her new life and turn everyone against her. She’s made an enemy, but who, and why? Everyone seems so nice, so trustworthy. So normal.
Except for one. And as bad things begin to happen and her life rapidly spins out of control, Lena finds herself cursing the day she moved to Mandalay Close. She can’t believe this is happening to her, because she’s not a bad person, is she? Even though she does have secrets of her own, secrets that she’s not willing to share with anyone…
A completely jaw-dropping psychological thriller, perfect for fans of K.L. Slater, Lisa Jewell and Sue Watson.
Author Bio –
Joanne Ryan is the author of several well-reviewed psychological thrillers. Previously published by Tamarillas Press, she lives in Wiltshire. Her first thriller for Boldwood is Keep Your Friends Close.
Social Media Links –
It is December 1999 and the world waits with trepidation for the new year and millennium bug. Alex can’t help using the Finding Machine to help save the life of a teen one icy night. But it has serious consequences for her job and relationship…
The Millennium Affair is the sequel to The Finding Machine. There are mentions of events in the previous book and the relationship development between the characters but no major spoilers (read the first book: it’s fab!)
Alex is keen to use the Finding Machine for good but is fearful that the machine will be taken away from her so can only use it in secret. However the Millennium Bug may cause the machine to glitch and some of the ageing parts need replacing. She needs to decide who she can trust as scientists insist she hand over the machine to them. Her father entrusted the machine to her but, now she has fulfilled his mission, she wants to use it for good.
Alex loses her job for breaking protocol over the missing person rescue. However, she gets an opportunity to join DC Henry Longhurst as he investigates cold cases. Her involvement and use of the machine locates a body and the pair are soon searching for a killer who has struck again in the intervening years. Alex needs to reassess her romantic relationship. Antony is acting oddly and she doesn’t feel supported. She is attracted to Henry and he believes in her but she can’t be totally honest with him about the machine.
I was totally invested in this story, transported back to those fearful yet exciting days as we approached the year 2000. The murder mystery element of the book as well as the personal life of Alex were both engaging. There are lots of twists as the plot progresses and I had no idea which way things would lead. Alex has huge dilemmas to contend with and I enjoyed her thought processes as she tries to stay true to herself and her father’s legacy.
The Millennium Affair is a delightful book, and I loved the plot and characters as well as the ‘historical’ setting (!) of 25 years ago. I am privileged to know the author (who is lovely!) and this book is even better than the first, so congratulations Lucy!
Book blurb:
TWO LOVE RIVALS… A GLITCH IN THE FINDING MACHINE… AND A KILLER COLD CASE
December 1999.
Alex Martin has put the Finding Machine into storage. All she wants is a quiet life. But when a panicked teen phones for help on the coldest night of the year, Alex dusts off the machine and breaks every rule in the book to save him. In an instant, her life is thrown into chaos, she’s fired from the job she loves, and her relationship with Antony is stretched to breaking point.
The rescue attracts the attention of Detective Henry Longhurst, who is intrigued by Alex’s method of finding people. He wants her help to catch an elusive murderer who keeps changing his identity. But there’s a problem—the finding machine is glitching and could stop working any moment. With the new Millennium around the corner, Alex must race against the clock to fix her heart and find the faceless villain before he strikes again. Tick Tock.
Sara and Lainey always planned to take another trip together but life and then death gets in the way. Lainey dies and leaves money and her ashes to Sara with specific instructions to scatter them in Italy. Can Sara enjoy her freedom or will reality drag her down…?
Escape to the Rome Apartment is the third book in the series and I have previously read and reviewed the first book, The Rome Apartment. Some of the characters feature in this book but there are no major plot spoilers.
Ooh I was annoyed! Poor Sara has a job she hates and a family who take her for granted. She has split up from her husband but they still live together and she skivvies around after him and her grown up sons. Of course, I fully believe that people will only treat you badly if you let them and this is a theme that threads through the book as Sara realises she should have more power and freedom in her relationships.
Most of the book is set in the present to show Sara’s experience in Italy (she doesn’t move to Rome or the apartment until halfway so I was starting to think the title didn’t fit!) There are some chapters to show Sara’s past relationship with an Italian man and this helps us to understand how she ended up stuck with Declan, accepting second best.
Ronnie and Marina remain a force to be reckoned with from the earlier books. Their insight and determination reinforces how essential it is to grab every second of life, be true to yourself and value what is important. I felt so sorry for Sara that it takes the death of her friend for her to truly live herself.
Escape to the Rome Apartment is a light hearted but deeply profound book about making the most of life’s opportunities.
Book Description:
Sara’s eyes fill with tears as she reads the letter, her last words from her dearest friend: ‘I’m buying you your freedom. You don’t need to ask your husband’s permission and you have to put yourself first for once. Have an incredible adventure before it’s too late for both of us…’
Sara has lost her zest for life. Trapped sharing a house with her soon-to-be-ex-husband, with grown-up children who still need her but take her for granted, working in a job where her boss bullies her, the final straw is the heartbreak of losing her beloved best friend Lainey.
But Lainey’s death could be the beginning of Sara’s new life… as the last gift Lainey gives to her friend is a sum of money and a request: that Sara travels to Italy, the scene of the pair’s youthful adventures, and scatters Lainey’s ashes on the beach at Portofino.
For once, Sara decides to be brave. She quits her job, tells her family they can manage without her, and sets off on the trip of a lifetime. Swept up by new friends and relishing the freedom of being away from home in beautiful Florence, Sara finds herself drawn to Carlo. Handsome and charming, he is everything Sara finds it so hard to be: carefree, impulsive, living in the moment without worrying about the future.
And then Sara sees something she shouldn’t… and discovers a secret about Carlo that makes her question everything she thought she knew. Stuck at a crossroads in her life and her travels, she can’t face returning home yet, but nor is she brave enough to continue the challenge that Lainey set her. And then she meets an English woman who tells her about an apartment in Rome, that could just be the answer to everything…
Return to the sunny streets of beautiful Rome with this heart-warming and romantic story about discovering your true path in life. Perfect for fans of Jill Mansell, Elin Hilderbrand and Sheila O’Flanagan.
Author Bio:
Kerry Fisher is a million-copy bestselling author. She writes women’s contemporary fiction, is a USA Today bestseller and her books have been translated into twelve languages. She was born in Peterborough, studied French and Italian at the University of Bath and spent several years living in Spain, Italy and Corsica. After returning to England to work as a journalist, she eventually abandoned real life stories for the secrets of fictional families. She lives in Surrey with her husband, and a naughty Lab/Schnauzer called Poppy, who joins in the huge dances of joy when her young adult children come home.
Buy Link:
You can sign up for all the best Bookouture deals you’ll love at: http://ow.ly/Fkiz30lnzdo
