THE DEVIL HIMSELF by Steven Duggan

 4.5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon (universal link)
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: Amazon browse

In a Nutshell: Man unjustly accused of murder seeks to clear his name.  Set in Ireland.

Jack Finch was accused of a murder he didn't commit, and sent to prison for eight years after taking a plea deal.  While he's away, his wife divorces him and marries his elder brother.  Jack knows that going back to the small town where the murder took place is not the wisest move, but he cares more about clearing his name than about the reception he will have to endure.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, loved the writing style, and I liked Jack very much, which always helps.  There is much description about life in prison, a stark portrayal of the desperation and fear that an inmate can go through, the total despair.  

I'd seen in reviews that the ending is particularly good, and I echo this, wholeheartedly - I thought I'd guessed the twist early on, but I was so, so wrong - especially as it's a double twist.  It's (they're) so well done; a round of applause well earned.  Made me want to flick back to see if I could spot any clues.  I liked how the second one hinted at what happened without actually giving all the details; this worked so well.  

I've taken a half star off because of one issue - the proofreading.  I spotted the odd wrong word and incorrect punctuation mark, but mostly it was the excessive use of exclamation marks in dialogue that kept making me wince; the vast majority were not needed and should have been removed.  Aside from that, though, it was great.  Excellent plot, a great main character, and the sort of writing style that keeps the pages turning.

SHAPE OF REVENGE by Georgia Rose @GeorgiaRoseBook #TuesdayBookBlog

 4.5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon (universal link)
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: Recommendation from a trustworthy source!

In a Nutshell: Book 2 in the A Shade Darker crime thriller series, all set in the fictional village of Melton.

A Shade Darker is a great idea for a series - I believe there will be 12 novels, all stories being connected though each a stand-alone.  Quite a challenge for any writer; having not yet read Book #1, I am in the perfect position to confirm that, as far as Book #2 is concerned, it is one to which Ms Rose has risen admirably!

Shape of Revenge centres around Sharon Beesley, the owner of the local village shop.  She's a terrific character; horribly self-centred and self-righteous, blinkered, unable to 'read the room' whilst believing herself to be so perceptive.  She (thinks she) completely rules the roost in her household, with husband Eric tightly reined into humdrum subservience and daughter Daisy following whatever path Sharon deems suitable.  Of course, both Eric and Daisy have all sorts of stuff going on, not least of all in their individual heads, about which Sharon does not have a clue.

I so enjoyed reading the inner workings of Sharon's pernickety little mind; seeing a character's view of the world whilst knowing it to be utterly skewed is always so entertaining.  The book is most 'reader-friendly', flowing along in such a way that the pages just have to be turned.  I've noticed when reading another book by this author that she is a master of structure, revealing details at just the right time and making all events fit together perfectly.  This is so important in a book of this type, with its secrets, lies, smoke and mirrors, and themes of dastardly revenge, abduction and faked identities.

I don't know if this was intentional, but most of the way through, I felt that it had an element of dark comedy, a genre so popular at the moment with shows like Why Women Kill, You, The Flight Attendant and films such as Promising Young Woman.  The way that some of Sharon's antics were written, as well as those of secondary character Ella, definitely had this feel to it.  Somewhat tongue-in-cheek.  It worked, anyway!

NEAR DEATH by Richard Wall @writinblues

4.5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon UK
On Amazon.com
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: Twitter; I'd seen a few tweets about it from the author, then one day I took a look.

In a Nutshell: Murders most brutal, with a paranormal theme.

The story is set in the early 1960s in New York and rural South Carolina.  John Henry Beauregard, a Korean War veteran, is working as the chaplain in Sing Sing prison, when he is called to give last rites to Joseph Hickey, a vicious murderer whose crimes were so horrific that details are withheld from most.  Hickey taunts John, and promises that he'll see him again, even though he is about to be frazzled on Old Sparky.

As other similar murders begin to take place, John and his friend, NYPD cop Eugene, begin to explore possible theories that sound insane even to themselves.  They are both psychologically damaged and at times just trying to hang onto the threads of their lives.

I enjoyed this book all the way through.  Throughout the main story, mostly told by John in the first person, are short chapters that hint about why events are taking place, with the reader being left to piece it all together, gradually.  The pace and drip-feeding of information worked so well, and made the story a real page-turner.  Lots of unpredictable events; I do love a novel in which I can't guess what's going to happen.

The characters of John and Eugene were very likeable, as was Vinnie, the hard-nosed lawyer who flips the bird at convention and authority, and I loved the writing style, which was clear, simple and effective.  I only had one problem with it: 'black', as in the colour of a person's skin, was spelled with a capital B in most but not all cases.  I know this is favoured by the politically correct in this day and age, but it was not so at the time John was telling this story, and it looked out of place.  Similarly, John uses the phrase 'people of color', which was not introduced and popularised until at least a decade later.  I wouldn't usually nit-pick about stuff like this that wouldn't bother most people, but they really stood out to me.

Paranormal is not my usual genre of choice, but it totally worked in this story, seeming possible and believable, and I liked the author's take on what happens after death.  The book is clever, humorous in parts, touching, terribly sad and fairly brutal, with gory and shocking detail, so it's not a book for the faint of heart.  I'm very glad I stopped on that tweet, clicked the link to Amazon and downloaded it on Kindle Unlimited.  At some point I shall take a look at the rest of Mr Wall's work.  Nice one.

STILL YOU SLEEP by Kate Vane @K8Vane

4 out of 5 stars

On Amazon UK
On Amazon.com
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: it was submitted to Rosie's Book Review Team, of which I am a member.

In A Nutshell: A redundant crime reporter and a news blogger aim to solve the mystery surrounding the suspicious death of a young woman.

I chose this book from the review team list because I'd read another book, Brand New Friend, by this author and was most impressed by her characterisation.  Although this is a crime novel - not my usual choice - it concentrates on those involved in the situation (families, friends), and the journalists looking into it, which is why I enjoyed it much more than I might have done had it been a police procedural.

Vikki Smith is a young woman with a learning disability who is found dead from a drug overdose.  The police write it off as an accident but online journalist Tilda Green and redundant crime reporter Freddie Stone believe foul play to be afoot; Freddie knows the family and Tilda scours social media on a daily basis, discovering much that makes her suspicious.

The story is very 'real life', warts-and-all, and one aspect that I liked is how current it is, both sociologically and in the way in which Tilda delves into every intricacy of social media, though I did wonder if it would go over the heads of people who don't know exactly how Twitter works, on quite a complicated level.  I'm a Twitter addict, though, so I really appreciated how well the author understood its idiosyncrasies.

The characterisation, dialogue and the logistics of the plot deserve a round of applause, though I felt there were one or two many storylines and character points of view.  Social media strategies, dysfunctional families, social prejudice, drug dealers and abuse, alcoholism, two-faced politicians, unrequited love, alt-right versus liberal politics; every scenario is written most convincingly, but I'd sometimes get to the beginning of a new chapter from yet another POV and think, 'Hang on a minute, who's Simon?', and have to look back to remind myself.  The addition of so many plot threads and characters actually dilutes the evidence of her strengths; Ms Vane is a highly competent and readable writer. Less could be so much more, but this is really the only complaint I have about this book.

Still You Sleep flows along so well, wrapping all storylines together at the end, is entertaining, real, so relevant to today's world, and I'd definitely recommend it to anyone who appreciates well-drawn characters by a writer who has a sharp understanding of topical issues - or who simply enjoys working out mysteries. 

NO ONE CAN HEAR YOU by Nikki Crutchley @NikkiCAuthor

4 out of 5 stars

On Amazon UK
On Amazon.com
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: it was submitted to Rosie's Book Review Team, of which I am a member.

Genre: Crime and abduction, set in New Zealand

The book opens with an excellent prologue about Faith, a teenage foster kid getting abducted, back in 2001.  It then goes back to the main story, about Zoe, a thirty-something, recently unemployed teacher whose life is all at sea, going back to small town Crawton because her mother has died.  Zoe's feelings about this can hardly even be called 'mixed' ~ her relationship with Lilian was cold and distant, and she hasn't seen her since she was eighteen.  When she arrives in Crawton, though, she is left wondering what really happened to her mother.

Meanwhile, meth-head Megan has been abducted, and is kept prisoner in a storage cupboard.

Despite the themes of abduction, murder and the sleazy underworld of drugs, I'd describe this as a low-key thriller; much of the novel concerns Zoe's relationship with her mother and the other issues she is working through, and there is quite a lot of domestic and day-to-day conversational detail, which, together with the writing style, lends itself more to a dark drama with gradually unfolding sinister developments than edge-of-your-seat suspense.  It's nicely written and the characterisation is good, particularly Faith, with whom the book opens.  One of the characters has Alzheimer's, and I thought this was most realistic.

I had a feeling who the baddie(s) might be about half way through, but that's probably because I watch a lot of TV of this genre; it's not at all obvious.  The plot is convincing and cleverly structured, I thought the descriptions of what the abducted girls went through was particularly well done, and the ending was good ~ I do appreciate a well-thought out ending.  I can imagine this being the sort of book you might get into reading on holiday.

DEAD NORTH by Joel Hames @joel_hames

4.5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon UK
On Amazon.com
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: I've read and enjoyed most of Joel Hames's books, so downloaded this as soon as it was published.

Genre: Crime thriller, police procedural, murder

Sam Williams, mishap-prone lawyer and nancy Southerner, has been asked by Mancunian DI Roarkes to assist in the information gathering necessary to prosecute one Thomas Carson for shooting dead two police officers, up in the roughy-toughy, dark and dismal North West.  He leaves behind an unhappy girlfriend who is paying all the bills, largely due to Sam's inconsistent law career.  

Up in Manchester, Sam finds communication blockades whichever way he turns, dank and greasy hotels and pubs, food that is not much better, sexy designer-lawyer Serena who is also on the Carson case, an undercurrent of extreme danger/possible criminal gang intervention, and a not inconsiderable amount of resistance in the form of physical violence.

This is a most engagingly written book that I enjoyed, very much in places, though I didn't love it quite as much as The Art of Staying Dead and Victims, but that's just because it's more of a straight crime-solving-police-procedural type plot, which is not really my bag ~ my liking it slightly less is personal taste, not a reflection of the book's quality.  Indeed, that crime-solving-police-procedurals usually bore me witless but this didn't, is an indication of how good it is.

The story is action-packed with never a dull moment but a good balance of inner dialogue versus action, the plot is intricately worked out, the characters are clearly defined, and it carries with it Mr Hamer's usual wit and realistic dialogue.  Although part of the Sam Williams series, it's a stand alone, and any references made to other books/Sam's past are not at all confusing; the back story is woven in very well.

4* from me (ie, I liked it), with an extra half star in the interests of objective reviewing, because I believe it to be a jolly good example of its type.  I'd recommend it to any avid readers of well-written, well-plotted crime thrillers; you won't be disappointed.  Unless you're a particularly proud Mancunian, maybe 😉.

THREE HOURS PAST MIDNIGHT by Tony Knighton

4 out of 5 stars

On Amazon UK
On Amazon.com
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: it was submitted to Rosie Amber's Book Review Team, of which I am a member.

Genre: Hard-boiled crime

The Blurb:
  
His last job a disaster, a professional thief teams with an old partner eager for one last score – a safe in the home of a wealthy Philadelphia politician. But they are not the only ones set on the cash. His partner dead and the goods missing, he hunts for his money and the killer to find out that this may have been a job best left undone.


I liked this!  I enjoyed Tony Knighton's writing style, and it's a well-paced, cat-and-mouse page-turner with no unnecessary padding, and plenty of action. 

I felt the author must know the dark streets of Philadelphia well; it's highly atmospheric without being wordy or overly-descriptive.  Telling the story through the eyes of the violent thief anti-hero made me feel far more involved in the story than I might have done had it been told using a third person narrative; even though the thief is ruthless, with little disregard for anyone, I kind of liked him.  That's an art; making the reader like an unlikeable person.  

It's gripping, sharp, not too long, with excellently observed dialogue and convincing secondary characters.  Good job.  My only criticism is the Kindle price, from the point of view of those who might want to buy it; at over £5, it's more expensive than most full-length novels by more established authors.  The publisher might want to have a think about this, as it would be a shame to lose out on potential sales of a highly readable book.  It is available on Kindle Unlimited, though.

BLOCK 46 by Johana Gustawsson @JoGustawsson @OrendaBooks

4.5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon UK
On Amazon.com
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: I'd read several positive reviews for it on book blogs, but it was the one on Swirl and Thread that made me take the plunge!

I'm not usually one for police procedurals as I get bored with the endless conversations discussing the ins and outs of the case, but this attracted me because of the Scandinavian setting and the connection to Buchenwald concentration camp in WW2.

In Sweden, high-flying jewellery designer Linnéa Blix is found gruesomely and artfully murdered; it is clear that her killer was intent on her being discovered.  Her friend, crime writer Alexis, becomes involved in the investigation, much of which is led by forensic profiler Emily Roy.  The murder shows marked similarities to recent murders of young boys in London. 

Alongside the unravelling investigation runs the story of Erich Ebner, a German medical student interred in Buchenwald, and his relationship with a Nazi doctor occupied with medical experimentation.  Gradually, the two threads converge.

I was most pleased to discover that the ins and outs and whys and wherefores of the case discussion actually held my attention—a round of applause to the author.  One particular part of 'the reveal' had me wanting to go back to the beginning and see all the clues I'd missed; I didn't guess the outcome at all!  A side element I liked was the incidental information about Scandinavia, in general.  I didn't find any of the characters particularly vivid (Emily was the one who 'spoke' to me the most), and I found it hard to remember which cop was which (there are a lot of them), but it kind of didn't matter, because the plot itself, the neat structure, the building of suspense and the interspersing of story threads totally carried this novel.

It's a bit on the grisly side in parts, but given the subject matter it could hardly be anything but, and I didn't feel, at any time, that this was just sensationalism.  My only complaint was that I found the explanations of the killers' motivations a little vague; I was never exactly clear what need was being fulfilled or what the work of the Nazi doctor actually was, other than general sadism and psychopathery.  But that might just be me.  I was absorbed by the book all the way through, looked forward to getting back to it, and would definitely recommend it, whether you're a fan of this genre or not.

CARIBBEAN DEEP by Gary E Brown @oceanmedia

4 out of 5 stars

On Amazon UK HERE
On Amazon.com HERE
On Goodreads HERE

How I discovered this book: It had come to my notice via Twitter, and I eventually took the plunge.   Pun intended.😎

Caribbean Deep is a sailing-orientated human trafficking thriller featuring former Special Forces officers Pete, Willie and Dick; the book is written from the first person point of view of hard drinking, world weary Dick.  Willie is the 'character'; it's very much along the lines of your average Netflix thriller series, with plenty of explosions, witty banter from the main characters, dastardly baddies to get your teeth stuck into, helpless victims to save, and near death experiences.  It certainly ticks all the boxes, and I enjoyed it.

The author, Gary Brown, is an experienced sailor and bases much of his work on his experiences sailing around the Caribbean, and the authenticity of this novel is one of the elements that makes it work so well; it's clear that Mr Brown knows exactly what he's talking about with regard to the organised crime around the area, and I liked the observation that the slave trade has never been stamped out.  As for the sailing itself, there were many terms and words that I hadn't heard of, but it didn't matter; they all came together to build the atmosphere of the novel.  The characterisation and mood of suspense is very well done all the way through.

At £5.22, it's a little more expensive than your average indie-Kindle book, but I'd say that if this is your sort of book, it's definitely worth getting.  Having read this, I have just downloaded 'Biscay: Our Ultimate Storm', which is a mini ebook about a true event in the life of the author and his wife.

LOCKED DOORS by Blake Crouch

5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon UK HERE
On Amazon.com HERE
On Goodreads HERE

How I discovered this book:  I've read and reviewed a few of this author's books, and had just read the prequel, Desert Places - had to know what happened next!

Desert Places was jolly good, but this is even better.  Obviously I can't say anything about the plot because it's a sequel, and it would give away what happens in Book One, so I'll give the reasons why I liked it:

There's no exposition-type recapping of the previous book, and the situation of the main character, writer Andrew Thomas, seven years on from the end of the last book, is all that you would hope for him.  He's in Yukon, and I loved the description of the lonely cabin where he lives (okay, okay, I wanted to live there too....).  When the psychopathic Luther Kite beckons, though, he can't help responding....

The pace is terrific.  It alternates between characters, and from first to third person, and each change is just right, building the suspense perfectly - I'd swear that on occasion I got that adrenalin flutter of excitement as I moved from one section to another!

The new characters brought in are terrific - there's young Christian detective, Violet, plus Andrew's 'biggest fan', Horace Boone... and the parents of the evil killer. 

It's realistic - although all books of this type (serial killer thrillers in which your average guy takes on ultimate evil) can get a little far-fetched, all of this is well within the bounds of feasibility.  It's not predictable, either.  Just when you think it's going to be okay, it gets bad again.  And Crouch shows no fear about killing off people you badly, badly want to stay alive.....

A fab example of its type.  Really looking forward to the next one, Break You.  The reviews for that aren't so good... we'll see.  Incidentally, like all Blake Crouch books, this one finishes by about 80%, followed by excerpts from other books and bits and bobs generally telling you how awesome Blake Crouch is.  I don't mind this, if the book's been really good, but some people feel ripped off by anything that doesn't end at 99%, so I thought I'd better mention it.

DESERT PLACES by Blake Crouch

4.5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon UK HERE
On Amazon.com HERE
On Goodreads HERE

How I discovered this book: I've read and reviewed several of this author's (click author tag at the bottom if you would like to see them), and couldn't resist trying another.

I love a nice bit of Blake Crouch when I've been writing all day and want a nice easy read with a cracking good plot that I know will keep me turning the pages.  Desert Places was no disappointment.  It's about a super-successful writer, Andrew Thomas, who, at the peak of his career, gets a note from a stranger to say that a body has been buried on his land, and that the sender of the note has all the evidence he needs to get Andrew convicted for the murder.  To say any more would be to give away the plot, but it's a belter.  Plenty of fast action, surprises, and situations that you'll think can't possibly be remedied as the plot travels from beautiful, rural North Carolina to the deserts of Wyoming.

It's pretty grisly in places, but not excessively so, and not just for the sake of it.  It's not great literature, it's popular fiction, and a fine example of its type.  Good enough for me to nip over to Amazon and download the next in the Andrew Z Thomas/Luther Kite series, anyway!  

 

THE DCI JONES CASEBOOK: ELLIS FLYNN by Kerry J Donovan

3 out of 5 stars

On Amazon UK HERE
On Amazon.com HERE
On Goodreads HERE

Reviewed by me as a member of Rosie Amber's Review Team

I've read a couple of this author's other books, and still like On Lucky Shores best, which I recommend highly.  This one is a standard sort of British detective crime thriller, generally well planned out.  I liked the plot itself, and thought the baddies were suitably horrible, very convincing.  From what I can see, Mr Donovan certainly knows his stuff about police procedures, no problems there.  Some reviews say the plot is a bit far-fetched, but this is fiction, isn't it?  It wasn't a problem for me.

I thought where this book fell down was the characterisation/dialogue, which was, at times, almost like a something out of a comic book, or a spoof; Captain Jean-Luc, the French detective ('Jean-Luc, the same as your Captain Picard in Star Trek'), came across like something out of 1980s comedy series 'Allo 'Allo; he and Jones's sidekick Alex, a Swedish Brigitte Nelson type, preface their English phrases with 'how do you say' every five minutes, not forgetting Alex's 'ja' at the end of too many sentences, and their misunderstandings of English phrases 'is this what is called in England being a butter-fingers?' and something about uncovering 'the Ring of the Vice'.  We know they're French and Scandinavian; it's not necessary to remind the reader every time they open their mouths.  I couldn't decide if it was meant to be spoof-like or not; I just found it irritating.

The book begins with the wonderfully depraved Ellis Flynn's grooming of young teenager Hollie Jardine; this made for an excellent opening to pull the reader straight in, but was, alas, was let down by poor proofreading, and by the fact that part of the initial detective work hinged on the discovery of some photo booth pictures of Hollie and Ellis. Hollie was so excited about these, persuading Ellis to have them taken.  This leapt out at me: do teenagers do the photo booth thing any more?  I thought that was more something of 15 or 20 years ago; these days, teenagers take photos and videos on their phones, constantly.  I know this is set in 2011, but virtually all teenagers had camera phones/smartphones by then.

I'm sorry not to give a better review, because Mr Donovan is a jolly good writer in so many ways, and I can see by others that this book has been received very well, so perhaps it's just me!  As far as the plot and suspense go it's fine; it's just the dialogue and proofreading that let it down—and I'd still read another book by him, especially if he wants to revisit Chet Walker!

On Lucky Shores reviewed HERE

The DCI Jones Casebook: Sean Freeman reviewed HERE

 

THE BLUE RIDGE PROJECT by Neil Rochford

4 out of 5 stars

Thriller

On Amazon UK HERE
On Amazon.com HERE
On Goodreads HERE

Reviewed by me as a member of Rosie Amber's Review Team

 

This is a complicated and cleverly thought out thriller with three main strands that come together smoothly; it's a jolly good plot, original and unusual.  Murders, evil politicians, psychosis, mind control, dark secrets from the past—it's got the lot.  I wasn't quite sure at first, it just seemed like another forgettable crime suspense thriller type book, fairly readable but not that memorable, but then at about 25% it suddenly got more interesting, and I started to get seriously into it about half way through.  There's a well placed 'before' section that explains how all the situations you read about first have come about; the planning gets a tick from me.

Two things made this book not work as well as it might have done, for me.  One was the characterisation, or lack of it.  Most of the characters remained one dimensional, their dialogue mostly used as a vehicle for the plot, and with little insight into their heads.  The exception to this is main character Robert, who I could 'see' a bit more than the others (and psycho Lyons was good, too), but female cop Andrea was a man in all but name (why is it than women writers can usually write men better than male writers can write women?).  Because there were so many characters and they didn't walk out of the page and into my imagination, I sometimes got confused with who each one was.  Even when the plot is the star of the show, if you don't connect with the characters you don't care what happens to them.  I'd also be tempted to trim the cast list down.

My other minor complaint is that I thought the book could do with final proofread, and another edit.  Example: 'She pushed open a door to reveal a spacious lounge.  There were two comfortable-looking brown-leather chairs across from each other with a small, round, wooden table held up by a wooden sphere, instead of legs, that had been carved and polished with great care, and a round, flat piece of wood for the table top.' 

This would have been much more succinctly written as 'In the spacious lounge stood two comfortable looking brown leather chairs separated by a small, immaculately carved and polished, wooden table.'  You don't need to know that the doctor pushed open the door before she and Andrea walked into the room (let it be presumed), and maybe we don't need to know about the plinth, either.  This one just jumped out at me but there were a few similar.  I only put this in detail because at the end of the book the author has expressed the desire for feedback via reviews.

Having said all this, I would still recommend The Blue Ridge Project, and the author has a good handle on suspense; it kept me interested and I wasn't tempted to abandon or skip read.  I gather this is Rochford's first novel; I am sure he will iron out his debut novelist dodgy bits, as most do.

BREXECUTION by Joel Hames

4.5 out of 5 stars

Thriller novella about the EU Referendum

On Amazon UK HERE
On Amazon.com HERE
On Goodreads HERE

This was a jolly good few hours' read!  Brexecution is a fast moving thriller set during the few days following the results of the EU referendum.  At the heart of it are a corrupt banker or two, a high level politician, sadistic thug, a London cab driver and a girl in a Marilyn Monroe wig.  It's amazingly well written considering how quickly it was (br)executed, but then Joel Hames has intelligent thriller-writing talent in spades, and not without a little humour.

Some of the events unfold a little over-smoothly, but that's what stories like these are made of, after all; some of the most outlandish secrets are frighteningly possible, even likely, suggesting that there is a lot more (and a lot darker) stuff involved in the governing of this country than is known to the common man.  The plot fits perfectly into the novella format, which is an art in itself.

A few writers may leap on the referendum bandwagon to produce a highly topical novel, in weeks to come, but once you've read this you'll applaud Mr Hames for being in the driving seat.  It's great.  Buy it!

The Art of Staying Dead by Joel Hames is reviewed HERE

NEED TO FIND YOU by Joseph Souza

3.5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon UK HERE
On Amazon.com HERE
On Goodreads HERE

Reviewed by me as a member of Rosie Amber's Review Team

This was a strange one for me; I went from not being that keen to liking it, to not liking it and back to thinking it was perhaps rather terrific, all the way through.

It's a crime thriller, starring the tough and damaged Yasmine, two cops, and a sinister underworld figure.  The cops, Whip Billings and Philip Haskins, are so well done, and I enjoyed reading their sections, even if the characters did walk straight out of Standard Fictional Detectives Ltd: wouldn't you love to see one who isn't a struggling ex-alcoholic/hampered by emotional demons/possessed of a need to execute his duties in a maverick fashion?  But Souza has painted them beautifully, stereotypes or not; I really liked Whip, and his father was very real, too.  Yasmine, not so convincing.

The plot is great, though at the beginning I was bothered by the stilted fashion of the narrative.  Short sentences, delivering statements or pieces of information in a flat manner.  One that stuck out: '..he stared up at a water stain on the ceiling.  He thought it resembled a tattered catcher's mitt.'  Could have read more smoothly as something like: 'he stared up at the catcher's mitt of a water stain on the ceiling'.  Okay, that might seem a bit nit-picking, and it seems fine on its own, but when whole pages are written like this it feels a bit wooden.  I felt the narrative could have done with another re-write, with the author looking at each sentence and considering if it could be made to read better.

Once the dialogue started the whole novel loosened up and it went from being 'okay' to 'oh good, I'm enjoying this now'; the dialogue is spot on, all the way through, sharp, convincing, and just right for the genre, which is so important, but then I'd come across someone being 'sprawled in the foetal position', which is surely a contradiction in terms, or lines like 'he pulled up his chair in an avuncular manner'; the prose tended towards wordy without being descriptive, at times.  Then the day would be saved by lovely observations like this one, in which Whip imagines his romantic successor: 'He imagined Dana to be one of those soft-spoken guys with a gentle disposition and a weak handshake.  A ponytailed dude who liked to hike in his Birkenstocks, carrying a hand-carved walking stick that he'd made in his workshop.  Asshole!'. Loved that!

The story centres around the hidden journals of a famous writer, Robert Cornish, and here was something else that bothered me.  Cornish is supposed to be a writer of such acclaim that his works are studied by literature students, yet the quotes from him at the start of each chapter were banal quips.

Once I'd read the book I had a look at the reviews to see what others thought of it, as I always do, and most of them are positive.  Although I disliked some aspects, the best is very, very good, and I'd read something else by this author.  Despite the moderate star rating, I'd still recommend it for those who like this sort of novel.