Hello everyone. Apologies for the lack of reviews over the last two months. I’ve been incredibly busy, both editing my new book The Quickening and working on another project which I hope to tell you about soon. I have been doing lots of reading – some of it crime – and I’m finally getting around to writing my reviews. I’ve also been reading lots of ghost stories which I’ll be reviewing on separate posts but, first up, here are my recent crime reads.

[image error]Ann Cleeves has a new book out, The Long Call, the beginning of a new series set in north Devon. Her protagonist, detective Matthew Venn, is a native of the county who, as the book opens, attends the funeral of his father. He comes from a Brethren family, a closed religious society, who disapprove of his homosexuality. When a man’s body is washed up on a beach, Venn has to investigate the community he tried to escape from. I loved the moving plot and, as ever, Cleeves excels in her descriptions of the landscape. A wonderful start to what promises to be an excellent series.

[image error]Camilla Bruce’s debut novel, You Let Me In, is a strange and magical thriller set in Norway. Locals think that bestselling novelist, Cassandra Tripp, has murdered members of her family but, as her tale unfolds, we discover the influence of the Pepper-Man, either Cassanda’s imaginary friend or something much more dark. A mix of thriller and folk horror, it was great to read a narrative which kept me enthralled throughout.

[image error]Finally C M Ewan’s new book, A Window Breaks, is a fast-paced page-turning thriller which I couldn’t put down. A family recovering from the death of their teenage son take a holiday in a remote Scottish lodge when they hear a window break in the middle of the night. The book examines how far you’d go to defend your family and the secrets people keep in order to protect others. I loved it!