Never Look Back by Susan Lewis

 

This story was unpredictable and good. It got you questioning everything you know about AI and digital manipulation (of which I know almost nothing).

Romy’s husband died in strange circumstances. The couple were exceptionally close. Romy disappears and several media posts show her happy and saying she will contact her friends when she feels more settled. Nothing sits well and her close circle feel that things are not quite right and one of them starts a pod cast to get to the bottom of the story.

What is unravelled is a scam involving overseas tricksters who steal everything from you, not just your money but your identity and leave you abandoned with nothing to your name. Inevitably betrayed by someone within your circle who is vulnerable.

The story is very possible and frightening to envisage. The extent to which cyber criminals can enter your world seems almost childs play.

Sent by Harper Collins UK Harper Fiction for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

Murder on frosty Night by Verity Bright

 

Winter 1925 just before Christmas. Hugh and Eleanor just getting ready to celebrate their first Christmas together. Also to celebrate the launch on their detective agency. A sudden telegram, along with an advance deposit comes from the most remote village possible to find, summoning them urgently.

In dramatic fashion they arrive at Yorelow to find the man who sent the telegram murdered in the church graveyard whilst Midnight Mass was going on and a myriad of suspects available for the taking. Very steady detection work, many red herrings, lots of eccentric characters often times found in English cozies of the time all adding a sense of piquancy and unreality to the surroundings.

The stories of Lady Eleanor, Hugh Seldon and Clifford along with their entourage is humorous and engaging though the background is always murder.

Sent by Bookouture for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

These Crooked Things by Ellen Byerrum

 

1934 and its Post Prohibition now. Bars are open openly but crime proliferates. Graydon and his brand new fiancée are called in to cover up a murder. An attack on a pregnant woman by her own husband, high on cocaine leaves her husband dead and a upper crust father doing his best to see that his daughter in law does not end in the executioners chair. A plausible story to protect the injured Maura was floated by Esme, agreed on by all parties including the Detectives on the case as a tidy way of sorting out the problem.

They did not think that there were two other people wanting to take a shot at the victim, one a make believe one to shake him up and one assailant who feels cheated out of his victim! The story involves local and Chicago criminals, show biz characters and Graydon’s own aristocratic parents, particularly his father who has very set ideas of people and their place in society. A daughter in law who is a drama producer and one who dabbles in crime is not what he thought suitable.

The story was interesting and fast paced from the word go. Characters were varied and the settings of the theatre and the theatre lifestyle caught my interest.

Sent by Victory Editing Netgalley Co-op for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

The Lies We Inherit by Angela R. Key

 

The Goodreads description was confusing. There is no Delilah and no caregiving of a mother with Alzheimers. 

At the beginning I thought the girl around whom the story revolves was in a state of being unstable. Then one questions the mental state of the overpowering mother and the cruelty of the brother. It was not an easy story to follow or analyse, but I liked the style of writing. The characters were difficult to like.

The story also portrays how one can very insidiously mess up a persons head by planting misinformation and memories, getting the person to think in a very different way as to sequence of events and what actually happened. This is what happened to Elise in the story and she had to unravel years of wrong information to get to the truth.

Sent by Crown Cipher Publishing for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley 

Murder at cottonwood Creek by Clara McKenna

 

Stella and Lyndy are visiting Stella’s mother’s ranch in Montana, where Lord Atherly, Lyndys father is on a mission to find fossils of a long extinct horse. It is rough country, and Lyndy who is used to deference due to his aristocratic status, finds that none of the people who he works with is cowed or bothered by whom he is.

Undercurrents exist on the site and amongst all those involved, but when one murder is followed by another, and the suspects all seem to have alibis Stella finds herself in a quandary. Limitations because of her being female also plays a role. On top of it all the coroner who seems to be the most powerful man in the area, over rides the verdict of murder and declares death by accident. His appointed jury follows him and though the Sheriff disagrees, he is not willing to go against the most powerful man in Cottonwood Creek. 

The setting in Montana, the era, the ranching lifestyle and the lack of pretension are all highlighted in this story.

Sent by Kensington Publishing for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

The Marazion Murders by Sally Rigny

 

An elderly woman found dead in a care home would be quite a routine matter. It is a bit unusual in that all the inmates are former entertainers. Some more prominent than others, and a routine investigation turns into a murder investigation when we find the first victim has been murdered.

Once the detectives start the investigation, they find that the seemingly disparate characters have had dealings in the past professionally and personally and most of them did not end well. There is deep seated envy and antagonism, and when a second person is murdered the detectives have to up their game and fast before there is another victim.

A very good cozy.

Sent by Storm Publishing for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

Not Exactly Mr Darcy by Carolyn Miller

 

Olivia Bennett, a true Austen aficionado transfers from rural Australia to a tiny village to help her ailing grandmother. The fact that Hartbury Hall is within hailing distance helps, because that is where the famous scene of Darcy kissing Elizabeth occurs and Liv is so keen on visiting this particular site (and of course imagining the scene).

Hartbury Hall has fallen into an abyss of ruin and going downhill rapidly. Liam the present owner with no funds, no staff and a somewhat stubborn resistance to change doesn’t help the situation. A chance to bring in volunteers to resuscitate the Hall, using Liv as the coordinator, using the Austen connection to the full is not without its hazards and faces many obstacles. Liv and her team are determined to get there and prevent the Hall falling into the hands of private investors, and preserve its heritage for both the villagers and the family.

The story was a simple one with a clean romance, a mixed bunch of characters and an easy read.

Sent by Barbour Publishing for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.