prdgreads

Firstly let me apologise, my stop was yesterday and I didn’t realise I had the wrong date in the diary! but thank you to Anne at Random Things Tours for organising the tour and inviting me to take part and thank you to the author and the publisher for my copy.

Pages: 208

Synopsis: Is it ever too late to find love?
June cleans houses. Ray is a janitor at the public tennis courts in Dun Laoghaire. He’s not romantic material; she’s not even friend material. When it comes to learning how to be with other people at the age of 70 plus, they are unlikely companions – even more unlikely friends.

Ray looks a bit like Willie Nelson. June looks a bit like Chrissie Hynde. They’ve never fitted in before, and they don’t fit in now. Yet, as understanding blossoms into friendship, June and Raymond begin to discover the joy that’s been missing from their lives for so long.

The right person at the right time.
June and Ray, this is your moment.

My Thoughts: what an absolute breath of fresh air this book was, it’s not often we get stories about the older generation finding friendship, learning new things and falling in love & I really enjoyed it!

Both June and Ray are slightly unlikeable characters, they keep themselves to themselves, set in their routines and have feel that this is all life has to offer.. until they meet each other and the most unlikely of friendships starts, they encourage and push each other to try new things both separately and together. The friendship slowly blossoms into more in a way that feels realistic and believable.

I found myself smiling for the majority of this book and found it to be a real pick me up.

Highly recommend to everyone, I have a feeling we’ll all end up being like Ray or June when we’re older 😂

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Today I am on the tour for Someone Like You by Elena Frost, thank you to Zoé at Zooloos Book Tours for organising it and inviting me to take part and thank you to the author and the publisher for my copy.

Pages: 258

Synopsis: Has she found the perfect haven? Or a deadly trap?

When Carey Billingham moves into Saltwick, a beautiful old lighthouse, she thinks it’s the perfect chance for her and her young son Riley to start over.

She’s finally escaped from her controlling ex-husband and his terrifying family. From here on out, it’s just her, Riley, and oceans of peace and quiet.

Or so she hopes.

Then Saltwick is mysteriously targeted by vandals and arsonists. Someone is out to sabotage her new life. But who? And why?

Even worse, the man in the yellow raincoat – the man who has been haunting Carey’s dreams for years – is back. And it seems he is no longer confined to her nightmares but is now a living breathing presence in the real world.

Concerned for her own sanity, Carey is determined to find out what is really going on. But as she draws closer to the truth, she realizes that Saltwick may not be the beginning of her perfect new life – but instead may be home to a horror beyond her wildest imaginings.

My Thoughts: the perfect definition of a slow burn thriller, a book that will lull you into a false sense of security and then pull the rug from under your feet.

I didn’t know what to expect going into this one but I really enjoyed it, there was something about the writing that just left me wanting more, every chapter left me with more questions than answers.

Carey as a main character was likeable and relatable, but couldn’t seem to catch a break, there was someone determined to make her life a living hell & they succeeded more than once too!

This is definitely a book that will have you questioning yourself and keep you guessing throughout, full of twists and red herrings so that when the truth is revealed you’re left wondering how many clues you missed along the way.

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Today I am on the tour to I Know You Saw Her by Ann Girdharry, thank you to Zoé at Zooloos Book Tours for organising it and inviting me to take part and Thank you to the author and the publisher for my copy.

Pages: 341

Synopsis: Two sisters. One life. A deadly secret.

Five years ago, Fiona’s sister Amy vanished without a trace.

Determined to find out what happened to her beloved sibling, Fiona assumes a new identity and rents a room in the boarding house where Amy once lived.

It’s an eerie place. The landlady speaks to people who aren’t there while her son Keith silently observes Fiona from the shadows.

Little by little, Fiona pieces together the truth about the life her sister was living – and the web of secrets and lies in which Amy became entangled.

Then Fiona realises she is putting herself in grave danger, because someone close has a secret they’ll do anything to protect.

But she has to know the truth. She’ll follow in her sister’s footsteps – even if they lead her to a place darker and more terrifying than anything she could ever have imagined.

My Thoughts: this story reminded me of a crime documentary on Netflix.. we know Amy went missing 5 years ago, we know where she live and who she lived with.. just not where she is now.

Her sister Fiona determined to get to the bottom of it decides to almost live Amy’s life, she moves into the same house Amy was at when she went missing and soon realises that not all is what she thinks… the house is run down, the landlady talks to herself or rather has conversations with people that aren’t there & her son doesn’t talk but seems to always be watching and taking everything in!

I really, really enjoyed this one. It’s dual POV and dual timeline which is one of my favourite ways to read a thriller. It’s unsettling & down right creepy, I felt uncomfortable the whole time but found I just couldn’t put it down, the chapters were short and snappy and more often than not ended on a cliffhanger which left you feeling the need to just carry on.

I genuinely think I doubted every single one of these characters at various points within the book & had convinced myself I knew what was happening at least 5 times only to be proved wrong each time.

Absolutely pick it up, I promise you’ll love it.

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Today I am on the tour for The Bleed by Paul Barrell, thank you to Anne at Random Things Tours for organising it and inviting me to take part and thank you to the author and the publisher for my copy.

Pages 252

Synopsis: Marc Madison is a loveable rogue, with a flawed addictive personality but no one ever got sacked for smoking a little too much weed or nursing the hangover from hell. He is, unbeknown to others, also one of the Mets best undercover cops and his current assignment is to bring down the drug Kingpin of south London.

With the help of bad boy dealer Christian, Marc has successfully infiltrated a local maintenance firm and is getting ever closer to the Duke Of York, the head of the OCG.

Until, one evening on the way home he suffers a massive heart attack, and as he drifts between life and death, a strangers touch brings him back to life. Although from that moment something in Marc changed. Something that went all the way back to his childhood. and his twin brother.

When a chance encounter introduces him to Eva Chan a high-class Chinese masseuse, Marc feels strangely drawn to her, but has no idea she is embedded deep within the jaws of the drug gang.

With Eva a willing Bonnie to his Clyde, Marc is dragged deeper into London’s underworld, a place where, in the search for the truth about his brother ‘s murder, the stakes escalate with every crime he is forced to commit.

My Thoughts: I wasn’t sure what to expect from this one, but I’ve loved Paul’s work before so I was eager to give it a go.. needless to say I shouldn’t have doubted my enjoyment.

This is a gritty crime thriller that will keep you turning the pages with a slight supernatural twist which I wasn’t expecting but it really added another layer to the story.

Full of action from the get go with drug use being mentioned throughout and people being drugged and taken against their will, it’s very subtle in the way that it’s done but it does happen do please check trigger warnings before going in!

This was another thriller that I found impossible to put down, I was swept up in the story & so invested that it almost felt like I was part of it, I even found myself looking behind me whilst reading it felt that real 😂

One thing is for sure I wouldn’t like to run into Marc or Eva at any time of the day never mind just on a dark night, but I’d definitely like to have them in my corner if I was in trouble!

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Today I am on the tour for Pimlico People by Rupert Stanbury, thank you to Hannah at Hygge Book Tours for organising it and inviting me to take part and thank you to the author and the publisher for my copy.

Pages: 365

Synopsis: Pimlico People is the third book in the Gods Galore series about the Olympian Gods in the 21st Century AD.

The Goddesses Artemis and Hebe are staying in Central London to obtain a better understanding of the lives of ‘normal’ people.

To their surprise, they soon encounter a plot to blow up a foreign embassy. Add to that a sophisticated operation involving the theft of valuable paintings from a major art gallery, and the two goddesses begin to question what a ‘normal’ life is all about.

Meanwhile, in the Underworld Cerberus encounters another dog who, amazingly, only has one head! How will they get on?

My Thoughts: there’s just something about this series that keeps me coming back for more.. it’s not the most sophisticated writing but it’s so much fun & has me laughing out loud or smiling whilst I’m reading!

This one follows Hebe and Artemis, Hebe is used to the human world but Artemis isn’t, so I really enjoyed her first experience and witnessing the things that are strange to her as an outsider.

OGGY OGGY OGGY throughout the book really took me back to being in the pub growing up, the nostalgia was real 😂

As always with the gods galore series, there’s a lot of joking and a lot of tongue in cheek but this one had a serious undertone too which I appreciated as it broke things up a little, this could be a bold statement but I think this one might be my favourite book in the series.

I absolutely love that Cerberus has a new friend 🥺 and I can’t wait to see what Rupert does with that story Arc in the future!

If you’re looking for a series that not only tells you about Greek mythology but also sweeps you along with it and makes you feel like part of the gang I promise you’ve found it.

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Today I am on the tour for the Detective Marcy Kendrick Boxset and I have a review for End Game, thank you to Zoé at Zooloos Book Tours for organising it and inviting me to take part and thank you to the author and the publisher for my copy.

Synopsis: Marcy Kendrick is struggling to get her life back to normal when a series of murders thrust her back into the limelight.
A serial killer is on the prowl. He calls himself Killer Cache because he posts the geocaching coordinates of the site where he’s left the body of his latest female victim.
Leaving no stone unturned in the search for the sadistic killer, Marcy must choose between her own safety and stopping a psychopath before he can kill again.

My Thoughts: ohh this one was the perfect ending to the Marcy Kendrick series and was one of the most chilling.

Geocaching is something that’s quite popular at the minute, especially because of the use of technology.. I could see the events in this story happening in real life!

I just couldn’t put it down, it almost felt like of if I put it down I’d miss something important, I really felt like part of Marcy and Angels team this time around 😂

Bodies are turning up & there’s too many witnesses, all after photos as proof because they would rather have the noterietay of finding the ‘treasure’ than realising there’s a dead body and a crime has been committed.

This makes things harder for the team because there’s DNA everywhere… can they get to the bottom of what’s going on before it’s too late?

I have honestly loved this entire series so much, I feel like I’ve become friends with all of the characters and will be sad to let them go!

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Today I am on the tour for the Detective Marcy Kendrick Boxset by Theo Baxter – Specifically Kill count today which is book 4. Thank you to Zoé at Zooloos Book Tours for organising it and inviting me to take part and thank you to the author and the publisher for my copy.

Synopsis: The City of Angels is in the hands of the devils.

LAPD detective Marcy Kendrick and her partner, Angel Reyes, are called to investigate the brutal sex murder of an up-and-coming starlet.

A calling card has been left at the crime scene. This was the work of a professional, Alejandro ‘El Gato’ Gómez, an infamous drug lord who has evaded LA police for over a decade.

Gómez has a right-hand man, a mysterious assassin known as El Mariachi de los Muertos. The assassin, for reasons unknown, is on a murderous rampage across LA. The bodies are piling up.

But why?

As Marcy soon discovers, El Gato has secrets. But drug lords don’t want their secrets to become public knowledge.

Especially not these secrets…

The race is on. Have Marcy and Angel got what it takes to stop El Gato and his right-hand man? Or will they themselves end up in the assassin’s crosshairs?

My Thoughts: firstly let me just say I have ADORED this whole series, might be my favourite police procedural series I’ve ever read!

We’re back with Marcy and Angel, who are just the perfect pair, they’re best friends which helps them to just have each others back, I found myself constantly smiling at the little things they do for each other without even thinking about it.

As is to be expected with this series Kill Count was full of action throughout! – is it a serial killer, is it a copy cat? Calling cards left at the scene brings a new face to the team, one that Marcy and Angel are reluctant to trust and let too close, but neither of them can explain why.

They’re all left chasing their tails as the killer always seems to be one step ahead of them!

this honestly had my heart racing and I felt like I had a constant lump in my throat because I had no idea which was the story would go.

I 1000% recommend this series, I promise you won’t be disappointed.

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Today I am on the tour for And The Devil Danced by Janey Clarke, thank you to Zoé at Zooloos Book Tours for organising it and inviting me to take part and thank you to the author and the publisher for my copy.

Pages: 2482

Synopsis: In the unforgiving heart of the Old West, the peaceful lives of frontier settlers are in turmoil as the vengeful figure known as Shadow Hawk strikes under cover, spreading darkness. His brutal campaign, marked by Bible verses foretelling divine retribution, leaves fear in his wake as he seeks to settle a long-buried score.

Amid the rising terror, Josh and Amy must face yet another ruthless threat—a relentless pursuer bent on taking Josh’s life. Their trials deepen when a devastating grasshopper swarm ravages their land, leaving their livelihood at stake.
Desperate to protect her family’s future, Amy pins her hopes on a legendary treasure—the fabled Jesuit gold, a prize that could pay for her younger brother’s education back East and provide for her ailing father. Together, Josh and Amy must conquer foes both human and natural to reclaim peace and secure a brighter future.

My Thoughts: I loved being back with Amy and Josh whilst they try to work out both the mystery of the Jesuit gold and trying to work out Josh’s really identity and what happened to lead him where he is now.

Filled with action that will keep you turning the pages from the beginning with enough of a proper story line to keep you fully invested in all the characters that we have grown to love.

We definitely see more of the side characters in this one and really felt like part of ‘the gang’ like I could have a seat at the table with Amy’s family.

As if all the secrets & the very real threat to Josh’s life weren’t enough we have an absolutely terrifying grasshopper swarm and a baby who needs caring for.

We did get slight hints of romance but it just wasn’t enough.. I need more and will definitely continue on with the series!

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Today I am on the tour for Sallowsfield by Cliff Hudder thank you to Zoé at Zooloos Book Tours for organising it and inviting me to take part, I have a spotlight for you!

Pages: 390

Synopsis: Wyatt W. Sallow, MBA–poet, business ethics professor, and coach of the 8th ranked collegiate chess team in East Texas–travels to the heart of northern England to trace his family origins in mundane Sallowsfield, only to find his supposed ancestry a mirage. He does have a real past, however: one that stalks him across the green hillsides in echoes of his catastrophic marriage, the lingering shadow of a lost child, and–there, in person, inexplicably emerging from the town’s faux-Victorian train station–”X,” the enigmatic object of his unrequited passion and a figure as perplexing as an algebraic variable. On his eight-day tour/pilgrimage/mock epic journey, Wyatt pursues the specter of his lost love and crosses paths with the citizens of this down-at-its-heels market town as they struggle to grasp the all-consuming obsessions, ghosts, and X-factors that confound their days. Thought-provoking yet dryly humorous, Sallowsfield weaves diverse elements into a story both light-hearted and philosophical, exploring along the way universal human touchstones of obsession, ruined love and the inexplicable mysteries that shape our lives.

About the Author:

Cliff Hudder flunked out of law school in 1981, but received an MFA in fiction writing from the University of Houston in 1995, and a PhD in American Literature from Texas A&M University in 2018. He has been an archaeological laborer, a film and video editor, a photographer, air compressor mechanic, electrical lineman, and educator. In addition to articles on regional and American literature, his short stories have appeared in several journals, including Alaska Quarterly Review, The Kenyon Review, and The Missouri Review. His work has received the Barthelme and Michener Awards, the Peden Prize, the Short Story Award from the Texas Institute of Letters and the Ruth Vande Kieft Prize from the Eudora Welty Society. His novella, Splinterville, won the 2007 Texas Review Fiction Award, and his novel, Pretty Enough for You, (2015 Texas Review Press) was named a top-10 Texas favorite for 2015 by the Lone Star Literary Life website. He teaches English at Lone Star College-Montgomery in Conroe, Texas. In 2017, Cliff was inducted into the Texas Institute of Letters.

If you like the sound of this it can be bought here!

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Today I am on the tour for Jacob by VH Nicholson, thank you to Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources for organising it and inviting me to take part and thank you to the author and the publisher for my copy.

Pages: 285

Synopsis: Resisting temptation will test me to my limits

I’ve been in love with Skye since we were kids. But she’s off-limits, not just because I’m her boss, but she’s my best friend’s ex. And, together we made a pact as teenagers. And unbreakable bro code. Never Touch each other’s ex. Ever.

But I’m forced to spend hour after hour, day after day, with her beauty. In meetings, conference calls, emails, business trips. Every. Single. Week. It’s hideously torturous, and I shouldn’t want her the way I do. But then I think she might feel the same way…

Jacob is my boss. He’s broad, toned, dripping in ink and it turns out the man I’m falling for has been under my nose this entire time and yet I can’t have him. It’s too complicated and he won’t betray his best friend and my ex.

So we resist. Although it’s amazing how much naughtiness you can get up to without touching. But then it becomes clear this is more than just lust. This might be real. How can we ever make this work? I wanted a fairy tale, but right now I’d settle for a chance to at least kiss my prince.

My Thoughts: oh my word this was hot 🥵

Imagine your boss is your best friend, you’ve had a thing for him since you met at 16 years old.. but his other friend showed his feelings for you first, so you never got to find out if he felt the same..

You then split up with your boyfriend and find your boss in a compromising position at work & saying your name..

This is the second book in the Billionaire Boys series and this will be a hard one to beat, I just loved everything about it.

The characters were strong yet not afraid to show each other their vulnerable side and the vulnerability was evident in both characters which was a breath of fresh air as it’s normally just the females.

Jacob loves with his whole heart, which he wears on his sleeve. He remembers the little important things, things you wouldn’t even think to remember and I was just a puddle on the floor through his chapters his was so adorable that I just melted.

Skye knows she deserves better than Owen, it just took her 14 years to get there, to realise she deserves more than a boyfriend who literally puts everyone else before her, but once she gets there she’s a force to be reckoned with and refuses to backtrack.

The build up and the tension in this book was done to perfection, which meant when they finally got together it really felt like they deserved it.

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