8 of 10 Dead Jealous -CALLADINE and BAYLISS series by Helen H Durrant #bookreview #detective #crimefiction @hhdurrant @joffebooks

DEAD JEALOUS by Helen H. Durrant

‘A fresh pair of eyes and a different perspective added to advances in forensics brings to light evidence and possibilities that were overlooked 17 years ago with shocking results. There are many twists and turns along the way as the team untangles a web of lies going back many years. The conclusion is a real shocker that the reader cant see coming.’

Dead Jealous (book 7)

Available from AMAZON

A teenage girl’s body is found in the back of a car on the notorious Hobfield housing estate. No one had reported her missing, but she’s been dead for a week.

Meanwhile, an old jar is brought into the station. It was found carefully wrapped in a blanket, with a child’s pink hairclip. The jar contains ashes and bone fragments.

Seventeen years ago Detective Tom Calladine had been part of a team investigating the disappearance of Jessica Wilkins. Her mother had taken her to Leesdon Park one summer afternoon.

She went to get the child an ice cream and when she returned her daughter was gone. Over the years there were no sightings, no witnesses — nothing.

Will there finally be closure for this unsolved mystery?
And why was the girl found in the car killed and why are her friends not telling her the whole story?

Detectives Tom Calladine and Ruth Bayliss will unravel a web of lies and pain, in this fast-moving and gripping crime mystery.

Full of twists and turns, this is a crime thriller that will keep you turning the pages until the stunning conclusion

If you like Angela Marsons, Rachel Abbott, Mel Sherratt, Ruth Rendell, or Mark Billingham you will enjoy this exciting new crime fiction writer.

DEAD JEALOUS is book seven of a new series of detective thrillers featuring D.S. Ruth Bayliss and D.I. Tom Calladine.

MY REVIEW

Helen Durrant is a fabulous author and I loved this book from the very first page. Forensic pathology is a particular interest of mine so this was an extra bonus. While it is part of a series it does work very well as stand alone. The book does refer to events from the previous book but Helen has, excellently, managed to bring a new reader up to date while at the same time ensuring readers of the previous books are not bored with recaps from previous books.

There are several cases that the team has to juggle. A teenage girl is murdered, a 17 year old cold case is reopened and a viscous moneylender has residents living in fear. Totally different cases and the team is struggling to move forward with any of them.

Team dynamics play a big part in this book as personal feelings and resentments come to the fore. The characters are very realistic and complex. We learn a little about their personal lives within the book as they develop.

A fresh pair of eyes and a different perspective added to advances in forensics brings to light evidence and possibilities that were overlooked 17 years ago with shocking results. There are many twists and turns along the way as the team untangles a web of lies going back many years. The conclusion is a real shocker that the reader cant see coming,

I absolutely loved this book I was hooked from the beginning and just kept reading ‘a little bit more’. I intend to read Helen’s backlist as soon as time allows.

A fantastic read. Thank you to Joffe Books for the advance copy,

THE DETECTIVES
Tom Calladine is a detective inspector who is devoted to his job. His personal life, however, is not so successful. Having been married and divorced before the age of twenty-one has set a pattern that he finds difficult to escape.

Ruth Bayliss is in her mid-thirties, plain-speaking but loyal. She is balancing her professional life with looking after a small child.

THE SETTING
The fictional village of Leesdon on the outskirts of an industrial northern English city. There is little work and a lot of crime. The bane of Calladine’s life is the Hobfield housing estate, breeding ground to all that is wrong with the area that he calls home.

THE DCI GRECO BOOKS
Book 1: DARK MURDER
Book 2: DARK HOUSES
Book 3: DARK TRADE

THE CALLADINE & BAYLISS MYSTERY SERIES
Book 1: DEAD WRONG
Book 2: DEAD SILENT
Book 3: DEAD LIST
Book 4: DEAD LOST
Book 5: DEAD & BURIED
Book 6: DEAD NASTY
Book 7: DEAD JEALOUS

Helen H Durrant

Author Bio

Helen sets her books in the area she has lived in for many years. The towns and villages that sit in the shelter of the Pennine hills. This is an area between two counties, Lancashire and Yorkshire, and between the city and the hills. It offers a rich mix of the industrial and the countryside and all the character therein.

Helen always planned to write crime novels. But until she retired from full-time work in a local further education college, it had to go on the back burner. Once she did retire – there was no excuse. She now writes full-time. Retirement proper will have to wait!

Currently there are nine books in the ‘Calladine & Bayliss’ series available – Dead Wrong, Dead Silent, Dead List, Dead Lost, Dead & Buried, Dead Nasty, Dead Jealous, Dead Bad, and the latest – Dead Guilty. There is also a box set of the first three books.

Also available are four books in the ‘DI Greco’ series – Dark Murder, Dark Houses, Dark Trade, and the latest – Dark Angel.

There are two books in the DI Matt Brindle series – His Third Victim and The Other Victim.

The DCI Rachel King series has two books – Next Victim and Two Victims

LINKS

Twitter – @hhdurrant

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/pg/helenhdurrant/about/?ref=page_internal

11/10/2019 0

The Girls Are Gone by Michael Brodkorb and Allison Mann #truecrime

The Girls Are Gone by Michael Brodkorb

Available from Amazon UK

On the evening of April 19, 2013, Samantha and Gianna Rucki disappeared. Two of five children born to David Rucki and Sandra Grazzini-Rucki, the teenage sisters vanished in the midst of their parents’ divorce.

The girls’ father, David Rucki, worked tirelessly with law enforcement to search day and night for his two missing daughters, following every lead while raising three remaining children at home. Their mother, Sandra Grazzini-Rucki, used her newfound freedom to vacation around the world, abandoning her children. And as the investigation intensified, catching the attention of the media, Sandra also disappeared.

The Girls Are Gone is the true story of two sisters who went missing, the father who kept searching, and the adults who conspired to keep the truth hidden.

My Review

Thank you to Book Publicity Services for the review copy of this book. This is my unbiased review, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

I usually read Fiction in particular Crime Fiction although I have read True Crime in the past. However, I was unsure what to expect from this book but it wasn’t anything like I was expecting.

Sandra and David have a normal family life with 5 children. They are well off financially and everything in their lives is perfect. Or so David thought. Trust fund monies go missing and Sandra is spending more money than they have coming in. She provides a solution to their problems in the form of a paper divorce. David innocently signs the papers.

From that point his life will never be the same again. He finds he is divorced in all senses of the word and accused of abusing the children he loves with all his being. What follows is a long drawn out legal battle to regain custody of his children. The day all his children returned home to David’s care his 2 middle daughters go missing.

A long process to find his daughters begins with his estranged wife placing massive obstacles in the way and enlisting the help of various support groups and individuals to prevent the girls being found.

The general story is interesting however, the book contains a lot of court transcripts which I found hard going and difficult to read and digest. The large number of people involved in the case made it difficult to keep track of who was where.

It was an interesting and different read which made a change but I am not sure I would want to read anything similar again.

3.4 stars from me

View all my reviews

25/12/2018 0

BLOG TOUR – The Aro Street Girls by Lyndsay Campbell @junctionpublish #historicalfiction

Today is my stop on the Blog Tour for THE ARO STREET GIRLS by Lyndsay Campbell. This is a new release to the Historical Fiction Genre and is set in New Zealand.

The Aro Street Girls by Lyndsay Campbell

Available from AMAZON

Kathy’s world is torn apart when her fiancé, Freddie enlists with NZ Forces to fight in World War One. When their father dies. she and her siblings, Belle and Walter, are forced to grow up fast and Kathy’s dream to become a teacher is thrown into question by family needs.

Kathy and Freddie’s romance continues via touching letters to and from the Front, but her devotion is challenged when Pacifist Lay Pastor, Arthur Tremaine appears on the scene.

This charming tale is set against the harsh realities of life in a small British colony a century ago. Feminist ideals are woven throughout as the cast of strong women and engaging men meet the challenges and tragedies they are faced with.

The reader is taken across the globe to Europe and post-war Britain where the Spanish flu has taken hold. The disease follows returning New Zealand soldiers’ with devastating consequences.

Will Freddie survive the war to claim his love?

Will Kathy fulfil her dream to become a teacher, or has the war changed everything they once knew to be true?

The Aro Street Girls is awash with romance, mystery and excitement; a vivid portrayal of wartime life in New Zealand.

My Review

I have recently rediscovered my love of Historical Fiction and recently read a few books set in WWI Britain. So I was very interested in reading The Aro Street Girls as it is set in the same era but in New Zealand.

This is a steadily moving story that I love. It follows a family from the start to the end of the War, and covers all the issues encountered during that difficult time.

Love, laughter and tears all combine together to make a brilliant read with well rounded, realistic characters. The family members are all completely different but the family dynamics work perfectly.

I won’t spoil the enjoyment by going into any details, but I will say I really enjoyed reading this and look forward to more from this author.

Author Bio

Writing has always been an integral part of my life. From factual articles for newspapers and news stories for a local radio station, interviewing offenders as a probation officer and writing their pre-sentence court reports for New Zealand’s District Courts, as well as amassing a small collection of poetry.

My historical fiction is inspired by the stories of my Scottish and Irish ancestors who crossed the seas in sailing ships in the mid 1800s to find a new life in Aotearoa New Zealand. This, combined with years spent working in the field of counselling and social work after my family had grown, has given me an interest in the lives of our ancestors more than a century ago and in writing about what makes people act the way they do. I love to create believable characters who find themselves in challenging situations.

I am a natural gypsy and while I love to travel internationally, more recently my husband and I have enjoyed motor homing around New Zealand. Walking the beaches and bush tracks and meeting people who also enjoy the mobile life is lots of fun. The wonderful thing about writing is its portability. I am happy with my laptop on my knee in our mobile home, or at a proper desk. Living on the shores of beautiful Lake Rotorua where steaming mud and thermally heated pools are the norm is quite a blessing and I am sometimes to be found writing in one of Rotorua’s lovely cafes.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lyndsay.campbell.71

20/11/2018 0

LADYBIRD (DS Jason Smith #3) by Stewart Giles

Ladybird (DS Jason Smith #3)

Available from AMAZON UK US AU CA

From #1 best-selling author: Stewart Giles comes a new addition to the popular Detective Jason Smith series.

The Goul is arrested for Murder and Jason Smith is on sick leave.

Detective Sergeant Jason Smith is days away from the end of his sick leave after a case that almost cost him his life when he gets a call from an old friend. His friend has been arrested for the murder of a student. He wants Smith to investigate the murder and prove his innocence. Smith is persuaded return to work. The student was killed with a bread knife. Ladybirds were scattered on his dead body.

When another man is found dead with ladybirds on his body, Smith enlists the help of an insect doctor, the enigmatic DR Karen Wood, to try and understand the significance of the ladybirds. As Smith gets drawn closer to this mysterious woman and more and more men wind up dead with ladybirds on their bodies Smith quickly realises that Dr Wood is not who she seems to be.

Smith and his team unearth a terrible secret from twenty years earlier; somebody wants justice and, as more and more men die, Smith realises he is running out of time to find out who.

This is a fast-paced page-turner with twists and turns all the way to an ending you wont see coming.

If you like Police Procedurals, then this is a series you won’t want to miss.

What the readers are saying

Black Books Blog

The book is a brilliant story, which kept me guessing all the way through as to the link between the victims and also who the killer was and why they were using ladybirds at the scene. Read more here

Turn the Page Blog

I really feel party of Stewarts books a me that they come to life! I can’t recommend this enough! Read more here

Donna’s Book Blog

The characters in the story are great, very well developed and I love their interaction. The writing style is great and it flows really well. It starts at a great pace and that continued right up to the brilliant ending. Read more here

Linda Strong Book Reviews

This book is full of twists and turns. I pride myself in guessing the who-dun-its …. but it just didn’t happen with this one. The author had me running in circles. Read more here

On the Shelf Reviews

Ladybird is a really quick and compelling read which kept me guessing who the killer was almost until it was revealed. Read more here

Ginger Book Geek

Bloody hell this was one hell of a dramatic, sometimes gory rollercoaster ride of a read. ‘Ladybird’ is brilliantly written with a superb plot designed to grab your attention from the start. Read more here

Joanna Larum’s Book Reviews

There are clues galore but I can never predict the killer, which is why I like these books so much. It’s a rip-roaring ride which I didn’t want to put down until I had finished it. Read more here

Debbie Hipster

Digging back into the world of Jason Smith it’s fast paced from the start. Now his friend the Ghoul is accused. The story has so many twists in the tale. It’s a race against time, as more and more deaths occur. Read more here

THE SETTING
York is a historic walled city in North Yorkshire, England.
At the confluence of the River Ouse and Foss, York is the traditional county town of the historic county of Yorkshire. York Minster and a variety of cultural and sporting activities make it a popular tourist destination.

THE DETECTIVES
DS Jason Smith is an Australian who was sent to York to live with his Grandmother when his sister disappeared from a beach. He has suffered many losses in his short life and is now a dedicated detective. He is a bit of a loose cannon he has his own way of doing things and that doesn’t always mean following orders and procedures.

DS Thompson is of the same rank as Jason, but he doesn’t have the same support or success. He and Jason have a love/hate relationship which brings a bit of humour to the series. Thompson is old school and thinks his age should give him respect and privileges, but life doesn’t work that way for him.

DC Erica Witton is Jason’s preferred partner they work well together and share a bond. She isn’t always appreciated by Jason, but they care about each other and that brings a different dimension to the series.

Stewart Giles – Author Bio

After reading English at 3 Universities and graduating from none of them, I set off travelling around the world with my wife, Ann, finally settling in South Africa, where we still live. After Ann dropped a rather large speaker on my head I came up with the idea for a detective series. DS Jason Smith was born. Smith, the first in the series was finished a few months later. 3 years and 8 DS Smith books later, Joffe Books wondered if I would be interested in working with them. As a self-published author, I agreed. However, we decided on a new series – the DC Harriet Taylor Cornwall series. The Beekeeper hit the shelves and hit the number one spot in Australia. The second in the series, The Perfect Murder did just as well. The third in the series, The Backpacker I have self-published and is now available.

Links
Website: www.stewartgiles.com
Twitter: @stewartgiles
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stewart.giles.33

You can join the Stewart Giles reader club by completing this form https://mailchi.mp/a64f6de4c541/sgreadersclub

BOOKS BY STEWART GILES

DS JASON SMITH SERIES
Book 0.5 – Phobia
Book 1 – Smith
Book 2 – Boomerang
Book 3 – Ladybird
Book 4 – Occam’s Razor
Book 5 – Harlequin
Book 6 – Selene
Book 7 – Horsemen
Book 8 – Unworthy

DC HARRIET TAYLOR SERIES
Book 1 – The Beekeeper
Book 2 – The Perfect Murder
Book 3 – The Backpacker

18/11/2018 1

BOOMERANG (DS Jason Smith #2) by Stewart Giles

Boomerang (DS Jason Smith #2)

Available from AMAZON

From #1 best-selling author: Stewart Giles comes a new addition to the popular Detective Jason Smith series.

A MAN IS KILLING PEOPLE IN YORK!

Initially the murders appear to be the random acts of a maniac.
Detective Jason Smith is put in charge of the investigation. It soon becomes clear that the murders are all connected to him in one way or another.
All of the killings correspond to events in Smith’s life and the murderer leaves dates at the crime scene which tie up to important dates in Smith’s history. When one of the dates is a time before Smith was even born, he realises he must look deep into the past to find a way to stop the worst spate of murders in York’s long history.
As the countdown begins can Jason catch York’s first serial killer before it’s too late?

This is a fast-paced page-turner that has so many twists and turns it keeps the reader guessing right up to the shocking end.

If you like Police Procedurals, then this is a series you won’t want to miss.

What the readers are saying:

Joanna Larum’s Reviews

The action in the book ranges between England, Australia and Vietnam, as each little piece in the puzzle is revealed but it all has a certain sense of inevitability, making it page-turningly fast. I enjoy Stewart Giles’ easy writing style and his portrayal of characters, added to the fact that most of the action takes place in this wonderful County I call home. Read more here

Linda Strong Book Reviews

As usual, Smith is at loggerheads with his superiors and at times he comes across as rude and sarcastic. He also has a softer side and the differences make him an interesting character to follow. It’s fast-paced and action-packed. I look forward to reading the next book in Smith’s adventures. Read more here

Donna’s Book Blog

It is well written and has some fantastic characters. The writing style is really suited to this genre and I loved the flow. The storyline had me gripped from the beginning and I loved the ending!! Read more here

Black Books Blog

This book follows Smith and Witton as they are trying to uncover York’s first serial killer, who is writing dates on the dead people’s feet after he has killed them. He is very hard to catch as, even though he makes no attempts to hide once he has made his killing, he wears a disguise each time and changes his appearance and accent all the way through the book.

On the Shelf Book Reviews

I feel like this series is getting better and better! Boomerang is a fast paced police procedural that has a whole heap of twists and turns which leads to up an emotional and nail biting ending.

Debbie Hipster

Here I am once again thoroughly gripped and immersed into a fast paced, murder mystery. Following the mystery unfold through the Detective’s eyes. I love the two different timelines and the international aspect of the stories, and that the book kept me guessing right to the last point. Read more here

Ginger Book Geek

Bloody hell ‘Boomerang’ is certainly one hell of a rollercoaster ride of a read. I was gripped from the first word on the first page and Smith had me under his spell until I read the last word on the last page. The story starts in a memorable way and you can’t help but carry on reading to discover how the Vietnam War is connected to what is happening in present day York. Read more here

THE SETTING
York is a historic walled city in North Yorkshire, England.
At the confluence of the River Ouse and Foss, York is the traditional county town of the historic county of Yorkshire. York Minster and a variety of cultural and sporting activities make it a popular tourist destination.

THE DETECTIVES
DS Jason Smith is an Australian who was sent to York to live with his Grandmother when his sister disappeared from a beach. He has suffered many losses in his short life and is now a dedicated detective. He is a bit of a loose cannon he has his own way of doing things and that doesn’t always mean following orders and procedures.

My Review

Stewart Giles – Author Bio

Links
Website: www.stewartgiles.com
Twitter: @stewartgiles
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stewart.giles.33

You can join the Stewart Giles reader club by completing this form https://mailchi.mp/a64f6de4c541/sgreadersclub

BOOKS BY STEWART GILES

DC HARRIET TAYLOR SERIES
Book 1 – The Beekeeper
Book 2 – The Perfect Murder
Book 3 – The Backpacker

17/11/2018 3

SMITH (DS Jason Smith #1) by Stewart Giles

Available from Amazon

‘The sleepy historical city of York is about to wake up’.
It is Christmas Day in York. A woman is found dead in her bed. A suicide note is found on her chest. It reads ‘I am so sorry Martin’. Hours later the police are called to a house a few miles away. A mother and her daughter have been brutally attacked; the mother is dead and the daughter is barely alive. The father is found shaking uncontrollably in the corner of the room. He is covered in blood but he is unharmed. His name is Martin Willow.
Detective Sergeant Jason Smith is put in charge of the investigation. After reaching dead end after dead end, Smith starts to put the pieces together and figures out that Martin Willow is innocent and the killer is still out there.
The little girl who was attacked on Christmas Day wakes from her coma and gives Smith a clue about the attacker; a piece of a song she heard directly before the attack. Smith then finds himself in a race against time to find this maniac before he kills again.

What the readers thought

On the Shelf Reviews

I really enjoyed this first full length Jason Smith novel! It’s one of those mysteries that you can really get stuck into! Like with Phobia the chapters are short and snappy with an incredibly fast pace but Stewart Giles still managed to weave an intricate narrative balancing almost three separate storylines and timelines. Read more here

Linda Strong Book Reviews

There are plenty of twists and turns to keep the reader totally engrossed in the story. I look forward to following the further adventures of DS Smith. Read more here

Ginger Book Geek

I have to be honest and say that there was not one thing that I disliked about the book. I loved the fact that the majority of the book is set in York, which isn’t far from where I live. I loved the cast of characters although the Detective Sergeant who dislikes Smith needs a slap with a wet flip flop. Read more here

Joanna Larum’s Reviews

The story is gripping with lots of shocks and surprises, pulling the reader in head first and not giving any time for the reader to come up for air. I read the whole book in two sittings – it would have been in one go but I had to sleep in the middle of it, falling asleep at 2.30am and waking at 5am to finish the story off. If you like a fast-paced story with believable characters and a well-crafted plot, then you will love this. Read more here