Category: Book Reviews

Posted in Book Reviews

Why: Runaway by Claire MacLeary @Sarabandbooks @ClaireMacLeary #LoveBooksGroupTours

Posted on by Meggy | Chocolate'n'Waffles

You can’t imagine my joy at the idea of sharing my review of Runaway by the wonderful and kind Claire MacLeary!

Thank you so much to Kelly at Love Books Group for inviting me to be part of this wonderful blog tour and for introducing me to a great series!

runaway.jpgTitle: Runaway
Publisher: Contraband
Date of publication: 2019
Format: e-copy
Source: blog tour organiser
Number of pages: 304

The third book in the awards-listed Harcus & Laird series

When Aberdeen housewife Debbie Milne abruptly vanishes without trace, leaving behind her two young children, husband Scott is too distraught to sit out the police’s 72-hour window and await developments. He turns to local detective agency Harcus & Laird.

Put off by previous “domestic” cases, Maggie Laird isn’t keen, but is cajoled by partner Wilma Harcus into a covert operation. Together they comb through meagre scraps of information, eventually trawling the city’s women’s refuges and homeless squats, in spite of the deadly danger.

Then a woman’s body is discovered in a Dundee builder’s skip. With the clock ticking and the police struggling to make identification, the race is on. Claire MacLeary fashions a surprising, gritty, fast-paced tale with the warmth and wisdom of ‘women of a certain age’.

Continue reading “Why: Runaway by Claire MacLeary @Sarabandbooks @ClaireMacLeary #LoveBooksGroupTours” →

Posted in Book Reviews

The Empire: Mama’s Gone by Leopold Borstinski @borstinski @damppebbles #damppebblesblogtours

Posted on by Meggy | Chocolate'n'Waffles

It’s almost the weekend! Have you planned your readings? If you feel like being a gangster for a while, take a look at Mama’s Gone!

My thanks to Emma #damppebblesblogtours for inviting me to be part of this tour

41-Ro+mIrTLTitle: Mama’s Gone (The Lagotti Family series #4)
Author: Leopold Borstinski
Publisher: Sobriety Press
Date of hardback publication: 2019
Format: ecopy

When children grow up, the parents must die

California gang leader Mary Lou has built a criminal empire while her adult children are desperate for their mother’s attention and love. 

As her mental faculties wane, Alice and Frank Jr must acknowledge their mother is not the woman she once was and that they need to step up and take the helm, despite the stark differences between them. 

But their sibling rivalry blinds both of them to their weaknesses which threatens the family when the Russian mob moves into the state. How can they fend off those attacks while fighting to decide who will lead the family now their dear Mama’s gone?

Continue reading “The Empire: Mama’s Gone by Leopold Borstinski @borstinski @damppebbles #damppebblesblogtours” →

Posted in Book Reviews

Joker: The Last Act by Brad Parks @Brad_Parks @FaberBooks @joshuars_

Posted on by Meggy | Chocolate'n'Waffles

Switching genres or adding spices to my reads help me enjoy books better. I love picking novels that take me on different paths, and The Last Act did exactly this!

I would like to thank Faber & Faber for inviting me to be part of this blog tour. This review is my unbiased opinion.

43521532.jpgTitle: The Last Act
Publisher: Faber & Faber
Date of publication: 14.03.2019
Format: hardback
Source: Publisher
Number of pages: 368

Former Broadway star Tommy Jump isn’t getting the roles he once did. As his final run as Sancho Ponza draws to a close, Tommy is getting ready to give up the stage, find a steady paycheck, and settle down with his fiancée.

Cue Special Agent Danny Ruiz. An old school friend of Tommy’s, now with the FBI, Ruiz makes Tommy an offer that sounds too good to refuse. All Tommy has to do is spend six months in prison, acting as failed bank robber ’Pete Goodrich’.

Inside, he must find and befriend Mitchell Dupree, who has hidden a secret cache of documents incriminating enough to take down New Colima, one of Mexico’s largest drug cartels. If Tommy can get Dupree and reveal where the documents are hidden, the FBI will give him $300,000, more than enough to jumpstart a new life. But does he have what it takes to pull off this one final role?

Continue reading “Joker: The Last Act by Brad Parks @Brad_Parks @FaberBooks @joshuars_” →

Posted in Book Reviews

Listen to your Heart: Only Daughter by Sarah A. Denzil @sarahdenzil @bookouture #BlogTour

Posted on by Meggy | Chocolate'n'Waffles

Some stories are meant to be told. Some authors shoot you in the heart, leaving you panting, the adrenaline running through your veins, the tears steaming down your face. Emotionally exhausted but so happy to have read Only Daughter, I present you my little review, knowing it could never do this novel justice.

My biggest thanks to Bookouture for this amazing read and for allowing me to be part of this blog tour.

Only-Daughter-Kindle.jpgTitle: Sarah A. Denzil
Publisher: Bookouture
Date of publication: 13.03.2019
Format: e-copy
Source: Publisher
Number of pages: 341

‘Your daughter is dead.’

When Kat Cavanaugh hears the words every mother dreads, her perfect world shatters. She takes in the beautiful long blonde hair, torn yellow dress and chipped blue nail-varnish. It can’t be real.

And then the police add the word ‘suicide’. But Kat refuses to believe them. 

Even when they show her the familiar looping handwriting and smudged ink on the note her little girl left behind. She knows her bubbly, vivacious daughter would never take her own life.

As she searches Grace’s perfume-scented room, filled with smiling photos, she uncovers secrets her little girl had been hiding. Secrets that could put her in terrible danger too.

But Kat’s determined to find out what really happened to Grace on the night she died, whatever it takes…

This addictive and heart-pounding psychological thriller will keep you gripped late into the night.

Continue reading “Listen to your Heart: Only Daughter by Sarah A. Denzil @sarahdenzil @bookouture #BlogTour” →

Posted in Book Reviews

Muddy Waters: A Body in the Lakes by Graham Smith @GrahamSmith1972 @bookouture

Posted on by Meggy | Chocolate'n'Waffles

Do you get that yummy thrill when it’s time to share the review of a book written by one of your favourite authors?? Because I do!!

Thanks to Noelle and Bookouture for inviting me to be part of this amazing blog tour!

A-Body-in-the-Lakes-Kindle.jpg
Title: A Body in the Lakes
Author: Graham Smith
Publisher: Bookouture
Date of publication: 15.03.2019
Format: e-copy
Source: Publisher
Number of pages: 372

The woman’s limbs were so thin; the skin on her arms as translucent as tracing paper. Around her neck lay a faint string of purple bruises. In one so frail, darker, angrier marks might be expected but Beth knew the bruising would have stopped the moment her heart stopped beating.

When a walker finds the body of a woman by the shores of Lake Ullswater, the police are put on high alert. Felicia Evans was known to be a tough character, but who would have strangled her?

Detective Beth Young quickly spots the links to three cold cases. Three women strangled and discarded in the stunning, wild hills of the Lake District.

As Beth begins tracking down witnesses, the team receives an anonymous letter claiming the charming mayor of Carlisle is behind the murders. There’s pressure from the top to clear his name. But Beth is determined to find the truth no matter whose feathers she ruffles in the process.

Beth knows the clock is ticking. The killer is hunting again. And it’s down to her to find who’s responsible before another woman becomes his prey…

A gripping edge-of-your-seat thriller from bestselling author Graham Smith, perfect for fans of Joy Ellis, LJ Ross, and J.R. Ellis.

Continue reading “Muddy Waters: A Body in the Lakes by Graham Smith @GrahamSmith1972 @bookouture” →

Posted in Book Reviews

Hear Me: Before She Knew Him by Peter Swanson @PeterSwanson3 @FaberBooks

Posted on by Meggy | Chocolate'n'Waffles

I will never be able to come up with a Top 10 or 20 this year again. Before She Knew Him is another proof of this. What a read. What A READ! Do I wish my TBR were less good? Nope!!!

My biggest thanks to Faber & Faber for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. Hugs to Namra for the speed delivery to fight postage fails!

D39A372C-5584-4AE5-B863-EF3A703BE975
Title: Before She Knew Him
Author: Peter Swanson
Publisher: Faber & Faber
Date of publication: 7.03.2019
Format: Hardback
Source: Publisher
Number of pages: 309

‘Ever since she’d been old enough to pick out her own library books, Hen had always
had a morbid streak, a preoccupation with death.’

When Hen and Lloyd move into their new house in West Dartford, Mass., they’re
relieved to meet, at their first block party, the only other seemingly-childless couple in

their neighborhood, Matthew and Mira Dolamore. Turns out they live in the Dutch
Colonial immediately next door.

When they’re invited over for dinner, however, things take a sinister turn when Hen thinks she sees something suspicious in Matthew’s study. Could this charming, mild-mannered College Professor really be hiding a dark secret, one that only Hen, who’s been battling her own problems with depression and medication, could know about?

Lloyd certainly doesn’t seem to believe her, and so, forced together, Hen and Matthew start to form an unlikely bond. But who, if anyone, is really in danger?

From its deeply unsettling opening, Peter Swanson, the master of contemporary domestic thrillers, fashions a novel as brilliant, dark, coruscating and surprising as Patricia Highsmith and Ira Levin at their very best.

Continue reading “Hear Me: Before She Knew Him by Peter Swanson @PeterSwanson3 @FaberBooks” →

Posted in Book Reviews

Remember: Day of the Accident by Nuala Ellwood @NualaWrites @EllieeHud @PenguinUKBooks

Posted on by Meggy | Chocolate'n'Waffles

Happy Monday! … Is there such a thing? Anyway, I am delighted to talk about Day of the Accident today!

I’d like to send my biggest thanks to Penguin and Ellie for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review! I apologize for the delay. 

day of the accidentTitle: Day of the Accident
Author: Nuala Ellwood
Publisher: Penguin
Date of publication: Paperback 22.2.2019
Format: paperback
Source: Publisher
Number of pages: 388

Sixty seconds after she wakes from a coma, Maggie’s world is torn apart

The police tell her that her daughter Elspeth is dead. That she drowned when the car Maggie had been driving plunged into the river. Maggie remembers nothing.

When Maggie begs to see her husband Sean, the police tell her that he has disappeared. He was last seen on the day of her daughter’s funeral.

What really happened that day at the river?

Where is Maggie’s husband?

And why can’t she shake the suspicion that somewhere, somehow, her daughter is still alive?

Continue reading “Remember: Day of the Accident by Nuala Ellwood @NualaWrites @EllieeHud @PenguinUKBooks” →

Posted in Book Reviews

Watch Your Back: Keep Her Close by M. J. Ford @MJFordBooks @AvonBooksUK @Sabah_K

Posted on by Meggy | Chocolate'n'Waffles

No better way to end a week than meeting up with a good friend! Josie Masters is back!

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I would like to thank Avon Books for inviting me to be part of this blog tour.

keep her closeTitle: Keep Her Close
Author: M.J. Ford
Publisher: Avon UK
Date of publication: 7 March 2019
Format: paperback
Source: Publisher

Someone is playing a deadly game…

When a young girl goes missing from Jesus College Oxford, DS Josie Masters is plunged into a world of panic as fear grips the city. Along with Thames Valley Police’s newest recruit, the handsome DS Pryce, Josie must act fast – and when two more girls disappear from Oriel and Somerville colleges, she realises the killer is sending her a deadly message in a cruel game of cat and mouse. This time, the case is personal – but who is the perpetrator?

In a desperate race against the clock, Josie hunts for the kidnapper, and soon discovers he could be a lot closer to home than she’d ever thought…

M.J. Ford is back with a gripping new thriller, perfect for fans of Cara Hunter and T.M. Logan

Continue reading “Watch Your Back: Keep Her Close by M. J. Ford @MJFordBooks @AvonBooksUK @Sabah_K” →

Posted in Book Reviews

Best Friends Forever: Her Closest Friend by Clare Boyd @ClareBoydClark @bookouture #BlogTour

Posted on by Meggy | Chocolate'n'Waffles

Thriller Tuesday! Are you ready to get poisoned?

My biggest thanks to Bookouture for inviting me to be part of this blog tour!

Her-Closest-Friend-Kindle
Title: Her Closest Friend
Author: Clare Boyd
Publisher: Bookouture
Date of publication: 2019
Format: e-copy
Number of pages: 372

Pop music blares from the radio. She sings drunkenly from the backseat. The thrash of windscreen wipers against the driving rain. The screech of tyres. A thud. 

Naomi and I are best friends.

School runs, dog walks, a shoulder to cry on over a glass of wine, we’re inseparable.

But now my husband has walked out, I need her more than ever.

I know she will help me pick up the pieces.

Because she knows about the lie I told to protect her.

She knows how much I’ve sacrificed for this friendship. 

And she’d never let anyone hurt me.

Would she?

This extraordinary page-turner will suck you in from the very first page and keep you gripped until the breathtaking finale. Fans of The Wife Between Us, The Girl Before and Gone Girl will adore this twisted tale of toxic female friendship.

Continue reading “Best Friends Forever: Her Closest Friend by Clare Boyd @ClareBoydClark @bookouture #BlogTour” →

Posted in Book Reviews

In The Blink of an Eye: Finding Grace by K.L. Slater @KimLSlater @bookouture

Posted on by Meggy | Chocolate'n'Waffles

Happy day at the Roussel’s! K. L. Slater is back!!!

finding graceTitle: Finding Grace
Author: K.L. Slater
Publisher: Bookouture
Date of publication: 2019
Format: e-copy
Number of pages: 253

This morning, my daughter sat right here, munching her breakfast, too excited to finish it. Now, she is missing.

The day after her ninth birthday, Lucie and Blake Sullivan agree, for the very first time, to let their daughter, Grace, make the four-minute walk back home alone from a friend’s house just down the street.

They joke with friends about hiding behind bushes to ensure she is safe. But the joke turns sour when Grace does not appear.

Despite the best efforts of the police and local community, Grace seems to have vanished into thin air. With hope fading fast, Lucie knows she can rely on her husband to support her through such dark times. That is until the day she makes a shocking discovery, hidden in Blake’s desk, and suddenly she begins to doubt everything she knew about the man she married.

But Lucie harbours a terrible secret of her own. One that she has never shared with anyone, even Blake …

And as the search for Grace reaches fever pitch, Lucie receives a terrifying message. If she is ever to see Grace again, Lucie has no choice but to face the past she tried hard to bury forever. And she must do it alone.

The most gripping psychological thriller you’ll read this year from the bestselling author K.L. Slater. If you love The Wife Between Us or Gone Girl, you’ll be totally hooked on Finding Grace.

Continue reading “In The Blink of an Eye: Finding Grace by K.L. Slater @KimLSlater @bookouture” →