Eight years ago, ‘The Inside Man’ murdered four women and left three more in critical condition—all of them with their stomachs slit open and a plastic doll stitched inside. And then the killer just... disappeared. Ash Henderson was a Detective Inspector on the initial investigation, but a lot can change in eight years. His family has been destroyed, his career is in tatters, and one of Oldcastle’s most vicious criminals is making sure he spends the rest of his life in prison. Now a nurse has turned up dead on a patch of waste ground, a plastic doll buried beneath her skin, and it looks as if Ash might finally get a shot at redemption. At earning his freedom.   SHORT THOUGHTS     This is the second and last book for me in this series. It seemed to take a lifetime for me to get through and I nearly DNF'd twice. I wasn't overly high on the first one but decided to stick with it due to Alice who i thought was a brilliant character. Unfortunately, this boo...

  Detective Constable Ash Henderson has a dark secret Five years ago his daughter, Rebecca, went missing on the eve of her thirteenth birthday. A year later the first card arrived: homemade, with a Polaroid picture stuck to the front – Rebecca, strapped to a chair, gagged and terrified. Every year another card: each one worse than the last. The tabloids call him ‘The Birthday Boy’. He’s been snatching girls for twelve years, always in the run-up to their thirteenth birthday, sending the families his home-made cards showing their daughters being slowly tortured to death. But Ash hasn’t told anyone about Rebecca’s birthday cards – they all think she’s just run away from home – because if anyone finds out, he’ll be taken off the investigation. And he’s sacrificed too much to give up before his daughter’s killer gets what he deserves.   SHORT THOUGHTS   Firstly let me say that I have read all of Stuart MacBride's Logan McRae crime novels and love them to...

  A TERRIFYING BIRTH A young woman is rushed to the hospital with stabbing pains in her stomach. The chief surgeon delivers a living child with the face of an angel and the body of a tentacled monster. The doctors are unanimous that the baby must die. AN ESCAPE FROM THE DARK Engineer Gemma is plunged into darkness in a tunnel beneath London. Before she escapes, a strange green light illuminates a cluster of ghostly figures. Gemma is certain they were children. A SUPERNATURAL THREAT DC Jerry Pardoe and DS Jamila Patel, of Tooting Police, have investigated the occult before – but nothing as strange and horrible as what they must confront in the city sewers. Down here in the dark, where the dead come back to life, witchcraft is the only force strong enough to save you...   SHORT THOUGHTS I was sitting here thinking which Graham Masterton books I have read in the past and I think the only one I had read was a copy of "The House That Jack Built" which I picked up in a s...

      SHORT THOUGHTS   Birmingham's favourite DI Zoe Finch is back with another case.  This series has fast become one of my favourite crime series mainly due to its likeable and believable characters.   A topic which could be heavy going is expertly made readable by the author and makes this book an excellent installment.  Bit by bit, book by book, the characters are being fleshed out and given personalities that make you feel as if you know them.  Zoe Finch herself is a particularly well-rouded character - having a facade as a hard as nails DI, but prepared to go the extra mile for her team and showing a softer side in the sections dealing with her home life. This is the third in the series.  Buy the three (and sign up for the free prequel at the author's website - link below) before the next installment which is due in January.  All three books are also available to Kindle Unlimited readers.     LINKS Rachel McLean Official ...

  In this game it’s kill or be killed A stranger has you cornered. They call themselves The Host. You are forced to play their game. In it one person can live and the other must die. You are the next player. You have a choice to make. This is a game where nobody wins…       SHORT THOUGHTS So so good! A serial killer thriller with a twist - the "serial killer" doesnt actually kill anyone.. Based around the "trolley problem" and its moral/ethical challenge, this book is really refreshing, fast paced and believable with a flawed yet likeable lead character who I would love to see featured in a series of books. Includes a couple of shocks (one of which i was genuinely shocked at) Highly recommended.   Thanks to HQ/Netgalley for providing advanced reading copy in exchange for fair unbiased review

  Hannah knows the cage intimately. Small, the size of a shopping centre parking space. A bed, a basin, a table and chair. A hatch and metal drawer through which to exchange food and other items. Then there's him. Always there on the edges of her vision, no matter how hard she tries to block him out. Every day, the same thoughts run through Hannah's mind: What if he speaks to me? What if he hurts me? What if he gets out? SHORT THOUGHTS Set in a UK where instead of prisoners going to jail, they are placed  in the custody of the victim who has to become their jailor.  Electric fences surround the house to prevent escape with codes not available to the victim/jailer.  How would you feel if the man accused of murdering your husband/wife had to live in a cage in your kitchen and you were responsible for their care? I was very unsure about this book and nearly DNF near the start as I could not get into it but I am so glad I did.  One of the most original and rewarding...

When I arrive unannounced at my husband’s studio in need of a shoulder to cry on after hearing that my best student, Alex, has died, I see a pair of wineglasses drying by the sink and my deepest fear is confirmed: my husband is having an affair. Most women would fall to their knees in tears and throw him out of the house–but I just can’t bring myself to do it.  Instead, I go home and cook a healthy dinner for our children, walk the dog and unload the dishwasher without complaint. I will make him see that I’m still the woman he married; attractive, successful, the glue that holds our perfect family together. I need this marriage to work to protect a terrible secret of my own, something that would destroy everything I’ve already sacrificed so much for. But when the police arrive at my door asking questions about Alex’s death that I can’t answer, and threatening text messages start appearing on my phone, I know that someone close has been watching me very carefully. The truth is, ther...