Longstone by LJ Ross

November 7, 2022 By Leave a Comment


Longstone by LJ Ross
Publisher: Dark Skies Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Between the devil and the deep blue sea…

Viking treasure is discovered beneath the icy waters of the North Sea and local historian Doctor Anna Taylor is called in to help catalogue the most exciting hoard in living memory. But when a shipwreck diver washes up dead, she’s soon out of her depth. Luckily, she knows just the person to call…

When DCI Ryan arrives at the picturesque fishing town of Seahouses, he’s faced with an impenetrable wall of secrets and lies. As he juggles marine archaeology and the cutthroat world of shipwreck diving, another murder blows the case wide open. To uncover the truth, Ryan must delve deeper into the hearts of those around him to find what lies beneath…

Murder and mystery are peppered with romance and humour in this fast-paced crime whodunnit set amidst the spectacular Northumbrian landscape.

After years of searching, a university professor contacts Dr Anna Taylor-Ryan, excited beyond belief he’d found an intact Viking ship and treasure beyond belief. Agreeing to meet the following morning, Anna is shocked to discover her colleague drowned mysteriously overnight. DCI Ryan is called in to investigate, but the small coastal town has plenty of secrets and no one appears eager to divulge any of them.

I have been enjoying this series and while this – the tenth book – is not blindingly new or breaking new ground, it has all the hallmarks of a really good British police procedural storyline and a gripping who-done-it murder mystery plot. Given the small, coastal town and the limited number of potential murderer’s readers could be forgiven for thinking the mystery element might be a bit lacking – but I was delighted to find that assumption couldn’t be more wrong. While superficially the motive for murder is clear cut, I was pleased that DCI Ryan’s investigation uncovers a complicated web of interlocking parts, and the entire plot was shown to be delightfully complex.

Readers who have enjoyed the previous stories might be a little bummed that a number of the regular main characters – particularly other members of DCI Ryan’s team – are very much on the periphery of this investigation until about halfway through the book. I thought this was a double-edged sword for the book. On the one hand I really enjoyed the fact this plot and mystery very much stood properly by itself – an exceptional and well contained story that could be picked up, read and thoroughly enjoyed by anyone even had they not read a single previous book. That is always a very bright spot in a series and an excellent way to draw new readers in who otherwise might not be keen to start a series mid-way through. That said, I spent most of the first half of the book struggling not to skim ahead to see how some of the characters – particularly Jack – pulled up after the events of the last two books. While this will easily make a re-read of the book later far more enjoyable, I do feel it was a bit of a shame the author left it so late into the book to answer those questions left dangling from the previous two books.

I greatly enjoyed seeing plenty of Anna and Ryan though and was pleased to see such a self-contained plotline back in England. The mystery itself was quite interesting and there were enough subplots, red herrings and other goings-on in the small town that kept me invested and eagerly turning the pages. I feel this would be a good book for readers new to this author and series to dip into – virtually no pre-existing knowledge of the characters, world or set up is needed to properly and thoroughly enjoy this story.

An interesting read for those who enjoy British police procedural style murder mysteries.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,

A Wee Boo by Jessica Boyd

November 4, 2022 By Leave a Comment


A Wee Boo by Jessica Boyd
Publisher: Orca Book Publishers
Genre: Children’s (0 – 6 y.o.), Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Paranormal, Contemporary
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

This heartwarming ghost story will make readers laugh out loud and sympathize with a ghost who is too cute to be scary.

Wee Boo is a ghost who wants nothing more than to earn her haunting license like all the other accredited ghosts. The problem? She’s far too cute to scare anyone! She’s given one last chance, with extraordinarily low standards: Boo doesn’t need to make anyone scream or gasp or shudder, she just needs one “whoa” to earn her place as a certified ghost. But she’s running out of chances and her final haunting is not going well―that is until she meets a baby. When Boo makes the baby laugh, she realizes something: although she’s terrible as a scary ghost, she might just make an outstanding imaginary friend. And a baby laughing in a crib at an invisible friend might just be enough to spook someone after all―the baby’s parents.

Even ghosts have to follow the rules.

Boo was utterly adorable. I loved her gentle personality and her belief that everyone she met was a future friend. She was such a kind spirit that being scary enough to finally earn her haunting license was the hardest thing she’d ever tried to do. I smiled as I read about her dilemma and wondered what else she’d try to fix it.

I loved the subtle messages this tale shared about the assumptions we make about how we should behave based on other people’s or other ghost’s in this case, expectations of us. Getting along with others is a good goal, but there are other things to consider, too. I can’t say much more about this part of the storyline without giving away spoilers, but I thought it was blended into the narrative nicely and had an important point to make for readers of all ages.

The plot twists were delightful for Halloween and beyond. They were straightforward enough for young children to follow but also included some extra layers of meaning to appeal to older readers. I always enjoy finding picture books that work well for both preschoolers and their siblings, parents, or caretakers who are reading it aloud again to the small ghost-lover in their lives. It takes talent to pull that off, so I’ll be keeping an eye out for what Ms. Boyd might release next.

A Wee Boo was the perfect ghost story for readers of all ages.

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Final Warning by John Carson

November 3, 2022 By Leave a Comment


Final Warning by John Carson
Publisher: Vellum
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Fern

A detective on his way out. A pathologist already out the door. And a killer up for the challenge.

Detective Superintendent Calvin Stewart is on his final warning after messing up a crime scene in Glasgow. He’s never been one for desk duty and he’s not going to start now.

Finbar O’Toole is a pathologist and is at the crime scene where Stewart disgraces himself. There’s no love lost between the two men.

A violent incident takes place and Finbar steps in to save Stewart, and then the two men get talking.

A bond is formed as they set about tracking down a killer who’s been amongst them all this time – and nobody is even aware.

Finding roadblocks at every turn, they put their own lives on the line as they search for the truth and hunt down a killer who won’t let anybody stand in their way. Not even them.

Detective Superintendent Calvin Stewart has always been a man to walk his own path. When he’s put on desk duty – possibly for good – he has no intention of being forced to toe the line at this stage of his life. There’s no love lost between Stewart and local pathologist Finbar O’Toole but after an altercation at the pub the two men find themselves reluctantly talking and finding some common ground. Then when Finbar admits he strongly believes what was assumed to be a natural death due to a heart attack is the latest in a series of murders Calvin and Finbar team up to do what they both do best – find answers and hope for justice.

This is the first book in a new spin-off series for Carson and I really enjoyed it. Readers should be aware there is plenty of banter between the characters – and a lot of it is bawdy and not necessarily PC. Personally, I have thoroughly enjoyed Calvin Stewart’s character in the Harry McNeil series and am pretty excited to see him have his own series hopefully starting up now. I wouldn’t quite say Stewart is an anti-hero, but I don’t feel he will suit every reader’s tastes. He absolutely walks his own path and has no problems being rude – and crude – when he feels it warranted. He’s not your average hero and I can see why he’s somewhat of a polarizing character. Speaking personally, I enjoy him and find this a great read, but I can understand that this won’t be to everyone’s tastes.

As this is the first book in the series there’s a bit of set-up at the start of the book, properly introducing Calvin’s character and the team he works with, and the events that lead to him being desk-bound etc. I felt the pace moved along at a decent clip, but there is more banter than police work for much of this stage and while I completely understand how the situation needs to be explained this start to the book isn’t heavily involved in the eventual mystery and police procedure. Once Finbar and Calvin begin to talk and the mystery around the women’s death is divulged things move much more quickly and a lot more of the investigation work begins. And I definitely feel this is where Calvin – and Finbar – both shine.

Readers who enjoy Carson’s other novels should find this one similar enough in tone that they will enjoy picking this up as well. I personally am a big fan and am eager for the release of the second novel. Readers who are new to Carson’s work should find this a fun, fairly light and definitely blokey book full of banter and shenanigans. There is plenty of mystery and police procedure in it, but enough light and heart that readers should find it a fun and easy book to read with enough characters and interest to keep the pages eagerly turning. A fun book I absolutely enjoyed.

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Old Bones by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child

November 2, 2022 By Leave a Comment


Old Bones by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
Publisher: Head Of Zeus Ltd
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Nora Kelly, a young curator at the Santa Fe Institute of Archaeology, is approached by historian Clive Benton with a once-in-a-lifetime proposal: to lead a team in search of the so-called “Lost Camp” of the tragic Donner Party. This was a group of pioneers who earned a terrible place in American history when they became snow-bound in the California mountains in 1847, their fate unknown until the first skeletonized survivors stumbled out of the wilderness, raving about starvation, murder-and cannibalism.

Benton tells Kelly he has stumbled upon an amazing find: the long-sought diary of one of the victims, which has an enigmatic description of the Lost Camp. Nora agrees to lead an expedition to locate and excavate it-to reveal its long-buried secrets.

Once in the mountains, however, they learn that discovering the camp is only the first step in a mounting journey of fear. For as they uncover old bones, they expose the real truth of what happened, one that is far more shocking and bizarre than mere cannibalism. And when those ancient horrors lead to present-day violence on a grand scale, rookie FBI agent Corrie Swanson is assigned the case…only to find that her first investigation might very well be her last.

Corrie Swanson is a newly minted Special Agent. Eager to move forward from re-visiting cold cases, she is undeterred when her first case is the murder of a low-level criminal hired to dig up a long-interred grave. Corrie finds a number of circumstantial links to other similar cases and a tenuous link to one common ancestor – Albert Parkin. Parkin was one of those who died on the infamous Donner Party and Dr. Nora Kelly has just begun a search and excavation of the Lost Camp, the third and final resting place of that long ago Party. Past and present collide as Nora and Corrie discover long-buried secrets.

I have been a huge Preston & Child fan for many years, but I really especially enjoyed this book. I have a particular soft spot for Corrie’s character and she’s hands down one of my favourites. I also really enjoy Nora and am pretty much guaranteed to read anything related to these two – together or apart. That said I feel this is the perfect entry-way book for a number of reasons. Readers who have never read anything by Preston & Child can easily pick this up and enjoy it. This is the first book featuring Nora and Corrie and thus has no real connotation of back story or previous installments. The book very carefully explains how both Nora and Corrie end up at the same place – the Lost Camp of the Donner Party – and what they’re looking for. This is easily a book that can be picked up just by itself and thoroughly enjoyed on its own merits.

I loved the plotline – two seemingly separate stories that slowly wind together until it’s clear they’re both a part of the same whole. And I really enjoyed how both Nora and Corrie were two quite different characters and each coming from different positions yet could try to find some common ground and learn to respect each other. The whole story – both their characters and the plotlines – felt natural and well woven, and most importantly of all enjoyable. Add in there were a bunch of elements that just always make a good story – hidden gold, the history behind a failed journey, cannibalism and archaeology along with modern day grave robbing and murder. What on earth is not to like?

This is a fun book which I found to be a lovely blend of mystery, adventure and high stakes this is an exceptional book and well worth the time. I can’t wait for the next one.

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Brutus Finds a Collar by Tif E. Boots

November 2, 2022 By Leave a Comment


Brutus Finds a Collar by Tif E. Boots
Publisher: ShelteringTree.Earth, LLC
Genre: Children’s (0 – 6 y.o.), Action/Adventure, Contemporary
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Brutus and Scrump are playing tag.
Charlie watches from above.
Something is waiting to be found.
An adventure and new friends await.

This book includes discussion questions and fun map skills.

Farms don’t have a lost and found, right?

Kindness comes in many forms. I liked the way the narrator framed what a good deed can look like and how much space the audience was given to come up with our own interpretations of what Brutus was doing and what we thought of his choices. There is definitely something to be said for stories that trust their readers to do such things, and it makes me eager to read more about these characters in the future if the author decides to keep their adventures going.

When I reviewed Brutus Finds a Friend, the first tale in this series, earlier this year, I mentioned wishing that more details about the setting had been included. This was something I noticed happening in this instalment, too. While the illustrations were adorable, there was still a lot of room left in the story itself to describe the setting and characters. I would have happily gone for a full five-star rating if this had been done.

I was once again pleased with how the author balanced creating an engaging story with making sure the vocabulary in it was appropriate for young readers. The lovely simplicity of the text made it something that I’d be happy to give to the kids in my life who are just beginning to read on their own, and the exciting subject matter makes me think they’d like it quite a bit! It’s difficult to balance these two concerns, so good job to the author for accomplishing it.

This is the second picture book in a series. It can be read as a standalone work.

Brutus Finds a Collar was a delightful adventure.

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Dark Whisper by Christine Feehan

November 1, 2022 By Leave a Comment


Dark Whisper by Christine Feehan
Publisher: Berkley
Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Paranormal
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Xeranthemum

Vasilisa Sidkorolyavolkva is a Lycan of royal blood. She knows what is expected of her, but all she wants is to be out from under her family’s watchful eyes. There is a fire inside her that is building. A restlessness coupled with a sense of growing dread. Every day she feels the weight of the legacy passed down through generations. The prophecy that says a man will come to claim her as his mate, and that she will guard his soul. She knows nothing about him except that he is hers. But nothing seems real until the night she meets him in the flesh….

Afanasiv Belan is a Carpathian, an ancient one. In all the centuries of his existence, no one has ever affected him like Vasilisa. He can see into her mind and feel what is in her heart. They are so alike, warriors bound by honor and plagued by secrets. They both know they must reveal the darkest parts of their souls if they hope to survive and protect the ones they love.

But if they claim each other as lifemates, it will change them down to the bone. They will become something more—something feared by both of their kinds….

The action is well-written, the suspense and drama are strong, and the characters are as interesting as ever. What I liked about Dark Whisper is that there is no stupid drama about the heroine resenting or resisting Afanasiv’s claim to her, or the possessive alpha nature of the hero. Vasilisa is well aware of what she guards, and I actually like that about her. No unnecessary angst, just a strong sense of self, knowing her duty and the confidence of her skill to carry it out, come what may. She’s a very strong heroine.

Both hero and heroine work well together. They don’t get a lot of down time because the pace of this novel is non-stop. The plot conflict keeps coming at them. But with their allies, Afanasiv and Vasilisa are up to the task of fighting off demons, vampires and betrayers. It’s a dark read which fits the title appropriately.

The ending is a bit abrupt, and I wasn’t expecting that. Usually there’s a wrap up that gives a reader time to admire all the threads of the plot being wrapped up, including the happy ever after. It felt like a roller coaster ride that ended too soon, up, down whoosh and …done. It was still a good tale, entertaining and engaging. Afanasiv and Vasilisa definitely complement each other. There were even a few surprises which I enjoyed.

I’m not too thrilled with the current story arc. I’ve been a fan of the series for a very long time, and most of the books are awesome. This one with the demons and Lilith mixing with vampires and mages just seems like it’s pushing the envelope into an area I don’t care for. The one sticky point that bothered me the most was the use of holy water. It seemed disingenuous because there was no correlation to anything referring to Christianity in Dark Whisper. I am used to holy water being directly associated with some type of Christian faith because it’s one of the most potent, visible and easily accessible symbols, yet it’s frequently taken out of context, using all its power but none of its source. I’m all for engaging willing suspension of disbelief in order to enjoy the paranormal romances I read, but I can’t ignore the use of something with power devoid of what gives it power in the first place. Using it on evil beings and then expecting me to believe that it would have the same powerful effect as if it were produced from the sole source, a Christian religion, but not? Nope, that didn’t work for me. It didn’t completely kick me out of enjoying all the other aspects of the novel. Like I said, there was a lot going on, but I took note, and it bothered me enough to mention it. It’s a good thing that there were many other facets of the tale I did like. There were exciting and powerful characters helping the hero and heroine out and I enjoyed the idea that there is something about Skyler that could create a new story arc for her and Dimitri. It certainly brought up more questions than answers, but they are captivating ideas to ponder. Then there’s the mention of the trapped Carpathian, Justice. Something big is building, that’s for sure. I’m glad they got one of the bad guys out of the picture. How they did it was sort of gruesome but extremely apropos. This is a dark romantic paranormal suspense after all. Ms. Feehan knows what she’s about.

Overall, I enjoyed the story. It’s a good read and I think fans of the series will like it. I did go, Wow! a few times and threw in a whoa! or two as well. It’s worth checking out.

Filed Under: Reviews, Romance Tagged With: , , , , ,

Square Penny: Romance and Mystery Afoot by Shelley White

November 1, 2022 By Leave a Comment


Square Penny: Romance and Mystery Afoot by Shelley White
In for a Penny Series, #2
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Genre: Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Romance, Historical, Contemporary
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

With the dramatic conclusion of Penny Gothic and Tripp’s self-realization, Penny’s happily ever after should be just around the corner…right? What happens when neither main character is ready to ride off into the sunset? They read another book.

The couple meet up in 50s-era teen series Pom Squad Mystery #17. They channel their inner Nancy Drew and Ned to solve the corny mystery of the missing time capsule.

Meanwhile, Penny’s research into her family legacy produces information that suggests sexy neighbor, Gregorio, might be more than just a secondary character.

When the mystery is solved will Penny and Tripp be ready to take their romance into the real world or will unanswered questions still stand in their way?

If you like gentle fiction, look no further.

I was once again amused by Penny’s healthy suspicion of and intelligent responses to some of the tropes of the romance genre that would be unusual to find in the real world. That is to say, she wasn’t the sort of character who leapt into anything without knowing exactly where she’d land first and what she’d do if something didn’t turn out the way she expected it to. That endeared me to her just as much as it did in the first book. She was relatable, funny, and well-rounded.

It would have been helpful to have a little more time dedicated to the mystery storyline. I was interested in how it would play out but didn’t find enough clues to help me come up with good theories about what happened to the missing time capsule. This was the only issue preventing me from choosing a full five-star rating as I enjoyed everything else about this book.

One of the things I’ve enjoyed the most about this series so far has been how much time the slow-burn romance has been given time to develop. While this can be read as a standalone work, I’d recommend starting with Penny Gothic: A Romance of Fictitious Proportions if you want to fully appreciate all of the effort the author put into setting up the framework for Penny and Tripp to fall in love. These sorts of storylines are so much more meaningful to me when I’ve had ample time to get to know the characters and discover the reasons why they’d make a fantastic match.

Square Penny: Romance and Mystery Afoot was a lighthearted and entertaining read.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Bella Cigna by Wendi Dass

October 31, 2022 By Leave a Comment


Bella Cigna by Wendi Dass
Foreign Endearments, Book 1
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Xeranthemum

Devastated by personal loss, Sarah Flynn escapes to Rome where she finds a job teaching English. Only the girls’ school is like a nunnery and she’s expected to speak fluent Italian overnight. What has she gotten herself into? While the beautiful sights rekindle her interest in art, not even her brush finding canvas can heal all the wounds she carries. She’ll need the help of a meddling nun, a nutty mathematician, and a handsome Italian admirer. Can Sarah overcome the insecurities born of a shattered marriage? Will she again take a chance on love?

This is a character driven, drama-infused novel of a very flawed woman trying to find her way back from the betrayal of her husband, someone she trusted implicitly. His leaving Sarah like she was nothing to him was traumatic and sent the heroine into an emotional quagmire.

Sarah’s friend, Meredith, is crucial in not only supporting the heroine, but giving her advice and a shoulder to cry on when needed. She also acts as a sounding board on and off throughout the novel. Another person that interacts with Sarah is her mother. The relationship is very similar to real life – a relationship that bounces between love, annoyance, impatience, gratefulness, supportiveness and every other quirk that can exist between a mother and a daughter. There are quite a number of interpersonal relationships sprinkled throughout the book – not all of them are benign. Then there’s Anna. I liked her. She is a young, quirky and energetic young woman who ends up taking the older Sarah under her wing. It’s up to the reader to decide if that is a good or bad thing. I think Anna was a good-hearted young lady who was still maturing during the course of the novel. Sister Maria is another secondary character that I felt was crucial to the romance’s success.

When I said that Sarah was flawed; that’s an understatement. Lying by omission comes back to haunt her. Going against her better judgement and drinking to excess in a foreign country also comes into play as a plot conflict. Her lack of self-esteem, her lack of confidence in herself as a woman, courtesy of her ex-husband, messes with her decision-making skills and she makes some bad ones. Repeatedly. Then she comes up against a sexual predator, so that may be a trigger for some readers. Sarah goes through so many ups and downs, it made me dizzy. Eventually things even out and a reader can finally breathe a sigh of relief as the hints of an HEA become realized.

This is ultimately a romance story, and Eduardo and his daughter are the bright spots that made this novel enjoyable. I really adored every interaction between Sarah and Lucia, Eduardo’s daughter. I felt they were the most beautiful exchanges in the whole book. Eduardo is a very nice guy, handsome and rich, but he can be very emotional and easily hurt. But he is also very forgiving, and that part of his nature is key in the success of the romance.

The happy ever after is hard won but satisfying in the end. Actually, it’s a very happy HEA and I was thrilled for Sarah. After everything she went through, she deserved to be happy. Bella Cigna is not an easy read but it’s a good story with a nice romance between two people that sound like someone you could meet in real life.

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Dead Level by Damien Boyd

October 28, 2022 By Leave a Comment


Dead Level by Damien Boyd
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

In the early hours of Christmas Eve, the wife of parliamentary candidate Tom Perry is brutally murdered in an apparent burglary gone wrong.

With the by-election campaign about to start in earnest, and the festive season in full swing, torrential rain brings with it flood warnings on the Somerset Levels.

Suspended on full pay and transferred to the cold case unit, Detective Inspector Nick Dixon is languishing on the sidelines as the investigation into Elizabeth Perry’s murder unravels and the floodwaters rise.

Returning to duty, Dixon is convinced that the answer lies hidden in Tom Perry’s political life, but why was Elizabeth the target and not her husband? The more Dixon uncovers, the further he is from finding the truth…

DI Nick Dixon is suspended on full pay while a disciplinary action is investigated against him. Working temporarily in the cold case unit he’s grateful just to be kept busy. But when a local parliamentary candidate’s wife is murdered DI Dixon soon finds himself back in action and investigating quite a murky case.

This next installment of the Nick Dixon mystery series is a far longer book than the previous offerings. I enjoyed the fact the plot was equally a fair bit more convoluted and there were a few more moving parts than I recall there being in the previous books. I was surprised that for much of the first quarter or so of the story Nick was suspended and so it was his girlfriend and colleague Jane, and another DI, Janice, who worked the main murder mystery case. While I did enjoy this very different aspect to the story, I wondered a few times what other readers might think of the focus of the story being very much not on Nick as the main character, but very much sitting idly by and not really involved at all.

I was also a bit surprised that Nick’s cold case really took a back seat once he was reinstated and immediately took over the murder of the politician’s wife. At no stage did I think Nick had forgotten about it or that he wouldn’t return to it, but there was a large section of the book where it clearly wasn’t his focus and while I understood this it also didn’t feel very good to me.

That said, I thoroughly enjoyed this strong police procedural story. I enjoyed seeing a few more characters and actually hope to see more of the other DI Janice in later books. The pace of this story is fairly slow – readers looking for a heavily action orientated style of novel won’t find that here – but for more classic British style who-dun-it and police mystery novels should really find this a well written and exceptionally well plotted story. I was also pretty happy that the book stood very well on its own. I don’t believe any of the prior novels in this series need to be read to really enjoy this book.

An interesting and well plotted murder mystery, this is a great book, and I am eager to read the next.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,

Rivers Of London by Ben Aaronovitch

October 27, 2022 By Leave a Comment


Rivers Of London by Ben Aaronovitch
Publisher: Orion Publishing Group
Genre: Contemporary, Paranormal, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Peter Grant looks look your average London police officer, but he is actually a part-time wizard in a very elite branch of the Metropolitan Police. It’s his job to investigate those crimes that regular cops don’t like to talk about because they often involve vampires or strange things in Underground tunnels. Peter’s latest case features a self-driving killer automobile, a Serbian refugee, the Most Haunted Car in England, a handsome drug dealer with a nice paisley scarf and a seemingly harmless wooden bench with a dark past! Collecting the sell-out smash mini-series, Rivers of London: Body Work!

Constable Peter Grant is nearing the end of his probationary period and is excited to see what his next steps will be in the Metropolitan Police Service. Only he finds himself taking a witness statement from a ghost and all too soon his career takes a sharp sideways turn. Peter discovers there are all manner of paranormal beings out there, and plenty of them call London home.

It has been quite some time since I have been really excited by a paranormal story and this book was absolutely exceptional. I really enjoyed the light, easy to read voice of the author – and of Peter himself – and found the whole story very “moreish” in that I kept on wanting to read just a little bit more, then a bit more after that. There are a bunch of interweaving characters and while the plot seems to meander a fair bit even that I can find acceptable because Peter is entirely new to this world and so everything wasn’t making complete sense to him yet either. There isn’t a lot of cohesion to everything, but I feel this mimics how unusual everything appears to Peter as well.

That said, I found this a very easy to read book and while everything appears scattered at first the tone and overall feel to the whole book – and the new paranormal world opening up to Peter – was so interesting and enjoyable I didn’t think twice about slowing down or stopping. I was again very happy to discover this is the first in a decently sized series and I had already purchased the second story when I was barely halfway through this one.

Readers who like a good police/mystery novel should definitely find this appealing. I also think paranormal readers should be very happy with this book. Readers who don’t mind a bit of humour in their stories – or a lighter take on the various paranormal creatures out there – should definitely feel the style of this novel suits their tastes too.

A brilliant first book and a new-to-me author which I am very happy to add to my collection. Recommended.

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