Tag: Thriller

Traitors Gate by Jeffrey Archer

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Historical Fiction, Thriller3 Comments

Traitors Gate Cover 2

Publisher: Harper Collins (ebook – 26 September 2023)

Series: William Warwick – Book Six

Length: 384 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Amazon

Bestselling author Jeffrey Archer returns with another exciting addition to his fun and compelling William Warwick series with Traitors Gate.

Jeffrey Archer is a well-known and interesting British figure: a former politician, a convicted criminal, a life peer and member of the House of Lords.  However, these days Archer is best known as a bestselling author, having written a large catalogue of novels that usually contain a historical or thriller element to them.  Some of his works include the Kane and Abel series, his well-known Clifton Chronicles and a range of standalone books like Heads You Win.  I particularly enjoy the William Warwick series, which is a fun and entertaining collection of historical thrillers.

The William Warwick novels, which originated within the fiction universe of the Clifton Chronicles series, follows the life and career of titular protagonist William Warrick, an idealistic London police officer who rises through the ranks while solving a series of dastardly crimes.  This series, which is defined by its character-driven plots, new criminal focuses for each novel, and the protagonist’s bitter rivalry with a notorious crook, are always very entertaining and feature some compelling stories.  I personally really enjoyed the first three books in the series, Nothing Ventured, Hidden in Plain Sight, and Turn a Blind Eye, although I unfortunately missed the next two books in the series.  Luckily, I was able to grab a copy of the upcoming sixth William Warwick book, Traitors Gate, which honestly might be one of the best entries in the series.

London, 1996.  There is nothing more sacred nor valuable in the entire realm than the crown Jewels of England.  Kept secure within the Tower of London, the jewels are only brought out once a year for the Queen to attend the State Opening of Parliament.  Providing security for the transfer between the Tower and the palace is one of the most important jobs done by the Metropolitan Police, and this vital duty is now overseen by Chief Superintendent William Warwick and his crack team.  Thanks to all the elaborate precautions around the transfer, the jewels are considered unstealable, but there is one audacious crook who is about to prove them wrong.

For years, William has sought to bring down notorious criminal mastermind Miles Faulkner, a gentleman thief and deadly rogue who has brought nothing but misery to William’s friends and family.  But despite the best effort of William and the men under his command, Faulkner has always managed to elude justice as he continues to hatch his despicable plots and thefts.

However, Faulkner also has a vengeful streak, and when William manages to finally get one over on his rival by recovering a stolen artwork, Faulkner decides it is time to get his final retribution against William and everyone close to him.  Pulling together a team of rogues and villains, Faulkner sets in place his boldest plan yet: steal the Crown Jewels and ruin the career of William and the other police involved in its protection.  Can William stop this plan before everything he loves is destroyed, or has Faulkner finally won their decades-long game of cat and mouse?

Archer continues to impress with his latest William Warwick book, which honestly had me hooked the entire way through.  An intriguing continuation of his fun ongoing series, Traitors Gate was a great character-driven thriller that was fun from start to finish.

Traitors Gate has a great story to it that expertly combines existing storylines from the series with an excellent and wildly entertaining new plot.  Once again focusing on protagonist William Warwick and fantastic antagonist Miles Faulkner, Archer sets up a great story that takes their rivalry to a new level.  The author does an outstanding job of setting this up, with the early parts of the novel recapping key events from the previous William Warwick novels whilst highlighting the protagonist’s current role in protecting the Crown Jewels.  The first half of Traitors Gate follows some intriguing story threads focused on several key existing characters that eventually lead to William getting one over on Faulkner in their long-running feud.  This first half of this book is very entertaining, especially as the rivalry between the protagonist and antagonist is so damn fun, and you really get drawn into the unique and continuing character stories.

The second half of the book really amps up a notch as Faulkner initiates a series of elaborate and daring revenge plots against those who wronged him, while also setting up his master heist.  These various storylines, which include a con job and a fantastically fun court sequence, work together well to tell an excellent overall story, and they play into the build-up for the big conclusion extremely well.  However, the crown jewel (pun intended) of the plot has to be the great heist scene, which was so damn tense and exciting.  Archer sets the entire thing up perfectly, and by constantly switching back and forth between various characters on both sides, you get quite the intense and captivating sequence.  This entire heist is a ton of fun from conception to implementation and leads to a compelling final part of the novel which sees the characters all desperately trying to come out on top.  The various elements of this, from the fun characters involved, the multiple elaborate steps the antagonists take, and the ticking clock the protagonists need to beat, are designed to keep the reader on their toes, and I had such a fun time seeing everything unfold.  The entire story honestly comes together extremely well, and frankly this was one of the more impressive and addictive stories that Archer has come up with yet.

Archer pulled this excellent story together in his typical style that focuses on the characters and makes great use of quick jumps between various perspectives.  I loved the multiple fantastic storylines that emerge as a result, and the author does a great job of balancing the various elements and character arcs.  Archer also proves very apt at building suspense and laying down the ground work for the key sequences for his story where the real magic happens.  Watching some of the more impressive scenes, such as the excellent entertaining court sequences (which are generally the highlight of all the William Warwick books) and the brilliant heist, are so much fun, and you really appreciate the planning and build-up he puts into it.  The author also makes excellent use of the 1990s London setting for the majority of the plot, and I have really enjoyed how the William Warwick books have moved from the 80s to the 90s, incorporating real-life events as they go.  The 1996 election plays a key role in the plot of Traitors Gate, and I loved the historical colour that Archer added to the plot, including a great in-story presentation about Colonel Blood and his own infamous Crown Jewel heist.  I also really need to highlight the way that Archer makes each of his novels inclusive and open so that new readers can easily dive into Traitors Gate.  Thanks to some quick and effective recaps and reintroductions, new readers can start the series at Traitors Gate without any issues, and indeed even after missing the last two books in the series, I was able to dive in without any pause at all.  This book comes together so well and I had a great time reading it.

I really need to highlight the fantastic and outrageous characters the plot of Traitors Gate follows.  Throughout the course of six William Warwick books, Archer has built up quite an intriguing cast of characters to follow, and he does an excellent job of breaking up the story between them.  There is a notable divide between the protagonists and the antagonists throughout the course of Traitors Gate, and watching the cast play off each other with their moves and countermoves is exceedingly fun.  Each of the protagonists, especially the police characters, are very righteous in their dealings (William goes by the nickname “Choir Boy”, for example), although they aren’t averse to breaking the rules if it gets them justice, which makes for some great scenes.  However, it’s the baddies are the ones who really make the book extremely entertaining.

Archer has done such a great job building up main antagonist Miles Faulkner throughout the course of the series, and the elaborate and spiteful rivalry he forms with William and his friends drives so much of the plot.  Faulkner honestly steals every scene he is in with his elaborate schemes, villainous persona, and sheer petty hate of the protagonists, and I have so much fun following throughout the book.  I also have a lot of fun with secondary antagonist Booth Watson QC, Faulkner’s lawyer, who seems to act for every criminal and villain in the William Warwick series.  A morally corrupt lawyer who specialises in every devious legal trick you can think of, Watson is nearly as bad as Faulkner, and he proves to be such a delightful thorn in the protagonist’s side.  Watching him legally manipulate and pontificate is so much fun, especially when he faces off against William’s straightlaced and proper father, Sir Julian Warwick, who he brings out the worst in.  These two characters are at their best when they face off against each other in the courtroom, and it so damn entertaining to see them get childish and outraged in the middle of a trail.  These characters, and more, add so much enjoyment to Traitors Gate and I look forward to seeing the epic rivalry between William and Faulkner continue in the future.

Jeffery Archer has produced a fantastic and awesome new addition to his always entertaining William Warwick series with Traitors Gate.  Featuring a fun and inventive narrative that makes great use of the bitter rivalries of Archer’s well-established cast, Traitors Gate is a highly addictive and exciting novel that has some outstanding moments to it.  Slick, hilarious and always compelling, Traitors Gate is an amazing novel that is well worth checking out.

Traitors Gate Cover

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Throwback Thursday – Mr Mercedes by Stephen King

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Five-Star Books, Thriller, Throwback Thursday16 Comments

Mr Mercedes Cover 1

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton (Paperback – 3 June 2014)

Series: Bill Hodges – Book One

Length: 407 pages

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Amazon

Welcome back to my Throwback Thursday series, where I republish old reviews, review books I have read before or review older books I have only just had a chance to read. Is this week’s Throwback Thursday, I am going back to some of the older works of the legendary Stephen King lately, starting with his compelling and intense psychological thriller, Mr Mercedes, an excellent and captivating read that I had an outstanding time reading.

I have to admit that I don’t have a lot of experience with Stephen King’s books, having only read some of his more recent releases, such as Later, Billy Summers (one of my favourite novels of 2021), and Fairy Tale.  However, I have been keeping an eye out for King’s upcoming novels, including his next book, Holly, which is out very soon.  In preparation for Holly’s release, I decided to go back and read an earlier King novel, Mr Mercedes, especially as it serves as the introduction of the titular character from the upcoming book, and boy was I glad to try this fantastic novel out.

On a dark and cold morning in a depressed mid-western city, a desperate crowd gathers outside a jobs fair, hoping to turn their lives around.  However, many never got the chance, as a lone driver in a stolen Mercedes drives into the crowd, killing eight people and wounding more, before managing to escape.  This gruesome crime has haunted the community, and especially detective Bill Hodges, who was unable to catch the “Mercedes Killer” before he retired.

Years later, Hodges is living the solitary and depressed life of a former police officer who has seen too much.  Barely managing to get through each day, Hodges is suddenly revitalised when he receives a disturbing letter from someone claiming to be the Mercedes Killer.  Now more determined than ever to hunt down this killer and bring him to justice, Hodges jump-starts an unofficial investigation, hoping that his prey’s decision to contact him will be his biggest mistake.

Hodges’s new search leads him back to the owner of the Mercedes, who committed suicide from the guilt of her car being used in such a horrendous attack.  Teaming up with the dead woman’s sister and a band of unlikely helpers, Hodges begins to finally unravel the case.  However, the Mercedes Killer is a far more dangerous prey than Hodges ever realised.  Not only is he obsessed with killing Hodges, but he also has a nefarious plan that will rock the city to its core.  Can Hodges finally defeat his nemesis before it is too late, or will the Mercedes Killer once again get away with an outrageous act of violence?

This was a very impressive novel from King, who masterfully explores the psychological thriller genre the way only he can.  Featuring some powerful and complex characters, an elaborate cat-and-mouse plot, and King’s intense and addictive writing style, Mr Mercedes is a masterful novel that proves near impossible to put down.

I loved the powerful and captivating story that King pulled together for Mr Mercedes, as the author really dives into this dark story in a big way.  Starting with the gruesome and over-the-top Mercedes killing, which definitely sets the scene for much of the book, the main plot begins years later, with the retired Bill Hodges receiving a letter from the Mercedes Killer, who is attempting to persuade Hodges to kill himself.  However, Hodges instead enters into an off-the-books investigation, attempting to goad the Mercedes Killer into making a mistake while also connecting with the sister of the case’s key witness.  Half the book also focuses on the character of Brady Hartfield, the Mercedes Killer, who has become obsessed with ending Hodges, while also launching a new attack.  Disturbed, and determined to win, Brady’s perspective adds a great narrative edge to Mr Mercedes, and you are soon swept up in his complex emotional journey, especially once he realises that Hodges is on his tail.

The plot develops at a pretty fast and compelling pace, and you swiftly get drawn into each perspective character’s unique view on life and the grizzly events unfolding around them.  King really focuses on the dark and damaged minds of each of his characters, and the ongoing narrative is littered with compelling and fascinating dives into each of their pasts and the events that led them to where they are now.  The author also introduces several great supporting characters, each of whom adds their own unique elements to the book, whether it’s by helping Hodges with his investigation or by adding to the emotional fire that burns within both main characters.  Most of the story is devoted to the cat-and-mouse chase between Hodges and Brady, especially as they come closer and closer to confronting each other and digging at each other’s psyche.  King really moves the story along in the second half, thanks to a massive moment that really shatters the somewhat comfortable narrative that had been building at that point.  Everything leads up to the big and inevitable conclusion, as Brady attempts to unleash his master plan and Hodges and his allies close in on him.  This big confrontation is pretty damn interesting and intense, especially as a surprising third party takes the lead, but it leaves a fantastic and satisfying conclusion that readers will deeply appreciate and will leave you wanting more of the great characters and King’s unique style.

This awesome story was well backed up by King’s uncanny and wonderful writing style, and he really had me hooked the entire way through.  While early parts of the book where a tad slow in places, especially as King was building up the main two characters, once the full psychological dance between Hodges and the Mercedes Killer truly begins, you really cannot pull away from this great novel.  The mounting tension as these characters make their respective plays is so damn effective, and you get drawn into the dark mental battle between them.  King’s use of multiple perspectives really helps to enhance the brilliant story, and the captivating look into all the key characters’ minds is such an essential part of the book that it proves hard to turn away from these tragic and damaged figures.  I honestly could not put this book down in places, especially the last third, as the tension, emotional power and tragedy that King had built up by then was extremely palpable.  This was probably one of the better King novels I have read so far, especially as it had an excellent conclusion that fit the earlier themes of the book, and I deeply appreciated how well he explored the darker areas of the mind.

As I mentioned above, one of the main highlights of Mr Mercedes were the complex and highly damaged characters that were such a vital part of the plot.  King always excels at effectively utilising impressive and highly realistic character driven narratives in his books, and Mr Mercedes was no exception to this.  The major figures featured in this book were also highly unique and complex in their own way, often with some distinctive and understandable psychological damage that defines them and which they spend much of the book trying to overcome.  These highly personal and compelling character elements were really well woven into Mr Mercedes’ plot, and you really get drawn into each character’s own damaged journeys, as well as the intriguing relationships that they form.

The main character of Mr Mercedes is retired police detective Bill Hodges, who serves as a dogged and solid protagonist.  A rugged and tired figure who has seen too much, Hodges was an awesome retired cop character, and King did an outstanding job of capturing his loneliness and regret, especially in the early stages of the book.  However, this burns away when the killer contacts him, and he once again has a purpose.  I felt that this change in character focus was very well done and you easily understand why he dives back in the case, desperate to solve that one lingering case.  While initially driven by obsession, Hodges soon develops more reasons to live, as he connects with several of the other characters in the book and each connection makes him want to live that little bit more.  It was also interesting to see him revisit and reflect on his previous actions as a police officer, especially when he connects with the family of the witness he falsely accused of negligence, and the insights and empathy he develops now he is no longer a cop is quite touching.  You really grow to appreciate Hodges as a character as the book continues, especially as you see him once again enjoying life, and King’s portrayal of a man who suddenly rediscovers his purpose is very well done.  Of course, this opens him up to even greater tragedy, and watching him suffer cuts you to the core.  Thanks to the television adaptation of the book, I could only envision Hodges as Brendon Gleeson, which I think fit the depictions shown in the book, and I really enjoyed seeing this gruff, no-nonsense figure in action.

I also really need to highlight the excellent work that King puts into creating the antagonist of Mr Mercedes, Brady Hartfield, the titular Mercedes Killer.  I have read many good villains of the years, but frankly, the Mercedes Killer was one of the best, mainly because of how quickly and effectively King makes you despise him.  King does such a good job of introducing and utilising the character of Hartfield throughout Mr Mercedes, and his dual life and obsession with Hodges become a key part of his chapters.  The character’s sheer arrogance, distain and disregard for human life are so well written, and you understand just how deranged and damaged Hartfield is in just a few pages of his introduction.  King does take the time to build up Hartfield as a character, showcasing his traumatic past, formulative family events and unsettling relationship with his mother, all of which helps the reader understand how he become the monster he currently is and why he does the things he does.  However, even with that, it proves very hard to find any sympathy for the character, especially as every scene of his features an arrogant and hateful internal diatribe about the people he encounters and the world around him.  I deeply appreciated how King was able to capture Hartfield’s sociopathic superiority complex and inherent sense of greater intelligence with his writing, and it was such a key part of Hartfield’s character.  This ensures that when things do not go his way or when he is outsmarted by Hodges, a man he views as his inferior, he takes it badly, and watching Hodges manipulate Hartfield this way was a fantastic part of the book.  This is honestly one of the better King villains I have so far had the pleasure of reading and his obsession with Hodges and being the smartest man in the room, was so damn well written.

Aside from the main perspective characters of Hodges and Hartfield, King also features several other intriguing figures in Mr Mercedes who also add a great deal to the plot in a supporting role.  I personally really enjoyed the character of Janelle Patterson, who serves as Hodges’ main love interest.  Janelle was a feisty and highly likeable figure in the book, and I actually really enjoyed the heartfelt connection she formed with Hodges, especially as they filled an emotional hole in each other’s lives.  Janelle’s self-involved sister, Olivia Trelawney, also proves to be a great inclusion, despite being dead by the time the main plot starts.  King builds her into a complex and tragic figure, and it was intriguing to see her sense of reality combat with guilt and despair in several flashback scenes.  Jerome, the wisecracking teenager who serves as Hodges’s assistant and tech support added some great humour to the story, and his loyalty to Hodges ensured the reader grew quite attached to him, while also getting worried as Hartfield circled around.  However, probably the most unique supporting character was Holly Gibney, who, as I mentioned above, is getting her own spin-off story soon.  Initially shown as emotionally damaged and barely able to function, Holly doesn’t strike you as having protagonist potential.  However, thanks to her bond with Hodges and certain shocking events breaking her out of her trauma shell, Holly ends up becoming a key supporting figure, able to assist in the case due to her unique insights and life experiences.  Despite only being in the book for a relatively short amount of time, Holly really shines through as a complex and exciting figure who the reader quickly gravitates to.  As such, by the end of the book you very much understand why Holly goes on to become her own protagonist, and I look forward to seeing how much she further developed when I grab King’s next novel.

Overall, Mr Mercedes was just as good as I had been led to believe, if not better.  Stephen King did a masterful job with this powerful and captivating dark psychological thriller, and I got so wrapped up in the awesome battle of damaged minds that emerged.  Featuring an excellent story, some exceptionally complex protagonists, and King’s infallible character-focused writing style, Mr Mercedes was a joy to read from start to finish, and I have to give it a full five-star rating as a result.  I cannot wait to dive into King’s next book, Holly, when I get my hands on it in the next week, and I have no doubt that will also blow me away.

Mr Mercedes Book Two

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Dark Corners by Megan Goldin

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Murder Mystery, Thriller3 Comments

Dark Corners Cover 2

Publisher: Michael Joseph (Trade Paperback – 8 August 2023)

Series: Rachel Krall – Book Two

Length: 352 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Amazon

One of Australia’s fastest-rising crime fiction authors, Megan Goldin, returns with another awesome read, the moving and entertaining novel, Dark Corners.

Over the last few years, I have been really enjoying the works of talented Australian author Megan Goldin, whose releases have become something of a must-read for me.  Goldin has written some amazing books throughout her relatively short career, including the very gripping and intense The Escape Room (one of my favourite Australian books of 2019) and the brilliant psychological thriller, Stay Awake (one of my favourite Australian books of 2022).  One of Goldin’s best books so far was The Night Swim, which was one of my favourite Australian books of 2020.  The Night Swim followed protagonist Rachel Krall, a true crime podcaster, as she investigated a notorious rape trial in a small American town.  This was a particularly moving and intense read that really showcased Goldin’s range.  As such, I was very interested when I saw that Goldin was releasing a second Rachel Krall book this year with Dark Corners, and I made sure to read a copy as soon as I could.

After returning from her latest recording exploit, famous true crime podcaster Rachel Krall finds herself dragged into another sinister case when a phone call from the FBI sees her flown to a maximum security prison outside of Daytona Beach, Florida.  A famous social media star has gone missing shortly after meeting with Terence Bailey, a notorious inmate serving time for a relatively minor crime, who many believe is a serial killer.  The only clue the FBI have is a message handed between the two requesting that the missing star seek Rachel out.

Unable to let go of such a curious and intriguing case that she is inexplicably linked to, Rachel resolves to remain in Florida until she finds the truth.  Checking into a massive influencer convention being held at Daytona Beach, Rachel looks to find out more about the missing girl and finds herself being dragged into the cutthroat world of influencers, Instagrammers and internet celebrities.  However, the more information she finds about the missing girl, the more she realises that there is something peculiar about the victim and her past.

Rachel’s investigation uncovers a series of sinister deaths and disappearances in the area, each of which may be connected to Terence Bailey, who is due to be released in a couple of days.  Racing against the clock, Rachel and the FBI must uncover the truth before Bailey gets out of prison.  But it soon becomes clear that there is another predator lurking around Daytona Beach, one who hides in plain sight and will do anything to cover their tracks, including taking Rachel out.

This was a very impressive new read from Goldin, who follows up The Night Swim in a big way.  Dark Corners is a fantastic novel that beautifully combines an intense narrative with some unique and entertaining elements to create an awesome read I easily powered through.

Goldin really comes out of the gate swinging with Dark Corners, and I was swiftly drawn into the clever mystery and intense, character-driven narrative that she pulls together for this follow-up read.  The author starts the reader off with the compelling mystery of a social media star who has been kidnapped after contacting an imprisoned convict.  With the protagonist dragged in thanks to her internet fame, this swiftly turns into an intense personal investigation, as Rachel and the FBI attempt to find the missing girl and solve several unsolved murders and disappearances.  Told through several key perspectives, including that of Rachel and a mysterious rideshare driver who has a dark connection to the case, the story evolves at a rapid and powerful pace, and the author sets up an intriguing series of mysteries both in the past and the present.  The story effectively unwraps all of these interlinked and compelling cases, and you are soon powering through the intriguing web of cases, desperate to find the conclusion.  With much of the story set to the fantastic background of an influencer convention, there are several great tangents and mysteries that emerge, especially as they provide some great alternate leads and red-herring suspects.  The final solution to the case is very interesting, if somewhat spoiled by one of the alternate perspectives, and the big confrontation is well set up and filled with intense moments.  While I was a little disappointed that some of the alternate cases were not as connected to the main mystery as they could have been, this was a very impressive and captivating story, and I had such a great time getting drawn in Goldin’s narrative web.

I really liked the captivating writing style that Goldin utilised for Dark Corners, which has some intriguing similarities and contrasts to the previous Rachel Krall book.  The use of multiple character perspectives, as well as excerpts from Rachel’s true crime podcast for context, work extremely well to tell an extensive and complex narrative.  I particularly liked the inclusion of a sinister antagonist perspective for much of the story, especially as it provides some compelling insights into the deadly case as they circle the protagonist like a shark.  Despite some similarities in style, Dark Corners has a very different tone to The Night Swim, with more of a faster edge given to the story, and less focus on traumatic character histories.  The story does still contain some powerful character moments, especially when the protagonist encounters several victims’ families, but the story was more thriller focused than the last book.  Despite the connections to The Night Swim, Dark Corners can easily be read as a standalone novel, and this actually serves as a great introduction to Goldin’s flexible writing style.  Dark Corners probably has the quickest pace of any of the Goldin books I have so far read, and you will really get drawn into this elaborate book as a result.

While the fantastic mystery and intriguing character-focused stories are great, I really must highlight Goldin’s entertaining take on the social media world as her protagonist attends an influencer convention at a glitzy beachside hotel.  It does not take long for the protagonist’s, and presumably the author’s, true feelings about the influencer crowd to emerge and there is a certain amount of amusing disdain there.  You really can’t help but laugh at Goldin’s mocking and somewhat over-the-top depictions of the typical social media stars’ day-to-day lives, including obsessively recording everything they do, exceedingly fake interactions, and hollow personal relationships.  Goldin really does not pull any punches here, which I personally deeply appreciated, and it added quite a humorous edge to the book, especially when combined with the protagonist’s exasperated reactions to the various scenarios she encounters.  Despite this somewhat critical edge, Goldin does include a lot of intriguing information about the community, such as the various types of influencers, their social makeup, the ins and outs of the trade, as well as the type of personalities that are attracted to the lifestyle.  There is even a quite nuanced take on several key influencers throughout the book, and it was quite compelling to see what sort of people they really are.  While this background setting is mostly entertaining and fun, it does serve quite a vital role in the story, and I felt that Goldin was able to weave quite an intriguing and unique mystery story around it.  This ended up being one of the best inclusions of the entire novel, and I really loved how Goldin made Dark Corners stand out even further with her clever, if slightly acerbic take, on social media personalities and their influence.

Overall, Dark Corners was another outstanding book from Megan Goldin, who continues to shine as one of Australia’s premier authors of thriller fiction.  Combing a clever mystery with an intriguing character focus and a unique background setting, Dark Corners was an addictive read from start to finish and I deeply enjoyed Goldin’s latest impressive novel.  Highly recommended!

Dark Corners Cover

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Waiting on Wednesday – Kill Your Husbands by Jack Heath

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Murder Mystery, Thriller, Waiting on Wednesday2 Comments

Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy.  I run this segment in conjunction with the Can’t-Wait Wednesday meme that is currently running at Wishful Endings.  Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them.  In this week’s Waiting on Wednesday I highlight the next compelling and awesome sounding crime fiction read from one of my very favourite Australian authors with Kill Your Husbands by Jack Heath.

Kill Your Husbands Cover

Amazon

One of the things I love about being a reviewer in Australia is that I get ready access to so many outstanding Australian reads that people in the international market might not be as familiar with.  Thanks to some dedicated local publishers, I get a healthy serving of Australian fiction each year, including from several truly remarkable and talented authors.  One of my absolute favourite Australian authors is the always impressive Jack Heath, who has been killing it (literally and figuratively) in recent years.

Heath, who is from my home city of Canberra, is one of Australia’s leading crime fiction authors and I have really grown to enjoy his clever, entertaining and highly distinctive thrillers and murder mysteries.  Heath has written an intriguing raft of different books over the years, including some outstanding young adult fiction, but he is probably best known for his Timothy Blake books, also known as The Hangman series.  This gruesome series follows a highly troubled, yet skilled, investigator, who solves some elaborate cases while trying to resist his cannibalistic urgings.  I have had a lot of fun with several entries in this series, including Hideout (one of my favourite Australian books of 2020) and Headcase (one of my favourite Australian books of 2022), and my first taste of the Timothy Blake series made me a huge fan of Heath’s writing style.  This appreciation for Heath’s writing was further compounded by his epic and elaborate thriller, Kill Your Brother, which was one of my favourite Australian books of 2021.  Kill Your Brother was a particularly brilliant standalone read that saw a kidnapped protagonist forced to choose between her own survival and killing her own brother.  I have nothing but love for all of Heath’s work and I was very excited to discover that he had another amazing crime fiction read coming out later this year.

This upcoming book from Heath is titled Kill Your Husbands, which features another elaborate and fun murder mystery plot.  Set for release in late November 2023, Kill Your Husbands sounds quite exceptional and I have already fallen in love with its fantastic and distinctive narrative outline.

Plot Synopsis:

Three couples, friends since the university athletics team, travel to a house in the mountains for an unplugged weekend of drinking and bushwalking. No internet, no phones, no stress. On the first night, the topic of partner-swapping comes up. It’s a joke – at first.

 Not everyone is keen, but an agreement is made. The lights will be turned out. The three men will go into the three bedrooms. The three women will each pick a bedroom at random. It won’t be awkward later, because no one will know for sure who they’ve slept with – though each guest is privately sure that they alone will be able to tell.

But when the lights come back on, someone is missing. A search of the house and the surrounding bushland turns up a body.

Five people remain. They have no way of contacting the police. Nor can they leave – the keys to the cars are missing. And the killer is just getting started.

 Two weeks later, Senior Constable Kiara Lui drives to the house with her girlfriend, Elise. She’s already interviewed the survivors. Now, she must work out which of them is lying, and why…

Ok, now this is definitely one of the more amusing and memorable plot synopsises I have read in recent months.  Anonymous partner swapping in the dark leading to murder and a locked room mystery is a very interesting plot basis for a crime fiction novel, but I am definitely all on board for it, especially with Heath at the helm.  I know that Heath will pull together a truly elaborate story in Kill Your Husbands, loaded with tangled motives, hidden opportunities, and highly complicated characters, which will turn into something particularly fun and addictive.  The fantastic plot above has so many opportunities for mystery and drama and I cannot wait to see how the various characters react, as well as the eventual motivations for the killings.  I am also very excited, as the inclusion of Kiara Lui and Elise as characters means that Kill Your Husbands is a sequel to Kill Your Brother, and it will be fun to see how Heath continues the storyline from the previous novel.

Due to how great Heath’s previous books have been, there is no way that I will not be grabbing a copy of Kill Your Husbands later this year, especially with that crazy plot behind it.  Jack Heath is too talented an author not to turn such a fantastic and memorable story idea into something particularly awesome, and I already know this is going to be one of the best Australian books of 2023, if not one of my favourite reads of the year, period.  I have no doubt I am going to get completely dragged into this upcoming mystery, and I cannot wait to get my hands on Kill Your Husbands with all its over-the-top goodness.

Waiting on Wednesday – Extinction by Douglas Preston

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Murder Mystery, Science Fiction, Thriller, Waiting on Wednesday5 Comments

Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy.  I run this segment in conjunction with the Can’t-Wait Wednesday meme that is currently running at Wishful Endings.  Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them.  In my latest Waiting on Wednesday, I check out an awesome upcoming thriller that sounds exceedingly fun and over-the-top, with Extinction by Douglas Preston.

Extinction Cover

Amazon

Here at The Unseen Library, we are always on the lookout for distinctive, compelling, and intriguing alternate thrillers and crime fiction reads, particularly those that make great use of science fiction, fantasy or horror elements.  These unique novels honestly make for such epic reads, and I love seeing the different ways authors blend these genres together.  As such, when I recently came across the synopsis for the upcoming book, Extinction, I knew instantly that I was going to have to read it.

Extinction will be the latest novel from acclaimed veteran thriller author, Douglas Preston.  Preston, is a highly regarded author known for his impressive range of crime fiction and thriller reads, including his many collaborations with Lincoln Child, as well as his solo novels that form part of his Tom Broadbent and Wyman Ford series.  While I haven’t had the pleasure of reading any of Preston’s books before, his catalogue of works sounds very awesome, and I think I am going to have to try and get more familiar with his books.  I will start this by checking out his upcoming 2024 release, Extinction, which will be Preston’s first solo novel in 10 years.

Extinction has a very cool and compelling sounding plot to it which is really what drew me to this approaching novel.  The fact that this looks set to be a fantastic murder mystery/thriller set in a park full of genetically produced prehistoric creatures, such as woolly mammoths and giant sloths, is so damn appealing to me, and I already know I am going to love everything about it.

Plot Synopsis:

With Extinction, #1 New York Times bestselling author Douglas Preston has written an epic thriller in the Michael Crichton mode that explores the very real effort to resurrect the woolly mammoth and other extinct megafauna from the Pleistocene Age.

Erebus Resort, occupying a magnificent, hundred-thousand acre valley deep in the Colorado Rockies, offers guests the experience of viewing woolly mammoths, Irish Elk, and giant ground sloths in their native habitat, brought back from extinction through the magic of genetic manipulation. When a billionaire’s son and his new wife are kidnapped and murdered in the Erebus back country by what is assumed to be a gang of eco-terrorists, Colorado Bureau of Investigation Agent Frances Cash partners with county sheriff James Colcord to track down the perpetrators.

As killings mount and the valley is evacuated, Cash and Colcord must confront an ancient, intelligent,
and malevolent presence at Erebus, bent not on resurrection—but extinction.

I really love the sound of this fun, Michael Crichton-esque novel, and I cannot wait to see how Preston’s love for megafauna (the author is apparently a bit of a dinosaur fan) with his proven track record for creating elaborate and captivating thriller reads.  This upcoming book has so much potential to be a particularly fun and exciting read, especially with those plot hints at additional hidden monsters waiting for the protagonists.  I am so damn excited for Extinction, which will probably end up being one of the most entertaining books of 2024, and I look forward to checking it out.

The Drowning Girls by Veronica Lando

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Murder Mystery2 Comments

The Drowning Girls Cover

Publisher: Harper Collins Australia (Trade Paperback – 5 July 2023)

Series: Standalone

Length: 323 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

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Rising Australian crime fiction author Veronica Lando presents a particularly intense and captivating read in her latest gritty release, The Drowning Girls.

Port Flinders in the north of Australia is a desperate town, suffering from depleted fishing and a poor economic future.  The only thing that is keeping the tiny town going is its infamous Drowning Girl Festival, which draws vast crowds of tourists to the town’s mangrove-lined shores each year.  The festival honours a statue that is symbolically dropped into the water in a seemingly harmless bit of fun, recognising an old legend that a woman must be sacrificed each year to revitalise the town’s fishing.  But not everyone thinks that the legend is untrue, especially as a tragic drowning of two girls 25 years earlier seemed to save the town.

As the new festival beings, Nate Bass arrives, set to temporarily fill in as the town’s sole teacher.  Forced to take the job after an incident at his last school, Port Flinders is the last place Nate ever wanted to come back to, as he has history with the town and its sinister festival.  However, the past has a way of coming back to haunt everyone, and soon a new development in the towns infamous history emerges.

A dead woman is pulled from the water at the height of festivities, but is she the victim of an unfortunate drowning accident, or has someone sacrificed her to the ocean?  As Nate finds himself drawn to the case, he is forced to dive back into his tragic childhood to events that have haunted him for 25 years, especially when the identity of the drowned woman is revealed.  To discover the truth, the past and present will need to come together, but is Nate ready to reveal his biggest mistake to the world?

The Drowning Girls was a very distinctive and captivating bit of Australian fiction by Lando which deeply impressed me when I checked it out.  Set around a compelling rural Australian setting with some major baggage associated with it, The Drowning Girls has a great story to it that features an excellent blend of mystery, emotional dives into the past, and some major character moments that really drew me in.

The story itself is told through two separate perspectives, that of Nate Bass, the town’s substitute teacher who returns during the height of the Drowning Girl Festival, and a young boy nicknamed Tack, who provides an intriguing alternate perspective of certain events.  Both get embroiled in the mysterious drownings that occur in Port Flinders in different ways, and their character-driven narratives swiftly come together to tell a story of tragedy, friendship, and secrets.  Nate’s story serves as the central focus of much of The Drowning Girl’s plot, and his exploration of the town’s history, the mindset of its people, and the impact of the festival adds some great depth to the story, especially as the author introduces some excellent supporting characters/suspects in the case.  The story revolving around Tack is an interesting coming-of-age tale, which shows the young protagonist trying to fit in around Port Flinders, while also learning about the mysteries of the festival.  This secondary storyline is a little harder to get into at the start, but the intriguing inclusions it features have some fantastic and fascinating impacts on the larger story.

There is a great reveal about halfway through the book that completely changes everything you thought you knew about The Drowning Girls’ plot, and which brings the two separate storylines together in an outstanding way.  I loved how Lando turned everything around at that point, and it led to a pretty addictive and exceptional second half of the book, which I honestly had a hard time putting down.  There are even more excellent twists revealed towards the end of the book, as well as some deeper dives into the protagonist, as he explores all the trauma from his past, as well as the deadly events from 25 years earlier.  The full extent of both the drownings in the past and the present are intense and very clever, and the elaborate and dramatic mystery that Lando came up with is extremely impressive and moving.  This entire story comes together pretty perfectly, and the full extent of the book’s tragic and moving storyline results in some truly shocking moments.  I honestly did not see the book’s big conclusion coming, and the Lando ensured that readers will come away from The Drowning Girls shocked and deeply moved.

There are a lot of great elements to The Drowning Girls that I enjoyed, and Lando has a real talent for writing and creativity that really connected with me.  Her creation of the fictional town of Port Flinders is fantastic, and she does a remarkable job of capturing the feel of a dying tourist town in Australia’s far north.  Everything about this town, including the crippling isolation, the rowdy tourists, the oppressive feel of the surrounding mangroves, and the various people who choose to call such a location home, feels highly realistic and it works into the dark storyline of The Drowning Girls extremely well.  I also loved the intense feelings invoked by the mysterious festival that is such a key part of the book’s plot, and you have to love the dark symbolism that Lando chose to associate with it.  You can almost understand the desperation that some of the town’s residents feel when it comes to the festival, and I felt that it was an outstanding and creepy plot focus that really stood out.  However, one of the best elements of The Drowning Girls was the main protagonist, Nate Bass, who has a complicated past and a deep and traumatic connection to the town.  Seeing the slow unravelling of Nate’s personal history is an outstanding and moving part of the book, and you really get attached to him as a result.  Watching him unload his guilt, trauma and resentment is some of the most powerful parts of the book, and you really must appreciate everything that Lando puts her protagonist through.  Thanks to the author’s great use of the split storyline, as well as the fantastic blend of drama and mystery that emerges throughout the narrative, The Drowning Girls’ story really shines through, and I came away with a huge appreciation for Lando’s style.

The Drowning Girls by Veronica Lando is one of the more unique and complex Australian crime fiction books I have so far read this year, and I was really impressed with how compelling and dark she was able to make it.  Featuring a clever and twisted mystery with some major character moments, The Drowning Girls is a highly recommended read and easily one of my favourite pieces of Australian fiction in 2023 so far.

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Fearless by M. W. Craven

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Thriller14 Comments

Fearless Cover

Publisher: Constable (Trade Paperback – 27 June 2023)

Series: Standalone/Book One

Length: 435 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

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The talented M. W. Craven debuts an awesome thriller protagonist with his epic and intense new novel, Fearless.

Craven is an interesting thriller author who has been establishing himself over the last few years.  Craven already has a fantastic catalogue of novels behind him, including his Washington Poe and Avison Fluke series, although I had not previously had the pleasure of reading any of his books.  As such, I was intrigued when I received a copy of Fearless, which looks to be the first book in an awesome new series.  I really liked how cool Fearless sounded and I was glad I got the opportunity to check out another author who was new to me this year.

Ben Koenig is a man who knows how to disappear.  The former leader of the US Marshals’ elite Special Ops Group, Koenig was the man who brought the very worst fugitives to justice, and his relentless attitude and uncanny abilities made him feared throughout the criminal community.  But after an operation goes bad, Koenig goes into hiding, drifting from small town to small town.

After managing to stay off everyone’s radar for six years, Koenig suddenly finds his face plastered across every television screen in America.  His old boss at the US Marshalls desperately needs Koenig’s help for a personal mission, and he’ll do anything he can to get his attention.  Soon Koenig finds himself back on the job, but this time he has no limits, no backup, and no idea the amount of trouble he is about to find himself in.

His assignment will eventually lead him to the small town of Gauntlet in the middle of the Chihuahuan Desert.  Someone in Gauntlet has a dark secret that they will do anything to protect, and they have the entire town, and more, at their disposal.  However, they have never encountered anyone like Koenig and they soon begin to realise that Koenig has no fear, no mercy and no desire to stop.  But against the dangerous forces in front of him, as well as dangerous assassins from his past, can even the fearless Koenig stay alive and complete his mission?

Fearless was a very fun and over-the-top thriller from Craven, who crafts together a very intense and addictive narrative for this new book.  Starting off with a strong introduction to the character of Ben Koenig, the reader gets quickly swept up in both his unusual life and his new mission as he is drafted in to find a missing girl and revenge on the people that hurt her.  Fearless’ story has a lot of great elements to it, and Craven takes his protagonist on a wild and blood-soaked thrill ride through several great locales and impressive scenarios.  Most of the story takes place in the Texas town of Gauntlet, where Koenig investigates a mysterious solar energy company involved with his case.  Craven does a great job setting up the antagonists of this series, as well as a compelling underlying mystery about who they are and why they are there, and I loved the combination of suspense and intrigue that emerged, as well as the fear and brutality of the villains as they try to take Koenig down.  At the same time, Craven works in several compelling flashback chapters that give greater context to Koenig’s character and flesh out why he was on the run and the implications that has on his current situation.

Craven works a ton of brilliant and action-packed set pieces into the story as he goes, and the reader really sticks around to check out all the violence that emerges as a result.  The author goes pretty over the top multiple times throughout the book as he tries to make the scenarios, and his protagonist, as explosive and unpredictable as possible.  These memorable sequences mesh well with the investigative and character driven aspects of the story, and the reader really gets drawn into the entire compelling plot.  Everything leads up to the big finale, where the author unleashes several massive and exceptionally brutal fights, which really draw the reader in and ensure that they cannot stop turning the pages.  Everything ends on a very interesting note, although a couple of the final twists are clearly only there to set up the future books.  Still, this ended up being a very thrilling and enjoyable story, and I honestly managed to knock off this lengthy book in a couple of fun-filled days.

Craven utilises a pretty effective style for this book that is focused on making the novel as fast-paced and easy to read as possible.  Fearless is dominated by multiple short and impactful chapters which are very easy to power through and which encourage the reader to keep going, especially as you can get through the next exciting chapter with only a few page turns.  I honestly found myself just going and going as I was reading, as I really wanted to see what awesome event was going to pop up next in the story.  The author did a really good job of quickly and effectively setting up the protagonists, the story, and the general vibe of Fearless, and you quickly realise what sort of fun and compelling story the author has planned, which helps to keep you hooked.  The primary focus on protagonist Ben Koenig is nicely balanced with several chapters told from the perspective of the antagonists, and I loved seeing some of the different angles of the story, especially as the villains get more and more desperate, and ruthless, as the book continues.  This ended up being quite an attractive and highly accessible new series to test out, and Fearless will appeal to most thriller readers, especially those who are interested in something with a ton of action and a fun plot.  There are obviously some interesting parallels between Fearless and the Jack Reacher novels, which Craven does cleverly and humorously reference at the start.  I think this book will appeal to anyone who appreciates intense, fast, and unpredictable thrillers, and this really was a great treat.

One of the more interesting and distinctive elements of Fearless is the over-the-top protagonist, Ben Koenig.  Written as an elite former government agent on the run after upsetting the wrong crime family, Koenig is a very capable and effective killer who serves as the book’s main point-of-view character and narrator.  Koenig is a fun central figure for Fearless, and I loved his unique and entertaining viewpoint of the world, which translates through his chapters and gives the book more of a humorous edge.  Most of the novel is designed to introduce readers to the author’s new major protagonist up and I liked the intriguing background that Craven built around him in several fantastic flashback chapters.  There is a certain arrogance and cockiness to Koenig that some people might not like, but I though it fit his story arc well, and he does get called out on it a bit.  There is also a great ruthlessness to him at times, which does make you wonder if he is really a good guy.  These elements are cleverly tied into Koenig’s most defining character feature: due to a medical condition, he lacks the ability to feel any fear.  While this does seem like a bit of a weird character element, Craven does an excellent job working it into the story, and the entertaining interactions that emerge from Koenig failing to react with any fear make for some fantastic reading.  It was surprisingly fun to see Koenig blithely walk through a range of scenarios without any concern at all, such as when he’s digging his own grave, and the resulting reactions from his opponents are so much fun.  The character’s inability to feel fear does has some downsides, as Koenig’s risk assessment capability is shot, so he does end up making some mistakes from a lack of caution, which was a useful narrative handicap.  Still, the inventive ways that he gets out of several unfortunate scenarios makes for some compelling reading, and Craven really manages to stretch his imagination thanks to this protagonist.  I honestly enjoyed seeing the story from his perspective, and I look forward to reading a larger series featuring this character in the future.

Overall, I had an absolute blast reading Fearless by M. W. Craven, and it really was a particularly fun and exciting thriller.  While the story might get a bit to over-the-top crazy in places for some readers, I honestly enjoyed how silly and insane it got, as it made for some entertaining reading that I could quickly power through with a big smile on my face.  As such, I am giving Fearless a pretty good rating, and I would strongly recommend this novel to anyone who wants a huge dealing of action, funny characters, and wonderfully violent thriller storylines.

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Quick Review – The Last Orphan by Gregg Hurwitz

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Quick Review, Thriller10 Comments

The Last Orphan Cover 2

Publisher: Michael Joseph (Trade Paperback – 21 February 2023)

Series: Orphan X – Book 8

Length: 342 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

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The always impressive Gregg Hurwitz continues his amazing Orphan X series with the awesome and wonderful new addition, The Last Orphan.

One of my favourite spy thriller series at the moment is easily the exciting and cool Orphan X series by rising thriller author Gregg Hurwitz.  This fantastic series follows a former elite government assassin, Evan Smoak, codenamed Orphan X, who is forced to go rogue and hide himself away from his old employers.  Hoping to redeem himself after all the killing he’s done, Evan takes up a new identity, the Nowhere Man, a vigilante who helps the most desperate people in ways no one else can.  I have been a fan of this series for ages, ever since I read Out of the Dark, which pitted the protagonist against a deranged US President.  Since then, I have had an outstanding time reading the latest books in the series, including Into the Fire, Prodigal Son, and Dark Horse.  I always make it a point to pick up the new Orphan X book each year, and the latest entry, The Last Orphan, was another pretty awesome book that I was quickly able to power through.

Plot Synopsis:

As a child, Evan Smoak was plucked out of a group home, raised and trained as an off-the-books assassin for the government as part of the Orphan program. When he broke with the program and went deep underground, he left with a lot of secrets in his head that the government would do anything to make sure never got out.

When he remade himself as The Nowhere Man, dedicated to helping the most desperate in their times of trouble, Evan found himself slowly back on the government’s radar. Having eliminated most of the Orphans in the program, the government will stop at nothing to eliminate the threat they see in Evan. But Orphan X has always been several steps ahead of his pursuers.

Until he makes one little mistake…

Now the President has him in her control and offers Evan a deal – eliminate a rich, powerful man she says is too dangerous to live and, in turn, she’ll let Evan survive. But when Evan left the Program he swore to only use his skills against those who really deserve it. Now he has to decide what’s more important – his principles or his life.


The Last Orphan was another outstanding entry in this great series and Hurwitz ensures that it features all his trademark features, including strong characters, a powerful emotional heart, and a ton of action and intrigue.

This latest Orphan X book has a very strong start to it as Evan is ambushed right at the beginning of the novel by a massive Secret Service detail, determined to finally bring him in after he went rogue on the President a few too many times.  Captured and trapped, Evan is forced to make a deal: kill mysterious industrialist Luke Devine or lose his own life.  However, Orphan X makes his own decisions about who he assassinates, and after escaping, he begins his own research into his target, hoping to determine if he deserves to die.  Investigating a mysterious death associated with Devine’s estate and the massive parties that go on there, Evan begins to make his own connections about the case and is forced to go up against Devine’s lethal and morally dangerous security detail.  There are some pretty intense scenes in this part of the book as Evan makes some curious discoveries about Devine and his company, while also being forced to protect potential witnesses from his target’s security.  At the same time, Evan begins to wonder if Devine actually deserves to die and must soon choose between his conscious and his peaceful life of anonymity.

This was a pretty good entry in this series, although possibly not the best that I have so far read (in my mind, that’s Into the Fire).  I really liked the awesome start to The Last Orphan, especially as the over-the-top and intense capture by the Secret Service was so damn cool and it was interesting to finally see Evan taken down by the Government.  However, this doesn’t last long, and once he rather easily escapes, the intensity and pace of the story kind of slows down a bit.  Don’t get me wrong; I did really enjoy the subsequent storyline set around the investigation into the mysterious industrialist and his security crew, but it was a bit of a step down after the initial excitement.  Still, this second half of the novel is a ton of fun, and Hurwitz presents his usual blend of fascinating spy thriller moments, particularly intense and brutal action, as well as the focus on Evan’s strained and unique personal life.

The villains of this story, Devine’s security detail, are some pretty over-the-top but genuinely threatening figures, and Hurwitz comes up with some excellent scenes around them, even presenting them as real threats to the protagonist.  At the same time, Hurwitz works in a very compelling morality edge to the story, as Evan tries to work out whether Devine is actually evil or just a political threat to the President.  The author makes this determination pretty hard, especially as Devine comes across as a very manipulative and unusual figure who manages to make even the legendary Orphan X doubt himself.  The big conclusion of this books is very good and features all the typical action and carnage that you would expect.  However, parts of the story go in some very surprising directions and I liked the unique ideas that Hurwitz presented here.

In addition to all the action and intrigue, quite a lot of The Last Orphan revolved around the compelling and moving emotional and personal concerns of the protagonist and his great supporting cast.  Evan has always been a very complex figure due to his unusual upbringing, his lack of personal skills, and his crippling OCD, and a fantastic recurring theme of the books has been him trying to overcome this and finally make some connections.  This continues extremely well in The Last Orphan, as he once again relies on his friends and his surrogate daughter/little sister to pull him out of the fire and keep his sanity.  There are some pretty emotional interactions between Evan and these figures throughout the course of The Last Orphan, especially as it appears that Evan might not be able to come back from his latest adventure, and I felt that this was another powerful and impressive evolution of some already deep character growth.  There are some other pretty big personal moments for Evan in The Last Orphan, including the seeming end of one relationship due to Evan’s fugitive status, and the potential development of another as Evan finally attempts to dive into his own complex past.  It will be fascinating to see how this develops in the future, and I am sure that Hurwitz has some very intense moments planned for all of us.  I honestly felt that the author got the right balance between action and emotion for The Last Orphan, and this ended up being a stronger book as a result.

Overall, The Last Orphan was a pretty awesome new entry in the great Orphan X series, and I really liked how Gregg Hurwitz continued his fantastic ongoing narrative.  Featuring an excellent blend of spy thriller fun and powerful character work, The Last Orphan was an addictive and clever read, and I am glad I got the chance to check it out.  Highly recommended, especially to established fans of the series, The Last Orphan is really worth the read.

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Kill For Me Kill For You by Steve Cavanagh

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Thriller5 Comments

Kill For Me Kill For You Cover

Publisher: Headline (Trade Paperback – 25 July 2023)

Series: Standalone

Length: 356 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

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The always entertaining Steve Cavanagh returns with another outstanding thriller, this time with an awesome new take on an old classic with Kill For Me Kill For You.

Steve Cavanagh is an outstanding author who I have been having a wonderful time reading in recent years.  Cavanagh is best known for his awesome Eddie Flynn legal thriller series that follows a former conman turned defence attorney as he uses his unique insights and tricks to win impossible cases, even when everything is stacked against him.  I have had a ton of fun with the last few books in the series, The Devil’s Advocate and The Accomplice, and Cavanagh is firmly on my yearly must-read list now as a result.  I had been hoping for another Eddie Flynn novel this year, but I was happy to receive a copy of Cavanagh’s new standalone thriller, Kill For Me Kill For You, which throws a grieving mother into a terrible situation.

Amanda White is a woman who lost everything in life when her young daughter was kidnapped and murdered.  Left helpless as the prime suspect is found innocent while her own husband killed himself out of despair, all Amanda has left is a desire for revenge.  But with her target aware of her hatred, and the police certain to arrest her if she tries anything, Amanda can only sit back and do nothing.

Required by the court to attend a trauma support group, Amanda has a chance encounter with another member, Wendy, who has her own desire for revenge.  Like Amanda, Wendy wants to kill the man responsible for her own child’s death but is determined to avoid police retaliation.  Together, the two women plot on how to take out the men that they hate, and soon draw inspiration from a classic Hitchcock film in which two strangers kill the other’s target.

However, when Wendy suddenly kills Amanda’s obsession, she is forced to act quickly and commit her murder for Wendy before the police come for her.  But nothing is as it seems, and Amanda soon finds herself trapped in a deadly situation with the police hot on her trail.  To survive, Amanda will need to dive into the past to discover a legacy of hatred, death and manipulation that will drive her to the brink of sanity and despair.

This was an excellent new thriller from Cavanagh that I managed to power through in no time at all thanks to its exciting and fast-paced plot.  Told from several different perspectives, Kill For Me Kill For You tells a clever and multi-layered narrative that proves very hard to put down, especially as Cavanagh loads it with his usual fun collection of twists, betrayals and compelling reveals.

Kill For Me Kill For You has a great character-driven narrative that follow several very damaged protagonists in a series of compelling situations.  The main storyline follows the character of Amanda White, whose desire for revenge against her daughter’s killer sees her form a friendship with Wendy, when they try to enact their Strangers on a Train inspired double murder.  At the same time, a good chunk of the plot revolves around the character of Ruth Gelman, who survives a brutal attack by a serial killer and is forced to deal with the traumatic consequences.  These two storylines are linked by a third major point-of-view character, Detective Farrow, who investigates both the assault on Ruth and the murder of Amanda’s daughter and finds himself getting drawn into both of their lives.

Both major storylines continue at a fast and compelling pace throughout the book, with Amanda’s storyline focusing on the clever intrigue, while Ruth’s storyline has a more emotional edge to it as she and her husband Scott are forced to deal with her injuries and ongoing fear of the killer’s return.  There are some fantastic developments in both, especially for Amanda when the Strangers on a Train plan goes out the window as expected.  I really loved the fantastic twists that surround Amanda at the middle of the book which completely change the trajectory of her entire plot as a result.  Both stories continue mostly unrelated for the rest of the book, and I think both develop in a great way independent of the other.  They do eventually come together towards the end of the book, and for me that was where Kill For Me Kill For You fell apart a little.  The joining twist of these two independent storylines is very predictable, even though Cavanagh did try to cover it up in a few clever ways.  Certain elements of this twist also stretch the feasibility of the plot to a degree, and while possible, it was a very unlikely.  Still, this only ruins the flow of the book a little and readers will still be hooked on the plot.  I loved the final few twists that Cavanagh loaded towards the end of the book, and the overlying emotional story writing and character moments that are utilised throughout the entire plot ensure that this is a very powerful read.  Readers will come away from this book very satisfied, and I honestly could not put Kill For Me Kill For You down the entire way through.

With the exception of the that problematic twist I discussed above, I mostly enjoyed how Cavanagh wrote Kill For Me Kill For You.  The excellent use of multiple character perspectives which shift from chapter to chapter works well to tell an expansive story with a lot more facets than I thought it would.  The different story focuses is very interesting and I liked the unique stories that both of the major characters (Amanda and Ruth) told throughout the book.  While I did find the chapters focusing on Amanda and her crisscross a lot more interesting, the Ruth storylines are more psychologically powerful and have some compelling edges to them.

I have to say that I was also very impressed with how Cavanagh made excellent use of the Strangers on a Train inspired murder plot throughout Kill For Me Kill For You.  Cavanagh makes some clever references to the classic film (and the book it is based on) throughout the novel, and I loved how he put his own spin on this classic tale.  I was worried in advance that it would be too much like other crime fiction homages to Strangers on a Train that I have seen before, but Cavanagh really made this plot element his own in Kill For Me Kill For You, working the film into his story in an excellent and memorable way.  The resulting compelling storyline was so much fun, and I cannot emphasise how brilliant and captivating this part of the book was.

In addition to the fun story elements, I also deeply appreciated the powerful character focus that Cavanagh featured throughout Kill For Me Kill For You.  There are four major point-of-view characters in Kill For Me Kill For You, and Cavanagh ensures that they have some complex and emotionally charged moments throughout the course of the plot.  All four of these characters are damaged by trauma or loss in their own unique way, including Amanda’s deep obsessive need for revenge, Ruth’s intense fear after surviving her traumatic attack, Scott’s guilt for not being there for his wife which leads to anger and despair and Farrow’s detrimental connection to his cases and the people impacted by them.  The author does an amazing job of diving into each of these character aspects throughout the course of Kill For Me Kill For You and you really grow to understand their individual traumas, obsessions and motivations throughout the course of the book.  Each character reacts to their damage and obsessions in different ways, and watching them overcome them, or succumb to them, are a key part of the plot.  This was probably the most emotionally charged and character focused book of Cavanagh’s that I have read so far, and I really appreciated how he dove into his complex protagonist’s psyches and attempted to highlight just how damaging death, violence and trauma can be on a person.

Kill For Me Kill For You was an outstanding read from Steve Cavanagh and one that I would very strongly recommend.  Featuring a unique and highly entertaining thriller narrative that cleverly balances intensity, twists, a wonderful homage to a classic piece of crime fiction, and powerful character moments, this is an excellent read that I really got attached to.  While I did have issue with a certain key point in the book, Kill For Me Kill For You was an overall strong and compelling novel that really showcases Cavanagh’s rising talents as an awesome thriller writer.

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Quick Reviews – Dark Rooms, Essex Dogs and Blow Back

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Historical Fiction, Murder Mystery, Quick Review, Thriller5 Comments

In recent weeks, I have been trying to review several older books; especially ones that I read last year but never got a chance to publish about.  I am hoping to rectify that to a degree now by publishing brief reviews for three intriguing 2022 releases that I had a great time reading.

Dark Rooms by Lynda La Plante

Dark Rooms Cover

Publisher: Zaffre (Trade Paperback – 16 August 2022)

Series: Tennison – Book Eight

Length: 319 pages

My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Amazon

Over the last few years, I have had a great time getting through the amazing Tennison series by iconic crime fiction author Lynda La Plante.  A prequel series to the Prime Suspect television series, the Tennison books follows a younger version of Prime Suspect’s protagonist, Jane Tennison, as she works her way up the ranks while investigating several intriguing crimes.  There have been some awesome books in this series so far, including Good Friday, Murder Mile, The Dirty Dozen, Blunt Force and Unholy Murder, each of which is worth a read, especially for fans of the original show.  I managed to get through the eighth book in the series, Dark Rooms, last year, and it is high time I wrote a review for it, especially as the next Tennison thriller is out just around the corner.

Plot Synopsis:

Helena Lanark is an elderly woman, living in a luxurious care home. The heiress of an immense family fortune, she keeps the secret to the horror which once occurred within the Lanark family house.

Jane Tennison is leading a murder investigation into the recent brutal death of a young girl, her decomposed starved body discovered in an old air raid shelter in the garden of the Lanark’s now derelict house. Initially the focus is on identifying the victim, until another body is found, hidden in the walls of the shelter.

As the investigation and search for answers intensifies, Jane travels to Australia. There she discovers the dark secret, that the Lanark family has kept hidden for decades.  A secret, that not only threatens to bring down a family dynasty, but also places Jane Tennison in mortal danger . . .

This was a fairly compelling crime fiction novel from La Plante, although I must admit that it wasn’t my favourite Tennison novel.  Dark Rooms’ story has an excellent start to it, with Tennison investigating the sinister death of a young woman in an abandoned air raid shelter.  This mystery gets even more complicated when the body of a young baby is also found in the basement.  However, this strong start doesn’t last for as long as I would have liked, with the more interesting case about the dead young woman being solved relatively quickly (although with an extremely dark solution), leaving only the mystery of the dead baby behind.

This second case, while interesting in its own way, is simpler than I would have liked, and the mystery behind it is actually a bit obvious.  La Plante does insert some great dramatic elements behind it, especially behind the tragic nature of the events behind it, as well as the unreliability of the main witness, which increases the emotional impact of the story.  I also quite liked the quick journey to Australia that Tennison undertakes to get answers, which was a nice change of pace that I rather enjoyed.  However, none of this helps to make the case as interesting or suspenseful as it needed to be, and I did not get as attached to the second half of the book.  It also didn’t help that La Plante was a reusing a lot of story elements from the previous entries in the series here, with Tennison facing the usual sexist boss and police department, and the author spending too much time on the protagonist’s social life than was strictly needed.  As such, the story drags in the places, and the lack of a particularly substantive and complex mystery ensures that it never really picks up to the degree you hope it would.

Overall, Dark Rooms was a weaker Tennison novel from Lynda La Plante, and one that does not really stand out when compared to some of the more impressive books in the series.  While I am little critical of it, Dark Rooms did have its interesting and powerful moments, and is still worth a read, especially for established fans of the series.  I am hoping that the next book in the series, Taste of Blood, has a better story behind it, and I am still intrigued to see how this series continues.

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Essex Dogs by Dan Jones

Essex Dogs Cover

Publisher: Head of Zeus (Trade Paperback – 30 August 2022)

Series: Essex Dogs – Book One

Length: 456 pages

My Rating: 4.25 out of 5 stars

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One of the more intriguing historical fiction debuts of 2022 had to be the awesome action adventure novel, Essex Dogs by Dan Jones.

Plot Synopsis:

July 1346. Ten men land on the beaches of Normandy. They call themselves the Essex Dogs: an unruly platoon of archers and men-at-arms led by a battle-scarred captain whose best days are behind him. The fight for the throne of the largest kingdom in Western Europe has begun.

Heading ever deeper into enemy territory toward Crécy, this band of brothers knows they are off to fight a battle that will forge nations, and shape the very fabric of human lives. But first they must survive a bloody war in which rules are abandoned and chivalry itself is slaughtered.

Rooted in historical accuracy and told through an unforgettable cast, Essex Dogs delivers the stark reality of medieval war on the ground – and shines a light on the fighters and ordinary people caught in the storm.

This was a very fun and exciting historical read that followed a small band of soldiers, the titular Essex Dogs, as they find themselves in the middle of the initial campaign of the Hundred Years War.  Jones writes a very compelling and action-packed story with a huge focus on camaraderie and survival, as the small band works together to try and overcome the many obstacles before and around them.  Written in the same character and themes as Band of Brothers or Saving Private Ryan, Essex Dogs has a good mixture of compelling historical detail, intense action, and interesting character moments, as the full story unleashes itself upon the reader with some major dramatic moments.  Cleverly working these characters into the middle of all the key events that occurred between the English landing in France all the way up to the Battle of Crécy (with some intriguing real historical extracts to give a fun contrast included at the start of each chapter), you will get wrapped up in Jones’ awesome and electrifying story.

This was a very impressive overall read, and I loved how well Jones managed to bring to life several desperate soldiers and lead them through the chaotic historical events depicted in Essex Dogs.  The captivating action, deep character moments, and inherent tragedy of war really help to turn this into an outstanding read and a pretty great first outing from Dan Jones as an author.  This ended up being one of my favourite debuts of 2022, and I am very interested to see how Jones will continue the story in the upcoming 2023 sequel, Wolves of Winter.

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Blow Back by James Patterson and Brendan Dubois

Blowback Cover

Publisher: Century (Trade Paperback – 1 September 2022)

Series: Standalone

Length: 503 pages

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

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A great thriller that I had high hopes for in 2022 was the compelling James Patterson novel (co-written with Brendan Dubois), Blow Back, that featured a fun story about an insane US President.

Plot Synopsis:

He’s America’s most brilliant president ever. He’s also a psychopath.

US president Keegan Barrett swept into office on his success as director of the CIA. Six months into his first term, he devises a clandestine power grab with a deadly motive: Revenge.

President Barrett personally orders Special Agents Liam Grey and Noa Himel to execute his plan, but their loyalties are divided. As CIA agents they’ve sworn to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all threats, both foreign and domestic.

When the threat comes directly from the Oval Office, that’s where the blowback begins.


Blow Back ended up being a very entertaining thriller that was extremely easy to read.  The authors deploy the typical Patterson style of short, sharp chapters, and several intriguing character perspectives to showcase the exciting tale, and I loved the great buildup that occurs in the first third of the novel.  Told primarily through the eyes of two US intelligence agents brought in to oversee the President’s planned intelligence revival, the first third of the book is pretty awesome as you watch them change the game in several exciting ways.  There is a ton of action-packed sequences and exciting espionage moments during this first half, as well as some frank and compelling assessments of the state of US, Russian and Chinese intelligence programs in America and across the world, all of which makes for some epic reading.  While the focus is primarily on espionage and the actions of the protagonists, there is also a tangible and compelling sense of dread building in the background as the reader gets closer and closer to seeing what the President is actually planning.

The eventual reveal of the President’s full duplicity and the evil schemes he has cooked up help change the tone of the second half of the book as the protagonists, who have been manipulated the entire way through, are now forced to work outside the system to try and save themselves and the entire world.  This makes for a pulse-pounding second half, and the cool story is loaded with chases, firefights and betrayals, all set around an apocalyptic scenario with a ticking clock behind it.  I honestly had a hard time putting the novel down, and the authors’ easy-to-read style really worked in Blow Back’s favour, producing a lightning quick read with a fun conclusion to it.  I did think that the story did not hit as hard as it possibly could have, and I might have preferred a few more twists or big moments towards the end.  I also didn’t get particularly invested in any of the major protagonists, although I did find President Barrett to be a very fun villain, especially when he completely loses his marbles and goes full evil warmongering tyrant on his enemies.

While I did think that Blow Back’s narrative did have a few issues and could have been a little tighter and more explosive in places, this was a still a very fun read and one that is guaranteed to keep thriller fans highly entertained and engaged.  The fast-paced story proves very hard to put down, and you will get really swept up in Blow Back’s ultra-exciting story of a psychotic and morally bankrupt President trying to destroy the world in his own compelling way.

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