Archive | January 2021

Nine by Rachelle Dekker

Jan18

Who Do You Want To Be?

Nine by Rachelle Dekker is a fast paced futuristic Christian thriller that will have your heart racing as you read.

The novel is about choosing who you want to be. You need to discover your identity and whose you are and then you will know who you are. We are not destined to repeat the mistakes of our parents. Neither do we need to repeat our pasts. We are free to write our futures learning from the past.

There is the theme of trust. Sometimes our trust is misplaced as people deliberately set out to deceive us.

A name change signifies a character change. When we become a Christian, Jesus gives us a new name. He calls us His child, His beloved.

Life is a battle between the forces of good and evil. It is no coincidence that the evil one is called the deceiver and the father of lies. We need to de-tune his voice and tune into the life affirming voice of God.

Continue reading →

The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood

Jan18

All For One

The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood is a contemporary novel with good old fashioned amateur super sleuthing murder suspense.

The novel is set in the English countryside in a village with a cast of characters who could be straight out of Miss Marple or Midsommer! The leading lady is heading towards her eighties, there is a vicar’s wife and a dog walking lady – three musketeers who set out to solve crimes their way. This certainly produces some amusing scenes. The novel is light-hearted in tone and would make a fabulous early evening television drama.

As the action progresses there are an array of guilty parties but can you work out who is the perpetrator and why? I failed to solve the crime before the big reveal – again.

Continue reading →

Aunt Ivy’s Cottage by Kristin Harper

Jan16

Legacy And Love

Aunt Ivy’s Cottage by Kristin Harper is a delightfully charming contemporary novel about love and family. It is the second book in the Dune Island series but can be read as a stand-alone.

The novel is about a love that has travelled down the generations and is now passed between three generations as they share time together in the old family house. The love and memories are entwined in the very fabric of the house. It is a house where love and care live.

A casual remark opens up a mystery to be solved. The reader is just as keen as the characters to know the answer.

Life is not always kind. There have been some hard losses but memories and love help with the healing process.

Continue reading →

Fifty Fifty by Steve Cavanagh

Jan16

Mesmerising

Fifty Fifty by Steve Cavanagh is a contemporary psychological murder suspense that will have you glued, guessing and mesmerised from the start. It is the fifth book in the Eddie Flynn series but can be read as a stand-alone.

Two sisters stand accused of their father’s murder, each is accusing the other. One is guilty. One is innocent – now it’s up to the jury to decide and deliver the verdict. Can you correctly guess the guilty party?

The novel is very cleverly constructed as the tale is told from alternating points of view including that of the guilty party under the heading of ‘She.’ I carefully followed the action, noting the clues along the way – but try as I might I failed (again) to predict the outcome but it was a marvellous roller coaster of an emotional read.

Fifty Fifty would make a marvellous television crime drama – totally compelling and impossible to decide on the guilty party.

Continue reading →