Your Closest Friend by Karen Perry

Description from Goodreads:

"Imagine sharing your darkest secret with a stranger - a girl who isn't what she seems, and who will do anything to keep you close . . .

On a hot humid night in London, Cara Jameson's busy, fulfilling life is interrupted with the sound of gunfire. Panic and terror grip the street as the air is filled with screaming and Cara is pulled roughly to safety by a stranger.

Taking refuge in a storeroom, Cara huddles with her savior - Amy - and in the darkness she shares more in those hours than ever has with even her husband. When she emerges hours later, a bond forged in the trauma of that night has formed between them.

Returning to work, Cara tries to put the experience behind her, but the incident has taken its toll and as cracks begin to show in her perfect life and marriage, Amy reappears, set on pursuing a friendship.

Cara wished she hadn't shared everything she did in those hours of darkness. But as her life skids towards deepening violence, there is only one person she can turn to: Amy, her closest friend."

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What a unique story and nothing like anything I've read before.  You are thrown into the middle of a terrorist attack at the beginning of the story and not knowing whether she is going to survive or not, Cara confides her deepest secrets to the young lady who plucked her to safety.  Secrets that should have stayed hidden as they are now used against her.

The writing style is easy to read and flows really well with each chapter written from the perspectives of the 2 main characters - Cara and Amy - which works extremely well for this book and the story.  I did feel there was a bit of a lull in the middle but it certainly makes up for it as we move towards the thrilling conclusion.

Never having read anything by these authors before (Paul Perry and Karen Gillece ), I will most certainly keep my eyes open in future and thank you to the Publisher, Penguin UK - Michael Joseph, and NetGalley for once again introducing me to yet another great book that would likely have passed me by.

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Connect with the authors:

Twitter:  karenperrybooks 

Girl On Fire (Max Wolfe #5) by Tony Parsons

Description from Goodreads:

"When terrorists use a drone to bring down a plane on one of London’s busiest shopping centres, it ignites a chain of events that will draw in the innocent and the guilty alike.

DC Max Wolfe of West End Central finds himself caught in the crossfire between a tech-savvy terrorist cell and a revenge-seeking, Bible-quoting murderer called Bad Moses.

And when Max’s ex-wife suddenly reappears to reclaim custody of his beloved daughter Scout, he finds himself fighting the greatest battle of all ... "

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"I woke up and the world was gone.

All was silent, all was black, the darkness so complete that it was as if all the light had been drained from the world."

Those are the dramatic opening lines to this book which had me hooked and eating up the pages as if my life depended on it.

Mr Parsons writes with grit, authenticity and humanity which I find very addictive and although Max isn't perfect by any stretch of the imagination, he is a very engaging character that I love getting to know a little more with each outing.

I must admit that there were times when I felt reality was ignored for the sake of the story (i.e. missed suspects which, in my opinion, were glaringly obvious) but I just put them to one side and continued to enjoy the ride on Mr Parsons' roller-coaster because, after all, this isn't a true story although the subject matter certainly is unfortunately.

Although this can be read as a standalone, I would very much recommend you read the others in the series as this will give more depth and understanding to the main characters and will enhance the whole reading experience.

I would highly recommend this series and Tony Parsons as a great British author and would like to thank the publisher, Random House UK, Cornerstone and NetGalley for my copy in return for an impartial review.

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Other books in the series I have read and reviewed - click the link under the book covers to be taken to my review:

Click here to read my review of
Die Last

Click here to read my view of
The Slaughter Man

Click here to read my review of
The Hanging Club

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Connect with the Author:

Twitter:  TonyParsonsUK

Facebook:  TonyParsonsBooks