The Guilty Couple by C.L. Taylor

 

Description from Goodreads:

"Five years ago, Olivia Sutherland was wrongfully convicted of plotting to murder her husband.

Now she's finally free, Olivia has three goals: repair her relationship with her teenage daughter, clear her name, and bring down her husband – the man who framed her.

Just how far is she willing to go to get what she wants? And how far will her husband go to stop her? Because his lies run deeper than Olivia could ever have imagined – and this time it’s not her freedom that’s in jeopardy, but her life…"

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I have read a few books by C.L. Taylor and have mostly enjoyed them and this was no exception; I quickly became totally invested in Olivia's story and I was hooked from the very beginning.

Olivia has been convicted of conspiring to murder her husband; she has lost everything ... her marriage, her daughter, her life. After 5 years, she is desperate to clear her name and prove her innocence but when she has been abandoned by most of the people from her previous life, this is not going to be an easy task but one she is determined to achieve no matter what.

This is a fast-paced read with some great twists and great characters (although most of them aren't particularly likeable) and whilst you have to suspend reality in parts, it was a quick, tense read that I enjoyed.

My thanks to the author, Avon Books UK and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of The Guilty Couple.

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Other books by C.L. Taylor that I have read and reviewed:

Her Last Holiday

The Island

Strangers

Sleep

The Fear

Captured at Singapore: A Diary of a Far East Prisoner of War by Jill Robertson and Jan Slimming

Synopsis from Goodreads:

"What would it be like to leave your loved ones behind knowing you may never see them again? Then depart on a ship in the dead of night heading for an unknown destination and find yourself in the heat of a battle which concludes in enemy conditions so terrible that your survival in captivity is still under threat?

Cultivated from a small, faded, address book secretly written by a young soldier in the Royal Army Service Corps, Captured at Singapore, is a POW story of adventure, courage resilience and luck.

In 1940, Londoner Stanley Moore became Driver T/170638 and trained for desert warfare along with many others in the British Army’s 18th Division. Their mission, they thought, was to fight against Hitler and fascism in the Middle East. But in a change of plan and destination, he and his fellow servicemen became sacrificial lambs on a continent much further from home.

After tough rudimentary combat training in England, Stan’s division set off on a secret overseas mission. After months at sea, and several unexpected ports of call, their convoy was redirected to the other side of the world as the Imperial Japanese Army rampaged across Manchuria, Hong Kong and other parts of Asia. Singapore was under sole British jurisdiction and a large naval base had been built after the First World War to defend the island at the foot of the Malay Peninsula. The British Government believed Japan would never attack their prize territory and so left Singapore to fight for itself with limited troops and outdated equipment. But after an attack on Pearl Harbor, the under-trained and undersupplied 18th Division was redirected to fight the Japanese.

Using extensive research and personal documents, the authors’ account - via their father’s small, faded, diary and his 1990 tape recording - tells of Stan’s journey and arrival in Keppel Harbour under shellfire; the horrific 17 day battle to defend the island, the Japanese Admonition and the harrowing forced labour conditions after capitulation.

Only a small percentage of the 85,000 British troops returned after the war. Captivity and years of trauma ultimately stole years of the young soldiers’ lives, which they were later ordered to forget by the British Government. The aim of this work is to provide information for future generations to understand how ordinary men died under horrific conditions of war, and how the lucky survived."

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You can only ever give 5 stars for stories like these ... those that open your eyes to the reality of war and the harrowing nature of what life was like for those unfortunate to have been taken prisoner but lucky enough to have survived.  

This is a really well written and powerful account of one man's experiences during World War II and is a eye-opening and, at times, shocking read.

Their stories cannot and should never be forgotten.

Thank you to the authors, Pen & Sword and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of this emotional story.

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Murder on the Menu by Alex Coombs

Description from Goodreads:

"Chef Charlie Hunter's arrival in the beautiful Chilterns is the fulfilment of a long-held to open her own restaurant in an idyllic countryside location. The Old Forge sits on the village green (complete with duck pond and flint-faced houses) and seems just the place for the high-quality cooking she wants to be known for.

But instead of rural peace and a chance to lick her wounds, Charlie finds something ugly stirring under the chocolate box perfection. When a prominent local builder is found dead in suspicious circumstances, Charlie the outsider becomes a suspect. And the only way to clear her name seems to be to find out who the real killer is.

Luckily she has her student waitress, a kitchen porter making up in muscles what he lacks in brain and a briskly efficient clairvoyant. Using all the craft Charlie's learned in kitchens – discipline, timing, preparation and grim determination – she will be as relentless in her quest to bring a murderer to justice as she is in creating the perfect meal."

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I have read a number of Alex Coombs books and have thoroughly enjoyed them so when I saw this, the start to a new series, I wanted to get right in there at the start and I wasn't disappointed.

Charlie is starting a new life after making a huge mistake.  She has bought a café in a small village and is determined to fulfil her dreams of owning a successful eatery.  Unfortunately, things don't go to plan - Charlie doesn't know anyone and when someone is found murdered, the finger solidly points to her.  How can she prove her innocence whilst trying to start a new business?

With the help, and hindrance, of some interesting characters, Charlie goes about her task with more than a little hesitation however, the stakes are raised when more murders are committed and she becomes a target.  Can she solve the case before she becomes the next victim?

With excellent characters, a great location and an intriguing story, this is a great start to a new series and one I am looking forward to getting my beady little eyes on the next instalment to see how things develop.

Many thanks to the author, Bedford Square Publishers, No Exit Press and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of this start to a new series.

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Other books by Alex Coombs I have read and reviewed:

The Stolen Child

The Innocent Girl

The Missing Husband

The Silent Victims

Buried for Good

The Forgotten Tower by Lulu Taylor [Audiobook]

🎙🎙🎙 Narrated by Lulu Taylor and Eleanor Jackson🎙🎙🎙

 

Synopsis:

"Georgie is reluctant to move when her husband inherits Wakefield Castle, but he is determined to restore its fortunes. When exploring her new home she finds an old handwritten recipe book which leads her to suspect that the castle hides secrets as troubling as her own . . .

In 1939, as war is declared, the Wakefield family open the castle to shelter unusual guests. As the Wakefield children learn to cope with the loss of their missing parents and the presence of newcomers, the castle becomes a refuge and a keeper of secrets.

As Georgie’s fascination for the castle grows, it becomes a place for her own escape. But when unravelling the mysteries of its past, she realises that in order to be truly free, she must confront what she most dreads."

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I haven't read or listened to any of Lulu Taylor's books before but something about the cover, the title and then the synopsis drew me in and I wasn't disappointed.

This is a story that, whilst it didn't have a lot of 'action', kept me engaged and keen to learn more about the various characters in the story.  It's told from 2 timelines, 1939 and the present day, and uncovers the secrets and mysteries of both households from both periods.

The characters were well developed and interesting; the mysteries and family dynamics and how the two timelines came together was what kept me engaged.  I also found the narrators excellent and really drew me in which made this an enjoyable listen.

Many thanks to MacMillan UK Audio and NetGalley for enabling me to listen to and share my thoughts of The Forgotten Tower and for introducing me yet another author to look out for.

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The Killer's Christmas List by Chris Frost

Synopsis from Goodreads:

"In the picturesque village of Kibblesworth, DI Tom Stonem is dreaming of a quiet Christmas alone.

But in the shadow of the Angel of the North, a body lies waiting. The dead man is posed with a child’s Christmas list in his pocket, and the first mysterious item – 1. No angel – is crossed off.

When a second body is found – a woman, stabbed in the abdomen after her work Christmas do – Stonem is convinced there’s a grim connection between the crime scenes and the seemingly innocent list. 2. Red partee dress. Could this be a murderer’s twisted code?

As a blizzard rages in the Tyne & Wear countryside, the body count is snowballing. Can Stonem stop the killer before they get everyone on their Christmas list?"

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I haven't read anything by Chris Frost before but after reading the blurb, it definitely sounded like something that would keep me glued to my Kindle for a while and I wasn't disappointed.

This is just what you want for a Christmas read but cozy it is not!!  It's dark, full of suspense, twists and turns and has great characters that I certainly became invested in.  The ending was cracking and certainly not what I anticipated and this is something I really like in a book.

Overall, a great read that I definitely recommend to those of you who enjoy something a bit darker than the usual Christmas stories and many thanks must go to the author, HarperNorthUK and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of this anti-cosy Christmas crime novel.

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