thriller | Yet another blogging mummy!!!
Justice Gone by Nick Lombardi Jr.
I have received a free e-copy of the book Justice Gone by Nick Lombardi Jr to review.
This book is dedicated to Kelly Thomas who was beaten to death by police in California. This event inspired Nick to write this novel which is set in 2006/7.
The story starts in Bruntsfield, New Jersey where a bar-owner doesn't like the fact that there is a homeless man outside. In order to get him moved on, he gets his bartender to call the police and falsely suggest he is trying to break into cars. The homeless guy is Jay Felson, a decorated veteran of the war with Iraq. Two cops arrive and start giving Jay a hard time. They call for back up and ultimately, there are 6 cops who beat Jay to death.
Previously Jay had been attending a veterans trauma clinic in Manhattan for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) along with his best buddy Donald Darfield. Their counsellor there is Dr Tessa Thorpe, supported by Casey Hull. Tessa and team are utterly horrified when they see the pictures on TV. But then Tessa realises Donald has gone missing. And Tessa goes to see Jay's father, Colonel Marshal Felson, to discuss how they will get justice for Jay.
Meanwhile Bruntsfield council are holding an emergency meeting and decide the best course of action is grand jury, no indictment rather than a long drawn out trial, as they believe the public will get tired and dust will settle. I had to look up the word indictment, and discovered no indictment means no formal charge. But wrong decision, the public outcry continues to grow, especially after footage of a protest after Jay's funeral and of the huge bloodstain surrounded by flowers. Ex-chief of police, John Garson comes to see Tessa.
Things get even worse after a video of the beating goes viral, so a public forum is scheduled for three days later. But before we reach that point, three of the cops are gunned down. Who has taken matters into their own hands? Prime suspects are the missing Donald Darfield and Jay's father, Marshal Felson.
Darfield is tracked down and arrested. Is he innocent or guilty?
Justice Gone by Nick Lombardi Jr. is available on Amazon, currently priced at £12.99 in paperback and is also available in Kindle format. An interesting read with a twist at the end, although somewhat confusing.
This entry was posted in Book reviews, Reviews and tagged book review, books, fiction, legal fiction, Nick Lombardi Jr., psychological thriller, review, thriller on April 8, 2019 by mumjd.
I have received a free e-copy of the book AntiAmerica by T K Falco to review. To find out more about the author you may visit his website.
Although I love thrillers, I have to admit that I am not really into the cyber crime genre, but I was willing to give this book a go.
This book is set in Miami with the main characters being young hackers. Alanna's ex-boyfriend Javier is missing and the story starts with Alanna going to check out Javier's flat, having received a text saying "Alanna, I'm in trouble. Come find me". Alanna is mainly into identity theft, but she turns her hand to picking the lock and finds the place ransacked but no sign of Javier. As she leaves, the FCCU (Federal Cyber Crimes Unit) arrive. She runs but they catch her. The Secret Service are also involved.
Turns out they have also searched her apartment and discovered evidence of her phishing attacks on her laptop. But it is Javier they are really after as they believe he has links to AntiAmerica, an anarchist group, who are hacking into banks. They offer Alanna a deal as an informant. She reluctantly agrees, but she has another plan up her sleeve.
The story continues with plenty of twists and turns, some of which I would never have guessed. A good psychological thrilling book, but just not one for me, mainly because I'm not particularly interested in cyber crime, but also I found it somewhat confusing. Perhaps it would appeal more to those who enjoy the YA genre too.
AntiAmerica by T K Falco is available on Amazon, currently priced at £1.99 in Kindle format and is also available in paperback and audiobook formats. A good cyber crime book for those who like that sort of thing.
This entry was posted in Book reviews, Reviews and tagged book review, books, cyber crime, fiction, psychological thriller, review, T K Falco, technothriller, thriller on March 19, 2019 by mumjd.
I have received a free e-copy of the book Dark Inheritance by P B Lawson to review. You may find out more about the author on his website.
Detective Doug McKenna is baffled by a series of bizarre killings that have shocked the city of Toronto. All the victims have had their throats brutally slashed, yet there is little blood at any of the crime scenes.
This story, mainly set in Toronto starts with a few short chapters introducing the mysterious killer and detective Doug McKenna. The killer has murdered a prostitute on a path between 2 houses in a residential area. We are then introduced to journalist Jodie Sommers, who is after a scoop, and the residents, who are now suspects.
We then seem to go off at a tangent, as we meet Doctor Stephanie Salkind who has just discovered via paperwork in an old suitcase that she is adopted. From this point onwards, I realised there were several stories entwining with more main characters yet to be introduced. Plus it includes narrative from the fourteenth century, which blends in surprisingly well.
Lots more twists and turns to come in this tale including further deaths.
Dark Inheritance is available on Amazon, currently priced at £7.93 in paperback and is also available in Kindle format. A gripping thrilling plot.
This entry was posted in Book reviews, Giveaway, Reviews and tagged book review, books, crime, fiction, giveaway, P B Lawson, review, thriller on February 20, 2019 by mumjd.
I have received a free e-copy of the book Evo by Diane May to review. For more information on the author, you may see her website.
Livio Marchiori, a legendary homicide detective with the highest rate of solved cases in Verona, is faced with The Hypnotist, a serial killer whose modus operandi borders the supernatural and who is as elusive as a ghost. He never touches his victims and he leaves no evidence behind, except for the pen drive showing a dark figure who has the ability to hypnotize people to death…their own.
The more Marchiori digs, the less he finds while the city is on edge with the mayor and the press putting pressure on the police. And when The Hypnotist threatens to kill the love of his life, the chief medical examiner, Marchiori knows that he is quickly running out of time.
So when Captain Victor Miller from Interpol walks into town, Marchiori is more than happy to partner again with the man who two years ago helped him put an entire mafia clan behind bars. But Miller has his own agenda and Marchiori soon discovers that there is more to this than meets the eye, an entire thread of things way beyond his pay grade – secret experiments, dastardly research, and the most terrifying threat humanity has to face.
And just when Marchiori thinks the situation can't get any worse than this, he finds out that Miller isn't what he claims to be.
Feeling at the end of his tether and not knowing who to trust anymore, Marchiori begins a race against time to save both the woman he loves and millions of people from dying.
EVO is a gripping serial killer thriller with a shocking twist that will keep you awake until the first light of dawn.
The story starts with a flashback 20 years ago when CIA agent John Blake discovered that illegal genetic experiments had been performed on his young daughter Maya during IVF. Is this why she has special abilities? However there is a chilling note at the end of the file saying "Maya Blake and Christian Brent – test results positive. Terminate her". He's not going to let that happen but how?
Fast forward to the present day and there is a serial killer in Verona, seemingly murdering by hypnotism. Detective Captain Marchiori is investigating the case. Meanwhile Maya now lives in Verona too and one day trying to thwart a thief, she bumps into a gorgeous stranger, Christian Brent. By a twist of fate, Chris is dating Maya's best friend Sara. A huge argument, another murder and a disappearance, followed by a trip to Africa. What is going on?
And then Captain Victor Miller from Interpol arrives on the scene, aka Maya's ex fiancé, Alex. Who is he really and what is his agenda?
There is much much more to come in this story. It had me on the edge of my seat.
Evo is available on Amazon, currently priced at £4.99 in Kindle format. A thrilling read with a fantastically woven storyline.
This entry was posted in Book reviews, Giveaway, Reviews and tagged book review, books, Diane May, fiction, giveaway, review, thriller on December 10, 2018 by mumjd.
I have received a free e-copy of the book On the Count of Three by bestselling author Carolyn Arnold to review. I've now read several of Carolyn's books, so I was very much looking forward to reading this one, particularly as it stars FBI Agent Brandon Fisher just like the first of her books I read. To find out more about the author you may visit her website.
This is book 7 in the series featuring FBI agent Brandon Fisher.
The FBI team fly urgently to Miami, having been summoned by homicide detective Kelly Marsh who believes that due to similarities with 2 cold cases, missing person Jenna Kelter has been abducted by a serial killer. The previous 2 victims were decapitated on day 3 after abduction, so time is of the essence to find Jenna.
One small gripe was the use of 3 letter acronyms. DUI and BAU were used in the book blurb and frequently throughout the book. I do wish authors would avoid using these. The only BAU I know is Business as usual, which wouldn't make sense in the context of the story. I therefore had to look them up. So for anyone else as mystified as me, they are Driving under the influence and Behavioural Analysis Unit.
Also I found a small sub-story that was running throughout a bit perplexing. It is pretty obvious that it is leading up to one of the other agents Zach leaving the team at the end of the book. But why? It is not as if it is a film series, where an actor has requested to be written out.
On the Count of Three is available on Amazon, currently priced at £12.49 in paperback or £5.49 in Kindle format. Once again, Carolyn gives us a gripping story to keep you on the edge of your seat.
Here are the links to my reviews of other books by Carolyn Arnold.
This entry was posted in Book reviews, Reviews and tagged book review, books, Carolyn Arnold, fiction, review, thriller on December 4, 2018 by mumjd.
I have received a free e-copy of the book Quick Fix by J. Gregory Smith to review. You may find out more about the author on his Amazon page.
Military contractor Kyle Logan's luck has gone from bad to worse ever since he returned home to Philadelphia following an injury by an IED in Iraq. First, his marriage crumbles, then his career after he's pushed to the brink and assaults his wife's lover, who is also her divorce attorney. When Kyle's shady best friend turns up and offers him a "once in a lifetime" chance to regain his job and his life, all for just a couple night's work, Kyle figures he's got nothing to lose. The police, Philly Irish Mob and a couple of drug cartels all think otherwise. Now forced to fight for his life, and those around him, Kyle must turn to allies from his old neighborhood in a desperate effort to stay alive and out of prison. Quick Fix is one man's fall into a world of unintended consequences that seeks to tread the razor-thin lines between right and wrong, loyalty and treachery.
This story starts in Fishtown, Philadelphia with Kyle being served his divorce papers in the bar. He sees red and punches Fenster, his ex-wife Beth's lawyer boyfriend, but with an assault charge against him, he then loses his job too.
A week later, Kyle's shifty best friend Ryan turns up with a proposal to rob three statues from a police station and replace them with fakes. Ryan wants Kyle to be the driver for a $50k cut plus the promise of pulling strings to get the assault charge dropped. Then part two of the plan will be to sell the statues for a cool $2m.
What could go wrong? Plenty! And lots more characters still to be introduced.
However I do find jargon somewhat off-putting. What with IED in the blurb and then KOed and POed in chapter 1, I was in two minds whether I wished to carry on reading. But certainly glad I did.
Quick Fix is available on Amazon, currently priced at £10.57 in paperback and is also available in Kindle format. A great crime read.
This entry was posted in Book reviews, Reviews and tagged book review, books, crime, fiction, J Gregory Smith, review, thriller on October 26, 2018 by mumjd.
I have received a free e-copy of the book Initiated to Kill by Sharlene Almond to review. For more information on the author, you may see her website.
Most of the story takes place in Seville in 2010 but it also includes flashbacks to Annabella's childhood and to earlier incidents featuring the bad guys. Plus the tale of Jack the Ripper is another main element and Freemasonary plays a part too.
Annabella is deaf due to a childhood injury, but she is able to read body and facial expressions. Her flatmate Celestina is the first girl to disappear, which she reports to the police.
Meanwhile the police start receiving anonymous gruesome packages. Detective Valero is called back in from sabbatical leave to work on the case with Detective Rivero. As more girls disappear, the link appears to be that they all attend Seville University. The detectives call upon Annabella's skills in reading people and hide her behind the glass when interviewing their first suspect.
Lots of twists to come in this story.
Although I'm a huge thriller fan, I did find this one rather too graphic, in its descriptions of dismembering victims' organs.
After finishing reading the book, I did feel compelled to look up the tale of Jack The Ripper and I saw that the name mentioned in this story was one of the possible suspects for the unidentified serial killer.
Initiated To Kill is available on Amazon, currently priced at £11.18 in paperback or £2.99 in Kindle format. A thrilling mysterious read with an interesting weaving of the storylines.
This book is recommended for adult readers only, due to its graphic content.
Plus I'm hosting a rafflecopter competition to giveaway a paperback copy of this book to 1 lucky winner, who may choose whether they wish for their prize to be signed by the author or not.
This entry was posted in Book reviews, Giveaway, Reviews and tagged book review, books, fiction, freemasons, giveaway, Jack The Ripper, mystery, review, Sharlene Almond, thriller on September 13, 2018 by mumjd.
I have received a free e-copy of the book Shark Bait by Matt Walker to review. You may find out more about the author on his website.
"I'm no hero. I'm a Licensed Vigilante. And I kill people for a living." Government hitman John Steele has just completed his current contract, and has the bullet wound to show for it. That's when he meets a vicious criminal loan shark called Gary Brooker. But Brooker has got his own problems. He's picked on the wrong guy.
I was drawn into the story just by the opening line "The worst time to get pulled over by the cops is when you have a body in the boot". However John Steele is able to show the police his LV (licensed vigilante) ID card and drive away with the bad guy banging from inside the boot.
But the Carlucci drug gang that he has just busted are not the only baddies in town. On his way to hospital, he spots a man, Jeremy in some distress in the road. John lends him his phone to call his wife and then drives him home, where a goon is waiting outside in a van. From what he has overheard both on the phone call and from the goon speaking, John works out that Jeremy has a loan shark Gary Brooker on his back and he is not happy when he sees Jeremy hand over his Dad's war medals. John decides to follow the goon to get the medals back. He waits until the goon has handed them to Gary, then follows Gary's Porsche and deliberately rams it at the traffic light, before punching Gary and another goon Baz and robbing Gary of the medals.
When John finally gets to the hospital, he sees Jeremy being wheeled in unconscious. Looks like Gary has been back again. So John gets further embroiled into this when he should be hot-footing it out of town, since more of the Carlucci clan are after him now. Meanwhile Gary has other problems, so lots more to the storyline.
I really liked how the different parts to the story aren woven together, along with John's background too.
Shark Bait is available on Amazon, currently priced at £6.99 in paperback and is also available in Kindle format. A good thriller with lots of twists.
This entry was posted in Book reviews, Reviews and tagged book review, books, fiction, Matt Walker, review, thriller on August 19, 2018 by mumjd.
I have received a free e-copy of the book Taking Care of Business by J. D. De Roeck to review.
When Paul Smith travels to the south of France for a sales conference, events conspire to drag him into a world of kidnappings, blackmail and murder. Following a violent incident, Paul instinctively offers refuge to a girl he believes to be a vulnerable lost soul in a desperate situation, only to find that all is not as it appears. Unwittingly, he finds himself caught between competing international crime syndicates as they go to war, and two powerful Russian families as they fight for control of a vast Russian conglomerate. What begins as a routine business trip to Nice, turns into a journey of self-discovery that takes him to some of the most glamorous locations on the Cote d'Azur. Paul is compelled to confront each new escalating threat in turn, while his neatly ordered world spirals relentlessly out of control. As events unfold, he is forced to challenge everything he thought he knew about himself, before finally embracing the danger and brutal violence he encounters along the way. Can Paul get to the truth, and does he have what it takes to keep those he cares about safe, and himself alive?
This book is mainly set in 2014, but it starts 3 years previously in St Petersburg to give some background to the story. The initial chapters swap back and forth between interesting background material and what feels quite dull introducing Paul, an average guy and his associates Gary and Doug who are all attending a sales conference in Nice. As a reader I was left thinking, come on there must be more to this story.
And there is, but it isn't until chapter 11 that things start to heat up. Paul wakes in the night, hearing someone being attacked in the next hotel room. He rescues a terrified girl Anna, when she is thrown into the corridor naked by a huge brutal man, hiding her in his own room.
Starting with little things like going out to buy Anna something to wear, Paul gradually gets pulled from his everyday sales world, hardly attending any of the conference. Not all is as it seems with Anna and Paul finds himself immersed in a very different violent world of kidnapping.
The story develops into a real page turner, and Paul becomes such a different character as he faces dangerous challenges. Wow what a thrilling read. And how many people can you squeeze into one hotel room, as we get introduced to other good characters in the story. Of course we meet plenty of baddies too.
This book is available on Amazon currently priced at £11.99 in paperback and is also available in Kindle format. It is a long book, but a gripping read once it gets going. Highly recommended. Plus the ending allows for a possible follow-up.
This entry was posted in Book reviews, Reviews and tagged adventure, book review, books, crime, J. D. De Roeck, review, thriller on August 12, 2018 by mumjd.