Diagnosis: Bookaholic

  SYNOPSIS DI Kate Young is on leave. She’s the force’s best detective, but her bosses know she’s under pressure, on medication and overcoming trauma. So after her bad judgement call leads to a narrowly averted public disaster, they’re sure all she needs is a rest. But when Staffordshire Police summon her back to work on a murder case, it’s a harder, more suspicious Kate Young who returns. With a new ruthlessness, she sets about tracking down a clinical, calculating serial killer who is torturing victims and leaving clues to taunt the police. Spurred on by her reporter husband, Young begins to suspect that the murderer might be closer than she ever imagined. As she works to uncover the truth, Young unravels a network of secrets and lies, with even those closest to her having something to hide. But with her own competence—and her grip on reality—called into question, can she unmask the killer before they strike again? Title: An eye for an eye Author: Carol Wyer Series: DI Kate Young...

  SYNOPSIS When Leeds meets Layla, he’s convinced he’ll spend the rest of his life with her—until an unexpected attack leaves Layla fighting for her life. After weeks in the hospital, Layla recovers physically, but the emotional and mental scarring has altered the woman Leeds fell in love with. In order to put their relationship back on track, Leeds whisks Layla away to the bed-and-breakfast where they first met. Once they arrive, Layla’s behavior takes a bizarre turn. And that’s just one of many inexplicable occurrences. Feeling distant from Layla, Leeds soon finds solace in Willow—another guest of the B&B with whom he forms a connection through their shared concerns. As his curiosity for Willow grows, his decision to help her find answers puts him in direct conflict with Layla’s well-being. Leeds soon realizes he has to make a choice because he can’t help both of them. But if he makes the wrong choice, it could be detrimental for  all  of them. Title: Layla Author: ...

SYNOPSIS Alice thought her future was set in stone, until her past came knocking... Alice Butler starred in a successful US sitcom until tensions in the cast and crew caused the show to be cancelled. Now, five years later and working towards her dream job in art history, she’s called back for a revival of the show. It can only end in disaster, surely? Flown to a villa in Chianti to meet with the rest of the cast, Alice must decide where her future lies – with her boyfriend, David, who laps up the Hollywood company, or with the mysterious Matt, who shies away from public attention? Title: Second chances in Chianti Author: T.A. Williams Publisher: Canelo Publication date: February 22, 2021 REVIEW RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 💫 T.A. Williams' novels are the perfect remedy for quite a number of ailments. You're feeling down and need your spirits lifted up? Read a T.A. Williams' book. You'd love to feast in some Italian food but you're on a diet and have to settle on reading about scr...

  SYNOPSIS To solve an impossible murder, you need an impossible hero… Judith Potts is seventy-seven years old and blissfully happy. She lives on her own in a faded mansion just outside Marlow, there’s no man in her life to tell her what to do or how much whisky to drink, and to keep herself busy she sets crosswords for The Times newspaper.  One evening, while out swimming in the Thames, Judith witnesses a brutal murder. The local police don’t believe her story, so she decides to investigate for herself, and is soon joined in her quest by Suzie, a salt-of-the-earth dog-walker, and Becks, the prim and proper wife of the local Vicar. Together, they are the Marlow Murder Club. When another body turns up, they realise they have a real-life serial killer on their hands. And the puzzle they set out to solve has become a trap from which they might never escape… Title: The Marlow Murder Club Author: Robert Thorogood Publisher: HQ Publication date: January 7, 2021 REVIEW RATI...

SYNOPSIS Lila Ridgefield lives in an idyllic college town, but not everything is what it seems.  Lila  isn't what she seems. A student vanished months ago. Now, Lila's husband, Aaron, is also missing. At first these cases are treated as horrible coincidences until it's discovered the student is really the third of three unexplained disappearances over the last few years. The police are desperate to find the connection, if there even is one. Little do they know they might be stumbling over only part of the truth.... With the small town in an uproar, everyone is worried about the whereabouts of their beloved high school teacher. Everyone except Lila, his wife. She's definitely confused about her missing husband but only because she was the last person to see his body, and now it's gone. Title: Pretty little wife Author: Darby Kane Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks Publication date: December 29, 2020 REVIEW RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ This is how I like my domestic ...

  SYNOPSIS The words blurred as she read the note. She could feel her blood turning to ice.  ‘Before you make the biggest mistake of your life, meet me. If you don’t, her blood will be on your hands. ’ When  Beth Mullen  returns home, expecting to find her twin  Rachel  waiting for her, the silent house sends a shiver down her spine. She races upstairs to find her beautiful beloved sister cold in her childhood bed, her sparkling blue eyes closed forever, the morning after attending a glittering party… Newly engaged  Detective Lottie Parker  knows that Rachel has been murdered the minute she enters the bedroom. Rachel’s neck is bruised and a shard of glass placed in her throat. Confronted with such a horrifying killing, Lottie wastes no time in pursuing every clue. While interviewing the partygoers, Lottie discovers that Rachel’s handbag and keys are nowhere to be found. But as she is searching for them, a brilliant young doctor is found murdered w...

  SYNOPSIS Edward Hyde has a strange gift-or a curse-he keeps secret from all but his physician. He experiences two realities, one real, the other a dreamworld state brought on by a neurological condition. When murders in Victorian Edinburgh echo the ancient Celtic  threefold death  ritual, Captain Edward Hyde hunts for those responsible. In the process he becomes entangled in a web of Celticist occultism and dark scheming by powerful figures. The answers are there to be found, not just in the real world but in the sinister symbolism of Edward Hyde's otherworld. He must find the killer, or lose his mind. A dark tale. One that inspires Hyde's friend...Robert Louis Stevenson. Title: Hyde Author: Craig Russell Publisher: Constable Publication date: March 4, 2021 REVIEW RATING: ⭐⭐⭐💫 I've been a long time fan of Craig Russell. His Jan Fabel Series is one of my favorite police procedural series ever. A couple of years back I was nicely surprised by "The Devil's Aspect...

  SYNOPSIS 500 years ago: eight martyrs were burnt to death 30 years ago: two teenagers vanished without trace Two months ago: the vicar committed suicide Welcome to Chapel Croft. For Rev Jack Brooks and teenage daughter Flo it's supposed to be a fresh start. New job, new home. But, as Jack knows, the past isn't easily forgotten. And in a close-knit community where the residents seem as proud as they are haunted by Chapel Croft's history, Jack must tread carefully. Ancient superstitions as well as a mistrust of outsiders will be hard to overcome. Yet right away Jack has more frightening concerns. Why is Flo plagued by visions of burning girls? Who's sending them sinister, threatening messages? And why did no one mention that the last vicar killed himself? Chapel Croft's secrets lie deep and dark as the tomb. Jack wouldn't touch them if not for Flo - anything to protect Flo. But the past is catching up with Chapel Croft - and with Jack. For old ghosts with scores...

  SYNOPSIS Six of us are going to the island. Only one of us will make it back. That one of us will be me. For friends Riley, Sam, Mia and Scarlett, their trip to Whisper Island was meant to be a once in a lifetime adventure – just four young women, with everything to live for… But as soon as they arrive things start to go wrong.  First there is the unexpected arrival of Sammy’s drug addict brother and his girlfriend Opal – why are they here?  And then the deaths begin.  As the dream trip quickly turns into a nightmare, suspicion is high.  Are they really alone on the island?  Or is there a killer hiding in the shadows?  And as each of the girls reveals a dark secret of their own, perhaps the truth is the killer is closer than they think…just a whisper away. Title: Whisper Island Author: Carissa Ann Lynch Publisher: One More Chapter Publication date: February 5, 2021 REVIEW RATING: ⭐⭐⭐💫 "Watch me" Riley, Mia, Sammy and Scarlett are four art students ...

SYNOPSIS Agatha Arch's life shatters when she discovers her husband in their backyard shed, in flagrante delicto, giving the local dog walker some heavy petting. Suddenly, Agatha finds herself face to face with everything that frightens her...and that's a loooooong list.  Agatha keeps those she loves close. Everyone else she keeps as far away as possible. So she's a mystery to nearly everyone in her New England town. To her husband, she's a saucy no-B.S. writer. To her Facebook Moms group, she's a provocateur. To her neighbor, she's a standoffish pain in the butt. To her sons, she's chocolate pudding with marshmallows. And to her shrink, she's a bundle of nerves on the brink of a cataclysmic implosion.  Defying her abundant assortment of anxieties, Agatha dons her spy pants - a pair of khakis whose many pockets she crams with binoculars, fishing line, scissors, flashlight, a Leatherman Super Tool 300 EOD, candy, and other espionage essentials - and sets ...

SYNOPSIS It is the early spring of 2016 and Queen Elizabeth is at Windsor Castle in advance of her 90th birthday celebrations. But the preparations are interrupted when a guest is found dead in one of the Castle bedrooms. The scene suggests the young Russian pianist strangled himself, but a badly tied knot leads MI5 to suspect foul play was involved. The Queen leaves the investigation to the professionals—until their suspicions point them in the wrong direction. Unhappy at the mishandling of the case and concerned for her staff’s morale, the monarch decides to discreetly take matters into her own hands. With help from her Assistant Private Secretary, Rozie Oshodi, a British Nigerian and recent officer in the Royal Horse Artillery, the Queen secretly begins making inquiries. As she carries out her royal duties with her usual aplomb, no one in the Royal Household, the government, or the public knows that the resolute Elizabeth will use her keen eye, quick mind, and steady nerve to bring ...