Drivers by Peter Carroll.

Ross Fleming lands a job as a driver for a gangster in Glasgow. He thinks this is an easy dream job, what could possibly go wrong?

I found Drivers to be a violent, fast paced thriller set amongst the criminal underworld in Scotland. There are lots of characters with dubious nicknames and very colourful history.

This novel floats about quite a bit over time, going backwards and forwards resulting in the reader knowing more about the background of the other characters, than the central character Ross Fleming does.

The dangers are obvious and I wished Ross would simply walk away and seek a less glamorous job. I lacked empathy for Ross as he was acting the fool.

The other characters in this thriller were simply bad, nasty people who you would never want to associate with. Drivers lacked any likeable characters and I felt their whole lives were a mess.

I found Drivers to be an OKAY 3 star read along the lines of a violent soap opera. Peter’s writing style was rather tabloid but very easy to follow. There was a lot of gang warfare that followed regular plot lines. This is a run-of-the-mill thriller centred around the day to day life of the unseen criminal underworld. My lasting impression is thank goodness I have NEVER met anyone like a character in this book. What a mess some people’s lives become. My reading pleasure was okay but Drivers lacked a USP - unique selling point. There was no feel good factor in this book but it was certainly thrilling with no boring or slow bits.

Drivers was written in 2014 and is available as an Amazon Kindle eBook.

Restless In The Grave (Kate Shugak #19) by Dana Stabenow.

Follow PI Kate Shugak as she solves the mystery of a fatal plane accident. Was it mechanical failure, pilot error or even a murder?

I enjoyed reading Restless In The Grave and liked how the atmosphere carried on from previous books in this series. I liked the lifestyle descriptions of Alaskan life and the many cultural references scattered throughout this story. For example…

no one in Bush Alaska ever threw anything away

...There were many local North American words for me to discover like “zaftig” - which added to the feeling of being a long way from the UK. Also there were lots of brand names that British readers will not have come across like Carhartt bibs, Xtra Tufs boots, Arctic Cat snowmobiles and a beer I have not tried before called Alaskan Amber. Sadly the lead character Kate Shugak is teetotal and another character offers her a soft drink but he is clearly not pushing the boat out…

He nodded, his back to her as he filled two glasses with ice and split a Diet Coke between them.

… what a cheapskate! That is one of my pet hates, sharing a 330ml can - get a life!

Mutt, the half husky, half wolf pet dog of Kate Shugak has her role to play in solving the mystery of the fatal crash. I loved the dynamics between Kate and her dog, this bond added a lot to the story and dog owners will feel very much at home.

I liked the pace of this story and with its strong character development I felt as though I was there in the middle of this mystery. All the extra details painted a powerful picture in my mind as though I was sitting back enjoying a film.

I liked how the plot unfolded and all the nagging doubts thrown at the reader from the first page. I think Restless In The Grave is another GOOD 4 star read and Dana shows what a consistent author she is with her Kate Shugak series.

Restless In The Grave was written in 2012 and is available as an Amazon Kindle eBook.

Rescuing Eddy: Will He Bite the Big One? by Marty Gates.

Eddy, a Jack Russell terrier was abandoned in San Diego in 2011. Marty is involved with dog training and rescue, so he takes Eddy on and explains what adopters should do to give a dog a forever home.

I really enjoyed reading Rescuing Eddy which had a lovely text and many, many photos. Rescuing Eddy is not a big book and only runs to 132 pages. However, what you get is a good understanding of how dogs think and how to train them.

I liked how Marty used two voices in his book. The main voice was the author’s but the other was Eddy talking back to Marty and the reader with his point of view. Listening to Marty and Eddy you learn what being a pack animal involves. Dog’s brains and memories are very different to humans as Marty nicely explains…

Dogs, on the other hand, don’t live in the past, they don’t hold grudges, and they live in the moment.

...I liked how Marty explained the psychology of dogs and how they think. This insight gives a good understanding so you can develop a loving, loyal, respect and obedient bond with your dog.

I think Rescuing Eddy is a GOOD 4 star read that is a refresher course for dog owners everywhere regardless of your pet’s breed.

Rescuing Eddy was written 2014 and is available as an Amazon Kindle eBook.

Though Not Dead (Kate Shugak #18) by Dana Stabenow.

Continuing on from book 17 in this series, Old Sam dies aged 87 and leaves the majority of his estate to his niece Kate Shugak. However, Old Sam also leaves a mystery for Kate to solve. Follow Kate as she tries to solve the secrets Old Sam left behind.

I enjoyed reading Though Not Dead and felt quite at home with Alaska and Dana’s writing style. I liked how this novel had a strong sense of belonging and roots. Much fun is made of tourists and their off-the-rack clothing from REI and the differences between Outside and the Park. Yet more local North American words were used for example - coldcocked - which made me feel like a welcome tourist.

Mutt, the half husky, half wolf dog belonging to Kate had a great role to play in the story. I liked how the relationship between a dog and their owner was fully explored - the bond that is shared is beautiful and very strong. Also, all dogs can make you smile, for example when 

Dana writes…

“No,” she said, so violently that Mutt, snoozing peacefully before the fire, was startled awake. When no danger appeared imminent she gave Kate an indignant look and went through her pawing, circling, and flopping ritual, this time punctuating her displeasure with a loud and aromatic fart.

...I enjoyed how the mystery was skilfully solved by Kate who was acutely aware of Occam’s razor. However, I was distracted by the story rolling back and forth between Old Sam’s life before Kate was born and the present day. Very often throughout this novel the reader knew more about what had happened than Kate, the lead character did. Still, I think Though Not Dead is a GOOD 4 star read and I look forward to the next book in this series.

Though Not Dead was written in 2011 and is available as an Amazon Kindle eBook.

Left Turn Lane by Eva Ramona.

 Susan Elizabeth James, 38,  wife and mother of 2 teenagers has simply had enough of living with them and decides to take the Left Turn Lane to start a life on her own. Follow the new Susan as her life escapes into new horizons.

I enjoyed reading Left Turn Lane and found it very easy to step into Susan’s shoes. This novel is written in the first person and has a linear time line, which is my favourite format. I liked how Susan’s character blossomed and I felt as though I really got to know her.

I liked the holiday romance feel to this book as Susan enjoyed her time around Maui in Hawaii. I liked how relationships were developed with the handful of people Susan met along the way.

I liked the emotions Susan worked through about sharing your life with other people and what was really important in your life. I liked the comparisons Susan made between her lifestyle and a drifter she met in Maui. The romance Susan found was gentle and there was nothing in the text that could offend anyone, anywhere in the world.

I found the story and writing very easy to follow, engaging right to the end. And what a surprise ending it was at the end - no spoilers from me.

I think Left Turn Lane is a GOOD 4 star read that nicely addresses the question, should I stay or should I leave?

Left Turn Lane was written in 2005 and is available as an Amazon Kindle eBook.

A Night Too Dark (Kate Shugak #17) by Dana Stabenow.

An abandoned car is found containing a suicide note. But where is the driver in this remote location of Alaska? Don’t worry because Private Investigator Kate Shugak is on the case and she will solve this mystery.

I was looking at the Amazon Kindle daily deal one day and saw this author’s books reduced to 99p. I have not come across Dana Stabenow before and as her books are in the crime/mystery/thriller genre, I thought I would try one of her novels. The Kate Shugak series runs to 21 novels, so which should I choose? Well I thought at 99p a go, lets have a Fiver’s worth of her most recent. This is why I chose book 17 as my Kate Shugak starting point.

A Night Too Dark can be read as a stand-alone and I believe that all her novels in this series are stand-alones. I did not think that anything was missing by jumping in at book 17. There is not tonnes of back story to study, just find the driver.

I enjoyed reading A Night Too Dark, it is lovely being able to travel in your mind to another country during the current coronavirus pandemic. I loved all the descriptions of remote areas in Alaska and the explanations of the culture with the diverse ethnic mix of the population. There were lots of local North American words and consumer brand names that I am not familiar with but British readers are still able to enjoy and understand this book. The local lingo and brands added to my feeling of being away - a cosy escape from Covid-19.

I liked the lead character Kate Shugak and her dog, a half husky, half wolf called Mutt. The plot of A Night Too Dark is complex and quite involved. I liked the way the story developed and how Kate’s private life was included. I liked how the reader was getting the bigger picture about everything that was going on at the same time and not just a simple, find the missing driver quest. Kate started digging and there was a lot more to this story than an abandoned car. I thought this novel had a good plot and I was pleased there was a little romance too.

I think A NIght Too Dark is a GOOD 4 star read and I will be more than happy to read some of the other books in this series.

A Night Too Dark was written in 2010 and is available as an Amazon Kindle eBook.