Map of the Dead by Murray Bailey.

Follow Alex MacLure as he unfolds the mystery surrounding his friend's death and legends entombed in Egypt.

I found Map of the Dead to be a regular secret code mystery with the usual conspiracies, lies and speculation thrown in. The plot was average with no real surprises. There was the usual mix of bad and good guys with the standard question of who can you trust. There was nothing in this story that made it stand out from others in this genre.

I did enjoy how the author threaded mathematics into the story. I thought those parts were very interesting. I was impressed by the research about Egypt and it's history of language, records and hidden data. But the religious mumbo jumbo simply left me cold. I thought the inclusion of a discovered story dating from 1,300 BCE a tiresome bore.

Map of the Dead filled the time but did not excite me. It was an okay, 3 star read with only 1 joke within the pages.

Map of the Dead was written in 2016 and is available as an Amazon Kindle eBook.

Deserve to Die by Miranda Rijks.

Tamara is a young woman who knows what she wants. Stacey has a lovely marriage to Dom and they adore their children Arthur and Ivy. Tamara would very much like a life like Stacey's and if her plans work out, she can have the life of her dreams.

Deserve to Die gets off to a very dramatic start and I was gripped. It is creepy but realistic. Then in the next chapter the point of view changes from Tamara to Stacey. Deserve to Die is a psychological thriller with the stress put on both the characters and the reader. The tension starts from the first chapter all the way to the end.

Character development is wonderful, it just builds and builds. Tamara and Stacey are so different. Tamara is youthful, sexy, sharp and dynamic, with shed loads of attitude. Stacey is a yummy mummy running a messy, untidy home. I loved all the bitchy remarks Tamara made about Stacey, they made me chuckle because they were so catty. There is something so funny when women have a go at each other.

I thought Deserve to Die has a good pace and a great plot. I was impressed by the quality of writing and amazed by the extensive vocabulary used. Every chapter I had to call up an obscure word to check it's definition. I do not feel this was the author showing off, I believe she simply has the linguistic skills to finely describe what is going on.

I loved the format of Deserve to Die with alternating chapters from Tamara and Stacey. It also has a linear time line which pleased me big time as one of my pet hates is novels that jump backwards and forwards in time.

Okay Tamara is a nasty woman but she makes for a thrilling read. You do not have to like her but she is not some boring bimbo into beauty and cupcakes.

I really enjoyed reading Deserve to Die and found it an engaging story. I loved the tension and the way the story was told. I think Deserve to Die is an OUTSTANDING read which gets the top score of 5 stars from me.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher Inkubator Books for giving me a copy of this book on the understanding that I provide an honest review.

The Ransom by Nancy Boyarsky.

Nicole Graves continues in her job as a Private Investigator, this time she is asked to look into the identity of a kidnapping victim. This 4th story in the Nicole Graves series can be read as a standalone.

I thought The Ransom got off to a very good start. Nancy set the scene in Los Angeles very well indeed. NIcole was asked to look into the identity of the third kidnapping victim in the city. Maybe there were serial kidnappers on the loose, or maybe the victims were connected. There were plenty of what-if’s thrown at the reader and I was looking forward to Nicole solving the mystery.

However, The Ransom differs from the previous Nicole Graves novels which were solely about Nicole and told purely from her point of view. This time Nicole’s sister Stephanie is dragged into the story. Now you get two points of view, the main focus being Nicole but a substantial although secondary focus on Stephanie. There are many times within the story when the reader knows more about what is going on than Nicole, because they have read Stephanie’s parts. I found this two person tale very frustrating.

The plot within this story was quite simple and nowhere near as involved or intricate as in the three earlier novels. There was no WOW! Factor in The Ransom. After a very good start this book then plodded along and became a regular search and find. The story then became rather predictable with nothing out of the ordinary. In the earlier novels we had lots of content and feeling about the life of Nicole in and out of work. The character development and living the life of Nicole was drastically reduced in The Ransom, the story being more about the searches Nicole ran than the heroine we previously enjoyed. There was a hint at romance this time but it was just a hint and was not developed.

Another frustration was when Nicole got closer to the kidnappers. The police told her about the risks involved and to stay away. What does the silly cow do? Yes, she grabs her handbag and storms off in search of the kidnappers and their victims. I lost my empathy for Nicole then.

I did like the localisation that Nancy put into her story. Not only does she use Los Angeles as a back-drop to her story but she uses American words and expressions that give British readers a lot to think about. This mix of local culture was a joy to read.

I found The Ransom to be an Okay 3 star read. I did not enjoy it anyway as much as her earlier novels which I thought had far, far better plots and a much stronger personality from Nicole.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and INscribe Digital/Light Messages Publishing for giving me a copy of this book on the understanding that I provide an honest review.

The Cornish Cream Tea Bus by Cressida McLaughlin.

Charlie Quilter is left in her uncle Hal’s will a 1964 AEC Routemaster, ex-London Transport double decker bus. Follow Charlie, a baker, as she transforms Gertie into a mobile cafe and sightseeing tour bus.

Having driven buses and coaches since 1981, I loved how Cressida puts across to the reader the passion that vintage buses and coaches can give. There is a little something that vintage buses and coaches have that modern vehicles lack. Cressida taps into the character of this Routemaster very well indeed and with her words you get the feel of this bus. I was really impressed that Cressida could put across the bus parts of this book so well. It was lovely for me to finish my rest break reading The Cornish Cream Tea Bus and then reflect upon the book as I drove along the motorway behind the wheel of my modern Euro 6 - Volvo B11R. Cressida had done her research well as Charlie had both her PCV licence and a valid Driver CPC Qualification Card. I will ignore the absence of an Operator’s Licence etc and all the legal requirements as this does not affect the story.

The Cornish Cream Tea Bus has a large list of lively characters who all have their part to play. The whole book is told from Charlie’s point of view and I had empathy for her from the moment she pressed the button to start the AEC AV590 9.6 litre engine. Character development was good and there was romance in this story too! The romance developed at a steady pace and it was uncertain which way Charlie’s heart would lead. This is light reading and is suitable for all age groups as there is no gritty sex within the pages, just the odd gentle kiss on the mouth. All the cream was on the scones! 

This whole story is very British and is told in a cosy, warm, whimsical way, very similar to the popular television series Doc Martin, also set in Cornwall. Tourism and village life are lovingly depicted giving this book a great holiday feel. I really engaged with this book and had the “we’re all in this together” feel. Making me feel more at home, not just the bus and the scones, was Marmite - a pet Yorkiepoo. Charlie’s dog was a crossbreed Yorkshire Terrier/Poodle and as dogs are integral to many people’s lives, it is lovely when they are included within a story.

I enjoyed reading The Cornish Cream Tea Bus and thought it was a GOOD 4 star read. It was a light and fluffy, very comfortable read with a happy ending.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher HarperCollins UK for giving me a copy of this book on the understanding that I provide an honest review.

The Marriage Trap by Sheryl Browne.

Diana is married to Robert and their daughter Karla is married to Jason, giving them two grandchildren, Holly and Josh. However, the adults in this story have some very sharp words will each other and are not living in married bliss. Follow these three generations of people as they try to muddle through the hustle and bustle of family life.

The cover of The Marriage Trap claims this novel is a psychological thriller. I did NOT find this book thrilling but found it to drag on and on. I thought The Marriage Trap was a MISERABLE read. All four adults were unhappy with their marriages and the mood was dreadful. The story got off to a BAD start in the first chapter when you are thrown into the situation of Jason leaving Karla. Then chapter two begins and the timeline goes back three whole months. From hereon you are given a day by day account of both marriages. It was off putting to read in the first chapter that Jason is leaving Karla and the rest of the book is background to that day. All four adults have their faults and you do not develop an empathy for any of them. Your gut feeling very quickly becomes that you are very glad you are not married to any of them.

There are plenty of secrets and lies to be revealed but each one takes forever, a hint here and a hint there until many chapters later you find out what the hints were all about.

I found the mood of this book very annoying, the three generations were living a miserable existence. There was no joy in their lives, making this novel a very sad read. The Marriage Trap did not stimulate me and I did not find it entertaining. I failed to engage with the story and found it a turn off. I think this book would put off any single people thinking of marriage.

In the acknowledgements at the end of The Marriage Trap, Sheryl writes…

Final thanks to every single reader out there for buying and reading my books. Authors write with you in mind.

...However, I did not enjoy reading The Marriage Trap. I found the domestic misery a chore to read. I was very disappointed with The Marriage Trap, I simply did not like the story. Having been happily married myself for the past 28 years, I thought the adults were behaving dreadfully towards each other. I think Sheryl has made a mistake by publishing such a negative novel.

I did like that each adult had their own chapters that represented their points of view. Sheryl can write very good novels as I thought her last book called The Second Wife was an OUTSTANDING 5 star read. Sadly The Marriage Trap left me COLD and I can only vote this latest from Sheryl the minimum score of 1 star. Sheryl can produce the goods, so hopefully better luck next time for her readers but if this was their first read, they may move onto other authors.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Bookouture for giving me a copy of this book on the understanding that I provide an honest review.

Elevator Pitch by Linwood Barclay.

There are 63,000 passenger elevators in New York City. What could possibly go wrong?

Linwood starts off his latest novel with a plunge as the reader is launched into a very busy and crowded New York. The tension starts from the first page as you are thrust through short chapters and as each scene quickly unfolds you do not know what is going to happen next.

There are tons of content in this thriller, there is no padding and as you wade through this avalanche of data it becomes clear Linwood’s writing quality is spot on.

Elevator Pitch is a plot based thriller with an abundance of characters thrown in. The head count is very high but each character is concisely introduced no matter how small or large a part they play in this story. New York is a very busy city and this novel really conveys the buzz on the street.

Linwood explores the everyday threat of terrorism to the citizens of New York. Threats from the Middle East like ISIS plus home grown activists like the Flyovers. Henry Olsen explained the concept behind Flyovers in 2017 when he wrote…

Although originally coined by a citizen of flyover country, the term has become a pejorative description of the interior states of the USA and is largely attributed to coastal and liberal Americans who – in more ways than one – are said to ‘look down’ on these lands and their peoples during their high altitude journeyings from one fashionable seaboard metropolis to another.

...Linwood has little snips of subtle humour sprinkled throughout his story, for example…

“But isn’t that exactly what you have reduced the so-called coasters to? A cliche? Sushi-eating, latte-drinking, gluten-avoiding, Prius-driving elites?”

Barbara sat back on the bench. Oh, no, she thought. She’s gone to the dark side. She’s working for Facebook.

But Twitter was not typically where one posted photos of friends. It was for mouthing off, something Barbara did plenty of.

...I loved how Elevator Pitch is quite topical, it includes real past events and has many, many social observations. I loved the realism of this story and found the threat of everyday terrorism the man in the street has to live with, very engaging. Elevator Pitch showed just how much some people use a mobile phone and how it has become an integral part of their lives. This was quite shocking and a sad but true reflection on how society has developed with many people so absorbed and attached to their mobile phones. They may be connected but can miss out on the really important things happening around them.

I loved reading Elevator Pitch and found it a great, entertaining and thrilling book. I think that Linwood is at the top of his game and that Elevator Pitch is an OUTSTANDING read that gets 5 stars from me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Harper Collins UK for giving me a copy of this book on the understanding that I provide an honest review.

The Tree of Rebels by Chantelle Atkins.

Okay guys, let’s jump into the next century and become the role of Lissie Turner, a 13 year old girl living in the UK and asking lots of questions about our society and what lies beyond the fence surrounding her town.

WOW! What the devil has gone on? Has our world gone mad? When did the Old World collapse and the new world begin? Can 13 year old Lissie Turner uncover the truth?

Okay guys, the concept is GOOD. There are many conflicts and wars around the world today and nobody knows how our future will unfold. Many, many lies have been told in the past, YES listen at the back Tony Blair, Iraq did NOT have Weapons of Mass Destruction in 2003.

So onto the Tree of Rebels. Ah, I thought this book was a DRAG, it rambled on and on, poor old Grandma Elizabeth on her death bed, telling the same old stories time and time again. Lissie Turner being a typical annoying teenage girl, sorry Louise but Chantelle Atkins hits the button with the naivety of modern teenage girls and their smartphone, grab a Coke from Grandad’s fridge attitudes.

I found the plot to The Tree of Rebels very SHALLOW and the handful of critical points or issues were repeatedly reviewed, time and time again. This book seemed to be going nowhere and not a lot happened. The concept of the fall of the Old World, the development of the new world with the possibility of false histories was NOT developed properly. It was just hints that lies may have been told. I hoped this novel would get better as the pages dragged on but it continued to be a POOR 2 star read all the way to the end. I was clearly not entertained by this book and found the whole reading experience a big disappointment. At 61 years of age, I know that I am not in the target group for a YA novel but if this is what teenagers choose to read, I feel reading will become nothing more than a passing fad for them. Still, I read The Tree of Rebels to the very end only to find nothing much happened and then to be told this sad, sorry tale would be continued in the next book. The ending was like watching 90 minutes of football to end with a no goal score draw. Yes, I could have done better things with my time, those reading hours lost forever wading through a bloated novel with very little content.

The Tree of Rebels was written in 2017 and is available as an Amazon Kindle eBook.