Protecting His Fake Wife (Aegis Security) by Leslie North

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Fun with a dangerous undertone 

Charlotte and her friends witnessed a mob hit and are now being threatened so they are all now under the protection of a private security team. Easton is tasked with protecting Charlotte and their cover is as newly weds at a hotel and spa in Florida

I liked Charlotte, she is friendly and kind, she makes friends easily and can quickly get information from people. She is a fun character who knows what she wants but also is scared about what is happening to herself and her friends making her seem more real

Easton is a fabulous character, he struggles with the assignment as Charlotte isn’t like anyone he had ever had to protect and he starts to develop feelings towards her. He is determined to protect her, even if that means scaring her to make her understand the seriousness of the situation and he hates the thought of her not being safe 

There is a lot of drama and danger in this book and it kept me hooked and reading, not everyone’s be who they seem and danger may be closer to the surface than you realise. There was a brilliant twist near the end which I didn’t expect, although on reflection maybe I should have, which will make this a book that I loved 

I would recommend this book to those who enjoy stories full of drama, danger and romance in an amazing setting with some fabulous characters 

AM 🐾 x 

A Quiet Place to Kill by N R Daws

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Strange but addictive

A serial killer is roaming Scotney village and RAF station brutally murdering the girls of the ATA but can police detective Kenber and psychologist and ATA pilot Lizzie work together to catch them 

Lizzie has issues but she is also brilliant at what she does and without her insights Kember may not have been able to catch the killer, however at times I struggled with her as a character. She has a lot of internal struggles which can overwhelm her and makes it hard as a reader to connect to her, mainly because there are a lot of changes in her personality which can make it tough to fully understand her. However, now I have read her story I can see her as a more rounded character and I look forward to getting to know her more in the rest of the series 

Kember is a police detective of his time, he is stuck in his ways and is very suspicious of things he doesn’t know about or understand, including Lizzie’s use of psychology to look into the mind of the murdered and create a profile of the killer. He is good at his job and I found myself warming to him so quickly and I could picture him in my minds eye going about and conducting his investigation 

Two things initially drew me to this book, the first being the location where it is set, I live in Kent and have been to Scotney Castle many times before so it was easy for me to see the village and the Battle of Britain airfield, even though those in the book are fictional as they are places I know. The other thing that interested me was Lizzie’s job as an Air Transport Auxiliary pilot, without the crews of the ATA it would have been much harder to recover damaged aircraft for repair without using the resources of frontline pilots. It just so happened that a few weeks ago I heard a lecture from the Maidenhead museum which houses the ATA museum which charts the work of the ATA and the challenges that the crews, especially the women faced, to be able to fly all aircraft and not just the more basic ones like the Tiger Moth. I think that having this understanding of the ATA and the struggles going on behind the scenes really helped me to connect to the characters, their delight in flying as well as their frustrations and determination came through so strongly that I felt so connected to them and absorbed by their story

This means that there is a brilliant supporting cast of characters in this book and they work together to make it so addictive that I couldn’t put it down. The story telling and the descriptions were so vivid and compelling that I could see everything happening in my minds eye, it also kept me guessing right up to the end and I totally wasn’t expecting the killers identity 

I would recommend this book to those who enjoy a historical murder mystery full of drama and twists that will catch your attention and have you unable to put it down 

AM 🐾 x

An Antique Murder by Norman Russell

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A murder mystery with a fabulous twist

A resident in a retirement home for actors has been murdered with a Nazi dagger and the police must work out what has happened 

This book is written from so many view points that it isn’t possible to talk about individual characters but they have all been created perfectly and the personality of each person shines though, more than once I ended up giggling from some of the residents antics. The characters and their lives came to life for me and more than once I went to google them and their care home, only to remember that it’s fiction and I think the shows how much I was drawn into the book

I’m not going to lie that at times this book was difficult to read as it does look at the Holocaust but it was written sympathetically and although I’m not sure of how much is written is true, it’s inclusion in the story works and gives the reader a different perspective on some of the characters

This story looks at how the image that people project to the world may not always the the truth and this is done several ways by different characters and it drew me into the story more wanting the know the truth

This book has the perfect blend of seriousness and humour that comes together to form a story that will stick with the reader long after the last page and as such I would recommend it to a lot of people but especially those who enjoy a murder mystery full of twists that will keep you wondering all the way to the end 

AM 🐾 x

Murder at the Manor by Anne Penketh

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Fabulous 

Rupert Iverson has been murdered at his 25th birthday party at his family home of Iverson Hall. There are a lot of suspects though, Rupert’s party was a fancy dress party in the style of Louis XIV, there is a lot of coastal erosion and Rupert’s father is on the council committee for that and the family rent the Hall out for parties which the neighbours totally hate 

This book mostly follows Julie, one of the detectives on the team investigating Rupert’s death. I did quite like Julie but at times she did really annoy me however I know that this was mostly because she is such a complex character. She works alongside Sam Clayton, Bullard and other detectives and seeing them working together made them feel more real to me. They bicker, they have their faults and they do or say things that maybe they shouldn’t but that makes them people rather than characters and I became invested in their lives 

I loved the fast paced nature of things and that as a reader it kept me guessing but looking back I wonder if there were clues and hints as to who the killer was. The story caught my interest right from the start and had me staying up way later than I should have just so I could keep reading

I’m not going to lie, there were some things in this book that I wasn’t keen on and at times it felt like some twists were put in just because, but I can totally see why they were there and how they made the story more complex and more compelling 

Overall I loved this book and it’s a crime drama that I would recommend to those who enjoy a book full of fast paced drama, full of twists and an ending that will keep you guessing

AM 🐾 x

Alaskan Christmas Escape by Juno Rushdan

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So full of drama

Zee is in hiding following an incident in her past but things have caught up with her and now she is in danger and on the run with her former Navy SEAL neighbour John

Because of the nature of the story I struggled to connect with John and Zee but at the same time I got to see their fundamental personalities, their skills and ingenuity which I loved. I also got to to witness what they would do for each other, even whilst denying their feelings and I could see the strength of their bond which made them characters who I totally got behind

I really enjoyed this book, it’s action packed and full of drama but in a way that also made me struggle with it a bit and I know that sounds really weird but I didn’t feel like I could fully get to know the characters before something else happened which did make it harder for me to bond with them

I am however really hoping that there is another book after this in the series because I have to know what happens next in the underlying story! There is such a cliffhanger that I’m now incredibly impatient which I think shows how much I enjoyed this book overall

I would recommend this book to those who enjoy a story that is so packed full of drama and danger that you don’t have time to catch your breath before something else happens 

AM 🐾 x

A Brutal Season by Judi Daykin

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Addictive 

It’s summer and time for the carnival in the Norfolk town of Cromer but things start to go wrong when the carnival queen is murdered

This book follows multiple characters and storylines, including the police, Adele, a mum on the carnival committee and the sound technician for the local theatre, Jessie. I really enjoyed how the story was woven to encompass all areas of the story and how the strings get pulled together as the investigation progresses. Seeing things from different points of view was really good and it enabled me to become more entwined in the story and wanting to know what happened and how everything came together 

I will mention that this book does contain some domestic violence which is really challenging to read and I know may impact readers which is why I wanted to mention it. I think this difficult issue was dealt with sympathetically and with respect which can be hard to do

The carnival events run through the book and seeing the dedication of the committee members no matter what obstacles got thrown at them felt so real, and will feel that way, I’m sure, to the many readers who volunteer or organise events

This book caught my attention from the beginning and I found myself being pulled deeper into the story, staying up way later than I should because I couldn’t put it down

I would recommend this book to those who enjoy a crime drama that will make you forget you are at home and instead pull you into the story right from the very first page

AM 🐾 x

Brutal Crimes by Michael Hambling

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Loved it 

A teenage girl witnessed the dumping of a body in a remote lake and her report to the police leads to an investigation by Detective Superintendent Sophie Allen and her team 

This book is set from most members of the Police teams point of view which I think worked really well as it allowed me to see further into their investigation. This is the first book I have read in this series so I didn’t know a lot of the characters backgrounds which made it, at times, slightly tricky to follow along all the time. However this didn’t dampen my enjoyment of the story and the characters leapt of the page to me 

I will admit that a big part of the draw for me with this book was the location it is set in, as a child I often holidayed in the Isle of Purbeck in Dorset and have many happy memories of the area which I think helped a bit with my being able to picture the scenes and the locations that the characters visited. I enjoyed seeing the area from the darker side as well, even the most idillic places have an undercurrent and this book brings the two sides of the area together in a brilliant manner

I totally loved this story and was unable to put it down right from the very start, and I would recommend it to those who enjoy a detective story full of twists that will keep you on your toes and an ending that you won’t see coming 

AM 🐾 x

The Abberley Beach Murders by D E White

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Strange but intriguing 

This book starts with a police officer being attacked and then 4 bodies are found in a glass escape room under a pier in a story full of twists 

This book is mainly set from Detective Dove Milson’s point of view and she is a character who I knew from very early on that I would like and as each new facet of her personality came through she became even more loveable to me 

This book is in a series and I haven’t read the preceding books however I don’t think that stopped me from enjoying it. The storyline is unique and there is enough descriptions and information about the characters to enable the reader to become immersed into their world

The escape room murder idea was totally new to me and I think it worked so well in this book, making the story so absorbing that I wasn’t able to put it down. It was also the kind of mystery that kept me as a reader guessing and every time I decided in my head who had committed the crimes, something would happen and my idea would be thrown out. It kept me on my toes, full of constant changes of direction with an ending that pulled all the strings together which I totally adored

I would recommend this book to those who enjoy a detective story full of twists that will keep you guessing right up until the end

AM 🐾 x

Deadly Caller by OMJ Ryan

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Addictive

A person gets murdered whilst on a Zoom call and the subsequent police investigation unravels secrets and grudges that go back many years 

The main character is Detective Jane Phillips of Greater Manchester Police and I really liked her. She is determined and dedicated to her job, she knows the impact it can have on her life and seeing her struggles made her seem so much more real to me

I will say that I struggled with so many characters in this book and a lot of them are referred to only by their last names after they had been introduced which had me concentrating and trying to keep up with who everyone was and how they fitted in but once I remembered who the core team were, the story became much easier to follow. 

The police investigation and the characters came alive in my head and I could feel the danger and the drama as things unraveled and the story became clearer with the murderer being revealed and then catching them. It also looks at the other side of policing, one that doesn’t often get mentioned, that of budgets and how much things cost and I think this really worked as part of the story and made it seem so much more believable.

As this is part of a series and I haven’t read the preceding books I think this may have had an impact on my enjoyment of the book but overall I did enjoy it and would recommend it to those who enjoy a crime drama full of surprises that will keep you hooked and wanting to find out more 

AM 🐾 x

The Secrets of Latimer House by Jules Wake

In the war against Hitler every secret counts…

Society heiress Evelyn Brooke-Edwards is a skilled interrogator – her beauty making her a non-threat in the eyes of the prisoners.

Farm girl Betty Connors may not be able to type as she claimed, but her crack analytical skills soon find her unearthing covert connections.

German ex-pat Judith Stern never expected to find herself listening in to German POW’s whispered conversations, but the Nazis took her father from her so she will do whatever it takes to help the Allies end this war.

Billeted together in the attic of Latimer House – a place where secrets abound – Evelyn, Betty and Judith soon form a bond of friendship that carries them through the war. Because nothing is stronger than women united.

Tucked away in the Buckinghamshire countryside, Latimer House, a grand country estate, stands proudly – a witness to some of greatest secrets of WW2.

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Absolutely amazing 

Evelyn, Betty and Judith have ended up sharing a room in Latimer House, a top secret war time facility hidden in the English countryside where higher ranking German prisoners of war are interrogated 

I loved the characters of Judith, Evelyn and Betty, they are from vastly different backgrounds but have come together in wartime. They challenge and support each other, they have come together to make a difference and they end up making lifelong friends, although each road has its hiccups. Each girl had her own skill set, Judith is a German Jew who escaped and came to Britain, Betty is a local girl with an extraordinary memory and Evelyn is a higher class young lady who travelled round Europe and who had a German fiancée before the war. Their talents mean that they each excel at their specific jobs and I think this helped me to love them even more as I could understand more about them, who they are, their hopes and dreams and the troubles they have endured 

I really enjoyed this book, it caught my attention right from the start and because it’s based on Latimer House’s real wartime purpose it felt so real and the lines between fact and fiction became blurred. I became so entangled in the story that I could see the characters and the situations in real life, they were there in front of me and I really didn’t want to let them go at the end of the book

I would recommend this book to those who enjoy a story full of secrets, drama and intrigue with a central circle of characters who will capture your heart from the very first page 

AM 🐾 x

Purchase Link – mybook.to/SecretsOfLatimerHouse

Author Bio

Jules Wake announced at the age of ten that she planned to be a writer. Along the way she was diverted by the glamorous world of PR and worked on many luxury and not so luxury brands. This proved fabulous training for writing novels as it provided her with the opportunity to hone her creative writing skills.

She writes best-selling warm-hearted romantic contemporary fiction for One More Chapter as Jules Wake and was shortlisted for Romantic Novel of the Year 2020 with The Spark.

Under her pen name Julie Caplin, she also writes the warm and witty Romantic Escapes series.

Between them, the two Js have written eighteen novels, The Secret of Latimer House being the latest.

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