Every Mother's Nightmare by S E Lynes #EveryMothersNightmare #BooksonTour‪ @selynes.bsky.social‬ @bookouture.bsky.social‬ @bookouture #BookReview

 

It's the call every mother dreads.

You knew it was coming...

You are at work, on a hot summer afternoon, when the phone vibrates in your handbag. Your heart beats faster as you scrabble to find it because somehow, even before you answer it, you know. It's the call every mother fears. It's the call you've been waiting for.

Your daughter is in hospital. She was found this morning, confused and alone. She doesn't remember anything. You wish you had never let her go away for the weekend. You can't understand why her brother wasn't watching over her like he promised, why he didn't protect her.

You race to be with them, before it's too late. But then the police find a body, deep in the woods, right next to where your children were staying.

You'll do anything to keep them safe. But knowing what you know... do you need to protect your son, your daughter, or yourself?

Every Mother's Nightmare by S E Lynes was published on 9 July 2025 by Bookouture. My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review as part of this Books On Tour. 

S E Lynes writes thrillers with depth. Always right on trend, dealing with issues that surround us. Always with character that are familiar, created skilfully and who the reader will back throughout and always with a real empathy and understanding of the human psyche. 

There are some thrillers that have plots that a great and immersive, but the reader really knows they are a little over the top and then there are the thrillers that Lynes produces. They could be based on your street, within your friendship groups, in your local schools. 

I am not a mother, and sometimes it can be difficult for me to relate to characters when their whole remit is being a parent. However, Lynes has created, in Melissa, a woman who is so easily believable. Her thoughts, her fears, her anxieties are excellently portrayed. I felt every emotion. 

Melissa's children are teenagers.  Daughter Casey and her older brother Dan. They've both gone off to summer camp. Casey is working there whilst Dan and his friends have gone along for the craic. When Melissa's phone rings, she knows instantly. This is not good news. She is right. Casey has been found in a confused state, in a tent that is not hers.  With no hesitation, Melissa sets off to be with her girl, wondering as she travels, where Dan was and why he hasn't protected his sister. 

And then, a body is found. Not far from the campsite and things really become quite tense. Melissa is determined that she will protect her kids and keep them safe, no matter what that takes. 

That's as much as you get on the blurb of the book and I'm not going to give anything else away about the plot. I will tell you that the author doesn't shy away from issues that are so current. Toxic masculinity and the dreadful behaviours and beliefs that can poison young men's minds. She deals with it all, it can be emotionally challenging but it is done so very well. 

Gripping and utterly absorbing. Highly recommended 

S.E. Lynes is the author of Amazon #1 best seller, THE HOUSEWARMING, plus
bestselling psychological suspense novels such as VALENTINA, MOTHER, THE WOMEN, HER SISTER's SECRET, THE BABY SHOWER ,THE EX, THE SUMMER HOLIDAY and many more!

A former BBC Producer, she has lived in France, Spain, Scotland and Italy and is now settled with her family in Greater London. After completing her MA, S E Lynes taught creative writing at Richmond Adult Community College for ten years. She now combines writing, mentoring and lecturing in Richmond Borough.

Lynes has also published thrillers in Italy, Germany, Poland and Croatia, and has also published three children's books in Italy: IL LEOPARDO LAMPO, LA COCCODRILLA INGAMBA, and the bilingual LA SCIMMIA SPIRITOSA/THE FUNNY MONKEY.

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The Wasp Trap by Mark Edwards #TheWaspTrap @mredwards @MichaelJBooks #BookReview @markedwardsauthor.bsky.social‬‪ @michaeljbooks.bsky.social‬

 

Summer 1999. Will joins five other idealistic graduates working for an eccentric psychology professor. They’re going to launch a website to change online dating forever.

No-one expects it to end in tragedy.

Twenty-five years later, Will gets an invitation: a dinner party. A chance to see the old gang again.

But as soon as he arrives, something doesn’t seem right.

There’s an unexpected guest. The hosts are clearly keeping a secret. And on the way in, Will is sure he heard crying.

Everyone has something to hide about what really happened that summer.

But only one of them is willing to kill to find the truth…

The Wasp Trap by Mark Edwards is published on 31 July 2025 by Michael Joseph. My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review. 

It's been a while since I last read Mark Edwards, not sure why! I read this one during my recent holiday in Rhodes. It is the perfect holiday read, sitting in the sun with a long cool drink being totally entertained by a tension filled plot. Perfection! 

I'm a fan of a dual time narrative and the story of The Wasp Trap takes place in 1999, and then twenty five years later.  

Will relates his story as he accepts an invitation from two friends from 1999. There were six of them back then, they worked on a dating website with Professor Sebastian Marlowe. The professor has recently died and it was thought that having a dinner and reuniting the old gang would be a great way to celebrate his life. 

Edwards carefully creates each of his characters. All six of the group are individuals and clearly defined, and then there's Finn - a newbie to the group. He worked alongside the professor in his later years and has been invited to join the group of old friends.  

The dinner party does not go to plan ..... 

The group find themselves imprisoned in the house, at gunpoint. They are told that they must tell their innermost secrets, if they don't they won't survive. 

The author nips back and forth, to 1999 and back to the present day and it's a great structure that keeps up the tension and left me trying to work out just where we were going with this one. It's clever, it takes an unexpected twist every so often, just to keep you on your toes! 

This one is a winner for me and highly recommended. 

Mark Edwards writes psychological thrillers in which scary things happen to ordinary
people.

He has sold 5 million books since his first novel, The Magpies was published in 2013, and has topped the bestseller lists numerous times. 

His other novels include Follow You Home, The Retreat, In Her Shadow, Because She Loves Me, The Hollows and Here to Stay. 

He has also co-authored six books with Louise Voss. 

Originally from Hastings in East Sussex, Mark now lives in Wolverhampton with his wife, their children and two cats.

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Canaries by Alex Makepeace BLOG TOUR #Canaries @LexMakepeace @elsewhenpress @RandomTTours #BookReview

 

IT HAPPENED HERE


In a chillingly credible near-future Britain, a new government sweeps to power with a radical agenda. For some, life will never be the same again.

Bryan and Philip are living a comfortable life with their adopted children in London and barely give a thought to how the change of government might affect them. But little by little the family and their friends - gay and straight - begin to discover their way of life is under threat. When the family are forced to go on the run from the authorities, they are faced with impossible choices, and soon find out who their true friends really are.



Includes instances of violence, prejudice and bullying that some readers may find upsetting.

Canaries by Alex Makepeace was published on 04 July 2025 by Elsewhen Press. My thanks to the publisher who sent. my copy for review as part of this #RandomThingsTours Blog Tour 

I am a huge fan of speculative fiction, it is often very unsettling as we have some very clever authors who look into the future and describe things that really could happen.  

I don't think anyone can deny that the premise of Alex Makepeace's Canaries is utterly and totally relevant to today and will resonate painfully with many readers. 

Given that, it is also a brilliantly created story about two characters who could live on your own street. Beautifully imagined, with elegance and poise. 

Bryan and Philip, a middle-class gay couple and their two adopted children go on the run when a new government come to power with a radical agenda that forces them to flee.  What Makepeace does so very well is to describe just how regular people, and organisations respond to the new government. 

At times it's like reading the current news, with our own new government under fire, and of course, the whole Trump thing in the US.

I'm finding it quite difficult to write a review of this one without giving away the plot, but still expressing my horror at what could happen here! 

Recommended by me. 

Alex Makepeace was raised in London and began his career as a journalist before moving into international aid and public health, where he learned that what might seem like a catastrophe to some is just another day at the office for others. 

That got him thinking, and that got him writing. 

He also publishes Italy-set fiction as Tom Benjamin.

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The Art of a Lie by Laura Shepherd-Robinson #TheArtofaLie @LauraSRobinson @laurasrobinson.bsky.social @panmacmillan.bsky.social #BookReview #HistoricalThriller

 

London, 1749. Following the murder of her husband in a violent street robbery, Hannah Cole is struggling to keep her head above water. The Punchbowl and Pineapple, her confectionary shop on Piccadilly, is barely turning a profit, and her suppliers are conspiring to put her out of business. So when she learns that her husband had a large sum of money in his bank account that she knew nothing about, the surprise is extremely welcome. And when William Devereux, a friend of her late husband, tells her about a new Italian delicacy called “iced cream”, Hannah believes it might transform the fortunes of her shop.

But her husband’s unexpected windfall attracts the attention of author-turned-magistrate Henry Fielding, who suspects the money was illicitly acquired. Unless Hannah can prove otherwise, her inheritance will be confiscated. As she and Devereux work to uncover the secrets of her husband’s double life, their friendship opens Hannah to speculation and gossip, locking her into a battle of wits more devastating than anything, even her husband’s murder.

The Art of a Lie by Laura Shepherd-Robinson is published on 10 July 2025 by Pan Macmillan. My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review. 

Fans of historical fiction are in for such a treat with this one!  I have read all of this author's novels now and can honestly say that this is her best yet. A clever and compelling thriller with a cast of characters headed up by a strong feisty female, researched impeccably and delivered with style. 

In Georgian London, Hannah Cole is recently widowed. Her husband Jonas was murdered in a street robbery and Hannah is struggling to keep her high-end confectionary shop; Punchbowl and Pineapple going. A lone woman in business can be a target and there are some suppliers who would happily see her out of business. 

Two events change Hannah's outlook. The discovery that Jonas had a large sum of money in his account when he died and a visit from William Devereux; a man who claims to be an old friend of Jonas and who introduces Hannah to iced cream.  This new delicacy from Italy seems perfect for Hannah's shop and she goes about producing her own.

Meanwhile, Henry Fielding, novelist and now magistrate is looking into the late Jonas' affairs. He is convinced that the money in the account should not be there and is threatening to block the account. 

This is an immersive and detailed story, beautifully written and filled with tension. This author brings Georgian London to life with her colourful and evocative descriptions.  I was impressed by the structure of this novel; the author chooses to tell her tale using two voices; Hannah and William. These two narratives are so different yet work so perfectly together. 

The title of this novel is perfect. The story is filled with lies, with treachery, with confidence tricksters. It is superb and highly recommended by me. 

Laura Shepherd-Robinson is the award-winning, Sunday Times and USA Today bestselling author of four historical novels. 

Her books have been featured on BBC 2’s Between the Covers and Radio 4’s Front Row and Open Book. 

Her fourth novel, The Art of a Lie, will be published in Summer 2025.

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When Nothing Feels Real by Nathan Dunne BLOG TOUR #WhenNothingFeelsReal #NathanDunn @MurdochBooks_UK @RandomTTours

 

Journalist Nathan Dunne was living the life of his dreams in London until, one evening, he jumped into a lake for a swim. When he emerged, his identity was simply gone. He felt completely lost and in acute, inexplicable pain. He knew who he was supposed to be but had no connection to the person named Nathan. His memories were distant and separate, not his. Everything was unfamiliar. All he felt was terror.

This was the beginning of his experience with depersonalisation, a little-understood and on-the-rise mystery mental illness that causes a person to dissociate from their body and thoughts. It can be chronic and severe but it can also be more everyday and relatable: symptoms include feeling overwhelmed, withdrawing from family and friends, experiencing negative thoughts, being unable to concentrate or perform routine tasks, or feeling outside of yourself.

When Nothing Feels Real is Nathan's quest to find his way through to the other side from the terrifying onset of his illness, the years of misdiagnosis and his long search for an answer and a cure. In the vein of Lost Connections and The Woman Who Changed Her Brain, he expertly weaves in neuroscience, patient experiences and interviews with leading doctors in the field, using himself as a guide to courageously explore the personal, medical, psychological and philosophical issues raised by depersonalisation.

A compelling, deeply personal account, When Nothing Feels Real shines a light on this growing mental illness, helping other depersonalisation sufferers feel more informed and less alone.

When Nothing Feels Real by Nathan Dunne was published by Murdoch Books on 05 June 2025. As part of this #RandomThingsTours Blog Tour, I am delighted to shine a spotlight on the book for you today. 

'Imagine losing your sense of self in an instant. You no longer recognize your face, your body, even your own voice. You have become a ghost, disconnected to everyone and everything around you. This is what it is like living with depersonalization disorder. In Nathan Dunne's exquisitely written and deftly researched memoir, When Nothing Feels Real, Dunne takes us on his arduous journey to find a diagnosis and cure for this devastating illness. This book broke my heart but also gave me hope. There is so much yearning here, so much longing to live and to love and to be whole again. This is a brave and beautiful book.'

Mira Bartok, author of The Memory Palace: A Memoir

'This book is a vital and timely exploration of a poorly understood and devastating mental illness, and a powerful meditation on the fragility and resilience of selfhood. It will resonate profoundly with all those who question what it means to be ourselves, and what it is to be human.' 

Elinor Cleghorn, author of Unwell Women

'When Nothing Feels Real took a lot of courage to write. It captures the pain and mystery of depersonalisation as well as its art and science.

Professor Anthony David, Neuropsychiatrist and Director of the UCL Institute of Mental Health

'Nathan Dunne is a writer of such touching sympathies and affinities and generosity and pure gifts of language and mastery of both echoes internal and in the air.'

Cynthia Ozick, author of The Puttermesser Papers and Antiquities

'Dunne's writing is extraordinary, original and rewarding.'

Robert Cottrell, BBC Culture

'Jeepers! That's some illness.' - Peter Goldsworthy

'His vivid descriptions of losing himself are graphic, visceral and, at times, alarming - powerful storytelling'

Becca Whitehead, Books + Publishing

Nathan Dunne was born in Brisbane, Australia and grew up in India. 

After graduating from the University of Sydney with the University Medal, he studied art history at Cambridge University and received a PhD from Birkbeck College, University of London. 

He has lectured at Harvard and Yale, and also worked for several years at Tate Modern. 

As a journalist and critic, he has contributed to many publications, including The Washington Post, The Atlantic, The Boston Globe, The Guardian, Slate and Artforum. 

He now lives in Sydney.

The Inside Man by Trevor Wood #TheInsideMan @TrevorWoodWrite @QuercusBooks #BookReview @trevorwoodwrite.bsky.social

 

The second Newcastle-set police thriller with a twist. DCI Jack Parker fights to hide his Early Onset Dementia while he continues to do the job he loves - investigating crimes and bringing villains to justice.

Still haunted by the death of a colleague in a hit and run for which he blames himself, he pursues the case with a determination bordering on recklessness when he encourages her replacement, DS Emma Steel, to get close to a local gangster who knows more than he's letting on, thereby endangering Emma and causing dissent among his team.

Jack is called in to investigate the disappearance of a young woman, Maria, and her son who appear to have vanished off the face of the earth. His boss tells him to focus on her ex-husband, but though the evidence points in his direction, Jack has his doubts. The woman has form with toxic men and the husband is just the latest in a long line.

As Jack's plans to hide his condition become more challenging, he begins to wonder if Maria is really the innocent victim she's been portrayed as - until a body turns up. As he starts to discover the truth in both these investigations, Jack comes to understand that nothing in this world is as black and white as it seems.

The Inside Man by Trevor Wood is published today; 03 July 2025 by Quercus. My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review. 

I read and reviewed the first in this series; The Silent Killer, in October last year. I've since heard the author speak about the series at fiction festivals and have been looking forward to this next instalment. 

Once again, this clever author presents a thrilling and compelling crime drama, interwoven with a generous and empathic look at the effects of early onset dementia. He does it with such style.  DCI Jack Parker is a wonderful creation; he's passionate about policing, but often makes rash decisions that come to affect him long term. Jack is still trying to get over the fact that his work partner was killed, he feels responsible for her death and it is his ultimate aim to track down how did it. Meanwhile, he's putting his new partner Emma in danger by encouraging her to get close to a local gangster. 

Jack is leading the investigation into the disappearance of a local woman and her small child. All fingers point at the woman's ex-husband at first, but it soon becomes clear that her life was quite complicated. The reader is more aware of what is happening in the case than Jack and his team and this adds a real depth and tension to the plot line. 

This is a really smart novel, readers cannot help but love Jack Parker despite his questionable decisions and his grumpiness. He deals with the devastation of his diagnosis in his own way, and is also now involved in drugs trials. He is determined that his illness and its effects will not stop his career. 

There's humour, there is some tenderness, there is drama and there's a cast of wonderfully created characters who the reader will really care for. Highly recommended by me. 

Trevor Wood has lived in Newcastle for 30 years and considers himself an adopted
Geordie, though he still can’t speak the language. 

He's a successful playwright who has also worked as a journalist and spin-doctor for the City Council. 

Prior to that he served in the Royal Navy for 16 years joining, presciently, as a Writer.

 Trevor holds an MA in Creative Writing (Crime Fiction) from UEA. 

His first novel, The Man on the Street, won the CWA John Creasey (New Blood) Dagger, the Crimefest Specsavers Best Crime Debut Award and was shortlisted for the Theakston’s Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year. It was followed by two more critically-acclaimed books in the Jimmy Mullen trilogy, One Way Street and Dead End Street. 

His next book, You Can Run, a standalone thriller set in a remote Northumberland village, was also long-listed for the Theakston’s Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year. 

His latest book, The Silent Killer, is the first in a police procedural series featuring Detective Chief Inspector Jack Parker, who is in the first stages of Early Onset Dementia.

 Trevor is represented by Oli Munson at AM Heath. 

He is one of the founding members of the Northern Crime Syndicate.

No One Would Do What The Lamberts Have Done by Sophie Hannah BLOG TOUR #BookExtract @sophiehannahCB1 @bedsqpublishers‪ @sophiehannah.bsky.social‬

 

You think it will never happen to you: the ring of the bell, the policeman on the doorstep. What he says traps you in a nightmare that starts with the words, 'I'm afraid…'

Sally Lambert is also afraid, and desperate enough to consider the unthinkable. Is it really, definitely, impossible to escape from this horror? Maybe not. There's always something you can do, right?

Of course, no one would ever do this particular something – except the Lamberts, who might have to.

No one has ever gone this far. Until Sally decides that the Lamberts will…

No One Would Do What The Lamberts Have Done by Sophie Hannah was published on 19 June 2025 by Bedford Square Publishing. As part of this #RandomThingsTours Blog Tour, I am delighted to share an extract from the book with you. 

Extract from No One Would Do What The Lamberts Have Done by Sophie Hannah

Monday 16 September 2024

Connor

PC Connor Chantree was afraid he’d already ruined everything and was about to be sent abruptly on his way. He should have explained to Large first, and only then handed over the bundle of papers. He’d done his best to uncrush them, straighten them out, smooth away creases and brush off what dirt he could. Then he’d arranged them into a rectangular shape, which had taken far longer than he’d expected it to. He’d added two red elastic bands, top and bottom.

The result was unimpressive. It sat in the middle of Large’s desk and seemed to drink in the baffled stares of both men; and yes, Connor checked with himself, those battered pages did look thirsty in a way those not in the room would have called impossible.

Somehow, increasing the tidiness of the bundle’s presentation had achieved the opposite of what Connor had wanted. The document (was that the right name for a few hundred pages? Should he think of it as something else? A book?) looked nothing like the sort of pristine, sharp- cornered contender he’d hoped to create.

Contender? Words were appearing in Connor’s head that he was sure hadn’t been there before he’d read the… thing. Ideas too. Like this one: the spruced-up, rectangularised heap looked as if it was trying to mock convention – as if it had scuffed itself and kicked itself about a bit in an act of deliberate defiance. Even to Connor, its curator – curator? – it seemed to be saying, ‘And your point is?’, whereas the mess of maimed and defeated pages he’d seen on first opening the box had screamed a different message at him: ‘Pay attention! Help! Put me together!’

There was a strong chance, of course, that he was imagining some of this. He wished he’d brought in the soggy box, exactly as he’d received it and without reading any of the contents, and simply handed it over. ‘Above my pay grade,’ he could have said as he’d passed the problem on to Large.

Who was he kidding? He couldn’t have done that; the possibility hadn’t occurred to him because it had never existed. He’d felt duty-bound to drop everything and read the thing from start to finish before doing anything else. The physical package had been left for him, marked for his attention, and with it had come a powerful sense of duty that couldn’t be shirked.

Sophie Hannah is a Sunday Times, New York Times and Amazon Kindle UK No. 1
bestselling author and her books have sold millions of copies worldwide. 

She writes contemporary psychological thrillers and, at the request of Agatha Christie’s family and estate, the new series of Hercule Poirot novels. 

She lives in Cambridge with her family.

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Never Tear Us Apart by Rowan Coleman #NeverTearUsApart @HodderBooks @rowancoleman.bsky.social‬‪ @hodderbooks.bsky.social‬ #BookReview

 

Fate has brought them together. Will time tear them apart?

✨✨✨

2025

Named after a star, war correspondent Maia knows how to find the brightest stories - the tales of survival and strength - hidden amongst the dark realities of combat.

Now, travelling to Malta to visit her estranged father, with one more chance to build a relationship with her last remaining relative, she's here to find her own story: never having found somewhere - or someone - she can call home, she's desperate for answers that might show her where she truly belongs.

But when she arrives on the beautiful mediterranean island, she realises her long-lost family is full of more secrets than she could possibly have imagined. . .

✨✨✨

1942

Maia wakes up to find herself on an island under siege, a city in ruins - and knows she must have been sent here for a reason.

Who has she been sent to save? Or is it Maia herself that needs saving? And just when she's finally found what she's been seeking . . . will time separate them forever?

Never Tear Us Apart by Rowan Coleman is published on 3 July 2025 by Hodder.  My thanks to the author who sent a copy of the book to me.  I read this one in the heat of Rhodes, Greece. My copy was a heat bound book and the pages had all fallen out by the time I had finished the book. I'm looking forward to seeing the author at Newark Book Festival in July and buying a shiny finished copy! 

I've been reading Rowan Coleman's novels for many years now. I'm a huge fan, I also love her work as Bella Ellis - she's a superb writer, no matter the subject matter, she brings her characters to life and makes the settings perfect too. 

This one is set on the island of Malta - a place that I've visited and very much enjoyed. Maia is a journalist, covering wars. She has travelled to Malta to visit her estranged father, to try to mend their relationship and find out more about herself and her family. Maia and her father argue when they are out in the car and there's an accident. 

Maia wakes up in hospital, but there's something not quite right about her surroundings. She realises that she's woken in 1942 during the siege of Malta. The island is unrecognisable, bombed and in ruins. Maia knows that she's there for a reason, but what? Add attractive Canadian pilot Danny into the mix and you have a heady story of history, romance and family relationships. 

This is just wonderful. Coleman's trademark magical, evocative writing makes this such an immersive read. Despite the time hopping, this feels so real, so magical and so wonderfully researched. The beauty of Malta and its people shines through. It is so life affirming and an utter joy to discover. 

Highly recommended by me. 

Rowan Coleman is the Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling and award-winning
author of fifteen novels including the Richard & Judy bookclub choice, The Memory Book, the Zoë Ball ITV bookclub pick, The Summer of Impossible Things and The Girl at the Window. 

During her career to date Rowan has been a WHS Fresh Talent pick, RNA award winner, and Love Reading Reader's choice for Book of the Year 2014. 

Rowan's novels have been published internationally for more than twenty years.

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