
Peckinpah Today: New Essays on the Films of Sam Peckinpah
Book
Written exclusively for this collection by today's most significant writers and researchers on Sam...

The Wild and the Wicked: On Nature and Human Nature
Book
Most of us think that in order to be environmentalists, we have to love nature. Essentially, we...

CSI: Crime Scene Investigation - Season 5
TV Season
Greg begins his journey from a lab rat to a field mouse, as the Las Vegas Crime Lab faces a...

Les Cigares du Pharaon (Cigars of the Pharaoh) (Tintin #4)
Book
Herge's classic comic book creation Tintin is one of the most iconic characters in children's books....

Lost Souls of Horror and the Gothic: Fifty-Four Neglected Authors, Actors, Artists and Others
Elizabeth McCarthy and Bernice M. Murphy
Book
Horror and Gothic in all of their various forms have penetrated the cultural mainstream in a manner...

Prayer for the Dead
Book
Sunday Times bestseller Prayer for the Dead is the fifth novel in the bestselling Inspector McLean...

Closed Casket: The New Hercule Poirot Mystery
Agatha Christie and Sophie Hannah
Book
Hercule Poirot returns in another brilliant murder mystery that can only be solved by the eponymous...

Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2400 KP) rated Billy Boyle in Books
Jun 19, 2020
I’ve heard about this series several times over the years, but it was a friend recommending it to me recently that pushed me to finally start the series. I’m glad I did. I’ve always loved World War II, and I already learned something I didn’t know about it thanks to this book. The author has obviously done his research; unfortunately, sometimes that slows down the story. I’m torn on that because I did love the characters, and I loved seeing how everything from this time was impacting them. Most of the characters are fictional, but they feel like they could be real. Billy was especially wonderful, and I hope we see more of several of the characters as the series progresses. While not a cozy, the book does keep the language and violence to a minimum, which I appreciated. I also loved Billy’s restraint with the women he met – I found that very refreshing. The tone mixes some humor with more serious themes for a richer book. Now that I’ve met Billy, I have a long way to go to catch up, and I’m looking forward to the journey.

Hazel (2934 KP) rated Secrets of a Serial Killer in Books
Jul 5, 2020
Told from multiple points of view, this is a pretty fast moving book, once the usual introductions to the various characters has been completed, and what a great cast of characters the author has created here. The author is also clearly adept at describing the eerie setting and at creating atmosphere ... I was transported to the old hospital, the derelict caravan and the woods surrounding them. The tension and fear in each of the characters is really well told and builds and builds throughout until the gripping and nail-biting conclusion.
Although I enjoyed this book, I do have a few issues that prevent this from being a 5 star read - there was next to nothing regarding the Police input or investigation and they came across as being inept and pretty useless, particularly at the end but I won't go into it here as it would be a spoiler but you will see what I mean when you read it. Also, the blog posts inserted at various points didn't really do anything for me or add to the story that much and I wonder if they were put there as a red-herring?
Despite the niggling issues, this is a creditable and decent debut and even though there are a few unanswered questions, in addition to the cliff-hanger, they are either left to the imagination of the reader or are going to be resolved in another instalment? If so, I would definitely read it.
My thanks go to HarperCollinsUK and One More Chapter via NetGalley for my advance copy in return for an unbiased and unedited review.
