Home Feed
Home
Search
Search
Add Review, Blurb, Quote
Add
Activity
Activity
Profile
Profile
#Readaway2025
review
OutsmartYourShelf
post image
Pickpick

On Wednesday afternoon, wealthy businesswoman Ilaria Cavendish checks into a luxury London hotel as usual. Shortly afterwards, her lover discovers her dead & submerged in a bath of scalding hot water. Accident or murder? The CCTV shows that no-one went in the room or came out during the time she was killed, so if she was murdered how did they do it?

DS Maeve Kerrigan is working on the case which is being run by DI Josh Derwent. (continued)

OutsmartYourShelf This is the first time they have worked together in a while & things have been tense between them, but when he is accused of something that Maeve knows he would never do, she swings into action to clear his name.

The Cavendish case is quite interesting & a little more involved than at first sight with hints of an Agatha Christie-esque sleight of hand, however it's the case involving Josh & his interactions with Maeve which are the biggest draw.
2d
OutsmartYourShelf I did work out what was happening early on so it was quite satisfying to see it all unfold. As for Maeve & Josh - you'll just have to read it & see for yourself. 4.5🌟

My thanks to #NetGalley & publisher, HarperCollins UK, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

Full Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6948045743
Read 20th-22nd Apr 2025

#ReadAway2025 @Andrew65 @DieAReader @GHABI4ROSES
#SeriesLove2025 @thespineview
2d
TheSpineView Fantastic! 2d
DieAReader 💖🎉Excellent! 2d
31 likes4 comments
review
OutsmartYourShelf
post image
Panpan

Philadelphia, 2011 & a young woman named Ellen Greenberg was found dead in the apartment she shared with her fiancée. Ellen had received over 20 stab wounds, many to the back of the neck & head, & at least one has been assessed to have been received post-mortem - and yet, her death has been judged a suicide. Examining what evidence there is, this case seems to have been either disastrously bungled or there is something darker at the root of this.

OutsmartYourShelf First of all, this seems to me to be a very clear miscarriage of justice & Ellen's story needs to be out there so that the powers-that-be are finally convinced to re-examine her case. Unfortunately this book about the case is a bit of a mess. It really needs re-editing so that the arguments are more structured & linear to avoid repeating the same information over & over. 4d
OutsmartYourShelf The author is obviously passionate about wanting to see justice done but this was all over the place. 2⭐

Thank you to #NetGalley & publishers, Post Hill Press/Regalo Press, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

Full Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7404599049
Read 19th-22nd Apr 2025

#ReadAway2025 @Andrew65 @DieAReader @GHABI4ROSES
4d
DieAReader #Next 👋🏻 4d
27 likes3 comments
review
OutsmartYourShelf
post image
Pickpick

Sixteen years ago, nine-year-old Rosalie Marshall vanished from her bed one summer night & was never seen again. Her disappearance tore her family apart & now her parents have been found dead, in what seems to be a murder-suicide, but DS Maeve Kerrigan & DI Josh Derwent aren't convinced.

Meanwhile since the events of last summer when Maeve & Josh went undercover as a couple on Jellicoe Close, Josh has been keeping his distance. (Continued)

OutsmartYourShelf This new case brings them back together & both of them are acutely aware of the simmering attraction between them.

If you've been reading this series so far, then I'm not going to spoil this one for you. Safe to say, the case is an interesting one, but the main aspect is the will-they-won't-they between the two main characters.
5d
OutsmartYourShelf The chemistry is turned up another notch from the last book & at some point Maeve & Josh are going to have to confront their feelings about other.

I thought 'The Close' was the author's best so far, but this one is just about perfect. I'm now moving straight on to the next book in the series (luckily I managed to snag an ARC) because I need to know what happened in that epilogue. 5🌟
(edited) 5d
TheSpineView Great job! 🤩📖📚 5d
DieAReader 💖🎉Excellent! 5d
35 likes1 stack add5 comments
review
OutsmartYourShelf
The Guilt Pill (Itpe) | Saumya Dave
post image
Pickpick

“If a pill could free you of guilt … would you take it?“

This was not the usual kind of topic that I choose to read but it turned out to be rather good. Even women who aren't parents can identify with the many demands on our time & being expected to multitask, so being a mother must be a whole other level. It's also about the fact that women are held to much higher standards in business & also (continued)

OutsmartYourShelf the additional pressures & judgement on Maya because she is a woman of colour.

The use of interview transcripts & social media messages alongside the usual narrative worked here given the nature of Maya's business dealings, & it kept things interesting. Overall I thought it was an interesting read although the sudden switch to a thriller in the last few chapters was a bit jarring.
1w
OutsmartYourShelf I also thought that the ending was a little too neat but they are minor quibbles.
3.75🌟

My thanks to #NetGalley & publishers, Hera Books, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

Full Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7424270078
Read 16th - 18th Apr 2025

#ReadAway2025 @Andrew65 @DieAReader @GHABI4ROSES
1w
GHABI4ROSES YES, @DieAReader and @Andrew65 know that I seem to operate from GUILT. Ew. Glad I saw this, friend, thank you. 7d
DieAReader @GHABI4ROSES 🫂👰🏻‍♀️💖 7d
34 likes1 stack add5 comments
review
OutsmartYourShelf
post image
Pickpick

This is a fast-paced, high-octane thriller with an interesting plot & an excellent premise. The use of how 'mob mentality' makes people do things they wouldn't usually do is well-played. I really enjoyed it - right up until the author introduced a cute dog only for it to be killed a few moments later. That is one of my pet hates (no pun intended), but it's a good read up until then so I rate this one 4🌟

29 likes2 comments
review
OutsmartYourShelf
Misery Plaza | J J Alo
post image
Pickpick

Joseph Griffin, notorious outlaw, has been laying low & hiding out, but when he gets the news that bounty hunters are on his trail, he packs up his two children & sets off for the remote Missouri Plaza (aka Misery Plaza). Now going by the name, William Potter, he hopes that he's run far enough for now, but when something odd is found buried on the land he is now living on, he realises that bounty hunters are not the only thing after him. (cont'd)

OutsmartYourShelf I agree with other reviewers that this isn't really a horror book, it's a western crossed with sci-fi: Men In Black meets Bonanza!

I've never been a fan of westerns either on the page or onscreen, but it's definitely an interesting take. Although the first 30% or so was really slow & I was wondering when the action was going to kick in. once it did there was a lot happening at once.
2w
OutsmartYourShelf I also wasn't a fan of the ending but I could see what the author was going for. Finally, there was also a whole lot of 'smirking' going on - nearly every character was smirking at least once & it became odd.

It was an entertaining read once it got going but overall the pace was slow until nearly halfway through, & the ending was a bit lacklustre after all that had happened before. The Roswell nod was well-worked in. 3.75🌟
2w
DieAReader 🎉🎉🎉 1w
28 likes4 comments
review
OutsmartYourShelf
Murder: The Biography | Kate Morgan
post image
Pickpick

A look at the development of the English judicial system on the topic of murder, & the cases that contributed to changing aspects of the law. From well-known cases to more obscure crimes, each one helped either set a precedent or provided the need for updating current case law.

Given the subject, I wondered if it was going to be quite dry to read, but I needn't have worried. It was a really interesting read from start to finish. (continued)

OutsmartYourShelf As the book moves through the centuries from the Tudor legal bigwig, Sir Edward Coke, to the present-day, the author focuses on a particular aspect of the law from domestic murder to holding companies responsible for decisions which lead to the death of employees or customers. A comprehensive look at the evolution of English law. 4.5🌟

My thanks to #NetGalley & publishers, HarperCollins UK/Mudlark, for the opportunity to read an ARC.
2w
32 likes1 stack add2 comments