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“Mary Hand Mary Hand,
Dead and buried understand.
She’ll say she wants to be your friend.
Do not let her in again.”

This is the rhyme that, in 1950, the girls at Idlewild Hall, a boarding school for girls in Vermont, were singing about the ghost who haunted the school’s gardens.

Although I was a little put off by the ghost element, of which I am not a big fan in thrillers, after reading the blurb, I was really drawn to this book. I loved that the novel is set partly in a boarding school and even the alternation between the past and the present which is always good in a mystery book.

In 1950, Idlewild Hall is a boarding school for troubled girls, girls whose families found difficult to deal with, the ones who caused troubles, the ones who were illegitimate, the ones who had no family left, the ones who were going through a traumatic event. Among them, four girls, roommates, and best friends, Katie, CeCe, Roberta, and Sonia. As each is going through their own personal problems, they also have to deal with Mary Hand, the ghost who haunts Idlewild Hall’s gardens and who reveals each girl’s worst fear.

In 2014, Fiona Sheridan is a freelance journalist who is writing an article about Idlewild Hall. After the boarding school closed in 1979, the place was left abandoned until now that a rich woman has decided to renovate it. The place is personal for Fiona because that’s where her sister’s body had been dumped after being killed by her boyfriend twenty years earlier. Fiona has never gotten over her sister’s death and she still visits the place, even in the middle of the night.

Moving between 1950 and 2014, between the four Idlewild Hall girls and Fiona, I was completely immersed as a I read about creepy and scary ghosts and legends, mysterious disappearances, homicides, prejudices against women, and small-town politics.

THE BROKEN GIRLS is dark and disturbing with a gothic atmospheric and characters with rich personality. As I said, I am not a big fan of ghost presences in novels, but somehow the paranormal elements (although not really necessary to the story) work perfectly well in this novel and give it another touch of suspense and thrill.

Haunting, sharp, and atmospheric, THE BROKEN GIRLS is one of these books that I couldn’t wait to go back to read, and it’s out now (in eBook in the UK).

I am still new to Jo Nesbo’s novels, I just read a couple of them, but I love his writing and his well-developed characters. Macbeth is one of my favorite Shakespeare’s plays so I have been looking forward to read this and I’d like to thank Vintage Books for providing me with a proof copy of this modern retelling of the 400-year-old play.

The novel is set sometimes in the 1970s, in a town without a name, a town nobody leaves, a corrupted town where crime is high. The previous Chief Commissioner was a man in the hands of drug lords who let the town fall into chaos, but now Duncan is the new Chief Commissioner. He is a visionary, an idealistic who promises to end the war on drug by capturing the most powerful criminal in town, Hecate. At his side there are the loyal Malcolm, Duff, Inspector of the Narco Unit who dreams of becoming the Head of the Organised Crime Unit, and Macbeth, head of the SWAT team.

Macbeth comes from the poorest side of town, he grew up in an orphanage, and he is an ex drug-addict. Despite this, Duncan decides to promote him as Head of the Organised Crime Unit. And when Strega, a witch sent by Hecate, prophesizes him that he will become Chief Commissioner, Macbeth and Lady (who is the owner of the Inverness Casino) come up with a plan to get rid of Duncan and help Macbeth’s raise to the top.

I really couldn’t put this book down!!! I stayed up late at night reading and I am still thinking about it, days after I finished it. All the characters from the Shakespeare’s play are in the book, sometimes with different names (Macduff becomes Duff) and Jo Nesbo did a fantastic job in creating complex and vivid characters. They are all corrupted, but I couldn’t help liking them at some point or other throughout the novel. Duff is driven by his ambition to become powerful and Lady (who had a very troubled childhood) sees power as a tool for survival. Macbeth is the best-crafted character. Jo Nesbo follows the original storyline of the play, but until the end I couldn’t help but hope for redemption and salvation for Macbeth. It’s fascinating to watch Macbeth become a ruthless and reckless man who doesn’t stop at anything to get what he wants. But he has also a more human side, a side that doesn’t let innocent people die, a side that it’s not corrupted by drug or by his love for Lady.

Out today, MACBETH is such a superb and riveting novel. Jo Nesbo’s writing is captivating, as usual, and the setting of the novel is very dark and grim, the perfect frame to this world of drug and corruption.

I would like to start by thanking Orion for providing me with a copy of this thrilling and unpredictable novel.

THE CRAFTSMAN opens in 1999, in Sabden, in Lancashire, where Assistant Commissioner Florence Lovelady attends the funeral of Larry Glassbrook, a man accused of the murders of three teenagers thirty years before. Over the years she made regular visits to Larry while he was in prison and now she is there to close one of the most terrible cases of her life. But during her brief stay there she finds a clay effigy of herself, similar to the voodoo dolls left with Larry’s victims.

Then the novel goes back to 1969, when Flossie had just joined the Lancashire Police. Three teenagers had disappeared in the last weeks and while her colleagues think that it’s a case of runaway teenagers, Flossie is convinced that it’s more complicated than that and she challenges her colleagues to prove that she is right.

THE CRAFTSMAN is very creepy and very captivating. There is never a dull moment and the tension is always high. I loved the elements of folklore and witchcraft that fit perfectly with the gloomy setting and the grim and scary plot.

I found Flossie a very intriguing character. She is hard-working and very smart. She is good at her job and I loved how she stood up to her sexist and prejudiced colleagues who just want her to make tea or clean the bathrooms just because she is a woman.

Full of mystery, legends, and twists that will chill you to the bone, THE CRAFTSMAN is one of these sublime books that keep you up at night. It’s out this week and I highly recommend you go and buy it.

What is French for falling in love?

When Del leaves small town America to compete in a perfume competition in Paris, she thinks it is just the next step on her five-year-plan. It’s an exciting opportunity. What started out as just a dream for Del and her twin sister is nearly in her grasp. If she wins this competition, they are on their way to opening their very own perfume boutique!

Arriving in Paris, watching the sun glinting off the Seine and wandering the Champs-Elysees, Del discovers the most perfect perfumery she’s ever seen. Yet, as the competition dawns Del realises that whilst she might have had the best nose in her small village, her competitors seem to know more than she could ever have dreamed. This competition isn’t going to be easy…

Del has the romance of Paris to sweep her away from her worries, but as the competition heats up, so does her desire for that which she cannot have! If only the dashing owner Sébastien didn’t smell so seductive, look so handsome and make her heart flutter like it never has before. They say love smells as sweet as a red rose in bloom, but Del would tell anyone that true love can’t be bottled – it’s beautiful and unique to everyone…even herself. With everything on the line for her future, can Del really let a little attraction get in the way of securing her dreams?

I found the story enjoyable and romantic. I read it in less than a day, not only because it’s not too long (a little more than 200 pages), but because I was engrossed in the plot. What I liked most about this novel is the character of Del. The author presents her through many fronts. She is devoted to her family, she is still grieving over her grandmother’s death and she constantly misses her twin sister Jen, her other half, especially since she is now busy with her boyfriend. She is competitive and determined to win her place in the competition but she is also a loyal and true friend and she helps the other competitors even if it means she could lose. She is also funny and gets herself in ridiculous and embarrassing situations that made me laugh out loud. And she’s never been in love, at least not until she arrives to Paris.

Small town girl meets big city boy. She grew up in a farm in Michigan, raised by her grandparents while her hippy parents healed the world with their prayers. He is the heir of an empire. While she dreams of the bright lights of the big city, he wishes for the quietness of the countryside. Del and Sébastien couldn’t be more different, and yet they hit it off right away, and I enjoyed seeing their story develop throughout the novel. The fact that the novel is set in the most romantic city in the world helped to create the romantic and atmospheric setting for Del and Seb’s love story.

The setting of Paris is another thing that I enjoyed in this novel. I loved to explore Paris along with Del as she visits the city with its iconic landmarks – from the Moulin Rouge to Notre Dame and more – and its beautiful shops and cafés.

THE LITTLE PERFUME SHOP OFF THE CHAMPS-ELYSEES is an highly enjoyable and charming novel and I’d like to thank HQ Digital for providing me with an early copy of the book and for letting me take part in the blog tour.

REBECCA RAISIN is a true bibliophile. This love of books morphed into the desire to write them. Rebecca aims to write characters you can see yourself being friends with. People with big hearts who care about relationships, and most importantly, believe in true, once in a lifetime love.

What attracted me first to this book was the blurb. Described as “Making a Murderer meets Scandal” (and I really love Scandal) and as the story about two people from completely different backgrounds with hints of suspense and romance, I couldn’t wait to put my hands on it.

The protagonists of the novel are Noah Marshall and Gracie Richards. I loved his Southern politeness (calling everyone ‘sir’ or ‘ma’am’) and her stubbornness and independence. Noah and Gracie grew up together in Austin. His mother and her father were police officers, partners, and best friends. But when Noah was 11 years old and Gracie was 6, her father died during what seemed a drug deal gone wrong and he was accused of being corrupted. So her mother packed their things and moved them to live in Arizona in a trailer park, while Noah’s mother climbed up her way through the Austin Police Department to become Chief.

Fourteen years later, after tragedy strikes, Noah and Gracie meet again to find answers to the mystery surrounding their parents and to find out the truth about what really happened to Gracie’s father.

I loved the main characters, the evolving relationship between Noah and Gracie and their witty exchanges. I liked that Noah was good and honest and that Gracie was determined and strong and how they hit it off right away.

I liked how the author confronts themes of racial injustice, corruption, and different backgrounds. You are aware of the presence of these themes in the story but they don’t weigh too much on the plot. KEEP HER SAFE is a romantic suspense novel with the right amount of romance and the right amount of police story. The mystery seems easy to solve but I found a few twists that took me by surprise.

Alternating between the past and the present and between characters, KEEP HER SAFE is carefully plotted and beautifully written. It is one of these books that I couldn’t put down and I couldn’t wait to go back to read and it is out now.

“It takes three men to pull the body from the water”

That’s how TANGERINE, the gripping and disturbing novel by Christine Mangan, starts. We are in Tangier, Morocco, in the 1950s. Alice Shipley has moved from England with her husband John. But Alice hasn’t adjusted to life in Morocco and she finds Tangier, its hot weather, and its people suffocating so she spends most of her time indoors, while her husband is out having fun on his own using the money from her trust fund. The other protagonist of the story is Lucy Mason. She was Alice’s roommates when they both went to Bennington, in Vermont. They were best friends, almost sisters, until the accident happened (I am not giving away what the accident was but it is hinted at often and then fully revealed). Lucy arrives in Tangier looking for Alice, to restart their friendship, but Alice is distant and you can’t say she welcomes her with open arms.

The story is told by both Alice and Lucy’s points of view and it is fascinating to see them through each other’s eyes. Through a few flashbacks, we have a few details of their relationship in college, we see how Lucy and Alice first met, how Lucy saw Alice as a sophisticated wealthy girl, while, for Alice, Lucy was the carefree and mature friend.

It was infuriating watching Alice and Lucy’s relationship as one takes advantage of the other and seeing their disturbing friendship evolve. Alice is anxious, isolated, and too dependent on other people. Lucy, instead, is manipulative and resourceful and she is ready to do anything to get what she wants.

The exotic setting is very enchanting and atmospheric. In the background, there are the riots for the independence of the country from France and the city of Tangier is a character in itself of the novel with its markets, its clubs, its loud and busy streets that make Alice anxious and Lucy thrive.

I would like to thank Hayley Camis and Little, Brown for giving me the chance to read TANGERINE, I was completely engrossed from the first to the last page. Full of suspense and with a brilliant ending to close Alice and Lucy’ story, it is an addictive and superb novel about toxic relationships, obsession, and mental health and it’s out now.

Although I am a big fan of Agatha Christie and her novels, I don’t know much about her personal life and this novel gave me the chance to find out more about her so I’d like to thank Jess Barratt and Simon & Schuster for providing me with a copy of the book.

In December 1926, the Queen of Crime Agatha Christie was going through a lot both personally and professionally. On the personal side, she misses her mother who died two years earlier and she doesn’t accept that her husband is leaving her for another woman. On the professional side, the success of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd has created expectations from her readers and she is struggling to finish her new novel, The Mystery of the Blue Train. She suddenly disappears and, even though the entire country is looking for her, she turns up in a hotel only ten days later. She doesn’t remember what happened and the mystery was never solved, but Andrew Wilson creates a fantastic fictional story of what happened during these ten days in A TALENT FOR MURDER.

The novel starts with Agatha Christie at a train station in London. She is first attacked, then saved, and then blackmailed by the same man, a Dr Kurs who wants her to commit the perfect murder. Fearing not only for her life, but also for the lives of the people she loves, Agatha Christie has no choice but to disappears for ten days and do everything that this man asks her.

In my mind, Agatha Christie is the genius behind the creation of Hercule Poirot, Miss Marple and other amazing and twisty stories, but here Andrew Wilson portrayed her as a mother who loves deeply her daughter and would do anything to protect her; as a wife in love with her husband who hopes he won’t leave her; as a daughter still grieving over her mother’s death; as a bestselling author who feels the pressure of the readers; and, finally, as a woman who underestimates herself, her character, and her look. Andrew Wilson depicts her as a smart woman with a great mind, but by portraying her fears, her hopes and her insecurities, he makes her more human.

The novel doesn’t focus only on Agatha Christie, but also on other characters that play a role in the story. Dr Kurs is portrayed as a diabolic and dark man, like a villain out of one of Agatha Christie’s mysteries. Then there is Superintendent William Kenward, the detective in charge of the investigation of Agatha Christie’s disappearance. He thinks that she is dead and that her husband has something to do with it and he wants to prove it. Although he seemed like a good man, I found him a little too pretentious and self-assured. And finally, my favorite character, Una Crowe. She is a young girl, turned journalist, who is investigating the author’s disappearance. I like her because she is determined, she wants to prove to the world that she is not just a rich girl with no ambition in her life, but she has brain and she knows how to use it.

Beautifully written and carefully plotted, A TALENT FOR MURDER is a gripping and captivating novel and it is out now, so I suggest you go out and buy it.

‘Will you… pretend to marry me?’

Bonnie Haskett loves everything about weddings. She loves her job at a national bridal magazine and even has a deposit down on her dream dress. The only problem? She doesn’t have a fiancé!

So when Bonnie is sent to Edelweiss Island, known as ‘The Little Wedding Island’, it’s a dream come true. She’s heard the rumours, every wedding that takes place in the tiny chapel ends in a happy-ever-after.

But there’s a catch! Investigating the story, Bonnie needs to pose as a blushing bride – and the only man up for posing as her groom is her arch rival (and far too handsome for his own good) journalist Rohan Carter…

A gorgeously uplifting summer romance. Perfect for fans of Holly Martin and Caroline Roberts.

I really loved and enjoyed this novel and I’d like to thank HQ Digital for providing me with a copy of the book.

The protagonist of the novel is Bonnie Haskett, a journalist writing for a bridal magazine. She doesn’t just write about weddings, she really loves them. She believes in love and happy endings and, even though she doesn’t have a boyfriend, she has already found her perfect wedding dress and she has it on hold while she pays for it little by little every month. The Twitter war with Rohan started when she defended a newly married couple that Rohan had criticized and attacked. Her belief in true love and happy ever after make her look a bit naive, but I couldn’t help liking her optimistic nature and view of life.

Bonnie and Rohan couldn’t be more different. Where she is positive and an hopeless romantic, Rohan is pessimistic, sarcastic and he had a very bad experience with love in the past. But he is also charming, kind, and funny and I loved his witty exchanges with Bonnie. When the islanders refuse to help them with their articles, Bonnie and Rohan pretend to be engaged and to organize their wedding on Edelweiss Island. With moments that reminded me of one of my favorite movie, The Proposal (with Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds), Bonnie and Rohan find themselves sharing the honeymoon suite, holding hands, kissing, and pretending to be in love. Although, maybe they are not really pretending.

Hilarious, sharp, and captivating, THE LITTLE WEDDING ISLAND will make you laugh out loud and you won’t help but love its engaging characters and its improbable but refreshing and intriguing plot.

THE LITTLE WEDDING ISLAND is out now in the UK.

JAIMIE ADMANS Jaimie Admans is a 32-year-old English-sounding Welsh girl with an awkward-to-spell name. She lives in South Wales and enjoys writing, gardening, watching horror movies and drinking tea, although she’s seriously considering marrying her coffee machine. She loves autumn and winter, and singing songs from musicals despite the fact she’s got the voice of a dying hyena. She hates spiders, hot weather and cheese & onion crisps. She spends far too much time on Twitter and owns too many pairs of boots. She will never have time to read all the books she wants to read.

In the past year, I have been discovering and reading more and more Nordic noir authors, but this is my first Icelandic novel. I find Nordic noir different from the thrillers I am used to, for the plot, the atmosphere, the writing (compelling, but I think that some descriptions are too graphic and gruesome) and the names that I can’t pronounce. I was drawn to this author because I have been hearing a lot about him from other bloggers and I was really curious to see for myself and I have to say that I am sorry I haven’t read his novels before.

The protagonist of his latest novel is Detective Hulda Hermannsdottir. She is sixty-five years old and, even though she is a good detective and she is respected by her colleagues, she is forced into early retirement to make room for the youngest generation. Throughout the entire novel, the author explores in details Hulda’s feelings towards her retirement which she finds hard to accept as she can’t envisage a future in which she doesn’t work. She is been allowed, as her last job, to work on a cold case of her choice, so she decides to investigate the death of Elena, a 27-year-old refugee from Russia whose body was found in a cave. The detective who had investigated the death ruled it out as a suicide, but Hulda is convinced that there is something more to it.

I found the character of Hulda flawed, but very intriguing. She is strong and determined. When she puts her head into something she goes through it even if she has to compete not only with a younger generation who thinks she is now past her time, but also with her male colleagues who don’t think she is as smart as them. I liked how she fights for the weakest, not necessarily victims, even if it often leads her to trouble. And she has a painful and dark past that it slowly unravels through the novel, and it’s her past that made me want to read and found out more about this character.

The pace of the novel is not too fast, not too slow, the good amount to keep the suspense high and to keep you glued to the page. I really loved the evocative and atmospheric descriptions of the Icelandic landscape, with its white snow and frozen lakes that make you dream of hot chocolate and fireside (which, by the way, I think it’s the best way to read this book!)

The ending was a complete surprise, not at all what I expected. Without giving any spoilers away, it’s not the ending I wished for, but I think it fitted perfectly with the story and with the character of Hulda.

Thank you Michael Joseph for providing me with an earlier copy of the book.

THE DARKNESS is out now in the UK.

This novel is creepy, dark and atmospheric and I really loved it. It is the first novel featuring Meg Dalton, the new DI in the Derbyshire Police. She has a troubled past that slowly unravels through the novel. She has also unresolved issues and she is broken by the guilt that she feels over her sister.

The novel starts with a great opening. A man slowly dying in a cave. The man’s name is Peter Hamilton and he is a patent lawyer. The cave his body was found in is called by the locals The Devil’s Dice and the legend say that people go there to kill themselves. What at first looked like a suicide, it quickly turns into murder as Meg finds out that Peter Hamilton had many secrets. And even all the people around him seem to be hiding something, from his wife to his siblings, from his colleagues to their wives.

While Meg investigates she has other things to deal with: someone seems to be after her and there is a male colleague who constantly throws cutting remarks at her because she is a woman. On the personal side, she is worried about her mother who lately seems forgetful and she is clearly hiding something.

I liked the character of Meg, she is flawed, troubled and complicated, but she is a good detective and good daughter. The other characters are (mostly) likable and engaging, but what I liked most was Meg’s relationship with her colleague Jai and their funny and witty exchanges.

The author adds a mystical touch to the plot with the elements of the cursed house, the Greek mythology, the legend of the Devil’s Dice, and the witchcraft. The setting of Derbyshire and Peak District is dark and atmospheric and it suits perfectly to the story.

THE DEVIL’S DICE is the first novel in a series and I really look forward to reading more about these characters and from this author.

Thank you HQ for providing me with an early copy of the book.

THE DEVIL’S DICE was published in the UK on March 8^th.