[AD/Gifted - I received an e-book copy of the book for the purpose of this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. This post contains affiliate links.]
A Black Widow's Web by Phil Martin - 5/5
Blurb:
"Estate agent Lawrence Hennessey has his eyes firmly on the prize, a future away from the mother of his daughter and a multi-million-pound property deal to fund his new life.
His dreams are shot to pieces though when he is arrested for the most heinous sexual crimes against his seemingly embittered ex, Summer, and their seven-year-old daughter, April.
He claims his absolute innocence, but the evidence is so strong that his world quickly turns against him. Having breached his bail conditions, he is sent to prison awaiting a trial that, with his life now in constant danger, may never come. Only one person stands with him; his sister Grace.
Desperate to break the allegiance between mother and daughter, Grace vows to leave no stone unturned in her quest to clear her brother’s name before it is too late.
She unearths a web of vicious deceit in Summer’s turbulent past but nothing to prove her brother’s innocence. She is convinced though that if she keeps digging she’ll unearth something much bigger about her brother’s accuser to weaken the validity of her claims.
But as the evidence against Lawrence gets more sinister, his alcoholism, blackouts and activity on the Dark Web paint a much different story to the one her brother is telling."
Review:
The word "unputdownable" was made for this book.
Before I start an ebook, especially before a blog tour, I tend to look up how many pages it is so I have a rough idea of how long it will take me to read it. When I saw 557 for this one, I thought "that's a chunky one!" and gave myself a good week. I didn't need it at all. I completely devoured this book and had read the majority in 24 hours.
Lawrence Hennessey has a seven year old daughter called April with partner Summer Wilson. He is having an affair with Zara Williams, a teacher from April's school. Summer seems a bit psychotic and as much as I don't root for cheaters, you understand why he is pulling away from Summer.
Just before a secret trip away with Zara to Monte Carlo, Lawrence is arrested for allegedly raping his daughter. I have a daughter who is almost seven so this was a tough one to read. What follows next is just horrific. His life starts falling apart.
Lawrence obviously protests his innocence but there seems to be a lot of evidence stacked against him. The only person who believes him is his sister Grace. Whilst imprisoned, Lawrence is attacked a few times due to the nature of his "crimes" and Grace vows to uncover the truth. But Summer is always a step ahead.
I genuinely did not want to put this book down because I was desperate to see what was going to happen next. With novels like this, I worry about plausibility but everything was tied up nicely and made complete sense.
Grace is trying to show that Summer has coaxed April into lying to the police but the police aren't buying any of it. She delves into Summer's past, going back decades, and this is very cleverly written. You really feel Grace's frustrations when no one is listening to her.
A Black Widow's Web is clearly planned well and gets your heart racing.
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| Phil Martin, author |
Phil Martin has published seven ebooks in the crime genre. He is a journalist in the global casino and sports betting sectors. "I grew up in the creative cauldron of nineties Manchester when Madchester rocked the charts and the Hacienda ruled clubland. The city has shaped me as a writer. I write thrillers and crime stories based on the fine folk of Manchester and Salford and sell them online as ebooks.
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A massive thank you to Damp Pebble Blog Tours for having me on the tour. You can find the information of other bloggers that are taking part in the tour in the graphic below.
Thanks so much for being part of the blog tour x
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