Paris Requiem by Chris Lloyd | Blog Tour Book Review

[ad/gifted - I received a copy of this book for the purpose of this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. This post contains affiliate links.]

Paris Requiem by Chris Lloyd

My rating: 4/5

Publisher: Orion

Publication date: 23rd February 2023

Blurb:

Paris, September 1940.

After three months under Nazi Occupation, not much can shock Detective Eddie Giral. That is, until he finds a murder victim who was supposed to be in prison. Eddie knows, because he put him there. The dead man is not the first or the last criminal being let loose onto the streets. But who is pulling the strings, and why?

This question will take Eddie from jazz clubs to opera halls, from old flames to new friends, from the lights of Paris to the darkest countryside - pursued by a most troubling truth: sometimes to do the right thing, you have to join the wrong side...

Review:

I generally wouldn't reach for a historical fiction book but this year I am trying to branch out more. Paris Requiem is proof that I needed to!

Set in the 1940s in Paris under the Occupation, Detective Eddie Giral is called to a jazz club where a body has been found. The person's lips had been sewn together. Eddie is shocked by this because the body is that of a prisoner that Eddie had helped get put away. He wasn't due to be released so why and how did this happen?

Upon delving into this Giral and his partner Boniface discover that other prisoners have been released but no-one who works at the prison is speaking. Their files are gone too so it is as though they were never incarcerated.

I loved the backdrop of this novel and the pace was perfect. As I mentioned, I don't tend to read historical fiction but I felt as though I learned a lot in the background whilst also being entertained by the plot. The author's note was very helpful too!

Eddie is a complex character for sure and, props to the author, his personality really shone through. I believe this isn't the first in the series so I will have to go back and read! 

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A massive thank you to Orion for having me on the blog tour. You can find information about the other blogger's taking part in the tour in the graphic below.

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides | Book Review

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

My rating: 4/5

Publisher: Orion 

Publication date: 12th December 2019

Blurb:

Alicia Berenson lived a seemingly perfect life until one day six years ago.

When she shot her husband in the head five times.

Since then she hasn't spoken a single word.

It's time to find out why.

Review:

Alicia Berenson is a famous artist. One night six years ago, she shot her husband in the head five times and hasn't spoken since.

Psychologist Theo Faber is convinced that he is the one who will be able to communicate with her and get her to speak after all this time. He gets a job at The Grove, the secure unit where Alicia is, and sets upon creating a bond with her.

He looks into her relationships, her paintings, her past, all to build a picture. But what will be revealed?

This book is so cleverly written. It is the perfect pace and I felt a real chase whilst reading. I was desperate to know the truth. The psychology and Greek aspects were very interesting to me. I did however start to guess the outcome towards the end - maybe I've read too many thrillers! But it was very enjoyable with a lot of red herrings.

The Island by Adrian McKinty | Blog Tour Book Review

[ad/gifted - I received an ebook copy for the purpose of this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.]

The Island by Adrian McKinty

Star rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Publisher: Orion

Publication date: 17th May 2022

Blurb:

After moving from a small country town to Seattle, Heather Baxter marries Tom, a widowed doctor with a young son and teenage daughter. A working vacation overseas seems like the perfect way to bring the new family together, but once they're deep in the Australian outback, the jet-lagged and exhausted kids are so over their new mom.

When they discover a remote Dutch Island, off-limits to outside visitors, the family talks their way onto the ferry, taking a chance on an adventure far from the reach of iPhones and Instagram.

But as soon as they set foot on the island, which is run by a tightly knit clan of locals, everything feels wrong. Then a shocking accident propels the Baxters from an unsettling situation into an absolute nightmare.

When Heather and the kids are separated from Tom, they are forced to escape alone, seconds ahead of their pursuers.

Now it's up to Heather to save herself and the kids, even though they don't trust her, the harsh bushland is filled with danger, and the locals want her dead.

Heather has been underestimated her entire life, but she knows that only she can bring her family home again and become the mother the children desperately need, even if it means doing the unthinkable to keep them all alive.

Review:

I really enjoyed The Chain by Adrian McKinty so I was very excited to read The Island. One thing that McKinty does well is write stories with a bit of a chase.

Heather is a 24 year old massage therapist who marries Tom, a doctor who is in his forties with two teenage children - Olivia and Owen. Their mother passed away a year previously.

The family visit Australia as Tom is giving a keynote speech at a conference. The children are a bit bored as they aren't seeing the beauty of Australia. They are invited over to a remote island with only around 27 inhabitants and all the one family, under the premise that they will be able to see native Australian animals in the wild.

Whilst there, an accident causes them to be held hostage and thus insues the chase to free themselves.

I will be honest and say that I did feel a little like it was very easy for the hostage takers to agree with Heather's demands or attempts to talk them out of harming them but I appreciate that the story would be very different were that not the case.

The vivid descriptions really put you in the scenes and you can feel the urgency from the family as they try to escape and get back over to the mainland. I really enjoyed Owen as a character and his diagnoses, I felt, were written very well.

Heather's character arc throughout the novel was definitely one of my favourite parts though!

A massive thank you to Compulsive Readers and Orion for having me on the blog tour. You can find information about the other bloggers taking part in the tour in the graphic below.