Book Review: The Puppet Maker by Jenny O’ Brien
I’m pleased to be welcoming Jenny O’ Brien to Novel Kicks. She’s here with the blog tour for her novel, The Puppet Maker.
The scrap of paper looked as if it had been torn from a diary. The words written in faint pencil. The letters rounded, almost childlike: Please look after her. Her life and mine depend on you not trying to find me.
When Detective Alana Mack arrives at Clonabee police station, in a small Irish seaside town on the outskirts of Dublin, she doesn’t expect to find a distressed two-year-old girl sobbing on the floor. Abandoned in a local supermarket, the child tells them her name is Casey. All Alana and her team have to go on is a crumpled note begging for someone to look after her little girl. This mother doesn’t want to be found.
Still recovering from a terrible accident that has left Alana navigating a new life as a wheelchair user, Alana finds herself suddenly responsible for Casey while trying to track down the missing mother and solve another missing person’s case… a retired newsagent who has seemingly vanished from his home.
Forced to ask her ex-husband and child psychiatrist Colm for help, through Forensic Art Therapy, Alana discovers that whatever darkness lies behind the black windows in Casey’s crayon drawing, the little girl was terrified of the house she lived in.
Then a bag of human remains is found in a bin, and a chilling link is made – the DNA matches Casey’s.
Alana and her team must find the body and make the connection with the missing newsagent fast if she is to prevent another life from being taken. But with someone in her department leaking confidential details of the investigation to the media, can Alana set aside her emotional involvement in this case and find Casey’s mother and the killer before it’s too late?
Heart-pounding and totally addictive, The Puppet Maker is the first in the Detective Alana Mack series.
*****
When Detective Alana Mack arrives for work one day at Clonabee Police Station, she didn’t expect to not only have to look after an abandoned two-year-old girl but would also need to investigate the discovery of human remains.
The hunt is on to find a murderer and to reunite a mother with her daughter. Can Alana and her team solve the mystery in time before another life is lost?
by 
Book Spotlight: A Cranberry For Christmas by Charlie Dean
Today, we are getting festive and shining a light on A Cranberry for Christmas, released today by Charlie Dean.
Alisha Jones, or Princess Christmas as she is affectionately known, is joint heir to her Grandpa Frost’s family fortune, but being third behind an older sister and brother means she has to work three times as hard to prove herself.
Marsha Underwood, her Grandpa’s PA and ever-present thorn in her side, is determined to undermine her at every turn and Alisha finds herself powerless to prevent this.
An encounter with a fortune teller at the Frost Christmas Ball leads to a bewildering dream of the future; and the added complication of Tom Walker, the son of Frost’s new business partner leads to a tumultuous year.
With her friends by her side, will she be able to turn things around? And what exactly does the strange dream mean?
A story of family, friendship and love at first sight with a sprinkle of Christmas magic.
by Book Review: Take Me Home by Beth Moran
I’m so excited to be welcoming Beth Moran back to Novel Kicks. She’s here with the Blog Tour for her latest novel, Take Me Home.
Sophie Potter’s job is helping people deal with the worst, because Sophie Potter knows what the worst feels like.
An expert at keeping moving, with her trusty motorhome and faithful dog Muffin, Sophie has built her life around keeping her loves and loyalties as few as possible.
Fabulous fifty-something Hattie Langford has kept her heart and past safely stored away too. But for reasons she’s only willing to share with a stranger, Hattie needs to tell the story her family has been hiding at Riverbend, their home in Sherwood Forest. There is a history of heartbreak and hurt that Hattie is ready to face.
As Sophie helps Hattie uncover the secrets of generations of women who have lived at Riverbend, along with the stories of the men they have loved and lost, they start to see echoes in their own pasts. And as Riverbend shares its biggest secret of all, can Hattie and Sophie finally embrace the lives they’ve put on hold for so long, and risk their hearts to men who can break the Riverbend curse?
*****
Sophie is far more comfortable helping other people get through their grief and pain than facing her own.
However, from the moment she meets Hattie, the course of her life will change forever.
I am always so excited when a new Beth Moran novel gets released. I have become such a big fan of this author and so I was honoured to be invited onto the blog tour for Take Me Home.
The cover is beautiful and I knew from the blurb that it was going to make me cry and make me cry it did.
by Audiobook Review: The Alewives by Elizabeth R. Andersen
I am pleased to be welcoming Elizabeth R. Andersen to Novel Kicks and the Audiobook blog tour for her novel, The Alewives
Colmar, 1353 CE
Gritta, Appel, and Efi managed to survive the Black Death, only to find that they are in desperate need of money. With limited options and lots of obstacles, they band together to become alewives – brewing and selling ale in the free Alsatian town of Colmar. But when an elderly neighbor is discovered dead in her house, the alewives cannot convince the sheriff and the town council that her death wasn’t an accident, it was murder. As the body count piles up, the ale flows and mystery is afoot!
Set in the tumultuous years after the most devastating pandemic the world has ever experienced, The Alewives is a playful romp through a dark time, when society was reeling from loss and a grieving population attempted to return to normal, proving that with the bonds of love, friendship, and humor, the human spirit will always continue to shine.
*****
Gritta, Appel and Efi are in desperate need of money. With limited options and a town reeling in the aftermath of the Black Death, they soon work together to brew their own ale.
However, when women in the area start getting murdered, are the three friends safe? Who can they trust?
The premise for this novel intrigued me so I was excited to be invited onto the audiobook blog tour for The Alewives.
This book is based on an element of history I’m not really familiar with beyond knowing about the Black Death. It has certainly piqued my interest in learning more about the Alewives and their place in history.
The story itself is based around Gritta, Appel and Efi.
by Book Review: The Housekeeper by Valerie Keogh
Please help me in welcoming Valerie Keogh to Novel Kicks and the blog tour for her novel, The Housekeeper.
An unwelcome guest?
Still in shock after the tragic death of husband Richie, Cassie Macreddin hopes that her new home, historic Hindon House, is the place where she can heal her pain and hide her secrets.
But Hindon House has secrets of its own…
Cassie soon realises that not everyone is pleased at her arrival and that someone is actively trying to make her leave Hindon House….but who? And why?
As events escalate, Cassie must fight to save her home…and maybe even her life.
Don’t miss the brand new thriller by Valerie Keogh! Perfect for fans of Sue Watson, Shalini Boland and K.L. Slater.
*****
Cassie, having just bought Hindon House is hoping for a fresh start after the loss of her husband.
Wanting the work done on the house as soon as possible so that her dream of a B&B can be realised, she refuses to let a few strange things going on with the house to derail her plans but someone is determined to stop her and how far will they go?
I am a big fan of Valerie Keogh and so was pleased to be invited onto the blog tour for her latest novel, The Housekeeper.
The premise was intriguing and it didn’t take long for me to get pulled into this story.
by Book Club
