Tag: Crime Thriller

Audiobook Review: The Dispatcher by John Scalzi and Narrated by Zachary Quinto

The Dispatcher
Series: The Dispatcher #1
Author: John Scalzi

Narrator: Zachary Quinto
Published: October 4, 2016
Audiobook: 2 hours 18 minutes

Reviewed By: Jessica
Date Listened To: October 11, 2022
Jessica’s Rating: 5 stars     

Book Description:

One day, not long from now, it becomes almost impossible to murder anyone – 999 times out of a thousand, anyone who is intentionally killed comes back. How? We don’t know. But it changes everything: war, crime, daily life.

Tony Valdez is a Dispatcher – a licensed, bonded professional whose job is to humanely dispatch those whose circumstances put them in death’s crosshairs, so they can have a second chance to avoid the reaper. But when a fellow Dispatcher and former friend is apparently kidnapped, Tony learns that there are some things that are worse than death and that some people are ready to do almost anything to avenge a supposed wrong.

It’s a race against time for Valdez to find his friend before it’s too late…before not even a Dispatcher can save him.

Jessica’s Review:

This one was a re-listen because it was short and Audible had the next two novellas available! I had listened to it several years ago and enjoyed it. Kim and I actually had a double review for it. I don’t have any more to say that was in my original review so read it here!

Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK

Cover Reveal: The Girl She Was Before by Jess Kitching

Today I am helping in the cover reveal for The Girl She Was Before by Jess Kitching. This crime thriller is 350 pages and  will be published on October 31, 2021.

Book Description:

A crime thriller with a brilliant twist you won’t see coming!!

Powerful, packed full of gruelling details that will linger with you long after the book has finished.

Nat lives a picture-perfect life, but it wasn’t always this way. A victim of horrific bullying when she was a teenager, Nat will do anything to keep distance between the girl she was before and the woman she is now.

But when her best friend is murdered and people begin to point their finger at her, Nat’s new life quickly begins to unravel.

To Nat, it’s no surprise that the crime happened at the same time as the return of her biggest tormentor, Chrissy Summers. A woman with a violent streak who destroyed lives when she was younger and isn’t afraid to do it again.

Face to face with the past she so firmly keeps behind her, Nat’s sanity wavers as her determination to reveal Chrissy as the monster she knows her as rises to dangerous heights.

The question is, can Nat prove Chrissy is a killer, or will Chrissy get to Nat and her family before she has the chance?

You can’t outrun the past…

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now….. What does the cover look like?????? Keep scrolling to find out!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Almost there!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here it is:

Pre-order Link: http://mybook.to/girlshewasbefore

About the Author:

Jess Kitching is an avid reader, writer and binge-watcher. Originally from Bradford, England, she currently lives in Sydney with her fiancé Jack. Her two goals in life were to move to Australia and have a book published. To be able to say she has done both is something she still can’t wrap her head around.

Contact Jess:
Instagram:
  @jesskitchingwrites

 

Kingsley Publishers:

Instagram: @Kingsleypublishers
Twitter: @kingsleypublis1

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Blog Tour: 30 Days in June by Chris Westlake

Today I am sharing my review as a part of the blog tour for 30 Days in June by Chris Westlake.  This is a crime thriller that has a serial killer!

Book Description:

On the 1st day of June 1988, the residents of south Wales were thrown into a state of panic when a married couple were brutally murdered in their own home. The killer, nicknamed Spartacus by the media, did not flee the scene immediately; instead, he stayed to carve Roman Numerals onto his victims’ chests.

This was the beginning of a month-long killing spree, each murder taking a step closer to home.

Seventeen-year-old Jeffrey Allen was to be the final victim, on the final day of the month. Instead, he became the only survivor, and the only real witness. The killings ended as suddenly as they began. Jeffrey relocated to London, changing his name, and his identity, to Marcus Clancy. His past life became merely a dark secret.

On 1st June 2018, 30 years to the day since the first killing, a mysterious figure refers to Marcus by his old name, through closing lift doors.

Is Spartacus back? If so, has he returned to finish what he failed to do thirty years ago?

And so begins 30 days of terror for Marcus Clancy, culminating in dramatic fashion on the final day of June.

30 DAYS IN JUNE is Chris Westlake’s third novel, and his first crime thriller. He is currently writing his second crime thriller and is on schedule to have it completed in 2020.

30 Days in June
Author: Chris Westlake

Published: December 15, 2019
359 Pages

Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Read: March 9-27, 2020
Jessica’s Rating: 3.5 stars

Jessica’s Review:

Sign me up: 30 Days in June is a crime novel about a serial killer during the month of June and the story also takes place in 1988 and 2018. The novel starts on June 1st, 1988 with a married couple and their sexually graphic adventures that take an unexpected turn for them.  Throughout the month of June the serial killer Spartacus frightens the immediate area until the final victim survives and then Spartacus disappears.

Fast forward thirty years and the survivor had moved and changed his name then one day he hears his old name, which starts him on a path he did not expect to go on. Is Spartacus back or is this some kind of copycat occurring exactly 30 years later? And if Spartacus in fact is back, what does he want after all this time?    

30 Days in June was a decent read for me. The premise is intriguing and you want to know if in fact Spartacus is back. I was not really attached to Jeffrey/Marcus, so I did not really care what happened to him.  He is an imperfect person and we see this over both time periods. Parts of the novel became a bit mind-numbing for me, but keep with it as when you get to the final few chapters, the story really gets moving and we have a final standoff  with a satisfying conclusion. 

Overall, 30 Days in June has its ups and downs but is ultimately worth it in the end! 

Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Blackwells

About the Author:

After completing a Creative Writing course in 2010, Chris Westlake’s short story, Welsh Lessons, was awarded 1st place in the Global Short Story Award (not bad for the first writing competition he had entered). He followed this up with 1st place in the Stringybark Erotic Fiction Award and 2nd place in the HASSRA Literary Award.

Chris has written three novels. 30 DAYS IN JUNE is his first crime thriller. He is currently writing his second thriller, on schedule to be completed in 2020. He is determined to write many, many more – his main regret is that he didn’t start writing earlier.

Chris considers himself to be a developing author. He is always looking to improve, to make his next novel even better than the last. He is continuously experimenting with different styles, different genres.

Contact Chris:
Email: You can contact Chris at chriswestlakeauthor@hotmail.co.uk. He would love to hear from you!
Website
Twitter: @ChrisWestlake2

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