Month: January 2021

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Review My Best Friend’s Murder – Polly Phillips

My Best Friend’s Murder

Polly Phillips

Simon & Schuster

ISBN: 9781761100178

RRP $29.99

 

Description:

You’re lying, sprawled at the bottom of the stairs, legs bent, arms wide.

 

If I squint, you could be playing Sleeping Bunnies. Or maybe Twister.

 

I wish I could tell you how the blood pooling around your head looks like a halo.

 

But you’re past listening.

 

I need to let the paramedics in. And then I have to be careful.

 

Because as the energy trickles out of your body it’s pumping into mine.

 

And while this could be a tragic accident, if anyone’s got a motive to hurt you, it’s me.

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Bec and Izzy have been best friends their whole lives. They’ve been through a lot together – the death of Bec’s mother, the birth of Izzy’s daughter, Bec’s engagement.

But there’s a darker side to their friendship, too – and Bec is about to reach breaking point.

Then Izzy is found broken and bloodied at the bottom of the stairs.

It could have been an accident – perhaps she fell – but if the police decide to look for a killer, then Bec is sure to be their prime suspect.

*

This is The Rumour meets The Holiday, a compulsive thriller with a toxic but layered friendship at its heart that keeps you in the dark until the final few breathless pages . . .

 

My View:

This is a really interesting read on a few levels. It is a genre I like – crime/mystery/domestic noir, and it has an plenty of plot twists and red herrings to keep you guessing – in fact I didn’t work out the culprit – and was surprised when this was revealed (no spoilers). But for me this has been a significant read/discussion about relationships and has left me considering the toxicity of some of those relationships in my life.

 

For me this is a narrative about the stories we tell our self; of memory and how it is influenced by our own desires and need to fit, to belong, to be acknowledged. Reflection  sat heavily with me long after I finished reading this book. Thank Holly Phillips for creating a world that has shone a torch on my own relationships, toxic relationships are hiding within plain sight 😊 Now what to do about them…I don’t have stairs in my house😊 😊

 

PS Polly is a Perth writer – another reason t celebrate this read 😊

 

 

 

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Review: The Schoolgirl Strangler – Katherine Kovacic

The Schoolgirl Strangler

Katherine Kovac

Echo

ISBN: 9781760686635

RRP $32.99

 

Description:
The shocking true story of a serial killer in 1930s Melbourne.

 

November, 1930. One sunny Saturday afternoon, 12-year-old Mena Griffiths was playing in the park when she was lured away by an unknown man. Hours later, her strangled body was found, mouth gagged and hands crossed over her chest, in an abandoned house. Only months later, another girl was murdered; the similarities between the cases undeniable. Crime in Melbourne had taken a shocking new turn: this was the work of a serial killer, a homicidal maniac.

 

Despite their best efforts, police had no experience dealing with this kind of criminal. What followed was years of bungled investigations, falsely accused men – and the tragic deaths of two more girls – before the murderer was finally caught and brought to justice.

 

With all the pace of a thriller, Katherine Kovacic recounts this extraordinary, chilling true story – of failed police enquiries, a killer with a Jekyll and Hyde personality, and the families shattered when four innocent lives were cruelly taken.

 

My View:

Katherine Kovacic is a talented writer, who, with the publishing of this work of non-fiction, has demonstrated her great skills and depth of writing and research. I enjoyed every aspect of this read- the cover art – which is perfect for the era of the crimes (in fact I will share a personal image with you that was used in a local “a stranger danger awareness” shoot back in the 1960’s.)

I love the chapters with the face/jigsaw puzzle slowly revealing the face of the accused.

The research led narrative is presented in easily digested vocabulary, and without personal intervention, I like this tyle op presentation for true crime writing.   I absolutely abhor true crime where the writer thinks that their opinions are valuable in the story, in my opinion, they are not, it should be the reader who decides what they take/believe/ understand from the facts presented.

 

This is another great read from the talented Katherine Kovacic.

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Best Crime Fiction Reads of 2020

2020 was a year of unprecedented events and changes. For me I became more involved in my art than in reading but still read around eighty books. There were some stand outs which I will share with you over the next few days.

In no particular order – all great reads.

 

Please See Us: Caitlin Mullen

 

 

Long Bright River: Liz Moore 

 

 

The Janes: Louisa Luna

 

The Silent Wife – Karin Slaughter 

Summerwater: Sarah Moss 

The Good Turn  – Dervla McTiernan 

The Familiar Dark  – Amy Engel 

Red Dirt Country – Fleur McDonald

Trust – Chris Hammer 

House of Correction – Nicci French   

 

 

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Repost and Giveaway: Sugar and Snails – Anne Goodwin

 

Never has a book been more relevant. 

Anne Goodwin is the author of two novels and a short story collection. Her debut novel, Sugar and Snails, about a woman who has kept her past identity a secret for thirty years, was shortlisted for the 2016 Polari First Book Prize. Throughout February, subscribers to her newsletter can read Sugar and Snails for free: https://www.subscribepage.com/sugar-and-snails-free-e-book  CLOSES 28 FEB

 

Description:

At fifteen, she made a life-changing decision. Thirty years on, it’s time to make another.

When Diana escaped her misfit childhood, she thought she’d chosen the easier path. But the past lingers on, etched beneath her skin, and life won’t be worth living if her secret gets out.

As an adult, she’s kept other people at a distance… until Simon sweeps in on a cloud of promise and possibility. But his work is taking him to Cairo, the city that transformed her life. She’ll lose Simon if she doesn’t join him. She’ll lose herself if she does.

Sugar and Snails charts Diana’s unusual journey, revealing the scars from her fight to be true to herself. A triumphant mid-life coming-of-age story about bridging the gap between who we are and who we feel we ought to be.

 

 

 

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnJ5pbhSLho&feature=youtu.be

Website: annegoodwin.weebly.com

Twitter @Annecdotist.

Link tree https://linktr.ee/annecdotist

Amazon author page: viewauthor.at/AnneGoodwin

YouTube: Anne Goodwin’s YouTube channel

 

 

 

 

 

 

https://www.subscribepage.com/sugar-and-snails-free-e-book