PTSD

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Post Script: Two Nights – Kathy Reichs

Loved, loved, loved this one!

Two Nights

Two Nights

Kathy Reichs

Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine

Bantam

ISBN: 9780345544070

 

Description:

#1 New York Times bestselling author Kathy Reichs steps beyond her classic Temperance Brennan series in a new standalone thriller—featuring a smart, tough, talented heroine whose thirst for justice stems from her own dark past.

 

Meet Sunday Night, a woman with physical and psychological scars, and a killer instinct. . . .

 

Sunnie has spent years running from her past, burying secrets and building a life in which she needs no one and feels nothing.

 

But a girl has gone missing, lost in the chaos of a bomb explosion, and the family needs Sunnie’s help.

 

Is the girl dead? Did someone take her? If she is out there, why doesn’t she want to be found?

 

It’s time for Sunnie to face her own demons—because they just might lead her to the truth about what really happened all those years ago.

 

 

My View:

Loved, loved, loved this one!

 

Staccato writing/pacing… sparse, intense, not a word wasted, I loved the pace, the style and the sublime twist. What a surprise! Though a fan of Reich’s Temperance Brennan series I think this new book might just about be my favourite from this author.  Maybe I am a little too comfortable with Bones and her cohorts, her storylines, her TV series… Two Nights is fresh, powerful and different.

 

A story of redemption, of facing your fears, of cults, of mind washing…of terror. This is a brilliant read – read with an open mind and no preconceived notions about the writing or the writer and you will enjoy this book. I hope this this is the start of a new series.

 

 

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Eliza Henry Jones Talks About Her Novel Ache

Welcome author of In the Quiet and Ache. “Eliza Henry-Jones was born in Melbourne in 1990. She was a Young Writer-in-Residence at the Katharine Susannah Prichard Writers’ Centre in 2012 and was a recipient of a Varuna residential fellowship for 2015. She has qualifications in English, psychology and grief, loss and trauma counselling. She is currently completing honours in creative writing – exploring bushfire trauma – and works in community services. She lives in the Dandenong Ranges with her husband and too many animals.” http://www.harpercollins.com.au/9781460750384/#sm.000013x3sti4gof8ssqbvqu70beyi

 

I recently read Ache and was seduced by the emotions and the poignantly written characters; individuals, families, communities, animals and the landscape  – a vivid and bold major character in this novel. The compelling writing will touch all that read it. I highly recommend this read.

Listen to Eliza  here:

 

 

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Post Script: Ache – Eliza Henry Jones

Ache

Ache

Eliza Henry Jones

Harper Collins

ISBN: 9781460750384

 

Description:

A year ago, a devastating bushfire ripped Annie’s world apart – killing her grandmother, traumatising her young daughter and leaving her mother’s home in the mountains half destroyed. Annie fled back to the city, but the mountain continues to haunt her. Now, drawn by a call for help from her uncle, she’s going back to the place she loves most in the world, to try to heal herself, her marriage, her daughter and her mother.

A heart-wrenching, tender and lovely novel about loss, grief and regeneration, Ache is not only a story of how we can be broken, but how we can put ourselves back together.

 

 

My View:

I have had great difficulty trying to find the right words to describe my reaction to this book. It was an amazing read – written so beautifully, the writing seducing the reader to read more and more…and the feelings it evoked…an abundance of feelings.  The characters so credible and the situations they face almost unbearable at times and almost unbearable to read such is the empathy I felt for these paper people.

 

Survivor guilt, grief, PTSD…this book covers it all yet  despite the challenging scenarios presented in this narrative it is not a negative or depressing read, in fact it is full optimism. Read and discover your new favourite author.

 

 

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Post Script: The Right Side – Spencer Quinn

This is an outstanding read – it goes straight onto my “Best Reads of 2017 “list.

The Right Side

The Right Side

Spencer Quinn

Atria Books

ISBN: 9781501118401

 

Description:

 In this riveting new novel by the New York Times bestselling author of the Chet and Bernie mystery series, a deeply damaged female soldier home from the war in Afghanistan becomes obsessed with finding a missing girl, gains an unlikely ally in a stray dog, and encounters new perils beyond the combat zone.

 

LeAnne Hogan went to Afghanistan as a rising star in the military, and came back a much lesser person, mentally and physically. Now missing an eye and with half her face badly scarred, she can barely remember the disastrous desert operation that almost killed her. She is confused, angry, and suspects the fault is hers, even though nobody will come out and say it.

 

Shattered by one last blow—the sudden death of her hospital roommate, Marci—LeAnne finds herself on a fateful drive across the country, reflecting on her past and seeing no future. Her native land is now unfamiliar, recast in shadow by her one good eye, her damaged psyche, her weakened body. Arriving in the rain-soaked small town in Washington State that Marci had called home, she makes a troubling discovery: Marci’s eight-year-old daughter has vanished. When a stray dog—a powerful, dark, unreadable creature, no one’s idea of a pet—seems to adopt LeAnne, a surprising connection is formed and something shifts inside her. As she becomes obsessed with finding Marci’s daughter, LeAnne and her inscrutable canine companion are drawn into danger as dark and menacing as her last Afghan mission. This time she has a strange but loyal fellow traveler protecting her blind side.

 

Enthralling, suspenseful, and psychologically nuanced, The Right Side introduces one of the most unforgettable protagonists in modern fiction: isolated, broken, disillusioned—yet still seeking redemption and purpose—LeAnne takes hold of the reader and never lets go.

 

 

My View:

This is an outstanding read – it goes straight onto my “Best Reads of 2017 “list.

 

If you are expecting another narrative in the style of the Chet and Bernie series – think again. I strongly suggest that you begin this book as if you have just discovered a new to you author – just expect this to be a brilliant read – and then you will not be disappointed.

 

For me this is a book that demands to be read in one sitting. The characters are complex – the psychological revelations are insightful and useful.  You will navigate heartbreaking traumas to reveal the small ray of sunshine, of optimism that prevents this book from being morose and sullen.  The mysteries here will keep the pages turning and you will gain a few perspectives that might surprise you and make you think.

 

This is an outstanding read and I imagine one that will soon be transformed onto the big screen – I wish I had the $$ to produce this one. It will be a winner – guaranteed.

 

 

 

 

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Post Script: Combatting Fear – Sandy Vaile

combatting fear cover

Combatting Fear

Sandy Vaile

Crimson Romance

ISBN: 9781507203453

 

Description:

How far would you go to save a child that wasn’t yours?

 

Mild-mannered kindergarten teacher Neve Botticelli leads a double life. Thanks to a childhood tragedy and her paranoid father, she’s a trained warrior with extreme survival skills who lives off the grid.

 

When self-made billionaire Micah Kincaid storms into town in search of his son, Rowan, he’s pushy, entitled, and stands for everything she despises. Micah can’t believe a kindergarten teacher is barring the way to him getting crucial information or even just a glimpse of the boy his cheating ex kidnapped. They share only one thing in common: either will do anything to protect the four-year-old, who they soon discover is being held for ransom by an outlaw motorcycle gang.

 

But as they work together to get Rowan back, they start to see beyond each other’s masks. Could falling in love be even more dangerous than hunting down deadly criminals?
My View:

An action packed read – experience the rush!

 

Author Sandy Vaile has created a pulse raising, action packed romantic suspense narrative that surprised me with its intensity, mystery and physical action, this was not what I was expecting from this genre.

 

Bold and fearless main characters that are larger than life, filled to the brim with qualities that we all admire; compassion, integrity, selflessness, courage, bravery, determination, reliability and confidence with a side serve of eccentricity and vulnerability that are endearing and engaging and you have the recipe for successfully creating characters the reader cares about.  And care we do!  As the action ricochets off the pages we are consumed by worry and fear.

 

Outlaw motorcycle gangs make the perfect antiheroes – there is so much material to work with here, to install fear into the bravest heart and Sandy Vaile incorporates our worst fears into this read with authority and emotional impact.

 

The authors love for speed, thrills and adventure is obvious in this narrative as is her passion for South Australia’s Fleurieu Peninsula, with its scenic vineyards, rolling hills and rugged bush terrain all showcased at its alluring best.

 

What’s not to love about this read?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Post Script: Face Value – A Wright & Tran Novel – Ian Andrew

face-valueFace Value

A Wright & Tran Novel

Ian Andrew

ISBN: 9780992464127

 

Description:

Kara Wright and Tien Tran, former members of an elite intelligence gathering team active in Afghanistan, Iraq, and places still classified, now make their living through Wright & Tran, a PI service that tracks errant spouses, identifies dishonest employees and, just occasionally, takes on more significant cases that allow them to use all their skills.

 

When siblings Zoe and Michael Sterling insist that their middle-aged parents have gone missing, Kara and Tien are at first sceptical and then quickly intrigued; the father, ex-intelligence analyst Chris Sterling, appears to be involved with an enigmatic Russian thug.

 

Using less than orthodox methods and the services of ex-colleagues with highly specialised talents, Wright & Tran take on the case. But the truth they uncover is far from simple and will shake Zoe and Michael as much as it will challenge Tien and anger Kara – anger she can ill afford for she is being hunted by others for the killing of a street predator who chose the wrong prey.

 

The only constant in this darkening world is that nothing and no one can be taken at face value.

 

My View:

Australian authors are awesome!

 

What a fantastic discovery!  This book easily scores a place in my “Top Reads of 2016”! Fast paced, action packed, explosive, compulsive writing and with not one but two particularly interesting and empathetic female protagonists!

 

The introduction provides a very tasty and appetising bait – you won’t feel that hook until it is too late and it is after midnight and you are reading “just one more page”… until you have finished! You can catch up on sleep another night.

 

“It wasn’t the prettiest place to die. But then again, where is? She was taking a short cut through unfamiliar territory. He was running an illegal errand on ground he called his own. Neither would have wanted the street with its vandalised lights and graffiti-covered hoardings, to be their final view of life. But we don’t often get what we want.”   (p.1)

 

Bad things are going to happen, you can feel it, sense it, taste it. But you might just get a surprise or two here. And then there is the rest of the narrative! I was thoroughly hooked, engaged, enthralled.

 

I cannot wait to read the second in this series “Flight Path.” Thanks Ian Andrew for a consuming read!

 

 

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Post Script- Remembering Anita Cobby – Mark Morri

Remembering Anita Cobby

Remembering Anita Cobby

Mark Morri

Random House Australia

ISBN: 9781925324150

 

Description:

On 4 February 1986, John Cobby’s life imploded. He was driving up the coast looking for his missing wife, Anita, when over the radio he heard: ‘The body of a naked woman has been found in a paddock in western Sydney.’ . . . As details emerged of the rape and murder of the gentle nurse and former beauty queen, outrage engulfed Australia. Five men were caught and, amid unprecedented security, jailed for life.

 

For young reporter Mark Morri, the case was a baptism of fire. Told to ‘find the husband’, he despaired: Cobby had changed his name and disappeared. But the Daily Mirror found him, and Morri’s interviews sold like hotcakes. For nearly 30 years, Morri and Cobby kept in touch.

 

In this book John finally opens up, recounting how he and Anita fell in love, suffered the pain of miscarriage and then went travelling. He also explains why they were apart at the time of the murder. Weaving in chilling material from the autopsy and police files, and interviews with detectives who hunted down the killers, Mark Morri explores the ripple effects of the murder that still shocks a nation.

 

 

My View:

This narrative focusses on the thirty years of emotional turmoil experienced by husband of the victim of a horrendous crime. The abduction and murder Anita Cobby is a crime that shocked a nation, a crime that changed attitudes regarding personal safety and security, a crime that defiled the innocence of a nation.

 

However this is not a book about the crime, or the victim or her family – this is an attempt by the author to verbalise the turmoil this negative life event exerted over the husband of the victim – John Cobby. Unfortunately I found most of this narrative slow going, repetitive and clichéd.

 

If the purpose of this book is to re-engage the public so as they will ensure that parole or resentencing is not allowed for those convicted on Anita Cobby’s death – then I think it has succeeded.

 

 

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Post Script: Even Dogs In The Wild – Ian Rankin

https://readingwritingandriesling.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/cover-even-dogs-in-the-wild.jpg

Even Dogs in the Wild

Ian Rankin

Hachette Australia

Orion

ISBN: 9781409159377

 

Description:

Detective Inspector Siobhan Clarke is investigating the death of a senior lawyer during a robbery. But the case becomes more complex when a note is discovered, indicating that this may have been no random attack, and when local gangster Big Ger Cafferty receives an identical message, Clarke decides that the recently retired John Rebus may be able to help. He’s the only man Cafferty will open up to, and together the two old adversaries might just stand a chance of saving Cafferty’s skin.

 

 

But a notorious family has arrived in Edinburgh, too, tailed by a team of undercover detectives. There’s something they want, and they’ll stop at nothing to get it. DI Malcolm Fox’s job is to provide the undercover squad with local expertise, but he’s soon drawn in too deep as the two cases look like colliding. And meantime, an anonymous killer stalks the night time streets, focussed on revenge. It’s a game of dog eat dog – in the city as in the wild.

 

 

Even Dogs in the Wild brings back Ian Rankin’s greatest characters in a story exploring the darkest corners of our instincts and desires.

 

 

My View:

Make a date for a great night in – settle yourself somewhere warm and cosy (your favourite reading chair perhaps…) have a glass of whiskey to the ready (to keep in sync with the protagonist’s choice of spirits) and a couple of Dark Side Truffles (http://www.darksidechocolates.com.au/) – Rebus has yet to be introduced to this delight but I am sure he would love them. Now, comfortable? Good, grab your copy of Ian Rankin’s outstanding, intriguing, contemporay and realistic, must read in one sitting, Even Dogs In the Wild and enjoy a fantastic night in!

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Post Script: Little Black Lies- Sharon Bolton

Atmospheric, fantastic word visuals, contemporary issues and a mystery to solve- what a great read!

Cover Little Black Lies

Little Black Lies

Sharon Bolton

Random House UK, Transworld Publishers 

Bantam Press

ISBN: 9780593069202

 

Description:

 

What’s the worst thing your best friend could do to you?

 

Admittedly, it wasn’t murder. A moment’s carelessness, a tragic accident – and two children are dead. Yours.

 

Living in a small island community, you can’t escape the woman who destroyed your life. Each chance encounter is an agonizing reminder of what you’ve lost – your family, your future, your sanity.

 

How long before revenge becomes irresistible?

 

With no reason to go on living, why shouldn’t you turn your darkest thoughts into deeds?

 

So now, what’s the worst thing you can do to your best friend?

 

 

My View:

This was a great read – there is so much packed into this one narrative; it is evocative, the sense of dread and foreboding vibrates of the page. The scenes with the whales (no spoilers here) just so dark and sad and painful – it tears large wounds in your heart. Grief, despair, depression and post-traumatic stress provide the back beat to this black tune. What a powerful story!

 

 Then there is the mystery and disappearance of several young children and a mother’s passion for vengeance. Read and enjoy and maybe like me just be for the reveal you may guess the culprit.

 

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Post Script: Hidden – Emma Kavanagh

Engaging, chilling, mesmerising. A read in one sitting novel.

Book cover Hidden Emma Kavanagh

Hidden

Emma Kavanagh

Random House UK, Cornerstone

Cornerstone Digital

ISBN: 9781448184576

 

Description:

A gripping psychological thriller by a former police psychologist. Perfect for fans of Nicci French, Tana French and S. J. Watson.

 

HE’S WATCHING

A gunman is stalking the wards of a local hospital. He’s unidentified and dangerous, and has to be located. Urgently.

Police Firearms Officer Aden McCarthy is tasked with tracking him down. Still troubled by the shooting of a schoolboy, Aden is determined to make amends by finding the gunman – before it’s too late.

 

SHE’S WAITING

To psychologist Imogen, hospital should be a place of healing and safety – both for her, and her young niece who’s been recently admitted. She’s heard about the gunman, but he has little to do with her. Or has he?

As time ticks down, no one knows who the gunman’s next target will be. But he’s there. Hiding in plain sight. Far closer than anyone thinks…

 

 

My View:

Last night I had the pleasure of reading an exciting and engaging book about a contemporary social issue and crime that is becoming more prevalent in our modern world – the spree killing. The first few pages hook you as you find yourself in the middle of a massacre; blood pooling across the floor, death and carnage racing to meet you. A brilliant hook – you cannot wait to learn what had happened, who is responsible and the answer to the big question, WHY?

And so the narrative begins. Each chapter is narrated by one of the main characters in this drama, including the Shooter. The novel is cunningly written to provide you with many a red herring that will lead you down twisty paths to… nowhere. You will think you have worked it out, you will place his/her name into chapters narrated by “ The Shooter” – and they will make sense…for a while… in fact I changed my mind about the culprit about 3 times during the course of the narrative but at no time did I actually realise who the actual shooter really was.

This is an absorbing psychological drama guaranteed to please.