Category Archives: Severn House Publishers

October 31, 2018 · 11:56 pm

Review: Love in a Mist by Sarah Harrison

Title: Love in a Mist by Sarah Harrison
Publisher: Severn House Publishers
Genre: Historical (70s & 90s), Fiction
Length: 224 pages
Book Rating: C+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

Who knows what secrets lie within a marriage …? Sarah Harrison’s compelling new romantic drama.

Everyone envies young Flora Mayfield: she has the best parents in the world. A successful, handsome father and a gorgeous, vivacious mother who adore each other, and no siblings with whom to share the limelight of their love and attention.

But Flora has always known there’s something rather different about her family life. Her parents, Nico and Zinny, set an impossible standard – of beauty, of success, of romance. Clever, plain Flora feels condemned to live in their shadow. But just as she begins to blossom, having fallen in love for the first time, a devastating piece of news forces Flora to confront her parents about the past, unearthing a series of shocking secrets and causing Flora to question her very identity.

Love in a Mist is a compelling tale about the corruption of lies, the terrifying discovery of truth and the hard-won freedom, finally, to love.

Review:

Love in a Mist by Sarah Harrison is an intriguing novel that reads like a memoir.

Flora Mayfield lives with her parents Nico and Zinny in a seaside town along the British coast. Her mom is glamorous and beautiful whereas her dad is more playful without much ambition.  They are so in love that Flora sometimes often feels like an afterthought to their lives.  An only child, Flora is rather introverted with few friends.  It is not until she is an adult that Flora uncovers the truth about the odd dynamic between her and her parents.

After reaching adulthood, Flora eschews going on to university and she enjoys the various jobs she undertakes. It is not until she begins working for college professor and mystery writer  Edwin Clayborne that she is completely content. She and Edwin have a easy working relationship and she is content with her life. However, Flora’s relationship with her parents remains a bit distant but an unexpected letter leads to a shocking revelation.

Weaving back and forth in time,  Love in a Mist is a somewhat slow-paced novel with an interesting premise. Flora is a delightful narrator but she is rather prone to introspection. The plot is well-written and Sarah Harrison’s descriptive prose brings the various settings vibrantly to life. An overall enjoyable read that keeps readers in suspense right up until the novel’s surprising conclusion.

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Filed under Fiction, Historical, Historical (70s), Historical (90s), Love in a Mist, Rated C+, Review, Sarah Harrison, Severn House Publishers

August 22, 2018 · 11:57 pm

Review: The Lucifer Chord by F.G. Cottam

Title: The Lucifer Chord by F.G. Cottam
Publisher: Severn House
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Horror, Supernatural/Occult Elements
Length: 240 pages
Book Rating: B+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

Ruthie Gillespie’s efforts to find out the truth about a mysterious missing rock star lead her on a terrifying journey into the past.

Researcher Ruthie Gillespie has undertaken a commission to write an essay on Martin Mear, lead singer and guitarist with Ghost Legion, the biggest, most decadent rock band on the planet, before he disappeared without trace in 1975. Her mission is to separate man from myth – but it’s proving difficult, as a series of increasingly disturbing and macabre incidents threatens to derail Ruthie’s efforts to uncover the truth about the mysterious rock star.

Just what did happen to Martin Mear back in 1975? Is he really set to return from the dead, as the band’s die-hard fans, the Legionaries, believe? It’s when Ruthie’s enquiries lead her to the derelict mansion on the Isle of Wight where Martin wrote the band’s breakthrough album that events take a truly terrifying turn …

Review:

The Lucifer Chord by F.G. Cottam is an incredibly atmospheric and enthralling mystery with subtle yet eerie supernatural elements. Although characters from previous novels make guest appearances, this latest release can be read as a standalone.

Children’s book author Ruthie Gillespie is staying with good friend Veronica Slade in hopes of mending her broken heart. When offered a research job by Carter Melville to write an essay on much celebrated singer/songwriter/guitarist Martin Mear whose band Ghost Legion still has a cult following, she harbors a few qualms about accepting the assignment. Reassured by her friend (and possible love interest) Michael Aldridge, Ruthie cautiously begins her research into the life and death of the iconic rock star.

Rumor and speculation swirl around the death of Martin Mear in 1975. Not everyone is convinced he is in fact dead so Ruthie’s first order of business to try to authenticate his death. Hoping to glean a few psychic clues, her first interview is with medium Frederica Daunt, who has a family connection to Mear. Although she is not  exactly a skeptic, Ruthie approaches her upcoming meeting with Frederica with an open mind.  In the aftermath of their chilling encounter with a menacing  spirit, Frederica flees to Portugal and warns Ruthie to tread lightly.

Ruthie’s next meetings with Mear’s girlfriend Paula Tort and his daughter April are certainly less ominous and provide her with important insight into the charismatic singer. However, the band’s roadie and Martin’ s friend, Sir Terence Maloney proves to be much more elusive. As she traces Mear’s meteoric rise  to stardom, Ruthie discovers Martin’s uncle Max Askew has an unexpected connection to Martens and Degrue which is really a front for the Jericho Society. Ruthie has reason to be a bit worried about this link since her dealings with the Jericho Society in the past have been rather frightening. The deeper she digs into Mear’s past, the more Ruthie begins to speculate about exactly how Martin’s success originated.

With some very bone-chilling encounters and all too real deaths in the present, The Lucifer Chord is a spellbinding mystery with understated paranormal phenomena. Ruthie is a multi-faceted protagonist that is well-developed with realistic strengths and weaknesses. F.G. Cottam deftly incorporates slight supernatural elements that greatly enhance the fast-paced and engaging storyline. The novel comes to a clever conclusion that completely wraps up the various story arcs. I highly recommend this suspenseful mystery to readers of the genre.

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Filed under Contemporary, F.G. Cottam, Horror, Mystery, Rated B+, Review, Severn House Publishers, Supernatural Elements, The Lucifer Chord

May 23, 2018 · 11:57 pm

Review: The Girl in the Woods by Patricia MacDonald

Title: The Girl in the Woods by Patricia MacDonald
Publisher: Severn House Publishers
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 240 pages
Book Rating: B

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

A deathbed confession has chilling consequences in this gripping novel of psychological suspense.

“I have to tell you something … I did something bad”.

Ever since her best friend Molly was murdered fifteen years before, Blair Butler has returned to her small hometown in the Pocono mountains as seldom as possible. Now she has been summoned home to see her terminally ill sister one last time – only for Celeste to make a shocking deathbed confession. Is it really true that the wrong man has spent fifteen years in jail for a crime he didn’t commit?

Having promised her dying sister that she would do her best to right the wrongs of the past, Blair sets out to discover what really happened that cold, wet November night fifteen years before: the night Molly’s battered body was found in the woods behind her home. But is Blair prepared for the shocking truth … ?

Review:

The Girl in the Woods by Patricia MacDonald is a gripping mystery about a young woman’s attempt to exonerate a man wrongly convicted of murder.

Blair Butler has come a long way from her small home town where she lived with her older sister Celeste and their bigoted uncle who raised them after their mom’s death.  Blair went on to college and owns a thriving business with two college friends. Celeste became a single mother and still lives with their Uncle Ellis Dietz.  Blair has no choice but to return the small town where Celeste’s battle with cancer is about to come to its sad conclusion. However, before she dies, Celeste makes a stunning confession to her about the murder of Blair’s childhood friend, Molly Sinclair, who died fifteen years earlier.  Now Blair feels like she has no choice but to act on this new information, but local police are in no hurry to re-open the case in which the killer has already been convicted and is serving out his prison sentence. Blair wants justice for her friend and she enlists the aid of  private investigator Tom Olson to help her uncover the truth. However, a killer who has gotten away with murder for the past fifteen years will go to any lengths to stop Blair and Tom from unmasking his or her identity.

Blair has always blamed herself for the circumstances that led to Molly’s death.  Her business needs her attention but despite her best efforts, she cannot walk away from this new information.  She does not waste any time informing the police about the details Celeste disclosed to her right before her death. When they refuse to re-open the case,  Blair feels duty bound to investigate the case herself and she first teams up with a local news reporter to search for answers. When this arrangement quickly falls through, Blair is ready to concede defeat, but she cannot in good conscience leave town without trying one last time to find someone who can look into the case for her.

With no one else to turn to, Blair hires former cop and current private investigator Tom Olson to help her find Molly’s killer. Tom is not exactly hopeful he can unearth the truth, but he nonetheless agrees to take the case. Blair’s plans to leave town are once again scuttled when she does not trust Tom to follow through with his end of their bargain.  With the new lead that Blair has uncovered, she and Tom resume their investigation and she notices a puzzling detail that takes the case in a very unexpected and  shocking direction.  Blair’s curiosity then puts her harm’s way and she is uncertain whether or not she can escape from an increasingly dangerous situation.

The Girl in the Woods is a fast-paced and absorbing mystery. Blair is a likeable and sympathetic protagonist who learns and grows from her unexpected experiences in her hometown. Savvy readers will most likely figure out the perpetrator’s identity but Patricia MacDonald has a few surprises as the novel comes to an action-filled conclusion.  A nice amateur sleuth mystery than fans of the genre will enjoy.

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Filed under Contemporary, Mystery, Patricia MacDonald, Rated B, Review, Severn House Publishers, Suspense, The Girl in the Woods

March 28, 2018 · 11:57 pm

Review: Whisper the Dead by Stella Cameron

Title: Whisper the Dead by Stella Cameron
Alex Duggins Mystery Series Book Five
Publisher: Severn House
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 256 pages
Book Rating: B

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

With plot twists galore and an array of credible suspects, this traditional village mystery series will appeal to fans of M.C. Beaton and Midsomer Murders

When Alex Duggins comes across a terrifying scene at the site of a new housing development, once again she is drawn into a case of brutal murder. 

A new year arrives and winter holds Britain’s Cotswold Hills in its icy grip once more. But it’s the construction of a new housing development that’s causing the residents of Folly-on-Weir most concern. As she passes the site late one afternoon, pub owner Alex Duggins is confronted by the terrifying scene of a construction trailer on fire and a man desperately trying to break the door down.

Her efforts to help – and the subsequent findings of the police forensic pathologist – draw Alex and her friend Tony Harrison into a major murder investigation whose tentacles will reach right to the heart of the tight-knit Folly community – and into Alex’s own past … 

Will appeal to fans of M.C. Beaton and Midsomer Murders.

Review:

Whisper the Dead by Stella Cameron is an engaging mystery set in the cozy village of Folly-on-Weir.  Although this latest release is the fifth installment in the Alex Duggins Mystery series, it can be read as a standalone.

Pub owner Alex Duggins is on her way home when she decides to stop and check out a new development. To her shock and dismay, she arrives in time to report a fire at the construction site. While the developer, Bob Hill, manages to stagger to safety, his friend, architect Lance Pullinger is not so lucky.  Detective Chief Inspect Dan O’Reilly and Detective Sergeant Bill Lamb have a few questions for Alex once it is determined that Lance was murdered. The case takes an ominous turn when another murder victim is discovered and a much loved local woman is bludgeoned to death. Although her best friend and boyfriend Tony Harrison urges her to stay out of the investigation, Alex continues nosing around to see if she can uncover any new information especially since these strange occurrences coincide with her mom Lily’s reluctant confession about their past.  Will DCI O’Reilly and DS Lamb unmask the killer before they strike again?

It is really difficult keeping things under wraps in the close-knit community but O’Reilly and Lamb manage to keep a lid on the recent deaths a little longer than usual. By all accounts, Lance was an easy-going man who does not seem to have put down roots and Bob is a little vague when it comes to divulging information about him. The investigation takes an interesting turn when the next victim is discovered since she appears to have some connection to Lance, but exactly what their relationship is remains a bit of a mystery. Lamb and O’Reilly are already stymied when another victim is found and they are unable to see exactly how her death fits in with the first  two.

Alex, Tony and the rest of the crew at the Black Dog pub are rather mystified by Lily’s unaccustomed moodiness. Although she is not initially forthcoming about the cause of her unhappiness, she does finally divulge a few details about what is going on. Alex knows there is much more to the story, but Lily has always been reticent to discuss the past with her daughter. When someone for her past casts an ominous shadow on  Lily’s life in the present,  she reveals a bit more information that affects both her and Alex. However, when it becomes apparent that this person might be connected to the recent deaths, Alex takes her concerns to Dan and Bill. What no one can quite decipher is how these seemingly disparate bits fit into the recent murders.

With quite a few story arcs, Whisper the Dead is a very intriguing whodunit. The cast of characters are richly developed with interesting back stories that play a fairly large role in the unfolding events.  The investigation into the murders sometimes takes a backseat to the personal  dramas but all of the storylines eventually converge as Stella Cameron brings the novel to a fairly exciting and rather surprising conclusion. This latest addition to the Alex Duggins Mystery series is wonderful cozy mystery that fans of the genre will enjoy.

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Filed under Alex Duggins Mystery Series, Contemporary, Mystery, Rated B, Review, Severn House Publishers, Stella Cameron, Suspense, Whisper the Dead

January 31, 2018 · 11:55 pm

Review: Vanished by Karen E. Olson

Title: Vanished by Karen E. Olson
Black Hat Thriller Series Book Four
Publisher: Severn House
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 224 pages
Book Rating: B+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

Computer hacker Tina Adler heads to Paris, France in search of the truth – but discovers that someone is close on her trail in this tense and twisting thriller. 

With a price on her head, computer hacker Tina Adler is determined to stay offline. Only one person knows how to reach her – and he’s in as much danger as she is.

A chance discovery leads Tina to abandon her South Carolina hideaway in search of her old flame, undercover FBI Agent Zeke Chapman. What is Zeke doing in Paris, France? And what is his connection to the disappearance of American college student Ryan Whittier?

En route to Paris in search of answers, Tina realizes that someone is on her trail: someone who’s getting disturbingly close. Has she been set up??

Review:

Vanished by Karen E. Olson is another enthralling foray into the world of hacking. Although this newest addition to the Black Hat Thriller series can be read as a standalone, I HIGHLY recommend the previous novels as well.

Tina (Adler) Jones is now living a quiet life off the grid in South Carolina. A former hacker with a price on her head, she is staying off line while establishing a name for herself in the local art world. At a gallery show, she crosses paths with Madeline Whittier, who is convinced she recognizes Tina from somewhere. During Tina’s quick internet search to see if there is a connection between them, she makes a stunning discovery about someone from her own past. Zeke Chapman, the FBI Agent whose history with her is extremely complicated, is a person of interest in the missing person’s case of Ryan Whittier. Both men were last seen at an ATM in Paris and Tina quickly uncovers a perplexing and somewhat bizarre link to another friend of her and Zeke-fellow hacker Spencer Cross. When the situation in South Carolina turns treacherous, Tina and Spencer decide to head to Paris where they hope they will find Zeke along with the answers to some very distrubing questions.

Tina and Spencer literally hit the ground running as they try to avoid both the police and a possible hit man. Luckily for them, Zeke set up the documents they both need to flee the country but for part of the journey, Tina is on her own. Her return to Paris is rather bittersweet since the city of lights holds both happy and very dark memories for her. Despite her mixed emotions, she is certain that Zeke is in some sort of trouble trouble so Tina remains fully committed to figuring out exactly what he is mixed up in.

Spencer knows Zeke’s current assignment is a case about selling hacked credit card information on the dark web. Zeke was caught on video tape planting a device to steal info from unsuspecting users and  Spencer has also uncovered CCTV footage that puts Zeke willingly going into a vehicle owned by nemesis Tony DeMarco. Needless to say, in light of this troubling knowledge, both Spencer and Tina are extremely concerned about what this might mean for his safety. This information along with the discovery that someone has been surreptitiously taking pictures of Tina makes her suspicious that someone might be manipulating the situation for nefarious purposes.

Vanished is an action-packed and exciting addition to the Black Hat Thriller series. Tina has been living on the edge for so long that she does not know whom she can trust.  Karen E. Olson keeps the series fresh with a new setting and a clever mystery that relies on going deep into the dark web and savvy hacking skills to solve. Although the current adventure is completely wrapped up by the novel’s thrilling conclusion, several key people manage to evade capture leaving Tina and Zeke hot on their trail.

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Filed under 1950s, Black Hat Thriller Series, Contemporary, Karen E. Olson, Mystery, Rated B+, Review, Severn House Publishers, Thriller

November 29, 2017 · 11:57 pm

Review: Deadly Dance by Hilary Bonner

Title: Deadly Dance by Hilary Bonner
DI David Vogel Series Book One
Publisher: Severn House Publishers
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 256 pages
Book Rating: B

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

This compelling novel of psychological suspense is the first in an intriguing new series featuring Bristol detective, DI David Vogel.

The discovery of the partially-clothed body of a teenage girl in the heart of Bristol’s red light district indicates a tragic yet familiar scenario. But this marks the start of a baffling murder investigation where nothing is as it first appears. Fourteen-year-old Melanie Cooke told her mother she was visiting a school friend. Who was she really going to meet?

Detective Inspector David Vogel is led towards three very different principal protagonists, each of whom grows increasingly chilling. But are they what they seem? And is any one of them capable of murder?

A darkly complex secret lies behind Melanie’s death – and its ultimate revelation will shock Vogel and his team to the core.

Review:

The first installment in the DI David Vogel series, Deadly Dance by Hilary Bonner is a dark yet compelling police procedural.

DI David Vogel is affected more than usual when he is assigned to investigate the death of fourteen year old Melanie Cooke since he has a daughter who is the same age as the victim. He does not let this affect his investigation but he is definitely determined to bring her killer to justice. Like many murder inquiries, he and his team, DC Dawn Saslow and DS John Willis, begin with the victim’s family. Although stepfather Jim Fisher has an alibi, troubling information almost immediately comes to light. Melanie’s father, Terry Cooke, is incredibly distraught at the news but he co-operates fully with the investigation. However, DC Willis zeroes in on Terry as a suspect right from the beginning.  Vogel is not convinced Terry murdered his daughter, but will the evidence prove Willis is on the right track?

Interspersed with David’s investigations are chapters  written from three very different individuals. Saul desperately wants to meet and marry and turns to an online marriage website to find a bride, but will he find a woman to share his life with? Leo is gay but he is so deeply closeted he turns to hook-ups to satisfy his desires but will he change his mind after he becomes infatuated with a one-night stand? Al is a pedophile with voyeuristic tendencies but will he continue to resist acting on his fantasies?  While these three men initially do not seem to have any connection to Melanie’s murder, will this change once Vogel delves deeper into the investigation?

Deadly Dance is an intriguing but rather slow-paced mystery. The investigation into Melanie’s murder is a straight-forward murder inquiry and Vogel is a by the book detective inspector who has keen instincts and a sharp intellect.  The chapters written from Saul, Al and Leo’s perspectives are somewhat explicit but Al’s exploits are particularly difficult to read.  These chapters are not intended to be titillating and none of their scenes are gratuitous but the subject matter is not for the faint of heart.  Readers will most immediately guess the identity of Melanie’s killer, but Hilary Bonner still brings the novel to a jaw-dropping, action packed conclusion. The DI David Vogel  series is off to an outstanding beginning with this first clever installment.

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Filed under Contemporary, Deadly Dance, DI David Vogel Series, Hilary Bonner, Mystery, Rated B, Review, Severn House Publishers, Suspense