Book Review -The One You Love by Paul Pilkington

REVIEW

Emma Holden’s boyfriend goes missing on his own stag night and no-one knows what has happened to him.  This is the beginning of a mystery that takes Emma up and down the country, questioning everything she ever knew or thought she knew in a bid to find out what exactly happened that night.

The One You Love is a suspense novel with a romantic element and can be enjoyed by anyone who likes a good mystery. Hints and clues were dropped into the story line but every time I thought I might have it worked out, something else came up to make me change my mind. I liked the way small insights were given as to what was happening that the main characters didn’t necessarily know or, if they did, they weren’t sharing with each other. It unfolded rather like a crime drama seen on TV and kept me hooked and interested the whole way through.

Really enjoyable read and I shall definitely be adding  the other books in the series to my reading list.

DESCRIPTION

Emma Holden’s nightmare has just begun. Her fiancé vanishes, leaving the battered and bloodied body of his brother in their London apartment. Someone is stalking her, watching her every move. And her family are hiding a horrifying secret; a secret that threatens all those she loves. In a desperate race against time, Emma must uncover the truth if she ever wants to see her fiancé alive again.

The One You Love is a fast-paced suspense mystery, full of twists and turns, following in the tradition of writers such as Nicci French and Sophie Hannah.

Since July 2011 it has been downloaded over one million times, has spent a full month at number 1 in the UK Kindle free download chart (July-August 2011), and reached the top of the US Kindle free download chart.

About the Author

Paul Pilkington has had material broadcast on BBC radio and ITV television, and was long listed for the 2004 London Book Fair Lit Idol competition. In 2004, Paul was inspired to write his first suspense mystery, The One You Love, through his love of emotional mystery thrillers, such as those by Harlan Coben, Linwood Barclay, Nicci French and Thomas H Cook. His aim is to create fast-paced, twisting and turning fiction that stirs the emotions. His latest mystery suspense thriller, Someone to Save You, was released in 2011. The One You Fear (sequel to The One You Love), will be published in December 2012. Find out more about Paul’s writing:

Follow Paul on Twitter: @paulpilkington

Like him on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/paulpilkingtonauthor

Visit his website: http://www.paulpilkington.com

Book Review : Security by Mandy Baggot

REVIEW

With a slight shift in sub-genre from romance to romantic suspense, Mandy Baggot’s books get stronger and stronger.  This is probably my favourite one to date.

We meet Autumn Raine, singing superstar and she is not instantly likeable, coming across as spoilt and self-obsessed. However, gradually the walls come down and you get to know the real woman underneath who is both vulnerable and determined at the same time. Underneath the celebrity exterior, there is a genuine likeable person. She’s had a lot of emotional obstacles to overcome and has not always had the best advice. Now she’s up against the biggest challenge yet with her life in danger.

Cue mean and moody, northern bodyguard, Nathan Regan. He doesn’t change his attitude or his mind for anyone, that is until he comes up against Autumn Raine . As if outwitting kidnap plots and extremists isn’t enough for one guy, he also has  demons of his own to battle at the same time.

With unexpected twists in the plot, Security, has suspense and tension all the way through, together with some great chemistry and tough romance, this really is my sort of book.

Description

Autumn Raine is a pop vocalist at the very top of her game. She’s a style icon, the paparazzi’s darling and everyone wants to be her friend. But when her safety is threatened, her whole life starts to unravel.

Enter Nathan Regan, an ex-elite soldier who is assigned to protect her. He’s a good man doing bad things but what drives him? Passion? Madness? Or grief? Demons from his past are threatening to consume him. Can he win the fight alone or will he have to admit he needs help?

As the threat deepens, Autumn starts to find out who she really needs in her life. Is there still room for personal assistant Janey or rapper boyfriend Rockweiler? When everyone around her is feeding her lies, how does she work out the truth? Does her record producer know more than he’s letting on? What is her mother, the British Foreign Secretary’s involvement in the situation? And can Autumn put her faith in a forty-something Jamaican woman who handles an automatic weapon as expertly as she cooks?

Eluding kidnap and trying to stay alive, can Autumn find the strength to be the person she longs to be? And can two people, poles apart, forge something strong enough to survive anything?

GIVEAWAY

As part of of the Security launch, Mandy is having a giveaway. Anyone who posts a review on Amazon up until the end of May can enter into the Rafflecopter draw to win a £25/$40 Amazon gift certificate. You will be able to enter via this link:

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/e42d6b8/

About the Author

Mandy Baggot brings you award-winning fiction! In 2012 she won the coveted Innovation in Romantic Fiction award at the UK’s Festival of Romance. Her novel Strings Attached was also short listed for Best Author Published Read!.

Mandy writes strong contemporary romance and characters you’ll fall in love with. Previously self-published, she was signed by US
publishing house Sapphire Star Publishing in January 2012. Shortly afterwards she became a member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association.

Mandy is a self-confessed Twitter addict who also likes to show off her singing talents on You Tube – check out Lady Gaga! She has auditioned for X Factor, appeared on ITV1s Who Dares Sings and longs to duet with Bryan Adams. She also has a fondness for white wine, mashed potato, country music and World’s Strongest Man.

Mandy lives near Salisbury in Wiltshire, UK with her husband, two daughters and two cats called Kravitz and Springsteen.

You can find out more on Mandy’s website
http://mandybaggot.com

or check out her author page at Sapphire Star Publishing
http://www.sapphirestarpublishing.com/mandybaggot

This visit was arranged by

Up Close by Henriette Gyland

Too close for comfort…

When Dr Lia Thompson’s grandmother dies unexpectedly, Lia is horrified to have to leave her life in America and return to a cold and creaky house in Norfolk. But as events unfold, she can’t help feeling that there is more to her grandmother’s death than meets the eye.

Aidan Morrell is surprised to see Lia, his teenage crush, back in town. But Aidan’s accident when serving in the navy has scarred him in more ways than one, and he has other secrets which must stay hidden at all costs, even from Lia.

As Lia comes closer to uncovering the truth, she is forced to question everything she thought she knew. In a world of increasing danger, is Aidan someone she can trust?

My Thoughts

Really enjoyed this book. A bit of suspense, a mystery and a romance too – all the things I love in a novel.

It took me a little while to warm to the main character, Lia, but as I got to know her better and understand her, I did feel a real empathy for her.  This was actually quite refreshing  as I felt Lia was a very realistic character – just like in real life, it takes time to get to know someone and not until you know them properly, can you form a balanced opinion of them.

Aidan had several layers to his character too and although I was sure I could trust him, the way the plot unravelled had me questioning his actions.

The plot revolved around military issues; the impact of going to war and the after effects which had obviously been well researched by the author.  There were other aspects woven into the plot too, which keeps the reader guessing and trying to put together the pieces to solve the mystery. The clues are there, some more subtle than others, together with a twist at the end.  I don’t want to say much more for fear of spoiling the plot but for those who enjoy romance and suspense, this is one I’d highly recommend and will certainly look out for future novels by this author.

Links for Henriette Gyland

http://henriettegyland.wordpress.com/

ChocLit Publishing

Amazon.co.uk

Amazon.com

Public Property by Mandy Baggot

Freya Johnson is back and life is good!

Having sold her photography studio in the UK, she’s now living the American dream, engaged to Hollywood film star, Nicholas Kaden. Finally her past is behind her and the only way is up – as long as she’s regularly fed takeaway food!

But with a wedding to plan and a whole heap of charity work to organise, she could do without the reappearance of her childhood sweetheart, Jonny Sanders. He’s rich, he’s better looking than she remembers and he reminds her of all those times she’d rather forget.

When a flippant comment made during a hospital visit ends up as headline news, suddenly everything is in turmoil and Freya’s life is in danger!

Could her past be coming back to haunt her?
Who is sending her hate mail?
And where the hell are her ‘Wild Wednesday’ pants?

My Thoughts

Having read Excess All Areas earlier in the year, it was nice to catch up with Freya and Nicholas again. I was pleased to see the banter between the two was still there, which made me smile often and laugh out loud several times. It was also great to see that they were still very much in love.

The first half of the book built up a good picture of their relationship and gradually filtered in bits of information that were later significant to the plot. The pace increased as the plot developed and there were plenty of surprises along the way. Some I weren’t expecting at all and one was a complete surprise but an excellent one. The tension increased with every page right up until the end.

A great plot that builds up and really gathers pace with plenty of twists to keep me on the edge of my seat.

Links for Mandy Baggot

Website : http://mandybaggot.webs.com/

Twitter : @MandyBaggot

Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/mandy.baggot?fref=ts