crime fiction

Crimson Lake by Candice Fox Review

Janereads2 Comments
Crimson Lake by Candice Fox review
Crimson Lake by Candice Fox, ISBN 9781784758066, 405pp

I have to admit that I would never have picked up Crimson Lake by Candice Fox if not for the repeated recommendation from a bookstagram friend. Candice Fox is an Australian crime writer who has about eleven books under her belt, including a few co-written with publishing superstar James Patterson.

Don’t get me wrong, I do like reading crime novels by Australian authors — Jane Harper is my favourite — but I don’t read this genre too often and I have a “to be read” pile bursting at the seams. But my husband found me a second-hand copy of Crimson Lake and I was then out of excuses. I had to give Candice Fox a chance.

And my verdict? Crimson Lake is one of the best books I’ve read for ages. Continue reading →

The Ruin by Dervla McTiernan Review

Janereads7 Comments
The Ruin
The Ruin by Dervla McTiernan, ISBN 9781460754214, 380pp, Pub Feb 2018

The Ruin by Dervla McTiernan is a debut novel set in Galway, Ireland. I was sent a copy of this book for review by HarperCollins Australia and it sat in my to be read pile for a while. When I finally picked it up, I was instantly hooked by the writing and expert plotting. The Ruin very much reads like it should be book ten from a well-established author instead of a debut. I read mostly crime thrillers rather than police procedural novels, but I’ve read enough of this genre to know that this is a high quality example.

The Ruin has been compared to the bestselling The Dry (probably because Dervla and Jane Harper both live in Australia) but I think it’s very different from The Dry.

Continue reading →