I love reading the first book in a new mystery series and finding new characters to follow. I am also always happy when the ending has a twist that I was not expecting. This book has both.
Below you will find a book blurb, my book review, and the author’s information and social media links. Enjoy!
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Book Blurb:
Is someone trying to frame psychologist Pippa Durrant for the brutal murder of a woman she’s never even met?
It certainly seems that way when Pippa’s photo is found on the body of murdered lottery winner, Leanne Smith.
Pippa soon finds herself a suspect at the centre of a huge media storm. But she has an invaluable skill set – she is a human polygraph, expertly trained to spot lies and deceit. Skills she will need to help her to solve the mystery of who killed Leanne before it destroys her career – and her life.
But every cloud has a silver lining and this one arrives in the shape of DS Joe Swain. Initially suspicious of Pippa, he comes to trust her and to value her lie detection skills. Soon it’s clear there’s a definite spark between them….
Then, when another body turns up, Pippa realises her reputation isn’t the only thing in danger. Can she identify the killer before she becomes the next victim?
Fatal Fortune is the electrifying first book in the Dr. Pippa Durrant Thriller Series. If you like edge-of-your-seat action, clever sleuths, and shocking twists, then you’ll love Miranda Rijks’ gripping crime novel.
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My Book Review:
RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars
FATAL FORTUNE (A Dr. Pippa Durrant Mystery Book 1) by
Miranda Rijks is the first book in a new mystery series featuring psychologist
Dr. Pippa Durrant.
Leanne Smith won the lottery. As she plans for her future,
Leanne is found murdered and a photo of Pippa is left on her body, but Pippa
does not know Leanne or her family. Pippa does not like being a suspect. She is
losing her private practice clients due to the notoriety so she agrees to work
with DS Swain to get her life back.
Pippa has a talent for criminal work. She was a forensic
psychologist while working on her PhD and has studied micro expressions as a
way of being able to read the truth in facial expressions. She is like a human lie
detector. She has also studied graphology. Pippa changed to more main stream
private practice after the loss of her daughter and the disintegration of her
marriage.
DS Joe Swain is at first suspicious of Pippa, but as he gets
to know her and verifies her background, he starts to trust her and her skills.
As they work together, he seems interested in more than just Pippa’s
professional assistance.
Another dead body and another picture of Pippa on the body
with a threat written on the back. Will Pippa and Joe be able to identify the
killer before Pippa becomes the third victim?
I liked the fast paced murder mystery plot in this story. It kept me turning the pages. The twist at the end was not what I was expecting and that always makes me happy. The characters were realistically flawed and each has secrets that they are trying to keep. I still have questions in regards to Pippa’s professional and personal past which I hope will be answered in future books. I also will be interested to read how the author handles Pippa and Joe’s attraction.
I enjoyed this first mystery in the series and am looking
forward to reading more.
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About Miranda
Rijks:
Miranda Rijks is a writer of suspense
novels. I WANT YOU GONE is her first psychological thriller.
Miranda has an eclectic background ranging from law to running a garden centre.
She’s been writing all of her life and has a Masters in writing. A couple of
years ago she decided to ditch the business plans and press releases and now
she’s living the dream, writing suspense novels full time. She lives in Sussex,
England with her Dutch husband, musician daughter and black Labrador.
Up next is FATAL FORTUNE, the first of three books in a mystery romance series
that will be published in May 2019. They feature Dr Pippa Durrant, a
psychologist and specialist in lie detection, who works alongside Sussex police
getting embroiled in some scary stuff!
Miranda loves connecting with her readers, so you can reach out to her at www.mirandarijks.com
I am very happy to be a part of the Blog Blitz for Heleyne Hammersley’s new book BAD SEED (DI Kate Fletcher Book #3). This Feature Post contains a book blurb, my book review and the author’s social media info.
Even though this is the third book in the series, I had no trouble reading it as a standalone and it is definitely a page-turner. (I will be going back to read the first two books, too.) I love Kate and all of her team. I am hooked on another British police procedural series!
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Bad Seed Blurb
When the body of a woman is discovered near
Doncaster’s red light district, DI Kate Fletcher is called to the scene.
The victim has an abdominal wound that looks
like a Caesarean incision, leading the police to believe she may have been
pregnant.
Kate’s team establish the woman’s identity
but it soon becomes clear that those close to her have something to hide.
The post-mortem reveals the victim wasn’t
pregnant and, when a second body is discovered with similar wounds, the police
realise they are hunting for a serial killer with a sinister fixation.
Can Kate solve the case before another
woman dies?
And can a ruthless, methodical killer be brought to justice?
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RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
BAD SEED (DI Kate Fletcher Book #3) by Heleyne Hammersley is
the latest DI Kate Fletcher British police procedural in the series. This is
the first book I have read in this series by this author and it is easily read
as a standalone. I enjoyed it so much, I will definitely be going back to read
the first two books.
DI Kate Fletcher is called to the scene of a gruesome murder victim found dumped in a field. The victim has been strangled, raped and had her abdomen sliced open with a precision cut similar to a Caesarean incision. She was not pregnant. As Kate’s team works to identify the woman, they soon discover that those around her are hiding something.
When a second body is found with similar wounds, Kate
believes they may have a serial killer. Can Kate and her team catch this methodical killer before
another woman dies?
This is a fast paced procedural that kept me turning the
pages. Ms. Hammersley’s writing pulls you in and with all the twists and turns I
could not put it down. I love DI Kate Fletcher. A strong female lead character
done well. The whole team makes a great cast of secondary characters that I
hope to learn more about as I follow the series.
I can highly recommend this book and I cannot wait to read
more in the series!
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Author Info
Heleyne
Hammersley is a British writer based in Cumbria. She writes psychological
suspense thrillers and crime novels.
Heleyne has been writing since junior school –
her first work was a collection of poems called ‘Give Them the Works’ when she
was ten years old. The poems were carefully handwritten on plain paper and tied
together with knitting wool.
When she’s not writing, Heleyne can often be
found wandering on the fells or in the local park with her dog.
MURDER UNEXPECTED (Kat and Mouse Mysteries #2) by Anita
Waller is the second contemporary cozy mystery in this intriguing and
entertaining trilogy. Each book has a unique mystery to be solved, but these
books are best read in order due to the continuation of the main characters’
interactions and development.
This story picks up just a few months after the end of the
first book, which has Kat, Mouse and Doris all waiting anxiously for the birth
of Kat’s baby while being wary as Kat’s husband is still a fugitive. The three
are being careful and vigilant as they work to grow their detective agency,
Connection in the village of Eyam.
When a widow gives the ladies a case to identify the birth
mother of her deceased husband something just does not feel right. Judith is
not telling the whole truth. While others knew of her husband’s wish to find
his birth mother before his cancer diagnosis, no one believes Judith is doing
this out of love. When the ladies go to return her retainer and get out of the
case, they find Judith murdered.
This murder leads to many twists and turns, with the ladies
sharing information with DI Tessa Marsden and Hannah once again.
This second book in the trilogy was even more intense and
emotionally riveting than the first. Kat’s continued personal upheaval with her
husband, Leon ended with a surprise that was realistic, but I did not expect the
author to go there. The murder mystery plot in this book also was not what I
was expecting. It had so many twists and turns that drained me emotionally and
yet were completely satisfying by its resolution. Ms. Waller has some very
clever ideas when it comes to murder.
I love Kat, Mouse (Beth) and Doris. These are strong female
characters you feel you want to meet in real life. DI Marsden and Hannah are
also intelligent law enforcement characters. Wonderful writing brings these
characters to life and the resolutions are clever and thought provoking.
I can highly recommend this book and am anxiously awaiting book #3 of the trilogy!
Thanks very much to Bloodhound Books and Net Galley for allowing me to read this eARC.
MURDER UNDENIABLE (Kat and Mouse Mysteries #1) by Anita Waller is the first book in a contemporary cozy mystery trilogy. This author has written three main characters that are as intelligent and realistic as they are entertaining. The start was a little slow, but it was setting up a crime in the past witnessed by a group of friends which ties into the current murders. The suspense and mystery builds after this scene though at a rapid pace.
Katerina Rowe is a Deacon at her church in the village of
Eyam. She is happily married and very satisfied with her life. They have just
celebrated their fourth wedding anniversary.
As Kat and Leon are exciting into the alley behind his
pharmacy, they discover a man shot to death and a woman barely hanging on to
life after being shot in the shoulder and kicked in the head. The woman, Beth,
called Mouse, by her family was the dead man’s escort for the night. Kat does not
understand why, but she is drawn to Mouse and wants to protect her.
At the hospital Kat meets Beth’s nan, Doris and the three
woman form a bond. When Beth’s flat is burned down, Kat takes her and her nan
in as the peril escalates and more people are murdered. These three will use
their skills to dig into the murders and hopefully find the killer before he
succeeds in killing Beth.
I love Kat, Beth and Doris. They are unique characters that
each have their own talents to bring to the group. I am very glad I will get to
revisit them. The setting of the “plague village” of Eyam was interesting to
learn about and is perfect for a cozy setting. I was glad that Ms. Waller made
the police investigators as intelligent as the cozy sleuths. They were not
stupid or inept caricatures. The ending was only a partial surprise, but it was
very satisfying.
I am looking forward to reading the remainder of this Kat
and Mouse trilogy.
A MERCIFUL FATE (Mercy Kilpatrick #5) by Kendra Elliot is
the latest romantic suspense, mystery/suspense, FBI procedural, who cares what
you call it, cannot put it down read featuring one of my favorite main
characters! This is a series I recommend you read in order because each book
builds on all of the characters’ relationships and secrets besides giving you
new crimes and/or mysteries in each.
Special Agent Mercy Kilpatrick is thrown into a notorious,
decades old bank robbery when the skeleton of one of the robbers is found in a
decaying cabin. The mastermind of the team was captured and put in prison, but
the money and the rest of the gang seem to have disappeared into thin air. Just
as Mercy starts reinvestigating the robbery, a young tabloid reporter shows up
in Eagle’s Nest asking questions that are threatening long buried secrets.
Police Chief Truman Daly gets pulled into the investigation
when the reporter is found dead in her car. Some of the people have secrets and
are not who they appear in the Eagle’s Nest community. Whether they are related
to the old robbery or not, they want them kept secret. Mercy and Truman need to
reveal them all to find the threat to their community and family. Some long
held friends and neighbors are not who or what they seem.
This series just keeps getting better and better. The old,
unsolved robbery is an intriguing crime plot that builds the suspense and threat
level at a rapid rate throughout the story. I was very surprised throughout the
resolution. I love Mercy and Truman’s relationship and how Mercy is learning to
navigate their relationship while balancing everything with her long held prepper
lifestyle. All of the secondary characters are becoming fully fleshed out
characters that I look for now in each book.
My only slight criticism of this series is that I believe
Mercy’s father may have a point. Not his indifference or stubbornness, but the
people around Mercy seem to be injured or killed quite frequently. In most series
the main character is injured or almost killed so many times you wonder how
they can keep recovering and working, but it is those around Mercy who suffer
this author’s wrath.
That said, I highly recommend this series and Mercy! I
always look forward to reading these books and catching up with all of the
Eagle’s Nest community.
Hopefully by now you have all checked out my Feature Post for Kendra Elliot’s new book “A Merciful Fate” and entered the Rafflecopter giveaway.
This Feature Post and Book Reviews are to entice you to read the whole series! I LOVE Mercy and I highly recommend this series. Below you will find my reviews of Mercy Kilpatrick Books 1-4 by Kendra Elliot and the author’s social media info.
Happy Reading!
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RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars
A MERCIFUL DEATH (Mercy Kilpatrick #1) by Kendra Elliot is
the start of a new series that is a cross between romantic suspense and
mystery/suspense. This type of series is always difficult to categorize for me,
but it is similar to Melinda Leigh’s Morgan Dane series and/or Marie Force’s
Fatal series which are must reads for me. The balance between romance and
mystery/suspense varies depending on the plot in each book.
FBI Special Agent Mercy Kilpatrick grew up in rural Eagle’s
Nest, Oregon in the shadow of the Cascade Mountains. Until the age of eighteen,
Mercy was raised in a family of preppers. After a falling out with her father
that had him disowning her, Mercy left town to build her own life. Her lifetime
of being prepared for disaster has stayed with her though and is a necessary
part of her life even though she hides it from her colleagues.
When there are a series of elderly male preppers murdered in
Mercy’s hometown. What would normally be a local case catches the FBI’s
attention when the preppers large caches of weapons are also stolen. This
raises the possibility of domestic terrorism. Her FBI supervisor sends her and
her partner to work with the nearby Bend office and local law enforcement.
Eagle Nest Police Chief Truman Daly is the nephew of one of
the murdered men. Raised in the community only on summer breaks, he is just
starting to be accepted in a community that has its own ideas about the
government and police. As Truman works with Mercy on the murders, he learns of
her family ties to the community and begins to suspect, she did not completely
leave her prepper life behind.
Mercy discovers that these current murders are eerily
familiar to two unsolved murders in the town’s past. With her sister now
involved, Mercy and Truman must capture a killer who has been free in their
community for much too long before her sister suffers the same fate.
Mercy is a wonderfully unique and flawed character. I find her so interesting and want to know much more about her and her family. Truman has his own interesting history and I hope this budding romance continues. He has his work cut out for him with such an independent heroine who does not like to share her secrets. The plot was interesting and tied in well with the older cases, but this is also why I gave this book four stars instead of five. I found Mercy’s brother’s actions not believable. (No spoilers, so you will have to read it and see if you agree.) Overall, a good start to this series and I am looking forward to reading the next book.
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RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
A MERCIFUL TRUTH (Mercy Kilpatrick #2) by Kendra Elliot is
the newest book in this continuing romantic suspense/mystery/suspense series. I
have been looking forward to reading more about Mercy!
FBI Special Agent Mercy Kilpatrick and her partner, Eddie have
transferred to the Bend FBI field office. Eddie likes the wilderness of central
Oregon over Portland and Mercy wants to be closer to Truman and her family.
Mercy is getting closer to her sisters and mother, but her father and brother
blame her for the violence and change in her family from book #1.
Eagle’s Nest Police Chief Truman Daly is investigating a
series of small fires that he believes are being started by teenagers. When a
barn is set on fire, everything changes when two county sheriffs are shot and killed
when they respond. Arson has become murder. At the next fire the murdered body
of an unidentified man is found at the scene. No one is talking and Mercy and
Truman have no idea why these fires are being set or who is setting them.
As they investigate the unidentified dead man, Mercy’s niece
is learning that the teenagers her new boyfriend is hanging out with are
trouble and that her boyfriend is having second thoughts about working at his
job on a large secluded ranch outside of town. There are rumors of many outside
men coming to town and living on the ranch. Mercy’s brother is also somehow
tied to the ranch and reciting a lot of anti-government hate rhetoric.
The closer Mercy and Truman get to the truth, long buried
secrets are exposed and their personal danger escalates.
I loved Mercy in the first book and I am now hooked for good. Her character is so interesting. The balance between her life as an FBI agent and her hidden life as a prepper makes for very interesting reading. I love that Truman “gets” Mercy and her unique life and does not try to change her. Mercy’s family and all of the secondary characters are becoming more fleshed out and interesting. The plot builds in intensity and wraps everything up at the end. This book can be read as a standalone, but like so many other similar series, the relationships grow and change in each book as in real life, so I recommend reading them in order. This has become a must read series for me!
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RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
A MERCIFUL SECRET (Mercy Kilpatrick #3) by Kendra Elliot
returns you to Mercy Kilpatrick’s world of rural central Oregon. This series
gives you intriguing mystery/suspense plots and a view into the world of
preppers, survivalists and anti-government sovereign citizens.
FBI Special Agent Mercy Kilpatrick is surprised at night on
a rural road close to her hidden cabin by a young girl who flags her down from
the side of the road. Mercy is led through the woods to a cabin where the
girl’s grandmother is dying from multiple stab wounds. The Sabins, three
generations of women; grandmother, mother and daughter have lived isolated in
the woods and are rumored to be witches.
Mercy is later to learn a judge, hundreds of miles away is
found slain in the exact same way brings her friend and fellow FBI agent from
Portland to investigate both murders. Not one to be kept on the sidelines,
Mercy along with Chief of Police Truman Daly insert themselves into the
investigation. An old friend from Mercy’s high school days is implicated along
with the daughter of the slain woman.
Rumors and secrets keep hindering the investigation until
the explosive surprise climax.
This series just keeps getting better and better. The mystery plot in this third book is fast paced and the resolution was a surprise to me. This book also contains some flashback scenes from one of the suspects which add depth and understanding to her character and others. Mercy and Truman’s relationship takes a big leap after the climax of this story and I cannot wait to read more. I found it difficult to put this book down and I am anxiously awaiting the next book in the series!
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RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
A MERCIFUL SILENCE (Mercy Kilpatrick #4) by Kendra Elliot is
a cross between romantic suspense and mystery/suspense genres. Each book has a
standalone mystery/suspense plot, but it also has a building romance involving
the main characters of the series which may or may not be prominent in each
story. The current book leans more towards being a police procedural with
emotionally charged murders in the past and present with extremely high stakes
for Mercy and Truman.
FBI Special Agent Mercy Kilpartrick is called to the scene
of a washed out road which exposes human skeletal remains. As she works to
discover the identity of the remains, she remembers two families that were
murdered in the exact same manner 20 years ago. The killer has always
maintained his innocence and is still in prison. Copycat or has the wrong man
been in prison all these years?
When the sole survivor of one of the old murdered families
returns to town, Mercy is not sure what to make of the woman. She asks for
Mercy’s help because she believes she is being stalked. Mercy feels she knows
more than she is telling about that long ago murder. Is she somehow a part of
the current murders or is she a lose end that needs to be eliminated?
As Mercy works her case, Eagle’s Nest Chief of Police Truman
Daly has a unique traffic stop with a young man who shows illegal ID and claims
to be a sovereign citizen. While jailed, he sends Truman a letter claiming he
owns him 3 million dollars for an illegitimate arrest. Truman does not know
whether to take this seriously or as a joke. These sovereign citizens do not
want anyone interfering in their business. Truman and his police vehicle
disappear and there is blood on the driveway.
I could not put this book down!
Mercy and Truman both go through so much in this book. Even
as they are apart, it is the fight to get home to the other that gives them
their strength. Mercy realizes no amount of prep can prepare her for
everything. She learns it is OK to sometimes rely on family and friends. Truman’s
love for Mercy is his strength and reason to continue on even when he thinks he
cannot. This was definitely an edge-of-your-seat read with both cases having
such high stakes.
I believe you should read this series in order as the characters grow and change in each book as in real life. I highly recommend this series. Mercy is a memorable character.
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Author Biography
Kendra
Elliot has landed on the Wall Street Journal bestseller list
multiple times and is the award-winning author of the Bone Secrets and Callahan
& McLane series, as well as the Mercy Kilpatrick novels: A Merciful
Death, A Merciful Truth, and A Merciful Secret. Kendra is
a three-time winner of the Daphne du Maurier Award, an International Thriller
Writers finalist, and an RT Award finalist. She has always been a voracious
reader, cutting her teeth on classic female heroines such as Nancy Drew, Trixie
Belden, and Laura Ingalls. She was born, raised, and still lives in the rainy
Pacific Northwest with her husband and three daughters, but she looks forward
to the day she can live in flip-flops. Visit her at www.kendraelliot.com.
