S J Bolton - Awakening

I read this novel with one of our Westbourne Reading Groups. My goodness Sharon Bolton can write tension and suspense. If you like excellent writing and scarey intelligent stories this is for you. Our heroine is Clara a Veterinary Surgeon. Like many of Sharon's strong female leads, she has her own problems and vulnerabilities, having been disfigured as a child. She has chosen to bury herself, in the countryside and work with animals who do not judge, When a man dies from a suspicious snake bite she is called in to give her opinion. There then begins a terrifying search for a clever killer, linking his killings to an ancient ritual. This book is truly creepy. The snakes are horrible but fascinating at the same time. I loved it. It has some great themes and makes a good reading group read.

It is great that we have Sharon coming t6o Westbourne Library to give a talk on Fear, Folklore and Forensics. See you there?

Kate Rhodes event

Come and meet the wonderful Kate Rhodes who will be talking about her new book River of Souls the fourth book in the Alice Quentin, forensic psychologist series.
This is a fast paced thriller with a very dark heart, based around the River Thames, a politicians daughter, an elderly priest and ancient Roman artifacts. Absolutely brilliant and an excellent choice for a reading group!

Sharon Bolton - Little Black Lies

We are very excited that we have Sharon Bolton coming to Bournemouth for an author event at Westbourne Library on 22nd October.

Well what a fantastic book this is. Taut, dark, edge of the seat thriller. Set in the Falklands in 1994, it is an intense psychological journey. The book is told from several perspectives each revealing more of the drama unfolding in our narrator Caitlin's head.
Three years ago Caitlin lost both her sons in an accident, she lost the baby she was carrying and ultimately her husband as well. As she struggles to survive the only thing that seems to keep her going is her desire for revenge on the woman whom she blames for all her loss.
However, also during that time two young boys have gone missing and now a third is missing as well.  What has happened to them? Drawn into the search almost against her will, spurred on by Callum, a psychologically damaged former paratrooper who stayed on after the war, the book rushes to a brilliant climax.
This would make a fantastic reading group book, there is just so much to talk about, The Falklands, the whales, loss, revenge, friendship and the last paragraph, oh my word!

Clare Mackintosh - I Let You Go

Absolutely stunning debut novel from Clare. It is very difficult to actually say very much about this book without giving away massive spoilers. It is a thriller, a mystery and packs a punch keeping you guessing all the way through and with a massive twist at the end that I did not see coming. A great feature of the book is the wonderful Welsh landscape. I would thoroughly recommend it and it quite rightly deserves to be up there  with the best sellers , It would make an excellent reading group book, there is much to discuss.