Mr Lucky by Lee Wood #kindlebooks @LeeWoodAuthor #MrLuckyBook #bookreview

 

Mr Lucky by Lee Wood

Published by Nielsen

Publication Date: 3rd May 2023

Book Description:

Detective James Sheldon had it all—a loving family and a solid career—but when tragedy strikes, his life spirals into a dark abyss, leaving him homeless. Just as he hits rock bottom, an astonishing £168 million Lotto win seems like his salvation. But money can’t buy safety, and soon, James finds himself facing threats far deadlier than his own demons.

With danger lurking around every corner, every time James thinks he’s seen the worst, a new nightmare begins. As he fights to pull himself back from the edge, he’s forced to confront his darkest fears and rediscover his strength—or risk losing everything again.

Will he survive the greatest challenge of his life, or will his victory turn into his ultimate downfall?

My Thoughts:

This book fell into my kindle one lunchtime at work. One of those perfect mood reads which just happens to be on a 99p kindle deal just when you're "between books" and have "nothing else to read". (Let's just ignore for now the other gazillion books on my kindle and my shelves at home which are groaning under the strain of unread novels. They don't exist when out of reach and there's an interesting kindle deal going on...).

So, the concept of this book piqued my interest. How could a lottery win of £168 million when you're homeless and down to your last couple of quid possibly make life worse for someone? Enter James Sheldon and his nemesis Dave Rex to tell us more. The opening chapter of this book very much reminded me of the opening scenes in the TV series Gangs of London. Not exactly the same, but giving off very similar vibes. Some really not nice people exacting their own brand of vengeance on those they believe have crossed them. The book tracks James's speedy slide from successful police detective to homeless, jobless loser and the person responsible for this turn of events.

Without sounding callous, I enjoyed reading how the two men interlinked with each other - not even 6 degrees of separation at some points - and the story certainly points at how quickly a person's fortunes can change depending on outside influences and the desires of others. Food for thought when I was sitting in a traffic jam on my way home from work. There but for the grace of God we all go. Scary if you choose to overthink things! Thank goodness there are a few good souls left in this world, and their light shone through during James's misfortunes.

I found the early chapters of the book to be a little clunky in their writing style; a bit "tell" instead of "show", and I felt as if I could distinguish what the author had written in one of their writing sessions before breaking off and starting the next chapter with a new vibe later on. This eased at around the halfway point, and the writing seemed to flow far better from there on in, as if the author had found his rhythm and the story just poured out of him once he'd put all the building blocks into place.

A thought-provoking read which overall I enjoyed - it's difficult to say too much without hinting at where the book ends, and I don't wish to spoil anyone's journey of discovery through the pages. I can quite positively say that I had my money's worth from this kindle deal. A decent story for under a quid, and another author to add to my ever-growing list of ones to watch (he has a further 9 books for me to choose from, so I know where to go when I'm between reads another time!).

About the Author:

Before turning to writing crime novels, Lee enjoyed a long and dynamic career in the music industry. From playing in bands as a teenager to running an indie record label and record shop during the punk rock era, Lee has always been close to the action. He also launched a music collector’s magazine, building it from the ground up to reach a circulation of 14,000 copies a month. Over the years, he’s crossed paths with almost every major ‘pop star’ and fulfilled a lifelong dream by managing The Troggs, one of his all-time favourite bands.

His passion for storytelling began early, with Sherlock Holmes sparking his imagination at just eight years old—and by eleven, he’d already helped the police solve a local crime.

Lee lives in Cambridge and approaches writing as a thrilling new adventure.

The Lollipop Man by Daniel Sellers @AllisonandBusby @DJSellersAuthor #TheLollipopMan #booktwt #bookreview

 

The Lollipop Man by Daniel Sellers

Published by Allison & Busby

Publication Date: 20th February 2025

My thanks to Josie at Allison & Busby publishing team for the very early invitation to read this book ahead of publication. My thoughts and opinions are my own and unbiased.

Book Description:

When a young girl is snatched from a West Yorkshire town there are eerie similarities with a cold case from many years earlier. It can't be the same killer, can it?

Yorkshire, 1994. Eighteen-year-old Adrian spends his days working at the local newspaper, and his evenings in his local pub. But under this ordinary surface lies a haunting story. Aged ten, Adrian was kidnapped by a shadowy figure known as The Lollipop Man, who had abducted three children before. Adrian was the only one to escape.

The Lollipop Man might well have returned when another missing child whips up a media frenzy. Journalist Sheila Hargreaves, troubled with memories of her own involvement in the reporting of the previous abductions, is determined to dig deeper, atone for what she did nearly a decade ago and bring the Lollipop Man to justice.

My Thoughts:

Daniel Sellers has just earned his way on to my 'ones to watch' list with his new book The Lollipop Man. It's an intriguing story of what happened to 'the one who got away' from a kidnapper of young children some 8 years previously. 

Adrian Brown is finding his feet as the newbie in the office of local newspaper. He's basically a dogsbody, watching and learning from the reporters and photographer who he's tasked with ferrying around. But a job comes in that takes him back to the worst time of his life, when everything changed including his name. A young girl has been taken from the garden of a house - surely the Lollipop Man can't be back? The local news team are despatched to find out what is going on. 

Within hours Adrian finds himself to be the centre of a attention, not least from journalists digging into the past, the local constabulary and a random "crazy lady" named Edna Wormley who herself becomes headline news for all the wrong reasons.

Daniel Sellers has created some great characters in this book, with unlikely allegiances made and friendships tested to breaking point. I had all sorts of possibilities running through my head as the plot developed - even asking myself whether Adrian was closer to the Lollipop Man than could possibly be true.

Vivid descriptions of places and characters make this an engaging read, which earns itself a very strong 4 star rating from me.

About the Author:

Daniel Sellers is the author of the Kindle-bestselling Lola Harris Mysteries and is an obsessive fan of Agatha Christie. His crime thrillers are pacy and dark, with as much interest in whydunnit as who. He grew up in Yorkshire, and has lived and worked in Liverpool, Glasgow, Ireland and Finland. Sellers now lives in Argyll in Scotland.

Making A Killing by Cara Hunter #NetGalley @CaraHunterBooks #MakingAKilling #bookreview @Hemlock_Press @HarperFiction #DCIFawley

Making A Killing by Cara Hunter

Published by Harper Fiction/Hemlock Press

Publication Date: 13th February 2025

Huge thanks to the publisher for allowing me early access to this fabulous book via NetGalley.

Book Description:

In 2016, eight-year-old Daisy Mason vanished from her Oxford home.

Her disappearance made the national press and the final culprit shocked everyone. DCI Adam Fawley remembers the case well, he arrested Daisy’s mother for murder himself.

But her body was never found.

Now, forensic evidence at a current murder scene calls the whole case into question. DCI Adam Fawley and the team are brought back in to investigate. And they all have one question on their minds.

What really happened to Daisy Mason?

My Thoughts:

To say there was one overly excited reader here when I opened the notification from Netgalley with the approval for this book is possibly the biggest understatement of 2024! I have followed the Adam Fawley series from book 1, Close to Home, and have pushed it into the hands of many a reader seeking a guaranteed page turner since 2017. But, that said, as it was some 7 years plus since I read that first instalment, I decided a refresher read was necessary before I dived in to book 7. A decision well-made as it brought all the details of the Daisy Mason disappearance back ready for reference as Adam and the team were forced to revisit the case that put both her parents behind bars. There's a handy introduction to the significant characters at the start of the book which, if you have bought the book not realising its background, is really useful. 

The story begins, as with many discoveries of murder victims, with a dog walker stumbling across a shallow grave - but the can of worms the discovery opens isn't immediately obvious. There's a missing uni student in the locality, so it makes sense that first guesses to the identity of the victim point in her direction. Forensic tests on the body and associated evidence soon shift the focus - but what they're saying seems impossible, as the DNA they've found belongs to someone who couldn't possibly have been there: Daisy.

Cara Hunter has used her signature method of including photos, social media posts, newspaper clippings, and emails along the way to portray the public mood toward the case and information being fed between the investigators. I love this method as the reader can put the pieces together themselves alongside the detectives as the story progresses.

OK so it would be most unlikely for the detectives who got things so spectacularly wrong first time around to be quite involved in this new case, but if you can ignore that (which I found extremely easy to do) you will love the journey this book takes you on. It explores not just what happened 8 years ago, but the effects that whole experience had on everyone involved. Which would infuriate Daisy because - as always - it's not all about her!

The ending is fantastic but will annoy some readers as the remaining loose ends dangle some tantalising tasters for possible further instalments in this series. Which makes me very happy - I just hope we don't have to wait another 8 years for the answers!

About the Author:

Cara Hunter is the author of instant New York Times bestselling thriller Murder in the Family as well as the Sunday Times bestselling crime novels featuring DI Adam Fawley and his Oxford-based police team. Of those novels, Close to Home was shortlisted for Crime Book of the Year in the British Book Awards 2019 and No Way Out was selected by the Sunday Times as one of the 100 best crime novels since 1945. Cara’s books have sold more than a million copies worldwide. She lives in Oxford, on a street not unlike those featured in her books. 

Find out more at cara-hunter.com