Virtual Crime Book Club – Video and Voting

First of all, apologies for putting this post up a day late. Yesterday I had my head down finishing a manuscript that needed to go to my editor. It was already late and there was no way I could add even another day to that. There really was no time to spare to write this up. But, it’s done! And I’m here now 🙂

Monday evening saw the Virtual Crime Book Club discuss The Dying Squad by Adam Simcox. We also had the pleasure of Adam’s company for the first twenty minutes where we peppered him with questions about the book, about the world he wrote about and about his writing process – which surprised a few of us! He was wonderful company and we are grateful he took the time out of his evening to talk to us.

Due to the nature of the book, the level of fantasy weaved into the crime, it was a mixed bag of thoughts this month. But those who enjoyed it are definitely going on to the next in the series, which is published later this year.

You can watch the meeting below. Be aware it contains huge spoilers, so if you’re planning to read the book, don’t watch this until you’ve done so.

For May’s book we are reading a psychological thriller. We haven’t read this sub-genre since the book club re-started two years ago. And can I just take this moment to say, the book club is two years old this month! So a huge thank you to all members, whether you read along quietly in the background, attend only one or two meetings, or attend all meetings. You are what makes the virtual crime book club so much fun and so welcoming to new members. Thank you.

So, onto the vote. As always, you have until the end of Friday to vote for the book you want to read. Leave your vote in the comments. The next meeting is Monday 23rd May at 8pm BST (UK time zone). If you haven’t yet signed up to the book club (which you need to do in order to access the zoom meeting) you can sign up HERE. 

Angel Maker by Morgan Greene

Every angel deserves their wings…

A teenage girl is found dead in the woods. The kill bears a chilling resemblance to those of the Angel Maker, a serial killer caught two decades ago.

But with the old case files missing and doubts swirling about the original investigation, London Met detective Jamie Johansson is drawn back to the icy streets of her home city to help. Her father, one of Stockholm’s most notorious detectives, closed the case when Jamie was just a girl. And her memories may hold the only key to unlocking the past, and the truth of whether he put the right man behind bars all those years ago.

Jamie will have to confront her own dark childhood, as well as the evil stalking the city if she hopes to crack this case. But with so many secrets buried beneath the frozen earth, will she be able to find the killer before he claims his next victim?

The Angel Maker is back, and a plan twenty years in the making is already in motion.

Good as Dead by Susan Walter

It all starts with a promise from a stranger: We’ll take care of everything.

Holly Kendrick’s husband is dead. Holly saw it all. In one violent moment, a hit-and-run accident turns Holly’s life upside down. Then a fixer for the high-powered guilty party approaches Holly with an offer she is in no position to refuse. Holly and her daughter, Savannah, will want for nothing, beginning with a luxury dream house—all for the price of their silence. But when their sudden appearance in privileged Calabasas, California, piques the curiosity of neighbors, the price becomes greater than they imagined. Because Holly and Savannah aren’t the only ones in the neighborhood with something to hide.

Told from alternating points of view, Good as Dead draws together an unlikely group of people bound to one another by a crime, a cover-up, and compounding deceptions. As carefully constructed lives begin to crumble, how far will everyone be willing to go to bury the truth and protect the people they love?

The Photographer by Mary Dixie Carter

WHEN PERFECT IMAGES

As a photographer, Delta Dawn observes the seemingly perfect lives of New York City’s elite: snapping photos of their children’s birthday parties, transforming images of stiff hugs and tearstained faces into visions of pure joy, and creating moments these parents long for.

ARE MADE OF BEAUTIFUL LIES

But when Delta is hired for Natalie Straub’s eleventh birthday, she finds herself wishing she wasn’t behind the lens but a part of the scene―in the Straub family’s gorgeous home and elegant life.

THE TRUTH WILL BE EXPOSED

That’s when Delta puts her plan in place, by babysitting for Natalie; befriending her mother, Amelia; finding chances to listen to her father, Fritz. Soon she’s bathing in the master bathtub, drinking their expensive wine, and eyeing the beautifully finished garden apartment in their townhouse. It seems she can never get close enough, until she discovers that photos aren’t all she can manipulate.

Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney

Think you know the person you married? Think again…

Things have been wrong with Mr and Mrs Wright for a long time. When Adam and Amelia win a weekend away to Scotland, it might be just what their marriage needs. Self-confessed workaholic and screenwriter Adam Wright has lived with face blindness his whole life. He can’t recognize friends or family, or even his own wife.

Every anniversary the couple exchange traditional gifts – paper, cotton, pottery, tin – and each year Adam’s wife writes him a letter that she never lets him read. Until now. They both know this weekend will make or break their marriage, but they didn’t randomly win this trip. One of them is lying, and someone doesn’t want them to live happily ever after.

Ten years of marriage. Ten years of secrets. And an anniversary they will never forget.

The Next Wife by Kaira Rouda

There is no limit to the lies, suspicion, and secrets that can poison the perfect marriage in this twisting novel of suspense by USA Today bestselling author Kaira Rouda.

Kate Nelson had it all. A flourishing company founded with her husband, John; a happy marriage; and a daughter, Ashlyn. The picture-perfect family. Until John left for another woman. Tish is half his age. Ambitious. She’s cultivated a friendship with Ashlyn. Tish believes she’s won.

She’s wrong.

Tish Nelson has it all. Youth, influence, a life of luxury, and a new husband. But the truth is, there’s a lot of baggage. Namely, his first wife—and suspicions of his infidelity. After all, that’s how she got John. Maybe it’s time for a romantic getaway, far from his vindictive ex. If Kate plans on getting John back, Tish is one step ahead of her.

She thinks.

But what happens next is something neither Kate nor Tish saw coming. As best-laid plans come undone, there’s no telling what a woman will do in the name of love—and revenge.