Tag: crime

Blog Tour/Book Review: A Clean Canvas by Elizabeth Mundy

whatcathyreadnext2 Comments

A Clean Canvas Full Tour Banner

Welcome to today’s stop on the blog tour for A Clean Canvas by Elizabeth Mundy, the second book in the author’s fun Lena Szarka Mystery series. Thanks to Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources for inviting me to take part in the tour and for my review copy.  You can read my review below.

WinThere’s also a giveaway too (UK only) with a chance for one lucky person to win a Winsor & Newton pocket-sized watercolour set and a signed copy of A Clean Canvas. To enter via Rafflecopter click here.

Giveaway Terms and Conditions

  • UK entries only.
  • Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.
  • The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner.
  • Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data.
  • I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

A Clean CanvasAbout the Book

Crime always leaves a stain…

Lena Szarka, a Hungarian cleaner, dusts off her detective skills when a masterpiece is stolen from a gallery she cleans with her cousin Sarika.  When Sarika goes missing too, accusations start to fly.

Convinced her cousin is innocent, Lena sweeps her way through the secrets of the London art scene. But with the evidence against Sarika mounting and the police on her trail, Lena needs to track down the missing painting if she is to clear her cousin.

Embroiling herself in the sketchy world of thwarted talents, unpaid debts and elegant fraudsters, Lena finds that there’s more to this gallery than meets the eye.

Format: ebook, paperback (288 pp.)      Publisher: Constable
Published: 3rd January 2019                  Genre: Mystery

Purchase Links*
Amazon.co.uk  ǀ Amazon.com |  Hive.co.uk (supporting local bookshops)
*links provided for convenience, not as part of any affiliate programme

Find A Clean Canvas on Goodreads

My Review

I really enjoyed the first book in the series, In Strangers’ Houses, and Elizabeth Mundy has repeated the same winning formula in this second outing for Hungarian cleaner, Lena Szarka, now running her own fledgling cleaning business. Although A Clean Canvas works perfectly as a standalone, there are some references to events in the first book.

A cleaner is a great premise for an amateur detective because of course they have unparalleled access to the homes of their clients (no search warrant needed) and can learn all sorts of things about them from the way they fold their socks to what they keep in the cupboard beneath their sink. As Lena confides, ‘Their houses speak… If you learn how to listen.’

I loved how cleaning is never far from Lena’s mind, whether as a means of relaxation or concentration (‘Polishing shoes always helped her think’), a spur to activity (‘She saw a dirty teacup and fought the urge to wash it up’) or as a way of judging character.  ‘She knew his type.  Ignore you unless they wanted something.  The kind of person you would clean for for years, dusting his television, washing his socks, wiping the dried up szar from his toilet bowl.  He wouldn’t even know your name and would never think to leave a tip at Christmas.’ [Even if you don’t speak Hungarian, I think you can probably work out the meaning of the word szar!]

Lena is smart, observant and has a logical mind; all useful attributes for a detective. Combine that with a strong sense of natural justice and loyalty to friends and relatives, and it’s no surprise Lena can’t help but get involved when her cousin is suspected of the theft of a valuable painting. And she’s thrilled when she’s able to team up with an old ally unexpectedly back on the scene…and perhaps not just for this case?

Lena’s mother, Greta (a personal favourite from the first book) makes a return appearance, albeit at a distance.  Greta is a woman who can fall out with someone over the matter of a burnt pan, who prides herself on making the definitive chicken paprikash and distrusts any man who doesn’t have a healthy appetite.  At one point, detecting the urge to make a goulash for the man for whom she harbours romantic feelings, Lena fears she may be turning into her mother!  On another occasion, Lena describes a girl as having ‘proportions her mother would have approved of’.

I really enjoyed getting to know Lena again and joining her on another adventure.  A Clean Canvas is a charming and entertaining read and I hope Lena’s plans for her new venture mean there will be further adventures ahead for her.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

In three words: Engaging, amiable, mystery

Try something similar…Madam Tulip by David Ahern (read my review here)

Elizabeth MundyAbout the Author

Elizabeth Mundy’s grandmother was a Hungarian immigrant to America who raised five children on a chicken farm in Indiana. An English Literature graduate from Edinburgh University, Elizabeth is a marketing director for an investment firm and lives in London with her messy husband and two young children. A Clean Canvas is the second book in the Lena Szarka mystery series about a Hungarian cleaner who turns detective.

Connect with Elizabeth

Website ǀ  Twitter  ǀ Facebook | Instagram |  Goodreads

 

Blog Tour/Book Review: Poetic Justice by R.C. Bridgestock

whatcathyreadnext4 Comments

Poetic Justice Blog Tour Poster_New

I’m thrilled to be hosting today’s stop on the blog tour for Poetic Justice by R. C. Bridgestock and to share with you my review of this prequel to the much-loved and highly regarded ‘DI Jack Dylan’ crime series.  If, like me, you’ve not read the other books in the series, Poetic Justice is the perfect place to start.

Do also check out the fantastic guest post by the authors I published earlier entitled ‘Walking With A Dinosaur’.  Do you have the observational and deductive skills to be a detective? And, in case you missed earlier stops on the blog tour, you can catch up here:

Review by Sarah at By The Letter Book Reviews
Review and giveaway by Anne at Random Things Through My Letterbox

Thanks to Emily at The Dome Press for inviting me to participate and for my review copy.  Also to Bob and Carol (AKA R.C. Bridgestock) for their brilliant support of the book bloggers taking part in the tour, including the very special personalised token of their gratitude. I’m honoured to be part of #TeamDylan.

Poetic JusticeAbout the Book

When Detective Jack Dylan heads home to his wife after a residential course, he has no idea that an extraordinary succession of events is about to turn his life upside down. A vicious, unprovoked personal attack is just the start. The discovery of his wife’s death in a road accident also reveals her affair, and his step-daughter is being expelled from university for drug use. Professionally, two teenagers have gone missing and one is soon found dead.

An ordinary man might break under the strain, but Dylan is no ordinary man. He knows that his survival depends on him carrying-on regardless, burying himself in his work, relieved by the distraction of newcomer to the admin department, Jennifer Jones.

His determination to pursue the criminal elements behind the events – both personal and professional – is to be his salvation, and his relationship with Jen, his ‘Guardian Angel’, will turn out to be the mainstay of his future, both within the Force and at home.

Life may have changed, but nothing will stand in the way of Dylan’s determination to seek justice.

Format: Paperback, ebook (320 pp.)    Publisher: The Dome Press
Published: 28th February 2019     Genre: Crime, Thriller

Purchase Links*
Publisher (save 30%) | Amazon.co.uk  ǀ  Amazon.com  ǀ Hive.co.uk (supporting UK bookshops)
*links provided for convenience, not as part of any affiliate programme

Find Poetic Justice on Goodreads

My Review

I’ve observed previously that a prequel provides both opportunities and challenges for authors, although maybe more of the former than a sequel does.  The opportunities include the ability to delve more deeply into the past of the main character, to explain the background to decisions or actions they may take in later books, to fill in more of their back story.  The authors have certainly taken full advantage of this opportunity in Poetic Justice.

The main challenge is that the author can’t change what is going to happen in later, already written, books.  It’s no spoiler to say that the reader knows however dangerous the situations in which he finds himself, Jack Dylan isn’t going to die in Poetic Justice but, of course, he doesn’t know that.  And, of course, the same doesn’t necessarily apply to those around him…

Soon after being introduced to DI Jack Dylan, the reader becomes aware that his marriage to Kay is in trouble and that Isla, his adopted daughter, is in a precarious mental state.  Unfortunately for Jack, tragedy and turmoil will follow – as if the life of a police officer wasn’t challenging enough already.  I’ll admit I found it hard to have sympathy for Kay who seems to be trying to ‘have her cake and eat it’ although even she doesn’t deserve what transpires.   I found it much easier to empathise with Isla who is going through a tough time but whose inner goodness and touching relationship with Jack nevertheless shines through.

In Jack Dylan, the authors have created a character who is principled, incorruptible (although some may try), diligent, determined and has an eye for the details that others may miss. (On the latter point, you may want to read/reread the guest post by the authors I published earlier.)

The authors’ knowledge of police procedure comes across clearly in the authentic detail but the story never gets bogged down in too much information or jargon.  Quite the opposite in scenes such as the dramatic opening to the book and the later powerful and moving scenes involving Jack, Kay and Isla.

Poetic Justice introduces the reader to characters who will no doubt feature significantly in future books in the series, notably new recruit Jennifer Jones who has a similarly troubled private life.  There’s also a side story involving vulnerable children that, unfortunately, is all too reminiscent of real-life events in the news over the past few years.

I really enjoyed Poetic Justice. It’s gritty, atmospheric and full of drama.  It’s only fair to warn you that by the end – like me – you’re likely to be adding the other books in the series to your wishlist!

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

In three words: Dramatic, intense, authentic

Try something similar: The Last Thread by Ray Britain (read my review here)

RC Bridgestock Author PhotoAbout the Authors

R.C. Bridgestock is the name that husband and wife co-authors Robert (Bob) and Carol Bridgestock write under. Between them they have nearly 50 years of police experience, offering an authentic edge to their stories. The writing duo created the character DI Jack Dylan, a down-to-earth detective, written with warmth and humour. The ninth book in the series will be published by The Dome Press in 2019, along with their backlist. A further crime series is presently being scripted by the pair, which has a strong Yorkshire female character – Charley Mann – at the helm.

Bob was a highly commended career detective of 30 years, retiring at the rank of Detective Superintendent.  During his last three years, he took charge of 26 murders, 23 major incidents, over 50 suspicious deaths and numerous sexual assaults. He was also a trained hostage negotiator with suicide interventions, kidnap, terrorism and extortion.

As a Detective Inspector he spent three years at the internationally acclaimed West Yorkshire Police Force Training School where he taught Detectives from all over the world in the whole spectrum of investigative skills and the law. On promotion to Detective Superintendent, Bob was seconded to a protracted enquiry investigating alleged police corruption in another force. He worked on the Yorkshire Ripper and Sarah Harper murder, and received praise from Crown Court Judges and Chief Constables alike for outstanding work at all ranks, including winning the much-coveted Dennis Hoban Trophy.

As a police civilian supervisor, Carol also received a Chief Constable’s commendation for outstanding work.

The couple are the storyline consultants/police procedural on BAFTA-winning BBC1 police drama Happy Valley and series 3 of ITV’s Scott and Bailey, and are presently working with Scott Free Production scriptwriters on two commissioned TV drama series.

Carol started and chaired the Wight Fair Writers’ Circle in 2008, along with Bob, where she created an annual charitable community writing competition to inspire others of all ages. This event has raised over £10,000 for Island charities.

The couple pride themselves on being up-to-date on past and present day UK police procedures, and as a result, Bob is regularly sought by UK television, radio and national and local newspapers for comment on developing major crime incidents etc. They have also taken part in BBC Radio 4 (Steve) PUNT P.I.

Together they can regularly be seen as speakers at a variety of events in the literary world and work with colleges in schools in providing writing seminars and workshops, and they also work with International TV/Film make-up artist Pamela Clare, to help inspire her students at the White Rose Colleges.

Eight annual R.C. Bridgestock trophies are annually awarded to students. Carol and Bob are also patrons and ambassadors for several charities.

Connect with R.C. Bridgestock

Website  ǀ  Facebook  ǀ  Twitter  ǀ  Instagram ǀ Goodreads

RCB_Poster_DylanSeries