Shadows on the Shore

 Shadows on the Shore

A Bec Whitfield Mystery #2

Annie Seaton

Reviewed by Helen

Book two in this series, book four is just about to be released and I am catching up and loving it, Bec is such a great character and this one had me turning the pages when four back packers go missing around The Whitsunday’s and Bec is thrown head first into the case as she starts her new position as detective in the small seaside town.

DI Todd Davenport arrives to help Bec with the investigation, when a catamaran is found on Dunk Island and then a body is discovered in the water, is this one of the missing woman? As they dig deeper into what they have already uncovered they find that the three woman have a small connection with a local who often takes backpackers on as crew on his yacht is this local who seems to have a bad reputation part of the reason they are missing or is it something else entirely and will they find out the truth on what has happened before there are any more bodies?

I loved this one, the setting is just the best and Bec is fabulous she has a lot going on at the moment her new position and the feeling she has for her boss Todd Davenport will anything come of that and starting a new position is not always easy especially when she walks into a police statin that has been sloppily run for many years, how will things work out for Bec I look forward to book three. I do highly recommend this one and the series to anyone who loves a good mystery set in a fabulous setting and with fabulous characters.

5 stars

June 20, 2025 by ASA

The Wolf at the Door

 The Wolf at the Door

Margot Phalen FBI #2

Kate Wiley

Reviewed by Helen

In this installment, which is fabulous Margot has to leave Wes and her farm to go to Tennessee to interview serial killer Wyatt Holmes he has been behind bars for a while now but they are trying to discover if there are more of his victims out there, Margot is one of the best to be able to get into the minds of these killers, after all she is the daughter of one of America’s worst serial killers, who are monsters.

The team Andrew, Alana, Greg, Sydney and herself hire an expert at hiking on this track to re-visit the grounds where Holmes spent a lot of time but what they discover is a grave site with seven more victims they have called in top anthropologists to determine how long they have been there and if there is any chance they can be identified, they soon realise that these victims cannot all be Holmes’s victims so it appears that there is another serial killer who needs to be caught and the investigation starts, Margot and the team are at their best and Margot soon becomes a target, will they get the killer?

There is also a call to the team from a nearby town requesting help about a bucket that has been found buried and that there is an unsolved murder, this case has similarities to the case that involved Wes not long ago could this be linked, Margot is determined to find out but at the moment she is on this case.

This is a fabulous story, a page turner as the team searches clues and slowly gets answers I loved this one from start to finish, action packed and had me thinking and I am eagerly awaiting the next book in the series, and how the changes to the team may change things up, I do highly recommend this one and the series, it is awesome.

My thanks to Storm Publishing and Netgalley for my copy to read and review.

5 stars

May 19, 2026 by Storm Publishing

For All the Dead Girls

 For All the Dead Girls

Lou Alcott #2

Sherryl Clark

Reviewed by Helen

This is the first book I have read from this author and it won’t be the last, this one had me turning the pages as PI Lou Alcott gets caught up in a dark web group with confronting ideas on how woman should be treated, it is an issue that sadly in this day and age is still happening and I was on the edge of my seat throughout the story.

PI Lou Alcott is the daughter of assistant police commissioner and was a police officer herself once she and her father have a strained relationship and at the moment she is living with her grandfather, she works for PMI and enjoys her job her boss has her on a missing persons case at the moment which appears to be closely related to her family when he asks her to rescue a mother and her son from an abusive relationship this will start Lou on a journey through some very dark and hard issues and times.

The weather is heating up as is the case with the deaths of more woman linked to what PMI have discovered is a group of men on the dark web known as SYB but when Lou becomes their next target and the violence heats up will they get the members of SYB before Lou and any other woman are killed?

This is a great and well written story, sadly about things that are happening that shouldn’t be and it is confronting at times but I did very much enjoy it, although it can be read as a standalone I do wish I had read book one first and will be chasing that one up to read and I look forward to more Lou Alcott stories I think she is a great character her strength is amazing after all she has been through and her workmates Gang and Paul not to mention her grandfather Hamish are fabulous and add so much to the story, I do highly recommend this one to any lover of a good thriller that will keep you turning the pages.

My thanks to HQ Fiction for my ARC to read and review.

4 stars

June 30, 2026 by HQ Fiction

Least Angels Weep

 Least Angels Weep

Detective Liz Moreland #5

Phillipa Nefri Clark

Reviewed by Helen

When there is a death in a small outback Victorian town that raises questions because of the similarities to a cold case back in the 1980’s, Liz and the team are called in, this is the first case with a new boss after Ben left and Liz is keen to get away from Melbourne for a while after the consequences from their last case and what happened with her father, so she makes her way on her own first to the small town and starts the investigation before more of the team arrive to help.

Soon Meg, Rueben and then Pete and Candice arrive and they are working through the small amount of information they have to see if this is the same killer from all those years ago or is it a copycat killer but what they uncover appears to be cover ups that go deep into the town hierarchy including police, they hit brick walls trying to get information but they do have the local cop Kath Conner helping but the danger is growing as is the suspects.

This is another fabulous installment in the awesome series, after all that has happened and with a new boss Felix Fletcher and new team members to get to know Liz has her worries about how things will go but she soon sees that the team are working well and she is getting on with the job and putting the past behind her, as for this case there are many twists that had me thinking who did this, how many people are involved and what started it all, all those years ago, so many great characters.

I loved this one so much the author has written another awesome crime mystery that is sure to keep readers turning the pages to find out who and why, I do highly recommend this one and the series and I can’t wait for more in this series, a must read.

My thanks to the author for my digital copy to read and review.

5 stars

April 29, 2026 by Amazon Digital Services

The Husband's Secret by Debra Webb

 Reviewed by Nas Dean

The Husband’s Secret by author Debra Webb is a tense and emotionally layered romantic suspense that keeps the pages turning. Centered on a marriage built on trust—but shaken by hidden truths—the story dives deep into how well we really know the people we love. Debra Webb crafts a compelling mix of danger, intrigue, and heartfelt emotion, with stakes that feel both personal and high-risk.

The pacing is sharp, revealing secrets at just the right moments to keep the tension rising without overwhelming the story. The chemistry between the main characters adds depth, making their struggles feel authentic as they navigate betrayal, fear, and the possibility of redemption. As part of the Colby Agency: The Next Generation series, it stands strong on its own while rewarding returning readers with familiar connections.

With twists that keep you guessing and an emotional core that resonates, this is a satisfying read for fans of romance intertwined with suspense and mystery.

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Dark Sanctuary

 Dark Sanctuary

Sarah Barrie

Reviewed by Helen

Sarah Barrie has bought her readers another twisty ride with her newest thriller this one is a page turner with fabulous characters, good and bad and there are some bad ones, it centers around Coastal Sanctuary a place for the criminally insane and what goes one there, this one is told from a few different angles and it appears two stories, will they come together?

Detective Hex Rexford is retiring and his body is telling him it should be soon, the date is set for his retirement and a new boss has been chosen although not all are happy with the new choice but when some gruesome murders start happening Hex steps back to take over after all he put the infamous serial killer known as the Witchdoctor Dr. Witcherton behind bars many years ago and these killings are similar and Witcherton claims to know the killer, Hex will push to get answers and the killer.

Beth Thompson is a single mum with two small children and she is being stalked by her violent husband she is doing all she can to keep her kids safe, she works at a retirement village and loves her job and is close to a couple of residents one of them Rose, her young some Charlie is showing some strange behaviour at the moment and he has somehow acquired a new teddy bear named Theo, Rose offers Beth and the children a new place to move to a cottage that is isolated and Beth takes it but will it be safe?

Eve and Zane are podcasters who are starting a new podcast on the state of mental health and they are using Coastal Sanctuary to start with and what they find will shock them all, when a doctor from Coastal Sanctuary offers to step up and help them with their research Eve is happy but Zane not so happy and soon danger is creeping closer and closer.

What a story this is I loved it Beth and Hex are such fabulous characters as is Eve and Zane and Rose and what is uncovered is a shock to everyone the past tying in with the now and MS. Barrie did it so well, she had me on the edge of my seat often, this is one that I would highly recommend to any reader who loves a good crime, mystery, thriller, don’t miss this one, a fabulous story.

My thanks to the publisher Harlequin AU for my copy to read and review.

5 stars

April 28, 2026 by Harlequin Enterprises (Australia) Pty Ltd

Stillwater

 Stillwater

A Luke Harris Thriller #1

Tanya Scott

Reviewed by Helen

Jack Quinlan is seven years old when his mother passed away from a drug overdose, child services locates his father Michael Quinlan, and here he lives a life of trauma and violence not necessarily from his father known as Quin but from associates they are living in a friend’s house Kevin and his Mother, Gail has always been caring and made sure he was OK, but as a young boy he is discovered by Gus who sees that Jack is a very smart young boy and he decides that he will do very well in his line of work which is not what anyone parent would wish for their child, a life of crime.

But as the years go by and Jack finishes his schooling he sees that his life will end in in jail like his father and when he thinks the time is right he leaves moves well away from Melbourne and the life of crime, changes his name to Luke Harris and starts over again, seven years later Luke returns to Melbourne to go to university and take up the commerce degree he put off years ago, hoping the past will leave him alone, that works for a while until Gus finds him again and Luke is back in his employment against everything he ever wanted.

While Luke is working as a career to a disabled young man, Phil Wylie, his father Jonathon starts getting Luke to work extra for them this brings into contact with Emma Wylie and soon they seem to becoming friends but it also appears that Jonathon has links to Gus and soon Luke finds himself caught in the middle, with danger on both sides and Emma being danger as well and there is the problem of secrets being uncovered that could change Luke’s life again.

This is a brilliant debut that had me turning the pages, fast paced with wonderful characters there are twist and turns as the past is uncovered and we learn what young Jack’s life was like, can he pull himself out of the life he led to become the person he wants be and what of Emma?

I do highly recommend this one to any reader who loves a good crime, mystery.

5 stars

August 12, 2025 by Allen & Unwin AU