Liar Liar by M J Alidge

Reviewed by Desere

I have only read one other book in this series, but just from that one I have pretty much learned that when you pick up a book by this author, you get drama, action, intrigue and a whole lot of on the edge of your seat scariness.  So of course I could not wait to dig into this one.

The latest case for Helen Grace involved multiple arson attacks, someone is literally targeting families in the safety of their homes! So starts Helen and her team’s race against time to save lives.  From the previous book I have already learned that Helen has her very own set of demons to deal with, the demons seem to take a back seat when she’s in the zone to solve the crimes, but every now and then it does seem to pop up whilst she is seriously trying to get to the bottom of a mystery, this alone is a fascination in the books for me. 

I find it hard to imagine how difficult it must be to try and focus on a demon set to destroy the lives of others whilst having to deal with your own set of demons.  The previous book made Helen seem strong enough though to deal with it all, but in Liar Liar I could not help but feel like she helpless.  I am still at odds if it was the actual case or the demons she fights that made her seem more helpless instead of strong like in the previous read, I will get back to you on that after the next book.

None the less the above did not change that this is a fantastic plot, action packed and it kept me up for a whole night too, could not put it down, simply had to see what it was that Helen found.

The author is a master storyteller for sure, he knows exactly how to target your emotions and leave you feeling physically drained with anguish and terror. I look forward the next installment and I certainly hope that the next part will involve the author giving us a little more insight to the demons Helen deals with, I have a definite clear idea on it all but I need more to make that final conclusion.

Highly recommended for all thrill seeking, on the edge of your seat, mystery solving fans!

4.5 star review

“Liar, Liar, pants on fire! Oh no wait it’s the house that’s on fire!!”

** Copy provided by Penguin Random House South Africa in exchange for a honest review 

The Doll's House by M.J. Arlidge

Reviewed by Desere


It starts with a young girl Ruby, she wakes up in a cold, dark cellar, with no recollection how she got there, and so her hellish nightmare begins. Beatings, being starved, shackled to the bed, the list goes on and on.

All the while her captor is always one step ahead of DI Helen Grace, who along with her team is slowly gluing all the puzzle pieces together in order to try and bring to justice the monster who has done this kidnapping - killing game not once or even twice before, but three girls have all faced and lost the battle from hell at the hands of a crazed madman.

Then as DI Grace and her team start closing in, time runs out for Ruby because her captor has just found his next victim and it's time to throw out the old and bring in the new, it's a deadly race against time for all involved.

This was my first time reading this author, but I will be coming back for more. The Doll's house is one of those thrillers that have you looking behind you every few minutes of so and double checking out the people you think you know very well, just to make sure that there is not something hiding behind their smiles.

This read has an extremely thrilling fast pace of events, not once does it slow down to a drizzle, nope this author really kept my attention all the way through to the end. And the guessing game in this read was absolutely phenomenal! So many suspects that fit the bill , and then suddenly all is lost and another suspect comes along looking perfect but no the author is not quite content on letting it come together that easily or that quickly, I loved it!

Suspense, drama and a whole lot of psycho! Yes this as I said is a read filled with thoughts of really bad things running through your mind, I felt the fear and could taste the bitter disappointment of the police and I for darn sure got the creeps from a truly out of his ever loving mind killer, you know those chills that literally run down your spine and you don't know how to stop them except to stop reading but you can't because the book is that darn good!

I highly recommend this read for all fans that love a fast paced, well thought out thriller. Intense and truly good old fashioned on the edge of your seat!

Available now at Penguin Random House South Africa