Choked by Tania Carver

The fourth novel from Tania Carver is fantastic, the characters from the other three books are back but this time the crime is personal!

Again this book is a fantastic read by itself but works much better having read the other three first, mainly because in this story it’s personal so by already having an attachment to the characters I was with them every step of the traumatic way.

In Choked main man Phil Brennan is in a coma after the house they are in explodes leaving his partner Marina and their daughter to fend for themselves, but wait! During all the confusion of the explosion their little girl has vanished.

Without the help from Phil Marina has to complete a series of tasks given to her by her daughters kidnappers. Can Marina stay strong enough and for long enough to see her daughter alive ever again?

From the start this story is explosive, literally and full of great plot lines. It is cleverly written and never gives anything away too soon. I am a huge fan of Tania Carvers and think her books are clever and well written.

I suggest my readers read these books, while I try to wait patiently for the fifth novel to be released!

Cage of Bones by Tania Carver

I stand corrected, the 3rd novel in this series is much more haunting and scary than The Creeper was! Again a good stand alone novel but it has much more depth and meaning if the other two books have been read first.

If the police force hadn’t seen enough action in the first two books they definitely get their fill in this book. In this story a little boy is found in a cage made from bones in the cellar of a building due to be demolished, so the police are called in. Not only is the case itself horrific but to the main character Phil Brennan it feels strangely  familiar.

This case is bigger and goes deeper than any of Phil’s team expected, with corruption and lies throughout how do they know who to trust, and can Phil keep his team together even though he is having trouble doing so himself.

This book is fantastic and gripping right from the start, for me it is even better because I have gotten to know the characters throughout the previous books and know who I like and who I don’t. I would recommend reading this book but, I strongly suggest reading the other two first.

The Creeper by Tania Carver

The Creeper is the second great novel by Tania Carver, while a great read on its own it is definitely better after having read  the first book The Surrogate.

The Creeper follows the same police force or family as they feel to me now through yet another gruelling and horrific case. The police force, still licking their wounds from the first case are confronted by another killer, only this time everything may not be as it seems.

The book also details the trials and tribulations of being a police officer and the politics involved and sometimes the romance. It depicts how hard it is to leave your family issues and your ego behind to work well as a team and concentrate on the case in hand.

The  main plot line in the book though is about “the creeper” who stalks his prey for a while, even living in one victim’s house and visiting her bedroom while she sleeps. From stalking, to kidnaping, to killing the Creeper seems to hate women but as the story slowly unwinds the police begin to wonder if the Creeper is acting alone or if he is a pawn in someone elses game!!

This book is brilliant, it’s creepy and addictive in equal measure. It’s a story that makes you check that the door is locked at night, even though Carver illustrates that doesn’t always matter when it comes to The Creeper! Well worth a read, horror fans.

Hide and Seek by Katia Lief

Hide and Seek is the next thrilling book from Katia Lief, it is a great book in its own right but it is a follow on from her previous book You are Next.

Karin Schaeffer would love to believe that she has finally moved on with her life after the tragedy that befell her in the first book. unfortunately it is not to be, Mac’s parents have been brutally murdered and suddenly Mac himself disappears.

Karin cannot bring herself to believe that Mac would kill himself, or that he is having an affair so what choice does she have but to go searching for someone everyone else thinks is dead!

As per Karin’s luck, in her quest to find Mac she finds herself getting sucked into something even more dangerous than just a missing man.

This book sees Karin the main character going through hell again, but this time will they all come out alive? You will just have to read it for yourself to find out.

Another brilliant and well written book from Katia Lief.

You are Next by Katia Lief

What would you do if during the course of your career you became too close to a notorious serial killer, who after setting his sights on you he sets out to destroy you, starting with your husband and child!!

You are Next is about cop Karin Schaffer who after finding the domino killer purely by chance has her life destroyed when the killer targets her husband and child. Karin leaves the police force as she has trouble dealing with the aftermath of the tragedy that befell her and her family, just starting to put her life back together Karin learns that the Domino killer has escaped from prison and that he could be after her family again, or what is left of it.

Karin wants to be involved in catching the killer again but as everyone keeps reminding her, she isn’t a cop anymore so she has to rely on her ex partner and friend Mac to solve the case for her.

Throughout the story Mac and Karin become close which is a nice interlude from the murder and crime. I also think it is nice as Karin is having to cope with so much loss and guilt as the killer is after her family again that it makes the reader feel Karin deserves something good from the story.

You are Next is 352 pages of well written and well thought out plot lines, in some places the story can be too descriptive but that doesn’t make it a bad book. It is definitely worth a read if thrillers are your thing.