Rush of Blood – Mark Billingham

Crime Fiction
4*s

So you’re on holiday in Florida, you’ve met up with another two couple’s from the UK, spent time together all fairly standard stuff and then on the last day, a girl goes missing from the resort. You’re interviewed by the police and allowed to return to the UK. Would you make a date to meet up with your fellow holidaymakers away from the sun?

Well that’s exactly what the couples in our story did. It has to be said some were keener than the others to get together but they grouped together round Angie and Barry’s table they begin to get to know each other on home ground so to speak. Inevitably the conversation becomes dominated by what could have happened to Amber-Marie and how she had disappeared so suddenly. Of course it goes without saying that one uncomfortable dinner party isn’t enough for these intrepid travellers, as Ed and Sue host one as do Marina and Dave. For the reader who doesn’t have to endure the actual company, these are brilliant parties with each character showing their hand a little bit more.
Over in Florida Amber-Marie’s mother Patti Lee Wilson is naturally distraught and the manager of the resort where she has camped out is fearing she is bad for business, or he’s simply run out of what little compassion he has.

Jeff Gardner is working the case in the US and left to voice the increasingly trite sounding reassurances that the case is getting the department’s full attention. And then there is a murder in the UK and a bright trainee PC, Jenny Quinlan decides to contact Jeff and so the investigation progresses both sides of the Atlantic.

In between the dinner parties themselves not only does the investigation gather pace but we hear what the characters are doing, what worries them and, for some, what have they found on the internet that they can mull over and dissect at the next meeting. We also hear the killer’s voice but I have to admit, it wasn’t who I thought it would be.

I can safely say that none of the characters have bucket loads of redeeming features but they are all recognisable, you probably work with at least one of them! There characteristics range from mousey through to an arrogant assumption that their opinion is what everyone is waiting for, from the geeky nerd to the wannabe actress and from the neurotic to the grumpiest man on the planet – why the couples are with each other is intriguing enough let alone why they would voluntarily chose to spend time with the other couples!

In a nutshell that is the beauty of Rush of Blood this standalone novel has a different feel to the Tom Thorne books, although fans will be pleased to hear he does have a cameo role. While there is a mystery to solve it is more firmly in a whodunit than a why which makes it possible for the author to experiment with the amusing character studies which contrasts behaviour between the couples themselves and how they behave in a group situation… and the author doesn’t neglect the detectives either but I’ll let you make your own minds up about them!

I found Rush of Blood an absolutely fascinating read whilst vowing to myself to make sure I look as unfriendly as possible on any future holidays I may take!!

I’d like to thank Grove Atlantic for allowing me to read Rush of Blood. This honest review is my thanks to them.

First Published UK: 2012
Publisher: Grove Atlantic
No of Pages:  400
Genre: Crime Fiction
Amazon UK
Amazon US

This Week in Books (February 1)

Hosted by Lipsyy Lost & Found my Wednesday post gives you a taste of what I am reading this week. A similar meme is run by Taking on a World of Words

Well January has passed in a flash so onto February’s reading!

I am currently reading the much-anticipated He Said/She Said by Erin Kelly and I’m glad to say I got that ‘I’m in a safe pair of hands’ feeling when I started this one, I’m really enjoying it. He Said/She Said will be published on 20 April 2017.

Blurb

In the hushed aftermath of a total eclipse, Laura witnesses a brutal attack.
She and her boyfriend Kit call the police, and in that moment, it is not only the victim’s life that is changed forever.
Fifteen years on, Laura and Kit live in fear.
And while Laura knows she was right to speak out, the events that follow have taught her that you can never see the whole picture: something – and someone – is always in the dark… Amazon

I have just finished Rush of Blood by Mark Billingham a dark story about holiday friendships which despite being a standalone we do get a brief glimpse of DI Tom Thorne.
You can read an excerpt here

Blurb

Perfect strangers.
A perfect holiday.
The perfect murder…
Three couples meet around the pool on their Florida holiday and become fast friends. But on their last night, their perfect holiday takes a tragic twist: the teenage daughter of another holidaymaker goes missing, and her body is later found floating in the mangroves.
When the shocked couples return home, they remain in contact, and over the course of three increasingly fraught dinner parties they come to know one another better. But they don’t always like what they find: buried beneath these apparently normal exteriors are some dark secrets, hidden kinks, ugly vices… Amazon

Next up I will be reading Kate Hamer’s The Doll Funeral which is set in The Forest of Dean, where I grew up. The hardback will be published on 16 February 2017 but it is available for the kindle now.

Blurb

My name is Ruby. I live with Barbara and Mick. They’re not my real parents, but they tell me what to do, and what to say. I’m supposed to say that the bruises on my arms and the black eye came from falling down the stairs.
But there are things I won’t say. I won’t tell them I’m going to hunt for my real parents. I don’t say a word about Shadow, who sits on the stairs, or the Wasp Lady I saw on the way to bed. Amazon

So what are you reading this week? Go on you know you want to share!

First Chapter ~ First Paragraph (January 24)

Welcome to another Tuesday celebrating bookish events, from Tuesday/First Chapter/Intros, hosted by Bibliophile by the Sea Every Tuesday, Diane at Bibliophile by the Sea posts the opening paragraph (sometime two) of a book she decided to read based on the opening. Feel free to grab the banner and play along.

This week my opener is taken from Rush of Blood by Mark Billingham, a standalone story from the creator of the DI Tom Thorne series.

Blurb

Perfect strangers.
A perfect holiday.
The perfect murder…
Three couples meet around the pool on their Florida holiday and become fast friends. But on their last night, their perfect holiday takes a tragic twist: the teenage daughter of another holidaymaker goes missing, and her body is later found floating in the mangroves.
When the shocked couples return home, they remain in contact, and over the course of three increasingly fraught dinner parties they come to know one another better. But they don’t always like what they find: buried beneath these apparently normal exteriors are some dark secrets, hidden kinks, ugly vices…
Then, a second girl goes missing.
Could it be that one of these six has a secret far darker than anybody can imagine? Amazon

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

First Chapter ~ First Paragraph ~ Intro

PART ONE
ANGIE AND BARRY

From: Angela Finnegan angiebaz@demon.co.uk
Date: 16 May 17:31:01 BST
To: Susan Dunning susan.dunning1@gmail.com
Cc: Marina Green marinagreen1979@btinternet.com

Subject: Dinner!!!

Hi All!

You know how you meet people on holiday and say things like ‘we really must stay in touch’? I bet you’re regretting swapping those email addresses now. Ha ha!

Seriously though. It was an amazing holiday even if it did end a bit oddly, so I thought it would be great if we could all get together. So, me and Barry would love it if the four of you could come to dinner on Saturday, June 4th. I know it is a bit of a trek down here to deepest, darkest Crawley but I do a mean bread and butter pud and I promise to send out sherpas if you get lost!!

Talk to the boys and let me know ASAP, but I really hope you can make it.

Lotsa love, Angie xxx

PS. Been looking at the local papers on the internet and still no sign of that poor girl. Can’t imagine what her mother must be going through. Horrible, just horrible.

PPS. Can’t remember, but is anyone a veggie?

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I know that’s more than a paragraph but it wouldn’t make sense to have split it. I have to admit I love books that have emails, letters or diaries in them, I don’t know about you but I can picture Angie so well, just from that email and now I’m really looking forward to getting stuck into this book.

What do you think? Would you keep reading?

Weekly Wrap Up (September 18)

This week I got some great news from the publishers Bonnier Zaffre
Dear Cleo,

I hope all is well with you. Just getting in touch to tell you something that I hope you might like.
As you may know, My Husband’s Son by Deborah O’Connor is coming out in paperback on 6th October and I’ve just received copies of this stunning book. I wanted to let you know that a quote from your review has been included in the first page of the book!

I hope this makes your day! 

Many thanks and best wishes,
C

Did it make my day? Hell yes! It also guarantees that some of my dear friends will receive this book as a gift!

Last Week on the Blog

Well I managed to celebrate two author’s birthdays on the blog this week:

First up was the wonderful Roald Dahl who I met as a child as he lived fairly close to where we lived in Buckinghamshire and he did a talk at our local library. Roald Dahl would have been 100 on 13 September 2016 and Audible had a promotional post of his audio books – including one the great man read himself.

I then too part in the Agatha Christie Blogathon timed to coincide with Agatha Christie’s 126th birthday, my choice was to revisit Miss Marple after over thirty years of shunning her for not being anywhere as delightful as Hercule Poirot – you can read my thoughts on The Murder at the Vicarage here

I was also extremely lucky to receive an ARC of The Trespasser by Tana French, the sixth in the Dublin Murder Squad series which I reviewed on Monday.

The Kill Fee by Fiona Veitch Smith got plenty of coverage this week featuring in my First Chapter, First Paragraph post on Tuesday and later in the week I reviewed the book.

Wednesday highlighted my reads for the week, including The Woman on the Orient Express by Lyndsay Jayne Ashford; another entry for Agatha Christie, this time in a book inspired by the Queen of Crime.

On Friday my post was a book tag, this one about all things NetGalley – you can read my responses here

This Time Last Year…

I reviewed the psychological thriller, Can Anybody Help Me by Sinéad Crowley, a real tale of our time that involves an internet site for mothers – remind you of anything? This book is swiftly paced to say the least and proved to make for some compulsive reading!

 

It was crazy really, she had never met the woman, had no idea of her real name but she thought of her as a friend. Or, at least, the closest thing she had to a friend in Dublin.

Struggling with a new baby, Yvonne turns to netmammy, an online forum for mothers, for support. Drawn into a world of new friends, she spends increasing amounts of time online and volunteers more and more information about herself.

When one of her new friends goes offline, Yvonne thinks something is wrong, but dismisses her fears. After all, does she really know this woman?

But when the body of a young woman with striking similarities to Yvonne’s missing friend is found, Yvonne realises that they’re all in terrifying danger. Can she persuade Sergeant Claire Boyle, herself about to go on maternity leave, to take her fears seriously? Amazon

Stacking the Shelves

There were just two books added to my shelves this week – I know, I can hear those gasps of amazement and awe at my self-restraint.

First is Rush of Blood by Mark Billingham which has a publication date on NetGalley of 7 February 2017 but actually this book is already available to buy here in the UK, having originally been published in 2012.

Blurb

In the standalone novel Rush of Blood, internationally bestselling author Mark Billingham puts a sinister twist on a deceptively innocent topic: the beach vacation.

Three British couples meet around the pool on their Florida holiday and become fast friends. But on Easter Sunday, the last day of their vacation, tragedy strikes: the fourteen-year-old daughter of an American vacationer goes missing, and her body is later found floating in the mangroves. When the shocked couples return home to the U.K., they remain in contact, and over the course of three increasingly fraught dinner parties they come to know one another better. But they don’t always like what they find. Buried beneath these apparently normal exteriors are some unusual kinks and unpleasant vices. Then, a second girl goes missing, in Kent—not far from where any of the couples lives. Could it be that one of these six has a secret far darker than anybody can imagine?

Ambitiously plotted and laced with dark humour, Rush of Blood is a first-rate suspense novel about the danger of making new friends in seemingly sunny places. NetGalley

I was also delighted to be approved to read The Trophy Child by Paula Daly, an author that has entertained and delighted me with each of her three previous novels Just What Kind of Mother Are You?, Keep Your Friends Close and The Mistake I Made The Trophy Child will be published on 7 March 2017 by Grove Press.

Blurb

Karen Bloom is not the coddling mother type. She believes in raising her children for success. Some in the neighbourhood call her assertive, others say she’s driven, but in gossiping circles she’s known as: the tiger mother. Karen believes that tough discipline is the true art of parenting and that achievement leads to ultimate happiness. She expects her husband and her children to perform at 200 percent—no matter the cost. But in an unending quest for excellence, her seemingly flawless family start to rebel against her.

Her husband Noel is a handsome doctor with a proclivity for alcohol and women. Their prodigy daughter, Bronte, is excelling at school, music lessons, dance classes, and yet she longs to run away. Verity, Noel’s teenage daughter from his first marriage, is starting to display aggressive behaviour. And Karen’s son from a previous relationship falls deeper into drug use. When tragedy strikes the Blooms, Karen’s carefully constructed facade begins to fall apart—and once the deadly cracks appear, they are impossible to stop.

A thrilling tale of ambition and murder, Daly’s richly imagined world of suburban striving and motherly love is an absorbing page-turner about the illusions of perfection and the power games between husband and wife, parent and child. NetGalley

TBR WATCH

Since my last post I have read 5 books, and gained 2 and had I located a read book left on the spreadsheet so the total is now a fairly respectable 172 books!

82 physical books
70 e-books
20 books on NetGalley

What have you found to read this week?