Month: April 2017

#NIGHTMARKET BLOG TOUR: CTG + @DPemb TALK GIN, BOOK SHOPS AND HA-HAs!

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Today I’m thrilled to be hosting a stop on Daniel Pembrey’s – aka ‘DPemb’ – blog tour for his latest thriller NIGHT MARKET. To mark the occasion, Daniel stopped by CTG HQ for couple of gins and a chat about what he’s getting up to this week…

Good to see you DPemb, what’s going on? It seems you have another book out, already!

Well ….

Well? *taps fingers against glass* Tell me all about it.

Strictly speaking it’s the second half of the same story, which started with The Harbour Master. Part two of two, if you will.

But this is a different story – it’s not The Harbour Master, it’s Night Market?

That’s true. And my Amsterdam detective Henk van der Pol is really put through the wringer this time!

Well, he went through quite a lot in the first book so sounds like gin is required.

That’s exactly right, CTG. This Wednesday 26th April, I’m doing an event at South Kensington Books in London – http://www.kensingtonbooks.co.uk/ – with the wonderful Fiona Cummins, and gin will most certainly feature.

nightmarket-rattle pic

Excellent! That sounds like a very fun event – I loved both NIGHT MARKET and Fiona Cummins’s RATTLE. And then what, I hear you’re out and about all week?

And then … publication day is the next day, April 27th, which happens to be King’s Day in Holland, so I’m trotting along to the Dutch Embassy to celebrate that. Koningsdag, as they call it. (Not that this has anything to do with my book, still!)

The Embassy, very fancy! *CTG resists the urge to ask DPemb about the likelihood of Ferrero Rocher* And then later in the week?

Ah yes, I’m going to up to Newcastle Noir to chair a spectacular thriller panel on the Sunday evening, 30th April featuring Paul Hardisty, Luca Veste and…

Me!

Yes, you! How cool will that be?

I think it’ll be very cool and a lot of fun!

We shall be talking about Deep Down Dead. And Deep Blue Trouble …

Excellent – I’m looking forward to it! Now is there anything else I need to know?

Actually there is. The following Thursday 4th May, I’m doing an event at Nomad Books in Fulham with the brilliant David Young (STASI CHILD/STASI WOLF). Find out more at www.nomadbooks.co.uk/whats-on

Is he bringing his Stasi police car?

I believe that’s kaput, but perhaps he’ll bring some jet fuel-strength ex-GDR schnapps, or similar. Let’s see!

You’re going to have a busy couple of weeks! Now what’s this about ha-has, I hear you’ve been doing some rather unusual research?

*DPemb gulps down the rest of his gin* What’s what about what?

You know … *gives knowing look* Ha-has!

Ohhh … *notes down reminder to contact Jilly* yes, fingers crossed for that!

ha ha pic

A ha-ha. (Huh?)

*CTG laughs*

I guess D Pemb is keeping his ha-ha story under his hat for now!

Well best of luck with the launch of NIGHT MARKET, Daniel, and see you in Newcastle at the weekend!

Likewise CTG, and thank you for having me.

NIGHT MARKET by Daniel Pembrey is out this week. You can buy it here

Here’s what the blurb says: “When Henk van der Pol is asked by the Justice Minister to infiltrate a team investigating an online child exploitation network, he can hardly say no – he’s at the mercy of prominent government figures in The Hague. But he soon realises the case is far more complex than he was led to believe… Picking up from where The Harbour Master ended, this new investigation sees Detective Van der Pol once again put his life on the line as he wades through the murky waters between right and wrong in his search for justice.

Sometimes, to catch the bad guys, you have to think like one. . .”

To find out more about Daniel Pembrey and his books hop over to his website at www.danielpembrey.co.uk and follow him on Twitter @DPemb

And be sure to visit all the other stops on the fab NIGHT MARKET blog tour…

night market blog tour poster

CTG REVIEWS: TWO O’CLOCK BOY by MARK HILL

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Today I’m delighted to be a part of Mark Hill’s blog tour for the debut that’s taking the UK by storm – Two O’Clock Boy.

What the blurb says:

“TWO CHILDHOOD FRIENDS… ONE BECAME A DETECTIVE… ONE BECAME A KILLER…

Thirty years ago, the Longacre Children’s Home stood on a London street where once-grand Victorian homes lay derelict. There its children lived in terror of Gordon Tallis, the home’s manager.

Then Connor Laird arrived: a frighteningly intense boy who quickly became Tallis’ favourite criminal helper. Soon after, destruction befell the Longacre, and the facts of that night have lain buried . . . until today.

Now, a mysterious figure, the Two O’Clock Boy, is killing all who grew up there, one by one. DI Ray Drake will do whatever it take to stop the murders – but he will go even further to cover up the truth.”

From the chilling prologue to the nail-bitingly intense final pages this London-set police procedural had me hooked.

Longacre Children’s Home burnt to the ground thirty years ago, but the horrors that occurred during the time it was open still haunt those that grew up there and the adults that had dealings with the place. Most of them just want to forget, but someone won’t leave the past behind – they are picking off the people who grew up at Longacre – and dragging back up all the secrets that have been burried for thirty years.

Enter newly promoted DS Flick Crowley and her mentor and boss DI Raymond Drake. Two dynamic detectives determined to get to the truth behind the murders – and also two people with connections to the Longacre themselves. As their professional and personal lives colide, and they try to piece together the evidence as the body count rises, can they work together to find the killer or will the memories and questions the investigation raises force them apart?

I loved this story with its strong procedural detail and gritty, authentic feel to the narrative. Flick and Ray are two great new police characters and, as the investigation puts increasing pressure on their relationship, I was fascinated to find out how things would play out.

The story twists and turns, ratcheting up the tension with every chapter as one-by-one the past residents of the Longacre are singled out by the mysterious Two O’Clock Boy. As more secrets get exposed, and Flick and Ray get ever closer to the killer, the pace accelerates to full throttle, propelling you into the edge-of-the-seat show down and shocking revelations at the climax.

The Two O’Clock Boy is a masterful debut and a real must-read for lovers of police procedurals and detective stories – I recommend you add it to your ‘to read’ stack immediately!!

 

You can find out more about Mark Hill by popping over to his website at www.markhillauthor.com and following him on Twitter @markhillwriter

The Two O’Clock Boy is out in paperback and eBook now – you can buy it here from Amazon and here from Waterstones

And don’t forget to check out all the stops on the Two O’Clock Boy One Hot Blog Tour…

 

Rearview man in coat walking along urban subway from above

CTG’s CRIME THRILLER CLUB #COMP: SIGN UP TO #WIN BOOK BUNDLES AND CHOCOLATES

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The sun is shining, spring is springing, and the easter holidays are here – sounds like a good time for a bookish giveway…

… so everyone who subscribes to my Crime Thriller Club will be automatically entered into a prize draw with the chance to win one of these two fabulous book bundles plus some easter chocolates from Hotel Chocolat (pictured).

Book Bundle 1:

  • Die of Shame by Mark Billingham
  • Deep Down Dead by Steph Broadribb
  • I See You by Clare Mackintosh
  • Mask of Shadows of Oscar de Muriel
  • Evil Game by Angela Marsons
  • Hotel Chocolat Hop! and Chirp! chocolates

Book Bundle 2:

  • The Woman In Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware
  • Deep Down Dead by Steph Broadribb
  • The Escape by C. L. Taylor
  • Black Wood by S. J. I. Holliday
  • The Follower by Koethi Zan
  • Hotel Chocolat Hop! and Chirp! chocolates

By signing up to the CTG Crime Thriller Club you’ll get access to my eNewsletters with exclusive subscriber competitions, content and will be the first to hear about my book news and events. I only send a few newsletters a year, so you won’t be bombarded!

It only takes a moment, so CLICK HERE to sign up now to be in with a chance to win!

** This competition closes at 9pm on Sunday 23rd April 2017 **

Rules
 (1) One entry per subscriber (2) Open to current and new subscribers (3) The winners will be drawn at random (4) No cash alternative (5) The judge’s decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into