Tag: story

CTG Reviews: The Maze by Daniel Pembrey

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The Maze cover image

The Maze cover image

What the blurb says: “In the latest Harbour Master story, maverick Amsterdam cop Henk van der Pol roves further afield, to Rotterdam, Antwerp and Brussels – investigating a maze-like set of cases involving diamonds, fine art, drugs and high-class prostitution. What connects the cases, and what risks must Henk run to uncover the criminals? Impeding him is his rival and boss Joost, who has an equal but quite separate interest in the investigation’s outcome. Upon discovering the connection between the cases, Henk must confront challenges at a higher and more dangerous level of the Dutch state.”

The Maze is the second story in Daniel Pembrey’s popular Harbour Master II novella series, and the first in the series that I’ve read.

It’s also the first crime book with a Dutch detective lead character that I’ve read in a very long time and I really enjoyed reading a story set in different cities to those I often read about.

Henk van der Pol makes for a great lead character – he’s strong willed, courageous and determined to unravel the cases he encounters and serve justice – no matter how complicated they might be. Which is good, because The Maze sees him challenged by a spate of seemingly unrelated cases. As Henk digs deeper into the evidence he begins to see a pattern, but encounters trouble and obstruction where he least expects it – within the police service. As he connects the cases, and sees the potential political implications, he has to call in favours from those in his past in order to bring those responsible to justice – and to stay alive.

Henk’s wife, Pernilla, and daughter, Nadia, feature strongly within the story as Henk tries to balance his family responsibilities with his work and his wife becomes anxious as their daughter becomes increasingly distant. As the investigation takes him from Amsterdam to Rotterdam, Antwerp and Brussels, and his wife becomes increasingly concerned, Henk is torn between his competing priorities.

A fast paced, page-turner of a story – this crime thriller a fabulous read. At 108 pages it’s perfect to read in one sitting on a lazy Sunday afternoon or a long train ride, or to enjoy in daily instalments.

Highly Recommended.

 

To find out more about Daniel Pembrey’s books hop on over to his website at http://danielpembrey.com/books/

You can also follow him on Twitter @DPemb

 

[many thanks to Daniel Pembrey for my copy of The Maze]

Indie Spotlight: The Missing by Karl Vadaszffy

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The Missing cover image

The Missing cover image

What the cover says: “John Simmons is en route to London with his girlfriend, Jennie Michaels, whom he intends to propose to that evening. He pulls into the London Gateway Services, leaving Jennie in the car. But when he returns, she has disappeared. Frantic with worry, he turns to the police for help. The police doubt that Jennie exists: there is no trace that she ever existed.

John, convinced Jennie was not a figment of his imagination, sets out in a desperate attempt to find the woman he fell in love with. He has the help of Detective Sergeant Kate Nielsen, herself haunted by a botched undercover operation that led to her being raped four years earlier.

Everything he can remember of Jennie – where she worked, where she lived – turns out to be untrue. Nielsen, following John as he lurches from one lead to another, begins to wonder if Jennie could be the eleventh victim of a serial killer. Their investigation becomes increasingly urgent and threatens to bring back dark and murky images from Nielsen’s past.”

John Simmons is in a nightmare situation. His fear for Jennie and his determination to find her make him a sympathetic and compelling character. Even though everything he thought was true about his girlfriend turns out to be false, he won’t give up. Finally, he persuades DS Kate Nielson to help him.

But as John becomes increasingly desperate to find Jennie, and his behaviour becomes more and more erratic, DS Kate Nielson’s challenges grow. Her boss thinks John is delusional, and Kate herself begins to doubt if Jennie ever did exist.

But when another woman is brutally attacked and murdered, John’s convinced there’s a connection. As John and Kate hunt for the killer, they become targets themselves.

The race is on. Can Kate find Jennie and catch the killer before she becomes the next victim?

The Missing is an action packed, high tension read. The stakes continue to rise, and the list of suspects continues to grow, while the question ‘Did Jennie Michaels really exist?’ adds further complications.

Part police procedural, part action thriller, part psychological thriller, with more than enough twists to keep the reader guessing until the end, this is a debut novel well worth checking out.

Debut novelist, Karl Vadaszffy, is published by Peach Press in eBook format. You can find out more at his website: www.karlvad.com

The Missing is the first book in the DS Kate Nielson series.

 

Writing Prompts: the abandoned motel

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abandoned motel

abandoned motel

Travelling through the States I stumbled across this abandoned motel on the edge of a tiny town in West Virginia.

It seemed odd, that in a cute little town with artisan shops and traditional bars, a motel beside a picturesque river on the edge of a national park could fall into disrepair.

Old and crumbling, with broken windows and the door to the reception area just slightly ajar, the place looked like it’d been empty a while.

It got me wondering: what happened here?

Now there’s a prompt for a story …

Writing Prompts: “A Great Place for Murder”

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English: The Old Land Port

English: The Old Land Port (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The other week, along with several of my writing friends from The Nomad Novelist Writers Group, I joined a walking tour of Dickens’ Portsmouth.  It was a fabulous tour, fill of great little insights into the life and world of Dickens.  But the thing I got most from the tour was the opportunity to have a good look around Portsmouth’s nooks and crannies.

A fellow writer had set his recently completed dark thriller in the city.  I was a beta reader of his first draft, and as we walked he gleefully pointed out all the locations that had featured in the novel.

As we neared the end of the tour we came across the Landport Gate. At this point I turned and said, ‘Wow, wouldn’t this make a great place for a murder.’  He agreed.  And as we were discussing how it might happen, we noticed the other people on the tour (non writers) quickly moving away from us.

Perhaps we should have explained we were plotting for a book!

What places have inspired your writing?

 

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