I am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes

A few people had recommended  this to me and I had it on my bedside table for a few weeks. After reading a random review comparing it to Frederick Forsyth, I opened it one Friday and didn't put it down for the rest of the weekend.

A detective notices murders based on a book he wrote anonymously when he was a spook. Following leads he discovers a terrorist plot against the United States. Reluctantly he goes back into the spy world, trying to foil the upcoming attack. He realises that the terrorist responsible has gone undetected   and is as brilliant, if not better at his tradecraft than anyone else. Unravelling first the connection and cause he sets out to catch him before the unthinkable...

It is everything a spy novel should be; enough twists to keep you turning the pages, believable characters and a tight plot! Stunning debut from one of Hollywood's great scriptwriters.

KD 

Books with related topics

I have recently finished two books dealing with a  common topic; the deep dark web:

I was given a forward copy of Lee Child's Make Me from the publisher. I couldn't wait to crack open the latest Jack Reacher and I wasn't disappointed!

He drifts into a Midwestern town, Mother's Rest, on a whim (as he does ) and invites trouble (as he does). He literally bumps into a woman whose PI colleague is supposed to be meeting with here. Against his better nature he finds himself assisting in her search for her colleague. The town folk are suspicious and something seems amiss. After digging around they realise that he was working on something big. Following his vague leads, they stumble upon a website found on the deep web. What they uncover is far more disturbing than anything Child has written about before...

If I go any further it would be pointless for you to read the novel AND Reacher fans would never forgive me!

I write a monthly newsletter of current and forthcoming titles for the bookshop I work at. So I often come across intriguing blurbs. Pretty Girls by Karin Slaughter  caught my eye.

This is the story of a loving family torn apart by the abduction of the eldest child. 

Claire, newly widowed after a violent crime finds out that her husband is not the man she thought he was for 19 years. Discovering snuff porn on the day of his funeral and caught in a game of cat an mouse with the police, her estranged sister Lydia is the only person who can help her. 

Together they discover the extent of Claire's husbands betrayal. 

Together they must fight to stay alive, fight to find truth and finally find their sister.

A tight plot taut with suspense, this book must not be missed. Fans of Gillian Flynn will LOVE this!

After reading what goes on in the deep dark web I realised that 99% of us are oblivious to this hidden world and all the the nastiness associated with it. 

There is an actual market for the most heinous crimes you could think off. And in this day and age with the internet being so easily assessable, these violent crimes are exploding!

Two utterly fascinating reads. 

Go ahead... Do it! Pick up that book, I know you want to... Dinner can wait 😉

KD

Dark Places by Gillian Flynn

I had watched Gone Girl a few months back and enjoyed it, probably because I hadn't read the book!

While going through movie trailers one afternoon, I came across a film adaptation of Dark Places starring the talented Charlize Theron. Dark, emo and with a hint of madness I knew I had to hunt down a copy.

Whew!

Gillian Flynn is one talented lady! Her words have the amazing quality to leave me supremely uncomfortable yet greedy for more!

Libby Day. Survivor of a family massacre. A family massacred by one of their own. 

Fast forward 20 odd years and Libby is broke and bitter. (I loved to despise Libby) Needing money quickly, she agrees to meet with a "murder club", accepting payment to speak about her ordeal at the hands of her brother. Once she gets there it's not the sympathy she expects. They convince her of the lack of evidence and her testimony against her convicted brother.

She is forced to confront childhood memories of the murders and the possibility of her brother's innocence.

Leaping between present day and the week leading up to the murders and told from the POV's of Libby, her mother and brother, this is an ending you never saw coming!

As prescribed by another reviewer, "this book should be read out in the bright sun while surrounded by happy people."

Loved it!

KD