Review: Eeny Meeny by M.J. Arlidge

Eeny Meeny is a crime thriller set in the UK. Couples are being abducted and held against their will. To gain their freedom their captor has a simple request – ‘when one of you kills the other, the survivor will walk free’. As the bodies start to pile up DI Grace needs to find the killer fast.

The descriptive writing style draws the reader in with graphic and gruesome descriptions of the crimes, and the book is very enjoyable. The plot and characters are very similar to the type of crime stories you see on prime-time TV – time limited scenario, detectives with personal issues, psychological elements. The one let down for me came later on in the book, where the threat moves closer to home for the investigators; there was simply a lack of real peril which for me is the key to a good thriller.

Eeny Meeny will appeal to fans of crime dramas like CSI and criminal minds and is available from Amazon UK for £3.99. 

[Review copy provided by NetGalley]

Review: The Troop by Nick Cutter

The Troop is a horrific, terrifying and brilliant tale exploring what happens when boys are forced to become men. Part horror, part psychological thriller, part sci-med, The Troop starts out with a small scout group and their scoutmaster taking a trip to a remote, deserted island, all seems normal until one night a man arrives, clearly ill. Tim the scoutmaster feels that it is his duty as a doctor to try to help the dying man without fully realising the horror incubating inside the stranger. Soon the evil emerges and starts to slowly work its way through the small group, who have no one but themselves to turn to for help.

The Troop is so captivating that even when you really feel like you can’t take anymore you keep reading. The actual infection (I will say no more) pales into insignificance compared to the palpable fear of the characters and the detailed exploration of their psyche as the situation shows the best and the worst of the teens. There is no shying away from the necessities of the situation, and there is no clear ‘hero’, each of the boys will do something they regret. The author cleverly weaves in reports from those on the mainland taken after the events in the book, which allows the reader to catch their breath and regroup, as well as showing us how futile the boy’s situation is. The final bid for survival and the last twist had me in tears and goose bumps respectively.

This is not the book for those with a weak constitution, there is an abundance of gore, with some very graphic descriptions, there is swearing, there is some sexual activity, there is self-mutilation. However, none of this should bother most adult thriller or horror readers enough to stop them reading. I did however draw the line at the very graphic descriptions of animal cruelty by one of the characters, and did have to skip over one particular part involving a kitten. Whilst completely fitting to the story, it did upset me. There are also descriptions of animal experimentation, but this is presented more clinically. If any of this bothers you, you may want to give The Troop a miss.

Overall a horrifically good thriller that I recommend anyone with a strong stomach gives a go but not one for the kids.

The Troop is available for £7.99 from Amazon.co.uk and from Amazon.com.

[An ARC was provided by NetGalley]

Review: Second Chance by David Perry

Second Chance tells the story of Alex Benedict, a devoted husband and hospital pharmacists who ends up getting dragged into a hunt for clues to find the most sought after drug in the world – the elixir of life. Alex has a personal reason to want to find it, as his wife is terminally ill in hospital.

It took me several months of trying to read Second Chance before getting past the first few chapters, as the story is not that gripping to begin with. It does soon pick up, and becomes very readable from around the 60% mark. I did enjoy reading it, although it’s not a book I’d read again given that I now know the plot.

I did feel that Second Chance was slightly let down by some plot weaknesses. For example, it’s never properly explained (as far as I remember) why the IV bag samples didn't yield the ingredients uses in the drug. The clues to find the hidden formula seem to be very easy to decode, and nothing seems to be too difficult, be that getting a plane or accessing documents after-hours. Due to that, there was a lack of real threat. The most believable moment is ‘the’ scene near the end of the book, where Benedict truly comes alive as a character.

The story also wasn't helped by a rather large cast of characters, some who are introduced near the start of the book, only to disappear till the end. This left me racking my brains trying to figure out who they were and what they had to do with everything.

Overall Second Chance is a decent mystery, but not one that I’d like to re-read. It is available from Amazon UK for £8.23, and from Amazon US for $13.57.

[Review copy provided by NetGalley]

Review: Country Doctor: Tales of a Rural GP by Michael Sparrow

Country Doctor is a collection of anecdotes about the life of a former Air Force medic turned country GP - Michael Sparrow. It follows in the footsteps of books like Sick Notes and Confessions of a GP, the primary difference in this case is that the doctor in question has had a rather dubious background for a GP; he is someone who openly admits to being less than academically gifted and admits to neglecting his duties whilst a student/house officer.

The book was enjoyable to read, and there were moments when I literally laughed aloud. The anecdotes in the most part are interesting and entertaining but I found three things hindered my enjoyment of the book. First, the title is misleading. Just a fraction of the book is actually set when the author is a country GP, the vast majority focusing on his early career and time in the Air Force. For me this was immensely disappointing as it was not the collection of interesting stories about interesting people, and good old fashioned village spirit, I had imagined it to be.

The next issue for me was the underlying vibe of the author saying "Look how great I am". Whilst on the surface the author says he wasn't that good a medical student or junior doctor, there is a definite vibe of "I'm better than you" throughout, which quickly got wearing such as when the author basically turns around and said that his tutor could see just how amazing a doctor he was, that they 'helped' him through his exams. Lastly, some of the 'true' stories recounted in the book are questionable. If they did indeed happen, then some of the events where at best unethical.

Overall I found Country Doctor to be a easy, humorous read but for the reasons outlined above I have given it a three star rating, although at only 99p currently, you cannot go too wrong.

Country Doctor is available from Amazon UK for 99p and from Amazon US for $1.63.