* Copy courtesy of Pan Macmillan Australia *It's with great pleasure that I'm kicking off the blog tour for The Twisted Knot by Australian author and serving Police Officer J.M. Peace today.
Let's get started.
Blurb
A marked man. A damaged cop. A town full of secrets.
After her abduction and near death at the hands of a sadistic killer, Constable Samantha Willis is back in the uniform. Despite being on desk duty, rumours reach Sammi that someone in Angel's Crossing has been hurting little girls, and before long a mob is gathering to make sure justice is served.
So when a man is found hanging in his shed, the locals assume the pedophile has finally given into his guilt. That is, until Sammi delves further into the death and uncovers a dark family secret, an unsolved crime and a town desperate for vengeance.
My Review
This is the second crime novel in the Constable Samantha Willis series by J.M. Peace, and I thoroughly enjoyed the first one A Time To Run, so it was a joy to slip back into her world.
I was powering along within the first 10 pages, chuckling while reading a scene involving a member of the public trying to get out of a traffic related ticket. The dialogue is uniquely Australian and I loved the small town setting in Queensland, Australia.
This time Sammi is investigating a crime (and not a victim of one), so the element of immediate danger was absent, which for me meant the plot wasn't as gripping as the first. Having said that, I really enjoyed the character development, the rhythms of work-life at the police station (my favourite part) and unraveling the 'whodunnit' aspects of the novel.
If you haven't read any Australian authors for a while - or even if you have - I heartily recommend picking up The Twisted Knot or A Time To Run. The Twisted Knot can easily be read as a stand alone novel, and with short punchy chapters and a dark atmospheric cover to lure you in, it's a quick and easy read.
Besides, the author is a serving Police Officer who is managing to keep her publishing success a secret from her colleagues, it doesn't get any more fascinating than that! #respect
My rating = ****
Carpe Librum!
Author Bio
J.M. Peace is a pseudonym to protect the author's identity as she is still a serving police officer. Over the past 15 years, Jay has served in a number of different capacities and her experience adds a chilling realism to her writing. Jay's debut novel, A Time to Run was published last year and she blogs regularly about policing and writing at www.jmpeace.com. She lives on the Sunshine Coast with her partner and two kids, juggling writing with police work and being a mum.
Blog Tour
I'm kicking off #thetwistedknot blog tour, but check out the blog tour schedule here for more reviews, interviews and a giveaway.
Do you think this plot was a little more intricate than the last? It felt like that for me.
ReplyDeleteDeb
It was, and I guess it had to have more characters for it to be a successful 'whodunnit'.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed the character development, the rhythms of work-life and unraveling the 'whodunnit' aspects of the novel. I would love to click here again.
ReplyDeleteThanks Aliya, glad you enjoyed it.
ReplyDelete