In Print

My Mother’s Secret

A completely gripping and emotional page-turner

‘They told me he died, but I never believed them. I’d have known,’ she says, her voice little more than a whisper and her eyes searching mine. ‘A mother would know if her child died, wouldn’t she?’

Danni has never had an easy relationship with her mother, Diana. But when Diana is diagnosed with a serious illness, everything changes. As some of Diana’s memories slip away, others force their way to the surface. One night she breaks down and reveals that before Danni was born, she had another baby who never got to see the world.

Now married, with a loving husband and two beautiful daughters of her own, Danni has put her childhood behind her. But she has always wondered what caused her mother’s coldness. Could this be why? Danni can’t tell whether Diana’s story is a symptom of her confusion, or something real. She decides to find out, hoping to bring her mother some peace.

Yet as Danni investigates the past, tracking down the aunt she’s never met to learn what lies in her mother’s past, her good intentions have unexpected consequences. As more truths emerge, a shocking revelation could turn her life upside down. Will Danni’s quest heal her pain, or are some secrets best left buried?

My first read of 2021 to reduce me to tears… the definition of a page-turner and a tear-jerker. I didn’t want to stop reading… I loved every word.’ The Book Lover’s Boudoir, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Rachel Hart Series

# Book 1.

Little Girl Missing

An absolutely unputdownable crime thriller

How can a little girl vanish into thin air?

Five-year-old Cassie Bailey’s mother tucked her into bed and kissed her goodnight. This morning she’s missing, her unicorn bedcovers are empty, and her parents are frantic.

Detective Rachel Hart knows that the first few hours after a child goes missing are the most crucial, and that the Baileys are living every parent’s worst nightmare. Rachel knows, because as a child her family lived through it too, when her sister was taken.

The days are ticking by with no sign of Cassie, and the cracks in the Baileys’ marriage are beginning to show. But are the holes in their stories because they’re out of their minds with panic – or because they’re lying?

Rachel’s convinced that Cassie knew the person who took her, but can she find the little girl before she’s lost forever?

Well this book was everything I hoped it would be, it had me hooked from the very first chapter. So many twists and turns I couldn’t work out “ who done it” So well written, will read more from this author.

# Book 2.

What he did

Your husband’s car crash wasn’t an accident…

Maddy Shaw learns the life-shattering news in the most horrific way: live on air. As the shaky mobile phone recording pans over the terrible crash, she recognises her husband Simon’s car in the wreckage… He is critically injured, and she rushes to his side.

Detective Rachel Hart hurries to support her friend Maddy, and decides to investigate. It’s not her case, but she knows how it feels to have a loved one’s life hanging in the balance, and if she can give her friend answers, she will. But when she watches the footage, she sees a motorbike chasing the car at a dangerous speed. Simon didn’t crash because he was distracted, or because a tyre blew. Someone made this happen. Someone who wants Simon dead…

After the discovery of a threatening letter, buried in Simon’s diary, Maddy has to ask how well she knew her husband. Then a new victim is found – an old friend of Simon’s, a man he hasn’t seen in years. It seems a dark secret from their past has finally come to light… Is Maddy’s whole life built on a lie?

Can Rachel find the murderer and protect her friend, before time runs out? And will Maddy ever forgive her if the truth about Simon destroys everything she thought she knew?

# Book 3.

Why She Died

It was a person after all, but she was suspended in mid-air. Abi’s heart began to thump against her ribcage as the full horror of what she was seeing became apparent. Her shrill scream pierced the silence, startling birds into taking flight. ‘Help me!’ she cried. ‘Somebody please help!’

When beautiful and bright Hannah is late for their morning run, her best friend Abi thinks nothing of it. Hannah isn’t always that reliable – she’s probably just overslept.

But as Abi runs through the woods, following the same route she always does, she is greeted by a horrifying sight: Hannah’s body, swaying in the breeze.

Detective Rachel Hart is called to the scene. Something seems wrong from the start. Hannah’s friends and family insist that she had everything to live for, and no one has a bad word to say about her. But when murder is confirmed, and Rachel starts digging, she soon realises that there were plenty of people with reason to want Hannah dead.

Then a second woman is found strangled in the same wood, and everything Rachel thought is thrown into doubt. Is there a serial killer at work?

Rachel is determined to find answers before another life is lost – all the time unaware that the killer’s sights are focussed firmly on her.

Can Rachel unravel the deadly game before she walks into a trap?

Alice in

Theatreland

It’s 1976; a summer of soaring temperatures and the year nineteen-year-old Alice Abbott’s life changed irrevocably…
Alice’s childhood dream of seeing her name up in lights seems close to fulfilment when she attends an audition for a new West End show but first she must impress theatre impresario, Richard, a man with an unhealthy penchant for innocent young dancers.
Befriended by Gina, an experienced dancer who is determined to protect her new friend from the sleaze behind the glamour, and attracting attention from the male lead in the show, Peter, a former pop star who she’s had a crush on for years, Alice’s star seems to be ascending until she accepts Richard’s impromptu dinner invitation.
Alice’s naivety places her in peril, but is anyone really as innocent as she appears, and just how far will Richard go to protect his guilty secret?

Great story, great characters. Couldn’t put this book down, really well written. A story of innocence, crime, friendship & heartache all rolled into one with a cracking ending.

The Liberty Sand’s Trilogy

# Book 1.

Life’s a Beach and Then…

Holly Wilson has landed a dream job but there is one proviso… she must keep it secret, and that means telling lies. Holly hates telling lies.
Her latest assignment has brought her to the paradise island of Mauritius where she meets a British couple, Robert and Rosemary, who share a tragic secret of their own.
The moment they introduce Holly to handsome writer, Philippe, she begins to fall in love, something she hasn’t allowed herself to do for twenty years.
But Philippe has not been completely honest and when Holly stumbles across the truth, she feels totally betrayed.

Loved this book from page one. Enjoyed imagining being on a beach on holiday.

The story is gripping and sad in places, with a few unexpected twists. Well worth a read.

# Book 2.

If He Really Loved Me…

An enthralling story of love and romance, heartache and betrayal, set against the exotic backdrop of Barbados and the stunning Gower peninsula. If Holly can’t trust her own son, who can she trust?
Single mum, Holly Wilson, and her twenty-year-old son Harry have an enviably close relationship but when Harry finds out that she is pregnant and, for reasons unknown to all but herself, intends to raise the baby alone again, he begins to question her decision not to tell him about his own father, who abandoned them before his birth.
Upon discovering his father’s name, Harry secretly embarks on his search for the truth, a search which takes him to Los Angeles where he uncovers a tragic story. Still reeling from what he has learned, an extraordinary twist of fate brings Harry and Philippe, the father of Holly’s unborn child, face to face. Should Harry tell him about the baby and risk damaging his relationship with his mum forever? If he does, will Philippe want to be a husband and father? And will Holly be prepared to give Philippe a second chance?

Another 5 star review from me for this very fitting sequel to the first book. Provides great escapism with an interesting, intriguing and truly captivating story-line from start to finish. Brilliantly written, highly engaging and shows the author has tremendous creativity with yet another abundance of twists and turns in the plot. A true ‘curve ball’ of a read!

# Book 3.

It’s Never Too Late To Say…

An emotional and at times tragic conclusion to the Liberty Sands trilogy, It’s Never Too Late To Say… uncovers terrible family secrets that have long been buried.
Holly Wilson seems finally to have it all: a beautiful baby daughter, a son about to embark on an exciting career, a glamorous new job in television, and an adoring boyfriend in bestselling novelist, Philippe. But something isn’t quite right…
In another part of the country, Carol has liver cirrhosis and is suffering from alcohol induced dementia causing her to relive memories – dreadful memories – of sins committed against her and those she has inflicted on others. Her carer, Helen, hopes a meeting with someone from the past might help mend Carol’s broken soul, but time is running out and there is something Helen has been keeping secret.
What links Holly to Carol and Helen? And who is Nick, the handsome stranger who has just walked into her life?

Truth be told when you get to the third book in a trilogy it sometimes lacks substance …….not this book was as thrilling to read as the other two. The characters are so well written you get drawn in and actually care and want to know what happens to them. There is more than enough story to read this as a stand alone but I would bet if you do you will be heading back for the other two .