Dark Game - Rachel Lynch

Kelly’s gut turned over as she realized the danger she was in. She heard no sirens. She knew that she was simply collateral. To these men who made a lot of money from the suffering of others, they’d have no problem snuffing her out.

After a scandal forces D. I. Kelly Porter out of the Met, she returns to her home turf in the Lake District. Crimes in the Cumbrian constabulary tend to be of the minor sort, but Kelly begins work on a cold case that shocked the local community – the abduction and brutal murder of ten-year-old Lottie Davies.

Meanwhile, Kelly is also investigating two seemingly straightforward crimes: a case involving an illegal immigrant, and a robbery following the death of local businessman Colin Day. But evidence comes to light that reveals a web of criminal activity beyond anything Kelly imagined. Behind the veneer of sleepy, touristy towns lies a dark and dangerous underworld. As Kelly threatens to expose those with much to lose, she risks paying the ultimate price to get to the truth…

I read some amazing thrillers last year featuring female detectives/leads and it looks like 2018 is going to be the same. Rachel Lynch has created a fantastic character in Kelly Porter, struggling to adjust living in her childhood home after leaving London under somewhat of a cloud. 

Moving back in with her mother and dealing with her older, bitter sister Kelly is also looking into a cold case that turns out to be linked to her current case involving one of the area's most prominent businessmen, found dead in one of his hotels. The cold case involved a ten-year-old girl who was brutally murdered and her father was the only suspect at the time. Now, Kelly is determined to bring the child's mother some peace but doesn't realize just exactly what she's about to become involved in.

In the beautiful and seemingly quiet surroundings of the Lake District, you certainly don't expect to find drug running, illegal fights, people trafficking, and crime bosses, but this is what Kelly uncovers and somehow it all ties into Lottie's disappearance and death.

It was, quite literally, a case of 'up all night' for me when reading Dark Game. I picked it up before bed expecting to read a couple of chapters but four hours later I was turning the last page, having become completely immersed in Rachel Lynch's wonderful writing and gripping plot. Kelly Porter is not without her fault. She left London after being accused of being too reckless but this is exactly what these two cases need to get to the bottom of them both, to find justice for one and hopefully save lives. You get to see the darker side of one of the most beautiful places in the UK, where nothing is as it seems and if you scratch the surface, don't be surprised at what you find underneath. Rachel Lynch has created a compelling and engrossing main character and I can't wait to see what DI Kelly Porter gets up to next!

About The Author

Rachel Lynch grew up in Cumbria and the lakes and fells are never far away from her. London pulled her away to teach History and marry an Army Officer, whom she followed around the globe for thirteen years. A change of career after children led to personal training and sports therapy, but writing was always the overwhelming force driving the future. The human capacity for compassion as well as its descent into the brutal and murky world of crime are fundamental to her work.

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Dark Game - Rachel Lynch
Publisher - Canelo
Release Date - January 29th, 2018
Find - Goodreads | Amazon UK | Kobo

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February New Release Giveaway!

Welcome to the February 2018 New Release Giveaway Hop, hosted by It Starts At Midnight! The hop now runs all month long so you can enter from now until midnight on November 30th. Up for grabs is any new release this month up to the value of $20 from the Book Depository as long as they deliver to your country - find the list of countries here. 

All you have to do is choose any new release published in November and fill out the rafflecopter!

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Check out the linky for more chances to win, thanks for entering and good luck!

Read My Own Books 2018 - January Check-In

Well, I'm off to a pretty good start but I think that's because I've forced myself to start sorting through the stacks of books everywhere and have been discovering books that I had forgotten I'd bought. Not a good thing as I've also come to the realization that I have about 700 physical books waiting to be read and I'm not even going to think about the hundreds of titles on my Kindle. I think I may change my rules slightly and adjust the number of books I have to read before I can a buy a new one. I got off to a good start with my TBR challenge but I'm sad I didn't read a single library book this month. Some of the books I've read this month I wouldn't even contemplate buying now but obviously a few years ago my reading habits were quite different! Bold means TBR, red means a review copy, and purple indicates a Kindle read.

Books Read In January

1. Never After - Rebecca Lickiss | Own, Paperback, TBR
2. Eccentric Circles - Rebecca Lickiss | Own, Paperback, TBR
3. Moonlocket - Peter Bunzl | Own, Paperback, TBR
4. Tangleweed & Brine - Deirdre Sullivan | Own, Hardcover, TBR
5. Servant of The Underworld - Aliette de Bodard | Own, Paperback, TBR
6. The Wish List - Gabi Stevens | Own, Paperback, TBR
7. Close To Home - Cara Harper | Kindle, Review Copy
8. Infinite Days - Rebecca Maizel | Own, Hardcover, TBR
9. The Cliff House - Amanda Jennings | Kindle, Review Copy
10. The Things We Learn When We're Dead - Charlie Laidlaw | Paperback, Review Copy
11. The Polar Bears Explorer's Club - Alex Bell | Own, Paperback, TBR
12. Dark Game - Rachel Lynch | Kindle, Review Copy
13. Force Of Nature - Jane Harper | Paperback, Review Copy
14. Deep Down Dead - Steph Broadribb | Kindle
15. White Cat - Holly Black | Own, Paperback, TBR
16. Red Glove - Holly Black | Own, Paperback, TBR
17. Wraith - Phaedra Weldon | Own, Paperback, TBR
18. Pleasure Unbound - Larissa Ione | Own, Paperback, TBR
19. A Scream In Soho - John G Brandon | Own, Paperback, TBR
20. Mind Games - Carolyn Crane | Own, Paperback, TBR
21. The Tree Shepherd's Daughter - Gillian Shepherd | Own, Paperback, TBR
22. Circle Of Five - Dolores Riccio | Own, Paperback, TBR
23. Another Faust - Daniel & Dina Nayeri | Own, Paperback, TBR 
24. Land Of Neverendings - Kate Saunders | Own, Hardcover, TBR
25. The Girl Who Saved Christmas - Matt Haig | Own, Paperback, TBR

January In Numbers 

Total Books Read - 25
TBR Challenge - 19
Own - 21
Kindle - 4
Review Copy - 5

Read My Own Books 2018

After taking part in the #ShelfLove challenge last year and doing reasonably well I wanted to do it again this year but alas, it's not running. I've decided to do my own TBR challenge so I can set the rules and I'm only accountable to myself, and obviously the readers of this blog!

I lost track of my #ShelfLove numbers towards the end of the year but I think I managed around 110 of my own books. Ill health and a broken-down computer didn't really help in my blogging/reading endeavours but nevertheless I'm doing this challenge, come hell or high water...

So, the rules. Simple but hopefully easy enough to stick to!

• Read at least 15 of my own books a month
• For every 10 books read I can buy 1 new book
• For every 20 books donated to the library/charity store, I can buy 1 new book
• I can request/download no more than 5 Netgalley/Edelweiss titles a month
• I must write reviews in a more timely fashion ie. not 6 months later...

I'll post a list at the end of each month with my RMOB titles to keep better track than last year, and also reset my TBR Challenge page to list all books read. Nothing remains except to say wish me luck!

My Bookish Year 2017 - July to December

This is where my year went downhill... I had an amazing month in July, I read some great books and I went to ComicCon & YALC for the fourth year in a row, and I met HODOR!!! Then in August disaster struck, my knee gave out and ever since I've been waiting for surgery, stuck in the house apart from hospital appointments, x-rays, and blood tests. That's enough of the miserables though, here are some of my favorite reads from July to December, click on the pics to get to reviews or Goodreads for more info.

Bout of Books 21

Well, I'm not starting 2018 in the organized way I would like. I completely forgot about signing up for Bout of Books 21 so I'm doing it now, partly into day 1 of reading!

"The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda Shofner and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week-long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, January 8th and runs through Sunday, January 14th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 21 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog." - From the Bout of Books team.

I've just started a new book so will count that as the 1st book of the challenge and I'll be posting on Instagram mostly, with short updates on here (when I remember...)

Progress

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My Bookish Year 2017 - January to June

Started well but ended badly... I'd like to forget about 2017 from August onwards but I can't. I didn't go to any bookish events from January to June as I was determined to save for ComicCon and YALC, and I was trying to make sure that I read a lot of books from my own shelves. Neither worked out as well as I hoped but never mind. Here are my favorites of the first half of the year, and, hopefully, followed shortly by July through to December! Some are titles I've reviewed on the blog, you can find them by clicking on the book picture, and others will link to Goodreads.