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bibliobethreads's review against another edition
4.0
First of all, huge thanks to Faye Rogers for organising this blog tour and asking me to be a part of it and to the author and publisher, Kindle Press for providing me with a copy of Jacqueline's first crime novel in exchange for an honest review. I'm a big fan of crime fiction and it used to be all I read before I broadened my horizons slightly but I still always appreciate a well written, exciting and dark piece of crime fiction and I got this all and much more besides with Random Acts Of Unkindness.
We are introduced to our main character, a police detective Jan Pearce in quite a shocking way as she has entered a house after reports of a suspicious smell to find an old woman dead in what she believes could be suspicious circumstances. We then find out that Jan has an ulterior motive in entering the property and this is because she is pursuing a link between the man who owns the house, the mysterious criminal mastermind Mr Connelly and the disappearance of her own beloved teenage son Aiden some time ago. What she isn't expecting is to find so many parallels between her own private tragedy and the disappearance of the old woman Bessy's own son, Thomas many years ago in the 1960's when the horrific crimes of the notorious Moors Murderers were rife.
Jan manages to find a notebook of Bessy's, written in the form of a journal, which contains vital information about her son's case and provides many links to Jan's current situation. It brings her both comfort and a sense of dogged determination that only makes her more desperate to find out exactly what happened to both boys. Defying the advice of her superior officer, her work partner and her ex-husband, Jan is certain that she will solve the mysteries of disappearing children that have plagued the county for decades. Things are about to get very dangerous as Jan receives terrifying threats, risks her livelihood and indeed, her life just to uncover the truth at any cost.
When I first began this novel, I have to admit to not being quite sure where the author was going with the story. The pace at the beginning I found quite slow but believe me, the build-up was totally worth it as when the action got going, the whole mystery and excitement really picked up a gear. I really enjoyed the way Jacqueline Ward has presented the story, in that we get to hear Jan's voice in the present time and pieces from Bessy's journal as she struggles to cope with never knowing what has happened to her son. I can only imagine the research that the author has had to carry out, on the Moors Murderers in particular and more than one passage sent a shiver down my spine, perhaps it was all the more chilling knowing that it is based on real-life people who actually carried out these atrocities. Random Acts Of Unkindness promises to be the first novel in a DS Jan Pearce series and I'll certainly be checking out further books from this author in the future based on the strength of this particular novel.
For my full review and many more please visit my blog at http://www.bibliobeth.com
We are introduced to our main character, a police detective Jan Pearce in quite a shocking way as she has entered a house after reports of a suspicious smell to find an old woman dead in what she believes could be suspicious circumstances. We then find out that Jan has an ulterior motive in entering the property and this is because she is pursuing a link between the man who owns the house, the mysterious criminal mastermind Mr Connelly and the disappearance of her own beloved teenage son Aiden some time ago. What she isn't expecting is to find so many parallels between her own private tragedy and the disappearance of the old woman Bessy's own son, Thomas many years ago in the 1960's when the horrific crimes of the notorious Moors Murderers were rife.
Jan manages to find a notebook of Bessy's, written in the form of a journal, which contains vital information about her son's case and provides many links to Jan's current situation. It brings her both comfort and a sense of dogged determination that only makes her more desperate to find out exactly what happened to both boys. Defying the advice of her superior officer, her work partner and her ex-husband, Jan is certain that she will solve the mysteries of disappearing children that have plagued the county for decades. Things are about to get very dangerous as Jan receives terrifying threats, risks her livelihood and indeed, her life just to uncover the truth at any cost.
When I first began this novel, I have to admit to not being quite sure where the author was going with the story. The pace at the beginning I found quite slow but believe me, the build-up was totally worth it as when the action got going, the whole mystery and excitement really picked up a gear. I really enjoyed the way Jacqueline Ward has presented the story, in that we get to hear Jan's voice in the present time and pieces from Bessy's journal as she struggles to cope with never knowing what has happened to her son. I can only imagine the research that the author has had to carry out, on the Moors Murderers in particular and more than one passage sent a shiver down my spine, perhaps it was all the more chilling knowing that it is based on real-life people who actually carried out these atrocities. Random Acts Of Unkindness promises to be the first novel in a DS Jan Pearce series and I'll certainly be checking out further books from this author in the future based on the strength of this particular novel.
For my full review and many more please visit my blog at http://www.bibliobeth.com
staceyinthesticks's review against another edition
4.0
This is my first read from Jacqueline Ward and I couldn't wait to get stuck into this after reading the blurb, as crime & thriller is one of my fave genres but one I don't read as much any more.
Jan is a detective who's son goes missing at the age of 15, and it turns out lots of other boys around his age have been disappearing over the years too. She launches into her own investigation of his disappearance, alongside the Operation which she is involved in for the other missing boys. On her enquiries she comes across a dead body of an old woman - Bessy, a bag of money, a journal, and a dead baby skeleton, and from there the story really starts unravelling...
The book is written in first person from Jan's POV and Ward has done a good job with this. Parts of the story are told via Bessy's journal, though when it was first introduced it was a little confusing as it was a chapter name rather than number like the beginning.
The story in general had me so engrossed though there were a couple of inconsistencies where I had to flick back a few pages too. Ward managed to keep me guessing and hanging on throughout though, also with changing my mind about certain characters, and I didn't even imagine the truth of what happened to the missing boys.
The whole story is a true horror that no parent should ever have to face, and I really found myself feeling so sad for Jan and Bessy, especially when people didn't believe them and just brushed them off. Bessy's story is set around the time of the Moors Murders so there are references to this too.
All in all, a brilliant thriller with many twists & turns along the way, and I hope there are more books planned as I would love to read more of Jan's story! 4.5* due to the slight confusion.
Jan is a detective who's son goes missing at the age of 15, and it turns out lots of other boys around his age have been disappearing over the years too. She launches into her own investigation of his disappearance, alongside the Operation which she is involved in for the other missing boys. On her enquiries she comes across a dead body of an old woman - Bessy, a bag of money, a journal, and a dead baby skeleton, and from there the story really starts unravelling...
The book is written in first person from Jan's POV and Ward has done a good job with this. Parts of the story are told via Bessy's journal, though when it was first introduced it was a little confusing as it was a chapter name rather than number like the beginning.
The story in general had me so engrossed though there were a couple of inconsistencies where I had to flick back a few pages too. Ward managed to keep me guessing and hanging on throughout though, also with changing my mind about certain characters, and I didn't even imagine the truth of what happened to the missing boys.
The whole story is a true horror that no parent should ever have to face, and I really found myself feeling so sad for Jan and Bessy, especially when people didn't believe them and just brushed them off. Bessy's story is set around the time of the Moors Murders so there are references to this too.
All in all, a brilliant thriller with many twists & turns along the way, and I hope there are more books planned as I would love to read more of Jan's story! 4.5* due to the slight confusion.
m00plays's review
4.0
I'm gonna rate this book more like a 4.5!
Well, I read this book for 2 days straight because of how addictive it is! When I took a break to eat, sleep or shower I still couldn't get it off my mind. My mind was bouncing from one theory to another throughout and not once did I expect the ending! It is vile and sick and twisted but actually scary to think stuff like this happens.
I won't say anymore in case I spoil it but honestly READ THIS BOOK.
Well, I read this book for 2 days straight because of how addictive it is! When I took a break to eat, sleep or shower I still couldn't get it off my mind. My mind was bouncing from one theory to another throughout and not once did I expect the ending! It is vile and sick and twisted but actually scary to think stuff like this happens.
I won't say anymore in case I spoil it but honestly READ THIS BOOK.
rebeccacarter's review
3.0
This is a slow-brew type of story. A mother searches for her missing son, insisting he's still alive. No body, no proof of crime is a general sentiment throughout. There's a substory of another mother, forty years earlier, in the same situation. The concept of the story was great. There were moments of high-intensity. But for the most part, there was also a lot of repetition of thought in both storylines. I began to feel like the characters: I don't want to hear this mother talk about her missing son again. Nonetheless, plotwise, the story was interesting.
I received a copy of this book through the Kindle Scout program.
I received a copy of this book through the Kindle Scout program.
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