Blue Wolf Reviews

Tag: psychological

  • Kill For Me Kill For You

    Kill For Me Kill For You

    There is a reason why Steve Cavanagh is an international award winning thriller author; his cleverly devised plots, well-fleshed-out characters and his ability to misdirect the reader. In ‘Kill For Me Kill For You’ he employs all three. It is more than an intriguing take on the classic Patricia Highsmith ‘Strangers On A Train’ story line, with its multiple twists and shocking revelations. All is not as it seems.

    Amanda and Wendy both have lost their daughters at the hands of a heinous sexual predator, who despite destroying their lives has never been brought to justice. The grieving women meet at a bereavement support group and form an almost instantaneous connection. Knowing the man responsible and desperately wanting him dead, over drinks they agree to “I’ll kill for you and you kill for me”, as neither can find peace until the perpetrator is killed. Have they hatched the perfect plan?

    Told from multiple perspectives, the reader is given insight into the troubled minds of the unique characters and with a powerful twist, the author brings their dual stories, which are running concurrently, together.  Although this appears to be a story of revenge in which two women unite in their all-consuming, unrelenting grief, it is also a tale of vigilantism, betrayal and lies.

    I highly recommend this well-crafted, page turning, highly suspenseful psychological thriller, in which Steve Cavanagh leads the reader with numerous surprising twists in many different directions and finally to an unexpected climax. Members of a book club will no doubt want to discuss the moral dilemma facing the women. Does their extreme grief justify their contrived solution?  Where does revenge stop?

  • The Accident

    The Accident

    Very cleverly created The Accident is a small slice of life in the everyday world of Grace, her daughter Emma and some of the people who come into their world, invited and otherwise, which captures beautifully the major mess life can all too easily become, when all you want to do is getting on with simply getting on!

    Emma is an only child to single mother, Grace, a Veterinarian who has earned an excellent reputation for her work with the local wildlife sanctuary. Emma is struggling with an eating disorder which rules both their lives.

    Zoe, in a long term relationship but childless, finds herself suddenly single as the ‘love of her life’ has accepted a contact in Vancouver and does not want her along on the journey. She is bereft, almost beyond consolation but seeks support from her cousin Claire, a psychologist and her long time very best friend.

    Their worlds run parallel as Emma changes schools due to ‘bullying’ issues and finds herself as one of Zoe’s students. Add Christopher, Emma’s birth father, Imogen a Doctor in the Emergency Department of the hospital, who never seems to be at all confident about her diagnosis, Nick the new love in Zoe’s life and then of course there is Ben, the forever love of Graces’ life, except he is married!

    There is hidden within the fabric of daily life, a subtle, but deadly game being played out based in obsession and possession which highlights the games people play with others’ lives to fulfil their own needs; sadly, an increasing modern societal issue.

    Over a nine-month period Katie McMahon weaves skilfully all these lives into a cohesive force that develops a momentum of its own, until everyone’s reality is bought into sharp focus by The Accident, which as accidents are wont do bring the many things that are truly important in life to the forefront.

    Dotted between the chapters are sections of the Coronial report from the Coronial Court of Tasmania Inquiry into a Death which adds to the intrigue of the storyline; but who died?  

    As the pages turn the story wraps itself around the emotions each one of us has faced or experienced in the madness that is life; the reality of eating disorders, mental health issues, abandonment and rebuilding that will eventually be called for, as life progresses ever onward.

    The Accident: do make sure you read the first page of quotes. They sum up life perfectly in a microcosm. An excellent read which is while very easy to relate to, retains the wonderful mantle of fiction to allow life to be held at arm’s length a little while longer. 

  • Those Who Return

    Those Who Return

    Not only has one boy disappeared but now another has been murdered; both are residents at Hatchery House which had a chequered past as an asylum, therapy house and church. Former FBI psychiatrist Lore Webber was sent to this not for profit treatment facility for orphaned and abandoned children in the remote wilderness of Nebraska, to treat those with psychiatric disorders.

    When Lore’s former partner and childhood friend Cedar, drags her reluctantly into the centre of the enquiry, she is forced to confront past events from which she’d been running her entire life. Although distrustful of others and uneasy in their company, the skills which she acquired while with the FBI prove extremely useful during the investigation.

    Can they discover what happened to the murder victim Luis before the killer strikes again? Who within the walls of Hatchery House, with its dark past, locked rooms, mysterious bell tower and unpredictable nature of some of its residents, is the murderer? 

    Although this first person narrative is at times difficult to navigate, many readers will enjoy this slow burner psychological thriller, with its many twists and turns which keep you guessing until the final pages.

  • Into the Night

    Into the Night

    The Dark Lake was Sarah’s first novel, and she won great acclaim for it. We were introduced to the detective Gemma Woodstock, in a murder mystery that was taut, suspenseful and captivating. Into The night, follows on with Gemma’s career. She has moved from a small country town to Melbourne where she continues to work with the police as a highly intelligent and resourceful detective. The author involves the reader by expanding Gemma’s personal story, and describes the child she loves so much, but can’t raise and the man she loved, but can’t live with. This young woman has her own demons but spends her days hunting out others.

    Gemma’s first case involves the senseless murder of a homeless man in a tunnel. There is no reason why anyone would harm this gentle man. Very shortly after, Gemma and her partner are advised that a street in Melbourne’s CBD will be closed for the filming of a TV show. Although security is at a premium, another murder takes place. Again, there seems to be no logical reason why this popular young man should be killed.

    Sifting through CCTV footage in the city and questioning all those involved in the murdered man’s life is standard practice, but Gemma has a special knack of listening to what is not being said. As she goes about her plan, organizing others to do the leg work and compiling ideas, more avenues are opened for investigation. Along with her new position, Gemma has to respond to her fellow workers, learn the ropes in a new station, and again deal with her demon.

    The author pulls us into the story by gradually revealing information about the people who were close to the murdered man. We get to know them and the victim, which adds to the picture that we are trying to build up. Most stories can’t be trusted, and as the detective is trying to piece together stories that match.

    The writing is beautifully descriptive in this story, so that the reader understands the feelings and emotions of the characters. There is much to draw one into the story, the unemotive factual processes and the passionate desire of Gemma to have some stability in her life.

    The author describes all actions of Police procedure comprehensively, and has set a new barrier for Psychological thrillers. This is an excellent follow up to her first book, and I believe that Sarah Bailey is set to become a leading crime fiction writer.

  • The Hanging Girl

    The Hanging Girl

    This psychological thriller will keep you on your toes as a reader. Just when you think you can relax into the story, something most unexpected happens. The action is really more about the mental anguish of the characters, and how they cope with conflict. The main character is an eighteen year old (called Skye), who is graduating from school with her best friend, Drew. The girls, especially Drew, have been planning to move to New York after their graduation. Skye has a mother who has little money, and will be unable to support her daughter.

     Skye and her Mother both read Tarot cards, her mother seriously, the daughter just as a revenue raiser. Even then no money has been saved for the girl’s move interstate. One gets the feeling that the mother is fairly detached from her daughter. She was fifteen when she had Skye, and the father left very quickly, so single parenting was the only option. An opportunity now presents itself to Skye in the guise of Paige, the local judge’s daughter who has a proposition and needs Skye’s help to pull it off.

     What a dilemma! The reality is that Paige wants to give her parents an awful fright, to punish them for neglecting her. She needs Skye to give psychic clues to the police so that she can eventually be found. A large sum of money will change hands and Skye will be able to move out with her best friend. The best laid plans go astray, and the girls have to rework the initial plot.

     Meanwhile Skye is under suspicion by the Police, as well as Paige’s friends. She often feels as though she is being followed, and goes through the motions at school. She becomes more and more pressured, until her mother begins to take charge. Unfortunately, Mother does this by calling in the media, the last thing that Sky wanted. As the tension mounts and different plans are put in place, things become truly complicated. Skye and Paige want such vastly different things. For Skye, it is just the money, for Paige, it is revenge.

     There is so much uncertainty shown by the characters that we can feel the moral issues they are struggling with. The view of the real world is quite different for all of the women; for Drew “Money is just not a problem,” for Paige, “Revenge is everything,” and for Skye “Being able to change your future to one with promise,” is a goal to reach towards. As we follow their journey, and events unfold, we realise that nothing usually goes completely to plan. That they could go so drastically wrong rocks even the most complaisant reader. The main character’s age is certainly appropriate to the way she thinks and behaves, adding extra insight into the story.