Nicki`s Life of Crime : BLOG TOUR, BOOK REVIEW

BOOK DESCRIPTION

WEALTH. SECURITY. PROSPERITY. NONE OF IT MATTERS IN THE DARK.

In a quiet cul-de-sac on the newly-opened, much sought-after Blackstoke housing development, the first handful of families are moving in. These neighbours, thrown together for the first time, are looking forward to settling into their bright new lives—with varying degrees of enthusiasm. The estate couldn’t be nicer, but it’s a big change for everyone.Then things start to happen. Bad things. As if something doesn't want them there.As the new residents try to make sense of events, the buried history of the area makes itself suddenly, deeply apparent—with a series of shocking, violent escalations.Soon, no one is safe, as the original powers of Blackstoke return to reclaim their territory and birth right in a final night of dark revelations, gore and bloodshed

This part domestic drama, part horror is voiced from the perspectives of the various residents occupying the five completed houses in the still under construction Blackstoke Estate. The other residents retired couple Quint and Wendy Fenchurch, Fletcher Adams,his wife Joyce and their identical twins Boyd and Burnett, Christian and David Lyon and their baby daughter Olivia and Grace Milligan and her massive Irish Wolfhound Dewey were already settled in their homes when Peter and Pam West moved into their new home with their children Alice and Jacob. Peter and Pam discovered that their new neighbours were a friendly bunch with the exception of grumpy Quint who appeared to have taken a disliking to Grace and poor Dewey. Everything seemed to be going well in the new neighbourhood until all of a sudden strange things started happening and then people started mysteriously disappearing. Eventually the neighbours find themselves battling for their lives against a terrifying enemy who had nefarious sickening plans for certain members of the community. Dark secrets about their neighbourhood have not been disclosed to the new home owners. When the dust settles after the battle, will any of the residents be left standing and will anyone believe the horrors that they have witnessed.

As with any neighbourhood, the residents were a mixed bag of realistic individuals, some likeable,some not so likeable. My favourite characters were feisty Grace and her fierce looking but adorable dog Dewey, I also liked Peter,David,Christian and Joyce. The twins Boyd and Burnett had a mysterious aura about their characters and I thought that it was a shame that they didn't appear more in the story. The spooky setting was also a character in its own right with its possibly controversial gates at the entrance to the estate and dark,hidden past.

This story is essentially written in two halves, the reader spends the first part of the story getting to know the various residents of the five houses, the inner workings of their relationships and witnessing the interactions between the neighbours. Then things started happening, the tension started to build until the reader finds themself plunged into a seriously, chilling, intense horror story that had a genuinely unexpected conclusion. I would love to watch a film adaptation of this gripping story and would happily read more of this author's books in the future.

AUTHOR BIO

Rob Parker is a married father of three, who lives in a village near Warrington, UK. The author of the Ben Bracken thrillers and the standalone post-Brexit country-noir Crook's Hollow, he enjoys a rural life on an old pig farm (now minus pigs), writing horrible things between school runs. Rob writes full time, as well as organising and attending various author events across the UK - while boxing regularly for charity. Passionate about inspiring a love of the written word in young people, he spends a lot of time in schools across the North West, encouraging literacy, story-telling and creative-writing. He is also a co-host of the For Your Reconsideration film podcast, and a regular voice on the Blood Brothers crime book podcast.

Publisher : Red Dog Press (25 Mar. 2021)
Language : English
Paperback : 290 pages
ISBN-10 : 1913331946
ISBN-13 : 978-1913331948