November First Monday Crime... Jenny Blackhurst

Come along to First Monday Crime at London's Library Club on November 7th. 
As always, there's a fantastic panel lined up, with Jenny Blackhurst, Belinda Bauer, Cathi Unsworth & Adam Hamdy - chaired by Barry Foresaw. This is then followed by drinks and socialising with book-loving like-minded people. What more could you want?

See below for details of how to buy tickets.

Today I have an Author Spotlight on... the brilliant Jenny Blackhurst!

About Jenny

Jenny Blackhurst rediscovered her childhood love of writing after the birth of her son in 2011 and wrote her first novel between feeds and nappy changes.

Jenny has a Masters degree in Psychology, and when she isn’t writing she works as the Fire Safety Systems Administrator for Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service. Her debut novel, How I Lost You, was published in paperback in Spring 2015.

Her latest novel, Before I Let You In, has been described by B.A. Paris as ‘an outstanding and original thriller’.

Find Jenny on her FB author page here and follow Jenny on Twitter - @JennyBlackhurst 

Before I Let You In
By Jenny Blackhurst
Published by Headline (3 November 2016)
ISBN: 978-1472235275

Publisher's description

Karen is meant to be the one who fixes problems.

It's her job, as a psychiatrist - and it's always been her role as a friend.

But Jessica is different. She should be the patient, the one that Karen helps.

But she knows things about Karen. Her friends, her personal life. Things no patient should know.

And Karen is starting to wonder if she should have let her in . . .

I love this book. Jenny has evil & twisted mind (a good thing for a crime/psychological thriller writer). Read my review here.

Buy Before I Let You In here.

First Monday Crime - November

Murder, mayhem and wine return to the Library Club on London's St Martin's Lane on 7th November at 6.30pm. The evening will be sponsored by Headline, with goodie bags! Amazing value at just £5 for the event.

Follow First Monday Crime on Twitter to keep up with the latest news - @1stMondayCrime

Click here to book your tickets. And I look forward to seeing you there!

Before I Let You In by Jenny Blackhurst - Blog Tour Review

I am delighted to be today's stop on the blog tour for Jenny Blackhurst's latest psychological thriller - Before I Let You In. Before I Let You In is published in paperback by Headline on 3 November 2016.

Before I Let You In
by Jenny Blackhurst
Published by Headline (E-book out now; Paperback - 3 November 2016)
ISBN: 978-1472235275

Publisher's description

Karen is meant to be the one who fixes problems.

It's her job, as a psychiatrist - and it's always been her role as a friend.

But Jessica is different. She should be the patient, the one that Karen helps.

But she knows things about Karen. Her friends, her personal life. Things no patient should know.

And Karen is starting to wonder if she should have let her in . . .

My verdict
Jenny Blackhurst has an evil and twisted mind! That's the first thing I have to say. Secondly, her latest book Before I Let You In is a definite winner! She made me think twice to check what I had read. And that doesn't happen very often.

This psychological thriller is a brilliant page turner that will keep you guessing, with lots of surprises, twists and turns. It's dark, compelling and disturbing, about the friendships between three different women, who believe they tell each other everything. But do they?

The story is narrated by each of the three women, plus there's another narrator who seems to know them all well, clearly spying into their lives. I loved all of the characters - they're well rounded and believable - and the plot gripped me from beginning to end.

I enjoyed the author's first book - How I Lost You - but Before I Let You In is definitely a much darker, more intense and misleading read!

I received an Advance Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.

Follow the Blog Tour

How I Lost You by Jenny Blackhurst

How I Lost You
By Jenny Blackhurst
Published by Headline (Kindle edition - 9 October 2014, Paperback - 23 April 2015)
ISBN: 978-1472218964

Publisher's description
They told her she killed her son. She served her time. But what if they lied?

I have no memory of what happened but I was told I killed my son. And you believe what your loved ones, your doctor and the police tell you, don't you?

My name is Emma Cartwright. Three years ago I was Susan Webster, and I murdered my twelve-week-old son Dylan. I was sent to Oakdale Psychiatric Institute for my crime, and four weeks ago I was released early on parole with a new identity, address and a chance to rebuild my shattered life.

This morning, I received an envelope addressed to Susan Webster. Inside it was a photograph of a toddler called Dylan. Now I am questioning everything I believe because if I have no memory of the event, how can I truly believe he's dead?

If there was the smallest chance your son was alive, what would you do to get him back?

My verdict
Wow - what an emotional roller coaster. How I lost You made me smile, cry, worry and breathe a sigh of relief throughout its 368 pages.

This is the story of Susan Webster who was convicted of killing her baby son, Dylan. She can't remember much from that time, but certainly doesn't remembering wanting him dead. Susan has now been released from prison, after a three-year sentence, and is living under the name Emma Cartwright, desperately trying to make a new life for herself. But someone keeps sending packages to Susan Webster, telling her that her son is still alive.

How I Lost You was a well-written fast-paced thriller. It kept me guessing all the way until its dark creepy end, when the final twists were revealed. Not everything in the story was realistic or believable, and I questioned at times how Susan/Emma could be so trusting after everything she had experienced. However, this was a great debut, and compelling page turner, and I will be looking out for more books from Jenny Blackhurst.

I received a paperback copy from the publisher through BookBridgr in exchange for an honest review (and I bought the ebook version too).