I haven’t imposed a book ban for 2023. I have 47 paperback/hardback books to read in my home. I have over 200 audiobooks to read. I have 64 kindle books to read. Buying a haul of kindle books makes me feel less guilty than buying a hoard of paperbacks and it is lighter on my bank account!

Seriously though, I have had a yearning to get stuck into another detective series that has a long run of books. As of writing this, I am halfway through book 16 of Lisa Regan’s ‘Josie Quinn’ series and it’s my longest detective series with Elly Griffith’s ‘Ruth Galloway’ series coming in second.

I need more series in my life. So I went out to search for some. Over the last months of 2022 and into 2023 I predominately read Detective Crime, Reverse Harem, Fantasy, & Children’s. I sort of go through a loop of reading these genres.

I’m always fascinated by how my tastes change and evolve over the years. I’ve been keeping a record of what I read for years now and it’s always interesting to see what phases I have gone through. Some of what I read in the past I wouldn’t dare to read now and vice versus.

Anyway, you don’t want to listen to my internal rambles. I’ll get on with showing you what I bought. I got 12 Kindle books in total. The majority cost between £1.99 and £4.99. I got a couple free from the ‘Top 100 Free Kindle Books’ section on Amazon but for the life of me I can’t remember which ones those were.

I’ll pop the book blurb and a bit of text as to why I got the book below.

This trilogy has been sitting on my ‘reading’ tab of google for most of January. This series was recommended as similar to what I’ve read in the past. At the time of writing this I have actually already read the first book ‘Blood and Ruin’. It is similar to a few other books that I’ve read so while I wouldn’t class it as outstanding, the first book at least was captivating enough.

Blood and Ruin (Book 1) –

Free on Kindle Unlimited / £3.05 to Buy

Six years ago, my world was ripped from under me, and I was taken to Cardinal Three. A place where pain has been my endless companion.

Witches, demons, shifters, and humans all live under one rule…King’s.

What he says goes. So, trying to get the hell out of here hasn’t been easy. No one leaves without his permission. In fact, no one leaves at all…That is, alive.

But I have a plan. One change to get out of this nightmare once and for all. One month is all I need. One month to stay off King’s radar and get the last few items needed for the spell I’ve been working on.

Shouldn’t be that hard…right?

But it turns out King has his own plan. One that involves trading me off to the five alphas of Manhattan. With King’s ultimatum, I have no choice but to go through with it. But I’m still getting out of here, no matter what.

Or so I thought. Turns out the five alphas are my mates…and also, the boys I left behind six years ago.

Blood and Wrath (Book 2)

Free on Kindle Unlimited / £3.36 to Buy

Kai. Jax. Luka. Rion. Axel.

She was taken from us…again.
And now she’s in the hands of that sadistic psycho.
But thanks to our bond, we have abilities that surpass even the strongest of our kind.
We’ll get her back.
And when we do…
Those who have hurt her will pay.
Along with anyone else who gets in our way…

Blood and Reign (Book 3)

Free on Kindle Unlimited / £3.36 to Buy

It’s time…

Time to end this once and for all.

With my mates by my side, I know we can get through anything…even if the world burns around us.

It all started with King, and it will end with him too.

Even if that means I have to hunt him to Hell to finish this.

One way or another…

One thing’s for sure.

King’s reign will end…

That I can promise you.

The first two are from the ‘Top 100 Free Kindle Book’ section. ‘What Lies Beneath’ is book 1 of 5. ‘Girl, Alone’ is book 1 of 14. ‘Abby Kane’ includes books 1-6 of the series. Both Girl, Alone and Abby Kane are FBI stories and I haven’t read that particular sub-genre before so I am looking forward to reading something different.

What Lies Beneath (Rutland Crime Book 1) –

Free on Kindle

A peaceful Sunday morning in Rutland is shattered when a dead body is discovered on the rocks at Normanton Church.

The victim has been laid out in a crucifixion pose, facing the altar. DI Caroline Hills is certain there’s a religious connection — one which threatens the tranquillity of life in the area.

The killer has gone to extraordinary lengths to make the symbolism clear. And the deaths will continue until Caroline and DS Dexter Antoine uncover the truth behind the dark secret — and what lies beneath.

Girl, Alone (An Ella Dark FBI Suspense Thriller – Book 1) –

Free on Kindle

FBI Agent Ella Dark has studied serial killers from the time she could read, devastated by the murder of her own sister. With her photographic memory, she has obtained an encyclopedic knowledge of every serial killer, every victim and every case. But when a serial killer strikes in the swamps of Louisiana, Ella soon comes to learn that the real thing is like nothing she ever expected.

Abby Kane FBI Thrillers (Book 1-6) –

Free on Kindle

Meet the agent with an impossible directive: solve the FBI’s most baffling cases. Abby Kane spent her early career putting sickos, psychopaths, and ruthless killers behind bars. After her husband’s mysterious death, she moved her family to San Francisco, hoping for a fresh start and healing. What she got instead was a job with the FBI.

I’ve wanted to read a David Baldacci novel for a while but I was never sure about dipping my toe in the water in case I didn’t like it! I decided to jump into it with Kindle – so wish me luck. I’ve tried to read Helen Fields books before and generally haven’t got on well with them, however, this one sounded so good I decided to try it. Last seen was on the top 100 free kindle book list. I would be rude not to try it!

The Shadow Man –

Free on Kindle Unlimited / £2.99 to Buy

He collects his victims. But he doesn’t keep them safe…

Elspeth, Meggy and Xavier are locked in a flat. They don’t know where they are, and they don’t know why they’re there. They only know that the shadow man has taken them, and he won’t let them go.
 
Desperate to escape, the three of them must find a way out of their living hell, even if it means uncovering a very dark truth.
 
Because the shadow man isn’t a nightmare. He’s all too real.
 
And he’s watching.

Last Seen –

Free on Kindle

When five-year-old Molly Reynolds is snatched from the park in the small village of Otterfield, Detective Bernadette ‘Bernie’ Noel throws herself into the search, sick with worry for the quiet, sensitive little girl and her distraught mother.

Wasting no time, Bernie finds a small green cardigan under a bush in the park. It still has the smiley face sticker Molly won that week at school. It’s the first in a chain of clues – and Bernie can’t shake the feeling that it was left deliberately, as a message.

But Bernie encounters a wall of silence. Otterfield is a close-knit community, yet no one in the village has anything to say about the missing child. And Bernie is sure there is something Molly’s mother isn’t telling her either. Why?

And then she makes a chilling discovery: twenty-five years ago, another little girl went missing from the area. Her name was Sophie, and all they ever found of her was her teddy bear, hidden under a bush, just the same as Molly’s cardigan. Now Bernie knows she’s in a race against time to save Molly’s life.

Bernie’s team work round the clock to find a connection between the two girls – but when they find their proof it comes at the price of a shocking tragedy that strikes right at the heart of the case. Molly’s family have been hiding a secret, and now their little girl is in greater danger than ever.

Long Road to Mercy (Atlee Pine Series Book 1) –

£4.99 on Kindle

FBI Special Agent Atlee Pine has learnt three lessons in life:

Some wounds never heal.

Atlee’s twin sister, Mercy, was abducted from their bedroom over thirty years ago, and Atlee has spent every day since wondering what happened to her.

Time doesn’t lessen your pain.

The prime suspect, notorious serial killer Daniel James Tor, is in a high-security prison, but with no confession, Atlee continues to search for her sister, even as Tor taunts her from jail.

But she can always make a difference.

Wracked by survivor’s guilt, Atlee joined the FBI to hunt down killers like Tor. Assigned to the remote wilds of the Western United States, she has spent years honing her skills and building her endurance, always with one eye on the ultimate goal.

Now, Atlee Pine is tasked with an investigation which begins with a missing person in the Grand Canyon. And ends with a discovery much more sinister and far-reaching.

I have previously tried to read Angela Marsons ‘Silent Scream’ and I never ended up getting very far. However, I know she’s a good author so I’ve decided to give it a go. Joy Ellis has always been on my radar I just haven’t managed to read anything by her yet. I hope to change that soon. ‘No Right to Kill’ is book 1 of 19, so hopefully it’ll be another series to sink my teeth into!

No Right to Kill (DI Sara Ramsey Book 1) –

Free on Kindle Unlimited / 99p to Buy

He stands in the shadows. Watching them.

DI Sara Ramsey’s life is about to change forever. Recently moved to the area and in charge of a new team, she’s tasked with finding a serial killer terrorising a rural community.

Crimes as heinous as this rarely happen in picturesque rural idylls.

The community is living in fear, desperate for Sara to keep them safe.

When the killer changes his MO and abducts a vulnerable resident, Sara realises she is in a race against time to prevent the killer from claiming yet another victim.

Crime on the Fens (DI Nikki Galena Series Book 1) –

Free on Kindle Unlimited / £1.99 to Buy

THE DETECTIVE
DI Nikki Galena is a police detective with nothing left to lose. She’s seen a girl die in her arms, and her daughter will never leave the hospital again. She’s got tough on the criminals she believes did this to her. Too tough. And now she’s been given one final warning: make it work with her new sergeant, DS Joseph Easter, or she’s out.

HER PARTNER
DS Joseph Easter is the handsome squeaky-clean new member of the team. But his nickname “Holy Joe” belies his former life as a soldier. He has an estranged daughter who blames him for everything that went wrong with their family.

THEIR ADVERSARY
A ruthless man who holds DI Galena responsible for his terrible disfigurement.

The town is being terrorised by gangs of violent thugs, all wearing identical hideous masks. Then a talented young female student goes missing on the marsh and Nikki and Joseph find themselves joining forces with a master criminal in their efforts to save her. They need to look behind the masks, but when they do, they find something more sinister and deadly than they ever expected . . .

Silent Scream (Detective Kim Stone Crime Thriller Series Book 1) –

£1.99 on Kindle

Five figures gather round a shallow grave. They had all taken turns to dig. An adult sized hole would have taken longer. An innocent life had been taken but the pact had been made. Their secrets would be buried, bound in blood…

Years later, a headmistress is found strangled, the first in a spate of gruesome murders which shock the Black Country. But when human remains are discovered at a former children’s home, disturbing secrets are also unearthed.

Detective Kim Stone fast realises she’s on the hunt for a twisted individual whose killing spree spans decades. As the body count rises, Kim needs to stop the murderer before they strike again. But to catch the killer, can Kim confront the demons of her own past before it’s too late?

Don’t Tell a Soul is another book I started to read and then forgot about and returned. It is book 1 of 18. I decided to give it another shot. I discovered Eva Chase through another series of book that I am thoroughly enjoying and have made it a mission to read all her books. Next on the list for me are Shattered Vow and Monstrous Power which are respectfully books 1 and 2 in the Shadowblood Souls series.

Don’t Tell a Soul (Detectives Kane and Alton Book 1)

£1.99 on Kindle

When a body is found stuffed into a barrel at the local dump, covered in long red cuts, Detective Jenna Alton and her new deputy, David Kane, rush to the scene.

Nothing ever happens in the small town of Black Rock Falls, so Jenna believes the victim must be one of two recent missing persons, and she fears for the life of the other.

Both were strangers to the town, but there’s nothing else to link them. Jenna knows someone must have seen something, but no one’s talking; how well does she really know the people around her?

Then a disturbing clue makes Jenna suspect a connection with other disappearances in the town’s history. Just when she begins asking the right questions, she realises she’s being followed. Is she next on the killer’s list?

In a race against time, Jenna and David must unlock the dark secret at the heart of the town, before it’s too late…

Shattered Vow (Shadowblood Souls Book 1) –

Free on Kindle Unlimited / £4.06 to Buy

We vowed to escape together. I broke that promise. Now the men I loved just might break me.

There were six of us. Caged, turned into monsters, and tormented with brutal tests of our horrific emerging abilities.

We had only each other to count on… until our escape attempt ended with one dead, the others recaptured, and me dragged away into a different nightmare.

Now I’ve finally fought my way back to rescue them. Except the men I set free are hardened, beastly versions of the devoted boys I remember.

They see me as a traitor and a murderer—but they refuse to let me go now that they have me back.

They have no idea that the greatest threat may be the new darkness that’s woken up inside me.

I don’t know how to control it. And if these men break me, I could destroy us all.

Monstrous Power (Shadowblood Souls Book 2) –

Free on Kindle Unlimited / £4.15 to Buy

The truth has come to light… but can I ever trust my men again?

After weeks of cruel hostility, the guys I swore to save know how wrong they were—at least about what I did four years ago. Now that they’ve seen my horrifying new power, will they decide I’m an enemy after all?

With what they put me through, I’m not sure I even want to stick with them. These brutal men aren’t the boys I fell in love with anymore.

But nothing matters more than learning how to control my own vicious urges. So I’ll accept a tentative truce while we hunt down more answers… by turning to the very monsters our creator feared most.

Let me know if you’ve read any of these or if you’ll be adding them to your tbr lists.