The #Bookvent Calendar 2021 – Day Five

#Bookvent – Celebrating my top reads of 2021

My day five #bookvent selection is probably going to be one of the most memorable and catastrophic books in my whole countdown. At least for the characters involved. The author of this particular book took no prisoners and I know that they say that authors need to be prepared to murder their darlings, but book took that premise to a whole new level. Dramatic, tense, and undoubtedly emotional, it shook fans of the series almost as much as the characters in the book. My day five pick is …

Time Is Running Out by Michael Wood

You’re a survivor, aren’t you, Matilda? But what’s the point in surviving when everyone around you is dead?

When DCI Matilda Darke receives a mysterious telephone call, she immediately dismisses the threat. Afterall the Homicide and Major Enquiries team are a regular target for prank calls.

But ignoring this warning might soon be the biggest regret of Matilda Darke’s life.

A lone gunman is on a deadly rampage around Sheffield, leaving a bloody trail in his wake. Taking his shots with a sickening precision, he’s about to leave his mark on the world and change Matilda and her team’s lives forever.

The next chilling instalment in the DCI Matilda Darke thriller series, perfect for fans of Patricia Gibney and Angela Marsons.

This book … Just read the first line of that blurb again. It tells you everything you need to know. Now I came late to this series (no surprises there) but I learned pretty quickly that Michael Wood is not afraid to take his readers, and his characters, to the dark side. But by ‘eck. I don’t think any of us were quite expecting this. I don’t want to say a lot about the plot – take what you wish from the blurb. It gives you the essence of the plot, the central theme of the story. But for any long term readers of the story, this book leaves as many emotional scars on us as it does the characters within. This is a real cat and mouse of story with echoes of previous books, faces from the past we will hate even more than we thought possible, and with consequences that will be felt in all of the stories to come. We are not talking ripples here, not even waves. We are talking full on tsunami. The book was packed with emotion, anger, tension and so much intrigue. The whys and wherefores are slowly uncovered but, in spite of some real moments of shock and melancholy, there is little respite for either characters or readers in this fast paced, action packed, shock and bullet ridden humdinger of story. And just when you think there is nothing left for Michael Wood to take from us, no pain left to feel … well prepare yourself. From the start to the finish, this book is a lesson in non-stop emotion wrangling and it left me exhausted. In a good way. Completely floored too. Jaw dropping doesn’t even begin to cover it. It is a book that is equal parts OMG, what the heck, ooofffft and nooooooo. If you can get from the start to the finish without shedding a tear or at least finding yourself with more than the occasional watery eye moment then I just don’t know what is wrong with you. I didn’t manage it. The author said that this was the book that changes everything. He wasn’t wrong. It was unquestionably a red hot read and a reminder as to why this series should be on the must read list for any self respecting police thriller fan.

You can read my full review of Time Is Running Out right here.

Happy #bookvent reading all

Jen