The Creek by LJ Ross

Today Mandie is sharing her thoughts on The Creek, the second book in the Summer Suspense series by LJ Ross. We both love the author’s work and seeing her bring the Cornish coastline to life (and death) has been a real treat. Here’s what it’s all about:

About the Book

YOU CAN RUN, BUT YOU CAN’T HIDE…

Kate Irving arrives at her grandfather’s cottage at Frenchman’s Creek in the dead of night with her young son, a small suitcase and little else. Its scattered community of fishermen, farmers, artists and jetsetters barely bat an eyelid, because theirs is a rarefied world, tucked beneath the lush forest that lines the banks of the Helford estuary, deep in the heart of Cornwall, where life is slow and people generally mind their own business. Unless, of course, your grandfather happens to be a pillar of the local community…

Kate’s left the past behind and guards her privacy and her son fiercely. She’s wary of accepting the friendship her new neighbours offer, but their kindness is too great to refuse and she begins to feel she has found her place in the world. That is, until tragedy strikes, and her new friends look to her for the answers…

Kate soon learns that the past always catches up with you, in the end—the question is, will she be able to face it, when it does?

Suspense is peppered with romance and humour in this fast-paced mystery, set amidst the spectacular Cornish landscape.

Mandie’s Thoughts

The Creek is the second book in the Summer Suspense Mystery series and this time we are introduced to Kate who is trying to escape an abusive marriage for the safety of both her and her young son. Returning to the one place she used to love in her childhood she seeks refuge with her grandfather, someone she has not seen since the death of her parentsfifteen years before. Determined to keep running she starts to reconnect with her childhood friends and wonders if she can make a life in place that holds both good and bad memories. 

Kate has had a lot to deal with in her life so it is understandable that she is reluctant to open up to anyone or trust them. Wanting to get on with her life it seems to get upended again when the father of her old friend is found dead and her grandfather is considered a suspect in his death. As she battles to stay hidden from her husband, the deaths of her parents is brought back to the fore and what was originally considered a tragic accident may not be as it first appeared. As the book progressed I really warmed to Kate as she battled her demons and started to find the joy in life she once knew. 

The pace of the book seemed to increase at the same time as the tension and as secrets and lies are revealed more than one person finds themselves in danger. At the heart of this book is quite a hard topic, one of controlling behaviour and domestic abuse which will hit home with some readers but is dealt with in a sensitive way that shows that you can never be sure what goes on behind closed doors. Whilst it is easy to judge victims of domestic abuse and wonder why they don’t just up and leave the reality is that often fear of further reprisals keeps them tied to the abuser. 

As ever LJ Ross gives us characters and locations that wrap themselves in your imagination making this another perfect book to while away those long summer nights with.

About the Author

LJ Ross is an international bestselling author, best known for creating atmospheric mystery and thriller novels, including the DCI Ryan series of Northumbrian murder mysteries which have sold over 7 million copies worldwide.

“Mania” (the fourth book in her Dr Gregory series) was released in March 2022 and “Bamburgh” (the nineteenth book in her DCI Ryan series) is available for ebook pre-order now!

Her debut, Holy Island, was released in January 2015 and reached number one in the Amazon UK and Australian charts. Since then, she has released a further twenty two novels, all of which have been top three global bestsellers and most of which have been UK #1 bestsellers. Louise has garnered an army of loyal readers through her storytelling and, thanks to them, most of her books reached the coveted #1 spot whilst only available to pre-order ahead of release. Her eleventh novel, “The Infirmary”, is a prequel story and is also available as a major Audible Originals audio-drama starring Tom Bateman, Kevin Whately, Bertie Carvel, Hermione Norris and Alun Armstrong.

In addition to her DCI Ryan series, Louise has created a new series of thriller novels based around the central character of ‘Dr Alexander Gregory’, whose work as a psychological profiler takes him around the world. The first three books (Impostor, Hysteria and Bedlam) were #1 bestsellers and the fourth book was released in March 2022 (Mania). They were narrated in audio by the actors Hugh Dancy (Impostor & Hysteria) and Richard Armitage (Bedlam & Mania).

“The Cove” (the first book in her new Summer Suspense Mysteries series) was released in 2021. This is a new series of standalone romantic suspense novels featuring strong female protagonists.

The novels are available to purchase in e-book, paperback and audiobook formats on the Amazon store, as well as in libraries and book shops around the world.

Louise was born in Northumberland, England. She studied undergraduate and postgraduate Law at King’s College, University of London and then abroad in Paris and Florence. She spent much of her working life in London, where she was a lawyer for a number of years until taking the decision to change career and pursue her dream to write. Now, she writes full-time and lives with her family Northumberland, where she enjoys reading all manner of books, travelling and spending time with family and friends.

Louise is a keen philanthropist, and is pleased to have supported numerous non-profit programmes in addition to founding several of her own, including the Lindisfarne Reading Challenge and the Lindisfarne Prize for Debut Crime Fiction.