Book Review | One Beats The Bush by Riall Nolan - The First in the Max Donovan Adventure Series

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One Beats The Bush is a well-paced action thriller that ticks multiple boxes; page-turning twists, fight scenes, a lot of crime and, more importantly, a main character you cannot help but love. Vietnam veteran Max Donovan is in Bangkok, and very hungover, when his friend “Fat” Freddie Fields is arrested in San Francisco for the murder of an Australian diplomat. He knows his old buddy would never hurt a fly, so he rushes back to the Bay Area to help. Suspecting Freddie is being framed, Donovan tries to rustle up some cash to bail him out, but only succeeds in getting into trouble with the local mob.  He’ll have to solve the case on his own. Unfortunately, the only clue he has suggest the answer lies in the jungle-covered mountains of Papua New Guinea. As he comes face-to-face with smugglers, hostile tribesmen, insurgents, and a web of corruption and deception, can Donovan achieve what is seemingly impossible? Nolan has managed to achieve a page-turning action thriller that doesn’t feel
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Book Review | In The Blink Of An Eye by Jo Callaghan | A Five Star Debut

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Jo Callaghan’s debut is hands down a five star read, and worth all the hype its receiving on Book Twitter. 

In the UK, someone is reported missing every 90 seconds. Just gone. Vanished. In the blink of an eye. 

DCS Kat Frank knows all about loss. A widowed single mother, Kat is a cop who trusts her instincts. Picked to lead a pilot programme that has her paired with AIDE (Artificially Intelligent Detective Entity) Lock, Kat’s instincts come up against Lock’s logic. But when the two missing person’s cold cases they are reviewing suddenly become active, Lock is the only one who can help Kat when the case gets personal. AI versus human experience. Logic versus instinct. With lives on the line can the pair work together before someone else becomes another statistic? 

The first thing I loved about this book, and the first thing that drew me to it, was the extremely fascinating concept. The idea of the police having an AI detective is genius; and the reaction and response of every character feels so realistic and accurate. This book as a whole left me with so much food for thought - how would I feel working with AI? What would I react in these circumstances? 

I may have come for the concept but I stayed for the plot and characters. Both are written in a way that made me instantly engrossed and obsessed. It got to the point where at times I forgot I was reading a book, it just felt so easy to read and I could picture it all.

In The Blink Of An Eye was a joy to read from start to finish. My second five star read of 2023 and an outstanding debut. I cannot wait to see what Jo Callaghan does next!

A safe space for me to ramble on about the books I’ve read. Don’t expect high quality, news worthy reviews; I’m just a simple woman who needs somewhere to vent! This blog contains affiliated links.

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