Heather Burnside

A second Manchester-based series by Heather Burnside and it's off to a great start.

Born Bad

Amazon.com link

My review - 

Adele and her brother Peter are like chalk and cheese. Peter turns to petty crime, which then becomes not so petty, while Adele works for her A levels. She’s hard pressed to do so. Her mother lives on tranquilisers and her alcoholic dad is physically abusive to his wife. The children learn to tread carefully. She can’t understand why her mother puts up with the abusive treatment and humiliation her father hands out.

This is the first of another series set in Manchester, my native city, and it has such a sense of place. It’s a long time since I heard one or two of the words or expressions used here and they nailed the story geographically for me. Heather Burnside is so good at getting into characters’ heads and leaving you understanding their predicament, but I confess, I didn’t expect the turn the story took. I found it very good indeed.

I received a review copy of this from the publisher.

Heather Burnside

This is the third in a trilogy and the writing has become more assured as the story progresses.

Danger by Association

Amazon.com

My review -

This is the third part of the Riverhill Trilogy and I found the story very compelling. Rita returns with her husband, Yansis, and her son, her sister Jenny’s little boy, for a family wedding. Her brother John, formerly in the forces, has come home to join the police, and it’s his wedding she’s attending. Rita is determined not to have anything to do with the Riverhill Estate but events pull her back. Her brother, after a heavy night of drinking, makes an unfortunate statement to a member of the public which has terrible consequences. Once again, Rita and those she loves are in danger.

I read a lot of crime books and some of them, to be honest, feel a little far-fetched. This one feels like it really could happen, to ordinary people living straight-forward lives. Rita seems like a ball of hot anger, but after what happens to her family, you can understand it. A very good read – but you do need to know the background. If you haven’t already, go and read the other two first.

Heather Burnside

This is Book 2 in a trilogy and, though I enjoyed Book 1, this is even better.

A Gangster's Grip

Amazon.com

My review -

I enjoyed Slur, the first book in this series, not least because it is set in the part of Manchester where I was born. The action in A Gangster’s Grip takes place four years later and the girls have matured considerably. Rita and her husband Yansis return from his native Greece for a protracted stay in Manchester for a reason we discover later. She finds things at home are not as cosy as she’d come to believe from letters and phone calls. Her sister Jenny is visibly pregnant to a dodgy and bullying partner. When Rita and her friend Julie try to help Jenny to get her life back, they find she isn’t the only person under this man’s influence.

The characters here are believable and I wanted things to work out well for Rita, Julie and their families. It’s easy for the reader to become involved in this story and there’s plenty of action and excitement. I was drawn into it and read it quickly and I eagerly await Part Three of the trilogy.

I received an advance copy for review.