Inge | The Belgian Reviewer

A sun-soaked read with heart and history: The House of Hidden Letters by Izzy Broom #BookReview #NetGalley For sale: Greek cottage. Price: One Euro. Skye doesn’t make impulsive decisions. But when she sees a derelict Greek cottage for sale by lottery, she enters with dreams of a fresh start. However, her heart sinks as she pushes open the tattered blue door weeks later. Can this wreck ever be her home? Then Skye finds a bundle of letters hidden in the fireplace, their faded pages drawing her in with a story of long-forgotten love, tragedy, and unbelievable bravery.

'a truly fabulous read - thoughtful, hopeful and unforgettable'

The House of Hidden Letters by Izzy Broom #BookReview #NetGalley @PenguinUKBooks 💙📚

Quite Ugly One Evening by Chris Brookmyre #Netgalley #BookReview Reporter Jack Parlabane thrives on chasing stories in unlikely places, and where could be less likely than a fan convention on a cruise liner celebrating a contentious Sixties TV series? But unlike the media family exploiting their show's renewed relevance, he's not there to stoke controversy: he's there to solve a murder. Already in deep water with his employer, Jack desperately needs a win, and solving this decades-old mystery could be it.

'I was pleasantly surprised with the revelations in both storylines. No way you'll guess both!'

Quite Ugly One Evening by Chris Brookmyre @LittleBrownUK #NetGalley #BookReview

Write Me For You by Tillie Cole #BookReview Seventeen-year-old June Scott has always dreamt of becoming a novelist. To write the greatest love story ever told. One that would fill hearts and souls with happiness and joy. However, June has never been in love and when she receives some devastating news, there doesn’t feel as if there’s much time left for her own beautiful love story. That’s until she meets Jesse Taylor who treats every day as if it could be his last.

'What makes this novel special and so beautiful is its dual ending.'

Write Me For You by Tillie Cole #BookReview

The Quiet Neighbor by J.D. Barker, Adam Roach #BookReview #NetGalley Cynthia Burrows thought she’d built the perfect life—successful law career, loving husband, beautiful daughter. But when eighteen-year-old Tori vanishes without a trace, Cynthia’s carefully constructed world begins to crumble. The school says Tori was excused by family. Security footage shows her leaving with an older man. And the boy she was supposed to date? His name sends chills down Cynthia’s spine—Alexander Beaufort.

'addictive, mysterious and the kind of story that turned me into a 'one more page' reader'

The Quiet Neighbor by J.D. Barker, Adam Roach @simonschuster @IBPA #HamptonCreekPress #BookReview #NetGalley

The Mysterious Affair of Judith Potts by Robert Thorogood (The Marlow Murder Club book 5) #BookReview A killer is on the loose. The bodies are piling up. And Judith is hiding a deadly secret … Someone from Judith’s past has turned up in Marlow and is stirring up trouble. With all the murders that the Marlow Murder Club have had to solve and her work setting crosswords, Judith’s been too busy to give her old life much thought.

'I didn't mind at all that I didn't solve this one on my own'

The Mysterious Affair of Judith Potts by Robert Thorogood (The Marlow Murder Club book 5) @HQstories #BookReview #NetGalley

My top 10 favourite books of 2025 I haven't read as much as the previous years so it wasn't as easy (or difficult) as the previous years to compile a top 10 for 2025. But here they are: The Lost Passenger by Frances Quinn Passenger 23 by Sebastian Fitzek Still See You Everywhere by Lisa Gardner The London Séance Society by Sarah Penner Your Are Fatally Invited…

My top 10 favourite books of 2025

The Mercy Chair by M.W. Craven (Washington Poe book #6) #BookReview Washington Poe has a story to tell. And he needs you to listen. You'll hear how it started with the robber birds. Crows. Dozens of them. Enough for a murder . . . He'll tell you about a man who was tied to a tree and stoned to death, a man who had tattooed himself with a code so obscure, even the gifted analyst Tilly Bradshaw struggled to break it.

'the twists at the end are unheard of. The clues are right there and I still think everyone will be surprised'

The Mercy Chair by M.W. Craven (Washington Poe book #6) #BookReview

25 Library Terrace by Natalie Fergie #BookReview 25 Library Terrace in Edinburgh is a house where lives are changed. In 1911, new resident Ursula Black embraces women's suffrage in the form of census protest, discovers vegetarianism, and learns just how difficult it can be to bring up someone else's children. In 1931, the house becomes part of a radical experiment in a different way of living, and a family secret from the past is uncovered.

'If walls could talk.. well I certainly had the feeling I was a fly on the wall.'

25 Library Terrace by Natalie Fergie #BookReview

Past Life by Dominic Nolan #BookReview Detective Abigail Boone has been missing for four days when she is finally found. Suffering retrograde amnesia, she is a stranger to her despairing husband and bewildered son. Hopelessly lost in her own life, with no leads on her abduction, Boone's only instinct is to revisit the case she was investigating when she vanished: the baffling disappearance of a young woman, Sarah Still.

'The violence even made me flinch'

Past Life by Dominic Nolan #BookReview

The Cutting Room by Jilliane Hoffman (C.J. Townsend book 3) #BookReview THEY WATCH. The body of a student who went missing from a Florida nightclub is found in a dumpster. A horrifying scene, but nothing compared to what she had to endure before her murder. She was drugged and tortured – all broadcast live for the twisted pleasure of a snuff club. THEY WAIT. Detective Manny Alvarez works the homicide alongside young hotshot Assistant State Attorney Daria DeBianchi.

'there was a hint of romance woven in, which was enjoyable until it made my heart bleed and then bleed some more'

The Cutting Room by Jilliane Hoffman (C.J. Townsend book 3) #BookReview 💙📚

Still Falling For You by Holly Miller #BookReview #Netgalley Josh is 18. Rachel is 18. From the first night they meet as freshers, Rachel and Josh know they are meant to be. An electric connection quickly blossoms into plans to spend the rest of their lives together. Josh is 29. Rachel is 29. Inexplicably, none of the men in Josh's family has lived past the age of thirty. As the fateful birthday approaches, Josh is wracked with fears: of his own death, and of leaving Rachel alone in this world.

'The ending was bittersweet and made my heart ache' 💙📚

Still Falling For You by Holly Miller #BookReview #Netgalley

Mrs England by Stacey Halls #BookReview 'Something's not right here. In the house. With the family.' West Yorkshire, 1904. When newly-graduated nurse Ruby May takes a position looking after the children of Charles and Lilian England, a wealthy couple form a powerful dynasty of mill owners, she hopes it will be the fresh start she needs. But as she adapts to life at the isolated Hardcastle House, it becomes clear there's something not quite right about the beautiful, mysterious Mrs England.

The build up was great and the ending splendid!
I did experience some difficulties with some of the vocabulary

Mrs England by Stacey Halls #BookReview 💙📚

Christmas gift ideas for book lovers – edition 2025-2026 Ho ho ho everyone! I bring you some ideas that will win you brownie points with the book lover you want to please at the end of this year. Gift idea #1 OK this one should be a pre-gift but I wouldn't even mind starting in January. A gift that keeps on giving for several days isn't that nice? I found two interesting…

Christmas gift ideas for book lovers – edition 2025-2026

Deep End by Ali Hazelwood #BookReview Scarlett Vandermeer is swimming upstream. A Junior at Stanford and a student-athlete who specializes in platform diving, Scarlett prefers to keep her head down, concentrating on getting into med school and on recovering from the injury that almost ended her career. She has no time for relationships—at least, that’s what she tells herself. Swim captain, world champion, all-around aquatics golden boy, Lukas Blomqvist thrives on discipline.

'Are you ready for a little rant?'

Deep End by Ali Hazelwood #BookReview

Book folding for beginners: a cat with a heart #bookishhobby Hello everyone!  For those who follow my blog since the beginning, in 2017 I made a book folding tutorial post of a heart and the word Home (you can find it here; with the link to the free patterns). It was great fun and I recently came into possession of a hardback that was meant to be binned so I thought it a great opportunity to pick up this hobby again. 

'nobody should be worried that it's too difficult for them'

Book folding for beginners: a cat with a heart #bookishhobby

The Quiet People by Paul Cleave #BookReview Cameron and Lisa Murdoch are successful New Zealand crime writers, happily married and topping bestseller lists worldwide. They have been on the promotional circuit for years, joking that no one knows how to get away with crime like they do. After all, they write about it for a living. So when their challenging seven-year-old son Zach disappears, the police and the public naturally wonder if they have finally decided to prove what they have been saying all this time…

'The Quiet People was well-plotted, surprising at every turn and unputdownable'

The Quiet People by Paul Cleave #BookReview

Got You Back by Jane Fallon #BookReview A husband. A wife. A mistress. And the ultimate plan for revenge . . . The husband James never intended to lead a double life - with a wife in London and a mistress in the country, it's exhausting. But that's all about to change . . . The wife Stephanie isn't really snooping when she finds a text message from a strange woman on her husband's mobile.

'Katie doesn't want to take revenge, she wants to ruin James's life and for me that went too far'

Got You Back by Jane Fallon #BookReview

The Last Death of the Year (Hercule Poirot book 6) by Sophie Hannah #BookReview Hercule Poirot and his good friend Inspector Edward Catchpool arrive on the Greek island of Lamperos for a little holiday…or is it? Catchpool suspects Poirot has a different reason for being there — one he won't reveal. As the clock ticks towards the New Year and a festive guessing game takes a sinister turn, can Poirot stop a murderer who is determined to strike before midnight?

'once Poirot started his speech I was hanging on his every word'

The Last Death of the Year (Hercule Poirot book 6) by Sophie Hannah #BookReview

All My Lies Are True by Dorothy Koomson #BookReview Verity is telling lies... And that's why she's about to be arrested for attempted murder. Serena has been lying for years. . . And that may have driven her daughter, Verity, to do something unthinkable... Poppy's lies have come back to haunt her . . . So will her quest for the truth hurt everyone she loves? Everyone lies. But whose lies are going to end in tragedy?

'I'm happy I stuck with this one after all so don't let this review change your mind about reading it yourself'

All My Lies Are True by Dorothy Koomson #BookReview

Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers by Jesse Q. Sutanto #BookReview Tea-shop owner. Matchmaker. Detective? Sixty-year-old self-proclaimed tea expert Vera Wong enjoys nothing more than sipping a good cup of Wulong and doing some healthy ‘detective’ work on the internet (AKA checking up on her son to see if he’s dating anybody yet). But when Vera wakes up one morning to find a dead man in the middle of her tea shop, it’s going to take more than a strong Longjing to fix things.

Not only the cover was a hit, but I had such a good time with this book!

Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers by Jesse Q. Sutanto #BookReview

Platform Seven by Louise Doughty #BookReview Platform Seven at 4am: Peterborough Railway Station is deserted. The man crossing the covered walkway on this freezing November morning is confident he's alone. As he sits on the metal bench at the far end of the platform it is clear his choice is strategic - he's as far away from the night staff as he can get. What the man doesn't realize is that he has company.

Platform Seven by Louise Doughty #BookReview

As the story progressed it made me wonder what pushed her over the edge in the end. At first it seems irrational but then the story really takes off and it becomes clear...

Ah that's wonderful to hear you recently discovered this as well. Better late than never I say.

You Are Fatally Invited by Ande Pliego #BookReview Six thriller authors. One writing retreat. You’d die to be on the guest list . . . The Host Legendary mystery author J. R. Alastor’s books are sold all over the world, but no one knows his real name. After years hiding in the shadows, he has sent out six invitations to an exclusive murder mystery retreat on his private island.

'Even for an accustomed reader of this type of locked-room novel it managed to keep me invested and surprised me'

You Are Fatally Invited by Ande Pliego #BookReview

A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman #BookReview A grumpy yet loveable man finds his solitary world turned on its head when a boisterous young family moves in next door. Meet Ove. He's a curmudgeon, the kind of man who points at people he dislikes as if they were burglars caught outside his bedroom window. He has staunch principles, strict routines, and a short fuse. People call him the bitter neighbor from hell, but must Ove be bitter just because he doesn't walk around with a smile plastered to his face all the time?

I can't wait to read more of his books now!

A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman #BookReview

Kiss Her Goodbye by Lisa Gardner (Frankie Elkin #4) #BookReview Frankie Elkin usually prefers her cases cold. Until she finds herself in the broiling streets of Tucson, Arizona, where an Afghan refugee has been missing for three weeks. The woman she is looking …

'awesome characters and some great twists provided counterbalance and Frankie definitely gets some chilling action again'

Kiss Her Goodbye by Lisa Gardner (Frankie Elkin Book 4) #BookReview

thebelgianreviewer.wordpress.com/2025/07/27/k...

The Darkest Water by Mark Edwards #BookReview Calvin finally owns the bakery of his dreams, in an idyllic village in the Lake District. After reluctantly following his wife Vicky’s advice to promote it on social media, he’s thrilled when a viral clip makes him a legend overnight. But then the creepy DMs start flooding in—all from a stranger who claims she’s his biggest fan. Meanwhile, a local recluse is found on a nearby beach, buried to his neck and left to drown, and the community goes into shock.

'A haunting past, a mysterious man, a possible stalker and some great twists were all that I needed'

The Darkest Water by Mark Edwards #BookReview

The London Séance Society by Sarah Penner #BookReview May mercy be upon the man who finds himself the enemy of a vengeful medium… 1873. At an abandoned château on the outskirts of Paris, a dark séance is about to take place, led by acclaimed spiritualist Vaudeline D’Allaire. Known worldwide for her talent in conjuring the spirits of murder victims to ascertain the identities of the people who killed them, she is highly sought after by widows and investigators alike.

'a murder mystery that scores high in originality and was once again very well researched'

The London Séance Society by Sarah Penner #BookReview 📚💙

The Death of Us by Abigail Dean #Netgalley #BookReview It’s the night we never talk about. It’s the story the world wants to hear. But this isn’t the story of that night. This is the story of us. Together, Edward and Isabel move to London. They are young and in love, occupied by friends, work and fun. But late on a spring evening when they are thirty years old, their home is invaded by a serial killer.

'I'm not sure I was the right listener for this type of novel'

The Death of Us by Abigail Dean #Netgalley #BookReview 📚💙

Still See You Everywhere (Frankie Elkin #3) by Lisa Gardner #BookReview A remote tropical island. Countless dangerous secrets. No way to call help. Missing persons specialist Frankie Elkin is on an isolated island off the coast of Hawaii. Her mission: to find Leilani, the missing sister of a Death Row serial killer known as the Beautiful Butcher who is awaiting execution in just three weeks’ time. According to the Beautiful Butcher’s sources, Leilani is being held captive by her millionaire ex-boyfriend on the island.

'This novel was edge-of-your-seat suspenseful'

Still See You Everywhere (Frankie Elkin #3) by Lisa Gardner #BookReview

It’s Always the Husband by C.L. Taylor #BookReview #Netgalley Welcome to Lowbridge. Where secrets hide behind every door… When newly divorced Jude arrives in the small town of Lowbridge, she is soon drawn to widower Will, the father of her young daughter's best friend. But Will's past is shrouded in tragedy, with questions that no one knows the answer to – and after two tragedies tore his life apart in just a few short years, gossip and rumours abound about what really happened to the women he loved.

'The final lines were perfect to leave with though I think reading those final words made my heart miss a beat'
It's Always the Husband by C.L. Taylor #BookReview #Netgalley