I'll say now, this book is apparently "not up to her usual standards", which is really good as there's no way to give no stars...

The police are inept but it's ok, they'll try their hand at solving murder, arson, gun running, the lot. Obv none of it well, but they have a THIN lady cop to act as a girlfriend, so it's all good... Belle is a simple courtesan, but she knows that the assets she has now will not last. She is going to have to find a way out of this world, whether finding something else to do or escaping completely. Belle has to get out and get away from the men who want her attention and this world entirely. But the road ahead will be full of dangers, even for someone as resourceful as she is. Does Belle have the courage within herself to try and escape? Will she have any allies out there in her quest for freedom? Read this exciting book from wonderful author Lesley Pearse to find out! The novel is strong on characterisation, so the reader gets to know all the residents through their own eyes and the opinions of their neighbours. It is initially quite hard to keep up with them all after the initial introductions, but gradually the reader gets to know them and gets caught up in their dramas. The murder realigns their lives and priorities in both good and bad ways. It is an interesting idea of introducing Conrad and Nina who walk into the situation blind and are able to offer more balanced opinions.

Retailers:

From an outsiders perspective Willow Close appears to be an idyllic place to live but it seems that all of the residents of Willow Close have secrets that they don’t want discovering. All of the residents are suspects, with each suspect being focused on at various points giving you insight into each of their lives. Eve should never have married Don Hathaway. Yes, he gave her two beautiful children - Olly and Tabitha - but he is a bully. Worse than that, he hurts her. With her father in the Royal Marines, Lesley and her older brother spent three years in grim orphanages before her father remarried – a veritable dragon of an ex army nurse – and Lesley and her older brother were brought home again, to be joined by two other children who were later adopted by her father and stepmother, and a continuing stream of foster children. Believing someone must have seen the murderer, the police interview all the residents of the Close. They soon find out that each neighbour harbours their own secrets. The rest of the book looks at each household and their reaction to Chloe’s death and the other secrets that the police investigations uncover. This should have been good. That whole idea of secrets below the presentable surface has a lot of potential. One tragedy uncovers a lot of previously hidden darkness in the neighbours, who knows what goes in behind close doors etc etc (see Tall Bones by Anna Bailey as a recent example of this done well).

A fast-paced, psychological drama . . . with an enthralling plot, a cast of fascinating characters, and Pearse's addictive storytelling, Suspects will grip from start to finish The Best Life ProjectBelle is the first novel in the Belle series. It is 1910 in London, and a young girl has grown up in a brothel all her life without ever knowing it. Now that she is 15 years old, she has suddenly discovered that all is not as it seems in the Seven Dials. Even though she grew up there, Belle’s life is forever changed and her innocence gone forever when she sees one of the girls that lives there brutally murdered. The truth in places like Willow Close, is that behind the neat gardens and spaciously arranged homes, the owners live very, very different lives. Not only does Chloe’s death shake the complacent, very white, upper middle class enclave, it acts as a catalyst. Pearse has written a book with so many twists and turns that you will find yourself wondering who has killed the 13 year old girl until the very end. This is a very gripping book and I listened to the entire book in one sitting. I did enjoy this read, but that was due to reading alongside others and creating our own stories and views rather than what we were reading, because what we were reading was awful.

Over the pas few years I have been grateful to have been offered the opportunity to read Lesley Pearse’s thrillers, and I have enjoyed every one of them. Her new offering is Suspects, set in a a leafy susburb of Cheltenham, Willow Close. Nina and Conrad have been looking for their perfect new home for a while, and find it in Willow Close with its perfect front gardens, tranquil setting and perfect houses with gleaming windows. But on the day they move in the body of a young girl from Willow Close is found murdered in the woods. As the police investigation starts, and residents questioned, Nina and George begin to wonder if Willow Close is less Stepford Wives and more Nightmare on Elm Street. The Promise is set in 1914 in London and reunites the reader with Belle Reilly in this sequel to Belle. Belle has finally found happiness and a life she has always wanted thanks to her husband Jimmy. Now she has achieved another dream that she has always wanted to follow; owning and running a hat shop. But when the first world war starts to slowly arrive like a ship on the horizon, Belle’s crazy life is about to change in ways that she never even saw coming.

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

It leads to a quite disjointed feel, the women are cut-out stereotypes of the ‘ tart with a heart’, ‘brazen hussie’‘curtain twitcher’variety, and there were several references to domestic violence which were framed as though it was ‘a woman’s lot’ which I took exception to. Lesley, I’m sorry to be so blunt, if this was your first draft of your first novel then it was good, for at that time, but it hasn’t aged well. I’m not trying to be cruel, but I’m struggling. The premise of this book was exactly the kind of book I normally enjoy so I entered the competition to win a spot on the pigeonhole readalong.