So today is a super exciting day. I am, as you probably
know if you hang round these parts on a regular basis, a lover of a good
thriller and a lover of a good police procedural and a lover of a good story. I
have a lot of love. With all that in mind, it took me approx.. 0.25 seconds to
say that YES, I absolutely did want
to share an extract of Rachel Lynch’s new novel Dead End with you all.
Dead End is the third of Rachel’s books to feature Kelly
Porter, but trust me when I say you don’t have to have read the other two to
enjoy this; it works perfectly well as a standalone. I hadn’t read either of the
other two and I still loved this. I loved it in part because it’s set in The Lake
District which is sort of local to me
and a place I love a lot and also because it ticked all the above boxes – it’s
twisty and turny with a story that really hooks you from the get go and
characters you find yourself drawn to, there’s a bit of a romance which I’m
always a sucker for – it’s nice here because it’s nice to see Kelly outside of
the investigation; I really loved the stuff with her family, and Johnny – the guy
she’s seeing and the whole things moves forward at a satisfying pace doing the
thing thrillers do when their done well -
sending you in one direction only to laugh in your face when you get there and
send you somewhere else.
ANYHOW. This is not supposed to be a review, it’s supposed to be the sharing
of an extract so you can see for yourself, so here, have some Kelly/Johnny
goodness and then go and buy a copy of this book for yourself.
HERE IT IS:
Chapter 2
Kelly jumped from the top of
Kailpot Crag into the freezing water below and screamed. She didn’t reckon
there was anyone else on the planet who would dare push her over the edge, and
as she emerged from the lake below, she squealed at Johnny in mock horror. He
laughed out loud and jumped in after her, making his body into a bomb. She
wasn’t offended when he pretended to be laddish, because she saw straight
through it. It was a relief to be with someone who expected nothing from her
apart from what they already got.
The water would
have stopped the heart of someone from a warmer climate, but for Kelly and
Johnny, it was luxuriously refreshing. They were alone, because it was May, and
too cold for tourists to venture here. But the cold bothered neither of them
because they knew that this was the best time to visit; when they both needed
to cool off after equally taxing days.
They swam towards
the middle of the lake, and Johnny caught Kelly’s leg. She wriggled and they
both went under the surface. The cold stung her eyes as she searched underwater
for him. He’d swum beneath her and grabbed her leg once more. They broke the
surface and caught their breath. The water was a deep turquoise, and they could
see fifteen feet below them. Kelly was a confident swimmer in the Lakes, but
not in open water: she hated swimming in the sea. Here, only the odd ugly pike
lurked beneath, and the experience didn’t leave a sticky residue of salt and
sand.
They swam out
further and got used to the temperature. The tensions of the day melted away
and Kelly felt free.
‘Race!’ Johnny
shouted. She was as competitive as he, and he knew she’d take the bait.
‘Where to?’ she
asked, treading water. She was used to the cold now, though she could feel her
body was covered in goose bumps.
‘Back to the
beach,’ he called. They were about a hundred metres away from the shore, and
Kelly wondered if they might spot a steamer puffing around the bend, to the
left or right of them. But there was no sound.
‘Go!’ she
shouted, and dived beneath the surface. She knew Johnny would grin broadly as
he held his breath and took his first stroke. But he’d still win.
He pounded the
water back to the shore, coming up only every six strokes for air. Kelly had to
take a breath every four. She could feel his body pushing through the water
only feet away from her and knew he was overtaking her. She pushed harder. By
the time they were in less than three feet of water, he was close enough for
her to grab his shorts and pull them down. He stopped and clutched at them, but
it was too late; Kelly swam past him and was officially the winner.
She strode out of
the water, pulling her hair back and wringing it out over her shoulder.
Laughing to herself, she turned round to watch Johnny pulling his pants back
up. He grinned and came towards her. She expected a kiss, but at the last
moment he slapped her firmly on her backside. Technically that was a victory
too; he knew she hated it. Well, she pretended to. The first time he’d done it,
on a run around the lake, she’d gone to berate him, delivering the full extent
of her indignation, but he’d smiled and defused her mood without saying a
single word.
They were both
short of breath, and sat down on their towels on the tiny shingle beach. It was
the type of place you saw in a magazine, empty, hidden and private; but come
summer, it would be rammed, noisy and annoying.
‘So, was it
broken?’ Kelly asked as she pulled a sweater over her bikini and lay down on
her side, propped up on an elbow. A light breeze began to stir the trees, and
they moved from side to side, like elders nodding their consent. Johnny rubbed
himself roughly with his towel; goose bumps covered his body. Kelly watched
him. Maybe it was time to get dressed after all.
‘Yes, in three
places. It was pretty bad,’ Johnny said. He was talking about a woman he’d
brought off the mountain this morning, who’d fallen down a gully on St Sunday
Crag. Luckily her boyfriend’s mobile phone had a signal, and the helicopter had
managed to get Johnny up close enough to reach her within two hours. She was
now tucked up in the Penrith and Lakes Hospital, awaiting complicated surgery.
‘It must have hurt like hell,’ he added. For Johnny to say that, it must have
been bad.
Kelly’s day
hadn’t been anywhere near as exciting, but it had been challenging nonetheless.
Her superior at HQ, DCI Eddie Cane, was doing his best to get her to commit to
a desk there, pen-pushing reviews and cold cases. Technically it was her next
step – a promotion, and an honour indeed, but not one that Kelly wanted bestowed
upon her. Reappraising cases and crunching paperwork at HQ had never been her
intention; she was an operational officer, made for the outdoors, and she
couldn’t desert her team, not now.
***
And if you wanted a little bit more information about the book, well, HERE IT IS:
Title: Dead End
Author Name: Rachel
Lynch
Previous Books (if
applicable): Dark Game and Deep Fear
Genre: Crime
Fiction, Police Procedural
Release Date: 8th
October 2018
Publisher: Canelo
Book Blurb:
When the seventh Earl of Lowesdale is found
hanging from the rafters at Wasdale Hall, everyone assumes the aging,
hard-partying aristocrat had finally had enough of chasing the glory of his
youth. But when the coroner finds signs of foul play, DI Kelly Porter is swept
into a luxurious world where secrets and lies dominate.
At the same time, two young hikers
go missing and it’s up to Kelly to lead the search. But digging deeper reveals
ties to two other unsolved disappearances and Kelly and her team find
themselves in a race against time.
Now, as all roads of both
investigations and Kelly’s own family secrets lead to Wasdale Hall it becomes
more important than ever for Kelly to discover the devious truths hidden behind
the walls of the Lake District’s most exclusive estate...
Don't
miss this gripping crime thriller featuring an unforgettable detective. Perfect
for fans of Angela Marsons, Patricia Gibney and Robert Bryndza.
Links to Book:
Author Bio: Rachel Lynch grew up in Cumbria and the
lakes and fells are never far away from her. London pulled her away to teach
History and marry an Army Officer, whom she followed around the globe for
thirteen years. A change of career after children led to personal training and
sports therapy, but writing was always the overwhelming force driving the
future. The human capacity for compassion as well as its descent into the
brutal and murky world of crime are fundamental to her work.
