Deception – 5 Star Review

Stuck at home? Need to get away from the mundane?

Escape to a land where romance pulses through the red soil. Soak up the secrets that Amanda has tried to hide and witness the heat as Alex and Amanda try to resist the unwanted passion that threatens to destroy their worlds.

5 out of 5 stars.

Deception by Eloise De Sousa is the heartbreaking story of Amanda, her young son Zachary, and Alex. Their lives are woven together more than they know, as they take a harrowing trip down a trail full of lies and deceit to find the truth and try to capture the future that they both see at the end of the trail. Amanda ran from home shortly after learning she was pregnant; scared and heartbroken over the betrayal from her family, she ran far and fast. Alex is there to help rescue Amanda and Zachary, while hoping Amanda can rescue him from the pain and loneliness of losing his wife. When the truth starts to come out, people want to make sure it’s never known. Torn by his own loss and the lies surrounding that night, Alex is standoffish but quickly realizes his love for Amanda. Zachary is just five, but already learning that life isn’t always easy. Used by adults to try to get what they want, he’s lucky to have his mother there and a man that already thought of him as his own son to protect him from the people trying to hurt him.

Deception by Eloise De Sousa makes you wonder what would you do for your family and how far would you go to get what you want? Eloise De Sousa’s characters feel real and the imagery she uses places you right there with Amanda, Alex, and poor Zachary as they follow the path to finding the truth and their happily ever after. Deception kept me on the edge of my seat and was almost impossible to put down. I just had to know what happened next and I wasn’t satisfied until I’d read the entire thing! Eloise De Sousa did an amazing job tying everything together and showing just how far some people will go to get what they want and to protect the ones they love.

 

Deception is available on KindleKoboNookIbooks and direct from Lulu.

Review of The Iron Pendulum

Whilst working towards completing another crime thriller this year, I was pleased to receive another five star review for The Iron Pendulum.

Needless to say, I appreciate all reviews, good or bad, but this one made my day:

This book was an impulse purchase. I was looking for something different and enjoy reading material by less well known and/or up and coming authors. I wasn’t disappointed. It’s a gripping page turner than offers a fantastic and unexpected twist at the end. I am always fascinated by the ideas that get woven in to novels. This story is full of characters you can try to get inside the mind of. Super. Highly recommended!


C. TAYLOR
5.0 out of 5 stars A gripping page turner! Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 7 March 2020

Pick up your Kindle, Kobo or IBook copy today and let me know what you think about The Iron Pendulum.

My Killer

Cigarette smoke curls and licks at her frazzled locks, braiding them with a scent of something delicious and sensuous. I watch her sway before me. Her attempts to seduce are abysmal but I smile, my lips sticking to my teeth as I watch each layer removed from her body like onion peels.

Brown skin burns in the soft light and I desperately want to squeeze it between my fingers, feel its texture and warmth. But I stay my course. A gentle breeze lifts the cheap chintz curtains, exposing the street lights and dismal rain sloshing down the streets below. The air is a welcome break from the incense and heady perfume permeating every inch of this tiny room that she and I share. Our breath is mixed in these close quarters, almost tasting each other in its closeness.

Fingers test their boundaries as she snakes herself over my inert body, hoping for a response that will never come. What I want will make her scream – the kind of scream that sends nosy neighbours running and crying into their phones; the kind of scream that makes my skin crawl in delight and sends shivers down my spine. I lick my lips in anticipation. It’s time.

Her flexing muscles gyrate against my lap, working sweat through her armpits and at her temples. She’s ugly when she tries so hard. I snap her pretty little head with a flick before she can cry out. It’s a pity really. Such a waste of that gorgeous skin. Maybe I could take some and keep it for later? Yes. Waste not want not, and all that. Her muscles are still flexing as life flows out of her body. I mount her, feeling the power seep through my skinny body. Eyes once so bold now glaze over in a steady exchange with mine as I tilt my head left to right, a bird sitting on its prey.

Cigarette smoke slithers up the curtains and dances to the rain drops outside. My keepsake is carefully packed away in my briefcase and she is dressed in her best for her discovery later tonight or maybe tomorrow morning. I linger. It’s just that she’s so damn beautiful lying there in her dressing gown with her fingernails painted with matching toes. Those wayward locks are framing her face, exposing fine cheekbones I hadn’t noticed before. The light certainly gives her a mysterious flavour and I can’t resist kissing those luscious pink lips one more time.

With a sigh, I take one last look at the studio flat. The breeze has died down and the rain is no longer beating out its tender pulse. My exit will be observed at this late hour. Risks have to be taken by any doctor visiting his patient after hours. After all, isn’t this part of the service? I can feel my lips sticking to my teeth again so I blow out my cheeks as my gloved fingers trail down her fantastic body. Yes. I must go.

Until my next appointment, I shall have her to enjoy in my thoughts and in my fridge.

 

Review of The Iron Pendulum

An exciting new review of TIP showcasing the reader’s opinion on the crime thriller.

5.0 out of 5 stars Stunning
ByWilma Lettingson 18 June 2017
Format: Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase
A stunning thriller full of suspense and susprises. The opening scene sets up a great sense of intrigue as we discover along with the detetcives a very strange crime scene. Soon, another crime scene is discovered, this one even more bizarre and puzzling. You simply can’t help wondering what has happened and will want to know where the story is going. There are two people missing. We learn a little later on where the missing people are, while the detectives are still in the unknown. It’s hard to describe this thriller further without risking giving anything away.
It’s high octane, fast paced, well plotted and definitely a worthy challenge for those eager to figure a novel out before the debouement. A treat for crime fiction fans.

If this has sent your crime taste buds into a frenzy, click below to get your copy:

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Review of The Iron Pendulum

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent thriller, June 18, 2017
This review is from: The Iron Pendulum (Kindle Edition)
A stunning thriller full of suspense and susprises. The opening scene sets up a great sense of intrigue as we discover along with the detetcives a very strange crime scene. Soon, another crime scene is discovered, this one even more bizarre and puzzling. You simply can’t help wondering what has happened and will want to know where the story is going. There are two people missing. We learn a little later on where the missing people are, while the detectives are still in the unknown. It’s hard to describe this thriller further without risking giving anything away.
It’s high octane, fast paced, well plotted and definitely a worthy challenge for those eager to figure a novel out before the debouement. A treat for crime fiction fans.

Monday

The pungent smell of rot permeated the air as footsteps echoed through the forest. Hairs rose on their tiny arms and legs as the bushes rustled to their right. The sound drew closer; their footsteps quickened. No point in running; the roots were a trip hazard and judging by the heavy odour, a swamp was close at hand. 

Suddenly, the torchlight dimmed and went out leaving a yawning darkness ready to swallow them whole. Soft whimpers escaped their lips as they waited for their eyes to acclimatise to the inky blackness staining their retinas. All the while the rustling edged ever closer, shaking and snapping the undergrowth with a vengeance.

Just as the shadows and silhouettes became distinguishable against the purple hued sky, the creature broke free from the bushes. Screams pierced the night followed by running, tripping, crying figures. The odd shape gave chase, closing the distance with ease. 

Flash! Another torch punctured the dark, exposing the two figures cowering next to the redwood with moss tinted bark. Big brown eyes looked up at the adult looming over them.

“That’s quite enough for one night, Izzy and Zach,” sighed their mother. “You’ve excited the dog and now he smells like the swamp. It’s time to go home.”

“Aww, mum please,” they cried. “Just one more game of hide and seek and then we will call it a night. Please?”

Her shadow panned across the tree line and shrubs as she turned to find the smelly beast wagging his tail, waiting for the command to hide in the undergrowth again. She smiled, her teeth glinting in the sparse light.

“Fine. I’ll count but no more screaming as if the devil is out to get you! Ready?”

Eager little heads bobbed up and down before disappearing back into the darkness.

A voice called,”One…two…three..!” 

Two figures scrambled in the dark, their bodies pumped with adrenaline as their breath came in gasps. This was the best game of hide and seek ever! 

Review: The Iron Pendulum

My editor, Lance Mitchell, wrote a lovely review for The Iron Pendulum.
Here is what he had to say:

Write to Inspire

The Iron Pendulum
The Iron Pendulum by Eloise De Sousa

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Declaration of interest: I am the editor of this book.

The author is already well known for her superb children’s stories and for a previous thriller, Deception. I was delighted to be invited to beta-read and edit her latest book.

It captured me from the first paragraph. I warn you that it is a fairly gruesome tale with lots of blood and flesh [literally] hanging around. The main story is interwoven with a lot of intrigue and a share of puzzles for the detectives and the reader to work out. I am sure that you, like me, will go off down several wrong tracks as you try to solve the mysteries.

What I particularly liked was the way that the characters of the rather strange family members and the detectives are built into the main story…

View original post 62 more words

The Pink Mask

Taster:

Crystal quivered as another sob escaped her swollen lips. How could such a simple plan go so wrong?  She had followed her sister’s commands to the letter.  Yet, somehow, somewhere along the line, what was supposed to be a silly prank had become real.  Her sister was dead.  Tangled, wild hair fell unchecked across her face as she turned to watch the paramedics load Harold’s unconscious body into the back of an awaiting ambulance.

She sighed.  All this for revenge.  Had she had the nerve, she would have stopped her sister in time; hindsight was a beautiful thing. After giving her statement to the police, she would be free to go, whereas poor Harold would be arrested for Melanie’s murder.  Crystal gulped down a nervous giggle.  Well, from another perspective, Melanie plan had worked!

With the body of her sister wrapped in black and tucked away in the back of another ambulance, the sirens wailed their despair as they pulled away from the crime scene.

The body of Melanie Kent wrapped in black, most becoming for any beautiful corpse, mused Crystal.  The heavy footfall of a very large man dressed in a heavy trenchcoat caught her attention.  His determined walk in her direction wiped the lingering smile off her pretty face.

“Detective Bob Jones, miss. I’d like to ask you a few questions about what occurred tonight.”  Heavy brows and the hooded, focused stare scared her. She wrapped the patchwork blanket tighter around her body.

“I already answered the officer’s questions detective.  What more do you want from me?”

Jones watched her. She was as slinky as a cat’s tail, curling her feline body into a protective stance at his scrutiny.

“Do you know the woman who was found in the bathtub?”

“N-no detective. As I told Officer Campbell, Harold and I were in the bedroom.  I got up to go freshen up and found her there. I tried to pull her out but…” A lonely tear wet her cheek. “The blood.  It was too much and my mind snapped. I screamed. Harold, he tried to help me but I knocked him aside and ran.” Her hand quivered as she cleared stray strands of hair from her eyes. “The next thing I remember is being wrapped up in this blanket and the police arriving.”

The detective watched Crystal picking at the blanket, as though trying to remove the lies woven within. He sighed. Life would be so simple if people told the truth the first time round.

THE IRON PENDULUM

Extra! Extra! Read all about it…

The Iron Pendulum is now available.

https://read.amazon.co.uk/kp/card?asin=B01HYFLBII&asin=B01HYFLBII&preview=inline&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_w0lJxbCYNKAXR

Here’s a quick synopsis:

Julia Webster and Hugo del Fuego are missing from their third floor apartment in Bagley. The grisly display discovered in their home leaves Detectives Perkins and Jones with little evidence to follow and, as more remains turn up, the pressure mounts to find the killer.  Time is the key element in solving a case riddled with dead ends and a strange family hiding its true evil behind the façade of money and power.

Can they unravel the secrets hidden behind the closed doors and will it be enough to solve the case and rescue the couple in time?

The Iron Pendulum is currently available from lulu and on Amazon with all my other titles.

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Click here to order your copy

Download your copy and don’t forget to leave to a review!

 

 

 

 

 

One Month To Live

https://read.amazon.co.uk/kp/card?asin=B00KX6E3CC&asin=B00KX6E3CC&preview=inline&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_u1Duxb1VZFN6R

“Five years I had waited for this day to come. Five years. At last, my mother was going to die!”

What if your mother was about to die.  Would you celebrate and relish the fact that she would soon pass on to the other side – or would you fight to keep her alive.

This book is not at all what it seems.  To find out why, click to buy!