#FridayFiveChallenge

This fun feature is a mini workshop invented by Rosie Amber. We look at book covers just from their thumbnail pictures at online selling book sites and make quick fire buying decisions. We look from a READERS Point of View and this exercise is very EYE OPENING.

To join in with the #FridayFiveChallenge please read the rules at the bottom of the page.

This week I searched for genealogical mystery, a genre which I have enjoyed before. British author Steve Robinson has written a series of novels about Jefferson Tate, an American genealogist who reluctantly flies across the Atlantic to solve mysteries.  Another british author, Nathan Dylan Goodwin, writes about an English forensic genealogist called Morton Farrier.

This time I was drawn to Blood Tied by Wendy Percival.  A thriller based on murder and family secrets.

Book Description

“A desperate crime, kept secret for 60 years… but time has a way of exposing the truth…”

Esme Quentin is devastated when her sister Elizabeth is beaten unconscious, miles from her home. Two days later Esme discovers that Elizabeth has a secret past. Desperate for answers which the comatose Elizabeth cannot give, Esme enlists the help of her friend Lucy to search for the truth, unaware of the dangerous path she is treading. Together they unravel a tangle of bitterness, blackmail and dubious inheritance, and as the harrowing story is finally revealed, Esme stumbles upon evidence of a pitiful crime.

Realising too late the menace she has unwittingly unleashed, Esme is caught up in a terrifying ordeal. One that will not only test her courage and sanity but force her to confront her perception of birth and family.

28 reviews give an average 4.5 stars and include the following comments:-

Blood-Tied explores the complications that could arise when we find out more than we thought we knew about those nearest to us…
This is a well-crafted and engaging mystery; the pace is steady with a tense ending. The main character, Esme Quentin, is a former investigative journalist with a gentle, but persuasive manner. You feel the shock to the family, especially to Esme as she discovers more, but she keeps her head, her tenacity and her journalist’s nose twitching to the end.
For me there was a too much tea-making (although I do like a cuppa myself!), although this grounds the story in real life and contrasts well to what happens.

Totally engrossing read. Highly recommend. A good summer read to take on holiday! Good storyline very inspirational and well written.

At £2.99 the Kindle is affordable. Shall I BUY or will I PASS?   I’m going to BUY.

What have others chosen this week?

Shelley has found a beautiful cover with an intriguing Blurb.

Rosie has chosen a Spring cookbook.

Cathy has selected the wonderful Costa book award winner

Barb gives us the result of her UK/US cover survey

So now it’s your turn.

Get yourself a cuppa and give yourself 5 minutes.

In today’s online shopping age, readers often base their buying decisions from small postage stamp size book covers (Thumb-nails), a quick glance at the book description and the review. How much time do they really spend making that buying decision?

AUTHORS – You often only have seconds to get a reader to buy your book, is your book cover and book bio up to it?

Rosie’s Friday Five Challenge is this….. IN ONLY FIVE MINUTES….

1) Go to any online book supplier.

2) Randomly choose a category.

3) Speed through the book covers, choose one which has instantly appeal.

4) Read the book Bio/ Description for this book, and any other details.

5) If there are reviews, check out a couple,

6) Make an instant decision, would you BUY or PASS?